May 18, 2026 |
Audio only version is here
Meditation practice begins at 11:54
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project. I hope you are finding steadiness and connection wherever you are. Before today’s sit, I share some thoughts about ritual and why I believe it matters so much in spiritual practice. Meditation can certainly help us sleep better, reduce stress, or become more patient. Those things are real and valuable. But when practice becomes only... READ MORE
May 11, 2026 |
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, I heard something the other day in the morning meditation at The Open Heart Project sangha: a thoughtful, well-done study confirms that meditation improves your brain and can make you happier. That’s meaningful and encouraging. It also reminded me that there’s another kind of understanding of meditation, one that comes from thousands of years of... READ MORE
May 4, 2026 |
Audio only version here.
Meditation practice begins at 9:01.
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project meditator. We moved to a new house recently and the effort to make a relationship to a new space has been front of mind. How do you connect with unseen energies? How do you fill a space with unseen goodness? Alleviate unseen obstacles? When an Open Heart Project sangha member asked if Buddhists pray, I... READ MORE
April 27, 2026 |
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, I wrote to you recently about not feeling settled, about living among boxes and in-between spaces, about that strangely tender mix of disorientation and possibility. I had a feeling many of you would understand, but, I didn’t quite anticipate the depth, honesty, and humanity of what you shared in return. A special thanks to all... READ MORE
April 20, 2026 |
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, I’m writing to you from a new home. Moving, as you may know, has a way of revealing everything at once. There is the thrill of beginning again, of opening a door and not quite knowing how the light will fall in the afternoon. And there is also the compression of it all, the boxes,... READ MORE
April 13, 2026 |
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, I am thrilled and nauseated and delighted to say that I’ve finished the manuscript for my next book. Thrilled, because it was created to honor my extraordinary teachers of the last three decades. Nauseated, because what writer isn’t. Delighted because it’s done. It should be out in the next few months. It will be self-published... READ MORE
March 16, 2026 |
Hello Wonderful Open Heart Project, Today I wanted to let you know that my book, The Buddhist Enneagram, has just been released in a new edition by Shambhala Publications. The book explores how the wisdom of Buddhism and the Enneagram can illuminate each other. Together, these two systems offer a powerful way to understand how we move through the world,... READ MORE
February 3, 2026 |
I hope to see you in May for the Fearless Creativity meditation and writing retreat at Drala Mountain Center this May. Love, Susan
February 2, 2026 |
Audio only version here.
Guided meditation here.
Hello Open Heart Project, Each morning, the Open Heart Project Sangha gathers to meditate and to tell the truth about what is happening. Recently, the group was larger than usual. That alone says something about the moment we’re in. I don’t have a teaching that makes this time acceptable or less painful. There is no way to explain it away.... READ MORE
January 26, 2026 |
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project meditator. This week’s email is to let you know that the OHP now has a podcast, Buddhism Beyond Belief. I created it to offer further support on your journey. I talk about classical Buddhist teachings and share experiences from my own life about how I have applied (and misapplied) them. I’m linking to a few episodes... READ MORE
January 19, 2026 |
Audio only version is here
Meditation practice begins at 17.23
Hello, wonderful Open Heart Project. I’ve been reflecting on how easily meditation practice can fade into the background when life gets busy or uncertain. Not because it doesn’t matter, but because the very moments when we need it most are often the moments when it’s hardest to remember to turn toward it. What I keep coming back to is this:... READ MORE
January 12, 2026 |
Audio only version is here
Meditation begins at 8:40
Dear, wonderful Open Heart Project, I received a thoughtful question about how to offer loving-kindness to people who feel toxic, while still honoring and protecting our own boundaries. Before today’s sit, I wanted to share a few reflections with you. If you have a question you’d like me to explore in a future video, please feel free to send it... READ MORE
