Speaker: Jen Kern. Jen reflects on maitri aspiration and how it leads to warm-hearted courage and "buddhanature self esteem". She contemplates two profound questions related to maitri that came up after recent talks given by Rinpoche: "Why am I still putting up walls of protection and closing down when I aspire to expand?" "How am I shirking my responsibility to self-reflect, be present with fear, and shine a light on obscurations?" Jen discovered that her fear of self-cherishing resulted in a failure to direct loving-kindness to herself, which then became an obstacle to feeling genuine compassion and open-heartedness. Reflecting on the benefits of "placing the fearful mind in the loving cradle of maîtri", she leads listeners in a loving-kindness practice that starts with oneself.

Speaker: Fredi Kaufmann. Fredi reflects on how language shapes experience and spiritual growth. Words are creative forces- our inner and outer speech manifest reality. Cultivating kind, compassionate self-talk supports well being and transformation. On the Buddhist path, mantra recitation is a sacred language, which becomes a means of transformation. Mantras hold vibrational power beyond meaning. Repetition of mantras or prayers calms the mind, aligns us with deep aspiration, and reveals the mind's nature. Over time, repetition rewires thought patterns and allows sacred words to surface in daily life, aligning us with deep wisdom and compassion.

Speaker: Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. This previously-recorded teaching was originally given by Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche to the Sangha on December 6, 2015 in Crestone, Colorado. Rinpoche extensively explains the meaning of four famous lines from the Sakya tradition that address being a spiritual practitioner, renunciation, bodhicitta and the ultimate view.

Speaker: Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. This previously-recorded LINK was the third teaching of a weekend program called, "Breeze of Simplicity", given to the Naropa University student body by Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche and Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel in October 2012. Part 1 aired on the September 21st LINK, and included an introduction to shamatha and calm abiding practice. Part 2 aired on September 28th where Rinpoche introduced the five (5) obstacles and the eight (8) antidotes. Today's teaching includes the nine (9) ways of resting.

Speaker: Rebecca Henry. Having recently lost her father, Rebecca shares poignant memories through poetry and verse on the profound love she and her dad shared. She immediately saw the many ways her father had been training her throughout her life to become a practitioner. Rebecca shares that his passing and what they shared in the final days was a most precious training that exemplified confidence, spontaneous presence, unpredictability and proving that living does not need to make sense.

Speaker: Dungse Jampal Norbu. Generally speaking, we tend to separate our spiritual practice from the rest of our life, especially when the demands of a busy life set in. Dungse-la encourages us to bring Dharma into our life holistically. He also discusses the disparate impact that negative thinking has on our minds compared to positive thinking. Oftentimes what becomes a habitual tendency begins without much thought, such as scrolling on our phones. Unraveling from this requires time, clarity and intention to improve our life, specifically our internal life. As we become free from neurotic emotions and ego-grasping, our life becomes free, and our ongoing circumstances improve because we are now moving in a positive direction. The trick is to keep moving. As practitioners, we are not seeking temporary experiences; we are seeking complete and total freedom.

Speaker: Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. This previously-recorded LINK was the second teaching of a weekend program that was given to the Naropa University student body by Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche and Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel in October 2012. In Part 2, Rinpoche gave detailed instructions on shamatha meditation including the five (5) obstacles and the eight (8) antidotes.

Speaker: Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. This previously-recorded LINK was the first teaching of a weekend program that was given to the Naropa University student body by Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche and Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel in October 2012. Part 1 included an introduction to shamatha and calm abiding as a practice that Buddhism offers to the world at large.

Speaker: Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. This is a recorded reading of notes taken from a LINK talk given by Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche on September 14, 2025.

Speaker: Bob Reid. Following up on two LINKs from August 2024, Bob talks about the four immeasurables practice with a focus on loving-kindness. He describes loving-kindness as the sense of care, warmth and tenderness that we feel towards others in our life as well as to ourselves. He goes on to explain how it is the care towards oneself that is particularly difficult for westerners who have become accustomed to a competitive culture based on comparison and critique. Bob stresses how we all equally wish for happiness and to obtain the causes and conditions of happiness. He suggests we can be curious and investigate with an open mind when thoughts of being hard on ourselves arise, allowing ourselves to be fully present with our minds while also not believing our thoughts. Finally, as practitioners, we can open our hearts to the three jewels and surrender to Guru Rinpoche. In doing so our heart can recognize that our nature is the same as the deity's.