How our mind misdirects our energies
Suppose a child is trying to heat some water on a stove and starts stoking the fire. But somehow the fire starts spreading beyond the [...]
Suppose a child is trying to heat some water on a stove and starts stoking the fire. But somehow the fire starts spreading beyond the [...]
Suppose someone’s car stops working. They infer, “The spark plug is the problem,” whereas their friend who is no more a car expert than them [...]
Suppose a friend comes to us with a black eye, a bleeding nose and a broken tooth. We will be concerned, if not alarmed. We [...]
When we love someone authentically, that love involves a dynamic tension between our concern for them as they are presently and our concern for what [...]
Few things are as polarizing in today’s Left-Right cultural divide as political correctness. The Left often condemns politically incorrect speech, seeing it as evidence that [...]
Suppose a child meets with a terrible accident that permanently damages his legs. Cultured society may avoid referring to him as lame or even as [...]
Speech is effective when it is both sensible and sensitive (Bhagavad-gita 17.15). Our speech becomes ineffective when we are sensible but not sensitive. Let’s understand [...]
“How can I make my speech more effective?” We all have probably asked ourselves this question, especially after we tried to persuade someone of something [...]
On the brink of the Mahabharata war, Arjuna was overwhelmed by misdirected compassion and was about to abandon his duty. Krishna could simply have corrected [...]
Suppose a blind person is out in the cold, covered only by a thin, torn sheet. Wanting to give them a thick, intact comforter, we [...]
Suppose a first-grade student struggling with math approaches their teacher and says: “This is so difficult.” And the teacher shows the student a 500-page book [...]
When we see someone with intelligence far greater than ours (as measured by some parameter such as IQ), we may feel inferior or insecure. We [...]
The Bhagavad-gita analyzes people into two distinct categories: godly and ungodly (16.05). We might wonder, “Are such categories useful when most people fall somewhere in [...]
When someone speaks harshly or acts cruelly toward us, how we respond depends primarily on their disposition. The Bhagavad-gita (16.04) mentions two distinct dispositions: godly [...]
Suppose a policeman feels guilty about putting a vicious criminal in solitary confinement. If that criminal has been duly tried and convicted, then the policeman’s [...]
When someone complains too much about how hard things are, they are sometimes told to grow up. What does that mean? It means to understand [...]
If someone is whiny, a candid well-wisher may exhort them: “Grow up.” What does it mean? It refers not to physical growth but to emotional [...]
Resentment is a toxic but telling emotion. To understand what it is telling us, we need to attentively analyze its cause. Usually resentment arises from [...]
When we strive to cultivate gratitude, we often find it elusive. At one moment, we feel grateful; sometime later, we feel the opposite: fearful, fretful, [...]
Here are two thought-exercises: Dwell on the wonders of life: Though life can be demanding, even devastating, it also features much beauty, artistry and sublimity. [...]
Even when we have enough of the things we need, we don’t always feel grateful for them. Why is that? Because we don’t see the [...]