Why Do You Laugh at Your Own Humor?
This question came from a friend who had just attended one of my talks. He explained, “Normally, in executive humor—that which is appropriate for workplace [...]
The Same Words, Different Worlds
Today morning, on July 6, as I was leaving Delhi to catch a flight to Mumbai, I was in the car talking on the phone [...]
Two ways to know our attachments
To understand our attachments, we need to notice where our thoughts go when they have nowhere else to go. Our minds are always full of [...]
A hard look or a hard knock — what will we choose?
If we don’t take a hard look at ourselves, we will soon get a hard knock from ourselves. We often worry about people who are [...]
How Not to Let the Darkness of the Human Heart Become Activated
Whenever we start looking into the abyss, we need to even more urgently and regularly start looking into the mirror. The term abyss is often [...]
Can destiny cause someone to fall down morally or spiritually?
Whenever we try to live a life of principles, we may often feel haunted by the possibility of fall downs. This concern becomes especially poignant [...]
Why has God created our mind to act as our enemy so frequently and forcefully?
God has provided us with the mind as a functional tool to link our spiritual selves with our physical bodies. However, the specific way the [...]
Seek inner harmony through persuasion, not domination
If we consider our inner world as a territory where disputes occur, there are broadly two ways to address these disputes. The first approach is [...]
Four meanings of consciousness
The many meanings of consciousness and how they matter Consciousness is a frequently discussed concept among those seeking personal and spiritual growth. Gaining a clearer [...]
Finding our voice shouldn’t become an excuse for funding our vice.
The call for individuality We live in a culture where the call to be an individual is not just encouraged but championed and glamorized. However, [...]
Free me from the illusion that I am free
Bhagavad Gita 18.59 yad ahaṅkāram āśritya na yotsya iti manyase mithyaiṣa vyavasāyas te prakṛtis tvāṁ niyokṣyati If, clinging to ego, you think, “I won’t fight,” [...]
Guide me to the work aligned with my nature, not the work glamorized by the culture
Bhagavad Gita 18.47 śreyān sva-dharmo viguṇaḥ para-dharmāt sv-anuṣṭhitāt sva-bhāva-niyataṁ karma kurvan nāpnoti kilbiṣam Better one’s own duty, though done less well, Than another’s performed with [...]
O Lord who are above illusion, save me from the illusion that I am above illusion
Bhagavad Gita 18.40 na tad asti pṛthivyāṁ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ sattvaṁ prakṛti-jair muktaṁ yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ No being on this earthly [...]
Protect me not just from the pleasures that seduce but also from those that sedate
Bhagavad Gita 18.39 yat agre cānubandhe ca sukhaṁ mohanam ātmanaḥ nidrālasyapramādotthaṁ tat tāmasam udāhṛtam From start to end, it makes the soul numb, And leaves [...]
Protect me from chasing the cause of my dissatisfaction as its cure
Bhagavad Gita 18.32 adharmaṁ dharmam iti yā manyate tamasāvṛtā sarvārthān viparītāṁś ca buddhiḥ sā pārtha tāmasī Shrouded in darkness, it takes wrong for right, [...]
2.41 The power of healthy tension
When under pressure, a cricketer might miss an easy catch— or pull off an incredible one. Why the difference? It's not the absence of fear; [...]
3.24 Choose which fear you face
We may fear public speaking. "I might freeze—or be mocked on stage." But if we let that fear stop us we’ll meet another fear: that [...]
1.28 How fear can be an educator
Have you ever met someone who had no tension in a situation you were tense about? Maybe you were coaching them for a critical interview, [...]
1.44 Fear: Factual or fictional?
Have you ever felt the absolute power of fear? You feel a certainty about imminent doom— no doubt that disaster awaits on the path ahead. [...]
3.35 Let fear inform our choices, not deform our values
Fear isn’t always bad. Sometimes it warns us of real dangers to avoid. The Bhagavad Gita (3.35) points to such healthy fear, teaching that choices [...]
15.7 Fear: unavoidable, not unmanageable
Because life is full of uncertainties, we’ll all sometimes feel anxious, insecure, or worried. We can’t remove fear from life— but we can refuse to [...]