Might we be protecting our heart from Krishna instead of for Krishna?
As aspiring devotees, we long to relish the spiritual emotions that the bhakti scriptures extol. Such devotional longing is natural and desirable. However, it comes [...]
Let’s guard our consciousness the way we guard our homes
We guard our homes against trespassers, often warding them off with the notice, “Trespassers will be prosecuted.” Gita wisdom urges us to guard our consciousness [...]
Realization comes by riveting to the relationship, not the ritual
Reciting mantras, worshiping the Deity, fasting on holy days – many such rituals characterize spiritual life. As these rituals are visible and tangible, it is [...]
When we best serve Krishna by keeping out of his business
Faultfinding comes easy for most of us; it gives a much-craved boost to our false ego by making us feeling superior to the faulty. And [...]
Might we be burning the very bridge that we want others to cross?
When we practice devotional service and realize its transformational benefits, we naturally feel inspired to share our faith with others. Such an inspiration is noble. [...]
Are we mistaking the red signal to be the green signal?
To navigate through traffic, we need to understand traffic signals properly. Similarly, to navigate through life, we need to understand the signals during our life-journey. [...]
“Now and then” or “from now on”?
We all have had hobbies. Things that we do ‘now and then’ after we have dealt with the more serious, pressing and unavoidable aspects of [...]
A prison of promises and pretenses
“Purchase this and you will be happy.” “Wear this and you will enjoy.” “Own this and your dreams will be fulfilled.” Ads like these confront [...]
Are we mistaking the lifeline to be a handcuff?
“Why do the scriptures have rules against doing so many enjoyable things?” Such thoughts may come to us when we see people engaging in materialistic [...]
Is our religion a sanctuary for the soul or a gymnasium for the ego?
“My home altar is more elegant than that of others.” “I pronounce verses more accurately than others.” “I give more donation than others.” Such thoughts [...]
Are our desires locking us into a world of frustration or releasing us into the world of fulfillment?
We all may have experiences of how while dreaming and desiring something, we get transported somewhere into the world of our dreams, removed from everything [...]
Seek pleasure in the pursuit of meaning, not meaning in the pursuit of pleasure
Most people live caught up in the pursuit of worldly pleasures. As all such pleasures are destroyed by death, they assume that life has no [...]
What defines us as devotees is not how we fall, but how we rise
When we fail and fall while practicing the moral standards expected of us as devotees, we often feel discouraged, “I will never be able to [...]
Unravel the mystery of the Infinite’s descent into the finite through love
“How can the Supreme who is beyond all limits of space and time appear within those limits?” This is one of existence’s greatest mysteries. Gita wisdom [...]
Invest emotion to relish transformation
We live where our heart lives. When our heart lives in material things, we live in the material world. When our heart lives in Krishna, [...]
Imprisoned by circumstances, liberated by consciousness
Sometimes life pushes us into a tight corner from which we just can’t wiggle out. We feel imprisoned by our circumstances. Such imprisonment is an [...]
The balance between “matter alone matters” and “matter doesn’t matter”
Matter alone matters is the belief of materialists. They consider the things of this world alone as valuable and material enjoyment as life’s ultimate success. [...]
Can we recognize that we haven’t recognized ourselves?
“That couldn’t have been me.” This is what people say when they think of what they did under the spell of alcohol – actions that [...]
Completeness comes not by material amelioration or mechanical reconnection, but by emotional redirection
We all frequently feel that something is missing in our life. In fact, our entire life with its varied pursuits – career, wealth, position, spouse, [...]
Love that is too big to allow room for hatred in the heart
When people reject, cheat or humiliate us, we may feel justified to hate them. No matter how justified our feeling, it doesn’t change the reality [...]
Are we holding on to a straw instead of a lifeline?
Our present material existence is like an ocean – an ocean of misery. Though we can struggle against the waves of life’s miseries for some [...]