We can’t lose weight just by reading books on how to lose weight
Learning is foundational for doing, but learning itself is not doing. The difference between the two is evident for activities such as weight loss: reading [...]
Bhakti makes expanded awareness our enduring awareness
During the course of our life, we may get a glamorized lifestyle product, but find the pleasure thereof pathetically short-lived. Or we may lose something [...]
In meditation, the way to relaxation is through concentration
Many people try out meditation for de-stressing and relaxing themselves. However, when they start meditating, they often find concentrating during meditation demanding, even draining. And [...]
Spiritual growth comes by improving our mental model, not our physical posture
Some people treat as spiritually advanced those who are able to sit for long in difficult yogic postures (asanas). Expertise in asanas underscores the body’s [...]
The mind’s spells make our life a waking nightmare
Suppose we have a nightmare in which someone is strangling us. We try desperately to resist, but find ourselves being increasingly asphyxiated. Just as we [...]
Don’t give the mind monopoly over your inner conversation
Our mind carries on a continuous one-way conversation inside us. It allures, grumbles, distracts. Using subtle suggestions or imperious instructions or anything in between, it [...]
Don’t just restrain the mind – retrain it
Suppose a horse-rider finds their horse going off in dangerous directions. They will have to restrain it, and restrain it forcefully if it is recalcitrant. [...]
In mind management, find the balance between laxity and stringency through maturity
When our child acts mischievously, we can empathize if we remember how we too were restless at that age. Still, if they start doing something [...]
Focus not on comfort or discomfort – focus on purification
Suppose we are sitting on a chair and studying. If the chair is twisted, the resulting discomfort may hinder our study. But if the chair [...]
We have to lose our mind to gain our soul
“Lose one’s mind” can have multiple meanings, based on literal and idiomatic usages of the word lose. These meanings can illumine various aspects of bhakti [...]
The mind will smother if we don’t see it as the other
Murderers who don’t want to leave any telltale signs by using a weapon sometimes smother their victims. The mind acts with similar calculated malevolence while [...]
The mind is like a dog that barks but can’t bite – unless we let it
A dog that barks ferociously can terrify passers-by. Their fear disappears, however, if they come to know that the dog barks loudly, but can’t bite. [...]
Devotion makes the mind’s power our power
Our mind is phenomenally powerful. Within a fraction of a moment, it can take our thoughts from one end of the world to another. Unfortunately, [...]
Build roads, not roadblocks
Suppose someone had to go to a place that wasn’t accessible by road. We would expect them to clear a path to get there. If [...]
Absorption of consciousness in Krishna brings about expansion of consciousness through Krishna
Expansion of consciousness is an oft-used term in spiritual circles. People seeking deeper fulfillment in life intuit that they can do so by expanding their [...]
Devotion helps us discover the richness of life
We often go through our lives with a feeling of chronic impoverishment. The culture around us specializes in showing us all the things we don’t [...]
Don’t just talk about yourself – talk to yourself
People who like to talk about themselves can come off as egotistic when they describe their successes and as whiners when they explain (away) their [...]
Nothing distracts us as much as we ourselves
We live in a culture of mass distraction. Worldly things around us try to catch our eye in myriad ways. And with us lie devices [...]
Unconscious decisions are usually unhealthy decisions
Suppose we suddenly feel hungry. Nearby, we might have some snacks – some fatty, some non-fatty. If we consciously contemplate what we are doing, we [...]
Awareness of lack of self-awareness is also self-awareness
When we practice meditation and strive for spiritual awareness, we often find that our mind wanders here, there and everywhere. We may become discouraged, thinking, [...]
Purification means changing the mind’s default programming
While practicing spiritual life and striving for purity, we may become disheartened: “Today’s culture fills me with so many impure desires. And my mind too [...]