My Daily Thread
by Jeff Lichty
Latest episode
303. Mirror, mirror on the wall... yo! don't lie to me! - Svādhyāya
303. Mirror, mirror on the wall... yo! don't lie to me! - Svādhyāya
About this podcast
thread
sutra, (Sanskrit: "thread" or "string")
Welcome to My Daily Thread. A little slice of wisdom from the ages. From Patanjali through the present, a little riff to make your day! That's the thread, the sutra, the wise string that binds us all together.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 299 episodes
- 303. Mirror, mirror on the wall... yo! don't lie to me! - Svādhyāya · 6 minSvādhyāya is usually translated as "self-study." In this episode, looks at it as a mirror, and asks whether we're willing to look into it honestly. Snow White's Evil Queen asks…
- 302. Who Do You Think You Are!? - Svādhyāya · 5 min302. Svādhyāya: Who Do You Think You Are!? How well do you really know yourself? What if getting to know yourself is getting to know the Divine? We've been exploring the niyamas…
- 301. Burning Down the House! - Tapas · 5 min301. Tapas: Burning Down the House! If a little heat transforms us, isn't more heat better? In this final episode on tapas, we return to Yoga Sutra 2.43: kāyendriya-siddhir…
- 300. Who's Running the Show? - Tapas · 5 min300. Tapas: Who's Running the Show? Your phone buzzes. Someone cuts you off in traffic. Something triggers you!? ... Who's running the show? In this second episode on tapas, we…
- 299. Burn Away What!? - Tapas · 5 min · Episode 299299. Tapas: Burn Away What? Heat. Fire. Purification. But what exactly are we trying to burn away? In Yoga Sutra 2.43, Patañjali returns to tapas — one of the three practices we…
- 298. STOP IT! Never Enough Sucks. - Santosha · 5 min298. STOP IT! Never Enough Sucks What does it actually mean to practice contentment? In this final episode of our three-part exploration of santoṣa, we move from philosophy to…
- 297. Yeah, yeah! Contentment. I Want More! - Santosha · 5 min · Episode 297Episode 297: Yeah, yeah! Contentment. I Want More! ... Contentment? or Complacency? If I'm content with my life, why the hell would I try to make it better? That's the tension at…
- 296. I'll Be Happy When?! - Santosha · 4 min · Episode 296296. Santosha: I'll Be Happy When… "I'll be happy when…" More money. A better relationship. The job. The body. The house. Recognition. The next experience. The travel. Sound…
- 295. YS 2:41. Saucha, Madonna and Jewish New Year · 5 min · Episode 295295. Saucha, Madonna and a Jewish New Year What are you carrying forward that you don't need to carry anymore? Old stories. Attachments. Expectations. Fear of not being enough…
- 294. 2:40 Śauca... Clean up your side of the street. · 5 min · Episode 294Śauca — Sutra 2.40 Sanskrit (Transliteration) śaucāt svāṅga-jugupsā parair asaṁsargaḥ English Translation From purity arises a natural distaste for excess attachment to one's own…
- 293. Niyamas overview. Organizing our Inner Life. · 5 min · Episode 293शौचसन्तोषतपःस्वाध्यायेश्वरप्रणिधानानि नियमाः Niyamas 1:32. śauca-santoṣa-tapaḥ-svādhyāya-īśvara-praṇidhānāni niyamāḥ In the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the Niyamas are the inner…
- 292. " Man in the Arena"- Happy New Year from Teddy and me. · 6 min · Episode 292Man in the Arena In this episode, Jeff reads and reflects on one of the most enduring passages on courage and participation: Theodore Roosevelt's "Theodore Roosevelt'" from his…
- 291. Season Finale - Transcend · 5 min · Episode 291A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! As we usher out 2025, we play the yearly word game. A huge thank you to all the My Daily Thread Tribe! We an extra shout out to Peter and…
- 290. Aparigriha ... and just letting go! · 6 min · Episode 290Sutra 2.39 अपारिग्रहस्थैर्ये जन्मकथन्तासम्बोधः Aparigrahasthairye janma-kathantā-sambodhah Word-by-Word Breakdown • Aparigraha (अपारिग्रह) • a = not / without • pari = around…
- Eunice Peterson on Trauma and Gratitude - Happy Thanksgiving · 51 minJoin Jeff and Eunice Peterson as they discuss Trauma, Gratitude and Yoga. Jeff and Eunice will be conducting a workshop together at Yoga Passage in Calgary, Alberta on the…
- 289. Brahmacarya – True Strength: The Right Use of Energy · 6 min · Episode 289We continue our exploration of the yamas in Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras with the fourth principle: brahmacarya. This yama is often misunderstood, yet it carries profound wisdom for…
- 288. Asteya – The Abundance of Non-Stealing · 7 min · Episode 288Continuing the theme... Yoga Sūtra II.37, which speaks to the practice of asteya, or non-stealing. The sūtra reads: asteya-pratiṣṭhāyāṃ sarva-ratnopasthānam "When one is firmly…
- 287. Asteya – don't steal my primary series poster · 5 min · Episode 287287-Asteya – don't steal my primary series poster In this episode of My Daily Thread, we continue our exploration of the Yoga Sūtras, searching for practical wisdom we can apply…
- 286. Satya – The Power of Truthfulness · 5 min · Episode 286It's been a minute — I took some time to get out to the mountains, visit friends, and reset. Now we're back, continuing our journey through the Yoga Sūtras. If you want your own…
- Dr Paul Bramadat - "Yogalands." · 45 minIn this special episode we are happy to have Dr. Paul Bramadat back to chat about his book Yogalands. Paul Bramadat received his BA in religious studies from the University of…
- 285. Liar Liar ... · 6 min · Episode 285Today we're taking another pass at satya, the second yama from Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. The sutra we're focusing on is YS 2.36: satya-pratiṣṭhāyāṁ kriyā-phala-āśrayatvam—when one…
- 284. Established in Truth! · 5 min · Episode 284YS 2.36 says: satya-pratiṣṭhāyām kriyā-phala-āśrayatvam — "When one is firmly established in truthfulness, then their words become so powerful that the result of action rests…
- 283. A mercy that starts inside... · 5 min · Episode 283Yoga Sūtra 2.35 – ahiṁsā pratiṣṭhāyām tat-sannidhau vaira-tyāgaḥ When one is firmly established in non-violence, all hostility ceases in their presence. Today, we return to…
- 282. Ahimsa and our modern Matriarchs. · 6 min · Episode 282Yoga Sūtra 2.35 – ahiṁsā pratiṣṭhāyām tat-sannidhau vaira-tyāgaḥ When one is firmly established in non-violence, then all hostility ceases in their presence. Today, we reflect…
- 281. A Non-violent default setting ... · 6 min · Episode 281Today, we return to our study of aṣṭāṅga yoga, the eight-limbed path outlined by Patañjali. As a reminder, the eight limbs are: • Yama – ethical restraints • Niyama – personal…
- 280. Desire to anger, huh? · 5 min · Episode 280Today we continue our deep dive into Yoga Sūtra 2.34, staying with the powerful teaching of pratipakṣa bhāvanam—the deliberate cultivation of opposite, positive thoughts to…
- 279. Desire to disillusionment... · 6 min · Episode 279Today, we continue our deep dive into Yoga Sūtra 2.34, staying with the powerful teaching of pratipakṣa bhāvanam—the deliberate cultivation of opposite, positive thoughts to…
- 278. Don't be a greedy thief! · 5 min · Episode 278We continue our journey with Yoga Sūtra 2.33, and now deepen into the next verse — 2.34. If 2.33 gave us the prescription — pratipakṣa-bhāvanam — then 2.34 shows us the…
- 277. "Stop it!" Bob Newhart, and thought replacement therapy. · 6 min · Episode 277We continue our exploration through the Sādhana Pāda, arriving again at Yoga Sūtra 2.33 — a powerful and practical teaching that has everything to do with the life we're living…
- 276. Don't fight it. Redirect .. · 6 min · Episode 276Let's review Yoga Sūtra 2.32, which lists the five niyamas, or personal observances — and in reviewing this sūtra, what strikes me most is the elegant simplicity of the path it…
- 275. Inner truth over outer noise ... · 7 min · Episode 275The yamas and niyamas are more than philosophical principles — they are ethical and moral disciplines, and for me, they're the practices I return to again and again in my journey…
- 274. Contentment. Allow the water to become clear. · 5 min · Episode 274Yesterday, we began exploring the niyamāḥ, the observances of aṣṭāṅga yoga as laid out by Patañjali in Yoga Sūtra 2.32. We looked closely at śauca, purity or clarity, and how it…
- 273. Choose your śauca – purity, cleanliness, or clarity!? · 5 min · Episode 273Yesterday, we explored YS 2.31, and today we continue by honoring a beautiful insight from scholar Edwin Bryant. He draws particular attention to the importance of this sutra…
- 272. Mahāvratam. The great vows! · 5 min · Episode 272We continue our journey through the Sādhana Pāda of the Yoga Sūtras, exploring the practices that Patanjali offers to help us move toward viveka-khyāti—discriminative wisdom. In…
- 271. Ahiṃsā the start of yoga? · 5 min · Episode 271Continuing our journey into the Yoga Sūtras and the teachings of the great meditation masters, we return to the Sādhana Pāda of Patañjali, the chapter of practice. This is where…
- 270. Forget Love, jump to Ahimsa!? · 5 min · Episode 270we're continuing our journey through the Sādhana Pāda, the second chapter of Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras. Let's remember where we've just been: in Sūtra 2.28, Patañjali says that…
- 269. The eight limbs, moving to mediation. · 5 min · Episode 269Jumping right in, friends—today we're working with Yoga Sūtra 2.29, where Patañjali gives us what is often considered the classic blueprint of yoga: the eight limbs of Aṣṭāṅga…
- 268. Jñāna dīptiḥ. Let your light shine! · 5 min · Episode 268Dear followers of this thread, now begins the light of jñāna dīptiḥ, the illumination of wisdom. Jeff first went to India seeking the fiery discipline of Aṣṭāṅga Yoga as taught…
- 267. Cultivating clarity, a practice for freedom. · 5 min · Episode 267
- 266. Practice is the path... · 5 min · Episode 266This is the sutra that kept Jeff returning to India, year after year, to dive deeper into Aṣṭāṅga Yoga. It was Patañjali's words here that affirmed the path and ignited the faith…
- 265. Let the light of discriminative wisdom dawn .. · 5 min · Episode 265Today's on My Daily Thread our verse brings us to a powerful turning point in our journey through the Sādhana Pāda. The snippet of wisdom comes from Yoga Sūtra 2.28, and it holds…
- 264. Unshakable! · 5 min · Episode 264We continue our journey through the Sādhana Pāda of Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras. Last time, we studied Yoga Sūtra 2.26, which introduced us to the idea of viveka-khyāti—the…
- 263. Wisdom time! Is this true? · 5 min · Episode 263As we continue our deep dive into the Sādhana Pāda of the Yoga Sūtras, we return to Yoga Sūtra 2.27: tasya saptadhā prāntabhūmiḥ prajñā "For one with unwavering discriminative…
- 262. The ground of wisdom... trying to be a wise guy? · 5 min · Episode 262We continue our journey through the Sādhana Pāda of Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras. Last time, we studied Yoga Sūtra 2.26, which introduced us to the idea of viveka-khyāti—the…
- 261. Jeff chirping, A little review ... · 5 min · Episode 261Let's do a little review to ground ourselves in the essential foundation of yoga philosophy. The entire project of yoga is based on Yoga Sūtra 1.2: yogaś citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ…
- 260. Discriminative wisdom for the chirping fears ... · 5 min · Episode 260We continue on My Daily Thread to search for pearls of wisdom from Patañjali and the yoga masters. Today, we arrive at Yoga Sūtra 2.26, a verse that marks a major turning point…
- 259. Kaivalya - Freedom, baby! Freedom! · 5 min · Episode 259Thanks for joining My Daily Thread. Yesterday we talked about the sacred entanglement between the Seer and the seen, or Puruṣa and Prakṛti, through the lens of Yoga Sūtra 2.23…
- 258. Awareness begins where confusion used to be... · 5 min · Episode 258Thanks for joining My Daily Thread again today. We're continuing with our journey through the Yoga Sūtras, and today we're on Sūtra 2.24: "tasya hetuḥ avidyā" "The cause of this…
- 257. You are, simply YOU! · 5 min · Episode 257Thanks for joining My Daily Thread—a space where we weave together ancient wisdom and present-day experience. Yesterday's reflection was a bit of a passionate dive into fear, a…
- 256. Fear. Tariffs and the Mind Stuff. · 6 min · Episode 256Welcome to the week—and welcome back to My Daily Thread, where we look for snippets of wisdom in the Yoga Sūtras and anchor them into the real moments of our lives. We're…
