SHE Asked Podcast
Welcome to The SHE Asked Podcast with Anna McBride—a space where the stories we tell ourselves are challenged, reimagined, and rewritten to unlock personal transformation.
Hosted by former therapist, storyteller, and lifelong seeker Anna McBride, this podcast dives deep into the power of narrative. Through personal stories and intimate conversations with guests, we explore how shifting our internal dialogue can change not just how we see our lives—but how we live them.
Each episode offers what Anna calls “practical hope”—real tools, lived experience, and emotional honesty for anyone feeling stuck, lost, or ready for change. Whether you’re navigating divorce, grief, reinvention, or simply trying to understand your past, The SHE Asked Podcast invites you to become the author of your own story—and the hero in it, too.
Follow along for weekly episodes filled with compassion, perspective, and the courage to ask yourself:
What story am I telling—and is it still serving me?
SHE Asked Podcast
Ep 5: The Bhagavad Gita Part 2: The Ancient Text That Influenced Einstein, Gandhi and Jobs
The Bhagavad Gita: Part Two
The Bhagavad Gita, a 2000-year-old spiritual text, contains powerful wisdom that has transformed the lives of influential figures from Mahatma Gandhi to Steve Jobs and continues to offer practical guidance for modern challenges.
Today on SHE Asked, we summarize the Bhagavad Gita's core teachings:
• Know who you are
• Do what you do FULL out
• Let go of outcomes
• Serve others
Remember - one meaningful connection can create profound impact.
In this episode, we mention and recommend Stephen Cope's translation "The Great Work of Your Life" which includes modern stories of people influenced by these teachings.
Be sure to follow the show and reach out with any questions, comments or suggestions at anna@annamcbride.com
Hi everyone. It's Anna McBride. Welcome back to she Asked, tools for Practical Hope. This show explores topics of growth, healing and recovery, offering tips and guidelines to help you along your personal journey. In today's episode, we're going to pick up the story of the Bhagavad Gita, where I'm going to share with you today about how I applied it in my personal life. And I also, before I jump into that, want to share with you some names of some people that you might know that not only read the Bhagavad Gita but really were able to be of great service in the world because of what they learned from that story.
Speaker 1:Mahatma Gandhi is known to have read it and changed his life. He began his work as an attorney and struggled as an attorney, and at the time that he was struggling in that role, he had already read the Bhagavad Gita and actually was known as he carried it with him everywhere and it was what he called his spiritual dictionary, and from that he learned the lessons of know who you are your duty, do it full out, let go of the outcome and do it in devotion to God. So at the time that he read the book, india was going through a great transformation, from being a province of England to wanting to break free, and many of the indigenous people were being held in servitude and slavery, and Mahatma Gandhi made it his purpose to help free his people and fought for their rights, and to do it. He actually gave up all of his life in devotion to that and it is said that to his last breath he had that book with him. Albert Einstein is another person who is known to have not only read the Bhagavad Gita but practiced talking in Hindu and with great expressions of that story and its insights of the universe is what really made him curious about studying what he has brought forth to our world. Carl Jung, one of the famous psychologists, is known to have integrated the Bhagavad Gita into his teaching and understanding of archetypes within the psychological realm. Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple, was known to have read the Bhagavad Gita and appreciated its spiritual insights, which influenced his approach to business and creativity. One of my teachers, deepak Chopra, also have known to have read the Bhagavad Gita many times and implemented it as a part of his work in bringing Ayurvedic medical practices to America and really felt the relevance of that story in modern day spirituality and wellness. I could go on and on, but these are just a short list of people who served as heroes for me and motivators to me to want to find a way to live the Bhagavad Gita.
Speaker 1:As I mentioned in the previous episode, I came across the story the first time when I was 18, in a literature class at university. Yet it came back to me when I started studying yoga and meditation and, honestly, when I found that book at that time I was at a crossroads in my life. I was in an unhappy marriage and wasn't sure about what I was going to do about that, what I was really meant to do in life. I was a mother of three young children and yet in my mind, that wasn't my only purpose and not really one that was going to help me in my life. You know, the thing about the story is that it really taught me to find ways to appreciate that one of my roles, that of being a mother, one of the main purposes of my life. I didn't understand it then. My children are all grown now and I can say and I have told them most importantly that being a mother was one of the main purposes of my life. It is the thing that saved my life, quite frankly, the other thing that saved my life was really finding a way to bring yoga and meditation to communities when I was deeply struggling in my marriage.
Speaker 1:I at the time was living outside Philadelphia in a farm community. I lived on a property that had a barn, it had a cottage, it had a main house, it had an exterior house and we were on quite a few acres and I had this idea of turning it into a wellness farm. We turned the barn into a yoga meditation studio that we called the Yoga Barn, into a yoga meditation studio that we called the Yoga Barn, and the cottage was called Cottage Counseling. And I opened up the farm to the community. We had people coming and going every single day. We had people who would just come to hang out on the property because there was some sort of energy that made them feel better.
Speaker 1:I thought about that, particularly about the story, because there was a battleground going on in my life, in my marriage, in myself, and by turning that same property, the farm, into a place of healing, a place of serving, a way to give back in devotion to the things that were helping me heal was actually a way for me to answer that question of why am I here? What is my purpose? How can I fulfill the duty of who I am? And it's a story that keeps reminding me that in life, as in many things, that we don't always understand, what is the deeper meaning. We think that we're meant to be successful and what success looks like according to society, and yet if we don't match that, then we failed. I have learned that success, which is really another word for progress, is how we progress in the world, how do we carry yourself, how do we find a way to really be, and I learned through this story. It guided me into yoga, meditation, it guided me into turning my farm into wellness, it guided me to becoming a therapist and it guided me to become that yoga and meditation teacher where I taught classes around.
Speaker 1:This very story, over and over. This story originally was told. That's how the best storytelling happened, how the only storytelling happened. Back when this story came to be, there was no paper, there were no books, and now it's the most translated story of all time. Yet it was first told word of mouth, and the themes, which are many, are really both metaphorical and historical, and so if you remember that the main themes, which are know who you are. Do it full out. Let go of the outcome and do it in service. Let go of the outcome and do it in service. That is the purpose of why we are here. When I think about that, I've had great success. It's not attached to a dollar. It's not attached to a societal idea. People could view my life and think that I've missed a few things. No, I'm divorced, my kids are grown. I don't necessarily have a retirement plan. That's why I'm here sharing with you, and yet, at the same time, I have a lot of experiences to bring forward, most of which I've learned from this one story.
Speaker 1:Some of the great quotes from it are ones that keep teaching me about why the story still holds great meaning. This idea of be in the present moment before you take action is so powerful that if we would only be present instead of worrying about yesterday or figuring out what we're going to do tomorrow, then we would understand that all we have is right this moment and the best decisions are only made in the moment. They're not made tomorrow and they're not made yesterday. And they say that the universe exists now. So the other main theme from this that I really enjoyed is the idea of the power of one To be successful.
Speaker 1:I used to think like I had to teach a lot of people right, and that in a sense makes sense. Right, you can't maybe make a living off of one person. Yet the most powerful, successful teachings and connections I've ever had have been with one person one conversation, one therapy session, one cooking class, one-on-one and if you can see that as having great meaning, then you've been successful. Not many people really know the power of connection. One of the modern day quotes is to everyone, you are one person, but to one person you may be everything. I love that quote and it comes from the story, because the whole idea is that Arjuna thought that he needed to be able to have an effect on many, many people, when really the only person you need to have an effect on was himself Know yourself and be that.
Speaker 1:There's another quote that comes from that story about the universe, and I think this is the one that really inspired people like Albert Einstein as above, so below, as within, so without. And that quote really means is that the universe we think exists outside of us, and what the Bhagavad Gita taught is that it actually exists inside of us. Everything that is outside of you is already within you, and scientists have proven that all of the atomic matter that's in the world actually exists inside of us in some way, shape or form. We look at the way the world exists in space and water and fire and land, right, earth and air. These qualities exist in each human being. It's really fascinating the way that these things just keep on going, and I've thought about the fact that, when it comes to really understanding my impact in the universe, I have to first be able to go within myself in order to know myself so deeply that whatever I bring outside of me is adding, not taking away from someone else.
Speaker 1:One of the other main quotes that comes from this story is this idea of you are your thoughts. Whatever you think is what you're actually experiencing. That's the power of thought. Arjuna thought that his life was over, that this problem of being a warrior was going to destroy him, when the character Krishna reminded him that thoughts are powerful, that if you think you're going to be destroyed by your circumstances, then you probably will. Yet if you think that your circumstances are going to transcend you to make yourself more, then they will. Even if you die, you will have lived In that story, krishna said at our essence, there is no end and no beginning.
Speaker 1:We always were and therefore we always will be. It's kind of a mind-blowing thought, and yet the way we look at it today is we will always exist. I think Einstein said that energy cannot be destroyed. It can only be transformed. That was his translation from what he learned from the Bhagavad Gita. The way we say it now is we have a part of us that will always exist. I like to think that the part of us that will always exist besides, whatever ideas you have about spirituality is our story. Our stories will always exist. So I believe in storytelling because I want to be remembered for the way I connect with people, the way I help people, the stories I told to feel attended to, to heal. That's the part of me that I hope continues.
Speaker 1:There's so many great things that come from this story. I could go on and on and on, but I want to inspire you to really think about what your purpose is is to be you, be you, know you so well and love yourself enough to just be you. Don't think you have to be like anybody else. The only thing you can succeed at is be you Don't think you have to be like anybody else. The only thing you can succeed at is being you, and then do it full out, without worrying about any kind of outcome, because the best outcome is what you invest in yourself, your own income, and then do it in service. Think of you being you. Existing is for for service, particularly if you're kind. You know kindness to one person is kindness to every person.
Speaker 1:I really strongly believe that the themes of this story are what can help us heal, individually and universally. So, not for nothing, go get a copy of the bhagavad-gita. I particularly like that translation by Stephen Cope the Great Work of your Life. If you want some great stories about it, I really suggest that you start there. It's a simple read with some great stories of modern people that I've mentioned already, including Jane Goodall, the great story of Jane Goodall. There's even one story in there about Harriet Tubman and how she was influenced by this story as well. The story that keeps on giving are the best stories that we can hold on to, and here at she Asked, the Practical Hope podcast, we want to offer you tools, and this story is a great tool. So go get yourself a copy, embrace the themes and put them to work in your life. Until soon, this is Anna McBride. Be well.