The Only Option
The world we see is the consciousness we carry. Here's a beautiful thought experiment...
Feb 26, 2026·4 min
Om SwamiOm SwamiOm SwamiOm SwamiOm SwamiOm Swamiआत्मा · Atma · The self that watches
Who is the one watching the watcher? These reflections sit at the edge of that question. Not to answer it — answers come and go — but to make it impossible to look away.
“Self-realization is not becoming something new. It is seeing what was always there.”
Bring patience. Bring no conclusions.
Begin with this
December 28, 2011·2 min read·9
In this second of the six parts of Bhaj Govindam, listen to the exposition on the next six verses of this stotra.
Read this reflection
Foundational reflections
If you read only three, start with these.
77 of 77 reflections
The world we see is the consciousness we carry. Here's a beautiful thought experiment...
Here's a beautiful story and an important announcement.
How amazing it would be if there no constraints in your life, right? Maybe not.
Plus, baby pillows and other pointless mentions.
When the floodgates to the stream of consciousness open...
How well do you know your attachments?
Sometimes, one question is enough to trigger a lifelong transformation...
Here are six principles of awakening as elucidated by the great scholar Nagarjuna
The desire to be respected is a giant hurdle on the spiritual path. One tiny episode of disrespect... and mental afflictions come running.
of Om Swami...
My life as a monk is the exact opposite of what I thought it would be.
Can justice and revenge ever be used in the same sentence?
With 100% devotion for me, she gave her heart, mind, and soul to the cause of Black Lotus.
How a change in habits and perspective can completely set you free
Here's a beautiful true story to make you think...
If there was only one post you needed to read on my blog, it would be this one.
Does enlightenment mean you will forever surf the waves of bliss?
What to do when the wild elephant of thoughts tears into your garden of peace and quiet?
Sometimes the most profound realization comes not in flow but in stagnation, when life challenges you...
Here's a beautiful story from the life of a saint showing the power of a genuine spiritual experience.
A single flower blooms and throughout the world it’s spring...every thought matters.
Surrounded by the various shades of life, the path of truth is the only real path to liberation.
The origin of kundalini goes back to the most ancient Puranic lore beginning with Shiva and his consort...
The tree laden with fruit always bends down a bit. On the path of divinity, it represents a key virtue.
Is it possible to be detached? Here's a beautiful story with a profound lesson on detachment.
The Law of Attraction can manifest your dreams provided you help others to manifest theirs.
Here's a beautiful Zen anecdote to help you see beyond faith, conditioning and ego.
If you understand the Zen of living, you'll make a quantum leap on the path of life.
Here's a beautiful story, a gentle reminder about the purpose of spirituality — to see the divinity in everything.
Faith is light in the darkness of your lonely moments, it is your anchor of peace and strength.
When you learn to observe yourself and your thoughts, you become like incense. The more life burns you the more scent you emit.
A mind that's turned inward leads to contentment and virtues bloom in a contented heart like flowers do in spring.
In this post I elucidate the nine states of awareness as propounded by Patanjali and other great yogis like Vyasa.
Why is happiness fleeting and elusive like the summer clouds whereas our sorrows and miseries feel like giant rocks and boulders?
Be where they are to know why they are the way they are. Don't be emphatic where being empathic will do. Know the difference.
"Why does this always happen to me?" This is the most common question people ask when tough times eclipse their lives, when adversity gnaws at their happiness.
You can't find your life's meaning in religion or rituals but in the deepest recesses of your own heart.
Just like the full moon that softly dispels the darkness, a genuine master lights up your soul.
The mind is like a monkey, forever hopping from one place to another. It's not pure-impure or good-bad. It just is.
On the tree of life are the cages of desires holding captive the birds of attachment. Love roams freely.
What is faith? How does a rose bloom? Read the story.
Am I the butterfly dreaming I'm Chuang Tzu or the other way around? What are dreams?
This world is a stampede. If you don't fit in, you are either pushed or crushed. Realization is stepping aside. Mentally.
The sky remains independent of the colors and clouds in it. It returns to its natural state — blue. So can you.
He rounds up his sheep before dark. Or does he? It depends on the strength of your faith.
When you learn to value 'nothing', everything becomes priceless. Self-realization is emptying your basket (of the mind).
It's a lost world, too complicated. Chalk out your own path if you don't want to lose your way.
If you want to learn to swim, sooner or later, you will have to jump into the water. There is no other way.
Sometimes you just don't know the answer. Pause. Reflect. You may be looking at the wrong question paper.
People don't love or hate you but what you have to offer. If you have what they want, it's love, otherwise it's hate.
Coldness turns soft snow into hard ice, brittle and cold. When you are cold inside, it hurts more, you become more fragile.
Natural calamities are not punishable acts but corrective measures Nature takes to sustain itself.
What happens to the ripe apple you don't pick? It falls to the ground. There is no escape.
How come one seed flourishes and another one perishes? Is the Law of Karma the answer to everything?
Like moving water causes sedimentation, unabandoned thoughts become psychic imprints; they trigger emotions.
Nobody is strong enough to resist the language of love. It pierces the heart and goes straight to the soul.
Every karma must bear fruit and karmas are of three types according to the Bhagavad Gita.
Do unto others what you want done to yourself. It's important to have the same rules for others as you have for yourself.
Is there more to giving and taking than meets the eye?
If you travel light life becomes easier and less burdensome
Does God really exist or is he some elusive and illusory entity? Is he an invention, or a discovery?
Do you know what it is that you really want from your life, or even from others? Have you ever pondered over it?
Is it possible that God gets angry with you and punishes you for your sins and bad karma? If so, would he be God, really?
Your salvation depends on your state of mind, your karma. Realization of truth can help you live in this world with peace and bliss.
Bhaj Govindam by Shankracharya is laced with profound and eternal wisdom. In this discourse the first six verses are covered.
Your true nature is pure bliss, but you've forgotten yourself because of your societal and religious conditioning.
What does it take to attain that transcendental state the scriptures call samadhi? Why is it important to have any rules or discipline?
I do not believe in passing on second hand knowledge. Before you try to absorb what I have to say, do read this post
Self transformation is the inward journey of understanding yourself so you may discover your true nature of bliss.
How do we know what we want to do is our inner calling and not just a strong desire constantly talking in the head?
Is it important to be spiritual? Or does being spiritual mean you stop living and no longer enjoy the luxuries of this world?
Love is innate in everyone. It is the cause of your existence and the basis of your being. You become what you love.
A reader asked me why I communicate or engage with the world. "Why don't you follow your own path?" he asked.
A reader asked me what the supreme truth or ultimate form is, or, is there one?
Is happiness a journey or the destination? It all depends on one's perspective, and, perspective, in turn, depends on understanding.
Desires prompt us to act, but it helps to know their source because they make us what we become.
What are expectations and why are they the source of most human misery — a perspective.
Looking for something else? There are eight more themes in the library.
Browse all themesHere's how to be happy in this day and age. It's philosophical yet not far from the truth.
