The QUEST acronym (Why the Gita’s first chapter matters 1)
The Bhagavad-gita is widely known as a book of profound philosophy. Why does such a book start with an entire chapter whose content is largely [...]
To speak effectively, learn to let go of what you think you are speaking and hear what others are hearing
While communicating with others, we are often surprised, even shocked by how they misunderstand us: “I spoke something so obvious; why are they outraged? What [...]
Our tongue is like a loaded gun that we always carry within us
Suppose we have a powerful, loaded gun. We would be extremely careful that it doesn’t get fired accidentally. Scarily, we all have a powerful, loaded [...]
Wrong philosophy may not obstruct people spiritually as much as our calling their philosophy wrong
Suppose we encounter people who follow some philosophy in which we can find many holes. We may be tempted to call their philosophy wrong. We [...]
The essence of education is enlightenment, engagement and encouragement
If we wish to educate others about something – especially something that requires moral strength, discipline, and diligence – we need to provide them three [...]
To speak effectively, speak not just correctly, but also appropriately
When a doctor prescribes a medicine to a patient, they consider not just the patient’s malady, but also the patient’s case history. Sometimes, if a [...]
To inspire improvement, offer encouragement, not judgment
When we see others doing something wrong, we often feel impelled to judge and correct them. This impulse becomes even stronger if we happen to [...]
Before you put others in their place, put yourself in their place
When we teach something and find that some people keep objecting, we may feel impelled to speak cuttingly and put them in their place. However, [...]