Recollection is a function of connection
To remember some fact, say, the year of America’s independence, we need to connect that date with other dates we already remember. In general, placing [...]
Following scripture centers not on legalistic conformity, but on loving reciprocity
When driving through unfamiliar territory, a map guides us. Similarly, during our life-journey, scripture is meant to be our map. But life is much more [...]
Fear boiled down to its barest is the absence of God
We all have our fears: loss of health, wealth or loved ones. To deal with such fears, we arrange for insurances, security systems or self-defense [...]
Faith is not just certainty – it is also openness to possibility
We often equate faith with certainty, as in, “I am sure that God exists.” Such equalization is valid in terms of ontology – we need [...]
Education is needed not just to fulfill our desires, but also to know which desires to fulfill
We usually want education so that we can have a lucrative career and thereby fulfill our many desires. And, yes, education can serve this purpose, [...]
Counter temptation not just at the level of activity but at the level of identity
When we are tempted by some pleasure that we know we should resist, we often fight it at the level of physical indulgence – we [...]
Anxiety is not incidental to materialism – it is intrinsic
Anxiety epidemic. That’s how psychologists describe the spiraling anxiety levels among people today. Anxieties are frequently attributed to uncertainties that arise from financial, political and [...]
The mind may give us a flashback, but we don’t have to turn back
When we strive to lead a principle-centered life, we sometimes get sudden flashbacks. Some flashbacks are joyful, some painful. The unpleasant flashbacks are often of [...]
Tolerance is not an end in itself – transcendence is
Tolerance implies the readiness to live with unpalatable situations. It is a strength that enables us to keep small things small so that we can [...]
The highest spiritual vision culminates in compassion, not inaction
Some spiritual seekers think that to avoid bondage and to grow spiritually, they need to reject the world and give up all action. While this [...]
Our activities may need to be spaced out, but we don’t need to be spaced out
The word “spaced out” can refer to our actions or to our consciousness. When we have a lot of things to do, especially demanding things, [...]
The mind on auto-pilot leads us to destruction, not destination
When a plane is flying on course in the sky, it can be set on auto-pilot and it will cruise towards its destination – provided [...]
The event of death isn’t avoidable, but the trauma of death is
Death is life’s scariest reality. Even when we see it happening around us, we shield ourselves from it by believing that it won’t happen to [...]
The whole is far greater than the sum of its parts
Modern science often analyzes objects to be the sum of their parts. We may extend this scientific approach to spirituality – on coming to know [...]
Focus not on where the inner voice is coming from, but on where it is taking
We often hear different voices within us. Some voices prompt us to act foolishly, some to act wisely, some to actions in between. Gita wisdom [...]
Union of wills requires not the breaking of will but the building of will
We may have a lose-win conception in our relationship with God: He is the Supreme, and we have no option but to obey him, else [...]
The spiritual vision of all living beings is both saddening and gladdening
A foundational philosophical insight is that the material vision and the spiritual vision do not see alike. When we strive to gain spiritual vision through [...]
The mind is not inherently our enemy – it is circumstantially our enemy
When we understand how our mind frequently sabotages us in our endeavors to do constructive things, we may become averse to it, deeming it as [...]
To achieve transformation, see devotion more as intention than as emotion
We may think of devotion as the sweet emotion we feel on, say, beholding Krishna’s Deity form or hearing a sweet kirtan. Such emotion is [...]
To avoid the inner bad feeling, don’t weaken conscience – strengthen willpower
Whenever we do something wrong, we feel bad, “I shouldn’t have done like that.” This bad feeling is the pinch of conscience. Conscience is like [...]
The first place we lose the battle is in our thinking
The Bhagavad-gita is spoken just before a major war against vicious aggressors. And yet at that critical moment, the foremost virtuous warrior, Arjuna, loses his [...]