Interview by Joanna Rotté (A Sky Lake Series) View this episode's page on Libsyn Michele Martin has two graduate degrees in literature from Yale University and has been a Buddhist practitioner in the Karma Kagyu lineage for over forty years. She is a founding board member of the Tibetan Buddhist Research Center and has spent more than thirty years studying with and translating for Tibetan lamas in Nepal and India. She is the author and translator of Music in the Sky: The Life

Interview by Joanna Rotté (A Sky Lake Series) View this episode's page on Libsyn Larry Mermelstein has been a close student of the Venerable Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche since 1971. He is a founding member and Executive Director of the Nalanda Translation Committee, a senior teacher in the Vajradhatu-Shambhala community, and a consultant for Shambhala Publications. He resides in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This interview was conducted in person by Joanna Rotte before a live audience at

View this episode's page on Libsyn Host Bill Moriarty introduces a 2019 public talk from Anam Thubten: "The Wisdom of Meditation and Everyday Life" in the Dzogchen tradition. Anam Thubten describes meditation with an object (breath, body sensations, mantras, ordinary objects, sound) and meditation without an object (open awareness: "rest in the natural state of your mind"). Anam Thubten grew up in Tibet and at an early age began to practice in the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan

View this episode's page on Libsyn Andrew is a consultant at Bain & Company, a firm that provides advice to public, private, and non-profit organizations. He's also the president of Applied Mindfulness Training. Andrew and Michael talk shop about "what exactly does a consultant do?" and reminisce about Andrew's father Patton Hyman, founder of AMT and a close friend of Michael's. This episode was originally produced by Applied Mindfulness Training as part of their Mindful Voic

View this episode's page on Libsyn Michael Carroll sits down with Chris Kayser, who has been earning a living as an actor in the Atlanta area for over 40 years. Most recently he performed in a play about death and has been coming to terms with his own cancer diagnosis. He and Michael discuss how both acting and death can bring us vividly into the present, and the role that mindfulness plays on the stage and in life. From: https://www.alliancetheatre.org/blog/chris-kayser-belo

View this episode's page on Libsyn Michael Carroll sits down with Dr. Michael Baime, founder of The Penn Program for Mindfulness to talk about how applying mindfulness helps both patients and doctors manage stress and heal through sharing an authentic human connection. https://www.pennmedicine.org/services/mindfulness?redirect=1&referrer=pennmed&source=fsu https://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/people/michael-baime This episode was originally produced by Applied Mindfulness Training as pa

View this episode's page on Libsyn Ron is CEO at Continental Sales lots-4-less, a discount store on the South Side of Chicago. Started by Ron's father in 1965, the store has gained a loyal customer base and sees upwards of 1000 sales a day. Ron and Michael discuss the thrill of treasure hunting and the company's values, which include mindfulness, community, and joy. This episode was originally produced by Applied Mindfulness Training as part of their Mindful Voices series. Le

View this episode's page on Libsyn Michael talks with Jacqueline Gallo, Chief Operating Officer of Whitcraft Group, about how applying mindfulness at work helps weather change, make tough leadership decisions, and even see around corners. They also discuss Whitcraft's highly successful prison work release program. This episode was originally produced by Applied Mindfulness Training as part of their Mindful Voices series. Learn more at https://www.appliedmindfulnesstraining.or

View this episode's page on Libsyn Susan Piver is a Buddhist teacher, New York Times bestselling author and founder of the Open Heart Project, a community of support for living an awakened life. Michael sits down with his long-time friend, Susan Piver to talk about community, creativity, pain, loneliness, and other things we're afraid of. They also discuss how applying mindfulness impacts how we run a business, how we teach, and how we learn. This episode was originally produ

View this episode's page on Libsyn A Mindful Gathering - August 2025 Ever wonder what you're actually saying when you chant "Om" or mumble through "Gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha"? Join us for a fascinating conversation with Dr. Varun Khanna, who studied traditional Sanskrit grammar in India and earned his PhD from Cambridge. We explore how ancient practitioners understood Sanskrit as vibrations that directly create experience, break down the real meanings behind

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View this episode's page on Libsyn Anam Thubten spoke in 2023 at the Philadelphia Shambhala Center. He emphasized the path of the Bodhisattva.

View this episode's page on Libsyn Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche Resting in the True Nature of Mind: Essential Meditation Instructions Commentary on a text by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche In 2019, we were deeply honored to host Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche for a special teaching event in the Swarthmore Friends Meeting house. This rare visit from one of Tibetan Buddhism's most respected teachers included a public talk, reception, and a tour of historic Philadelphia. Essential Meditation Instr

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View this episode's page on Libsyn This is audio from a video discussion - see this video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/eFpLpjmPNxc Bill Moriarty talks with Lama Lodro Lhamo at the Karma Triyana Dharmachakra (KTD) monastery in Woodstock, New York. We discuss the importance of this place as the seat of the Karmapa in North America, and Lama Lodro's path to serving as first woman president of KTD. KTD: https://kagyu.org/ Visit us at The Wisdom Seat: https://www.thewisdomseat.or

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View this episode's page on Libsyn In this Wisdom Seat podcast episode, the focus is on co-founder Matt DiRodio as he prepares to embark on a 3 Year Retreat in the Tibetan Buddhist Kagyu lineage starting in August 2024. The episode features a detailed discussion from a recent Wisdom Seat community gathering, where Matt explains the history, structure, and personal motivations behind his retreat. Listeners gain insights into the retreat's practices and preparations. Matt's com

View this episode's page on Libsyn On April 9, 2024, Anam Thubten visited Philadelphia, PA to give a talk. This event was put together by local students of Anam Thubten including Sunisa Manning, Ada Kase, and Geoff Matis. Anam Thubten was hosted by Germantown Friends Meeting to speak about nonviolence. https://dharmata.org The Wisdom Seat helped by providing audio equipment and running sound for the event. We were able to to provide, with Anam Thubten's permission, this recor

View this episode's page on Libsyn Welcome to another episode of The Wisdom Seat podcast. On today's episode, we are diving into the origins of The Wisdom Seat. I talk with Michael Carroll and Matt DiRodio, the two founders, about what brought them together, and what their original vision was. Then we'll hear about the encouragement and almost command from senior lineage holders to them that they must preserve the teachings of Trungpa Rinpoche. So, they began to invite and ho

View this episode's page on Libsyn Podcast episode 13. Orchestrating Insight: A Discussion on Sharing Buddhist Teachings Bill Moriarty and Michael Carroll discuss how to approach becoming a teacher, and what that even means. Notes from this show: The Vagrant and the poet W. Blythe Miller, Phd. https://sangha.live/teachers/lama-willa-miller-bio/ While Willa, in this article, does not speak to the "5 point Mahamudra practice" formulated by Gampopa, here is a section from the te

View this episode's page on Libsyn This is a special one. Anam Thubten recently came and led a retreat at The Wisdom Seat in Pennsylvania in September, 2023. He generously agreed to a 1:1 podcast interview with me after the retreat. There was a sense of celebration throughout the weekend, and afterward Anam Thubten suggested we discuss joy in Buddhism. Anam Thubten mentions the practice of Chod during our talk and so we want to provide you with some links. Anam Thubten's orga

View this episode's page on Libsyn Board member of The Wisdom Seat, and longtime practitioner Richard Driscoll tells his very personal story of becoming a Buddhist under the guidance of Venerable Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche. Learn more about Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche's life here: https://rinpoche.com/ Visit us at: https://www.thewisdomseat.org/

View this episode's page on Libsyn Tsunma Tenzin Dasel, born Lisa V. Blake, became a Tibetan Buddhist nun at mid-life after a career in education and social justice. Her interest in a spiritual life began early in her life through a love of the outdoors and questioning the suffering she witnessed around her. This led to a search for deeper meaning and purpose and formal study of meditation in the Buddhist tradition, culminating in enrolling in theological seminary and becomin

View this episode's page on Libsyn Phakchok Rinpoche Pendle Hill, Wallingford, PA We were pleased to host our first event for Phakchok Rinpoche in 2015. Rinpoche gave a talk titled "Transforming Confusion into Wisdom: The Path of Buddhist Meditation in Everyday Life." https://www.thewisdomseat.org/post/phakchok-rinpoche https://phakchokrinpoche.org/

View this episode's page on Libsyn Bill Moriarty talks with Michael Carroll, Matt DiRodio, and Jacqui Merrell to ask: why would someone go on a meditation retreat? How do you choose one? Are they all different? I hope this is of benefit for you. Michael will be leading a 2 week retreat in July, 2023. Check us out at The Wisdom Seat

View this episode's page on Libsyn Bill Moriarty interviews Michael Carroll to discuss how he takes care of his home which is filled with art, objects, thangkas, family life, events... it's a lot. For anyone lucky enough to visit Michael's home, you know it is very beautifully laid out and accommodating. He and his wife regularly host visiting Buddhist teachers, and community events, and they do so with tremendous effort. Flower Arranging https://www.lionsroar.com/uncondition

View this episode's page on Libsyn We were honored to host Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche in May of 2018 for a talk at Swarthmore College and a reception. Rinpoche presented teachings from his new book: Training in Tenderness: Buddhist Teachings on Tsewa, the Radical Openness of Heart That Can Change the World. Visit this post for more information and photos from this visit. This podcast is entirely supported by donations from our community

View this episode's page on Libsyn We were pleased to host Phakchok Rinpoche and Erric Solomon for several days in November, 2018. Visit this post for more information and photos from this visit. Your donation helps directly support The Wisdom Seat Podcast We presented a talk and book signing at the Philadelphia Ethical Society for their book, Radically Happy https://radicallyhappy.org/. East meets West in this fresh, modern take on a timeless challenge: how to find contentme

View this episode's page on Libsyn Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel Women, Wisdom and The Buddhist Path: The awakening of feminine energy in modern times Feminine wisdom or prajnaparamita in Sanskrit is considered the very foundation of all the teachings and practice lineages of the Buddha. You might say that such feminine wisdom is the very heart of awakening, offering us insight into our mind, reality and our relationship to the world around us. But how can the prajnaparamita teach

View this episode's page on Libsyn Your donation helps directly support The Wisdom Seat Podcast The Tibetan Buddhist Vajrayana path emphasizes devotion where the relationship between the student & the teacher grows throughout the entirety of the path cultivating compassion, wisdom and ultimately enlightenment. Yet, such devotion is well beyond blind faith or celebrity worship where the student and teacher share a deep appreciation of lineage and reality itself. During this se

View this episode's page on Libsyn Michael Carroll & Bill Moriarty discuss regret, and Matt DiRodio adds some music. Your donation helps directly support The Wisdom Seat Podcast Visit us at thewisdomseat.org

View this episode's page on Libsyn Our first episode! Bill talks to Michael Carroll about why it is so difficult to describe the awakened state. Matt adds some improvised music. Visit us at thewisdomseat.org Your donation helps directly support The Wisdom Seat Podcast