Three tests to counter rumor-mongering
One of the fundamental implications of the Bhagavad Gita 16.2 directive to be averse to fault-finding is to avoid engaging in rumor-mongering. This means not [...]
From wishful and fretful thinking to prayerful and purposeful thinking
Let our thinking not be wishful or fearful; let it be prayerful and purposeful. Our thinking capacity is our most powerful capacity. It is the [...]
Speaking our mind or speaking with our mind?
Before we speak our mind, we need to speak with our mind; otherwise, it is our mind that will speak—instead of us, and not for [...]
Countering invisible attacks on our consciousness
Just because we don’t see that we are being attacked does not mean that we are not under attack. The inner war is invisible, but [...]
Navigating the inner marketplace
Introspection is meant to tune out the louder voices inside us so that we can tune in to the wiser voices inside us. Suppose we [...]
How to dump emotional bumps and slumps during meditation
Life is filled with ups and downs, or alternatively, life is filled with bumps and slumps. Things go up and down at times. If we [...]
Can we stop the flow of temptation into our consciousness?
Even if we can't stop the flow of temptation into our consciousness, we can certainly stop that flow from becoming a flood that takes over [...]
How meditation differs from obsession and frees us from obsession
The Bhagavad-gita (18.22) describes knowledge in the mode of ignorance, which leads people to obsess over one thing as if it were everything. Such an [...]
Importance of intelligence in meditation
Our intelligence is meant to be our protector, akin to an inner guard. We need such a guard because inside us is our mind, which [...]
Does surrender mean that God manages our life for us?
The Bhagavad-gita begins and ends with surrender. But these two forms of surrender are significantly different. The initial surrender in 2.7 happens when Arjuna acknowledges [...]
Krishna is present in the present
The Bhagavad-gita (12.8) states that those whose mind and intelligence are absorbed in Krishna live in Krishna already. The emphasis is that Krishna is not [...]
Hold a mirror to ourselves and feel satisfied
If we don't hold a mirror to ourselves, we may end up having no inclination or even an aversion to holding a mirror to ourselves. [...]
Get off the slippery slope of random inner desires
To get into a desire is far more difficult than getting out of a desire. Better to exercise our intelligence to decide whether to get [...]
When efforts to concentrate just don’t work …
Whenever we are trying to meditate on Krishna, we may often be challenged by our mind’s wandering here and there. In the Bhagavad-gita (6.26), Krishna [...]
From visible to invisible — challenges in meditation on Krishna
The Bhagavad Gita (7.7) states that Krishna is the invisible thread in the necklace of this world. When we are trying to meditate on Krishna, [...]
Know the core above anxiety
Suppose we are in a turbulent ocean; naturally, as we are tossed by the waves, we will be shaken and smashed and will feel fear. [...]
Worrying vs Meditating
Whenever we worry in life, it's because things are either going out of our control or threatening to do so, which brings a shocking and [...]
Antidote for anxiety
Anxiety may just be the default reaction of our body-mind machine in certain situations; we may not be able to stop that reaction, but we [...]
Anxiety – constructive vs destructive
Anxiety is constructive when it alerts us to the presence of danger, but it becomes destructive when it decreases or deletes our capacity to differentiate [...]
How to be present in the present
To be present in the present, we need to learn to focus gradually and incrementally. If our mind is wandering, we can bring it back [...]
How distraction cheats us
The problem with distraction is that it leads to a frustrating non-presence in the present. The present moment is an opportunity for us to both [...]