Category: Female

  • The Power of Kindness: Sharon Salzberg

    Length: 26 minutes, 17 seconds. Memorable Quote:  If you really want to be a rebel, be kind. If you really want to break away from the narcissistic expectations of society and be bold, be kind. Synopsis: Sharon sees kindness and compassion not simply as a tool for seeing for clearly, but also the culmination of…

  • Damnit Dukkha: Ruth King

    Length: 14 minutes, 31 seconds Memorable Quote: “The mind has no shame. It will do anything to get your attention.” Synopsis: Ruth contrasts the “big” dukkhas (suffering), such as illness and death, with the smaller kinds of dukkha, those moments when you say “Damnit!” These smaller sufferings are moments of not getting what you want,…

  • Anticipation: Ines Freedman

    Memorable Quote: “It’s important as we look at the life desire that moves us forward, and we keep a balance between forward movement and having a really strong presence in the now.” Synopsis: Ines points out that, although we often think of mindfulness as being in the present moment, we should also pay attention to…

  • Renunciation and Desire: Aya Santacitta

    Length: 27 minutes, 23 seconds Memorable Quote:  In renunciation, I am not “forcing” myself to do something, but “adding” more mindfulness and awareness to my life. Synopsis: Renunciation is out of style these days, Aya Santacitta tells us. Renunciation, in a way, is the opposite of pursuing sensual desire. Being free from addiction and desire…

  • Working with Habits: Gina Sharpe

    Length: 22 minutes, 50  seconds Memorable Quote: “Many habits that we’ve built up that are habits that create short-term pleasure; in the long-run, these habits are unhelpful and destructive.” Synopsis: Gina encourages us to be open to exploring the countless ways we can define “who we are” and “who we might become.” She points out…

  • The Conceit of Self: Marcia Rose

    Length: 10 minutes, 22 seconds. Memorable Quote: We need to recognize our inner goodness, not for prideful purposes, but in order to generate the respect, confidence, and sense of well-being that’s essential and natural to the awakening mind. Synopsis: In this talk, Marcia discussed the “conceit” of self. One of the most pervasive ways this…

  • What Freedom Looks Like: JoAnna Harper

    Length: 25 minutes, 38  seconds Memorable Quote: “I want to have the full richness of life. I hope I get to do that without getting slammed and torn every time something happens that I like a lot or want to push away.” Synopsis: JoAnna starts her talk by asking a hypothetical question: what would it…

  • Thought and Emotions: Anushka Fernandopulle

    Length: 21 minutes, 39 seconds Memorable Quote: “Sometimes we paint beautiful pictures. We go in a cave, paint a picture and fall in love with it. We build a shrine and we marry the picture.  It’s so beautiful that we want to live in the cave forever.” Synopsis: Anushka describes how the thoughts we think…

  • All About Love: Spring Washam

    Length: 17 minutes, 2 seconds Memorable Quote: “People can get very intellectual with Buddhism…I always go back to the basics. Sitting on the earth with a warm heart. Focus on that.” Synopsis: Spring describes the cultivation of love (“lovingkindness”) as training the mind to see the truth. We have a lot of junk in our…