No to incite yes to insight
The world contains many power-hungry people who ruthlessly pursue their selfish, even devilish, agendas. To serve their own ends, they have no compunctions about manipulating [...]
Might life be better if we pursued something other than happiness?
We live in a world that oversells happiness to us, with unending promises and unendingly glamorized products. And we have minds that are programmed with [...]
Feeling God or trusting God?
During our life, there will be times when we are down, yet we feel God's presence guiding, strengthening and uplifting us. However, there will also [...]
How to speak more effectively: Cross or Across?
Whenever we have a difference of opinion with someone, wherein despite our best attempts to persuade them, they just don't seem to get our point, [...]
Gita 17.16 – Explanation from Bhakti Shastri Class
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Bg 17.16 manaḥ-prasādaḥ saumyatvaṁ maunam [...]
Facing losses but not feeling lost — the reorienting power of gratitude
Suppose we are driving through a remote area guided by GPS and suddenly the GPS connectivity gets lost due to a heavy storm. Not knowing [...]
From gifts in life to the gift of life
When striving to cultivate gratitude, we often attempt to look at the things that are good in our life and see those things as gifts. [...]
Is gratitude a state or a trait?
Gratitude can be both, and it is best when manifested as both. Let’s see how. State: Gratitude as a state refers to the emotions of [...]
What we do with our blessings
In our life, we all have both blessings and problems. Unfortunately, we often tend to fixate on our problems, which may arise due to our [...]
Wanting our wants or valuing our values?
When we try to improve ourselves, we often need to fight against our wants, especially those that are unhealthy or disproportionate. Yet we seem to [...]
Why focusing on relapse prevention can be unhelpful
When we seek self-transformation by giving up an unhealthy habit, we often assess our progress based on whether we can prevent relapses. However, such an [...]
When we can’t give up an unhealthy habit …
If an unhealthy habit keeps recurring despite our best efforts, how can we progress in self-transformation? By changing our attitude toward that habit: we can [...]
How can grievous wrongdoing be reconciled with devotion?
The Bhagavad-gita (09.30) raises a serious question: How can grievous wrongdoing and devotion go together? To address this question, consider the ocean-anchor metaphor. We all [...]
Gita 07.19 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya In this 7th chapter now we [...]
Seeing Krishna’s love for us and showing our love for him
Many of us turn toward God after we have tried everything else in our quest to be happy and it all has left us disappointed. [...]
When self-talk is counterproductive and when productive
Self-talk can refer to two broad things: Something inside us talks to us: We all have a voice inside us that keeps commenting about the [...]
Beyond pat explanations for our unhealthy behaviors
Suppose an airplane crashes, leading to huge casualties and damages. When questioned about the cause of the crash, suppose the airline company reports, “The plane [...]
Gita 18.66 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan Bg 18.66 sarva-dharmān parityajya mām [...]
How to better manage our emotions
Our emotions are an essential part of who we are; without them, we would be reduced to a flavorless, robotic existence. Though they add value [...]
How curiosity can increase our self-awareness
We all are naturally curious: the many breaking news are just one among hundreds of things that cater to our curiosity. That universally present faculty [...]
Gita 09.29 explained
Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan We will continue the glory [...]