Lion’s Roar Foundation Podcasts

Author of Peak Mind Dr. Amishi Jha talks about the book, the natural capacity we have to cultivate our attention, and how you can function at your peak for the things that really matter in life.By Sandra Hannebohm

Editor-in-chief Melvin McLeod, deputy editor Andrea Miller, and associate editor Ross Nervig talk about the latest issue of Lion’s Roar magazine and some of the highlights therein, from Ted Lasso to Dogen.By Sandra Hannebohm

Buddhist meditation teacher Kate Johnson leads a session of Tonglen meditation informed by current events, and talks about her new book, Radical Friendship: 7 Ways to Love Yourself and Find Your People in an Unjust World.By Sandra Hannebohm

Pema Khandro Rinpoche shares the life of the Tibetan yogi Shabkar, whose practice and teachings were inseparable from loss and grief.By Sandra Hannebohm

Mushim Patricia Ikeda examines how spiritual work can help us generate wholeness, joy, ease, and even ancestral healing. Then, Rick Hanson guides a short meditation to rewire your brain for the better.By Sandra Hannebohm

AI scientist and Buddhist teacher Nikki Mirghafori talks about how to live and love more fully by facing our mortality, including a guided meditation.

On a pilgrimage to India Lion’s Roar’s Andrea Miller explores the life and teachings of the historical Buddha and the new insights she gained by being there. Then, Zen teacher Enkyo O’Hara shares a quick tip about the subtle joy of Shikantaza, also known as Silent Illumination or “just sitting.”

Psychologist and author of Neurodharma: New Science, Ancient Wisdom, and Seven Practices of the Highest Happiness, Rick Hansen shows Lion’s Roar’s Chris Pacheco how to use your mind to change your brain for the better, including a short practice.

Dream yoga specialist Andrew Holecek and one of the first American women to be ordained in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, Lama Tsultrim Allione, share their expertise on powerful practices and contemplations from the profound teachings of Tibetan traditions as featured in Lion’s Roar’s online learning series, Open Heart, Vajra Mind.…

Secular Dharma Foundation founder Dave Smith is teaching an online, teacher-directed, community-based buddhist addiction recovery course. Buddhadharma’s Koun Franz asked him about the Four Noble Tasks of recovery and how they inform his new program.

Sumi Loundon Kim, Buddhist chaplain at Yale University, talks with Buddhadharma’s Koun Franz about what she’s learned from teaching mindfulness to kids and their parents. Then, the Buddha is believed to have said the true nature of reality is beyond human comprehension, so journalist Judith Hertog asks former monk Georges Dreyfus can we know the tr…

Vanessa Sasson is a religious studies professor and author of Yasodhara: A Novel about the Buddha’s Wife, a fiction based on close study of historical Buddhist texts on the Buddha’s path to, and of, enlightenment. She talks with Lion’s Roar magazine’s Andrea Miller about the forgotten story of Siddhartha’s wife, shares an excerpt from the book, and…

American Tibetan Buddhist nun, Thubten Chodron, gives a humorous depiction of the consequences of believing in a solid self and an objective reality. Then, Chan teacher Guo Gu talks about founding Dharma Relief, a pan-Buddhist Covid relief program to distribute masks in the early months of the pandemic, and what’s next for the growing organization.…

Beth Wallace is Lion’s Roar’s Associate Publisher, Finance & Operations, but she’s also big on dharma and mindfulness, and helps people understand and experience these for themselves. She sat down with Lion’s Roar’s Rod Meade Sperry to delve into the benefits of mindfulness at work, how work has changed since mindfulness entered the mainstream, and…

Buddhadharma’s Koun Franz interviews Chan teacher and scholar Guo Gu about the essence of his latest book, Silent Illumination: A Chan Buddhist Path to Natural Awakening, in which he explains embodied practice and Chan methods of realizing your Buddha nature.

Korean American Zen priest Cristina Moon responds to the recent rise in anti-Asian violence in her article, “Anti-Asian Violence Is an Attack On Us All.” Then a quick conversation with Zen teacher Sensei Dorothy Dai En Friedman, recorded in preparation for Love & Resilience: The Contemplative Care Summit -- register at lionsroar.com/care.…

In this special episode featuring music from Buddhist artists, Jessica Pimentel from Orange is the New Black talks to Lion’s Roar’s Ross Nervig about the intersection between her practice of Buddhism and her role as the frontwoman for the indie death metal group, Alekhine’s Gun. Then, rapper and meditation teacher Born I Music talks about the inspi…

Teacher, author, and radical black activist Lama Rod Owens explores what it means to let go of the person you think you are, and how to face the inevitable discomfort and brokenheartedness that comes with working to liberate yourself and others.

Chenxing Han challenges mainstream assumptions about American Buddhism with Be the Refuge: Raising The Voices Of Asian American Buddhists – a book that calls out the whitewashing and erasure of diverse communities and centers on the voices of young Asian Americans. Buddhadharma’s Koun Franz asks how the book was inspired, and Han dispels some of th…

Zen teacher and author Josh Bartok talks to Andrea Miller about the process of writing Buddhist children's literature, the concept of loving-receiving, and his latest children's book, I See You, Buddha.By Lion’s Roar Foundation

In honour of the life of Sojun Mel Weitsman we’re sharing a selection of clips in which you’ll hear him speak personally about his early days with Suzuki Roshi, the founding of the San Francisco Zen Center, and the founding the Berkeley Zen Center. Then, Buddhadharma’s Koun Franz is joined by Rory Lindsay, a Harvard University doctorate in South As…

The prisoner subscription program is just one of the positive things we’re able to do because of the generosity of readers and listeners. So Lion's Roar's Rebecca Pearson, Bakes Mitchell, and Ross Nervig got together to tell the story of how the program was inspired, and how listeners can help make the dharma more accessible to prisoners in need. P…

Lama Tsomo shares a guided tonglen meditation to apply your personal practice to widening social circles, and to move from fear into love.By Lion’s Roar Foundation

Lion's Roar's Andrea Miller shares Pema Chodron's advice on how to really “walk the walk” of a spiritual person, and what being a “fake” spiritual person really means. Also, Editor in Chief Melvin McLeod reflects on how we can lead with love and wisdom after the historic 2020 U.S. election.By Lion’s Roar Foundation

Author, teacher, and founder of the Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery, Tenzin Palmo has a frank discussion with fellow teacher and scholar, Pema Khandro Rinpoche about what advice Buddhism has to offer about health and illness during a time of pandemic. Tenzin Palmo also shares what she’s learned about suffering and gratitude while on solitary retreat in …