Episode 47: You Always Have Choices – Conversations on Spirituality, Purpose, and Inner Peace

A heartfelt podcast by Jay DePaolo, exploring transformation, healing, and the deeper meaning of life. Discover peace, purpose, and joy through the choices we make every day.

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Welcome, everyone. My name is Jay DePaolo, owner of Choices Books and Gifts in New York City. It's a store dedicated to health and wellness. And the recovery community. For over 30 years. I am the host of our podcast. You always have choices where we dive deep into stories of transformation, healing, and personal growth. Today, I am very happy to, to be telling you that we have Ravi Kathuria and he is a very wonderful man. He's produced a few books. I'm going to read a little bio on Ravi, so we know who we're dealing with today.

Ravi Kathuria is the founder and president of Houston Strategy Forum and the management consulting firm Cohegic Corporation. He is a recognized business thought leader, vibrant speaker, and executive coach. He is the author of the highly acclaimed Leadership Parable. How cohesive is your company? His second book, Happy Soul Hungry Mind, a modern-day parable about spirituality, is a non-religious and practical tale exploring spirituality. Ravi has made spirituality stunningly simple and accessible for all without judgment and preconditions. Learn more at SpiritualityWithin.com. And I'm so happy that a lot of people do this, but you, you also gave us a lot of questions. Usually, I supply them all. But I'm glad that you, you know, and I think to myself, why don't people do that? They wrote the book. They know the best things to ask them.

First of all, thank you. Thank you for having me on your show. I appreciate it. Thank you for the work that you're doing, and  I love the thrust in your podcast. Right? We all have Choices to make, right? So I want to congratulate you for propagating that and helping people realize that the life that we build around ourselves is because of the choices that we have made, and we can always change it. Right? That's why we have the power to change it. So, I congratulate you on that. And then getting back to questions. So we have my PR team do that. But we don't have to. We can ask any question, and we can take this discussion.  I have your questions and I have a few more. So we'll see how it goes. Yes. Let it flow.

Right. Perfect. Yeah. So I am going to begin with question number one, sir. And it

Tell me, what inspired you to write this book? Yeah. Both the books, for that matter. Whatever you want to talk about. Yeah. Great question. In fact, when I wrote my second book, it was a book on nonreligious spirituality.

And a good friend of mine, I tried to tell him how great this book was. Right. And I was really proud of it. And so the question he asked me was, all right, Ravi, what inspired you to write this book? And, I think he was expecting a grand answer. You know, this historical figure or this incident in my life, or. I’ve looked at something, and I looked at him squarely in his face, and I said I was not inspired by anything to write this book. And I could see the disappointment on his face because he was almost sorry that he asked the question. I think he was sorry that he knew me. But what made you pick up the pen and start to write?

Yes. So the answer I gave him was that I was not inspired. I was compelled, I was compelled. It was. That's even better. I think it's like I had a choice. This is. I use this example often. I've never given birth to a baby. But when a woman becomes pregnant, she knows she has to deliver the baby. There is no choice. Right, right. And so this book compelled me, right? There are some choices that I made. You didn't have a choice. I didn't have a choice. I had a choice in terms of the timing and in terms of the focus. But it had it was in me and it had to come out. It had to come out one way or the other. It compelled me. So, I would love to take credit and say I got inspired. I am the one who did it. The fact is, the book used me as a power greater than myself. Had you written this book? Yes, the book is more. I say this to people. The book, and here today, you know, it sits on my desk.

This book is even though I have written every word in it. This book is more powerful than I. I love it. I'm going to get both copies, and I'm going to read both of them. I love to read. I would I would love for you to read it, and next time I was in New York, just a week ago next time I come to New York, because my son lives there, I'll come to your shop and will autograph these books.

Absolutely, absolutely. We'll go to lunch and I'll tell you my thoughts on a lot of them, which I'm sure will be very positive. So question two. Yes. Is Spirituality practical in our daily lives? What a beautiful question of all the questions. This is right. This is the question and the answer.

It absolutely is. Spirituality is not mumbo jumbo. Spirituality is not for the people who renounce the Himalayas or live in a monastery on some mountaintops. Right? Spirituality is not for the priests and the pastors who are in a church or a mosque, or a temple; spirituality is for the everyday human being. Everyone who is getting up in the morning and going to work, who's getting up and making sandwiches for her kids so they can take them to school, and for him when he comes home and cooks food for the family, right?

One who has to take their dog out for a walk after it's come back. Every one of us, whether we are the president of the country or whether we are a school bus driver. Spirituality is for everyone of us, and it is so practical. Yes, in raising the quality of our lives. If you don't do this, we're missing out. I give this example. You know, spirituality cannot change the direction of your life in the sense that you are going to a certain destination you’re going to get there. But what it is going to do is it's going to move you from coach class right next to the restrooms at the end and move you to first class, first class, same journey, but you are going to the same destination, but your journey is going to be very different, right?

But I also have for me, I have to understand and make sure I keep spirituality close. So, for me, I wake up every day, and I do transcendental meditation for 20 minutes. I say a prayer, and I sort of talk to God for me. It's God, all day long, for different situations. Is that a part of the spirituality, or do you say you don't need to be aware of it?

So, there is a bifurcation there between religion and God and spirituality. Right? Okay. And, it may be worth explaining the difference because spirituality is available to both people who believe in God, the theists, and also the people who don't believe in God. Spirituality does not discriminate because spirituality is not about religion. Spirituality is not about God, not who is. Wow. So tell us a little bit about. That's a zinger. Yeah. That's like that, you know, your audience. You do. Excuse me. In this conversation, I can see where that confuses some people. So I think we have to clear that up. Yes, we absolutely do. And that is where the practicality of spirituality comes from. Spirituality is not connected with God in the way that we traditionally think.

Alright, say I'm a person, I wake up, I don't believe in God, religion, nothing. Do I have a specific thought process to I have, you know, what do I do? How do I do it? So what we need to do is absolutely, let's answer that question by getting down to the fundamentals about what spirituality is, okay. Because once we understand what spirituality is, then we'll be able to understand why it is not related to God. The concept, as developed by religion, is applicable universally. Right. What a powerful thing spirituality is, nonreligious spirituality. My whole book is about non-religious spirituality because, until now, over the ages, not just today, people have confused religion with spirituality, no doubt.

And they are two distinct. They cannot be more separate. And understanding this distinction is so important.

For mankind, for humankind to understand. Because this is where the secret to our happiness lies, the secret to living a wondrous life. Because it has been confusing, people have realized that maybe spirituality is not for me. People have made it complex, complicated. They have it. They have it buried under layers of doctrines and dogmas and rituals and traditions, and got it confused with religion. And suddenly spirituality got obscured, and people said, I don't know what that is. And you look up Wikipedia, definition on spirituality, it'll give you a headache. With all due respect to Wikipedia, not just Wikipedia, you know, look at champ, GPT, or Google, or any of these guys, and spirituality definition. It runs into multiple paragraphs.

You listen to these spiritual leaders, contemporary spiritual leaders, great speakers, and you listen to their definition. It will give you a headache. It gives me a headache. Maybe others are smarter than I am, but you know, I'm interested in the subject. I try to read it. So we're all sitting here in suspense. Let's build the suspense. Now, let's get you the definition of spirituality. This is the simplest definition on earth. There cannot be a simpler definition, and there cannot be a more powerful definition.

So friends, listen up. We'll build it up enough. Okay, here it is. Spirituality is the experience of your own life force. There is a life energy in you that keeps you living. Spirituality is the experience of your own life Energy. Whether you call that life, energy, soul, spirit, Atma, whatever you want to call it in your language, doesn't matter. You have a life energy. That is why you are living. When that life energy leaves, you are no longer living. Your own family members are going to do something with you but not keep you around that life. Energy is what makes you dynamic, experiencing your own life Energy is spirituality. Okay, now this definition, I told you, is the simplest definition. You cannot come up with a simpler definition than this. It is the most profound and powerful definition because now we think about this in this definition, there are only two components. It was you and your life energy. There was nothing else. There was no religion. There was no God, nothing. It was just you and your life energy.

And guess what? It did not even say who you are. It did not say whether you are religious. It did not say that you as if you are a man, or woman, or transgender. It did not say that. It did not say you whether you are straight or gay or asexual or bisexual or hypersexual. It did not say that. It did not say you. Whether you are the president of the country or you are a soldier, or you whether you are a billionaire, or you're a pauper. It did not say whether you are an American or an Asian, or living in the Amazon rainforest and never having seen any modern exposure.

It's just you and your life energy, you and your life energy. That is it. You may not need anybody's permission. You do not need anybody's blessing. You do not need to go anywhere. You don't need to visit a pilgrimage site. You and your energy are there all the time. And you have been together since you were born. This spirituality is innate in you. It is in your DNA. Your ability to experience your own life. Energy has been there all the time.

Excellent, excellent description. Very exciting. And I have more questions. So I'm going to this third question, I think you answered it just now. So we should move on to the next one. It says what spirituality is. You just explained that beautifully. And now the next one gets a little bit more. Is spirituality simple? I think the answer is yes. Or is it mystical and complex? I think you explained that as well. But please.

Yes, a lot of people do not understand spirituality. I used to watch the Oprah Show, and people came and explained spirituality. Oh, right. Are you crazy? Oh my God. You know, everybody has their own, I don't know, they make up stuff. Yes. And you know, they use very eloquent terms. I mean, you need a dictionary to look up and say, What did he use? And he goes, Oh my God, I if I have to pick up the dictionary for anything, that's not for me. Yeah. If I need the dictionary to understand spirituality, it's not like, please excuse me. Get out of my way. I don't even want to talk to you, you know, that's how they describe it. Spirituality is not mystical. This is not mysticism. Spirituality is not mysterious. Spirituality. In this definition that I have just shared with you does not include, you know what it did not include: the word God. It did not say anything about God. Now, is it okay to have spirituality and God?

Absolutely, it can. You can choose, and I will explain to you.  Choose or have both?

You can choose to have God, or you can choose not to have God. Spirituality doesn't make a difference to spirituality, okay? It doesn't make a difference to spirituality.

Beautiful. Okay. So I think the majority of the way people think today and the way and where we're heading, I think they would prefer this simpler, more or less complex form that you are speaking to us about right now. Well, and let me say this, I appreciate that they would prefer it, but really, it doesn't matter whether they prefer it or not, because this is the truth. Yes. I don't care if they like it or not. It is absolutely simple. I think they should pay attention to it. But really, does it depend on their preference? This is the truth. Yes. Spirituality is the experience of your life energy. Just experience it. Yeah. I would not have to have a debate with you. An argument. I try not to get into arguments with people because there is no point in arguing, right?

I use this example. There is a cheesecake, and you're sitting here arguing with me about what the taste of the cheesecake is. What? Quit the argument. There is no debate that is, either eat the cheesecake, or enjoy it. Experience it. Once you experience it, you don't need to talk about it. I love cheesecake. When I'm eating cheesecakes, I don't want anybody talking to me. And when I'm done eating the cheesecake, I don't want anybody talking to me. Because I am somewhere. I'm transported. I'm enjoying and experiencing the cheesecake. We spent so much time in religious leaders arguing back and forth about what God is, what religion is, what you are doing, and who you are. All of that spirituality did not say what profession, and now you know, Jay, you're a good host. You're encouraging me. So, I'll go further on the edge and say this spirituality does not care about your profession. Yeah. That's not caring whether you are a baster or you are a prostitute. It does not care because the definition says you and your life energy. The Baster has a life energy, so does a prostitute. Now, am I suggesting that you leave morality and build a society that doesn't have a moral basis? That's not what I'm suggesting. I am not telling society how it should conduct itself.

All right. I want to be careful. I don't want to be stoned to death. I am not telling so that society can choose its values and morals the way it wants. I don't have a problem with that. But I think what you're saying is, it's up to the individual what their experience is within their life, whether it be, you know, I’m a priest or as you said, a prostitute. It doesn't.

Yes. Whether you're a saint or you're a serial killer waiting on death row because you're a serial killer who is going to be, you know, you committed murders, and rightfully society is going to punish you. The law is going to punish you, and they're going to hang you in 15 days, right? You're going to be hanged. They're going to execute you. But you, the serial killer, you're obviously not a good person. You've hurt people. But guess what? The life energy is still in you, and you can experience that life energy even though you're 15 days from execution. I cannot stop that. The Supreme Court cannot stop that. The president of the country cannot stop that. Nobody can stop you from experiencing your life force if that's what you decide to do.

How powerful is that? You know, it's funny. We're talking about spirituality and things like that, where I think when we talk and look at religion, look, it has, you know, it's caused a lot of harm, wars, things. And most of the time, it's misread or misunderstood, but it brings them apart. It brings us so much sadness and despair.

Yeah, I have a chapter. It is the second last chapter. It's the second last main chapter, because the last chapter is just half a page, but it's the really last main chapter in my book, Happy Soul, Hungry Mind. And the title is God, Man, and Universe. And I give the definition of what is God, not who is God, the definition of what is God, and that definition is the most logical definition that exists. And when people begin to understand that, they will realize that killing each other in the name of religion is absolutely stunning stupidity. But it is. It is happening in 2025. It happened in India, where terrorists from Pakistan came and they killed men in front of their wives and kids. Young kids, just because they were of a certain religion.

Religion. Yeah, it is happening. What happens all the world today, it’s so strong today. Israel and Hamas. Is it? Yes, it is. It works today because of this ridiculous belief in some sort of religion where, you know, if everybody just loved one another and got along, that's really, I don't know. The religious ideology. It is religious there.

People are being told that when you do this, when you go to heaven, you will get, oh my God. Oh, I mean, really. You know you can't blame them because you have told them this since birth. That's what you're going to believe in. It's told to them since the moment they can understand a word.

The tragedy is that misinformation, that brainwashing, is leading people to do heinous things. Heinous things. Oh my God, the atrocities on both sides are just it's it wakes you up in the middle of an issue. How can a human being act like that? And they justify it. They say, I'm doing this in the name of God because God wants me to do that. Well, if that is not bullshit, then I don't know what is bullshit.

You know, more I just had to control myself because between religion and how people view politics today, it's the two saddest things that're putting this country into the hole that it's in.

Both are equally sad. I mean that because it's not about helping. It's about controlling. And I don't even want to get into that. Let's stay out of this.  You know, I am out of my league. I am I'm in no position to comment on society and no position to comment on religion. And in fact, I do not care about religion. Yes, I am religious myself. I follow religion, but I really don't care about religion when it comes to spirituality because spirituality is the real thing. Religion, it is a marker. 

So let me because we're going on and on. Let me just, you know, take a curveball. In your opinion, or do you know what your thoughts are? What is the secret to success?

Wow. You know, we live in this world where, we live in a society that is outcome obsessed. How much do we have and how much can we get? That's the idea of success, and that's on anybody's success. Yeah, I go and speak to BBA students. I talk to MBA students, MBA students. I said, What is it that you want? Yeah. And you know the answer. I don't, the answer is I think I can guess, but I can’t, Yes, the answer is one. It's the number one answer. That answer is money. I knew that was coming. We want money.

No one will, very rarely, someone say, I want happiness, peace. I want to be calm. Oh my God, what are we teaching our new generation?

What are these business schools charging 250 K and brainwashing these people, telling them they're the greatest thing since sliced bread, and all they need is money? How many people do we know who have so much money and are so miserable? Oh my god, I would not trade their lives for nothing. Listen to a billionaire's interview. You can see the amount of anger, the amount of greed. You see if you are. Excuse my language, you're a freaking billionaire. How much more money do you need? There is more money you have than I can conceive. And yet you wake up in the morning, a billionaire wakes up in the morning, and all he or she thinks about is. How do I have more? I have a coach; I've been an executive coach for 25 years.

I have coached some very powerful CEOs, very rich people, really rich people, and very successful people. And you know what they think about money. And the irony of it. It's how we measure success, which is, you know, you should measure success to me, is how do you wake up? Do you have fear? Do you have anxiety? Do you have peace, too?

But the problem is these people, because they have been thinking in that mode for so long, they cannot help themselves disconnect. There is no way that they can get to the point where they go, I have had enough. Yeah, it is part of their psyche. It becomes part of their personality. And so even having success does not produce happiness. And you say, What is the secret to success? Yes. Tell me. Yes. So the secret to success is how you approach life. When you begin to understand the difference between your effort, the difference between the journey and the destinations, the difference between the effort and the outcome. Money, homes, assets, these are outcomes. And we spent so many years trying to get there, but we forgot to live our lives in the journey of getting there. And when we get there, I buy a beautiful house and I'm really happy, right? I'm really happy. I throw a housewarming, my friends come in, and they're really unhappy because I bought this beautiful, big house. I could see it on their faces and I'm really happy. I'm, you know, I'm really proud of myself. I throw a big party, and then the next week, I find out that one of my friends bought a bigger house than mine in the neighborhood.

So what? I was so proud of last week that I had a big house for myself. Now, one week later, I am miserable because of how he found out about the house. How did I miss? Why didn't my realtor tell me about it? Why did my wife push me to buy this? We could have waited. And guess what? This house was so beautiful and gave me so much joy. Suddenly I look at it and I go, it represents my failure. Oh my God, I'm killing myself. 

I have a very strong feeling. That's not the way you think, because I know my best friend in the world can have millions and billions, and I promise you, I would only be happy for him.

I do not think that way. Oh, I understand what makes me happy. Yeah, and it's. It's my peace of mind. Look at that person going for a run in Central Park. It's me. Peace. It's me sitting with my wife at night and watching a show and laughing at it. It is not the consumption of money or how much we have I have.

You have answered. What is the secret to success? You have just answered What is the secret of success? You know how to live life. That does not stop you from trying to achieve big things. I have understood that, but you are relishing. You know the value of life. The people who are failures. They may have $1 billion in the bank, but they are absolute failures because they do not know the value of life.

Yes, and I see it every day all around me. I live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Yes. The Mecha of all of this nonsense. You are there. But the kids, you watch young people. I was like, I told you, I was there last week. You look at young people in New York, they are moving so fast, and they're focused on building a career and competing. I mean, this is a cutthroat place. You've got to compete. You've got to do it. You've got to take the stress and anxiety right. And you've got to earn more so you can move out of your little closet and buy a one-bedroom, then a two-bedroom, a three-bedroom, and then a kids, and then a wife. And who's competitive enough, and your careers are clashing, and oh my God.

The American Dream is a fable. And it is, it is a lie, right? The world you go anywhere else in the world. And people say, I talk to them and say, Oh, I want to go to New York. I want to go to New York. Right. I agree, and most people in New York who have been here for a long time want to leave this place. So I have to tell you this story. I was in beautiful Jamaica. Love it. I've been there five times.

Oh my God, it is beautiful. Beautiful. I know I was on the beach, and I was sitting on a beach, and in fact, the title of my book, Happy Soul Hungry Mind, came to me when I was sitting on a beach in Jamaica. Okay, that's where the title came to me, and it was so beautiful. I really thought to myself, I never shared this with my wife.

I said I could die here, I think it's okay, I would be okay to die here. This is a place where I could die, and I would be okay. And so I think Jamaica is the most beautiful place, right? And  I agree with you 100%. Many years ago, I think 15 years or 14 years ago.  I met a young man who lives in Jamaica, who was born in Jamaica.

And I said, How blessed you are to be born in Jamaica and live here. How blessed you are. I said, What is it that you want in life? I have a problem. I talk to people like this all the time, trying to understand them. And he said, I want to get off this island. Yeah. He said, I want to go to the main island.

I want to go to America and I went. Why? Yeah, there is nothing. It doesn't hold boat, though I do if they have, you know, it's hard sometimes in my imagination tells me, you know, if they're poverty-stricken, if they are hungry, if they don't have homes. No, this, this young man, you know, the reason why I met him?

Because he was working in the resort. So he had a good job, you know, so he even had a means, right? This was not poverty-stricken, but it was just, you know, in the mind, we get into this discussion. Happy soul, hungry mind is the mind. Even when you have the best of things, your mind can one day wake up and say, It doesn't hold interest for me anymore. Move, right? It can happen to you. Whether you live in New York and have the best job, agreed and then beautiful apartment overlooking Central Park, something that everybody else in the world is dying to get up to. And you can go. Yeah, I don't know. It doesn't matter. You could be living in Jamaica, have a good life, and you go, I need to do something the mind can change anything. I think I could be happy in Jamaica. I really do, let's do it. I think I could, forget being happy. I was willing to die. Let's go, let's go. All right, so let me ask you this, my dear man. How do we find peace and happiness in this life?

Beautiful question, Jay. It is beginning to understand how our mind works. If you're beginning to understand that the mind, whether it's in New York or in Jamaica, can change its preferences. And you begin to observe the mind, your own mind, and watch how it does, and then you become not this you know, you go from being the slave of the mind to the master of the mind. Yes. And help it become quiet. Help us become quiet, you say? Absolutely. Help the mind become quiet. Because how do you experience your life energy? We never answered that question. The way you experience your life energy is when your mind becomes quiet, and your life energy will become self-evident, and you will experience it. So the secret to happiness in life truly is quieting your mind.

And that is what Jay experiences when he is in Central Park. That is when he is with his wife, and he feels quite attuned. Yeah. Listen. And the religious person who goes to church, and sits there, since there is no congregation, there are no people. He's just sitting on the wooden bench. He looks up, and there is a cross there, and behind it is stained glass. And the sunlight is coming through just a little bit. He experiences the peace.

Right. You go into a temple where they're singing and dancing, and in all that singing and dancing, you experience the peace. The person who is doing extreme sports, who's riding the wave in Los Angeles at that moment, they experience this. Be somebody who goes to the top of the mountain, climbs up, hiked up experiences to be somebody who is in their zone. When the mind becomes quiet. Within the meditators, the people who meditate and become thoughtless, they open up to a huge, wondrous aspect of life.

I remember, you know, just four years ago, I climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, and on the top of that mountain, the quietness, as you said, and the peace, and you are as high as the clouds are. You are looking down at the clouds. You are looking down on the clouds. It is the most one of the most wondrous things I have ever experienced in my life, one of the most wondrous things.

And the reason why you experience that wonder, of course, the scenery and being on the mountain top above the clouds had something to do with it, but it truly begins to happen when your mind feels quiet.

Yeah, you were not thinking about your bookstore. You were not thinking about. Absolutely. You were not thinking about anything else? No. I was in awe. I was in awe of what I would say on the quiet was the peaceful quiet. And when the mind becomes quiet, regardless of where you are, you begin to get a glimpse of your own life energy. Welcome to spirituality. Yeah, welcome. It exists in you all the time, waiting patiently for you. You quiet your mind, and it will surface.

You know, I have two more questions for you, but I do want to say this. I'd love to invite you back, because I don't think we'll get to all the questions I want to get  today. As a matter of fact, I know we won't, so I hope we can have a part two of this. So I'm just letting you know that now I'm at your beck and call, so you command.

I cannot tell you how much I'm enjoying this and learning and just talking about this and having life, you know, someone who understands the way I live my life and the way you live yours. It's so nice to have that. So with that, I'm going to ask you this question, sir. What is the purpose of life?

So I mentioned the Oprah show I've watched, and then she asked this question of almost every speaker that she hosts. Now. So, you know, on her show, many people would come and they would she would ask them what? What is life's purpose? What is your purpose? And that would give up a purpose one after the other. A very complicated purpose, a very complicated or even a simple purpose. But every purpose that they gave without fail, every one of them was not the purpose of their life. It was the purpose of their mind. Their mind said, I want to change the world. I want to do community service. I want to be the best actor. I want to be the best politician. I want to be the best pastor. I want to serve the Lord. It was what their mind told them all those purposes. But of the purposes of the mind. The ultimate life purpose has nothing to do with your mind.

So tell me what the purpose of life is. The purpose of life is to experience your life energy. I knew you were going to say that. I could not say anything else. That is it. That's what we started with, and that's what we're going to continue with. Absolutely. That is the purpose of life. Your life transforms you. Complete your cycle.

I think I understand you, and I think we're very similar in a lot of ways. But this next question, I would love to hear the answer to from you. And I want you to tell all the people, so you're ready? Yes. What is God? Oh, wow. Can I ask you, can I ask them to go read my book?

You can. Absolutely. Because, as you said, you have a chapter that you just talked about in Chapter 20.. But let me not do that. Let me not be a Grinch. Let me answer the question that has been asked. What a beautiful question, sir. This is the crescendo, and I'm even curious. I'm not lying. I want to know

What is God? You know, we have been told religion has told us, you know, that there are people who say, well, Rob, God is in a different galaxy, exists in a different realm. Or many times they'll tell you, Oh, you're not old enough to see God. You have to be so pure, or you don't have the eyes. You cannot see God. You cannot understand who God is. He's too infinite for us to understand, you know, so you cannot really. I mean, excuse me. You are not worthy of God. And so just be humble, put your head down, and be the slave that you are, because that really is not your cup of tea. Right?  That's what we have been told. And God is mysterious. He has. And nobody can know God. And, you know, just. And those definitions are inaccurate.

Because God can only be one thing. And here it comes, my friends. Here comes chapter 20 of Happy Soul Hungry mind. What is God in his full glory? And I'm willing to defend this answer because this answer will shock you. But this answer is, Jay, you talked about religions and fighting. This is the answer that solves all the fighting and eliminates the need for fighting. Because what is God, not who is God? Here it comes, my friends. God is the universe. The universe itself is God. And when I say the universe, I mean the capital. You universe. Right? All these big bangs may happen, but it's this whole system that exists. That entire system, this capital universe, is itself God. God is the universe. The universe itself is God. And you, my friends, you are of the universe. By the universe. You live in the universe. You will die in the universe. You are for the universe. You know the in religion, they talk about God being in me. No, I say, excuse me. God is not in you. You are in God.

Yeah, you are in God. And you know what? You cannot take the universe out of me. You can kill me. You can burn me. You can bury me. But I'm part of the universe. You can never take the universe because I am born out of the universe. I am in the universe. I am always. You cannot separate me from the universe. The universe is in me. I am in the universe. God is the universe, which means I am off God by God, For God in God always. I always have been, and I always will be. And you can harm me. You can judge me, you can destroy me, but you cannot separate me from God. Yeah, it is impossible. It is impossible, my friends. It is impossible. I am the very essence of God. You are the very essence of God. All of us. Are part of God. We're part of this universe.

This God universe. That is what is so fascinating. And the idiots who say, I'm sorry, I should be careful. I should be nicer, be nicer. I will be nice. Who says my God versus your God? Don't know anything. Because when the universe is God, there is only one God.  That is not your universe. In my universe, I agree. Oh my God,

how do I claim this universe to be mine? Am I crazy? I have to be really crazy and really dumb to say this is my universe. No, I am part of this universe as much as you are. This is the God. This is the God universe.

 

Infinite. You know, when I was growing, and that's all there is. There's not this God, there's not that God, there's not your God, there's not my God. That is not my God. Yes, God is not like my father. I said, my father, my mother, my brother, my car. No, God is not an object that that is for you are to acquire and attain and preserve, my bank balance. My girlfriend, my boyfriend, my reputation, my career, my books, (my)....  It doesn't matter my religion. My doctrines. Oh my God, please, can you stop talking? Yes, this is the God universe I am part of? And if you quiet your mind enough and accept that you will understand it, hear it, and know God.

Oh my God, Jay, God bless you. It is when you quiet the mind. When the mind is quiet and you experience your life energy, you experience your infinite essence. Absolutely, absolutely. Oh my God, oh my God. I feel like wanting to get up and dance today. I need to do that. Let's do it. I promised you at the beginning that there would be no bending of hands hands. I'm sorry. I lied. I need to dance, jay his whole hands and dance. So I'm there. I'm coming to Central Park. We're going to do. We're going to do it. We're going to go to Central Park together. Central Park. Am I going to the tanks? Are we going to go to the Middle of Times Square to an old bold man holding hands and dancing?

Oh my God, if that's not going to be great. No. They need to see our joy and our happiness and understand it. My God, I am in the God universe. God is the universe. Yes sir. So then a physicist said, well, big man, God created. It's like, you know, send a firecracker up and you say, the firecracker God created and it created space.

Well, space always existed. The firecracker just came. Absolutely. Space cannot go anywhere. The universe has always existed. This Einstein, this man, this physicist, I think, has given the most profound spiritual statement when you said energy and matter cannot be destroyed or created, that means this has always existed, always, exists. Yeah. There may be other universes where the laws of physics are different, laws of chemistry are different.

But guess what? That whole system that works different universes, existing, different big bangs, that big capital, your universe is God itself. They said, but God created the universe. Yes, yes. And I don't want to sound so, he gets to call the saying, oh, I understand that, I see it, but I do. I sort of get it. I hope and wish that this podcast and you're speaking so beautifully on this, and I am looking forward to reading both these books, that I just wish this part of the world could get that much of it, this much of it, is what I hope you reach.

You’re doing a beautiful job. Can I stop the Israel-Hamas war tonight? Right now? Can I go to Gaza and say to friends, we're part of the God universe? What are you? . You can plant that seed. What are you fighting about? Yes, . If you're fighting about land, then say it this is about land, and we'll figure that out. Stick out, God! Out of this fight. Yes. Take God out of this fight. Nothing to do with this fight. And God nothing. The God universe doesn't care where the boundary is drawn. That is for humans to figure it out. And once you pick up God out of this fight, then the fight becomes very simple. Then there is no fight.

 

Then you say, Okay, then it's a negotiation. What do you need? Let me help you. Let me help you and how we respect each other. Yes, you may have a different culture and different values. I have a different culture. But guess what? We're part. We are in the same essence. You are no different. You may have a different culture, different values, different language, different upbringing, but I am part of the same God universe that you are.

That's it, I hear you. I’m with you.  We could stop now. I mean, my God, we could. You are one of the. And I've been doing this for a while, but this is one of my, I'm going to say this one of my favorite podcasts. And you're one of my favorite people. I got to say that I gotta say that you are one of the only men in my life who has explained how I live my life.

How beautiful. Yes. And I want to thank you. I thank you, and I want you on this show again. No, sir, I am your servant, you command. I will show up. I have no choice. You know why?  And I for you.  My friend. You are the God universe. If you command, I have to show up. I don't want to mess with you. You're the essence.  We say this in the most humbleness of humbleness because we understand that it's not us. It's. It's the universe. It is the universe. Yes. I am a drop in the ocean. Am I the ocean? I'm a grain in the sand in Jamaica. Yes, I'm a grain in the sand, I'm a drop in the ocean. But guess what, I am as much water as the entire ocean. Ocean? You cannot differentiate between me, the drop, and the ocean. You would be really stupid to try and do that. You go ahead and do that. I cannot stop you, right? But I am as much water. I am as much a property of water as the entire ocean. Absolutely. If that is not liberating, if that is not lifting, if everybody can understand that, but you are all of it. Yes, we are all of it. Every human being, all. If everybody understood that I would have heaven on earth right now.

Right here. Yes, sir. Oh my God, Jay, I want to urge everybody who is in New York to find Jay and go hug him. And he is in Central Park. He may try to run away but chase him down. I'll hug them. I will, I promise them. And if you find me, I'll hug you.

Oh, please hug Jay, dance with him in the middle of Central Park. Send me a video. If you take one. But be in the presence of Jay and Sir in the presence of you, wherever they can find you and seek you out. Because you my friend, are a wonderful messenger, and I appreciate you. And I thank you. And I look forward to the next time we do this.

So, with that said, Ravi, this is what I need to say now in closing. And with that, we will wrap up this wonderful and amazing episode of this choices podcast. I hope our time together was as inspiring and motivating as it was for me. Stay empowered and stay well. You can watch this episode and all episodes on our website at choicesgifts.com.

May you have peace and blessings, and we will see you next time.