Know Thy Soul

Jennifer Maura DePascale
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Spirituality

Know Thy Soul is a podcast about the journey home to ourselves, to the divine, and to the wisdom within waiting to be remembered.   Hosted by Jennifer Maura DePascale, each episode draws from myth, fairy tale, scripture, symbolism, ancient spiritual traditions, personal reflection, and conversations to uncover the timeless patterns woven through the world's great stories and spiritual traditions, and what they reveal about our lives today.   Together, we'll explore questions of meaning, healing, consciousness, relationship, and our direct connection to the divine. Through ancient stories and modern insights, we'll discover what these enduring patterns can teach us about ourselves, our world, and the journey from exile to wholeness.   Join us as we explore the lifelong journey of knowing thy soul.  🎙️ New episodes are released every Tuesday.  Visit knowthysoul.com to listen, read episode transcripts and reflections, and join the Know Thy Soul newsletter. 

  1. 2d ago

    Episode 18: Unveiling Genesis 1:1: How Origin Stories Shape Us

    What if the story you were taught about how the world began is still shaping what you believe about yourself, the world, and your place in it? “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” It’s the opening line of a creation story that helped shape the Western world. But how often do we slow down long enough to ask what those familiar words might still have to tell us? Genesis 1:1 is just seven words and twenty-eight letters in Hebrew. I spent an entire episode on that one verse, and I could have kept going. We’ll read it word by word, sometimes letter by letter, with fresh eyes to see and ears to hear. I’ll share readings I never heard growing up, trace some of the mathematical patterns woven into the Hebrew, and ask what this first verse might already be telling us about the sacredness of all creation. You might come away hearing that first verse differently. And if a story this familiar can still surprise you, what else might you see differently about your place in the world? Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  2. Nov 3

    Episode 17: Adam and Eve: The Story That Shaped How We See Men and Women

    What if the story of Adam and Eve has shaped our understanding of men, women, and God in ways we've never thought to question? For centuries, the Garden of Eden has been interpreted through teachings that portray Eve as the source of humanity's downfall and women as subordinate to men. But how much of what we've inherited comes from the biblical story itself, and how much comes from the people who held the authority to interpret it? In this episode of Know Thy Soul, Jennifer Maura DePascale invites us to revisit one of the Bible's most familiar stories with fresh eyes. Drawing on a fascinating psychological experiment involving a rigged game of Monopoly, she explores how power shapes what we believe is fair, natural, and even ordained by God. Along the way, Jennifer shares her own journey from questioning the story as a little girl to reclaiming her spiritual sovereignty, and how following her curiosity and relationship with God led her to write Eden Unveiled, an unexpected second book devoted to the first three chapters of Genesis. This episode begins a new series exploring the Hebrew text, the wisdom of Jewish mysticism, the divine feminine presence known as Shekhinah, and what the story of Adam and Eve might reveal when we begin looking beyond the interpretations we've inherited. What might we discover if we stopped accepting what we've been told a story means and began looking for ourselves? Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  3. Oct 27

    Episode 16: Who Taught You That You Weren't Enough?

    What if one of the deepest sources of human suffering is the belief that there's something fundamentally wrong with who we are? After the heartbreaking death by suicide of a fifteen-year-old boy in her community, Jennifer finds herself wrestling with questions about suffering, compassion, and the beliefs we pass down from one generation to the next. How did we learn to hide our pain, suppress our emotions, and measure our worth by how well we meet the expectations of others? And what happens when the religious teachings meant to bring us closer to God leave us believing we're inherently flawed and unworthy of love? Drawing from her own experiences, psychology, the ancient stories of the Handless Maiden and Perceval, and a fresh exploration of the Garden of Eden, Jennifer challenges the idea that we were ever meant to earn our worthiness. What if Adam and Eve's nakedness isn't simply about their bodies, but about the freedom to be fully seen without shame? What if the biblical journey isn't about humanity becoming worthy of God's love, but about discovering that we always were? This is a deeply personal episode about the wounds we inherit, the armor we learn to wear, and the compassion that can help us find our way home. Jennifer closes with a heartfelt letter to anyone who may be struggling, especially those who have begun to question whether their life matters. Because you were never born unworthy of love. And you don't have to find your way home alone. Content note: This episode includes discussion of suicide, suicidal thoughts, bullying, grief, and religious shame, including a personal account of childhood suicidal thoughts. If you or someone you love is struggling, support is available. In the United States, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, free and available 24/7. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911. Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  4. Oct 20

    Episode 15: The Emperor's New Clothes: Why We're Afraid to Speak Up

    What happens when everyone around you insists something is true, but deep down, you know it isn't? In this episode of Know Thy Soul, we revisit Hans Christian Andersen's classic fairy tale, The Emperor's New Clothes, and discover that this childhood story has a lot more to teach us as adults than we might expect. Why are we so afraid of looking foolish? Why do we stay silent when something doesn't feel right? And what happens when our desire to fit in becomes so strong that we begin deceiving not only others, but ourselves? Through the symbolism of the naked emperor, the fearful officials, and the child who finally speaks the truth, we explore the hidden costs of conformity, the fear of being exposed, and what happens when we abandon our own inner knowing. We also connect this story to the Handless Maiden, the wounded masculine of Perceval, and the importance of bringing our inner and outer worlds back into alignment. And as we prepare to revisit one of the most influential stories in Western civilization, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, we're left with a question: What have we accepted as truth simply because everyone around us insisted it was there? Sometimes all it takes is one person willing to look again, and speak up. Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  5. Oct 13

    Episode 14: Pointing Toward the Moon: Seeing the Forest for the Trees

    What if the stories, symbols, and teachings we’ve been exploring were never meant to become answers in themselves? In this episode, I step back from The Handless Maiden, Perceval, Dame Ragnell, and the other stories we’ve explored to ask what they’ve been pointing toward all along. Through an old Zen parable of a teacher pointing at the moon, we explore the difference between studying the symbol and allowing it to reveal something within us. I also share more personally about my own silver-handed marriage, anxious attachment, learning to trust my inner knowing, and what it has meant to grow my hands back. We look at feminine knowing, masculine protection, wounded relationship patterns, sovereignty, and the possibility of a love built on mutuality rather than self-abandonment. Sometimes the story helps us see everyone else first. Eventually, though, the finger turns back toward us. And asks: Where is this in me? Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  6. Oct 6

    Episode 13: The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell: A Story of Sovereignty and True Chivalry

    In Episode 13, we return to Camelot for The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnell: A Story of Sovereignty and True Chivalry. When King Arthur’s life depends upon discovering what women most desire, Sir Gawain is drawn into a mysterious bargain that will test the meaning of honor, love, and choice. In the second half of the episode, we confront what happens when women’s sovereignty is not honored. Against the backdrop of recent sexual assault allegations involving a Cornell fraternity, we explore rape as the most brutal denial of sovereignty and the devastating consequences of a culture that teaches men to equate masculinity with conquest. Drawing together The Handless Maiden, Perceval, and Dame Ragnell, we look beneath the violence to the original wound. Patriarchy offers men a devil’s bargain: power in the outer world at the cost of their emotional and spiritual lives. What they are taught to dominate within themselves, they may learn to dominate around them. These stories show us another path. They ask what it would mean to heal men who do not need to dominate in order to feel powerful, to restore the feminine within us, and to return the choice to the hands where it has always belonged. Content note: This episode includes a discussion of rape and sexual violence. Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  7. Sep 29

    Episode 12: Why You Get Triggered and What Your Reactions Are Trying to Tell You

    Why do some moments hit us so much harder than they seem like they should? A criticism. A tone of voice. Someone pulling away. Suddenly, the reaction inside us feels much bigger than what is happening in front of us. In this episode of Know Thy Soul, Jennifer explores what triggers are actually trying to show us through the unlikely story of a four-pound puppy and a bee stinger. Sometimes the wound is not only what happened to us, but the meaning that became lodged inside because of it: I’m not safe. I’m not good enough. People leave. My feelings don’t matter. Years later, something touches that old wound and suddenly we react. Through The Handless Maiden, Perceval and the Fisher King, scripture, psychology, and Jennifer’s work with the subconscious, we explore why we protect the places that hurt, how those protections can become armor, and why a heart that seems “hard” may actually be a heart that has felt too much. We also look at the difference between the wound itself and the meaning we carry from it, and how becoming conscious of those meanings can help us stop organizing our lives around the past. This episode is an invitation to pause in the space between feeling and reacting, to turn toward the wound with curiosity instead of shame, and to ask the question Perceval once failed to ask: What ails you? Because healing does not mean we will never be wounded again. It means learning how to meet what hurts without abandoning ourselves, so the wound no longer gets to decide what happens next.. Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

  8. Sep 22

    Episode 11: Perceval, Part 2: The Masculine Wound and the Courage to Feel

    What if the Grail Quest was never about finding a sacred object, but becoming a person capable of compassion? When Perceval fails to ask the question that could heal the Fisher King, he responds in the only way he knows how: he rides away, fights more battles, and tries to prove that he has what it takes. But no amount of achievement can heal the wound he refuses to face. In Part Two of Perceval’s story, we follow him through shame, wandering, and finally into the forest, where he removes his armor, allows himself to weep, and begins the transformation from knight into a mature masculine king. Along the way, we explore why so many people have learned to fix pain rather than feel it, how our unhealed wounds spill into our relationships, and what the Handless Maiden must do when the king is not yet willing to heal. Perhaps the Grail was never a prize to be won. Perhaps it is a heart capable of seeing suffering, remaining present before it, and asking the question love requires: What ails you? Did something in this episode speak to you? Send me a note. About Know Thy Soul Know Thy Soul explores myth, fairy tales, scripture, symbolism, psychology, and spiritual traditions as maps of the soul, revealing the timeless patterns that illuminate the journey home to ourselves.   🎙️ New episodes every Tuesday. Visit knowthysoul.com for episode transcripts, reflections, and more.  📬 Join the Know Thy Soul newsletter

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About

Know Thy Soul is a podcast about the journey home to ourselves, to the divine, and to the wisdom within waiting to be remembered.   Hosted by Jennifer Maura DePascale, each episode draws from myth, fairy tale, scripture, symbolism, ancient spiritual traditions, personal reflection, and conversations to uncover the timeless patterns woven through the world's great stories and spiritual traditions, and what they reveal about our lives today.   Together, we'll explore questions of meaning, healing, consciousness, relationship, and our direct connection to the divine. Through ancient stories and modern insights, we'll discover what these enduring patterns can teach us about ourselves, our world, and the journey from exile to wholeness.   Join us as we explore the lifelong journey of knowing thy soul.  🎙️ New episodes are released every Tuesday.  Visit knowthysoul.com to listen, read episode transcripts and reflections, and join the Know Thy Soul newsletter. 

Information

  • Creator
    Jennifer Maura DePascale
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    19
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Know Thy Soul
  • Show Website
    Know Thy Soul