The Jason Gregory Podcast

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will discuss whether God is an adequate word when referring to the irreducible essence of the universe. In the great Eastern traditions, there are many words that describe the true nature of the universe a lot better than the word God. This stems from the context in which God is thought of in some influential Western religions. But, from an Eastern perspective, this Western view of God is foreign. In the end, is God the right word or not? If not, then what words should we use?

I have been meditating every day for over 10 years. Meditation has changed my life more than anything else. This commitment I made to myself over 10 years ago is the main reason I have done what I have in my life thus far. Grounding myself in that daily practice has strengthened my resolve in the work that I do. But there has been times when I've dragged myself out of bed kicking and screaming in trying to avoid my daily practice, but they are usually the most opportune moments to sit and dive deep. I have learned so much that it is hard to articulate. However, in this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will try to articulate my experience and share with you the changes that will happen to your mind and also the 18 ways that meditation will transform and improve not only your own life, but also the immediate world around you.

The second Noble Truth in Buddhism is one of the most important teachings passed down from the Buddha to humanity. The historical Buddha went to great lengths to discover the origin of human suffering so that we can eventually be liberated in this life. But how can we understand the nature of the second Noble Truth? In this episode of The Sacred Word, we will contemplate the significance of the second Noble Truth. I will explain how the origin of suffering is related to thoughts and how the illusion of an independent self is built in this process.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain who are energy vampires and how to protect yourself against them. We've all encountered energy vampires in our life, where our energy reserves are depleted in their presence. I will define the characteristics and behaviors of an energy vampire so that you can identify them early in the process of a friendship/relationship. As a result, you will be able to skillfully edit them out of your life without having your spiritual progress hindered. NOTE: This site directs people to Amazon and is an Amazon Associate member. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The pages on this website may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended.

The Sacred Word is a new series about the great masters, sages, and texts of the East. I aim to give thorough explanations of some the deepest teachings expounded by the great masters, sages, and classical texts of the East. In this series you will find clarity on these deep teachings to benefit your own spiritual development. In episode one, we will explore Shankara's teaching on how to see the true nondual nature of the Godhead (Brahman). Shankara's view of reality is one of the deepest we can find from the great annals of spiritual and philosophical literature. He had an amazing ability to articulate the true meaning the Upanishads, and how the depth of Hindu knowledge boils down to how our ordinary perception of the world and ourselves is in fact an illusion. Shankara holds the the key for cleansing our misperception. NOTE: This site directs people to Amazon and is an Amazon Associate member. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The pages on this website may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will explain how thoughts create the ego and the nature of thoughts. Thoughts and the process of thinking has been an area the East has focused on for thousands of years. In the modern world, we are under the impression that thoughts are linked in a series creating this continuity of the person we think we are. What causes this linkage? Is it a natural function of the mind or just a habit we are caught in? The great traditions of the East explain why thoughts themselves are not linked and this wisdom leads to the nature of mind itself and its true essence and function. Get ready to dive deep. NOTE: This site directs people to Amazon and is an Amazon Associate member. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The pages on this website may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended.

In this episode of Enlightenment Today, I will speak about what enlightenment is and also if you will ever be enlightened. There is a glaring misconception about enlightenment that most people overlook. We live in an age where many people claim to be enlightened, including self-styled gurus who make up their own enlightenment stories. But the problem with all of these claims is enlightenment has nothing to do with our persona, which exposes our lack of understanding of what enlightenment truly is.

How Your Body Can be an Extension of the Universe is the eighth video in the series based on my Effortless Living audiobook. In this video, I explain how the universe can be an extension of your body. When we trust completely, our physical, mental, and spiritual planes of consciousness harmonize with the heartbeat of the Earth. When we have cleared the passage for Tao to function through us with its natural velocity, the rhythms of our bodily functions and vibrations of our mental states move as an extension of the Earth. A perfect example of this complete trust and harmony with the planet is the Kon-Tiki expedition of Norwegian ethnographer and adventurer Thor Heyerdahl in 1947. In this amazing story Heyerdahl and his crew drifted on a balsa-wood raft from Peru out into the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. Heyerdahl had a trust that his own organism and the ecosystem of the Pacific would harmonize together as one if they were given the time to do so. Find out what happens next. Effortless Living Audiobook https://amzn.to/31uNLQq NOTE: This site directs people to Amazon and is an Amazon Associate member. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The pages on this website may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended.

The Taoist Natural Way vs. Confucian Social Control is the seventh video in the series based on my Effortless Living audiobook. In this video, I explain how the Taoism of Lao-tzu emphasized that if we do not let individuals grow as nature intended, they will lose their naturalness and be drawn into the world of animal drives, desires, attachments, and ultimately suffering. The Way of the Tao and our experience of it comes from allowing all aspects of the universe to happen as they will without conscious interference. This understanding of Tao is a trust in and affirmation of life that cannot be broken. Humanity’s superficial differences could be dissolved if each individual could live by this trust. Yet society and culture have been built on ideologies such as Confucianism, communism, and democracy, which all teach us in some way to impose our will over one another, a goal based on the erroneous idea that we are achieving freedom in this process. To trust the Way of the Tao is the complete backflip to Confucianism or any present-day ideology or theology. Lao-tzu’s wisdom exposes humanity’s selfish tendency to impose the will of one individual, nation, religion, race, or gender over another. We are always interfering with each other’s natural sovereignty. Many people arrogantly and ignorantly do this daily and then proclaim that they know what freedom and love are. How can we listen and help each other if it is merely from our own cultural, social, or religious perspective? If we have a set of beliefs to sell another, then we are surely imposing our idea of life upon her without letting her grow as nature intended. Effortless Living Audiobook https://amzn.to/31uNLQq NOTE: This site directs people to Amazon and is an Amazon Associate member. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The pages on this website may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended.

Why a Taoist is a Threat to Society is the sixth video in the series based on my Effortless Living audiobook. In this video, I explain how the virtuous individual always presents danger to social, religious, and cultural systems that seek to bind humanity with superficial constraints. The individual who knows and follows the Tao is a threat because their way of being is liberated from the shackles of external influence. From the cultural, religious, and social perspective, these individuals are rebels who threaten to disrupt the hypnosis of the status quo. True and eternal freedom is loathed by the tyrants of cultural, ideological, theological, social, and religious dogmas, because when we are liberated by the true freedom that we can only find within us, we cease to conform to the machinations of tyranny. The rebellion of Lao-tzu’s Taoist Way has always posed a threat to the established order, especially in China. True Taoism was suppressed in the first decades of the People’s Republic of China (with people even persecuted during the Cultural Revolution), though it continued to be practiced in Taiwan. Taoism has often been scorned because the essential Taoist teaching of wu-wei is about surrendering your life into the comforting arms and the Way of the universe rather than conforming to social ethics. This eternal truth, known only by some people, frustrates those who know it not. In the eyes of an established ideology, theology, or organized religion, this experiential truth disrupts the social indoctrination that keeps the masses moving to the beat of someone else’s drum. Effortless Living Audiobook https://amzn.to/31uNLQq NOTE: This site directs people to Amazon and is an Amazon Associate member. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The pages on this website may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended.