10% Happier with Dan Harris
Episode: Jack Kornfield on How to Stay Sane in Insane Times
Date: December 3, 2025
Main Theme
This episode features legendary Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield in a timely and deeply practical conversation about maintaining perspective, stability, and compassion in an increasingly turbulent world. Drawing from ancient Buddhist wisdom, personal stories, and modern challenges, Jack and Dan explore how we can face “the polycrisis” of politics, climate, technology, and cultural anxiety without losing our hearts or sanity—and, in fact, how crisis can become a crucible for courage, joy, and transformation.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. Diagnosing “the Insanity” of Our Times
[08:41]
- Kornfield likens today’s crises to a “polycrisis” (politics, climate, technology, war) and roots these challenges in human greed, hatred, fear, and ignorance:
“It said that the Buddha...was called the Great Physician. And his diagnosis...there is suffering in life...and much of it is human caused. And those causes are greedy, hatred, fear, ignorance or delusion.” — Jack Kornfield
- He draws from Buddhist teaching that the only real antidote lies in transforming these roots internally:
- Greed → Generosity
- Hatred/Fear → Love
- Ignorance → Wisdom
- Kornfield emphasizes “inner climate change” as crucial to solving “outer climate change,” since external advances alone (tech, AI, etc.) can’t address the core human issues.
2. The Opportunity within Crisis
[12:33]
- Rather than just “dumpster fire,” Kornfield sees a critical opening—a “Great Turning”—for humanity to realize our deep interconnection and choose respect and care over exploitation.
- He references activist-scholar Joanna Macy and describes humanity’s moment as critically creative, where our decisions and actions can help “turn” the tide toward healing.
“It’s possible to live in a different way. So our invitation...is to live in a more respectful and conscious way. And that’s how we’ll change the earth for humanity.” — Jack Kornfield
3. Facing Political Anxiety & “Propancha” (Mental Proliferation)
[14:05 to 21:09]
- Dan shares his rising anxiety over threats to democracy and the “wobbly promise of America,” concerned about rule of law erosion and spinning worst-case scenarios in his mind.
- Kornfield acknowledges these fears, warns against fueling the crisis with rage and confusion (“those are the very things that are actually fueling it”), and advocates responding from calm clarity:
“It’s possible to see clearly this is destructive and to stand up for what you care about, but to do it with a peaceful heart without promoting further fear and further outrage...” — Jack Kornfield
- Kornfield recounts a story from Mahago Sananda, emphasizing the need to “remove the landmines from the heart,” not just the world.
4. Planting Seeds, Not Controlling Outcomes
[26:10]
- The wisdom is to “plant seeds” of integrity and hope, even if we can’t guarantee results:
“Convince me you have a seed there, and I’m prepared to expect miracles.” — Henry Thoreau, quoted by Jack Kornfield
- Kornfield highlights collective efforts, activism, and community as what actually shifts the world (with inspiring stories from activism in hardship, including those honored at the Oslo Freedom Forum).
- He cites Thomas Merton:
“Do not depend on the hope of results...you start more and more to concentrate not on the results, but on the value, the rightness and the truth of the work itself.” — Thomas Merton (read by Kornfield at [23:14])
5. Inspiration from Compassionate Avatars & Expanding Perspective
[33:14]
- Kornfield tells the CEO of a major company to put spiritual figures (Buddha, Mother Mary, Kuan Yin) on a shelf as symbolic “backup”—a reminder that we draw on a greater legacy and source of strength.
- Encourages a “vast” perspective—connecting to both the immensity of change and the timelessness of loving awareness:
“No one can imprison your spirit.” — Jack Kornfield ([33:14])
6. Specific Survival & Well-being Practices
[42:24+]
-
Equanimity Practice: Accepting life’s changing tides (seasons, rise/fall of empires), letting go of the illusion of control.
-
Loving Kindness (Metta):
- Begins with well-wishing for loved ones (“May you be well, may you be safe, may you be protected”) and then expands to wider circles.
- Kornfield recounts teaching this to Ford CEO Bill Ford to handle immense stress ([42:24]).
- Pushback addressed: Loving kindness is not weakness but the root of true courage:
“The force behind courage that really makes a difference is love.” — Jack Kornfield ([46:13])
-
Joy as a Moral Obligation:
- Recounts Dalai Lama’s refusal to let oppressors “destroy my happiness.”
- Quotes the Buddha:
“Live in joy in love, even among those who hate...Live in joy and peace even among the troubled...” ([47:44])
- “Joy is a moral obligation.” — Citation of André Gide
-
Nature and Movement:
- Kornfield shares how running by the San Francisco Bay and connecting to nature bring him daily joy ([51:03]).
- “Stepping out and connecting to nature is an incredibly good thing.”
-
Thanking Your Anxiety:
- A unique strategy—greet anxious thoughts as helpful but unnecessary, then “let them go and do something positive.”
“Thank you for trying to protect me. I’m okay. Now I’m going to do something positive…” ([54:56])
- A unique strategy—greet anxious thoughts as helpful but unnecessary, then “let them go and do something positive.”
7. The Importance of Intention
[57:18]
-
Actions are determined by intention; pausing in conflict to ask your “highest intention” transforms reactivity into compassion.
“The minute that that intention surfaces...my tone of voice changes, my eyes soften…I’d rather be loving.” — Jack Kornfield
-
Perfection is not required: Kornfield addresses the pressure to have “pure” motivation—“only human, only human”—what matters is to return to wholesome intention without harsh self-judgment ([60:13]).
8. Imagination and Hope as Antidotes
[67:14]
- Kornfield urges listeners to be “imaginal cells”—the elements in the cocoon who envision and construct something radically new (the butterfly).
- Individual action can be the “make weight” that tips larger scales—small actions make a collective difference.
“Maybe you are the make weight, maybe your podcast, Dan…tips the scale in some important way. And so there’s something tremendously empowering about this.”
9. Embracing Mystery: The "You Are Consciousness" Practice
[73:12]
- Kornfield invites us to regularly connect with the deep mystery of existence and our own awareness.
- Simple practices:
- Mirror Practice: Look in the mirror—notice aging, but also that your sense of “self” hasn’t aged, because you are awareness, not the body.
- Vast Awareness: Close your eyes and sense the mind as vast as the sky, including all sounds and events within it, not separate from the flow of life.
- Be the Witness: Turn attention away from the “movie” of thoughts, becoming instead the loving presence (“the one who knows”) behind all experience.
“Who you are is the loving witness of all of this. This is the timeless dimension of consciousness itself.” — Jack Kornfield
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On rooting change in the heart ([08:41]):
“No amount of AI and compute and Internet…is going to stop continuing warfare, continuing racism, continuing climate disruption...because the roots of them are in the human heart.” — Jack Kornfield
-
On the difference we can make ([26:54]):
“We don’t get to control the outcome, but we get to act beautifully. And when we plant seeds of care, when we plant seeds of justice, when we plant seeds of compassion, those will eventually bear fruit.” — Jack Kornfield
-
On loving kindness & courage ([46:13]):
“The force behind courage that really makes a difference is love...it gives you the courage to care and gives you the strength. So, in fact, it’s a power.” — Jack Kornfield
-
On joy in dark times ([47:44]):
“They’ve taken so much from me. Why should I let them destroy my happiness?” — Dalai Lama (quoted by Kornfield)
-
On only being human ([60:13]):
“We are first very quick to judge ourselves...don’t be idealistic. There ain’t no ideal human being. Every human being I’ve ever met, even the most saintly...they’ve all effed up at some time.” — Jack Kornfield
-
On imagination as activism ([72:36]):
“We have the opportunity to be the imaginal cells at this difficult time, to vision that there is a society that humans can have...characterized by mutual respect, by care for the vulnerable, by care for the environment, by coming together and listening to each other.” — Jack Kornfield
-
On the practice of mystery ([73:12]):
“It is incredibly mysterious...Who you are is the loving witness of all of this. This is the timeless dimension of consciousness itself.” — Jack Kornfield
Suggested Timestamps for Key Segments
- Jack’s diagnosis & Buddhist roots of suffering: [08:41]
- On the opportunity in crisis: [12:33]
- Dan’s personal fear and “propancha”: [14:05]
- How activism is cultivated from the heart: [21:09]
- Planting seeds vs. controlling outcomes: [26:54]
- Gaining strength from compassion avatars (make a shelf!): [33:14]
- Loving kindness & courage: [42:24], [46:13]
- Joy as a practice, not denial: [47:44]
- Jack’s personal strategies for joy: [51:03]
- Thanking your anxiety: [54:56]
- The importance of intention: [57:18], [60:13]
- Imagination, hope, and being the “make weight”: [67:14]
- Practice: “You are consciousness”: [73:12]
Tone
The entire conversation is marked by warmth, humility, and persistent hope. Kornfield mixes practical advice with deep spiritual encouragement and frequent self-effacing humor (e.g., “Just go on jackkornfield.com and there are lots of free meditations and for many, many people having an audio or video guided meditation is a really great way to start.” [82:22]). The episode feels both grounded and expansive—a “massive dose of perspective” in Dan’s words ([00:00]), inviting listeners to both feel their concern and to reach for something vaster and more creative in their response.
Further Resources
- Jack Kornfield’s new book: “All in This Together: Stories and Teachings for Loving Each Other and Our World”
- Free online course: “Stand Up for Compassion” (link via show notes/jackkornfield.com)
- Guided meditation: Available with this episode at danharris.com (sign up for access)
- Podcasts for charity: GiveDirectly.org/Dan
For listeners: This episode is a highly practical and inspirational primer for anyone feeling anxious about the state of the world and hungry for both actionable tools and renewed hope. Expect wisdom, real talk, and much-needed levity throughout.