Wisdom of the Sages
1,310 episodes - English - Latest episode: 13 days ago - ★★★★★ - 845 ratingsTruths about life from the timeless wisdom of the Bhakti-yoga tradition - fun, relevant, and deep. Learn about dharma, yoga, bhakti, and how it relates to all the basic questions of life. This show is about how to live your best life, let go of the external distractions, and uncover the spiritual happiness that lies within the heart as the true nature of the soul.
Raghunath and Kaustubha's connection goes back to their teens in the New York Hardcore Punk Scene of the early 80s, through serving together as Bhakti-yogi monks in the 90's, to sharing their experiences in the world of yoga in the 21st century.
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Episodes
1244: Real Truth is the Medicine
February 01, 2024 13:57 - 55 minutes - 25.3 MB“God speaks in the silence of the heart. Listening is the beginning of prayer.” – Mother Teresa / there’s a lot of crazy talk in our mind / sometimes God’s plan is for Raghu to keep the stage dive money / never consider yourself to be the Ultimate cause / put in the effort, but understand there’s a greater plan / we grow by applying wisdom to misfortune, death, grief, betrayal, etc. / real truth is the medicine SB 7.2.39-44
1243: We Follow Our Mind Like a Slave Until We Find Truth
January 31, 2024 14:16 - 58 minutes - 26.6 MBwe’re living out the dream of Bhaktivinode Thakura / what good are my beauty products when this body burns? / isn’t it just sane to recognize and appreciate all that’s provided for me? / because we lack conviction in our spiritual nature, we focus on the differences and suffer / we follow our mind like a slave until we find truth / our thoughts and meditations are creating our next body right now SB 7.2.22-38
1242: Q & A Volume 209
January 29, 2024 13:57 - 55 minutes - 25.4 MBHow can Sri Chaitanya give the highest gift to the most unqualified? / Please explain, who are the Pancha Tattva? / Is loving God as Father a lower type of love?
1241: Plant a Tree!
January 24, 2024 15:27 - 57 minutes - 26.5 MB“The one who plants trees knowing that he or she will never sit in their shade, has at least started to understand the meaning of life.” — Rabindranath Tagore / As pouring water on the root of a tree energizes the trunk, branches, twigs and everything else, simply worshiping the Supreme Person through Bhakti automatically satisfies the demigods / don’t cut down trees- just build around them / take special care of your initiation beads / trees are sacred and so are squirrels / we’re like st...
1240: Beautiful Devotional Audacity
January 23, 2024 15:16 - 1 hour - 29.2 MBone who is content enjoys transcendental happiness without endeavoring / for one who has mastered ahimsa, others become nonviolent in their presence / We need a class of pure hearted spiritualists without a material agenda / It’s simple math to see the value of a cow / There’s gotta be an adult in the room to stop all the junk mail / no good comes after 10 pm / Srila Prabhupada’s beautiful devotional audacity SB 7.2.1-12
1239: Jai Sri Ram!
January 22, 2024 13:45 - 58 minutes - 27 MB(may God) deliver you from externals, and bestow upon you an inward occupation, which will absorb you so that your attention is not drawn away - Rumi / Begging for the removal of envy and animosity / let your meditation be thick like honey on Krishna / may our minds go to Krishna spontaneously / our inner meditation will deliver us to our spiritual body / it’s hard to be kind when you’re a hornet / the curse of a Bhakti-yogi is ultimately a blessing / the background history of the demon Shis...
1238: Q & A Volume 208
January 20, 2024 15:34 - 55 minutes - 25.4 MBWhat are some of the do’s and don’ts when attending a temple? / Can you tell us about Sri Caitanya?
1237: Emancipate Yourself from Mental Slavery
January 19, 2024 15:21 - 55 minutes - 25.6 MB"If something can corrupt you, you’re corrupted already." — Bob Marley / Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. — Bob Marley / get obsessed with things that lift you up / knowledge frees one from the pain of insults / our issues all stem from our bodily concepts / enmity is a powerful meditation / Through song, ritual, music or meditation, bring your mind to Krishna SB 7.1.22-29
1236: What We Meditate Upon, We Become
January 17, 2024 14:25 - 57 minutes - 26.4 MBRaghu’s official apology to Bob Marley / “We become what we think about most of the time, and that’s the strangest secret.” - Earl Nightingale / Only if one contemplates something continuously does it become fixed as internal consciousness and manifest as a part of one’s nature. - Sri Madhvacharya / spiritual culture makes it easy to meditate all the time / Krishna is the most purifying force / Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fa...
1235: The Wisdom in Accepting Our Fate
January 16, 2024 12:49 - 59 minutes - 27.2 MBthe wisdom in accepting our fate / it’s the strong person who can accepts reversals in life without complaint / we have very little control beyond our own mind / entering Sage Level 3 / Sisupala’s focused hatred of Krishna / Krishna’s cool headed tolerance of Sisupala’s insults / right in the mists of the worlds great kings and sages, Krishna effortlessly takes Sisupala’s life / how did a deamon like Sisupala receive the moksha of merging into the body of Krishna? SB 7.1.13-15
1234: How to Guard Your Snow Globe-like Heart
January 15, 2024 15:40 - 57 minutes - 26.5 MB‘Have your heart always turned towards the Divine…. It is not exterior silence that makes a monk, but silence of the heart.’ - Theodora of Alexandria / how to guard your snow globe heart / love God above all things, preserve tranquility, be meek and without malice, avoid obscenity and silliness, love non-covetousness, don’t neglect communal prayer - Theodora of Alexandria / Raghu Has Forgiven Elvis Costello & Moved On / It’s one thing to align with God externally, but it’s a life’s work to ...
1233: Q & A Volume 207
January 14, 2024 14:35 - 56 minutes - 26 MBHow can I clear the bad karma accumulated through activities of the past? / If one of the pillars of Bhakti is to take no offense, why does the SB speak about the danger of offending pure devotees? / What is the Bhakti viewpoint on chanting japa silently?
1232: Passing Through the Gates of Crisis
January 12, 2024 14:40 - 54 minutes - 24.9 MB“In ancient India, soul-searching crisis was not concealed or imbued with shame, but viewed as an important time of transition, a deep rite of passage.” - Simon Hass / passing through the gates of soul searching crisis to the next level of spiritual advancement / sacred literature- it’s one crisis after another / Krishna is independent, but likes to be dependent on devotees / there is growing evidence that depression is linked to television watching / why not binge out on the sacred texts? /...
1231: The Soul Within the Body & Behind the Mind
January 10, 2024 13:06 - 54 minutes - 25.1 MB“I have tried to be impartial, though I know that a man's past always colors his views.“ - Will Durant / only the impartial can see the truth / true impartiality is found through seeing the soul within the body and behind the mind / Vishnu is both a cat and a dog person / the result of mixed devotion is fear, the result of our devotion is freedom / What is the way to get pure devotion? / because the body of the conditioned soul is infected by the three qualities of nature, dualities arise su...
1230: Q & A Volume 206
January 07, 2024 14:25 - 57 minutes - 26.5 MBMy question is about the difference between Shaivism and Vaishnavism? / Should we pray for others? / What advice should I give families as a hospice nurse?
1229: Spend 5 Minutes with Your Worst Enemy
January 04, 2024 14:29 - 1 hour - 27.7 MBwhen two enemies are talking, they're not fighting / if you spend five minutes with your worst enemy you will find that you both have something in common / Bhakti rituals destroy cruelty in the heart / Wanna change the world? Change yourself / Radhanath Swami's internal purity is changing the world externally / Understanding and respect leads to change / When the talking ceases the ground becomes fertile for violence / Vishnu and Laxmi are the original power couple SB 6.18.1-6.19.28
1228: Am I a Warmonger?
January 03, 2024 16:26 - 57 minutes - 26.2 MBlove others and God above all / Hate the greed, tyranny and animal appetite within ourselves / Spiritual freedom is the true happiness / See ourselves with the big I identity / We’re just concocting mental turbo scenarios / Our mind creates happiness and distress in illusion / Understand we’re living within a movie / Tragedy is around the corner and nobody gets a pass / We need to fully understand this illusory world in order to navigate and transcend it / Knowledge and detachment come nat...
1227: Expect Your World to Get Turned Upside Down
January 02, 2024 13:00 - 56 minutes - 25.8 MBYou can choose your destiny by who you hang out with / What can ya do when truth comes in an uncool package? / There’s magic to be had / Take advantage of spirituality and connection however you can (even in Catholic school) / Don’t be worried about world wars and corruption, acharyas are being born/ You can lose the taste for the forbidden fruit / Take radical responsibility- I got what I got, now what? / Stop blaming to find peace / Be fixed only in the service to God / Once you have a de...
1226: Q & A Volume 205
December 30, 2023 14:37 - 57 minutes - 26.1 MBHow to deal with feelings of inauthenticity when social obligations seem to get in the way of spiritual commitment? / How does my job fit in with my spiritual practice?
1225: Shooting Straight to Acceptance
December 29, 2023 12:52 - 55 minutes - 25.3 MB"The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance." - Nathaniel Branden / the 5 stages of grief - denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance / shooting straight to acceptance / the comedy of when we can’t accept / Just because you join the Bhakti club doesn’t mean you’re liberated / As spiritual ambition rises, resentment anger and depression decreases / Am I capable of shooting straight for acceptance? / You get what you get and don’t be upset / However ...
1224: The Darkest Region of Materialistic Thought
December 28, 2023 13:04 - 56 minutes - 25.9 MB“It isn’t that they can’t see the solution. It is that they can’t see the problem” - GK Chesterton / don’t just fix the symptoms, get to the root of the disease / our problem is that we see ourselves as disconnected from the root of all existence / Citraketu gracefully accepted his curse / Pariksit gracefully accepted his curse / Prithu gracefully responded to Indra’s offenses / Indra lacked grace, and always tried to hold onto his position / the more we try to rectify reversals, the more w...
1223: Divine Love - Ask for Nothing More
December 27, 2023 12:30 - 55 minutes - 25.3 MB“To love or to have loved, that is enough. Ask nothing further. There is no other pearl to be found in the dark folds of life.” - Victor Hugo / Our desires drive us to pursue pleasure - but we end up getting the opposite results / pride in one's material experience brings contradictory results / a living being’s sense of identity apart from Kṛṣṇa is called māyā / having forgotten our purpose since time immemorial, we are situated in different bodies, as men, animals, demigods, etc. / when on...
1222: The World Isn’t Our Paradise, it’s Our University
December 26, 2023 15:03 - 56 minutes - 25.9 MBwithout self knowledge we are slaves / don’t let our senses carjack us / yoga starts with understanding how our machines work / the world isn’t our paradise, it’s our university / I’m not the enjoyer, I’m the student / Vishnu to the soul “Um, both you, and the world, are produced, pervaded and supported by Me / deep sleep, dreaming and wakefulness are insubstantial phases of conditional life / “Pay now or pay later.” - Raghunath / forgetfulness of our oneness with God is the cause of transmi...
1221: Q & A Volume 204
December 24, 2023 15:13 - 58 minutes - 26.9 MBShould I be attached or detached as a parent? / Where do the gunas first get mentioned? / Are the different ages in life linked to the gunas? / How can we prepare to die in relation to the gunas? / How should we interact with people who are visibly affected by the lower gunas?
1220: Bhagavad Gita Gives Relief to the Burning Heart
December 22, 2023 12:30 - 54 minutes - 25 MBBhagavad-gita is common sensical and profound / books change the world / Krishna was the original thought leader-influencer / what the world needs now is love via BG / just hear carefully / consult the Gita in all critical times / the Bhagavad-gita is impregnated with instructions for relieving the burning heart in all circumstances of time and space Goal: 3.7 Million Gita’s around the world. https://livetogive.webflow.io/ To donate, text/whatsapp/call Malini at this number: +1 (669) 2...
1219: Albert Einstein on the Illusion of Separateness
December 21, 2023 13:23 - 55 minutes - 25.4 MB"The quest for liberation from this bondage [or illusion] (of seeing ourselves as separate) is the only object of true religion." - Albert Einstein / our nature is intrinsically connected the whole / Krishna is the hub (holding everything together) and the root (nourishing everything) / “Persons who are too materialistic always see separateness.” - Srimad Bhagavatam / substantial relationships are built on spiritual truth / chant japa with attention and intention to open the safe / the key t...
1218: I Can't Save My Face & My Butt at the Same Time
December 20, 2023 13:17 - 58 minutes - 26.8 MBreaching out when struggling over the holidays / I can’t save my face and my butt at the same time / praying for more stuff within the prison cell / it’s not sectarianism, it’s orienting our minds to higher thinking in whatever tradition one is from / frying out the seeds of material desire / freedom from the mentalities of “you and I” and “yours and mine” SB 6.16.36-46
1217: If All is Matter, What Really Matters?
December 19, 2023 14:31 - 55 minutes - 25.3 MBresponse to a Stephen Hawking anti-nugget - we get it that computers don’t have an afterlife, but their users do / response to a Christopher Hitchens anti-nugget - we get it that germs cause disease, but where did the germs come from? / the forgotten past of microbiology from Sage Scientist Kanva in the Atharvaveda / nobody has a monopoly on truth / It takes a scientist, a philosopher and a theologian / If we’re just bags of chemicals, why give holiday gifts? / Sattvika-bhavas - unpremedita...
1216: Digital Avatars Don’t Make You Immortal
December 18, 2023 15:28 - 56 minutes - 26 MBUm, sorry Kiss, but your digital avatars don’t make you immortal / centrifugal vs centripetal force / glowworms only appear bright in the dark / the truth is we are fallible, vulnerable and dependent / finding meaning and happiness in truth, not illusion / sometimes our tragedy is just a little karma left to burn / clearing all the corrupted files in the mind SB 6.16.21-31
1215: Q & A Volume 203
December 17, 2023 15:46 - 56 minutes - 25.9 MBCan you please clarify the difference between imperfect senses and being illusioned as described in Vedic epistemology? / Can you share your thoughts about depression and the need for a guide to study Bhagavad-gita? / Is there any scriptural advice for a situation regarding the heart hardening to those who have done us wrong? / Do you have any practical guidance on studying Bhagavad-gita?
1214: Come Out of the River a Different Person
December 15, 2023 15:43 - 57 minutes - 26.3 MB“You have something in you more powerful and miraculous than the things that affect you and make you dance like a puppet.” – Marcus Aurelius / We are all made of the superior energy of God. / We are far more effulgent than the sun! / we can be permeated and vitalized by God’s ever-blissful spiritual rasa / Social media has us dancing like puppets / You want resurrection? We got resurrection / our senses and mind are nothing but trouble / we’re qualitatively one with god, and quantitatively d...
1213: Excuse Me Indian Gentlemen in the Back, but This is Satyam
December 14, 2023 15:06 - 54 minutes - 25 MB“It’s better to conquer grief than to deceive it.” —Seneca / Citraketu conquers grief / deluded by ignorance, the living entity wanders in the forest of this material world, enjoying the happiness and distress resulting from his past deeds / let grief open you up to truth / Excuse Me Indian Gentlemen in the Back, but This is Satyam / “and this schizophrenia, we call pleasure” / we can love but we can’t possess / if I was a director I would cut to the faces of the co-wives / Krishna has a bet...
1212: Cold to the Illusion - Warm to the Spirit
December 13, 2023 12:44 - 54 minutes - 24.7 MBthe gift of the association of pure devotees / mantras change your vision / Has your lord ever manifested into a boar or a dwarf?! / to the degree you want to be closer to Krishna he comes closer to you / our children are our children for a moment / See past the temporary roles and love the soul beneath / to love an actor you need to see beyond the illusion of the roles they play / be cold to the illusion but warm to the spirit SB 6.16.1-6
1211: All That is Left is a List of Names
December 12, 2023 13:09 - 57 minutes - 26.3 MB“You have no choice. You must leave your ego on the doorstep before you enter love.” ― Kamand Kojouri / Bhaktivedanta is the fullest expression of the self / To the degree there’s ego, there’s no room for intimacy / looking at our own pain with the discernment of a stone cold Vendantin and a soft heart of a Bhakti-yogi / ask the sages for knowledge during times of pain / wisdom eases the pain of grief / “All that is left of this family life is a list of names.” - Srila Prabhupada / when you’...
1210: The Ego is a Clever Monkey
December 11, 2023 12:25 - 54 minutes - 25.1 MB“Avoid having your ego so close to your position that when your position falls, your ego goes with it.” - Colin Powell / I identify only as the servant of the servant of the servant of the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa / “The ego is like a clever monkey, which can co-opt anything, even the most spiritual practices, so as to expand itself.” ― Jean-Yves Leloup / because the individual soul has desired to act in forgetfulness of his original identity since time immemorial, he is accepting differ...
1209: Q & A Volume 202
December 09, 2023 14:25 - 54 minutes - 25.1 MBHow to come to the point where I do everything purely the love of Krishna? / Should I be putting my chanting first before any other aspects of my Sadhana/Seva? / I have lost most access to long term memory so have a hard time maintaining a steady practice. Can you help?
1208: The Message of the A-List Sages
December 08, 2023 14:56 - 1 hour - 27.7 MB“Your children are not your children. They come through you but not from you.” - Kahlil Gibran / Share what’s valuable but give them breathing room / the litmus test for what’s real - does it exist in all 3 phases in time? / We are not the body; we are spiritual beings trapped in the body / our massive problems are actually tiny / We have no independent potency to create / take this to your bosom SB 6.15.1-7
1207: Grief is the Crack Where Truth Can Enter
December 07, 2023 12:56 - 54 minutes - 25 MB“If we climb high enough, we will reach a height from which tragedy ceases to look tragic.” - Irvin D. Yalom / without the spiritual lens, life’s tragedies (and it’s meaninglessness) become crushing / tragedy will come- nobody gets a pass / all our hopes for material happiness come with grief as the flip side / grief is the crack where truth can enter / tragedy can break your faith in God or break your faith in false promise of happiness in illusion / Let our most tragic moments be the most ...
1206: Spiritual Trajectories are Often Born of Tragedy
December 06, 2023 13:42 - 1 hour - 28.6 MB“Tragedy is like strong acid. It dissolves away all but the very gold of truth.” - D. H. Lawrence / tragedy can kickstart our spiritual evolution / if we could only see our spiritual trajectories over the course of lifetimes / there’s real hope and beauty in material collapse / the material world always puts some sand in your sweet rice / Bhagavatam instructs as a ruler, a friend, and lover / Citraketu’s joy quickly turns to pain SB 6.14.1-49
1205: Good Karma Can Ruin Your Life
December 05, 2023 13:17 - 56 minutes - 26 MB“People who sincerely search will find the same truth in every age and culture. The direction is always toward more love and union-in ever widening circles.” - Richard Rohr / Sanatana dharma is the ultimate in inclusivity / the soul is never warped / may our actions please lord Krishna / all the same things are happening in the celestial world / our desires got us to this miserable place / good karma can ruin your life / for a devotee there is no bad karma / Indra’s long, painful, embarrassi...
1204: When We Need Him Most, The Avatar Appears
December 04, 2023 12:52 - 52 minutes - 24 MBKirtan is magic / Krishna will crush your desire to be the center / We just gotta let go…and then it all comes / a devotee’s not interested in maintaining some position / Just when we need him most, the avatar appears / Indra recognizes that Vritrasura is a pure devotee SB 6.12.18-35
1203: Q & A Volume 201
December 02, 2023 14:59 - 51 minutes - 23.7 MBIs our path more about supporting others or should we be focused more on our own path? / In moments when doubts and hardships were overwhelming how are you able to turn it around?
1202: We're Back & Dreaming of the Future
December 01, 2023 13:26 - 50 minutes - 22.9 MBAfter both being sick for 5 days, Raghu and Kaustubha squirrel away for a show about their experiences and thoughts while under the weather. Topics include... • the glory of the devotees of Alachua Fl. • the soon to be released Mahabharata from HD Goswami • Jahnavi Harrisons music descending from the spiritual world • and a dream about the future for Wisdom of the Sages listeners Check out Kaustubha's upcoming Vani course: The Sages' Insight MASTERCLASS WITH KAUSTUBHA https://co...
1201: Q & A Volume 200
November 25, 2023 15:02 - 52 minutes - 24.2 MBWhat does it mean to be an authentic person on a Bhakti path? / Could you share a little advice on raising a child in Bhakti? / Clicker counters vs tulsi beads for counting japa - is one method better than the other?
1200: You Cannot Change Your Cage, You Have to Change Yourself
November 24, 2023 13:32 - 56 minutes - 25.8 MB“the Matrix can remain our cage or it can become our chrysalis, ... To be free, you cannot change your cage. You have to change yourself.” - Neo, The Matrix Screenplay / we lose our dignity and our focus chasing pleasures in the matrix / the world is a virtual reality designed to to train us to love purely / loving purely means entirely selfless, and encompassing everyone / 'Perform your duty equipoised, abandoning all attachment to success or failure. Such equanimity is called yoga.' - Bhag...
1199: Tinder Swindlers and Crazy Joe Davolas
November 23, 2023 13:35 - 1 hour - 27.5 MB“What is life?… It is the breath of a buffalo in the winter time.” - Crowfoot / observe nature, reflect and journal / Vritrasura starts blowing Indra’s mind! / What is the fruit of devotion mixed with material desire? Enmity, anxiety, mental agitation, pride and belligerence. / we’ve all got a Crazy Joe Davola / Vritrasura offers his body, words & mind to Vishnu / Vritrasura shares his tender, inner, feminine side / Vritrasura’s desire to serve the servants / rooting out the inner tinder swi...
1198: The Material World is Designed to Humiliate Us
November 22, 2023 13:09 - 55 minutes - 25.2 MBthoughts on kirtan / have faith the Maha-mantra will reveal everything / “Our bodies are just temporary vessels for our souls, which will go on forever. You really are an extension of the power that created the whole universe, no matter what drags you have on.” -RuPaul / we wear many drags / note what we’re leaning into to escape our pain / material focus keeps you on a rollercoaster of ups and downs / the material world is designed to humiliate us / devotees are awarded fearlessness / let t...
1197: Once You Dress Like a Cowherd Boy, You’ve Gotta Own It
November 21, 2023 12:31 - 54 minutes - 25 MBwe’ve gotta reject the aspects of religion that prevent us from uniting in kirtan / kirtan can lift us to the spiritual world / once you dress like a cowherd boy you’ve gotta own it / great personalities are not disturbed by insults / welcome insults as an opportunity / why should anything in this illusory world disturb our connection to Krishna? / let’s be ready to die a glorious death / duels have umpires SB 6.10.13 - 6.11.5 Check out the Mayapur Kirtan that Kaustubha mentions at https...
1196: Mental Hygiene / An Interview with Yogi Charu
November 19, 2023 15:22 - 59 minutes - 50 MB VideoRaghunath and Kaustubha interview their longtime friend, Yogi Charu, about the importance of maintaining a daily sadhana and other practices for physical, spiritual and mental health. Check out Charu's book, https://a.co/d/3L4z0zB Learn more about Yogi Charu and his latest offerings at https://www.yogicharu.com/
1195: Q & A Volume 199
November 18, 2023 14:39 - 59 minutes - 27.4 MBHow to explain Bhakti to a concerned spouse? / Why is religion the cause of so much war? / How to react when through serving others you feel like you are being taken advantage of? / How to explain Bhakti to skeptical family members?