Noah Markus hijacks this episode to present an anthology of the practical Buddhist wisdom he has received during his Mindrolling conversations with Sharon Salzberg, Jack Kornfield, and Joseph Goldstein.
Joseph Goldstein on Grief and Anxiety
The first two clips in this anthology come from Mindrolling Ep. 327, which was recorded shortly after Ram Dass’ death. In the first clip, Raghu and Noah discuss grief and attachment with Joseph, who talks about separating the experiences of grief and loss. In the next clip, Noah asks Joseph for some advice on dealing with anxiety. Joseph talks to Noah about changing his attitude toward anxiety.
“I would really suggest beginning to separate out the experience of loss from the experience of grief because for most people these two are conflated. It almost becomes the same thing. But when we look carefully they’re not the same thing at all.” – Joseph Goldstein
Dr. Judson Brewer joins Ethan Nichtern for a conversation around unwinding anxiety in The Road Home Ep. 56
Jack Kornfield on Intuition and Negative Thinking (16:10)
The next two anthology clips come from Mindrolling Ep. 425. First, Raghu and Noah speak with Jack about intuition. Jack leads Noah through an exercise that connects him with his intuition around self-judgment. Next, Noah asks Jack about dealing with negative thinking and always jumping to the worst-case scenario. Jack gives Noah some practical, actionable advice for handling this issue of catastrophizing.
“It’s not the problem that you have the thoughts; they’re creative in a way, they could hire you in Hollywood, you’d make some really good horror movies. It’s not the content, it’s the fact that you believe that shit.” – Jack Kornfield
Spring Washam explores embodiment, intuition, and personal power in BHNN Guest Podcast Ep. 64
Sharon Salzberg on Emotions in Meditation and Lovingkindness for Difficult People (33:10)
The final three clips come from Mindrolling Ep. 437. To begin, Noah asks Sharon about dealing with difficult emotions and feeling stuck during meditation. Next, Raghu and Noah speak with Sharon about the practice of Lovingkindness for difficult people. In the final clip, Sharon leads a guided meditation on working with change.
“And that’s what kind of defines, from the Insight Meditation point of view, that’s what will characterize a good meditation. It’s not what’s happening, it’s how you’re relating to what’s happening.” – Sharon Salzberg