Open Question

Elizabeth explores absolute bodhicitta through the story of the 11th century spiritual quest of Naropa. His training, under Mahasiddha Tilopa, illustrates the necessity of disrupting delusion in the …

In the context of a recent pilgrimage in India, Elizabeth opens up the topic of “engaged” bodhicitta and the six paramitas. She weaves in the story of Sujata, the young woman known for generously off…

In episode 601, Across the Valley, Elizabeth uses the analogy of two communities situated on opposite sides of the valley where she lives to consider our tendencies towards fundamentalism and rightne…

In this episode Elizabeth reflects upon the provocative poem by renowned Buddhist teacher, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, entitled, “Looking Into the World.” “It’s not a cozy poem,” she says, “It’s an inc…

Devotion is one of the many expressions of faith. When understood clearly, devotion can hasten the process of awakening for the student on the spiritual path, ripening and maturing them in a simple a…

All great spiritual lineages point us back to that which defies concept and language. Authentic practitioners describe awakening as being touched by a sense of awe, overcome by the beauty, fierceness…

At 7:15 am on August 7th, 1974, 1,300 feet above a gathering crowd, French high wire artist, Philip Petit, renowned for his unauthorized public stunts, stepped onto a 131-foot wire rigged between the…

In this episode, Elizabeth takes us on a journey through the term ‘faith.' We may assume we know what faith is, but most of us have never truly explored its nuance or spectrum of meanings. We often u…

Elizabeth shares the classic Buddhist narrative of Avaloketeshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, and asks us to contemplate the story carefully, adding, “because something similar could happen to y…

Continuing with the theme - The Self: Walking the Middle Way Path, we meet the 2nd Century spiritual genius, Nagarjuna, who is considered the father of the Middle Way school. Nagarjuna once paid homa…

The most intimate relationship you will ever have is the relationship you have with your SELF! Ironically, when looking for a singular, permanent or autonomous self, all we find is a myriad of dynami…

Many of us can recall our earliest encounters with the quandary of death. As children, we possess a natural longing to make sense of the world; to find explanations for things that disturb or amaze u…

Our life - our world - can be rich…and it can also be a bitch.  We walk the terrain of multiple - maybe infinite - grounds.  We move in and out of these overlapping spaces.They are not geographical t…

What do you see when you think about the world? You might picture a rainforest or desert. You might envision a crowded subway terminal. You might imagine a household or a war zone. You might think: “…

In Open Question 303, Elizabeth explores the power of words and what it means to go beyond them in the tradition of Prajnaparamita.

The Buddha Nature teachings of Mahayana Buddhism reason that all beings possess natural intelligence. We can observe in ourselves and others that the instinct for wellbeing drives everything we do. W…

Most spiritual traditions offer teachings on "sacred world"-the promise of a life beyond struggle-the search for a place of ease. This is a noble human quest. And yet, the "sacred" often seems to be …

Marc Andrus is the Bishop of  the Episcopal Diocese of California. His leadership is focused on key issues related to peace and justice, civil rights, and the environment. Bishop Andrus has just rele…

In this episode Elizabeth shares her love of the most quintessential text of Mahayana Buddhism: The Heart Sutra. She weaves heartfelt commentary through a musical composition of the text, performed b…