Falling down is not failure – staying down is
Some devotee-seekers ask, “While striving to live according to devotional principles, we sometimes slip and fall. How can we best deal with such falls?” Not [...]
Enlightenment means to replace oneself with Krishna as the center
Different people conceive enlightenment differently – as experiencing peace, as perceiving a white light, as merging into a cosmic oneness, for example. However, the Bhagavad-gita [...]
Unity comes not by blinding oneself to differences, but by seeing beyond differences
Differences are often the cause of conflicts. Wanting to avoid such conflicts, some people try to wish away the differences by claiming that we are [...]
Varnashrama uses the false ego in the service of the true ego
In general parlance, the word ‘ego’ often refers to arrogance, but in Gita wisdom it frequently refers to our sense of self-identification – of “I [...]
Sense pleasure is not imaginary, but it is a product of imagination
Imaginary refers to that which doesn’t exist, whereas a product of imagination refers to that which results from the activation of imagination. Sense pleasure is [...]
Don’t give Krishna your leftovers
The very idea of giving Krishna our leftovers may shock out devotional sensibilities – we usually give leftovers such as food to beggars, not to [...]
Don’t run from pain – learn from it
When we face a painful situation, we often tend to run away from it. Such running can be intelligent when the pain is unnecessary and [...]
Don’t confuse “I can’t know” with “I don’t know”
When applied to the question of understanding God’s glory as is manifested in reconciling his paradoxical attributes, “I don’t know” is an admission of ignorance. [...]
The art of living is to balance the self we are eternally with the self we are presently
The self we are eternally refers to the soul, part of Krishna – that’s our eternal spiritual identity. The self we are presently refers to [...]
“One of these days” is none of these days
“I will do it one of these days.” This is how we often respond when asked to take up spiritual life seriously. We feel that [...]
To fix the mind, fix it on Krishna
The word ‘fix’ can mean ‘focus’ or ‘repair.’ Using these dual meanings, this article title conveys: To repair the mind, focus it on Krishna. Presently, [...]
Everything attractive comes from Krishna, but everything attractive doesn’t take us to Krishna
The Bhagavad-gita repeatedly urges us to not become attracted by sense objects. Yet the same Gita (10.41) asserts that the attractiveness of everything attractive comes [...]
Speak not “to reveal the truth about others,” but to realize the truth about yourself
Gossipers often act as if they are doing a valuable social service by “revealing the truth about others.” However, they frequently don’t check whether that [...]
Be spiritually curious – and become spiritually serious
Curiosity is natural for us. Usually, we are curious about material things such as sports, movies, prices and politics. But when we direct our curiosity [...]
We have nothing to lose except our non-existence
When we consider taking up spiritual life, materialists often try to scare us by saying that we will lose the many material things that we [...]
Realization harmonizes scientific experimentation with spiritual revelation
Some people ask, “Isn’t it better to acquire knowledge through scientific experimentation rather than scriptural revelation because by experimentation we can actively participate and verify [...]
Study not to be seen by the world as learned, but to see the world with learned eyes
When we acquire knowledge, the ego frequently gets intoxicated, “I know so much.” If others respect us for our learning, then getting more respect often [...]
Don’t sensationalize sensations
The sensations of taste, touch, smell, sight and sound are the sources of sensual pleasures. Such pleasures are the goals of materialism, the worldview that [...]
Money talks – and walks away as it is talking
“Money talks” is an idiomatic way of stating that those who show money are taken seriously – others respect them and hasten to do their [...]
The soul seems far out because it is far in
Some people think that the concept of the soul is far out because it seems incomprehensible or even unbelievable. Yes, the soul is difficult to [...]
Don’t just be mindful – make the mind full of Krishna
Many self-help teachers recommend mindfulness – cultivating awareness and living in the present. Certainly, mindfulness is better than absent-mindedness, but is it sufficient? Let’s analyze [...]