Be Here Now Network Guest Podcast

Trudy Goodman offers dharma teachings on conflict and kindness, helping us build a loving awareness of who we truly are.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.In this episode, Trudy Goodman holds a talk on:How our thoughts shape our identity and can create mental prisonsBreaking free from fixed ideas about ourselves, others, and the worldStarting with ourselves: offering kindness to our inner critic Uniting in our shared intention to cultivate loving-kindnessLiving in a world of complexity without creating suffering in ourselves and othersThe Tibetan practice of exchanging the self for another Inspiration from children and appreciating the present momentMaking friends with our lives rather than living in conflict Relating wisely to situations and forgiving ourselves for being imperfect   This recording from a 2013 retreat at Spirit Rock was originally published on Dharmasee

Drawing on the wisdom of The Four Resolves, Gil Fronsdal discusses finding our own inner strength to remain committed to the path of practice. Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Gil Fronsdal illuminates:Gil’s own introduction to Vipassana practice How sickness, old age, and death motivated the BuddhaSpiritual support and determination at Zen monasteries Why cultivating your own inner resolve is one of the greatest challenges on retreatThe Four Resolves of Buddhism: truth, wisdom, generosity, peaceHow Vipassana practice is dependent on allowing the truth to reveal itselfDiscovering truth in the smallest moments through mindful awarenessHow everyday mindfulness builds the resilience needed for life’s most challenging momentsLetting our hearts be generous and stepping out of self-preoccupationSurfing the ways of life without drowning: becoming one wit

Pioneer of Buddhism in Africa, Bhante Buddharakkhita, dives into building a sangha, practicing meditation, and the journey from pleasure to lasting peace.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Bhante and Vincent discuss:Bringing the dhamma to Africa and creating the Uganda Buddhist Center Creating a self-sustaining Sangha out of simplicity & self-sufficiency What made Bhante commit to ordination as a Buddhist monkDisillusionment with experiences that were once pleasurableEducation and excellence in training one’s own mindThe joy and fascination of looking into the mind through meditationMaking a habit out of meditation rather than only focusing on pedagogyCultivating happiness and peace in your life as the first step to living fullyStepping out of books and into a retreat or working with a teacherThis conversation was originally recorded on the Paths of

From meditation retreats to pop music, Vipassana teacher Trudy Goodman describes cultivating devotion in both obvious and unlikely places.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.In this episode, Trudy Goodman illuminates:Cultivating devotion through seeing things with a positive connotationThe activity of compassion as a beautiful possibility to experience the sacredA story of Trudy’s daughter and facing severe illness with graceHolding a deep gratitude for life and the dharma Practicing devotion through pop music and romance balladsRemembering the present moment, the only moment we haveExperiencing devotion through the tenderness of our shared joys and sorrows Enduring messy and painful moments with gratitude and continuing to enjoy our practiceHow judgment and worry fall away when we are truly present A lesson from Ram Dass on loving everything Emerging from the mystery of

Gil Fronsdal explores practicing in accord with nature, showing how mindfulness and honesty help us release resistance and move with the natural flow of the Dharma.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Gil Fronsdal lectures on:Being in accord with the dharma, with truth, and with natureThe painful attitudes that we often bring to changeAccepting our feelings rather than pushing them awayHow resistance to reality causes more suffering Mindfulness: creating the ideal conditions for the natural process of healingFloating down the stream of Dharma rather than struggling up a mountainStudying nature rather than rushing into conclusionsBecoming an observer of our own lives with child-like openness and adult-like resolveAbout Gil Fronsdal:Gil Fronsdal is the co-teacher for the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California; he has been teaching since 1990. He h

We are starting a special mini-series featuring Ram Dass and guests from his Satsang on Maui.This episode kicks things off with Kirtan by Uma Reed, as Ram Dass humorously explores the wonder of aging and seeing the entire world as God.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.“Aging is wonderful, all you have to do is stay conscious.” –Ram DassIn this Satsang with Ram Dass, the group talks about:Dealing with pain, injury, illness, and other effects of agingSeeing the body as simply a vehicle for this plane of realityRam Dass’s book Still Here and aging with awarenessFocusing on our consciousness rather than concerning ourselves with the body’s declineRam Dass’s story of seeing Krishna in a police officerPlaying our roles while we are in this worldly plane Karma Yoga and seeing the entire world as GodThis talk was recorded in 2008 at one of Ram Dass' quarterly Sunday Satsang gatherings in Studio Maui.&

In this intimate dharma talk, Mirabai Starr and Rameshwar Das explore the healing power of spiritual community and soul-level friendships. Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.Join the Ram Dass Fellowship virtual community and learn about other opportunities for connection HERE.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Mirabai Starr and Rameshwar Das explore:The concept of beloved community and why it matters so much in today’s worldSatsang, soul pods, and other forms of spiritual supportRam Dass’s book of self-discovery, You are the UniverseThe universal soul consciousness which links all people togetherAccessing the depth of our being that Ram Dass called “the loving witness”Releasing the lone wolf mentality and cultivating conscious communityThe Three Jewels of Buddhism and becoming a refuge for each other Healing through shared grief, trauma, and deep spiritual friendshipNavigating introversi

From interfaith practice to ancestral wisdom, Kaira Jewel Lingo and Vincent Moore explore how engaged spirituality across traditions supports collective awakening.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Kaira and Vincent discuss:The Beloved Community for Engaged Spirituality: developing a monastic space for Buddhist/Christian/non-denominational practice in upstate New YorkReceiving Lamp Transmission from Thich Nhat HanhContending with hostility, wars, and climate crises Ancestral wisdom and honoring those who came before usSkillful means and working with people in denial around the current troubles of our timeEnjoying practice, allowing individuality, and letting go of rigidity Remembering that everyone has the capacity for awakeningThis conversation was originally recorded on the Paths of Practice Podcast. Listen to more episodes HERE.About Kaira Jewel Ling

Trudy Goodman explains the healing power of mindfulness in helping adults be authentically present with children—fully entering their creative, playful world.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Trudy Goodman talks about:Trudy’s own life as a mother and grandmother, witnessing many stages of growth from different perspectivesBecoming inspired by the playfulness, openness, and curiosity of childrenApproaching the world with beginners mind: approaching all experiences as if they are newA sonar for presence: how children can tell when we are present and when we are notHow the capacity to meet ourselves often goes back to the parent-child relationship Striving to be ‘good enough’ as a parent rather than perfectOrdinary devotion and maintaining a sense of routine care for our childrenLearning to be alone and getting acquainted with our inner lives Resting in p

Gil Fronsdal invites us to see Buddhism not as a doctrine but as a lived experience where insight, trust, and letting go give rise to genuine freedom.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Gil Fronsdal dives into:How the twelve steps of dependent origination fit into the schema of Buddhist practiceThe stark difference between an insight and a belief Buddhism as a path to walk rather than a doctrine to believe in Turning from suffering and clinging to peaceFinding out how Buddhism is meaningful to us individuallyHow we have all been liberated from something in our livesAppreciating the relief and clarity that comes from letting go of clingingThe profound act of trust that it takes to be open and present The door of the wishless, when the mind stops desiring Looking at things exactly as they are rather than trying to conceptualize  About Gil Fr

Guiding listeners into bliss, Dr. Robert Thurman explores how emptiness, renunciation, and compassion reinforce our oneness with all beings.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Dr. Thurman offers us:A lovely translation of an 18th-century poem written by a Tibetan lama Finding ‘mother emptiness’ and reinforcing our oneness with all beingsLessons from the Buddha on emptiness and relativity Understanding renunciation as self-compassionPrioritizing the dharma rather than what society makes us feel we need to doWhat happens to the mind and body as we begin to renunciate thingsDifferentiating sympathy, empathy, and true compassionRealizing how precious we are as human beings How compassion arises from our own inner blissReleasing our need to achieve and cultivating a tolerance for ambiguity The synergy of all elements along The Eightfold Pa

Exploring Vedanta and Vipassana practices, Ram Appalaraju discusses interfaith spirituality and his work as an eco-chaplain, honoring the dignity of all beings.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Ram and Vincent discuss:Encountering dukkha (suffering) on a day-to-day basisResourcing ourselves so that we can be a resource for othersSelf-discovery and learning how to process our sufferingThe yoga of meditation and cultivating the core aspect of inner growthThe sense of ease that comes from deepening our practiceWeaving together Vedanta and Vipassana practices Fostering trust in our own experiences Transitioning from a high-stress work environment to living a more spiritual lifeOffering dignity to ourselves and others, no matter their circumstanceRam’s work in prisons and offering compassionate, attentive care to othersHow preconceived notions hinder us fro

Vipassana teacher Trudy Goodman provides practical tools for staying present.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Trudy Goodman explores:Staying connected to the flow of the breathThe breath as our life-long companion and source of presence The loneliness of thought and being caught in the trap of our own thinking How the breath is our anchor and our teacherCultivating the power of the mind to focusThe pause at the end of a breath Balancing our energies and moving through each breath with care Stepping out of our familiar reactivity Accepting this as they are so that we can let them go About 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 cond

Explaining how imagination creates both beauty and suffering, Gil Fronsdal offers a skillful way to tap into inspiration without becoming lost in a dream.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Gil Fronsdal dives into:The poem “Thursday” by William Carlos WilliamsTransformation through presence during mundane experiences Dreaming as an important part of being humanHow the imagination helps to create connectionsThe Zen principle of present moment awarenessAllowing reality to move through the world of our imaginationNot becoming lost or stuck in a dreamThe Buddha as a man of tremendous imaginationImagining the possibility of being freed from sufferingThis episode was originally published on DharmaseedAbout Gil Fronsdal:Gil Fronsdal is the co-teacher for the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California; he has been teaching since 1990. He has practiced Zen and Vipassana in the U.S. and Asia since 1975. He was a Theravada monk in Burma in 1985, and in 1989 began training with Jack Kornfield to be a Vip

With embodied loving awareness, Dr. Sará King invites us into ancestral intelligence, shadow healing, and remembering our living connection to our lineage.This recording is from our 2nd Annual Ram Dass Legacy Summer Mountain Retreat in Boone, North Carolina. Keep up with upcoming retreats and events HERE.This week on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Dr. Sará King explores:Ancestral intelligence and the collective nervous system as an interdependent web of beingThe concept of ‘Beloved Community’ and what it feels like to embody loving awarenessMeeting the pain, grief, and responsibility of climate change with compassionComing into contact with our shadows and healing our ancestral bloodlineRecognizing that our ancestors are truly present with us, guiding us in the here and nowBreathwork and grounding to reconnect with earthSending metta to those around us and to our ancestorsShifting our neural connections and transforming our hearts through practiceGrab a copy of the book that Dr. King reads from: In Search of Our Mot

Exploring the connections between Bharata Natyam dance and zazen, Anusha Enryu Fernando helps listeners remember the joy of practice.This conversation was originally recorded on the Paths of Practice Podcast. Listen to more episodes HERE.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Anusha and Vincent discuss:Zen practice and doing full-body meditationsBharata Natyam: a sacred and ancient dance that focuses on the mind-body connectionPaying attention to the body so intently that there is no space for thoughtThe non-abiding mind and continuing to move through human experienceUnderstanding the devotional gestures that are built into zen practiceAnusha’s profound experience learning Sanskrit for both ancient dance and studying the dharma The most important vow: to really be alive in this lifeFood preparations, making offerings, and connecting with the ancestors through fo

Drawing on neuroscience, psychology, and lived experience, Matt Zeemon discusses the power of psychedelics for quieting the ego, rekindling love, facing pain, and opening the heart.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Matt Zeemon explores:Psychedelics as catalysts for healing, not curesMatt’s first psychedelic experience and reconnecting with his motherWestern psychological medicine as a bandaid approach versus working to find the root causeBreaking repetitive thinking patterns ourselvesUncovering what relative risk meansThe mental health crisis in our country, especially among veterans How we all have psychedelic usage within our lineage The social politics of psychedelic substances Ways to create safe, sacred space for yourself and others on their journeysWhat it truly means to walk each other homeAbout Matt Zeemon:Matt Zemon, MSc, is a b

Offering listeners a way to live life fully, Trudy Goodman explores how to overcome the brain's negative bias by inclining the mind toward appreciation. Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.In this episode, Trudy Goodman gives a lecture on:The mind’s tendency to view things negatively How evolutionary wiring shapes what we notice and what we missA powerful teaching from loved ones at the end of life: do all things with joyRemembering that our heart is inclined toward that which we pay attention toHow micro-moments of mindfulness accumulate into lasting transformationBuilding new neural pathways through steady, repeated practiceLiving fully with both joy and difficulty instead of moving into denialEnsuring that we do not overlook that which will grow our spiritual wealthRealizing that both our feelings about a situation and the situation itself do not really matterWhy the Buddha wanted us to

Connecting to the timelessness of the present moment, Gil Fronsdal offers practical steps towards the only source of true happiness: contentment.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Gil Fronsdal explores:Seeing the timeless present through photographs Enjoying the preciousness of our limited time here on earth How corporate, capitalist America prefers people who are discontentWhat the Buddha said about the vital importance of contentment How many desires often dissipate on their own if you ride them outThe ways in which desire alienates us from ourselves The embodied quality of contentment and being in touch with ourselvesFreedom in the Buddhist sense: freedom ‘from’ rather than freedom ‘to do’Cultivating contentment by valuing it and seeing it as an important part of lifeActivities which encourage contentment versus remaining franticFacing disc

Uncovering the deep connection between Buddhism and Martial Arts, Damiano Seiryū Finizio joins Vincent Moore to explore what it truly means to face our most powerful opponent: the mind.This conversation was originally recorded on Paths of Practice Podcast. Listen to more episodes HERE.Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Damiano and Vincent discuss:What initially brought Damiano to Buddhism after growing up in Italy, a predominantly Catholic countryHow Buddhism can be harmonious with martial arts Working on self-development and mutual growth rather than sparring Maintaining perfect mental presence during times of physical discomfort Following the Buddhist precepts and adopting a vegan diet for the principal of no-harmMountains as natural energy centersDamiano’s global work and exposure to unique cultures in Vietnam, Cambodia, The Canary Islands, and