Advice from a 126-year old Monk
February 15, 2016 • Insights on Life, Learn
![Blog Image](https://dorgmain.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/swami-bua-1-840x558.jpg)
Swami Bua was a dear friend of mine. I was first introduced to him when I lived as a monk at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. My guru had known Swami Bua for years now and had invited him to spend a week or so with us at the monastery to celebrate a yearly festival. Swami Bua accepted and spent the week with the monks at the monastery.
I was one of his hosts and had the great pleasure and blessing to have had many conversations with him during his few visits to the monastery over the course of a few years.
I recently came across this conversation which I had with him in the monastery and had written down in my monastic journal.
28th June 2004
Dandapani: “Swami Bua, what is the best advice you can give for someone who is practicing yoga?” *
Swami Bua: “Some insects have only 2 senses. Some 3. Animals have 4 senses. But man has 6 senses. The sixth being intuition. Intuition to discriminate. Discrimination is the key. Discriminating between what is right and wrong.”
* Yoga here refers to the entire 8-step practice and not what the modern day world refers to as postures (asana).
![Swami Bua and I having a conversation at Kauai's Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. Circa 2004.](https://dorgmain.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/swami-bua-and-dandapani.jpg)
Swami Bua and I having a conversation at Kauai’s Hindu Monastery in Hawaii. Circa 2004.
![Blog Image](https://dorgmain.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/240202-Lets-Talk-Meditation-Part-3-FINAL-840x558.jpg)
Let’s Talk Meditation – Part 3 (FINAL)
This is the final part of my series of emails on Meditation. I hope you have been enjoying them and have gained deeper insights into meditation. Please reply and let me know (you may not get a response due to the volume of emails I receive), but I’d love to hear from you. If you…
Read More![Blog Image](https://dorgmain.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Part-2-Lets-Talk-Meditation-840x558.jpg)
Part 2 – Let’s Talk Meditation
Everybody and their dog has an opinion on meditation (including me). Most of these folks don’t meditate or have never been formally trained or even more so seriously committed to one meditation path. The latter truly is a telltale sign of how seriously one takes his or her meditation practice. Wh...
Read More![Blog Image](https://dorgmain.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/learn-meditation-Dandapani-courses-online-840x558.jpg)
Let’s talk Meditation! – Part 1
I’m starting the year by writing a 3-part series on meditation with the goal of bringing some clarity around it and dispelling a few myths. First things, first. Let’s get clear on terminology. This is important because we want to train our subconscious to understand the specific meaning of a word...
Read More![Blog Image](https://dorgmain.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/old-soul-young-soul-840x558.jpg)
Old Soul, Young Soul
If I can accept myself for where I am in my evolution, then I can accept others for where they are in their evolution. As a Hindu and from personal experiences, I believe and subscribe to the concept of reincarnation. Simply said, reincarnation describes a belief that we are a soul living in a ph...
Read More