The Funniest Conversation You'll Ever Hear About Achieving Inner Peace | Pete Holmes
10% Happier
126,697 views
Ready to begin or deepen your meditation practice? Join Dan Harris and world-class meditation teachers on the 10% with Dan Harris app here:
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You were taught that spiritual growth takes effort. Comedian and writer Pete Holmes thinks that might be exactly backwards — and he's got the mushroom trip, the divorce, and the Richard Rohr quotes to back it up.
Pete Holmes is a comedian, actor, writer, and host of the long-running podcast *You Made It Weird*. He is the author of *Comedy Sex God*, a memoir about faith, comedy, and the search for meaning.
In this conversation, Pete Holmes shares:
Why his evangelical upbringing collapsed — and what he found on the other side of that crisis
How the prodigal son story contains the entire Christian message (and it has nothing to do with guilt or punishment)
What "awareness" actually means as a word for God — and why it's not just a dodge
Why laughter, deep sleep, and meditation all point to the same experience
How the two-word mantra "yes, thank you" can dissolve a bad feeling almost instantly
Why affirmation addiction is actually a superpower in disguise
This is a live conversation recorded in front of an audience — and one of the most joyful, wide-ranging spiritual discussions Dan has ever had on stage.
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Subscribe to watch more 10% Happier videos:
tenpercenthappier
Follow Dan Harris on Social Media:
Instagram: danharris
TikTok: danbharris
Facebook: DanHarrisABC
Twitter: danbharris
LinkedIn: dan-harris-91ba5716b
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Timestamps:
0:00:00 Introduction
0:01:00 Pete's evangelical upbringing in Massachusetts
0:04:00 Divorce, faith crisis, and dabbling in atheism
0:06:00 Beautiful atheists and a surprise about morality
0:07:00 Mushrooms at Bonnaroo and seeing the witness behind experience
0:09:00 Joseph Campbell, mystics, and why literalism misses the point
0:11:00 How Pete re-reads Jesus as a mystic
0:12:00 The prodigal son: what Pete believes is the whole Christian message
0:16:00 What Pete means when he says "God" — awareness explained
0:18:00 What is awareness? The koan at the center of non-duality
0:22:00 Working with difficult emotions: the pedantic vs. tantric approach
0:23:00 Dan's take: seeing by dividing (vipassana) vs. Pete's approach
0:27:00 Compassion as a natural result of shared awareness
0:30:00 The "am I aware?" inquiry — and why you already have the answer
0:32:00 What actually produces lasting peace (hint: not achievements)
0:34:00 Affirmation addiction — what it is and why it's not all bad
0:36:00 Why our wounds are an excuse to love each other
0:40:00 Outlets, masks, and why Pete is a deeply happy person
0:43:00 Mask work, RuPaul, and the spiritual case for drag
0:46:00 How Pete actually lives all this in daily life (spoiler: imperfectly)
0:50:00 Mindfulness as remembering — the original translation of sati
0:51:00 The pathless path vs. progressive meditation (Rupert Spira)
0:54:00 Why laughter is a taste of enlightenment
0:58:00 Comedy as merging — why live laughter is shamanic
1:00:00 The "yes, thank you" mantra and how to use it
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#meditation #mindfulness #happiness
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20 Comments
One day I was at a place I visit every day, The Huntington Library and Gardens, and a group of people who are benefitting from Homeboy Industries were there to learn about gardening practices. I chatted with a lovely young woman, and felt such joy at being able to see how people are benefitting from something my godmother "introduced".
And then the camera did pan out and I could see the surrounding area of the pulpit which is in Marble Collegiate Church on Fifth Avenue at 29th Street, where I attended church for 32 years.
In 2016 after 50 years in Manhattan I moved to Colorado and seeing the pulpit of the church I attended for decades is like being inside one of my Manhattan apartments.
I am determined to listen to what these two guys have to say.
But I am continuously distracted by the legacy of the experience I had attending this church where Rev. Dr. Norman Vincent Peale (who wrote THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING) preached for many decades.
What a gift to come across this discussion!
The Funniest Conversation You'll Ever Hear About Achieving Inner Peace | Pete Holmes
10% Happier
126,697 views
Ready to begin or deepen your meditation practice? Join Dan Harris and world-class meditation teachers on the 10% with Dan Harris app here:
https://app.danharris.com/membership
---
You were taught that spiritual growth takes effort. Comedian and writer Pete Holmes thinks that might be exactly backwards — and he's got the mushroom trip, the divorce, and the Richard Rohr quotes to back it up.
Pete Holmes is a comedian, actor, writer, and host of the long-running podcast *You Made It Weird*. He is the author of *Comedy Sex God*, a memoir about faith, comedy, and the search for meaning.
In this conversation, Pete Holmes shares:
Why his evangelical upbringing collapsed — and what he found on the other side of that crisis
How the prodigal son story contains the entire Christian message (and it has nothing to do with guilt or punishment)
What "awareness" actually means as a word for God — and why it's not just a dodge
Why laughter, deep sleep, and meditation all point to the same experience
How the two-word mantra "yes, thank you" can dissolve a bad feeling almost instantly
Why affirmation addiction is actually a superpower in disguise
This is a live conversation recorded in front of an audience — and one of the most joyful, wide-ranging spiritual discussions Dan has ever had on stage.
---
Subscribe to watch more 10% Happier videos:
tenpercenthappier
Follow Dan Harris on Social Media:
Instagram: danharris
TikTok: danbharris
Facebook: DanHarrisABC
Twitter: danbharris
LinkedIn: dan-harris-91ba5716b
---
Timestamps:
0:00:00 Introduction
0:01:00 Pete's evangelical upbringing in Massachusetts
0:04:00 Divorce, faith crisis, and dabbling in atheism
0:06:00 Beautiful atheists and a surprise about morality
0:07:00 Mushrooms at Bonnaroo and seeing the witness behind experience
0:09:00 Joseph Campbell, mystics, and why literalism misses the point
0:11:00 How Pete re-reads Jesus as a mystic
0:12:00 The prodigal son: what Pete believes is the whole Christian message
0:16:00 What Pete means when he says "God" — awareness explained
0:18:00 What is awareness? The koan at the center of non-duality
0:22:00 Working with difficult emotions: the pedantic vs. tantric approach
0:23:00 Dan's take: seeing by dividing (vipassana) vs. Pete's approach
0:27:00 Compassion as a natural result of shared awareness
0:30:00 The "am I aware?" inquiry — and why you already have the answer
0:32:00 What actually produces lasting peace (hint: not achievements)
0:34:00 Affirmation addiction — what it is and why it's not all bad
0:36:00 Why our wounds are an excuse to love each other
0:40:00 Outlets, masks, and why Pete is a deeply happy person
0:43:00 Mask work, RuPaul, and the spiritual case for drag
0:46:00 How Pete actually lives all this in daily life (spoiler: imperfectly)
0:50:00 Mindfulness as remembering — the original translation of sati
0:51:00 The pathless path vs. progressive meditation (Rupert Spira)
0:54:00 Why laughter is a taste of enlightenment
0:58:00 Comedy as merging — why live laughter is shamanic
1:00:00 The "yes, thank you" mantra and how to use it
---
#meditation #mindfulness #happiness
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His response? 'Yes, thank you.'
And it worked: 'It just lifted.'
This episode is full of these moments - where Pete takes something profound and makes it hilarious and usable. From standup as shamanic practice to why the Prodigal Son changed everything he believes about forgiveness.
What's your 'yes, thank you' moment from today?