Awake in the World Podcast

Michael speaks at Occupy Vancouver on November 6, 2011. "We are failing in our culture from a lack of imagination. And what we're achieving here is space for imagination." Originally shot by Ian MacKenzie (https://vimeo.com/31735800) and watch the post-speech piece Love & Shadow in the Occupy Movement (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2akehtL-Ac).

The evening begins with Priya Thomas covering Bruce Springsteen's "I'm on Fire," then Michael reads the Fire Sermon and gives a talk on the way we burn with lust, hatred and delusion and how the Buddha offers a public path of practice. We practice even when we're on fire. Recorded Sept 22, 2010 at Centre of Gravity, Toronto.

Michael Stone explores the integration of yoga and Buddhism, and how we can live a life fully engaged with the suffering of the world while also taking care of ourselves. Recorded during a day-long workshop and fundraiser for New Leaf Foundation (https://newleaffoundation.com) at the University of Toronto in September 2010.

This was the final talk during silent retreat at Stowel Lake Farm on Salt Spring Island, August 2016. Michael talks about the relationship between emptiness, Buddhism, and the need for healing with First Nations. It was an inspiring and powerful end to the retreat.

A wide ranging talk by Michael Stone on using language in meditation practice, labelling thoughts, and the way kids and adults use language to mediate their internal states. [NOTE: The recording unfortunately was cut off before the end of the talk. We apologize for the error.] Recorded on April 8, 2014.

Michael talks about how our work should be energetic, industrious, diligent and skilful. We should live within our means and keep good company. When you really, really want something, you might ask: How central is this for becoming a good version of myself? Recorded on March 1, 2014.

Michael offers teachings from the Buddhist tradition on how to make a living, and how to make ethical decisions around money in a financial world that revolves around extraction and exploitation. Recorded on March 1, 2014.

Michael explores two questions: 1) Who Are You? and 2) What Should You Do? Using the old Zen koan, "What's the price of rice?" Michael talks about wrestling with questions, compassion, empathy, and how to care for people without getting credit. Recorded on February 4, 2014.

Even when we advance in spiritual practice, something is always missing. Maybe nirvana is about having troubles without falling into defense or burnout? Michael also gives a strong critique of the economic stories that drive us. Recorded on January 14, 2014.

Michael talks on loneliness, paying attention, and the importance of small ideas that can network and build a new culture. Recorded at Centre of Gravity, Toronto on December 3, 2013.

Michael Stone gives a talk on the importance of paying attention, youth, and how deep yoga is a political practice. Recorded December 1, 2013 at Yoga Shala Calgary.

Michael Stone explores the bleakness of loneliness, the puzzle of modern isolation, and how to work with being alone and feeling lonely. Recorded at Centre of Gravity, Toronto, on November 26, 2013.

A Q&A discussion with Joshua Stephens after his talk, Gentle with Each Other, Dangerous Together (https://soundcloud.com/michaelstoneteaching/gentle-with-each-other-dangerous-together-with-joshua-stephens). Recorded at Centre of Gravity, Toronto, on November 12, 2013.

Often when we see Buddhist practice put into conversation with radical social transformation, commitments like forgiveness, patience, and non-attachment appear in one of two ways: as pillars of self-care, or resigned—almost theological—faith in inaction in the face of the intolerable. In fact, these practices are not merely tactical approaches to our immediate experience; they are key, prefigurative building-blocks worth re-thinking not just through the lens of the Buddha's teachings, but the accounts of actors on the ground in contemporary struggles. Recorded at Centre of Gravity, Toronto on November 12, 2013.

Michael Stone and Rabbi Miriam Margles co-teach a popular retreat integrating Jewish & Buddhist practice. Michael gives an afternoon talk reflecting on God, gratitude, mind, compassionate action, and the encounter between what can and can't be talked about. Recorded in Quebec on November 3, 2013.