Wisdom of the Sages

the mad elephant offense / smiling Lord Vishnu melts the heart / so called pleasure is just a cessation of pain / have faith that happiness lies in service / #dontbeasuckerbeaserver / the Bhakti-yogis don't try for liberation, but liberation herself stands with folded hands waiting to serve them / everyone has a backstory / the fact that the atmaramas take pleasure in the form of Krishna is proof that His form is spiritual SB 3.15.39-43

our attractions & aversions are randomly programed into our minds / the illusion of duality / Raghunath's exercise / happiness is an inside job / purification through the fire of knowledge / see the Divine orchestration in everything / we accept the curse, but may we not forget Vishnu / we aren't asking for peace, we are stepping in the fire / high level meditation on the form of Vishnu / the appearance of Lord Vishnu / seeing God in the skunk SB 3.15.34-38

we're either grateful or entitled / gratitude leads to spiritual awakening / the myth of the more choices the better / regulation gives rise to beauty / finding value in the tough times / parampara - from one to another / being endowed with billions of years of tradition / life is a game of frogger / people have shown me kindness that was otherworldly / the catharsis of gratitude

Can departed family members send us signals, and how can their souls stay with us and simultaneously take on a new body? / How can Bhakti help me to manage expectations of others and how can I manage expectations of others on me? / In the sacred texts we hear about how humiliation can stimulate spiritual growth, but also how Krishna uses fear of humiliation as an encouragement for Arjuna's growth. How would you connect the two? / Do you have any suggestions for ashrams in India to visit or stay at?

taking radical responsibility / Srimad Bhagavatam every day! / when the mind is out of harmony with the soul, we experience discord - anxiety, fear, boredom, depression, etc./ train the body to dance with the soul / as you become more spiritual you become aware of discordance within / religion = allegiance to a church; spirituality = developing the qualities of God / harmony of the body & mind with the true self is yoga / a positive spin on subordination SB 3.15.32-33

relinquish the burden of resentment / squash it quick! - be quick to apologize and quick to forgive / the pain derived from humbling oneself is less than the pain derived from offending someone / the qualification and disqualification for freedom from anxiety / Vaikuntha Man / the verse we wear around our necks / Krishna is sending us people for our evolution / superficial peace crumbles when it's challenged / the boy sages approach the gates of the spiritual world / anger is the younger brother of desire / the anger of the liberated person is different SB 3.15.26-31

sound is transformative / "the darkest region of ignorance" like those football hooligans / to change your life wipe out Blame & criticism / how we open the gate to fear, anxiety & depression / the rare opportunity of earthly human life provides just enough pleasure & pain for one to decide to transcend / you can't step into reality with a hard heart / 5 steps to getting blown up in a spiritual land mine SB 3.15.23-25

Madhava's Rock Band is saving Raghunath from the Brahma Complex / the Brahma Complex = don't you know who I am – who do you think you are? / you don't punk Krishna, Krishna punks you / we get bitter or we get better / seeing the inner child of the football hooligan / their desires are fulfilled by rendering transcendental loving service / the residents of Vaikuṇṭha have a better standard of pleasure / bringing the principles of the spiritual world into the material world = spiritual activism SB 3.15.20-22

Ouch! Wisdom of the Sages gets rejected by Madhava's Rock Band (we love them anyway) / Diti puts a pause on her pregnancy (we're beyond uniformitarianism over here) / we can fight the law - but the law always wins / the first description of the spiritual world / the metaphor of the upside-down banyan tree / illusion follows desire / the metaphor of the reflection in the window / it's not that dogs & vegan doughnuts don't exist - it's just that we are trying to enjoy their reflections SB 3.15.1-19

rational, ethical & metaphysical challenges to the sacred texts / 3 levels of thought - literal, rational, transcendental / burden carriers vs essence seekers /the folly of uniformitarianism / 3 challenges to miracles / just because something happens routinely doesn't make it any less extraordinary / the mathematical complexity of digestion / rationality is a call for open-mindedness / sci-fi - why is attraction to the supernatural so natural? / what we call reality depends on the scale of our perception / celestial perspective vs human perspective / how we devalue scripture & how we devalue science / humility facilitates open-mindedness