When the light seems too bright …
Suppose someone is trapped in a dark maze-like dungeon. After wandering for a long time, they finally find an opening. But as they near the [...]
Are we treating our beliefs and our doubts equally?
Suppose we grew up in an environment that fostered belief in things such as the teachings of sacred texts like the Bhagavad-gita. Over time, we [...]
Are you someone you would want to live with lifelong?
If our partner is someone we can’t live with, that would make our life miserable. How much greater would be our misery if we had [...]
Does Arjuna’s reluctance to fight show that he is irresponsible?
Some people, especially those of a martial orientation, think that by refusing to fight when his army depended on him, Arjuna was acting irresponsibly — [...]
Thinking tanking thanking — moving from pessimism to optimism
At any given time in our life, we all can list several things that are wrong. And we often need to be aware of those [...]
When appreciating life’s good things doesn’t foster gratitude …
We may have heard that gratitude arises when we appreciate the good things in our life. But what if such appreciation doesn’t foster gratitude? We [...]
How to feel grateful when we are not successful
When our endeavors don’t lead to success, how can we cultivate gratitude? By contemplating what really matters for us. Aiding such contemplation, Gita wisdom offers [...]
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 [...]
What forgiving ourselves means — and what it doesn’t mean
Suppose we have made some grievous mistake that has hurt others terribly. Irrespective of whether others forgive us or not, we may refuse to forgive [...]
When contemplating our mistakes helps and when it doesn’t …
Humility, which is lauded as a prime virtue in the Bhagavad-gita (13.08), is often misunderstood. One such misunderstanding centers on how it can be developed: [...]
Are we being ‘nonjudgmentally’ judgmental?
Most virtues, when taken to an excess, end up becoming vices. Such is the case with the virtue of being nonjudgmental which protects us from [...]
The difference between what we want and what we want to want
Our wants often arise from external factors such as peer pressure, cultural glamorization or corporate-controlled media promotion. During our reflective movements, we may realize that [...]
What moments of weakness can do — and what they can’t do
When people fall to vice, they often explain it as “just a moment of weakness.” Let’s evaluate this explanation. We all are finite and fallible [...]
When our conscience speaks ….
We all have inside us an inner guiding voice: the voice of conscience that guides us to act in ways that are worthwhile, ennobling and [...]
When our ignorance is exposed … (From ignorance to knowledge series 1)
When our ignorance is exposed - Because we are tiny beings living in a huge and complex world, what we know will always be dwarfed [...]
Will ethical self-assessment increase our guilt? (Ethics & devotion series 5)
Will ethical self-assessment increase our guilt? - If we are told to assess ourselves ethically, we may fear, “I already feel guilty because I can’t [...]
Does the world hate me? (Beyond black and white conceptions series 6)
Does the world hate me? - Suppose we greet someone at a get-together and they don’t respond. We may be taken aback. Suppose several people [...]
Are we the fisherman or the fish? (Managing the mind 2)
Are we the fisherman or the fish? - Suppose a fisherman casts a bait in a river to catch a fish. The fisherman stands to [...]
Angry about being angry? (Anger management series 2)
Angry about being angry? - We all have probably experienced that anger can make our life hellish, as warned by the Bhagavad-gita (16.21). We may [...]
How doubt can’t live without faith (Dealing with doubt 7)
How doubt can’t live without faith- Parasites can’t exist without the host organisms they prey on. Doubt is such a parasite that can’t live without [...]
Don’t let doubt stop our human search for understanding (Dealing with doubt 6)
Don’t let doubt stop our human search for understanding - We humans have an innate thirst for understanding. This thirst impels us to explore the [...]