Few things raise people's guard as much as threats to their freedom from totalitarian governments.

Yet they often overlook the greatest threat to individual freedom – the individual. That is, they themselves. The Bhagavad-gita (03.36) points to this threat through Arjuna’s insightful question: what impels us to act self-destructively, as if against our will?

If we introspect, we can recollect times when we acted senselessly, and on returning to our senses wondered in dismay: what possessed me to do that?

The next Gita verse answers that it is lust, the shortsighted self-centered dark desire to enjoy matter. Such desires are lodged in our lower self. Our actual self, our higher self is the soul, but we also have an exploitative evil side comprised of impressions formed by exposures to ungodly indulgences. This lower self foists upon us blind desires for instant pleasure, no matter what the risks and costs. When we mistakenly identify such desires as our desires, we act self-destructively. Such actions when repeated become addictions that steal our capacity to think clearly and choose freely.

Today’s materialistic culture being filled with seductive images fuels such selfish desires. These desires masquerading as our desires comprise the greatest threat to our freedom.

To help us counter the totalitarian tyranny of such desires, Gita wisdom outlines the most empowering use of our freedom: devotional service to Krishna. When we choose to live in accordance with our true self, as souls capable of delighting in loving service to Krishna, the resulting inner satisfaction and illumination immunizes us to the outer seductions that steal our freedom. Devotional service not only preserves our freedom in this world but also propels us to the supreme freedom in the next world – the freedom of an eternal life of love and joy with Krishna.

**

03.36 - Arjuna said: O descendant of Vrishni, by what is one impelled to sinful acts, even unwillingly, as if engaged by force?

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Srila Prabhupada, Spiritual Revolutionary

 My dear Srila Prabhupada,

Please accept my prostrated obeisances in the dust of your divine lotus feet. All glories to Your Divine Grace.

Srila Prabhupada, who can fathom your greatness, your accomplishments, your unbounded causeless mercy and love? In a letter to a sympathizer in India in 1966, you wrote of your experience of America:

“The general people are all intoxicated and loafers. . . . You cannot imagine from there, how difficult it is to make them accept good sad-acara [behavior according to scriptural injunctions]. It is so much mercy from Srila Prabhupada [Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati] that they are giving up illicit relationships, intoxication, marijuana, tea, coffee, everything. Having given up meat they are eating dal, chapatti, and rice and are very happy. They do kirtana and hari-nama every morning and evening, and do sandhya before Srila Mahaprabhu’s picture. To honor the guru-varga, as soon as they see me they pay obeisances. I never expected so much. . . .

“It is not possible to beg here. It is not possible to run a matha or temple if money does not come from earnings. Here it is not possible to go from door to door to beg flour and rice. Without [advance] notice it is not possible to meet with any gentlemen. . . . Along with all this inconvenience, in this faraway foreign country, I am working alone, helplessly. My only hope is Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. I have no one else. In my house my wife and son did not help me, so I left my home. I thought the Godbrothers would help me, but even that I did not get. . . . In my old age I have taken so much risk, but not to fulfill any of my own desires. Srila Prabhupada had desired this work, and I am trying to fulfill that desire according to my ability. Personally I have no ability. My only hope is Srila Prabhupada.”

Some glimpse of your greatness—and your mission—is given in your translation and purport to Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto Two, Chapter Four, text 18:

kirata-hunandhra-pulinda-pulkasa
abhira-sumbhayavanahkhasadayah
ye ’nyeca papa yad-apasrayasrayah
sudhyantitasmaiprabhavisnavenamah

“Kirata, Huna, Andhra, Pulinda, Pulkasa, Abhira, Sumbha, Yavana, members of the Khasa races, and even others addicted to sinful acts can be purified by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord, due to His being the supreme power. I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto Him.”

In your purport you explain, “The above-mentioned historical names are different nations of the world. Even those who are constantly engaged in sinful acts are all corrigible to the standard of perfect human beings if they take shelter of the devotees of the Lord. Jesus Christ and Muhammad, two powerful devotees of the Lord, have done tremendous service on behalf of the Lord on the surface of the globe. And from the version of Srila Sukadeva Gosvami it appears that instead of running a godless civilization in the present context of the world situation, if the leadership of world affairs is entrusted to the devotees of the Lord, for which a worldwide organization under the name and style of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness has already been started, then by the grace of the Almighty Lord there can be a thorough change of heart in human beings all over the world because the devotees of the Lord are able authorities to effect such a change by purifying the dust-worn minds of the people in general.”

Your disciple and Sanskrit editor Pradyumna dasa, who had read many scriptures, commentaries, and works by previous acaryas, told me that what struck him as unique about you was that you applied the principles of scripture beyond the individual practitioners’ efforts to the affairs of state and the world. You applied the same principles on a broad scale, as we see immediately in this purport.

The verse says that anyone who is sinful can at once be purified by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord—which is very encouraging for us sinful souls. And you take the principle and extend it—that the whole world is suffering because people are sinful. As you have explained, all suffering is due to sin—transgressing God’s laws—and sin is due to ignorance. So if we become free from ignorance, we will become free from sin and suffering—which can be achieved by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord.

Everyone is under the jurisdiction of some government. If the governments are guided by devotees of the Lord, there will be no more sinful activities, no more sinful reactions, and no more misery, and people will be peaceful and happy.

“The politicians of the world may remain in their respective positions because the pure devotees of the Lord are not interested in political leadership or diplomatic implications. The devotees are interested only in seeing that the people in general are not misguided by political propaganda and in seeing that the valuable life of a human being is not spoiled in following a type of civilization which is ultimately doomed. If the politicians, therefore, would be guided by the good counsel of the devotees, then certainly there would be a great change in the world situation by the purifying propaganda of the devotees, as shown by Lord Caitanya. As Sukadeva Gosvami began his prayer by discussing the word yat-kirtanam, so also Lord Caitanya recommended that simply by glorifying the Lord’s holy name, a tremendous change of heart can take place by which the complete misunderstanding between the human nations created by politicians can at once be extinguished. And after the extinction of the fire of misunderstanding, other profits will follow. The destination is to go back home, back to Godhead.”

As described by Lord Caitanya in His Siksastaka, the chanting of the holy name cleanses the mirror of the heart. And Sukadeva Gosvami recommends yad kirtanam—the same thing.

One may think of the verses of the Siksastaka in a very personal way, in terms of one’s own spiritual advancement, but here you extend the principle: if the government leaders propagate hari-nama-sankirtana, then all of the benefits mentioned in the first verse of the Siksastaka, such as extinguishing the blazing fire of material existence, can be achieved, not only on the level of the individual and family, but also on the level of nations. On every level people can be delivered from the blazing fire of material existence by taking shelter of the devotees’ instructions and performing sankirtana.

“In the Bhagavad-gita (9.32) it is said by the Lord that there is no bar to becoming a devotee of the Lord (even for those who are lowborn, or women, sudras, or vaisyas), and by becoming a devotee everyone is eligible to return home, back to Godhead. The only qualification is that one take shelter of a pure devotee of the Lord who has thorough knowledge in the transcendental science of Krsna (the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam).”

Tamal Krishna Goswami once dreamed that you were reporting to the previous acaryas about the situation on the planet Earth: “The people now have no good qualities. They have no background in pious activities, no background in Vedic culture, and no background in scriptural knowledge. But they do have one good quality: They have full faith in me, and whatever I tell them they do.”

Hearing the dream, you smiled in agreement. “The only qualification is that one take shelter of a pure devotee of the Lord who has thorough knowledge in the transcendental science of Krsna.”

“Anyone from any part of the world who becomes well conversant in the science of Krsna becomes a pure devotee and a spiritual master for the general mass of people and may reclaim them by purification of heart.”

Here you are referring to Sri Caitanya-caritamrta (Madhya 8.128): “Whether one is a brahmana, a sannyasi, or a sudra—regardless of what he is—he can become a spiritual master if he knows the science of Krsna.” And you are extending the principle that regardless of one’s background—no matter how sinful—if one takes shelter of a devotee of the Lord who is conversant with the science of Krsna and learns the science from him, one in turn can become a guru, a teacher of the transcendental science.

“A Vaisnava, therefore, can accept a bona fide disciple from any part of the world without any consideration of caste and creed and promote him by regulative principles to the status of a pure Vaisnava who is transcendental to brahminical culture.”

Your stance was revolutionary. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura enunciated the principle, with evidence from sastra, that even a person not born a brahmana can become a Vaisnava and that when one is actually a Vaisnava he surpasses even the brahminical qualifications. And he implemented the principle in his matha, awarding the sacred thread to devotees not born in brahmana families.

You, Srila Prabhupada, extended the same principle even to those born outside India or Hindu society.

In India we met—and one still meets—people who objected to your awarding the sacred thread to those born outside brahmana families. In Madras Acyutananda had an argument with our host, a so-called orthodox Hindu who believed that you cannot be a brahmana unless you are born in a brahmana family. Still, he conceded, “You can be a Vaisnava, and a Vaisnava is more than a brahmana—but you are not a brahmana. To become a brahmana you have to take birth as a brahmana in your next life.”

Acyutananda explained, “One takes birth in a particular family according to his karma, his previous pious and sinful activities, and thus someone who has engaged in sinful activities may not take birth in a brahmana family. But by chanting the holy name of the Lord you can immediately eradicate all sinful reactions, without a change of body.” In conclusion, he questioned our host, “What is stronger—the holy name or sin?” And the man had to admit that the holy name is stronger.

So by taking shelter of the holy name, under the guidance of a pure devotee, one can be freed from sinful actions and reactions, even without changing one’s body, and thus transcend the position of even a material brahmana. One can become more than a brahmana—and also a brahmana.

Your purport continues, “So by the order of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the cult of Srimad-Bhagavatam or the Bhagavad-gita can be preached all over the world, reclaiming all persons willing to accept the transcendental cult. Such cultural propaganda by the devotees will certainly be accepted by all persons who are reasonable and inquisitive, without any particular bias for the custom of the country. The Vaisnava never accepts another Vaisnava on the basis of birthright, just as he never thinks of the Deity of the Lord in a temple as an idol.”

Here you refer indirectly to a verse from the Padma Purana: “One who thinks the Deity in the temple to be made of wood or stone, who thinks of the spiritual master in the disciplic succession as an ordinary man, who thinks the Vaisnava in the Acyuta-gotra to belong to a certain caste or creed, or who thinks of caranamrta or Ganges water as ordinary water is taken to be a resident of hell.”

Just as the Deity is transcendental—not stone or wood or metal but Krsna Himself—so too a Vaisnava who has been reinstated in his or her constitutional position as an eternal servant of Krsna is not a brahmana or vaisya or sudra or mleccha or Indian or American or Chinese or man or woman. He or she is a Vaisnava, servant of Visnu.

“And to remove all doubts in this connection, Srila Sukadeva Gosvami has invoked the blessings of the Lord, who is all-powerful (prabhavisnave namah). As the all-powerful Lord accepts the humble service of His devotee in devotional activities of the arcana, His form as the worshipable Deity in the temple, similarly the body of a pure Vaisnava changes transcendentally at once when he gives himself up to the service of the Lord and is trained by a qualified Vaisnava.”

And here you refer to Lord Caitanya’s instruction to Srila Sanatana Gosvami in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta (Antya 4.192): “At the time of initiation, when a devotee fully surrenders unto the service of the Lord, Krsna accepts him to be as good as Himself” (not in quantity, of course, but in quality).  And the same principle is confirmed by Sanatana Gosvami in his Hari-bhakti-vilasa (2.12), as you often quote: “As bell metal is turned to gold when mixed with mercury in an alchemical process, so one who is properly trained and initiated by a bona fide spiritual master immediately becomes a brahmana.”

“The conclusion is that the Lord, being all-powerful, can, under any and every circumstance, accept anyone from any part of the world, either personally or through His bona fide manifestation as the spiritual master. Lord Caitanya accepted many devotees from communities other than the varnasramites, and He Himself declared, to teach us, that He does not belong to any caste or social order of life, but that He is the eternal servant of the servant of the Lord who maintains the damsels of Vrndavana (Lord Krsna). That is the way of self-realization.”

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta indicates the value, or stature, or significance of someone—you—who can actually purify people addicted to sinful acts. That principle was there in the Bhagavatam, but until you left India and crossed the ocean, it had not been done outside of India.

The Caitanya-caritamrta describes the Caitanya tree, with Lord Caitanya being simultaneously the tree and the gardener tending the tree. Different branches of the tree are described, one as sarvottama, “the best of all.”

“On the western side were the forty-third, forty-fourth, and forty-fifth branches—Sri Sanatana, Sri Rupa, and Anupama. They were the best of all.” (Adi 10.84)

“By the will of the supreme gardener, the branches of Srila Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami grew many times over, expanding throughout the western countries [pascima desa] and covering the entire region.” (Adi 10.86)

Reading these verses, we are struck by the resemblance between what Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami says about Sri Rupa and Sri Sanatana and what we know to be true of you.

Rupa and Sanatana are glorified because they spread Krsna consciousness in the western countries of Bharata (India). By the desire of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the supreme gardener, you went even further west, across the ocean to America, and across the next ocean, to China. Thus you are appreciated for nirvisesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine: “delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism.”

“The people in general on the western side of India were neither intelligent nor well behaved, but by the influence of Srila Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami they were trained in devotional service and good behavior.” (Adi 10.89)

Such was the condition of the population on the western side of India during Lord Caitanya’s time—what to speak of the western hemisphere when you went. Still, you trained us in devotional service (bhakti) and good behavior (sad-acara).

As you yourself explain in your purport, “Until five thousand years ago . . . the Vedic culture was current everywhere. Gradually, however, people were influenced by non-Vedic culture, and they lost sight of how to behave in connection with devotional service. Srila Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami very kindly preached the bhakti cult in western India, and following in their footsteps the propagators of the Caitanya cult in the Western countries are spreading the sankirtana movement and inculcating the principles of Vaisnava behavior, thus purifying and reforming many persons who were previously accustomed to the culture of mlecchas and yavanas. All of our devotees in the Western countries give up their old habits of illicit sex, intoxication, meat-eating, and gambling. Of course, five hundred years ago these practices were unknown in India—at least in eastern India—but unfortunately at present all of India has been victimized by these non-Vedic principles, which are sometimes even supported by the government.”

When you first returned to India and came to Bombay in 1970, there was a large gathering of sadhus at Chowpatty Beach. Many Mayavadis were on the stage, with thousands of people in the audience. The sadhus gave many longwinded, dry, impersonal, speculative discourses, and when finally your turn came, you spoke for only a few minutes:

“The problem is . . . how we can make everyone accustomed to take up good habits—sad-acara. I think in this age, Kali-yuga, there are many faults.” You proceeded to explain the power of Lord Caitanya’s sankirtana movement to clean the hearts of everyone, referring to the two great rogues whom Lord Caitanya had delivered, Jagai and Madhai.

“Now we are saving, wholesale, Jagais and Madhais. Therefore, if we want peace, if we want to be situated on the sad-acara platform, then we must spread the hari-nama maha-mantra all over the world. And it has been practically proven. The American and European Vaisnavas who have come here, who have chanted Hare Krsna mantra—they were cowflesh eaters, drunkards, illicit sex mongers, all kinds of gamblers. But having taken to this Krsna consciousness movement, they have given up everything abominable. Sad-acara has come automatically. They are no more meat-eaters, no more gamblers, no more illicit sex mongers, no more intoxicators. They do not even take tea or coffee, or even smoke, which I think is very rare to be found in India. But they have given up. Why? Because they have taken to this Krsna consciousness.

“I do not feel that I have to say very much. You can see what is the result of Krsna consciousness. It is not something artificial. It is there in everyone. I have not done anything magical. But this Krsna consciousness is present in all of us. We simply have to revive it.”

Thus you did with people all over the world what Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami had done in the western countries of India—trained people who were neither intelligent nor trained in devotional service or good behavior.

In your talk, and in your purport, you boldly pointed out that your disciples had given up all these sinful activities because they had taken shelter of a pure devotee and engaged in chanting the holy name of the Lord. So, if we maintain that position of following the instructions of the pure devotee and chanting the holy names, we will have the strength to resist the force of previous bad habits and the false propaganda of materialistic leaders. It is not automatic; but if we make a conscious, deliberate effort to maintain the shelter of the pure devotee and the holy name, maya will not be able to touch us.

Krsna is like the sun, and maya is like darkness. As long as we remain in the sun of Krsna consciousness, the darkness of maya cannot touch us. And so we should continually chant, Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, under your perfect guidance.

On this occasion we pray that we may always remain in the light of Krsna consciousness and fulfill your words and desires.

Hare Krsna.

Your fallen servant,

Giriraj Swami

Srila Prabhupada's Appearance Day

Join us for Srila Prabhupada's appearance day celebration at ISKCON Brampton on Thursday August 29th @ 7:00pm. We are pleased to have the association of His Grace Subhavilasa Prabhu (a disciple of Srila Prabhupada) for this occasion. 

PROGRAM INCLUDES:
7:00 pm        Guru Aarti
7:15 pm        Gaura Aarti
7:40 pm        Nrsingadev Prayer
7:45 pm        Welcome announcements
7:55 pm        Srila Prabhupada Abhishek & Bhoga offerings
8:10 pm        Memories of Srila Prabhupada by His Grace Subhavilas Prabhu (a disciple of Srila Prabhupada)
8:40 pm        Vyasa puja readings (tributes) to His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada
8:45 pm        Pushpanjali
8:50 pm        Guru Arati
9:10 pm        Sayana Aarti
9:30 pm        Srila Prabhupada Maha Feast

SPONSORSHIPS AND DONATIONS:
Srila Prabhupada Mahafeast           $251
Pushpa Abhisheka                           $51
Please contact Krsna smaran devi dasi (kavitabalram@yahoo.com) for more info.
ALL GLORIES TO HIS DIVINE GRACE A.C BHAKTIVEDANTA SWAMI SRILA PRABHUPADA!

My dear Srila Prabhupada, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Your Divine Grace! Once again your transcendental appearance day has come & has blessed me with this opportunity to reflect upon my relationship with you & what exactly that means. Having taken birth in this material world seven years after your departure from […]

BY SIMHESVARA DASA

 

Dear Srila Prabhupada,

Please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to your divine self.

On this sacred day of your appearance, I meditate on how you are the most exemplary leader – a leader who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way.

1.    Knows the way:

All of us conditioned souls are lost in the darkness of material existence not knowing the way to our wellbeing. In fact, as the ominous clouds of Kali yuga thicken and darken, we can’t see the way to even our material well being, what to speak of our spiritual well being.

Amidst such dense darkness, few are the enlightened souls, the pure devotees, who know the way. Pure devotees are rare in all ages, but all the more so in this age of Kali. Even amongst such pure devotees, you were special for you were distinctively empowered to fulfill the prediction of Lord Chaitanya that his holy name will be propagated in every town and village of the world.

You knew the way because you descended from the spiritual world on the instruction of Krishna. But to show us by example how the way is to be known, you enacted the pastime of establishing a connection with the parampara. You attentively heard from your spiritual master with such fierce one-pointedness that it attracted his attention and appreciation. As an enterprising businessman, you had a demanding traveling schedule, yet you grabbed every opportunity to pore over the books of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati and the previous acharyas. And when you wrote your commentaries on the sacred scriptures you didn’t rely only on your years of committed practice and concomitant realizations; you also painstakingly referred to the works of the previous acharyas.

That you knew the way is seen not only through the extraordinary knowledge manifest in your books and the exceptional proficiency with which you produced them till your last breath. It is also seen through how you went the way and showed the way.

2.    Goes the way:

Srila Prabhupada, you went all the way showing how to face all the inevitable challenges of material existence, challenges that become multiplied for those who declare war against Maya by preaching the glories of Krishna.

You were empowered by Krishna, no doubt, but that empowerment didn’t mean that you didn’t have to encounter and counter formidable challenges. Your empowerment didn’t cause those problems to magically disappear; it meant that you magically persevered, no matter how many and how massive the problems. This magical perseverance came from your pure devotion to Krishna – pure devotion that manifested as your unbreakable determination to carry out the instruction of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura, whatever the obstacles and reversals.

You went the way by living your life as a householder who while diligently executing family responsibilities also seized every opportunity to assist in spreading your spiritual master’s mission.

And you went the way by accepting the renounced order not to retire for a peaceful life in idyllic Vrindavana but to recoup for launching a frontal attack on the headquarters of Maya. The attack that you singlehandedly launched has no parallel in world history. When battling against one of the most formidable formations of the forces of illusion – the proud and prosperous materialistic edifice of the West, what were the chances of success for a solitary old man, penniless and friendless, weak and sick due to two deadly heart attacks?

But you were not solitary; your unflinching will to serve connected you with Krishna’s supreme will to bless. And mission impossible became transformed into mission unstoppable.

You went the way not just by travelling all alone to America but also by going in advanced old age around the globe fourteen times to make the ignorant enlightened, the unfortunate fortunate, the joyless joyful.

And you went all the way by demonstrating how to pass the final exam of death. You endured gracefully and gratefully a prolonged sickness so agonizing and mortifying that it could easily have broken the spirit of most people. Your spirit was made of supremely stern stuff, stuff that nothing could break. Even when your body had practically no physical strength to speak, you kept speaking into a dictaphone held right next to your lips, blessing us with your precious Bhaktivedanta purports.

By your selfless and tireless sacrifice, you have gone the way, a way whose roughness and toughness we can’t even understand, leave alone retrace.

Thankfully, we don’t have to retrace that way because you have by your sweat and blood given us an easier way. That way is the opportunity to practice devotional service in the safety and sanctity of the Krishna consciousness movement that you gave as your enduring legacy for many generations of devotees.

3.    Shows the way:

You have shown us the way through your actions and your words.

In your actions, you expertly blended preservation with adaptation, uncompromisingly preserving the substance of our exalted Gaudiya tradition while also unhesitatingly adapting its form to increase its accessibility.

As regards preservation, you didn’t compromise when asking for the demanding commitment of chanting sixteen round daily as essential for the transformation of our consciousness; you didn’t compromise while insisting on adherence to the four regulative principles; you didn’t compromise in pointing out the errors of popular spiritual teachers who misrepresented the Gita’s message.

As regards adaptation, you didn’t hesitate to convert storefronts that had been drug dens into temples; you didn't hesitate to use the wood from an ordinary American tree as the material for the first Deity of Jagannatha in ISKCON; you didn’t hesitate to entrust untrained Australian devotees with the responsibility of worshiping the newly installed Deities.

Through your words as manifest in your books, you have given us the essence of the Vedic literature. Your books are the result of your enormous personal sacrifice, waking up early in the morning after just a few hours of sleep. Throughout the day, you would speak about Krishna with those who came to meet you. And in the night, you spoke about Krishna with everyone, even those whom space and time kept away from your personal association. Through your books, you inspired and empowered not only devotees who were living in the remotest corners of the world but also devotees who have come and will come in many subsequent generations.

 

Srila Prabhupada, our most eloquent words can’t be enough to delineate even a fraction of your glories. Yet how can we not glorify you, the great soul who has rescued us from the folly and futility of a life without Krishna?

The best glorification we can offer you is not through words but through actions – through our dedication to the mission of preaching that you said is our family business. All glories to the merciful mission of Krishna that you presented and represented, that you protected and propagated, that you loved and lived.

I consider it my greatest fortune to have some small role in this mission of compassion. Falling at your merciful feet, I beg for your mercy so that I can play my part in sharing Krishna’s message of love – and play that part faithfully, sensitively and vigorously.

Srila Prabhupada ki jaya.

Your unworthy servant

Chaitanya Charan das

 

Time Goes By

Khedive, Saskatchewan

Time goes by so quickly when walking. 4 AM is suddenly 5 AM and then 6 AM and so on and on and on. The scenery change, the weather change from dark to light to bright, the interaction with people are all fillers to the time factor.

The chanting which I do during the mobile process also offers a kind of groundedness or gravity to the otherwise irritable mind. For certain, the Hare Krishna mantra keeps me from a weary state of being, it gives energy. When speaking about the physical world there’s nothing that can infuse and enthuse you with optimum thought like when you are under the open prairie skies. The sky tells you to unleash, to dream, to be creative, to rise to the spirit of freedom and to giving and to offering your whole self to the world and the Creator.

Yet, that said and done, there is not a day that perfectly lays itself out. For me there is always going to be some leg and foot issue, and in the case of today, an harassing sun, but that’s alright. This is to be accepted as the nature of the world with all its dualities. How can we develop an evenness of mind unless dualities are honoured? Count your blessings, my friends.

My blessing was partially felt in spending the balance of the day in a room at Circle 6 Motel, compliments of owner Aswin Brahmini, a Gurjurati gentlemen. He’s been arranging an East Indian meal of chapattis, rice and subji, even in the thick of his busy schedule.

I had put in a good day of trekking practically without stoppage once it begun. Meanwhile Daruka constantly chats with residents of Weyburn, and also clicks away with his camera. Today, his main subject was grasshoppers which are numbering in millions on the road. He caught one grasshopper couple mating. He positioned his camera and as he put it, “They gave me a look as if to say, ‘Do you mind?’”

My relationship with these jumping bugs is as an observer. So many of them get ruthlessly crushed under the wheels of the motorists. Then, to respond to the tragedy, their cohorts come to the victim and either feast on them or reverentially stand by in sadness. I’m not sure what are the dynamics.

Are there any grasshopper gurus out?

30 KM

The post August 29th, 2013 – Darshan appeared first on Mayapur.com.

HH Prahladananda Swami on Srila Prabhupada’s Appearance Day (Radhadesh 23 August, 2011) from Lilasuka Das on Vimeo.

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84 paintings of Krishna lila of famous artist B.G. Sharma freely downloadable Read more ›

The magic of the Deities' loving reciprocation in this unique abode is wonderful. One time we bought a crystal necklace with large pendant for Lord Nrsimhadev, but never saw Him wear it. My wife prayed to Him "Please let me know what I could buy for You that You will like to wear." The next day when she came to see Him, the merciful Lord was wearing the crystal necklace Read more ›

Lakshman Poddar: At 10 PM, an abhishekh was performed for Sri Sri Krishna Balaram & Radha Shyam sundar with a blissful kirtan by 24 hour kirtan team. And finally after fasting till noon, we had a sumptuous feast Prasad for everyone. Almost 1,000 devotees honored the Lord’s feast. Read more ›

Basu Ghosh Das: Just now I was informed that we had more than 2.5 lakhs - 2,50,000 or 250,000 (two hundred and fifty thousand) visitors here yesterday for Sri Krishna Janmastami! Of course, this is a "guestimate"... but there was a huge flow of visitors all day and a "mob" at midnight, including the Baroda Police Commissioner, Sri Satish Sharma, IPS, who was present with his family for the post abhishek arati at 1 AM. Read more ›

Answer Podcast

HH Bhakti Rasamrita Swami speaks on ‘Improving Sadhana’ at the HH Jayapataka Swami Disciples’ Retreat 2013, on August 16th at the Watford Hilton Hotel, close by to Bhaktivedanta Manor.

From R Jogani P

The Q to be asked is not how did Darwin or Macaulay or Islam or anything else spoil our culture but rather "How did we let all of them spoil our culture?" Any culture which cannot protect itself from outside forces needs to introspect. It is the job of outsiders to disrupt us and they are doing a damn good job of it. We should expect no favours from them.

There are far too many weakness' in Indian culture which make us incapable of successfully meeting challenges posed by foreign aggressors.

Answer Podcast

From Ravikant Jagtap P

Why Christianity and islam allow meat eating? Some of my friends tell me that it is written in Quran that one is not muslim who don’t eat meat in 40days and cow is created by Allah for eating. Is it true? Why they don’t believe in reincarnation is there clear reference in bible and quran for this?

Answer Podcast

Islam - Quotes on Vegetarianism

Respect for animals:

Seest thou not that it is Allah Whose praise all beings in the heavens and on earth do celebrate, and the birds (of the air) with wings outspread? Each one knows its own (mode of) prayer and praise, and Allah knows well all that they do. 
              Sura 24:41

"The Holy Prophet Muhammad (S) was asked by his companions if kindness to animals was rewarded in the life hereafter. He replied: 'Yes, there is a meritorious reward for kindness to every living creature'." (Bukhari)

STATUS OF ANIMALS

"There is not an animal on earth, nor a bird that flies on its wings - but they are communities like you." (The Quran, 6:38)

PHYSICAL INJURY

"The Holy Prophet (S) forbade the beating or the branding of animals. Once he saw a donkey branded on its face and said: 'may Allah condemn the one who branded it'." (Muslim)

ANIMAL BAITING AND BLOOD SPORTS

"The Holy Prophet (S) forbade the setting up of animals to fight against each other." (Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi)

"The Holy Prophet (S) condemned those who pinion or restrain animals in any other way for the purpose of target shooting. (Al-Masburah and Al-Mujaththamah)." (Muslim)

CAGING

"The Holy Prophet (S) said: 'It is a great sin for man to imprison those animals which are in his power'." (Muslim)

VIVISECTION

According to tradition (Hadith Mishkat 3:1392), Mohammed taught that "all creatures are like a family of God; and He loves the most those who are the most beneficent to His family."

Compulsory to eat meat?

‘I find not in the Message received by me by inspiration any meat forbidden to be eaten by one who wishes to eat it…” Sura 6:145

"You are prohibited to eat flesh, blood & other things of a dead animal that is cut without reciting the names of Allah or is killed after severe beating or it is brutally slaughtered  or somebody else has executed it , or it is dead due to a fall ,or some wild beast has eaten some of its chunk , or it is cut on a rock , or it is given as a sacrifice , or is killed by a sharp arrow. The Koran declares meat of such animal to be prohibited.(5.3)

As far as sacrificing the animal is concerned, the process of sacrifice should be complete within three strokes of a knife. It is mandatory to recite the kalma once while striking every time. It is essential to move the knife around its neck three times without hitting any bones. The food the animal had before the sacrifice should not come out & there shouldn't be any noise before cutting the animal. If any of the above isn’t followed, the meat and the sacrifice becomes unlawful (haram).

 

From Ravikant Jagtap P

What is Vedic understanding of Bramho samaj, Arya samaj and Nirankaris. They also believe in Vedas but why they don’t accept deity worship?

Answer Podcast

Today is the wonderful and the most mysterious appearance day of Lord Krishna – His Birthday 5000 years ago. May everyone celebrate the occasion directly and indirectly. Just participate. just do it.

From Ravikant Jagtap P

Ramkrishna Mission prapogated Vivekananda as national spiritual hero. Isn’t it a failure of iskcon to do so for Prabhupada when he has transformed many lives? What can be done on personal level and widespread organizational level so that every Indian feels proud of Prabhupada? Now also many people don’t know about Prabhupada.

Answer Podcast

From Ravikant Jagtap P

Related to your answer on Macaulay as it is represented in history before britishers came to India many Indian were not allowed for taking education and many evils like untouchablity, sati, cast discrimination, child marriages, polygamy in their perverted form were existing and this was all because of vedic culture. Leaders like Mahatma Phule started women’s education and many other leaders supported British education system even today many Indians feel that they have Britishers gift that they are taking education today otherwise they would have been supressed by vedic culture. Is there any better alternative education system than education system influenced by Britishers?

Answer Podcast

From Ravikant Jagtap P

Why language should be Obstruction for our preaching in India everybody understands hindi but many people don’t understand English because of this many hindi audience feel left out and neglected?

Answer Podcast

 

“Holy days like Ekadasi and Janmastami are the mothers of devotion for devotees who properly respect them.” [ Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur, Sarangati, Suddha Bhakata Carana Renu, verse 2 ]

From Ravikant Jagtap P

Spiritual knowledge is meant for Rajrishis who have intelligence to understand it and who have influence to make it understandable to others as number of devotees and resources are few we want to help people in most effective way. We are preaching to educated and wealthy people that is out of our desire to reach every one in long run. in war less wounded people are treated first so that they can assist in treating others  but don't you feel aspect of reaching to large number of people is neglected and discriminately preaching is done? When we have spiritual ideals like Bhakti Tirtha Swami who preach in slums and also to influencing leaders without discrimination why we discriminate so much that people feel neglected when they come to us and don't take process seriously. As Lord Jagganath mercifully comes to give his darshan to everybody without discrimination, cant we reach more people so that they will feel loved and cared and misconception of iskcon is ment  for rich and foreigners can be broken? As we reach to every person during book marathon without discrimination can’t this mood be followed throughout year so that we can spread Prabhupada’s glory more effectively? Sorry for long question and if any devotee feel offended by this question.

Answer Podcast

From Ravikant Jagtap

Krishna no name, but by His qualities we give Him names. If a man is very beautiful, we call him "beautiful." If a man is very intelligent, we call him "wise.' So the name is given according to the quality. Because God is all-attractive, the name Krishna can be applied only to Him. Krishna means "all-attractive." It includes everything

And in lectures he says gods original name is Krishna how to understand this contradiction? What do we actually mean when we say lords name is eternal?

Answer Podcast

Holy Name meditation podcast

Under the spell of illusion, living entities are trying to be lords of all they survey, but actually they are dominated by the material energy of the Lord. The Lord is the master of material nature, and the conditioned souls are under the stringent rules of material nature. Unless one understands these bare facts, it is not possible to achieve peace in the world either individually or collectively.

Bhagavad Gita As It Is 5.29 purport

Lecture Janmastami, 10 August, 2012, by HH Prahladananda Swami at the Lika Summer Camp, Croatia from Lilasuka Das on Vimeo.

Janmastami Lecture – Leave the driving to Krishna 2012-08-10

AKA

Lecture Podcast

Lecture Podcast 

We treasure our belongings, especially those belongings that are worth a lot financially or mean a lot emotionally. Many people go even further, making their belongings the primary purpose of their life and making their belongings their defining identity.

Yet no matter how much we treasure our belongings, how long can they belong to us? At best for a lifetime. Frequently, not even for that long. They become devalued, even decimated, by the passage of time. Or they are dragged away by the vicissitudes of the world. Natural calamities like earthquakes can in one dreadful moment dispossess thousands of people collectively. Or smaller earthquakes within our bodies – heart attacks, for example – can in one heartbreaking instant dispossess us individually.

Though we know at the back of our mind that nothing will belong to us for long, still we feel driven to possess.

Why? Because it is our nature to possess. We just need to find out the belonging that will not let us down, that will belong to us forever.

Is there such a belonging? Yes, there is answers Gita wisdom. The Bhagavad-gita (02.40) points to this everlasting asset – the progress we make on the path to transcendence; the attraction we cultivate towards spiritual reality, ultimately towards Krishna. Time can’t even deplete, leave alone decimate, our spiritual credits; they will stay with us life after life, increasing whenever we perform further spiritual activities. Eventually, their cumulative balance energizes us with an irresistible attraction towards Krishna. This attraction transforms our life-journey, from a doomed chase after non-retainable belongings to a purposeful pilgrimage towards eternal love for Krishna.

And pursuing this spiritual possession doesn’t require us to renounce our material belongings. If we use them in Krishna’s service without becoming infatuated by them, they can become aids, not obstacles, in our spiritual advancement.

**

02.40 - In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.

Today is a very special day for all the aspiring bhakti yogis out there. That's why instead of continuing with Chapter 4 today, we would like to take the time to celebrate the appearance day of the speaker of the Bhagavad Gita - Krsna!

Some may be wondering why we are using the word appearance day as opposed to "birthday". To clear up any confusion, we'll go straight to the Gita to hear from the Krsna Himself. Skipping ahead to Chapter 10 Verse 3, Krsna states "He who knows Me as the unborn..."

So what does that mean? It means that Krsna is not born, nor does He die (it's a perk of being THE Divine!). He is eternal, just like our souls are.

But I digress...today is not so much about discussing the fascinating aspects of Krsna (which we'll definitely delve into another time) but more about appreciating Him.

In my circle of friends, we have a very beautiful tradition. On someone's birthday (or appearance day!) we normally have an appreciation circle. It's an opportunity for those of us who have gathered together to express to our gratitude and appreciation to the special person/s we are celebrating that day and let them know of the impact they have in our lives.

So here goes! One of the things I love most about Krsna is the fact that I never feel judged by Him. I may make all kinds of mistakes and do silly things, but I always feel like I'll never run out of chances. I always know that I can redeem myself and that's such a comforting feeling. It's truly a symptom of unconditional love. I also know that when I truly and genuinely turn to Him and ask for help, He has never failed me. Sure...it can take some time until I feel that reciprocation (and I'm definitely not a patient person!), but it always comes.

Finally, the quality I appreciate most about Krsna is the fact that He appreciates intention and devotion over expertise and results. It levels out the playing field so to speak. It breaks down the barriers as to who can and cannot approach Him. It doesn't matter what religion, culture, gender or -ism you associate yourself with - He's there for all of us if we simply want to connect.

So on this day celebrating his appearance, I request all of you, my dear readers, to also offer a few words of appreciation and gratitude to Krsna or even the practice of yoga which originates from Him. Please feel free to leave those appreciations in the comments, but most of all please do take the time to express them in your heart. Wishing everyone a wonderful and blessed day!

by Lilasuka dasi

His Holiness Varsana Maharaj gave the early morning Srimad Bhagavatam class today, Janmastami, the Appearance Day of Lord Krsna.

Someone asked him, “Maharaj, what is the true meaning of “brijbasi spirit?”  His reply was, “the essence of the brijbasi spirit is loving relationships. Brijbasis live in the land of Braja, of course, thus the name “Brijbasi”.  However, it is not that we revere a specific tract of land as the “dhama” or holy place of pilgrimage. Rather, the dhama is more accurately a container, just like a vase, which holds “rasa”. “Rasa” is the synergy of all past, present and even future sweet relationships between the devotees and the Lord. The bottom line is that the spiritual master can make any place a holy dhama. It is, in fact, not the land itself, but the presence of the holy person that makes a place a dhama.”

Lecture Podcast 

Gopi Gita verses ppt

Gopi Gita overview ppt 

Download Srila Prabhupada Vyasa Puja Offerings 2013 as a PDF of ePub file Read more ›