I am bringing this up to you to emphasis the importance of having a balanced mental/emotional life as a component of your spiritual practices, whether or not you live in a temple community or near to devotees of Krishna. As we don’t hesitate to go to the doctor or dentist, we should know when mental health professionals are required. In the Chowpatty, India Temple near Mumbai, they have a spiritual counselor system. I would see this as a big part of devotee care and the first line of defense against spiritual and emotional/psychological problems, provided the counselors know when to refer out—or in other words, when more is needed than a purely spiritual solution. We must be able to see the unique whole person and their requirements, and think long term. (part 2 continued from my 12/18/10 blog)