00:00

Speaker 1
(jazzy music plays) Let's remember together some of the greatest TV and movie stars of yesteryear with the woman who knew them. Mary Jane Pop hosted radio and TV shows for nearly five decades, meeting these stars and getting them to share their real-life stories. You'll meet them up close and personal as Mary Jane searches her extensive archives for the best and brightest real star talk on Pop Star Talk. And here she is, Mary Jane Pop.

00:34

Speaker 2
Are you ready to take a trip into the world of New Age with the king of alternative lifestyle on Pop Star Talk? Hi, Mary Jane Pop here, with my producer, Kenneth Signorino, as we delve into the world of the man who is still exploring the unknown. He is none other than the most prominent New Age guru and alternative medicine advocate, Deepak Chopra. Now, in the 1990s, uh, Deepak, a physician by education, by the way, became a popular figure and prominent in the holistic approach. Uh, Chopra claims that a person can attain perfect health, free from disease, and may even live forever. Uh, I don't know about that one. But that got my attention. So along with one of his books that we talked about, he has written a multitude of books on just about every subject of life, Ken. Uh, do you know m- much about Deepak Chopra, Ken?

01:37

Speaker 3
You know, I, I'm very familiar with the name, and I've h- I've listened to him a few times. Uh, so I don't know that much, so I can't wait to hear, to hear the interview.

01:49

Speaker 2
Yeah, there's a k- some things that he talked about that I thought was kind of fascinating. One is that we should laugh more at ourselves, and I didn't think he would say that. He said we take ourselves too serious. You would think someone like him would want you to be, you know, very serious about alternative and everything. And no, he has a, kind of a good sense of humor. Um, and he said, "Happy equals success." He didn't say, "Money equals success or fame equals success." No, "Happy equals success." Um, and I, I don't know. And, and he said, "You can find happy by making others happy." I like that, because we don't do a whole lot of that. It's sort of all about me, my, mine, you know, and all this kind of thing. Um, and I love to find out who people are. So I wanted to find out, you know, who is he? Why is he here? And I would want to know w- who am I (laughs) and why am I here? So I hope we can share some really interesting bits and pieces with, uh, Deepak Chopra. And he...

02:54

Speaker 2
Laughter, he says, comes from the heart, and laugh... We should laugh like children. You know, I think we forget about that. We get so doggone serious, we get so much into life, Ken, that we forget to be a kid. Um, I remember talking to people who are, like, psychics or, um, uh, they do palm reading and all that kind of thing, and they said the f-... You remember when you were a kid? Now, I don't know if you had this experience, Ken. Did you have a, a, a, an imaginary friend by any chance?

03:26

Speaker 3
Oh, I still do.

03:28

Speaker 2
You do?

03:29

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

03:29

Speaker 2
Who do you, who do you talk to?

03:31

Speaker 3
It's a guy that... My, my... You know, his name's Jake.

03:35

Speaker 2
Really?

03:36

Speaker 3
Not really. Secretly, uh, having an a, an affair with my wife, but I, I know all about it.

03:41

Speaker 2
(laughs) Now, do you a... Does he answer you?

03:45

Speaker 3
Oh, yeah.

03:45

Speaker 2
Do you get answers?

03:46

Speaker 3
Oh, definitely.

03:46

Speaker 2
Yeah?

03:47

Speaker 3
Definitely. I can... I sit in the hot tub and we have long conversations.

03:51

Speaker 2
I think that is so cool. I'm gonna have to do an interview with you to find out what he, you know, where he's, where he's coming from, uh, why he's there. Is he kinda looking out for you? Have you ever asked him some of these questions? Like-

04:03

Speaker 3
Nope.

04:03

Speaker 2
... "Why are you here, Jake?"

04:04

Speaker 3
No, it's mostly golf tips.

04:07

Speaker 2
Oh, golf tips. (laughs)

04:08

Speaker 3
Yeah. "Hold your hand this way. Don't do this. Don't do that."

04:11

Speaker 2
Keep it simple, stupid.

04:11

Speaker 3
"Play this way." Keep it simple, stupid, you know?

04:14

Speaker 2
(laughs)

04:15

Speaker 3
Yeah.

04:16

Speaker 2
Oh my gosh.

04:17

Speaker 3
You know-

04:17

Speaker 2
I love it.

04:18

Speaker 3
He's on the golf course with me all the time, and he usually says, "Now, why did you do that?" (laughs)

04:24

Speaker 2
Ah. Oh, I, I think that's great. Did you have him from a friend, like, very, when you were young, or just as an adult?

04:31

Speaker 3
Just as an adult.

04:32

Speaker 2
Huh. Did, did you have any... Did you know him when he was alive?

04:37

Speaker 3
No, no. Mm-mm. No.

04:39

Speaker 2
No. How did he come to you? I'm interviewing you now.

04:41

Speaker 3
(laughs)

04:42

Speaker 2
Where, where did he come from?

04:43

Speaker 3
Oh. I felt, you know... It, it, it... People would think you're crazy if you're talking to yourself, so when they say, "Who you talking to?" I said, "Jake."

04:55

Speaker 2
Oh.

04:55

Speaker 3
And that just was my answer, and Jake became Jake. And I said, you know-

04:59

Speaker 2
Oh, my god.

05:00

Speaker 3
'Cause I tend to ask myself questions like, uh, you know, like, "What did I come here for?" You know, I'll be in Costco, go, "What'd I come here for?"

05:08

Speaker 2
(laughs)

05:09

Speaker 3
And (laughs) like, "Who you talking to?" "Jake." (laughs)

05:12

Speaker 2
Yeah. I'll be honest with you, though. I talk to myself a lot.

05:16

Speaker 3
Yeah.

05:16

Speaker 2
Uh, and I al-... And they s- and they say, "Well, why?" And I say, "Because I can get the right answers," you know? (laughs) And they... I, I answer myself. Why not?

05:24

Speaker 3
Why not?

05:24

Speaker 2
It clarifies some of the things that you have to face and do.

05:28

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

05:28

Speaker 2
My opinion. What do you think? Yeah?

05:30

Speaker 3
Yeah, yeah.

05:31

Speaker 2
Okay. All right.

05:32

Speaker 3
And then I often, I often ask, "What would Jake do in situations?" And I get the answer.

05:38

Speaker 2
Have you ever had bad advice from Jake?

05:39

Speaker 3
Oh, yeah. Of course.

05:41

Speaker 2
(laughs)

05:41

Speaker 3
Jake's, Jake's not perfect. (laughs)

05:43

Speaker 2
Oh. (laughs) I love it, I love it.

05:46

Speaker 3
He's having an affair with my wife. What do we talk about?

05:50

Speaker 2
(laughs) I'm gonna talk to Mindy about that.

05:53

Speaker 3
Well, no. D- do you know what? Uh, a quick story of the Jake story. When we first started dating, uh, she went out and bought-

05:58

Speaker 2
You... With Mindy. You started dating with Mindy, right?

06:00

Speaker 3
Yeah.

06:01

Speaker 2
Not Jake.

06:01

Speaker 3
Yeah. D- not Jake. We started... Uh, she went and bought, bought me underwear, and on the, on the band of the underwear, it said, "Jake."And I opened the drawer and saw Jake and all the underwear, and I said, "Who in the hell is Jake?"

06:14

Speaker 4
(laughs)

06:14

Speaker 3
(laughs)

06:17

Speaker 4
Oh my gosh.

06:17

Speaker 3
So that's how I found out, you know. And that's when I really named my, my, my, my imaginary friend Jake.

06:24

Speaker 4
That was meant to be.

06:25

Speaker 3
Yeah.

06:26

Speaker 4
Okay, Ken. So without further ado, let's find out what the famed Deepak Chopra had to say about living, and when it might end, and then what? (instrumental music plays) How can you not be inspired by Deepak Chopra, chairman of the Chopra Center for Wellbeing? Well, Mike Myers was, and is, as his new flick The Love Guru opens in theaters on June the 20th, and we are inspired by Deepak Chopra, because although he has a serious side, he really can lighten up and believes comedy helps with overall joy and happiness. And that's why I love his new book, Why God Is Laughing: The Path to Joy and Spiritual Optimism. Now Deepak Chopra needs no formal introduction, for he inspires everybody. Uh, by the way, uh, Deepak does make a cameo appearance in The Love Guru. Deepak, nice to have you with us on Pop Off.

07:30

Speaker 5
Thank you. It's nice to be with you again.

07:32

Speaker 4
Yeah, it's, uh, such a pleasure. I know I spoke with you last year, and I was so inspired because you do have a sense of humor. You don't always take life so doggone seriously, and hoorah for a change.

07:42

Speaker 5
Well, humor allows us to shift our perception and see the opportunity in every situation.

07:49

Speaker 4
Well, I'll tell ya, God's gotta have a sense of humor to put up with us, don't you think?

07:53

Speaker 5
(laughs) Yeah, I think the deeper thing is, though, that, uh, the human spirit is full of contradiction. We have inside us the divine and the diabolical, the sacred and the profane, the sinner and the saint. And when we love ourselves as we are and stop judging ourselves, then we radiate a simple, unaffected humanity that makes us even more lovable and that allows us to love others. So, the key to, to life, really, is to take it as it comes, to not be serious about, uh, yourself particularly, to see the opportunity in obstacles, and creative solutions in problems.

08:35

Speaker 4
Why is it that in today's society, we go for everything that is negative, you know, uh, the negative news, the negative reality shows, the stuff where people are hurt and nasty things happen to them, instead of the positive? Positive doesn't make it. Why?

08:50

Speaker 5
Because, we are so full of anguish ourselves, we vicariously want to feel that we're not alone, and therefore we enjoy the anguish of others. We also have been hypnotized by our society to believe that if we just had the right thing, we would be happy, so if we were healthy, we would be happy, if we had money and success, we would be happy, if we had the right relationships, we had, we would be happy. Turns out it's the other way around. If you're happy, you'll be successful, you'll have the right relationships, and you'll make choices that are healthier for you. So how do you find happiness? By making others happy.

09:31

Speaker 4
Hmm.

09:31

Speaker 5
By, um, looking for, uh, opportunities when you see problems, by letting go of your limiting beliefs, by not being attached to your ego, or, and by letting go of fear, by letting go of addictive behavior, which is always not just the physical addictions but the psychological addictions of cynicism and what can go wrong and attachment to outcome. So happiness is, uh, within.

09:59

Speaker 4
Yeah. I, I love the idea that you say it's important to col- cultivate an internal sense of optimism. And it, that means it can't be from the outside, 'cause I got a bigger car or a bigger house or I'm making more money or a fancier job. That's not gonna give me happiness. It's gotta start from the inside out, right?

10:15

Speaker 5
In fact, studies have shown that outside things add maybe 7% to your happiness. The remaining 93% comes internally from letting go of limiting beliefs, from being creative, from being loving and compassionate and grateful.

10:35

Speaker 4
But it doesn't mean that we shouldn't still strive to be the best that we can be, 'cause otherwise then we're throwing away talents and abilities that have been given to us and we're not using 'em.

10:46

Speaker 5
Yeah. I mean, the, but how to be the best you, uh, wanna be is by asking yourself and reflecting on questions like, who am I? What's my purpose? How do I make other people happy? What are my unique talents? How do I express them? What are the qualities I look for in a good friendship? What are the qualities I express in my relationships? Who are my heroes and heroines in history, mythology, religion? When we live these questions, then life moves us into the answers.

11:19

Speaker 4
You know, you're absolutely right. Uh, I'll just give you an example, just so you know that I th- I, I feel what you feel. Uh, I do this show every day, and I do this to be able to share with people, to help them make their lives better, et cetera, and that's the reason I do so many varieties of, of topics. I had an, uh, a seminar that I just recently did. Uh, again, bringing in people to make lives better for folks. Uh, sharing these kinds of things makes me feel wonderful.

11:45

Speaker 5
Of course. Of course. That's the only way, because there's no separate self. We are part of a collective consciousness. We do not have a separate self. In fact, when we feel separate, that's when we get depressed.

12:01

Speaker 4
Mm-hmm.

12:01

Speaker 5
That's when we get lonely. That's when we get afraid. But at the deeper level, our soul is connected to everybody and everything.

12:09

Speaker 4
And you also said the healthiest response to life is laughter from the heart. Um, and I don't think we do that anymore. We watch television, we see programs. The ner- the laughing is almost like a nervous laugh. It's not a real laugh that comes from the inside.

12:25

Speaker 5
Yes, because society is so programmed at external gratification and also internal gratification that children laugh, uh, from their heart, from inside. And if you can restore that innocence in your own self, experience a sense of wonder, then you too will have that laughter.

12:47

Speaker 4
Why do we lose it? Wha- when do we lose it?

12:51

Speaker 5
It's education. You know, our education is just the provision of information. Our education is not about emotional intelligence. How do we get in touch with our feelings? How do we get in touch with other people's feelings? How do we manage relationship effectively? How do we find our joy? How do we find our insight, our intuition, our imagination, our creativity? In other words, our own consciousness.

13:20

Speaker 4
How did you find yours, Deepak?

13:22

Speaker 5
Well, first of all, I was brought up in a completely different, uh, world, you know, where my mother and my parents always told me that we were gifts from the universe, that, uh, um, they were 100% sure that one day we would contribute to the world and all we had to do is discover our unique talents and express them with joy and love, and there was nothing else expected from us. And no amount of good grades or going to good schools or getting into the right colleges would make a difference to them. And yet all of that happened because we were detached from it.

13:59

Speaker 4
Mm-hmm. (instrumental music plays) Hang in there with us because we got more to come.

14:05

Speaker 6
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15:05

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16:05

Speaker 6
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17:05

Speaker 8
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18:04

Speaker 4
(instrumental music plays) It's Pop Talk. Hey, you know we do talk. (laughs) We talk so much today and there seems to be so much disparity and arguments and wars over the word religion, you know, and different types of religion. Where have, uh ... Will we ever get away from this? It always seems like religion has always caused wars. Uh, ih, w- why do we have to have such wars over religion? Why can't we just either believe our own thing or somehow come together and say, "I accept you for you, what you are"?

18:36

Speaker 5
I think religion is essentially, um, uh, um, i- if I may say so, primitive, and, uh, divisive and quarrelsome. It began in tribal times, and we still, um, uh, hearken to that tribal tendency. So religion is ethnocentric, religion is frequently racist, and bigoted. It's exclusive. Hence, all the wars, uh, in the name of God, 35 wars in the world, all in the name of religion.

19:08

Speaker 2
Mm-hmm.

19:09

Speaker 5
We are now having to, um, understand that religion is, uh, has not kept up with all the knowledge we have in the world, uh, through cosmology, through evolution, through biology, through physics, through mathematics, through, uh, all the sciences. So there's a big conflict between intelligent science and religion, and yet we have deep questions, where did we come from? What is the meaning and purpose of our life? Do we have a soul? What happens to us after we die? Does God exist? Etcetera. So we need to find new answers, new answers that are consistent with an intelligent understanding of the universe.

19:53

Speaker 2
Mm-hmm.

19:53

Speaker 5
And that is found (clears throat) in the evolving spirituality of our times, where we begin to understand that there is a domain of awareness which is beyond our personality, where we experience our universal self. There is a domain of awareness where we find insight and intuition and imagination and creativity and conscious choice-making and love and compassion, and that if we can have this experience, then that would be a truly religious experience.

20:24

Speaker 2
Mm.

20:24

Speaker 5
Most people who are religious, they're believing in somebody else's religious experience. They've never had the experience on their own.

20:32

Speaker 2
Mm-hmm.

20:33

Speaker 5
If I was pointing to the moon, you should be looking towards the moon, not holding onto my finger.

20:38

Speaker 2
(laughs)

20:39

Speaker 5
So that's what we end up doing in religion. It's unfortunate, but religion is outmoded. (instrumental music plays)

20:51

Speaker 2
I thought that was fascinating, that religion is outmoded, but you know what, Ken? It is funny because a lot of, um, reports now are saying that people are becoming more, quote, "spiritual" and not necessarily following a specific religion or accepting all religions, and just being more spiritual about what you do in life. And I think it just, I loved it that he w- had the sense of humor to be in the movie The Guru. He, I, I think it was only a cameo appearance, uh, with, with, uh, Mike Myers.

21:25

Speaker 3
Mike Myers.

21:26

Speaker 2
Yeah, and to have that kinda sense of humor, uh, with some of the serious things that he talks about, that's what we all should be doing for a change. I mean, one of the things, and I believe he's gonna talk about that, uh, in the next segment, but he said... I asked him about Jesus, and he said, uh, "He was a story of enlightenment." And, you know, we should take that, uh, in- into account on life. We learn. Keep learning. Keep opening yourself up to the possibilities. Uh, and the fanaticism that is in our world today, and he said, "It's a cover-up. Fanaticism is a cover-up for insecurity." Doesn't that... These are, are things that kind of m- when you listen to 'em, it makes sense, doesn't it?

22:11

Speaker 3
Y- and it's, it's basic, and we try to complicate things sometimes, and, you know, we are very basic humans, you know, when it gets down to it. You know, we eat, sleep, and a few other things but, that are basic, you know?

22:28

Speaker 2
Yeah.

22:28

Speaker 3
And, and, uh, you know, and laugh. You know, laugh a lot.

22:33

Speaker 2
We need more laughter in the world, but not laughing at each other.

22:38

Speaker 3
Yeah.

22:38

Speaker 2
Laugh with each other.

22:41

Speaker 3
No, no.

22:41

Speaker 2
You know?

22:41

Speaker 3
No. Uh, you know, there's... You know, like a little kid, when he makes fun of another kid and they laugh, that's not good.

22:48

Speaker 2
Hm mm.

22:48

Speaker 3
But when they do something funny that they all laugh together, that's good. You know? So let's all laugh together. Uh-

22:55

Speaker 2
Yeah, and...

22:56

Speaker 3
Uh, you know, I, I, I try to look at things in humorous ways all the time. You know, there's a fine line between tragedy and humor, you know? And sometimes it's the humor that, uh, keeps you, uh, in, in, in line to s- survive the tragedy.

23:17

Speaker 2
Yeah, because tragedy... We're human, and there's always gonna be some tragedy. Uh, I call it the good, the bad, and the ugly.

23:25

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

23:25

Speaker 2
There's always gonna be that part of our life.

23:28

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

23:28

Speaker 2
Uh, but you have to be able to take it one day at a time.

23:32

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

23:32

Speaker 2
Uh, be the best person you can be, and also laugh with, not at.

23:39

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

23:39

Speaker 2
Uh, and, and just enjoy every single day 'cause you never know... I always used to say, "There's a big old calendar in the sky, and there's a number on it, and when your number comes up, it doesn't matter who you are, what you are, how famous, how rich, doesn't matter. It's your number, and you, it might be today, it might be tomorrow."

23:58

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

23:58

Speaker 2
"It might be many years from now, but just enjoy each day because we don't know when that number's gonna come up."

24:04

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm. Well, I, I'm towards the end of the calendar in my age.

24:08

Speaker 2
Are you? (laughs) Don't look at it that way. You gotta look at-

24:12

Speaker 3
Well-

24:12

Speaker 2
... 'cause you never know.

24:13

Speaker 3
That's when it becomes more fun. I mean-

24:16

Speaker 2
Yeah.

24:16

Speaker 3
... you don't have to worry about what, what the future is. You don't have to worry what people are gonna think 'cause, you know, you don't have to live with them that much longer, and you have fun.

24:26

Speaker 2
It's interesting that you say that because, um, I've had veterinarians on, uh, my other show-

24:33

Speaker 3
Mm-hmm.

24:33

Speaker 2
... and i- it's interesting what they say. They, they say, "Animals, especially dogs, they do not think about yesterday."They don't think about the future, tomorrow. They live in the moment, today. And you know, that's a good lesson to learn for us humans. Uh, and hey, we learned it from our dogs. (laughs) 'Cause they do live in the moment. Jack and Daniel, your two dogs, do. My two dogs, Ice and Trekker, right?

24:59

Speaker 3
That's right. They-

25:00

Speaker 2
They just wanna know what treat they're gonna get. (laughs)

25:03

Speaker 3
Well, they, they learn how to open the door and let the flies in.

25:07

Speaker 2
Yep, oh yeah. (laughs)

25:08

Speaker 3
That's why I have this fly swatter around.

25:10

Speaker 2
I know. I was wondering about that during... while, while we were listening to the interview, I saw you with the fly swatter and I said, "What the heck is he doing?" You know? Chasing flies.

25:20

Speaker 3
My, my, my daughter-in-law one time says, "Ken, you love all animals." I said, "That is not true. I hate flies."

25:27

Speaker 2
(laughs) Well there, I always look at it this way. Uh, I don't mind bugs. I, I try not to, you know, squish every bug that I see when I go for a walk or anything. But you know, if they're in my house, "You don't belong here." You know? "Go back outside. You can stay (laughs) outside. You're okay." Oh, well.

25:45

Speaker 3
But see, most bugs don't bug you, but flies bug you.

25:51

Speaker 2
Okay. *******.

25:53

Speaker 3
So those things that bug you are the things you have... that you don't like.

25:58

Speaker 2
How about mosquitoes?

26:00

Speaker 3
Okay, you added another one.

26:01

Speaker 2
Okay. (laughs) See? I knew...

26:04

Speaker 3
See, they don't bug you. It's different. They just bite you, like an animal would bite you.

26:09

Speaker 2
Yeah, but they draw your blood.

26:10

Speaker 3
And that's it. No, flies, that's why I had to go get the fly swatter. I'm sitting here and there's this fly landing on me.

26:18

Speaker 2
I love it.

26:18

Speaker 3
And on the mic and here and there, you know, you're bugging me. (laughs)

26:22

Speaker 2
(laughs)

26:22

Speaker 3
And you know the fly is looking at me going, "Aah!" You know?

26:26

Speaker 2
(laughs) Yeah, trying to chase him. Okay, so I was also very curious about what happens when we die. I mean, we got Deepak Chopra here. I can ask that question. So we hear that... and I don't know if you've heard this, Ken, that sometimes, um, we lose so many ounces of weight when we die. Um, or some people actually see like a puff of smoke or something coming out of the body as their loved one passes on. But the soul goes on. So I had to ask Deepak, what is the soul?

27:04

Speaker 5
(instrumental music plays) Well, first of all, there's no difference in the body. If anything, the body loses weight because of dehydration.

27:11

Speaker 2
Okay.

27:12

Speaker 5
So there is no, no difference in the weight. The soul is the consciousness with its memories and its desires and its potential for creativity and manifestation. And that consciousness is not in the body. Just like when you're listening to the radio, the speaker... People who are listening to us, um, right now don't presume that we're in the radio sets.

27:37

Speaker 2
Mm-hmm.

27:37

Speaker 5
The radio sets are instruments that are trapping energy and information and localizing it and producing sound. And so it appears that we are speaking through the radio, but we are not in the radio. So too, your real self is not in your body. It's non-local, which means it has no location in spacetime. It's eternal. It has no beginning, it has no ending. And it uses the body for communicating. So the body and the brain are instruments. We are not the instruments. We are the user of the instrument. Every time you have a creative insight, every time you imagine, every time you're inspired, every time you feel love, every time you feel compassion, every time you have a deep intuition, you're getting in touch with your soul. Every time you feel stillness, you're getting in touch with your soul. It's in the space between your thoughts.

28:35

Speaker 2
So that soul is what goes on?

28:37

Speaker 5
Yes.

28:38

Speaker 2
Hang in there with us, 'cause we got more to come.

28:42

Speaker 6
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29:52

Speaker 6
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30:42

Speaker 8
That's the ease at which you get information. You want it, you get it. Like that. Ask your phone, group chat, smartphone. You're always connected and informed in real time. No waiting. So if you're diabetic and still using finger sticks to read your blood sugar, what are you waiting for? Knowing your blood sugar levels instantly is important for managing diabetes. Call US Med at 888-665-0704 to learn more about continuous glucose monitors, a real-time instant method to track your blood glucose. US Med is an approved provider for Medicare, and over 1,000 private insurers. And the best part? Call 888-665-0704 and we'll give you a free insurance benefits check today. So call 888-665-0704 today. That's 888-665-0704. And manage your diabetes as easy as (dinging) .

31:42

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32:06

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32:16

Speaker 10
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32:41

Speaker 6
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33:46

Speaker 4
So the question that everybody wants to know, and maybe we'll never know till we get there, where do we go from here?

33:54

Speaker 5
We don't go anywhere. We're here. We just lost a line of communication. If you, if a house, um, collapses and the walls come down, nothing happens to the space. The space now is unbounded, it has no definition, so you can build another house in the same space. So just like the space cannot be created or destroyed, the soul cannot be created or destroyed. It finds a new way to express itself through its own creativity. If two people are speaking on the phone and the lines get cut off, then that, that doesn't mean the people have disappeared. Only a line of communication has been disrupted for the time being.

34:38

Speaker 4
(instrumental music plays) We may think of it as The Twilight Zone, but you know what? It is not The Twilight Zone. It is like Deepak Chopra just told us. It's a connection. We always are, always have been, always will be, o- and it keeps going on. It's on and on and on. Uh, Deepak Chopra is with us. Of course, the name of the book, Why God is Laughing, and of course, he got involved with the, uh, the movie called The Love Guru with Mike Myers. Uh, before we do that, I, you, I really wanna get your definition, because I, I had an argument one time, Deepak, with, uh, a scientist who said, "There is no such thing. You can't tell me that there's a god. You can't prove that there's a god. It's all faith," et cetera. And I gave him a definition o- of what I thought God is. Uh, because I learned it in catechism when I was in Catholic grade school. It said, "God always was, always will be." Uh, and just keeps going on and on.

35:27

Speaker 4
And I said, "If you defined the word energy for me, isn't that the same thing? It always was, always will be. It can change forms, but it never goes away." Isn't that what you're basically telling me, that we are and one with God?

35:41

Speaker 5
Yeah, we are one with God, but it's not energy. It's the source of energy, and also intelligence, because energy in the universe is not random. It's organized into biological organisms and natural laws. So God is infinite intelligence, infinite consciousness that orchestrates the energy, information, spacetime, and the objects of the universe. God is pure potential that differentiates into all of this. God is therefore infinite love, infinite compassion, infinite understanding, infinite creativity, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, um, the simultaneous creator of information, energy, and matter.

36:28

Speaker 4
Will we ever get to that point? I always used to think Heaven to me would be total knowledge, really understanding it all.

36:35

Speaker 5
Heaven is a state of consciousness. That's all it is. It's a projection of our own consciousness.

36:40

Speaker 4
Really? And fascinating. Uh, but it being one with God, then hopefully one day w- or sometime in the, the space continuum, we will understand all this?

36:50

Speaker 5
I think, um, we can understand it right now. Heaven is upgrading the illusion, hell is downgrading the illusion, and what we are experiencing right now is also the illusion. It means that it is a projection of our consciousness. We create it based on our deeper, um, intentions and desires. The only thing that's real is the consciousness itself.

37:15

Speaker 4
Uh-huh.

37:16

Speaker 5
Everything else is a projection of that consciousness.

37:19

Speaker 4
If we have this, this negative consciousness that you're talking about, instead of l- raising it to the level of, like you said, the heavenly consciousness, can that bring on bad things for the, for the body materially? In other words, bad health, bad conditions, bad mind, all this kinds of things?

37:34

Speaker 5
Well, it's generally known that when you have stress then you, um, have, um, you know, a higher incidence of cardiovascular disease, cancer, infection. And stress is basically always being at war with yourself and with the world. It's the perception of physical or emotional or psychological threat. On the other hand, if you're joyful and feel connected and have, um, laughter inside you, then your body makes things like, um, dopamine and serotonin and oxytocin and opiates which fine-tune your immune system and also act as antidepressants. So your body's chemistry is definitely another projection of your state of consciousness.

38:18

Speaker 4
Now, Mike Myers, uh, said that, that you had such a great impact on his life and his comedy. How did you meet Mike or how did Mike meet you?

38:26

Speaker 5
I met him 15 years ago. He was interested in spiritual, um, philosophy, particularly from the East, and he ... I realized he was a good (laughs) scholar and knew a lot about it, and so we spent a lot of time together. And later, when he started doing improv comedy in The Village in New York, he asked me to join him once. We did a special on the Sundance channel. And then when he decided to do this movie, he wrote a script and he asked me to look at it.

38:58

Speaker 4
Mm-hmm. What, what did you think of it when you first read it?

39:02

Speaker 5
I thought it was hilarious.

39:03

Speaker 4
(laughs) I can imagine. But is it kind of poking fun, though, at the, the Hindu religion? How do Hindus ... How do you think they'll respond?

39:11

Speaker 5
No, no, if it's poking any fun at anybody, it's poking fun at me.

39:15

Speaker 4
Oh. (laughs)

39:15

Speaker 5
But, um, you know, um, fundamentalists always get, uh, annoyed. It's the way they attract attention. It's a cry for self-importance. If you're so easily offended, you're not very religious.

39:29

Speaker 4
You know, I, I'm so glad you said that, because everyone has ... We have our own beliefs. We have our own inner fortitude and whatever that fortitude is. A- and it's like you said at, at the very beginning, we take ourselves way too seriously. Uh, our laughter is probably the best medicine that we could have.

39:45

Speaker 5
Yeah. Laughter allows you to get in touch with your soul, with your deeper self.

39:51

Speaker 4
N- now, you act- actually do a cameo appearance. Do you play yourself?

39:55

Speaker 5
Yeah. He's, you know, on the ... Part of one of the themes in the movie is that he's upset that he's number two-

40:01

Speaker 4
(laughs)

40:01

Speaker 5
... and Deepak is number one. So I finally get to see him and say, "You can be number one."

40:06

Speaker 4
Amazing. Now, what, what gave you the inspiration to write Why God is Laughing?

40:12

Speaker 5
Um, I realized that, you know, most religious people are extremely serious and self-important, and we find very little laughter or humor in religion. But true spirituality should be about going beyond the ego and going beyond the need for approval and going beyond the need for being offended all the time. So I thought I'd, uh, illustrate the same principles that I've done in my books through a book that is light-hearted and says, "Take it easy, enjoy life, um, have fun, and, uh, don't take yourself seriously and you'll start to see results."

40:50

Speaker 4
Ab- absolute- well, it loosens things up and allows you to be more creative and open up your mind to the possibilities.

40:55

Speaker 5
I think if you're that cruel, then you're of course more creative. When you're serious and worried, you're not so creative.

41:01

Speaker 4
What is the goal for Deepak Chopra? What do you reach for?

41:06

Speaker 5
I'm like a person who's singing in the bathroom and, uh, enjoying his point of view and enjoying sharing his point of view. It seems like a lot of people are interested in that point of view.

41:17

Speaker 4
And the thing is that people do accept you for what you are and how, how you say it and what you say instead of ... They don't judge you. They really, really don't. And I find that fascinating and also quite refreshing.

41:29

Speaker 5
Yeah, it's fun. I'm enjoying the ride.

41:31

Speaker 4
Yeah. Well, but again, it comes from your heart, from the inner, inner part of Deepak Chopra, doesn't it?

41:36

Speaker 5
Yes. Of course.

41:39

Speaker 4
Hang in there with us 'cause we got more to come.

41:43

Speaker 9
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42:08

Speaker 7
Call 800-806-9175. 800-806-9175. 800-806-9175.

42:17

Speaker 10
Consolidated Credit Solutions Incorporated, 5701 West Sunrise Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33313. Licensed by the New York Department of Financial Services and by the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation. Kansas CSO 0019051. Maryland DM1492. Oregon DM892. Licensed by the Virginia State Corporation Commission, license number DC83. Service may adversely affect the individual's credit. Non-payment of debts may lead to additional finance charges or collections activity, including legal action. Actual interest rates, length of program, and monthly payment reductions will vary by consumer and creditor. Yours could be higher or lower. Not a loan company. We do not lend money.

42:43

Speaker 11
Sometimes life is wonderful, and sometimes it's not. Cherish the good, but always be prepared for life's challenges.At Private Healthcare, we provide the peace of mind you deserve. With Private Healthcare, you'll get the coverage you want and healthcare you need. If your employer doesn't supply healthcare coverage and you don't qualify for Medicare or Medicaid, you need to give us a call right now. Private Healthcare is private health insurance for ages 65 and under with medical, dental, vision, and even prescription coverage. When life comes at you unexpectedly, you need to be ready, and health insurance is your financial safety net. If you're looking for health coverage at the best price and your annual household income is 35,000 or more, give us a call at 800-694-0036. That's 800-694-0036. 800-694-0036.

43:43

Speaker 8
That's the ease at which you get information. You want it, you get it, like that. Ask your phone, group chat, smartphone. You're always connected and informed in real time, no waiting. So if you're diabetic and still using finger sticks to read your blood sugar, what are you waiting for? Knowing your blood sugar levels instantly is important for managing diabetes. Call US Med at 888-665-0704 to learn more about continuous glucose monitors, a real-time instant method to track your blood glucose. US Med is an approved provider for Medicare, and over 1,000 private insurers. And the best part? Call 888-665-0704 and we'll give you a free insurance benefits check today. So call 888-665-0704 today. That's 888-665-0704. And manage your diabetes as easy as (bell chimes) .

44:43

Speaker 1
And here she is, Mary Jane Fox.

44:47

Speaker 4
What makes your life special to you?

44:52

Speaker 5
I have my children, my family, my wife, my grandchildren now. That's the most special thing I have.

44:59

Speaker 4
That's beautiful. What's the next, what's the next goal? What's the next book?

45:03

Speaker 5
The next book is called Jesus: A Story of Enlightenment. Since I've annoyed the Hindus, it's time to annoy the Christians.

45:10

Speaker 4
Oh. (laughs) Good for you. I love it. What, what kind of ... Are, are you into writing it already?

45:17

Speaker 5
I'm almost finished it, yes.

45:19

Speaker 4
Fantastic. So how do you, how do Hindus view Jesus?

45:24

Speaker 5
Hindus view Jesus as one of the greatest teachers, uh, as an incarnation of God. Um, and, um, they do believe that, um, Jesus was divine, but they also believe there are other people who've been divine.

45:39

Speaker 4
Amazing. Why is it that we have to be so specific? You know, He was the son of God. He was this, He was that. Instead of just accepting what he was trying to teach us?

45:50

Speaker 5
Yeah. Besides, you know, when if you look at the Greek, um, Bibles originally, he calls himself a son of God or of the nature-

46:00

Speaker 4
Mm-hmm.

46:01

Speaker 5
... of God. He refers to Ruach Adonai, which is the spirit of God that animates all beings, the spirit that is mentioned in the Book of Genesis. The Lord God made man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. We are part of that spirit. We share that breath, we share that mind, we share that cons- consciousness.

46:27

Speaker 4
Does it not annoy you, and perhaps you have the spiritual tenacity not to have that, that, being upset about it, but I do. When you have the Islamic terrorists, and, and obviously there are many, many people of the Muslim religion who are not, so I don't, I don't wanna put all them in one bailiwick. But you have these fanatics who is, you know, "You don't believe that I believe, you're gonna be die, you're gonna be dead. That's it, it's all over for you if you don't believe the way I believe." What has caused this fanaticism in our world?

46:56

Speaker 5
Fanaticism is not just in Islam, it's in every religion. The Hindus can be fanatics, they just happen to be vegetarians.

47:04

Speaker 4
Yeah. (laughs)

47:06

Speaker 5
(laughs) You have fanatics everywhere. Fanaticism is a cover-up for insecurity. These people deserve even more love and compassion and understanding.

47:16

Speaker 4
Yeah, but if they don't kill us first.

47:18

Speaker 5
Hmm?

47:18

Speaker 4
If they don't kill us first.

47:20

Speaker 5
Well, we ... Part of the reason they kill us or, is that we, we dismiss them and are, are not, um, you know, even aware of their values. I was part of a survey that was done by a Gallup poll. I mean, I participated in the creation of that, and what people want is to be spoken to respectfully, to recognize that there's perceived injustice on both sides, that there's room for forgiveness, that there's no belligerence, that there's use of emotional intelligence, that there is, uh, an attempt to understand different people's values without proving them wrong, that there is a recognition that, uh, fear is on both sides. So, you know, there's a lot of good principles that can be used to, um, resolve conflicts, uh, and even actually disarm your enemies, but we don't use them, because we, we're so brought up to think that the only way to, um, um, get rid of an enemy is to destroy him. Um, but actually, the only way to get rid of an enemy is to make him your friend.

48:29

Speaker 4
Do you think we'll ever reach a point where we're not going to have that animosity?

48:33

Speaker 5
I hope so. I mean, we're laying the seeds for it now.

48:36

Speaker 4
Good for you. And please keep up those seeds. We need all the help that we can possibly get.

48:41

Speaker 5
Thank you very much.

48:42

Speaker 4
We, we mean that. Why God is Laughing, uh, it is available, I assume, every place, correct?

48:47

Speaker 5
Yes, it is.

48:47

Speaker 4
And do you have ... You also have a website, don't you, Deepak?

48:49

Speaker 5
Yeah, it's just my name, deepakchopra.com.

48:52

Speaker 4
Dot com. Fantastic. We will look forward to the movie, The Love Guru.

48:56

Speaker 2
And I'm gonna be looking for you, and when I see you up on the screen, I'm gonna wave to you, okay? Okay. Terrific. Deepak, thank you so much for being with us on Pop Off. Thank you. Keep up the good work. We, we need the heart and soul that you have. Thank you. Take care now. That's Deepak Chopra. I tell you, you know, doesn't he have good common sense, Ken?

49:19

Speaker 12
Yeah. He said, uh, so many things in eight minutes that, wow, were so, uh-

49:26

Speaker 2
Deep.

49:27

Speaker 12
Deep.

49:28

Speaker 2
(laughs)

49:29

Speaker 12
That's why his first name is Deep. No.

49:31

Speaker 2
No.

49:32

Speaker 12
Ah.

49:32

Speaker 2
I'm gonna, I, I've gotta find his number and see if we can get him back again, because there was something that I saw in my research that he's been talking a lot about the artificial intelligence that we have now.

49:44

Speaker 12
Mm-hmm.

49:44

Speaker 2
And he said artificial intelligence, um, and spiritual enlightenment go together, and I, I've gotta find out what he means by that.

49:55

Speaker 12
Hmm.

49:55

Speaker 2
That fascinated me, how, how artificial intelligence, which we're afraid is gonna take over, uh, also can help with our enlightenment. Uh, uh, you know me, I'm very... I say nosy, but I'm curious. I am curious about that, so I'm gonna see if I can find him to come back again and let us know.

50:12

Speaker 12
Well, somebody said, "Why do we need artificial intelligence?" And I, I, it just hit me and I said, "Well, it's because we haven't figured out, uh, how to educate our children."

50:24

Speaker 2
Yeah. That's true. That's true. There's a lot of, a lot of things that we have to change, uh, a lot that we have to accept in life, and with other people, with other cultures, and until we do that-

50:39

Speaker 12
Mm-hmm.

50:39

Speaker 2
... um, we will not see positive things happening.

50:43

Speaker 12
No, but he said-

50:44

Speaker 2
I hate to say.

50:44

Speaker 12
He said some great things. I just, uh... I'll have to go back and take notes.

50:50

Speaker 2
Yeah, (laughs) and also, well, I'll have him back again, and then you can tell me what you want me to ask him too, so... (laughs)

50:56

Speaker 12
Right.

50:56

Speaker 2
Well, anyway, Ken, thank you so much. Greg, our engineer, thank you, too. Um, I'm Mary Jane Pop, and I promised you a myriad of guests with celebrities and perhaps a look at the deeper meaning of life. And I hope I followed through with that promise with Deepak Chopra. Now, I'll have to check out what he's into these days after he wrote Why God Is Laughing, and I'm probably saying that God is not only laughing, but he's rolling off his chair now. Till our next time together, Ken and I hope that you will once again have celebrities in your life through Pop Star Talk, famous and infamous, to entertain and enlighten you and me. Till then, live simply, laugh often, love deeply, dare to dream, and Ken, give my best to Jake.

51:48

Speaker 12

 

(laughs) Okay. (instrumental music)