Should someone practicing Buddhism stop drinking? Plus, anonymous vomit.

(Becasue she’s so fine, Gwen’s mic was crackling hot out this episode, sorry)

Links mentioned:

The 5 Mindfulness Trainings of Thich Nhat Hanh

Gwen gets co-opted by Nintendo to indoctrinate a generation of women into playing video games. What percent of this introducing women to an unhealthy habit, and what percent is Gwen turning into a corporate shill, and what percent is eeeevil? 27.3%, that’s how much!

Links mentioned:

• The YouTube girl who does Japanese videos.

• Guitar Hero On Tour for the DS.

• One of our favorite videos of all time, Strongbad as a Japanese Cartoon.

(Music from OverClocked Remix)

A viewing of Wall-E prompts Gwen and Patrick to think about consumption and the consequences of it.
Links mentioned:

• The Onion article Patrick reads from.

• ClimateCrisis.net

• Stuff White People like : Recycling

Books mentioned:

• A decent review of Voluntary Simplicity, by Duane Elgin.

This week we’re takin’ time off to…erm…meditate or something.

Zen is Stupid takes a break once a year. Today’s the day. So, no podcast. But if you’re bored, try:

The Sound of Young America…Colin Marshall reviewed us & I think the best part about the review is the comment where someone says Gwen is full of CRAP!!!! I mean, I couldn’t have said it better if I’d said it myself.

Patrick’s Peak Condition Project is taking off. Check out his hot bod. A hot Buddhisty dude? Yeah, right, you think. Well, think again.

Gwen’s a Brand Enthusiast for Nintendo now & just had a kick-ass, all-girl party in Denver, CO. Go ahead, cruise on over & leave mean comments if you want. She can still demolish you in Mario Kart any day of the week. So bring it.

Well, that’s all for this week! Check us out next week when we talk about something deep and meaningful that will shift the axis of your world, making you a better friend, spouse, and overall human being. Or maybe we’ll just talk about mullets.

Thanks for reading, listening, commenting, as always…

What’s up with all the superhero movies and TV shows? What part of our psyche is getting sated by all this stuff? Plus, Tonglen for brown people.Books mentioned:

• Cave in the Snow, the story of Tenzin Palmo’s years in solitary meditation in a Tibetan cave. Soon to be rewritten properly by Patrick.

• Pema Chodron’s The Places That Scare You.

How should one deal with becoming famous, and why is it so irresistible for us humans?

Links mentioned:

• The episode of Penn & Teller’s Bullshit that dishes on the truth behind “Dr.” John Gray.

We sit down and have a frank discussion about Christianity, the Bible, and Church culture. If we (i.e. Patrick) offended you, we’re sorry and really think you’re a nice person.Links mentioned:

• Richard Dawkins and his adventures with the God Machine.

Books mentioned:

• Who Cooked the Last Supper?, by Rosalind Miles

• The first part of Thich Nhat Hanh’s, Living Buddha Living Christ

• Sharon Salzburg’s book, which Gwen refers to as “Faith Something Something” is actually just called Faith.

Music: Kevin MacLeod

A rambling discussion about how diversity can help us grow, and why it’s so hard to find it in our daily lives. Plus, storytime!

Links mentioned:

• Here is some of the fallout from our podcast entitled “Privilege.”

• The NPR critique of the Peace Corps’s current situation.

• A classic Mr. Rogers clip where he learns about the newest sensation, video games. Very cool except Mr. Rogers doesn’t let the kid finish out his game! What a jerk.

Books mentioned:

• A good review of Bill Bishop’s book, The Big Sort.

Like it or not, we live in a world of high and low, have and have-nots, powerful and weak. How does a Buddhist navigate this swamp and not get screwed?

Links mentioned:

• The 48 Laws of Power, as compiled by Robert Greene and Joost Elfers.

We consume it everyday, we excrete it everyday, and we hardly pay attention to it. Mindfulness in the kitchen, and later, on the toilet.

Links mentioned:

• Patrick’s Peak Condition Project, now with 3 new members!

• The Questions of King Milinda (sometimes called Menander), an old and surprisingly readable Buddhist text. Here is the excerpt that discusses taking care of the mortal body as if it were a wound

Excerpted from the Chapter, The Arhats and Their Bodies

The king asked: “Is the body dear to you recluses?”

“No, it is not.”

“But why then do you look after it, and cherish it so?”

“Has your majesty somewhere and at some time in the course of a battle been wounded by an arrow?”

“Yes, that has happened.”

“In such cases, is not the wound anointed with salve, smeared with oil, and bandaged with fine linen?”

“Yes, so it is.”

“Is then this treatment a sign that the wound is dear to your majesty?”

“No, it is not dear to me, but all this is done to it so that the flesh may grow again.”

“Just so the body is not dear to the recluses. Without being attached to the body they take care of it for the purpose of making a holy life possible. The Lord has compared the body to a wound, and so the recluses take care for the body as for a wound, without being attached to it. For the Lord has said:

A damp skin hides it, but it as a wound, large, with nine openings,
All around it oozes impure and evil-smelling matter.”

“Well answered, Nagasena!”

Books mentioned:

• Michael Pollan, In Defense of Food

• Skinny Bitch