Ordinary Mind Zen School Finding peace in disillusionment
Jan 5, 2026
A talk about how disillusionment shows up in personal life and society, from climate anxiety to global conflict. It explores whether clear awareness must turn into gloom and how practice can intentionally reveal emptiness. Themes include dropping into contentment beyond craving, owning our role in harm, and balancing compassion with joy.
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Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Face Suffering Without Becoming Morbid
- Hold awareness of suffering without falling into morbid despair; being realistic doesn't require flattening your mood.
- Geoff Dawson suggests that seeing through superficial hopes can lead directly to contentment rather than bleak emptiness.
Practice As Intentional Disillusionment
- Buddhist practice intentionally disillusions us so we recognise the emptiness of superficial pleasures.
- Geoff Dawson explains this leads not to bleakness but to deeper contentment, acceptance of transience and connectedness.
Ireland History Shows Perpetual Human Delusions
- Geoff Dawson recounts the violent history of Ireland to illustrate recurring human delusions like religious self-righteousness.
- He contrasts past centuries' bloodshed with modern awareness to show how old delusions persist.