#416. Hinduism 101 | Swami Tyagananda

One of the most consistent requests we get from listeners is to explore non-Buddhist forms of meditation. That’s what we’re going to do with this episode. Our guest is Swami Tyagananda, who has been a Hindu monk since 1976, and is now the Hindu chaplain both at MIT and Harvard.

This conversation explores: the basics of Hinduism, including its history, and its approach to prayer and meditation; letting go; karma; rebirth (and how and why to escape it); the deep connections between the Buddhist and Hindu traditions; Swami Tyagananda’s contention that all prayers are answered; and a recipe for reducing stress and anxiety. Swami Tyagananda also shares his thoughts about how to deal with our sense of not-enoughness or incompleteness and he provides a new way of thinking about the trickiest of all Buddhist concepts: annata, or the idea that the self is an illusion.

Where to find Swami Tyagananda online: 

• Swami Tyagananda — Vedanta Society  
• Swami Tyagananda | Harvard Chaplains 
• Twitter 

Other Resources Mentioned:

• Vedanta Society
• Swami Vivekananda — Vedanta Society 
• Sri Ramakrishna — Vedanta Society
• Sri Sarada Devi — Vedanta Society