Websites from the ISKCON Universe
By Mayapur Sasi dasa For the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada this report contains the following North American results of book distribution for the month of November 2016. North American Totals, Monthly Temples, Monthly Weekend Warriors. Monthly Top 100 Individuals, Monthly Top 5, Cumulative Countries, Cumulative Temples, Cumulative Top 100 Individuals, Cumulative Top 5 Continue reading "NASN November 2016 – North American Sankirtan Newsletter
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Holy Name Retreat 2016 at Govardhan (5 min video)
Video by: Hare Krishna Bhakti Lok
Watch it here: Read More...
Marathon book distribution in UK reaches 125.000 books distributed so far (Album with photos)
Sutapa das: I am with the traveling team in Manchester - after a gruelling month there is physical weakness, mental tiredness, and even the vehicles are feeling it (yesterday the sankirtan van broke down). But with some spiritual energy everyone pushes on… between 4 devotees nearly all the books were distributed. Amazing day, amazing people, amazing interactions… we wish it could go on and on…
Manor has reached 100,000 registered books (actual estimate is around 125,000!). Its a mammoth effort. The Hay barn, which is the temporary marathon storage, is gradually emptying out. Its a satisfying sight.
Last few days to contribute something to the “final offering”.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/IeqVZ3
Joy of Krishna Consciousness (8 min video)
Srila Prabhupada: If there is some discrepancy anywhere, some non-cooperation, fighting, or if the work is slow or not to the standard, it is to be supposed that the person or persons in charge are not very much attached to Krishna. That means they will discriminate: my engagement is not good, other’s engagement is good, like that. They do not know the secret of surrendering to Krishna. Such surrendered devotee sees that everything is part of Krishna’s plan, that whatever is meant to be, I am doing that, so let me do it with my full attention to every detail, let me become absorbed in such service, never mind what it is, but let all other considerations be forgotten and only my desire to do the thing best for Krishna’s alone pleasure be my motive. That is advanced stage of understanding devotional service or Krishna Consciousness. From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to: Jayapataka – Bombay 19 December, 1972
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/8nrsLk
(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 2008, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Lecture)
Austerity in itself is not a limb of bhakti. Bhakti has sixty-four limbs; this means that there are sixty-four types of activities which give us bhakti but austerity is not amongst them.
However, austerity is glorified in the scripture that by performing sacrifice, by giving in charity and by engaging in austerity even saintly men are being purified. So in this sense, austerity is held in high esteem in the scripture. It is also said, nayam deho deha-bhajam nrloke, kastan kaman arhate vid-bhujam ye, tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam, suddhyed yasmad brahma-saukhyam tv anantam (Srimad Bhagavatam 5.5.1). This is where Maharaj Rsabhadeva is speaking to his one hundred sons and instructing them about spiritual life. He says that this human form of life is not meant for sense gratification; this human form of life is meant for penances and austerities so that one may reach the transcendental state of happiness which is beyond the three modes of material nature.
Like this, austerity is glorified in the scripture but austerity is a preliminary – austerity gives us strength to practice bhakti but austerity in itself is not spiritual. A lack of austerity may make us weak in our determination. So a certain amount of austerity is required as a preliminarily activity to get some basic determination because in the initial stages of devotional service we are acting in the mode of goodness; we are not yet transcendental; we are in a transcendental process but we ourselves are not transcendental. Therefore we are trying to fix ourselves in the mode of goodness. This is the interim stage of devotional service. Then, as we get more and more advanced, eventually we will come to a transcendental stage.
Chief Minister Awards FFLV.
We are pleased to inform you that on the 14th of December 2016, our founder Rupa Raghunath Das, on behalf of Food for Life Vrindavan received the Swayam Award 2016. The award was given by the honorable CM of Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Akhilesh Yadav. The award ceremony was organized by Gaon Connection Foundation.
It is noteworthy that out of a total of 650 nominations, Food for Life Vrindavan was amongst the top ten selected organizations. The award has been given to the those that have been working at the grassroots of the society to bring a positive change. The CM said that such organizations inspire others also to work towards the betterment of the society.
Food for Life Vrindavan has been working in the field of girl education, women empowerment and social development for the past 25 years. Currently we have 3 schools that are providing free education, transport & meals to 1300 girls. We also have other projects such as skill training, organic farm, medical camps, free meal distribution, water projects etc. FFLV is honoured to receive this award and it has given us great encouragement. We hope to doing more and more work in this direction in the years to come.
Rathayatra in Calles Principales De Pereira, Colombia (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: When Lord Caitanya asked Ramananda Raya what is the most painful experience in human society, Ramananda Raya replied that separation from a pure devotee is the most painful experience. In other words, when there is no devotee of the Lord present, there is great suffering in society, and association with other people becomes painful. In Srimad-Bhagavatam (3.30.6–7) it is stated that if one who is bereft of the association of a pure devotee tries to become happy through society, friendship and love devoid of Krsna consciousness, he is to be considered in the most distressed condition. In the Brhad-bhagavatamrta (1.5.54) it is stated that the association of a pure devotee is more desirable than life itself and that in separation from him one cannot pass even a second happily. From “The Teachings of Lord Caitanya” by Srila Prabhupada
Find them here: https://goo.gl/2UOaAs
Learning Deity worship in Mayapur Academy (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: When there is krsna-kirtana, people, all classes of people, become very much pleased, and they join. As soon as your kirtana will be pure sankirtana, not artificial, not professional… There are many professional dancer. That will not attract. But even if you do not know the art of dancing, if you simply dance in ecstasy for Krsna’s love, that will be appreciated by everyone. That will be appreciated by everyone. Krsnot-kirtana-gana-nartana-parau. These are the art. From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on The Nectar of Devotion – January 8, 1973, Bombay
Find them here: https://goo.gl/2s6KGF
Looking for Prabhupada
The post Daily Darshan: December 22nd, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.
Our Radha Govinda temple at Puncak, in the hills outside of Jakarta, has a growing devotee community. This includes quite a few children of devotee families.
Besides the beautiful deities, temple, asrama and guest house, there’s a small goshala at the back with three cows and one calf.
The devotees also grow a variety of vegetables and fruits, including huge jackfruits.
By Nameera Sarjoo The Hare Krishna Movement distributed food, drinks and sweet parcels in the Ladysmith community on Saturday morning. They went out to different areas to hand out fresh, hot food and juices. The recipients were extremely grateful for the devotees’ kind gesture, saying that it really touched their hearts and lifted their spirits. The friendly team also took some time to mingle with the people, making it a special day for all. This ‘Food for Life’ programme was initially started by His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. It is a worldwide initiative that continues on a daily basis. Ladysmith’s ‘Food for Life’ provides this service once a month to the community and surrounding areas. The members of the Hare Krishna Movement wish to place on record their sincere appreciation to all the donors and well-wishers. Continue reading "Devotees provide hot, fresh meals for the community
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By Victoria Arnold, Forum 18 Report published yesterday, 20 December 2016. Before Puchkov's conviction, Frolov told Forum 18 on 7 December that his client had been playing an Indian drum in the procession and had not spoken to anyone. Video footage of the event, seen by the court, showed people only singing Vedic mantras, not engaging in conversation with passers-by and not distributing literature. "No words were used apart from Hare, Krishna, Rama," Frolov insisted. "This was a public act of worship which was not missionary activity, since no information about beliefs was disseminated and nobody involved anybody else in the religious association." Documents in the case seen by Forum 18 appear to show that the absence of verbal interaction and religious literature had little bearing on the decision to bring charges. Prosecutors cite as their grounds for prosecution an 11 October "expert report" by Anatoly Gurin, a theology lecturer at Tver State University, and Andrei Bezrukov, the director of the university's theology students' society. Their conclusion that the event constituted "missionary activity" is based solely on an assessment of its religious character and the fact that it took place in public. Continue reading "Chaos in Russia as the new “anti-missionary” low is used arbitrarily to restrict the Hare Krishna movement
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| MATERIAL NATURE | GOODNESS/SATVA | PASSION/RAJAS | IGNORANCE/TAMA |
| BASIC NATURE | Illuminates the mind and intelligence, sense of happiness and knowledge. | Unlimited desires, longings, selfish actions, deep attachment, intense endeavor, hankering. | Delusion, madness, indolence and sleep |
| RESULT OF ACTION | Pure | Misery | Foolishness |
| DEVELOPMENT OF MIND | Knowledge develops. | Greed develops. | Foolishness, madness and illusion develops. |
| NATURE OF KNOWLEDGE | Knowledge to see the undivided spiritual nature in all living entities, even though seemingly divided by bodily differences. | Knowledge to see the body to be the self and different types of bodies as the self and differentiate accordingly. | knowledge by which one is attached to work only as the all in all without knowledge of the true self or Supreme truth. |
| NATURE OF ACTION | Action in a regulated fashion without attachment to selfish results, love or hate. | Action performed with great effort to gratify one’s desires out of ego and pride. | Action disregarding scriptures, without concern for future results. Causes violence and distress to others. |
| NATURE OF WORK/DUTIES | Work with determination and enthusiasm unwavering in success or failure. Free from ego, pride. | Work with attachment to work, and fruit of work desiring to enjoy the fruits. Greedy, envious, impure and disturbed by joy and sorrow (resulting from success and failure). | Work against the injunctions of the scripture. Materialistic, obstinate, cheating, expert in criticizing others, lazy, always morose and procrastinating. |
| NATURE OF INTELLIGENCE | Intelligence to discriminate what is to be done/not done, what is to be feared/not feared, what is binding/liberating. | Intelligence to discriminate dharma and adharma, what is to be done and not be done. | Intelligence to consider religion to be irreligion and irreligion to be religion. Always in illusion and darkness and strives in the wrong direction. |
| NATURE OF DETERMINATION | Determination to be steady by sustained practice, controls the mind, and senses through meditation and yoga. | Determination which attaches one to selfish results in religion, economic development and sense gratification. | Determination that cannot go beyond dreaming, fearfulness, lamentation, moroseness and illusion. |
| NATURE OF HAPPINESS | Like poison in the beginning but like nectar at the end. | Derived from contact of the senses including the mind. Feels like nectar in the beginning but poison at the end. | Blind to self-realization, delusional from beginning to end. Arises from sleep, laziness and illusion. |
| FOOD | Increase the duration of life, purify one’s existence, gives strength, health, happiness, and satisfaction. Food is juicy, fatty, wholesome, and pleasing to the heart. | Too bitter, too sour, salty, hot, pungent, dry and burning causing distress, misery and disease. | Food prepared more than three hours before being eaten, tasteless, decomposed and putrid, and food consisting of remnants and untouchable things. |
| YAJNA or SACRFICE | Performed according to the directions of scripture, as a matter of duty, desire for no reward. | Performed for some material benefit, or pride. | Performed without regard to scriptures, no distribution of prasādam [spiritual food], no chanting of Vedic hymns and no remunerations to the priests, and with no faith. |
| BODY,SPEECH and MIND | Using body, speech and mind not for material benefits but only for the sake of pleasing the Supreme. | Using body, speech and mind out of pride and for the sake of gaining respect, honor and worship. It is neither stable nor permanent. | Using body, speech and mind out of foolishness, with self-torture or to destroy or injure others. |
| WORSHIP/FAITH | Worship demigods | Worship demons | Worships ghosts and spirits |
| CHARITY | Given out of duty, without expectation of return, at the proper time and place, and to a worthy person. | Given with the expectation of some return, or with a desire for selfish results, or in a grudging mood. | Given at an impure place, improper time, to unworthy persons, or without proper attention and respect. |
| AT DEATH | Born again in higher planets. | Born again in earthly realm (born in a family where selfish actions are predominant). | Born again in animal kingdom. |
By Saurav Sarmah Veda means knowledge. The word Veda is related to the Sanskrit root ‘vid’ meaning ‘to know’. So, it encompasses the entire corpus of knowledge, both phenomenal and numinous. Actually, knowledge is established through three primary epistemological premises, viz., sense perception, logical-mathematical inference and reliable testimony. However, when a subject employs inductive methodology to acquire knowledge, it is inhibited by four defects, viz., limited senses, illusory perception, mistaken inference and cheating propensity. As a result, inductive methodology cannot reliably establish any type of knowledge, let alone the ultimate conclusions on reality. (For instance, throughout history, men have died and they continue to die; but we can never conclude that man is mortal applying induction because there may be an unidentified man or a future man who will never die). Continue reading "The Origin and Evolution of the Vedic System
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Harinama in Poland (2 min video)
In 1967 at ISKCON’S first temple, at 26 Second Avenue, New York City, Srila Prabhupada had just received a postcard from his disciples in Montreal. The city was hosting the World’s Fair – Expo ‘67 – and the devotees were asking if he had any paintings they could display at the Fair. Prabhupada showed me the postcard and asked if we had any. “Well, Swamiji,” I said, “We have a painting of Lord Varaha just finished by Kancanabala Dasi. But I don’t think people will believe it.” After all, the picture showed Lord Varaha, Krsna in His incarnation as a giant boar, holding the Earth on his tusks and fighting with a big demon. The demon was at least ten times bigger than the Earth itself. Prabhupada didn’t care for my objection. Instead, he told me a relevant story about Lord Caitanya. “When Lord Caitanya was thinking of going to Benares, the devotees told Him not to waste His time there. The people there were all impersonalists, and they wouldn’t believe in or take part in the chanting of Hare Krsna. But Lord Caitanya said, ‘If they don’t like what I have to sell, I’ll take it back.’ ” Prabhupada then raised his arms in the air, imitating Lord Caitanya. “So He chanted Hare Krsna and danced and everyone bought it.” He was impressing upon me, as he often did, to present Krsna “as He is” and not be overly concerned about “so-called public opinion.”
From a BTG article by Yadurani Devi Dasi
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/GfFbgC
This is the last part of the Braj Parikrama 2016 series of posts.
India is the land of making easy things impossible and impossible things easy. No-one of western decent would have thought that muddy pits leading to Chir ghat were passable with a bicycle let alone our big bus, but we prayed and our driver hit the pedal. It was at least an hour and half before we could disembark, hitching up our saris and dhotis. Maharaj later compared it to the Vitarani river described in the Bhagavatam; a river of unspeakable substances that separates us from the spiritual world. “It’s the price we pay,” he said, putting things into perspective.
In search of the main temple, our harinama team part took a detour through a remote village. The residents ran out of their simple homes to greet us with bright and eager “Radhe Radhe” smiles. The energy was very different from our usual visits. No one tried to hit us up for a donation. Even the dogs seemed well cared for. It was easy to see that despite the occasional jeans-clad teenager, culture still existed; cows, patterned cow dung patties and rice husks all received an eco-friendly thumbs-up.
After a wrong turn or two, we reached the village mandir. A 4m wide wall art boasted a 3-D depiction of Krsna sitting in a Kadamba tree and beckoning the gopis to rise from the Yamuna and receive their clothes which he had stolen. It was this pastime that made this village glorious. On the left was a tiny alter with sweet pair of Radha Krsna Deities. Adjacent to the altar was a tall Kadamba tree with multi-coloured fabric tied on its branches. Maharaj perched himself on a low wall and began a mellow bhajan. Villages dutifully visited the temple offering their respects. Kids gathered nearby and an eccentric looking pujari, with long hair and a 15cm thick wooden belt across his waist, kindly kept their curiosity in check. Maharaj broke off into ‘Hare Haraya Namah’, petitioning the mercy of Krsna’s names, Lord Gauranga and the previous acaryas. He switches to a popular melody of Madhava Prabhu with a KK swami flavour, takes it up a few gears into a dancing kirtan and ends mellow once more.
Dry sand stretches out in front of us where the Yamuna once flowed. Maharaj begins with poetic verses glorifying the Yamuna which he had penned down in a little notebook. Some verses were by Visvanatha Chakravati Takur and others from the Gopal Champu. He elaborated on the sacred place in which we found ourselves; a little further back was Ramaghat, a place dedicated to lord Balarama. And further ahead was Nandaghat, where Nanda Maharaj was arrested by Varuna for bathing at an improper time just so that Varuna could get the darshana of Krsna. Maharaj recollected how the previous year we had an unexpected detour to Tapovana, the forest of austerity, before reaching Chirghat. And austerity in devotion service became a theme that he latched onto. Chanting 16 rounds, following the 4 regulative principles and eating only Krsna prasadam was our austerity as followers of Srila Prabhupada.
He mentioned that the spiritual world is a place of worship, when the devotees saw each other they would offer arati. The relationships were not cheap. The Gopis didn’t see Radha as just “the best gopi” but as guru and worshipped her as such. That is culture of the spiritual world and our movement is meant to be transparent to the spiritual world.
It was the disappearance day of Srila Gaura Kishore Das Babaji Maharaj as well as ekadasi and a kind devotee prepared a light but sumptuous lunch for us. Back in the bus our driver eventually found Ramaghat (which was meant to be our first stop), yet it was still quite a hike away and Maharaj and Adi Kesava decided against it. As we neared Vrindavana our bus was stopped and prevented entry. After some conversations between the driver, the police and Maharaj, all of which was undecipherable to me, we were ordered off the bus. Maharaj got into manager mode, rallied some auto-rickshaws, stacked us into them. And what seemed like an impossible ten inches to squeeze into became possible. Because India is such a place where the easy becomes impossible and the impossible becomes easy.
The final day of our parikrama was reserved for Unchagaon. The birthplace of Srimati Lalita devi has been one of Maharaj’s favourite places of pilgrimage. Year after year he chose to go back to this quaint village. He sometimes would watch Bhakti Caitanya Swami’s DVD on the ‘Hills of Varsana’ to remember this sacred place.
Unchagaon, or the “high village” lives up to its name and we climbed to the white domed temple that housed deities of Sri Sri Lalita Behari. Lalita devi is 27 days older than Srimati Radharani and is definitely the gopi in charge. She tries to protect Sri Radha from an unreliable Krsna. One should never enter a temple empty handed; we enter with the offering of the holy name. As the bhajans warmed up the local pujari and some children of vraja joined in the dancing with care-free flourish. A little girl ran to her home and returned with rotis, subji and a canister of butter-milk and offered then to Maharaj and the devotees. Maharaj summarised the different holy places we would visit that day and soon we were on our way.
Descending the high hill we veered to the right to find the Dauji Temple, housing unique deities of Balarama and Revati. This Lord Balarama is black in complexion, being fully absorbed in thought of Krsna. Lord Balarama is the giver of spiritual strength; definitely a place to pray. There was also a deity of Laddu Gopal belonging to Narayana Bhatta Goswami, a disciple of Sri Gadadhara Pundit. Narayan Bhatta Goswami continued the work of Srila Rupa and Sanatana Goswami by escavating holy places in Vrindavana. it is said that Laddu Gopal would speak to him, directing him in his service.
On our way to Narayan Bhatta Goswami’s samadhi we stopped at the “Triveni Koop”, a well, said to be made by Krsna’s flute, containing the waters of three sacred rivers. And we got drenched with the mercy. At the samadhi Maharaj gave an indepth commentary on the Hansadutta. Approaching the Dham through the books of the goswamis was one of his aims in this parikrama. It was a multidimensional presentation. The Hansadutta is a discussion between Srimati Lalita devi and the swan that she choose to send an urgent message to Krsna about Srimati Radharani’s intense separation. Sri Lalita also represents guru tattva and the swan a neophyte disciple. Hidden in the verses of the Hansadutta is also the intricate dynamics of the guru disciple relationship. Lalita tries a variety of arguments to convince the swan to follow the path to Krsna. She gives him arguments both material and spiritual and tries to cajole him on, even though the swans own enthusiasm may be lacking or superficial. She encourages him that if he follows this path he will become a paramahamsa just by carring the message of the pure devotee. The swan not only has to be convinced but the swan has to embark on a process to become purified. In the end we never know if the swan goes or not. Maybe it is a question that each disciple has to answer for themselves. A brilliant presentation indeed.
During this final parikrama we were privleged to have to company of Medhavi prabhu, a disiciple of Srila prabhupada. Medhavi Prabhu is a thoughtful yet such a quite persona that he managed to pass unnoticed for almost half the parikrama. Maharaja recognised him and received him warmly. We then journeyed down to Deha Kund, a lake at the base of two temples housing Sri Sri Deha Behari and Sri Sri Rasa Behari. Maharaja explained that Deha Kund is a place where we remember that our body, mind and words are all for Krsna. It is a lake of atmanivedanam or complete surrender; A place where the unsurrendered can hope and pray.
We then crossed over to the other side of the village to “Saki Parvat’. There the unthinkable happens; Krsna marries Lalita. We stayed only brief moments before climbing up the hill to the Chapan Katori. As always, Maharaj is the first up the hill. We settle down over the enlongated rock formation with 56 depressions resembling bowls or katories resembling an ” all- natural” dining table where Krsna and the cowherd boys would gather for lunch.
In the distance was the hills of Varsana enhanced by a gentle haze. Maharaj drew everyones attention to the hills as he spoke the final words of the parikrama. It had been a spiritual adventure; priceless, precious and profound. He had truly given all his energy, and then some more, determined to do it justice. On a physical level he had to detach himself from his body just to endure it. On a spiritual level our souls were dancing. And now it had reached its conclusion. We must take Vrindavana with us; it is more than just a place, it is a state of consciousness; a place for Krsna’s pleasure. He tasked us to come back, again and again, with others and to show them the holy places that he had kindly shown us. In this way the glory of Vrindavana will always reach fresh ears and penetrate deeper into our hearts.
42 ways to Distribute Srila Prabhupada’s Books.
VERY GOOD TIPS – can try one or few or all…..
Down To Earth Book Distribution (Book Distribution Simplified)
Here are 42 easy ways to Help Distribute More Books!
YOU can.
1. Always keep a small book in your purse, bag, or backpack. That way anytime the conversation goes towards Krsna, you can pull out the book, if even just to show them a picture.
2. Leave books in waiting rooms at the doctor’s office, laundry mat, or any place where people have to wait and can happily read something. Write or stamp inside the book “Please take” or “Free Gift”.
3. Give books to people who come to your house to make deliveries, fix things, etc.
4. Give books as gifts for any occasion, like birthdays, weddings anniversaries, engagement parties, home openings, graduations, etc.
5. Ask local Indian/ Asian market if they will display and sell your books.
6. Donate books to a local library.
7. Ask local health food shops if they will display and sell books.
8. Ask at a local import shop or new age shops if they will display and sell books.
9. Book a booth at any local fairs or events.
10. Lay a blanket on the grass in the local park, with books on top, and sing kirtans to attract people.
11. Sell the books to a used book shop.
12. Approach local book shops about selling the books.
13. Distribute books to co-workers.
14. Give books to family members.
15. Give books to friends and/or classmates.
16. Go to events, where large crowds have gathered.
17. Spend a bit of time in the spiritual/ religious section of any book shop and make conversation with people looking for books on these topics.
18. Go on harinama sankirtana and distribute books to the people who stop to watch.
19. Approach people waiting at bus stands, subways, train stations.
20. Distribute books to shop keepers you regularly shop with.
21. Get a permit to setup a book table.
22. Go door to door.
23. Check for any yoga or similar clubs at your local university. If there isn’t one, start it.
24. Approach yoga centers in your community. Ask if you can display books there or have a program there.
25. Distribute prasadam and display books.
26. Donate books to be put in hotel rooms.
27. Ask an experienced book distributor to take you out on book distribution.
28. When you are travelling by train in India, join the local temple sankirtan party.
29. Make a book distribution buddy. Commit to getting together once a week or so and distributing books together.
30. Ask people working in shops if they would like a book.
31. Approach business owners (especially Indians) and ask if they would like to buy books in bulk to distribute to employees.
32. Start a book table at your University or College campus.
33. Whenever you distribute a book, or even if you don’t make sure to be very friendly and have a sweet smile. When people are pleased with you, they will come back for more.
34. You can distribute books on e-bay, Amazon, or other websites like those.
35. Distribute through flyers: Create and distribute flyers that have the Krishna.com website (or your local temple book shop). Include pictures, excerpts, testimonials, your local number, website, and email.
36. Take people’s e-mails, and don’t “sell” the books, but inform and inspire them to take.
37. Next time you take a flight; just place a couple books in the magazine pockets of the seats. The next group of passengers will be in for a pleasant surprise.
38. Leave books on the magazine tables in reception areas of businesses, professional offices, and other establishments.
39. If you can’t distribute books yourself, help someone who already is for example, you can buy books for them to distribute.
40. Assist devotees who want to distribute books by covering their other temple services etc.
41. You can get a street address listing from some phone companies. You could choose any little town that may never have a chance to see devotees or you may want to take responsibility for a particular section of a larger city. Set aside a small portion of your monthly income and send out a few books each month until you’ve covered your chosen area.
42. Setup a cake sale or cookie sale at work or in the town, for every donation to the prasadam include the cost of the book as a “free” incentive.
Find your Jaladuta!
Driving past the San Francisco airport this morning, I saw a jet lift off the runway and then mystically disappear into the low hanging fog above.
For a second, in my mind’s eye, I imagined the jet’s passengers sitting together in neat rows, each with their own unique destinations and purposes. Each one bought a ticket, packed bags, thrashed about through security, and finally piled on the plane to go … Somewhere.
If we interviewed each passenger on that jet leaving SFO, we might discover some of their motives or obligations: “Earning a livelihood, going on vacation, seeing friends and family, performing some meritorious or nefarious work,” and so on.
Next, my mind turned to Srila Prabhupada and his coming to America on the Jaladuta. He begged the ticket only to endure a life-threatening trip across the ocean. But he too had a specific reason for his journey which he wrote about before his arrival at Boston Harbor, thus:
“Although my Guru Maharaja ordered me to accomplish this mission, I am unworthy to do it, being very fallen and incompetent. That being the case, O Lord Krsna, Your mercy is today arising in a befitting manner in order to make me become worthy, for You are most wise.
“In spite of my shortcomings, O Lord, You have somehow or other brought me to this country just to speak about You. Now it is up to You, my Lord, to do with me as You like.” (Prayer to the Lotus Feet of Lord Krsna & Markine Bhagavata-Dharma)
In the Gita, Krsna says: “Everyone is forced to act helplessly according to the qualities he has acquired from the modes of material nature; therefore no one can refrain from doing something, not even for a moment.” (Bg. 3.5)
But Srila Prabhupada’s travel on the Jaladuta was not impelled by the modes of nature. His hard labor in crossing the ocean was directed by his spiritual master who asked him to perform the service of preaching to Westerners. His voyage was transcendental and will forever stand out in history.
In the Gita, Krsna imparts to us one of the great secrets of life by teaching us how to distinguish between action and inaction:
“One who sees inaction in action, and action in inaction, is intelligent among men, and he is in the transcendental position, although engaged in all sorts of activities.” (Bg. 4.18)
A person who moves for Krsna – by following the order of the spiritual master – is in the transcendental position. His or her movements are different from the movements of those going somewhere on their own, to fulfill a selfish agenda.
All the trouble the devotee undergoes to realize the plan of the spiritual master is purifying and liberating. On the other hand, the difficulties I undergo for myself are simply troublesome; moreover, they implicate me in a multitude of karmic reactions.
A fortunate person takes to heart the directive of the spiritual master and then works to fulfill it, however demanding it may seem.
Even Srila Prabhupada said that he could not at once fulfill the order of his guru. But, he took it to heart and engaged in a lifetime of preparation to execute it.
One may not immediately or easily renounce obligatory work. But, one who finds his or her own Jaladuta – and braves the voyage – is the best traveler of all, for he or she will sail back to Godhead.
Vaisesika das
News from Food For Life Global.
Since the inspirational “founding” of Hare Krishna Food for Life when the founder/acharya of ISKCON, Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada told his students, “No one should go hungry within 10 miles of our temple,” volunteers have set up projects in more than 60 countries.
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/UPE8nC
On the sands of Venice Beach, California… Punyatma Prabhu breaks the current record by blissfully distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books in Arabic to five Saudi Arabian university students, all at the same time!
To see more BBT Far East / Middle East book distribution related photos click here: https://goo.gl/ALSMYQ
BOB HOPE and American ex-president Gerald Ford meet the devotees.
Drumila das: I met Bob Hope twice. The 1rst time was in the mid 80’s. I personally went to the Bob Hope Golf Classic as I was in Palm springs at the time, and decided it would be a good place to go and give stars books. I was walking around with a paper shopping bag full of books that day so as not to be discovered by security and be kicked out (seems pretty silly in retrospect….a paper shopping bag!!).
That day I gave books to a few sport legends like Bobby Or, Willie Mays and Barry Bonds to name a few. I ran into Robert Stack from the TV series ‘The Untouchables’ and tried to give him a 'Coming Back’ but he wouldn’t take it cause he thought it was from a cult, and his own son had been in one so he had a bad taste. I preached to him for about five minutes explaining to him that we were not a cult, and all the reasons why, at which time he said he would take the book home with him and read it.
Just remembered, I gave a 'Higher Taste’ to Dinah Shore that day, and she was thrilled cause she had just put out her own cookbook.
Anyway back to Bob. I saw him about to tee off on one hole. So I watched him with about 50 other people, by a roped off area.
When he was done, I said “Bob!” to catch his attention. He looked over at me, and said, “Yes!”(his head perking up and looking gleefully in my direction) and I said “ I have a gift for you!” I handed him a 'Coming Back’ and a 'Higher Taste’ upon which time I looked at him and said enthusiastically, “Bob… You’re really going to love these books!!” With a coy grin he looked and me and said enthusiastically, “Am I!? Am I!?” Of course I must have said something like 'Yes!’ or 'Definitely!’
The crowd dispersed and I started thinking how I could directly gave a book to ex President Ford who happened to be there that day. About a month before I had given a 'Bhagavad-Gita’ hardbound to ex President Ford via his security team( he was standing about 25 feet away and they would not let me give it to him directly but said they would give it to him).
Anyway President Ford was at the golf tournament that day, and I was thinking how I could approach him and give him a book directly. So the idea came to me. “Wait a minute I thought, "Bob Hope is friends with all the presidents! He was very friendly with me. Perhaps he could help me with President Ford.”
So I went to the next hole where he was and I approached him again. I said, “Bob, could you do me a favor…( what was I thinking). He immediately retreated, or withdrew as it were from my presence, turning his face away from me in the other direction. I realized I had made a big mistake, and had presumed to much, as I walked away feeling foolish and dejected.
Then a funny thing happened. As I was walking, moping along with my shopping bag in hand, I noticed a golf cart in my peripheral vision, going about the same speed as I was walking. It was Bob Hope driving the cart with the women’s champ from the year before, Julie Inkster. He looked at me and yelled out jokingly, "Hey, what do got in the bag? A bunch of divets!?( clumps of grass made after hitting the golf ball. People collect them for keep sakes.) After saying this they both sped away briskly laughing all the way. To this day I took it that Bob let me off the hook, by speaking to me again, thus, letting me know everything was alright.
Later that day I put down my paper bag(I had that much common sense), and made a bee line right for President Ford just after he tee’d off. His security were momentarily covered over and no one stopped me. I handed him an Origins magazine(our Krsna Conscious rebuttal to the atheistic magazine Omni.) I explained how he cared about the people in the world, and how this magazine could help him in his endeavors to help the people of the world. But he seemed rather put off as he trembled(his arm literally shaking with the magazine in it), as he turned around with a look of disgust and hurled it into his golf cart. He was probably wondering how I got through his security, or maybe he was just adverse to Krsna in the form of the magazine!
The next time I met him Bob Hope was in New Orleans. I overheard someone say Bob Hope was in 'Pat O'Brian’s’(a famous restaurant/bar).
I went in, and there was Bob, a hundred years old. He was sitting at the table alone(his eyes were drooping and showing the red around the borders) His wife was standing up with 3 or four friends nearby the table. They seemed pretty oblivious to Bob, so I took my cue, and went right up to him and said, "Bob, I don’t know if you remember me, but, I met you at your Classic in the 80’s and gave you a couple of books, and you were joking with me.”
He looked up at me and acknowledged what I had just said. Then I said, “I have gift for you also today. I sat right down next to him at the table, Then I said, "It’s a book called 'A Second Chance’( it was hardbound). Then I flipped through the pictures, with the Yamadutas and Visnudutas, and Ajamila laying on his deathbed, all the while explaining to Bob the story of Ajamila and how he was saved at the time of death by uttering God’s Holy Name.
As I left him I marveled at the special mercy he was receiving from Krishna in his final days( he died shortly after that) and how kind Krishna was to come to him near the end of his life, and how kind Krsna was to let me be his instrument to give him that mercy.
Srila Prabhupada’s Transcendental Book Distribution ki Jaya!
The history of FATE- Iskcon Museum Project (video)
Adi Deva das: Devotees named Srimati dd and Prabhas das were already working with Milan. Murti d, Bibhavati devi dasi, Madhavendra Puri das, Baradraj das, Rukmini devi dasi, Saptaratha das, and myself joined the team learning how to make clay tools from pieces of bamboo- how to find and dig up sticky clay and sandy clay. We learned how to mix clay with cow dung juice and other mysteries. We began sculpting fruits, vegetables, animals, birds, noses, eyes, ears, lips, fingers, toes, armatures, straw tying, clay application. We created small dolls, large dolls, sanding, painting, wigging, clothing and jeweling. Milan was expert and showed us everything.
On Gaura Purnima 1974 we put on a humble exhibition for Srila Prabhupada’s approval. He told us that we were" not yet expert" and should hire another teacher and continue learning. We hired another older artist who was very generous in helping us develop our skills.
Our group shrunk and the few of us left went to Vrndavana where for several months we created 8 Gopi dolls and presented them to Srila Prabhupada.
Bharadraj das and Rukmini Dasi were asked by Srila Prabhupada to travel to India and lead the project of bringing this dying Art of Putul (Clay Dolls) to the West and create museums explaining our philosophy thru this medium.
My friend Murti das received an inheritance shortly after we were invited to travel to India; so we got the initial paperwork and shots and off we went. Our plane (Air India) had problems; we stopped in NYC, then Kuwait, then Bombay and finally landed in the long cow pasture which was the Calcutta airport. Bhavananda Maharaj picked us up in an old Jeep and drove us the two hour bumpy drive to Sridham Mayapura. Mayapura sits upon the banks of the Ganges River and is a holy place of pilgrimage for saintly devotees from all over West Bengal and beyond.
Upon our arrival, we were greeted by a small group of devotees from Europe, Australia, and North and South America. I soon realized my new home was the vortex of a construction site. A half built, three story temple/guest house sat one- fifth of a mile from a little used main road. Other temples on that road looked tired and sleepy. Across the road were a series of fields, then the Ganges river, and the town of Navadvip on the other side.
To get from the main road (Bhaktisiddhanta Marg) to our temple in progress we had to walk through rice fields on a mud path about two feet wide; one slip and you were knee deep in mud.
The temple was covered in a web of bamboo scaffolding with many Bengali workers scurrying all over it, as they brought their bricks and buckets of cement. Encamped on one side of the temple in low huts and tents, they were a loud and jolly bunch. We slept in unfinished rooms on the first and second floor; Srila Prabhupada’s quarters and guest quarters on the third floor with sanyasis’ quarters on the roof.
All water came from one hand pump–for our bathing, cooking, pot washing, cement mixing, workers’ bathing–ONE HAND PUMP!
In this video I talk about the letter I received from Srila Prabhupada outlining his vision for the project.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/Jr9EvG
By Sadaputa das The mind/body problem plagues scientific thinkers as vigorously today as it did thousands of years ago. Sadaputa Dasa (Dr. Richard L. Thompson) tackles this perennial enigma by combining the detailed physiological mechanisms of eyesight with the Bhagavatam's philosophy of the soul. This gestalt-type approach illuminates other mysteries of science, such as qualia, cognitive anomalies of hydrocaphalus, stigmata, and out-of-body experiences. Continue reading "Tackling the Mind/Body/Soul Enigma (video)
→ Dandavats"
By Giriraj Swami The Lord advised Arjuna to regulate the senses from the very beginning so that he could curb the greatest sinful enemy, lust, which destroys the urge for self-realization and specific knowledge of the self. Jnana refers to knowledge of self as distinguished from non-self, or in other words, knowledge that the spirit soul is not the body. Vijnana refers to specific knowledge of the spirit soul’s constitutional position and his relationship to the Supreme Soul. Continue reading "From Lust to Love–With Krsna’s Mercy
→ Dandavats"
Srila Prabhupada was “Right On”
Please find below some of the most recent recordings of Kadamba Kanana Swami.
Download all (404 MB, zip file)
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KKS_AUS_MEL_11December2016_Lecture_SB_3.26.52
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KKS_AUS_MEL_10December2016_ShortLecture_DeityInstallation
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KKS_AUS_MEL_09December2016_Lecture_SB_3.26.51
KKS_AUS_MEL_07December2016_Lecture_SB_3.26.46
KKS_AUS_MEL_04December2016_Lecture_SB_3.26.41
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KKS_AUS_MEL_03December2016_Lecture_BG_10.10
View the updated post with video recordings here.
Audio and video recordings are courtesy of Russell Sara
Huge Food for Life prasadam distribution organized by the devotees of Iskcon Budapest, Hungary for Christmas (Album with photos)
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At the age of five was my first memorable introduction to the Bhagavad-gita. I participated in a Gita verse recitation competition in Chandrapur, Maharashtra. I remember feeling both happy and nervous: happy to have memorized several verses, and nervous about recite them on stage in front of many people. However, that encounter with the Gita had no lasting impact on me, at least not visibly. I forgot the Gita and went on with my life, pursuing the great Indian student dream of academic excellence.
From achievement to fulfillment
Though I had left the Gita, the Gita hadn’t left me. I retained a subconscious attraction to Gita verse recitation, an attraction that was unusual because I had no interest or talent for singing or music. Little did I know that Gita recitation would draw me back to the Gita fifteen years later.
I was in the third year of my engineering in Electronics & Telecommunications at the Government College of Engineering, Pune. I had just fulfilled my lifelong dream of becoming a topper: I had scored 2350 out of 2400 and stood first in Maharashtra. I expected to be elated and I was, but for a heartbreakingly brief period. There was no happiness in just looking at my mark-sheet. Only when someone congratulated me for my marks did I feel joy. And if anyone didn’t congratulate me, I felt miserable. I realized that my life’s most desired achievement had not made me happy; it had made me more dependent on others for my happiness. By working hard, I could top in another exam, but what would I get? At best, a repetition of the same brief elation. Wasn’t life meant for something better?
When our heart is ready for wisdom, wisdom finds its way there. While I was pondering such questions, a friend gave me a copy of the Bhagavad-gita. I read the Gita (06.22) description of spiritual absorption: a state that takes us beyond dissatisfaction and disturbance. Having just tasted the shallowness of worldly achievements, I felt inspired to pursue this as my life’s ultimate achievement.
As I studied the Gita, recited its verses and applied its teachings, I found my anger decreasing, my mind becoming calmer and my life becoming more purposeful. I started sharing the Gita’s message with friends and several of them became transformed, some to a greater degree than me. They broke free from bad habits and became more positive and productive.
So sublime and transformational was the wisdom I found in the Gita that I decided to dedicate my life to studying and sharing it.
Spiritual science
The Gita transformed me not just experientially but also intellectually. It infused my life with holistic meaning. Since my school days, I was fascinated by science, especially by how it uncovered law-like order in nature. And yet I felt disappointed, disturbed even, that science provided me islands of meaning while sentencing me to drown in an ocean of meaninglessness. Science, or more precisely scientism, told that my life was ultimately pointless; that I was just a lucky accident, a parcel of protoplasm somehow come alive for a brief lifetime.
The Gita helped me understand that the order science had discovered in the material universe was a subset of a higher order that permeated all of existence. I felt that the Gita was a masterpiece of spiritual science. It taught that:
A Morale-Restorer
The Gita begins by acknowledging that life can hurt, and hurt terribly. Arjuna was a battle-hardened warrior, the embodiment of fearless virility, trained to face death without flinching. Yet such a warrior who could tearlessly endure wounds caused by the deadliest arrows was reduced to a state of uncontrollable tears (02.01) – such are life’s overpowering vicissitudes. This traumatic beginning shows that the Gita speaks our language; it understands and addresses our predicaments as we face our life’s battles, small or big.
At the Gita’s start (01.46), Arjuna put aside his bow, disoriented and disheartened. By the end of the Gita (18.78), he picked up his bow, ready to answer the demanding call of duty. Such is the morale-restoring power of Gita wisdom.
Arjuna’s bow can be said to represent our determination. Life sometimes afflicts us with perplexities and adversities. Disheartened, we put aside our metaphorical bows. But on hearing the Gita, we become animated with spiritual devotion and connect with the supreme source of strength that lies deep inside us. Being thus empowered, we get the wisdom and strength to raise the bow of our determination and face life with confidence.
Transforming a Battlefield into a Classroom
No other book in the world has a setting as dramatic as the Gita: It is spoken in the middle of a battlefield, after the blowing of the conches that signified the start of the war. A parallel that may illustrate the momentousness of this setting is a cricket World Cup Final. Thousands of spectators are cheering, the fielders have taken their positions, and the bowler has started the run-up. Suddenly, the batsman calls the non-striker to the middle of the pitch and they start talking and keep talking, on and on.
Similar is the Gita’s setting. The Gita’s speaker Krishna, whom tradition considers God incarnated on earth, demonstrates extraordinary teaching expertise: he converts a battlefield into a classroom. By his presence and presentation, he raises Arjuna far above the battlefield as they scale heights of wisdom that the world has rarely seen before or after.
The Gita’s battlefield setting conveys that no worldly problem is too mundane for God’s voice to reach us. If Arjuna on a battlefield could take time out to seek Gita wisdom, we all can too. Studying the Gita doesn’t consume time; it contributes time. Investing time in studying the Gita helps us protect the time that is otherwise stolen by our disturbed mind. The Gita helps us put first things first, thereby ensuring that we put our time to best use.
Also, just as Krishna converted a battlefield into a classroom, his message can help us convert life’s experiences into learning experiences.
The Gita’s Contemporary Relevance
On the Kurukshetra battlefield, Arjuna was fighting a battle within, a battle between reason and emotion. Emotion had caught reason in a stranglehold. The Gita’s message helped Arjuna win his inner battle, not by helping reason defeat emotion, but by harmonizing both reason and emotion through a higher vision of life. Similarly, the Gita can help us harmonize our emotional right brain and logical left brain, thereby enabling us to bring out our best.
The Gita (18.46) urges us to work as worship. The mood underlying this could be re-phrased as: “What we are is God’s gift to us; what we become is our gift to God.” God wants us to discover our talents, develop them and use them for constructive contribution. The more we work in a mood of service to him and to all living beings in relationship with him, the more we grow both externally and internally. Externally, we contribute to the world; internally, we connect with the source of the supreme peace and joy. The Gita reveals an activist vision of spirituality. Modernity romanticizes the world, making us believe that everything will be hunky-dory if we just adjust a few things. Some spiritual traditions demonize the world, claiming that everything in it is simply a source of temptation and tribulation. In positive contrast to such romanticization or demonization, the Gita recommends utilization: using the things of the world for humanity’s spiritual evolution.
In today’s multi-cultural world, especially relevant is Gita (18.66): “Give up all religions – just surrender to me.” This verse doesn’t reject religion per se, but connects religion with its defining purpose: to love God. When religion is being increasingly misappropriated for promoting sectarian extremism, the Gita’s stress on religion as a means to spiritual devotion can offer precious healing to a hurting world.
Millions the world over succumb to various self-destructive behavioral patterns such as depression, addiction and suicidal urges. Such self-destruction begins with a misleading inner voice that makes us do things that hurt us and hurt others. Pertinently, the Gita (06.05) cautions: “Elevate yourself with yourself; don’t degrade yourself with yourself. The self is the friend of the self and the self is the enemy of the self too.” Gita wisdom is an illuminating inner torchlight to identify and rectify the misleading voice. Thus, it can serve as an invaluable spiritual complement to psychology and psychiatry in healing those who have become their own worst enemies.
Personal realization and contribution
On occasions too many to count, the Gita has solaced and strengthened me. By reciting it, I access the spiritual sound that raises my consciousness above my circumstance. By meditating on it, my intelligence becomes equipped to return and face the circumstance with greater maturity and clarity.
In 2011, while I was on a morning walk in Mumbai, I slipped on some spilled water. The fall fractured severely my left leg which had been afflicted with polio when I was one and had thereafter hollowed with osteoporosis. The fracture caused pain of the kind I had never experienced before. As I struggled to endure the pain, suddenly Gita verses from the second chapter came out of my mouth, and I felt immediate relief from the pain. From that moment onwards for the next five hours till I was given anesthesia for a surgery, I was continuously reciting the Gita’s verses. By such recitation, I found my consciousness rising above my bodily pain and going deep into the Gita’s wisdom.
After this exceptional spiritual experience, I felt inspired to do something special for serving the Gita. While exploring options, I found that no one was sharing the Gita’s wisdom through concise daily reflections. Several Christian pastors were mailing daily Bible messages, and some Muslim mullahs were mailing daily Koran messages. I felt troubled: Why was the Gita not receiving similar daily service? After praying and seeking my mentors’ blessings, I took up this service on November 1, 2011.
For over five years since then, I have been writing daily a small three-hundred-word reflection on the Gita and publishing it at gitadaily.com. I feel grateful for the opportunity and the ability to do this service to the Gita. And I feel even more grateful to see that these daily reflections are connecting thousands of readers from all over the world with the Gita.
An Israeli scholar on the Gita, Dr. Ithamar Theodor, has called my Gita presentation an expression of “humanistic Hinduism.” The Gita speaks to us through many voices. Dr. Theodor verbalized what I had inchoately sensed: The Gita is meant for all of humanity, for bringing the best out of humanity and for helping humanity get the best out of life.
When I give talks on the Gita in various parts of the world from Australia to America, people often introduce me as a Gita teacher. But I see myself as a Gita student who seeks to understand it better by speaking and writing on it. I don’t teach the Gita – the Gita teaches me and teaches through me. I am profoundly grateful to the many Gita teachers, past and present, whose insights have helped me dive deeper into the Gita. As a service to them, I do my small part in keeping the Gita’s legacy of wisdom alive and accessible.
My life’s greatest fortune is to savor and share the Gita. I hope and pray that I can serve it by writing on it daily till my life’s last day.
The post What I have learned from the Gita appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.
Travel Adventures of a Krishna Monk.
Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, By Krishna-kripa das.
Inspiring quotes from Srila Prabhupada’s books, conversations, and letters. I add a quote by Krishna Himself from Srimad-Bhagavatam. I include quotes from the books of previous acaryas, namely Rupa Goswami and Bhaktivinoda Thakura. Ramesvara Prabhu, who did great service for the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, gave a class after breakfast on Thanksgiving at The Bhakti Center on the philosophy behind book distribution. The class was very inspiring and filled with a lot of realizations, and I share my notes on that. I also share notes on the morning classes at The Bhakti Center given by Adi Purusha, Rama Raya, Karuna Gauranga, Paramananda Gopal, Murali Gopal and Mahotsaha Prabhus, and by Bhaktas Josh and Cesar. I also include quotes from articles in Back to Godhead, Vol. 51, No. 2, by Krishna Dharma Prabhu, Nagaraja Prabhu, Caitanya Candra Prabhu, Nikunja Vilasini Devi Dasi, and Madhava Smullen. I also share one note from an internet lecture by Vaisesika Prabhu, which I overheard.
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/7UhnlW
Jagannath Rath Yatra 2017 at Iskcon Pune (1 min promo video)
Nara-narayana: When you came to the Western world, no one anywhere believed that it would be successful, I think. But actually it has become very successful, by preaching. Prabhupada: I myself did not believe I shall be successful, [laughs] what to speak of others. But because I did in the proper line, so it has become successful. From Srila Prabhupada’s Morning Walk – December 12, 1973, Los Angeles
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/2GI8Yr
Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya by Tarana & friends (7 min musical video)
One can attain salvation simply by chanting the holy name of the Lord. Srimad Bhagavatam 1.18.7
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/mexdHg
Bhagavad Gita for children ( Chapter 2 Text 59) By Radha Padma Mayapur 2016 (9 min video)
Vaisnava Seva das: Yet another amazin...
Notes from Ramesvara prabhu’s recent sankirtana seminar at The Bhakti Center on Thanksgiving Day: In some confidential conversations with his disciples, Srila Prabhupada indicated that he was sent from the spiritual world to write his books and distribute them worldwide, much in the same way as the Six Goswamis were.
It was Srila Prabhupada’s genius to illustrate his books with fantastic, colorful, and glorious artwork to attract the conditioned souls to read them.
London was considered the capital of the world because of the British Empire, but after World War II, New York City became more prominent.
Srila Prabhupada envisioned presenting the Srimad-Bhagavatam in 60 volumes of 400 pages each. Most religions have one book about God, and they think that is amazing. In the introduction to the first printing of the second volume of the First Canto, Srila Prabhupada recalls a conversation with someone who found it hard to believe he was producing so many volumes about God. He replied that he was only producing 60 volumes because the puny brains of the residents of Kali-yuga can only take so much. In the higher planets, they have millions of volumes.
Of all of our activities, this activity of book distribution is our most important activity.
Srila Prabhupada gave up everything to write these books, and if we give up everything to distribute them, that will be proper reciprocation, and we will experience a deep satisfaction.
Every embodied soul in every body has a deep-rooted desire to enjoy sense objects. If we had that desire in the spiritual world, it would create a lot of disturbance, and thus Krishna created this world for us. This material sense enjoyment is not this world’s only purpose. Krishna has not forgotten us, and enters into the heart of each body as Paramatma. To come to the human form takes millions of births.
A rich person dies, a poor person dies, a famous person dies, and an unknown person dies. Why should I endeavor for wealth and fame if my end is the same. A human being can question this.
If you are not focused on this philosophy, when you walk out of the door, you will look after one sense object after another, because it is a deep-rooted habit.
No love in the material world could motivate someone to follow his friend in every abominable birth he takes, and thus no one has love like Krishna, who is willing to do that.
Although the souls have attained the human form, they are victimized by Kali-yuga and encouraged to desire like animals, and thus lose their opportunity for perfecting their human lives. When you see with that vision when you go out, that is seeing spiritually. Everyone is part of Krishna like we are and is a family member.
Approaching them, knowing they are our brothers and sisters, although they do not recognize that we are their brothers and sisters, is an art.
The secret on sankirtana is to really care about the people, and Krishna will give the person the ability to see that you really care.
If they get a book, even if they do not read it, they will get a human birth.
If you perform the austerity of trying to distribute the books, although it is not your nature, you will become very dear to Krishna. Krishna sees that you are trying to come up to a soul He has been watching for so many births and get him to turn away from sense enjoyment.
In the beginning it is very hard, but at the end it is nonstop spiritual ecstasy, and that is because Krishna is so pleased that someone is finally trying to turn each soul away from sense enjoyment and toward Him.
We should always think, “These are my brothers and sisters. They are living in a culture that causes them to waste their human lives. I have to give them the opportunity to be delivered.”
Japa is a prayer. It is a call for help. If you pray to Krishna to always give you that sankirtana consciousness, he will do that.
Those ecstasies of sankirtana are waiting for you, like an ocean to swim in.
I cannot describe how dear you become to Krishna if you dedicate your life to connect others with Him.
Q (by Cesar’s father): What did Srila Prabhupada think of when he came to America all alone?
A: This is recorded in his poem “Markine Bhagavata-dharma.” First he thought, “Krishna, why did You bring me here?” For thousands of years in India, the mood was to not associate with such degraded souls. Then he considered that Krishna brought him there for a purpose. And he prayed for Krishna to give him words to say to the people and to make him a success, if He desired.
It has nothing to do with us, but some impossible things occur because Krishna is working through us.
You may think “that person will never take a book,” but Krishna can give you the words to say so he will take a book.
Srila Prabhupada wrote in a letter to Satsvarupa Maharaja one paragraph for me to tell the book distributors. In essence it was, “Because I have sacrificed so much to write these books and you are sacrificing so much to distribute them, we have an intimate and intense relationship, like actors on a stage, and I am the director, and through this the people of the world will be saved.”
Srila Prabhupada said that he liked to work at night because he had to have it very quiet so Krishna could speak to him the translation and purport from within the heart and he could hear it.
Source: https://goo.gl/7UhnlW