Evening of Bhakti – April 6th 2013 @ 6:00pm
→ ISKCON BRAMPTON'S BLOG
Evening of Bhakti – April 6th 2013 @ 6:00pm
Celebrating New Year – Every day by HH Bhakti Charu Swami
→ Successful Vaisnavas
We recently just observed the Gaura Purnima Festival, which is New Year for Gaudiya Vaisnavas. It reminded me of this email I received from His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami at the beginning of the year.
I hope you also get inspiration from it to make the best use of every day.
Your servant,
Krsnendu dasa
_______________________________________________
A very happy and prosperous New Year 2013 to all of you!
There are various different New Years according to different calendars. This New Year is based on the Christian Calendar, but in India there are various types of calendars used. Generally we follow the Gaudiya Calendar which marks the New Year from the appearance day of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
Celebrating New Year is important because it comes with a new hope. It is a feature of when we leave the old year behind and use those experiences as a stepping stone or springboard to the following year.
However, our actual consideration should be not just the New Year but the new day. Every day – like every new year – comes with its fresh start. And that is how time progresses. The day begins with the sunrise and we, as human beings, are supposed to become active until the night, when we fall asleep to become rejuvenated for facing the
next day – the new day.
Therefore our main consideration should be how to face every day as a new day. Every sunrise comes with new opportunities, new hopes and new possibilities and that is how we should mould our lives. Let our actions be so noble, so wise and so generous that it leaves a very positive imprint in human society. Let our actions speak for our real self. Let us recognise the fact that we are eternal parts and parcels of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and hence we are His eternal servants.
The constitutional position of the living entity is that he is an eternal servant of the Lord. That is his real identity. And when he
acts according to that identity, his life becomes truly meaningful. And that life makes him progress. It makes him proceed towards the spiritual world and in this way every day we should make it a point to get a little closer to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And eventually at the end of our life we can step out of this material nature and enter in to the spiritual sky.
Thank you all very much.
Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada,
Bhakti Charu Swami
1st January 2013
Sydney, Australia
To learn more about His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami visit http://www.bcswami.com/
Hear from our guest speaker Apurva Prabhu this Sunday
→ ISKCON BRAMPTON'S BLOG
Sunday Feast, March 31st @ 11:00am
We are pleased to have the association of Apurva Prabhu at ISKCON Brampton this Sunday. Apurva Prabhu along with his wife Kamalini Mataji used to cater different events and taught cooking classes. Prabhu has been invited to assist with the evolution of the Govinda's restaurant at the ISKCON Toronto Temple. They have both come from Hillsborough, North Carolina to spend a few months in the GTA. They have two grown children, who are have families of their own.
The program consists of arati, kirtan (devotional chanting), philosophical discussion and prasadam. Please come, get inspired and inspire others through your desire to share Krsna Consciousness!
Program Schedule:
11:00 am - 11:30 am Guru Puja
11:30 am - 12:00 pm Arati & Kirtan
12:00 pm – 12:05 pm Narasingadev Prayers
12:10 pm - 1:00 pm Vedic Discourse by His Grace Apurva Dasa
We are pleased to have the association of Apurva Prabhu at ISKCON Brampton this Sunday. Apurva Prabhu along with his wife Kamalini Mataji used to cater different events and taught cooking classes. Prabhu has been invited to assist with the evolution of the Govinda's restaurant at the ISKCON Toronto Temple. They have both come from Hillsborough, North Carolina to spend a few months in the GTA. They have two grown children, who are have families of their own.
The program consists of arati, kirtan (devotional chanting), philosophical discussion and prasadam. Please come, get inspired and inspire others through your desire to share Krsna Consciousness!
Program Schedule:
11:00 am - 11:30 am Guru Puja
11:30 am - 12:00 pm Arati & Kirtan
12:00 pm – 12:05 pm Narasingadev Prayers
12:10 pm - 1:00 pm Vedic Discourse by His Grace Apurva Dasa
1:05 pm - 1:20 pm Tulasi Puja
1:20 pm - 2:00 pm Prasadam (Vegetarian feast)
Upcoming Events:
Rama Navami - Appearance of Lord Rama April 19th
Please mark your calender for this upcoming event. ISKCON Brampton would celebrate this festival with an evening program starting 7:00pm. More details will be sent in the near future.
Ramanavami celebrates the birth of Rama or Ramachandra. On the ninth day of the first fortnight of Chaitra the birth of Rama is commemorated. The story of Rama was first written by Vaalmeeki in about the 4th century B.C. Rama is supposed to have lived during the 8th or 7th century B.C. The epic known as the Ramayana. In some parts of India, it is a nine-day festival, coinciding with the Vasanta Navaratri (see also Navaratri).
Devotees celebrate this day by fasting till sunset, singing and chanting His holy names, pastimes and glories. JAI SRI RAMA!
There are lots of opportunities to serve on this special occasion. Please contact Acharya Thakur Prabhu or Mother Prema Gaurangi for more information.
1:20 pm - 2:00 pm Prasadam (Vegetarian feast)
Upcoming Events:
Rama Navami - Appearance of Lord Rama April 19th
Ramanavami celebrates the birth of Rama or Ramachandra. On the ninth day of the first fortnight of Chaitra the birth of Rama is commemorated. The story of Rama was first written by Vaalmeeki in about the 4th century B.C. Rama is supposed to have lived during the 8th or 7th century B.C. The epic known as the Ramayana. In some parts of India, it is a nine-day festival, coinciding with the Vasanta Navaratri (see also Navaratri).
Devotees celebrate this day by fasting till sunset, singing and chanting His holy names, pastimes and glories. JAI SRI RAMA!
There are lots of opportunities to serve on this special occasion. Please contact Acharya Thakur Prabhu or Mother Prema Gaurangi for more information.
Hear from our guest speaker Apurva Prabhu this Sunday
→ ISKCON BRAMPTON'S BLOG
Sunday Feast, March 31st @ 11:00am
We are pleased to have the association of Apurva Prabhu at ISKCON Brampton this Sunday. Apurva Prabhu along with his wife Kamalini Mataji used to cater different events and taught cooking classes. Prabhu has been invited to assist with the evolution of the Govinda's restaurant at the ISKCON Toronto Temple. They have both come from Hillsborough, North Carolina to spend a few months in the GTA. They have two grown children, who are have families of their own.
The program consists of arati, kirtan (devotional chanting), philosophical discussion and prasadam. Please come, get inspired and inspire others through your desire to share Krsna Consciousness!
Program Schedule:
11:00 am - 11:30 am Guru Puja
11:30 am - 12:00 pm Arati & Kirtan
12:00 pm – 12:05 pm Narasingadev Prayers
12:10 pm - 1:00 pm Vedic Discourse by His Grace Apurva Dasa
We are pleased to have the association of Apurva Prabhu at ISKCON Brampton this Sunday. Apurva Prabhu along with his wife Kamalini Mataji used to cater different events and taught cooking classes. Prabhu has been invited to assist with the evolution of the Govinda's restaurant at the ISKCON Toronto Temple. They have both come from Hillsborough, North Carolina to spend a few months in the GTA. They have two grown children, who are have families of their own.
The program consists of arati, kirtan (devotional chanting), philosophical discussion and prasadam. Please come, get inspired and inspire others through your desire to share Krsna Consciousness!
Program Schedule:
11:00 am - 11:30 am Guru Puja
11:30 am - 12:00 pm Arati & Kirtan
12:00 pm – 12:05 pm Narasingadev Prayers
12:10 pm - 1:00 pm Vedic Discourse by His Grace Apurva Dasa
1:05 pm - 1:20 pm Tulasi Puja
1:20 pm - 2:00 pm Prasadam (Vegetarian feast)
Upcoming Events:
Rama Navami - Appearance of Lord Rama April 19th
Please mark your calender for this upcoming event. ISKCON Brampton would celebrate this festival with an evening program starting 7:00pm. More details will be sent in the near future.
Ramanavami celebrates the birth of Rama or Ramachandra. On the ninth day of the first fortnight of Chaitra the birth of Rama is commemorated. The story of Rama was first written by Vaalmeeki in about the 4th century B.C. Rama is supposed to have lived during the 8th or 7th century B.C. The epic known as the Ramayana. In some parts of India, it is a nine-day festival, coinciding with the Vasanta Navaratri (see also Navaratri).
Devotees celebrate this day by fasting till sunset, singing and chanting His holy names, pastimes and glories. JAI SRI RAMA!
There are lots of opportunities to serve on this special occasion. Please contact Acharya Thakur Prabhu or Mother Prema Gaurangi for more information.
1:20 pm - 2:00 pm Prasadam (Vegetarian feast)
Upcoming Events:
Rama Navami - Appearance of Lord Rama April 19th
Ramanavami celebrates the birth of Rama or Ramachandra. On the ninth day of the first fortnight of Chaitra the birth of Rama is commemorated. The story of Rama was first written by Vaalmeeki in about the 4th century B.C. Rama is supposed to have lived during the 8th or 7th century B.C. The epic known as the Ramayana. In some parts of India, it is a nine-day festival, coinciding with the Vasanta Navaratri (see also Navaratri).
Devotees celebrate this day by fasting till sunset, singing and chanting His holy names, pastimes and glories. JAI SRI RAMA!
There are lots of opportunities to serve on this special occasion. Please contact Acharya Thakur Prabhu or Mother Prema Gaurangi for more information.
Tuesday Hip Opener!
→ Bhakti Lounge - The Heart Of Yoga in Wellington
Get your strength on!
Our famous, loved “Tues Night Challenge” teach returns to Bhakti Lounge! Trained in Ashtanga and Power Yoga Teaching since 2005 in NZ, Australia and India.
Get your hips strong and flexible. Yep you read it, STRONG and flexible. Come along next Tuesday April 1st for some hip-opening goodness through creative transitions and inversions. This month we’ll be working toward and wrapping up our practice with Bhujapidasana, an arm supported pose testing both strength and flexibility in the hips. Up for the challenge? ;)
Not suitable for beginners
90min class followed by dinner
$18/$15 students with ID
Guilty Conscience
→ Tattva - See inside out
Nobody likes to be a hypocrite, and a gap between the ideal and the real naturally generates feelings of frustration, guilt and regret. This is an interesting phenomenon. Without a sense of guilt or shame one will lack the impetus to improve. They generally gravitate towards a life of justification, where they comfort themselves in their compromised position and accept their weaknesses with no concrete plan to overcome them. On the other hand, an overdose of guilt becomes highly debilitating. It usually leads to depression, hopelessness and an inferiority complex where the aspirant feels powerless to improve. They often end up leading a subdued and isolated life, distancing themselves from people and situations that remind them of their shortcomings. To avoid the two unhealthy extremes of justification and hopelessness, we need to manage a healthy and balanced amount of guilt to create positive change.
How can we support those who aspire against the odds to be good and noble, but who sometimes fail? How can we transform the guilt into growth? How can we reassure individuals to stay determined and never give up? The ancient teachers stress the principle of guhyam akhyati prcchati: to openly discuss one’s challenges with a friend. Firstly, it frees one from anxiety and a sense of hypocrisy. Honesty can calm our conscience and bring an immediate feeling of relief. Secondly, one creates an opportunity to receive invaluable advice, feedback and support. Even if they offer words that we’ve heard before, it can still impact our lives in a significant way. Thirdly, and arguably most importantly, there is a divine recognition and witness to this exchange. Humbly admitting one’s shortcomings is a demonstration of a genuine and sincere desire to improve. That exhibition of humility is rewarded with great inner strength and resolve. Through honest exchange, one can face their challenges and emerge with greater enthusiasm and maturity to continue on. It’s good to talk.
Guilty Conscience
→ Tattva - See inside out
Nobody likes to be a hypocrite, and a gap between the ideal and the real naturally generates feelings of frustration, guilt and regret. This is an interesting phenomenon. Without a sense of guilt or shame one will lack the impetus to improve. They generally gravitate towards a life of justification, where they comfort themselves in their compromised position and accept their weaknesses with no concrete plan to overcome them. On the other hand, an overdose of guilt becomes highly debilitating. It usually leads to depression, hopelessness and an inferiority complex where the aspirant feels powerless to improve. They often end up leading a subdued and isolated life, distancing themselves from people and situations that remind them of their shortcomings. To avoid the two unhealthy extremes of justification and hopelessness, we need to manage a healthy and balanced amount of guilt to create positive change.
How can we support those who aspire against the odds to be good and noble, but who sometimes fail? How can we transform the guilt into growth? How can we reassure individuals to stay determined and never give up? The ancient teachers stress the principle of guhyam akhyati prcchati: to openly discuss one’s challenges with a friend. Firstly, it frees one from anxiety and a sense of hypocrisy. Honesty can calm our conscience and bring an immediate feeling of relief. Secondly, one creates an opportunity to receive invaluable advice, feedback and support. Even if they offer words that we’ve heard before, it can still impact our lives in a significant way. Thirdly, and arguably most importantly, there is a divine recognition and witness to this exchange. Humbly admitting one’s shortcomings is a demonstration of a genuine and sincere desire to improve. That exhibition of humility is rewarded with great inner strength and resolve. Through honest exchange, one can face their challenges and emerge with greater enthusiasm and maturity to continue on. It’s good to talk.
Travel Journal#9.3: Gainesville and Ocala Rainbow Gathering
→ Travel Adventures of a Krishna Monk
Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 9, No. 3
By Krishna-kripa das
(February 2013, part one)
By Krishna-kripa das
(February 2013, part one)
Gainesville and Ocala Rainbow Gathering
(Sent from Gainesville, Florida, on March 24, 2013)
(Sent from Gainesville, Florida, on March 24, 2013)
Where I Went and What I Did
During the first half of February, I continued living at Krishna House, and chanted on the campus each weekday for two and a half hours. We also chanted Wednesdays at the Farmers Market for an hour and a half or two hours. I describe in more detail a couple special events we did in early February, chanting Hare Krishna at Gainesville’s Mardi Gras event and the Ocala Rainbow Gathering, where we also distributed Krishna food.
Now that my personal reading program of Srila Prabhupada’s books is becoming more well established, I am often able to read fifteen minutes each of Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, and The Nectar of Devotion. Thus I have some notes on especially striking sections from these books. I also include excerpts from the writings of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, whose blog I proofread. Prabhupada disciple, Amala Bhakta Prabhu, who has made recordings of all of Srila Prabhupada’s main books, gave classes in Alachua and Gainesville with lots of realizations, and I share notes on those. I also share notes on the lectures of the senior devotees from Alachua who give lectures at Krishna House. I have notes from a group past live regression seminar led by Prema Manjari dd, who has expertise in that area.
First Friday Harinamain Gainesville
Marlan (holding the sign) and Alexandra (on the far right) went out on harinama for the first time and both liked it. Marlan said that when he was with the devotees at the temple, he sometimes felt out of place because the other devotees have been around longer and knew what was going on, but on the harinama he felt more comfortable chanting with the devotees than associating with the Friday night partiers on the street.
Many devotees considered that harinama to be the high point of their week. [For me, however, because I love First Friday in Tallahassee so much, it was clearly second rate. I thought our trip to Jacksonville where we assisted the devotees there in the Thursday Krishna club meeting and Friday breakfast program of the students was more pleasing.]
Thanks to Tulasirani devi dasi for the pictures of harinama. For more pictures, see her Facebook album, Friday Night Harinam.
The Ocala Regional Rainbow Festival
As usual we brought Krishna prasadam (spiritual food) and
kirtana (chanting the holy name) to the Ocala Regional Rainbow Festival in the Ocala National Forest.
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A team of about twenty devotees from Krishna House carried 12 buckets of prasadam, consisting of several flavors of halava, cookies, and spaghetti with vegan sauce to the trading circle to share with others. |
We chanted much of the two hours each way, to and from the National Forest, as well as the forty-five minutes each way it took us to walk to and from the site. Then we chanted for six hours while we were there. The devotees were in bliss from all the kirtana.
Caitanya dd talked and distributed books to many people, some who had bought books from her last year and two years ago, and who were eager for more. Hladini dd talked to someone she met at the National Rainbow Gathering in Tallahassee that she had attended with the New Vrindavan devotees.
I talked to a girl (on the right of the above picture) who said she ate Krishna Lunch when at the University of Florida but now she lived in Orlando. I explained to her about our Sunday program and its free feast in Orlando, and asked if she would like the contact information, and she did, so I copied it off the paper I had brought for that purpose.
Many people would dance with our kirtana party as they passed.
I too danced to the chanting.
 |
 Some played their African djembe drums. |
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Others played stringed instruments.  |
Some of the Rainbow people admired the tilaka worn by the devotees, and when Tulasirani dd told them it designed the body as a sacred temple, they wanted her to put tilaka on them. They appear to take it so seriously as she told them, “Now you are marking your body as a temple Lord, you can no longer use it for selfish desires, but only to benefit your soul and others.”
Even nonhumans appreciated the Krishna food.
Half of our party chanted through the woods to the kitchen where Kyra, a devotee from Alachua, who organized the outreach at the National Rainbow Gathering, cooked Krishna prasadam every other day in the vegan kitchen of a friend. She was happy to see us, and we were happy to see her and her Jagannatha Deities and pictures of Radha Krishna. The other half of our party continued chanting at the trading circle where we continued distributing food.”
Some Rainbow person brought a parrot which fascinated Hladini.
As dusk approached, we moved to the main circle and chanted until the “om” and the evening announcements. Then during the distribution of food we continued chanting softly, as a couple of us distributed the rest of the halava to the Rainbow people who were all circling a bonfire. Krystina, who we knew from Krishna Lunch, came by with a friend, to do a music video of the main circle, and included our chanting in it. She was frustrated later when her guitar disappeared in the dark without a trace.
One new devotee who was doing traveling book distribution and who came with us to the gathering, said that he had our spaghetti there last year, and that was the beginning of his Krishna experience.
On the whole, lots of people got to connect with Krishna through food and song, and all the devotees felt happy, although exhausted at the end of the long day.
Thanks to Tulasirani devi dasi for the pictures of the Ocala Rainbow Gathering. For more pictures, see the Krishna House Facebook album, Ocala Rainbow Gathering 2013.
Thanks to Tulasirani devi dasi for the pictures of the Ocala Rainbow Gathering. For more pictures, see the Krishna House Facebook album, Ocala Rainbow Gathering 2013.
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
from Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.19.19, purport:
“In the name of secular government, unqualified people are taking the supreme governmental posts. No one is being trained to act according to the principles of varnasrama-dharma,and thus people are becoming increasingly degraded and are heading in the direction of animal life. The real aim of life is liberation, but unfortunately the opportunity for liberation is being denied to people in general, and therefore their human lives are being spoiled. The Krishna consciousness movement, however, is being propagated all over the world to reestablish thevarnasrama-dharmasystem and thus save human society from gliding down to hellish life.”
from Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.19.20, purport:
“A living entity becomes established in spiritual, blissful life when he fully understands that his happiness depends on spiritual self-realization, which is the basic principle of ananda (bliss), and when he is eternally situated in the service of the Lord, who has no other lord above Him.”
from The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 14:
Some scholars recommend that knowledge and renunciation are important factors for elevating oneself to devotional service. But actually that is not a fact. Actually, the cultivation of knowledge or renunciation, which are favorable for achieving a footing in Kåñëa consciousness, may be accepted in the beginning, but ultimately they may also come to be rejected, for devotional service is dependent on nothing other than the sentiment or desire for such service. It requires nothing more than sincerity.. . . Mental speculators neglect the process of devotional service, and by simply trying to defeat others in philosophical research they fail to develop the ecstasy of devotion. . . . One should not give up anything which can be utilized in the service of the Lord. That is a
secret of devotional service. Anything that can be utilized in advancing Krishna consciousness and devotional service should be accepted.
fromThe Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 16:
“Spontaneous love of Krishna as exhibited by the Vrisis and the denizens of Vrndavana is eternally existing in them. In the stage of devotional service where regulative principles are followed, there is no necessity of discussing this love, for it must develop of itself at a more advanced stage.”
from a lecture:
In a court if the defendant pleads that he did not know the law, he will not be excused. Ignorance is no excuse. Similarly ignorance of God’s law is no excuse.
If any rascal guru comes, we can challenge him for speaking differently than Krishna.
Any rascal who claims to be God we can defeat. Look up the dictionary definition of God. God is the supreme being. Are you the supreme being? Is there no one equal to you or greater than you?
The guru is worshiped as God because he is representing God, but if he thinks that because he is being worshiped as God that he has become God, he is a rascal. God is always God, and guru is guru. Guru does not become God.
For one who is serious to understand God, a guru is required.
One who has accepted a guru will never talk any nonsense.
If we do not cultivate knowledge we are as good as an animal.
We are in darkness and require knowledge from a guru to see things are they are.
We are struggling to get a better position, but the better position we do not know. All material positions are temporary. There is no better position in this material world, and thus those are strive in that way are being defeated.
There is knowledge in the Vedic scripture how you can become immortal. The guru’s responsible position is to instruct the disciple how to attain that immortality.
from The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 17:
It is essential, therefore, that one constantly associate with pure devotees who are engaged morning and evening in chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. In this way one will get the chance to purify his heart and develop this ecstatic pure love for Krishna.
from Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.30.8, purport:
Each and every one of the sons of King Pracīnabarhiṣat was an individual soul, but they were united in offering transcendental service to the Lord. The unity of the individual souls attempting to satisfy the Supreme Lord or rendering service to the Lord is real unity. In the material world such unity is not possible. Even though people may officially unite, they all have different interests. In the United Nations, for instance, all the nations have their particular national ambitions, and consequently they cannot be united. Disunity between individual souls is so strong within this material world that even in a society of Krishna consciousness, members sometimes appear disunited due to their having different opinions and leaning toward material things. Actually, in Krishna consciousness there cannot be two opinions. There is only one goal: to serve Krishna to one’s best ability. If there is some disagreement over service, such disagreement is to be taken as spiritual. Those who are actually engaged in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot be disunited in any circumstance.
from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Antya11.24:
The first regulative principle is that one must chant the Hare Krishnamaha-mantra loudly enough so that he can hear himself, and one must vow to chant a fixed number of rounds.
from Back to Godhead,Vol. 1, Issue 1, 1966:
“It does no good to absentmindedly chant the name of Krishna while your thoughts are elsewhere. Chanting will bring our uncontrolled mind under control.”
from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi 12.37, purport:
When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhupunished Kamalakanta Visvasa by no longer allowing him to come into His presence, although the punishment was actually very hard on him, Sri Advaita Prabhu, understanding the inner meaning of such punishment, was happy because He appreciated that the Lord had actually favored Kamalakanta Visvasa. Therefore He was not at all unhappy. Devotees should always be happy with all the dealings of their master, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. A devotee may be put into difficulty or opulence, but he should accept both as gifts of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and jubilantly engage in the service of the Lord in all circumstances.
from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi 12.51, purport:
But association with pounds-and-shillings men, or visayis, materialists who are simply interested in sense gratification, pollutes one’s mind and hampers such continuous remembrance of Lord Krishna. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore advised, asat-sanga-tyaga ei vaisnava-acara: aVaishnava should behave in such a way as to never associate with nondevotees or materialists (Cc. Madhava 22.87). One can avoid such association simply by always remembering Krishnawithin his heart.
from The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 20:
We may understand that the various feelings of happiness derived from discharging devotional service may be termed the “mellows” of devotional service. This relishing of transcendental mellow in discharging devotional service cannot be experienced by all classes of men, because this sweet loving mood is developed only from one’s previous life’s activities or by the association of unalloyed devotees.
“The beginning is to hear about Lord Krishnain the association of devotees who have themselves cleansed their hearts by association. Hearing about the transcendental
activities of the Lord will result in one’s feeling transcendental bliss always.”
from a Ratha-yatra lecture:
“Ratha-yatra is a very feeling festival.”
Raghunatha Dasa Goswami:
from Sri Visakhanandabhida-stotra:
Lord Madhava is famous in the three worldsbecause His name is connected to the name of Radha.Sri Radha is famous in the world because Her nameis connected to the name of Lord Madhava.
Bhakti Marga Swami:
Q: What can’t sense gratification make us happy?
A: Would you expect automobiles to experience pleasure by rubbing their bumpers together? No. Because we are not our bodies, we should not expect any pleasure from rubbing our bodies together.
Kirtana is one piece that we are presenting to Krishna so we have to work together.
When reading Srila Prabhupada’s books we should think, “How can this can go from the page to the stage?”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
from Writing in Gratitude:
activities of his guru. Mine saved the
whole world by giving us a movement
with centers in almost all countries. Even in the new countries
of the former Soviet Union, and many cities
in India and America—everywhere.
He was such a spiritual master,
empowered by God. Still he lives in us
by his instruction, in our hearts.
“Now the black bear of separation from him
crushes my ribs and scratches my limbs.
I run away, maddened
like a jivawho misspends his free will.
I've gotten into trouble without you.
It used to be so simple.
All glories to you and your divine words,
the books you made and your
visits. Please visit us and
call us with your latest orders.”
crushes my ribs and scratches my limbs.
I run away, maddened
like a jivawho misspends his free will.
I've gotten into trouble without you.
It used to be so simple.
All glories to you and your divine words,
the books you made and your
visits. Please visit us and
call us with your latest orders.”
“It is the perfection of youthful energy to use it in singing and dancing in congregational sankirtana.Whoever sees this group will be inclined to join them according to their capacity and share the bliss.”
“I truly believe Prabhupada empowered me to write the biography in the way he wanted. It has affected the lives of many readers, bringing them to knowledge and appreciation of Prabhupada’s incomparable contributions.”
Amala Bhakta Prabhu:
Surrender means offering body, mind, and words to the Lord.
There are degrees of blessings as there are degrees of surrendering. The greatest blessing is to experience the presence of the Lord.
Srila Prabhupada spoke of “loving devotional service.” There is “service,” there is “devotional service,” and there is “loving devotional service.” The desire to please Krishna differentiates between “service” and “devotional service.”
Shouting out the word makes it easier to remember than just seeing it on the page.
When we are completely focused on our devotional service, the result is incalculably greater.
When you cook for Krishna, you are consciously thinking of Krishna as you add each ingredient of the preparation.
When we distribute a book, we think that we are incapable and we ask Krishna to help us, so that person can be truly benefited and attain love of God.
In our Seattle temple anyone can come in the temple and get a plate of prasadam for free.
After many years of taking prasadam, people conclude, “I do not know what you guys believe, but you are such good cooks, there must be something behind it.” I tell them, “There is plenty behind it. And you are missing out on a lot of goodies.” And I show them some of the books, and the artwork in the temple, etc.
When we are uncertain, the best thing to do is close your eyes and with folded palms, pray, “My dear Lord Krishna. I do not know what to do. I do not want do something is displeasing to you. Please guide me.”
No need to ask for Krishna anything back.
Sometimes in difficulty we think, “O Krishna, why aren’t you treating me nicer. I do so much service.” But what kind of devotional attitude is that?
Parents like to hear from their children. And when they hear from us they become so happy just from that simple act. In the same way, Krishna likes to hear from us.
How can you get continuous happiness without connecting with He who is continuously happy.
Try to be thankful that you got the mantra. “Krishna, you have given me this gift. Let me relish it.”
You can chant with the head or chant with the heart, and it feels different.
Not just service, not just devotion, but pure loving devotional service.
Q: If we find we are doing devotional service without feeling, what do we do?
A: We call ourselves a fool and rascal, and all those other words Srila Prabhupada would always use. Pray to Krishna to protect us from this mayawith great sincerity.
Q: What if you are praying to Krishna and at the same time holding on to maya?
A: Better go through maya and suffer, and then you will realize to stay away from maya.
Try by discrimination, try by prayer, and if not that does not work, then go through the maya.
I would pray to Krishna, “If I had more money, I will do this and that, but if You do not think I need that, that is fine by me.”
Caturatama Prabhu:
Srila Prabhupada was a master of analogies.
Some people criticize Srila Prabhupada for not sharing the highest knowledge because he stressed “you are not the body” but that is higher knowledge, and unless we get then we cannot proceed any further.
Exchanges of gifts enhances our appreciation of both the other person and devotional service to Krishna.
Some thoughts that go through our mind are useless and should be forgotten while others are valuable, and sometimes we are confused about which is which.
Jayananda Prabhu was enthusiastic to distribute prasadam to the people in general and the devotees in particular. Someone he would wake up you in the middle of the night and stick a cauliflower pakorain your mouth, and say, “Look what I found! I thought they were all gone!”
Friendships with devotees help us get through crises.
After one leader described in detail his difficulties in dealing with different devotees, Srila Prabhupada told him, “As I am tolerating you, you please tolerate them.”
Srila Prabhupada’s statement that “in the material world such unity is not possible” is a slap in the face of so many welfare workers striving for unity in this world.”
All our activities are meant for bringing the conditioned souls back to Godhead.
As we do devotional service year after year, it becomes more natural because it is our natural state to be engaged in devotional service.
It pleases the Personality of Godhead to see the devotees nicely cooperating in devotional service, and He is inclined to give them some benediction.
If the Lord is going to push us to accept a benediction, let that be a benediction that helps others in devotional service.
The Lord’s blessings are advancement in devotional service.
Ways to avoid creating offenses:
Do not engage in gossip.
Render service to Vaishnavas.
Being respectful.
Avoid speech that offends.
Study together.
When I was a new devotee, our temple president would engage us in serving devotees that we had offended to rectify the situation.
Kalakantha Prabhu:
When we come to the point of being disenchanted with the external features of our life to the point that we want inquire whether there is something beyond that, that is beginning of our spiritual inquiry.
Are there moments of existential crisis in which you asked a question?
.[Some people offered questions]
Are details important?
How to solve the root cause of the suffering, such as those caused by inequity, in the world?
Is that all there is? I got everything I wanted, but I was not satisfied? Would I ever be satisfied?
Does true altruism exist?
To ask the right questions to the right people is the beginning of spiritual life.
How to do our duties without being emotionally affected by the outcome that is beyond our control. A spiritualist makes the endeavor but knows the results are beyond his control.
There is enough money in the world for everyone to have 3 million dollars.
In Sunday school I would ask, “If God is all-powerful and all-good, why is there so much suffering?” No one could satisfactorily answer that question. Bhagavad-gita does provide an answer. By acting in ignorance of God we suffer, but when we act according to His will become free from suffering.
One should act as if everything depends on us and pray like everything depends on God.
An instrument has no value until someone plays it. That is our situation with ourselves as the instruments of God.
Surrender can be viewed in a positive way as being protected by a superior person.
Our conception of wanting to be independent despite the consequences, which is like that of two- to four-year-old child, keeps us from surrendering.
Killing people for political purposes is clearly in the mode of ignorance.
People who intimidate others to surrender to God are not representing Him, for the Lord in Bhagavad-gitaasks for voluntary surrender.
Hell is all around us. It is living entities transmigrating from one body to another without being able to do anything about it.
If one enters marriage with too high expectations, one is bound to be disappointed.
Men tend to regenerate by withdrawing while women tend to regenerate by social interaction, so in marriage one must be aware of this and make provision for it.
Premarital counseling to determine if the men and women have compatible values and expectations is very important to reduce the likelihood of divorce.
Sometimes the wife marries someone she feels has great potential with the idea of modifying him to completely match her needs. This is not a good idea because the man probably will not change, and she will be frustrated.
If they enter the marriage with the idea of wanting to serve each other, then the marriage has a bright future, but either partner enters the marriage wanting to enjoy, it is doomed.
Woman go through different changes throughout their lives, and the men should be aware of this.
If both the husband and wife can communicate and accept each other as they actually are, then marriage can be a fulfilling experience.
from a breakfast conversation:
Material life means having great expectations of the material energy and little expectation of the spiritual, and spiritual life is just the reverse.
If it is a genuine spiritual relationship, one should be increasing his dependence on Krishna.
As at the end of the Bible, there is the Book of Revelation, similarly in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, at the end is the “Bhumi Gita” telling the symptoms of this age of Kali.
Forgiveness is the only way of becoming free from anger.
The Bible says “a person who claims to be enlightened but who bears anger for his brother is still in darkness.”
To get free from anger it helps to understand the other person’s point of view, but if we inquire in an angry way, the person will become defensive, so we have to inquire to get information without expressing our point of view.
We can inquire within ourselves as to why we became angry.
Avoiding immediate reaction is helpful in the case of anger.
The less you know about a dispute before you mediate, the more neutral you can be.
Overview
- Build Your Peacemaker’s Toolbox
a. Pen and paper
b. Open-ended Questions (get the person talking)
c. Close-ended Questions (to end discussion)
d. Reflective Listening (showing you have understand)
- Bring the Disputing Parties Together (somehow or other bring decision)
- Understand the Dispute
a. Allow each side to speak without interruption.
- Start a Discussion (continuing until it becomes repetitive)
- Meet Privately with Each Party
a. keep meeting of equal length
b. ask scary open-ended questions if an agreement is not reached today to motivate
c. ask questions
- Create a Written Record
comment by Michel Collins: if you try to act compassionately people will less likely become angry toward you.
If anger can be displayed in a self-controlled way, it can be used in Krishna’s service.
comment by Ballava-sena Prabhu: When I see that the person who is making me angry is acting as an instrument of my karma, that solves the whole issue for me.
Sesa Prabhu:
It essential that we have association with devotees that encourage us in our Krishna consciousness.
In Ramayana, Lord Rama and His three brothers were inseparable and had friendly relationships devoid competition.
When Bharata heard that his mother banished Rama to the forest and arranged he would become king, he was so upset because of his love for Rama, he immediately disowned his mother.
Bharata went to the forest to get Rama and hoping to make Him the king. When he saw Him, he immediately fell at His feet, and said a single word, “Brother!”
Five thinks Rama taught:
Protection.
Service during both adversity and prosperity.
Wealth [or whatever assets we have] for the happiness for others.
Deep affection for others.
No sense of victory over or competition with others.
Increasing brotherhood is most needed in the world at this time.
In 2011, there was a 20% increase in armed conflicts around the world.
Srila Prabhupada said regarding the United Nations, “They are simply increasing the flags.” Instead of becoming more united they are becoming more divided.
There is a saying “America is the most segregated on Sunday.” Hardly will you find a church with people from such a variety of ethnic backgrounds and financial statuses as at this temple.
Christ said, “You have not chosen me, I have chosen you.”
Krishna has directed us here today for a purpose, to experience the brotherhood of Krishna consciousness.
Srila Prabhupada said, “Our society is depending on love and respect. We are bound by love.”
If we have a humble attitude with everyone, will Krishna not protect us?
We can respect people for the choices that they make. Then dialog can take place because there is mutual respect. Still the choices that we make have different consequences, and difficulty arises when people are unwilling to accept the consequences for their choices.
We can pray to Raghunatha Dasa Goswami that we can become completely absorbed in Krishna consciousness and free from the necessities of the body.
Vishnupriya, after Lord Caitanya took sannyasa, subsisted on one grain of rice for every round of chanting Hare Krishna (108 mantras).
Srila Prabhupada said we can present ourselves as “a school of Hinduism.”
Bhakti Marga Swami preferred that the GBC members not use the word ‘preach’ because it has certain connotations not good for the ‘preaching.’
Srila Prabhupada points out that teaching spiritual knowledge:
(1) enables you to become most dear to Krishna
(2) is the best service to humanity
(3) is the best act of friendship
(4) should be done without discrimination
Both Devamrita Swami and Vaisesika Prabhu agree that we must have different styles of distributing books to engage the different types of devotees.
Preaching is individual as realizations are different, and it is best to preach according to our realization.
When you are sharing Krishna consciousness, you want to treat the people as individuals.
comment by Kalakantha Prabhu: The beginning of sharing Krishna consciousness is to understand where people are at.
Good listening skills:
pay attention
show that you are listening
provide feedback
defer judgment
respond appropriately
Preaching is best when it is not forced.
Purity is a force that you can use because people will be able perceive you are acting for their welfare.
comment by Jai Nitai Gauranga: One time on book distribution I saw people were afraid of seeing my big books, so I would immediately put them back in my bag. I would then explain what we were doing and ask for a donation. If they gave a donation, I would give them a small book as a gift, which they were happy to accept.
In the history of preaching in Italy they were encouraging whole families to get involved in Krishna consciousness. Because the attitude was inclusive they were very successful.
Once in Toronto, Prabhupada had a program at an Indian devotee’s house, but when he got there he saw all his Western disciples, eager to hear him, were sitting in the devotee’s living room. Srila Prabhupada inquired, “I came to do an Indian program, but where are the Indians?”
Good preaching is creative, an act of love, and best when it is nonjudgmental.
Prema Manjari dd:
comment by Marlon: Scientists say that in women there is more communication between the two halves of the brain.
comment by Shyamala: I studied psychology, and there are different types of intelligence, and men and women excel in different types.
When they originally invented the IQ test, the girls would score higher, so they had to revise the tests, so now the boys score a little higher.
Buddhiis intelligence given by Krishna, and we really get this intelligence when we connect with Krishna.
Actually in the Vedic scriptures it is said both that a women can steal away a man’s intelligence and that a woman can strengthen a man’s intelligence.
One study in the Netherlands showed men become less intelligent after talking with attractive women.Even after just a few minutes of talking to an attractive women, men scored considerably less than usual on tests they were given. Women, however, did not show diminished abilities after talking to handsome men.
comment by Vaishnava Prabhu: There is story from the Mahabharata regarding the Pandavas and the Dronacarya and shooting an arrow on the target. Arjuna was successful because he saw the center of the target alone and nothing besides that while the vision of the others was not as focused.
Q: What about statements in Srila Prabhupada’s books mentioning women are less intelligent?
A: One point is that women are said to be less intelligent because of a tendency to materialist, but in this age both men and women are materialistic.
A (Brahma Tirtha Prabhu): I see it as encouragement to chivalrous men not to exploit women.
comment by Bhakta John: Studies show that when choosing a mate, women are more analytical while men are more emotional, just the opposite of how they usually are.
on past life regression:
Things coming from past lives: Great attachment to period in history or a culture or part of the world, spontaneous affection or aversion to a particular person, a phobia, or a disease.
Astrologers, psychics, and hypnotherapists can tell you about your past life.
12% of mind is conscious.
Only the part of the mind that deals with past lives is there at birth.
Usually in a group hypnotherapy session about 75% of the people have a past life remembrance experience.
Many devotees mention seeing Srila Prabhupada in a previous life.
Some people hear or feel things from the past rather than seeing images.
It is like you are seeing a movie and one of the characters is you, and it takes some people quite awhile to recognize who is himself or herself in the previous life.
Some people worry that you can get stuck there [in the previous life], but that is not possible.
If you have a negative experience, you can always open your eyes
When you just see some images, you can be doubtful, but if you have emotions then it seems very real.
Rohini Kumar Prabhu:
Habits are not simply bad choices, but they are a result of lifetimes of bad choices.
People say “God is love.” Suppose if I went up to you and said, “You are love” what would you think? Of course, you have been called worse, but still, would you be pleased? Love is just a quality, but you are more than just a quality. You are a person.
We say, “My body.” But did I make my body? My mother has more claim to my body than I do.
Anger did not control Srila Prabhupada, but Srila Prabhupada could use it in Krishna’s service.
There are two words that can get you out of any argument, “You’re right.”
The illusory energy is the immigration department for the spiritual world.
I am an eternal spiritual soul stuffed in a material body subject to time.
By serving others our good qualities will increase and their good qualities increase, and we become more the spiritual beings we desire to be.
As we chant Hare Krishna, the small stuff seems less significant.
Seeing my college friends and even a few professors get increasing drunk and stoned as the night wore on, I wondered how these people were any better off than the common men in the street who spent thousands less on education but have a similar conception of enjoying life.
One of the pleasures of spiritual life is the association of devotees, and one of the austerities of spiritual life is the association of devotees.
Eating only Krishna prasadam will immunize us against the material energy.
We are the tata-stha sakti (marginal energy). We cannot get too proud. We can go either way [toward the spiritual or the material] at any moment.
This process of bhakti-yoga is joyfully performed, and so if we are not happy, then we are doing something wrong with our sadhana, and we should introspect and find out what.
It is valuable to stay in the middle of the devotees because they are on the way back to Godhead.
comment by Tulasirani dd: Sometimes it seemed that my sadhana was good and my service was good, but I was not feeling it because I had the wrong attitude.
comment by Rohini Kumar Prabhu: Well the attitude is actually an aspect of the sadhana. We have to perform the sadhana with the right attitude.
We cannot take our minds too seriously.
Madhukari Prabhu:
Vaisesika Prabhu says preaching to uninterested people is like picking unripe fruit. Unripe fruit has value but you have to let it ripen.
Hanan Prabhu:
comment by Caitanya Dasi of Krishna House: I was telling some people at the Rainbow Gathering about my trip to India, and that Vrindavan is so nice you can experience the presence of Krishna simply by being there. We talked about seeing Krishna’s presence in things and just then we looked in the perfectly clear sky, and saw a perfect rainbow over the Rainbow Gathering. We were amazed and considered it Krishna’s revelation.
Researchers say that usually falling in love lasts somewhere from the end of the honeymoon until two years afterward.
If a very sentimental newly married wife tells her husband each day that she was too busy thinking of her husband to cook dinner or do the laundry, such a relationship will not last very long because real love involves service.
At the end Bhagavad-gita Chapter 6, yoga is described as better than other paths, but bhakti-yoga is described as the best yoga. Narada also describes how bhakti surpasses other paths in his Narada-bhakti-sutras.
Bhakti is easier because you can engage more than just the mind. You can also engage your senses and your emotions.
As we develop as souls our ability to love increases beyond the conditioning of our body.
Shabari was herding goats, and learned that her parents were going to kill the goats for a marriage ceremony feast. She did not like that idea so she left home. While wandering she encountered an ashram. Watching the activities of the ashram, she became attracted. She decided to render to service to the ashram, and get them to include her. It worked and the sage in charge taught her a meditation. At one point, all the residents of the left, and the sage in charge told her to remain and continue chanting the name of Rama, and if you do so, some day Rama Himself will come, and you will meet Him. Many years later, Rama was traveling and saw how beautiful the ashram was. Rama asked her, “How are your austerities all these years?” She replied, “Everything is worth it because I am seeing You.” She collected fruits for Him. She would taste them, and if they were good enough, she would offer them to Him. He was pleased with her devotional attitude.
Tulasirani dd:
from sense gratifiers anonymous meeting:
Krishna steals butter because it is a product of the gopis love, and so He is stealing that love.
comment by Kimani: I find that if I think of the Bhagavad-gita verses at the end of Chapter Three that discuss lust, I get the strength to free myself from lusty desire in my mind and I become peaceful.
from a discussion following bhajanas:
Jananivasa Prabhu told me that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura said that if chanting Hare Krishna does not bring us joy it is because we are willfully neglecting to pay attention to the holy names.
When I was feeling depressed because I was away from Mayapur. Caitanya Dasi from Krishna House told me I should go out and distribute the holy names every day, and that I would feel better. I was so depressed I did not feel like going out, but I did it anyway, and it actually made me felt alright.
Sruti Sagar Prabhu:
from a conversation:
There is a story about a devotee who was feeding one friend every day, until he found out his friend was an atheist, and so he did not feed him. The Lord appeared to the devotee in a dream, and asked why he stopped feeding the man, for the Lord said that He Himself feeds all the atheists.
Jai Nitai Gauranga Prabhu:
Suppose you are talking to an acquaintance and you find he is a multi-millionaire, it may change how you talk to him. Suppose you find out he is very strong, and you need protection. In this way, people are affected when they encounter the Lord’s opulence.
My guru, Jayapataka Swami, told me a sannyasi, a member of the renounced order of life, has no private life.
Bhakta Andy:
The Sri Caitanya-caritamrita is meant for the devotees to relish. If we do not relish it, who will?
B. B. Govinda Swami tells a story of an Indian government clerk who greatly facilitated the processing of his paper work because he understood B. B. Govinda Swami was a follower of Srila Prabhupada. The young man explained that he was depressed and confused about life’s meaning when someone gave him Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita, and from reading it he was grateful to find life’s meaning. He pulled out his desk drawer and showed Maharaja’s his copy of Prabhupada’s book. He asked Maharaja if he could someday meet Srila Prabhupada, and Maharaja explained that he left his body in 1977. The man’s eyes filled with tears, as if he had heard of the death of a most dear friend, and it was several minutes before he could regain his composure. This shows the power of Srila Prabhupada’s books to connect one intimately with Srila Prabhupada.
The Goswamis never said “we have seen Krishna.” They were saying, “Where is Radha? Where is Krishna?” If people say I know Krishna, I have seen Krishna, we should be suspicious because that is not the mood of the advanced souls.
comment by Tulasirani dd: Sometimes we chant nicely for a few days, and we think we are doing really well. Then the next day we do not do so well because pride has crept it. We have to remember it is by the mercy of the Lord we can chant nicely, and we must always pray for that mercy.
-----
patrapatra-vicara nahi, nahi sthanasthana
yei yańha paya, tańha kare prema-dana
“In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead.” (Sri Caitanya-caritmrita Adi 7.23)
Travel Journal#9.3: Gainesville and Ocala Rainbow Gathering
→ Travel Adventures of a Krishna Monk
Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 9, No. 3
By Krishna-kripa das
(February 2013, part one)
By Krishna-kripa das
(February 2013, part one)
Gainesville and Ocala Rainbow Gathering
(Sent from Gainesville, Florida, on March 24, 2013)
(Sent from Gainesville, Florida, on March 24, 2013)
Where I Went and What I Did
During the first half of February, I continued living at Krishna House, and chanted on the campus each weekday for two and a half hours. We also chanted Wednesdays at the Farmers Market for an hour and a half or two hours. I describe in more detail a couple special events we did in early February, chanting Hare Krishna at Gainesville’s Mardi Gras event and the Ocala Rainbow Gathering, where we also distributed Krishna food.
Now that my personal reading program of Srila Prabhupada’s books is becoming more well established, I am often able to read fifteen minutes each of Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, and The Nectar of Devotion. Thus I have some notes on especially striking sections from these books. I also include excerpts from the writings of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, whose blog I proofread. Prabhupada disciple, Amala Bhakta Prabhu, who has made recordings of all of Srila Prabhupada’s main books, gave classes in Alachua and Gainesville with lots of realizations, and I share notes on those. I also share notes on the lectures of the senior devotees from Alachua who give lectures at Krishna House. I have notes from a group past live regression seminar led by Prema Manjari dd, who has expertise in that area.
First Friday Harinamain Gainesville
Marlan (holding the sign) and Alexandra (on the far right) went out on harinama for the first time and both liked it. Marlan said that when he was with the devotees at the temple, he sometimes felt out of place because the other devotees have been around longer and knew what was going on, but on the harinama he felt more comfortable chanting with the devotees than associating with the Friday night partiers on the street.
Many devotees considered that harinama to be the high point of their week. [For me, however, because I love First Friday in Tallahassee so much, it was clearly second rate. I thought our trip to Jacksonville where we assisted the devotees there in the Thursday Krishna club meeting and Friday breakfast program of the students was more pleasing.]
Thanks to Tulasirani devi dasi for the pictures of harinama. For more pictures, see her Facebook album, Friday Night Harinam.
The Ocala Regional Rainbow Festival
As usual we brought Krishna prasadam (spiritual food) and
kirtana (chanting the holy name) to the Ocala Regional Rainbow Festival in the Ocala National Forest.
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A team of about twenty devotees from Krishna House carried 12 buckets of prasadam, consisting of several flavors of halava, cookies, and spaghetti with vegan sauce to the trading circle to share with others. |
We chanted much of the two hours each way, to and from the National Forest, as well as the forty-five minutes each way it took us to walk to and from the site. Then we chanted for six hours while we were there. The devotees were in bliss from all the kirtana.
Caitanya dd talked and distributed books to many people, some who had bought books from her last year and two years ago, and who were eager for more. Hladini dd talked to someone she met at the National Rainbow Gathering in Tallahassee that she had attended with the New Vrindavan devotees.
I talked to a girl (on the right of the above picture) who said she ate Krishna Lunch when at the University of Florida but now she lived in Orlando. I explained to her about our Sunday program and its free feast in Orlando, and asked if she would like the contact information, and she did, so I copied it off the paper I had brought for that purpose.
Many people would dance with our kirtana party as they passed.
I too danced to the chanting.
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Some played their African djembe drums. |
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Others played stringed instruments. |
Some of the Rainbow people admired the tilaka worn by the devotees, and when Tulasirani dd told them it designed the body as a sacred temple, they wanted her to put tilaka on them. They appear to take it so seriously as she told them, “Now you are marking your body as a temple Lord, you can no longer use it for selfish desires, but only to benefit your soul and others.”
Even nonhumans appreciated the Krishna food.
Half of our party chanted through the woods to the kitchen where Kyra, a devotee from Alachua, who organized the outreach at the National Rainbow Gathering, cooked Krishna prasadam every other day in the vegan kitchen of a friend. She was happy to see us, and we were happy to see her and her Jagannatha Deities and pictures of Radha Krishna. The other half of our party continued chanting at the trading circle where we continued distributing food.”
Some Rainbow person brought a parrot which fascinated Hladini.
As dusk approached, we moved to the main circle and chanted until the “om” and the evening announcements. Then during the distribution of food we continued chanting softly, as a couple of us distributed the rest of the halava to the Rainbow people who were all circling a bonfire. Krystina, who we knew from Krishna Lunch, came by with a friend, to do a music video of the main circle, and included our chanting in it. She was frustrated later when her guitar disappeared in the dark without a trace.
One new devotee who was doing traveling book distribution and who came with us to the gathering, said that he had our spaghetti there last year, and that was the beginning of his Krishna experience.
On the whole, lots of people got to connect with Krishna through food and song, and all the devotees felt happy, although exhausted at the end of the long day.
Thanks to Tulasirani devi dasi for the pictures of the Ocala Rainbow Gathering. For more pictures, see the Krishna House Facebook album, Ocala Rainbow Gathering 2013.
Thanks to Tulasirani devi dasi for the pictures of the Ocala Rainbow Gathering. For more pictures, see the Krishna House Facebook album, Ocala Rainbow Gathering 2013.
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
from Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.19.19, purport:
“In the name of secular government, unqualified people are taking the supreme governmental posts. No one is being trained to act according to the principles of varnasrama-dharma,and thus people are becoming increasingly degraded and are heading in the direction of animal life. The real aim of life is liberation, but unfortunately the opportunity for liberation is being denied to people in general, and therefore their human lives are being spoiled. The Krishna consciousness movement, however, is being propagated all over the world to reestablish thevarnasrama-dharmasystem and thus save human society from gliding down to hellish life.”
from Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.19.20, purport:
“A living entity becomes established in spiritual, blissful life when he fully understands that his happiness depends on spiritual self-realization, which is the basic principle of ananda (bliss), and when he is eternally situated in the service of the Lord, who has no other lord above Him.”
from The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 14:
Some scholars recommend that knowledge and renunciation are important factors for elevating oneself to devotional service. But actually that is not a fact. Actually, the cultivation of knowledge or renunciation, which are favorable for achieving a footing in Kåñëa consciousness, may be accepted in the beginning, but ultimately they may also come to be rejected, for devotional service is dependent on nothing other than the sentiment or desire for such service. It requires nothing more than sincerity.. . . Mental speculators neglect the process of devotional service, and by simply trying to defeat others in philosophical research they fail to develop the ecstasy of devotion. . . . One should not give up anything which can be utilized in the service of the Lord. That is a
secret of devotional service. Anything that can be utilized in advancing Krishna consciousness and devotional service should be accepted.
fromThe Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 16:
“Spontaneous love of Krishna as exhibited by the Vrisis and the denizens of Vrndavana is eternally existing in them. In the stage of devotional service where regulative principles are followed, there is no necessity of discussing this love, for it must develop of itself at a more advanced stage.”
from a lecture:
In a court if the defendant pleads that he did not know the law, he will not be excused. Ignorance is no excuse. Similarly ignorance of God’s law is no excuse.
If any rascal guru comes, we can challenge him for speaking differently than Krishna.
Any rascal who claims to be God we can defeat. Look up the dictionary definition of God. God is the supreme being. Are you the supreme being? Is there no one equal to you or greater than you?
The guru is worshiped as God because he is representing God, but if he thinks that because he is being worshiped as God that he has become God, he is a rascal. God is always God, and guru is guru. Guru does not become God.
For one who is serious to understand God, a guru is required.
One who has accepted a guru will never talk any nonsense.
If we do not cultivate knowledge we are as good as an animal.
We are in darkness and require knowledge from a guru to see things are they are.
We are struggling to get a better position, but the better position we do not know. All material positions are temporary. There is no better position in this material world, and thus those are strive in that way are being defeated.
There is knowledge in the Vedic scripture how you can become immortal. The guru’s responsible position is to instruct the disciple how to attain that immortality.
from The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 17:
It is essential, therefore, that one constantly associate with pure devotees who are engaged morning and evening in chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. In this way one will get the chance to purify his heart and develop this ecstatic pure love for Krishna.
from Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.30.8, purport:
Each and every one of the sons of King Pracīnabarhiṣat was an individual soul, but they were united in offering transcendental service to the Lord. The unity of the individual souls attempting to satisfy the Supreme Lord or rendering service to the Lord is real unity. In the material world such unity is not possible. Even though people may officially unite, they all have different interests. In the United Nations, for instance, all the nations have their particular national ambitions, and consequently they cannot be united. Disunity between individual souls is so strong within this material world that even in a society of Krishna consciousness, members sometimes appear disunited due to their having different opinions and leaning toward material things. Actually, in Krishna consciousness there cannot be two opinions. There is only one goal: to serve Krishna to one’s best ability. If there is some disagreement over service, such disagreement is to be taken as spiritual. Those who are actually engaged in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot be disunited in any circumstance.
from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Antya11.24:
The first regulative principle is that one must chant the Hare Krishnamaha-mantra loudly enough so that he can hear himself, and one must vow to chant a fixed number of rounds.
from Back to Godhead,Vol. 1, Issue 1, 1966:
“It does no good to absentmindedly chant the name of Krishna while your thoughts are elsewhere. Chanting will bring our uncontrolled mind under control.”
from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi 12.37, purport:
When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhupunished Kamalakanta Visvasa by no longer allowing him to come into His presence, although the punishment was actually very hard on him, Sri Advaita Prabhu, understanding the inner meaning of such punishment, was happy because He appreciated that the Lord had actually favored Kamalakanta Visvasa. Therefore He was not at all unhappy. Devotees should always be happy with all the dealings of their master, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. A devotee may be put into difficulty or opulence, but he should accept both as gifts of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and jubilantly engage in the service of the Lord in all circumstances.
from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi 12.51, purport:
But association with pounds-and-shillings men, or visayis, materialists who are simply interested in sense gratification, pollutes one’s mind and hampers such continuous remembrance of Lord Krishna. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore advised, asat-sanga-tyaga ei vaisnava-acara: aVaishnava should behave in such a way as to never associate with nondevotees or materialists (Cc. Madhava 22.87). One can avoid such association simply by always remembering Krishnawithin his heart.
from The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 20:
We may understand that the various feelings of happiness derived from discharging devotional service may be termed the “mellows” of devotional service. This relishing of transcendental mellow in discharging devotional service cannot be experienced by all classes of men, because this sweet loving mood is developed only from one’s previous life’s activities or by the association of unalloyed devotees.
“The beginning is to hear about Lord Krishnain the association of devotees who have themselves cleansed their hearts by association. Hearing about the transcendental
activities of the Lord will result in one’s feeling transcendental bliss always.”
from a Ratha-yatra lecture:
“Ratha-yatra is a very feeling festival.”
Raghunatha Dasa Goswami:
from Sri Visakhanandabhida-stotra:
Lord Madhava is famous in the three worldsbecause His name is connected to the name of Radha.Sri Radha is famous in the world because Her nameis connected to the name of Lord Madhava.
Bhakti Marga Swami:
Q: What can’t sense gratification make us happy?
A: Would you expect automobiles to experience pleasure by rubbing their bumpers together? No. Because we are not our bodies, we should not expect any pleasure from rubbing our bodies together.
Kirtana is one piece that we are presenting to Krishna so we have to work together.
When reading Srila Prabhupada’s books we should think, “How can this can go from the page to the stage?”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
from Writing in Gratitude:
activities of his guru. Mine saved the
whole world by giving us a movement
with centers in almost all countries. Even in the new countries
of the former Soviet Union, and many cities
in India and America—everywhere.
He was such a spiritual master,
empowered by God. Still he lives in us
by his instruction, in our hearts.
“Now the black bear of separation from him
crushes my ribs and scratches my limbs.
I run away, maddened
like a jivawho misspends his free will.
I've gotten into trouble without you.
It used to be so simple.
All glories to you and your divine words,
the books you made and your
visits. Please visit us and
call us with your latest orders.”
crushes my ribs and scratches my limbs.
I run away, maddened
like a jivawho misspends his free will.
I've gotten into trouble without you.
It used to be so simple.
All glories to you and your divine words,
the books you made and your
visits. Please visit us and
call us with your latest orders.”
“It is the perfection of youthful energy to use it in singing and dancing in congregational sankirtana.Whoever sees this group will be inclined to join them according to their capacity and share the bliss.”
“I truly believe Prabhupada empowered me to write the biography in the way he wanted. It has affected the lives of many readers, bringing them to knowledge and appreciation of Prabhupada’s incomparable contributions.”
Amala Bhakta Prabhu:
Surrender means offering body, mind, and words to the Lord.
There are degrees of blessings as there are degrees of surrendering. The greatest blessing is to experience the presence of the Lord.
Srila Prabhupada spoke of “loving devotional service.” There is “service,” there is “devotional service,” and there is “loving devotional service.” The desire to please Krishna differentiates between “service” and “devotional service.”
Shouting out the word makes it easier to remember than just seeing it on the page.
When we are completely focused on our devotional service, the result is incalculably greater.
When you cook for Krishna, you are consciously thinking of Krishna as you add each ingredient of the preparation.
When we distribute a book, we think that we are incapable and we ask Krishna to help us, so that person can be truly benefited and attain love of God.
In our Seattle temple anyone can come in the temple and get a plate of prasadam for free.
After many years of taking prasadam, people conclude, “I do not know what you guys believe, but you are such good cooks, there must be something behind it.” I tell them, “There is plenty behind it. And you are missing out on a lot of goodies.” And I show them some of the books, and the artwork in the temple, etc.
When we are uncertain, the best thing to do is close your eyes and with folded palms, pray, “My dear Lord Krishna. I do not know what to do. I do not want do something is displeasing to you. Please guide me.”
No need to ask for Krishna anything back.
Sometimes in difficulty we think, “O Krishna, why aren’t you treating me nicer. I do so much service.” But what kind of devotional attitude is that?
Parents like to hear from their children. And when they hear from us they become so happy just from that simple act. In the same way, Krishna likes to hear from us.
How can you get continuous happiness without connecting with He who is continuously happy.
Try to be thankful that you got the mantra. “Krishna, you have given me this gift. Let me relish it.”
You can chant with the head or chant with the heart, and it feels different.
Not just service, not just devotion, but pure loving devotional service.
Q: If we find we are doing devotional service without feeling, what do we do?
A: We call ourselves a fool and rascal, and all those other words Srila Prabhupada would always use. Pray to Krishna to protect us from this mayawith great sincerity.
Q: What if you are praying to Krishna and at the same time holding on to maya?
A: Better go through maya and suffer, and then you will realize to stay away from maya.
Try by discrimination, try by prayer, and if not that does not work, then go through the maya.
I would pray to Krishna, “If I had more money, I will do this and that, but if You do not think I need that, that is fine by me.”
Caturatama Prabhu:
Srila Prabhupada was a master of analogies.
Some people criticize Srila Prabhupada for not sharing the highest knowledge because he stressed “you are not the body” but that is higher knowledge, and unless we get then we cannot proceed any further.
Exchanges of gifts enhances our appreciation of both the other person and devotional service to Krishna.
Some thoughts that go through our mind are useless and should be forgotten while others are valuable, and sometimes we are confused about which is which.
Jayananda Prabhu was enthusiastic to distribute prasadam to the people in general and the devotees in particular. Someone he would wake up you in the middle of the night and stick a cauliflower pakorain your mouth, and say, “Look what I found! I thought they were all gone!”
Friendships with devotees help us get through crises.
After one leader described in detail his difficulties in dealing with different devotees, Srila Prabhupada told him, “As I am tolerating you, you please tolerate them.”
Srila Prabhupada’s statement that “in the material world such unity is not possible” is a slap in the face of so many welfare workers striving for unity in this world.”
All our activities are meant for bringing the conditioned souls back to Godhead.
As we do devotional service year after year, it becomes more natural because it is our natural state to be engaged in devotional service.
It pleases the Personality of Godhead to see the devotees nicely cooperating in devotional service, and He is inclined to give them some benediction.
If the Lord is going to push us to accept a benediction, let that be a benediction that helps others in devotional service.
The Lord’s blessings are advancement in devotional service.
Ways to avoid creating offenses:
Do not engage in gossip.
Render service to Vaishnavas.
Being respectful.
Avoid speech that offends.
Study together.
When I was a new devotee, our temple president would engage us in serving devotees that we had offended to rectify the situation.
Kalakantha Prabhu:
When we come to the point of being disenchanted with the external features of our life to the point that we want inquire whether there is something beyond that, that is beginning of our spiritual inquiry.
Are there moments of existential crisis in which you asked a question?
.[Some people offered questions]
Are details important?
How to solve the root cause of the suffering, such as those caused by inequity, in the world?
Is that all there is? I got everything I wanted, but I was not satisfied? Would I ever be satisfied?
Does true altruism exist?
To ask the right questions to the right people is the beginning of spiritual life.
How to do our duties without being emotionally affected by the outcome that is beyond our control. A spiritualist makes the endeavor but knows the results are beyond his control.
There is enough money in the world for everyone to have 3 million dollars.
In Sunday school I would ask, “If God is all-powerful and all-good, why is there so much suffering?” No one could satisfactorily answer that question. Bhagavad-gita does provide an answer. By acting in ignorance of God we suffer, but when we act according to His will become free from suffering.
One should act as if everything depends on us and pray like everything depends on God.
An instrument has no value until someone plays it. That is our situation with ourselves as the instruments of God.
Surrender can be viewed in a positive way as being protected by a superior person.
Our conception of wanting to be independent despite the consequences, which is like that of two- to four-year-old child, keeps us from surrendering.
Killing people for political purposes is clearly in the mode of ignorance.
People who intimidate others to surrender to God are not representing Him, for the Lord in Bhagavad-gitaasks for voluntary surrender.
Hell is all around us. It is living entities transmigrating from one body to another without being able to do anything about it.
If one enters marriage with too high expectations, one is bound to be disappointed.
Men tend to regenerate by withdrawing while women tend to regenerate by social interaction, so in marriage one must be aware of this and make provision for it.
Premarital counseling to determine if the men and women have compatible values and expectations is very important to reduce the likelihood of divorce.
Sometimes the wife marries someone she feels has great potential with the idea of modifying him to completely match her needs. This is not a good idea because the man probably will not change, and she will be frustrated.
If they enter the marriage with the idea of wanting to serve each other, then the marriage has a bright future, but either partner enters the marriage wanting to enjoy, it is doomed.
Woman go through different changes throughout their lives, and the men should be aware of this.
If both the husband and wife can communicate and accept each other as they actually are, then marriage can be a fulfilling experience.
from a breakfast conversation:
Material life means having great expectations of the material energy and little expectation of the spiritual, and spiritual life is just the reverse.
If it is a genuine spiritual relationship, one should be increasing his dependence on Krishna.
As at the end of the Bible, there is the Book of Revelation, similarly in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, at the end is the “Bhumi Gita” telling the symptoms of this age of Kali.
Forgiveness is the only way of becoming free from anger.
The Bible says “a person who claims to be enlightened but who bears anger for his brother is still in darkness.”
To get free from anger it helps to understand the other person’s point of view, but if we inquire in an angry way, the person will become defensive, so we have to inquire to get information without expressing our point of view.
We can inquire within ourselves as to why we became angry.
Avoiding immediate reaction is helpful in the case of anger.
The less you know about a dispute before you mediate, the more neutral you can be.
Overview
- Build Your Peacemaker’s Toolbox
a. Pen and paper
b. Open-ended Questions (get the person talking)
c. Close-ended Questions (to end discussion)
d. Reflective Listening (showing you have understand)
- Bring the Disputing Parties Together (somehow or other bring decision)
- Understand the Dispute
a. Allow each side to speak without interruption.
- Start a Discussion (continuing until it becomes repetitive)
- Meet Privately with Each Party
a. keep meeting of equal length
b. ask scary open-ended questions if an agreement is not reached today to motivate
c. ask questions
- Create a Written Record
comment by Michel Collins: if you try to act compassionately people will less likely become angry toward you.
If anger can be displayed in a self-controlled way, it can be used in Krishna’s service.
comment by Ballava-sena Prabhu: When I see that the person who is making me angry is acting as an instrument of my karma, that solves the whole issue for me.
Sesa Prabhu:
It essential that we have association with devotees that encourage us in our Krishna consciousness.
In Ramayana, Lord Rama and His three brothers were inseparable and had friendly relationships devoid competition.
When Bharata heard that his mother banished Rama to the forest and arranged he would become king, he was so upset because of his love for Rama, he immediately disowned his mother.
Bharata went to the forest to get Rama and hoping to make Him the king. When he saw Him, he immediately fell at His feet, and said a single word, “Brother!”
Five thinks Rama taught:
Protection.
Service during both adversity and prosperity.
Wealth [or whatever assets we have] for the happiness for others.
Deep affection for others.
No sense of victory over or competition with others.
Increasing brotherhood is most needed in the world at this time.
In 2011, there was a 20% increase in armed conflicts around the world.
Srila Prabhupada said regarding the United Nations, “They are simply increasing the flags.” Instead of becoming more united they are becoming more divided.
There is a saying “America is the most segregated on Sunday.” Hardly will you find a church with people from such a variety of ethnic backgrounds and financial statuses as at this temple.
Christ said, “You have not chosen me, I have chosen you.”
Krishna has directed us here today for a purpose, to experience the brotherhood of Krishna consciousness.
Srila Prabhupada said, “Our society is depending on love and respect. We are bound by love.”
If we have a humble attitude with everyone, will Krishna not protect us?
We can respect people for the choices that they make. Then dialog can take place because there is mutual respect. Still the choices that we make have different consequences, and difficulty arises when people are unwilling to accept the consequences for their choices.
We can pray to Raghunatha Dasa Goswami that we can become completely absorbed in Krishna consciousness and free from the necessities of the body.
Vishnupriya, after Lord Caitanya took sannyasa, subsisted on one grain of rice for every round of chanting Hare Krishna (108 mantras).
Srila Prabhupada said we can present ourselves as “a school of Hinduism.”
Bhakti Marga Swami preferred that the GBC members not use the word ‘preach’ because it has certain connotations not good for the ‘preaching.’
Srila Prabhupada points out that teaching spiritual knowledge:
(1) enables you to become most dear to Krishna
(2) is the best service to humanity
(3) is the best act of friendship
(4) should be done without discrimination
Both Devamrita Swami and Vaisesika Prabhu agree that we must have different styles of distributing books to engage the different types of devotees.
Preaching is individual as realizations are different, and it is best to preach according to our realization.
When you are sharing Krishna consciousness, you want to treat the people as individuals.
comment by Kalakantha Prabhu: The beginning of sharing Krishna consciousness is to understand where people are at.
Good listening skills:
pay attention
show that you are listening
provide feedback
defer judgment
respond appropriately
Preaching is best when it is not forced.
Purity is a force that you can use because people will be able perceive you are acting for their welfare.
comment by Jai Nitai Gauranga: One time on book distribution I saw people were afraid of seeing my big books, so I would immediately put them back in my bag. I would then explain what we were doing and ask for a donation. If they gave a donation, I would give them a small book as a gift, which they were happy to accept.
In the history of preaching in Italy they were encouraging whole families to get involved in Krishna consciousness. Because the attitude was inclusive they were very successful.
Once in Toronto, Prabhupada had a program at an Indian devotee’s house, but when he got there he saw all his Western disciples, eager to hear him, were sitting in the devotee’s living room. Srila Prabhupada inquired, “I came to do an Indian program, but where are the Indians?”
Good preaching is creative, an act of love, and best when it is nonjudgmental.
Prema Manjari dd:
comment by Marlon: Scientists say that in women there is more communication between the two halves of the brain.
comment by Shyamala: I studied psychology, and there are different types of intelligence, and men and women excel in different types.
When they originally invented the IQ test, the girls would score higher, so they had to revise the tests, so now the boys score a little higher.
Buddhiis intelligence given by Krishna, and we really get this intelligence when we connect with Krishna.
Actually in the Vedic scriptures it is said both that a women can steal away a man’s intelligence and that a woman can strengthen a man’s intelligence.
One study in the Netherlands showed men become less intelligent after talking with attractive women.Even after just a few minutes of talking to an attractive women, men scored considerably less than usual on tests they were given. Women, however, did not show diminished abilities after talking to handsome men.
comment by Vaishnava Prabhu: There is story from the Mahabharata regarding the Pandavas and the Dronacarya and shooting an arrow on the target. Arjuna was successful because he saw the center of the target alone and nothing besides that while the vision of the others was not as focused.
Q: What about statements in Srila Prabhupada’s books mentioning women are less intelligent?
A: One point is that women are said to be less intelligent because of a tendency to materialist, but in this age both men and women are materialistic.
A (Brahma Tirtha Prabhu): I see it as encouragement to chivalrous men not to exploit women.
comment by Bhakta John: Studies show that when choosing a mate, women are more analytical while men are more emotional, just the opposite of how they usually are.
on past life regression:
Things coming from past lives: Great attachment to period in history or a culture or part of the world, spontaneous affection or aversion to a particular person, a phobia, or a disease.
Astrologers, psychics, and hypnotherapists can tell you about your past life.
12% of mind is conscious.
Only the part of the mind that deals with past lives is there at birth.
Usually in a group hypnotherapy session about 75% of the people have a past life remembrance experience.
Many devotees mention seeing Srila Prabhupada in a previous life.
Some people hear or feel things from the past rather than seeing images.
It is like you are seeing a movie and one of the characters is you, and it takes some people quite awhile to recognize who is himself or herself in the previous life.
Some people worry that you can get stuck there [in the previous life], but that is not possible.
If you have a negative experience, you can always open your eyes
When you just see some images, you can be doubtful, but if you have emotions then it seems very real.
Rohini Kumar Prabhu:
Habits are not simply bad choices, but they are a result of lifetimes of bad choices.
People say “God is love.” Suppose if I went up to you and said, “You are love” what would you think? Of course, you have been called worse, but still, would you be pleased? Love is just a quality, but you are more than just a quality. You are a person.
We say, “My body.” But did I make my body? My mother has more claim to my body than I do.
Anger did not control Srila Prabhupada, but Srila Prabhupada could use it in Krishna’s service.
There are two words that can get you out of any argument, “You’re right.”
The illusory energy is the immigration department for the spiritual world.
I am an eternal spiritual soul stuffed in a material body subject to time.
By serving others our good qualities will increase and their good qualities increase, and we become more the spiritual beings we desire to be.
As we chant Hare Krishna, the small stuff seems less significant.
Seeing my college friends and even a few professors get increasing drunk and stoned as the night wore on, I wondered how these people were any better off than the common men in the street who spent thousands less on education but have a similar conception of enjoying life.
One of the pleasures of spiritual life is the association of devotees, and one of the austerities of spiritual life is the association of devotees.
Eating only Krishna prasadam will immunize us against the material energy.
We are the tata-stha sakti (marginal energy). We cannot get too proud. We can go either way [toward the spiritual or the material] at any moment.
This process of bhakti-yoga is joyfully performed, and so if we are not happy, then we are doing something wrong with our sadhana, and we should introspect and find out what.
It is valuable to stay in the middle of the devotees because they are on the way back to Godhead.
comment by Tulasirani dd: Sometimes it seemed that my sadhana was good and my service was good, but I was not feeling it because I had the wrong attitude.
comment by Rohini Kumar Prabhu: Well the attitude is actually an aspect of the sadhana. We have to perform the sadhana with the right attitude.
We cannot take our minds too seriously.
Madhukari Prabhu:
Vaisesika Prabhu says preaching to uninterested people is like picking unripe fruit. Unripe fruit has value but you have to let it ripen.
Hanan Prabhu:
comment by Caitanya Dasi of Krishna House: I was telling some people at the Rainbow Gathering about my trip to India, and that Vrindavan is so nice you can experience the presence of Krishna simply by being there. We talked about seeing Krishna’s presence in things and just then we looked in the perfectly clear sky, and saw a perfect rainbow over the Rainbow Gathering. We were amazed and considered it Krishna’s revelation.
Researchers say that usually falling in love lasts somewhere from the end of the honeymoon until two years afterward.
If a very sentimental newly married wife tells her husband each day that she was too busy thinking of her husband to cook dinner or do the laundry, such a relationship will not last very long because real love involves service.
At the end Bhagavad-gita Chapter 6, yoga is described as better than other paths, but bhakti-yoga is described as the best yoga. Narada also describes how bhakti surpasses other paths in his Narada-bhakti-sutras.
Bhakti is easier because you can engage more than just the mind. You can also engage your senses and your emotions.
As we develop as souls our ability to love increases beyond the conditioning of our body.
Shabari was herding goats, and learned that her parents were going to kill the goats for a marriage ceremony feast. She did not like that idea so she left home. While wandering she encountered an ashram. Watching the activities of the ashram, she became attracted. She decided to render to service to the ashram, and get them to include her. It worked and the sage in charge taught her a meditation. At one point, all the residents of the left, and the sage in charge told her to remain and continue chanting the name of Rama, and if you do so, some day Rama Himself will come, and you will meet Him. Many years later, Rama was traveling and saw how beautiful the ashram was. Rama asked her, “How are your austerities all these years?” She replied, “Everything is worth it because I am seeing You.” She collected fruits for Him. She would taste them, and if they were good enough, she would offer them to Him. He was pleased with her devotional attitude.
Tulasirani dd:
from sense gratifiers anonymous meeting:
Krishna steals butter because it is a product of the gopis love, and so He is stealing that love.
comment by Kimani: I find that if I think of the Bhagavad-gita verses at the end of Chapter Three that discuss lust, I get the strength to free myself from lusty desire in my mind and I become peaceful.
from a discussion following bhajanas:
Jananivasa Prabhu told me that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura said that if chanting Hare Krishna does not bring us joy it is because we are willfully neglecting to pay attention to the holy names.
When I was feeling depressed because I was away from Mayapur. Caitanya Dasi from Krishna House told me I should go out and distribute the holy names every day, and that I would feel better. I was so depressed I did not feel like going out, but I did it anyway, and it actually made me felt alright.
Sruti Sagar Prabhu:
from a conversation:
There is a story about a devotee who was feeding one friend every day, until he found out his friend was an atheist, and so he did not feed him. The Lord appeared to the devotee in a dream, and asked why he stopped feeding the man, for the Lord said that He Himself feeds all the atheists.
Jai Nitai Gauranga Prabhu:
Suppose you are talking to an acquaintance and you find he is a multi-millionaire, it may change how you talk to him. Suppose you find out he is very strong, and you need protection. In this way, people are affected when they encounter the Lord’s opulence.
My guru, Jayapataka Swami, told me a sannyasi, a member of the renounced order of life, has no private life.
Bhakta Andy:
The Sri Caitanya-caritamrita is meant for the devotees to relish. If we do not relish it, who will?
B. B. Govinda Swami tells a story of an Indian government clerk who greatly facilitated the processing of his paper work because he understood B. B. Govinda Swami was a follower of Srila Prabhupada. The young man explained that he was depressed and confused about life’s meaning when someone gave him Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita, and from reading it he was grateful to find life’s meaning. He pulled out his desk drawer and showed Maharaja’s his copy of Prabhupada’s book. He asked Maharaja if he could someday meet Srila Prabhupada, and Maharaja explained that he left his body in 1977. The man’s eyes filled with tears, as if he had heard of the death of a most dear friend, and it was several minutes before he could regain his composure. This shows the power of Srila Prabhupada’s books to connect one intimately with Srila Prabhupada.
The Goswamis never said “we have seen Krishna.” They were saying, “Where is Radha? Where is Krishna?” If people say I know Krishna, I have seen Krishna, we should be suspicious because that is not the mood of the advanced souls.
comment by Tulasirani dd: Sometimes we chant nicely for a few days, and we think we are doing really well. Then the next day we do not do so well because pride has crept it. We have to remember it is by the mercy of the Lord we can chant nicely, and we must always pray for that mercy.
-----
patrapatra-vicara nahi, nahi sthanasthana
yei yańha paya, tańha kare prema-dana
“In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead.” (Sri Caitanya-caritmrita Adi 7.23)
Join us in the celebration of Gaura Purnima on Tuesday March 26th
→ ISKCON BRAMPTON'S BLOG
YOU ARE INVITED FOR THE GRAND CELEBRATION OF GAURA PURNIMA (APPEARANCE DAY OF LORD CAITANYA MAHAPRABHU)
The festival is considered to be one of the most important festivals of the entire year for Gaudia Vaishnavas (followers of Lord Caitaniya). Devotees observe this festival by fasting till moonrise and chanting when they can the holy names of Lord all day.
Lord CAITANYA is KRISHNA HIMSELF, appearing as His own devotee only to teach us by example "How to love the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna" and to gain full enlightenment simply by chanting His holy names; HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE. Thus he brought a revolution in spiritual consciousness by inaugurating the chanting and dancing.
GAURA PURNIMA meaning GOLDEN FULL MOON which signifies lord CAITANYA appeared during full moon night by taking the golden complexion of Radha Rani to bless everyone without any discrimination based on background or spiritual qualification with His soothing moonlike rays of His sublime teachings. Those who witnessed the pastimes of lord CAITANYA saw Him dance and chant with ecstatic love for God, the likes of which had never been seen before.
Sri CAITANYA'S teachings cover three principal topics:
· Knowledge of soul's relationship with Krishna
· The method of awakening that relationship and
· The awakened state of that relationship(pure love of God)
He predicted that nama sankirtana would spread in every town and village.
"Param vijayate sri-krsna-sankirtanam"
"SIKSASTAKAM", The eight instructions of Lord Sri CAITANYA should be followed by everyone in order to become a pure devotee. http://harekrishnatemple.com/
ALL GLORIES TO LORD SRI CAITANYA, THE MOST MAGNANIIMOUS AND MERCIFUL!
MORNING PROGRAM:
5.00am ................Mangala arati
5.30am.................
5.35am.................Tulasi aarti and kirtan
5.40am.................
5.45am.................
5.55am.................
6.25am.................Srila Prabhupada arati
EVENING PROGRAM:
7.00PM................GAURA AARTI
7.30PM................
7.40PM................GLORIES OF LORD SRI CAITANIYA MAHAPRABHU by His Grace Advaita Gosai Das
8.20PM................GAURANGA MAHA ABHISHEK
8.50PM................SUNDAY SCHOOL PRESENTATION
& Vaisnava Song presentation by Milton Bhakti Vriksha children
9.20PM.................MAHA AARTI
9:35 PM...............Honour GAURANGA MAHA FEAST
& Enjoy a performance by Hladini Group
SPONSORSHIPS AND DONATIONS:
"One who performs opulent celebrations on such days, pleases the lord, who grants him all benedictions and removes all sins." (Hari Bhakti Villas)
Srila Prabhupada established opulent Deity worship and celebration of vaishnava festivals as an opportunity provided by lord Himself, so that we can unitedly express our gratitude and love to the lord, His associates and devotees.
OFFERING OF KALASH: $51[per family]
FLORALS AND GARLANDS: $108
MAHA AARTI: $108
GUARANGA MAHA FEAST $251
Please contact Acarya Thakur Das Prabhu [alexf108@gmail.com]or mother Prema Gaurangi [premagaurangi.jps@hotmail.com
Join us in the celebration of Gaura Purnima on Tuesday March 26th
→ ISKCON BRAMPTON'S BLOG
YOU ARE INVITED FOR THE GRAND CELEBRATION OF GAURA PURNIMA (APPEARANCE DAY OF LORD CAITANYA MAHAPRABHU)
The festival is considered to be one of the most important festivals of the entire year for Gaudia Vaishnavas (followers of Lord Caitaniya). Devotees observe this festival by fasting till moonrise and chanting when they can the holy names of Lord all day.
Lord CAITANYA is KRISHNA HIMSELF, appearing as His own devotee only to teach us by example "How to love the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna" and to gain full enlightenment simply by chanting His holy names; HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE. Thus he brought a revolution in spiritual consciousness by inaugurating the chanting and dancing.
GAURA PURNIMA meaning GOLDEN FULL MOON which signifies lord CAITANYA appeared during full moon night by taking the golden complexion of Radha Rani to bless everyone without any discrimination based on background or spiritual qualification with His soothing moonlike rays of His sublime teachings. Those who witnessed the pastimes of lord CAITANYA saw Him dance and chant with ecstatic love for God, the likes of which had never been seen before.
Sri CAITANYA'S teachings cover three principal topics:
· Knowledge of soul's relationship with Krishna
· The method of awakening that relationship and
· The awakened state of that relationship(pure love of God)
He predicted that nama sankirtana would spread in every town and village.
"Param vijayate sri-krsna-sankirtanam"
"SIKSASTAKAM", The eight instructions of Lord Sri CAITANYA should be followed by everyone in order to become a pure devotee. http://harekrishnatemple.com/
ALL GLORIES TO LORD SRI CAITANYA, THE MOST MAGNANIIMOUS AND MERCIFUL!
MORNING PROGRAM:
5.00am ................Mangala arati
5.30am.................
5.35am.................Tulasi aarti and kirtan
5.40am.................
5.45am.................
5.55am.................
6.25am.................Srila Prabhupada arati
EVENING PROGRAM:
7.00PM................GAURA AARTI
7.30PM................
7.40PM................GLORIES OF LORD SRI CAITANIYA MAHAPRABHU by His Grace Advaita Gosai Das
8.20PM................GAURANGA MAHA ABHISHEK
8.50PM................SUNDAY SCHOOL PRESENTATION
& Vaisnava Song presentation by Milton Bhakti Vriksha children
9.20PM.................MAHA AARTI
9:35 PM...............Honour GAURANGA MAHA FEAST
& Enjoy a performance by Hladini Group
SPONSORSHIPS AND DONATIONS:
"One who performs opulent celebrations on such days, pleases the lord, who grants him all benedictions and removes all sins." (Hari Bhakti Villas)
Srila Prabhupada established opulent Deity worship and celebration of vaishnava festivals as an opportunity provided by lord Himself, so that we can unitedly express our gratitude and love to the lord, His associates and devotees.
OFFERING OF KALASH: $51[per family]
FLORALS AND GARLANDS: $108
MAHA AARTI: $108
GUARANGA MAHA FEAST $251
Please contact Acarya Thakur Das Prabhu [alexf108@gmail.com]or mother Prema Gaurangi [premagaurangi.jps@hotmail.com
Birthday Prayer
→ Seed of Devotion
Yesterday morning for my birthday, my friend Mandali and I took a rickshaw to Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur's bhajan kutir. This is the place where the Thakur made a vow to chant one billion names of the Lord in prayer for the fallen souls of this age. He chanted for 9 years and 3 months.
I had wanted this quiet, meditative morning; obviously Lord Chaitanya had a different plan. Yesterday so happened to be the last day of Navadwip Mandala Parikrama! This is an organized pilgrimage that draws thousands of people from every corner of the world. Mandali and I were moving among rivers and rivers of people, their eyes glowing, faces bright. We kept shaking our heads and grinning, letting ourselves get carried with the current.
The kutir itself is usually quiet, but yesterday thousands had gathered in the courtyard to sing kirtan and listen to saintly people speak about such a holy place. I felt moved by how the Lord has truly reciprocated with the Thakur's prayers to flood the world with love of God.
This kutir is the place to pray to be empowered to give. I prayed that this year I can be strong and share with others the love that has been given to me by the great souls.
Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur
Srila Prabhupad
my spiritual master, Radhanath Swami
Birthday Prayer
→ Seed of Devotion
Yesterday morning for my birthday, my friend Mandali and I took a rickshaw to Bhaktisiddhanta
Saraswati Thakur's bhajan kutir. This is the place where the Thakur made a vow
to chant one billion names of the Lord in prayer for the fallen souls of this
age. He chanted for 9 years and 3 months.
I had wanted
this quiet, meditative morning; obviously Lord Chaitanya had a different plan.
Yesterday so happened to be the last day of Navadwip Mandala Parikrama! This is an organized pilgrimage that draws thousands of people from every corner of the world. Mandali
and I were moving among rivers and rivers of people, their eyes glowing, faces bright. We kept shaking our heads and grinning, letting ourselves get carried with the current.
The kutir itself is usually quiet, but
yesterday thousands had gathered in the courtyard to sing kirtan and listen to saintly people
speak about such a holy place. I felt moved by how the Lord has
truly reciprocated with the Thakur's prayers to flood the world with love of God.
This kutir
is the place to pray to be empowered to give. I prayed that this year I can be
strong and share with others the love that has been given to me by the great souls.
Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur
Srila Prabhupad
my spiritual master, Radhanath Swami
ISCOWP March Update
→ Life With the Cows and Land
Check out this news and more from the ISCOWP farm in the latest 'ISCOWP Update' e-newsletter.
ISCOWP March Update
→ Life With the Cows and Land
Check out this news and more from the ISCOWP farm in the latest 'ISCOWP Update' e-newsletter.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Days 9-14
→ A Convenient Truth
Day 9
This one is hard to look at. It brings up so many emotions: loss, sadness, regret, resentment, confusion. I’ll never forget where I was when he left his body. My wife, Kadamba mala, and I were in the car heading to Gita-nagari from New Jersey. We were about half way there when my cell phone rang. It was an automated voice announcing that he had departed. And that was it. He was gone. By the time we made it to Gita-nagari and the Institute House the devotees were milling around. There was a heavy atmosphere of sadness and loss. It was quiet and sober. There was a small group of devotees in his quarters, preparing his body for the last rites. I didn’t see his body until it was brought out on a palanquin and marched in a procession of kirtan down to the temple room.
When I finally had the opportunity to approach his body and offer flower petals, I looked down at his lifeless face and closed eyes. Mother Vraja-lila was standing next to me. I think she put her hand on my back. I can’t remember. She handed me a stick of maha-incense. I didn’t know what to feel. I felt empty. I felt speechless. I felt like I failed him by not staying true to my vows. I held back my tears and quickly scurried away into the crowd of assembled devotees.
Part of me felt resentment for a while. I always wondered why he didn’t pursue more traditional cancer treatment therapies. I would wonder if he would still be with us physically if he had gone through chemotherapy instead of heading down to a jungle in South America to visit a healer. I know, it sounds terrible to even write that, but I don’t say it out of spite. I say it with love and attachment to him. Maybe it’s just selfish on my part anyway, because I’m thinking how I would have liked for him to meet my daughter and to be able to dance in kirtan with him and to be able to talk to him. It could just be my selfishness resenting the choices he made when he discovered the cancer.
I can’t talk too much more about this image. I don’t feel like crying right now, as I’m at work before the day begins. I’ll just say to wrap this up, part of me is glad I didn’t see him like this in person. I would have been devastated. I wasn’t there to see the gradual progression to this state, so it would have been a terrible shock to see him lying there like this, unresponsive and so close to death. I probably would have lost it. Maybe knowing this Krishna saved me from the pain of witnessing him in this condition, because the last time I had seen him in person he was still bright and fresh and smiling.
I also wanted to say that this image really makes me confront my own mortality. It’s a stark reminder of the fate that awaits us all; a fate that many of us don’t want to think about. My Gurudeva was a shining example of how to embrace and accept this fate. He stayed true and strong until the end. I hope that my departure from this material world can be even just a tiny bit as glorious and auspicious as his was.
Day 10
Soaked in sweat and effulgent. A familiar sight considering the way in which my Gurudeva would lead kirtans. I wasn’t here and I’m not sure where this is, but it appears that he is sitting on the Vyasasana and singing Jaya Radha-Madhava before giving class. Is that Sri Hanuman in the background? Or is it Sri Varahadeva? I can’t tell. It’s an interesting photo composition though. My Gurudeva’s profile paralleled with the profile behind him. It looks as if the Deity is controlling my Guru Maharaja, like a puppet, with His arms inside my Gurudeva’s back, making him move and speak. How fitting, as everything my Gurudeva did and said was not from the platform of his own desires and wants. He was truly the “transparent via medium” for Sri Guru to manifest and act on this material plane. My Gurudeva knew my heart so intimately and when he would speak to me, it wasn’t John Favors or Bhakti Tirtha Swami talking to me, it was Sri Guru/Paramatma. This Bhakti Tirtha Swami was just the outward, external form in which Sri Guru was appearing and speaking to me.
Day 11
What an incredibly sweet photo and moment captured in time. It embodies the compassion and love that my Gurudeva carried within his heart for all living entities. When I see this photo I feel jealous and sad, because I wish that my daughter had had the opportunity to meet my Guru Maharaja and to receive his direct blessings and mercy, not only as a baby, but as she grows up over the years.
Of course, it’s all karma isn’t it? The people that we meet, the blessings we receive, the experiences we have, the sadhus that we encounter. I could say the baby in this photo is fortunate, but aren’t we all fortunate having come in contact with the process and path of bhakti? In one way or another that mercy is coming down through the parampara and touching us all in some capacity. The real question is: what do we do with that mercy and those blessings that we receive? A baby can meet a sadhu yet end up becoming a completely mundane materialist with no devotional inclination. On the other hand, one can grow up in a meat-eating, materialistic family and later take up the process of devotional service to go on and become quite spiritually advanced.
I pray to my Gurudeva to not waste the blessings and mercy that I have received. I pray to always appreciate them and to be aware of my great fortune. I pray to never see Krishna Consciousness as just another religion. It’s all about the consciousness and the soul. It’s all about loving and serving God and His devotees.
Day 12
This is an iconic, famous photo of my Gurudeva with Nelson Mandela. I don’t know what this event was, nor do I know the details of what my Gurudeva would talk about with Mandela. It does go to show however that his interest was in trying to preach to the upper echelons of society. He wanted to reach the leaders and the people with influence and power. This is why he was so interested in meeting with or getting on the Oprah Winfrey show (it unfortunately never materialized before he departed).
The thing that interests me most about this photo is his Nrsimhadeva cane in the foreground. I had once heard the story that it was carved for him by a man named “Uncle Nanda” and that this man came to my Guru Maharaja when a lot of leaders were falling down and leaving ISKCON. He came to my Gurudeva and told him that Srila Prabhupada didn’t want him to leave ISKCON and that he should stay within the society to try and help heal it. There was also a story about how this Uncle Nanda and my Gurudeva stayed in a room for three days without eating or sleeping and that he taught my Gurudeva about subtle, psychic things, like astral projection and the like. Then I heard this Uncle Nanda had revealed his form on the astral plane as a unicorn or Pegasus. Uhh…yeah.
I can’t remember the name of the devotee that told me these stories. It was while I was at the Potomac temple. My Guru Maharaja was in some meetings and I was chanting japa outside when this devotee started talking to me. Come to think of it, I don’t even know where that devotee is now or what happened to him. Were his stories some crazy flights of the imagination? Or did those things really happen in some capacity? I don’t know for certain. Surely my Guru Maharaja would have never talked about those things with me even if I inquired. (On a side note, one time I asked him if he remembered his past lives and his previous relationship(s) with Srila Prabhupada. I remember it vividly. We were driving back from the Lewistown Walmart, just he and I in the car. He was quiet and grave and responded with an emotionless, “Uh, yes. To some degree” (or something like that. His exact words are vague now). Then he was silent and his energy indicated that I shouldn’t be asking him those kinds of questions. So anyway, if I asked him about Uncle Nanda I’m sure it would be a similar response.
Like I said, I don’t know if those stories are true, but I do know that I can’t look at that old cane of his and not think about all these things.
Day 13
This is a tiny, low-resolution picture, but the moment is so sweet. I remember when my Guru Maharaja used to do this in kirtans. He was such a transcendental MC (master of ceremonies). He would guide the devotees how to dance and have us following his moves. It was never in an egotistical way. It was in a spirit of community and getting everyone involved and absorbed in the kirtan and Holy Name.
Recently a god brother of mine posted a video on my Facebook wall of some intense kirtan. There were three or four devotees in the kirtan that started doing crazy break dancing moves, like doing the worm across the temple room floor and doing back spins. At one point a devotee was sitting on the ground with his leg behind his neck then he jumped up and did a head stand, flashing his kaupins for everyone to see. I couldn’t believe how self-centered and egotistical they were being. They turned it into a mundane dance contest with no focus on the Holy Name, the Deities or the other devotees present. It was just like, “Hey! Look at me!” Maybe I shouldn’t judge like that. Maybe they were experiencing some deep bhava and it was being expressed in that way. But still, even if it were some kind of genuine bhava they shouldn’t let it out like that or display it in such a way as to make people question their motives. Srila Prabhupada never did head spins and splits, nor did my Guru Maharaja. When my Gurudeva did “let himself go” the temple room would light up with ecstasy and joy, but it was never all about him. It was like his enthusiasm and spiritual emotions would spill out to everyone around him and make everyone else feel enlivened in devotional service. It would be an encouraging thing, not an excluding thing. You would feel inspired as he would dance wildly, not thinking, “This Swami is just showing off.”
In this photo he’s parting the devotees into two sides to create a sort of aisle. Then he would push devotees into the aisle to dance along to the end or sometimes they would dance down to one end and then come back to where they began. It was sweet and loving. If put the spotlight on everyone and gave everyone a chance to express themselves in the kirtan. So beautiful, so wonderful. That was my Gurudeva’s mood and it flowed from his kirtans.
Day 14
More kirtan. My Guru Maharaja was known for his kirtans. Everyone knew when he was leading the kirtan there was going to be a lot of dancing. In this particular photo he’s walking down the streets of New York City at the Ratha Yatra festival. I don’t think it was this year that I was with him, but seeing this photo reminds me of a memory.
Gurudeva had to go to the bathroom. So he asked Agnideva to find a restroom for him. The problem was that we were walking down a street with no public restrooms. There were just various businesses. We ended up heading into some sort of shopping mall or large chain store, like a Macy’s or something. I was following behind Agnideva and my Guru Maharaja, weaving around customers in the store. We passed by the clothing section, then the perfume and make up section then through the shoes. We were trying to find the elevator. I remember we were all soaked with sweat. What a sight it must have been for the people in that store: a black Hare Krishna with two white Hare Krishnas, all sweaty and speedily darting through the aisles.
We finally made it to the elevator, which we had to share with the shoppers. The silence was more awkward than usual in an elevator. After we found the restroom and my Gurudeva went we did the same sprint back through the store. We then had to weave through the crowds of people on the sidewalk to get back to the kirtan procession.
Such a simple and insignificant memory, but it’s a memory I cherish, just as everyone moment I had with my Guru Maharaja.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Days 9-14
→ A Convenient Truth
Day 9
This one is hard to look at. It brings up so many emotions: loss, sadness, regret, resentment, confusion. I’ll never forget where I was when he left his body. My wife, Kadamba mala, and I were in the car heading to Gita-nagari from New Jersey. We were about half way there when my cell phone rang. It was an automated voice announcing that he had departed. And that was it. He was gone. By the time we made it to Gita-nagari and the Institute House the devotees were milling around. There was a heavy atmosphere of sadness and loss. It was quiet and sober. There was a small group of devotees in his quarters, preparing his body for the last rites. I didn’t see his body until it was brought out on a palanquin and marched in a procession of kirtan down to the temple room.
When I finally had the opportunity to approach his body and offer flower petals, I looked down at his lifeless face and closed eyes. Mother Vraja-lila was standing next to me. I think she put her hand on my back. I can’t remember. She handed me a stick of maha-incense. I didn’t know what to feel. I felt empty. I felt speechless. I felt like I failed him by not staying true to my vows. I held back my tears and quickly scurried away into the crowd of assembled devotees.
Part of me felt resentment for a while. I always wondered why he didn’t pursue more traditional cancer treatment therapies. I would wonder if he would still be with us physically if he had gone through chemotherapy instead of heading down to a jungle in South America to visit a healer. I know, it sounds terrible to even write that, but I don’t say it out of spite. I say it with love and attachment to him. Maybe it’s just selfish on my part anyway, because I’m thinking how I would have liked for him to meet my daughter and to be able to dance in kirtan with him and to be able to talk to him. It could just be my selfishness resenting the choices he made when he discovered the cancer.
I can’t talk too much more about this image. I don’t feel like crying right now, as I’m at work before the day begins. I’ll just say to wrap this up, part of me is glad I didn’t see him like this in person. I would have been devastated. I wasn’t there to see the gradual progression to this state, so it would have been a terrible shock to see him lying there like this, unresponsive and so close to death. I probably would have lost it. Maybe knowing this Krishna saved me from the pain of witnessing him in this condition, because the last time I had seen him in person he was still bright and fresh and smiling.
I also wanted to say that this image really makes me confront my own mortality. It’s a stark reminder of the fate that awaits us all; a fate that many of us don’t want to think about. My Gurudeva was a shining example of how to embrace and accept this fate. He stayed true and strong until the end. I hope that my departure from this material world can be even just a tiny bit as glorious and auspicious as his was.
Day 10
Soaked in sweat and effulgent. A familiar sight considering the way in which my Gurudeva would lead kirtans. I wasn’t here and I’m not sure where this is, but it appears that he is sitting on the Vyasasana and singing Jaya Radha-Madhava before giving class. Is that Sri Hanuman in the background? Or is it Sri Varahadeva? I can’t tell. It’s an interesting photo composition though. My Gurudeva’s profile paralleled with the profile behind him. It looks as if the Deity is controlling my Guru Maharaja, like a puppet, with His arms inside my Gurudeva’s back, making him move and speak. How fitting, as everything my Gurudeva did and said was not from the platform of his own desires and wants. He was truly the “transparent via medium” for Sri Guru to manifest and act on this material plane. My Gurudeva knew my heart so intimately and when he would speak to me, it wasn’t John Favors or Bhakti Tirtha Swami talking to me, it was Sri Guru/Paramatma. This Bhakti Tirtha Swami was just the outward, external form in which Sri Guru was appearing and speaking to me.
Day 11
What an incredibly sweet photo and moment captured in time. It embodies the compassion and love that my Gurudeva carried within his heart for all living entities. When I see this photo I feel jealous and sad, because I wish that my daughter had had the opportunity to meet my Guru Maharaja and to receive his direct blessings and mercy, not only as a baby, but as she grows up over the years.
Of course, it’s all karma isn’t it? The people that we meet, the blessings we receive, the experiences we have, the sadhus that we encounter. I could say the baby in this photo is fortunate, but aren’t we all fortunate having come in contact with the process and path of bhakti? In one way or another that mercy is coming down through the parampara and touching us all in some capacity. The real question is: what do we do with that mercy and those blessings that we receive? A baby can meet a sadhu yet end up becoming a completely mundane materialist with no devotional inclination. On the other hand, one can grow up in a meat-eating, materialistic family and later take up the process of devotional service to go on and become quite spiritually advanced.
I pray to my Gurudeva to not waste the blessings and mercy that I have received. I pray to always appreciate them and to be aware of my great fortune. I pray to never see Krishna Consciousness as just another religion. It’s all about the consciousness and the soul. It’s all about loving and serving God and His devotees.
Day 12
This is an iconic, famous photo of my Gurudeva with Nelson Mandela. I don’t know what this event was, nor do I know the details of what my Gurudeva would talk about with Mandela. It does go to show however that his interest was in trying to preach to the upper echelons of society. He wanted to reach the leaders and the people with influence and power. This is why he was so interested in meeting with or getting on the Oprah Winfrey show (it unfortunately never materialized before he departed).
The thing that interests me most about this photo is his Nrsimhadeva cane in the foreground. I had once heard the story that it was carved for him by a man named “Uncle Nanda” and that this man came to my Guru Maharaja when a lot of leaders were falling down and leaving ISKCON. He came to my Gurudeva and told him that Srila Prabhupada didn’t want him to leave ISKCON and that he should stay within the society to try and help heal it. There was also a story about how this Uncle Nanda and my Gurudeva stayed in a room for three days without eating or sleeping and that he taught my Gurudeva about subtle, psychic things, like astral projection and the like. Then I heard this Uncle Nanda had revealed his form on the astral plane as a unicorn or Pegasus. Uhh…yeah.
I can’t remember the name of the devotee that told me these stories. It was while I was at the Potomac temple. My Guru Maharaja was in some meetings and I was chanting japa outside when this devotee started talking to me. Come to think of it, I don’t even know where that devotee is now or what happened to him. Were his stories some crazy flights of the imagination? Or did those things really happen in some capacity? I don’t know for certain. Surely my Guru Maharaja would have never talked about those things with me even if I inquired. (On a side note, one time I asked him if he remembered his past lives and his previous relationship(s) with Srila Prabhupada. I remember it vividly. We were driving back from the Lewistown Walmart, just he and I in the car. He was quiet and grave and responded with an emotionless, “Uh, yes. To some degree” (or something like that. His exact words are vague now). Then he was silent and his energy indicated that I shouldn’t be asking him those kinds of questions. So anyway, if I asked him about Uncle Nanda I’m sure it would be a similar response.
Like I said, I don’t know if those stories are true, but I do know that I can’t look at that old cane of his and not think about all these things.
Day 13
This is a tiny, low-resolution picture, but the moment is so sweet. I remember when my Guru Maharaja used to do this in kirtans. He was such a transcendental MC (master of ceremonies). He would guide the devotees how to dance and have us following his moves. It was never in an egotistical way. It was in a spirit of community and getting everyone involved and absorbed in the kirtan and Holy Name.
Recently a god brother of mine posted a video on my Facebook wall of some intense kirtan. There were three or four devotees in the kirtan that started doing crazy break dancing moves, like doing the worm across the temple room floor and doing back spins. At one point a devotee was sitting on the ground with his leg behind his neck then he jumped up and did a head stand, flashing his kaupins for everyone to see. I couldn’t believe how self-centered and egotistical they were being. They turned it into a mundane dance contest with no focus on the Holy Name, the Deities or the other devotees present. It was just like, “Hey! Look at me!” Maybe I shouldn’t judge like that. Maybe they were experiencing some deep bhava and it was being expressed in that way. But still, even if it were some kind of genuine bhava they shouldn’t let it out like that or display it in such a way as to make people question their motives. Srila Prabhupada never did head spins and splits, nor did my Guru Maharaja. When my Gurudeva did “let himself go” the temple room would light up with ecstasy and joy, but it was never all about him. It was like his enthusiasm and spiritual emotions would spill out to everyone around him and make everyone else feel enlivened in devotional service. It would be an encouraging thing, not an excluding thing. You would feel inspired as he would dance wildly, not thinking, “This Swami is just showing off.”
In this photo he’s parting the devotees into two sides to create a sort of aisle. Then he would push devotees into the aisle to dance along to the end or sometimes they would dance down to one end and then come back to where they began. It was sweet and loving. If put the spotlight on everyone and gave everyone a chance to express themselves in the kirtan. So beautiful, so wonderful. That was my Gurudeva’s mood and it flowed from his kirtans.
Day 14
More kirtan. My Guru Maharaja was known for his kirtans. Everyone knew when he was leading the kirtan there was going to be a lot of dancing. In this particular photo he’s walking down the streets of New York City at the Ratha Yatra festival. I don’t think it was this year that I was with him, but seeing this photo reminds me of a memory.
Gurudeva had to go to the bathroom. So he asked Agnideva to find a restroom for him. The problem was that we were walking down a street with no public restrooms. There were just various businesses. We ended up heading into some sort of shopping mall or large chain store, like a Macy’s or something. I was following behind Agnideva and my Guru Maharaja, weaving around customers in the store. We passed by the clothing section, then the perfume and make up section then through the shoes. We were trying to find the elevator. I remember we were all soaked with sweat. What a sight it must have been for the people in that store: a black Hare Krishna with two white Hare Krishnas, all sweaty and speedily darting through the aisles.
We finally made it to the elevator, which we had to share with the shoppers. The silence was more awkward than usual in an elevator. After we found the restroom and my Gurudeva went we did the same sprint back through the store. We then had to weave through the crowds of people on the sidewalk to get back to the kirtan procession.
Such a simple and insignificant memory, but it’s a memory I cherish, just as everyone moment I had with my Guru Maharaja.
ISCOWP March 2013 Update
→ The Yoga of Ecology
ISCOWP March 2013 Update
→ The Yoga of Ecology
Pause for Thought 19 March
Krishna Dharma das
I delivered this script today on BBC Radio 2. The theme was ‘Water’ as this week it is World Water Day.
Water and life in all its forms are inseparable. When we look on other planets for signs of life it’s the first thing we try to detect. Although we can last quite a long time without food we humans will die in a week without fluids. In the case of cups of tea it might be only a few hours.
But despite its importance we can’t really create water, certainly not on the scale it is needed. Massive are required explosions to make just a small quantity. When the ill fated Hindenburg –a hydrogen balloon—exploded, a good few gallons were made, but we would hardly want to replicate that very often. So far our attempts to manufacture water have not met with great success and we now face a growing global crisis of not having enough of it. Africa, Asia, Australia, even America and Europe, have all been suffering drought conditions. The world water situation is becoming so critical that wars may well be fought over it.
In truth we depend on a higher power. Water is a natural resource we can only hope is bestowed upon us through sufficient rainfall, over which we have no control. We can only make things worse it seems. Although our technology cannot create water, it has managed to seriously deplete many freshwater sources through widespread pollution and the immense amounts used in manufacturing processes we could probably live quite comfortably without.
This doesn’t have to happen. In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna tells us that all our resources come as a result of divine grace, and that we can have abundance in all areas if we simply abide by divine direction. This is the bigger picture. That everything ultimately belongs to God and we are only temporary custodians of his property. When we treat the world with reckless abandon in pursuit of immediate profit we inevitably create calamity. Maybe if we used God’s gifts in a godly way we could avert disaster before it is too late.
No-complaints
→ Successful Vaisnavas
I just wanted to share something which I’ve personally been finding helpful.
Negative talk (prajalpa) is a bad habit that most of us fall into at some time or other (or most of the time for some people)-:
I was therefore interested when I was sent the link below from Urmila Devi Dasi on Facebook. In a nutshell it is a challenge to goIt is something that gets in the way of our advancement in Krishna consciousness and in general just makes us unhappy.
21 days without complaining using the power of a rubber band!!!
This is a video about it.
This is the essence that you can put into action immediately.
http://www.acomplaintfreeworld.org/faq
Let me know how it works for you. Leave a comment below.
I look forward to hearing about your experiences.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 8: "Blissful Life"
→ A Convenient Truth
Sometimes I think about this disconnect between sannyasi-life and the life of the average grihasta living out in the world and having to deal with so much mundane stuff. That’s not to say there’s no such thing as an ideal house holder life or like you can’t be Krishna Conscious while being married and working out in the world. It’s just sometimes a million times harder than being a temple devotee or living with nothing else to do but chant, read and eat prasadam.
My Guru Maharaja laughed at me in an email once and said it was funny that I was thinking life would be easier living out of the temple. It said it could be easier if one becomes “somewhat of a cheater”. But yeah, to genuinely practice sadhana-bhakti and to be married with kids and dealing with a job and bills and money, it just becomes a real distraction. It’s much harder to chant 16, quality rounds when you don’t live in the temple. It’s also much harder to eat only prasadam.
Anyway, I didn’t mean for this to become a ramble of excuses about why it’s harder being a devotee living outside than being a sannyasi or a temple devotee. I guess seeing my Guru Maharaja and these sannyasis laughing and dancing and having a blissful time made me a little jealous. Is that wrong to feel jealous? Or does it foster some desire within my heart to head towards that ideal life?
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 8: "Blissful Life"
→ A Convenient Truth
Sometimes I think about this disconnect between sannyasi-life and the life of the average grihasta living out in the world and having to deal with so much mundane stuff. That’s not to say there’s no such thing as an ideal house holder life or like you can’t be Krishna Conscious while being married and working out in the world. It’s just sometimes a million times harder than being a temple devotee or living with nothing else to do but chant, read and eat prasadam.
My Guru Maharaja laughed at me in an email once and said it was funny that I was thinking life would be easier living out of the temple. It said it could be easier if one becomes “somewhat of a cheater”. But yeah, to genuinely practice sadhana-bhakti and to be married with kids and dealing with a job and bills and money, it just becomes a real distraction. It’s much harder to chant 16, quality rounds when you don’t live in the temple. It’s also much harder to eat only prasadam.
Anyway, I didn’t mean for this to become a ramble of excuses about why it’s harder being a devotee living outside than being a sannyasi or a temple devotee. I guess seeing my Guru Maharaja and these sannyasis laughing and dancing and having a blissful time made me a little jealous. Is that wrong to feel jealous? Or does it foster some desire within my heart to head towards that ideal life?
Navadvipa Mandal Parikrama on Saturday 23rd March 2013 at 6:30am
→ The Hare Krishna Movement
With great pleasure, Sri Sri Radha Giridahri Temple invites you all for the Navadvipa Mandal Parikrama 2013 to be held on Saturday 23rd March at 6:30 am…
International Speaker
→ The Loft Yoga Lounge Auckland
International speaker, author and spiritual teacher, Devamrita swami, is back this week to host our Grand NEW YEAR FESTIVAL. on Sunday 24th March at 5pm. He will be giving a life altering presentation, accompanied by a Matrix Themed Drama, live music, topped off with a huge Veggie Feast Devamrita swami has been traveling the globe [...]
The post International Speaker appeared first on The Loft Yoga Lounge Auckland.
Gaura Purnima Festival 2013
→ The Hare Krishna Movement
Please join in to celebrate the Gaura Purnima Festival 2013 at Sri Sri Radha Giridhari Temple, Kumeu….
24 Hour Maha Kirtan Gaura Purnima Festival 2013
→ The Hare Krishna Movement
Please join the 24 Hour Maha Kirtan on the occassion of Gaura Purnima Festival and chant the transcendental Maha Mantra…
Podcast 11 – Jahnavi Chants
→ Oxford Kirtan
The second session recorded at our February 2013 kirtan, led by Jahnavi Harrison.
Podcast 11 – Jahnavi Chants
→ Oxford Kirtan
The second session recorded at our February 2013 kirtan, led by Jahnavi Harrison.
Podcast 11 – Jahnavi Chants
→ Oxford Kirtan
The second session recorded at our February 2013 kirtan, led by Jahnavi Harrison.
Gaura Purnima Home Programmes 2013
→ The Hare Krishna Movement
If you would like to host a programme at your home and have Bhajans, Kirtans and Caitanya Katha. Please contact….
Gurvastakam
Krishna Dharma
samsara-davanala-lidha-loka-
tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatwam
praptasya kalyana-gunarnavasya
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
Within this fire of worldly existence
The guru’s mercy falls like a cooling rain
drawn from the Lord to extinguish all our pain
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
mahapraboh kirtana-nritya-gita-
vaditra-madyan-manaso rasena
romancha-kampashru-taranga-bhajo
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
In divine bliss he trembles, chants and dances
With streams of tears and instruments in hand
Enthused by Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtan
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
sri- vigraharadhana-nitya-nana
shringaira-tan-mandira-marjanadau
yuktasya bhaktamsh cha niyunjato pi
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
Dressing the deities in full resplendence,
He cleans their temple in total reverence
Engaging us in such subservience
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
chatur-vidha-sri-bhagavat-prasada-
swadv-anna-triptan hari-bhakta-sanghan
kritwaiva triptim bhajatah sadaiva
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
Offering Krishna foodstuff in abundance
Of every type and taste ambrosial
Pleased when the prasadam is placed before all
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
sri-radhika-madhavayor apara-
madhurya-lila-guna-rupa-namnam
prati-kshanaswadana-lolupasya
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
Eager to hear of Radha Krishna’s romance
and ever speak of their supreme splendour
Aspiring to be in this always absorbed
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
nikunja-yuno rati-keli-siddhyai
ya yalibhir yuktir apekshaniya
tatrati-dakshyad ati-vallabhasya
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
Dear to the Lord for his expert assistance
Shown to the gopis in their affairs of love
With Radha Krishna within Vrindavan’s groves
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
sakshad-dharitvena samasta-shastrair
uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhihi
kintu prabhor yah priya eva tasya
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
Worthy of worship in highest exultance
Declared divine by all authority
Due to the Lord’s loving intimacy
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasado
yasyaprasadan na gatih kuto ‘pi
dhyayan stuvams tasya yashas trisandhyam
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam
By his grace we gain divine benevolence
Without his grace no progress can be made
Always I offer him all accolade
To his auspicious feet I pay obeisance
Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakur says, “One who, with great care and attention, loudly recites this beautiful prayer to the spiritual master during the Brahma-muhurta obtains direct service to Krsna, the Lord of Vrndavana, at the time of his death.”
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 7: "Spiritual Espionage"
→ A Convenient Truth
This is what I call my Gurudeva’s “preaching-vesa”. “Vesa” is the appearance or dress of someone. I think some devotees (and even sometimes disciples) were confused by my Guru Maharaja’s preaching style. They didn’t understand why he was circulating through the New Age circles and writing books about UFOs, pyramids, psychic phenomenon and the like. He wasn’t attached to those things. He was simply dovetailing everything into Krishna Consciousness and preaching to those particular people that had those particular interests.
I think my Gurudeva unfairly became labeled as being outside of the parampara and introducing speculation into the process of bhakti as it had been given by Srila Prabhupada. Of course not everyone thought this about him, but it was easy to come to this conclusion based on the external appearances. But no matter whom he was preaching to his focus was on pleasing Srila Prabhupada and serving his mission of spreading Krishna Consciousness around the planet.
I’ll never forget the one time during a darshan where he asked the assembled devotees, (paraphrasing) “Who is the more important preacher? The one on the front line distributing books or the undercover preacher performing spiritual espionage?” Someone up front, like four feet away from him, responded without hesitating, “The frontline preacher!” My Guru Maharaja leapt from his chair, pointed at the disciple and shouted, “That’s your NONSENSE, you nonsense!” The disciple quickly scurried backwards. He then said, “It’s the espionage soldier!”
His point was that it’s one thing to go out on the street and give a random stranger a book compared to infiltrating groups of people that have far-reaching influence and power. In terms of preaching, it would be far more effective to turn Oprah Winfrey into a Krishna bhakta than some Joe Shmo at a Vans Warped concert.
This isn’t to say that one way of preaching is better than another or to criticize the book distributors who are out there serving Srila Prabhupada. It’s just the point that’s coming up from seeing my Gurudeva dressed in his Neru jacket and hat. It was easy to misunderstand his purpose and to only perceive what he was doing externally, rather than understanding the essence. It didn’t matter what he was wearing. It mattered that he was doing whatever it took to try and reach the most jivas possible. He truly embodied the spirit of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, whose mission was to preach to the upper echelons of society. My Guru Maharaja was going for the “big fish”: the leaders of movements, executives, doctors, lawyers, etc. If it meant he had to dress like an African king or a New Age psychic it didn’t matter to him. The thing that mattered most was pleasing Srila Prabhupada.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 7: "Spiritual Espionage"
→ A Convenient Truth
This is what I call my Gurudeva’s “preaching-vesa”. “Vesa” is the appearance or dress of someone. I think some devotees (and even sometimes disciples) were confused by my Guru Maharaja’s preaching style. They didn’t understand why he was circulating through the New Age circles and writing books about UFOs, pyramids, psychic phenomenon and the like. He wasn’t attached to those things. He was simply dovetailing everything into Krishna Consciousness and preaching to those particular people that had those particular interests.
I think my Gurudeva unfairly became labeled as being outside of the parampara and introducing speculation into the process of bhakti as it had been given by Srila Prabhupada. Of course not everyone thought this about him, but it was easy to come to this conclusion based on the external appearances. But no matter whom he was preaching to his focus was on pleasing Srila Prabhupada and serving his mission of spreading Krishna Consciousness around the planet.
I’ll never forget the one time during a darshan where he asked the assembled devotees, (paraphrasing) “Who is the more important preacher? The one on the front line distributing books or the undercover preacher performing spiritual espionage?” Someone up front, like four feet away from him, responded without hesitating, “The frontline preacher!” My Guru Maharaja leapt from his chair, pointed at the disciple and shouted, “That’s your NONSENSE, you nonsense!” The disciple quickly scurried backwards. He then said, “It’s the espionage soldier!”
His point was that it’s one thing to go out on the street and give a random stranger a book compared to infiltrating groups of people that have far-reaching influence and power. In terms of preaching, it would be far more effective to turn Oprah Winfrey into a Krishna bhakta than some Joe Shmo at a Vans Warped concert.
This isn’t to say that one way of preaching is better than another or to criticize the book distributors who are out there serving Srila Prabhupada. It’s just the point that’s coming up from seeing my Gurudeva dressed in his Neru jacket and hat. It was easy to misunderstand his purpose and to only perceive what he was doing externally, rather than understanding the essence. It didn’t matter what he was wearing. It mattered that he was doing whatever it took to try and reach the most jivas possible. He truly embodied the spirit of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, whose mission was to preach to the upper echelons of society. My Guru Maharaja was going for the “big fish”: the leaders of movements, executives, doctors, lawyers, etc. If it meant he had to dress like an African king or a New Age psychic it didn’t matter to him. The thing that mattered most was pleasing Srila Prabhupada.
Holi, the festival of color, sounds like a lot of …
Utah Krishnas
Holi, the festival of color, sounds like a lot of fun. The celebration itself, well the color festival, is enough to draw much of attention. And since this year's Holi is coming, I'd like to express my holi wishes to all! Have a great celebration of Holi!
Build High, Dig Deep
→ Tattva - See inside out
Skyscrapers are well-known for their deep foundations. The calculation of depth is primarily based on three things:
- The height of the building
- The softness of the soil
- The severity of the weather conditions
The building of our life can rise high. We can adopt challenging projects, accept multiple responsibilities, tackle stressful situations and fly high in the skies of success... as long as we have deep spiritual foundations to balance it out. We should simultaneously be aware of the soft soil we are building on; inherent weakness of heart, flickering determination and a fragile mind are archetype characteristics of the aspiring spiritualist. Also bear in mind that the climate within which we operate is unpredictable and often unsupportive. We are surrounded by a world which promotes a different paradigm.
The problem is not that we strive to do amazing things, but rather that we neglect to invest quality time in spiritually nourishing ourselves. As one is cemented in a deep sense of spirituality their ability to become an agent of positive change increases. They can rise high, impact the world, and still remain strong, steady and humble.
Build High, Dig Deep
→ Tattva - See inside out
Skyscrapers are well-known for their deep foundations. The calculation of depth is primarily based on three things:
- The height of the building
- The softness of the soil
- The severity of the weather conditions
The building of our life can rise high. We can adopt challenging projects, accept multiple responsibilities, tackle stressful situations and fly high in the skies of success... as long as we have deep spiritual foundations to balance it out. We should simultaneously be aware of the soft soil we are building on; inherent weakness of heart, flickering determination and a fragile mind are archetype characteristics of the aspiring spiritualist. Also bear in mind that the climate within which we operate is unpredictable and often unsupportive. We are surrounded by a world which promotes a different paradigm.
The problem is not that we strive to do amazing things, but rather that we neglect to invest quality time in spiritually nourishing ourselves. As one is cemented in a deep sense of spirituality their ability to become an agent of positive change increases. They can rise high, impact the world, and still remain strong, steady and humble.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 6: "Gravity"
→ A Convenient Truth
Gravity. That’s what this photo of my Guru Maharaja exudes. He wasn’t all Cheshire cat grin and laughter all of the time. Many times when I was with him his mood was like this: introspective, quiet, serious, grave. We hear that the word “guru” can be translated as “heavy” and my Gurudeva could be “heavy” with the best of them. His “heaviness” came from the gravity that he possessed.
I’m starting to realize these reflections can start heading into a glorification of the 26-Vaishnava qualities that my Guru Maharaja manifested. I don’t mean for this, nor want this, to become some sort of empty, pontification of a disciple fawning over his Spiritual Master. I want these reflections to go deeper, like it was for the Day 1 meditation. I don’t want this to become another emotionless routine or ritual.
So this gravity he possessed, why did he possess it and what does it mean to me? Obviously he was acutely aware of his vows and mission to serve Srila Prabhupada. That was his life and soul. He took time management very seriously and never wanted to waste a moment not somehow serving. This is in stark contrast to my frivolity and strong affinity for time wasting.
Where does one get this seriousness and determination in devotional service? It really, truly is a priceless gift and blessing from Sri Guru. Without being serious on this path of bhakti, how will we ever make progress? If we don’t take chanting or our vows or any other devotional practices seriously then how could we ever attain any tangible results? We’ll just start to think, “Yeah, this chanting stuff doesn’t work. I’ll just go watch TV.”
Being grave is essential to cultivating true bhakti. It comes from an awareness of our mortality and our limited time in these bodies. It comes from being committed to the higher cause of serving the needs and wants of Sri Guru and not our own minds and senses. It comes from a sense of responsibility towards Sri Guru. If we’re really in touch with and deeply connected with Paramatma then we’ll always be aware of His presence. We’ll always be thinking, “I don’t want to waste time in this sense gratification, because Sri Guru is watching me and this wouldn’t be pleasing to Him.”
This is a quality I also sorely lack. I usually just end up being tossed around by the whims of my mind. I pray to my Gurudeva in this grave mood that he please also bless me with genuine gravity so that I can take this process of devotional service much more seriously.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 6: "Gravity"
→ A Convenient Truth
Gravity. That’s what this photo of my Guru Maharaja exudes. He wasn’t all Cheshire cat grin and laughter all of the time. Many times when I was with him his mood was like this: introspective, quiet, serious, grave. We hear that the word “guru” can be translated as “heavy” and my Gurudeva could be “heavy” with the best of them. His “heaviness” came from the gravity that he possessed.
I’m starting to realize these reflections can start heading into a glorification of the 26-Vaishnava qualities that my Guru Maharaja manifested. I don’t mean for this, nor want this, to become some sort of empty, pontification of a disciple fawning over his Spiritual Master. I want these reflections to go deeper, like it was for the Day 1 meditation. I don’t want this to become another emotionless routine or ritual.
So this gravity he possessed, why did he possess it and what does it mean to me? Obviously he was acutely aware of his vows and mission to serve Srila Prabhupada. That was his life and soul. He took time management very seriously and never wanted to waste a moment not somehow serving. This is in stark contrast to my frivolity and strong affinity for time wasting.
Where does one get this seriousness and determination in devotional service? It really, truly is a priceless gift and blessing from Sri Guru. Without being serious on this path of bhakti, how will we ever make progress? If we don’t take chanting or our vows or any other devotional practices seriously then how could we ever attain any tangible results? We’ll just start to think, “Yeah, this chanting stuff doesn’t work. I’ll just go watch TV.”
Being grave is essential to cultivating true bhakti. It comes from an awareness of our mortality and our limited time in these bodies. It comes from being committed to the higher cause of serving the needs and wants of Sri Guru and not our own minds and senses. It comes from a sense of responsibility towards Sri Guru. If we’re really in touch with and deeply connected with Paramatma then we’ll always be aware of His presence. We’ll always be thinking, “I don’t want to waste time in this sense gratification, because Sri Guru is watching me and this wouldn’t be pleasing to Him.”
This is a quality I also sorely lack. I usually just end up being tossed around by the whims of my mind. I pray to my Gurudeva in this grave mood that he please also bless me with genuine gravity so that I can take this process of devotional service much more seriously.
Daily Meditation on my Gurudeva – Day 5
→ A Convenient Truth
This is a version of my Gurudeva that I am very familiar with. When I think of him this is how I most remember his activities and mood. Sure, there was the preaching with the different outfits and all of that, which I also remember, but this was like his real, inner mood manifesting. The kirtans were always so ecstatic when he was there leading. Complete abandonment of ego and just getting lost in the Holy Name and connecting with other Vaishnavas in the heart. That’s what his kirtans were. They were pure magic.
In this photo he’s holding that favorite drum of his. Sometimes he would let someone else hold the drum while he would keep the stick and continue to play it while singing and dancing. I remember one time being so fortunate to have this service. For some reason this drum reminds me of Sri Abhirama Thakur’s “whip” (which is also said to really be a bamboo rod) named Jaya Mangala. Not that my Gurudeva would hit people with the drum or drumstick, but just thinking of the similarities of the blessings this object could bestow.
I’m not saying that drum gave me Krishna-prema, but maybe I received a little drop of mercy from engaging in my Gurudeva’s personal service. That tiny drop of mercy has been the only reason I keep coming back to Krishna Consciousness. I think without that mercy I would have fallen away a long time ago and totally re-assimilated myself back into the world of maya. I jumped back into the ocean of maya with gusto back in 2002, but by some causeless grace, even then, I could never totally forget about Krishna.
Maybe that drum did have some magic in it. Or maybe, more likely, I was fortunate enough to have served and been in the presence of a pure Vaishnava such as His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Tirtha Swami.