meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
The Way Out Is In

The Eight Realizations of Great Beings – Part One (Episode #82)

The Way Out Is In

Plum Village

Buddhism, Mental Health, Education, Religion & Spirituality, Health & Fitness, Self-improvement

0.00 Ratings

🗓️ 23 January 2025

⏱️ 122 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

🎟 Get tickets to the live podcast episode in London. Welcome to episode 82 of The Way Out Is In: The Zen Art of Living, a podcast series mirroring Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s deep teachings of Buddhist philosophy: a simple yet profound methodology for dealing with our suffering, and for creating more happiness and joy in our lives. This installment sees Zen Buddhist monk Brother Phap Huu and leadership coach/journalist Jo Confino joined by Zen Buddhist nun Sister True Dedication to discuss the Eight Realizations of Great Beings. This ancient Buddhist sutra provides guidance on overcoming suffering, putting an end to misunderstandings and difficulties, and making progress towards or even attaining enlightenment: “leaving behind the world of birth and death, [and] dwelling forever in peace”.In this, the first of two parts, the three contributors explore the first four realizations, which cover the impermanence of all things, the suffering caused by desire, the tendency of the mind to seek fulfillment outside of itself, and the importance of diligent practice to transform unwholesome mental states.  Their conversation also touches upon the relevance of these teachings for modern life and the need for a balanced approach that combines inner work and outward service; the value of community; and a non-judgmental approach to one’s own mind and body as key to the Buddhist path of understanding and love. Co-produced by the Plum Village App:https://plumvillage.app/   And Global Optimism:https://globaloptimism.com/ With support from the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation:https://thichnhathanhfoundation.org/ List of resources Interbeinghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interbeing   Sister Hien Nghiem (Sister True Dedication)https://plumvillage.org/people/dharma-teachers/sister-hien-nghiem  Sutrashttps://plumvillage.org/genre/sutras  The Eight Realizations of Great Beings https://www.parallax.org/product/the-eight-realizations-of-great-beings Dharmakayahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharmak%C4%81ya  Pali Canonhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pali_Canon Parthian Empirehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthian_Empire Sister Jinahttps://plumvillage.shop/authors/sister-jina-van-hengel/  ‘The Three Dharma Seals’https://www.parallax.org/mindfulnessbell/article/the-three-dharma-seals/  Dharma Talks: ‘The Five Remembrances’ https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-five-remembrances-sr-thuan-nghiem-spring-retreat-2018-05-17 Brother Phap Linh (Brother Spirit)https://www.instagram.com/brotherspirit Mahayanahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahayana  ‘Three Resources Explaining the Plum Village Tradition of Lazy Days’https://plumvillage.app/three-resources-explaining-the-plum-village-tradition-of-lazy-days/Dharma Talks: ‘The Noble Eightfold Path’https://plumvillage.org/library/dharma-talks/the-noble-eightfold-path  Pema Chödrönhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pema_Ch%C3%B6dr%C3%B6n  Bodhisattvahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhisattva  Quotes “When we talk about non-self in Buddhism, it is to understand that we cannot exist by ourselves. That is non-self in a nutshell.” “Those things we might hold on to as important are also impermanent. In this realization we’re touching both the good news and the challenge: the good news of impermanence and the challenge of impermanence. So those things that are causing great injustice, hardship, suffering, fear, and despair: they are impermanent. That can give us some relief when we really look into the broad scale of things and the broad scale of time. But, also, things we cherish are impermanent. The house that we saved up to build, to renovate, to take care of – where will that house be in two thousand years’ time? In twenty thousand years’ time? We can pour our whole heart into a project – but where will that project be in ten thousand ye

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hello, dear friends. Welcome to this latest episode of the podcast series, The Way Out is In.

0:27.5

I am Joe Confino, working at the intersection of personal transformation and systems evolution.

0:33.7

And I'm brother Faphu, a Zen Buddhist monk student of Zen master Tinginghan in the Plumvilleish tradition.

0:39.2

And today, dear listeners, we're going to do what FAPU described as getting nerdy.

0:45.0

So we are going to be looking at a sutra that is core to Buddhist philosophy, and it's called the eight realizations of great beings. And Ticknat Han says this is pretty important. And he says,

0:52.5

if we actually study this and put it into practice,

0:56.0

we will put an end to countless misunderstandings difficulties

0:59.4

and progress towards enlightenment,

1:01.7

leaving behind the world of birth and death,

1:04.7

dwelling forever in peace.

1:07.5

So no small promise here.

1:10.3

So let's get going.

1:13.6

The way out this team. Hello, dear listeners, I am Joe Confino.

1:33.1

And I'm Brother Papu.

1:34.3

And today, this is a very special day, because who do we have in the house?

1:40.5

Tadda!

1:41.7

Sister True dedication.

1:45.4

And we're always trying to get Sister True dedication to jump into our net and join us.

1:51.0

True, true.

1:51.5

And it's difficult to get her.

1:53.3

And the last time she was on, I said to her, Sister, what would encourage you to come back again?

1:59.6

And she had a very simple answer. She said coffee.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Plum Village, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Plum Village and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.