Welcome to the Ask Susan podcast. This is episode #23. I’m really excited to be able to offer this to you. Each week, I will answer a question about spirituality and meditation practice. Please click here to ask me your question. Katia’s question is about figuring out the balance between kindness toward others and self-care. In this answer, I... READ MORE
I’m a 20+ year practitioner in a Tibetan Vajrayana tradition. It is based on teachings brought to the West by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. There are things in these seemingly straightforward sentences that might piss some people off. There are people who say that the Vajrayana (the third “yana” or vehicle of Buddhist teachings, aka the esoteric teachings) is not even... READ MORE
Welcome to the Ask Susan podcast. This is episode #21. I’m really excited to be able to offer this to you. Each week, I will answer a question about spirituality and meditation practice. Please click here to ask me your question. This week’s question is truly fascinating. Our questioner has discovered that since beginning a meditation practice, his mind... READ MORE
(Parts of this piece were published previously, but as our wedding anniversary approaches, I felt compelled to update it.) Next month, my partner and I celebrate our 19th wedding anniversary. Nineteen years. How the hell did that happen?! As we get ready to celebrate nearly two decades of wedded bliss, (and also of wedded hell, confusion, joy, and mystery), I’ve... READ MORE
Even though Buddhism is often associated with ascetic practices done by people in robes, as a 20+ year practitioner, it has been useful to apply core Buddhist teachings to my love life. Buddhist practice and study were helpful when I fell in love, got my heart broken, and, now, in marriage. In a recent post, I offered a way to... READ MORE
Earlier this week, I posted about applying the wisdom of Buddhism to romantic relationships. Is it even possible? Advisable? As a Buddhist and a wife, I would say yes. Relationships have periods of closeness and distance and no one can really tell you what governs their coming and going. It’s a mystery. During one such period of distance with my... READ MORE
My 19th wedding anniversary is coming up next month. HOLY CRAP. I never in a million years imagined that I would be with one person for this long. Our marriage has been more than I could have hoped for but nothing I would ever have expected. Like most of us, when I was young, I dreamed of finding the right relationship.... READ MORE
When you think of spirituality, you might call to mind a framework or set of rules that show you the way to inner peace, to end your suffering (and possibly even avoid death), is to be good. On the darker end of the spectrum, however, behavior is often driven by a fear of consequences (of not following the rules), an... READ MORE
Since the presidential election, I have felt called to do more. To get involved with organizations that stand for the values I hold dear, to call my elected officials to give them a piece of my mind (or at least read one of the suggested scripts from Facebook), to march and rail and educate myself about my own ignorance and... READ MORE
Hello, dear, brave warriors. I want to share with you a piece I wrote for Lion’s Roar on November 9, called “Don’t Bite the Hook: Five Things to Remember Post-Election.” As a community of practitioners, now is the time to put our practice to work as the foundation for bravely standing up for what is right without losing a sense... READ MORE
I woke up at 3:30 this morning and made one up out of a longing to live in a world that makes sense to me. Before I even got out of bed, I decided that I want a third party that will take us in the direction we need to go to save our Democracy and our planet and I... READ MORE
A meditation teacher and award-winning author provides guidance on readers’ real-life problems. Here is her advice on domestic distress. Dear Susan, My boyfriend of 10 years now is so rude to me. He barks orders and isn’t sexually interested anymore and complains about all that I do. I feel worthless. What should I do? Dear Friend, Well, this is a... READ MORE
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