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How to Train a Happy MindAI and Enlightenment with Dr. David Kittay #201Dr. David Kittay stands out as one of the most expansive, intelligent, creative, and warmhearted thinkers of our time. His course at Columbia University, Technology, Religion, Future, is often described as “life-changing” for its exploration of how technology intersects with humanity’s deepest questions. In an earlier conversation with Scott, before the AI boom, he offered insights that felt ahead of their time—making his return now all the more vital as we face a profound question: Can artificial intelligence lead to enlightenment, or are we speeding toward a super-intelligent future that may no longer include us?This con...2025-08-0551 minHow to Train a Happy MindIs Enlightenment Possible? #200We can't believe this is our 200th episode! For this special occasion, we wanted to share a talk and meditation Scott Snibbe offered in our Train a Happy Mind community a couple of weeks ago called “Is enlightenment possible?” Over the years, Scott's ideas of enlightenment have evolved as he's interviewed some of the world's foremost teachers and scholars of Buddhism like Dr. Jan Willis, Dr. Robert Thurman, Thupten Jinpa, and Tenzin Palmo. This episode is a reflection of these new understandings and an exploration of other tasty questions like...Is enlightenment possible for anyone?...2025-07-2949 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Warm Heart of Awareness: A Meditation with Ven. René Feusi #199Today we’re sharing a guided meditation from the wonderful Venerable René Feusi (Scott Snibbe's long-time teacher). Settle in, find a comfortable seat, and let René’s clear, grounded guidance open the warm heart of awareness within you.Episode #199: The Warm Heart of Awareness: A Meditation with Ven. René FeusiFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beau...2025-07-2213 minHow to Train a Happy MindConcentration Makes Us Happy! with Ven. René Feusi #198It turns out that many of the greatest living Buddhist teachers are also some of the hardest to receive teachings from. Lacking ego, they have no need to promote themselves. This is the case with Scott's closest teacher, Venerable René Feusi. Out of a wish to maintain his solitude and focus on long-term students—and probably mostly out of humility—Venerable René has always declined Scott's invitations to appear on this podcast. But last year he gave a public talk at Tse Chen Ling Center in San Francisco on the benefits of concentrated awareness. We asked him if we c...2025-07-1550 minHow to Train a Happy Mind20 Minute Path to a Happy Mind Guided Meditation #197This 20 minute guided meditation comes from the sequence Scott shares in the How to Train a Happy Mind podcast and book. The stages are based on the Tibetan Buddhist lamrim, which was created more than a thousand years ago by the Indian Master Atisha Dipankar. Over the past decade, Scott has adapted it to be a non-religious way to transform the mind from states of frustration, craving, and loneliness to states of satisfaction, connection, and meaning. Scott leads live meditations like this every Sunday in our Train a Happy Mind community, which you can join fo...2025-07-0824 minHow to Train a Happy MindBeyond Bombs: A Meditation on Ending War and Cultivating Peace #195Instead of the episode we had planned to share today, a meditation from Tenzin Chogkyi as part of her beautiful conversation on joy, we're postponing that release by a week. In its place, we're sharing a meditation Scott Snibbe led just a couple of days ago with our Train a Happy Mind community. This meditation was recorded the day after the United States launched a new bombing campaign in Iran. In response, Scott reflects on the roots of violence, both in our world and in our minds, and to offer a path toward peace influenced by Tibetan B...2025-06-2453 minHow to Train a Happy Mind10-Minute Path to a Happy Mind Guided Meditation #193Scott Snibbe leads a 10-minute guided meditation that is based on the sequence he shares in the How to Train a Happy Mind podcast and book. Many Tibetan Buddhists do this meditation every day. If you don't have much time or want to start small, this is a good place to begin. It touches on the precious life, impermanence, cause and effect, suffering, renunciation, love, compassion, and interdependence.Episode 193: 10-Minute Path to a Happy Mind Guided MeditationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to...2025-06-1012 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Complete Path to a Happy Mind #192"I'll tell you something. I've learned it's hard work to be happy." Brian WilsonIn this special retreat episode, Scott Snibbe guides us through the full path to a happy mind—from appreciating the simple miracle of being alive to confronting our deepest mental habits and reconnecting with our capacity for kindness, meaning, and change.It’s not a quick fix or a life hack. It’s the whole path. And it might just shift how you see the world.Episode 192: The Complete Path to a Happy MindFrom A...2025-06-0346 minHow to Train a Happy MindHealing America's Racial Karma—Larry Ward #190Scott talks with Dr. Larry Ward, a student of Thich Nhat Hanh, and author of America's Racial Karma. His book is about how we heal from the trauma of racism, not just as a society, but in our own minds and bodies. In our conversation, Dr. Ward shares a profound truth: racism is a fiction, but one with very real consequences, and it lives not only in the structures of our society, but in our thoughts, our speech, and our nervous systems.Episode 190: Healing America's Racial Karma with Larry WardFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe...2025-05-2053 minHow to Train a Happy MindBeyond Us vs Them: Transforming Society Through Fierce Vulnerability with Kazu Haga #186This week, Scott is joined by transformative activist and restorative justice advocate Kazu Haga to discuss his new book, Fierce Vulnerability, which rethinks nonviolence as a path to healing and connection. In a world fueled by division, Kazu challenges the idea of winning against an enemy and asks: What if resistance wasn’t about force, but about vulnerability? If you’ve ever questioned whether conflict itself is keeping us stuck, this conversation is for you.Episode 186: Beyond Us vs Them: Transforming Society Through Fierce Vulnerability with Kazu Haga From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in...2025-03-2557 minHow to Train a Happy MindBitcoin and Buddhism #70 [rebroadcast]What can Buddhism teach us about how Bitcoin works & why it’s so valuable? What can Bitcoin teach us about emptiness, the interdependent nature of reality? Find out in this episode with Scott Snibbe!Episode 70: Bitcoin and BuddhismFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new fr...2025-02-1843 minHow to Train a Happy MindHow to Live a Happy Life: NPR's Laura Sydell Talks with Scott Snibbe #176NPR's Laura Sydell talks with Scott Snibbe about his book, How to Train a Happy Mind, at The Battery in San Francisco. They discuss interdependence (or emptiness) at length and also how great movies and comedians, like Jerry Seinfeld, can capture Buddhism's insights into how to live happy lives. Episode 176: NPR's Laura Sydell Talks with Scott SnibbeFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better worl...2024-11-2654 minHow to Train a Happy MindCompassion for our Country: Meditations for Healing After a Divisive Election #175The recent U.S. election has left our country more divided than ever, with Donald Trump elected as the next president. Whether this news fills you with hope or despair, today's episode offers a fresh perspective on how we can respond with curiosity, compassion, and a commitment to finding common ground even when it feels impossible.Scott shares his personal reflections on nonviolence, the deeper motivations that drive us all, and how you can still recognize the fundamental goodness in everyone, even those you vehemently disagree with. Through meditation and thoughtful exploration, you'll learn to soften your...2024-11-1254 minHow to Train a Happy MindDoes Nonviolent Protest Work? Kazu Haga #173Kazu Haga's book, Healing Resistance, explains that nonviolence isn't just refraining from harm, but a sophisticated six-step strategy that begins with research and dialogue and ends, most importantly, with reconciliation. He explains that the purpose of nonviolence is not just to create a change we desire in the world, but to heal relationships and enrich our sense of connectedness, respect, and interdependence with all beings. Kazu graciously took time off from raising his five-month-old child to speak about why nonviolence works and how to counter the common objections to nonviolence. Scott and Kazu also talk about healing f...2024-10-2956 min
How to Train a Happy MindDiary of a Yogini with Paula Chichester #171The ancient word yogi, or yogini in its female form, refers to someone who's dedicated their life to inner transformation through meditation. They often spend years or even decades in solitary retreat. Scott's teacher and friend Paula Chichester is one of the vanishingly few modern people who has chosen to live such a life of isolation and inner adventure. In this conversation, Paula talks about balancing the inner development fostered by meditation with the outer transformation of social action. She talks about the joys and challenges of long-term retreat and the practicalities of how to pay for i...2024-09-2446 minHow to Train a Happy MindStories We Tell Ourselves—Laurie Anderson & Scott Snibbe at Tibet House #170Scott speaks with artist and musician Laurie Anderson at New York's Tibet House about Scott's new book, How to Train a Happy Mind. They discuss how the tools of analytical meditation have helped them cultivate lives of meaning and satisfaction, and foster transformation and even joy through tragedy.For those of you unfamiliar with her work, Laurie Anderson is one of our greatest living artists. Her work includes spoken word and performance, top charting albums, music videos, digital art, film, virtual reality, and the invention of ingenious instruments like the tape bow violin and the talking stick...2024-09-1759 minHow to Train a Happy MindDr. Cornel West: Truth, Justice, and Love #169Dr. Cornel West combines a formidable intellect with an enormous heart and an unceasing drive for social justice that transcends his multiple identities as an academic, author, philosopher, theologian, political activist, social critic, and public intellectual. Many of you even know him as an actor for his brief, but memorable appearances, in The Matrix films. Of course, Dr. West is also an independent candidate in this year's U.S. Presidential Election. Scott spoke with Dr. West a couple of weeks ago about compassionate leadership, nonviolence, social and economic justice, and the balance between inner and outer transformation t...2024-08-2744 minHow to Train a Happy MindDJ Spooky + Snibbe at the Rubin Museum #168A couple of months ago, Scott Snibbe was in New York City for a conversation with Paul Miller at The Rubin Museum for the release of his recent book, How to Train a Happy Mind. Paul is an old friend who'd be famous enough for his incredible pioneering work with collage hip hop music as DJ Spooky, but he has so many other identities as an author, public intellectual, and artist.Episode 168: DJ Spooky + Snibbe at the Rubin MuseumFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute...2024-08-2050 minHow to Train a Happy MindFreeing Ourselves from Suffering: Anger, Craving, Pride, and War #167For this week's episode, we're sharing a recent meditation Scott Snibbe led for our new Train a Happy Mind community on letting go of suffering. Every Sunday morning, he leads a meditation on one of the topics from How to Train a Happy Mind. Sometimes he also expands into other topics or leads practices relating to current events. This topic's chapter is called Am I the Most Important Person in the Universe?In this talk and its meditation, Scott touches on how our own delusions of anger and attachment connect to the bigger problems in the world...2024-08-1354 minHow to Train a Happy MindTenzin Chogkyi & Scott Snibbe San Francisco Book Launch for How to Train a Happy Mind #164Tenzin Chogkyi talks to Scott Snibbe about his new book, How to Train a Happy Mind, at the Medicine for Nightmares bookstore in San Francisco.Episode 164: Tenzin Chogkyi & Scott Snibbe Medicine for Nightmares SF How to Train a Happy MindFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vege...2024-07-0951 minHow to Train a Happy MindRobert Thurman & Scott Snibbe at Tibet House: How to Train a Happy Mind #161In New York City, a couple months ago, I had the honor of sharing a public conversation with one of my Buddhist heroes, the renowned author and scholar Robert Thurman. In this episode's conversation, we share an edited recording from that evening, talking about everything from overcoming self-hatred, enjoying pleasure without attachment, getting ghosted by the Dalai Lama, and how one might come to have compassion for someone as dangerous and deadly as Vladimir Putin.Episode 161: Robert Thurman & Scott Snibbe at Tibet House: How to Train a Happy MindFrom August 28 to 31, Scott S...2024-06-0441 minHow to Train a Happy Mindsujatha baliga & Scott Snibbe in conversation: How to Train a Happy Mind #159Restorative justice practitioner sujatha baliga talks to Scott Snibbe about his new meditation book, How to Train a Happy Mind.Episode 159: sujatha baliga & Scott Snibbe in conversation: How to Train a Happy MindFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.2024-05-0744 minHow to Train a Happy MindBook Passage Talk with Derek Fagerstrom #156Derek Fagerstrom interviews Scott Snibbe about his new book, How to Train a Happy Mind, at San Francisco’s Book Passage. Derek is the co-founder of Pop-up Magazine, and has worked at Esquire, Interview, and Francis Ford Coppola's literary journal Zoetrope: All-Story. How to Train a Happy Mind is out now in paperback, e-book, and audiobook. You can find it anywhere you buy books.Episode 156: Book Passage Talk with Derek FagerstromFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and lone...2024-04-0238 minHow to Train a Happy MindPrecious Life Meditation from How to Train a Happy Mind #155Scott Snibbe leads a meditation from his new book, How to Train a Happy Mind, on how to make the most of our precious lives.Episode 155: Precious Life MeditationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOW2024-03-2618 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Precious Life—Chapter Reading from How to Train a Happy Mind #154Scott Snibbe shares a chapter from his new book, How to Train a Happy Mind: The Precious Life. If you enjoy this episode, check out the whole audiobook on Audible, which includes guided meditations!Episode 154: The Precious Life—Chapter Reading from How to Train a Happy MindFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forest...2024-03-1921 minHow to Train a Happy MindHow to Train a Happy Mind book launch conversation with Scott Snibbe and Vicki Mackenzi #153This is an exciting episode for the podcast because my book, How to Train a Happy Mind, comes out today. To celebrate its release, we're sharing a conversation I had with best-selling author Vicki McKenzie a couple of weeks ago at a book preview event in London, in front of a live audience.This podcast is where I developed most of the ideas for the book, based on more than a decade leading meditations that eventually formed many of our episodes. I want to thank all our listeners for your feedback and support over these four years...2024-03-1238 minHow to Train a Happy MindEquanimity Meditation with Scott Tusa #149Scott Tusa leads an equanimity meditation—based on the Mahayana Buddhist tradition—that works with three kinds of relationships in our life. The purpose is to cultivate compassion, loving-kindness, and understanding.Episode 149: Equanimity Meditation with Scott TusaFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends...2024-01-3015 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Is the Right Thing to Do? with Scott Tusa #148After ordination by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Scott Tusa spent nine years as a Tibetan Buddhist monk. Today, he's an irreverent meditation teacher and a brand-new father. In this episode, Scott and I talk about some hard decisions we've faced in life, and that the world faces today, asking ourselves, What is the right thing to do? Is there a right and wrong from a Buddhist perspective? How did Scott and I deal with the painful decisions we faced in our lives to get divorced and to give up a monastic life? We also grapple with one of...2024-01-2338 minHow to Train a Happy MindLetting Go and Looking Forward in the New Year #147Scott Snibbe shares a gentle Buddhist approach to self-forgiveness, letting go, establishing good habits, and rejoicing in all the good we've done. Move into the new year with your best intentions and best self.Episode 147: Letting Go and Looking Forward in the New YearFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying deli...2024-01-0229 minHow to Train a Happy MindDan Harris: Love, Skepticism, and the "Cheesy Upward Spiral" [rebroadcast]Dan Harris, former ABC News anchor and host of the hit podcast Ten Percent Happier, talks with Scott Snibbe about love, skepticism, Buddhism, and the "cheesy upward spiral." Episode 134: Dan Harris: Love, Skepticism, and the "Cheesy Upward Spiral"This is a rebroadcast of one of the year's most popular episodes.From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the...2023-12-1942 minHow to Train a Happy MindAI, Compassion, and Enlightenment with Dr. David Kittay #77/78 [rebroadcast]Professor David Kittay talks with Scott Snibbe about whether we should treat AIs with compassion, whether we are living in a simulation, and whether technologically assisted enlightenment might be possible.Dr. David Kittay teaches philosophy, religion, and technology at Columbia University, where his students call his courses life changing. Dr. Kittay is also an author, a translator, and a Tibet House board member. His latest publication is the Vajra Rosary Tantra, available from Wisdom Publications.Episode 77: Buddhism and Technology with Dr. David Kittay Episode 78: Buddhism and Technology with Dr. David Kittay (Part 2)...2023-10-311h 01How to Train a Happy MindCompassionate AI with Kristian Simsarian #80 [rebroadcast]Artificial intelligence expert Kristian Simsarian joins host Scott Snibbe to discuss how we can create ethical, unbiased and compassionate AI, whether we should be scared of AI, and the implications of AI on the future of work and spirituality.Kristian Simsarian has a Ph.D. in human-robot collaboration and worked as a Robotics and AI computer scientist before holding leadership positions at IDEO, the California College of the Arts, Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center and many other organizations. He helped found Humans for AI and helped grow the Center for Humane Technology in its early years. His...2023-09-1244 minHow to Train a Happy MindLoving Our Parents, Loving Our Children #76 [rebroadcast]Host Scott Snibbe offers touching personal stories and a meditation on how to best love our parents and our children using powerful Buddhist teachings and techniques on understanding, listening, and compassion.Episode 76: Loving Our Parents, Loving Our ChildrenFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new...2023-09-0537 minHow to Train a Happy MindDan Harris: Love, Skepticism, and the "Cheesy Upward Spiral" #134Dan Harris, former ABC News anchor and host of the hit podcast Ten Percent Happier, talks with Scott Snibbe about love, skepticism, Buddhism, and the "cheesy upward spiral."Episode 134: Dan Harris: Love, Skepticism, and the "Cheesy Upward Spiral"From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new...2023-07-2542 minHow to Train a Happy MindCompassion with Ven. Sangye Khadro and Scott Snibbe #129Last year I had the privilege to participate in a dialogue on compassion with my teacher, Venerable Sangye Khadro who is also well known by her Western name Venerable Kathleen McDonald. Venerable Sangye Khadro is the author of How to Meditate and Awakening the Kind Heart. She's a very active Buddhist teacher and a fully ordained nun, which is the highest level of ordination for a Buddhist monastic.It was wonderful to hear her share wisdom on this topic, touching on many practical ways to deal with everyday pain and conflict in our lives using this universal...2023-03-0752 minHow to Train a Happy MindTen Million Percent Happier - Interview with Scott Snibbe #105Scott Snibbe becomes the interviewee in this week's episode as Ven. Fabienne Pradelle speaks with him about finding meaning and spirituality through art and creativity, love without attachment, misconceptions about Buddhism, the afterlife, and our infinite potential.Ep. 105: Ten Million Percent Happier - Interview with Scott SnibbeFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redw...2022-04-261h 02How to Train a Happy MindVaccines and Compassion #94How does the Buddhist view on compassion help us think about COVID vaccine controversies? What do the Dalai Lama and the Pope have to say about vaccination? Without arguing for any one position, host Scott Snibbe and Producer Tara Anderson talk about how to stay loving and connected to people we disagree with, how to avoid "compassion fatigue," and how to (not) convince somebody to see things our way. Scott and Tara also share personal stories about growing up in an anti-vax household and deciding whether to vaccinate their young children.Episode 94: Vaccines and Compassion...2021-11-3049 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat is Enlightenment with Dr. Jan Willis #90Is enlightenment really possible for people like you and me? Do we lose ourselves when we become enlightened? Are there people on earth who are enlightened right now? Buddhist scholar Dr. Jan Willis answers these questions and more as we explore what enlightenment (or awakening) really means.Episode 90: What is Enlightenment with Dr. Jan WillisDr. Jan Willis has a distinguished career as a scholar and teacher of Buddhism that spans fifty years. She first met Tibetan Buddhists in India and Nepal at age nineteen and went on to earn degrees in Philosophy...2021-11-0245 minHow to Train a Happy MindCompassionate AI with Kristian Simsarian #80Artificial intelligence expert Kristian Simsarian joins host Scott Snibbe to discuss how we can create ethical, unbiased and compassionate AI, whether we should be scared of AI, and the implications of AI on the future of work and spirituality.Kristian Simsarian has a Ph.D. in human-robot collaboration and worked as a Robotics and AI computer scientist before holding leadership positions at IDEO, the California College of the Arts, Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center and many other organizations. He helped found Humans for AI and helped grow the Center for Humane Technology in its early years. His...2021-08-2444 minHow to Train a Happy MindLoving Our Parents, Loving Our Children #76Host Scott Snibbe offers a touching personal talk and meditation on how to best love our parents and our children using powerful Buddhist teachings and techniques on understanding, listening, and compassion.Episode 76: Loving Our Parents, Loving Our ChildrenFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new...2021-07-2737 minHow to Train a Happy MindScott Tusa's Guided Meditation on Open Awareness #62Scott Tusa leads a guided meditation on open awareness, allowing feelings and thoughts to arise in our body and mind without fixation or judgment.Episode 62. Scott Tusa's Guided Meditation on Open AwarenessFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP N...2021-04-2021 minHow to Train a Happy MindScott Tusa on Meditation and Mindfulness in Everyday Life #61Scott Tusa, mindfulness and Buddhist meditation teacher, talks with us on balancing a committed life of a Buddhist practitioner with the everyday life of work, friends, and family. He also shares some of the common challenges people face in meditation, and constructive, compassionate ways that we can work with these challenges.Episode 61. Scott Tusa on Meditation and Mindfulness in Everyday LifeFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving rela...2021-04-1344 minHow to Train a Happy MindBirth, Death, and Infinity #56I want to tell you a story about birth and death and infinity. We’re all born and we’re all going to die, but I don’t know how many of you have ever felt a connection to infinity. I want to tell you about the time in my life when I felt this connection to infinity every day. And I also want to tell you about how I lost it, and whether it’s possible to get it back again.Episode 56: Birth, Death, and InfinityFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-perso...2021-03-0930 minHow to Train a Happy MindMeditation on Loving-Kindness and Compassion with Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche #55A short guided meditation on loving-kindness and compassion by Tibetan Buddhist lama, author, and abstract painter Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche.Episode 55. Meditation on Loving-Kindness and Compassion with Dzigar Kongtrul RinpocheFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOW2021-03-0213 minHow to Train a Happy MindDzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche on Patience, Compassion, and Art #54Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche, renowned Tibetan Buddhist lama, author, and abstract expressionist painter talks about the mind, compassion, patience, and art.Episode 54. Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche on Patience, Compassion, and ArtFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOW2021-02-2330 minHow to Train a Happy MindStephen Butler on Openness, Gentleness, and Mr. Rogers' Buddhism #53Our podcast producer finally steps in front of the mic! Stephen Butler, producer of Grammy-nominated Indigenous and Native American music on gentleness, openness, and the Buddhism of Mr. Rogers. Episode 53. Stephen Butler on Openness, Gentleness, and Mr. Rogers' BuddhismFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thou...2021-02-1638 minHow to Train a Happy Mind10 Minute Meditation on LoveA 10-Minute guided meditation on love shows us how to expand our love for our partner and family to a loving-kindness that embraces all beings.10 Minute Meditation on LoveFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOW2021-02-1211 minHow to Train a Happy MindI Want to Know What Love Is #52If you want to know what love is, search beyond eighties songs to the wisdom of Buddhist loving-kindness that expands our love to all beings while also deepening our connection to our partner and family. This special Valentine's Day episode on love asks great Buddhist teachers the question of what love is, including Dr. Jan Willis, Ven. Kathleen McDonald, Dr. Rick Hanson, Geshe Tenzin Namdak, and Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche.Episode 52: I Want to Know What Love IsFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to...2021-02-0929 minHow to Train a Happy MindTen Questions for Dr. Robert Thurman (Part 2) #51Part two of our mind expanding interview with Buddhist scholar and author Dr. Robert Thurman, who shares what is a healthy kind of ego, how to be a Buddhist without belief, and a powerful vision of enlightenment and Nirvana.Episode 51. Ten Questions for Dr. Robert Thurman (Part 2)From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of Cali...2021-02-0235 minHow to Train a Happy MindTen Questions for Dr. Robert Thurman (Part 1) #50Buddhist scholar Dr. Robert Thurman answers 10 profound questions: What is the nature of time? What is enlightenment? Why is there no evidence for "nothing?" What is a psychonaut? And why is it important to be skeptical of both Buddhism and science? Join us for this first half of a wonderful conversation with one of the world's greatest minds.Episode 50. Ten Questions for Dr. Robert Thurman (Part 1)From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a ha...2021-01-2634 minHow to Train a Happy MindDr. Rick Hanson's Five Breaths MeditationDr. Rick Hanson, best-selling author of Buddha’s Brain and Neurodharma, shares his "Five Breaths" neuroscience-based guided meditation.Dr. Rick Hanson's Five Breaths MeditationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOWSupport the show2021-01-1912 minHow to Train a Happy MindDr. Rick Hanson, Author of Neurodharma and Buddha’s Brain #48Dr. Rick Hanson, best-selling author of Buddha’s Brain, Hardwiring Happiness, and Neurodharma, shares insights from neuroscience on how to grow our extraordinary potential for inner happiness without denying any of our pain.Episode 48. Interview with Dr. Rick Hanson, Author of Neurodharma and Buddha’s BrainFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of Calif...2021-01-121h 07How to Train a Happy MindBeginning the New Year with a Purification Meditation #47Our first episode of 2021 is a guided meditation on "purification": a healthy way to let go of regrets from the last year and make a realistic path to being our best self this year through forgiveness and self-acceptance.Episode 47: Beginning the New Year with a Purification MeditationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of Cali...2021-01-0538 minHow to Train a Happy MindDr. Jay Garfield on Healthy Realities #46In this deep and fascinating interview with Dr. Jay Garfield on the connection between compassion and emptiness, he shows how, when we realize our interdependence on other beings, ideas, and the world around us, it helps us to dissolve our self-centered view and embrace the needs of all beings and the reality around us.Episode 46. Dr. Jay Garfield on Healthy RealitiesFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving rela...2020-12-2951 minHow to Train a Happy MindMeditation on Gratitude, Dedication, and Determination #45From the Buddhist, as well as the psychological and scientific perspectives, gratitude and dedication aren’t just polite bookends. The process of feeling gratitude and resolve creates the mental and neurological causes to actually become better people and to better serve the world.Episode 45: Meditation on Gratitude, Dedication, and DeterminationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwoo...2020-12-2225 minHow to Train a Happy MindSecular Guided Meditation on the Buddhist Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (Lamrim) #44We’ve spent the better part of a year going step-by-step through a modern secular version of the major topics from Tibetan Buddhism’s Stages of the Path, what we call A Skeptic’s Path to Enlightenment. In Tibetan this sequence is called the lamrim. It’s a series of meditations that progressively move our mind to better understand itself, bring out our best qualities, and create the causes for a happy meaningful life. People who practice the Stages of the Path in the Tibetan style normally review the whole path every day as part of a meditatio...2020-12-0850 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: The Interdependent Self #43Who am I? From the Buddhist perspective, there’s a systematic way of asking this question of who you are in the form of a meditation on the ultimate nature of the self, or "emptiness." This meditation is said to be the strongest antidote to our disturbing states of mind and a cause for greater self-awareness, happiness, and connection with others.Episode 43: Guided Meditation — The Interdependent SelfFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a hap...2020-11-2444 minHow to Train a Happy MindWho Am I? #42Are you your body? Are you your mind? Are you a collection of thoughts, memories, and neural connections that could be uploaded into a computer to live forever? Or are you an old-fashioned soul? This episode probes the nature of the self using the Buddhist notion of emptiness, searching for the partless, independent, unchanging "I" that ordinarily appears to us, and finding a self that's far richer and interconnected with reality and with others.Episode 42: Who Am I?From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll...2020-11-1737 minHow to Train a Happy MindGeshe Tenzin Namdak on the Mind, Disturbing Emotions, and the Ultimate Nature of Reality #41"Buddhism is not meant to make people Buddhist … but to generate happy minds." Western Tibetan Buddhist master Geshe Tenzin Namdak on the mind, disturbing emotions, and emptiness, the ultimate nature of reality.Episode 41. Geshe Tenzin Namdak on the Mind, Disturbing Emotions, and the Ultimate Nature of RealityFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of Califo...2020-11-0444 minHow to Train a Happy Mind20-Minute Meditation on the Interdependent Nature of Reality #40Meditating on the interdependent nature of reality, or emptiness, breaks down the illusion of independent, partless, and unchanging objects; instead we observe their parts, causes, and our mind that wraps these with a label like phone, home, or our delicious dinner.Episode 40. 20-Minute Guided Meditation on the Interdependent Nature of RealityFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beau...2020-10-3021 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Interdependent Nature of Reality #39The Buddhist understanding of how things exist breaks objects down into parts, causes, and a mind that bundles them into the illusion of a solid, singular, unchanging entity. When we apply this analysis to an iPhone, we see that it is made up of almost all the elements in the periodic table, and is connected to thousands of hours of hard labor and the entire history of our civilization, planet, and universe.Episode 39. The Interdependent Nature of RealityFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore an...2020-10-2727 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: How Things Exist #38Objects around us ordinarily appear as if they are solid, singular, and separate from us. However, both science and the Buddhist understanding of reality show us that as we examine things more closely, they exist far more subtly and richly than they appear. This meditation focuses on an object most of us have strong feelings toward—our smartphone—breaking it apart into its myriad parts, and giving us a meditative glimpse of how it truly exists.This episode is the second in a series exploring the Buddhist topic of “emptiness,” or how things exist through parts, causes, and the...2020-10-2032 minHow to Train a Happy MindHow Things Exist #37The Buddhist view on reality, called emptiness, combines the awe of scientific knowledge with the inner, experiential knowledge that comes from meditation and critical reasoning to arrive at a feeling of interconnectedness. The first in a seven-art series on Buddhism's view of dependent origination looks at how objects exist using the example of that most modern wonder and addiction, our smartphone.Episode 37. How Things ExistFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happ...2020-10-1329 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: The Natural Goodness of our Mind — Ven. Sangye Khadro (Kathleen McDonald) #36A guided meditation by Ven. Sangye Khadro (Kathleen McDonald) on the natural goodness of our mind, or Buddha nature. In this meditation we let go of all our negative, disturbing states of mind like anger, anxiety, or fear; and cultivate our positive mental qualities of compassion, wisdom, and courage.Episode 36. Guided Meditation on the Natural Goodness of our Mind — Ven. Sangye Khadro (Kathleen McDonald)From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind...2020-10-0618 minHow to Train a Happy MindVenerable Sangye Khadro (Kathleen McDonald) on The Natural Goodness of our Mind #35Venerable Sangye Khadro (Kathleen McDonald), renowned author of How to Meditate and fully ordained Tibetan Buddhist nun, talks about the natural goodness of our mind, karma, and powerful analytical meditation mind training techniques for living a compassionate, meaningful life.Episode 35. Venerable Sangye Khadro (Kathleen McDonald) on The Natural Goodness of our MindFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the...2020-09-2934 minHow to Train a Happy MindSympathetic Joy: Opening Your Heart to the Happiness of Others #34Sympathetic joy is an easy-to-understand meditation practice that expands our love and compassion by rejoicing in all the good things that others did today. It counteracts greed, jealousy, and envy, and can be done kicking back on the couch at the end of a hard day.Episode 34. Sympathetic Joy: Opening Your Heart to the Happiness of OthersFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better worl...2020-09-2222 minHow to Train a Happy MindBe Willing to Get Woke - Interview with Dr. Jan Willis #33Dr. Jan Willis, renowned scholar and teacher of Buddhism, talks about race and racism through a Buddhist lens. She shares stories about growing up with racism in Birmingham, Alabama; marching with Dr. Martin Luther King there in 1963; brushes with the Black Panthers; her experience as one of the first Westerners to dive deeply into Tibetan Buddhism; and how we can compassionately combat systemic racism and Anti-Blackness today.Dr. Willis has a distinguished career as a scholar and teacher of Buddhism that spans fifty years. She first met Tibetan Buddhists in India and Nepal when she was nineteen...2020-09-1539 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Universalizing our Problems and Pleasures #32A guided meditation on “universalizing,” a Tibetan Buddhist mind training technique for transforming our everyday problems and pleasures through love and compassion.Episode 32. Guided Meditation: Universalizing our Problems and PleasuresFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOW2020-09-0815 minHow to Train a Happy MindUniversalizing: Transforming Pain and Pleasure into Love and Compassion #31One of the most powerful Tibetan Buddhist mind training techniques is universalizing, a practice that transforms everyday pains and pleasures into profound meditations. From arguing with the family to stuffing yourself with a delicious meal, life’s problems and pleasures can bring anger, guilt, and sadness. The meditation technique of “universalization” transform our everyday experiences of pleasure and pain into engines of love and compassion.Episode 31. Universalizing: Transforming Pain and Pleasure into Love and CompassionFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxie...2020-09-0125 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Tonglen Meditation: Exchanging Yourself with Others #30Tonglen is a meditation practice that combines meditating on loving-kindness with meditating on compassion to release our own pain, suffering, and loneliness. In translation, tonglen practice can be called “taking and giving” or “exchanging self with other." Tonglen is one of the “mind training” techniques from Tibetan Buddhism that reverses our ordinary state of mind of selfishly seeking happiness and pleasure for ourselves and those close to us. Instead, we willingly open ourselves to the suffering of others.Episode 30. Guided Tonglen Meditation: Exchanging Yourself with OthersFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation...2020-08-1825 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Compassion Meditation #29A 15-minute guided meditation on compassion: the wish to take away others’ suffering.Episode 29. Guided Compassion MeditationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOWSupport the show2020-08-1117 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Is Compassion? #28Compassion is starting to rival mindfulness as the next most popular up-and-coming form of secular meditation. But what is compassion? Compassion, from the Buddhist perspective, is not just empathizing with others’ suffering, but actively wishing to take it away.Episode 28. What Is Compassion?From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoyi...2020-08-0426 minHow to Train a Happy MindKhen Rinpoche Geshe Tashi Tsering on Karma, Analytical Meditation, and Mindfulness #27Khen Rinpoche Geshe Tashi Tsering shares his profound insights on a secular understanding of karma, the importance of analytical meditation, and a warning that the popularity of meditation today might just kill it.Episode 27. Khen Rinpoche Geshe Tashi Tsering on Karma, Analytical Meditation, and MindfulnessFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjo...2020-07-2838 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation on Love #26A guided meditation on love, or loving-kindness, the expansive form of love wishing happiness not only to friends and family but to all beings everywhere including our enemies.Episode 26. Guided Meditation on LoveFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN...2020-07-2123 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Is Love? #25Love is complex in our culture, tied up with finding a single person to satisfy our huge list of needs and dreams who we then grant the exclusive gift of our affection. But love—loving-kindness from the Buddhist perspective—is simpler, free from attachment. It's wishing others to be happy.Episode 25. What Is Love?From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens...2020-07-1422 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Dalai Lama’s “Simple Meditation” #24On Ten Percent Happier a few weeks ago, The Dalai Lama described to Dan Harris a “simple meditation” for these times. This guided meditation is an interpretation of the two meditations His Holiness recommends in the morning: meditating on the mind and meditating on the kindness of others.Episode 24. The Dalai Lama's "Simple Meditation"From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens...2020-07-0729 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Transforming Bias with Equanimity #23The Buddhist meditation on equanimity teaches a technique to eliminate bias and expand our love and concern from family and friends to strangers and even enemies. It tames our fierce attachment to loved ones and our anger toward enemies for a stabler, happier mind and a more just and equitable world.Episode 23: Guided Meditation: Transforming Bias with EquanimityFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a bett...2020-06-3020 minHow to Train a Happy MindSpiritual Democracy #22In everyday life we’re torn between fierce attachment to our loved ones and anger at those that give us trouble. But Buddhism, democracy, and social justice tell us that all people deserve the same rights and freedoms: we’re all equal and we all deserve happiness. The Buddhist meditation on equanimity, applied to our everyday relationships and the painful daily news, teaches us a technique of “spiritual democracy” for developing healthy feelings of connection to others—even those we most despise.Episode 22. Spiritual DemocracyFrom Augus...2020-06-2329 minHow to Train a Happy MindInterview: Venerable Robina Courtin — Buddha's Science of Mind #21Venerable Robina Courtin, Buddhist nun and advocate for prisoner’s rights, on how activists can leverage meditation and mind training, how Buddhism functions as a science of the mind, and how being a Buddhist doesn’t mean being a pushover.Episode 21. Venerable Robina Courtin — Buddha's Science of MindFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of Califor...2020-06-1748 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Fighting Systemic Racism through Compassionate Action #BlackLivesMatter #20A guided meditation on fighting the systemic racism against Black Americans through compassionate action.Episode 20. Guided Meditation: Fighting Systemic Racism through Compassionate Action #BlackLivesMatterFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOWSupport the show2020-06-0931 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Adventure So Far: Analytic Meditation on the Stages of the Path #19A guided analytical meditation through Skeptic’s Path meditations, based on Tibetan Buddhism’s Lamrim Stages of the Path. Each meditation is part of an adventure for the mind to bring about inner joy and purpose considering Life’s Preciousness, Impermanence, Cause & Effect, Refuge, Suffering, and Renunciation.Episode 19. The Adventure So Far: Analytic Meditation on the Stages of the PathFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a bett...2020-06-0250 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Renunciation #18Dostoevsky once said, “The best way to keep a prisoner from escaping is to make sure he never knows he's in prison.” This is the point of meditating on renunciation: to gain a clear-eyed sense of our state of mind right now, with many moments of frustration and anger and impatience and craving: feelings that we'd rather be free from. And turning away from these delusions toward liberation, a the true source of refuge that we can find within our own mind.Episode 18. Guided Meditation: RenunciationFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person medi...2020-05-2624 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Red Pill of Renunciation - Embracing Reality as It Is #17What do The Matrix and Jerry Seinfeld have to do with renouncing suffering?Episode 17. The Red Pill of Renunciation - Embracing Reality As It IsFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SIGN UP NOWSupport the show2020-05-1928 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Letting Go of Suffering #16A clear-eyed meditation on suffering: both what suffering is, and the mental source of suffering in our delusions of attachment, anger, and self-centered ignorance. We practice the antidotes to these delusions, giving us tools for a more balanced, less self-centered view of our experience that offers sustained stability and happiness through life’s challenges and desires.Episode 16: Guided Meditation - Letting Go of SufferingIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review in the iTunes App StoreFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Va...2020-05-1229 minHow to Train a Happy MindAm I More Important Than Everyone Else in the Universe? #15Do each of us believe deep down that we’re just a little bit more important than everyone else? My happiness, my goals, my relationships? The root cause of our suffering from the Buddhist perspective is this belief, a delusion called ignorance, seen as the true source of all our suffering: from disappointment in the face of life’s setbacks, to the dissatisfaction we can feel even when we get exactly what we want. It’s a retelling of the Buddha’s very first teaching, The Four Noble Truths: on suffering, its causes and antidotes, with a modern twist.2020-05-0539 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Do You Do When You're Alone? #14What do you do when you’re alone? When you’re anxious, lonely, or afraid, when you feel strong craving? What do you turn to? In this episode we look at where our mind runs when we feel pain, when we don’t feel balanced or whole. We’ll examine the Buddhist view on this subject that reveals a deep source of strength and support within our own minds accessible to each of us any time we need it.Episode 14: What Do You Do When You're Alone?If you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating...2020-04-2828 minHow to Train a Happy MindPodcast Trailer - How to Train a Happy MindThe How to Train a Happy Mind podcast brings Buddhist meditation to modern people hungry for happy, meaningful lives. Each week on the podcast, I and my guests share powerful mind training techniques that go beyond mindfulness to harness our intelligence, emotions, and imagination. Our approach to meditation is secular, based on science and psychology, yet grounded in the authentic thousand-year old tradition of analytical mediation I learned directly from great Tibetan Buddhist masters including His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Come check it out!From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani...2020-04-2801 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Alone Together #13Millions are now faced with enforced solitude, while others, in the crush of families together all day, realize how much we needed that time alone we took for granted. The essence of meditation is getting to know yourself alone, without social stimulus, entertainment, or reputation—what we truly are deep inside ourselves. There, we can find in our mind a place of satisfaction that’s equally at ease when we’re alone or when we’re with others.Episode 13: Guided Meditation — Alone TogetherIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review in the iTu...2020-04-2134 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Mental Cause and Effect #12A meditation practice of self reflection, taking control of the mental cause and effect that's normally unconscious: the habits and activities conditioned by evolution, our upbringing, society and the media. This is a practice you can do at the end of each day: reviewing your day, rejoicing in the positive, and finding ways to sincerely forgive yourself for anything that you regret, so you can sleep better and be your best self the next day.Episode 12. Guided Meditation: Mental Cause and EffectIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review in...2020-04-1423 minHow to Train a Happy MindMental Cause and Effect #11Science has greater and greater mastery in understanding and controlling physical cause and effect, from planets to particles, but we are only starting to understand cause and effect in our minds. Evolution, habits, and society all affect our behavior. How do we gain conscious control of our behavior, much less our thoughts? One method is a daily practice of self-appreciation and self-forgiveness that lets us release regret and pain to face each day with renewed presence and joy.Episode 11: Mental Cause and EffectIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review...2020-04-0733 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Embracing Impermanence #10A guided meditation on impermanence that helps us release fear and anxiety to embrace the constant change at every scale of reality: from particles, possessions, homes, and the environment, to our thoughts, feelings, and perceptions, and relationships. When we embrace impermanence, we more easily take on challenges like today’s Coronavirus crisis. We become more fully present to those around us and we can even more deeply appreciate life’s impermanent pleasures.Episode 10. Guided Meditation: Embracing ImpermanenceIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review in the iTunes App StoreFr...2020-03-3122 minHow to Train a Happy MindEmbracing Impermanence #9We cling to things as if they won’t change, but change is the nature of reality. When we embrace impermanence, we prepare ourselves for big changes, and are able to let go of our fear and anxiety to become more fully present to those around us, to make the most meaningful choices day-to-day, and to more deeply appreciate life’s fleeting pleasures.Episode 9. Embracing ImpermanenceIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review in the iTunes App StoreFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retr...2020-03-2425 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Combatting Coronavirus Fear With Compassion #8A guided meditation combatting fear of the Coronavirus through compassion using the technique of Taking and Giving (in Tibetan, Tonglen). We soothe our own fear and anxiety by imagining how others are suffering now, just as we are. And we sincerely wish to help, to take away their pain, through a powerful guided visualization.Episode 8. Guided Meditation: Combatting Coronavirus Fear With CompassionIf you're enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating or review in the iTunes App StoreFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute...2020-03-1727 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: What Is the Mind? #7This guided meditation takes us through different ways of observing the mind, first examining its ever-present parts: perception, feeling, will, and awareness. Then we explore the nature of subjective reality itself by asking what is the mind without thoughts? Where is the space of our consciousness? And, how finely can we slice moments of consciousness? Do we ever arrive at a quantum of consciousness?Episode 7. Guided Meditation: What Is the Mind?From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cult...2020-03-1029 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Is the Mind? #6If the mind is our thoughts, then what is it that observes those thoughts? What are we without thoughts? Do we ever truly see an object, or only its mental reconstruction? Though we are all convinced that we have one, science has no agreed definition for consciousness or mind. Even subjectively, the mind is elusive, difficult to pin to any specific mental experience.Episode 6. What Is the Mind?From August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the...2020-03-0320 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: The Preciousness of Life #5A guided meditation on the preciousness of our next 24 hours alive and our unique place in the universe as science understands it: intelligent, self-aware beings at the end of 14 billion years’ cosmic and biological evolution.Episode 5. Guided Meditation: The Preciousness of LifeIf you are enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating and reviewFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world...2020-02-2517 minHow to Train a Happy MindThe Preciousness of Life from Cosmos to the Kardashians #4Regarding the possibility of reincarnation, Voltaire once said, “It is not more surprising to be born twice than once.” In this episode we contemplate the miracle of existing at all, from our place at the end of our universe’s 14 billion years’ evolution, to the simple joy of another 24 hours alive.Episode 4. The Preciousness of Life from Cosmos to the KardashiansIf you are enjoying our podcast, please leave us a rating and reviewFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, f...2020-02-1819 minHow to Train a Happy MindGuided Meditation: Stabilizing the Mind and Watching Thoughts #3A complete guided meditation session expanding your compassion, stabilizing concentration on the breath, and observing your thoughts.Episode 3. Guided Meditation: Stabilizing the Mind and Watching ThoughtsLeave us a rating and reviewFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cultivate the deeper causes of a happy mind; connected, loving relationships; and a better world. It all happens in the beautiful redwood forests of California, while enjoying delicious vegetarian meals and meeting thoughtful new friends.SI...2020-02-1131 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Is Meditation? #2Over the past few years meditation has become popular as a way to help reduce stress, be focused at work, sleep better, or simply relax. Yet meditation isn’t just a tool to improve focus or relax, but a way to strengthen the positive qualities we all naturally possess: compassion, kindness, generosity, patience, humor, and finding joy in everyday life. This episode explores this higher purpose of meditation through the less familiar technique of analytic meditation that uses stories, thoughts, and emotions to steer our minds toward happiness, meaning, and benefiting others.Episode 2: What Is Meditation?2020-02-0434 minHow to Train a Happy MindWhat Is A Skeptic's Path to Enlightenment? #1Introducing A Skeptic’s Path to Enlightenment, bringing the inner science of Buddhist meditation to twenty-first century people hungry for happy, meaningful lives. We take a secular approach to meditation that requires no belief beyond our current understanding of science and psychology, based on powerful Buddhist mind training techniques that use imagination, intelligence, and emotions to probe our inner and outer realities, and expand our compassion.Leave us a rating and reviewFrom August 28 to 31, Scott Snibbe is leading an in-person meditation retreat at Vajrapani Institute. We’ll explore antidotes to anxiety, fear, and loneliness—and cu...2020-01-2819 min