"Call and Response" podcast series is made possible by the Kirtan Wallah Foundation: Your support via direct donations are tax deductible under 501c3 guidelines and go toward new offerings such as this series as well as the the compilation of all of KD’s work on the Path, for the purpose of sharing it with everyone in a variety of media. It is also the intention of Kirtan Wallah Foundation to eventually be able to offer assistance to organizations around the world, whose efforts are in alignment with the teachings of Neem Karoli Baba.
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"Call and Response" podcast series is made possible by the Kirtan Wallah Foundation: Your support via direct donations are tax deductible under 501c3 guidelines and go toward new offerings such as this series as well as the the compilation of all of KD’s work on the Path, for the purpose of sharing it with everyone in a variety of media. It is also the intention of Kirtan Wallah Foundation to eventually be able to offer assistance to organizations around the world, whose efforts are in alignment with the teachings of Neem Karoli Baba.
Call and Response Ep. 72 | Family Troubles, Chant Etiquette
Q: I was curious if you could speak to having family members that are making choices that seem not helpful for them.
“People are going to do what they’re going to do. There’s not a lot we can do about that. We wouldn’t want anybody telling us what to do and the first step is letting them be who they are, you know? And hopefully, if you are with them in a way that’s not judgmental or you know, they might feel comfortable enough sharing with you what they’re going through and in that process they can open up a little bit. But if you’re going to be the enemy, there’s no way they’re going to be open.” – Krishna Das
KD: Hi.
Q: Hello.
KD: Hi.
Q: Ok. Hi.
KD: Ok.
Q: I was curious if you could speak to having family members that are making choices that seem not helpful for them and…
KD: Or you.
Q: Definitely not for me, I know. I might be about me. But I don’t know if you have some sort of… reaching to people who are not reachable at the moment from family members.
KD: Yeah, well, first thing we say is, “If you want to know how your spiritual practice is going, visit your family.” Nothing will show you your stuff as quickly as that. You know, yeah. People are going to do what they’re going to do. There’s not a lot we can do about that. We wouldn’t want anybody telling us what to do and the first step is letting them be who they are, you know? And hopefully, if you are with them in a way that’s not judgmental or you know, they might feel comfortable enough sharing with you what they’re going through and in that process they can open up a little bit. But if you’re going to be the enemy, there’s no way they’re going to be open. It’s not easy, because we want them to be happy and we think we know how they’re going to be happy and we think we know that what they’re doing is not, you know, good for them but, you know, they don’t know that. There’s a rule in India about grandparents. This is how grandparents have to behave in India. You know, you don’t say nothing and I’m a grandparent now and I try to follow that rule. I mean, you know, I know my daughter, I know where she got her stuff from. Hello. You know? So, how can I get, you know, what can I say? You know? I could just try to be available if anyone is interested, which is almost never. So, if that’s going to hurt me, I mean, if that’s going to make me crazy, that’s not fun. It makes her mother crazy. Ha ha ha. Which I like. No, I don’t. Much. So, you know, it’s a letting, you’ve gotta, you know, but on the other hand, you know, you want someone to feel that they care for them. That they’re cared for by you, regardless of what they’re doing, you care for who they are. So it’s a tricky thing, you know. We get caught in our own wantings for people. On the other hand, you have to think, you have to use your own, you have to trust your own intuition about situations. There are times when you just have to, you know, where it might be helpful to put your hand up. “Stop, now.” Or “Not here.” You know? You have to, if you can create some boundaries that they agree to respect, that’s a big thing, if the boundaries aren’t angry boundaries, you know? It’s not easy because nobody did that for us, right? I mean, not for me. Not my house. I wasn’t allowed to have boundaries so I grew up, it was very hard to learn how to say “no” and it was even to learn how to say, “thank you,” was hard. Because where was I? Who was I? Where was I standing to do that? You know? So, to make boundaries is, but it’s hard. But you know, if someone feels you’ve always been on their side, even if you haven’t been overly, you know, then they can come back at a certain point. You might be there. It might be good. But I’m sure people know better than me, so read a book or something. There must be books about this stuff.
Q: Hi.
KD: Hi.
Q: First I want to say,
Call and Response with Krishna Das
"Call and Response" podcast series is made possible by the Kirtan Wallah Foundation: Your support via direct donations are tax deductible under 501c3 guidelines and go toward new offerings such as this series as well as the the compilation of all of KD’s work on the Path, for the purpose of sharing it with everyone in a variety of media. It is also the intention of Kirtan Wallah Foundation to eventually be able to offer assistance to organizations around the world, whose efforts are in alignment with the teachings of Neem Karoli Baba.
