Be Here Now Network Guest Podcast

Using poetry and story-telling, Trudy Goodman melds together present moment awareness and Metta in this beautiful ode to mindfulness.This dharma talk was originally published on Dharma Seed.Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/beherenowIn this 2008 talk recorded at the Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Trudy Goodman demonstrates:What mindfulness actually meansExperiencing metta as a byproduct of being mindfulNoticing we are lost as a sign of awarenessHaving Metta for ourselves when we veer off courseSelf-worth and our capacity for compassionBeing alive as our greatest achievementDeveloping strategies for painful emotionsThe practice of taking a step backMaking the shift into receptivityThe Zen tradition and calling out to yourselfThe contour of the Dharma and being in service of alivenessAppreciating our surroundings through the non-interfering presence of mindfulness“The beauty of our mindfulness practice is that it can go anywhere, that the quality of our attention when we’re mindful, it really doesn’t depend on the content of the experience.“ – Trudy GoodmanSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Delving into the power of meditation, Jackie Dobrinska and Sharon Salzberg tie together the skills of concentration, mindfulness, and compassion.Today’s episode was recorded as part of the Ram Dass Fellowship’s regular online gatherings. To learn more about the Ram Dass Fellowship and sign up to join a fellowship gathering near you, visit RamDass.org/Fellowship.Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/beherenowIn this episode from the Ram Dass Fellowship, we hear Sharon Salzberg and Jackie Dobrinska explore:The three skills of Concentration, Mindfulness and CompassionHow distractions waste our energyAlways being able to start overThe difference between what’s happening and the stories we tell ourselvesOpening our attention through lovingkindness practicesThe practical and transformational power of meditationInsight as the most precious gift of mindfulnessA guided meditation from SharonA Q&A from listeners on the subjects of meditation, coping, and more“We begin again all the time. That’s what resilience is. It’s that adjustment. It’s being alive to change, being able to move, being able to flow. That’s what we’re actually practicing in meditation when we get distracted, when we let go, when we begin again. – Sharon SalzbergSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Offering listeners the gift of receiving metta, JoAnna Hardy leads a guided meditation using The Awesome Book of Love.Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/beherenowIn this episode, JoAnna describes:The ways that love can be felt and expressedTouch deprivation and the power of a hugMātā Amritānandamayī, the hugging saintAllowing ourselves to receive kindness and loveThe generosity in letting someone giveThe Awesome Book of Love and the beauty of listening to storiesA guided meditation on love Ram Dass' Love Serve Remember Foundation and the Alan Watts Organization invite you to open your mind, open your heart, and tap into the living truth of Alan Watts and Ram Dass. Learn more about this special 4-week Virtual Course:"The Presence of the Way: The Dharma of Alan Watts and Ram Dass"About JoAnna Hardy: JoAnna Hardy is an insight meditation (Vipassanā) practitioner and teacher; she is on faculty at the University of Southern California, a meditation trainer at Apple Fitness+, a founding member of the Meditation Coalition, a teacher’s council member at Spirit Rock Meditation Center, a visiting retreat teacher at Insight Meditation Society, and a collaborator on many online meditation Apps and programs.Her greatest passion is to teach meditation in communities that are dedicated to seeing the truth of how racism, gender inequality and oppression go hand in hand with the compassionate action teachings in Buddhism and related perspectives to social and racial justice. “Maybe the expression or experience of love, maybe it’s through the way that you feed your body, or the way that you eat, or the way that you exercise, or the way that you share a smile with a stranger when you’re walking down the street. Maybe it’s how hard you work and the care that you put into your profession. Maybe you’re a good friend. Maybe you’re a good listener. – JoAnna HardySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Pondering what it means to awaken spiritually, Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee examines the possibility of life beyond the illusions of ego that are fed by our distorted culture.Two cultural icons. Two unique perspectives... One understanding of the presence of the way.Ram Dass' Love Serve Remember Foundation and the Alan Watts Organization invite you to open your mind, open your heart, and tap into the living truth of Alan Watts and Ram Dass. Learn more about this special 4-week Virtual Course:"The Presence of the Way: The Dharma of Alan Watts and Ram Dass"In this episode, Llewellyn tells us his thoughts on:What a spiritual awakening can look and feels likeBeing here now for our individual self and the worldHaving an awareness for the distortions of our culturePerception versus what is presentCulturally created illusions and conditioningThe primal experience of life and creationThe relationship between humanity and the worldThe archetypal Garden of Eden and divine presenceWhen reality meets with our illusionsHow the ego manipulates our thoughtsThe non-existence of separateness in nature“A primary spiritual experience is to be awake in the moment, to experience life as it is. In this moment we experience life not through the patterns of the mind, or the illusions of the ego, but a simple, direct experience of life around us.” – Llewellyn Vaughan-LeeAbout Llewellyn:Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Ph.D. is a Sufi teacher in the Naqshbandiyya-Mujaddidiyya Sufi Order. He is the author of Sufism, the Transformation of the Heart, and the founder of The Golden Sufi Center. Check out his new podcast Working With Oneness.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Trudy Goodman, a renowned Vipassana teacher and Founding Teacher of InsightLA, shares her wisdom on navigating life's complexities. She discusses embracing impermanence and the interplay of personal and universal truths, highlighting the importance of mindfulness amid chaos. Trudy reflects on the transformative power of suffering for spiritual growth, using personal anecdotes to illustrate interconnectedness. She emphasizes mental health awareness, advocating for openness and the benefits of therapy in achieving balance and resilience.

Exploring doubt as the fifth hindrance of mind, the podcast discusses the different forms of doubt and its usefulness as an indicator of necessary change. It emphasizes the importance of recognizing doubt, embracing discomfort, and trusting the walkway. The speakers also delve into the concepts of wholesome and unwholesome actions in Buddhism, stillness and sensitivity in mindfulness practice, and the significance of honesty and integrity.

Activist, writer and yoga teacher Seane Corn joins Jackie Dobrinska, host of the Ram Dass Fellowship, for a conversation about nurturing the soul with love and attention in a way that allows for a ‘revolution of the soul’.Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/beherenowIn this interview for the Ram Dass Fellowship, Jackie speaks with Seane Corn about:Tapping into our inner strength and pursuing a ‘revolution of the soul’How the practices of yoga, mindfulness and meditation can offer relief for those who have experienced severe traumaLearning to befriend ourselvesToday’s episode was recorded as part of the Ram Dass Fellowship’s regular online gatherings. To learn more about the Ram Dass Fellowship and sign up to join a fellowship gathering near you, visit RamDass.org/Fellowship.“Getting real is recognizing not only the grief and the anger, but the sense of powerlessness that a lot of people feel in this day and age.” – Seane CornSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sufi teacher Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee describes the multi-tiered transformations that can come from from working with light.Be sure to check out his new podcast Working With Oneness for more insightful and flowing wisdom from Llewellyn.Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/beherenowIn this episode Llewellyn explores:The deep ecology of our consciousnessDeveloping the light of our divine natureInner life and outer serviceBringing primal, spiritual energy into our lives and communitiesIndividual and societal transformationsThe illusion of separateness“When a human being prays and looks towards God, turns towards the divine inside of them, then that light shines through them. It is the light of pure awareness.” – Llewellyn Vaughan-LeeAbout Llewellyn:Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Ph.D. is a Sufi teacher in the Naqshbandiyya-Mujaddidiyya Sufi Order. He is the author of Sufism, the Transformation of the Heart, and the founder of The Golden Sufi Center. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Trudy Goodman shares Zen Master Dōgen's method, the Backward Step, for stepping back into awareness and receiving each moment as awakening.Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/beherenowIn this episode, Trudy Goodman lectures on:Stories about Wonhyo, Bodhidharma, Ajahn Chah, and the BuddhaHow to work with what arises when sitting in retreatDōgen Zenji’s Backward StepDating Jack KornfieldBeing present with different kinds of experiences"When we have the capacity to be with our own suffering with a more steady presence, what happens is we can help other people with that steady presence. We can be with them through the ups and downs of their lives when we’re called to do that. And so freeing our hearts is a blessing, not just for ourselves, but for our world." – Trudy GoodmanAbout Trudy Goodman:Trudy is a Vipassana teacher in the Theravada lineage and the Founding Teacher of InsightLA. For 25 years, in Cambridge, MA, Trudy practiced mindfulness-based psychotherapy with children, teenagers, couples and individuals. Trudy conducts retreats and workshops worldwide.Learn more about Trudy's offerings at trudygoodman.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

JoAnna Hardy, an insight meditation teacher and retreat leader who links metta practice with social and racial justice. She explains metta’s origins and how kindness arises from mindfulness. Guided segments move from self-directed metta to extending care to easy, neutral, and difficult people, then widen to local and global beings.