From Bhajan Kutir #483
by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami
Websites from the ISKCON Universe
Welcome to everyone who got the recent Living Social deal!
Here are some answers to Frequently Asked Questions:
Q: What does “PROMOTIONAL VALUE EXPIRES ON September 29, 2013″ mean?
When you redeem your Living Social voucher at Atma Yoga you activate a pass. The pass you get depends on which offer you purchased (four, eight, or twelve weeks). The pass you receive in exchange for your voucher expires at the completion of the term of the pass or on September 29, 2013 whichever of the two cut-off points comes first.
Here are the latest dates that you can redeem each of the vouchers to get a pass that will give you the full term:
Twelve week voucher: Activate by July 7, 2013 latest to get full twelve weeks.
Eight week voucher: Activate by August 4, 2013 latest to get full eight weeks.
Four week voucher: Activate by September 1, 2013 latest to get full four weeks.
Giriraj Swami and Indradymna Swami awarded first and second initiation to devotees prior to the Panihati festival at the Laguna Beach temple on Friday. During the ceremony, Giriraj Swami initiated Srila Tamal Krishna Goswami’s brother and sister-in-law, Bhakta Carl and Bhaktin Stella Herzig, as well as Saroj Wadehra. Now Saroj will be known as Tulasi Manjari dasi, Stella as Shraddhanjali dasi, and Carl as Kalachandji das.
“We have a particular relationship with our diksa-guru, and that must be maintained and respected. But we also have other relationships with spiritual aunts and uncles and older brothers and sisters, and all our spiritual family members cooperate for that same purpose — to help the individual become purified and advanced in Krishna consciousness, engaged in the mission of Srila Prabhupada and the Pancha Tattva.”— Giriraj Swami
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Initiation talk by Indradymna Swami
Initiation talk by Giriraj Swami
Moving story of Sindhutai Sapkal – Radhanath Swami @ Narayan Mandir June 4th 2013
I recently asked y’all on Facebook how much you spend on raw milk. The prices ranged from $3 per gallon up to $20. The break down is like this:
We have 2 dairy cows, but only one is in milk right now. Our other cow just got “serviced” last month and we hope that she is pregnant! I am going to break down our costs for you, to show you how much we spent in the month of May (2013) on our dairy cows, and how much we made in milk profits.
Total monthly expenses: $523.07
And of course there were start-up costs, like buying fencing, stall equipment, the pump, the cows, etc. This is what we spent:
Total start up costs: $4,862.49
Start-up costs per month (total divided by 24 months): $202.60
And there are the occasional expenses, which we divide out over the year:
Total occasional expenses: $110.94
Occasional expenses per month (total divided by 12 months): $9.24
And the labor…My husband does all of the milking. Every morning he spends around 30 minutes outside milking and 30 minutes sterilizing all of the equipment. He does this again in the evening. So 2 hours per day milking. Plus the labor of contacting customers, sending e-mail reminders to customers about payments, etc. That’s probably 1 hour per week. So, 66 hours per month spent on the dairy business.
Let’s see what our profit was.
We sell our milk for $10 per gallon.
In the month of May, we made $1,502 on milk.
$1,502 profit
-$523.07 monthly expenses
-$202.60 start up costs
-$9.24 occasional expenses
Total profit = $767.09
Divided by 66 hours, that is $11.62 per hour…which isn’t a very amazing wage.
When we get our second cow milking, our profits will increase (ideally they will double), but our expenses will also increase a bit. Here are my projections:
$3004 profit per month
-$886.34 monthly expenses (increased expenses due to second cow eating grain, using teat dip, etc.)
-$202.60 start up costs
-$9.24 occasional expenses
Total profit = $1,905.82
With a second cow, the milking labor will increase by about 30 minutes per day. And the amount of time working with customers will increase by 1 hour per week. So, approximately 85 hours worked per month for 2 dairy cows.
If we sell our milk for $10 per gallon (as estimated above), with 2 milking cows, my husband’s wage per hour will be $12.89. And that, folks, is the cap in Oregon. That’s all we can make on raw milk, unless we increase the cost of our milk per gallon. By law, we can only have 2 milking cows and 1 dried up.
If we wanted to sell our milk for $3 per gallon, like the grocery store, we would be under water by $198 per month!
If we wanted to sell our milk for $5 per gallon, we would be making $4.72 per hour.
And this does not include the cost of liability insurance…which we have not been able to find for our farm, only because we sell raw milk. (We got liability insurance for going to farmer’s market, but it does not cover our farm and raw milk).
We’ve taken raw milk training at Champoeg Creamery, and Charlotte charges $16 per gallon for her milk and has a waiting list. I think that is a more realistic amount to charge. Tim Wightman, raw milk specialist, says that the national average for raw milk should be $30 per gallon.
What do you pay for raw milk? Are you willing to pay more after reading this?
Do you sell raw milk? If so, how much do you charge? How much do you think your expenses are per month?
- See more at: http://www.wellfedhomestead.com/the-cost-of-producing-raw-milk#sthash.bVom9642.dpuf
Ratha Yatra Berlin 2013 – Gaura Arati Kirtan with Sripad BV Vana Maharaja
“For one who has accepted the boat of the lotus feet of the Lord, who is the shelter of the cosmic manifestation and is famous as Mukunda, or the giver of mukti, the ocean of the material world is like the water contained in a calf’s footprint. param padam, or the place where there are no material miseries, or Vaikuntha, is his goal, not the place where there is danger in every step of life.”
Srimad Bhagavatam (10.14.58)
“…If we are called by God to holiness of life, and if holiness is beyond our natural power to achieve (which it certainly is) then it follows that God himself must give us the light, the strength, and the courage to fulfill the task he requires of us. He will certainly give us the grace we need.”
Thomas Merton, Life and Holiness (New York: Image, 1963) p.16
As Kaunteya das is growing I am thinking about that statement that no one should became guru, teacher or parent unless he is able to free his subordinate from birth and death. Can somebody who is a kanistha adhikari do that?
The disease process.
Over the years you see many different types of suffering from short disease to long term progressive diseases, but one thing remains true it consumes not only the sufferer but also their family. The conversations revolve around the disease and problems associated so consumed that they become less aware of the suffering of others.
As a devotee and a nurse I often ponder and reflect on this thought, especially when we look at the disease of material suffering, consumed and covered by maya we become blinded by our condition, it consumes us becomes our identity and our conversation points.
As with all disease it comes in many different forms but the end is inevitable, suffering and frustration lashing out at others for the misfortunes felt.
Listening as always to the suffering and frustrations of those suffering they long for a life they never had, a loss of faculty that restricts or stops them enjoying; resentment of what others have I should have this? Many blame God, or use it as a way of denying Gods existence “See if God exists then I would not suffer like this!”
The realization was that I had only one person to blame for suffering here in the material world, ME
I chose to enjoy material nature but not understanding material nature I abuse, this abuse means I suffer, my suffering is unique to me; but like many who are in the disease process the identification focuses solely on this; it becomes normal a part of me in every way. It becomes normalized this is my life.
The cure is their, but unlike material medication that gives a temporary relief, the disease can come back or a new one takes it place; the spiritual cure ends all suffering forever.
It means we have to become completely absorbed in the cure process; embrace it fully no matter what difficulty we may experience. Sadly like many who start treatment we just give up, loose hope loose belief in the cure.
The more I have chanted the more clearly I can see the suffering of others in relation to material identification covered entirely by maya; some have some knowledge but few have full knowledge; study of the Gita, Srimad Bhagavatam gives us that knowledge but do we surrender and act on it?
Like those who’s disease is liked to diet, lifestyle, intoxications and are asked to change for many it is hard, a temporary change but reverting back once we have relieved some suffering; it returns for a change is needed.
To become free from the disease of material suffering we need to surrender and follow the process not just till we get some temporary relief but till we are back in the spiritual world returning home to be with Sri Krishna.
We need to remain determined, focused and take the support of those who are fully surrendered to the process of spiritual rather than material advancement; are you up to the challenge?
Or are you simply absorbed in your material suffering that you view it a normal?
Rathayatra 2013 London
We read in the Bhagavad-gita that happiness is a characteristic of a person acting in the mode of goodness. Is this happiness the result of being in the mode of goodness? Or is being happy a way to cultivate the mode of goodness? To put it another way… Does happiness come from success? Or does […]
The post Happiness is a symptom of the mode of goodness… or is it a cause? appeared first on Successful Vaisnavas - Personal Development for Hare Krishnas.
We read in the Bhagavad-gita that happiness is a characteristic of a person acting in the mode of goodness. Is this happiness the result of being in the mode of goodness? Or is being happy a way to cultivate the mode of goodness?
To put it another way…
Does happiness come from success? Or does success come from happiness?
This entertaining and insightful TED Talk gives an interesting and very practical perspective.
Let me know what you think in the comments below.
(this blog is recorded on the full page: quick time player needed; works best with Firefox or Explorer)
Are you ready to be free (?)
it doesn’t mean being a tree—
you laugh, but our body is the same—
we’re forced to choose survival,
for the tree, growing to the light
thinking that this is life’s purpose,
and we’re forced to be human
identifying with race, gender, age
mental likes and dislikes—physicality.
If we could only realize our self
the simple truth of spiritual existence
not defending what can’t endure:
our conception of material identity