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Prabhupada said, "This is Vaishnava. A Vaishnava is kind to every living entity. Not this squishing business." Sukadeva: Prabhupada said that you have to become like the bumblebee and not like the fly and Prabhupada proved it by his own example. Once Nara-Narayan—who does not sing like a nightingale—was in the temple room singing and Prabhupada said, "Who is that singing?" Karandhar said, "It's Nara-Narayan, Srila Prabhupada." Prabhupada said, "Hmm, he keeps very good time." Once Hari Sauri's alarm clock went off and Prabhupada said, "What is that sound?" Hari Sauri said, "That's the alarm clock, Srila Prabhupada." Prabhupada said, "Oh? Who is in danger?" I looked at Hari Sauri and thought, "Wow! My spiritual master has a sense of humor!"

Swamiji’s Thriving 26 Second Avenue Center

The entrance way to New Vrindaban, along the start of the famed Aghasura Road.

Excerpted from an article written by Cintamani Dasi and previously published in the Brijabasi Spirit, October 1985.

It was May 9th, 1969. Before coming to New Vrindaban, Srila Prabhupada visited the Columbus, Ohio center. By some inconceivable good fortune I met him and was initiated. After breaking open the storehouse of love of God in Columbus, Krishna sent Srila Prabhupada to New Vrindaban to bless the ground with his lotus feet.

From Columbus two carloads of devotes went to New Vrindaban. Kirtanananda Swami and Srila Prabhupada drove in a black Lincoln. I was eager to ride in the other car that was going, but Jaya Gopal, the temple president told me, “You can’t go. Srila Prabhupada doesn’t want any bramacarinis in New Vrindaban. Only brahmacharis and married couples.” I was devastated. An Indian lady who was visiting the center asked what was wrong, and I told her. She ran upstairs and told Srila Prabhupada.

“She can come,” he said. “Tell her she can stay as long as I am there.” Srila Prabhupada was so merciful! I got back in the car. Soon, Srila Prabhupada was sitting in the front seat of the other car, and they were off. We tried to keep up with them, but it was not easy.

After a couple of hours, we were driving on the winding roads of West Virginia. Then we went down a bumpy little road and parked next to the old school house.

We (Labangalatika, Nara Narayana, Hrisikesa and I) started walking up a narrow grass path that we could barely see. I was carrying a sleeping bag and a small suitcase, and after the first mile I was wondering if I was going to make it. “Oh God! Oh Krishna! When are we ever going to get there?”

Srila Prabhupada speaking with his followers outside the original New Vrindaban farmhouse, Spring 1969.

Finally, the small house came into view. As we got nearer, I saw Srila Prabhupada. He was sitting outside on the grass with several devotees around him. He was beaming. It was a beautiful, sunny, transcendental spring day. Seeing Srila Prabhupada made everything perfect. He was just sitting there, looking around at the devotees. It was obvious he really liked it in New Vrindaban.

Satyabhama brought prasadam out for the devotees, and along with Srila Prabhupada we honored the tasty prasadam. Satyabhama then served out more prasadam, but I was skipped. I was thinking, “I want more prasadam, but I don’t want to ask in front of my spiritual master.” Just then Srila Prabhupada looked at me and asked, “You want more?” Amazed, I said, “Yes.” I knew I had to be careful what I thought because Srila Prabhupada knew everything.

Later on, I looked over the “facilities.” The women – Syama Dasi, Labangalatika, and I – stayed on the second floor of the barn, above Kaliya, the cow. There was a well outside for water. In the afternoon we would literally slide down a steep hillside to Kesi Ghat to bathe. It was a little austere, but just being with Srila Prabhupada made everything ecstatic.

It was cold the first night we stayed in the barn. Morning came, and someone hit a gong – time to get up! Near the temple there was a small room where everyone put on tilak before entering the temple. Mangala arotika was so ecstatic! Srila Prabhupada would come downstairs and sit on a raised platform that had a gold pillow on it. Kirtanananda Swami would play harmonium. Sometimes Hayagriva would blow his kelp horn that was so long he practically had to stand in the kitchen to play. Everyone danced ecstatically. Afterwards, Srila Prabhupada would give classes on Srimad Bhagavatam.

After the morning program, the devotees would go to work. I washed pots and dishes. Outside the kitchen there was a wooden platform with a big tin tub on it, and I used to haul up well water and wash pots in the tub. We didn’t have scouring powder or soap. We used sand or pebbles to scrub the posts. They had to be very clean or Srila Prabhupada would complain. The best part about the service was that a few times a day Srila Prabhupada would come outside and walk right by, so even washing pots was ecstatic.

Once, when Srila Prabhupada walked by, a brahmachari was standing in front of the wooden platform playing his guitar, trying to teach me “Govinda Jaya Jaya.” He said he wanted to make a record, but since I was a new devotee, I didn’t know too much. Srila Prabhupada came over and said to him, “Why are you standing so near?” All of a sudden I could feel my face turning red. I realized that Srila Prabhupada didn’t want the women to be talking to the brahmacharis, even if it was just to learn a song. I was thinking, “I wish he would move.” But the brahmachari just stood there and said, “Oh, Srila Prabhupada, I was just teaching her this song.” “Oh,” said Srila Prabhupada, “You are teaching her?” And he just walked away.

After Srila Prabhupada took his lunch he always left some remnants. Often, the brahmacharis would run with his remnants into the woods, tackling each other to get the most. One day a new couple arrived. When the girl saw the brahmacharis running into the woods, she couldn’t understand the meaning of it. I explained that the remnants form the spiritual master’s plate are very potent.

On several occasions devotees came down from New York to visit Srila Prabhupada. The brothers Brahmananda and Gargamuni came one day, wearing jeans and suspenders. They came without notice, which produced some anxiety. “Would there be enough prasadam for Brahmananda?” He really could eat a lot of prasadam.

Srila Prabhupada & devotees enjoying prasadam near the original New Vrindaban cow barn, Spring 1969.

Although there were only a few devotees, we would still have a Sunday feast. During the feast the pots of prasadam were lined up outside. Every devotee would eat to their full satisfaction. Finished, some of the men would fall asleep on the grass near the pots, wake up later and eat more.

Srila Prabhupada’s lifestyle was so simple in New Vrindaban. Every morning his servant Devananda would heat up water in an aluminum pail over an outside fire. Srila Prabhupada would take the water and bathe in it in a little shack next to the temple. Sometimes in the morning, Srila Prabhupada would get a massage. One day Bhurijana dasa came and was taking some pictures of Srila Prabhupada getting a massage. Srila Prabhupada laughed and said, “These pictures are not for the Back to Godhead magazine!”

In the cool mornings, Srila Prabhupada would often take walks and a servant would follow, fanning him with a big leaf. I used to clean Srila Prabhupada’s room above the temple. In one closed off section he had small Radha Krishna Deities, and in the main section there was a mattress. Next to the mattress were two black trunks with some of Srila Prabhupada’s belongings and books. He used the trunks as a desk.

Srila Prabhupada seated in his quarters during his first visit to New Vrindaban, Spring 1969.

Early one morning, he came upstairs, surprising me. I was still cleaning his room. On the desk was a garlanded picture of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta. Srila Prabhupada took the garland off the picture and handed it to me saying, “This is from Krishna, with blessings.”

Then the day came for Srila Prabhupada to leave New Vrindaban. Srila Prabhupada walked at a brisk pace down the two mile path with all the New Vrindaban devotees behind him. I felt sad when he left but knew we couldn’t keep him there forever, although I would have liked that. We understood he had to spread Lord Caitanya’s mercy to other fallen souls.

Srila Prabhupada sat outside daily under a persimmon tree, Spring 1969.

New Memories Video, 63.
A great way to end the 50th Year of ISKCON’s birthday with a gift for yourself and/or your friends as the “Memories” series continues with Part 63 featuring the following 10 devotees:
Atitaguna dasi, Krsnarupa dasi, Mishra Bhagavan das, Niranjan das, Pancharatna das, Riddha das, Sauri das, Sevananda das, Surabhi dasi and Tribhangananda das. You will learn what fragrance is Srimati Radharani’s favorite, who was Srila Prabhupada’s favorite secretary, how Srila Prabhupada appreciated his spiritual daughters, what is your relationship with Krishna and many many more anecdotes in this 2 hour DVD.

This DVD is not yet on our website so please order this DVD for only $15 in the U.S. and $20 outside the U.S. by emailing Siddhanta at itvproductions1@gmail.com for payment instructions.
Watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biGy4FPe2PQ

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, September 2008, Cape Town, South Africa, Lecture)

When the principles of the mode of goodness becomes our second nature, this is the point where you begin to enjoy spiritual life. Spiritual life is very nice! We are chanting and having nice association and we are very happy.

But this is not all. Still we must sacrifice, we must do whatever we can to save condition souls. You may say, “Well, you know, they’re very sinful, very fallen and I don’t know if I can associate too much with those people because I might fall down. It is better to stay safe.”

Sit there safe in your nice little spiritual life, in your sweet little Krsna bubble but know one thing for sure, you are STILL-NOT-FULFILLED! There is STILL-SOMETHING-LACKING! In spite of everything, in spite of having all the Krsna conscious videos that you can imagine, in spite of having 3 000 cd’s, in spite of having 12 000 lectures and 78 000 pictures of Krsna… in spite of all of that still… still somehow or other, a sense of emptiness just hits you every once in a while.

So, if we do not make that sacrifice, if we do not take the trouble to save the condition souls, it will not happen, we will not be truly fulfilled and satisfied.

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Rupa Goswami describes this type of hope as asha-bandha (“bound by hope”): One thinks, “Because I’m trying my best to follow the routine principles of devotional service, some way or other I will be able to approach the Lord and will certainly receive His favor. Surely I will go back to Godhead, back home.” In the mood of asha-bandha a devotee feels, “I wasn’t born in a good family, I haven’t done good works, I have no knowledge of the Lord or love for Him, and no attraction for the processes of hearing about, chanting about, and remembering Him, which will develop that love. Yet still, I want to approach Him. And that very want upsets me because I am completely unfit to do so. In terms of justice, my case is hopeless; all I have are demerits. So, I seek my fortune in the Lord’s mercy.” Continue reading "Hope: The Bedrock of Spiritual Progress
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Quotes by Thomas a Kempis
(Thomas à Kempis, (1420) was a Dutch canon regular of the late medieval period and the author of The Imitation of Christ, one of the most popular and best known Christian books on devotion.)
Be thankful for the least gift, so shalt thou be meant to receive greater. Endeavor to be always patient of the faults and imperfections of others for thou has many faults and imperfections of thine own that require forbearance. If thou are not able to make thyself that which thou wisest, how canst thou expect to mold another in conformity to thy will?

Love flies, runs, and rejoices; it is free and nothing can hold it back.

Never be entirely idle; but either be reading, or writing, or praying or meditating or endeavoring something for the public good.

- More quotations on: [Laziness]
Of two evils we must always choose the least.

- More quotations on: [Evil]
Remember that lost time does not return.

The good devout man first makes inner preparation for the actions he has later to perform. His outward actions do not draw him into lust and vice; rather it is he who bends them into the shape of reason and right judgement. Who has a stiffer battle to fight than the man who is striving to conquer himself.

Who has a harder fight than he who is striving to overcome himself.

First keep the peace within yourself, then you can also bring peace to others.

- More quotations on: [Peace]
And when he is out of sight, quickly also is he out of mind.

Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.

Rama’s forsaking Sita is the Ramayana’s most challenged and most challenging incident. A man’s abandoning his pregnant wife because of an unproven accusation seems troublingly wrong.

Reputation

Why did Rama do such a thing? Was he excessively reputation-conscious? Did he abandon Sita just because he didn’t want his good name sullied by having a wife suspected to be impure? But if he had been so obsessed with his reputation, then why did he not remarry after sending Sita away? A king overly concerned about appearances would want a trophy queen by his side; being a queen-less king was hardly a reputation-enhancer.

As a wealthy, powerful emperor, Rama could have married anyone of his choice. He refused to remarry because he wanted to honor his word to Sita. Soon after their marriage, Rama had promised Sita that she would be his only wife. By keeping that pledge lifelong, Rama showed his respect for Sita, thereby rebutting her accusers.

If Rama had wanted to remarry, he could have justified giving up that pledge on the grounds of religious duty. As a king, he was expected to perform sacrifices meant for his state’s welfare. And tradition mandated that the sponsor perform such sacrifices with his wife. When priests pointed out this requirement and exhorted Rama to remarry, he respectfully but firmly refused. He honored the traditional requirement by making a golden image of Sita and seating it besides him during the sacrifices. By according this honor to her through her image, he proclaimed that he still considered her his wife. And that he still considered her pure, so pure in fact that her image could sit next to him in rituals that often required exacting standards of purity.

Ethical crisis

If Rama considered Sita pure, why did he abandon her? Because the ethical dilemma confronting him didn’t seem amenable to any other solution.

We need to see the actions of characters in the epics in the light of the prevailing culture and its cherished values. The Ramayana depicts a deeply spiritual culture. Therein, people saw success not just in terms of prosperity in this world, but also in terms of the spirituality cultivated during one’s journey through this world. Cultivating spirituality, in its highest sense, meant developing devotion to the source of everything, God, and harmonizing one’s whole life accordingly. In such a culture, all relations and positions were seen as opportunities for sacred service, service to God and to others in relationship with him. One service was the service of exemplifying detachment, especially from things that came in the way of one’s spiritual growth.

Most people are attached materially to their relations and positions. Such attachments can keep them alienated from God, who is the ultimate provider of everything including family members and who is the ultimate shelter after death, when all family members are left behind. Materially attached people are naturally attracted to those with lavish material assets. The person with the most impressive material assets is usually the king. If the king demonstrates detachment by not letting material things come in the way of spiritual cultivation, then the king’s example forcefully edifies citizens about the importance of life’s spiritual side. So, integral to the king’s duty was the duty of demonstrating to his citizens that worldly attachments couldn’t sway him from his spiritual dharma. This duty conflicted with Rama’s duty as a husband.

When Rama heard the accusation leveled against Sita, he was faced with an ethical dilemma. Whereas a moral dilemma confronts us with two choices, one moral and the other immoral, an ethical dilemma confronts us with two choices, both moral. For resolving an ethical dilemma, we need to discern the higher moral principle and harmonize the lower moral principle as much as possible. Rama’s dilemma was ethical because his duty as a king conflicted with his duty as a husband.

As a husband, he was dutybound to protect his wife. But as the king, he was dutybound to exemplify and teach detachment to his citizens. If his citizens felt that he was so attached to Sita as to keep her despite her impurity, then they would, consciously or subconsciously, use Rama’s alleged attachment to rationalize their own attachments to unworthy things. Of course, Sita was not impure. She had not left Rama and gone to Ravana; Ravana had abducted her against her will. Because Ravana had been cursed to die if he ever violated a woman against her will, he had tried to gain Sita’s consent by alternately tempting and threatening her. She had heroically preserved her purity by spurning his temptations and braving his threats for an endlessly long year. Rama himself had no doubts about Sita’s purity. But anticipating people’s objections, he had prepared to address them. After the fall of Ravana in Lanka, when Sita was brought into his presence, he had her purity dramatically demonstrated through the test of fire. Moreover, after that test, the gods led by Brahma had certified Sita’s spotless character.

If despite all this, people were still questioning Sita’s purity, Rama felt that nothing would ever convince them. If he neglected such people and continued to live with Sita, he would appear attached. If he silenced them, he would come off as so blinded by attachment as to be vindictive. He felt that his duty as a king required him to show his detachment from Sita.

Exhibiting a stoic spirit of sacrifice, Rama deemed his duty as king more important than his duty as husband, and so sent Sita away to the forest. But he didn’t entirely neglect his duty as a husband; he did that duty too because the forsaken Sita was still in his kingdom and thus indirectly in his protection.

When the distraught Lakshmana informed Sita of Rama’s decision, she was devastated. But soon she regained her composure, understood her Lord’s heart and gracefully accepted her part in the heart-wrenching sacrifice that both of them had to be part of. She didn’t resent Rama and didn’t poison her sons against their father. She raised them lovingly, accepting with fortitude the role of a single mother that had been thrust on her.

Of course, she was not a single mother in the modern sense; she didn’t have to single-handedly earn a living and care for her children. After being forsaken, she lived in Valmiki’s hermitage, where the matronly female hermits took care of her and helped her to take care of her children.

It’s worth noting that banishment may not be the best word for describing Sita’s abandonment. Banishment implied being evicted from the kingdom into the forest – as had happened to Rama earlier in the Ramayana. Though Sita lived in the forest, she was still in Rama’s kingdom. She did not have to scour for food, clothing, shelter; these were arranged for in Valmiki’s hermitage.

Sacrificers, not victims

The whole Ramayana is permeated with the spirit of sacrifice – a spirit that attains its summit in the separation of Rama and Sita. The mood throughout the epic is not of demanding one’s rights, but of sacrificing one’s rights for a higher cause.

When Rama was exiled because of the promise of his father Dasharatha, Rama didn’t demand his rights as the rightful heir. He could have argued: “I am utterly blameless, yet I am being not only disinherited but also exiled, as if I were the worst of criminals. And all this just for honoring some undocumented promise made by my father to my stepmother. How unfair!” Far from arguing thus, Rama immediately agreed to sacrifice his right for the higher cause of honoring his father’s words. He even calmed those who wanted to rebel against the king.

On hearing about Rama’s exile, Sita too didn’t fight for her rights. She didn’t claim that she as a princess deserved to live in royal comforts. She willingly, even insistently, sacrificed those comforts for accompanying her husband to the forest.

This spirit of sacrifice is illustrated by Lakshmana too when he accompanied Rama to the forest. Sita being Rama’s wife was expected to stick by his side through thick and thin. But nothing of that magnitude was expected from Rama’s brother. Yet Lakshmana didn’t demand his right to royal comfort; instead, he sacrificed that comfort for the cause of serving Rama.

Bharata too demonstrated this spirit of sacrifice. He could have ascended the throne, justifying that it had come of its own accord; he himself had done nothing wrong to get it. Yet, he didn’t. Even when Rama entrusted the kingdom to him, he didn’t consider royal luxury as his right. Though he discharged the responsibilities of a ruler, he placed Rama’s sandals on the throne and sat at their feet. Emulating his brother’s hermit lifestyle, he lived in a cottage outside Ayodhya and eating austere fare.

Importantly, none of these characters saw themselves as helpless victims deprived of their rights; they saw themselves as conscious agents who chose to sacrifice their rights for a higher cause. In that same spirit, Sita, on being forsaken, didn’t see herself as a victim of a judgmental husband. Recognizing that she had been called to bear a particularly heavy cross, she gracefully, even gallantly, accepted the necessary sacrifice. Those who portray her as a victim do grave injustice to her awesome strength of character.

Such people err even more if they portray Rama as a victimizer. In this incident, his position is similar to that of Sita – both are partners in an excruciating sacrifice. Perhaps the best parallel to appreciate Rama’s agony in sending Sita away is Dasharatha’s agony in sending Rama away.

Just as Dasharatha wanted with all his heart to offer the best of everything to his son, Rama too wanted to do everything he could for his wife. After all, she had endured, for his sake, thirteen years of austere life as a hermit and one year of agonizing life as an abductee. Just as Dasharatha was bound by duty to do something that broke his heart, so too was Rama bound by duty. At least, Dasharatha could point the finger at Kaikeyi and could vent his anger at her machinations. Rama couldn’t do even that, for people would have thought him vindictive. So, he had to not only give the wrenching order of exiling Sita, but also keep the storm of his anger and agony contained within himself.

Just as Dasharatha was not punishing Rama, Rama too was not punishing Sita. Just as father and son had to make a painful sacrifice for a higher cause, husband and wife too had to make an anguishing sacrifice for a higher cause.

Esoteric explanations

For those seeking explanations based on past-life causes, the Valmiki Ramayana offers one and the broader Rama tradition offers many. The epic (6.51.15) mentions an ancient curse that ordained the separation of Vishnu and Lakshmi. Once, when the demons were fleeing from the gods led by Indra, they took shelter of the sage Bhrugu’s wife, Khyati. When the gods asked that the demons be handed over to them so that they could be duly punished, Khyati became incited by a misguided sense of compassion. Summoning her mystic powers, she started attacking the gods, who beseeched Vishnu for help. A hard-earned win against deadly demons was being undone because of Khyati’s misplaced protectiveness. To prevent such a catastrophe, Vishnu was constrained to use his own mystical disc Sudarshan Chakra for slaying her. When Bhrugu came to know about this, he became enraged. He cursed Vishnu to take multiple births in the material world and, in one such birth, to be separated from his wife – just as Bhrugu was now separated from his.

Of course, Rama as the Supreme Being is not subject to anyone’s curse. Still, he accepted it out of deference to the sage and for furthering his own pastimes. The enactment of that curse comprised the chain of events that led to the separation of Rama and Sita, who were Vishnu and Lakshmi incarnated on earth.

The Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition explains that the separation of the divine couple facilitates viraha-bhakti, devotion in separation. Separation intensifies the devotee’s remembrance of the Lord. And as the Lord is not a finite person, but is the Supreme Person, he is always present in the devotee’s heart. When the devotee remembers him intensely, he reciprocates by increasingly manifesting himself in the devotee’s heart, thereby intensifying the devotional trance. Externally such separation seems like agony, but internally it is the summit of spiritual ecstasy. Separation does to love what wind does to fire – spreads it more and more. When separated from Rama, Sita relished such intense devotion.

Injustice towards women?

Some people see this incident as representing Indian culture’s repressive attitude towards women. But is Rama’s forsaking Sita meant to be a benchmark for judging all women based on unfounded suspicions? Not at all. The pastime is meant primarily to illustrate the mood of sacrifice. Its specific details aren’t meant to be universalized, as is evident from Rama’s conduct in other situations.

That very Ramayana which describes Rama’s abandoning Sita also describes Rama’s mercifulness towards everyone, including women, even women looked down upon by mainstream society. The sage Gautama’s wife had been literally petrified, turned into stone, because of a curse triggered by her accidental unchastity. Rama, far from being judgmental towards her, mercifully released her from that curse and reinstated her in the respectable position of the sage’s wife. The female hermit Shabari was treated as an outcaste, but Rama graced her by accepting the berries she offered. Tara had become widowed after the demise of her husband Vali, but Rama ensured that she was given a place of dignity in the Kishkinda palace. Considering the cultural conservatism of those times, Rama’s actions were exceptionally inclusive and magnanimous.

The bhakti tradition explains that the same Absolute Truth who manifested as Rama manifested later as Krishna. And Krishna demonstrated an even more inclusive attitude towards women deemed fallen by society. Once, he was beseeched to rescue many kings who had been imprisoned by a demon named Bhaumasura. Krishna freed the world from the menace of Bhaumasura and then freed the kings. During the rescue and release operation, he came across the many princesses who had been abducted by that demon. In the prevailing conservative society, these princesses had become permanently stigmatized, even though the demon hadn’t violated them. Driven by a peculiar idea of gaining religious merit, he had been waiting for an auspicious day to slay all the kings in a macabre rite of human sacrifice and thereafter take the princesses for himself. Still, because these princesses had lived in the demon’s captivity, society considered them defiled.

They thanked Krishna for having rescued them from the demon and begged him to rescue them from their destitute condition too. When he asked them what exactly they wanted, they requested that he accept them as his maidservants. He more than consented, making them not his maidservants, but his queens. He not only reinstated them, but also elevated them to the status of royalty in a phenomenally powerful kingdom.

Consider the contrast between the Lord’s dealing with Sita and these princesses.

1. He asked Sita to pass a test by fire, but he didn’t ask these princesses to undergo any such test.
2. Sita was already his queen, yet he sent her away. These princesses were unrelated to him, yet he made them his queens.
3. Sita was already pregnant with his children, so he had a major obligation to her. He had no such obligation to the princesses, yet he accepted an obligation to them and reinstated them to respectability.

The point of this contrast is to illustrate that the Lord is too great to be reducible to any mundane characterization based on any one incident. The Lord’s activities, known as lila or pastimes, are enacted to serve varying purposes. Accordingly, different pastimes demonstrate different qualities. As Rama, his pastime primarily demonstrated the principle of sacrifice. As Krishna, his pastime primarily demonstrated the principle of compassion.

Inspiration for selflessness

The Ramayana’s extreme examples of sacrifice can inspire us to infuse a healthy dose of selflessness into our relationships. Significantly, Indian society that has drawn enduring inspiration from the Ramayana is characterized by robust family relationships. In many parts of the world, families are falling apart. But in India, the family structure is still strong. Much of this strength comes from the readiness of family members to sacrifice for each other.

Appreciating Rama’s forsaking Sita as an act of supreme sacrifice harmonizes with the Ramayana’s seminal starting question: whowas the ideal person? The eponymous epic declares Rama the ideal person. A person who abandons his pregnant wife can hardly be considered ideal. But a person who consistently demonstrates the signal virtue of sacrifice, no matter what it costs him, even if it costs him separation from his pregnant wife – that person is indeed extraordinary. And when both husband and wife demonstrate such sacrificing spirit, meditating on those exalted exemplars can offer immortal inspiration.

The post Why did Rama abandon Sita? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Focus of the Mentorship System (MS) is on the all-encompassing care, both spiritual and material, of existing devotees and not on expansion. Mentees have the facility also of having one-to-one personal meetings with their mentor based on Sacinandana Swami’s “Tree of Life” concept. Devotees feel part of an extended family and by regular training and positive, healthy, devotee association, they will naturally become more stronger in their spiritual lives and happier too! After some years of being in ISKCON we often tend to mechanically perform our sadhana and service, by getting together in the mentee groups we are reminded of the most important regulation which is to “Always remember Krsna, and never forget Him”. Mentors assist us in becoming more conscious of Krsna and keep us focused on our ultimate goal of life of going back home, back to Krsna. As a result of feedback, to cater for devotees of differing levels, our meeting formats have flexibility to be more tailor-made for the individual groups. We are very delighted to be able to offer a new prasadam service to those in the MS and we are looking for more devotees to assist in our new initiative of cooking and/or delivering prasad to mentees in times of illness etc. Please email us at mentorship@krishnatemple. com if you can help. To find out more about the MS visit the “departments” section on krishnatemple.com

Bhaktivedanta Manor - Shree Krishna Haveli Model.
“At the Manor, one hopes to be able to serve Lord Krishna at their highest levels of cognizance,” explained Harish Patel, “This dream became a reality for me when Gauri and Srutidharma prabhus approached us to make the model for the Shree Krishna Haveli. With assistance from my graduating students Amit Bhagat and Pradeep Hirani, this devotional service was taken on. Kamal Chunilal from India helped us overcome the most complicated parts! After about 300 hours of service our prayers were answered and the model was complete!” The model of the Haveli can be found within the visitor’s section of New Gokul farm.

Radha Kunjabihari Temple Anniversary (Album with photos)
Ramai Swami: Seven years ago, the Bali Klungkung area devotees bought...

Indian Govt approves new liberalized visa policy.
The new policy includes long-term multiple-entry comprehensive visa by mergin...

Artha Forum, a not-for-profit initiative that aims to bring the relevance of ancient wisdom to modern business, organised the event “Business With a Purpose” on 17th November 2016 at Bombay Stock Exchange, Mumbai. Over 400 corporate heads and entrepreneurs attended. Radhanath Swami was invited to be the keynote speaker. Others who spoke on the occasion were leaders from business and government administration: Ashishkumar Chauhan, the head of Bombay Stock Exchange, one of the leading stock exchanges in the world; Praveen Pardeshi, the principal secretary to the chief minister of Maharashtra state; and Ajay Piramal, the chairman of Piramal Group, a diversified global business conglomerate. Continue reading "Radhanath Swami Addresses Corporate Leaders at the Bombay Stock Exchange, Mumbai
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The devotees of ISKCON NOIDA performed a 15 day padayatra from October 2nd to October 15th. The route began in NOIDA (Indraprastha) and ended in Sri Vrindavan Dham. NOIDA is approximately 150 kilometres away from Vrindavan. The padayatra, which was organized as of part of the ISKCON golden jubilee celebrations was the first of its kind in the history of Delhi or the National Capital Region[2] (NCR). The inspiration behind the walk was none-other than the Padayatra Minister, Lokanath Swami Maharaja; –it was also made possible by the efforts of Vanshidhar Dasa, Co-President of ISKCON NOIDA and many other devotees from the congregation. Continue reading "Iskcon Noida Organizes Its First Padayatra
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Krishna Club joins the Marathon! The Future is Bright! (2 min video)
UK - Big thanks to Krishna Club for taking up the marathon...

The setting inspires talks on “What cricket can teach us about life”
For me personally, the most productive aspects of my visit to the Middle East were the talks I gave on, of all things, cricket. I, like most Indians, had heard the name of a Middle East city because of the cricket tournaments it hosts. In recent years, as I have been speaking and writing on the Bhagavad-gita, I have been thinking of ideas to present its wisdom in contemporarily intelligible and appealing ways. For Indians, few things are as powerfully popular as is cricket. So, I have been thinking of ways in which the Gita’s message can be presented using cricket-related metaphors.
Such thinking was further stimulated when I came to know how an American author Steven Pressfield has used golf to present a novelized, simplified rendition of the Gita in his novel The Legend of Bagger Vance and how Satyaraja Prabhu, one of ISKCON’s leading authors, has commented on that novel with a book Gita on the Green: The Mystical Tradition Behind Bagger Vance.
Accordingly, for several years, I have been exploring ideas to write on the theme of cricket and Bhagavad-gita. Unfortunately, I have been paralyzed by a writer’s block. I was recently jolted out my self-induced paralysis on coming to know that one of my closest friends, Vraja Bihari Prabhu, was inspired by similar thoughts and has acted on that inspiration by writing a rough draft of a novel “Cricket in a Monastery.” He has serialized many parts of that novel on his blog yogaformodernage.com.
With the inspiration of his example at the back of my mind, I decided to force myself out of my creative lethargy – I chose to speak on the topic of “What cricket can teach us about life.” By Krishna’s mercy, that leap of faith led to a safe landing. My talk came out fairly well – and not only that, it stimulated a creative momentum that inspired me to speak on the same topic for two more classes, which were my last two classes in the Middle East.
What cricket can teach us about life Series: https://goo.gl/38zjKi

Tribulations for the Radha Kunda Seva - November 2016 Photos and Updates (Album with photos)
What a ride this last month has been! And it’s not over yet. November started out innocently enough. We were only halfway through the holy month of Kartika, and the crowds of pilgrims were as persistent as before. Our cleaners managed to keep up with the trash and our cooks kept feeding our widows and the parikrama pilgrims… until… a number of Radha Kunda residents and visitors came down with apparent food poisoning following the Govardhana Puja festivities, though, luckily, none of our folks were afflicted. When three people died of the ailment, the Nagar Panchayat (local government) decided to place a ban on the selling or distribution of prepared food in the Radha Kunda area. Consequences for disobeying the edict were dire. Anyone caught selling or distributing cooked food was soundly beaten. And although the sickness turned out to be caused by cholera contaminated water and we only use RO filtered water for cooking, our prasadam distribution had to be halted for nearly 3 weeks.
To add insult to injury, on November 8th, in an anti-corruption bid, Prime Minister Modi announced that all large currency – 500 and 1000 rupee bills – were now rendered useless. Our manager, Abhay Charan Prabhu had just withdrawn 50,000 rupees in 500 and 1000 rupee bills. Fortunately, he was able to immediately turn around and deposit them back into the bank account. But, ATM machines would only give 2000 rupees per day instead of the 10,000 they used to impart, and banks were loath to give 4000 rupees, often giving nothing since they had run out of small change. Five hour bank lines became the new “parikrama” as everyone, including our Abhay Charan scrambled each day for every last available 100 rupee, 50 rupee, and 10 rupee bill. Several times during the month, we received 10,000 rupees from the bank in 10 rupee notes.
In terms of emotional value, 100s have become the new 1000, 50s the new 500, and 10s the new 100. And yet, their actual monetary value has remained unchanged. A 100 rupee bill is still only worth around $1.50. And so, just to make ends meet, bank lines remain the daily ritual. Besides food shops, all stores have been closed, people have been making bonfires of useless bills and police have been beating off folks who, after spending hours in lines, angrily demand small change from the bank’s empty coffers. We’ve had to elicit the help of members of our Padma Charitable Trust board who’ve dug deep into their personal bank accounts in order to collect the necessary funds to keep our service going.
Between a shortage of funds and the ban on food distribution, the widows struggled for their daily sustenance. We were able to provide them with raw ingredients to cook their own meals in their tiny ashram homes. However, cooking like this means struggling to breathe because of cooking in very confined areas with little or no ventilation using whatever scraps of wood and dried cow dung patties (gobar ulpa) they could scavenge. Even obtaining dry cow dung cooking patties was a struggle since with the money shortage, people that would normally use gas tanks to cook, reverted to the old traditional ways causing a shortage of dung patties too!
Meanwhile, the kitchen construction had to be delayed since we don’t have the cash to pay our crew. And yet, when all is said and done, at the moment we are just feeling grateful to be back to daily feeding our Radha Kunda widows again.
Thank you for being part of the team! Please browse our latest photos and join our efforts by visiting www.radharani.com. Your servants, Campakalata Devi dasi, Padma Gopi Devi dasi, Urmila Devi Dasi, and Mayapurcandra dasa.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/N0mMGg

I advise all to preach the teachings of Rupa-Raghunatha (disciples of Lord Caitanya) with all energy and resources. Our ultimate goal shall be to become the dust of the lotus feet of Sri Sri Rupa Raghunatha Goswamins. You should all work conjointly under the guidance of your spiritual master with a view to serve the Absolute Knowledge, the Personality of Godhead. You should live somehow or other without any quarrel in this mortal world only for the service of Godhead. Do not please give up the service of Godhead in spite of all dangers, all criticisms and all discomforts. Do not be disappointed, for most people in the world do not serve the Personality of Godhead; do not give up your own service which is your everything and all, neither reject the process of chanting and hearing of the transcendental Holy Name of Godhead. You should always chant the transcendental Name of Godhead with patience and forbearance like a tree and humbleness like a straw. Continue reading "Who is a Rupanuga?
→ Dandavats"

For me personally, the most productive aspects of my visit to the Middle East were the talks I gave on, of all things, cricket. I, like most Indians, had heard the name of a Middle East city because of the cricket tournaments it hosts. In recent years, as I have been speaking and writing on the Bhagavad-gita, I have been thinking of ideas to present its wisdom in contemporarily intelligible and appealing ways. For Indians, few things are as powerfully popular as is cricket. So, I have been thinking of ways in which the Gita’s message can be presented using cricket-related metaphors.
Such thinking was further stimulated when I came to know how an American author Steven Pressfield has used golf to present a novelized, simplified rendition of the Gita in his novel The Legend of Bagger Vance and how Satyaraja Prabhu, one of ISKCON’s leading authors, has commented on that novel with a book Gita on the Green: The Mystical Tradition Behind Bagger Vance.
Accordingly, for several years, I have been exploring ideas to write on the theme of cricket and Bhagavad-gita. Unfortunately, I have been paralyzed by a writer’s block. I was recently jolted out my self-induced paralysis on coming to know that one of my closest friends, Vraja Bihari Prabhu, was inspired by similar thoughts and has acted on that inspiration by writing a rough draft of a novel “Cricket in a Monastery.” He has serialized many parts of that novel on his blog yogaformodernage.com.
With the inspiration of his example at the back of my mind, I decided to force myself out of my creative lethargy – I chose to speak on the topic of “What cricket can teach us about life.” By Krishna’s mercy, that leap of faith led to a safe landing. My talk came out fairly well – and not only that, it stimulated a creative momentum that inspired me to speak on the same topic for two more classes, which were my last two classes in the Middle East.

The post The setting inspires talks on “What cricket can teach us about life” appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

During my last full day in the Middle East, on 25th, which happened to be Ekadashi and which also happened to be Friday (the weekly holiday in the Islamic world), it worked out that I had to give five classes in three different cities. For over a decade and a half, I have been fasting on Ekadashi, taking only water or at the most ginger water or lemon water. Over the years, I have found that while fasting, speaking for several hours is not as draining as traveling to various places. During my US tour in 2015, I had to travel on Ekadashi to three places – Portland, Oregon and Seattle – and give three classes. But this Middle East Ekadashi turned out to be even more draining, and far more uplifting.
I had a morning class in one city where I spoke to an audience of three hundred on Why Rama banished Sita. Thereafter, a two-hour drive brought me to the next city, where I was astonished to see a crowd of over five hundred performing a rousing kirtan indoors. I spoke on Help your mind to learn using association and intelligence explaining how bhakti can help us manage our mind more effectively. The talk was followed by several technical and unusual questions such as:
What was the technology of the pollution-free Pushpaka vimana?
If someone says the sparks of Krishna’s splendor are enough for me, how can we connect them with Krishna?
Then, that evening, I spoke at a youth meeting on Counter the inner negative conversation of doubt and desire, where I spoke how Gita wisdom can help us counter the negativities and insecurities that the mind creates in all of us, especially in adolescence and youth.
After that, I traveled to a third city, where again nearly three hundred people had assembled in an open-air program in a garden outside a devotee’s villa. There, I spoke on “What cricket can teach us about life.”
At around 10.30 pm, when I reached the place where I was staying, I was told that that devotee had called nearly fifty of his Bhakti Vriksha members and they were all waiting. This talk was unplanned and I was dead tired. As I was about to self-righteously explode against that devotee for so inconsiderately stretching me so much, I had a flashback: over twenty-five years ago, I had one day stayed awake late into the night after an exhausting day, just to watch a day-night cricket match. That memory steeled me: If I can stretch myself for cricket’s sake, why can’t I stretch myself for Krishna’s sake?
I spoke briefly on The world sees results, Krishna sees efforts. I took my tiredness as an excuse to speak most of the talk with closed eyes, and within minutes I realized that I was absorbed in Krishna’s glories – my tiredness disappeared, and I felt solace and strength in meditating on the spiritual sound.
Irrespective of whether the content was inspiring or not for the audience, the absorption in Krishna was inspiring for me.
Long ago, my spiritual master had said that, even when Krishna’s message comes from us, we should hear it attentively because what we speak is meant for us too, not just for others. Here, I got some realization of that insight which I had heard in Mumbai – and I hope to carry that realization wherever I go.

The post Feasting on Krishna’s glories on Ekadashi appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

While in a prominent city in the Middle East, I stayed with a devotee whose house was on the seventeenth floor of a skyscraper. During my travels to Australia, USA, Canada and UK, the devotees who have hosted me have had houses ranging from one-room apartments to multi-story villas. But this house was the highest height at which I had stayed. Though I may have spoken at greater heights in hotels, I didn’t have the time to contemplate the view from there.
During the course of the day, while observing the city from the window, I could see the well-organized roadways, the crowded yet orderly buildings, the impressive domes of the mosques interspersing the concrete expanse and the skyscrapers towering above everything else. In several metropolitan Middle Eastern cities, many buildings are designed with exquisite artistry. This view was far different from the aerial view of Mumbai that I would see whenever my return flight would descend in that financial nerve center of India. This view was more reminiscent of the modernization I had seen in the West.
A major difference between the West and the Middle East, however, was the level of public sensuality. Because of the conservativeness of Islamic culture, no immodest imagery can be seen either on the streets or on the billboards. Although I could see some Bollywood actors on the billboards, their pictures were far more modest than those seen in India. The decreased sensual temperature of the culture makes it easier for spiritual aspirants to keep their mind peaceful for practicing spirituality. The phrase that popped up in my mind for describing the situation was modernization without westernization.
Ultimately, no place in the material world is fully conducive for spirituality. What spiritualizes people is their own intention to be spiritual and the guidance of saintly teachers.
Still, the principle of modernization without westernization can significantly facilitate spiritual growth. Srila Prabhupada would compare the spiritually uninformed west to a blind man and the technologically under-equipped India to a lame man. If the two would come together, if western technology could be joined together with Indian spirituality, that synergy could substantially raise human consciousness, thereby helping promote greater peace and joy, both individually and globally. In this metaphorical merger, Srila Prabhupada could be said to be recommending modernization without westernization. And that has been actualized to some extent by ISKCON, which is working to globalize the message of the Gita using the latest technology.
If India at large could implement modernization without westernization, Indians would have to struggle less for getting life’s necessities and utilities, and would have more time and energy for spiritual cultivation.
But then, categories such as modernization and westernization are porous, and influences from one can easily seep into the other. Ultimately the key to our spiritual protection and purification is not our country’s orientation, but our consciousness’ intention.
If we are determined to grow spiritually, we may still have our struggles and lapses because of our circumstances and conditionings. But we will gradually be guided by Krishna from within, as he assures in the Gita (10.10). And with that guidance, we will learn to adeptly adapt and adopt for doing the things necessary for moving closer to him.
Such adeptness is demonstrated by the devotees in the Middle East, who have found ways to grow devotionally even while being far away from their devotional homeland. In fact, during my world travels, I have seen sincere souls practicing bhakti seriously in all kinds of circumstances – western and non-western, modern and pre-modern (and post-modern too). These devotees are living testimony to the reality that whatever our situation, we can always open the door of our heart to Krishna, and he will mercifully manifest his presence there.

The post Modernization Without Westernization – Reflections on the Middle East’s spiritual potential appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

“How Shall I Serve You?”

Srimad-Bhagavatam contains a discussion between Dharma, in the form of a bull, and the Earth, in the form of a cow. Eventually he asks her, “The so-called administrators are now bewildered by the influence of this age of Kali, and thus they have put all state affairs into disorder. Are you now lamenting this disorder? Now the general populace does not follow the rules and regulations for eating, sleeping, drinking, mating, etc., and they are inclined to perform such anywhere and everywhere. Are you unhappy because of this?” (SB 1.16.22)

In his purport, Srila Prabhupada writes, “The so-called administrators are all untrained in the affairs of a ksatriya. The ksatriyas are meant for administration, as the brahmanas are meant for knowledge and guidance. The word ksatra-bandhu refers to the so-called administrators or persons promoted to the post of the administrator without proper training by culture and tradition. Nowadays they are promoted to such exalted posts by the votes of the people who are themselves fallen in the rules and regulations of life. How can such people select a proper man when they are themselves fallen in the standard of life? Therefore, by the influence of the age of Kali, everywhere, politically, socially or religiously, everything is topsy-turvy, and therefore for the sane man it is all regrettable.”

What Srila Prabhupada wrote more than fifty years ago is relevant today. And the antidote would appear to be to educate people in Vedic knowledge as presented in Srila Prabhupada’s translations of Srimad-Bhagavatam and other books—delivered to them by people such as me and you.

Hare Krishna.

—Giriraj Swami

Read about Vrindavan Part 1

Read about Vrindavan Part 2

Written by Rukmini dd

Monday, 07 November – The Hills of Varsana 

It became a familiar sight to watch Maharaj launch himself into the bus and claim the front seat. Once aboard, he would often break into fluent Hindi (Dutch or English in the same breathe). He dealt with our driver or some locals, taking charge of every situation –  and in India there are always “situations”. The bus ride was never his favourite part of the day. He could’ve easily opted to take a private car and a smoother journey for himself but he made the sacrifice merely to be with us.

Whilst the bus was stalled at a train crossing, Maharaj munched on a couple bananas. Breakfast is never an issue for him on parikrama although he often would consider us and and allow us time to satisfy grumbling tummies whilst he just continued speaking or singing; the glorification of Krsna should be nirantara – incessant.

And then the hills of Varsana rose up in front of us. Adi Kesava and Maharaj planned our route just before exiting the bus. Maharaj was very eager to go to a particular kund, which was to be our last stop. As we walked in to the small town, we suddenly found ourselves lodged between the sharp juncture of two hills with vertically flattened rocks. Maharaj climbed halfway, choose a spot on the rocks and began bhajans at what appeared like a common village crossing.

“Sancaricor, where we are now, is where two hills join; the perfect location for Radha and Krsna to meet. This narrow passage way is the perfect location for the dhankeli lila, where Krsna demanded yogurt and butter as tax. One wonders, ‘Doesn’t it get boring?’ We are always looking for something new, different. On the spiritual platform the pastimes is so sweet one can’t get enough therefore it just continues in different varieties.”

Our next stop was Ciksoli, or the village of Citradevi and it was a climb! Around Varsana are the villages of the astasakis, the eight principal gopis. Here Krsna and his friends would steal yogurt and butter from the storehouse of Citra’s family. On one occasion they were caught and escaped via the window, only Madhumangal got stuck and the elder gopis found him and punished him ‘in the place that mothers do’. The temple was beautiful artwork with a substantial hall to host guests and our kirtan party. On the way back down, Maharaj bumped into Bhakti Caitanya Swami. Vrindavan gifts us the darshan of sages at every turn. We did a quick walk through Srimati Radharani’s garden, which has taken some effort to reinstate, before bracing ourselves for the heights of the Varsana hills.

“We can’t pinpoint these places, we rely on the locals and some places are just there to recreate the transcendental nature of the dham.” We are blind in Vrindavan. What can we see? We move forward, walking in Maharaj’s giant footprints. We sit when he sits, move when he moves, bow when he bows. All we can hope to do is just keep moving, up the devotional terrain, higher and higher, ignoring the complaints of tired bodies. “Keep moving, don’t fall,” was the mantra. Often times he would look over his shoulder to ensure that none of us fell by the way side.

After a brief pause at the Rajastani temple and a stolen darshan, we moved forward. Panda’s block our path every few hundred meters calling, ‘dhaan, dhaan’ beseeching us to pay for our entrance into this holy place, much in the mood of their Lord.  I couldn’t help but feel that ascending the hills of Varsana was but a metaphor for the path back to Godhead. And suddenly we were there at the Sriji temple, a breath taking wonder with a view to stop hearts. The pujaris gave Maharaj preferential darshan and he shared the mahaprasadam with each of us with his own hands, calling for kirtan. After all, should we reach the spiritual world, what would we do? We would do what we always do; chant Hare Krsna.

Varsana gave us many moods of mercy, but solitude was not one of them. Maharaj searched for quiet, meditative spots but it was not to be. We descended from the Sriji temple to the kund that Maharaj was anxiously wanting to visit.

Peelu Pukor

When Srimati Radharani was cooking for Krsna because of Durvasa Muni’s benediction, Mother Yasoda was very pleased with her. She wondered,”Who is this girl, is she the Goddess of Fortune”’ Yasoda was convinced that this girl was the best match for her son. Spontaneously she smeared tumeric on Srimati Radharani’s hands. “What is this?” Srimati Radharani enquired, alarmed, “This means you are now engaged!”

“I’m too young, what will my parents say?”

“Just show it to your parents, they will be happy.” Radha was embarrassed. Lalita said that its just tumeric so she could wash it off. There was a pond nearby, with deep blue water and Sri Radha washed her hands.  As she looked at that that pond she became absorbed in remembering Krsna. She washed her hands and just kept washing and washing till not only the tumeric but her very own golden colour entered the water.

“And so we remember Lord Caitanya because it is by his mercy that we may come here. Local residents are here by their karma, not us. So we respect the local residents, who knows what pious activities they have performed to be here? But for us, Srila Prabhupada created our piety.” Maharaj mentioned that it was easy to see that even in India, a land of saints, Srila Prabhupada his purity and unique love for Krsna stood out. At Peelu Pukor our feet touched the earth again and connected to the ground in gratitude.

Wednesday, 09 November – Brahmanda Ghat and Raval

As we piled out of the bus at Brahmanda Ghat, Maharaj was the first to quickly circumambulate a sacred tree and appease the pujari with a donation before moving to the actual ghat; only to find a host of local ladies bathing. So he hauled back all the brahmacaris and sent the female disciples down to scout out and let him know when the coast was clear. It was a hilarious start to the day. After our numerous attempts to get them to ‘juldhee, juldhee’ (move quickly) eventually Maharaj descended and settled on a spot midway on the stairs. He began bhajans with some of his classical, never-out-of-fashion tunes. Kirtan began slow and meditative with a gradual build-up and this seemed to be more his mood in the parikramas. He tried to keep the drummers from speeding up but eventually he couldn’t help but reach rocking. The holy name is a natural pivot in all our parikramas and a significant way we gain entrance in this sacred places; to simply serve in singing.

Maharaj opted for us eat to breakfast, since ‘eating’ was quite the mood this of place, it was where Krsna supposedly ate clay. Once Krsna returned from the forest with the cowherd boys. All of them complained in unison to Mother Yasoda that Krsna had ate clay. “It’s a lie,” Krsna said, “A political entreaty. A plot for revenge.” He was innocent. He didn’t do anything. But Balarama testified that Krsna did indeed eat clay. “Even your big brother agrees,” countered Mother Yasoda. “Oh Mother,” crooned Krsna, “How can you think of that of your own son? I can’t believe that my own Mother thinks I’m a liar.”

Within our minds we visited Nanda Maharaj’s palace, quite nearby, and placed the dust on our heads. And more bhajans at the side of the Yamuna. Every holy name must be pronounced to perfection, each unlocking a different mood in the melody.

After Maharaj ate few ‘powder apples’, the tasteless India variety, he motioned to wash his hands at a water pump. A kind villager was pumping water and allowing a cow to drink. Maharaj humbly waited. The cow caught sight of Maharaj and paused to let him wash his hands. Maharaj offered his pranams to the cow before leaving. Who knows who the animals in Vrindavan really are?

Raval

Our next destination was the birth place of Srimati Radharani, Raval. As we exited the bus it was evident that other parikrama parties were both inside and around the main temple in Raval so we entered the temple only to offer our obeisances to the Deities which included a Deity of Radha in childhood form. We crossed over to the nearby gardens and found shelter under a sacred tree which is all you need in Vrindavan. We didn’t realise at first just how sacred that kalpavriksa was; a Tamal tree entwined with a Kadamba tree, representing the Divine Couple. It had been a tiring journey for Maharaj. He had given so much of himself in and around these parikramas that in the first kirtan he almost fell asleep. He switched gear to speaking about our connection to this sacred place.

A theme throughout the parikramas has been that Vrindavan is covered but can be perceived by adjusting our consciousness. Maharaj added that sometimes the dham itself manifests through the external layer, like in the form of the sacred trees where we resided. He explained that the essence of such a sacred place, if we meditated according to our lineage, was to see that we are “simply the servant of the servant of the servant, a hundred times removed” because if we don’t bring such high pastimes back to the level we can assimilate then we risk taking them cheaply. Being very much over our heads in such a setting, he directed us to pray to Srimati Radharani for her mercy; that we may serve with a little love that our worldview may change and for a drop of taste, “What could one drop of taste not do for us?” We had come to Vrindavan looking for Krsna. Maharaj assured us that even if we didn’t find Him, the search was blissful and we would have secured the next drop of mercy that would help us forward. That was how we were to survive – drop by drop.

With these prayers buried in the soft earth of Raval we returned to our buses, dragging our feet. It was such a blessed place. No-one really wanted to leave.