Dharma Roads
In this podcast, Buddhist chaplain, Zen practitioner and artist, John Danvers, explores the wisdom and meditation methods of Zen, Buddhism and other sceptical philosophers, writers and poets - seeking ways of dealing with the many problems and questions that arise in our daily lives. The talks are often short, and include poems, stories and music. John has practiced Zen meditation (zazen) for almost sixty years.
Episodes
34 episodes
Episode 34 - Kenneth Rexroth: his life and poetry
In this episode I talk about the American poet, essayist and translator, Kenneth Rexroth. Like Gary Snyder, who I will speak about in a future episode, Rexroth explores the natural world – both literally, as a hiker through the American landsca...
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31:06
Episode 33 - Mindful meditation & creativity
In this episode, somewhat longer than usual, I explore some of the relationships between mindful meditation and creativity – what we might call ‘creative awareness.’ I begin by examining what we mean by creativity and go on to suggest that ther...
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38:11
Episode 32 - Mindful Solidarity - an interview with Mike Slott
In this special episode I interview, Mike Slott, about his new book titled, Mindful Solidarity: A Secular Buddhist Democratic Socialist Dialogue. Mike is the founder of the Secular Buddhist Network – an organisation that h...
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42:04
Episode 31 - Daoism (Taoism)
In this extended episode I explore some of the main ideas and beliefs of Daoism (also known as Taoism) - highlighting aspects of Daoist philosophy that have a particular connection to the development of Zen. I also describe the way in which Dao...
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35:10
Episode 30 - John Dewey
In this extended episode I share some thoughts on a strand of philosophy known as ‘pragmatism’ as realized in the work of one of its key exponents, John Dewey – who was born in 1859 and died in 1952 at the ripe old age of ninety-three. Here and...
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34:34
Episode 29 - Climate action & eco-grief
In this episode I share some more thoughts on global warming, climate action and eco-grief. This is a revised and extended version of Episode 3. I argue that we need to face up to the global challenge we face, ...
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23:34
Episode 28 - Soren Kierkegaard
In Episode 21 I talked about existentialism and mentioned that while Jean Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and other existentialist thinkers were agnostics or atheists, there were a number of influential Christian philosophers who developed form...
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27:24
Episode 27 - 'Suchness,' Zen & window cleaning
In this extended episode, I am going to talk about the notion of tathata, or ‘suchness,’ and relate this to the Zen practice of ‘bare attention.’ I will also say something about what is known as kensho in Japanese Zen – often ...
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30:50
Episode 26 - Cultivating mindful ethics
In this episode, I return to the question discussed in Episode 22, that is, what kind of ethical values may be necessary to the development of a just and peaceful society – describing in more detail what I have called ‘mindful ethics.’ In a sen...
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28:32
Episode 25 - Michel de Montaigne & Samuel Beckett
In this extended episode, I explore some of the ideas and values that inform and animate the work of the sixteenth-century French thinker, Michel de Montaigne, and the twentieth-century writer and playwright, Samuel Beckett. I suggest that in t...
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32:02
Episode 24 - Transmission, transformation and secular Zen
In this episode I talk about my many years of Zen meditation practice and relate my experience to the development of a sceptical, secular Zen that is rooted in contemporary western culture – with an emphasis on empirical investigation, naturali...
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23:10
Episode 23 - Interwoven nature
In this episode I talk about the relationship between body, mind and world from the perspective of someone who has been practicing zazen, a form of mindful meditation, since 1965. Zazen is a very simple practice but not always easy. It consists...
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23:43
Episode 22 - Mindful ethics, capitalism & sustainability
In this episode I suggest that the current neo-liberal forms of capitalism are unsustainable insofar as they are damaging to our planet and its life-supporting atmosphere, and as they generate, in the human realm, divisive and deeply inequitabl...
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22:37
Episode 21 - Existentialism - another Dharma Road
We each have to find, or maybe construct, a dharma road upon which we can walk in peace with care and attention – cultivating wellbeing and living a good life. The many forms of Buddhism offer possible dharma roads but there are also other rout...
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31:23
Episode 20 - Transience, clinging & non-attachment
In this episode I share some thoughts about impermanence, clinging and the value of non-attachment. I also reflect on what it means to be here – the miraculous nature of being alive and conscious. I go on to say something about interdependence ...
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24:38
Episode 19 - Buddhism, interdependence & ecology
In this episode I trace some parallels between Buddhist and ecological views of the world. We live in a universe of interwoven and interactive processes and energies – a universe in which things are actually events, with no fi...
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27:59
Episode 18 - Poetry & paying attention
In this episode I explore the relationship between poetry and paying attention – the ways in which poets are mindful - noticing things that often get missed in the merry-go-round of life. In the act of making poems, poets practice a kind of min...
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27:59
Episode 17 - Scepticism, Buddhism & Zen - being a mindful sceptic
In this episode I offer a few personal thoughts on what might be called a ‘sceptical approach to Zen Buddhism,’ or, perhaps more accurately, a worldview rooted in the ideas and practices of both Zen Buddhism and the sceptical philosophy establi...
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23:59
Episode 16 - John Cage & Zen: a chattering silence
In this extended episode I explore some of the ideas and works of the American multi-disciplinary artist, John Cage – who was born in 1912 and died in 1992 – particularly noting parallels with the practice of zazen and mindful meditation. In 19...
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35:16
Episode 15 - Baruch Spinoza - God, Nature & ethics
There are many sources of wisdom and advice about how to live a ‘good life.’ Buddhist teachers have much to say about how to minimise suffering and maximise wellbeing. But we can extend what is called ‘dharma’ - the body of Buddhist wisdom and ...
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14:44
Episode 14 - Race, class & identity
As always with these talks, I am offering my thoughts in order to prompt reflection and discussion. The theme of this episode, race, class and identity, is a huge and complex topic and I can only on touch on a few aspects. I highlight what I se...
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18:16
Episode Thirteen - Learning from zazen: 'chattering mind' & Zen practice
In this episode I offer a few reflections on some of the things I have learnt from Zen practice and how it has come to be so central to my life. I suggest that zazen, Zen meditation, is an art that enables the practitioner to gain insights into...
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18:00
Episode Twelve - Truth, delusion & usefulness
In this episode I discuss some of the meanings of the term, ‘truth,’ and explore the ways in which different concepts of truth affect how we see the world and how we relate to each other. I go on to suggest that it may be more beneficial to hum...
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18:05
Episode Eleven - Anger & suspending judgment
In this episode I talk about anger – how we think about it, manage and make use of it, and how we can learn to let go of it. I then discuss how feelings of anger are often associated with making judgments – how the judgments we make can too eas...
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20:16