Welcome to Season 4 of AWAKEN—a Webby Honoree podcast about the dynamic path to enlightenment and what it means to “wake up.” Hosted by actress and filmmaker Isabella Rossellini, this season delves into the complex Buddhist concept of attachment and explores how the practice of letting go of preconceived ideas, beliefs, and idenities can transform our experience of the world.

Trailer voices in order of appearance: Founder and Director of the Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Founder and Chief Visionary for Healthy Minds Innovations, Inc. Dr. Richie Davidson; author and transformational thought leader Sonya Renee Taylor; contemplative social scientist Eve Ekman; teacher and meditation master in the Bon Buddhist tradition Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche; and scholar of Tibetan Buddhism Annabella Pitkin.

AWAKEN Season 4 will launch on November 12, 2024.

Everyone has spent time wondering about it, but no one can say for sure: What happens after we die? In the last episode of the season, all of the guests in the series consider this question and consider how believing or not believing in the afterlife impacts how they live. If death is simply a transition from one state to the next, then how do we imagine life after?

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 14:45.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more: https://rubinmuseum.org/mediacenter/life-after-the-afterlife-awaken-podcast

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include Visionary artists and founders of the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors Alex and Allyson Grey, poet Marie Howe, writer and professor Kiese Laymon, artist, director, and author Chella Man, professor, clinical psychologist, and scientist Dr. Lisa Miller, writer and editor Haley Nahman, artist and podcaster Nigel Poor, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, meditation teacher and writer Sebene Selassie, neuroscientist and author Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, author and poet Michelle Tea, neuroscientist Dr. Kay Tye, and meditation teacher and author Spring Washam.

• (14:45) - A Folio from a Manuscript of the Liberation through Hearing in the Intermediate State (Bardo Thodrol)
• (24:47) - Outro

One thing is for certain: one day you will die. But what happens when you die? And how does knowledge of your inevitable death impact how you live now? In this episode, all the guests in the series reflect on these questions and consider how grappling with our mortality is part of what makes us human.

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 18:07.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more.

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include Visionary artists and founders of the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors Alex and Allyson Grey, poet Marie Howe, writer and professor Kiese Laymon, artist, director, and author Chella Man, professor, clinical psychologist, and scientist Dr. Lisa Miller, writer and editor Haley Nahman, artist and podcaster Nigel Poor, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, meditation teacher and writer Sebene Selassie, neuroscientist and author Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, author and poet Michelle Tea, neuroscientist Dr. Kay Tye, and meditation teacher and author Spring Washam.

• (18:07) - Leg Bone Trumpet (kang ling)
• (30:40) - credits

If faced with bravery and awareness, conflict can bring great insight into what is right or needed. From the Buddhist perspective, it’s not the conflict itself that matters, but how we react to it. Because if we are too guarded, protecting ourselves from the difficult emotions that come with conflict, we might miss out on the opportunity for growth and new possibilities.

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 25:07.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more:
https://rubinmuseum.org/mediacenter/life-after-conflict-awaken-podcast

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include poet Marie Howe, artist, director, and author Chella Man, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, meditation teacher and writer Sebene Selassie, author and poet Michelle Tea, neuroscientist Dr. Kay Tye, and meditation teacher and author Spring Washam.

• (00:00) - Conflict
• (24:08) - The Fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lobzang Gyatso (1617–1682) with Previous Incarnations
• (26:45) - Conflict
• (31:22) - outro

In Buddhism, morality isn’t just about avoiding harm but helping others. It comes down to taking responsibility for our actions. We can never truly know our morals until they are tested. But faced with that test, it can wake us up to new ways of thinking, being, and relating to one another in the world.

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 20:58.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more:
https://rubinmuseum.org/mediacenter/life-after-morality-awaken-podcast

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include writer and professor Kiese Laymon, writer and editor Haley Nahman, artist and podcaster Nigel Poor, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, neuroscientist Dr. Kay Tye, and meditation teacher and author Spring Washam.

• (20:58) - Previous Lives of the Buddha
• (23:24) -
• (25:26) - credits

Aspiration involves desire and ambition, whether it’s the pursuit of a new job or to be a better friend. It’s something that gives us a north star to move toward in our daily life. But what happens once we get there? And how can the Buddhist concept of attachment help us make sense of the inevitable ups and downs along the way?

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 22:18.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more.

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include writer and professor Kiese Laymon, professor, clinical psychologist, and scientist Dr. Lisa Miller, writer and editor Haley Nahman, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, and meditation teacher and writer Sebene Selassie.

• (22:18) - Avalokiteshvara in His Potala Pure Land
• (25:00) - Marker 01
• (30:51) - credits

Emotions aren’t just the feelings in the body—they reflect neurons firing in the brain, and from the Buddhist perspective, they offer opportunities for profound insight. When we hold too tightly to our emotions, we risk getting caught up in them. But when we step back and harness the power of simply observing them, there is great potential for transformation.

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 22:07.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more.

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include Visionary artist and cofounder of the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors Alex Grey, poet Marie Howe, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, meditation teacher and writer Sebene Selassie, neuroscientist and author Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, neuroscientist Dr. Kay Tye, and meditation teacher and author Spring Washam.

• (21:55) - F1998.17.3

It’s often in the most challenging moments that we learn the most about ourselves and others. Not only do we have the opportunity to rewire our brains, but we get to see things with newfound clarity. From the Buddhist and neuroscientific perspectives, learning is all about allowing for curiosity and openness. What does the process of learning have to teach us?

View the artwork discussed in this episode, beginning at 18:50.

Read about this artwork, learn more about the Rubin, donate, and more.

AWAKEN Season 3 is hosted by singer and songwriter Falu. Guests featured in this episode include poet Marie Howe, artist and podcaster Nigel Poor, Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and author Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, neuroscientist and author Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, author and poet Michelle Tea, neuroscientist Dr. Kay Tye, and meditation teacher and author Spring Washam.

• (18:51) - Art