When people are so confused that they can’t discern their own material inclinations, how can we engage them in bhakti?

People are so confused and so disoriented that they don't even know what they like, at a material level also. Yeah, that is how it is, the three modes, goodness, passion and ignorance. So, in ignorance, we are not, sometimes nowadays there is a lot of aversion, sorry, lot of what do you say, people don't, people live together, they don't even want to get married.

They just want to stay single and they have relationships with many people. So, that is because they feel there are so many options for enjoyment and if I choose one option for enjoyment, other doors will close for me. So, therefore, let me keep all doors open.

So, that means people are not able to decide even which material object to enjoy. So, that is, that is, in ignorance, we are not able to decide, there are so many objects what to enjoy, I can't decide that also. In passion, sometimes people in passion may appear to be very, very self-controlled.

Sometimes the athlete, I want to build this gold medal and they just work so hard, they will regulate their diet, they will work, they will have a very strict regimen, they will work very hard. So, now, are they self-controlled? Not exactly self-controlled because there is no spiritual inclination and after they win their, after they win their tournament or whatever, they may just drink like crazy to celebrate. So, but at least in passion the advantage is the self is controlled by one desire.

The self-controlled by one desire is not a self-controlled self, is not self-controlled. Self-controlled means one is having the self directed towards the supreme controller Krishna. But in passion, at least the self is controlled by one desire.

What do I want to do with my life? I want to, I want to go to Cambridge. I want to become a software engineer. So, that is the mode of passion.

In some ways the mode of passion is better than the mode of ignorance. There is at least clarity about what I want to do. Now, whether what I want to do is good for me or not, that is a separate question.

But there is, the indecision is the characteristic of the mode of ignorance and just absolute conviction about one decision, that is the characteristic of the mode of passion. Sometimes there may be harmful effects, like some people when you want to form a relationship, they say, I want to marry this person. And then I will reject the whole world.

They say, romantic movies, you know, they say the parents, I reject your inheritance, but I will not reject this person. So, that is typical of the mode of passion. And then same person, after software, maybe a few months or a few years, they live with that person.

Why did I want to marry this person? So, that means what has happened? The passion created attachment and passion created aversion after some time. But in ignorance, one is not able to even decide what to do. So, if people are in that situation, where they can't even understand what they materially like and materially dislike, then at that time, they should just encourage to do some service.

And if they are not able to decide, just we observe them and we give them whatever the engagement. And by that, gradually they will become purified. The lower modes influence will go down.

As they come to goodness, then they will be able to pursue better what we should be doing. And of course, even the same person is not always there in the mode of passion ignorance. Even alcoholics also sometimes have their reflective moments.

What am I doing with my life? How did I end up in this mess? This could be some moments of goodness for them. So, even people in the mode of passion ignorance, they have moments of goodness. And at that time, they reflect.

And that is the time when they take their decisions. Then they can also take a wiser decision. So, if people are not able to decide, then we just encourage them to practice bhakti and do some service.

When they come to goodness, then they will be able to decide what will give them the material spiritual higher taste.