Monday, December 30th, 2013
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Vancouver/ Toronto

Guidelines For Humans

Due to the time taken in air travel I found no opportunity to stretch either leg in the form of walking. My eyes did stumble, during a read, on the instructions on Bhismadev. Bhishmadev was the wise warrior whom we learn of in “The Mahabharata” epic and in the details of his passing from the book “Bhagavatam” wherein he offered his last words of guidelines for humans. This is an excerpt from 1.2.26 purport:

“The varnashrama-dharma is prescribed for the civilized human being just to train him to successfully terminate human life. Self-realization is distinguished from the life of the lower animals engaged in eating, sleeping, fearing and mating. Bhismaedev advised for all human beings nine qualifications:

1) not to become angry

2) not to lie

3) to equally distribute wealth

4) to forgive

5) to beget children only buy ones legitimate wife

6) to be pure in mind and hygiene in body

7) not to be inimical toward anyone

8) to be simple and

9) to support subordinates.

One cannot be called a civilized person without acquiring the above mentioned preliminary qualities”

May the Source be with you!

0 KM
 

Sunday, December 29th, 2013
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Port Coquitlam, British Columbia

Nelson Mandela Etc.

“Nelson Mandela, Steve Jobs and Albert Einstein all got impacted by this book.”  I was listening very carefully to these words, a selling point for the Bhagavad-gita. Banka Bihari, a woman that I have known for thirty years since she first discovered the powerful message of Krishna, was relaying to a small group of us how she gets people to stop and hear her spiel at the mall.  She was young at the time, hailed from Brantford, Ontario, and she was so eager to know about life.  Now years later, she reigns supreme in the Gita distribution category for the greater Vancouver area. Around the dining room table, with her husband Ramanuja to my side and Hadai, a family friend and a student of mine, we heard Banka Bihari tell of her success and challenges with sharing the knowledge of the Gita to the Christmas shoppers.  Every year a marathon is held world-wide for a pleasant push to acquaint the public with this treasure of knowledge.  The marathon referred to is the Prabhupada marathon, an initiative by ISKCON which has been running since the early seventies.  We were intrigued with Banka Bihari’s magic, what she says and how she says it when approaching pedestrians to or from the shop.  “They take the Gita,” she said, “and often come back for a second book related to bhakti.”  She sometimes mentions that this book influenced Gandhi, but there are mixed feelings as people then relate to the book as some religion.

On that note she defends it by saying the information is about life challenges and how to overcome them.  It’s not for any particular denomination.

Banka Bihari volunteers her time and as a sacrifice.  She has a young handicapped son, Nicholas. Between Nicholas’s father and mother they juggle time between home and work in the most co-operative spirit.  It is quite commendable that she extends herself to share the science of the self in the form of the Gita.

The family served me in their Langley home a grainless meal honoured every two weeks on what is a Vaisnava tradition called ekadasi.  The quinoa with veggies mixed in was mouth-gratifying. My second visit to a household was in Port Coquitlam.  The family, who run a security business, have been in Canada from their native India for a decade.  They are taking to bhakti yoga so naturally. They had so many questions on how to apply self-realization in their lives.  Naturally I obliged.

A final victory for the day was staging “The Little Big Ramayana” at Vancouver’s ISKCON centre.  The youth I worked with on this project did a bang on job as an offering to Krishna.  All in His service.

May the Source be with you!

8 KM

Saturday, December 28th, 2013
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Surrey, British Columbia

The Great Past

Some of the members of the youth who volunteered themselves in the drama project of this weekend, have this unstoppable passion for kirtan.  One of our girls in Vancouver organized a twelve hour, uninterrupted kirtan, a chanting session, which has become very commonplace in bhakti-yoga communities.

I had mentioned to Radharani, the coordinator, in order to accomplish a traditional edge in a multi-houred chanting kirtan, you have no pauses, no breaks whatsoever.  “When one chanting group
completes their slot the next group to shuffle in, acts as a continuum.  There is a flow that should not be broken.  It needs to be the smoothest transition.”

Secondly, I suggested that since tradition has some merit then have the chanters stick to the maha-mantra.  I learned of these ways from my Bangladeshi and Oriyan friends.  This is their approach for
generations and is the method of showcasing “the mantra” Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare /Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, nothing else.  They call this kirtan “Ashta Prahar” an eight hour times three chanting period. Chanting is purging.  It generates camaraderie.  It is an opportunity to present one’s talent but more importantly it is a place and time for collective hearts to offer themselves to the one who leaves sound as a way to transform.  I did indeed put in some walking after leading the final kirtan, at which time the grand finale group got off their butts to dance in the course of chanting.  If we are at all to value antiquity, especially in the line of Chaitanya, then we might look to old levitation techniques, where you rise on your feet, then sway back and forth, raise arms and hands at times.  Tradition has it that you surrender not just your voice and hands (as in playing an instrument) but to engage the entire body, the entire being.  Whatever is great that the past holds let it be sustained for future benefits.

May the Source be with you!

5 Km

Prepared More Than Three Hours
→ Japa Group

yāta-yāmaḿ gata-rasaḿ
pūti paryuṣitaḿ ca yat
ucchiṣṭam api cāmedhyaḿ
bhojanaḿ tāmasa-priyam

TRANSLATION
Food prepared more than three hours before being eaten, food that is tasteless, decomposed and putrid, and food consisting of remnants and untouchable things is dear to those in the mode of darkness.

PURPORT
The purpose of food is to increase the duration of life, purify the mind and aid bodily strength. This is its only purpose. In the past, great authorities selected those foods that best aid health and increase life's duration, such as milk products, sugar, rice, wheat, fruits and vegetables. These foods are very dear to those in the mode of goodness. Some other foods, such as baked corn and molasses, while not very palatable in themselves, can be made pleasant when mixed with milk or other foods. They are then in the mode of goodness.

All these foods are pure by nature. They are quite distinct from untouchable things like meat and liquor. Fatty foods, as mentioned in the eighth verse, have no connection with animal fat obtained by slaughter. Animal fat is available in the form of milk, which is the most wonderful of all foods. Milk, butter, cheese and similar products give animal fat in a form which rules out any need for the killing of innocent creatures. It is only through brute mentality that this killing goes on. The civilized method of obtaining needed fat is by milk. Slaughter is the way of subhumans. Protein is amply available through split peas, dāl, whole wheat, etc.

Foods in the mode of passion, which are bitter, too salty, or too hot or overly mixed with red pepper, cause misery by reducing the mucus in the stomach, leading to disease. Foods in the mode of ignorance or darkness are essentially those that are not fresh. Any food cooked more than three hours before it is eaten (except prasādam, food offered to the Lord) is considered to be in the mode of darkness. Because they are decomposing, such foods give a bad odor, which often attracts people in this mode but repulses those in the mode of goodness.

Remnants of food may be eaten only when they are part of a meal that was first offered to the Supreme Lord or first eaten by saintly persons, especially the spiritual master. Otherwise the remnants of food are considered to be in the mode of darkness, and they increase infection or disease. Such foodstuffs, although very palatable to persons in the mode of darkness, are neither liked nor even touched by those in the mode of goodness. The best food is the remnants of what is offered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

In Bhagavad-gītā the Supreme Lord says that He accepts preparations of vegetables, flour and milk when offered with devotion. Patraḿ puṣpaḿ phalaḿ toyam. Of course, devotion and love are the chief things which the Supreme Personality of Godhead accepts. But it is also mentioned that the prasādam should be prepared in a particular way. Any food prepared by the injunctions of the scripture and offered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead can be taken even if prepared long, long ago, because such food is transcendental. Therefore to make food antiseptic, eatable and palatable for all persons, one should offer food to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is 17.10

The Lake Of The Mind
→ Japa Group

"During the japa session, as the mind howls, don’t give up the chanting. However bad the mind's demands, don't give in; let's keep chanting 'till we complete our daily quota. The lake of the mind will eventually settle down. But be rest assured, tomorrow as you sit for another japa session, the mind will once again agitate. Again the solution is the same; do not react."

Radhanatha Swami

Fulfilling the void
→ KKSBlog

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 13 December 2013, Pretoria, South Africa, Evening Program)

radha madhavaThe essence of what I’m trying to say is that we must fill our life with service to Krsna.  That is the difference, you see. Hearing, chanting and other service to Krsna will make the difference.

Otherwise, we will be alone, wherever we are.  It doesn’t matter who we are with, still alone! But when we are really absorbed in service to Krsna, then we will never be alone.  Never!

Therefore  we will never be feeling any lacking. One who is not with Krsna all the time always feels something lacking, even if you have everything.

 

 

 

 

New Vrindaban Daily Darsan @ January 1, 2014.
→ New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

Please see the link for all photos …..

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/114809389518597520995/albums/596400752995915950501

Today or tomorrow this worthless material body will leave me and all the material happiness connected with it will also leave. Because material happiness is temporary, it should be understood to be only a mirage of the real happiness. O my mind, please abandon this false happiness and enjoy the real, eternal happiness of devotional service within the land of Vrindavana.

[ Source : Nectarean Glories of Sri Vrndavana-dhama by Srila Prabodhananda Sarasvati Thakura, 1-23 Translation ]

2013 A Year’s Reflection
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Start of a new year normally a time when I reflect on the previous year the good, bad and ugly bits.

Reflection on practice was something instilled during my nurse training to critically analyse not to see what went well, what could be improved and what went wrong in order to avoid the same mistakes.

This years hospital admission taught me a lot especially about Japa and our connection with our Guru Maharajah; Japa is not that easy the mind becomes an uncontrollable beast it was so kind that the devotee Dipak Prabhu who came with me kept me focused and chanting. Sharing my thoughts with my Guru Maharajah helped focus my mind on one fact, difficulty in chanting comes from inattentive Japa. A timely warning!

It was also wonderful the few amazing devotees who cooked and visited me each day, Thankfully I was admitted during the Diwali festival period not in my home town here in Wales were I would have been without such association (their would be no devotee visits). Reflecting again it shows the value of association, we forget that in many ways the only reason we remain strong is by building strong relationships with sincere devotees. Yes! None of us are pure devotees but were all getting their slowly and that in itself is inspirational, knocking the rough edges off each other. If we want to make progress in devotional life then these devotees are going to be the key.

It was also a year in which I again started to give class in the temple especially humbling as you look out at the amazing devotees who’s knowledge is more expansive than mine; but they listen attentively ask questions and encourage me to give more classes. It is amazing how many personal realizations you gain whilst giving class I think I learn more than those who are listening.

It makes me laugh how I start Pujari clean as the devotees allow me to do the morning transfers and assist the pujari’s in a small way; to ending up making the local dustmen looking remarkably clean given the duties that Acharia prabhu gives for me to do as seva; but it’s always worth the trip and time off work.

The community and school seva is slowly increasing I would love it to increase and cover the whole of Wales; but my inexperience shows; we had the second community Diwali joined by a wonderful devotee couple Mena and Vijay, Mena made a wonderful cake and Vijay did an amazing Kirtan as arati was offered. Yes were planning on another this year, hoping to make it bigger and better I plan one year to take over the Grand Theatre in the sea side town of Porthcawl it’s an aspiration.

But my underlining realization is that of friendship from those who I see and chat to in the guest room, to the pujaris, senior devotees and remarkable devotees who give up their time to do some devotional service. Each inspire and keep me motivated; without this association I would never make any spiritual progress; may Krishna continue to bless you all and your family.

Gaura Purnima 2014 Sponsorships
→ Mayapur.com

With great pleasure, ISKCON Mayapur invites devotees worldwide to celebrate the Gaura Purnima festival 2014 at Sri Dham Mayapur. On the 27th of February Kirtan Mela will begin, followed by the festival inauguration, various festivities, Navadwipa Mandala Parikrama, and the grand celebration of Gaura Purnima on the 16th of March. Gaura Purnima 2014 Festival Schedule   […]

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