Assertion Partly supported
Kornfield says the Tibetan language has no word for self-hatred
“And I remember being in a teacher meeting That we helped to organize with the Dalai Lama decades ago. There was a group of us who were Western meditation teachers, and at one point we said, so what do you suggest we do about all the self-hatred that comes up f…”
Insight
Kornfield argues AI and technology cannot solve human-driven conflicts
“Anybody who looks can see That no amount of computers, and artificial intelligence, and space technology, and nanotechnology, and biotechnology, and all that is going to stop continuing warfare, stop racism, stop climate destruction you know, or economic injus…”
Disclosure
Kornfield joined Wisdom Ventures to fund mindfulness and compassion startups
“I'm part of a new venture capital fund, which is sort of weird for a meditation teacher and former monk called Wisdom Ventures, and Wisdom Ventures With a group of very experienced meditators and several very experienced venture capitalists, and I thought, wel…”
Insight
Kornfield: Facing suffering directly is the gateway to freedom
“There's two kinds of suffering. The kind you run away from that follows you everywhere, and the kind that you face, and that's the gateway to freedom.”
Insight
Kornfield says Ivy League curriculums ignore emotional regulation and compassion
“What I'd learned in an Ivy League education was half of what I needed in my education. I learned philosophy and history. I did some mathematics, and I was doing pre-med for a while, so science things. I said, but nobody taught me what to do with my There's ang…”
Insight
Kornfield: Naming and somatic awareness make intense emotions passing visitors
“The first step is to recognize what emotion is there, and we were actually taught to begin to name them. Anger, rage, fear, longing, love, delight, joy, tenderness anxiety, amusement. I mean, I've got a list of 500 emotions. To begin to recognize them, to feel…”
Insight
Kornfield: Negative thoughts should be acknowledged with gratitude as protective mechanisms
“Our thoughts Try to keep us safe in all kinds of ways. Try to keep us safe from pain, from, you know, difficulty, from humiliation, from loss, and so forth, and try to help us get everything around us that will keep protect us and keep us safe, whether it's mo…”
Insight
Kornfield: Pausing to recall your highest intention transforms conflict
“In moments of difficulty or conflict, taking a pause and asking what's my best or highest intention shifts your state of consciousness.”
Disclosure
Kornfield required therapy clients to sit in silence before sessions
“For a few decades, I also worked as a therapist, and one of the things that I did Was have people sit quietly with me for five minutes before we launched into our therapeutic conversation.”
Disclosure
Kornfield used a candle-lighting ritual to ground Google vice presidents
“I remember going into Google to work with the top, you know, vice presidents who helped run the company, and there were in this white, I mean, in this glass cubicle, because it's sort of open floor plan, but you can kind of sit and close some doors so it's not…”
Assertion Partly supported
Ram Dass's Seva Foundation funded surgeries restoring sight to 5.5 million
“Again, going back to my, your friend Ram Dass, as a teacher, he also started something called Seva Foundation, which still is doing surgeries to restore sight for blind people around the world. And he got a whole group of really great people to do it. His, you…”
Jack Kornfield