In this episode of the Helping Hands Podcast, host Daniel Blake speaks with Dr. David Loy, a professor, author, activist, and Zen teacher in the Sanbo Zen tradition of Japanese Zen Buddhism. David has lectured all over the world, focusing on the topics of social and ecological issues.In his most recent book, Ecodharma: Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis, published in 2019, David writes about different perspectives of Ecodharma in response to our ecological crisis.

Today, Daniel and David discuss engaged Buddhism, and specifically the bodhisattva path, as it relates to our environment—also called ecosattva. We explore the root causes of today’s ecological state, what David calls “the tip of the iceberg.” This ties up to the concept of dualism and what Buddhism refers to as the delusion of separateness. And lastly, we touch on the actions that each of us can take to alleviate our current predicament.

We also hear from Michael Calabrese, a former student of David Loy who is a socially engaged musician. Michael is the drummer with the popular band Lake Street Dive. We’ll learn about his and the band’s work helping to raise funds and awareness through their music, and how Loy’s book and teachings on Ecodharma influenced this turn toward a more socially engaged artistic practice.

Episode 4: “‘I Am The River, The River Is Me'” (David Loy, Michael Calabrese)” by Buddhist Global Relief is licensed under a Creative Commons License.