Author Archives: Chaitanya Charan das

Can those who have more material desires not come in Krishna’s gravity pull?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2017%20QA/09-17%20QA/Can%20those%20who%20have%20more%20material%20desires%20not%20come%20in%20Krishna%27s%20gravity%20pull.mp3

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Stories about Krishna remain the same, whereas new stories about fictional heroes keep coming up – how then are Krishna stories ever-new?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2017%20QA/09-17%20QA/Stories%20about%20Krishna%20remain%20the%20same%2C%20whereas%20new%20stories%20about%20fictional%20heroes%20keep%20coming%20up%20-%20how%20then%20are%20Krishna%20stories%20ever-new.mp3

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Material entertainment requires no thinking, spiritual entertainment requires deep thinking – are the two comparable?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2017%20QA/09-17%20QA/Material%20entertainment%20requires%20no%20thinking%2C%20spiritual%20entertainment%20requires%20deep%20thinking%20-%20are%20the%20two%20comparable.mp3

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Gita 14.19 Seeing that our actions are impelled by the modes inspires us to resist the desires induced by the modes
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Bhagavad-gita verse-by-verse podcast
http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/Lecture%20series/Gita%20verse-by-verse/Gita%2014.19%20Seeing%20that%20our%20actions%20are%20impelled%20by%20the%20modes%20inspires%20us%20to%20resist%20the%20…

Understanding Surrender – Meditation on Prabhupada’s prayer Markine Bhagavata Dharma – 6
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[Talk at Retreat in Breckenridge, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Understanding%20Surrender%20-%20Meditation%20on%20Prabhupada%27s%20prayer%20Markine%20Bhagavata%20Dharma%20-%206.mp3

PPT:

Understanding surrender meditation on prabhupada’s prayer markine bhagavata dharma from Chaitanya Charan

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QA on dealing with material desires, excessive workload, inattentiveness in chanting and other bhakti principles
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Podcast
http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/QA%20on%20dealing%20with%20material%20desires%2C%20excessive%20workload%2C%20inattentiveness%20in%20chanting%20and%20other%20bhakti%20principles….

Understanding the spiritual world, the power of bhakti and Narottama Das Thakura’s contribution to the bhakti tradition
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[Bhagavatam class on Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.15.15 at ISKCON, Denver, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Understanding%20the%20spiritual%20world%2C%20the%20power%20of%20bhakti%20and%20Narottama%20Das%20Thakura%27s%20contribution%20to%20the%20bhakti%20tradition.mp3

Podcast Summary

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Summary%20-%20Understanding%20the%20spiritual%20world%2C%20the%20power%20of%20bhakti%20and%20Narottama%20Das%20Thakura%27s%20contribution%20to%20the%20bhakti%20tradition.mp3

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Understanding Surrender – Meditation on Prabhupada’s prayer Markine Bhagavata Dharma – 5
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[Talk at Retreat in Breckenridge, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Science%20Spirituality%20%26%20Self-Improvement.mp3

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Understanding Surrender – Meditation on Prabhupada’s prayer Markine Bhagavata Dharma – 4
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[Talk at Retreat in Breckenridge, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Understanding%20Surrender%20-%20Meditation%20on%20Prabhupada%27s%20prayer%20Markine%20Bhagavata%20Dharma%20-%204.mp3

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Understanding Surrender – Meditation on Prabhupada’s prayer Markine Bhagavata Dharma – 3
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[Talk at Retreat in Breckenridge, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Understanding%20Surrender%20-%20Meditation%20on%20Prabhupada%27s%20prayer%20Markine%20Bhagavata%20Dharma%20-%203.mp3

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Understanding Surrender – Meditation on Prabhupada’s prayer Markine Bhagavata Dharma – 2
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[Talk at Retreat in Breckenridge, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Understanding%20Surrender%20-%20Meditation%20on%20Prabhupada%27s%20prayer%20Markine%20Bhagavata%20Dharma%20-%202.mp3

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Understanding Surrender – Meditation on Prabhupada’s prayer Markine Bhagavata Dharma – 1
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[Talk at Retreat in Breckenridge, USA]
Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Understanding%20Surrender%20-%20Meditation%20on%20Prabhupada%27s%20prayer%20Markine%20Bhagavata%20Dharma%20-%201.mp3

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Tolerating phases of bad fortune

khalvāṭo divaseśvarasya kiraṇaiḥ santāpite mastake

vāñchan deśam anātapaṁ vidhi-vaśāt tālasya mūlaṁ gataḥ

tatrāpy asya mahāphalena patatā bhagnaṁ sa-śabdaṁ śiraḥ

prāyo gacchati yatra bhāgya-rahitas tatraiva yānty āpadaḥ

 

khalvāṭaḥ — a bald man; divaseśvarasya — of the sun; kiraṇaiḥ — by the rays; santāpite — on experiencing burning; mastake — of the head; vāñchan — desiring; deśam — some place; anātapam — free from heat; vidhi-vaśāt — out of his fate; tālasya — of a palm-tree; mūlam — under; gataḥ — went; tatrāpi — there too; asya — his; mahāphalena — by a big coconut; patatā — by falling; bhagnam — cracked open; sa-śabdam — with a great sound; śiraḥ — head; prāyaḥ — usually; gacchati — goes; yatra — wherever; bhāgya-rahitaḥ — an unfortunate person; tatraiva — there too; yānti — arrive; āpadaḥ — his destined suffering;

 

“A bald man’s head was burning by the strong rays of the sun. He decided to find some relief from the heat, and by the arrangements of providence he found shelter under a palm-tree. Even after finding relief with such great difficulty, a coconut fell on him, breaking open his head with a loud cracking noise. Truly, wherever an ill-fated person goes, his misfortunes follow him.”

— (Nīti-śataka of Bhartṛhari, Verse 90)
We sometimes go through phases of bad fortune when things keep going wrong, one after another. Whatever we do to set things right only makes them worse. Gita wisdom helps us understand that such phases deliver us concentrated doses of reactions to our past karma. To navigate such phases, or even to just survive them, we need patience and tolerance. Kneejerk reactions can cause aggravation, even devastation.

Does this mean that we fatalistically do nothing to solve problems? No, the Vedic tradition wasn’t fatalistic. For example, it didn’t ask the sick to just live with their pain; it treated them with a sophisticated branch of medical knowledge, Ayurveda.

Still, spiritual traditions the world over have been realistic enough to recognize that sometimes, despite our best efforts, nothing works. Such times call for not frantic action, but philosophical contemplation. To become contemplative, we need the capacity to tolerate distress – intolerance keeps us agitated, rushing from one apparent solution to another.

Unfortunately, our capacity to tolerate distress is eroded by modern thought. Most contemporary thought-systems operate on the foundational ideology of self-determination, which holds that we alone are the makers of our destiny. By our intelligence and efforts, we can stave off everything undesirable and attain everything desirable. Or so we are taught to believe. The notion that we are the controllers of our life is so central to our worldview that we define our success and even our self-worth in terms of our capacity to mold our circumstances to our will. Given such self-conceptions, uncontrollable situations don’t just frustrate us – they shatter us. No wonder mental health problems have risen with the spread of modernity.

If we wish to respond to difficulties intelligently, not impulsively, we need to challenge our debilitating beliefs about controllership. Gita wisdom offers a better understanding of our […]

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Gita 14.15 The modes are not just psychological constructs, they are also post-mortem destination shapers
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Bhagavad-gita verse-by-verse podcast
http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/Lecture%20series/Gita%20verse-by-verse/Gita%2014.15%20The%20modes%20are%20not%20just%20psychological%20constructs%2C%20they%20are%20also%20post-mortem%20desti…

Our survival instinct tells us to avoid pain, whereas austerity means to accept pain – how to decide what to do?
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Answer Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2017%20QA/09-17%20QA/Our%20survival%20instinct%20tells%20us%20to%20avoid%20pain%2C%20whereas%20austerity%20means%20to%20accept%20pain%20-%20how%20to%20decide%20what%20to%20do.mp3

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Should we be simply attached to the principle of service or to specific services according to our nature?
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Answer Podcast
http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/CCD%20QA/2017%20QA/09-17%20QA/Should%20we%20be%20simply%20attached%20to%20the%20principle%20of%20service%20or%20to%20specific%20services%20according%20to%20our%20nature.mp3

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Ramayana reflections – Maricha represents worship in fear
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[Reflection at Krishna House, Gainesville, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Ramayana%20reflections%20-%20Maricha%20represents%20worship%20in%20fear.mp3

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Damodara lila analysis – Going beyond cultural conceptions to spiritual revelation
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[Bhagavatam class at Bhakti House, Jacksonville, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Damodara%20lila%20analysis%20-%20Going%20beyond%20cultural%20conceptions%20to%20spiritual%20revelation.mp3

Podcast Summary

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Summary%20-%20Damodara%20lila%20analysis%20-%20Going%20beyond%20cultural%20conceptions%20to%20spiritual%20revelation.mp3

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How our vision alters our perception – Gita study 01.24-36
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[Bhakti Shastri Class at Krishna House, Gainesville, USA]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/How%20our%20vision%20alters%20our%20perception%20-%20Gita%20study%2001.24-36.mp3

Video:

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Overcoming negative emotions 2 – Depression
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[Talk at North Florida University]

Podcast

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Overcoming%20negative%20emotions%202%20-%20Depression.mp3

Podcast Summary

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/desiretree/2017%20classes/09-17%20classes/Summary%20-%20Overcoming%20negative%20emotions%202%20-%20Depression.mp3

Video:

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Prabhupada life-story 08 – Journey on Jaladuta – Physically demanding, Divinely revealing

Audio Podcast :

http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/Srila%20Prabhupada%20life-story/Prabhupada%20life-story%2008%20-%20Journey%20on%20Jaladuta%20-%20Physically%20demanding,%20Divinely%20revealing.mp3

 

Video :

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Gita 14.14 A disposition of knowledge and purity elevates to the destination of the knowledgeable and the pure
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Bhagavad-gita verse-by-verse podcast
http://www.thespiritualscientist.com/audio/ccd%20classes/Lecture%20series/Gita%20verse-by-verse/Gita%2014.14%20A%20disposition%20of%20knowledge%20and%20purity%20elevates%20to%20the%20destination%20of%20the%20knowled…