The Elephant in the Meditation Room | Christopher Ford

The Elephant in the Meditation Room | Christopher Ford

Today's episode is the culmination of a long search to find a countervailing force: a Buddhist Trump supporter. This search was born out of the Buddhist impulse to find the other side. What is talked about as cultivating non-attachment to views and also called "beginner's mind." As you will hear, after a lot of searching, we finally found our person. Christopher Ford is a longtime Republican who worked for Trump (albeit indirectly) at the State Department. Ford wrote a pair of fascinating and provocative articles for the Buddhist magazine Lion's Roar. One was entitled, Zen and the Moral Courage of Moderation. The other was called, The Elephant in the Meditation Room.

Christopher Ford is a lay chaplain in the Soto tradition of Zen Buddhism. His teacher is Roshi Joan Halifax, who has been on this show a couple of times and is herself a longtime progressive. From January 2018 until January 2021,he served at the state dept as Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation. He's also worked at the National Security Council, and as a congressional staffer.

This episode explores:

  • Ford's argument for a Buddhist conservatism
  • Ford's experience in the Trump administration and his assessment of our current political state
  • The personal tools Ford recommends using in day-to-day life, some of which go right to the issue of not being attached to our views

Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/christopher-ford-420

Jaksot(1029)

Colin O'Brady, Pro-Endurance Athlete

Colin O'Brady, Pro-Endurance Athlete

Fewer than 50 people have accomplished the Explorer's Grand Slam, a challenge of summiting the highest peaks on each of the seven continents and completing treks to the North and South poles. Colin O'...

9 Marras 201642min

Duncan Sheik, '90s Rocker Turned Broadway Composer

Duncan Sheik, '90s Rocker Turned Broadway Composer

Duncan Sheik first made a name for himself in the mid-90s with the hit song, "Barely Breathing," and has since reinvented himself as a Broadway composer. He won two Tonys and a Grammy Award for music ...

2 Marras 201645min

Judge Jeremy Fogel, Using Mindfulness on the Bench

Judge Jeremy Fogel, Using Mindfulness on the Bench

About 20 years ago, Judge Jeremy Fogel was serving as a superior court judge in California. But when he felt that it was causing him a lot of stress, he started looking for a way to center himself, an...

26 Loka 201649min

Sebene Selassie, A Life of Service While Fighting Breast Cancer

Sebene Selassie, A Life of Service While Fighting Breast Cancer

Sebene Selassie's career has taken her all over the world. An Ethiopian immigrant, Selassie grew up in the Washington, D.C., area. Her father left her family in the '70s to go back to Ethiopia and bec...

19 Loka 20161h 1min

Robin Roberts, "GMA" Anchor, Cancer Survivor (Bonus Episode!)

Robin Roberts, "GMA" Anchor, Cancer Survivor (Bonus Episode!)

"Good Morning America" co-anchor Robin Roberts has more than 30 years of experience in the radio and television business and said it was her "GMA" colleagues, George Stephanopoulos and our host Dan Ha...

17 Loka 201646min

Election Stress Special (Bonus Episode!)

Election Stress Special (Bonus Episode!)

In the midst of what some are calling the ugliest election ever, millions of Americans say they're feeling more stressed, anxious and just plain exhausted from it. One therapist even coined a term for...

16 Loka 201649min

Jason Stirman, Ex-Twitter, Medium Exec Turned App Entrepreneur

Jason Stirman, Ex-Twitter, Medium Exec Turned App Entrepreneur

Jason Stirman went to his first meditation class when he was working at Twitter. An early employee there, he eventually quit Twitter with founder Ev Williams with the intent of starting a new company ...

12 Loka 201646min

Eileen Fisher, Fashion Icon

Eileen Fisher, Fashion Icon

Eileen Fisher weaves mindfulness and social consciousness throughout her multimillion-dollar clothing company and in her personal life. After being in business for over 30 years, her collections are s...

5 Loka 201650min

Suosittua kategoriassa Terveys ja hyvinvointi

unicast
psykopodiaa-podcast
voi-hyvin-meditaatiot-2
tiedenaiset-podcast
vakeva-elama-viisaampi-mieli-vahvempi-keho
meditaatiot-suomeksi
puhu-muru
rss-pitaisko-erota
katilon-kahvitunti
rss-pt-paahtio
rss-kuumilla-aalloilla
rss-kyykkya-ja-kuoharia
fitnessvastaanotto
terapiassa
paritellen
junnut-pelissa
rss-uplevel-by-sonja-hannus
rss-nautinto
fitnesskulmapodcast
rss-mighty-finland-podcast