With immense sorrow and deep regret, I beg to report the departure of Her Grace Yamuna devi dasi, premier disciple of Srila Prabhupada, known for her deeply spiritual qualities and connection with His Divine Grace, for her glorious offering of the Govindam prayers that we hear and chant daily, for her love of pure kirtan, for her ecstatic award winning cook books which were infused with spiritual anecdotes, for greatly inspiring and encouraging the younger generation of ISKCON devotees in their KC, on this morning of Saphala Ekadasi, in her Melborne Beach Florida ashram-kutir which she shared with her dearest friend and companion in devotional service, Dinatarine Continue reading "Yamuna devi dasi, beloved daughter of Srila Prabhupada, departed Dec. 20th → Dandavats"
I may not be the only devotee who wondered what to do with leftover rice prasadam. For years, I have been in a quandary—should it be refrigerated and then served cold the next day? or should it be refrigerated and reheated the next day? or something else? Continue reading "Yamuna’s Leftover Rice → Dandavats"
Her Grace Yamuna-devi dasi passed away on December 20, 2011.
There is so much to be said about Srimati Yamuna-devi dasi.
In October of 1970 I was one of a group of Srila Prabhupada’s disciples from America going to join him in India. On the way, we stopped in Brussels, and it was there, in an apartment, that I first met Yamuna-devi—and Malati and Shyamasundar (I had met Gurudas before, in Boston). Upon entering, I could immediately feel their intense, extraordinary devotion to Srila Prabhupada—it was so palpable, so tangible; the room was just suffused with their devotion—and we spent the next several hours there together. As enthusiastic as I was to go to India to be with Srila Prabhupada, I felt like I could stay there forever; I never wanted to leave the association of these amazing devotees who were so attached to Srila Prabhupada and so capable of serving him in such different ways.
Gurudas had arranged a cheap flight on a small airline, and so, that evening we boarded an old converted dual-propeller cargo plane, bound for Bombay with a stop in Cairo. In my mood of Krishna consciousness then, I was quite oblivious to things around me. I wanted to avoid maya—anything that could distract me from Krishna—and didn’t pay much heed to anything that didn’t relate directly to my service. I was focused on the idea of chanting and hearing every word of the Hare Krishna mantra distinctly, on always thinking about Krishna and never forgetting Him. And I had heard that Srila Prabhupada had said that if you have trouble hearing you should chant loudly. And sometimes, to really get into the holy names—and to break out of any possible lethargy—I would jump up and down. One or two of the devotees told me that they were anxious about how people in Egypt might react to my chanting, but I was determined.
There was unrest in Egypt at that time, and when we landed in Cairo we were met on the tarmac by soldiers and armed security guards with bandoliers of bullets around their chests and machine guns over their shoulders. And as we deplaned, walking down the steps, the men were pointing machine guns in our direction. Then Yamuna, as I was later told, saw the guards suddenly point their guns up and down, shifting their aim. And when she turned around to see why, she saw me behind her, walking down the stairs chanting japa, jumping up and down.
Anyway, we escaped Egypt and flew to Bombay, where, as arranged by Srila Prabhupada, we were taken to Kailash Seksaria’s house. There I went through a period of confusion—some things were very difficult for me to understand and cope with—and I wasn’t sure what to do. I was a relatively new devotee, at least compared with the others in the group, and somehow I just got the inspiration to go to Yamuna and Gurudas for help. What they told me was extraordinary, and for me, revolutionary. I entered their room feeling completely at a loss, but they turned the whole thing around, saying that Srila Prabhupada had sent me to engage them in thinking about him and about topics of deep significance. They turned the whole thing completely around, and I believe they were completely genuine in the way they took it and in what they said. And that was the beginning of what proved to be a very close relationship with them both.
While we were staying at Seksaria Bhavan, Srila Prabhupada introduced a new tune for the Gurvastakam prayers in the morning. He tried to teach some of the men, but they couldn’t quite get it. Then he decided to instruct Yamuna-devi, in the presence of us all, and she picked it up right away. Afterward, Srila Prabhupada told Yamuna, “Learn to listen. You cannot follow nicely unless you hear nicely, and you cannot lead nicely unless you have learned to follow nicely.” And gradually the rest of us learned the new melody.
In Bombay Srila Prabhupada was invited to attend the Vedanta Sammelan in Amritsar, and so a party of seven men and two women—Yamuna and Kausalya—traveled there with him by train. The Vedanta Ashram offered us two small rooms and the use of the large common courtyard just outside. Srila Prabhupada occupied one room, Yamuna and Kausalya the other.
Srila Prabhupada was very protective of the women, and he would have them ride to programs with him in his car (while the men took rickshaws). He did programs in the morning and evening—and often in between. Kausalya told me that driving to one engagement, he had mentioned that he needed new shoes. “Stop at the next Bata shoe store,” he had said. In the store, he had told Yamuna and Kausalya, “You choose the shoes for me,” and sat down. So, they looked all around the store and found some white crisscross plastic sandals that they thought would be just right. Each of them carried one shoe up to Srila Prabhupada, and they slipped them on his feet. He smiled and asked, “Do you like them?” They responded, “Yes.” “Then we will buy them.” And so he did.
In the afternoons when there was some free time, Yamuna-devi would chant in the courtyard. It was very cold in Amritsar in November, but it would be a little warmer when the sun came out in the afternoon, and she would sit cross-legged with her back erect and chant Hare Krishna maha-mantra japa continuously with her eyes closed—nonstop. She told me then that when she chanted, her ears and mind and heart opened up to the holy names and that the names would enter and she would just hear the sound. She would be fully absorbed in the sound, not even thinking that she was chanting the holy names or that these were names she was hearing—she was just absorbed in the sound.
After Amritsar, Srila Prabhupada and his party traveled by train back to Bombay. On the way, the train stopped at the New Delhi station, and a gentleman, a lawyer named D. D. Gupta who had been corresponding with Prabhupada and had been informed of his stopover, came to meet him. He requested Srila Prabhupada to leave some disciples in Delhi to start the activities there. Prabhupada turned to Gurudas, who was riding in the same compartment, and said, “This man is inviting us. Get down and see what you can do.” Gurudas asked for some devotees, and then he and Srila Prabhupada agreed on a team: Yamuna-devi, Gopala, Bhakta Bruce (now Bhanu Swami), and me.
Mr. Gupta arranged for us to stay in two rooms in Old Delhi, near Delhi Gate. The rooms were very basic—just plain concrete with whitewash on the walls—and they abutted the courtyard at the center of the building. We would have to walk around the courtyard to use the simple latrine (though, in urgent cases, we would often have to run!).
Mr. Gupta, it turned out, was a peculiar man. He was an advocate, but not a very big one. And he was miserly. He would keep his used, dead batteries in a drawer, in the hopes that they would come back to life. The whole situation was very austere, but it was wonderful being with Gurudas and Yamuna. We were like a family, with Gurudas and Yamuna like our older brother and sister, taking care of us in the absence of our father, Srila Prabhupada.
After leaving us in Delhi and spending some days in Bombay, Srila Prabhupada proceeded to Indore for the Gita Jayanti Mahotsava, and our small party joined him there. Once, when we entered his room, he looked up from his desk, and Yamuna-devi remarked, “Srila Prabhupada, you look just like a picture I have seen of your guru maharaja looking up from his desk.” And Srila Prabhupada replied, with all humility, “All that glitters is not gold. My guru maharaja was like gold; I am like iron.”
From Indore, Srila Prabhupada and his party traveled to Surat, in Gujarat, where we received an overwhelming reception. In Surat something happened—I actually haven’t thought of it for years. One day I was chanting my rounds on the roof of the house where we all were staying, and somehow my mind got fixed on the idea that . . . I had heard that Srila Prabhupada said that if you can deliver just one soul back home, back to Godhead, then your own deliverance is assured. Somehow I thought of my girlfriend from before I joined, and I considered, “Maybe I should have her come and join me, and I will make her a pure devotee, and then I’ll go back to Godhead.” It all made perfect sense to me, but I thought I had better consult Gurudas and Yamuna. I was very serious, and they questioned me, “Why her in particular? There are so many souls that you could deliver back to Godhead—why her?” Indirectly, they pointed out my attachment for her, and they induced me to abandon that strategy.
After Surat, Srila Prabhupada stopped in Bombay, where he met with the few devotees based there. We were all staying at the Sea Palace Hotel, which was pure vegetarian and belonged to Sri Ramchand Chhabria, who knew the devotees from England and was himself vegetarian. While we were there, a new issue of Back to Godhead magazine came, and the first article was Srila Prabhupada’s poem “Markine Bhagavata-dharma,” written when he initially arrived in America, in Boston. We had never seen the poem before; it had never been published. Gurudas, Yamuna, and I got together to look at the magazine, and Yamuna read the poem out loud. It was written in a mood of deep humility and dependence on Krishna. And when she got to the end—“Signed—the most unfortunate, insignificant beggar, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami”—she burst into tears. She couldn’t contain herself.
Years later, in September 2002, after celebrating the anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s arrival in America, I wrote Yamuna-devi, “Two days ago I spoke of the time Srila Prabhupada’s poem ‘Markine Bhagavata-dharma’ first appeared in English in BTG and you read it to Gurudas Prabhu and me and at the end you cried.” And she replied, “I sang this prayer this year on Vyasa-puja day, and all the while torrents of tears fell. One of my weaknesses is tears.”
From Bombay, Srila Prabhupada went to Allahabad for the Ardha-kumbha-mela, and Yamuna-devi and I were there with him. Srila Prabhupada spoke on the story of Ajamila and the holy name from the Sixth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Only the first two cantos had yet been translated and published, so Prabhupada read from his Sanskrit Bhagavatam with commentaries, sometimes translating from Sridhara Svami’s and occasionally from Jiva Gosvami’s. While there, I heard that Srila Prabhupada had said that he was speaking for Yamuna. And in April 2007, when Yamuna visited me in Carpinteria, I asked her about it. And she told me something that etched an indelible impression on my heart.
As she explained, she always thought that she had as much right as anyone else to walk or sit close to Srila Prabhupada. And generally when he spoke, she would sit in front of the vyasasana at his feet. She had never really distinguished in terms of etiquette that men should walk closer to Prabhupada, and women further away, or that men should sit closer to him, and women further away. The movement had been like that—like a family. In Allahabad, however, one of the sannyasis explained to her that in India the women sat apart and that she should, too.
About 10:30 the next morning, after she hadn’t sat at the foot of Prabhupada’s vyasasana as usual, Srila Prabhupada noticed Yamuna passing by his tent, and he called, “Yamuna, come in here.” She entered and offered her obeisances, and before she got up he said, “So, you don’t want to hear anymore?” Yamuna burst into tears; Prabhupada—hearing from him—was her life. “Where were you this morning?” he asked. Yamuna told him exactly what had happened. Prabhupada was silent.
That, as she told me, was a turning point in her life; it changed her whole orientation in Krishna consciousness. She suddenly had the realization that she would not always have Prabhupada’s company. Since 1967, when Srila Prabhupada recovered from his stroke, she had never been able to conceive of ever being separated from him. The devotees were so dependent on him for everything, it was inconceivable to them that he would not be with them. But, she told me, every disciple must come to a personal realization that there will be a time when the spiritual master will not be present. And for her that moment came in Allahabad, after her talks with the sannyasi and then with Srila Prabhupada.
Sitting in Prabhupada’s tent, she asked him, “How much time did you actually spend with your guru maharaja?” “Very few occasions,” he said; “maybe five or six. But they were very intimate. We used to walk and talk so many things.” Then he said, “Those who think that association with the spiritual master is physical, they are no better than a mosquito sitting on the lap of a king. And what is the business of a mosquito? Simply to suck blood. So many of my godbrothers, they were big, big sannyasis, and they thought like that, and they simply sucked blood.”
Yamuna took Prabhupada’s words as confirmation. She now understood that she needed to go to another place to explore her relationship with him and her service to him in separation. She began to consider the question of vani (words, instructions) and vapuh (body, form), and she got more and more insight into it. As she told me, it is something “unlimitedly deep and profound. You can hear the terms on the surface, but vani means to again be in Prabhupada’s presence”—to be in his presence in separation as much as when you were in his physical association. “So that was a turning point for me, to realize that Prabhupada was going to leave this planet: ‘He is an old man, and he is going to leave, and I have to prepare.’ ” She took it that from that moment she must start mentally preparing—find a way of continuing in Krishna consciousness that was not based on Srila Prabhupada’s personal association.
“So, that is that story of hearing,” she continued. “Prabhupada said, ‘I am speaking because you want to hear so much. I am speaking as much because you want to hear so much.’ So he knew that hunger. I never expressed that to him, but he knew.”As Yamuna often said, Srila Prabhupada was completely aware of every disciple in every way—both their internal consciousness and the external manifestations of their service.
Vani and vapuh became a major theme in Yamuna-devi’s life—how to maintain one’s connection with Srila Prabhupada through vani to the same degree and with the same intensity as in his physical, even close personal, presence. She was convinced that it was possible, and she arranged her life in such a way as to always receive his guidance and mercy—to always be in his association.
Then came the Bombay pandal. Shyamasundar Prabhu, who was the temple president, divided the work into different departments, with one devotee in charge of each. (Often, that devotee was the department.) And Yamuna-devi was in charge of the Deities. We had very little money then. Although we were raising funds for the pandal program, we needed it all for the event. And the treasurer, Rishi Kumar, was very tight with the money, which Srila Prabhupada considered a good quality for the treasurer. Sometimes Rishi Kumar would put a sign on his office door: “Closed for three days.” So, Yamuna-devi was charged with raising the funds for the Deities. That was the year we got big marble ones. In the pandal we had small brass Deities, and on the last day of the program there was to be a procession from the pandal, at Cross Maidan, to Chowpatty, where there was to be a program at the beach, at which Sri Sri Radha-Rasabihari would be revealed for the first time to the people of Bombay. And she just couldn’t raise the money.
One day while she was out endeavoring to raise funds for the Deities, Yamuna became so disappointed and distraught that she just sat down on the sidewalk and wept. A black limousine, with a pious, distinguished-looking gentleman in the back seat, stopped on the road before her, and the man got out of the car and asked her what was the matter. “We’re having a pandal program,” she explained, “and I’m in charge of the Deities’ outfits and decorations, and I have to raise the money, but no one is giving, and we’re running out of time.” “Don’t worry,” he replied. “I am the chairman of two of the biggest temple trusts in Bombay. How much do you need?” “Two thousand five hundred rupees,” she replied—which was really a lot back then. “Don’t worry,” he said. “Just come with me to my office, and I’ll give you a check for the whole amount.” She was that sincere and dedicated.
From Bombay, Srila Prabhupada sent Tamal Krishna and me to Calcutta to arrange a similar pandal program, and eventually Yamuna-devi also came, and soon she was engaged in the service of the Deities there, Sri Sri Radha-Govinda. Every morning we would look forward to the darshan (viewing) of the Deities. The worship was so beautiful—so devotional.
One day, at the pandal site, I approached Yamuna-devi and told her that I had some questions regarding my future and the future of the movement that I just could not answer, but that I didn’t want to approach Srila Prabhupada with them directly. The whole mood then was, “Don’t disturb Srila Prabhupada. He has to translate. He has important things to do. Don’t go to Srila Prabhupada.” When I told her my questions, however, she responded, “No, you should go to him. You are just the type of devotee he would want to spend time with, and these are just the types of questions he would want to answer.”
So, based on her advice, I approached Srila Prabhupada in his room at the temple, and my meeting with him was very significant. “Before joining the movement,” I said, “I was interested in making movies, and I even made one. So I was thinking maybe I should make movies about Krishna consciousness.” Srila Prabhupada replied, “That, others are doing. Our main medium is books.”
Then I said, “Srila Prabhupada, now you are here, so everything is all right. But what if, in the course of time, when you are not here, ISKCON falls from the standard? What should I do?” And Srila Prabhupada replied, “You are also one of the important members of the Society”—actually, I was really very new at the time, but . . . “You are also one of the important members of the society, so you work for the correction. But don’t leave.”
These instructions have been guiding me ever since. And it was Yamuna-devi who advised me to go and ask Prabhupada directly.
After Calcutta was the Delhi pandal. Again Yamuna-devi arranged beautiful Deity worship, for Sri Sri Radha-Gokulananda, who later went to Bhaktivedanta Manor in England. The darshans were spectacular. But after the program, she was very sick. She was staying in the same, large house as Srila Prabhupada, and he noticed that she was missing. He inquired and found out that she was sick. She was resting in a very small room—like a closet. Because she was sick, she had to have her own room, and that was what the devotees could offer. Srila Prabhupada went to visit her and found that no one was really taking care of her, and he became concerned and assigned a devotee to take up that service. It was cold, and I think Prabhupada gave her his own room heater—perhaps the only one. And he said that we have to take care of our devotees when they fall ill.
After the Delhi pandal, I went to Madras, while the rest of the party went to Vrindavan with Srila Prabhupada for the first time. There was one car—an Ambassador—with Srila Prabhupada and some men, and a bus with the rest of the devotees. Prabhupada was in the car, and he noticed Yamuna climbing into the bus. He said, “Wait! Wait!” He called her, knowing that she was sick, and told the men to get out. Then he had her get in the back seat with Gurudas and another man—Prabhupada was in the front with the driver—and the other men went on the bus.
In time, Srila Prabhupada got some land in Vrindavan and put Gurudas and Yamuna in charge. And she related a couple of incidents to me that I consider to be very instructive. Once, a small group of devotees went to the Radha-Damodara temple, and the Goswami in charge invited them to have prasada. The devotees sat in the courtyard, and the Goswami arranged the Deities’ maha-prasada for them. While they were honoring the prasada, he began to badly blaspheme Srila Prabhupada—“Why does he wear a ring?” and all sorts of things. The devotees felt extremely uncomfortable and were tempted to just get up and walk out, but somehow they decided not to. After the incident, Gurudas and Yamuna reported to Srila Prabhupada what had happened, and Srila Prabhupada instructed, “In Vrindavan there are five thousand caste goswamis, five thousand shopkeepers, and five thousand widows, and we have to keep good relations with all of them; otherwise we will end up in court, like the Gaudiya Matha.”
On another occasion, Srila Prabhupada sent Gurudas and Yamuna to meet his godbrother Professor O. B. L. Kapoor. At some stage after Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura left, Professor Kapoor had taken shelter of a babaji as a siksa-guru. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta had vehemently criticized these babajis, and they had staunchly opposed him. So this was a very peculiar situation, that Professor Kapoor had taken shelter of a babaji who was the type of person who was the object of his spiritual master’s criticism and in turn opposed his spiritual master. But Srila Prabhupada simply said, “That is his weakness”—that’s all. He didn’t consider that it disqualified Dr. Kapoor from helping the movement. Srila Prabhupada had a very broad view of the Krishna consciousness movement and of engaging people in it, and that was demonstrated quite vividly in Vrindavan.
Then Srila Prabhupada left us, and things did change. And I didn’t see Gurudas and Yamuna for many years. But then somehow my relationship with Yamuna was revived. She had really been sort of a mentor to me, and decades later she was again. Although so many years had passed, when we met again it was more or less the same—the relationship hadn’t changed, and we shared thoughts about Srila Prabhupada and his service and his mission. She was always very concerned about the mission, that Srila Prabhupada’s legacy should be preserved as it is and not adulterated or compromised.
I also saw that she was very absorbed in Krishna consciousness. When I think of the five main processes of devotional service (pancanga-bhakti), she was very strong in all of them.
“One should associate with devotees, chant the holy name of the Lord, hear Srimad-Bhagavatam, reside at Mathura, and worship the Deity with faith and veneration.” (Cc Madhya 22.128)
She was very strong in reading and studying. Every morning she would read the Bhagavatam and the teachings of the more recent acharyas—Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura and Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura—taking special note when they spoke about the holy name. This was a major focus for her, and she would relish reading, especially instructions related to nama-bhajana and to guru-seva.
Another thing about Yamuna-devi struck me as amazing. About the time of the first Bombay pandal, when we were staying in Akash Ganga, a high-rise apartment building in an affluent part of central Bombay, she would stay back and clean. She would clean the whole place, for hours. And while cleaning, she would sing in a very ecstatic mood. The rest of us were going here and there—for service, of course, but there were incidental benefits: seeing exotic India, meeting all sorts of cultured and interesting people, tasting varieties of delicious prasada—and she was staying back and cleaning. She put her heart into it and would be singing in an ecstatic mood.
Later, in April 2007, when Yamuna visited me in Carpinteria, I asked her about this, and she said that Srila Prabhupada had put greater emphasis on bhagavata-marga because he wanted his books produced, so they would be there for all time, and because he wanted his books distributed, so the income from the sales would support the expansion of the mission. So he didn’t have much time to personally train disciples in pancaratrika-vidhi. But he did train her, and she considered personal service to him to be in the same category as personal service to the Deity. And, of course, she is right. Once, a devotee came forward to fan Srila Prabhupada and Srila Prabhupada stopped him, saying that he wasn’t a brahman. So, cleanliness is one of the basic principles of Deity worship. But Yamuna-devi didn’t distinguish between cleaning the guru’s ashram and cleaning the Deity room. As she told me, “In Bombay, I learned to take joy in that cleaning. Whether you are serving the spiritual master or the arca-vigraha, the cleaning is external and internal. It is a very spiritual engagement—as powerful as distributing books.”
She explained that Srila Prabhupada would teach each servant about the importance and standards of cleanliness according to the servant’s capacity to understand. And she told me how strictly he had trained her. He had his four-tiered cooker, and if he found a black spot on the bottom of any of the pots, he would really chastise the servant. She would use the word “whipping.” He would chide the servant, “This is not Vaishnava. This is Muslim. No Vaishnava will ever leave a black spot on any of the pots in the kitchen.” Prabhupada’s cooker was always to shine like gold.
Based on Srila Prabhupada’s instructions, Yamuna developed a whole system for cleaning his quarters in Vrindavan—an elaborate five-step procedure, going from bottom to top and top to bottom. First, she would get the big dirt off the bottom, then she would go up as far as she could reach, dusting, and then she would go back to the bottom, cleaning everything as perfectly as she could. If there was anything wrong, Prabhupada would notice and tell her about it. And keeping the rooms clean in Vrindavan was very hard: with the simmering sands of Raman Reti and the whole place being a construction zone, there was always dirt and corrosion—everywhere. The walls of Prabhupada’s rooms were pale yellow, and the floors were black stone. The floors were covered with rugs, and the rugs were covered with white sheets.
One morning when Srila Prabhupada came back from his walk, after Yamuna had gone through her five-step procedure and everything looked as clean as could be, he told her, “Please clean my room, Yamuna. Haven’t I taught you to clean?” “No, Srila Prabhupada,” she said. “How may I improve my cleaning?” He didn’t say anything. On his desk were his eyeglass case, his tilak, pens, a flower vase, a picture of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, and a staple gun. Srila Prabhupada took the staple gun, which was about two and a half inches long, removed it from its plastic case, lifted up the metal staple holder, and ran his little finger, his pinkie, across the thin metal strip between the staple holder and the hinge. . . . Dust. “When will you learn how to clean?”
If Srila Prabhupada had had the time, Yamuna-devi told me, he would have trained all his disciples in both pancaratriki-vidhi and bhagavata-vidhi, but because he was focused more on bhagavata-vidhi, he mainly trained only his close managers and personal servants—be they men or women—in both. Srila Prabhupada knew the consciousness of his disciples—he knew their capacity—and he would train them according to their capacity to absorb it.
Cooking, like cleanliness, is also part of Deity worship, and Yamuna-devi was, of course, most expert. Once, when Srila Prabhupada was coming to Vrindavan, she went to the Vraja-vasis and asked, “What is the best way to make Vraja-vasi rotis?” They told her, “You have to get this red Punjabi wheat berry. You have to grind it in the morning, and then you have to cook it with neem wood.”
When Prabhupada came she didn’t say a word to him, but she got that red wheat berry from Punjab, she had it ground in the morning, and she cooked the chapatis with neem wood. Then she brought the plate in to Prabhupada and put a hot chapati on his plate. He took one bite and said, “This is the red Punjabi wheat berry. You ground it this morning and cooked it with neem wood.” She hadn’t said a word to him—he just knew.
That was at the Radha-Damodara temple in 1972. And there is a sequel to the story about the Vraja-vasi chapatis, from Raman Reti in 1973. I am not a cook—chapatis are too technical for me—so I will read the transcription of Yamuna’s account to me in Carpinteria:
“One time when Srila Prabhupada came—I think it was the first time I met Satsvarupa dasa Gosvami; he was Prabhupada’s servant—I was on a bucket stove again, on the floor—no kitchen. I was making Prabhupada’s prasada, and as you may or may not know, when you cook with a bucket stove and you have a little bit of hard coal and then a little bit of soft coal and then a little bit of cow dung, it is a little hard to regulate. There is a certain temperature, and you cannot turn a switch to make it higher or lower. And then, depending on the thickness of the pot, you know what intensity you want. And then there is what you call a thawa, which is an iron griddle, concave, and to make a chapati you keep that on the stove and then you lift it off and you put the chapati on top of the flame. So, I made chapatis for Prabhupada’s lunch.
“Satsvarupa Maharaja wanted to bring in the lunch, thinking that I probably shouldn’t do it. He brought in the plate, came back into the kitchen, and said, ‘Prabhupada wants me to teach you how to make chapatis.’ And I said, ‘Oh, Maharaja, I would be so grateful if you could do that. I’d love to learn to make chapatis. Please.’
“Then I got up, and he began to wash his hands. By the time he sat down and rolled out a chapati, the thawa was really hot. He rolled out an octopus-like chapati. Now, when you roll out a chapati, the ball bearings for rolling it out is the dusting of flour, and if you roll the chapati in too much flour you actually roll flour into the surface of the flatbread and then even if you try to flap it off, you still have a crust of flour. So you use a minimal amount for the ball bearings and then flap off the little extra.
“His octopus was covered with flour on a hot thawa. When he put it on, I said, ‘Maharaja, what should I be looking for?’ He said, ‘You wait until there are pimples on the top.’ As soon as the chapati hit the griddle, very hot, the pimples came very fast. He turned the chapati over, and there were little burnt holes. So there was no question of it puffing up.
“So, he put it on, and the little bubbles appeared at different places, and he took it in to Prabhupada. Then he came back and told me, ‘Prabhupada said, “This is excellent.” ’
“So, that’s how Prabhupada taught me. It was never with a whip, but they were beatings nonetheless. They were beatings over my head.”
Another time, in 1974, one of the devotees based in Vrindavan approached Yamuna and said, “My wife is coming, and she is a very good cook. She wants to cook for Prabhupada.” Yamuna replied, “How wonderful. I will be glad to engage her in Prabhupada’s service.” The new cook arrived after the big Mayapur festival, and almost all the devotees were ill with dysentery and other maladies. There was really no proper arrangement for them, but Gurudas and Yamuna cared for them like parents. Yamuna was doing the cooking for the devotees there at Fogel Ashram. Under the circumstances, she really didn’t have time to cook for Srila Prabhupada, so she was very happy that the new cook was there. Meanwhile, she was trying to make arrangements for the devotees’ prasada. She had no facility, she was unable to speak Hindi and communicate with the locals, and the assistant cooks were ready to walk out at any time. She was working practically twenty-four hours. And she didn’t go to see Prabhupada the entire time.
She began to get messages: “Prabhupada wants you”—but she didn’t go. She just replied, “Tell him I am really busy.” She told me later, “Bad, very bad—really low consciousness.”
When finally she came to Prabhupada’s room, he was about to go out. So she came back the next morning.
Yamuna had given the new cook specific instructions. Still, the lady had taken Srila Prabhupada’s cooker and his unclean laundry and stuffed them in a bolster pillowcase meant for his seating area, now black all over the bottom. Yamuna arrived just as the lady was putting the cooker in with the clothes, in the pillowcase. Srila Prabhupada was also standing there, watching the cooker being shoved into the pillowcase. He didn’t say a word—not to the cook, not to Yamuna.
“Prabhupada knows everything,” Yamuna told me later. Thus he said to her, “Are you too busy to come? So I am delaying my departure for one day.” The men said, “But the cars are ready. We’re just loading them.” “No,” Srila Prabhupada stated unequivocally, “Yamuna will stay here and cook for me tomorrow. I am staying, and she is going to cook for me tomorrow morning, and then we will go.”
Cleanliness. More than thirty years later Yamuna-devi told me, “I can honestly say that I joyously engage in cleaning, and so in our ashram [in Saranagati, Canada] we sing and clean, sometimes for hours and hours and hours. Our place is very primitive; we have a dirt floor and dirt walls, and a lot of earth outside. It is very simple, but we like to clean a lot. We enjoy cleaning, for Srila Prabhupada and the Deities.”
Kirtan. Yamuna-devi had a dream. I don’t remember the details, and it is a little delicate, because she was a very private person. Anyway, in this dream, or vision—whatever it was, she took it as very real—she was a sage in the forest and Srila Prabhupada was also in the same forest, and somehow he engaged her in doing kirtan. She felt that from her past life there was a connection with Srila Prabhupada in relation to kirtan.
About Srila Prabhupada’s kirtan she said, “Srila Prabhupada’s kirtan had no tinge of being a performance. It was purely for the pleasure of Krishna. It allowed the chanters access to the fact that the Lord’s holy name and the Lord are nondifferent. He said that the key to engaging in kirtan without anartha was hearing and studying our literature, and that gradually it would rise to the platform of pure devotional service.
And in an e-mail to Bhakta Carl (now Kalachandji das), she wrote, “Leading and chanting in kirtan has little to do with how we sound to each other. It has much more to do with how we call out to Krishna and immerse ourselves in hearing the vibrations of the holy names. What a vehicle for experiencing love of Godhead.”
When she and the other devotees were recording with the Beatles, George Harrison was so impressed by her singing that he told her he could make her one of the most famous and celebrated vocalists in the world. But she wasn’t interested. Her singing was meant for another purpose—pure devotional service to please Srila Prabhupada and Sri Sri Radha-Govinda.
Yamuna-devi said that to the degree one follows Srila Prabhupada, to that degree things are revealed. And she gave the example of Bhakti Tirtha Swami. She felt that because of Maharaja’s deep connection with the holy name—his dedication to japa, his private time with japa—he was able to perceive Srila Prabhupada’s presence in separation. She said, “Prabhupada freely gave everything to all of us. But it is the individual’s hankering, which leads him to make certain decisions in his life to catch that mercy, that facilitates his or her perception of Srila Prabhupada, especially in separation.”
Yamuna recalled an incident that demonstrated to her unequivocally how Prabhupada knew his disciples. She came to the courtyard of the Radha-Damodara temple in the wee hours of one morning, remaining as silent as humanly possible, so as not to disturb Srila Prabhupada, and he came out of his room and called her name. “There was no way Prabhupada could have known that I was there at one thirty in the morning,” she said. “I didn’t make any noise.”
But then she balanced her statement: “On the other hand, there were many times when he would say, ‘I want your report. Otherwise how do I know?’ ” And she added, “There were times when I did it, but other times, because of low Krishna consciousness, I ceased reporting in an honest way, and it contributed to my fall, to my weaknesses in Krishna consciousness. When I was open and revealed everything honestly in my reporting to Prabhupada, as we are supposed to report to Krishna, I was stronger in Krishna consciousness. And when I closed that avenue off, my consciousness suffered.”
In her profound humility, Yamuna explained, “Srila Prabhupada’s presence in vani and vapuh, or our ability to perceive his presence in his vani and vapuh, depends on our consciousness—whether we are able to perceive a drop of who Prabhupada was. Some devotees who never had Srila Prabhupada’s company, with their laulyam and their greed for it had more of it than I sometimes did while I was in his company, depending on my consciousness. . . .
“I still have no idea of the greatness of Prabhupada’s presence, then or now, although I think about it a lot, meditate on it a lot. We discuss it almost every day. It comes up in some form or other in our morning Bhagavatam class. . . . Prabhupada’s presence then and now—vani and vapuh. And it is very important to hold onto his presence as the focal point in our maturation in spiritual life, because he is the center in our spiritual life. Nothing comes without his presence. Even if the mercy comes to us through other forms, from endless different places—still, he is the fountainhead. . . . If I am qualified, then certain mercies will come to me. Mercy is not something you bargain for or arrange for or even desire very deeply. You can have intense hankering, and then whatever comes—whatever form the mercy comes in—it is so Krishna conscious.”
After Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance anniversary in 2009, Yamuna-devi wrote me a letter that shows her deep absorption in Srila Prabhupada and in the holy names, and her intimate relationship with Srila Prabhupada. I think that she really did understand Srila Prabhupada and his mission. He gave her a lot of instruction.
“Dear Giriraj Swami, Pranama dandavats. Jaya Srila Prabhupada! I wanted to share a few thoughts and reflections on yesterday, Srila Prabhupada’s thirty-second disappearance day. We observed the day first at Radha-Banabehari Mandir with our morning program at Radha-Banabehari Mandir, then at a midday program at Govardhana Academy [the school at Saranagati], introducing the students to the traditional way Srila Prabhupada instructed us to honor this day, and then in the evening at a program with adults in the community, who for convenience regularly meet in the evening for any kind of Vaishnava holy day.
“Last night Yadubara showed his preliminary edited footage for DVD Eleven: ‘Srila Prabhupada’s Final Pastimes.’ Though I had seen much of the footage before, it had been without comment, and not arranged in sequence to tell a visual story of Srila Prabhupada’s final days and hours, the moment of his passing, and the aftermath—the Vrindavan parikrama and the samadhi entombment.
“One evening, sitting with my back to Srila Prabhupada’s front bucket seat, riding in a van from Tittenhurst [John Lennon’s estate] to a Conway Hall lecture in London, Srila Prabhupada said loud enough for me to hear, ‘When I die, see that my body is taken on a palanquin around Vrindavan on parikrama.’ Stunned, but immediately attentive to these words, I turned around, and on my knees, bent forward from the waist so that my head was even with his shoulder, I said, ‘Why have you told me to do this, Srila Prabhupada? Better that you tell Tamal Krishna. He has more access to seeing that this is done than I do.’ He replied, ‘No, you can tell him.’ He fell silent and said no more. I too fell silent and said no more.
“Yadubara’s footage last night of the thickest pastime of Srila Prabhupada’s life with us—his passing—was poignant and moving. Though I was not there physically with Srila Prabhupada, I could not have felt closer to him or experienced more of his presence had I been so. Every moment of every day has been a meditation on Srila Prabhupada, and we have been engaged in constant kirtan. Perhaps it would have been difficult for me even to have been there at that time, for except Pisima, it is clear that women were not allowed close proximity to Srila Prabhupada, and that might have been almost unbearable for me after the closeness I experienced in previous years with him.”
She says more, expressing appreciation for the devotional mood and service of some of Prabhupada’s disciples who were there—they had “a shared intent to follow Srila Prabhupada’s instructions, glorify his mood, honor his example, and share that with others.” But her letter also expressed her concern about how at a certain point the role of women in the movement had changed. In earlier days . . . of course, she was exceptional—she would lead kirtan before thousands of people, speak before thousands of people, and render personal service to Srila Prabhupada. As she told me, at Tittenhurst she was basically Srila Prabhupada’s personal servant—she and Malati and Janaki. Purusottama would do some of the correspondence, and some of the men would give massage, but basically these ladies were doing the personal service.
She said that one day Prabhupada came into his room—they had just made his bed and done whatever else had to be done—and said, “This is very unusual,” meaning for a sannyasi to have women do that service. He said, “This is very unusual, but it is appropriate.” He continued, “Sometimes I am like your father and you are like my daughters, and sometimes you are like my mothers and I am like your son.”
In Mother Yamuna’s last year there was tremendous concern about her health. At different stages she spoke to me about her condition and options, but then, near the end, perhaps in September, she came to a very critical point with regards to her heart. Because of her size and age, the doctors were afraid to perform an invasive procedure, but if they didn’t, there was every chance she would have heart failure, at any time. For a while she wasn’t sure what to do, but in the end she decided to just return to her home and depend on Krishna.
She said a few times that she was ready to go, that she felt she had done what she was meant to do in this life, or what she could do, and she was ready to go. She had no fear—and no regrets. Personally, I questioned her conclusion about her service, and I suggested, “Well, you may have something left to do in terms of service to Srila Prabhupada.” I was thinking of her writing, that she should write about her experiences with and realizations about Srila Prabhupada. But she said, “No, I have thought about it, and there’s nothing really that I have to stay to do. If there is anything—if I am given more time—it is to try to help the women in the movement.” And she added, “I don’t think that you, as a sannyasi, can understand what the women in the movement experience. But if Krishna does give me some more time, I would like to do something for the women, to support the women, to give a strong voice to the women.”
No matter how dire her physical condition was, Yamuna-devi was so Krishna conscious. My conversations with her were quite frequent after she went to Bhaktivedanta Hospital. Naturally, I was concerned about her medical condition, and so we would be talking about it, and somehow or other, without my knowing how she got there, she would be talking about Krishna and Srila Prabhupada and the holy name and how wonderful devotees are and how merciful Prabhupada and Krishna are and how grateful she was. Quite the opposite of what I often experience with myself: I begin talking about Krishna and then—I don’t know how it happens—somehow I’m talking about my body. With her, I would bring up her body—how she was doing and if I could help in any way—and without my knowing how, suddenly we were talking about Krishna and Prabhupada and the holy name and the prayers of the acharyas and the wonderful service of the other devotees and just how grateful she was for what she had been given.
At about 6:30 in the morning on December 20, Yamuna’s constant companion and spiritual confidante, Dinatarini dasi, found that Yamuna had left. Yamuna’s hand was in her bead bag, and a slight smile was on her face. She looked completely at peace—even blissful. She had been unafraid of death. She had been confident that she would again be with Srila Prabhupada, or somehow engaged in serving his mission. Such is the destination that awaits anyone who gives his or her life fully to serving Srila Prabhupada, his vani, his vapuh.
Yamuna-devi was a beautiful soul, a divine servant of Srila Prabhupada, his mission, and his Lords. She exemplified nama-ruci (taste for the holy name), jiva-daya (mercy for the living entities), and vaisnava-seva (service to the devotees). She was a mentor, guide, and friend to many, including me. We will miss her personal presence. Still, we shall try to serve her in separation by upholding the ideals she held dear.
In conclusion, I quote from a letter she wrote me some years ago, which has given me both solace and guidance:
“I remember when Dina and I visited you in your house in Vrindavan. We asked you one question, and you took three hours to answer it: ‘How has your relationship with Srila Prabhupada changed since his departure?’” Again, vani and vapuh. She continued, “The departure of loved ones helps us to change, to go deeper. Surely this will happen.”
HH Bhaktimarga Swami: Bhaktimarga Swami, popularly known as "The Walking Monk", took to a monk’s life in 1973 as a youthful 20-year-old. Prior to becoming a monk, he did chores on the family farm in Chatham, Ontario, Canada, and was a college student of Fine Arts. His walks are extensively and internationally featured on radio, television, in the newspaper, and film
“I felt very fortunate because I got to see Prabhupada when he wasn’t with his disciples, when he wasn’t busy training them in management in so many different ways or chastising them for the mistakes they had made and being involved in seeing that the books were being produced and all of these different services he was doing for his spiritual master. Then at various times in the day when the doors closed, Prabhupada was just there by himself; and they were the times that I liked the most because he was a devotee of Krishna, and Prabhupada loved Krishna. You would find him in his room reading; and sometimes from the servant quarters, all of a sudden you would hear the harmonium.
It wasn’t Krishna Kanti coming in and recording bhajans, Prabhupada was just doing bhajan. Whenever I heard that, I would run into the room and I would offer obeisances; and as soon as I would sit up, Prabhupada would give me the nod, “Get the kartals,” and I would play kartals and Prabhupada would play the harmonium and he would just chant. It’s one reason I stayed with Prabhupada as long as I did, because I found being with Prabhupada was very peaceful for most of the time. And it was amazing because, as we know, Prabhupada was doing everything, he was running everything, the entire society, the BBT, taking care of so much mail every day, doing the classes, the morning walk, instructing devotees.
But somehow or other it seemed like there were hours where Prabhupada was just alone, and he was a devotee of Krishna and he was very sweet. He was doing everything he was asking us to do, just develop our love of Krishna by chanting and hearing and so many times reading his books. He would walk around and chant in his room; and he would just chant on his beads, walk around, and sometimes he would jiggle his bead bag, you could hear the beads in his bead bag. But there was just this peacefulness that was amazing because of everything that he was doing. But as soon as the door closed, that was all gone. It was just Krishna there with him, and Prabhupada was always happy. Even someone like me could pick up on some of that and just feel so peaceful to be with Prabhupada. It’s like you didn’t want to be anywhere else at those times.”
A devotee farmer near the Gita Nagari farm in Port Royal, Pennsylvania, has received a Farm Ownership Loan from the USDA Farm Service Agency, which offers low rates to help new farmers buy farms. The program offers up to 100% financing on up to $600,000, and encourages people to take up farming and save farmland for future generations.
HH Kavicandra Swami: This very wonderful devotee, Harililamrta das, along with his beautiful daughter, were killed in a motor crash yesterday. His wife, Prana Priya dasi, is in critical condition.
The work on the cover is entirely digital and was done in the Procreate App on an iPad Pro. I wanted to create a candy-coloured outlook of the spiritual world. I had a specific perspective in mind so I simulated Krishna’s and the gopis’ postures in an app called Easypose to get the proportions right. I am inspired by art with a variety of textures and bright colours and I hope to inspire others that way too.
Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 16, No. 23 By Krishna Kripa Das (December 2020, part one)
New York City (Sent from Brooklyn on December 19, 2020)
Where I Went and What I Did
I continued staying at Radha Govinda Temple in New York City and assisting Rama Raya Prabhu with his NYC Harinam party, chanting four hours of Hare Krishna in public almost every day. I would also attend the Bhakti Center Thursday night harinama in the Lower East Side and their Sunday harinama in Washington Square Park. I also made laddus for Radha Govinda and Rama Raya Prabhu’s Govardhan sila.
I share notes on Srimad-Bhagavatam, Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, The Nectar of Devotion, and Sri Brahma-samhita, and a variety of books by Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami. I share notes on lectures at ISKCON NYC by Candrasekhara Swami, and Hansarupa, Rama Raya, Shobha-mayi, Premananda Kirtan, Ter Kadamba, Hari Vilasa, Natabara Gauranga, Ananda-bihari, and Vraja Mohana Prabhus. I also share notes on a recorded lecture by Niranjana Swami.
Many, many thanks to Mera Chitra and Bhaktin Elena for their very generous donations. Thanks to Kaliya Krishna Prabhu for the many videos and photos in which I appear.
Itinerary
September 12–January 2: NYC Harinam December ?: ISKCON NYC Sunday feast lecture (via zoom) December 24: Albany, Christmas Eve with relatives (via zoom) January 3–April 5: Orlando and Tallahassee harinama and college outreach April 6: New York
Chanting Hare Krishna in New York City
During our four-hour harinamas, I would sing for between half an hour and an hour.
Most often I would either be in back of the book table or off to the side, dancing and offering pamphlets to those who appeared attracted by the chanting.
Kaliya Krishna Prabhu took a couple of videos of me chanting Hare Krishna in November which I forgot to upload:
Kaliya Krishna Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Manhattan at a former venue of ours which was under construction for almost two years during which time we could not use it (https://youtu.be/or37BZabbQs):
Here I lead the Hare Krishna chant on the Bhakti Center Thursday night harinama outside a Lower East Side cafe while simultaneously filming diners enjoying dancing with the devotees (https://youtu.be/5YV6gtu9_28):
Braja Sakhi Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna in Midtown Manhattan, and Ananda Kirtan Prabhu dances while distributing books (https://youtu.be/etZ0otKjaXQ):
Rama Raya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Midtown Manhattan, a couple plays shakers and dances, passersby take videos, and Caitanya Priya Prabhu sells transcendental literature (https://youtu.be/ol6Atk08VV4):
Minna chants Hare Krishna in Washington Square Park during the Bhakti Center Sunday harinama (https://youtu.be/aJsWwgKAgf0):
Then Premananda Kirtan Prabhu chanted Hare Krishna along the streets of Downtown Manhattan (https://youtu.be/e-mBTLSiBJ0):
When the Bhakti Center harinama party returned to Washington Square Park, a tall lady dressed in black delighted in dancing with the devotees as Premananda Kirtan continued to sing (https://youtu.be/t_vyPhcJa-0):
Champakalata Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna on the Bhakti Center Thursday night harinama, and diners at several restaurants in New York City’s Lower East Side participate by playing the tambourine, clapping, taking videos, dancing, accepting literature and even chanting Hare Krishna (https://youtu.be/r8gbVVfOfEM):
Champakalata Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna in front of 26 Second Avenue, the site of the first ISKCON center (https://youtu.be/_u51Mh2eg_8):
Premananda Kirtan Prabhu chants Hare Krishna and engages restaurant goers in chanting the response (https://youtu.be/mboBCr-UhTg):
Premananda Kirtan Prabhu chants Hare Krishna and passersby play tambourine, dance, and sometimes chant Hare Krishna (https://youtu.be/6RLD4H2jy4k):
Kaliya Krishna Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Midtown Manhattan, and devotees dance (https://youtu.be/hj8rUaOt6Bc):
Rama Raya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna to the “Jingle Bells” tune in Midtown Manhattan (https://youtu.be/kNPY_CyzGXQ):
Rama Raya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna, and a couple plays shakers, films, gives a donation, and accepts a book (https://youtu.be/3972hu2V2n4):
Rama Raya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna, and two ladies dance, mostly with one filming the other (https://youtu.be/RuCa3fG16R8):
Premananda Kirtan Prabhu chanted Hare Krisna in Washington Square Park during the Bhakti Center Sunday harinama, and several middle school and high school kids happily danced with devotees (https://youtu.be/SOT0d4oiiDo):
Then Premananda Kirtan Prabhu taught the kids the Hare Krishna mantra, and they enjoyed chanting it as well as dancing (https://youtu.be/B68-sCruEDo):
Premananda Kirtan Prabhu briefly explained bhakti yoga to the kids after they enjoyed chanting and dancing with our kirtan party for several minutes (https://youtu.be/kt4wjXg_gDo):
I gave a couple of them “On Chanting Hare Krishna” after his speech.
Premananda Kirtan Prabhu continued to chant Hare Krishna in Washington Square Park, and a man chanted, danced and played the shakers (https://youtu.be/5dn89EcdFF8):
Caranti Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna in Washington Square Park, and passersby dance (https://youtu.be/U13rXVPhjiY):
Ananda Kirtan Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Radha Govinda Temple, and ladies dance (https://youtu.be/WFwWq8Hg3_E):
Natabara Gauranga Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Radha Govinda Temple, and devotees dance (https://youtu.be/ArNZ6DWbddI):
Natabara Gauranga Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Midtown Manhattan, and I dance and distribute phamphets (https://youtu.be/zM1mI0KruW4):
At breakfast it appeared Bipin made the biggest puris I had ever seen in my life.
I was informed they are a related preparation called bhatura, and are meant to be very large.
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.7.28 verse and purport:
“The members of the assembly addressed the Lord: O exclusive shelter for all who are situated in troubled life, in this formidable fort of conditional existence the time element, like a snake, is always looking for an opportunity to strike. This world is full of ditches of so-called distress and happiness, and there are many ferocious animals always ready to attack. The fire of lamentation is always blazing, and the mirage of false happiness is always alluring, but one has no shelter from them. Thus foolish persons live in the cycle of birth and death, always overburdened in discharging their so-called duties, and we do not know when they will accept the shelter of Your lotus feet.
“Purport: Persons who are not in Krishna consciousness are living a very precarious life, as described in this verse, but all these circumstantial conditions are due to forgetfulness of Krishna. The Krishna consciousness movement is meant to give relief to all these bewildered and distressed persons; therefore it is the greatest relief work for all human society, and the workers thereof are the greatest well-wishers, for they follow in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya, who is the greatest friend to all living entities.”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.6.6, purport:
“Whatever a person may be in the estimation of the social order of things, if a person tries to reciprocate a feeling of love towards the Supreme Personality of Godhead and is satisfied with the blessings of the Lord, he will at once feel the highest peace of mind for which he is hankering life after life.”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.11.2, purport:
“Krishna consciousness and maya are always there, side by side. As soon as there is awakening of Krishna consciousness, all the illusory pains and pleasures of material existence are vanquished. Mayam etam taranti te: [Bg. 7.14] constant chanting of the maha-mantra will keep us always aloof from the illusory energy of maya.”
From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 11:
“In the Hari-bhakti-vilasa there is the following statement about self-surrender: ‘My dear Lord, a person who has surrendered himself unto You, who is in firm conviction that he is Yours, and who actually acts in that way by his body, mind and words, can actually relish transcendental bliss.’”
“In the Skanda Purana there is another statement about tulasi, as follows: ‘Tulasi is auspicious in all respects. Simply by seeing, simply by touching, simply by remembering, simply by praying to, simply by bowing before, simply by hearing about or simply by sowing this tree, there is always auspiciousness. Anyone who comes in touch with the tulasi tree in the above-mentioned ways lives eternally in the Vaikuntha [spiritual] world.’”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 22.103:
“‘The living entity who is subjected to birth and death attains immortality when he gives up all material activities, dedicates his life to the execution of My order, and acts according to My directions. In this way he becomes fit to enjoy the spiritual bliss derived from exchanging loving mellows with Me.’
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 22.109, purport:
“One has to learn to use a typewriter by following the regulative principles of the typing book. One has to place his fingers on the keys in such a way and practice, but when one becomes adept, he can type swiftly and correctly without even looking at the keys. Similarly, one has to follow the rules and regulations of devotional service as they are set down by the spiritual master; then one can come to the point of spontaneous loving service. This love is already there within the heart of everyone (nitya-siddha krishna-prema).”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 22.118, purport:
“In our Krishna consciousness movement we have therefore limited our study of the Vedic literatures to the Bhagavad-gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Caitanya-caritamrita and Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu. These four works are sufficient for preaching purposes. They are adequate for the understanding of the philosophy and the spreading of missionary activities all over the world. If one studies a particular book, he must do so thoroughly. That is the principle. By thoroughly studying a limited number of books, one can understand the philosophy.”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 22.128–129:
“One should associate with devotees, chant the holy name of the Lord, hear Srimad-Bhagavatam, reside at Mathura and worship the Deity with faith and veneration. These five limbs of devotional service are the best of all. Even a slight performance of these five awakens love for Krishna.”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 23.69:
“The transcendental qualities of Lord Krishna are unlimited. Out of these, sixty-four are considered prominent. The ears of the devotees are satisfied simply by hearing all these qualities one after the other.”
[These are: “(1) beautiful features of the entire body; (2) marked with all auspicious characteristics; (3) extremely pleasing; (4) effulgent; (5) strong; (6) ever youthful; (7) wonderful linguist; (8) truthful; (9) talks pleasingly; (10) fluent; (11) highly learned; (12) highly intelligent; (13) a genius; (14) artistic; (15) extremely clever; (16) expert; (17) grateful; (18) firmly determined; (19) an expert judge of time and circumstances; (20) sees and speaks on the authority of the Vedas, or scriptures; (21) pure; (22) self-controlled; (23) steadfast; (24) forbearing; (25) forgiving; (26) grave; (27) self-satisfied; (28) possessing equilibrium; (29) magnanimous; (30) religious; (31) heroic; (32) compassionate; (33) respectful; (34) gentle; (35) liberal; (36) shy; (37) the protector of surrendered souls; (38) happy; (39) the well-wisher of devotees; (40) controlled by love; (41) all-auspicious; (42) most powerful; (43) all-famous; (44) popular; (45) partial to devotees; (46) very attractive to all women; (47) all-worshipable; (48) all-opulent; (49) all-honorable; (50) the supreme controller; (51) changeless; (52) all-cognizant; (53) ever fresh; (54) sac-cid-ananda (possessing an eternal blissful body); (55) possessing all mystic perfections. (56) He has inconceivable potency. (57) Uncountable universes generate from His body. (58) He is the original source of all incarnations. (59) He is the giver of salvation to the enemies whom He kills. (60) He is the attractor of liberated souls. (61) He is the performer of wonderful varieties of pastimes (especially His childhood pastimes). (62) He is surrounded by devotees endowed with wonderful love of Godhead. (63) He can attract all living entities all over the universes by playing on His flute. (64) He has a wonderful excellence of beauty that cannot be rivaled anywhere in the creation.” (The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 21)]
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 23.95–98:
“‘For those who are completely washed of all material contamination by pure devotional service, who are always satisfied and brightly enlightened in the heart, who are always attached to understanding the transcendental meaning of Srimad-Bhagavatam, who are always eager to associate with advanced devotees, whose happiness in the service of the lotus feet of Govinda is their very life, who always discharge the confidential activities of love — for such advanced devotees, who are by nature situated in bliss, the seed of love [rati] is expanded in the heart by previous and current reformatory processes. Thus the mixture of ecstatic ingredients becomes tasty and, being within the perception of the devotee, reaches the highest platform of wonder and deep bliss.’”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Antya 20.14:
“‘The result of chanting is that one awakens his love for Krishna and tastes transcendental bliss. Ultimately one attains the association of Krishna and engages in His devotional service, as if immersing himself in a great ocean of love.’”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam Introduction:
“The Lord’s congregational sankirtana movement at Puri was a unique exhibition for the mass of people. That is the way to turn the mass mind towards spiritual realization. The Lord inaugurated this system of mass sankirtana, and leaders of all countries can take advantage of this spiritual movement in order to keep the mass of people in a pure state of peace and friendship with one another. This is now the demand of the present human society all over the world.”
“He [Lord Caitanya] passed through the jungles of Jharikhanda (Madhya Bharata), and all the wild animals also joined His sankirtana movement. The wild tigers, elephants, bears and deer all together accompanied the Lord, and the Lord accompanied them in sankirtana. By this He proved that by the propagation of the sankirtana movement (congregational chanting and glorifying of the name of the Lord) even the wild animals can live in peace and friendship, and what to speak of men who are supposed to be civilized. No man in the world will refuse to join the sankirtana movement. Nor is the Lord’s sankirtana movement restricted to any caste, creed, color or species. Here is direct evidence of His great mission: He allowed even the wild animals to partake in His great movement.”
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura:
From Sri Brahma-samhita 5.38, purport:
“Nowadays also the devotees see Him [Krishna] in Vraja in their hearts, saturated with devotion although they do not see Him with their eyes. The eye of devotion is nothing but the eye of the pure unalloyed spiritual self of the jiva. The form of Krishna is visible to that eye in proportion to its purification by the practice of devotion. When the devotion of the neophyte reaches the stage of bhava-bhakti the pure eye of that devotee is tinged with the salve of love by the grace of Krishna, which enables him to see Krishna face to face. The phrase ‘in their hearts’ means Krishna is visible in proportion as their hearts are purified by the practice of devotion.”
From Sri Brahma-samhita 5.55:
“I adore the primeval Lord Govinda, the meditators of whom, by meditating upon Him under the sway of wrath, amorous passion, natural friendly love, fear, parental affection, delusion, reverence and willing service, attain to bodily forms befitting the nature of their contemplation.”
“Purport: Bhakti is roused by following with a tinge of faith in the rule of the sastras [scriptures] and instruction of the preceptors. Such bhakti is of the nature of loyalty to the scriptural regulations. It continues to be operative as long as the corresponding natural feeling is not roused. If a person loves Krishna out of natural tendency. there is the principle of raga, which is no other than a strong desire to serve, which turns into bhava or substantive feeling. When the substantive feeling is aroused the devotee becomes an object of mercy of Krishna. It takes much time to attain this stage. Devotion which is of the nature of feeling is superior to that connected with scriptural regulation, soon attains to the realized state and is attractive to Krishna.”
From Sri Brahma-samhita 5.56:
“I worship that transcendental seat, known as Svetadvipa where as loving consorts the Laksmis in their unalloyed spiritual essence practice the amorous service of the Supreme Lord Krishna as their only lover; where every tree is a transcendental purpose tree; where the soil is the purpose gem, all water is nectar, every word is a song, every gait is a dance, the flute is the favorite attendant, effulgence is full of transcendental bliss and the supreme spiritual entities are all enjoyable and tasty, where numberless milk cows always emit transcendental oceans of milk; where there is eternal existence of transcendental time, who is ever present and without past or future and hence is not subject to the quality of passing away even for the space of half a moment. That realm is known as Goloka only to a very few self-realized souls in this world.”
From Sri Brahma-samhita 5.59:
“The highest devotion is attained by slow degrees by the method of constant endeavor for self-realization with the help of scriptural evidence, theistic conduct and perseverance in practice.”
From Sri Brahma-samhita 5.60, purport:
“He who cultivates the preliminary devotional activities anxiously keeping in view that realized state of devotion can alone attain to that object of all endeavor.”
The humble servants of Srila Prabhupada:
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 12.12.69:
“Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto my spiritual master, the son of Vyasadeva, Sukadeva Gosvami. It is he who defeats all inauspicious things within this universe. Although in the beginning he was absorbed in the happiness of Brahman realization and was living in a secluded place, giving up all other types of consciousness, he became attracted by the pleasing, most melodious pastimes of Lord Sri Krishna. He therefore mercifully spoke this supreme Purana, Srimad-Bhagavatam, which is the bright light of the Absolute Truth and which describes the activities of the Lord.”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 12.13.11–12:
“From beginning to end, the Srimad-Bhagavatam is full of narrations that encourage renunciation of material life, as well as nectarean accounts of Lord Hari’s transcendental pastimes, which give ecstasy to the saintly devotees and demigods. This Bhagavatam is the essence of all Vedanta philosophy because its subject matter is the Absolute Truth, which, while nondifferent from the spirit soul, is the ultimate reality, one without a second. The goal of this literature is exclusive devotional service unto that Supreme Truth.”
“Purport: Thus the ultimate goal of Srimad-Bhagavatam is to train the sincere reader in love of Godhead. Lord Krishna is supremely lovable because of His eternal, transcendental qualities. The beauty of this world is a dim reflection of the unlimited beauty of the Lord. Without compromise, Srimad-Bhagavatam persistently declares the glories of the Absolute Truth and is therefore the supreme spiritual literature, awarding a full taste of the nectar of love of Krishna in full Krishna consciousness.”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
From Free Write Journal #120:
“Prabhupada says we should always be engaged in Krishna conscious thought, and I try to do that faithfully.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 4:
“If we are fortunate to live in a society of devotees, then, whether we ‘notice’ or not, we are regularly being exposed to Prabhupada’s lectures, books, kirtanas, and way of life. Even when we don’t actively remember him, we can be assured that our inner self is benefiting by exposure to Prabhupada. If an iron rod is placed in fire, gradually it will become hotter and hotter, even if only by imperceptible degrees. Prabhupada used to give the example that a preoccupied airplane passenger may not notice when the plane takes off, but, after a while, he will be surprised to see that he is thousands of feet above the earth. Similarly, even if we sometimes fail to notice the benefit of living in Prabhupada’s shelter, eventually, Prabhupada will bless us to become more aware.”
“Until each of us can honestly say we like Prabhupada’s company, how will Krishna bring us to Prabhupada in the next life? Krishna looks deep into our hearts at the time of death. As Supersoul, He fulfills our heartfelt desires. He also gives us what we deserve. We may say we want to go to Prabhupada, but if we do not deserve it by our surrender and service, or if we do not really desire it, then Krishna will reward us accordingly. Of course, Prabhupada will not forsake us, and he will return in some form or other to awaken our Krishna consciousness and bring us back to His service. Our duty is to realize Prabhupada’s mercy on the heart level and then to serve the pure devotee. We cannot realize his mercy only philosophically. As we advance more, we will come to relish his company.
“One aspect of Prabhupada’s mercy is that he allowed people to approach him in different ways. Some devotees liked to be close to Prabhupada and to engage themselves directly in his personal service; others preferred to serve his order in other ways. There is not necessarily any difference in each person’s affection for Prabhupada. While Prabhupada might praise his servant for his nice cooking, another devotee serving away from Prabhupada may receive his encouragement when he hears of that devotee’s preaching. Prabhupada himself said that the preacher is more important than the ‘oil-smearing secretary.’
“There are different ways to express loyalty and love for Prabhupada. By Prabhupada’s grace, we can all find a way to like his company.”
“Where should one go with such shameful doubts? Therefore I appreciated that Prabhupada was always available for us to hear our most basic, obnoxious doubts. We often expressed them on morning walks in what appeared to be a mock debate. He often invited us to take the roles of scientists and theologians. Prabhupada would say, ‘What do they say?’ He was inviting us to bring out our own skepticism. In the name of giving scientific arguments, we eagerly expressed our doubts. Then Prabhupada would directly confront them and defeat them. He defeated us with direct, simple logic and sastra. Prabhupada never shied away from dealing with us, even when we were doubtful; he never told us we had no right to be doubtful, but instead dismantled our skeptical thoughts and built our faith. It was refreshing.”
From My Purpose at Isola di Albarella:
“SP said, ‘Birth, marriage and death are important – a father spends a fortune for the first two and the son spends on death.’”
“You are not living with devotees in a temple. ‘Can you live outside and practice Krishna consciousness?’ Someone asked SP after a lecture in Melbourne. He said, ‘Yes, this is just an example (what we are doing in our temple). You can do it in your own home.’ He said that. Practice KC wherever you are.”
From Free Write Journal #121:
“Some disciples with a ‘mystical’ attitude think I know everything about them without their telling me. But Prabhupada once wrote me, ‘Don’t keep me in the dark.’ He wanted regular correspondence and hearing from me about my service to him in the message.
“Unless they write to me, how can I respond to them and keep up to date with their activities and struggles? Not writing to me weakens their position.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 4:
“Doing the Needful
“Prabhupada always did the needful—whatever was best for spreading Krishna consciousness. His own Krishna consciousness was mature; therefore, he wanted to give Krishna consciousness to others. As he preached, his own enthusiasm and attachment to Krishna increased more and more. Although he was perfect, the ocean of Krishna consciousness is always increasing.”
From The Qualities of Sri Krishna:
“Most Powerful
“The holy name is so powerful that compared to it, everything else appears inconsequential. Whatever good is to be found in anything in this world, it is only in its ability to lead someone to the feet of the holy name. Scriptural study, which leads the intellect to understand the difference between matter and spirit, is culminated when the scholar chants the holy name. Karma-kandiya activities culminate when the fruitive worker realizes that he must surrender to Krishna through His holy name. Every activity culminates in surrender to the holy name.
“Srila Prabhupada was immersed in chanting Hare Krishna—Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare. Aware of the holy name’s power, he was confident enough to travel to America. He knew that although the Hare Krishna mantra would sound foreign to Western ears, the holy name was so powerful that it could manifest in their hearts regardless. By Srila Prabhupada’s mercy, the powerful movement of chanting the holy names is spreading to every town and village around the world.
“The holy name’s power is not yet fully unleashed in Kali-yuga. People can see Krishna, if only they will take wholeheartedly to chanting. Those who are already chanting can see the holy name’s power in their lives. Spreading the power of the holy name is the work of the Hare Krishna movement.”
From Japa Walks, Japa Talks:
“When I say we have to show Krishna our sincerity by our chanting effort, and that wonderful, auspicious things will come from the Lord when we increase our efforts—I feel excited. I start getting the inkling for an idea. Maybe it’s another vain idea, and I can attain the summit by increasing my numerical strength of chanting, or something. But what is a person supposed to live for, except the hope to improve?”
Candrasekhara Swami:
The virat form of the Lord is described to be imaginary. It is said to exist to help those who have an impersonal idea of God to conceive of God in a personal way.
Arjuna asked to see the universal form of Krishna so people could see that not only could Krishna talk about His opulence as the Supreme Lord, but He could practically demonstrate it.
Opulence and sweetness cannot go together. Otherwise you have rasa-abhasa.
Krishna does not say the living entities are His temporary parts but that they are His eternal parts.
The Mayavadis really have no answer to the question, “Where does the illusion come from?”
The Mayavadi philosophy sounds good when you first hear it, but the more you examine it, the more problems you find with it, and one of these is that the Vedic literature does not support it, and Srila Prabhupada quotes many verses to this effect.
People put forward philosophies by explaining creation so it is important to know about it.
In this material world, we imagine the various screen plays we have written for ourselves are actually factual.
The senses come from the Supreme Lord, and they are meant to serve the Supreme Lord.
Q (by Premananda Kirtan Prabhu): Is there a difference between the universal form in Srimad-Bhagavatam and the universal form in Bhagavad-gita? A: I had the same question, and I looked in the Folio, and it looks like they are pretty much the same. In the Gita, Krishna speaks about His opulences in Chapter 10, and He demonstrates them in Chapter 11. In both cases there is a correspondence between some part of the universe and some part of the body of God.
When Krishna went to make His final peace offer between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, Duryodhana had a plan to capture Krishna and hold Him for ransom. When his soldiers moved forward to do this, Krishna said, “Oh, you think I have come here alone?” and He manifested from His body a universal form with all the demigods, etc., and Duryodhana became inert in surprise, having no clue what to do next. Then Krishna absorbed the universal form back into Himself and left. Later Duryodhana spoke of Krishna as playing some mystical trick.
Regarding the Purusa-sukta, sukta comes from two words, su meaning auspicious and ukta meaning said. Thus sukta means ‘well said’.
The material world is designed in such a way that the living beings cannot understand where it came from. Only a very sincere person who studies the Vedic literature and serves the Supreme Lord, can understand why the universe exists, how it is deployed, and how we can get out of it.
There is a rare phenomena where someone has been in a vegetative state for months and then suddenly they become fully functional for an hour or so and then they die. Medical science really has no explanation for how this can happen.
There are others cases where people who have hydrocephalus and are missing 60 to 80% of their brains are fully functional.
These cases show there are other principles that are functioning which science does not know about.
From a conversation:
Materialism does not just bring down individuals; it brings down whole societies.
Materialism ends up with people smoking more and enjoying less. You are doing the same things, but they do not do the same thing for you.
Niranjana Swami:
From a class on Brhad-bhagavatamrita:
It is important to hear of the greatness of the Lord so we come to understand He is in a superior position and that we should serve Him. When we understand we are meant to please Him, we can come to have a more intimate relationship with Him.
Hansarupa Prabhu:
Several times during a 1976 visit to Mayapur, Srila Prabhupada mentioned to the devotees that if one sees a situation contaminated by the mode of ignorance and one does not act to correct it, he himself is contaminated by the mode of ignorance.
Bhaktivinoda Thakura had a vision of a city where devotees from all over the world would chant the holy name of the Lord together. Srila Prabhupada expanded upon that original vision.
The Mayapur Chandra deity originally in Prabhupada’s hut is now in his room.
Sometimes a teacher marks on a curve when everyone in the class does poorly as a concession. Lord Caitanya gives such a concession to the residents of the Kali-yuga.
We are simply trying to distribute this transcendental knowledge.
Sometimes our members go elsewhere to acquire knowledge, but generally that knowledge tends to disconnect them from Krishna.
Srila Prabhupada told Acyutananda Prabhu, who was a swami at that time, “Never trust a swami who doesn’t dance.” He meant that a swami who does not take pleasure in his spiritual practice must be taking pleasure from a material source.
Srila Prabhupada spoke minimum words with maximum effect.
He would quote a Bengali saying that your bhajana [meditation] and puja [worship] will be tested at the time of death.
When people say, “I have no time” they mean “I am wasting so much time in useless fruitive activities, I have no time to hear about the eternal benefit of the soul.”
In the beginning I was attracted by the incense. You could smell it outside the temple. We all had incense in those days [the 1970s], but the incense from the temple was something special.
Several times Srila Prabhupada said, “The temple is Vaikuntha [the spiritual world].”
Kali-yuga is fertile ground for sharing spiritual wisdom because people can see how the material world is a miserable place.
“There is nothing I can do to guarantee my happiness” – I had tried everything by age 23 and that was my realization.
Lust converted is intense hankering for the Personality of Godhead.
One should retire at fifty years and go to the preaching field, while he still has something to give. Then one will have no regrets.
There is no guarantee we will be surrounded by devotees chanting Hare Krishna at the time of death. There was a devotee who retired to Vrindavan, but when he was near the end of his life, his family forcibly took him away, so he died in some unknown location away from devotees. There has been more than one case like that.
As a new temple resident I saw the poster of Radha and Krishna holding a flute together. I asked Dravida Prabhu, “Why is Krishna holding a pipe?” Dravida expressed some surprise and explained that Krishna plays the flute. He went on to tell of some of Krishna’s pastimes with the flute which were over my head at the time.
Every moment is an opportunity to preach.
In those days, at Govinda’s it was $1.99 all you can eat, and we would give a free book.
Books have a mystical effect on people because they know within them is knowledge.
Comment by Natabara Gauranga Prabhu: Knowledge is power. So books are a superpower.
Robert Nelson did all kinds of things for Srila Prabhupada when he lived uptown. I was locking up the temple at 55th Street after the Sunday feast. I saw a street person outside the temple. “Where is Swamiji?” he said. “Which Swamiji? Do you mean Srila Prabhupada?” I replied. “Yes, Prabhupada,” he answered. I told him the sad news, “He left this world a few months ago.” He was devastated. He ended up doing a lot of handyman work, not at 55th St, but here at 305 Schermerhorn St. He became initiated by Vipramukhya Swami as Jagannatha Prasad. He passed away years ago. The devotees did a nice memorial service for him.
Comment by Bhakta Alex: One man I saw on 3rd St. said I met your Prabhupada outside a drugstore. The man started tearing up, and said, “He is not from this planet. He was sent here on a mission.”
Even in Genesis it is said the living entity is injected into the material elements from the breath of God.
Everything is related to the Supreme Lord. There is nothing bad because the Supreme Lord is ultimately good.
We should strive to attain the level of consciousness where we are not bewildered by the appearance and disappearance of the Lord in this world.
Now Mayapur is a tourist destination. There was a group from NYU who took a tourist boat up the Ganges from Kolkata, got off at Prabhupada Ghat, and walked to our temple in Mayapur.
People specialize in certain areas of the law because there are so many laws. In the field of religion, we specialize in unalloyed devotion to the Supreme Lord.
How do devotees go on with confidence in these trying times? Because they have full faith in the Personality of Godhead.
The devotees do not have time to worry because they are busy trying to increase their service to the Supreme Lord.
To touch the fabric of the spiritual realm we have to engage in the activities of that realm.
To continue to taste in spiritual life one must continue the pure motive. We must be willing to follow the minimum standard of chanting 16 rounds, following the four rules, and rendering service.
If one sins and asks for forgiveness each week, what if he dies before the next confession?
If we practice to always remember Krishna we will find it is possible.
Every enjoyment known to man is fleeting.
We are the only ones who know how to get pleasure without artificial means.
We get pleasure reading this transcendental literature and discussing it among devotees. We have all experienced this.
So many people who have read Science of Self-Realization have become devotees because it is as if Srila Prabhupada is personally speaking to them.
People are always seeking direction. Formerly they used stars; now they use artificial satellites.
All knowledge is at our fingertips, if we want it.
Srila Prabhupada said if you do not know what day it is, you are in maya.
God is in control. Thus we do not have to worry.
In martial arts they say, “Do not block what is not going to hit you.”
You get a new vision with each stage of advancement.
Rama Raya Prabhu:
Srila Prabhupada was ordered three times by his guru in dreams to take sannyasa [the renounced order of life].The final time was in Vrindavan, and his guru said previously the time was not right, but now it was time to take sannyasa.
There was a young man from Amsterdam who was an architect, and Srila Prabhupada gave him photos of a prominent Vrindavan temple and asked him to design the Juhu Bombay temple. He gave him initiation immediately, along with that important engagement. That is from the memoir of Surabhi [who was himself that architect].
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura said that the motto of his Gaudiya Math is everyone goes back home back to Godhead.
People tend to not understand how much purification is required to attain an intimate relationship with Krishna. In particular the prakrta-sahajiyas seriously misunderstand this.
Srila Prabhupada stopped a very showy devotee in the beginning of his attempt to chant the guru-puja kirtan, and asked a gurukula boy who was not particularly musically inclined but was very enthusiastic to sing instead, and Srila Prabhupada greatly appreciated the boy’s kirtan.
In the spiritual world there is no duality between the devotee’s internal consciousness and his expression of it as you often find with people in this world.
Srila Prabhupada saw a deity plate and pointed to one item and asked his disciple what it was. The devotee explained it was the daily sweet. Srila Prabhupada said he could understand that but asked what sweet it exactly was. The devotee replied that it was peanut burfi. Srila Prabhupada impressed upon him that he had taught them so many wonderful sweets that there was no need for that concoction.
Prabhupada said carob is for hippies and not to be offered to the deities.
In Sri Sri Radha-kripa-kataksha-stava-raja, Radharani is glorified for being natural and spontaneous.
God does not force us to go away from Him. It is just our choice.
The devotees do not require material bodies because material bodies are only needed by those who have material desires.
The result of attempting to render pure devotional service is that you realize how much additional purification you still have to do.
Shobha-mayi Devi Dasi:
Because King Pariksit was a great devotee of Krishna he could accept the fact that he was cursed to die in seven days was Krishna’s mercy.
By worshiping some demigods, you may get your desires fulfilled, and you may achieve this planet or that planet, but you have to come back here when the results are finished.
Five powerful warriors could not save Draupadi, but Krishna saved her.
Premananda Kirtan Prabhu:
The universal form contains things we can actually perceive with our senses and thus we can connect with God in that way.
Although we have so much knowledge given to us, sometimes we are still confused. When this happens, by the association of the Vaishnavas we can get the inspiration and direction to continue.
As we do our harinama and book distribution, we have to see ourselves as instruments of Krishna’s mercy.
When my family visited me on the Polish tour for three days, that was more transforming for them spiritually than any other previous interaction I had with them, but that could not have happened if I did not maintain a positive relationship with them for years.
Comment by Rama Raya Prabhu: Srila Prabhupada writes that the prayer of the devotee for the upliftment of others is always answered.
Ter Kadamba Prabhu:
A transcendental religion as opposed to a mundane religion can show how everything is connected with God.
Brahma is happy that Narada is inquiring from him about the source of the universe rather than trying to figure it out by his own experiment and speculation.
You see a materialist after ten years, and you see they are dealing with the same issues, but you see a devotee after ten years, and you see how much they have progressed.
People sometimes say, “I do devotional service when I feel like it.” That is not spontaneous. That is sporadic.
Hari Vilasa Prabhu:
We are ordained a certain place in this world, and we are placed there.
Similarly we can be placed in the kingdom of God, but we cannot enter there by force.
To attain any position, you have to pay the price to go there.
If we attain a place based on our consciousness, the question is how to attain the consciousness of the kingdom of God.
The universe is organized so people with a similar mentality live together.
To advance we have to seek the association of those who are more advanced.
There is a saying, “If you are the smartest person in a room, you are in the wrong room.”
If you can be friends with devotees, 90% of your spiritual life is successful.
If you do not get taste in devotional friendship, you will seek it elsewhere.
Respect is the basis of Vaishnava relationships and not just an official respect demonstrated by acting in certain ways.
To think you are entitled to someone’s time or association is the most objectionable mentality.
You do not choose your friends. Others choose you as a friend. You consider yourself to be their servant. In this way friendships are sustained.
When two devotees can act on the Vaishnava platform, they have already entered into the kingdom of God.
The mood of the preacher is to look for signs of sincerity and then willingly extend himself or herself.
When we associate with advanced devotees, if we are fortunate we can see Krishna through their eyes.
We see in the Bhagavatam in different peoples’ lives at some point they have a breakthrough.
In the mode of passion, all you can see is what you want.
It is amazing how much people suffer unnecessarily simply because they are stubborn.
Even people with great spiritual potency can only help you if you allow them to. Some people who met Srila Prabhupada surrendered themselves completely and became his disciples while others considered him an ordinary man.
Q (by me): My father died when I was 12, and my grandmother died when I was 13. It is hard to develop intimate relationships with people when I know I will be separated from them by death. A: Although as with others, we are separated from our devotee friends when they die, our attachment to devotee friends who have departed draws us closer to Krishna and therefore they are valuable spiritually.
This world is not a comedy or an action movie but a tragedy.
Lord Rama shows the tragic reality of human life, but if it is done in terms of dharma, it is noble and glorious.
Natabara Gauranga Prabhu:
In Jaiva Dharma Bhaktivinoda Thakura says that a society’s impiety is indicated by its lack of varnasrama [the system of social and spiritual orders recommended by the Supreme Lord and meant to uplift society spiritually].
In our present society everyone is encouraged to study in school, in elementary school, in high school, and then in college, but that is not actually ideal. Many occupations do not require so many years of education, and thus many people are simply wasting their time.
In Krishna’s own life as a vaisya youth, He did not require much education to help his father tend the cows. Only later after he left Vrindavan, he studied under his guru, Sandipani Muni, as a ksatriya prince.
The brahmana’s education never stops.
Unless a brahmana performs the three compulsory duties, he has no right to accept charity.
According to Lord Caitanya, eating karmi grains gives you karmi brains.
Q (by Caranti Devi Dasi): What do you do if people give you unofferable things on sankirtana. A: It is important for them that you accept what is offered, but it is important for yourself that you do not eat or offer forbidden things. Thus you have to somehow dispose of it.
Ananda-bihari Prabhu:
In sharing Krishna consciousness we have to figure out how to bypass a person’s ego.
“You are a person. You have likes and dislikes. God can not be less than that.”
God’s only business is to exchange love with His devotees.
This coronavirus is not coming from China. It is coming from Krishna. It is to help us to learn that this world is not a place to become comfortable in.
If you think “I am not paying my bills, I am paying Krishna’s bills,” it is a lot easier to get excited about paying them.
When we encounter challenges in life, we can think, “Let this purify me.”
Kaustubha says that the impersonalist idea of reducing activities to zero to achieve peace is like a debtor aspiring to be out of debt instead of aspiring to have a positive balance.
Because Krishna is giving us our karma, He can take it away.
Comment by Divyanga Devi Dasi: Instead of thinking “Why is Krishna doing something to me?” we can think “Why is Krishna doing something for me?” Just one word difference.
Our material life can end in a second, just as a nightmare can end in a second as soon as we wake up.
If you work for God, you do not have to worry about Him going out of business.
Comment by Lumi: I decreased my expenses so I would not have to work so much, and I would have more time for my spiritual life. Now I live in a van.
Vraja Mohana Prabhu:
Aindra Prabhu was asked by a devotee why he had not attained suddha-nama, the pure chanting of the holy name,although he had chanted for so many years.
Aindra Prabhu snapped back, “Who is stopping you?” In this way, he reminded us that it is our fault we have not attained that stage.
In Harinama-cintamani it is said that offensive chanting can give one impersonal liberation, but by nama-abhasa chanting can give one of the Vaishnava kinds of liberation in Vaikuntha-loka [the spiritual world]. Thus one who passes by the harinama party and chants a couple of holy names can actually attain the spiritual world.
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jivera ‘svarupa’ haya — krishnera ‘nitya-dasa’
krishnera ‘tatastha-shakti’ ‘bhedabheda-prakasa’
[Lord Caitanya tells the inquisitive Sanatana Goswami:] “It is the living entity’s constitutional position to be an eternal servant of Krishna because he is the marginal energy of Krishna and a manifestation simultaneously one with and different from the Lord.” (Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 20.108)
This important verse by Lord Caitanya informs us that as spiritual souls we are marginal energy and can thus take shelter of the spiritual energy of the Lord or the material energy of the Lord. When under the control of the material energy we suffer varieties of inevitable miseries in our material life although we constantly endeavor for happiness. Thus the best course is to take shelter of the spiritual energy of the Lord for then we will just experience spiritual pleasure even when situated in this material world. We can take shelter of the spiritual energy by performing acts of devotion to the Supreme Lord, the most recommended one being for this period in time, according to the Vedic literature of India, the congregational chanting of the holy name of the Supreme Lord. I encourage everyone to attempt this and see if you like how the spiritual energy feels compared to the material energy, and set yourself up for the best possible future.
This year, in the midst of unprecedented crisis faced by the world due to SARS-Covid-19, there was heartening news which delighted at least all the well-wishers of H.H. Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Swami. The announcement of Sir Roger Penrose winning the Nobel for physics brought cheers to many of us. Besides, soon after the announcement, the book 'Science, Spirituality and The Nature of Reality', a dialogue between Sir Roger Penrose and Dr. T.D. Singh was in demand and recorded good online sales on Amazon. Continue reading "New Science – A Divine Vision of H.H. Bhaktisvarupa Damodara Swami → Dandavats"
Her Grace Tungavidya Devi Dasi, a dedicated pujari and preacher who was much beloved by devotees, passed away due to acute cardiac arrest (reportedly a complication from COVID-19) on December 14th, 2020. She departed at 3:45am during the sacred Brahma Muhurta period on Samvit Amavasya in Sri Vrindavan Dhama, India. Tungavidya Devi Dasi and her […]
A devotee farmer near the Gita Nagari farm in Port Royal, Pennsylvania, has received a Farm Ownership Loan from the USDA Farm Service Agency, which offers low rates to help new farmers buy farms. The program offers up to 100% financing on up to $600,000, and encourages people to take up farming and save farmland […]
Gita Nagari is a 350-acre farm, established in 1974 to fulfill Srila Prabhupada’s instruction that city temples should be affiliated with farm projects.
Pundarika Vidyanidhi initiated Gadadhara Pandita for the second time, and on the day of Odana-shashthi he saw the festival.
PURPORT
At the beginning of winter, there is a ceremony known as the Odana-shashthi. This ceremony indicates that from that day forward, a winter covering should be given to Lord Jagannatha. That covering is directly purchased from a weaver. According to the arcana-marga, a cloth should first be washed to remove all the starch, and then it can be used to cover the Lord. Pundarika Vidyanidhi saw that the priest neglected to wash the cloth before covering Lord Jagannatha. Since he wanted to find some fault in the devotees, he became indignant.
jagannatha parena tatha ’maduya’ vasana
dekhiya saghrna haila vidyanidhira mana
When Pundarika Vidyanidhi saw that Lord Jagannatha was given a starched garment, he became a little hateful. In this way his mind was polluted.
sei ratrye jagannatha-balai asiya
dui-bhai cada’na tanre hasiya hasiya
That night the brothers Lord Jagannatha and Balarama came to Pundarika Vidyanidhi and, smiling, began to slap him.
gala phulila, acarya antare ullasa
vistari’ varniyachena vrndavana-dasa
Although his cheeks were swollen from the slapping, Pundarika Vidyanidhi was very happy within. This incident has been elaborately described by Thakura Vrndavana dasa.
In 1976, Srila Prabhupada instructed the founding members of the Bhaktivedanta Institute “to build a model of the universe that could later be built full size at the future Mayapur Temple and Planetarium complex.” To help broadly facilitate Srila Prabhupada’s directive, the Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies (BIHS) in Gainesville, Florida, recently hosted its second […]
The cosmography workshop entitled as “Models and memes and maps: A modern journey through ancient cosmography” attracted participants online from around the world over the weekend of November 21-22, 2020.
The Sri Sri Doyal Nitai Sacisuta temple in Moscow has announced, with deep sorrow, the passing of His Grace Brahmananda Puri Das due to COVID-19 complications. About two weeks ago, Brahmananda Puri, one of the seniormost Russian-speaking Vaishnavas, was hospitalized with pneumonia as a result of COVID-19. He passed away on the morning of […]
Religious restrictions around the world often target women, who in many countries face censure because their clothing is considered too religious – or not religious enough. These restrictions frequently take the form of social harassment by individuals or groups, but also sometimes involve official government actions. Women in 56 countries experienced social hostilities – […]
Religious restrictions around the world often target women, who in many countries face censure because their clothing is considered too religious – or not religious enough.
The Bhagavad-gita online course developed by devotee professionals led by Lila Purusottam Das (Dr. Laxmidhar Behera) Professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering, at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur available here: https://LearnGitaLiveGita.com/. The course contains 10 lessons with over 60 videos to ensure the graduates learn the practical application of the Bhagavad Gita As It Is in […]
The Bhagavad-gita online course developed by devotee professionals led by Lila Purusottam Das (Dr. Laxmidhar Behera) Professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering, at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur available here: https://LearnGitaLiveGita.com/. The course contains 10 lessons with over 60 videos to ensure the graduates learn the practical application of the Bhagavad Gita As It Is in their lives.
The third annual MAN-tra Retreat was held online November 20th to 21st. Due to Covid-pandemic restrictions, the planned 2020 New Vrindaban in person retreat was cancelled but then, bad became good. With 210 registered participants from Canada, US. England,South Africa, Trinidad, India, Indonesia, Australia, Russia and Bangladesh the audience widened. International participants have requested […]
What if your 11-year-old son comes home one day and says he wants to cut off his sika? Or your teenage daughter doesn’t want to wear neck beads because they ruin her look? How about if your kids want to spend time over at the homes of friends who are not devotees? Or you learn […]
We need to have good communication skills to be able to have conversations about tough topics and to maintain openness and trust in the relationship. Part of this means knowing when to stop talking.
With the second wave, more than fifteen devotees are infected with the COVID virus. I implore all of you to please be careful. Please stay at home, avoid gatherings, and take all precautions when you have to go out.
By Malati Devi Dasi
By Danavir Goswami
Her Grace Yamuna-devi dasi passed away on December 20, 2011. 
By ISKCON-London Communications
By Jaganmohini devi dasi
