Ever felt like a fraud? Like any minute now you’ll be “found out”? In this episode of The Vedic Worldview, Thom Knoles unpacks the real cause of imposter syndrome and why false modesty isn’t the virtue we think it is.

He reveals how subtle mistakes of the intellect keep us playing small and prevent us from expressing our full potential in the world.

So, if you’ve ever questioned your worth or doubted your success, this conversation offers a profound reminder of who you really are.

You can also watch the podcast on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/Q-hVse91BNo

Episode Highlights

[00:45] I’m a Fake

[03:24] I Know Better Than Them

[05:18] I’ll Accept the Accolades

[09:04] I’m the Universe Having a Human Experience

[11:43] You Deserve the Best

[15:39] As It Comes, Take It

[18:59] Change Who the I is Inside

[23:10] Can techniques other than Vedic Meditation help with imposter syndrome?

[23:43] A - Direct Experience

[26:38] The Implications of a Silent Mind

[30:02] Experiential Illumination

[34:42] Enlightenment Denial

[38:53] “Are you enlightened yet?”

[42:49] The Fun of Remembrance

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

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https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

What if everything you see, touch, and experience is actually made of the same thing?

In this episode, Thom explores the startling relationship between matter and consciousness, challenging our most fundamental assumptions about reality and about who and what we are.

Prepare to view the world and yourself in an entirely new light.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] We Seem to Live in a Material Universe

[02:55] Good Vibrations

[05:01] A Responsive Universe

[07:31] The Hard Question of Consciousness

[10:29] The State of Unity Consciousness

[13:15] Sharpening Our Sensory Acuity with Vedic Meditation

[16:37] The Ultimate in Sensory Perception, Seeing Yourself in Everything

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

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https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

Can we consciously design our next incarnation, or are we already doing it unwittingly?

In this episode, Thom explores the Vedic and Buddhist perspectives on rebirth, fulfillment, and the trap of unfulfilled desire. Along the way, Thom shares a remarkable story of enlightenment and a cautionary tale from the Mahabharata that reveals how easily we can mistake desire for destiny.

Listen as Thom explains how meditation allows us to live in “total and unambiguous relevance,” free from the need to chase fulfillment through endless cycles of becoming.

You can also watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Y-nkLcRFwVQ

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Q - Can we engineer our incarnations in advance?

[00:51] A - Jataka: The Retrospective Approach

[03:35] Experience and Intellectual Understanding Go Together

[06:35] Fulfillment in Search of a Gelato

[10:19] Everythingness Cannot Reincarnate

[12:44] Living Life in Total and Unambiguous Relevance

[14:56] Q - Which path is better, revenge or enlightenment?

[15:44] A - It’s a Cautionary Tale

[18:37] Vedic Meditation: An End to Desperate Unhappiness

[20:47] Enlightenment: Fulfillment Seeking Need

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

Is sexuality a path to higher consciousness or a distraction dressed up as spirituality?

In this episode, Thom explores the Vedic view on sexual energy, why so-called “harnessing” may be the opposite of what you think, and the hidden cost of “chasing the active ingredient.“

Thom also flips manifestation on its head, revealing why desire follows what is already unfolding and how transcendence twice daily changes the game.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Harnessing

[05:47] Active-Ingredient Mentality

[10:04] A Lack of Fundamental Fulfillment

[12:45] A Very Clever Marketing Idea

[15:05] Perpetually Orgasmic

[17:58] Transcendence is Everything

[19:32] The Universe is Your Sugar Daddy

[21:24] Desire is Secondary to Manifestation

[26:03] Q - What’s the relationship between creation energy and sexuality?

[26:09] A - Enhanced Repertoire

[30:21] What Does Sexuality Mean?

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

Work-life balance has become a buzz phrase in recent years, especially since the intrusion of smartphones began edging their way into so-called “free time.”

In this episode, Thom explains why free time and work aren’t necessarily exclusive of each other, potentially making work-life balance unnecessary.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Routine Work has Been Around Forever

[03:18] What Do I Do?

[05:28] Vedic Meditation - A Major Dose of Unboundedness

[08:26] A Neuroplastic Brain

[12:26] Work Becomes an Expression of Happiness

[14:58] A New Style of Functioning

[19:14] Q - How Do You Work Surrounded by Stressed People?

[19:42] A - Find Somewhere Else

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

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https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

"Never a dull moment," could easily be a tagline for the tourism industry in India. It’s a land of contrast, color, and constant surprises. But if you want to experience the real flavor of India, you’d be hard pressed to find a better travelling companion than Thom Knoles.

With more than 50 years of travelling to India, building deep and lasting relationships, not to mention his status as a Mahamandaleshwar, Thom has a vast collection of stories to tell. In this episode, Thom shares a tiny sample from this vast collection, featuring swamis, snakes, Diet Coke, and more.

There are even more stories to come. If you’d like to be there and be a part of future adventures, Thom invites you to join him on his upcoming annual India retreat.

You can find out more at https://thomknoles.com/india-retreat/.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] A Visit from Swami Premananda

[05:40] Passing the Lunch Exam with the Shankaracharya and Some Swamis

[08:40] Eructations and Diet Coke

[10:27] The Shankaracharya’s Birthday Party

[12:37] Of Course He Has a Snake in His Hair!

[15:11] A Full Spectrum of Experiences Await in Rishikesh

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

What if the thing holding back our evolution wasn’t the Unviverse, but our alignment with it?

In this Q&A episode, Thom explores the subtle early signal of misalignment, why formulaic living dulls creativity, and how the unknown became the forge of the human brain.

Thom also challenges us to make our behaviors more evolutionary, offers a cautionary message about our modern archives, and shares a bold, simple law you won’t forget.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Q - How do we make evolution exponential as opposed to gradual?

[00:55] A - The Sweet Spot Is…

[05:03] Looking for Frictionless Flow

[07:18] The Dangers of Formulaic Thinking

[10:40] An Allergy to Embracing the Unknown

[12:33] The Unknown is the Frontier that Built the Human Brain

[15:30] An Invitation to Do Something Different

[17:54] Q - What exactly are we to harvest? Knowledge or resources?

[19:11] A - Breaking the Shackles of Our Brain

[21:35] The Greatest Wasted Resource on Earth

[24:01] Use It Or Lose It

[26:43] Brain-Power Problems

[30:39] The Great Good Fortune of Being a Vedic Meditator

[32:31] An Outlet for Social Relevance

[36:14] Q - Are our current evolutionary theories still relevant?

[36:54] A - Big Crunch is Making a Comeback

[39:34] Individuality is Cosmic

[42:12] Thank Goodness for the Asteroid Strike

[46:03] Unreliable Archives of the Human Experience

[52:14] Q - Should we harvest more interactions with each other?

[52:35] A - Meditators Have the Capacity to be Interactors

[56:06] The Joy of Person-to-Person Human Connectivity

[58:28] Commonality is a Great Uniting Force

[01:00:41] Q - Does the Veda state that evolution is Cosmic Law?

[01:00:59] Evolve. Full Stop.

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

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https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/

One of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s most well-known insights was, “Problems are a state of consciousness.”

In this episode, Thom shares a vivid example of how Maharishi embodied this truth, using a single, signature word to transform everyday challenges into masterclasses in perception, presence, and trust.

Episode Highlights

[00:45] Beautiful

[03:04] An Excursion in Switzerland

[05:50] Lost in Basel

[07:53] Found in Basel

[10:13] Waiting Consciousness State is Good

Useful Links

info@thomknoles.com

https://thomknoles.com/

https://www.instagram.com/thethomknoles

https://www.facebook.com/thethomknoles

https://www.youtube.com/c/thomknoles

https://thomknoles.com/ask-thom-anything/