To help Arjuna choose wisely, Krishna analyzes in terms of the three modes the various elements of decision-making, including the intelligence (18.30-32). How is intelligence [...]
Krishna’s discussion with Arjuna was meant to help him choose wisely. What factors could aid him in choosing wisely? A key factor is knowledge, wherein [...]
Sometimes, the Bhagavad-gita is commended as the manual for living. This raises questions among thoughtful people, “Isn’t life way too complex to ever have a [...]
Does Krishna’s statement (18.60) that we are bound to act according to our nature leave any scope for free will? If it didn’t, why would [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna tells Arjuna twice (03.35 & 18.47) that it is far better to act according to one’s own nature than according to [...]
We live in an age of unprecedented distraction. When our mind is being so fiercely targeted, how can we focus it? Here are two time-tested [...]
Suppose we are walking on a narrow path that slopes unpredictably and has ditches on both sides. We could walk much more steadily if the [...]
When we have to do something difficult, it’s helpful if we are prepared for it. Suppose we have to lift a heavy suitcase, a timely [...]
When Krishna describes the virtues and duties of various social classes in the Bhagavad-gita (18.41-44), he mentions a specific virtue that characterizes brahmanas: forgiving (18.42), [...]
At the start of the Bhagavad-gita’s final chapter (18.01), Arjuna asks a question that may be puzzling in both content and context. Content because he [...]
A puzzling feature of the Bhagavad-gita is Krishna’s referring to himself sometimes in the third person. One way to make sense of such references is [...]
When we want to do anything important, why do we often find it so difficult to focus? Due to the combined consequence of three forceful [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna sometimes refers to himself in the third person. Why? To better understand, let’s consider a specific example. In the eighteenth chapter, [...]
Krishna mentions the modes throughout the Bhagavad-gita; devotes the entire fourteenth chapter to explaining what they are and how they function; and uses them to [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita’s eighth chapter, Krishna states that whatever we remember at the time of death, we will attain the corresponding state in our next [...]
The Bhagavad-gita’s eighth chapter is centered on the theme of one’s consciousness at the moment of death. In fact, Krishna has referred to that theme [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita’s eight chapter, Krishna explains how dedicated yogis train themselves to depart at auspicious times, thereby attaining liberation (08.24). Those who depart at [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita’s thirteenth chapter (13.14), Krishna talks about divine omnipresence in remarkably personal terms: everywhere are his hands, legs, eyes, heads, faces and ears. [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita (13.08-12), Krishna characterizes knowledge in terms of twenty virtues that indicate the overall direction of one’s heart. Such characterization implies that the [...]
In the Bhagavad-gita’s thirteenth chapter, Krishna lists twenty characteristics of those in knowledge. And one characteristic is detachment, specifically detachment from children, wife, home and [...]
When Krishna deems this world a place of distress (Bhagavad-gita 08.15), some spiritually-minded people take this statement as a prescription for material apathy: “Why try [...]
