Author: Dayalu Nitai Das

Question: Holy places like Vrindavana exist on the surface of the earth just like other physical places. Then why do spiritualists consider these places to be spiritual? Answer: Holy places like Vrindavana are considered spiritual because they exist not just on the physical plane like other places, but also as a parallel reality on a higher-dimensional spiritual plane It is in this higher, parallel reality of the holy places that the Lord and his devotees have performed sublime pastimes, but this reality is normally inaccessible to us due to our…

This quote provocatively restates a universal truth, enshrined in sayings such as “Man proposes, God disposes.” We all have dreams and we make plans accordingly. We envision our life going along a smooth line leading to destination happiness, with happiness being equated with the fulfillment of our dreams. However, life rarely goes the way we plan – factors beyond our control disrupt things. If we ascribe those disruptive factors beyond our control ultimately to the supreme divinity, then we could say that God has disposed the plans we had proposed.…

madopaśamanaṁ śāstraṁ khalānāṁ kurute madam cakṣuḥ prakāśakaṁ teja ulūkānām ivāndhatām madopaśamanam — removers of arrogance; śāstram — scriptures; khalānām — for the wicked; kurute — they increase; madam — arrogance; cakṣuḥ-prakāśakam — eye illuminating; tejaḥ — brilliance [of the sun]; ulūkānām — for the owls; iva — like; andhatām — blindness. “The arrogance of the wicked increases on studying scripture, which is actually meant to remove arrogance, just as the darkness owls experience increases with the rising of the sun, which is actually meant to remove darkness.” — Subhāṣita-ratna-bhāṇḍāgāram, ku-paṇḍita-nindā,…