Photo: Jack Kornfield and James Baraz in Bodh Gaya, India, 1976. James Baraz recently interviewed Buddhist teacher and author Jack Kornfield for the Awakening Joy series "Conversations with the Wise." Jack trained as a Buddhist monk in the monasteries of Thailand, India and Burma. He has taught meditation internationally since 1974 and is one of the key teachers to introduce Buddhist mindfulness practice to the West. Jack co-founded the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts. In addition, James and Jack are founding teachers of  Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. Jack's books have been translated into 20 languages and sold more than a million copies. They include, A Wise Heart: A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology, Bringing …

Awakening Joy's James Baraz recently sat down with Ruth King, a mindfulness teacher, author & life coach. She is on the Teacher’s Council at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and Insight Meditation Community of Washington, and is the founder of Mindful Members Insight Meditation Community in Charlotte, NC. Her books include Healing Rage: Women Making Inner Peace Possible and Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism From The Inside Out (arriving June 2018). “One of the things I’m trying to encourage is that we can use this practice to begin to investigate our conditioning so that we can change our relationship to this stimuli or this numbness that some of us have. My prayer is that we get educated around our conditioning at a …

Awakening Joy's James Baraz recently sat down with Sylvia Boorstein, a best-selling author, psychotherapist and founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center. Sylvia is particularly interested in emphasizing daily life as mindfulness practice and including informed citizenship and social activism as integral to spiritual maturation. Her books include Happiness is an Inside Job; It's Easier Than You Think: The Buddhist Way to Happiness; That's Funny, You Don't Look Buddhist; Don't Just Do Something, Sit There; and Pay Attention, for Goodness' Sake: The Buddhist Path of Kindness. “Mindfulness is being alert moment to moment to see clearly what’s really happening so that we will be able to respond in a way that will not create suffering for ourselves or others." For the full …

James Baraz recently interviewed Terry Patten, a philosopher, author, activist, social entrepreneur, consultant and coach. He is the author of A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries. He worked with Ken Wilber as part of a core team at Integral Institute to develop the book, Integral Life Practice, which distills ancient and modern practices into an intelligent, contemporary transformational lifestyle. "Our crimes against the young at the level of environmental and fiscal irresponsibility are going to become political issues and I think we will have an opportunity and responsibility to bring our support. We in the older generation need to take some risk with our time and money to support the younger generation." For the full interview, visit https://awakeningjoy.info/conversationsPatten.php https://youtu.be/_1okR7J2lX8

James Baraz recently interviewed Dacher Keltner, a professor of psychology at UC Berkeley where he directs the Berkeley Social Interaction Lab. He is also the founder and faculty director of the Greater Good Science Center, a cutting edge interdisciplinary research center that is devoted to the scientific understanding of individual happiness, compassion, strong social bonding, and altruistic behavior. Keltner is the author of Born to Be Good and The Power Paradox: How We Gain and Lose Influence. "Women are rising to positions of power in unprecedented fashion. This is a reason for serious optimism. In addition, the new generation seems less materialistic than the previous one. That gives me hope." For the full conversation go to www.awakeningjoy.info and click on “Conversations with the Wise.” https://youtu.be/mwo8yzkmziY

James Baraz recently interviewed Bob Doppelt, a leading environmental and sustainability expert who coordinates the International Transformational Resilience Coalition (ITRC), a network of more than 300 mental health, trauma treatment, and resilience-building professionals working to build individual psychological and collective psycho-social-spiritual resilience in response to the traumas and toxic stresses generated by climate change. Doppelt is the author of Transformational Resilience: How Building Human Resilience to Climate Disruption Can Safeguard Society and Increase Wellbeing and From Me to We: The Five Transformational Commitments Required to Rescue the Planet, Your Organization, and Your Life. "Systems push back hardest when they’re on the verge of change because there is a desire to maintain the status quo. It is very possible if we have the …

James Baraz interviewed Julia Butterfly Hill, an environmental activist best known for having lived in an ancient redwood tree for more than two years in the late 1990s. She is the author of "The Legacy of Luna" and "A Course in Courage": "I feel fear, but I don’t let my fear stop me. I feel rage and anger because that’s my natural response to places and people and animals I love being decimated. I feel all of these feelings that are part of the human experience but what we choose to do with those feelings makes all the difference. What's going on now is putting things right in front of people’s faces and we have to deal with it. It’s …

We learn compassion as we see that we are not alone in our suffering. A classical teaching encourages us to remember every day that suffering is part of life. Everyone is subject to loss and gain, illness and death. Whether you are going through a period full of blessings or full of challenges, remember that they’re both part of our life’s curriculum. With gratitude for just being alive and learning along the way, every moment counts. James Baraz interviewed Frank Ostaseski, founder of the Metta Institute, co-founder of Zen Hospice Project, and author of The Five Invitations: Discovering What Death Can Teach Us About Living Fully, as part of a series called "Conversations with the Wise": “Mature hope requires clear intention but …

Often we want to contribute to society in some way but it’s hard to take the first step. Will our efforts make a difference? James Baraz interviewed Linda Graham, MFT - Resources for Recovering Resilience who teaches nationwide on the integration of mindfulness, relational psychology, and neuroscience as part of a series called "Conversations with the Wise": “When we do one scary thing a day we can train the brain to overcome inertia or anxiety with an action. We train ourselves to respond rather than stay scared. To do something small is fine—that’s how the world changes. When we take wise action from a full, loving heart it makes a difference. Every choice has an impact.” https://youtu.be/ZOpf9WAdq2s For the full conversation go to …