Shadow to Self with Acharya Shunya

Acharya Shunya shares a personal story about learning the Gayatri Mantra from her grandfather during dawn walks to the Sarayu River.

Shadow to Self host Acharya Shunya and guest Rabbi Matthew Ponak draw connections between Advaita Vedanta and Kabbalah, beginning with a structural comparison of Ein Sof (the Kabbalistic infinite) and Brahman/Sat Chit Ananda.

Acharya Shunya introduces a season focused on the Ramayana, exploring themes of light and shadow through ancient Vedic wisdom.

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Acharya Shunya introduces the concept of five inner glaciers (kleshas) that keep people stuck, and explains how real yoga can melt them.

Acharya Shunya hosts David Nichtern, founder of Dharma Moon and a senior Tibetan Buddhist teacher who studied with Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche beginning in 1970, in a conversation framed around the concept of being 'anchored but unstuck.' Nichtern introduces the Buddhist three-truths framework — absolute, relative, and their inseparability ('not one, not two') — and Acharya Shunya maps it onto the Vedic triad of paramarthika, vyavaharika, and pratibhasika satyam.

Acharya Shunya hosts Michael Sternfeld — independent Ramayana scholar, producer of the world's longest audiobook (the 75-hour unabridged Valmiki Ramayana), and student of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi — for a Diwali special unpacking the festival's spiritual meaning through the Ramayana epic.

Acharya Shunya delivers a solo episode on self-respect, arguing from her book 'Roar Like a Goddess' that women are culturally conditioned to accept disrespect — at home and at work — through internalized guilt, and that self-respect (not external validation) is the foundation of physical health, emotional sanity, and healthy boundaries.

Acharya Shunya introduces her podcast exploring non-dual wisdom and addresses racial injustice against Asian Americans.

Acharya Shunya introduces her podcast exploring non-dual wisdom from ancient Indian scriptures to help listeners move from ego-driven shadow to true self.