Finding My Perfect Master, June 1, Potomac, Maryland
Giriraj Swami

SP_in_Boston_1969“I had the idea that you didn’t choose your guru but that he was already there and he just had to manifest himself to you. And I even had a vague mental impression of what he looked like—and he didn’t have hair. All the other swamis I had met had long hair. I had gone to see so many swamis and masters, every time with high hopes, but in the end I had always been disappointed. Finally I started feeling despondent: ‘How will I ever find my perfect master?’ Then one day I saw a poster on campus: ‘Bhagavad-gita As It Is — A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami.’ I looked at it, but I was so discouraged I couldn’t believe that he could be my perfect master. . .”

Finding My Perfect Master

Vaishnavi Sanga Retreat – June 20th – 22nd, 2014
→ The Toronto Hare Krishna Temple!

In it's third year, we are happy to announce we will once again have our Vaishnavi Sanga Retreat Friday, June 20th - Saturday, June 22nd! This is a chance for the women of our community to spend a weekend away, absorbing yourself in Krishna katha, amongst amazing classes, kirtan, association and prasadam!

We are thrilled to have Laxmimoni devi dasi returning for the third year in a row and will be joined this year by our very own Prema Manjari devi dasi facilitating classes and discussions throughout the weekend.

Highlights of the past retreats have included:
  • seminars and workshops
  • games and activities
  • sweet kirtan
  • Zumba class!
  • sumptuous prasadam
  • nature walks
  • ....and much more!
This year, the retreat promises to be even more enlivening and uplifting. The retreat takes place on Friday, June 20th - Saturday, June 22nd in Muskoka, Ontario at the Muskoka Riverside Inn, about two hours away from Toronto. The cost for the retreat is $108, which includes your accommodation and meals. If you need to bring your children, please note that children from 0-3 can attend for free and kids 4-12 at half price.

If you have any questions or concerns and would like to register, please check out our website here at: http://vaisnavisanga.weebly.com/. 



12 things you didn’t know about Krishna Lunch!
→ Dandavats.com

Halava, the semolina and fruit dessert served with Krishna Lunch, comes in an array of flavors limited only by the chefs’ imaginations. Past flavors have included pineapple upside-down cake, pumpkin pie and banana split. Krishna Lunch volunteers have served up to 1,200 people in a single day. That’s a lot of halava — 35 gallons, to be exact. Preparation of the meal begins at 5 a.m. Read more ›

One Should Know The Mind
→ Japa Group

What happens when we are not hearing with attention? Who is active there? The mind is active. The mind is active all the time....so the chanter of the holy name has to be also a student of the mind. A student of the mind doesn't mean follower of the mind. It means one should know the mind."

Lokanatha Swami
Chant For Change Seminar

New Vrindaban Congregational Department Fans the Spiritual Spark
→ New Vrindaban

By Madhava Smullen

Bhakta Josef Lauber clearly loves his service. It comes through in his voice, as the words tumble out in a colorful torrent, filled with emotion.

And why wouldn’t he? As head of ISKCON New Vrindaban’s Congregational Development Department, he is constantly guiding newcomers in Krishna consciousness, watching them learn, seeing their enthusiasm and their love for God build.

Josef reaches out to the 25,000 Westerners and Indian immigrants who visit New Vrindaban every year, giving many of them instructions on how to chant Hare Krishna, and sending them home with japa beads and Srila Prabhupada’s books.

“I love sitting down with visitors who drove six to ten hours from Washington, New York, Chicago, Toronto, and beyond, reading and reciting the Bhagavad-gita with them and seeing them soak it all up,” he says. “And then seeing how they start reading and chanting, taking Bhagavad-gita and Bhakti Sastri courses by phone conference call, and even how some of them eventually get initiated.”

Josef has also revived the Govardhana parikrama that Varshana Swami created to scale according to Srila Prabhupada’s instructions. And every Sunday morning, he takes guests on a two-hour tour of replicas of the sacred hill and the lakes Kusum Sarovara, Manasi Ganga, Lalita Kunda, and Radha Kunda, while narrating Krishna’s pastimes.

“After two hours of singing the Holy Name, hearing Krishna Katha, breathing the fresh air, and seeing the untouched beauty of nature in New Vrindaban, you can see how they revive their spiritual selves, and become happy,” he says.

Another of Josef’s favorite activities is his outreach program, in which he and other members of the Congregational Development Department visit friends of New Vrindaban, invite them for a return visit, give them books and encourage them in their Krishna consciousness.

“Sometimes we’ll do a house-warming ceremony, or try to accommodate whatever else is happening in their lives,” he says. “Going to their homes, and seeing their devotion -- how they center their lives around their home Deities and chant on their beads every morning, despite the struggles of everyday life -- really touches my heart.”

Another element of Josef’s service is raising the large amount of funds needed to keep New Vrindaban running every year. With three years of experience as a fundraiser for Greenpeace, and ten running his own fundraising consulting company for non-profit organizations, he’s an expert, inspiring many to donate towards the community’s cow protection and other needs.

While it’s predominantly Indian congregation members who donate and participate in the above programs due to their natural attraction to Krishna consciousness, Josef is also involved in a number of efforts specifically targeted at reaching out to a Western audience.

Chief of these is his service as promoter for Srila Prabhupada’s Palace, known as The Palace of Gold to tourists. Rated one of “8 Religious Wonders to See in The US” by CNN Travel as recently as 2012, the Palace is still New Vrindaban’s ace, and Josef knows it.

Through local TV and newspaper ads, flyers in nearby hotels, and collaborations with local tourist agencies, he has already significantly increased the number of non-Indian visitors since last year. And he attracted major interest from Lenzner, one of the biggest bus tour operators in the US, when 25 of the company’s managers visited New Vrindaban in late April.

“The Palace of Gold is an asset that has potential to revive New Vrindaban as a place of pilgrimage, just like Srila Prabhupada wanted,” he says.

Josef is also a firm believer in the Festival of Colors, introduced in 2012, as a major way to attract Westerners to Krishna consciousness. Last year, over three-and-a-half thousand people, mostly young students from nearby universities, attended the event at New Vrindaban, with nearly twice as many expected this year.

And the first Pittsburgh Festival of Colors, put on by New Vrindaban devotees on April 19th this year, drew between five and six thousand students from three universities.

To achieve success in all these projects, it’s essential for the New Vrindaban Congregational Development Department to work as a team, one of the most important things that Josef has brought to it.

“I’m trying to cultivate a Vaishnava-like atmosphere of helping each other and an enlivening team spirit where everybody feels welcome and accommodated," he says.

Josef has many more improvements he hopes to implement in the future. He hopes to grow his team from three active preachers to six or seven, further refine his database of contacts, build a solid base of monthly donations, and upgrade Radha-Vrindabanchandra’s swan boat.

With New Vrindaban’s Palace Lodge already beautifully refurbished, he hopes to repeat the process with the cabins by the lake for more quality accommodation, and to renovate the Palace of Gold, a ten-year, multi-million-dollar project.

Meanwhile on the spiritual side, he hopes in the future to see a more systematized way of preaching in the form of an academy where the congregation can study the scriptures and receive Bhakti Sastri diplomas.

Temple of Vedic Planetarium: The waterproofing is being taken to the next level
→ Dandavats.com

The waterproofing is being taken to the next level, the rainwater pipes are now being installed. They function to allow the surplus liquid from the dome to pour off and prevent water damage. The building is being protected against water seepage on any level and it will be perfectly sealed against moisture. These pipes will be spread across the dome in many locations for maximum efficiency. The HDPE pipes being used are of the highest quality to ensure that they will last at least 100 years. Read more ›

How the less intelligence of impersonalists deprives them of krishna-prema
→ The Spiritual Scientist

The object of worship for the  less intelligent men  is but  a transformation of material sattva guna, which  has  qualities such  as formlessness. Out  of fear  of contamination by worship of human  forms   or  material  qualities,  the   less  intelligent  resort   to  the   formless and unchanging  concept, but  by  this  they  are  deprived of  Krsna  prema.

Chaitanya Shikshamrita, Bhaktivinoda Thakura

New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday – 06/05/14
→ New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

Prabhupada New Vrindaban 1976

New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday – 06/05/14.

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

This week’s challenge: In this photo with Srila Prabhupada there at least 10 devotees whose face can be seen, including a number of ladies. Who can you identify?

Extra credit: Where are they and who currently lives in that location?

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.

There is no magic fix
→ KKSBlog

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 24 April 2014, Radhadesh, Belgium, Caitanya Caritamrta Lecture)

At every moment, we are drowning in mercy – this is an amazing Movement! Our relationship is centered solely around Krsna and is meant to deal with the Absolute Truth, as it is presented in the scripture and in accordance with kala, desha, patra – time, place and circumstance, which actually means the reality of our situation.

Srila prabhupada 3This is what we are looking at – presenting Krsna consciousness according to the reality of our situation. That is my topic, my angle where we say, ‘I have to crystallize this Krsna consciousness to the point where it deals with the reality of where we are at.’ You can see that is actually what Prabhupada did. He dealt with the hippies from Lower East Side and brought Krsna consciousness down to them.

So certain things could be done and certain things could not be done. About ekadasi and deity worship; these things he kept simple and he did not get too much carried away in ritual. One could say that people were not qualified and therefore not able to deal with it – maybe, but that might have not been the sole reason. Another reason to keep the rituals simple might have been because it is, in a way, secondary to the substance of chanting Hare Krsna and of sankirtan.

Now, we are learning more and more and sometimes, a bit more ritual has come than what was existing in the 70’s. Alright, it can be there because this is the time when we have everything: we have the Vedic approach, we have the Krsna West approach, we have so many approaches, grihasta approach, brahmacari approach, we have academic approach… So as a Movement, we start to get many different approaches to Krsna consciousness. It is no longer just simply, ‘Do you wanna be a devotee?

‘Aww, well I think yes.’

‘Ok, why don’t you join the temple?’

‘Well, yes, I mean, I guess, I will join the temple.’ That was the 70’s. You want to be a devotee, then – join the temple! So it was either you want to be a devotee and join the temple or you are not a devotee; that is how it was. Now it is of course different, now it is more of what kind of devotee are you going to be?

A temple devotee, a congregational devotee, an academic devotee, a professional, or a type doing little business on a side and live close to the temple…? So many different ways of life and what to be? But then, there is somebody like me, who is of no help to such decisions in life,  ‘Is it good if I move in a temple?’

KKS_simhachalam_2014‘Yes.’

‘Is it good if get a job outside and just chant sixteen rounds and follow the principles?’

‘Yes.’ It is all good.

‘Is it good if I get married?’

‘Yes.’

‘Is it good if I stay brahmacari?’

‘Yes.’ It is all good. See, I don’t give you any answers. All I do is hold options in front of your nose, ‘Well, you could do this or you could do that but you decide.’

‘But for God’s sake, tell me what to do!!!’

But I am not going to. I refuse; I don’t want to. The reason is that I don’t want dependent people; I want people who can make decisions and live by their decisions.

‘But please tell me what the right decision is?’

The answer is that on the material plane, anything dealing with material energy – there is no right decision, as every decision brings pleasure and pain! That is material life.

‘What ashram should I chose?!’

I don’t know… which one you like the best? Of course, for some people I have a plan and I would tell them what ashram I would like them to be in, that may also be true. But for majority of people, I say choose whatever you like but make it Krsna conscious. You see, the ashram is not the magic fix, making it Krsna conscious is what it is all about. Grhasta ashram is great if you make it Krsna conscious, brahmachari ashram is really good if you make it Krsna conscious, vanaprasta ashram is good if you can find a way to do it, sannyasa – yes, it is the great blessing but one has to really do something to make it happen.

 

Move it – Turn on your brain
→ Successful Vaisnavas – Personal Development for Hare Krishnas

Looks like dancing in kirtan might help you concentrate in class, in your japa, and in your work. (See the infographic below.) Studies show that aerobic exercise not only makes you feel better and concentrate better, it might even slow down the aging process in the brain. Aerobic exercise is the when you move the […]

The post Move it – Turn on your brain appeared first on Successful Vaisnavas - Personal Development for Hare Krishnas.

Move it – Turn on your brain
→ Successful Vaisnavas

Looks like dancing in kirtan might help you concentrate in class, in your japa, and in your work. (See the infographic below.)

Studies show that aerobic exercise not only makes you feel better and concentrate better, it might even slow down the aging process in the brain.

Aerobic exercise is the when you move the major muscles in your body like your legs and your arms causing your heart to beat faster and take in more oxygen. To get benefit,  it is recommended to do aerobic exercise for at least 20 mins (about the time it takes for a full arati)

As well as dancing, brisk walking (japa walk anyone?) and swimming are good forms of aerobic exercise. Srila Prabhupada showed by his example with his daily morning walks exercise is good for devotees. Don’t just sit behind your desk all day get up and move. And for a really good dose of exercise go out on Harinama – Chant and dance in the streets – Save the world and save your brain. =>:-)

Exercise and the Brain
Benefits for the Brain from Exercise

Wings
→ Seed of Devotion

"Where are you from?" I'm asked sometimes.

Sigh. I can see that they're puzzled by my name, dress, accent, and/or hairdo.

"Do you want to know where my parents are from, my ethnicity, my nationality, where I grew up, or where I live now?"

In fact, none of these categories really give a sense of where I'm from, because I don't identify with any of them. What often follows is my declaration that I'm a second-generation devotee of Krishna - or, a gurukuli.

Everyone is searching for who they are, where they're from. Everyone wants an identity. I'm no exception, struggling and slipping upon words and definitions, searching for something to hold onto to keep me from being a nobody from nowhere. So I sometimes I grab ahold of being a gurukuli.

Gurukulis can be found in almost every country in the world speaking almost every language in the world. We sometimes get drawn to each other, like flamingos, eagles, penguins, and sparrows who all flock to one place with only the basics in common. Wings. Beaks. Feathers.

Boiled down to one thing, we have parents that are devotees of Krishna. Of course, nowadays its becoming complex to even define gurukuli. We all seem to struggle with that question, "Where are you from?" because we all have a long list of possible answers. We all seem to slip and slide upon definitions.

But one thing I know for sure is that when I'm with gurukulis, I have this experience of unconditional acceptance - I'm accepted, I accept others. Family. That sense of belonging transcends all cultures, languages, countries. And when the motley crew of us birds gather in one place, my own experience is that deep down, our wings are Krishna. We seem to all be connected to Krishna in some way - whether we accept Krishna as God or not. Krishna seems to be that gene that we were born with, and whether we like it or not, we've all got wings.

And ultimately, don't we all have wings? Don't we all yearn to shed our identities - even of being a "gurukuli"? Doesn't every soul long to fly?

"This sky 
where we live
is no place
to lose your wings
so 
love
love
love." 

- Hafiz  



Subscribe

New Vrindaban Daily darsan @ June 4, 2014.
→ New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

IMG_7648

Crying in a voice filled with pain, rolling about on the ground, bowing down to offer respect to the person who is his dearmost friend, placing blades of grass between his teeth, and with millions of plaintive words begging for the merciful glance of his two masters, staying all alone at the base of a tree in Vrndavana forest, resting his cheek on his left hand, and shedding many tears, a certain incomparably fortunate person spends his day and nights.

Source : Nectarean Glories of Sri Vrindavana-dhama by Srila Prabodhananda Sarasvati Thakura, Sataka-2, Text-54, Translation.]

Please click here for more photos ….

Visiting Slovakia, May 2014
→ KKSBlog

Bhaktiloka (17)Report by Gopali dasi

On Friday (16 May), Kadamba Kanana Swami flew from Germany to Vienna (Austria) which is near Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. On Sunday morning, he presented a lecture at the Bhaktiloka centre in Bratislava and narrated a story from the Hamsa Dutta. The story was about Krsna missing the residents of Vrindavan and Lalita sending a swan messenger to Krsna, trying to inform Him about the dangerous health state of Srimati Radharani who was in high fever due to separation from Him.

In the evening, a program took place in Vienna that started with a long bhajan session followed by a lecture in the German language. Guru Maharaj spoke about his journey to the East and his first impressions of India. About fifty guests came to see and hear from Maharaj. A wonderful feast cooked by his disciples was served and thereafter, Guru Maharaj drove back to Slovakia. On Sunday, a program was held in the most famous yoga-centre in Bratislava where Guru Maharaj led another wild kirtan with devotees bursting in the happiness of kirtan. A captivating lecture about Jagai and Madhai followed and again, the program ended with wonderful prasadam. The next day, Guru Maharaj took rest in the morning and for the remainder of the day, he offered himself to his disciples who were eager to see him and have darshans with him. On Tuesday at noon, he headed to Czech Republic.

 

Photos

Flickr has changed their privacy settings and we cannot embed a slide-show in this post. To view photos from these programs, please visit flickr.