​Help your mind to learn using association and intelligence
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​Friday feast program at Dubai, UAE

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​When chanting doesn’t feel blissful, how can we make it always blissful?
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​How did Prabhupada provide sadhana-bhakti and raganuga bhakti together?
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​How can we avoid second guessing ourselves while doing creative work?
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Before we can evaluate our desire, we end up indulging in it – what to do?
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Seven Srimad Bhagavatam Sets on Ekadasi! Today is a very…
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Seven Srimad Bhagavatam Sets on Ekadasi!
Today is a very auspicious, joyful day: We distributed seven Srimad-Bhagavatam sets, which we were able to do by the mercy and inspiration of Vaisesika Prabhu.
In the morning I was doing a japa walk, and a person told me that today is Ekadasi. He said that whatever auspicious activity we perform gives a multiplied result.
This gave me the impetus to set a goal of distributing ten Bhagavatam sets. When I returned home, I saw that I had only two sets. I called the BBT to order ten more, and I planned to distribute them after work. I also called Vinodh Prabhu and asked him to compose an email to friends and devotees and asked him to join me for book distribution in the evening. We planned to do BIG.
Set 1: After eating breakfast, I met a lady who once came to do some service. She asked about the duties of a woman, which she wanted to teach her daughter. I displayed the Bhagavatam and showed her the Seventh Canto chapters about varnas and asramas. She agreed to buy a set.
Set 2: During the lunchtime at my office, I was saying Gayatri. Then a friend asked me what I was doing. I soon started to explain the Bhagavatam. I suggested that his parents will be glad to read the book at their age. He took a set in Telugu.
Set 3: Also during lunch, a friend asked me about Ekadasi (which he has followed forseveral years without knowing its importance). After sharing with him some glories of Ekadasi, I told him about the Bhagavatam and suggested that his wife, who is now pregnant, read the prayers by Uttara about her child in the womb. He took a set.
Sets 4 & 5: A long-time devotee friend called in the afternoon and shared his difficulties with sadhana. I suggested that he try to distribute Bhagavatam sets today. He didn’t immediately agree. He said that he could not glorify Srimad Bhagavatam because he feels weak in Krsna consciousness.
I said, “You simply call ten friends to ask whether they have a set of the Bhagavatams. And quote Srila Prabhupada to your friends: ‘I want that every respectable person has a set of Srimad Bhagavatam and Chaitanya-caritamrita’.”
Around 10 p.m., he called back with the news that he’d distributed two sets and wanted to deliver them the following day. He said he chanted his best rounds in a long time owing to the inspiration of distributing two sets on an Ekadasi.
Set 6: Returning from work, I met a colleague who was talking about cultural activities for children and opportunities to speak about stories. I immediately suggested that the Bhagavatam gives culture to the kids and asked him to take a set. Although he didn’t have the money on hand, he agreed to take the set and pay in installments.
Set 7: Feeling tired after work, we tried going door-to-door. Mahamantra Prabhu and Vinodh joined me in the evening, and we read two pages of the Bhagavatam and got energized. We knocked on a neighbor’s door and prayed to Srimati Tulasi Maharani at that home, the home of an elderly couple and performed kirtan for ten minutes with them, praying that they would take a set. After the kirtana, even before we began speaking about the Bhagavatam, the lady eagerly asked us if we had the full Srimad Bhagavatam. She had previously owned a small Bhagavatam book and wanted to have the full set. We showed them the books, which they accepted and asked us to install in their home. The elderly gentleman got us some flowers and arranged for some fruits and a lamp. With these simple offerings, we invited the Lord in the form of the Bhagavatam into the home of these simple-hearted people.
Param Vijayate Sri Krishna Sankirtanam!
Sri Rama Dasa,
Hyderbad

Seeing Those Before Me… Bhaktimarga Swami: In my humble…
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Seeing Those Before Me…
Bhaktimarga Swami: In my humble opinion the following is worth repeating, an excerpt from our script, “Krishna Is” and it is a poeticized segment of the exchange between warrior, Arjuna, and wise Bhagavan (God). Author Bhaktimarga Swami.
ARJUNA: Seeing those before me causes me to shiver.
To lift my bow is as though I had never
Hairs stand on end, mind is reeling.
I’m confused, it’s new, this kind of feeling.
Sri Krishna, I just cannot fight.
There’s something here that is not right.
KRISHNA: Arjuna, you’ve lost your sense of duty.
A man of defense renounced a warrior’s beauty.

For the wise there’s a different point of view
Of eternity—no birth, no death—known by few.

Consider the world, which is full of duality.
Good and bad is its only reality.

The major point is to not lament.
The soul is forever, that is my comment.

Moving through bodies from young to old.
From old to young, the circle does unfold.

ARJUNA: Krishna, what is the force that compels one to do wrong.
If you could please include this in your song.

KRISHNA: It is desire, born of passion—then wrath
That keeps us covered and obscures the path.

Perform your yoga, and your sacrifice
For the creator and then all will be nice.

ARJUNA: Krishna, yoga can be tried for controlling the mind.
But the mind is an instrument of a different kind.

I’m fine if asked to harness the wind.
But the mind cannot be anchored or pinned.

KRISHNA: Begin the process; take it easy and slow.
In the end, there’s freedom; the soul will then glow.

ARJUNA: You are my teacher, mentor and guide.
It was no mistake to have you on my side.

I have come to consider about you there is more.
It’s your cosmic form I wish to explore.

KRISHNA: The form is manifest when we have the eyes.
Otherwise there’s the tendency to despise.

I reveal it to those whose devotion is clear.
When friendship is firm, I then come quite near.

It is surrender through service that is so sweet.
It is surrender that is illusion’s defeat.

ARJUNA: Oh Krishna, my doubt is now gone.
I believe the fight should definitely go on.

KRISHNA: Arjuna, my song is old but alive.
You have your free will, but now let me drive.

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2016
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Toronto, Ontario
  
Seeing Those Before Me


In my humble opinion the following is worth repeating, an excerpt from our script, “Krishna Is” and it is a poeticized segment of the exchange between warrior, Arjuna, and wise Bhagavan (God). Author Bhaktimarga Swami.


ARJUNA:    Seeing those before me causes me to shiver.
  To lift my bow is as though I had never.

  Hairs stand on end, mind is reeling.
  I’m confused, it’s new, this kind of feeling.

 Sri Krishna, I just cannot fight.
 There’s something here that is not right.

KRISHNA:  Arjuna, you’ve lost your sense of duty.
                     A man of defense renounced a warrior’s beauty.

                     For the wise there’s a different point of view
                     Of eternity—no birth, no death—known by few.

                     Consider the world, which is full of duality.
                     Good and bad is its only reality.

                     The major point is to not lament.
                     The soul is forever, that is my comment.

                     Moving through bodies from young to old.
                     From old to young, the circle does unfold.

ARJUNA:    Krishna, what is the force that compels one to do wrong.
                     If you could please include this in your song.

KRISHNA:  It is desire, born of passion—then wrath
                    That keeps us covered and obscures the path.

                    Perform your yoga, and your sacrifice
                    For the creator and then all will be nice.

ARJUNA:   Krishna, yoga can be tried for controlling the mind.
                    But the mind is an instrument of a different kind.

                    I’m fine if asked to harness the wind.
                    But the mind cannot be anchored or pinned.

KRISHNA: Begin the process; take it easy and slow.
                    In the end, there’s freedom; the soul will then glow.

ARJUNA:   You are my teacher, mentor and guide.
                    It was no mistake to have you on my side.

                    I have come to consider about you there is more.
                    It’s your cosmic form I wish to explore.

KRISHNA: The form is manifest when we have the eyes.
                    Otherwise there’s the tendency to despise.

                    I reveal it to those whose devotion is clear.
                   When friendship is firm, I then come quite near.

                    It is surrender through service that is so sweet.
                    It is surrender that is illusion’s defeat.

ARJUNA:  Oh Krishna, my doubt is now gone.
                    I believe the fight should definitely go on.

KRISHNA: Arjuna, my song is old but alive.
                    You have your free will, but now let me drive.

May the Source be with you!

6 km 

Life is Short! Vaisesika Dasa: I met a pathologist recently who…
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Life is Short!
Vaisesika Dasa: I met a pathologist recently who works with cancer patients. She explained to me that there is a certain kind of pancreatic cancer that is most deadly and that one who contracts it can survive only a few months, at the most.
She said that because of the often-depressing nature of her job, she and her colleagues have a way of speaking among themselves to lighten the emotional impact when they receive bad news about a patient’s prognosis.
For example, when they read a patient’s lab results and find that the patient has developed the most deadly strain of pancreatic cancer, they speak about it to one another in a somewhat indirect way.
Among pathologists, a conversation might go like this:

“Did you read the lab report for your patient?”

“Yes.”

“What’s the result?”

“Well, I can tell my patient not to buy the big tube of toothpaste the next time she goes shopping.”

My first impression upon hearing this was that the pathologists’ conversation was almost too glib for the circumstances. After thinking about it a while, however, the phrase, “tell her not to buy the big tube …” stuck in my mind and their conversation began to seem more profound and it also made me question my own life and priorities:

What am I investing in and why? (Am I buying the “big tubes”?)

What people, things, and abilities that I already have, am I taking for granted?

I can also imagine a conversation among higher beings who, upon hearing about my very limited duration of life, might say among themselves: “Tell him not to buy the big tube of toothpaste.”

Life is Short Indeed, the bhakti scriptures clearly and repeatedly tell us that our human lives are shorter than we think! They say, therefore, that we should take excessive care to use every moment for advancing toward the highest goal – going back to Godhead:

“After many, many births and deaths one achieves the rare human form of life, which, although temporary, affords one the opportunity to attain the highest perfection. Thus a sober human being should quickly endeavor for the ultimate perfection of life as long as his body, which is always subject to death, has not fallen down and died. After all, sense gratification is available even in the most abominable species of life, whereas Krishna consciousness is possible only for a human being.” Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.9.29

Bhakti Tree (Album with photos) Ramai Swami: Krsna Kirtan das…
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Bhakti Tree (Album with photos)
Ramai Swami: Krsna Kirtan das is from Croatia and his wife Amala Prema devi dasi from Turkey. They came to Australia about a year ago and served at New Gokula farm.
They have now transferred to the Bhakti Tree in Newcastle and both serve in the restaurant – he cooks and she takes care of the customers.
They also lead and participate in nice kirtan on the preaching nights.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/4lD7UK

The marathon of distributing 200.000 in UK Srila…
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The marathon of distributing 200.000 in UK Srila Prabhupada’s books during the Christmas holidays of 2016 just begun!
Sutapada das: Last of the first deliveries are in. We just offloaded an artic lorry fully loaded with 30,000 books! Seeing all these books piled up is a nerve racking sight. But I’m quietly confident.
Despite our inherent limitations, we gain firm conviction from knowing that the all-powerful will of providence is on our side. With such transcendental back-up, anything is possible. One who is ‘quietly confident’, their surety grounded in humility and dependence, can achieve unimaginable things in this world. Pride, complacency and hopelessness are not found in their dictionary. Seeing themselves as merely instruments, their job is to just “get out of the way” and let the divine magic manifest. Let’s see how the transcendental drama unfolds.
Watch a video about this here: https://goo.gl/hOsZZX

Please Don’t Be a Burden to the Earth
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Hare KrishnaBy Paramadayala Nityananda Dasa

Use of fossil fuel can be described by the Vedic term “ughra karma” or greatly destructive work; but changing to other forms of energy does not address the real problem. Human beings will continue to be a major burden to the Earth until we acknowledge that we are not the owners of the Sun, wind, water or atoms; these are produced and owned by God, and any energy we derive from them must be used for His pleasure. However great the population may be, we are not a burden to the Earth when we use energy in Krishna’s service. But we cannot avoid adverse reactions when we misuse energy for our sense gratification. As a society of Brahmana’s, it is the duty of ISKCON members to inform those who place their faith the Paris Agreement that it does not identify the real problem or give the real solution. This may make us unpopular, but people are suffering due to ignorance, so how can we not tell them the truth? Continue reading "Please Don’t Be a Burden to the Earth
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If someone says the sparks of Krishna’s splendor are enough for me, how can we connect them with Krishna?
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WSN October 2016 – World Sankirtan Newsletter
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Hare KrishnaBy Mayapur Sasi dasa

You may have heard that the Russian government is trying to stop book distribution. It passed a law that does not allow anyone from any religion to promote his beliefs, and if anyone gets caught, he invites a big fine. When the devotees in Russia heard this, it caused them transcendental anxiety. Devotees are known to be quite fearless, however, so they continued distributing anyway. One devotee was caught and went to court. Fortunately, he had a good lawyer. So the judge did not rule that the devotee had done something wrong. Rather, he threw out the case. That was the protection of Lord Caitanya, and it set a precedent. Continue reading "WSN October 2016 – World Sankirtan Newsletter
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​How do prioritize between our duty to our parents and to our wife and children?
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What You Live You Give
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Hare KrishnaBy Mahatma das

I once attended a workshop facilitation training in which we were taught that many people will come to our trainings with the mindset of “I already know that.” They explained that they might know of it, about it, or are familiar with it, but they don’t know it unless they live it. So if our audience thinks they already know what we will be teaching, the learning process shuts down for them. So we were taught to joke with the audience by saying, “The three worse words in the English language for learning are, “I know that.” The point of this article is to see how this relates to us I am not the body. I’ve heard it 4000 times. I know this. Or do I? Continue reading "What You Live You Give
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Counter the inner negative conversation of doubt and desire
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Youth meeting at Dubai, UAE

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Bhakti Tree
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img_1955img_1958

Krsna Kirtan das is from Croatia and his wife Amala Prema devi dasi from Turkey. They came to Australia about a year ago and served at New Gokula farm.

They have now transferred to the Bhakti Tree in Newcastle and both serve in the restaurant – he cooks and she takes care of the customers.

They also lead and participate in nice kirtan on the preaching nights.

img_1956img_1959

An Account of the Last Journey of Jagajivan Das (ACBSP)
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On Thursday, November 10, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. during the holy month of Kartik, GBC member Jagajivan Das (ACBSP) left this world at Bhaktivedanta Hospital & Research Institute, Mira Road, Thane, Maharashtra, India. Jagajivan Das was on a visit to India for the recently concluded GBC meeting. For over a decade Jagajivan Das was suffering from cardiomyopathy resulting in the weakening of his heart and leading to breathlessness on exertion.

Four Excerpts from my Mahabharata: The Eternal Quest
→ NY Times & Bhagavad Gita Sanga/ Sankirtana Das


Bhima Fights Baka:
Bhima, however, grabbed the Rakshasa’s throat with one hand and held him at bay while he reached for yet another tasty item. Baka was incensed. With his face contorted and his red eyes bulging and his black, matted hair flying and showing his four rows of teeth, he raised a blood-curdling scream. Bhima threw him to the ground.  Baka quickly rebounded and uprooted a nearby tree and hurled it at Bhima. Bhima dodged it, and in an instant, they both ripped trees out of the ground and charged at each other, smashing one another relentlessly.  After those trees were shredded, they uprooted more trees, hurling them at one another.  The forest around them became decimated and the Rakshasa turned to find another tree. But he did not get far. Bhima jumped and rammed his knee into Baka’s back and broke his spine. Baka fell flat on his face. As he tried to get up, Bhima quickly twisted his neck. The Rakshasa’s eyes bulged out. He vomited blood and fell dead.


The Pandavas Enter The Himalayas
The way was steep and treacherous. All around them the skies darkened. Fierce winds were suddenly upon them and enveloped them in a dust storm. They lost sight of one another.  The winds howled so fiercely that the Pandavas were nearly swept off the mountainside. The group held on tightly to boulders and scraggly trees as the winds ripped at their faces and took their breath away.  Angry winds lashed at them from one direction and then another. But soon the winds ceased as suddenly as they had come.
The Pandavas felt relief only momentarily.  Pounding rains came fast upon them as thunder flashed against distant clouds. The group scurried higher, frustrated and in tears and not knowing where to turn.  Out of nowhere, or perhaps as if the Celestials had placed it right in their path, they came upon a cave. There they took shelter from the storm, which continued to rage throughout the night. 

From Gita
Arjuna asked, “What are the qualities of one who is in divine consciousness? How does he act?”
 Krishna spoke, his voice serene and majestic. “Such a person is not disturbed by the constant changes of this world. He is beyond the dualities of success and failure. Beyond profits and losses. Beyond pleasures and pains. Beyond the constant flow of desires which come and go like the waves of an ocean.  He is forever free from fear and anger.  His senses are restrained.  He eats, speaks, sleeps and works in moderation. He is not attached to the results of his work, but neither does he try to avoid work. He sees that all worldly pleasures, which first appear sweet and alluring, ultimately sour. They have a beginning and an end, and he does not strive for such things.
“Rather, he is situated in the pursuit of transcendence. He is happy from within. He rejoices and is illumined from within. Gradually his heart opens.  He sees all beings with equal vision and acts for their welfare. And he sees Me dwelling patiently in the hearts of all as the Companion. He is centered in knowledge, peace  and compassion. A person in this consciousness remains fixed, even at the moment of death. Such a rare soul readily attains Vaikuntha, My supreme spiritual abode, free from fears and anxieties, and above heaven itself.

The Battle Begins
In the heavens, Siddhas, Gandharvas, and Charanas gathered to watch the battle below. A moment of silent anticipation descended upon Kurukshetra, a moment which hung heavy, a moment of waiting, of postponing death a little while longer, and then drums and bugles sounded and warriors blew their conch shells, and Time once again ground forward as battle cries arose from the ranks of the armies and rolled across the valley, and like a great beast stirring from its slumber, the warriors shook their weapons and rushed at one another and collided together with a thunderous force. 

Copyright, 2013, Andy Fraenkel 


To see acclaim by scholars, another excerpt and to order go to www.Mahabharata-Project.com