Q&A session lead by Swami Sarvapriyananda as part of a spiritual retreat at the Vedanta Society of New York on June 2nd, 2019. List of Questions with Timestamps: 0:33 - Is consciousness present in non-living things? Are they also Brahman? 12:18 - What is the nature of bliss? Is it dependent on the mind? Does a pure being experience bliss all the time? 26:15 - Does your liberation depend upon your karma? 31:50 - Does the presence of Maya imply duality? 36:25 - Does suffering bring us closer to spirituality? Can people who are mentally week resort to spirituality as an escape route? 46:45 - Is it difficult to stay in the non-dual path when the path of knowledge is considered difficult to follow in the current age? 59:25 - Advice for somebody who has experienced a flash of spiritual bliss and is trying to understand and sustain it. 1:02:56 - Explain the verse from the Taittiriya Upanishad: "He who is here in man and he who is in yonder sun—both are one." Web: http://vedantany.org Soundcloud: http://Soundcloud.com/VedantaNY iTunes Podcast: http://bit.ly/vedanta-talks-itunes Google Play: http://bit.ly/vedanta-talks-google-play ABOUT VEDANTA Vedanta is one of the world’s most ancient religious philosophies and one of its broadest. Based on the Vedas, the sacred scriptures of India, Vedanta affirms the oneness of existence, the divinity of the soul, and the harmony of religions. ABOUT US Vedanta Society of New York is affiliated with the Ramakrishna Order of India. In fact, this is the Order's first Center started by Swami Vivekananda, in 1894. It was a historic event, for the seed of the world-wide Ramakrishna Movement was sown here in New York over a century ago. Swami Sarvapriyananda is the present Resident Minister and Spiritual Leader of the Vedanta Society of New York.