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The tree seems to be a universal symbol in religious and cultural traditions around the world. In Judaism the Torah is referred to as the Tree of Life. In Buddhism the Buddha attained enlightenment sitting beneath a tree.
By Sankirtana Das (ACBSP)
Earlier this month, a 12 ton, 78 feet Norway Spruce at Rockefeller Center in NYC lit up with 45,000 lights. The tree lighting event at Rockefeller Center started in 1933. But the Christmas tree event goes back to when it was introduced to English high society by Prince Albert who put up an evergreen for the holidays in Windsor Castle in 1841. It had been a pre Christian German symbol, and most Christians at that time loathed the idea of connecting the tree with Christmas. But within 10 years the fanciful custom took root in England and by the end of the 1800’s it also become an established tradition in America with Woolworths stores selling Christmas tree decorations and all.
The tree seems to be a universal symbol in religious and cultural traditions around the world. In Judaism the Torah is referred to as the Tree of Life. The Torah is likened to the branches of a great tree spreading into the sphere of our lives, and it calls upon us to make every act an act for God.
In Buddhism the Buddha attained enlightenment sitting beneath a tree. At one point in his meditation when he was assailed by raging storms and other strange occurrences, a divine serpent arose from the roots of the Bodhi tree to protect him.
Nearly a thousand years ago on this continent, Deganawidah, known as the Peace Maker, called for a great council by the shores of Lake Onondaga. There, he carefully uprooted a Pine tree and urged all of the warriors from the gathered tribes to throw their weapons into the hollow of the earth. Then the tree was replanted over the weapons. The tree (the Tree of the Long Leaves) became known as the Tree of Peace. Thus the Great Peace was declared and the five nations of the Iroquois was established.
500 years ago Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the religious leader of the Bhakti Movement, implored us to be as tolerant as the tree which patiently endures the rain and cold and heat. Another time, Caitanya declared to his followers “take the fruits from the Tree of Devotion and give them away freely to all people, in all directions, all over the world. Do not consider who is fit or unfit, let people take these fruits (being the names of God) and become free from old age and death.”
Symbols of spirituality and peace from whatever tradition can surely be revered by all.
Sankirtana Das, a 40 year resident of New Vrindaban Community, is an award-winning author, storyteller and workshop leader. More info about his book at www.Mahabharata-Project.com
Especially for devotees having reservation for street/door-to-door distribution, but WANT to participate.
The uniqueness of this mode is to leverage the Circle of Influence (CoI) of each devotee & create a network. CoI contacts can be Friends, Relatives, Previous/Present Colleagues/Neighbors, Shopkeepers, anyone approachable.
Phase 1:
· Make a list of 10-15 very close people from your CoI contact, with whom you can freely talk.
· Call 3-5 people from that list daily. The list will be exhausted in 3-4 days.
Phase 2:
· By now, you would have gained some confidence.
· Now increase the CoI list to be as exhaustive as possible. Do NOT discriminate or speculate if the person would be interested or not. Just list people whom you know.
· Call fixed number of people every day in the descending order of your comfort level.
· If some are not interested you may ask for references whom you can contact. This can create good leads.
Phase 3:
· Identify the leaders in CoI contacts: Like chairman/secretary/president of any business, philanthropic, religious organizations, housing society, clubs, etc.
· Seek their guidance to increase Gita distribution within their circle of influence.
· They can give referrals, table space or stage time in their events, etc.
Phase 4:
· Use the collected phone/mobile numbers in your congregation preaching programs and in the temple.
· Use the telephone directory to make blind calls. Need to figure out the success rate for this mode.
Follow-up:
· Follow-up with those who pledged to buy, till the book reaches them. If need be, post it to them OR connect them to local devotee/temple to arrange Gita for them.
Testimonies – Experiences of THIS mode of book distribution:
· Called a devotee friend. He offered to distribute Gita to all students in his son’s school. His budget was 200 Gitas. He got 200 Gita sponsorship from other source. So total of 400 Gita distribution pledged.
· A friend tapped his 20 CoI contacts and distributed 2,000 Gitas.
· Called a cousin. He bought 50 Gitas to distribute in his circle.
· Called a school friend. He decided to distribute 40 Gitas to guests on his parent’s 50th wedding anniversary.
· Called college friends. He decided to gift Gita in his building and society. One distributed 15 another 20.
· A school friend bought Gita for himself although he thought it would be difficult to understand. We assured discussion whenever needed. This way, we can also create a Gita Study Circle with book distribution.
We shall be happy to assist in designing step-by-step program suiting your nature & circumstance. E.g. If you are hesitant, your CoI contacts can be called by other family member or devotee, giving your reference.
Messaging Instead of Phone/Mobile:
· You may also use Messaging (SMS, Whatsapp, Viber, FB, etc.) to inform your CoI contacts. But address the person with name. General message without specific name of the person is not effective.
What to Speak·
· This is a Gita Jayanti month when the Gita was spoken.
· To celebrate, ISKCON/we are distributing Bhagavad Gita.
· If you may please support this noble cause:
ü Buy Gita for yourself
ü Sponsor Gitas to gift your friends, family, colleagues, business, children’s school, enemies :-), etc.
ü Sponsor Gitas and we can distribute for you.
Advantages of this mode of book distribution:
· Rapport is already there with known people. So easy to approach. Most are ready requiring gentle push.
· Less probability to allow mind to overpower us.
· Instead of head-on face-off with our false ego, this is the moderate way around.
· Creates momentum to inspire street or door-to-door distribution for further purification.
· We may be able to distribute bigger quantity of books.
Good to have:
· Please be detached to book count. If easier, let people buy from local temple. Even if the count goes to that temple. Your work is done as long as the Gita gets in your contact’s hand.
· Apply for unlimited phone/mobile calling scheme so that you do not incur excessive cost for these phone calls. E.g. Airtel-India landline charges Rs. 99/- per month for unlimited calls to landline/mobile within India.
Mood:
· Please see this as a service of engaging the Jiva and for our own purification.
· Do not focus to get the money or high book score. Focus on Giving.
· Please ignore and don’t feel dejected if someone says NO. Our service is to try to distribute books. Not that what is my score or what is my collection. BG 2.47: “Karmanye vadhikaraste ma phalesu kadacana…..”. Krsna told Arjun to fight the battle and not to win the battle.
Other Optional Points for the script:
ü This is SHASTRA DAAN – Greatest kind of Charity of Divine Knowledge
ü This BHAGAVAD GITA is a Manual of Mankind
ü If any festival is round the corner: “Wonderful Time to offer Wonderful Gift (Bhagavad Gita) to Wonderful People in your life.”
ü As said, “There is no better gift than Gita to be given to or to be received from.”
ü Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita (BG 18.68-70) that one who distributes this message of Bhagavad Gita is Most Dear to Him and recipient of His Blessings.
ü Some may say their contacts not interested: Story:- Bhagavad Gita was given to an uninterested person. He disposed it to old book shop. A student picked it and became a devotee with his 3 brothers. Preached to his teacher & he also became a devotee with family. And the network continued.
ü Few Celebrity Readers of Bhagavad Gita: Albert Einstein, Mahatma Gandhi, Sri Aurobindo, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Spiritual teachers of India.
We shall be happy to assist in designing step-by-step program suiting your nature & circumstance.
E.g. If you are hesitant, your CoI contacts can be called by other family member or devotee, giving your reference.
If you may have any questions then we shall be happy to answer.
Please share your experiences and feedback with us.
Thank you very much.
your servant,
Sanjay Krsnacandra das KCS
ISKCON-Japan
Email: sanjay.karanji@gmail.com
Phone/Whatsapp/Viber: +91-7874499982 (India)
Skype: sanjay.karanji
amara ajnaya guru hana tara ei desa
yare dekha, tare kaha ‘krsna’-upadesa
[Cc. Madhya 7.128]
Amara ajnaya guru hana. Caitanya Mahaprabhu said… Because Caitanya Mahaprabhu is maha-vadanyavatara, most munificent incarnation to reclaim all the fallen souls. Ei rupe brahmanda bhramite kono bhagyavan jiva [Cc. Madhya 19.151]. So the guru’s business is to make everyone a bhagyavan, fortunate. That is guru’s business. The guru’s business is… They are so much sympathetic that one can get Krsna consciousness if he is fortunate. So guru’s labor, guru’s activity, is how to make people fortunate. That is wanted. Because without being fortunate one cannot understand Krsna. And without Krsna consciousness he cannot be relieved from this avidya-karma-samjna-sakti, material nature. Therefore it is the business of guru to make everyone fortunate. So how he can make everyone fortunate? That is… Caitanya Mahaprabhu advises that amara ajnaya guru hana. You follow the principles of Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s instruction first of all. Sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu-nityananda, sri-advaita gadadhara srivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrnda. You just take their mercy. Then you become guru. And then what is your business? His business is yare dekha tare kaha krsna upadesa [Cc. Madhya 7.128]. So guru-krsna. Guru makes the people fortunate, and then the people become Krsna conscious, and then he becomes fortunate. This is the process of Krsna consciousness movement. Everyone is advised to become guru.
Srila Prabhupada: “Whatever you have on your plate when you start, you have to finish that prasadam.”
Daivishakti: In 1974, maybe in August, after Janmastami, Prabhupada was again recovering from his sickness. And we used to cook for Prabhupada, and then after cooking for Prabhupada we would make something for his servants and secretaries to eat.
AGRA: ‘Bhakti without Borders’ is a rather apt name for an album of bhajans that has been nominated for the 58th Grammy Awards, to be held in Los Angeles next year on February 15. Eleven bhajans dedicated to Lord Krishna have made it to the prestigious list released on December 7. Why “without borders”? All of these songs have been composed by Krishna devotees from across the world — from Australia to America, from England to India.
Nominated in the ‘Best new age album’ category, the collection, whose executive producer is Madi Das, an ISKCON Vrindawan follower from Germany, has 11 singers. The lone Indian in the group, Gaura Mani, lives in Vrindavan. The foreign singers are bhakts who visit the ISKCON temple each year and are part of a not-for-profit group that produces Indian religious music. Funds from sale of the music provide food and education to poor girls in Vrindavan.
This is only the third time an album with religious music of the Indian tradition has been nominated for a Grammy, the biggest music recognition award in the United States. Earlier, Jai Uttal’s ‘Mondo Rama’ was nominated in 2004 and Krishna Das’ ‘Live Ananda’ in 2013. This is the first time ISKCON devotees have received a Grammy nomination.
“I couldn’t believe it when I woke up to a text message telling me we had been nominated,” said Das, who was the one to first come up with the idea of the album and whose parents met in a Krishna temple in Germany. He was schooled in Vrindavan. “Shaved head and all,” he told TOI on Wednesday over phone from Australia.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bhakts-without-borders-score-a-Grammy-nod/articleshow/50211252.cms
Food For Life Nepal Picnic Program - A Thousand Smiles (Album with photos)
Food For Life Nepal organized picnic program for a thousand children @ ISKCON Nepal temple, Budhanilkantha. A perfect place for a family gathering & to get a spiritual experience…
Our thanks & gratitude to ISKCON Nepal for their help & support.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/pDRHgt
The new generation of preachers are here!
Sri Mayapur International School: Our Grade 4 students went for Book Distribution inside of Mayapur Campus. (Album with photos)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/3FxWNG
Second Vaisnava Film Awards at Mayapur Festival 2016
submitted by Nrsimhananda das, ITV
In 2006, the 1st Vaisnava Film Awards took center stage at the Mayapur Festival. There have been many “films” made since then. The time has come to honor the best productions during the past 10 years. The Nityananda Awards had been given in numerous categories including Best Picture, Best Editing, Best Writing, Best Cinematography, etc.. At this year’s 50th Anniversary of Iskcon, another group of filmmaker/videomakers will be honored – all for the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada who stated:
“One thing more, if we are successful in this program then my dreamt mission of life to spread Krishna Consciousness all over the world will be fulfilled. I wish to speak on the great philosophy of Bhagavata Dharma at least once in a week on Television, so if arrangement is made by you for this, then you will be doing the highest service for Krishna.” (letter to Karadhara – Bombay 22 March, 1972)
The videophiles who have utilized the medium for preaching have advanced the mission in every town and village. They have brought Harinam sankirtan onto computer screens in every country. They have broadcast the glories of Srila Prabhupada’s personal example and clear explanations of Vaisnava philosophy everywhere. They have glorified Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Holy Dhama’s, devotees, and the pastimes of Lord Krishna in unimaginable magnitude. They are being watched 24/7 in all corners of the globe. That’s BIG preaching We will honor this at the 2nd Vaisnava Film Awards at Maypur Festival 2016
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We are requesting all producers/directors: submit entries by sending a link to your uploaded production: nrs@itvproductions.net Questions may also be sent to that address. Deadline is January 22nd. Include your name, address, telephone, Skype name, and any other relevant information regarding your entry. Please be brief and write in English. All entries are required to be in English or have English subtitles. Additional files/dvd’s will be requested as needed.
A panel of judges who have professional experience will select the winners. The 2006 Festival awarded more than $6000 in prizes. The amounts, if any, this year are unknown at this time.
The best five in each category will be featured via clips at the event. They will also be screened prior to the ceremony at the samadhi auditorium over a number of evenings. The coveted Nityananda statues will be presented on stage at the awards presentation. These awards do not discriminate among Vaisnava sangas. (In 2005, a non-devotee producer won the “Best Picture” category for “My Hare Krishna Family.”)
The Oscars, British Academy Awards, National Film Awards (India), Caesar Award (France), AMA Awards (Africa), Golden Eagle Awards (Russia), Golden Rooster Awards (China), Citra Awards (Indonesia), Japan Academy Prize, AACTA (Australia), Lola Awards (Germany) , Luna and FAMAS Awards (Philippines)….so many film awards CANNOT compare with the achievements of the Vaisnavas who overcome the powerful resistance of MAYA by defying the odds to produce Krishna conscious productions. All glories to the indefatigable filmmakers/videophiles of Lord Chaitanya’s movement.
Pure Enjoyment is the latest CD by Kadamba Kanana Swami. It was released in April 2015 during the Ratha Yatra in Durban, South Africa, and also some time later in Australia but it never made it across the ocean… until now!
Finally available in Europe (and elsewhere for that matter!), the latest audio album by Kadamba Kanana Swami. Pure Enjoyment is a wonderful mix of bhajans recorded in Melbourne and produced in Germany by Potwhale and Jananivasa. Ten lovely tracks that will take you back to Godhead in Pure Enjoyment! Check out all the album details here.
Order now :
€ 22.00 Add to cart
Answer Podcast
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A short video by Shaktyavesha Avatara Das.
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Fortunate People, an organization that keeps in touch with those who receive Srila Prabhupada’s books on the street, has added an inspirational new feature to its Facebook page: videos of first timers chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. Fortunate People was launched in May 2013 when Shaktyavesha Avatar Das, a London-based book distributor, saw a possible answer to a major problem in ISKCON book distribution – follow-up.
December 17. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Prabhupada had a lot of ammunition. He had good reasoning power and good arguments. He had personal saintliness and a mystical connection with the Supreme. He had the ancient and great Vaisnava tradition behind him. He was from India and spoke of many acaryas who also accepted Krishna consciousness. He said that what he was preaching was the same thing that Christ and Buddha taught. So, if one went against him, he went against all the Vishnu incarnations, all the God-teachers and sages of renunciation and lovers of the Supreme. He frankly said that the truth is beyond our senses; we should accept it and be humble. Prabhupada said that what he was teaching would bring freedom from anxiety. This was wanted. Swamiji himself appeared to be free of anxiety and he was “fixed.” He said that anyone could do it just by chanting Hare Krishna.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=3
On December 12th world leaders and representatives of 195 countries agreed to to work together to limit average global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6F) above pre-industrial temperatures. According to CNN, “Failure to set a cap could result in superdroughts, deadlier heat waves, mass extinctions of plants and animals, megafloods and rising seas that could wipe some island countries off the map.”
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Bhakti Vidyapurna Swami at ISKCON Mayapur on 2015-12-13, Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 06 17 34 35
Sorry, the Loft will be closed from 21st Dec 2015 and will reopen from 24th Jan 2016. We wish you a nice and safe holiday season and new years! THE LOFT
The post The Loft closed from 21 Dec & Reopens on 24 Jan. appeared first on The Loft Yoga Lounge Auckland.
Prabhupada’s Believability
Gita verse-by-verse study Podcast
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Harinama around Sigatoka Temple, Fiji (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: No one in this life can chant the holy name of the Lord unless he has passed all lower stages, such as performing the Vedic ritualistic sacrifices, studying the Vedas and practicing good behavior like that of the Aryans. All this must first have been done. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.33.7 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/9mfbOK
Harinama at Coolangatta (Coolangatta is the southernmost suburb of City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia) - 13 December 2015 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Oh, how glorious are they whose tongues are chanting Your holy name! Even if born in the families of dog-eaters, such persons are worshipable. Persons who chant the holy name of Your Lordship must have executed all kinds of austerities and fire sacrifices and achieved all the good manners of the Aryans. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.33.7 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/D2bLIl
This December Marathon, for the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada on the 50th Anniversary of ISKCON, Bhaktivedanta Manor has a set a goal to distribute 100,000 of Srila Prabhupada's books all over the UK.
Upon realizing that this was George’s first contact with devotees, and that George had had been reading and chanting on his own for two years, it became obvious that Krishna had brought the devotees to meet George.
Parikrama - 13 December 2015 (Album with photos)
Yoga Pitha, Srivas Angan and Murari Gupta’s House
Find them here: https://goo.gl/aBDHRm
A new book is being produced that calls for the participation of women poets in the Bhakti tradition. The Vaishnavi Voices Poetry Project is drawing in women devotees from all over the world, who are uniting together to represent and offer a tribute to the spiritual sentiments of contemporary vaishnavis, or women practitioners of bhakti yoga.
Those who recognise that the same God is being worshipped, despite the differences in names used by the worshippers, will acknowledge and appreciate the paths of everyone, giving them freedom to express their deepest feelings of faith.
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