Oddbean new post about login | logout Good morning meditation, good Ayurvedic breakfast, good exercise... Now, back to my Sanskrit studies. Good afternoon #Nostr How is everyone today? What practices have you found most helpful in transforming your suffering into understanding and compassion? 🙏💜 #Ikitao
Are you planning to read something specific in Sanskrit? Like the Ramayana? Or the Bhagavad Gita?
Yes, and more. Someone asked me yesterday why I am learning Sanskrit, so I will share that reply here. "The benefits are too numerous to write in this brief reply. In short, I chant Sanskrit mantras for health and spiritual well-being. Being one of the oldest languages in the world, learning Sanskrit provides access to ancient texts like the Vedas, Upanishads, and Mahabharata, and traditional practices like Ayurveda. It is known as "Deva bhasha" (language of the gods), and it holds deep wisdom about Indian culture, life, and spirituality."
I get it. I especially like the Upanishads. But I only read it in translation sadly. Your ambition to learn Sanskrit is admirable.
Thank you. Indeed, the Upanishads are wonderfully profound spiritual texts. And yes, it has been said, "Traduttore, traditore" (translator, traitor): an act of translation is an act of betrayal.
lol i do old Chinese and always feel this way
Nice. I do the same. Traditional Chinese was my first second language, and something I still study. I have many translations of the Tao Te Ching in English, each having their own strengths and weaknesses. It is so much more rewarding to read ancient texts in their native language.
Absolutely The process of translation adds a whole different dimension to understanding the text. Traditional Chinese is hard enough and there's so much to do, I doubt I will ever get around to Sanskrit 😕
That's wonderful! I hear you. Living in Taiwan for over a decade helped accelerate my proficiency tremendously. Immersion works wonders! If you make it a must and not just a want, I am sure you will get around to it, my friend. If we are still in touch at that time, I can help connect you with some excellent learning materials.
Lol we'll see. I appreciate it. I lived in Japan for a long time too. That's how I got started. My Roshi told me to start translating old Zen stuff.
Speaking. Us dudes tend to keep it all inside.
The channels from Abraham, Bashar and Kryon.
Beautiful. I am very familiar with these teachings, having immersed myself in nearly every Abraham-Hicks audio release, along with extensive material from Bashar and Kryon. While I've found deep wisdom in their teachings, I personally chose to skip the risk of distortion through the channel and go straight to the source - since channeled information naturally passes through each channel's personal framework and ego. That said, these teachings serve as wonderful signposts pointing the way to inner truth, though it's up to each of us to walk our own path. Every stage of the spiritual path is valid, and I have found that these teachings contain profound wisdom for those drawn to them. Peace be unto you, traveller.
Belief work Adopting beliefs & then feeling around for what other beliefs are in conflict with this new belief. If you can become aware of & articulate an illogical belief, it tends to dissolve quite rapidly. This can be done playfully but can also have a dramatic and affect on your experience here. I believe everything is happening for me & not to me. I take complete ownership for my experience here & believe there's value to be found in even the shitiest of experiences.
It is a wonderful practice, and something to let go of afterward and be with in meditation. Well said. Everything truly is happening FOR us and not TO us. We are how Divinity chooses to know itself and evolve in its own experience. Peace be unto you, traveler.
Vinyasa yoga and meditation. Sometime ago I discovered Meta but I’ve not been consistent in its practice.
A practice bringing much self compassion to me comes from Alan Watts - The practice of recognizing oneself as the cosmic actor playing the cosmic drama. Recognizing discomfort and the silliness of it all as a self attempt to engulf oneself into the drama, to really feel the emotions - because that's the whole purpose of theater, to persuade the audience that it isn't fake and that this is such a serious matter. Personal detachment to specific outcomes, but also grounding in recognizing how engrossing these plots are, both for myself and others.