Jahnavi: How to Create Inner Calm When Life Feels Overwhelming (THIS Simple Daily Practice When Your Mind Won't Stop!)

Today, Jay sits down with longtime friend and Grammy-nominated devotional artist Jahnavi Harrison for a deeply personal conversation about faith, creativity, and living a life of service. Together, they reflect on spiritual grounding as a daily practice, not rooted in perfection but in the ability to remain steady through uncertainty and change. Jay and Jahnavi explore the often unseen journey behind purpose-driven work, how passion gradually becomes discipline, and discipline shapes a life of devotion. They unpack the courage it takes to walk a less conventional path, especially in a world that often values conformity and external validation. Through stories of growing up between two worlds, wrestling with self-expression, and finding healing through music and mantra, they invite us to reconsider success not as achievement, but as alignment. As the conversation unfolds, their focus turns to prayer, service, and staying connected when you feel lost. Jay and Jahnavi share why speaking to God, serving others, and creating space for vulnerability can become powerful anchors during difficult seasons. Ultimately, this conversation reminds us that spirituality isn’t about having everything figured out, it’s about showing up with sincerity, listening deeply, and choosing to give, even when the path ahead is unclear. In this interview, you'll learn: How to Find Peace Through Sacred Sound How to Stay Grounded When Life Feels Overwhelming How to Turn Doubt Into a Deeper Faith How to Express Yourself When You Feel Invisible How to Trust Your Intuition Over External Pressure How to Integrate Spirituality Into Everyday Life How to Reconnect With Purpose Through Service How to Talk to God in Your Own Way You are allowed to take your time, to find your voice in your own way, and to choose a path that feels meaningful rather than impressive. Healing and purpose don’t come from perfection, but from showing up sincerely and trusting that what you offer with love will return in its own time. Check out Jahnavi’s Grammy nominated album Into the Forest here. With Love and Gratitude, Jay Shetty Join over 750,000 people to receive my most transformative wisdom directly in your inbox every single week with my free newsletter. Subscribe here. Check out our Apple subscription to unlock bonus content of On Purpose! https://lnk.to/JayShettyPodcast What We Discuss: 00:00 Intro 04:06 What Truly Defines Who You Are 06:06 Are You Actively Seeking Truth? 08:54 Where a Love for Music First Began 10:31 Understanding Devotional Mantra Music 13:31 Growing Up With an Unconventional Education 21:35 Navigating Identity and Belonging 24:27 Learning to Trust Your Inner Confidence 25:27 When Parents Are Doing Their Best 27:49 Questioning Life Within a Spiritual Community 31:02 From Curiosity to Creative Mastery 34:51 Experiencing the Divine Through Sound 36:43 Creating Space for Others to Feel Free 39:39 When Music Becomes Healing 41:35 Turning Personal Prayer Into Shared Experience 45:23 The Biggest Misconceptions About Spiritual People 49:17 Growing Up Surrounded by Spiritual Validation 51:05 Holding a Safe Space for Spiritual Exploration 54:22 Navigating a Crisis of Faith 56:45 What It Feels Like to Lose Faith 59:35 Using Meditation to Access Stillness 01:03:09 Asking Yourself, “Am I Being of Service?” 01:09:20 Jahnavi on Final Five Episode Resources: Jahnavi Harrison | Website Jahnavi Harrison | Instagram Jahnavi Harrison | Facebook Jahnavi Harrison | YouTube Jahnavi Harrison | X See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Jay Shetty?

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• 0:41Jay Shetty?

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• 1:26Jay Shetty?

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• 2:01Jahnavi Harrison?

  There's so many different ways that people pray. For some people, it's very spontaneous. Some people have a very ritualized way of placing their body in a certain position or doing certain actions. I think all of those things are designed to bring us into a certain state of mind and of being.

• 2:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  That allows, can allow you to express some of these deepest sentiments that are otherwise quite hard to access.

• 2:29Jay Shetty?

  Hey, everyone. Welcome back to On Purpose, the place you come to become happier, healthier and more healed. Today's guest is one of my dearest friends of the last 20 years, but she's also one of the most talented musicians. She uses music not just to entertain, but to heal. Jahnavi is a devotional singer, writer and artist, whose voice has become a refuge for people searching for peace and spiritual grounding. Through her performances, recordings and global workshops, Jahnavi has devoted her life to helping people experience the power of mantra, meditation and sacred sound. Her work invites us to pause, breathe

• 3:10Jay Shetty?

  and reconnect with our inner life. And she's also been nominated for her very first Grammy. If you're part of the Academy, this is my personal request, go and vote for her. I'm so excited to welcome to On Purpose my dear friend, Jahnavi Harrison. Jahnavi, it's so wonderful to have you here.

• 3:30Jahnavi Harrison?

  I just got a massive confidence boost.

• 3:33Jay Shetty?

  You, I mean, I just want to let people know, so I've known you now for like 20 years. And I met you through our Temple and Spiritual Community in London, which is where we first met. And we would have both been at college or something like that. And I am so fortunate and so excited about this because sometimes I post these pictures of me on the, on social media, which are like how it started, how it's going. And all of those how it started, so many of them were with you. So me and Jahnavi, for everyone who doesn't know, what we would do is, we would do events together where I would speak and Jahnavi would lead mantra meditation and we would like, that was like our duo.

• 4:14Jahnavi Harrison?

  Tag team.

• 4:14Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, exactly. And we'd travel all over England. We did events in London, we did events in Weymouth, we did events.

• 4:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  Cambridge.

• 4:22Jay Shetty?

  Cambridge. We did events in maybe Oxford. We did, we would do events, and we've done this for years together. And. That's always what we did. It was always our do. And then since I moved to L A, Jahnavi comes to my house every single year and we do an event where Radhi will organize this beautiful gathering of all of our friends and Jahnavi will lead a meditation and people are always so moved and just it's it's pretty amazing like thinking about being friends for twenty years and seeing our our relationship has always been service based

• 4:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 4:52Jay Shetty?

  of wanting to give spiritual experiences to others.

• 4:55Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 4:55Jay Shetty?

  But at the same time, you lived with us during the pandemic.

• 4:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  I did.

• 4:59Jay Shetty?

  For a few months, I think.

• 5:00Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, surprisingly, I did. Yeah.

• 5:02Jay Shetty?

  Uh, so I'm really excited because rarely do I get to sit with someone that I've known for twenty years on the show.

• 5:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 5:08Jay Shetty?

  And and I'm so excited that you've been nominated for a Grammy. I mean, it's just such a like

• 5:12Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you.

• 5:12Jay Shetty?

  monumental, historical occasion for, you know, our whole tradition.

• 5:17Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 5:17Jay Shetty?

  Uh, and to really see that just how far you've taken spiritual mantra music to help people and it's such a how does it feel? I mean?

• 5:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  It's it's a huge honor. And like you said, it's it feels like an honor, not, you know, it's it's part of our training. And um, I think that the spiritual tradition that I've grown up in that, you know, you you get an honor and it might have your name attached to it. But you think about how many people have brought you to that moment, how many hands and hearts and minds have all collaborated to, you know, whether it's creating something or whatever it is, um, it's such a collective endeavor. So I feel honored personally, but I feel honored on behalf of everybody. And yeah, it's it's incredible.

• 6:06Jay Shetty?

  It's it's amazing. I mean, you've, you know what? It's really interesting because obviously I've seen you grow and, you know, you you tour the world, you do retreats, uh, you know, you made an album with our dear friend Willow, who you came on the podcast with last time. It's been amazing to watch, but I almost, this is really exciting for me because even when you know someone, when I get to sit in the interview with them, I'm always thinking, I'm actually going to get to know them in a way that I don't before.

• 6:31Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 6:31Jay Shetty?

  So I want to go back to your childhood.

• 6:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 6:34Jay Shetty?

  And I want to ask you, what is a childhood memory that you have that you feel defines who you are today or embodies who you are today?

• 6:44Jahnavi Harrison?

  Wow. Well, I know with these kind of things, you should you're supposed to say the very first thing that comes into your head. And I'm seeing myself in a field near my house. Um, you know, I grew up outside of London, but it's not that far from the city. But it's an area that there's a lot of protected farmland and stuff. So there's a lot of fields and forest and it really feels quite rural. And these fields were um, close to my house. So I used to love walking, cycling there and just being in nature. And uh, yeah, they, they would rotate the, the crops and the things that were grown in the field.

• 7:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  And certain years, there would be these incredible um, yellow flowers, rape seed flowers are sometimes called mustard flowers. And you could just kind of walk amongst them and be completely engulfed by these yellow flowers, yellow as far as I could see. So I don't know why that came to my head, but yeah, that, I guess that's something that's defined um, who I am, connection to nature and just, yeah, finding a lot of inspiration in that.

• 7:55Jay Shetty?

  Do you still spend a lot of time in nature?

• 7:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  I try to, yeah, yeah, I do.

• 7:59Jay Shetty?

  In where, is it where you are now or when you go back home? Because I know you don't live in London.

• 8:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, yeah, I mean, for the last, um, you know, almost three years, we've been living in the Bay Area. So that's, that's famous around the world for the incredible nature. So now we've got the redwood trees and you know, the incredible um, California coast. So yeah, we try to be out in that environment as much as possible. But I love to like, uh, you know, I, I consider myself a bit of a, a tree nerd. So wherever I go in the world, I'm always trying to learn about what trees are around. And yeah, it's just something that inspires me a lot.

• 8:35Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I mean, I obviously know your parents. Your, your dad actually uh, was our wedding priest for me and Radi.

• 8:41Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 8:41Jay Shetty?

  And so he actually did our wedding ceremony and uh, I've known your parents for twenty years now as well. And they've always been just so wonderful and you know, they're so loved by our community.

• 8:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 8:53Jay Shetty?

  And everyone has such an affinity for them, like what? What do you think each of them gave you growing up? That you carry with yourself today? Like, what was a quality or a value or a belief? Or even mindset? That you think has really stayed with you for all these years?

• 9:09Jahnavi Harrison?

  They're both truth seekers. That's something that I think brought them together. I mean, they both joined the spiritual community for, I think, around a decade before they got married. So they came from their respective religious traditions that they were brought up with and even countries. You know, my mom's from Canada. And both of them went on a personal odyssey of a sort, you know, searching for truth and meaning, purpose in life. So I think that courage to depart from the script that's being given, which I know a lot of people had in the, you know, the sixties, seventies, a lot of young people felt emboldened to to take some unconventional steps.

• 9:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  But not only did they sort of try that on, but they've committed to that life and to deepening, I think, with every year and to have parents that are, yeah, they're so committed to a life of service and devotion and community. I think both of them in their own way, my mom's, my mom's the one, I mean, actually, both of them are are very people people, you know? They, they know a lot of people, they remember people's names, but they really care about people as well. I think in our community, if they walk from point A to point B, you know, like a five minute walk,

• 10:36Jahnavi Harrison?

  they'll be stopping constantly with every person and and care about what's going on in their life at the moment. So I think that's something that's made a deep impression on me. It's It's hard to follow in their footsteps, you know.

• 10:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  In my life and I guess in the life of all of us who have grown up with the internet and social media, we have the ability to be connected to so many more people than ever before. And it's difficult to bring that same quality of presence and attention and care to all of our interactions. But it's a kind of a gold standard that I have in my mind. Yeah, so much. It's hard to, hard to measure all the things you've received from your parents.

• 11:21Jay Shetty?

  Did you always know that you wanted to create music? Did you always know that?

• 11:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  I didn't know that I wanted to create music in a formal way, but I was always, I think I was always doing it without consciously realizing that was a thing. Like I just, when I was home recently, my mom had some cassette tapes from, that I, I used to record myself, you know.

• 11:46Jay Shetty?

  At what age?

• 11:47Jahnavi Harrison?

  Um, like probably seven, eight, nine years old. And I had a, one of those keyboards, Casio keyboard, and I would just put on a drum beat. And I would just play, I didn't know how to play keyboard, but I had total lack of, you know, inhibition. I'd just record myself spontaneously and I would sing a bit, tell a story, make up the story as I went along. And they were just meant for my sister to hear, like bedtime stories and stuff like that. But when I listen back, I, I was like, oh, I guess I was kind of making up songs and things like that. But yeah, it wasn't.

• 12:24Jay Shetty?

  Were you any good now when you listen back, like?

• 12:26Jahnavi Harrison?

  No, it was embarrassing. It was really embarrassing.

• 12:29Jay Shetty?

  We need to hear them. I need to hear this.

• 12:30Jahnavi Harrison?

  I, I think I'm gonna, I'm gonna digitize them just so I can listen back and be like, wow, I've come a long way. But I, I mean, I love to sing. You know, I grew up surrounded by music. My dad and mom both love singing. My dad was really well known for his voice and

• 12:50Jahnavi Harrison?

  yeah, we, we sung as a family together. So I think it was just always around me. But I'm, you know, quite introverted by nature. So I was never like, I want to be a singer, you know.

• 13:00Jay Shetty?

  What do you, what do you think, what's the difference for someone who doesn't know?

• 13:03Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 13:03Jay Shetty?

  What's the difference between devotional mantra music?

• 13:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 13:07Jay Shetty?

  And popular music or music in general? Like, how would you? Differentiate them.

• 13:13Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think there's a few key differences. One is, one is the most obvious, which is, which is the lyrics. With, with mantra music specifically, a mantra is, you know, a sacred word or phrase, often containing names that refer to the, to the supreme being. And it's repeated. So, you know, people's first reaction is like, often what, oh, why is that? Why are you saying the same thing over and over again? But the idea is that it's a type of purifying. Like, I always think of a washing machine, you know? If you had clothes that were really dirty, you'd, you'd put them in the washing machine a few times

• 13:54Jahnavi Harrison?

  or something like that. So it's, it's sound vibration that is intended to, to clarify, purify the heart and mind. But I think the other key difference is the intention of the music. So the intention is often, prayer is to connect, like you were saying at the beginning, to that sacred space within. Whereas I think, you know, music can have all kinds of intentions. There can be the intention of the artist just to express something, to just to connect with the listener or just to entertain. I don't mean just in a, you know, to minimize what that is, but yeah, the quality of it is different. You can, you can encounter that. You can feel it.

• 14:35Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, no, it's a, I remember when I first got exposed to it, it was addictive and intoxicating in, in a way that was something I hadn't experienced before. I remember my, my friends and I would love going out to parties and clubs and things like that. And then when I heard devotional music for the first time, I was, I was like, wait, why do I like this? Like, you know, but it felt familiar and it felt, it felt like it, I don't know, connected with a part of me that. Had been buried for some time or not, you know, not awakened and yeah, it has a really special quality. And now, obviously, years later, it's it's one of my favorite things to experience, especially when

• 15:14Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 15:15Jay Shetty?

  When you're chanting, but.

• 15:16Jahnavi Harrison?

  Did you feel that straight away? Do you remember if you, did it take a while to appreciate it or immediately?

• 15:22Jay Shetty?

  On my, on one of the first retreats I went on, like I felt it immediately. It was, there was a part of it that was just fun because there's so much, you know, there's dancing, there's chanting, like it's

• 15:32Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 15:32Jay Shetty?

  It's such a celebration.

• 15:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, it's not always just sitting in meditation.

• 15:37Jay Shetty?

  Exactly. It's so festive.

• 15:38Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 15:39Jay Shetty?

  So I think there's a part of that.

• 15:41Jahnavi Harrison?

  Hmm.

• 15:41Jay Shetty?

  But there were, there were certain people and um, yeah, I'll tell you later of who specifically, but like, yeah, there were, there were just, there were just specific. There, there were definitely experiences I had very early on that made me very convinced that the practice made sense and it was beautiful and

• 15:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 15:57Jay Shetty?

  And special, but um, but yeah, how, so if you were, so you were always artistic, as in you're always playing around.

• 16:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 16:05Jay Shetty?

  Talk to me about the discovery, because so much of our community and our audience

• 16:08Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 16:09Jay Shetty?

  Is always in the pursuit of their passion.

• 16:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  Mm hmm.

• 16:11Jay Shetty?

  And obviously, you're doing something you love.

• 16:13Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 16:13Jay Shetty?

  You're doing something that's more niche. You're also doing it extremely successfully. This is what you do. It's what you offer to the world. And I think often we live in a world today where we think, oh, if I'm not doing something that's really mainstream, and if I'm not doing something that has millions of followers and has, then I can't do it and then it can't be successful and it can't take care of me and my family. And I think there are people like yourself and others I know that have found something you love, that serves other people, makes them happy, is able to, you know, get nominated for a Grammy.

• 16:43Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 16:43Jay Shetty?

  Uh, talk to me about the discovery, the early discovery of this passion, or maybe it's not, maybe it was always a passion, but the discovery of mastery of it.

• 16:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  Hmm.

• 16:53Jay Shetty?

  What did you, what did you study at college? What did you think you, actually, let's go backwards. What did you think you were gonna be when you were like eleven years old? Because I feel we all get asked that question. What did you, what did you write? I'm intrigued. What did you write?

• 17:06Jahnavi Harrison?

  I remember, um, so I, I went to school at the temple, in the temple community, till I was about ten years old, and then I went to, um, you know, a, a bigger, regular school. And uh

• 17:19Jay Shetty?

  What was that transition like?

• 17:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  That was hard, it was really hard.

• 17:23Jay Shetty?

  Talk to me about the difference. So I didn't go to a school like that.

• 17:25Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 17:25Jay Shetty?

  I only ever went to public schools and grammar schools in England and

• 17:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 17:29Jay Shetty?

  I ever went to a spiritual school. So talk to me about what that means.

• 17:32Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 17:32Jay Shetty?

  And then the transition from.

• 17:34Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, so the school at the temple, so um the place where I went to school is called Bhaktivedanta Manor and uh you know, it's in in many ways, an idyllic environment. There's, you know, it's kind of eighty acres of beautiful um country land. There's cows there. There's a beautiful lake. Um it was a very special environment to grow up in. The school was very small, so we had very individual attention from the teachers. Um there was a lot of singing, drama, um art, you know, in addition to the usual things we studied. And also, we we would lead um

• 18:16Jahnavi Harrison?

  the chanting in the temple once a week as a whole school. So we were doing

• 18:21Jay Shetty?

  Are you still learning the national curriculum?

• 18:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yes, we were doing the national curriculum. So we were doing all the regular subjects, but we would also have time where we would study texts like the Bhagavad Gita. We would learn, you know, verses and things even from four or five years old. So um it's a very unique way to grow up. Like I, for me, it was all I knew. Um but we used to have, there would be um schools that would visit the temple as part of their religious education. You know, I think some people might not know in the UK, religious education is compulsory in school. So you go out to places of worship and see how, you know, how other people live. So we would have these kids looking through the window, like pressing their nose against the window, looking. So we'd be like, we're not, we're not zoo animals.

• 19:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  But they were curious and and we also didn't know what their school experience was like. Um but yeah, for me, it was normal. And I didn't realize when I went out to, you know, a more kind of conventional school, that most kids don't um learn, you know, songs in ancient Sanskrit when they're young and talk about death and reincarnation from a young age and the soul and things like that, you know, it kind of makes you a bit weird. It's other kids. And I also didn't have that much exposure to to pop culture, you know, so.

• 19:43Jay Shetty?

  But you only realized that when you went to.

• 19:45Jahnavi Harrison?

  When I transitioned.

• 19:46Jay Shetty?

  Went to high school.

• 19:47Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 19:47Jay Shetty?

  You didn't know that until then.

• 19:49Jahnavi Harrison?

  I didn't know that, but it was a bit of a rude awakening anyways.

• 19:51Jay Shetty?

  Tell me about it like.

• 19:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I mean, I was I I was confident in my world, but coming out of my world, I felt extremely vulnerable and shy. Um, you know, sometimes people say, oh, when did you give yourself the name Genevieve? And I'm like, no, I I was given the same when I was born, you know, and I chose to keep that as my name when I went to regular school. So then, anyone who has an unusual name knows the embarrassment of like, the teacher pausing when they get to your name and the kids all laugh, or whatever those things, kind of things are. Um, even being vegetarian at that time was quite unusual. I think it's much more common now.

• 20:32Jahnavi Harrison?

  Um, I just wanted to disappear. I didn't want to be comment worthy in any way. And yeah, that was really hard, because I was trying to erase, I was trying to erase myself in a way, so that no one would have anything to say or make fun of.

• 20:51Jay Shetty?

  Because you were coming with a different name, a different culture.

• 20:54Jahnavi Harrison?

  Different name. Yeah. Why do you have white skin, but you say you're you're Hindu? Your name is weird? Can we just call you something else? Why do you eat that? You know, it's, they're pretty innocuous questions in one sense, but kids can, everyone knows kids can be really mean as well.

• 21:11Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 21:12Jahnavi Harrison?

  Um, I didn't even grow up, you know, with, like, I didn't grow up around that many kids. So suddenly being in a class of thirty kids, it can be quite a sensory overload also, if you're sensitive. Um, and it's just, I think it's about also having the confidence as a young person to speak about, why, why did you grow up in this way? What are the things that you believe in? You know, sometimes you don't kind of have that experience till you're a bit older. And, um, yeah, I just didn't have the words to describe it. So I'd rather become silent. Um, so that was really difficult. I felt like I'd.

• 21:50Jahnavi Harrison?

  Been kicked out of the nest, you know, the bir- the baby bird kicked out of the nest and I couldn't get back to the nest. Cause you change through those difficult experiences. You're no longer. I remember um I did wear a school uniform at the temple school. Um but it was a different kind of school uniform when I went to the other schools. And my, I remember my parents were saying, oh, why don't you come, you know, that there's a worship service at the temple every morning? And they were saying, why don't, why don't we go before school? You can go in the temple. And I was like, well, I'll have to wear my uniform. And they were like, that's okay. You can just come in your uniform and come for, you know, ten minutes, then we'll go to school.

• 22:31Jahnavi Harrison?

  And I was like, I can't. And they said, why can't you? And I, I was trying to describe it, but I was trying to say that. When I put that uniform on, I have to become someone else. I can't, if, it's almost like I felt like I would implode or something if I tried to be that person at the temple. It was just like two different masks I had to wear or characters, roles that I was playing.

• 22:53Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 22:54Jahnavi Harrison?

  So, learning how to integrate and just be yourself in all environments, that was a real journey.

• 23:01Jay Shetty?

  Going back into the world of work was a culture shock.

• 23:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 23:05Jay Shetty?

  And it was very, very different. It was almost easier to go into the monastery than it was to get out. Because getting out felt like, wait a minute, I've been practicing all these things for three years. And now I have to go to a wine and pizza tasting networking event. And I don't drink and there's things I don't eat anymore and things like that and just having to adjust. And so it's.

• 23:29Jahnavi Harrison?

  It's embarrassing.

• 23:29Jay Shetty?

  It's, it was, it's, it's, yeah, it's hard. And, and I did that as an adult. So to me, it was hard, but it was so much easier. It was somewhat easier.

• 23:36Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 23:36Jay Shetty?

  But to do that as a teenager is like, you know, is, is super hard. What did it? What actually helped to integrate? Well, how did you integrate these two seemingly opposite lives? That seemed to contradict themselves. Uh, what, what did you do to integrate? What did that look like?

• 23:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I think in my school, the school, school years, like, you know, till.

• 24:00Jahnavi Harrison?

  Eighteen or so, I just really struggled. It kind of felt like a dark tunnel those years, cause not, not that every day was dark, but it just, I just didn't feel like I could find that confidence and that self-assurance to feel, yeah, grounded in who I am. And I kind of um went back and forth in and out of, you know, I'd go to a regular school for a year and then I would actually, I mean, several times, I kind of made myself sick actually with anxiety. Um, I started developing stomach issues and I get headaches every single day. I wouldn't eat at school, I wouldn't, you know, I'd just save my lunch and eat it on

• 24:45Jahnavi Harrison?

  the bus on the way home. Just like all these behaviors that were not, I don't know why I was doing those things. Um, so then I'd tell my parents, okay, I'd, I wanna do like homeschooling for a while and I'd do that, but then, you know, I, I could tell myself that I have, um, it's not like I'm like super academic, but I, I need to be stretched a bit, like when, when you're in that comfort zone of home, or you're just with friends, or your parents telling you to do things, you don't, you don't always push yourself. So I would kind of yearn for that environment again and go back into it and then feel like, oh, I don't think I can do this. Um, and I think, I think things really changed when I started to feel like I could take

• 25:29Jahnavi Harrison?

  agency for myself and start to take, have a bit more confidence in choosing the, the direction of my education, which I think maybe for many people comes around university and you're kind of starting to hone in on, you know, what you want to do. But I was gonna say, you were, you were saying, you know, when you were eleven, what did you want to do with your life? And I remember sitting on the school bus and writing, I remember like three long lists on the page and they were just all these different artistic things. And I would keep going back to the list and every time I would learn something more about each of those creative careers, I might cross one off and it was like florist and special effects makeup artist.

• 26:13Jahnavi Harrison?

  And my, my dad would sometimes take me to like do, you know, work shadowing with different people, just to, just to try and see what it was, what it was all about. But yeah, I had no idea where my journey would.

• 26:26Jay Shetty?

  Did you ever narrow it down to one or no?

• 26:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  No, I never, no.

• 26:29Jay Shetty?

  That's so funny.

• 26:30Jahnavi Harrison?

  I'm still working on that.

• 26:32Jay Shetty?

  Was it hard to go from secondary school or high school to college, like to university? Was that hard, that transition? Or was university not that hard?

• 26:41Jahnavi Harrison?

  That was easier, that was easier, because by that time, I think I'd I'd developed some confidence. I did my A levels very unconventionally through evening classes, which I was with older people that I found easier to be around, because I don't know, I just think I'd also grown up around a lot of older people and I found I did really well doing studying independently a lot. And so I think that gave me a lot of confidence, like choosing how I was going to study, you know. Then I finished the A levels in a year instead of two years. It's like a different way of approaching it. And then I I started to feel like, okay, you know, I just, yeah, felt different in myself. I mean, you grow up.

• 27:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  So I think university, college, also, people are a lot more open minded, I've found. You start realizing that it can be cool to be different, rather than just something to be made fun of.

• 27:41Jay Shetty?

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• 28:24Jay Shetty?

  That's indeed.com/podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire? This is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs.

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• 29:02Jay Shetty?

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• 29:45Jay Shetty?

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• 30:24Jay Shetty?

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• 30:46Jay Shetty?

  Did you have any wisdom from the spiritual traditional community that you carried through with you that helped you through those tough times? Or do you feel it was you were trying to keep it out so much that it didn't really even have a chance? Like, I really felt that when I went back into the world of work, the thing that I held on to the most that really changed my life, I genuinely mean it, was the the verse that says, uh, when you protect your purpose, your purpose protects you. And I'm translating Dharma as purpose in that regard. The originally is when you protect your Dharma, your Dharma protects you.

• 31:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 31:22Jay Shetty?

  And when I heard that verse, that was just profound to me and I started to want to protect what I believed my Dharma was, rather than neglect it and reject it to move toward what the world was trying to get me to focus on.

• 31:37Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 31:37Jay Shetty?

  And that acted as a real compass for me when I was feeling unsure. Was there anything for you? I'm just intrigued. Or was it so like you were like, this is so alien, I have to keep it separate that you were just trying to avoid it?

• 31:49Jahnavi Harrison?

  That's such a great question. I don't think I've thought about it in that way before. I, I don't remember actually taking strength from the spiritual tradition, like independently. I think my parents would try to help me with that. And I, I know for sure, I think on an emotional level, my mom was trying to care for me in every way possible. I mean, I really gave my parents a hard time. I'm also the eldest, so I was the first of the children to go out to school and

• 32:17Jay Shetty?

  What do you mean you gave them a hard time?

• 32:19Jahnavi Harrison?

  I would cry every day. I would beg not to go to school. Um. I think they were just, you know, parents are just trying to do the best for you. They wanted me to have opportunity. They wanted me to to grow intellectually, to, you know, to do well in studies and everything. And I think they were really confused about like, how can we make her be happy and just embrace this with confidence and not just be kind of yeah, stressed and anxious all the time?

• 32:48Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 32:49Jahnavi Harrison?

  So, yeah, I feel, I feel really sorry for what, you know, putting them through that.

• 32:55Jahnavi Harrison?

  But they were definitely really trying to help also from a spiritual perspective always and, you know, in, in simple and digestible ways. But I think, yeah, it was It was difficult for me to really integrate that at the time.

• 33:07Jay Shetty?

  Did you, so many kids who grew up in religious and spiritual communities.

• 33:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 33:12Jay Shetty?

  End up leaving.

• 33:13Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 33:13Jay Shetty?

  Did you ever consider it?

• 33:15Jahnavi Harrison?

  Not at the time, not at the time. And people would always ask me that and I would, it was like a very common question. Especially from people outside of the tradition, they'd always be like, so did you ever wanna just rebel and just leave? And I would always very confidently say, no, no, I never really had that inclination. One of the reasons I think with that is that my parents have been always very broad minded, very open to talking about anything. And I would have a lot of conversations, especially with my dad about any, you know, any theological questions, philosophical things, doubts that would come to my mind, we would always talk about it and he's um very well read, very extensively in many different traditions. So

• 33:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  he'll always have some great insight to offer. So I didn't feel that pull, but I think what I didn't know was that, you know, doubt and crisis of faith or looking at your tradition from a different lens, it doesn't necessarily always happen in those formative teen times. Sometimes it can come later on, or sometimes comes multiple times through your life. So it's not that I ever felt the strong urge to leave, but I definitely went through some difficult times at a later phase. I think when I really started to,

• 34:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  yeah, it's almost like with every step further out into the wider world, it kind of demands of me to go deeper

• 34:42Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 34:43Jahnavi Harrison?

  in what I practice and believe, because it's being kind of butted up against just these intense currents of everything that's going on in the world.

• 34:54Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I I often think about that because, you know, when Ravi and I talk about like thinking about having children or whatever it is and like how we wanna raise them where they have good spiritual values, but at the same time they have choice.

• 35:05Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 35:06Jay Shetty?

  And and it's always hard because you're kind of like. I always think, I always believe that people who choose what they follow and someone who's grown up in a tradition also gets that opportunity as they get older

• 35:18Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 35:19Jay Shetty?

  to keep choosing.

• 35:19Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 35:20Jay Shetty?

  And I always feel like when you choose what you follow it, you're more confident about it. It generally has more power, generally speaking.

• 35:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  For sure, I believe that.

• 35:29Jay Shetty?

  But when you're raised in something, you have to choose as you get older because you choose whether this value is still yours. And the interesting thing about that is that also just applies to anyone who grew up in the normal system because you grow up with certain beliefs your parents have. And at one point you pause and you go, wait, do I even believe this?

• 35:48Jahnavi Harrison?

  Exactly.

• 35:48Jay Shetty?

  So your parents might have believed that you shouldn't work that hard or you should marry a man who works hard. Or your parents may have had the belief that you should always do what you love or you should never do what you love, you should do what is safe and is reliable. And I think we all go through our twenties and thirties and have reflection points.

• 36:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 36:08Jay Shetty?

  Where we say, well, yeah, my parents believed that, but I didn't. And so it applies to all of life, but obviously very specifically aligns to someone who's grown up in a specific tradition, in a specific path.

• 36:20Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 36:21Jay Shetty?

  When did music go from being passion, exploration, curiosity to mastery? Because I think this is such an important part. I think I hear a lot of people who say, follow your passion. And I think that's okay, you know? But if you're going to turn it into something you do professionally, the passion at one point has to turn in to proficiency and mastery. When did you start to actually master your art and craft? What did that look like?

• 36:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  I don't identify with the word master in any way. And I don't mean that in a falsely humble way, I just. Yeah, I feel like I'm I'm very much scratching the surface. But I think that um I think that it happened very organically. I started to, you know, when I was eighteen, I started to develop more of an independent interest in art in my own tradition and really engage with um with the mantra meditation practice, Kirtan. And also, uh, you know, I'd been studying the violin since I was about ten years old. And that was always something I did basically in my bedroom and in my room with the teacher.

• 37:35Jahnavi Harrison?

  I'd never I never really used my instrument in a public place. I did I I did one time, one day in an orchestra and I got bullied and then I was like, I'm not going back. Um, so it was a very like, I got to a point and I was like, why am I even learning this instrument? So it was only when I started playing it at the temple in the Kirtan and trying to improvise, I realized that, you know, aside from just participating in this activity, musically, there's something I can offer, something I can develop and refine. And initially, that was my connection through the violin. Um, that was my voice, you know, I was too shy to sing.

• 38:16Jahnavi Harrison?

  But um, I think everything actually stemmed from there because through the violin, um, I ended up joining a mantra music group that was forming at the time, um, right as I was finishing my undergraduate degree and I did not know what was I was gonna do next. You know, I I studied English and cre- creative writing, linguistics. It was like very interesting to me, but I I had no idea what to do with it. And this opportunity came like a month before my graduation, uh, to tr- to tour all over America and um, all around the world it had ended up being. So I was just, it was a no brainer. I was like, yeah, I wanna do that. Um, and I thought that it would just be.

• 39:02Jahnavi Harrison?

  I still felt like, well, I'll have to get a regular job. I didn't know what that was. Um, I actually then I did get a job as a magazine editor, but I I I got the job. And then right when I was meant to go back and take it, I was doing this touring beforehand. And then I just wrote to them. I said, I'm sorry, I can't. I I think I need to keep doing what I'm doing. It was, yeah, speaking to my soul, I guess. Um, so it's been very organic. I think I have struggled with a lot of doubt along the way. Because anyone who does anything creative or artistic knows it's there's no assurance of any kind of ability to maintain yourself, have a livelihood with that with that activity.

• 39:46Jahnavi Harrison?

  And so it's a real act of, um, I think faith and courage to sort of just keep going with it a year upon year. And so I was many times constantly questioning myself. Okay, so is now the point when I should get a quote unquote regular job? Or something that's more, yeah, predictable and stable?

• 40:09Jay Shetty?

  Do you think you experience divinity when you sing and make music in a way that you don't access through any other practice?

• 40:20Jahnavi Harrison?

  I would say, yes, yeah, I do.

• 40:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think it's an incredibly deep idea that you can access divinity through sound. Sound being so subtle, not requiring any instrument, any tool, just your own voice. And it just requires presence. And it's it's very esoteric, but I feel like anyone can experience it also. Like, we have ears to hear, you know, a voice to use and, um,

• 41:01Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I remember first starting to become aware of that around, I mean, I had many incredible moments when I was a child. You know, sometimes people ask me what some of my earliest memories of of Kirtan and there's so many incredible times. Like, there was a festival that would happen every year. We would walk in procession through London to this huge park, Battersea Park, and there would be a festival, many tents there till late at night, and the Kirtan would be going all afternoon into the evening. And I just remember feeling so joyful, so exhausted, but like so filled by that experience. I think I started to really notice that, wow,

• 41:45Jahnavi Harrison?

  there's something really special here around sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, and feel like I want to come back to this, you know. How you feel when you, I guess there's so many things you could you could liken that to, but you just, yeah, you want to keep doing it.

• 42:01Jay Shetty?

  What have you found when people are, because I think singing out loud can feel so nervous for people, because it's this call and response where you're chanting and people are responding back, especially when you're live.

• 42:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 42:12Jay Shetty?

  What have you seen, like the transformation people have had where they start off, because you do retreats, etc., where they start off really nervous and anxious and they're Yeah, yeah. And then what have you seen that turn into, even for people who think like, I can't sing to save my life, or you don't like the sound of your voice, or whatever it may be, my singing voice, I'm very confident speaking, but.

• 42:31Jahnavi Harrison?

  I've heard you sing. I think you can sing. I think you can sing.

• 42:35Jay Shetty?

  Now I know you're lying for sure. Now I've proved that last night when you were talking about that thing, you were lying. But what, yeah, what is that for you? Like, what have you seen? I'm intrigued. For people, anyone who's listening right now, anyone who's listening right now, I hope you're gonna go to Spotify or, you know, Apple and type in Jahnavi Harrison. And, you know, I'm looking, you've got like one hundred and thirty four thousand monthly listeners right now. And if someone was to listen to this music, or they were gonna come and see you live.

• 43:05Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 43:06Jay Shetty?

  And you'd say, hey, everyone sing along with me, which is very common at these events.

• 43:10Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 43:11Jay Shetty?

  If someone's nervous in the beginning or doesn't quite get it, how have you seen people transform over time through retreats and events?

• 43:17Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I think it's really normal to feel nervous. I think many people, or even I would say most people, have some level of insecurity about singing out loud. I think the beautiful thing about it is that you're singing with other people. So you're not even, there's no demand that you even sing really loud, you know, you can sing very quietly, but feeling that togetherness, I mean, we experience, we all can experience that if we go to a concert or, I don't know, a football match. Everyone's singing the same thing together. It's empowering and it's connecting in a way that few things are of that nature. So I would even say that, you know, some people, some people that lead this type of music are more

• 44:03Jahnavi Harrison?

  strident or commanding and like, come on, everyone sing, you know. I, I think I being a more shy nature, I really empathize and understand how that feels to feel so nervous. So I don't, I don't expect people to, you know, push themselves in a way that feels just too uncomfortable. I always tell people, if you want to sing internally, because we have, we have an internal voice as well, you can sing back in, in your heart. I do that on the plane if I'm stressed. I listen to something and then I sing back with my inner voice. But it's incredibly freeing and I've seen people relax and become free in a way that they didn't expect.

• 44:47Jahnavi Harrison?

  By letting go and letting their voice out, you know. Everything that feels uncomfortable initially usually feels, you feel a great sense of achievement afterwards as well.

• 44:57Jay Shetty?

  Yeah. What do you think, what do you think people turn to your music for? Like when you're finding people discovering your music.

• 45:03Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 45:04Jay Shetty?

  Who are not from the tradition, who, who don't, aren't familiar with it. What do they find? I mean, like you're, you were Raddies, I think, number one artist on Spotify rap this year.

• 45:12Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 45:13Jay Shetty?

  She's playing in the house all the time. Like what do you think people are, yeah, what, what are people seeking? What have you found?

• 45:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  I can say what people tell me, which is, I think people say that they find a sense of peace, a sense of shelter and comfort. A lot of people tell me that they listen to their music, to my music in difficult times, you know. So many people say. Yeah, you know, I was I was studying for exams. Um, my parent was unwell, someone in my family was dying. Um, or, you know, I was getting ready to get married and then I played your music on my on my wedding day as I was coming in. These kind of um transitional and very meaningful moments in life. Um, a lot of people talk about playing my music first thing in the morning or last thing at night when they want to connect to

• 46:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  a place of deep uh prayer or um a sacred space. Yeah, I think that's what people find and um I'm always blown away by people's stories, you know, because ultimately, uh you as a person or I speak for myself, like we're we're so aware of our humanness and our flaws and everything that we bring to, you know, we bring all of it to every endeavor. So it's really incredible for me that I can do something that allows someone to enter into that space um where they feel so deeply connected, because I know that that's not it it it's me because I'm allowing myself to be used in that way, but I know that there's something a lot deeper that's happening.

• 46:52Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, every time, I mean, every time I'm in one of your sessions, I'm like just at the back trying to hold back my tears.

• 46:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  I've seen that, I've seen that.

• 47:01Jay Shetty?

  It's it's it's strange, though, because you can't really explain it.

• 47:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 47:05Jay Shetty?

  It's it's it's so hard to put into words where you just got to be in one. And I've had like my team has come to sessions, obviously, we have friends here who've come to events at our home. And and it's amazing how you don't need to know the language. You don't really, you don't even need to know to some degree, I know you always explain what it means, but even if someone doesn't know what it means. It's it's it's so interesting how and sound has that potential. I I think, you know, if you look at even music right now, like Latin music is, you know, so global now.

• 47:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 47:34Jay Shetty?

  You know, you've got Bad Bunny who's Puerto Rican and that that style of music has taken over and you've got and that's what's so beautiful about music in general is that it's so beyond language and so beyond where you grew up.

• 47:44Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, it transmits.

• 47:46Jay Shetty?

  It transmits, yeah.

• 47:47Jahnavi Harrison?

  The meaning, you really feel it.

• 47:48Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, which is which is so special and and I definitely feel that in. You know, in in mantra music in in an unexpected way.

• 47:55Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, although I I would say, you know, I've started to also experiment with, or not experiment, but part of my creative journey in the last few years has been to to write original songs also and incorporate that into, especially when I do concerts. You know, I I kind of distinguish certain settings for certain offerings, I think. You know, there's a lot of times I'll I'll lead meditation sessions with Kirtan in a very traditional sense, and it has a very, it can have a very intimate feeling, especially if people are, they know what to do, you know, they're ready.

• 48:37Jahnavi Harrison?

  But in a in a more, maybe, I don't know if theatrical setting is the right word to use, but in in an auditorium where there may be people who have never done this before. I've started to weave together these traditional chants with sometimes original songs in English because it's not only just a tool for for making a connection point for someone else with a language of prayer, but for me also, I found it to be something that brings a certain vulnerability and personalism to, which I think in some ways, growing up, I would have thought that that was taboo because the practice of Kirtan is very much not about you putting yourself there.

• 49:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  It's really being a vessel, being a channel to just give this pure sound. But I think that there's some value as well in sharing, yeah, personal, a personal prayer, a personal reflection on on just being someone trying to go through life and be connected to to to truth and and faith and beauty.

• 49:44Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, if if someone wants to start with one of your albums.

• 49:46Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 49:46Jay Shetty?

  Where would you like them to start? Like, if someone was like, I want to check this out, I don't really know much about it.

• 49:50Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 49:51Jay Shetty?

  What would you recommend?

• 49:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think if someone's curious in in the

• 49:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  Just mostly the traditional songs and mantras. My first album, Like a River to the Sea, is a great one. But I, I think a lot of people connect with the album that I did with Willow called Rise. And then my recent album, Into the Forest, I think Rise and Into the Forest are similar in that they incorporate both mantras and, and some original lyrics.

• 50:19Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, that's great. Yeah, for anyone who's starting out their, their journey of wanting to, you know, move into devotion music and have, have never had the experience of it.

• 50:29Jahnavi Harrison?

  Or they should check out Radhi's playlist.

• 50:31Jay Shetty?

  Radhi's playlist, yeah, yeah.

• 50:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  So many people tell me, oh, I found your music through Radhi's playlist. She's got a great collection there of also many other wonderful artists.

• 50:40Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I love that, love that. What's, what's a misconception you think people have about spiritual people?

• 50:48Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think people tend to project a lot onto spiritual people that they're like, you're so divine and you're like, you must float around your house all day, you know, spouting like wisdom quotes and.

• 51:02Jay Shetty?

  That's exactly what I do.

• 51:05Jahnavi Harrison?

  I've seen you in your robes.

• 51:08Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I think a misconception is that spiritual people don't have doubts, don't have material desires, don't make mistakes. Well, all, all of those things obviously are true.

• 51:24Jahnavi Harrison?

  Or that spiritual people have all the answers. I think to, to try to pursue a life connected to a spiritual core is courageous because there is a level of faith that's required where there's not always a hard, hard answer. There's very good answers, but you also still have to be very open-hearted and constantly open to, to learning and surrender, which is very, very difficult.

• 51:52Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, such a great answer. Not what I expected, but yeah, such a great answer. It's a. Yeah, everyone's human and everyone's trying and everyone's failing and everyone's making mistakes. And and I think the problem is when you think that a spiritual person is perfect.

• 52:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:07Jay Shetty?

  Then you don't feel spiritual.

• 52:09Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:09Jay Shetty?

  Internally.

• 52:10Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:10Jay Shetty?

  Because you don't feel like you've reached what other people have reached or what you should have reached.

• 52:15Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:16Jay Shetty?

  And that can actually deter you from the path.

• 52:18Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:18Jay Shetty?

  Because you think, oh, well, I'm not like that.

• 52:20Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:20Jay Shetty?

  And they have it all together and therefore I must not be spiritual.

• 52:24Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:24Jay Shetty?

  Not realising that we all already are inherently.

• 52:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:27Jay Shetty?

  And perfection may be the goal and the aspiration, but the journey towards it is far more incremental and step by step than it is.

• 52:37Jahnavi Harrison?

  Incremental.

• 52:37Jay Shetty?

  This enlightened day. I think, you know, I I think that's a misconception. I always think is people always like, what was the day you've realised?

• 52:44Jahnavi Harrison?

  Right.

• 52:45Jay Shetty?

  I have not had that.

• 52:46Jahnavi Harrison?

  Oh, you know, the light came down from the clouds.

• 52:48Jay Shetty?

  Again, it's how media has portrayed it, where it feels like you have this day of enlightenment.

• 52:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:53Jay Shetty?

  It's like, yeah, I've had really special meditations. I've had really special experiences.

• 52:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 52:58Jay Shetty?

  But it's three steps forward, one step back, two steps pause, three steps forward.

• 53:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  Sometimes ten steps back.

• 53:05Jay Shetty?

  Totally.

• 53:05Jahnavi Harrison?

  And you're like, what what am I doing wrong or?

• 53:08Jay Shetty?

  And that's what it's meant to be.

• 53:09Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, yeah. I do find that, you know, I I I encountered that the more that I became publicly known for doing mantra meditation and devotion sacred music.

• 53:23Jahnavi Harrison?

  I would start to encounter more and more people coming to me like with, you know, shining eyes. I could feel and sometimes it's very obvious by the words they say that they they are, for want of a better phrase, putting me on a pedestal or thinking that there's some kind of perfection, you know, happening, which I know is not true. And I think part of that is, you know, anyone that's kind of facilitating us to go into a spiritual practice or experience, we may, you know, associate that person with the feeling and the and the the real, the very real experience that we get.

• 54:02Jahnavi Harrison?

  But I think, yeah, I I think as you get older, especially just accepting both your own, being patient with your own flaws. I've definitely had to learn to be very patient with myself.

• 54:17Jahnavi Harrison?

  Because, yeah, I mean, we're blessed to have as well, you know, we're blessed to know so many people who truly are exemplary in their life and their actions. And yeah, I mean, I identify with that, looking at someone thinking, God, you know, I'm never gonna be, I'm never gonna be spiritual.

• 54:36Jay Shetty?

  What, what's something that you used to believe to be true spiritually and now you don't agree with it?

• 54:45Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think, I think growing up in a particular spiritual tradition,

• 54:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  you can have, you're surrounded by constant affirmation and validation of that tradition. Um, you, you know, if you're immersed in a community, you're surrounded by people who believe in that path, in those practices.

• 55:12Jahnavi Harrison?

  And I think the more that I've grown and encountered people from all different walks of life, who've had all different kinds of experiences. Um, I don't know if it's so much something that I don't believe anymore, but it, it challenges a lot of, um, things that I've heard, things that I've just accepted because everyone around me was saying, yes, yes. Um, and I really value that. I, I feel that's necessary. But it's not always easy because sometimes there's not an easy resolution or answer to, yeah, conflicting worldviews and, and opinions about things. So

• 55:56Jahnavi Harrison?

  that's something that I've encountered a lot on, on my journey. Sometimes it's even people that are within the same broad category of a, of a religion or a faith tradition, but you know, different strands of, of specific beliefs. Um, there's so much nuance and.

• 56:15Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I think I've found it harder to to be like, this is the answer.

• 56:20Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, it's a. I I agree. I think it's a healthy thing and it's also. It the brain just doesn't like it for simplicity's sake. It's just easier for the brain to have its set of beliefs and move with them, even if they're not helpful.

• 56:35Jahnavi Harrison?

  Definitely.

• 56:36Jay Shetty?

  And so when you allow yourself to be in a paradox.

• 56:40Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 56:40Jay Shetty?

  It's it's challenging.

• 56:42Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 56:43Jay Shetty?

  And that's why we avoid it. That's why we prefer left or right or black or white or binary thinking. And so.

• 56:49Jay Shetty?

  I I find that in my own self. I try and live it like that. I try and live in the middle of the Venn diagram always, like trying not to be binary.

• 56:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 56:59Jay Shetty?

  But it's hard because you're it's so much easier to to pick a place to live and say, yeah, I'm gonna go all in and believe this is the truth, or I'm gonna refute it. And and it's like, well, no, there's things that make sense and there's things that don't make sense. And I was just saying to someone this morning, I was like, it's funny how we've always talked about how whether the glass is half full or half empty. And I'm like, it's both.

• 57:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 57:22Jay Shetty?

  Like, it's always both. Like, that's such a stupid question. Because.

• 57:26Jahnavi Harrison?

  Could you see it? Could you see it? Like, could one eye have one lens and the other have the other?

• 57:30Jay Shetty?

  Totally, and it's like.

• 57:31Jahnavi Harrison?

  Both things at the same time.

• 57:32Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, and both things are true. If if a glass is half full, it is therefore half empty.

• 57:37Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 57:38Jay Shetty?

  And so therefore, the right answer is, I see both.

• 57:40Jahnavi Harrison?

  Right.

• 57:40Jay Shetty?

  And if you see both, it means I can fill the glass up.

• 57:43Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 57:43Jay Shetty?

  And it also means I have more to drink. And so this idea of, do you see the glasses half full or half empty? The answer is both, but it's the brain doesn't want that answer. The brain just wants to choose one or the other. So we either become positive or, you know, evangelists of our beliefs, or we become negative and pessimist of that belief. And we don't recognize that most things have lots of good in them and lots of things that they could improve and

• 58:05Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 58:05Jay Shetty?

  and grow. But it's the brain, for simplicity's sake. Prefers one or the other and.

• 58:10Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah. And sometimes it's hard to feel, you know, it's difficult because you also don't want to be. Sometimes you have to choose a specific direction or, you know, there is specificity to the choices we make. And, and sometimes, you know, for integrity, you need to kind of define things, you know, is it this or is it that? But anyway, it's, yeah, it's very context based as well, I find. But I don't know, I, I don't know if it's because of me also trying to um connect with that space. But I know a lot of people have told me that, you know, there's so many people who have grown up in religious environments, who have experienced a lot of heavy judgment or trauma even.

• 58:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  It seems more common than not sometimes, or at least maybe I just encounter people who speak about that. And I've felt encouraged that people have said when they've come to my events or gatherings that they feel it's a safe space to, to, to be in a spiritual space, but not have something imposed upon them. And I, I'm, I feel happy about that, you know. Um, I want to try to, to hold that tension, tension. I don't know if it's tension, but it's like, you know, walking a path of integrity and specificity oneself, but being able to, to create space that feels very inclusive and, and welcoming for everyone.

• 59:48Jay Shetty?

  This episode is brought to you by Amtrak. You know that feeling when you're already tired and you haven't even gotten there yet? That's where Amtrak comes in. Leave the driving behind and settle into a comfortable seat with plenty of room to stretch out. Catch up on work with wifi, grab a snack at the cafe car, or just sit back and enjoy your favorite podcast. Choose a cellar or northeast regional and get there without the stress of getting there. Visit amtrak.com to plan your next trip. This episode is brought to you by Whole Foods Market. If you're talking about quality food, you can't forget Whole Foods Market, who've been holding themselves to the highest standards since they opened in nineteen eighty.

• 1:00:31Jay Shetty?

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• 1:01:12Jay Shetty?

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• 1:02:05Jay Shetty?

  Has there ever been anything that's really difficult that you've gone through in life that you feel your faith has been integral to moving through?

• 1:02:14Jahnavi Harrison?

  I don't think there's been a life event like, you know, some of the huge things that happen or, you know, losing a loved one, things like that that are... Often the the cause of a, you know, a deep

• 1:02:32Jahnavi Harrison?

  grief and sorrow that, you know, it sometimes leads to a spiritual search. But I think I have experienced crisis of faith, which required faith.

• 1:02:46Jay Shetty?

  That's good, yeah.

• 1:02:47Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, um, which, yeah, took me by surprise, you know, I think the experience, especially if you're used to being someone who who that's something that you do feel sure of. And then when it's suddenly not there, it can feel like rug is pulled out from under your feet. And I I felt like I'm I'm not quite sure who I am, you know, you're like, like, like in a coloring book, you know, you've got the lines and that's like the defined color within the lines. But imagine if the lines just disappeared and you're just color. Like, who am I without that? I have experienced that a couple of times.

• 1:03:26Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:03:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:03:28Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, it's, yeah, it's it's an interesting answer because, yeah, it's like how I hosted the Variety Faith and Spirituality on us last week.

• 1:03:36Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:03:37Jay Shetty?

  And I was talking about how the people who are being awarded and honored, they've showed different types of faith. And I was saying it showed having faith, messy faith, losing faith. And that's what makes it so real, where I think faith-based content or people sometimes have always been shown as one note. Where like, this is who you are.

• 1:04:00Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:04:00Jay Shetty?

  Or like, this is the kind of person you should be.

• 1:04:02Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah. You gotta believe.

• 1:04:04Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, yeah. And now I think we're showing these variegated depictions of what faith can look like and spirituality can look like. And it's just so much more real.

• 1:04:16Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:04:17Jay Shetty?

  Because.

• 1:04:17Jahnavi Harrison?

  Relatable.

• 1:04:18Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, relatable and grounded and accessible and and, yeah, just truly transparent, because that's what it can look like. And I think if anyone is a person of, how did faith help you refine faith when there was a crisis of faith?

• 1:04:31Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think there was a period of time, and it wasn't that long, but because of the disorientation that I felt, it felt a lot longer than it was, I think, um, of of feeling like the faith had just totally evaporated.

• 1:04:49Jahnavi Harrison?

  And you know, it feels like a type of, it feels like a type of darkness because something that had previously given you a lot of light and internal support and nourishment just seems to disappear, or no, it seems like vapor, that is, was that actually real?

• 1:05:09Jahnavi Harrison?

  And I think, I think faith almost, it felt like it seeped in almost like, you know, through a pinhole where you get light that just comes through a tiny crack and it gradually grows, but initially, the, there had to be a speck of faith for me to think that faith could even return in a way. I had to be open to that. And I found through that experience,

• 1:05:42Jahnavi Harrison?

  I connected more to, to prayer spontaneously and personally versus more ritual type of worship or a set, you know, practice or routine, more spontaneously, more expressively in, in English. And it's funny because I, I grew up, you know, completely steeped in prayer, like throughout the day, because that's just the environment I was in. I was thinking about the soundscape of my, of my life growing up. There was always bells ringing and, you know, in, in my tradition, we blow this conch shells. There's these kind of spiritual

• 1:06:25Jahnavi Harrison?

  sounds around. And ancient mantras, Sanskrit was a very familiar language for me. But what I didn't have confidence and ease with was praying in the language that I speak and actually being that personal to just be alone and speak those words, whatever was coming up. And I think that was a really transformative experience and time for me and actually led to some of the songs that I've recorded because eventually I thought, you know, you don't always think like, oh, that I should record this because it's so personal and specific. But I did feel that, I bet there are others who go through these times or who feel these.

• 1:07:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  These emotions who may, it may enable them to express words that they, they can't find the words to say.

• 1:07:18Jay Shetty?

  Do you think we all need to talk to God more?

• 1:07:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  One hundred percent.

• 1:07:24Jahnavi Harrison?

  One hundred percent, yeah. I was thinking about this um ahead of our chat because I was thinking about how much, you know, in the last, I don't know if it's the last decade, but of course mindfulness is a word that we've heard so much. Meditation has become something that is so, in, in many ways, integrated into, you know, it's not that everyone does it, but if you say it, no one's gonna probably look at you funny. You might see people doing it in an ad or, you know, I always remember walking into, I think it was Gap or something, you know, on a high street. And there were these mannequins sitting like this in the lotus position. And I was like, oh, interesting. This is like filtering into just everyday, you know, culture and fashion.

• 1:08:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  But I, I was thinking about how meditation can bring us into this space of stillness and internal connection. But what am I meditating on? And the, the difference between just coming to a place of groundedness, stillness, calming the mind, and prayer to me is quite distinct.

• 1:08:36Jahnavi Harrison?

  That's my personal take on it. You know, someone may use those terms differently and, and describe it differently. But I, I feel like um, yeah, if prayer is not something that you've ever done, or even if it is something that's familiar that you did grow up with, I, I feel like, you know, sometimes they say, oh, just try doing something with your left hand or your non-dominant hand because it will reveal something to you. Or you'll feel a different way of looking at something and doing something. I think, I think. Yeah, it might be something that listeners would like to try, you know, to to either approach it for the first time or approach it through a different pathway.

• 1:09:18Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I like that.

• 1:09:19Jahnavi Harrison?

  Than what you've been used to.

• 1:09:20Jay Shetty?

  She's like a new neural pathway almost.

• 1:09:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 1:09:23Jay Shetty?

  Why not try?

• 1:09:24Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, yeah, sometimes it sometimes it involves, you know, there's so many different ways that people pray. For some people, it's very spontaneous. Some people have a very ritualized way of placing their their body in a certain position or doing certain actions. And I think all of those things are designed to bring us into a certain state of mind and of being that allows can allow you to express some of these deepest, um, these deepest sentiments that are otherwise quite hard to access.

• 1:09:57Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:09:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  In a natural way.

• 1:09:59Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, yeah. I mean, for me, like, I find I love talking to God when I'm driving.

• 1:10:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  I do that. I do that.

• 1:10:06Jay Shetty?

  That's my favorite.

• 1:10:06Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, and one of the hardest times I experienced, that was the time you just reminded me of that. I I would just talk, yeah, driving by myself, cry.

• 1:10:17Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:10:17Jahnavi Harrison?

  Speak, sing.

• 1:10:19Jay Shetty?

  I I find driving to be so therapeutic.

• 1:10:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:10:21Jay Shetty?

  A place to share streams of thoughts.

• 1:10:24Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:10:25Jay Shetty?

  And I always love it. I think it also reminds me of that Bruce Almighty scene, where he's like asking God for a sign.

• 1:10:30Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:10:31Jay Shetty?

  God keeps sending him loads of signs and he keeps ignoring them. And then his car goes off the bridge or whatever it is. And I'm like, yeah, I'm always looking around for signs and I'm driving and connecting billboards to to God's message to me. And it's just like this fun idea that that there's some, you know, there's some power in what I'm reading and seeing. So I love that. Last question before the final five.

• 1:10:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  Mm hmm.

• 1:10:52Jay Shetty?

  What's a question you ask yourself when you feel lost?

• 1:11:00Jahnavi Harrison?

  Am I connected with my, am I, am I being of service?

• 1:11:08Jay Shetty?

  Hmm.

• 1:11:09Jahnavi Harrison?

  I, I might actually connected with service in this moment.

• 1:11:13Jay Shetty?

  Hmm, because you believe that if you're connected to service, then you'll have found where you belong.

• 1:11:18Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I feel like it's a state of being which is, is protective because it's protective of the experience of being totally lost. Because you're, you're focusing on giving, um, it's, it's hard being embodied human, you know? It's so easy to feel lost for so many different reasons, but when you're thinking about how you can serve someone else, whatever that may look like, I find that that really helps me.

• 1:11:45Jay Shetty?

  It's such a great answer and I, I couldn't agree more. And I think it's, I think it's one of the biggest losses of modern education.

• 1:11:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:11:53Jay Shetty?

  And modern space where everything to solve you is all about you.

• 1:11:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:11:59Jay Shetty?

  And not about anyone else. And, and there's been studies on this too, like if you have depression and you help people who have depression, your depression goes down. And so even in a really difficult state, the act of service can still be helpful to yourself. What to speak of when things are not that bad.

• 1:12:14Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:12:15Jay Shetty?

  And yeah, it's fascinating to me how we always think, oh, if I have more, then I'll be able to give more. But actually, wherever you are just now, you already may have a little more than someone else. And if you can help and support in whatever way, time, energy, money, if that is your way of helping.

• 1:12:31Jahnavi Harrison?

  Hmm.

• 1:12:31Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I, I love that answer. Such a good answer.

• 1:12:34Jahnavi Harrison?

  It's something I've been, I've been trying to, to say this, this prayer every day. And it's, it's, it's a traditional Sanskrit prayer. I won't say all the, the words, but it ends with the phrase das anu das. And that means, you know, servant of the servant. And it's funny when, when I, when I was growing up and you know, this, this is one of those things that in a, in a religious community, a certain thing becomes a way that people do things. Which from the outside can seem a bit weird.

• 1:13:01Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:13:02Jahnavi Harrison?

  And so everybody would sign a letter or a message, your servant. And I can't remember when it happened, but maybe we were visiting some relatives or something. But I just saw that through a different lens and I thought, that must sound so funny. Because the idea of being a servant is not something that we would regard very highly. You know, in a sort of like regular world.

• 1:13:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  But it's a really profound spiritual idea that to identify as a servant as like an essential identity keeps you always looking for ways to contribute and give. So yeah, I find that really helps me a lot.

• 1:13:42Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, it's, yeah, I think if you, it's really interesting because I think the misconception of that is when we think, oh, that means I have to stay small.

• 1:13:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, or that means I'm going to be exploited.

• 1:13:55Jay Shetty?

  Correct, correct. And, and it's almost like there's been the servant leadership movement.

• 1:14:00Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:14:00Jay Shetty?

  And even the idea of, oh, you could be the CEO of a company.

• 1:14:03Jahnavi Harrison?

  Mm hmm.

• 1:14:04Jay Shetty?

  And see yourself in service of others.

• 1:14:07Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:14:07Jay Shetty?

  Like, it's, it's not based on your position in society.

• 1:14:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:14:11Jay Shetty?

  It's based on the mood and intention that you do that act with.

• 1:14:15Jahnavi Harrison?

  Hmm.

• 1:14:15Jay Shetty?

  So someone could be the coach of the biggest soccer team in the world and see themselves as serving their team.

• 1:14:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:14:21Jay Shetty?

  And someone could be the best player in the world and see themselves as serving their team.

• 1:14:25Jahnavi Harrison?

  Mm hmm.

• 1:14:26Jay Shetty?

  Or you could be all those things and think you're the best thing in the world and no one else is important. And so it's got nothing to do with your external position.

• 1:14:34Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:14:34Jay Shetty?

  And I think the problem we think is, oh, my external position has to match that.

• 1:14:38Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:14:38Jay Shetty?

  So therefore I won't.

• 1:14:39Jahnavi Harrison?

  Be small.

• 1:14:40Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I've got to be small and play small and it doesn't make any sense because.

• 1:14:43Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I'd like to understand, I'd like to, to, to understand and grasp that more deeply. Cause I, I, I think I still struggle with that. Like you've always, you know, in our friendship, you've always encouraged me to, to embrace what I'm doing and be, you know, unafraid to. To, I guess, grow and broadcast out what I'm doing, you know, bigger and bigger as, as a service. But it's so difficult when you're, you're, you're more visible or more in a position of leadership to continue to kind of, yeah, harmonize that, that idea that I'm, I'm serving, but also have to kind of

• 1:15:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  have the things that go along with being more in a, in a leadership position. I don't know. For me, I, I find it, I find it challenging.

• 1:15:29Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, no, I, I don't disagree. I, I think that the more closer you get to your unique service, the less you see it as big and small, and the more you see it as just yours. And so there is no, it, it kind of fades away because it's so clearly what you were meant to do.

• 1:15:46Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:15:47Jay Shetty?

  That then you don't see it as big or expansive or small or not.

• 1:15:51Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:15:51Jay Shetty?

  It's just is.

• 1:15:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:15:53Jay Shetty?

  And, and therefore I find that people who know their purpose and their dharma are less envious and less comparative and less.

• 1:16:01Jahnavi Harrison?

  Right.

• 1:16:02Jay Shetty?

  All of those things because they just found their thing.

• 1:16:04Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah. You can, you know, you can't be or do what someone else is doing because you, you know yourself so well and.

• 1:16:11Jay Shetty?

  Correct.

• 1:16:11Jahnavi Harrison?

  And you feel aligned in what you're doing. I guess, I guess I'm coming to that. I'm coming to that now. I think I've finally accepted myself as doing what I'm doing and this is, this is who I am. It's taken a long time.

• 1:16:23Jay Shetty?

  Yeah. Well, God in the universe had to nominate you for a Grammy to, to get you to understand that.

• 1:16:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  I mean, he knows that I, I need a big, a big push, you know?

• 1:16:31Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I love it. Jonathan, this has been so nice getting to know you this way. Like, I know we've, we've had so many conversations. I mean, whenever you're over at the house and you come over, we'll like, you know, stay up and talk for hours and hours and hours. And we, you know, I love having these conversations, but I feel I'm so glad I get to share you with the community. And I know you've been on before, a few years back now, that was like.

• 1:16:50Jahnavi Harrison?

  Twenty twenty.

• 1:16:51Jay Shetty?

  Twenty, was it twenty twenty?

• 1:16:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, it was in your old place, old studio.

• 1:16:54Jay Shetty?

  So amazing to have you back on.

• 1:16:56Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you. And I'm a fan of the podcast. So this is like very cool for me.

• 1:17:01Jay Shetty?

  It's awesome to have you here. And we end every episode, as you know, as a fan of the podcast, with a final five.

• 1:17:06Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:17:07Jay Shetty?

  These questions have to be answered in one word to one sentence maximum.

• 1:17:10Jahnavi Harrison?

  Wow.

• 1:17:11Jay Shetty?

  Everyone does one sentence, no one does.

• 1:17:12Jahnavi Harrison?

  Okay, okay.

• 1:17:13Jay Shetty?

  Uh, so Jonathan V. Harrison, these are your final five.

• 1:17:15Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you.

• 1:17:15Jay Shetty?

  Question one, uh, what is the best advice you've ever heard or received?

• 1:17:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  Don't be afraid.

• 1:17:25Jay Shetty?

  Who told you that, do you remember?

• 1:17:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  I've heard it from many different people, but I think my parents, mentors, yeah. And it's there in the Bhagavad Gita, just don't be afraid, have trust and courage and keep, keep walking forward in your purpose.

• 1:17:40Jay Shetty?

  Yes. Uh, question number two, what is the worst advice you've ever heard or received?

• 1:17:46Jahnavi Harrison?

  Anything related to, to what are, what will other people think?

• 1:17:50Jay Shetty?

  Hmm, definitely, definitely. It's when you say you wanna do something and goes, what will they say?

• 1:17:56Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 1:17:58Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, it's a good answer. Uh, question number three.

• 1:18:03Jay Shetty?

  Is there a decision you made that didn't make any logical sense, but was the right one for you?

• 1:18:09Jahnavi Harrison?

  The decision I made to, on purpose, miss a plane home to get, to take up this job as a magazine editor.

• 1:18:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  I, I've never, I'm always like a real rule, rule follower and the fact that I had a flight booked is, and that I intentionally missed it and just said, I'm gonna drop that. That didn't make any sense at the time. And the ne- the next morning when I woke up, I was like, what did I do? But I think I was trying to follow a deeper intuition and it turned out to, to lead me to this, this and many other moments. But that, it took a long time for me to realize.

• 1:18:47Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 1:18:49Jahnavi Harrison?

  Had to have confidence in that decision along the way.

• 1:18:52Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, I'm so glad you did that. Uh, question number four, what's something that you used to value, that you don't value anymore?

• 1:18:59Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think I used to put a lot more value on other people's opinions and that doesn't mean that I don't now. But it's something I've actively worked on because I've realized how, how, um, how damaging it can be to place that much, um, weight and concern on, on what other people are thinking and saying. But I don't know if I could have. Come to that point any earlier.

• 1:19:27Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:19:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  It's part of growing up.

• 1:19:30Jay Shetty?

  For sure.

• 1:19:30Jahnavi Harrison?

  So, yeah.

• 1:19:31Jay Shetty?

  It's the biggest one. It's it's a weird one. You wanna, it's almost like you wanna choose which opinions you listen to from which people.

• 1:19:38Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:19:38Jay Shetty?

  Cause we all have to listen to some, like, and you know, as we talk about in spirituality, there has to be some sense of authority. The challenge is when you give everyone an authority of you and all of a sudden now you listen to everyone with equal. You listen to everyone with equal attention despite their lack of authority or competence or character.

• 1:19:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  Weight to that.

• 1:19:59Jay Shetty?

  Give weight when it doesn't have any value.

• 1:20:01Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:20:01Jay Shetty?

  That's what I think is the issue. We all have to listen to someone, but we give too much weight and value to people who don't know anything about that or us.

• 1:20:10Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I think I used to do that to the extreme, probably because of also growing up in an environment where you're expected to, you know, respectfully hear from anyone who's older than you or, you know, knows more than you. But yeah, it's a work and I'm a work in progress for sure.

• 1:20:28Jay Shetty?

  No, I came up with a system when I wrote Think Like A Monk to make it easier because I struggled with that so much. In spiritual circles for sure, but in general, and I came up with something that I call um the four C's, which is character, care, consistency and competence. And so I think about the problem that I have and then I figure out who I'm speaking to based on one of those four. So if it's a morality question.

• 1:20:51Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:20:52Jay Shetty?

  I have to ask the person of high character. Because if I just ask the person who cares about me, they may bend morality in my favor. Or if I am worried about my health, I've got to talk to the person who cares about me, but is also competent. Whereas the person who might have, who might consistently be around me, they may not have the best insight and advice. Or like, for example, if I talk to my mom, she just cares if I've eaten well, uh but she won't give me the best work advice because she'd prefer I take care of myself than

• 1:21:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  Right.

• 1:21:22Jay Shetty?

  do something good for work. And so.

• 1:21:23Jahnavi Harrison?

  So do they all four have to be there or it's different things for different.

• 1:21:27Jay Shetty?

  I believe no one has all four.

• 1:21:29Jahnavi Harrison?

  Oh.

• 1:21:29Jay Shetty?

  And there are different things for different decisions.

• 1:21:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:21:33Jay Shetty?

  And they just care about you.

• 1:21:34Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:21:35Jay Shetty?

  So there's, advice is skewed, but their opinion is also, one of my favorite quotes says, don't take directions from someone who's never been to where you're going. And we all do that. We all take someone's opinion and they've not even been there. They've never, they've never reached that or achieved that. And we're sitting here taking their word as gospel.

• 1:21:55Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:21:55Jay Shetty?

  And so, yeah, those, those four Cs have kind of really helped me.

• 1:21:59Jahnavi Harrison?

  That is really helpful.

• 1:22:00Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:22:01Jahnavi Harrison?

  Tough, it's a tough one to, to learn. Cause you may have people that are very close to you and you assume that by intimacy, by the fact that they know you so deeply, that they will have all, or at least most of those. But yeah, it's not necessarily the case.

• 1:22:16Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, like even, even my mom, like my mom has a very good character. She cares about me. She's consistent, but she's not competent in every area. She's competent in some areas. There's some things my mom has great insight on, but she's not competent in every area of my life and therefore it's not, you know. But anyway, all right. Fifth and final question. We ask this to every guest who's ever been on the show. If you could create one law that everyone in the world had to follow, what would it be?

• 1:22:41Jahnavi Harrison?

  I would love everyone to, to talk to God more. I feel like, I feel like a lot of, you know, like a domino effect. A lot of things would, would shift.

• 1:22:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  And, and I know it sounds like a cliche, but to truly have um, this mood of being in service to, to others, to each other. Imagine if that was like a compulsory thing, just to be a citizen of the world. Um, I think it would be a beautiful world.

• 1:23:16Jay Shetty?

  It's a great answer. How do you know if you're talking to God or talking to yourself?

• 1:23:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  You know, it's intention. It's intention. You might, it might look like you're talking to yourself. Um, but I think you, it's, yeah, it's purely about your intention. If you address God, I mean, i- if you are familiar with any spiritual tradition, most, most will agree that God is everywhere, in everything. Um, everything is coming from him, her. And uh, so there's so many different ways to do that and.

• 1:23:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, you can do it in your own way, or you can get guidance on how to do it. But I think if you've, if you've not experienced it before, it's just, it's, it's so worth it.

• 1:24:05Jay Shetty?

  Hmm.

• 1:24:05Jahnavi Harrison?

  And um, it's not worth, it's not worth missing out on what you may find through that experience to, you know, to kind of leave it aside.

• 1:24:15Jay Shetty?

  Everyone, the album is called Into the Forest. Jahnavi Harrison just got nominated for a Grammy. I'm so excited. I'll be at the Grammys next year.

• 1:24:22Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you.

• 1:24:23Jay Shetty?

  Fingers crossed, hoping.

• 1:24:24Jahnavi Harrison?

  See you in two months.

• 1:24:25Jay Shetty?

  Hoping for the win.

• 1:24:26Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:24:26Jay Shetty?

  For any of you don't already, please follow Jahnavi Harrison on Instagram. You can subscribe to her music on Spotify and listen along to the album she's mentioned today. And Jahnavi, thank you so much for being such a dear friend, for uh, doing this interview. And so proud of you, so excited for this really big moment in your amazing career.

• 1:24:46Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you.

• 1:24:46Jay Shetty?

  And just you doing something based on service and devotion and it being recognized at this level. It's so exciting.

• 1:24:53Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you. I want to say thank you to you because you've been such a um, an encouraging friend. But also, I think so many of these very meaningful moments in my journey have been somehow connected to you through, through serving together. Um, I've learned so much and I recognize that a lot of significant growth that I've had has been through your encouragement.

• 1:25:19Jay Shetty?

  So sweet.

• 1:25:19Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I really feel that. So I share the Grammy nomination with you.

• 1:25:24Jay Shetty?

  Well, yeah.

• 1:25:25Jahnavi Harrison?

  And everyone.

• 1:25:26Jay Shetty?

  I'll add that to my bio.

• 1:25:27Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 1:25:27Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:25:28Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah. No, it's really a privilege. I'm so grateful to be here.

• 1:25:31Jay Shetty?

  No, you're so kind and, and uh, honestly, it's been such a joy. Like, it's fun looking back at those pictures of the last twenty years.

• 1:25:38Jahnavi Harrison?

  Did you mention Weymouth at the beginning?

• 1:25:39Jay Shetty?

  I did, I did. Yeah, I did, yeah. Do you know what the funny thing about that picture is? I'm actually sitting behind a pillar, so you can't even see me in it. But it's like, yeah, we drove to Weymouth, which I can't remember how far that is from London.

• 1:25:50Jahnavi Harrison?

  I think it was about three hours.

• 1:25:52Jay Shetty?

  Three hours. We stayed the night. We did an event. It was like ten people came.

• 1:25:56Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:25:56Jay Shetty?

  And like, I mean like.

• 1:25:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  It was a beautiful event.

• 1:25:57Jay Shetty?

  It was a beautiful event, but that's the kind of, you know, it's, it's fun talking about these things because. It's easy to sit here now and you know, you nominate for Grammy and all the rest of it. But it's like, no, it's like, we used to drive three hours and I would do a talk and you would chant and lead meditations and we would do that for free.

• 1:26:15Jahnavi Harrison?

  Mm hmm.

• 1:26:16Jay Shetty?

  Uh, just wanting to do our service. And we do it all the time. We did it at universities, we did it and it was just for free all the time. We did it together and it's fun looking back and, and you know, we, we both still do so many things for the community and here and there, but it's just so, yeah, it's fun, it's fun looking back.

• 1:26:33Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah. And how to cha- channel and hold on to that same spirit, even though the, the form, you know, the vessel of it may change, it may have more kind of image of material success, but the intention that yes, I want to be there and I want to, I want to show up.

• 1:26:52Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:26:52Jahnavi Harrison?

  With everything that I can give, how to kind of, yeah, hold on to that.

• 1:26:56Jay Shetty?

  Absolutely.

• 1:26:57Jahnavi Harrison?

  I know.

• 1:26:57Jay Shetty?

  There was a magic about those times.

• 1:26:58Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah.

• 1:26:59Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:26:59Jahnavi Harrison?

  Yeah, I remember doing these meditation sessions at Soas University.

• 1:27:03Jay Shetty?

  Yep.

• 1:27:03Jahnavi Harrison?

  I remember running from the tube station across Russell Square and it would be like three students would be there and we'd do that for an hour.

• 1:27:12Jay Shetty?

  Yeah.

• 1:27:12Jahnavi Harrison?

  Um, but yeah, this precious times, anytime you get those kind of opportunities, I think, so.

• 1:27:19Jay Shetty?

  Yeah, absolutely. Well, thank you so much.

• 1:27:21Jahnavi Harrison?

  Thank you.

• 1:27:21Jay Shetty?

  Yay. If you loved this episode, you will enjoy my interview with Dr. Daniel Amen on how to change your life by changing your brain.

• 1:27:30Speaker 03

  If we want a healthy mind, it actually starts with a healthy brain. You know, I've had the blessing or the curse to scan over a thousand convicted felons and over a hundred murderers and their brains are very damaged.