Planet ISKCON

The post Daily Darshan : May 27th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

"Artha" refers to not just wealth but also meaning. To pursue artha means to pursue both wealth and meaning, that is, to pursue wealth in a meaningful way that creates value.

All you ever wanted to know about how to chant japa …improperly :-) (4 min video)
Srila Prabhupada: My dear Lord, although You bestow such mercy upon the fallen, conditioned souls by liberally teaching Your holy names, I am so unfortunate that I commit offenses while chanting the holy name, and therefore I do not achieve attachment for chanting. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 20.16)
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/PMrWrF

‘Miracle on Second Avenue’ is a short, carefully researched documentary book written in a you-are-there style, that catalogs the start and growth of the Hare Krishna movement. ‘Miracle on Second Avenue’ won the 2012 National Indie Excellence Award for Biography. The work is a memoir of Mukunda Goswami, one of the pioneers of the religious group that is now known throughout the world formally as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). The book is a series of historical events that include the movement’s founder, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, and his interactions on two continents with the author over the three-year period from August 1966 until December 1969.

Here is a video clip introducing the book. Watch on YouTube.

Admittedly, although we desire these friendly connections with everyone around us, it just doesn’t seem to work out in real life. Fighting and friction seem an integral part of social intercourse. 

A video by ISKCON Congregation Ministry.

Maha Sudarshan Homa fire yajna for the protection of Mayapur (Album with photos)
The yajna is called the Maha Sudarshan Homa, and it last for 3 and hours. It is done once a year on the festival of Narasimha caturdasi and is dedicated to the protection of Mayapur Dham. This year the yajna was very successful and amazing in many ways. In the vehicle literature it said that if there is rain after a sacrifice it is very auspicious. And this year within 30 minutes from the yajna completion there was a huge rain, one of the biggest so far. We pray that lord Narasimha dev is pleased and that we may continue to serve him for many years to come. Us boys of the gurukul really love these services, and count off the days in our calendars not for vacations, but for the next big festivals:))
Sri Narasimha deva ki Jay!!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/FfTuzN

With ISKCON’s 50^th anniversary year nearly halfway gone, and the date of its incorporation on July 13^th, 1966 in New York fast approaching, temples throughout the society are working hard to make a splash for founder Srila Prabhupada. In South Africa, all the country’s thirteen temples are working together to achieve big things, with a steering committee driving efforts nationally, and ISKCON 50 ambassadors in each temple pumping everyone up locally.

Sankirtana Dasa, long time resident of New Vrindaban community, recently won a Storytelling World Resource Award for his dramatic storytelling CD Hanuman’s Quest. He is also a recipient of  a WV Artist Fellowship Award,  a National Endowment of the Arts Grant,  an Ohio River Border Initiative Grant, and a Next Generation Indie Book Award for his Mahabharata: The Eternal Quest.  

A video by ISKCON Desire Tree.

Bhaktivedanta Academy Alumni Page

“Hare Krishna,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda. I would just like to tell my humble story and experiences in gurukul, and my great gratitude for His Holiness Śrīla Bhaktividya Purna Swami and all the teachers of the Bhaktivedanta Academy of Mayapur.

I was born in 1995, and by Krishna’s mercy in a family of exemplary vaisnavas. My father is Śrīman Prahlad Nrisimha Prabhu, my mother is Śrīmati Manorupa Mataji, and my brother Śrīnam Vanamali Krishna Dāsa. I was brought up in New Talavan, America, until the age of 5 when my studies were going to begin. Then we moved to Mayapur and joined the Bhaktivedanta gurukul. My father became a teacher there and I stayed there for six months until the Bhaktivedanta Academy finally reopened in September 2001. My brother and I both joined and I have been there ever since. My experiences in gurukul are definitely the highlights of my life, and the teachers, namely Śrī Madhava Gauranga Prabhu, Priti Vardhana Prabhu, Śrī Radhe Mataji, Vagisha Prabhu, Subeksana Prabhu, and many others, are so dear to me, some of them I see just like my parents. They have cared for and looked after me so perfectly ever since I was 6, and still do. My brother left the gurukul in the end of 2007. I was so happy in the school that I still wanted to stay and continue my studies. It was really just the best — my friends are all like brothers to me, and still are; with them even the hardest services were fun.

In 2009 I left the school in the beginning of my teens, wanting to go and try something else. With my parents and brother we moved to Ecuador and started a new life there, trying to preach to our relatives and many, many families and friends there. We would put up great festivals on Gaura Purnima, Nrisimha Caturdāsai, Janmasthami, ect. We would even make excuses to do programs like birthdays, full moons, ekadāsais, weddings, anything that would bring people to come listen, chant and take prasad. We would get easy around 50 people, and serve them all prasad. It was really ecstatic. But due to my laziness, my studying was not doing too well; I was doing an online course and would get extra tuitions here and there. But being 13 and really not wanting to study it was difficult to focus. After a whole year and a half my father decided that although the preaching was going good and we were making quite a community, it was important that my brother and I first finish our studies and be properly rooted in Krishna consciousness before attempting to do anything else. But then the question was if the gurukul would allow me to rejoin after being a whole year away. My father said we should at least try and if not, then I would join the Śrī Mayapur international school and get my high school diploma. We sold everything: the car, TV, fridge, ect. Even the Xbox 360, which was the latest one at the time, and moved back to Mayapur.

We arrived the day before Janmasthami 2010 in the night, and the next day took part with the gurukul boys in the preparation for the festival. I felt so at home and like family that I told my father, “I need to go back. I won’t go anywhere else.” He picked up the phone and called Madhava Gauranga Prabhu. He told Mahasay (a way of addressing your teacher with great respect) of my request, and Mahasay simply said, “Yeah of course, send him over with his bags.” Within an hour I was on my way to school, completely overjoyed. I never regret leaving though, because it really made me realize what I had and not take gurukula for granted. I made a decision to really try my best and give it all I had. I joined back as a completely new student and worked my way through the levels and in 2013 took initiation from His Holiness Indradyumna Swami. I then started to help with teaching and also in the management of the boys, under the guidance of the senior teachers and deans of the Academy. In December 2015 my dear Mother moved to Mayapur to leave her body due to so many diseases, one of them being cancer. I was destroyed and really torn at heart. But the teachers and boys of the school were my greatest strength. I was told by my teachers to go and serve my mother in her last days and to really try to learn from her and get her association. It was by far the greatest experience of a lifetime. I saw my mother day in and day out, twenty four hours a day, staring death in the face, but at the same time she was in complete bliss. We had kirtan for her 8 hours a day and there were so many senior sannyasis and Prabhupāda disciples, so many devotees and well-wishers constantly there. On one day my mother called my father over and said to him, “It’s amazing that even though you took me to every paradise this world has to offer, and gave me every desirable thing, you still managed to keep the best for last.” She was happier than I have ever seen her. She kept on saying to me to please stay in Mayapur and serve. She stayed on the verge of death for two whole months and then on the 16th of February 2015 my mother left this world at 4:45 AM during mangal arti, and by Krishna’s mercy I was allowed to sing for her during this most auspicious moment. That day I sang for 8 hours straight with so many mixed feelings in my heart. But over all I just so proud to be connected to such a great group of Vaiṣṇavas.

After some time my father left Mayapur to go preach again and my brother too. I was in gurukula, and can’t find the words to express the love that I felt from my teachers and friends. I will be forever grateful. My mother’s passing had such a great impression on me; I really wanted to do more for Śrīla Prabhupāda and for the school. I took my responsibilities and service up with so much more determination and with so much faith in the Lord and his service.

On the 4th of May, 2016, I graduated from the school and now along with my two good friends Baladev Śrīman dāsa and Krishna Caitanya dāsa we are helping as trainee principals and headmasters of the Academy. I hope that I may be a servant of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission and be an instrument in the gurukula educational system we all know was so dear to him. In conclusion, my experience of gurukula was by far the greatest thing I could have ever imagined. I love my gurukula, my life, so much that now even though I graduated, and could go where I like — and ‘experience’ the world — I really want to stay and serve in the gurukula. I want to help others, and to make sure that their experience of gurukula will top even mine. When I think back it fills me with pride to say that I really lived such a life. The relationships I made will last a lifetime, and my memories I hope will too. Of course, there were ups and downs; being six in the ashram is no walk in the park. But thinking back I wouldn’t have changed my past for that of a prince. For it made me what I am today, and although I’m not much, I really do want to serve and I ask for your blessings.

Your servant, Śrī Paramahamsa Gaura dāsa

Maha Harinam in Vienna, Austria (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: In this Age of Kali, the process of worshiping Krishna is to perform sacrifice by chanting the holy name of the Lord. One who does so is certainly very intelligent, and he attains shelter at the lotus feet of Krishna. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 20.11)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/msNhJY

Iskcon Los Angeles: 25th Annual Prabhupada Festival (May 28th, May 29th)
This year marks the 25th Annual Prabhupada Festival. The Prabhupada Festival was founded as a venue for all followers, newcomers, and interested persons to come together, learn about, and glorify His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada and his accomplishments.
Held every Memorial Day Weekend since 1992, the festival has always been free of charge and open for all who wish to glorify and learn about His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. The Los Angeles Temple, designated as ISKCON World Headquarters by His Divine Grace, is the location; and this festival has emerged as one of the largest festivals held there.
The festival includes special talks and remembrances from senior disciples, glorious kirtans, six sumptuous feasts, an annual boat festival, Maha Harinam, original artistic performances, representatives from diverse preaching projects as well as a variety of Vaishnava vendors.
If you have never attended the Prabhupada Festival, we enthusiastically invite you to attend; and if you have come before, we warmly invite you to attend again. This festival gets better every year and it is not to be missed! We look forward to seeing you. Srila Prabhupada Ki Jaya!
More info here: http://prabhupadafestival.com/

May 27. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: “All Right”
After a 1966 lecture in the storefront, Prabhupada sometimes asked for questions from the audience. When he felt he had answered enough, he said, “All right.” Sometimes he said it with resignation, almost sadness. He seemed to mean, “All right, I’ve tried my best.” Sometimes after answering many questions, Prabhupada’s utterance of “all right” sounded disgusted. He had just given a wonderful parampara speech, and yet people were raising their hands and asking challenging, doubtful, or crazy questions. He looked out at the audience before him, sensing that they were not asking intelligent questions. “All right,” he would say, “let us have kirtana.”
Swamiji sharing an apple with us as the last act of the evening at 26 Second Avenue; when he said, “All right,” it meant we had to leave. It was sad. Although we had just had such a nice meeting, it had to end, just like everything else in the material world. In that sense, “all right” presented a challenge to those souls who wanted to return to their maya in Manhattan.
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=8

Gita verse-by-verse podcast

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The post ​Gita 10.16 – Desire for details of a subject demonstrates deep devotion to that subject appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Podcast

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The post ​Bhagavatam study 45 1.9.17-24 By doing the Lord’s will, we understand his benevolence appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

“All Right”

The following blog was one of my very early ones I posted in 2007, which I included in my book, Give to Live. I post it again because of my thinking this morning on the importance of seeing our life--with its many ups an downs--in the best light possible. This is true even as we strive to improve and may still feel bad about the mistakes of the past. Part of the spiritual and human journey is feeling our life has value, and in making the best use of it, even as we have to cut the karmic cords that bind us through forgiveness, acceptance, and prayer.

I share with you here four quotes from people glorifying the telling of our personal stories (and then comment on the general idea) from the introduction to the "4th course of Chicken Soup for the Soul" series (copyright 1997 Jack Canfield). If you like, you can call it "Chickpea Soup for the Soul."

"Everybody is a story. When I was a child, people sat around kitchen tables and told their stories. We don't do that so much anymore. Sitting around the table telling stories is not just a way of passing time. It is the way the wisdom gets passed along. The stuff that helps us live a life worth remembering. Despite the awesome powers of technology many of us still do not live very well. We need to listen to each others stories once again." Rachel Naomi Remen

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(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 04 February 2016, Bhaktivedanta Manor, United Kingdom, Srimad Bhagavatam 10.2.21)

It is true that there is that inner animal within us. The animal that we hide. The animal that lives behind the saintly expressions on our faces. There is this animal and we have chained him up in regulative principles by Srila Prabhupada’s mercy but he wants to break loose. That inner animal which lives within and he OR SHE wants to break loose and waits for opportunities!

I like this theme. I found it somewhere in a magazine, a lady writer picked up on it. She had this bag of special chips and she was like really lusting over the chips in her mind for a long time, and was waiting for an opportunity to sort of like get into it and stuff them in her mouth. So when no one was around, she attacked it, ripped it open and just like packed it in… and then someone came!

Now we can easily translate that into a mangal aarti sweet. You know, you get caught just as you secretly stuff it in your face. For a moment, you give some room to lusty desires by taking shelter of prasadam. It is good to take shelter of prasadam but you feel embarrassed when you get caught with a mouthful and you try to inconspicuously swallow it, as if everybody does not know what you doing since everybody you know does it too!

The point I am making is that it shows that we are indeed a combination of the modes of material nature and that indeed all these pushings of the senses are within us and we are controlling them with good behaviour. We say the right words, “Jaya… nectar… bliss.” Whatever words are there in the jargon, we say them and we dress in a particular sort of way… We are experts in projecting an image but internally it is still raging – there is still a volcano. There are still so many influences pulling us in so many directions. And therefore there is still a little bit of Kamsa in us… still a little bit of Putana and still a little bit of all these demoniac personalities.

Giriraj Swami read and spoke from Bhagavad-gita 8.28.

“One who has a little faith in Bhagavad-gita should learn Bhagavad-gita from a devotee, because in the beginning of the Fourth Chapter it is stated clearly that Bhagavad-gita can be understood only by devotees; no one else can perfectly understand the purpose of Bhagavad-gita. One should therefore learn Bhagavad-gita from a devotee of Krsna, not from mental speculators. This is a sign of faith.” (Bg 8.28 purport)

“Adau sraddha—The first stage in devotional service is sraddha or faith. Without sraddha one cannot make any progress in devotional service. Or, in other words one cannot begin in devotional service. Here Srila Prabhupada emphasizes that faith means faith in the devotional scriptures and faith in the devotees who explain the devotional scriptures and apply them. And that faith is described in the verse we just read—just by engaging in devotional service one does not have to engage in other activities separately but one gets the result of  all the other activities just by engaging in devotional service. So that is faith. And that is just the beginning of Krishna consciousness. Advancement in Krishna consciousness really means development of faith.”

Bhagavad-gita 8.28, Houston

A video by Ananta Vrindavan of Indradyumna Swami's travelings.

Beautiful Vrindavana. Aerial shots of this holy place and its residents (5 min video)
Srila Prabhupada: Philosophy is the highest, but even higher than philosophy is the practice of philosophy. So if you simply remain pure, your preaching will have effect. Letter to Brihaspati, November 15, 1971.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/y9xc1e

A brand new single-volume biography of ISKCON Founder Srila Prabhupada, created to be marketed and accessible to the general public, was launched in New York City on May 19^th. The book, “Swami in a Strange Land: How Krishna Came to the West,” comes from publisher Mandala and author Joshua M. Greene (Yogesvara Das), a Prabhupada disciple, scholar and author of many books including George Harrison biography “Here Comes the Sun.”

Vivaha-yajna in Russia (5 min video)
“In this video is presented a colorful ceremony called - Vivaha-yajna or a wedding ceremony, a Vedic ritual.
It is the key to a successful marriage and one of the ten major purificatory ceremonies, which must pass a man in his life.
This ritual gives a person the strength to follow his vows for the rest of life. The wedding "is recorded in heaven” at a time when the young are aware of the fact that they promised each other, to God and to others never to leave only if they can be considered as husband and wife in the Vedic tradition of marriage - an act of celebration, and not an agreement that people make among themselves, motivated by lust compound of married men and women -. not only the physical, moral, but also -. a spiritual process he imposes on the spouses responsible not only for their material existence, but also for spiritual development. Together husband and wife are united in the service of God. His wife protects her husband from the other women, and the husband the wife of sexual harassment of other men. A woman can only have one husband, and the man only one wife. “
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/q5nRrU

Ratha Yatra in Rijeka, Croatia, 04th June 2016.
We are most happy and enthusiastic to invite you to participate at the 14th Ratha Yatra festival in Rijeka, Croatia.
Festival will be held on the 4th of June at 11 am. This year we celebrate 50 years of ISKCON and we want to make the biggest Ratha Yatra so far.
Please come and join in our celebration for the pleasure of Lord Jagannatha, Lord Baladeva and Subhadra Devi.
Ratha-yatra procession will start at 11 am from Jelacic Square. It will then proceed through Korzo street to Jadranski trg and back to Korzo. Program on stage will start at 11 am and will be going on continually until 3 pm, with a break when the Ratha chariot passes by.
Special guests of the festival are HH Candramauli Swami, HH Krishna Kshetra Swami and HG Rohini-suta Prabhu.
Prasadam distribution will be at 1,30 pm, close to the parked Ratha chariot and the stage.
Everybody is heartily invited to come and enjoy the rain of mercy that will shower on the whole city, and especially on the heart of our town – Korzo.
To see the photos of last year’s festival: https://goo.gl/9WXMIW

Mega Harinama in Ekaterinburg 07.05.2016 (18 min video)
Srila Prabhupada: These four principles: Always think of Krishna, become Krishna’s devotee, worship Krishna and offer your respect, obeisances to Krishna. That’s all. This is Krishna consciousness. Hyderabad, November 17, 1972.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/ajZviS

The post Tuesday’s conversation with devotees after festival appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

The post Conversation with devotees after the festival appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

Bhaktivedanta Manor School
Hilfield Lane, Aldenham, Herts WD25 8EZ
bvmanorschool@gmail.com
Tel: 01923-851000 Ext.241 FAX: 01923-851006

KS2 Primary School Teacher
Reception Teacher
Full Time
Salary negotiable

Interested in being part of a school where values come first?
We offer a holistic relevant education rich with the culture and teachings of Vedic wisdom situated at Bhaktivedanta Manor

To begin employment in September 2016

The qualities we are looking for are:

Willing to be an active part of a team striving to educate and nurture the children

Experienced and competent with an ability to take initiative

A respect and understanding of Krishna conscious philosophy and Vedic culture

A methodical, organised, calm and creative approach to teaching and working with the children

Experience in working with the national curriculum and in the classroom preferably with qualified teacher status (also Early Years Foundation Stage (for Reception)

A commitment to the educational needs of the children they are working with.

If you are interested please contact Guru Carana Padma at the school office (details above) or write the above address for an application or for further information.

Closing date is May June 30th 2016

A video by Prananath Das.

The post Daily Darshan: May 26th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

An inspiring video to invite people to Washington DC to the Chant4Change event on October 8th, 2016. 

Today is the disappearance day of one of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's most confidential associates, Sri Ramananda Raya. Lord Caitanya is Krsna Himself in the mood of Srimati Radharani, with Her bodily luster. Thus Lord Caitanya is the combined form of Radha and Krsna (sri-krsna-caitanya radha-krsna nahe anya). And in krsna-lila Ramananda Raya is the gopi Visakha, one of the most confidential associates of both Srimati Radharani and Krsna. Spiritually, Visakha enjoyed a very intimate relationship with both Sri Krsna and Sri Radha. In His later years, after He toured South India, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu retired to Jagannatha Puri, and He experienced intense separation from Krsna, just like Srimati Radharani did after Krsna left Vrndavana. In that ecstatic mood of separation, He would confide in two very close associates--Sri Svarupa Damodara Gosvami, who in krsna-lila is the gopi Lalita, and Sri Ramananda Raya. Continue reading "Jewels in the Ocean
→ Dandavats"

'Srila Ramananda Raya was an incarnation of the gopi Visakha. Since Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was Lord Krishna Himself, there was naturally an awakening of love between Visakha and Krishna. Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the combination of Srimati Radharani and Krishna, and the gopi Visakha is a principal gopi assisting Srimati Radharani. Thus the natural love between Ramananda Raya and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu awakened and they embraced.' Continue reading "Sri Ramananda Raya and Rajahmundry Yatra
→ Dandavats"

By Satyaraja Dasa

In a classic reversal of roles, the Lord and His devotee discuss the highest spiritual truths.

Everyone likes to converse with loved ones. There is nothing quite as satisfying as sitting back and spending time with like-minded souls, sharing thoughts, ideas, and intimate feelings. In spiritual life, too, there is nothing quite like conversation – a back-and-forth that deepens one’s knowledge of transcendence and increases the possibility of spiritual loving exchanges.

Because dialogue is a fundamental form of communication and interaction, numerous texts from antiquity have used conversational structure as a literary device to convey deep truths. Religious works such as the Bible, Buddhist sutras, and Confucian texts partake of this method, and in philosophy Plato’s use of dialogue is particularly well known.

The Sanskrit tradition of the Vedas deemed the conversational format (known as samvada) most effective. One of its earliest examples appears in the Rg Veda, where Mitra and Varuna engage in an extended back and forth. Elsewhere in the Vedas, we find a pivotal conversation between Yajnavalkya and Maitreyi. Most Upanishads, in fact, are basically treatises involving the exchanges between spiritual teachers and their students, thus making prodigious use of conversational technique. The Mahabharata, too, contains numerous examples: Draupadi and Satyabhama, Yaksha and Yudhishthira, Krishna and Arjuna (Bhagavad-gita).

Ramananda Raya, a Super-Excellent Vaishnava

For Gaudiya Vaishnavas, or devotees of Lord Krishna in His form as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the best samvada is a conversation between Chaitanya and Ramananda Raya, recorded in the seventeenth-century text Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita (Madhya, Chapter 8). Their conversation in Vidyanagar on the bank of the Godavari River (east coast of south-central India) details the highest and most confidential aspects of Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy.

When Lord Krishna appeared as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Krishna’s eternal associates accompanied Him. Born in Odisha, Ramananda was the eldest of five sons of Bhavananda Raya. In the Chaitanya-charitamrita (Madhya, 10.53), Lord Chaitanya tells Bhavananda Raya: “You are Pandu, and your wife is Kunti. Your five sons are the five Pandavas.”*

Bhavananda’s home was in Alalanath, also known as Brahmagiri, about twelve miles west of Jagannath Puri. The family was well-to-do and devout.

Ramananda is traditionally regarded as a disciple of Raghavendra Puri and a grand-disciple of Madhavendra Puri, an important predecessor of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Ramananda was a natural Vaishnava in heart and soul.

As Ramananda reached adulthood, he served as the governor of a district known Vidyanagar (around modern-day Rajahmundry) in South India, then part of the Odisha kingdom of Prataparudra Deva, who acceded to the throne in 1497, after his father, Purushottam Deva. Prataparudra’s empire spread from the banks of the Ganges to the southern borders of Karnataka, with his capital in Cuttack. Later, Ramananda served as one of his prominent ministers.

Ramananda Raya’s significance in the pastimes of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu begins soon after the Lord accepted the sannyasa order of life. It was then that Mahaprabhu arrived in Puri and met Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya, the king’s court pandit. Sarvabhauma was a prominent Mayavadi (impersonalist) philosopher who was soon swayed by Mahaprabhu’s charisma and teaching.

The Lord didn’t stay in Puri for long. He left for a tour of South India, to spread the holy name of Krishna to all. But just prior to His departure, Sarvabhauma gave Him paraphernalia for His journey and requested Him to visit Ramananda Raya at Vidyanagar. “Here, you will find a singularly super-excellent Vaishnava,” Sarvabhauma said.

After several adventures on His way south, Mahaprabhu finally arrived at the Godavari, making a beeline for Rajahmundry, the largest city on the river’s banks. It is directly across from an area called Kovvur, where Sri Ramananda often bathed. After enjoying the waters there Himself, at Gospada Ghat, Mahaprabhu sat and waited.

When Ramananda passed by with his stately retinue, on seeing Mahaprabhu’s effulgent form he descended from his palanquin and offered obeisance, enthralled by the Lord’s magnificence. They greeted each other and embraced. Both felt the onset of divine emotions, experiencing the highest forms of transcendental love in each other’s company.

The Sacred Conversation

Mahaprabhu expressed a desire to hear about Krishna from Sri Ramananda’s pure lips, and so they agreed to spend time together. Normally, the devotee hears from the Lord, and not the other way around. But here, for the Lord’s pleasure, the situation was reversed. Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami relates in his Chaitanya-charitamrita (Madhya 8.1): “Gauranga [Chaitanya] is like the ocean of spiritual truths; He filled the cloud named Ramananda with the nectar of devotion to Himself. Ramananda then rained down that same nectar on the very ocean from which it had come, producing the jewels of transcendental knowledge.” In the Bhagavad-gita Arjuna hears from Lord Krishna, but here Krishna (Sri Chaitanya) hears from His devotee Arjuna (Ramananda Raya).

Mahaprabhu asked Ramananda Raya to explain the ultimate goal of life, using evidence from the scriptures. This he did, and the ensuing conversation might very well be the deepest theological discussion ever noted down for posterity.

Although Ramananda first proposed (as the ultimate goal) observance of the four social and four spiritual orders of life (varnashrama) and executing one’s duties in accordance with this principle, Mahaprabhu quickly rejected this proposal as superficial. Acknowledging this, Sri Ramananda gradually proposed other options, one after another, so that by the end of the conversation the reader sees the full gamut of Vedic knowledge and the numerous goals leading to the ultimate spiritual conclusion. The dialogue takes them from the idea of merely renouncing the fruits of one’s activities to rendering formal service to the Lord; from serving the Lord with devotion mixed with mundane action (karma-mishra-bhakti) to devotion mixed with knowledge (jnana-mishra-bhakti) to pure devotional service without any motivation or mundane desire (prema-bhakti).

Although, as a matter of course, Mahaprabhu agreed that pure devotional service (bhakti-yoga) constitutes entrance into the ultimate goal of life, He urged Ramananda to go further, for there are subtle nuances regarding this supreme truth. In response, Ramananda explained the basic elements of rasa-tattva, or loving attachment to Krishna in servitorship, friendship, parenthood, and romantic love. Even hearing this, however, Mahaprabhu wanted more: “Kindly proceed further and tell Me where it goes from there.”

Sri Ramananda then explained the love of the gopis, Krishna’s cowherd girlfriends, adding that the selfless mood of Srimati Radharani, the topmost gopi, remains super-excellent and unsurpassable. Living beings must aspire to serve Her and to reach for Her level of loving devotion, knowing they can attain only a facsimile of Her love. That aspiration is the ultimate goal of life.

Mahaprabhu was pleased, accepting this conclusion about life’s consummate stage of perfection. But He still wanted to hear more, and so Ramananda obliged Him by singing a song he had composed that sums up Sri Radha’s confidential mood of divine love (prema-vivarta-vilasa). At one point, Sri Chaitanya covered Ramananda’s mouth with His hand, confirming that Ramananda was now expressing the most intimate and confidential spiritual truths, the realization of which can come only through devotional practice. After this, Sri Ramananda elaborated a bit more on the intimate love of Sri Radha and Her gopi attendants.

Finally, Sri Chaitanya and Ramananda embraced, weeping in spiritual ecstasy. They concluded their talk and rested for the night.
Essential Questions

The next evening, Ramananda met Mahaprabhu again. The Lord embraced him with great love and, after comfortably seating him, began to ask questions.

Mahaprabhu: “What is the best education?”

Sri Ramananda: “Devotion to Krishna.”

Mahaprabhu: “What is the greatest activity for a living entity?”

Sri Ramananda: “To be the servant of Krishna.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the supreme wealth?”

Sri Ramananda: “Love of Radha-Krishna.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the greatest unhappiness?”

Sri Ramananda: “To not have the association of Krishna’s devotees.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the highest liberation?”

Sri Ramananda: “Love for Krishna.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the best song?”

Sri Ramananda: “A song describing the pastimes of Radha-Krishna.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is most auspicious for living entities?”

Sri Ramananda: “The association of a devotee of Krishna.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the only thing we have to remember?”

Sri Ramananda: “Krishna’s name, qualities, and pastimes.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the only thing to meditate upon?”

Sri Ramananda: “The lotus feet of Radha-Krishna.”



Mahaprabhu: “Where is the best place to live?”

Sri Ramananda: “Wherever Krishna displays His transcendental pastimes.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the best thing to be heard?”

Sri Ramananda: “Descriptions of Radha-Krishna’s loving pastimes.”



Mahaprabhu: “What is the only thing to be glorified?”

Sri Ramananda: “The name of Radha-Krishna.”

In this way, Mahaprabhu would ask questions and Sri Ramananda would answer, sometimes in terse, one-sentence responses, sometimes in a detailed way. Over the centuries, the Vaishnava acharyas have elaborated Ramananda’s teachings to make explicit what is mostly implicit in the Chaitanya-charitamrita. Their books constitute a storehouse of literature on love of God.

Mahaprabhu as God


When their talks were nearly complete, Mahaprabhu revealed His divine nature as Radha and Krishna, both mystically appearing in the person of Sri Chaitanya. Seeing this form, Ramananda could not contain himself and fell unconscious. Regaining his senses after some time, he offered spontaneous hymns in praise of the Lord. Mahaprabhu then requested him to keep confidential the truths of His mysterious identity and appearance. He asked Ramananda to transfer to Jagannath Puri, saying that the two of them could remain there together and happily pass their time discussing Krishna. Without delay, Ramananda made Puri his headquarters, continuing to serve under King Prataparudra. He became close friends with Svarupa Damodara Goswami, Mahaprabhu’s private secretary, and spent his time composing plays for the pleasure of Lord Jagannatha.
The Ideal Guru-Disciple Exchange

There is much to be gleaned from Ramananda Samvada, as this conversation is now known, not least the essential exchange between an ideal guru and his disciple. As Srila Prabhupada writes in his book In Search of the Ultimate Goal of Life:

The method of approach and the manner of humility exhibited by Lord Chaitanya to Ramananda is the ideal for approaching a bona fide tattva-darshi, or a master of transcendental knowledge. . . . In the Bhagavad-gita, it is recommended that one approach the spiritual master for supramundane knowledge under the protection of service and surrender accompanied by relevant inquiries. Lord Chaitanya, as the ideal teacher and practical demonstrator of the teachings of the Bhagavad-gita, teaches us by His approach to Ramananda Raya. He shows that a person desirous of knowing the transcendental science must not be proud of his material acquisitions of education and wealth, which are very insignificant to the transcendentally situated spiritual master from whom we should be very keen to understand the science of devotion.

If somebody approaches the bona fide spiritual master with the vanity of mundane pride in respect to his heredity, wealth, education, or personal beauty and without the necessary qualifications of surrender, service, and relevant inquiry, surely such a person will be honored outwardly by the spiritual master, but the spiritual master will decline to bestow transcendental knowledge upon the student who by his attitude of mundane vanity is rendered unqualified. Such a proud student is actually a shudra and he has no access to spiritual knowledge for want of the necessary qualifications mentioned above. Thus the shudra student, instead of availing himself to the mercy of the spiritual master, goes to hell as a result of his mundane vanity.

Ramananda Raya was born in the family of a shudra and was also a grihastha in terms of the system of varnashrama-dharma. Lord Chaitanya appeared in the family of a highly cultured brahmana of Navadvipa and was in the topmost rank of the sannyasa ashrama. Therefore, in terms of the varnashrama system, Ramananda Raya was in the lowest status while Lord Chaitanya was in the highest status; yet, because Ramananda was a master in the art of transcendental knowledge, Lord Chaitanya approached him as one should approach a guru. He did so for the benefit of us all.

Today, the art of conversation is not what it used to be. People focus on their computers and cell phones more than on real interpersonal exchange. Technology distracts them from in-depth involvement with others, leading to crude forms of shorthand and impersonal kinds of communication: Many are more inclined to watching a conversation than engaging in one. Spiritual dialogue, too, is having a difficult time of it. The conversation between Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Ramananda Raya brings us back to a time when interpersonal exchange was more prominent, evoking a simpler way of life that stresses the importance of taking one’s time and evolving spiritually.

Of course, no conversation can match the interaction between Mahaprabhu and Ramananda Raya. And reading their conversation makes you part of it, allowing you to enter a dialogue with the Lord.


*According to the Gaudiya tradition, Ramananda Raya is also an incarnation of the gopi Vishakha, one of Radharani’s closest companions, as well as the gopi Arjuniya.

The carts for the Ratha-yatra of Lord Jagganath are getting ready in Puri, Orissa, all by hand (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Chant Hare Krishna as many times as possible and be liberated. Thank you very much. Vrindavana, November 14, 1976.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/THXq4y

Girgaum dump now a butterfly garden, thanks to devotees
Mumbai, May 23 – A temple in south Mumbai has created a butterfly garden out of a former garbage dump in Girgaum. After creating the green haven in the middle of a congested area, the temple has taken its green project further by nurturing the garden with compost created from puja wastes.
While much of Mumbai assumes that it is the municipal corporation’s responsibility to collect and dispose of their waste, the Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir at Girgaum, part of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), has been recycling 40kg of flower waste a day into manure that is used at the butterfly garden.