Podcasts about ganges river

On today's episode, Michael sits with Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati. Sadhviji is a renunciate monk, or sanyasi, living in an ashram on the banks of the sacred Ganges River in Rishikesh, India. Originally from Los Angeles and a graduate of Stanford University, she holds a Ph.D. in psychology and has dedicated her life to sharing the profound wisdom from the ancient Vedic tradition of India. Sadhviji is a bestselling author, a world-renowned speaker, a recipient of President Biden's Award for a Lifetime of Service, and she serves on the United Nations Advisory Council on religion. Her latest book, “Come Home to Yourself: Simple Answers to Life's Essential Questions,” is out now.  Highlights from their conversation include: -How Sadhviji's book, “Come Home to Yourself,” was birthed through satsangs—spiritual Q&A sessions where divine wisdom flows through her to meet people's deepest concerns -The lack of inner joy Sadhviji felt, despite having all the “ingredients” for happiness—education, success, privilege, which led her to reluctantly travel to India -The profound realization that our inner narratives of not being good enough, lovable, or pure are illusions, and that true healing begins when we question those narratives -Thoughts to vehicles—buses that we can choose to ride or not–which allows us to take back control and intentionally choose thoughts that align with peace and love -Sadhviji's childhood trauma and how true forgiveness set her free -Reframing surrender as not giving up, but aligning with the deeper flow of divine wisdom and intelligence, opening to the way to spiritual power -Reflections on the spiritual elegance of simplicity—Truth doesn't need to be complicated to be transformative -Sadhvij's call to action, reminding us that spirituality must lead to service and action, and how, in a chaotic world, our inner practice empowers us to stand up, speak up, and show up for good Next, Michael leads a centering meditation to pause, return to inner stillness, and become a vessel of love for others. Get Sadhviji's book, “Come Home to Yourself: Simple Answers to Life's Essential Questions,” here https://comehometoyourself.org/.  Visit her website, https://sadhviji.org/, follow her on FB, IG, and see her videos at her YouTube channel, https://www.youtube.com/c/Sadhviji.  Listen to her new podcast, Ask Sadhviji, wherever you enjoy your podcasts.   Remember to Subscribe or Follow and set an alert to receive notifications each Wednesday when new episodes are available! Connect with Michael at his website – https://michaelbeckwith.com/ – and receive his guided meditation, “Raise Your Vibration and Be Untouchable” when you sign up to receive occasional updates from Michael!  You can also connect with him at https://agapelive.com/. Facebook: @Michael.B.Beckwith https://www.facebook.com/Michael.B.Beckwith  IG: @michaelbbeckwith https://www.instagram.com/michaelbbeckwith/  TikTok: @officialmichaelbeckwith   https://www.tiktok.com/@officialmichaelbeckwith  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqMWuqEKXLY4m60gNDsw61w  And as always, deep gratitude to the sponsors of the Take Back Your Mind with Michael B. Beckwith podcast: -Agape International Spiritual Center: https://agapelive.com/ and -NutriRise, the makers of Michael's AdaptoZen product line, a few of which include: -Superfood Greens: https://nutririse.com/products/greens-superfood  -Superfood Reds: https://nutririse.com/products/adaptozen-superfood-reds    -ELEVATE+: Organic Fermented Mushrooms: https://nutririse.com/products/elevate-fermented-mushrooms-powder  

This week Spencer is bringing us another round of TIFU! Next, Madison tells us about the wildly macabre Ganges River. We've got an obituary that is absolutely diabolical, one with some contradictions and so much more!!! INCLUDING some dumb.ass.criminallllllllls! Let's go! Watch us on YouTube: Youtube.com/@obitchuarypodcast Buy our book: prh.com/obitchuaryGet your Merch: wonderyshop.com/obitchuaryCome see us live on tour: obitchuarypodcast.comJoin our Patreon: Patreon.com/cultliterNew episodes come out every Thursday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers.Follow along online: @obitchuarypod on Twitter & Instagram @obitchuarypodcast on TikTokCheck out Spencer's other podcast Cult Liter wherever you're listening!Write to us: obitpod@gmail.comSpencer Henry & Madison ReyesPO Box 18149 Long Beach, CA 90807Sources:https://www.newspapers.com/image/1103028703/?article=db2a31e6-e78f-46aa-b4df-35f64e13107a&terms=beauty%20queenhttps://www.seasmartschool.com/blog/2022/2/17/12-most-polluted-rivers-in-the-worldhttps://www.wilton-photography.com/news-stories/life-and-death-along-the-ghats-of-varanasi#:~:text=When%20only%20ashes%20remain%20these,cannot%20be%20cremated%20in%20Varanasi.https://dornsife.usc.edu/news/stories/death-on-the-ganges/https://www.passporthealthusa.com/2023/12/bathing-in-the-ganges-river/https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28112403https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangeshttps://www.hinduamerican.org/blog/ganga-river-goddesshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghats_in_Varanasihttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollution_of_the_Gangeshttps://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/what-became-of-india-s-corpse-eating-turtleshttps://www.nationalgeographic.com/photography/article/the-pyres-of-varanasi-breaking-the-cycle-of-death-and-rebirthhttps://english.kyodonews.net/news/2024/02/0e7f9656dc55-feature-indias-cremation-king-helps-to-bring-salvation-in-modern-times.htmlhttps://www.wired.com/story/india-ganges-river-clean-project/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/indias-government-once-released-25000-flesh-eating-turtles-ganges-river-180953384/https://www.wect.com/2022/05/12/woman-exits-vehicle-drive-thru-car-crashes-over-chick-fil-a-retaining-wall/https://www.newspapers.com/image/828291399/?article=9dd4051c-67a1-41f2-a7e1-320e6cc1286f&terms=monster%20https://people.com/onlyfans-model-allegedly-poops-car-road-rage-incident-11728123See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ten Thousand Things is back for another season, now with Wonder Media Network. This season is about the objects that help us move forward — like a traditional Vietnamese dress, a jar of water from the Ganges River, and a gold trophy. New episodes start May 20th. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

 How do we break out of self-sabotage? The mind is biologically programmed to be negative. Lisa continues the conversation today with renunciate monk and author Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati. Sadhvi has lived on the banks of the sacred Ganges River in Rishikesh, India, for the past 30 years. Originally from Los Angeles, and a graduate of Stanford University, she holds a Ph.D. in psychology. Sadhvi explains how we are the offspring of people who know they need to survive. Our ancestors needed to assume the worst, in order to survive. We have evolved this way. And, we know that we can now change. We can reprogram our minds. Sadhvi suggests using a mantra. It doesn't have to be in Sanskrit. It's anything that can bring you into the present moment and out of negativity. We can reason with our minds, and sometimes we need to face the negativity, but more often we can delete and end the cycle of negativity. “OM” is a very common mantra. It's very powerful. Chanting also helps. This stops the mind. She gives examples of many different mantras and prayers. The sounds help the brain go into a state of coherence. She also talks about attending the Maha Kumbh Mela where more than 670 million people came to the Ganges river recently to attend the largest gathering in the history of the world. The Maha Kumbh Mela means the great festival of the nectar of immortality. It took place on the confluence of the banks of 3 great rivers in India.  There was no conflict, no violence; it was just people coming together in love and peace. She further discusses the astrology of the moment, especially the full moons. Vedic astrology predicts that this particular planetary alignment happens only once every 144 years. With hundreds of millions of people attending the gathering, this shows that people are suffering and looking for answers. People are angry. People are frustrated. People are searching for answers. This was a way to break out of constraints and experience freedom. When asked about anger, she expressed that there are some reasons to be angry including poverty, hunger, loss of human rights, and so much more. Yet, when we are angry, we are called to be agents of change, but first we must find peace within ourselves so we can then help others. She offers breathing exercises with specific energy centers and anchoring. Whether it's other people's actions, or even the weather, we shouldn't have expectations that things will be different. We cannot control others. We must bring light to the darkness, but not from a place of anger. She notes Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, Jr, and Gandhi and how they were angry but came from a place of peace to make change.   Sadhvi is a bestselling author, a world-renowned speaker, a recipient of President Biden's Award for a Lifetime of Service, and she serves on the United Nations Advisory Council on religion. She talks further about her new book “Come Home to Yourself” and discusses how forgiveness is the key to help us reach deeper spiritual truths. It's an invitation to come home to freedom. This is Part 2 of the interview. Info: www.sadhviji.org  

An old faded rice cooker. A blue two piece suit. A vial of water from the Ganges River. For the past four years, Poet Shin Yu Pai’s podcast, Ten Thousand Things, has explored how objects – from the extraordinary to the mundane, the literal to the figurative – communicate stories of Asian American meaning, identity, and culture. As of last month, the stories in the series have broken out of podcast players and become a new exhibit in Seattle’s Wing Luke Museum. The exhibit includes objects that will be familiar to listeners of the series – as well as some new items that will be featured in upcoming episodes. Soundside’s Alec Cowan joined Shin Yu Pai at the Wing Luke Museum to talk about the exhibit. Guests: Shin Yu Pai, writer, curator, and host of Ten Thousand Things. Related Links: EXHIBIT: Ten Thousand Things — Wing Luke Museum KUOW - Ten Thousand Things with Shin Yu Pai Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you live in anger and fear? Would you like to hear a story of healing? Today Lisa talks with renunciate monk and author Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati. Sadhvi has lived on the banks sacred Ganges River in Rishikesh, India, for the past 30 years. Originally from Los Angeles, and a graduate of Stanford University, she holds a Ph.D. in psychology. Seemingly having it all, she realized at the young age of 25, that she was not happy. Although she was married and excelled academically, she felt restless and was always wanting more. She had overcome childhood traumas, abuse, a severe eating disorder, and depression. She knew there must be another way. Upon arriving in India, she had an unexpected and profound spiritual experience. She only went to India because her husband wanted to go. She left with only a backpack, thinking this would be a semester break. Suddenly, while standing on the banks of the Ganges River, she was overwhelmed with ecstasy. Several days later she randomly walked past a beautiful, clean ashram. It felt like an oasis to her. She was walking through it and heard a voice say, “You must stay here.” She didn't see anyone, and she was a scientist, so of course she ignored it. One minute later, she heard the voice again, and still didn't see anyone. She was just about to ignore it again, when she remembered she made a promise to herself while on the flight to India. She asked herself to “keep her heart open.” The fact she was in India made no sense to her. She was not religious, and she was not spiritual, yet she always believed there would be a plan. This felt perfect and she knew this must somehow be aligned. Sadvhi further shares her story about realizing that things were planned. Being a scientist, she does not believe in random events. Although she still believes in science, she was open to possibilities. She knew that if she didn't want to stay in India, it would be very easy for her to return to the US. She ended up staying at the ashram and working with the spiritual teacher there. The ashram is dedicated to self-realization and awakening for all. The devotees there believe in the betterment of all and help to provide food for the hungry, empower women, and offer free medical care, as well as a spiritual path for anyone who is interested. They have yoga programs, philosophy programs, sacred ceremonies, all taught by example from the guru there. They focus on love and compassion for all. Sadhvi is a bestselling author, a world-renowned speaker, a recipient of President Biden's Award for a Lifetime of Service, and she serves on the United Nations Advisory Council on religion. Sadhvi's latest book is “Come Home to Yourself.” This book is the edited version of the Q&A sessions that she teaches each night in the ashram. She is a vessel for wisdom to pour through her. She feels that the gift she was given was to come home to the truth. She wants to offer these powerful teachings as a way for each person to find the truth within themselves. We all have the answers within. We may just need to be reminded that we can end our suffering by coming home to ourselves. We don't need to constantly be taught; we just need to be guided back into ourselves to find the truth.  Info: www.sadhviji.org

More than sacred—this is about cosmic justice, karmic cleansing, and the mysterious flow of divine grace. In this provocative conclusion to our two-part deep dive, Raghunath and Kaustubha unpack why the Ganges is revered as the purifier of sins and how its sanctity is upheld—not just by myth or ritual, but through the living presence of Krishna and His devotees. What makes a river more than water? How does mercy override karma? And how can we become a river of grace ourselves? Key Highlights: •⁠  ⁠The Ganges as a portal of divine compassion—from Vaikuntha to Earth. •⁠  ⁠How saintly souls become walking places of pilgrimage. •⁠  ⁠Grace vs. karma: why fairness isn't the highest principle in the universe. •⁠  ⁠The mystical relationship between Krishna's feet, the holy river, and the pure-hearted. •⁠  ⁠Why Bhagiratha's mission wasn't just personal—it was a multi-generational act of love. Whether you've dipped in her waters or just dreamed of the Himalayas, this episode will change the way you see rivers, saints, and the subtle forces that shape our destiny.

More than sacred—this is about cosmic justice, karmic cleansing, and the mysterious flow of divine grace. In this provocative conclusion to our two-part deep dive, Raghunath and Kaustubha unpack why the Ganges is revered as the purifier of sins and how its sanctity is upheld—not just by myth or ritual, but through the living presence of Krishna and His devotees. What makes a river more than water? How does mercy override karma? And how can we become a river of grace ourselves? Key Highlights: •⁠  ⁠The Ganges as a portal of divine compassion—from Vaikuntha to Earth. •⁠  ⁠How saintly souls become walking places of pilgrimage. •⁠  ⁠Grace vs. karma: why fairness isn't the highest principle in the universe. •⁠  ⁠The mystical relationship between Krishna's feet, the holy river, and the pure-hearted. •⁠  ⁠Why Bhagiratha's mission wasn't just personal—it was a multi-generational act of love. Whether you've dipped in her waters or just dreamed of the Himalayas, this episode will change the way you see rivers, saints, and the subtle forces that shape our destiny.

Can water actually wash away your karma? For thousands of years, pilgrims have journeyed to the Ganges River with unwavering faith that her sacred waters can liberate the soul. But where does that power come from? And why is it believed that even the most sinful acts can be purified through a simple bath in her current? In this episode, Raghunath and Kaustubha explore the profound story of King Bhagirath and the descent of the Ganga, as told in the pages of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Together, they unpack ancient insights into how grace flows through sacred elements, and how divine consciousness transforms even the physical elements of this world. Key Highlights: • Why Bhagirath's mission to bring down the Ganges spanned generations • The deep Vedic symbolism of “lotus feet” and approaching the divine from the ground up • Ganga's own doubts—can she handle the sins of the world? • What makes something sacred in bhakti: form, faith, or transcendental connection? Get ready to rethink what it means to be purified, and how spiritual energy can travel through water, sound, and intention to change the destiny of a soul.

Can water actually wash away your karma? For thousands of years, pilgrims have journeyed to the Ganges River with unwavering faith that her sacred waters can liberate the soul. But where does that power come from? And why is it believed that even the most sinful acts can be purified through a simple bath in her current? In this episode, Raghunath and Kaustubha explore the profound story of King Bhagirath and the descent of the Ganga, as told in the pages of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Together, they unpack ancient insights into how grace flows through sacred elements, and how divine consciousness transforms even the physical elements of this world. Key Highlights: • Why Bhagirath's mission to bring down the Ganges spanned generations • The deep Vedic symbolism of “lotus feet” and approaching the divine from the ground up • Ganga's own doubts—can she handle the sins of the world? • What makes something sacred in bhakti: form, faith, or transcendental connection? Get ready to rethink what it means to be purified, and how spiritual energy can travel through water, sound, and intention to change the destiny of a soul.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit akiyaproject.substack.comIf you believe that America's national park system is one of the greatest achievements in the country‘s history — and is for the betterment of mankind — you'd find yourself in the company of the majority, including me. However, Cronon articulates a fascinating history of post-Civil War America and the winding down of the Indian wars. At this time, many native Indians were forced off their land to establish the national parks across the country in the name of keeping the land “pristine” and “sublime”. Naturally, we think of this as an absurd tragedy. We often think of the native people as having a deep connection with the land and a deep connection to their human nature. Why, then, would we divorce them from their natural place and way of life in order to respect an arbitrary line on the map? In his essay, Cronon argues that we all possess the same human nature, whether we are native Indian, American settlers moving out West, Swiss mountaineers, or Japanese farmers. However, in our modern world, we Americans seem to have forgotten that truth that we are embued with human nature. Modernity and industrialization have done a good job of detaching us from the land, the fruits of our labor, and the wrath of natural disaster. Cronon says that we have fetishized the wilderness out there and have failed to recognize the wilderness in here. From a practical matter of public policy, it makes no sense to dismantle the national parks nor would I ever advocate for such action. However, my experiences in Japan, in Switzerland, and the reflections I've gained from reading this essay have taught me that it does little good to treat far-flung places as separate from civilization. If we do so, it becomes easy to slip into the mindset that we humans are devoid of nature, or worse, are contaminants to it. Instead, Cronon argues that we should tend to our gardens, care for the trees along our sidewalks, and clean the streams in our neighborhoods just as if they are Yosemite Valley, the Amazon Rainforest, or the Ganges River. There is a beautiful Buddhist belief that says that as you walk along the street and look upon the faces of the strangers going past you, you may just be looking at the face of the Buddha. In the same way, the nature in your backyard exemplifies the sublime if you only look close enough.Local Japan Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Books Mentioned In This Episode:When you purchase a book (or anything on Amazon) with the links below, you support me and the podcast at no extra cost to you:* Uncommon Ground: Toward Reinventing Nature by William Cronon* The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan* Walking by Henry David Thoreau* My First Summer in the Sierra by John Muir* Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail by Theodore Roosevelt* The End of Nature by Bill McKibben* This Is Dinosaur: Echo Park Country and Its Magic River by Wallace Stegner* Home Economics by Wendell BerryLinks to More Resources:* Profesor William Cronon* President Theodore Roosevelt* John Muir* William Woodsworth* Hayao Miyazaki* Princess Mononoke* Wendell Berry* Learn Ikebana in Kobe (with me and a local expert!) on TripAdvisor* The Akiya Project on YouTubeProducts Used For the Build* Rockwool Insulation* Wood PuttyIf you'd like to see the visual media and photos behind this paywall, please subscribe for $5 a month or just $40 a year!

Ch. 4 - Noble Silence from Journey of Insight Meditation by Eric Lerner BENARES, THE SPIRITUAL CAPITAL of Hinduism, and the site of our next retreat, had been one of the most exciting places I'd visited in India or anywhere else in my travels around the world four years earlier. It's a city of death and rebirth. Pilgrims gather there to bathe away their sins in the holy Ganges River waters and then patiently await the end of this life in order to be cremated beside the Mother of Waters. Saddhus and holy men mingle freely with the poor and the well-to-do. Everyone is a beggar at the end. The fires of cremation along the river banks produce eerie, smoky sunsets while the holy chanting of “Hare Krishna,” “Hare Krishna” goes on night and day. by Eric Lerner 2025 30 minutes 25 seconds Listen to Streaming Audio Your browser does not support the audio element. Download Audio (14MB) Audio copyright, 2025 Pariyatti View the book, eBook and free PDF download. You can also find it at Amazon worldwide using this link: http://a-fwd.com/com=pariyatti-20&asin=B0CJL9SG5D. About Eric Lerner. View more books and audio resources available in the Pariyatti bookstore.

Sadhviji Bhagawati Saraswati is a renunciate nun, or sanyasi, living in an ashram on the banks of the sacred Ganges River in Rishikesh, India, nestled amidst the majestic Himalayan Mountains. Originally from Los Angeles, California, and a graduate of Stanford University, she holds a Ph.D. in psychology and has devoted her life to sharing the profound wisdom of the ancient Vedic tradition from India. Sadhviji is a bestselling author, a world-renowned speaker, and a recipient of President Biden's Award for a Lifetime of Service. She also serves on the United Nations Advisory Council on Religion. Connect with Sadhviji: WEBSITE: www.sadhviji.org INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/sadhviji YOUTUBE: www.youtube.com/@Sadhviji This event is hosted by ✨ Happy Jack Yoga University ✨ www.happyjackyoga.com ➡️ Facebook: /happyjackyoga ➡️ Instagram: @happyjackyoga Bhakti Yoga Conference at Harvard Divinity School Experience a one-of-a-kind online opportunity with 40+ renowned scholars, monks, yogis, and thought leaders! REGISTER FOR FREE: www.happyjackyoga.com/bhakti-... This conference is your opportunity to immerse yourself in the wisdom of sincere practitioners as they address the questions and challenges faced by us all. Expect thought-provoking discussions, actionable insights, and a deeper understanding of cultivating Grace in an Age of Distraction and incorporating Bhakti Yoga into your daily life.

Today's HeadlinesBurkina Faso exits regional bloc to form new allianceOver 30 killed in Indian religious festival stampedeListener finds renewed hope to live through Haiti radio program

"It's less interesting how technology changes people than how people change technologies." Are you interested in urban water management? What do you think about overstressed urban infrastructure? How can we provide water as a right for everyone? Interview with Anthony Acciavatti, Diana Balmori Assistant Professor at Yale University. We talk about his vision for the future of cities, urban density, water cycles, infrastructure retrofit, and many more. Anthony Acciavatti is a historian, cartographer, and architect whose work explores the intersection of architecture, urbanism, and environmental history in South Asia and North America, teaching at Yale University. As a principal of Somatic Collaborative and co-founder of Manifest: A Journal of American Architecture and Urbanism, Anthony has contributed widely to publications such as The New York Times, Cabinet, and Topos. His acclaimed book, Ganges Water Machine: Designing New India's Ancient River, offers the first comprehensive atlas of the Ganges River basin in over fifty years, crafted from a decade of fieldwork and archival research. Traversing the river basin by foot, boat, and car, Anthony meticulously documented the complex hydrological systems and seasonal rhythms of this vast region. His research delves into the environmental and socio-economic challenges tied to water resources, with Groundwater Earth—his upcoming book—investigating the global impact of groundwater extraction. Anthony's work encourages rethinking our relationship with water infrastructures and the landscapes they shape. Find out more about Anthony through these links: Anthony Acciavatti on LinkedIn @anthonyacciavatti_sc as Anthony Acciaviatti on Instagram Anthony Aacciavatti at Yale University Somatic Collaborative website Manifest: A Journal of American Architecture and Urbanism website Ganges Water Machine: Designing New India's Ancient River - book by Anthony Acciavatti Connected episodes you might be interested in: No.250 - Space Cities Panel conversation No.258 - Interview with Matt Gijselman about urban water management No.281R - Future global urban water scarcity and potential solutions No.298 - Interview with Carina Gormley about climate change being an imagination crises What wast the most interesting part for you? What questions did arise for you? Let me know on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@WTF4Cities⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or on the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠wtf4cities.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ website where the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠shownotes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are also available. I hope this was an interesting episode for you and thanks for tuning in. Music by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Lesfm ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠

It remains one of the most powerful and personal callings for someone on a quest for transformation and inspiration: the pilgrimage — a journey to what are believed to be sources of connection to the sacred or divine, the holy places.Many of the best-known religious pilgrimages involve a million or more believers or devotees, such as the Hajj, or sacred Hindu celebrations in India. A pilgrimage can be required by religious law, or begin with a singular calling, an inner urge, felt by the pilgrim for closer communion with the divine, however the spiritual or universal source is named or described.Why do people all over the planet from nearly every tradition take up these sometimes arduous adventures of spiritual devotion? What do they hope for?In this conversation we hear from two longtime Portals friends who recently completed what some people might call the pilgrimage of a lifetime, to the source high in the Himalayas of the sacred Ganges River, in Hindu belief the home of the Goddess Ganga. Jeff Vander Clute, consultant and author, and Grace Boda, teacher, consultant and executive coach, share with Aviv Shahar the feelings and power of their pilgrimage to this divine source.Among their insights:Pilgrimage is an opportunity to be individually transformed, and to plug into a universal power and give back into the collective — a seemingly nonlinear impact on the field, this planet and the people who inhabit her.It was a total life reboot; a reorientation from rigorously mining truth in every circumstance, to expressing love grounded in truth.It's reaching an edge physically, out of one's comfort zone, and needing to access other energy, other capacity, with the mental experience of dropping the structures and formations that block higher communion.When we Source, we open to the inspiration, and it brings a kind of knowing of right action — what the moment calls for. We can respond accordingly, and roles emerge; if a Sherpa is needed, we're suddenly a Sherpa.If there is shadow anywhere, there is shadow in me; if there is woundedness, there's woundedness in me. We co-participate in the field of healing. None of us is above the work required.If there is a Second Coming, it is all of us. This time, the upwelling impulse of enlightenment is collective — a collective presence and awakeness — which fills us from a source beyond any personal identity.This conversation is part of the continuing Portals discovery into what is emerging on the frontiers of human experience in this time of profound change. Information about upcoming special events can be found on the Events page. Also visit and subscribe to our YouTube channel. TWEETABLE QUOTES “And I realized that I was having a total life reboot. And, with the benefit of a little bit of hindsight, I can say that the nature of the reboot was a reorientation from mining truth, like rigorously mining truth, in every circumstance: what is true, what is true, what is true, what is true? What is real, and what is not? That had been my inquiry for many years. Subsequent to going all the way to the source, and having this embodied experience, the inquiry changed to expressing love.” (Jeff) “Perhaps because this group was ultra coherent, we were somehow able to become a conscious microcosm of the whole, of let's say the species, and even the whole Gaian system, and offer ourselves in service to the transformation of the entirety and the healing of the human family. So we're going to the source, and we're going to the roots, and we're able to be correspondingly empowered in our service and devotion to the transformation of humanity at this time.” (Jeff) RESOURCES MENTIONED Portals of Perception WebsiteAviv's LinkedIn Aviv's TwitterAviv's WebsiteJourneying to Source

The Ganges River, a lifeline for millions and one of the most significant and sacred rivers in the world, faces a multitude of seemingly intractable environmental challenges. One of the most innovative ways of both researching and shifting attitudes on the Ganges is through Citizen Science, bringing scientists and communities together to learn more about the world around them. Guests: Dr Prem Kurup (Science Education, La Trobe University) Anjali Yadav (PhD Candidate, La Trobe University and IIT Kanpur) Host: Assoc. Professor Ruth Gamble (Deputy Director, La Trobe Asia) Recorded on 17th October, 2024.

In this episode of Unknown Nations Podcast, Greg Kelley shares the remarkable story of Maya, whose encounter along the Ganges River ignited a gospel movement among the world's largest population of unreached people. Learn how her faith is now transforming lives and discover how you can join the mission and bring hope to the nations where Jesus is unknown.

 Learn more about Unknown Nations by visiting www.UnknownNations.com.

Fluent Fiction - Hindi: Tea, Travel & New Beginnings: A Love Story at Rishikesh Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.org/tea-travel-new-beginnings-a-love-story-at-rishikesh Story Transcript:Hi: गंगा नदी के किनारे, ऋषिकेश के हरे-भरे वातावरण में एक चाय की दुकान थी।En: On the banks of the Ganges River, nestled in the lush environment of Rishikesh, there was a tea shop.Hi: हवा में शरद ऋतु की ठंडक थी, और दुकान पर लोग गणेश चतुर्थी की रंगीन तैयारियों में व्यस्त दिखाई दे रहे थे।En: The chill of autumn was in the air, and people at the shop appeared to be engrossed in the colorful preparations for Ganesh Chaturthi.Hi: चाय की भाप आस-पास फैल रही थी और लोग चाय के साथ अपनी यात्रा की कहानियाँ साझा कर रहे थे।En: The steam from the tea wafted around, and people were sharing stories of their journeys over cups of tea.Hi: रोहन चुपचाप एक नुक्कड़ पर बैठा चाय की चुस्की ले रहा था।En: Rohan sat quietly in a corner, sipping his tea.Hi: वह खुश दिखने की कोशिश कर रहा था, लेकिन उसका दिल अभी भी पिछली प्रेम कहानी के घाव को सहला रहा था।En: He tried to appear happy, but his heart was still nursing the wounds of a past love story.Hi: तभी, उसके बगल की कुर्सी पर एक युवती आकर बैठ गई।En: Just then, a young woman sat down on the chair next to him.Hi: यह आयशा थी, उसकी आँखों में साहसिकता की चमक थी, लेकिन भीतर गहरे वह जीवन के अगले कदम के बारे में उलझन में थी।En: It was Ayesha, whose eyes sparkled with a sense of adventure, yet deep inside she was tangled with uncertainties about her next steps in life.Hi: दोनों ने एक-दूसरे की ओर देखा और मुस्कुरा दिए।En: They looked at each other and smiled.Hi: रोहन ने आयशा से हल्की बातचीत शुरू की।En: Rohan initiated a light conversation with Ayesha.Hi: "क्या तुम भी यहाँ घूमने आई हो?En: "Are you here on a trip too?"Hi: " उसने पूछा।En: he asked.Hi: आयशा ने उत्तर दिया, "हाँ, और खुद को खोजने के लिए।En: Ayesha replied, "Yes, and to find myself."Hi: " उनकी बातें धीरे-धीरे यात्रा और आध्यात्मिकता की ओर मुड़ गईं।En: Their conversation gradually turned towards travel and spirituality.Hi: दोनों को लगा जैसे वे अपनी परेशानियों को एक-दूसरे के साथ साझा कर सकते हैं।En: Both felt as though they could share their troubles with one another.Hi: गणेश चतुर्थी के उत्सव के दौरान, गंगा के किनारे आवाज़ें और रंग बिखरे हुए थे।En: During the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations, the sounds and colors scattered along the banks of the Ganges.Hi: रोहन ने अपनी यात्रा योजनाओं के बारे में आयशा को बताया और कहा, "क्या हमें और समय साथ बिताना चाहिए?En: Rohan shared his travel plans with Ayesha and said, "Should we spend more time together?"Hi: " आयशा ने सहमति में सिर हिला दिया।En: Ayesha nodded in agreement.Hi: मेला और त्योहार उनके भीतर एक विशेष संबंध जगा रहे थे, और उन्हें महसूस हुआ उन्होंने एक-दूसरे में कुछ अनमोल पाया है।En: The fair and festival sparked a special bond between them, and they realized they had found something precious in each other.Hi: जैसे ही वह दिन समाप्त हुआ, उन्होंने एक निर्णय लिया।En: As the day came to an end, they made a decision.Hi: वे ऋषिकेश में घूमने और एक साथ नई यात्रा शुरू करने का फैसला किया।En: They decided to explore Rishikesh together and embark on a new journey.Hi: रोहन ने धीरे-धीरे दिल खोलना शुरू किया और पाया कि वह फिर से प्यार और खुशी के प्रति आशावान हो सकता था।En: Rohan slowly began to open his heart and found that he could be hopeful about love and happiness once again.Hi: आशी ने महसूस किया कि वह नई चीज़ों को गले लगाने और संबंध बनाने में सक्षम है।En: Ayesha realized that she was capable of embracing new things and forming connections.Hi: इस तरह, गंगा के किनारे बैठकर, गणेश चतुर्थी की रोशनी में, दो यात्रियों ने एक नई यात्रा की शुरुआत की, जिसमें अनिश्चितता थी लेकिन साथीपन और रोमांच भी था।En: Thus, sitting on the banks of the Ganges, under the lights of Ganesh Chaturthi, the two travelers began a new journey, one filled with uncertainty but also companionship and adventure. Vocabulary Words:banks: किनारेnestled: स्थितlush: हरे-भरेengrossed: व्यस्तpreparations: तैयारियोंwafted: फैल रही थीnursing: सहलानाwounds: घावsparkled: चमकtangled: उलझनinitiated: शुरू कियाspirituality: आध्यात्मिकताscattered: बिखरे हुएbond: संबंधprecious: अनमोलcompanionship: साथीपनadventure: रोमांचenvironment: वातावरणchill: ठंडकautumn: शरद ऋतुsharing: साझा करनाsipping: चुस्की लेनाuncertainties: अनिश्चितताconversation: बातचीतgradually: धीरे-धीरेtogether: साथ-साथembracing: गले लगानाexplore: घूमनाhopeful: आशावानconnections: संबंध

In this episode, recorded Thursday August 1st 2024, I spoke with Amrutham Babu, where we discussed the "Journey to India" from SDI, a 14-day and 15-night experience taking place from January 10 to 24, 2025. This trip is specifically designed for spiritual directors and companions, offering an in-depth look at India's spiritual heritage. The journey includes: - **Internal Airfare:** Travel between locations within India. - **Airport Shuttle:** Pick-up and drop-off from the airport. - **Accommodation:** Single and twin/double rooms available. - **Meals:** Daily breakfast at the hotel. - **Arrival/Departure Assistance:** Transportation in an air-conditioned vehicle. - **Sightseeing Transportation:** Private, air-conditioned coach. - **Guides:** A local English-speaking guide, an experienced spiritual companion, and an SDI staff member. - **Entrance Fees:** Access to all monuments. - **Toll Taxes and 5% GST.** - **Activities:** Rickshaw ride in Delhi, village tour in Amritsar, battery van ride in Agra, daily yoga sessions in Rishikesh, and a boat ride on the Ganges River in Varanasi. This journey is an opportunity for spiritual growth and connection through experiencing India's spiritual heritage. Amrutham and I explore the details of this transformative trip and how you can be part of it. Come join us. Learn more and register here: https://www.sdicompanions.org/product/india-journey-january-2025/

Gugan, also known as Guha, is a character from the Indian epic, the Ramayana. He is the chief of the Nishada tribe and is known for his unwavering loyalty and friendship with Lord Rama. When Rama, along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana, was exiled to the forest, Gugan offered them his hospitality and assistance. Gugan's friendship with Rama is significant because it transcends social and caste boundaries, reflecting the values of loyalty, humility, and respect. He helps Rama and his family cross the Ganges River, providing them with a boat and offering them food and shelter. This gesture exemplifies Gugan's devotion and the deep bond of friendship that exists between them. Their relationship is a celebrated example of true friendship and devotion in Indian mythology.

All my links: https://linktr.ee/fairlylame This Week's Stories! (0:00) Cleaning Up The Ganges River! (0:56) Floating Solar Farms! (2:14) Using Tyres To Re-Surface Roads! (3:41) Saving Hawai'i's Birds From Malaria! (4:58) Sources: Cleaning Up The Ganges River! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0BKaVbcC8I Floating Solar Farms! https://grist.org/energy/climate-lake-floating-solar-panels-floatovoltaics/ Using Tyres To Re-Surface Roads! https://www.rmit.edu.au/news/all-news/2020/jul/sustainable-roads  Saving Hawai'i's Birds From Malaria! https://www.npr.org/2024/06/12/nx-s1-4906582/mosquito-hawaii-birds-endangered-species-extinct

Today we have on my business coach and digital nomad coach, Christa Romano from the Digital Nomad Life Academy and The Digital Nomad Life Podcast. She is here to tell us how she landed on Buzzfeed's Top Most Embarrassing Moments list and went viral. We also talk about what it means to become a digital nomad and how Christa and her program have truly changed my life. I am now able to work anywhere, travel the world and have ultimate freedom because of today's guest. I am so glad she is here on the show for y'all!  How to Become a Digital Nomad:FREE Masterclass from My CoachConnect with Christa:Digital Nomad Life Podcast@christabellatravels Support the Show.Want your episodes early? Sign up HERE to the newsletter. You will get episodes a week early!Connect:Instagram: @culturecultshowEmail: culturecultshow@gmail.comSend in your best travel story to share on the podcast via voice message or email:culturecultshow@gmail.com

Why are there no bear ghosts? Nearly all the ghosts in the world seem to come from a specific period of time, long before any of us were born. There is a universal obsession with death, so we're going to explore death from the perspective of those left behind. (Traditions about what lays beyond will be the subject of another episode.)We talk about the Shiva tradition in Judaism, and the ghastly tradition of shades that dates back to at least as far as the monarch's encounter with the witch of Endor.We explore some traditions common among Christian denominations, and also WAKES! Another strong ghostly tradition exists among Christians, but not universally shared.We look at funerary and ghostly traditions among Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Hindus, and Zoroastrians; and we take some time to ponder the Ghanaian Fantasy Coffins, and the New Orleans Jazz Funeral. What really deserves attention is the phenomenon of near-death experiences, not that they teach us about the world beyond, but they teach us an awful lot about ourselves. Raymond Moody put a lot of work into that field of NDEs, too bad it's all completely subjective neural chaos. DMT has been reported to offer a similar experience.All this and more....   Support us on Patreon or you can get our merch at Spreadshop.Join the Community on Discord.Learn more great religion factoids on Facebook and Instagram. [00:00:11] Katie Dooley: Hello, Preston.[00:00:12] Preston Meyer: Hi, Katie.[00:00:14] Katie Dooley: Get off your phone.[00:00:15] Preston Meyer: Okay.[00:00:18] Katie Dooley: It'll rot your brain on today's episode of--[00:00:21] Both Speakers: The Holy Watermelon Podcast![00:00:24] Katie Dooley: I don't know how to make a segue into this one.[00:00:27] Preston Meyer: This is a bit of a bummer.[00:00:28] Katie Dooley: It's... I feel like it's a more awkward conversation than even our sex talk.[00:00:33] Preston Meyer: I don't feel like it's more awkward.[00:00:34] Katie Dooley: People don't like talking about death. We're going to talk about some gross things today. [00:00:38] Preston Meyer: A little bit. But yeah, death is around us all the time. Can't really avoid it. That's the deal.[00:00:44] Katie Dooley: No, it's, uh, inevitable. Like Thanos.[00:00:48] Preston Meyer: That's what they say. Yeah, so I was talking to. A person that I work with the other day about his concern with ghosts. He was actually really worried about, um, the Titanic 2 expedition and all that nonsense, but the conversation led very quickly to ghosts, and it boggles my mind that we haven't just agreed that everywhere on the planet is super haunted or nowhere is.[00:01:21] Katie Dooley: I have had that thought as well. Um, I don't disagree with him because. My house alone has been around since the 50s. You can't tell me something hasn't died nearby,[00:01:33] Preston Meyer: Right?[00:01:34] Katie Dooley: Actually, I have heard that there is an unfortunate story with the next-door house, so, um,[00:01:40] Preston Meyer: Tell me more.[00:01:41] Katie Dooley: Uh, apparently someone killed themselves next door before the current people...[00:01:44] Preston Meyer: Bummer. Lived there. Are there haunting stories?[00:01:46] Katie Dooley: Not that I've heard of.[00:01:48] Preston Meyer: Okay. Just the unfortunate circumstances of death.[00:01:51] Katie Dooley: Yes, but that's typically.[00:01:54] Preston Meyer: What leads to a...[00:01:55] Katie Dooley: Haunting story. And I always think about how I'm like, you know, get haunted by your cat or your dog. How come ghosts are only humans? There's no bear ghosts.[00:02:03] Preston Meyer: It's a great question. Cocaine bear has unfinished business.[00:02:09] Katie Dooley: We should name this episode, "How come there are no ghosts?" Though I do really like your title, which we will probably stay with. Um. But I have often thought.[00:02:21] Preston Meyer: Yeah, for sure.[00:02:23] Katie Dooley: Or, like... I don't know...[00:02:25] Preston Meyer: Dinosaur ghosts? Why are we not haunted by the soul of absolutely ravaged Triceratops?[00:02:33] Katie Dooley: And also there's like, I don't know, ghosts feel like they're from a very specific time-period. Like, if you hear, like, how come we all have a ghost kicking around from the 1200s?[00:02:42] Preston Meyer: Right? All ghosts are Dickensian.[00:02:44] Katie Dooley: Yeah, or more modern but, uh, anyway.[00:02:54] Preston Meyer: Death is great, and we have really weird ways of dealing with it.[00:02:58] Katie Dooley: We really do. And I will sort of preface this before we break it down by religion is like we kind of think our way is the right way or the normal way. And reading some of these, some was like, that actually makes a lot of sense on how they handle death. And then some of them, I'm like, that's fucking weird, I won't...[00:03:18] Preston Meyer: Well, if you see one thing often enough, even if you aren't behind it theologically, the habits are still your habits. Normal gets normal.[00:03:27] Katie Dooley: Yeah. So that was, you know, eye opening to say the least.houldUm, anyway, so we kick it off with our good old Abrahamic buddies.[00:03:39] Preston Meyer: Let's do it. Stick with what's most familiar, and then we'll dig into. Yeah, the good stuff. So in Judaism, respect for the dead is one of the most important mitzvot. I feel like we've used this word before. It's commandments. So really take care of the dead. Traditionally, Jewish people bury their dead intact. Some people mostly, you know, you're more reform, more liberal Jewish groups will do the cremation thing. I think that's generally the the theme we'll see moving forward is the more conservatives will not like cremation. We're going to run out of space real soon. An interesting thing that I have read about Judaism is that cremation is counted as destruction of property.[00:04:31] Katie Dooley: Who's property?[00:04:35] Preston Meyer: That's an interesting question.[00:04:37] Katie Dooley: God's property. [00:04:38] Preston Meyer: That makes sense. But there's also the strong family thing in Judaism where there's like you, you belong to your family in this way that you are. If you're not moving that body around yourself anymore, you're property.[00:04:56] Katie Dooley: Oh. We'll, move you around. Oh, wait, that's a different tradition to talk about.[00:05:05] Preston Meyer: Yeah. Uh, Jewish people tend to observe a strict week of mourning after a funeral. They call this the shiva. Uh, it's just the number seven. So seven days of mourning. And during this process, mirrors in the home are often covered. And it's good to keep candles burning. And mourners will sit on nice low stools, like low as your squatty potty.[00:05:33] Katie Dooley: I'm too old for that. I'm not even that old.[00:05:36] Preston Meyer: It's a little tough, but these are all indications of mourning. Black veil is good for that. Things like that. Yeah.[00:05:43] Katie Dooley: Abrahamic and Western favour black for mourning.[00:05:48] Preston Meyer: Yeah and traditionally. Uh, you don't want to hasten up a death. You don't want to speed things along, even if you know death is imminent. Our country has a pretty interesting relationship with assisted death.[00:06:05] Katie Dooley: I think it's going to have to change anyway. That's not to digress too much. We could go on and chat about that, but I have my opinion.[00:06:16] Preston Meyer: Yeah, having it available makes perfect sense. The reality of the government actually pressuring people into it. I'm not a big fan of.[00:06:26] Katie Dooley: But I yeah, I mean it shouldn't be a government decision, but just like your pets, to let someone live in pain just so they can live as long as possible. And health care costs are only going to get more expensive, for whomever.[00:06:42] Preston Meyer: If the only activity on your schedule of day-to-day for months on end is eating up resources, at some point you got to figure out maybe there's a better plan.[00:06:54] Katie Dooley: Well, and I care less about resources as opposed to quality of life. Like we have family members that live every day in pain and then they're also paying. For fentanyl patches, which are very expensive to manage that pain that they're still in.[00:07:10] Preston Meyer: Fentanyl is a wild thing.[00:07:13] Katie Dooley: Anyway, wild.[00:07:16] Preston Meyer: Yeah. But as you may have deduced, we're going to talk about some ghosts today.[00:07:23] Katie Dooley: Really wants to talk about ghosts today. So.[00:07:25] Preston Meyer: So the Tanakh does mention ghosts. Um, there's a lot of different kinds of ghosts I've been in unrelated studies, been trying to suss out how different people categorize ghosts.[00:07:39] Katie Dooley: Like angels. [00:07:40] Preston Meyer: with A little bit. Yeah. Okay, so you've got poltergeists who can legit interact with the physical world, and then you've got shades which are not so much.[00:07:51] Katie Dooley: They're there, but they're they can't do anything.[00:07:53] Preston Meyer: Right. Like maybe you can communicate them. Maybe not, but they just they may be barely visible. They might be more visible, but they're not going to interact physically with the world. So they're like a shadow. So that's a shade sort of thing. So what we have in the Tanakh usually talks about shades more than poltergeists that we have in ancient Israel, the belief that ghosts, the spirits of the departed, could be summoned and you could have conversations with them and learn things from them. The story of Saul and the Witch of Endor is an example.[00:08:35] Katie Dooley: That's from Star Wars, right?[00:08:38] Preston Meyer: George Lucas is not half as original as he likes to get credit for. And Endor was just an old place. No Ewoks, which is just Wookiee backwards. Almost not perfect.[00:08:55] Katie Dooley: I see your theory. Yeah, yeah, yeah.[00:08:57] Preston Meyer: No, the plan was that they were going to go to the Wookiee homeworld in Return of the Jedi. And then they couldn't figure out how to do it in a reasonable way. So they decided, okay, we'll make smaller costumes and just cast little people.[00:09:15] Katie Dooley: Okay. Wow. Also, some Star Wars backstory from Preston today. Sorry, I interrupted, and I regret interrupting now.[00:09:26] Preston Meyer: So the shades are a thing that is a matter of concern in Jewish folklore. And in their theology a little bit as well. There are explicit commandments. Do not mess with people who summon ghosts. Which makes sense. And they also talk about shades that can linger in the land and just stay near the place where they lived or where they died. Isaiah talks a little bit about those too. So I think it's kind of interesting. Ghosts, very solid, part of the religious tradition and there are in more recent than biblical texts, traditions of these shades actually possessing a body usually for a short time just to accomplish a specific task. We talked about this a little bit in our voodoo episode. Actually, it's the same sort of idea. [00:10:22] Katie Dooley: Which makes, I was gonna say, makes a bit of sense knowing the origins of Voodoo, right?[00:10:27] Preston Meyer: Well, especially the way it interacted with other religions on its way here. Yeah. So kind of interesting that this possession business is really interesting. And as we get into Christianity, there's stories of ghosts in the New Testament, in Jewish populations where the story feels a lot different, knowing that there's this belief locally that these would be things that dead people are coming back to accomplish, rather than demons like the Greek interpretation jumps onto it. Mhm. It's kind of weird. Kind of fun.[00:11:06] Katie Dooley: Um, you know who loves death? Christian?[00:11:09] Preston Meyer: Uh, I don't even remember where the quote came from originally, but I feel like I've quoted it a few times. Christians are just way too excited to die. '[00:11:19] Katie Dooley: Yeah. Oh, man, they love it. Why is that Preston?[00:11:23] Preston Meyer: That we talk so much about the promise that the next life is going to be better. And yeah, there's there's so much wrong with this world that it makes sense to hope for something better. But when it gets anywhere close to somebody else realizing that you're too excited to die, you have really screwed up where your focuses are.[00:11:44] Katie Dooley: Yeah. And even like trying to try to make it all happen faster, trying to bring up the Second Coming. It's like.[00:11:52] Preston Meyer: Well, there's there's a lot of different ideas of what is supposed to trigger the Second Coming.[00:11:58] Katie Dooley: Humans aren't going to do it.[00:12:00] Preston Meyer: It's outside our control. We can't control God.[00:12:03] Katie Dooley: Doesn't mean people aren't trying because they can't wait. Yeah. Anyway, um, as I mentioned in Christians historically also don't like cremation because there would be no corpse when Jesus comes back and raises everyone from the dead, or he Christians believe in a physical resurrection.[00:12:23] Preston Meyer: Yeah, your body's got to rise from the grave. And as you pivot at the waist, you got to be facing east.[00:12:28] Katie Dooley: That sounds horrifying. It's all these and they all have to claw up six feet. Wow. Yeah.[00:12:37] Preston Meyer: Imagine the horror that this event would be.[00:12:39] Katie Dooley: Yeah. Anyway. But again, a lot of them are more relaxed now. I mean, I think it's just even people in my world, both of my grandparents were cremated and they were Christians. So. Anyway, I feel like they're the most relaxed now of any of the groups. [00:12:59] Preston Meyer: Probably,yeah.[00:13:02] Katie Dooley: I mean, Christian is a really big umbrella.[00:13:06] Preston Meyer: It sure is[00:13:07] But I'm sure there's groups within Christianity that still love a good burial, probably Catholic.[00:13:13] Preston Meyer: So I went to my granddad's funeral last...[00:13:17] Katie Dooley: We both did a bunch of funerals recently.[00:13:18] Preston Meyer: Yeah. What a time.[00:13:20] Katie Dooley: Yeah.[00:13:21] Preston Meyer: And I mean it was interesting that I had never talked about religion at all with my granddad. I'd never thought that he identified as Christian. Found out at his funeral. This was an important detail to somebody. Yeah. So there was a little ash cross dropped on his coffin and was laid down on the ground, making sure that he was facing in a way that if you were to bend at the waist, he'd be facing east. [00:13:52] Katie Dooley: In six feet of dirt.[00:13:53] Preston Meyer: Yeah it was it was an interesting learning experience.[00:13:59] Katie Dooley: Well, good.[00:13:59] Preston Meyer: And now we're talking about death.[00:14:01] Katie Dooley: Now we're talking about death in the terms of Christian wakes are a Christian thing.[00:14:08] Preston Meyer: Yeah. I haven't heard the word wake used a lot outside of a Catholic context. Um, though I'm certainly can't say that that's not happening, but it's certainly an old tradition.[00:14:20] Katie Dooley: Yeahand as someone who's involved with the Irish community, the Irish still love a good wake. I don't know too many other groups that do it. And I don't know if that's because it's Irish or because it's Catholic, like what that Venn diagram looks like. And how much is just the circles I run in. But the Irish love a good wake. The name comes from staying up long hours watching over the dead while reciting psalms.[00:14:43] Preston Meyer: So we're not talking about the risk of the dead waking up. It's just that you got to stay awake to watch the body.[00:14:50] Katie Dooley: To watch.[00:14:51] Preston Meyer: In case it wakes up.[00:14:53] Katie Dooley: in case it wakes up to make sure.[00:14:55] Preston Meyer: I mean, there it does make sense because historically we we have had situations aplenty enough that we've taken precautions.[00:15:05] Katie Dooley: Bells and...[00:15:05] Preston Meyer: Where the bodies do occasionally get back up again after we thought they were dead. But we're just dumb.[00:15:13] Katie Dooley: If you want to hear a great vaudeville song about exactly that, it's called Tim Finnegan's Wake and basically he's dead and everyone's sad. And then someone spills whiskey on him and he comes back to life because whiskey.[00:15:27] Preston Meyer: It's like the plants in my office.[00:15:31] Katie Dooley: Water. Oh. That's terrible. Preston.[00:15:38] Preston Meyer: Uh, no one's perfect.[00:15:41] Katie Dooley: You know, you don't need to keep plants if that's... If you're just gonna kill him.[00:15:45] Preston Meyer: I'm gonna be honest. I don't keep plants in my office, and the person who generally takes care of them generally takes very good care of them. But there are occasionally exceptions.[00:15:59] Katie Dooley: We're not going to do a full episode on Heaven or Hell. But Christians and even Muslims and Jews, depending on whether you're good or bad, good or bad, you get sent to heaven or hell. Dun dun dun. Yes, that definitely deserves its own episode.[00:16:16] Preston Meyer: Yeah, for most of history, the majority of Christians and an awful lot of segments of the Jewish population as well, have believed in a tiered series of heavens. In our angels episode, we talked about the ninth heaven, where like, the greatest of the angels live forever with God. And, um, the seventh heaven is a thing that happens occasionally in the way. What's the word I'm looking for? It's a common enough English idiom. Um, there's a TV show.[00:16:48] Katie Dooley: I know. [00:16:49] Preston Meyer: Who is in that TV show. I watched it for a year.[00:16:53] Katie Dooley: The most famous person out of Seventh Heaven was Jessica Biel. She was the second oldest daughter. Um, the guy who played the Christian pastor ended up being a pedophile in real life.[00:17:03] Preston Meyer: Oh, no.[00:17:04] Katie Dooley: Yeah, she was the most famous. I can't think of any of the other actors names now. Um, the older there was another.[00:17:10] Preston Meyer: Singer who was, like, really popular for a really short time. That was from that show, wasn't there? I don't know. I've got nothing.[00:17:17] Katie Dooley: Maybe as a side character, but of the family, only Jessica Biel made it anywhere significant.  I mean, JT and all and actually having some decent movie roles afterwards,[00:17:27] Preston Meyer: Right? Good for her.[00:17:30] Katie Dooley: Yeah. I mean, considering no one else.[00:17:33] Preston Meyer: Yeah. The phrase I'm on cloud nine. Yeah, I don't think you hear that a whole lot anymore either. But that was a thing.[00:17:38] Katie Dooley: That Cloud Nine superstore.[00:17:39] Preston Meyer: Your grandpappy, probably said... Man, Superstore was a good show.[00:17:43] Katie Dooley: It was a good show. Better than better than Seventh Heaven.[00:17:45] Preston Meyer: Yes. Um, yeah. So for a long time, we talked about these tiered heavens that. Yeah, salvation is universal, but because people suck to different degrees, some of us are going to achieve a better situation.[00:18:04] Or hell yeah.[00:18:05] Preston Meyer: Protestants, especially, like the evangelical movement, mostly believe in the simple dichotomy of black and white, no shades of gray. Everything that's wrong with you is going to be fixed or burn forever in hell. It's hard to say that I see the appeal to that. I don't really like it.[00:18:23] Katie Dooley: I mean.[00:18:24] Preston Meyer: It takes away your identity.[00:18:25] Katie Dooley: Well, and if it's that black and white, then everyone's going to hell because nobody's.[00:18:28] Preston Meyer: And that's absolutely contrary to the mission of Jesus. Oh, well.[00:18:34] Katie Dooley: I guess we'll find out one day.[00:18:36] Preston Meyer: Yeah. I think it's a lot more reasonable to accept this more classical idea of shades of gray. It just makes sense. Um, different types of people organized and divided based on the way they choose to live their lives would merit different levels of heaven, I think is really a really clean way of explaining it. There was a lady I used to visit for a while when I lived in New Jersey who hated the idea that God would separate people based on any judgment at all. It makes a lot more sense that we would separate ourselves, right? If you like stealing but hate violence, there's a community for you where you're safe from the violent. But the people who don't like being robbed are safe from you.[00:19:32] Katie Dooley: That's good. So you just all rob each other for all time.[00:19:35] Preston Meyer: Yeah,[00:19:37] Katie Dooley: That's a pretty good punishment.[00:19:38] Preston Meyer: Right?[00:19:39] Katie Dooley: You steal something, then you turn around and your shit's got. Ah.[00:19:41] Preston Meyer: Yeah.[00:19:42] Katie Dooley: So you got to steal more.[00:19:44] Preston Meyer: It feels a lot like the punishment fitting the crime. Yeah.[00:19:49] Katie Dooley: Um, we didn't put in our notes, but I know, I mean, I went to a Catholic funeral recently. We were... I don't know if you want to touch on that.[00:19:57] Preston Meyer: Sure, yeah. What is it that you experienced that you want to share?[00:20:00] Katie Dooley: I mean i've been told 2 or 3 Catholic funerals, now? Obviously, this one, most recently Catholic funerals are long because they do a full mass. I will say the thing about Catholic funeral, there's a lot of talk about God and not nearly as much about the person.[00:20:18] Preston Meyer: Sure. Now, is this a mass in addition to the daily mass, or is it just a not just a funeral attached to the daily mass?[00:20:27] Katie Dooley: No, they do... My understanding is they do a separate funeral mass.[00:20:31] Preston Meyer: I mean, nobody's accusing the Catholics of being efficient.[00:20:35] Katie Dooley: No, because it also took a long time. And then of course, I was like looking for the reliquary, because now we know from our lovely guest, Frank McMahon, confirmed that there is a holy relic in every Catholic church. So I'm looking for bits of saints.[00:20:49] Preston Meyer: Well, at the bare minimum, they'll have one locked away in the tabernacle, right? And you wouldn't get to see that. But yeah, if there's more about on on display.[00:20:59] Katie Dooley: There was something pretty fancy in a corner. And I was like, I don't know what that is. Okay, I didn't get close enough because I left the front for the family, but, uh.[00:21:07] Preston Meyer: No, no, you got to push your way through during a funeral.[00:21:10] Katie Dooley: During it. I need a front row seat, please, because I just need a front row seat. Um, but that's the biggest thing. Like. I mean, the last funeral I went to was as secular as a funeral gets. And they talk a lot about the person that passed. Um, so it's just. Different. But yeah, you know, everyone, priests especially very hopeful that she's in a better place. And we're the ones who are the losers an I don't know, I mean, you know, I don't believe any of that. I was like, is she. I mean, it's nice to think, but. Why are there no bear ghosts?[00:21:54] Preston Meyer: Because they don't have unfinished business. They got their honey. They're happy.[00:22:01] Katie Dooley: But. Right. If there's no bear heaven and bear hell, why is there human heaven? Human hell? Why are there no bear ghosts? That's my thesis.[00:22:14] Preston Meyer: I have a hypothesis. That bear heaven is fish hell. It's a very efficient system, and it's good enough that they don't need to linger here on Earth.[00:22:29] Katie Dooley: I've heard that, uh, squirrel hell is dog heaven.[00:22:32] Preston Meyer: Yeah. Perfect. So Christianity does inherit a lot from Jewish thought. It makes sense. Dispensationalism has got some tricky bits to it, but the inheritance system is inarguable. And that includes the matter of ghosts and the idea of possessing spirits I already mentioned shows up with the New Testament, but Greco-Roman thought shows a lot of its influence in the way that we see demons described in the Christian tradition that almost every ghost that you see described in the New Testament, apart from when they think that maybe Jesus is a ghost until he says, touch me and find out. [00:23:17] Katie Dooley: Pull my finger. Preston just wiggled his finger at me, so... "Pull my finger." - Jesus, Matthew 22:34.[00:23:26] Preston Meyer: Yeah, all the the ghosts are, well, terrible demons possessing people or making everybody have a bad time. Jehovah's Witnesses and Christadelphians outright deny the possibility of ghosts, which is really frustrating for them when you point out the holes in that logic. But. Oh, well they just stopped visiting.[00:23:52] Katie Dooley: As much as I, uh, you know, try to be fair to... They're the least Christian of the Christians.[00:23:59] Preston Meyer: I mean, it's so hard to delineate what what is Christian and what isn't.[00:24:03] Katie Dooley: I know, but that's was my point. I was trying to poorly word, but yeah, but they're at least Christian. [00:24:12] Preston Meyer: I can't argue with that in this moment.[00:24:15] Katie Dooley: My next thesis.[00:24:18] Preston Meyer: Um, Seventh-day Adventist got a lot of those in my family. They teach that any ghost you might encounter is absolutely, certainly a demon in disguise.[00:24:28] Katie Dooley: Cool.[00:24:29] Preston Meyer: Sure. Not that I'm encountering a whole lot of ghosts.[00:24:34] Katie Dooley: No, but I just, like. I'm imagining a ghost pulling off its ghost mask, like in Scooby Doo and be like there's a demon under here.[00:24:43] Preston Meyer: I like that imagery.[00:24:44] Katie Dooley: Thank you.[00:24:45] Preston Meyer: But generally everybody agrees they can basically shapeshift.[00:24:48] Katie Dooley: Oh, oh that makes a lot more sense, but it's way less cool.[00:24:54] Preston Meyer: Right? Most other Christians admit the possibility of the disguise problem, but acknowledge that a ghost could genuinely be the dead person you're after. The ghost that we see in the Witch of Endor story. It's not really answered in a really concrete way. Whether or not this should be expected to be a demon in disguise or the dead prophet returned. Because that wasn't the important part of the story. The important part of the story was stop getting witches to summon demons. Many Christians believe that the dead can take on the role of angel.[00:25:34] Katie Dooley: Which is where, as we're writing these notes, I was like, we need to separate heaven and hell. And even we talked about angels. And I was like, but dead people become angels.[00:25:43] Preston Meyer: Right.[00:25:43] Katie Dooley: One so yeah, there's like a whole other piece to this.[00:25:47] Preston Meyer: Yeah. Um, the Revelation talks about how there's like a third of the host of Heaven fell with Lucifer, as most people prefer to call him.[00:25:57] Katie Dooley: Satan is accurate.[00:25:59] Preston Meyer:  [00:25:59]Satan is a far more helpful thing here. And so those generally [00:26:03] get to be the ones that we call demons within Christian theology models. But there are also talks of, well, if you're just a bad person, you can become a demon that way too. It's exciting. It gives you something to aspire to if you don't want to change your ways. Lots of goodies.[00:26:23] Katie Dooley: Cool. The last of the Abrahamic religions, of course, is Islam. And I mean last chronologically[00:26:23] Preston Meyer: Of course and the last one we're talking about. [00:26:33] Katie Dooley: And the last one we're talking about today.[00:26:34] Preston Meyer: Because we usually stick. [00:26:36] Katie Dooley: Last but not least. Very similar, obviously, it's been influenced by Judaism and Christianity. When death is imminent, a family member or close friend is present to say the shahada, which is the, uh,[00:26:49] Preston Meyer: There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his prophet.[00:26:53] Katie Dooley: Yes. Uh, there's a word for it. Something of faith.[00:26:57] Preston Meyer: Uh, statement of faith. Statement.[00:26:58] Katie Dooley: Declaration. Declaration. Thank you. Declaration of faith. We talked about this in our Islam so years ago. But the shahada is also recited when you're born. So it's this. If you're born a Muslim, it's kind of a nice full-circle moment.[00:27:12] Preston Meyer: It's a very convenient conversion tool. All you got to do is shout that in somebody's ear and bam.[00:27:18] Katie Dooley: You actually shout it?[00:27:20] Preston Meyer: I mean, some people like like the video of the guy who doing like a really awful baptism of a baby with dunk, dunk dunk dunk dunk.[00:27:28] Katie Dooley: Baby gets shaken baby.[00:27:29] Preston Meyer: Yeah. And the parents are just horrified. There are people who shout at the children. But that's not likely the typical format.[00:27:39] Katie Dooley: All right. Again with like with the other Abrahamic faiths and more strictly Muslims do not cremate their dead. Some Jews do. I'd say half of Christians do, and no Muslims do. They do not cremate their dead because they believe in the physical resurrection that will happen. And autopsies are also forbidden. Unnecessary autopsies, obviously. I presume in the case of murder they would do an autopsy. But if someone dies in their home, they don't do autopsies[00:28:11] Preston Meyer: Right. There's I mean, there are places where autopsies just aren't happening. But here in North America, yeah, if something bad happens, it's going to happen. And you can put on your frowny face all you want. It's still going to happen. You just muscle through it.[00:28:30] Katie Dooley: Uh, but organ donation is okay because it helps people.[00:28:33] Preston Meyer: So I'm really glad that exception exists. It feels weird.[00:28:39] Katie Dooley: It feels contradictory.[00:28:40] Preston Meyer: Yeah. But I appreciate that exception exists because it helps people.[00:28:45] Katie Dooley: Yeah. I mean, you know, someone's dead and you don't care why they died. What is the point of an autopsy? Right. If they're 80 something years old.[00:28:56] Preston Meyer: Yeah.[00:28:57] Katie Dooley: And they died at home in their bed or in a hospital in the bed.[00:29:00] Preston Meyer: There's gonna come a time 100 years from now, and our podcast will still be available on podcast libraries. And somebody's going to hear that it was normal for us to die at 80 and go. What the hell was wrong with these people?[00:29:16] Katie Dooley: You think our life expectancy is going to get that?[00:29:18] Preston Meyer: I think our life expectancy can reasonably be expected to be extended by decades. I got high hopes. We'll see.[00:29:28] Katie Dooley: Uh, bodies are originally washed and wrapped in a white sheet before burial. And they are washed three times by a family member of the same gender as the deceased. Sharia law dictates that funeral planning start immediately after the death, and bodies are buried quickly. There are no viewings, so no wakes. You did not stay up all night drinking with your dead grandma. Have you seen Derry Girls?[00:29:55] Preston Meyer: I've seen a little bit of Derry Girls, but I definitely have not seen whatever has come to your mind.[00:30:00] Katie Dooley: There's an episode and they're at someone's wake. And my favorite character, Sister Michael, she's a curmudgeonly nun. Who I don't even know if she has that much faith. And there's one part. She's at this wake and she's talking to a family member. The family member is very annoying. She's like, oh my God, is this my wake? Am I dead? Am I in hell?[00:30:23] Preston Meyer: I love it.[00:30:26] Katie Dooley: Sister Michael, I'll show it to you after I love her. I watched through the whole series, and it's filled with charming teens. I was like, no, that grumpy old lady. That's my favorite.[00:30:38] Preston Meyer: That sounds right. So, if you were wondering. Yes, Muslims believe in ghosts. Uh, the spirits of the dead are supposed to go on to an underworld called Barzakh.[00:30:51] Katie Dooley: Oh, that's a good name.[00:30:52] Preston Meyer: Yeah, I like the name. Be honest, I did not look up what the name means. I'm sure it's got meaning, but I'll look it up later. Improper burial can impede the journey to this underworld.[00:31:03] Katie Dooley: Oh, that's why they're so regimented in it, okay.[00:31:06] Preston Meyer: Because you don't want to risk screwing this up, and then you've got a ghost wandering around because, I mean, if you ever notice ghosts, it's not because they're doing nice things for you. Nobody's emptying your dishwasher. It's not happening.[00:31:19] Katie Dooley: Oh, you seen that webcomic of this little ghost? And he's like, I love home decorating. And he's, like, moving around frames and vases, and the family's like, ah, but he's just this cute little ghost. It's like, I love this work. It makes me way too happy, but also sad.[00:31:34] Preston Meyer: I love it. Yeah, that's great. Um, so the shades of righteous spirits are expected to linger at their own graves, which feels a little bit weird. I had to dig at this. There's like, the soul goes on to the underworld and awaits resurrection. But a shade, a shadow of that soul lingers at the grave so that people can come and talk to it and get whatever great mystic knowledge is reserved for, not the living. But apparently the shades are willing to share it sometime.[00:32:16] Katie Dooley: It feels like a pretty common practice of like.[00:32:18] Preston Meyer: Yeah.[00:32:19] Katie Dooley: Visiting grave to talk to a loved one.[00:32:21] Preston Meyer: I would say it's pretty close to universal that you would go to wherever you buried your loved ones to talk to them, hoping to get some sort of answer.[00:32:32] Katie Dooley: But they believe that they actually stay there. That's cool.[00:32:36] Preston Meyer: Yeah, it's kind of nifty.[00:32:38] Katie Dooley: Yeah. All right. Heading to the East air quotes.[00:32:44] Preston Meyer: Vaguely eastward from where we were.[00:32:46] Katie Dooley: Or where we're heading to the Dharmic religions is actually a better title. Hinduism.[00:32:52] Preston Meyer: Yeah.[00:32:54] Katie Dooley: So when death is near, it is common to obtain water for purification from the Ganges River, which is considered sacred.[00:33:02] Preston Meyer: Remember we talked about how the Hindu people are the river folks.[00:33:05] Katie Dooley: The river folk is the part to be surrounded by loved ones at the time of your death. If the body is left alone, uh, light, ideally, a candle should be left near the body as close to the head as can be done safely so.[00:33:19] Preston Meyer: Yeah. You don't want them catching on fire.[00:33:20] Katie Dooley: No. Uh, to comfort the lingering spirit. Generally for Hindus, families are encouraged to remain conservative in their mourning, allowing the soul to move on quickly to its next stage. The soul is said to linger as long as people hold it with their thoughts. So mourners are encouraged to focus on happy thoughts and memories. I like that.[00:33:41] Preston Meyer: Right? So it's okay to mourn, but not too long and not too negatively. Which is good. Remember the good times.[00:33:51] Katie Dooley: Families typically prefer to bury the body within a day. Any work the coroner might need to do is a major inconvenience.[00:33:58] Preston Meyer: I mean, that's true, generally.[00:34:02] Katie Dooley: All organs need to be returned to their place before burial. So no organ donation here.[00:34:07] Preston Meyer: Yeah, I'm there's definitely going to be exceptions to that. Some people are a lot more liberal than but the the general religious expectation is leave it be.[00:34:20] Katie Dooley: The soul is believed to carry on to its next incarnation, whether as an angel, a human or an animal. Or better yet, escape the cycle of samsara and recombine with Brahma, the source of all creation, potentially to be recycled into creation. But that would be as a nearly totally new soul.[00:34:40] Preston Meyer: Yeah, the this cycle of samsara is. A really interesting thing to study so much potential or just go back and recombine with God. And maybe he'll use you again.[00:34:54] Katie Dooley: Maybe he'll use you for something else. You've done it. But now you're a rock. Because he needed a rock right here. Yeah, ad if you'll recall, the you come back based on how good you are. Good you were your karma in your past lives. So if you're doing good, you'll come back as something better. You're not doing so good. You're heading back to that rock.[00:35:18] Preston Meyer: Yeah. And that's historically that was like the way to move between casts was just.[00:35:26] Katie Dooley: Being reborn.[00:35:27] Preston Meyer: Yeah. And now we've seen in some places some movement between castees is more possible than in other places.[00:35:37] Katie Dooley: I mean, this generaetion, I think, is caring less about caste than ever before. And I'm sure in the next 20, 30, 40 years, it'll...[00:35:47] Preston Meyer: Get a little bit better every generation. Yeah, one can hope anyway.[00:35:52] Katie Dooley: Tell me about the Ghost, though.[00:35:53] Preston Meyer: Oh, man. So there's some there's some baggage here with Hindu ghosts. You're supposed to move on to the next life.[00:36:01] Katie Dooley: So if you don't, you're downgrading.[00:36:05] Preston Meyer: Right? You're supposed to get a new body.[00:36:07] Katie Dooley: So a ghost is like a variant of Loki. You've come out of the timeline.[00:36:14] Preston Meyer: A little bit.[00:36:15] Katie Dooley: Interesting.[00:36:16] Preston Meyer: I mean, to the point where you've got folks like the TVA saying, no, you need to get back in line. Yeah, that's a little that is a fair enough analogy of what we're looking at. Okay. It's not perfect.[00:36:29] Katie Dooley: But you're right because you're either supposed to come back better or come back worse. So if you're not coming back at all and you're not escaping samsara, there's a problem. Okay. I can't wait to hear this.[00:36:40] Preston Meyer: So go start a very serious matter. Reincarnation is the normal path. Something is keeping spirits from passing on to the next phase, which could theoretically be nirvana. But if you're in this situation where you're lingering here, maybe that next step isn't Nirvana. So there's a good list of things that might prevent a spirit from moving on, and thus lingering is a noticeable and likely malevolent spirit. We've got improper burial. So a lot of religions worry about burying people properly to prevent ghost problems. Uh, we've got violent death. Loads of fun there. Unfinished business. I mean, that's bad karma. Most of these are bad karma type things. Sometimes it's not your karma, but other people's karma on you. But if you've got unfinished business, that's your own karma. And the worst of all of these, the one that had some serious baggage that I thought was really interesting is if a woman dies in childbirth or at the abuse of her in-laws, then she is said to return as a churel or chudel or whatever. 400 different ways are pronouncing that based on the various languages of the region. A malevolent and destructive spirit is what a churel is, and they are focused on the destruction of the family that wronged her. Yeah, it's apparently very dramatic, caused a lot of problems, and they've got ghost hunters to deal with that.[00:38:15] Katie Dooley: Yeah, I was going to say that sounds like the plot of a good Bollywood movie.[00:38:20] Preston Meyer: There's got to be one, right? The odds are good.[00:38:23] Katie Dooley: The odds are... I might have to do some digging. Yeah. Cool. Buddhism.[00:38:30] Preston Meyer: So I remember showing you a video a little while ago that looked super suspicious.[00:38:35] Katie Dooley: I remember when I saw this, I was like, oh, okay. Yeah. Um, so Buddhism sort of overarching, very similar to Hinduism, trying to escape the cycle of life and death. But there's some nuances and some practices within Buddhism that are neat slash kinda gross.[00:38:52] Preston Meyer: Yeah, they're care for the dead is completely incompatible with what we see in the Hindu tradition.[00:38:58] Katie Dooley: I'm tempted to put a trigger warning on this part of the episode. I found it a bit gross. Sure, mostly the sokushinbutsu.[00:39:06] Preston Meyer: You've been warned. Skip ahead five minutes if you don't want to handle this.[00:39:09] Katie Dooley: Yeah, it's just like body horror is a bit strong, but it is a little gross. So we're gonna talk about Tibetan sky burials. Tell me about this video that you showed me.[00:39:18] Preston Meyer: So there was this person in a little corral full of vultures because they don't always just fly around waiting for stuff. Sometimes they know where the good stuff is, and sometimes they're part of a farm. And this person was just chopping up a human skeleton up. It was a pretty clean skeleton. Somebody had already taken care of business.[00:39:39] Katie Dooley: And it was very clear from the rib cage that it was a human skeleton.[00:39:43] Preston Meyer: It was very obviously human.[00:39:45] Katie Dooley: So this was a Tibetan sky burial. Sky burial. I don't know if it was in Tibet, but that's where it comes from. The term sky burial is a Western term. The actual practice, the translation translates to giving alms to the birds, which I kind of love.[00:40:00] Preston Meyer: It's for the birds.[00:40:02] Katie Dooley: This is a practice where the corpse is placed on a mountain to decompose through exposure to the elements and animal scavenging. Obviously, in the case Preston's talking about, for whatever reason, they need to speed it up. Or.[00:40:14] Preston Meyer: I mean, this could have been taking care of the skeleton after the scavenging. Yeah.[00:40:20] Katie Dooley: So Vajrayana Buddhists believe that the body is an empty vessel once the spirit has left. So none of this physical resurrection and therefore there's no reason to keep it. The person's got a new body somewhere else. They died. They've resurrected. They're not sorry, reincarnated somewhere else.[00:40:40] Preston Meyer: Yeah, Buddhists just generally aren't terribly worried about the corpse. And that's nice. I can appreciate that. Just don't worry about it.[00:40:49] Katie Dooley: Another Buddhist practice that mildly traumatized me. And it has a I feel like a deeper theological discussion we could talk about is Sokushinbutsu is the practice of self-mummification.[00:41:06] Preston Meyer: So gross.[00:41:06] Katie Dooley: Japanese. It started by Japanese Buddhist monks. Um, it's an ascetic practice. Acetic, ascetic? I always say it wrong.[00:41:14] Preston Meyer: Acetic is a kind of acid.[00:41:17] Katie Dooley: It's an ascetic practice that takes about 3000 days. That's what, eight years, roughly.[00:41:22] Preston Meyer: Sure.[00:41:23] Katie Dooley: To complete. And it involves essentially eating a tree. Monks would eat pine needles, resin and seeds found in these trees, and the process eventually eliminates all body fat.[00:41:38] Preston Meyer: So you've you've had Buckley's tastes awful, but it works.[00:41:42] Katie Dooley: Yeah, that's part of the tree.[00:41:43] Preston Meyer: Yeah. So the reason that it tastes awful and works is because pine needle oil is mildly toxic. That's why grass doesn't grow right up to the base of the tree. Why would you want to eat pine needles? Unless, of course, this is your plan.[00:41:59] Katie Dooley: Well. And yes. And this is I'll finish explaining it. But this like this idea and I guess it's like self-flagellation of, like, what is so important that you're willing to do this. And as an atheist I'm like, mm, nothing. Anyway, we'll we'll come back to that. Continue explaining this horrific process. So eating the tree eliminates all body fat. It does result in the starvation that it leaves the body well preserved, and they found corpses with skin, hair, teeth, nails in the forest, which is wild, and obviously probably because you're right of the biotoxins animals don't touch them right, and the skin doesn't rot away. So I don't know who figured this out. I don't know why anyone wanted to figure this out, but.[00:42:44] Preston Meyer: Right. There's there's so much that we do that like knowing it. Sure. We can keep going. How did we first find out? Like cheese. The milk went so bad and then all of a sudden was fine again.[00:43:03] Katie Dooley: There's a lot of things in life. I'm like, how did we figure this out? This is one I don't think we needed to figure out but... So the practice has been banned since the late 1800s in Japan. But and there's pictures of this if you do like this kind of stuff. The Buddhist monk Luang Pho Daeng died in 1973. He was a Thai monk from Thailand after practicing sokushinbutsu, and his body is actually on display and they just die while meditating. So he's sitting there cross-legged and they put sunglasses on them because apparently his eye sockets are pretty horrific. But, uh, I mean, it's an interesting example of... They didn't do anything to him. He's just he's behind glass now.[00:43:47] Preston Meyer: But I would hope so because people, you know, people are going to be touching. Right.[00:43:53] Katie Dooley: Yeah. But he's they didn't do any other sort of embalming to him besides...[00:43:58] Preston Meyer: What he did himself, what he...[00:43:59] Katie Dooley: Did to himself. So anyway, um, yeah, it's an interesting like but I guess we even have cases like 9/11. What do you believe in so much that you're willing to die for it? Something that takes 3000 days of some commitment[00:43:59] Preston Meyer: Right? I mean, there's a lot of things I like to eat that would slow this process down.[00:44:20] Katie Dooley: I don't I don't think you're supposed to eat other things.[00:44:23] Preston Meyer: I know it's a major commitment.[00:44:25] Katie Dooley: You'd be like, you'd eat like pine needles and then be like, oh, but a burger sounds great.[00:44:29] Preston Meyer: Right?[00:44:32] Katie Dooley: Um, yeah. And the the Luang Pho Daeng, he had six kids and a wife, and he left to become a Buddhist monk. And then he decided.[00:44:41] Preston Meyer: He would end it all the slowest way possible.[00:44:43] Katie Dooley: The slowest way possible. And I just, I, I don't know, I just I can't wrap my head around it, but I guess it's.[00:44:50] Preston Meyer: Not for me.[00:44:51] Katie Dooley: I guess. But John Paul II flogged himself and people flew into the Twin Towers and Luang Pho Dang starved himself to death. I don't, I guess. Maybe I'm just too apathetic, Preston.[00:45:05] Preston Meyer: Maybe, I don't know.[00:45:08] Katie Dooley: Maybe I just like life too much.[00:45:10] Preston Meyer: There's a lot to like about life.[00:45:12] Katie Dooley: I think so, but.[00:45:14] Preston Meyer: All right. Well, believe it or not, Buddhists believe in ghosts, too.[00:45:19] Katie Dooley: What? I'm seeing a theme. This might be the only universal belief in the entire world. I don't believe in ghosts, though, so.[00:45:26] Preston Meyer: Well, we've already pointed out a couple of groups that deny the universality of the belief. Jehovah's Witnesses and Christadelphians.[00:45:34] Katie Dooley: But I do know atheists that believe in ghosts, which is funny to me.[00:45:37] Preston Meyer: Right? You can believe in ghosts without believing in God.[00:45:39] Katie Dooley: No, but I just.[00:45:41] Preston Meyer: No. I think if you do believe in ghosts, it's easy to talk somebody into believing that there's more. And then bam, you get into the mysterious agnostic belief in some sort of god.[00:45:56] Katie Dooley: Or some sort of something.[00:45:58] Preston Meyer: Well, even even if the universe is God, you still got all God.[00:46:01] Katie Dooley: Yeah. Anyway, I was so excited to find a universal belief, its not even universal that puppies are adorable.[00:46:09] Preston Meyer: Right? Puppies are haram.[00:46:12] Katie Dooley: Are haram. Anyway.[00:46:14] Preston Meyer: All right, so many Buddhists celebrate a ghost festival. Where they offer food to ghosts who might linger. This is an expression of compassion mostly, which is one of the greatest virtues of Buddhism. And in return, the ghosts do not bother the community, which seems to usually work, or, depending on your measure of things, maybe always works.[00:46:39] Katie Dooley: Because they don't exist.[00:46:41] Preston Meyer: Right? Um, ghosts might also move onto a realm specifically for hungry ghosts, where there are no offerings and everybody is just hungry all the time.[00:46:57] Katie Dooley: That sounds scary.[00:46:58] Preston Meyer: That sounds like hell. I feel like this is a really nice way of saying they're in hell.[00:47:04] Katie Dooley: Yeah, I don't want to be hungry.[00:47:06] Preston Meyer: Yeah. That sucks. In the Tibetan tradition. A bothersome ghost can be captured with a special trap and extra killed with a ritual dagger, sending it to be reborn again.[00:47:20] Katie Dooley: My, do you know what that reminds me of? When people say he was killed to death, I'm like, uh huh, uh huh. Yep.[00:47:27] Preston Meyer: Redundant. [00:47:28] Preston Meyer: Murder-Death-Killed.[00:47:29] Katie Dooley: Murdered. Death killed. He was murdered to death.[00:47:33] Preston Meyer: But if a ghost is sticking around, that's. Yeah, there is a procedure in place to kill the ghost so that it is not an operating ghost any further.[00:47:44] Katie Dooley: I was going to say that's the only context in which I will accept killed to death is when you're killing a ghost.[00:47:51] Preston Meyer: Yeah, it's. It doesn't fit in the frame that we have for ghosts here. It's different than exorcism, which is kind of what we would talk about, about getting rid of a ghost. But there there are some, some commonalities. There is one particular ghost that I think is rather interesting. And the Dalai Lama agrees. Maybe not for the same reason. Dorjee Shugden is a powerful 17th century monk, I say is because that's what some people believe. In Tibet, he's revered by some who claim that his lingering ghost is a god. Most Buddhists don't really mess with arguments about theology. Don't worry about God's worry about your own path through samsara.[00:48:40] Katie Dooley: This one is hot topic.[00:48:42] Preston Meyer: Yeah, because a lot of people believe that Shugden is a God that is, like worthy of worship and like focus on him a fair bit. And other people, not so much. Of course, the Dalai Lama is not a fan at all. He says that Shugden is an evil spirit. And yeah, this division is causing a lot of contention in Tibet.[00:49:06] Katie Dooley: Sikhs, Sikhism, like Buddhists and Hindus, believe in reincarnation, which is interesting because it's also a monotheistic religion. Remember, it's the baby of Hinduism and Islam.[00:49:18] Preston Meyer: Hindu's a little bit monotheistic. That's true. Depending on your interpretation of all of the things and expressions of God.[00:49:26] Katie Dooley: Um, so Sikhs believe in reincarnation that comes from the Hinduism side and to eventually escape the cycle and become one with God, but only one God. I guess, as you pointed out, Brahma.[00:49:39] Preston Meyer: Right, one, three, 700 million, whatever.[00:49:43] Katie Dooley: It's fine. Cremation is the preferred and traditionally accepted method to deal with the deceased in Sikhism. This is the first time we've seen that. [00:49:54] Preston Meyer: It's like a system built around being wise in a very densely populated part of the world. Thought of a solution to one of a few problems.[00:50:06] Katie Dooley: Family members are expected to witness the cremation process, which I thought was interesting. I don't think that's very typical here.[00:50:12] Preston Meyer: I don't know if we make it very convenient to witness a cremation here.[00:50:16] Katie Dooley: I think you can if you ask, but I don't think it's typicalbecause when we put down Paige, if you've heard our little jingles on the podcast, there's no more jingles anymore. It was an option to watch her be cremated. And I was like, no, I'm good. But I haven't had a human in my life cremated recently, so I don't know.[00:50:35] Preston Meyer: Fingers crossed that it doesn't happen.[00:50:37] Katie Dooley: I'm gonna do that.[00:50:38] Preston Meyer: And if you're curious why people cross their fingers or knock on wood, we did an episode on that a little while ago.[00:50:45] Katie Dooley: Ashes are scattered into a river. They believe that the body should be returned to the earth, and that the family left behind doesn't carry this attachment to the body. In instances where Sikhs may choose burial, headstones are not allowed because the body is just that shell that we've seen in the other Dharmic religions. There should be no attachment to the body. A Sikh funeral is antam sanskar. Antam Sanskar which translates to final ceremony. TThe deceased Sikh is dressed in their five Sikh articles of faith before the funeral and cremation. So that's the Kesh, Kanga, Katcha, Khara and kirpan. If you want to know what those are.[00:51:31] Preston Meyer: Check out.[00:51:32] Katie Dooley: Our episode. One of those is a little knife. Yeah, that's the kirpan. After a funeral service, family and friends gather to read the Sri Guru Granth Sahib. Which is the final guru and the holy book.[00:51:46] Preston Meyer: So as an heir to both Hindu and Muslim philosophies, the ideas of ghosts live in both realms. To some extent, we do have the worry of the ghosts of the abused, that maybe they'll come back and cause some problems, and it's kind of hard to work that out of the faith when it's still living in at least the more secular portion of the Hindu reality. Yeah. Nothing terribly new and exciting there.[00:52:13] Katie Dooley: Now we have some outliers, some that attach directly to religion. Some are just cultural practices around death. Now that we all know what Zoroastrianism is. They are actually doing something very similar to the sky funerals, they have a tower of silence.[00:52:27] Preston Meyer: That sounds really cool.[00:52:29] Katie Dooley: It does. They put their dead on this tower raised platform for scavengers and the elements to aid in decomposition. It is a circular ray structure used just for this purpose. This keeps corpses which are considered to be unclean, away from the sacred elements of fire, earth and water.[00:52:53] Preston Meyer: Up in the air.[00:52:55] Katie Dooley: Well, there's not much you can do about that. I figured it this way. Right. You either has to be Earth. Well, I guess any of them. One of them has to be tainted, though, to get rid of the body. So they've opted for air and give it to the animals. I didn't read the full article because it was behind a paywall, which I hate, but, uh, there's no Towers of Silence in in the West. So that has led Zoroastrians to have to compromise on their last funeral rites and traditions, which is kind of sad. I mean, right, and this is where.[00:53:28] Preston Meyer: Fire is such a big thing, there's always these these fire temples for Zoroastrianism. And part of me wants to say, well, just build a separate fire for cremation, but that is still putting an unclean thing in sacred fire.[00:53:44] Katie Dooley: But and this is where, you know, I said at the top of the episode, some things make a lot of sense, like getting rid of a body in a very both economical and ecological way makes a ton of sense, and I don't think it gets more sanitary than a tower of silence. Whatever, you could argue a sky burial mound could get into the water system or whatever. But yeah, you're right. The West is so uptight about. [00:54:14] Preston Meyer: Dead bodies.[00:54:15] Katie Dooley: Dead bodies, so do I think. You know, eating a tree to die makes a lot of sense. No. Do I think, uh, sky burial does? Yeah.[00:54:24] Preston Meyer: Yeah. Fair.[00:54:25] Katie Dooley: And so it made me sad for them. Like, imagine not being able to have a funeral the way you won't have a funeral for a loved one.[00:54:32] Preston Meyer: There's. There's got to be a way that we can work around existing systems to make that work out.[00:54:39] Katie Dooley: I don't know, I feel like you. Well, no, because there'd still be laws. But the solution is buying private land, right? But you still have to circumvent laws with dead bodies. And I don't know what laws.[00:54:49] Preston Meyer: Cops aren't allowed on our property.[00:54:51] Katie Dooley: Yeah, um.[00:54:52] Preston Meyer: What's the tower for? None of your business. It's a religious structure.[00:54:55] Katie Dooley: You can't see what's on top of it. Of course we have, of course, drones and airplanes and all sorts of things. People know there's dead.[00:55:01] Preston Meyer: There's. Yeah. New project. I'm going to design a structure that isn't super friendly to drones, where you could have a tower of silence.[00:55:13] Katie Dooley: Okay.[00:55:16] Preston Meyer: This would be a thing that will happen a lot more easily if I knew people who were Zoroastrians.[00:55:24] Katie Dooley: Well, if you know a Zoroastrian... If you know Zoroastrian, put them in touch with us. I would just love to interview them and, uh, Preston can talk about his scheme with them.[00:55:37] Preston Meyer: Yep. All right. New Orleans jazz funeral is a fun little extra thing to talk about. Yeah. So, Louisiana. I've never been. Have you been to Louisiana?[00:55:50] Katie Dooley: No. It's actually quite high on my list of places in the States to go. Um, I would really like to go to New Orleans.[00:55:56] Preston Meyer: Yeah, it's from from what I've seen on TV and movies. A great collection of people. That's about what I got for my own knowledge. But luckily we do reading.[00:56:09] Katie Dooley: Yeah. And I mean, I this is nice because we have talked about Voodoo and a little bit of Hoodoo in the past.[00:56:15] Preston Meyer: Yeah. So there's strong colonial past there. Connects to Europe, Africa and the Caribbean. There is a great tradition of military style brass bands at these funeral processions. You can you can find videos on YouTube. They're great. Mix that with African spiritual practices, Catholic influences. And you know, this being the birthplace of jazz, New Orleans has a pretty unique funerary tradition. Lots of dancing. I've seen more than one casket drop.[00:56:48] Katie Dooley: I mean, that person doesn't care anymore.[00:56:52] Preston Meyer: And everybody's having a good time. You're like, for sure there are going to be a couple living people who are a little uncomfortable with dropping a casket, but that's not a thing that has to be remembered. Yeah. They really incorporate celebration into the mourning. Yeah. You lost somebody you love, but you get to celebrate the time you did enjoy with them and celebrate the fact that you've been brought together with your community and family.[00:57:17] Katie Dooley: You know, I'm just going to touch on this right now because I'm thinking of it. Our good friend Sarah Snyder, our very first ever guest on the podcast, she shared a I guess it's a meme that's not a funny one the other day. And she said, things that are said at funerals should be set at birthdays. And I thought, I'm going to start doing that. I'm going to write long loving cards to my friends now. So I like it. It doesn't all get left to the last minute.[00:57:41] Preston Meyer: Yeah.[00:57:42] Katie Dooley: Ghanaian fantasy coffins. So interesting. We'll post some pictures on the day this launches on our Discord. These are works of art used by the Ga people of Southern Ghana. They believe that our lives continue into the next world the same as they did on Earth. So the coffins represent the deceased by using different symbols. Fantasy coffins are shaped and painted. You can get them in ships, mermaids, chickens, shoes and so much more. And yeah, often they use it to represent what your job was in life. So pilots will be buried in planes and.[00:58:20] Preston Meyer: So I can get I wrap my head around a lot of careers that would get you buried in something that's shaped like a ship. What do I do I have to do to get buried inside a mermaid?[00:58:32] Katie Dooley: I would also say ship related work. Ocean navigating. You can also be a professional mermaid now.[00:58:41] Preston Meyer: Okay, fair.[00:58:43] Katie Dooley: I don't know how popular that is in Ghana I feel like it's a real white person thing.[00:58:46] Preston Meyer: Famadihana is the traditional Madagascar ceremony of the Malagasy people, of turning of the bones. It's basically just a way to continually remember the deceased. Bodies of ancestors are removed from their resting place, rewrapped and their names written on the shroud to be remembered. That's kind of nice. A little gross.[00:59:11] Katie Dooley: Yeah, I was gonna say I want to be the person. There's like a there's a point where is horrible. And then once they're just bones, it's fine. But there's like the first couple of years where they're still icky. I wouldn't want to be that person.[00:59:24] Preston Meyer: But yeah, when it's sticky, it's a bad time. Yeah.[00:59:27] Katie Dooley: But once they're just clean bones, yeah, that's not so bad.[00:59:32] Preston Meyer: And depending on the situation, I mean, it might not even be a long time, right?[00:59:36] Katie Dooley: I don't know how long the body takes to decompose.[00:59:39] Preston Meyer: It varies on region. Right. Well Madagascar is wet.[00:59:42] Katie Dooley: Yeah. And then I mean over here they don't decompose because we put so many fucking toxic shit into them, which.[00:59:47] Preston Meyer: There is that[00:59:49] Katie Dooley: Please don't do that to me. I want to be a mushroom.[00:59:52] Preston Meyer: Okay?[00:59:53] Katie Dooley: Hollow me out and then turn me into mushrooms.[00:59:55] Preston Meyer: Yeah. Okay, so there is more to this process. They don't just wrap them up and then stick them back where they found them. They dance with their skeletons. They have a real party. I'm almost. I'm gonna say Mexican Day of the dead level.[01:00:12] Katie Dooley: Yeah.[01:00:13] Preston Meyer: But there's this practice creeps a lot of people out, and so they're doing it less and less. I don't know if it needs to be stamped out. It doesn't feel like that is necessary, but the Christian missionaries have really put a lot of pressure on them to stop, even though the Catholic Church is okay with it.[01:00:32] Katie Dooley: The Catholic Church has come out to say they're okay with it. So I'm guessing these are Protestant missionaries that are like, maybe we shouldn't dance with bones. Catholic Church has come out and said, no, it's fine. Have fun.[01:00:43] Preston Meyer: I mean, especially this newest pope. He's mostly like, yeah, keep doing your good things. Please don't leave the church.[01:00:52] Katie Dooley: I just heard by the time this episode comes out, this will be really old news, but that he's, like, not approved of gay marriage. But there's steps being taken to... You can't call them marriage, but you can get blessed.[01:01:07] Preston Meyer: Yeah. The Pope did a little while ago announced that he will bless gay unions, which is. It's a step. It is a step.[01:01:24] Katie Dooley: So, anyway, uh, Preston mentioned the day of the dead, and we've talked about it a little bit before. And it is, of course, the subject of video or popular animated films. The day of the Dead is November 2nd, religiously. Secularly. It has extended to more than a single day, and the festival is much more fun. The ghosts aren't likely offended, right?[01:01:47] Preston Meyer: It's just loads of rum. Loads and loads and loads of rum.[01:01:50] Katie Dooley: For that part of the world.[01:01:51] Preston Meyer: Bright colors and parades. All right, so I did a bunch of deep diving into near death experiences. Um, so research into this field of near-death experiences is relatively new. We haven't been talking about it for even 200 years quite yet, really. And so it started when people started regularly falling from heights great enough to have time to contemplate their lives. So fairly recent history. And so when we started reviving people from clinical deaths, then we started getting a lot more people giving reports on their near-death experiences, experiencing the sorts o

Australia's international airports seized nearly 400,000 items from travelers last year, including live toads, slugs, birds' nests, and holy water from the Ganges River. In light of this, Renuka presents a feature on what you can and can't bring into Australia. - தடைசெய்யப்பட்ட மற்றும் ஆஸ்திரேலியாவின் சுற்றுச்சூழலுக்கு ஆபத்தான கிட்டத்தட்ட 4 லட்சம் பொருட்கள் கடந்த ஆண்டு ஆஸ்திரேலிய விமான நிலையங்களில் வைத்து கைப்பற்றப்பட்டுள்ளன. இதுகுறித்த செய்தியின் பின்னணியை எடுத்துவருகிறார் றேனுகா துரைசிங்கம்.

Madison Margolin is a journalist covering psychedelics and spirituality. She is the author of Exile & Ecstasy: Growing Up with Ram Dass & Coming of Age in the Jewish Psychedelic Underground. Also the host of the Be Here Now Network's Set & Setting Podcast, as well as the co-founder of both DoubleBlind Magazine and the Jewish Psychedelic Summit, she has written for publications like Rolling Stone, Playboy, VICE, High Times, Lucid News, and Jewish publishing house and production studio Ayin Press, where she works as an editor curating psychedelic stories and interviews. With a master's from Columbia Journalism School and a bachelor's in rhetoric and linguistics from UC Berkeley, Madison has traveled everywhere from pot farms in the Emerald Triangle to the shores of the Ganges River and all over Israel|Palestine exploring the role of entheogens in religion, health, and conflict resolution. With a decade's worth of experience covering psychedelics, cannabis, and religion/spirituality, Madison's work has been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, KCRW, and other outlets. She offers classes, workshops, and consulting on the topic(s) of Judaism and psychedelics, and has presented at conferences like SXSW, Horizons: Perspectives in Psychedelics, the Association of Alternative News Media, and more. Check out her website or follow her on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn.https://www.madisonmargolin.com 

"The community of corpse burners or Doms take pride in their ability to give moksh but it's also a way of justifying their place in a society that otherwise shuns them, humiliates them and treats them as untouchables. They believe they have religious capital. But at the end of the day, there are no privileged caste people who want to do this job. That's why the Doms are continuing to do this job and that's why they are not able to break through the caste barrier" - Radhika Iyengar, author, Fire on the Ganges talks to Manjula Narayan about her book that documents the customs, harrowing work and lives of the keepers of the sacred fire, the Doms of Varanasi

As we continue our advent series on the past, present and future coming of Jesus, the NOW team of Suzie Lind, Kevin Dixon, Mike Erre and Tim Timmons reflect on God with us in the middle of our current darkness. Plus: Kevin goes Gran Torino and yells at the railroad workers to get off his lawn. Producer Edwin Rivera III gives the whole team a mommy boost, but it just tastes like grass clippings to Mike. Suzie shares an unfortunate side effect of the boost beets that has Tim seeing red.  Also: Stay tuned after the credits to learn all the tributaries of the Ganges River. 0:00 Introduction and assorted inanities  15:27 Actual content begins 38:15 Postcredit banter --- Got a question or a comment for the JourneyNOW team? Join the conversation by texting us at (615) 861-9503. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/journeychurch/support

From 9-5 Job to Real Estate MILLIONAIRE After a Near-Death Experience

Walking a spiritual path is as simple as recognizing you are more than the physical, emotional, and mental aspects of your life. When you commit to transcend your attachment to the limited and fleeting moments of pain and pleasure, you remember the deep abiding peace and joy that is your true nature. Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati joins Paul Scheele in this episode of the MINDTRX podcast. Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati is a renowned spiritual leader and motivational speaker. Originally from Los Angeles and a PhD graduate of Stanford University, Sadhvi has lived on the banks of the sacred Ganges River in the lap of the Himalayas for more than 25 years. Her best-selling memoir, “Hollywood to the Himalayas,” recounts her journey of healing and transformation. Today from one of the largest ashrams in India, Sadhvi teaches meditation, provides spiritual counseling, and oversees a myriad of charitable and humanitarian activities. She travels far and wide and shares the stage with world leaders and spiritual luminaries alike. Sadhvi created the “Pathway to Freedom” program with Learning Strategies. Learn more and connect with Sadhvi at www.SadhviJi.org, www.Youtube.com/@Sadhviji, www.Facebook.com/SadhviBhagawatiSaraswati, and the Drops of Nectar For Joyful Living: The Parmarth Niketan Podcast. Paul Scheele, PhD, is an acclaimed innovator within the fields of neuro-linguistic programming, whole mind learning, preconscious processing, and accelerated learning. As co-founder of Learning Strategies, he has designed and developed over one hundred programs to stimulate personal and professional success, including the Paraliminals on the MINDTRX app. Others include “PhotoReading at 25,000 words a minute,” “Genius Code,” “Abundance for Life,” and “Future Mapping.” Paul guides people to meet critical challenges in their own lives as well as the world. And he helps them achieve extraordinary results in their relationships, work, finances, health, and spiritual well-being. He is the author of “PhotoReading,” “Natural Brilliance,” and “Drop Into Genius.” Learn more about Paul at www.LearningStrategies.com, www.MINDTRX.com, www.YouTube.com/LearningStrategies, and www.Facebook.com/LearningStrategies. To comment or ask a question about this episode please go to our channel on YouTube at https://youtu.be/9K4723qaOXc.

“When I first decided to do these pilgrimages, I told myself I'm doing this as an investigative reporter. I'm doing it as an observer, and as an outsider … and in the end, that isn't what happened.” Rosemary Mahoney, author The Singular Pilgrim: Travels on Sacred Ground When Rosemary Mahoney got off the ferry at the tiny island of Tinos, in Greece, she witnessed something extraordinary. Pilgrims dressed in black exited the boat and immediately flung themselves to the ground, crawling on hands and knees to worship at a shrine at the top of a nearby hill.  Watching these men and women rolling in the dirt, sweating beneath a scorching sun, she asked herself a simple question. Every human culture that has ever existed has had some concept of the divine, however you define that. She wanted to understand why. Her search for an answer began a remarkable journey to undertake six of the world's most prominent religious pilgrimages. Her journey would take her from the Way of St James, trekking hundreds of miles across the Pyrenees of southern France and Spain, to the burning ghats of Varanasi, on the banks of the Ganges River, in India, and beyond. This isn't a story about religion, or faith. It is an investigation into one of the most fundamental, but little understood, aspects of humanity. It is a quest to discover the roots of belief itself. And to find it, she will have to travel to six countries, walk hundreds of miles, and stare death in the face.  Insightful, evocative, and inspiring. Rosemary's story is an adventure into the heart of what it means to be human. FIND ROSEMARY Get a copy of Rosemary's book The Singular Pilgrim: Travels on Sacred Ground, online or from your local bookstore. Find out more about her work at rosemarymahoney.net. Facebook: @RosemaryMahoneyWriter SOCIAL Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website. This show was produced by Armchair Productions. Jenny Allison and Aaron Millar wrote and produced it; Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music by the artist Sweet Chap. Find our other shows: armchair-productions.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Adam and Budi discuss their seventh choice for the Theatre of Others Book Club, You Are That by GangajiGangaji, born Toni Roberson, grew up in Mississippi. Like many of her contemporaries, she searched for fulfillment through relationships, careers, motherhood, subculture experiences, political activism, and spiritual practice. While she had never planned to go to India, it was on the banks of the Ganges River that her search ended. In 1990, Gangaji met her teacher, Sri H.W.L. Poonja, known as Papaji. Papaji gave Toni the name Gangaji and asked that she bring his teaching to the West. He said, “The Ganga now will flow in the West.”Today, as a teacher and author, Gangaji speaks to people from all walks of life inviting them to fully recognize the absolute freedom and unchanging peace that is the truth of one's being.She is the author of The Diamond in Your Pocket: Discovering Your True Radiance, Freedom and Resolve: The Living Edge of Surrender, Hidden Treasure: Uncovering the Truth in Your Life Story, and You are THAT. She and her husband Eli Jaxon-Bear live in Ashland, OR.Support the showIf you enjoyed this week´s podcast, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. To submit a question: Voice- http://www.speakpipe.com/theatreofothers Email- podcast@theatreofothers.com Support the Theatre of Others - Check out our Merch!Show Credits Co-Hosts: Adam Marple & Budi MillerProducer: Jack BurmeisterMusic: https://www.purple-planet.comAdditional compositions by @jack_burmeister

So how did I end up on viral Buzzfeed article of The 23 Most Awkwardly Painful Things That Happened In 2015?  Well on this episode I am covering that, along with my best three travel stories as I have been traveling as a digital nomad.  We are covering how I hit a bucket list experience in Cappadocia Turkey, how I became a viral sensation during my trip to India, and how I dealt with heartbreak in Guatemala. Travel isn't always perfect, but it is always a good story and one I would love to share with you today! If you want to hear more of my travel stories, let me know! Message me @christabellatravels on Instagram and let me know which of these stories were your favorite. FREE Digital Nomad Masterclasshttps://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/masterclassJoin me for a monthly live event: https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/nomadpotentialEnroll in the Digital Nomad Life Academy:https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/dnlaApply  for my VIP coaching program:(5-month intensive):https://www.digitalnomadlifeacademy.com/coachingFollow me on Tiktok:https://www.tiktok.com/@christabellatravelsMessage me Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/digitalnomadlifeacademyhttps://www.instagram.com/christabellatravels/

May 7, 2021 #Yogananda #YogodaSatsangaSociety #SRF Swami Chidananda Giri, president and spiritual head of Yogoda Satsanga Society of India/Self-Realization Fellowship, delivers an uplifting talk on the Divine Mother aspect of God while visiting India for the centenary celebrations for YSS in 2017. This was Swami Chidanandaji's first visit to Paramahansa Yogananda's beloved motherland after becoming president of YSS/SRF. In this inspired talk, filmed at the YSS Math in Dakshineswar (Kolkata) along the banks of the sacred Ganges River, Swami Chidanandaji illuminates the concept of the Divine Mother as taught by Paramahansa Yogananda. Presenting stories from Yoganandaji's “Autobiography of a Yogi,” sharing his own experiences and impressions, and using guided meditation and visualization to help the audience make these truths real for themselves, Swami Chidanandaji illustrates how every devotee can create a personal and profound relationship with the Divine Mother. To learn more about the YSS Lessons, the home-study course created by Yogananda presenting his personal instruction in the science of meditation and the art of balance spiritual living: https://yssofindia.org/yss-lessons To participate in special online Healing Prayer Sessions conducted by YSS sannyasis: https://yssofindia.org/event/special-... To participate in an online group meditation through the YSS Online Dhyana Kendra: https://yssofindia.org/online-meditation To read “Autobiography of a Yogi,” now celebrating its 75th year in print: https://bookstore.yssofindia.org/prod... To view more talks from this series:    • Inspirational Services With Meditation   If you would like to support the spiritual and humanitarian work of YSS, please click on this link: http://www.donateyss.org ***  For the latest content from SRF: https://yogananda.org/   / yoganandasrf  https://www.facebook.com/selfrealizat...https://twitter.com/srfyoganandahttps://www.instagram.com/selfrealiza...https://bookstore.yogananda-srf.org/ ***  About Subtitles/closed captions:  We are happy to provide quality subtitles in several languages. If no captioning is yet available in your language, please check back in a few days. Subtitulado común o para personas con discapacidad auditiva: Nos complace ofrecer subtítulos en español. Si aún no los encuentra disponibles en su idioma, por favor vuelva a verificar en unos días.  Untertitel: Wir freuen uns sehr, Ihnen auch passende deutsche Untertitel bieten zu können. Sollten die Untertitel gerade noch nicht zur Verfügung stehen, bitten wir Sie, einige Tage später nochmals nachzusehen. Sottotitoli: siamo felici di mettere a vostra disposizione sottotitoli in italiano. Nel caso i sottotitoli non risultino ancora disponibili nella vostra lingua, vi invitiamo a ricontrollare tra qualche giorno. Legendas e legendas ocultas: Temos a satisfação de disponibilizar legendas fidedignas em português. Caso as legendas na sua língua não estejam disponíveis, por favor, verifique novamente dentro de alguns dias. #Yogananda#SwamiChidananda#DivineMother#HowToLive#YSS#SRF#YogodaSatsangaSociety#KriyaYoga#BrotherChidananda#Chidananda#DivineMother

In today's episode, why Chileans are stocking up on armored vehicles and guns. The latest on the cat-and-mouse game between Disney and Florida's Governor DeSantis. And journey to the banks of India's Ganges River, where the elderly are choosing to break the cycle of death and rebirth rather than head into a nursing home. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt-out of targeted advertising

Cynthia Hall is the community coordinator for NASA's Transform to Open Science program, where she works with organizations and communities to build diverse scientific collaborations with NASA. She works to make scientific research and processes more inclusive and accessible to everyone. Cynthia talks with us about open science, her influential NASA Academy internship, and backpacking on the job from Zion National Park to the Ganges River. This episode was produced by Zoe Swiss and Shane M Hanlon, and mixed by Collin Warren. Artwork by Karen Romano Young. Interview conducted by Jason Rodriguez.

0:00:00 Introduction Richard Saunders 0:06:42 A Strongly Worded Letter Skeptics receive all sorts of interesting letters from the public, some complimentary, some not. It seems that many people also believe that skeptical organisations wield much more power or influence than we really do. On today's show, Richard Saunders reads one of the more noteworthy examples of frustration from a corespondent. 0:18:16 You Can Count on Adrienne. With Adrienne Hill The Story of 'Lady Ganga', Michele Frazier Baldwin, daughter of Kendrick and Ruth Frazier. When Michele, a 45 year old Mother of three was diagnosed with late-stage cervical cancer, she took this as a call-to-action. She decided that she would travel to India to paddle board over 700 miles down the Ganges River, spreading awareness about this disease that was going to kill her and breaking a World Record in the process. https://www.ladyganga.world LADY GANGA: NILZA'S STORY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5yMCzx0ctU 0:23:34 Rob Palmer at CSICon 2022 Guest reporter Rob roves around the halls at CSICon 2022 in Las Vagas and bumps into Kyle Polich from the Data Skeptic Podcast, Karl Withakay and JD Sword. 0:38:12 A Dive into a Trove A wander through the decades of digitised newspapers on a search for references to Kendrick Frazier. 1989, Nov 25 - Kenosha News 1976, July 26 - Benton Courier 1995, Aug 28 - Clovis News Also Sydney Skeptics in the Pub Special Guests, 24th Nov. https://www.meetup.com/austskeptics/events/287036082 Australian Skeptics National Convention 2022 Science & Skepticism in a changed world 3 - 4 December, National Library of Australia, Canberra https://skepticon.org.au

Varanasi is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world and considered the spiritual capital of India. While also holy to Buddhists, Jains and many other sects, it is the most sacred city in Hinduism. Said to have been founded by Lord Shiva, for centuries Hindus have made the pilgrimage from all over the world to the banks of the Ganges River. For many of these pilgrims, they know this will be their last mortal journey. In Hindu tradition it is said that to die in Varanasi, one may attain Moksha – an end to the continual cycle of rebirth, and a place in paradise. These are the stories of those intimately involved in the unique culture of spirituality, death and funerals in the city. We hear from the manager of Mukti Bhawan, one of the so-called Death Hotels which host pilgrims in their final days on earth, alongside personal family accounts of those who have chosen this path and the stories of those who jobs are to cremate the roughly 100 bodies per day at the ancient Burning Ghats, before their remains enter the holy river to pass into the afterlife. (Photo: Panoramic view across the holy river Ganges on Munshi Ghat in the suburb of Godowlia. Credit: Frank Bienewald/Getty Images)

Those of you who have been listening to this show for a while, know we are all about unlocking our full potential. And part of superhumanizing is reconnecting with the profound wisdom of ancient healing practices. Today we are going to dive deep into adaptogens, the plants and mushrooms that have been used around the world for thousands of years that can help us regulate our system and adapt and respond to stressors, be they mental or physical. I believe the present time, where so many of us are dealing with stress or chronic or infectious diseases, is the perfect time to learn about and integrate adaptogens into our daily practice. And I have two leading experts on adaptogens joining us today.Tero Isokauppila is a bestselling author and the founder of Four Sigmatic, the eight figure functional foods company that has become synonymous with making health delicious and easy. His roots are in Finland, where he grew up on his family's 13th generation farm and he has a degree in Chemistry, Business and a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition at Cornell University. Tero is also the author of Healing Mushrooms and Santa Sold Shrooms, a children's book for adults about the magical origins of Santa Claus.Danielle Ryan Broida is a Registered Herbalist of the American Herbalists Guild, Certified Holistic Nutritionist and Head of Education and Innovation at Four Sigmatic. Prior to joining forces with Four Sigmatic, she received her BA in Environmental Studies and Philosophy from Whitman College. Danielle studied Ayurveda in India and became a Certified Yoga Instructor on the banks of the Ganges River. She then worked with a Naturopathic Doctor in Indonesia where she became a Certified Raw Chef and Detox Coach. After several years in Asia, she landed in Boulder, Colorado to formalize her education in holistic medicine, completing her graduate studies at the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism where she presently is the Instructor of Mycology.Danielle has a private practice, Danielle Ryan Wellness, where she works with hundreds of clients across the US, specializing in functional mushroom based treatment for individuals with autoimmune conditions and chronic illnesses.Tero and Danielle co-authored the book Healing Adaptogens: The Definitive Guide to Using Super Herbs and Mushrooms for Your Body's Restoration, Defense, and Performance.In this interview, Danielle and Tero share what an adaptogen is, some of the world's most healing adaptogens and how to use them and how adaptogens found their way from traditional systems of medicine into modern times. If you want to boost your body's ability to perform, defend and restore, this episode is for you!In this episode with Tero and Danielle, you'll discover:-A primer on "what is an adaptogen?"...04:30-Encouraging news on the current state of research on adaptogens...08:45-How indigenous cultures have understood and used mushrooms and adaptogens...13:15-Tero's journey to becoming subject matter expert and entrepreneur in mushrooms and adaptogens...21:00-Danielle shares her own journey to the realm of adaptogens...27:55-Advice for people at the beginning of the adaptogen journey re: body types and overall health...32:08-The categories (and examples) of adaptogens...36:44-How to know if the supplements that say they contain adaptogens, actually contain adaptogens...45:30-Ariane, Tero and Danielle share their daily adaptogen routines...53:10-Are mushrooms an alien life form?...59:09-Tero's and Danielle's best personal practices (that don't have to do with adaptogens)...1:04:00Resources mentioned:BOOKS

Danielle Ryan Broida is a key player in the worldwide mushroom movement. As a Registered Herbalist (RH) of the American Herbalists Guild (AHG), Certified Holistic Nutritionist, Instructor of Mycology, and National Educator of Four Sigmatic, Danielle is teaching the world about the importance of a life on functional mushrooms. Prior to joining forces with Four Sigmatic, she received her BA in Environmental Studies and Philosophy from Whitman College. She then studied Ayurveda in India and became a Certified Yoga Instructor on the banks of the Ganges River. She then worked with a Naturopathic Doctor in Indonesia where she became a Certified Raw Chef and Detox Coach. But it was leading trekking adventures into the backcountry of Thailand where she became particularly fascinated by herbal medicine (while also becoming fluent in Thai).After several years in Asia, she landed in Boulder, Colorado to formalize her education in holistic medicine. Upon completing her graduate studies at the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism (CSCH), she opened her private practice where she worked with hundreds of clients specializing in functional mushroom-based treatment for individuals with autoimmune conditions and chronic illnesses. She was invited to become the Instructor of Mycology at CSCH, where she still teaches. Danielle brings her passion and expertise in herbal medicine, clinical practice, teaching, formulation, and her deep love for fungi to everything she does.This episode will blow your nutritional mind and give you great tips to incorporate adaptogens and fungi to uplevel your life from a cellular level. We also cover different herbs, sleep, the underrated benefits of magnesium and water, and more.   Find Danielle online at danielleryanwellness.com where you can learn more about holistic nutrition, clinical herbalism, and wellness coaching. Follow her on IG at @danielleryanbroida or at @foursigmatic, and check out her new book, Healing Adaptogens! As usual, follow and find us at:CurrentlyUnwell.com@currentlyunwell on IG

First, I am really grateful for all the well-wishes and congratulations we received on the birth of my son. He's doing great, and I'm over the moon. I decided to record a podcast about the experience-- why my wife and I decided to have our first child here last year, as well as our second child this year, and tell you how great the experience was. Naturally, though, we start with a historical perspective. Today's episode begins in ancient India with one of the most famous figures in human history. It turns out that, in addition to being a spiritual icon, he was also an extreme biohacker. We talk about the evolution of medicine, and how healthcare used to be a ‘patient-first', science-driven field. Individual healthcare practitioners today are still that way. Doctors, nurses, and medical researchers have answered a noble calling to help the sick. But the healthcare industry itself is now ruled by insurance companies and political hacks who have managed to increase the cost of care, make it much more bureaucratic, and severely dilute the doctor-patient relationship. I share a story of my step father, who died several weeks ago after being chewed up by a healthcare system that did not seem designed to help him. This is one of the big reasons why we had our children in Mexico; it's a much more liberated healthcare system. In Mexico, we have a very close relationship with the physician, who is unconstrained by bureaucratic policies and idiotic regulations. And if some stupid rule ever does come up? It's Mexico. We ignore it. The births of my children were both fantastic experiences. The hospital was great. The physicians and nurses were great. And the cost? Imagine Nany Pelosi closing her thumb and index finger into a small circle saying, “It costs nothing.” Frankly it's almost embarrassing that the all-in cost of my child's birth was about $1,750, including the ‘Presidential Suite' at one of the best private hospitals in the country. My children are both Mexican citizens (in addition to the four others that they receive from mom and dad). Plus parents AND grandparents are both entitled to permanent residency in Mexico. This proved especially useful for my in-laws; my wife is from Ukraine, so we were able to get the family out of Kiev and relocate them here to Cancun-- because they now have permanent residency. I tell you the whole story in today's episode, which you can listen to here. Open Podcast Transcription [00:00:01.140] Today we're going to go back in time more than 2500 years ago to the mid 500 BC. To the Kingdom of Kashi on the Ganges River in northern India. Now you might not have heard of the Kingdom of Kashi, a lot of people haven't, but it's actually quite historically significant for a couple of reasons that we're going to get into. At the time, in the mid 500s, there was a guy in his mid thirty s, a guy that some of you might know. This name Siddharta Gotama.   [00:00:27.520] And if you don't know his name, you will in a moment. But this is a person who was born into wealth and power and money and status and he renounced it all. As a young man he said, I'm not interested in the money. What I am interested in is spiritual enlightenment. And that might sound a little bit hokey today, but back then that was actually quite a popular social value.   [00:00:49.210] A lot of people said, you know, I want to seek spiritual enlightenment and their culture and their civilization. That was a prized value. And he walked away from all of his worldly possessions and decided that the way he wanted to do that, he was going to hit the road. And he became essentially a wandering beggar. And during that time he experimented with some really extreme conditions.   [00:01:07.920] At the time, in fact, there was a commonly held belief that if you starved yourself that eventually you would achieve spiritual enlightenment. And this seems crazy to us,

First, I am really grateful for all the well-wishes and congratulations we received on the birth of my son. He's doing great, and I'm over the moon. I decided to record a podcast about the experience-- why my wife and I decided to have our first child here last year, as well as our second child this year, and tell you how great the experience was. Naturally, though, we start with a historical perspective. Today's episode begins in ancient India with one of the most famous figures in human history. It turns out that, in addition to being a spiritual icon, he was also an extreme biohacker. We talk about the evolution of medicine, and how healthcare used to be a ‘patient-first', science-driven field. Individual healthcare practitioners today are still that way. Doctors, nurses, and medical researchers have answered a noble calling to help the sick. But the healthcare industry itself is now ruled by insurance companies and political hacks who have managed to increase the cost of care, make it much more bureaucratic, and severely dilute the doctor-patient relationship. I share a story of my step father, who died several weeks ago after being chewed up by a healthcare system that did not seem designed to help him. This is one of the big reasons why we had our children in Mexico; it's a much more liberated healthcare system. In Mexico, we have a very close relationship with the physician, who is unconstrained by bureaucratic policies and idiotic regulations. And if some stupid rule ever does come up? It's Mexico. We ignore it. The births of my children were both fantastic experiences. The hospital was great. The physicians and nurses were great. And the cost? Imagine Nany Pelosi closing her thumb and index finger into a small circle saying, “It costs nothing.” Frankly it's almost embarrassing that the all-in cost of my child's birth was about $1,750, including the ‘Presidential Suite' at one of the best private hospitals in the country. My children are both Mexican citizens (in addition to the four others that they receive from mom and dad). Plus parents AND grandparents are both entitled to permanent residency in Mexico. This proved especially useful for my in-laws; my wife is from Ukraine, so we were able to get the family out of Kiev and relocate them here to Cancun-- because they now have permanent residency. I tell you the whole story in today's episode, which you can listen to here. Open Podcast Transcription [00:00:01.140] Today we're going to go back in time more than 2500 years ago to the mid 500 BC. To the Kingdom of Kashi on the Ganges River in northern India. Now you might not have heard of the Kingdom of Kashi, a lot of people haven't, but it's actually quite historically significant for a couple of reasons that we're going to get into. At the time, in the mid 500s, there was a guy in his mid thirty s, a guy that some of you might know. This name Siddharta Gotama.   [00:00:27.520] And if you don't know his name, you will in a moment. But this is a person who was born into wealth and power and money and status and he renounced it all. As a young man he said, I'm not interested in the money. What I am interested in is spiritual enlightenment. And that might sound a little bit hokey today, but back then that was actually quite a popular social value.   [00:00:49.210] A lot of people said, you know, I want to seek spiritual enlightenment and their culture and their civilization. That was a prized value. And he walked away from all of his worldly possessions and decided that the way he wanted to do that, he was going to hit the road. And he became essentially a wandering beggar. And during that time he experimented with some really extreme conditions.   [00:01:07.920] At the time, in fact, there was a commonly held belief that if you starved yourself that eventually you would achieve spiritual enlightenment. And this seems crazy to us,

Few rivers have a name as iconic as the Ganges River in India. At over 1550 miles (2,500 kms) long, it winds its way from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal, passing a population of over 650 million along the way, making it the most populated river basin in the world.But there is more to the Ganges than just a body of water meandering through the landscape.In this episode, Thom brings his beloved Ganges to life. He explains why she plays such a significant role in the spiritual life of Indian citizens and visitors who come from around the world just to bathe in her icy waters. Thom leaves us in no doubt that the Ganges will justifiably play a pivotal role in our upcoming 2023 retreat in Rishikesh.If you'd like to attend the retreat with Thom in Rishikesh India from January 8th to 18th, 2023, please visit Thom's website for more details, https://thomknoles.com/india-retreat/ or follow the link in the show notes.[00:00:45] Mother Ganga[00:03:17] The Goddess Whom Everyone Can See[00:05:25] Taking a Dip in Ganga[00:07:19] An Invitation from Swami Kailashanand Giri[00:09:06] Removing Karma from the Physiology Useful Linksinfo@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

Paul Saltzman and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new film Meeting The Beatles in India, John Lennon and following your heart, politics, civil rights andhow storytelling can do magical things and what it might mean to look for inner peace.TrailerVisit Paul's other sites: Moving Beyond Prejudice and Prom Night in MississippiFor More InformationSynopsis:Filmmaker Paul Saltzman retraces his journey of 50 years ago when he spent a life-changing time with the Beatles at the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's ashram on thebanks of the Ganges River. In 1968, he discovered his own soul, learned meditation, which changed his life, and hung out with John, Paul, George and Ringo.Fifty years later, he finds “Bungalow Bill” in Hawaii; connects with David Lynch about his own inner journey; as well as preeminent Beatles historian, Mark Lewisohn;Academy Award nominated film composer, Laurence Rosenthal; and Pattie and Jenny Boyd. And much of this is due to Saltzman's own daughter, Devyani, remindinghim that he had put away and forgotten these remarkably intimate photographs of that time in 1968.Narration by: Morgan FreemamExecutive Producer: David Lynch & OthersAbout Paul:Paul Saltzman is a two-time Emmy Award-winning, Toronto-based director-producer of over 300 film and television productions. In 1968, he learned meditation at theMaharishi Mahesh Yogi's ashram in India, an experience that changed his life. There, he photographed the Beatles, Jane Asher, Cynthia Lennon, Pattie BoydHarrison, Maureen Starkey, Mia Farrow, Donovan, Mal Evans and Mike Love.In 1968-69 he assisted in the birth of a new film format as second-unit director and production manager of the first IMAX film. He later attended the original WoodstockMusic Festival, produced a Leonard Cohen concert tour, and made his first film, a documentary on Bo Diddley. In 2000, Viking Penguin released Paul's first book, TheBeatles in Rishikesh. In early 2006 Paul created the Deluxe Limited-Edition box set, ‘The Beatles in India'.Today, Paul continues to make films; leads small tour groups to India; and does film screenings and workshops worldwide on the Beatles, Moving Beyond Prejudice,Meditation, Maximizing Creativity, Conflict Resolution and Nonviolent Communication, and Overcoming Performance Anxiety.Image Copyright and Credit: Paul Saltzman.F2F Music and Image Copyright: David Peck and Face2Face. Used with permission.For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here.With thanks to Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

If the idea of a Vedic Meditation retreat in the foothills of the Himalayas with Thom Knoles sounds appealing, then this episode is for you.After a two-year hiatus, Thom is returning to Rishikesh and is extending a warm welcome to Vedic Meditators, and aspiring meditators alike, for a 10-day experience like no other.Thom explains why Rishikesh is the first and perfect choice for such a retreat, making it a pilgrimage to the acknowledged home of meditation and yoga. He outlines the daily routine and some of the highlights to look forward to, such as visits to the Ganges River and Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's former ashram, and time spent as guests of His Holiness Swami Kailashanand Giri, the Shankaracharya-elect and the Master of our tradition.With luxury accommodations and gourmet food at the famous Divine Hotel, , your stay will be truly memorable.Let Thom whet your appetite with this special bonus episode, then make your way to https://thomknoles.com/india-retreat/ to register.Jai Guru Deva.[00:01:19] Upanishad - Sitting at the Feet[00:02:38] Rishikesh - A Holy Name for a Holy Place[00:04:53] Bringing an End to Ignorance[00:06:25] Ending the Day With Sama Veda[00:07:43] Honored Guests[00:09:05] A Divine Place to Learn Vedic Meditation[00:10:52] You Were in Rishikesh? Useful Linksinfo@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

Marcia DeSanctis is a journalist, essayist, and author of A Hard Place to Leave: Stories from a Restless Life, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go, a New York Times travel bestseller. A contributor writer at Travel + Leisure, she also writes for Air Mail, Vogue, BBC Travel and many other publications. She has won five Lowell Thomas Awards from the Society of American Travel Writers and is the recipient of the 2021 Gold Award for Travel Story of the Year. Before becoming a writer, she was a television news producer for ABC, NBC and CBS News, for most of those years producing for Barbara Walters. She lives in Connecticut."When I was in Northern India, everywhere I was passing by the Ganges River, and I realized that this story was about water. This story was about connecting with this place as I would a baptism. I'm a Catholic. I don't relate to India in that same spiritual way as a native of the country or as a Hindu would, but I can relate to it as a person in that I feel cleansed and refreshed and purified by water. And I felt a draw always to the water."https://marciadesanctis.comA Hard Place to Leavewww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.orgPhoto credit: Elena Seibert

"When I was in Northern India, everywhere I was passing by the Ganges River, and I realized that this story was about water. This story was about connecting with this place as I would a baptism. I'm a Catholic. I don't relate to India in that same spiritual way as a native of the country or as a Hindu would, but I can relate to it as a person in that I feel cleansed and refreshed and purified by water. And I felt a draw always to the water."Marcia DeSanctis is a journalist, essayist, and author of A Hard Place to Leave: Stories from a Restless Life, 100 Places in France Every Woman Should Go, a New York Times travel bestseller. A contributor writer at Travel + Leisure, she also writes for Air Mail, Vogue, BBC Travel and many other publications. She has won five Lowell Thomas Awards from the Society of American Travel Writers and is the recipient of the 2021 Gold Award for Travel Story of the Year. Before becoming a writer, she was a television news producer for ABC, NBC and CBS News, for most of those years producing for Barbara Walters. She lives in Connecticut.https://marciadesanctis.comA Hard Place to Leavewww.creativeprocess.infowww.oneplanetpodcast.org

The Far Middle episode 61 is dedicated to Roger Maris and his 61 home runs in 1961 to break Babe Ruth’s record. Nick looks back on the controversy and confusion surrounding Maris and baseball’s home run record, and transitions to the confusion looming large today around mammoth economic and geopolitical issues. Specifically, Nick looks at media coverage of energy exports and fuel prices, as well as Russia using as energy as a force multiplier as it curtails natural gas flows to Europe. And he questions why there’s not more journalistic focus on the current administration’s regulatory attack on domestic energy, which is increasing fuel prices and hurting Europe. Next, Nick examines the current state of American energy and environmental policy after 17 months of the Biden Administration, followed by a discussion on the Federal Reserve (and its army of economists) continuing to be behind the inflation curve. And in a Far Middle first, Nick examines the flow of the Ganges River in India. While a topical first, the takeaway is a continuing Far Middle theme—stay vigilant in separating fact from fiction. Last up this episode is a Far Middle real estate update examining Malibu, Cal., where the median price for a single-family home reached $6.99 million in the first quarter of 2022. And Nick closes with a Far Middle signature connection, linking Roger Marris to “Robert Zimmerman” to George Kaiser.

Jennifer Prugh is the co-founder and owner of Breathe Together Yoga in Los Gatos (est. 2011). She created the JOY of Yoga School of Integrative Learning where she oversees and teaches for the 200- and 300-hour teacher trainings (est. 2007). She also created the JOY MAP program, a 100-hour course in meditation and awareness practice.Jennifer is passionate about “life education,” making mind and body practices accessible so students are empowered to live fully and contribute to life. She brings eight years as an Associate Professor of storytelling, storyboarding, and creativity, ten years as a professional artist, and a Master's Degree in Art and Consciousness studies to her teaching and business leadership.A passionate traveler, Jennifer leads four international retreats a year. Last year she published River of Offerings, Twelve Journeys along the Ganges River, (chosen as one of the top fifty spiritual books of 2021 by Spirituality and Practice). A book of stories and photographs that was ten years in the making, River of Offerings is available at Insight Editions or your favorite local bookstore. She lives with her husband, son who is about to leave for college and two golden retrievers, Hobbes and River. JENNIFERS LINKS:jenniferprughyoga.combreathetogetheryoga.combreathetogetheronline.comFacebook: Jennifer Prugh YogaInstagram: @JennPrughBook: River of Offerings Purchase Book DirectlyPurchase on AmazonSponsor a Child: Tibetan Children's EducationOn this podcast we speak aboutHow Jennifer got started in yoga during the peace movement of the 70's and was influenced by the BeatlesShe started with Sharon Babtiste Her trips to India and the Ganges river moved her so deeply that she pursued yoga and left the corporate and professor worldA benefactor invested under a million dollars to open her studio on Los Gatos California . She opened big with a 2 room  studio running 50 classes with a teahouse and wellness centre. She hired a manager right from the beginning and put systems and procedures in place.How procedures and processes take the make it less personal.Standard operation procedures are a live document that gets refined every year.Jennifer shares the structure of her business and peopleHow Jennifer changes the roles basted on the talents of the people and they all know what lanes they are driving in.How the Yamas and Niyamas support communicationsThe importance of hiring quality instructors - 500 hours or 7 years of teaching that have already developed their voice.How Jennifer keeps her salary low and rewards herself financially with her trainings and retreats.How PASSION and CREATIVITY drives everything and how she cares about people changing their lives.She advices to keep your non yoga relationships strongThe importance of having the deepest trust with managersMICHAEL JAY YOGA & CONSULTINGAND YOGA BIZ CAMP:http://www.yogabizcamp.comInstagram @yogabizchampMichael's software resources

On today's episode, Alexandra speaks with Madison Margolin, one of the founders of Double Blind Magazine, a super sexy and inclusive magazine on psychedelics!Madison Margolin is the co-founder and editorial director of DoubleBlind, a media company and education platform at the forefront of the rapidly growing psychedelic movement. As a working journalist based between New York and Los Angeles, Margolin has covered psychedelics, cannabis, drug policy, Jewish culture, and spirituality for a variety of publications including Playboy Magazine, Rolling Stone, Nylon, VICE, LA Weekly, Tablet, and was featured in High Times among other outlets. A graduate of Columbia Journalism School and UC Berkeley, Margolin has traveled everywhere from pot farms in the Emerald Triangle to the shores of the Ganges River, and all over Israel-Palestine, exploring the role of plant medicine in religion, mental health, and conflict resolution. She got her start in journalism with a column on cannabis at the Village Voice, after having lived in south Tel Aviv working with Eritrean refugees. With more than 6 years of experience covering cannabis and psychedelics, Madison has spoken on topics like social equity, cannabis feminism, drug journalism, and so forth at conferences like SXSW, Horizons: Perspectives in Psychedelics, Digital Hollywood, the Association of Alternative New Media, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, Pepperdine's Cannabis Law Symposium, and more. In this episode, you'll hear:What psychedelics are and what they do in your mind and your being, and why it's so important to understand and make room for the integration part of the process of working with psychedelics.Ideas on accessing states of being that are experienced during a psychedelic trip even when sober, or in our everyday.Ideas on what the regulation and capitalization of psychedelics may do to the experience, and some ideas on how to maintain the sacredness of the ritual even as the industry grows in the mainstream.Exploration of some of the stereotypes surrounding psychedelics and how Double Blind is steering the conversation and intention behind psychedelics in a direction to accurately show who is engaging with psychedelia.And more!Connect with DoubleBlind Magazine and see their online course on How to Grow Mushrooms at doubleblindmag.comConnect with Madison at madisonmargolin.com / jewishpsychedelicsummit.orgConnect with Madison and Double Blind on IG: @madisonmargolin / @doubleblindmag / @jewishpsychedelicsummitAnd on Twitter: @margolinmadison / @doubleblindmag