By Indradyumna SwamiOn this auspicious day 114 years ago, you appeared in this world to bestow causeless mercy on the fallen souls of this age. At the time of your appearance your glories were unmanifest like a lotus flower that remains closed in the darkness of night Read the rest of this entry »
Krishna by His practical example taught us to give all protection to the cows and that should be the main business of New Vrindaban. Vrindaban is also known as Gokula. Go means cows, and kula means congregation. Therefore the special feature of New Vrindaban will be cow protection, and by doing so, we shall not be loser Read the rest of this entry »
By Parasuram dasHH Mahavishnu Swami heads up this tour. He's a low maintenance swami and a real pleasure to be with. From morning to night we get non-stop Krishna katha Read the rest of this entry »
By Sukanti Radha dasiThe Minister for Culture at the Indian High Commission in the United Kingdom, Her Excellency Monika Mohta, graciously hosted the launch of the Temple of Vedic Planetarium on the 30th of August 2010 at the Nehru Centre, London Read the rest of this entry »
Visakha Priya wrote: Regarding Niscala Prabhu’s apparent reluctance to accept an elevated Vaisnava’s so-called failure to show affection toward his dependants, I would suggest that the closer the disciple is to the spiritual master, the more the spiritual master will treat him strictly.
Thankyou, for your feedback. I certainly agree with you that a guru will chastise a sincere disciple, as he can learn so much from the chastisement. I was not referring to chastisement, which I see as a symptom of affectionate dealings. I was referring to the withdrawal of affection on the part of the guru or advanced devotee- not as in chastisement, but as in a pulling away from the disciple, an aloofness, a non-interest in him, if you will. I think we all agree that chastisement is an affectionate dealing, so I was asking KK why a guru or advanced devotee would withdraw his affections- not why he would chastise. Such a situation appears quite rare- there is the dealing with Harikesa and Prabhupada, but generally, Prabhupada was there for his disciples- he was ever approachable.
Therefore, Kesava Krsna’s point is very valid- that there should not be so much distance between senior and junior members, but, as in the quote you gave, a feeling of oneness, closeness…your quote indicates that there should be feelings of oneness (which in vaisnava understaning, is not as in merging, but as in a sense of brotherhood) even between disciples and gurus, what to speak of senior and junior members in our society! There must be a sense of brotherhood/sisterhood. Seniors are elder brothers and sisters, and should therefore be always attentive that their younger siblings are progressing. They should not be aloof and uninterested.
Even when seniors chastise, it should not be to crush, intimidate or humiliate , but only to correct- the only motive should be to help, to raise the disciple/junior up. When one is affectionate, one may chastise or praise, and the recipient feels valued either way, even from the chastisement, because the senior or the guru has gone to so much trouble to correct him. But when the guru hardly even know’s his disciple’s name, because he is the thousandth disciple, or because he has better things to do with his time, then that is showing no affection at all- not on occasion, not as an exception, but as a general rule. What value is of a guru who has no time for you? What is the value of being a senior unless we can help our younger siblings?
“You rascal, how can you kill me? The child who will kill you is already born before me somewhere within this world. Don’t be so cruel to your poor sister.” I do not know either Atmavidya Prabhu or Abhaya Mudra Devi in the slightest. And I know nothing about astrology. I belong to the small section of devotees who prefer to stick to Prabhupada’s instructions recorded in Srila Prabhupada’s Siksamrta (Volume 1, p.97-8). Significantly, they only occupy one page and a half, but they are worth reading.
That being said, I find the debate between Atmavidya Prabhu and Abhaya Mudra Devi to be instructive and would like to see it conducted to its conclusion. Regarding Abhaya Mudra Devi’s latest question to Atmavidya Prabhu: what the objective of his conduct online is, I personally feel that his objective is to benefit the community of laypersons who know nothing or very little about astrology. I noticed that his tone became progressively more aggressive, but it seems to me that it is because his questions have not been answered authoritatively. Whether in material or spiritual circles, the norm is to substantiate one’s statements with conclusive proofs and it seems to me that Atmavidya Prabhu has been doing just that and asked for the same. Regarding getting knowledge from the Paramatma, it is stated in Bhagavad-gita 18.58 that “No conditioned soul actually knows what is to be done and what is not to be done, but a person who acts in Krsna consciousness is free to act because everything is prompted by Krsna from within and confirmed by the spiritual master.” So even though astrology is a material science, since Abhaya Mudra Devi asserts that she is practicing astrology under the instruction of her spiritual master, I suggest that the matter of whether “her” Paramatma is right or not be referred to him and publicly answered on this website for the benefit of all of us.
Thank you. Hare Krsna. And happy Janmastami.
Your servant,
Visakha Priya dasi
Great news that the Hindu Council is gearing up to help the Pakistanis, regardless of their religion, I assume! Certainly such action is part of the peace process…we want to fight atheism, but so much atheism is caused because of sectarian religious hatreds, violence, jihads, crusades, or just as bad, turning a blind eye “because they are of THAT religion”. Only non-sectarian religion can bring about peace and the breakdown of atheism among pious people who take to it only because of outrage against the above. This is not a speculation- generally atheists always argue “but religion has caused so much violence and misery!” We have a non-sectarian philosophy, but unless we get rid of our sectarian mindset, it will do us no good, and will contribute to a godless civilization of lost souls. It will also do us no good if we get rid of the sectarian mindset, but do not express the result practically. This is an excellent opportunity.
Priyavarta Prabhu, we would like to help us volunteers for FFL in poor areas in the near future- my husband is often expressing the desire- but we need to tie up a few of our material loose ends first, so for the time being, we will just donate..
I found the newsletter in the following link :
http://ebooks.iskcondesiretree.....Petals.pdf
For other issues You can use this link:
http://ebooks.iskcondesiretree.....ght_Petals
Hope this will help You Prabhu.
Y/s
Gour Gopal Das
Dear Mataji
PAMHO AGTSP AGTSG & SG
Congratulations for your seva.
Besides, we are awe struck with your humility, as the “non-entity person” concept was unheard of so far yet. Ha !
From a technical angle, it seems that there is a problem accessing the newsletter via the link. The error message is about a “damaged file which could not be repaired”. Please, kindly check as we would all love to read this meant-to-be a valuable contribution to the understanding of the varnashrama system and its adequate implementation within ISKCON.
Best,
Puskaraksa das
By Bhakta ShivAfter more than 18 months of planning, the much anticipated moment arrived on Sunday 22 August when a breathtaking new altar was finally unveiled and officially offered to Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha Londonisvara to commemorate Their 40th anniversary Read the rest of this entry »
By Food for Life GlobalFood for Life Global in partnership with affiliates in Pakistan and India are mobilizing teams to provide meals to survivors of the recent floods in Pakistan Read the rest of this entry »
By Urmila DasiGreat NY Times article on reincarnation and it looks like one of our devotees is there quoted and in a pic! Read the rest of this entry »
By Abhaya Mudra DasiDid we choose the Polish (Przystanek) Woodstock festival this year, or were we magnetically drawn to this biggest rock gathering in Europe? Last year some 450,000 mostly young enthusiasts were in attendance. Our computers became covered with a thick layer of dust from the passing parade. The experience was surreal... Read the rest of this entry »
The author, Vijaya Gauranga das, sent me an email requesting me to read and comment on this article, so please forgive my intrusion here. I don’t know what I should add. The material world is imperfect. It will never be perfect. There is nothing more to say.
Vegetarianism is not perfect. Veganism is not perfect. I know maybe I want to say “Prasadam is perfect” but instead I will speak for myself and say prasadam is not perfect either, because it is created by my imperfect heart which lacks prema-bhakti - therefore it is not perfect prasadam.
Nothing is perfect.
Thats the biggest thing that bothers me about a discussion of which is better - Vegan or Vegetarian. They are both various gradations of imperfection. Which one is closer to perfection? Both are infinitely distant.
I wrote about this vociferously in 1994 or 95 with a similar conclusion to the current post. I think if you want to omit dairy from your deit I bow to your feet reverentially and appreciate your dedication to pleasing Krishna through furthering Ahimsa. I think on the other hand if you have OTHER ways to pursue pleasing Krishna that you are inspired in, which do not include worrying that much about your diet, I also bow to your feet reverentially and admire your dedication to pleasing Krishna as best you can.
In short, to me it doesn’t matter anymore if I do or if I don’t by milk from a grocery store. NOTHING really matters to me except if I do or if I don’t have a heartfelt need to please Krishna in WHATEVER I happen to be doing.
I hope you find this comment useful and apologize for taking your time. Hare Krishna.
August, 2010 — Food for Life Global in partnership with affiliates in Pakistan and India are mobilizing teams to provide meals to survivors of the recent floods in Pakistan.
According to FFL coordinator, Sandeep Kumar Maheshwary, most of the public have been collecting clothes, dry food, water, and medicine for the affected areas. They are then transporting the donations to local community groups or the Army who have set up relief camps.
Maheshwary suggests that the most practical type of meal should be dry, like Dhal Chawal, or spicy rice, etc, however, the kind of meals served will largely be dependent on the financial support Food for Life Global recieves. “Food for Life is famous for providing hot, tasty nutritious meals at such times, and the Pakistan food relief will be no exception, explains global director, Paul Turner.
The Food for Life Pakistan Relief Team will focus on poor, minority groups who have lost their homes.
Areas of focus include: Sindh Areas: Hyderabad, Khairpur, Sukkur, Gambt, Shikarpur, Larkana, Rato, Dero, Mirpur. Punjab Areas: Kand kut, Kambr, Karmpur, Gunspur, Gutki, Khan Garr, Khan Pur Mehr, Sultan Kut, Sehdad Kut
Food for Life Pakistan Relief Team will also try to collaborate with other NGOs, namely, the Swami Narayan Welfare Temple and Trust and the Pakistan Hindu Council.
The teams will be led by Ram Yagya who is a full time volunteer with the Food for Life project and ISKCON Karachi.
Contact Information:
Ram Yagya: +92 301 36 88 360
Sadhu Seva: +92 332 27 30 312
DONATE NOW AT www.FFL.ORG
Thank you for your kind words. I thought that the article would get more comments than it has. I was very surprised. In any case, I did get a response from devotees in Pakistan and India and we are now working in a solution to provide prasadam to people.
Pray for them!
Very sweet spiritual sentiments expressed in #16 by Visakha Priya dd. We are so very blessed to have inspiration from Srila Prabhupad. My wife, Daru Brahma dd, showed me a T-shirt she purchased at the San Francisco Rathayatra. On the front is a picture of a boat and Srila Prabhpad, and the inscription is:
Thank you, Srila Prabhupad!! for coming to the West and saving us!!
We are not, of course, moksha-kamis, but bhaktas. Saving us does not mean dry salvation. It means immerse-ment in devotional service, the sentiments of which will be inspired by Sri Gurudeva & Radha. Krishna is “Raso vai sah”, the embodiment of all Rasa, yet He appears as Lord Chaitanyadeva with the heart of Srimati Radharani, wanting to taste the sweetness of the loving mood of the Supreme Lover, Sri Radha. When Lord Chaitanya is dwelling in a small room, Gambhira, relishing the glories of Sri Krishna’s Lila, we can understand that these matters are very much internalized in the consciousness, not of external mundane perceptions. We pray for a particle of dust from the Lotus Feet of Sri Krishna Chaitanyadeva.
About the chanting of the Holy Names, as recommended by Srila Prabhupad, His Divine Grace used a very nice example: Ladies in the villages of India often walk about with a waterpot or basket upon their heads, with child in hand, and going about their activities. The balancing of the basket upon the head is analagous to remembering the Holy Names while going about one’s daily activities. Internally, the consciousness will become Krishna-ized with the association of the Holy Names. Krishna is Pavitram Paramam, the Supreme Pure, and we can hope to be cleaned in our consciousness by the remembrance of the Holy Names.
But…one of the reasons I wrote the expression in #15 is to express Krishna’s quality of Renunciation. We, being His parts and parcels, also have a small degree of such renunciation capacity. We are exploring the question of humility, and why is it that we might feel ignored by apparently good-hearted devotees. The point I wanted to make is that the expression of renunciation may arise when we do not expect it to arise. Hence, we might feel neglected, when in fact Krishna is trying to inspire us to “go deeper, seek deeper, don’t stay on the superficial level”. Krishna is our dearmost Friend. Pusta Krishna das
Pusta Krishna das
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We can read the past life and future life from any chart. We do not really need to go to other varga charts if we have the vision to see them at a glance in the rasi chakra. Because all divisional charts are derivatives of the main chart their separate layout is done solely for visual convenience. They are not meant to be read like the main chart because they only give a complimentary perspective on an issue. For example, if we take a stone, we can read it from many different angles: like chemical composition, like physical weight and measure, like visual color and so on. You may say that only one way of reading the stone is right but you will not be correct. The rasi chakra unites all perspectives.
The drekkana chart especially deal with the number 3. The number 3 is represented by the 3 modes of material nature, which is the underlying principle of attachment to matter. In this way we can see the taste, or attachment a person has to this world. In this light, from the point of attachment, we can determine where he or she is coming or going. The number 3 is also related to our brothers and sisters? There is most karmik link between siblings (from the physical experience of the matter.) Brothers and sisters are designated as such because they have lied in the same womb. The womb is the location where karmik potential grows to take the shape of a body. If there is a physical reference of oneself in this world, a close comparison in body, character and behavior, those are our brothers and sisters. There is no better resemblance of oneself in this world but a brother or a sister. So the drekkana chart gives us the indication of our trends of taste. Ultimately, where we come from and where we go before and after death is according to what taste we have developed. Hopefully that is the taste to always remembering Krishna and never forgetting Him.