Ep. 517 - Your Heart Was Made For This with Oren Jay Sofer

Mindfulness teacher Oren Jay Sofer sits with Raghu to discuss keeping our hearts open through difficult times. In this episode, Raghu Markus and Oren Jay Sofer talk about:Oren’s path to mindfulnessThe influence of Vipassana MeditationHow mindfulness can be a resource to navigate the horrors of global conflictExpanding the capacity of our heartsThe potential that human beings have to move beyond ourselvesThe challenges we are currently faces as a speciesCompassion and the route to a better worldFamily and the importance of relationshipsHow the company we keep affects our spiritual practiceThe way that individual change can impact societyEcology and the abuse of earthYugas, cosmology, and building a future through our daily choicesSangha and witnessing another human being’s healingStories from experiences with MunindrajiThe importance of joy and gratitudeHow self-centeredness is being encouraged and exploited by technologyCourage and the willingness to be vulnerableA brief guided meditation around ease“Our hearts were made to flourish. We are born with these immense capacities and this beautiful potential to contribute and grow and flower as human beings, if we receive the right nourishment and if we know how to water those seeds.” – Oren Jay Sofer About Oren Jay Sofer: Oren teaches mindfulness, meditation and Nonviolent Communication in secular and Buddhist contexts. Oren is also the founder and Guiding Teacher of Next Step Dharma, an innovative online course focused on bringing the tools of meditation to daily life, and co-founder of Mindful Healthcare. He is a CNVC Certified Trainer of Nonviolent Communication, and visiting teacher at the Insight Meditation Society. You can order your copy of Oren Jay Sofer's new book, Your Heart Was Made For This, on his website.  Check our Oren’s recent blog post about allowing the heart to open and close during difficult times. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.