Questions & Answers
Questions & Answers

Different Visions of Krishna

Seeing Kṛṣṇa as per One’s Bhāva Question: In a Bhagavat Sandarbha lecture, you mentioned that God appears in a mutually exclusive way to devotees, such that if one sees Him as a child, then one cannot see God’s Majesty. You cited the examples of Yaśodā and of Arjuna. However, Vyāsa saw Him in His complete

Read More
Philosophy Questions & Answers

Buddhist Conceptions

Question: Certain schools of thought, namely Buddhism, put forward the idea of momentariness. The flow of events gives rise to a continuum of consciousness, but this continuum is observed by a subtle level of mind, and not by a witness like the ātman/soul from an underlying substratum. Schools such as the Gelugpa tradition state that there

Read More
Questions & Answers

Morality in Scripture, Nonviolence, Vaishnava Commentaries

  Question: Different characters of the Purāṇas, even Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva, whom we consider guṇāvatāras, are shown to commit immoral acts. By such incidents, are we to understand that the rules of morality pertain only to humans, or is there another explanation? Answer: Yes, there is a more convincing explanation. You need to study

Read More
Questions & Answers Vedic Psychology

Interactions between the Ātmā and the Mind

Question: Who feels pain and pleasure in the conditioned stage? Is it the soul or the mind? Answer: The mind feels it. Question: From where does viveka or the faculty to choose between wrong and right come? Does it come from the buddhi or ātmā? Answer: It comes from buddhi. Question: Does the soul have intrinsic

Read More
Questions & Answers Vedic Psychology

How to Overcome Jealousy and Envy

Question: An ordinary person has jealousy—how to overcome this problem? Answer: Jealousy comes because of ignorance and attachment to your own self or body. First, you should understand what jealousy is. These two words in English, envy and jealousy, have similar meanings but with subtle differences. Envy means that someone has more than you and

Read More
Questions & Answers

Consciousness at the Time of Death

  Question: As per Bhagavad Gītā 8.6, “Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, O son of Kuntī, that state he will attain without fail.” If one thinks about dead matter like a building, money etc., when he quits his body, then what is his destination? Answer: Such a question arises from

Read More
Questions & Answers Vedic Psychology

Attachments at the Time of Death

Question: You said that at the time of death, we remember important saṁskāras from our life. Why is this?    Answer: We have certain attachments in our life. We work and survive because of these attachments. Without attachments, you would feel completely blank. Attachments are of different grades and shades. Some are strong, some are

Read More