Vedic Worldview

Ceremonial fires have been used in most cultures for millenia. Often these fires just have a symbolic purpose, but the Vedic worldview has a particular use of fire, in combination with sounds and offerings, which has a specific impact on consciousness itself. In this episode, Thom gives an entry-level view of yagyas, a fascinating and specialized process that can be used to awaken impulses of crea...

Sanskrit terminology has been slowly creeping into common usage outside of India, quite often incorrectly. Yoga, for example, has a widely understood meaning outside of India, which doesn’t reflect the actual meaning of the word.  In this episode, Thom explains the meaning behind many of the titles applied to or bestowed upon various positions within the Vedic realm. You’ll learn the definitions f...

The Bhagavad Gita is one of the most pivotal spiritual texts of all time. Its teachings have been taught for millenia throughout India, and outside of India for the past 100 years or so, inspiring billions with insights into how we can reduce suffering in our own lives. In this episode, Thom gives us a brief introduction to the Bhagavad Gita as a primer for his upcoming three-day course in which h...

What does it mean to be masculine in the modern age?  In this episode, Thom strips the discussion back, questioning not just the premise of masculinity, but also the premise of modernity.  Thom invites us to reset our expectations of ourselves and others, and to reevaluate our apparent need to compartmentalize behaviors. Episode Highlights: [00:45] Terribly Modern [03:16] What Does It Means to Be...

In the modern world, mantras come in all shapes and sizes. Though they originate from the Vedic tradition, it’s becoming more and more common to see/hear mantras used in a more modern context, as political slogans or even as a rallying cry to get people behind a common cause. Modern and ancient mantras all have a similar purpose, to alter the thinking of the listener and/or the speaker of the mant...

Most of us attempt to control other people or situations more often than we like to admit it. Much of the time we’re not even conscious of it, but control shows up in our lives in so many ways. In this episode, Thom addresses the fallacy of control. This is a series of curated questions and answers from Thom’s online Satsang community, a resource for receiving lectures, sharing group meditations,...

The pinnacle of the journey for any meditator is to become an Initiator of Vedic Meditation.  Not only does it give you the tools and opportunity to teach the technique to others, but it also gives a quantum boost to your own evolution.  The opportunity to spend 12 weeks in the birthplace of our technique, absorbing Vedic wisdom from Thom and other course leaders, and the chance to develop lifelon...

This episode of The Vedic Worldview explains the significance of Guru Purnima, which falls on this weekend, July 20-21. Vedic meditators are invited to join Guru Purnima celebrations with Thom and other Vedic Meditation Initiators around the world over the course of the weekend. If you'd like to join these celebrations, please visit thomknoles.com/guru-purnima for details of events near you. The V...

In this episode, we're celebrating the student-guru relationship, and the role it has in our evolution. Each year we celebrate this relationship, and the all the teachers and teachings in our life, with Guru Purnima. Vedic meditators are invited to join Guru Purnima celebrations with Thom and other Vedic Meditation Initiators around the world during the weekend of July 20-21, 2024. If you'd like t...

The pain a mother experiences when giving birth is an experience that only a mother could know. Though it’s often overplayed in movies and on television, it’s a sacred experience that brings extremes of emotion into play. In this episode, Thom leans heavily on the experience of midwives and mothers, and shares how the Vedic perspective on pain can be applied to the process of labor and childbirth....

Vedic meditators are blessed with a life-changing technique that can make a profound difference in their lives.  Many meditators, though, seek to progress even further, and tap into the vast well of Vedic wisdom that is available to us all.  One avenue for further progress is knowledge of and initiation into practicing the “Siddhis.” These advanced practices allow us to tap into extraordinary huma...

As Vedic meditators, we have the distinct advantage of knowing that evolution is the only thing ever happening. So, if this is the case, do we ever need to make things right?  Aren’t they right already? In this episode, Thom reminds us that we aren’t just pawns in some cosmic storyline that’s out of our control and that we aren’t just here to witness the story as it unfolds. In fact, as Vedic medi...

Spiritual principles can sometimes seem straightforward when we hear them, but when we put them into practice, we might find them difficult to uphold. This is especially the case when the principles have been misunderstood or misinterpreted. In this episode, Thom tackles some misconceptions about “charm,” wealth, and vegetarianism in answer to some listener questions. These are important principle...

As humans, we often draw conclusions based on observations. However, these observations can frequently lead us down the wrong path.  Take, for instance, the assumption that wisdom or enlightenment demands an austere or stoic life. This belief stems from centuries of observing monastics and ascetics, who have traditionally been custodians of wisdom. This can lead people to think either, a) that the...

Sacrificing the comforts of life is often seen as part of the “spiritual path,” so it might seem unusual to hear from a Vedic master that, “You deserve the best.” Yet this is one of the key teachings of Swami Bramhananda Saraswati, Thom’s master’s master, also referred to as Guru Deva. In this episode, Thom clarifies the meaning and intent of Guru Deva’s quote, reconciling the notion of deserving...

“The truth hurts!”... or so we’re often told. Many of us have no problem being truthful, even if the recipient gets hurt in the process.  After all, isn’t honesty the best policy? On the other end of the spectrum, for those who have difficulty telling the harsh truth, a “white lie” can often be a compelling and justifiable alternative. In this episode, Thom argues the case for something in between...

What’s the distinction between mind, intellect and ego? And what are their functions? Unlike many modern psychological approaches, the Vedic worldview honors and celebrates the role of all three.  While they may not always function perfectly – like the 'mistaken intellect' often discussed by Thom – each of these elements plays a specific and essential role in our evolution. Thom explains in this e...

When most people think of abundance or self-sufficiency, they think of cash and assets, having the wealth to do what they want when they want it. In fact, for many people, it’s a driving goal to become “financially independent” so as to have more choices in their lives. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi took an alternative approach, demonstrating that true freedom and true abundance actually require us to sur...

We’re celebrating episode 200 of The Vedic Worldview by featuring more questions from listeners and answers from Thom. The questions cover a variety of topics… To what extent should we intervene when we see someone potentially harming others, especially young children? Will enlightenment for all mean an end to humanity? How do we meet the demands of the moment? How can we counteract toxic masculin...

Modern science and ancient Vedic wisdom often take different routes to reach the same destination. Many of the concepts of Ayurveda, for example, have been known and understood for millennia, yet modern science is only just now catching up with some of these principles, and explaining them from the scientific point of view.  Perhaps the most profound slice of Vedic wisdom, Vedanta, is another fron...

There’s no end to the number of ways we can have awakening experiences. It can come as an epiphany, a realization, a side-effect of taking a hallucinogen, a near-death experience, or even just a spontaneous event while sipping a cup of tea. While reports on such experiences vary dramatically, they consistently feature a high level of contrast between these normal and our regular day-to-day experie...

Ahiṃsa is a term made famous outside India, in large part, as a result of Mahatma Gandhi's ‘non-violent’ approach to securing independence for India. It’s often thought of as pacifism, rejecting violence altogether. For some, that means non-violence towards fellow humans, and for others, it means non-violence towards all living beings. As is often the case, this common understanding of Ahiṃsa is i...

Wisdom is of little use unless it’s shared, however it can go to waste if it’s shared where it isn’t wanted. It can even have a damaging effect if it’s shared where it’s unwelcome. So when you have wisdom that you know would be valuable, knowledge about Vedic Meditation for example, how can you inspire others to receive that wisdom willingly? Thom frequently talks about “worthy enquiry” on the pod...

One of the mistakes often made by those outside of India is to look at Vedic symbology in superficial terms. The Shiva Lingam is one such symbol. Frequently viewed as a representation of male and female genitalia, it actually has a much deeper and richer significance than this. Thom gives us an entry-level look at the subject in this episode, correcting the misuse of the term Shiva Lingam, and cla...

All of us are used to perceiving the world around us in terms of varying objective characteristics; hard and soft, hot and cold, solid and fluid, and so on. We might even attribute subjective qualities to the world around us; hostile, inviting, harsh, comfortable… But does it make sense to attribute ‘personality’ to the world around us? In the Vedic worldview, it doesn’t just “make” sense, but it’...