Over the last two years I’ve listened to approximately 50-60 hours of Jack Kornfield’s podcast, Heart Wisdom Hour. Alongside The Grateful Dead, this podcast holds the place for the most oft heard soundtrack in my earbuds. It’s rare for me to find a voice that so compels me and speaks into my life. I’ve written about Jack Kornfield on this blog before, but I haven’t really analyzed why I keep coming back to his dharma talks. Here are a few thoughts.
- Jack is a wonderful story teller. It always feels good to be in the capable hands of a master story teller. Jack is one for sure.
- Jack reminds me of things that I have experienced, that I value, that I believe, and that I strive towards. It’s good to be reminded.
- Jack is a non-anxious presence. The mere thought of listening to one of his talks gives me a sense of spacious calm. This spacious calm can be hard to find at times so the fact that Jack helps bring me to that place is something I value.
- Jack illuminates. Some aspects of the human experience are either so obvious or so mysterious that they can be hard to see clearly. Jack is particularly good at investigating these areas and helping summon them to the fore so that they can be honored and appreciated.
These are a few of the reasons that I keep coming back to listen to Jack Kornfield’s, Heart Wisdom Hour. As a rabbi, as an educator, as a human being, Jack informs and inspires me to remember who and what I really am. I strongly recommend checking out pretty much any episode of his podcast. If you do, let me know what you think!