Unthinking words reflect an uncaring heart
Our words are like a mirror that give others peeks into our hearts. If the mirror is unclean, it distorts whatever it reflects. Similarly, if [...]
Cultivation of satisfaction requires not the rejection of desire, but the selection of desire
Some people feel, “Dissatisfaction is the spur for performance. If we simply become satisfied and give up the desire to excel, how will we achieve [...]
Anesthesia is meant to help heal sickness, not hide it
Suppose a surgeon is operating on a patient. Naturally, the surgeon needs to give anesthesia so that the patient’s pain while being operated is minimized. [...]
Purity reverses our mental gravity
Gravity refers to the force by which objects fall to the earth. Our mental gravity can refer to the force by which our thoughts naturally [...]
Watch what you talk when you talk to yourself
When we are talking, especially in an important meeting, we watch what we talk, lest we speak inappropriately. Just as we watch what we talk [...]
Mental silence is more defining than verbal silence
Some people, especially those seeking to grow inwards, take a vow of silence, known in Sanskrit as mauna-vrata. The rationale for such a vow is [...]
Gita 17.09 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Bg 17.9 kaṭv-amla-lavaṇāty-uṣṇa- tīkṣṇa-rūkṣa-vidāhinaḥ āhārā [...]
We make our faith and then our faith makes us
People are often classified as faithful or faithless. But even the faithless are faithful – faithful to their faithlessness, to their unprovable belief that God [...]
Speak to give people peace of mind, not a piece of your mind
When people do something infuriating, we feel like giving them a piece of our mind, blasting them for being irresponsible, insensitive, intractable or whatever else. [...]
Focus not on the harsh truth, but on the gentle healing
Whenever surgeons operate, they try to minimize the distress caused by the surgery. Physically, they administer pain medicine. And emotionally, they solace the patient by [...]
Speak because you have something to say, not because you have to say something
When we socialize with someone unfamiliar, we may struggle to find things to speak. Such conversations are usually stilted and inane. When they end, both [...]
Delusion makes eating a life-threatening activity
Commensality, the act of eating together with others, is one of the commonest relaxing and rejuvenating activities. While our body gets necessary nourishment through good [...]
To learn to speak well, learn when not to speak
Some of us may lament that we are not fluent in speaking. By training and practice, we all can improve our speaking ability. Even if [...]
Just as food adds to our physical weight, thoughts add to our mental weight
In today’s culture with its largely sedentary lifestyle, people often watch what they eat as they don’t want to put on unwanted weight. Such watchfulness [...]
To gain satisfaction, replace expectation with appreciation
Our satisfaction is often inversely proportional to our expectation. Suppose we go for a feast expecting a particular delicacy. If it is not included in [...]
To use the truth for beating people on the head is to abuse the truth
When we understand that the Bhagavad-gita contains timeless truths meant for everyone, we may feel impelled to convince those around us about these truths. Such [...]
Don’t crave the feast in others’ plates – savor the feast in yours
Suppose we were invited to a feast in which everyone had slightly different delicacies on their plates. Suppose further that we got so caught in [...]
The body is meant for neither gratification nor mortification, but for utilization
We often assume that our body is meant for gratification. The world leads us to believe that by indulging in our bodily senses, we will [...]
Don’t just tell it like it is – tell it like it can be
People who speak candidly often say, “I just tell it like it is.” In an increasingly spin-doctored world, hearing the truth spoken unvarnished can be [...]
The modes are not monochrome, but are multi-level
The Bhagavad-gita (17.04) analyzes different kinds of worship according to the modes: people in sattva-guna (mode of goodness) worship the gods; people in rajo-guna (mode [...]
Eat food made of plants, not food made in plants
Food made of plants is both spiritually and physically congenial. Spiritually it shows due reverence for the Creator by minimizing violence to his creation, by [...]