Author Archives: Chaitanya Charan das

The Monk’s Podcast 85 with Krishna Kshetra Maharaj – Dashavatara 4 – Narasimha
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Chaitanya Charan · Dashavatara 4 – Narasimha – The Monk’s Podcast with Krishna Kshetra M

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Chaitanya Charan · The Monk’s Podcast 85 with Krishna Kshetra Maharaj Summary – Dashavatara 4 – Narasimha.mp3

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The Monk’s Podcast 84 with Madhavananda Prabhu – From Sentimentality to Spirituality
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Chaitanya Charan · The Monk’s Podcast 84 with Madhavananda Prabhu – From Sentimentality to Spirituality

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Chaitanya Charan · From Sentimentality to Spirituality – The Monk’s Podcast with Madhavananda P Summary

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When our life is going on well and we hear that the world is a place of distress, how can we avoid becoming paranoid that problems will befall us in future?
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Chaitanya Charan · When We Hear That The World Is A Place Of Distress, How Can We Avoid Paranoia About Future Problems
The post When our life is going on well and we hear that the world is a place of distress, how can we avoid becoming paranoid that p…

The Monk’s Podcast 83 with Shyamananda – Social Justice and Spiritual Wisdom 2 – Caste System Analyzed
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Podcast:

Chaitanya Charan · Social Justice And Spiritual Wisdom 2 – Caste System Analyzed – The Monk’s Podcast With Shyamananda

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The Monk’s Podcast 82 with Shyamananda – Animals and their place in an eco-friendly world
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Chaitanya Charan · Animals And Their Place In An Eco – Friendly World – The Monk’s Podcast 82 With Shyamananda

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Why is bhakti, especially as presented by our movement, seen by many as non-intellectual or even anti-intellectual?
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Chaitanya Charan · Why Is Bhakti Seen By Many As Non – Intellectual Or Even Anti – Intellectual
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If we leave the room for the supernatural in the scientific quest for knowledge, won’t we tend to look for easy lazy ways out?
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Chaitanya Charan · If We Leave Room For The Supernatural In Science, Won’t We Tend To Look For Easy Lazy Ways Out

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Even after getting the darshan of the Lord, why do Kardama Muni or Aditi not become free from their material desires, the way Dhruva Maharaj did?
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Chaitanya Charan · Even After Getting The Lord’s Darshan , Why Do Kardama Muni Or Aditi Still Have Material Desires?

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How can we distribute our time between hearing and chanting?
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Transcription :

Transcriber: Suresh Gupta

Editor: Raji Nachiappan

Question: How can we distribute our time between hearing and chanting?

Answer: The essence of bhakti is neither hearing nor chanting. Rather, it is remembering Krishna.
smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇur vismartavyo na jātucit
sarve vidhi-niṣedhāḥ syur etayor eva kiṅkarāḥ
(CC Madya Lila 22.113)

Krishna is the origin of Lord Vishu. He should always be remembered and never forgotten at any time. All the rules and prohibitions mentioned in the shastras should be the servants of these two principles.

Therefore, the purpose of all those rules and regulations is to always to remember Krishna and never forget Krishna. Hence, both hearing and chanting are meant to help us remember Krishna. Chanting is the yuga dharma, and we definitely have a prescribed number of rounds to chant. At the same time, chanting can very easily become mechanical if there is not adequate intellectual conviction for chanting. Intellectual conviction or spiritual inspiration for chanting comes largely by hearing.

Bhakti is a whole culture and there are so many activities which are done for Krishna. Chanting is important but we do not have to reduce all of bhakti to chanting alone. There is room for individuality in bhakti. There may be some devotees who may decide that every festival they will chant sixty-four rounds. While that is very good, there is no need for that to be universalised. We all have a prescribed number of rounds to chant and we do that. Beyond that, each of us has to take up individual responsibility, to find out, how best we can connect with Krishna and do that. Some devotees may find chanting very inspiring, while some others find hearing or deity worship or book distribution more inspiring, and devotees can engage in these activities as per their inspiration. Hence, there is prescribed minimum that we do, but just because some devotees practice one limb of bhakti more, that does not mean everybody has to do the same.

Once, Srila Prabhupada was in London which was at that time the European headquarters. Devotees from various parts of Europe like Germany and France came there and were reporting to Srila Prabhupada on how the outreach was progressing in their respective places. There was one devotee, Ishan Prabhu, who felt that everybody had something to do for Srila Prabhupada but that he did not have anything to do. Then, he went to Srila Prabhupada and asked Prabhupada what he could do for him. Prabhupada asked “What do you want to do?”. Ishan prabhu replied that he will do whatever Prabhupada tells him to do. Prabhupada insisted and asked him what he wanted to do for Krishna. Ishan prabhu thought Prabhupada was testing him, and he again replied that he will do whatever Prabhupada tells him to do. Prabhupada then told him to understand our philosophy and our philosophy entails that we find out what we want to do and then do it for Krishna.

Ishan prabhu thought about it. Next day he […]

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How can we increase our determination for waking up in the morning?
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Answer Podcast

 

Transcription :

Transcriber: Suresh Gupta

Editor: Raji Nachiappan

Question: How can we increase our determination for waking up in the morning?

Answer: Firstly, denying the body’s needs should not be mistaken as a sign of determination. If the body has a habit of sleeping for six-seven hours, suddenly expecting one to manage with five hours or less and considering inability to do so to be lack of determination, is not a correct understanding of determination. Determination is a matter of will power, which is basically the soul’s capacity to desire which is expressed through the mind on to the body.

The body is like a vehicle. The driver may have a lot of will power but if the vehicle does not have any fuel, then will power alone will not work. Therefore, we cannot deny body’s needs. It is true that Prabhupada said that as we become spiritually advanced, the needs of the body will decrease. Srila Prabhupada gave the example of Goswamis who slept and ate very little. That is true, however, that alone is not the sign of spiritual advancement. It is also not that, by artificially eating or sleeping less we will make more spiritual advancement. Srila Prabhupada also said that if we sleep too much we will become lazy and if we sleep too less we will become crazy. This means that when we sleep too less, the mind will not work properly. Even if we are awake, we will be half asleep or inattentive or sometimes even irritable. Therefore, the inability to decrease the body’s needs in sudden steps is not a lack of determination. The body’s needs will decrease organically. That means as we find more and more absorbing things to do in Krishna’s service, then naturally we will not spend so much time sleeping and as a result, the body’s sleep will decrease.

Practically speaking, we can decrease our sleep in steps – from six hours thirty minutes to six hours fifteen minutes and then to six hours. As the body adjusts, we can try to decrease sleep over a period of time. However, just decreasing sleep alone is not the sign of spiritual advancement nor is the inability to decrease amount of sleep a sign of lack of determination. If we want to improve our sadhana and we want to wake up in the morning, generally it is good to sleep earlier, so that we get adequate rest.

With respect to waking up three different things can be done:

I. Team-up: If there is another devotee who wakes up early, teaming up will help. When we set the alarm, we battle with our own mind. However, if we team up, then the devotee also helps us in our battle.
To some extent, the association of the devotees helps us to use the power of our ego in devotional service. For example, we do not want the other devotees to think of us as lazy or lacking in determination. This thought process is not necessarily […]

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The Monk’s Podcast 80 with Krishna Kshetra Maharaja – Churning the Bhagavatam – Dashavatara 3 – Varaha
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Podcast

Chaitanya Charan · The Monk’s Podcast 80 Churning The Bhagavatam – Dashavatara 3 – Varaha

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As we can’t know for sure what are principles and what details, why not just follow the tradition as it is, without even attempting to change anything?
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Chaitanya Charan · As We Can’t Be Sure What Are Principles And What Details, Why Not Just Follow The Tradition As It Is

The post As we can’t know for sure what are principles and what details, why not just follow the tradition as it is, without even attempting to change anything? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.