Monthly Archives: November 2016

Tuning into Sound in a Visual Age
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The sharp growth in online video consumption suggests the people of the world are becoming more enraptured by visual content than anything else. But for teachers of the ancient Vedic tradition, sound is seen as capable of having a much d…

Vaishnava wedding in Mayapur. The wedding of 2nd gen Sahki Caran…
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Vaishnava wedding in Mayapur.
The wedding of 2nd gen Sahki Caran and 3rd gen Madhavi Lata in Mayapur 20/11/16.Read More…

Krishna-kshetra Swami: I am happy to report that Prof. Ravi M….
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Krishna-kshetra Swami: I am happy to report that Prof. Ravi M. Gupta, Radhika Ramana Prabhu, my longtime colleague who teaches at Utah State University, has received the annual DANAM Best Book 2016 for his edited volume, Caitanya Vaisnava Philosophy: Tradition, Reason, and Devotion (Ashgate, 2014). (DANAM = Dharma Association of North America, a practitioner-friendly academic initiative with an annual conference linked to the annual American Academy of Religion meeting). Ravi’s book contains five essays (including an introductory essay by yours truly) and five short translations (more details at amazon’s ‘look inside’: https://goo.gl/BP2mGE).

Summary study of Srila Rupa Goswami’s ‘Bhakti Rasamrta-sindhu’
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By Giriraja Swami and Bhurijana prabhu “In the course of time, the transcendental news of Krsna’s pastimes in Vrndavana, was almost lost. To enunciate explicitly those transcendental pastimes, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, at Prayaga, empowered Srila Rupa G…

Adventures In Russia
- TOVP.org

Sadbhuj prabhu, the TOVP Managing Director, safely arrived in Moscow, Russia and the trip has been a great success! He has gone to visit the Production Company where all of the TOVP’s Kalashes and Charkras are being manufactured. He will also preach about the magnificence of the TOVP to the Russian devotees. Despite the extremity

The post Adventures In Russia appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Iskcon 50 celebrations at Iskcon Nairobi
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Hare KrishnaBy Bhakta George Shihundu

Despite the chilling cold and rainy weather of Nairobi, a large group of more than 250 devotees assembled at the Sri Sri Radha Banke Bihari Mandir to commemorate the ISKCON’s golden jubilee. Amongst them were HH Bhakti Narasimha Swami(South Africa), HG Akhandadhi Prabhu(UK), ISKCON Nairobi Vice President Rukuma Prabhu,HG Manasi Ganga Mataji, and 90 jubilant students that celebrated attaining a Certificate of Ethics and Morality after a year-long course on Vaishnava philosophy. The programme is run by the Hare Krishna Training Center, part of ISKCON Nairobi. The goal is to introduce students to the ageless wisdom of Vedic philosophy and practice of Krishna Consciousness. The centre seeks to further A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada’s mission of preaching to all people around the world. The centre also seeks to establish a large pool of devotees by targeting mostly young students from local universities who have an interest in understanding their purpose in life. By offering character building courses, students are not only introduced to the need to live an ethically astute and morally sound life as young adults, but are also introduced to the unwavering practice of Krishna Consciousness that is a much needed weapon against the vagaries of society in an increasingly volatile East African region struggling with poverty, Islamic fundamentalism, corruption, and ethnically motivated conflict and violence. Perhaps the pure love for Krishna and the peace that comes with it could not have come in handy. It is akin to the 60s when Prabhupada gave the hippies the Krishna Conscious “drug” for self-realization.

What subjects have I subjected myself to today?The word,…
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What subjects have I subjected myself to today?
The word, subject, is both a noun and a verb.

When used as a noun, subject, means a person or thing that is being discussed. For example, “The teacher brought up the subject of Lord Krishna tending the cows.”

14th Annual Vrinda Kunda Festival. This coming February will be…
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14th Annual Vrinda Kunda Festival.
This coming February will be the auspicious 14th Anniversary of Vrinda Kunda Temple opening! To celebrate we are organizing special parikramas to the Holy Places of Braja. The Festival will culminate with our famous…

Do our default settings come from our past karma or our association?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/Do%20our%20default%20settings%20come%20from%20our%20past%20karma%20or%20our%20association.mp3
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Members of the Rotary club help Iskcon Food for Life Nepal…
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Members of the Rotary club help Iskcon Food for Life Nepal (Album with photos)
(Rotary International is an international servic…Read More…

Bhajans in the Balboa Park, San Diego – Nov. 19, 2016 (Album…
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Bhajans in the Balboa Park, San Diego – Nov. 19, 2016 (Album with photos)
Yesterday, Syamali and I had the great privilege to take part in ISKCON San Diego’s weekly “Bhajans in the Park”, at Balboa Park. Srila Prabhupada spoke and walked this 100+ year old park several times, and this chanting endeavor has been going on since the early days of our San Diego yatra.
Harinam Sankirtan Yajna KI JAYA!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/CDm09q

If having too many commitments makes us resentful, what can we do?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/If%20having%20too%20many%20commitments%20makes%20us%20resentful,%20what%20can%20we%20do.mp3
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The post If having too many commitments makes us resentful, what can we do? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

What is more powerful – the soul or the mind?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/What%20is%20more%20powerful%20-%20the%20soul%20or%20the%20mind.mp3
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The post What is more powerful – the soul or the mind? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

How should we preach – gently or forcefully?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/How%20should%20we%20preach%20-%20gently%20or%20forcefully.mp3
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Do the spikes of desire vanish when we become spiritually advanced?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/Do%20the%20spikes%20of%20desire%20vanish%20when%20we%20become%20spiritually%20advanced.mp3
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The post Do the spikes of desire vanish when we become spiritually advanced? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

What is the difference between being religious and being spiritual?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/What%20is%20the%20difference%20between%20being%20religious%20and%20being%20spiritual.mp3
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The post What is the difference between being religious and being spiritual? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

How can we attract materially comfortable people who don’t feel the need for spirituality?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2016%20QA/11-16%20QA/How%20can%20we%20attract%20materially%20comfortable%20people%20who%20don’t%20feel%20the%20need%20for%20spirituality.mp3
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The post How can we attract materially comfortable people who don’t feel the need for spirituality? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Learning from the guru named death
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Congregation program at Bahrain
Podcast:

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2016%20classes/11-16%20classes/Learning%20from%20the%20guru%20named%20death.mp3
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QA on Practical application of bhakti
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Talk at ISKCON, Bahrain
Podcast:

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2016%20classes/11-16%20classes/QA%20on%20Practical%20application%20of%20bhakti.mp3
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Bhikshu Gita 4 – The mind distracts us from bhakti in the name of bhakti (Srimad Bhagavatam 11.23.45)
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Talk at ISKCON, Bahrain
Podcast:

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2016%20classes/11-16%20classes/Bhikshu%20Gita%204%20-%20The%20mind%20distracts%20us%20from%20bhakti%20in%20the%20name%20of%20bhakti%20Bhagavatam%2011.23.45.mp3
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The post Bhikshu Gita 4 – The mind distracts us from bhakti in the name of bhakti (Srimad Bhagavatam 11.23.45) appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

What feels right
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(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 06 September 2016, Cape Town, South Africa, Srimad Bhagavatam 1.9.26) Intelligence is found in the two upper classes of men – in the brahminical class and the kshatriya class. The intelligence of a vaishya is of a different nature because the intelligence of a vaishya is less selfless. The brahmana and kshatriya […]

Vijay and Kiran
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Vijaya and Kiran are from the Punjab in India. They have lived in the Murwillumbah area since 1977. Vijaya’s grandfather first arrived here in 1901 and grew bananas and kept dairy cows. For the last few years, Vijaya has headed … Continue reading →

Santa Parade Rathayatra Procession Schedule 2016
→ The Hare Krishna Movement New Zealand

1.Glenfield (North Shore) Santa Parade – Sunday 20th November Parade will Start @ 11am (we have to be there @ 9.30am) 2.Henderson West Gate Saturday 26th November Parade will Start @10am (we have to be there @ 8.30am) (after the parade Lord Jagannatha will go to Sundargopal prabhuji’s place for Bhoga Offering.) 3.Orewabeach – Saturday […]

Thursday, November 17th, 2016
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Buenos Aires, Argentina

Another City, Another Continent
I’m in a country, Argentina, where soccer can be considered the heart-beat of the nation and tango dancing has a place in people’s minds.  The country is European in flavour, and you see more walking going on than in America; although fast cars are plentiful.  The local currency, the peso, is generally not very strong against the American dollar.

The place in Buenos Aires that I visit yearly is the ISKCON Centre at Palermo.

It is not a wealthy community.  An acquired private school converted to an ashram/temple is gradually being renovated.  Outside this welcoming destination are streets that I’ve reported before as being a bit too dog-ridden.  Nothing wrong with dogs.  It’s the owners who show irresponsibility.  You could be slipping and sliding if you don’t watch yourself.

Balarama, who travelled with me here from Canada, said, “So it’s just like Mexico, my country,” indicating that it’s hard for pedestrians at times, dealing with the dung.

I mentioned about financial-tightness.  That’s not always the worst thing.  What’s important is to value what you have.  And if humility plays a role in your day-to-day life, due to the “less is more” reality, then that’s nothing to necessarily complain about.  As my room-mate monk, Gaura Vani Swami, indicated, “Where there is excess of money, that’s where you find the corruption.”  And then he said to watch out for the influence of Kali-Yuga, the age of shadiness.

May the Source be with you!

3 km

Friday, November 18th, 2016
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
Meeting Talent

Juan and I took a stroll at our “Krishna Is” drama’s break-time.  I asked him what his vocation is and he tells me he’s training up to be a clown.

Really. Can someone make a living doing that? I thought.  Juan has so much more potential.  He’s doing fantastic as the warrior, Arjuna, in our drama which is set to be performed this Sunday.

Back to our practice place and there I met Laura.  She’s a super talented actor on Argentinian television.  More recently, she’s devoted herself to live theatre musicals.  Devotees tell me she is quite famous.

Laura was kind enough to watch a small Krishna vignette.  What an honour for those of us practising!  She gave her input after she saw our troupe in action.

“Believe in what you are on the stage, then you convince others (the audience).”  “Give more fullness in your movement,” she suggested, in an encouraging way.

The discussion I had, to follow-up on her fine critique, involved the person, Krishna, Himself.  “What a god Krishna is!  He dances, sings, is heroic, stays young permanently.  Amazing isn’t it?” I asked her. 

Meeting Him means meeting talent. 

“Oh yes!” she answered agreeably.  Laura is connected to Krishna-lila (pastimes), and to chanting….

She’s also lived in Toronto for some time.  People in Argentina know her as Laura Azcurra.  It was great to have her presence.

May the Source be with you!

5 km

Wednesday, November 16th, 2016
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Santiago, Chile

 

 

Giving Up

It is merely a short stop-over that Balarama and I took in Santiago (population 7 million), the major city in Chile.  I could see that while we were in the airport, we were snuggled in the Andes Mountains.

Mountains, oceans and prairies have always been the best locations for dreaming, in my opinion.  Looking to the mountainsthrough the glass, beyond the airport’s facility, I simply reflected on the exchange with the woman behind us in the queue.  She was Canadian.

“Actually, I’m from Pembroke, raised in Niagara Falls.  I was a police woman there.”

“Oh yes, I’ve walked through both those places.  I do walking pilgrimage.”

The newly-made friend understood pilgrimage.

“Actually, I come from a Mennonite background.”

She mentioned it was her dad who was the generation to leave the strict order.

“When he acquired a car, he had to paint the bumper because it was too shiny,” she said, expressing the rigidness of the faith.

Somehow, we got to talking again about her job policing in Niagara.

“One man, who was near the falls, reached into his pocket and just handed me his wallet which held his ID and cash.  He then took a few steps over, jumped into the water, and off he went.”  The 175 foot or 53 metre drop to the bottom was his destiny.  Like most people who attempt suicide in these great waters, there is a high success rate within this act of defeat.

Insert ‘faith’ and there’s less chance of giving up.

May the Source be with you!

0 km

Tuesday, November 15th 2016
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Toronto, Ontario

 

 

Detach

 

 

Before an eleven hour flight to Santiago, Chile, and then a two hour soaring over to Buenos Aires, I took a one hour walk through Rosedale.  No coat required.  It appears to be an extended, warm fall.  The occasional changes in Canada are a constant reminder of the temporariness of the world.

This feature of material nature should serve to remind us of the world’s fleeting way and how we can learn detachment.

In Sutapa’s rendition of Bhagavad-gita: A Short Summary in Acronyms, he addresses this principle of detachment in Chapter 15.

“Imagine someone checks into their holiday hotel room and then begins painting the walls, buying new furniture, refitting the bathroom and hanging up family pictures. It sounds ludicrous—you don’t make arrangements for long-term comfort in a temporary residence. This world is likened to a hotel room within which people make complicated plans for security and enjoyment. In Chapter Fifteen, Krishna uses a wonderful analogy to create detachment within the spiritualist and fuel his desire to re-enter his real home in the spiritual realm.”

The banyan tree is used by Krishna to help us understand life’s complexities, its entanglement, and that life’s aim is to move in the direction of exiting this.  For that, great reflection is required.

Please refer to the banyan tree example in Chapter 15 to help understand reflection.

May the Source be with you!

5km

Monday, November 14th, 2016
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Toronto, Ontario

 

 

Super Moon

Our small team of walkers were somewhat keen to catch a glimpse of the upcoming supermoon.  NASA reported that a super bright moon would punctuate the sky and be the brightest since 1948.  It will be closer to earth this evening.  Before sun-up this morning, we thought to see what we could, once out of the neighbourhood’s city lights.

On May Street, our feet received a treat, as the road is one of the few in the city which boasts being composed of interlocking red-brick, which is also slightly wavy.  Good for the feet.  We then hit its parallel—Glen Road—and from the bridge stretched over a ravine, we could see the moon, not crisp and clean at this point, but hazy, if anything.

We leaned over the bridge’s rail and admired the heavenly body which is so under-rated and often ignored.  It was beautifully suspended in the fathomless sky and seemed to shift to the westerly direction from its position twelve hours earlier when it visited the east.

Frankly, as we drove back into the city, last evening, that same wondrous moon seemed buoyant.  As we made those turns (on wheels, not feet) toward the city’s inner core, he would play hide-and-seek, so it seemed.  It’s as if the moon has personality, possessing gravity at some moments, and frivolity a few  moments later.

It’s interesting how chandra, the moon, can stir the human mind, arouse wolves and coyotes, conjure the romance in people, and provide nourishment for plants among so many other influential things.

May the Source be with you!

5 km

‘Less Meat Less Heat’ Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger
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Animal agriculture accounts for an estimated 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and emissions from this fast-growing sector are largely unregulated.

‘Less Meat Less Heat’ Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger
→ ISKCON News

Animal agriculture accounts for an estimated 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and emissions from this fast-growing sector are largely unregulated.

Vrindavan, November 2016 – Part 2
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Written by Uddhava Das  Read about Vrindavan Part 1 Friday, 04 November – Disappearance Day of Srila Prabhupada On the special occasion of the disappearance day anniversary of Srila Prabhupada, Kadamba Kanana Swami chanted his rounds in the morning and later on, attended the memorial service for Srila Prabhupada. For this purpose, the huge hall […]

Srila Prabhupada On The Srimad-Bhagavatam As The Natural…
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Srila Prabhupada On The Srimad-Bhagavatam As The Natural Commentary On Vedanta-sutra

From Teachings of Lord Kapila, Chapter 4: ‘Srimad-Bhagavatam is a commentary on Vedanta-sutra. Vedanta-sutra explains that the Supreme is the source of everything, and the nature of that source is explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.1): janmady asya yato ‘nvayad itaratas carthesv abhijnah svarat. That source is abhijna, cognizant. Matter is not cognizant; therefore the theory of modern science that life comes from matter is incorrect. The identity from whom everything emanates is abhijna, cognizant, which means He can understand. The Bhagavatam (1.1.1) also states, tene brahma hrdaya adi-kavaye: Krsna instructed Lord Brahma in Vedic knowledge. Unless the ultimate source is a living entity, how can He impart knowledge? Srimad-Bhagavatam was compiled by Vyasadeva, who also compiled the Vedanta-sutra. Generally the Mayavadis emphasize the commentary made on the Vedanta-sutra by Sankaracarya, the Sariraka-bhasya, but that is not the original commentary on Vedanta-sutra. The original commentary is given by the author himself, Vyasadeva, in the form of Srimad-Bhagavatam. To understand the actual meaning of the Vedanta-sutra, we must refer to the commentary made by the author himself. As stated by Sri Krsna Himself in Bhagavad-gita (13.5):

Three modes of material nature
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By Chirag Dangarwala Srila Prabhupada says in his purport that mode of goodness is better than the others because in this mode one is able to see all the things in their right perspective and hence it gives chance to develop devotional service to Godhe…

A letter of appreciation from a satisfied receiver of Srila…
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A letter of appreciation from a satisfied receiver of Srila Prabhupada’s books.
Jiva Doya das is a book distributor from the Bhaktivedanta Manor. He travels around England with three other devotees.
Dear Jiva,
thank you very much for contacting me. It was nice to speak to you in town when I saw you. I had had a rather uninspiring day and it was eye opening to talk to someone who seems to have a real passion for what they believe in. At the moment I am at a point in my life where I am happily floating on a cloud of contentment for who I am and what I believe in, which at present is unknown even to myself.
I have the greatest respect for people like yourself who have kept the lifestyles of those before you in an unbroken chain of philosophy and spiritualism. I believe that if I hadn’t already been captured in the cycle of what is my turbulent near adult life I would have liked to have done something similar to yourself.
Thank you for stopping me in the street and being so warm and friendly, you have opened my eyes to the world that is around me and the amazing people such as His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (see I have read the books you gave me!) who have inspired millions upon millions of people.
I must repeat my thank you again as your email has been like a ray of sunshine to what has been a rather boring life and I am grateful to you for that, as it is not an easy job restoring my faith.
I hope you are well and enjoying life
all my best wishes
Helen

Service to the Cow
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By Advaita Acarya Dasa Worshiping the cows: The Vedic scripture states that all the demigods and demigoddesses reside in the body of a cow. This explains why the body of a cow is divine and holy. If we worship Mother Cow, we attain the same material be…