Blue Beryl
Intelligent conversations about Buddhism, Asian medicine, and embodied spirituality.
Episodes
27 episodes
Critique, Wonder, and Chinese Anatomy, with Lan A. Li
Today I sit down with Blue Beryl's producer, Lan A. Li, a historian of Chinese science, medicine, and the body. We talk about their life-long practice of qigong, the limits of academic critique, and the integration of divergent epistemologies i...
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Season 2
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Episode 9
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55:21
The Body in Classical Hathayoga, with Ruth Westoby
In this episode I sit down with Ruth Westoby a scholar, teacher, and practitioner of yoga. We discuss Ruth’s work on the body in early hatha yoga texts. We talk about the broad diversity of approaches to the material body in these sources...
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Season 2
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Episode 8
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52:09
Yoga, Disability, and Animism, with Theo Wildcroft
Today, I sit down with Theodora Wildcroft, a researcher, anthropologist, and long-time teacher of what she calls “post-lineage yoga.” We discuss Theo's ethnographic research on yoga in the UK, focusing on its connections with animism, paganism,...
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Season 2
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Episode 7
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58:13
BONUS: Awakening the Body, with Willa Baker (Rebroadcast from 2023)
Today I sit down with Willa Blythe Baker, a writer, translator, and teacher of meditation based on Himalayan Buddhist tradition. We talk about Willa’s early discovery of Buddhism with her mother, her time living as a nun, and our shared experie...
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Season 2
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Episode 6
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57:45
Nondual Psychosomatic Chinese Medicine, with Brandt Stickley
Today I sit down with Dr. Brandt Stickley, associate professor of classical Chinese medicine at the National University of Natural Medicine. We talk about Brandt’s approach, which he calls “nondual psychosomatic medicine.” We also explore how p...
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Season 2
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Episode 5
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49:00
The Enlightenment of the Body, with Naomi Worth
In this episode, I sit down with Naomi Worth, a scholar and practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism’s postural yoga tradition. We dive into Naomi's experiences in yogic retreats, highlight the vigorous movement and intense visual elements of the pract...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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49:50
Reiki and the Subtle Body, with Justin B. Stein
Today I sit down with Justin B. Stein, a specialist in modern Japanese religion and the preeminent historian of Reiki. We discuss Justin’s new book, Alternate Currents, about the transnational origins of Reiki, and also get into his pe...
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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58:00
Psychedelics, Mysticism, Aliens, and the Dao, with Dominic Steavu
I sit down with Dominic Steavu, a historian of Chinese religion and healing from UC Santa Barbara. We discuss the central role of the body in medieval Daoist practices, and talk about the Daoist use of psychedelics to facilitate mystical experi...
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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58:17
Embodying the Dao, with Paul C. Wang
In this debut episode of Blue Beryl's second season on embodied spirituality, I sit down with Paul C. Wang, a healer and teacher of Chinese medicine and Daoism, and host of the Daology Podcast. We talk about Paul’s practices of “memet...
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Season 2
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Episode 1
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50:52
Intro to Season 2: Embodied Spirituality
Welcome to the Blue Beryl, a podcast with intelligent conversations about Buddhism, Asian Medicine, and embodied spirituality. In this episode, host Dr Pierce Salguero sits down with BBP producer Dr Lan Li to reflect on Season 1 and look ...
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Season 1
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Episode 18
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53:57
BONUS: Buddhist Medicine in Contemporary Times, with Pierce Salguero (rebroadcasted from the Buddhist Medicine & Yoga Podcast)
Dr Pierce Salguero is interviewed by James Bae on the Buddhist Medicine & Yoga Podcast. In this extensive and in-depth conversation, we talk about differentiating religion from medicine, what Buddhist medicine can teach contemporary clinici...
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Season 1
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Episode 17
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1:16:14
Women & the Body in Buddhism, with Amy Langenberg
Today I sit down with Amy Langenberg, a scholar of South Asian Buddhism, gender, sexuality, and the body. We focus on Amy’s work on misogyny in Buddhist texts, her book on Buddhist embryology, and her current project on sexual abuse in contempo...
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Season 1
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Episode 16
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1:08:01
A Buddhist Approach to Self-care Sovereignty, with Pamela Boyce Simms
Today I sit down with Pamela Boyce Simms, a Buddhist practitioner, herbalist, and cultural healer. We talk about how Pamela’s Buddhist practice enables her to facilitate self-care sovereignty for impoverished rural and urban communities. We als...
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Season 1
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Episode 15
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45:03
A Chinese American Buddhist Healer, with Kin Cheung
In this episode, I sit down with Kin Cheung, a scholar of contemporary Buddhism at Moravian University. We talk about his research on a Chinese American community healer who happens to be his father. We discuss how his father’s practice raises ...
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Season 1
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Episode 14
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53:18
Buddhist Healing in Contemporary Japan, with Rev. Nathan Jishin Michon
Today I sit down with Rev. Nathan Jishin Michon, a postdoctoral fellow at Ryukoku University and an ordained priest in the Shingon Buddhist tradition. Our conversation touches on diverse Buddhist healing rituals and the role of light in Shingon...
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Season 1
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Episode 13
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1:01:00
Situating Religion and Medicine, with Michael Stanley-Baker
Today I sit down for an in-depth conversation with my good friend, Michael Stanley-Baker, a scholar of Chinese religion and medicine. We talk about Mike’s international childhood and how his family history influenced his intellectual life, his ...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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1:03:05
Traditional Medicine in Laos, with Elizabeth Elliott and Ounkham Souksavanh
Today I sit down with two guests, Ounkham Souksavanh and Elizabeth Elliott, to talk about community engagement and community health in Laos. We discuss how Elizabeth as a medical anthropologist, and Ounkham as a physician, work together to buil...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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45:59
Awakening the Body, with Willa Baker
Today I sit down with Willa Blythe Baker, a writer, translator, and teacher of meditation based on Himalayan Buddhist tradition. We talk about Willa’s early discovery of Buddhism with her mother, her time living as a nun, and our shared experie...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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57:45
Embodiment and Pedagogy, with Frances Garrett
In this episode I sit down with Frances Garrett, a scholar of Tibetan culture, history, and language. We talk about Frances’s interests in embodiment and movement, and how her experiences as ballet dancer, surfer, and rock climber connect with ...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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1:00:58
Buddhist Ritual Magic, with Zachary Lui
And now for something completely different! Today I sit down with Zachary Lui who is a practitioner of Chinese medicine, magic, and shamanism in the Toronto area. We start by talking about his early work with Chinese martial arts, traditional m...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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49:45
BONUS: "Buddhish" and "Buddhist Medicine," with Pierce Salguero (rebroadcasted from the Imperfect Buddha Podcast)
We'll periodically be sharing a bonus episode outside of our usual monthly schedule. This time, we're rebroadcasting an interview with me that aired on the Imperfect Buddha Podcast in late 2022. Host Ma...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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1:23:37
Healing Buddhist Studies, with Paula Arai
Dr Pierce Salguero sits down with Paula Arai, a scholar of Japanese Zen, gender, and healing ritual. Paula is an inspiration in the way she blends critical analysis and compassion in her work. In this episode, we talk about how her journey into...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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52:15
Buddhism and Traditional Thai Medicine, with Nephyr Jacobsen
Dr. Pierce Salguero chats with Nephyr Jacobsen, a traditional Thai medicine practitioner based in Portland Oregon. Nephyr is the founder and director of the Naga Center, and a long time student and teacher of traditional Thai medicine. We talk ...
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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1:05:47
Buddhist Responses to Covid, with Ven. Pemaratana
Dr Pierce Salguero sits down with Venerable Soorākkulame Pemaratana, chief abbot at the Pittsburgh Buddhist Center and a scholar of modern Buddhism in Sri Lanka. We talk about his role in adapting Buddhist practices to address social and mental...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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51:52
Zen Chaplaincy, Activism, and Scholarship, with Wakoh Shannon Hickey
In this episode, I sit down with my friend Wakoh Shannon Hickey, who is a Soto Zen priest, hospice chaplain, scholar, and activist. We talk about Wakoh’s early experiences with social violence in the 1980s, her work as a hospital chaplain, and ...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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51:48