Gita 18.46 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan So He describes the process [...]
How can Arjuna do his work as a worship?
In the Bhagavad-gita (18.46), Krishna urges Arjuna to worship the Lord through his work. What does this mean? For work to be worship, it needs [...]
How working with devotion prevents entanglement
In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna addresses Arjuna’s concern: Won’t work entangle me in the world? After outlining various processes for spiritual growth, Krishna recommends bhakti-yoga, or [...]
Krishna’s intriguing third-person references to himself
In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna sometimes refers to himself in the third person. Why? To better understand, let’s consider a specific example. In the eighteenth chapter, [...]
How to use the material to reach the spiritual?
Suppose we received a large sum of money as inheritance. If we were prudent, we would invest it wisely to create something of sustainable value. [...]
Three ways to see our abilities spiritually
We all have certain abilities. Though we often think that those abilities belong to us, they sometimes inexplicably desert us, as when talented sports players [...]
How to assess the value of our work
We often value our work based on the paycheck it provides — the bigger the paycheck, the better the work. Such assessment is understandable because [...]
Why spirituality isn’t world-rejecting…
Some people think that jumping over the world, with all its problems and complications, is the way to reach God. Yes, spiritualists don't want to [...]
The world is a resource to take us to the source
During our reflective moments, we may wonder, “What is the purpose of this world?” Materialists answer that the world is a place for our enjoyment. [...]
The best motivation for ambition is realization, not recognition
Some aspiring spiritualists fear, “Will becoming spiritual mean that I have to give up my ambitions?” No, to grow spiritually, we don’t need to give [...]
Devotion fosters absorption, not obsession
Some people accuse devotees, “You have become obsessed with Krishna and irresponsible about everything else.”, It’s sadly true that some devotees become negligent. But such [...]
Devotion increases our self-worth through purification and our social worth through contribution
Some people feel that devotion is too other-worldly, for it seeks only to attain liberation to another world. While spiritual liberation is the ultimate fruit [...]
Seek God not just in the privacy of the heart but also the activity of the world
Some people think that to seek God, we must renounce the world, go to a secluded place in a forest and meditate on him in [...]
To offer our best, we need to discover our best
Suppose someone has a precious inheritance buried in their backyard, and they want to give a valuable gift to their loved one. Naturally, they would [...]
When we get out of ourselves, we find ourselves
Many people are eager to be themselves, to find and express their authentic self. This search for authenticity is good. But if not channelled properly, [...]
Those who stay upset about what they don’t have waste what they do have
Suppose a person with artistic talent craves and slaves to become an engineer. But if they just don’t get mathematics or physics and somehow struggle [...]
The material and the spiritual can be competitive, but they can also be cumulative
When we start practicing spiritual life, our material and spiritual sides can seem to be competitive. Both require our time and energy. As these are [...]
Be a spiritual worker, not a material shirker
Some people who become spiritual but don’t have an inclusive understanding of spirituality start neglecting their work and their worldly responsibilities in the name of [...]
Give the world your attention, but don’t give it monopoly over your attention
“Don’t miss the forest for the trees” is a saying that cautions us against letting small things blind us to far bigger things. This saying [...]
The value of our work is not determined by our work’s market value
Our market-driven culture places a price tag on everything, even things such as artistic talents whose value is often not reducible to monetary terms. Such [...]
Note consciously what you notice unconsciously
In the Mahabharata, when Arjuna disguised as a brahmana won Draupadi’s hand in the svayamvara, Drupada sensed that his to-be son-in-law was actually a kshatriya. [...]