Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

Welcome to another Q&A episode, with Thom fielding a range of questions from listeners with a common thread of social discomfort.

Thom holds forth on the subjects of social division, embarrassment, how to accept compliments gracefully, how to strengthen relationships in tough times, and anger, specifically whether or not enlightened masters can be angry.

As always, it’s an episode with universal appeal that could potentially tick off a few boxes in your own evolutionary journey.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Q - Why are people so divided right now?

[00:48] A - Destructive Normalization

[02:05] Mistaken Identity

[04:03] The It-ification of Other Humans

[05:51] Be an Inspiration to Others to Learn Vedic Meditation

[08:07] Q - How can we recover after embarrassing ourselves?

[08:11] A - Get Yourself a Sense of Humor

[09:53] The Human Condition is Not a Serious Condition

[12:09] Q - How can I accept compliments gracefully?

[12:19] A - Words Can’t Even Express Your Greatness

[14:11] Thank You

[16:44] Q - How can we strengthen a relationship during tough times?

[16:49] A - Alliances vs Relationships

[19:33] Honor the Best Interests of Each of You

[21:28] Vedic Meditation Reminds You Who You Really Are

[23:09] Work on Our Capacity to Give

[25:16] Q - Can enlightened masters be angry?

[25:20] A - Moments of Strong Expression

[27:32] Be Masterful Without Being Angry

Useful Links

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https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

Being an empath might seem like a gift—experiencing what someone else is going through must surely deepen our understanding of one another.

But in this podcast, Thom brings a surprising twist to the concept. He explains that not all empathy is created equal; different levels of empathy can lead to very different outcomes. While some forms can unintentionally add to our suffering, "high-grade empathy" is what actually alleviates it.

Thom leaves us with a clear sense of how to cultivate this higher level of empathy so we’re better equipped to bring true comfort and understanding into our interactions.

Episode Highlights:

[00:45] Direct Experience of Being Another

[02:56] Moving in the Direction of Unity Consciousness Through Vedic Meditation

[05:47] An Extension of One’s Own Inner Self

[07:55] Big Toe Consciousness

[09:39] Siddhis - Extraordinary Human Capabilities

[11:52] Limping Dog Suffering

[13:42] Capability to Alleviate Suffering

[15:35] You Are Totality

[18:01] Knowledge is for Action

Useful Links:

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

In a world where education is available to nearly everyone, one might expect that the major challenges facing humanity would have been solved by now, leading to a more prosperous and harmonious existence. 

But, as we can clearly see, that’s far from the reality.

In this episode, Thom explores the underlying cause: education today is focused on the wrong outcomes.

Thom offers a profound solution—an approach that cultivates students who are able to tap into infinite creative intelligence, unlocking problem-solving abilities far beyond what mere knowledge accumulation can provide.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] What Is a Problem For You?

[02:35] Archimedes and Leverage

[06:29] Do You Have Problem-Solving Techniques?

[08:10] University - Unified Diversity

[10:51] What Kind of Human Have They Become?

[12:29] Credentialed Persons

[13:45] Highly-Qualified Uber Drivers

[15:17] Knowledgeable in Very Certain Areas

[17:23] Ignore, Ignore, Ignore

[20:53] Increase Knowledge of the Knower

[22:51] Knowledge of the Knower

[24:57] Vedic Meditation Awakens the Home of All Knowledge

Useful Links

[email protected] 

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https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

One could easily spend a lifetime exploring Vedic literature and still barely scratch the surface in terms of the wisdom that’s available to us. Between the four Vedas, Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Atharva Veda and Yajur Veda, the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras, the six schools of Vedic philosophy, and countless other written and oral texts or translations, there’s no shortage of avenues to explore.

And even if you could absorb them all in a lifetime, you’d probably need to reread them to understand them from a more evolved point of view.  

Fortunately, the Vedic worldview is that all this wisdom is experiential, and we can shortcut the process of attaining wisdom through “knowledge of the Knower.” 

Thom provides an example of this in this assessment of Patanjali's Eight Limbs of Yoga, a subset of The Yoga Sutras. 

Thom clarifies that the piecemeal approach of trying to check off the eight limbs through our actions in order to attain the state of Yoga, is a misguided approach to take, and that practicing Vedic Meditation provides an express route that accelerates our personal evolution.

Episode Highlights:

[00:45] The Yoga Sutras

[02:36] Ashta Anga

[03:44] Yoga - Unification

[06:27] Samadhi

[07:39] The Simultaneous Arrival of Balance

[09:57] 1. Yama and Its Five Qualities

[13:21] Outcomes vs Causes

[15:05] 2. Niyama and Its Five Observances

[20:18] 3. Asana - The Sequential Elaboration of Limbs

[23:32] Asana for Transcendence

[24:51] 4. Pranayama - Administration of Breath

[27:00] 5. Pratyahara - Inward Intentionality

[29:31] Reversing Habits of the Senses

[32:05] 6. Dharana - Inward Movement

[33:41] 7. Dhyana - Arriving at the Subtlest Layer of Thought

[35:14] 8. Samadhi - Being Knows Itself

[36:50] Samadhi Affects Yama

[39:50] Spontaneous Self-Sufficiency

[41:34] Samadhi Affects Niyama

[45:09] Samadhi Affects All Other Limbs

[46:56] A Process of Verification and Validation

Useful Links

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/
_

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

We often hear cries for justice when what’s being called for is actually revenge. So, what exactly is justice? And how do we distinguish the difference between the two? 

In this episode Thom lays out the Vedic perspective on revenge and justice, giving us clear guidelines to follow, and indicators on when we might have favored revenge over justice. 

Fortunately the distinction between the two is unambiguous and will leave us in no doubt moving forward as to whether we are leaning towards justice or revenge in our actions.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Restoration of Balance

[05:03] Was It Just?

[07:33] Misguided Avengers

[10:28] Satisfaction Through Moksha - Liberation

[12:50] Karma - Actions or Thoughts That Bind You

[15:43] A Futile Act

[19:48] Does Nature Know What It's Doing?

[21:33] Aham Brahmasmi - I Am Totality

[23:53] Further Studies

Useful Links

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

One thing that sets the Vedic worldview apart from other schools of thought is the notion that everything that we get to witness, every form, every phenomena, is the unfolding of an epic story.

Thom explains the mechanism of evolution in this episode, including the infinite organizing power that it takes for stories to play out, with play being the operative word. Seeing our lives unfold in this way offers us an opportunity to reconsider our own stories from a vast, more Universal perspective.

Episode Highlights:

[00:45] The Writing of the Gods

[02:53] The Infinite Organizing Power Attributed to The Feminine

[04:50] Play Power of The Totality

[07:41] Simplicity to Sophistication

[09:15] Sequential Elaboration

[11:55] Elevational Theater

[14:04] Plateaus and the Status Quo

[16:02] Leela Shakti and the History of The Universe

Useful Links

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

Listeners are steering the ship once again, in our latest Q&A episode.

Thom answers a question about karma and how it fits into the dynamics of our relationships. It turns out that it’s our relationship with our Self that matters most.

Thom also tackles a question about charm, in particular, how we can adapt when charm doesn’t seem to be as supported by Nature as we would expect.

Finally, Thom gives a definitive answer to the age-old question, can there be art without suffering? It’s a question that could easily be answered with one word, but Thom provides a rationale that leaves us in no doubt about the role of suffering in art.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Q - How do karmic relationships with others work?

[01:20] A - Karma: Action That Binds You

[03:24] The Knot of Karma

[05:22] Kṛiya - Spontaneous Right Action

[07:29] Untying the Knots of Karma

[09:25] Moving in the Direction of Kṛiya

[12:15] Vedic Meditation - Losing the Tendency to Create Problems

[14:12] Q - How can I understand the nuances of charm?

[14:52] A - A Big Bundle of Capability

[16:55] Charm and Aversion

[18:52] Thinning Out of Charm

[20:02] Moving from Capability to the Field of Need

[22:27] Witnessing vs. Engaging

[23:53] Witnessing the Self in Action Through Others

[26:03] Engage or Witness: Do What You Can

[27:45] Q - Can There Be Art Without Suffering?

[27:47] A - The Most Artistically Productive Era?

[29:25] What Creates Great Art?

[30:33] Artistic Talents Despite Suffering

[32:17] The Artistic Gift

Useful Links

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

If you've ever wondered where one of the world's most astonishing gatherings takes place, look no further than the Kumbha Mela. This grand festival of spiritual significance draws tens of millions of devotees from around the globe in a display of harmony, wisdom and tolerance like no other.

Having been to several Kumbha Melas over the past 50 years, and currently preparing to attend the next Kumbha Mela in January 2025, Thom is well equipped to give us a small but enticing glimpse into the significance and the spectacle of this truly unique phenomenon.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] A Contained Celebration

[03:25] Triveni - Where Three Sacred Rivers Meet

[06:03] Maha Kumbha Mela

[08:10] Diversity of the Mela

[10:05] Millions at Kumbha Mela

[12:41] Ardh Kumbha Mela

[14:50] Kumbha Mela 2025

[16:29] Maintaining Order and Safety

[18:52] Om Namah Shivaya

[20:37] A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience

Useful Links

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

Followers of Vedic wisdom often refer to the four goals, Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha, as something we should aspire to in our lives.

While these are, indeed, qualities that mark our level of consciousness, in this episode, Thom clarifies the status of these four qualities. In doing so, he also clarifies the meanings of each of the four qualities, which are often referred to in overly simplistic, and slightly misleading terms.

As always, Thom will put the horse back in front of the cart, and equip us with a process that will ensure we embody these four qualities to the best of our ability at all times. 

Episode Highlights

[00:45] The Four Goals

[05:30] Your True Dharma

[08:00] Tat Wale Baba - Abundant in All Things

[10:27] No Abundance: What a Terrible Life

[12:41] What True Abundance Looks Like

[14:26] The Ability to Extract Maximum Pleasure

[17:11] Living in a Dual Awareness

[19:15] Attaining Puruṣārtha Through Vedic Meditation

[21:45] Self-Realization by Numbers

[23:57] The Process is the Outcome

[26:03] Measuring Rods of Enlightenment

Useful Links

[email protected] 

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

 Thom's annual Australian tour is now underway and we'd love to invite you to participate.. We have a range of tour events scheduled, including free introductory talks and a learn to meditate course for those who are new to Vedic Meditation. 

If you've completed a qualified Vedic Meditation course, we invite you to join Tom for knowledge sessions, group meditations and a one-day retreat he has scheduled in Sydney.  

Thom is also offering a five-day four-night retreat in Gerringong, south of Sydney, as well as private mentoring sessions throughout the month.  

You can find out more about all of these offerings at thomknoles.com/sydney.  That's thomknoles.com/sydney.

Most of us think of laws of Nature as being those laws that determine how the environment behaves on a physical level. The Vedic worldview expands the scope of these laws to include consciousness itself, and its constantly-evolving intentions. 

This effectively makes Nature a conscious entity, hence why you’ll often find us spelling it with a capital N.

In this episode Thom gives us a masterclass on how to live in alignment with the laws of Nature, taking into consideration not just the variability of the physical laws of nature, with a small n, but also the ever-changing intentions of Nature, with a big N.

It’s an approach that guarantees to reduce, and ultimately eliminate suffering from our lives. 

Episode Highlights:

[00:45] Q - What Are the Laws of Nature?
[00:51] A - Patterns of Cause and Effect
[02:25] Elegance - The Pinnacle of Sophistication
[04:12] Science's Evolving View of Nature
[06:31] Laws that Change With the Need of the Time
[08:36] A Universe Becoming Conscious of Itself
[10:58] Your Role in the Evolutionary Flow
[12:58] Survival Through Evolution
[15:24] Survival is a Product
[17:20] Reduce Suffering - Act in Tune with Nature
[19:07] Vedic Meditation and Laws of Nature
[21:08] Be The Universe
[23:44] Survival is a Product of Evolution
[25:42] Theory + Practice = Science
[28:15] Practice Vedic Meditation and Become an Effective Agent of Evolution

Useful Links

[email protected] 

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