Saturday, July 26th, 2014
→ The Walking Monk

Edmonton, Alberta

The Last


The last of the stops for the festival tour culminated in Edmonton.  The sky had been insistent on bucketing the water.  By noon, the dumping of yesterday converted to a spray which eventually depleted as our outdoor procession of the Chariot Festival was in progress. 

As remarked by more than one person, there was a remarkable focus on chanting and dancing.  The location or route was a little odd – through an industrial plaza strip area.  Perhaps it will take a little more time for us to prepare ourselves for hip Whyte Avenue for the future. 

One instance that pulled out of the sternness in me, and then later a chuckle, had to do with one of our young bus troupers.  Young Raj is from Texas.  He was in the procession like the rest of us.  He managed to grab a plate of prasad (sanctified food) and had a nibble at it.  Where one of the escorted police cars was parked along the way, Raj decided to place his food on the front hood of the car as he was fiddling with something.  The police officer was making his way back to his vehicle when I noticed the plate on the car.  I conveniently had a mic in my hand since I was the person responding to the lead singer in the procession.  I used the mic to alert Raj, I beckoned him towards me, “Raj!” who then picked up the plate and came to me.  I gave him a mild chiding and said, “You should never do that.  You don’t want to be disrespectful, do you?”  indicating that the police are our friends and are there to help us.

In innocence he said, “You mean I shouldn’t disrespect the prasad?”

“No, Raj, the police.”

Anyway, when it came to my few minutes on the stage once the chariot procession was over, I relayed the story to the crowd sitting before me.  They also had a good laugh.

Our day ended with an hour long chanting session on Whyte Avenue where the evening young folks hang out.  Kish, of the Mayapuris, lead the chant which had the support of three booming mrdanga drums.  I personally like the percussion, it gets people hopping.

May the Source be with you!

7 KM

Friday, July 25th, 2014
→ The Walking Monk

Calgary, Alberta

A Monk’s Take on Family and Kids


“I would just like to see wholesome families become a part of the social fabric.”  This I expressed to a young devotee of Krishna who’s engaged to be married. 

It was the second time today that I had a conversation on the topic of marriage.  “New world with old values,” were our mutual thoughts.  “Many new experiments aren’t working,” said the thoughtful young man, without elaborating. 

Then I offered to say, “Chosen life partners must be good listeners towards each other.”

A second person whom I would deem as successful in his marriage of several years, told of a third child on the way, and that I played a major role in what will soon be a new arrival.  He explained that in my last visit I said something about how a good couple should consider many children.  “It would increase a finer percentage of humans,” that was the logic.  We know that is not always the case, yet my observation tells that dharmic couples can help the world with their procreation. 

This second person, also a pious person, asked me frankly, “What do you, a monk, think of people like me, a married man, caught up in the world of money?”

I was frank, “You’re doing great.”  I indicated, “Let’s populate the world with great offspring, kids with a good sense of right and wrong and who have a good drive.”  We rambled on as rain and wind continued to be a lame excuse for not trekking today. 

May the Source be with you!

0 KM

Thursday, July 24th, 2014
→ The Walking Monk

Jasper, Alberta

Water


A herd of elk came into our purview, while ground squirrels (black tail prairie dog) poked their heads out of their holes, mostly to see what we could offer them in the form of food.  These creatures kept us company at the Marmot Meadows Campsite.  We also caught glimpse of a black bear who entertained tourists simply by his very presence.  European tourists just go nuts when they see Canadian wildlife, but they’re not the only ones.  Canadian city slickers also go into a frenzy clicking their cameras. 

It really was a day of wetness.  The boys tents and their contents; cots, blankets, pillows, clothes, got drenched.  It warranted a trip to the laundry mat.  The place was already full, but with our entrance, 25 or so wild young folks, I’m the oldest, the place was completely packed. 

In general, on a day of rain, or whether it be high winds, Indra dynamics becomes a reality.  Still, water was not enough to intimidate.  The big draw or attraction for the day for our bus crew was a swim and Radium Hot Springs, surprisingly done inside.  By day’s end my legs became antsy for something outdoor.  For a challenge I took to the downward road from mountain high down to the direction of Yellowhead Highway.  There in raingear I tread, dodging the hefty currents of water coming down as rivulets on the asphalt.

I took these waves of downward water as a tax by maya, illusion.  I was most alert, yet anything to avoid wet socks.  Surely my chanting was evermore sharp as opposed to the more casual approach taken when sitting on the front seat of our bus.  A small ounce of austerity or inconvenience imposed on the self always goes a long way to contributing to the life of a monastic.  It happens to occur right here on the road, once again. 

May the Source be with you!

6 KM

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2014
→ The Walking Monk

Jasper, Alberta

Mountainous Beauty


I covered a mere few kilometres on foot before the trip to Jasper, with stops along the way to capture with the eyes, the mountainous beauty.  My hosts, Radha Madhava, Swasti, and daughters in Calgary, and I, drove along Highway 93. Any stops made along the way, whether washroom breaks or gassing up, gave me the opportunity to add a kilometre here and there.

One tourist pulled over and offered a ride wondering how I mystically moved so swiftly as he passed me by twice before.  He just got so curious.

At Athabasca River we ventured down a trail as did so many other tourists from every part of the world imaginable.  Nature here seemed to have carved out of the earth these cool grooves by glacial and water movement in what is described as a tug of war for territory between rock and water.  Along the trail a plaque is entitled ‘Battle Front’, with the following text:

Water fights the rock lip back a few millimetres a year.  Now, the water is winning, but the nature of the rock may one day force the water to abandon this channel and seek another route. 
 
At the site of the gushing falls, more text follows:

Here, in a fury of sound and spray, the power of roaring water and a trembling earth meet.  Echoes of timeless batter assault our senses. 
 
After reading and viewing the facts we carried on to Whistler’s Park, where the Krishna Culture Bus Tour vehicle was kept.  I hooked up again with our team only to engage in spiritual talks over campfire roasted veggie marshmallows.  Marshmallows are an ancient food of the Egyptians. 

All is good here.  You just have to watch where you step.  One of the boys accidentally stepped into a prairie dog hole and sprained the ankle.  Such are the forces of nature. 

May the Source be with you!

11 KM

Govinda’s Vegetarian Lunch – Wedding Catering
→ Sri Sri Radha Govinda Mandir, Hare Krishna Temple. ISKCON New York

Dear Friends,

We received this blog post about a recent catering Govinda’s did in Brooklyn:

http://bklynbrideonline.com/33608/wedding-photos/real-wedding-erin-brad/

As you can see, the bride and groom, and their guests truly enjoyed the food and decor.

We would be happy to cater your next event.  For more info, call us @ 347-249-4064.

Yours @ Govinda’s Vegetarian Kitchen

Klungkung
→ Ramai Swami

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Klungkung, Bali, is an area steeped in ancient tradition. Many years ago the Maharaja ruled the area from his opulent palace near the centre of town. 

Today he is not a ruler but presides over ceremonial and cultural activities of the area. His father met the devotees and there is a painting of Radha and Krishna in one of the rooms of the palace.
We have a humble but beautiful temple on the outskirts of town where Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha Kunjavihari are worshiped by around 120 local devotees. The temple also runs a small restaurant in town that is quite popular.
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Escape the glass box!
→ KKSBlog

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 27 June 2014, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Srimad Bhagavatam 5.13.17)

Munich-airport-smoke-boxPeople say, many times, that the greatest enjoyment in the material world is sex! Well, we can also say that greater than that is to be free from such desires. If you do not have the desire then it saves a lot of trouble! You know, then you do not have to worry about Saturday night. You do not have to buy flowers. You do not have to spend a lot of money in bars and all these things. So many things you do not have to do if you do not have sex desire. You do not have to spend a fortune on all kinds of clothes and things like that. Think about it, the consequences of sex desire are quite far reaching!

The other day, I was writing about this and I was comparing it to being addicted to cigarettes, to smoking. Say that we are smokers and airports now are all smoke free zones so then you have this glass box and people smoke in the glass box. It looks kind of foolish, these people in the glass box! Everyone looks at them and it is just a handful of them in a small glass box. So, those are the smokers and everyone can see them. They just sit in there, trying to feel at ease but meanwhile it is embarrassing to go sit in a glass box and smoke, obviously. But if you would ask the people that come out of the box, ‘Do you like smoking?’ They would say, ‘Oh yes, very much! Yes, I like it very much.’

radhadesh (2)But then, if there is someone who is not a smoker, when they see all that and hear all that, they will say, ‘This is foolish. You like it very much because you are addicted!’ So, the same we can apply to sex also. We are addicted! We are just addicted but when we take up serving Krsna then gradually our interest changes from enjoying the body to enjoying serving. Instead of taking – enjoying the body means taking for our senses – instead of taking for our senses, we now become very active in satisfying the senses of Krsna.

Srila Prabhupada wrote a letter where he explains to Kirtananda, ‘You please worship the deity and if you decorate the deity very beautiful, and when you make the deity very beautiful, then you will forget everything about the beauty of the material world.’ The beauty of the material word, it cannot satisfy the heart. So we are not proposing a life of giving up. We are not proposing of a life of giving up mundane pleasure; that is not our focus. We are proposing a life of embracing spiritual pleasure.

 

 

Harvest Festival-2014 in New Vraja Dhama, Hungary (Album 112 HR photos)
→ Dandavats.com

Krishna-valley / New Vraja-dhama is more than 250 hectares of typical Mid Europian rural area, located in Hungary about 30 Kms from the well known tourist place Lake Balaton, in a beautiful natural environment. New Vraja-dhama is the transcendental realm of the world’s most beautiful deities Sri Sri Radha-Syamasundara. Please visit Krishna-valley for a spiritual journey. Read more ›

New Vrindaban’s Gardens Having a Thriving Summer
→ New Vrindaban

Garden Blog

By Kacey Orr

7-16-2014

The last few weeks have been VERY busy in the gardens. We have had many new volunteers.  A family from Maryland came to work and camp in the garden.  Currently we have two volunteers from WWOOF (world wide opportunities on organic farms) that have been helping with our abundant harvest of green beans.  The Roots & Shoots 4-H Cloverbud Club came and spent a day touring the gardens and picking flowers.  The kids had a wonderful time and learned all about farming and flowers.

The first week of July we planted four varieties of squash.  This is the last big planting until fall.  Our sweet potatoes are looking great and the vines are filling in all the spaces in their beds. Twice a week we harvest herbs and greens for the temple (lettuce, kale, swiss chard, and arugula).  This week brought us our first full sized red tomatoes and bitter melons. Our current pick list also includes red raspberries, peppers, beets, basil, oregano, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, dill, and tons of green beans.  Two of our local contract growers have been also making weekly deliveries of carrots and cilantro.

Both the Teaching Garden and the Garden of Seven Gates are bursting with beautiful flowers.  The temple staff has been picking hundreds of marigolds for garlands and a variety of flowers for vases. As we move further into the summer harvest we hope to have more volunteers to continue to provide the community with a bounty of vegetables and flowers.

“Monkey safari” and a peacock sanctuary for Vrindavana
→ Dandavats.com

The District Forestry Office is working on a plan to make a peacock sanctuary. The team of the environment activist raised various issues related to deforestation in Vrindavan. They were particularly concerned about recent reports about peacock deaths in the district. The DFO assured the team that steps are taken to protect the peacocks in Vraja. As per the forest office, they are also working to make a “monkey safari,” for which they have already sent a proposal to the government. Once the project is approved, monkeys from Vrindavan and other places will be translocated to forest land in Farah, between Mathura and Agra. Monkeys have become danger for trees, birds, peacocks and even for the humans. Read more ›

Devotees in Tel Aviv, Israel distribute the Holy Name, S.Prabhupada’s books and prasadam to lift the mood (Album 66 photos)
→ Dandavats.com

As a fire burns dry grass to ashes, so the holy name of the Lord, whether chanted knowingly or unknowingly, burns to ashes, without fail, all the reactions of one's sinful activities. SB 6.2.18 etävän eva loke 'smin puàsäà dharmaù paraù småtaù bhakti-yogo bhagavati tan-näma-grahaëädibhiù Devotional service, beginning with the chanting of the holy name of the Lord, is the ultimate religious principle for the living entity in human society. SB 6.3.22 Read more ›

Gaura Purnima 2015 Festival Schedule
→ Mayapur.com

We are happy to announce the festival schedule for next year’s Gaura Purnima Festival, please stay tuned for more updates, and opportunities to donate for the festival. 11 Feb  Devotee’s arrival 12 to 15 Feb Sravna Utsava 15 Feb Kirtan Mela Adivas Ceremony 16 to 20 Feb Kirtan Mela 21 Feb Parikrama Adivasa 22 to 28 Feb Navadvipa […]

The post Gaura Purnima 2015 Festival Schedule appeared first on Mayapur.com.

A Birthday Speech (I Haven’t Given)
→ The Enquirer

A Birthday Speech (I Haven’t Given)

When I was 19, I sat up in my bed one night and tangibly experienced reality — the impossibly infinite magnificence of existence itself. I could literally see and feel divinity saturating, permeating, being everything — even the most hum-drum of all stuff — like the walls I sat up to stare at.[0]

Since then I haven’t been normal.

Of course, I was never “normal,” but this amazing experience made my abnormalities escalate radically. There is such a deep feeling of happiness in truly experiencing reality — it is euphoric like a sustained, breathtaking, almost “orgasmic” wholeness. Suddenly my normal experience of life felt like a small box with very little inside. I lost interest in everything else and pretty recklessly threw my life on whatever tracks seem to lead towards this divine experience. [1]

The good news is that I have gotten somewhere on those tracks: I have been able to have this sort of experience with increasing regularity and increasing depth. The bad news, especially if you are my relative or old friend, is that it’s hard to relate to and easy to misunderstand me, because my spheres of interest intersect with most everyone else’s only momentarily and in ways always connected to mysterious spheres of things people often aren’t conversant in. I am not proud of my inability to connect with the “normal” level of reality. I realize that it is a hallmark of immature personal evolution on my part. Over the years I have improved, becoming able to interact with normal reality more and more fully while simultaneously having a satisfyingly deep spiritual experience of it.

But still, certain things that particularly challenge me. Unfortunately, these things are quite ubiquitous in today’s world. I dislike these things not because they are “evil” in and of themselves (which they definitely aren’t), but because the way that we usually deal with them is markedly antithetical to the profundity I experienced at 19, exacerbating the shallowness and disconnectedness of our live. Sports is one — but it’s not so bad, since at least it can be healthy and has lots of good side effects. A more annoying dislike is our obsession with being sexy. Often I feel like being a member of the Human Race in this day and age is like being a dog who is in heat 12 months a year, non-stop. Sex is wonderful, and the love of children is probably the single most inherently joyful thing in this world, but the way we are obsessed with being sexy profoundly “short-circuits” and reduces our ability to truly experience reality. Eating meat disturbs me far more then the “lets always be sexy” thing. To me meat eating symbolizes the short-circuited, short-cited mentality of putting one’s own wants before the needs and rights of other people and other living things. The fourth and worst of my pet-peeves: getting drunk. For many people it seems impossible to relax or have a decent time without drinking. This really disconnects us from reality and stunts our perception.

These four dislikes present challenges to my relationships. I don’t hold anyone in contempt for being immersed in these things, but I want people to know why I don’t have fun with such things.

Yesterday, I turned 44. Surely old age will pose increasing challenges to my health, maybe the fact that I was jet-lagged and quite sick at my birthday party is symbolic of that. But other than the worry that perhaps my body and mind will not remain operable, I am nothing but eager to turn 45, 55, 85, and hopefully even 108. “Age before beauty,” because age can give wisdom, wisdom is the key keeping the gates of reality, and within the gates of reality lie true beauty in its most opulent and abundant form.

I am thankful to my parents, and my aunt and uncle and their son and his nice girl-friend for making the effort to celebrate my birthday, which is merely a symbol of how deeply they have always made themselves and their resources lovingly available to help me, a blind-fool in pursuit of something abstract.

I am thankful to my mother-in-law, who called me from Japan twice with so much love in her voice.

I am thankful to my many, many superb friends who expressed birthday blessings towards me in such gracious ways.

I am, most of all, thankful to my wife for giving me her trust, her very heart, and for giving me four children who are unfailing sources of inspiration and anchors for my wayfaring life.

Above all else, always and forever, I am thankful to the Supreme Reality, whom I affectionately know as my Rādhā and Krishna.

Finally, I ask the forgiveness of everyone whose life my non-conformity has made more difficult than it already needs to be.

——–

[0]:I was “straight-edge” — no drugs were involved.

[1]: My exposure to Hare Krishna began just prior to this experience, and probably triggered it.

 


Sunday Experience at ISKCON Delhi (Album 19 photos)
→ Dandavats.com

Therefore it should be understood that one is easily relieved from all sinful reactions by chanting the holy name of the Lord and chanting of His qualities and activities. This is the only process recommended for relief from sinful reactions. Even if one chants the holy name of the Lord with improper pronunciation, he will achieve relief from material bondage if he chants without offenses. Ajamila, for example, was extremely sinful, but while dying he merely chanted the holy name, and although calling his son, he achieved complete liberation because he remembered the name of Narayana. SB 6.3.24 Read more ›

Follow the great – don’t imitate them
→ The Spiritual Scientist

There are many pseudo devotees of Lord Śiva who want to indulge in smoking gañjā(marijuana) and similar intoxicating drugs, forgetting that by so imitating the acts of Lord Śiva they are calling death very near. Similarly, there are some pseudo devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa who prefer to imitate the Lord in His rāsa-līlā, or dance of love, forgetting their inability to lift Govardhana Hill. It is best, therefore, that one not try to imitate the powerful, but simply follow their instructions; nor should one try to occupy their posts without qualification.

(Srila Prabhupada, Bhagvad Gita-As It Is, 3.24 Purport)