The Gay Buddhist Forum by GBF
Buddhism for Liberation and Social Action - especially for LGBTQIA audiences.
We invite teachers from all schools of Buddhism to offer their perspective on its application in modern times. Produced by The Gay Buddhist Fellowship of San Francisco.
Episodes
941 episodes
The Mindful Sanctuary: Why We Go on Retreat
In this reflection on retreat life, four GBF community members explore how taking time away from our relentless routines, news cycles, and digital devices offers a quiet sanctuary to examine our habits and cultivate genuine peace. R...
A Contemporary Eightfold Path for Navigating Hard Times - Donald Rothberg
Donald Rothberg helps us lean into dharma wisdom to navigate the difficult realities of our world without becoming numb, overwhelmed, or cynical. We often focus our Buddhist practice solely on personal meditation, but Donald ...
Trusting the Heart: Finding Faith Beyond Belief - John Martin
John Martin explores how we can find a steadfast sense of peace and trust when life brings us unexpected pain, uncertainty, and constant change. John defines Buddhist faith not as blind adherence to dogmas or rigid beliefs, b...
Relating to the Mettā Sutta on Our Own Terms – Prasadachitta
This talk is a preview of the GBF Fall Retreat: Our Belonging to Kindness: Awakening to the World We Carry Together, September 25-27, 2026.______________...
The Gifts of Imperfection: Finding Faith in Uncertainty - Eli Talen
Eli Talen invites us to examine our endless pursuit of perfection and the exhausting habit of waiting until everything is organized before we allow ourselves to start living. We can easily get caught wishing for ideal conditi...
The Sacred Dance of Joy: Practicing Mudita in Daily Life - JD Doyle
How can we remember that we were created for joy when our minds are busy and our hearts feel weighed down by the world's troubles? In this uplifting talk, JD Doyle invites us to explore mudita—tradition...
The Power of Words: Practicing Right Speech in Daily Life - Laura Burges
Ryuko Laura Burges invites us to consider how our words shape our reality and whether they serve as a force for division or healing in a troubled world.Laura demonstrates the profound weight our speech carries, by drawing on a ten...
Becoming Ordinary: The Five Ranks of Zen Service - Roshi David Blackwell (Jōkai)
Despite the world around us constantly changing, we can remain grounded in the timeless stillness beneath it all.Roshi David Blackwell walks us through what happens when we transition from years of formal spiritual training...
Remagining Buddhist Pride - Trip Weil
In this talk from Pride weekend, Trip Weil explores how we can find a true, universal sense of freedom in our lives if we allow the dharma to reveal and heal painful aspects of shame we may be carrying. Trip invites us to jo...
How We Can Stop Judging and Start Living - Daigan Gaither
We become disconnected from our actual lives when we’re constantly trapped in a cycle of judging every feeling we have. Here Daigan Gaither invites us to look at how we often dismiss our own pain by comparing it to "fi...
Finding Our Universal Flow - Bill Weber
Can we move beyond that small, tight sense of feeling separate and truly experience ourselves as part of the vast, magical universe? In this heart-opening talk, Bill Weber shares how a powerful Qigong practice called the "Six...
The Practice of Unselfish Joy - Melvin Escobar
Melvin Escobar helps us discover how we can tap into a source of happiness that doesn't depend on our personal wins, but actually grows the more others succeed. Here he explores the concept of mudita—often translated a...
Shakespeare Dharma: Two Refuges - Matthew Perifano
In this moving and lyrical talk, Matthew Perifano shares how he found a sense of true refuge when facing deep grief and the uncertainty of life. Matthew shares how he began weaving together the wisdom of the Dharma with the t...
The Path to Freedom in an Ever-Changing World - Walt Opie
The Path to Freedom in an Ever-Changing WorldHow can we find lasting peace when everything in our lives—from our favorite shops to our own bodies—is constantly changing? In this talk, Walt Opie explores impermanence, the "b...
Embodying Our Truth: The Perfection of Queer Wisdom - Liên Shutt
Rev. Liên Shutt explores how the Buddhist path of wisdom can help us fully celebrate and embody our identities as queer people. The concept of prajna (wisdom) is not an abstract theory, but as an interactive w...
Fueling Our Resilience with Joy - Eve Decker
Eve Decker explores the vital necessity of cultivating joy not as a way to ignore suffering, but as a spiritual practice to maintain internal balance and equanimity. It is an internal ease independent of external circumstances. By embrac...
The Resilience of Joy - Mary Stancavage
Finding a sense of lightness and joy ? Mary Stancavage explores the vital necessity of cultivating joy as a spiritual practice to maintain internal balance and equanimity in a world marked by violence, cruelty, and despair. D...
The Softened Heart: Cultivating Wisdom Through Vulnerability - Joe Goode
How can we prevent our hearts from hardening against a brutal world and instead use our own imperfections as a bridge to connection?Joe Goode addresses this by arguing that while political or social resistance is necessary,...
The Balanced Heart: Redefining Equanimity in Times of Conflict - René Rivera
How can we maintain a steady heart and a sense of purpose when the systems we rely on seem to be collapsing and the world feels overwhelmed by conflict?René Rivera shows us that equanimity is not mere "composure" or "evenne...
Leading with a Friendly Heart - Sean Feit Oakes
How can we maintain a compassionate heart in a world defined by conflict? Sean Feit Oakes shows us how we can use the Brahma Viharas—the "immeasurable" states of love, compassion, joy, and equanimity— t...
It's Okay to Not be Okay - Daigan Gaither
Daigan Gaither helps us examine how we can remain deeply engaged with a suffering world without losing our sanity, despite the "fire hose" of constant information and activism. He explores the phrase "it's okay to not be o...
Finding Your Posture of Peace - Victoria Austin
How can we maintain a steady heart and a sense of purpose when the world around us is in conflict? Victoria Austin introduces us to the concept of a "posture of peace," which she defines not merely as a physical...
The War Within: Transforming Aggression into a Pure Heart - Mary Stares
Onryu Mary Stares helps us understand why external peace is impossible without first addressing the "war" occurring inside—the aggression and destructive emotions within our own heart. She offers several key approaches to support this ef...
Loving-Kindness Practice: Cutting Through Everyday Anxiety - Sean Feit Oakes
How can we cultivate a heart that remains open and loving regardless of the external circumstances we face? In this talk, Sean Feit Oakes explores the Brahma Viharas, also known as the "divine abodes" or states ...
Community: The Crucial Ingredient for Awakening - Kevin Griffin
Exploring the Buddha's nine causes of spiritual and personal development, Kevin Griffin identifies one that is the foundation for all the others: community and spiritual friends. He notes that once a person has good friends, it ca...
