Dharma If You Dare: Recent Episodes
Planet Dharma
In this final regular episode of Season 4, we finish up our series on the 4 pillars of Planet Dharma’s approach to working with students with a look at Shadow Integration. In this excerpt from their online course, Beyond the Cushion, Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei explain what the shadow is, how it shows up, how it can be reintegrated, and the tremendous benefits this work offers those who undertake it.
We hope you enjoyed this Season! Please take a moment to rate and review Dharma if you Dare on your favourite podcast app. It really helps people discover what we’re doing. And don’t forget to subscribe to notifications when the new season starts, along with any bonus content that may be shared this summer.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite in which Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei answer a question about why they wear red hats when they teach.
Theoretical understanding and food for thought are helpful inputs as we go about our daily life, but for deep spiritual change and liberation from suffering we need to engage in depth work. In this tradition - as you hear in this recording - along with retreat work, this manifests as personal engagement with qualified spiritual guides. As engaging, practical and empowering as these podcast recordings are, working with Qapel and Sensei in person is where the transformation really happens. If you are looking to actually transform your life and awaken in this lifetime, check out planetdharma.com to find your best way to connect and move that dream closer to reality.
In this third episode in our series on the 4 pillars of Planet Dharma’s approach to working with students, we will hear about Karma Yoga, also known as ‘the path of service’, or ‘meditation in action’. In this excerpt from their online course, Beyond the Cushion, Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei explore the many facets of karma yoga, and explain why it is such a good fit for many modern practitioners.
The path of karma yoga is a powerful approach that readily lends itself to supporting a 21st-century awakening. If this path of meditation-in-action appeals to you, we think your best bet is the 3-Month Intensive Karma Yoga program at Clear Sky Center. The program brings spiritual awakening into the modern context – by integrating karma yoga, meditation, psychology, environment, career, and community. To learn more, visit planetdharma.com/kyprogram.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite in which Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei give a brief introduction to the Tarot. In addition to looking at the deck’s origin and how it can be used, they give a short introduction to the first card, the Fool.
This summer at Clear Sky Center (and virtually for those unable to travel) Qapel and Sensei will be leading a deep dive on the Tarot & Western Archetypes. This practice is part of a powerful and concise path of liberation that draws on our own life experiences as Westerners and our native intelligence to help unfold deeper wisdom and understanding of our mystical life. You can learn more about the Tarot retreat, and learn how to attend in person or virtually at planetdharma.com/tarot.
In this excerpt from their online course, Beyond the Cushion, Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei talk about the value of meditation and the reason most of us find it so hard to maintain a solid practice. They also talk about their focus on ‘Meditating on the Fly’, the idea of integrating meditation into our daily lives outside of our formal daily practice, and the tremendous impact this can have.
There are many ways to experience this modern formulation of the teachings. These 4 pillars are infused into Planet Dharma's diverse range of in-person and virtual programming to meet spiritual seekers where they are. From online courses and classes to full-length meditation retreats on topics ranging from Buddhadharma to the Western Mysteries, you’ll find an offering that works for your context to speed up your spiritual unfoldment. Visit planetdharma.com/events to see which experience will help you with your awakening this year.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite in which Catherine Pawasarat Sensei talks about how meditation works and why we need to value the experience of the practice and the insights we uncover. Sensei also talks about the importance of having guidance and a support community to make the practice more secure and effective.
Although Planet Dharma also incorporates study, service and integrating the shadow into its approach, Sensei and Qapel are quick to underscore the invaluable benefits of a meditation practice. And one of the most powerful experiences available on the spiritual path is the meditation retreat. Each year, Planet Dharma offers a number of group retreat options. These span a large number of topics and practices, but each is grounded in transformational meditative practices. You can learn more and find the retreat to take your practice deeper at planetdharma.com/retreat.
We will finish this 4th season of the podcast with a series of four episodes that explore Planet Dharma's 4 pillars, the framework that Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei employ to help people progress on the spiritual path. The 4 Pillars are Study, Service, Meditation & Shadow Integration, and were introduced in Episode 12 of this season.
In today’s excerpt taken from their online course, Beyond the Cushion, Qapel and Sensei explore the power of studying the myriad aspects of our experience. They look at how applying this approach helps us understand our mind, emotions and our material world, including being able to more skillfully be in community together.
There are many ways to experience this modern formulation of the teachings. These 4 pillars are infused into a diverse range of in-person and virtual programming to meet spiritual seekers where they are. From online courses and classes to full-length meditation retreats on topics ranging from Buddhadharma to the Western Mysteries, you’ll find an offering that works for your context to speed up your spiritual unfoldment. Visit planetdharma.com/events to see which experience will help you with your awakening this year.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite in which Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei respond to an insight shared by a participant after he had a breakout room conversation with other people in the class.
Catherine Sensei will be leading a breathing retreat at the beautiful Clear Sky Center in May. This is an opportunity for practitioners of any level to deepen their connection to this powerful practice, guided by a world-class teacher, in person or virtually. Sensei will be fresh off her own 3-month personal cabin retreat, jumping back into teaching to lead this retreat on the practices from the Ānāpānasati Sutta, the Mindfulness of Breathing Discourse. You can learn more and register at planetdharma.com/breathing.
In this interview, Qapel talks about the part the Western Mysteries played in his own path and how his teacher, Namgyal Rinpoche, employed these teachings. He also discusses the similarities and differences between the Western and Eastern esoteric teachings, and how practitioners can leverage the Western mystical tradition as a path unto itself or as a way to complement Eastern practices.
Today's interview provides context for the upcoming Western Mysteries retreats: Tarot & Western Archetypes and The Hero’s Journey. You can learn more about these retreats, and learn how to attend in person or virtually at planetdharma.com/2022.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite in which Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei answer a question about how to stay fully engaged in wholesome and meaningful work without losing contact with the clear light mind of absolute reality.
Catherine Sensei will be leading a breathing retreat at the beautiful Clear Sky Center in May. This is an opportunity for practitioners of any level to deepen their connection to this powerful practice, guided by a world-class teacher, in person or virtually. Sensei will be fresh off her own 3-month personal cabin retreat, jumping back into teaching to lead this retreat on the practices from the Ānāpānasati Sutta, the Mindfulness of Breathing Discourse. You can learn more and register at planetdharma.com/breathing.
In today’s episode, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei and Doug Qapel Duncan introduce the topic of the Western Mysteries, or better named, the Divine Mysteries. They outline an overview of the main parts of the spiritual journey: the call, the initiation and the return. They also explore the historical place these traditions have had and some of the ways their influence shows up today.
Today’s recording is content from a previous course by Sensei & Qapel introducing this topic. This summer at Clear Sky Center (and virtually for those unable to travel) they will be leading a retreat on the Tarot & Western Archetypes, a powerful and concise path of liberation that draws on our own life experiences as Westerners and our native intelligence to help unfold deeper wisdom and understanding of our mystical life.
Later, in the fall, Qapel & Sensei will be in Europe to lead an in-person interactive retreat on The Hero’s Journey, a powerful mythical journey experience, integrating Eastern & Western traditions. Accepting the challenge of the Hero’s journey will leave you with a healthier, strengthened ego – one more fully integrated with the ‘shadow’ and thus more energetic and less susceptible to stress.
Learn more about these retreats by visiting planetdharma.com/2022.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite from Catherine Pawasarat Sensei on how goodness is misunderstood and undervalued and how much could be done collectively if we embraced its true power.
Catherine Sensei will be leading a breathing retreat at the beautiful Clear Sky Center in May. This is an opportunity for practitioners of any level to deepen their connection to this powerful practice, guided by a world-class teacher, in person or virtually. Sensei will be fresh off her own 3-month personal cabin retreat, jumping back into teaching to lead this retreat on the practices from the Ānāpānasati Sutta, the Mindfulness of Breathing Discourse. You can learn more and register at planetdharma.com/breathing.
In today’s episode, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei and Doug Qapel Duncan dive into intimate relationships, and explore the skills needed to make a partnership truly work. They look at how our cultural and family conditioning plays out in how we relate to our romantic and life partners. Qapel and Sensei also highlight some ways we can begin to shift our incomplete views about how relationships should be so we can use them to truly become more conscious.
Today’s recording is part of a full audio course called Conscious Love. In the 4-part course, Sensei and Qapel cover a wide variety of topics related to intimate relationships. They explore the conditioning that impacts our relationships and how we experience our partners, including imprinting in the womb and our early experiences with family. And most importantly, they show us how we can use what our relationships show and teach us to wake up. Podcast listeners can download the entire course for free at planetdharma.com/podcastlove.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei as they give advice to a student about how to train the mind to be attentive to the details in their relative, day-to-day reality without losing contact with the absolute truth that everything is light and empty of inherent existence.
If you are looking to incorporate more activities into your life to support contemplation and introspection, we recommend our weekly reflection series called ‘52 Reflections’. Sign up for free and once a week you’ll receive a short passage and follow-up prompt that you can use to frame your day, your week or a meditation session. You can learn more and sign up for free by visiting planetdharma.com/52reflections.
In today’s episode Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei explore the topic of The Clear Light of the Mind. They outline how our sense of reality is formed, including how early stimulation and imprinting creates the sense of solidity of our selves and our environment. They explore how we can use dreams as a way of understanding the ephemeral nature of our experience. And they look at how traditional buddhist practices help us to reconnect with the essential light nature of the universe.
Looking to engage with cutting-edge 21st-century dharma in a way that’s right for you? Each year, Planet Dharma offers a variety of programs and retreats to catalyze awakening for spiritual seekers. Over the course of this year, in addition to the Tarot retreat, Planet Dharma will be offering a variety of in-person and online retreats of various lengths. These offerings will be complemented by online courses and Enlighten Up dharma talks. There is also a dharma trip to the Baltics being planned for the fall. To learn more about these events and to see the diversity of material being offered, visit planetdharma.com/2022.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei as they introduce the 3 principles of Hua Yan Buddhist philosophy in preparation for their upcoming meditation retreat.
You can learn more about the retreat at planetdharma.com/huayan.
If you are looking to incorporate more activities into your life to support contemplation and introspection, we recommend our weekly reflection series called ‘52 Reflections’. Sign up for free and once a week you’ll receive a short passage and follow-up prompt that you can use to frame your day, your week or a meditation session. You can learn more and sign up for free by visiting planetdharma.com/52reflections.
In today’s episode Doug Qapel Duncan gives an overview of the major arcana from the Tarot. He goes over all 22 of the cards from the Fool to the World, giving pithy summary statements about each one and brief comments on how you can use or work with them.
The mandate of Planet Dharma is to help people awaken in this lifetime. In this recording you get a sense of this, both via the urgency of making every aspect of our experience conscious, and the framing of these 22 archetypes as an integrated path of spiritual awakening rather than simply a divination tool.
If you are interested in doing a deep dive into the Tarot, Planet Dharma is running a retreat called Tarot & Western Archetypes this summer. The retreat will take place at the beautiful Clear Sky Center in the British Columbia Rockies. There will also be the option to join virtually for those who are unable to travel. You can visit planetdharma.com/tarot for more information.
We hope you enjoy today’s soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei as they answer a question about how to balance staying absorbed in the bliss state during tantric deity practice while remaining attentive to the number of mantras recited.
If you are looking to incorporate more activities into your life to support contemplation and introspection, we recommend our weekly reflection series called ‘52 Reflections’. Sign up for free and once a week you’ll receive a short passage and follow-up prompt that you can use to frame your day, your week or a meditation session. You can learn more and sign up for free by visiting planetdharma.com/52reflections.
Today’s episode is our third in-a-row exploring the topic of leveraging archetypes for our spiritual unfoldment. In this talk, Doug Qapel Duncan discusses archetypes specific to the Vajrayana Buddhist tradition: tantric deities. He talks about the representations of body, speech and mind in the forms of Vajrapani, Chenrezi and Manjushri. He also introduces the 5 Buddha Families, and the 8 Bodhisattvas. Qapel explains how tantric deity practices transform our experience and help us move through negative patterns. The recording ends with a closer look at the Chenrezi practice, including an explanation of its symbology and mantra.
If you are interested in doing a deep dive into tantric deity work or learning how to get the most out of your work with sadhanas, the texts that describe these practices, Planet Dharma is about to run a weekend-long retreat called Practices for Power. There is still room for virtual participants, so check out planetdharma.com/sadhana to learn more about the home retreat.
Today’s recording is bonus content from Sensei & Qapel’s audio course Conscious Love. The course explores many aspects of intimate relationships, including the unconscious patterning that influences them and how to turn partnerships into opportunities for deep transformation.
Podcast listeners can download the entire course for free at planetdharma.com/podcastlove.
In today’s talk, Doug Qapel Duncan continues to dive deeper into the topic of archetypes, which he introduced in the talk we heard in Episode 11. He explores how archetypes operate at the personal & psychological level, and why we are drawn to them in contexts like storytelling. Qapel also explains the difference between what happens when these archetypes are operating consciously vs. unconsciously.
Spiritual archetypes, which we will hear more about in an upcoming episode are a vehicle for accessing higher states of consciousness. Arising yoga, also known as tantric deity practice, is one such manifestation of how to use spiritual archetypes as an awakening tool. If you are interested in doing a deep dive into arising yoga or learning how to get the most out of your work with sadhanas, the texts that describe these practices, Planet Dharma is running a weekend-long retreat called Practices for Power for both in-person and virtual participants. Check out planetdharma.com/sadhana for more information.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei on how arising yoga sadhana practice can help us move to more responsive and liberating planetary models of being.
If you are interested in learning more by doing a deep dive into arising yoga or learning how to get the most out of your work with sadhanas, Planet Dharma is running a weekend-long retreat called Practices for Power for both in-person and virtual participants. Check out planetdharma.com/sadhana for more information.
In today’s talk, taken from their course Beyond the Cushion delivered in the early days of the pandemic, Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei explore the idea of the modern monastery. They explain what traditional aspects of the monastic model are being carried forward and what new approaches and structures are being introduced to make the model relevant and effective in these times and beyond.
Qapel and Sensei discuss how they are working with students in community at Clear Sky Center as well as virtually to bring these approaches and structures into focus through the idea of a living lab. They touch on the topics of dharma training, karma yoga, study and other modalities to help support people’s spiritual awakening.
There are many ways to experience this modern formulation of the teachings. Planet Dharma offers a diverse range of in-person and virtual programming to meet spiritual seekers where they are. From online courses and classes to full-length meditation retreats on topics ranging from Buddhadharma to the Western Mysteries, you’ll find an offering that works for your context to speed up your spiritual unfoldment. Visit planetdharma.com/events to see which experience will help you with your awakening this year.
In this soundbite taken from his Enlightened Archetypes talk, Doug Qapel Duncan outlines the three levels of refuge. For many of us, just getting to the point where we are taking refuge in the buddha, dharma and sangha can feel like our biggest challenge, but it is important to be aware that in a way this is just the first step in the taking-refuge process.
Right now there are lots of things going on in the world that are challenging physically, emotionally and mentally. Reflecting on refuge reminds us that we will never fully resolve any of these challenges because, as phenomena rooted in samsara, they are inherently unresolvable. When we deepen our wholesome refuge we are actually able to address the challenges, without allowing our relative level of success to affect our clear, blissful and radiant state.
Taking a moment to rate and review Dharma if you Dare on your favourite podcast app is a great way to reinforce your aspiration to support wholesome, awakening activity and helps us connect with more people.
And check out the programming that we have on offer for this year: there’s a wide variety of opportunities for in-person and virtual learning and retreats. Check out planetdharma.com/2022.
In today’s talk, Doug Qapel Duncan introduces the topic of archetypes. He gives an overview of what archetypes are, how they operate in our lives and explains how to harness their power by making them conscious. In the talk, Qapel touches on the topic of refuge and its connection to how we relate to archetypes. He also briefly talks about samadhi, states of absorption, which you can hear more about in last week’s bonus episode.
This recording was made during the first course that had to switch to online only during the early days of the pandemic. Catherine Sensei was in a writing retreat at the time and so Qapel led this course on his own.
Interestingly, Sensei was finishing her book about the Gion Festival. If you would like to learn more about this fascinating and beautiful 1150-year-old month-long purification ritual focused on warding off epidemics, check out Catherine Sensei’s book, The Gion Festival: Exploring Its Mysteries. Sensei is the world’s foremost English language expert on the festival, and has used this position to help reintegrate people’s understanding of the festival as a massive spiritual ritual. You can find it, and some videos on the topic at gionfestival.org/book.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan on the three forms of meditative absorption: kamma samadhi, upacara samadhi & appana samadhi.
If you are looking to incorporate more activities into your life to support contemplation and introspection, I recommend our weekly reflection series called ‘52 Reflections’. Sign up for free and once a week you’ll receive a short passage and follow-up prompt that you can use to frame your day, your week or a meditation session. You can learn more and sign up for free by visiting planetdharma.com/52reflections.
In today’s talk, Doug Qapel Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei go over 4 secrets that make up a core part of how we orient ourselves in the world. Drawing on material from their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland, Sensei and Qapel explain each secret, how they operate in our lives and what possibilities open up when we integrate them into our conscious awareness.
Today’s episode covers ideas that Qapel and Sensei explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. If you’d like to explore these ideas further, you can visit the Planet Dharma website to receive a free copy of the chapter entitled ‘Protecting Against Hurt Is What Hurts’. Podcast listeners can download this free chapter of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/purelandchapter.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan on how to support loved ones through the dying process.
For an extended look at death, dying and rebirth, check out Episode 7 from this season, about 5 recordings back in the podcast feed. You can also watch that talk as a video on your YouTube channel at youtu.be/rzgLkJ1Yxxk.
If you are finding the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend the free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
In today’s talk, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei explores the topic of Women in Buddhism. She talks about her early years as a feminist, becoming an attendant for her male teacher, shifting views in the buddhist world around female rebirth & elevating female tantric deities, among other subjects.
Wisdom Publications has just published an interview with Catherine Sensei and Qapel on their Wisdom Podcast. It’s a wide-ranging interview, the first half of which lays out a detailed account of the life of Namgyal Rinpoche. It’s a great synopsis of the legacy that this generation of the lineage is currently carrying forward. The second half of the interview explores the ways that Qapel and Sensei are honoring the Namgyal tradition of bringing the teachings to new frontiers. You can find the interview - Episode #128 of The Wisdom Podcast - on your favourite podcast app and at wisdomexperience.org/wisdom-podcast/128-duncan-pawasarat.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei on the difference between states and stages - models from Integral Spirituality - and the roles meditation work and ego work play in developing the stages of development that we have access to.
Have you checked out our Patreon page yet? By becoming a micropatron you can help us upgrade our equipment, expand our production bandwidth and grow our listening audience. This also gives us a chance to connect with our most enthusiastic listeners with monthly updates and extended cuts of recordings. You can learn more and participate at patreon.com/planetdharma.
In today’s talk, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei and Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan explore the topic of Buddhanature. They look at the various terms that are used to describe it and highlight the challenge of talking about Buddhanature in a way that doesn’t fall into a conceptual trap that actually separates us from it. Qapel and Sensei also discuss switched off and switched on potential, how Buddhanature gets obscured and how an effective spiritual practice helps remove these obscurations.
Helping people experience spiritual awakening is the reason Planet Dharma exists. If you are also passionate about unfolding and awakening deeper and more quickly, we encourage you to enroll in one of our online courses. Each year Qapel and Sensei host multiple online courses live on various topics with the goal of empowering participants to dive deep into their awakening spiritual practice. Learn more about upcoming opportunities to join these online offerings at planetdharma.com/online.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei on how Buddhism worked with the shadow before modern psychology existed to name this aspect of our psyche.
And a note of clarification: In the talk, you’ll hear Qapel and Sensei reference Passionate Enlightenment, which is a book by Miranda Shaw on the history of women in Tantric Buddhism.
Today’s bonus recording covers ideas that Qapel and Sensei explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening. The third section of the book is entitled 'Crazy Wisdom' and covers a wide variety of topics, including The Shadow, Tantra, and Money, Sex & Power. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from this section of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/crazywisdom.
Today’s recording is a talk that Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan gave recently on the topic of death, dying and the bardos. In the talk, he explores how we really experience a death in every moment, and describes in detail the steps in the death process and how consciousness finds its way to its next rebirth.
If you are looking to incorporate more activities into your life to support contemplation and introspection, we recommend our weekly reflection series called ‘52 Reflections’. Sign up for free and once a week you’ll receive a short passage and follow-up prompt that you can use to frame your day, your week or a meditation session. You can learn more and sign up for free by visiting planetdharma.com/52reflections.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei on how to access higher states of consciousness through clearing the lower 3 chakras.
Today’s bonus recording covers ideas that Qapel and Sensei explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. The third section of the book is entitled 'Crazy Wisdom' and covers a wide variety of topics, including The Shadow, Tantra, and Money, Sex & Power. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from this section of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/crazywisdom.
In this interview, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei talks about the impact our views of connection with - or disconnection from - our natural environment have on the quality of our lives moment to moment. She highlights the centrality of natural laws in the very essence of the meaning of ‘dharma’. She also talks about her own journey of fully connecting with her ecosystem and reflects on what we can do as practitioners to help us do the same.
If these teachings resonate with you, we recommend you check out Planet Dharma’s library of articles on the website. There are over 100 blog posts offering dharmic perspectives on all sorts of issues of interest to awakening beings. You can check them out at planetdharma.com/articles.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei on the folly of assigning happiness to objects and how happiness is actually a result of being in a good state.
This bonus episode marks the 100th upload to the podcast feed! How many of the recordings have you listened to?
If you’ve benefited from these teachings, one of the best ways to honor that is to pay it forward: introduce the people in your life to the podcast. Word of mouth recommendations are the most meaningful and effective way for others to find these teachings. Post your favorite episode to social media or text a friend a link to some material you think might resonate. It’s a great way to practice generosity and support awakening in our world.
In this episode, Catherine Pawasarat Sensei and Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan explore parts of our natal charts that are particularly connected to spiritual and personal transformation, including Chiron, Saturn, and North and South Nodes. They explain how these lenses can help us get unstuck, transform challenges into tools, and take things in our lives less personally. This includes how to use astrology to integrate our shadow and realize our fullest potential.
Today’s recording is a continuation of a talk from Season 3 (Episode 11) entitled “Astrology + Buddhism: Introducing AstroDharma”.
Interested in developing a working understanding of astrology as a system of personal and spiritual transformation? Looking to explore the material from today’s talk and look at how it applies to your own life? Catherine Sensei’s self-study course Intro to AstroDharma goes step-by-step through everything you need to know, and includes fun, meaningful and engaging exercises, including analyzing the Dalai Lama’s chart and guided activities to deepen your understanding of your own natal chart. Visit planetdharma.com/astrodharma to learn more about the course and to access some free resources.
You may also like what's going on in our AstroDharma Facebook Group. You can see what's happening there by visiting www.facebook.com/groups/2858034031184361
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Catherine Pawasarat Sensei and Doug ‘Qapel’ Duncan on the Buddha’s allegory of the ego being like a house on fire, inviting us to orient from the awakened state rather than the objects in our lives.
If you find these teachings resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, visit planetdharma.com/events to see the variety of online and in-person offerings coming up. Whether through the formal retreats on Dzogchen, the Western Mysteries or Zen or online teachings and Q&A like Enlighten Up and Digital Dojo, there is a wealth of programming to suit any level of interest and availability.
In today’s talk, Doug 'Qapel' Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei explore the topic of 'Spiritual Energy Traders' in more detail. (Season 3 Episode 22 introduces this material.) They look at the unwholesome aspects of capitalism and how it reinforces negative patterns both in our individual lives and in our collectives: our communities, countries and corporations. They outline suggestions for how we can shift our attitudes and behaviors to transform our world into a place where we are motivated by exploration, compassion and a vision for humanity that is much bigger than ourselves.
Today’s episode covers ideas that Qapel and Sensei explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. The third section of the book is entitled Crazy Wisdom and covers a wide variety of topics, including The Shadow, Tantra, and Money, Sex & Power. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from this section of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/crazywisdom.
Note: the extended version of this recording, with 5 extra minutes of material, is available to our supporters on Patreon at patreon.com/planetdharma.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Catherine Pawasarat Sensei and Doug Qapel Duncan on the importance of actually seeing ourselves as an integrated part of our ecosystems.
If you are looking to incorporate more activities into your life to support contemplation and introspection, we recommend our weekly reflection series called ‘52 Reflections’. Sign up for free and once a week you’ll receive a short passage and follow-up prompt that you can use to frame your day, your week, or a meditation session. You can learn more and sign up for free by visiting planetdharma.com/52reflections.
Today we are introducing the first of what we hope will become a regular addition to this podcast: interviews with Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat.
Given the pace at which the teachings can evolve and change, we thought it would be helpful to check in periodically about what is happening with our two root teachers so they can speak to a topic that’s currently at the fore for them.
Our first interview is with Doug Duncan, formerly known as Doug Sensei, about his recent decision to start using his zen name, Qapel. We talk about what led to his decision, the place names and titles have in the teachings, and how name changes can be leveraged by practitioners for their unfoldment.
Note: the unedited/extended version of this conversation is currently available on our new Patreon page. For the next month, it will be available to the public as a taster of the sort of material that will be available to our patrons going forward. Visit patreon.com/planetdharma to learn more and access the extended recording.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan on how we can best support loved ones through the death process.
If you are finding the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, try the free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
In order to truly understand what drives our unconscious behaviour we have to understand the core fears of the ego. If we don’t, we are doomed to repeat behaviour that we may even realize is unwholesome as we are impacted by the invisible hand of these forces.
In today’s talk based on the section of their book Wasteland to Pureland entitled “The Pearl Without Price”, Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat explain the 4 Deep Ego Fears and why they hold so much power over us.
You can learn more about the 4 Deep Ego Fears and other topics by checking out Doug and Catherine’s bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening. Visit planetdharma.com/purelandchapter to receive a free copy of the reflection entitled ‘Protecting Against Hurt Is What Hurts’.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on creating a harmonious relationship between absolute and relative truths through the cultivation of both a clear view and training.
Did you know that Planet Dharma also has a library of articles covering a wide variety of topics? We have over 100 blog posts on our website offering dharmic perspectives on all sorts of issues of interest to awakening beings. You can check them out at planetdharma.com/articles.
In today's episode, Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat speak about what form the teachings will likely take in the 21st Century. Given how teachings of spiritual liberation have evolved through the millennia to speak to the cultural contexts in which they found themselves, in what ways will the expression of timeless wisdom evolve and adapt in the coming years? They also discuss ways that we can leverage feedback from teachers - as well as sangha members - to train ourselves to be more fully integrated.
Dharma If You Dare is now on Patreon! By becoming a micro-patron you can help us upgrade our equipment, expand our production bandwidth and grow our listening audience. This also gives us a chance to connect with our most enthusiastic listeners with monthly updates and extended cuts of recordings. You can learn more and participate at patreon.com/planetdharma.
Season 4 is launching soon!
Today producer Christopher Lawley takes the opportunity to introduce himself and to talk a bit about how Planet Dharma operates.
For more on karma yoga, visit www.planetdharma.com/what-is-karma-yoga/
For more on the practice of dana, visit www.planetdharma.com/what-is-dana/
And, as always, for more content from the cutting edge of spiritual awakening, including books, blogs, videos and a free minicourse, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss how the current capitalist paradigm that is so focused on the individual creates all sorts of conditions in our psyches that lead to suffering. They explore how a shift in view and behaviour would allow us to build a society that will work for everyone, not just a handful of people. The ideas in today’s talk are explored in detail in the chapter entitled 'Spiritual Energy Traders' in Doug and Catherine's bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening. If you’d like to read more about these ideas, you can visit planetdharma.com/crazywisdom to receive a free copy of a chapter from the book.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on why retreat work is unparalleled in its transformative potential: it allows us to access higher states of consciousness, to see the interconnectedness of our world and to live our lives more fully. Have you checked out any of Planet Dharma’s online offerings? We have a range of options available to you on the Planet Dharma website, from small group Q&A Office Hours, to full online courses, some of which are taught live and some of which are study at your own pace. Take a look at what’s currently running or coming up soon by visiting planetdharma.com/events.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss how we attempt to manipulate and control our worlds in order to get what we desire. They explain the importance of making these actions conscious in order to integrate our shadow. Through harnessing the energy of our desires by making them conscious we can power our spiritual transformation and exercise greater choice in our daily lives. Today’s episode covers ideas that Doug and Catherine explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. The second section of the book is entitled Riding the Dragon and covers a variety of topics, including awakening through action, creativity, career and relationships. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from the book by visiting planetdharma.com/purelandchapter.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on a few ways to establish a well-supported meditation practice and some of the key benefits of doing so.
Have you checked out any of Planet Dharma’s online offerings? We have a range of options available to you on the Planet Dharma website, from small group Q&A Office Hours, to full online courses, some of which are taught live and some of which are study at your own pace. Take a look at what’s currently running or coming up soon by visiting planetdharma.com/events.
In this talk, Doug and Catherine explore 'the shadow', the unconscious drives that keep us stuck in repetitive patterns and limited views of what’s possible. They discuss how integrating our shadow releases us from being held in its grip and liberates massive amounts of energy that we can use for wholesome pursuits and positive states of mind.
If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on how much more is available to us when we go beyond mindfulness into deeper meditative practices that involve not just awareness but 'awareness of awareness'. Did you know that Planet Dharma also has a library of articles covering a wide variety of topics? We have over 100 blog posts on our website offering dharmic perspectives on all sorts of issues of interest to awakening beings. You can check them out at www.planetdharma.com/articles.
In this talk from their Livestream Series, Enlighten Up, Doug and Catherine explore the difference between mindfulness and meditation, the power of retreat work and why people tend not to practice. They look at how meditation gives us the space to see how much of our experience is ruled by the habit patterns of our “operating system”, aka the ego. The insights this produces allows us to see through our isolation to the very ground of being and to compassionately share the benefits of this clear and loving space with others. Helping people experience spiritual awakening is the reason Planet Dharma exists. If you are also passionate about unfolding and awakening deeper and more quickly, we encourage you to enrol in one of our online courses. This year Planet Dharma’s online courses include a variety of topics, such as classical buddhadharma and how to establish and strengthen your daily practice, all geared towards life in our modern world. Take a look at what online offerings are up next at planetdharma.com/online.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan’s recent response to a student during an online Office Hours call. The student expressed how scattered she felt by all the anxiety in the world around the current COVID-19 pandemic and asked for advice on how to feel more grounded.
Have you checked out any of Planet Dharma’s online offerings? We have a range of options available to you on the Planet Dharma website, from small group Q&A Office Hours, to full online courses, some of which are taught live and some of which are study at your own pace. Take a look at what’s currently running or coming up soon by visiting planetdharma.com/events.
In this talk from their 2019 online course, Crazy Wisdom, Doug and Catherine discuss in detail the three lowest chakras and the energies they manifest. This recording is a continuation of an earlier introductory talk that gave an overview to the topic. You can find that episode by searching for Season 3 Episode 14 in the podcast feed. The ideas in today’s talk are explored in detail in Doug and Catherine's bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening. The third section of the book is entitled Crazy Wisdom and covers a wide variety of topics, including The Shadow, Tantra, and Money, Sex & Power. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from this section of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/crazywisdom.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the most prevalent aspects of our society’s collective shadow and whether we can shift our collective actions to more wholesome patterns. Have you checked out any of Planet Dharma’s online offerings? We have a range of options available to you on the Planet Dharma website, from small group Q&A Office Hours, to full online courses, some of which are taught live and some of which are study at your own pace. Take a look at what’s currently running or coming up soon by visiting planetdharma.com/events.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss the question ‘What is Awakening?’ Known by many terms in various traditions, spiritual awakening or enlightenment is about waking up to our true nature. Doug and Catherine explore several metaphors to help explain what spiritual awakening is and why the ego tends to ignore it in favour of getting caught up in the world of objects. Helping people experience spiritual awakening is the reason Planet Dharma exists. If you are also passionate about unfolding and awakening deeper and more quickly, we encourage you to enrol in one of our online courses. This year Planet Dharma’s online courses include a variety of topics, such as classical buddhadharma and how to establish and strengthen your daily practice, all geared towards life in our modern world. Learn more about upcoming opportunities to join these online offerings at planetdharma.com/online.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on spiritual organizations and how they support our growth and unfoldment. During the talk, you will hear the term ‘quantum creativity’. If you’d like to learn more about that topic look for Season 3 Episode 3 in the podcast feed. If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
In this talk from their online course The Pearl Without Price, Doug and Catherine discuss the nature of the ego and how we can step outside the box of our comfort zone to experience greater degrees of freedom, bliss and peace.
These ideas are explained in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening. The first section of the book is entitled The Pearl Without Price and covers a variety of topics, including spiritual awakening in the modern age, the four deep ego fears and freedom from trauma. If you’d like to explore these ideas further, you can visit planetdharma.com/purelandchapter to receive a free copy of the related chapter, entitled ‘Protecting Against Hurt Is What Hurts’.
Welcome to this Dharma If You Dare Bonus Episode. We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the sixth of the 6 Paramis: Prajna, usually translated as ‘wisdom'. If the paramis are new to you, you can hear an introduction and overview to the topic by finding Season 3 Episode 4 in the podcast feed. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss the Buddhist Common Foundations, also known as 'the four thoughts that turn the mind towards practice”. These are reflections that help us stay in contact with the urgency of continuing with our spiritual practice. In the course of this talk Doug and Catherine also explain what samsara is and explore the nature of the ego and how to put it in its proper place. This spring, Doug and Catherine will be offering more modern and practical takes on classical Buddhadharma in their online course, The Four Foundations of Mindfulness: The Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta. This will be one of the 4 online courses that Planet Dharma will host over the course of the year, along with various in-person retreats and public teachings. To learn more about these events, visit planetdharma.com/2020.
Welcome to this Dharma If You Dare Bonus Episode. We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the fifth of the 6 Paramis: Dhyana, usually translated as ‘concentration’ or ‘absorption'. If the paramis are new to you, you can hear an introduction and overview to the topic by finding Season 3 Episode 4 in the podcast feed. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
In this talk from their online course, Crazy Wisdom, Doug and Catherine discuss the three lowest chakras and the energies they manifest. They look at the problems that are created in our lives when these energies are activated unconsciously and they explain the benefits that flow when we integrate and balance them.
Today’s episode covers ideas that Doug and Catherine explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. The third section of the book is entitled Crazy Wisdom and covers a wide variety of topics, including The Shadow, Tantra, and Money, Sex & Power. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from this section of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/crazywisdom.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the fourth of the 6 Paramis: Virya, usually translated as ‘energy'. If the paramis are new to you, you can hear an introduction and overview to the topic by finding Season 3 Episode 4 in the podcast feed. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss the topic of ‘monsters in the closet', a.k.a. the shadow. They look at how the ego is formed through early trauma, and how it calcifies through additional conditioning via the family and society-at-large, creating areas in our lives that we are unable to meet. They explain how we can address these unconscious blocks and the benefits of undertaking this work.
This coming spring Doug and Catherine will be in Europe. They will be spending the month of May in the UK, and will be teaching at Watkins Bookstore in London and will be running a workshop at the Body, Mind, Spirit Festival. They will also be leading a 10-day somatic retreat on the topic of Karma, Womb and Transcendence in Wales. For more details, visit planetdharma.com/2020.
Welcome to this Dharma If You Dare Bonus Episode. We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the third of the 6 Paramis: Ksanti, usually translated as ‘patience'. If the paramis are new to you, you can hear an introduction and overview to the topic by finding Season 3 Episode 4 in the podcast feed. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. And to find out when you can join Doug and Catherine at an upcoming live teaching, either in person or online, visit planetdharma.com/events.
In this talk from their 2019 online course Riding the Dragon, Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat discuss how to free ourselves from "the B Movie of our lives”, the flat storylines caused by our attachment to the familiar. They explain that when the ego is seen as a tool, rather than who we are, we are finally able to access true creativity. This recording is a continuation of a talk on Quantum vs. Adaptive Creativity. To better understand those terms check out Episode 3 of Season 3.
If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the second of the 6 paramis, sila, usually translated as ‘ethics’ or ‘morality'. If the paramis are new to you, you can hear an introduction and overview to the topic by finding Season 3 Episode 4 in the podcast feed. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. And to find out when you can join Doug and Catherine at an upcoming live teaching, either in person or online, visit www.planetdharma.com/events.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat on the first of the 6 paramis, dana, usually translated as ‘generosity'. If the paramis are new to you, you can hear an introduction and overview to the topic by finding Season 3 Episode 4 in the podcast feed. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. And to find out when you can join Doug and Catherine at an upcoming live teaching, either in person or online, visit www.planetdharma.com/events.
In this talk on AstroDharma Catherine and Doug discuss some basic elements of our natal astrological charts and how they can be leveraged for our spiritual unfoldment. This excerpt from the talk is focused on the 3 most important parts of your chart. The study of dharmic astrology obviously involves much more than this. You will hear Catherine and Doug refer to other elements such as houses, for example, which are not explained in detail in this recording. If you like what you hear and would like to learn more, you can find some free resources and a self-study course at planetdharma.com/astrodharma. The self study course, Catherine’s Intro to AstroDharma: Awakening Through Astrology, covers all the major elements of dharmic astrology in a way that builds from module to module, all with the lens of empowering you to achieve spiritual breakthrough. A personal favourite are the exercises where you practice by analyzing the Dalai Lama’s natal chart. Visit planetdharma.com/astrodharma to learn more.
We hope you enjoy this soundbite from Catherine Pawasarat and Doug Duncan on the distinction between submission and surrender and how they play out in the spiritual path. Don’t miss out on Doug and Catherine's next online course, The Diamond Realization: Clarity in an Unclear World, starting soon. For more information, visit planetdharma.com/diamond.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss Awakening Through Action, traditionally known as the practice of karma yoga. Karma yoga is a practice that transforms even mundane activities into paths of spiritual growth and awakening. In this practice every moment is turned into an active meditation. It is an ideal spiritual path for action-oriented modern people, that takes us beyond our selves. In the talk you will hear them make reference to 'Buddhas in Action’. This is their 2-week intensive program on karma yoga that they are currently offering every second year.
If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. It includes a module on the path of Awakening Through Action discussed in today’s episode. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
The Diamond Sutra explains how a clear and strong consciousness cuts through foggy or disillusioned mind states to reveal wisdom and ultimate truth. In this talk, Doug Sensei uses the metaphor of clothing to explain how conditioning and previous karma cover up the diamond clarity of our natural state of being. The Diamond Sutra is also the focus of the first Planet Dharma online course of 2020, Diamond Realization: Clarity in an Unclear World. Taking place over 4 weeks in January, this course can be joined live or via recordings during that time. There are also optional Master Classes and an at-home weekend-long retreat available for a more immersive experience. You can learn more at planetdharma.com/diamond. In 2020, Planet Dharma will be holding 4 online courses over the course of the year, along with various in-person retreats and public teachings. To learn more about these events, visit planetdharma.com/2020.
In this talk Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat explore the topic of 'Crazy Wisdom'. Also known as 'Divine Madness’, these are energetic and unpredictable teachings that help shake students’ fixed views about their reality. The stuck nature of our egos requires a breaking through of the status quo in order to access a place of open spaciousness of possibility. Doug and Catherine also explore the paradox that we actually feel more in control and secure when we let go of our ego’s need to be in charge all the time. Today’s episode covers ideas that Doug and Catherine explore in detail in their bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. The third section of the book is entitled Crazy Wisdom and covers a wide variety of topics, including The Shadow, Tantra, and Money, Sex & Power. Podcast listeners can download a free chapter from this section of the book by visiting planetdharma.com/crazywisdom.
In this talk Doug and Catherine discuss the Buddha’s First Ennobling Truth: that life is always in some degree of struggle. They explore how preferences and anti-preferences contribute to our self image and how the degree to which we suffer is tied to the degree to which we cling or can surrender this limiting view of ourself. Did you know that Planet Dharma also has a library of articles covering a wide variety of topics? We have over 100 blog posts on our website offering dharmic perspectives on all sorts of issues of interest to awakening beings. You can check them out at www.planetdharma.com/articles.
In this talk Doug and Catherine explore the process of spiritual awakening and its many benefits. They discuss how it leads to greater freedom and control in our lives, makes us less subject to old habits and conditioning, and allows us to bring all aspects of our self into consciousness. If you find the teachings of Planet Dharma resonate and are wondering how to explore them further, we recommend our free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening. This self-study course gives an introduction to the main approaches that Doug and Catherine employ with students to help them find their speediest path to spiritual awakening. You can learn more and register for free by visiting planetdharma.com/wakeup.
As always, you can learn more about Planet Dharma’s offerings at planetdharma.com/podcast.
In this talk, Doug and Catherine discuss the importance of bringing all aspects of ourselves into consciousness. Through integrating the shadow we can access greater and greater degrees of freedom and free up huge amounts of energy. Today’s episode featured a recording from Riding the Dragon, an online course based on the ideas in Doug and Catherine's bestselling book, Wasteland to Pureland. You can learn about upcoming online courses by visiting planetdharma.com/events and clicking on 'Online Courses'. You can learn more about Wasteland to Pureland, download a free chapter, or purchase your own copy by visiting planetdharma.com/pureland.
In this public talk Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat introduce the paramis, 6 aspects of consciousness that have been taught in the buddhadharma for more than two thousand years and allow practitioners to become their own inner and outer works of art. They are qualities that we can grow to feel internally grounded and to act from a positive, wholesome place in our relationships with others. To download a free paramis reference sheet and to access more resources on this topic, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. If you are looking to take a deeper dive into this material, Doug and Catherine teach a long-weekend retreat called Becoming a Work of Art at beautiful Clear Sky Center in the British Columbia Rockies. For more information, visit planetdharma.com/paramis. And as always, you can learn more about Planet Dharma’s offerings at planetdharma.com/podcast.
In this talk from the online course Riding the Dragon, Doug and Catherine explore the concepts of Quantum Creativity and Adaptive Creativity. They discuss how imagination springs forth from spaciousness and how it is the remedy for habitual mind. Surrendering, or letting go, into this spaciousness allows us to move beyond simply running on instinct and tap into our fullest potential. Here are the links referred to in the episode: Register for the free online course called Wake Up: 4 Paths to Spiritual Awakening at planetdharma.com/wakeup. Learn about upcoming online courses by visiting planetdharma.com/events. Learn more about Wasteland to Pureland, download a free chapter, or purchase your own copy by visiting planetdharma.com/pureland.
In this talk Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat look at the pitfalls of our society’s tendency to value information over lived experience. They discuss ways to integrate knowledge and wisdom so we can live connected lives.
Today’s recording comes from Doug Duncan and Catherine’s Facebook Livestream series, Enlighten Up, a monthly talk given on contemporary topics of awakening.
To stay up to date on these teachings, like and subscribe to notifications for our Facebook page at Facebook.com/planetdharma. We also upload edited versions of the Enlighten Up episodes to our YouTube channel at YouTube.com/planetdharma To learn more about Planet Dharma’s offerings visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
Drawing on material from the first reflection in their book, Wasteland to Pureland, Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat explore the topic of personal vision and connect it to the concepts of absolute and relative truth. Today’s recording is a continuation of the material that you can hear in the Season 3 trailer entitled, Why Awaken? To explore these ideas further, purchase Wasteland to Pureland: Reflections on the Path to Awakening, available on Kindle and in paperback on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Indigo. Today’s episode features a recording from Planet Dharma’s first online course of 2019, The Pearl Without Price. Doug and Catherine run 3 or 4 online courses each year. Participants can attend live or watch the recording for one week after each of the 4 weekly sessions. The next online course takes place in September and covers the material in the final section of Wasteland to Pureland, entitled Crazy Wisdom. To learn more about Planet Dharma’s online courses visit planetdharma.com/events and click on “online courses”.
This week is Doug Duncan‘s 70th birthday. We thought this was the perfect time to launch Season 3 of the podcast with its new title, Dharma If You Dare.
The first episode of the new season will drop any day now, so stay tuned. Make sure to subscribe wherever you get your Podcasts to receive new episodes directly on your device as soon as they are published. We look forward to sharing a season of thought-provoking, insightful and practical teachings to help you to more fully integrate your spiritual practice into your daily life.
In Season 3 you’ll hear content from Doug and Catherine’s best-selling book, Wasteland to Pureland, along with other teachings that translate traditional wisdom into modern paths of spiritual awakening. We’ll leave you today with a selection of recordings of birthday messages from some of Doug and Catherine‘s students, wishing Doug Sensei a wonderful birthday. In their messages they share reflections and stories about the impact Doug Sensei has had on their lives. We hope these messages resonate and inspire, reminding us all the value of prioritizing our spiritual development, and the importance of spiritual mentors to guide the way.
Don’t forget to subscribe to receive new episodes directly on your device. You can learn more about Doug and Catherine‘s teachings at PlanetDharma.com. Happy birthday, Sensei!
Why Awaken? Today's episode explores the idea of personal vision and how it relates to spiritual unfoldment. It's part of our celebration for the upcoming release of more podcast episodes from Planet Dharma.
Season 3 will begin in mid-July to celebrate Doug Sensei’s 70th birthday!
The Season 3 launch will include a new podcast name, theme music and format. It will be all-new content, but will still have the same focus on how to embrace a path of awakening in modern times by leveraging all that life has to offer.
And to keep you engaged in the teachings between now and the launch of Season 3, Doug Sensei and Catherine Sensei will be hosting a 4-part online course entitled Riding the Dragon: Spiritual Awakening in Modern Life. To learn more about this course, which can be viewed live or via recordings, visit planetdharma.com/events.
We hope you enjoy today’s episode and stay tuned for the launch of Season 3 in July.
For more content from the cutting edge of spiritual awakening, including books, blogs, videos and a free minicourse, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
Join Deborah Price, founder of The Money Coaching Institute, in a conversation with dharma teachers Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat as they address the challenges of living a spiritual life in the modern world. Together they discuss community, time management and consumerism and how it impacts our ability to live a full life.
This interview highlights the launch of Doug Duncan and Catherine Pawasarat’s best selling book Wasteland to Pureland. You can find out more about the Wasteland to Pureland book at planetdharma.com/pureland. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
We all have boundaries that help us feel safe and comfortable. But what happens when we cling to the comfort?
In this episode, Duncan and Catherine explore the comfort zones of their students at Clear Sky Retreat Center. They encourage these students to step out of their comfort zones and discover the ultimate place of learning: their growth edges.
This episode comes from a class given during Planet Dharma’s retreat, Buddhas in Action at Clear Sky Retreat Center. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
We’re all familiar with yoga in the studio, with an instructor guiding us on our mats. But did you know that there are other types of yoga that we can incorporate into our spiritual practice?
In this talk, Doug and Catherine introduce these other yogic paths and explain why karma yoga, the path of action, is built for the modern spiritual warrior.
This episode comes from a class given during Planet Dharma’s retreat, Buddhas in Action at Clear Sky Retreat Center. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
We live in a distracted society. Keeping focused can be challenging, whether we’re engaging in conversation or trying to meet a deadline. Learn what it means to put ‘complete effort’ into things and the benefits we gain by being fully present in each moment.
In this talk, Doug and Catherine explore the topic of Right Effort, from the Buddha’s Noble Eightfold Path. They explain that wholesome effort is when we are in the moment and not distracted by conflicted emotions or primitive thinking.
This episode is an excerpt from Planet Dharma’s 2017 online course, Right Effort – Healing the Splits Within. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
How do you find your purpose? Embrace compassion, explore, and ultimately, get over yourself so you can tap into something much, much deeper.
In this talk, Doug and Catherine explain the need for a vision bigger than your lifetime and bigger than yourself. They look at the importance of letting the study of nature and consciousness inform your vision and career.
This episode is an excerpt from Planet Dharma’s 2017 online course, Right Effort – Healing the Splits Within. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
The paramis are Buddhist teachings that allow you to overcome bad habits and transform them into more wholesome ways of being. When applying these principles in our daily lives, unnecessary suffering cannot arise.
In this talk, Doug and Catherine give an overview of the paramis and explain their power and practicality.
This episode is an excerpt from Planet Dharma’s 2017 online course, Right Effort – Healing the Splits Within. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit planetdharma.com/podcast.
There’s a sense of safety with feeling comfortable. But comfort often goes hand-in-hand with habit, routine and ultimately suffering. It’s time to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
In this talk, Doug and Catherine explore the low-grade angst that exists when we cling to comfort and explain how not seeking comfort is not the same as seeking discomfort.
This episode is an excerpt from Planet Dharma’s 2017 online course, Right Effort – Healing the Splits Within. To learn more about Planet Dharma's teachings and programs, visit www.planetdharma.com/podcast.
"Lama Rinpoche, to you I supplicate." Even if you're fully awakened, you still say that.
Why?
To overcome pride, which is very subtle!
http://www.planetdharma.com/
How do you live and move and recognize in your world? What are the patterns and structures of how the mind works, whether hunger/gatherer or food grower or living in the modern world?
Doug Sensei gives an interview on an upcoming talk he will give on traditional wisdom in Australia in December 2013.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
The spiritual teachings are focused on drawing your attention to the awakened/awakening consciousness. The real purpose of awakening is it puts you in a position where it's just much easier to learn without a lot of baggage.
From an interview conducted in October 2013 with Doug Duncan Sensei...
Transcript:
Well again, it's mapping, it's patterning. I won't go into those particularly, but pattern recognition. It's what the human consciousness is particularly good at. "Oh, winter's coming. Oh, nuts are under the snow. Hmmm…. let's build a shed, put the nuts in the shed. I can get to the shed. I can't get under the snow." It's a kind of pattern recognition.
So, cabbalistic teachings, Christian teachings, Islamic teachings, Buddhist teachings… it's all about pattern. It's all recognizing pattern, seeing how things work, how things tie together -- psychology, science, mysticism. It's all patterns. "Occult" means "hidden" -- that which is hidden -- so if you're an occultist, you're studying that which is hidden. Science is "anti-occultism." You're studying that which is apparent. Although, I suppose if you're a quantum physicist the distinction starts to (laughs)… starts to fall away.
So, everything is teaching. Everything is a potential teaching -- human relationships, psychology, marriage -- again, pattern. What kind of patterns evolve in relationship? Guru/student, teacher-guide/adept relationships. What's the patterning? How does that patterning work? Who gets the high seat? Who gets the low seat? What pattern is involved in that?
So, when one is hurt, one tends to see other people's patterns as being abusive. When one is in a state of loving-kindness, one tends to see other people's patterns as being abusive, but not so much to oneself as to others...well, to oneself and the person who is suffering.
So the idea is that as you become more and more conscious of patterns, you become more and more conscious of the interconnecting factors in those patterns. You see that more and more everything is a teaching -- science, art, music, relationship. The spiritual teachings are teachings that are focused particularly on trying to draw your attention to the awakened/awakening consciousness. And from many perspectives, the real purpose of awakening is it puts you in a position where it's just much easier to learn without a lot of baggage.
So, if you were going to take a shower, would you go in with your clothes on? Or would you go in naked? The idea is you go in naked, because it's much easier to get clean that way and much easier to have that experience. So, too, the transcendent nature is getting naked to life so that you can be washed or have the experience more fully. Having clothes on in the shower, you might get cleaner than you were when you went in, but there's a lot of unnecessary dukkha/struggle in that. The nature of spiritual teachings is to bring you closer to fundamental patterns of how consciousness works and how the self, the ego, gets structured and therefore caught up, and so on.
So, whether it's caballistic teachings or Buddhist teachings, or whatever, the idea -- the core understanding -- remains the same. "What is this thing called 'transcendent consciousness'?" "How do I recognize it and how do I live it?" And from there you go to other teachings, like science, art, music, and so on… business.
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The 'you' -- is an illusion...because 'you' aren't there. And if you knew that, the 'you' would disappear. It would evaporate like a fog.
Transcript
Student: The ego is hurt...somebody steps on you.
Doug Sensei: "The definition of 'you' is 'hurt'. Be very clear about this. 'You' is 'separation'. Separation is, by definition, hurt. You don't want to know the cruel taskmaster who owns you -- the 'you' -- is an illusion...because 'you' aren't there. And if you knew, the 'you' would disappear. It would evaporate like a fog. You don't want to know that 'you' are an illusion -- an image in a mirror, a reflection in a pond. You want 'you' to be there, and so you purposely get distracted. It's a choice to be distracted. And in that distraction you appear.
(That's the problem with all these you's.) If you are not distracted, you dissolve. And then there's bliss; clarity; non-clinging awareness. But your program -- the whole story of you, the whole story of 'me' -- is to be distracted. The minute I'm not distracted, I'm not there anymore.
There's sensation; there's perception; there's cognition; but none of those things make a 'me' until I attach to this one and push off of that one.
So why does suffering continue? This is a hard one. Are you ready? Because you want it to…. Ouch.
All suffering is self-created."
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The first step in spiritual awakening is becoming aware of our ego structure -- actually perceiving the particular beliefs and images that we have identified with and taken to be true -- then dissolving that, letting go of that part of one's identity.
Doug Sensei teaches on the enneagram, drawing from this source:
Facets of Unity: The Enneagram of Holy Ideas by A.H. Almaas, 1998; Chapter 4, Basic Trust Search inside: http://books.google.com/books/about/Facets_of_Unity.html?id=gdTz5Mt0WtgC&redir_esc=y
Extended paraphrase:
The ego is a psychic structure that is based on crystallized beliefs about who we are and what the world is. We experience ourselves and the world through the filter of this structure. Spiritual awakening involves connecting with those dimensions of experience obscured by ego structure.
The first step is becoming aware -- actually perceiving the particular beliefs and images that we have identified with and taken to be true -- then dissolving that facet of the ego structure. This means letting go of part of one's identity, which can be painful or frightening because the old sense of your identity crumbles and you don't know what will take its place. Letting go of what has felt real feels like jumping into an abyss.
The jumping can be easy or difficult depending on the presence of "basic trust" -- the sense that whatever happens will ultimately be fine. The ego's perspective arises out of a lack of this trust. It is based on distrust, paranoia, and fear that the universe will not take care of you in the ways that you need. Basic trust is a confidence that the universe and human nature is fundamentally good and loving, that life is fundamentally benevolent. It will help you take that plunge.
You don't need assurances that things are going to be okay because you implicitly know things are going to be okay. Basic trust gives you the capacity and willingness to let go of the identifications, beliefs and concepts -- remnants of the past -- that make up the ego.
If you don't have basic trust, you will react to what arises in accordance with your conditioning and will want things to go one way or another, rather than to just be, without reacting, which is allowing the ego to die. The more that basic trust is present, the more smoothly the process of realization and transformation can proceed.
If we lack basic trust, it is important to develop it. With basic trust, our lives have a sense of freedom. The desire to know where things are going arises out of simple curiosity rather than a desire to control the unfoldment. Tension and stress from constantly struggling and fighting with our reality become relaxed into a sense of peace that allows a spontaneous and natural unfoldment of one's being. A new outlook emerges, allowing us to see that whatever happens is right even if it's painful. Things that we had thought were bad turn out not to be bad.
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Part 2: Paralyzed and Free!
A quadriplegic man in the hospital for 25 years sees the spaciousness through which all manifestations can arise, including the mind. Was no longer obsessed with the arisings.
Part two of the "Why Practice the Paramis?" podcast from Aug. 23, 2013. The "he" referred to at the beginning is "Gerry," who was laid up in the hospital for 8 weeks unable to move. This talk was originally given on Dec. 13, 2007, in Kyoto, Japan.
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The paramis are qualities of character, or "perfections" of heart and mind that can be developed to support the path of awakening--practices which develop wholesome activity, growth and enlightenment. "It is so clear that the Teaching is the only refuge."
What are the paramis? They are qualities of character, or "perfections" of heart and mind that can be developed to support the path of awakening--practices which develop wholesome activity, growth and enlightenment. In the Theravadin school of Buddhism there are ten. In Mahayana, six, considered to indicate a sequence of development: generosity, virtue (coolheadedness), patience, energy, concentration, and wisdom. For more on the paramis, search for "A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life" or "paramita." Also, "The Path Of Victory: Discourses on the Paramita" by Namgyal Rinpoche can be ordered from BodhiPublishing.org
Transcript:
Why practice the paramis? Well, as you remember, if you had a turban and it was in flames, what would you do? You'd put it out... or take it off. And so, to extinguish the flames of craving you must apply the antidote and the antidote is... the paramis. Simple as that. You are in a burning pit of passion, desire, fear, hope, ambition, worry, anxiety, wishful thinking. You know, "When my prince comes, when my house is paid for, when the banks get it all straightened out, everything will be fine." No it won't. Then you'll be 60 and you'll have a heart attack... or something.
I talked to Gerry today, you remember Gerry? He's walking now, which is good, very fast [recovery]. They call him the poster boy for rehab. He was supposed to be in rehab for 3 months, but it looks like he'll only be there a month and he can walk with a walker.
He said to me today, "You know, Sensei, I hate to say it, but this has been absolutely, totally, fantastically marvelous." Crushed from the knee to the ankle, thinking he'd never walk again, losing both the lower parts of his legs, having them rebuilt.
He's walking, it's good, he's walking and he's probably happier than if he didn't obviously, and he wouldn't wish it on anyone, but he said "This was the most amazing experience of my life. It is so clear, it is just so absolutely clear that the Teaching is the only refuge."
Because everybody else is busy. What are they doing when you're in hospital for six weeks, or in this case, two months? Moving on. When you're sitting there in the hospital bed for two months, what are they doing? Going to movies, having suppers, talking to their friends, oh, calling you once a week to see how you're doing. Maybe you get an hour of their time and then mostly they're going, "Well, okay, gotta go."
He said it brought the teachings so home. The only refuge you have is your state in the moment and the only thing that maintains your state in the moment are the paramis. There is no other place to go except busyness, and the nature of busyness does exactly what? It hides the nature of your clinging. The more busy you are—and I'm not saying you shouldn't be busy; it's fine to be busy—but what I'm saying is that the busier you are the less visible it is—the clinging that's going on. When you're in your hospital room and you got nowhere to go, you're just left with it—the body and you: clinging. And you have to be in the moment. You have to give up... you have to let the passions and the feelings come and go. You have to give them up. You have to surrender them. You have to surrender your impatience with the process. You can't move.
He wasn't supposed to move off his back for six weeks. Don't move, they told him. Never mind go for a walk. Don't move. Because your flesh is building...in his leg and if he moves them he disturbs them.
Patience isn't something you have any choice about. Coolness—you either do that or you lose your mind, which many people do in those circumstances, they go bananas. They throw things at the nurses, they scratch them, they kick, they bite. Because they're freaking out. I mean, can you imagine... weeks without moving on your back if you have no training, no mental training, no training in the mind? I mean all of a sudden... you know, you've been busy being Joe-head-of-your-department and all of a sudden you're in the hospital. You've got nothing.
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Bliss is present because there is no one trying to do anything. Be very clear about this: bliss arises when you no longer try to do anything.
A one-minute excerpt from a talk by Doug Sensei on the Diamond Sutra held at Zofukuji Temple, Miki, Japan, on Jan. 4, 2013. You'll want to listen to this one over and over again.
Transcript:
"Bliss is present because there is no one trying to do anything. Be very clear about this: bliss arises when you no longer try to do anything. Whether it's a golf shot, a poem, a recipe, or singing a song in a band. You're not trying anymore. The minute you don't try to do anything, there it is -- the flow, I guess. You only can be a samurai when you realize you are already dead. The minute you put in a defensive motif of any kind it tightens your muscles, it slows down your reaction time, puts you in a sense of separation […] So, recognize awakening is... you already have to see your life as being over. My life is over. MY life is over. There's just life. My preferences and non-preferences are over. There's just options."
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"I undertake to train myself to refrain from getting lost in phenomena" -- a suggestion from Sensei for a New Year's -- (from falling asleep in my own stories about me)
Sensei offers a suggestion on something to do for a New Year's resolution for 2013. Some quotes from Sensei: "Where do you tend to undermine your own unfoldment?" "It's not hard to awaken. You just have to want to do it."
Definition of "passer le temps": doing something simply to pass the time
podcast.clearskycenter.org http://www.planetdharma.com/
Part 4: Q & A
In this full talk, the "Map to Awakening" metaphor is a journey from west to east—in this case Kyoto to Tokyo—with the arrival point being the awakened state.
The metaphor: Traveling west to east, from Nagoya to Shizuoka to Yokohama before reaching Tokyo. "Tokyo" is the awakened state, while any city along the way is still part of conditioned existence. Question: "Could you speak a little bit to Westerners? We seem to have these expectations that our teachers need to prove that they're holy by living in a certain way to determined 'by me.' At least in North America we think you shouldn't smoke, should probably be a vegetarian, etc.…" "The lama in the vajrayana system -- the teacher, the guide -- becomes much more important because you're relying more on the person who's been to 'Tokyo' than you're relying on the map that you have in your hand or that you've been given. You're relying more on the humanity, the interhuman connection of it, more than a program. And in that sense it can be very much faster, because you don't have to stop and look at your map all of the time." How can you tell the charlatan from the real teacher? "You look at the teacher from the point of view, 'Do I feel that he loves me? Do I feel that he has my best interests at heart? And does he act that way?' Not whether I agree with him, whether I like him, whether that's something I approve or disapprove of, but 'Do I feel that he or she is basically on my side?' That's what you can trust." The Aquarian Age is all about 'group guru' -- how to come together as a group, a community. The four stages of the womb journey: 1st stage: Bliss in the womb 2nd stage: Contractions (intermittent) 3rd stage: Birthing (violent); trauma 4th stage: Plop and cut Concepts such as personal mastery, shifting the burden, and creative tension vs. emotional tension are based on the recommended book "The Fifth Discipline" by Peter Senge.
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Part 3: The Awakened State
In this full talk, the "Map to Awakening" metaphor is a journey from west to east—in this case Kyoto to Tokyo—with the arrival point being the awakened state.
Part three of four on Doug Sensei's "The Map to Awakening" talk The ongoing metaphor: "Tokyo" = Awakening "The ego is an artificial boundary produced to defend itself against being swallowed up. That the ego is there is not the problem. The problem is that it's there when it doesn't need to be there, which is, fundamentally, 99% of the time." "What is the awakened consciousness? The awakened consciousness is the being who doesn't see themselves as being inherently or 'existentially' separate from anybody or anything else. It says 'you and I are one consciousness. We have work to do. Let's get on with it.' " "In the fundamental essence, humanity is one consciousness laboring under the illusion that it is in separate bodies, and that's the source of all suffering. The source of all personal suffering is seeing yourself as separate." Creative tension vs. emotional tension: from Peter Senge's book "The Fifth Discipline" (pp. 135-142): "The gap that is between our current reality and our vision is called "creative tension." This gap is a source of creative energy…" Summarized well here: http://thecreatingspace.wordpress.com/2008/11/12/creative-tension/ Question from audience: [How are you] supposed to judge what's good and what's bad? Suggested rules/criteria for a broader vision of a "good" or "bad" (moral) act: 1. Is it conducive/does it lead to awakening? (Helping us individually or as a group to move forward?) 2. Would it be okay if everybody on the planet did it/behaved that way/said that? 3. Would it be okay if everybody knew? "But good and bad depends on where the scale is...as your wisdom and compassion deepen, the scale moves. What your parents see as good and bad, though true for them now, may not be true anymore as they move toward awakening. The good and bad may shift and the scale may shift." "What's your personal vision? Is Tokyo on the map or are you happy with Nagoya or Shizuoka? What do you need to do to move your organism a little down the road towards Tokyo? How do you determine what that is, see what that is? And what might that be? What kind of actions or behavior or lifestyle do you think you need to produce that will be more conducive to that journey?"
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Part 2: Heading to "Tokyo" (Planetary Consciousness)
In this full talk, the "Map to Awakening" metaphor is a journey from west to east—in this case Kyoto to Tokyo—with the arrival point being the awakened state.
"We are one cell each in a body called humanity. And this, as I see it, is where the dispensation and the map for the future lies in terms of the evolution of human consciousness." -- Sensei Doug Duncan For the first part of this talk, listen to the previous Launch Pod podcast, "First, You Need the Map!" (FYI: The geographical progression eastward is Kyoto > Nagoya > Shizuoka > Tokyo) "We want our explorations to be wider, more incorporating than they have been in the past." "Samsara means from the ego point of view our lives go around and around on the same circle." "You're unfolding as a human being, but where you end up is going to be determined by which map and which aspiration you have." "If we want to survive and thrive as a species, and if we want the planet to be habitable, and if we want to be in good places, we have to see the self as other." "You are me and I am you."
"We are one cell each in a body called humanity. And this, as I see it, is where the dispensation and the map for the future lies in terms of the evolution of human consciousness." -- Sensei Doug Duncan For the first part of this talk, listen to the previous Launch Pod podcast, "First, You Need the Map!" (FYI: The geographical progression eastward is Kyoto > Nagoya > Shizuoka > Tokyo) "We want our explorations to be wider, more incorporating than they have been in the past." "Samsara means from the ego point of view our lives go around and around on the same circle." "You're unfolding as a human being, but where you end up is going to be determined by which map and which aspiration you have." "If we want to survive and thrive as a species, and if we want the planet to be habitable, and if we want to be in good places, we have to see the self as other." "You are me and I am you."
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Part 1: First, You Need the Map!
In this full talk, the "Map to Awakening" metaphor is a journey from west to east—in this case Kyoto to Tokyo—with the arrival point being the awakened state.
"The awakened consciousness is THE evolutionary step for humanity in total. The destination for the human species is awakening." -- Doug Duncan Sensei "You're going to be seeing more people awaken more speedily and more easily than ever before in history." "The absolute bottom-line fear, the main issue, for every human being throughout their life is the fear of disappearing, which is equated to mental illness. After all, mental illness is a real possibility. You see people fracturing and falling apart regularly and you're going to see more and more of it. Being "in control" is a way of managing the fear, of keeping you from mental illness. The idea of giving up control triggers the fear of losing a sense of who you are. It's a fear of disappearing, of being absorbed. The closest understanding we have of that is the fear of mental illness, where you're no longer compos mentis; you're no longer sane." "Will meditation drive you crazy? No, life drives you crazy. Meditation shows you that life is crazy. If you don't meditate you can assume that life is normal, but the minute you start meditating, life looks pretty crazy." "In terms of the awakening experience, you have to meet these fears of being out of control, of being crazy, of losing your identity. Because that's how the ego has projected the awakening experience back onto itself as the reason for not doing it. Don't think you can't do it (awaken), because the depth of your being knows you can. The depth of your being is prepared for it. The organism knows that this is part of the potential program. Your brain, your body, your organism as a human being knows it has the capability and the possibility for awakening." "In most conventional ways when we say I love somebody, it means 'I can control them' or 'I can manipulate them' or 'I'm with her/him because I like being controlled by her/him'; 'I like the way she/he controls me, I like way she/he manipulates me'. And this is what we call love. Because love is usually a deal--a deal about your ego and their ego being able to dance to similar music. And it's not a bad thing. I'm not putting this down at any level. But that deal doesn't lead to awakening. Having said that, you can still be married and have a family and be awakened, but you can't set up family and profession and kids as a false destination. You've got to bring them toward awakening; it doesn't work the other way around."
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In meditation you just notice what arises rather than seeking after experiences, which are conditioned by the ego's need for stimulation, recognition and structure.
Doug Duncan Sensei: "In meditation you're not trying to _change_ your sensations, your passions, your lusts -- you're trying to see it clearly." "All the skandhas -- form, feelings, perceptions, etc. -- happen at the same time. It's too compacted to get a good look at. So you take it apart." "Once you know your ego -- stimulation, recognition, structure -- you're already free of it. You don't have to change it. You don't have to fix it. All you have to do is take note of it." "If you identify with the label, that is the source of the suffering. From that, the suffering will pour forth." "The hungry ghost realm is marked by unfulfilled needs whose time has passed. The ego, by definition, in relationship to its sensing functions -- its cravings, its passions, its lusts, and so on -- is an unfulfilled need whose time has passed." Amitabha mantras: OM AMITABHA HRIH SVAHA for lovingkindness in the world OM AMI DEVA HRIH (when a person is dying) "Enter the friendly shining" OM RATNA KUTA HUNG (for animals) "Enter the jewel state of consciousness" This talk was recorded on April 7, 2010 at Maitreya House in the United Kingdom http://crystalgroup.org.uk/maitreya.htm
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In meditation you just notice what arises rather than seeking after experiences, which are conditioned by the ego's need for stimulation, recognition and structure.
"Awakening isn't so much that you're fixing what's wrong or improving what's gone off as you are expanding your range to include what you exclude." "Namgyal Rinpoche mentioned two ways to increase your intelligence: increase the range of what you eat and increase the range of your sexual experience." "'Unwholesome' means choosing things that you may be habitually comfortable with but which aren't taking you forward. They're holding you in place in a limited conditioning based on security and comfort." "When you start to meditate and you're doing Amitabha practice, this is a place where rather than seeking after familiar and comfortable experiences you just note the ones that are arising." "You really need just two things for awakening: a good heart -- the actual desire for the welfare of other beings -- and determination (cetana)." This talk was recorded on April 7, 2010 at Maitreya House in the United Kingdom http://crystalgroup.org.uk/maitreya.htm
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The nature of addiction is an attempt to escape the pain at the core of our being. Resisting the urge to give in rather than face the appetite or addiction takes patience and determination.
In this concluding section, Sensei answers such questions as: How do you live in the moment and still plan for the future? Aren't there authentic pleasures that are not based on addiction? How can you not identify with the objective world in a healthy way that still allows you to function?
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The nature of addiction is an attempt to escape the pain at the core of our being. Resisting the urge to give in rather than face the appetite or addiction takes patience and determination.
In the end, the nature of addiction is an attempt to escape the pain that is at the core of all of our beings. Getting on with the spiritual work means learning to be okay in the present moment, just as it is, without need for stories or elaborations, knowing that we're going to die, that no absolute security is to be found, that everything is impermanent. Part 4 of 5 of a public talk given in Winnipeg, Canada, in September 2009
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The nature of addiction is an attempt to escape the pain at the core of our being. Resisting the urge to give in rather than face the appetite or addiction takes patience and determination.
Part 3 of a public talk given in Winnipeg, Canada, in Sept. 2009
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The nature of addiction is an attempt to escape the pain at the core of our being. Resisting the urge to give in rather than face the appetite or addiction takes patience and determination.
"If you want freedom you have to come to terms with being okay in the now doing nothing." -- Doug Duncan Sensei "All of your bad states are entirely your responsibility. Your state is totally under your control as long as you can exercise the mindfulness to be present in the moment. When you remain present you won't go to the addiction or to a negative mind state." "On the spiritual path, you're not fighting your addiction, you're fighting the inability to face the appetite or addiction. It takes patience and determination to sit through the state and study the pattern, rather than simply being driven by early childhood conditioning." From a public talk given in Winnipeg, Canada in September 2009
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The nature of addiction is an attempt to escape the pain at the core of our being. Resisting the urge to give in rather than face the appetite or addiction takes patience and determination.
--
"If you look at the nature of your consciousness, you're always one step ahead of yourself or perhaps one step behind yourself, but very rarely are you actually in this moment just as it is." -- Doug Duncan Sensei The nature of appetite or addiction is thinking, 'What's next?'" In our modern lifestyles, we are addicted to being busy, always going from one thing to next, seeking happiness in the next moment. This is an addictive pattern. Seeking cannot produce peace and contentment. Happiness cannot be found in the next moment. Only in breaking the pattern, the addiction to the immediate reward of the chemical rush, do we find that consciousness can reside pleasantly in this moment, undisturbed for a period of time. The cycle of addiction is rooted in a strong sense of survival in one's being. Rather than fighting against it, look at it with reason. Decide to meditate, to do nothing but rest peacefully in the moment for one or two hours a day. In meditating, one's habit is absent, so initially boredom will arise. Boredom is the result of the withdrawal from mental addiction, the addiction to 'What's going to happen next?' Boredom is followed by fear and anxiety, which have some survival value. So how do you marry the survival value of planning and organizing with the idea of being present in the moment? Stay tuned.
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Part 3: You Cannot Let the Unwholesome Run You
The real work is to pay attention to and recognize what's going on in inside -- our mental states. We cannot let ourselves be ruled by subconscious conditioning.
In this last part of his talk, Doug Sensei gets down to the nitty-gritty. It's your work to do. We need to pay attention to and recognize what's going on in inside -- our mental states. And not let ourselves be ruled by subconscious conditioning. Mantras mentioned: Chenrezig (Jewel in the Lotus) mantra (for your heart): Om Mani Padme Hung Manjushri mantra (for your head): Om A Ra Pa Tsa Na Dhih Vajrapani (The Holder of the Diamond) mantra: Om Vajrapani Namah Hum Deity: Red Shinji, wrathful Red Manjushri: the most wrathful of all the deities in the mandala
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Part 2: Why Wait for Spring?
The real work is to pay attention to and recognize what's going on in inside -- our mental states. We cannot let ourselves be ruled by subconscious conditioning.
It's the basics for awakening. Recognize the wholesome for the wholesome. Recognize the unwholesome for the unwholesome. And you always know that the unwholesome state is unwholesome. You just aren't admitting it. Om ah ra pa tsa na dhih. Hail to the wisdom that is ripening. (Manjushri mantra) This talk was given by Doug Duncan Sensei on Aug. 14, 2010 at Clear Sky Center, BC, Canada.
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Part 1: Nobody's Perfect
The real work is to pay attention to and recognize what's going on in inside -- our mental states. We cannot let ourselves be ruled by subconscious conditioning.
"sabbe sankhara dukkha'ti" All conditioned phenomena are filled with suffering. This talk was given by Doug Duncan Sensei on Aug. 14, 2010 at Clear Sky Center, BC, Canada.
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Sensei answers questions and riffs energetically on cause and effect -- karma -- and a range of other subjects from the point of view of the Buddha (ultimate truth vs. relative truth)
Doug-sensei says: "Action is intention. Be very careful about this. There's no thing that you do at any moment ever that isn't intended. Every single thing you do is intended, whether you acknowledge the intention or not."
Reference: Prajna Paramita = The Heart Sutra
Relevant section: "O Shariputra, all dharmas are forms of emptiness, not born, not destroyed, Not stained, not pure; without loss, without gain. So in emptiness there is no form, no sensation, conception, discrimination, awareness. No eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind."
Ultimate vs. Relative Truth = The Buddhist Doctrine of Two Truths From p. 41 Luminous Mind, Kalu Rinpoche: "All things can be viewed according to two levels of reality: the relative or conventional level and the ultimate level. These two truths correspond to two points of view, two visions of reality: the relative truth or view is relatively or conventionally true but ultimately illusory, and the ultimate truth or view is definitively true, the authentic experience beyond all illusion. All samsaric perceptions are experiences of relative truth. Nirvana, which is beyond illusions and samsara's suffering, is the level of ultimate truth." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_truths_doctrine
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Sensei talks about going against the flow by meditating, reflecting and taking on the challenge to let go, abandon, renounce, and give up the idea that samsara is resolvable.
Doug Sensei says: "Your journey to awaken is upriver! Samsara is noted for being endless. You are not going to awaken by keep makin' the same choices, goin' down the same stream. Unless, of course, the choice you're making is to meditate, contemplate, reflect, study, listen to your mentor. But fundamentally you have to take the challenge -- not just to meditate or contemplate, but to take the challenge to go upriver for you! And no Buddha can do this for you." "It's not about rebelling against society. It's not about fixing or destroying society. It's irrelevant. Your challenges are irrelevant to what society is doing. Your challenge is to leave it behind, to walk on, to let go, to abandon, to renounce, to give up the idea that samsara is resolvable!" Term: skandhas For a good explanation: http://tibetanlama.com/buddhism/The_Five_Skhandas.asp
Text used: "Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom," the classic handbook of Buddhism, by Gampopa (This podcast episode now contains the corrected sound file -- no sound dropouts.)
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Doug Sensei rapidly outlines the Buddhist teachings -- how to awaken -- giving life to them with direct commentary suited for people today.
"You're not looking at suffering clearly enough. You're drugging it out. You're in a dream state. Instead, you have to see the true nature of what you're attached to -- that it's impermanent, that it's subject to loss, that you can't ever own it, and that which owns it is itself a dream." Continuing with another talk from Dec. 2009 retreat, Doug Sensei rapidly outlines the Buddhist teachings -- how to awaken -- giving life to them with direct commentary suited for people today. An overview of the teachings from the book, "Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom," the classic handbook of Buddhism by Gampopa, considered the 12th century forefather of the Kagyu traditions of Tibet. Translated by Ken and Katia Holmes in 1994, "according to the detailed explanations traditional to the Karma Kagyu Lineage".
See: http://www.samyeling.org/
Part 1: The Prime Cause -- The Enlightened Essence (having the awakened potential -- you have Buddha nature)
Part 2: The Basis -- A Precious Human Existence
Part 3: The Condition -- The Good Mentor
Part 4: The Means, The Mentors' Instruction Part
5: The Kaya of Perfect Buddhahood
Part 6: Non-Conceptual Enlightened Activity to Benefit Beings
Sensei starts out: "We're talking about samsara and nirvana. Samsara and nirvana are the same insofar as their actual nature is spaciousness. The form it takes is different according to the delusion. Insofar as you're subject to delusion you're in samsara. Insofar as you're not subject to delusion you're in nirvana. The nature of samsara is that it's repetitive -- it just keeps going round and round. The key characteristic is that in samsara because of the delusion you're subject to suffering. In nirvana you're not subject to suffering because you're not subject to the delusion. So then how do you get free from the delusion?" "The nature of the guru, the lama, the Buddha, is to point out blind spots. You don't need the lama to practice, to study, to reflect or contemplate on the Dharma. That you can do on your own. But what you can't do is see your blind spots." "Ignorance doesn't mean you're stupid. It means you're just not looking. From that POV, your neurosis is simply that you don't look past what you already know. It's the nature of the ego."
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Part 3: Wake Up, Little Suzy
Teachings based on the book "Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom" by Gampopa.
Your preferences are shaped, formed by conditioning. Ultimately everything is insubstantial and you need to see that.
Your parents have done their job, but they mentored you for a worldly existence. "The insubstantiality of the problem and the insubstantiality of the person experiencing the problem ends every problem. And by having meditative concentration, you just tell that little imp --- poof!" "Bliss, clarity, non-clinging is your birthright."
Buddhist term: Sambhogakaya
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Teachings based on the book "Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom" by Gampopa.
We are constantly seeking satisfaction. Merely accepting the cycle of getting temporary satisfaction and then seeking again is switching off. You need to transcend it instead.
Student question: "Don't we just accept that there is a cycle of getting temporary satisfaction and then seeking again?"
Sensei: "What are you taking refuge in, my friends?"
Concept: Switched-Off Potential (for Enlightenment)
Another incisive retreat talk!
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Teachings based on the book "Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom" by Gampopa.
The Four Impediments to Awakening Why don't you want to awaken? Get ready for impact. Talk given at winter retreat in Dec. 2009, Miki, Hyogo, Japan.
Note: Quote attributed to Neils Bohr > actually by Schrodinger to Bohr.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Some topics covered in this talk: skandhas (composites), the awakening experience, dealing with pain, "karma is cetana (will or decision)", being hurt and how to forgive
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Part 3: Seven Types of Meditation
In this talk: Samatha meditation (develops calm and concentration resulting in bliss) Six types of samatha meditation: visualization, mantra, mudra, devotional, energy, and breathing. Plus, Vipassana meditation: insight
In this talk: Samatha meditation (develops calm and concentration resulting in bliss) Six types of samatha meditation: visualization, mantra, mudra, devotional, energy, and breathing Vipassana meditation: insight What is reality? From the point of view of Buddhism, there is no object to be found in the universe anywhere. All objects are made up of composite parts. A human being is made up of these composite parts: form, feeling, perception, consciousness, factors of consciousness.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Part 2: What is Meditation?
The separation between the mind that's experiencing a state and the state that you're experiencing is fundamentally meditation. Meditation practices are tools that you use to get between you and your habitual run-on mind.
"Fundamentally, meditation means the ability to witness what's going on in consciousness while it's going on in consciousness." "If you don't see that the state you're in right now -- while you're in a state of anger or in a fight -- is more important than the outcome of the fight, you'll always be fighting. [...] If you put the state you're in right now first, you're meditating, which doesn't mean you have to say to yourself 'I'm not angry.' You step back from the state you're in to look at what it's like to be in that state." "Meditation is the process of learning how to observe the state you're in -- physically, emotionally and mentally -- without getting all bent out of shape about it." "Meditation practices are basically levers or wedges to get in between you and your state to pry the mind and the state apart from each other. If I can pry myself free from that state a little then I'm in a position to look at its nature .... and learn something useful ... and realize that it doesn't really matter what state arises." "The separation between the mind that's experiencing a state and the state that you're experiencing is fundamentally meditation. Meditation practices are tools that you use to get between you and your habitual run-on mind."
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Part 1: No More Quiet Desperation
We don't have to lead lives of quiet desperation. Sensei tells us: "The key to awakening is being aware of your own state, almost as if it's not your own."
We don't have to lead lives of quiet desperation. Perhaps we are too lazy to investigate the nature of our own consciousness, perhaps we have doubts. We fool ourselves into thinking we can get true happiness from objects that are transitory and fundamentally... unsatisfactory. Sensei tells us: "The key to awakening is being aware of your own state, almost as if it's not your own." "Ask yourself one question: 'What is inherently unpleasant or uncomfortable or undesirable in this thing?' "In the process of taking apart your views of things, you find that a lot of the things you're building your happiness on are doomed to end. Can they possibly, then, create everlasting peace?"
http://www.planetdharma.com/
We're obsessed with our lives. We reference everything back to ourselves. We need to let go of this obsession in order to access that which is greater than ourselves. You can't be busy with distractions.
"The problem is that you want to have your cake and eat it, too. So you try to do the job and career and relationship thing AND stand on the edge of the cliff, but because you're clinging to the job and career and relationship, you're not actually ON the edge of the cliff. You try to convince yourself you're on the edge of the cliff when you're 15 miles from it. The teacher's job is nothing other than to disabuse you of the fact that you're not standing at the edge of the cliff, and to point where the edge of the cliff is." Terms used in the talk: "alaya vinjana" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Store_consciousness) Jataka tales (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jataka_tales) Jodo Shinshu (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jodo_Shinshu) Kyentse Norbu Rinpoche (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dzongsar_Jamyang_Khyentse_Rinpoche) guru yoga (Google it yourself ;-))
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Are We Our Thoughts?
Part 1 of 2
The mistake we make that hinders our spiritual development is that we take things personally, which feeds experiences back into the conditioned responses that we call the self. So what is the self? Our thoughts? Our emotions? Our body?
Wake up in the morning and set your aspiration for the day. It's fundamental for "working the bowl upstream into the more radiant fields of consciousness." The mistake we make that hinders our spiritual development is that we take things personally, which feeds experiences back into the conditioned responses that we call the self. So what is the self? Our thoughts? Our emotions? Our body? This talk was given in March 2009 at Clear Sky Center, B.C., Canada.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
To meditate, you don't have to be "smart," says Doug Sensei. You just have to see clearly.
In this edited talk excerpt, Sensei discusses "the Purification of View" (from the Abhidhamma) and provides a useful meditation exercise to help one come to understand nama and rupa (mind and matter), the knowledge of which constitutes the first stage of insight and leads to overcoming doubt on the Path.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
What does it mean to purify one's morality?
In this short excerpt from a talk given in Calgary, B.C., Canada, Doug Sensei discusses "the purification of virtue (sila)" as part of the traditional "seven stages of purification" and defines sila as being in a state of fundamental friendliness toward self and others. Sanskrit terms: sila: "coolness" or "cool-headedness" kusala: skilful, virtuous http://www.quangduc.com/English/kusala.htm
http://www.planetdharma.com/
A discussion on the seven types of meditation, includes the Sanskrit terms samatha, vipassana, and rupa/arupa jhana
Full talk: Part 3 of 3
Sanskrit terminology used in this talk include: bardo and Tathagatagarbha.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
A discussion on the seven types of meditation.
Full talk: Part 2 of 3
Continuing with this discussion on the seven types of meditation, you’ll encounter the following Sanskrit terms: Tathagatagarbha, alaya-vijnana
References are also made to Mahākāśyapa, the Flower sermon disciple, and Hui Neng, the Sixth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism.
http://www.planetdharma.com/
A discussion on the seven types of meditation.
Full talk: Part 1 of 3
In this discussion on the seven types of meditation, you'll encounter the following Sanskrit terms: samatha, vipassana, rupa/arupajhana
Talks are edited lightly to remove extraneous material. For more information on the activities of Doug Sensei, please visit: http://www.planetdharma.com/
With the purification of consciousness, you realize that you are a wave and you are an ocean. In essence you are water -- all the same water. Water is the six senses in this metaphor.
This talk was given for a retreat in Guatemala on Feb. 26, 2004. Part 2 of 2. For more information on the activities of Doug Sensei, please visit:
http://www.planetdharma.com/
Purification of the sense doors is probably the most important work you do on the path, leading to a body of radiance.
This talk was given for a retreat in Guatemala on Feb. 26, 2004. Part 1 of 2. For more information on the activities of Doug Sensei, please visit:
http://www.planetdharma.com/
podcast.clearskycenter.org
The root of the path is sila, samadhi and panna.
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The Golden Rule works.
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Concentration -- requires and effort that goes beyond your preference mind (you get bored). Important for right-hemisphere brain if mind is wandering around in the left brain.
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Wisdom -- Complete View: fundamentally, reality from a Transcendent point of view is self-aware, luminescent, spacious. From that platform all phenomena appear.
Part 3 of 3 of a talk given in Kyoto, Japan, in November 2008.
podcast.clearskycenter.org http://www.planetdharma.com/
All the objects of your mind are impermanent. Liberation from suffering/Nirvana/Christ consciousness is a right-hemisphere experience but the left hemisphere is the hemisphere that knows about it.
This talk was given in Kyoto, Japan, in November 2008. It is Part 2 of 3.
podcast.clearskycenter.org http://www.planetdharma.com/
When studying the mind, if you're busy with your thoughts, feelings and sensations, you're getting caught up with what's in the mind, not the nature of the mind itself. "M" Mind is aware, spacious, naturally luminescent and clear.
This talk was given in Kyoto, Japan, in Nov. 2008. Part 1 of 3.