Don’t eternalize the present; contextualize it
When we face problems, they sometimes overwhelm us so much that we can’t think of anything else. We feel as if the problem will never [...]
Train yourself to avoid mental potholes
When we travel regularly along a pothole-filled road, we carefully avoid the potholes, thereby saving ourselves of unnecessary jolts. By analogy, when the Bhagavad-gita (02.58) [...]
Use technology – don’t be used by technology
In today’s society, living without technology is almost impossible. As aspiring devotees living in a techno-centric society, we usually think of technology as a neutral [...]
The world is a station, not a destination
We may find the Bhagavad-gita’s injunction to stay equipoised amidst success and failure (2.38) perplexing: “Isn’t it natural to feel happy when we succeed and [...]
Blunt the desire for enjoyment with engagement
The greatest obstacle on the spiritual path for most of us is the desire to enjoy material pleasures, especially anti-devotional material pleasures. Because most of [...]
Don’t let the mind eat your head
The mind sometimes makes us do self-defeating, short-sighted, stupid things. How? By making us headless. The Bhagavad-gita (02.62) indicates that when the mind contemplates sense [...]
Might we be hitting the bull’s eye of the wrong target?
Cellphones, internet, robots – the technological advances in our society are impressive. Yet they haven’t made people happier, as the rising statistics of stress and [...]
What we do reflects on what we do
“What we do” can refer to our specific behavior as well as to our general vocation. What we do in our specific behavior reflects on [...]
Put the world out of the equation by the strength of devotion
“Work without attachment for success or failure.” This message of the Bhagavad-gita (02.48) begs the question: what are we to work for if not for [...]
To get happiness, get the happiness sequence right
All of us want to be happy. The world makes us believe that fulfilling our material desires will make us happy. However, this makes us [...]
Are we winning the misery championship with our eyes?
Most of us have entered the misery championship. Here’s how. The qualifying rounds: Our contemporary culture assaults our eyes with visually alluring images of sensuous [...]
We are dressed by and for our desires
Our desires determine and define us; we are, Gita wisdom indicates, dressed by and for our desires. Let’s see how: Dressed by our desires: The [...]
Endless nibbling at the tastes of this world dulls our taste for Krishna
All of us are innately pleasure-seeking. How we seek pleasure is largely shaped by our external culture. As our present culture constantly glamorizes material pleasures, [...]
Did nothing in life prepare you for life?
From middle-age onwards, the human body usually starts undergoing a miracle of the wrong kind. Unfortunately, many such miracle-afflicted people go into a denial mode [...]
Guard against the tiny crack – it can end in mighty crash
A tiny crack in a dam is not a tiny thing. The massive pressure of all the dam water forces the crack to enlarge till [...]
Determination is the first thing, the main thing, the only thing
Nothing glorious can be achieved without single-pointed, sustained determination. The Bhagavad-gita (02.41) indicates that determination (drdha-vratah) is essential for the most glorious achievement of life: [...]
Is the social mirror making a fool out of us?
The social mirror refers to society’s opinion that lets us know how we look in its eyes. This mirror often perverts the reality, especially in [...]
Checked, but never checkmated
Practicing spiritual life in the material world is challenging. This challenge exists at all times because materialism is inherent to the material world. The challenge [...]
Morning is the time for mooring our heart to Krishna
For us as aspiring devotees, worldly temptations pose formidable challenges to our spiritual integrity. The Bhagavad-gita (02.67) indicates that these temptations are like stormy winds [...]
Today’s medals will be tomorrow’s baubles
One of our innermost drives is the drive to show the world that we are someone significant. This drive impels us to win medals, which [...]
Temptations in the consciousness are like dust in the carburetor
When dust enters into the carburetor of a finely tuned engine, the engine can no longer function optimally. Though the dust initially seems inconsequential, after [...]