Member Questions: Matt and Dan Harris

Sam speaks with brothers Dan and Matt Harris. Dan is an author, podcaster, and the founder of the Ten Percent Happier meditation app. Matt is a venture capitalist and Waking Up member.

They discuss Sam’s decision to leave Twitter; the mechanics and costs of everyday distraction; superficial pleasures vs. meaningful experiences; the origins of secular mindfulness; key differences between non-dual and dualistic mindfulness; the advantage of Vipassana meditation for beginners; the psychological benefits of metta; the impersonal nature of consciousness; misleading indicators of progress in meditation; the central paradox of Tibetan Buddhism; the possibility of conscious experience beyond death; overcoming attachment to one’s self-concept; the likelihood that telepathy and other psychic abilities exist; and other topics.