Category: Mindfulness

Jacqueline Freeman: Listening to the Wisdom of Honeybe...

Jacqueline Freeman is a biodynamic farmer and natural beekeeper who speaks internationally on organic beekeeping, women in agriculture, and cultivating a more holistic relationship with nature. With Sounds True, she has published the book Song of Increase: Listening to the Wisdom of Honeybees for Kinder Beekeeping and a Better World. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Jacqueline discuss the unique unity consciousness of bees and how understanding their perspective opens up profound new views of existence. They talk about the challenges facing bees in the modern world and why thriving beehives are essential for a healthy ecosystem. Finally, Jacqueline describes her ability to communicate with bees, the messages she has received from them, and the purpose of a bee’s life—from the bee’s perspective. (70 minutes)

Janine Shepherd: A Broken Body Is Not A Broken Person

Janine Shepherd is an author, motivational speaker, and former Olympic-level skier whose work draws upon an incredible journey of personal healing. She details that journey—from the car accident that broke her spine through intense rehabilitation and beyond—in the Sounds True book Defiant: A Broken Body Is Not a Broken Person. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Janine talk about the active choice to be alive and the power in knowing that decision. They speak on what it means to be truly resilient, and how one can experience fear without being afraid of it. Finally, Janine explains the realization that she is more than just a body and how that has reshaped her view of death and dying. (55 minutes)

Shinzen Young: The Science of Enlightenment, Part 2

Shinzen Young is a renowned mindfulness teacher known for his live gatherings, where he uses a scientific, “algorithmic” approach to explain the many aspects of meditation. With Sounds True, he has published the decades-in-the-making book The Science of Enlightenment: How Meditation Works. In the second half of an extensive interview on Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Shinzen talk about how to bring equanimity to both pleasurable and painful sensory experiences and how that has a purifying effect on consciousness. In order to ground this experience, Shinzen leads Tami and the audience on a guided practice to help give a “taste of purification.” Finally, Shinzen shares a quick, powerful technique for starting on the path to enlightenment and something intensely personal—his happiest thought. (75 minutes)

Shinzen Young: The Science of Enlightenment, Part 1

Shinzen Young is a renowned mindfulness teacher known for his live gatherings, where he uses a scientific, “algorithmic” approach to explain the many aspects of meditation. With Sounds True, he has published the decades-in-the-making book The Science of Enlightenment: How Meditation Works. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Shinzen speak on his approach to mindfulness, including a method of breaking down sensory experience into easily parsed categories. They talk about the three core powers of focused attention—sensory clarity, concentration, and equanimity—and how mindfulness can free us of the impression that our selves are static and unchanging. Finally, Shinzen and Tami discuss the different ways in which we can understand the concept of enlightenment, including an in-depth consideration of what Shinzen calls “classical enlightenment.” (66 minutes)

Krista Tippett: Virtue, Hope, Flesh & Faith

Krista Tippett is a Peabody® award-winning broadcaster and New York Times bestselling author whose works focus on faith, ethics, and moral wisdom. She is the host of the radio program and podcast On Being. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Krista discuss how journalism can be an art that drives healing, as well as the difference between being driven by a mission and being driven by an agenda. They speak on the virtue of hope and how it contrasts with optimism. Finally, Krista and Tami talk about the impetus for societal change, how that change happens in the margins, and the responsibility we have to see it shepherded to its fruition. (70 minutes)

Elena Brower: Following Your Homing Intuition

Elena Brower is a yoga instructor, artist, and designer who is devoted to cultivating meditation as our most healing habit. With Sounds True and coauthor Erica Jago, Elena has published Art of Attention: A Yoga Practice Workbook for Movement as Meditation. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with Elena about her upcoming audio offering, The Return Home: Essential Meditation Training for a Vital, Centered Life. Elena talks about the “home frequency” that each of us possesses, as well as how the return to that frequency requires a breaking of compulsive habits and addictions. They discuss the necessity of prayer and forgiveness, and consider the foundational principles of returning to one’s home frequency. Finally, Elena offers a practice for calming and returning to one’s center in the face of stress and overwhelm. (67 minutes)

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