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Cultivating Wise Hope

Cultivating Wise Hope is a 16 hour virtual retreat experience that explores hope, compassion and resilience through the lens of a diverse lineup of Bhakti, Buddhist, Christian and Sikh visionaries and teachers. This digital download features a wide spectrum of Dharma talks, meditation, storytelling, music and Q&A sessions.

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Sri Rudram, I took the plunge!

This simple certificate means the world to me. Staying home during COVID times allowed me to pursue studies into the roots of chanting and when I found my teacher Shantala Sriramaiah of VedaStudies.com, I took the plunge. I started by taking courses on shorter prayers and she convinced me that I would be able to dive into the one-year course to start learning Rudrapraśnah, so this past Shivaratri I was able to celebrate my course completion by chanting along with priest Prakash at Eddie Stern’s newly-reopened Broome Street Temple.

Showing up weekly at the crack of dawn and endeavoring to practice regularly gave me such a sense of purpose and continues to feed me in ways I hadn’t foreseen as I continue to learn by repetition. I loved hanging out virtually with students from all around the world - beginners and more seasoned practitioners.

Now, I’m hooked and knowing there’s a universe of Vedic chants, I’m happily continuing on this journey of study in this practice.

Omega | Dropping In Podcast - Bringing Chant to Life with Nina Rao

Nina Rao has her grandfather to thank for setting her on the path to sacred chant. It took many years and several professional pit stops—including commercial banking—before she found her way to kirtan and to becoming the musical assistant and business manager for Krishna Das (KD).

In this bonus episode of Dropping In, Nina walks her students through the ancient verses of her favorite chant, Hanuman Chalisa, during her Heart Practice of Chanting workshop with KD at Omega. The episode also features a performance with Nina, as well as a visit from KD, who muses about his early days in pursuit of enlightenment.

Join longtime public radio journalist Karen Michel for this and other episodes of Dropping In as she sits down with the great thinkers, creative talent, and social visionaries who teach at Omega Institute, to explore the many ways to awaken the best in the human spirit.

Originally published July 27, 2020

Nina Rao – Be Here Now Network Guest Podcast – Ep. 81 – Roots of Chanting w/ Shantala Sriramaiah & Eddie Stern

I am so honored to have had this discussion with my Vedic Sanskrit teacher Shantala Sriramaiah of Veda Studies and Eddie Stern. Please enjoy this podcast on Be Here Now Network at the link below, where Shantala shows how this chanting can be accessible to us ~

Nina Rao Chant invites Veda expert, Shantala Srirmaiah, and NYC yoga legend, Eddie Stern, to share the roots of chanting practice and ritual worship outlined in the Vedas.

Welcoming Sanskrit chanting and Veda expert, Shantala Sriramaiah; as well as NYC yoga legend, Eddie Stern; Nina Rao invites them into a unique and gripping conversation digging into the roots of chanting practice. After a bhav-radiating opening invocation to Hanuman-ji, Nina asks Shantala and Eddie about their teachers, families, and those who helped them along the spiritual path to learn about worship rituals, chanting, and puja.

“My father is someone who devotes himself to ritual and puja. His entire day is a puja. He grows his own flowers for the puja. And the collection of the flowers is itself a ritual. The way he arranges these flowers to be washed before the ceremony, itself is a ritual. It’s so meticulous, specific flowers for specific deities. He derives great joy from this.” – Shantala Sriramaiah

Listen to Be Here Now Network Guest Podcast
Ep. 81 – Roots of Chanting w/ Shantala Sriramaiah, Nina Rao & Eddie Stern

Nina Rao – Be Here Now Network Guest Podcast – Ep. 79 – Windfall of Grace w/ Japna Tulsi and Devadas Labrecque

In this episode of the Be Here Now Guest Podcast, Nina Rao and Devadas Labrecque speak with Japna Tulsi about her film, Windfall of Grace, which details the story of Neem Karoli Baba.

Japna Tulsi is a keen spiritual traveler. She has a background in Rural Development and has worked as a consultant with various NGOs in the field of environment and sustainable livelihoods. Responding to a deep desire to fulfill her higher calling, she embarked on a film project on Neem Karoli Baba in August 2017 as an amateur filmmaker. The result is Windall of Grace.

Devadas Labrecque is a devotee of Mata Amritanandamayi, a kirtaniya, a composer, and an artist hailing from Brooklyn, New York. He leads kirtans throughout the world and has produced a wide variety of recordings, including Nina Rao’s chant album, Antarayaami.

Go to windfallofgrace.com now to stream the film today.

Nina welcomes Japna and asks about deciding to make a film without having any background in filmmaking. Devadas speaks with Japna about her process of making the film and finding many of Neem Karoli Baba’s Indian devotees to interview. Japna talks about how KK Sah influenced the film.

“[KK Sah] would always tell me… ‘Don’t listen to anyone, just do what you think is right.’ And that really was important for me.” – Japna Tulsi

It’s Just Love (19:47)

Nina and Japna dig deeper into the process, discussing how the music and some of the more stylized scenes came together, and also how the film really reinforced their faith. They talk about why Japna wanted to make a film about a lesser-known saint, and how the filmmaking process itself became a spiritual journey for her.

“Suddenly, when I found Maharajji, it was like you don’t have to do anything, it’s just love.” – Japna Tulsi

Raghu Markus, Krishna Das, Daniel Goleman, and Rameshwar Das share stories of Ram Dass, Maharajji, and India on Mindrolling Ep. 392

A Culmination (39:34)

Nina and Japna discuss the Western devotees that she interviewed, and how she missed out on talking with Ram Dass. Devadas asks Japna about her daughter and the role she played during the editing process. Nina wraps things up by asking Japna about how this project has transformed her life.

“This film, I felt, was sort of like a culmination, not just for [Japna] as a filmmaker, but also for us viewers, and brought together many generations of people.” – Nina Rao

Jocelyn Kay Levy – BHNN Guest Podcast – Ep. 76 – Mothers’ Perspective on Practice with Nina Rao

March 31, 2021

Yoga innovator, Jocelyn Kay Levy, is joined by kirtan wallah, Nina Rao, to share Mothers’ perspectives on spiritual practice, offering personal stories and advice from Siddhi Ma.

Jocelyn Kay Levy, the founder of the world-renowned Wee Yogis Organization, is a dedicated yogi, musician and social innovator with over 15 years of experience teaching transformational workshops and performing original music. Jocelyn is committed to creating fun, thoughtful and effective learning environments where music, movement and healing unite the mind, body and soul, creating a connection that decreases stress, builds confidence, and maintains a connection to childlike wonder

Mothers’ Perspective on Practice

Through the lens of the yoga and mindfulness practices and life skills she brings to children through her Wee Yogis Organization, Jocelyn Kay Levy invites Nina Rao to share from a mother’s perspective, what it is like bringing a daughter into the world, and then raising her within the context of spirituality. Nina describes how even in the womb, her child was being steeped in prayer, practice, blessing, and bhav (devotional essence).

“I really felt [my daughter] was going to receive the blessings of the Guru, of the Divine Ones, if I did my practice. In the same way we choose what we’re going to eat, how we’re going to sleep, we care for our bodies when we have our babies inside. Same way, if I was feeding myself spiritually, she would also be nourished.” – Nina Rao

“We want our children to be a particular way, to follow a particular path, but the only path that exists for them is their own. What Siddhi Ma said to me was: Nina, she already knows everything. All you have to do is raise her, feed her, show her love, give her good education, and raise her to be a capable adult.” – Nina Rao