Advertise on podcast: Open Question sponsorship by Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel

Podcast episodes

Check latest episodes from Open Question podcast

OQ 501 - The F Word

2024/02/13

In this episode, Elizabeth takes us on a journey through the term ‘faith.' We may assume we know what faith is, but most of us have never truly explored its nuance or spectrum of meanings. We often use the term faith to refer to: dogma, fundamentalism, doctrine, confidence, devotion conviction, just to name a few. In the context of contemporary culture, there are those who suggest that we replace the world faith with spirituality, but Elizabeth requests us not to write-off faith so glibly. Faith carries with it the undeniable tension between our search for security and the limits of our ability to know. Faith keeps us connected to the heart of the human condition.

OQ 405 - The Self: Bearing Witness

2023/11/21

Elizabeth shares the classic Buddhist narrative of Avaloketeshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, and asks us to contemplate the story carefully, adding, “because something similar could happen to you.” Continuing her exploration of the self, Elizabeth navigates the common responses to our challenging human experience: fixing, despairing or withdrawing…all of which are rooted in misunderstanding. Elizabeth takes inspiration, instead, from Avaloketeshvara's example to bear steadfast witness to experience.

OQ 404 - The Self: When Does Bread Become Toast?

2023/09/08

In previous episodes we engaged in the liberating practice of looking and not finding, as we searched for something singular or independent. In this episode, Elizabeth explores the topic of permanence - the 3rd in this triad of classical Middle Way inquiries. Elizabeth drops back into her grandmother’s kitchen for a tour of the nature of time, what it might mean to ‘live in the moment,’ and the difference between impermanence and emptiness.

OQ 403 - The Self: Into The Watery Depths

2023/06/22

Continuing with the theme - The Self: Walking the Middle Way Path, we meet the 2nd Century spiritual genius, Nagarjuna, who is considered the father of the Middle Way school. Nagarjuna once paid homage to the Buddha, saying, “I prostrate to he who has abandoned all views.” Looking into the topic of views, Elizabeth will take us on a fascinating quest.

OQ 402 - The Self: Mind and Its World

2023/04/25

The most intimate relationship you will ever have is the relationship you have with your SELF! Ironically, when looking for a singular, permanent or autonomous self, all we find is a myriad of dynamic, contingent relationships. In this episode, Elizabeth introduces us to the Buddha’s most essential insight - dependent arising - and guides us through a classic Middle Way investigation, leading us to a deeper understanding of mind and its world.

OQ 401 - The Self: Beyond Existence and Extinction

2023/02/21

Many of us can recall our earliest encounters with the quandary of death. As children, we possess a natural longing to make sense of the world; to find explanations for things that disturb or amaze us. Throughout our lives, we are continually confronted by the conundrum of existence and extinction. How do we straddle the tension between our longing to exist and our fear of extinction? Are these dualistic constructs an accurate framework? And what does it mean to either be or not be?

OQ 305 - Sacred World: Life is Rich!

2022/11/22

Our life - our world - can be rich…and it can also be a bitch. We walk the terrain of multiple - maybe infinite - grounds. We move in and out of these overlapping spaces.They are not geographical territories, but rather various ways we encounter our human condition as our mind and its world engage in the playful exchange we call, ‘experience.’

OQ 304 - Sacred World: Where is "THE" World?

2022/09/12

What do you see when you think about the world? You might picture a rainforest or desert. You might envision a crowded subway terminal. You might imagine a household or a war zone. You might think: “the world is a mess,” or feel touched by the beauty and the beings that inhabit it. Where exactly is “the” world? Is it conscious or material? Does it exist within our individual mind streams or outside of us? Is it cruel, mundane or sacred? Is it one or many? Is “the” world even findable?

OQ 303 - Sacred World: The Shimmering Apparition

2022/07/15

In Open Question 303, Elizabeth explores the power of words and what it means to go beyond them in the tradition of Prajnaparamita.

OQ 302 - Sacred World: Awakening Natural Intelligence

2022/05/23

The Buddha Nature teachings of Mahayana Buddhism reason that all beings possess natural intelligence. We can observe in ourselves and others that the instinct for wellbeing drives everything we do. We bend toward wellbeing like a plant bends toward the light of a sunny window. How is it then, that we create so much suffering? To bring our actions together with our true intentions requires discernment, or prajna. Prajna is our inherent resource—but unrecognized, it remains dormant. How do we wake it up?

OQ 301 - Sacred World: Through the Eyes of Prajnaparamita

2022/03/10

Most spiritual traditions offer teachings on "sacred world"-the promise of a life beyond struggle-the search for a place of ease. This is a noble human quest. And yet, the "sacred" often seems to be a place other than where we find ourselves now. How do we reconcile the tension between the spiritual and temporal aspects of life? This is our conundrum

OQ 209 - The Beloved Community

2021/12/28

Marc Andrus is the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of California. His leadership is focused on key issues related to peace and justice, civil rights, and the environment. Bishop Andrus has just released a new book: Brothers in the Beloved Community: The Friendship of Thich Nhat Hanh and Martin Luther King Jr. In this interview, Elizabeth and Bishop Marc discuss the powerful connection between spirituality and activism, the nature of interdependence, and bodhisattvas in our world.

Read Open Question podcast reviews

4.9 out of 5

130 reviews

Elizabeth Sem 2023/07/16

Madyamaka is where the action is

So nice to hear someone delving into the teachings of Nagarjuna so unabashedly

Marjoriemoon 2021/01/24

Superb

I love how Elizabeth teaches the dharma as she’s totally grateful to share it with us. A fine teacher.

waiting for the lama 2020/07/22

Poadcast 3

Elizabeth, amazingly helpful with my practice!!!! So sweet, so gentle. Barbara

Dbrooster 2020/07/03

What a beautiful mind!

Love the message! Thank you Elizabeth!

Elizabeth Prather 2020/05/07

Anam Thubten Rinpoche

Wonderful interview where I felt such wisdom and inspiration from both Elizabeth and Anam Thubten.

monilove19. 2020/05/06

Authentic, deep, accessible!

Beautiful podcast that is very accessible - I love the interview format - while touching into deep teachings, questions, and possible truths.

cecilMcV 2020/05/05

Heart Friends

Elizabeth states that she and Anam Thubten are "Heart Friends"...it certainly seems that way in this interview. I feel like I'm sitting at the table w...

Truly Engaging! 2020/05/04

Truly Engaging!

From the moment the podcast started to the end of the first episode I felt totally engaged, invigorated and drawn into this world of open potential. E...

maryalbrittain 2020/05/04

So loving, deeply profound and yet so applicable to all we love and hold close!

Elizabeth is a loving presence in my life for as long as I have known her! Can never repay her kindness!

Rich'd H 2020/05/03

Wonderful!

From the first moments, Eliz brings you from ‘virtual space’ onto the earth in Spring, thus saying, “this is an embodied, personal, revelatory experie...

check all reviews on aple podcasts