 outlines. Consequently, we may assume that our attachments are holding us in such a vicious grip that we can't do anything about it. This assumption may even make us rationalize continued moral lapses.
Gita wisdom cautions us against assuming that our attachments are holding us; we might be holding them.
How can we understand the difference between the two?
Only if the tempting sense objects unexpectedly come our way without our desire to encounter them and trap us can we say that our attachments are holding us.
Usually, we are not so innocent. Although we externally say that we want to be detached, we internally hold on to the desire to enjoy the pleasure associated with that attachment. We secretly hope to somehow still enjoy that pleasure. We even plan to encounter those tempting sense objects. If any or all of these -- desires, hopes, and plans -- precede our becoming trapped, then it is we who are holding on to our attachments.)
Based on Bhagavad Gita Chapter 02, Text 44
As aspiring devotees, we often find that our attachments abduct and drag our consciousness away from Krishna, as the Bhagavad-gita (2.44) outlines. Consequently, we may assume that our attachments are holding us in such a vicious grip that we can’t do anything about it. This assumption may even make us rationalize continued moral lapses.
Gita wisdom cautions us against assuming that our attachments are holding us; we might be holding them.
How can we understand the difference between the two?
Only if the tempting sense objects unexpectedly come our way without our desire to encounter them and trap us can we say that our attachments are holding us.
Usually, we are not so innocent. Although we externally say that we want to be detached, we internally hold on to the desire to enjoy the pleasure associated with that attachment. We secretly hope to somehow still enjoy that pleasure. We even plan to encounter those tempting sense objects. If any or all of these — desires, hopes, and plans — precede our becoming trapped, then it is we who are holding on to our attachments.
