Fanatics use God’s name to give God a bad name
The news often reports how religious fanatics kill innocent people and justify their barbarity in the name of God. Such reports, coupled with ghastly imagery, [...]
Those who don’t respect themselves are most agitated when others don’t respect them
When others disrespect us, we naturally feel hurt. But some people go beyond feeling hurt to wanting to hurt others, and hurt them disproportionately. Why [...]
We have to risk going too far to know how far we can go
Suppose we are seeking something that requires effort and involves risk. When we start stretching ourselves, others may caution us, “You are going too far [...]
More damaging than the lies we tell others are the lies we tell ourselves
Suppose someone has diabetes and they secretly eat desserts. If they lie to their caregivers about what they are doing, that’s bad; they will worsen [...]
To savor what is most sweet, we often need to shed the most sweat
If we want to eat food, we need to earn it. If we want to eat sweet food, we need to pay more, that is, [...]
Some people get many insights from one sight, others don’t get even one insight from many sights
Some people learn so much from small incidents in daily life, whereas others forget the lessons learned through big blunders. Why the difference? Are some [...]
To live life fully, leave life regularly – take breaks before life breaks you
Suppose we use a machine continuously without turning it off. If it’s not given enough time off, it will deteriorate rapidly. Downtime is essential for [...]
We relapse not because we are witless or will-less, but because we are weapon-less
When we make resolutions to give up some unhealthy indulgence, we often relapse. On succumbing thus, we may berate ourselves for being witless: “How could [...]
Be childlike, not childish
Children have a charm to them. They have an innocence and freshness to them that lightens and brightens the world around them. They bring out [...]
Gita 09.05 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Now the next verse reveals [...]
Appreciating others’ achievement fosters extrinsic self-worth, appreciating their commitment fosters intrinsic self-worth
Suppose we are guiding someone, as when we are parents guiding our children. Guiding involves both correcting and appreciating: correcting them when they do something [...]
Our future is shaped not so much by how many options we have as by how well we choose among the options we do have
We are sometimes constrained by our situations, wherein they leave us with very few options to choose from, be they financial, relational, professional, educational or [...]
The mind makes us spin like dirty laundry and leaves us dirtier
Our mind is extremely powerful and restless. Through its thoughts, it can go from one end of the universe to another within a moment. It [...]
To forget that the world is a hurtful place is to place ourselves on a path full of hurts
Suppose we walk out on a thorny path without any footwear. We will hurt our feet. If someone warns us that the way is thorny, [...]
Problems are like burdens whose weight increases with the attention we give them
Suppose we have to carry a huge bag. We may struggle to carry it, but if that bag became bigger and bigger, the struggle would [...]
Materialism reduces you to a number and glamorizes things that make you number
Most people nowadays are materialistic: they live to seek materialistic sensations and possessions. Yet most of them haven’t thought through the philosophical implications of materialism. [...]
Mindless feeds don’t feed our mind, they feed our mindlessness
Suppose we regularly eat food that is high in calories and low in nutrition. We would soon become bloated and drained. To be more productive, [...]
No one has a right to mistreat you, not even you
Suppose someone repeatedly derided us. We would be incensed: “You have no right to mistreat me like this.” Yet we let ourselves be mistreated like [...]
Let your practices make you a spiritual fruit, not a religious nut
Religious nuts are those people who in the name of religion become fanatical, irrational, disagreeable. In contrast, spiritual fruits are those religious practitioners who manifest [...]
Choose the good when it protects you from the bad, but not when it deprives you of the best
Suppose we had to choose between a low-quality product for a high price and a high-quality product for a high price. We would naturally choose [...]
Watch the mind, or the mind will catch you
Suppose we are living in a high crime locality where thieves will catch and steal from us if we aren’t alert. Naturally, we will give [...]