What is your most dangerous distraction?
Though we are exposed to many distractions, some are more harmful than others. How can we know which distraction is most hazardous for us? By [...]
How to distance ourselves from the wants induced by the world
By reflection, we can understand that many of our wants are actually the world’s inducements, not our core aspirations. Despite gaining this insight, we may [...]
The difference between what we want and what we want to want
Our wants often arise from external factors such as peer pressure, cultural glamorization or corporate-controlled media promotion. During our reflective movements, we may realize that [...]
Three levels of deception
When we strive to develop a virtue by disciplining ourselves, we may succumb to deception at three levels. Intention to deceive others: We may seek [...]
What moments of weakness can do — and what they can’t do
When people fall to vice, they often explain it as “just a moment of weakness.” Let’s evaluate this explanation. We all are finite and fallible [...]
What avoiding sense objects doesn’t mean
When the Bhagavad-gita recommends that those striving for self-discipline should withdraw their senses from sense objects (02.58), this recommendation can be misunderstood in two ways. [...]
Is it cowardly to avoid temptations?
On hearing the Bhagavad-gita’s recommendation to withdraw our senses from sense objects (02.58), some people object, “Isn’t it cowardly to avoid such temptations?” No, such [...]
Self-discipline: outside-in and inside-out approaches
For cultivating self-discipline, the Bhagavad-gita recommends two distinct approaches. Let’s understand these approaches. The outside-in approach: When discussing how we can stay steady amid worldly [...]
Through discipline to the stage beyond discipline
Self-discipline can seem to be a constant struggle between our far-sighted intentions and our short-sighted emotions. We may morosely ponder: “Will the struggle ever end?” [...]
When does our mind become our friend?
The Bhagavad-gita (06.06) states that our mind can be our friend when it is controlled. To control our mind, it needs to be informed and [...]
When discipline doesn’t seem worthwhile …
When we strive to discipline ourselves, we may falter and fail, sometimes repeatedly. Being disheartened, we may wonder, “Is all this struggle worthwhile? What difference [...]
What temptation can do — and what it can’t
Whenever we resolve to discipline ourselves for some worthwhile purpose, we will, sooner or later, feel tempted. To deal with such temptation, we need to [...]
Will all paths lead to the same goal when the goal is all-pervading?
In countering the all-paths-same-goal claim that is attributed to the Bhagavad-gita (04.11), Srila Prabhupada gives an example: Consider a railway station with many trains headed [...]
How to assist our intelligence to support our endeavors for self-discipline
The Bhagavad-gita (18.38) outlines a vital life-truth: things that taste like nectar initially will taste like poison eventually. For example, when we eat fatty food, [...]
Ahimsa: Gita insights on nonviolence and deterrence
Ahimsa, frequently translated as nonviolence, is a concept drawn from the Indian tradition that has gained widespread resonance in today’s world. The Bhagavad-gita, India’s foremost [...]
When discipline feels like self-deprivation …
We often think of discipline as something that deprives us of life’s pleasures and comforts. For example, we may fear that waking up early to [...]
How is everyone on Krishna’s path?
In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna offers what might be best described as user-friendly spirituality. This is seen in his declaration that all people are on his [...]
How Gita study both has an end and is endless
In the journey is the joy. This could be a contemporary way to phrase one of the Gita’s most well-known teachings: work without attachment to [...]
Krishna’s incredible inclusivity
Through the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna reveals how his teachings are utterly different from exclusivism. Here are four ways to understand his astonishing inclusivity: Acknowledges multiple paths [...]
The tension between purpose and pleasure
Human existence is characterized by a tension between purpose and pleasure. There is a part of us that wants to do something purposeful — that [...]
Two powerful motivators: desire and fear
Suppose we need to choose between paths A and B, wherein A will take us to a good place and B to a bad place. [...]