Finding Joy in Difficult Times with James Baraz
Today on Being Well, Dr. Rick Hanson and I are joined by James Baraz. James has been a meditation teacher for over 40 years, and is the cofounder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. He is the coauthor of Awakening Joy: 10 Steps to True Happiness, and leads the popular online course of the same name. He is also the guiding teacher of One Earth Sangha, a website devoted to expressing a Buddhist response to climate change.
Today we explore step four of James’ 10 steps to awakening joy: how to find joy in difficult times. We discuss how to balance a sense of equanimity with compassion for the suffering of the world, and how cultivating joy at an individual level can support healing at the collective level.
Watch the Episode: Prefer watching video? You can watch this episode on YouTube.
Key Topics:
0:00: Introduction
1:45: Why joy is important in Buddhism
5:05: James’ journey to prioritizing joy
11:40: How to practice awakening joy without turning away from suffering
17:20: Putting yourself back together after cultivating awareness of suffering
24:10: The 10 Steps of Awakening Joy
28:45: How people can use emotionally positive states in contemplative practice
32:00: Positivity in relation to the climate crisis and other collective challenges
38:05: Equanimity, compassion, including both sides of the river
43:35: The great perfection
47:10: James’ realistic hope for the next 25 years
49:30: Recap
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