Dandavats.com: Some poems on Lord Krishna

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Here are the latest updates for   "Planet ISKCON" - 45 new articles H.G. Sankarshan das Adhikari, USA: Thursday 24 March 2011--How the Weak Becomes Super Powerful--and--How Can I Make You Happy? Kurma dasa, AU: Elizabeth Taylor ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Today's Darsana ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Gaura Purnima 2011 H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011 H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Monday, March 21st, 2011 H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Sunday, March 20th, 2011 H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Saturday, March 19th, 2011 H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Friday, March 18th, 2011 Subhavilasa das ACBSP, Toronto, CA: Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Bharatavarsa.net: Bhakti Vikasa Swami: Child's duty to mother Toronto Sankirtan Team, CA: Coming Up This Weekend - 22nd Monthly Sankirtan Festival. Saturday, March 26th Toronto Sankirtan Team, CA: Gou-ranga? Japa Group: Japa Retreat - Being Present Devadeva Mirel, Alachua, USA: 6? Vegan Cake GiveAway : Today’s Cake is Carrot! Rupa Madhurya das, TX, USA: Lecture - Mukunda Datta das - SB 10.1.54-56 Kurma dasa, AU: Salt and Breadmaking H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – SB 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Srila Prabhupada's Letters Madhava Ghosh dasa, New Vrndavan, USA: Fighting Grape Vines Madri dd, South Africa: Annual Journal for Bhaktivedanta College of Education and Culture [BCEC] Doyal Gauranga dasa & Gadadhar Pandit dasa, NYC: Hot and Spicy South Indian Rice Doyal Gauranga dasa & Gadadhar Pandit dasa, NYC: Mind-Brain Problem H.H. Sivarama Swami: Gaura-purnima Maha Harinama in Budapest H.H. Sivarama Swami: Harinama in Budapest Toronto Sankirtan Team, CA: 22nd Monthly Sankirtan Festival - Setting the Mood Akrura das, Gita Coaching: WHY WE ARE NOT HAPPY? H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): 257—Poem for March 22 H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): OLD FRIENDS H.H. Sivarama Swami: Questions with Russian disciples about temple standards, sankirtana and women covering their head Subhavilasa das ACBSP, Toronto, CA: A Holi Festival with reflections of Hiranyakashipu and Bhakta Prahlada. H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): 256—Poem for March 21 H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): OLD FRIENDS Dandavats.com: Some poems on Lord Krishna Gouranga TV: Gaura Purnim Kirtan, Boston Japa Group: His Life Is Chanting More Recent Articles Search Planet ISKCON Prior Mailing Archive H.G. Sankarshan das Adhikari, USA: Thursday 24 March 2011--How the Weak Becomes Super Powerful--and--How Can I Make You Happy? A daily broadcast of the Ultimate Self Realization Course(TM) Thursday 24 March 2011 The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna, and His eternal consort, Srimati Radharani are enjoying transcendental pastimes in the topmost planet of the spiritual world, Sri Goloka Vrindavan. They are beckoning us to rejoin them. (Click on photo to see a larger image.) Our Mission: To help everyone awaken their original Krishna consciousness, which is eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss. Such a global awakening will, in one stroke, solve all the problems of the world society bringing in a new era of unprecedented peace and prosperity for all. May that day, which the world so desperately needs, come very soon. We request you to participate in this mission by reviving your dormant Krishna consciousness and assisting us in spreading this science all over the world. Dedicated with love to ISKCON Founder-Acharya: His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, our beloved spiritual master, and to you, our dear readers. Today's Thought: How the Weak Becomes Super Powerful Uploaded from Bhaktivedanta Ashram--Austin, Texas USA The Vaisnava never considers himself to be a powerful controller. He always humbly, meekly feels himself to be very weak and insignificant. Therefore he always fully relies on the Lord's mercy in all times, places, and circumstances and always calls out to the Lord for protection knowing fully well that the Lord is his only shelter. In this way the Vaisnava although feeling himself to be very weak becomes so powerful that by the grace of the Lord he can transform human history by revolutionizing the entire universe with Krishna bhakti. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: How Can I Make You Happy? You are so kind to me. That is way I always feel to thank you for your kindness to me. Can you please tell me how do you want me to make you happy? I want to make you feel, Yes. This my disciple. Your servant, Didi Answer: Absorb Yourself Fully in Krishna Bhakti There is nothing that pleases the spiritual master more than seeing that his disciples are developing their love for Krishna. So if you want to be my real disciple, fully absorb yourself in loving service to Lord Sri Krishna 24 hours daily with all of your thoughts, words, and deeds. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Transcendental Resources: Receive the Special Blessings of Krishna Now you too can render the greatest service to the suffering humanity and attract the all-auspicious blessings of Lord Sri Krishna upon yourself and your family by assisting our mission. Lectures and Kirtans in Audio and Video: Link to High Definition Videos Link to Over 1,000 Lecture Audios Lecture-Travel Schedule for 2011 http://www.ultimateselfrealization.com/schedule Have Questions or Need Further Guidance? Check out the resources at:http://www.ultimateselfrealization.com or write Sankarshan Das Adhikari at: sda@backtohome.com Get your copy today of the world's greatest self-realization guide book, Bhagavad-gita As It Is available at: http://www.ultimateselfrealization.com/store Know someone who could benefit from this? Forward it to them. Searchable archives of all of course material: http://www.sda-archives.com Receive Thought for the Day as an RSS feed:http://www.backtohome.com/rss.htm Unsubscribe or change your email address Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Daily_Thought http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=714185709 Copyright 2005-2011 by Ultimate Self Realization.Com Distribution of this material is encouraged. Simply we request you to acknowledge where it is coming from with a link to our sign up page: http://www.backtohome.com Our records indicate that at requested to be enrolled to receive e-mails from the Ultimate Self Realization Course at: This request was made on: From the following IP address:   • Email to a friend • • Kurma dasa, AU: Elizabeth Taylor Elizabeth Taylor, the violet-eyed beauty whose hectic off-screen love life often eclipsed her most sultry film roles, has died at 79. Her movies, public dramas and health problems made Taylor a frequent topic of cover stories in Life, People and other magazines. By the time she won her first Oscar at age 28, Taylor had been married five times. "What do you expect me to do? Sleep alone?" she said. "I never planned to acquire a lot of jewels or a lot of husbands," she said in an interview posted in Harper's Bazaar on February 9. "For me, life happened, just as it does for anyone else. I have been supremely lucky in my life in that I have known great love, and of course I am the temporary custodian of some incredible and beautiful things." "Acting is, to me now, artificial," she told the Associated Press at an AIDS clinic dedication in 2005. "Seeing people suffer is real." I am sure that life will continue to happen for Elizabeth Taylor, albeit under different circumstances. The soul lives on.   • Email to a friend • •   ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Today's Darsana Guna Mani Nitai > Colecciones > Darsana 24/03/11 Miniaturas Detalle  36 fotos |  Where would we be without that all-consuming glance of our Sri Radha? She so kindly takes everything: She steals our mind and hearts, lovingly takes over our very life and in so doing She also takes away all inauspiciousness and all obstacles that separate us from Her lotus feet. May Srimati Radhika always look upon us gracefully and accompany us every step of our way back to Her eternal abode. Here is the darsana of our Divine Mother and the treasures She is waiting for us with.   • Email to a friend • •   ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Gaura Purnima 2011 This is the second and last batch of pictures from last Sunday's celebrations. The photos speak for themselves! Have a look...   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011 Good Reading Up in Space Over Land and Water Jet Airways flew four of us from Ahmedabad to Mumbai, then Brussels and back to Toronto. In the air there is time to reflect. I like India, its people, its spiritual side. I belong here but don't wish to stay here for a great length of time. My dislikes - density of people, dust, heat, chaos. Willing to visit regularly. While in space I relished reading some of the collected letters of our guru, Srila Prabhupada. In the '74 collection he wrote to a temple leader in Nairobi, "The Africans and the Aryans will not like to mix. So there is no harm in opening separate temples." Here Srila Prabhupada acknowledged the different needs of the different communities. To on leader in Mayapura, India, Prabhupada wrote, "The wrestling is all right," in reference to young monks engaging in this sport. To a sannyasi monk in Africa he wrote, "Shakti Mati is an elderly woman and can do important work with the cultured Indian society, and she also speaks Swahili. She must be given and important position as a manager." That message was interesting since I heard over the weekend someone say that they were opposed to female temple leaders. Prabhupada wrote to Bombay about an American student who wanted to practice polygamy. His words were "He cannot marry a second wife. If he wants to do so, he can leave our temples." Prabhupada indicated in a letter directly to the young man interested that polygamy is against the law. To someone in London he wrote, "Regarding your being depressed, you are becoming older, but so also I am an old man. But you should not be depressed on account of old age. Krishna will help you." This was all good stuff to brood over while thousands of feet up in the air. My pet peeve of the day was that my walking opportunities were limited to deplaning and planing during transfer times. I'm resolute in the point of travel - walking is better than flying but if you have to sit for many hours reading in the best preoccupation. 0 KM   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Monday, March 21st, 2011 Last Day in India Ahmedabad, India It was more of an elevator than walking day keeping to home program commitments. It was also pack the bags day, we're flying out. But before leaving for the airport I made commitments to the count of five homes, four of which were apartments. In the welcoming culture of India, you find you'll be honouring invitations. It's a blessing for people to have a sadhu (holy person) in their home. In one home kirtan (chanting) became the request. In another I answered questions philosophically - questions that lie in suspension for one family and friends. In one apartment I was introduced to a group of home-schooled kids and asked to distribute refreshments to the students. Then in one place occupied by a prominent family of devotees, I was questioned about how to kick start a devotional drama troupe and then to see it blossom and grow. Food was a sure feature at each stop. That's where the challenge began. Hospitality overflowed. So much love poured out at each of the residences and from people I never met before. It would be impossible proportionately for me to give the kindness that they gave me. This gets down to the real essence of bhakti yoga. It's the giving and loving that we demonstrate that can affect a smart change to the world. Godruma Goura, the young devotee from Gita Nagari, Pennsylvania, accompanied me and he too felt the overwhelming affection from these people. A little bit more then again a little bit more of this kind of human exchange, constant installments and we can see a different world. 5 KM   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Sunday, March 20th, 2011 A Day of Colour Ahmedabad, India It's another day of celebration in India. "When isn't it?" You may ask. Holi is a day of color when people smear each other with powdered colors or colored powders. It commemorates the greatness of Rama and the biggest supporter of displaying this is young Krishna who celebrates in the form of teasing His friends, both boys and girls in the fun-making of covering them with rich colored dyes. They reciprocate of course. The crowds at the temple, our place of accommodation, were huge, as they were the previous day. When you are a monk, and particularly a swami, there are demands made for giving attention, some of which are planned and some that are spontaneous. "Please come to my Gita group, Maharaja, and tell them about japa meditation," asked one group leader. I complied. That talk, plus one lengthy one in the morning, a dramatic reading of Chaitanya's ecstasies in the evening, a home program and a meeting with our group of young acting mendicants, was all tempered by the morning's trek. It is important to have some time to yourself. To give a different spin on the Sunday program each member of our group was called on to give a three minute talk about their personal spiritual evolution to the big crowd. The guys, mostly in their teens, "broke ice" talking to a sizable group of people. Our senior group member, Doug, who is 67 and a silver award winner for the Canadian tae-kwan-do championship, also spoke about his introduction to Krishna Consciousness. All of the group had a remarkable time in Ahmedabad despite the fact that half of us (myself included) discovered our shoes stolen when left outside the temple. It's always a bitter-sweet sentiment that hits when such things happen. Someone out there is teasing is. Agents of our providence I should think. Or perhaps do we look at the Ultimate-in-Charge who's testing us? 8 KM   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Saturday, March 19th, 2011 The Last Light Ahmedabad, India What a day! It's the birth anniversary of the Golden Avatar, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Since Chaitanya is often affiliated with the moon for its beauty, its cooling influence and the fact that he was born on a Purnima, a full moon, a small delegation of us earthlings decided to walk towards the moon. A row of street lights on the dusty road led us to a final one. At 5:30 the lights are clear and all else is hazy. This final light had no lamp post. The ball of light was larger than the rest. Suspended in the air and so deceptionaly close to the ground we realized it was the moon appearing so accessible. It was beautiful and now alone as we stood there in admiration at the road's cul-de-sac. We reversed directions and diverted from my usual trail to come upon a temple of Goddess Kali. We entered the shrine which can accommodate a small number of people to see the Goddess with a joyful demeanour. I could swear I saw a smile behind the dangling tongue. Maybe it's my perception. After all it's a happy occasion. A laughter within struck me when seeing the hands-off Flinstones type of device at the entrance. To call the neighbours a unique machine which is not manually operated (only a switch turns it on) creates the sound of a party. Two mallets jut out of the metal box which beat on an affixed drum while two hammers strike a pair of gongs simultaneous to two ropes autonomically jerking the balls of two bells causing them to ring. The sound and the device added to the sweetness and the celebratory nature of the day. Other than that the day shone with chanting, fasting leading up to a feast and conducting two classes. By the day's end I looked again at that powerful moon, the Chaitanya moon, so much to be admired. 7 KM   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Friday, March 18th, 2011 Baroda, Here We Are! Baroda, India It never hurts to get a little critique on the work you do. After walking a dusty road to a surprise of an abundant peacock population, godbrother Basu Gosh drove me along with Pundit Sanskritam to Baroda for a day's stay. The pundit, ever so respectfully, offered his critique on the one and only Sanskrit verse I recited from the drama script the night before. Apparently King Bharat had this passion for God's presence within the sun and it was that recited verse he used to say, as found in the Bhagavatam book, that got analysed as far as my pronunciation goes. "Okay!" I said, "Please tell me the correct way of saying it. I would be very much obliged." He agreed he would. Whatever was my mistake will then be my teacher. I accept the correction with a sweet degree of humility. Basu Gosh was kind in more ways than just leading me to speech correction. He took the drama troupe boys and I to his Baroda Temple, the restaurant (for eating) and then the Mahi River for swimming. This rather surprisingly substantial body of water was just the icing-on-the-cake for this Gujarat visit. The water is actually dammed at the spot of our swimming and it was relishing moments for me to see the guys do their stunts such as Abhay sliding on his head down the forty-five degree slope of the dam. It is hard to describe how he did it. Local youth were entertained by these foreign devotees and naturally wanted to bond with them. The swim culminated with a quick zip back to the temple for the evening chant. Anton, a 52 year old film maker from France, captured us on his camera. He has travelled much of India producing a documentary on life in this land of spice and everything relatively nice. We packed our twelve bodied group in a modest van, (it's make is unknown to me) for our return journey back to Ahmedabad. 6 KM   • Email to a friend • •   Subhavilasa das ACBSP, Toronto, CA: Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Subhavilasa das ACBSP, Toronto, CA: Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Jaya Srila Prabhupada! Simple post today: All glories to Srila Prabhupada! Dandavats at the dust of your lotus feet again and again! Must watch video!   • Email to a friend • •   Bharatavarsa.net: Bhakti Vikasa Swami: Child's duty to mother As your mother's duty was to raise you till you got strength, similarly when a child is grown up, it is his duty to see to the spiritual welfare of his mother. In the Srimad Bhagavatam the example is Devahuti and Lord Kapiladev. Lord Kapiladev appeared as the Son of Devahuti, and in the absence of Kardamuni, the father of Lord Kapiladev, the Divine Son instructed His mother, Devahuti, and she got elevated to the transcendental position. >>> Ref. VedaBase => Letter to: Ranadhir, 7 December, 1969   • Email to a friend • •   Toronto Sankirtan Team, CA: Coming Up This Weekend - 22nd Monthly Sankirtan Festival. Saturday, March 26th Our 22nd Monthly Sankirtan Festival which falls on March 26th, will be celebrated as Gaura Purnima Special. In the mood of Sri Chaitanya, we will all head out on the streets sharing the love and happiness that fills our lives through kirtan, books and prasad. There is service for everyone - help before, during or after the sankirtan festival in whichever way you like. Our goal this month is to have a team of 108 devotees hitting the streets. Will you help us? In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead. The flood of love of Godhead swelled in all directions, and thus young men, old men, women and children were all immersed in that inundation. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement will inundate the entire world and drown everyone, whether one be a gentleman, a rogue or even lame, invalid or blind. CC Adi 7.23-26 See you soon! Please email toronto.sankirtan@gmail.com for more information. Schedule:- 4:30am Mangal Arti, Japa 7:45am Bhagavatam Class 9:15-10:00 am Building the Mood - Training & Goals 11:00am-2:00pm Street Sankirtan 2:00pm Maha-Harinama 2:30pm Lunch Prasad at the temple How can YOU help? 1. Prepare Prasadam for distribution: From the comforts of your home prepare dry non-perishable prasad for distribution. Our goal is to distribute 5,000 pieces of prasad. 2. Package Prasadam for distribution: Friday 25th March 2011, 6:30-8:30pm 3. Stamp and pack books for distribution: Friday 25th March 2011, 6:30 PM - 8:30pm 4. Help with Logistics/Transportation: Saturday 26th March 5. Prepare Prasadam for Sankirtan team: Saturday 26th March 6:00-10:00am 6. Participate in Harinam - sing along, lead kirtan, play an instrument, hand out cookies or distribute books: Saturday 26th March; 11:00-3:00pm Please dress WARMER than you think you'll need to (it's still cold - bring gloves and caps along).   • Email to a friend • •   Toronto Sankirtan Team, CA: Gou-ranga? Everytime I fly to the US, I get the jitters! I don't know what it is, but something scares me! Hence, I make sure that I have said my prayers to Lord Nrsimhadev a couple of times before going through immigration! Recently, I had a really nice experience at an airport that showed me that if Krsna desires, he can show his beautiful form to any one! I was in Austin, Texas for Gaura Purnima this year and got the chance to witness the festival at the beautiful Houston temple. There, they had beautiful plaster-of-paris deities of Gaura Nitai and it was love at first site! I had to bring them so that they can shower their mercy at my home! While packing them in my bag, I made sure they were properly put away so that they wont break in the travel. Since I am so nervous about my travel, I make sure that my hand luggage meets all travel regulations and hence rarely get pulled over by security. However, at the Austin airport, when I put my bag through the X-ray, the security officer stared at the screen intently and then told me, that he wants to put it back again. I was shocked as I had no idea what he was concerned about as I had no liquids or food in my bag! After going through the X-ray again, he asked me if he could run it the third time. Now I was getting really scared as I had no idea what was going on! After the third X-ray, he comes to me with the bag and asks, "Ma'am, do you have a statue in there?".. I nodded and said that it is an Indian statue that I purchased a local temple. He then asked me if it was a God's statue and I said yes it is. He looked at me very seriously and asked, "Which one?". At this point, I was just confused and I said, "Gauranga". He looked dissappointed and said, "I guessed it wrong then! Who is Gou-ranga?" I was just amazed at his question and proceeded to tell him about Caitanya Mahaprabhu and how he spread the chanting of the holy name to everyone without the consideration of colour, caste and creed! And then the officer, who was clearly ignoring other people who were in line asked me, what did he ask them to pray? And I recited the Mahamantra for him and he was so excited to hear it! He then asked me where he can find more information and I gave him the address to Krishna.com and told him about the local centers in Austin and Houston. As he bid me farewell, he said, so I have to search for "Hare Krishna?" I secretly smiled! By the unbelievable mercy of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, his spiritual journey may have just begun!   • Email to a friend • •   Japa Group: Japa Retreat - Being Present A very good workshop on the subject of being present during our Japa.   • Email to a friend • •   Devadeva Mirel, Alachua, USA: 6″ Vegan Cake GiveAway : Today’s Cake is Carrot! I am experimenting with cakes, soon to be for sale. Today’s experiment: vegan carrot cake. Want to win a cake? Whoever is the first to comment after I get this post up wins the cake! Here’s the catch(es): You have to live close enough to pick up the cake (Alachua/Gainesville area) You need to pick the cake up today or else it *will* get eaten You need to give me honest feedback about the cake since I am still developing my recipes Here’s my critique: This was my first time using the 6″ pan and I overfilled the pans a bit so the layers were too thick. I remedied this by slicing each layer in half and making 2 cakes. But my slicing was wonky, so the cakes are crooked. I used carrot juice to color the frosting, which turned out great. But in this instance, I think it tastes too sweet for the cake. I don’t want to be bothered with vegan cream cheese frosting because then I have to figure out which vegan cream cheese is best, where to buy it and what to do if they are out. I need to keep the cake operation simple. Decoration was a rush job and I know I can do better. Taste is good. Cake moist. Seems a bit oily to me but I think that is how carrot cake is supposed to be. Still, I would like to cut down on that. print   • Email to a friend • •   Rupa Madhurya das, TX, USA: Lecture - Mukunda Datta das - SB 10.1.54-56 Rupa Madhurya das, TX, USA: Lecture - Mukunda Datta das - SB 10.1.54-56 Lecture on Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 10, Chapter 1, Texs 54-56 by Mukunda Datta das. Dallas, TX 2011-01-10 Srimad Bhagavatam 10.1.54 sri-vasudeva uvaca na hy asyas te bhayam saumya yad vai sahasarira-vak putran samarpayishye 'sya yatas te bhayam utthitam TRANSLATION Vasudeva said: O best of the sober, you have nothing to fear from your sister Devaki because of what you have heard from the unseen omen. The cause of death will be her sons. Therefore I promise that when she gives birth to the sons from whom your fear has arisen, I shall deliver them all unto your hands. PURPORT Kamsa feared Devaki's existence because after her eighth pregnancy she would give birth to a son who would kill him. Vasudeva, therefore, to assure his brother-in-law the utmost safety, promised to bring him all the sons. He would not wait for the eighth son, but from the very beginning would deliver to the hands of Kamsa all the sons to which Devaki would give birth. This was the most liberal proposition offered by Vasudeva to Kamsa. Srimad Bhagavatam 10.1.55 sri-suka uvaca svasur vadhan nivavrite kamsas tad-vakya-sara-vit vasudevo 'pi tam pritah prasasya pravisad griham TRANSLATION Srila Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Kamsa agreed to the logical arguments of Vasudeva, and, having full faith in Vasudeva's words, he refrained from killing his sister. Vasudeva, being pleased with Kamsa, pacified him further and entered his own house. PURPORT Although Kamsa was a sinful demon, he believed that Vasudeva would never deviate from his word. The character of a pure devotee like Vasudeva is such that even so great a demon as Kamsa firmly believed in his words and was satisfied. Yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincana sarvair gunais tatra samasate surah (Bhag. 5.18.12). All good attributes are present in a devotee, so much so that even Kamsa believed in Vasudeva's words without a doubt. Srimad Bhagavatam 10.1.56 atha kala upavritte devaki sarva-devata putran prasushuve cashtau kanyam caivanuvatsaram TRANSLATION Each year thereafter, in due course of time, Devaki, the mother of God and all the demigods, gave birth to a child. Thus she bore eight sons, one after another, and a daughter named Subhadra. PURPORT The spiritual master is sometimes glorified as sarva-devamayo guruh (Bhag. 11.7.27). By the grace of the guru, the spiritual master, one can understand the different kinds of devas. The word deva refers to God, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the original source of all the demigods, who are also called devas. In Bhagavad-gita (10.2) the Lord says, aham adir hi devanam: "I am the source of all the devas." The Supreme Lord, Vishnu, the Original person, expands in different forms. Tad aikshata bahu syam (Chandogya Upanishad 6.2.3). He alone has expanded into many. Advaitam acyutam anadim ananta-rupam (Brahma-samhita 5.33). There are different grades of forms, known as svamsa and vibhinnamsa. The svamsa expansions, or vishnu-tattva, are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whereas the vibhinnamsa are jiva-tattva, who are part and parcel of the Lord (mamaivamso jiva-loke jiva-bhutah sanatanah [Bg. 15.7]). If we accept Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead and worship Him, all the parts and expansions of the Lord are automatically worshiped. Sarvarhanam acyutejya (Bhag. 4.31.14). Krishna is known as Acyuta (senayor ubhayor madhye ratham sthapaya me 'cyuta). By worshiping Acyuta, Krishna, one automatically worships all the demigods. There is no need of separately worshiping either the vishnu-tattva or jiva-tattva. If one concentrates upon Krishna, one worships everyone. Therefore, because mother Devaki gave birth to Krishna, she is described here as sarva-devata. Download: 2011-01-10 - Mukunda Datta das - SB 10.1.54-56.mp3   • Email to a friend • •   Kurma dasa, AU: Salt and Breadmaking I am quietly preparing sourdough culture in the hope I will find some time to start baking regularly again. On the subject of breadmaking, I found this old blog interesting. PB from Bangalore, India wrote me today: Hare Krishna! I wanted to ask... is it necessary to add oil or salt while making atta flour dough for chapatis? My husband has read that we should avoid using salt & oil while making it. Why do we add salt to the dough & is it required?" My reply: It is a matter of personal taste whether you add oil or salt in chapatis. Salt improves the flavour of the breads, there is no doubt. It accentuates the natural sweetness of the grain, even. Saltless bread is very bland. And the salt also improves the dough texture due to chemical changes with the gluten.* Oil or ghee inside the chapati dough makes the breads softer and more tender. I prefer to leave out any oil or ghee, and spread the hot chapati with a little ghee after cooking. (*When salt is added to a dough, some of the negatively-charged chlorine ions will bond with the positively-charged sites on the gluten protein, neutralizing the overall charge. With the repulsive forces eliminated, the web will tighten, compact, and bond with itself more strongly. A more bonded, compact gluten web can better withstand the force exerted by the swelling air bubbles in an actively fermenting dough, and thus will expand more slowly). And for those who thought that adding/not adding salt in bread was an insignificant choice, think again.   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – SB 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – SB 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 SB 04.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 2011-03-22 Lecture – Srimad Bhagavatam 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 Radhadesh H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – SB 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 SB 04.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 2011-03-22 Lecture – Srimad Bhagavatam 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 Radhadesh SB 04.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 2011-03-22 Lecture - Srimad Bhagavatam 4.31.15 Next Time It Will Be Real Love, Even Radha Krishna Would Be Envious 3-22-2011 Radhadesh   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 2011-03-21 Lecture – Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 Radhadesh H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 2011-03-21 Lecture – Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 Radhadesh Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 2011-03-21 Lecture - Pastimes Of Srila Prabhupada 3-21-2011 Radhadesh   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 2011-03-21 Lecture – Bhagavad Gita 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 Radhadesh H.H. Prahladananda Swami: Lecture – BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 2011-03-21 Lecture – Bhagavad Gita 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 Radhadesh BG 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 2011-03-21 Lecture - Bhagavad Gita 13.31 Enthusiasm More Productive Than Lamentation 3-21-2011 Radhadesh   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1966 March 23: "Tritiya. One letter of Mayor's office replied. Informed that I shall wait to see Mayor Lindsay till he is free to talk with me. One letter sent to the Director Library of Congress, Washington D.C. asking for the Library card no. of my Srimad Bhagwatam. In Doctor Mishra's apartment there were ten to eleven members and I cooked for them all. Today's meeting only two gentlemen attended therefore I did not record the speeches. No expenditure." Prabhupada Journal :: 1966   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1968 March 23: "I want to see you make BTG successful like Life Magazine or Illustrated Weekly of India. You can use your discretion how to do it. You are at liberty to do it with full power of attorney. BTG must be improved to the fullest extent, because it is the backbone of our society." Prabhupada Letters :: 1968   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1969 March 23: "My only request is that you kindly publish one issue every month of this French BTG. That will make you very much happy and will make me always very much happy. And Krishna will bestow all blessings to you in this endeavor. Now this work is specially entrusted to you so please execute it." Prabhupada Letters :: 1969   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1971 March 23: "There is some harassment but the preaching never stops. That should be followed. We are delivering the genuine goods on behalf of Krishna. No one can check us because no material circumstance can permanently hamper devotional service." Prabhupada Letters :: 1971   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1972 March 23: "Today we have laid the cornerstone for our Bombay Center in Juhu and a few days back laid the cornerstone for our Vrindaban Temple. So the program now in India is immense task and I am very much encouraged that you feel yourself enthusiastic to help me for pushing on this Movement here." Prabhupada Letters :: 1972   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1973 March 23: "Simply read one sloka daily and I have given you enough slokas for over 50 years. We are offering to make Brahmanas from anywhere in the world, to become trained up in the highest spiritual knowledge and to become preachers. So now go and recruit some solid devotees for pushing on this movement." Prabhupada Letters :: 1973   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1974 March 23: "We are simply presenting the truth - outside of Krsna Consciousness there is no hope for the betterment of modern affairs rather they are all going to hell without check." Prabhupada Letters :: 1974   • Email to a friend • •   Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1974 March 23: "Second initiation should be given only when you are certain the devotee is really following. So now instruct further on the seriousness of the regulative principles of Krishna Consciousness. All the devotees there are in your charge so by your example they will best be encouraged to enthusiastic advancement." Prabhupada Letters :: 1974   • Email to a friend • •   Madhava Ghosh dasa, New Vrndavan, USA: Fighting Grape Vines The snowdrops have been blooming along the road to cabins by the lake in New Vrindaban and the early daffodils are almost ready. We drive past them because we, my son Tulasi and myself, have been going up to the Garden of Seven Gates to clear some land for planting nut trees. There is a strip of land between the road to Manasaganga’s and the fence of the garden that has been let go wild. It will be a great place for nut trees as the access will be easy and the ground is currently unproductive. There are some weed trees that have grown in there that need to be cleared. It has been quite challenging to cut them as they are infested with fox grapes.  A useless weed grape that has no useful fruit but tries to make up for that lack by vigorous tree choking growth. I had approached the temple’s wood cutter suggesting he cut them for wood for the temple, something he would be doing anyway, but he didn’t want to get involved with them. I like to have all my wood for next winter up in the pile by the end of April as that gives it all summer long to cure out and cured wood is the most efficient to burn. I was going to have to cut some anyway so I decided I would go ahead and donate my time to the project and take the wood in exchange for using my equipment and gas. I had plenty of wood to cut on my own property that would have been faster to cut but this needed to be done and rather than hire someone to do it, it was cheaper for me to take the wood as exchange. It is the labor that makes the value in firewood. GEETA (the corporation that cares for the cows in NV), also soon to be known as Krishna’s  ECO Village, was using some of its gas money to fund tree planting in New Vrindaban. I got a budget to work with and this nut tree planting was one component of it. The goal is 1000 fruit and nut trees in ten years.  We did get 200 planted the first two years of the project and this spring it looks like we are going to get well over another 200 planted. That includes the temple plantings plus private plantings subsidized by ECO Village. The trees were very challenging to cut because of the grapes.  In one place where there were 4 6″ diameter (.15 m) close together we cut three of them  and they remained standing, being all intertwined with grapes with the remaining tree. Last fall I had bought  a power pole pruner and we had to use that to cut through all the grapes to get the trees to fall.  It is like a little chain saw on the end of a 6′ (1.8 m) pole that you can reach up and cut limbs or, in this case, grape vines with. Like a weed whacker with a chain saw on the end of it. We couldn’t get all the vines because they grow 20 and 30′ (8 m) but enough so the weight of the trees can often pull then down, at least closer to the ground so we can cut through the vines some more. Another problem with the vines is that when you cut a standing tree, it doesn’t always hinge at the point of the cut, but the butt can swing back towards you.  So it is dangerous and takes a lot of planning and care. Tulasi is learning how to use the chain saw, and when cutting an aiming notch did it too deep and got the blade pinched. I chastised him mildly and pointed out his error.  Rookie mistake. They say repetition is the key to learning and he got that when later I was cutting an aiming notch and failed to account for the torque  the vines were exerting on the tree and also got the blade pinched. Fortunately I have an extra blade and chain so we could disconnect the main part of the saw from the blade and put the extra on it in order to cut above the pinched blade to free it (them). The whole endeavor was further complicated by there being an electric power line running parallel to the road we were working along (the pole in the picture is NOT the power line, just some leftover).  Several trees would have hit it if we had dropped them the way they leaned, so some ropes and aiming notches were required to avoid them. The whole thing is like solving a puzzle, how to drop trees laced with vines and avoid power lines, but we are making a little progress each day.  I can only do it for a couple of hours before I get exhausted, but sure and steady wins the race. Filed under: Cows and Environment   • Email to a friend • •   Madri dd, South Africa: Annual Journal for Bhaktivedanta College of Education and Culture [BCEC]   • Email to a friend • •   Doyal Gauranga dasa & Gadadhar Pandit dasa, NYC: Hot and Spicy South Indian Rice Hot and Spicy South Indian Tomato Rice The spice masala: 1 ½ teaspoons oil 3 large dried red chilies 1 teaspoon coriander seeds 3 teaspoons chana dal or yellow split peas ¼ teaspoon fenugreek seeds 1 tablespoon desiccated coconut Remaining ingredients: 2 tablespoons oil 2 cups water 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup basmati or other long-grain white rice 1 teaspoon mustard seeds 10 fresh curry leaves 2 large red or green chilies, sliced in rings ½ teaspoon asafetida (hing) 4 large firm ripe tomatoes, chopped To prepare the spice masala: Heat 1 ½ teaspoons oil in a wok or heavy pan over moderate heat. Drop in the red chilies, coriander, and chana dal. Toast, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes or until they darken in color and become fragrant. Towards the end, drop in the fenugreek and coconut, and stir until the coconut becomes golden brown. Remove the spices and coconut and grind to a powder. Remove and set aside. To prepare the rice: 1. Slowly bring the water and salt to a boil in a 1-liter/quart covered saucepan. 2. Warm 1 teaspoon oil in a 2-liter/quart saucepan over moderate heat. Pour in the rice and stir-fry for 2 minutes or until the grains glisten and turn whitish. Add the boiling water, raise the heat and quickly bring to a full boil. Immediately reduce the heat to very low, cover with a tight-fitting lid and gently simmer, without stirring, for 20-25 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender and fluffy. Remove the pan from the heat and let the rice sit, covered, for 5 minutes to allow the grains to firm up. To prepare the tomatoes and complete the dish: 1. While the rice is cooking, place the remaining oil in a wok or heavy frying pan over moderate heat. When the oil is hot, drop in the mustard seeds. They will crackle, sputter, and start to turn grey. Add the curry leaves, stir briefly, then add the chilies and fry them for 1 or 2 minutes, or until they turn translucent. Sprinkle in the asafetida (hing), sauté momentarily and add the chopped tomatoes. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the tomatoes soften and break down. Stir the spice masala into the tomatoes and cook for an additional one minute. Remove from the heat. 2. When the rice is fully cooked and firm, stir in the spicy tomatoes, fluffing the rice and tomatoes gently with a fork to mix evenly. Serve piping hot.   • Email to a friend • •   Doyal Gauranga dasa & Gadadhar Pandit dasa, NYC: Mind-Brain Problem "A century and a half after Charles Darwin published his theory of evolution, some still doubt its ability to explain the emergence of human beings and other forms of life. These days, some Darwin skeptics are focusing on the human brain. They say a higher power must be involved; otherwise, how could a bunch of cells produce such complicated mental processes as consciousness or subjective experiences? How could something like free will be the result of evolution? While Darwin skeptics have homed in on this mind-brain problem, most brain scientists say there's plenty of evidence that mental actions such as consciousness have evolved along with the brain." After reading and hearing the previous excerpt from an NPR piece, (more completely provided in the link below), our Reflections discussion went in a variety of directions as we discussed the origins of our own being and the way people approach the topic. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=100867217   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Sivarama Swami: Gaura-purnima Maha Harinama in Budapest H.H. Sivarama Swami: Gaura-purnima Maha Harinama in Budapest   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Sivarama Swami: Harinama in Budapest H.H. Sivarama Swami: Harinama in Budapest March 23rd, 2011 [ 1:47:22 ] H.H. Sivarama Swami: Harinama in Budapest   • Email to a friend • •   Toronto Sankirtan Team, CA: 22nd Monthly Sankirtan Festival - Setting the Mood Our 22nd Monthly Sankirtan Festival which falls on March 26th, will be celebrated as Gaura Purnima Special. In the mood of Sri Chaitanya, we will all head out on the streets sharing the love and happiness that fills our lives through kirtan, books and prasad. There is service for everyone - help before, during or after the sankirtan festival in whichever way you like. Our goal this month is to have a team of 108 devotees hitting the streets. Will you help us? In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead. The flood of love of Godhead swelled in all directions, and thus young men, old men, women and children were all immersed in that inundation. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement will inundate the entire world and drown everyone, whether one be a gentleman, a rogue or even lame, invalid or blind. CC Adi 7.23-26 See you soon! Please email toronto.sankirtan@gmail.com for more information. Schedule:- 4:30am Mangal Arti, Japa 7:45am Bhagavatam Class 9:15-10:00 am Building the Mood - Training & Goals 11:00am-2:00pm Street Sankirtan 2:00pm Maha-Harinama 2:30pm Lunch Prasad at the temple How can YOU help? 1. Prepare Prasadam for distribution: From the comforts of your home prepare dry non-perishable prasad for distribution. Our goal is to distribute 5,000 pieces of prasad. 2. Package Prasadam for distribution: Friday 25th March 2011, 6:30-8:30pm 3. Stamp and pack books for distribution: Friday 25th March 2011, 6:30 PM - 8:30pm 4. Help with Logistics/Transportation: Saturday 26th March 5. Prepare Prasadam for Sankirtan team: Saturday 26th March 6:00-10:00am 6. Participate in Harinam - sing along, lead kirtan, play an instrument, hand out cookies or distribute books: Saturday 26th March; 11:00-3:00pm Please dress WARMER than you think you'll need to (it's still cold - bring gloves and caps along).   • Email to a friend • •   Akrura das, Gita Coaching: WHY WE ARE NOT HAPPY? Because: - We compromise what we know is right - We are afraid to confront what we need to change - We are afraid to desire - We are afraid to love - We are not ready to pay the price of success   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): 257—Poem for March 22 www.sdgonline.org. A Writer of Pieces New format—I will begin with a poem written on the day of its printing. Then I will print random excerpts of books I have printed over the last 30 years. I hope this variety will be pleasing. Poem for March 22 We’d like to find a poem like a flat stone on a beach, but there are no beaches around here.  A poem to Krishna has to be made gazing on His strong arm, adoring His long flute with the jewel in the middle. Radha is hiding from the nondevotees, can only be seen by the bhakta. O, how can we enter that realm and taste the bliss of service? It’s open to everyone, they just have to do their occupational duties to Lord Hari. I am repeating the parampara, but I believe it’s actually the way to approach. Yesterday the day after spring began, it snowed so hard it was depressing. When is flower- bearing season going to begin? I did the yoga stretches as best I could until I became exhausted and asked to stop. Then I edited the pages of the autobiography. I took the incense stick, lit it up and waved the curlicues of smoke around the Deities’ bodies for entering Vraja pastimes and longer life in this world. These are my occupations and walking on the road against the stream of cars until we reach the beribboned telephone pole and return back, talking something relaxed and entering the house for a glass of Nimbu Pani. I try to enter the mysterious realm of a writing life sharing your feelings of Prabhupada’s activities or my own in relation to his. Something worth remembering.   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): OLD FRIENDS www.sdgonline.org. From Vaisnava Behavior (1983) “At least three times a day the formal prayers should be offered, but the remembrance and praise of the spiritual master should be continual. Especially after receiving his orders, the disciple should think about these orders constantly and not be disturbed by anything else. According to Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura, the order of the spiritual master is the life and soul of the disciple. Meditation on his order is the perfection of meditation, and sincere attempts to carry out that order are the perfection of human activity. “When the spiritual master is pleased, then the disciple’s higher objectives are achieved, and he becomes more encouraged to go on carrying out the order of the spiritual master. He wants to please his spiritual master more and more; there’s no limit in the exchange. This reciprocal energy, the preaching of Krishna consciousness goes on. A disciple’s satisfaction, to please the previous spiritual masters in disciplic succession, is secured when he faithfully practices and preaches. To the degree the disciple carries out the spiritual master’s order, he can satisfy guru and Krishna and subsequently satisfy himself. “As recorded in the Caitanya-caritamrta, Isvara Puri, the spiritual master of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, performed service to Madhavendra Puri in the last difficult days of his spiritual master’s life on earth. Isvara Puri intimately cared for the body of the spiritual master and was always chanting the holy name and pastimes of Lord Krishna for Madhavendra Puri to hear. In this way he helped Madhavendra Puri remember the holy name and pastimes of Lord Krishna at the time of death. Madhavendra Puri was very pleased and gave Isvara Puri the benediction that he would become a great devotee and lover of Krishna. Krishnadasa Kaviraja remarks that for this reason Isvara Puri became an ocean of ecstatic love for Krishna, whereas Ramacandra Puri—who offended his spiritual master—became a dry speculator and critic to everyone else. ‘These two persons, Isvara Puri and Ramacandra Puri,’ writes Krishnadasa Kaviraja, ‘are examples of the object of a great person’s benediction and punishment. Madhavendra Puri instructed the entire world by presenting these two examples.’ (Cc. Antya 8.34) “If the spiritual master is displeased with the disciple, then that disciple’s progress is blocked. Since the guru is even more concerned for his disciple than the wayward disciple for himself,  the guru continues to instruct him in hopes that he will rectify and take up his constitutional service before it’s too late. When a wife came and forcibly dragged away one of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati’s sannyasa disciples, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati cried, ‘I could not save this soul.’ “His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada compassionately granted Vaisnava initiation to thousands of men and women, and he always tried to save them from guru-aparadha, offenses to the guru, even when he saw them drifting away. “‘Know it that I am eternally your guide, but if you don’t accept   me as your guide, then what can I do? Unfortunately, if my disciples don’t take my guidance, then what can I do? By bad association it so happens, so I remain silent. I see the tricks of Maya.’ “‘You mentioned that your pathway has become filled with stumbling blocks. But there are no stumbling blocks. I can kick out all stumbling blocks immediately, provided you accept my guidance. With one stroke of my kick, I can kick out all stumbling blocks.’—Letter, December 9, 1972, to Krishnadasa”(1990) From Prabhupada Appreciation (1990) “There are many ways that we can say that Prabhupada was dear to Krishna. According to the Bhagavad-gita, ‘One who preaches this same message to the devotees is most dear.’ Srila Prabhupada first created Vaisnavas and then preached to them. When Prabhupada first arrived at Commonwealth Pier, he wrote a poem asking the Lord how these people who were so addicted to sense gratification would be able to hear his message and take up the regulative principles of human life. But by Krishna’s grace and Srila Prabhupada’s own pure desire, he managed to instruct Krishna consciousness in the hearts of those same people. “As for Srila Prabhupada himself, he humbly disclaimed all these qualifications. He always saw himself as the eternal servant of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati. In the Srimad Bhagavatam (4.12.33), Prabhupada said that if one of his disciples could become as strong as Dhruva Maharaja—‘even though I am crippled in so many ways…’ they could carry him back to Vaikuntha-loka. There are many references like this. For example, in the invocation to the Eighth Canto, Prabhupada writes: “‘On this occasion, therefore, I am praying to my spiritual master to give me strength to finish this work. I am neither a great scholar nor a great devotee. I am simply a humble servant of my spiritual master, and to the best of my ability I am trying to please him by publishing these books with the cooperation of my disciples in America.’ “But Prabhupada is inconceivably dear to Krishna for fulfilling Lord Caitanya’s order to spread Krishna consciousness to every town and village. Prabhupada made the Hare Krishna mantra a household word, and he brought Vaisnavism into the forefront of the world’s vision. Although ISKCON may not yet appear to be a major religious force according to its relative position in the world, it is definitely carrying some presence, and Srila Prabhupada’s books are considered the definitive texts for those wishing to study contemporary Vaisnavism. “Although his demeanor was always humble, and he always gave credit to his own spiritual master for his accomplishments, Srila Prabhupada could also be fiery, asserting his own position as jagad guru and always working to defeat the ‘opposing yogis, swamis, mayavadis, impersonalists, scientists, philosophers and other mental speculators.’ Sometimes persons with an immature grasp of Srila Prabhupada as a person see this as a sign of pride and think he was making these statements out of a personal vanity. But Prabhupada always spoke with the authority of guru, sastra and sadhu, and he always spoke with the voice of a preacher. If he claimed to be jagad guru, he also behaved as such. If he claimed to be able to defeat all nonsense philosophies, he actually did it. Neither did he do so separately from his attitude of complete submission to Krishna and guru. Srila Prabhupada embodied the service attitude; he was what he was for the pleasure of his spiritual master and Krishna.” From Journal and Poems, Book I (1985) “Jagannatha Bliss “Jagannatha is checked in to room 903. How can the Lord of the Universe be a Sheraton guest? Because He consents. “First thing to do is make up His altar— today He’s in yellow, Subhadra red, Balarama blue. And I’m collapsed beside Them. “Travel is exciting if you choose as your companion the best Friend, Enjoyer, the Ruler of all. “Nothing else really matters, jets, buses, oceans, the enormous world of nondevotion. That’s all illusion. But He is the center, and I am His servant. That’s all that matters; surrender. “O Lord Jagannatha, please save me, please keep me, take me home, keep me traveling. Keep me sick, make me well. Whatever You want. Keep Your name on my mind. “March 15, 1985 “I felt heavy-hearted as we arrived at Gita Nagari today. The austerity of what I am proposing to do weighed on me. Instead of coming for another visit with interesting preaching prospects ahead, I’m coming to recover my health. I’ll be staying here resting for most of the year. On the way, I listened to a tape of Srila Prabhupada. He strongly condemned chanting alone in a secluded place. Preaching is the essence. “Once at the cabin I busied myself rearranging drawers and unpacking. Dutifully I am entering the long-term stay. “Looking reverently out my window to the shaggy pine. Health is so slowly improving, it’s not funny. But I’ll give it a try. “Is this also service? Will it please my spiritual master, to get well in a year? If Krishna desires.”   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Sivarama Swami: Questions with Russian disciples about temple standards, sankirtana and women covering their head H.H. Sivarama Swami: Questions with Russian disciples about temple standards, sankirtana and women covering their head March 23rd, 2011 [ 20:18 ] H.H. Sivarama Swami: Questions with Russian disciples about temple standards, sankirtana and women covering their head   • Email to a friend • •   Subhavilasa das ACBSP, Toronto, CA: A Holi Festival with reflections of Hiranyakashipu and Bhakta Prahlada. Ashalata devi dasi distributing a Bhagavad-Gita Minakshi devi dasi distributing a book to a fortunate kid Indresh & Kishori. We smelled like balls of onions after being surrounded by smelly food for hours. We did not get to eat all day but evening prasad made up for this... 1st shift 2nd shift An opportunity arose to do a book table at a Holi festival being held at a banquet hall. The organizers were charging for sponsor tables but offered ISKCON a no charge table. There was some discussion between Radha Mohan das and myself, whether or not to do the table  considering the environment. Not wanting to hurt the sentiments of the the organizers, seeing this as a sankirtan opportunity and confirming that my sis and mom were willing to split the shift, we ultimately decided set up the book table this past Sunday.  The "environment concerns" centred around the possibility of alcohol and non-vegetarian food being served in a mundane setting complete with dance numbers. In the Toronto MSF (Monthly Sankirtan Festival) promotion the inspiring quote that was chosen this month was:  In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead. The flood of love of Godhead swelled in all directions, and thus young men, old men, women and children were all immersed in that inundation. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement will inundate the entire world and drown everyone, whether one be a gentleman, a rogue or even lame, invalid or blind. CC Adi 7.23-26 With such an appropriate quote how could we not set up a table... So when we got there we were greeted by a Holi Festival poster complete with a Radha Krishna picture (mind you a BBT copyright one) overlooking a questionable venue. We were shown an area for 1/2 of a 3' table and after a bit of debate we grabbed our 6' table from the car and set it up right next to the bar...yes the bar. We watched as people grabbed their drinks, plates of non-veg food and watched performers gyrate to music.  The day after Gaura-Purnima you cannot help to think of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Lord Nityananda's lila with Jagai and Madhai. In this case we have Indians born in the land of Krishna that have forgotten their rich Vedic culture and have abandoned it for cheap alcohol and eating meat in an attempt of "Holi" fusion. To add to the sadness there were some people that you see now and then at the temple as well as kids of congregation/devotee parents paying and partaking  in this "Holi" event.    We diligently promoted Srila Prabhupada's books knowing that the souls that are supposed to get these books would and we can simply act as instruments trying to humbly offer these books. One child around 10 years old looked through the books and liked the Krsna book. He told me that he "likes Krishna" and I told him he would "Love Krishna" after reading this book. He asked his dad to get the book and I also encouraged his father, telling him how fortunate he was that his son was interested in Krishna. I told him that half his job is already done. But his answer was "NO". On this "holi" festival people were interested in promoting and showing off Hiranyakashipu traits. Holi celebrates Bhakta Prahlada and his bhakti and character that defeated Holika and ultimately Hiranyakashipu but people have forgotten this. But this example shows you a kids desire and reflections of Bhakta Prahlada and an Indian gentleman that has forgotten his Vedic culture and is displaying reflections of Hiranyakashipu when he chastises his child and drags him away from Krishna. Anyhow, in this environment we made a humble attempt to sprinkle the mercy of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and bring back remberance of the real purpose of Holi. In this humble attempt over 20 "big" books were distributed  (over $300 in Laxmi points).  Personally, it reinforced that book distribution is vital, since despite their outward appearance and birthplace they need to be reminded of their Vedic culture. Srila Prabhupada clearly stated that "There is a misconception that the Krishna consciousness movement represents the Hindu religion" however he gave great importance to preaching to Indians inside and outside of India to remind them of this bona-fide philosphy. Srila Prabhupada also instructed my dad to preach to Indians. He wanted Indians to back up ISKCON to show the world that this was bona-fide Indian culture. For example in a letter dated October 1976 Srila Prabhupada states "Let all the Indians say that this is bona fide. Have profuse testimony. Collect testimony in London and Toronto. Ask SubhaVilasa to collect opinions that this is bona fide Indian culture." I am hopeful that in this humble attempt to remind people of the true purpose of life and their rich vedic culture we might be pleasing Srila Prabhupada in some small way. ~ Indresh I noticed a lot of typos and grammatical errors, so the blog has been edited and reposted.   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): 256—Poem for March 21 www.sdgonline.org. 5:30 A.M. A Writer of Pieces New format—I will begin with a poem writ­ten on the day of its print­ing. Then I will print ran­dom excerpts of books I have printed over the last 30 years. I hope this vari­ety will be pleasing. Poem for March 21 The Autobiog The autobiography runs on flowing gifted with new pieces every day. It is modeled after Mark Twain’s, not following the “cradle to the grave” route but beginning wherever the mind is interested and going with that until it pales and then takes a new direction. I have told of my early life before Krishna consciousness, but now it’s all as Swami’s cela, a transcendental manuscript. How happy I am to have this last gift from Krishna written in an interesting way with new episodes every day. Thank you Lord for the autobiography. I pray there will be no hindrance to its progress, let there be no sharks in the waters but smooth sailing through the corridors of memory, the diary of present day, yes, and the worries which are spiritual anxiety. I pray to you through the muted trumpet of young Miles Davis and Charlie Parker, let it be stuff that will last like Prabhupada’s, for thousands of years, drops of Prabhupada nectar, from the heart.   • Email to a friend • •   H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami (Ret.): OLD FRIENDS www.sdgonline.org. Prabhupada Meditations, Volume II, (1989)—Initiation: “Go for it.” I had a conversation with Raya Rama just before my initiation by Prabhupada. I said “How can I know for sure that I’ll be able to follow all these regulations?” Raya Rama said, “Say it’s a gamble. So gamble that it’s the right thing to do with your life—that there is God and that He’s the truth and that He’s Krishna. We’re staking our whole life on that. So what the hell? Go for it. There’s always some gamble or risk in life, but this risk is worthwhile.” His line of reason was appealing to me. I had been willing to risk my life taking LSD and doing other crazy things, so why should I become hesitant to be initiated just because I couldn’t see a guarantee? In fact, if someone had given my all guarantees, it would have been hard to accept. I took it as an adventure, “Go for it—get initiated by Swamiji.” On the night of the initiation, I was sitting in Swamiji’s inner room while Swamiji was in the worship room preparing for the ceremony. Keith was sitting beside me. I said, “How can we actually accept that the person Krishna is the Absolute Truth?” Keith repeated the Bhagavad-gita verse, Krishna says, everything depends on Me as pearls are strong on a thread. That little quoting of the scripture by a Godbrother helped purge me of some impersonal hesitation. Godbrothers are so much like ourselves, so when we see that they’re faithful and that they have some knowledge we accept it—and then we do it for ourselves. Taking initiation is supposed to be a solemn commitment, not a casual undertaking. However, despite our promises we have to admit that we are taking a risk. Srila Prabhupada was also taking a risk by accepting us as disciples. He honored our vows and depended on Krishna, expecting us to carry out our obligations. Srila Prabhupada’s coming to America was itself a risk. Sometimes he had to abandon the strict regulations of sannyasa in order to stay and do the more important work of spreading Krishna consciousness. When he stayed in Carl Yeargen’s apartment he had to keep his food in the same refrigerator where Carl kept cat food. Prabhupada explained that this was actually against the rules for sannyasa living but, “If I thought I can’t do this, let me go back to India, then I never would have been able to preach.” In Prabhupada’s case, his risks were completely protected by Krishna. Neither was Prabhupada able to conduct a full ceremony with all the details for yajna. For bricks we found some discarded ones at a construction site, and for dirt we dug it up (when Mr. Chudi was not looking) from the garden in the courtyard. Prabhupada conducted the initiation with faith in the holy names and a desire to carry out his spiritual master’s order. He improvised and accepted the broken souls who came to him, provided he saw them as sincere. Everything he did was bona fide according to vaisnava-smrti, but some things had to be done according to time, place and persons. If he did not have ghee, he’d do a ceremony with butter, even margarine. “Prabhupada, you asked for coconuts but we can’t find any. We’ve got bananas but no banana leaves.” “All right,” Prabhupada said. He was not going to stop an initiation for lack of banana leaves. Prabhupada’s mood was that he was ready to go to hell for Krishna. According to the ninth offense against the holy name the guru must not give the holy name to unqualified persons. Technically speaking, we lacked some of the qualifications for initiation, but Prabhupada accepted us because we showed at least some sparks of serious interest. Prabhupada impressed on us that initiations vows were lifelong and serious and he expected us to follow them. Nevertheless he went ahead with tremendous trust even though we hadn’t done that much to show we were trustworthy. Memory in the Service of Krishna (1990) Considering just a few of the many expert analyzes of material and spiritual life we come to appreciate with awe the wisdom of Vedic knowledge. For example, men can be divided into categories of karmis, jnanis, yogis and bhaktas. How much wisdom is packed into that analysis! And there are three modes of nature—goodness, passion and ignorance—which interact in many mixtures. All human behaviour can be detected according to these gunas. We can learn from Bhagavad-gita how austerity should be performed how we should pursue happiness, how we should work, how we should be determined, and how we should eat. Whoever is without this Vedic direction is groping. Despite the best intentions a person may commit serious mistakes, such as the mistake of thinking that animals have no soul and so there is no reaction for killing them. Or someone may think that after reading enough books he can become a teacher and advocate that one can do whatever he likes and attain perfection. As a result of such teachings, a self-appointed guru paves his way to the worlds of darkness. My dear Lord Krishna, my dear Srila Prabhupada, sometimes it’s too hard to know what I should do to serve you. But at least I know basic right from wrong. There is no excuse now. I know what’s right, because I know your will and I accept it as my way. You may punish me for wrongs as your erring servant, but whatever you do I remain your devotee. Please give me courage to teach your way to those “who do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done.” Please free me from the wrong of complacence as if simply being “right” were enough. A Visit to Jagannatha Puri (1987)—Preparing for Tomorrow’s Parikrama Wherever we go, chant the holy name— at Jagannatha temple describe each gate, pray at each gate, show the pandits you think it’s alright that you don’t enter, you just chant. Appreciation of Lord Caitanya. I realize that out of all the acaryas, Lord Caitanya is the foremost. I have learned this from books like Teachings of Lord Caitanya and Caitanya-caritamrta and this is the conclusion of the Gaudiya sampradaya’s stalwarts, the Six Gosvamis, Visvanatha Cakravarti, Baladeva and so on. Narottama dasa Thakura says, “Whoever calls the name of Gauranga, I want to associate with him.” From Bhaktivinoda Thakura and Bhaktisiddhanta Thakura—because Prabhupada has blessed us to hear from them—we understand that Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s contribution is astounding and most magnanimous. We also see this when we chant in public and when we read in sampradaya books. When we look at another teacher’s composition, we notice either some tinge of karma-kanda or a hint of emancipation, some with of impersonalism or a lack of full Radha-Krishna knowledge given by Lord Caitanya. In the discourses of Lord Caitanya’s devotees and in their ecstatic kirtana is the ultimate conclusion. We honor Christ, Buddha, Sankara, Muhammad. And certainly we revere and adore Ramanuja and Madhva. But as for Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is Krishna Himself, we exclusively love and recognize Him as the all-attractive source of everything: sri krishna caitanya radha-krishna nahe anya. Spiritualized Dictionary Chinafy: “The political impotence of China in 1915.” Re­fers to reducing a country to a state of passivity and helplessness. This does not accurately describe modern-day China. The original impact of some of these words is lost as time changes world events. I remember there used to be a similar word in vogue, “Finlandization.” It meant that Finland could be annexed to the Communist empire just by proxim­ity—a kind of osmosis of one country into another. “Finlandization” has now become an obscure word with meaning only for history professors. Krishna conscious words don’t become obscure with the passage of time or the changes of fate. They are eternal and absolute. Nor do they get hijacked by some modern world problem into meaning something other than what they were in­tended to mean. For example, the word “”aids” was once a common word that meant “helps.” Now it has been hijacked by the deadly disease. Similarly, “gay” was a sweet word often used by 19th-century poets. It was a lighthearted word denoting the light­ness of a spring day or of an old man’s happiness. “Gay” has been hijacked. Now it means “homo­sexual.” Krishna conscious words are not hijacked by fads. They maintain their transcendental life throughout the centuries, preserved in living Sanskrit and re­peated by devotees speaking in parampara on topics of Krishna. Even when such devotees speak many dif­ferent languages, their constant reference to San­skrit preserves the integrity of these words even in translation. Can we make the meaning of “Chinafy” relevant to us? Is ISKCON reduced to helplessness? We hope not. We become Chinafied when we are over­powered and then controlled. It especially happens to persons or groups who have been accustomed to having more control over their lives or institutions. When control is lost, they often lapse. Does ISKCON have the system of Chinafication? When we look at ourselves in terms of the greater society, we can see our impotence. We have no ulti­mate power over anything or anyone. Yet we’re a feisty, active entity-proactive, as some like to term us. We like to make waves. Making waves is Prabhupada’s legacy. Even be­fore he came to America, he was feisty. He wasn’t influential with the government (he had to beg them for paper during the paper shortage), and he had no real money of which to speak, but imme­diately he made waves. He spoke strongly against ig­norance and spiritual complacency, and he pushed the Krishna consciousness movement forward before it could even be called a movement. No, we’re not Chinafied. Prabhupada wasn’t passive, and neither are we. Neither are we helpless. Rather, in Prabhu­pada’s footsteps we are printing books, preaching, performing Deity worship, and even arguing among ourselves as to the best way to propagate the sankirtana movement. We may not be influential in the world—we have no political constituency—but we’re certainly not Chinafied. Of course, we can look at the state of being Chinafied externally and quantifiably or according to internal development. A real spiritual movement is vital when its followers are making advancement in spiritual qualities, when they are friendly, kind, fixed in the Absolute Truth, attached to hearing the Lord’s names, etc. That’s the real definition of “active in spiritual life.” The Bhagauad-gita defines that as the difference between action and inaction. Even when a devotee appears passive, his heart is engaged in Krishna’s service.   • Email to a friend • •   Dandavats.com: Some poems on Lord Krishna Gautam Saha: The perfection of human life is to be a great devotee like Sudama Well versed in the authorized scriptures, and a lover of Lord Krsna Once you reach out for and take Lord Krsna ‘ s hand The Lord Himself will make sure that He never lets go of your hand   • Email to a friend • •   Gouranga TV: Gaura Purnim Kirtan, Boston Gouranga TV: Gaura Purnim Kirtan, Boston Gaura Purnim Kirtan, Boston   • Email to a friend • •   Japa Group: His Life Is Chanting His life is chanting, but his life’s activities have to be pure in order to chant. Our movement depends on offenseless chanting, and spiritual advancement depends on offenseless chanting, whatever your particular service is. At the same time, to take to the mercy of the holy name and grow spiritually, you must avoid the sinful activities: illicit sex, gambling, intoxication, meat-eating, and be very faithful in service to the spiritual master. This combination will make the perfect advancement. Japa Reform Notebook by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami   • Email to a friend • • More Recent Articles H.G. Sankarshan das Adhikari, USA: Wednesday 23 March 2011--Are You Ready for Death?--and--Do I Have to Chant "Krishna"? ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Today's Darsana ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Daily Class - Aniruddha Prabhu H.H. Sivarama Swami Bharatavarsa.net: Bhakti Vikasa Swami: Civilizational collapse

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