Afgespeeld
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Feeling like you fit in is hard, especially when you have many different identities. If you’ve ever felt like you put on a different mask every place you go, this episode is for you. We speak with Falcon Sang, a young artist from L.A., about how practicing Buddhism helped him find himself.
Key takeaway: If you’re willing to dig deeper, you’ll find that Buddhability is universal, and it can help you connect with anyone.
Cheat sheet:
00:30 Announcement: Send us your questions about love
1:13 Introduction to the episode
2:02 A little bit about Falcon’s childhood
6:26 Why it’s important to know who you are
7:26 How his childhood made him feel
9:58 Where he went looking for answers
18:07 Why Buddhism clicked for him
22:38 How loneliness can be turned into a source of strength
23:27 How Falcon’s anger started changing
27:28 How he found a sense of purpose
32:16 The passage that changed his life
37:32 His dream for the future
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We’re taking a short break for the holidays but our year-end episode will feature answers to a few listener-submitted questions about anything you want to ask about your own Buddhability. All you have to do is email a voice memo to [email protected] of no more than two minutes, sharing your name, where you’re located, what your question is and any context you want to share. A few selected voice memos will be included in the podcast, so please only submit if you’re comfortable having it shared! Deadline: December 27.
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As we enter into a most unusual holiday season, we’re thinking a lot about what family means and how tapping into your Buddhability can impact your loved ones. If you’ve ever felt unsure of your place in your family, or like you wish you could connect with them better, this story is worth a listen. Priya Gunaseharan shares the story of how she found her own voice by helping her grandmother find hers, entirely through a series of phone calls. Key takeaway: If you try your best to accept others the way they are, you’ll find you can finally do the same for yourself.
Cheat sheet:
00:35 Introduction to the episode
3:25 How Priya started chanting
5:17 Why she struggled to express herself within her family
9:18 How she decided to start calling her grandma
14:47 What to do when you love someone who can be also hurtful
18:03 What Priya chanted about
24:46 What her dream for her family is
28:04 What she learned about her grandmother
29:58 How Priya feels in her family now -
This week, we speak with Rory Arnaud about what a daily Buddhist practice in the morning can do for you. The fact is, most of us haven’t even scratched the surface of what we are capable of accomplishing, learning and giving in this lifetime. Today’s key lesson is that if you can consistently win over yourself in the morning through chanting, you can unearth a treasure trove of wisdom, energy and courage and completely transform how you see yourself and the world.
0:37 Introduction to today’s topic
1:52 Rory’s story
7:00 What losing a friend taught him about life
8:50 What his mornings used to feel like
10:00 How they changed after he started chanting
11:57 How he decided to start a company
17:12 What winning in the morning means
19:20 What he’s up against each morning
22:56 The question that keeps him motivated every single day
27:04 Advice for Rory’s younger self (or anyone listening)
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This week’s episode is about how to build the confidence to pursue a big dream. Seon Yeop Jung shares how he using chanting and goal-setting to rebuild the confidence he lost due to bullying. By pursuing one small goal after another, he discovered his dream of being a scientist and educator. Key takeaway: If you don’t believe in yourself right now because of whatever you may have faced in the past, it’s OK. Just start wherever you are with one small goal and you’ll discover your purpose along the way.
Cheatsheet:
0:35 Introduction to Seon
4:30 How bullying affected his childhood
8:29 What he realized when he started chanting
11:59 Why he set a goal of studying for 10 hours
13:50 How achieving minor goals can build your confidence
16:58 How to apply chanting to specific goals
19:08 What if you get stuck?
23:16 How having supportive friends can help
24:53 What Seon’s dream is now
27:24 3 keys to never giving up
29:46 Seon’s advice to anyone pursuing a dream
30:44 Today’s key takeaway
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This week, we’re talking about love. Well, specifically what it takes to be in a committed relationship for the long haul. Ian and Audrey McIlraith, who are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary this year, tell us the story of how they overcame their own fears of being alone and of being good enough, to create a happy family. Here are their secrets: if you want to find a life partner and stay together through life’s storms, you need to be willing to confront your fears, see yourself honestly and strive for a shared goal.
0:39 Introduction to today’s topic
2:01 Introduction to Ian, Audrey and how they met
4:15 How they each starting practicing Buddhism
6:30 What their mindsets toward relationships were before they met
16:23 How they challenged fears of being alone, and being good enough
18:30 How chanting helped them overcome an accident and a long journey to have kids
21:56 Why self-transformation and respect are so key to relationships
27:11 Their advice to anyone struggling with a relationship (or finding a partner)
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This week, we speak with Abe Uccello about working for change in Florida’s prison system, even when he couldn’t see any forward movement. He explains how chanting can help you build trust and respect with anyone, and what unity actually means. Hint: You have to unlock your own wisdom and compassion first.
Cheatsheet:
1:50 What we’re trying to understand today
4:02 Introduction to Abe
5:02 How chanting helped him feel like he had control over his life again
10:54 His experiences working with the prison system
16:20 How chanting helped him figure out what to do
17:20 What a tenacious effort to build trust helped him achieve
25:10 Why he didn’t give up
28:32 How to maintain hope even when you see the darkest parts of humanity
32:33 What the end goal in Buddhism is
35:46 Advice to anyone feeling stuck or overwhelmed by uncertainty
38:02 What “happiness for self and others” means
45:39 What else to read on Buddhability about feeling stuck and making change
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Great artists are authentic. It’s how they are able to connect to enormous audiences, yet each person experiencing the music, or art, feels directly spoken to. What would you do if you could go through life with this kind of genuine, inspiring power?
Being yourself, truly yourself, is hard. Today, we speak with legendary Grammy-winning jazz musicians Wayne Shorter and Esperanza Spalding about how Buddhism has helped them become their most authentic selves.
P.S. The book mentioned in the episode is called Reaching Beyond: Improvisations on Jazz, Buddhism, and a Joyful Life.
Cheatsheet:
1:25 Introduction to Wayne & Esperanza
2:41 How Esperanza discovered Buddhism
5:22 Why Wayne started chanting
7:11 How Wayne discovered a deeper purpose to playing music
8:10 How chanting helped Wayne see himself more clearly
12:23 Esperanza on authenticity as a musician
17:35 Wayne on how Buddhism can help you check yourself
19:25 Esperanza on how to unlock your own capacity
20:34 Some notes on Esperanza’s “life force”
21:48 On Wayne & Esperanza’s friendship
23:33 Wayne’s advice to anyone who feels stuck with their art or work
24:57 A key lesson from today’s conversation
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Deciding on your career is hard. If you’ve ever felt like what you’re passionate about and what you do for work don’t align, this episode is for you. Climate activist Roberta Giordano shares how she found the courage to make the bold decision of committing full time to fight climate change and how, through chanting, you can do the same, whatever your passion or cause might be.
Cheatsheet:
1:22 Episode Intro
2:14 Intro to Roberta Giordano
4:15 How her childhood fears influenced her career
7:08 How she started practicing Buddhism in college
12:00 The first steps she took to fight climate change
15:21 How chanting helped her decide what impact she could make
18:35 The difference between actually believing in yourself vs. telling yourself to
19:50 How chanting can help you process your feelings and take action
22:11 How Roberta found the courage to choose a career in climate finance
27:00 What to do when you feel small or overwhelmed along your way
31:00 Key takeaways from Roberta’s story -
This week, we speak with psychotherapist Sean Grover about how therapy works, what its limits are, and what it takes to actually change yourself for the better. He also shares insights from his own Buddhist practice and what chanting can offer in the journey of self-transformation.
Key takeaway: Human beings heal through relationships, so how you show up in relationships matters … a lot. If you want to be really, truly happy, you have to learn to care for yourself well, to be yourself around other people, and also learn to care for other people well. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and having a supportive community can help you do all of the above.
Cheatsheet:
1:14 Episode Intro
2:12 Introduction to Sean
2:36 Why he started practicing Buddhism
6:16 What brings people to therapy
8:14 The difference between temporary and sustainable happiness
11:05 The growth of self-awareness practices
16:15 The limits of therapy and mindfulness
18:23 How Buddhism can tackle the ego
20:27 Why changing yourself is so hard
22:19 What the Bodhisattva vow is, in plain English
25:42 Why mastering human relationships is the key to most problems
26:25 Creating a culture of caring for others
29:43 How not to get drained by giving to others
33:14 How therapy and Buddhism can work together
37:08 Next week’s show
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This episode is a masterclass in how to get the world to see you the way you see yourself.
We speak with trans rights activist, actress (you might recognize her as Candy from FX's Pose) and founder of TransTech Social Enterprises, Angelica Ross. She constantly shares about Buddhism in interviews, but today we’re talking about a deeply personal part of her life that chanting helped her transform: her relationship with her mom.
For more from Angelica, also see our recent IGTV video.
Cheatsheet:
0:00 Welcome to Buddhability
0:34 Intro to Angelica Ross
1:20 How Angelica transformed her relationship with her mom
7:06 What chanting allowed her to bring out of her own life despite the hurt
15:19 How chanting helps her navigate so many projects and relationships
19:46 Angelica explains Nichiren Buddhism for new listeners
21:26 What Angelica’s chanting (and daily) routine looks like
24:03 Angelica’s dream for the rest of the 21st century
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