Podcasts about Sanskrit

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Microcosmos Records presents Gati, a new album by Six Dead Bulgarians — a deep, ritualistic journey where ambient electronics, ethnic instrumentation, and archaic memory dissolve into one continuous flow. The word Gati comes from Sanskrit and can be translated as movement, path, passage, destiny, the migration of the soul. It reflects a worldview where life unfolds as an endless current of transitions and rebirths. This idea resonates with the geography of the Russian North, where countless rivers carry names ending in "-ga" — Volga, Onega, Pinega, Vaga — as if echoing an ancient linguistic and cultural source. Musically, Gati is dense yet meditative. Analog synthesizer drones pulse like slow breathing, while flutes, didgeridoo, trumpet, guitar, ethnic percussion, and deeply rooted folk vocals form a living, organic texture. Field recordings from the archives of Kenozero National Park add a documentary layer, grounding the album in real landscapes, voices, and time. The album's concept revolves around the life and fate of a Russian woman during times of hardship — not as a narrative, but as a state of being. Each track feels like a fragment of memory: intimate, restrained, and quietly powerful. Despite its depth, Gati remains surprisingly accessible — music that can accompany daily life while subtly shifting perception.

Why is religion today so often associated with giving and taking offense? To answer this question, Slandering the Sacred: Blasphemy Law and Religious Affect in Colonial India (U Chicago Press, 2023) invites us to consider how colonial infrastructures shaped our globalized world. Through the origin and afterlives of a 1927 British imperial law (Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code), J. Barton Scott weaves a globe-trotting narrative about secularism, empire, insult, and outrage. Decentering white martyrs to free thought, his story calls for new histories of blasphemy that return these thinkers to their imperial context, dismantle the cultural boundaries of the West, and transgress the borders between the secular and the sacred as well as the public and the private. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

In our second episode on the Ramayana, which began to be written down in Sanskrit c. 350 BCE, we dive deeper into the theme of dharma. We explore some of the many different meanings of this term and trace the development of the three oldest dharmic faiths: Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. We also compare how Buddhist and Jain retellings of the Ramayana differ from the one revered by today's Hindus. Finally, we fangirl out over Hanuman a little more. Want to read the transcript? Click here. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review us—and share with your friends! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Vishuddha Chakra, or Throat Chakra, governs communication, self-expression, and truth. It empowers us to articulate our needs and share our unique resonance through sound and language. Associated with Lord Dakshinamurthy, a form of Shiva symbolising wisdom and inner guidance, this chakra fosters clarity and authentic expression. The mantra honouring him seeks his blessings for truth and wisdom.The Vishuddha Chakra is symbolised by a light blue lotus with sixteen petals, representing the elements of speech and sound, and the Sanskrit vowels that enable clear communication. Its yantra features a full moon with a silver ring, emphasising clarity and spiritual growth, and a downward triangle representing creative expression.The Bija mantra "HAM" resonates with the element of space, facilitating harmonious expression. The white elephant symbolises purity, wisdom, and discernment, reminding us to detach from outcomes and practice mindful speech. By balancing Vishnu Granthi, we cultivate sattvic expression—thoughtful, helpful, inspiring, necessary, and kind.To read more and to practice with Zephyr Wildman, click here. To support Zephyr Yoga Podcast, donate here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is religion today so often associated with giving and taking offense? To answer this question, Slandering the Sacred: Blasphemy Law and Religious Affect in Colonial India (U Chicago Press, 2023) invites us to consider how colonial infrastructures shaped our globalized world. Through the origin and afterlives of a 1927 British imperial law (Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code), J. Barton Scott weaves a globe-trotting narrative about secularism, empire, insult, and outrage. Decentering white martyrs to free thought, his story calls for new histories of blasphemy that return these thinkers to their imperial context, dismantle the cultural boundaries of the West, and transgress the borders between the secular and the sacred as well as the public and the private. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

Why is religion today so often associated with giving and taking offense? To answer this question, Slandering the Sacred: Blasphemy Law and Religious Affect in Colonial India (U Chicago Press, 2023) invites us to consider how colonial infrastructures shaped our globalized world. Through the origin and afterlives of a 1927 British imperial law (Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code), J. Barton Scott weaves a globe-trotting narrative about secularism, empire, insult, and outrage. Decentering white martyrs to free thought, his story calls for new histories of blasphemy that return these thinkers to their imperial context, dismantle the cultural boundaries of the West, and transgress the borders between the secular and the sacred as well as the public and the private. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

Why is religion today so often associated with giving and taking offense? To answer this question, Slandering the Sacred: Blasphemy Law and Religious Affect in Colonial India (U Chicago Press, 2023) invites us to consider how colonial infrastructures shaped our globalized world. Through the origin and afterlives of a 1927 British imperial law (Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code), J. Barton Scott weaves a globe-trotting narrative about secularism, empire, insult, and outrage. Decentering white martyrs to free thought, his story calls for new histories of blasphemy that return these thinkers to their imperial context, dismantle the cultural boundaries of the West, and transgress the borders between the secular and the sacred as well as the public and the private. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/law

Russell T. McCutcheon's essay collection Critics Not Caretakers: Redescribing the Public Study of Religion (Routledge, 2023) argues that the study of religion must be rethought as an ordinary aspect of social, historical existence, a stance that makes the scholar of religion a critic of cultural and historical practices rather than a caretaker of religious tradition or a font of timeless wisdom and deep meaning. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/critical-theory

Russell T. McCutcheon's essay collection Critics Not Caretakers: Redescribing the Public Study of Religion (Routledge, 2023) argues that the study of religion must be rethought as an ordinary aspect of social, historical existence, a stance that makes the scholar of religion a critic of cultural and historical practices rather than a caretaker of religious tradition or a font of timeless wisdom and deep meaning. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

Russell T. McCutcheon's essay collection Critics Not Caretakers: Redescribing the Public Study of Religion (Routledge, 2023) argues that the study of religion must be rethought as an ordinary aspect of social, historical existence, a stance that makes the scholar of religion a critic of cultural and historical practices rather than a caretaker of religious tradition or a font of timeless wisdom and deep meaning. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/politics-and-polemics

Imagine for a second that Eckhart Tolle wasn't a spiritual teacher, but a deep cover operative with a gun to his head. And just for a second, pretend that Tolle’s Power of Now wasn't a way to find peace, but a survival mechanism used to slow down time when your reality is collapsing. And your memory has been utterly destroyed by forces beyond your control. Until a good friend helps you rebuild it from the ground up. These are the exact feelings and sense of positive transformation I tried to capture in a project I believe is critical for future autodidacts, polymaths and traditional learners: Vitamin X, a novel in which the world’s only blind memory champion helps a detective use memory techniques and eventually achieve enlightenment. It’s also a story about accomplishing big goals, even in a fast-paced and incredibly challenging world. In the Magnetic Memory Method community at large, we talk a lot about the habits of geniuses like Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson. We obsess over their reading lists and their daily routines because we want that same level of clarity and intellectual power. But there's a trap in studying genius that too many people fall into: Passivity. And helping people escape passive learning is one of several reasons I’ve studied the science behind a variety of fictional learning projects where stories have been tested as agents of change. Ready to learn more about Vitamin X and the various scientific findings I’ve uncovered in order to better help you learn? Let’s dive in! Defeating the Many Traps of Passive Learning We can read about how Lincoln sharpened his axe for hours before trying to cut down a single tree. And that's great. But something's still not quite right. To this day, tons of people nod their heads at that famous old story about Lincoln. Yet, they still never sharpen their own axes, let alone swing them. Likewise, people email me every day regarding something I've taught about focus, concentration or a particular mnemonic device. They know the techniques work, including under extreme pressure. But their minds still fracture the instant they're faced with distraction. As a result, they never wind up getting the memory improvement results I know they can achieve. So, as happy as I am with all the help my books like The Victorious Mind and SMARTER have helped create in this world, I’m fairly confident that those titles will be my final memory improvement textbooks. Instead, I am now focused on creating what you might call learning simulations. Enter Vitamin X, the Memory Detective Series & Teaching Through Immersion Because here's the thing: If I really want to teach you how to become a polymath, I can't just carry on producing yet another list of tips. I have to drop you into scenarios where you actually feel what it's like to use memory techniques. That's why I started the Memory Detective initiative. It began with a novel called Flyboy. It’s been well-received and now part two is out. And it’s as close to Eckhart Tolle meeting a Spy Thriller on LSD as I could possibly make it. Why? To teach through immersion. Except, it's not really about LSD. No, the second Memory Detective novel centers around a substance called Vitamin X. On the surface, it's a thriller about a detective named David Williams going deep undercover. In actuality, it's a cognitive training protocol disguised as a novel. But one built on a body of research that shows stories can change what people remember, believe, and do. And that's both the opportunity and the danger. To give you the memory science and learning research in one sentence: Stories are a delivery system. We see this delivery system at work in the massive success of Olly Richards’ StoryLearning books for language learners. Richards built his empire on the same mechanism Pimsleur utilized to great effect long before their famous audio recordings became the industry standard: using narrative to make raw data stick. However, a quick distinction is necessary. In the memory world, we often talk about the Story Method. This approach involves linking disparate pieces of information together in a chain using a simple narrative vignette (e.g., a giant cat eating a toaster to remember a grocery list). That is a powerful mnemonic tool, and you will see Detective Williams use short vignettes in the Memory Detective series. But Vitamin X is what I call ‘Magnetic Fiction.’ It's not a vignette. It's a macro-narrative designed to carry the weight of many memory techniques itself. It simulates the pressure required to forge the skill, showing you how and why to use the story method within a larger, immersive context. So with that in mind, let's unpack the topic of fiction and teaching a bit further. That way, you'll know more of what I have in mind for my readers. And perhaps you'll become interested in some memory science experiments I plan to run in the near future. Illustration of “Cafe Mnemonic,” a fun memory training location the Memory Detective David Williams wants to establish once he has enough funds. Fiction as a Teaching Technology: What the Research Says This intersection of story and memory isn't new territory for me. Long before I gave my popular TEDx Talk on memory or helped thousands of people through the Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass, live workshops and my books, I served as a Mercator award-winning Film Studies professor. In this role, I often analyzed and published material regarding how narratives shape our cognition. Actually, my research into the persuasion of memory goes back to my scholarly contribution to the anthology The Theme of Cultural Adaptation in American History, Literature and Film. In my chapter, “Cryptomnesia or Cryptomancy? Subconscious Adaptations of 9/11,” I examined specifically how cultural narratives influence memory formation, forgetting, and the subconscious acceptance of information. That academic background drives the thinking and the learning protocols baked into Vitamin X. As does the work of researchers who have studied narrative influence for decades. Throughout their scientific findings, one idea keeps reappearing in different forms: When a story pulls you in, you experience some kind of “transportation.” It can be that you find yourself deeply immersed in the life of a character. Or you find your palms sweating as your brain tricks you into believing you're undergoing some kind of existential threat. When such experiences happen, you stop processing information like you would an argument through critical thinking. Instead, you start processing the information in the story almost as if they were really happening. As a result, these kinds of transportation can change beliefs and intentions, sometimes without the reader noticing the change happening. That's why fiction has been used for: teaching therapy religion civic formation advertising propaganda Even many national anthems contain stories that create change, something I experienced recently when I became an Australian citizen. As I was telling John Michael Greer during our latest podcast recording, I impulsively took both the atheist and the religious oath and sang the anthem at the ceremony. All of these pieces contain stories and those stories changed how I think, feel and process the world. Another way of looking at story is summed up in this simple statement: All stories have the same basic mechanism. But many stories have wildly different ethics. My ethics: Teach memory improvement methods robustly. Protect the tradition. And help people think for themselves using the best available critical thinking tools. And story is one of them. 6 Key Research Insights on Educational Fiction Now, when it comes to the research that shows just how powerful story is, we can break it down into buckets. Some of the main categories of research on fiction for pedagogy include: 1) Narrative transportation and persuasion As these researchers explain in The Role of Transportation in the Persuasiveness of Public Narratives, transportation describes how absorbed a reader becomes in a story. Psychologists use transportation models to show how story immersion drives belief change. It works because vivid imagery paired with emotion and focused attention make story-consistent ideas easier to accept. This study of how narratives were used in helping people improve their health support the basic point: Narratives produce average shifts in attitudes, beliefs, intentions, and sometimes behavior. Of course, the exact effects vary by topic and the design of the scientific study in question. But the point remains that fiction doesn't merely entertain. It can also train and persuade. 2) Entertainment-Education (EE) EE involves deliberately embedding education into popular media, often with pro-social aims. In another health-based study, researchers found that EE can influence knowledge, attitudes, intentions, behavior, and self-efficacy. Researchers in Brazil have also used large-scale observational work on soap operas and social outcomes (like fertility). As this study demonstrates, mass narrative exposure can shape real-world behavior at scale within a population. Stories can alter norms, not just transfer facts from one mind to another. You’ll encounter this theme throughout Vitamin X, especially when Detective Williams tangles with protestors who hold beliefs he does not share, but seem to be taking over the world. 3) Narrative vs expository learning (a key warning) Here's the part most “educational fiction” ignores: Informative narratives often increase interest, but they don't automatically improve comprehension. As this study found, entertainment can actually cause readers to overestimate how well they understood the material. This is why “edutainment” often produces big problems: You can wind up feeling smarter because you enjoyed an experience. But just because you feel that way doesn't mean you gain a skill you can reliably use. That’s why I have some suggestions for you below about how to make sure Vitamin X actually helps you learn to use memory techniques better. 4) Seductive details (another warning) There's also the problem of effects created by what scientists call seductive details. Unlike the “luminous details” I discussed with Brad Kelly on his Madness and Method podcast, seductive details are interesting but irrelevant material. They typically distract attention and reduce learning of what actually matters. As a result, these details divert attention through interference and by adding working memory demands. The research I’ve read suggests that when story authors don't engineer their work with learning targets in mind, their efforts backfire. What was intended to help learners actually becomes a sabotage device. I've done my best to avoid sabotaging my own pedagogical efforts in the Memory Detective stories so far. That's why they include study guides and simulations of using the Memory Palace technique, linking and number mnemonics like the Major System. In the series finale, which is just entering the third draft now, the 00-99 PAO and Giordano Bruno's Statue technique are the learning targets I’ve set up for you. They are much harder, and that’s why even though there are inevitable seductive details throughout the Memory Detective series, the focus on memory techniques gets increasingly more advanced. My hope is that your focus and attention will be sharpened as a result. 5) Learning misinformation from fiction (the dark side) People don't just learn from fiction. They learn false facts from fiction too. In this study, researchers found that participants often treated story-embedded misinformation as if it were true knowledge. This is one reason using narrative as a teaching tool is so ethically loaded. It can bypass the mental posture we use for skepticism. 6) Narrative “correctives” (using story against misinformation) The good news is that narratives can also reduce misbelief. This study on “narrative correctives” found that stories can sometimes decrease false beliefs and misinformed intentions, though results are mixed. The key point is that story itself is neither “good” or “bad.” It's a tool for leverage, and this is one of the major themes I built into Vitamin X. My key concern is that people would confuse me with any of my characters. Rather, I was trying to create a portrait of our perilous world where many conflicts unfold every day. Some people use tools for bad, others for good, and even that binary can be difficult for people to agree upon. Pros & Cons of Teaching with Fiction Let’s start with the pros. Attention and completion: A good story can keep people engaged, which is a prerequisite for any learning to occur. The transportation model I cited above helps explain why. The Positive Side of Escapism Entering a simulation also creates escapism that is actually valuable. This is because fiction gives you “experience” without real-world consequences when it comes to facing judgment, ethics, identity, and pressure-handling. This is one reason why story has always been used for moral education, not just entertainment. However, I’ve also used story in my Memory Detective games, such as “The Velo Gang Murders.” Just because story was involved did not mean people did not face judgement. But it was lower than my experiments with “Magnetic Variety,” a non-narrative game I’ll be releasing in the future. Lower Reactance Stories can reduce counterarguing compared with overt persuasion, which can be useful for resistant audiences. In other words, you’re on your own in the narrative world. Worst case scenario, you’ll have a bone to pick with the author. This happened to me the other day when someone emailed to “complain” about how I sometimes discuss Sherlock Holmes. Fortunately, the exchange turned into a good-hearted debate, something I attribute to having story as the core foundation of our exchange. Compare this to Reddit discussions like this one, where discussing aspects of the techniques in a mostly abstract way leads to ad hominem attacks. Now for the cons: Propaganda Risk The same reduction in counterarguing and squabbling with groups that you experience when reading stories is exactly what makes narratives useful for manipulation. When you’re not discussing what you’re reading with others, you can wind up ruminating on certain ideas. This can lead to negative outcomes where people not only believe incorrect things. They sometimes act out negatively in the world. The Illusion of Understanding Informative narratives can produce high interest but weaker comprehension and inflated metacomprehension. I’ve certainly had this myself, thinking I understand various points in logic after reading Alice in Wonderland. In reality, I still needed to do a lot more study. And still need more. In fact, “understanding” is not a destination so much as it is a process. Misinformation Uptake People sometimes acquire false beliefs from stories and struggle to discount fiction as a source. We see this often in religion due to implicit memory. Darrel Ray has shown how this happens extensively in his book, The God Virus: How Religion Infects Our Lives and Culture. His book helped explain something that happened to me after I first started memorizing Sanskrit phrases and feeling the benefits of long-form meditation. For a brief period, implicit memory and the primacy effect made me start to consider that the religion I’d grown up with was in fact true and real. Luckily, I shook that temporary effect. But many others aren’t quite so lucky. And in case it isn’t obvious, I’ll point out that the Bible is not only packed with stories. Some of those stories contain mnemonic properties, something Eran Katz pointed out in his excellent book, Where Did Noah Park the Ark? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhQlcMHhF3w The “Reefer Madness” Problem While working on Vitamin X, I thought often about Reefer Madness. In case you haven’t seen it, Reefer Madness began as an “educational” morality tale about cannabis. It's now famous largely because it's an over-the-top artifact of moral panic, an example of how fear-based fiction can be used to shape public belief under the guise of protection. I don’t want to make that mistake in my Memory Detective series. But there is a relationship because Vitamin X does tackle nootropics, a realm of substances for memory I am asked to comment on frequently. In this case, I'm not trying to protect people from nootropics, per se. But as I have regularly talked about over the years, tackling issues like brain fog by taking memory supplements or vitamins for memory is fraught with danger. And since fiction is one of the most efficient way to smuggle ideas past the mind's filters, I am trying to raise some critical thinking around supplementation for memory. But to do it in a way that's educational without trying to exploit anyone. I did my best to create the story so that you wind up thinking for yourself. What I'm doing differently with Vitamin X & the Memory Detective Series I'm not pretending fiction automatically teaches. I'm treating fiction as a delivery system for how various mnemonic methods work and as a kind of cheerleading mechanism that encourages you to engage in proper, deliberate practice. Practice of what? 1) Concentration meditation. Throughout the story, Detective Williams struggles to learn and embrace the memory-based meditation methods of his mentor, Jerome. You get to learn more about these as you read the story. 2) Memory Palaces as anchors for sanity, not party tricks. In the library sequence, Williams tries to launch a mnemonic “boomerang” into a Memory Palace while hallucinatory imagery floods the environment. Taking influence from the ancient mnemonist, Hugh of St. Victor, Noah's Ark becomes a mnemonic structure. Mnemonic images surge and help Detective Williams combat his PTSD. To make this concrete, I've utilized the illustrations within the book itself. Just as the ancients used paintings and architectural drawings to encode knowledge, the artwork in Vitamin X isn’t just decoration. During the live bootcamp I’m running to celebrate the launch, I show you how to treat the illustrations as ‘Painting Memory Palaces.’ This effectively turns the book in your hands into a functioning mnemonic device, allowing you to practice the method of loci on the page before you even step out into the real world. Then there’s the self-help element, which takes the form of how memory work can help restore sanity. A PTSD theme runs throughout the Memory Detective series for two deliberate reasons. First, Detective Williams is partly based on Nic Castle. He's a former police officer who found symptom relief for his PTSD from using memory techniques. He shared his story on this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast years ago. Second, Nic's anecdotal experience is backed up by research. And even if you don't have PTSD, the modern world is attacking many of us in ways that clearly create similar symptom-like issues far worse than the digital amnesia I've been warning about for years. We get mentally hijacked by feeds, anxiety loops, and synthetic urgency. We lose our grip on reality and wonder why we can't remember what we read five minutes ago. That's just one more reason I made memory techniques function as reality-tests inside Vitamin X. 3) The critical safeguard: I explicitly separate fiction from technique. In Flyboy's afterword, I put it plainly: The plot is fictional, but the memory techniques are real. And because they're real, they require study and practice. I believe this boundary matters because research shows how easily readers absorb false “facts” from fiction. 4) To help you practice, I included a study guide. At the end of both Flyboy and Vitamin X, there are study guides. In Vitamin X, you'll find a concrete method for creating a Mnemonic Calendar. This is not the world's most perfect memory technique. But it's helpful and a bit more advanced than a technique I learned from Jim Samuels many years ago. In his version, he had his clients divide the days of the week into a Memory Palace. For his senior citizens in particular, he had them divide the kitchen. So if they had to take a particular pill on Monday, they would imagine the pill as a giant moon in the sink. Using the method of loci, this location would always serve as their mnemonic station for Monday. In Vitamin X, the detective uses a number-shape system. Either way, these kinds of techniques for remembering schedules are the antidote to the “illusion of understanding” problem, provided that you put them to use. They can be very difficult to understand if you don't. Why My Magnetic Fiction Solves the “Hobbyist” Problem A lot of memory training fails for one reason: People treat it as a hobby. They “learn” techniques the way people “learn” guitar: By watching a few videos and buying a book. While the study material sits on a shelf or lost in a hard drive, the consumer winds up never rehearsing. Never putting any skill to the test. And as a result, never enjoying integration with the techniques. What fiction can do is create: emotional stakes situational context identity consistency (“this is what I do now”) and enough momentum to carry you into real practice That's the point of the simulation. You're not just reading about a detective and his mentor using Memory Palaces and other memory techniques. You're watching what happens when a mind uses a Memory Palace to stay oriented. And you can feel that urgency in your own nervous system while you read. That's the “cognitive gym” effect, I'm going for. It's also why I love this note from Andy, because it highlights the exact design target I'm going for: “I finished Flyboy last night. Great book! I thought it was eminently creative, working the memory lessons into a surprisingly intricate and entertaining crime mystery. Well done!” Or as the real-life Sherlock Holmes Ben Cardall put it the Memory Detective stories are: …rare pieces of fiction that encourages reflection in the reader. You don’t just get the drama, the tension and the excitement from the exploits of its characters. You also get a look at your own capabilities as though Anthony is able to make you hold a mirror up to yourself and think ‘what else am I capable of’? A Practical Way to Read These Novels for Memory Training If you want the benefits without the traps we've discussed today: Read Vitamin X for immersion first (let transportation do its job). Then read it again with a simple study goal. This re-reading strategy is important because study-goal framing will improve comprehension and reduce overconfidence. During this second read-through, actually use the Mnemonic Calendar. Then, test yourself by writing out what you remember from the story. If you make a mistake, don't judge yourself. Simply use analytical thinking to determine what went wrong and work out how you can improve. The Future: Learning Through Story is About to Intensify Here's the uncomfortable forecast: Even though I’m generally pro-AI for all kinds of outcomes and grateful for my discussions with Andrew Mayne about it (host of the OpenAI Podcast), AI could make the generation of personalized narratives that target your fears, identity, and desires trivial. That means there’s the risk that AI will also easily transform your beliefs. The same machinery that can create “education you can't stop reading” can also create persuasion you barely notice. Or, as Michael Connelly described in his novel, The Proving Ground, we might notice the effects of this persuasion far more than we’d like. My research on narrative persuasion and misinformation underscores why this potential outcome is not hypothetical. So the real question isn't “Should we teach with fiction?” The question is: Will we build fiction that creates personal agency… or engineer stories that steal it? My aim with Flyboy, Vitamin X and the series finale is simple and focused on optimizing your ability: to use story as a motivation engine to convert that motivation into deliberate practice to make a wide range of memory techniques feel as exciting for you as they are for me and to give your attention interesting tests in a world engineered to fragment it. If you want better memory, this is your challenge: Don't read Vitamin X for entertainment alone. Read it to see if you can hold on to reality while the world spins out of control. When you do, you'll be doing something far rarer than collecting tips. You'll be swinging the axe. A very sharp axe indeed. And best of all, your axe for learning and remembering more information at greater speed will be Magnetic.

The Masterclass Hegemony, Revolt and Selfhood: India's Encounters with Languages explores three defining moments in India's linguistic journey: the arrival of Sanskrit, Persian, and English. Each language came from beyond India's borders, gained a foothold, and extended its influence across diverse cultures, communities, and tongues. Their dominance shaped not only communication but also identity, politics, and thought. Thus, becoming inseparable from the larger story of India itself. These lectures will trace how each language consolidated its power, how resistance took form, and how new voices emerged in the process. Strikingly, in every encounter, it was not the imperial language that endured, but the languages rooted in the soil (the desa, the nadu) that reshaped and redefined the cultural landscape. As we step into an uncertain digital future, this series asks whether India's linguistic resilience will once again carry it forward, as it has so often before. Language and Hegemony Explore how Sanskrit, Persian, and English reshaped India across centuries. Each entered from outside, claimed cultural power, and ruled the imagination, but India remained a linguistic civilization defined by diversity. This talk uncovers why language became both a tool of hegemony and the essence of India's selfhood. In this episode of BIC Talks, G N Devy delivers a masterclass. This is an excerpt from a conversation that took place in the BIC premises in Sep 2025. Subscribe to the BIC Talks Podcast on your favourite podcast app! BIC Talks is available everywhere, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Overcast, Audible, and Amazon Music.

The Masterclass Hegemony, Revolt and Selfhood: India's Encounters with Languages explores three defining moments in India's linguistic journey: the arrival of Sanskrit, Persian, and English. Each language came from beyond India's borders, gained a foothold, and extended its influence across diverse cultures, communities, and tongues. Their dominance shaped not only communication but also identity, politics, and thought. Thus, becoming inseparable from the larger story of India itself. These lectures will trace how each language consolidated its power, how resistance took form, and how new voices emerged in the process. Strikingly, in every encounter, it was not the imperial language that endured, but the languages rooted in the soil (the desa, the nadu) that reshaped and redefined the cultural landscape. As we step into an uncertain digital future, this series asks whether India's linguistic resilience will once again carry it forward, as it has so often before. Decline and Transformation Sanskrit reigned for millennia, Persian for centuries, English for decades. Yet, none endured unchallenged. Each gave way to the resilient desi-bhashas, rooted in the land and people. This lecture traces the rise, fall, and transformation of languages in India, and what these shifts reveal about power and imagination.

The Masterclass Hegemony, Revolt and Selfhood: India's Encounters with Languages explores three defining moments in India's linguistic journey: the arrival of Sanskrit, Persian, and English. Each language came from beyond India's borders, gained a foothold, and extended its influence across diverse cultures, communities, and tongues. Their dominance shaped not only communication but also identity, politics, and thought. Thus, becoming inseparable from the larger story of India itself. These lectures will trace how each language consolidated its power, how resistance took form, and how new voices emerged in the process. Strikingly, in every encounter, it was not the imperial language that endured, but the languages rooted in the soil (the desa, the nadu) that reshaped and redefined the cultural landscape. As we step into an uncertain digital future, this series asks whether India's linguistic resilience will once again carry it forward, as it has so often before. Language between Nationalism and Technology In today's charged climate, languages carry the weight of both nationalism and digital futures. This session asks how India's linguistic diversity will evolve in the twenty-first century, and whether the voices of many can thrive amid the pulls of technology, identity, and the search for cultural belonging. In this episode of BIC Talks, G N Devy delivers a masterclass. This is an excerpt from a conversation that took place in the BIC premises in Sep 2025. Subscribe to the BIC Talks Podcast on your favourite podcast app! BIC Talks is available everywhere, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Castbox, Overcast, Audible, and Amazon Music.

Fluent Fiction - Hindi: Unlocking Ancient Secrets: A Snowy Quest in the Ruins Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.com/hi/episode/2025-12-24-23-34-02-hi Story Transcript:Hi: सर्दियों की ठंडी सुबह थी।En: It was a cold winter morning.Hi: सूर्य की किरणें प्राचीन खंडहरों पर कोमलता से पड़ रही थीं।En: The sun's rays were gently falling on the ancient ruins.Hi: चारों ओर बर्फ की सफेद चादर बिछी थी, जिससे हर चीज़ में एक रहस्मय आकर्षण आ गया था।En: A white sheet of snow covered everything, giving a mysterious allure to the surroundings.Hi: अनिका, रोहन और देव उन खंडहरों के बीच खड़े थे, सांसों में ठंडी हवा की चुभन महसूस हो रही थी।En: Anika, Rohan, and Dev stood among those ruins, feeling the sting of the cold air in their breaths.Hi: अनिका इतिहास की गहरी प्रेमी थी।En: Anika had a deep love for history.Hi: उसके मन में हमेशा से इन खंडहरों का आकर्षण था।En: She had always been fascinated by these ruins.Hi: उसने बड़े उत्साह से कहा, "यहां का रहस्य सुलझाना चाहिए।En: With great enthusiasm, she said, "We should solve the mystery here.Hi: हमें वह पुराना कलात्मक अवशेष खोजना होगा।En: We need to find the old artistic relic."Hi: "रोहन ने सिर हिलाया।En: Rohan shook his head.Hi: "तुम्हें इन कथाओं पर विश्वास नहीं करना चाहिए, अनिका।En: "You shouldn't believe these tales, Anika.Hi: ये केवल कहानियाँ हैं।En: They are just stories."Hi: "देव ने सहमति जताई, "हाँ, लेकिन मुझे भी इन रहस्यों को जानने की उत्सुकता है।En: Dev agreed, "Yes, but I am also curious to know these mysteries.Hi: यह भूला बिसरा खंडहर कुछ तो कहता होगा।En: These forgotten ruins must say something."Hi: "वे तीनों आगे बढ़े।En: The trio moved forward.Hi: बर्फ के बीच, पुरानी दीवारों पर उगी बेलें लहराते हाथों सी प्रतीत होती थीं।En: Amidst the snow, the old vines growing on walls seemed like waving arms.Hi: अचानक, एक जगह उन्हें एक प्राचीन कलात्मक वस्तु मिली।En: Suddenly, they found an ancient artistic object at one spot.Hi: स्थानीय लोग कहते थे कि यह शापित है।En: The locals said it was cursed.Hi: कई दशकों से लोग इसे छूने से डरते आए थे।En: For decades, people had been afraid to touch it.Hi: अनिका ने कहा, "हमें इसे सावधानी से देखना होगा।En: Anika said, "We need to examine it carefully.Hi: मैं मानती हूँ कि इसका कोई वैज्ञानिक कारण होगा।En: I believe there must be some scientific reason."Hi: "लेकिन तभी, आस पास की हवाएँ तेज़ हो गईं।En: But just then, the winds around them intensified.Hi: खंडहरों की छांव उन्हीं पर फैलने लगी।En: The shadows of the ruins began to envelop them.Hi: तीनों साथी थोड़े घबरा गए, लेकिन अनिका की उत्सुकता अभी भी ज़िंदा थी।En: The three companions got a little nervous, but Anika's curiosity was still alive.Hi: उसने आगे बढ़ कर वस्तु पर हाथ बढ़ाया।En: She stepped forward and reached out her hand towards the object.Hi: रोहन और देव उसके पीछे खड़े सोच रहे थे, "क्या हमें यहाँ से चले जाना चाहिए?En: Rohan and Dev stood behind her thinking, "Should we leave this place?"Hi: "अचानक, एक हल्की सी चमक हुई और ध्वनि गूंजने लगी।En: Suddenly, there was a slight flash and a sound echoed.Hi: ऐसा लगा जैसे पत्थरों का जीवन जाग उठा हो।En: It felt as if the stones had come to life.Hi: रोहन ने कहा, "शायद यह कोई पुराना यंत्र है जो अब भी सक्रिय हो सकता है।En: Rohan said, "Maybe it's some old device that can still be active."Hi: "तभी अनिका को एक छोटे से पत्थर के नीचे एक धातु की पट्टी दिखी जिस पर कुछ उत्कीर्ण था।En: Then, Anika saw a metal plaque under a small stone with some engravings.Hi: वह पढ़ते हुए बोली, "यह तो प्राचीन संस्कृत में है।En: She read aloud, "This is in ancient Sanskrit.Hi: इसका अर्थ है - 'संसार एक भ्रम है, और उसके रहस्य समय के सर्प को चुनौती देते हैं।En: It means - 'The world is an illusion, and its mysteries challenge the serpent of time.'"Hi: '"अनिका ने ध्यान से पढ़ा।En: Anika read attentively.Hi: स्थानीय कथाओं में उलझकर रहस्यों को समझने में उन्हें देर नहीं लगी।En: It didn't take them long to unravel the mysteries entwined in local legends.Hi: वे समझे कि वस्तु की बनावट और मेटल इंस्ट्रूमेंट्स का समन्वय था।En: They understood that the object was a blend of design and metal instruments.Hi: किसी समय यह वस्तु आकाश के नक्शे दिखाने के लिए इस्तेमाल होती होगी।En: At one time, this object might have been used to show maps of the sky.Hi: खंडहरों के रहस्यमय अनुभव के बाद, अनिका ने हाथ जोड़कर खंडहरों को धन्यवाद दिया।En: After the mysterious experience at the ruins, Anika folded her hands in gratitude.Hi: अब उन्हें समझ आ गया कि अज्ञात परियों की कहानियों में भी कहीं न कहीं विज्ञान छिपा होता है।En: They now understood that somewhere within the tales of unknown fairies, there is science hidden.Hi: वापस आते समय, अनिका ने कहा, "अब मुझे समझ आया कि हर कहावत का सम्मान आवश्यक है।En: On their way back, Anika said, "Now I understand that respecting every saying is necessary.Hi: हम इतिहास से बहुत कुछ सीख सकते हैं।En: We can learn a lot from history."Hi: "रोहन हँस दिया।En: Rohan laughed.Hi: "अब मुझे भी इन पुरानी धरोहरों का सम्मान करना है।En: "Now I too must respect these old heritages."Hi: "देव मुस्कुराया।En: Dev smiled.Hi: "हमने एक अद्भुत अनुभव साझा किया है।En: "We have shared a wonderful experience.Hi: यह क्रिसमस इन खंडहरों की तरह हमेशा यादगार रहेगा।En: This Christmas will always be memorable, just like these ruins."Hi: "यह सर्दियों की सुबह उनके लिए ज्ञान और समझ का नया अध्याय लेकर आई थी।En: This winter morning brought a new chapter of knowledge and understanding for them.Hi: प्राचीन वस्तु का रहस्य सुलझाकर उन्होंने न केवल शाप की कहानी का अंत किया, बल्कि अपने भीतर भी एक नई शुरुआत की।En: By unraveling the mystery of the ancient object, they not only ended the tale of the curse but also started a new beginning within themselves.Hi: ⛄En: ⛄ Vocabulary Words:sting: चुभनallure: आकर्षणancient: प्राचीनartistic: कलात्मकrelic: अवशेषvines: बेलेंcursed: शापितintensified: तेज़envelop: फैलनाechoed: गूंजाengraving: उत्कीर्णillusion: भ्रमserpent: सर्पgratitude: धन्यवादheritages: धरोहरोंmemorable: यादगारcompanion: साथीunravel: सुलझानाchallenge: चुनौतीblend: समन्वयmysterious: रहस्यमयcuriosity: उत्सुकताlegends: कथाएँscientific: वैज्ञानिकplaque: पट्टीattentively: ध्यान सेdebris: मलबाbreaths: सांसोंamidst: बीचmetal: धातु

One on One Video Call W/George https://tidycal.com/georgepmonty/60-minute-meetingSupport the show:https://www.paypal.me/Truelifepodcast?locale.x=en_USTrue Life Podcast Episode DescriptionIn this powerful return conversation, host George welcomes back Remzi Bajrami, co-founder of Common Planet, to dive deep into the future of economics and human coordination.Remzi introduces Creditism — a bold alternative economic system designed to replace debt-based capitalism with pure credit, eliminating scarcity mindsets and enabling true abundance. Drawing from a decade of research across finance, philosophy, game theory, and systems design, Remzi breaks down:•  How modern banking actually works (and why banks are privileged debt creators)•  The hidden truths about government “debt” and infinite money creation•  Why capitalism, socialism, and communism all fail at the same foundational level: pre-distributing Earth's commons to a privileged few•  The core principles of Creditism: unconditional income, activity-based credit creation, democratic bonus metrics for production, and currency deletion upon spending•  The planetary membership project IU (“life” in Sanskrit) — a decentralized network launching soon to co-create digital tools for governance, record-keeping, and a new infinite gameThis episode challenges everything you thought you knew about money, power, and possibility. If we're going to solve the metacrisis — ecological collapse, inequality, endless conflict — we need a fundamental evolution in how value is created and distributed.Remzi and his team are going public now: Substack launching tomorrow, YouTube in January, and the IU app in early 2026.Join the conversation. The old game is breaking. It's time to build the one that comes next.

Sanskrit name: MuladharaLocation: Base of the spineRight: To be here, to haveIdentity: Physical identityChallenge: FearPlanet: SaturnElement: EarthSacred Geometry: HexahedronGoddess Archetype: Mother Gaia - Pachamama - Hecate - Alchemy: Nigredo - Putrefaction Earth cycle: Samhain

Sanskrit name: MuladharaLocation: Base of the spineRight: To be here, to haveIdentity: Physical identityChallenge: FearPlanet: SaturnElement: EarthSacred Geometry: HexahedronGoddess Archetype: Mother Gaia - Pachamama - Hecate - Alchemy: Nigredo - Putrefaction Earth cycle: Samhain

PURANA Media is an annual, peer-reviewed, open access journal focused on modes of cultural production encompassed by the term purāṇa (a Sanskrit word designating things 'ancient' or 'primordial'). Populated by deities, sages, and a host of other more-than-human agents, the purāṇic past has been disseminated through a wide range of media and forms of embodied knowledge. As an authoritative discourse, purāṇa has been integral to the shaping of history and cultural memory in early South and Southeast Asia. In the contemporary world this discourse continues to (re)create the past as a social, political, and affective force. The journal approaches purāṇa as a way of worldmaking that uses memories of a distant past to meaningfully anchor the relative present and envision a future possible. PURANA Media adopts a broad methodological and regional scope. The journal integrates scholarship on primary historical sources (textual, visual, and material) and their contexts, critical reflections on heritage-making and museum studies, as well as contributions in art, design, photography, and other media. Open Access: here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

PURANA Media is an annual, peer-reviewed, open access journal focused on modes of cultural production encompassed by the term purāṇa (a Sanskrit word designating things 'ancient' or 'primordial'). Populated by deities, sages, and a host of other more-than-human agents, the purāṇic past has been disseminated through a wide range of media and forms of embodied knowledge. As an authoritative discourse, purāṇa has been integral to the shaping of history and cultural memory in early South and Southeast Asia. In the contemporary world this discourse continues to (re)create the past as a social, political, and affective force. The journal approaches purāṇa as a way of worldmaking that uses memories of a distant past to meaningfully anchor the relative present and envision a future possible. PURANA Media adopts a broad methodological and regional scope. The journal integrates scholarship on primary historical sources (textual, visual, and material) and their contexts, critical reflections on heritage-making and museum studies, as well as contributions in art, design, photography, and other media. Open Access: here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

PURANA Media is an annual, peer-reviewed, open access journal focused on modes of cultural production encompassed by the term purāṇa (a Sanskrit word designating things 'ancient' or 'primordial'). Populated by deities, sages, and a host of other more-than-human agents, the purāṇic past has been disseminated through a wide range of media and forms of embodied knowledge. As an authoritative discourse, purāṇa has been integral to the shaping of history and cultural memory in early South and Southeast Asia. In the contemporary world this discourse continues to (re)create the past as a social, political, and affective force. The journal approaches purāṇa as a way of worldmaking that uses memories of a distant past to meaningfully anchor the relative present and envision a future possible. PURANA Media adopts a broad methodological and regional scope. The journal integrates scholarship on primary historical sources (textual, visual, and material) and their contexts, critical reflections on heritage-making and museum studies, as well as contributions in art, design, photography, and other media. Open Access: here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/indian-religions

Send us a textBuy Jill's book, Sacred Sound Formulas to Awaken the Modern Mind @ jilljardine.comBook a reading with Jill to find out what 2026 has in store for you!  www.jilljardineastrology.comBuy the Sacred Rays of God by Paul of Venus: https://www.thesacredraysofgod.com/What if awakening is gentle—a soft opening into the same place with a different space? We sit down with Paul of Venus to discuss his book, The Sacred Rays of God. Paul describes the Sacred Rays as living streams of consciousness that heal fear, organize the heart, and guide a calm transition into the New Earth. From the first days of raw surrender on Mount Shasta to vivid encounters with Saint Germain, this story moves from brokenness to embodiment and shows how alchemy happens through feeling, not bypassing.We trace the lineage behind the work—Theosophy's seven rays, Elizabeth Clare Prophet's teachings, and deeper roots in Lemuria and Sanat Kumara—then widen into an expanded spectrum that includes hybrid rays and refined frequencies for modern times. Paula shares the Threefold Flame of will, wisdom, and love as the core template in every heart, and explains how the blue will of God coordinates with allies like Archangel Michael, Pleiadians, and Arcturians to steady courage and purpose. You'll hear how forgiveness on the violet ray dissolves karmic tangles, why the ruby ray ignites peace and sacred service, and how the emerald ray anchors truth behind the noise of personality.Beyond myth, we get practical. Paul of Venus describes field-tested tools received on the mountain: stepping outside time and space, quieting human interference to reveal true frequency, and working with imagination as a lawful interface to light. The book, The Sacred Rays of God, emerges from journaled activations inside etheric retreats—Telos, Shambhala, and the Ascended Masters' sanctuaries—and reads like a transmission designed to activate, not just inform. We connect light and sound technology too, linking Sanskrit mantra practice with the tonal aspect of the rays to stabilize change at the nervous system level.If you're feeling the squeeze of this moment, consider this a clear path forward: forgive relentlessly, align to the will of God, listen inside the heart's silence, and let the rays organize your life. The New Earth is already braided into our world; the choice is whether to step into it.The Sacred Rays of God unveils the ancient wisdom of the Divine Rays—powerful streams of celestial energy that illuminate the path to healing, enlightenment, and ascension. Channeled through automatic writing during profound encounters on Mount Shasta, author Paul of Venus shares direct transmissions from the Ascended Masters, including revelations about the secret Rays of Venus never before disclosed to humanity. From the Blue Ray of Divine Will to the transformative Violet Ray, each stream of God-consciousness carries specific gifts of cosmic wisdom waiting to be awakened within you. This groundbreaking work offers practical guidance for embodying these sacred frequencies in your daily life, while unveiling mysteries from Shambala, Telos, and the first city of the New Earth. More than a book, this is a living transmission of light itself—each page infused with the authentic frequency of Saint Germain's Divine guidance and the wisdom of Mount Shasta's Ascended Masters, designed to awaken you to your true nature as a Divine creator.Listen, share with someone who needs hope, and leave a review so more seekers can find this work. Subscribe for upcoming transmissions and on-mountain activations.Support the show

Dr. Raj speaks with Vedic chanting teacher Shantala Sriramaiah about life at the intersection of ancient lineage and modern online learning. In addition to Shantala's journey, we discuss her platform Veda Studies and her newly published teaching resources. Here are some links to learn more about Shantala's work: Website: https://www.vedastudies.com Spotify Artist Page: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2c2XaZTIfbryunWLcUVSo7 Nitya Prārthanā and Nitya Dhyāna: https://www.vedastudies.com/books/ Free Veda chanting essentials course (on demand): https://www.vedastudies.com/student-registration/ The Indian Wisdom Podcast is hosted by Dr. Raj Balkaran, a Sanskrit scholar, seasoned storyteller and spiritual lineage holder. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at The Indian Wisdom School. He is also the author of "The Stories Behind the Poses: The Indian Mythology that Inspired 50 Yoga Postures” and runs a thriving one-on-one spiritual guidance practice. Personal Website: https://rajbalkaran.com Courses: https://indianwisdomschool.com Podcast: https://indianwisdompodcast.com

It's time for some good old-fashioned epic action with our first episode on the Ramayana, one of the great Sanskrit-language epics from India. Composed as a written work from about 350 BCE onward (but probably much earlier as an oral poem), the Ramayana tells of the trials and tribulations of Rama, Prince of Kosala and avatar of the god Vishnu. It has everything from romance and battle to deep spiritual wisdom and a divine monkey hero who overthinks a lot.Want to read a transcript or see our references? Click here. Don't forget to subscribe, leave a rating or review, and share us with others! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Each year, under the bright full moon of Guru Purnima, yoga practitioners and seekers around the world pause to honor the timeless presence of the Guru, the teacher who removes darkness and reveals the light that has always been within us. But what does it truly mean to walk in the light of the Guru? In the ancient yoga tradition, the Guru is far more than just a transmitter of techniques or philosophy. The Guru is the living embodiment of wisdom, a steady flame passed from teacher to student, generation after generation. The Guru: Not Just a Teacher, but a Living Embodiment Our ancient texts speak clearly about this. The Mundaka Upanishad (1.2.12) tells us: तद्विज्ञानार्थं स गुरुमेवाभिगच्छेत समित्पाणिः श्रोत्रियं ब्रह्मनिष्ठम् ॥ Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet Samit-panih srotriyam brahma-nishtham "To realize that Supreme Knowledge, one must approach a Guru alone, carrying fuel in hand, who is learned in the scriptures (srotriya) and firmly established in Brahman (brahma-nistha)." These two qualities, srotriya and brahma-nistha, reveal the heart of the true Guru. Srotriya (श्रोत्रिय) comes from sruti (श्रुति), meaning "that which is heard," the revealed wisdom of the Vedas and Upanishads. Etymologically, sru means to hear and -triya means possessor of. A srotriya is one who has fully mastered the sacred teachings, the outer mastery of scripture, tradition, and precise method. Brahma-nistha (ब्रह्मनिष्ठ) brings us deeper still. Brahman is the undivided reality, the ultimate truth. Nistha means "firmly established," from nis (down, firm) and stha (to stand). A brahma-nistha is one who stands unshakably rooted in the living truth of Brahman. This is the inner realization that breathes life into the outer knowledge. Together, they remind us: Without srotriya, the teaching drifts. Without brahma-nistha, the teaching is lifeless. How the Guru Lives in Our Lineage In the Ashtanga Yoga tradition, we have seen these qualities alive in the teachers who came before us. K. Pattabhi Jois was a true srotriya, deeply rooted in Sanskrit, the Vedas, and the subtle method of Ashtanga Yoga. Yet his real power came from being brahma-nistha too: his whole life was practice, devotion, and direct living example. He did not just talk about yoga, he was yoga, every dawn, every breath, every student who came to him. Sharath Jois, Guruji's grandson, embodies this same living thread. His srotriya shines through in the precise count, the unwavering discipline, the commitment to preserve the parampara, the unbroken lineage. But what touches people most is his brahma-nistha: the quiet steadiness, the humility, the simple, living truth that shows through his presence and service to this path. A true Guru does not make you a follower. A true Guru shows you how to find the light that has always been yours. The Guru Cultivates the Inner Flame As Patanjali reminds us in the Yoga Sutra (1.20): श्रद्धावीर्यस्मृतिसमाधिप्रज्ञापूर्वक इतरेषाम् ॥ १.२० ॥ Sraddha-virya-smrti-samadhi-prajna-purvaka itaresam "For others, samadhi comes through faith (sraddha), vigor (virya), remembrance (smrti), deep absorption (samadhi), and wisdom (prajna)." These qualities are the hidden garden the Guru nourishes in us: Sraddha: faith, the quiet trust that steadies us when doubt arises. Virya: courageous effort, the strength to keep going. Smrti: remembrance of who we really are and why we practice. Samadhi: deep absorption, the merging of mind, breath, and heart. Prajna: clear insight, the wisdom that sees through illusion. The outer Guru lights this lamp. The inner Guru keeps it burning. A Prayer on Guru Purnima When we bow on Guru Purnima, we do not bow only to a person, we bow to the entire living thread that connects us to truth: our teachers, our daily practice, our inner wisdom. May our lives be our offering back, our sraddha, our virya, our willingness to stand firm in the truth when the world wavers. May we carry this flame forward, bright and steady, for all those who will come after us, seeking the same light that our Gurus kept alive for us. ॐ श्रीगुरुभ्यो नमः। Pranam to all Gurus, visible and invisible, past, present, and yet to come. Closing Thought May Guru Purnima remind you that the Guru is not far away. The true Guru lives in your daily breath, your sincere effort, and the quiet voice inside that whispers, keep going. May we keep this light alive, together. Practice LIVE with me exclusively on Omstars. Start your journey today with a 7-day trial at omstars.com. Stay connected with us on social @omstarsofficial and @kinoyoga. Practice with me in person for workshops, classes, retreats, trainings and Mysore seasons. Find out more about where I am teaching at kinoyoga.com and sign up for our Mysore season in Miami at www.miamilifecenter.com .

The Serpent's Tale: Kundalini, Yoga, and the History of an Experience (Columbia UP, 2025) traces the intricate global histories of Kuṇḍalinī, from its Sanskrit origins to its popularity in the West. Ranging from esoteric texts to global gurus, from the cliffs of California to the charnel grounds of Assam, they show that there has never been one single “authentic” model of Kuṇḍalinī but a multiplicity of visions. Bridging the gaps between textual and historical analysis and the complexities of embodied practice, Borkataky-Varma and Foxen reflect on the narration and transmission of experiences, including their own. Lively, accessible, and nuanced, The Serpent's Tale offers rich insights for scholars, practitioners, and all readers drawn to Kuṇḍalinī. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Exploring the connections between Bharata Natyam dance and zazen, Anusha Enryu Fernando helps listeners remember the joy of practice.This conversation was originally recorded on the Paths of Practice Podcast. Listen to more episodes HERE.Today's podcast is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/beherenow and get on your way to being your best self.This time on the BHNN Guest Podcast, Anusha and Vincent discuss:Zen practice and doing full-body meditationsBharata Natyam: a sacred and ancient dance that focuses on the mind-body connectionPaying attention to the body so intently that there is no space for thoughtThe non-abiding mind and continuing to move through human experienceUnderstanding the devotional gestures that are built into zen practiceAnusha's profound experience learning Sanskrit for both ancient dance and studying the dharma The most important vow: to really be alive in this lifeFood preparations, making offerings, and connecting with the ancestors through foodHow people get stuck on the first noble truth and forget that there is joy in practiceCheck out The Great Vow Zen Monastery in Oregon and learn more about residencies, workshops, and more.About Anusha Enryu Fernando:Anusha Enryu Fernando was born in Sri Lanka to a Theravadin Buddhist family. Her grandparents founded the Vipassana Meditation Centre located in Colombo, Sri Lanka in 1957. She began practicing Zen Meditation with Hogen and Chozen Roshi in 2007, and became a dharma holder in 2021. She holds a BA in Religious Studies, specializing in Buddhism and Hinduism from McGill University, and a Masters of Arts in Asian Studies from the University of British Columbia, specializing in Sanskrit. In her dissertation, she translated a Sanskrit poem of the life story of the Buddha, called the Padyacudamani. Enryu has been a teacher and performer of Bharata Natyam, a form of Indian Classical Dance, for the past thirty years and is the founder and Artistic Director of Shakti Dance Society. She has also been the book purchaser at Banyen Books and Sound, Vancouver's iconic spiritual and metaphysical bookstore, for the past twenty-eight years. She is the mother of an adult daughter and lives with her husband, parents, and multiple furry friends in Vancouver, Canada. Read more about Anusha's work in Shakti Dance HERE."Movement is a huge part of the experience of zazen. You're not sitting there like a fallen rock. The connecting with just the aliveness of that experience, that juicy, wonderful aliveness which is movement, is the practice.” –Anusha Enryu FernandoAbout Vincent Moore:Vincent Moore is a creative and creative consultant living in San Francisco, California, with over a decade of experience in the entertainment industry and holds a graduate degree in Buddhist Studies. For years, he performed regularly at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, an improv and sketch comedy theatre based in New York and Los Angeles. As an actor, Vincent performed on Comedy Central, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Late Show with Seth Meyers, Above Average, and The UCB Show on Seeso. As a writer, he developed for television as well as stage, including work with the Blue Man Group, and his own written projects have been featured on websites such as Funny or Die. Additionally, he received a Masters of Buddhist Studies from the Institute of Buddhist Studies with a Certificate in Soto Zen Studies and engages in a personal Buddhist practice within the Soto Zen tradition. Vincent is also the creator and host of the podcast, Paths of Practice, which features interviews with Buddhists from all over the world. Learn more on Vincent's website HERE.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mudras – meaning ‘seal', mark' or ‘gesture' in Sanskrit – are said to intensify the effects of our yoga or meditation practice and enhance the flow of energy. But how does this work and when should we use them? There are many schools that teach about Mudras in different ways. Sharmee Divan follows the Ayurvedic School of practice for the MudrasCome join Sharmee explore how you can take your health back in your hands.Enlightened World Network is your guide to inspirational online programs about the spiritual divinity, angels, energy work, chakras, past lives, or soul. Learn about spiritually transformative authors, musicians and healers. From motivational learning to inner guidance, you will find the best program for you.Check out our website featuring over 200 spirit-inspired lightworkers specializing in meditation, energy work and angel channelingwww.enlightenedworld.onlinePlease consider donating to support the work of the EWN https://www.paypal.me/EnlightenedWorld.To sign up for a newsletter to stay up on EWN programs and events, sign up here:https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/FBoFQef/webLink to EWN's disclaimer: https://enlightenedworld.online/disclaimer/#Angelicguidance #Spiritualcommunity #archangels#Christconsciousness

The Serpent's Tale: Kundalini, Yoga, and the History of an Experience (Columbia UP, 2025) traces the intricate global histories of Kuṇḍalinī, from its Sanskrit origins to its popularity in the West. Ranging from esoteric texts to global gurus, from the cliffs of California to the charnel grounds of Assam, they show that there has never been one single “authentic” model of Kuṇḍalinī but a multiplicity of visions. Bridging the gaps between textual and historical analysis and the complexities of embodied practice, Borkataky-Varma and Foxen reflect on the narration and transmission of experiences, including their own. Lively, accessible, and nuanced, The Serpent's Tale offers rich insights for scholars, practitioners, and all readers drawn to Kuṇḍalinī. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/indian-religions

Welcome to the Spiritually Fit Yoga podcast with Amelia Andaleon! In episode three of my 30-day December mini meditations, we explore Aparigraha, a Sanskrit word meaning "non-possessiveness," "non-attachment," or "non-greed," and is the fifth of the ⁠five Yamas⁠ (ethical restraints) in ⁠Patanjali's Yoga Sutras⁠. It involves taking only what you need, letting go of excessive material possessions, and releasing emotional attachments to things, outcomes, and the past. Aparigraha asks us: What are you gripping tightly?  What are you trying to control?  Who are you having a hard time emotionally letting go of?  Are you attached to any outcomes, results or expectations?--------------------------I'd love to hear what you are experiencing practicing these mini meditation episodes. Connect with me by leaving a comment or DM me on Instagram @spirituallyfityoga. If you found this episode valuable, please share with others. Your 5-star reviews are always appreciated.Learn more about me at ⁠⁠http://SpirituallyFitYoga.com. ⁠⁠ Check out my upcoming events and yoga retreats.Subscribe to my VIP newsletter for special offers and discounts only sent via email to my subscribers:⁠⁠https://tinyurl.com/sfityoga-subscribe⁠⁠In Gratitude,Amelia AndaleonYoga & meditation teacher, lead trainer and owner of the Spiritually Fit Yoga school (RYS)

In this episode, we dive into what it means to live from love — exploring the role of spirituality in mental health, faith versus blind belief, the Sanskrit wisdom of the divine, and how every action can ripple with sacred meaning. Topics we discussed: The feeling of Christmas — and how that sense of warmth connects to spirituality Why spirituality can deeply protect mental health (drawing on research, work referenced by Lisa Miller, PhD) The heart's purpose: to love and to be loved — especially divine love (prema) The difference between genuine faith and blind belief or skepticism Understanding the divine through the lens of three dimensions: Brahman (the absolute), Paramatman (the supreme soul), and Bhagavan (the “personal” divine) What it would feel like if we approached every action as an act of love Reflections on life's delicacy, sacredness, and meaning — inspired by the Govardhan Eco Village monks Join the Happy Jack Yoga community:

Send us a textThe ancient Rishis, through deep states of consciousness perceived the true architecture of cosmic time, shedding light on why the impossible (like interstellar travel)  is infinitely possible. Vedic knowledge, is not myth. it is memory that sustains within the humanity's DNA. All that we call myth - from the  ancient domain of Africa ( which includes Egypt ), India, China, the great pyramids, Mayan civilization's UN-erasable history- the universal truth etched in our memory- memory to be remembered. A more recent Vedic aeronautic tome called the Vaimanika Shastra written by Pt. Sastry cited the intricate architectural designs implemented in ancient Vedic models for starships such as Ai Atlas and R2 Swan - the design and construction and propulsion of these ancient starships noted untra-dense metal construction and mercury vortex engines and other highly advanced  technologies.  The modern discovery of concepts like ion drives, warp drives and  anti-gravity technology align with the supreme design architecture described in this text which elaborated on ancient Vedic texts such as Ramayana and Mahabharata that noted these flying machines called Vimana, a Sanskrit term: The descriptions of Vimanas as silent hovering craft moving with aquatic grace at unfathomable speeds across great swaths of the universe navigating through known cosmic portals. Vaimanika Sastra surmised the starship's design  complied with Vedic mathematical principles that emulate the natural symmetrical  pulsation and geometrical sequence of the universe. ancient Vedic renditions of spacecraft design would have had to include a timed emission system that is synchronized  to match the pulsation of the cosmic heartbeat generating from Spanda, the primordial vibration.  Its navigation system is rooted in the cosmic code imbued into the spiral of galaxies, a concept founded  in 200BCE by the Vedic mathematician, Pingala in his work on Sanskrit prosody where he surmised the Virahanka numbers, the knowledge of what is now known as the Fibonacci sequence - the cosmic code imbued in the spiral of galaxies, in the full cycle of the DNA double helix, and in various aspects of nature.To help us understand  the impossible timeline being not only possible but holding infinite possibilities listen to the deeper vibration of truth currently resonating in every cell of your being. There is simply nothing to fear  from the arrival of interstellar starships and their Supra-conscious sojourners.Vedic cosmology describes time in vast cycles called kalpas, 4.32 billion years, for example, represent a day of Brahma followed by a night of Brahma of equal length, where the universe is created and then dissolved. This cyclical model predates present day Big Bang theories. The Vedas propose that the universe expands from a singularity and at the end of each Kalpa it collapses into dissolution therein triggering the next Big Bang. This understanding of the Kalpa principle of time offers insights into the bending and folding of cosmic time. For example, the ancient space crafts of Ai ASupport the showMay Peace Be Your Journey~www.mayatiwari.comwww.facebook.com/mayatiwariahimsa.Buzzsprout.com Get Maya's New Book: I Am Shakti: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/o-books/our-books/I-am-shakti Amazon.com Bookshop.org

Blending travelogue, history, and archaeology, Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand (SUNY Press, 2023) unravels the various avatars of India's most famous emperor, revealing how he came to be remembered—and forgotten—in distinctive ways at particular points in time and in specific locations. Through personal journeys that take her across India and to various sites and cities in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand, archaeologist Nayanjot Lahiri explores how Ashoka's visibility from antiquity to the modern era has been accompanied by a reinvention of his persona. Although the historical Ashoka spoke expansively of his ideas of governance and a new kind of morality, his afterlife is a jumble of stories and representations within various Buddhist imaginings. By remembering Ashoka selectively, Lahiri argues, ancient kings and chroniclers created an artifice, constantly appropriating and then remolding history to suit their own social visions, political agendas, and moral purposes. Nayanjot Lahiri is Professor of History at Ashoka University. Her previous books include Finding Forgotten Cities: How the Indus Civilization was Discovered; Marshalling the Past: Ancient India and Its Modern Histories; and Ashoka in Ancient India, which was awarded the John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2016. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Blending travelogue, history, and archaeology, Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand (SUNY Press, 2023) unravels the various avatars of India's most famous emperor, revealing how he came to be remembered—and forgotten—in distinctive ways at particular points in time and in specific locations. Through personal journeys that take her across India and to various sites and cities in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand, archaeologist Nayanjot Lahiri explores how Ashoka's visibility from antiquity to the modern era has been accompanied by a reinvention of his persona. Although the historical Ashoka spoke expansively of his ideas of governance and a new kind of morality, his afterlife is a jumble of stories and representations within various Buddhist imaginings. By remembering Ashoka selectively, Lahiri argues, ancient kings and chroniclers created an artifice, constantly appropriating and then remolding history to suit their own social visions, political agendas, and moral purposes. Nayanjot Lahiri is Professor of History at Ashoka University. Her previous books include Finding Forgotten Cities: How the Indus Civilization was Discovered; Marshalling the Past: Ancient India and Its Modern Histories; and Ashoka in Ancient India, which was awarded the John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2016. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/southeast-asian-studies

Blending travelogue, history, and archaeology, Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand (SUNY Press, 2023) unravels the various avatars of India's most famous emperor, revealing how he came to be remembered—and forgotten—in distinctive ways at particular points in time and in specific locations. Through personal journeys that take her across India and to various sites and cities in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand, archaeologist Nayanjot Lahiri explores how Ashoka's visibility from antiquity to the modern era has been accompanied by a reinvention of his persona. Although the historical Ashoka spoke expansively of his ideas of governance and a new kind of morality, his afterlife is a jumble of stories and representations within various Buddhist imaginings. By remembering Ashoka selectively, Lahiri argues, ancient kings and chroniclers created an artifice, constantly appropriating and then remolding history to suit their own social visions, political agendas, and moral purposes. Nayanjot Lahiri is Professor of History at Ashoka University. Her previous books include Finding Forgotten Cities: How the Indus Civilization was Discovered; Marshalling the Past: Ancient India and Its Modern Histories; and Ashoka in Ancient India, which was awarded the John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2016. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/archaeology

Blending travelogue, history, and archaeology, Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand (SUNY Press, 2023) unravels the various avatars of India's most famous emperor, revealing how he came to be remembered—and forgotten—in distinctive ways at particular points in time and in specific locations. Through personal journeys that take her across India and to various sites and cities in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand, archaeologist Nayanjot Lahiri explores how Ashoka's visibility from antiquity to the modern era has been accompanied by a reinvention of his persona. Although the historical Ashoka spoke expansively of his ideas of governance and a new kind of morality, his afterlife is a jumble of stories and representations within various Buddhist imaginings. By remembering Ashoka selectively, Lahiri argues, ancient kings and chroniclers created an artifice, constantly appropriating and then remolding history to suit their own social visions, political agendas, and moral purposes. Nayanjot Lahiri is Professor of History at Ashoka University. Her previous books include Finding Forgotten Cities: How the Indus Civilization was Discovered; Marshalling the Past: Ancient India and Its Modern Histories; and Ashoka in Ancient India, which was awarded the John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2016. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Blending travelogue, history, and archaeology, Searching for Ashoka: Questing for a Buddhist King from India to Thailand (SUNY Press, 2023) unravels the various avatars of India's most famous emperor, revealing how he came to be remembered—and forgotten—in distinctive ways at particular points in time and in specific locations. Through personal journeys that take her across India and to various sites and cities in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand, archaeologist Nayanjot Lahiri explores how Ashoka's visibility from antiquity to the modern era has been accompanied by a reinvention of his persona. Although the historical Ashoka spoke expansively of his ideas of governance and a new kind of morality, his afterlife is a jumble of stories and representations within various Buddhist imaginings. By remembering Ashoka selectively, Lahiri argues, ancient kings and chroniclers created an artifice, constantly appropriating and then remolding history to suit their own social visions, political agendas, and moral purposes. Nayanjot Lahiri is Professor of History at Ashoka University. Her previous books include Finding Forgotten Cities: How the Indus Civilization was Discovered; Marshalling the Past: Ancient India and Its Modern Histories; and Ashoka in Ancient India, which was awarded the John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2016. Raj Balkaran is a scholar of Sanskrit narrative texts. He teaches at the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and at his own virtual School of Indian Wisdom. For information see rajbalkaran.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/buddhist-studies

Most people think they know what the Hare Krishna movement is, until they actually speak with a monk living the lifestyle. In this eye-opening conversation recorded at Spirit Fest USA, we sit down with Jadardana Krishna Das, a modern monk who breaks down the truth behind one of the world's most misunderstood spiritual traditions. If you've ever wondered what the robes mean, why monks shave their heads, what Krishna Consciousness actually teaches, or whether the Bhagavad Gita has anything to offer someone who isn't Hindu…this episode will challenge your assumptions and force you to see spiritual awakening in a completely different light. This isn't dogma. This isn't recruitment. This is practical mind-training, ancient consciousness science, and a path toward inner clarity that anyone, any faith, any background, can explore. What You'll Learn in This Episode:✔ What the Hare Krishna movement really teaches Not the stereotypes. Not the assumptions. The actual mission: raising consciousness, reconnecting with the soul, and empowering people from any background to develop a spiritual foundation. ✔ The surprising truth about the Bhagavad Gita It's not a “Hindu book.” It predates Hinduism and Buddhism and offers universal teachings on the mind, the self, and the battlefield within.  ✔ Why monks shave their heads & wear orange robes Purification, simplicity, detachment, spiritual focus, and yes, hygiene. The symbolic meaning goes far deeper than most people realize.  ✔ What the forehead markings really represent Not decoration...purification, protection, and identity within a specific philosophical lineage.  ✔ Are Hare Krishnas trying to convert people? Short answer: no. Long answer: this episode explains why the movement focuses on knowledge, not recruitment.  ✔ How chanting really works Why anyone, child or adult, any religion or none, can chant Hare Krishna and experience its effects anytime, anywhere.  ✔ The monk's personal journey From sports, movies, and a secular upbringing…to a life-changing realization in college that led him to choose a life of spiritual training. Why This Conversation Matters:This isn't a fringe movement. This is one of the oldest consciousness-expansion systems on Earth. And it speaks directly to the problems modern seekers face:mental overwhelmlack of meaningdisconnection from selfthe inner “battlefield” the Gita describes so wellthe pressure of material lifethe desire for spiritual grounding without dogmaJadardana shows how these teachings are not about escaping life...they're about engaging with it from a higher state of awareness.Resources Mentioned:• Bhagavad Gita As It Is The recommended version with Sanskrit, translation, and commentary used in the Hare Krishna tradition. Available online, in libraries, and in print.  • Local Hare Krishna Temples & Centers Found in most major cities. Offer meditation, classes, and free vegetarian food. Ideal For Listeners Seeking:Spiritual AwakeningConsciousness ExpansionMysticism & Esoteric KnowledgeMind-Body ConnectionAlternative SpiritualityExploring the UnknownPractical Meditation & Higher Self WorkNon-dogmatic paths to spiritual growthListen Now This episode will shift the way you think about spirituality, identity, and what it means to live a conscious life, whether you resonate with the Hare Krishna path or not. Subscribe, Rate & Review! If you found this episode enlightening, mind-expanding, or even just thought-provoking (see what we did there?), please take a moment to rate and review us. Your feedback helps us bring more transformative guests and topics your way! Subscribe to The Skeptic Metaphysicians on your favorite podcast platform and YouTube for more deep dives into spiritual awakening, consciousness, spirituality, metaphysical science, and mind-body evolution.Connect with Us: 

Episode 0940- Tribulation & Detachment, I(Click on the above link, or here, for audio.) Extended commentary on current world conditions associated with Biblical "Tribulation" (Tlipsis, from Greek) -- and its use as catalyst for wise/balanced detachment (Vairagya, in Sanskrit). Multiple perspectives on Tlipsis & Vairagya, with application to personal process, healing & balance,

Episode 0941 - Tribulation & Detachment, II (Click on the above link, or here, for audio.) Concluding commentary on current world conditions associated with Biblical "Tribulation" (Tlipsis, from Greek) -- and its use as catalyst for wise/balanced detachment (Vairagya, in Sanskrit). Multiple perspectives on Tlipsis & Vairagya, with application to personal process, healing & balance,

In a world where information is always within reach, it's tempting to believe we no longer need teachers. With a few clicks, we can access ancient texts, videos, and tutorials on nearly any aspect of yoga. But there's something that the internet cannot give you: transmission. Yoga is not simply learned; it is received. And it is only in relationship that this sacred transmission occurs. Our role as yoga teachers is not to entertain or perform. We are not here to serve up a random collection of poses or stories. Our job is to teach yoga to you, to help you understand the significance of the method. Especially in Ashtanga Yoga, where lineage matters and precision holds meaning, we offer a comprehensive system, not a fragmented sampler. What we offer is not just technique; it is a way of being. And that way of being is passed down through a living thread. To understand the teacher-student relationship in yoga, we must return to its roots, in the Sanskrit tradition, in the oral teachings of the Upaniṣads, and even in the deep etymology of the words we use in English. Practice LIVE with me exclusively on Omstars! Start your journey today with a 7-day trial at omstars.com. Stay connected with us on social @omstarsofficial and @kinoyoga Practice with me in person for workshops, classes, retreats, trainings and Mysore seasons. Find out more about where I'm teaching at kinoyoga.com and sign up for our Mysore season in Miami at www.miamilifecenter.com.  

Register for the Austin listener meetup Donald S. Lopez Jr. is among the foremost scholars of Buddhism, whose work consistently distinguishes Buddhist reality from Western fantasy. A professor at the University of Michigan and author of numerous essential books on Buddhist thought and practice, he's spent decades studying Sanskrit and Tibetan texts, including a formative year spent living in a Tibetan monastery in India. His latest book, The Buddha: Biography of a Myth, tackles the formidable challenge of understanding what we can actually know about the historical Buddha. Tyler and Donald discuss the Buddha's 32 bodily marks, whether he died of dysentery, what sets the limits of the Buddha's omniscience, the theological puzzle of sacred power in an atheistic religion, Buddhism's elaborate system of hells and hungry ghosts, how 19th-century European atheists invented the "peaceful" Buddhism we know today, whether the axial age theory holds up, what happened to the Buddha's son Rahula, Buddhism's global decline, the evidently effective succession process for Dalai Lamas, how a guy from New Jersey created the Tibetan Book of the Dead, what makes Zen Buddhism theologically unique, why Thailand is the wealthiest Buddhist country, where to go on a three-week Buddhist pilgrimage, how Donald became a scholar of Buddhism after abandoning his plans to study Shakespeare, his dream of translating Buddhist stories into new dramatic forms, and more. Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links, or watch the full video on the new dedicated Conversations with Tyler channel. Recorded October 6th, 2025. Other ways to connect Follow us on X and Instagram Follow Tyler on X Sign up for our newsletter Join our Discord Email us: cowenconvos@mercatus.gmu.edu Learn more about Conversations with Tyler and other Mercatus Center podcasts here.