Planet ISKCON

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 20 March 2013, Melbourne, Australia, Srimad Bhagavatam 2.7.52)

Humility is something alien in the modern world. We had a comic in Holland; I saw it as a kid but it made an impression on me. It was a simple man; he had a cap on – a labourer type – and he was coming for a job interview which was happening in a big hall. The interviewer was sitting behind a glass with a screen so you couldn’t see him but his voice was coming out through a loud speaker.

The voice was saying, “Name?” Then the man said his name and he said, “Thank you very much, please.” And after every question that he answered, he said, “Thank you very much, please,” and he looked like a total fool but actually, if you think about it, he was very humble and the other man (the interviewer) was very cold and arrogant.

But this humility was depicted as like… you become a fool when you are humble. when you are simple! So the whole world projects this upon us that you’re a fool when you’re simple.

Even when you are a devotee, it hounds you, “How many slokas do you know?”

Reply, “Seven!”

“Only seven! My god, how can you know only seven slokas!?” Who can be so simple to say so…

So, the social pressure upon us in this whole world, where you have to be greater than you are, comes into every field. In the modern world, it came into the field of sex because ordinary sex will not do – it has to be super sex! You have to be a super lover and if you’re not a super lover, you’re a loser. That’s the image that is being projected.

The article " The pressure to be super good! " was published on KKSBlog.

Whenever a devotee leaves his or her body, we hear so much praise of them. Everyone becomes happy to be absorbed glorifying a devotee. It seems that we do not do enough of praising devotees while they are with us. Of course a devotee should not be hankering to be praised. St. Francis of Assisi would tell those who started to praise him, "Wait until I am dead, I could fall down at any time". Of course that just makes him more worthy of praise. "Offering all respect to others, but not expecting anything in return" Siksastakam 3. Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu took great pleasure in praising devotees. He gave both a personal example and guidelines. "‘One should see that because of the meeting of material nature and the living entity, the universe is acting uniformly. Thus one should neither praise nor criticize the characteristics or activities of others.' Continue reading "Wait Until I Am Dead
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The animal part of a human being necessarily require food to eat, shelter to live in, protection from fear and gratification of senses. These four principles of life are common both to the man and the animals. A time is nearing when there will be no wheat paddy in the field and no politician will be able to make a quick supply of bread. The food problem is already acute. The atheistic civilization is to be troubled more and more with the progress of materialism. We have such foretellings in the pages of Srimad-Bhagavatam. The more the people are turning to the atheistic, the more things of disturbing elements do appear before us. And that is the thing which matters at present. This is a wrong type of civilization. Continue reading "What is the matter with the world
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The grand finale of my sojourn at Korsnäs Gård was the Vegetarian World Food Masterclass.
Thanks to Kalindi Vraj for most of the images.
Goodbye Scandinavia - I’m looking forward to some nights without sunshine
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Dhirasanta Das Goswami: It was the hour of the day when anyone could come to the king and present anything and the king would deal with it. So Maharaja Yudhisthira was on the throne waiting for people and Bhima was at the entrance to the castle in the next room.

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Srila Prabhupada: Simply we have to desire to please Him, and not desire anything for ourselves. Then we become simply instruments for His will. This is the important essence of Krishna consciousness. Letter to Atreya Rsi, October 20, 1973.

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Srila Prabhupada: “Even while engaged in various activities, devotees whose minds are completely absorbed at Your lotus feet, and who constantly hear, chant, contemplate and cause others to remember Your transcendental names and forms, are always on the transcendental platform, and thus they can understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 10.2.37)
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«Important Kirtan Points»
Hare Krishna, everyone! I’m BB Govinda Swami and I’m visiting Bhaktivedanta Manor and I was requested to give a brief interview for Kirtan Space. I was requested to speak on important points, points that I feel are important about kirtan.

“This is love. This service that you are doing, this is also love.”
Kadamba Kanana Swami: It is interesting that when speaking of prema (pure love for Krsna) in the Srimad Bhagavatam, the example is given of the intermediate devotee, the madhyama-adhikārī. Not the kanishta-adhikārī (the neophyte), but of the madhyama, someone a bit more advanced, a devotee who has shown determination. It is provided: īśvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca prema-maitrī-kṛpopekṣā yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ (Srimad Bhagavatam 11.2.46). This says that for the madhyama-adhikārī, he has prema for isvara (Lord), friendship for the devotees and indifference for the envious. So it is interesting that the word prema has been used for the madhyama-adhikārī. Now, prema comes at the end of the ladder of the nine stages of bhakti, from sraddha (faith) to prema (pure love for Krsna). So how is it that the madhyama-adhikārī can already have prema, considering it is the uttama-adhikārī who is the advanced devotee. This is because prema is not like flicking a light switch that can suddenly be changed from the darkness of ignorance to “I love Krsna”! There is a lot in between where that Krsna prema is developing and growing.

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 03 May 2016, Vrndavana, India, Bhagavad-gita 3.34)

It is interesting that when speaking of prema (pure love for Krsna) in the Srimad Bhagavatam, the example is given of the intermediate devotee, the madhyama-adhikārī. Not the kanishta-adhikārī (the neophyte), but of the madhyama, someone a bit more advanced, a devotee who has shown determination. It is provided: īśvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca prema-maitrī-kṛpopekṣā yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ (Srimad Bhagavatam 11.2.46). This says that for the madhyama-adhikārī, he has prema for isvara (Lord), friendship for the devotees and indifference for the envious. So it is interesting that the word prema has been used for the madhyama-adhikārī. Now, prema comes at the end of the ladder of the nine stages of bhakti, from sraddha (faith) to prema (pure love for Krsna). So how is it that the madhyama-adhikārī can already have prema, considering it is the uttama-adhikārī who is the advanced devotee. This is because prema is not like flicking a light switch that can suddenly be changed from the darkness of ignorance to “I love Krsna”! There is a lot in between where that Krsna prema is developing and growing.

So our movement is operating on this goal of attaining love for Krsna. Prabhupada was very generous in that regard. For instance, we may remember the famous story that Srutakirti prabhu told us about massaging Prabhupada. It started with a large group of devotees receiving Prabhupada at the airport. Since they had not seen Prabhupada in a very long time, everyone was crying when Prabhupada arrived, except for Srutakirti. He had dry eyes with not a single tear. So when he was massaging Prabhupada later that day, he expressed to Prabhupada, “I am such a fallen soul Prabhupada. Everyone was crying at the airport when they saw you, because they were full of love for you. But I am just cold, and I have no feeling in my heart. No love at all. What do I do?” Prabhupada responded with absolutely nothing. The next day however when it was time for the same massage, Prabhupada finally gave the answer to Srutakirti, “This is love. This service that you are doing, this is also love.”

Therefore, Prabhupada was very generous in such ways. There are other pastimes of intimate servants of Prabhupada whose minds were still not always aligned, and wanted to do something else, even while they were serving Prabhupada, a pure devotee. Now we can say things like, “Prabhupada is a unique personality who did the greatest work of bringing this movement forward for all of us.” But his servants, meanwhile, were also after a while, ready to do something else. So imagine how this point counts for all of us. We are engaging in devotional service and yet our mind may sometimes desire some other activity. This is possible. We may think to ourselves while chanting, “Do I really have to do it again? This is not even pure love.” But Prabhupada did not look at it in that strict sense, because even if it is not manifesting as pure love, regardless, it is still love.

The article " Defining love " was published on KKSBlog.

Kirtan Mela in New Dwarka, Iskcon Los Angeles (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: “O Lord,” the demigods say, “the impersonalists, who are nondevotees, cannot understand that Your name is identical with Your form.” Since the Lord is absolute, there is no difference between His name and His actual form. In the material world there is a difference between form and name. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 10.2.36 Purport).
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Have you ever worked for someone who doesn’t have time for you? Krishna is the controller of everything, but He has all the time in the universe for you. And not only for you but for me too. That’s the beauty of Krishna. He is with all of us individually. Because the Krishna conscious person is regulated in his work, speech, sleep, wakefulness, and other bodily activities, he or she experiences no misery. This is practical. If someone undergoes some sort of stress, a friend might say, “Just take your mind off it; get engrossed in your work.” People do that as a kind of therapy. Here the Gita recommends we go on permanent therapy. Work for Krishna. You’ll get so absorbed that you won’t fear even death. Steadiness comes from being constantly engaged in serving guru and Krishna. In the spiritual world the gopis compete to serve Krishna. There is so much work to do for Krishna that you can be totally carried away. Love is both a verb and a noun. To feel perfect satisfaction, you have to practice loving Krishna. You have to serve Him. Continue reading "Practice Loving Krishna
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Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada was the founder and organiser of a large worldwide religious movement; that he developed it in just twelve years, all after his seventieth birthday, shows that he was not only practical, innovative and determined but also spiritually empowered. Although these are valid reasons to think highly of Srila Prabhupada, he always de-emphasised his own abilities, preferring to be judged on the more objective grounds of his bona fide allegiance to the teachings of the Vaisnava tradition he represented. He did not credit his preaching success to any special abilities of his own. As he once said, 'I don't claim that I am a pure devotee or perfect, but my only qualification is that I am trying to follow the instruction of the perfect.' Continue reading "Srila Prabhupada and the Vaisnava Tradition of Scriptural Commentary: Serving the Words of His Predecessors
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“Сердце мое вовсе не довольно, если  преданные, безразличные ко всем остальным духовным практикам и реализациям, желающие одного лишь личного служения Шримати Радхике, постоянно воспевающие Ее славу и поглощенный любовью к Ней, достигают  того же места на Вайкунтхе, что и иные преданные. Это так печально! Я не могу смириться с тем, что это конечное место назначения таких преданных, как Шри Нандарайа и Шри Яшода. Все-таки для них должна быть иная обитель, выше Вайкунтхи. Если есть такое место, пожалуйста, опиши мне его и развей мои сомнения”.

[ Уттара – своему сыну, Парикшиу Махараджу, “Брихат-Бхагаватамрита”, 2.121-22,24 ]

“My heart cannot be satisfied if those devotees who, being indifferent to any other spiritual practice and spiritual attainment, desire only the personal service of Srimati Radhika, and who perpetually sing Her glories and are immersed in love for Her, attain residence in merely the same Vaikuntha as so many other devotees do. This is a matter of great sorrow! And I cannot tolerate that this must be the final destination for devotees like Sri Nandaraya and Sri Yasoda. There must certainly be a suitable abode for them that is superior to Vaikuntha. If there is such a place, then please describe and deliver me from doubt.”

[ Uttara to her son, Pariksit Maharaja, Brhat Bhagavatamrta, 2.121-22,24 ]

The word "Acarya" in Founder-Acarya means that Srila Prabhupada is the ultimate teacher by his own example in ISKCON. Being a perfect teacher by example, therefore, everything he does is instructive because, as followers, we are meant to aspire to strictly follow his example. Prabhupada would oftentimes speak about the difference between following in the footsteps and imitating. He would say that following in the footsteps of the previous acaryas means that we follow the same path they themselves walked. It also means to follow their instructions. Therefore, mahajano yena gatah sa panthah....they leave behind instructions by which their followers can traverse the same path as they themselves also traversed. Imitating means that we try to artificially imitate the position of being fully realized without being fully realized. Continue reading "The Highest Compassion
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Bhimasena said to Srila Vyasadeva, “Only when I eat to my full satisfaction does the fire in my stomach become satisfied. Oh great sage, I might possibly be able to fast only once, so I beg that you tell me of an Ekadasi that is worthy of my fasting and that includes all other Ekadasis. I shall faithfully observe that fast and hopefully still become eligible for liberation.”

Srila Vyasadeva said, “Oh Bhimasena, one who can fast on the special Jyestha-sukla Ekadasi reaps the benefit of having fasted on every Ekadasi during the year. You should even give up drinking water on this particularly auspicious Ekadasi day. 

Oh Vrikodara (veracious eater), whoever fasts on this Ekadasi receives the merits of bathing in all the places of pilgrimage, giving all kinds of charities to worthy persons, and fasting on all the dark and light Ekadasis throughout the year, in one go. Of this there is no doubt.

Oh tiger among men, whoever fasts on this Ekadasi truly becomes a great person and achieves all manner of opulence and wealth, grains, strength, and health. And at the fearful moment of death, the terrible Yamadutas, whose complexions are yellow and black and who brandish huge maces and twirl mystic pasha ropes in the air for binding their victims, will refuse to approach him. 

Rather, such a faithful soul will at once be taken to the supreme abode of Lord Visnu by the Visnu-dutas, whose transcendentally beautiful forms are clothed in gorgeous yellowish garments and who each hold a disk, club, conch and lotus in their four hands, resembling Lord Visnu. It is to gain all these benefits that one should certainly fast on this very auspicious and important Ekadasi, even from water.”

When the other Pandavas heard about the benefits to be gained by following Jyestha-sukla Ekadasi, they resolved to observe it exactly as their grandfather Srila Vyasadeva had explained it to their brother, Bhimasena. All the Pandavas observed it by refraining from eating or drinking anything, and thus this day is also known as Pandava Nirjala Ekadasi.

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