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Many times devotees try to reconcile this essentially Christian concept with Vedic understanding, but end up writing lengthy explanations that do not always satisfy the curiosity. This is because it is mostly incompatible with the truths of Bhagavad-Gita, for it has to be broken down in a simplified manner to give a satisfactory and brief explanation. Predestination As we may know, the five truths covered by Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, namely Krishna, the jiva souls, nature, time and action or karma are revealed. Of these, karma or action does not fit in to the predestination scheme. Yes, we can argue that our actions determine our ‘predestination’ or fate, but this is not the predestination of God’s doing. Continue reading "Free Will vs Predestination – Easily Explained
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ISKCON Vapi Rath Yatra 2016 - with elephants and camels (Album with 615 photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The names of the Lord and the Lord are non-different. So Lord Krishna’s instructions to Arjuna to “remember Me” and Lord Caitanya’s injunction to “always chant the names of Lord Krishna” are the same instruction. (Bhagavad-gita, Introduction)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/YtrKIS

Kumbha Mela: an amazing festival of Harinam and Prasad Distribution! (Album with photos)
Deena Bandhu Das: Blissful Harinama Sankirtan with Sri Sri Gaura Nitai and Srila Prabhupada! Every evening, we go with our Gaura Nitai Padayatra Ratha throughout the Mela showering all the pilgrims with the Nectar of the Holy Name! Morning and evening we distribute thousands of plates of Prasadam! Check out our Mela Kitchen! Set up and manned by our devotees from ISKCON Chowpatty!
Thousands of pilgrims relishing full plates of Krishna Prasadam!
Special dining area for our donors and special guests. Today the RAF, Rapid Action Force, came!
Even a stove for making nans!
Notice the rail tracks for transferring the pots!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/GPF5tP

To spread awareness of the importance of cows and their well-being for a peaceful and prosperous society, the devotees at New Vraja Dham organise a special festival every spring to celebrate the first grazing of the cows after a cold winter. The festival, held on 16 April 2016, had some very special guests this year. Organised by Mrs. Kavita Chhabra, wife of the Indian ambassador in Budapest, a group of the members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Hungary came to see NVD. 

Academic Conference at Harvard Highlights ISKCON’s 50th Anniversary.
Over the weekend of April 22nd to 24th, more than thirty scholars met at Harvard University’s Center for the Study of World Religions to talk about the growth, impact, and challenges of ISKCON since its inception in July 1966. Participants included some of the earliest scholars ever to study the Hare Krishna Movement, such as retired professors Thomas J. Hopkins and Larry Shinn, as well as the retired head of the British Council of Churches’ Committee on Interfaith, Kenneth Cracknell. Also in attendance were scholars who are themselves practitioners of bhakti-yoga and members of ISKCON, including Ravi M. Gupta, William Deadwyler, and Edith Best.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/aQnQAy

Chaitanya Charitamrita, which is said to be written by Srila Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami’s own hand. Relish these beautiful photos taken by the BRC Manuscripts Mission Team on a recent visit to Jhamatpur, the birthplace of Srila Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami, (author of Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita.)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/Zxvn7n

Harinama in Arbat Street, in the historical centre of Moscow (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: I do not know how much nectar the two syllables “Krs-na” have produced. When the holy name of Krishna is chanted, it appears to dance within the mouth. We then desire many, many mouths. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 4.71 purport, Vidagdha-Madhava 1.12)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/JQQ1n3

Jhansi Ratha Yatra (Album with photos)
All glories unto Jhansi. The city where Srila Prabhupada made his first attempt to create a society of devotees which he later on did: ISKCON. In Jhansi Srila Prabhupada started “ The League of Devotees”. In Jhansi Srila Prabhupada initiated his first disciple Acarya Prabhuakar Das who was around not long go.
It was a wonderful Ratha yatra. It is worth going every year.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/fSMFpD

Kingsday 2016 Harinama, Amsterdam, Holland (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: O my Lord, Your holy name alone can render all benediction to living beings, and thus You have hundreds of millions of names such as Krishna and Govinda. In these spiritual names you have invested all of Your transcendental potencies, and there are no hard and fast rules for chanting these names. (Sri Siksastakam, text 2)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/7aZida

Devotees in Stockholm, Sweden, are campaigning to save their Hare Krishna Center, which has served the public for 34 years and is the oldest Hindu temple in the city. Every three years so far, the Center has renewed its lease with its landlord, Familjebostader (Family Residences), a property company that is owned by the Municipality of Stockholm and builds properties for public benefit. But in December 2014, the company cancelled ISKCON’s rental contract, with plans to use the building for another purpose.

Ecstatic Harinam during King’s day celebration in Amsterdam, Holland. Probably the world’s largest street chanting party! (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: All glories to the all-blissful holy name of Sri Krishna, which causes the devotee to give up all conventional religious duties, meditation and worship. When somehow or other uttered even once by a living entity, the holy name awards him liberation. The holy name of Krishna is the highest nectar. It is my very life and my only treasure. (Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 4.71 purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/hU0dfY

By Zayani Bhatt

As a part of ISKCON’s 50th year celebrations, devotees from Bhaktivedanta Manor, academics from around the country and students from Bath Spa University gathered at the picturesque and quaint university on Saturday 23rd April to talk about their shared interest in the Hare Krishna movement. The day, organised in collaboration with Religions, Philosophies and Ethics at the University, was dedicated to talks, presentations and a panel discussion on the history of ISKCON including its greatest achievements and challenges, its position within the larger British Hindu community and its future and the potential challenges it may experience going forward into the next fifty years.

The academics included Dr Dermott Killingley who used to be of Newcastle University and Professor Kim Knott of Lancaster University, both of whom have extensively studied the Holy Scriptures such as the Bhagavat Gita, and the theology and practice of Srila Prabhupada’s movement.

Professor Kim Knott conducted her PhD on ISKCON, which enabled her to spend a week at the temple and experience and enjoy the practical aspects of Krishna conscious life such as garland making and the 4am aarti. She spoke openly and positively about ISKCON’s development within the UK: from engagement with the Beatles to enter the awareness of the British public, to the arduous struggle with local government over planning permission, to the establishment of education with the Krishna Avanti schools and the College of Vedic Studies. Professor Knott also noted that despite the various conceptions the public has had, over the years with the identity of the movement; from the Indian-isation of it given the mostly white disciples of Prabhupada, to its Hindu-isation in order to fit into the British Indian society, it has retained its theological philosophy whilst trying to engage with and serve the wider Hindu community.

Dr Killingley, one of the country’s most advanced Sanskrit speakers and a senior associate researcher at University of Oxford’s Centre for Hindu Studies, spoke at length about the history of ISKCON within the Vaishnava tradition as a whole. There is often debate about whether Krishna Consciousness is a new religion or not and Dr Killingley explained, that, the movement began fifty years ago by Srila Prabupada is a new version of a much older practice of Gaudiya Vaishnavism started in Bengal by Lord Chaitanya. This, in turn was a new version of a much older custom. In a wonderfully clear and succinct manner, Dr Killingley also explained bhakti, the different loving relationships one may have with God and the concept of Krishna Lila.

Rasamandala Das gave a presentation on the education ISKCON provides and the aims of this education, including further propagation of Krishna Consciousness in the future. As a devotee, he proposed that education, along with ethics are key areas for ISKCON, both looking inwards, especially at training for leadership roles and in engaging with the wider western world. The academics, Gauri Das, Rasamandala Das and Dr Suzanne Newcombe, a research officer at INFORM (Information Network on Religious Movements) engaged in a panel discussion about their first encounter with ISKCON, whether it can be considered a new religious movement and the future challenges ISKCON might face such as environmental issues and its stance on transgender.

Conference goers were also treated to a demonstration of aarti with its meaning and spiritual purpose, a short skit by the Bhaktivedanta Players, a traditional Bharatnatyam dance and a rousing musical rendition of the mahamantra. The essence of the day as explained by Devaki Dasi, the ISKCON 50 UK National Coordinator was that “there were people from all walks of life and every single one of them was interested in the Hare Krishna movement. There was a deep appreciation of our society.” Ultimately for the devotees however, it was a learning experience. In the words of guest His Grace Vraja Bihari das Brahmachari from Mumbai, “we are here to learn. Often when we are spiritual, we miss the world around us. By engaging with academics, we have a great opportunity to see and hear, from the benches, how far we have come. It helps us to better engage with others and improve.”

April 29. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Asking Michael Grant for Help.
A week passed, and no one had found a suitable place for the Swami. One day Prabhupada suggested that he and Carl take a walk up to Michael Grant’s place and ask him to help.
Mike: I was awakened one morning very early, and Carl was on the phone saying, “Swamiji and I were just taking a walk, and we thought we’d come up and see you.” I said, “But it’s too early in the morning.” And he said, “Well, Swamiji wants to see you.” They were very near by, just down the street, so I had to quickly get dressed, and by the time I got to the door they were there.
I was totally unprepared, but invited them up. The television had been on from the previous night, and there were some cartoons on. The Swami sat between Carl and me on the couch. I was keeping a pet cat, and the cat jumped up on Swamiji’s lap, and he abruptly knocked it off onto the floor. We began to talk, but Swamiji glanced over at the cartoons on the television set and said, “This is nonsense.” Suddenly I realized that the television was on and that it was nonsense, and I got up very quickly saying, “Why, yes, it is nonsense,” and turned it off.
As Prabhupada talked, he tried to impress on Mike how difficult it was for him to live with Carl and Eva, and Mike listened. But was the Swami so sure he couldn’t go back to the Bowery loft and live with David Allen? Except for that one incident, it had been a nice setup, hadn’t it? Prabhupada explained that David had become a madman from too much LSD. He was dangerous. Mike gave the Swami a half-incredulous look – David Allen, dangerous? Prabhupada then told a story: “There’s an old saying in India that you get yourself a spiritual master, you sit opposite him, you learn everything from him that you can, then you kill him, you move his body to one side, and then you sit in his place, and you become the guru.” As Prabhupada spoke, Mike began to feel that David was dangerous, so he didn’t ask for any more details.
Mike could see that Swamiji was appealing to him for help, and as they all sat together on the couch, Mike and Carl quietly nodded in agreement. The Swami was looking at Mike, and Mike was trying to think.
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=7

Asking Michael Grant for Help

Tesla Motors unveiled the Tesla Model ≡ last month. I've been meaning to write about it for a while. Here's my thoughts:

First of all, watch the unveiling by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Elon Musk famously never rehearses his presentations as he is too busy. He makes them up on the spot. This one seems a bit more rehearsed than "never". Maybe he practiced it once. He has a lovingly awkward super-genius style of presenting. I think it's great. 

I thoroughly recommend reading the Elon Musk biography by Ashlee Vance. It gives a great understanding about how Mr Musk things and why is he so driven to do the amazing things he and his companies do.

So, what's so special about this car? 

It's relatively fast (0-100km/h in under 6 seconds), it has relatively long range (350km on one charge) and it's going to be relative cheap (USD $35,000 for the base model). It's also been pre-ordered by a bunch of people, so good luck getting on in the first few years of production.

The reason it's so (relatively) cheap it that Tesla has built the Gigafactory, the biggest battery factory in the world. The economies of scale of that factory mean Tesla can product lithium-ion batteries cheaper and better than anyone else in the world. The Gigafactory will produce more batteries than the entire rest of the world's battery production combined.

The design of the car has people divided. I think it looks great. Other people don't like the unfamiliar front of the car, a design without an air-intake grill. Electric cars don't have a hot-running combustion engine to cool, so the air-intake is unnecessary.

The car is shaped for maximum aerodynamics with a drag coefficient of 0.21. The lower the drag coefficient, the less wind resistance a car experiences as it drives at high speed. Less wind resistance equals better power efficiency, as less power is required to pushing the car through the air.

The XL1 might be slippery, but, oh boy, is that thing ugly. The Model 3 looks wonderful by comparison. Note that Tesla will continue to optimise the aerodynamics of the Model 3, so the drag coefficient might improve more before release.

See how on the XL1 the rear wheels are covered over? That greatly contributes to an improved drag coefficient because the spinning wheels cause a lot of turbulence, adding drag and slowing the car down, but those wheel covers make the car look really weird. Tesla did something really clever to get the best of both worlds. They designed a special kind of turbine hub cap that redirects the passing air underneath the car, reducing the wheels' drag.

I'm a bit disappointed that the Model 3 is a sedan and not a hatchback (hidden details video has some explanation about why). Watch this test drive of the Model 3. At the end of the video they open the trunk/boot of the car. While it doesn't have the extra storage space behind the rear head-rests that a hatchback would have, it does have an incredibly deep trunk and a frunk for additional storage. A frunk is a "front trunk". Because there is no need for a big combustion engine under the hood of the car, there is storage extra space there instead. The battery is along the base of the car. 

Finally, here is an excellent overview of the Model 3 and the Gigafactory with lots of great pictures of the new car.  

Tesla Motors unveiled the Tesla Model ≡ last month. I've been meaning to write about it for a while. Here's my thoughts:

First of all, watch the unveiling by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Elon Musk famously never rehearses his presentations as he is too busy. He makes them up on the spot. This one seems a bit more rehearsed than "never". Maybe he practiced it once. He has a lovingly awkward super-genius style of presenting. I think it's great. 

I thoroughly recommend reading the Elon Musk biography by Ashlee Vance. It gives a great understanding about how Mr Musk things and why is he so driven to do the amazing things he and his companies do.

So, what's so special about this car? 

It's relatively fast (0-100km/h in under 6 seconds), it has relatively long range (350km on one charge) and it's going to be relative cheap (USD $35,000 for the base model). It's also been pre-ordered by a bunch of people, so good luck getting on in the first few years of production.

The reason it's so (relatively) cheap it that Tesla has built the Gigafactory, the biggest battery factory in the world. The economies of scale of that factory mean Tesla can product lithium-ion batteries cheaper and better than anyone else in the world. The Gigafactory will produce more batteries than the entire rest of the world's battery production combined.

The design of the car has people divided. I think it looks great. Other people don't like the unfamiliar front of the car, a design without an air-intake grill. Electric cars don't have a hot-running combustion engine to cool, so the air-intake is unnecessary.

The car is shaped for maximum aerodynamics with a drag coefficient of 0.21. The lower the drag coefficient, the less wind resistance a car experiences as it drives at high speed. Less wind resistance equals better power efficiency, as less power is required to pushing the car through the air.

The XL1 might be slippery, but, oh boy, is that thing ugly. The Model 3 looks wonderful by comparison. Note that Tesla will continue to optimise the aerodynamics of the Model 3, so the drag coefficient might improve more before release.

See how on the XL1 the rear wheels are covered over? That greatly contributes to an improved drag coefficient because the spinning wheels cause a lot of turbulence, adding drag and slowing the car down, but those wheel covers make the car look really weird. Tesla did something really clever to get the best of both worlds. They designed a special kind of turbine hub cap that redirects the passing air underneath the car, reducing the wheels' drag.

I'm a bit disappointed that the Model 3 is a sedan and not a hatchback (hidden details video has some explanation about why). Watch this test drive of the Model 3. At the end of the video they open the trunk/boot of the car. While it doesn't have the extra storage space behind the rear head-rests that a hatchback would have, it does have an incredibly deep trunk and a frunk for additional storage. A frunk is a "front trunk". Because there is no need for a big combustion engine under the hood of the car, there is storage extra space there instead. The battery is along the base of the car. 

Finally, here is an excellent overview of the Model 3 and the Gigafactory with lots of great pictures of the new car.  

As usual, Thursday night programs at Govindas Asrama in Darlinghurst are great.

On other nights there is mainly kirtan and wonderful prasadam served to the guests.

However, on Thursday, there is a mix of kirtan with philosophy and of course sumptuous prasadam. Generally around 25 or 30 guests attend.

Indradyumna Swami and hist team visited the famous Confucius Institute in Qufu, China, the hometown of Confucius, the famous Chinese philosopher and teacher. During their two day stay Maharaja gave a seminar on Krsna consciousness and had ecstatic kirtans with the students. A video by Ananta Vrindavan.

The day, organised in collaboration with Religions, Philosophies and Ethics at the University, was dedicated to talks, presentations and a panel discussion on the history of ISKCON including its greatest achievements and challenges, its position within the larger British Hindu community and its future and the potential challenges it may experience going forward into the next fifty years.

Relish photographs of Srila Prabhupada interacting with his disciples throughout the world, along with excerpts from his letters in which he encourages his disciples to be all they can be and do all they can do for Krishna's pleasure. An empowering and enlivening 12-minute film meant to reawaken Prabhupada's mood and mission, especially regarding his female disciples. A video by Visakha Dasi

Over the weekend of April 22nd to 24th, more than thirty scholars met at Harvard University’s Center for the Study of World Religions to talk about the growth, impact, and challenges of ISKCON since its inception in July 1966. Participants included some of the earliest scholars ever to study the Hare Krishna Movement, such as retired professors Thomas J. Hopkins and Larry Shinn, as well as the retired head of the British Council of Churches’ Committee on Interfaith, Kenneth Cracknell. 

Remnants of Srila Krishna Das Kaviraj’s sandals.
Sri Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami was born in a Nadiya family of physicians at the village of Jhamatpur, within the district of Barddhaman, near Naihati. His father was Sri Bhagiratha, and his mother was Sri Sunanda. He had a younger brother named Syama das. The deity of Gaura-Nityananda installed by Sri Kaviraja Gosvami is still being worshiped there. It appears that his family line is no more. More information about the early life of Sri Kaviraja is available in a book called Ananda-ratnavali.
Read more: http://goo.gl/hGTTx2

The post Daily Darshan : April 28th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.