The Spartan Mind Strength Podcast with Tim & Vie: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Wellness

Episode Topics

• Om Gum Ganapataye Namaha
• Happy Ganesha Chaturthi!
• Ganesha was not mentioned in the Vedas in his current form
• What are the Puranas in relation to the Vedas and the Upanishads
• The importance of the Puranas ayurvedically
• Ganesha is about giving power to the people
• The Shiva Puranam, one of the 18 most important Puranas
• Ganesha in Nepal
• How Ganesha got his elephant head according to the Shiva Puranam
• Shiva and the ganas
• Parvati and the shaktis
• Stratagem is the most clever part of strategy
• The one tusked elephant
• Ganesha aka Ekadanta
• Ganesha loves coconuts and jaggery
• Ganesha, the Lord of the gods
• The Indian Scholar Vie is referring to, Y. Krishan
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• We will surprise you with a gift for supporting your friendly neighborhood podcast
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Audio Transcript

Hello, this is Tim and this is Vie and we welcome you to another episode of the spartan mind strength podcast. Today’s episode is about Ganesha.

Yes, it’s in honor of Ganesha Chaturthi.

That’s a fancy word.

Yes, it is. Stay tuned, we’ll be right back

And we’re back.  Om Gum Ganapataye Namaha.

Yes.  Om Gum Ganapataye Namaha. That’s right. You always ask Ganesha for help before you do anything major. 

And Ganesha is considered the god or the deity of the people. 

Yes. Ganesha is all about power to the people. 

Sweet. 

Yeah. I love Ganesha.  Ganesha is the most beloved god, deity, archetype -

Whatever you wanna call it. 

- In the Hindu tradition. And when we say Hindu tradition, we don’t mean the religion. We mean the tradition, the tradition includes many philosophies, everything.

And I love how every story is changed a little bit, depending on where it was actually told. 

Exactly.  Yes, every area has its own version of Ganesha and how Ganesha was created.

So there is, in the Vedic philosophy, is that the right term?

Yes.

There is stories of Ganesha.

Yes.

All sorts of stories of Ganesha.

Can you tell me where Ganesha was first brought up that you’ve been able to find?

Yes, Ganesha was officially brought up in the Puranas.  Some people will say that Ganesha was brought up in the original Vedas, like in the Rig Veda, but quite a few scholars will argue that the name Ganapati that the Rig Veda talks about refers to God as the creator himself. 

Okay. So not Ganesha the elephant headed cute, adorable little guy. 

So Ganesha was officially introduced in the Puranas.  And this is very interesting. 

What is the Puranas first?

The Puranas are - they are not the Upanishads. They are part of the Vedic tradition that were composed probably at the same time or later, the opinions vary. And it doesn’t really matter. 

Sort of like assholes.

Everybody’s got one.  The Puranas talk about rituals that the people can do. So this is very interesting. The Vedas, the original Vedas, were talking about elaborate rituals that were very, very fancy.

You needed gold, silver, oils, incenses, fragrances.

Paying the brahmins, the priests and everything . So the Puranas said - so the Upanishads said, let’s ignore the rituals, let’s focus on the individual themselves, right? The experience. 

Now the Puranas come in and say, well, rituals are good, let’s do rituals, but make them very, very simple, very, very accessible by using deities like Ganesha, like Vishnu, like Shiva, like Kali, things like, you know, deities that and make them very, very simple. 

So they include chants and they include ceremonies that are very accessible to the people and they eliminate the need for the wealth that the brahmins were requiring. So you don’t need the brahmins. 

Okay.  So I know that one ritual that I’ve practiced is breaking coconuts, where all you need is a couple of coconuts and that gets rid of on a certain day for Ganesha. And that gets rid of karma, right?

Exactly.  Exactly. Because Ganesha likes coconut, likes jaggery, which is like really, really good sugar and all sorts of things like that. 

So the Puranas include - are like, you can think of them, like stories, like mythology that give power to the people. help the people connect with the deities. 

Ok. 

Now there are all sorts of Puranas.  But the scholars have actually identified 18 major ones.

Ok. 18?

18, 18 major ones. And, my most favorite story about Ganesha comes from the Shiva Purana. Basically it’s the Purana about Shiva, right 

And, Shiva is Ganesha’s father.

Shiva is Ganesha’s father except, except, if you follow a legend from Nepal that says that Ganesha was created, manifested all by himself.

Ok!

Which I find fascinating. But, yeah. In the other stories, Shiva is Ganesha’s father one way or another.  And Parvati is Ganesha’s mother.

Okay. Now one of the stories comes from, you said where?

From the Shiva Purana.

Can you tell us about that? 

Yes. I find it amazing.

Was that a good enough lead in?

So the Shiva Purana says where Ganesha’s elephant head came from. 

So Parvati, Parvati wanted an attendant of her own. 

What does that mean?

Basically wanted somebody to pay attention to her, you know, help her with different errands and stuff, because she was kind of annoyed that all the little gods, all the ganas, that’s what the Purana calls them, were under Shiva’s command. 

So they all listened to him and they were not  listening to her. 

So she created Ganesha out of the scrubbings from her body without the intervention of Shiva 

She said, I don’t need you, I’m going to take a bath - very, very interesting and create Ganesha out of my own DNA, right, you can think of.

And Ganesha was her attendant, right? So a major job of what he had to do is guard her place.

Because Shiva was away.

Because Shiva was away. So Ganesha had to guard her place. So Gnesha had never met Shiva, right. 

Shiva comes home to visit Parvati. And Ganesha said, sorry, you can’t come in.

Can’t come in. I don’t know you.  Get away. 

Exactly,  So that actually pissed off Shiva.  So Shiva had his guys, right, the ganas.  So Ganesha had to fight those guys. 

Guess what, Ganesha was brilliant. Parvati had not created a dummy. So Ganesha actually defeated, the Purana says, Shiva’s guys. 

So then Shiva said, oops, I got to do something about it. And the translation of the Purana, that’s actually from an amazing Indian scholar, Y Krishan, and we’ll have his info in there -

So Shiva had to actually devise a clever way to defeat Ganesha and they translate it as a stratagem. I had to look up that word. So stratagem means clever scheme.

So it’s similar to a strategy but different.

A very clever, it’s part of a strategy, the most clever part of the strategy. So Shiva cut off Ganesha’s head and oh boy, Parvati was pissed. 

And Parvati created thousand shaktis.

And shakti is female energy. 

Shakti is a female energy, a goddess.

And you don’t want to piss off a thousand women.

You don’t want to piss off a thousand women.  Between the thousand shaktis and Shiva’s ganas, Shiva’s little gods, a tremendous battle broke out that actually could lead to the destruction of the gods. 

And the gods said, we got to do something about it, we got to  find peace in some way. 

And Parvati said, okay, here is the deal. You have to restore Ganesha, you have to bring Ganesha back to life. And Shiva said to his little guys, okay, you’re going to bring me the head of the first living being that you’re going to find. 

And the first living being that they found was an elephant, but he was one tusked elephant. 

So he was missing a tusk. 

Exactly. And that’s how Ganesha got his elephant head. And also Ganesha is often referred to as Ekadanta, which in Sanskrit means one - eka - danta is tooth of tusk. 

So Ganesha is the Ekadanta. And then Ganesha was placed, was crowned as the leader or the Lord of the gods.

So he went from being his head cut off to being in charge of all of them.

Exactly. And that’s why no matter which aspect of the Hindu tradition you are going to look into, Ganesha is always honored first. 

He is the Lord of the gods and he is the most beloved deity by the people because he’s very, very accessible, he gives power to the people.

Elephant is all about strength, strength and power, and finesse.

Very nice. So we’ll talk more about this in the next episode, but right now we’re at the actually 12 minute mark. 

Yes. And happy Ganesha Chaturthi!  

Very nice. 

Until next time, much, much love from both of us. Na’maste kala! May we all be well, adapt, and thrive!

Episode Topics

• Our most valuable possession according to Ayurveda
• The modern Jyotish and modern astrology view on time
• The Ayurvedic view on time
• Natural time aka Astrological time or Ayurvedic time is not mechanical
• The days of the week and the planets
• The planets and the hours of each day
• The first hour of each day after sunrise is governed by the planet that also governs the day
• Astrological hour vs chronological hour
• The Byrds, Ayurveda and the Upanishads
• An Ayurvedic view at Ezekiel and Ecclesiastes
• Religion vs Astrology
• Real Astrology goes hand in hand with real religion
• Shrek and Ayurveda
• Monday, Moon, Saturn and ayurvedic / natural time
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• We will surprise you with a gift for supporting your friendly neighborhood podcast
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Audio Transcript

Hello, this is Tim 

And this is Vie and we welcome you to another episode of the spartan mind strength podcast.

And this is still part of our series of the Upanishads but it’s still again bringing more of the astrology aspect and more importantly time. 

Yes. Stay tuned. We’ll be right back.

And we’re back, and we’re going to talk about conspiracy theories. And the conspiracy theory is actually about today’s modern Jyotish and astrology people taking away our power. 

Last week, we were talking about how they were telling us that we can’t change our stars, that we’re born this way and that’s it.  This week we’re going to talk a little bit more about how they’re trying to take away our time. 

Yes. So Vie, tell me, tell me about my time.

Our time, our time is our most valuable possession

I think we’ve heard that before from you.

Yes. Anyone who’s taken out advanced ayurveda training knows that our most valuable possession is not even our mind. It’s actually our time. Once we use our time, it’s gone, that’s it. Our mind, we can recover.

Actually, after these 10 minutes, you’ll never get these 10 minutes back.

Exactly, exactly. So our most valuable possession is our time. However, even, even when we actually, even when we value our time, what we are missing more often than not, is the capabilities that our time has. 

Yes. 

We think, we say, okay, we are going to use our time wisely, right.

I attempt to.

Yes, for the most part.  The people who are listening to this right now, I think they probably are questioning themselves. 

But what happens is, we still don’t fully understand the ability that we have in terms of our time. We think that our time is linear. 

Ten o’clock is ten o’clock.

Exactly, we have a mechanical concept of our time. And also the other thing is, we've lost the natural sense of time, right.

We have artificial lighting, right, we have 24 hour shopping or things operating.

Amazon.

Exactly. Everything is - we have instant gratification, we have fast food even, like everything. So all of that has distorted the real concept of time, it has shifted -

Because making a good hamburger takes time.

Exactly.

Or you can go to McDonald’s and get a shitty hamburger for nothing, no time. 

Exactly. So we don’t know, we have lost, ayurvedically speaking, we’ve completely lost our relationship with the natural time. 

So even when we value our time, we still look at our time in a mechanical, in an artificial, in a superficial way.

The stars, the stars say that time is completely different than we think. 

And I know, Ezekiel -

From the Ecclesiastes, right from the Bible. 

Yes, from the Bible.

Okay. Yeah. I spent 12 years of my life supposedly studying the Bible.

And you did not do very well.

I did not do very well at it.

But anyways, a time for -

There is a time for everything, right.

Which is the Byrds. Great song. Great, great song.  Actually - 

It’s called “Turn, turn, turn”

And it's almost the entire verse verbatim from Ezekiel

So it says there is a time and purpose for everything. Every moment in time, the stars say, has a specific purpose. There is a time to gather stones.

There’s a time to live. There’s a time to die. 

There’s a time to gather stones. There’s a time to disperse stones. 

There’s a whole great song related to it. And we’ll put the link of the song. 

Yes, it’s an amazing song. And that’s like real, real traditional astrology. 

And that shows that astrology or the science of astrology is equal with religion. 

Exactly. With religion. 

Astrology, real astrology, traditional astrology is one and the same with religion, religion as it was meant to be. 

And actually, actually the astrology, the real astrology is what gives meaning to astronomy. Otherwise who cares, who cares about the celestial bodies, what does that mean to us.

So the astrology tells us the story of our life. 

Exactly. 

And that came from Shrek, haha!

Shrek, the original, he said, you know, donkey was asking Shrek while they were lying under the stars. if he, if Shrek, would tell him his future and Shrek says the stars don’t predict your future, the stars tell you a story. 

Yes. And that’s what we’ve lost. We’ve now, we now expect that the stars will tell us exactly what we need to do, instead of telling us who we are.

Exactly, Telling us, showing us infinite possibilities. 

So it is actually hard to believe that, clocks -

Clocks.

Right, clocks, not Glocks, clocks.

Clocks. Glocks is a wholenother story.

That’s a whole different aspect to this.

-- that clocks give us the mechanical time, not the natural time. 

So the time used to be calculated completely differently, the astrological time. 

So everything goes based on the sun. And as we mentioned previously, the sun is the, the aspect of the divine. 

Yes. 

The highest power.

It’s all unlimited possibilities.

Unlimited possibilities, the sun. So the sun gives us our day and night. We have the sunrise to sunset and then we have sunset to sunrise. So it divides our day in two aspects. Right. 

Also we have the days, the days that are named after -

The gods.

The planets, right.  We have the day of the moon, the day of Mars, Tuesday and all that. Then Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn. 

Yes. 

And the days are named actually based on the planet - this gets a little bit technical - based on the planet that governs, the first section that comes right at sunrise. 

Okay. So the Monday is based on - 

On moon, because moon governs the first astrological hour that comes at sunrise.

And just to toss this in, what’s the next astrological hour of Monday?

Saturn.

Yep. So you got the moon and then you have Saturn.

And actually what that means is -  come Monday morning, right - traditionally people dread Monday morning, right. 

They got to go back to work, they got to do whatever. Nobody, well very few people actually are looking really forward to Monday morning. 

I am.  I love Mondays.

Mondays usually are moody. So sunrise comes, you most likely don’t feel like getting up, doing whatever you’re supposed to do. And that’s the moon. That’s what the moon is. Acts like a baby, sometimes, fickle, finicky.

But then you have Saturn and forty minutes later or 80 minutes later, it depends on the astrological hour, it’s not 60 minutes - nothing is like that, that’s the mechanical time - then Saturn comes and then Saturn is all about discipline. And Saturn says - 

Let’s get to work, put your big pants, big boy pants on, put your mommy pants on, or your daddy pants on, and let’s start moving.

And behave and that’s Saturn.

So that’s a little quick thing about where the world is as far as astrology and astronomy, right?

Exactly. So the astrological time, which astrology is based on astronomy, the astrological time has infinite possibilities. Whereas the mechanical time, the chronological time says this is it. 

So understanding the astrological time makes you have more options, gives you a lot more options for your choices.

And clears, the ability to say, okay, this is why I’m this way right now.

Exactly. Say, you wanna, you wanna take action on a romantic relationship, the best time to do it is during the Venus hour on a Friday, which is day of Venus. So you are not gonna do it during the Mars hour of Mars 

On a Saturday or yeah, or Mars also.

So that’s what it’s all about.

So we’re going to be talking more about astrology and astronomy and Vedic philosophy and Jyotish in our next podcast. 

So say bye-bye because the astrology time is done.

Until next time, much, much love from both of us. May we all be well, adapt and thrive.

Episode Topics

• The Mamas and Papas Monday, Monday song
• Monday, the Moon and our Mind according to Jyotish
• The Sun and our Soul according to Jyotish
• The Sun and the Moon according to Ayurveda as opposed to commodity astrology
• Why natal charts are not applicable according to Ayurveda
• The etymology of the word “planet”, it’s a Greek word 😊
• The Upanishads and real astrology, it’s all about change and possibilities
• A Knight’s Tale and real astrology
• Ayurveda and Real Astrology say you cannot blame the signs, the planets or the doshas for your weaknesses
• The Pitta dosha, Planet Mars, Consternation Aries and character flaws
• Yoga Alliance’s view on Jyotish, Vedic Astrology and Real Astrology
• The etymology of the word “consider” (it’s Latin) and what that means in our daily life
• Charaka’s Ayurveda and Horary(Real) Astrology are focused on empowering the individual
• Commodity Ayurveda and today’s Vedic Astrology are focused on taking the power away from the individual
• Real Astrology by John Frawley
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

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Episode Topics

• Sanskrit origin of the name Jyotish
• Jyotish and the Vedas
• Yajur Veda and rituals
• Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra
• Jyotish and Ayurveda
• Jyotish today
• The ancient origins of astrology
• Ancient Chaldeans, Sumarians and Babylonians
• The purpose of astrology according to Ayurveda
• The etymology of the word "horoscope"
• Tim's experience with Vedic astrologers
• Vie's experience with Vedic astrologers
• Should Jyotish be practiced as part of an Ayurvedic lifestyle?
• Brihat Parasara Hora Sastra
• Vedic Astrology Simply Put by William Levacy
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Audio Transcript

Hello, this is Tim and this is Vie. And we welcome you to another episode of the Spartan Mind Strength podcast.

Today is going to be about Jyotish in relation to the Upanishads.

Stay tuned. We’ll be right back.

Jyotish!

It’s a Sanskrit word, go figure. It’s not Greek?

Well, I can make it be Greek, but I’m not gonna push it. 

Ok, Sanskrit word, meaning what?

It comes from Jyoti, which means light and Ish, which is short for Ishwara, which means God.

So light of God. Light of God or the will of God.

Very nice, I like it, very nice name.  So, what’s it supposed to be about today?

Well, the word, the term Jyotish, which is translated today as Vedic astrology is not actually what the Vedic astrologers of today say it is.

Ok, so today, they consider it almost like

Yeah, they tell you your horoscope, they do your chart, they talk about your life and

It’s like a horoscope thing, and they use the term horoscope, which is Greek. 

Yes. Yeah.

So basically, what Vedic astrologers do today is they do your natal chart, when you were born, they look at when you were born and the big picture. In general, they look at when you were born, what planets were in what houses and all that stuff and what that means to you.

But in the old days, when the Vedic books, the scriptures were written, it was what?

So Jyotish appears in the Yajur Veda, which is one of the four Vedas, one  of the ancient scriptures. There is a section referred to as Jyotish. And what it is is telling you how to create calendars for when to perform what rituals  to which deity.

Okay, so it wasn’t about the person, it was about the gods.

Exactly. It was about how to use your time wisely. It’s all about time. It’s not about you, the individual, your purpose in life according to your natal chart, no.

Sort of like, also like yoga and ayurveda, it’s been bastardized over the years to make money. 

Exactly, it’s very sad.

So it’s not the Vedas, it’s something new. And about, because there’s books on that, right?

Yes, there are, there are books. The main book that the Vedic astrologers of today worship is called, Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra, which is -

That’s a big word.

And it was not created until the 19th century. It is all extremely new, and it has nothing to do - 

Speaker 3: And actually early 20th century, possibly.

Yeah, possibly early 20th century. 

It has nothing to do with the Vedas, the scriptures. It’s actually, it’s insulting to the scriptures. 

Now with this, this is something new that has been bastardized from something old, but the sages back then were using -

Yes. They were using, obviously, they were creating calendars for when to perform rituals for whatever they were trying to accomplish. So they were respecting the celestial bodies. They were respecting the will of God for the specific moment in time. 

And you mentioned the word horoscope, right? Which people today think, oh, what does my horoscope say? Well -

I read the newspaper daily, I know my horoscope!

So, well, the word horoscope is Greek, comes from ancient Greece and comes from hora, which is used in Sanskrit also, which means hour, but the old meaning - 

Hour like two o'clock, three o’clock, not like ours, us together.

Actually, it is spelled h-o-r-a, it means hour, but the original meaning, the old meaning was time, right? Time. Or you can think “this hour in time”, right, “this moment in time''

And scopos, right “horo-scope”, scopos, which scopos means target, purpose. What’s the purpose or the best purpose, the best use for this chunk of time. Isn’t that amazing?

Yes. But I want to get into this chunk of time and say that the Greeks didn’t do this either. 

No, this came from the wise ones. 

So Indians, the sages from India and the philosophers from Greece didn’t make this.

No, they didn’t. They may have improved it, they may have added things to it in terms of mathematical calculations. But these came from the ancient Chaldeans and ancient Babylonians. They were the wise ones who actually started this. And then the, and then the Vedic rishis actually, who talked about the Jyotish and the rituals and all of that did, did something along those lines. And they were all communicating at the time. 

So I know, like, we dealt with a Vedic Jyotish guy and he wanted to, he said to us, well, first he said I was screwed. Everything about me, I should become a, basically I should have been somebody’s bitch, a slave to him because he needed me to move things, take care of his horses, do all that. He looked at me as being somebody that had no benefits to the world. 

Exactly. He could help you clean your karma, right?

Yeah, some crap like that. 

But he looked at you and said you had specific things, but in order to assist them, you had to spend all this money on gems. 

Exactly.  Yellow Sapphire was one of them. I remember it.

Yeah. And he had them, of course.  You had to buy his gems, not somebody else’s, because his were specifically designed for you, when he polished them, right. 

Exactly. And you had to wear it on a specific type, either gold or silver or something in the specific finger for so long. And then you had to get a different gem.

So basically you threw away a really, really expensive gem to buy another expensive gem. 

Now does the ancient Jyotish or the ancient scripts say that you got to wear rings?

No, absolutely not. No. It was all about what can this community do right now in order to work with the will of the universe? 

So they, and also that doesn’t mean - also I don’t want people thinking, well, what am I going to do now? What's the will of the universe now? I need to know when to do certain things. That’s not it. 

What they were doing is they were saying, statistically, is this the best time for something?

To do this?

Exactly. It was never, no don’t do it. Is this the best time?

And if it's not, should you still do it or not do it?

Exactly. And what to expect. What does history, the history of the celestial bodies, the statistics and the geometry - the geometry that helped us figure out the statistics - what does that tell us?

And I know, so I’ve been in the yoga industry for shit, 30 years, 40 years. I’ve dealt with several of the Jyotish people and everything they’ve told me so far has been so far off. I think that the farmer’s Almanac is more accurate than the Jyotish readings I’ve had. 

Exactly. Exactly.  Also, they focus too much on the natal chart which to be accurate, a few minutes make a big difference. I know that.  Few minutes make a big difference. 

And if you don’t know the exact time when you were born, then you pay them a bunch of extra money, because I’ve had that done.

I did too because I don’t know my exact time of birth.

You have to pay them a bunch of extra money and tell them, give them details from your life of when certain events happened to you so that they can actually deduce most likely when you were born.

And even then you’re taking, you’re, you’re hoping that they’re even following, that they know what they are doing.

Exactly, that their software program is correct. It’s a very sad state of affairs, the Jyotish industry.

Because I know there’s one book that we have that even has a CD in it, a disc in it that you can type stuff in and it’ll tell you all that stuff. So you don’t even have to pay the thousands of dollars, you can just buy a book for $10.

Exactly. But, what it does is it does the opposite of what the ancient Rishis, the real rishis and the Babylonians and the ancient Chaldeans were trying to do, which is to give knowledge to the people so you empower them. 

This is taking your power away from you. Because first it says that you have - one of the Jyotish astrologers actually said something that was very wise in a very funny way. You need good karma to end up with a good Vedic astrologer, right?

Yes, yes.

So you have, you have to choose the Vedic astrologer wisely, right.

And then, and then you, you have to really believe what they tell you, and then it limits your possibilities, right?

Because even if it’s the best astrologer and they say, well, it looks like this. Well, anything you hear, anything you put in your mind makes you believe something that comes from the outside. 

And so I want to put it in your mind that we are over 10 minutes, and we can talk about Jyotish in the next one. We’ll put the names and links to some of the books we talked about in whatever that is.

In the notes.

I should have had a Jyotish reading on me, so I would remember that.

It would tell you that you need to work on your memory.

Until next time, much, much love from both of us. Namaste kala! May we all be well, adapt and thrive!

Episode Topics

• Why are we talking about the Upanishads?
• The value of the Upanishads today
• Continuing with the Chandogya Upanishad
• A major application of the first main principle of the Chandogya Upanishad
• The etymology of "astrology"
• Astrology then and now
• Ancient Babylonia, Mathematics, Astronomy and Astrology
• A major application of the second main principle of the Chandogya Upanishad
• Real Astrology by John Frawley
• The Upanishads by Eknath Easwaran
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

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May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Episode Topics

• The Chandogya Upanishad
• The 2 Universal Principles
• The principle of rita - law, order, regularity
• The principle of yajna - renunciation, sacrifice, letting go
• A real life application of the above from Tim and Vie’s expérience
• 200-hr Yoga Alliance Registered Teacher Training for $381.90
• 300-hr Yoga Alliance Registered Teacher Training for $488.90
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Episode Topics

• What does the word Upanishad mean?
• What are the Vedas?
• Ayurveda in terms of the Upanishads
• Yoga in terms of the Upanishads
• Hatha Yoga in terms of the Upanishads
• The value of the Upanishads today
• You are not your body, emotions or mind
• The only constant in an ever changing world is your Buddhi
• 200-hr Yoga Alliance Registered Teacher Training for $381.90
• 300-hr Yoga Alliance Registered Teacher Training for $488.90
• Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings and continuing education. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Find us on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/c/AskTimAndVie

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For Yoga Alliance Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Audio Transcript

Because the Upanishads are so intense, we’re just going to do 10 minute talks. So this is going to be the start of the Upanishads in a nutshell.

What does the word Upanishad mean?

Upanishads has a couple of different translations actually, because it’s a Sanskrit word. In Sanskrit, every word is like a mini dictionary, the meaning depends on the context. It depends on how you use it.

So Upanishads can mean to sit by, to sit by a teacher at the time and listen to what they are saying. But that teacher was not just someone random, that teacher was one of the ancient sages that were actually reciting - because at the time nothing was written, everything was transmitted orally - a teacher who was reciting the ancient wisdom of the Vedas. But not just the Vedas, it was a particular chapter of the Vedas, say a particular section.

What are the Vedas?

So the Vedas are, again it’s a Sanskrit word, and the Vedas are four main books. And it’s the oldest documented philosophy that we have. The word Veda means to have seen, as in “to know”. It’s actually very similar to a Greek word, the Greek word “oida” which means “I have seen”, Indo-European languages.

So the Upanishads come from the Vedas, the Vedas are the oldest written philosophy or science or whatever you want to call it, out. And the Upanishads is a section of each of the Vedas.

And what do they basically, I know it’s more than just basically, but can you give me a quick understanding of the Upanishads?

Yes, the Upanishads say, okay. most of the Vedas talk about all the rituals and gods and universe and higher force and all the sacrifices we should be making to please the gods and whatever, whatever.

But what about us as human beings right here, right now? What’s going on with us? Who are we in relation to all the stuff that the Vedas talk about?

So instead of being afraid and concerned about those higher forces that govern everything we do, let’s see what’s going on with us inside us. And what can we do?

We are not any lesser than the gods the Vedas talk about, because we are here. So we must matter. So that’s where the Upanishads come in. The Upanishads give the power to the human being. The Upanishads are about the human being, understanding how much power they have within themselves in order to do greatness in this lifetime.

All right. And, Ayurveda is part of the Upanishads?

Ayurveda is part of one of the Vedas, the Atharva Veda, the newest Veda and Ayurveda is okay, we have this body, how can we use it in the best way we can, to do greatness in this lifetime..

What is yoga as far as the Vedas? We know that yoga is not part of Ayurveda. Is yoga part of the Vedas or the Upanishads?

Yoga, actually yoga as it is written by Patanjali — because that’s where yoga is first actually formally documented in the Patanjali Sutras — Yoga is a lot newer than Ayurveda and a lot newer than the Upanishads.

So yoga is a modern phenomenon. It’s not ancient wisdom. You can call it ancient, but it’s not as old as Ayurveda or the Upanishads.

Actually, there’s only a couple handful of poses.

Well, hatha yoga is completely modern.

But even the Patanjali sutras, even the yoga philosophy that someone will say — well, I’m not talking about the poses. I’m talking about the sutras, the little threads.

Even that is a lot newer than the Upanishads and a lot newer than Ayurveda.

Excellent. So to sum up, Upanishads, can you do that quickly?

The Upanishads say that we are more than the physical body and we are more than our mind also. We are more than our breath. There is something more to this existence.

So where the Upanishads come in say, if you focus at this existence as we see it, it’s ever changing, right?

Everything changes. And that’s where the whole stress of life comes in, because everything changes.

So if we focus at possessions, we get bored, we lose them, whatever.

If we focus at other people, we get bored, we lose them, whatever.

If we focus at the weather, we get bored, we lose it, whatever.

Everything changes, right? But the Upanishads say that if you pay enough attention to, to this existence, if you start controlling what your body wants and what your thoughts want and the way you behave, then you’re going to realize that there is something deeper that never ever changes. And that is our higher self. And that’s where comfort comes in and confidence.

There is, there is something more. So when you say, the Upanishads say, I am cold, or I am tired, that’s not you. There is something deeper than that, that recognizes that your body feels cold, that your body feels tired.

When you say I’m angry, that’s not you. There is something deeper that recognizes that your mind is angry because, because if you say I’m angry and then you make an effort to think of something that makes you happy, you’re going to become happy and your anger is going to go away.

So in 10 minutes, you’re going to have completely different thoughts. So that means that there something deeper. And that thing that’s deeper, your little Buddhi, the Upanishads call it, that’s your higher self and that never changes.

So once you make that a habit in your everyday life, you’re going to feel much more content.

You are going to find joy a lot more often than you already do, and that’s power.

Excellent.

Until next time, much, much love from both of us. Na’maste kala! May we all be well, adapt and thrive.

Episode Topics

• This series is based on the book "When Violence Is the Answer" by Tim Larkin
• What are the Upanishads
• The Upanishads vs the Vedas
• The Upanishads vs the Bhagavad Gita and the Dammapada
• Do the Upanishads have any value today
• The Upanishads and Awareness
• The Katha Upanishad
• Nachiketa and The Lord of Death
• We always have two choices
• Karma and choice
• The 5 sheaths aka koshas
• The body of food
• The similarities between the Katha Upanishad and the Matrix Trilogy
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings, continuing education and coming soon, retreats.. Both teacher trainings include three months of private mentorship after you complete the training in order to help you successfully implement everything you have learned in your professional and / or personal yogic / ayurvedic life. They can be found at http://YogaEnergy.com

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

Yoga Energy's Training Library can be found at: http://YogaEnergy.com

You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For YA Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.

Episode Topics

• This series is based on the book "When Violence Is the Answer" by Tim Larkin
• Ayurveda and situational awareness
• Do you know your context?
• In what context would violence be the answer?
• Violence as a tool, just like a fire extinguisher
• Upanishads and the concept of violence
• Positive visualization can be misleading
• How aware are you on a moment to moment basis?
• Are your phone and headphones distracting you too much?
• Are your senses becoming conditioned?
• Are you using the ayurvedic pair of qualities gross vs subtle in your day to day awareness?
• Are you walking as a victim?
• Is your yoga practice making you a victim?
• Vie's yoga and ayurveda conspiracy theories
• Email us your feedback and any questions you may have at: [email protected]
• You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url
• May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

Other Resources

This series is brought to you by Yoga Energy School. It can be found at YogaEnergy.com

Yoga Energy School is offering Private Online Yoga Alliance registered 200-hr and 300-hr teacher trainings, continuing education and coming soon, retreats.. Both teacher trainings include three months of private mentorship after you complete the training in order to help you successfully implement everything you have learned in your professional and / or personal yogic / ayurvedic life. They can be found at YogaEnergy.com

Did you subscribe to the podcast?

Did you share this episode with all your friends?

Email us your feedback at: [email protected]

Yoga Energy's Training Library can be found at: http://YogaEnergy.com

You can help support our Podcast by giving as little as $1 per episode, our PayPal account is here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=7FDYKCGSKL3NL&source=url

May we all be well, adapt and thrive! - Tim and Vie

For YA Registered Instructors

Earn CEUs here: http://YogaEnergy.com

Disclaimer

All information provided here is for informational and educational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this Podcast. Please consult your physician or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and well being or on any opinions expressed within this Podcast.

You assume all responsibilities and obligations with respect to any decisions, advice, conclusions or recommendations made or given as a result of the use of this Podcast.