Three ways our mind sabotages us: vision, vigor and values
The mind as a spy: How it sabotages us The mind is frequently described as an enemy in wisdom texts like the Bhagavad Gita. Yet, [...]
Maturity in devotion: from certainty to curiosity
Maturity in devotion frees us from the compulsive need for certainty and fills us with the enriching openness of curiosity. When we start our spiritual [...]
Does free entertainment come with no strings attached?
“No strings attached” is an assurance often given when someone offers a favor or gift. While such promises may sound appealing, they rarely hold true. [...]
How to maintain humility when we have extraordinary ability
If we are gifted in any particular area, especially to an extraordinary degree, it can be easy to become proud. Such pride often leads to [...]
Three ways devotion causes disruption instead of contribution
Devotion is meant to bring about positive and powerful change, both internally within individuals and externally within society. However, devotion can sometimes have the opposite [...]
The mind’s two-step trap to encage us
Engage the mind or it will engage and enrage and encage us. Our mind is constantly active, always looking for something interesting or pleasurable. Restless [...]
Help me see how my faith is a matter of fate—and how it is not
Bhagavad Gita 17.3 sattvānurūpā sarvasya śraddhā bhavati bhārata śraddhā-mayo ’yaṁ puruṣo yo yac-chraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ Faith shapes each being from within, According to [...]
Help me deal with differences of faith without sentimentality, yet with sensitivity
Bhagavad Gita 17.2 tri-vidhā bhavati śraddhā dehināṁ sā svabhāva-jā sāttvikī rājasī caiva tāmasī ceti tāṁ śṛṇu Threefold is faith in every soul, Born of [...]
Help me see how the impulsive path is implosive
Bhagavad Gita 16.23 yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ na sa siddhim avāpnoti na sukhaṁ na parāṁ gatim Rejecting guidance the scriptures give, And acting [...]
Heal within me whatever is wounded, let me no longer stay blinded
Bhagavad Gita 16.24 tasmāc chāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te kāryākārya-vyavasthitau jñātvā śāstra-vidhānoktaṁ karma kartum ihārhasi Let scripture guide what’s right to do, And what must be [...]
Help me nourish my soul, not what nourishes the destroyers of my soul
Bhagavad Gita 16.22 etair vimuktaḥ kaunteya tamo-dvārais tribhir naraḥ ācaraty ātmanaḥ śreyas tato yāti parāṁ gatim Freed from these three gates dark and dire, [...]
Protect me from the inner demons that make my life a living hell
Bhagavad Gita 16.21 tri-vidhaṁ narakasyedaṁ dvāraṁ nāśanam ātmanaḥ kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṁ tyajet Three gates lead the soul to destruction, Desire, [...]
Let me never use you to stay away from you
Bhagavad Gita 16.17 ātma-sambhāvitāḥ stabdhā dhana-māna-madānvitāḥ yajante nāma-yajñais te dambhenāvidhi-pūrvakam Self-glorified, rigid with pride, By wealth and honor fortified; They offer rites for name [...]
Protect me from the distraction that drags me into destruction
Bhagavad Gita 16.16 aneka-citta-vibhrāntā moha-jāla-samāvṛtāḥ prasaktāḥ kāma-bhogeṣu patanti narake ’śucau With minds confused by countless schemes, Ensnared within delusion’s dreams; Attached to pleasures, bound [...]
Let my good deeds express the good within me, not conceal the bad within me
Bhagavad Gita 16.15 āḍhyo ’bhijanavān asmi ko ’nyo ’sti sadṛśo mayā yakṣye dāsyāmi modiṣye ity ajñāna-vimohitāḥ “I am wealthy, noble, of high birth, Who [...]
Help me protect my boundaries so they protect me
Bhagavad Gita 16.14 asau mayā hataḥ śatrur haniṣye cāparān api īśvaro ’ham ahaṁ bhogī siddho ’haṁ balavān sukhī “That foe by me was laid [...]
Let my ambition be fueled by my devotion, not by my illusion
Bhagavad Gita 16.13 idam adya mayā labdham imaṁ prāpsye manoratham idam astīdam api me bhaviṣyati punar dhanam “This today I gained,” they proclaim, “That [...]
Release me from running after the desires that are ruining me
Bhagavad Gita 16.12 āśā-pāśa-śatair baddhāḥ kāma-krodha-parāyaṇāḥ īhante kāma-bhogārtham anyāyenārtha-sañcayān Bound by hundreds of desire-shackles, Falling to lust and anger’s tackles; They seek pleasure, driven [...]
Let my anxiety draw me to spirituality, not drive me into sensuality
Bhagavad Gita 16.11 cintām aparimeyāṁ ca pralayāntām upāśritāḥ kāmopabhoga-paramā etāvad iti niścitāḥ Bound by anxieties, vast and deep, That haunt till death and never [...]
Lead me from infinite longings to longing for the Infinite
Bhagavad Gita 16.10 kāmam āśritya duṣpūraṁ dambha-māna-madānvitāḥ mohād gṛhītvāsad-grāhān pravartante ’śuci-vratāḥ Clinging to cravings nothing can fulfill, They are filled with pride and hardened [...]
Shelter me in meaning, save me from self-destruction
Bhagavad Gita 16.9 etāṁ dṛṣṭim avaṣṭabhya naṣṭātmāno ’lpa-buddhayaḥ prabhavanty ugra-karmāṇaḥ kṣayāya jagato ’hitāḥ Holding fast to such a view, Lost in self, with insights [...]