Maria Heim

Maria Heim, a scholar of early Buddhist texts and author of How to Feel, explores how feeling is central to Buddhist teachings. She discusses translating vedana as feeling, the Four Noble Truths ‘for one who feels,’ the paradox of pleasure and pain, how noticing feelings can reshape habit, and practices like the brahma viharas that create spacious freedom.

Maria Heim, a Professor of Religion at Amherst College and translator of The Questions of Milinda, engages in a captivating dialogue about this foundational Buddhist text. She explores the philosophical exchanges between Indo-Greek King Milinda and the monk Nagasena, showcasing how their discussion illuminates concepts like no-self and the transient nature of identity. Heim highlights the significance of analogies in Buddhist thought, including the famous chariot metaphor, and demonstrates how literary qualities enrich our understanding of these profound teachings.