Skillful Means Podcast

  • Home
  • Skillful Means Podcast

Skillful Means Podcast Spiritual nourishment for yoga practitioners and teachers.

Experienced teachers Jennifer O’Sullivan and Annie Moyer discuss to enrich and expand a yoga practice.

Jen wraps up her partial series on the Brahma Viharas with Mudita, commonly translated as "sympathetic joy." With Mudita...
15/09/2023

Jen wraps up her partial series on the Brahma Viharas with Mudita, commonly translated as "sympathetic joy." With Mudita, we're asked to rejoice in the good fortune of others, admittedly not easy.

This is why Jen likes to think of Mudita as "delight," specifically delighting in joy itself whether it's originating from someone else or from within. But, when we are able to delight in other's happiness, it's further solidifies our connection and sense of interconnectedness, helping to ease the suffering of loneliness and isolation.

🎧 @ https://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

As we continue our summer practice series, Jen's here with another exploration of the Brahma Viharas (The Four Immeasura...
15/09/2023

As we continue our summer practice series, Jen's here with another exploration of the Brahma Viharas (The Four Immeasurables), this time looking at Sympathetic Joy (Mudita).

Sympathetic Joy is rejoicing in other people's good fortune, and is designed to help us relax any jealous tendencies we may harbor, however subtle or obvious.

While Jen is not going to present a practice on the fourth Immeasurable, Equanimity (upekkha), check out Annie's practice on Drawing A Line (episode #94) for that.

We hope you've enjoyed this summer series. We're looking forward to being back in conversation soon!

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

Annie's back with a new meditation! Have you ever caught yourself (or been caught by someone else) with your head buried...
01/09/2023

Annie's back with a new meditation!

Have you ever caught yourself (or been caught by someone else) with your head buried in your smartphone while doing something mundane like brushing your teeth or walking through your home?

If so, you can probably relate to the lure of distraction when certain moments don't seem worth our full attention.

In this contemplation, Annie invites us to view these small, ordinary moments during the day as portals to mindfulness that may reveal a hidden treasure of simple awe that awaits our ordinary attention.

🎧 in your favorite podcast app: https://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com/

Jen is back in our summer series of practices with a continuation of an exploration of the Brahma Viharas, the Four Imme...
18/08/2023

Jen is back in our summer series of practices with a continuation of an exploration of the Brahma Viharas, the Four Immeasurables.

Compassion is empathy in action, a heartfelt wish to alleviate the suffering in one's self and others. We do this through several means including cultivating a helpful, non-harming inner orientation.

There are many, many ways to cultivate compassion. This week, Jen shares a practice inspired by Lojong, set of teachings sometimes referred to as "Trainings in Compassion" attributed to the 10th century sage Atisha.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

Jen's back with the second meditation in her mini-series on the Brahma Viharas, the Four Immeasurables. This time, she o...
18/08/2023

Jen's back with the second meditation in her mini-series on the Brahma Viharas, the Four Immeasurables. This time, she offers the Tibetan practice of Tonglen. This training in compassion is an inner alchemy where the practitioner seeks to transmute the suffering of others.

Tonglen teaches us how to grow our hearts beyond the boundaries of those in our in-crowd. It invites us to embrace our common humanity as an extension of our own being.

🎧 at https://www.skillfulmeans.com

Annie is back with the last in our summer practice series with a focus on equanimity.Everything in the manifest world is...
04/08/2023

Annie is back with the last in our summer practice series with a focus on equanimity.

Everything in the manifest world is inherently free of value. It's us (people) that determine if something is desirable or not. What we decide (however quick and unconscious) has a big effect on how we react/respond to what comes next.

This week, Annie offers a contemplation on how to develop discernment when facing difficult circumstances.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

Some of the most treasured and widely-practiced Buddhist Teachings are the Brahma Viharas (The Four Immeasurables). They...
21/07/2023

Some of the most treasured and widely-practiced Buddhist Teachings are the Brahma Viharas (The Four Immeasurables). They also appear in Patanjali's Yoga Sutras as one of the many practices that settle mind.

Sometimes referred to as "The Four Faces of Love," these teachings help us to foreground love in all our encounters... with ourselves, loved ones, community members, and even people that we don't particularly like.

As part of our summer series of practices, Jen is going to share 3 of the four "Divine Abodes," starting with metta (loving-kindness). In this practice, we're training up the capacity to tap into our shared humanity and awaken goodwill towards others.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

This summer, we're taking a hiatus from releasing discussion episodes. Travel plans being what they are, it was going to...
07/07/2023

This summer, we're taking a hiatus from releasing discussion episodes. Travel plans being what they are, it was going to be a challenge to get together.

But we aren't leaving you hanging! Join us for bi-weekly practices that you can practice wherever you are. No props necessary.

Annie kicks it off with an invitation to use your immediate surroundings - however mundane - to awaken to the present moment.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

In the last of our series on the less common practices of the First Foundation of Mindfulness (Mindfulness of the Body),...
23/06/2023

In the last of our series on the less common practices of the First Foundation of Mindfulness (Mindfulness of the Body), Jen shares a practice of contemplating the four elements of the body: earth, water, fire, and air.

Because everything in the manifest world contains these elements, this practice helps us to embody interconnectedness. We're also encouraged to soften our sense of exceptionalism. We are, after all, just this.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

Could you imagine a yoga class without postures? In fact, millions of dedicated yoga practitioners don't practice asana...
10/06/2023

Could you imagine a yoga class without postures? In fact, millions of dedicated yoga practitioners don't practice asana at all.

In this episode, Annie and Jen discuss ways to engage with the teachings separate from asana, drawing on guidance from the "Bhagavad Gita" and their own experiences.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

Check our our latest guided practice. In this variation of Body Scanning, Jen shares a mindful exploration of the Skin, ...
30/05/2023

Check our our latest guided practice.

In this variation of Body Scanning, Jen shares a mindful exploration of the Skin, Flesh, & Bones of the body.

This practice, appearing in the Buddha's First Foundation of Mindfulness, helps us to become less attached to idealized versions of our body, ushering an acceptance of change that is inevitable in the body.

🎧 http://www.skillfulmeanspodcast.com

We are thrilled to welcome Sarah Powers, author and co-founder of the Insight Yoga Institute, back to the show to talk a...
12/05/2023

We are thrilled to welcome Sarah Powers, author and co-founder of the Insight Yoga Institute, back to the show to talk about embodying the qualities of love and compassion.

Sarah was the perfect guest for this topic as compassion is such a central theme in her teachings. Throughout the sweeping conversation, Sarah helps trace the line between formal practice and love and compassion as an orientation towards living life.

Notable touchpoints include:

~ why starting a practice with self-compassion sets the mood for what's to come
~ an attitude of wonder vs imposing a strict structure on our practice
~ yoga practice as a container for meeting our full selves
~ getting comfortable with discomfort
~ the pressure to perform our best selves
~ are we practicing for ourselves or others?
~ how to be in touch with others' pain without attempting to carry it for them
~ being with the tumult in our world without drowning in it


🎧 Listen on your favorite podcast app: https://bit.ly/41z6HvL

Address


Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Skillful Means Podcast posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Skillful Means Podcast:

Shortcuts

  • Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company?

Share