Best Chinese Self Study Podcasts (2026)

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Shuchen Xiang, "Chinese Cosmopolitanism: The History and Philosophy of an Idea" (Princeton UP, 2023) 1:29:30

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6h ago1:29:30

1:29:30

A provocative defense of a forgotten Chinese approach to identity and difference. Historically, the Western encounter with difference has been catastrophic: the extermination and displacement of aboriginal populations, the transatlantic slave trade, and colonialism. China, however, took a different historical path. In Chinese Cosmopolitanism: The H…

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Megan Bryson and Kevin Buckelew eds., "Buddhist Masculinities" (Columbia UP, 2023) 55:25

2d ago55:25

55:25

While early Buddhists hailed their religion's founder for opening a path to enlightenment, they also exalted him as the paragon of masculinity. According to Buddhist scriptures, the Buddha's body boasts thirty-two physical features, including lionlike jaws, thighs like a royal stag, broad shoulders, and a deep, resonant voice, that distinguish him …

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SoulFire Sisters Ep5: Does Bad Stuff Have To Stick To You? - with Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar 31:32

6h ago31:32

31:32

In this uplifting episode of SoulFire Sisters, Dawn Morningstar and Dr. Mary Newstrom explore the radiant truth that heaviness doesn’t have to cling to your spirit. Through wisdom, humor, and grounded spiritual practices, they share how to release old energy, reclaim scattered soul essence, and strengthen your sacred boundaries. You'll learn simple…

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Scott A. Mitchell, "The Making of American Buddhism" (Oxford UP, 2023) 58:52

3d ago58:52

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Scott A. Mitchell is the Dean of Students and Faculty Affairs and holds the Yoshitaka Tamai Professorial Chair at the Institute of Buddhist Studies in Berkeley. He teaches and writes about Buddhism in the West, Pure Land Buddhism, and Buddhist modernism. As of 2010, there were approximately 3-4 million Buddhists in the United States, and that figur…

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SoulFire Sisters Ep4: What Is Nature-Based Spirituality? - with Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar 29:14

7d ago29:14

29:14

In this beautiful and grounding episode, Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar explore the essence of nature-based spirituality and what it means to live in harmony with the Earth and all living beings. Mary shares wisdom from her shamanic teachings about the sacred interconnectedness of life—the web of light that unites us with the elements, plan…

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Learning Chinese Through Life, Not Lessons: How Matthew McGuire Did It 30:14

2d ago30:14

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What began as a teenage crush became a lifelong journey into Chinese for Matthew McGuire, an Australian creator and accent coach. In this episode, Jared sits down with Matthew to discuss how he learned Mandarin without textbooks, grammar drills, or writing practice. Instead, he immersed himself in love dramas, shadowed dialogue, and built a Chinese…

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Integral Perspectives: From Kashmiri Shaivism to Tibetan Buddhism with Sean K. MacCracken 1:30:50

15d ago1:30:50

1:30:50

In this episode, Sean MacCracken reflects on his experience at the American Academy of Religion, noticing a shift toward more participatory, contemplative, and integrative approaches in religious studies. He discusses his course, Kashmiri Shaivism: Supreme Non-Dualism, highlighting how meditation, contemplation, and embodied practices cultivate awa…

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SoulFire Sisters Ep3: From Me to We — Awakening Consciousness - with Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar 28:47

9d ago28:47

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In this illuminating episode, Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar explore what it truly means to be conscious—beyond simply being awake. They unpack the shift from me consciousness (fear, scarcity, and separation) to we consciousness (love, abundance, and unity), inviting listeners to move from survival mode to soul mode. With warmth and insight…

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Yasmin Cho, "Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet" (Cornell UP, 2025) 53:29

10d ago53:29

53:29

Politics of Tranquility: The Material and Mundane Lives of Buddhist Nuns in Post-Mao Tibet (Cornell University Press, 2025) concerns the Tibetan Buddhist revival in China, illustrating the lives of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and exploring the political effects that arise from their nonpolitical daily engagements in the remote, mega-sized Tibetan Buddhis…

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Dr. Michael Uebel on Reimaging Equanimity 46:14

12d ago46:14

46:14

Michael Uebel is a psychotherapist and researcher currently based in Austin, Texas. He is recognized as a pioneer in applying psychological insights to the historical intersections of social, personal, and imaginative phenomena. He is a Research Affiliate at the University of Texas at Austin and a psychotherapist in both the public sector and in pr…

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Black Beryl: Self and Nonself, with Nick Canby 1:09:52

13d ago1:09:52

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Dr Pierce Salguero sits down with Nick Canby, visiting assistant professor at Brown University and a clinical psychologist specializing in meditation and psychedelics. Together, we dive into Nick’s research on the self — what is it and what it’s like to lose it. Along the way, we mention some of the downsides of experiencing oneness and the complic…

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SoulFire Sisters Ep2: Can Edgy and Sacred Live In the Same Space? - with Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar 30:18

16d ago30:18

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In this lively and thought-provoking conversation, Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar explore how the “edgy” and the “sacred” beautifully coexist within us and the world around us. From questioning old beliefs to redefining what’s holy, they invite listeners to embrace authenticity as a spiritual act. With stories, laughter, and deep wisdom, th…

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10 Things AI Will Never Do Better Than a Chinese Learner 26:53

17d ago26:53

26:53

With AI advancing at lightning speed, many are wondering: Do I still need to learn Chinese? Jared and John say yes, and in this episode, they break down 10 ways your Chinese skills remain AI-proof. These are the kinds of things no app, bot, or translation tool can truly replace. Along the way, you'll hear stories about phone conversations that left…

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SoulFire Sisters Ep1: Outside the Box, Inside the Soul - with Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar 32:41

23d ago32:41

32:41

In their debut episode, SoulFire Sisters hosts Dr. Mary Newstrom and Dawn Morningstar dive into what it means to live authentically and trust yourself in a world that often asks women to stay small. With warmth, wisdom, and humor, they explore how self-confidence and self-trust are not just personal strengths—but sacred acts of spirituality. Throug…

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John Kieschnick, "Buddhist Historiography in China" (Columbia UP, 2022) 49:10

1M ago49:10

49:10

Since the early days of Buddhism in China, monastics and laity alike have expressed a profound concern with the past. In voluminous historical works, they attempted to determine as precisely as possible the dates of events in the Buddha's life, seeking to iron out discrepancies in varying accounts and pinpoint when he delivered which sermons. Buddh…

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Stephen Murphy, "Buddhist Landscapes: Art and Archaeology of the Khorat Plateau, 7th to 11th Centuries (NUS Press, 2024) 55:48

24d ago55:48

55:48

This important new work, Buddhist Landscapes: Art and Archaeology of the Khorat Plateau, 7th to 11th Centuries (NUS Press, 2023) by Stephen Murphy, build on extensive fieldwork and archaeological surveys to reveal the Khorat Plateau as having a distinctive Buddhist culture, including new forms of art and architecture, and a characteristic aesthetic…

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Nayanjot Lahiri, "Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand" (SUNY Press, 2023) 47:40

1M ago47:40

47:40

Blending travelogue, history, and archaeology, Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand (SUNY Press, 2023) unravels the various avatars of India's most famous emperor, revealing how he came to be remembered—and forgotten—in distinctive ways at particular points in time and in specific locations. Through personal jou…

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A Czech Perspective on Learning Chinese: Renata Mirkova’s Story 47:02

1M ago47:02

47:02

In this episode, Jared sits down with Renata Mirkova, a Chinese language educator from the Czech Republic whose journey into Mandarin began not with a grand plan, but almost by accident. What started as a university entrance decision led her to master Chinese, live in China, and now teach both Czech and Chinese across cultural boundaries. Renata sh…

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Luke Gibson, "Reading Sanskrit: A Complete Step-By-Step Introduction with Texts from the Buddhist Tradition" (Columbia UP, 2025) 41:02

2M ago41:02

41:02

This textbook offers a fresh approach to learning Sanskrit, the ancient language at the heart of South Asia’s vast religious, philosophical, and literary heritage. Designed for independent learners and classrooms alike, it provides a uniquely in-depth and immersive introduction to the language, exploring a rich selection of Sanskrit texts from the …

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Sonia Faleiro, "The Robe and the Sword: How Buddhist Extremism Is Shaping Modern Asia" (Columbia UP, 2025) 41:40

2M ago41:40

41:40

When the robe becomes a weapon, who can stop the violence? We think of Buddhism as a faith of peace—rooted in compassion, patience, and nonviolence. But across South and Southeast Asia today, the robe is being turned into a weapon, as radical monks and nationalist movements unleash hatred and war. In The Robe and the Sword: How Buddhist Extremism i…

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Ground Zero to Confident Pronunciation: A Working Mother's First 6 Months Learning Chinese 16:25

1M ago16:25

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Links: Read a blog by Lewys, the student I interviewed in Mandarin on the last episode, about his journey to conversational Mandarin in 12 months here: https://imlearningmandarin.com/2025/03/12/lewyss-6-month-transformation-to-conversational-mandarin-video/ Learn more about my coaching programme here: https://imlearningmandarin.com/gym -- So, over …

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The 7 Worst Ways to Learn Chinese (And What to Do Instead) 33:04

2M ago33:04

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After 300 days of secretly studying Chinese, one guy surprises his partner with phrases like “the cheesecake is grieving” and “the purple elephant eats passion for breakfast.” It’s a bit humorous, but it also highlights a bigger issue: extreme learning methods that feel productive but fall flat in practice. In this episode, Jared and John dive into…

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Karine Gagné, "Caring for Glaciers: Land, Animals, and Humanity in the Himalayas" (U Washington Press, 2019) 1:41:53

2M ago1:41:53

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In her new book, Caring for Glaciers: Land, Animals, and Humanity in the Himalayas (University of Washington Press, 2019), Karine Gagné explores how relations of reciprocity between land, humans, animals, and glaciers foster an ethics of care in the Himalayan communities of Ladakh. She explores the way these relations are changing due to climate ch…

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Anand, "The Notbook of Kabir: Thinner than Water, Fiercer than Fire" (India Viking, 2025) 1:33:49

2M ago1:33:49

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Kabir is the most alive of all dead poets. He is a fabric without stitches. No centres, no edges. Anand threads his way in. Over the years, as a publisher and editor, Anand immerses himself in the works of Babasaheb Ambedkar and other anticaste thinkers. He gives up his practice of music and poetry, blaming his disenchantment on caste. One day in D…

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Can a new dad with a full-time job learn Chinese in just one year? 10:24

2M ago10:24

10:24

💬 Links: 🎯 My Coaching Programme: https://imlearningmandarin.com/gym 📹 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io0UWFtVIwk 📹 Lewys’s 6-Month Progress Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29Oxh1eA9xs Can you learn Mandarin to a conversational level in just one year while working full-time and raising a family? In this video,…

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The Golden Future Book Study - Week 3 - with Dawn Morningstar 1:03:39

2M ago1:03:39

1:03:39

During this podcast, we share with you our third discussion from our 12-week book study on Diana Cooper's The Golden Future. Together we explore chapters 3 & 4 on ascension and the New Earth Blueprint, as part of discovering our role in Earth’s transformation and awakening our 5D potential. This book study is free and open to all on Zoom every Tues…

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Fluency Now with Marko Jovanovic: No Classes, Just Progress 50:09

2M ago50:09

50:09

Can you become fluent in Chinese without teachers, classes, or even Chinese speakers around you? For Serbian software engineer Marko Javoanovic, the answer is “yes” by focusing on “fluency now”. In this episode, Marko shares how he started learning Japanese out of a love for anime but quickly pivoted to Chinese when he realized there were far more …

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Chandra Chiara Ehm, "Queens Without a Kingdom Worth Ruling: Buddhist Nuns and the Process of Change in Tibetan Monastic Communities" (Vajra Books, 2024) 1:05:34

3M ago1:05:34

1:05:34

Queens without a Kingdom worth Ruling: Buddhist Nuns and the Process of Change in Tibetan Monastic Communities is a fascinating study of nuns in the Tibetan Buddhist nunnery of Khachoe Ghakyil Ling in Kathmandu. Written by Dr. Chandra Chiara Ehm, who was a member of this monastic community for nearly a decade, it offers a rare perspective on life i…

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Does It Matter Where You Learn Chinese? Yes And Here’s Why 30:36

2M ago30:36

30:36

Ever wonder how the place you study Chinese can shape your accent, comprehension, and even identity as a learner? In this episode, Jared and John dive into the importance of where you learn Mandarin in China and how different regions can affect your speaking and listening skills. From Beijing’s “pirate R’s” to the relaxed tones of Taipei and the “h…