Lama Surya Das – Ep. 62 – Life is the Practice with Francesca Maximé

Lama Surya Das - Ep. 62 - Life is the Practice with Francesca Maxime

Lama Surya Das is joined by Francesca Maximé for a conversation about the compassion, wisdom and equanimity that comes when we turn our life into our practice and begin to connect with our true selves.

Francesca Marguerite Maximé is a certified mindfulness meditation teacher, journalist, poet, speaker & host of the WiseGirl Podcast. Learn more at francescamaxime.com

Show Notes

The Cathedral of Nature (Opening) – Lama Surya Das and Francesca Maximé reflect on what happens when we take time to reconnect with nature.

“I worry about these kids that grow up on their screen or in concrete cities that don’t have the kind of touching of the earth as the Buddha did. Many people don’t have that experience of witnessing and saying, ‘Hey, I am being held by the earth, by the ground beneath me. This is not just me all alone, this is other people and also the earth.” – Francesca Maxime

Layers of the Self (11:30) – Sometimes we only identify with the worst we see in ourselves. Francesca talks about changing our self-perceptions and looking at our true selves with a clear heart and mind. She shares some of the practices that have allowed her to discover a new level of self-care.

“In the traditions of sitting, you are really cultivating the ability to notice all this stuff without getting up.” – Francesca Maxime

Thinking Before Acting (27:00) – Francesca and Surya Das talk about the choices we make and regaining agency with mindfulness. They discuss the destructive beliefs and self-talk that can be de-conditioned with spiritual practice.

“What I have learned is that emotions rise and fall in anywhere from 30 – 90 seconds, so you get back online in short order if you don’t press the nuclear button. Then once you settle, it is a little easier to make a real choice that is not just from the place of conditioning.” – Francesca Maxime

Explore the principles of right effort, right mindfulness and right concentration on the Eightfold Path with Joseph Goldstein in Ep. 40 of the Insight Hour Podcast

Accepting Where We Are At (43:30) – Sharing her personal struggles with self-image and worth, Francesca talks about how we can reclaim our value and independence by first accepting where we are at. She and Surya Das look at ways to approach evolving social issues mindfully and turn our life into a practice of awakening.

      

Image via Francesca Maxime