Wednesday June 7, 2017
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Fort Collins, Colorado

The Richer the Clothes

Last Sunday, my clothes went for a fresh dye, a richer orange. It was the kindness of the ISKCON Colorado monks who addressed my fading colours. I knew it to be an issue. The sun and regular washing take the life out of the colour.

The police who came to visit me today, on Rd. 74, made some remarks. One of them said, “You got the right colour. Drivers can see you from far away.” The other officer mentioned that it is the colour of prisoners.

As usual, police stop out of concern for safety.They have a point. Thus far, most roads leading into the  Fort Collins/Denver area are heavily trafficked. Car accidents rate high in Colorado compared to the rest of the nation.

It is rare to see a walker. It’s cars that are all pervasive. Cars, cars, and more cars. When I see a train with rail cars full of automobiles, I would like to shout out, “Send them back where they came from. We don’t need anymore.”

A road construction fellow also remarked, “Yeah, in the eighties I remember more people walkin’. It’s madness today, really!”

For a while I was in a cursing mode, condemning the world for letting cars on the loose and attacking the freshness of air, water and space. I managed to tame the lion in me by relaxing under some huge cottonwood trees and catching a whiff of a Russian Olive. And just when I had laid down on the grass, in my perceived area of privacy within a public park, then a fellow with a whipper-snipper came cutting the grass.

Will the operator accidentally cut off my tired feet? They are precious. I have need of them. So I got up and got out of the way, and proceeded to walk.

May the Source be with you!
20 miles

Hollywood actress Marie Avgeropoulos visits Vrindavan and starts…
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Hollywood actress Marie Avgeropoulos visits Vrindavan and starts a campaign for its underprivileged girls.
The campaign aims to raise funds to support the education of a thousand more girls at the three Sandipani Muni Schools in Vrindavan, Lord Krishna’s birthplace. During her week-long visit, Marie spent her time trying to understand and document the problems underprivileged Brijabasi girls face. Her six-part documentary series on her experience will be released by Without Exception Films through an online campaign this month and will premier during a series of fundraising events in Los Angeles starting with one hosted by Marie herself on June 15th.
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/KaoHnw

A Taste for Reading
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Hare KrishnaBy Sacinandana Swami

Here I will teach a simple process for reading the Srimad-Bhagavatam (or Bhagavad-gita or any sacred bhakti text) with relish. This process of studying sacred scripture is given in the Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad. It entails three elements and the Vaisnavas have added the fourth item: 1) Sravanam – collecting the information in the text, that is, hearing or reading the text, much like attentively listening to a lecture at the university. 2) Mananam – reflecting on the subject matter 3) Nididhyasan – contemplating on how I can practically apply this text in my own life 4) Vandanam – praying for realization Continue reading "A Taste for Reading
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4 Ways to Stay
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Hare KrishnaBy Ananda V. Devi Dasi

Over 35 years ago I sat before the fire and took the same vows. I am grateful to still be practicing. Later that day I heard a talk which shared 4 reasons why devotees sometimes give up the process of Krishna consciousness, the one they once started so enthusiastically. Turning them into positives, here are 4 things, if we do them well, that can bring us success in our spiritual endeavor, which is to awaken love for Krishna and live to in congruence with that wholesome truth. Humility, offenses, sanga, knowing the path. Continue reading "4 Ways to Stay
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Light to see the world – Science, Spirituality and Life’s Big Questions
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[Talk to IIT Kharagpur students at Kharagpur, India]

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As humans can do a wide variety of activities, doesn’t that prove we have free will?
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Answer Podcast

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Don’t waste your mental energy on people on whom you won’t waste your time Gita 11.55
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Podcast

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Address misery first by recognizing its fundamental cause then its circumstantial cause Gita 09.33
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Podcast

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First Chakra Arrives in Mayapur
- TOVP.org

On the auspicious day of Pandava Nirjala Ekadasi, one of the Chakras for the small domes as well as the remaining parts for the two small dome Kalashes arrived in Mayapur.

Three Chakras will adorn the top of the three TOVP domes and are made of solid stainless steel plated with pure gold. This gold plating will remain for a long time and the three Chakras will not require re-plating for up to one hundred years.

Once the first Kalash is completely in place the first Chakra will be officially installed with a great ceremony officiated by Their Graces Jananivas and Pankajangri prabhus.

To make a donation specifically for the completion of the Chakras please contact Vraja Vilas at: *protected email*

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When so many humans are doing bad karma today, how is the human population increasing?
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How to revive and nourish the soil through efficient waste management
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Hare Krishna Cintamani dhama dasi: Radha Krishna das (UK) ACBSP has travelled to many farms since 1995 teaching and setting up what is now known as the Howard-Higgins Horticultural System, including Mayapur, Krsna Valley Radhadesh and Bhaktivedanta Manor to name but a few. It has been cited as ‘a Lost Veda’ Indeed Radha Krsna das believes it is one of the Lost Arts, in connection with cow protection, as mentioned in the tenth Canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. It fits right in with the Varnasrama programme where we hope to train people in what is the ‘noblest profession’ - farming, so that they can make a living in the mode of goodness and train others who will come to this movement through varnasrama preaching.
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Tuesday June 6, 2017
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Ault, Colorado
Switching Roads

“Do you sleep in the ditch?” was his question.

“No, I’m not that austere. Someone sponsored a room for me and my supporting team.”

The man with the query was actually a police officer, who along with his companion, heard my explanation for being on the highway at such an early hour. I imagine police meet walkers like myself, from time to time—drifters, marathoners, maybe a monk, once in a while.

They did express to me concern about the speedy traffic and the meagre space in which to walk on Highway 14 in Colorado.

Traffic wasn’t the only challenge. 5:30 to 6:30 a.m. is mosquito hour. Aggressive! Here’s where the big trucks do work in your favour. The gusts of wind they stir up send the little pests off. Still, traffic was too much. It was for the possibility of road rage that we transferred to #14 Highway and entered the state south of us. The Highway 30 which we were on merged into Interstate 80, which is un-walkable. At times we have to ‘jump’ to a parallel road.

Rd 86, a gravel road,  became my new path. Here, I could hear hundreds of prairie dogs in full chorus. They do not bark at all. They sound like those squeaky toys that you squeeze. I also saw elk in the distance.

A regular program at an inter-faith centre at Colorado State University gave me a break from walking, to talking, chanting and dancing. I asked one of the attendees about his take on Krishna.
“He’s the ‘party’ God, isn’t He?”
Not quite, but we partied nevertheless. No drugs. No booze. Just good clean fun!

May the Source be with you! 
19 miles

When Krishna is the source of both material and spiritual worlds, which world comes first?
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Answer Podcast

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How is Shankaracharya’s path to be seen in the inclusive understanding of dharma?
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Answer Podcast

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