Eastern and Western lenses to Analytic Idealism with Bernardo Kastrup and Swami Sarvapriyananda

#consciousness #metaphysics #mysticism #philosophy #cognitivescience #idealism #swamisarvapriyananda #hinduism #advaita #advaitavedanta #spirituality #philosophyofmind

In Philosophy Babble - The Great Minds Series
In this instalment; We have two distinguish speakers, Resident Swami and head off the Vedanta Society of New York, Swami Sarvapriyananda. Alongside him, we have the highly accomplished Philosopher, Author and Scientist Dr Bernardo Kastrup.

Details:
Swami Sarvapriyananda's
Bernardo Kastrup's

This conversation was recorded during a live session on Clubhouse @philosophybabble Swami Sarvapriyananda and Bernardo Kastrup conducted a profound and illuminating exchange on their perspectives surrounding life and existence. The discussion involved a deep exploration of various eastern and western philosophical schools of thought. The captivating discourse held the room in complete attention, with only a handful of questions punctuating the enlightening conversation. If you want to stay updated on upcoming live sessions on Clubhouse, please subscribe to the channel. And, don't forget to share, mention, and like!

Topic of discussion : Perspectives on life and Existence
1. Nature of Consciousness
2. Mind and Body problem
3. Self and the world

Summary:
This dialogue between philosopher Bernardo Kastrup and Swami Sarvapriyananda is a rich exploration of Advaita Vedanta, a non-dualistic Hindu philosophy, and consciousness. Bernardo commence with the three fundamental philosophical questions, around the nature of reality, self, and knowledge. Kastrup addresses accusations of plagiarizing from the Upanishads, leading to a discussion contrasting Western and Eastern philosophical approaches. The conversation dives into non-dualism, the "nothingness", and the hard problem of consciousness. Key concepts of Advaita Vedanta, such as Ananda (bliss), Shunyata (void), and the experience of Samadhi, are examined in depth. They also broach the existential perspective of life as a "cosmic error," countering it with Jivanmukti, enlightenment while living. They tackle idealist interpretations of consciousness, the concept of God in Hinduism, and the difference between Samadhi and sleep. The discussion concludes with an exploration between memory, consciousness, the mind-body problem, and the distinction between the personal and universal mind. Throughout, delightful blending of Eastern and Western philosophical perspectives.

Timecodes
00:00 - Intro
02:41 - Simplify Advaita Vendata in the shortest time ever!!
06:58 - 3 biggest questions in philosophy!
21:42 - Bernardo was accused of plagiarism on Upanishad
29:40 - Bernardo on Western’s mind
40:24 - Swami Ji on “Johnny Come Lately”
48:38 - Bernardo on absolute non dualism and nothingness
56:28 - Bernardo on the hard problem of consciousness
01:02:52 - Bernardo’s question on BLISS
01:02:08 - Swami Ji in depth explanation of BLISS
01:08:24 - Bernardo’s question on VOID
01:09:52 - Samadhi explained by Swami Ji
01:16:37 - Bernardo’s question “Life is a cosmic error”
01:18:10 - Jivanmukti enlightened while living
01:19:52 - Bindo Ji’s question on Idealism’s interpretation on CONSCIOUSNESS
01:22:42 - Swami Ji on concept of GOD and Goddesses
01:24:26 - Bindo’s question for deeper clarity on SAMADHI from Swami Ji’s understanding
01:26:36 - Swami Ji on the different between sleep state and samadhi
01:27:23 - Ary dived into deeper distinction between Emptiness and the Void
01:33:31 - Bernardo’s samadhi experienced
01:39:03 - Swami Ji advises on not chasing the experience of Samadhi
01:40:20 - Curious’s question on Memory and Problem with Consciousness as emergence while having a fan moment with Swami
01:44:27 - Bernardo illustration on truth and consciousness as emergence
01:50:17 - Swami’s on memory everywhere in technology except one thing “First person experience”
01:54:59 - Vinod’s question on how the mind cause the arm to move?
01:56:25 - Bernardo on “Your personal mind is not the universal mind at large”
01:59:42 - Eldhose’s last question.

MASSIVE THANK YOU TO THE TEAM AND EVERYONE THAT JOINED US ON THAT DAY.

JOIN US AT: CLUBHOUSE FOR FUTURE LIVE SESSION
Clubhouse: @philosophybabble

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[Jagombe]

Thank you for this! I have been waiting to see Bernardo converse with the Swami for quite some time now. It was better than I had envisaged. How Bernardo's Idealism meshes in with Advaita, Buddhism and the other non dual religions, has made me understand the nature of existence better.

[lubosjanosik]

If I remember it correctly, it was Swami Vivekananda, who said that the whole world will wake up, when Western scientists discover and confirm the old truth of the East. It is slowly getting closer 😊

[stevenmccarthy]

Swami is an absolute treasure! This is so inspiring.

[eldhoselife]

Saviours of Humanity in the 21st century 😊

[kmh]

What I keep realizing more and more as I read, study, spend weeks in retreats, go on pilgrimages to India, etc. is how deeply conditioned I am in the materialist mindset. Recognizing that is probably the best place to start. Great discussion. Thank you.

[ashwinisarah]

I've waited so so so long for a conversation between these two incredible human beings! The next one between Donald Hoffman and Swami Sarvapriyananda please!!!

[alexjan]

When hearing this incredible bright Bernardo I get a kind of exctasy. It is mind blowing, giving so much joy. His words are coming from real understanding with such analytical beauty, so well said, so genuine. A real inspired western pandit. He and dear Sarvapriyananda are the western and eastern rays of a beautiful dawn in a greater inexpressible universal mind...Love from VIenna

[ashokc]

OMG swamiji explaining with astonishing clarity on advaita in such a short time and with utmost precision..naman to him💐💐💐

[iemon]

Absolute banger of an episode .. I think these two should collaborate on a regular basis. The community will be immensely indebted.

[VedantaGorilla]

Beautiful conversation ❤️🕉. Swamiji is so unassuming that his depth of understanding is easy to miss - and I had until now! 😮. Bernardo is just lovely, such a beautiful mind and more.

Two things stuck out to me that I thought maybe in a different context would've been addressed more or differently. First was when Bernardo asked about bliss, and the second was his comment that he has no idea how to get back there (to his experience of the void is what he was referring to).

I do think Bernardo appreciated Swamiji's answer, which was a great one, but I thought it would be good to add that bliss really is a very limited and even misleading definition of "Ananda" - and therefore not particularly helpful to someone trying to understand it as Bernardo was. Perhaps broadening the definition to "limitless fullness" or "no-second-thing-ness" is helpful IMO to point to our unimpeded nature and to convey more closely what existence / consciousnesses is "like" prior to experience.

The second thing is simply that the idea of "getting back" to a certain experience is a dualistic viewpoint, whereas "you" (as swamiji said many times) are the unchanging witness of - in this case - both the one who "experienced the void" and the one who now apparently experiences something else.

Swamiji did eloquently speak about extracting wisdom from experience at a different point in the conversation, just not then.

Thank you to the organizers and participants for an incredible dialogue 🙏🏻❤️

[CeltaNeel]

This is what the 🌎 needs. My favorite satsang by Swamiji!

[nowenterpsie]

OMG! This is more valuable than mountains of gold dust. Thank you, feeling great gratitude.

[chinmay]

I have been waiting for this interaction since the past one year when I saw Bernardo on TOE by Curt Jaimungal and his ideas seemed to resonate with advaita vedanta a lot of which I had been introduced to by Swami Sarvapriyananda. I am immensely grateful to you for this and I know it is going to be an amazing talk even before watching the video!

[entropy]

Hello! I'm an Advaitin. This is one of the best talks I've seen. Congrats to the organisers, Bernardo and Swamiji.

I've followed Bernardo's work on analytical idealism for a while. I'm so glad to see that he's had this fantastic chat with Swami Sarvapriyananda and his appreciation of the Upanishads. I would love to hear Bernardo's view on the Upanishads not just for his own self development but also how Vedanta can add to Modern Philosophy and the way out of Suffering. Thanks again. ❤️🕉️

[adamkallin]

I’ve listened to dozens of lectures by the Swami. They always calm me yet are still engaging.

[atomoyoga]

This talk is gold! This mix is the most explosive mindful/intelectual cocktail that i have seen for a long time! ❤❤❤

[jamiealls]

My path to this insightful discussion was by way of TOE podcast who introduced me to Bernardo, who I discovered via Donald Hoffman.

I studied Tibetan Buddhism and for some reason was uninterested in Hinduism until now. This conversation was so illuminating and rewarding. I’m very thankful to the organizers and participants. The similarities between analytic idealism and Vedanta give me hope for humanity. Western philosophy is coming around.

[SusanButcher-prft]

Brilliant!!! I have hoped for a conversation between these two! better than I could have imagined! Thank you so much!

[markjohnson]

Brilliant. These two men are gifts to ailing humanity. We need to listen deeply to what they have to say and then look directly into our own experience.

[billyoumans]

Phenomenal. I’m a fan of both of these and a member of S.Sarvapriananda’s Vedanta Society in New York. So glad to see them together!