Metta Hour with Sharon Salzberg

For episode nine of the Real Love Podcast Series, Sharon speaks with meditation teacher and author, Jack Kornfield.

Sharon and Jack Kornfield originally met in the 1970s in Colorado and went on to found the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA along with Joseph Goldstein. In this episode, Sharon and Jack talk about their first meeting over 40 years ago, and how the landscape for meditation in the West has dramatically changed since that time. They also discuss Jack's new book "No Time Like the Present" and it's theme of freedom as compared to the theme of love in Sharon's new book "Real Love". Tune into a fascinating ninth episode for the Real Love Podcast Series.

For episode eight of the Real Love Podcast Series, Sharon talks with Congressman Tim Ryan about love in the political landscape. Tim currently serves in the U.S. Congress representing Ohio's 13th District. He was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2002. Aside from his leadership in the political arena, Tim is a tremendous advocate for mindfulness, and author of the book "A Mindful Nation". Sharon and Tim discuss the importance and practice of real love in such critical and polarizing times in american and global politics, as well as value of quiet time and interdependence in community.

For episode seven of the Real Love Podcast Series, Sharon talks with meditation teach and author, Tara Brach. Tara is the author of many books, including the "Radical Acceptance" and "True Refuge," and is the founder the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, DC. Sharon and Tara dive into the world of self-love, discussing the subtle differences between self-worth and self-love, and how the two inform each other. They also discuss how to return to compassion and love when our buttons get pushed, in particular in the with the current political climate in the world. Tara also offers her approach to applying mindfulness and compassion practices of R-A-I-N, and how she continues to develop these tools for herself and her students.

For the sixth episode of the Real Love Podcast Series, Sharon sits down with renowned psychiatrist and author, Dr. Mark Epstein. Mark Epstein has paved the way for the cross-section of Western psychotherapy with Buddhist philosophy in the West, writing a number of books including his seminal work, "Going to Pieces without Falling Apart." Listen in on a fascinating conversation between two longtime friends and colleagues discussing Real Love in relationships and what that has to do with attachment theory, desire, Freud and early childhood development!

For her fifth episode of the Real Love Podcast Series, Sharon speaks with environmental activist Tim DeChristopher. In December of 2008, Tim disrupted a Bureau of Land Management oil and gas auction by registering as “Bidder 70” and outbidding oil companies for land parcels in National Parks in Utah.

Sharon is joined by Bell Hooks for a heartfelt conversation about the transformative power of love. Bell Hooks is a cultural critic, feminist theorist, and writer. Celebrated as one of our nation’s leading public intellectual by The Atlantic Monthly, as well as one of Utne Reader’s 100 Visionaries Who Could Change Your Life, she is a charismatic speaker who divides her time among teaching, writing, and lecturing around the world. Previously a professor in the English departments at Yale University and Oberlin College, hooks is now a Distinguished Professor of English at City College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

The Happiness Track - Emma Seppälä is the Science Director of Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research in addition to her role as Co-Director of the Yale College Emotional Intelligence Project at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. She has conducted groundbreaking research on mind-body practices for combat veterans and in the fields of meditation and compassion. Sharon introduces Emma and her work, starting with Emma's book "The Happiness Track."

Sharon is joined by Holistic Life Foundation co-founders Andres Gonzalez and brothers Ali and Atman Smith for a conversation around the role of love in community building. The Real Love Podcast Series is a special series on the Metta Hour featuring a variety of conversations with some of the world's finest thinkers and teachers exploring Sharon's forthcoming book "Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection". Real Love a field guide for anyone seeking awakened living in the 21st century - regardless of age, race, gender, ethnicity or status. The book explores love is three different arena in life: love of oneself, love of one another, and love for all of life. Real Love is now available for pre-order and hits stores on June 6th, 2017.

Sharon sits down with Ram Dass and Raghu Markus for a conversation about Ram Dass's relationship with his Guru, Neem Karoli Baba, and how that relationship transformed his ability to love himself and others in his life. Recorded live in December 2016 at the Open Your Heart in Paradise Retreat in Maui, HI. The Real Love Podcast Series is a special series on the Metta Hour featuring a variety of conversations with some of the world's finest thinkers and teachers exploring Sharon's forthcoming book "Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection". Real Love a field guide for anyone seeking awakened living in the 21st century - regardless of age, race, gender, ethnicity or status. The book explores love is three different arena in life: love of oneself, love of an other, and love for all of life. Real Love is now available for pre-order and hits stores on June 6th, 2017.

Live from Deepak HomeBase, Sharon shares wisdom on learning to love your enemies. In this special talk, Sharon explores inner and outer enemies, looks at the fear, anger and anguish generated by being stuck in a mode of "us" and "them", and focuses on the liberation we are capable of.