We’re joined this week by Yoga and Buddhist meditation teacher Michael Stone. We begin by finding out how Michael got into spiritual practice, which happened to be at an early age through a profoundly spiritual uncle who suffered from schizophrenia. During his time in the asylum, visiting his uncle, he learned to meditate, to contemplative the words of great masters from the past, and to develop his own ideas regarding the spiritual path. This early exposure and interaction informed Michael’s future journey, when he ended up practiced deeply in both the yogic and Buddhist traditions.
We finish our conversation by exploring some of the overlaps and deep connections between these wisdom schools, paying particular attention to the similarities between Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and the early sutras of Siddhartha Buddha. We also speak about the body practices of yoga and what they may have to offer to the mind practices of Buddhism, noticing that both schools are ultimately both mind and body practices.
This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, No System Exists in a Vacuum.
Episode Links:
Center of Gravity ( http://www.centreofgravity.org )
The Satipatthana Sutta ( http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.010.than.html )
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali ( https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Yoga_Sutras_of_Patanjali )