Planet ISKCON

Now that I had gone to the Hare Krishna temple and survived, I felt brave enough to try one of their “Sunday Love Feasts.” The temple was a lot less imposing on Sunday afternoon with dozens of people around, a lot of them “normal looking.”

Inside, the temple floor was rich checkered marble. Marble pillars lined along the side walls, with beautiful original Krishna-paintings in the archways between them. The ceiling was two stories high, and looked  like an Indian version of the Sistine Chapel, with a huge painting of beautiful people in robes dancing and chanting in some rural setting. A big, crystal chandelier hung from the middle. Above the pillars, on the second-story level of the walls, were ornate bas-relief statues of Vedic deities dancing, singing, and playing drums and hand cymbals.

At the front of the temple was a stage about a meter high, with three elaborately carved wooden doors, opened so that only pillars and Indian-style arches remained visible unless you looked from the side. Brilliant light streamed out from the altar inside, revealing a huge, incredible wooden structure, carved and shaped more gorgeously than anything I had ever seen before.

This wooden masterpiece from another dimension formed a canopy over three sets of deities. The set on the right included the big round eye that had jumped out and stared at me when I peaked in the door the last time I had been here — three wooden figures, squarish, with exaggerated and simplified eyes and mouths painted over their black, yellow, and white surfaces. The set in the middle was Rādhā and Krishna in marble — big, full of flowers, amazingly colorful and, to use some of my favorite words from Prabhupāda’s books, “sumptuously opulent.” The set on the left were another two marble figures with arms upraised. The entire sight saturated and satisfied my eyes the same way a cake saturates and satisfies the tongue.

Someone was explaining what the Krishna philosophy is all about. I don’t remember much about that, but I remember the dancing! The Krishna’s had these two-headed drums and little metal hand-cymbals, and could really get something going with them. They even had mosh-parts! Their chanting would speed up and speed up and speed up, and then drop into a huge, slow, moshy, stomp. I was leaping and moshing around with my dreadlocks flying all over the place – feeling like a puzzle piece put in the right spot.

People gave me a little distance as I jumped around, but they looked at me with smiles. Some of the Krishna guys would even come over and leap around with me.

By the time it was over, I was sweating and out of breath. I sat there on the floor with paper plate and cup in front of me, in a line with the dozens of other people, plates and cups. Chatter was all around, but I had no one to talk to, and liked it that way. Talking to myself was more fun. A devotee proceeded down the line of plates and people, pushing a plastic bucket in front of him, scooping food onto the plates.

Splish… he dumped some spinach into my plate.

It’s green mass sat there on the white plate, slowly leaking green juice around it. There was nothing in the world I hated more than cooked spinach. Sometimes I would literally vomit when my mom put it on my plate and make me eat it.

Maybe the next bucket would have something I could stomach?

Splash.. This time a devotee plopped down something with a lot of carrots. Besides spinach, there was nothing I hated in the world more than cooked carrots.

I stared at the two dire enemies of my taste-buds, with growing determination. “This stuff is ‘prasādam’” I thought. “Krishna ate it. I should at least try it.”

I spooned a bit of the spinach into my wary mouth. It was delicious! Incredible!

Next, a spoon of the carrots… “What the fuck!?” I shouted to myself in amazement. “Why do I love this?”

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

By Vraja Kishor dās
VrajaKishor.com

Tagged: Hare Krishna, hare krishna temple, iskcon temple, sunday feast

Chanting alot is only possible if you chant attentively and free from offences, otherwise the mind will not cooperate.

Sacinandana Swami

Hare Krishna! Srila Prabhupada Arrives in Singapore! Ratha Yatra festival celebration
It is with great happiness that we announce the installation of Srila Prabhupada in his murti form in Singapore! This most wondrous event took place on the auspicious day of Padmini Ekadasi on Sunday 28 June 2015, during the most auspicious month of Purushottama!
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18179

Hare Krishna! The colorful Chariot Festival: Indian tradition going worldwide
Chicago: On June 28, 2015 Hare Krishna devotees celebrated the 41st annual Chariot Festival organised by ISKCON. This year in Chicago, the Chariot Festival saw the participation of 5000 people, with 400 new attendees joining in the celebration. Team NewsGram too joined in this vibrant festival to catch a glimpse. The parade began at 11:30 AM at Daley Plaza (50 West Washington Street, Chicago) and concluded at 12:30 PM. The grand festival which comprised of ecstatic dancing, live music, vegetarian food, and meditation went on till 6 PM.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18176

Glastonbury Festival 2015 (Album with 272 photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Krsna and the sound vibration “Krsna” are nondifferent, so if one loudly vibrates Hare Krsna, he will be able to think of Krishna immediately. This process of chanting is the best process of self-realization in this age; therefore Lord Caitanya preached it so nicely for benefit of all humanity. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 3.24.35 Purport)
See them here: https://goo.gl/O7MExB

Hare Krishna! HH Sivarama Swami’s Visit to Istanbul
We did 4 programs with Maharaja. 3 of them were in our yoga center in downtown, and one in our house for devotees only to inspire us more on preaching activities. Many new people were in the programs and in 3 days there were more than 100 people visited our Goranga Yoga Center. Sivarama Swami was giving lecture on Srimad Bhagavatam 7th Canto about nine processes of Bhakti Yoga in three days. Kirtans were wonderful. Turkish people are chanting really with full heart.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18172

Communist plot plants snakes in the living quarters of Mayapur! :-)
“OOOHHH! Prabhupa-da!” he dramatically exclaimed. “There is a snake in your bathroom! We need help! Let’s call Rasaparayana!” Rasaparayana was known as the big, strong, temple “ksatriya.” “Come on. Let’s call Rasaparayana!” Bhavananda yelled, as we ran out of S'ri-la Prabhupa-da’s quarters. We effectively terminated S'ri-la Prabhupa-da’s tranquil darshan. S'ri-la Prabhupa-da and his disciples left the room and went on the verandah. A couple of devotees went into the bathroom to search for the serpent while the others stayed on the porch. S'ri-la Prabhupa-da was undisturbed and quietly chanted japa, walking back and forth on the verandah.
Read the entire article here: https://goo.gl/0ZpwbU

Initiation ceremony in Poland (Album with 140 photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The liberated sage Kardama Muni could see Garuda carrying the Lord on the way to Vaikuntha and hear the flapping of his wings vibrating the sound of Hare Krsna, the essence of the Sama Veda. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 3.21.34 Purport)
See them here: https://goo.gl/h4YAbK

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From Istanbul.

The post Friday’s class on bhakti yoga – sravanam, kirtanam and smaranam (Part 1) appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

My Part Of The Bargain (7 min video)
Kurma Rupa Prabhu has lived in Vrindavan, India for many decades. He established Care for Cows, an international network that helps abandoned, sick or injured cows in Vrindavan for more than 25 years. He has been actively working to create awareness, educate, give guidance and support to likeminded charitable organisations worldwide.
Yet it is not only Krishna’s cows that he is dear to. It is amazing how many people hearts he touched throughout the years by being a good man and a humble devotee.
On June 28th, 2015 on the very special day of Padmini ekadasi in the greatly auspicious month of Purushottama Kurma Rupa Prabhu left his body in the holy land of Vrindavan amongst sacred cows, surrounded by devotee friends. This short video is our humble tribute to him.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/k9tEYS

Hare Krishna! The Passing of Kurma-rupa dasa
Prabhu remained alert, spoke philosophy, and concluded the administrative and financial arrangements necessary for the continued protection of the cows of Vrindavan. But days and weeks of fasting were now causing his external senses to fail. Bright lights became difficult to bear, sounds seemed further away, whatever small amounts of liquid were taken could only be swallowed with difficulty, and signing of legal documents was impossibly slow.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18165

Atlanta Rathyatra & Panihati Festival (2015): (90 Photographs)
Srila Prabhupada: If one repeats monotonous material words, he will feel exhausted, but if he chants Hare Krishna twenty-four hours a day, he will never feel exhausted; rather, he will feel encouraged to continue chanting more and more. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 3.21.22 Purport)
See them here: https://goo.gl/EB4UKE

Hare Krishna! Brahmananda Prabhu “The Mountain of our mission”
Though I was not in constant contact with Brahmananda Prabhu I always had great affection for him and Gargamuni Prabhu, the “love brothers” because of their unflinching faith in and pure unalloyed love for Srila Prabhupada. Brahmananda Prabhu was archetypal of what it meant to be a “Prabhupada man.” He would take a bullet for Srila Prabhupada and be happy to have had the opportunity.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18159

Initiation ceremony in Iskcon Los Angeles (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu recommended five items of devotional service, namely to serve the devotees of the Lord, to chant Hare Krishna, to hear Srimad-Bhagavatam, to worship the Deity of the Lord and to live in a place of pilgramage. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 3.19.38 Purport)
See them here: https://goo.gl/S1gyqt

Hare Krishna! 15th Annual Seshadripuram Ratha Yatra – A Grand Success
This Year, ISKCON Seshadripuram had celebrated it’s 15th Annual Ratha Yatra Festival on the 20th of June. As The Rural Naama Hatta programs have been expanding, over 500 devotees from Rural Karnataka had visited and a Few International Devotees From Australia, Malaysia and Bangladesh had also Joined in to Pull Jagannath back into their Hearts. We were fortunate to conduct this festival with HG Revati Raman Prabhu (ISKCON GBC, ISKCON Tirupati Temple President) and HG Radhesyam Prabhu (ISKCON Pune)
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18154

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Can the Deities of devatas also be jagruta?

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From Raja Parikshit Prabhu
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22.06.2015 H.G.Hari Ram Prabhu_SB-5.25.4-5

Kurma Rupa Das has lived in Vrindavan, India for many decades. He established Care for Cows, an international network that helps abandoned, sick or injured cows in Vrindavan for more than 25 years. He has been actively working to create awareness, educate, give guidance and support to likeminded charitable organisations worldwide. He passed away on June 28th in Vrindavan, India. A video by Syam Gopal Das and Vijay Radhika Dasi (www.vrindavanexperience.com)

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By the time I left New York, Beyond had become pretty huge, at least relative to the size of Hardcore Punk. What started off as the offshoot of a battle-of-the-bands project now played real shows with real bands to real people paying real money. What started off as a high-school hobby now had national attention in the hardcore punk scene.

We even had a record offer! Of course we are talking hardcore punk, not motown. Our “record offer” was from John Porcel – guitarist of Youth of Today, singer and mastermind of the band who practically invented militant straightedge, Project X, and the Chief Executive Officer and Primary Shareholder of a record label called Schism Records. (Schism’s stock traded only slightly higher than Shred Zine Records but was destined for greatness with such an influential figure at the helm).

So, at the end of the Summer of 88, I flew back from San Diego to New York to record a full-length LP record with Beyond. The flight had one stop, in Texas, where I had to change planes. As I walked through the airport with a guitar, skate-punk clothes, and dreadlocks, a short man walked up to me, middle-aged and with round glasses over his kind eyes.

“You must be a musician,” he said. “Are you on your way to play a concert?”

“No,” I said, secretly thrilled to have the chance to say, “I am going to record an album.”

“Wow, that’s great!” he exclaimed, and reached into a large bag at his waist, hanging from his shoulder by a strap that went across his chest. “You would really like this book. A lot of musicians really like this book.”

I recognized the book the instant he began pulling it from his bag. “That’s Bhagavad-Gītā!!!” I exclaimed.

He froze with the book in his hand instead of handing it to me immediately like a properly trained salesman should. “You know about the Bhagavad-Gītā?” He asked in amazement.

“Yeah!” I said, “Can I have it?”

He was delighted to hand it to me. “How do you know about Bhagavad-Gītā?”

“Some of the bands I am into are into Krishna consciousness,” I said. “I’ve read one book… eesshoo…”

I struggled with the pronunciation, so he helped me, “Īśopaniṣad?”

“Yeah! And a few other zines and magazines.”

“That’s great!” he said, eyes as wide as his smile. “Can you give a donation to cover the cost of printing?”

“Well… I sent away for a free copy of Bhagavad Gītā,” I explained, “but it never came. Sooo… can’t you just give me it?”

He thought about it for a moment and then said, “Yeah, I suppose so… Sure, why not!”

Finally, I had a copy of Bhagavad-Gītā! Between this book and Śrī Īśopaniṣad I felt prepared to learn more about Krishna than any punker had ever dared to learn before.

— An excerpt from the first draft of
Train Wrecks and Transcendence:
A Collision of Hardcore and Hare Krishna

by Vraja Kishor

VrajaKishor.com

Tagged: airports, Bhagavad Gita, book distribution

Once upon a time, by the arrangement of providence, an extra month came to this world. Every one took this month to be most inauspicious.

The personality of this month was very sad and went to see Lord Visnu in Vaikuntha. Lord Visnu said that only Lord Krsna could remedy the situation.

Lord Krsna said, “I shall make this poor extra month just like Me in quality, fame, opulence, realisation, success, and in giving benediction to the devotees.”

“This month will become equally potent to Me. I am bestowing all of My divine qualities in this abused month. Named after Me, this month will be famous as Purushottama month in this world.”

All human beings should perform some devotional service in this Purushottama month by:

1. Worshipping Sri Krishna, chanting His holy name 
2. Studying Srimad Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita, particularly Chapter Fifteen, Purushottama Yoga 
3. Giving in charity 
4. Offering a ghee lamp daily.

Bhurijana prabhu's interesting and indepth Japa Retreat exploring various aspects of sadhu ninda or offenses against devotees. Email subscribers please click the big blue link above to hear the audio.

Written by Nandan

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Morning Class at Bhaktivedanta Manor (14 June 2015)

CC Madhya 13: Ecstatic dancing of Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the Jagannatha Puri Ratha Yatra

So today was the day that many devotees were waiting for, including Maharaj. It was also great to see Maharaj giving the morning Ratha Yatra class in the country where Srila Prabhupada had so enjoyed Ratha Yatra back in the day. Maharaj decided to give class on this special day from the Caitanya Caritamrta, specifically Mahaprabhu’s pastimes in the Jagannatha Puri Ratha Yatra. Maharaj started off by describing the dayitas; a community descended from royalty and a tribe called the sabaras. They were strongly built and had the privilege of carrying Lord Jagannatha. Of course, one can argue, “Who can carry the Lord without his will?”

Five hundred years ago, Ratha Yatra was of a different nature due to Caitanya Mahaprabhu coming along. As described by Kavi Karnapurna, in the Ratha Yatra, everyone was ecstatic except for one person – King Prataparudra because it was the first Ratha Yatra after Caitanya Mahaprabhu had left. This perfectly highlights the separation devotees feel for their beloved Lord. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu was in the Ratha Yatra, no one could move the chariot!

Maharaj then stated that Lord Jagannatha is the most merciful deity but so is Caitanya Mahaprabhu. But as a deity form of the Lord, Lord Jagannatha makes himself even more accessible. This led onto describing the numerous glories of the Jagannatha Puri temple, including the endless preparations offered to the Lord at the temple. Maharaj then fast forwarded to Ratha Yatra in the early days of Iskcon… How Jayananda Prabhu had no money but he knew the Banana King and the builders, and he single-handedly constructed the Ratha cart!

Maharaj then spoke of the uniqueness of Ratha Yatra compared to other festivals. It’s so interactive; it makes you perform devotional seva. In India, they have chariot festivals but without kirtan so when the devotees are pulling the chariots, they need to take rest every five minutes. After all where is the inspiration to keep pulling without the racing beats of a kirtan to keep one going?

He then proclaimed that our kirtan of today is just an echo of that kirtan which was there five hundred years ago. Caitanya Mahaprabhu would jump so high, leaping so high into the air and Lord Nityananda would try catching Caitanya Mahaprabhu!

The sight of Mahaprabhu’s kirtan was astonishing; it made you forget everyone else like when Krishna was dancing on Kaliya’s head. No one would forget that, everything else meant nothing. It was the same with Mahaprabhu’s dancing.

Naturally Maharaj would not pass up the opportunity in glorifying Srila Prabhupada’s relationship with Ratha Yatra and how Prabhupada’s Ratha Yatra was a real victory march. Prabhupada was literally flooding the streets with mercy and that is the essence – to give the mercy. Maharaj then ended the class with the following message to the august assembly of devotees at the Manor,

So we don’t want to hear about old age, bones, back, etc.  Ratha Yatra is where you push yourself to the limit, then to a level to which you’ve never been. Srila Prabhupada said preaching is easy, just show everyone how happy you are. Miracles will happen in Ratha Yatra. It’s not a case of (saying in a strict Victorian tone) preach, preach, preach. Krishna consciousness IS the topmost process for happiness, it’s hypnotizing! (Laughter)

A few hours later and London Ratha Yatra 2015 was under way…

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London Ratha Yatra

London may have ruled the world once, but when one looks at the beauty of the city now, it certainly lags behind some of its European counterparts, like Rome or Vienna. However if there is one part of the city that still has world class architecture, majestic beauty and the look of a world class city, it would have to be the Ratha Yatra route. Their Lordships pass through most of the hallmarks of Britain’s past imperial glory (or infamy depending on how you look at it). Starting at 12 noon, in the legendary Hyde Park, Lord Jagannatha, Lord Baladev and Lady Subhadra will go into the posh Green Park area, then through to the famous Piccadilly Circus,  the culturally refined Shaftesbury Avenue and then finally to one of the most famous spots in the world – Trafalgar Square!

This year, there were four kirtan groups with an absolutely huge turnout of thousands of devotees in the procession!  Maharaj was in the second group with the big kirtaneering stalwarts of the UK, the fabulous Kripamoya Prabhu and the brilliant Govind Prabhu.

The first to lead in Maharaj’s kirtan group was Govind Prabhu. It was an amazing rendition of kirtan which really set the tone for the day. Then the carts came onto Green Park and about the time when they were in front of the glitzy Ritz hotel, Maharaj took over. All I can say is I am not an accomplished writer and I certainly cannot adequately describe what Maharaj did in that kirtan but it was truly something else! It felt like the Kingsday parade had never ended and was just carrying on in London. All the way from the Ritz Hotel, up to the mouth of Piccadilly Junction, Maharaj rocked it like it was the final party on earth. The holy names were decorated with a devastating fusion of earthy African tribal beats, juxtaposed with the Gothic tones and Classic Indian folksy tunes. The devotees were rocketing to the sky like they were in Jagannatha Puri Ratha Yatra with Mahaprabhu himself. From the look of the people that were in the streets witnessing this spectacle, it was obvious they could not quite comprehend what was going on, but they were transfixed nonetheless.

The Rathayatra carried on, with Kripamoya Prabhu eventually taking over the kirtan until they reached Trafalgar Square. The whole of Trafalgar Square was taken over by devotees and various Krishna conscious stalls, tents and gazebos. And the fun just carried on and on. In Trafalgar Square, they have the famous Nelsons column. At the base of the column is a gigantic, square granite platform and on each corner of this platform are positioned four humongous statues of lions. So what do the Hare Krishnas do? They convert the entire platform into a stage for some mega, fired up kirtans. Audacious and brilliant!!! Surprise, surprise Maharaj is right there in the thick of it. Not long after the chariots have come into Trafalgar Square, Maharaj is right up there in front of Nelson’s column, slap bang in the centre of two majestic lions, giving the kirtan of a lifetime. With a vocal baseline, deep enough to shatter a ribcage and some seriously loud but rhythmic vocals, Maharaj is in his element singing one of his trademark tunes with a strong, commanding and somewhat dark flavor. Like his majestic surroundings, Maharaj looks and sounds like a King!

While Maharaj was absorbed in taking Central London into the stratosphere, in another corner of Trafalgar Square in a small tent, Jayadvaita Maharaj was absorbed in bringing the materially illusioned Londoners back to reality with his engaging philosophical discussions mainly based around his new book Vanity Karma, an insightful and incisive commentary on The Ecclesiastes section from the Bible; from the philosophical vantage point of the Bhagavad-gita. Needless to say there were plenty of questions from the audience about karma, suffering, the notion of morality, fairness and cosmic justice, and how these concepts play out in our everyday lives.

Maharaj’s Ratha Yatra kirtans are still ringing in one’s ears… London Ratha Yatra 2015 Ki Jai! Srila Prabhupada Ki Jai! HH Jayadvaita Maharaj Ki Jai! HH Kadamba Kanana Maharaj Ki Jaiiiii!

Hare Krishna! Pure love
In a temple of jewels in Vrindavana, underneath a desire tree, Sri Sri Radha-Govinda, served by Their most confidential associates, sit upon an effulgent throne. I offer my humble obeisances unto Them. The Gaudiya Vaisnava, generally, following the footsteps of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, they aspire to become one of the assistants of the gopis. There are others also who like to be the assistants of the cowherd boys. So our Gosvamis, Rupa Gosvami, sri rupa sanatana bhatta raghunatha, they were all the assistants of the gopis.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=18152

Just this morning Srila Prabhupada’s disciple, Kurma Rupa prabhu, passed away in Sri Vrindavan dhama due to cancer. He took care of Krsna’s cows in Vraja for many, many years. Below BB Govinda Maharaja recounts his visit to Kurma Rupa prabhu a few days back. Thank you Kurma Rupa prabhu for showing us how to [...]

Some people ask, “Scripture requires us to restrict worldly enjoyment. Why should we restrict our enjoyment like this? Why can’t we enjoy without any restriction?”

The fact is that it is not scripture alone that restricts our worldly enjoyment – many other factors restrict it too, the most inescapable of which is the body itself. Even if we somehow did away with all restrictions such as scriptural (by rejecting scripture), cultural (by adopting a licentious culture) or financial (by having as much money as we want for enjoying), still we can’t do away with the body’s restriction – its limited capacity to enjoy. Consider the enjoyment through eating. Even if we owned the world’s best hotel that had the best cuisines and the best chefs, still we wouldn’t be able to enjoy food unrestrictedly – our stomach’s limited capacity would put an unavoidable cap on our enjoyment.

The same bodily restriction applies to the endlessly glamorized pleasure of sex too. Though the media often depicts unending erotic bliss, such depictions are counter-factual – the fact is that the body’s capacity for sexual indulgence is limited, like a water-filled sponge’s capacity to give out water.

Someone may argue, “Ok, even if we can’t enjoy unrestrictedly, we can still enjoy as much as our bodily capacity. Why does scripture impose further restriction on that enjoyment?”

The purpose of scriptural regulation is not to deprive us of happiness, but to direct us towards lasting happiness. The primary message of scripture is not that we restrict bodily enjoyment, but that we seek spiritual fulfillment. The Bhagavad-gita explains that we are at our core eternal souls and are parts of the Supreme Soul, Krishna, who is the all-attractive reservoir of infinite pleasure. By following the Gita’s guidelines to practice yoga, especially bhakti-yoga, we can realize our spiritual nature, connect with Krishna and thereby relish eternal spiritual happiness. While we pursue yogic connection with Krishna, the Gita asks us to regulate worldly enjoyment so that our mind can peacefully focus on higher, spiritual realities. Otherwise, if there were no such regulation, the mind would be obsessed with, indeed consumed by, cravings for enjoyment. If our mind is filled with the search for the next worldly object to enjoy, we will have no mental space left to search for the Absolute Truth.

Therefore, though it may seem that scripture restricts our enjoyment to even lesser than our bodily capacity for enjoyment, the reality is that it redirects our consciousness from matter to spirit so that we can relish unending spiritual happiness. The Bhagavad-gita (02.64) assures us that by following scriptural rules, we attain mercy and purity – which in turn paves our way to lasting happiness (02.65).

To better understand this, consider the example of a horse tethered to a pole by a ten-feet rope. If it keeps tugging at the rope, it may stretch the rope to twelve feet, but it still remains bound. If on the other hand, instead of wasting its energy in tugging at the rope, the horse focuses on learning what its master is teaching, then once it is trained, it will be freed of its tether and it can gallop joyfully with its master.

Similarly, if we keep tugging at the rope of restriction, we may extend our enjoyment from the ten-feet length of scripturally sanctioned enjoyment to the twelve-feet length of the body’s maximum capacity for enjoyment. But still our enjoyment will remain limited and our longing for lasting happiness will remain unfulfilled. If instead we focus our attention on learning the art of finding spiritual happiness that scripture teaches, then we can raise our consciousness from the material to the spiritual level and thereby attain lasting happiness and fulfill forever our longing for happiness.

Every analogy has its limitation. So while the horse may be able to break free from the rope without obeying its master, we can’t break free from the restriction on our enjoyment without raising our consciousness to the spiritual level. Additionally, while tugging at the tether may cause the horse minor sores on its leg or neck – the bodily part by which it is tethered – stretching our enjoyment beyond the scripturally sanctioned regulation can have major consequences. Overeating can cause various obesity- and food-related diseases and indiscriminate sexual indulgence can cause various sexually transmitted diseases or even martial ruptures. And we have not yet considered the mental enslavement caused by addiction. The urge for sensual gratification, when fed by repeated indulgence, grows into a sickening addiction that goads us perpetually to seek sense objects and strips us of our peace of mind and our concentration-capacity for doing anything constructive.

Much better that we regulate our bodily enjoyment and redirect our search for happiness to the spiritual level. There and there alone will our longing for happiness be perfectly and perennially fulfilled.