Perception is a function of association
Suppose some non-Indians unfamiliar with cricket come to India and enter a cricket stadium. They may find the hullabaloo bewildering, and the noisy, sweaty, jammed [...]
Krishna is close to us, but we are far away from him
Sometimes we may feel that Krishna is far away from us, existing as he does in the spiritual world. However, Krishna doesn’t exist only in [...]
God is the rationale not for gaps in our knowledge but for our knowledge itself
Atheists sometimes argue, “Theists commit the God-of-the gaps fallacy: They invoke God to explain gaps in our scientific knowledge of how things work – as [...]
Spirituality transforms our journey into an odyssey
During our life, we sometimes go on journeys. But we may not realize that life itself is a journey. It is essentially a journey of [...]
By looking further horizontally, we can’t see vertically
Suppose a person walking along a road wants to see ahead – and does so using binoculars. But as long as they are looking ahead, [...]
The mind is the TV – and the TV-thief
Suppose a person is watching TV, and a thief sneaks into the house and starts carrying the TV away. However, the person is so engrossed [...]
We don’t just have a relationship with Krishna – we are a relationship with Krishna
One of the fields in a Facebook profile is relationship status. Some of us may fill it with “none” to indicate that we are not [...]
Mentally junk the mental junk
In today’s hi-tech age of planned brand obsolescence, yesterday’s glamorous gadgets often become little more that junk today. Over time, we often end up with [...]
Krishna is the master before whom we stand truly erect
“Krishna is our master and we are his servants.” This scriptural tenet can evoke resentment within us: “Why should I bow down to God?” The [...]
Channelize your capacity to control for connecting with the supreme controller
Some people ask, “If the Gita teaches that I am not the controller, then why does it ask me to control my senses?” Actually, the [...]
We help ourselves best by remembering that we are helpless without God
The saying “God helps those who help themselves” conveys validly that we shouldn’t expect God to do everything for us, but should strive to do [...]
Our sense of beauty points to our transcendence
We have an innate sense of beauty – beautiful things naturally attract our heart. But where does this sense come from? If we are just [...]
To take back the mind, first take back the roads to the mind
Suppose an enemy has captured an important fort. To take back the fort, a frequently adopted strategy is cutting off the support to the fort. [...]
Krishna is nearest – let us make him dearest
When someone loves us, they may express that love with a tight hug, wanting to come as close as possible to us. But no one [...]
The rest of me is no rest for me
The "rest of me" refers to our physical and mental side – the two other levels of our present three-level existence as embodied souls. Our [...]
Don’t divorce who you are from whose you are
“Who we are” is the first philosophical message of the Bhagavad-gita. It explains that we are at our core eternal souls. Understanding this can free [...]
Break free from the material conception of the external and the internal
Suppose a thief has broken into a house’s premises. In one sense, the thief is outside the house, being in the courtyard. But in another [...]
Don’t wait for God – wait on God
Many people want God to give them a special signal for commencing their spiritual life: “When God calls me, I will begin.” However, such an [...]
To best work with the mind, first work on the mind
Every device requires basic maintenance for smooth functioning. Otherwise, like a woodcutter working with a blunt axe, the device-user may well toil inefficiently, putting in [...]
Rift with God makes us drift with the mind
We are pleasure-seeking beings. And we are intrinsically the eternal parts of Krishna, as the Bhagavad-gita (15.07) states. Because Krishna is the all-attractive reservoir of [...]
The world is a classroom, not a courtroom
Some religious people have a negative fear-centered conception of God as a judge waiting to catch them doing wrong. They also view the world darkly [...]