On this special episode of Metta Hour, Sharon visits humorist Randy Cohen's podcast, Person Place Thing, to talk about her most inspirational "Thing," the Statue of Liberty. Person Place Thing is an interview show based on this idea: people are particularly engaging when they speak not directly about themselves but about something they care about. Sharon shares how the values reflected in Lady Liberty inspire how she lives her life See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California P...
Feb 20, 2017•45 min•Ep. 48
Joseph Goldstein joins Sharon to talk about overcoming obstacles through meditative practice and living in the dharma. Recorded live from the Insight Meditation Society’s 40th anniversary benefit. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Feb 01, 2017•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 47
Sharon shares insight and words of encouragement on our meditative practice. We get a better understanding of the meaning of the word meditation and context for how it works in our lives. We learn to appreciate meditation as cultivation and the importance of getting used to it. Sharon is joined by Roshi Joan Halifax to take questions from the audience on patience, teaching others, and appreciating our contributions no matter how small they may be. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy ...
Jan 11, 2017•47 min•Ep. 46
This week, Sharon digs the into some of the reoccurring challenges we all encounter along the path. Our path to liberation is not a linear one of progression, in which we clear hurdles that never return. Instead, it is a circular journey that keeps coming around and influences all aspects of our life The wisdom our practice cultivates affords us the opportunity to approach these challenges in a better way each time they present themselves along the path. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/p...
Dec 12, 2016•55 min•Ep. 45
Sharon shares four reflections on the Dharma that will sustain us in our practice. Who in the Western world can imagine sitting in silent meditation for years at a time? What can we do, especially as novices, to remind ourselves the purpose and importance of our practice? Sharon asked the same questions early in her practice as well. What she learned is that there are reflections for sustained practice which shift our perspective and move us forward on the path. See Privacy Policy at https://art...
Nov 21, 2016•40 min•Ep. 44
This special episode of Metta Hour is dedicated to exploring the life of the historical Buddha. Sharon discusses the historical Buddha as a human, legendary figure, and mystic, in addition to his role as teacher, historical figure, and founder of a tradition. She walks us through the Buddha's experiences under the Bodhi tree and the teachings he left with. On this episode of, Metta Hour, Sharon gives insight into these lessons to help us better understand the Way of the Buddha. See Privacy Polic...
Oct 31, 2016•57 min•Ep. 43
This week on, Metta Hour, Sharon has a conversation with Rev Angel Kyodo Williams about political activism and spiritual practice. What is the interplay between activism and personal practice? Sharon and Rev Angel Kyodo Williams discuss the qualities of the two and what they bring to one another. On this week's episode, we learn how to make radical change happen and love everyone in the process. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/pr...
Oct 10, 2016•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 42
Sharon sits down with Ethan Nichtern and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to talk about transformational activism. The three discuss what exactly transformational activism is and how Ethan and Eric have been using the approach to promote positive change in politics.Ethan Nichtern founded The Interdependence Project in 2005 which offers a unique, multi-lineage education in Secular Buddhist practice and psychology. The project also features Transformational Activism initiatives, designe...
Sep 19, 2016•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 41
Sharon sits down with Ali Smith, Andy Gonzalez and Atman Smith of the Holistic Life Foundation at the JCC Manhattan to talk about their work bringing mindfulness and yoga to inner city youth in their hometown of Baltimore, MD. The Holistic Life Foundation has been serving Baltimore’s underserved communities since 2001 with high quality programming focusing on yoga, holistic health, environmental advocacy and education, sustainability, oneness, and interconnectedness. In this episode of The Metta...
Aug 29, 2016•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 40
In this episode, Sharon sits down with author and Buddhist teacher, Ethan Nichtern. Together they discuss with their live audience, life with a smartphone and how technology affects our spiritual development. Ethan highlights the use of technology as an escape mechanism and reminds us to be aware of when and why that is happening. Explaining our ability to turn the potential downfalls of technology into a weapon for positive change. How do we negotiate the extra layer of complexity that technolo...
Aug 08, 2016•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 39
We are reminded that when we are seeking balance, to practice meditation is to make a home of the deeper places that we have touched in our encounters with joy and sorrow. Loving Kindness is fueled by the truth, and therefore has the power to change our lives for the better. To train in Metta is to experiment in your relationship and reaction to all that you experience, with the understanding that everyone you see is as hopeful and deserving of the kindness and love that are our birthright. Conc...
Jul 20, 2016•55 min•Ep. 38
Pulling from her insight and wealth of experience in the art of mindfulness, Sharon responds to some of the questions and concerns that often arise when one delves into the practice of Loving Kindness meditation. This particular practice is unique in its more active approach to offering kindness to ourselves and others, and can be confusing during initial integration. Topics discussed include appropriate phrases, understanding the right effort involved relative to other forms of practice, aversi...
Jun 20, 2016•26 min•Ep. 37
Sharon and Congressman Tim Ryan discuss voting and mindfulness in politics and the role of mindfulness in schools. Recorded at the 2016 Mindful Life Conference. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 17, 2016•48 min•Ep. 36
What does it mean to be born into this human form, with an ever-changing body and mind subjected to forces seemingly out of our control? How can we possibly feel at home in our own lives, amidst the inevitable torrent of change? Sharon discusses this context within which we practice, highlighting the Buddha’s teachings as the compass used in seeking direction. We are all capable of developing the consciousness necessary to ask these questions, and to know the answers for ourselves through the po...
Apr 14, 2016•53 min•Ep. 35
A welcome explanation of what it truly means to seek refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Likening refuge to the Buddhist concept of ‘Bright Faith’, Sharon describes the power of possibility in keeping our spirits alive and moving. When our sense of limitation shifts from an absolute truth to a simple mental construct, we begin to see the light beneath the door. In revolutionizing our relationship to ourselves we affirm our own ability to bring faith, hope, and understanding to any ...
Mar 15, 2016•46 min•Ep. 34
Sharon offers an overview of the context in which we practice, providing insight and instruction for some of the basic tenements of meditation. This skills training can bring steadfast and sustainable concentration to the mind, promoting balance and ease as we move through the world. The goal is not to escape certain thoughts or to generate positive feelings, but rather to cultivate the conditions necessary for transformation within your own life. Through repeated efforts we begin to uncover a d...
Feb 01, 2016•53 min•Ep. 33
Piti is the Pali word for rapture, defined as an enthusiasm or sense of zeal that is often characterized by feelings of happiness, delight, and satisfaction. When developed, this quality pervades both the body and the mind with the energy of exhilaration. Sharon outlines the various levels of rapture and offers both methods and inspiration for its cultivation. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jan 11, 2016•45 min•Ep. 32
Sharon discusses some of the more common obstacles to sympathetic joy and offers methods that promote both the practice and sustainability of this quality. Learning to let go of our judgments and allowing others to live as they choose is often a crucial factor in shifting our perspective. Recognizing the line of separation created through the restless state of comparison will also serve to loosen the boundaries that we build. Through generosity we begin to see the happiness of others as a contin...
Dec 14, 2015•28 min•Ep. 31
Sharon explains the specific form of joy that comes from taking genuine delight in the happiness of others. Engaging in this practice challenges our deepest assumptions of who we are and what it means to be truly content. Releasing ourselves from the perceived sense of battle or competition with others can bring profound liberation to the mind and heart. In allowing and encouraging the happiness of others we naturally and dramatically increase the likelihood of experiencing authentic joy in our ...
Nov 30, 2015•31 min•Ep. 30
Sharon describes the spacious realm of equanimity and its role in cultivating and preserving an abiding sense of faith. When we can maintain a genuine presence with whatever comes our way, we open ourselves to the boundless compassion that stems from the deep knowing that we are a part of the larger fabric of the universe in which we exist. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Nov 16, 2015•59 min•Ep. 29
Identifying and acknowledging our habitual thought patterns is the first step in developing a greater sense of awareness regarding our moment-to-moment existence. The meditative process is rooted in this recognition and subsequent experimentation with the methods that best align with where we are right now. We are asked to step out of the race for acquisition in order to begin the journey of cultivation. Our capacity to love, to connect, to share, and to see can be obscured but is never destroye...
Oct 19, 2015•53 min•Ep. 28
“It is the truth that liberates, not your efforts to be free” - J. Krishnamurti Sharon helps us to appreciate the sense of clarity that naturally arises when our view is no longer distorted by our fears, biases, and judgments of the world around us. This truth is born of and sustained through the versatile wisdom that comes from the cultivation and subsequent embodiment of a genuine balance of the mind and heart. Meditation serves as a method of manifestation for the conditions necessary to prom...
Oct 05, 2015•50 min•Ep. 27
How can we be passionate while remaining at ease, moving forward in our investigation without losing our center? Sharon describes meditation as a means for learning how to sit in the heart of the paradoxes that we encounter on our path. We have to remain whole-hearted, to be daring in our efforts to explore that longing we feel toward something deeper. Right-effort is crucial in maintaining the balance and avoiding the strain and self-judgment that can often accompany such endeavors. Our aspirat...
Sep 21, 2015•56 min•Ep. 26
Sharon discusses some of the qualities that often accompany Metta, and explains the synergistic and supportive relationship they promote. When brought together these forces generate a sense of balance that is both genuine and sustainable. Equanimity is essential in understanding the potential for these qualities to become boundless in nature. We begin to open to suffering through compassion, and discover joy in the understanding of our shared experience. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/p...
Aug 24, 2015•56 min•Ep. 25
Raghu Markus returns to the Metta Hour to discuss a recent blog from Sharon regarding the role of proximity in understanding the ubiquitous nature of our lives. There is a capacity within us to see ourselves in one another as we begin to explore the intrinsic vulnerability under which we operate. The power of compassion is highlighted as a means for avoiding demonization, and enacting an energetic and compassionate response to the suffering that we encounter. Our ideas about one another are just...
Aug 23, 2015•54 min•Ep. 24
Experiences come and go with a dreamlike flow that often leaves us wondering how we ever got so lost in the moment. The miracle of mindfulness comes through its ability to bring greater perspective to the full spectrum of emotions that will undoubtedly arise throughout our lives. Awareness has the power to provide refuge in every moment and we need only to remember this ever-present potential. Sharon reminds us that mindfulness can go anywhere and isn’t dependent upon circumstance See Privacy Po...
Aug 10, 2015•1 hr•Ep. 23
Delusion clouds our judgment and prevents us from seeing things as they truly are. It often carries with it a sense of apprehension or uncertainty, which strips us of the energy required to look deeply at our lives. One of the greatest dangers is its ability to block empathy, which can be viewed as the root of caring. If we can’t open to our own suffering, then we become incapable of opening to the suffering of others. Sharon discusses the ways that we can both recognize and dismantle delusion i...
Jul 27, 2015•55 min•Ep. 22
What is it that happens within certain individuals that allows an emergence from a place of suffering into a space of greater faith and trust in the world in which they navigate? This alchemical process seems to be born of an understanding and appreciation of the larger universe in which we exist. Perhaps this expansion of our very being provides a larger space in which to hold the suffering. We can’t always prevent painful experiences from occurring, but we can learn to be present with them, to...
Jul 01, 2015•58 min•Ep. 21
‘The mind is naturally radiant and pure. The mind is shining. It is because of visiting forces that we suffer’ - The Buddha Sharon identifies and thoroughly deconstructs some of the more common obstacles encountered in practice, emphasizing the non-local aspect of these intruding forces. The implications of this discovery, and continued remembrance through practice, help us to better understand the importance of knowing who we truly are. When we are at one with our true nature we no longer feel ...
Jun 17, 2015•55 min•Ep. 20
Sharon outlines a few of the more powerful conditioned forces that can often motivate and form the basis for our intentions. Thankfully, she also provides some methodology for the purification of these mental states, and offers practical advice for integrating these fresh perspectives into our everyday lives. Not surprisingly, the power of practice is highlighted as a means for overcoming our more self-centered relationships to the world around us. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy...
Jun 06, 2015•57 min•Ep. 19
