Practical Spirituality

​Don’t identify with the mind – identify the mind

​Seek the synergy of siddhanta, sadhana and sadachara

​If devotees don’t do a service because they don’t feel inspired, are they being offensive?

If devotees repeatedly back out of services they have committed to, how to respond without becoming irritated?

​How can we stay positive when the mind is pessimistic?

​If we are unable to avoid negative emotions, how can we deal with them?

How can we draw the line about how much material things we can use in Krishna’s service?

​If we commit mistakes while preaching, should we stop preaching?

​Have addicted people lost their free will?

​When the spiritual-material are done together, does the spiritual component increase with age?

​Does chanting make us internally happy and then we won’t do anything externally?

​What kind of goals does a spiritually evolved person have?

​Can we function at both spiritual and material levels in life?

​Do we need to renounce the world to grow spiritually?

​Can spirituality help people having acute mental health problems?

​Can people with brain chemical imbalances practice spirituality and benefit from it?

​What makes people evolve from seeking recognition to making contribution?

​How to respond when devotees start campaigning against some mundane problem?

Why do senior devotees sometimes divert from bhakti to fringe fields?

How can we use our talents at work without being sucked by the work away from Krishna?

Can inattentive chanting cause mental problems?

How to respond when problems overwhelm us?

Is not being disturbed amidst problems indicative of apathy or of bhakti?

When caring for our small children takes a lot of time, how can we enhance our spirituality?

​If I don’t feel disturbed when my loved ones face problems, am I becoming heartless?

Is it better to chant in the morning and do very simple Deity worship or to do nice Deity worship and chant later in the day?

​How can we attract people who don’t find ISKCON adequately traditional in its cultural aspect?

​Holy Name seminar – Becoming conscious of our consciousnss, our distractions and our Lord

​Why do we become more angry with our family members than with our colleagues?

​How can we be both detached and compassionate?

​Why do people become sarcastic towards those practicing bhakti?

​How to avoid becoming disheartened on seeing our lack of spiritual emotion while chanting?

​How can we avoid becoming fearful about future possibilities?

Transform anxiety into intensity by spirituality

If someone is in too much anxiety, how can we help them?

​We can’t pray for problems like Kunti did, but being problem-free makes us complacent – what is the balanced attitude?

​Whenever I do anything, I feel distracted by the many other things in the world that are wrong – what can I do?

​How can we deal with spiritual jealousy?

​How do we prioritize between our material obligations and spiritual aspirations?

​If others don’t accept something we are strongly convinced about, what should we do?

​What are the most important things for practicing bhakti?

​Why do we chant Hare Krishna, not om krishna?

​When shasta-guru-sadhu give different guidance on some issue, how do we decide?

Focus not on the cause – focus on the cure

​Should we feel insecure if because of having many services we are unable to report to our authorities regularly?

​When the mind treats worldly objects, not Krishna, as its home, how to respond?

​Can the mode of ignorance be used in Krishna’s service?

​How can we avoid an excessively self-critical mentality?

​How to avoid feeling negative about people who criticize harshly?

​What to do if pressing the pause button amidst provocations will make things worse?

​Isn’t it better to address misunderstanding right away instead of letting it distract us later during japa?

​If senior devotees have misconceptions about us, is clarifying them disrespectful?

​Is mentally retaliating at devotees who have hurt us an offence?

​How can we train ourselves to pause when impulses hit us?

If something makes us go away from Krishna, how can we return towards him?

​How can we balance our studies and our bhakti?

​If bhakti is the art of becoming happy, why are we bhaktas not happy?

​How can we increase our appreciation for bhakti?

​How can we respond positively after committing mistakes?

​How can we control the mind in professional settings where we can’t do devotional activities?

Can we change a habit in two weeks, as some surveys suggest?

​How can we become more selfless?

​Take charge of your inner conversation

​How can the awareness of our sinfulness enhance our devotion?

​When Krishna said that the Kauravas were doomed because of offending Draupadi, why did he go to them as a peace envoy?

How can we differentiate between emotional experiences and transcendental experiences?

When the management gives services to one person and not another, isn’t that discrimination?

The Quest for Happiness

​Isn’t life all about discriminating – how can we be nonjudgmental?

What is the difference between judging and discriminating?

Is na dhanam na janam na sundarim applicable to householder life?

How does guilt practically help increase our bhakti?

​How can guilt manifest in a way favourable for bhakti?

​Does chanting purely itself give rise to virtues or should we strive to develop virtues?

​If we surrender to Krishna, won’t he help in taking care of our needs?

​Does Gita 09.22 imply that we needn’t care for our material needs?

​Are the material needs of pure devotees automatically provided for by Krishna?

Are the humble taken for a ride by others?

How can we tolerate provoking situations?

Is the tendency to not chant more than sixteen rounds good?

How can we dissolve the false ego?

Can feeling angry when insulted instead of tolerating insults spur us towards Krishna, as happened with Dhruva?

If a butcher has no alternative way to earn, will Krishna accept the fruits of their work?

Should we not give suggestions to others because of the fear that the suggestions will be rejected?

When the mind cries wolf, don’t fall for its bluff

Make Krishna the rest for the restless mind

Is the way of working in bhakti different from the way of working in material life?

Is it better to be inspired with the work itself instead of by its goal?

​Responding maturely to unfair criticism

What to do if devotees avoid services saying that they are not according to my nature?

Is service that which pleases Krishna or does it include that which we like?

​As sadhakas, what emotions can we experience in relationship with Krishna?

​How can we bring goodness into our passionate services?

Is service done in passion service or is it just self-gratification?

​Your worst enemy is inside you and so is your best friend

​While practicing bhakti, how can we avoid losing interest in our work?

Criticized? Clarify, counter – or ignore? (Subhashita commentary)

Understanding the mind through tech metaphors

If we are to be detached from results, how can we motivate ourselves for our work?

​How can we know when we are ready for taking vanaprastha?