Maya is not just illusion in perception – it is essentially illusion in conception
Thoughtful people know that our perceptions can illusion us. Such illusions are, say, mirages or the apparent bending of a stick kept partially in water. [...]
Direct your curiosity radar towards Krishna
Curiosity is natural to us as conscious beings. We all could be said to have a radar that zooms in on the things that we [...]
Ceaseless visual temptation causes pointless mental agitation
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Success in one field can’t compensate for failure in another
In today’s work-centered culture, some people achieve stupendous success in their professional lives – but often at great cost to their personal lives. Their relationships [...]
Krishna is the source, shelter and summit of everything
Some people conceive of God as a distant being who manages the world through some remote-controlling mechanism. Raising us beyond such preliminary notions of God, [...]
Tolerance prevents the inner sine wave from triggering an outer sin wave
Our consciousness in our present conditioned stage keeps moving up and down, akin to a sine wave. An elevated consciousness in the mode of goodness [...]
Don’t let the wealth without wipe out the wealth within
Our thoughts determine our inner wealth level. When materialism drives us, our thoughts obsess over outer things, gradually impelling us to indiscriminate actions. The Bhagavad-gita [...]
Gita 06.46 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya 46-47: The topmost yogi fixes his [...]
Satisfying our longing for the infinite with finite pleasures ends in addiction
We all long for pleasure. And the world promises us pleasure through its myriad material objects. But materialist propaganda downplays the fact that even the [...]
The capacity to choose is itself not freedom – the maturity to choose wisely is
Today’s ethos exalts freedom as the supreme virtue. Anything that infringes on freedom is labeled dictatorial and unacceptable. But consider addicts. They do have the [...]
Use breaks to break the mind’s spell on you
Our mind is like a spell-casting magician. When a magician spell-binds a person, the victim simply does whatever the magician orders: “Stand, jump; walk on [...]
Bhakti is the treatment that transforms into a treat
When we are sick, we accept the prescribed treatment as an austerity necessary for our recovery. And we often dream about the various treats we [...]
Gita 06.42 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya 38-45: If the mind deviates the [...]
When you shake an apple tree, don’t be blind to the falling of mangoes
Suppose a hungry boy goes to an orchard and starts shaking an apple tree. Nothing happens. He prays to God for help and shakes the [...]
Gita 06.41 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya 38-45: If the mind deviates the [...]
Our lack of confidence doesn’t choke us as much as our overconfidence in our hypercritical mind
When we get an opportunity to do something challenging – something that can help develop our God-given talents – we often shrink back in apprehension. [...]
Our entanglement is caused not by our attachment, but by our detachment
As spiritual beginners, we may think that our attachments cause our entanglement. Such thinking doesn’t probe deep enough – it fails to ask: Why are [...]
Gita 06.39 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya 38-45: If the mind deviates the [...]
If we don’t make time for time-saving activities, we stay hard-pressed for time
We frequently feel pressured because we have too many things to do and too little time to do them in. And our devotional engagements may [...]
Gita 06.38 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya 38-45: If the mind deviates the [...]
Don’t go through the motions – go through to the emotions
Going through the motions refers to doing things superficially, perfunctorily, mechanically – akin to the way a machine moves, without any emotional involvement. Bhakti is [...]