Escaping Samsara – Details, episodes & analysis

Bhante Panya tried the forest monk thing. He wore the Theravada robes in America, followed the Vinaya rules, and watched potential practitioners flee because he looked too foreign, too untouchable, too "religious icon" instead of accessible teacher. So he made a move that freaked out his ego: took Mahayana ordination in Taiwan, moved to Vietnam, and started asking uncomfortable questions about what Buddhism actually needs to look like in the West. This conversation gets real fast.

We're talking about: **The stuff nobody mentions:**
- How your friend group is a mirror of everything you hate about yourself
- The terror of taking the bodhisattva vow
- What happens when you sit next to someone who's actually realized 
- Why Theravada meditation might be technically superior but Mahayana community outreach hits different
- How to fight the dark spots in your mind when you can't run to a cave
- The difference between controlling your mind and just not reacting to it
- Why unhealed childhood trauma is probably running your whole spiritual path *

Bhante's books: https://www.amazon.com/Thoughtless-love-cultivation-Bhante-Panna https://www.amazon.com/touching-enlightenment-parable-distance-attachments-ebook Donations for Bhante: https://venmo.com/u/bhante ---

*Escaping Samsara is a weekly podcast exploring authentic Buddhist and yogic practice. Subscribe on Substack (escapingsamsara.substack.com) for free articles, teachings, and more episodes!

In this episode, we sit down with Kat Ashtanga, an advanced practitioner, to explore:

✨ How practice evolves through the different series of poses

✨ Balancing lineage with personal practice

✨ Integrating pregnancy, postpartum, and motherhood

✨ The subtle benefits of long term asana practice

✨ How the universal energy of prana is conducted via these poses

Whether you're deep in your own Ashtanga journey or just beginning to explore, this conversation offers wisdom and inspiration for yogis at all levels.

🔗 Also listen on Spotify / Apple / Substack

👉 Don't miss exclusive writings, bonus episodes, and behind-the-scenes reflections. Subscribe on Substack today: https://escapingsamsara.substack.com

Here's the only video of the old school Advanced A practice I'm aware of on YT:    • Ashtanga Yoga - ORIGINAL 1974 ADVANCED A S...   F

ind out more about Kat: https://www.kathache.com/

If you enjoyed this episode, please like, comment, and share — it helps the podcast reach more practitioners around the world.

 #Ashtanga #YogaPodcast #EscapingSamsara #Meditation #Motherhood #Lineage

Known simply as Darby, his story is one of movement, devotion, and surrender, which led him to India in 1979. There, in Mysore, he met Ashtanga guru Pattabhi Jois and embraced the transformative rigor of the practice. Darby's experiences reflect a deep commitment to both physical and spiritual growth. 

Today, as a husband, father, and teacher, Darby shares how he balances family responsibilities with his practice, emphasizing surrender as the key to fulfillment.

Whether you're a seasoned practitioner or new to yoga, this episode offers wisdom on integrating Chinese Medicine, Hatha, and Kriya yoga into daily life while staying true to your spiritual core.

We cover:

• Life in the original Mysore shala
• The original classical Ashtanga and the modern version
• Kriya yoga and integrating original hatha practices into modern practice
• Coming back to practice after parenthood
• What it really means to walk the yogic path

Kim Allen's journey into Buddhist practice began in 2003, sparked by a period of deep personal change and suffering. Guided by her primary teacher, Gil Fronsdal, she devoted herself to intensive retreat practice, sutta study, and a life aligned with the Eightfold Path. With over 1,000 days of silent retreat, including practice in Sri Lanka and Buddhist centers across Asia, Kim brings a depth of lived experience to her teaching.

She has studied with renowned teachers like Shaila Catherine, Bhikkhu Anālayo, and Bhikkhu Bodhi, and now offers teachings on classical texts, sutta study, and the integration of deep Dharma into daily life. In 2020, she took formal commitment as a Lay Contemplative, receiving the Dharma name Sumatimitta—a "wise friend" on the path.

Kim's teaching is rooted in direct experience—the willingness to meet reality as it is, with clarity, compassion, and wisdom. Her approach blends the profound depth of early Buddhist wisdom with the simple beauty of the present moment—whether it's the sound of a hawk's call or the ripple of aspen leaves.

I'm honored to welcome Kim to the podcast today as we discuss the Dharma, the power of retreat practice, and what it means to live a contemplative life in the modern world.

In this episode we're once again joined by Richard Josephson for a Dharma discussion centred around family life as a vehicle for practicing Buddhist and general liberation teachings. With over 50 years of practice experience both as a monk and a family man, Richard Josephson is perfectly placed to give a wise perspective on how we can best practice, whatever our circumstances. 

1. Listen for insights on:

• Why you should or shouldn't become ordained
• The challanges of being a monk or nun
• How to find time in family life to practice well
• How to cultivate an attitude and find motivation to pursue the noble path
• How to find stillness and release from stress no matter what 

What does it mean to be truly happy? In this episode of Escaping Samsara, I sit down with teachers Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor to explore the deeper layers of practice beyond asana and into meditation and philosophy.

Drawing from their decades of experience in spiritual practice, they discuss the subtle intersections of yoga, Buddhism, and embodiment—revealing how happiness is not just an emotion, but a fully integrated state of being.

We dive into the challenges of modern yoga, the pitfalls of spiritual ego, and how to navigate tradition without becoming dogmatic. Richard shares candid insights on guru culture, the Westernization of yoga, and the fine line between devotion and delusion, while Mary offers grounded wisdom on cultivating joy through breath, presence, and compassionate awareness.

Join us for an illuminating conversation on the art of practice, the paradox of happiness, and what it really means to escape Samsara.

Check out Richard and Mary's new book: Feeling Happy: The Yoga of Body, Heart, and Mind

Find more info about Richard and Mary here.

In the latest episode of Escaping Samsara, I sit down with Spiros Antonopoulos and Barry Silver in person on the banks of the Ganga River in Varanasi to explore their incredible project, Gently Down: Bathed, Beaten, and Blessed — a 20-year journey of artistic and spiritual collaboration rooted in the sacred energies of the Ganga and the Maha Kumbh Mela festival.

Spiros and Barry first met as yoga students in New York City, unaware that their paths would intertwine for decades, leading them back—again and again—to the ancient flow of India's most sacred river. 

We discuss:
🔹 The power of consecration—how objects, spaces, and even moments can be transformed into sacred vessels
🔹 The ritual journey of Bathed, Beaten, and Blessed 3.0 at the Kumbh Mela festival
🔹 How purification, intention, and devotion anchor us in deeper realities
🔹 The intersection of yoga, esoteric traditions, and artistic expression

In this episode, we discuss the positives and drawbacks of different ways of practising Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga.

Tiaga covers thoughts and perspectives from his diverse backgrounds studying with Ramaswami, Dharma Mittra, and his experience teaching Mysore style for over 20 years.

We also cover the core Tristana method, getting into the technique of breath and bandha, and how mudra exploration can enhance a regular asana practice.

So if you enjoy Ashtanga or any form of Vinyasa yoga and want a good geek-out with two long-term practitioners, prepare a cup of chai, sit back and listen in.

Ajahn Kovilo joins me from the Clear Mountain Podcast and Richard Josephson - a lay yogi living in a California temple.

We discuss the intersection of yoga, Buddhism, and mysticism in general. We cover Emptiness, pranayama, and the different paths of the renunciate and the layperson and how they can both lead to awakening.

This is a deep-dive discussion covering the transformative effects of sadhana in the modern world. We wonder what Samsara is and if we escape from it.

This is our 4th Escaping Samsara Bookclub and we are joined by author and teacher Daniel Simpson to discuss Gregor Meahle's "Chakras, Drugs, and Evolution: A Map of Transformative States."

Daniel and I discuss our thoughts on Chakras and how they are used in new ways by modern practitioners, our drug experiences and how they affect the spiritual path, and how our subjective experience shapes our practice.

Daniel Simpson

Daniel makes timeless insights accessible and relevant.

He's the author of The Truth of Yoga, an engaging overview of history and philosophy. He also hosts the Ancient Futures podcast.

His latest course is a year-long immersion, The Path of Knowledge – you can find out more and join us here.

"In this ground-breaking book, Gregor Maehle shows how the chakras offer a blueprint for the natural evolution of life via single-cell organisms, reptiles, mammals and humans. He draws on his experiences with mind-altering plant agents and chemicals during the late 70's and early 80's, as well as extensive research, to objectively describe how drugs influence each chakra, including their potential but also spiritual setbacks and dangers. The author further explores whether psychoactive substances are a useful supplement, shortcut or accelerator of spiritual evolution. The book culminates in a complete map of transformative and mystical states, including their potential accessibility through psychedelics versus traditional yogic methods."