Yoga Wisdom with Acharya das – Details, episodes & analysis

This is the Q&A from after the talk sponsored by the Hindu Council of Australia in cooperation with the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga.

The question was whether there is a distinction between Dharma and Sanatana Dharma? Acharya das concludes this Q&A session with the clarification that Sanatana Dharma is eternal and represents the soul's nature fully expressed in the spiritual dimension, and self-realization is accessible to everyone, as it is the uncovering of their eternal nature rather than being reserved for special individuals.

The discussion covers sadhana (spiritual practice) as the means to attain spiritual goals, with meditation on spiritual sounds as the foundational practice. The teacher uses the analogy of fog being burned away by sunlight to describe how regular spiritual practice gradually reveals spiritual clarity and identity. Key components include meditation/chanting, cultivation of yoga wisdom (atma jnana), and spiritual association (sangha).

Acharya das also addresses the transformation from ego-centered consciousness to God-centered consciousness, describing the journey from seeing oneself as the central enjoying agent to becoming an eternal servant of God.

Chapters

00:00:00 Audience member sharing their understanding of Dharma

00:02:59 Progressive Nature of Vedic Dharma and Spiritual Advancement ‎

00:06:53 Sadhana: The Practical Path to Self-Realization ‎

00:10:37 Essential Elements of Spiritual Practice‎

00:14:04 Transformation from Ego-Centered to God-Centered Consciousness ‎

00:16:38 The Journey from Self-Centeredness to Selflessness ‎

00:20:30 Practical Spiritual Living and Modern Challenges ‎

00:23:31 Developing Consciousness and Introspection ‎

00:27:41 Emotional Regulation and Practical Wisdom ‎

00:29:27 The Eternal Nature of Sanatana Dharma ‎

00:31:37 Universal Accessibility of Self-Realization ‎

00:32:33 Concluding with Transcendental Sound Practice

This talk is from an event sponsored by the Hindu Council of Australia in cooperation with the Australian School of Meditation and Yoga.

The question was whether there is a distinction between Dharma and Sanatana Dharma? Acharya das explained that while Dharma has conventional definitions including customary religious observance, prescribed conduct, duty, religion, and good works, it has a deeper meaning as an intrinsic characteristic that makes something what it is - something that cannot be removed without changing the fundamental nature of that thing. He provided examples of heat and light being the dharma of fire, sweetness being the dharma of sugar, and liquidity being the dharma of water.

Sanatana as meaning eternal, perpetual, permanent, everlasting, and primeval, distinguishing Sanatana Dharma from conventional religion by explaining that it deals with the eternal nature of the living being or spirit soul (atma). Acharya das distinguished Sanatana Dharma as dealing with the eternal nature of the living being or soul (atma), referencing Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada's teachings that Sanatana Dharma refers to activities that cannot be changed and represents the eternal function of living entities in relationship with the Supreme Lord. The lecturer addressed the apparent contradiction in the Bhagavad Gita where Krishna instructs Arjuna to abandon all varieties of dharma and surrender unto Him, explaining that this refers to abandoning temporary religious duties to embrace one's eternal spiritual nature.

Acharya das proposed that true self-realization requires understanding the three aspects of the self/soul: one's essence (being Brahman while maintaining distinction from Paramatma), one's position (equal to all living beings but subservient to the Supreme Being), and one's natural function (to love and to serve.)

He concluded that bhakti - rendering eternal loving service to the Lord - is the natural function of the living being and the true definition of Sanatana Dharma.

Quotes used in the talk:

Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear. - Bhagavad-gītā 18.66

Pure love for Kṛṣṇa is eternally established in the hearts of the living entities. It is not something to be gained from another source. When the heart is purified by hearing and chanting, this love naturally awakens. - Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 22.107

By chanting the holy name of the Lord, one dissolves his entanglement in material activities. After this, one becomes very attracted to Krishna, and thus dormant love for Krishna is awakened. - Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 15.109

Chapters

00:00:00 Introduction to Dharma vs Sanatana Dharma ‎

00:05:50 Deeper Understanding of Dharma ‎

‎00:06:28 Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada's Teachings on Sanatana Dharma

00:08:31 The Bhagavad Gita's Apparent Contradiction ‎

00:12:17 Arjuna's Dilemma and Krishna's First Instruction ‎

00:15:35 The Nature of the Eternal Soul ‎

00:17:48 Varieties of Dharma in the Bhagavad Gita ‎

00:22:06 The Temporary Nature of Vanashram Dharma ‎

00:25:31 Self-Realization and the Three Essential Questions ‎

00:29:46 The Position and Relationship of the Soul ‎

00:31:09 The Natural Function and Characteristics of the Soul ‎

00:35:10 Service as the Soul's Natural Expression ‎

00:38:27 Bhakti as Sanatana Dharma‎

00:41:10 The Awakening of Dormant Love ‎

00:43:22 Free Will and Universal Brotherhood ‎

00:46:04 Conclusion and the Power of Chanting

In this talk, Acharya das explores the concept of Christmas from a yogic perspective. He begins by examining what Christmas means in contemporary society versus its original spiritual significance.

Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus (Yeshua), known as Christ or Messiah, which means "the anointed one" and Acharya das discusses how yogis from the Vedic tradition would view and celebrate such a sacred day, emphasizing that they would honor any spiritual personality bringing enlightenment to mankind, regardless of tradition.

The talk delves into Jesus's core teachings about loving God with one's entire being and loving others as oneself, contrasting spiritual consciousness with material consciousness. He also highlights Jesus's teachings on detachment from worldly possessions and worries, drawing parallels with yogic concepts like an atmarama, or self-satisfied transcendentalist. Throughout the talk, Acharya das critiques modern materialism and consumerism, offering that Jesus's message was fundamentally about spiritual transformation as opposed to worldly pursuits. The talk concludes with reflections on how spiritual growth can bring an experience of true fulfillment which the materialistic lifestyle cannot.

“Selling the Lie” means to deceive or cheat or to create the ‘illusion of truth’. The advertising industry has perfected this rather dark art, using it for the past 100 years, and then “spin doctors” (public relations professionals) of the 70s taught Politicians how to use this form of deception and it was quickly embraced.

Now it has become so pervasive in common that people speak of “your truth” and “my truth” as if there can actually be different “truths”. This is having a catastrophic effect on society and on the individual, which can only further deepen the current mental health calamity. If we cannot accept that there is really an objective reality and think instead that we can (with our imagination) “create” our own truth, then we really are in crisis.

The 20thcentury saw the transformation of the population and societal values, in the developed world, that would have been considered unthinkable for thousands of years prior to this. The importance of the individual over society (increased self-centeredness), consumerism, instant gratification, and the notion that everything is disposable, have completely changed society and its institutions.

While the scale of the breakdown of family is known, we have been slow to recognize its destructive implications on the wider society. For many the meaning and purpose of marriage has been utterly transformed into something unrecognizable by older cultures and societies.

Some of the quotes I used:

in the early 1920’s Paul Mazur of Lehman Brothers wrote - "We must shift America from a needs, to a desires culture, people must be trained to desire, to want new things even before the old had been entirely consumed. We must shape a new mentality in America. Man's desires must overshadow his needs."

In 1927 an American journalist wrote: "A change has come over our democracy, it is called consumptionism. The American citizens first importance to his country is now no longer that of citizen, but that of consumer.

Adam Curtis ,the writer and producer of the BBC documentary series – The Century of the Self, makes an important point describing this documentary as “the story of the rise of an idea that has come to dominate our society. It is the belief that satisfaction of individual feelings and desires is our highest priority.”

Thus knowing oneself to be transcendental to material senses, mind and intelligence, one should control the lower self by the higher self and thus-by spiritual strength-conquer this insatiable enemy known as lust. - Bhagavad-gita 3.43

In recent years the term “safe space” has been utilized by young people at tertiary level educational institutions to demand they be free from hearing political and social debate that they disagree with. Some find this view exceedingly immature and unrealistic because we live as part of a society with differing world-views and to force upon everyone a monolithic view would be oppressive and totalitarian.

However, this desire, at its heart, is spiritual in nature. In this talk we explore the spiritual principle of “taking shelter”, real shelter and false shelter.

One of the quotes I used comes from Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada:

This world of maya is called durasraya, which means “false or bad shelter.” One who puts his faith in durasraya becomes a candidate for hoping against hope. In the material world everyone is trying to become happy, and although their material attempts are baffled in every way, due to their nescience they cannot understand their mistakes. People try to rectify one mistake by making another mistake. This is the way of the struggle for existence in the material world. If one in this condition is advised to take to the path of self-realization and be happy, he does not accept such instructions.

Many people think that freedom means my absolute and unobstructed freedom to choose to do anything I may wish. That my wishes and desires must ideally reign supreme over everything else. And society must bend to my wishes/desires, which are treated as sacred. But this is immature and even dangerous thinking.

The ancient sages in yogis taught that this was a false idea. I can be freely making choices but simultaneously I will be accountable for my actions. I will have to pay the karmic price and be forced to eat the fruit, both the sweet and the bitter results that arise from my actions. That is not real freedom.

The texts I quote in this talk:

A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires -- that enter like rivers into the ocean, which is ever being filled but is always still -- can alone achieve peace, and not the person who strives to satisfy such desires. - Bhagavad-gītā 2.70

I, the infinitesimal spirit soul, on the other hand, have embraced this mind, which is the mirror reflecting the image of the material world. Thus I have become engaged in enjoying objects of desire and am entangled due to contact with the modes of nature. -  Bhāgavata Purāṇa 11.23.44

Today you have opened our eyes and revealed how to cross to the other side of the ocean of darkness. By our past deeds and by the arrangement of superior authority, we are entangled in a network of fruitive activities and have lost sight of the destination of life; thus we have been wandering within the universe. - Bhāgavata Purāṇa 4.21.51

Before giving up this present body, if one is able to tolerate the urges of the material senses and check the force of desire and anger, he is a yogī and is happy in this world. - Bhagavad-gītā 5.23

Although a self-realized soul may live in various material bodies while in this world, experiencing their various qualities and functions, he is never entangled, just as the wind which carries various aromas does not actually mix with them. - Bhāgavata Purāṇa 11.7.41

If someone is ignorant and addicted to the path of samsara, how can one who is actually learned, merciful and advanced in spiritual knowledge engage him in fruitive activity and thus further entangle him in material existence? If a blind man is walking down the wrong path, how can a gentleman allow him to continue on his way to danger? How can he approve this method? No wise or kind man can allow this. - Bhāgavata Purāṇa 5.5.17

He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady in both success and failure, is never entangled, although performing actions. - Bhagavad-gītā 4.22

We have probably all heard the saying “You are what you eat”. This meant that the food one eats has a bearing on one's state of mind and health.

In tonight’s talk “You are what you Tweet”, I’m suggesting that our mental health (at least to some degree) but more importantly our spiritual health can be diagnosed by our social media habits – what we Tweet.

Yogic teachings state that we will be deeply influenced by our speech and thoughts. It will affect our consciousness and therefore prescribe exercising both restraint and caution in communicating as our speech will either be liberating or it will lead to harm.

Some of the Vedic texts I quoted:

Austerity of speech consists in speaking truthfully and beneficially and in avoiding speech that offends. One should also recite the Vedas regularly. - Bhagavad-gītā 17:15

And serenity, simplicity, gravity, self-control and purity of thought are the austerities of the mind. - Bhagavad-gītā 17:15

“The niyamas (observances) are internal and external purity, contentment, acceptance of austerity, the recitation of sacred mantras and study of Vedic texts, and complete devotion and surrender to God.” – Yoga-sūtra 2.32

“....Truthfulness means to speak the truth in a pleasing way, as declared by great sages.” – Bhāgavata Purāṇa 11.19.38

The need for a friend runs deep. We desire companionship, someone to share life’s experiences with, some level of support, someone you can trust.  But many of us are unaware that this need is driven by something deeply spiritual.

This need has become vulnerable to exploitation with the rise of so-called “AI Companions.” In this talk, we explore these issues.

Two of the verses I quote in this talk:

Although the two birds are in the same tree, the eating bird is fully engrossed with anxiety and moroseness as the enjoyer of the fruits of the tree. But if in some way or other he turns his face to his friend who is the Lord and knows His glories — at once the suffering bird becomes free from all anxieties. — Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 3.1.2

Everyone believes in the illusory concept of the body as being the self, and all are thus submerged in the darkness of illusion. They are actually unable to understand how You live in every living entity as the Lord within the heart (Paramātmā), nor can they understand Your absolute position. But You are the eternal friend and protector of all surrendered souls. - Bhāgavata Purāṇa 4.7.30

In this talk, we delve into a famous African billionaire's quest for happiness and where he found it. We also examine how acts that reflect or are connected to our inner spiritual nature, allow us to receive a glimpse into our true spiritual self, the eternal spiritual being residing within the material body.

Some of the texts I quoted:

As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature's modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then a person is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy. Bhāgavata Purāṇa1.2.19

Thus the self-controlled yogi, constantly engaged in yoga practice, becomes free from all material contamination and achieves the highest stage of perfect happiness in transcendental loving service to the Lord. Bhagavad-gītā 6.28

Dhruva Maharaja – Because of my state of complete foolishness and paucity of pious activities, although the Lord offered me His personal service, I wanted material name, fame and prosperity. My case is just like that of the poor man who, when he satisfied a great emperor who wanted to give him anything he might ask, out of ignorance asked only a few broken grains of husked rice. Bhāgavata Purāṇa4.9.35

I am such a fool that I have given up the service of that person who, being eternally situated within my heart, is actually most dear to me. That most dear one is the Lord of the universe, who is the bestower of real love and happiness and the source of all prosperity. Although He is in my own heart, I have completely neglected Him. Instead I have ignorantly served insignificant men who can never satisfy my real desires and who have simply brought me unhappiness, fear, anxiety, lamentation and illusion. Bhāgavata Purāṇa 11.8.31

"‘It is the duty of every living being to perform welfare activities for the benefit of others with his life, wealth, intelligence and words. By his work, thoughts and words, an intelligent man must perform actions which will be beneficial for all living entities in this life and the next.'  Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta - Ādi-līlā 9.42-43

Pure loving (devotional) service to the Lord is so sublime that one can very easily forget the happiness derived from material enjoyment, material liberation and mystic or yogic perfection. Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta - Madhya-līlā 24.39