Ep. 302 – Awakening the Lion’s Roar Within: Poetry of Courage, Compassion, and Wonder

In this inspiring poetry-infused talk, Jack weaves Rumi’s wisdom on the camel, lion, and child of the spirit into a journey from devotion, to courage, to wonder—inviting us to awaken the Buddha’s Lion’s Roar within and remember the inner royalty of the heart.

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“Poetry and the sense of beauty that art awakens is to move from a small sense of our problems and difficulties to some greater perspective of the heart.” – Jack Kornfield

In this episode, Jack mindfully explores:

• Rumi’s wisdom on The Camel, The Lion, and the Child of the Spirit
• Healing our wounds, grief, and sorrows
• Waking ourselves up from our trance
• Touching our rage, fears, and longings with kindness and respect
• Poetry of compassion, mystery, tenderness, and awakening
• Letting yourself love what you love
• Tenderness and seeing with the eyes of the Divine Mother and the great heart of compassion
• Living a life of wakefulness
• Rumi, bravery, and becoming a lion
• Awakening the Buddha’s Lion’s Roar within
• Uncovering your inner-royalty
• Beginner’s mind and becoming a “child of the spirit”
• Finding wonder and amazement in life
• The mystery of sleep, dreams, and consciousness
• Letting go of pity and reclaiming wonder in the present
• The power of prayer and blessing

“You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk for a hundred miles on your knees through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves.” – Mary Oliver

This Dharma Talk from 4/15/1993 at Spirit Rock Meditation Center was originally published on DharmaSeed

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 Journe