Don’t judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree
If a fish were evaluated by its ability to climb a tree, it would fail – utterly, hopelessly fail. And if the world deemed it [...]
We can help the unable, but not the unwilling
If a car is not starting, helpful passers-by may push it. With the driver and the pushers working together, the car may start moving. But [...]
Gita 18.55 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Now Krishna will talk about [...]
When our vision changes from competition to contribution, life becomes a celebration
Materialism makes competition life’s central reality. When we see ourselves as isolated, vulnerable units of matter dependent on material things for our pleasure, we see [...]
Fate is not a matter of faith, but our faith matters in determining our fate
The word fate connotes a trans-human shaper of results (Why is fate against me?) as well as the future that will result (Who knows what [...]
Don’t change the foot because the shoe doesn’t fit
Suppose a child gets infatuated with a shoe that is available only in adult size. When shown a shoe that fits, the child neglects it [...]
Krishna is our director – and our redirector
In a play, the actors are visible on the stage; the director isn’t. Yet the invisible director directs the visible actors. If we liken life [...]
Fanaticism is caused not by excessive devotion, but by inadequate devotion
When some religious people try to convert everyone to their faith, others get put off. They feel, “These guys are fanatical – their devotion is [...]
Gita 18.40 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Here the analysis of the [...]
The Gita’s concluding prophecy answers its starting enquiry
Great books often feature between their start and end a symmetry, a circularity that brings a fulfilling sense of completeness and elegance. The Bhagavad-gita too [...]
To have our needs met by being unhappy is unhealthy
Children who have neglectful parents may find that their parents’ give them attention only when they cry. Damaged by such parental neglect, they may develop [...]
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 [...]
Gita 18.21 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Bg 18.21 pṛthaktvena tu yaj [...]
Being grateful in general is like being married in general
With the increasing secularization or more specifically desacralization of mainstream culture, many of the uplifting values that comprised the core character of respectable people in the past have been divorced from the fabric of the spiritual worldview on which they had been based. Thus, for example,
Gita 18.08 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan After talking about renunciation in [...]
Be not fretful or fearful – be faithful
The present is all that we have – and all that we will ever have. But our mind often distracts us towards the past and the future through fretfulness and fearfulness. Fretful: The mind misdirected towards the past makes us fretful. We agonize over the many things that have gone wrong in our life
Life’s misfortunes are like thorns – don’t press on them; pass through them
Suppose we are walking barefoot and the path turns thorny. If that is the only way to our destination, we will gird ourselves to endure the pain. But we won’t press our foot on the thorns – we will take it off as quickly as possible and pass through.
The essence of bhakti is not moving backward or forward, but moving upward
Some spiritually-minded people, being engaged in mainstream society with its notions of progress centered on science and technology, pursue bhakti for getting peace, meaning and fulfillment – things elusive in today’s world. They see bhakti as a complement to their present way of living.
We can’t give what we don’t have, but in giving we can have
Suppose we were tormented by thirst, being lost in a desert; and some relief workers came, gave us some water and invited us to their hometown, an oasis with abundant water resources. We all are lost in the desert of material existence, thirsting for happiness.
Don’t let identity politics blind you to your identity
Identity politics refers to the phenomenon of people identifying themselves with particular political positions and viewing everything in terms of those positions, as for or against those positions. Identity politics can be corrosive.
Service attitude is the torch that lights the next step amidst the darkness of perplexity
Suppose we are walking through an unfamiliar area and suddenly the power goes off. We may rant initially, but soon we will turn on our [...]