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June 11, 2024
Transformative Yoga Practices from Physical Healing to Spiritual Inspiration
In this episode of the Finding Harmony podcast, Harmony Slater and Russell Case sit down with Ganesh Balachandran, an electrical engineer turned enlightened sage. Ganesh shares his profound journey from engineering to deeply exploring ancient spiritu...
In this episode of the Finding Harmony podcast, Harmony Slater and Russell Case sit down with Ganesh Balachandran, an electrical engineer turned enlightened sage. Ganesh shares his profound journey from engineering to deeply exploring ancient spiritual texts such as the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads. After a hip injury led him to meditation, Ganesh rediscovered his cultural roots and began integrating these spiritual teachings into his daily life. This episode is rich with philosophical insights and practical wisdom, making it a treasure trove for anyone interested in the deeper aspects of yoga and Vedanta.
Key Topics Discussed:
- Ganesh's transition from engineering to spiritual exploration
- The intersection of Advaita Vedanta and yoga philosophy
- The significance of Ishvara in Yoga Sutras and Sankhya philosophy
- Karma and its impact on life circumstances
- The concept of subtle body (Sukshma Shariram) and its relation to karma
- Understanding Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha
- The importance of lineage (Parampara) in Indian philosophy
Special Announcement: Join Harmony Slater for her Spiritual Wellness Workshop on Sunday, June 16th. This free online workshop supports Yoga Gives Back, an organization empowering women and children in India through education and microloans. Donations go directly to the charity. Find more details and sign up via the link in the show notes.
Connect with Ganesh Balachandran: Ganesh offers weekly Bhagavad Gita sessions where he shares traditional teachings interwoven with engaging stories from the Mahabharata. Find more information about Ganesh and join these sessions through his website: https://www.yogasukshma.com/
Work with Harmony
- Explore Harmony Slater's upcoming retreat in Turkey
- Take a Yoga Give Back Workshop with Harmony
- Study with Harmony in Munich
Connect with Us (We love to hear from you!)
Chapters
00:00 - Introduction to Finding Harmony Podcast
00:48 - Meet Ganesh Balachandran: Engineer to Sage
02:35 - Spiritual Wellness Workshop Announcement
03:47 - Diving into Yoga and Vedanta
12:05 - Ganesh’s Journey to Meditation and Enlightenment
15:52 - Understanding Karma and Reincarnation
23:46 - Exploring the Concept of Subtle Body
28:22 - Balancing Behavioral and Ultimate Reality
31:41 - The Concept of Consciousness and Action
31:59 - The Story of Duryodhana and Free Will
33:32 - Transforming Tendencies: From Bad to Good
34:19 - The Philosophy of Dharma and Adharma
36:55 - Understanding Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha
40:53 - The Role of Craving in Human Suffering
52:40 - The Importance of Lineage in Indian Philosophy
01:00:07 - Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Ganesh Balachandran
Ph.D.
Ganesh is an engineer by profession. He received a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Georgia Tech in 2001. Ganesh's passion is the study and dissemination of the subtle aspects of yoga found in the yogic scriptures written several hundreds to several thousands of years ago.
Ganesh believes in the mind setting power of these texts which are written from a meditative state of mind. He maintains a website called Yoga Sukshma (www.yogasukshma.com) where he writes extensively about the subtle aspects of yoga from the scriptures and teaches yoga sutras, the Bhagavad Gita and other scriptural texts to people around the world in a traditional format with the sanskrit chant and meaning, but in a way modern day people can relate to. His goal is to help people understand the more fulfilling, healing and refined aspects of yoga enunciated in these ancient texts. He loves to disseminate the information this information in these texts and has personally witnessed the mind settling effects of the information in these texts when he was suffering from severe pain from a arthritic hip which subsequently needed hip joint replacement.
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