Best Tricycle Talks Podcasts (2025)

1
Breathing Mindfulness with Sarah Shaw 59:36

2d ago59:36

59:36

Over the course of the last hundred years, breathing mindfulness has become the most popular method of meditation around the world. Yet its history remains largely unrecorded. In her new book, Breathing Mindfulness: Discovering the Riches at the Heart of the Buddhist Path, scholar Sarah Shaw provides a historical survey of some of the methods of br…

1
How to Stay Engaged without Burning Out with Daisy Hernández 58:09

11d ago58:09

58:09

For the next few episodes of Life As It Is, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, and meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg will be talking about specific themes that have been coming up in their practice, with a particular focus on navigating our current social and political climate. In this episode, they discuss how to stay engaged without burn…

1
The Edge of Language with Arthur Sze 56:24

18d ago56:24

56:24

For poet and translator Arthur Sze, poetry offers a way to ask difficult questions without any expectation of an answer. “It helps us slow down, hear clearly, see deeply, and envision what matters most in our lives,” he told Tricycle in a 2020 interview. “When one reads a poem, one has to pay attention to the sounds of words, to the rhythm of langu…

1
Classroom Mindfulness Put to the Test with Emma Varvaloucas 54:08

1M ago54:08

54:08

Emma Varvaloucas is the executive director of the Progress Network, a nonprofit media organization that aims to take a constructive approach to solving some of our most intractable problems. In her article in the February issue of Tricycle called “Classroom Mindfulness Put to the Test,” she explores the surprising results of recent research on mind…

1
The Grieving Body with Mary-Frances O'Connor 1:15:44

1M ago1:15:44

1:15:44

Grief is often thought of as a psychological phenomenon. Yet loss also has a profound impact on our bodies, often affecting our cardiovascular, endocrine, and immune systems. As a Professor of Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Arizona, Mary-Frances O’Connor specializes in studying the physiology of grief. In her new book, The …

1
A Journey through Buddhist History with Donald S. Lopez Jr. 46:15

2M ago46:15

46:15

Donald S. Lopez Jr. is the Arthur E. Link Distinguished University Professor of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies in the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Michigan and a longtime Tricycle contributing editor. In his new book, Buddhism: A Journey through History, he lays out a comprehensive introduction to the history of Bud…

1
Uprooting Harmful Habits with Valerie (Vimalasara) Mason-John 48:02

2M ago48:02

48:02

Valerie (Vimalasara) Mason-John is a senior teacher in the Triratna Buddhist Community, and their work focuses on how Buddhist teachings can support a sustainable path to recovery. In their new book, First Aid Kit for the Mind: Breaking the Cycle of Habitual Behaviors, they lay out practical tools for uprooting harmful habits, building emotional re…

1
Planting the Seeds of Happy Relationships with Kimberly Brown 56:20

2M ago56:20

56:20

Kimberly Brown is a meditation teacher and author based in New York City. In her new book, Happy Relationships: 25 Buddhist Practices to Transform Your Connections with Your Partner, Family, and Friends, she lays out a practical guide to help us cultivate and maintain healthy relationships with the people who matter most to us. In this episode of L…

1
How to Lose Yourself with Jay Garfield 59:09

2M ago59:09

59:09

No-self is a core teaching across Buddhist traditions. Yet what does it look like to actually live without a self? In How to Lose Yourself: An Ancient Guide to Letting Go, scholars Jay L. Garfield, Maria Heim, and Robert H. Sharf present a series of accessible and engaging translations of key Buddhist texts on why we are selfless persons—and why th…

1
Learning from Silence with Pico Iyer 58:12

3M ago58:12

58:12

After his family home burned down in a California wildfire in the 1990s, journalist Pico Iyer found refuge in an unlikely location: a small Benedictine hermitage outside of Big Sur. Though Iyer initially arrived looking for a bed to sleep in, he soon found the silence of monastic life transformative, and over the course of the past thirty-three yea…

1
Embracing Our Limitations and Making Time for What Counts 48:37

3M ago48:37

48:37

Oliver Burkeman is an author and journalist based in northern England. In his new book, Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts, he lays out a practical guide for living meaningful and fulfilling lives as finite, imperfect humans. In this episode of Life As It Is, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, Jam…

1
Everything Is Buddha with Noelle Oxenhandler 50:51

4M ago50:51

50:51

Noelle Oxenhandler is a writer and longtime Tricycle contributing editor based in northern California. Recently, she has been thinking a lot about what it means to be ready to die—and what will happen to all her belongings when she does. In her article in the November issue of Tricycle called “Everything Is Buddha,” she explores the sense of obliga…

1
Finding Joy in Everything We Do with Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche 48:13

5M ago48:13

48:13

Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche is a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and author based in southern Colorado. In his new book, Diligence: The Joyful Endeavor of the Buddhist Path, he draws from the teachings of the 8th-century Buddhist philosopher Shantideva to explore how we can meet the world with joy and openheartedness. In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricy…

1
Saraha, Poet of Blissful Awareness with Roger R. Jackson 1:09:45

5M ago1:09:45

1:09:45

When Roger R. Jackson was an undergraduate at Wesleyan, he came across the verses of Saraha, a 10th-century mystic known for his fierce exhortations to cut through the layers of delusion in order to experience the true nature of mind directly. While Saraha is considered one of the founders of the Vajrayana tradition and has been incorporated into a…

1
How to Grieve What We've Lost with Sameet Kumar 55:17

5M ago55:17

55:17

Sameet Kumar is a clinical psychologist at the Memorial Cancer Institute and Moffitt Hematology and Cellular Therapy program. His work focuses on mindfulness-based approaches to grief and loss. In his new book, How to Grieve What We’ve Lost: Evidence-Based Skills to Process Grief and Reconnect with What Matters, which he co-wrote with four other th…

1
Abortion and Buddhist Ethics with Katy Butler 49:36

6M ago49:36

49:36

When journalist Katy Butler first committed to the Buddhist precepts, it didn’t occur to her to consider her two abortions in their light. Now, fifty years later, she has come to understand abortion in the context of harm reduction and the alleviation of suffering. In her article in the November issue of Tricycle called “Abortion and the First Prec…

1
Picking Up the Pieces in a Postapocalyptic World with Vajra Chandrasekera 55:05

6M ago55:05

55:05

Vajra Chandrasekera is a novelist based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. His new novel, Rakesfall, follows two characters as they're reincarnated across histories and worlds from the mythic past to modern Sri Lanka to the far future Earth through endless epicycles of love, violence, and betrayal. In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief,…

1
A Safe Place to Fall Apart with BJ Miller 54:40

6M ago54:40

54:40

When BJ Miller was a sophomore in college, he climbed atop a commuter train and was immediately electrocuted, causing him to lose both legs and half an arm. In the aftermath of his own near-death experience, he turned to the arts to make sense of his injuries and to grapple with questions of disability and what it means to live a good life. Miller …

1
Becoming Thay with Adrienne Minh-Châu Lê 43:37

7M ago43:37

43:37

Thich Nhat Hanh was one of the most influential figures in contemporary Buddhism, from his founding of the Order of Interbeing and the Plum Village Tradition to his popularization of Engaged Buddhism. Yet his background is often overlooked. Adrienne Minh-Châu Lê, a Columbia University PhD candidate in international history, is one of the first scho…

1
A Meditator's Guide to Buddhism with Cortland Dahl 1:20:13

7M ago1:20:13

1:20:13

Cortland Dahl is a Buddhist scholar, translator, meditation teacher, and contemplative scientist based in Madison, Wisconsin. In his new book, A Meditator's Guide to Buddhism: The Path of Awareness, Compassion, and Wisdom, he offers an accessible introduction to Buddhist principles and practices through the lens of the three yanas, or vehicles. In …

1
Breaking Bias with Anu Gupta 55:10

7M ago55:10

55:10

Anu Gupta is an educator, lawyer, research scientist, and meditation teacher, and his work focuses on harnessing mindfulness and compassion practices for social change. In his new book, Breaking Bias: Where Stereotypes and Prejudices Come From—and the Science-Backed Method to Unravel Them, he weaves together Buddhist teachings and insights from mod…

1
I'm Mindful, Now What? with Andrew Holecek 1:10:12

8M ago1:10:12

1:10:12

Mindfulness has become ubiquitous as a practice. Yet according to meditation teacher Andrew Holecek, mindfulness is not enough to meet the challenges of the modern world. Holecek is a teacher in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition who leads workshops on meditation, dream yoga, and preparing for death. In his new book, I'm Mindful, Now What?: Moving Beyo…

1
US Poet Laureate Ada Limón on Returning to Wonder 59:58

8M ago59:58

59:58

Ada Limón is the 24th Poet Laureate of The United States and the author of six books of poetry. Her most recent project, You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World, is a collection of poetry that she edited in collaboration with the Library of Congress focused on how poetry can help us reconnect to the world around us. In this episode of Tricycle Ta…

1
'There Is No Enemy' with George Mumford 58:19

8M ago58:19

58:19

It can be so easy to get trapped in feelings of jealousy and envy, particularly in the context of competitive environments. According to meditation teacher George Mumford, one of the best practices for working with envy is cultivating mudita, or sympathetic joy. Mumford has worked as a mindfulness coach and sports psychologist for three decades, an…

1
Transforming Grief into Wisdom with Sister Dang Nghiem 57:29

9M ago57:29

57:29

Born in Central Vietnam at the height of the Vietnam War, Sister Dang Nghiem grew up singing made-up songs to comfort herself and express her suffering. After moving to the US, she began writing poetry at the encouragement of an English teacher, and eventually, she ordained as a nun in the Plum Village tradition following the sudden death of her pa…

1
Practical Tools for Uprooting Anger with Thubten Chodron 49:44

9M ago49:44

49:44

In tumultuous times, it can be easy to turn to anger. But according to Venerable Thubten Chodron, from a Buddhist perspective, anger is never useful. Venerable Chodron has been a nun in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition since 1977, and she is the founder and abbess of Sravasti Abbey in Washington State. In her book, Working with Anger: Buddhist Teachi…

1
Everyday Enlightenment with Susan Kaiser Greenland 50:26

9M ago50:26

50:26

Enlightenment can often sound like an unattainable goal. But mindfulness teacher and author Susan Kaiser Greenland believes that we can find enlightenment in every moment. In her new book, Real-World Enlightenment: Discovering Ordinary Magic in Everyday Life, she draws from various wisdom traditions to lay out practical tools for easing anxiety and…

1
Already Free with Bruce Tift 51:43

10M ago51:43

51:43

Bruce Tift is a psychotherapist and longtime practitioner of Vajrayana Buddhism. In his book, Already Free: Buddhism Meets Psychotherapy on the Path to Liberation, he lays out why he believes that the approaches of Buddhism and Western psychotherapy are fundamentally irreconcilable—and what we can learn from holding these contradictory energies sim…

1
Warrior Zen with Cristina Moon 58:01

10M ago58:01

58:01

At the age of 25, Cristina Moon sat her first ten-day meditation retreat to prepare for the possibility of arrest and torture inside military-ruled Burma. While Moon acknowledges the naïveté of her initial intent, on the retreat she nevertheless discovered not only a method to withstand pain but also a new way of seeing the world that set her on a …

1
Weathering the Eight Worldly Winds with Ethan Nichtern 53:50

10M ago53:50

53:50

In the midst of constant change, it can be easy to feel knocked around by forces outside our control. In Buddhist terminology, these forces are often referred to as the eight worldly winds: pleasure and pain, praise and blame, fame and insignificance, and success and failure. According to meditation teacher Ethan Nichtern, working with these pairs …

1
Awakening in Every Moment with Kazuaki Tanahashi 43:17

11M ago43:17

43:17

Kazuaki Tanahashi is an artist, translator, calligrapher, and environmental activist and peaceworker. In his new book, Gardens of Awakening: A Guide to the Aesthetics, History, and Spirituality of Kyoto’s Zen Landscapes, he explores the contemplative art form of Zen gardening and discusses why he believes gardens are an essential instrument of awak…

1
Why Actor Michael O’Keefe Renounced His Buddhist Vows 48:13

11M ago48:13

48:13

Michael O’Keefe is an actor, poet, and lyricist—and he’s also a former Zen priest. In his article in the Spring issue of Tricycle, “The Lost Robe,” he explores what led him to renounce his vows and leave the priesthood. In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, sits down with O’Keefe to discuss his path to ordina…

1
Calling on Our Ancestors with Kaira Jewel Lingo 54:11

12M ago54:11

54:11

When she was just 11 years old, Kaira Jewel Lingo already knew that she wanted to be a nun. Fourteen years later, she ordained in the Plum Village tradition, where she trained closely with her teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh, for fifteen years. In her new book, Healing Our Way Home: Black Buddhist Teachings on Ancestors, Joy, and Liberation, which she co-…

1
At the Crossroads of Buddhism and America with Helen Tworkov 46:27

12M ago46:27

46:27

Helen Tworkov grew up in a family of artists where art was considered the religion. Yet from an early age, she sought another kind of religion—one that would address deeper questions of the nature of truth and the self. After traveling throughout Asia and experimenting with a variety of New Age practices, Tworkov eventually arrived at Buddhism—and …

1
Facing Injustice with Joy with Dr. Kamilah Majied 1:00:08

1y ago1:00:08

1:00:08

Dr. Kamilah Majied is a mental health therapist, clinical educator, and consultant on advancing equity and inclusion through contemplative practice. In her new book, Joyfully Just: Black Wisdom and Buddhist Insights for Liberated Living, she draws from Black cultural traditions and the teachings of Nichiren Buddhism to lay out a path to liberation …

1
Transmuting Generational Grief with Jungwon Kim 56:00

1y ago56:00

56:00

In the face of global crises and catastrophes, how can we work with our anger effectively? And how can we channel our grief and rage without becoming consumed by it? These questions are at the core of Jungwon Kim’s practice. Kim is a multidisciplinary communications strategist and advocate who has chronicled frontline environmental and human rights…

1
Pulitzer Prize Finalist Arthur Sze on Translating Loss and Renewal 1:00:36

1y ago1:00:36

1:00:36

Unlike many contemporary American poets, Arthur Sze did not attend a traditional MFA program to learn to write poetry. Instead, he turned to translation to hone his craft. His latest collection, The Silk Dragon II: Translations of Chinese Poetry, compiles fifty years of his translations, illustrating the vitality and versatility of the Chinese poet…

1
Awakening to What We Already Are with Gaylon Ferguson 1:01:09

1y ago1:01:09

1:01:09

Gaylon Ferguson is an acharya, or senior teacher, in the Shambhala International Buddhist community and a faculty member in Religious Studies at Naropa University. In his new book, Welcoming Beginner's Mind: Zen and Tibetan Buddhist Wisdom on Experiencing Our True Nature, he uses the classic Zen oxherding pictures as a way of illustrating the stage…

1
A Call for the Full Ordination of Women with Karma Lekshe Tsomo 55:34

1y ago55:34

55:34

Karma Lekshe Tsomo came to Buddhism because of a typo: years ago, her family name had been mistakenly changed from Zinn to Zenn. When her classmates started teasing her about being a Zen Buddhist, she took to the library to learn more about Buddhism and was instantly sold. After deciding to dedicate her life to Buddhist practice, she ordained as a …

1
Living Between Worlds with Amy Yee 50:04

1y ago50:04

50:04

In March 2008, journalist Amy Yee was assigned to cover a press conference in Dharamsala following the Chinese government’s crackdown on protests throughout Tibet. After an unexpected personal encounter with the Dalai Lama at the conference, she set out to highlight the stories of Tibetans living in exile in Dharamsala and around the world. Her new…

1
A Guide for When Things Don't Go Your Way with Haemin Sunim 50:36

1y ago50:36

50:36

Haemin Sunim is a Korean Zen monk based in Seoul, where he founded the School of Broken Hearts and the Dharma Illumination Zen Center. In his new book, When Things Don't Go Your Way: Zen Wisdom for Difficult Times, he offers a guide to transforming life’s unexpected challenges into opportunities for awakening. In this episode of Life As It Is, Tric…

1
What Makes a Good Life with Seth Segall 56:58

1y ago56:58

56:58

What does it mean to live an ethical life? And how can cultivating wisdom and virtue support us in navigating the crises of today’s world? These questions are at the center of Zen priest and psychologist Seth Segall’s new book, The House We Live In: Virtue, Wisdom, and Pluralism. Drawing from Aristotelian, Confucian, and Buddhist ethical traditions…

1
The Zen Way of Recovery with Laura Burges 56:37

1+ y ago56:37

56:37

Laura Burges is a lay-entrusted teacher in the Soto Zen tradition, and she has been leading retreats on recovery at the San Francisco Zen Center for over twenty years. In her new book, The Zen Way of Recovery: An Illuminated Path Out of the Darkness of Addiction, she brings together Buddhist wisdom and the teachings of recovery programs to lay out …

1
Revisiting Radical Acceptance with Tara Brach 1:04:36

1+ y ago1:04:36

1:04:36

It can be so easy to feel like we’re not enough or that we’re somehow insufficient. According to meditation teacher Tara Brach, this feeling of unworthiness is fundamentally a disease of separation, as it alienates us from ourselves and the people around us. For Brach, one way to free ourselves from this trance of unworthiness is the practice of ra…

1
Restoring Dignity at the End of Life with Sunita Puri 1:08:58

1+ y ago1:08:58

1:08:58

Sunita Puri is a writer, a palliative medicine physician, and an associate professor at the UMass Chan Medical School. In her memoir, That Good Night: Life and Medicine in the Eleventh Hour, she explores her journey of helping patients and families redefine what it means to live and die well in the face of serious illness. In her article in Tricycl…

1
How the First Buddhist Women Became Free 59:39

1+ y ago59:39

59:39

After the Buddha’s enlightenment, his aunt and adoptive mother, Mahapajapati Gotami, asks him to ordain women and welcome them into his new monastic community. The Buddha declines to fulfill her request. But Mahapajapati Gotami doesn’t give up—accompanied by a large gathering of women, she sets out to ask him again. In her new novel, The Gathering:…

1
Meeting Crisis with Compassion with Oren Jay Sofer 56:13

1+ y ago56:13

56:13

What is the role of contemplative practice in times of crisis? And how can meditation actually support us in meeting the greatest challenges of our time? Oren Jay Sofer takes up these questions in his new book, Your Heart Was Made for This: Contemplative Practices for Meeting a World in Crisis with Courage, Integrity, and Love. As a meditation teac…

1
Becoming the New Saints with Lama Rod Owens 1:06:06

1+ y ago1:06:06

1:06:06

Lama Rod Owens is an author, activist, and authorized lama in the Karma Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism. In his new book, The New Saints: From Broken Hearts to Spiritual Warriors, he draws from the bodhisattva tradition to rethink the relationship between social liberation and ultimate freedom, putting forth the notion of the New Saint. In the pro…

1
How to Save Time (By Doing Nothing) with Jenny Odell 52:10

1+ y ago52:10

52:10

In her first book, How to Do Nothing, writer and artist Jenny Odell examined the power of quiet contemplation in a world where our attention is bought and sold. Now, she takes up the question of how to find space for silence when we feel like we don’t have enough time to spend. In her new book, Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock, Odel…

1
Actor Michael Imperioli on Patience, Practice, and Liberation 45:40

1+ y ago45:40

45:40

Michael Imperioli has a knack for playing mobsters and villains. Best known for his roles as Christopher Moltisanti on The Sopranos and Dominic Di Grasso on The White Lotus, the Emmy Award–winning actor has made a career out of exploring addiction and afflictive emotions on screen. Offscreen, though, Imperioli is a committed Buddhist practitioner. …

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Tricycle Talks Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen