Learning Meditation: Anusheh. Meditation (Kinda) Resolved My Anxiety.
Upali interviews Anusheh, who began practicing The Mind Illuminated in order to improve her anxiety. While it did help, it was a more convoluted path than she had been expecting. One topic she and Upali talk about is the idea that striving is actually helpful, in that it causes you to burn out enough that you stop doing it, which is the route to good practice. Anusheh also talks about the transition from lusting after enlightenment -- "future happiness" -- with the focusing on what happiness could look like in the present moment. "Rejecting your experience right now takes a lot of energy!"Support the show
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59:29
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59:29
Stephen Zerfas: Making the Jhanas Accessible
Stephen Zerfas, founder of the Jhana startup Jhourney (get it?), covers a wide range of topics in today's interview. He and Tucker talk about the relationship of the jhanas to the rest of the path, how Stephen has succeeded in getting so much publicity, and how the larger Dharma community has responded to a tech startup teaching meditation retreats.Support the show
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53:29
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53:29
Learning Meditation: Yuri. Using Meditation to Cope with War
Upali interviews Yuri, a Ukranian-British meditator. Yuri talks about how difficult his first retreat was, and how permanently his life changed following this. He then goes into how much better he became as a father as a result of his meditation practice. Later, Upali asks Yuri about what it was like when his country was attacked while his family was still there, and what impact his practice had on his ability to cope with this.Support the show
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1:10:09
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1:10:09
Dr. Tucker Peck: Freedom is the Opposite of Community
Upali interviews Tucker in this episode. In a wide-ranging conversation, they touch on:Many of us look for self esteem to pretty much everyone we meet, or to no one at all, rather than in a sane place.Doing what you'd like to do, and being in community, are opposite stances. How do we balance these?Tucker talks about Sanity & Sainthood, both the name of his book and what he sees as the two goals of dharma practice and psychotherapy. This is distinguished from the point of practice being to get and keep an awesome feeling.Support the show
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38:00
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38:00
Learning Meditation: Kacee. Dealing with Overwhelm in Meditation
Kacee is the first in a series Upali will do with guests who are longtime students, rather than teachers, of meditation. Kacee talks about a number of changes over her years as a practitioner, including her view of what to do when practice makes you feel worse, her view on integrating parts work into her meditation practice, and she deals with the inner critic.Support the show
This is the only podcast we know of devoted to the teaching of meditation. We interview teachers and others about the process of teaching, how they became teachers, their thoughts on who should and shouldn't teach, tips for new and veteran teachers, and more. While teachers and prospective teachers of meditation will of course find lots to learn here, this is also a great resource for anyone who wants to peer behind the curtain of being a meditation teacher. You can learn more about your hosts Upali over here https://upalimeditation.com/ and about Tucker over here https://meditatewithtucker.com/