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The joke used to be that every time Michael opened his mouth what he said was archived here. We couldn’t be more grateful for that now because it is one of the best ways Michael’s teachings will live on.
The Awake in the World Podcast is the heart of the Community Library. Talks are on a wide-range of topics, including: bringing mindfulness and meditation practice into daily life; personal and community issues regarding mental health; and social change.
This podcast has been created so that anyone can have instant access to Michael’s teachings. It has been made possible due to generous donations from members of the community. In the six years that the podcast has been available, over half a million people have pressed play as a way to be more—like the name says—awake in the world.
Each podcast is between 30-60 minutes long. As always, you’re encouraged to follow along weekly as part of your practice. The podcasts were recorded at live events so you might hear coughing, airplanes, cars, sirens, laughter, and peoples’ questions—all part of the intimate experience.
Feel the Fear (Heart Sutra 5)
Michael Stone discusses The Heart Sutra, nirvana, worry and fear. The Buddha lists five fears. Fear is a trance state. Some of the worst things in my life never happened. During sitting meditation, feel the stable knowing behind fear and
Give Yourself a Break (Heart Sutra 4)
The Buddha talks about the All. What is taste? Bukowski has a bluebird in his heart. Michael Stone continues discussing The Heart Sutra — self-liberation, thoughts without a thinker, spiritual air miles, three kinds of burnout, and more. A talk
Vacuum Cleaner (Heart Sutra 3)
Michael Stone continues discussing The Heart Sutra — form and emptiness, the Buddha’s troubles, making families in Toronto, bathing in Japan. What is underneath language in sitting practice is self-acceptance. Avalokiteshvara and Shariputra are both in you. Waves are the
Why Other People Suck (Heart Sutra 2)
Michael Stone discusses The Heart Sutra during a 12-day intensive at Centre of Gravity in Toronto. Emptiness is not place or process. Mistaking emptiness is like catching a snake from the wrong end. Moving out of stories in order to
Seeing the Background (Heart Sutra 1)
Beginner’s mind threatens the part of us that wants to control experience. Knowing before knowing. Hakuin: “Wisdom is not separate from you. It’s like beads rolling on a tray: sudden, ready, uninhibited.” We all want to be more comfortable, and
I’m Dying, What Can I Do For You? (Notes on Dying 2)
The mind makes snapshots and creates categories, our patterns contain the world keeping us small and separate, mindfulness is the new Tylenol, dying as generosity, perhaps practice means simply catching up to what you actually feel, instead of living in
Throw Up and Bow (Beginner’s Mind 6)
How do we bow? Everything becomes your teacher. Throwing up dualistic ideas. Teachers are heavy, students are feathers. The pain of panic wakes you up to what hasn’t grown up. Sincerity. The sense of something else gets in the way
How to Sit is How to Act (Beginner’s Mind 5)
Michael discusses Shunryū Suzuki’s book, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind. People who practice Zen are always asking: what is this all about? Whatever you do, Buddha is in that activity. Becoming the breath. Hitting the pillow. Occupy the wall. Suck your
Mountains & Rivers, Part 7
Don’t ignore what your life actually is… Practice tattoos us. Life stains us. Your life carves your face all the time. Michael reads section 17 of Dōgen’s essay, Mountains & Rivers. Every action you do carves your life. So, how
Mountains & Rivers, Part 6
Water has its own integrity, like you. Every event is interconnected and empty, and yet, everything has its own integrity. You can’t say exactly what a river is, and yet, it’s not the same as every river.
Betrayal, Awakening, and Living in a Burning House
Roshi Pat Enkyo O’Hara talks about the Lotus Sutra and the parable of the burning house. Even in the world of the dharma we can get caught up with playthings and forget that we’re living in a burning house. It
Mountains & Rivers, Part 5: A Love Letter to Meditators
Can we express with language what is most true for us? Maybe all philosophy is heading towards poetry. Michael Stone tells a story about finding the nectar of compassion in the centre of practice.
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