1449: Freeing Oneself & Reclaiming Happiness / An Interview with Eddie Stern

Raghunath and Kaustubha discuss their thoughts and feels upon arriving in Vrindavan / being greeted like members of the family / connecting with the Bengali pilgrims through kirtan / moving rituals at the sacred pond, Radha Kunda / Radha Kund is messy but pure / going deep / 3 rules for a deeper experience in Vrindavan / Vrindavan has frequencies we can’t perceive / seeing past the thin material layer / we’re living in a Bhakti renaissance ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

I understand that suffering is part of this material world and may be Krishna’s will but it saddens and disturbs me to see so much senseless suffering. How can I reconcile this? / Upon returning from a pilgrimage to India, how to carry this high vibe home and maintain it? / Please explain the sacred stones (shilas).  ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

What is the key to forgiveness, if we’re trying to forgive to move forward what’s the process? It doesn’t make the trauma go away, so how is forgiveness supposed to help you? / Why does Krsna Balaram Temple in Vrindavan sing a different song in the morning than all the other temples? / How to bring the right attitude into my morning practices? / How to help someone new to Bhakti ease into the practice without becoming overwhelmed?   ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

disconnected from our roots, we create a “theater of the absurd” / the eternal dharma that we all share - we’re all designed to serve with love / if you don’t feel shame when doing shameful things - something’s wrong with us / wandering up to the Himalayas to die / “Now, I’m meant to let go.” / we churn, we work, we sweat, we suffer - and then we learn that we just need to let go / Divine love prevails all trauma / we’re gonna keep hurting each other until we evolve

The Goddess Laxmi appears from the ocean of milk / Laxmi’s discernment in giving her self entirely to Visnu / Laxmi’s devotional mood brings all good fortune / the coronation of Laxmi / the female energy of God is personified good fortune / be blessed by Laxmi or deal with Durga / Laxmi chooses Vishnu / neglect of lax results in depression, bewilderment and frustration  SB 8.8.9-29 ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages  

The party is in Udaipur and its ever-fresh / Raghu confirms Kaustubha’s Krishna Miracle / Unconditional love is our innate operating system / things never go as smoothly as you want- even for the devas / the Goddess of Fortune lives to be enjoyed - does that trigger us? / the idea that we exist for the pleasure of another is triggering - but LOVE REQUIRES IT! / Krishna is waiting for us to come to his level of unconditional love / What’s your peace formula, Smarty pants? / the Goddess Laxmi’s got no issues SB 8.8.1-8 ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

Bhakti is caught more than taught / You just gotta ask (for Krishna prasad) /  tenderness of heart towards Kṛṣṇa is bhakti - tenderness of heart towards everyone is compassion / You play the bhakti game there’s no bad luck / Krishna pleased = Shiva pleased = everyone pleased / the highest method of worshiping God, in the heart of everyone, is to accept voluntary suffering to relieve the suffering of others  SB 8.7.1-46 ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

Kaustubha interviews his old friend Eddie Stern, a yoga teacher, author, and researcher based in New York City. Eddie has a multi-disciplinary approach to yoga which includes studying traditional texts and combining the application of the practices contained within them to science, research, technology, and collaboration.  ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

What are some practical steps for finding teachers and gurus to give practical advice if one lives far from a temple / How should one prepare their mind for physical austerities on the path of Bhakti? / How can I better share Bhakti teachings in my own voice, rather than just parroting what others say? ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages

The effulgent, beautiful vision of Lord Vishnu melts anxiety / nothing can touch Vishnu’s hear, but devotion / Lord Brahma speaks from that higher level / when Vishnu asks you to be patient, take the high road and cooperate with your enemies / with any great service, the first thing to appear from the churning / the demons agree to a truce SB 8.6.1-39 ********************************************************************* LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 CONNECT ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom_of_the_sages