May 6, 2025 • 14 mins
After returning from a spiritual conference in Switzerland and time with family in England, I reflect on how the guidance from my guru—"even if you win the rat race, you're still a rat"—shaped my approach to spirituality as central to all aspects of life.
• Living with spirituality as the foundation rather than an accessory
• Choosing work that serves spiritual purpose rather than being caught in the rat race
• Focusing on peace, meditation, and family time instead of status and wealth
• Questioning self-identity beyond temporary roles and labels
• Understanding consciousness as our true nature that persists beyond physical existence
• Recognizing liberation (jivan mukti) as possible in this lifetime
Thank you for listening, and I'll see you tomorrow. Namaste.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
hello and welcome to another episode of the bearded
mystic podcast, and I am yourhost, rahul n singh.
Thank you for taking out thetime today to either watch or
listen to this podcast episode.
Uh, as usual.
You know we're on discord, uh,you know we can get some lively
conversations going on there.
(00:28):
I'm also on whatsapp and, uh,yeah, anyway, and I'm on social
media sites as well, which Ineed to start promoting a bit
more, uh and putting more videoson.
But, um, today, uh, well, it'sbeen a long time since I've done
a podcast it.
Obviously.
(00:49):
I've been away.
I've been on holiday, uh, I wason a vacation.
Uh, first I went to switzerlandwhere my guru held a conference
, uh, for two days and uh, so Iwas there, I attended that.
It was on being boundless andthere's quite a lot that I
learned there, and then I spentaround, maybe, I think I want to
(01:16):
say a good 12 days then inEngland.
Was it 12 days?
I don't know, it was, yeah,around 12 days spent in England
(01:36):
and just spent time with familyand so on.
Got to meet a lot of friends,got to attend a few satsangs,
which was nice.
It's always helpful for me whenI attend a satsang, especially
when you know you visit thosethat you grew up in and there's
something about the closeaffinity and close connection
(02:00):
that you have with those.
So you know, I've beenrelatively very lucky from a
very young age to be attendingsatsangs and having spirituality
be part of my life.
I can't think of spiritualityever being a different aspect of
my life.
I've always felt like there'sonly spirituality and that's
(02:23):
what life's about and everythingelse revolves around
spirituality.
My work does not revolve aroundSorry, my spirituality doesn't
check out what my work is doingor whether it can.
It's the other way around,where my work serves my
(02:45):
spiritual purpose, in the senseof it gives me enough to support
a living where I can live avery spiritual life.
That does mean keeping desiresin check.
It means, yes, you know, youmay not want to earn as much as
everybody else, so you're not inthe rat race, which is good,
(03:07):
and I think that comes from avery deep idea that was given to
me.
I remember in Glasgow attendinga satsang in the presence of my
guru at the time was Babaji, soin the presence of Babaji, and I
remember him saying right, andthis you know, when you're 17
(03:28):
years old and you hear this or18.
I was just about to startuniversity hearing this.
It shapes the way you then viewlife, and maybe this wasn't
beneficial for, like my parents,who wanted me to probably go
and earn loads of money orwhatever at the time.
(03:51):
I don't know what they thinknow, but for me it was this
thought really kind of kind ofshaped my worldview.
He said that even if you winthe rat race, you're still a rat
(04:13):
and this is no offense to rats,by the way.
You know they're living theirlife, they're doing their thing.
Um, you know they're livingtheir life, they're doing their
thing, uh, but but the meaningof the statement is you know,
obviously you look at america,it's all about the rat race.
You know who's got the biggerhouse, better car, more wealth,
(04:34):
who's a millionaire, all thisstuff, and you know, and we give
people value based on that andit's.
It's really idiotic when youthink about it, but that's the
way we see things and we thinkthat if somebody is successful
in their business, it means thatthey must be really good.
They could earn that moneythrough very cunning and very
(04:58):
criminal ways even, you know,but, or going around loopholes
which normal folk wouldn't do.
Now, does that mean that thatperson should be given great
respect?
I don't really think so, justbecause they have a few extra
bucks in their pocket?
So essentially what my guru waspointing to was you know,
(05:19):
you're still a rat even ifyou're in the rat race.
And uh and this has been, Ithink, kind of my world view
ever since I heard that was youknow, I will enter the race, but
I'm not in the rat race.
You know, I'm not in the raceto be at the top.
If the top, if the opportunityto be at the top, comes to me,
(05:42):
that's different and I accept ithumbly.
But that doesn't mean that Iwill strive for that or I will
work for that.
I will just do my work and um,do it diligently and as best as
possible, and that's it.
Leave the rest to um and asbest as possible, and that's it.
Leave the rest to, and thenguard to guard to the formless.
(06:04):
And that's been the way I viewedlife.
It's helped me in a lot of ways, because it means I'm more at
peace, I'm more calm.
Things come to me rather thanI'm chasing them.
So I think I save a lot ofenergy and I get to sleep
(06:24):
beautifully at night, you know,and I get to read, I get to
meditate, I get to think aboutthe divine, I get to write
poetry.
I get to do so much in myspiritual life.
I get to spend time with my son, my wife.
These things are valuable to meand they hold more value than
anything else.
(06:45):
So, sorry, I'm also unwell.
I'm just recovering from A mildsickness that I got on this
trip On the latter part of it,which was also the annoying
thing, but that's the body right.
So, essentially, I think, thewhole point of just, you know,
(07:09):
coming back to America andcoming back home, you know, I
just realized that the choicesthat I've made since I've moved
to America and choosing not tobe part of the rat race,
choosing to just be to work onmy spirituality, has been the
(07:33):
right one.
To not get invested into, um,the, the silly conversations
that happen in america, like andthis is happening now weirdly
globally, but and because I Iheard moments of this
conversation even in england butlike people are worried about
how many genders there are,sexual identity, all this type
(07:55):
of stuff, and I'm just not forit.
I'm just like you know what, Ido not care how many genders
there are.
I do not care what sexualorientation someone is.
I don't care if someone istransgender.
I just want people to liveharmoniously.
I don't care if someone istransgender, I just want people
to live harmoniously, with loveand respect, and let people
identify with whatever they wantto identify with.
(08:17):
Because, as a spiritual person,we understand that any identity
that's formed becomes theahamkara.
It creates more of the I.
So essentially, we have to letgo of these labels and these
identities.
But if somebody holds dear toit, because right now they feel
that they're trying to masterthemselves, then let them do
(08:42):
that and there will be a timewhen they will let go of the
identity.
And unfortunately, what happensis the more you tell people not
to identify something, they'regoing to identify with it more,
because you're then putting whothey are on the line and that's
what they feel and and that'swhat people don't understand.
(09:05):
So you know, you get all thesefools that will blow up on
social media saying you knowthere's only two genders.
But essentially you're causingmore harm than you're proving,
than anything else.
And also, from a hinduperspective, there's not just
(09:26):
two genders.
So, just saying so, any hindusthat follow that particular line
of thinking you, you need to,like, read the scriptures a bit
more uh, so, uh, yeah, anyway,um, and who are we?
Essentially?
This is the point that I'mcoming to, that I'm alluding to,
(09:47):
and this is why desiring thingsdoesn't make any sense, and
that's why having detachmentmakes more sense, and that is
that, yes, you have your body,your mind, and you have that.
(10:09):
You see the world through that.
Yes, you function your lifethrough that.
Yes, but who are you?
You know, have we ever askedthat question?
Who am I?
And essentially, until we askthat question of who am I, we're
not going to go further in ourspiritual journey.
(10:32):
For me, it was important for meto know who am I?
Okay, am I the father role thatI have?
Am I the husband?
Am I the fiance?
Am I the boyfriend?
Am I the son?
Am I the brother?
Am I the friend?
Am I the brother?
(10:52):
Am I the friend?
Am I a male?
Are these things going to last?
So, when I die, is it called amale body or a female body?
Actually, it's just called thebody.
The body will be cremated orturn into ashes.
(11:14):
So that can't be me, becauseonce I'm ashes, how is anyone
going to identify me, as youknow, it's not going to be.
Those ashes will become part ofthe earth.
You know, obviously my asheswill be thrown in the river.
So um are poured into the riverand you'll enter into the ocean
(11:42):
.
Very, look at the metaphor.
So if death proves that I am notany of the identities that I
cling on to today, then who am I?
What makes me me, what makes mefeel like me?
I've gone through all thesechanges.
(12:06):
I'm a witness that witnessconsciousness that is.
I'm a witness that witnessconsciousness that, even like I
know that physically andmentally I won't, there will not
be the limitation ofconsciousness in those things.
(12:28):
I can recognize that.
Yet I recognize also thatconsciousness seems to go beyond
that.
And so if consciousness is whatI am, as the scriptures tell me,
that I'm formless, boundless,beyond form, beyond image,
beyond color, beyond definition,beyond quality, then can I
(12:54):
experience that right now?
And yes, you can.
You see, the body and mind doesnot inhibit you from doing so.
The idea that we think that thebody and mind is the biggest
obstacle.
It's only there because we makeit the obstacle Really.
It can be used to make us feelwhat we really are.
(13:16):
It can be used to make us feelwhat we really are.
Once you're able to feel it,then you're able to then go into
that feeling and then seek isit actually a feeling that comes
and goes, or is it somethingthat's actually present, that
you're now just being aware of?
The feeling that you areawareness, that you're
consciousness?
But actually the consciousnessand awareness is your every
(13:42):
moment experience and,ultimately, that is jivan mukti,
that is liberation whilstyou're alive.
That's what the scripturespoint us towards.
I'm not going to speak for muchlonger Because my throat will
give in.
I'm happy that I've been ableto speak For so long, but it's
(14:06):
been really great To get back torecording, to being here, and
I'll see you tomorrow for sure,but, like I said, remember who
you are, and that has to be bethe most important thing.
Okay, thank you, and I'll seeyou tomorrow, namaste.
hello and welcome to another episode of the bearded
mystic podcast, and I am yourhost, rahul n singh.
Thank you for taking out thetime today to either watch or
listen to this podcast episode.
Uh, as usual.
You know we're on discord, uh,you know we can get some lively
conversations going on there.
(00:28):
I'm also on whatsapp and, uh,yeah, anyway, and I'm on social
media sites as well, which Ineed to start promoting a bit
more, uh and putting more videoson.
But, um, today, uh, well, it'sbeen a long time since I've done
a podcast it.
Obviously.
(00:49):
I've been away.
I've been on holiday, uh, I wason a vacation.
Uh, first I went to switzerlandwhere my guru held a conference
, uh, for two days and uh, so Iwas there, I attended that.
It was on being boundless andthere's quite a lot that I
learned there, and then I spentaround, maybe, I think I want to
(01:16):
say a good 12 days then inEngland.
Was it 12 days?
I don't know, it was, yeah,around 12 days spent in England
(01:36):
and just spent time with familyand so on.
Got to meet a lot of friends,got to attend a few satsangs,
which was nice.
It's always helpful for me whenI attend a satsang, especially
when you know you visit thosethat you grew up in and there's
something about the closeaffinity and close connection
(02:00):
that you have with those.
So you know, I've beenrelatively very lucky from a
very young age to be attendingsatsangs and having spirituality
be part of my life.
I can't think of spiritualityever being a different aspect of
my life.
I've always felt like there'sonly spirituality and that's
(02:23):
what life's about and everythingelse revolves around
spirituality.
My work does not revolve aroundSorry, my spirituality doesn't
check out what my work is doingor whether it can.
It's the other way around,where my work serves my
(02:45):
spiritual purpose, in the senseof it gives me enough to support
a living where I can live avery spiritual life.
That does mean keeping desiresin check.
It means, yes, you know, youmay not want to earn as much as
everybody else, so you're not inthe rat race, which is good,
(03:07):
and I think that comes from avery deep idea that was given to
me.
I remember in Glasgow attendinga satsang in the presence of my
guru at the time was Babaji, soin the presence of Babaji, and I
remember him saying right, andthis you know, when you're 17
(03:28):
years old and you hear this or18.
I was just about to startuniversity hearing this.
It shapes the way you then viewlife, and maybe this wasn't
beneficial for, like my parents,who wanted me to probably go
and earn loads of money orwhatever at the time.
(03:51):
I don't know what they thinknow, but for me it was this
thought really kind of kind ofshaped my worldview.
He said that even if you winthe rat race, you're still a rat
(04:13):
and this is no offense to rats,by the way.
You know they're living theirlife, they're doing their thing.
Um, you know they're livingtheir life, they're doing their
thing, uh, but but the meaningof the statement is you know,
obviously you look at america,it's all about the rat race.
You know who's got the biggerhouse, better car, more wealth,
(04:34):
who's a millionaire, all thisstuff, and you know, and we give
people value based on that andit's.
It's really idiotic when youthink about it, but that's the
way we see things and we thinkthat if somebody is successful
in their business, it means thatthey must be really good.
They could earn that moneythrough very cunning and very
(04:58):
criminal ways even, you know,but, or going around loopholes
which normal folk wouldn't do.
Now, does that mean that thatperson should be given great
respect?
I don't really think so, justbecause they have a few extra
bucks in their pocket?
So essentially what my guru waspointing to was you know,
(05:19):
you're still a rat even ifyou're in the rat race.
And uh and this has been, Ithink, kind of my world view
ever since I heard that was youknow, I will enter the race, but
I'm not in the rat race.
You know, I'm not in the raceto be at the top.
If the top, if the opportunityto be at the top, comes to me,
(05:42):
that's different and I accept ithumbly.
But that doesn't mean that Iwill strive for that or I will
work for that.
I will just do my work and um,do it diligently and as best as
possible, and that's it.
Leave the rest to um and asbest as possible, and that's it.
Leave the rest to, and thenguard to guard to the formless.
(06:04):
And that's been the way I viewedlife.
It's helped me in a lot of ways, because it means I'm more at
peace, I'm more calm.
Things come to me rather thanI'm chasing them.
So I think I save a lot ofenergy and I get to sleep
(06:24):
beautifully at night, you know,and I get to read, I get to
meditate, I get to think aboutthe divine, I get to write
poetry.
I get to do so much in myspiritual life.
I get to spend time with my son, my wife.
These things are valuable to meand they hold more value than
anything else.
(06:45):
So, sorry, I'm also unwell.
I'm just recovering from A mildsickness that I got on this
trip On the latter part of it,which was also the annoying
thing, but that's the body right.
So, essentially, I think, thewhole point of just, you know,
(07:09):
coming back to America andcoming back home, you know, I
just realized that the choicesthat I've made since I've moved
to America and choosing not tobe part of the rat race,
choosing to just be to work onmy spirituality, has been the
(07:33):
right one.
To not get invested into, um,the, the silly conversations
that happen in america, like andthis is happening now weirdly
globally, but and because I Iheard moments of this
conversation even in england butlike people are worried about
how many genders there are,sexual identity, all this type
(07:55):
of stuff, and I'm just not forit.
I'm just like you know what, Ido not care how many genders
there are.
I do not care what sexualorientation someone is.
I don't care if someone istransgender.
I just want people to liveharmoniously.
I don't care if someone istransgender, I just want people
to live harmoniously, with loveand respect, and let people
identify with whatever they wantto identify with.
(08:17):
Because, as a spiritual person,we understand that any identity
that's formed becomes theahamkara.
It creates more of the I.
So essentially, we have to letgo of these labels and these
identities.
But if somebody holds dear toit, because right now they feel
that they're trying to masterthemselves, then let them do
(08:42):
that and there will be a timewhen they will let go of the
identity.
And unfortunately, what happensis the more you tell people not
to identify something, they'regoing to identify with it more,
because you're then putting whothey are on the line and that's
what they feel and and that'swhat people don't understand.
(09:05):
So you know, you get all thesefools that will blow up on
social media saying you knowthere's only two genders.
But essentially you're causingmore harm than you're proving,
than anything else.
And also, from a hinduperspective, there's not just
(09:26):
two genders.
So, just saying so, any hindusthat follow that particular line
of thinking you, you need to,like, read the scriptures a bit
more uh, so, uh, yeah, anyway,um, and who are we?
Essentially?
This is the point that I'mcoming to, that I'm alluding to,
(09:47):
and this is why desiring thingsdoesn't make any sense, and
that's why having detachmentmakes more sense, and that is
that, yes, you have your body,your mind, and you have that.
(10:09):
You see the world through that.
Yes, you function your lifethrough that.
Yes, but who are you?
You know, have we ever askedthat question?
Who am I?
And essentially, until we askthat question of who am I, we're
not going to go further in ourspiritual journey.
(10:32):
For me, it was important for meto know who am I?
Okay, am I the father role thatI have?
Am I the husband?
Am I the fiance?
Am I the boyfriend?
Am I the son?
Am I the brother?
Am I the friend?
Am I the brother?
(10:52):
Am I the friend?
Am I a male?
Are these things going to last?
So, when I die, is it called amale body or a female body?
Actually, it's just called thebody.
The body will be cremated orturn into ashes.
(11:14):
So that can't be me, becauseonce I'm ashes, how is anyone
going to identify me, as youknow, it's not going to be.
Those ashes will become part ofthe earth.
You know, obviously my asheswill be thrown in the river.
So um are poured into the riverand you'll enter into the ocean
(11:42):
.
Very, look at the metaphor.
So if death proves that I am notany of the identities that I
cling on to today, then who am I?
What makes me me, what makes mefeel like me?
I've gone through all thesechanges.
(12:06):
I'm a witness that witnessconsciousness that is.
I'm a witness that witnessconsciousness that, even like I
know that physically andmentally I won't, there will not
be the limitation ofconsciousness in those things.
(12:28):
I can recognize that.
Yet I recognize also thatconsciousness seems to go beyond
that.
And so if consciousness is whatI am, as the scriptures tell me,
that I'm formless, boundless,beyond form, beyond image,
beyond color, beyond definition,beyond quality, then can I
(12:54):
experience that right now?
And yes, you can.
You see, the body and mind doesnot inhibit you from doing so.
The idea that we think that thebody and mind is the biggest
obstacle.
It's only there because we makeit the obstacle Really.
It can be used to make us feelwhat we really are.
(13:16):
It can be used to make us feelwhat we really are.
Once you're able to feel it,then you're able to then go into
that feeling and then seek isit actually a feeling that comes
and goes, or is it somethingthat's actually present, that
you're now just being aware of?
The feeling that you areawareness, that you're
consciousness?
But actually the consciousnessand awareness is your every
(13:42):
moment experience and,ultimately, that is jivan mukti,
that is liberation whilstyou're alive.
That's what the scripturespoint us towards.
I'm not going to speak for muchlonger Because my throat will
give in.
I'm happy that I've been ableto speak For so long, but it's
(14:06):
been really great To get back torecording, to being here, and
I'll see you tomorrow for sure,but, like I said, remember who
you are, and that has to be bethe most important thing.
Okay, thank you, and I'll seeyou tomorrow, namaste.
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