Bhakti-vriksha is a congregational development program that utilizes small group structures in order to encourage its members in Krishna consciousness. http://www.iskconcongregation.com/product/bhakti-vriksha-manual/

On 17th January, Artha forum organized its 5th event in Singapore held at Tanglin Club on the back of very successful events in 2013 and 2014. The conference titled “Conscious Leader” was attended by over 120 entrepreneurs, industrialists, corporate leaders and professional in yet another successful event by Artha Forum (a Not for Profit initiative dedicated to bringing relevance of Ancient Wisdom in Modern business). Bhakti Charu Swami was invited to be the keynote speaker for the event. Esteem corporate leaders from Singapore shared the dias including Vikram Rao of Crayon Data, Dr. Charles Chow – Founder and MD of East West Group, Subba Vidyanathan – MD and Regional Head of Retail Banking at SCB, Sumita Ambasata – Founder of Flowering Tree Inc. and Gowthaman Ragothaman – COO at Mindshare Asia Pacific & Global Client Lead at WPP. Other eminent business leaders present during the event were Jayesh Parekh Co-Founder of Sony Entertainment Television, Anurag Srivastava of Jungle Ventures, Chandrasekhar Pingali – Managing Director at I Cube Consortium Limited and Sanjiv Aiyar – President PAN IIM Alumni.

The event started off with the extremely insightful panel discussion where the panelist fielded relevant questions on how they practically implement Conscious leadership in their respective spheres of work. Gowthaman shared that Conscious leadership should not be left to interpretation. One has to lead by example every day, every moment so that everyone can look up at you and know what is right and ethical and what isn’t.

Dr. Chow gave a very interesting analogy of how potato, egg, coffee and frog behave differently under boiling water. They either turn soft in case of potato, hard in case of egg, grind and spread aroma in case of coffee or just adopt to boiling water in case of frog. So as a leader we need to think what we and people around us want to become given the situation.

Having been leader in Human Resource, Sumita brought out a very important point of integration of inner and outer development of an individual. She mentioned that its inner development that drives outer development; and all this starts with patient, listening and understanding the motivation that drives the individual. Corporate leaders should not be looking at individuals as resources and numbers. Subba shared his experience of having self care and to be resilient from perspective of physical, mental and emotional and to be grounded by spirituality.

Bhakti Charu Maharaj started of his keynote talk by defining Conscious Leadership as the leader who has to become conscious of their position of leading and guiding others. He mentioned that leader needs to have three qualities, which are: to have vision, to know how to motivate the followers and to facilitate. A leader is the position at which you serve and not exploit. But the state of world we see now, the leaders have resorted to exploitation more than service.

Bhakti Charu Maharaj said that we all are leaders with either a large sphere of influence or small, and as a leader we all have to answer the questions of “Where to lead?” He brought home the important message of Bhagvad gita that as a living spiritual being, we are different from matter. We need to understand the science of soul and consider this as important aspect when leading. Briefly describing the sankhaya philosophy, which extensively analyzes the material creation made of 24 elements; he said is “objective” reality which in turn is meant for the subject, which is the soul.

He mentioned that the world is probing deeply in so many other branches but we are hardly probing the science of soul and spirituality. Emphasizing the significance of vedas he said that “The wisdom of vedas are not just the matter of faith. Wisdom of the vedas are scientific probing of different subject both material and spiritual. And though the probing started from material domain but it reaches spiritual domain.”

He concluded saying that “The world today has everything in abundance but there is one acute scarcity – that is the scarcity of spiritual understanding. The scarcity of consciousness. So take this responsibility. The books are available. So take this opportunity in order to benefit yourself and in order to benefit world around you.”

The keynote talk was followed by an hour of Q&A session where both Bhakti Charu Swami and the panelist fielded interesting lineup of questions from audience which was very thoughtful and full of inquisitiveness of how to apply spirituality in one’s own life.

Picture Gallery

Recently, Ambarisa prabhu, together with the other TOVP managers, went all around the TOVP, discussing plans to be executed in the year 2016. They talked about all the different procedures and areas where work will begin, and viewed all the great achievements from 2015.

Ambarisa was very pleased with the progress of the construction and the finishing work elements like the sandstone cladding, marble work and GRC pillars. He has blessed the TOVP team for a great year ahead in the service of Srila Prabhupada.

[See image gallery at tovp.org]

The post Plans For 2016 appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

There are different incarnations or appearances of Lord Varahadev. Previously the white boar incarnation has been described. The one that is in the Bhagavatam as we receive it is the story about the red incarnation and His fight with the demon Hiranyaksha. So it is an interesting history and one that is very instructive for the devotees because it is a narrative of people feeling sorry. The history is Diti was feeling unusually lusty. She was feeling impelled to the point where she lost control of herself and she approached her husband Kasyapa at an inauspicious time for the purpose of having a child. Of course it is to be noted that it wasn't even though she was feeling lusty her intention was to have a child. So it was for procreative purposes. You could say it was dharmic nevertheless. However it was still at an improper time of the day because it was sunset and that is just when Lord Siva and his ghostly hordes become active. Continue reading "Appearance of Sri Varahadeva
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Meditation Through Sound.
Meditation is an ancient process which helps us connect to our true nature and purify the mind. There are two ways to meditate; either through silent meditation or sound meditation. The struggle with silent meditation is that it might work for some time, but eventually the noisy mind will come back and begin chatting again. The mind’s duty is meant to always think, so you can not stop it’s function. Better to engage the mind in higher consciousness, which can be done through the power of sound mantras.
To read the entire article click here: http://tattvadarsi.com/2016/01/31/meditation-through-sound/

The two brothers went to the village called Mayuresvara, which was the village of Their maternal grand-father. Close to the village there was a jungle. Once, when these two brothers were about to enter that jungle, two villagers debarred Them, “Hey, don’t go to that jungle. There is a very big poisonous snake that devours everyone who goes there. No one returns. Please don’t go.” Nityananda Prabhu did not listen to them and They both entered that jungle. That big poisonous snake was staying under a tamala tree, and as soon as these two brothers entered the jungle it came out, raising his hood and hissing. Nityananda Prabhu was not afraid at all, rather He raised His hand and said, “Eh! Oh, wicked fellow! Dunta, stay there! Stay there! Don’t come forward!” The snake stopped. “Why are you killing and devouring innocent people?” Nityananda Prabhu is Nagaraja, the king of all snakes, Anantadev Naga, so when He told the snake to stop, he stopped. Then He continued and asked, “Why are you doing this?” Then the snake related his history from Dvapara-yuga. Continue reading "Lord Nityananda Trayodasi
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6 Tips for Bhakti-vriksha (3 min video)
Bhakti-vriksha is a congregational development program that utilizes small group structures in order to encourage its members in Krishna consciousness. Here we present six tips for hosting a Bhakti-vriksha program.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/UgfiiW

Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 12, No. 1.
Krishna-kripa das: I share many insights from Srila Prabhupada’s books and lectures. I include a beautiful poem about the holy name by Bhaktivinoda Thakura called Sri Nama Mahatmya. I share an excerpt about the public chanting of the holy name from the daily journal of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami. I include notes on interesting lectures by Amala Bhakti Swami. There are notes on a recorded lecture by Radhanath Swami. Many nice realizations from Madhava Prabhu from New Raman Reti, speaking in Gainesville and Deva Madhava Prabhu, who runs a Krishna House near Ann Arbor, speaking at the Harinam Ashram in New York City. I also include realizations from newer devotees in Gainesville and Jacksonville.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/iSG7EA

February 19. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Meditating on Prabhupada’s Eternal Form.
Usually I favor meditating on Prabhupada as we knew him. As an expression of loyalty, I almost scoff at the possibility of Prabhupada having a form other than how he appeared in the West in 1965. But I know he does. Still, we prefer to think of Prabhupada as we knew him, and anyway, we really can’t know Prabhupada in any other form. At least not now.
Lately, I am coming to understand that it is possible for a disciple to know his eternal relationship with his spiritual master in the spiritual world. It is possible to meditate on that eternal relationship. This no longer seems scandalous to my loyalty if I think like that.
Now I want to pray that the other form is revealed. I cannot imagine it or concoct it, but I hope one day Srila Prabhupada will reveal how I can be with him as he assists Radha-Krishna in the spiritual world. Just as we sing every morning, nikunja-yuno rati-keli-siddhyai. Shri-radhika-madhavayor apara-madhurya-lila-guna-rupa-nammam / prati-kshanasvadana-lolupasya / vande guroh shri-charanaravindam. These two verses are meaningful. I pray that I may one day realize them.
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=5

2016-02-15 Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 07.01.33-34 by HH Krishna Kshetra Swami at ISKCON Mayapur

With ISKCON’s 50^th anniversary year now here, ISKCON devotees all over the world are getting inspired to bring their communities together and celebrate in creative ways. At the temple in Potomac, a suburb of Washington D.C., for example, community members are holding their first 50-hour kirtan.

Meditating on Prabhupada’s Eternal Form

The post Daily Darshan : February 19th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

This is a response to the video "She can become guru" for all those who want to know the arguments from both sides.

Is Guru “as Good as” Śāstra?

If we observe the various spiritual and religious groups in Indian history we see that they can be grouped in two categories: pantha and paramparā. The difference between them is that a pantha is based on the teachings of a guru, but a paramparā is based on the teachings of śāstra – which is disseminated through gurus.

A pantha is based on the teachings of a guru, but a paramparā is based on the teachings of śāstra.

Both have gurus. The difference is that the pantha’s guru is the origin of their philosophy, but in a paramparā the guru is the teacher, preserver, and maintainer of the a specific understanding and interpretation of śāstra established by the founders of the paramparā.

It may seem that pantha gurus are more inventive and innovative than paramparā gurus, but this is not necessarily true. Paramparā gurus are more than preservers or  “refrigerators” of ancient ideas. They must be extremely innovative and inventive to keep the ancient truth of śāstra alive and relevant to modern situations, points of view, advances of information, and so on. Thus, the difference between the pantha and paramparā is not really that one is liberal and inventive while the other is conservative and insular. The real difference is that a pantha does not have full support from the ancient wisdom of Vedic śāstra, while the paramparā does.

The difference between the pantha and paramparā is not really that one is more liberal and inventive than the other. The real difference is that a pantha does not have full support from the ancient wisdom of Vedic śāstra, while the paramparā does.

One might think that gurus are not essential in a paramparā, since anyone can go and read the śāstra for themselves. This is not true. The śāstra is very mysterious and confusing, because it deals with very sophisticated and deep subjects. A paramparā represents a very beautiful, sophisticated, and harmonious interpretation of śāstra resulting from millennia of philosophical and spiritual endeavor by dozens of great persons in previous paramparās. If we start from scratch and read śāstra without the guidance of paramparā gurus, it is extremely unlikely that we would arrive at an understanding with the same depth and broadness.

If we start from scratch and read śāstra without the guidance of paramparā gurus, it is extremely unlikely that we would arrive at an understanding with the same depth and broadness.

Thus, gurus are as essential in a paramparā as they are in a pantha, and they are also as creative and modern. Again, the only real difference is that the pantha guru doesn’t align with the ancient wisdom of śāstra, while the paramparā guru does.

If guru is our ultimate authority, we belong to a pantha. If śāstra is our ultimate authority, we belong to a paramparā.

Members of a pantha and members of a paramparā both consider the words of a guru to be “as good as śāstra,” but they have very different reasons for feeling this way. In a pantha, members feel there is no need for śāstra, because the guru’s word is everything. To them, the guru’s word is “śāstra.” In a paramparā, however, members feel that the guru’s words are “as good as śāstra” because their guru does not say anything that is not clearly and demonstrably supported by śāstra.

In a pantha, members feel there is no need for śāstra, because the guru’s word is everything. To them, the guru’s word is “śāstra.”

Buddha underscores how important the śāstra is to paramparā. All Vaiṣṇava paramparā accept him as an avatāra of Viṣṇu himself, and Śrīmad Bhāgavatam states this explicitly, yet Vaiṣṇavas do not follow do not follow his teachings (except coincidentally, where they  happen to be harmonious with  śāstra), because he rejected the Veda. This demonstrates that paramparā will reject any guru, even an avatāra of Viṣṇu himself, if his or her teachings are not based directly on the śāstra.

Paramparā will reject any guru, even an avatāra of Viṣṇu himself, if his or her teachings are not based directly on the śāstra.

The Buddhist lineage is a pantha, not a paramparā. Guru Nanak’s Sikhism is another, more recent example of a pantha.

Pantha vs. Paramparā, Round One!

So… Which is superior, a pantha or a paramparā?

Common sense suggests that the paramparā is superior – because it more fully avails of all the philosophical and spiritual effort humanity has made over thousands of years, and it much more fully avails itself of the ancient records of wisdom, the Veda.

Of course, Vedic śāstra concurs:

“Knowledge is born from Śāstra.”

— Vedānta Sūtra 1.1.3

“Logic and argument alone cannot conclusively prove or disprove things.”

— Vedānta Sūtra 2.1.11

“Śruti [Śāstra] is the ultimate root of the veracity of all  concepts.”

— Vedānta Sūtra 2.1.27

“The Veda is the only eye through which anyone – human, ancestor, or god – can see the Supreme and come to understand the ultimate objective and means.”

— Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 11.20.4

“Debate cannot determine things that are beyond comprehension.”

— Mahābhārata Bhīṣma.5.22

Paramparā is superior, but it runs the risk of degrading into a pantha if it allows its gurus to reach conclusions that are significantly different from the interpretations of śāstra established by the founders of that paramparā. It also runs the risk of becoming a pantha if it allows its disciples to over-extend the concept that “guru is as good as śāstra,” and thus never take the trouble to understand the guru’s words in context of the śāstric conclusions established by the paramparā founders.

Paramparā runs the risk of degrading into a pantha if it allows its disciples to over-extend the concept that “guru is as good as śāstra,” and thus never take the trouble to understand the guru’s words in context of the śāstric conclusions established by the paramparā founders.

The gurus of a paramparā must guard against this by teaching their disciples the importance of śāstra, and directly teaching the interpretation of śāstra established by the paramparā founders. Not every disciple is intellectually equipped to fully comprehend and represent the paramparā but this does not negate the duty for the guru to find and educate disciples who are. It is also important that gurus dissuade those who are not thoroughly educated or intellectually capable from involving themselves in debates over the conclusions embraced by their paramparā, for this will only ruin those disciples by making them partisan, and thus aparādhic at heart, and will only fill the ether with confusion about the paramparā’s conclusions. This is a particularly urgent concern in the internet age, where anyone at all can find an audience.

Vraja Kishor dās

www.vrajakishor.com

Gita verse-by-verse study Podcast

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The post Gita 09.27 – Bhakti accommodates seekers at multiple levels appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

The other week as I was visiting a group of secondary school student’s as always making sure their was plenty of time for questions; one was a simple question, what two verses of your holy scriptures would you think have the greatest impact on society?

It was a question that took me back, most are superficial questions but this was had a beautiful deepness in it; which two verses for me summed up Krishna Consciousness.

My first verse was this:

harer nama harer nama
harer namaiva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva
nasty eva gatir anyatha
[Cc. Adi 17.21]

“‘In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy, the only means of deliverance is the chanting of the holy names of the Lord. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way.'”

Ref. Madhya 6.242

The second was the Mahamantra:

The Mahamantra was given to Narada by Brahma. Other mantras made by ordinary men are not authorized by the Sastras, so they have only proportionate effect as much as they are authorized or unauthorized. Highest benefit is from the Mahamantra, or Hare Krishna Mantra, because this is said by authorities. You know these things, you are becoming strong yourself by chanting this mantra, so actually it is so. Compare what you were before to what you have become, now challenge any other mantra to produce such effect. You know it, now try to realize it yourself and convince others, that is Krishna Consciousness. Yes, the more one surrenders, the more he is enabled by the Spiritual Master to succeed.

Ref. Letter to: Madhavananda — Tokyo 25 April, 1972

I was sat discussing this during my recent visit to The Manor pondering on my thoughts that in many ways we have missed the power of simple Harinama; each group I visit there is one thing that they like the most and is strongly associated with the devotees.

The street chanting of the Holy Names, many are fascinated by the Rathayatra, indeed we consistently hearing stories of devotees who were first attracted by the harinama party and many in the early days simply followed them to the temple.

The wonderful thing is that not only is this harinama one of the most powerful ways to attract people to Krishna Consciousness but that they can then learn all about Sri Krishna through his books; and one of the first and easiest ways to get into devotional service is by chanting the holy names. From this the kripa of bhakti grows and one can develop the knowledge and find a service one finds attractive, but we should never forget or stop this harinama after all it’s the prescribed prescription for relieving the spirit soul from material entanglement in this age of kali.

And not forgetting we are after all Sri Caitanya Sankirtan Movement, and our Founder Acharia Srila Prabhupad started the whole of ISKCON by simply sitting in a park chanting Hare Krishna, and that the disciples did Harinama along side book distribution; indeed have you noticed how many will take a book when they see the harinama party?
So I remain inspired by harinama and the chanting of the holy names, this simplicity has attracted so many to the devotees, I love rathayatra no matter what the size people are just amazed as they watch Lord Jaganatha how perfect is that?

I’m inspired when hearing about devotees looking at doing more harinama and rathayatra’s travelling from city to town and village, indeed one of our amazing young bhakta’s is raising funds to do just that.

Go Fund Me, Rathayatra Cart

And as I sat discussing my insights on answering this question, one recalled how Srila Prabhupad said that this Krishna Consciousness is so simple we may miss it, and for me the simplicity is found in the power of the holy names, this alone attracts the spirit soul.

It also reminded me I need to get out more doing just this simple harinama along with a little prasadam and book distribution, in this age there is truly no other way.

Harinam Party in St.Kilda Beach, Melbourne, Australia (Album with photos)
The nectar names of Lord Krishna are always new and fresh. Whoever chants them becomes free of the embarrassment of material life. He becomes happy. He becomes liberated even while living in this world.” (Narada Purana)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/f0ADgg

How beautiful our life would have been if every day would be filled with joy and just joy! When in life there would not be any fear of calamity, no fear of betrayal, no fear of losing our loved ones. Life with full of hope, full of happiness and no anxiety and no uncertainty.

GUNDAIPALEM Concludes the Fourth Phase of Yatra.
Among the few villages located at the confluence of a river and ocean is Gundaipalem. The village is constantly resounded by ocean roars and influenced by eight types of breezes from different directions. Beautiful Gundlakamma river flowing from west to east is resplendent due to sun rays from east in the morning and from west in the evening. These are some of the distinct features of this remote village. Though fishing is their main profession, agriculture was also practiced a decade or so ago. Agriculture has mostly been replaced with aqua culture due to which the lands have become saline and unfit for agriculture. The ground water is also polluted due to this. In spite of the degraded soil there are a few farmers determinedly engaged in agriculture from many years. Since last eight years, with the efforts of IDVM volunteers, the number of cows and bulls has increased in the village and also the practice of traditional agriculture has been introduced. There is an old temple of Lord Shiva and another for Lord Sri Rama. Remarkably, the deities of Sita Rama Lakshmana as a single stone block were found in a fishing net some fifty years ago. IDVM has also helped set up a small mud and straw Krishna temple eight years ago along with a Bhaktivedanta library. Surprisingly the temple survived two major floods in this area. There are ten devotee-families who have stopped their fishing profession and have sought alternative occupations. Under the auspices of HH Bhakti Raghava swami, who visits this village at least once almost every year, IDVM started the first Shikshalaya center, an educational program for children as a pre-runner for gurukula in this village. Three students qualified from shikshalaya program and are now getting trained in a gurukula in Chirala. This program is continuing under the supervision of HG Vraj Vrindavan prabhu, an active local devotee. Six Varnashrama camps were also conducted wherein people from city got an experience of an ideal village life. This village is also known for SiddaVaidya–a traditional treatment system coming from Dravidian culture. Legend says that Siddha is one of the oldest medical systems having deep knowledge of all types of diseases. Sixty years ago there was a Sidda maestro by name of Butchaiah, who was known in the whole district for his ability to diagnose diseases simply by seeing into the patient’s eyes.Due to lack of purity and interest in the younger generations this system has totally been wiped out, except for two very old persons practicing this system for one or two skin related ailments. Local devotees welcomed the preaching team with kirtan and subsequently they were served Idly and dosa prasadam as breakfast. Later local villagers arranged a boat ride in the river which went up to the confluence of the river and ocean then further into the ocean. Devotees from Hyderabad comprising of Ramsharan prabhu, Sripati Prabhu,Toshan Krishna prabhu and Haridas prabhu had their first experience of the continuous tides in the ocean. The boat was stationed and everyone swam in the ocean experiencing floating in the void, free of gravity. After returning from the ocean a full course meal with eight to ten traditional preparations was served. The evening program started with a procession consisting of spirited villagers. The nagarsankirtan went through all the main streets of the village. The program was arranged in a big open ground besides the newly built Sri Rama temple. People eagerly assembled at the venue and heard with rapt attention to the lectures of Sripati prabhu, Haridas prabhu and Ramsharan prabhu. Power point presentations and videos were also displayed. A reverential gopuja and pradakshina was conducted with more than one hundred people participating in it. The program followed with the pledge for protecting mother cow, arati and profuse distribution of prasadam. Villagers, who were otherwise not serious about ISKCON activities, also showed up in the program and gave a positive feedback.

 In the material world people are remembered for what they do – their ground-breaking achievements, their high ranking positions of responsibility, and their impactful influence on others. In spiritual circles, however, people are remembered for who they are.

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The post Reincarnation 3 – Five intuitive contemplations for self-discovery appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

The meanings of personalism and impersonalism may seem clear when the subject is discussed in theory, but in practice these two understandings of eternal existence seem to intertwine and confound the inexperienced spiritual practitioner. The answer lies in how we approach the Supreme Absolute Truth. While espousing the cause of a personal Godhead, neophytes are often seen to behave in a way that reveals longstanding impersonal roots. To understand the highest concept of personalism, let us see how Shrila Prabhupada describes the relationship of Krishna’s foremost devotees, the gopis of Vrindavana, to the Supreme Lord. And then let us consider how these compare with the relationships between materialistic women and men. Understanding this comparison is essential for realizing the difference between the ultimate reality of personalism and the utterly materialistic falsehood of impersonalism. Continue reading "Crossing the Border of Impersonalism
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And do the faithful of other religions attain Krsna by thinking of god at death.

The post Bhakta Tom asks how difficult is it to remember Krsna at the time of death appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

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New documentary short “Hare Krishna: 50 Years of Service and Joy”
Some incredible facts about ISKCON’s achievements over the years. For instance, there are 650 temples in over 100 countries; nine million worshippers visit ISKCON centers every year; and over the past 50 years, ISKCON devotees have distributed over 500 million of Prabhupada’s books.
For viewers from the general public, “50 Years of Service and Joy” is likely to provide a picture of ISKCON’s valuable contribution to society at large, and an understanding of why it’s relevant to them. And for devotees, it will provide a sense that they’re not alone but part of a huge, diverse family; and that the service they’re doing is deeply valuable.
ISKCON temples and institutions can get a HD download link for the film by writing to Krishna-lila at editor@iskcon.org, and providing information on their intended screening date, venue, and audience.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/CbdXRd

https://flic.kr/s/aHskuzxwpi

The post Scenes from parikrama in Godrumadvipa appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

By Gokulananda das

Prabhus and Matajis – Dandavats. I hope you are well. On behalf of our ISKCON MONTREAL Community, we would like to offer you and your temple’s entire community this invitation to please come join us for our special 50th anniversary of ISKCON Canadian GRAND FESTIVAL -to be held here in Montreal from Sept.2 to 5 -2016. We are also hoping to attract many of our movement’s empowered preachers to come and contribute according to each one’s special area of expertise.
(please see more details below).
Montreal, January 31st- 2016

It has now become a tradition here at our Montreal temple – for close to 10 years now – to have a yearly festival in honor of Srila Prabhupada, usually held during the first weekend of Sept. For this very popular festival we have hosted many stalwart followers of Srila Prabhupada such as Guru Das, Srutikirti, Yadubhara and Vishaka, Yogeswara, Puskar, Ranjit etc.
And – for the 50th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s founding of our ISKCON society – we are also planning an even bigger celebration for 2016. So your presence would be greatly appreciated to share with our whole community your very unique devotional expertise, thus enhancing our sharing of Srila Prabhupada’s glorious legacy.
Also this historic event will focus on Srila Prabhupada’s prolonged stay here in Montreal for the entire summer of 1968. And we have already received confirmations to also take part from some of the pioneers of both the San Francisco and London temples – such as Shyamsundar, Guru das and Malati, Significantly they had also received special training from Srila Prabhupada during their visit here in August 1968, which memories they will surely share with us. So please consider joining us for this very significant and memorable event. Upon receiving your consent, we would be happy to pursue this arrangement to cover all your travel costs etc.

Thus we hopefully await your positive reply. Thank you – Hare Krishna!
– your eager servant, Gokulananda das -on behalf of the ISKCON Montreal Community. gokul1008@yahoo.com cell: 438-876-1008.

The GRAND ALL- CANADA FESTIVAL – to honor SRILA PRABHUPADA and the 50th Anniversary of ISKCON – will be held here in Montreal on the Labor Day weekend of Friday Sept. 2nd to Monday Sept.5th. – 2016

Friday Sept.2nd – an evening gathering at the temple to inaugurate the festival, with our special guests of honor: Shyamsundar, Guru das, Malati etc. (these three have already confirmed).

Sat. Sept.3rd – a special all day BHAKTIVEDANTA EXPO – a grand event for the general public – celebrating Srila Prabhupada’s miraculous life as a world teacher, with an attractive FoodFair, and multiple workshops – all to showcase ISKCON ‘ s amazing diversity and variegated contributions to mankind’s betterment. During this Bhaktivedanta Expo, there could be workshops (and accompanying booths) of these various Portfolios (or whichever other themes they wish to share):
1. Sacred Land of India by HH Indradyumna Swami
2. Varnashrama Dharma & Cow Protection by HH Bhakti Raghava Swami
3. Eco Village by HH Sivarama Swami
4. Sacred Texts & Philosophy by HH Bhakti Caru Swami
5. Perfect Questions Perfect Answers by HH Gopal Krishna Goswami
6. Forbidden Archeology by HG Drutakarma Prabhu (Michael Cremo)
7. Chant & Be Happy by HH Sacinandan Swami
8. ISKCON & Beatles by HG Guru Das Prabhu & Shyamsundar Prabhu
9. New Vrindavan Community by HG Malati DD
10. Drama by HH Bhakti Marg Swami
11. Temple of Vedic Planetarium by Indresh Prabhu

For this special event we will also invite many VIPs – including our newly-elected prime-minister Justin Trudeau , plus a couple of the local Members of Parliament, and the Mayor of Montreal. We are hopeful to get their confirmation soon – to be announced as soon as we know more.

Sunday Sept.4th – A special elaborate evening program at the temple, starting with a Kirtan Fest 4 – 6 p.m., followed by a special Maha-abhisek, then culminating with the remembrances – from 6 to 8 p.m. – by our guests of honor (including Shivaram Swami), centered on Srila Prabhupada’s miraculous achievements and his major impact on the course of history etc.

Monday Sept. 5th – A maha-harinam in downtown Montreal – of 3-4 harinam parties all converging on the exact place of residence of Srila Prabhupada during his prolonged stay in the summer of 1968. We are attempting to also have a special commemorative plaque inaugurated at this historic place.

p.s. Accommodations for visiting devotees will be in the homes of our members, plus at one of our members’ quality hotel in downtown Montreal.

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By Romapada Swami

Queation: My father is now deceased, but was a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic. He was placed in a mental hospital for years. My brother is also paranoid schizophrenic and is on strong medication. I grew up observing the actions of the mentally ill.

As such I look very carefully at the reasoning given. I am a retired police officer and have come in contact with many people who are mentally ill.

Now to the question, If a mentally ill person believes his delusion and acts according to it (harming or killing), does the mentally ill person acquire karma?

Answer: Karma is not an easy topic to understand as it is convoluted and complicated. It spans many lifetimes and even sages cannot fully comprehend them. In any case, every human being, apart from the pure devotees of Lord Krishna, is always creating karma as well as enjoying or suffering his or her past reactions.

First, I will offer a response to your question above which leans in the direction “No, such challenged persons are not held fully responsible for their wrongdoings.”

Karma is only created in the human form of life. But it is said that karma does not act on a child or on grown-up persons with child-like or animal-like intelligence. For example: according to Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 1 Chapter 13 verse 1, Srila Prabhupada describes an interesting story of Manduka Muni who was wrongly sentenced to be impaled for an action he did not commit. The story is narrated as follows.

Once upon a time the state police caught some thieves who had concealed themselves in the hermitage of Manduka Muni. The police constables wrongly arrested all the thieves and Manduka Muni along with them. The King’s court specifically sentenced the muni to death penalty by being pierced with a lance. When he was just about to be pierced, the news reached the king that the condemned man was not a criminal but a great sage. The king at once stopped the death penalty enactment. The king personally begged the muni’s pardon for the mistake of his men.

The saint at once went to Yamaraja, who prescribes the destiny of the living beings. Yamaraja, being questioned by the muni, replied that the muni in his childhood pierced an ant with a sharpened straw, and for that reason he was put into difficulty. According to Mahabharata, the muni explains to Yamaraja that according to scriptures, actions committed by young children should not be considered to be sinful though they may seem so. This is also supported by Madhvacarya.

This is an interesting point to consider. It is said that from the time when a child is born his/her karma is actually taken up by the parents or guardians until the age of fourteen since they are considered incapable of distinguishing good from bad. In any case there are situations where according to scriptures a person may be excused for a sin. In SB 11.21.16, Krishna explains to Uddhava, “Sometimes piety becomes sin, and sometimes what is ordinarily sin becomes piety on the strength of Vedic injunctions. Such special rules in effect eradicate the clear distinction between piety and sin.”

Therefore, we may conclude that when an adult is behaving like a child or an animal due to a challenged condition of embodiment due to his past karma, he does not actually acquire the same full karma as an adult who is normal and has the capacity to know what is right or wrong.

On the other hand, consider the case of a child or baby touching a burning piece of wood. The burning wood is not going to say, ‘Since you are a child I will not burn you!’ Rather, there is a reaction or karma. In this case the reaction is immediate!

Similarly the karma for incapacitated people doing sin unknowingly will be minimal but there is karma.

Generally such individuals are to be taken care by the parents or guardians so that they do no harm themselves or others, unconsciously or unknowingly.

According to Srila Prabhupada, the king or the administrative leader/s of the state or country takes 1/6 of the karma of his/their subjects. This includes both good and bad karma. Similarly the guardians or persons who are meant to protect and take care of such challenged individuals take the majority of the karma and the person committing the sin get a smaller portion of the karma.

Krishna further tells Uddhava, “The same activities that would degrade an elevated person do not cause falldown for those who are already fallen. Indeed, one who is lying on the ground cannot possibly fall further. The material association that is dictated by one’s own nature is considered a good quality.”

For example: Although intimate association with women is most abominable for a renounced sannyasi, the same association is pious for a householder, who by Vedic injunction is authorized to approach his wife at the suitable time for procreation, having performed the prescribed purificatory practices prior to attempting to conceive a child. Similarly, a brahmana who drinks liquor is considered to be committing a most abominable act, whereas a sudra, a low-class man, who can moderate his drinking is considered to be exercising self- controlled. Piety and sin on the material level are thus relative considerations. Piety and sin therefore depend upon particular circumstances and are at times difficult to distinguish.

As you can see, the rules governing karma change according to place and circumstances. Even if one takes the time to study material piety and sin he/she will ultimately experience frustration due to the relativity and variability of the subject matter. Best is to be Krishna conscious and rely upon the Lord to protect us. For people who are mentally challenged, the best course of action anyone can do is to protect them and if they are devotees, they can let such people hear the holy names of Krishna and give them sanctified or blessed food, or prasadam. Doing so will both relieve them of their past karma and present karma – again this depends on the potency of the person giving them either the holy name or prasadam.

Meeting a Lover of the Lord (6 min video)
Agnideva Prabhu recalling the first time he met Srila Prabhupada in New York.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/dm1JP3

NBS#31 Sweet Pastimes of Lord Nityananda.
On the upcoming auspicious occasion of Nityananda Trayodasi, this issue presents the sweet pastimes of most merciful Sri Nityananda Prabhu.
The Teachings of Lord Kapila shall be continued in the next issue.
We pray that this issue brings some pleasure to the devotees of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
NBS # 31 Features:-
1) Why do we worship Sri Sri Gaur Nitai?
His Divine Grace A .C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
2) Srivasa, Sachimata and Lord Nityananda
Srila Vrindavan Das Thakura
3) Brahmana and Lord Nityananda
Srila Narhari Chakravarti Thakura
4) Prayers at the Lotus feet of Lord Nityananda
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura
5) Akrodha Paramananda
Supreme Bliss and Freedom from Anger
Sri Locana Das Thakura
This issue can be viewed here:
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/doc/299621546/NBS-31

Yatra to Inamanamellur.
On the banks of Gundlakamma river, amidst Guava fruit orchards and blessed by Lord ChennaKeshava is the well-known Inamanamellur village. The village was once well known for its rich Sri Vaishnava traditions; therefore the name of the village has Tamil origin. But presently these traditions are followed more so as obligations. The younger generation is totally apathetic to these traditions. Though situated on the banks of a river the villagers are more focused on agribusiness like tobacco and aquaculture,instead of developing agriculture. Paddy is also a prominent crop. Somehow from over a century guava is grown in abundance in addition to other fruits. As seen in most of the opulent villages the younger generation has settled down in towns and cities, while the large houses in villages are mostly inhabited by elderly people. Village has a mix of traditional houses and concrete structures with all modern amenities.
After the pleasant experience in Gollapalem village in the morning hours of January 14, 2016, the Yatra team arrived in Inamanamellur village to witness a contrastive atmosphere. The youth in Gollapalem village had participated very actively in the program, but here we found the youth in a totally different mood. They were gearing up for a volley ball match that was to commence from 5pm and expected to continue till midnight as a part of sankranthi celebrations. Choosing the right spot for the program was a hard task despite the village being big, the people from one street do not usually visit other streets due to caste constraints and political reasons. Finally after lot of consultations with the locals, we decided to hold the program in the main street near the pedestal where Hanumanji’s 20 feet murthi is installed. Inspite of repeated announcements and having performed harinaam in main streets of the village, people did not turn up even until evening 7.30 pm. We decided to play a few videos and only then people started coming and in no time a decent crowd of over 60 people assembled. The program started by Sripathi prabhu introducing Bhagavad-gita and Krishna consciousness. Later Haridas prabhu spoke about the Holy Name and Ramsharan prabhu about the glories of mother cow. Video on Gau-vaibhavam was also screened. After the pledge to protect mother cow, arathi was performed and prasadam was generously distributed. As we were concluding the program, the village temple utsavamurtis were brought in procession as a part of festival celebrations. Devotees felt that the village temple deities came to bless the Sri Govind Gau Gram Prachar Yatra as a grand finale of the program.

February 18. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Prabhupada Revealed the Topmost Bhakti.
Some devotees are starting to inquire more about how to be part of the intimate pastimes of Radha and Krishna. Some say Prabhupada taught only vaidi-bhakti. They claim they have to go elsewhere to get the higher teachings about the rasas. But it is not true. Everything is there in Prabhupada’s books. Prabhupada is on the highest platform. He is very advanced in his love for Krishna, and he has a very intimate relationship with Krishna in Vrindavana. We should never mistake that. The one important message is to stay faithful to Prabhupada. By faith in guru, we get Krishna. Not otherwise.
We should never think that Prabhupada didn’t teach the topmost understanding. We should always know that only when he allows us, can we enter the dhama and our eternal relationship with Radha-Krishna. Radha and Krishna and Their associates are mysterious, transcendental persons beyond this material existence. They will allow us to come to Them when we are qualified by sincerity and purity. We cannot simply pick up a book on internal Krishna consciousness and expect to be allowed to enter. You have to please your guru, the representative of Radha-Krishna. By his grace, you can make progress.
The real substance is service to Prabhupada. His service does include the higher topics, but like anything in Krishna consciousness, inquiry into these topics is a gradual process. We have to be careful not to hear from anyone who tells us Prabhupada was deficient, or incomplete in his teachings. In fact, it would be better not to know anything than to hear from someone who teaches us that Prabhupada didn’t give us what we need. Better to continue as he wanted us to, chanting Hare Krishna and praying to Radha and Krishna in the temple. We can always please Them with our wholehearted efforts.
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