Making a Case for Compassion with special guest Sara Schairer This month, we are excited to have Sara Schairer, compassion educator, as our guest. Sara Schairer is the founder and executive director of Compassion It®, a nonprofit organization and global social movement whose mission is to inspire daily compassionate actions and attitudes.  A facilitator of the Compassion […]

The Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron says, in relation to contemplative practice, “We are being encouraged to remain open to the present groundless moment, to a direct, unarmored participation with our experience… How many of us feel ready to interrupt our habitual patterns, our almost instinctual ways of getting comfortable?” Many of us find the experience […]

What is the role of joy on the spiritual path? The bodhisattva path and the path of compassion require us to have an awareness of the suffering of beings – are joy and compassion contradictory? Or can joy be used to sustain our spiritual path and practice? Join us for an exploration of the theme […]

Our emotions bring us our greatest joys and our deepest sorrows. We wouldn’t survive without them, and yet they can also cause us to harm others and ourselves. What is the purpose of emotions, and how can we cultivate more emotional balance? Join us for this conversation with well-known emotions researcher and educator, Dr. Eve […]

The motto of the United States, E pluribus unum (“Out of Many, One”) speaks to a pluralistic democracy with protections for every citizen, and a freedom from the religious tyranny that gripped much of Europe during the time of the country’s founding.  Yet, for many, this promise is being undermined by a small segment of the […]

In these uncertain times, our roles as individuals in the sweeping events washing over the world stage can feel deeply unclear, sometimes frightening and frequently overwhelming.  It is tempting to respond to these often painful situations by vacillating between anger and complacency. Buddhist teachings can offer insight into accepting “what is” while developing the capacity […]

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has often commented that the foundation of Buddhist practice is cultivating a good heart. As important as mindfulness and concentration meditations are within the Buddhist tradition, it is crucial to balance such practices with the cultivation and development of altruism, good will and care. The practice of the Four Immeasurables is […]

The COVID pandemic has led many of us to feel the hidden epidemic of loneliness more acutely than ever, yet loneliness is not much discussed even though scientists now link it to a number of negative health outcomes.  In this episode, Venerable Tenzin speaks with host Mathew Divaris about what Buddhism, with its strong focus […]

In this special episode of Reflections on Buddhism, we’re joined by Sunil Joseph, an empathy coach, mindfulness teacher and lifelong Nonviolent Communication (NVC) student, to talk about how we can use the principles of NVC to access our shared common humanity, thereby supporting our practices of lovingkindness and compassion in both everyday life and times of […]

The first Noble Truth of Buddhism is popularly translated as “life is suffering,” which is often misunderstood as a fatalistic view of a hostile world.  In this episode, Ven Tenzin and guest host Mathew Divaris delve into the nuances between discomfort, which is inevitable in life, and suffering, which is not.  In this wide ranging […]