Q: Dear Todd, “All suffering exists in the mind” leaves out the heart and the intuition part. Any thoughts?TODD ANSWERS: The heart and the gut (intuition) are essential to empathy and healthy emotions. From my experience, suffering most often starts in the mind and then our heart begins to ache. Emotions are where we feel our thoughts. Occasionally, like as in physical pain, our brain receives the pain signals and…
Q: Dear Todd, the more awareness I have, the more I see the resistance towards the situation, the people, the work, and the place. I meditated and changed my attitude case by case, bit by bit. Recently my depression is coming back, and I can't even sit still to meditate. Just started the medication. Any advice?TODD ANSWERS: First off, that's incredible that you were able to do that and see…
“The unexamined life is not worth living.”On trial for corrupting the minds of his students, for which he was sentenced to death, Socrates defended himself by saying, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”While many scholars may see this phrase as evidence that he meant we should sit around lost in thought, I believe Socrates was pointing to something much deeper. To examine, we must observe. To observe, we must…
Without knowing hardly anything about Buddhism, Todd Perelmuter decided to jump in with both feet by going to live at a Buddhist monastery as a monk in the Himalayan mountains in India.After months of living in complete silence, without technology or a phone, and even without books except for Buddhist texts, Todd discovered a wisdom and philosophy that would totally change his life as it had for countless Buddhists for…
On a vacation in Chile, Todd hoped to meet with a shaman to learn about the spirituality of the indigenous people of South America. Unfortunately, the shaman had left his home for the winter. However, just one day before Todd was scheduled to leave Chile, his travel companion, who was Chilean, received an unexpected phone call: the shaman would see him now.In this podcast, I share the beautiful beliefs the…
After quitting his high-paying advertising job, giving away all his belongings, moving out of his New York City apartment and buying a one-way ticket to India, he finally arrives in spiritual capital of the world.Hear what he finds, what he does, and how he got fleeced twice in two days. See how everything he had been searching for miraculously presented itself to him. Learn the lessons that India taught him…
This is the story of Todd's first experience in an ashram in India. Invited by his friend's family who has a house there, they got permission from the guru himself that I could come and stay there – something not usually done for outsiders. What Todd found was beyond his wildest imagination. At this ashram – supposedly the largest one in India – devoted followers, a beloved leader, and an…
Ever thought of Eat Pray Love -ing your way around the world? Ever thought you might like to try following in the footsteps of the Beatles and going to Rishikesh, India to get your meditation on? Ever wondered what really goes on in these places and if the key to your happiness lies inside? Then you're going to want to hear this podcast. In this episode, Todd Perelmuter recounts his…
If something here helped you feel less alone, would you help me keep it alive?
Even the smallest support matters.
Weekly Writings from the Desk of Todd Perelmuter
