Ghosts, Gauranga & Jungle Noise: Bhakti at the Palenque Ruins

Have you ever sat in a place that people call “sacred” and felt two things at once, total awe, and a quiet sadness that everything physical fades? That’s the feeling at the Palenque ruins in Chiapas, Mexico, where the jungle is so alive it almost feels like it’s breathing around you.

In this episode of Juicy MagiK on the Go, Mad Mangala Das and Ocean Dasi share travel plans, laugh at the chaos of jungle sound (yes, including a weed whacker), and let the stones of an ancient Maya city spark a real talk about war, impermanence, and the one kind of “progress” that doesn’t crumble with time.

Palenque, Chiapas: The jungle doesn’t whisper, it sings (and buzzes)

Palenque is humid, even in December. It’s that kind of heat where your skin notices everything, the wet air, the sun, the little shifts in breeze. And the soundtrack is nonstop.

There’s the natural jungle chorus, layered and wild. Then there’s human life threaded through it, radios playing somewhere, walkie-talkies crackling, workers clearing growth because the jungle takes space back fast. You can feel it out there, nature doesn’t pause politely around ruins. It keeps moving.

If you want a bit of grounded context on what Palenque is and why it matters, UNESCO’s site profile is a solid reference: Pre-Hispanic City and National Park of Palenque (UNESCO World Heritage Centre). It helps frame what you’re looking at, not just as “old buildings,” but as part of a protected cultural site with deep history.

On the road: Palenque to Mérida on the Tren Maya

This stop in Palenque is part of a bigger loop. The plan is to ride the newly finished Tren Maya, traveling through the Yucatán region and Quintana Roo, then head up to Mérida for the Bull Bitcoin conference.

It’s a simple travel plan when you say it fast, but it carries that sweet feeling of movement with intention, like, “Okay, we’re not just wandering, we’re threading places together.”

If you’re curious about the train itself, the official ticket and booking portal is here: Tren Maya booking and ticket portal. And since Palenque is a key starting point, this guide is useful for the practical side of it: Palenque Tren Maya Station details.

December in the jungle: A quick Advent moment

There’s a little December tenderness in the conversation too. Advent comes up, the German tradition of the four Sundays before Christmas, lighting a candle each Sunday until all four are lit.

It’s a small thing, candles and weeks and a rhythm you can keep, even when you’re far from home, even when you’re sitting in a jungle with ancient temples behind you and sweat on your neck.

Sometimes spiritual life looks like big words and big practices. Sometimes it looks like remembering a candle tradition while a weed whacker screams in the distance.

“Sacred place” expectations vs what the stones actually say

There’s a moment of honesty that lands hard: you come to places like this looking for sacredness, but the inscriptions and carvings often tell a story of war.

Captives. Spears. Glory stories carved into stone.

And it hits a nerve because it’s not just “their story.” It’s a human story. We keep trying to build meaning on top of domination, status, conquest, ego, and then we act surprised when what we built doesn’t last.

For a broader look at Palenque’s history (in a more narrative style), this piece gives helpful background and imagery that matches the feeling of being there, rainforest wrapped around stone: An overview of Palenque’s history and setting.

The lesson hiding in plain sight: everything fades

One of the simplest observations becomes a full teaching: the colors used to be bright. Reds that once popped. Details that once looked alive.

Now they’re faded. Washed out. Gone.

And it’s not said in a gloomy way. It’s almost gentle, like, “Look, it’s right here. This is what time does.”

It’s hard not to map that onto everything we chase:

• the “I’ll finally be happy when…” plans
• the status stuff
• the need to be seen
• even the religious idea of getting something for ourselves, like rescue, escape, a spiritual trophy

Stone fades. Paint fades. Bodies fade. Even empires fade.

So what doesn’t?

Out of the square and into the circle: the bhakti yoga idea

A big theme in this episode is what gets called “the square,” a kind of closed loop of material life. The way it’s described is simple and sharp:

• Economic development aimed at sense gratification (bigger, better, more, mine)
• Religiosity aimed only at liberation or salvation (still centered on “me,” just dressed up)

Even when it looks spiritual on the outside, if the center is still the self, it stays boxed in. Square edges. Dead ends.

Then comes the alternative: bhakti yoga, devotional loving service to the Supreme, described as that “fifth element,” the way out of the square and into an infinite circle.

Circle is a beautiful image for it. No sharp corners. No finish line where you “win.” Just relationship, service, love, returning, deepening.

If you want a straightforward overview of devotional service principles in this tradition, this resource lays it out cleanly: Bhakti, Yoga of Devotional Service (principles and practice).

“Some ghosts want a little Gauranga” (so we chant)

And then, in the middle of ruins and jungle noise and faded paint, a playful line becomes a real moment: maybe some ghosts want a little Gauranga.

So they chant.

“Gauranga” refers to Lord Chaitanya, described here in the traditional way: the golden one (more beautiful than molten gold), understood as Krishna Himself coming in the mood of His beloved, Shrimati Radharani, especially in the mood of separation.

That mood of separation is explained in a way that’s instantly human. When you’re wildly in love, being away can feel even more intense than being together. The longing sharpens everything. The desire to return becomes its own fire.

That’s the kind of emotional truth that makes spiritual ideas feel less like philosophy and more like life.

For more on Lord Chaitanya’s kirtan emphasis and the mood of separation, this article expands on those themes: The essential principles of Lord Gauranga’s kirtan.

Returning after 30 years: time, memory, and gratitude

There’s a personal loop in the story too.

The last time Mad Mangala Das was in this area was 1993, driving a truck down to Nicaragua with colleagues, donating it to a school so kids could be transported between rural homes and school. Back then they couldn’t make it up to Palenque because of deadlines.

Now it’s about 33 years later, and he’s sitting at the ruins.

That kind of return does something to you. You realize how fast decades pass. How “later” turns into a lifetime.

And it naturally turns into a deeper reflection: we don’t know when we’ll leave our bodies, so what do we do with the time we have?

Living with type 1 diabetes and choosing real inquiry

There’s also a candid share about living with type 1 diabetes for over 31 years. Not presented for sympathy, just as a plain fact of embodied life.

Every day becomes a blessing, not as a slogan, but as a lived thing. You wake up, you do what you need to do, you keep going, and you remember that the body is temporary.

So the question becomes practical and urgent: what do we use this body for?

The answer offered is not vague. Use this life for inquiry into the most important questions, and seek answers in a grounded way, described as three confirmations working together:

• Guru (saintly persons, teachers, guides)
• Shastra (bona fide scripture)
• Paramatma (confirmation in the heart)

Not just one of them. All three.

Japa on the stones: simple practice, real peace

The episode closes with that soft, steady image: japa beads in hand, quietly chanting the holy names.

No big production. No perfect conditions. Just practice in real life, on real stone, in real humidity, with real noise in the background.

That’s part of what makes it feel so relatable. You don’t have to “escape life” to be spiritual. You can chant right in the middle of it.

If you want to connect with the community mentioned in the episode, you can join through the Juicy MagiK Agora registration portal. And if you’re the type who likes to support practical projects, there’s also Juicy MagiK project support via BTCpay.

Conclusion: What lasts when everything else fades?

Palenque makes the point without trying. Paint disappears. Cities crumble. Stories of conquest turn into broken carvings and tourist paths.

And still, the practice remains: chant, remember, serve, love. That’s the quiet invitation of bhakti, to step out of the square of self-centered chasing and into a life that keeps opening.

If you’re sitting with your own questions right now, big ones or simple ones, consider letting them be real. Then see what happens when you bring those questions into prayer, into community, and into the sound of the holy names.

mariakerwin

As a former serial entrepreneur, she turned from a workaholic in the business world to freedom and creativity, living now as a writer, creator and world traveller. Since an early age Maria is close to death and what exists beyond, courageously exploring the dimensions of existence. A Kundalini Awakening guided her into the abyss of fully surrendering to the life force itself, crushing all known aspects of her old life. Finally, it led her to her purpose of bridging both worlds, connecting to what goes beyond the ordinary.

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