Ep308: Anatomy of Awakening - Stephen Snyder & Mark Mininberg (Bonus Episode)

In this episode I host a dialogue between Stephen Snyder, meditation teacher and author, and Mark Mininberg, Zen master and dharma heir to Bernie Glassman.

Stephen and Mark discuss their new podcast interview series, “Anatomy of Awakening”, in which they engage in peer-to-peer trialogue with other teachers of enlightenment.

Stephen and Mark reveal why they chose the teachers they have featured, the degree to which various claims to spiritual attainment played a part in their selection, and how they navigated conversations with teachers from other Buddhist sects.

Stephen and Mark reflect on the increase in meditation teachers who claim spiritual awakening, recall their own trainings in Zen communities in which discussion of enlightenment was taboo, and emphasise the need for rigorous training under an experienced guide.

Stephen and Mark also warn about teachers who overestimate their abilities, offer suggestions to aspiring gurus, and emphasis the whole body commitment required to truly attain Buddhist awakening.

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Video version: guruviking.com/podcast/ep308-anatomy-of-awaken…

Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.


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Topics include:

00:00 - Intro
01:12 - Anatomy of Awakening
03:12 - How did Stephen and Mark decide which teachers to interview?
05:43 - Are these teachers enlightened?
06:13 - Enlightenment doesn’t belong to anybody
07:36 - A synergy of awakening
08:21 - How can you even tell if someone is enlightened?
09:46 - Teachers who promote themselves as teaching awakening
10:16 - No teacher is flawless
10:56 - The danger of speaking openly about awakening
12:14 - Buddhism and awakening traditions are evolving in the West
14:54 - Why are more teachers claiming enlightenment?
16:29 - Changes in American Buddhism and the New Age since the 70s
18:15 - The lost virtue of humility
19:50 The Absolute awakens to Itself
20:49 - Going public with ones’s awakening
22:59 - Holding this life in reverence
24:05 - Signs of a mature practice
26:02 - Becoming a meditation teacher
28:11 - The true job of a teacher
30:47 - Teachers should not overestimate their level
34:35 - Ways to know you are in too deep as a teacher
35:45 - Teachers need teachers
37:50 - Is there any substitute for a 1-1 relationship with a teacher
39:54 - Humility and the truth a spouse sees
41:04 - People assume their teacher is perfect
41:47 - Mark’s conservative Zen training
43:00 - Customer services spirituality
45:08 - Holding a teacher in reverence
47:13 - The pitfalls of leadership by committee
49:51 - Awakening is a whole body commitment
54:29 - Surprises when meeting enlightenment teachers
57:20 - Peer to peer trialogues
58:12 - How to find the interview series
59:24 - Host and guest
01:00:14 - Praise for the Guru Viking Podcast


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Previous episodes with Stephen Snyder:
- guruviking.com/search?q=snyder

To purchase Anatomy of Awakening visit:
- awakeningdharma.org/anatomy-of-awakening

GV Podcast receives no affiliate commission from your purchase.

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For more interviews, videos, and more visit:
- www.guruviking.com

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Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James