EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Note: Shadow to Self is produced for the ear and is designed to be heard. If you are able, we encourage you to listen to the audio, which includes emotion and emphasis that is not on this page. Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition and human transcribers, and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting in print. Welcome to my podcast Shadow to Self. This is a special episode and i am dedicating it to George Floyd. The son of this land who died and his death will lead to the awakening of a greater consciousness. This is my belief and this episode i dedicate to the exploration of anger, it’s worth, its usefulness and why it is not time just to be angry in our limbic system. It’s time for the consciousness of our collective to be angered because when anger is properly experienced and channelled it becomes a great force of much needed change and the change that we are now becoming ready for is the end of discrimination. The discrimination based upon gender, sexual preference, religious choice and finally and most importantly based upon color. Do you know that so many decades ago, we humans managed to map the distance between, the earth and the moon. Two hundred and thirty eight or thirty nine thousand miles away is the moon and we bridged that gap but, we have still not been able to bridge the gap, between ourselves and the person standing merely few inches away from us, if they are of a different color. That is very unfortunate. Despite, more than four thousand religions that we human beings have managed to create and propagate. Despite more than fifty thousand universities worldwide, with I don’t know how many countless colleges and institutes, of higher learning that we have managed to establish in our planet and we call ourselves the educated animal and yet we could not understand that we are ONE. That our innocent pigment the melanin ,could cause so much pain, because a brightest animal on this planet is so not bright, that we have allowed, simple, biological parameters to come between us and our hearts. It’s unbelievable and within that same week NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley abort the Space X dragon endeavor arrived at the international space station and yet though we were mapping outer space in that same week, the space in our heart, in the heart of our law enforcement and protection givers heart was so collapsed that is use of uncalled force, unnecessary violence caused for the death of one of the son’s of our land, George Floyd, a father, a grandfather. I wonder did he love latte or chai. What toys was he planning to take for his granddaughter? What did he say to his brother when he would call him and say hey it’s me these are my dreams? We lost someone but this loss will become more bearable, if we gain something. If we can promise to this gentle giant as he is known George Floyd, that if he were to come back on earth, he would come back to people, who are more awakened, who have been asleep too long despite our thousands of religions, remove them. Our technology what use it is, our space missions, what is the point? But the remembrance, of something more pivotal, that i want to make happen transpire in this podcast, if you are listening to me, is the remembrance that we have a right to get angry. That’s right. You may have thought I am listening to a Vedic teacher and she is going to preach me and tell me and help me be rid of this anger i am feeling and i am not going to do any of that. So if you don’t want to hear me that’s okay! change the channel ,don’t listen to me, because i want to share with you some Vedic deep teachings on when is anger appropriate ,what is the purpose of anger, how it can be expressed appropriately and how do we know if we do have a healthy relationship with anger or not ,because we need to get in touch with our anger, so that we can make a promise to George Floyd, that if he were to come back on Earth, he would not have to lose his life in this painful, ugly, gory way again. That we would make our earth a safer home for him and for everyone who has a skin color, a sexual preference, a spiritual choice, a lifestyle that is not the dominant one. We are going to make that promise to him and we are going to grow within ourselves and i am going to do my part. My core area of expertise is this wisdom and i find solace in it, but not just the solace that puts me to sleep, in my smugness about my own spirituality and my own heritage. It awakens me, to do what i can and to become an activist in my own way. So to begin with let me tell you, all anger is not the same. This world does not today view all anger with the same lens. It does not allow for everyone to embody anger equally, even if the issues are the same, we know all about this. And that is why the anger of some people is dangerous while for others it is all constructive. But i would like to promise the gentle giant, that, we are going to grow up in our understanding and maturity about anger. Anger is known as ‘Krodha’ in Sanskrit. It is as much a divine emotion as any other emotion. Joy, peace, tranquillity what you may have, it but anger is no different it doesn’t come from some strange planet, you know, deposited here by beings we don’t recognize. It grows within the soil of our own consciousness and it has a spiritual purpose and its Spiritual purpose is that it helps us register if our boundaries are safe or not. Are we being violated physically, verbally, sexually, emotionally? Are we being asked to put within justice, discrimination, abuse? If we are not in touch with our anger and if our community is in not in touch with anger ,then it can allow an unjust, unfair circumstances to persist. That is why, anger is very important, in your personal as well as your collective ,that alone will ensure your well being. Anger will provide the motivation to constructively correct an injustice. It will urge you to act on an inborn sense of justice. What is this inborn sense of justice because in the eyes of our collective creator there is only one; intelligence from which it is all emerging not just humans but all beings right down to the smallest blade of grass. It all comes from this one common self with the capital S. This is the contribution of the Vedas. They do not allow, they let us have the luxury of a sense of duality but then sorry, they really put it out there for us, that, this duality is only apparent because we all have a common centre. We come forth from that centre, we dwell in that centre, it’s silently, invisibly supporting us and then we return to it and it’s the same and it’s not a person that looks like us or talks like us or dresses like us. It’s a field, it’s an intelligence and therefore, if we are all equal we have an inherent desire, to be treated equally and in fact when we don’t treat each other, with that inherent respect, that we want we ourselves feel guilty, because we know it deep down it’s not a cognitive knowing but it’s an intuitive knowing, that we are one. That is why; the people who are grieving for the death, the cruel death of gentle giant are not just people who belong to his community, the black community. This is across the board and the sorrow, the grief has gone beyond the borders of our nation, the United States. It is touching every part of the world there is an echo why? Because we all know somewhere, that he was our own and we were his. Every, even semi-conscious, semi-sensitive person, feels violated today and the only way to go beyond this violation, is to experience healthy anger. Even animals display anger when they are threatened or encroached upon unexpectedly. Even the most you know peaceful animal will occasionally show anger and we are a whole people, a whole community. How i can contribute in this podcast if someone were listening were that, all we have to do is discern between a healthy and unhealthy version of the anger and express it accordingly. But there is absolutely no reason to suppress the anger or you know feel guilty about it or allow the blame to be deflected back on you because you are angry. No, there is a relationship between the word ‘Dharma’ and ‘Krodha’ anger. Dharma comes from the root word ‘dhre’ that which angers, ‘dharyante iti dharma’. Dharma is a universal righteousness. It‘s not specific to a person or a community or a culture. It resents higher humane values like truth, fairness and justice. So we want our anger, our Krodha to be aligned with dharma and not; not aligned with it because if it is not aligned with it, our anger may begin at a right place for the right reason but then it can slowly become, a bit of a slippery slope in terms of, we may use that anger to justify, why we are exploiting another now or sometimes that anger if it’s not supported by dharma can also become kind of distorted and we may allow others to abuse us. So we become either too weak or too aggressive, but definitely, not in a healthy sense informed, clear, driven, towards the change that we want to see happen. So when we bring dharma and anger together then our anger will include mindfulness, it will include judiciousness, it will remain cognoscente of the bigger causes, the background causes, the immediate situations, the future scenario. It would not transgress or transgress those boundaries of clarity it would not ever lead to, abusing power or becoming a victim of others power. It would be a true dharmic power that comes from this anger. That’s why a basic teaching of dharma comes from Bhagavad Gita and there the teacher Krishna says that, you really don’t need to do a PhD on dharma but basically, never do or say that to another which you regard as physically or emotionally harmful to your own self. This in brief is the rule of Dharma. So therefore we all know dharma deep inside. We may all not know anger inside us because it is such a bad rep and you know really ,it’s the privilege of some people to be angry not; not others, but what i am trying to say is that everybody has the right to be angry ,but everybody has an imperative to contextualize their anger with dharma. I hope that’s helping. So what is this dharmic anger that we can bring together. What is dharma and anger together? i think what it is, is understanding, like right here in this case are the white skinned people are enemies, we know that and i want to underline that NO. It really is always a battle between those who have dharma and those who don’t. That’s why people who have dharma no matter what skin color they have, what sexual preference they have, what gender they are, what culture they belong to ,what cast they belong to ,what class they belong to. If they have dharma, they are standing there, raising their voice against injustice. It’s like really there are two communities on our planets, the dharmic one and the non dharmic one, the awakened one and the sleepwalking one, the responsible one and the entitled one. Which community do you belong to is the question and if you are someone who belongs to the awakened community, to the conscious and responsible community, to the dharmic community then one of your dharmic duties is to experience your anger, because if you don’t get in touch with your anger then you won’t raise the voice, then you will not be able to not cooperate with what has been going on which has been allowed too long. We have somehow become okay with, what we should not be okay with and if we become okay too soon, then movements that begin die down, they peter down or if we don’t bring dharma into our anger, movements that are supposed to lead to policy change, habit change, behavior change, cultural change, perception change and the change of history, only lead to looting or violence or rioting and i am not just saying all rioting is wrong, i am just saying, got dharma? That’s all. So we see this resonance of dharma and that’s why even the Hindu gods and goddesses are never just looking pleased and benefice and holy. They are also holding weapons and those weapons are simply reminders that look, i have this benefice, easy, relaxed form, when there is dharma, in this world but i am going to pick up this sword, when i need to address, the unconsciousness and my sword right now is this podcast. My next sword would be a blog i am planning to write. My next, the next time i move my sword i will be recording an online you know, YouTube based global satsang. I will i am working on a book called ‘roar like a goddesses’ where i am teaching how to roar with righteous inner dharma. So these are my swords. So when i say gods are holding swords so we need to hold our sword, you get it right. I am not asking you to walk with a naked sword in your hand. I mean you, get that right. We are just talking about how can we be activists, how we are, where we are, can we teach our children about oneness, the truth of our common self. Can we teach our children, if they are feeling afraid, that despite this being a scary planet, you still have to stand up for what it is true and the way we can teach it, is not just by talking to them, but by really going out there, in the way that is possible for us and letting people know that we are not quietly looking the other way while injustice continues. That we don’t live just for ourselves and our collapsed little family and our entitled lives you know no matter what color we are, just because we happen to have a better life so we are okay and we are immune and so we will just shut all our doors and windows and pretend like everything is fine on the planet. No, that doesn’t work, because there is no denying the fact, that we live in a society made up only of a few awakened beings and there are semi awakened. Unfortunately a majority of people are sleepwalking egos that are out to destroy dharma and out to murder innocent people like George Floyd and that is why the Hindu gods Durga ,Krishna, Rama they model super conscious anger in their battles for the protection and restoration of dharma and this alone is the realistic approach. Vedas thankfully don’t just teach an absolute ideal of Ahimsa, but they teach ahimsa parmo dharma. It is the highest dharma, except when himsa or violence is used for the restoration of dharma. So what violence is Bhagavad Gita talking about? Bhagavad Gita is talking about the kind of violence, that is needed sometimes, to correct something that has just gone beyond diplomacy, gone beyond talks, gone beyond dialogue and it is not my place to say, if one community has gone beyond that options with the other community, i don’t know that. All i know is that i can share a perspective, that while it should be our last imperative and at the same time, if it is a last imperative then we must not pause filled with guilt instilled in us, from all those ideas, floating around on our planet. That haven’t really helped us because here we are our rockets are going in space and our daggers are going in each other’s hearts. People who have skins, that have the color black or brown or yellow are not safe, people who have sexual preferences; that is anything but heterosexual are not safe. People who have religious propensities or spiritual yearnings that are different have to lead pretty different lives you know, besides ,science, which itself is ruthless doesn’t allow for mysticism, spirituality and a greater truth of oneness to thrive. So it’s not like science is the enemy, it is not that the white person is the enemy, it is not that people who are straight are the enemy, it is not that religion itself is the enemy and so we should all become atheists and agnostics but i call on my podcast, that we all embody a dharmic anger, to address this within ourselves and in our community. Let our anger become our motivation. I will give you an example. When i came to this country two decades ago, some of you know i am a Vedic Acharya, a master teacher. I am the leader of an ancient lineage and i have specialized in the spiritual teachings of the Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Ayurveda and Yoga and i was dismayed by the teachings specifically in Ayurveda. I found the teachings of Ayurveda in the West, a bit superficial or let’s just say, very one dimensional. It was not deep and but it was no help that the teachings in its own country of origin India, were absolutely estranged from the deeper truth of Ayurveda. It was following a pharmaceutical biomedical model. After colonization i feel like Indians like started proving a point, that their Vedic heritage was at par with western sciences and then instead of glorifying their own heritage, they started somehow proving, how similar it is to the western heritage you know, these things happen. We lose our own knowingness, when we become colonized and what Indians lost was not just the Kohinoor diamond, to the united kingdom and a lot of its money went to its colonial rulers, but what it lost was its pride and till today you know, Ayurveda is, taught sans its spiritual backbone, it’s almost like just a very watered down and yet scientifically rigorous, you know an apostrophe comma, curriculum which you know just fine with disease management, but i am not sure, how much, because despite, India becoming independent in nineteen forty seven. It’s not like Ayurveda is on the world map, it’s become more of a question mark because when you pull something out of it own nature, its own fabric and then kind of like you know put it out of there, as if it never lived and breathed the spiritual Vedic teachings, its own parents ,then you are just deceiving your own self, if you ask me and then in the west it was just becoming, what every other new age Guru wanted it to become. I became angry. I was angry and i didn’t necessarily handle that anger really well that time. I was also twenty years younger or little more maybe twenty four younger. But then i learnt to bring dharma into my anger. I realized this is not about me, this is not about my opinion. I really want people to benefit from the full spectrum promise of Ayurveda. I really want them to experience its spiritual benefits, because it is spiritual benefits, psychological benefits and physical dosha balancing benefits that together make it a complete science. So i, it was this anger that led me to establish my own wisdom school, create like award winning curriculums, so I am not sitting here to gloat about what i did. All i am trying to say is, if i didn’t get in touch with my anger and if i didn’t let that anger become the source of what i did day after day after day create my you know offering so that people could benefit from it, i would have done none of this, because i was so complete in my life. i didn’t need to do this because i didn’t even to do this as a source of income for me. Everything i was doing was philanthropy and everything was just being done because it had to be done because i had become angry with what i saw and there was no point in just complaining. I had to get my hands in there, till that soil, research and return and reclaim, what had become lost and so if we have to bring a change and if we have to keep our promises, to George Floyd ,so that when he comes back as a little child, he finds this earth safer then you and i have to be in touch with our anger and then allow that anger, to become an instrument of change in our homes ,in our personal thinking, in our family lives, where we don’t hesitate to speak up, teach our children and then even community based social action, whether it is peacefully marching or signing ,collecting signatures, for change of laws whether it is, even perhaps showing our rage. When i say that, i want to say that when i say that we show our rage, this rage cannot be like my guru used to say, dancing on our head making us dizzy you know, this rage should be again a well measured, mindful instrument, where we show that we are not meek. So our job is to cultivate clarity of what is our dharma in a given situation and be prepared for any necessary battles in this planet. We are still ruled by unconscious people of every race possible, who see women as no more than objects of pleasure, treat people of color as dirt. There are people who don’t hesitate to rape, molest, murder, harm fellow humans just, because they have a sexual you know preference that is not like theirs i can’t believe this, but it is true, right ?and these are people that can be found in every community maybe more so in the more privileged ones, just because there is more money, there more power there. But that doesn’t mean, anyone one of us can say we have not had our own baser, darker motivations. So it’s for all of us, to look in the mirror of our lives and then become prepared to wage a battle against the forces that make us agree, make us bend over backwards or make us look away and be smug with whatever is or just be happy that oh wow ! Look at the freedom we have in the United states of America. We can go shopping whenever we want to, we can go picnicking whenever we want. No, that is not sovereignty. No. How many more deaths, of how many more George Floyds, have we to witness, until we say, it’s not okay. So, therefore i urge you to get in touch with your healthy anger than your false peace. Today the warfronts we have to face are not the open fields with swords and guns, but inside our own families, communities, corporate meeting rooms, stalk exchanges, hallways of the capital hills and the senate’s in the world and the global and you know national courts of justice. We have to conduct our necessary battles. So what is your anger asking of you? It is asking you to restore balance, but it is asking you to have a clear mind before you go about restoring balance. So how do you do that? Here is what i want to share, before i end this podcast. You can experience anger like the Vedic goddess Durga. We almost always think of anger as if it leads to emotions like violent actions, hitting, screaming, and burning. Yeah, it is happening but is doesn’t always have to be that way. Try and experience anger, Krodha as a pure emotion. When you do that, you know to hit something or to kick something is a secondary choice and you have a choice then and you can decide what you want to do with your anger. Take purposeful actions with it or you want to vent it. It’s really your choice and when Durga the goddess goes to war, she doesn’t just close her eyes, it’s a blinding anger, she opens it wide, her perceptions, her awareness enhances and that’s what we need to do, if we are going to become, the caretakers of our new era. If we are going to make our planet safe, when George Floyd comes back. When goddess is in the battle, her moves are conscious, tactical. She upholds Dharma. She doesn’t suppress it, she doesn’t swallow it, she doesn’t pretend she is not angry, but she is smart with it .This anger comes it is shun and it is cope up .It doesn’t stay and stay and stay and makes us bitter, but it comes and it just like i said it doesn’t just come to our limbic system, like, for a minute there we see red but it colors our whole consciousness enough, that we can create a whole movement with it. I am so glad that i got angry with the way Ayurveda had become minimized packaged, distorted because i created a whole movement with it and if you too want to be a part of a movement, the contributor to a movement, the creator of a movement that leads to social transformation and restoration of justice and equality for all. Then you have to understand and truly embody what it means to be led by, guided by, conscious anger versus tormented by unconscious anger. Little bits and bytes of unconscious anger are totally fine because we all begin there. There is no option. But, then it is up to us then, to slowly understand what our goal is? This road is not a short road, we have to go a long race and one way that you can really start processing your anger, this gut level feeling of injustice, is first by letting it be with you. Truly experiencing it in your body. Go to a closed room or somewhere where you won’t scare children or frighten anybody and then scream, if you need to, cry if you want to. Allow that anger that fear that grief, that sense of feeling really repulsed, with the indignity, to your humanity that has happened with the cruel and reprehensible murder of George Floyd. It’s a reality and you need to allow that, to do what it needs to do to your body. But don’t let that happen when you are on the road, when you are on the street, when you are feeding your kids. Do this by yourself because you are a spiritual warrior. You are choosing, to embody super conscious rage to help yourself. Maybe this is your community that you want to stand up for, maybe it is not your community but you are a dharmic being so, every oppressed community is your community. It’s your opportunity, to extend you deepest core value, which is solidarity and oneness with all beings and so whether it does not matter who are you ,what’s your class what’s your country, what’s your culture ,what’s your skin color but if you are now willing to embody this unconscious rage for the benefit of the collective ,to wake up the sleepwalking ones and to help nurture and pick up, the injured ones, then get ready, first feel it and then give it some space, give it some breathe, spend some time with it. You don’t necessarily have to go into an all night rage roam and vent because just venting alone is not necessarily ,the way forward, because sometimes we may think we wrote this really raging message online or we you know threw a couple of stones maybe even ,but maybe then we will think we are done but we are not done. We are not done because if we think that we have come to a quick resolution because we have expressed this energy, this Shakti that was building in us and we expressed it, then we relax and we go back to normal life. Then, that Maya, that shadow, that collective shadow, that allows us to live in non respectful, nonworthy, nonspiritually ascended superior, circumstances will come to stay and we will once again, start slumbering until another George Floyd is killed just like that. Just like that, without a President who apologizes to us. With gas and arson and more suffering going on, we will fall asleep on the wheel, that’s what’s going to happen. So feel it fully, own it, it’s yours. It’s not George Floyd. It’s not another community. It’s ours. It’s how we have damaged ourselves. It’s where we are. We are as a collective humanity; we are still crawling, in the puss of the shadow. It’s stinking, it’s foul. It’s not even enough to say they did it, because we let that happen to ourselves. Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita that co-conspirator, the abusers and the abused, why did you allow that abuse to happen? Where have i contributed? Where have i been complacent with it? Why have i never recorded a podcast on this subject before in the fifty three years of my life? Another way to be a soldier embodying conscious rage is to take care of yourself, sleep on time and eat on time, join rallies, protest. Maybe it is an online post that you do, to spread awareness and a sankalpa, a soul decision to not be silent, to not be complacent anymore. For different people it may mean different things. It could be participation in a formal way. It could be participation in a private informal way, but whether it is through ritual, whether it is through religion, whether it is through private meditation and whether it is through social, political activism we have to take that decision, that we are going to see this through. We are going to make this earth a safer place, for George Floyd to come back. We are fortunate and thanks to technology that this world is not as divided or as difficult to conquer, as it once was and we want to conquer it with consciousness. We want to make networks of communities across gender, religious, culture, sexual and of course skin divides. We want to make networks of dharmic people, are you with me? We want to ask and reassure each other. Make your own George Floyd clubs, to keep each other on the toes. Let this man’s death, become an emblem, for humanity’s awakening. I have my own skills. My own ways to contribute and one way i will embody this conscious rage, is by promising to be vulnerable. Promising to be one with you in this pain. Not being on this spiritual you know, better than you, i am coping better than you or i am just going to be diplomatically silent. No, none of that. This is disrespect, to our human hood and what is even more shocking do you know? What is even really, really amazing is that, the oppressors often want and recommend and suggest peaceful rallies in a grotesquely, unpeaceful shockingly, reprehensible, inexcusably, unfair system, that defies human dignity. It’s as if it’s up to the oppressed, it’s up to us now, if you are oppressed and if you are feeling indignant and if you are unhappy where you don’t get to really express it right because this is where you have to know that the advantage group in every society has the rights over anger and rage and the subordinate groups always have to live with their anger being colored as illegitimate, hysterical, irrational, downright dangerous, unneeded, unlawful, unwanted, you have to call the national guards to put the people who dare to be angry behind the prisons okay. We make this conscious anger is going to make a lot of the oppressors very very angry. They will demand of us to be very peaceful. They are going to tell us all the rhetoric about ahimsa, that we should be peaceful but peace is not just in whether we make noise or not. Peace is an invitation, that cannot exist without offering respect. Peace cannot be only a one way transaction. The black community alone cannot be responsible, for keeping up the ideologies, on which this nation has been built. It’s not possible and that is why we are going to decide, within the cave of our own heart, that we are not going to take this judgement call of whether there should be a peaceful lawful protest or whether there should be a angry rioting protest, because this is exactly what the oppressors want, for the oppressed to devalidate their own rage. We are murdered, we have dealt with massacres, genocide, xenophobia and yet we are told take it easy now, be peaceful, walk right, walk left, walk straight, turn right, turn left, follow the rules while, we break all the rules. So this is what happens, when we are not in touch with our collective rage. We start denouncing each other but what we have to understand is that ,when it’s a war ,there may be times, we have to go peaceful, there are times we have to go not so peaceful, there are times we have to go diplomatic and there are times we have to be upfront in the face and say we are done, it’s enough we are done with your daily slaughter, we are done with your daily murder, we are done with your daily disrespect, we are done with your daily racial profiling ,we are done with the pain and suffering you are giving us on a daily basis and excuse me, excuse me if my rage makes you uncomfortable ,but this is how it looks today. So what i am really trying to say is not that pick up a rock and throw it, i hope you understand that what i am trying to say is, stop being so apologetic and let’s stop judging each other. The collective rage comes from understanding, the purpose of the collective and the purpose of the collective is not anger. The purpose of the collective is to bring about a change when, you are not being heard, when the narrative of how we should be angry, is being produced by our own oppressors. Then we have to take the narrative of how we want to be angry in our own hands. Please listen carefully. The way to be angry, is the way of the truth teller, The truth lever and the way to be part of this movement is to accept your truth that you are feeling broken, you are angry, you feel ashamed whether you belong to this community or that community ,x y z community. You are feeling ashamed because you could not be part of this illusion and our silence or our complacency; a lot made us the part of the problem. Fact of the matter is, George Floyd is dead and he died in a brutal way because he was seen as a nobody, as a subordinate, as an object because this is what happens, when there is unconsciousness. This is the collective shadow which comes from conceit, from entitlement, where the color of the skin is a bigger divide than the divide of the miles between the moon and the earth. Where is the true self? Where is that atma? That boundless true loving self, that dwells in all of us? It’s nowhere to be seen .Our planet today dear friends, is besieged by the shadow, completely besieged. We are in trouble. But these troubling times cannot be fixed by anyone, only we can do that, only we can sit quietly in inquiry with our own soul, our own self and question what can i do to transform my anger into a dharmic action? What are those steps that i can take? Can i pick up the phone and talk to a few people? Can i make some donations to worthy causes that are supporting this movement? Can i become initiator of or participator of signature campaigns like i mentioned before to bring about legislative changes or maybe i just simply blog or journal in my own journal or praying or chant mantra LOKAH SAMASTAH SUKHINO BHAVANTU, may all beings be truly peaceful. This is no ordinary peace; this is not peace that you get after eating cheesecake. This is peace because you no longer have hatred for another and you no longer have fear of another and you no longer live on a planet that is as divisive as ours. This is a shameful moment for humanity. I don’t know about you but i feel, not just angry with the oppressors, because it’s so easy to say its them, i just feel sorry for all of us that we are putting up with this. I want to be part of this solution. I am recording this podcast for me, so my dharma comes from knowing that my anger is needed, number one. My anger is not a bad thing ,number 2.Dharma comes from my regulation of my anger so it doesn’t lead to me unconsciously, screaming ,hitting another ,unless there is a clear intention of what i am doing, i have clear permission of what i am doing because ,you know, irrational violence is not necessarily fixed by irrational violence. Dharma also comes from taking care of myself, eating, sleeping, staying away from mind altering substances because that would hamper my judgement, i want to become an asset to my community, i am not an energy sucker, i want to rise beyond my own fears that is dharma because now it’s not about you, it’s about what is true, what is worthy, what is right and finally dharma comes from not letting people dictate to you, as to what you should do with your collective rage. So let’s not judge each other. For some of us right now it is taking a more violent turn and for some of us it is sobbing in bed, for others it is a peaceful rally and for yet others it is you know recording on truthful, deep, meaningful podcast, meaningful to me at least and finally at the end of it remembering, that hatred can never be dharma. If at the end of this whole movement, we just come up with a little bit of hatred towards the people who don’t look like us and due to no special effort it was just karma, that they were born with a different color, a fairer color, a lighter color than ours ,yours or mine, so we end up hating them or disliking them, then our movement would have failed. All of us dharmic people have to come together, bend together and preach the gospel of equality and oneness. That is why the great Vedas said EKAM SAT VIPRAH BAHUDHA VADANTI. There is only truth that the different pundits call it by different names but they can give it any name, any description, but it is really only one truth that exists. That is why the Vedas said VASUDHAIVA KUTUMBAKAM; the whole world is one family. I am fortunate that from very young age itself, growing up in my lineage, growing up in my Vedic family, I learnt to see my same self in the cow that came to my home asking for food at midday, i saw the same self in the snakes that dwelled in the river Sarayu near my home in Ayodhya, i saw the same self in the people of a lower cast back then India was very divided up on cast not so much now, but very much back in the nineteen sixties and i remember my guru calling the person from the most lowest cast ,hugging him, lovingly bathing him, offering him his own clothes and saying come stay with us, I will teach your children, you can find a job at our home just being with us, we will look after you and you can stay with us and do little things, they became part of the family. When the women in my house, who were not as progressive as my baba, at least one of them said, oh! But they are of a lower cast, baba said, huh, what are you talking about? We have the same self. I remember laughing and joking in the lap of these people, who were my people. We need more role models like baba ,that is why, i have always felt so comfortable with people, with different cultures, religious beliefs, sexual preferences and the whole nature can live with so much eco diversity. In fact diversity is its strength. Whenever we try to grow mono crops, we hurt nature and those mono crops don’t know how to grow, they can’t help each other out. But wherever there is diversity, that piece of nature, that forest, that land, that farm thrives. Have you forgotten to hold a hand out to each other? Fight on my brave men and women, fight on. Fight on for the dignity of George Floyd, fight on for the dignity of the human being. May there be light; in your souls. May you be guided from within, may your tears not be falling in vain. May the oppressors do wake up and realize, that they were hurting none but their own selves. In false egotistic shadows we hold on to but few waves, thinking that is me, when we are the entire ocean. In the false chase of the shadow we create so many divisions; we become estranged from our own divine nature. George Floyd you did not die in vain, you died to awaken humanity. Until next time, this is Acharya Shunya and remember i am going to continue talking to you and helping you, process your emotions, feel your feelings and, through my blogs that you can find everywhere on my website, through my private face book page or group rather, guide your rage towards constructive, transformative community action, through my global satsang which you can find on YouTube you can find it by the name Vedic contemplations by Acharya Shunya. On all my social platforms i am super active, especially right now, because i join you in the pain and i join you in the hope. Take care my beloveds, Bye Bye for now. Subscribe and listen now! Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Note: Shadow to Self is produced for the ear and is designed to be heard. If you are able, we encourage you to listen to the audio, which includes emotion and emphasis that is not on this page. Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition and human transcribers, and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting in print. Hello dear friends, welcome to my podcast Shadow to Self. This is only episode three and I am so humbled by your comments and your notes to me and how much you are enjoying this content. You have asked and I have listened. You want to know more, more, more and I will be sharing so many more tools. Hang in there I am going to be back. Pretty much every week I am going to drop a new episode and I want to reassure you that I am enjoying this conversation as much. Something you all pointed out is that you loved how transparent I was and how I, you know, joined you in sharing my own shadow and the times when the shadow takes over and how I look at it through the eyes of the self. Well why not? I think it’s time spiritual teachers stopped only showing their enlightened aspect, I have created this term called “Enlightened Vulnerability” and the vulnerable aspect, the not knowing, the doubts, the confusions, the vacillations come from the shadow and the enlightened aspects, the knowledge, the wisdom, the tools, they can really only present themselves to us when our true self is engaged and each one of us is a human being and we are a little bit enlightened and a little bit vulnerable and probably as a teacher just because i have had this knowledge for some time to work with in my life i can say that the vulnerable parts of me are well taken care of by the enlightened parts of me. So when we come into this comfortable relationship with our shadow instead of dispatching those parts of our self or hating ourselves and demeaning ourselves and criticizing ourselves we just understand that the shadow and the self, the appearance and the truth, the illusion and the reality coexists. That is part of our human package and we don’t have to get spooked by our shadow nor do we have to dislike our shadow nor do we have to be in shame because of our shadow nor do we have to be in permanent guilt because of our shadow. Once we are exposed that yup our shadow exists and under it is enlightened gently and lovingly with wisdom, it tends to perpetuate sorrow for itself, it tends to sell itself terribly cheap, huh price you know for crumbs of love and crumbs of respect. We then reel in our shadow. It’s almost like this part of ourselves that was just trying too hard and really not coming up with anything substantial is really tired and broken and in fact it is the shadow. Let me tell you that which turns in. It is the shadow that becomes enlightened. So let’s get ready everybody…for a shadow that becomes self realized and self actualized. See there is no other actor. It’s not like that we have this permanent enemy called the shadow and this permanent hero or heroine called the self. It is the same mind I have talked about in episode two and I want to re-stress that again. It’s the same theatre which is the mind. When it is exposed to wisdom, when it has access to practices like i am teaching and talking about which lead to self contemplation which lead to discernment ‘Viveka’ then we can also practice detachment from whatever is shadowy and cultivate a very real choice driven conscious path, not just towards the self, it’s not like self is a distant object in time and space and we are walking towards it. It’s more like we begin to chose those aspects of our self that we had outsourced to the pastor, to the teacher, to the guru, to the gods, to the enlightened beings, to the Buddha ,to Krishna never knowing that right inside us is the portal to absolute knowledge, absolute light, absolute wisdom known as the self and if we only turn in and be quiet with it for a little bit and allow ourselves to be instructed or exposed to wisdom of the Vedas like you are doing now by listening to me by being open minded and keeping your heart wide open, then you might surprise yourself and you have done that before too, way before you came across my podcast, you have been surprising yourself. You have found within you hidden abilities, capacities, even the capacity to tolerate something, to endure and then to bring yourself back on track. Those are not ordinary abilities. Those come from your true self. So right there in the theatre of the mind when you allow for what you are not, those false beliefs, those wrong ideas, those self embraced limitations, when you allow them to fall away, simply by seeing through them. These are just thoughts. These thoughts that i am not good enough, i am not worthy enough, i am not deserving, i don’t have what it takes. These are only thoughts ever thought about that thought, that these are only thoughts? They don’t have a concrete reality. But as per the Vedas, the Vedas have this beautiful amazing teaching which they give and they say and i am gonna say this short term in Sanskrit and it says, ‘Yad Bhavam Tad Bhavati’ which means as you keep thinking so becomes your reality. So if you keep thinking i am a disempowered person, i am a useless person you know success and happiness is and fulfillment is other peoples destiny not mine. Then just this your thoughts have power and you create a life story, a narrative, and a self fulfilling prophecy you see. But then you are listening to this podcast, the Shadow to Self. I am not going to allow you to keep your subscription going for this shadow. It can exist in you, you can reel it in gently and then you can tell it Look i know why you exist. You existed till I saw through you. You existed till I realized that you are not the ultimate reality. you are the shadow of something that’s brilliant and lit within me and that part of me belongs to the Divine mother, to the Divine father, to the goddess, to the stars, to the sun, to this whole universe and all i have to do is close my eyes and which i would like you to do right now, by the way if it's safe for you to close your eyes and if it’s not like you are driving or you know you are doing something while you are listening to me then at least can i ask you to focus on your breathe ,the in breathe and then the out breathe ,the in breathe and the out breathe. Yeah do that and then i would like you to maybe linger a little bit on the out breathe maybe it can be just a little slower ummm..yeah just exhalation and now with each exhalation maybe you can just think i am exhaling out what doesn’t serve me anymore, what is not true about me and as you exhale out there alone the inhalation just happens on its own by the way if you notice that. The deeper you exhale the deeper will be your inhalation and there you go you can inhale back in what you already are the self. See that’s the beauty of the non dual wisdom. You exhale out who you are not and you are inhaling this whole universe now becomes available. You are this whole universe that’s what the Vedas want to tell you. This is the thing about The Vedas. The Vedas don’t want to work with; you know diminished and ridiculously pathetic narratives about existence because none of it is true. That’s why we have people who are setting records, who are competing with themselves, who are rising from the ashes like phoenix, who are reinventing themselves, remorphing their whole being. I am constantly surprised by what I have hidden inside me. I can be thinking about something not have the answer and i can go to bed and when i wake up i have everything i ever needed to know about something and you can say, ‘Yeah Shunya you are a guru kind of figure you know the Sanskrit language you know how to chant mantras and you can completely separate yourself from me and you can go sit in the shadowy corner and put me in the bright light corner’ but that’s just your shadow wanting to play the game of haves and have nots. The reality is and that is why i have this podcast to tell you that i too once was a self declared and self convinced have not. I have seen challenges before I came out in the world as a teacher. Between my education and between my ability to give education there was a period when I was lost. That was my most transmitted period by the way. That was the dark night of the soul and i don’t know but i really believe that every teacher needs to go through that we need to come face to face with the shadow and see how deeply rotten it can get there when there is no room to breathe and you are suffocating in your own negativity and false beliefs, illusions and delusions and i have been there and that is what qualifies me to teach you about the light because i was there in a room that had no exit and then i found the exit inside me in my heart and once i started walking in there, let me tell you it’s an infinite space that i find there. I can be or become anything I want, I can endure any suffering. pain and i can give and receive any amount of love and joy i feel that expanded inside me. How is it even possible that someone who had cornered themselves into their own shadowy recesses of the mind locked themselves up and thrown away their key is now telling you that is not true and if you have just tuning in and you don’t know who i am ?.Then look me up I am Acharya Shunya ,look up my bio look up whatever you need to do, i am on the world stage people and not just today or yesterday i have been there i am changing lives because you know why? Because my life changed you know why? Because I connected with true life you know why? Because I dared to face my darkness. So in this episode all i am trying to tell you is if right now you are suffering, if right now you feel broken, i just want to give you hope that’s all; that’s the bottom line of this episode. This episode is about hope amidst stark hopelessness. And i want to be that voice and i know something will get stirred within you because i am not speaking because i wrote a script. I am not even thinking before I am speaking my next words. This is how I talk to the world. Now i don’t have to plan this. My truth comes first, the words come next. And this podcast is about the journey inside the mind. From our identification with the shadow and the shadow comes with its own luggage, it comes with its own padlocks, it comes with its own belief systems that diminish us and make us estranged from the rest of the world, to shifting our identity, Its only a cognitive shift we don’t change our clothes, we don’t change our hairstyle we don’t have to become acidics, acetic or celibate or even vegetarian or vegan, i mean it’s a great thing to do that but it’s not necessary. What is necessary is the willingness to know that there is a greater identity waiting for you. If that’s all you can believe, through this podcast, then i would feel that i have accomplished something through this conversation. I am not having a podcast just to have a podcast. I have too much going on. I am making room for the podcast ,but i wanted to make the room for the podcast because i want to share with the world that where i was, was not fun but maybe it was necessary .Maybe we need to explore where we can head with the shadow driving our car and how in an instant, things can begin changing, when we realize wait, no matter how far we have gone away and how kidnapped we feel by our own shadow, this shadow is ultimately in this beautiful universe, helping us because sooner or later because of the shadow we are going to start groping and looking around for the light switch .And we will know because of the shadow because everybody would have betrayed us by now ,everybody would have stabbed us in the back by now, everybody would have become no longer our friend but our enemy, when you have gone that far in the shadow and you would know ,that the switch only lies within you and then you would shift your attitude and the number one attitude that i would suggest that you entertained, is if there is oneself or many selves. That’s all. That was the only one contemplation, the non dual core teaching of the Vedas that brought me home to me. If i don’t like somebody, if i don’t like my former partner, if i don’t like a former friend who let me down etc. etc. making it up because at this point i don’t know if i dislike anybody. But if i don’t like someone a thought can be ‘Okay they are different bodies and they definitely have critical belligerent hurtful scheming minds but if they have the same self because non duality is the truth Acharya Shunya has been telling me about and if it is the same self then why am i doing this to me? What do i have to learn from this draw better boundaries, speak up, learn to reinstate my nose and my yeses, mean them, keep my word, walk my talk, listen to more podcast, read Acharya’s book. I really hope you do, because everything I am touching upon in the podcast goes really; really deep in my book ‘Sovereign Self’ and it's available, I hear on pre-order and it could be the book of other teachers too. Wherever you feel held, enlightened and supported to bring your vulnerable self into the shelter of your enlightened self without guilt, without shame and without this hopelessness, this takes over. Then you are in good company. Keep the company of those teachers, those books .Go back to them frequently. You know the path that I expound is known as ‘Gyana Yoga’ in Sanskrit, it’s the path of knowledge and you have to cultivate knowledge and one of the ways you are doing it is by coming back again and again to this podcast and sending me your questions. You have been, some of you have begun doing that and that really helps me to curate future topics to do that. Right me your comments, right me your questions tell me how this knowledge is changing your life because it will. This I can tell you. This i can tell you not only on my experience but the experience of countless lives that have been changing because i have been telling them the exact same thing and what’s really more important than what i tell you, is what i think about you and what i think about you is that you and i share the same self period. And you know it’s an amazing whole. We are bound by a radical wholeness and if one part of that wholeness feels uplifted, the all gets affected it’s a rippling effect. So i pull you all up when i get pulled up and i pull you all down when i get pulled down. So there is this power as well as responsibility as well as this, this sense of a splendid wow!! We are so radically connected and that is why in the Vedas there was this concept not just of freedom of one person known as Mukti but the collective liberation from the shadow of all beings and teachers working towards it, leaving their writings, leaving their teachings ,for the world, even when they discarded a given body because there is this concept of collective liberation from the shadow known as Sarva Mukti. Now that i have accomplished this sense of freedom from my own shadow it’s there it’s never going to go away till my last moment in this body that’s just how it is. If any human being tells you that I am free of the shadow hundred percent and all I am light then just listen to them yadi-yadi-yah and move on, there is no such thing. The only difference between a person with knowledge and without knowledge is the person with self knowledge does not allow their shadow to drive their car. Their shadow does not make their key decisions; their shadow does not even go to the refrigerator at two am at night to eat ice-cream. It eats it in the right season because they have studied Ayurveda with me and they know when to eat what. See that’s the difference. But to say i am shadow free i am perfect i am blemish-less, oh! I never have the darkness in me that’s setting up yourself for a big oops moment. We have all caught the Rinpoches and the Swamis and the Lamas and who not with their pants down, haven’t we? Might as well say that i am a sexual being and might as well create a wisdom context around your sexuality, around your sensual needs and even be true and open about your shadow because it might come up, why make such a big deal and hide it and pretend, it doesn’t exist and try to walk around with a halo. I don’t and most real teachers don’t and I belong to that legacy and I invite you to my legacy of open truthful bearing, of our own divine allness. All parts of us, I call it the good, the bad, the ugly, the lovely .All parts of us are there and they are all divine. How can the darkness be not divine, when this whole universe and every particle of it is divine and it has divine intelligence orchestrating it. So then this darkness exists for a reason and the only reason is for you to see through it. You don’t have to live there, you don’t have to fall in love with it, you don’t have to justify it, but nor do you have to be hanging yourself for it because you have it in less or more degrees. That is why from time to time whenever an opportunity comes up and I can illuminate you any part of my shadow where it comes up for a millisecond or a minute. I am gonna tell you about it, I promise. Will you tell me about your shadow or are you really interested in telling me how, how every part of you is just lit up? Okay i really hope it got lit up through real inner work. Didn’t just wake up one day enlightened because that story doesn’t, you know it’s old now. The true stories of enlightenment happen through wrestling with your own unconsciousness, making conscious choices even though they were difficult in that moment or you were not supported in the moment but you made them anyway. True enlightenment happens through connecting with teachers with light, books of light, communities of light and choosing to make every twenty four hour day, a day to cultivate light. That is what i am doing, by recording this podcast with all my love and all my light. I will see you the next time. In the meantime keep those comments coming. I love it and thank each one of you, those of you who are sharing my podcast, you are becoming a light bearer with me. I really appreciate it. I love having all of you with me on this journey, from shadow to self and before i sign off for those of you who are hearing my podcast for the first time, just a little bit about myself, hi! There I am Acharya Shunya but you can call me Shunya because Acharya is my title, it means a Vedic master teacher which I am. I have studied at the feet of my master, a great Vedic teacher from Ayodhya in India. It’s a holy city. Our family goes back several generations two thousand years of a legacy bringing Vedic wisdom to the world. I am happy that you decided to join me. I hope you enjoyed my podcast. Until next time see you. Subscribe and listen now! Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Note: Shadow to Self is produced for the ear and is designed to be heard. If you are able, we encourage you to listen to the audio, which includes emotion and emphasis that is not on this page. Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition and human transcribers, and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting in print. Welcome to the second episode of my podcast, Shadow to Self. I’m glad I’ve carved out this space and time to talk to you. This conversation that I want to have on this most important journey, from the Shadow to the Self, darkness to light, illusion to truth, may perhaps be the most important journey. And I want to make this conversation really easy to assimilate. This really has to be a non-academic, knowingness-evoking journey. And let me know if that’s what happens as you keep listening. I wanted to just start with where exactly is this journey going to transpire. As I mentioned in episode 1 of this podcast, that there seems to be a cosmic spell, or at least so was explained by the ancient Vedas more than 10,000 years ago. Our human minds seem to be very content with leading diminished lives, lives of struggle, lives of loneliness, lives of inner conflict and outer estrangement. We often abandon ourselves, betray each other. We create gods, and then we fight for our gods. Were we supposed to be leading lives like this? Because when we came into this planet as babies, and when we were growing up on this planet as toddlers, until our adults told us and role modeled us, all we really knew was Love. We were expansive, we felt joyful, we felt like we could reach out and catch the moon. Or wave our hands there, and some stardust will fall upon us. We had this memory that we’ve come from something special. We are special. And though we’re having this really special experience until bound. The adults around us, carrying morbid shadows inside them, their egos fully ready with their narratives of victimhood. Even if they are the ones abusing others, they feel deep inside entitled to do that. Because every abuser is deep down a victim. A victim of their own ignorance, a victim of their own lack of enlightenment, a victim of their own Shadow. Every body is consumed with the shadow. And before long, babies, toddlers, little ones, children – we lose our innocence. And this is how we slowly forget. And this is how the shadow takes over. And its all happening in the mind. That’s right, there are no two selves. There really is only one Self. Known as Atma in Sanskrit (the Boundless Consciousness) which is our true nature. And our Self always remains pure. But it is the mind, when it gets indoctrinated, conditioned, scripted, boxed into believing whatever beliefs have worked for a certain people, slowly the mind loses touch with its true Source, the Self. And a shadowy self is created through the intermixing of other people’s ideas, juxtaposition of beliefs, the collective unconsciousness births this sense of self which is a creation of the mind. Its literally a shadow, literally. And the shadow has a word in Sanskrit – it is known as jiva. So whereas we are Atma, the boundless one, the jiva is quite limited. It feels bondage. It doesn’t feel expansive. It doesn’t feel like I’m in touch with anything bigger, eternal, expansive, rich, powerful. The jiva feels, the shadow feels, like “I’m obliged to struggle”. That’s why one of the biggest fears the shadow has is about its own security. I mean, the shadow doesn’t know it is the eternal flame. The shadow wonders you know, how soon will it flicker out? So its busy trying to get more secure. So typically, the mind that is consumed with the shadow, would be consumed with thoughts around survival, especially emotional survival. Its an emotional cognitive level consumption. Its not an actual survival pursuit, because sometimes we can pursue a job, or try to increase our bank savings, and that all makes sense because we are biological creatures too and we want to be secure. But the kind of insecurity that the shadow possesses is voracious. It’s the thirst that nothing can satisfy. Its an itch that you cannot itch. Because its virtual, it’s a shadow. It never feels secure, so it’s a mental construct that “I’m insecure.” And often you will find that when the shadow is fully functioning, the person may have worked themselves to death trying to be secure. Become sick from overworking themselves, or they may have even committed crime to be a little richer or have more real estate. They could have manipulated or cheated others. And if nothing else they could have worried themselves sick, trying to be more secure. And if we were to go and point out to them that, “look here you have decent savings, you have good skills, so even if you lose this job you might find another one, and it looks like you have some support and friends and family, so you’d never be without a roof in difficult times.” And then this person’s shadow will come back and say “well no but, actually, in reality…” and they would always find a reason to worry and worry and worry. So what I want tell you is that when the mind becomes consumed with worry, that’s a good hint that we have been taken over by the shadow. Because the shadow has been birthed in the confines of a very limited mind, with very limited time and space constructs. It has forgotten that it is the limitless Atma – apanoti iti sarvam atman – the boundless One. “I have connections with divine all-ness, with the universal intelligence of this universe.” It has forgotten that, so this reflection this pretend make-believe self, the shadow creature inside us worries, and feels entitled to worry. And when you talk to this person, they justify why they worry and its all around security, and its of an emotional nature. When I was recording this podcast, now that I’ve begun recording it, the first one I just woke up in the morning and recorded it. But then for the second one, I had to stop and think “wait, what am I going to say in this? Because whatever I say is going to set the trend for the 3rd, and the 4th, and (so on).” I’m an “old-school” teacher. I was steeped in experiential, one on one learning with a teacher sitting in front of me. And I, being a disciplined disciple (disciple comes from the word discipline), I would have systematic long term teaching with long winding dialogues, but in recent years, as times have changed, I have morphed myself, and enjoyed reinventing myself, as a teacher who can teach on various platforms. So I have teachings on YouTube, on a private contemplations group (Facebook Vedic Contemplations Group), on Facebook, and now I’m teaching on various online forums. And now comes along this podcast. And it has its own demands, its own requirements. Because I want to have a conversation that doesn’t bog you down with academic details, but at the same time leaves you inspired, and leaves ME happy as I share this. So I had all these considerations going on, and guess what happened? For a few minutes there, my mind got really burdened. So it became clouded, and then the shadow loves it when our mind becomes clouded. Because worry feeds the shadow, and shadow eats the worry. And then when I tried recording this podcast, I was speechless because I had no idea, and I said “Oh my god!”. Because I am always a little bit beyond my shadow, because give me that credit, I have been working with this for some time. I looked at my shadow and said “wow, aren’t you trying to take over my whole podcast experience and convert this into a struggle”, and make this all about “Oh I just want to make this easy, and why do I have to think of all these parameters?”. But because I knew that this was not my only reality, this is the voice of the shadow, I decided to just go sit in my backyard. Fortunately its spring, and my backyard is just blossoming. And I have 50 or 60 pots with roses and lots and lots of flowers in the beds. And recently, because of the change in the rain and the heat cycle, my roses have a lot of challenges right now. They had aphids, then they had a snail infestation, and then they have some other stuff going on, and you know the roses and I are constantly trying to come through this. And still my roses are blossoming huge big flowers – roses as big as small cauliflowers! And as I looked at them, I remembered, no matter what be the challenge, what be the dis-ease in the moment, I have a capacity in me to come back and blossom my own roses. And this challenge that I’m facing with a new podcast, can be processed… Or rather shall I say, NOT processed by the Shadow, and it becomes a reason to lament, and self pity, and be confused. Pretend its alright. Or it can be a reason to have some humour, some light heartedness. When my true Self can look at it and say “You know what? What a great learning experience. Have I not amazed myself? Shunya, have you not amazed yourself by always being able to grow new flowers, based upon the season of the life you are dealing with? Have you not been able to adapt to no matter what is eating away at your roots? What snail, slug, human infestation has bothered you, you have always triumphed, come through and become a light for other too in the process.” What is this? This is a beautiful opportunity to share with the whole world that how the shadow to self journey is not just a journey we do in time, but it’s a journey we do ALL the time. And even when you become a spiritual teacher, and you’ve overcome your default way of living in the shadow, to living more in the light, the human mind is always being seduced to go into the more dark aspect of itself. Into the lostness, into the lamentation, into the confusion, into the bewilderment, into making every situation into a herculean battle. But we can breathe. We can exhale. We can go sit in the garden of our life and relax. We can see the flowers, we can look at the buzzing butterflies, and we can just relax and let go. And then this podcast emerged when I just let go. When I let go of the worrying. When I let go of how it should be, of what it should look like, and who am I talking to except my own Self in different bodies. You see that is the crux of Non-dual teachings known as Advaita Vedanta from India. These are given in the later section of the Vedas known as the Upanishads, and Bhagavad Gita is one of the most famous Upanishads. If I am talking to Me in You, then how does it matter, as long as I remember who are you. It is what I experience towards you that is going to influence this podcast more than what I say to you. Similarly when you are having the important dialogue with your boss, with your child, with your partner, with somebody you’re about to break up with, with somebody you’re about to say vows with and plan for a future that extends into eternity, you may want to remember the Truth of Self: that Shadow separates, Self unites. We have different bodies but same Self. There is no different shadow self and different true self within us. For teaching or talking purposes, we can say sure there are two selves, choose the one that is true/pure/wonderful/full of light. But that’s only to show you the difference. But really these two selves can be accessible through the same mind. When the mind is restful, easeful, more trusting of what is flowing, then there are greater chances of you connecting with your true Self. Which is already connected to everything that is infinite, wholesome, beautiful and abundant in this Universe. You don’t have to work too hard. Or when we superimpose a lot of that controlling that we have learned from childhood onwards. When we lost our innocence and started controlling our environment, our adults, our own feelings (suppressing a bunch of them and overexpressing a bunch of them), when we started getting to be like controllers of the whole experience, that is when the shadow was born and said “aha! Now I’m gonna tell you how to feel, how to be miserable, how to suffer.” I would have continued suffering if I hadn’t already worked out this whole journey of saying “Ah! Caught you! I’m not going there!” I had a minute of suffering, but that’s not too bad you know? Considering that people suffer for years, or are not even able to record a podcast or eschew worry of what they have to say. I have nothing to say to you. Probably for ten years that I’ll be doing this podcast, I’ll have nothing to say to you. All I’ll have is to experience this love that I’m feeling right now, because I am aligned with my Self as my voice comes out and makes some sounds. And probably if you understand the language that’s called English, they make some sense to you. But probably what you hear beyond those words, is my experience of Oneness, my experience of inner clarity, freedom, lightness and joy! At not having to be perfect. Its in those imperfections, its in this non-control, non forced, non regimented communication on this podcast that I invite you to the journey from the Shadow to the Self. It’s the same mind. When the mind is cloudy, because there’s a lot of mud stirred up in a lake, and there’s wind because of which the waves are too agitated – you can’t see to the bottom where lies some beautiful shining crystals of the Self. But when that mind becomes pure through meditation, contemplation, restfulness and other practices that I’ll keep sharing with you through this platform and other platforms, you’ll slowly realize that your mind itself has become the conduit for peace, wellbeing, amazing creativity, relaxation, restfulness, trust in a greater plan for us by this Universe. It is so beautiful. So we are going to simply learn to nourish our mind, restrain it, purify it, switch on a couple of lights, until it dissolves into the pure Self. This is true wisdom, and this is true meditation. Everything else is a bunch of didactic discussions really. So now that you know there are no two selves, it really is just that One. But it is the quality of the mind through which you access the true unbounded potential within you, OR the highly limited deviant convoluted shadowy version of you. Then its up to you what you want to do with your mind. That is why the whole journey from darkness to light, illusion to Truth, powerlessness to power IS a journey of psychology – a deep understanding of the mind. And that is why the Vedas are the first teachers of psychology. Such deep deep deep understanding of human psyche that I am just amazed. I would like to end this episode by sharing with you a memory and a mantra. The memory is of waking up every night in my traditional home. My ancestors are renowned in India for their ability to give this Vedic wisdom from their heart for several generations – 2000 years. My family has been involved in uplifting consciousness, awakening minds, shaking us out of our slumber, questioning our brokenness, smallness, and thunderously reclaiming our true Self. And therefore when I was born in this family, there were certain practices that I took for granted, but now I realize how important they were. They were planting seeds in me. That I CAN accomplish this journey. So I’m hoping this podcast feels like a place where new seeds shall be planted in you too. So my grandfather, a renowned Vedic sage of his time, Baba Ayodhya Nath, who happened to be my paternal grandfather and took me on as his disciple at age 9, (and then bequeathed me his lineage, making me the first female lineage holder in my lineage), would invite me and my cousins and his students all of us to chant together in the morning. It would be barely dawn, it would be almost dark, and Baba would light a ghee lamp. Ghee is clarified butter and it is considered very pure in the Vedic tradition – it is known as “God’s food” because it enhances immunity (Ojas), it enhances intelligence (Tejas), and it strengthens vitality (Prana). So we like to burn a lamp with ghee, not just any oil but ghee. It has this very steady flame. So it would be dark at night, like it would still be dark, not night but almost morning, and still be dark. And Baba would light this flame. And sometimes my eyes would meet his eyes and I would notice this recognition of the Self beyond the Shadow. Existence of shadows but no fear of them. Its almost like “yes there is darkness, but there is too much light and I am just going to focus on the Light.” So I would see this really fierce conviction in Baba’s eyes, and he would chant from this ancient Upanishad, 10,000 year old Upanishad. Om And if you are listening to me, you might want to close your eyes if you are somewhere comfortable, or you could just focus on your breath as I chant from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: Asatoma Satgamaya Tamasoma Jyotirgamaya Mrityor ma, Amritam Gamaya Om Shanti, Shanti, Shantihi Peace to me, Peace to you, Peace to all Beings. I would chant this mantra, and I think this mantra has become my life. And it has become the essence of the teachings that I give to the world and to my students worldwide, and now to you. We really owe it to ourselves to journey from Asat – that which has temporary reality but not eternal reality – to that which is the Truth that can never change. So whatever realities, confusions, tales, those shadows tell of sorrows and inflictions and jealousy and smallness and betrayal may have some temporary reality, but they are not the eternal reality. That you are the Self, beyond all this gossip and drama of the world. And that all beings: the bad guys and the good guys, everybody, is really your own Self coming to you to show you more of you so that you can reclaim all parts of you. To learn and grow and evolve into your true fullness. We owe it to our Self to journey from Tamas (darkness) to Jyoti (light). Because if we live in darkness, if we subscribe to it, then that becomes our apparent reality. But the more we spend time listening to teachers who teach about the light, reading books that expose this inner light in us, contemplate upon it, meditate upon it, we shall find that our life circumstance may be full of darkness, betrayal, difficulties… and yet! There is this light that’s in our heart that does not make us lose hope, does not make us feel small, does not allow us to abandon our Self. And we deserve to make that journey. Come with me. And finally this mantra says that we must journey from our identity with the jiva, the shadow, that seems to be distressed/diseased/dying after one birth after another – birth death birth death – its all a bunch of dreams of the shadow says the Veda. We must recognize our Amrita nature – our eternal nature, our immortal nature, that I Am Self. And once we realize that, your birth and death won’t be mandated upon you. You not only have free choice, but you remember free choice. That’s the difference between ordinary people and people who awaken completely to their true Self. In the Vedas, Krishna has said “You and I, we’ve had thousands of births, and thousands of deaths. We’ve had many lifetimes. The difference is, you don’t remember yours, and I remember each one of them with clarity.” Even Buddha is said to have said the same thing. So when we remember what Lasts, beyond what breaks or ends, that’s a whole paradigm that’s waiting for us to explore. I’m going to only give you hints here on the podcast, because how do you even play with immortality in day-to-day life? It doesn’t have to be a birth and death scenario. Its not like your body has to die and then you have to remember your spirit nature. I’m not talking about that right now. But let me just even give the example of feeling crushed when you felt “Oh how am I even yet going to reinvent myself for a new platform?” That is like a death. And then to come back flowing like the wind, singing like the birds, blossoming like the flowers, shining like the sun, twinkling like the stars, flowing like the river, that is eternal life. And that is what I am experiencing right now. Your immortal nature IS the proof of your eternal abilities to reinvent yourself. Find yet new courage, yet new skills, and yet new abilities. And don’t just take my word for it! Every time you were cornered in life, be it through bankruptcy, betrayal, death of a loved one, divorce, and you thought “its over”, sooner or later you came back. You grew bigger if you stopped, and if you had sense enough. If your shadow was not completely ruling you to make you a permanent victim. There were aspects of your Self that made you even stronger. You may thank the therapist or your teacher, but ultimately it was in you. And that is the journey this mantra is talking about. From being broken, and it feels like you’re dying, to realizing your amazing wholeness and reclaiming your ability to reinvent rejuvenate and recreate yourself again and again. With this, I take leave right now, I will see you again in my next episode. I am so glad you’re joining me. And for those of you who listen to this episode brand new, I just want to say, I’m Acharya Shunya. Acharya is my title, my official Vedic title, it means Vedic teacher. Shunya is my name, you are welcome to call me Shunya. And I am bringing you wisdom from my ancient lineage and more importantly, I am sharing this wisdom with you from my heart which has journeyed, and continues to journey every day – from untruth to truth, darkness to light, and brokenness to wholeness. Take care. Subscribe and listen now! Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Note: Shadow to Self is produced for the ear and is designed to be heard. If you are able, we encourage you to listen to the audio, which includes emotion and emphasis that is not on this page. Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition and human transcribers, and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting in print. Yesterday I had a disagreement with my partner, my husband of two plus decades. Disagreement? Aren’t I a spiritual teacher? Yes, disagreement. Because I’m a human first. If I said that there was no disagreement, then that would be called spiritual bypassing – pretending to be a spiritual teacher. But here’s where the spiritual part comes in. At night, when I was trying to go to bed, those thoughts kept coming back “hmm, I could have taken this opinion…and this makes sense… and this is right…and that is not right…”. As if I was in a courtroom, and my ego wanted to win. Or at least it was posturing to be very helpful, when really all it was doing was taking away my sleep. Because I am a spiritual teacher I saw right through it. The Ego, known as Ahamkara, is really the Story Maker, the Great Shadow. It spins a shadowy story after a shadowy story. Because Ahamkara in Sanskrit means the Kara, the creator, of the Aham, the “I”. And that Great I is an illusory I, that goes to the courtroom when its time to go to bed. Well, Mr. Ego… Yup, I got a male ego… Its time to Quarantine you. Its time to take shelter in my true Self that is beyond the courtroom, and that recognizes that I and my partner share one Is-ness, one Self. And its not a big deal! And my Self knows that even if I end my marriage, it will be from light. If I live in this marriage, it will be from light. If I argue in this marriage, it will be from light. I just don’t want to be drawn into the shadow – to believe that it is so important, to lose sleep on a trivial matter just because that matter, mattered… at noon. It should matter at 2am. It should matter so much that I can’t sleep, I can’t think, I can’t record my brand new podcast, I can’t bring into it my truth, I can’t speak to all the millions and billions of humans who are going to hear this hereafter, and think that somehow a spiritual teacher should speak from her Shadow and talk all about God and beauty and wonderment and Joy that’s oozing out of her. Instead of a couple of hours of lost sleep due to the Shadow. Hello everyone. I am as you know, Acharya Shunya, and I want to talk to you about this journey that each one of us is asked to make. Every day. Every moment of our life. From Shadow to Self. Hello everyone, you’ve already been introduced to my name, Acharya Shunya. You can call me Shunya. Acharya is my title, it means a Master Vedic teacher. I was born in an ancient Vedic family that goes back at least 2000 years in Northern India in a tiny holy city known as Ayodhya. It is said to be a pilgrimage town. Millions of people show up there every year because the beautiful sacred river, the Sarayu, flows through it. More importantly, Rama, who is said to be the avatar of Vishnu, a Hindu God, is said to be born there. We believe that to be true. It’s a place where everybody shows up, and they all take a dip in the river Sarayu. And before they take a dip into it, they think they are, their inner being, is just crawling with sorrow and unhappiness and misery. And after they emerge from that depth, they feel cleansed. Long ago, when I was a child, I asked my grandfather, who I called Baba (who was also my teacher) “why do they report such an instant change? They have walked into that water feeling so miserable, and they come back with this big grin”. And Baba said “Shunya, they went into that water with this deep deep intention that they wanted to let go of the Shadow – their false beliefs, imaginations and projections of their mind. That is not leading them to a greater truth of their own true being, being One with the supreme consciousness. Instead the shadow is leading them away to be lost in the corridors of worldliness and worldly roles, and now they’re feeling really sorry – these dads and moms and bankers and doctors and lawyers and real estate people. Then they go back to the Mother River Sarayu. Because they know their god Lord Rama too, when he wanted to shed his shadow (the body) he walked into that river, and he found his way back to the light. Because he was light, and he had just descended for a short time to be amongst us mortals. So clearly the river knows a way, and lets do that.” And then, India being India, everybody tells everybody, and before you know it for an uninterrupted period of 10,000 years, millions billions trillions of people report “I got rid of my Shadow at least temporarily, I’m gonna have a cup of chai and hot samosa right next to the riverbed and rejoice!” And then you will find a lot of people being super happy after their dip, and it’s a really cheerful place. I recommend you check it out next time you’re in India. But for now, you are with me. And I feel inspired to convert my podcast into that river Sarayu that I grew up with, and talk about all the time. If you read my book Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom, it’s a book on Ayurveda – Vedic medicine. And I was supposed to be all grown up and writing it, and my inner child just jumped out and wanted to cowrite that book. And we wrote about trips to the river Sarayu, and what we learned. I was wondering “what will I say to you?” on my first podcast, and it doesn’t matter anymore. Because if it is holy – not from the shadowy holiness that religions teach us to embody – but its holy from the wholeness that lives within us, that I’m going to ask you to reclaim from within you, then it doesn’t matter that I began my first podcast with how I was myself taken over by my shadow. Albeit for a few hours, until I annihilated it, and I returned back to who I am. My true Self. Feeling more expansive than ever, more generous than ever, more enlightened than ever. Because that is the true nature of our being. You know, you don’t have to believe me. I didn’t have to believe Baba, who was my teacher. He was the teacher of thousands of people when he was alive, in India. So was his grandfather. Our family goes back 2000 years in India. The Vedic tradition says “You don’t have to believe us. You don’t have to have blind faith in us, because that’s just being your shadow. Who wants your faith which is full of shadows? We’d like your reasoning, to come with that faith.” So why don’t you give me functional faith for now? Just hear me out. See. Try it. So the first stage is called “hear me out” or shravanam. The second stage is “think it out”, called mananam. The third stage is called “try it out” or nidi dhyasanam. Try it out. In your own relationships or at night, when you’re awake because of your shadow. Your ego telling you things it has no business of telling you. And if what I teach you or share with you, and feel inspired to bring forward in the podcast helps you, then you’ll know. You took a dip in the river Sarayu, that special river of wholeness, in which you can walk in with some brokenness and emerge whole. But here is another one. What if I told you, that river Sarayu, that river that makes you whole every single time. That removes the darkness, and fills you with light every single time. That takes away the curses, and fills you with blessings every single time, lives and flows and bubbles along, right inside YOU. How about that? Well that’s what the Vedas, this ancient body of wisdom that is taught and learned and lived in my lineage, since time immemorial, says to us. It says that your true Self is beyond every possible shadow. As long as we don’t know about it, the Ego, the Ahamkara, the Story Maker, can fabricate every possible story. Or at least if it’s a real life story with facts, can really build it up and make you either a tragic hero/heroine, or a super conceited hero/heroine because you’re winning it. But the reality is your true Self is peaceful, it knows how to share power, it is compassionate, its understanding. Above all, it is invincible. That’s right, you’re invincible, deep inside you. Deep inside you there is no darkness. Do you know how you can believe that? Because no matter how terrible you’ve been, and in the past your shadow got you, and other peoples shadows cornered you. Its like, with the world, it’s a dark alley where your shadow goes for a walk and other people’s shadows accost you in the corridor because you were the guy with less power, or less money, or less good looks, or not the “right” gender or the “right” race, and bam! The shadows win over one shadow – you. And so you were down and out. But then for a few moments, you went inside – maybe guided by a teacher like me, maybe you were in meditation. Maybe you saw a sunrise and your jaw just dropped in disbelief… and for that one moment, you came out of your shadow. And in that few moments, those milliseconds, when your shadow wasn’t actively telling you how to feel, how to think, how to behave, how to be defensive, for those few seconds…you became empowered again. Enlightened again. Whole again. You became invincible. And then you could go back, from those few milliseconds of connection with your shadowless Truth, back to those shadows. Back through those alleyways. But this time nobody dared accost you and pin you down in a corner. I’m not even sure if I’m using the right English words, bear with me people! English is not my first language. It is my third language. I have Hindi, I have Sanskrit, then I have English. And it doesn’t matter if my shadow mispronounces and takes the wrong word for the right word. Because my Self has this option of communicating with you. Self to Self. Not shadow to shadow. It is the shadow that wants to be perfect. It is the shadow that worries about being judged for its perfection. It is the shadow that thinks it must win or lose an argument. It doesn’t realize that there can be so many different opinions. That there can be so many versions of truth, in the shadow world. Because the shadow world is not meant for Truth. It is meant to be seen as a complete falsehood, where only shadows are vying for supremacy. And the only way to really regain that Truth is a turn inwards. The Truth beyond the falsehoods, and the truth pretending to be falsehoods, the Light that never dims, the wholeness that can never be taken away by any amounts of brokenness, lives right inside you. And according to the ancient Vedas, which were given to me as a legacy in my family, by my Guru Baba Ayodhyanath, to his disciple Shunya, who he chose as the first feminine leader of his 2000 year old all-male lineage, said: “You are Atma, apanoti iti sarvam atma – That which is boundless is You.” That is what the Veda are telling us. Boundless power, boundless light, boundless abundance, boundless creativity, boundless ability to reinvent ourselves, and boundless ability to even accommodate different opinions. And boundless ability to supercede every opinion if we think we have the light and others don’t, and it becomes our dharma, our spiritual duty to uphold that which we believe to be true. But to keep on this journey, its so important to know the difference between the Shadow and the Self. And this is what is going to be my task. Every week, I’m going to sit there and thread apart my shadow and my Self, so that you can be journeying from your shadow to your true Self. You know the Vedas is a complex body of literature. There are the four Vedas, known as Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda, Atharva Veda. These are about 10,000 years old. And I’m not just saying it – there’s anthropological, paleontological, linguistic, historical evidence that a long time ago, a good 10,000 years ago and more (not less), wisdom was at its peak in ancient India. This wisdom was spiritual, secular, scientific, and always concerned with the greater Truth of our Being. There were these Vedas, and then the later part of the Vedas were known as the Upanishads, which have the highest philosophy of Non-dual teachings, known as Vedanta come from the Upanishads. Bhagavad Gita, is one of the most popular Upanishads, it has something like 700 verses, which I teach all the time. They are available everywhere for people to benefit from. And then we have more teachings, more commentaries, such as one of my lineage ancestors, Adi Shankaracharya, who lived in India in the 8th century. And his commentaries, and his teachings, and his writings are such an eye opener! So I’m going to be quoting a lot from all of these texts occasionally, ok? Occasionally! Nothing heavy, don’t worry. I don’t have this shadow called the spiritual shadow, trying to prove what a scholar I am. But I do want to quote from the Svetasvatara Upanishad where it says “forgetting our light filled, truth filled Self. Oh humans! All of us have become ensnared in the world of shadows. And here we are caught in our own darkness. Bewailing our helplessness. But when through right knowledge we are able to see with our inner eyes, the glory of the Self, adorning our own heart, we go beyond all sorrow.” That’s right, tragically humanity, you me everyone, we have forgotten our true inner spiritual core of true light, invincibility, wholeness, fullness, which is the Self. Therefore we need wisdom reminders. That is why, because of this forgetting, we are filled with a behavior that doesn’t look or be or behave with boundlessness. We are like grasping creatures, needing creatures, just so afraid. Fortunately, this wisdom came true, and at some point I learned that there are two parts of my Being. The Shadow and the Self. The Ahamkara, which is the Story Maker, it is born in a story, it lives in a story, it creates stories, it will die in a story. A tragic one or a glorious one. And then I have Atma. Which is beyond all stories. Which is accessible within my own heart. And its mere remembrance, like you are doing right now, through this podcast, which is like a river that restores wholeness, you are feeling right now more restored. This is my hope and my prayer for you. Especially because on this day, I’m recording it at a time, when our planet is overcome with the Shadow. We are so afraid for our very existence, because a pandemic known as COVID19, is circling our planet. A lot of us are very afraid. A lot of us are so scared. Uncertainty, transience, suffering – something that we know is all around us, all the time, is actually standing in front of us! We can’t avoid it anymore. But here is a time now for us to not be caught up in the shadow if we want, and unearth the truth of who we are. Feel into our raw heart. What would it be like? If we were able to reclaim something whole despite the brokenness around us. And so therefore, what would it be like if we were all able to reclaim something unbroken from inside us. It may be a great time to quarantine our ego, that is constantly consumed with news and numbers of dead and dying. Keep yourselves up to date, with whatever is happening, whatever the law requires of you, to be safe and to keep others safe. But beyond that, why not journey into your true Self. Find something creative to do. Even if you had some honest tears, and that would be just fine. Ive seen people walk into that river of wholeness, sarayu, that I’ve been talking about from my hometown of Ayodhya, and they walk into it crying. They’re afraid. And its ok to be afraid, because all of us are caught up in Shadow land, and we don’t even know why we got here, we don’t know why we get attached to a few people around us. They’re dying or diseased or vulnerable. There is Death stalking us at every moment. This is a moment to be true about our fears. And again not bypass saying we’re ok. We can only be ok after we accept that we’re not OK. We can only really find our true Self, once we accept we are caught in the shadow. We can really only begin the journey of reclamation of our true abiding wholeness only after we accept that we have ascribed to brokenness. And our broken identity has become our narrative. We don’t want that to happen. And if you don’t want that to happen, stay tuned. I’m going to try my best. Honestly I can’t promise, but I’m going to try my best. My Shadow wants to make all kinds of promises, but my Self can tell you I enjoyed having this conversation with you. And I spoke from my true Self. If you benefited, I’m going to recommend you share it. Love, which is our true state, is what’s going to flow through my podcast. Sometimes I’m going to speak on something that may be hard to digest, but you should know it came from love. Because the Shadow likes to pander and please and prewrite a script, and come with perfect lofty words. But my aim was not to impress you, my aim was to reach out to you. Because I too need support during this pandemic. We are all a little bit vulnerable. We are all invincible. And when we accept both parts of ourself, we come into Wholeness. Take care. Until next time, we’ll keep this conversation going. Subscribe and listen now! Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Note: Shadow to Self is produced for the ear and is designed to be heard. If you are able, we encourage you to listen to the audio, which includes emotion and emphasis that is not on this page. Transcripts are generated using a combination of speech recognition and human transcribers, and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting in print. Hello everyone, I’m Acharya Shunya. Welcome to my brand new podcast “Shadow to Self”. It's going to be our place to chat about non-dual wisdom from the Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and the disciplines of Yoga and Ayurveda, that India and my ancient vedic lineage from India, has been renowned for since centuries. Did you know that we humans can hope to lead bold, powerful and fulfilled lives? But to do that, we must access an inner invisible dimension known as the Self. Upon discovery of our true Self, a deep sense of peace and wellbeing is said to take over our mind, that is otherwise, (you know) anxious, fearful and agitated. Then, our mind becomes naturally fearless, spontaneous, powerful, creative, generous, and of course compassionate in all our actions. No wonder the Self is known as Atma in the Vedas, which literally means “the Boundless One”. But here’s the catch. Unless we have right knowledge about our true spiritual identity, most of us are sleepwalking unconsciously. Living one shadowy life script or the other. We are experiencing tremendous existential and psychological suffering, and a diminished sense of self. We are seized by the Shadow instead. “What is the Shadow?” you may ask. The sense of a separate limited identity is the Shadow. It is known as “Jiva” in the Vedas. This shadow can be compared to your Self’s unhappy cousin – it is chronically dissatisfied. No wonder an ancient text, the Kato Upanishad, observes this: that the shadow gropes in darkness, while the Self lives in light. After all, the shadow is a mere construct of the mind – the ultimate illusion, which assumes the false ownership of your being. It convinces you of things that are not even true about you – the Others are the world. While the Self is the ultimate reality. Permanence and happiness of an abiding nature. The shadow is a mere appearance – it projects false realities in the mind, impermanence and suffering. Now for some Good News! We need not live like needy, grasping and sorrowful creatures of the Shadow after all. Let me ask you this: can clouds block the sun forever? While heavy clouds can seemingly cover the sun, when the wind chases away the clouds, we find that the sun never stopped shining. Not even for a single moment. Similarly, winds of wisdom activated by this podcast can begin to blow away your clouds of Self ignorance. These winds will begin unshackling your mind, from any false and disempowering beliefs of the shadowy nature, that may be holding you back right now. Then in the beautiful clear sky of your mind, you will find that the Self reveals itself in all its beautiful, bold, shining glory. You will then be given joy. All new freedom from fear, freedom from wants, freedom from obsessions, addictions, attachments. Freedom to reinvent yourself, freedom to rewrite your destiny, and lead your life the way you’ve always wanted to lead it. You would have become free of the shadow. You would have awakened to that secret Self inside you. Except that it is no longer secret to you. And let us not battle the shadow either, shall we? There is a reason why light and darkness, shadow and self, exist universally within each one of us. We simply have to see through it. So, if you’re excited to journey with me, from Shadow to Self, then listen anywhere you get your podcasts. A new episode will drop every week. The first three episodes are going to be really educational. You may not want to miss them, because I will lay out the Vedic path for journeying from shadow to self. I’m going to reveal the whole map. We’re going to talk about things like “why does the shadow even exist in the first place?”, and “what is the status of MY shadow?”. That’s right, you’ll be able to decode your personal shadow, and then begin hacking at it with knowledge. And what can you do about it? That can be a question you can bring. And will it work? Doubts are welcome too. Don’t miss these foundational episodes, because I’m going to address your curiosity and your doubts. All of it. And you should know that from time to time, I will invite like minded guests - peers from my spiritual world, because I believe that their insights and perspectives will take our conversation beautifully forward. Finally, if you appreciate the powerful ideas of Advaita, non-dual wisdom, that I’m going to be sharing with you with all my heart, then do rate and review the podcast. You can also subscribe to it, and invite friends so that you can all be taking the same journey together, from Shadow to Self. Hello again, I’m Acharya Shunya – a Vedic scholar, author, spiritual teacher to thousands world wide. But above all, I’m someone who has benefited from this transformative wisdom deeply. Because I too was once suffering, but now I’m not. I’m excited to bring this beautiful wisdom to you, and I cannot wait to meet you on my podcast “Shadow to Self.” Subscribe and listen now! Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

“So many years of education, yet nobody ever taught us how to love ourselves and why it is so important.” Spirit Science This quote rang true for me. I was taught to be respectful of others. The concept of respect was always outward facing. What about the respect and love for ourselves? Growing up, people would say, “you have such pretty skin, your eyes are so blue, your hair is so soft, you have such a nice smile.” So those were the attributes I learned to love. What about the rest of me? The real me? I spent the next two decades caring for and thinking of other’s needs, often before my own needs were met. I was sick a lot when younger, with colds, ear infections, and bronchitis. I had a pediatric doctor tell my Mom to keep me home from school on the first of my menstrual cycle, because my immune system was weak. I was treated over and over with antibiotics and had my tonsils removed, due to my chronic sore throats. I had asthma on a regular basis, and was allergic to cat dander, milk, fish, shellfish, bee stings, and grasses. My chronic colds continued into my adult life. I used to panic when a co-worker would come into work sick, afraid that they would share their germs. I was also shamed into getting a yearly flu shot, and like clockwork, I would get the flu 3 weeks later. At the age of 34, I was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Six years later, I had an emergency surgery due to a ruptured ureter, where they found a severe case of endometriosis and bladder cancer. During this surgery, I had a full hysterectomy. A few years later, under a doctor’s care, I lost 40 pounds. My diet consisted of protein drinks for four months! Shortly after that I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Really? When was this going to stop? I desperately wanted to be healthy. I was a 46 years old woman, happily married with a fantastic career, and a beautiful 8 year-old son. Yet, I kept getting sick. I finally decided to look outside of Western Medicine and into alternative healing modalities, including Acupuncture, massage therapy, and Reiki. I was searching for something that treated my mind, body, and spirit. I started to feel better, knowing that I was taking charge of my health, yet I felt guilty for spending so much money on myself. Fortunately, my husband was very supportive, and he wanted me to be healthy and happy too. MS is a scary disease. It is different for each person, so it is hard to track the symptoms. Anytime something was wrong with me, I would automatically think it was a relapse due to MS. I often wondered if I would wake up one day, and not be able to walk. The fear had really set in, we even sold our beautiful home, because there were too many stairs, and I feared that I would not be able to get around. Through a friend at work, I learned about Acharya Shunya’s wisdom school. My friend suggested I attend the free community classes on Ayurveda. I felt as if Acharya Shunya was speaking to me directly. I felt at peace. I was nourishing a part of me that I didn't know existed. I could not wait to come back. I was so thirsty for knowledge to live a healthy life. I immediately signed up for her Ayurveda course. I learned about Ayurvedic healing foods and spices seasonal routines, immunity boosting techniques, yoga philosophy, and how to cultivate a peaceful mind. This was a very interesting time for me, and there were adjustments I made to my lifestyle. I learned to sit with my food quietly. I also learned that sipping hot water during a meal is better than drinking a cold drink. I used to drink ice-cold carbonated water. I now know, that was one of the worst things I could be doing for my digestion. To aid in digestion, you can also walk 100 steps after consuming a meal. Who knew something so easy could be so beneficial? By the end of this course, the exhaustion had subsided. I felt invigorated and had more energy. I had not caught a cold, despite having sick people around me at work, and even at home. I was so intrigued by the realization, that by just making some simple changes in my life over a short period of time- I had already made a positive impact on my health. I felt like I was learning a new way to be and behave. I was so grateful for the knowledge I was receiving, that I wanted to take care of my school, and could not wait to thank my teacher for her wisdom. It was time to slowly let down the walls of caution and open myself up to this healing knowledge - I was ready to trust the science. It was time to take charge and heal myself. I decided I did not want to take antidepressants anymore. I expressed my idea to my western doctor, and she was supportive of my choice. She explained how to slowly stop taking them. I also applied what I was learning in my Ayurveda course. Through the right food choices, herbs, meditations, and lifestyle changes, I was able to eliminate antidepressants from my life. The next big hurdle was to lower my “bad” cholesterol (HDL). My blood work revealed that my cholesterol was extremely high. My western doctor gave me three months to lower my cholesterol, or I would have to start taking medication. I had heard that this medication could have serious side effects, so I did not want to take a medication that would fix one health problem, in exchange for creating another. However, I was scared of a heart attack or stroke. Fortunately, the newly learnt eating habits, recipes, exercise regimen, and daily care routines helped me lower my cholesterol to a healthy level. I am proud to say that six months later, my HDL levels are normal, and I have lost weight. As I look back at the last few years, I have benefited greatly from the Ayurveda education. There are some very basic routines that I do every day to stay healthy. These rituals are a part of my life now. I have found that I am listening to my body more. I look for signs that I am on the right course. Regular elimination is one of the biggest signs that I am digesting my food properly. A typical day starts before the sun rises, with a mug of hot water to clear the channels. Next I practice Surya Namaskar, a greeting to the sun and new day. I also chant mantras, practice pranayama (breathing), and meditation. The beauty of these practices is knowing I can take them anywhere. I travel a lot for work, and this is how I start my day, whether at home or away. About 2-3 times a week I practice Abhyanga before my shower. Abhyanga is a technique where you rub a warm therapeutic oil on your body. This has helped me greatly with my dry skin. I have also noticed that my arms and legs look smoother and slimmer. I have learned to give myself time in the morning to allow for proper elimination. When I am running late, I do have the time to relax and eliminate properly. As a result, I do not feel well throughout the day. I am very lucky because my husband cooks my meals. He has been a lifesaver. He enjoys cooking and learning new Ayurvedic recipes. This is great, but my next step will be to take charge of helping to prepare these meals as well. I found out the hard way- when he travels for work, I am at a loss. I now know, proper digestion starts with the preparation of your meal. Eating out does not have to be a problem. However, I choose not to eat out as often, so I have more control of how my food is prepared. In a pinch, I look for healthy, warm vegetarian choices. I try not to force the Ayurvedic lifestyle on my family. I trust in the process, that when they are ready, they too will start to eat Ayurvedically. My son is fascinated in what I am learning in my teacher’s wisdom school. He has started to adopt some Ayurveda into his life. He loves the nighttime ritual of preparing spiced milk. He is also a big fan of having me rub warm sesame oil on his feet. I just love that big smile, when he is totally relaxed and happy. This is a special time for us to bond. I am trying to work cold bubbly water and ice cream out of his diet. Ice cream can be consumed, but in moderation and when it is seasonally correct. I feel so grateful to be able to share this ancient knowledge of health with my family. My goal is to share with them preventative healthcare and encourage them to practice a healthy lifestyle. During the last 4 years, I have not been sick with a cold; I eliminated antidepressants, I avoided taking statins for high cholesterol; and I have lost weight. I also have more energy, and have not had any new symptoms due to MS. My journey continues, absorbing layer upon layer of teachings to create a solid foundation for a healthy lifestyle. I have a toolbox that I can rely upon. Overall, I have a feeling of wellbeing, knowing that I can help myself. I am now learning to love myself inside and out. Usha (spiritual name) Alchemy through Ayurveda Graduate Read more student expressions here. Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

Ayurveda teaches the path of the fulfillment of individual dharma as a way to stay healthy – spiritually, psychologically and, of course, physically. Disease strikes when we stray from the course of dharma. Cheating, lying, stealing, violence, and abuse may fester in us unnoticed by all; but our non-dharmic behavior cannot escape the searing look of our own Self. What Is Dharma? Dharma is a concept that is not easy to translate into English. It is loosely translated to mean “religion,” and has become synonymous with religion because of its wide use over many years. Living in dharma, however, encompasses following a universal code of conduct that is essentially secular (non-religious), but entirely spiritual. The word, dharma, has many meanings, such as duty, ethical conduct, charity, law, not harming others, the innate duty of things (e.g. the dharma of fire is to burn), compassion, altruism, positivity, etc. According to Sage Manu, the Hindu Law Giver, dharma has the following 10 attributes: Dhṛti (patience) Kṣamā (forgiveness) Damo (mental steadfastness or mental strength) Asteya (non-stealing) Śauca (cleanliness) Indriya nigraha (restraining of senses) Dhī (wisdom) Vidyā (knowledge) Satyam (truth) Akrodham (non-anger) Dharma is a core value of Indian culture, and so important that it can even be described as a synonym of Indian culture. To be cultured is to be dharmic. All that is positive is dharmic and all that is negative is non-dharmic. Dharma, in itself, is a cultural value and pervades all other cultural values. The Connection Between Self And Cosmos Ayurveda conceives a dynamic model of this universe wherein all objects, beings, events, phenomena, and experiences are vitally interconnected. According to Ayurveda, when we humans choose to discard truthfulness, forgiveness and righteousness (dharma), we agitate not only our immediate sphere of influence but the entire cosmos. Sage Charaka declares unequivocally, “The root cause of the derangement of the wind (vāyu), etc is unrighteousness.”[i] Rivers become violent and change course, meteorites appear frequently, earthquakes shake the terrain, and even the sun, moon, and stars become enraged.[ii] Self-Care is Planet-Care The dharma of Ayurveda teaches how self-care is really planet-care, and how one healthy unit is the beginning of more healthy units. This health, gained through dharma, is in turn the foundation of a healthy life. When firmly established on the pillars of bodily health, we humans can dare to aspire for the fulfillment of material and spiritual goals. The practice of dharma entails the strategy to not only survive, but also thrive, and that, too, excellently so. When dharma is violated, both the individual and society are violated, sooner or later. Almost every life situation is an epic event of cosmic magnitude, bursting with dharmic question marks. In fact, Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” is one such crossroads. When the dharmic content of our thoughts and actions is denied, blocked or resisted by us, ill health at the physical, psychological, or spiritual level will definitely eventually manifest. The Importance of Living by Dharma Ayurveda declares that living by dharma is not only critical to the here and now, but also influences our journey of consciousness after death. Ayurveda promises that dharma practiced in our daily life ultimately leads us face-to-face with the Absolute Truth at our time of transition. Any wavering from the path of dharma leads one astray and trapped in the endless cycle of birth and death. Dharma not only ensures a good life and an even better afterlife; it also influences the collective human experience today, at this moment; and dharma’s regard or violation by society affects our collective consciousness in a big way. Disease and Dharma A disease at one level is a savior at another. Ill health is often a message to wake up. The one who explores the dharmic goals of this earthbound journey listens to the voice of the spirit within, and thus, no more accidents, passivity, manipulations, and power games. The sages conceived of health at a grand scale, in which even the sun and moon were entreated to stay on the course of their respective dharma (spiritual journey), or else a cosmic chaos of unimaginable magnitude would follow. Likewise, the Dosas – Vāta, Pitta, and Kapha – in our body have their respective dharmas (nature and function) and when the Dosas, for example, stop following the dictates of nature, disease follows. Collective Consciousness and Ayurveda In Ayurveda, we see collective consciousness being modified by living dharmic-ly, and following spiritual and moral injunctions as social, but ultimately, spiritual creatures. Ayurveda also recommends that we follow environmentally-friendly lifestyles, and cultivate compassion for all fellow beings, plants, and animals, as we are all really individual parts of one collective consciousness. Ayurveda awakens within each of us the power to heal ourselves. If this life is an extension of nature, then why not use nature to be the best we can? Why be at war with nature? Why not instead outstretch both arms and find ourselves lost in nature’s compassionate embrace? Ayurveda teaches peace with the internal forces that regulate body and mind and a peaceful relationship with the external elements that compose our environment. Ayurveda is based upon remembering, reconnecting, and celebrating the eternal harmony and sacred connections between man and nature. In discovering the deep nurturance ever-available in nature, followers of Ayurveda gradually become one with nature’s great eternal rhythm and cycle. References: [i] Charaka Sāṃhita, Vimānāsthānam, III, 20 [ii] Charaka Sāṃhita, Vimānāsthānam, III, 6.3 Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

When I was still a young child, my Guru, who was also my grandfather, ‘Baba’ woke me up several times, literally at times, and figuratively, from metaphorical delusions. Growing up, I had a doll named Gudiya. I loved her dearly. I walked around with her everywhere and I felt she was a part of me, my entire existence. She even had special permission to sit with me to listen to Baba’s sermons on wisdom from the Vedas and Upanishads, night after night. People came from far and wide, and I and my doll Gudiya were always on time. After all we lived in Baba’s home. Once, in winter, when a slight breeze blew, I pulled my woolen shawl closer (it was my mother’s silk pashmina, I remember) and then to protect my doll some more from the cold too, I had wanted to push her inside my clothing (and ideally inside my very being), you know, somewhere close to me, if not in my heart, then at least inside the folds of my shawl. But, to my great and unending dismay, the doll fell with a deadly thud because my hands were maneuvering the shawl and trying to hold my doll up-close, at the same time. The fall broke off one of her arms, and smashed her nose in dirt. Next, my shawl came un-done, exposing me to the cold air suddenly, and I gasped from the touch of the breeze on my body. Finally, a bigger body, the one I lived inside (not my doll), with hands and feet tangled in the large, mom-sized shawl, while walking towards mom, fell to the floor with a bigger thud, all in my clumsy effort to save the doll, hold the shawl and walk to mom, at the same time. I never did get to maa that night. I stayed in my puddle of broken arm parts (one), muddy noses (two), and shocked silence (collective). Thankfully, maa scooped all of us and our pieces, in her arms. That night Baba spoke gently to me after dinner: Everything you can observe is material in nature. You and doll, both have material bodies. Consider matter as play-dough little Shunya. Did you see how your doll broke her arm? Sooner or later, objects of matter break, decay or end. So, do not grieve when this happens. Expect that. You cried when Gudiya broke her doll-arm, but you did not cry when you saw the shooting star that other night with me? A whole immense star exploded in front of you, but you did not cry. You had laughed then. Why? Because you are attached to your doll, so its broken arm bereaved you. And you are indifferent to the star’s fate. In fact, its fall is what delighted you most that night. It is your likes and dislikes that make you cry or laugh for matter objects then, not otherwise. It is you who project your Self (and emotions) into the world of matter that is on the play-dough bodies. When you see play-dough in bodies – do not see your true Self. Baba concluded: Shunya, I am sorry your doll Gudiya’s arm is unfixable at this point, though I am happy her nose is shining again after you rubbed it with your favorite elephant-print towel. No, I don't think any Ayurveda herbs will revive her arms either at this point. At this point, knowledge is the only medicine. Can you accept that external objects are always material are also transient (anitya) in nature? What does transient mean, you ask? What is transient simply appears to exist for a flash; but was not existing in the past and will not exist in the future. Where are the flowers, hundreds of them, that your maa grew last summer in pots? They were once visible to your senses, but now they are not. Objects that come and go in time are called transient. Where did the butterfly bodies who visited your mother’s flowers, disappear? They too were transient as all objects external to you are. Even Earth won’t last forever, nor the milky way you studied about last week at school, and made a diagram of with your new crayons which, too, are transient, and so are the stars you watch and identify with your father in the night sky, every night, when we all sleep outside in summer. Even our bodies, yours and mine, that are existing today, did not exist in the past, and will not exist forever. None of this that you perceive with your senses, will last. Everything is changing even now; emerging from invisible to visible (when you see it) then it will return to being invisible again. This is what I call transient, my child - anitya. When we look around, we see the world, but it is a magic show. What appears as permanence, is really impermanence. This transience makes most people insecure. But the one who can observe all this, you need to be afraid, since the observer, is not transient. Inside this body, you the Self, which is non-material, is nitya, pure existence that is neither influenced by time nor space. You and I - we who are one, though we inhabit material body suits, will always be. We alone are nitya - everlasting. And since it gets boring, we can always take on new bodies, he said with a smile. I dreamt that night of becoming a hummingbird, and a deer next. In fact, I dropped and took on so many bodies that night, bodies of all types, adventuring fearlessly. After all I am nitya (immortal) what fear would I have? I also felt no pain as I dropped a body, since it was anityam (transient) after all. Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

Let us practice spiritual acceptance - shall we? Please see how this Universe (whose controller is Divine Mother) is teaching you what to expect from it during your voyage as an embodied being. The day is always followed by night, light by darkness, spring by winter, youth with aging, birth by death and death by birth. In the same way, happiness and sorrow come to visit you as per a greater cosmic intelligence. Just like you don't go into a confrontation mode when it rains or when the sun shines, nor you try to control it, let the rain of karmic sorrow too fall upon your being; and when you become wet in it then alone, you will be led into finding the open sky within your heart. Indeed, the next steps lie in welcoming this cloud burst, nor wooing it to go away, or running away from it, nor lamenting, worrying and collapsing in fear. Can you, too, let the volatile waves in the ocean of karmas rise and fall? The pairs of opposites that the ocean washes ashore are always in pairs, health and ill health, safety and danger, fame and dis-fame, victory and defeat, loss and gain, likeable and unlikeable, comfortable and uncomfortable, pleasant and ugly, acceptance and rejection - each a teaching of sorrow and joy. Without becoming emotionally hysterical to control the opposites to go your way, or want to make the sorrowful ones vanish, and get more of the happy-making ones, can you instead be like a light-house, grand and noble, towering and rising above the crashing waves of duality, steadfast, unmoved and unshakable. This too was another wave…it too shall pass. Can you begin to not give the good and bad, wanted and unwanted circumstances so much importance, and remain steadfast instead by accepting all the opposites, with cultivated willingness? When you remain relatively balanced and non-greedy for (more) happiness at any cost, in pain as well as pleasure, joy as well as sorrow, gain as well as loss, fame as well as dis-fame, success as well as failure, corona or non-corona times, then Divine Mother knows, you have learnt to have a total view of spiritual life; a wholistic acceptance of the pairs of opposites (which is none other but Divine Mother). Make outer efforts to change things (wash hands, shelter at home, keep social distancing, eat Ayurvedic ally as per my booklet on improving immunity), but welcome inner acceptance for what is - because it is so. This is an excerpt from my forthcoming book Sovereign Self, (Sounds True, 2020). Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

Who is this river? I did not meet her earlier? Oh, she is eternally new. In each pulse of time, she rushes forth to become what she was not a pulse ago. Her watery canvas boldly moves joyously, bubbling, gushing forth, through the will of her own, because this she knows for sure, I must never stop. The river has no fear she need not capture her immensity in a standing pool of fear and ferocity, because the river bed below is still, and in that tranquility, there is courage for the river, to move, be and become, untold. With love and hugs, Acharya Shunya Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

Two thousand years ago, Ayurveda master Sage Charaka declared that humanity is on such a trajectory that pandemics cannot be ruled out. “The root cause of the derangement of seasons is loss of dharma or ethical behavior. If dharma is lost, over time, the seasons will get disrupted, rivers will become violent and change course, meteorites will appear frequently, earthquakes will shake the terrain, and in this natural and human created mayhem, diseases and disease-causing agents will thrive and multiply, and cause mass scale destruction of all living beings.” –Charaka Samhita, 2 BC However, Sage Charaka does not merely deliver the bad news. We can use Ayurveda’s 5000-year old principles to work on the host immunity, and thereby, be better prepared for the pandemic facing us in 2020. During these challenging times, we must do our best to keep our immunity strong and our stress levels low. The Ayurvedic sages encouraged building immunity and creating a healthy environment inside the body by virtue of a healthy lifestyle. Such a lifestyle incorporates a healthy diet, regular exercise, thinking pure thoughts, and reining in excess emotions. This holistic view of health, which has been adopted by forward-thinking Western physicians, ensures that the body is not vulnerable to germs. When a person’s immunity is strong – even eating rotten food and living in unsanitary conditions (as are seen in much of the world) will have a much less damaging effect. Ayurvedic Strategies for Immunity & Stress eBook (FREE) In my 14-page eBook, you’ll learn Ayurvedic 3 strategies to ensure your immunity is at its very best and your stress levels stay low using the wisdom of Ayurveda. Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.

The word for knowledge in Sanskrit is vidya. It comes from the root word vid, which means “to know.” I received Self-knowledge from my grandfather, who was also my Guru, Baba Ayodhya Nath, from the lofty Upanishads, from the ages of 9 to 24, in the form of expositions on non-dual Vedanta philosophy. Rare as it was, it felt like the ultimate knowledge to me; the highest, because this, alone, was leading me back to the underlying reality beneath my individual self and this manifest world. The secret name of Self in the Upanishads is Satyasya Satyam - the truth of truths. It is knowledge of this supreme Self, alone, that removes the sorrow brought about by forgetfulness. Hindus believe that there are two kinds of knowledge worth pursuing for two macro life goals. The first goal, of prosperity and well-being, signifies the progress or development of a human being in the material and social realm, called abhyudaya. It is undoubtedly dedicated to all-around prosperity. The second goal is for eternal bliss (not short-lived pleasures), called nihshreyasa. It deals with obtaining infinite happiness and contentment, which is, in fact, the natural state of the Self. This worldly knowledge, known as Apara Vidya, makes us prepared for the first goal, of prosperity. Transcendental knowledge of Consciousness that underlies the individual, world, and God (known as Para Vidya) prepares us for the second goal of seeking abiding (non-worldly) inner happiness. It is also known as Brahma Vidya. This second type aims at realizing Reality as it is and not as it appears to us in maya, the superficial world of appearances (as biology, chemistry, geography, neurology, medicine, health, religion, rituals, etc.). The latter fields of study are considered lower knowledge, since they have the phenomenal world as their main content and are ultimately rooted in self-ignorance and our identification with maya. They have a role to play, too, until we awaken; they help us survive and get by, and even thrive in maya (what with the degrees and paying jobs that come from such education!). However, only from knowledge of Self does our self-forgetfulness end. Hence, one deals with a search for the absolute truth, while the other is content with studying relative phenomena. Thus, Self-knowledge stands above and apart from all material knowledge in the Vedic tradition. The Atharva Veda guides all mortals: “Oh being, acquire knowledge. Along with all the parts of the body, make your soul powerful. Attain to liberation through the paths trodden by the learned sages.”1 The sages clarify that transcendental knowledge pertains to the immortality of the soul. This knowledge illumines within each one of us at some time or the other, and it facilitates the recognition that, “I am spirit.” Transcendental knowledge propels the human being on a path of liberation from the material bondage of existence. The Atharva Veda sages sing rapturously, “Just as from the high firmament, yea, out of heaven, a water drop with dew falls on the earth, and lends vigor and joy to mankind, so does the drop of Self-knowledge fall on me from the refulgent, Almighty God. Thereby, I am an emancipated soul.”2 The Importance of Awakening Scriptures And how does one go about receiving this exceptional Self-knowledge? Once again, theVedas proclaim unequivocally: one can get it only by exposing oneself to a scripture teaching educational program. Lord Krishna himself explains this path in the Bhagavad Gita in Chapter 4, verse 34. To awaken to the Self, one must go through an unswerving and methodical study of awakening scriptures for a length of time, to decondition the maya-saturated mind, slowly but steadily, and awaken to the truth of Self, irrevocably. I invite you to join me for my next LIVE Global Satsang held on the first Sunday of every month on YouTube - free and open to all. You can start today by watching the recordings of my satsangs so far this year! You can also sign up for my FREE Bhagavad Gita Class Series - now available on demand. 1. Atharva Veda, Book II, Hymn XXXIV, 5 2. Atharva Veda, Hymns 664 and 1678 Acharya Shunya is a globally-recognized spiritual teacher and Vedic lineage-holder who awakens health and consciousness through the Vedic sciences of Ayurveda, Vedanta and Yoga. She is the driving force behind an online wisdom school and worldwide spiritual community, and the author of best-selling book on the Vedic art of mind + body + soul well-being and health, Ayurveda Lifestyle Wisdom (Sounds True, 2017) and forthcoming second book with Sounds True to be released in 2020, Sovereign Self. Acharya Shunya is a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and serves as an advisor to the Indian Government in matters pertaining to global integration and cultivation of Ayurveda and Yoga. Receive her free online teachings and browse her current eCourse offerings here or see more about her on Facebook and follow her on Instagram. Subscribe to her YouTube Channel where she holds live Global Satsangs once per month. Study Ayurveda with Acharya Shunya in her online course, Alchemy through Ayurveda.