Wisdom of the Sages
1,323 episodes - English - Latest episode: 10 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
1057: Fascinating, Mind-Blowing Wonders Are Everywhere
May 30, 2023 11:43 - 54 minutes - 24.9 MBthere’s fascinating mind blowing wonders in every nook and cranny of existence / do we hear life’s wake-up calls, or do we just go on trying to find some enjoyment? / appreciate the architect - duh / “all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of My splendor” - Krishna / appear in our hearts and drive away our ignorance / by accepting devotional service we will think of each other’s welfare SB 5.18.1-9
1056: The Persistent Illusion that We Call 'Reality'
May 29, 2023 13:34 - 56 minutes - 25.9 MB“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” - Albert Einstein / what we call reality is the level of illusion that we keep coming back to / we’re searching for reality on a Hollywood set / our choice - sense gratification or self realization / Don’t spiritual bypass Vyasadev / behind all the layers of illusion is sweet Krishna / love the root and you will love every living being / nature is nothing but a machine operated by the Supreme Person SB 5.17.21-24
1055: Q & A Volume 168
May 27, 2023 14:13 - 1 hour - 29.5 MBCan spiritual advice be spiritual bypassing? / Do the Vedic texts support gun control? / How to help someone who doesn’t want to be helped? / How to practice Bhakti in a world where I need to “code-switch”? / What does a committed Bhakti practice look like for a career person?
1054: The Descent of the River Ganges
May 26, 2023 12:20 - 54 minutes - 24.7 MB“If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, Infinite. For man has closed himself up, till he sees all things thro' narrow chinks of his cavern.” ― William Blake / the Ganges originates at the feet of Lord Vishnu / every living being can purify his mind by touching it’s water / Dhruva accepts the Ganges on his head and feels devotional ecstasy / the Santa Rishis keep the water on their heads and practice Bhakti / the water flows thru the heavens / Lord ...
1053: Opening Up the Doors of Perception
May 25, 2023 11:56 - 1 hour - 27.7 MB“There are things known and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors of perception.” – Aldous Huxley / perception is the combination of our thoughts, beliefs, opinions, and awareness / what we consume creates our filters / I am an atomic particle of consciousness - Krishna is the infinite conscious entity - this world is a house of correction meant to reform my tendency to remain absent in our relationship / wear the lens of divinity / We Are Bugs, Living Under a Desk in a Ghet...
1052: Close Your Eyes & Sing to Krishna
May 24, 2023 12:01 - 59 minutes - 27 MBwhen Krishna is pleased, everyone’s pleased / we are in debt to all those who’ve selflessly loved us / treat your guests like God / Krishna saves Draupadi / in kirtan, don’t worry about pleasing the crowd - just please Krishna and everyone is pleased automatically / close your eyes and sing to Krishna / Krishna saves Kaustubha / Krishna always saves us Code: wisdomsages for 20% off vanischool.com
1051: Walk With the Knowledge That You Never Walk Alone
May 23, 2023 11:42 - 54 minutes - 24.8 MBAudrey Hepburn on beauty and poise / Bhagavad-gita on poise / real inclusivity means looking to Paramatma / find the good in others and fan that flame / gratitude vs entitlement / Bhakti waters the root of the tree / tasmin tuṣṭe jagat tuṣṭam - when Krishna is pleased, everyone is pleased / Bhakti addresses all social maladies / Bhakti satisfies all the devas / Bhakti touches both the saintly and the thugs / becoming accustomed to having our mind dwell in fundamental level thought SB 5.15....
1050: A Vision of Spiritual Leadership
May 22, 2023 11:57 - 53 minutes - 24.5 MBthere will always be people who will criticize - so just do the right thing / dial into your offering / Krishna anxiety - purchase it at any price / a leader’s first responsibility is to unite / how a leader must satisfy the citizens / how a leader satisfy women / how a leader must satisfy the earth / how a leader must satisfy the wise / how a leader must satisfy other leaders SB 5.15
1049: Q & A Volume 167
May 21, 2023 13:38 - 56 minutes - 25.7 MBHow do I gain that 100% faith / What's the relationship between vijnana and bhakti? / Can our spiritual attachments degrade back to material attachments if we are not careful of our intentions?
1048: Q & A Volume 166
May 20, 2023 14:16 - 1 hour - 28.1 MBHow to keep faith when negative emotions haunt us? / How to let go of negative habits? / How does Kaustubha organize his day?
1047: It's Life's Illusions That I Recall, I Really Don't Know Life at All
May 19, 2023 11:55 - 55 minutes - 25.4 MBJoni Mitchell’s vision of duality / the ups and downs of lowercase L love / “I should’ve listened to the Swami.” / the Shakers didn’t lose (in their spiritual investment) / Joni brings the Jnana, Pete Seeger brings the Bhakti / we all feel melancholy till we turn and face “The Sun” / This world churns us / the power of Krishna’s flute / Krishna churns the hearts of the Gopis
1046: Mind Experiment: We're Ants on an Alien Ant Farm
May 18, 2023 14:04 - 55 minutes - 25.3 MBAre we was so focused on achieving that we’re missing some great point about life? / Mind Experiment: We are ants in an alien ant farm. Are we learning the lessons we’re meant to learn, or just working aimlessly? / What good is speeding if you’re heading the wrong direction? / The satisfaction of devotion makes material success and liberation seem insignificant / Bharata’s last prayer as a deer / “happiness arose out of all I didn't want or need, not all I did. - Pico Iyer SB 5.14.44-46
1045: A Little Bhakti is a Permanent Asset
May 17, 2023 11:58 - 55 minutes - 25.2 MBall material success is time bound / Bhakti is the path of Garuda, material success is the path of the flies / the depth of Bharata’s renunciation / a little devotional service rendered sincerely is a permanent asset SB 5.14.41-43
1044: Turning Down the Volume of the Ego
May 16, 2023 11:42 - 53 minutes - 24.3 MB“Sell your clothes and keep your thoughts.” - Henry David Thoreau / Srimad Bhagavatam is the commentary on Vedanta Sutra, by the author himself / creating enmity and dying without achieving life’s mission / all material success winds up in failure as long as we maintain the “I and Mine” illusion / turn down the volume of the ego and listen for Krishna’s whisper / humility like darkness reveals the heavenly lights / you don’t have to change your position, just purify your purpose SB 5.14.40...
1043: Exiting the Forest of Material Enjoyment
May 15, 2023 11:42 - 1 hour - 28.3 MBif we cannot display wisdom, then we will clash like (legally blind moles) / when we are out of touch with our spiritual nature we are prone to misjudge intentions and exaggerate the dangers / at times we may have to live with an imperfect, untidy world / necessity knows no law / any sane person can understand that there’s no happiness in the prison / saintly persons, who are friends to all living entities, have a peaceful consciousness
1042: Public Schools With Spiritual Insight - Interview With Navin Krishna Das
May 14, 2023 13:50 - 1 hour - 32.6 MBThe Avanti Schools are a family of state funded schools in the UK which draw from traditional Bhakti texts like Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam to foster in their students not only educational excellence but also character formation and spiritual insight. In this episode, Kaustubha interviews Navin Krishna Das (Nitesh Gor) the Chief Executive of Avanti Schools Trust.
1041: Q & A Volume 165
May 13, 2023 12:29 - 54 minutes - 25 MBCan you share examples of women in Bhakti to follow - stories, authors, books, teachers, examples, etc? / How to get past self-loathing?
1040: Self-loathing in the Cage of Material Enjoyment
May 12, 2023 11:54 - 56 minutes - 26 MBregard this fleeting world like this… / the 4 sights of Gautama Buddha, which led to his realization of the impermanence and the ultimate dissatisfaction of conditioned existence / sleep is eating up our time / people try to drag us down / we stay in this cage for just a little material happiness / wealth is chanchala / oh the self-loathing / the indefatigable wheel of time / pseudo svāmīs, yogīs and incarnations / we’re running around like monkeys SB 5.14.20-33
1039: In the End it’s Love Alone That Really Matters
May 11, 2023 12:06 - 56 minutes - 25.7 MBconsensual reality is significantly flawed / certainty is a mirage / security a delusion / the tyranny of the dull mind threatens / laughter is holier than piety / freedom is sweeter than fame / in the end it’s love and love alone that really matters / we can’t handle Krishna’s opulences / everything we’ve got is meant to offered back / the cheap blessings of so-called sadhus and swamis / the pain of family squabbles / the pain of putting on all the social ceremonies SB 5.14.13-19
1038: We’re Born Naked & We Die Naked
May 10, 2023 12:10 - 55 minutes - 25.2 MByou can’t beat the system -the laws break you / swinging on the pendulum of material enjoyment & renunciation / Bhakti transcends selfish concerns / This world is designed more for pain than it is for pleasure / Naked we come into this world and naked we go out. In the interim we falsely claim, “This is my…” / the intense suffering of being criticized / hate ages you / don’t hate the assessor SB 5.14.9-12
1037: And I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For
May 09, 2023 13:23 - 57 minutes - 26.1 MBSrimad Bhagavatam is the ripened fruit of the tree of Vedic literature / “God does not float on your horizon, he sleeps in your substance. Vanity runs, love digs.” - Gustave Thibon / “If you fly away from yourself, your prison will run with you.” - Gustave Thibon / mirages and will-o’-the-wisps / we’re chasing wealth, we’re chasing sex, we’re chasing a better home, but when we get there….poof / the materialist perpetually wanders in material existence, struggling to get the necessities of li...
1036: Ya Can't See 3D Art Wearing an Eye Patch
May 08, 2023 11:57 - 1 hour - 28.3 MBis this world heaven or hell? / it takes two eyes to see the truth of this world - material cynicism is one eye, spiritual optimism the other / when stereoscopic depth perception kicks in we understand what we’re doing here / this world isn’t meant to be a paradise, it’s a university / try on the Bhagavatam’s philosophy / human being on earth - it’s a great opportunity / uncontrolled senses are plunderers / family members can be like Jackals / chasing the mirage / “at last, my love has come ...
1035: Q & A Volume 164
May 06, 2023 14:23 - 58 minutes - 26.8 MBDo you have any tools for bridging the gap between being aware and actually taking control of the mind and senses? / What is the meaning of this world’s emotional rollercoaster? / Why do the deva's desire the human form of life? / What was Raghunath’s hope behind his band Shelter?
1034: The Blinding Effect of Pride & Cultural Chauvinism
May 05, 2023 14:03 - 55 minutes - 25.5 MBthe need to root out pride and cultural chauvinism / the devotion of Ida Straus / our mantras are a lifeline We’re living on hopes piled on hopes / materially pessimistic, spiritually optimistic / neglect thoughts of being offended / what does lotus feet mean? / humbly serve the instructions of the great souls to see Krishna SB 5.13.21-26
1033: Transcending Thoughts of Friends and Enemies
May 04, 2023 13:41 - 52 minutes - 24.1 MBOn the occasion of the festival celebrating the appearance of Sri Nrisimhadeva the Lion like Avatara of Vishnu, Raghunath and Kaustubha discuss the stories and teaching of Nrisimhadeva and his boy devotee Sri Prahlada. https://youtu.be/R4xKn0w3WMM
1032: A Formula for Producing Pure Thoughts
May 03, 2023 12:28 - 54 minutes - 24.9 MBa formula for producing pure thoughts / japa and kirtan are real silence / Jada Bharata reveals his true identity / there is no good investment in this material world / material enjoyment will break your heart / the sword of knowledge SB 5.12.14-16
1031: Joe Strummer, Our Dehumanization & Bhakti Heart Transfer
May 02, 2023 12:24 - 57 minutes - 26.1 MB“We've all got to stop just following our own little mouse trail…. People are out there doing bad things to each other… they've been dehumanized. It's time to take the humanity back... Without people you're nothing.” - Joe Strummer / let’s put spiritual knowledge back in the center / greed is going nowhere / you have to discipline yourself to find truth / the deepest spirituality is shared heart to heart / the transformative power of listening respectfully / let your heart go out to the wo...
1030: Sectarianism, Inclusivism & Hyper-Inclusivism
May 01, 2023 12:04 - 56 minutes - 26.1 MB“In the great teaching of the Vedas, there is no touch of sectarianism. It is of all ages, climbs, and nationalities and is the royal road for the attainment of the Great Knowledge.” - Henry David Thoreau / no dogmatism - rather, question from all angles / step back and see how Vyasadeva is framing his message / Understand the progression in Vedic thought through hardcore - Me First & the Gimme Gimmes, Sick of it All, Shelter / Give your heart to a deeply realized soul SB 5.12.12
1029: Fine-tuning the Balance Between Immersive & Inclusive Bhakti / Interview with Chaitanya Charan Das
April 30, 2023 14:57 - 1 hour - 30.2 MBChaitanya Charan, a prolific author and speaker on Bhakti and Bhagavad-gita speaks with Kaustubha on two ends of a spectrum in spiritual practice - immersive/world-rejecting on one end, and inclusive/world affirming on the other, and the need to find the right balance. https://www.thespiritualscientist.com https://gitadaily.com
1028: Q & A Volume 163
April 29, 2023 14:12 - 58 minutes - 26.7 MBHow to explain Bhakti to Orthodox Jews? / Where does a queer man find a Bhakti community?
1027: The Earth is a Goddess & Perfect Seers Know It
April 28, 2023 11:49 - 52 minutes - 24.2 MB" the true joy in life: being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one – instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy" - George Bernard Shaw / we need a purpose to wake up for everyday / the Bhakti framework – we all share an eternal dharma of divine love - and we embrace and later let go of a series of temporary dharma’s designed to uncover the eternal / This is how we explain Go...
1026: Don't Try to Fix the Dream - Try to Wake Up!
April 27, 2023 13:33 - 54 minutes - 25.1 MBBob Dylan on how we are bombarded by insulting and humiliating “wonder bread” music / are we insulting our true self? / although the universe may temporarily appear to be the truth, it ultimately has no real existence / nondual knowledge is the ultimate truth / nondual knowledge as Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan SB 5.12.9-11
1025: Our Whole Lives Are Just Blips in Time
April 26, 2023 11:57 - 57 minutes - 26.2 MBspiritual knowledge well applied facilitates social justice (rather than bypassing / seeing the world as illusion (spiritual perspective) grants relief from suffering / the world’s a mess - water the root, not every leaf / this life is just a blip / our bodily existence is as unreal as the physical manifestation of any dream in the brains neurotransmitters / by understanding the original cause of different varieties, one can understand everything SB 5.12.7-8
1024: Don't Just Think You're Not Your Body, Know It!
April 25, 2023 12:57 - 1 hour - 27.6 MB“Most people see what they expect to see, what they want to see, what they've been told to see, what conventional wisdom tells them to see - not what is right in front of them in its pristine condition.” Vincent Bugliosi / don’t just think you’re not your body, know it / the true self has nothing to do with our worldly dealings / control the senses by eating prasadam / Bhakti takes spirituality to the next level SB 5.12.4-6
1023: Ya Don’t “Create” Clean Water, Ya Stop Polluting it
April 24, 2023 12:57 - 55 minutes - 25.2 MBto ask is to break the spell / "Blind belief and passive consumption can be broken through the simple act of asking questions." - Neil Postman / the yoga culture’s acclaim for thoughtful questioning / we presume we will be happier if we are materially successful - and never ask the right questions / question from all different angles / Bhakti is experience based - not just faith based / we don’t need to just conform- we need to transform / knowledge is revealed to the virtuous / “We need ne...
1022: Q & A Volume 162
April 22, 2023 13:33 - 58 minutes - 26.6 MBFamily therapist/Bhakti-yogini Dhanya Rico joins Wisdom of the Sages to address some difficult questions. • How to deal with a difficult person who is permanently in your life? • In dealing with someone who has emotional problems, how does one release judgment and show compassion and yet keep your heart at a distance so you don’t get hurt?
1021: Confronting the Birth to Death Time-lapse
April 21, 2023 11:38 - 49 minutes - 22.5 MBnever sniff glue! / the compelling, confronting, fascinating birth to death time-lapse diorama / we have to shift our perception in order to understand what we are doing here / the most amazing thing in the universe - we think we won’t die / “Don't become a mere recorder of facts, but try to penetrate the mystery of their origin." - Ivan Pavlov / when we dissociate anything from it’s origin we are in illusion / yogis see everything in it’s relation to Krishna / the discovery of Brahma Samhit...
1020: Learning to Ignore the Mind
April 20, 2023 11:39 - 54 minutes - 24.8 MBanxiety for your children never ends / the mind can be an unruly, unappeasable 5 year old / sometimes the best option is to ignore the mind / the mind and senses are meant to work for us, not the other way around / when one’s mind is absorbed in the material conception, one thinks that they belong to a particular nation, family, country or creed / upādhis - false designations we adopt, disguises of the spirit / a gift of aging is understanding the cycles of the world / our false intimacy wit...
1019: The Variables That Generate Our Unique Blend of Thoughts
April 19, 2023 11:16 - 53 minutes - 24.6 MB“Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead.” Oscar Wilde / we’re zeros desperately searching for 1 / the variables that generate our unique blend of thoughts - the physical elements, nature, the original cause, culture, destiny, time / stepping back to see ourselves separate from our desires /developing a strategy to respond to the challenge of the minds programing / Vasudeva - everyone dwells in Him, and He dwells within everyone / If we d...
1018: Hookup Apps & the Negative Thought Loops
April 18, 2023 11:34 - 54 minutes - 25.1 MBwe have 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day, 80% are negative, 95% are repetitive / Bhagavatam predicted Kali-yuga minds would be always disturbed - the National Science Foundation confirms it / technology has created a bizarre world, and it’s driving us mad / yogis are in the business of retraining our thoughts / the senses are channels to the mind / we can consciously design our mind’s programming / the mind can be the cause bondage or liberation / we need a game plan, otherwise the team of ...
1017: This World is a Metaphysical Costume Party
April 17, 2023 11:52 - 56 minutes - 25.9 MB“We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge.” - John Naisbitt / do we have the cognitive ability to distill information into wisdom? / we’re not asking all the most important questions / mental stability through knowledge of matter and spirit / the materialistic mind covering the living entity’s soul carries it to different species of life / we’re trying to find our tribe at a costume party / wrapping our heads around the idea that we could take birth as an animal / Prabhupada’...
1016: Q & A Volume 161
April 16, 2023 13:56 - 53 minutes - 24.5 MBWhy is there conflicting information about the practices and regulations in Bhakti-yoga? / How to root out “false Bhakti” in oneself?
1015: Parallels in Modern & Vedic Leadership – Interview with Bhuta Bhavana Das
April 15, 2023 13:56 - 1 hour - 31.7 MBBhuta Bhavana Das (Ed Anobah) graduated in Philosophy and Economics at the London School of Economics and is currently responsible to training 47,000 leaders in a global financial organization. He’s also been practicing Bhakti-yoga for over 25 years. In this episode he discusses parallels in leadership from both modern and Vedic sources, especially regarding the importance for leaders in developing unity while honoring diversity. Ed Anobah Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
1014: The Corrupted Files Within the Mind
April 14, 2023 11:41 - 56 minutes - 26 MB“You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” Marcus Aurelius / “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald / our minds have been corrupted (made unreliable by alterations) / how the 3 gunas corrupt the mind / Without yoga, we’re helpless / Don’t get pulled into a bird body SB 5.11.4-5
1013: Anne Frank’s Spiritual Insight
April 13, 2023 16:08 - 52 minutes - 24.1 MB“In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.” - Anne Frank / this world moves in cycles / the remedy for hate is spiritual insight / material awareness is like a dream - when we realize that material happiness is insufficient we begin to wake up SB 5.11.1-3
1012: Sometimes All We Need is a Different Perspective
April 12, 2023 11:36 - 58 minutes - 26.6 MBrelease the ego and sing with the devotees / functional identity vs fundamental Identity / we’ve got to simultaneously hold both the conventional perspective and the transcendental perspective / seeing the world through the perspective of what we hear from Bhagavatam / Bhagavad-gita’s formula for receiving spiritual insight / spiritual insight = seeing all living beings as part of the Supreme IG: keshava_rgm SB 5.10.23-25
1011: Decoding the Messages of the Universe
April 11, 2023 11:34 - 53 minutes - 24.7 MB"Keep your face always toward the sunshine—and shadows will fall behind you.” - Walt Whitman / “Kṛṣṇa is compared to sunshine, and māyā is compared to darkness.” - Sri Caitanya / “Whatever appears to be of any value, if it is without relation to Me, has no reality. Know it as My illusory energy, that reflection which appears to be in darkness.” Sri Krishna / seeing everything (family, money, property, responsibility) through it’s relationship to Krishna is the key to the code / seeking clar...
1010: Words that Slacken the Knot in the Heart
April 10, 2023 12:01 - 56 minutes - 25.8 MB“The truth will set you free. But not until it is finished with you.” —David Foster Wallace / do we point the truth only at others, or can we point it at ourselves? / Jada Bharata accepts karmic responsibility for his own circumstances / “Is everything going well in your endeavor to conquer the repetition of birth and death?” / King Rahugana bows down / Rahugana’s only fear, offending a truth speaker SB 5.10.14-18
1009: Inter-Interview
April 09, 2023 14:22 - 56 minutes - 25.7 MBRaghunath and Kaustubha ask each other….. • When did you know that you had to commit your life to Bhakti? • What were your biggest doubts in the beginning? • What are your biggest doubts now?
1008: Q & A Volume 160
April 08, 2023 15:50 - 57 minutes - 26.3 MBWhat’s the difference between love and Love? / Should we sing mantras glorifying the demigods? / What is the importance of studying verses in Sanskrit?