Wisdom of the Sages

choose your addictions carefully / loving every living being - beyond externals / what is the duty of one about to die (all of us) / perspective - our senses are so limited / karma & free will / free will expands & contracts according to the choices we make / bhakti releases one from past karma / yoga as an access point out of samsara / you get what you get & don't be upset / Maya (illusion) keeps...

Raghu makes bhakti history on Joe Rogan / speaking with genuine conviction can be as strong as a well developed argument / summary - what is Srimad Bhagavatam / we are here to grow / Narada's meditation experience / even-mindedness through shifting externals is called yoga (Bhagavad-Gita 2.48) / fundamental misconception - happiness is found through external things / a peaceful mind is not the end...

what's next God? / time is short - we gotta get focused / gravity / the material world gets boring / we've got too much love to give to just one person / the 50's / bhakti accumulates / petty material things are like shadows / Narada's character, instructions, meditation & results / the interconnectedness of trees / how do you know it's a myth? / what do we build our faith on / it all can't come f...

Raghu's in Cali / everything we have is a gift from someone / Narada's perfection in meditation / the bhakti path - 9 steps from faith to divine love / be steady and do the basics / we're chasing forms that don't satisfy / flash melts / bhakti is a descending (not ascending) path  

it's not about joining a club / focus on kindness & simplicity - drop the pettiness / you've been tricked to hate / simplicity means finding pleasure in the simple things / bhakti means transforming our desires - not our name or our clothes / this world is a jungle and we have to see God in the heart of all the creatures / Krishna appears in the heart of little Narada / Paramatma as the object of...

retraction: the Council of Nicea / gulab jamuns for increasing church attendance / w e are made up of the mercy of other people's love / spiritual form / sharing knowledge is the ultimate act of welfare / seeing all reversals as blessings / taking "Why is this happening to me!?" out of our rotation / Raghu's Scottish divine messenger / wandering alone as a spiritual practice / w arning: never chas...

little tweaks / get rid of your enemies / hurt people hurt people / I wanna know what love is / based on beauty, love soon dies / the power of commitment / sense control can overcome depression / radical self-change /   bhakti delivers knowledge as a concomitant factor / good intelligence - I may only be going 40mph, but it's in the right direction / transcendental sound delivers knowledge, spirit...

Raghu's first, weird temple experience /what is Deity worship all about? / controlling body, words & mind / how to wake up in the morning / Aindra Das' intense devotion / "it's not for me first" / duty is the first step in mastering the mind / St. Valentine / can dented cans become undented? / dedicating all our activities / tiny brains / putting oneself in the center leads to suffering / Krishna...

who am I? why am I here? what is my offering? /Announcement! - We're Launching an Online Community on Patreon for the Wisdom of the Sages Family / naked man & the box - shedding our programing / aghoris / Narada's example of how to practice bhakti / regulating the senses & support groups / Bhagavad-gita 2.59 getting a higher taste / Krishna's 3 energies - spiritual, material, and marginal / Public...

reconciling Christianity & bhakti / fundamentalism of the ego - my way is better / saragrahi Vaishnava, one who understands the essence / only spirit is eternal - there is no kennel in the sky / Raghu's Netflix fall down / yesterday's cliff hanger revealed - it's foot water! / the test for spiritual advancement - our desire to hear / we become what we call ourself / the lilas of Krishna attract th...

the shape of the hole in my heart / it's ok to die today / we don't eradicate our lower self - we transform it / stealing prasadam is bona fide / this world is a reflection / Poe's dream within a dream / if you want to engage me in gossip, then there must be something wrong with me / Stages of Spiritual Development – From Faith to Pure Divine Love   – 1. sraddha: faith 2. sadhu-sanga: association...

criticism – destructive & constructive / the 1st step in changing the world is changing oneself / pettiness can rob me of finding my inner happiness / honesty with oneself / bhakti etiquette / the detached can speak the truth / the true blessing is when we feel "I want to be like that" (the transcendentalist)  

trade in your expectations for appreciations / the 8 instructions of Sri Chaitanya / what's real punk rock / not caring about the opinions of the masses / Maya used to taste great :-( / material pleasure is just the cessation of pain / all the Vedic & yogic sciences are meant to lead to our divine source - Vishnu (Krishna)

the power of karma / our endeavor is only one factor in any action /  the bhakti path is direct - karma & are steps that one can get lost on / bhakti is successful even if you fail - materialism is a failure even if you succeed / monism vs. dualism / the responsibility of human life (and sea turtles save lives) 

fasting from mental junk food / changing our thoughts is real yoga / back in the states / refining our lens / bikini pics ≠ yoga insight / the false hope of the new India / Bhakti is all about becoming receptive to spiritual energy / Vyasadeva's yoga insight / Narada instructs Vyasadeva on the superiority of Bhakti over karma & jnana / apply yogic truths and feel free / a good teacher is qualified...

we are not the mind / material pleasure is a hope to enjoy created in the mind / mystic siddhis / mindfulness is a platform for approaching divine love / #connectthedots / spiritual regulations are designed to break the attachments that warp truth perception / the soul craves relationship by nature / we have the choice - to be a crow or a swan - lets stop consuming deep-fried twinkies

transforming attachments rather than breaking attachments / discontent should move us towards truth / knowing I'm eternal makes everything meaningful / cat in the basket - how rituals lose meaning / good teachers are rooted in the sacred text - not just making it up 

spiritual ecstasy of Jaipur mornings / singing & dancing is the goal of the yoga system / unity through connecting the universal source /   Srimad Bhagavatam lifts the mind above hankering & lamentation / there's no equality on the bodily platform / Mahabharata brought yoga wisdom to the masses / spiritual knowledge is the only solution to our material problems / treat everyone with dignity  

legend of Jaipur deities / no lasting happiness in the higher or lower planets / only spirituality can satisfy the soul / dreams of playing with the Ghouls / giving up on fulfilling material desires / nobody cares! (About Mara's knitting, or anyone from Pompeii)/ Vyasadeva's vision of Kali Yuga / what have we done to / the Earth? / divisions of the Vedas / how one's occupation can be purified  

Raghu meets his first Krishna guy who's not a gang member (Yogeshvara / Joshua Green) / Yogeshvara meets & records with the Beatles / the relationships we yearn for in this world are a reflection of those in the spiritual world / Yogeshvara witnesses Srila Prabhupada translating Srimad Bhagavatam / in departing, the guru enters the hearts of his disciples / the ecstasy of spiritual pain

spiritual experience isn't cheap - we need a lifetime plan / evolved people are the most humble / spiritual radar / Raghu chooses Bhakti over Shakti / a sage is recognized not by seeing, but by hearing / a guru is a postal peon / the qualities of a real sadhu / haters gonna hate / love is the way to change people's hearts  

a brief history of Gaura's mother, Rukmini Devi / the cooperation  of earth, animals and humanity / we've made the earth a ghetto / you can't force bhakti / kindness   is practical / the sages ask about Sukadeva Goswami - the naked sadhu speaker of the Srimad Bhagavatam /   the oneness, the divine light, is just one aspect of the Absolute Truth / the birth of Vyasadeva / ladies have a creep radar...

It's all one – but it's different too / our objective and subjective faith / Krishna comes as Chaitanya to understand the love of the Gopis / Hunuman's incarnation in Chaitanya's pastimes / spiritual knowledge descends - you don't climb up to it / positive peer pressure in spiritual community / real friends share our values and lift us up / dating advice from Raghunath / Bhagavatam is not just a b...

creating a framework for raising our kids with bhakti-yoga / offerings with both skill and devotion / carrying kirtan-tattva – delivering the Shakti in the holy names / ISKCON's 2nd generation of kirtan leaders are crushing it! / if Raghu & Kaustubha wrestled who would win? - the power of the brahmin / devotion, not learning or even piety, is the qualification for understanding God / Bhakti isn't...

yoga is not so much about moving beautifully, it's about thinking beautifully / The mind is like a computer / the impulsive mind (manas) false ego (ahankara) and intellect (buddhi) / the nature of the self is sat (eternal) chit (fixed in truth)   ananda (bliss) / break down the walls! (of labels that divide us) / I love you - eat a cricket! / have some cockroach scampi / there's no truth to the pr...