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Mindfulness & Social Action

A transcribed talk given by Michael designed into a beautiful booklet. Michael described this talk as a manifesto for how to talk about spirituality in a post-metaphysical age, used a PowerPoint presentation (the slides are included in the e-book) and said it linked together some of his clearest ideas of the time.

This is a large collection of Michael’s talks that have been transcribed by community members (including a few French and Spanish translations), as well as interviews and articles both with and by Michael. There is also a beautiful, downloadable e-book designed and produced by students.

Out of all of the texts these three are the most popular:

Books that Michael wrote, edited, or contributed to are on the Books page.

Life Doesn’t Give Up

Our oldest child, who now calls himself Dolphin, told me recently that everyone dies and everything changes but it’s ok because girls keep having babies. Life doesn’t give up, he added, brain splittingly. In moments like these, his depth swallows

Heart Sutra & Bodhisattva Vows

Heart Sutra & Bodhisattva Vows

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Maha Prajña Paramita Heart Sutra Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, doing deep Prajña Paramita, Clearly saw emptiness of all the five conditions Thus completely relieving misfortune and pain. Here Shariputra, form is no other than emptiness, emptiness no other than form; Form

Emotional Granularity

Emotional Granularity

A letter written by Michael after co-teaching with Paul Haller at the Tassajara Mountain Center: I just returned from co-teaching with Paul Haller at the Tassajara Mountain Zen Center. Paul has been practicing for forty years and his manner has

Grief: An Essay

Grief: An Essay

If the vastness of the oceans shows us the shared depths of our grief, the power of the grass to grow and regrow shows us its future—the way forward of life after death…

In response to Orlando

In response to Orlando

On June 12, 2016, Omar Mateen killed 49 people and wounded 53 others in a terrorist attack inside Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Michael wrote the following letter to the community: Dear friends, I continue to be horrified

Grief & The Leap Manifesto

Grief & The Leap Manifesto

Reading news coverage of the Leap Manifesto, you could be forgiven for thinking the authors had proposed we give up on this planet and pin our hopes on Mars. Rex Murphy called it “the most radical anti-oil agenda outside of

13 Things You Should Know About Patience

13 Things You Should Know About Patience

To build patience, find a strategy. British Columbia-based psychotherapist and meditation teacher Micahel Stone uses this one: first, he imagines how he’d respond if he was feeling patient. Then he waits until his frustration changes into something else – relief,

Ethics, Day 2

Ethics, Day 2

Michael: I wanted to talk about the first aspect of the first precept we’re exploring. The precept of ahimsa or non-violence, or not having the intention to cause harm. One of the ways I’ve been translating it lately is not

What’s the Music All About?

What’s the Music All About?

Uncle Ian sat so still listening to records, reading, drinking water. When nine-year-old Michael Stone was with Ian, he had enough space to think about the world in new ways.

Relationship is the Key to Awakening: Interview with Michael Stone about Family Wakes Us Up

Relationship is the Key to Awakening

Michael Stone discusses recent book Family Wakes Us Up and how family life – from working through communication troubles, to giving up fixed ideas of how we think things should be – can be a vehicle for cultivating intimacy, transforming