Bhagavad Gita Podcast

What is Bhagavad Gita? Read here – Bhagavad Gita for the Beginners

Bhagavad Gita has the best life teachings but most of the explanations have been either theistic or philosophical in nature, making it a difficult read for many. Everyone wants to read it but only a few actually do. We are using a storytelling approach to explain the practical applications of the Bhagavad Gita in our personal and professional lives. We are two individuals – one a business leader and the other a Yoga teacher – with our own explanations and thought process to the Bhagavad Gita.

Episode 1: What is Bhagavad Gita? Who is Krishna?

• What is Bhagavad Gita? We will give you a brief introduction to the Gita. 
• Who is Krishna? We will discuss if we need to see Krishna as God to understand Gita. 
• Bonus: We will discuss Star Wars and how Anakin/Luke Skywalkers face similar situations in Star Wars as Arjuna, the central character of the Bhagavad Gita. And do not miss our story from the movie Avatar. 

Episode 2: Duryodhana’s Mindset in the Bhagavad Gita

• Can we let go of our desire? What is a creative desire? What is a destructive desire?
• Why was Duryodhana so unhappy? We will discuss his character and analyze his entitled mindset.
• Bonus: Do not miss the story of 99 Club. It is one of the best moral stories we have heard in a long time. 

Episode 3: Krishna’s role as a Charioteer in the Bhagavad Gita

• What kind of person is ready for wisdom – we will discuss why Krishna chose Arjuna but not Yudhisthira or Bhima? 
• What does Krishna’s Role as a Charioteer teach us? 
• Bonus: Don’t miss our story from the Disney movie – Ratatouille  and Martin Luther King’s Noble Peace Prize – Speech 

Episode 4: What is Samkhya Philosophy?

• What are the Vedas and the Upanishads? A brief introduction
• What is Samkhya Philosophy? Why was it one of the most popular doctrines in ancient India?
• A brief introduction to Vedanta philosophy, focusing on Advaita Vedanta philosophy. How is Advaita Vedanta philosophy different from Samkhya philosophy? Do not miss our blog explaining the concept of Samkhya philosophy 

Episode 5: What is Dharma?

• A brief introduction to caste-based versus class-based division in Hinduism
•  A big bonus: For most of this episode, we have discussed two Hindi movies in detail –  Deewar (1975).  We tell stories of a father and a son, and how both of them face the same moral dilemma, and how they behave differently. And Border (1997), how a Major reprimanded, rebuked, provoked, and ridiculed an officer, who wanted to leave the battlefield to be with his dying wife.  
• AND do not miss the real-life story of happy-go-lucky Rob- the janitor; and how he inspired everybody with his selfless act. 

Episode 6: Karma Yoga

• Who is Karma Yogi? Krishna says, “Karma Yogi is someone who is neither elated by good fortune nor depressed by bad. Such a person is free from attachment, fear, and anger.”
• Story of a hare and a tortoise and what tortoise teaches us to be a Karma Yogi. 
• A story of a man who dug the mountain to create a path for the villagers. 
• We discuss Karma Kanda using the example of the famous movie Oh My God- OMG

Episode 7: Advance Karma Yoga

• The power of gratitude. Let’s learn how ancient people from the Vedic era used yajna as a means to show gratitude to gods.
• How the habit of showing gratitude can help us in both personal and professional lives. 
• Get great quotes of Krishna from chapter 3 (We have shared them below)
• Listen to the story of the “most beautiful donkey” in town and how delusional we can get about ourselves
• Listen to the story of the King and his plants, and learn why we should be the best version of ourselves. 

Episode 8: The concept of Avatar, Knowledge, and Meditation

• Lord Vishnu’s ten avatars and its significance as described by a Sadhu in Varanasi. Do you know Krishna does not explain Avatar in the Bhagavad Gita? 
• What is Gyana Yoga? What does realized knowledge mean? What happens when one finds his true self?
• How does Krishna’s teachings of meditation or Dhyana Yoga aligns with the Patanjali Yoga Sutras? We have written an article that explains Patanjali Yoga Sutras. 
• Bonus: A Jedi Story that teaches what we can learn from the salt, chicken, and crane (bird) to be successful in life. 

Episode 9: Bhakti Yoga

• What is Bhakti Yoga? How does Krishna insert the idea of Bhakti?
• What does surrendering mean? We give an example of when Krishna saves Draupadi during attempted Cheerharan incident in Mahabharat
• The link between Universe or Brahman in Upanishad and Krishna himself
• The historical significance of the Bhakti movement in India, and how the modern concept of Bhakti is influenced by Sufism. 
• Influence of Mahaprabhu Chaitanya and Meerabai on Bhakti Movement
• Bonus: The story of a dog and the priest to understand the true essence of Bhakti or devotion
• And our conclusion of how Bhakti has different forms. 

Episode 10: The Gunas

• THREE KEY LESSONS from the Bhagavad Gita:
  •  What is higher knowledge? 
  • What is God? 
  • How do you find inner peace?
• What are the three things that we must renounce for inner peace?
• Different examples of Gunas
  • Gunas and Food
  • Gunas and Charity
  • Gunas and Happiness
  • Gunas and Workers
  • Gunas and Intelligence 
• Krishna’s Final Message to Arjuna (and everyone)

Episode 11: Patanjali Yoga Sutras

• Who was Patanjali and what is Patanjali Yoga Sutras?
• Five different mindsets 
  • Good thoughts and true knowledge (pramana)
  • Bad thoughts and wrong understanding (viparyaya)
  • Confusion (vikalpa)
  • Sleep when mind is still active (nidra)
  • Memory or sensual encounter of any object based on smell, sight, feel, flavor (smriti).
• We will discuss different lifestyle choices we can make to bring serenity in mind, for example, we have to choose to show;
  • Friendship towards those who are happy
  • Compassion for those who suffer
  • Delight towards the righteous
  • Indifference towards the wicked people.

Episode 12: Patanjali’s Ashtanga Yoga

• The Eight Limbs of Yoga or Ashtanga Yoga: Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi.
• The Yamas listed as
  • Ahimsa – not harming or non-violence;
  • Satya– speaking the truth or avoiding falsehood;
  • Asteya– not stealing;
  • Brahmacharya – celibacy; and
  • Aparigraha– having no sense of ownership.
• The Niyamas are what Patanjali wants Yogis to adapt. These are –
  • Shaucha– purity of both body and mind
  • Santosha– contentment in the sense of not always seeking more than one already has
  • Tapa– acts of religious austerity
  • Svadhyaya– study and recitation of the Veda; and
  • Ishvara-pranidhana– devotion to God.
• Learn why Yoga is a way of life, not those complex Yoga postures.