The Jason Gregory Podcast

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain how our ego survives spiritual transformation. When people encounter spirituality the ego has a tendency to slip under the door of our apparent spiritual transformation. This is in part due to how we drop our social role and persona for a spiritual role and persona. This pervades the way we dress, speak, and behave, which are all predicated on a notion of a higher spiritual morality that we should now embody. But this entire process is essentially what keeps the ego alive and thriving in the background of our new and apparently improved spiritual role. Real spiritual transformation has nothing to do with how you look, behave, or speak. It is something much deeper, a place where the ego is on life support. Find out more.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain the relationship between Brahman and the Trimurti of Hindu gods, known as Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. All of the deities of the Hindu pantheon make up a complex system to intricately explain the nature of the universe and consciousness, from the microcosm to the macrocosm. But it is the Trimurti that represents the core of the Ultimate Reality of the universe, Brahman. This relationship represents the unfolding of time, matter and spirit, through the universal process of creation, preservation, and destruction.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will speak about three spiritual mantras that will help you though life's most difficult situations. There are thousands of mantras to come out of Asia, but the three mantras I recite are arguably the most calming and powerful. They not only have the ability to help you out of the most difficult situations, but they also posses the ability to bring equanimity to the mind, leading one into a deeper introspection of one's nature.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain why intellectual study is crucial for spiritual growth and maturity. There are a growing number of people interested in spirituality who are under the illusion that they don't need to intellectually understand the tradition they are attracted to. This has developed due to the misinterpretations of classical texts through bad translations, resulting in a deep misunderstanding, usually based on someones cultural biases, beliefs, and cognitive style. Such misunderstandings in part happened as a result of the migration of Eastern philosophy to the West, leading to the materialistically driven and overly sensationalistic new age spirituality that has become popular. A user's manual is important for anything we want to understand deeply, spirituality is no exception. Theory and practice have always been the core of the great Eastern traditions, no matter whether it is Hinduism, Buddhism, or Taoism. These three traditions, specifically, explain that if an individual has no frame of reference, then there is no way one could understand the deep wisdom and meditative experiences passed down through these traditions. Find out why study is crucial.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain how observing our thoughts in meditation and self-inquiry can have a negative impact on our life if we don't have the correct knowledge to practice correctly. A common habit in meditation and self-inquiry is people begin to demonize thoughts, creating a divide within themselves based on the hunt for the perceived enemy of the ego, which causes an artificial split within the mind. This can lead to numerous mental health issues. A lot of this bad meditation habit comes down to how we project our indoctrinated beliefs of right and wrong onto thoughts that naturally arise during practice. This is against the nature of meditation and self-inquiry.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain an important element within Taoism that many people often don't know about due to a lack of knowledge of what the verses actually mean that arise from incorrect translations of the Tao Te Ching. Taoism in its essence is a critique of Confucianism and this also relates to our modern world, as Taoism is not truly isolated to one period of time, but can critique any civilization throughout time. Nevertheless, its critique of the teachings of Confucius is solely focused on the inherit problems with social roles and sincerity that ultimately lead to falsity, hypocrisy, and many forms of psychopathy.

In chapter 28 of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-tzu explains how the interplay of the unified opposites of yin and yang function within our consciousness. Lao-tzu explains what our psychological disposition should be to be in perfect balance between yin and yang so that we can be in harmony with the Tao. Though, this chapter is not so easy to grasp. Chapter 28 is obscure to those not familiar with Taoist philosophy. But in this episode of The Sacred Word, I will unpack each line so that you can understand the kernel of truth dwelling within the heart of this magnificent chapter.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will speak about our commitment to ending the cycle of Samsara. Often people want to do good deeds in their present life so that their next life will be a prosperous. People do this because they are under the belief that they are accumulating good karma. But they are missing the point altogether and are driven by the fruits of the external world. This type of attitude is still geared towards materialism and essentially prolongs the cycle of suffering. Many people are often in this trap and they wonder why their suffering is not alleviated. To end the cycle of Samsara we have to make a committed to making this our last life in our present life. Rather than doing good deeds in our present life under the vague intuition that our next life will be prosperous, we need to be serious about ending this cycle of suffering we are all caught in. You need to ask yourself, Will this be your last life? Learn more.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will speak about why religious conversion is a problem in the world, especially in countries such as India. For thousands of years, some religions have traveled the world in an attempt to convert people from other parts of the world to bolster their religion's influence over the world. These religious conquests have often led to conflict and violence, not to mention the psychological damage it has had on other cultures not accustomed to foreign beliefs. Religious conversion itself is a subtle act of violence because it is an instrument used to interfere with other cultures. So why has religious conversion never been questioned openly? Why do some religions feel inadequate and so need to gain followers? Why are some religions under the illusion that their belief system is better than any other? All of this is due to a persistent psychological problem that is linked to survival and, hence, not very spiritual at all. Ultimately, this is a history of fanatical force over the natural way of the world.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will speak about why the law of karma is governed by nature rather than morality. There is a common misconception that the law of karma is based on the ethics and morality of a system of religion and culture, leading people into the illusion of good and bad karma according to their own belief systems. This is plain illogical and against the nature of karma. Karma is something entirely different from a subjective viewpoint of right and wrong. What is the nature of karma?