Planet ISKCON

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, September 2013, Cape Town, South Africa, Srimad Bhagavatam 8.20.12)

Before Aindra Dasa, Srila Prabhupada started the 24 hour kirtan in 1975. When the temple opened, for a short while Hamsadutta Dasa was the temple president. He had a very strict system – everyone would get coupons for prasadam at mangal-aarti.

So it was a very strict management and not so popular but then Prabhupada instructed him about the 24 hour kirtan. Prabhupada told him to have shifts and Hamsadutta implemented it in everyone - no matter who you were, you were given a shift. All the devotees had shifts and one mataji went complaining to Prabhupada, by saying, “But I have to make garlands for three hours.” Prabhupada said, “Yes, then you do not have to do the kirtan. It is not like that, it is for those who do not have other service.”

So it was a big struggle and it was hard to maintain after Prabhupada’s disappearance; it became difficult to maintain the kirtan. It was going on a bit but not exactly for 24 hours.

In 1978, I became in charge of the 24 hour kirtan for quite a number of years and we just did not have people to go on the whole night. We used to keep the kirtan going during the day with different volunteers. The temple commander before me was very eager; he was always getting devotees from all over the world to come and sit down and do some kirtan, while others danced. But no one had done exactly the schedule that Prabhupada wanted because we were managing. We were not sitting down ourselves but Aindra, he sat down himself. He sat down and he did the night shifts; he did the tough parts.

So like that, by hard work, he was successful not by some miracle but by hard work!

 

Prominent ISKCON sannyasi Bhakti Vrajendranananda Swami, who had been suffering from serious liver condition, has made a remarkable recovery and has just been discharged from the hospital.

If a king cannot distinguish between the time to be angry and the time to forgive, then he is lost.

- Draupadi to Yudhisthira, Mahabharata, Vana Parva

6,000 plates of hot meal and 32 tons of food packages, warm cloths and toys were distributed by Hungarian Krishna devotees over the Christmas holidays. Many political leaders, well-known public figures, sportsmen and artists joined them as volunteers in helping their efforts to care for underprivileged families. -- Read more ›

What played out was a stunningly beautiful Sunday Feast, with (amazingly) approximately 100 guests present. Candles were placed ALL around the Temple Room and with no microphones, it was pin-drop silence that welcomed each inspiring word that HG Vaisesika prabhu spoke. Everyone's collected voices chanted in kirtans that warmed the heart, if not the entire body! -- Read more ›

Hundrends if not thousands of people took prasadam from Iskcon devotees begining like this their way back to Home back to Godhead! -- Read more ›

It's not an accident that Brussels sprouts, like other cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and kale, have a famously unpleasant taste.

6,000 plates of hot meal and 32 tons of food packages, warm cloths and toys were distributed by Hungarian Krishna devotees over the Christmas holidays. Many political leaders, well-known public figures, sportsmen and artists joined them as volunteers in helping their efforts to care for underprivileged families.

BY JANANANDA GOSWAMI

KUALA LUMPUR - I am pleased to say that His Holiness Bhakti Vrajendranananda Maharaja has made a remarkable recovery  and has just been discharged from the hospital. He is still of course in a state of more than sensitive health. This is the third time the doctors were almost helpless as to what to do and that he was practically gone. Krishna protects.

It is stated, mare krsna rakhe ke, rakhe krsna mare ke: If Krishna protects someone, no one can kill him, and if Krishna wants to kill someone, no one can save him. SB 11.1.4

The doctors concluded that the prayers of the devotees were the only cause of his recovery. Thank you for your prayers and well wishes. 

Jai Srila Prabhupada!

Please see more photos …

Vrindavana is like the incomparable essence of the ocean of pure love of Krishna, or it is like the sweetest xisland-bracelet decorating that ocean of love. I pray this land of Vrindavana, which the great sages experience sweet as nectar, give me shelter until the moment I leave this body.

Several Harinama parties spreading the Holy Name -- Read more ›

http://flic.kr/s/aHsjPxMgC3

The post Radha-Damodara and Radha Syamasundara on December 26th appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

Kali Yuga series 9.

The post Spiritual status is determined by external symbols, propriety by earning well and scholarship by world jugglery appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

by Renewable Energy World Editors

New Hampshire, USA — Coal contributes 60 percent to India’s power mix today; solar is less than 1 percent. But what was a factor-of-seven difference between the cost of coal and solar two years ago shrank this summer to just a 1.8x gap. Can solar catch up within the next ten years?

In 2011 big coal plants were signing PPAs with tariffs for INR 2.8/kWh while solar was as high as 18/kWh. Now large grid-connected solar can be had at INR 7/kWh, while imported coal, on the rise to help offset a ~10 percent power deficit (baseload) exacerbated by rapidly rising power demand, is pushing INR 4/kWh without taking into account subsidies or cost of externalities. And that doesn’t begin to address the challenges of grid-connecting villages, much less the hundreds of millions of citizens who remain off-grid.

The answer to this lies in domestic solar power, both centralized and distributed, built relatively fast at any size and requiring less than 1 percent of the nation’s land. Four factors have to come into play, though, for solar to truly supplant coal in India in the next decade, according to Tobias Engelmeier, managing director at Bridge to India:

- Looking at longer-term costs. Getting solar costs down to INR 5/kWh in the next couple of years, and lower beyond that, will require improved materials, production, and efficiencies, but long-term solar costs are heading downward. Costs of non-replenishing fossil fuels including coal, meanwhile, will increasingly depend on foreign supply and demand markets.

- Costs of infrastructure and grid management. As an infirm power source, solar’s higher incorporation will require extra investments in a number of areas from storage to demand response. On the other hand, adding more coal plants and imports will mean more infrastructures in mining and a supply chain for imports. It’s still unclear how those all will compare.

- Measuring externalities. Beyond simple end market pricing, coal has several arguable cost-adders that should be factored in, most notably pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, water usage, soil degradation, etc. Factoring in all costs will increasingly be important.

- Valuing energy security. Notice how U.S. foreign policy decisions, including wars, made in the past few decades have been linked to dependence on imported oil? Don’t expect India to follow that lead, given global politics and current supply situations.

Have an Idea for Renewable Energy In India? In May 2014 the 5th annual Renewable Energy World India exhibition and conference returns to New Delhi in 2014, now alongside DistribuTECH India and co-located events POWER-GEN India & Central Asia and HydroVision India. The call-for-papers deadline is this Friday, October 25; topics can range from solar to wind to biomass to geothermal and heat pumps, waste-to-energy, hybrid plants, energy storage, resource forecasting, and numerous related issues.

DEEPER LOOK

Inside India’s Latest Solar Policy Guidelines: India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has approved guidelines for the next phase of the country’s National Solar Mission (NSM), which called for bids for 750 MW of solar plants, offering about 18.75 billion rupees ($303 million) in grants. Here’s a summary of the latest draft proposal‘s high points and key changes, from a sizable domestic content provision to a tweak to viability gap funding (VGF) and some reassurances for both developers and state manager SECI.

India’s Plan to Harness Biomass: The New York Times takes a closer look at India’s goals for biomass as a growing renewable energy source and economic enabler for its agriculture sector which supports more than half the nation’s population. Taking its cues from Europe’s embrace of biomass, India sees the potential to generate at least 18 GW of electricity, part of overall plans to more than double its renewable energy supply to 55 GW by 2017. That runs somewhat contrary, though, to another report that a dozen biomass power plants have scaled back their output since demand for the costlier power source has plummeted in the past year.

Filed under: Cows and Environment

New Vraja Dhama, or Krishna Valley as it is also known, is a 250 Hectare self-sufficient Hare Krishna farm community in Hungary. This 30 minute film explores the experiences of different devotees living in and visiting the community -- Read more ›

Iskcon devotees from the Goloka community of Argentina -- Read more ›

It’s time yet again for New Vrindaban’s Transcendental Throwback Thursday!

Each week we highlight an earlier era in the history of ISKCON New Vrindaban and ask readers to identify devotees in the photo.

This week there are five devotees who can be named in the photo.

Extra credit if you can correctly determine the words painted on the oval sign at the far right side.

Share your best guesses on the “who, what, when & where” in the comment section at the New Vrindaban Facebook Page.

Technical stuff: We post the photo Thursday and confirm known details Sunday.

Good luck!

We need to work hard and set higher and higher goals each time, so that we can achieve the highest goal – a clean heart in which we can cultivate real love for Radha and Krsna.

H.H Girriraj Swami Maharaj – SB 05.01.19

1971 December 26 : "The American Ambassador and the Indian High Commissioner have agreed to come. Now, if you can convince the President of Kenya, Mr. Jomo Kenyatta, then I shall also consent to come for a few days to meet him."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1971

The post December 26th, 2013 – Darshan appeared first on Mayapur.com.

1971 December 26 : "So never think dissatisfaction. Because you are serving Krishna, that is my satisfaction enough. But because you are also preaching so nicely, then I am more than satisfied. Why he does not write me?"
Prabhupada Letters :: 1971

1971 December 26 : "We should always cling to the Lotus Feet of the Lord by following very strictly. If routine work - sixteen rounds, rising early, street Sankirtana, etc.- becomes slack or neglected, then all other attempts will fail."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1971

1971 December 26 : "As long as we keep ourselves pure for preaching, then we shall have all good results - of that there is no doubt. That is the proof of your preaching work - it becomes touchstone and turns iron to gold."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1971

1972 December 26 : "They are able to give enough money, but don't bother to try to mix with or preach to the Hindus extensively. Real business is to convert the local men to become Krishna Conscious and carry on the work."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1972

1972 December 26 : "Except for some rare soul like George Harrison, big personalities will not help us. Now George is practically converted and he is only preaching about Krishna, and he has done that from the beginning."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1972

The soul is an entity between two worlds.

One world is an entirely masculine object. If the soul is attracted to it, it becomes an entirely feminine subject in essence. The other world is an entirely feminine object. If the soul is attracted to it, it becomes an entirely masculine subject in essence.

The object of the masculine world is, fundamentally, Kṛṣṇa. All entities who perceive that world do so from a feminine vantage point. Not every subject takes an externally feminine form, but the essence of all subjects perceiving the masculine object is feminine.

The object of the feminine world is Māyādevī. All entities who perceive her do so from a masculine vantage point. Some of them may appear to have no gender, some may overtly appear male, and some may externally appear female, but all subject observing the feminine object are masculine in essence.

Masculine energy dominates, controls, masters, conquers, and enjoys. Feminine energy supports, gives, nourishes, and amplifies input. Now, as we look around this world at so-called females, do we see any real, pure femininity? It is difficult to find even a predominance of femininity in this world, where everyone’s attitude is mostly to exploit and enjoy. It seems to be womanly to put on makeup and skirts and heels, but actually this is masculine behaviour in a feminine mold because the essence is the effort to control the world. Our entire world is a feminine object, and we are all masculine subjects. But the world of bhakti, the Kṛṣṇa-world, is an entirely masculine object, and we are all feminine subjects there.

This quest for femininity leads to Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. Ultimately, it cannot lead  anywhere else. The world in which she is the chief subject (and Kṛṣṇa the chief object) is the only world in which we can truly experience femininity.

1972 December 26 : "We want that the mass shall support us, but we want that the class shall preach for us, that is the distinction. Is it clear?"
Prabhupada Letters :: 1972

1972 December 26 : "I remember how you used to bring so many big men to see me at John Lennon's house. So if you sincerely desire to serve Him in that way, Krishna will give you every opportunity and intelligence."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1972

Answer Podcast

This article in the Huffington post outlines the unscrupulous ways in which Christian missionaries are converting Hindus.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/philip-goldberg/missionaries-in-india_b_4470448.html

Why does ISKCON act as if this doesn't matter?

Answer Podcast

I read about Srila Bhaktisiddhantha Thakura and found that Prabhupada did many things differently from his spiritual master. Yet he said, "I haven't changed anything." How do we understand this?

Answer Podcast

Spiritual happiness is unlimited. Here it is said that even the Lord cannot measure such happiness. This does not mean that the Lord cannot measure it and is therefore imperfect in that sense. The actual position is that the Lord can measure it, but the happiness in the Lord is also identical with the Lord on account of absolute knowledge. So the happiness derived from the Lord may be measured by the Lord, but the happiness increases again, and the Lord measures it again, and then again the happiness increases more and more, and the Lord measures it more and more, and as such there is eternally a competition between increment and measurement, so much so that the competition is never stopped, but goes on unlimitedly ad infinitum.

 

 

“It is difficult to find happiness within oneself, but it is impossible to find it elsewhere.”

- German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer

 

"It does no good to absentmindedly chant the name of Krishna while your thoughts are elsewhere. Chanting will bring our uncontrolled mind under control"

Srila Prabhupada Lecture
From Back to Godhead 1966

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 21 November 2012, Cape Town, South Africa, Evening Talk)

Philosophy helps us to remember how everything is connected to Krsna, even when we forget him all the time. I mean, I’ve given these examples of how good we are in forgetting Krsna. I mean, we can chant sixteen rounds and not think of Krsna even once (laughter). Chant sixteen rounds, never thought of Krsna once. You know what I’m talking about? You know, not even once, right!!

We are amazingly good in forgetting Krsna even in the middle of the Hare Krsna temple where everything is Krsna, Krsna, Krsna, Krsna - we forget Krsna. Maybe in the temple you remember Krsna a bit but as soon as you step out the gate, Krsna is gone. As soon as there is a movie playing…

I was sitting in the dentist’s waiting room yesterday and then this thing started with some mummies, drooling mummies on the screen. It is really hard, you know… terrible monsters… and then the fight. Again and again, it sucks you in. It is just amazing, the power of the video screen. It is stupid and you know it’s stupid. You are watching it and you say, “This is totally stupid,” but still you are watching it. God, oh, God.

So the power of the material energy to help us forget Krsna is very strong. Therefore, philosophy helps us to see that everything is connected to Krsna, so we need it. We need all these crutches of karma and jnana (knowledge) at this stage.

 

Thirty some years ago my wife made me a set of japa beads out of some tulasis who had appeared and left their bodies in New Vrindaban. At the time we had ideal circumstances for growing tulasis in the Northern Temperate zone with the winters and all. We had a greenhouse that was attached to a heated building so she had maximum natural light and a warm space to grow in. The benches were made on top 55 gallon steel drums laid on their sides and filled with water.

I painted the south end of the drum flat black so during the day the drums would soak up heat with their thermal mass and at night give bottom heat to the tulasi plants.  They got over a meter high (4 foot) and quite bushy so the stems got big enough to make beads.  As a matter of fact, while the beads were regular japa size, the head bead  is 7/8″ (17 mm) in diameter. Which may be normal in more moderate climates but big for here.

I treasured that she made them for me but put them away and never used them out of fear of losing them  I have lost several sets of beads over my lifetime, including the ones that Srila Prabhupada handed me when I was initiated. I used to travel a lot and would leave them in places I couldn’t get back to so I held these in reserve.

A few years ago I realized i wasn’t traveling anymore  and as my life expectancy diminished I figured I better use them now or never. I never take them out of the house and on the rare occasion I do want to take some beads i have a second pair I use so there is no risk of losing them.

After using them for a couple of years I noticed that they tangle more than regular beads. The inner dynamics of bead movement in a bag while chanting sometimes causes the beads to get snarled which usually just needs a couple of shakes and they flow again but I realized it was happening a lot.

I took them out and thad a close look  at them and could see that while Vidya had  done a few passes with the file after cutting the individual beads to approximate roundness there was still a flat edge on the bottom so I got a file and started to roundthem off some more. This took several hours in a few different sessions.  The large head bead itself was quite square and was the main culprit for tangles to I really rounded off the ends of that as well as all of the beads

Tulasi’s stem is square so that had made some sharp corners but I round them as well as at the edges. Some of the beads were a little misshapen and I had noticed when I came to them that they distracted me so I smoothed them up so they glide unnoticed through my fingers now.

So although it took decades to complete I now have a set of New Vrindaban tulasi beads that are top notch to chant on and it adds a dimension to my chanting  I believe.

Filed under: News, Ramblings or Whatever

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