Vedic Worldview

Apart from the Veda, one of the many gifts of ancient wisdom from India is the Upanishads.  The Upanishads consist of several short parables that give us insight into how we can behave in ways that support our personal and collective evolution.In this podcast episode, Thom shares the story of a man in a lake who, while immersed in more water than he’d need in a lifetime, remained thirsty.  This is a story we all have a need to hear as we all have our own ‘thirst stories’ that are running our lives.It’s a short yet profound tale that we can use to remind ourselves when we’re making things harder than they need to be.Enjoy.Episode Highlights: [00:00] Upanishad - Sitting at the Feet of…[02:28] Once Upon a Time There Was a Yogi[04:08] Who Came Upon an Unusual Sight[04:57] And Offered Some Help[06:15] But His Offer Was Rejected[07:21] Looking Outwards for Sources of Happiness[08:50]  Relief From the Mercy of the Object World[10:39] An Effortless Mantra - A Vehicle for the Mind[12:02] Finding What the Mind is Looking For[13:01] Becoming an Exporter of Happiness[14:34] Established in Being, Perform ActionUseful Links: info@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles 

Stress is very much misunderstood.  Most people think of stress as something that happens ‘to us,’ that our stress is caused by outside situations or stressful circumstances, but this is not the case.  We know this because we can all react differently to the same situation.  What makes you stressed might cause no reaction at all in someone else, thus demonstrating that it’s ‘the victim’ that is the source of the stress rather than the circumstances.In this episode, you’ll learn that not all stress is bad, how and why we have different reactions, how the body reacts when we are stressed, and the link between stress and premature aging.   More importantly, Thom shares the good news about the simple technique of Vedic Meditation and how you can not just manage inbound stress but you can even release accumulated stress in the body, easy and effectively.Episode Highlights: [00:44] The Father of Stress[01:39] General Adaptation Syndrome[03:18] Fight or Flight[05:08] There Are No Such Things As Stressful Situations[06:13] You Have to Change Now[07:36] It’s Not All Bad[08:28] Cool Hands. Cool Car[10:05] Eustress vs Distress[11:17] A Hearty Effort[12:21] A Bad Taste[13:24] System Failure[14:30] Attack Mode[15:50] A Heavy Weight to Carry[16:38] Seeing Red[18:19] 100,000 Premature Cognitive Commitments[19:23] Growing Old Before Your Time[20:08] Eliminate Stress Through Vedic MeditationUseful Links: info@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles 

The subject of reincarnation arouses a lot of curiosity and debate.  Those who ‘believe’ in reincarnation seek to understand the mechanisms behind it, and those who don’t, look for ‘proof’ before they consider it a possibility.  In this episode, Thom explains the Vedic worldview on reincarnation, putting forward a case to satisfy both the believers and the ‘scienticians.’He explains that the process of reincarnation doesn't just happen between lifetimes, but that it happens countless times within each lifetime. He challenges the notion that reincarnation must be proven and measurable, while at the same time offering sufficient proof to even make the most hard-nosed skeptics think deeper on the subject.He explores the process of enlightenment and describes the impact of ‘punya,’ your cosmic credit rating, on the choices available to you when the time comes to reincarnate.Importantly, he also reminds us that the belief of Vedic wisdom is an optional philosophy when it comes to one’s practice of Vedic Meditation.  Vedic Meditation can be practiced with great effect regardless of one’s philosophical or even religious beliefs.No matter what your current beliefs are, this is one episode you’ll want to listen to again, and again, and again... :-)Episode Highlights: [00:46 ] Belief in Reincarnation is Optional[02:11] Reincarnation is For the Ignorant[04:25] What is Reincarnation?[06:16] Heaven on Earth[08:34] Maya Koshas and the In-Between State [10:38] Immeasurable Love and The Scienticians[12:27] Unheard Of! Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony[14:39] The Body of the Senses[15:45] Brain Dead[16:36] Near-Death Experiences[18:06] A Reflective State[19:15] The World is a Model of Your Consciousness State[20:58] Kitten Consciousness[22:33] The Brain that Changes Itself[23:59] The Body is a Reflective State[25:42] Your World of Assumptions[27:18] The Field of Being[28:57] The Vedic Meditator’s Advantage[30:32] Enlightenment - Cosmic Consciousness[31:26] Consciousness Seeks Birth[33:00] Punya - The Cosmic Credit Rating[34:22] The Quickening[36:13] Science-Based Reincarnation[37:46] Consciousness Surviving Body Death[39:46] The Constant Reality of Reincarnation[41:16] A Highly-Populated World[42:22] The Attraction of Wisdom[43:54] Optional Philosophy[44:32] E = MC2  - Whether You Are Jewish or Not[46:02] A Brilliant Toaster[46:38] Keep on MeditatingUseful Links: info@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles Extra Resources: Consciousness Beyond Life: The Science of the Near-Death Experience - Pim van Lommel, MD https://www.amazon.com/Consciousness-Beyond-Life-Near-Death-Experience/ Life After Death: The Burden of Proof - Deepak Chopra  https://www.amazon.com/Life-After-Death-Answers-Paperback/The Brain That Changes Itself - Norman Doige https://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/ 

Explore the Vedic worldview on death, the concept of life after death, and the mysteries of life. Understand the role of love, the purpose of life, and the stages of human development. Discover the transcendence of consciousness and finding inner bliss. Learn about the layers of the human being and the continuity of consciousness after death.

Dharma, like many other Sanskrit words and phrases, is not well understood by many with an interest in Vedic wisdom.  It is often simplified to such an extent that it loses its true meaning.‘Purpose’ is perhaps the most common misinterpretation of the word dharma.  Many try to narrow their dharma down to a specific mission or purpose that they hope becomes a legacy for which they will be remembered.But dharma is much more interesting, more exciting even, than a singular mission or role in life.  In a constantly-changing ever-evolving universe, our dharma changes year by year, day by day, minute by minute.So rather than defining our life, our dharma defines our moments.In this episode Thom explains, as elegantly as always, that our dharma is to be vigilant, to become attuned to the need of the times and be an agent for progressive change.  It requires us to surrender to our role in the evolution of things.And the key to living our dharma?   Let’s just say our twice daily practice of daily Vedic Meditation gives us a distinct advantage.Episode Highlights:[00:43] Dharma – Your Role in the Evolution of Things[02:00] Complex, Sophisticated and Elegant[03:48] A Constantly-Evolving Bio-Friendly Universe[06:12] What is Your Role in Evolution?[06:49] The Bliss of Being[07:52] Your Dharma—An Agent of Progressive Change[09:28] Mistaken Identity[10:14] Perfectly Available at Every Given MomentUseful Links: info@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles 

Change is the only constant, yet many resist it. Embracing the Vedic perspective, every stage of evolution—creation, maintenance, and destruction—holds divine significance. Explore how Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva represent these phases. Discover how Vedic meditation enhances adaptability and awareness of life's cyclical nature, fostering creativity. Learn how adopting a creation operator mindset can turn challenges into opportunities, unlocking your potential by embracing the unknown. Let go of outdated forms to welcome innovation.

Discover the deeper meaning of freedom beyond mere circumstances. Explore how true liberation is an internal journey, sparked by self-realization. The discussion reveals that genuine happiness cannot be imported or dependent on external factors. Vedic meditation is highlighted as a powerful tool to enhance joy and clarity, promoting a state of being rather than doing. Uncover how shedding false identities and fears is essential in achieving inner peace and harmony.

We hear a lot about the problems of governance, whether it be government at the highest level, or the administrators of smaller bodies in society, schools, businesses, etc.In this episode, Thom explains that the crisis of governance is not with ‘the government’ or whatever other body is ‘in charge’, but rather with our view that ‘they’ are the problem, and that there is little or nothing ‘we’ can do about it.The Vedic worldview is that everything is structured in consciousness, including governments, and the only way to effect change is to effect consciousness.Thom shares that governments reflect the consciousness of the people, even in a dictatorship, and so our own role is to take responsibility for our own consciousness, and to be an example, an exemplar, for others to do the same. This is the only way in which governance can improve and the crisis can be resolved.Of course, Vedic Meditation, being the most efficient means to bring about a change in consciousness, has a role to play in this process. Here are some highlights from the episode, which you can listen to via the player, or read via the transcript, below.Episode Highlights: [01:58] A Reflection of the Average State of Consciousness [04:00] The Crisis of Identity - Self and ‘Other’[07:57] Self Sufficiency Is the Seed of Revolution[15:11] Dependence of the Individual Leads to Dependence On Government[17:38] Spreading Self Sufficiency By Example[21:01] The Ideal Individual Is the Basis of Ideal Government[21:41] Vedic Meditation Produces Ideal Individuals[27:06] The Spreader Effect - 1% of the Population Leading the Way Through Vedic Meditation[29:59] Individual Peace is the Basis of World Peace[33:14] Social Change is Not Going to Come From the Top Down[36:14] The First Science - The Science of Self Discovery[40.32] Challenge Your Assumptions About What is Possible[43:28] Self Realization + Action = Self Actualization [48:29] All Suffering is Based on Inaccurate ExpectationsJai Guru Deva.Useful Links: info@thomknoles.com https://thomknoles.com/https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoleshttps://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

Thom Knoles discusses Truth as that which does not change, how it can be detected in all fields of life, and how, by allowing change to form our sense of identity, we succumb to suggestibility. Vedic Meditation takes our awareness from the field of ever-change into an experience of that which is beyond change, and reveals to us the truth of our own identity, as an implicit statement of pure knowingness.Episode Highlights: [00:56] Truth is That Which Never Changes[02:36] Non-Change is Not Possible in the Relative World[05:28] Who is the ‘I’?[07:39] Evolution is a Truth[10:52] Catastrophe is Relative[13:10] Expanding Our Repertoire[15:32] Knowledge is Always for Action[17:24] Are We Alone?[20:47] Between the Changing and Never Changing[22:53] Vedic Meditation as a Path to Being[24:28] The Splitting of Truths[28:42] Sat-chit-ananda - Absolute, Consciousness, Bliss[28:58] Change is Exhausting[37:12] Transcending The Relative Provides Relief[41:41] Accessing the Self Through Vedic Meditation[43:39] There is No ‘Other’Useful Links: info@thomknoles.comthomknoles.com/podcast/Thom on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/Thom on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles/Thom on LinkedIn -  https://www.linkedin.com/in/thom-knoles-a3a90a1a3/ 

Thom Knoles discusses the state of fearlessness, how all fear is based on something unreal and how to learn to transcend fear and yet be fully participating in life. Living a life in fear is worse than death. Fearlessness is the pinnacle of the development of human consciousness. Through the regular practice of Vedic Meditation, we achieve it spontaneously. Episode Highlights: [00:39] The One Standard of a Life of Significance[02:38] Fear Isn’t Based on Reality[04:59] On Death and Dying[13:48] Immortality Removes Fear[16:29] The Long Dream[24:54] Expanding Consciousness[28:49] The Death Cascade[31:39] Transcending the Story Through Vedic Meditation[37:06] Beginning an End to a Sense of Fear[41:13] (Don’t) Go Jump Off a Cliff![42:58] Wisdom Hair[44:42] The Changing Face of Fear[47:50] Consciousness is the Source of the Body Useful Links: info@thomknoles.comthomknoles.com/podcast/Thom on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles/Thom on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles/Thom on LinkedIn -  https://www.linkedin.com/in/thom-knoles-a3a90a1a3/