The Imperfect Buddha Podcast

The Imperfect Buddha Podcast

episodes

The Imperfect Buddha podcast has been addressing anti-intellectualism and ideological capture in western Buddhism and spirituality more broadly since its inception. It provides a space for dynamic conversations designed to bring out what is so often hidden and so often despised by critics and intellectuals engaging with contemporary forms of practice. Matthew O’Connell hosts the Imperfect Buddha podcast and writes at The Imperfect Buddha site. Email: imperfectbuddha@outlook.com. Twitter: @imperfectbuddha. Facebook: @imperfectbuddha.


Making Sense of Yogacara with William Waldron

March 23, 2024

Making Sense of Yogacara with William Waldron

William Waldron

Professor William Waldron teaches courses on the South Asian religious traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism, Tibetan religion and history, comparative …

Christian Coseru on Perceiving Reality

January 8, 2024

Perceiving Reality

Christian Coseru

What does it mean to perceive and just how capable are we of perceiving reality? This is a core question in the work of Christian Coseru, who is today…

David McMahan on Rethinking Meditation

December 4, 2023

David McMahan on Rethinking Meditation

David L. McMahan

If anything, the Imperfect Buddha Podcast has been a rallying cry for the disruption of the myths that abound in the world of Buddhism and meditation.…

A.I. and Practice with Stuart Baldwin

November 10, 2023

A.I. and Practice

Stuart Baldwin

The technological revolution we are facing today is artificial intelligence. At least this is what we are told. Those doing the telling include tech e…

Wake up! An Antidote to Stupidity in Three Parts (Part 3)

November 2, 2023

Wake up! An Antidote to Stupidity in Three Parts (Part 3)

Matthew O'Connell
Listen:

Wake up! Antidote to stupidity in three parts. This is part 3. What follows is a three-part series on waking up to non-buddhism as an antidote to stu…

Wake up! An Antidote to Stupidity in Three Parts (Part 2)

October 26, 2023

Wake up! An Antidote to Stupidity in Three Parts (Part 2)

Matthew O'Connell
Listen:

Wake up! Antidote to stupidity in three parts. This is part 2. What follows is a three-part series on waking up to non-buddhism as an antidote to st…

Wake up! An Antidote to Stupidity in Three Parts (Part 1)

October 19, 2023

Wake up! An Antidote to Stupidity in Three Parts (Part 1)

Matthew O'Connell
Listen:

Wake up! Antidote to stupidity in three parts. This is part 1. What follows is a three-part series on waking up to non-buddhism as an antidote to st…

Meditating Three Minutes a Day: A Conversation with Richard Dixey

August 22, 2023

Meditating Three Minutes a Day

Richard Dixey
Listen:

After a month or two of absence, the podcast returns for a new season, beginning with an unexpectedly wide ranging conversation with Dr. Richard Dixey…

Curtis White on Buddhism and Transcendence

May 29, 2023

Buddhism and Transcendence

Curtis White

Acclaimed cultural critic Curtis White examines current fissures in Western Buddhism and argues against the growth of scientific and corporate dharma…

Simon Cox on the Subtle Body

May 18, 2023

Simon Cox on the Subtle Body

Simon Cox

What links Vajrayana Buddhism and Vajrayogini to Alistair Crowley and the neo-Platonists? A topic of speculation, desire and imagination, the Subtle B…

Think Piece: "I Refuse to Change"

May 16, 2023

"I Refuse to Change"

Matthew O'Connell

“There is positive and negative resistance, and plenty of somethings in between. But who determines the terms upon which such a psychological force is…

Ken McLeod on the Magic of Vajrayana

April 28, 2023

Ken McLeod on the Magic of Vajrayana

Ken McLeod

“A moving description of a life in practice which goes far beyond text-based ideas of prayer, devotion, guru-connection, or meditation, and most espec…

Doug Bates on the Ancient Greek Version of Buddhism

April 17, 2023

The Ancient Greek Version of Buddhism

Douglas C. Bates

“It is not events that disturb us, but what we believe about them.” Is this true? Well, apparently Pyrrho, a rather obscure Greek philosopher claimed …

Incognito: The Astounding Life of Alexandra David-Neel

April 1, 2023

Incognito

Dianne Harke

I grew up with Alexandra David-Neel’s books on my mum’s bookshelf. She was part of the myth making process that led to my own fascination with Tibet, …

A Review of "A Critique of Western Buddhism"

March 28, 2023

A Review of "A Critique of Western Buddhism"

Matthew O'Connell

Regular guest to the podcast Glenn Wallis wrote A Critique of Western Buddhism: Ruins of the Buddhist Real (Bloomsbury) back in 2018. Time has flown …

Contemplative, Existential Psychotherapy and Dzogchen

February 28, 2023

Contemplative, Existential Psychotherapy and Dzogchen

Ken Bradford

Ken Bradford, Ph.D., has been a practitioner in the Theravada and Tibetan Buddhist traditions since 1975, and engaged in introducing meditative sensib…

Nietzsche, Wokeism, Non-Buddhist Mysticism: A Discussion with Glenn Wallis

February 1, 2023

Nietzsche, Wokeism, Non-Buddhist Mysticism

Glenn Wallis

What does it mean to be a hundred? Perhaps Fredric Nietzsche would know. He’s in part the star of the show. Along with regular guest Glenn Wallis. We …

Non-Duality: A Discussion with Peter Fenner

December 11, 2022

Non-Duality

Peter G. Fenner

Peter Fenner, Ph.D, is an adapter and teacher of non-duality, and an author. His two books, Radiant Mind: Awakening Unconditioned Awareness (Sounds Tr…

Being Buddhist and Some Thoughts on "Identity"

November 25, 2022

Being Buddhist and Some Thoughts on "Identity"

Matthew O'Connell

The Think Pieces continue. This month, it is a look back at a piece on being Buddhist and identity. The text version can be found below. Themes picked…

Buddhist Medicine and Buddhish

November 18, 2022

Buddhist Medicine and Buddish

C. Pierce Salguero

In this episode, Pierce Salguero comes on to discuss two of his books: Buddhish, A Guide to the 20 Most Important Buddhist Ideas for the Curious and S…