Ep. 322 – Wisdom for Difficult Times: AI, Compassion, and Community
Heart Wisdom with Jack Kornfield
Be Here Now Network
4.7 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 6 May 2026
⏱️ 37 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this powerful dialogue, Jack Kornfield responds to questions from the community about some of the deepest challenges of the human heart.
Today’s podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/heartwisdom and get on your way to being your best self.
This time on Heart Wisdom, Jack Kornfield shares:
- Caring for aging parents with compassion
- Transforming rage into compassionate action
- Grieving without hardening the heart
- Meeting illness and death with presence
- Sangha as a refuge in difficult time
“We need each other. Sangha is the company of the wise. In these times we need to stand up for the truth and speak up together. That’s part of sangha—to be together in the innate dignity of humanity and say, ‘Yes, this is what matters.’” –Jack Kornfield
This episode was first recorded on Feb 23, 2026 for the Spirit Rock Monday Night Talk and Meditation
About Jack Kornfield:
Jack Kornfield trained as a Buddhist monk in the monasteries of Thailand, India, and Burma, studying as a monk under the Buddhist master Ven. Ajahn Chah, as well as the Ven. Mahasi Sayadaw. He has taught meditation internationally since 1974 and is one of the key teachers to introduce Buddhist mindfulness practice to the West. Jack co-founded the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, with fellow meditation teachers Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein and the Spirit Rock Center in Woodacre, California. His books have been translated into 20 languages and sold more than a million copies.
Jack is currently offering a wonderful array of transformational online courses diving into crucial topics like Mindfulness Meditation Fundamentals, Walking the Eightfold Path, Opening the Heart of Forgiveness, Living Beautifully, Transforming Your Life Through Powerful Stories, and so much more. Sign up for an All Access Pass to explore Jack’s entire course library. If you would like a year's worth of online meetups with Jack and fellow community, join The Year of Awakening: A Monthly Journey with Jack Kornfield.
“The idea from the Buddha’s teachings is that when we’re together and committed to compassion, liberation, a free heart, and a care for one-another, amazing things are possible.” –Jack Kornfield
Stay up to date with Jack and his stream of fresh dharma offerings by visiting JackKornfield.com and signing up for his email teachings.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | The idea from the Buddhist teachings is that when we're together and committed to compassion, |
| 0:12.0 | liberation, a free heart, and care for one another, amazing things are possible. |
| 0:20.0 | Some true medicine from Jack Cornfield |
| 0:23.6 | in episode 32 of the Heart Wisdom podcast, |
| 0:27.6 | Wisdom for Difficult Times, |
| 0:30.6 | AI, compassion, and community. |
| 0:34.6 | Thank you for joining us as always. |
| 0:38.7 | My name is Ganesh. |
| 0:39.9 | I'm Jack's assistant, and I am completely honored to open the door to this episode for you. |
| 0:46.5 | This is a video talk stemming from the Spirit Rock Monday Night Darmatalk on February 23rd of 2026. We hope you've been enjoying the |
| 0:57.6 | fresh episodes. This one being mostly a question and response session, which tunes in to the |
| 1:06.1 | current zeitgeist of the human experience, speaking on AI, grief, aging, how to transform our rage into |
| 1:17.4 | compassion, a true toolkit for these current times. And if the content of this episode speaks to |
| 1:27.1 | you, I highly recommend joining Jack's year-long |
| 1:31.1 | course, living the Dharma in a troubled world. Each month, there is a question and response |
| 1:38.2 | hang with Jack, as well as some beautiful weekly teachings, which help us all stay steady, kind, and in a semblance |
| 1:47.9 | of wise response rather than reactivity in these times which truly call for our love, mindfulness, |
| 1:56.0 | and dignity. And if you're somebody who found heart wisdom through the thread of Ram Dass, like myself and so many others, |
| 2:06.3 | I do hope you'll join Jack's Sacred Dialogues course, a rare and intimate transmission of conversations |
| 2:14.5 | from Jack and Ram Dass over the years, two beings who have dedicated their |
| 2:21.2 | lives to sharing the infinite gift of loving awareness. So without further ado, I invite you to |
| 2:30.2 | tune into your body and your surroundings, take a mindful breath, and allow this episode |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Be Here Now Network, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Be Here Now Network and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.