Ep 528: Be Childlike, Not Childish: The Spiritual Key to Presence and Play

In this reflection from The Daily Vedantic, we explore the powerful distinction between being childlike and childish. Spiritual traditions from Vedanta to Christianity celebrate childlike wonder, presence, and curiosity—but caution against the immaturity of being childish. Discover why the intellect must guide the playful, energetic, and present-moment nature of the inner child, and how embracing this balance can transform your relationships, mindset, and spiritual path. This talk pulls wisdom from the Bhagavad Gita, Socratic philosophy, and everyday experience with children, to help you live with joy—without losing direction.

The Daily Vedantic is a daily podcast and YouTube channel dedicated to the timeless wisdom of the Upanishads (https://thedailyvedantic.com/). Dating back to over 5,000 years ago, the source of nearly all Eastern Philosophy, and loved by Western giants from Emerson to Thoreau to Carl Jung and Alan Watts, studied daily by Joseph Campbell to Aldous Huxley to Arthur Schopenhauer and countless others, The Daily Vedantic aims to make this ancient philosophy as modern and accessible as it is simple, practical — and profound.

James Beshara ( https://www.twitter.com/jamesbeshara ) is a renowned startup founder of multiple companies, a prolific startup investor in 200+ others including some of the biggest startup names on the planet, a husband and father of three little girls, and philosophy student and teacher in Los Angeles.

James also co-hosts Yoga For Your Intellect (https://www.YFYI.co), a biweekly long-form conversational podcast with his teacher Joseph Emmett ( https://www.instagram.com/yogaforyourintellect )

James is a student of Swami Parthasarathy, the acclaimed author of Vedanta Treatise (Vedanta Treatise – The Eternities)  and teacher at Vedanta Academy in Malavli, India. As James says often, when you’re ready for the real thing, Swami’s daily lectures are where the true wisdom and systematic discovery of the world’s oldest continually studied philosophy resides: https://www.vedantaworld.org