"Planet ISKCON" - 38 new articles
H.G. Sankarshan das Adhikari, USA: Friday 14 January 2011--Get Upgraded to Perpetual First Class--and--How to Develop Faith?A daily broadcast of the Ultimate Self Realization Course(tm) Friday 14 January 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. 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: Get Upgraded to Perpetual First Class Uploaded from Mendoza, Argentina Every position in this material world is last class. Everyone here is struggling hard to be in the best possible position, but they do not realize that even the topmost positions in this material world are last class because at the time of death everyone has to die, just like a dog has to die. So why struggle so hard to achieve a false first class position? It is better to get upgraded from last class to the real and perpetual first class position of pure devotional service. There is no position like pure devotional service because in this position of pure bhakti, Krishna or God--the supreme owner, controller, and enjoyer of everything--becomes your personal property. No one has better facility for living life to its fullest than Krishna's pure devotee. Even Krishna Himself becomes His own devotee in order the taste the first class pleasure. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Introducing the Vegetarians to Krishnaterianism Govinda's Restaurant--Mendoza, Argentina 12 Janury 2011 http://www.backtohome.com/images/2010_Tour2/Mendoza_Govindas.JPG Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: How to Develop Faith? I do not believe in blind faith. I would like to know how should I develop faith? Pradnya Answer: Hear and Chant As Much as Possible Faith is developed by hearing and chanting, because the more you hear and chant about the Krishna, the more you will personally experience Krishna. And the more that you tangibly experience Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the more you will naturally develop strong experiential or empirical faith. 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 2010-2011 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 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: ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Daily Class - Devamrita SwamiSrimad Bhagavatam 11.29.5 - How to get selfless devotional service.
Bharatavarsa.net: Book distribution seminar: Real loveWe had been distributing the whole day in Tampere Finland with Tattvavada Prabhu (our GBC). I wanted to distribute until eight P.M., and he had gone for a sauna as it had been a cold day. The day was coming to a close, when I saw a couple in a car. They looked quite well-to do. I said that they looked good, like they were in good shape. I guessed the husband had a company that he was a leader of. It was a nice conversation, and it turned out that the wife was slightly interested about spiritual matters. She said, "And how about Amma." Amma, or Mata Amrtanandamayi, is an Indian lady who travels around the world hugging people and speaking Mayavada philosophy. I said, "Yes, she's nice. It's nice someone hugs even people she doesn't even know. I think that attracts many people in cold countries like Finland, where people are so lonely." The conversation went on and eventually the lady bought TQK. She paid ten euros for her book. The husband did not want a book. I was praying to Srila Prabhupada and the Lord to let him take also. Then I started canvassing very enthusiastically, "It's a nice book with stories and wisdom, so why not take it?" The man replied, "But I never read." "Maybe not for yourself, but you can read for your wife. You know, a little bedtime story or some wisdom of the day." He responded, "I really don't read." "But love is the determining factor. There is no ocean too wide or no mountain too high, if you have love." The man started to melt, "So how much it is?" I said, "You can give something, but give from your heart." He dug some coins from his pocket. It was about eight euros. Srila Prabhupada, ki jay! Then something extraordinary happened. The wife said, "And now comes the last part." She jumped out of the car and ran up to me and gave me a big hug. She was smiling ecstatically and her eyes were glowing and said, "Thank you so much for meeting us. The very beginning was so great that by that you sold us the first book. But even more special was that you could sell a book to my husband. He never buys any books! Thank you once again" Then she went to the car and they departed. Actually Tattvavada Prabhu had arrived just at the time the wife had jumped out of the car to hug me. He was really surprised to see what was happening, and I had to explain to him the whole story. I felt the lady hugging me was like getting a hug from Krsna. I had tried that day my best to distribute. I had the goal of distributing 100 books, but I did not quite reach it. Anyway, I felt Krsna appreciated the endeavor and sent these two souls just at the right moment. your servant, Vijaya das Bharatavarsa.net: Book distribution seminar: Literary revolution to change the worldGradually, we shall replace the literatures which are currently popular with our own style of transcendental literature. I have tried it: any page you open, that is wonderful reading matter. My ambition is to spread these books far and wide all over the world so that everyone shall read at least one of our books and that will change his life. If only 1% become devotees, that will change the world. >>> Ref. VedaBase => Letter to: Karandhara — Tokyo 2 May, 1972 H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami: 1905:00 A.M.It didn’t snow overnight, so we don’t have to do any new shoveling. Yesterday afternoon we watched DVD #2 of Yadubara’s film Following Srila Prabhupada.
There was sweet film footage of the morning ritual at the Los Angeles temple. Prabhupada used to come back from his morning walk in the car and all the devotees would be waiting outside the temple in two rows. He had a basket of flowers, and he would give each devotee a flower and they would give him one back. It was a spontaneous exchange that just developed and evoked much love between Prabhupada and the devotees. He would then go into the temple and greet the Deities by bowing down before each one and then sitting on the vyasasana holding kirtana and giving his morning lecture. The devotees said that the exchange of flowers after the walk was the best part of the day. The story of Bhaumasura—how he kidnapped and made captive sixteen thousand princesses by collecting them from the palaces of various kings, and how he was killed by Krishna the Supreme Lord, of wonderful character—is all described by Sukadeva Gosvami to Maharaja Pariksit in Srimad Bhagavatam. Generally, the demons are always against the demigods. This demon, Bhaumasura, having become very powerful, took by force the umbrella from the throne of the demigod Varuna. He took the earrings of Aditi, mother of the demigods. He conquered a portion of heavenly Mount Meru and occupied a portion known as Mani-purvata. The king of the heavenly planets, Indra, therefore came to Dvaraka to complain about Bhaumasura before Lord Krishna. Hearing this complaint by Indra, the King of heaven, Lord Krsna, accompanied by His wife Satyabhama, immediately started for the abode of Bhaumasura. Both of them rode on the back of Garuda, who flew them to Pragjyotisa-pura, the capital city of Bhaumasura. It was not a very easy task to enter into the city of Pragjyotisa-pura, because it was very well fortified . . . When Krishna arrived, He broke all the forts to pieces by the strokes of His club, and the military strength scattered here and there by the constant onslaught of the arrows of Krishna. With His celebrated Sudarsana-cakra He counteracted the electrified boundary; the channels of water and the gaseous boundary were made null and void, and He cut to pieces the electrified network fabricated by the demon Mura. By the vibration of His conchshell, He not only broke the hearts of great fighters, but also the fighting machines which were there. Similarly, the walls around the city were broken by His invincible club. I will tell you more later. The congresswoman who was shot in Arizona is reported as slightly recovering. They don’t know if she’ll live. I don’t know much about it. There are some suspicious issues surrounding it, since she was a Democrat and the Republicans in that area are so strongly opposed to her stand on health reform. A federal judge was killed in the shooting along with other people. The President attended a ceremony and gave a highly-praised speech calling for civility among differing parties. Krishna is in control. Everyone has their opinion. You go against others who have a different opinion. He takes a gun against them. That’s going too far. Speak your freedom ,but don’t shoot your opponent. Don’t blaspheme him. When does faultfinding go too far? I have a right to speak against your views, but I shall do so civilly. The first offense in chanting is to find fault with the devotee of the Lord. I can find fault with an ordinary jiva, but I should not do it in a blaspheming way. It’s slippery in Atlanta. It’s two feet deep in Boston. Say you want to get a gun to protect yourself. They search your record and discover you are a citizen with a clean record. “Did you ever take marijuana or LSD?” There’s nothing in my record that says so. I think I have written some personal published poems that confess I did so. They are proof. So that’s an infraction. T.J. asked me how many times a week I wanted a massage. I said, “Three.” “Three!” That was more than he expected, more time than he could spare. We’ll probably do it once a week. It’s relaxing, with Indian, Tibetan music in the background. My eyes are tired. I wanted to write a poem or letter, but now it’s not possible. You write what comes to your head. That’s Natalie Goldberg-style. Henny Penny said the sky was falling, but I said if you want to tell a fairy story tell “The Emperor Has No Clothes.” That is more appropriate because the G.B.C. is being uprooted by the grass-root intellectuals (1986 ISKCON reforms), and to brush it off and say, “Oh, Henny Penny said the sky is falling” is not the point. The emperors have no clothes. They formed a committee to interview each GBC man and I was the first one and the most cooperative. “Send us more like you,” J.S. said. And I resigned from the G.B.C. after seventeen years of service. Akrura das, Gita Coaching: HAPPY AND SUCCESSFULPeople are not happy because they are successful. People are successful because they are happy.  Book Distribution News: Real loveWe had been distributing the whole day in Tampere Finland with Tattvavada Prabhu (our GBC). I wanted to distribute until eight P.M., and he had gone for a sauna as it had been a cold day. The day was coming to a close, when I saw a couple in a car. They looked quite well-to do. I said that they looked good, like they were in good shape. I guessed the husband had a company that he was a leader of. It was a nice conversation, and it turned out that the wife was slightly interested about spiritual matters. She said, "And how about Amma." Amma, or Mata Amrtanandamayi, is an Indian lady who travels around the world hugging people and speaking Mayavada philosophy. I said, "Yes, she's nice. It's nice someone hugs even people she doesn't even know. I think that attracts many people in cold countries like Finland, where people are so lonely." The conversation went on and eventually the lady bought TQK. She paid ten euros for her book. The husband did not want a book. I was praying to Srila Prabhupada and the Lord to let him take also. Then I started canvassing very enthusiastically, "It's a nice book with stories and wisdom, so why not take it?" The man replied, "But I never read." "Maybe not for yourself, but you can read for your wife. You know, a little bedtime story or some wisdom of the day." He responded, "I really don't read." "But love is the determining factor. There is no ocean too wide or no mountain too high, if you have love." The man started to melt, "So how much it is?" I said, "You can give something, but give from your heart." He dug some coins from his pocket. It was about eight euros. Srila Prabhupada, ki jay! Then something extraordinary happened. The wife said, "And now comes the last part." She jumped out of the car and ran up to me and gave me a big hug. She was smiling ecstatically and her eyes were glowing and said, "Thank you so much for meeting us. The very beginning was so great that by that you sold us the first book. But even more special was that you could sell a book to my husband. He never buys any books! Thank you once again" Then she went to the car and they departed. Actually Tattvavada Prabhu had arrived just at the time the wife had jumped out of the car to hug me. He was really surprised to see what was happening, and I had to explain to him the whole story. I felt the lady hugging me was like getting a hug from Krsna. I had tried that day my best to distribute. I had the goal of distributing 100 books, but I did not quite reach it. Anyway, I felt Krsna appreciated the endeavor and sent these two souls just at the right moment. your servant, Vijaya das Book Distribution News: Literary revolution to change the worldGradually, we shall replace the literatures which are currently popular with our own style of transcendental literature. I have tried it: any page you open, that is wonderful reading matter. My ambition is to spread these books far and wide all over the world so that everyone shall read at least one of our books and that will change his life. If only 1% become devotees, that will change the world. >>> Ref. VedaBase => Letter to: Karandhara — Tokyo 2 May, 1972 Kurma dasa, AU: Vegetarianism and World Religions
Ravinarayan from Shimoga, Karnataka, India, wrote with an enquiry: "Is vegetarianism an important aspect in all religion? Can you give importance of it with reference to different religion?" My reply: "This is a very large topic, almost beyond the realm of this letter. In a nutshell: yes." Prof. Gene Sager of Palomar College writes: "Vegetarianism has been a common thread among the major world religions, even if only a minority have adopted the diet as an expression of their faith. For many people of faith, vegetarianism reflects the Golden Rule: Christianity – “So, whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them” (Matthew 7:12); Judaism – “Do not do unto others what you would not wish to be done to yourself – that is the entire Torah, the rest is commentary” (Babylonian Talmud); Islam – “No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself”; Baha’i Faith – “Blessed is he that preferreth his brother to himself”; Taoism – “Regard your neighbor’s gain as your own gain, and your neighbor’s loss as your own loss”; Hinduism – “This is the sum of duty: do naught to others that which if done to thee would cause pain”; Jainism – “A man should wander about treating all creatures as he himself would be treated”; Buddhism – “Hurt not others with that which pains yourself.” "
One of my favourite authors, Steven Rosen (Satyaraja Dasa) has written two very useful books in this connection: Diet for Transcendence:Vegetarianism and the World Religions” & "Holy Cow:The Hare Krishna Contribution to Vegetarianism and Animal Rights”.
For an overview of this entire topic, in more detail, click here. And finally, here's a list of some representative books: Keith Akers: “The Lost Religion of Jesus” Rynn Berry: “Food for the Gods:Vegetarianism & the World's Religions” Philip Kapleau: “To Cherish All Life” Stephen R. Kaufman and Nathan Braun: “Good News for All Creation” Andrew Linzey: “Animal Gospel” Al-Hafiz B.A. Masri: “Animals in Islam” Vasu Murti: “They Shall Not Hurt or Destroy” Norm Phelps: “The Great Compassion: Buddhism and Animal Rights” Lewis G. Regenstein: “Replenish the Earth” Steven Rosen: “Diet for Transcendence:Vegetarianism and the World Religions” Steven Rosen: “Holy Cow:The Hare Krishna Contribution to Vegetarianism and Animal Rights” Richard H. Schwartz: “Judaism and Vegetarianism” David Sears:” A Vision of Eden: Animal Rights and Vegetarianism in Jewish Law and Mysticism” Michael Tobias: “Life Force:The World of Jainism” Paul Waldau: “The Specter of Speciesism: Buddhist and Christian Views of Animals” Kerry Walters and Lisa Portmess (eds): “Religious Vegetarianism: From Hesiod to the Dalai Lama” ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Mayapur - Vedic Planetarium
ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Today's Darsana
Rupa Madhurya das, TX, USA: Bhajan - Mukunda Datta das - Hare Krishna Mukunda Datta das singing Hare Krishna bhajans at the Plano Janmastami celebration. Dallas, TX 2010-09-04
Download: 2010-09-04 - Plano Janmastami - 1 - Mukunda Datta das - Hare Krishna.mp3 Dandavats.com: Reunion - 40 years of Krishna Consciousness - Sydney May 20-22, 2011
Over three magical days, Friday 20 May to Sunday 22 May 2011, Sydney Temple will be celebrating that unique bond. The Temple will be hosting a whirlwind of memorable events that shouldn't be missed |
viernes, 14 de enero de 2011
Akrura das, Gita Coaching: HAPPY AND SUCCESSFUL
PLANET ISKCON
By Kurma dasa
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