"The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Listen again, O mighty-armed Arjuna. Because you are My dear friend, for your benefit I shall speak to you further, giving knowledge that is better than what I have already explained." Bhagavad-gita 10.1 My verse of the week is from Chapter 10 of the Bhagavad-gita As It Is. “Listen again,” Krishna says. It’s a beautiful thing, this listening, this calling one closer. Come, He says, I have something even better to tell you. To listen to Krishna is one of the most important and influential things we can do with our time. He will reveal everything if we l ..read more

Find balance, joy, and growth connected to Krishna every day. Balance to know when to say enough, to add more or do less. Joy to be present to the moment, feelingly. And growth to seek ways to be better at who we are and what we do. All this in service to the greater good of finding the voice of life, of love, deep within our heart ..read more

It always arrives. We plan for the day, for the event, for the celebration - and then it’s over. And so too for 2022. We think, how did that happen? Where did the time go? Yet here we are, moved along by invisible time. We often don’t like to think of endings, but we should always plan to end well. Whether it’s a book or play, a conversation or a letter, a life or a love, finish it on a good note. While it is the ending of one thing, it is simply the start of another. By ending well it sets us up for a good beginning. One of the practices of a Krishna devotee is ‘to leave the place cleaner tha ..read more

by Sacinandana Swami Question: I know I should choose bhakti, but often I simply can’t. I don’t have the strength to do it. What then? Answer: Yes, sometimes we feel weak and overwhelmed by the circumstances and it becomes clear to us, “I’m not like that advanced devotee, who just goes for bhakti all the time.” At that time it is important to recognize something that is yet unknown to many devotees: you can turn your weakness into strength. This is not a cheap coaching advice. In bhakti, you can actually turn your weakness into your greatest strength. You may say: “Oh well, when I’m weak, I’m ..read more

“Today I practiced mindful talking. I was extremely careful not to say anything to offend anyone. I imagined that each word was showering another soul with either flower petals or with bricks. Devotional words are like flowers that will enhance another’s well being and celebrate that person’s existence. Harsh and whimsical words are like assaults on others, as if stoning them with bricks.” Bhakti Tirtha Swami, The Beggar 2 This is a good reminder of the power of words and how we use them. How am I doing with the way I speak to others? And how can I do better ..read more

So there I was, driving on a five lane highway, a good speed mind you, when a car moseyed up behind me. The driver wasn’t putting a lot of pressure on me to get out of his way, but still I thought, let me move over and make room. So I did and it felt good. It also made me think how the act of making room for another is inherent in the practice of Krishna Bhakti. After I moved over I experienced a moment of humility. And a sense of service - even to a stranger as we cruised down the highway. When we make room, we are moving ourselves out of the center, shrinking the needs of our false ego to be ..read more

by Hari-kirtana Dasa My spiritual teacher, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, had many extraordinary talents. One of them was his ability to come up with simple English phrases to express complex philosophical ideas that are packed into compressed Sanskrit aphorisms. ‘Spirit soul’ was one such phrase that he frequently used to differentiate our essential spiritual nature from the material nature of the bodies we inhabit. He would often say, "We are spirit souls, not this material body." A question about this phrase came up the other day in connection with a series of classes I’ve been giving ..read more

“It’s important to let go so we can make room for what’s important.” I came across this quote from a book called Love People, Use Things. It describes the liberating activity of clearing the junk from our room or house. It then moves on to exploring what’s important to keep and value. It made me think about all the subtle junk we carry around. What would be good to let go, to remove from our consciousness and our tendency to live with? Each one of us will have our own list, but I came up with this as a starting point. 1. Don’t think we know it all - there is nothing worse for spiritual advance ..read more

As I stand where earth, sea, and sky meet, and watch the sun rise before me, it’s easy to feel the emotion of gratitude. Who am I to be so blessed and where does all this life and beauty come from? Prabhupada says it well: Every living entity, especially persons in the human race, must feel grateful for the benedictions offered by the grace of the Supreme Lord. Therefore anyone with a simple heart of gratefulness must be Kṛṣṇa conscious and offer devotional service to the Lord. Those who are actually thieves and rogues do not recognize or acknowledge the benedictions offered to them by the Sup ..read more

This Sunday, Nov. 14th, we begin the last 5 days of the sacred month of Kartika. I want you to imagine these are the last 5 days of your life here in this body and world. This is not such an unusual request - our most thorough book on the philosophy of Bhakti begins with a king being cursed to die in 7 days. He turns that into a blessing. For us, the last 5 days of Kartika are also a blessing. So, if we can meditate that these are our last 5 days, what do we want to do with them? How can we surround ourselves with the most beautiful Krishna conscious experiences? Who do we want to listen to? W ..read more