Yoga Wisdom with Acharya das

I received a question about the use of mantra in meditating and why we do this.   Many people do not fully understand what yogic meditation taught in the Vedas and passed down by authentic lineages of self-realized teachers really is.  Meditation is not really the activity of stilling the mind or emptying it of material thought, those are actually pre-meditation exercises practiced as Pr...

SHOW LESS I was asked the question “When should you tell the Truth?” and so this is my reply.   The Vedic culture had a wonderful perspective on this subject.  They were totally focused on being always truthful because this is in all of our interests to be honest and truthful.  Truth was seen as an integral part of becoming enlightened and dishonesty has the pernicious effect of cov...

This is the 7th lesson in the “Weathering a Storm” series. We should not simply bury our heads in the sand when confronted with adversity – this not only doesn’t help us, it often makes things worse. There is a need to face adversity, armed with knowledge and a clear and meaningful goal in life. The torchlight of knowledge casts light on potential ways forward, helps us to be more resilient, patie...

This is the 6th lesson in the “Weathering a Storm” series.  Since ancient times and in various cultures the warning has been echoed about the perils of “Build Sandcastles on the Shore.”   In the previous lessons, we have heard the advice that having false expectations of life leads to tremendous unhappiness and that we need to be more focused on how we deal with adversity (which is inevi...

This is the 5th lesson in the “Weathering a Storm” series. More often than not, anxiety arises from a feeling of not being in control of outcomes. This can apply to many different situations that produce anxiety, but careful reflection will help us to deal with this.   The previous lessons all provided answers or parts of the answer to dealing with anxiety:  1. This too shall pass ...

This is the 4th lesson in the “Weathering a Storm” series. Our life, as we are experiencing it, is largely the result of the choices we make. Making good choices and actions, produce the best possible outcomes, and can directly impact our happiness. To make conscious choices (as opposed to ‘emotional’ and often unconscious choices) we need to practice mindfulness. That means not letting our mind a...

This is the 3rd lesson in the “Weathering a Storm” series.  We explore the issue of “control”. It is very common for people to spend a good deal of their time either trying to control things that they cannot or being upset or angry because they cannot control someone, something, or some situation. If we are brutally honest with ourselves, this is not very smart and does not actually help us i...

This is the 2nd lesson in the “Weathering a Storm” series. We have heard that even the most difficult of times will pass. That can relieve us from a sense of desperation. But we need a framework to make decisions about how we proceed.    I propose that the Serenity Prayer offers such a framework which will help us to focus upon that which we can change and to gracefully accept those thin...

SHOW LESS This is the first in a series titled “Weathering a Storm” where we will examine a framework for addressing adversity or a crisis like the one we are currently entering, with the Covid-19 pandemic.   For most of us, it is almost impossible to grasp the ferociousness and regularity with which life was upended during the first half of the 20th century. Plague and conflict emerged on an...

In order to live in this world and find peace and the resultant happiness which comes from that, it is crucial that we take responsibility for our speech, actions, and how we process or deal with our thoughts.  We have no control over others and how they think, act, and speak, but we are responsible for our own actions, reactions, and behavior.     Real yogic mindfulness means...

I was asked to speak about some of the positive benefits of meditation and how meditation can help me make better choices in my life.   Over the years, and especially with my more recent work with women’s shelters and in prisons, it has become increasingly obvious how wonderfully beneficial meditation is in helping people live better, more purposeful, and happier lives. One of the most signif...

When we try to “process” or understand the world around us we unknowingly do this through a “worldview” or a paradigm.  As a result, things can appear utterly senseless at times.  Here we explore the spiritual paradigm which will make everything so much clearer and bring understanding. A more spiritual way of seeing things grants us a sense of serenity that arises from spiritual wisdom,...

Someone asked me to talk about something they are experiencing, where they previously suffered traumatic experiences in their childhood, and it continuously replays in their mind, creating a sense of fearfulness about the future.  The question is how should one deal with this from a spiritual perspective?

I’ve been asked how we can navigate our way through this current “age of outrage”. It’s really important to recognize that in a heightened state of emotions people generally do not think very clearly and certainly do not make the best choices and take the best actions which produce the best possible outcomes.  Social Media (YouTube included) have employed AI-driven algorithms to feed you “out...

This is the final part of “A Code to Live By” where we examine some of the qualities which can help me to achieve peacefulness and happiness. Some of those qualities recommended by the ancient sages are:   • Self-control (includes control of the appetites, passions, mind),   • Freedom from Possessiveness & Theft (includes covetousness) (being satisfied with just as much as one needs...

This is a continuation where we begin to examine some of the qualities which we are encouraged to cultivate as part of a code to live by. I am dividing a list of qualities promoted in the Vedas into two main parts. The first of qualities that affect my relationships and dealings with others. The second part I will deal with next week.   In considering these qualities we should try to contempl...

Societies can only function when there is an agreed code of conduct for everyone.   A code of conduct guides all organizations, companies, religious groups, educational institutions, and civic organizations. But theses codes may be external controls that people accept within a group but then discard once outside of that group.     Guiding principles are most effective when...

In this talk (the 3rd in the series “Lessons from Lockdown”) we examine the need for a guiding light to help us navigate life.  There is a need to recognize the fact that we are often the “products” of a great deal of conditioning (previously known as brainwashing).  There are some surprising examples of this in the talk.    We have been sold the idea that increased consumption...

One of the glaring observations around the world about lockdown was how dramatically the pollution levels fell and the environment began “healing”.  The abuse of the environment by humanity at large is unquestionable, but the ‘solution’ is less obvious.   Rather than just pushing for the use of alternative energy sources – that doesn’t address the underlying problem which is over-consump...

What are the lessons we can learn from the current lockdown?  In this series I hope to present some thought-provoking ideas about our lives up to this point, and what we can do to live a ‘better’ life – provided we learn the necessary lessons.    I mention an article from the New Zealand Herald which stated; “Optimists throughout this lockdown have hoped that coming out of the pande...

This is a continuation from last week as there were some questions from people wanting to know more about Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.   Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was a real spiritual revolutionary who not only introduced congregational kirtan as the prime means of spiritual attainment in this age, but also his overwhelming desire to see that all people attain the highest spiritual realization, and...

The day following this talk was the 534th anniversary of the appearance of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the “Father of Kirtan”, so I was asked to speak about him.   In the talk I referenced several quotes from the Vedas about him, predicting his appearance over 4,500 years prior to that day.  I also referenced 3 of the 8 prays he personally wrote, all of which I am sharing here.  गौरः सर्व...

This is a continuation of last week's talk on this most relevant topic.

There are people who want to protest injustice and racism, which is a good thing to do, but we need to apply a proper method to bring about this change.  Anger will not bring about a change in people’s hearts and minds. It can even make things worse.   The Mahabharata (the great spiritual epic from India) speaks to this in a wonderful way. There was a great and saintly warrior King who h...

This is a Puranic story about a man who became very wealthy but was extremely miserly and harsh even with his own family.  When his store of good karma ran out he gradually lost all his wealth and was rejected by his own family.   He reflected deeply on the situation and received some extraordinary insight into his situation.  He resolved to become a wandering monk and spend the rem...