Planet ISKCON

My dad kept trying to bring up the point that the Veda and Krishna were great, but ISKCON was seriously problematic. That was not news to me. I knew ISKCON was faulty, but my response to that fact wasn’t to abandon it, but to try to help fix those flaws.

So, in late 1992 I decided to make a more concerted effort, in the best way I could: sitting at the computer at my desk in my converted hot-dog shack of  a home.

What bothered me the most about ISKCON at the time was the very obvious symptoms of sexism pervasive throughout the Society’s daily life. So I decided to create a simple pamphlet called anārtha-nivṛtti. The title means “The Process of Purging Worthless Things.” It is a phrase used by Śrī Rūpa Goswāmī for the stage that should immediately follow after one begins devotional practices. This title was outlandishly bold, for it meant that ISKCON’s policies towards women were as worthless as all the other things bhajan must purify: addiction to sense gratification, false-ego, disrespect of guru and Krishna, and so on.

Rather than tackle the issue in an abstract, philosophical way, I decided to be very specific and aim to eventually change the abstract as a result of immediately changing the concrete situation. I identified a few specific instances of sexism in ISKCON daily life, particularly that women had to stand in the back of the room at any temple function, and that they were not permitted to give the morning classes on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Then I then laid out the desired reparations. I even included floor-plans detailing how to arrange men and women in the Boston, Brooklyn, Philly, and D.C. Temple rooms to maintain āśrama decorum without putting women into the offensively inferior positions.

With several dozen photocopied pamphlets in my shoulder bad, I traveled to the four temple’s I was focusing on, went to the men’s āśrama and handed my pamphlet to the residents, or slipped them under closed doors.

I didn’t hesitate to include the Swāmīs and Temple President’s either.

They flipped, swāmī’s and Temple Presidents most of all, and complained to Dhanurdhara Swāmī who instructed me that communication with superiors in ISKCON cannot be done so boldly and tactlessly. He asked why I didn’t consult with him before doing this, and said something that had bounced around my head for years before it could stop baffling me, “I’m not saying I don’t agree with you. Maybe I do, but what if I don’t? By writing this and distributing it like that, without even consulting me first, you may have inadvertently been making a statement that your own guru is full of anartha and needs to be purified by you.”

The only people who were happy about anartha-nivṛtti were a few ISKCON women (not all) and the majority of hardcore kids who had become involved with ISKCON over the last year, almost all of whom had similar perplexions on the subject as I.

Sure, the extremely unwelcoming reception bothered me, but not as much as the content of the objections, focusing nothing on the content of the pamphlet and everything on the writer and his distribution tactics. And so, of course, nothing changed – not immediately, the women kept standing in the back of the room, and the men kept giving the classes. But I would like to believe I contributed something to the momentum that, decades later, eventually started to enact these changes and more.

Prior to writing anartha-nivṛtti I had carefully nursed and propagated the idea that all of ISKCON’s flaws were the result of spiritually immature madness in the early ‘80s. Now that we had great reformers in place, I reasoned, everything weird would soon get repaired. After seeing how there reformers reacted to my pamphlet, however, I developed serious doubts in this positive outlook. I thought I could help create a positive change in the movement I loved, but now I began to see how difficult that would be, since its almost impossible to help someone who doesn’t want your help. I pictured ISKCON as a community striving nobly for reform, and therefore open to critique, but this experience very clearly showed me otherwise.

This certainly set me back a few paces and took a chunk out of my conviction that I was definitely doing the right thing with my life. But I still didn’t give up.

I couldn’t.

You can’t just fall out of love. When you love someone or something it becomes a part of you and you become a part of it, you become one. Getting out of a love one has fallen into is as daunting as removing a damaged vital organ. I had fallen deeply in love with ISKCON – because of their enticing promise to liberate me from petty material concerns and elevate me to the supreme platform of self realization.

Like a woman married to a man she assumed was perfect, I felt committed and even if my eyes clandestinely wandered on occasion, they could see neither a path out nor a better destination. How else could one achieve Krishna consciousness if not in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness?

– Excerpt from an early draft of
Train Wrecks and Transcendence: A Collision of Hardcore and Hare Krishna

By Vraja Kishor [VrajaKishor.com]

Tagged: ISKCON, ISKCON Alternatives, iskcon temple, sexism

Глава 8

– Добро пожаловать домой! – приветствовал меня, уставшего после перелета из Бангалора,   Махаван даса на выходе из нового блестящего терминала аэропорта Нью-Дели. Махаван (ему нет еще тридцати) – мой русский ученик и секретарь в путешествиях по Индии. Он брахмачари, носит шафран, бреет голову и забивает свою сумку новейшими гаджетами – сотовыми телефонами, iPad-ами, наушниками и зарядными устройствами.

– Мы пока еще не дома, – ответил я. – Хотелось бы, а до Вриндавана еще добрых три часа пути.

– Тогда поспешим, – сказал он. – Машина уже ждет.

Мы пробирались через толчею входящих и выходящих из терминала людей, как вдруг Махаван заметил в толпе пожилого мужчину в перепачканных одеждах винного оттенка.

– Гурудева, взгляните на того человека. Кажется, он просит о помощи. Должно быть, нищий?

– Он не нищий, – ответил я. – Он монах-буддист из Тибета. Просить подаяние – часть их традиции. Это помогает монахам развивать смирение.

– А чашки-то для милостыни у него нет. И похоже, он в отчаянии.

Ему никто ничего не подавал. Пока мы смотрели, мальчишка-подросток оттолкнул его в сторону. Монах, прикрыв лицо рукой, опустился на скамью. Секунду спустя мимо проследовала состоятельная пара, и он, поднявшись, направился к ним, но и они его проигнорировали. Он пробовал было настаивать – мужчина прикрикнул на него. Монах выглядел расстроенным. Он вернулся, сел на скамью и устремил взгляд прямо перед собой, будто в медитации. Вид у него был запачканный, однако, казалось, что он сияет.

Я был потрясен тем, как люди обходились с ним. Чувствуя, что мой долг – помочь ему, я направился прямиком к его скамье. Лишь только заметив меня, монах, вскочив, поспешил ко мне и ухватил за рукав.

– Пожалуйста, позвольте немного побыть с вами, – произнес он по-английски. – Мне нужно прибежище духовных лиц.

– Конечно, – ответил я. – Почему бы нам не присесть?

– Есть ли у вас время? – тихо спросил он.

– Для таких, как вы, у меня есть все время мира, – сказал я. Мы прошли к той скамье, на которой он сидел. Он все еще удерживал меня за рукав.

– Вы голодны? – спросил я. – Могу ли я вас чем-нибудь угостить?

– Спасибо, нет, – отвечал он. – Я не голоден.

– Вы потерялись? – расспрашивал я. – Может быть, помочь вам добраться до вашего места назначения?

– Подождите минуту, – ответил он и, выпрямив спину и закрыв глаза, принял медитативную позу. Медленно вдыхая и выдыхая, он стал невозмутим, спокоен и собран.

«Как, ради всего святого, он сумел настолько быстро успокоиться после столь дурного обращения?» – изумлялся я. Минута прошла, и я почувствовал, что волна умиротворения накрыла и меня. Наконец он открыл глаза. Смотря не прямо на меня, а куда-то вдаль, он поведал мне свою историю.

– Меня зовут Церинг Лама, – сказал он. – Приехал я из монастыря Сэра, Лхаса, Тибет. Жил там с пятилетнего возраста.

– Ого! – сказал я. – Сколько же вам сейчас?

– Мне семьдесят.

– А какое служение было у вас в монастыре?

– Изучать писания, – ответил он. – Мне с детства преподавали учение Ламы Цонг-кхалпы, который жил в четырнадцатом веке. Он основатель школы Гелуг-па, которой я принадлежу, и высокочтимый учитель буддистских писаний. Дебаты по писаниям –  мое основное служение. Это неотъемлемая часть нашей традиции.

– Встреча со столь сведущим ученым для меня большая честь, – проговорил я. – Сожалею, что видел,  как люди вели себя с вами сегодня.

Он покачал головой, как если бы дурное обращение не имело к нему никакого отношения, а может быть, чтобы пропустить мою похвалу.

– Я всю жизнь мечтал побывать в Бодх Гайе, – продолжал он. – Это место, где Будда достиг просветления. Это здесь, в Индии, штат Бихар. Несколько месяцев тому назад я попрощался со своими любимыми учениками и в одиночку, пешком отправился в Бодх Гайу.

Я подумал, сколько же сотен или даже тысяч учеников должно было быть у такого человека. Он продолжал:

– Когда я добрался сюда, в Дели двое мужчин предложили мне остановиться на ночь в их доме. Уставший после месяцев путешествий, я принял их приглашение. Вечером они меня накормили и напоили каким-то чаем. Следующее, что я помню – как я очнулся на тротуаре делийских трущоб. Наверное, в чай был подмешан какой-то препарат, потому я и потерял сознание. Я обнаружил, что они украли у меня все, что было: одежду, паспорт, конечно же, деньги и даже освященные четки для молитв. Я копил деньги на это паломничество в Бодх Гайу с самого детства, и вдруг оказалось, что я не могу совершить его. Теперь у меня ничего нет. Я в этом аэропорту уже три дня, прошу милостыню, чтобы завершить путешествие. Никто не подал мне ни единой рупии, скорее всего, оттого что я весь перепачкан и помят.

Я взял его за руку и сказал:

– Я вам помогу.

– Нет-нет, – отвечал он, – от такого святого человека, как вы, я не возьму деньги.

– Да всё в порядке, – сказал я. – Я еще не святой. Я стараюсь, но в действительности, я только начинающий. Мне еще предстоит долгий путь. Уверяю вас, можете смело принять от меня немного денег.

– То, что вы с таким смирением произнесли – не правда, – сдержанно сказал он. – Я изучил ваше лицо. Я вижу ваше истинное «я» через ваши глаза.

– Вы можете меня видеть сквозь мои глаза? – переспросил я.

– Да, – отозвался он. – Я научился этому от наших тибетских учителей.

Он пристально посмотрел мне прямо в глаза. Мне стало неудобно, и я отвел взгляд, но он ухватил меня за подбородок и повернул мою голову обратно к себе, внимательно изучая мое лицо. У его маленькой руки была неслабая хватка.

Я также взглянул на его лицо. Темно-карие глаза смотрели на меня из-под раскосых, как на тибетских изображениях, и приподнятых внешними уголками век. У него был маленький плоский нос, а тонкие губы, хотя и были твердо сомкнуты, казалось, еле заметно улыбались. Он явно не брился несколько дней, на золотистой коже было несколько маленьких рубцов. Казалось, от него исходит сияние, которое я скорее чувствовал, чем видел, и легкий острый аромат тибетских благовоний еще витал вокруг запачканного и потертого в путешествии одеяния. Хотя он едва ли доставал головой мне до носа, было чувство, что я стою перед кем-то огромным, могучим, кем-то, кто может сбить меня одним щелчком пальца.

Через несколько минут он заговорил.

– Ты хорошо служишь своему учителю в этой жизни.

– Что ж, выполняю кое-какое служение, – сказал я. – Говорю же, я стараюсь, однако…

– Ты распространяешь его славу посредством письменного слова, посредством речи и посредством праздников, которые ты проводишь в дальних землях.

«Дальних землях? – изумился я про себя. – Откуда тибетский монах может знать о фестивалях в Польше?»

– Однако в прошлом году твое служение было прервано болезнью, – сказал он.

– Ну да. Боролся с раком и…

– В марте, – сказал он.

У меня перехватило дыхание.

– Да, – сказал я. – Да. Вы совершенно правы. Это было в марте прошлого года.

– И впереди еще болезни, – сказал он.

– О… правда? – произнес я и услышал разочарование в собственном голосе.

– Не беспокойся, – сказал он. – Я тебе помогу.

Поднявшись со скамьи, он сел на полу в полную йоговскую асану. Снова закрыл глаза и, казалось, тут же переместился на иной уровень. Через несколько минут брови его из-за силы медитации сошлись, а губы задвигались, так как он читал мантры на тибетском.

Люди останавливались посмотреть на необычную картину: на скамье сидит санньяси, а буддистский монах медитирует около него на полу. Они поглядывали на меня, будто ожидая объяснений – у меня их не было. Я просто сидел молча, а он предлагал молитвы ради моего блага.

Двадцать минут спустя он открыл глаза и повернулся ко мне.

– Я убрал препятствия, – сказал он. – Ты проживешь долгую жизнь в служении своему учителю.

– Надо же, – сказал я. – Большое спасибо.

Я поднялся и помог ему вернуться на скамью.

– Сострадание – суть учения Будды, – сказал он.

– Я знаю, – сказал я. – Только вот почему вы так добры ко мне, незнакомцу?

– Мы не незнакомцы, – отвечал он. – Я возвращаю благо, оказанное тобою мне несколько жизней тому назад.

Я почувствовал, как волосы у меня на руках встают дыбом.

– Вы имеете в виду… хотите сказать, что мы встречались в прошлом…?

– Некоторые вещи лучше оставлять невысказанными, – отозвался он. – И мне нужно идти. Надо постараться исполнить свою мечту.

– Постойте, – сказал я. – Подождите минуту. Я хочу вам помочь.

– Нет, – сказал он. – Я ведь уже сказал, что не приму от тебя деньги. Ты используешь их, помогая людям, которым не так повезло, как тебе.

– Но подождите, – сказал я. – Откуда вам известно, как я использую деньги? Мы только что встретились.

– Я ведь говорю: глаза являют свет души.

Он повернулся и зашагал к терминалу.

– Нет! – я догнал его. – Я не позволю этим людям снова дурно обращаться с вами. Возьмите, пожалуйста, пожертвование. Здесь хватит, чтобы добраться до Бодх-Гайи и вернуться в Тибет поездом.

Я затолкал ему в руку несколько купюр.

Он долго смотрел на деньги. Когда он поднял взгляд, глаза его были влажны.

– Я приму твою доброту, – медленно сказал он. – И я тебя не забуду.

Он опять стал уходить, а потом остановился и повернулся.

– Мы не встретимся более в этой жизни, – произнес он. – Но я оставлю тебе особенный подарок в монастыре в Лхасе. Приедешь туда – назови мое имя. Монахи тебя проведут.

Он достал клочок бумаги из рукава своих одежд и написал адрес монастыря. У меня мурашки пошли по коже.

– Пообещай, что приедешь, – сказал он. – То, что я оставлю для тебя, будет большим подспорьем в служении твоему учителю.

– Вы говорите о деньгах? – спрашиваю.

– О нет, – отвечает он. – Ничего подобного. Это не купишь ни за какие деньги. Ты не будешь разочарован.

С этими словами он исчез в переполненной станции метро.

Я обернулся к Махавану.

– Что это сейчас было? Это сон?

– Нет, – сказал он с тем же, что у меня, потрясенным видом. – Я все это видел собственными глазами. Вы действительно поедете в Лхасу?

– Конечно, поеду, – отвечал я. – Всегда хотел побывать в Тибете. Теперь есть отличный повод – усилить служение моему духовному учителю, Шриле Прабхупаде.

– А можно мне поехать с вами? – спросил Махаван.

– Ты должен поехать, – сказал я. – Чтобы, когда мы найдем то, что оставил нам монах, подтвердить мне, что это не сон. И чтобы убедиться, что служение великой душе никогда не бывает напрасным.

********************

«Встать на путь освобождения из материального плена можно, только служа великим душам, достигшим духовного совершенства. К ним относятся имперсоналисты и преданные Господа. Хочет ли кто слиться с бытием Господа, или желает общаться с Самим Богом, он должен служить махатмам. Перед теми, кто не заинтересован в этом, кто общается с людьми, привязанными к женщинам и сексу, открывается прямая дорога в ад. Махатмы не видят разницы между живыми существами и равно расположены ко всем. Они умиротворены и целиком отдают себя преданному служению. Свободные от гнева, они заботятся о благе каждого и никогда не поступают неправедно. Такие люди известны как махатмы».

[ Шримад-Бхагаватам 5.5.2 ]

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Srila Prabhupada’s Shower of Mercy (12 min video)
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.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/d1DaE9

Several days ago, in Sridham Mayapura, Indradyumna Swami gave sannyasa to his disciple, Uttama Sloka dasa. He became Bhakti Rasayana Sagara Maharaja. Ananta Vrindavan dasa followed the ceremony from start to finish and produced this video.

At Vanipedia.org, the dynamic online encyclopedia of Srila Prabhupada’s words (vani), manager Visnu Murti Das and his Radhadesh, Belgium-based team are constantly adding new features during ISKCON’s 50^th anniversary year. The latest is “A Month in the Life of Srila Prabhupada,” a calendar showing each month of Srila Prabhupada’s recorded life in the West, through the years 1966 to 1977.

Shippensburg Arts Programming and Education (SHAPE), which is based in Pennsylvania, USA has announced a truly unique show for the month of April. ISKCON-guru Satsvarupa Das Goswami has been painting since the 1990’s. As he tells it,"...“I don't really consider myself as belonging to any school of art. I wasn’t imitating anyone. I wasn’t copying Dubuffet or Picasso. I was my own man, painting for pleasure and pursuing my spiritual path."

Realizations from a pilgrimage in Mayapur.
Aniruddha Dasa: Flew into Melbourne this morning after an odd night on the flight from Singapore to Melbourne. I don’t think it possible to be comfortable in an airplane even if you are in First Class. We were in Business. We used up frequent flyer points, just for the record.
Here’s the rub. The material world is meant for suffering. First class, second class and third class passengers are all suffering in the material world. Whichever class you are in you can’t avoid the jet lag of material life.
Otherwise we had a very productive and enthusing time in the holy dhāmas. By Kṛṣṇa and the devotees’ grace I managed to participate in full morning programs and focused japa sessions, especially in Mayapur. What a wonderful place to chant. It is immensely powerful. Now the challenge is to duplicate the same here at home. Visiting the dhāma and taking advantage of the valuable association there is meant to enthuse us to do the same, wherever we are. That way all the temples of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness are places of pilgrimage where one can associate with and learn from those who know the science of Kṛṣṇa. Those sincere persons looking for spiritual life will naturally be attracted, like iron filings to a magnet. The atmosphere should be so surcharged with knowledge and renunciation; focused on service to the Lord, that it is irresistible. And it is!
That comes from chanting good rounds, hearing attentively, remembering who we are and why we are here, serving with the goal of pleasing Kṛṣṇa whether it be the upkeep of His temple, or the distribution of Prabhupāda’s books, distributing prasādam, or whatever.
If we, all of us, keep Kṛṣṇa in the centre then we will be happy and so will those who associate with us.
The picture is from the ISKCON Disciple Course I taught on the weekend in ISKCON Dwarka (Delhi).

Beautiful aerial photos of today’s Navadwip Mandala Parikrama (Album with photos)
Prananatha Das: Today on Navadwip Mandala parikrama, we visited Pancavaktra Siva Sthana, Bilvapuskar: (Replica of Bilvavana in Vrndavana.), Meghera Chara, Simantini Devi Temple, Chand Kazi Samadhi, Jagannatha Temple and Sridhara Angana: The residence of Kolaveca Sridhara.
Much of the day was spent walking through the beautiful countryside, so I included a few extra pics of that.
Tomorrow will be the last day, as the devotees walk back to Mayapur from the Jagannath Temple.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/3LA2nj

Devotees to Feed 50,000 For Shantipur Festival.
Devotees from ISKCON’s headquarters in Mayapur, West Bengal are expected to feed hot sanctified vegetarian meals to around 50,000 villagers in the nearby town of Shantipur on March 20th.
The Shantipur festival has been a key part of ISKCON Mayapur’s Gaura Purnima festival for many years.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/sr6QVM

Timesoara Sunday feast talk.

The post Srila Prabhupada arrives in America (Part 1) appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

Harinama in Barnaul, (Barnaul is a city and the administrative center of Altai Krai, Russia) (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: “As fire burns dry grass to ashes, so the holy name of the Lord, whether chanted knowingly or unknowingly, burns to ashes, without fail, all the reactions of one’s sinful activities. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.18)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/t1jn8L

Why do you immediately jump to Krishna’s pastimes from the Tenth Canto?
Hari Sauri das: When we were in Bhuvaneshwar, in late January and early February of 1977, two or three moviemakers came. They told Srila Prabhupada that they were making a movie and that they wanted to popularize Krishna’s pastimes. They said,
“Hare Krishna is becoming popular, and we want everybody to know about Krishna. We want to show Krishna’s Vrindavan pastimes. Since you are the guru of the Hare Krishna movement, we would like to get your blessings for making this movie, and in the movie we’d also like to offer you our humble thanks for popularizing Krishna’s pastimes.”
Prabhupada immediately told them, “No.” Prabhupada said, “Why do you immediately jump to Krishna’s pastimes from the Tenth Canto? Nobody will understand. They will take it as mythology when Krishna kills the Trinavarta whirlwind demon or whatever other pastimes.”
They said, “But, Swamiji, everybody in India is a Krishna bhakta.” As it happens, the evening before, Prabhupada had had a conversation with an educated Indian man who asked, “Who is Krishna?”
Prabhupada had been shocked and chastised that man, saying, “You are born in India and you do not know who Krishna is?”
Prabhupada mentioned this conversation in his evening lecture also by saying, “Here we are in Bharatabhumi, but now people are so degraded that they’re asking, ‘Who is Krishna?’”
So when these filmmakers said, “Oh but, Swamiji, in India everybody’s a Krishna bhakta,” Prabhupada said, “You say that they’re Krishna bhaktas, but last night a guest asked me, 'Who is Krishna?’”
Then Prabhupada said, “Why don’t you first make a movie of the First Canto and then go progressively through the Bhagavatam and do the Tenth Canto at the end?”
But, of course, they wanted the Tenth Canto, Krishna with the gopis, and they were simply trying to capitalize on Prabhupada’s popularity by advertising, “Oh, this movie is approved by Bhaktivedanta Swami.”
But they could not get an endorsement from Srila Prabhupada. Prabhupada would not budge an inch even after they brought up various arguments for about a half an hour. Prabhupada said, “If you make one movie of the First Canto, then we’ll see.”
—Hari Sauri

With his first novel, “The Yoga Zapper,” ISKCON devotee Hari Mohan Das (Mohan Ashtakala) has blended exciting fantasy storytelling with themes from the Srimad-Bhagavatam, including the prophesied appearance of Kalki Avatar at the end of Kali Yuga. He hopes to entertain and educate a diverse Western audience with this potent mix, published by mid-sized Canadian publisher Books We Love.

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, November 2011, Mayapur, India, Caitanya Caritamrta Seminar – Part 4)

The divinity of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has been established. It comes up many times that he is clearly the Supreme Lord. There were many miracles which are related to this. This is expected since whenever you deal with the Supreme Lord, there will be miracles.

Before his birth, mother Śacīdevī saw celestial beings. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very small, they could hear a child, with ankle bells on, running around in the house but no one was running around. There were footprints in the house which they thought were from the śālagrāma-śilā but then, they saw that the marks of the footprints of Visnu were the same marks on Nimai’s feet, but he was too small to run! So how was all this possible?

On Ekadasi, there was a great offering being made in the house of Hiraṇya and Jagadīśa, and a huge feast was being cooked. Nimai was feeling very sick that day and he said that the only thing that could cure him was some of that prasadam. But how did he know that they were having such an offering in that house? Nobody else knew but somehow or other, Nimai knew and that was mystical!

He was extremely learned! Later, as a preacher, he went into the Jhārikhaṇḍa forest where he made the tigers and deers chant Hare Krsna, and embrace each other. The tigers and deers were kissing each other, which was quite a miracle! He cured Vasudeva, the leper, from the disease. He also cured Sanatana Goswami’s sores.

About one million years ago, Lord Ramachandra was showing Sugriva how very powerful he was and that he was able to defeat Bali. Therefore, Lord Ramachandra took an arrow and shot it through seven tall trees. Those trees were there when Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to South India. He embraced those trees and as he embraced those trees, they disappeared, one after another. It has been said that they went to the spiritual world!

When Lord Jagannatha’s chariot did not want to move, he pushed it with his head. The king called in big wrestlers but they could not move the chariot. Then he got elephants to pull the chariot but still the chariot would not move! But, when Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to the back of the chariot and pushed it lightly with his head, then it started to roll down the road – the ropes were lying in the hands of people but they were not pulling at all, the chariot was just moving on its own.

So these are just some of the miracles but the main miracle that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu shows us is his outstanding symptoms of love of God and that is the real topic of the Caitanya Caritamrta!

 

By Sita Rama das

According to the ISKCON foundational document “Srila Prabhupada: The Founder Acarya of ISKCON” (The Founder Acarya) two ideas exist which are a rejection of Srila Prabhupada’s instruction for continuing the disciplic succession. One idea is to reject individual gurus, the other is to eliminate the GBC and have one acarya (p.24). ISKCON needs to foster both an “…intense common loyalty to ISKCON and the GBC…” and a deep “…full teaching relationship between individual gurus and disciples within ISKCON” (The Founder Acarya, p. 24) Members need to realize that there is no conflict between loyalty to Srila Prabhupada, ISKCON, and their guru; rather, these two factors reinforce and support each other (The Founder Acarya p.24).

My point is, this “realization” is simply theoretical until an intense loyalty to ISKCON and the GBC, combined with surrender to an individual guru, is established as the cultural fabric of the movement. Until that happens the conflict exists. We need to do more to mitigate this conflict.

The disciplic succession is a foundational principle, without which there is no possibility of conditioned souls transcending the cycle of birth and death. There is no time or place where this principle can be neglected.

In “The Founder Acarya” the GBC is described as the “successor acarya” of Srila Prabhupada. It follows, quite correctly, that the GBC is the link in the chain of disciplic succession connecting ISKCON gurus to Srila Prabhupada. In my experience, however, this rarely acknowledged. I therefore see the chain deteriorating before my eyes.

The reality of parampara in ISKCON, as described in “The Founder Acarya” must be regularly discussed to reinforce this most important principle. Although devotees may have their own opinions, and may express them in private circles, the GBC must insist that devotees acknowledge the official teaching of ISKCON and forbid them from preaching anything opposed to this. This rigidness will make ISKCON more attractive to genuine spiritual seekers.

We can see that Christian religious organizations which uphold rigid theological principles remain dynamic, and the ones with a culture of individualism, and flexible interpretation, decline. ISKCON and these organizations share enough elements for us to conclude that growth and decline of ISKCON will be affected in a way similar to the way it is in these organizations. The common element shared by ISKCON and most Christian organizations is the goal of salvation. This invariable includes the concept of following the will of God in order to, by His Grace, obtain an eternal, joyful, life. One learns how to follow God’s will through leaders who teach from a sacred text.

Below is a small sample of the available data which justifies the assertion that religious organizations which demand strict acceptance of central beliefs, and restrictions on behavior, remain dynamic; and those who adopt theological liberalism and freedom of individual freedom decline.

In 1931, Ernst Troeltsch, through a study of the history of Christianity, developed the, “sect to church” concept. Religious movements start off as strict sects which have beliefs, values, and customs that create tension between them and society at large. The successful sects grow into churches, slacken doctrinal demands, and embrace secular morality. When this happens church growth slows down. Then reactionary groups break from the church and form sects, these new sects gradually become churches, and the cycle repeats.

Other scholars have given historical data to paint the same picture (see, The Churching of America, by Finke and Stark). We can also see this happening recently with the Presbyterian Church. Hundreds of Presbyterian congregations are leaving this liberal church and joining, the conservative, Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians, formed in 2010, and the, Evangelical Presbyterian Church, founded in 1981. The Evangelical Presbyterians declares itself, “reformed”, defined as accepting the, “…Scripture alone as the only infallible authority for belief…” (http://www.epc.org/faq)

Beyond simply theorizing, an abundance of empirical research on church growth and decline was precipitated by a 1977 book by Dean Kelley, “Why Conservative Churches Are Still Growing” Several theories have been developed, and debates have ensued, regarding why, “mainstream/ liberal” churches have declined and “conservative/strict” churches continue to grow. But there is, essentially, no denying that this trend has continued for over four decades.

Among other things, strict churches are characterized as having “costs”, such as demanding literal acceptance of the scriptures, restrictions on diet, dress styles, and social interactions, which often invite ridicule. These include several Pentecostal groups, Mormons, and Jehovah Witnesses. The mainstreams, liberal, churches which have been declining since the 1960’s include the Presbyterians, Episcopalians, and United Methodists.

Why are people more attracted to churches that demand more, when they could choose one that demands less? Answers to this are found in an academic paper published in the, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion (Sacrifice and Stigma: Managing Religious Risk, by Prosper Raynold). It is because people have the propensity to develop faith and hope in God; but people tend to rely on “faith intermediaries” to deepen their understanding of the will of God. They need to believe they have found intermediaries who have access to God (through sacred texts) and can transmit the will of God, and not exploit them. People then act in accordance with God’s will in order to obtain eternal life. But there is a, “mediation risk”, involved regarding whether the prescribed path will lead to the desired outcome. This intermediary risk is mitigated by “strictness.”

This makes sense. Regulations on behavior and literal acceptance of the scriptures are principles which do not jibe with the morals, ambitions, or world views, of the masses in materialistic society. Intermediaries who insist on these principles are making religion costly, but the cost being paid is not something the intermediaries can utilize for their own profit: this adds to their credibility. Conversely, genuine seekers can see that intermediaries who water down the scriptures are motivated to gain followers for reasons other than to inspire them to act according to the word of God. These intermediaries are unable to transmit the will of God or show the path to achieve eternal happiness.

Watering down the criteria may result in a boost in church membership but this will inevitable be short lived. It may attract those who have less spiritual desire; those who are less willing to pay a price for eternal life. But such people, invariably, have greater material ambitions, and will be ultimately drawn away by secular organizations which can offer material rewards much more effectively than any church. In other words, when churches stop emphasizing their unique product, eternality, they place themselves into the competitive market of material organizations which they are unable to compete with. They become unappealing to both genuine seekers and superficial members.

Similarly, ISKCON gurus who are not willing to accept the GBC as the link in the disciplic succession connecting them to Srila Prabhupada, and who do not emphatically teach the same to their followers, may be able offer greater freedom of personal opinions, and other things which jibe with the ideals of the masses in society; ideals which are precious to conditioned souls. They may be able, by personal charisma, to inspire faith in followers who openly have little faith in the GBC and are unwilling to accept it as the, successor acarya. But such gurus will not be able to inspire “intense loyalty to ISKCON and the GBC”. It follows, they will not be able to inspire intense loyalty to Srila Prabhupada, nor to the disciple succession coming from him.

If such gurus become the norm, then the continuation of ISKCON will eventually be in the hands of charismatic disciples of these charismatic gurus. It is easy to see that after a few generations the potency of ISKCON; which comes from making a direct connection with Krishna available, through rigidly following the instructions of Srila Prabhupada, will dwindle and eventually vanish.

However, if gurus display, and advocate, acceptance of the GBC as the link between them and Srila Prabhupada, this strict acceptance of the disciplic succession will increase their own credibility among followers who intelligently weigh intermediary risk. These gurus will “cost” more in terms of disciples giving up freedom of personal opinion, but the payback will be greater confidence that the guru/ intermediary is accurately transmitting the will of God, without personal interpretation or egotistic motivation. Thus, as idealized in “The Founder Acarya”, when gurus advocate loyalty to ISKCON and Srila Prabhupada their disciples develop greater faith in them. As an alternative route to persuasion, those who are inspired primarily by faith in Srila Prabhupada will have more confidence in the gurus when those gurus fully adhere to the system Srila Prabhupada established. Thus, acceptance of Srila Prabhupada, the GBC, and ISKCON gurus, as the chain of disciplic succession, will support and reinforce acceptance of all these links.

Let’s begin to develop a consensus regarding the nature of the parampara in ISKCON before our mundane sensibilities delude us into seeing acceptance of the GBC as some form of material authoritarianism.

ECO-Vrindaban Board Meeting Minutes 01/31/2016

Mission Statement: ECO-Vrindaban promotes simple living, cow protection, engaging oxen, local agriculture, and above all, loving Krishna, as envisioned by Srila Prabhupada, the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON New Vrindaban.

Participating Directors: Anuttama, Bhima, Chaitanya Mangala, Kripamaya and Ranaka

Recording Secretary: Jamuna Jivani

1. Directorship Renewal

Ranaka was re-elected to a three-year term as a Board Member.

2. New Directorship

After serving one year as a Board Advisor, Sri Tulasi Manjari was elected to an initial one-year term as a board member.

3. Radha-Krishna Dasi Advisor Renewal

WHEREAS: The ECO-V Board wishes to maintain a team of advisors.

RESOLVED: The Board renews Radha-Krishna’s role as an Advisor for another one-year term.

4. Officer Roles Renewal

WHEREAS: The ECO-V Board wishes to appoint members to fulfill the officer roles for 2016.

RESOLVED: The Board designates Kripamaya as the ECO-V President for one year.

RESOLVED: The Board designates Ranaka as the ECO-V Secretary and Treasurer for one year.

5. Chairperson Renewal

WHEREAS: The ECO-V Board wishes to appoint members to fulfill the organization’s roles for 2016.

RESOLVED: The Board designates Bhima as the ECO-V Chairperson for one year.

6. Recruiting New Advisors and Directors

The ECO-Vrindaban Board Members are interested in recruiting new Advisors who may potentially become Directors. Some of the current Directors mentioned possible candidates and encouraged the continued search for others who may be interested to volunteer in ECO-V related activities.

7. Announcements

The next on-site meetings will be held at New Vrindaban the weekend of April 15-17, 2016.

The post Daily Darshan : March 17th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

By Patita Pavana dasa Adhikary

OK I know it sounds crazy, but the question is a serious one. But let’s go back a bit … By ‘63 Bob Dylan was a teen idol turned hippest-of-the-hip. His vast talents combining new melodies (and old ones), accompanied by his freight train harmonica and songs of the road struck a nerve. Musically, his talents were at the top of their game since he could speak with his music as well as his words. Like some unspoken and unseen mass hypnosis from ’66 tens of thousands of young persons simply walked out of their homes, destination San Francisco. He was the pied piper with his perfect meter, rhyming sequences and multi-layered depths of meaning. Many agree that his early masterpieces could only be explained as divine gifts. No singer-songwriter had ever matched the likes of early Dylan. Like some gravel-voiced Gandharva from the chorus of Chitraratha, the singer-songwriter who had appeared in the Midwest made it all seem so easy. Even so, his work has never been duplicated except in the mind of a million posers. His gifts were special, very special.

After Dylan appeared in Manhattan a shaktyavesha avatara who was destined to change the entire world’s concept of religion and understanding arrived in the midst of all this 1960’s cacophony. Thus, by the time the world acharya Shrila Prabhupada boldly sauntered off the Jaladuta in September 1965, an inspired minstrel had already announced the coming of the leader of Krishna consciousness through his anthem of a generation “Mr. Tambourine Man.” For as it is said, “Krishna—God—works in ways that appear strange to us.”

It is well-known among his millions of followers that Shrila Prabhupada is none other than the divinely inspired representative of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is none other than Lord Krishna Himself. All devotees understand that His Divine Grace was spiritually empowered by the Supreme Absolute Truth Personified to inaugurate this mini-Satya Yuga now becoming manifest even in this Kali Yuga. Therefore, does it not sound reasonable that some singers would take to their instruments by the will of Saraswati, the goddess of poesy, in preparation for such an historical arrival? It is our understanding that the entire 1960’s was arranged by Lord Krishna as a part of His plan for the coming westward of the Gaudiya sampradaya and sankirtana. Therefore, during an unprecedented era in history, it is not strange at all that He would empower certain voices here and there to announce it. Quite simply, it is our conjecture that Dylan was one of those voices.

Human society in Kali Yuga is about as organized as a fistful of iron filings thrown to the wind and scattered here and there. At the time of Prabhupada’s advent in America, many of society’s so-called leaders were basically drug-addicted mad men. Kali Yuga was going into extreme spin and Prabhupada had arrived to single-handedly reverse the entire downward trend. Specifically in the sixties, the beatnik movement of NY’s Lower East Side was just now giving way to the era of the hippies prevalent in San Francisco. Dylan spoke to both sides of the equation as did Shrila Prabhupada. The Jagat Guru was like a powerful magnet that passes above the iron filings. Just as the invisible power of the magnet straightens out the iron particles and points them into a single direction, so the call of the acharya made sense out of the chaos of Kali Yuga.

Mahaksha dasa Prabhu, himself a 60’s musician, was mystically drawn to Vrindavana and Prabhupada in the early 70’s. He says, “Dylan is a writer with amazing channeling powers—which he seemed to have until his motorcycle accident (if that’s what it was). This means Dylan was drawing down lyrics from the ‘akashic records’ as some people call it. It’s the Universal language where we are all connected. Dylan was affected by Prabhupada’s presence whether knowingly or not. There was an all pervading bliss permeating the atmosphere at that time mainly on account of the coming to the west of Vedic wisdom headed up by the Tambourine Man.

“Dylan must have seen or heard Prabhupada in all likelihood but I doubt he’d admit it. He is very private about where his lyrics come from. Even he does not know where his lyrics came from—he admits it in his Chronicles. His work is definitely not meaningless drivel … Dylan did a deal with (who he calls) the Great Chief to receive all his empowered songs. They helped change and prepare a generation. Dylan is no way an ordinary man. He is a super power Archangel come to assist Universal redemption.”

Sankarshan Das Adhikari, an initiating spiritual master in ISKCON has posted on FB: “Dylan’s lyrics in ‘All Along the Watchtower:’ ‘There must be some way out of here—said the joker to the thief. There’s too much confusion here, I can’t get no relief …’ gave me faith that there was something beyond this material world and helped me come to Krishna consciousness. So I am indebted to Bob Dylan for that.”

So we have set out to analyze if Dylan’s song “Mr. Tambourine Man” was actually prophecy speaking of a coming Indian pure devotee armed with a pair of caratals (though we used to carry tambourines on sankirtana in the early days).

Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,

Here the singer calls upon another singer. He will explain that his own song has not been sufficient. Now he surrenders his song and seeks the highest song (which will come along soon enough as Hare Krishna).

I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to.

This is the disciple’s surrender. Prabhupada often emphasized the ability to conquer sleep and taught us to revere Arjuna as Gudakesha. Shrila Prabhupada set this example in his own life and slept but little, so important were his many projects, especially his literary ones. By “no place I’m going to” Dylan displays the disciple’s surrender. “Where Shri Guru Maharaja leads me, and to that place I gladly follow …”

Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
In the jingle jangle morning I’ll come following you.

The key is following, since the genuine disciple is a follower and he follows every example in the lotus footprints of the acharya as best he can.

Though I know that evening’s empire has returned into sand,

This is an example of Dylan’s lovely poesy—ornate but not flowery. Here his expression equals Vedic analogies from the pens of great Sanskrit masters. Now the poet observes the passing of night to day—the opposing ends of Nature. It is as though the darkness of night has melted onto the water-touched beach revealing the glorious rays of brightness. It is a time to greet the sunrise as brahmanas do half-submerged in holy waters singing to the sun god Surya.

Vanished from my hand,

This is a joke that refers to the living entity who thinks that he can control Nature—which is in control ultimately by Lord Shri Krishna. It is also an ironic ecstatic expression of the poet’s understanding of Who is Supreme and an acknowledgement of the Higher Powers of Nature.

Left me blindly here to stand but still not sleeping.

“Blind yet not asleep.” The poet cracks the whip and makes a sudden shift in the anthem’s tone (for this song would become an important anthem of a generation). When the guru decrees to the disciple, “you are blind” at that time the disciple must awaken himself. For as any sincere follower of his spiritual master knows, our perfection lies in becoming the blind follower of the previous acharya. And that means to accept as shastra everything that the spiritual master says unconditionally. We kneel before Shri Guru for it is he who has taken us out of the dark well of illusion. Thus we pray: om ajnana timirandasaya …

My weariness amazes me, I’m branded on my feet,

He expresses weariness, i.e., dissatisfaction, with the material situation, though he is “branded on his feet” or entrenched in samsara and the bodily concept of life. The seeker expresses his desire for release ….

I have no one to meet,

“Let me now exchange the useless association of materialistic sense gratifiers for the association of Shri Guru and his acolytes … which is today is a world wide devotional organization called ISKCON”

And the ancient empty street’s too dead for dreaming.

This is a very pointed look at the “eighth house” aspects of life: the mysteries of forever dead past lives marked by ancient streets once trod in previous lifetimes. Here and now let me move beyond this dilemma of samsara, the cycle of birth and death, once and for all. Let me go to that place of eternal light and love.

Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me
I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to.
Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
In the jingle jangle morning I’ll come following you.

Take me on a trip upon your magic swirling ship.

Another semi-prophetic song of the early 60’s was “Train to Jordan” by Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fsS4rFMrKc ). Through his train analogy, he defined the era’s distinct sense of a great deliverance that would come in the form of a massive vahana with room for everybody. This would prove to be Shrila Prabhupada’s Back to Godhead Express. Movies like On the Waterfront, Wild One and The Misfits carried hauntingly prophetic ideas neatly buried in words signaling social change.

My senses have been stripped,
My hands can’t feel to grip,
My toes too numb to step,
Wait only for my boot heels to be wandering.

Again, the poet expresses dissatisfaction with the places he has been to, and a desire to discover a new destination that only Mr. Tambourine Man can show him. He allegorically has gripped whatever karma has placed before him, he is tired of it and numb and wishes to proceed to the next plane.

I’m ready to go anywhere, I’m ready for to fade,

This is an expression of obedience and submission to Shri Guru whose instruction is equal to that of the order of the Supreme Lord.

Into my own parade,

He seeks to understand his own karma and to transcend it. He seeks to discover his own self—that is the eternal individuality of the atomic jivatma as opposed to the “parade” of materialistic association and values that seek to identify the body with the self.

Cast your dancing spell my way, I promise to go under it.

This can be nothing other than a direct reference to the great dance of sankirtana yagna of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is a spell that Shrila Prabhupada and no one else has cast upon the world. And since Dylan sang these prophetic words, that dancing spell has spread to every town and village of the earth, with millions blissfully having fallen under it.

Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to.
Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
In the jingle jangle morning I’ll come following you.

Though you might hear laughing, spinning, swinging madly across the sun,

Here Dylan describes the dancing of group sankirtana. He invokes the worshipful Sun god who is a representative of Lord Krishna and is the symbol of enlightenment.

It’s not aimed at anyone,

Who shall we blame for our problems but we ourselves, who are the creators of our own karmic reactions?

It’s just a escaping on the run,

Dylan describes the great escape from the jaws of Kali and the stringent laws of material nature.

And but for the sky there are no fences facing.

The poet describes liberation by recognizing that even the material sky can pose limitations. (Therefore the devotee’s destiny is the transcendental spiritual sky.)

And if you hear vague traces of skipping reels of rhyme,
To your tambourine in time,
It’s just a ragged clown behind,
I wouldn’t pay it any mind,
It’s just a shadow you’re seeing that he’s chasing.

As a proper disciple, the poet describes himself in humble terms as a ragged clown following the Guru. He admits that he has been chasing the non-real or shadowy world of illusion thinking that is has some permanent substance.

Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to.
Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
In the jingle jangle morning I’ll come following you.

And take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind,

Samsara, like a ring of smoke, is an endless but illusory cycle. And although it is called an illusory cycle it is also very real for it encompasses endless birth and death here in this material world. One remains trapped in this smoke ring of samsara eternally even though life here is but mere smoke and mirrors. As smoke is to the fire or shadow is to light, so are the smoke rings of Maya to the fire of Krishna consciousness. Therefore, here poet alludes to the real conundrum at hand, that of escaping from samsara—which is only possible through the grace of Shri Guru.

Down the foggy ruins of time,
Far past the frozen leaves,
The haunted frightened trees,
Out to the windy beach,
Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow.

These are more poetic descriptions of the world of samsara from which we must extricate ourselves in this lifetime. Since the spiritual kingdom of Lord Krishna is replete with sat-chit-ananda, it is “far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow.” And indeed it is very true that feeling constant sorrow is crazy when the eternal nature of the soul is actually blissful.

Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky

Looking beyond this world to the eternally effulgent “diamond sky” of Vaikuntha.

With one hand waving free,

Dancing in kirtan, the other playing the tambourine or drum …

Silhouetted by the sea,

Shrila Prabhupada brought Shri Jagannatha Rathayatra to the West by taking the Deities of Shri Shri Jagannatha-Baladeva-Subhadra to Ocean Beach in San Francisco where They could watch the waters of the Pacific.

Circled by the circus sands,

The poet is on the beach, but he is comparing the sands of the beach to a circus, as though the world is a circus of mere sands, always something happening, but never very significant in its constant rounds. Circus also means circle, the vortex of samsara of circling life and death. It is a meaningless whirligig of a staged show, one that is repeated ad infinitum as sands pour through the hourglass of samsara.

With all memory of fate,
Driven deep beneath the waves.

Here Dylan speaks of disassociating himself from past karmas. Let past karmas here in the world of meaningless names drown in the whirlpool of samsara.

Let me forget about today until tomorrow.

I shall submerge myself in the Holy Names of the Lord for now under the spell of your tambourine. But then I will also be realistic about my position and vow to face my own flaws and karmic dilemmas honestly.

Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to.
Hey, Mr. Tambourine man, play a song for me,
In the jingle jangle morning I’ll come following you.

Vaisesika Prabhu distributing the Bhagavad-gita in Toronto Canada

By Mahasundari Madhavi Devi Dasi

The 10% Increase

In 1969, while visiting ISKCON Press, the forerunner of the BBT, Srila Prabhupada said, “This is the heart of ISKCON.”

A devotee said, “You are the heart of ISKCON, Prabhupada.” Srila Prabhupada replied, “And this is my heart.”

In addition to the over-arching benefit of educating people in spiritual topics, Srila Prabhupada wanted ISKCON to fund many projects through book distribution. Many ISKCON Flagship temples and projects have been supported primarily through book distribution income. Today, the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) continues to support important ISKCON projects, including the upcoming Temple of the Vedic Planetarium (TOVP) in Mayapur, India, of which, North American BBT remains the biggest contributor among all the BBT’s worldwide branches.

Since the last five years, book distribution in North America has been on a steady increase. In 2012, under the encouragement and guidance of H.G. Vaisesika Prabhu, temple presidents and leaders assembled Team North America (continent wide team with one goal). In 2012, Team North America set a goal of 20% increase in the dollars remitted to BBT versus prior year; in 2013 another 20% increase on top of that, and in 2014 and 2015 each, additional 10% increase. The results were astounding – remittances more than doubled, implying an average annual growth of 18% over the last 5 years! This unprecedented and steady increase in book distribution has created new waves of enthusiasm in several centres across North America.

For 2016, at the Temple Presidents meeting, another 10% increase has been ratified for Team North America. In addition, the Temple leaders also agreed for at least 10% increase annually for the next 10 years. These goals promise to strengthen the North American BBT, as well the broader community of ISKCON devotees in North America and beyond.

Traditionally, book distribution in North America picks up towards the end of the year during Srila Prabhupada Book Marathon. But if all North American Centres start early on their book distribution plans and innovations, they can fulfill, and even exceed their goals to increase the BBT remittance. With a little more push – early on – Team North America’s success is guaranteed.

So join early, there is room for everyone to contribute. In Lord Caitanya’s movement, everyone matters, every bit counts! There are several resources you can tap into. If your centre is not already represented at the NASLT (read below), we encourage you to nominate your sankirtan leaders to join this group to have access to resources and innovations from across North America.

NASLT

NASLT is the group of Sankirtan Leaders from across North America. We meet at least once a month through conference calls to share best practices and innovations and to brainstorm ways to collectively enhance sankirtan for Team North America. We also organize training webinars for book distribution techniques. Our key priorities are: Collaboration, Sankirtan Training and BBT Services, and our current focus projects include bridge books and digital migration. To join the group, please email shyamamohini.bcs@gmail.com.

Morning SB class 11july 2015 vrindavan English

Lecture by HG Anuttama Prabhu at ISKCON Mayapur ON 2016-03-12

Reading from Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 7. Chapter 2, Hiranyakashipu, the king of the demons, verse-14:

SB:7.2.14

TEXT 14

pura-grāma-vrajodyāna-

kṣetrārāmāśramākarān

kheṭa-kharvaṭa-ghoṣāṁś ca

dadahuḥ pattanāni ca

TRANSLATION

The demons set fire to the cities, villages, pasturing grounds, Cowpens, gardens, agricultural fields and natural forests. They burned the hermitages of the saintly persons, the important mines that produced valuable metals, the residential quarters of the agriculturalists, the mountain villages, and the villages of the cow protectors, the cowherd men. They also burned the government capitals.

PURPORT

The word udyāna refers to places where trees are especially grown to produce fruits and flowers, which are most important for human civilization. Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (9.26):

patraṁpuṣpaṁphalaṁtoyaṁ
yo me bhaktyāprayacchati
tadahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam
aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ

“If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it.” Fruits and flowers are very much pleasing to the Lord. If one wants to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he can simply offer fruits and flowers, and the Lord will be pleased to accept them. Our only duty is to please the Supreme Godhead (saṁsiddhir hari–toṣaṇam [SB 1.2.13]). Whatever we do and whatever our occupation, our main purpose should be to please the Supreme Lord. All the paraphernalia mentioned in this verse is especially meant for the satisfaction of the Lord, not the satisfaction of one’s senses. The government—indeed, the entire society—should be structured in such a way that everyone can be trained to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But unfortunately, especially in this age, nateviduḥ svārtha-gatiṁhiviṣṇum: [SB 7.5.31] people do not know that the highest goal of human life is to please Lord Viṣṇu. On the contrary, like demons, they simply plan to kill Viṣṇu and be happy by sense gratification.

LECTURE:

So here we are reading that under the instruction of Hiranyakashipu, his demoniac associates went to earth to create chaos and destruction as goal. They are burning everything, villages, capitals, government heads etc. So the question should be asked here is why why would anybody want to do these things? Well at the bottom and underneath that, they are thinking that if they can destroy Vishnu, if they can destroy the devas, if they can destroy the pilgrimage sites, if they can destroy the process of yajna, disrupt the whole systems that are there. They want to disrupt the whole system, disrupt the varnashram, disrupt the devas and thus they would be able to take charge of what’s going on and they can exploit the world and enjoy it for their own satisfaction. So first destroy everything and then we can use it for our own selfish purposes. In other words as often it’s done but not such dramatic ways, they simply trying to increase their own separate enjoyment of the world. That’s their goal and they are rather powerful demons and so they are doing in a rather powerful expressive ways but but the underlying principle is the demonic mentality.

So Prabhupada explains here, in so many different purports, this is a difference between a demoniac mentality and a devotional one. The devotee of the Lord is the one who is gradually walking awakened in our understanding of who we are and what our actual identity is. We are trying to use everything for the Lord, the devotionally inclined person uses everything for the Lord and the demoniacally inclined person uses everything for their self. Overcome by the lowermost of nature, ignorance, of course, lots of passion thrown in and it’s described in the Shastra actually unknowingly they are acting against themselves and acting against others. They are thinking. Actually I’m going to control everything and enjoy it like crazy, but actually they are only harming themselves and only harming others.

What’s particularly interesting in this series of verses and key verses is that Hiranyakashipu who we understand is the greatest of the demoniac kings and the greatest example of the demoniac mentality. A few verses forward this, he is going to recite some wonderful philosophy to his mother, sister-in-law and nephews all who are lamenting over the death of Hiranyaksha. So let’s just listen to what he says just couple of verses here text 20, 21, 22. “My dear mother, the restaurant or place for drinking cold water, many travellers are brought together and after drinking water they continue with their respective destination. Similarly, living entities joined together in a family and later as a result to their own actions they are let apart to their destinations. This is Hiranyakashipu. The spirit soul, the living entity has no death, for he is eternal, being free from material contamination, he can go anywhere in the material or spiritual worlds. He is fully aware and completely different from the material body. But because of being misled by the misuse of his slight independence, he is obliged to accept subtle and gross bodies created by the material energy, and thus to be subjected to the so called material happiness and distress. Therefore no one shouldn’t lament for the passing of the spirits soul from the body. So that’s Hiranyakashipu. Rather strange, and private comments in the purport to that verse is that, the demons also have knowledge. Not necessarily completely ignorant but they misuse their knowledge.

We also know that Hiranyakashipu of course he was great devotee. Jay and Vijay were unfortunately forced to come into this world and act as demons. So the lines are little blurred. Demoniac, devotional, good guys, bad guys, use the world offer the world, it is not that you draw a line in the sand and you can make this demarcation. It is not clear, so why is it like that? We tend to see thing like that, I’m a devotee and that’s a demon or sometimes it’s even more direct I’m a devotee and you are a demon. Sometimes we think like that but the lines are blurred why? Ultimately because the real fact is, what was the real fact? Everybody is a devotee. Every living entity is a devotee of Krishna, but in this world everyone is forgotten about Krishna.

“Mamai vamsa Jiva loke Jiva bhuta sanatana

Manasastrani indriayani prakriti stani karshati”

They are all parts and parcels of Krishna. But we are forgetful, we are covered over by ignorance to one degree or the other. Therefore the Lord says in Bhagavad Gita,

“Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata”

He comes again and again, again and again and again and again, and again and again, to teach as much as people can possibly understand at that particular time, how to reawaken their knowledge of Krishna. So it is not so much demoniac and devotional. It is the spectrum really demoniac and barely awake in devotion and everything in between is a spectrum, there is a spectrum.

Srila Prabhupada explains in his purport to these verses in the fourth chapter about Krishna coming again and again. That the mission, mission of these, the Lords mission is the same and the mission of his different representatives and the mission of different spiritual teachers, it’s is all same. It is all for gradually bringing people back to God consciousness and therefore we see that there is so many different religious traditions in the world. And as devotees, Prabhupada instructs we should appreciate any process that bringing people gradually to a spiritual awakening. Again we tend to see we are good and they are bad, we are better etc.

I have one story and wanted to share. I have a friend, he is a professor who is a Muslim man and he is older. He may be in his seventies. He went and heard Prabhupada speak at Harvard University, whenever Prabhupada was there in early 69 or 70’s something like that in the early days, he just happened to walking through the hall of the divinity college and he saw someone in saffron. Being from India he knew saffron was not something you ordinarily see in the Harvard campus. So, he went to hear Prabhupada and two things he said came out which convinced is that there is great spiritual truth in every tradition. Because he was Muslim and he came and heard this Vaishnava saint speak, he was so impressed. So I knew this story for years and recently I was with him again. I asked I said, tell me that story again about your time with Prabhupada. So he told me the story again. At the end he said, you know something funny?, he said I’m a muslim he said whenever I’m in trouble and whenever there is a problem I think of him. He said I’m a muslim and you think I would think of something in Islam, but I don’t, I think of him. He started to cry and then it went like that, I can’t talk about any more.

So he is not over particular tradition, he doesn’t read our scripture, he appreciates our scripture. This particular man is vegetarian you know he talked to Hare Krishna, very wise person. But he is a Muslim. But he is appreciating the devotee, the Lord, the pure devotee of the Lord, he is appreciating the Krishna Conscious practice.

So we are very fortunate, we are sitting here in Mayapur with the lotus feet of Panchatattva & Shri Radha Madhava, we are so fortunate to have this opportunity to take shelter at the movement of Lord Chaitanya and to take shelter of Srila Prabhupada. We know Prabhupada describes again and again, that Krishna Consciousness is the best process we know that it is the best process. But within the word best what else is there? By definition?, if there is best what does it mean? There is others that also are good. This is the best among many, so when we say best we are very very fortunate to have this.

I was listening to a lecture just recently, Srila Prabhupada, he said this many many times is that it doesn’t really matter what religious system you are following. It doesn’t matter, Christian, Hindu, Muslim he said the question is are you awakening the love of God? That is the question, that’s what really matters, that’s what really matters. So we sit here as humble members and servants of ISKCON and Srila Prabhupada and the Vaishnavas. It is our 50^th anniversary as society, so we should be asking ourselves. Just like we just finished a leadership and management course, one of the principles is accountability, to be measuring things. Prabhupada also pushed us that we should be measuring things. So that we should ask ourselves individually and collectively, am I developing the love of God? How am I doing? It’s not enough that we simply think I’m wearing thilak, you know I have the classic 2 paisa thread. I have those best times passing whatever hair is left there is little shikha still there? That’s not actually the test. Those are nice things the external things are good, it’s a culture that helps us cultivate something.

Culture means you are cultivating something, just like you cultivate crops, we are cultivating God consciousness, cultivating the love of God. We have to be asking ourselves, Am I actually developing, awakening love of God? Along with that, prior to that, we have to ask ourselves, Who am I?, and are we losing our sense of pride and our sense of false ego? What separates the demons here from devotees?

Hiranyakashipu is full of spiritual knowledge and nobody’s quoting me in the Bhagavatam, that Anuttama said some greatest philosophical truth. But Hiranyakashipu spoke some great spiritual truth and Prabhupada comments in the purport, this is the deep spiritual knowledge. So he had that knowledge but he misused it. He didn’t really understand it, because of his pride, because of his false sense of who he was.

Just like we are here in Mayapur and we are building here, by Krishna’s grace. We are building this beautiful temple, glorious temple and we have to ask ourselves what’s our mentality towards the temple. Just like we have to ask ourselves, what’s our mentality towards our life, and towards our time, and towards our very being? What’s the mentality towards others? So if we think it’s a beautiful temple, but we should ask who is it for? We should ask ourselves who is it for? Who do I think it is for? We should ask ourselves, who gets the credit? Who gets the credit? Because if we think, I am building this temple or I am the donor, I have 1 paisa or I gave 1 dollar, or I gave whatever, a Radharani coin or I don’t know the other coins. It is beyond my capacity so I didn’t look so close. Radharani coin, Krishna coin, Chaitanya coin or whatever it is, if I give that then actually it’s an illusion. It is a bit of demoniac mentality.

It is the spectrum so we have to be careful because we know actually, Krishna is the doer and if I gave some money, whose money was it? How did I get it? May be my father or mother gave it to me. So who determined my father and my mother? Did I arrange that? I can’t take credit for that. May be I got good grades and got a good job. So who gave me the brain? Did I go to the store, pick out the best brain and made the best decision and therefore I am reaping the rewards of my good decision? No, May be some karma in the past. Who allowed those laws to work? Who allowed ultimately gave him that opportunity? Krishna. So if we are thinking, that for example, this temple is for us look what we have, look what we are doing.

Just say someone is here to talk about this biggest temple in the world, well! How many worlds are there? Even Lord Brahma was humble he created the whole universe. So may be we create one temple, of course it is not finished and ultimately Krishna, He can let it finish if He likes or not let us finish. The worlds full of unfinished buildings and empty buildings and buildings that were once great but then died.

The world is full of and our movement been full of fair share of great devotees who once rose but then spiritually died. It’s a battle, it’s a battle with maya and it is mostly the battle with ourselves. So if we are thinking that this temple is for us, and look what we have done and we are so good, here we are, out in the rice fields of Mayapur and if you really really know where you are going and if you really really really can’t tolerate the taxi driver, you find your way here. We build the temple, it’s a glorious temple there is no doubt. It’s an effort to fulfil the mission of great acharyas. But the point is if we start thinking that it’s for us, and not understanding who it is really for, then we are sliding into the materialistic or according to this analysis here demoniac mentality. Certainly it’s for Panchattava, certainly it’s for Radha Madhava, but even more than that who is that for, it’s for people.

You know the wonderful story Prabhupada was sitting in Bhajan kutir near the gate. He said this place is in the mode of goodness, its perfect place for Krishna Consciousness. Why we building just even the first building the lotus building, a little tiny building, that’s in the mode of passion. Why are we building it, because who will come to this hut? So why did he build the lotus building for the people, why we built in the temple for the people? The mass of people, which people? Not so much for us, it is really for the forgetful people. For who did Lord Chaitanya come for, who did Prabhupada come for? Did they come to save the brahmins? Was that their mission, save the Brahmins? No, that wasn’t a mission, the mission was to save the most fallen. If we are their servants we have to think who are we trying to save? To who our life is supposed to be dedicated for? So this temple, this temple, that temple, Mayapur itself, we should not be thinking, it’s not just like Hiranyakashipu is thinking, the world is for me, it’s all for me. I have a little bit of knowledge to convince it’s all for me. My people is special, my tribe is special, my race is special, my colour is special my position is special but if we are actually understanding that we are servants, beginning to awaken the love of God, the first principle is that we are servants, servants of this place. Our job is to facilitate others.

Srila Prabhupada structured the society in such a way, systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society at large, that’s our mission to systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to the society at large. So we are beginning to awaken our love of God, beginning to awaken love for Srila Prabhupada, beginning to love this mission, beginning to love our gurus. Then we should see how much are we excited to bring others to the Lord, how much we are thinking about how can we make this place heaven? How can Mayapur be heaven on earth? They say Juhu is heaven on earth, right? So how can it be heaven on earth, not for us but for the others. Heaven on earth is not supposed to be for us but we are supposed to be in service of others who can come here and become Krishna Conscious. Of course we also come here.

Srila Prabhupada says the servant enjoys like in the same level as king. But as soon as the servant starts thinking, I’m enjoying on the level of the king then he is in trouble. So it is our 50^th anniversary so many people are coming here, so many more people will be coming here to see the temple, to see this beautiful place, Mayapur.

It is described even in this verse, we read that people they are going to come and see even how do we treat the trees here. It says the word “Ujana” refers to the place where trees are specially grown to produce fruits and flowers which are most important for human civilization. So we think this place for us but not for the trees, then it is that the demoniac mentality, that we think this place is for us, but it’s not for the local people, then that’s a demoniac mentality. If we think this place is for us, however we define that, but it is not for the foreign people that is a demoniac mentality. If we think this place is for us for not for the high class people, they are too puffed up, then that’s the demoniac mentality. If we think this place for us but not for the low class people, look at these people they are so poor etc. like that then it’s a demoniac mentality. If we think I’m the servant of Sri Panchattava, Sri Radha Madhava and look at all of these devotees, some of them leaving their “beedies”, just outside the gate and what else they might be carrying in their hearts and in their minds. Krishna doesn’t see like that, Krishna doesn’t see this one is a demon, this one is a devotee. Where does it say in the sastra that is the way the deities see? He sees everyone who is coming as his devotee He is accepting their service. So not just here but everywhere around the world.

An important message for us it’s our 50^th anniversary week, we got a foothold, we have a foothold in the world we have made some progress. We have got a few temples level of six hundred and fifty temples and astonishing five hundred and sixteen million books that’s amazing so amazing number of books, but how many people in the world? 8 billion, 7 billion? So we have one out of 14 have gotten a book. It is a good start but it is time to quit? One out of the fourteen should we say OK it’s all done? How many languages now? 80, 90 languages? 80 or 90 languages and they estimate who knows there could be some more hidden in some forest or some place. But something like six thousand languages, ok so 80 or 90 it’s a good start but five thousand nine hundred and ten to go? So we start thinking Oh! 90 languages, Oh over 500 million books, oh! Six hundred temples then we are forgetting what our position is, because we start thinking we are the enjoyers of our success and we don’t want to do that because we can’t really help people. So when people visit temples, when people visit they should genuinely feel and it’s not a cheap thing. We have to actually develop this mentality.

Mukunda Maharaj writes when he first met Srila Prabhupada, I think it’s told in Lilamrita too. When he first met Prabhupada, he was amazed how he felt how Prabhupada really wanted to give him some time. He actually cared for him. He felt that it is may be for the first time in his life somebody actually cared and wanted to spend their time with him. Because of that, Srila Prabhupada’s mood, Krishna Consciousness is spread all over the world.

We have to measure ourselves, when we read these verses about demons set fire to the villages. You know it’s so easy to think, “Ya, those bad demons, good thing l’m not one of them”. But we should think where have I set fire, how many fires have I set for the last 24 hours? How many people I have discouraged in last 24 hours, how many people I could have encouraged and I didn’t encourage in the last 24 hours. How many seeds of ill-will little small tones I have spoken have set fire in people’s hearts? Where are we on the spectrum? Where did I allow myself to be on the spectrum, yesterday? Am I determined to be more on the devotional side today? Because we know we are conditioned souls we are affected by the things in this world. But people are looking to us and the Lord is looking to us and our Guru parampara is looking to us to carry the light, carry the banner.

It is the 50^th anniversary. People are coming and they want to see do you care about me? You say your movement is all about God but if you love God then what do you think about me? You know Christians don’t have a corner on compassion. They are really good at promoting it and they understand that quality of God. They have some deep realization about the quality of God, how much have we understood that? How much we demonstrating that to people? How is it possible for us to do so? How can we actually care for people? Well, because we know we have this knowledge that every living being is a part and parcel of Krishna and Krishna wants him back is such a beautiful understanding of God.

You know, He is so kind. You know the Lord is standing on the deity form, I know He is kind. Because I was a pujari for a short period of time. I poked him more pins that you can’t count. He did stayed there the next day, He didn’t leave. So many offenses we all commit and still He stays there tolerates us. We know he is so kind, He wants people back.

The way we please Krishna is to help others awaken their love for Him and give others an opportunity to serve Him and to serve them in a humble mood. We think that it’s not my land, we may have a house here, we may have an apartment complex here, we may have a hut, and it’s not mine. Especially in the mind, it’s not mine it belongs to Krishna. It belongs to the Lord.

We should think how can I share it? I have been given this mercy to come here how can I share what I have? Just as we know so many book distributors come here and book distributors are so fortunate because day and night they are thinking how I can share with more devotees, with people who have forgotten Krishna. But all of us should think like that. How can I share what I have with the tourist with the pilgrims with the ladies, Brahmachari, Sanyasi, Grahasta Prabhus. How can I share it with the ladies, how can I move out of the way? Lord Chaitanya stood in one place an old woman stood on His shoulders to see the deity. Was that just some insignificant pastime like Krishna’s pastime don’t mean anything? Everything else is important but that one doesn’t count. God himself as a sanyasi allowed a woman to step on His shoulders but we are going to be so pakka in our separation? You know ladies, but no ,they are mothers what do we do to facilitate spiritual advancement for our mothers? What do we do to make sure every tourist here feels affection feels appreciated these are practical things, we can say I love God. But where is the practical manifestation.

We love God, then we have to show it in our dealings with others especially people that are just beginning their path, we should think if we are beginning to awaken the love of God sometimes I think, You have got few years before this temple opens and when this temple opens the world is going to look they are going to give us about 30 seconds and within 30 seconds, may be one front-page story in the newspaper, one or two TV show. I have said this before they are going to walk across the street and they are going to ask the first rickshaw wallah they meet, “Is your life better because of that temple?”. If he says No, that’s the story, as your humble servant in communications. He is going to talk to workers and he is going to say are you better off than the guy across the street working for somebody who sells whatever popcorn or liquor. May be there is probably liquor shop some place, that the guy that owns a liquor shop treating his workers better than the Hare Krishna temple. What they say, I love God but I don’t care for His parts and parcel. I love god, and I love all the people who look like me. If you have a hair like this then I love you, different hairstyle, No Thank You. If you wear a tilak like this then it is very good, if you wear tilak like that I don’t. You wear hair up here then you are a good guy if you wear hair over here I don’t know. That’s because Hiranyakashipu, even he is teaching against that.

So we have some challenges, we have fantastic opportunity but part of the problem if you could take shelter of the pure devotee of the Lord you are supposed to become a pure devotee of the Lord. You know if you take shelter of a second class volley ball coach, if you learned to play volley ball second class grade, great, you did good. But if we take shelter of the pure devotee of the Lord, we are supposed to become pure devotees of the Lord. Not just become, but we are supposed to pass it on to others and to do so it’s Krishna Conscious to see Krishna in everything. So if we fail to do so, if we fail to see Krishna in everything, if we fail to see ourselves as servants, if we fail to see our duty to simply help others come to Krishna where there is service here? We are not the owners of the property. With the service we are meant to bring others, so many people are coming to the Lord, let me help them come. If we failed to do that and if we don’t try that, we risk being little Hiranyakashipus.

Hiranyakashipu had spiritual knowledge but he misused it. If we have spiritual knowledge and if we misuse it, you know where to lie on the spectrum. so we have to be careful. We, especially me, have to be careful. We have knowledge, we may have knowledge but we may have demoniac heart. That’s the challenge. We won’t necessarily be pleasing Srila Prabhupada. We may think that we are devotees, but like we are reading here, it’s a little blurred, then our progress will be slowed. How to we correct that is quite simple. We have to remember that we are servants and as we know here we are the at the feet of Lord Chaitanaya who is so kind he came in the mood of a servant to show the dumb people of this ag. How lucky we are to be servants? God Himself comes and do what he is telling us to do and we don’t want to do it. He comes and relishes the highest spiritual ecstasy in that mood. He comes to the lowest people and says, No you follow my footsteps. Prabhupada says to become a servant, go to the top of the class. So being servants and appreciating whatever we do have is a gift of Krishna it’s not mine, it’s a gift of Krishna. Know the Sun comes up as it’s a gift of Krishna. The fresh air Prabhupada mentions in some of these verses the fresh air is a gift of Krishna. Vaishnava sanga is the gift of Krishna.The fact is that some pilgrim comes and somehow wanders to the front with their little paisa, piece of cloth, puts it in the box, that’s the gift to us from Krishna. How this woman or this man you know walked 10 kilometres, 20 kilometres, some of these people walked and travelled three days just to come and put their paisa in the box, that’s a gift from Krishna to show me the mood I should try to be developing.

So remember we have service to see that everything is a gift and do everything we possibly can. We are conditioned and it’s difficult but try to share whatever we have. That’s Prabhupada’s mood, he struggled and he suffered, he suffered two heart attack, he suffered the cold, he suffered on the bowery. He took so much austerity just to try to help us, each other and every one of us and he said if you love me, we will try to repay our debt to him to preach like he has done to us in a humble mood.

Just please somehow attract others to Krishna, try to demonstrate our service to others and try to give everyone an opportunity to come and take shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Chaitanya, here or in Moscow or in Los Angeles or wherever we are. If we do that then we are fulfilling this definition of Vaishnava. Then 50^th anniversary of ISKCON is not just the celebration of what’s been done, but will be a celebration of wonderful great things to come in our generation and many many generations to come.

So thank you very much for your kind attention, I’ll end there. Srila Prabhupada Ki Jay!

Anuttama Prabhu: So can I take a question or two or not? Its 8:45, did it finish Pakka? Questions are Ok? Ok, the book minister, I’m the communication minster. In the hierarchy of ministers I am at the feet of the book distribution ministry. So I will take his order any questions or comments. Apurva prabhu, I know there is no Mic so I just repeat it.

Devotee: I’m remembering the pastime of Srila Prabhupada going on a morning walk in Mayapur one devotee told me. He wasn’t on the walk, he heard it later Prabhupada was mentioning somehow the conversation came up that Prabhupada has done so much. Prabhupada didn’t boast it but said yes, I have done this, I have done ten times more than my spiritual master, so you should do 10, 20 times more than me. Can you please unpack that for us?

Anuttama Prabhu: Well, so many people here could comment on that. I’ll just try to say that, Prabhupada said that many times he said that the desire of a spiritual master is to see the devotees, not just chanting and dancing but preaching, so that’s one. He also said that by the mercy of the spiritual master one can actually surpasses. He was explaining the spiritual master in this sense, that by His grace he can use us as an instrument. Again we are not the doer but he can use you as an instrument and he can achieve more things through us than to seem like he achieved. Of course none of us are ever going to surpass Prabhupada, that’s not possible but it’s the order of the spiritual master that we shouldn’t be too humble and think Oh what can I do. You know it’s a nice expression they say, “we should act as if everything dependent upon us and we should pray and meditate knowing that everything depends upon Krishna” that we give our full endeavour but maintain that humility and we see like that beautiful prayer, Markandeya Bhagavad Darshan, Prabhupada wrote to him in Boston Harbour it was such a beautiful prayer. Sirla Prabhupada is just so much struggling just on the cusp of you know, maybe been assuring came back on the ship but he’s about to disembark for good. He was just in the mood of utter helplessness, “I don’t know why you brought me here the people are covered by the modes of ignorance and passion but now if you want you can make my words understandable”, he says it again and again and again. “Now if you want you can make me your instrument”, so we should pray the same way, Thank you for the nice remembrance of Srila Prabhupada.

Anuttama Prabhu: Any questions from the ladies? You are little harder to hear can you come closer

Devotee: What’s the main thing Prabhupada wants to show our love to him after he leaves?

Anuttama Prabhu: First we know he emphasized cooperation we know that, why is that so important. We are from everywhere around the world. You know my friend, Baladev Prabhu is from Argentina, Srivas prabhu from West Africa, devotees here from Punjabi Bagh, Florida, New Vrindavan. We have a devotee here, by Krishna’s empowerment carved the deity of Nrsimha dev, he is sitting there. So what a fit that is. Devotees give us so many gifts. So the most important thing is to we have to cooperate the problem is really hard to cooperate, because people just don’t understand that “usually you are right”. Everybody understood “I was right It will be easy to cooperate and unfortunately they are in ignorance and they don’t understand how right I usually am”, obviously I’m making a point (smiling). That the materialistic mentality. So you know cooperate is not hard. Rasa reminded us a beautiful story I think it was in Atlanta. Prabhupada had an important meeting with the book distributors, and we all know how important book distribution is and when the book distributors asked Prabhupada, Prabhupada what is the most important way to please you? What is the most important service? I think ,they were you know, leading a kind of question a little bit and response was when you love Krishna that pleases me the most. But we can’t love Krishna, if we don’t love his parts and parcels. It doesn’t work. But if we want to love Him we have to try to love His parts and parcels. If we are trying to love Him we have to love His parts and parcels. You can’t do that if you don’t love him.

Anuttama Prabhu: There is one comment here, Prabhu where are you from? Nigeria? You know 50 nice devotees that came from Nigeria? You are 51, nice to have you here.

Devotee: I want to first of all say thank you to you. It’s a big introspective class you gave, it was very meticulous in that you raised questions several philosophical questions especially for example the question you raised about the rickshaw wallah and also different principles. We know that if we please Krishna and then everyone become please and also social order. There are laws are karma are in everything we do and we cannot please everyone and if Krishna is pleased everyone become pleased?

Anuttama Prabhu: So therefore I can’t please everybody, so if I please Krishna don’t worry about anybody else we can understand that?

But Krishna says that one who is in knowledge sees with equal vision Brahmana, elephant, cow, dog and dog eater. Those from West think dog eater it means abominable. When you see the dogs here, it’s really abominable, I mean when I get close to one of those lovely creatures, what to speak of eating one right? Dog eater is pretty low. One in knowledge see that person and Brahmana as equal. What is meant by this? Do we treat everybody equal? In one sense yes and in one sense no. Srila Prabhupada says, even a pure devotee doesn’t embrace a tiger, he thinks she is the tiger, but still he is merciful. If you go to the zoo you can still chant Hare Krishna mantra but you don’t jump in the tiger cage. So he sees everyone equal, gives everyone mercy and compassion. So yes, if we love Krishna, we are automatically pleasing everyone, that refers to the people you never run into. What about everybody else you have an exchange with. You are proper brahmachari with tilak, Shika so you walk to the airport and you know buy a bottle of water and you replied to that lady behind the counter and she thinks who is this person, Such a gentlemen, who are you anyway? Oh I’m a Hare Krishna, She says, I should learn more about you people. Or you buy your water and you are thinking you are in Samadhi, how you are going to offer to Krishna so you are rude to that lady, now have you pleased Krishna? You can’t please everybody at the back bottling the water but you can do little service to the lady who is selling you water. There was a class years ago called “Sankirtan Yoga” that book distributors, Sankirtan devotees, see I’m running from Krishna to Krishna to Krishna, that he is in your heart to your heart, to your heart, that everybody we meet. So you are right, we can’t please everybody, so we should try to please Krishna. Part of pleasing Krishna is to give everyone a chance to do service. It doesn’t mean that people who are already chanting 16 rounds, or even become a vegetarian, even come to the temple, why not everyone. Everyone you meet everywhere you, every rickshaw wallah you meet. I don’t know any Bengali but how are you are you having a nice days, how’s your kids? You ever bring them to the temple? Can I give you some prasadam? Why not? Are we too good to give a rickshaw wallah prasadam? To the bus driver say, thank you. “I’m a Big big Brahmin, you are lucky to have served me to driving this bus, you are fortunate, now your life is like this perfect and purified, you served the Vaishnava,” if we think like that he didn’t get much credit as I’m not much of a Vaishnava, and instead we should say, Thank you sir for helping me I’m going to work, I’m going to pick up my children go to temple. I’m so grateful you helped me. If we think like that he’s going to think, well, what kind of people are these? I’ve been driving bus for 30 years and nobody appreciated what I’m doing. Well, I guess they are all thinking about their sense gratification, you just an object I need to drive into work so I can make money for me, the world’s all about me. You are one more object. Devotees think you know everything is for Krishna you helped me for Krishna , thank you for this ride. Ok?. I’ll stop here thank you very much. Srila Prabhupada ki Jai! Sri Sri Panchattava Ki Jay Sri Sri Radha Madhava ki Jay.

By Nitya Kishor Dasi

Early in the morning we left the beautiful Pratapnagar towards the Ganges shore (only 2 km walk). We boarded the boats and ship to Sankarpur. You can’t imagine how it is to get all these boats on the right time and cross the Ganga with more than one thousand people. How much managerial work is necessary to get these things done? To be honest with you there is no such thing as Boat Company here and the boats need to be hired individually, what takes a lot of time, patient and work.

Before leaving we offered respects with folded hands to the dhamvasis who were bathing in the Ganges and all the women started the auspicious uludhuani (the loudly sound like a conch shell that we only hear in Bengal), and we felt blessed by them.

After reaching the other side of the Ganges we came to a place called Sankarpur, in the island of Rudradvipa. In Sankarpura, the famous Sripad Sankaracarya had darshan of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The Lord told him “… this is my own place and I don’t want you to preach Mayavada philosophy here.. Please move on..” In this way Lord Gauranga freed Sri Navadvipa Dhama from Mayavada philosophy.

After hearing this pastime from HH Bhakti Vigna Vinas Narasimha swami we headed to Rukumpur. How beautiful is Navadvipa Dhama landscape! And you can’t see this kind of green color anywhere in India. The devotees had an amazing morning walk before reaching Rukumpur for breakfast. HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj joined us in Rukumpur, for many years he was trying to organize the Parikrama in such way that we could visit this place.

After breakfast our party moved again towards Belpukur. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s mother, Sachi mata was living there with her parents. His famous father Nilambara Cakravarti was worshipping the deity of Madana Gopal; the beautiful deity is still in this place. We came here years ago and the deity had a very small temple with muddy courtyard. In this time the local authorities constructed a very nice courtyard with marble floor. The devotees from international group had an ecstatic Sandhya Arati and the Mayapur Sankirtan devotees distributed 300 Bhagavad Gitas again, for the happiness of the villagers, as they are doing every evening during Parikrama.

The evening class will be given by HH Bhakti Vigna Vinas Narasimha Swami, he is such a good speaker and his classes inspire everyone.

Tomorrow will be our last day Parikrama and we will have a special program in Jagannath Temple, in the island of Simantadvipa.

For further information about Navadvipa Dham please go to: www.navadvipaparikrama.com

Like Father, Like Son (8 min video)
Indradyumna Swami: Several days ago, here in Sridham Mayapura, we gave sannyasa to my disciple, Uttama Sloka dasa. He became Bhakti Rasayana Sagara Maharaja. Ananta Vrindavan dasa followed the ceremony from start to finish and produced this lovely video.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/y998Lz

March 17. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Disappointment from India.
On February 8, Srila Prabhupada had written to India’s new Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, requesting her to sanction the release of money from India. A reply, dated Feb. 25, New Delhi, came from the Prime Minister’s official secretary, Mr. L. K. Gha:
Dear Swamiji,
The Prime Minister has seen your letter of February 8, 1966. She appreciates the spirit which prompted you to carry the spiritual message of Srimad Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam to other countries. Owing to the critical foreign exchange situation which the country is facing, it is greatly regretted that it will not be possible to assist you from here in your plan to set up a Radha-Krishna temple.
But Prabhupada had other hopes. After writing to the Prime Minister, he had written again to Tirtha Maharaja asking him to request Dr. Radha Krishnan to persuade the government to sanction the release of funds. He waited for one month.
No answer.
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=6

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Disappointment from India

An initiation ceremony in Mayapura through the eye of one of ISKCON’s most famous photographers, Ananta Vrindavan dasa.