Why are gifts so important? Is everything a gift? What’s the difference between a gift economy and a transaction economy? Why is it hard to stay grateful?
Today’s episode was partly inspired by Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass. I also mention this talk by Ven. Shenyn: The Life of a Wondering Monk
You can view all the episodes of Rainforest Mind here.
I’m standing with my eyes closed in the middle of a busy street and listening. Why? And what can I learn from that experience? I talk about the false opposites of being and doing, and why I prefer lovable to perfect.
I mention the Bang And Olafson podcast Sound of the Cities, and an early epsiode of this podcast on Wildness.
See all episodes here. Or subscribe on iTunes, Sticher, or wherever you get your podcasts.
A few weeks ago we got a puppy! Wow – what a whirlwind the last month has been. Moments of sheer joy, and moments of fraught overwhelm. As one book Satya was reading put it, there is the honeymoon period, the WTF have I done period, and the I couldn’t live without her period….
Today I’m talking about what Aiko puppy has taught me, about living with a puppy and about living with myself.
Aiko is part of the reason there haven’t been many episodes recently. But she’s growing and easier to live with now, and so Rainforest Mind is back 🙂
Other episodes you might like:
Buddhist Psychology, Climate Change and Spiritual Encounters
A Nomadic life – in conversation with Jayne Johnson
All episodes here: Rainforest Mind
What a great conversation. James and I spoke about
the Unitarian Universalist movement, form and emptiness in Zen, boundlessness, spiritual fluidity and more.
James is a Zen Buddhist teacher and part of the Empty Moon Network, he leads a group in Southern California.
James’ most recent book is called Introduction to Zen Koans: Learning the Language of Dragons, search for it at your local bookstore.
Other episodes you might like:
Rainforest Mind: Zen and Christianity: An Interview with Rev Ian Spencer
Rainforest Mind: Buddhism and Christianity
Rainforest Mind: Needs, Gratitude and Grace
And all archived episodes
I’m talking to my Buddhist teacher Dharmavidya David Brazier. We talk about Buddhist Psychology: what does it mean, and how does Buddhist therapy work? We talk about how encountering ‘awakened’ people can be transformative, and about enduring great suffering. We talk about what supports grounding yourself in the big picture, and how faith helps us respond to climate change.
Dharmavidya’s book on Dogen is released in March by Windhorse and is called The Dark Side of the Mirror. Remember he writes under his given name of David Brazier, so search for that if you are looking for his other books, including Zen Therapy, which he mentions in the podcast.
I mention the Mary Oliver book Upstream.
Dharmavidya’s personal website is at elusis.ning.com, and the website of the Buddhist movement he leads is www.amidashu.org
Other episodes you might like
Zen and Christianity: An Interview with Rev Ian Spencer
Embodied eco-spirituality with Allison Priestman
Searching for God, or something like it
Or view all episodes here: Rainforest Mind
How can we support healing in people, and in the planet?
To help answer that question I’m talking about the importance of going outside, and what different kind of outside spaces can teach us.
I talk about what wildness means and I talk about the practice of finding a spot to sit in, and sitting there regularly. I talk about two different experiences of outside spaces, and what I learnt from each.
I mention George Monbiot’s Feral, and this Guardian article: The shutdown is over, can Joshua Tree recover?
If you’ve listened, drop me a comment below, I always love to hear from people.
Other episodes you might like:
Rainforest Mind: Embodied eco-spirituality with Allison Priestman
In this episode I’m in conversation with Ven. Ayya Yeshe, about her socially engaged Buddhist work. What led her to social engagement? How does helping fit with Buddhist practice?
She talks about how her experiences as a Tibetan Nun helped her to empathise with oppressed groups, and her socially engaged work in India with the Dalit community, particularly with woman and girls.
Make a donation to support her work here, through the Bodhichitta Foundation website.
For more information on Buddhist Action Month, see the Network of Buddhist Organisations website, or drop me a line.
I’m a little nervous about releasing this episode. It’s just me today, no guests, and I’m talking about my experience of depression, and how it is to be a Buddhist teacher and psychotherapist and have the ‘black dog’ as a companion on the path.
This is an important topic. We are all human and some of the trickiest situations arise when we don’t recognise all the different parts of ourselves, and all the different parts of the people we are in relationship with.
In this episode I’m talking to Jayne Johnson about life in community, and about the nomadic life.
Jayne got rid of most of her stuff, sold her flat and now lives nomadically.
Why leave the householder life? How do we live in community? And what is it like to leave the settled life? What are the benefits, and the costs?
Jayne is a body psychotherapist, and therapy trainer. Her website is here: shamanismembodied.com and you can find many of the courses Jayne teaches on here: erthworks.co.uk
Other episodes you might like
In this episode I’m talking to Clark Strand and Perdita Finn.
It was a quote by Clark that first grabbed my interested in speaking to them – he wrote about moving from ‘spirituality to ecology’.
In the end I forgot to ask about that quote, but we had a great conversation about lots of things and that theme found it’s own way in to the conversation.
We talked about Zen, about different kinds of practice groups, touched on the twelve steps, talked about the importance of trees and I heard about the history and importance of rosary practice and making prayers to the divine mother… great stuff
They are both writers, Perdita’s most recent book is The Reluctant Psychic, with Suzan Saxman, Clark’s most recent book is Waking Up to the Dark
As well as meeting in real life, you can find and join The Way of the Rose through their Facebook group.
Other episodes you might like:
You can view all episodes here: Rainforest Mind archive
