SIMPLICITY AFTER COMPLEXITY: THE MATURATION OF BHAKTI | The Free Radical Podcast # EP 74 — Vraja Kishor 7/15/26

Join us on The Free Radical Podcast for a reflective and deeply human conversation with artist, author, Vaishnava scholar, and astrologer Vraja Kishor.

Having joined ISKCON in 1990, Vraja Kishor pursued formal studies at the Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education and spent several years immersed in devotional life and study. His path has also taken unexpected turns—most notably through his time with the Krishna punk band 108, where he helped integrate devotional themes into alternative music culture. Alongside his spiritual and artistic work, he has built a diverse professional background spanning software development and language teaching, before dedicating himself fully to Vedic astrology. He is also a translator of key Vaishnava texts, including work on the Bhagavad Gita, four cantos of the Srimad Bhagavatam, and ongoing translation of the fifth canto as well as the Yoga Sutras.

In this episode, we explore themes drawn from his memoir Train Wrecks and Transcendence—including the arc of spiritual life, relationships, early enthusiasm and later grounding, and the challenge of integrating depth with simplicity. The conversation moves through questions of responsibility, devotion, friendship, family, and the evolving relationship between rigidity and maturity on the spiritual path—arriving at a vision of wholeness that finds the profound within the ordinary.

Tune in for a thoughtful and open exchange that traces a life lived at the intersection of devotion, creativity, and lived experience.

on Youtube! Swami Padmanabha – YouTube