Planet ISKCON

 

Madhava Gosh Recalls Srila Prabhupada Reuniting with Kaliya, New Vrindaban’s First Cow.

Originally published in Volume 3 #9 of the Brijabasi Spirit 1976.

We waited at the gate on the Vrindaban road the morning Srila Prabhupada took darshan at the tem­ple of Radha Vrndavana Natha. He arrived surrounded by two busloads of prabhus from Radha Damodara who had walked up behind him, only tak­ing time off from flooding the cou­ntry with Prabhupada’s books to see His Divine Grace. As Prabhupada got out of the truck that brought him part of the way up the road, the devotees made a path through the assembled cows for him to walk, and we fell in behind.

The green foliage canopying the road glistened with dew in the ear­ly morning sun. Prabhupada more flowed than walked over the foot-trodden dirt road, deftly avoiding the water-filled holes, and we ducked branches to keep up. In the woods alongside, the cows swished the brush aside, flashing colorful­ly amongst the verdant growth.

As we turned onto the last stretch, the over-growth opened up into a grazing area, and Mother Kaliya could be seen walking along­side. She was the first cow at New Vrindaban, and Prabhupada drank her milk when he spent a whole month at Vrindaban a long time ago. In the karmi world cows know they are go­ing to be slaughtered at the end of their economic usefulness and they will not let humans come near them without attempting to flee. Yet Kaliya seemed totally calm despite the large crowd, keeping pace with aged gait (No one knows how old she is, probably fifteen or so).

Advaitacarya dasa asked Pra­bhupada if he had named her and he nodded yes. Just as if she had heard, Kaliya turned from the path on which she was walking and light­ly skipped down the short steep bank to the road, causing the devo­tees there to stop and let her pass right next to Prabhupada, as close as she could without causing him to break stride. Then she briskly headed down the road. She stopped once and looked back over her shoulder, then continued on towards the abode of Radha Vrindaban Natha.

East London Rath 2012

“How could I have even thought of such a thing?” We may react thus in dismay on catching ourselves entertaining grievously sinful desires.

How can we avoid thinking of such things?

Based on the characteristics of brahmanas outlined in the Bhagavad-gita (18.42), we can adopt a two-pronged approach: ban sin (shama - peacefulness) or banish it (dama – self-control).

Let’s understand these two steps better:
1. Ban sin: Peacefulness results when we meticulously avoid wanton desires that agitate us. Once we have resolved to lead a life of moral integrity, we simply waste our time and mental energy playing with desires that we are not going to enact. Contemplating on the futility of entertaining such desires inspires us to resolutely ban them from our heart.
2. Banish sin: Despite our ban, some sinful desires keep returning. Then we need to banish them. That means we exercise dama (self control or, more precisely, sense control) by refusing to act physically on those desires. Our uncompromising refusal disempowers those desires, for they are parasites that suck energy from our fantasies about them. And as their power decreases, it becomes easier to drive them out. When we reject them determinedly and repeatedly, they gradually realize they are persona non grata and so stop visiting. That is, they accept the ban.
Banning refers to disallowing sinful desires entry and banishing refers to dismissing those desires that force their way in. By cultivating steady inner remembrance of Krishna and relishing higher happiness, we fill our mind with Krishna-thoughts, thereby making banning sin easier. And by keeping ourselves busy in external service to Krishna, we leave ourselves no time to act on sinful desires, thereby de-energizing them and making banishing them easier.
Thus does bhakti-yoga empower us to ban and banish sin.

***
Peacefulness, self-control, austerity, purity, tolerance, honesty, knowledge, wisdom and religiousness – these are the natural qualities by which the brāhmaṇas work.

The Lord is always eager to take him back to the spiritual energy, but due to his minute independence the individual entity is continually rejecting the association of spiritual light. This misuse of independence is the cause of his material strife in the conditioned nature. The Lord, therefore, is always giving instruction from within and from without. From without He gives instructions as stated inBhagavad-gītā, and from within He tries to convince the living entity that his activities in the material field are not conducive to real happiness. “Just give it up and turn your faith toward Me. Then you will be happy,” He says. Thus the intelligent person who places his faith in the Paramātmā or the Supreme Personality of Godhead begins to advance toward a blissful eternal life of knowledge.

Bhagavad-gita 13.23 purport

 

From Kalanidhi Pr

Discussing organ donation, You mentioned that devotees do not usually like to interfere in the course of nature. The citing of exceptional example of Shyam Sundar Prabhu to prove the rule was brilliant.

While I intuitively agree with the healthiness of this sentiment, I am curious, how far can  I stretch it in practical terms? Sometihing unnatural yesterday has become natural today. Like  bypass or even assisted breathing.

One thought is, do unto others that you would like others do unto you. If I would seek blood donation in need, I may donate to others too! Is this thinking OK?

Another question is, when i get sick, how much treatment is appropriate? Whether Ayurved is more desirable than other systems. Is going under surgery is less natural than medication? . How much money should I put away for unforeseen economic or health problems? Going by the trends of sophistication in expensive medicine, sky would be the limit.

I sometimes feel a sudden death is more desirable than a prolonged one, when you agonise over various , often expensive options. How does one deal with self or family in the latter type events?

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

 

From: Keshav
I took Electronics & Communication
Engg. due to my keen interest in Science
& passion to know the mysteries of universe,
But after i came in touch with Prabhupada's
books , the aim of life completely changed .

But now when i am in my last semester
I think that the ultimate reason to study any material book is to earn livelihood .

As you know that Engineer's mostly devote their life , in research & that too for material organisations, it keeps them away from the actual goal of life i.e Krsna Conciousness .

There are many exams like GATE , IES , IAS.
All requires extensive material brainstorming sessions to reach the goal.

Now each of us have in front of us
Spiritual & Material choice , but the material compulsions are so much that they are making us forget our spiritual identity .
To make us more inclined toward research and Development we are given allurements like Incentives,Gadets,Name ,Fame etc .

How can engineer's overcome such things
there is so much competition that unless you focus on your goal completely submerged in it , you can never reach it . You have to study hard , very hard for very long hours.

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 13 March 2013, Amsterdam, Netherland, Srimad Bhagavatam 5.1.33)

When I was a child, there used to be a television series called Twilight Zone. It was intense. There were always these weird things going on and in this one episode, there was a landing from outer space and these beings came out! They were like human beings but they had heads that were like four storeys, instead of our one storey, and they had like a lot more brain.

So, they were walking around like that with their big heads, coming to show friendship to human beings. In this way, they were visiting earth and it all seemed very nice. Then they organised a tour for people from earth to go see their planet. And as people entered this spaceship, they were suddenly put in cabins, in captivity! Food came through a little tunnel. One of the people had figured out that they were actually being transported to this other planet for food; that they were treating them like cattle, and that they were going to breed them and then eat them.

So, okay, there was also a hidden critique in the movie of the way we treat animals. But whatever it was, I was a kid when I saw it; it freaked me out and the reason why it freaked me out was because it opened up my eyes to new possibilities – things I haven’t thought about. No one could give me any reasonable arguments that there were no such beings out there. For days I looked up at the sky, wondering what was out there, “What kind of creatures would be out there? Anything is possible!”

Practice to chant the Hare Krsna mantra. Do not chant like the parrot who may learn to utter “Hare Krsna,” but when grabbed at the throat cries, “Caw caw!” Prabhupada said practice so that when death comes you will chant Hare Krsna.

From Japa Meditations
by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami

Practice to chant the Hare Krsna mantra. Do not chant like the parrot who may learn to utter “Hare Krsna,” but when grabbed at the throat cries, “Caw caw!” Prabhupada said practice so that when death comes you will chant Hare Krsna.

From Japa Meditations
by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami

Initiation Lecture Vamandeva – The Only Thing We Have Is Illusion – Balkan 2013-07-17

Imagine someone loves you and cares about you very much and wants to be with you and you ask him, "Please help me find a perfect lover!"

How would you feel in his shoes?

Similarly Krsna wants us so much and we pray to Him, "Please give me someone else."

Imagine someone loves you and cares about you very much and wants to be with you and you ask him, "Please help me find a perfect lover!"

How would you feel in his shoes?

Similarly Krsna wants us so much and we pray to Him, "Please give me someone else."

1970 July 26: "Kindly keep me informed of your activities at least twice in a week, otherwise I become very much anxious and sometimes do not eat, do not sleep. I am just trying to organize a worldwide movement not for any personal ambition but to execute superior orders so I request my students to cooperate fully."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1970

BBT press release

The BBT is pleased to announce the release of the annotated scans for chapter eight of Bhagavad-gita As It Is. They are now online at www.BBTedit.com/changes.

In this chapter, the revisions made are extensive. In fact, so much of what Srila Prabhupada originally wrote has been restored – and this so enriches the chapter – that lovers of Srila Prabhupada’s words may well ask themselves, “How could we not want this in?”

You’ll see:

• extensive lost text recovered — including significant explanations by Srila Prabhupada
• four instances where the old edition said only “Hare Krishna” and the new edition restores what Srila Prabhupada originally dictated — the entire maha-mantra: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare
• many Sanskrit quotations recovered
• text included in the 1968 abridged edition – but left out of the 1972 unabridged – now once again included
• the skipping of text 18 (For text 18 the first edition uses Srila Prabhupada’s translation and purport for text 19, and for text 19 it comes up with a new translation. In the second edition you’ll see this all set straight.)
• restored at the end of the chapter, a more detailed description of how one may progress from sraddha to prema
• and much more

See Srila Prabhupada’s original words

In several places the revisions and restorations are so extensive that the scans include attached tables to show you the old and new versions side by side with the original transcription of Srila Prabhupada’s words.

You’ll see all the revisions done for the purports, along with explanatory notes. And for nearly all the changes you’ll see images from the earliest manuscripts in the BBT’s files.

Apart from images for specific changes, also included are six complete sample pages from the transcriptions of Srila Prabhupada’s original tapes.

See for yourself

Whether you’re for “the changes,” against them, or neutral, here’s another opportunity to see what the changes actually are.

See for yourself in the annotated scans for chapter eight, now online at www.BBTedit.com/changes.

The changes for the Preface, the Introduction, and the previous chapters are already online. See them all at www.BBTedit.com/changes.

The post “Gita changes” for chapter eight an eye-opener, now online appeared first on Jayadvaita Swami.

BBT press release

The BBT is pleased to announce the release of the annotated scans for chapter eight of Bhagavad-gita As It Is. They are now online at www.BBTedit.com/changes.

In this chapter, the revisions made are extensive. In fact, so much of what Srila Prabhupada originally wrote has been restored – and this so enriches the chapter – that lovers of Srila Prabhupada’s words may well ask themselves, “How could we not want this in?”

You’ll see:

read more

BBT press release

The BBT is pleased to announce the release of the annotated scans for chapter eight of Bhagavad-gita As It Is. They are now online at www.BBTedit.com/changes.

In this chapter, the revisions made are extensive. In fact, so much of what Srila Prabhupada originally wrote has been restored – and this so enriches the chapter – that lovers of Srila Prabhupada’s words may well ask themselves, “How could we not want this in?”

You’ll see:

read more

Prabhupada Sangam at the Palace

By Sachimata Prins

July 24, 2013

On Tuesday, July 23rd, there was a wonderful evening program organized at the Palace in New Vrindaban to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s first tour of the Palace being built in his honor. Many devotees attended.

We heard how, forty years ago, the Palace was really in its rough stages – only the foundation and a few walls.  But the devotees were anxious for Srila Prabhupada to see their devotion, and Kirtanananda Swami wanted to give him the grand tour, along with some of the devotees who were actually building the Palace.  Soma das recalled that Bali Mardhana mentioned in Krishna Book, that Krishna’s Palace in Dwarka was illuminated with jewels.  Srila Prabhupada turned to him, and spoke one of his now most memorable quotes, “These devotees, my disciples, are my jewels.”

After learning about all the elaborate plans for Prabhupada’s study, bedroom, kitchen, bath and temple room, Prabhupada turned to Kirtanananda Swami and asked, “So are you going to install Radha-Vrindaban Chandra here, and Kirtanananda replied, “No, Srila Prabhupada, we are going to install you here.”

To which Srila Prabhupada replied, “This is proper.”

A few senior Prabhupada disciples, namely Yudhistira das and Rasa Lila dasi, also contributed wonderful stories and personal experiences about his visit at that time. We learned that Rasa Lila was initiated on that visit, along with Bhakta Marga Swami, Advaita, and Meghamala.  Varsana Maharaj, who was Kashyapa das at that time, took 2nd initiation.  Yudhistira’s pastimes were centered on Prabhupada’s desire that New Vrindaban be a beacon of light in the process of establishing self-sufficiency in Iskcon farm communities.  That we should depend on the cows, and train the oxen, so we could grow our own food, etc.   All in all, it was a wonderful and interesting evening.

I personally am so happy that these monthly programs are being organized by Kripamaya prabhu.  I’ve been to three so far this summer, and I’ve noticed that Srila Prabhupada always seems to have a big smile on his face, which tells me how pleased he is to have some of the local N.V. residents, newcomers, and guests visit him in his home and glorify him.

I just know that anyone who takes advantage of these sweet get-togethers will not be disappointed.  They are all centered on pastimes of
Srila Prabhupada, his instructions, and his vision for New Vrindaban.

Besides our regular daily sadhana, it’s so important for devotees to come together and relish the stories and history of New Vrindaban.  Hope to see you at the next one.

Haribol, your servant,

Sachimata devi dasi

Vaikuntha Lake Evening Programme with Mahavishnu Swami

This year Sri Krishna Janmastami falls on Thursday August the 29th.


Our program includes extended darshan; evening dramas, song and dance; a fire sacrifice and prasadam for all.

Some event-timings include:
4.00pm arati & kirtan
7.00pm arati & kirtan
7.30pm abhisheka & kirtan
9.00pm arati & kirtan
Midnight arati

Keep watching for more details when August arrives.

Lord Sri Krishna - whose Appearance we glorify at Janmastami - was compelled to further expand His blissful Vrindavana pastimes. He incarnated with all His associates in Chaitanya-lila. Why?

"Desiring to understand the glory of Radharani's love, the wonderful qualities in Him that She alone relishes through Her love, and the happiness She feels when She realizes the sweetness of His love, the Supreme Lord Hari, richly endowed with Her emotions, appeared from the womb of Srimati Saci-devi, as the moon appeared from the ocean." (Chaitanya-caritamrita Adi-lila 1.6)

When we offer service to Lord Krishna, we can each savour a drop of Radharani's love - by Lord Chaitanya's mercy. What is Sri Krishna Janmastami without serving together?

Your help is vital. To offer services - from cutting up vegetables for the Deities, to serving prasadam to guests or maintaining security - we need you. Don’t miss this very special chance to taste the bliss of giving transcendental pleasure to Lord Krishna and His devotees!

Volunteer at seva@servekrishna.com.au.

Avoid the fuss - take our bus:
• no cost
• no trouble
• no risk of a parking fine!


Take a free bus ride from Albert Park Lake and avoid parking congestion around the Temple.

From 6pm. - 11pm every 10 minutes two 25 seater buses will shuttle you from Lakeside Carpark in Aughtie Drive (Melways 2K E6) to the Mary Kehoe Centre (opposite the Temple in Danks St.) and return.

Parking at Lakeside Carpark costs $2.30 (flat rate) from 5-9pm., and then is free of charge.

Srila Prabhupada's Appearance Day - Sri Vyasa Puja for all ISKCON devotees - falls on Friday August the 30th.

Here is our schedule:

10.00am readings & homages
12.30pm Pushpanjali & Guru Puja
2.00pm prasadam feast

Please come and share your realisations of the impact that Srila Prabhupada's Appearance has made on your life.

See you there.

Love is life’s driving force. We all want to love and be loved.

Our longing for love drives our lives and our dreams – to have great looks, to earn big money, to shine professionally. Through such achievements we hope to attract the love of others or show our love for them.

Conversely, few things demotivate us as much as the feeling of being unloved, unvalued, uncared. They take away our drive to achieve, leaving us apathetic and lethargic – depressed.

And such depression seems inevitable in life. Those whom we love don’t reciprocate our love, at least not as much as we desire. And even their partially reciprocated love is terminated by time, sooner or later. Such tragedies can kill our drive to achieve, even live, thereby drowning us in a bottomless depression.

Thankfully, we can transcend such depression if we understand the Gita’s vision of a supremely loving and lovable God. Krishna always loves us, values us, cares for us – no matter what happens, even no matter what we do. He loves us so much that he constantly accompanies us as the Supersoul in our heart. Even when we keep spurning his love, He keeps striving tirelessly to change our heart so that we join him in his eternal world of love.

In fact, Krishna loves love so much that in his personal abode he conceals his divinity so that love can reign supreme. Thus, he enthrones love as existence’s crowning reality.

When we truly understand Krishna and his love, we cannot but offer all of our heart’s love to him, as the Bhagavad-gita (15.19) indicates. Then, life’s driving force never loses force, but continues forever, catalyzing us to live a fulfilling life in this world and catapulting us to an ecstatic life of eternal love in the next world.

***

Whoever knows Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, without doubting, is the knower of everything. He therefore engages himself in full devotional service to Me, O son of Bharata.

 

At my lunch break and listening to Srimad Bhagavatam lecture 2.1.5 given at our temple yesterday by Gopa Vrndesh Prabhu. Drew this cartoon when these statements from the purport stood out :

“The foolish materially attached men are wasting their valuable time in the improvement of the material conditions of life by sleeping, indulging in sex life, developing economic conditions and maintaining a band of relatives who are to be vanquished in the air of oblivion.

Being engaged in all these materialistic activities, the living soul entangles himself in the cycle of the law of fruitive actions. This entails the chain of birth and death in the 8,400,000 species of life: the aquatics, the vegetables, the reptiles, the birds, the beasts, the uncivilized man, and then again the human form, which is the chance for getting out of the cycle of fruitive action.

Therefore, if one desires freedom from this vicious circle, then one must cease to act as a karmī or enjoyer of the results of one’s own work, good or bad. One should not do anything, either good or bad, on his own account, but must execute everything on behalf of the Supreme Lord, the ultimate proprietor of everything that be”.

As I sat in my Japa chair today....the morning sun streaming through the window onto my chest - much needed heat and energy to help with the recovery of a 5 day influenza virus.

As I sat in my Japa chair today....the morning sun streaming through the window onto my chest - much needed heat and energy to help with the recovery of a 5 day influenza virus.

The Supreme Lord is so full that for the deliverance of the conditioned soul He is the supplier and digester of foodstuff, the witness of his activity, and the giver of knowledge in the form of theVedas and as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna, the teacher of the Bhagavad-gita. He is worshipable by the conditioned soul. Thus God is all-good; God is all-merciful.

Bhagavad-gita 15.15 purport

From: ankush sharma
according to varnaashram dharam a person who is working in a bank and born in brahmin family following regulative principles and chanting 16 rounds ,who is he a brahmin or a vashya.please describe.

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

From: ANKUSH SHARMA
how many types of bodies in spiritual world ? and how one will get that particular body and family?

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

From: sadhupran das
Is it okay to contribute for krsna consious purposes(like for preaching), financially even when we are personally in debt?

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

From: Shivam Saraogi
This is in relation to the Srila Prabhupada quote "Is a devotee an escapist." It is said that 20 generations of a devotee goes back to the spiritual world with him. Isn't this a bodily identification? Please clarify (and forgive if i have committed any offense by asking this question).

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

From: Prashant
Can a devotee perform the Agnihotra yagna which is prescibed to enhance the positive energy of the surroundings? Does it only helps in the material advancement or does it helps in spiritual advancement as well?

To hear the answer podcast, please click here

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 3 May 2013, Radhadesh, Belgium, Srimad Bhagavatam 5.19.20)

Devotee: I have also heard that there is something called jiva apradha (offense to another living entity). Is that a speculation?

Kadamba Kanana Swami:  Well, udvege divasa (CC. Antya- Lila 20.40), there are such statements for example, that one should not cause any anxiety to any living being and if we do then there are also reactions; that we should know. We should be ready to offer respect to all others. It does not say to all other devotees but ”to all others”. So, there are plenty of injunctions that we should not offend any living beings but the reactions are different when we start to offend vaisnavas. But we should not just stop at the vaisnavas and treat everyone else like dirt - no, we should be respectful to everyone.

Devotee: With vaisnava apradha, it is also by speech but with jiva apradha, we may speak badly of the karmis and so on?

Kadamba Kanana Swami: Sometimes a little bad is also all right. Narottama Das Thakur says that if we have anger that we can direct it towards the non-devotee, not towards the devotee. Sometimes you have to call a “spade a spade” and call people nonsense rascals which Prabhupada liked to do very much. And Prabhupada said things like, “I kick on their face,” and that was not offensive - that was appropriate.

However when we start imitating that, it may not be appropriate because we do not have the depth and vision. We start imitating left and right, “I kick this one on the face and that one is a rascal….”

So, especially in the beginning, we must be very careful and when we become more mature then we may be able to more clearly say who is at fault.

 

To hear the holy name meditation podcast, please click here

I’ve uploaded the recent classes recorded during my visit to Bhaktivadanta Manor it’s on the cloud as I enjoy listening to them whilst on the move but even nicer to share

Hg Kripamoya Prabhu.mp3

HG Shamaka Risi Das.mp3

HH Bhakti Rasamrita Swami (1).mp3

HH Bhakti Rasamrita Swami (2).mp3

HH Bhaktivinode Swami.mp3