Author Archives: Chaitanya Charan das

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

If we look in a mirror and find a stranger looking back at us, we will be disturbed. That’s what sometimes happens to us when we take a close look at ourselves using the mirror of introspection. We all have a certain picture of ourselves: who we are and what we stand for.  But the […]

Worry accelerates our imagination. When we face problems, worry paints dreadful pictures of the many further things that may go wrong, thereby sucking our mental energy into those gloomy possibilities. Saying that worry accelerates our imagination doesn’t mean that the problems we worry about aren’t real. They may well be real. But we can live […]

The idea of discipline often evokes in us an inaudible sigh, if not an audible groan – it appears to be a deprivation, as a form of self-torture. However, the purpose of discipline is not to torture ourselves, but to transcend ourselves. That is, transcend our lower self – our impulsive mind that is seduced […]

We treasure freedom as an inalienable right and resist anything that threatens it. However, we think of freedom largely in terms of the freedom to pursue various forms of material pleasures. Gita wisdom expands our conception of freedom by extending it to the spiritual level. As everything material is temporary, so is the pleasure from […]

“Am I really free?” We may get this situation when we try to change ourselves for the better and realize how difficult it is, realize how easily we tend to relapse to old habits and attitudes. The subject is complex with many nuances, but a general answer is: We are free to choose our desires, […]

Answer Podcast

The word ‘self-conscious’ refers to an excessive awareness of one’s appearance and actions. For example, when we give our first public speech, we may be self-conscious, that is, too worried about how we look and how we speak. Self-consciousness can be crippling. It can divert our mental energy away from concentrating on doing our actions […]

The pure devotee does not endeavor for anything which is against the principles of devotional service. For example, constructing a big building requires great energy, and a devotee does not take to such business if it does not benefit him by advancing his devotional service. He may construct a temple for the Lord, and for […]

Many people reject discipline: “I want to be free to do my own thing.” Our aspiration to be free is natural and laudable. But we need to consider: is my own thing actually my own thing? What we call ‘my own thing’ usually comes not from us, but from the world. The current materialistic culture […]

Sometimes one is praised and sometimes one is defamed; that is the nature of human society. But a devotee is always transcendental to artificial fame and infamy, distress or happiness. Bhagavad Gita As It Is 12.18.19 purport

‘Motion’ refers to the movement of unconscious things, whereas ‘action’ refers to the movements of conscious people. The waves flowing in a river are in motion, whereas boatpersons rowing their boats on that same river are in action. The laws of physics govern motion like say the motion of waves. These laws affect, but don’t […]

He [The devotee] is fully conscious that Krsna is the eternal Lord, so no one can disturb him.
Bhagavad Gita As It Is 12.14 purport

Our culture often reduces character to image, wisdom to sound bytes and self-worth to net-worth. Being goaded by such a superficial environment, people frequently, even feverishly, aim to look big. They want to appear to be belonging among the best, even to be the numero uno. The Bhagavad-gita (16.15) characterizes such obsession with appearances as […]

Every endeavor requires land, capital, organization and labor. Just as in business one requires a place to stay, some capital to use, some labor and some organization to expand, so the same is required in the service of Krsna. The only difference is that in materialism one works for sense gratification. The same work, however, […]

It is relatively easy to accommodate those who accommodate us. It is much more difficult to accommodate those who don’t accommodate us. The Bhagavad-gita reveals how Krishna is supremely accommodating. Therein, Krishna outlines various spiritual paths custom-made for people with varying inclinations, thereby expressing his desire to get everyone to start off on their spiritual […]

The impersonal conception of the Supreme Absolute Truth, as described in this [twelfth] chapter, is recommended only up to the time one surrenders himself for self-realization. In other words, as long as one does not have the chance to associate with a pure devotee, the impersonal conception may be beneficial. In the impersonal conception of […]

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

Spiritual master is not that a particular man is spiritual master. Spiritual master is a truth. So what is that truth? The truth is samsara-davanala-lidha-loka-tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatvam. The whole world is in the blaze of material pangs, threefold miseries. And a person who is authorized to deliver people from that material pangs, he is called spiritual […]

“I want more.” This urge often consumes us, largely due to our culture’s glamorization of possessions and possessors. Unfortunately, no matter how hard we work to get more, not one of our possessions will stay with us permanently. Thankfully, we can direct the urge for possessions towards something that can be eternally ours – we […]

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

Answer Summary: The world is first and foremost a service-ground, an arena for loving service to God and to all his children. Through such service, which can include both play and battle, we attain the highest fulfillment. Answer: The notion that the world is a playground is appealing, but it collides head-on with the harsh […]

Some devotees prefer to hear QA and lectures on sites like yours instead of going to the temple to hear the live Bhagavatam classes there. Is this desirable?
Answer Podcast

From Kamalaksi Rupini dd BhS Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada Hare Krsna, prabhu. I must say I don’t agree with what you wrote. We have plenty of examples of women who were raped and were not dressing anything indecent. We also have plenty of examples of kids being raped or […]

Some people ask: “How can we find harmony among the many different spiritual paths?” By looking beyond divergent ideas to convergent ideals, answers Gita wisdom. The Bhagavad-gita (05.05) states that true seers see the same ultimate destination of the paths of sankhya (analytical contemplation) and yoga (detached action). Sankhya focuses on analyzing the material elements […]

I am counting on you boys and girls to push on this movement and preach vigorously all over the world, and we shall be successful.” (Letter to Amogha, January 29,1973).

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

“Desa-kala-patra (the place, the time and the object) should be taken into consideration ..Therefore it is a principle that a preacher must strictly follow the rules and regulations laid down in the sastras yet at the same time devise a means by which the preaching work to reclaim the fallen may go on with full force.” […]

Many people imagine that the body is the gateway to pleasure, as is often depicted in novels and movies. Pleasure is not our native country, not our normal condition. Miseries from the body-mind complex, the social circle and the environment attack us repeatedly, if not constantly. Just as residents of a troubled country look for […]

Answer Summary: Yes, they definitely have that right, but the issue is not of rights, but of sending the right message about ourselves to others. When rights blind us to the right, we brand the right – modest dressing – as wrong, as old-fashioned. Answer: Today’s culture makes women believe that they have the right to […]

Some people fear that devotion to Krishna will require them to renounce the world. However, devotion requires not renunciation of the world, but its reconnection with Krishna. Arjuna, the Gita’s original student, didn’t renounce the world; he became a world ruler. Why did Arjuna get so involved? Because devotion is meant to include the world, […]

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

“In Bhagavad-gita we find that women are also equally competent like the men in the matter of Krsna consciousness movement. Please therefore carry on these missionary activities, and prove it by practical example that there is no bar for anyone in the …

From Vidya Kotwani M
Answer Podcast

People ask: “If God, the creator of the world, is good, why is there so much evil in the world?” The question reveals a fundamental confusion in attribution – they are placing the blame on the wrong doorstep. The sun gives only light, no darkness. Those who turn away from the sun see darkness. They […]

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

We should not simply publish these books for reading by outsiders, but our students must be well-versed in all of our books so that we can be prepared to defeat all opposing parties in the matter of self-realization.” (Letter to Hamsaduta, 3rd December…

People often ask: “What is the use of remembering Krishna?” It acts as a shelter and as armor. As a shelter, it helps us rest and recover after life’s exhausting battles. By remembering Krishna, we get spiritual energy to recoup and regroup, thereby preparing us for future battles. As armor, it provides inner stability and […]

Holy Name Meditation Podcast

Although a man who has fallen in the ocean may struggle very hard and may be very expert in swimming, he cannot save himself. But if someone comes and picks him up from the water, then he is easily rescued. Similarly, the Lord picks up the devotee from this material existence. One simply has to […]