Don’t use others to feel better about yourself, learn from others how to become better
When we are distressed, we often need someone to unburden ourselves to. While that is an understandable and even essential human need, it can become [...]
Gita 08.09 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan 9-13: Remembrance by yoga-mishra [...]
Seeking to understand our nature won’t box us in, it will reveal the box we are already in
Some people resist any system of categorization of human nature. They feel, “This will box me in.” While their concern is understandable, it is based [...]
To be responsible means to stop blaming the outer trigger for the inner trouble
Suppose we feel tempted by someone who wears revealing clothes. Or we feel irritated by someone who behaves in an annoying way. We may blame [...]
Self-pity makes feel-bad seem feel-good
Suppose we are in physical pain. We will naturally do whatever we can to free ourselves from that pain as soon as possible. While such [...]
The mind is like ice to truth and fire to lies
The mind is meant to serve as a tool for us souls to perceive the world, but it is often the greatest obstacle for us [...]
Ask not why bad things happen to good people, ask what good people do when bad things happen to them
One of the oldest philosophical questions is, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” Gita wisdom answers by introducing the principle of karma, which [...]
Equality that is imposed doesn’t raise everyone up, it brings everyone down
We live in an age where equality is celebrated. Any discrimination, based on race, gender, caste and so forth, is frowned upon, or even condemned. [...]
Speak in a way that educates and engages, not enrages and estranges
Suppose we have some knowledge that will be helpful or valuable for others. When we speak to share it with them, we sometimes find that [...]
The mind often recasts antipathy as inability – what it doesn’t want to do, it presents as if it can’t do
Suppose a child doesn’t want to study a particular subject, say, math. He may protest to his mother, “I can’t do this.” If the mother [...]
The media is mostly the mind multiplied, magnified & magnetized
Whenever some people hear of shocking instances of brutality or perversity, they hold the media responsible: “The media is feeding people’s minds with such images. [...]
Those who underestimate their mind undermine their intelligence
Suppose a country has a hostile neighbor. If they underestimate their neighbor, they will not pay attention to their own intelligence agencies which may warn [...]
For inner change, momentum matters more than movement
Suppose we strive to improve ourselves in some area, but fail repeatedly. We may feel disheartened, “There are so many things wrong with me. Even [...]
As long as we don’t mine under the mind, the mind will undermine us
Suppose someone is digging for buried gold. If they find iron coated to look like gold and celebrate prematurely, they will miss the real treasure. [...]
If we justify our weaknesses by comparing ourselves with those who are weaker, we weaken our motivation to rectify ourselves
Suppose we have a weakness, say, a short temper. Driven by anger, we may speak and do things that we know we shouldn’t. Indeed, anger [...]
Gita 09.28 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan And Krishna will describe in [...]
Even if we fare well in life, we still have to say farewell to life
We all wish to fare well in life; we seek positions and possessions as markers of our progress and success. Often, we lament because we [...]
Even if we are feeling miserable, that doesn’t give us the right to make others miserable Gita 17.16
When something goes wrong in our lives, we may feel hurt, irritated, dejected. If we give in to bouts of self-pity and start repeating our [...]
Life becomes meaningless not when we tire of life’s problems, but when we tire of life’s pleasures Gita 03.16
When we face many problems repeatedly, we may become disheartened. And such discouragement becomes aggravated when problems thwart us in something extremely important. We may [...]
An impurity censor makes no sense to those who don’t have even an impurity sensor
An impurity censor refers to some regulator that filters out impure content. And an impurity sensor refers to some identifying mechanism that detects impure content [...]
Obscenity is objectionable not because it shows too much of a person, but because it shows too little and obsesses people with the too little
Obscenity is becoming increasingly accessible and visible in today’s media and especially on the Internet. And it has some aggressive proponents: “If people want to [...]