The Insight Myanmar Podcast
From the moment that the Burmese military’s tanks started rolling into the streets, we here at Insight Myanmar Podcast knew we had to act. In the weeks and months that followed, we transformed our podcast programming, essays and blogs to fill the gaping holes in most mainstream media coverage, and give Burmese voices a direct outlet to the world.
Our interviews go beyond simple sound bites or short summaries, and delve into longform discussions to allow the stories of our guests to unfold in detail. They are asked to speak extensively about their background, experiences, and perspectives to better educate and inform our listener base.
We continue to be committed to bringing a wide and diverse range of authentic voices—artists, political activists, and others, from all different religious and ethnic backgrounds—to listeners around the world.
Listen to our most recent episode, below!
Background
Longtime followers of this platform know that the origins of our work started with an interest in spirituality, in particular exploring meditative traditions in the Golden Land. Over a decade ago, it began as the Burma Dhamma Blog, where information, reflections and observations were shared about monasteries and meditation centers. Then as the country began opening up more during the democratic transition of the 2010s, increasing numbers practitioners and scholars took advantage of the country’s growing freedoms to visit the Golden Land. The blog also blossomed into something more, with documentaries, presentations, pilgrimages, and more, all designed to explore the role of Buddhism and monasticism within Burmese society, history, and culture. This developing involvement with Myanmar evolved into Shwe Lan Ga Lay, a comprehensive guidebook to Myanmar for meditation practitioners.
In 2019, the Insight Myanmar Podcast was launched, which allowed us to go deeper into exploring this little-known content. However, when the coup hit, everything changed. We expanded our podcast platform’s mission to respond to the current crisis, and while a Buddhist perspective continues to be explored with guests from that background, our episodes reflect the full range of diversity of the country, its cultures, its religions and its peoples. Most recently we established Better Burma, a nonprofit, to deliver urgent humanitarian care to Myanmar.
Featured
Media
As our mission has expanded, our work has been picked up on sites across the web. Mizzima regularly shares our content across their website and magazines, and Radio Free Asia broadcasts our audio interviews as well. In addition to this, over 75,000 listeners tune into our podcast. Several Wikipedia articles reference our podcasts and essays, as have internet forums related to Buddhism and Myanmar. The on-line magazine, Myanmar Mix, called us one of the top five podcasts in Myanmar; Lotus Sculpture, a Buddhism-oriented site, named us one of the top 40 Buddhist blogs, and Feedspot, a media database, lists us as #2 and #5 among all Myanmar influencers. Various newspapers, magazines and TV channels have referenced either our podcast or nonprofit, including Mother Jones, Foreign Policy, The Diplomat, ABC News, Southeast Asia Globe, The Budapest Times, The Irrawaddy, The Art Newspaper, New Mandala, Coconuts Yangon, Rocklaz Podcast, MSNBC, Tricycle, Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), Voice of America (VOA), Uncensored Women of the World Podcast, Myanmar Mix, Myanmar Press Photo Agency, International Network of Engaged Buddhists, Boeddhistisch Dagblad, Cornell University Press, Tea Circle, Mizzima, Zomi National TV, Helena Civic Television, Indian Express, Buddhismus Aktuell, and Public Voice Television (PVTV). Just some of the blogs, organizations, and monasteries who have picked up our work are Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project, Buddhist Global Relief, Refugees International, The Open Buddhist University, InzichtMeditatie Antwerpen, Unpacking My Bottom Drawer Blog, Burma Spring Benefit Film Festival, Campaign for a New Myanmar, Tilorien Monastery, Vipassana.Nu, Buddhist Door, Helena Progressive Action Network, Seattle Insight Meditation Society, Helena Service for Peace and Justice, Aloka Vihara, Living Vipassana, No Selves No Masters Blog, Burma Studies Group, Vipassana Hawaii, Alliance for Bhikkhunis, Engaged Dharma, Atlas Letters, GM4MD, Girls Globe, Lewis and Clark Library, Mudita Foundation, German Solidarity with Myanmar Democracy, Boeddhistisch Dagblad, and Thabarwa Monastery. Essays from our project have appeared in Tricycle and Buddhist Global Relief.
Our overall mission, and each of its various facets, are supported 100% by donations. Please consider making a contribution to help support us in this work!
Site Navigation
You can listen to our run of podcast episodes, and take a look at more detailed information about our guests as well. You can listen on these platforms. We also post on four blogs: The Burma Blog, Insight Myanmar Blog, Better Burma Blog, and Burmese Language Blog.
You can also see our podcast guest list (as well as those that coming soon), the full transcripts, our quote collection, and our cartoon commentaries.
Exploring the rise of a major meditative tradition.