Since Falling Fruit tv is going out of business, Buddhist Geeks (which is a separate project) will be moving to a new home, on the Personal Life Media network. In this episode we share some details on what that means for our listeners (you all), and some of the changes you may--or may not--notice during this transition.

The Round Table Geeks continue their exploration of Whitney Joiner's article, "Dive-bar Dharma". In a flurry of paradox, perspectives, humor, and exploration they tackle questions of integrating dharma into life, the Buddhist secular movements, contemplative practices in other traditions, and the historical and sociological dimensions of Dharma's spread to the West. We hope you enjoy this dynamic and fun conversation between fellow Buddhist geeks.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, Dive-bar Dharma: Making it Fresh or Sensationalizing it?.

Related Resources:

- Dive-bar Dharma (the article that we are discussing in this episode)

Join the Geeks of the Round Table as we discuss an article published on Salon.com entitled, Dive-bar Dharma. The geeks explore several questions, sparked by this article, including whether or not we should update ancient metaphors with more contemporary metaphors? Also of interest is how far teachers should go in adapting the teachings of the Buddha to the culture and counter-cultures that they teach within? How do we discover the fine between making the dharma more fresh and relevant and of sensationalizing it?

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, Every Generation Creates the Dharma Anew (airing next week).

Related Resources:

- Dive-bar Dharma (the article that we are discussing in this episode)
- Entrepegurus and the Meditation Factory
- Reframe America
- Marketing Mindfulness to the Youth, an interview with Diana Winston
- Buddhist Peace Fellowship

Real creative expression, to me, is a process of discovery ... It's entering the mystery - Daido Roshi

John Daido Loori, Roshi continues his discussion with Robert Spellman on the intersection between contemporary art and contemplative awareness. The two teachers share revealing stories about their understanding of the importance of meditative awareness in the creative process, and of specific exercises that one can do to tap into deeper ways of seeing, participating, and merging with the creative process.

This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1, Zen Mountain Monastery: Zen and the Arts.

Resources:

- Zen Mountain Monastary
- Robert Spellman
- "The Applied Social Arts" - by Artur Zmijewski
- Zen Environmental Studies Institute
- The Eight Gates of Zen: A Program of Zen Training by John Daido Loori, Roshi

John Daido Loori, Roshi abbot of the Zen Mountain Monastery in NY and well-known Buddhist author, joins us to discuss the history and development of his teaching, especially with regards to the key role that Art plays in Zen practice. Naropa University teacher Robert Spellman joins us as guest host to ask Daido Roshi about the 8 gates of zen, Roshi's training with Minor White, the difference between Western and Eastern forms of art, how the wildness of nature relates to Buddha-Nature, and ethical issues of taking responsibility for one's state of mind and their art work.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, Everything Arises in the Mind of the Yogi.

Related Resources:

- Zen Mountain Monastary
- Robert Spellman
- Minor White
- The Eight Gates of Zen: A Program of Zen Training by John Daido Loori, Roshi
- Mysticism by Evelyn Underhill

Where does awareness tend to locate itself? And how is this important in our experience and understanding of the Buddhist path of awakening? This week Diane Musho Hamilton—Zen sensei and Big Mind lineage holder—joins us again to discuss the importance of what Ken Wilber calls the three faces of spirit.

Using this powerful notion as a lens we explore questions about how and why lineage is passed down, the way that Buddhism adapts to new cultures and why it is particularly vulnerable to being destroyed, how cultural development impacts the tradition, issues surrounding the master-disciple relationship, and finally whether or not one can regulate the erotic impulse.

This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to part 1: Discover Yourself as a Perspective-Taking Being.

Related Resources:

- BigMind.org
- Talks with Genpo Roshi on Buddhist Geeks
- Essential Spirituality: The 7 Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind by Roger Walsh
- "Women Who Sleep with Their Gurus ... and Why They Love It" by Jessica Roemischer

Diane Musho Hamilton, Zen sensei and Big Mind lineage holder, joins us to discuss her personal story on the path of awakening. From experiencing the death of several friends at a young age, to studying with Chogyam Trunpga in the mid-80s, to becoming the first lineage holder of a unique new spiritual process called Big Mind, join us as Diane shares the intimate details of her life as a seeker (and non-seeker).

In this dialogue we also touch in on the importance that the work of integral philosopher Ken Wilber has had on her teaching, especially with regards to what Wilber calls the three primordial perspectives. These three perspectives can be summarized by the pronouns, "I" (first-person), "we" (second-person), and "it" (third-person). Find out why these perspectives are so important to someone who is trying to bring together the spiritual quest with all of their other endeavors.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2, The Three Faces of Spirit: Where is Awareness Locating Itself?

Related Resources:

- BigMind.org
- Integral Institute
- Ken Wilber

We continue our discussion with Buddhist teacher and author, B. Alan Wallace, on the impact of the recently completed Shamatha Project. Dr. Wallace shares the astounding levels of concentration that were achieved during the 3-month retreats he led and tells us more about the achievement of shamatha. Find out how deep the students on this retreat went, and why nearly %20 of them decided to continue on with intensive retreat practice after it was over!

Dr. Wallace also discusses the potential impact that a study of this magnitude could have on the scientific community as well as the culture-at-large. Questions that the study aimed to answer included, "Is it possible to train attention?" & "Does meditation have an effect on ethics?". While the answers may be obvious to meditators, having them scientifically validated could have a major impact on the fields of education, mental health, and psychology.

This is part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1: Reverberations from The Shamatha Project.

Resources:

- Alan Wallace
- Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness Studies
- "The Shamatha Project" - an interview with Dr. Wallace prior to the retreat
- More Talks with B. Alan Wallace on Buddhist Geeks
- The Attention Revolution: Unlocking the Power of the Focused Mind by B. Alan Wallace
- Embracing Mind: The Common Ground of Science and Spirituality by B. Alan Wallace

B Alan Wallace, author of "The Attention Revolution" and "Embracing Mind", joins us to discuss the initial results from The Shamatha Project—one of the most extensive studies on the long-term benefits of meditation practice ever conducted. The terabytes of data that were collected during the course of the retreat-study included physiological and psychological measurements, thousands of entries from student journals, and the ongoing evaluations from Dr. Wallace as he interviewed with the students. Find out what his evaluations were, and how deeply the yogi's progressed over the course of their 3-month retreats.

Also listen is in to hear Dr. Wallace's perspective on the relationship between shamatha and vipassana, and whether deep states of shamatha are necessary pre-requisites for the advanced practices of insight found in the Buddhist tradition.

This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2: Unwavering Samadhi: Meditative Achievement and Its Impact in the World.

Resources:

- Alan Wallace
- Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness Studies
- "The Shamatha Project" - an interview with Dr. Wallace prior to the retreat
- More Talks with B. Alan Wallace on Buddhist Geeks
- The Attention Revolution: Unlocking the Power of the Focused Mind by B. Alan Wallace
- Embracing Mind: The Common Ground of Science and Spirituality by B. Alan Wallace

Have you ever considered what it would be like to cultivate, what in the Buddhist tradition are called the siddhis or magical powers? Buddhist magic is an endlessly fascinating topic, and in this episode we speak with Daniel Ingram, one of our favorite guests here on Buddhist Geeks, about the powers.

We cover their historical treatment by some of the major traditions, including the Zen, Tibetan, and Theravada. Daniel also gives us his first-hand experience having explored the powers, and considers the implications of doing public magic, and whether or not this kind of magic is "objectively real". We also discuss the ethical issues involved in using magic and issues of reproducibility.

Finally, we take a look at the ancient text, The Fruits of the Homeless Life, and explore what was said in that text about the powers, especially about the greatest power of all, the power of insight.

Related Resources:

- InteractiveBuddha.com - Daniel's website
- The Dharma Overground - A community-wiki run by Daniel
- Pa Auk Sayadaw
- Mahasi Sayadaw
- Other Talks with Daniel Ingram on Buddhist Geeks
- The Fruits of the Homeless Life | The Samaññaphala Sutta

The Geeks of the Round Table™ continue their discussion on the Big Mind process and the criticisms from Zen teacher Brad Warner, in his article Big Mind™ is a Big Load™ of Horse Shit (link goes to SuicideGirls, an alt porn site). The geeks focus on these criticisms which include charging for the dharma, the nature of an authentic transmission, trademarking Dharma practice, ethical issues with marketing the dharma, and issues of confusing personal psychology with transpersonal states and stages. Hold on to your seat and be prepared to be whisked into a world of geeky and fun banter between these young (and foolhardy) practitioners.

This is Part two of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1: McZen: A Double Satori with Cheese.

Related Resources:

- Big Mind™ is a Big Load™ of Horse Shit by Brad Warner (Keep in mind that this article is hosted on SuicideGirls, an alt porn site, that Brad writes on occasionally. Might not be good to open at work.)
- Genpo Roshi on Buddhist Geeks
- Brad Warner on Buddhist Geeks
- BigMind.org
- Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul's Korean Way of Zen by Robert Buswell
- Seth Godin
- Instant Enlightenment: Fast, Deep, and Sexy by David Deida
- Sex, Ecology, Spirituality by Ken Wilber

This is an experimental dialogue called Geeks of the Round Table. In this session we speak with two young Buddhist practitioners in a round-table format about Brad Warner's criticisms of the Big Mind process, in an article he wrote called, Big Mind™ is a Big Load™ of Horse Shit (link goes to SuicideGirls, an alt porn site). We are joined by a student of Genpo Roshi's as well as someone who has a more skeptical view of the Big Mind process.

This quick-paced dialogue covers a number of interesting topics including the difference between altered states and permanent traits, issues of marketing the Dharma, the nature of skillful means, transmission and practice, the important dialectic between tradition and innovation, and the recipe for a sensational new sandwich, the double satori with cheese.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 2: Geeks of the Round Table™.

Related Resources:

- Big Mind™ is a Big Load™ of Horse Shit by Brad Warner (Keep in mind that this article is hosted on SuicideGirls, an alt porn site, that Brad writes on occasionally. Might not be good to open at work.)
- Genpo Roshi on Buddhist Geeks
- Brad Warner on Buddhist Geeks
- BigMind.org
- Skillful Means / Upaya

Crazy Wisdom, a phrase coined by the late Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, is used to describe uncommon, unique, and even wild ways of sharing wisdom. Wes Nisker, insight meditation teacher, shares with us his connection to the crazy wisdom teachers of the past, including such spiritual teachers as Jesus, Rumi, Kabir, and Benkei as well as philosophers, scientists, and artists from the Western tradition. We discuss the importance of crazy wisdom, especially with regards to it's ability to pave the way for new ways of thinking. Quoting Oscar Wilde, Wes explains that, "all great truths begin as blasphemy."

At the end of the talk we share an except from Wes Nisker's comic monologue album, with a track entitled Meeting the Buddha on the Road. With his own unique brand of Crazy Wisdom, Wes shares his initial exposure to the dharma and to the difficult, albeit funny, truth of how the mind works.

This is part 3 of a three-part series. Listen to Part 1: Atto, Zepto, and Yacto: The Buddhist Marx Brothers and Part 2: Science as the Western Wisdom Tradition.

Resources:

- The Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom by Wes Nisker
- Crazy Wisdom Saves the Day Again! by Wes Nisker
- WesNisker.com

"The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained to liberation from the self." - Einstein

One would think that the above quote would come from one of the East's great sages, but instead it comes from one of the last centuries most celebrated physicists. In this episode Wes Nisker shares with us his understanding of the similarities and differences amongst the Eastern and Western approaches to knowledge. He uses the human brain and it's two hemispheres as a metaphor for understanding these two different, and yet intimately related perspectives, and explores whether or not science is actually be a valid wisdom tradition.

We also discuss issues of intelligent design and evolution, as well as what it's like to look at the history of humanity through a "deep time" perspective. Enjoy this fast-paced and intellectually stimulating dialogue.

This is part 2 of a three-part series. Listen to Part 1: Atto, Zepto, and Yacto: The Buddhist Marx Brothers, and Part 3: Crazy Wisdom Saves the Day!

Resources:

- The Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom by Wes Nisker
- Einstein and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings by Thomas McFarlane and Wes Nisker
- Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson
- www.WesNisker.com

What would it be like if we were able to extend the silence & clarity of the meditative mind into our relationships? Would this impact how we listen, what we say, and even how we perceive reality? Gregory Kramer, teacher of a unique interpersonal meditation called Insight Dialogue, claims that it does this and much more.

In this dialogue we find out about the specifics of the Insight Dialogue practice, covering each of the six steps of this practice (see below), as well as exploring what it's like to be on a retreat where both individual and interpersonal contemplation takes place.

This is Part 2 of a two-part series. Listen to Part 1, Interpersonal Meditation - Awakening as Relational Beings, if you haven't already and also check out the links below to find out more about Gregory and the important work he is doing.

The six steps of Insight Dialogue:

1. Pause
2. Relax
3. Open
4. Trust Emergence
5. Listen Deeply
6. Speak the Truth

Additional Resources:

- Insight Dialogue: An Interpersonal Path to Freedom by Gregory Kramer
- The Metta Foundation