Ep270: Wandering Monk - Jina Kusala
Jina Kusala is a wandering Theravada monk, originally from Norway.
Available on Youtube, iTunes, SoundCloud & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.
Jina tells the story of his traumatic childhood, the mental suffering and instability it caused, and how the Buddhist path provided a means to reckon with the pain.
Jina shares encounters with religious leaders such as Mingyur Rinpoche, recounts meeting previous podcast guest Bhante Jason and reflects on the profound time he spent under Bhante’s instruction.
Jina recalls his Himalayan wanderings and cave retreats, discusses the power of the 4 foundations of mindfulness, details the differences between Hīnayāna and Vajrayāna realisations, and explains why with incremental progress one may aim for sainthood.
00:00 - Intro
00:56 - Background and recent travels in the Himalayas
01:40 - How to work with hardship
03:09 - Upbringing in Norway and traumatic childhood
04:30 - Healing trauma
06:21 - Redeeming trauma and helping others
07:42 - Chasing satisfaction
10:22 - Finishing high school and seeking
13:25 - Discerning the wholesome vs unwholesome
14:46 - First encounter with Buddhism in Norway
15:44 - Travel to Sri Lanka and attempts at meditation
17:17 - Jina suggests a location change
17:57 - Meeting Bhante Jason
19:19 - Sophisticated use of the 4 Foundations of Mindfulness
22:46 - Entering the 4 jhānas, clearing emotional blockages,
23:34 - Mechanism of gaining insight
24:31 - The Buddhist path in brief
24:59 - 3 kinds of delusion
25:35 - The 4 noble truths
29:14 - When the mind lets go
31:55 - Leaving Bhante Jason’s hermitage
35:21 - Making Jina’s broken mind functional
38:25 - A scripture parade
38:45 - A period of chaos and profound uncertainty
40:05- Stabilising and improvement of functionality
40:59 - Interpersonal difficulties and wounds of mistrust
42:52 - Manifestation of unprocessed trauma
43:55 - Becoming a cure for trauma
44:53 - Himalayan Buddhism as Jungian shadow work
45:49 - Jina’s karmic background with Himalayan Buddhism
47:02 - Differences between the realisations of early vs later Buddhist forms
49:16 - Formless states vs true nirvāṇa
52:25 - A private meeting with Mingyur Rinpoche and 5 month retreat in caves
54:40 - Plans for India
55:21 - Reflections on the wandering life
57:05 - Developing intuition and accessing the magical mind
58:59 - Reflections on the path, meaning, and ennobling character
01:00:43 - Learning from your mistakes
01:02:29 - Incremental improvement
01:02:32 - Aiming for sainthood
Kathmandu Interviews playlist:
Previous Episode with Bhante Jason:
Music ‘Deva Dasi’ and ‘Meditation’ by Steve James