In this series, JK explores the full story of the Proto-Indo-European migrations — from the Yamnaya Steppe nomads of prehistory, through the ancient and medieval periods, all the way to the present day. The goal here is to create a simple, digestible overview that explains:
How these migrations occurred
Where the various archaeological, linguistic, and tribal names come from, and
How they shaped the modern world we live in today
In Part 4, the series concludes by exploring the branches of the Proto-Indo-Europeans who migrated south into Anatolia, the Middle East, and India.
Part 1 covered Northern and Western Europe, following the chronicles of the Celtic and Germanic peoples. Part 2 explored the branches that gave rise to the Hellenic, Italic, Balkan, and Balto-Slavic peoples of the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe. Part 3 covered the branches that remained in the vast and ever-changing Eurasian Steppe.
Follow on social media where posts are posted daily: Instagram (jonaskilker), TikTok (jonaskilker). X (x.com/jonaskilker), Website: jonaskilker.com. Sons of the Steppe merch: constantinegraphicsco.com...Thanks to everyone who has supported this endeavor through the creation of this series through comments, shares, subscriptions, and even insights and bits of research. (A collaborative effort is truly enjoyable.)
THE SERIES
With this series completed, it is thrilling to have a solid framework to be able to reference as we move ahead and explore the virtually THOUSANDS of exciting and thought-provoking histories within all of these regions and cultures. Of course, this channel will also be exploring various topics in philosophy, mythology, and much more. This is only the beginning, the very, very beginning.
Jonas Kilker, Jan. 4, 2026; Pat Macpherson, Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
Friends, at the beginning of the year, I made a commitment to write more. Since then, I have actually done a little writing every single day. Five gold stars!
Writers tell me it is important to keep up the habit, that practice makes progress. Obviously, it’s the same with meditation, so I am humbly practicing what I preach, trusting that if I just keep writing, eventually something good will come of it.
At the same time, it would be a huge help to know what readers actually want to read about.
My strength, if I dare say so myself, is attending and attuning to the person sitting in front of me. I’ve never been great at addressing a large or anonymous audience. It’s never quite clear what’s being requested of me with such an audience.
So when I sit down to write, I’m often left with a sense of well, What do readers want to know?
A few weeks ago, I recorded a podcast (see above) with the charming Dan Harris. As one can see, I enjoyed the conversation. He asked great questions and did a wonderful job of playing proxy for the average viewer who doesn’t know too much about the world of advanced Buddhist meditation.
The first time Pa Auk Sayadaw came to America, he was invited to California in Napa
.
For me, it was my first real foray into addressing an audience I do not know. The same issue crops up here. Of all the precious and hidden gems the Dhamma (the Buddha’s Teaching) has to offer, which of them should I give this hour to? Again, instinct prompts me to ask, What does anyone want to know?
Dan and I touch on past lives, absorption (jhana), science, and its relationship to the Buddha’s “Doctrine in Ultimate Terms” (Abhidhamma), eventually landing on a topic dear to my heart: the skillful and wholesome (kusala).
But the topic choice from my side was basically just a series of guesses. I don’t really have a clue what the average viewer of Dan’s podcast, or the average reader of my newsletter might want to know more about.
So please let me know at bethupton.com. Let me know in our next one-on-one meeting, or on a group call, or better still, in the comments below.
Also, if anyone would like for me to do more podcasts like this one with Dan Harris, please take a moment to like the video and leave a comment there.
Let us know in the comments which kinds of things the world would want to hear more from me in future videos.
Another successful Western female student of Pa Auk Sayadaw: Dr. Nikki
And for those of wondering where the button is to book one-on-one time with me, I am sending out monthly newsletters, interspersed with these ones that are just me writing about things. Open and read them all, just in case it’s the one with the button. 🌝
All of my work is done on a donation basis, which means that all of this is only possible because of generous voluntary support. Support this work at bethupton.com.
Key takeaways:
Kusala states = happy states:
Kusala, drawn from the Buddhist psychology of the Abhidhamma—a system that breaks down experience into its most granular mental and emotional components—refers to a constellation of virtuous, skillful mind states.
Beth Upton calls it a “Buddhist happiness cake,” made from ingredients like generosity, mindfulness, uprightness, loving-kindness, and more.
One entry point unlocks the rest:
We don’t need to cultivate them all at once—because focusing on just one quality (like loving-kindness, integrity, or gratitude) invites the rest to arise. These mental states are “best friends” who tend to show up together.
Letting go feels better than giving in:
Our culture glorifies small, fast pleasures—like scrolling, snacking, and checking out—but deeper, more lasting happiness comes from subtle, wholesome states.
Letting go of ego and craving isn’t a sacrifice; it’s a relief.
It’s not just for monastics:
We don’t need a cave or a meditation cushion. Kusala can be woven into daily life—as we parent, commute, chop vegetables, or write emails. More
But thanks to the Macedonian Alexander the Great, Hellenistic and Buddhist cultures came into contact in the 4th century BCE, creating a cultural synthesis known as Greco-Buddhism.
What is "shadow banning," who does it, and why? It's for censorship and suppression of views.
The CIA (US military-industrial complex Central Intelligence Agency) controls most media of any significance in the U.S., utilizing a program it dubbed Operation Mockingbird.
Bernie has so gone over to the mainstream that he speaks for them now.
Ven. Moggallana: "Devata, your beauty shines in all directions like the bright star named Osadhi.
"When you dance, divine music and sweet fragrance spread from your hands and feet. Also, the ornaments on your head play delightful music. The bouquet of flowers on your head spreads sweet fragrance, like that of a manjusakatree, and plays music when the breeze blows on it. Surely, you must smell that fragrance and see your own divine body?
"Tell me, Devata, what kind of meritorious action [skillful karma] did you do when you were in the human world to have gained this beauty that shines in all directions and to have earned all these wonderful things?"
Devata: "In my previous life, I was in the human world living in the city called Gaya. I was a servant girl working in a high-caste family. I did not have much merit and was very unfortunate. Everybody called me 'Rajjumala.' I was abused, threatened, and beaten. I was tired of living that way.
“One day I took a water pot and, pretending to get some water, I ran away. I ran into the forest beside the road. There I contemplated suicide. I thought that there was no point in living like this. I made a strong noose and tied it to a tree. I looked around to see whether anybody was there. Then I saw the Supreme Buddha, the most compassionate teacher of all beings in the world, sitting at the root of a tree meditating, free from all fears.
(Roxy Music, April 3, 1973) "In Every Dream Home a Heartache." Brian Ferry asks, "Is there a heaven? I'd like to think so." BBC TV: The Old Grey Whistle Test, Brian Eno on keyboards.
“I was shocked and surprised. The hairs on my body stood on end. I thought, 'Who is that being in this forest – is he a human or a deva?' The sight of him was thrilling! He has escaped from the forest of defilements and attained the bliss of calmness. When I saw him, I was delighted. I realized that he was not an ordinary human being. The Blessed One lived with restrained senses, delighting in meditation, with his mind established in nirvana. Truly, he is the Supreme Buddha, the most compassionate teacher in the world.
“Like a lion living in his cave, the Blessed One is afraid of nothing. Seeing a brave buddha is very rare, like seeing a [heavenly] udumbara flower. The Supreme Buddha called to me gently, saying, 'Rajjumala,' and asked me to go for guidance to the Supreme Buddha. When I heard those sweet, gentle, meaningful, soft, and lovely words, all my sorrows went away. My mind was joyful and clean. I was ready to understand the Dharma [Teaching of Liberation]. At that time, the most compassionate teacher in the world taught me the Dharma, saying, 'This is suffering, this is the cause of suffering, this is the end of suffering, and this is the way leading to deathlessness [nirvana].' I followed the advice of the most compassionate and skilled teacher, the Supreme Buddha. I understood the peaceful and deathless state, nirvana. With the realization of the Four Ennobling Truths, my love towards the Buddha became strong, unshakable, well rooted, and well established. I became a daughter born of the heart of the Supreme Buddha.
We're here to entertain you, Shining One!
“Now, I enjoy living in this heaven, playing and dancing. I do not have any fear of falling into the plains of misery again [because she has attained at the very least the first stage of enlightenment called stream entry, which means one can never be reborn anywhere lower than the human plane]. I wear divine flower garlands and drink water from the divine river Madhumaddava. Sixty thousand musical instruments wake me from my sleep. Devas entertain me. Their names are Alamba, Gaggara, Bhima, Sadhuvadin, Samsaya, Pokkhara, and Suphassa. Other devatas, including Vina, Mokkha, Nanda, Sunanda, Sonadinna, Sucimhita, Alambusa, Missakesi, Pundarika, Athicharuni, Eniphassa, Suphassa, Subhadda, and Muduvadini entertain me as well. These and many other devatas entertain me with divine music coming to me whenever I wish. They approach me saying, 'Come now! Let’s dance and sing! We are here to entertain you.'
“Those without merit will not receive mansions [vimanas = UFOs = celestial platforms, mansions, palaces, motherships] like this. Only those with merit receive this happiness in the heavenly Nandana Park in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three (Tavatimsa).
“Those who have not gathered merit will not get any happiness in their current life or their next life. Only those who have gathered merit get happiness in both the present and next life. Those who would like to be reborn in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three must collect much merit. Only people who do good things are able to enjoy heavenly [celestial] pleasures.
“Definitely, supreme buddhas are born into this world for the happiness of all beings. Thus, buddhas are the unique fields of treasure where donors can plant their seeds of merit [with massively abundant results]. Having respected such great beings, these fortunate people enjoy heavenly pleasures. Source: Vv 50: Rajjumālāvimānavatthu—Ven. Kiribathgoda Gnanananda Thera (suttacentral.net)
The Noble Journey: From Fear to Fearlessness with Pema Chödrön
He's no longer our guru after his sex scandal.
(Global Well-Being) We always have a choice, Pema Chödrön teaches us, so we can let the circumstances of our lives harden us and make us increasingly afraid and resentful OR we can let them soften us and make us kinder.
In this talk, Pema provides the tools to deal with the problems and difficulties that life throws our way. This wisdom is always available to us, she explains, but we usually block it with habitual patterns rooted in fear.
Beyond that fear lies a state of openheartedness and tenderness. This talk is a guide on how to awaken our "basic goodness" or true nature and connect with others, to accept ourselves and others complete with our and their faults and imperfections, and to stay in the present moment by seeing through the strategies of the ego that cause us to resist life as it is. "The more neurosis, the more wisdom."
Pema Chodron
When Things Fall Apart
Beloved Buddhist teacher, author, American nun, and mother, Pema Chodron has inspired millions of people around the world who have been touched by her example and message of practicing peace in these turbulent times. The Pema Chodron Foundation is dedicated to preserving and sharing Pema’s inspiration and teachings in order that they might help us all awaken wisdom and compassion in ourselves and the world around us.
Gampo Abbey
Gampo Abbey is a Western Buddhist monastery in the Shambhala Tibetan-ish tradition in Nova Scotia, Canada. Founded by Guru Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in 1983, it is a lineage institution of Shambhala and a corporate division of the Shambhala Canada Society.
Under the spiritual direction of Chogyam's son and sex scandal plagued failed Guru Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, the steppe down spiritual head of Shambhala International, Gampo Abbey is guided by Abbot Venerable Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche and principal teacher Acharya Pema Chödrön.
May we all be happy. May we all be well. May we all be safe. May we all live in peace and harmony with each other, ourselves, the earth and all that lives throughout time and space ♡ Namaste, Love, Gratitude, and Respect, Dick ♡
The Global Well-Being Synchronized Meditations Community is dedicated to benefiting the earth, all that lives, and all sentient beings, by organizing synchronized global meditations. Everyone and all traditions are welcome.
"All people are united in our pursuit of happiness and our desire to avoid suffering. This is the source of humanity’s greatest achievements. For that reason, we should begin to think and act on the basis of an identity rooted in the words 'we humans.'” HH the 14th Dalai Lama
Q: Help! I want a daily meditation practice starting January 1st, 2020. What do I need to do?
A: Skip the wishing this year; make a commitment. Group meditation is the sure way to start and keep going with a practice. Soon what is learned can be carried over to a regular practice anytime, anywhere.
Group practice answers all questions -- who, what, where, when, why, (w)how? Choose an aim, learn a successful method, and get paired with a friend to keep you accountable and on it. Have access to a free guide during the week in case roadblocks arise. It's a big group, and we all get by with a little help from our noble-friends (kalyana-mittas). Free/donations accepted. Warm and inviting atmosphere. Vegan snacks served. Free/by donation. Sign up/RSVP:
Mahamevnawabm.org, Deva Sattavatapada Sutra; Dhr. Seven, Pfc. Sandoval, Wisdom Quarterly
"The Discourse on the Seven Noble Vows of Sakka"
Stories of Sakka Lord of the Gods
Thus have I heard. At one time the Blessed One was staying in Sāvatthi province in Jeta’s Grove at Anāthapiṇḍika’s Monastery where he taught:
“Meditators, in the past when Sakka, king of the devas, was a human, he practised seven noble vows. Because of that good karma he achieved his current position. What were those seven noble vows?
As long as I live may I help my parents.
As long as I live may I respect the family elders.
As long as I live may I speak gently.
As long as I live may I not speak divisively.
As long as I live may I live at home without greediness, removing the stain of stinginess, open-handed, always ready to give, always free to help others, delighting in giving and sharing, and well organized in giving charity.
As long as I live may I speak the truth.
As long as I live may I be free from anger, and if anger should arise in me, may I remove it quickly.
“Meditators, in the past when Sakka, king of the devas, was human, he practiced seven noble vows. Because he carried out those good deeds, he achieved the position he has now.”
There are three sorts of Dharma: the Dharma of theory, the Dharma of practice, and the Dharma of attainment.
The Dharma of theory refers to the teachings of the Buddha: the discourses (sutras), the (monastic) discipline, and the higher teachings (Abhidharma), all "84,000" sections of the Pali language canon. This sort of Dharma is everyone's common property.
As for practice and attainment, they're the individual property of those who do them.
The Dharma as the teachings: sutras/discourses.
For example, [one of the Buddha's four chief disciples, two of them nuns, two of them monks like] Ven. Moggallana's practice was his own practice. His attainment of the paths and fruitions leading to nirvana was his own attainment.
The same holds true for [the other chief male disciple] Ven. Sariputra and each of the noble disciples, all the way down to all of us practicing here [and now].
The practice and attainments of each person are that person's very own. It's like our own land and fields. They belong to us individually; they are not common property.
[Therefore, it is wise to take our common property and make it our own, take the Dharma (teaching) and make it our own. For our practice of it and attainment through it will be our own. Only then will we really benefit from what the Buddha made known.]
[Aryan, "noble," in Buddhism refers to those on the stages of enlightenment; the meaning in English is corrupted. Hinduism records Inner Earth heavens.]
Some of the oldest cultures speak of civilizations inside of vast cavern cities in the bowels of the earth.
According to certain Buddhist and Hindu traditions, secret tunnels connect Tibet (Potala Palace, Lhasa) to a subterranean paradise, a Shangri-la (like the Turkish/Mongolian legend of Ergenekon). Hollow Earth is the legendary underworld called Agartha.
I have been to Inner Earth: Col. Billie Woodard
In Agartha I (Col. Billie Faye Woodard) was given a mission (Pt. 2).
Woodard, a hermaphrodite in Feb. 2012, claims to be from Hollow Earth. S/he took a 6-month trip to Hollow Earth as a child, met people and creatures there, saw technology, and returned to the surface. S/he graduated high school at 12 and searched for a job that ultimately led her to earn a commission in the US Air Force and was assigned to the Pentagon then Area 51.
In India, this underground oasis is best known by its Sanskrit name, Shambhala, thought to mean "place of tranquility." Mythologies throughout the world, from South America to the poles, describe entrances to these fabled inner lands.
[In the Americas this cavern-world is called Aztlan, and the Ancient Mesoamericans described their civilization as having arrived on rafts from a central island in the ocean, likely remnant fragments of the once great Atlantis-continent.]
Many occult organizations, esoteric authors, and secret societies concur with these myths and legends of modern subterranean inhabitants.
They are the remnants of antediluvian (pre-flood) civilizations, which sought refuge in hollow caverns inside the earth.
Numerous endeavors have been undertaken to access the interior of the earth. Polar expeditions and battles, such as the U.S. Operation Highjump, Antarctica, which remains largely classified.
Other endeavors have remained shrouded in secrecy for decades, but scientific revelations validate the rumors about these covert operations, and their implications are finally being exposed to the light of day.
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