Sivana Podcast: Eastern Spirituality, Yoga Philosophy, And Conscious Living

Stories are an essential way in which we translate our experience of life and the world. They become even more important in helping the human mind comprehend the beyond. India realized this with the writings of the Puranas, ancient stories that give the form to the formless. These stories help to convey essential truths in a way that is more digestible by the human mind. Written By: Ashton Szabo Spoken By: Ashton Szabo Sound Engineer: Zach Cooper Produced By: Benn Mendelson www.sivanaspirit.com    

What are the Six Qualities of Consciousness? How can learning about these qualities enrich your life? Join us as we chat with author and teacher, Danny Arguetty as we discover new insights and perspectives on living life to the fullest. www.sivanaspirit.com

What is the difference between knowledge, understanding, and wisdom? What does it have to do with success and prosperity, and our purpose in life? Join us for the final installment of our three part mini-series about wealth, success, and purpose, following stories of Ganesha, the beloved elephant headed deity. In this final episode of the mini-series, we'll hear of Ganesha' trip around the universe, and learn how applying knowledge into our lives brings forth success and prosperity, without their usual trappings and temptations. Written By: Ashton Szabo Narrated By: Ashton Szabo Sound Engineer: Zach Cooper Produced By: Benn Mendelson www.sivanaspirit.com

Art finds a way to touch us all deeply as beings and carries with it the potential to transform our lives. Join us in this conversation with a sacred artist whose work is heavily inspired by his spiritual practice, Abhishek Singh, as we explore how art is linked to our most basic and profound human experiences. How can art tell a story and convey mystical ideas? What can art teach us about our deepest selves? Abhishek offers keen insight into art’s influence on eastern philosophy and how art can lead us into deeper spiritual understanding. Whether you consider yourself and artist or not, you are sure to look at art with entirely new eyes after listening our latest episode of the Sivana Podcast. Host: Ashton Szabo Special Guest: Abhishek Singh www.abhishekart.com Sound Engineer: Zach Cooper Produced by: Benn Mendelson www.sivanaspirit.com  

What is the source of fulfillment? Does it come from finally getting that thing you’ve always wanted? The new job, the new house, new car, new relationship? In Part Two of our three part mini-series on life’s purpose and the temptations of wealth and success, we’ll explore the story of Ganesha and Kubera, the King of Gold. We’ll see what happens when you get caught up in the materialism of the world, always putting off your happiness until some time in the future once you’ve finally gotten that “thing”, and how this saps joy and fulfillment from your life. This is a great episode for you if you’ve ever found yourself thinking that once you get this thing or that thing, that you’ll finally be happy, only to then realize afterwards that you still feel unfulfilled. Written By: Ashton Szabo Spoken By: Ashton Szabo Sound Engineer: Zach Cooper Produced By: Benn Mendelson www.sivanaspirit.com  

What is Ayurveda? And how can this ancient form of medicine help you live up to your fullest potential. Join us as we chat with Britt Barret, an Ayurvedic Counselor and founder of Daily Ayurveda. She offers up some Ayurvedic Life Hacks so you can bring Ayurvedic concepts into your life to optimize your health and strengthen your immune system.

Join us for Part One of a three part mini-series as we explore how to live purposefully and abundantly in the world, without succumbing to the temptations of success, wealth and fame. Through various stories of the popular elephant headed deity, Ganesha, we will learn to navigate obstacles on the path of life. Is life all about work and money? Fame and success? Does being successful mean you have to sell your soul? Do you have to give up all your possessions and renounce money to be “spiritual”? Find out, by listening to this engaging three part mini-series. Written By: Ashton Szabo Spoken By: Ashton Szabo Sound Engineer: Zach Cooper Produced By: Benn Mendelsohn www.sivanaspirit.com

Join us on a conversation with Peter Rader, the producer of the highly acclaimed documentary on the life of Pramahansa Yogananda, Awake: The Life of Yogananda. Peter shares some behind the scenes stories about making the movie, how making the movie changed his life, and some interesting stories about Yogananda himself!

Are you feeling disconnected from the divine, separate from people and the world around you? Through this story of the birth of Ganesh and the decision of Shiva to take form as Hanuman, we’ll explore how living a life of service can connect us to the divine and everything around us.

What is Mantra? Cultures all across the world, from all time periods have practices (both social and private) that encourage the repetition of certain words or sounds. In these two stories, we’ll explore examples of how to use mantra in our lives to help us overcome our subconscious desires and distractions in order to achieve our greatest goals.

Learn how to decode sacred images! Join us as we sit down with my good friend, the incredible sacred artist and author, Ekabhumi Ellik. Ekabhumi lives a life immersed in his sacred art, and recently added his own contribution to the Adult Coloring craze by releasing the Shakti Coloring Book. In this podcast we discuss mystical symbols and how we can begin to “read” sacred images by understanding basic concepts of what certain symbols mean. Why does this deity carry a sword but that one an mace? What does it tell us when a deity is holding a lotus flower? With this basic understanding, you can begin to look at sacred images in a whole new light!

What does it mean to live a spiritual life? Do you have to give up all your possessions and live off in a cave? Can you live in the world, with bills, a family and responsibility, and still live a spiritual life? In this podcast, we dive into a story of the goddess Kali to learn about living a spiritual life while living fully in the world. Moving away from the idea that a spiritual life is the life of an ascetic or monk, we’ll explore a tradition that encourages us to live fully immerse into the ‘every day’ experience of life.

How can meditation help you focus and achieve your goals? In this story about Hanuman and the Golden Mango, we?ll explore how the breath and meditation can help direct our focus and energy into the goals and tasks we want to achieve in life.

What is tantra? Is it synonymous with sex? In this interview with renowned author and scholar, Hareesh Wallis, we'll set the record straight and clear up any confusion about tantric yoga and sex.

What is blocking you from reaching your fullest potential? Sharing this story of the Goddess Maha Saraswati, we’ll explore means with which you can overcome your demons and achieve your fullest potential.

A brief introduction on what to expect from the Sivana Podcast! Together, we’ll explore stories and interview interesting guests that focus on the topics you want to know about: yogic lifestyle, healing living, eastern philosophy, and more!