Are emotions subjective or objective?
Our emotions shape us significantly. What enlivens us, what enrages us, what enchants us — all this reveals who we are. What triggers attraction in [...]
Illusion drives us compulsively; Krishna draws us compassionately
We all like to be free – we resent it when we are forced to do something. In fact, many people often hesitate to practice [...]
Don’t let being well-off come in the way of being well
In today’s materialistic culture, being well-off is enthroned as life’s primary, if not only, goal. The pressure on us to accumulate the trappings of success [...]
Change recollection from selective to comprehensive and deceptive to protective
Alcoholics, for a few moments of pleasure, undergo the indignity of slurred speech, incoherent behavior and overall foolishness that takes a heavy toll on time, [...]
Expect not the absence of the shadow; embrace the presence of the light
Devotee-seekers sometimes ask, “I am devoting myself to Krishna – why then am I still getting miseries in my life?” Because misery is an intrinsic [...]
Rationalization is temptation’s spin-doctor
When we strive to lead a principle-centered life, we reject the temptations that violate our principles. However, temptation doesn’t so easily take no for an [...]
Don’t be exhausted by the mind – be exhausted with the mind
We probably know people who exhaust us by their meaningless prattle or baseless grumbling or senseless demands. Knowing their nature, we often avoid or at [...]
Love God, not the concept of God
The concept of God refers to an intellectualized or sentimentalized notion of God that is more a projection of one’s own preference than the revelation [...]
To be wistful is to be wasteful
We know that it is undesirable to be wasteful – whether it is in terms of water by leaving the tap on, or electricity by [...]
Sense gratification is a fascinating path to frustration
“Eat this; see this; touch this – and you will enjoy.” The world glamorizes sense gratification thus. In striking contrast, the Bhagavad-gita (05.22) asserts that [...]
To ascribe omnipotence to the laws of nature is poor – and pure – fiction
Atheists often claim that the laws of nature alone have brought into existence the whole universe and all the life in it. But laws are [...]
Detachment is not hard-heartedness, but clear-headedness
Some people ask: “When the Gita (13.10) asked Arjuna to become detached from family members such as sons, why did he become so distraught after [...]
For the cynic, the truth lies in the heart
Some people are inveterate cynics who ascribe the darkest motives to even the noblest actions. When such cynics target religion, they see God as a [...]
To acquire equal vision externally, cultivate spiritual satisfaction internally – by remembering Krishna devotionally
The Bhagavad-gita repeatedly urges us to see pleasant and unpleasant situations equally. How is this possible? To understand, let’s analyze a Gita verse (06.08) that [...]
In life’s multiple-choice exam, select an alternative based on what it says, not where it stays
In a multiple-choice exam, the position of an alternative doesn’t determine its correctness. Just because an alternative is positioned first doesn’t make it correct. The [...]
The great achievement of materialism
Materialism is the belief system that matter is all that exists. Sometimes it takes a slightly more tolerant form as the belief system that matter [...]
Are we using religion as a cloak instead of as an armor?
A cloak is often used to concealoneself; an armor, to protect oneself. When we use our religion as a cloak, we hide our weaknesses under [...]
Is our culture preventing us from growing up?
Children desire toys and cry when thwarted and angered. Undiscriminating desire and unmanaged anger – these two defining emotions of childishness underlie many of our [...]
Materialism is wrong – and wrongheaded
Materialism, the idea that matter is all that exists, is on a mass seduction campaign nowadays, especially through the media. To see through its seduction, [...]
Dig the grave of materialism, functional and fanatical
Materialism comes in two main brands: fanatical materialism which claims that matter is all that exists; and functional materialism which claims that matter is all [...]
To access the Absolute Truth, reject the absolute rejection of absolute truths
Due to the spread of postmodernism, many people tend towards metaphysical relativism: the idea that absolute truths are impossible because cultural, historical and intellectual biases [...]