Tricycle Talks

In this special series of episodes of Tricycle Talks, editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down with three contributors to the Winter issue of Tricycle. In today’s episode, he’s joined by Suzannah Showler, a writer, cultural critic, and poet. In “Bechdel’s Quest,” Showler reviews Alison Bechdel’s new graphic memoir, "The Secret to Superhuman Strength." Shaheen and Showler talk about exercise obsessions, toxic work habits, and the dangers of the American myth of self-reliance.

In this special series of episodes of Tricycle Talks, editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down with three contributors to the winter issue of the magazine, out this month. In today’s episode, he’s joined by Zen teacher and writer Lew Richmond. Richmond’s article in the magazine, “Food Is Very Important,” offers a Buddhist approach to disagreement based on a line he heard from his teacher, Suzuki Roshi. Shaheen and Richmond discuss strategies for working with disagreement and conflict inspired by Suzuki Roshi’s example.

In this special series of episodes, editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down with three contributors to the winter issue of the magazine, out this month. In today's episode, he's joined by Sarah Ruhl, an award-winning playwright and poet interviewed in the issue. Shaheen and Ruhl discuss the relationship between the face and the self, the role of theater in building empathy, and the power of not praying for outcomes.

It can be so easy to become demoralized or even apocalyptic about the state of our planet. But entrepreneur and activist Paul Hawken believes we have less reason to despair than we think. In fact, Hawken asserts that if we act together, we can end the climate crisis in decades to come. In his new book, "Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation," Hawken offers a model of climate activism that puts life at the center of every act and decision. After all, writes Hawken, if we want to save the world, we have to create a world worth saving. In today’s episode of Life As It Is, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen and co-host Sharon Salzberg sit down with Hawken to discuss the Buddhist teachings that underpin his activism, the role of reverence in solving the climate crisis, and how he stays motivated in the face of burnout.

Sallie Tisdale is a Zen teacher, writer, and Tricycle contributing editor—and she has seen nearly every season of the award-winning reality TV show Survivor. In her latest book, "The Lie About the Truck: Survivor, Reality TV, and the Endless Gaze" (out October 26), Sallie brings her keen eye and characteristic wit to the series, which she calls “the greatest social experiment on television.” In today’s episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down with Sallie to talk about the dharma lessons of Survivor and what it can teach us about perception, performance, and surviving ourselves.

When her closest childhood friend was diagnosed with cancer, writer and interfaith minister Barbara Becker set out on a quest to live a year of her life as if it were her last. Drawing from a variety of wisdom traditions, Becker explored questions of what it means to be mortal and how turning towards death can help us live more fully. This journey eventually led her to train as a hospice volunteer and interfaith minister, accompanying patients at the bedside and helping families make sense of their loss. In today’s episode of Life As It Is, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen and co-host Sharon Salzberg sit down with Becker to discuss the power of ritual in coping with loss, the Buddhist teachings that help her turn towards death, and how the pandemic has changed the way we grieve.

“A book must start somewhere. One brave letter must volunteer to go first, laying itself on the line in an act of faith, from which a word takes heart and follows, drawing a sentence into its wake. From there, a paragraph amasses, and soon a page, and the book is on its way, finding a voice, calling itself into being. A book must start somewhere, and this one starts here.” So begins Ruth Ozeki’s new novel, "The Book of Form and Emptiness," which follows the story of a young boy, Benny Oh, who starts hearing voices after his father’s death. In this poignant exploration of grief, Ozeki weaves together Zen Buddhism, pop culture, environmental politics, and the writings of German philosopher Walter Benjamin—not to mention a cacophony of voices that calls into question our understanding of what is “real.” In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down with Ozeki to reflect on the redemptive power of writing, the interplay between creativity and madness, and relational modes o

For many of us, this past year has felt like an in-between state, as our usual routines and realities have been upended. Tricycle contributing editor and writer Ann Tashi Slater likens this suspension to the bardo journey, the transitional path between death and rebirth outlined in "The Tibetan Book of the Dead." Born in Andalusia, Spain to an American father and a Tibetan mother, Slater, who was raised in the US, is no stranger to navigating in-between spaces. In her writing, Slater explores themes of ancestral pilgrimage and the bardo journey, and her connection to the bardos has deepened in recent years through personal encounters with illness and loss. In today’s episode of Life As It Is, Tricycle editor-in-chief James Shaheen and co-host Sharon Salzberg sit down with Slater to discuss near-death experiences, end-of-life rituals, and what the living can learn from "The Tibetan Book of the Dead."

After months of isolation, many of us are in a moment of transition, whether we’re attending larger social gatherings again, seeing relatives, or preparing to head back to the office for the first time in months. While there’s a lot to be excited about, such changes are also likely to stir some fear and anxiety. If anyone can explain how anxiety grips us, it’s Josh Korda, a counselor and the guiding teacher of Dharma Punx NYC. In today’s episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down with Korda to unpack what he calls the “anxiety of return.” Drawing from early Buddhist teachings, neuroscience, and evolutionary biology, Korda offers a more skillful way to manage life’s stressors and live with greater ease.

In this special episode of Tricycle Talks, editor-in-chief James Shaheen is joined by three contributors to Tricycle’s 30th anniversary issue, out this August. First, Jordan Quaglia, a neuroscientist and experimental psychologist who runs the Cognitive and Affective Science Lab at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, talks about a video game he reviews in the issue that teaches unexpected lessons on impermanence. Quaglia and Shaheen discuss virtual friendships, cultivating compassion in the digital world, and the unique opportunities video games can offer contemplative practitioners. Next up is Vanessa Zuisei Goddard, a Zen teacher and writer based in New York City. In “Just Love Them,” Goddard writes about a time when her job at a Buddhist monastery was getting in the way of what she calls the “real work.” She joins Tricycle Talks to talk about the dangers of perfectionism, the transformative power of lovingkindness, and practical tools for dealing with burnout. Finally, Ira Helderman, a religious studies

Welcome to Tricycle’s new podcast series, Life As It Is. Each month, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen and co-host Sharon Salzberg will speak with Buddhist practitioners about their work, practice, and everyday life—and, perhaps most importantly, how they're navigating these uncertain times. In today’s episode, Sharon and James sit down with Buddhist writer, cultural activist, and Tricycle contributing editor Daisy Hernández to discuss her new book, "The Kissing Bug: A True Story of a Family, an Insect, and a Nation's Neglect of a Deadly Disease." Equal parts memoir and investigative journalism, "The Kissing Bug" tells the undertold story of a parasitic disease that disproportionately affects Latinx communities.

We often look to buddhas and bodhisattvas as the heroic protagonists of the Buddhist cosmos. But even the most wretched creatures can teach us a thing or two about the dharma. Andy Rotman, a scholar of South Asian religions at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, is one of the few academics researching the history of hungry ghosts—the denizens of hell who suffer from greed and envy cultivated in past lives. Rotman and Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen discuss ancient ghost stories in today’s episode of Tricycle Talks. Together, they reflect on how these cautionary tales and nightmarish images reveal not only some of the fears and concerns of early Buddhist communities but also many of our own. What these tormented souls are meant to do, according to Rotman, is to shock us out of selfish complacency and delusion and wake us up to a more compassionate way of being.

The day after the Sandy Hook tragedy in 2012, Shannon Watts, a former communications executive and stay-at-home mom of five, founded Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Since then, the grassroots initiative has matured into a nationwide movement with over 6 million supporters fighting to end gun violence. Now the largest gun-prevention organization in the US, Moms Demand Action has had major successes at the ballot box, on school boards, city councils, in state legislatures, and in corporate America. In the latest episode of Tricycle Talks, Watts tells Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen and cohost Sharon Salzberg about what it’s like to work with communities afflicted by gun violence and how her Buddhist meditation practice has kept her in the fight despite Twitter trolls and fierce pushback from the National Rifle Association.

Not too long ago I attended an online retreat with Joseph Goldstein, cofounder and guiding teacher at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts. I've sat with Joseph on retreats before, but what really struck me this time were the repetitive patterns playing out in my mind and body, whether it was getting lost in stories and caught up in self-judgment, or simply being distracted by physical pain—all pretty common experiences on a meditation retreat. In today’s episode, I sit down with Joseph, who recently emerged from a 3-month silent retreat himself, to ask him some questions that have been at the top of my mind. We’ll talk about the value and challenges of a long retreat, the wisdom of investigation and curiosity, and why we need to make more room for joy and humor on retreat and off. At the end of our conversation, Joseph will lead us in a brief mindfulness meditation to re-ground ourselves in the present moment. —James Shaheen, editor-in-chief of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review.

In the latest episode of Tricycle Talks, editor-in-chief James Shaheen sits down to talk with four contributors to Tricycle’s Summer issue out this May. First up are psychotherapist Mindy Newman and translator and musician Kaia Fischer. Together over the past year they have presented a series of teachings from a newly translated Tibetan sutra. Through their collaborative writing practice, Mindy and Kaia have been able to explore psychology and scriptural exegesis, Buddhist storytelling, and guru devotion in the Tibetan tradition. Poet and short story writer Souvankham Thammavongsa is a rising star in the literary world. Born in a Lao refugee camp in Thailand and raised in Toronto, Thammavongsa is known for her nuanced reflections on immigrant and refugee experiences. In this episode, she joins us to talk about her family’s history, the power and limits of language, dislocation, and loss—themes woven throughout her short story How to Pronounce Knife, which appears in the current issue. In his feature article,

Many years before the COVID-19 pandemic began, Toni Bernhard was thinking and writing about the isolating experiences of illness—and what it really means to be “well” in our society. After an acute viral infection led to a chronic condition, Bernhard was forced to retire from her long career as a law professor and dean of students. She learned to live within her body’s new limitations, and even wrote four books in the process. In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief James Shaheen talks to Bernhard about her Buddhist practice, how her journey to self-acceptance and authorship began, and what advice she would give to people who are “too young to be sick,” or those who are suffering from long-haul COVID-19 symptoms. Toni Bernhard is the author of the award-winning How to Be Sick: A Buddhist-Inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Caregivers, which is now available as a pocket guide. She’s also written two other books on living well with chronic illness.

We have end-of-life rituals for a reason—to help us accept loss and fully grieve. Of all the rituals disrupted by the pandemic, the loss of funerals and other communal spaces that allow us to support those dealing with the death of a loved one has been one of the hardest to cope with. Virtual gatherings can mitigate feelings of loss and isolation to a certain extent, but there is no real substitute for being with others. With well over half a million lives lost to the pandemic so far, grieving may look different under lockdown but it has no off-switch. In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Sameet Kumar, a clinical psychologist, grief counselor, and author, joins Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, and co-host Sharon Salzberg for a conversation about grief, how we’ve come to redefine it during this time of social distancing, and the importance of staying present to it. Buddhist teachings, breathing techniques, and meditation, Kumar tells us, have shown him how to hold great pain and make it bearable for hi

For the last 12 years, Dekila Chungyalpa has worked with religious and indigenous leaders, scientists, and policymakers to design community-based environmental and climate programs. But having grown up in the northeastern Indian state of Sikkim, surrounded by strong women who chose to walk the monastic path, Chungyalpa hasn’t always found it easy to show up as both a devout Tibetan Buddhist and a conservation scientist. In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Chungyalpa shares with Tricycle’s editor James Shaheen how she’s come to integrate her commitments to science and faith, deal with climate deniers, and head the Loka Initiative, a climate-change outreach program that empowers and uplifts religious communities. In the face of so much eco-anxiety, climate distress, and doom and gloom, it is ultimately Buddhist teachings on emptiness, impermanence, non-attachment, and compassion, she says, that sustain her.

In this episode of Tricycle Talks, Editor and Publisher James Shaheen is joined by three contributors to take a closer look at our Spring 2021 issue. First, James speaks with Zen priest and psychologist Seth Zuiho Segall, whose feature article, “The Best Possible Life,” situates ancient Greek ideals of human flourishing against Buddhist enlightenment. Seth talks about what’s lost—and what’s gained—when practices from one culture find a home in a new one. Next, James and writer Daisy Hernández discuss the Buddhist concept of mudita, or sympathetic joy, and why it matters more than ever to take pleasure in other people’s happiness. Daisy’s article “The Joy of Joy” addresses the initial skepticism she felt about the term—and how that changed as she continued to practice mudita. Finally, the poet Arthur Sze talks with James about his poem “Wang Wei,” his artistic process, selections from his National Book Award-winning collection, Sight Lines, and the relationship between poetry and meditation. Also in this issue

The United States and the world watched in shock last month, when on January 6, a mob of Trump supporters, many of them white and motivated by racist and nativist ideologies, laid siege to the US Capitol as lawmakers were certifying the 2020 presidential election results. As the US tries to rally around unity instead of division, Tricycle has been taking stock of recent events by looking inward—at why we, as a nation, need to deal with the roots of suffering first, before we can move toward collective healing. Race-based suffering, resilience, and transformation are at the core of a new collection of “freedom stories” written by Black Buddhist voices. In our latest episode of Tricycle Talks, editor and publisher James Shaheen speaks about what it means to be Black and Buddhist in America with Pamela Ayo Yetunde and Cheryl Giles, coeditors of Black and Buddhist: What Buddhism Can Teach Us About Race, Resilience, Transformation, and Freedom. In this conversation, Yetunde, a pastoral counselor and practitioner i