“The one who never even received broken currency, who was so poor and nobody wanted – Tulsi says that Shri Rama, the protector of the poor, has made him worth so much.” (Dohavali, 108)

lahai na phū।tī kau।dihū ko cāhai kehi kāja |
so tulasī maha’go kiyo rāma garība nivāja ||

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It was a long day at the office. You don’t feel like cooking anything. You shouldn’t be eating food from outside, but in this case you feel like there is no choice. You go ahead and order a pizza. While the online system for many places accepts credit cards, this restaurant is more old-fashioned. It’s cash only. The restriction is worth the bother since the food tastes so good.

You don’t even go to the place to pick up. Delivery brings its own joy. You sit there on the couch while waiting…

“Tulsi says that one who has love for Rama should be friendly towards friends, renounce enmity with enemies, and be easy-going, simple in nature, quiet, and equally disposed towards all.“ (Dohavali, 93)

hita soṃ hita, rati rāma soṃ, ripu soṃ baira bihāu |
udāsīna saba soṃ sarala tulasī sahaja subhāu ||

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Forgive, but don’t forget. Let go of the incident, but remember the person’s character. In this world the rule is dog eat dog; at least that has been the experience so far. If you don’t look out for yourself, who will? Every person is focused on svartha, or self-interest. Paramartha maybe, but that only for personal gain in the afterlife. It is seen that family members will turn against each other if the desire to satisfy the senses is strong enough.

In spite of how easy it is to hold a…

“When they have thus enjoyed heavenly sense pleasure, they return to this mortal planet again. Thus, through the Vedic principles, they achieve only flickering happiness.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 9.21)

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Friend1: I found an interesting name for earth.

Friend2: You found it? Where were you looking?

Friend1: Came upon it while reading shastra, the Bhagavad-gita. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been reading it regularly for years, but this time I paid attention to the word-for-word translation on a particular verse.

Friend2: Okay. What is the name?

Friend1: Martya-loka.

Friend2: Ah. The planet of death.

Friend1: Or simply, the planet of mortality.

Friend2: Sorry, you’re right. That’s the literal translation.

Friend1: I found it interesting because if you think about it, so many people are trying to invalidate that name.

Friend2: That is the game, no pun intended.

Friend1: To outlive death?

“Tulsi says that one who has love for Rama should be friendly towards friends, renounce enmity with enemies, and be easy-going, simple in nature, quiet, and equally disposed towards all.“ (Dohavali, 93)

hita soṃ hita, rati rāma soṃ, ripu soṃ baira bihāu |
udāsīna saba soṃ sarala tulasī sahaja subhāu ||

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It was a traumatizing experience for sure. One of those where you remind yourself to never forget. Forgetfulness is known to occur, as that is one effect of time. It is said that time heals all wounds. For some reason you’d rather this wound remain awhile. Let it stay fresh in the mind so that you can remember just how wronged you were. Things worked out in the end, but only after a difficult struggle.

While it is understandable to hold a grudge, to keep the memory of the person or people…

“After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.19)

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Friend1: Temporary and miserable.

Friend2: I know where you are going with this.

Friend1: You do?

Friend2: Duhkhalayam ashashvatam.

Friend1: Yes!

Friend2: That is the nature of the world.

Friend1: Well, this world.

Friend2: There are others?

Friend1: Three planetary systems. Up, down and middle. Fourteen divisions in total.

Friend2: And where are we?

Friend1: In the middle. The earthly region, featuring both highs and lows. A little bit of heaven, a little bit of hell, and some in between.

Friend2: So life in heaven is not temporary and miserable?

Friend1: It is temporary.

Friend2: But I thought that’s the goal of life. Be…

“The peacock has a strange body, speaks in a cowardly way, eats snakes for food, and has a ghastly mind. Tulsi says that Shri Hari still uses its feathers to adorn the head, and therefore everyone now says, ‘mine.’” (Dohavali, 107)

tanu bicitra kāyara bacana ahi ahāra mana ghora |
tulasī hari bhae pacdhara tāte kaha saba mora ||

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Most likely you won’t be able to complete a marathon, let alone win it, without some prior training. It’s not every day that a person runs for over twenty-six miles. The body is not accustomed to it. Even regular runners need to take some precautions. They eat a certain way. They make sure the body can handle going for a certain distance on a regular basis.

As such, there are rules and regulations. These are the components to what is known as training. From…

“The peacock has a strange body, speaks in a cowardly way, eats snakes for food, and has a ghastly mind. Tulsi says that Shri Hari still uses its feathers to adorn the head, and therefore everyone now says, ‘mine.’” (Dohavali, 107)

tanu bicitra kāyara bacana ahi ahāra mana ghora |
tulasī hari bhae pacdhara tāte kaha saba mora ||

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Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu has said that as Krishna is worshipable, so is His land. The reason is rather obvious. The land is intimately associated with Krishna. Just visiting a place like Vrindavana brings to mind the darling child of Nanda and Yashoda. That boy was naughty in His youth, stealing butter from the homes of the neighbors. The mothers living in those homes would complain, but inside they were delighted by the visits. They didn’t really want Yashoda to punish her child, who was…

“Tulsi says that if someone respects Shri Rama, they have good value even if they are of bad character, like when the black ash from a lamp is put on the head to drive away evil spirits, it becomes fixed.” (Dohavali, 106)

tulasī rāma jo ādar yo kho।to kharo kharoi |
dīpaka kājara sira dhar yo dhar yo sudhar yo dharoi ||

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Ash is the unwanted residue from the lighting of a flame. The fire has some value when it is wanted. Without fire, man would not be able to survive. Indeed, there is a flame inside of the body, indicating life. When that fire exits, the body turns cold, which is one sign of death.

If there is a fireplace in the home, after it is used residue builds up inside. This is known as soot, and it is a byproduct of…

“Shri Rama does good for everyone; through His love everyone is benefitted. Therefore, it must hold true that Rama will always do good for Tulsi.” (Dohavali, 105)

rāma nikaii rāvarī hai sabahī ko nīka |
jauṃ yaha sā’cī hai sadā tau nīko tulasīka ||

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It’s an important question to ask. There is so much effort invested to begin with. There is faith that the end result will be something never before experienced. The promise is to remove the greatest fear a person can have: death.

“Just as the ripened fruit has no other fear than falling, the man who has taken birth has no other fear than death.” (Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya Kand, 105.17)

The mature fruit hanging from the tree has no other fate than to fall. Growth is finished. There is no more potential in that area. For the mature…

“This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.14)

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Friend1: Do you ever get tired of hearing the message?

Friend2: Which one? I do keep getting calls from these people who want to sell me solar energy.

Friend1: Robocalls?

Friend2: There’s not even a person on the other end. They buy up a series of similar phone numbers, too, so it’s not like you can simply block their number.

Friend1: That should be made illegal.

Friend2: One would think.

Friend1: I’m talking about the bhakti message, science of self-realization, in general.

Friend2: What exactly is the message?

Friend1: Take advantage of this human life, which is rare. Follow devotion to God, who is a person. Give up attachment to…