Wisdom of the Sages

1793: The Highest Transcendence Through Passionate Love | The Rāsa Dance Begins

Wisdom of the Sages

Show Notes

A first reading of the Rāsa Līlā might suggest the gopīs' love is selfish, irresponsible, even unethical. But looking closer one can find the highest transcendence attained not through grinding austerity but through love so real and complete that everything else simply fell away. In this episode Raghunath and Kaustubha arrive at Canto Ten, Chapter Thirty-Three — the Rāsa Dance itself. Krishna expands between each pair of gopīs. The demigods crowd the sky. The gopīs sing, creating sixteen thousand musical ragas. Rādhārāṇī, tired from the dance, places her arm around Krishna's shoulder. His arm carries the fragrance of blue lotus and sandalwood. Her hair stands on end. She kisses his arm. This beautiful scene is what Vyāsadeva was told to meditate on and share with the world. Srimad Bhagavatam 10.33.1-11 ******************************************************************** LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 *********************************************************************

More from Wisdom of the Sages

Oct 22, 2026

He is the origin of every branch of knowledge, and yet he sits down at the feet of a teacher. In this episode Raghunath and Kaustubha, live from the ISKCON temple in Toronto, follow Krishna and Balarāma as they leave their village life behind and enter a guru's school. Why would the all-knowing seek a teacher at all? And what does his example reveal about humility, gratitude, and the lost art of being a student in an age that takes its teachers for granted? Srimad Bhagavatam 10.45.20–34 ******************************************************************** LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 *********************************************************************

Oct 20, 2026

A sage who has found peace beside the river is suddenly undone by love for a son he never knew he had, and Time, in the form of the river, laughs at him. In this episode Raghunath and Kaustubha read from Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha and ask whether we can love without trying to own. As Siddhartha struggles to let go, he catches a reflection that changes how he sees his own past. It opens a conversation about attachment, the pain we keep repeating until we learn from it, and why laughing at ourselves may be the first real step toward freedom. Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha • Bhagavad-gītā 9.4 ******************************************************************** LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 *********************************************************************

Oct 19, 2026

"I'm independent. I don't owe anybody anything." It's the modern dream: happiness without obligation. Moral teachings answer that we're woven into a web of mutual obligation. Deeper spiritual teachings explain why: in a real sense we are one, parts of one whole, made of the same divine energy, so you can't hurt another without hurting yourself. The deepest teachings add that we are also eternally distinct, and that difference is what makes love possible: a love so intimate that God lets himself forget he's God, just so his parents can hold him on their laps. In this episode Raghunath and Kaustubha trace that ascent, from the writings of James Baldwin to Krishna's pastimes in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.45.1–19 ******************************************************************** LOVE THE PODCAST? WE ARE COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AND WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN! Go to https://www.wisdomofthesages.com WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/@WisdomoftheSages LISTEN ON ITUNES: https://podcasts/apple.com/us/podcast/wisdom-of-the-sages/id1493055485 CONNECT ON FACEBOOK: https://facebook.com/wisdomofthesages108 *********************************************************************

Oct 14, 2026

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Oct 12, 2026

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