Metta Hour with Sharon Salzberg

The Buddha taught a path of awakened living, but how does that manifest in today’s world of constant connectivity and widespread suffering?
How do we keep our hearts open without being defined or hardened by the pain that surrounds us, whether personal, collective, or historical? How do we navigate the paradox of holding both pain and joy, without mistaking suffering for punishment or personal failure? Can we infuse our compassion with wisdom and perspective to find the agency to take meaningful action in our communities? In her new series, Engaged Compassion, Sharon delves into these questions and more, engaging in candid conversations with a diverse group of teachers, activists, and changemakers.
For the inaugural episode, Sharon’s speaks with longtime friend and colleague, Jerry Colonna—a renowned coach, writer, and speaker who specializes in leadership, business, and the practice of radical self-inquiry. Jerry is the Co-founder and CEO of Reboot.io, a company inspired by the belief that work need not destroy us. He is also the author of two books: "Reboot: Leadership and the Art of Growing Up" (2019) and "Reunion: Leadership and the Longing to Belong" (2023). For more than two decades, Jerry has championed the idea that work should be non-violent to the self, the community, and the planet. This marks his third appearance on the Metta Hour Podcast.
In this conversation, Sharon and Jerry speak about:
Suffering and the end of suffering
The Four Noble Truths
Sara Bareilles and Gavin Creel
Holding many things at once
Where resilience comes from
How generosity can appear in extreme loss
Jerry’s time in India after an earthquake
The dynamics of hope and fear
How we actually “get over loss”
Misunderstanding karma
Control veiled as “magical thinking”
How unworthiness leads to isolation
Compassion is not hierarchical
The Dalai Lama winning a Grammy
Suffering versus Extra Suffering
Facing our helplessness
The fixation with fixing things
Finding fuel for the long haul
Facing our nihilism
Additional Resources
You can learn more about Jerry’s work and his organization Reboot.io right here. This episode is also being release on the Reboot Podcast, which can be found right here. You can listen to Jerry’s first appearance on the Metta Hour in Episode 102, recorded in 2019 and his second appearance, Episode 229, recorded in 2023.
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For episode 280 of the Metta Hour, we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Insight Meditation Society, which opened doors on Valentine’s Day in 1976.
Today, IMS is one of the Western world’s oldest and most respected meditation retreat centers, dedicated to providing a spiritual refuge for all who seek freedom of mind and heart. The Retreat Center offers a range of silent meditation courses, ranging from a weekend to three months. IMS Online offers retreats, sanghas, dharma talks, courses, and other programming to support your practice from our virtual meditation hall. IMS also has two adjacent retreat facilities – the Retreat Center and the Forest Refuge – that are set among almost 400 secluded wooded acres in the quiet country of central Massachusetts.
In this episode, Sharon presents a special episode from the archives of IMS history featuring her teacher Dipa Ma. Originally recorded in October of 1984, when Dipa Ma was visiting IMS, this dharma talk was given as part of the 1984 three-month retreat. Through an interpreter, Dipa Ma shares the story of how we came to meditation following tremendous loss. She reflects on her early years of practice under the tutelage of Anagarika Munindra and how she gradually began teaching meditation. She also takes questions from the audience about her practice from the attending three-month retreatants.
Resources
A full transcript of this episode is available right here.
To learn more about the Insight Mediation Society, click here.
To learn more about Dipa Ma, click here.
To learn more about the Dharma Seed archive, click here.
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For episode 279, Jack Kornfield returns to the Metta Hour to talk about his new book, “All in This Together: Stories and Teachings for Loving Each Other and Our World.”
Jack trained as a Buddhist monk in Thailand, Burma, and India and has taught worldwide since 1974. He is one of the key teachers to introduce Buddhist mindfulness practices to the West. He is the cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society and of Spirit Rock Center in Woodacre, California. He holds a PhD in clinical psychology and has written more than fifteen books, including The Wise Heart, A Path with Heart, and more.
In this conversation, Sharon and Jack speak about:
The impetus for Jack’s new book
The universe is made of stories
Beginner’s Mind as the goal of practice
Ajahn Chah’s squirrel story
How repetition factors into storytelling
Trusting the gifts of interconnectedness
Ram Dass as the great public neurotic
The glance of mercy
The Bodhisattva Vow
Envisioning generosity to change the world
Working with our expectations
Despair is not the end of the story
Mindful Service as a source of happiness
The Insight Meditation Society's 50th anniversary
The founding of IMS told by Jack
How the Dharma evolves across cultures
This episode closes with a guided meditation from Jack. Learn more about Jack’s many offerings right here and get yourself a copy of his new book All in This Together.
Join the IMS 50th anniversary online celebration on February 14th, 2026! Learn more and register right here.
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For episode 278, Sharon sits down with author and friend, Parvati Markus, the editor of the new Ram Dass book, “There is No Other: The Way to Harmony and Wholeness.”
Parvati is a developmental editor who has been midwifing non-fiction books and memoirs since her first efforts with Ram Dass’s classic Be Here Now. She serves on the Board of Advisors for the Love Serve Remember Foundation and has helped with many other spiritual organizations and events. Parvati is also the author of numerous books, including Whisper in the Heart and Love Everyone. This is Parvati’s first appearance on the Metta Hour.
In this conversation, Parvati and Sharon speak about:
How Parvati found her path
Meeting Neem Karoli Baba
Ram Dass and Parvati’s friendship
Parvati’s contribution to “Be Here Now”
The inspiration for “There is No Other”
Moving past “us” and “them”
Balancing real life & spiritual life
Substituting noticing for judging
Neem Karoli Baba’s directive of service
Ram Dass learning to accept help
Moving from Role to Soul
How to be here now in times of difficulty
Community as the future Buddha
Joseph Goldstein’s fateful meeting with Ram Dass
What is Loving Awareness
Ram Dass’s final public appearance
This episode closes with a guided meditation from Ram Dass that invites us to let go of the heaviness of confusion and our rigid models of who we are and how it is.
Learn more about Parvati’s many book projects right here and get yourself a copy of Ram Dass’s new book “There is No Other” right here in hardcover, ebook and audiobook formats.
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For episode 277, we are continuing a new series on the Metta Hour, centered on kids, in honor of Sharon’s first children’s book, Kind Karl, released on December 9th!
Written with Jason Gruhl, this illustrated picture book is for 4-8 year-olds and is a children’s adaptation of Sharon’s beloved book Lovingkindness.
For this podcast series, Sharon speaks with educators, caregivers, and researchers about the ways meditation, mindfulness, and lovingkindness can impact children of all ages and the family systems that support them. For the sixth episode of the series, Sharon speaks with Richie J. Davidson.
Richie is the William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Founder and Director of the Center for Healthy Minds. He is best known for his groundbreaking work studying emotion and the brain. A friend and confidante of the Dalai Lama, he is a highly sought-after expert and speaker, leading conversations on well-being on international stages such as the World Economic Forum, where he serves on the Global Council on Mental Health.
In this conversation, Sharon and Richie speak about:
Richie’s pillars for human flourishing
Free Kindness Curriculum app
How to nurture enduring traits
Lovingkindness as a training
Our whole being is malleable
Flourishing is contagious
Temporary states vs lasting traits
We are born to be kind
The Born to Flourish book, coming in March
Changing our narratives
Affective Neuroscience
Six basic emotional styles
Evolving the K-12 education space
Supporting Healthcare providers
Community as contemplative intervention
What is Contemplative Neuroscience?
The conversation closes with a guided meditation led by Richie. To learn more about Riche’s work or his different books, you can visit his website and access the free Healthy Minds Kindness Curriculum right here in English or Spanish.
You can learn more about Sharon’s brand-new children’s book, Kind Karl, right here.
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