Illusion is the ultimate thief of not just our property but also our very identity
Suppose thieves steal all the property from their victims. Still, the victims can get relief by, say, withdrawing money from their bank by using their [...]
Fame is the pathway to not satisfaction but dissatisfaction
Fame is life’s driving purpose for many: “I would do anything to be the cynosure of all eyes, as are sportstars.” Little do they realize [...]
The real me is beyond jeans and genes
Being influenced by our superficial culture we often evaluate others based on externals. We may similarly evaluate ourselves too, imagining, say, that we are lovable [...]
To shift our emotional center of gravity, we need gravity much more than emotionality
Spiritual growth essentially means shifting our emotional center of gravity. The center of gravity is the point at which all the mass of an object [...]
The mind’s feelings are frequently the soul’s failings
We are sometimes led astray by the mind’s feelings. For example, we may eat a lot because it feels good, but later it spoils our [...]
Focus not on breaking free from illusion; focus on holding on to reality
A person who is bound usually focuses on breaking free by, say, untying or cutting the binding ropes. That kind of focus is not the [...]
Far more important than the book cover is what the book covers
“Don’t judge a book by its cover” is almost a truism. Yet it has special relevance for the Bhagavad-gita because its cover can intrigue as well as beguile, for it [...]
Misery is not the cause of enlightenment – mercy is
Some seekers ask, “When afflicted with a deadly disease, some devotees take intense shelter of Krishna and make phenomenal spiritual advancement. If similar misery came [...]
To put first things first, stop putting things first
“Put first things first” is a sensible self-help slogan that urges us to prioritize important things. It, however, leaves unanswered some key questions: What things [...]
Take the wind of passion out of the mind by meditation
Just as stormy winds sweep a boat away, the Bhagavad-gita (02.67) states that the winds of sensual desires sweep us away from the spiritual path. [...]
Our fear of our mortality is a pointer to our immortality
The fear of death is one of life’s most haunting fears. Intriguingly, this haunting fear can become illuminating if we turn the usual question raised [...]
Cultivating humility doesn’t mean courting dishonor
The Bhagavad-gita (13.08) commends humility as the first among the virtues of the enlightened. And it also commends protecting one’s honor, the seeming opposite of [...]
Vice may not give up the wise, but the wise give up vice
Wisdom means knowing the difference between virtue and vice; and cultivating virtue and curbing vice. We get wisdom by the study of scriptures and the [...]
Let the desire to be somebody not make us somebody else
The hugeness of the world around us and the tininess of our place in it often fuel within us a drive to be somebody. Unfortunately, [...]
When we make the sea our ground, how can we avoid being moved around?
When we stand on solid ground, the steadiness underneath us gives a sense of safety. In contrast, when we stand on a rocking boat, we [...]
Those who mistake meekness to be weakness sentence themselves to spiritual sickness
The Bhagavad-gita begins with an expression of meekness that may be misconstrued as a sign of abject weakness: the surrender to God of a strong-bodied, [...]
Life is meant to be not a race from birth to death but a raise from mortality to immortality
“Is life meant to be a race from birth to death?” If people were asked this question, they would probably reply: “Obviously not. Who [...]
Focus not on what we have to renounce for spirituality; focus on what serious spiritualists get that enables them to renounce
Prospective spiritualists sometimes fear, “If I practice spirituality, I will have to give up so many enjoyable activities. How can I live without them?” Such [...]
The defect of distraction distorts the defender into a defector
The life of a spiritual seeker is the life of a warrior – a warrior defending the territory of the consciousness against the forces of [...]
The bird may be encaged, but its desires stay engaged in the field
A bird may be physically restrained by a cage, but it can’t be mentally restrained from dreaming and craving about the grains it could have [...]
Those who insist that the contextual is universal become fanatical
Most people dread fanaticism, for our world is scarred by many religious conflicts. What makes religious practitioners fanatical? Obsession with the externals of their [...]