Thursday, Sept 21st, 2017
→ The Walking Monk

Sterling Heights, Michigan

What Is Genuine?

“Hey, do you guys want to distinguish reality from illusion, big time?” is what I said to Hayagriva and Marshall.  The phrase about “reality and illusion” may sound as a reference from the book Bhagavatam—the first verse.  What I was actually half-joking about was something more to do with the truth behind taste—real taste or flavour that’s organic and not GMO.  While we were parked at an abandoned lot off of I-80 for a break, I pointed at two apple trees, one a red delicious breed and the other, a golden delicious.

“Go and try some of these fruits, far removed from the artificial flavours at the grocery store.”  There was a slight hesitation before they moved zealously in the direction of the discovered apple trees, but once they went for the pick and the bite, they understood what I was talking about.  The experience of taking an apple locally-grown and free of pesticides is a taste worth experiencing—a genuine explosion of joy.

My team agreed with me that real flavour is what’s missing in our food today. https://instagram.com/p/BZTi5bDlpxt/

It was an energy boost.  We carried on driving.  And what a drive it was, starting from Omaha, Nebraska, en route to Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and finally Michigan.  We embarked upon our destination for an evening program at Ypsilanti.  I see new people here, Carl and Radha who are new-residents in the house called “Harmony Collective.”  For my talk some young folks came for the first time—Meena and Josh.  I wish them well in their spiritual endeavours.  I hope they return for more of the genuine experience of hearing and chanting.

Vivasvan and Ananda Rupa invited us to their home for a rest.  They still have the Ganesh deity that we found in the bottom of a lake in Massachusetts when commencing this U.S. walk.

May the Source be with you!

0 mi


Giriraj Swami’s Vyasa-puja, September 17, London, via Skype
Giriraj Swami

IMG_0877Giriraj Swami read and spoke from Srimad Bhagavatam 3.15.25.

“When one is free from all ten of these offenses in chanting the holy name of God, he develops the ecstatic bodily features called pulakasru. Pulaka means “symptoms of happiness,” and asru means “tears in the eyes.” The symptoms of happiness and tears in the eyes must appear in a person who has chanted the holy name offenselessly. Here in this verse it is stated that those who have actually developed the symptoms of happiness and tears in the eyes by chanting the glories of the Lord are eligible to enter the kingdom of God. In the Caitanya-caritamrta it is said that if one does not develop these symptoms while chanting Hare Krsna, it is to be understood that he is still offensive. Caitanya-caritamrta suggests a nice remedy in this connection. There it is said in verse 31, Chapter Eight, of Adi-lila, that if anyone takes shelter of Lord Caitanya and just chants the holy name of the Lord, Hare Krsna, he becomes freed from all offenses.” SB 3.15.25 purport.

Vyasa-puja, London

Chitra Devi – The Compassionate-Hearted One
→ Mayapur.com

Today is  Chitra Devi Sakhi’s divine appearance day. At Mayapur, she is adorned with colorful garlands and special decorations and her divine qualities are displayed, for everyone to glorify & pray to her for mercy to serve the divine couple. In the year 1992, Chitra Devi was one of the last of the four Asta-sakhis, […]

The post Chitra Devi – The Compassionate-Hearted One appeared first on Mayapur.com.

The days of austerity
→ KKSBlog

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 2011, Berlin, Germany, Lecture)

In the earlier days of ISKCON, austerity was a big thing. It was considered spiritual, the more austere the more spiritual – the colder the water the better, the less you ate the more Krsna conscious you were! The days of austerity where everything was taboo! A book that was not Krsna conscious, if found in the ashram, would be confiscated and burned!

“Such books are not to be read, such books are maya, such books are contaminating us! We do not even wish to see them! Destroy them, annihilate them so that we will be safe from maya and it will not in any way disturb us and we will have purity in our devotional life!”

There is just one thing that we forgot. We forgot that we are human; we forgot that we have taste; we forgot that we have likes and dislikes; we forgot that we desire to enjoy and feel good.

Those days of fanaticism have moved along; it does not last.

 

Training Oxen by Voice Commands Lesson 3
→ Life With the Cows and Land



Lesson 3 is about teaching the commands "Get Up" and "Whoa" to the team Dhruva Laddhu and Kalyan Tamal. In this video, Dhruva is 9 months old and Kalyan is 10 months old. Check back or subscribe to know when the continuing lessons are published. By the end of the series, one should know how to train a team from an early age to adulthood or full working capacity.

enCHANTING evening of Kirtan and Bhajan- Saturday- Oct 14th 2017
→ ISKCON Scarborough



Hare Krishna!
Please accept our humble obeisances!
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga!


You are invited to an evening of soul stirring kirtan & Bhajan organised by ISKCON Scarborough on October 14th, 2017.

Here are additional details
When: Saturday - Oct 14th - 6 pm to 9.00 pm
Where: Sri Sathya Sai Baba Centre of Scarborough, 5321 Finch Ave E, Scarborough, ON, M1S5W2(Finch/Middle field Rd)
Cost of ticket: Free. Please send an email to www.iskconscarborough@hotmail.com for free tickets
Capacity of the Hall: 650 guests
Singers: Hari Bhakti Dey (Australia), Ajamil das and many others



ISKCON Scarborough
3500 McNicoll Avenue, Unit #3,
Scarborough,Ontario,
Canada,M1V4C7

Email Address:
iskconscarborough@hotmail.com

website: www.iskconscarborough.org

Tiling the Main Dome
- TOVP.org

Tiling of the Main Dome is now in full swing in preparation for the installation of the Kalash and Chakra in February. These photos reveal the beauty of the blue tiles.

Waterproofing and tiling are done daily from morning till evening and the facing of the Main Dome will be completed in six months. Tiling of the Nrsimhadeva Dome will also start shortly.

The post Tiling the Main Dome appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Wednesday, September 20th, 2017
→ The Walking Monk

Omaha, Nebraska

At Om-Maha!

“Do you speak English?” asked the young father of two kids active at the playground.

“Yes, I do!”  I said.

“Are they smudging?” he asked, referring to the two monks, my helpers, Hayagriva and Marshall.  They were sitting on the grass.  

I simply replied, “They are actually chanting.  It’s like sharing a peace pipe.  They are purifying the atmosphere with ancient Sanskrit mantras.  It benefits both the persons singing and those who are listening.”

“It’s very peaceful, soothing,” remarked the man, who identified himself as Andrew.  He’s been struggling with life, has been to rehab but has been straight and sober for two years and three months.  When he told me of this victory, I congratulated him.

“The chanting is something that grounds an individual.  Here is my card with the mantra on the back.  I just finished a cross-country U.S.A. walk and have been chanting a lot of it.”  I also gave him the book, On Chanting, and a second one, How to Make a Deal With the Universe, which I had an extra copy of and is authored by Rami Bleckt, a friend and bhakti yogi.   https://www.amazon.com/How-Make-Deal-Universe-English/dp/5990198752 

Andrew was most appreciative and I was pleased to have met him.  “Please keep in touch.” 

I had also been keeping in contact with another young father, Josh, who came over to the park—Westwood Heights—to see me.  He also partook of the apparent “smudge.”

More chanting took place in Omaha, in the company of Bhaskar, where we had gathered last summer as I was making my way on foot to the west.  It was a great day on wheels and in the park.  I managed, however, to squeeze in two miles on foot.

May the Source be with you!

2 miles

Srila Prabhupada Is Right Here
Giriraj Swami

Prabhupada deity in Juhu quartersA twenty-two-year-old devotee in Mumbai, Radhika Jajodia, sent me a beautiful letter about her realizations of Srila Prabhupada’s merciful presence in his quarters in Juhu, which she entitled “Srila Prabhupada Is Right Here”:

One day during your last stay in Juhu, in 2014–15, you were chanting in Srila Prabhupada’s quarters. I really wanted to take some association, so I came running from home to join you. But as soon as I got there, you completed a round and left for your room one floor below.

I felt so unfortunate. But then I decided to chant a few rounds sitting in front of Srila Prabhupada. As I was chanting, I was looking at His Divine Grace and praying, “O Prabhupada, please let me have some personal association with my guru maharaja. Please let me have some exchange, some interaction. I really need it. Just a few minutes will be enough to encourage me to carry on my practices for the months when he will no longer be present in Bombay. Please, please be merciful on me, O Prabhupada.”

I was repeating the same prayer again and again, using different words.

And then a miracle happened. The very moment I completed my second round of japa and was saying the Pancha-tattva mantra, my cellphone rang. It was my brother, Narottam, who was serving you. I instantly got goosebumps. I picked up the call, and he said, “Guru Maharaja wants to see you. Come down to his room immediately.”

I couldn’t believe my ears. I just looked at Srila Prabhupada sitting there with his divine effulgence. At that very moment I could feel—I just knew—that he was right there, present with me, listening to me. I couldn’t help but burst into tears of love and gratitude.

Once I regained control of my emotions, I wiped off the tears and rushed downstairs to see you. Your caring and loving words during that five-to-ten-minute meeting gave me so much spiritual strength for the many months that followed.

Since that day, my bond with Srila Prabhupada has grown deeper. And whenever I visit his quarters in Juhu, I can feel it: He is right here.

Your fallen servant,
Radhika Jajodia

Tuesday, September 19th, 2017
→ The Walking Monk

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Going East

Onward we go in our trusty 2006 Ford Freestar, ‘The Jaladuta Express’, eastbound on I-80 through Utah, Wyoming and the soon-approaching Nebraska.  We know little of what’s going on in the world.  We are in our own little transcendental bubble.  This is brahmacari-style living—simple, humble.  We like it that way.

Even though we are somewhat limited to a van, we have diverse things going on—japameditation, chanting, reading, naps and some time in the park.  It’s a break for us and our machine, ‘The Jaladuta’.

The capital city of Wyoming is Cheyenne, population 64,000, and it’s celebrating its 150th birthday, just like Canada.  We pull over at the Holiday Park, where a manmade lake is replete with deep red fish—maybe goldfish.  But that’s not how we busied ourselves.  The squirrels are particularly human-friendly, golden-bellied and gorgeous tailed.  The boys did the benevolent act of feeding the bushy-tailed creatures with peanut prasadam.  They went squirrely, both my assistants and the animals.

Now, all three of us are from the east.  We’ve never seen dust storms like they have here, where the sky turns brown and tumbleweeds and corn stalks are hurled through the air.  Visibility was poor.  It’s actually dangerous. https://instagram.com/p/BZRPDaclkoT/

When the term “the wild, wild west” is used, it just can’t only refer to tough cowboys with spurs and the roping and lassoing of cattle and horses.  It just might have something to do with the concept of weather.  It was beastly.

May the Source be with you!

1.5 miles

Monday, September 18th, 2017
→ The Walking Monk

Salt Lake City, Utah

To Salt Lake

It is our first day of travel back to the east—a long twelve hour drive on Interstate 80.  No walking for me today.  The boys and I were on a tight deadline to make it to Salt Lake City.

The two-consecutive-no-walking-day program has me a little worried.  If it keeps up, I’ll gain weight again.  Currently my kurta (upper cloth) hangs loose on my torso and I'm kind of glad about that.  Future tailoring means a tighter knit with the kurta, if I stay thin.  Just a bit of discipline is required in the form of walking to keep pounds (karma) at bay.

While in the passenger’s seat, I get the chance to keep up with reading Chasing the Rhinos With the Swami, authored by Shyamasundar.  I'm in the episode where he met and spent quality time with George Harrison.  Marshall was in the driver's seat and reminded me of a song by Geroge—“Any Road.”  So I played it from the phone.  Here are some of the lyrics:

“Oh I've been traveling on a boat and a plane
In a car on a bike with a bus and a train
Traveling there and traveling here
Everywhere in every gear

But oh Lord we pay the price
With a spin of a wheel, with the roll of a dice
Ah yeah you pay your fare
And if you don't know where you're going
Any road will take you there.

And I've been traveling through the dirt and the grime
From the past to the future through the space and the time
Traveling deep beneath the waves
In watery grottoes and mountainous caves.

But oh Lord we've got to fight
With the thoughts in the head, with the dark and the light.
No use to stop and stare
And if you don't know where you're going
Any road will take you there

You may not know where you came from
May not know who you are
May not even wondered how
You got this far.

I've been traveling on a wing and a prayer
By the skin of my teeth by the breadth of a hair
Traveling where the four winds blow
With the sun on my face, in the ice and the snow.”  https://youtu.be/kVxeLZyzswU


The song goes on.  It’s sweet.

The program in Salt Lake was sweet, too.  We chanted and gave a report of our walking travels up to San Francisco.  I asked if anyone knew about Tumbleweed, the kitten we found on the side of the highway, in the middle of nowhere and in the middle of the night.  We left her at Spanish Fork amidst the llamas back in August.

Thanks to the Sharma’s who opened their home for the program and Rasavilas for the accommodation.

May the Source be with you!

0 mi

Rajani Priya’s Ninety-seventh
Giriraj Swami

RP with CakeRP with GRS———————————-
Three days ago we celebrated the ninety-seventh birthday of Rajani Priya Dasi (Rose Forkash), who, with Srila Prabhupada’s approval, began the F.O.L.K (Friends of Lord Krishna) program in the 1970s and has been chanting and serving ever since. As we sat together, she said, “I wish all of you and your loved ones, my age and then some, with good health, thinking of Krishna, for the rest of your life,” which I took as a great blessing, intended not only for me but for everyone.

Hare Krishna.

Yours in service,
Giriraj Swami

Giriraj Swami’s Vyasa-puja, September 16, Dallas, via Skype
Giriraj Swami

10-01-16_grs_vp_10_dallasGiriraj Swami read and spoke from Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.5.12.

“Everyone should be friendly for the service of the Lord. Everyone should praise another’s service to the Lord and not be proud of his own service. This is the way of Vaisnava thinking, Vaikuntha thinking. There may be rivalries and apparent competition between servants in performing service, but in the Vaikuntha planets the service of another servant is appreciated, not condemned. This is Vaikuntha competition. There is no question of enmity between servants. Everyone should be allowed to render service to the Lord to the best of his ability, and everyone should appreciate the service of others. Such are the activities of Vaikuntha. Since everyone is a servant, everyone is on the same platform and is allowed to serve the Lord according to his ability.” —SB 7.5.12 purport.

“Srila Prabhupada said he wanted us to act on the platform of madhyama-bhakta. The madhyama-bhakta has four different ways of dealing with four different categories of people. The Bhagavatam (11.2.46) says, prema-maitri-krpopeksa. Prema — he should give his love to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Maitri — he should make friends with devotees. Krpa — he should give mercy to innocent people. And upeksa — he should neglect the envious. These are the distinguishing characteristics of the madhyama-bhakta. Many devotees are more like kanisthas than madhayamas, so  how do we help them become madhyamas? It seems clear from the verse that if we work on developing love for the Supreme Lord and His representative, the spiritual master, making friends with devotees, showing mercy to the innocent, and neglecting the envious, then we can develop that intermediate standing in devotional service.”

Vyasa-puja talk via Skype, Dallas
Vyasa-puja kirtan via Skype, Dallas

Prabhupada’s arrival in the West 2
→ Ramai Swami

Srila Prabhupada: “I planned that I must go to America. Generally they go to London, but I did not want to go to London. I was simply thinking how to go to New York. I was scheming, “Whether I shall go this way, through Tokyo, Japan, or that way? Which way is cheaper?” That was my proposal. And I was targeting to New York always. Sometimes I was dreaming that I have come to New York.”
After arriving in New York, Srila Prabhupada, with the help of some young followers, secured a storefront called “Matchless Gifts” with an adjoining apartment at 26 Second Avenue. He began holding Bhagavad-gita classes at 6 am and 7 pm.
The Hare Krsna Movement was now firmly planted in the West.

 

Sunday, September 17th, 2017

Berkley, California
Don’t Mix
Bhagavad-gita, 13.22 states, “The living entity in material nature thus follows the ways of life, enjoying the three modes of nature.  This is due to his association with that material nature.  Thus he meets with good and evil amongst various species.”
The above divine verse is what I spoke about at the Berkley ISKCON temple, this evening.  It’s a favourite.  We have there another one of those endorsements for reincarnation and the subject of duality.  The superior energy, purusha, mixes with the inferior energy, prakriti, and then something happens—good and bad—through various life forms. https://instagram.com/p/BZL5sYwlP6i/
What does this mean, simply?  To stop the mixing we must extricate ourselves from such strong identification with this inferior energy which always changes and cannot be trusted.  One scholar, Chanakhya, said, “Don’t trust in asat, the temporary.  Trust in sat, the permanent.”  Krishna, the Source, is permanent.
I was happy to see Guru Das join us for the program in Berkley.  He is a genuine kind-hearted person.  Also Dilip Patel has been a real sweet soul to our party of cross-country travellers, giving us rooms in Pacifica.  Mandala is with us for the weekend and he accompanied me in the walk in 2015 and 2016.  I consider them all my “honey chiles.”
When I think about it, the Divine Intervener, Krishna, surrounds me with such amiable people.  I feel blessed.  Maybe one day I’ll identify less with the prakriti.
May the Source be with you!

0 mi

Saturday, September 16th, 2017
→ The Walking Monk

San Francisco, California

The Day After

Every day that is devotional is an exceptional day.  It was no exception today, the day after.

Chanting on my japa mala beads is always priority.  To achieve that, Guru das from Hawaii, and Marshall and I headed for the switchbacks located next to our motel, The Sea Breeze.  Great view—waves and air.

We also made our way to Lincoln Park, the place where the Lincoln Highway begins; to us a familiar road.  Rupa and Sanatana from Toronto head up a walk here.  At noon we met Guru Das, the original, at the first Krishna Temple location on the west coast.  Now a laundromat, it once housed the freshly carved Jagannatha.  We also entered the apartment that Prabhupada stayed at in ’67—fifty years ago.  Guru Das has no shortage of stories to tell.

We shifted to Bona Vista Park across from where those iconic deities of Jagannatha were sculpted by Shyamasundar.  We held kirtanand had the most scrumptious food, all grainless.

Finally, my Swiss friend, Navina Nirada, arranged for me to give a talk about travel adventures across the U.S.  So I did.  Then, I led the group, at this martial arts school at 640 Stanyan, in a kirtan and dance in front of the mirrors.  I was encouraging synchronized movement.  It was lovely.  When you see yourself in action through a mirror, it reveals much about your need to improve.  Mandala, from Ottawa, can vouch for that.

Yes, it was a perfect today—very devotional.  I even got some nominal walking in.

https://instagram.com/p/BZL5lvSFcj5/

May the Source be with you!

5 miles

Mineral Paint from Germany
- TOVP.org

Recently we have begun the process of painting sections of the GRC (Glass Reinforced Concrete) ribs on all three domes and on the decorative elements under the three Kalashes in a special gold-colored paint formulation from Germany.

This highly resistant façade mineral paint from Germany is manufactured to withstand sunlight, moisture and other environmental onslaughts, and will last for many years before requiring to be replaced. And its brilliant colors will complement the gold color of the titanium Kalashes and gold-plated Chakras.

The post Mineral Paint from Germany appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Community Town Hall – October 1, 2017
→ The Toronto Hare Krishna Temple!

UPDATE - The Town Hall will NOT be broadcast live online in an effort to promote better in-person attendance.

The Temple Council is very excited to announce that we will be hosting our next Town Hall on Sunday, October 1, 2017 from 4:00pm to 6:00pm in Govinda’s Dining Hall.  This Town Hall will present an opportunity for our vibrant Hare Krishna community to come forward and engage in a productive, two-way dialogue about our Hare Krishna temple and community at large.

The Town Hall will begin with a small presentation from the ISKCON Toronto Temple Council, highlighting the successes, challenges and financial developments over the last several months.  After this, we will open up the dialogue to our entire community to share their thoughts, dreams, concerns and suggestions about how we can continue to grow our temple and community.

Please accept this as a warm invitation for you to come and attend our Town Hall.  We continue to host these Town Halls every three months in an attempt to increase the communication between the temple management and our dear congregation.

If you are unable to make it to the Town Hall, but would like to share some ideas, suggestions or feedback, please feel free to fill out our form by clicking here or email us at templecouncil@torontokrishna.com.  You can also visit the Temple Council's website at templecouncil.torontokrishna.com.

We hope to see you on Sunday, October 1, 2017 - please feel free to pass along this warm invitation to your devotee friends!  Hare Krishna!

Sincerely,
The ISKCON Toronto Temple Council
templecouncil@torontokrishna.com
www.torontokrishna.com

FEAR acronym – Learning to deal with our fears
→ The Spiritual Scientist

[Congregation program at Columbus, USA]

Podcast

Podcast Summary

The post FEAR acronym – Learning to deal with our fears appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.