Gaura Purnima, March 16, ISKCON Silicon Valley, Mountain View, California
Giriraj Swami

03.16.14_04.GauraPurnima_ISV03.16.14_03.GauraPurnima_ISVGiriraj Swami spoke during the evening part of the celebrations.

“Srila Prabhupada, at the age of seventy, and at the order of his guru maharaja, crossed the ocean and sat down under a tree and chanted Hare Krishna. He said that anyone could take Krishna consciousness to anywhere in the world by the same method. You just go to a park in the center of the town, sit down under a tree and chant Hare Krishna. And—this is Srila Prabhupada’s own words—’Immediately people will think, Who is this crazy fellow sitting and chanting in the town square? And they will come around to find out about this crazy fellow.’ Then you tell them about Bhagavad-gita and Krishna consciousness. So, this is continuing by Srila Prabhupada’s mercy and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s mercy. All we have to do is take it and distribute it. This is the mission of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu—that you should taste the nectar of the holy name, taste love of God and distribute it—share it with others.

Gaura Purnima, ISV, 2014

Feeding 2500 Vrndavana sadhus in the name of Govinda Swami’s departed mother (Album 71 photos)
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Govinda Swami: Today we served the Vrindavan sadhus and acaryas. Tomorrow we will serve a feast to all of the ISKCON devotees at Krishna Balaram Mandir, as well as sponsor all of the Deities Seva's and feeding the cows in the Bhaktivedanta Goshalla. May Gaura Nitai, Krishna Balaram, Radhe Shyam, the vaisnavas, and the cows bestow their grace upon the soul of my mother. Read more ›

Gaura Purnima: Blissful celebrations at Sri Jagannatha Mandir, ISKCON Malaysia Head Quarters (Album 138 photos)
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Sri Jagannatha Mandir, ISKCON Malaysia head quarters celebrated the most auspicious appearance day of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The programme started with Tulasi Puja and Guru Puja followed by Abhishekam of Sri Sri Gaura Nitai. His Holiness Bhakti Vrajendranandana Swami Maharaja, President of ISKCON Malaysia, graced the occasion with his presence and talk. HG Simhesvara Prabhu, Regional secretary, also spoke and inspired everyone highlighting the glories of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His blessings to all of us. We were also honored to have the presence of YB Senator Datuk Dr Loga Bala Mohan (HG Loka Bandhu Gauranga Prabhu), the Deputy Minister of Federal Territories and His Excellence the Ambassador of Venezuela. Read more ›

SRILA PRABHUPADA ON WRITING
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Realization means you should write, every one of you, what is your realization. What for this Back to Godhead is? You write your realization, what you have realized about Krsna. That is required. It is not passive. Always you should be active. Whenever you find time, you write. Never mind, two lines, four lines, but you write your realization. Sravanam kirtanam, writing or offering prayers,

Sunday, March 16th, 2014
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Ottawa, Ontario

Fast to Feast

Savyasacin had gone to his godfather’s for the evening while I was accommodated in the apartment right next to our Ottawa ashram / restaurant.  There was not to be any eating today.  Govinda’s restaurant is closed on Sunday.  And besides, we are looking at a fast today in honour of Sri Chaitanya’s birthday. 

Who is Chaitanya? 

As I had outlined to the people in the packed place, he is the avatar of the current era (yuga)  who introduced kirtan to the world in a very extraordinary way.  He is credited for bringing the magicalpreoccupation of chanting yoga to the modern world.  As guest speaker, I expressed to the crowd the obligation we all have in offering him our gratitude.  I also spoke about his encounter with the two nefarious characters, Jagai and Madhai, notorious outlaws who struck fear in the hearts of all humble townsfolk in Bengal’s Nadia district in very early 16thcentury.  There was a serious scuffle which involved these two characters and his close associate, Nityananda, but the outcome was a miraculous conversion from heathens to saints for the lives of these two murders, Jagai and Madhai.

Chaitanya was on regular pilgrimage.  His prominent walks were from as far north as Vrindavan in the Delhi area down to the southernmost section of India.  He particularly loved the pilgrimage site on the eastern shore at a place called Puri and spent much of his last 18 years there.  Walking played a big part in his life, as a renunciate, it was a veritable practice. 

Oh yes, and our fast was also followed by a feast.  Scrumptious!

May the Source be with you!

5 KM

Saturday, March 15th, 2014
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Norwood / Ottawa

Two Stops

Savyasacin and I were headed for the city of Ottawa, not by foot, no, that would take two weeks.  We were scheduled to a satsang(gathering of spirits) in an Ottawa suburb for the evening.  We drove, and through another storm, in another day of the winter that refuses to end.

A stopover in Norwood, midway to Ottawa, was really cool, as was our visit to the capitol city.  At the home of Kirtan, mother of 12 great kids, we had lunch, and talks with members of the neighbouring kirtan group.

Now I don’t intend to be redundant with the word, kirtan, but the person’s actual name is Kirtan, which means, a singing or a praise of the absolute.  It just happens to be the name awarded to her by her guru.

The group, from Peterborough, were curious about my passion for walking.  The door of glowing opportunity then arose for me to highlight pilgrimage as a positive outlet for people, as an ancient therapeutic practice, and as a search for answers to otherworldly quests.  I had passed through this town here in 2003, took to some trekking on the nearby Trans Canada Trail, and found myself under constant attack by horse and deer flies.  The only relief was a submerging into the waters of a local lake. 

Speaking of submersion, our little kirtan group did enter into the chanting of the maha mantra, after which we sunk teeth into muffins and chips and guacamole dip.  A great group of chanters and munchers we are. 

Savyasacin and I really look forward to being with the group in the not so distant future.  All hail to Kirtan, the person!  All hail to kirtan, the chanting! 

May the Source be with you!

3 KM

Pleasure seekers
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(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 25 December 2013, Mayapur, India, Srimad Bhagavatam 5.9.3)

Faith is based on desire. The living being is by nature is pleasure seeking, ānandamayo ’vasāne, according to the Vedanta Sutra. So, wherever we think that happiness is found that is where we will direct our faith. If we think it is in money then all our efforts will go towards money. If we think it is sex then all our effort will go towards that. If we think it is children then all our efforts will go towards the children. And if we think that happiness is really found in so many things – this one, that one and really everything; then we will be very restless!

harinama partyIt is like when Canakya Pandita speaks about a girl who is talking to one man, looking at another one and thinking of the third one; he could also speak about a boy in that way. So we are like that, whatever object of sense gratification we have, we hold onto that and meanwhile we are thinking, “Where is the next?” Everywhere, we are looking for more and more, still more and nothing satisfies us completely. It satisfies us at least partially so we keep everything we have and just get more! In this way, we think our happiness is increasing, “We are doing a lot better now than twenty years ago. We made a lot of progress.”

In this way, the illusory energy seems to indicate that we are making progress but it is false progress. Something like this situation – I saw pictures of Iskcon development. In the 1975 picture of the temple and all the devotees, some were on the roof, some were on the balcony in front of all the windows and the brahmacaris were next to the sankirtan van. In 1978, a newer picture – bigger house, more devotees everywhere. But what it does not show is the dent in the bank. It does not show that the new temple was purchased with a big loan. It does not show that all those devotees in the picture now have to work very hard to pay-off that loan.

So, in the same way, it may show that we have made so much progress in spiritual life. Look at what we have now – nice garlands, chadars, dhotis, hats in the right colour and matching socks. It looks good on Facebook but what about our spiritual bank account? That is the question and that is what we are facing in Jada Bharata as one who had a lot of substance in his spiritual bank balance and therefore, he had incredible strength!

 

 

Prelude to Gaura Purnima, Part 2, March 16, ISKCON Silicon Valley, Mountain View, California
Giriraj Swami

03.16.14_01.GauraPurnima_ISVGiriraj Swami and Vaisesika Dasa continued reading and discussing Sri Caitanya-caritamrta.

“One thought about rapturous hearing. I have had the experience that when someone is talking to me in a room where many conversations are going on and somebody nearby is having a conversation that I really want or need to hear, and the person talking to me is saying something that is not so important and is going on and on, there is a way that my ear and brain can filter out not only what the person is saying directly to me, but also the kids running around the room and screaming and all the other conversations. My ear can pick up that one conversation. Why? Because I really want to hear it. It is a state of heart, a state of consciousness. Rapturousness means there is a hunger. When you are hungry, anything seems good. Even a simple meal. Like, ‘I am sorry it it so simple,’ and you are thinking, ‘Are you kidding? This is fantastic!’ So, in that verse Srila Prabhupada is talking about living in such a way that you have that hunger. And once you have that hunger, the circumstances don’t matter that much, you will be able to absorb it wherever you are—’rapturous.’ “—Vaisesika Dasa

Prelude to Gaura Purnima, ISV, Part 2