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Preaching program in Kolhapur (Album 225 photos)
Members of ISKCON Daiva Varnasrama Minstry attended a 7 days most wonderful festival known as Indian Cultural Festival at Kolhapur, Maharashtra.
See them here: http://goo.gl/M6M1MH
Bhakti Charu Swami on Srimad Bhagavatam 02.10.47
From Pandurang Charan P
From Pandurang Charan P
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Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast
We’ve come to think of Rāgānugā Sādhana as an “advanced” practice. From what I can tell by considering what I have considered, it is more of a practice that evolves from a simple to a more advanced stage. There are advanced practitioners of Rāgānugā Sādhana and there are also beginners. Their qualifications and activities are the same in substance but different in quantity and depth of specificity and purity.
Dhyānacandra Goswāmī gave a very full, advanced version of Rāgānugā-sādhana in his Gaura-Govinda-Ārcana-Smaraṇa-Paddhati, which is practical only for those with very high qualifications: (for example) freedom from rajas and tamas and their impulses to karma, and thus the ability to meditate nearly 24 hours a day. Śrī Rūpa, however, gave a definition in Bhakti-rasāmṛta Sindhu which can scale easily to accommodate the initial as well as the advanced approaches to the path.
I’ll try to show how Śrī Rūpa’s definitions pertain to those just getting started with Rāgānugā-Sādhana.
His definition of how to practice starts with 1.2.294. He starts off by saying kṛṣṇaṁ smaran – “remember Krishna.” The word smaran is not esoteric. It is the essential principle of vaidhi-sādhana as well (smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇuḥ, BRS 1.2.8).
Then he says janaṁ ca – “[remember Krishna] with his devotee.” That’s the hallmark of this (asya) type of sādhana, not found in vaidhi-sādhana. We always think of Krishna with his devotees.
Then he says preṣṭhaṁ nija-samihitam – This answers, “which devotee?” He says, “Think of Krishna with the devotee who loves Krishna in the way you yourself hope to love Krishna.”
This implies some adhikara. Specifically, its impossible to do rāgānugā unless we have some natural hope to love Krishna in a somewhat specific way. (laulyam/lobha). We don’t need to be freed from rajas-tamas and qualified for constant samādhi meditation to begin rāgānugā-sādhana. We just need a natural, clear, steady aspiration for a specific type of love of Krishna. That’s the actual bar, below which its not possible to even begin rāgānugā.
Next, Śrī Rūpa clarifies how to best “remember Krishna with his devotee” — tat-tat-kathā-rataś cāsau. “Remember them by always hearing about their love.”
Then he adds, kuryād vāsaṁ vraje sadā. “Always make your residence in Vraja.” On one hand this is a practical advice: if I want to always hear about the love of Krishna and a particular devotee, my best bet is to surround myself with others who have similar interests. So I should move to Vraja. On the other hand, it could mean “If you constantly hear about the love between Krishna and the devotee you admire, you will effectively always be living with them in Vraja.” The second interpretation seems better, since not every rāgānugā practitioner lives in Vṛndāvana. Even Mahāprabhu and his extremely elevated associates lived in Pūri.
Now, we come to 295. This one is about seva, “service.” We have to do 294 before we are capable of doing 295; we have to cultivate interest in and familiarity with Krishna’s relationship with the devotee we admire, before we can come to the instructions in 295, which advise us how to apply that information to our practical sevā.
The verse is about sevā – that is the topic. Sevā has two forms (the rūpa of the practitioner is not the topic, the rūpa of seva is the topic): a practical form (sādhaka-rūpeṇa) and an ideal, perfect form (siddha-rūpeṇa). In this rāgānugā path (atra) sevā must operate through both forms. We must execute the practical form of the seva but the more important (hi) aspect is to also (ca) be participating in the ideal, perfect form of the seva.
A very advanced practitioner could follow Dhyānacandra Goswāmīs system for elaborately envisioning the ideal form of seva, but it is not necessary. The new practitioner of Rāgānugā simply performs their external deeds (performing kīrtan, worshipping the deity, cleaning the temple, etc) while maintaining awareness of the internal significance of that deed, in the context of the relationship with Krishna that he or she aspires to.
Śrī Rūpa thankfully states this fairly explicitly by saying, tad-bhāva-lipsunā kāryā “[Participation in this internal form is done by] connecting it to the bhāva [mood of devotion] you are striving to achieve.”
He ends with vraja-lokānusārataḥ — “This is how you follow the essence of the denizens of Vraja.”
Then we come to 296, which answers, “What type of sevā should I do?”
śravaṇot-kīrtanādīni vaidha-bhakty uditāni tu, yāny angāni ca tany atra vijñeyāni manīṣibhiḥ
He says, “The intelligent apply themselves to a realized practice of the sevās described in the section on Vaidhi-bhakti: hearing, chanting, and so on.”
Here the words intelligent (manīṣībhiḥ) and realized (vijñeyāni) refer to doing the external form of these practices (sādhaka-rūpa) with awareness and focus on the internal relevance of them to ones cherished devotional ideal.
So, taken together, the three verses [BRS 1.2.294-296] read like this:
“Remember Krishna with the devotee who loves him in the way you yourself hope to love him, by always hearing about their love and residing in Vraja. Cultivate their same mood of love by doing your devotional practices with focus on their analogue relevance to the services you hope to perform. Thus intelligently apply yourself to all the practices of devotion described in the section vaidhi-sādhana, especially hearing and kīrtan.”
To do this sādhana doesn’t require freedom from lower modes, etc. But it does require that one have a natural and clear interest in a particular type of relationship with Krishna. It doesn’t require 24 hour meditation, or any elaborate system, although advanced practitioners can avail themselves of such systems. It simply requires that one hear about Krishna’s relationship with his beloved devotee, and try to emulate the spirit of that love when performing ones normal devotional practices.
Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast
(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 29 November 2008, Lecture at Mamgachi)
namo brahmanya-devaya, go brahmana-hitaya ca, jagad-dhitaya krishnaya, govindaya namo namah
As Advaita Acharya continued his worship, he chanted this verse. Advaita Acharya fell prostrate before the Lord, seeking shelter at His lotus feet. Lord Gauranga lifted His lotus feet and placed it on Advaita Acharya’s head. Upon seeing this, the devotees became mad with jubilation, completely forgetting themselves. Some rolled on the ground; others embraced one another or slapped each other boisterously while many others cried out loudly. Advaita Acharya felt as if all of his desires had been fulfilled because the Lord had placed His lotus feet upon his head. Lord Caitanya then instructed, “Let Me see you dance!”
Advaita Acharya was not a young man. It said that when Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu appeared in this world that Advaita Acharya was already fifty-two years old! So after the Lord revealed Himself which was in His twenty-second year, that means Advaita Acharya was seventy-four years old, and he was supposed to dance! Advaita Acharya lived another twenty-five years after the disappearance of Lord Caitanya and thus we understand that Advaita Acharya actually became a hundred and twenty-five years old.
Advaita Acharya happily began to dance and so the devotees started a very sweet melodious kirtan. As he continued dancing in front of the Lord, Advaita Acharya sometimes moved in a spirited manner and sometimes moved very gracefully. Sometimes, he felt very humbled and kept a bunch of straw in between his teeth. Sometimes, Advaita Acharya would spin around, jump into the air, then fall to the ground and roll back and forth. At other times, he would breathe deeply and quickly, and then fall unconscious.
We know that keeping a bunch of straw between the teeth indicates humility. It is in a mood of humility that one keeps straw between the teeth. Exactly why this custom is there, I cannot say, but it is there. And more important than the custom, is the mood that Advaita Acharya manifested because no one can do anything without the mercy of the Supreme Lord.
Although Advaita Acharya himself was also the Supreme Lord, still he was not govindam adi purusam – the original purusa, the original Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna, but rather, he was the avatar of Lord Sri Krsna.
In the Bhagavad-gita (4.8) it is stated, paritranaya sadhunam, vinasaya ca duskrtam, dharma-samsthapanarthaya, sambhavami yuge yuge, that the Lord appears in various millenniums for the sake of establishing the principles of religion and to annihilate the miscreants. That is the work of the incarnations of the Lord. Only the Supreme Lord can give krsna-prema and that is why Advaita Acharya was very eager for Krsna to appear, because Advaita Acharya was not interested just to establish the principles of dharma; Advaita Acharya wanted to drown the entire world in love of God.
Now we can see how it is happening! We can see how gradually, little-by-little, invisibly, the sankirtan movement of Lord Caitanya is infiltrating. Because, as a person becomes touched by this sankirtan movement, as one hears the holy name or as one engages in devotional service, one becomes captured.
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Sadly Missing Krishna
Balabhadra went to check this morning on Krishna and found him in the same position. He sprinkled Govardhana dust and Radha Kund water on his head, put Tulasi leaves in his mouth and put a Lord Nrsringhadev kavitra on his horns. The sound of Hare Krsna bhajans could be heard in the barn from a CD player which we have playing 24/7. An hour later Balabhadra called me from the barn to tell me Krishna had passed away. He will be buried on the farm today.
Read the entire article here: http://goo.gl/o2cdqk
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Huge success for Krishna conscious program in Mumbai (Album 63 photos)
Indradyumna Swami: Last night’s program in Mumbai was our biggest yet. Over 9,000 people sat transfixed for 90 minutes as our actors brought the pastime of Usa and Aniruddha from the pages of Srimad Bhagavatam to life. Srila Prabhupada, we do this all for you. Please give us your blessings!
See them here: http://goo.gl/RA5xAb
(English/Russian)
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A flower offering in remembrance of Sankara devi dasi.
By Madhava Smullen
Friends and family are remembering Srimati Sankara devi dasi — known for her deep love of her children and quiet dedication to Krishna’s service — as the 30th anniversary of her passing approaches on January 25th, 2015. On that day, the Sunday Feast program at ISKCON New Vrindaban will be held in her honor.
Born Sylvia S. Walker on January 5th, 1946, Sankara dasi was raised in Michigan. She first met ISKCON devotees in San Francisco in 1969, two years after the first ever Rathayatra there.
Returning to Michigan, she lived near the Detroit temple with her young family and visited often. In the early 1970s, she and her husband regularly invited devotees to hold weekend festivals at their farm near Ann Arbor.
In 1978, tragedy struck. Sankara was diagnosed with acute hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES), an extremely rare form of leukemia. She wanted to use whatever time she had left delving deep into her Krishna consciousness. So she moved into the Detroit temple full-time.
“When I first met Sankara and her children, in Detroit, she was a happy introspective person who held an extraordinary ability to see God everywhere,” recalls her friend Mrigaksi Dasi.
In 1980, when her eldest children had grown too old for the small devotee school in Detroit, Sankara moved to ISKCON’s New Vrindaban farm community near Wheeling, West Virginia, which she felt would be the best place for them.
Her own children weren’t the only ones Sankara cared for. From 1980 to 1983, she watched many young kids at the New Vrindaban nursery. From 1983 on, she taught kindergarten and first grade at the community’s Nandagram School to children from all around North America. Many of her former students remember her fondly as patient, sweet and caring.
Sankara also sewed for New Vrindaban’s presiding Deities Sri Sri Radha-Vrindaban Chandra and made their garlands daily, which was her favorite service.
“Sankara was easy to do service with; having an insightful and creative nature,” says Rupa Dasi, who worked with her on a sewing project. “She had a keen sense of focus for the project and really put all her heart into the service. She also was always very concerned for the welfare of her children. And this was a frequent topic of her talks. She knew her time was limited, and she was determined to use it to the very best advantage she possibly could on their behalf.”
During this time, Sankara had to go for heart surgery more than once due to the stresses her chronic condition placed on her heart. She also suffered from asthma. Yet Vidya Dasi, who lived and worked with her – both in the nursery and in garland-making – says that no matter how sick she got, Sankara always did her service with devotion and dedication.
“I don’t think we understood at the time how her failing health must have made her feel,” says Vidya. “And I’m thinking back, ‘How did she not complain, how did she keep up with us?’”
Even on the morning when Sankara went to the hospital for the last time, devotees remember her making sure her daily garland-making service would be covered and that her children would be looked after. It was this mood that encapsulated her life.
At the Intensive Care Unit, when doctors declared they couldn’t do anything more and invited her devotee friends in, Sankara’s vitals stabilized as she heard them chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. It was in this setting, surrounded by a number of her godsisters, that she finally left this world on January 25th, 1985.
Sankara Dasi is survived by her five children, Chaitanya Mangala, Makara, Veena, Sesa and Bhima; her five grandchildren, Kalindi, Airavata, Lauren, Hayden and Daniel; and her former husband, Danakeli Das.
Her family had her remains cremated, and scattered her ashes among the flower beds at Prabhupada’s Palace Rose Garden, one of her most cherished places. In 2005, on the 20th anniversary of her passing, they dedicated a Nama Samadhi in the form of a granite memorial bench in her honor at New Vrindaban.
The bench is situated along the scenic walkway that winds around the Kusum Sarovara Lake at the lotus feet of Gaura Nitai and in the shadow of Srila Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold. It serves as a place for people to relax and appreciate their surroundings as they follow a parikrama path through the holy dham.
Sankara dasi’s memorial bench, situated at the Lotus Feet of big Gaura Nitai (bottom left corner).
Etched into the bench are the words: “In loving memory: Sylvia S. Walker – Sankara devi dasi. January 5th, 1946 – January 25th, 1985” and a quote from Sankara herself – “I am surrounded by the radiance, glory and richness of the Creator. In the final analysis, all things come from the same Source. We are all related; even the rocks are our brothers.”
“My mother was a sensitive, thoughtful and highly spiritual person who quietly and determinedly performed her services despite whatever obstacles were placed in her path,” says her eldest son, Chaitanya Mangala, who is a board member for both ISKCON New Vrindaban and ECO-Vrindaban. “To me, that’s a sign of a genuine devotee.”
“Moreover,” he continues, “She cared deeply for her children and was totally convinced that the fledgling Hare Krishna Society, and more specifically New Vrindaban, was the best place to raise us. Despite the hardships and shortcomings, I do appreciate the sincere attempts made by my mother and others of her pioneer generation. And, as we honor the 30th anniversary of her passing, I humbly dedicate my community building efforts in her memory.”
Members of Sankara dasi’s family with her memorial bench.
Bhakti Charu Swami on Srimad Bhagavatam 03.24.44
Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast
Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast
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Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast
Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast
Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast