The Real Secret
→ NY Times & Bhagavad Gita Sanga/ Sankirtana Das


In Conjunction with Sutapa prabhu's post - http://sutapamonk.blogspot.com/2014/07/spirit-secret.html  - about The Secret, just want to share an article I wrote back in 2007. entitled Listen, Do You Wanna Know A Secret


Several months back the Times ran an ad for a DVD of the book The Secret. The Secret is the newest sensation and darling of the New Agers. It's beyond the New Age. I'm sure the Neocons are reading it behind closed doors. It's a hot seller with the Walmart crowd. Oprah, on her show, made a big deal about it.

I had an occasion to see The Secret video last year. I can only describe it as a testimonial to materialism. The height of Me-ism. At one point on the video there’s a women standing in front of a jewelry store longingly looking at a necklace displayed in the window. The next minute she’s wearing the necklace. There’s another scene where a kid wants a bike and then you see him happily riding the bicycle. This goes on to a woman being attracted to a man and later she’s walking with him hand in hand.

The Secret views the earth as just one big Kamadhenu cow ready and eager to supply everyone’s desire, as opposed to the paradigm of The Sri Isopanishad which tells us that everything in the world is controlled and owned by the Supreme Lord and that we should only accept what we really need for ourselves and not take anything unnecessarily, knowing well to whom it belongs. There is a delicate balance in nature and we should fulfill our needs and wants with the utmost care. Native American wisdom tells us that we must take into consideration the impact of our actions on the next seven generations.

But The Secret, endorsed by the "good guys," would have us believe that the earth can completely satisfy our every desire and that we can have a fairy tale life wherein all wishes are fulfilled (that may have been the case in the Satya-yuga). The ad in the paper reads that The Secret can give you "...unlimited joy, health, money, relationships, love, youth, everything you ever wanted." Yes. It's all yours!!!You have just hit the jackpot, won the lottery, beat out everyone on The Idol, been invited on Oprah, postponed death indefinitely, moved into a new mansion and made a million new close friends. (This sounds better than all the snake oil remedies the quack doctors used to sell in the wild west.)

In these times, however, is it responsible to have a mindset and live a lifestyle advocated by the Secret? This type of unrestricted consumerism is the very mentality that has put us in the precarious situation we’re in today. Is the The Secret going to stop the ice caps from melting or bring back the ozone layer? Is it going to stop people from getting blown up? Is it going to stop disease and death? The Secret doesn’t mention that ultimately we cannot control what happens to us. We can only control our attitude and our intentions. As the ancients, to live peacefully, we must learn self control, to conquer our greed and anger, to respect all life and the environment we live in, and to offer ourselves in service to the Creator of all things.

One of the appeals of a secret is that people like to be in on something that’s exclusive. The Secret is special, and they are special and their knowing the Secret gives them a special advantage over everybody else. Of course, everybody else is thinking the same thing. Basically, the secret of The Secret is the law of attraction, when you think positive thoughts you get positive results. And when you know this “secret” you can have it all. And to prove that The Secret is bona fide, the narrator in the video (DVD) summons up some of the big movers in history like Jesus, Buddha, Lao-tzu, Confucius, Socrates, Shakespeare, Newton. They all knew The Secret, and that’s what made them so famous, successful and spiritual. I wonder why they didn’t mention Gengis Khan or Rocky Balboa.

Because of its popularity, I think devotees have a great opportunity to offer people an insight into the real Secret (In marketing this is called positioning - that you position your product with, or against, a product that is popular). Real knowledge is not on how to acquire material things and get a beautiful body, but how to distinguish between matter and spirit.

“This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by realization, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting and it is joyfully performed.” Bhagavad Gita 9:2

Award winning book by Sankirtana das -  www.Mahabharata-Project.com


Devotees perform Friday Harinama in Tel Aviv, Israel, to stop the war (Album 51 photos)
→ Dandavats.com

O Supreme Personality of Godhead, when someone desires to chant Your holy name, sins tremble in fear, the glory of material illusion faints unconscious, Yamaraja's scribe Citragupta becomes happy and gazes at the chanter's toenails with awe and reverence, and Lord Brahma prepares madhu-parka with which to worship him. O Lord, what more can we say than this?—author unknown (Padyavali 4) Read more ›

Ratha Yatra in Kherson, southern Ukraine (Album 30 photos)
→ Dandavats.com

“Chanting is the greatest act of piety and the supreme refuge. Even the words of the Vedas do not possess sufficient power to its magnitude. Chanting is the highest path to liberation, peace and eternal life. It is the pinnacle of devotion, the heart's joyous proclivity and attraction and the best form of remembrance of the Supreme Lord. The holy name has appeared solely for the benefit of the living entities as their Lord and master, their supreme worshipable object and their spiritual guide and mentor. Read more ›

Spirit Secret
→ Tattva - See inside out

Seven years after its first release and people are still talking about it. ‘The Secret’ that Rhonda Byrne felt she had discovered was the ‘law of attraction’; whatever you think about and focus on, eventually becomes reality in your life. The universe, she says, is essentially energy, and all energy vibrates at different frequencies. Since each person also vibrates at a certain frequency, they attract the same within the larger energy field. Thus, we attract objects, fortunes, people and situations that are of a similar ‘vibration’ to ourselves.

It’s a mouthwatering concept – the possibility of attracting anything you desire. While Eastern teachers would agree with the general notion of designing our destiny, there is more to the story. Philosophical exploration and practical observation clearly shows that forces beyond our control are also influencing our fortunes. It’s called karma. We may desire different things, but without the karmic credit, those things will remain elusive. Unfortunately, the secret is not as simple as it sounds.

The Bhagavad-gita, however, reveals a more profound secret to life. While Rhonda’s book is about attracting, the classic Sanskrit text encourages one to first establish what is worthy of being attracted. Most people hastily draw up their shopping lists of life without significantly considering this point. Our basic problem is that we are attracted by the wrong things; things that won’t bring us what we are ultimately looking for. When we reconfigure our desires, turn our attention towards the right things, spiritual things, those things which allow us to connect with our very essence, then everything falls into place perfectly. This is the secret behind the secret.

Krisna-völgy/ New Vraja-dhama, Hungary: A truly self-sustaining community (Album 28 photos)
→ Dandavats.com

Vaishnavas do not accept anything until it has first been offered to the Deity. Before foodstuffs are offered to the Lord, they are referred to as bhoga (enjoyment). Once they have been offered with heartfelt prayer to the Lord, then they are understood to have been tasted by Him and are then known as prasadam or "mercy." The food has become blessed or sanctified, and we can make spiritual progress by partaking of Lord Krishna's remnants. Read more ›

How do we develop taste for studying scripture?
→ The Spiritual Scientist

Question by Madana Sundari devi dasi (mihaela ispasoiu) -
where does someone find the strength to study? Or how do you develop the pleasure of studying? Why do we lack the pleasure of studying? How do I get over the need to relax my mind after a day of work and just stay and do nothing or watch a movie? I should do everything as my duty, but is it possible to do everything without expecting some pleasure?

Answer Podcast

New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday – 07/24/14
→ New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

New Vrindaban Prabhupada 1969

New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday – 07/24/14.

Each week we highlight an earlier era of ISKCON New Vrindaban.

This week’s challenge: In addition to Srila Prabhupada, there are ten recognizable faces in this photo. How many can you identify?

Extra credit: When and where was this photo taken?

What to do: Post your guesses on the “who, what, when, where & why” in the comment section at the New Vrindaban Facebook Page.

Technical stuff: We share a photo Thursday and confirm known details Sunday. Let’s keep it light and have a bit of fun!

Special request: If you have a photo showing New Vrindaban devotees in action, share it with us and we’ll use it in a future posting.

Bhaktivedanta Academy School
→ Ramai Swami

IMG_0892IMG_0891IMG_0888

The Bhaktivedanta Academy is the second school in Bali and opened in July of this year. The first was the Bhaktivedanta Dharma School and now that has over 180 students.

There was a need for a secondary school because our first school only catered to primary and kindergarden. While the new school does have classes for primary and kindergarden, the main focus will be on secondary education.
It’s only been open a short time but there are already 22 students and about 8 staff.
IMG_0886IMG_0885

Stay on the bus!
→ KKSBlog

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 09 July 2014, Serbia, Summer Camp, Lecture after kirtan)

queensday bus 2013In Mayapur, there is a bus that stops everyday in front of the gate of our Sri Caitanya Candrodaya Mandir. When one gets on the bus in Bengal, it is not uncommon that people are involved in a heated discussion because Bengali people are fiery people and they like politics. So often times, great discussions would be held on the bus and even when the original people who started the argument got off the bus, the argument stayed on the bus the entire day.

So in the same way, even when the people who started the kirtan have left, the kirtan just ‘stays on the bus’. So like that, may the kirtan stay with us even when we are no longer here together. The kirtan carries on – akhanda kirtan, endless kirtan. Kirtaniya sada harih, that ongoing chanting is our desire. In order to come to that point, one must become thoroughly honest. A sadhu is one who is sadhava, thoroughly honest, and when we become thoroughly honest, then automatically we must become humble – because everybody knows how many mistakes we make all the time. Everybody knows how limited we are really.

When there is a success, mostly it is good luck and has nothing to do with us! When there is a failure, it is normal because that is basically where we are at. Considering all that, when we are honest, then humility can finally develop in our heart and maybe then, maybe that day we will be able to always chant the holy name of the Lord.

I am praying for that and I thank you for your kind association upon me, for your enthusiasm. Thank you very much because it is together that we will go back to Godhead, and it is together that we are continuing our spiritual life: sometimes meeting and sometimes not meeting – being apart but we remain together. It is nothing between us, because our only interest is to together make spiritual advancement. So for that, I am grateful because I have been nourished in your association and I am leaving here carrying that with me, taking some energy of Serbia to Italy and will try to drown the devotees in some Serbian ecstasy. In that way, we wait for the Italians to become all ecstatic, and then from there we will drown again another part until the whole world is submerged in the chanting of the holy name!

 

Halfway!
→ travelingmonk.com

We are halfway through our summer festival tour here in Poland. Last night we presented our new theater production, ‘Usa and Aniruddha.’ People loved it. Today we are packing up and moving our base 400 kilometers west to Kostrzyn Nad Odra to begin preparations for the great Woodstock Festival. This will be our 20th year [...]

Welcome Lecture USA Retreat 2014 – Gītā-Nāgarī
Bhakti Charu Swami

INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS  Founder-Ācārya: His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda  Welcome Lecture Given By His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami USA Retreat 2014, Gītā-Nāgarī, 23 July 2014. [Guru Mahārāja leads kīrtana singing Hare Kṛṣṇa maha-mantra] nama om visnu-pādāya Kṛṣṇa-presthāya bhū-tale śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vānī-pracārine nirviśesa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tārine Śrīla Prabhupāda Ki Jaya!(...)

Fourth Annual Pushpa Abhishek in New Vrindaban
→ New Vrindaban

Quickly becoming a favorite New Vrindaban festival, the Fourth Annual Pushpa Abhishek will be celebrated Sat. July 26, 2014.

Their Lordships, Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra will be showered with thousands of fragrant flower petals of all colors and descriptions in the evening, accompanied by ecstatic Hare Krsna kirtan.

If you'd like to come early, at 10 AM we will begin preparing the flower petals for the evening flower showers.  Bring your own home-grown flowers to offer too, if you'd like, and join us.

Festival Hare Krishna in Poland (Album 65 photos)
→ Dandavats.com

Indradyumna Swami: We are halfway through our summer festival tour here in Poland. Last night we presented our new theater production, 'Usa and Aniruddha.' People loved it. Today we are packing up and moving our base 400 kilometers west to Kostrzyn Nad Odra to begin preparations for the great Woodstock Festival. This will be our 20th year of participating in the event and we have bigger plans than ever! One time Srila Prabhupada requested his disciples to, "Think big.” As his servants our lives are meant for fulfilling his desires. Jai Srila Prabhupada! Read more ›

Summer Kids Camp at ISKCON Toronto- August 7-9th‏
→ ISKCON Scarborough



Hare Krishna,

Krishna's FunSkool at Toronto's Hare Krishna Centre is very happy to announce the dates for our Summer Kids Camp! We promise three full days of interactive spiritual learning, yummy prasadam meals and lots of fun for kids aged 4-12.

Here are more details:-
The camp will run for three days Thursday August 7th to Saturday August 9th  from 9:00 am to 5:00pm. You can register your child for one, two or all three days (Reg Fees $25 per day or $60 for all three days). Please pre-register your child by emailing us

For more information please contact kids@torontokrishna.com

We look forward to hearing from you.

In your service,
Krishna FunSkool Team
ISKCON Toronto
416.844.2937

The Cult of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the only solution to war and conflict
→ simple thoughts

Share

Words are words
Thoughts are thoughts
Feelings are feelings
A viewpoint is that a viewpoint

Today we are surrounded by social media each seeking our attention
Today we are surrounded by propaganda each reportedly telling the truth

Each justifying a position an action
Each justifying conflict

Their is many commentators many points of view and each appears more disturbing than the last, justifying in this age war that kills more civilians than military personnel, few even from devotee sources mentions what Krishna or the Acharia’s have to say; and on war, what is justified war, how to wage war and the context of war in the age of Kali means.

Here are but a few selected purports to ponder:

This is the symptom of demons. The first concern of a nondevotee is how to enjoy his personal sense gratification at once, whereas the devotee’s first concern is to satisfy the Lord. This is the distinction between the nondevotee and the devotee. In this material world, since most people are nondevotees, they regularly compete, fight, disagree and war among themselves, for everyone wants to enjoy and satisfy his own senses. Therefore, unless such demons become Krsna conscious and are trained to satisfy the senses of the Lord, there can be no question of peace in human society or any society, even that of the demigods. The demigods and devotees, however, always surrender to the lotus feet of the Lord, and thus the Lord is always anxious to satisfy their ambitions. While the demons fight to satisfy their own senses, devotees engage in devotional service to satisfy the senses of the Lord. The members of the Krsna consciousness movement must be alert in regard to this point, and then their preaching of the Krsna consciousness movement will be successful.
SB 8.8.36

The word paribhava-ghnam is significant in this verse. In Kali-yuga human society is infected with enviousness. There is great envy, even among members of the same family, who constantly quarrel in this age. Similarly, neighbors are envious of each other and of each other’s possessions and status. And entire nations, burning with envy, go to war unnecessarily at the risk of genocide caused by terrible modern weapons. But all of these harassments caused by family members, strangers, so-called friends who are unfaithful, opposing nations, financial competition, social disgrace, cancer, etc., can be relieved by taking shelter of the lotus feet of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. It is not possible to save the material body, but one who takes shelter of Caitanya Mahāprabhu loosens the hard knot of the heart that psychologically binds him to the hallucination of identifying with the external body or the subtle material mind. Once this false identification is broken, one can be blissful in any adverse material condition. Those who foolishly try to make the temporary body eternal are wasting their time and neglecting the actual process for making life permanent, which is to take shelter of the lotus feet of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is Krsna Himself.
SB 11.

Yamarāja has specifically described the qualities of the Visnudūtas to convince his own servants not to be envious of them. Yamarāja warned the Yamadūtas that the Visnudūtas are worshiped with respectful obeisances by the demigods and are always very alert to protect the devotees of the Lord from the hands of enemies, from natural disturbances and from all dangerous conditions in this material world. Sometimes the members of the Krsna Consciousness Society are afraid of the impending danger of world war and ask what would happen to them if a war should occur. In all kinds of danger, they should be confident of their protection by the Visnudūtas or the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati). Material danger is not meant for devotees. This is also confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadāṁ na teṣām: in this material world there are dangers at every step, but they are not meant for devotees who have fully surrendered unto the lotus feet of the Lord. The pure devotees of Lord Visnu may rest assured of the Lord’s protection, and as long as they are in this material world they should fully engage in devotional service by preaching the cult of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Lord Krsna, namely the Hare Krsna movement of Krsna consciousness.
SB 6.3.18

Yes a devotee full of compassion for the fallen condition soul is moved by their plight and as indicated we should not get wrapped up in apportioning blame or justification of killing of one over another NO!

Our business remains propagation of this Krishna Consciousness movement which teaches us not to misidentify with the body but identify with the spirit soul, to love and care for all living entities human/animal alike, to care for this land and look after the resources

And most important to unite the whole world in service to Sri Krishna (god) in love and devotion with street singing of the Mahamantra and prasadam distribution that feeds and nourishes mind body and soul

In this age one of the symptoms is war
In this age the solution is the preaching given to us by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu it is the only way in the age of quarrel and hypocrisy.

Kolkata Ratha Yatra 2014
→ ISKCON News

The Ratha Yatra in Kolkata was held on June 29, 2014. The event was entitled as the  "Prabhupada Ratha Yatra" because A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada used to hold a small Ratha Yatra for neighborhood children when he was a boy. A video by Jeff Wilson, commentary is by Subhag. 

Devotees perform Ratha-yatra in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine as an antidote for the war and conflict
→ Dandavats.com

The smell of herbs and chants. I do not know what you're thinking, but we are talking about the Indian festival "Ratha Yatra". This "festival of chariots" already visited most of Ukraine, and recently visited Dnepropetrovsk. Vaishnava bright costumes, these oriental beauties and the crowd escorted flowered chariot. Yes, the city plunged into authentic Indian feast! The embankment came not only Hare Krishnas and Hindus Dnepropetrovsk, but ordinary onlookers. Songs, dances and candy that throwing people with chariots, lifted the mood. Read more ›