Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Hare Krishna

Greetings to the one that rules the 18 million internal
and external universes.
Greetings to the one who created everything out of itself
Who permeates and rules it and is the consciousness of and
In it
and who dwells in me



Greetings to the one who is one alone and the many as one
Who is the substance of things unseen
Who is always more than there is
no matter
How much there may be
The rising sun that never hits the zenith



Greetings to the living light behind all appearances
Who composes the appearances and is not what appears
Greetings to the qualities and virtues that make up the personality of
The ineffable in the cloud of unknowing that shrouds the blinding world and
Humbles everything before it and which
Dwells in me.



Greetings to the unassailable unmoving center
From which spirals the galaxies and worlds
Like the spiral of a closed fist
Of perfect concentration
That holds it all in place that
Moves it all that forms and un-forms and does not
Begin or end and which dwells in me.



Greetings to that which endures and prevails
And is the life in everything
That meets and greets itself knowing and unknowing
That scatters itself into uncountable pieces and
Gathers them altogether again and
That dwells in me



Greetings to the dynamic animating principle.
Greetings to the one that does not know time nor size but
Does know sequence and form



Greetings to the one whose idea is complete in the genesis and
Is the intelligence behind evolution and design and not the result of them.
Greetings to what cannot be known but whose presence can be practiced
And enjoyed and who dwells in me.



Greetings in the before and after that both spill into the endless now
Greetings to the one who commands the superiors and inferiors
Whose every effort serves the entire
Who is the one who waits before
In the midst and at the end of every thought, word and deed



Greetings to the mind inside the mind of every architect in every dream
Who waits and watches forever and who
Abides in me.



Greetings from within the sleep that struggles for awakening
That cries out for union with the beloved
That cries in this moment for awakening to the one
Who dwells in me.



Greetings
many greetings and
much gratitude
Greetings and greetings and
much gratitude



Hare Krishna


Patrick Willis narrates:

1106 comments:

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Anonymous said...

Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.2.7 Purport

"As the sun appears in the morning and gradually rises to the meridian and then again sets in one hemisphere while simultaneously rising in the other, so Lord Krsna's disappearance in one universe and the beginning of His different pastimes in another take place simultaneously. As soon as one pastime is finished here, it is manifested in another universe. And thus His nitya-lila, or eternal pastimes, are going on without ending."

---------------------------

Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.15.49 Purport

"The demigods are also associates of the Lord without personal touch, whereas the direct associates of the Lord are in constant personal touch with Him. The Lord and His personal associates incarnate in many universes without cessation. The Lord remembers them all, whereas the associates forget due to their being very minute parts and parcels of the Lord; they are apt to forget such incidents due to being infinitesimal. This is corroborated in the Bhagavad-gita (4.5)."

---------------------------

Srila Prabhupada..

"Krsna had 16,108 wives, and each wife had ten sons, and each son had another ten sons. In this way the whole family was composed of hundreds and thousands of men, Yadu dynasty. And when Krsna came, so to assist Him, all these demigods, they came to help Him, lila. Just like if you play something dramatic, you require so many assistants, so when Krsna comes, those who are devotees of Krsna, they also come to assist Him. Somebody becomes His father, somebody His mother, somebody His friend, somebody His wife, somebody His son, some grandson, like that."


Steve said...

Well Homer, over one thousand little gems in one place!

Well done and thank you.

I always enjoy re-reading this beautiful post of Visibles when I visit here also.

Hare Krishna

Anonymous said...

With the transcendental sound of the Mahamantra permeating the atmosphere -

“There was a profound experience when he left his body. It was visible. He just lit the room.."

"Son of Hari"

http://www.vedic.com.br/georgeharrison/august_22_1973.htm

Anonymous said...

Chapter 18, Text 63, Bhagavad-Gita As It Is by Srila Prabhupada(Original)

"Thus I have explained to you the most confidential knowledge. Deliberate on this fully, and do what you wish to do."

Purport..

"Here Lord Krsna tells Arjuna that he can do as he chooses. God does not interfere with the little independence of the living entity..... Before surrendering one is free to deliberate on this subject as far as the intelligence goes; that is the best way to accept the instruction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Such instruction comes also through the Spiritual Master, the bona fide representative of Krsna."

Anonymous said...

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati

Q: What is it you call by the name Vaikuntha?

A: It is where there is no kuntha or the characteristic feature of measuring everything. This Vaikuntha has two petals or apartments. In the one God exists as Bhagavan with the highest Majesty. In the second apartment above the first one He is ever present with His Personality of perfect sweetness, He being the Ocean of all the sentimental succulence that gives the utmost sensation of transcendental pleasure; here He covers up that climax of Majesty with the predominance of His graceful sweetness by dint of inevitable Potency. Vaikuntha is no kind of limited region like the Swarga, of the Hindus, Bahest of the Persians, Heaven of the Christians, nor is the place, a habitation of the deities who are subject to the measuring limitations. The conception of Vaikuntha among the Vaisnavas is not like that of persons who think that as the result of virtuous acts they will go to the region of heaven and again come in contract with wives, sons and relatives connected with their bodies to remain absorbed in enjoyments as in the world. In Vaikuntha, Krishna is the only Master and all are eternally engaged in serving Him. According to the Vaishnavas, Swarga, Bahest, etc., are as false as day-dreams. We are all servants of God and God is the only recipient of our service. We are believers in Achintya-Bhedabhedavada i.e., the doctrine of the inscrutable simultaneity of distinction and non-distinction among God and His creation, animate and inanimate. We have no desire for obstructing the eternal essential virtue of chit (animation) in order to annihilate it with a suicidal policy by merging into Brahman, or, on the other hand, for being absorbed in material enjoyments in this world or in heaven etc., along with relations. We are associated counterparts of God. The modern thinkers are apathetic towards listening to Vaidic [sic] commands which have come down to us through the true line of Gurus, but they attach more value to the process of empiricism. And they are properly rewarded with punishment through that process itself. But we accept Avatara-vada, or process of Deduction. God and His devotees graciously come down to this world and give us the message of Vaikuntha.

Anonymous said...

via Homer..

Thank you, Cap'n!

Thank you Visible prabhu!

Hare Krishna!

"One can satisfy the Lord simply by love and devotional service. ... When Krsna says or God says that "Give Me this...," Just like He is begging from Bali ... He is so rich, so opulent, still He is begging that "Little flower, a little water, .... Even little done, it can act so nicely that sometimes it can save you from the greatest danger."

-Srila Prabhupada

Anonymous said...

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 7.9.11

naivātmanaḥ prabhur ayaḿ nija-lābha-pūrṇo
mānaḿ janād aviduṣaḥ karuṇo vṛṇīte
yad yaj jano bhagavate vidadhīta mānaḿ
tac cātmane prati-mukhasya yathā mukha-śrīḥ

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is always fully satisfied in Himself. Therefore when something is offered to Him, the offering, by the Lord's mercy, is for the benefit of the devotee, for the Lord does not need service from anyone. To give an example, if one's face is decorated, the reflection of one's face in a mirror is also seen to be decorated.

PURPORT

In bhakti-yoga it is recommended that a devotee follow nine principles; śravaṇaḿ kīrtanaḿ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaḿ pāda-sevanam/ arcanam. vandanaḿ dāsyaḿ sakhyam ātma-nivedanam [SB 7.5.23]. This service of glorifying the Lord by hearing, chanting and so on is not, of course, meant for the benefit of the Lord; this devotional service is recommended for the benefit of the devotee. The Lord is always glorious, whether the devotee glorifies Him or not, but if the devotee engages in glorifying the Lord, the devotee himself automatically becomes glorious. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaḿ bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam [Cc. Antya 20.12]. By glorifying the Lord constantly, the living entity becomes purified in the core of his heart, and thus he can understand that he does not belong to the material world but is a spirit soul whose actual activity is to advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness so that he may become free from the material clutches. Thus the blazing fire of material existence is immediately extinguished (bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam). A foolish person is amazed that Kṛṣṇa orders, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaḿ śaraṇaḿ vraja: [Bg. 18.66] "Abandon all varieties of religious activities and just surrender unto Me." Some foolish scholars even say that this is too much to demand. But this demand is not for the benefit of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; rather, it is for the benefit of human society. If human beings individually and collectively surrender everything to the Supreme Personality of Godhead in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all of human society will benefit. One who does not dedicate everything to the Supreme Lord is described in this verse as aviduṣa, a rascal. In Bhagavad-gītā (7.15), the Lord Himself speaks in the same way:

na māḿ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ

prapadyante narādhamāḥ

māyayāpahṛta-jñānā

āsuraḿ bhāvamāśritāḥ

"Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons, do not surrender unto Me." Because of ignorance and misfortune, the atheists and the narādhamas, the lowest of men, do not surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore although the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, is full in Himself, He appears in different yugas to demand the surrender of the conditioned souls so that they will benefit by becoming free from the material clutches. In conclusion, the more we engage in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and render service unto the Lord, the more we benefit. Kṛṣṇa does not need service from any of us.

Anonymous said...

Les Visible prabhu, my friend.

You know I'm a big believer in The Exception to the rule.

And exceptions, too..

-----------------------------------

Pancha Tattva Maha-Mantra

jaya sri-krishna-chaitanya
prabhu nityananda
sri-adwaita gadadhara
shrivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrinda

TRANSLATION

I offer my respectful obeisances unto Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Lord Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhara Pandit, Srivas Thakur, and all the devotees of Lord Caitanya.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is always accompanied by His plenary expansion Sri Nityananda Prabhu, His incarnation Sri Advaita Prabhu, His internal potency Sri Gadadhara Prabhu, and His marginal potency Srivasa Prabhu. He is in the midst of them as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should know that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is always accompanied by these other tattvas. Therefore our obeisances to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu are complete when we say, sri-krishna-chaitanya prabhu nityananda sri-adwaita gadadhara shrivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrinda. As preachers of the Krsna consciousness movement, we first offer our obeisances to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu by chanting this Panca-tattva mantra; then we say, Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. There are ten offenses in the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, but these are not considered in the chanting of the Païca-tattva mantra, namely, sri-krishna-chaitanya prabhu nityananda sri-adwaita gadadhara shrivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrinda. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is known as maha-vadabtavatara, the most magnanimous incarnation, for He does not consider the offenses of the fallen souls. Thus to derive the full benefit of the chanting of the maha-mantra (Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare), we must first take shelter of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, learn the Panca-tattva mantra, and then chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra. That will be very effective.


Anonymous said...

"Either in waking or in sleep, a devotee can never be free from thinking of Krishna's name, fame, quality and pastimes."

(Bhagavad-gita 1.24)

-----------------------------------

Sri Adi Shankaracharya..

Adore the Lord, adore the Lord, adore the Lord, O fool! when the appointed time (for departure) comes, the repetition of grammatical rules will not, indeed, save you.

For him, who has studied the Bhagavadgita even a little, who has drunk a drop of the Ganga water, and who has performed the worship of the Destroyer of the demon Mura (viz. Shri Krishna) at least once, there is no tiff with Yama (the Lord of Death).

Being devoted completely to the lotus-feet of the Master, become released soon from the transmigratory process.
Thus, through the discipline of sense and mind-control, you will behold the Deity that resides in your heart.



Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada
Maha Kumbha Mela 1977 at Allahabad, India

http://www.prabhupadanugas.eu/?p=29915

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

January 14, 1970

Dear Sir: With reference to your article in the Los Angeles Times dated Sunday, January 11, 1970, under the heading “Krishna Chant,” I beg to point out that the Hindu religion is perfectly based on the personal conception of God, or Vishnu. The impersonal conception of God is a side issue, or one of the three features of God.
The Absolute Truth is ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Paramätmä conception is the localized aspect of His omnipresence, and the impersonal conception is the aspect of His greatness and eternity. But all these combined together make the Complete Whole.

Dr. J. F. Staal’s statement that the Krishna cult is a combination of Christian and Hindu religion, as if something manufactured by concoction, is not correct. If Christian, Muhammadan, or Buddhist religions are personal, that is quite welcome. But the Krishna religion has been personal from a time long, long ago when Christian, Muhammadan, and Buddhist religions had not yet come into existence.
According to the Vedic conception, religion is basically made by the personal God as His laws. Religion cannot be manufactured by man or anyone except God superior to man. Religion is the law of God only.

Anonymous said...

The Lord thus attacked all Vedāntists who interpret the Vedānta-sūtra fashionably, according to their limited power of thinking, to serve their own purpose. Such indirect interpretations of the authentic literatures like the Vedānta-sūtra are hereby condemned by the Lord.

The so-called followers of the Vedic injunctions make their own interpretations of the Vedic injunctions, and thus they establish different parties and sects of the Vedic religion. Lord Buddha directly denied the authority of the Vedas, and he established his own religion. Only for this reason, the Buddhist religion was not accepted by the strict followers of the Vedas. But those who are so-called followers of the Vedas are more harmful than the Buddhists. The Buddhists have the courage to deny the Vedas directly, but the so-called followers of the Vedas have no courage to deny the Vedas, although indirectly they disobey all the injunctions of the Vedas. Lord Caitanya condemned this.

The examples given by the Lord of the conchshell and the cow dung are very much appropriate in this connection. If one argues that since cow dung is pure, the stool of a learned brāhmaṇa is still more pure, his argument will not be accepted. Cow dung is accepted, and the stool of a highly posted brāhmaṇa is rejected.

The Lord continued:
"The Vedic injunctions are self-authorized, and if some mundane creature adjusts the interpretations of the Vedas, he defies their authority. It is foolish to think of oneself as more intelligent than Śrīla Vyāsadeva. He has already expressed himself in his sūtras, and there is no need of help from personalities of lesser importance. His work, the Vedānta-sūtra, is as dazzling as the midday sun, and when someone tries to give his own interpretations on the self-effulgent sunlike Vedānta-sūtra, he attempts to cover this sun with the cloud of his imagination.

Steve said...

Yay!

Anonymous said...

via Homer..

Yay!! is right!


"In the 1800s, Bhaktivinode Thakura, a great devotee in the Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya line, predicted in his magazine, Sajjana-toshani, in an article called Nityananda Suryodoy, "Soon there will be a time when chanting of Krishna's name will be heard in England, France, Russia, Germany, and America."

"Sriman Mahaprabhu [Sri Caitanya] did not descend with His associates to deliver a certain number of human beings in the land of India, but rather His purpose was to deliver and uplift all living beings in all countries of the world by practicing the eternal religion of all souls."

Hare Krishna!

Anonymous said...

October 6, 1968
Seattle, Washington

My Dear Advaita,
Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your letter dated October 2, 1968, and noted the contents very carefully.
I am so glad to learn that the New York devotees are all feeling my separation and you are feeling also; this is very blissful. In the transcendental platform, actually separation is more relishable than meeting. But either separation or meeting, the state is always absolute. Actually in the spiritual platform, there is no separation, but it is a different stages of rasas.

So far service to Krishna is concerned, it is variegated. Krishna has got multi-energies, therefore, He can receive services from us in multi-forms. So anyone can render loving service to Krishna by his talents, that is the technique of Krishna Consciousness. So by the Grace of Krishna, you have got the talent and you have got the opportunity also to serve Him, and I wish that Krishna may give you more and more such opportunity to make your progress in Krishna Consciousness.

Your ever well-wisher,
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Anonymous said...

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 4.24.63

TRANSLATION

My dear Lord, You are the only Supreme Person, the cause of all causes. Before the creation of this material world, Your material energy remains in a dormant condition. When Your material energy is agitated, the three qualities — namely goodness, passion and ignorance — act, and as a result the total material energy — egotism, ether, air, fire, water, earth and all the various demigods and saintly persons — becomes manifest. Thus the material world is created.

PURPORT

If the whole creation is one — that is, nothing but the Supreme Lord, or Viṣṇu — then why do the expert transcendentalists make such categories as are found in the above verse:? Why do learned and expert scholars distinguish between matter and spirit? In answer to these questions, Lord Śiva says that spirit and matter are not creations of various philosophers, but are manifested by Lord Viṣṇu, as described in this verse: tvam eka ādyaḥ puruṣaḥ. Spiritual and material categories are made possible by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but actually there are no such distinctions for the living entities who are eternally engaged in the service of the Lord. There is only a material world for those who want to imitate the Lord and become enjoyers. Indeed, the material world is nothing but forgetfulness of the original Supreme Personality of Godhead, the creator of everything. The distinction between matter and spirit is created by the sleeping energy of the Lord when the Lord wants to give some facility to those living entities who want to imitate the Lord in His enjoyment. It is only for them that this material world is created by the dormant energy of the Lord.

The material creation is therefore caused by the Lord through His material energy. It is by the glance of the Lord that the material energy is activated. At that time the three material qualities are set into motion, and the material energy is manifested first in the form of the mahat-tattva, then egotism, then ether, then air, fire, water and earth. After the creation, the living entities are impregnated in the cosmic manifestation, and they emerge as Lord Brahmā and the seven great ṛṣis, then as different demigods. From the demigods come human beings, animals, trees, birds, beasts and everything else. The original cause, however, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Kṛṣṇa also confirms this in Bhagavad-gītā (10.8):

"I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this perfectly engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts."

Anonymous said...

from 'Hari Bhakti Vilasa'

Glory of the Conchshell

"Shankha"

The Brahma Vaivarta Purana mentions that Shri Hari is situated in the conchshell; wherever there is conchshell, Shri Hari along with Laksmidevi is always situated and all inauspiciousness disappears from that place.

Wherever the sound of conchshell is heard, Laksmidevi resides there without moving.

"O best of brahmanas! All the places of pilgrimage within the three worlds reside in the conchshell by the order of Krishna. Therefore, one must treat the conchshell with respect."

Anonymous said...

The Sri Camatkara-chandrika (A Moonbeam of Sheer Astonishment) by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur describes a number of Krsna-lila pastimes in which the divine residents of Vraja play tricks on one another. The first of these pranks, entitled 'The Meeting in the Box', tells a wonderful story about Krsna's beautiful jewelry and ornaments. These, Mother Yasoda says she boxing up as gifts for Krsna, Balarama and Radha, but at the heart of the prank is Sri Krsna, the personification of all glorious ornaments and jewels.

Lord Krsna's jewelry and ornaments are expansions of His personal energy, and are thus worshipable as being Themselves among the residents of Vraja, where they are serving in the santa-rasa, the mood of neutrality:

"The Lord's clothing, bedding, slippers and everything required as an ordinary necessity are all transformations of Sesa, Visnu, the expansion of Sri Baladeva. Thus the cloth and other paraphernalia of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are but other forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Everything connected to the Lord is worshipable. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu instructs us that just as Krsna is worshipable, Krsna's place, Vrndavana, is also worshipable. And as Vrndavana is worshipable, similarly the paraphernalia in Vrndavana--the trees, roads, river, everything--is worshipable. A pure devotee thus sings, jaya jaya vrndavana-vasi yata jana: "All glories to the residents of Vrndavana." If a devotee has a staunch devotional attitude, all these conclusions will be awakened or revealed within the heart."

Anonymous said...

Devotee: You painted that painting? [pointing to the painting of Sri-Sri Pancha-Tattva behind Srila Prabhupada.]

Govinda dasi: Yes, and when I painted that, there was an incident where Srila Prabhupada let me know… The whole time I painted it, I wanted to paint it so that he would like it so much, that he would touch Lord’s Caitanya’s feet. I never told him that. Years later, years later, it used to be right here. He liked having it right here [next to his desk]. I was standing at the door, he came over to the painting, put his head on Lord’s Caitanya’s lotus feet, and left for the airport. And I thought, “Oh, he has satisfied my desire.” I mean, there are the experiences that we had with Srila Prabhupada. These are real experiences. Like Satyahit said, he used to fall down, he was so overwhelmed by Srila Prabhupada’s divine presence. He opened our hearts completely.

Srila Prabhupada would pose for us sometimes. He would walk in and he would pose. Sometimes he posed for Krsna, to give us an idea how the flute and everything, the position. He posed for Hiranyakasipu with his arms up, and he posed for Nrsimhadeva at least once a day, that was his favorite pose. He would walk in and roar, and say, “I’m jumping out of the pillar!” [laughter] Honestly! Anyone who was there can tell you this. This is what the early times were like.

Once in the Prahlad book, which was a children’s book that we were working on at the time, he told me to paint some demons that were poking at Prahlad while he was sitting in a boiling vat of oil. Well, I’d never seen a demon except in a comic book, so I got one of Rayarama’s comic books and managed to come up with demons, with tails, and skinny and horns, stuff like that. I kind of made them up. And then I took it to show it to him, because he approved everything. That’s my point. He approved the writing, he approved the artwork. He looked at them, and said, “Yes, that is very good. There are such demons in Africa and other places, in the jungles.” And I was in my fourth year of college; educated, right? And I said, “Oh Srila Prabhupada, I didn’t know that,” meaning that I didn’t know that such things existed on our planet, because science had taught me everything that there was. And Srila Prabhupada looked at me and said, “There are many things you do not know.”

His divine presence came through his books, and they were transcendental. He told everyone they’re transcendental: “Read my books. They’re transcendental.”

Anonymous said...

Were There Two Buddhas?

-Sri Nandanandana Dasa

In the following material, we will look at the evidence that seems to indicate that there was first the Avatara Buddha, the incarnation of Lord Vishnu who appeared near 1800 BCE, and then there was another person who became known as Gautama called Buddha, born around 560 BCE.

1. The first Avatara Buddha established the philosophy of Ahimsa, nonviolence, and convinced those followers of Vedic customs who had become bent toward animal sacrifice to give up such rituals and simply follow him, and become kind to animals. Being an avatara of Vishnu, He did not establish any godless or monist philosophy.

2. The Avatara Buddha was also born of his mother Anjana in what became known as Bodhgaya.

3. The second Buddha known as Gautama, Siddhartha, or Shakyamuni – sage of the Shakyas – was born in Lumbini, now in Nepal, with Mayadevi as his mother. He is the one we often hear about, the prince who left home to do austerities to find enlightenment. He went to Bodhgaya to meditate because of its spiritual potency as the birthplace of the avatara Buddha. Then he became enlightened to the reasons for suffering in this world, and developed a godless way of becoming free from suffering. From that point he established the monist and godless philosophy of Buddhism, which became named after him.

http://www.harekrsna.com/sun/editorials/10-12/editorials9215.htm

Anonymous said...

Purity is the force, Srila Prabhupada said. People can easily detect the purpose in our preaching. When it is done purely for Krsna's pleasure, they sense that purity. Innocent ones get curious, pious ones become devotees and demons become furious. All this happens spontaneously and often without any rational reason. After all, the initial response is generated from the heart, not from the brain.

Krsna's mercy cannot be attracted by our pathetic heroism, youthful passion or heavy duty sadhana. It's our pride Krsna sees and He is not impressed. After all, He is the Supreme Person and can clearly see what our true motivation is. To impress the world with our heroic deeds puts us in comparison with Krsna's gigantic display of His energies, and into the category of fools and comedians.


Anonymous said...

As far as devotees of Rama go, Hanuman is at the top of the list. Ever infused with spiritual love, Hanuman, even during times of dejection finds ways to glorify his reason for living.

Hanuman, having the odd form of a forest dweller, was very anxious to act. Therefore Rama, through the proxy of Sugriva, the king of monkeys in Kishkindha, gave him the task of finding Sita’s whereabouts and returning to the camp with the information. Sort of like a scavenger sent to find the enemy, Hanuman was sent off with a singular purpose. Because of his divine qualities and his unmatched love for Rama, he eventually made his way to Lanka, searching practically every inch of space within for Sita.

But when he didn’t find the princess of Videha, he grew despondent. He even contemplated starving himself to death, as he could not bear to cause pain to his friends and family back home by telling them he had failed. Through enough sober thought, however, he was able to turn the tides. Instead of feeling sorry for himself, Hanuman was determined to get revenge. “Why am I going to wallow in pity over something that’s not even my fault? Ravana is the one who took Sita. Therefore he should be the one to pay. As I have tremendous powers, I should be the one to deliver that punishment to him.”

It should be noted that this was not the task assigned to Hanuman. He was well aware of the fact that he could destroy Ravana in a fair fight, as he would actually note this many years later in a conversation he would have with his half-brother Bhima, one of the five Pandava brothers. Yet his wanting to punish Ravana was simply an outgrowth of his love for Rama.

We see a wonderful comparison made by Hanuman to illustrate what he would do to Ravana. Hanuman here says that he will grab Ravana and forcefully take him across the ocean and back to Rama, as an animal is brought before Pashupati, which is another name for Lord Shiva.

His desire to offer up Ravana was always there, for he couldn’t help but want to please Rama in that way. Rama is never disappointed in Hanuman, for who could be angry at someone who acts out of pure love?

Among other things, Hanuman is poetic, for he knows how to describe his actions using comparisons. Though he uses symbolism, his identity, his personal self, and his place in the famous Ramayana are real, and anyone who takes advantage of this will be forever benefitted.

Anonymous said...

Jaiva-dharma..

Then the saintly sannyasi respectfully said, "O master, my heart is filled with conviction that the mayavada theory is shallow and unimportant. Any doubt I had about that is now thrown far away by your mercy. Still, I myself wear the garments of a mayavadi sannyasi. Now I yearn to rid myself of them."

The saintly babaji replied, "O great soul, I do not teach that one should like or hate any particular kind of garments. When one's heart is purified, his garments will also become pure. When a person gives great respect to his outward garments, it shows that he does not give great attention to the condition of his heart.

"In my opinion one should first purify his heart. Then he may adopt the external activities and garments of a saintly person without committing an offense.

"In your heart become a sincere follower of Sri Krsna Caitanya. Then you will naturally desire to accept the external things that are appropriate for that following. Let that be the way you act. Always remember these words of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya 16.238-239):

"You should not make yourself a show bottle devotee and become a false renunciant. For the time being enjoy the material world in a befitting way and not become attached to it."

"Sri Caitanya Mahaprahbu continued: Within your heart you should keep yourself very faithful, but externally you may behave like an ordinary man. Thus Krsna will soon be very pleased and deliver you from the clutches of maya."



Anonymous said...

"O great devotee, now I will answer your second question: Please listen with an attentive mind. The words 'the creation of the individual soul' or 'the fashioning of the individual soul' are all manifested by the illusory potency maya. They are material words that describe inanimate material things. The three divisions of time are: 1. past, 2. present and 3. future. These divisions refer to material time, time within the realm of the illusory potency maya. In the spiritual world the present exists eternally. In the spiritual world the past and future do not exist. Lord Krsna and the individual spirit soul exist in that eternal present. In this way the individual soul is eternal and his original nature, which is his pure love for Lord Krsna, is also eternal. Talk of the individual soul's being 'created' or 'fashioned' is a misconception, mistakenly imposing the time patterns of the inanimate material world on a spiritual entity. The atomic individual soul is spiritual and eternal. He existed before his entrance into the material world. Because in the spiritual world there is no past or future, whatever exists there exists in an eternal present. Therefore the soul and its nature are both eternal. They exist in that eternal present. I am only describing this in words. Your understanding will depend on your ability to understand the pure spiritual world. I can only give a hint here. In spiritual trance you will be able to see all this directly. The logic and argument of this material world will not help you to understand it. Your ability to directly perceive the spiritual world beyond the realm of matter will depend on how much you can loosen the shackles of material bondage. In the beginning you will see your own pure spiritual form. By again and again chanting the spiritual and holy names of Lord Hari, you will come to understand the nature of the soul.


Anonymous said...

Srimad Bhagavatam (7.9.10)

The twelve brahmanical qualifications here are: 1. truthfulness, 2. self-control, 3. austerity, 4. freedom from envy, 5. modesty, 6. tolerance, 7. freedom from malice, 8. sacrifice, 9. charity, 10 steadiness, 11. hearing the Vedas, and 12. observing vows.

A brahmana who possesses these twelve qualities should be honoured by everyone in the world. However, if a brahmana has all these qualities, but has no devotion for Lord Krsna, then that brahmana is degraded. Even a devotee who is a dogeater is better than such a brahmana. The meaning here is that the dogeater referred to is a person who has taken birth in a dogeater family, but by association with saintly persons becomes purified (samskara), and because of that purification engages in the eternal spiritual activities of the soul. The brahmana referred to here is a person who has taken birth in a brahmana family, but is averse to the eternal activities of the soul, and prefers to perform temporary, material activities in their stead. Than such a brahmana, such a dogeater is better.
----------------------------------------
Sri Sri Damodarastakam - Text 4

varam deva! moksam na moksavadhim va
na canyam vrne 'ham varesad apiha
idam te vapur natha! gopala-balam
sada me manasy avirastam kim anyaih

He Deva! O Lord! Although You are capable of granting any boon I do not pray to You for liberation, | nor for eternal life in Vaikuntha, or for any other benediction | He Natha! O Lord! May Your form as a cowherd child forever remain manifest in my heart | Other than this I have no need of anything..

Anonymous said...

The ears of a devotee are compared to an ocean which is constantly replenished by hearing of the transcendental pastimes of Rama and His closest associates. It is also noted that no matter how many tributaries and rivers come rushing in, this ocean never becomes overfilled, thus indicating the differences between spiritual qualities and material ones. We may enjoy a particular film or television show and watch it over and over again, but after a certain point, a level of satiation will be reached. We can’t read the same books, watch the same movies, and hear the same songs every single day and not get bored. But the ocean-like mind of the pure devotee is so wonderful that it can absorb the same descriptions of the pastimes of the Lord and the same sound vibrations glorifying His transcendental qualities over and over again without ever being fully satisfied.

The Lord, through His pastimes and names, is just as potent far away as He is when standing right before us. Therefore the greatness of works like the Ramayana cannot be properly measured.

Anonymous said...

The qualities of a devotee provided by Valmiki apply to a large cross-section of individuals, especially those residing in the spiritual world. Though there are countless liberated souls engaged in devotional service, no single person better exemplifies the characteristics of a devotee of God than Shri Hanuman, the faithful Vanara warrior and eternally existing worshipable object. Hanuman, though having had Rama’s personal association and benedictions, worships the Lord almost entirely in the mood of separation. The Ramayana exists primarily for his pleasure, as he takes great joy in hearing the same accounts of Rama’s life and teachings every single day. Though Hanuman is supremely powerful, wholly renounced, and fully capable of harnessing any of the perfections related to mystic yoga, his favorite activities are hearing and chanting about the Supreme Lord.

Worship in separation is not a unidirectional force. Just as the devotees love to hear about the activities of their favorite person, the Supreme Lord and His associates take great joy in hearing of the transcendental activities of the devotees. Just as much as Hanuman loves thinking about Rama, the Lord takes great delight in glorifying and hearing of the exploits of Hanuman.

Many specific incidents relating to Hanuman are described as amazing in the Ramayana of Valmiki. This viewpoint was held not only by the celestials in the sky overseeing the events, but also by Rama, who is antaryami, or the all-pervading witness.

There is no limit to the glories of Shri Hanuman. Just like an ocean that can never overflow with stories about the original Divine Being in the sky, the body of water that represents the glories of Shri Hanuman can never swell over, no matter how often it is replenished with kind words offered in his favor.

Anonymous said...

Once the famous impersonalist and monist sannyāsī Ramana Maharshi of Madras was asked by a foreign disciple, "What is the difference between God and man?" His cryptic reply was "God plus desire equals man, and man minus desire equals God."

We say that man can never be free of desire. In his eternal conditioned existence the jīva is full of the desire to enjoy matter, while in his eternal liberated state he is full of the desire to render devotional service to the Lord. Thus the jīva can never become God. The unnatural desire to deny the inherent characteristics of his conscious self is the very same desire that keeps him from attaining liberation.

This forcible elimination of desire is spiritual suicide.

According to the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, desire can never be nullified. While conditioned, the jīva is a repository of unlimited material desires. However, in the liberated state produced by acting under the direction of the Lord's internal, spiritual energy, the jīva's true, spiritual desires become manifest.

Those who understand that the multifarious human desires are a reflection of the Supreme Brahman's desires are careful not to discard them but to use them in the Lord's service.

Long ago, the seven great sages and the Manus all used their God-given desires in the Lord's service, and anyone today who emulates the example of these illustrious ancestors will never see desire as mundane or as an impediment to spiritual progress.

If anyone advises us to negate desire, then we must conclude that he misunderstands the Vedic statement sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. Those who have realized that all desires and feelings are Brahman by nature, and who thus engage them in the Supreme Lord's service, should be considered perfected souls.

Anonymous said...

Sanandana said, ”After the dissolution of the whole cosmic manifestation, the entire energy and the whole creation in its nucleus form enters into the body of Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu. The Lord at that time remains asleep for a long, long time, and when there is again necessity of creation, the Vedas personified assemble around the Lord and begin to glorify Him, describing His wonderful transcendental pastimes. It is exactly like a king: when he is asleep in the morning, the appointed reciters come around his bedroom and begin to sing of his chivalrous activities, and while hearing of his glorious activities, the king gradually awakens.

“The Vedic reciters or the personified Vedas sing thus: ’O unconquerable Lord, You are the Supreme Personality. No one is equal to You or greater than You. No one can be more glorious in his activities. All glories unto You! All glories unto You! By Your own transcendental nature You fully possess all six opulences. As such, You are able to deliver all conditioned souls from the clutches of māyā. O Lord, we fervently pray that You kindly do so. All the living entities, being Your parts and parcels, are naturally joyful, eternal and full of knowledge, but due to their own faults they try to imitate You by trying to become the supreme enjoyer; thus they disobey Your supremacy and become offenders. And because of their offenses, Your material energy has taken charge of them; thus, their transcendental qualities of joyfulness, bliss and wisdom have been covered by the clouds of the three material qualities. This cosmic manifestation, made of the three material qualities, is just like a prison house for the conditioned souls. The conditioned souls are struggling very hard to escape from the material bondage, and according to their different conditions of life they have been given different types of engagement. But all engagements are based on Your knowledge. Pious activities can be executed only when inspired by Your mercy. Therefore, without taking shelter at Your lotus feet one cannot surpass the influence of material energy. Actually, we, as personified Vedic knowledge, are always engaged in Your service to help the conditioned soul understand You.’”

Anonymous said...

Except for Him, all living entities, beginning from Brahmā down to an ant, are conquered by the contact of material nature.

Because He possesses in full the six opulences of wealth, strength, fame, beauty, knowledge and renunciation, the Lord alone is beyond the spell of material nature. Unless the living entity is situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he cannot approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead, yet the Lord, by His omnipotency, can dictate from within as the Supersoul. In the Bhagavad-gītā, the Lord advises, “Whatever you do, do for Me; whatever you eat, first of all offer to Me; whatever charity you want to give, first give to Me; and whatever austerities and penances you want to perform, perform for Me.” In this way the karmīs are directed to gradually develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa directs the philosophers to approach Him gradually by discriminating between Brahman and māyā. At last when one is mature in knowledge, he surrenders unto Kṛṣṇa. As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā, “After many, many births, the wise philosopher surrenders unto Me.” The yogīs are also directed to concentrate their meditation upon Kṛṣṇa within the heart, and by such continued process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness the yogī can become free from the clutches of material energy. But, as is stated in Bhagavad-gītā, because t he devotees are engaged in devotional service with love and affection from the very beginning, the Lord directs them so that they can approach Him without difficulty or deviation. Only by the grace of the Lord can the living entity understand the exact position of Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān.

Anonymous said...

The Glorious Month of Damodar

Sri Sri Damodarastakam - Text 8

namas te 'stu damne sphurad dipti-dhamne
tvadiyodarayatha visvasya dhamne
namo radhikayai tvadiya priyayai
namo 'nanta-lilaya devaya tubhyam

O Lord Damodara! I offer my obeisances unto the exalted rope binding Your waist which is the source of splendrously brilliant effulgence | I offer my obeisances unto Your belly which is the support of the entire universe | I offer my obeisances unto Radhika, Your dearmost beloved | And I offer my obeisances unto Your wondrous, uncommon pastimes.

Anonymous said...

Kali yuga, with a capital K.

Annamrita, ISKCON's Bleeding Heart Meals for the Bombay Underprivileged, has appointed a real live Indian goat-killing celebrity chef as their very own ambassador.

"Celebrity chef Vikas Khanna—ISKCON's new Good Will Ambassador for its Mundane Meal Programme—cooks up goats, chickens and fish. He even has a recipe for pate de foie gras, goose liver paste, one of the most violent foods ever created, since the poor goose is force fed till his insides nearly explode."

What next? Veal lunch with the Dalai Lama?

He's a great guy!!
(until you get to know him)

Anonymous said...

Srimad Bhagavatam 6.2.46

"Therefore one who desires freedom from material bondage should adopt the process of chanting and glorifying the name, fame, form and pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, at whose feet all the holy places stand. One cannot derive the proper benefit from other methods, such as pious atonement, speculative knowledge, and meditation in mystic yoga, because even after following such methods one takes to fruitive activities again, unable to control his mind, which is contaminated by the base qualities of nature, namely passion and ignorance."

Cudamani: Why is it, then, that an outcaste who chants the holy name of Lord Hari is not qualified to perform yajnas and other rituals?

Vaisnava dasa: To perform yajnas and other rituals one needs to take birth in a brahmana's home. A person who takes birth in a brahmana's home is not qualified to perform Vedic rituals after he has received the sacred thread, so an outcaste who has become purified by chanting Lord Hari's holy name but who has not taken birth in a brahmana's home cannot perform yajnas and other rituals. However, the various activities of devotional service are immeasurably better than the performance of Vedic yajnas.

Cudamani: What kind of conclusion is that? That a person not qualified for an ordinary thing can be qualified for an exalted thing! What is the clear proof for that?

Vaisnava dasa: Human activities are of two kinds: 1. material and 2. spiritual. Even after becoming qualified, one may not necessarily be able to perform certain material activities. For example, a person born in a Yavana family may become purified and, spiritual speaking, may become a genuine brahmana. Still, according to the material conception, he is still not qualified to marry a brahmana's daughter.

Cudamani: Why not? What is wrong with that?

Vaisnava dasa: It is wrong to violate social custom. They who are proud of their material activities do not break social custom, and they who are qualified to make spiritual advancement do not break social custom either.

Cudamani: How does one become qualified to perform material activities? How does one become qualified to perform devotional service?

Vaisnava dasa: One's nature, birth, and other things qualify one to engage in material activities. Faith in the truth qualifies one to perform devotional service.

Anonymous said...

Cudamani: What did you mean when you said the words "faith in the truth"?

Vaisnava dasa: When a person has in his heart sincere faith and trust in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is called faith. When a person is materialistic, has an impure heart, in his heart has a false conception of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and is selfish. proud, and eager for fame, his faith is called "insincere". Some saintly persons say that "sincere faith" means "faith that follows the scriptures' teachings". This kind of sincere faith makes one qualified to engage in devotional service.

Cudamani: Various persons may possess this "faith that follows the scripture's teachings", but they are not necessarily all exalted great souls. Are such persons qualified to engage in devotional service?

Vaisnava dasa: A person's nature makes him qualified to perform specific duties, but it does not necessarily qualify him to engage in devotional service. Please look at the explanation written in this page of Srimad Bhagavatam (11.20.27-30 and 32-33):

"Having awakened faith in the narrations of My glories, being disgusted with all material activities, knowing that all sense gratification leads to misery, but still being unable to renounce all sense enjoyment, My devotee should remain happy and worship Me with great faith and conviction. Even though he is sometimes engaged in sense enjoyment, My devotee knows that all sense gratification leads to a miserable result, and he sincerely repents such activities.***

"When an intelligent person engages constantly in worshipping Me through loving devotional service as described by Me, his heart becomes firmly situated in Me. Thus all material desires within the heart are destroyed.***

"The knot in the heart is pierced, all misgivings are cut to pieces, and the chain of fruitive actions is terminated when I am seen as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.*

"Everything that can be achieved by fruitive activities, penance, knowledge, detachment, mystic yoga, charity, religious duties, and all other means of perfecting life is easily achieved by My devotee through loving service unto Me. If somehow or other My devotee desires promotion to heaven, liberation or residence in My abode, he easily achieves such benedictions."***

In this way faith in devotional service develops.

The Supreme Lord Himself promises: "My devotee will never perish.* The karmi or jnani may fall into bad company, but My sincere devotee will never fall into bad company, for he always has Me as his companion. Therefore he will never fall down. Whether born in a sinful family or a brahmana family, a devotee always has the supreme goal of life in the palm of his hand."

Anonymous said...

My Dear George,
Please accept my blessings. I am so much obliged to you for your valued cooperation in spreading my movement of Krsna Consciousness throughout the whole world. I beg to acknowledge receipt herewith of your contribution of $19,000 (nineteen thousand dollars) for publication of my book, Krsna, now going to the press within the week.
Please note that every farthing of this money will be employed in the service of the Lord, and the Lord is so kind and grateful that He will bestow upon you benediction at least ten times more than that you have done for Him. It does not, however, mean that Lord Krsna is like a business man, and He bestows benediction when He is profited by our service. The Lord is full in Himself; He does not require our service, but if we render service unto Him in love and devotion, such action enriches our very existence.

The example in this connection is given that when a man decorates his face, he does not feel much enjoyment because he cannot see his own face. But he enjoys his beautiful face when it is reflected on the mirror. In other words, when a living entity, by rendering service to the Lord, feels happy, the Lord enjoys the situation.

Anonymous said...

Who sometimes fervently plays His flute on the banks of the Yamuna river in Sri Vrindavana, who is like a bumblebee that blissfully tastes the lotus faces of the Vraja-gopis, and whose feet are worshipped by great personalities such as Laksmi, Shiva, Brahma, Indra, and Ganesha — may that Sri Jagannatha-deva be the object of my vision.

Anonymous said...

He's the supreme controller, but He is controlled by His devotee, Srimati Radharani. He is controlled. So it is not to be easily understood what is the pastimes between... But Krsna is willingly agreed to be controlled by His devotee. That is Krsna's nature. Just like mother Yasoda. Mother Yasoda is controlling Krsna, binding Him: "You are very naughty? I will bind you." Mother Yasoda has a stick, and Krsna is crying. Krsna is crying. These things you study. It is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, Kunti's prayer, how she is appreciating that "My dear Krsna, You are the Supreme. But when under the stick of mother Yasoda you are crying, that scene I want to see." So Krsna is so bhakta-vatsala that He is the supreme controller. But a devotee like mother Yasoda, a devotee like Radharani, devotees like gopis, devotees like the cowherds boy, they can control Krsna. That is Vrndavana life.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

This Srimad-Bhagavatam is like a sword in the hand. With it, intelligent men cut through the labyrinthine knot of karma. If you hear about Krsna, think about Him, meditate on Him and worship Him, you become perfect.

It is very simple.

Here is God; we give His name, address, phone number, everything. Simply qualify yourself to go there by thinking of Him. By thinking of Him you will become the greatest yogi, for Krsna is the goal of all mystic yoga—Yogesvara. You cannot serve Krsna with these blunt material senses. Krsna cannot be served with matter—only with spirit.

There are so many impediments to worshiping the demigods, but there is no impediment to worshiping Krsna. You simply have to offer Him love. In the material world people are always speaking about love, but there is no love in the material world. People are simply under the control of lust and are trying to satisfy their senses. But love is different.

Love is the satisfaction of Krsna's senses."

Anonymous said...

Jaiva-dharma

The inherent function of the jiva is certainly to serve Krsna, but when the jiva is indifferent to Krsna, and covets different types of sensual enjoyment, Bhagavan's external potency (bahiranga-sakti or maya), which is situated nearby, seizes him and binds him in her web.

ami siddha krsna-dasa, ei katha bhule
mayara naphara hana cira-dina bule

He forgets Bhagavan's identity, and his own identity as a servant of Hari. Becoming a slave of maya, he wanders here and there for a long time in this bewildering material existence.

kabhu raja, kabhu praja, kabhu vipra, sudra
kabhu duhkhi, kabhu sukhi, kabhu kita ksudra

Sometimes he is a king and sometimes a subject, sometimes a brahmana and sometimes a sudra. Sometimes he is happy and sometimes distressed, and sometimes he is a tiny insect.

kabhu svarge, kabhu martye, narake va kabhu
kabhu deva, kabhu daitya, kabhu dasa, prabhu

Sometimes he is in heaven, sometimes on earth, and sometimes in hell. Sometimes he is a deva and sometimes a demon. Sometimes he is a servant and sometimes a master.

ei-rupe samsara bhramite kona jana sadhu-sange nija-tattva avagata hana

As he is wandering like this throughout material existence, if by some great fortune he happens to obtain the association of pure bhaktas, he comes to know of his own identity, and his life thus becomes meaningful.

nija-tattva jani ara samsara na caya kena va bhajinu maya kare haya haya

By his association with those bhaktas, he understands his true identity and becomes indifferent to material enjoyment. Grieving bitterly for his predicament, he laments, "Alas! Alas! Why did I serve maya for so long?"

kande bole, ohe krsna! ami tava dasa
tomara carana chadi' haila sarva-nasa

He cries profusely, and prays at the lotus feet of Bhagavan. "O Krsna! I am Your eternal servant, but I have been ruined because I disregarded the service of Your feet. Who knows how long I have been wandering aimlessly as the slave of maya?

kakuti kariya krsne dake eka-bara
krpa kari krsna tare chadana samsara

"O Patita-pavana! O Dina-natha! Please protect this destitute soul. Deliver me from Your maya and engage me in Your service." Sri Krsna is an ocean of mercy, and when He hears the jiva cry out in such desperation even once, He quickly transports him across this insurmountable material energy.

mayake pichane rakhi' krsna-pane caya
bhajite bhajite krsna-pada-padma paya
krsna tare dena nija-cic-chaktira bala
maya akarsana chade haiya durbala

Krsna empowers the jiva with His cit-sakti, so that maya's power to attract the soul gradually wanes. The jiva then turns his back on maya and desires to attain Krsna. He worships Krsna again and again, and finally becomes competent to attain His lotus feet.

Anonymous said...

"It may not be very palatable to hear," Srila Prabhupada says, "but there is a reason for so many dogs, hogs and monkeys in Vrndavana. The gosvamis who live in Vrndavana and outwardly observe the religious forms but secretly commit all kinds of sinful activities take birth as dogs and hogs in Vrndavana. In this way, by touching the dust of Vrndavana, they become purified. Then after a life as a hog, they are liberated."

Atheists are always saying, 'Show me God,' but if you have the eyes to see God, you can see Him everywhere. If you become saintly by austerities, you can see God everywhere. If you are a materialist, you can also see God in the sun and moon. Those who are impersonalists can see God in that way. Hiranyakasipu challenged God, so God came before him as death. God is willing to reveal Himself according to our expectations.

Whatever way you approach Krsna, you will become purified. Divert your attention to Krsna, and that is love. You have a particular relationship with Krsna which will gradually be revealed.

Just as the desire for sex is in all entities and becomes manifest at the right age, so svarupa-siddhi[our constitutional position] becomes manifest at the right time. The sun becomes visible when it rises. You cannot force the sun to rise at midnight. Be patient, render devotional service and wait. Guru Maharaja said, 'Don't try to see Krsna. Just get Krsna to see you.'

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

That is the real picture of God. The Vrindavana-lila of Krishna is the perfect presentation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He’s simply enjoying. And all the inhabitants of Vrindavana, the gopis, the cowherd boys, Maharaja Nanda, Yasoda, everyone is simply anxious how to make Krishna happy. They have no other business. The inhabitants of Vrindavana has no other business than to satisfy Krishna, and Krishna has no other business. Yasoda-nandana brajajana-ranjana. He’s acting as the little son of Yasoda, and His only business is how to please the inhabitants of Vrindavana. Yasoda-nandana brajajana-ranjana. And yamuna-tira-vana-cari. And He’s wandering in the forest of Vrindavana on the bank of the Yamuna. This is the actual picture of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

If, after many, many births one has to come to this point of surrender, then why not immediately?

The blazing fire of material nature is supervised by Durga. Often she is portrayed with weapons in her hands. She has ten hands, and each holds a different type of weapon. This indicates that she is ruling all ten directions of this universe.

She wields the different weapons to chastise the demons. There is one famous picture of a demon struggling with a lion, and the goddess Durga is pulling the demon’s hair and pushing her trident against his chest. If we study this picture we can determine that we are the demon and that the trident is the threefold miseries of material existence from which we are always suffering.

Some miseries are inflicted by other living entities, some are inflicted by natural disasters, and some are inflicted by the mind and body themselves. In one way or another we are always struggling against these three types of miseries. No one in the material creation can say that he is free from them.

The trident of this material nature is pressed against everyone’s chest, and because of this, pure happiness within this material world is not possible. We may try to satisfy Mother Durga by worshiping her or by giving her some bribe, but Durga is not so easily bribed.
Therefore we should know that our aim of life should be to understand the Supreme personality of Godhead.

We should make every arrangement–social, political, philosophical or religious–but the aim should be to approach the Supreme person.

In the Vedas it is stated that the learned advanced people, the demigods of the creation, simply look to the lotus feet of Krishna. The aim should be the same with human civilization. Without looking to Krishna’s lotus feet, all religious, social or political endeavors will fail.

It is not possible to make progress as long as our desires are anchored in the material world.

Anonymous said...

A poem of dedication, written by the Mughal Emperor Akbar in honor of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.


"Hail thee O Chaitanya — the victor of my heart,
Mark the rhythm of his mystic dance in lofty
ecstasy — quite alone.
Merrily sounds the tabor and the cymbal's
note keeps time.
The joyous hand following him sing and
dance merrily — merrily;
He steps a pace or two onwards in his
dancing gait,
And knows no rest — intoxicated with his
own over-flowing joy.
Oh my heart's Lord, how can I express the
love I have for thee?
Saha Akbar craves a drop from the sea of thy
piety and love."

Song by Emperor Akbar
(Translated from Hindi)

Anonymous said...

Slaughterhouse Civilization

Srila Prabhupada..

Yes, this is our proposal. Why should you kill the cow? Let the cow be protected. You can take the cow’s milk and use this milk for making so many nutritious, delicious preparations.

Aside from that, as far as meat-eating is concerned, every cow will die–so you just wait a while, and there will be so many dead cows. Then you can take all the dead cows and eat. So how is this a bad proposal? If you say, “You are restraining us from meat-eating”–no, we don’t restrain you. We simply ask you, “Don’t kill. When the cow is dead, you can eat it.”

Yogesvara dasa: You’ve pointed out that the cow is just like a mother.
Srila Prabhupada: Yes. She gives us her milk.

Srila Prabhupada: They don’t have to protect the cow. We shall protect the cow. Simply we ask them, “Don’t purchase meat from the slaughterhouse. We shall supply you the cow after her death.” Where is the difficulty?

Srila Prabhupada: We simply request, “Don’t kill. Don’t maintain slaughterhouses.” That is very sinful. It brings down very severe karmic reactions upon society. Stop these slaughterhouses. We don’t say, “Stop eating meat.” You can eat meat, but don’t take it from the slaughterhouse, by killing. Simply wait, and you’ll get the carcasses.

For the first few years you may not get quite as much as now. During that time you can eat some dogs and cats. [Laughter.] Yes. In Korea they eat dogs. What is the difference between here and Korea? Or hogs. Eat hogs. We neither sanction nor prohibit. But especially we request cow protection, because it is ordered by Lord Krsna. Go-raksya:

“Protect the cows.” That is our duty.

Anonymous said...

When Krishna was present on this planet, He proved by His activities and opulence that He is the Supreme Lord.

If we are actually anxious to understand who and what the Supreme Lord is, all of the information is given in Vedic literatures.

If we utilize whatever we have in our possession to understand God, Krishna will prove that He is the Supreme personality of Godhead. If we but accept this one fact, then all of our education is complete.

It is fashionable to research to try to find out who is God, but this is not necessary. God is present, and He Himself says:

mattah parataram nanyat
kincid asti dhananjaya
mayi sarvam idam protam
sutre mani-gana iva

“O conqueror of wealth (Arjuna), there is no truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.” (Bg. 7.7)”

Anonymous said...

Who can guess the Supreme Lord's plan?

The "Untimely" Demise of
H.H. Ananda Vidvan Swami

One year and a half before taking sannyasa, Yadu travelled by foot more than 2,000 kilometers in India, making a pilgrimage to the most important holy places related with Lord Krishna's pastimes, especially those of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Krishna couldn't wait any longer to take back home His beautiful devotee, Ananda Vidvan Swami!

His Holiness Ananda Vidvan Swami, amidst loud chanting of the Holy Names, peacefully and blissfully left his mortal body today at 7:03 p.m. He was only 58 years old.

"I'm eternally a disciple of Srila Prabhupada by gratitude."

All glories to the holy month of Damodara!
All glories to Sri Sri Radha-Govinda and Sri Sri Radha-Syamasundara!
All glories to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada!
All glories to His Holiness Ananda Vidvan Swami!

Anonymous said...

When Narada first heard that Lord Krsna had appeared in
Vrndavana, he wandered in Vrndavana's twelve forests looking for any signs
of Syamasundara. With great intensity he ran through the secret bowers in
which Krsna would meet with the gopis. But he could not find any evidence of
Krsna's appearance. So Narada Muni is a traveling transcendental spaceman.
In other words from his vantage point(like a map-view) he can see anywhere
and everywhere whenever he likes. When he came over Vrajamandala he
could not see, although he is an accomplished yogi himself. He is full of
mysticism. Although he is trikala-jna - he knows everything, but when he
came above Vraja he was completely bewildered. He couldn't see. Therefore he
had to ground himself.

In Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 51, Srila Prabhupada says that when Narada
Muni came to the Bhandiravana forest, he saw in one of the trees the famous parrot couple that always accompanies Lord Krsna. The parrots were imitating a discussion they had heard upon the Vedanta philosophy, and thus were
seemingly arguing upon various philosophical points. Narada Muni was
wonderstruck and he stared at the parrots without moving his eyelids. This
is an example of anurasa, or imitation.

Then the two parrots got into an argument. They got into such a heated
argument that Narada Muni was trying to intervene and say, "Don't fight."
But they were not interested in seeing him or neither hearing him. Then he
said to himself, "Who are these parrots? They are absorbed in their own
consciousness and they cannot see me and I am Narada Muni and I am grounded
and I had to see up!" So in other words he lost all his mysticism as a
traveling transcendental spaceman.

In the heated discussion the two parrots got into some argument about
gramya-katha. That gramya-katha means they reduced the philosophy to
say that, "We cannot understand." Narada Muni said, "These parrots are
bewildering me." And the parrots started to speak about how so many young
girls are running after one boy. Immediately Narada Muni tried to close his
ears. He said, "Hearing this will make me break my brahmacari vows." But he
couldn't. He was already contaminated.

Anonymous said...

From there he wandered through many forests trying to forget what he heard.
But the more he tries to forget, the more he remembers. It is paradoxical.
The more he forgets, the more he remembers. So with great intensity he ran
through every kunja feeling, "The only person who can resolve this is this
Syamasundara." And he started looking for Him, looking for Him, looking for
Him.

So that is the feature of the mood of the six Goswamis

"O Beloved of Nanda Maharaja, where are You, where are You? Are You at
Govardhan? Are You there, here and everywhere?" He was doing that. So he was
becoming purified by hearing from the eternal associates or the Lord, these
two parrots. So he became purified by their association and he took on the mood of vipralambha-bhava of separation from Krishna.

But there is a difference. He did not meet Syamasundara so how can he feel separation? So this type of vipralambha indicates that he is feeling separation by
eagerness to meet him for the first time. It is a different type of
vipralambha. It is not the vipralambha of the eternal associates of the Lord
where they meet(sambhoga) and then vipralambha, separation is there.

Narada Muni became contaminated by anurasa. That means when these parrots were imitating a philosophical discussion and started speaking of
gramya-katha, about how so many girls are fighting over one boy. He became
contaminated simply by the imitation of the parrots of Vrindavan. So it is
called anurasa.

Imagine if he gets the real thing!

Therefore it is
vipralambha-bhava, not with first meeting Krishna, because he is only getting an abhasa or shadow of the reflective consciousness of the eternal residents of Vrndavana.

So Narada Muni became completely disturbed
that, "I need to see this boy!" So he performed tapasya to please Lord Siva
and then he got a boon from Lord Siva. When Siva appeared he said, "You take
this mantra, meditate and perform some tapasya in this forest called Puspavan." Puspavana means a forest of flowers.

Narada Muni meditated and meditated and meditated through austerity, not
even drinking water. He was not interested in doing any other activity
except the eagerness and earnest desire to get Krishna, Syamasundara
Krishna. So at the time, in that particular area, one little girl came with
her friends. Prior to this her mother said, "I noticed in this area one Baba
is there. You go and see what he needs because he has been there for weeks
and months but he is going on without eating. He is always sitting one
place. So you go and see."

cont...

Anonymous said...

GOVINDA DASI..

One young devotee lady, second generation, Tulsi Gabbard, from Hawaii, was just recently elected to the US Congress in Washington D. C.

At her January inauguration, Tulsi will be sworn in on Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Original Edition, as she publicly declares that she is a Hindu and a vegetarian. And from a spiritual perspective, just having people chanting the name “Tulsi” grants benefit. During the campaign, our highways were papered with signs and billboards bearing the words, VOTE TULSI.COM. This, I assure you, would delight Srila Prabhupada!

Regarding the issue, male vs. female: Such kinds of strong identification and attachment to the temporary male / female bodily identities are a great detriment to spiritual life. Srila Prabhupada taught us that this human life is very short, and so tiny and frail. We can be male today, female tomorrow, male again, female again, or even feline, canine or whatever. He never fostered the intense (and ridiculous) identification with gender that somehow grew up in the later years of Iskcon.

Srila Prabhupada, being a great saintly personality, saw with “equal vision” as so stated in the Gita. Thus he gave equal love, concern, respect, and often responsibilities to both his male and female disciples. Srila Prabhupada clearly saw the soul, and he based his dealings on that level. He wanted his female disciples protected, not exploited. And he wanted his male disciples to take up the yoke of responsibility he placed upon them.

Prof. O’Connell: Is it possible, Swamiji, for a woman to be a guru in the line of disciplic succession?

Prabhupada: Yes. Jahnava-devi was Nityananda’s wife. She became. If she is able to go to the highest perfection of life, why it is not possible to become guru? But, not so many. Actually one who has attained the perfection, she can become guru. But man or woman, unless one has attained the perfection…. Yei krsna-tattva-vetta sei guru haya. The qualification of guru is that he must be fully cognizant of the science of Krsna. Then he or she can become guru. Yei krsna-tattva-vetta, sei guru haya. In our material world is it any prohibition that woman cannot become professor? If she is qualified, she can become professor. What is the wrong there? She must be qualified. That is the position. So similarly, if the woman understands Krsna consciousness perfectly, she can become guru.”

“I want that all of my spiritual sons and daughters will inherit this title of Bhaktivedanta, so that the family transcendental diploma will continue through the generations."

He saw the need of the times, and he stepped forward into the 21st century. He initiated his female disciples with Gayatri mantra, encouraged them to perform arotiks and Deity worship, and to manage temples when needed. He saw that girls are educated in the same ways as boys in the Western countries, and instead of trying to suppress that, he encouraged his female disciples to do whatever they excelled in–whether it was art, music, Deity worship, public relations, management, or whatever. It was much later, due to the anti-woman sentiment of a few agitated leaders, that Iskcon became so lop-sided and averse to the spiritual welfare of the women and children.

Srila Prabhupada repeatedly stressed that there is no place in spiritual life for personal ambition. So anyone, male or female, who decides to step in line for guruhood, should deeply question his or her inner motives. Is he or she inspired by a genuine desire to serve Srila Prabhupada, and to serve others, or is there some personal ambition lurking beneath the layers? Is he or she inspired by the desire for: Fame? Money? Adoration? Security? He or she must answer confidently, that he/she is not deceiving his/herself, but can actually uplift lost souls and place them at the lotus feet of the Lord. He or she must also be able take on the disciples’ past karmas, and purify them without losing his or her own purity. This is the real test.

Anonymous said...

Nārada Bhakti Sūtra 37

loke 'pi bhagavad-guṇa-śravaṇa-kīrtanāt

TRANSLATION

One achieves bhakti by hearing and chanting about the Supreme Lord's special qualities, even while engaged in the ordinary activities of life in this world.

PURPORT

Someone might say that Nārada is being unreasonable in advocating "uninterrupted loving service." How can those who are busy with duties in the world maintain constant bhajana? But Nārada, like all ācāryas, is well aware of the worldly situation and the jīva's predicament. Thus he recommends śravaṇaḿ kīrtanam, hearing and chanting about the Lord, for all persons at all times.

An outstanding example of a Kṛṣṇa conscious devotee who was busy in the world is Arjuna, Kṛṣṇa's friend. And it was Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself who insisted that Arjuna not renounce the battlefield in favor of meditation:

tasmāt sarveṣu kāleṣu mām anusmara yudhya ca
mayy arpita-mano-buddhir mām evaiṣyasy asaḿśayaḥ

"Therefore, Arjuna, you should always think of Me in the form of Kṛṣṇa and at the same time carry out your prescribed duty of fighting. With your activities dedicated to Me and your mind and intelligence fixed on Me, you will attain Me without doubt" (Bg. 8.7).

Śrīla Prabhupāda writes,

"The Lord never suggests
anything impractical.... If he [Arjuna] doesn't practice remembering Kṛṣṇa while he is struggling for existence, then it will not be possible for him to remember Kṛṣṇa at the time of death" (Bg. Introduction).

Anonymous said...

Still the question remains, How can an active person perform double duty — work and chant at the same time?

But it is possible, through love.

Prabhupāda gave the example of a man who goes to work in an office while his young son is very ill at home. Out of natural affection, the father is always thinking, "How is the boy?" Another example, given by the ācāryas, concerns a married woman's attachment for her paramour. The wife always thinks of her lover, even while doing her household chores. In fact, she does her housework even more carefully so that her husband will not suspect her. In the same way, we should always remember the supreme lover, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, even while meticulously discharging our material duties. If we say, "But I lack strong love for Kṛṣṇa," the only remedy is vaidhi-bhakti. The very purpose of this training stage of bhakti is to bring out our original love for God, just as striking a match brings out a flame. And among all the devotional practices, the foremost are śravaṇaḿ kīrtanaḿ viṣṇoḥ [SB 7.5.23], hearing and chanting the glories of the Lord.

est said...

-
yes
and what krishna said to arjuna
was [i believe] the battles inside

it is attachment- you must slay
-not your actual brethren

much like abraham and isaac

when god saw he was really
going to sacrifice his son

he said 'no wait' it's only a test
the same applies here, i believe
-

Anonymous said...

Krishna is the only Husband of all Jivas

"One day Jiva Goswami was the head of the Vaishnavites in Vrindavan. Meera wanted to have Darshan of Jiva Goswami. He declined to see her. He sent word to Meera that he would not allow any woman in his presence. Mirabai retorted: "Everybody in Vrindavan is a woman. Only Giridhar Gopala is Purusha. Today only I have come to know that there is another Purusha besides Krishna in Vrindavan". Jiva Goswami was embarrassed . He at once went to see Meera and paid her due respects."

Anonymous said...

Pradyumna, Vrindavana, August 15, 1974: “I am the original fragrance of the earth, and I am the heat in fire. I am the life of all that lives, and I am the penances of all ascetics.” (Bhagavad-gita 7.9)

Srila Prabhupada: So Krishna is describing how He is spread everywhere, in details. In the beginning, before this verse, He has mentioned in so many ways. So we can see Krishna in every step and every moment. If we practice to see Krishna, it is not difficult. Whenever there is fragrance… Just like rose flower, beauty and fragrance, you can immediately remember Krishna, “Here is Krishna.” Simply we have to practice it.

So as soon as you remember Krishna or you say or utter the word “Krishna,” immediately Krishna contacts you. You are in contact with Krishna immediately. And if you remain constantly in contact with Krishna by studying all these details, then where is the lack of Krishna consciousness? And if you remain always in that way, Krishna conscious, then you are the topmost yogi. Yoginam api sarvesam [Bg. 6.47] Very easy.

It is not at all difficult. Simply you have to practice. As soon as there is nice fragrance, nice flower… In another place it is said that the nice flower, or any flower that is fructified, that is blooming, that is smiling, smiling of Krishna. So you can see Krishna smiling as soon as you see a flower.


Anonymous said...

Hanuman Garhi

In Treta yuga, the famous pastimes took place involving Sri Rama Laksman, the great devotee Hanuman, and the demon Ravana. While bringing Rama and Laksman on his shoulders, Makardhvaj changed their path, and this resulted in Hanuman arriving in Naimisharanya.


As described in Ramayana, when the demon Ravana captured Rama and Laksman and spirited them off to Patalaloka, at the bottom of the universe, Hanuman rescued them. Upon returning to Earth, he arrived at Naimisharanya.


The Hanuman Garhi shrine at Naimisharanya is considered to be one of the most beautiful places in the Tirtha. There is a self-manifested Hanuman deity here, standing 18 feet tall, and a deity of Hanuman with Rama on one shoulder and Laksman on the other. When devotees come to get darshan, they buy big sweets and put them into Sri Hanuman's mouth.

Naimisharanya is mentioned in several of the Puranas. The Vayu Purana describes how in the Satya Yuga, the sages wanted to perform a large yagna, and requested Lord Brahma to guide them in identifying an appropriate location. Brahmadeva created a huge wheel, the Manomaya Chakra, which he dedicated to Lord Shiva. Releasing the chakra, he told the sages to follow it, instructing them to hold their sacrifice at the place where the wheel broke. It landed in the forest at Naimisharanya and as predicted, it broke. In Sanskrit, 'naimi' refers to the circumference of the wheel.


Where the wheel cracked, a huge fountain of water emerged from the earth in the shape of a linga, and threatened to flood the forest. The sages were panicked, but the goddess Shakti appeared and stopped the gushing water. The place where this Manomaya Chakra landed, rupturing the ground, is a very sacred spot.


Anonymous said...

Monday, December 8, 1969
London, England

My Dear Jaya Govinda,
Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated December 3rd, 1969.
The descriptions given by you are very pleasing and nice. Kindly keep up the standard of your temple activities by mutual cooperation, and everything will come out successful and smooth.

Krishna is giving you all help, and the more you serve Him, the more help will come automatically.

You were in India, so you have seen our Godbrothers have hundreds of temples and Maths, and others also in India; everyone is nicely maintaining, depending on Krishna.

Actually they have no fixed income, but as they serve the Lord, the Lord arranges everything. Therefore, our principle should be to serve nicely, and everything will be arranged by the Lord.

Regarding your question about Krishna’s associates, the principle is that all living entities are expansions of the Original Living Entity, Krishna.

But there are different grades of living entities: Vishnu Tattva and Jiva Tattva. Vishnu Tattva is almost equal to the level of the Personality of Godhead, and Jiva Tattva is minute particles.

So when Lord Caitanya appeared, Nityananda Prabhu and Advaita Prabhu were Vishnu Tattva; whereas Gadadhara Prabhu and Srivas Prabhu were Shakti Tattva. Jiva Tattva is also within the Shakti Tattva. These things are explained in TLC and other of our books. Lord Nityananda is Balarama Himself, not an expansion of Him.

Srila Narottama das Thakura has sung that the Lord who appeared as the Son of Nanda Maharaja has now appeared as the son of Sacidevi; and the same Balarama has appeared as Nityananda.

I hope this will meet you in good health.
Your ever well-wisher,

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Anonymous said...

sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu nityananda sri-advaita gadadhara srivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrnda


Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama,
Rama Rama, Hare Hare

Anonymous said...

Prabhupāda: ...about Kṛṣṇa's forbidding Arjuna not to speak this Bhagavad-gītā to a person who is not very much advanced in austerity and penance. The verse is on the Eighteenth Chapter, verse number 67, in which Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna:

idaṁ te nātapaskāya
nābhaktāya kadācana
na cāśuśrūṣave vācyaṁ
na ca māṁ yo 'bhyasūyati

Kṛṣṇa says, "This confidential knowledge may not be explained to those who are not austere or devoted or engaged in devotional service, nor to one who is envious of Me."

So Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He knows very well that there will be so many rascals who are envious of Him.

Actually, everyone is trying... Because Bhagavad-gītā is very popular book of profound knowledge, everyone is trying to prove his own theory through the medium of Bhagavad-gītā, excluding Kṛṣṇa. This is going on. They want to kill Kṛṣṇa, demonic. Anyone who is trying to kill Kṛṣṇa, he's a demon. So to warn the devotees from these demons, this śloka was spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself.

Anonymous said...

Atapaskāya. Actually, one who is sinful, who is not undergoing the method of austerities, penance, what he will understand about Bhagavad-gītā? It is not a table talk. People are taking it as a table talk. By so-called scholarship... That is not possible. Just like it is said that unless one is a brāhmaṇa, qualified brāhmaṇa, he should not touch the Vedas. That means what he'll understand? Unless one has attained the brahminical qualification: truthfulness, cleanliness, controlling the senses, controlling the mind, simplicity, tolerant, full of Vedic knowledge, practical application in life, and full faith in the Vedas... This is, these are the brahminical qualifications. So unless one has attained the brahminical qualification, what he will understand, the Vedas? It is not that Mr. Max Muller translates Vedas. This is all nonsense. What Max Muller will understand Bhagavad, uh, Vedas? It is, these are not the subject matter of advanced in A-B-C-D. No. These are transcendental subject matter. Tat. Oṁ tat sat. Unless one is advanced... Everything... Just like on our ordinary life also, unless one has graduated, he cannot enter into the law college. So it is not prohibition. The law college is open for everyone. But he must be properly qualified to get entrance. Similarly, one must be properly qualified to enter into the transcendental subject matter. Everyone and anyone cannot. Śūdras, those who are in śūdra qualification, how they can understand Vedas? It is not possible.

Therefore Kṛṣṇa knows that mostly they are persons contaminated. Therefore He said, idaṁ te na atapaskāya. Those who are too much contaminated with the material qualities, three qualities: sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa... So generally, people are contaminated with tamo-guṇa and rajo-guṇa. Hardly, at the present moment, hardly we shall find out one is qualified with the sattva-guṇa, brahminical qualification. Śāstra says, kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ: "In this age, Kali-yuga, mostly all of them are śūdras. " No brāhmaṇa, no kṣatriya, no vaiśya, according to qualification. You can, by force, you can say, "I am brāhmaṇa; because I am son of a brāhmaṇa, I am brāhmaṇa. " That you can do, but that is not the qualification. If somebody says, "My father is high-court judge. Therefore I am a high-court judge," is that very nice proposal? One must attain the qualification of high-court judge, even though he's a son of a high-court judge.

So these things are mentioned in the śāstras, but we are defying.

Anonymous said...

"For a non devotee, the world is full of problems, whereas for a devotee the entire world is full of happiness."

(Srimad Bhagavatam 10.2.24)

---------------------------

Sri Jaiva-dharma (The Universal Religion)

Nitya-dharma & Idolatry -

Those whose spiritual qualification is extremely low cannot understand the pure, spiritual state of existence. Even when such people meditate on the Lord within their minds, the form that they imagine is material, and meditating on a material form within the mind is the same as constructing a form of physical elements, and regarding it as the Lord's form. That is why it is beneficial for a person on this level of eligibility to worship the Deity.

Factually speaking, it would be most inauspicious for the general class of people if there were no worship of Deities. When ordinary jivas become inclined toward the service of the Lord, they become despondent if they cannot see the Deity form of the Lord before them. In religions where there is no worship of the Deity, members who are on a low level of spiritual qualification are highly materialistic and oblivious to Isvara, or in a state of distraction. Therefore, worship of the Deity is the foundation of religion for all humanity.

The form of Paramesvara is revealed to the mahajanas through their trance of unalloyed jnana-yoga, and they meditate on that pure, transcendental form in their hearts, which are purified by bhakti. When the bhakta's heart is revealed to the world after his continuous meditation, the image of the Lord's transcendental form is fashioned in this mundane world. The divine form of the Lord, having been reflected in this way by the mahajanas, has become the form of the Deity.

Anonymous said...

The Deity form is always cinmaya (spiritual and conscious) for those who are on the highest platform of eligibility. Those on the intermediate level see the Deity as endowed with perception and awareness (manomaya). This means that the intermediate devotee has faith that the Deity is conscious of his thoughts and prayers, and accepts his mood of worship. However, the intermediate devotee, unlike the advanced devotee, does not directly perceive the Deity as the spiritual all-conscious form of Bhagavan. Those on the lowest level initially see the Deity as material (jadamaya), but in time, the Deity reveals His pure spiritual form to the intelligence purified by spiritual love. Consequently, the Deity form of Bhagavan is suitable to be worshipped and served by all classes of devotees. It is unnecessary to worship an imaginary form, but it is highly beneficial to worship Bhagavan's eternal Deity form.

The Vaisnava sampradayas give this provision for people on these three levels of eligibility to worship the Deity. There is no fault in this, for it is the only arrangement by which the jivas can
gradually attain auspiciousness. This is confirmed in Srimad- Bhagavatam (11.14.26):

yatha yathatma parimrjyate ‘sau

mat-punya-gatha-sravanabhidhanaih

tatha tatha pasyati vastu suksmam

caksur yathaivanjana-samprayuktam

O Uddhava, as the eyes that are treated with therapeutic ointment can see very minute objects, similarly, when the heart is cleansed of material contamination by hearing and reciting the narrations of My supremely pure activities, it can see My subtle transcendental form, which is beyond the purview of matter.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

(Lecture -- New York, April 17, 1969)

"So when I was publishing this Back to Godhead from Delhi, one day one bull thrashed me, and I fell down on the footpath and I got severe injury. I was alone. So I was thinking, "What is this?" So I had very, days of very tribulations, but it was all meant for good. So don't be afraid of tribulations. You see? Go forward. Krishna will give you protection. That is Krishna's promise in the Bhagavad-gita."


Anonymous said...

For the pleasure of the devotees, and evreryone.

"Bhagavad-gita As It Is: The King of Education"


http://www.harekrsna.com/sun/news/12-12/news4616.htm

http://youtu.be/QPOVZZcq0qs

Anonymous said...

Devotee, Los Angeles, January 3, 1969:

Prabhupada, does Lord Jesus Christ appear in the spiritual sky with the body he manifested on the earth?

Prabhupada: Yes. Otherwise how there can be resurrection? Ordinary body cannot be resurrected. He appeared in his spiritual body, certainly. Jesus Christ told, if I remember, that “Lord, excuse these persons,” who were crucifying him. Is it not? He knew that “These rascals, they are killing me, but… They are offending certainly. So they do not know that I cannot be killed, but they are thinking that they are killing.” You see? But that was offensive, therefore he begged Lord to be excused because God cannot excuse to the offenders of the devotee. He can excuse one who is offender to God, but if somebody is offender to the devotee, God never excuses. Therefore he prayed for them. That is devotee’s qualification. He prays for everyone, even of his enemy. And he could not be killed. That he knew. But those rascals, they thought they were killing Jesus Christ.

That’s all. All right. If there is no question, chant Hare Krsna. (end)

Anonymous said...

Sri Samkatanasana
Ganesa Stotram
Narada Purana


Sri Narada says:

1. With head bowed, let me unceasingly worship in my mind the god Vinayaka, the son of Gauri, the refuge of his devotees, for the complete attainment of longevity, amorous desires and wealth.

2. Firstly, as the one with the twisted trunk. Secondly, as the one with the single tusk. Thirdly, as the one with the fawn colored eyes. Fourthly, as the one with the elephants mouth,

3. Fifthly, as the pot-bellied one, Sixthly, as the monstrous one, Seventhly, as the king of obstacles, Eighthly, as the smoke colored one

4. Ninethly, as the moon crested one, Tenthly, as the remover of hindrances, Eleventhly, as the Lord of the hordes, Twelfthly, as the one with the elephants face.

5. Whosoever repeats these twelve names at dawn, noon and sunset, for him there is no fear of failure, nay, there is constant good fortune.

6. He who desires knowledge obtains knowledge. He who desires sons gets sons. He who desires salvation obtains the way.

7. Whosoever mutters the hymn to Ganapati reaches his aim in six months, and in a year reaches perfection, on this point there is no doubt.

8. Whosoever makes eight copies of it, and has them distributed to as many brahmans, he reaches knowledge instantaneously, by the grace of Ganesh.

Anonymous said...

Sri Jaiva-dharma (The Universal Religion)

HDG Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur

Babaji: In the Katha Upanisad (2.2.13) it is said:

"Only saintly persons who can see, within and without, the same Supreme Lord, can actually attain to perfect and eternal peace."

Vrajanatha: They who can see the Supreme Lord within their hearts attain eternal peace. However, what method should one adopt to see the Lord in this way? That's what I would like to see. That's what I don't understand.

Babaji: In the Katha Upanisad (1.2.23) it is also said:

"The Supreme Lord is not attained by expert explanations, by vast intelligence, nor even by much hearing. He is attained only by one who He Himself chooses. To such a person He manifests His own form."*

In Srimad Bhagavatam (10.14.28) it is said:

"My Lord, if one is favoured by even a slight trace of the mercy of Your lotus feet, he can understand the greatness of Your personality. But those who speculate in order to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead are unable to know You, even though they continue to study the Vedas for many years."*

O baba, our Lord is very merciful. The Lord of our hearts is Sri Krsna. Simply by studying and understanding the scriptures one does not attain Him. Simply by being very intelligent or studying from many teachers one does not attain Him. Only to one who says, "Krsna is my Lord," does Lord Krsna mercifully reveal His eternal spiritual form of knowledge and bliss. Think about this and you will easily understand it.

Vrajanatha: Is anything written in the Vedas about Lord Krsna's spiritual abode?

Babaji: It is described in many places. In some places it is called 'para-vyoma' (the spiritual sky), in other places 'samvyoma' (the great sky), in other places 'brahma-gopala-puri' (the city of Lord Gopala), and in other places 'gokula' (the world of the surabhi cows). It is described in these words of the Svetasvatara Upanisad (4.8):

"In the eternal spiritual sky the demigods and the Vedic hymns serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. What will he who does not know Him do with the Vedic hymns? They who know Him have attained the goal of life."

Anonymous said...

Vrajanatha: Tantrika brahmanas say that the potency of Lord Siva is the 'adya sakti' (original potency). Why do they say that?

Babaji: The potency of Lord Siva is the maya-sakti. From maya the three material modes: goodness, passion and ignorance are manifested. The brahmanas are in the mode of goodness. They purely worship Goddess Maya, who is the origin of material goodness. They who are in the mode of passion worship Goddess Maya as the mother of the mode of passion. They who have taken shelter of the mode of ignorance worship Maya as Goddess Vidya, the controller of the mode of blinding darkness. In truth, Maya is a transformation of the potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Maya is not a separate potency. Maya is a shadow or a reflection of the Supreme Lord's original spiritual potency. Maya imprisons the conditioned souls and she also sets them free. Persons averse to Lord Krsna she imprisons in the material world and punishes. Persons who are favourably inclined to Lord Krsna she places in the mode of goodness and gives knowledge of Lord Krsna. Persons shackled and imprisoned by Maya cannot see that Maya herself is a reflection of the Supreme Lord's original potency. It is these persons who claim that Maya is the 'adya sakti' (original potency). A person bewildered by Maya may reach the right conclusion if he has performed many pious deeds. One who has not performed pious deeds will not.

Vrajanatha: Among the servants of Lord Krsna in Gokula is mentioned someone named "Durga-devi". Who is that "Durga"?

Babaji: She is Yogamaya. She is the seed that grows into the changed forms accepted by the cit-sakti (spiritual potency). She stays in the spiritual world, and there she is considered identical with the Lord's internal potency. It is by her power that the Lord's spiritual potency is reflected as the material potency maya. The Durga of the material world is a maidservant of her, Yogamaya, who is the Durga of the spiritual world. This spiritual Durga assists in Lord Krsna's spiritual pastimes. Manifested as Yogamaya, in the spiritual world she makes the nectar of Lord Krsna's pastimes by convincing the gopis that they are married to others and Krsna is their paramour (parakiya-bhava). She also arranges for the Lord's rasa-lila pastimes. This is described in these words of Srimad Bhagavatam (10.29.10):

"Taking shelter of His Yogamaya potency, Lord Krsna enjoyed the rasa dance."

Pratyatosa Dasa said...

Anonymous said: "This line of guru-parampara is existing up to today without any break and it will continue to exist like this in the future also. To say, 'There is no sad-guru living in the world at present and neither will there be any in the future', is an atheistic opinion."

... and attributes the quote to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada. This quote was copy/pasted from a book called "True Conception of Sri Guru Tattva." According to:

http://www.purebhakti.com/events/bhakti-news-mainmenu-65/624-the-true-conception-of-sri-guru-tattva.html

... "True Conception of Sri Guru Tattva" was written by BV Narayana Maharaja, who is infamous for writing/speaking offensive nonsense.

It's common knowledge that there are huge gaps in the disciplic succession.

Anonymous said...

Sri Jaiva-dharma (The Universal Religion)
by HDG Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur

This day Vrajanatha came a little too early to Srivasa's courtyard. The devotees living in Sri Godruma had come to Srivasa's courtyard to see the evening arati. Paramahamsa Babaji Sri Prema dasa, Vaisnava dasa, Advaita dasa and all the other devotees had already entered the temple to see the arati. Seeing the residents of Sri Godruma, Vrajanatha thought, "Now I have their association. My life is now a great success."

Seeing humble, devoted, smiling Vrajanatha, everyone gave him their blessings. When after a short time they left, going south to return to Sri Godruma, the saintly elderly babaji noticed that tears were streaming from Vrajanatha's eyes. Saintly Raghunatha dasa Babaji had by this time developed strong affection for Vrajanatha. He asked Vrajanatha, "Baba, why are you weeping?" Vrajanatha humbly replied, "O master, your teachings and association has brought an upheaval in my thoughts. Now my heart understands how worthless the material world is. My heart yearns to take shelter of Lord Gaura's feet. In my mind there is one question: Who am I in reality, and why do I live in the material world?

Babaji: Good. With this question you have made me fortunate. When his auspicious day comes, a soul places this question before all others. When you hear the fifth verse of Dasa-mula and its explanation, doubts will no longer live in your heart.

"As sparks fly from a blazing fire, or rays of light fly from the sun, so the individual spirit souls come from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Hari. As the sparks and rays of light are at once different and not different from their source, so the individual souls are different and not different from Lord Hari. Lord Hari is the supreme controller. He is the master of the material world. The illusory potency maya is under His control. The individual soul is not like Him. Even when he is liberated, the soul is capable of coming under maya's control."

Vrajanatha: That is a wonderful conclusion! I wish to hear the evidence the Vedas give for it. The words of the Supreme Lord (Bhagavad-gita) are worthy evidence by themselves. However, when they are supported by the words of the Upanisads, they are more easily accepted by the people in general.

Babaji: These truths are revealed in many passages of the Vedas. I will recite one or two of them. Please listen carefully. In the Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad (2.2.20 and 4.3.9) it is said:

"As tiny sparks fly from a fire, so all individual souls have come from the Supreme."

"A person has two places: the spiritual world and the place where the spiritual world meets another world. There is also a third place, a place of dreams. Standing between them, the soul sees on one side the spiritual world and on the other side the place of dreaming."

Anonymous said...

Sri Jaiva-dharma (The Universal Religion)

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur

The word 'maya' refers to the potency of Lord Krsna that manifests the spiritual world, the individual spirit souls, and the material world. Understood in this way, the word 'maya' refers to the Lord's internal potency (svarupa-sakti), not to His material potency. Lord Krsna is the master of this maya potency. The individual spirit souls are under the control of the maya potency. This is described in the following words of the Svetasvatara Upanisad (4.9-10):

"It is very difficult for the conditioned soul, illusioned by maya and trapped in the material world, to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the controller of the illusory potency and the creator of the material universes.*

"One should know that although maya (illusion) is false or temporary, the background of maya is the supreme magician, the Personality of Godhead, who is Mahesvara, the Supreme Controller."*

In these verses the word 'mayi' refers to Lord Krsna, the controller of maya, and the word 'prakrti' refers to His complete potency. This glorious quality (being the controller of maya) belongs to the Supreme Personality of Godhead alone. The individual souls do not possess it. Even the liberated souls cannot attain this quality. In the Vedanta-sutra (4.4.17) it is said:

"Even after he attains liberation, the individual soul does not have the power to create the material world."

Therefore the conclusion of Vedanta-sutra is that the individual souls are eternally different from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The circle of the wise accept this conclusion. This eternal difference is not an imagination. It is eternally real. The difference between the soul and the Lord will never be destroyed. Therefore you should know that the statement "The individual spirit soul is eternally a servant of Lord Krsna" is one of the most important teachings of the scriptures.

Anonymous said...

Vrajanatha: If they are eternally different, then how are they not different? Should we accept the idea that when he attains nirvana, the soul becomes one with the Supreme?

Babaji: Baba, it is not like that. At no time does the individual soul become non-different from the Supreme. Vrajanatha: Then why do you say that the soul is simultaneously one and different from the Lord?

Babaji: In the sense that they are both spiritual in nature, Lord Krsna and the individual soul are eternally not different. Otherwise, their natures are eternally different. Their oneness is eternal and their difference is also eternal. Their oneness does not refer to the other qualities of their natures. In other qualities their difference is more prominent. Therefore, if one says that a house is simultaneously "the property of Devadatta" and "without Devadatta's presence", then even though Devadatta may be absent, the idea that it remains his property is the more important of the two ideas. Now I will give another material example. The sky is a material thing. If some portion of the sky is contained within a clay pot, the existence of the great sky outside the pot remains more important than the sky within the pot. In the same way the eternal difference between the Supreme Lord and the individual spirit soul is more important than their oneness.

Vrajanatha: Please describe the soul's eternal nature more clearly.

Babaji: The individual spirit soul is an atomic fragment of consciousness. He has knowledge. He has ego, or a sense of self, and he calls himself by the word "I". He is an enjoyer, and thinker, and a knower. The soul has an eternal form. That form is spiritual and subtle. That form has hands, feet, eyes, nose, ears, and other limbs, all handsome and graceful, superficially like the limbs of an ordinary material body. That body is made of a spiritual atom. It is very handsome. It is spiritual. That is the eternal form of the individual spirit soul. When the soul is imprisoned by Maya, the soul's original spiritual body is covered by two material bodies. One of these bodies is called 'linga-sarira" (the subtle body) and the other is called 'sthula-sarira' (the gross body). The linga-sarira covers the atomic spiritual form of the individual spirit soul. From the time the soul is first imprisoned in the material world until the time he is released, the linga-sarira cannot be removed. When the soul takes birth in another body, he enters a different sthula-sarira (gross body). He does not enter a different linga-sarira. He keeps the same linga-sarira. The linga-sarira is one. On the other hand, the soul periodically leaves one sthula-sarira and, impelled by his material desires, accepts another sthula-sarira.

Anonymous said...

Seattle, October 14, 1968:

Prabhupāda: In a different way, in varied ways, Kṛṣṇa is trying to make us understand the constitutional position of the soul. Yes.

Viṣṇujana: Transference of the atomic individual soul to another body is made possible by the grace of the Supersoul(Paramatman). The Supersoul fulfills the desire of the soul as one friend fulfills the desire of another.

Prabhupada: There is statement that two birds are sitting on the same tree. The tree is compared, the body is compared with the tree. And two birds, namely the Supersoul, Kṛṣṇa, and the living entity, individual soul, they are sitting together. And one is eating the fruit of the tree and the other is simply witnessing. This is our position. The other friendly bird, Kṛṣṇa or Supersoul, is giving us opportunity to act with this body as I like. He’s giving us opportunity. Kṣetra-jña. I am the proprietor of this body. I have been allowed to utilize this body as I like. And the facility is given by the Supersoul.

So if I like, I can utilize this body for higher grade of life. Kṛṣṇa will give us all facilities. And if I like, I can utilize this body for lower grade of life. Kṛṣṇa will give us facilities. So He’s always friendly. And He gives us also friendly advice, that “Don’t act independently. Just act in Kṛṣṇa consciousness under Me. Then you’ll be happy.” That is His actual instruction. But the living entity does not care for the instruction of the Supersoul. He wants to act independently, and he has to suffer the consequence. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā in the Fourth Chapter.

Anonymous said...

Sri Jaiva-dharma
(The Universal Religion)

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur

After he had heard the Dasa-mula's teachings about the individual spirit soul, Vrajanatha lay in his bed in his own home and deeply thought, "Who am I?" that question was answered. Now I know who I am. I am an atomic particle of light shining from the spiritual sun of Lord Krsna. I am atomic in size, and therefore I possess consciousness, a spiritual identity, and a single drop of spiritual bliss. I have a form made of a tiny fragment of spirit. I am very tiny and my form is somewhat like the moderately sized form of Lord Krsna. I cannot see my spiritual form. That is my misfortune. That I am now very eager to see this spiritual form means that now I have become fortunate.

"Now the Lord will take me from this material life."

He went to the family shrine of Goddess Durga. His students came, fell at his feet, and requested, "We have come to study logic. Please teach us the book Kusumanjali. That is our wish."

Vrajanatha humbly replied, "Like Nimai Pandita, I too have closed my books. I have made my mind place its gaze on a different path. Please find another teacher."

At sunset Vrajanatha approached the elderly babaji's cottages. He offered dandavat obeisances. The saintly babaji said, "Last night it rained, so you could not come. Now I am very glad to see you." Vrajanatha replied, "O master, many calamities have fallen upon me. Later I will tell you about them. For now I will ask this question: The individual soul is pure spirit. Why does the calamity of residing in the material world fall upon him?" The saintly babaji smiled and recited this verse:

"Covering them with gross and subtle material forms, chaining them with the modes of nature, and pulling them with the painful ropes of karma, Maya leads to Svargaloka and to hell the criminal souls who, forgetting their own spiritual welfare, have turned from Krsna and become intent on their own happiness."

Anonymous said...

Detroit, August 3, 1975

"So very simple thing. Don't think I have played something wonder. No, it is not my wonder. The process is wonderful, the process itself. You have to simply accept; then your life will be successful. It is not that "Bhaktivedanta Swami has brought this." They say. They give me the credit. That is my good fortune also. But actually I am just like a peon. I have brought, but I am delivering it without any adulteration. That may be my credit. And if you take it without any adulteration and practice it, then your life is successful. This is the secret of success. Chant, dance, take prasadam, live very happily, and look very brilliant, and next life go to home, back to Godhead."

Anonymous said...

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is 10.1

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
bhūya eva mahā-bāho
śṛṇu me paramaḿ vacaḥ
yat te 'haḿ prīyamāṇāya
vakṣyāmi hita-kāmyayā

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Listen again, O mighty-armed Arjuna. Because you are My dear friend, for your benefit I shall speak to you further, giving knowledge that is better than what I have already explained.

PURPORT

The word bhagavān is explained thus by Parāśara Muni: one who is full in six opulences, who has full strength, full fame, wealth, knowledge, beauty and renunciation, is Bhagavān, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. While Kṛṣṇa was present on this earth, He displayed all six opulences. Therefore great sages like Parāśara Muni have all accepted Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Now Kṛṣṇa is instructing Arjuna in more confidential knowledge of His opulences and His work. Previously, beginning with the Seventh Chapter, the Lord has already explained His different energies and how they are acting. Now in this chapter He explains His specific opulences to Arjuna. In the previous chapter He has clearly explained His different energies to establish devotion in firm conviction. Again in this chapter He tells Arjuna about His manifestations and various opulences.

The more one hears about the Supreme God, the more one becomes fixed in devotional service. One should always hear about the Lord in the association of devotees; that will enhance one's devotional service. Discourses in the society of devotees can take place only among those who are really anxious to be in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Others cannot take part in such discourses. The Lord clearly tells Arjuna that because Arjuna is very dear to Him, for his benefit such discourses are taking place.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

Here is God; we give His name, address, phone number, everything. Simply qualify yourself to go there by thinking of Him. By thinking of Him you will become the greatest yogi, for Krsna is the goal of all mystic yoga—Yogesvara.

You cannot serve Krsna with these blunt material senses. Krsna cannot be served with matter—only with spirit.

There are so many impediments to worshiping the demigods, but there is no impediment to worshiping Krsna. You simply have to offer Him love. In the material world people are always speaking about love, but there is no love in the material world. People are simply under the control of lust and are trying to satisfy their senses. But love is different.

Love is the satisfaction of Krsna’s senses.”

Steve said...

So simple, yet so profound.

Practice, practice, practice.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

"I was alone, I was thinking, who will listen to me? I shall stay little longer, at least I can distribute a few books. But Krishna was all along preparing something I could not see. Now I can see that it is a miracle."

(Letter to Sudama, December 23, 1972)

est said...

-
so i went

and asked him, myself

who am i, why am i here ?

you never left he said

you have always been here

and you always will be

you just don't know

who you really are

well who am i really

you are me

and you always will be

and who are you, i asked

i am you

when we recognize each other
in ourselves > we meet god

when we recognize ourselves
in each-other> god meets us
-
throw in krishna, for god ^

Anonymous said...

Prithvi, the Earth Mother

Prithvi is one of several Sanskrit names for the Earth Mother, more commonly known as Mother Bhumi Devi. Prithvi is the personification of the Earth, and is therefore also known as Prithivi Tattwa, the essence of the element earth. Prithvi is also called Dhra, Dharti, or Dhrithri, meaning 'that which holds everything'.

As Prithvi Devi, she is one of two wives of Lord Vishnu, His other wife being Lakshmi Devi (Sridevi).

Prithvi, or Mother Bhumi, is associated with the cow. Prithu, an incarnation of Vishnu, milked her in the cow's form to get food from her. Prithvi also appears in Early Buddhism, where she is mentioned in the Pali Canon, dispelling the temptation figure Mara by attesting to Gautama Buddha's worthiness to attain enlightenment.[1] In art, she is typically represented as a woman with four arms and a green complexion.

Mother Bhumi is also understood to be the consort of Lord Varaha.

She is also the mother of Sita, so it is not surprising that baby Sita was found in a ploughed field. According to the Uttara-kanda, when Sita finally leaves her husband Rama, she returns to Bhumi.

Mother Bhumi is often depicted in votive statuary, seated on a square platform which rests on the back of four elephants, who represent the four corners of the world. When depicted with four arms, the paraphernalia she holds are a pomegranate, a water vessel, a bowl containing healing herbs, and another containing vegetables. .[3] When shown with two arms, she holds a blue lotus known as Komud or Uttpal, the night lotus, in the right hand. [4] The left hand may be in the Abhaya Mudra (fearlessness), or the Lolahasta Mudra, which is an aesthetic pose meant to mimic the tail of a cow.

Anonymous said...

NITAI DASA..

Because of our conditioning, we cannot see how Radha and Krsna, with Their associates, are always performing Their pastimes in Vrindavana.

Less than 500 years ago, a great devotee, Krishnadas found an ankle bracelet in a kunja under a tree in Vrindavana. He knew immediately that this anklet was special and not off this world. He went into ecstasy just by touching it. The next day, he saw an old women looking for something around the same spot where he found the bracelet. She told him that the previous night, someone had lost an ankle bracelet and she was looking for it. Lalita devi, who appeared as this old lady, is one of the main sakhis and the closest associate of Srimati Radharani. Upon inquiry from Krishnadas and because he was a pure devotee, she told him that the previous night, Radha, Krsna and the Gopis were enjoying their rasa-lila dance and Radharani lost her anklet. The old lady then revealed her original form as Lalita to Krishnadas.

We do not have eyes to see how Radha and Krsna are always having pastimes in Vrindavan. The externals are only visible to us.

So not just 5,000 years ago, even 500 years ago and now and always, Radha, Krsna and their associates are performing their pastimes in Vrindavana but we do not have eyes to see.

Prolonged stay in the Holy Dhama causes us to only see the open drains, trash, stool, so-called uncivilized people – and we criticise based on our Western conditioning and standards. To avoid offences, unqualified devotees should not stay more than a week in Vrindavana. As one advances, Vrindavana reveals itself gradually and one begins to experience the sweetness – then the externals do not matter.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

So our scientific advancement has created this atomic bomb to kill man, and it will be used. And we have to go underground to become again rat. From tiger, again rat. That is going to be.

There is a very nice story. One rat, he was troubled with cat. So he came to a saintly person: "My dear sir, I am very much troubled." "What is the difficulty?" The rat said, "The cat always chases. So I'm not in peace of mind." "Then what do you want?" "Please make me a cat." "All right, you become a cat." After few days, the same cat again came to the saintly person, says, "My dear sir, I am again in trouble." "What is that?" "The dogs are chasing me." "Then what do you want?" "Make me a dog." "All right, you become a dog." Then after few days, again he comes. He says, "I am again in trouble, sir." "What is that?" "The foxes are chasing me." "Then what do you want?" "To become a fox." "All right, you become a fox." Then again he comes. He says, "Oh, tigers are chasing me." "Then what do you want?" "I want to become a tiger." "All right, you become a tiger." And when he became a tiger, he began to stare his eyes on the saintly person: "I shall eat you." "Oh, you shall eat me? I have made you tiger, and you want to eat me?" "Yes, I am tiger. I shall eat you." Oh, then he cursed him, "Again you become a rat. Again you become a rat." So he became a rat.
So our human civilization is going to be like that. The other day I was reading in your--what is called?--World Almanac. In the next hundred years people will live underground like rats. So our scientific advancement has created this atomic bomb to kill man, and it will be used. And we have to go underground to become again rat. From tiger, again rat. That is going to be. That is nature's law. Daivi hy esa gunamayi mama maya duratyaya. If you defy the laws of your state and you are put into difficulty, similarly if you continue to defy the authority, the supremacy of the Supreme Lord, Personality of Godhead, then the same result: again you become rat. As soon as there is atomic bomb, everything, all civilization on the surface of the globe will be finished. So people may not like it. It may be very unpalatable, but the fact is like that. Satyam bruyat priyam bruyat ma bruyat satyam abruyat. It is social convention that if you want to speak truth, you speak truth very palatable, flattering. Don't speak unpalatable truth. But we are not meant for that purpose, social convention. We are preacher, we are servant of God. We must speak the real truth. You may like it or may not like it, that a godless civilization cannot be happy in any stage.

That is a fact.

Anonymous said...

by Goswami Abhay Charan Bhaktivedanta..

Adore thy feet my Master
And those who are devotees.
Rupa with elder and the other
Jiva Adwaita with societies.
Krishna Chaitanya is my Lord
Radha Krishna and Lalita accord.
Vishaka is there in the midst.
That's my prayer in the gist.

(2)

I wish my eyes flow in tears
As my heart Gauranga it hears
Hari thy name could I say
Nitaichand thy blessings may
Curb my desire to Lord it over,
Let my body in ecstacy shiver
Let my mind freed of matter
May I see Vrindaban scatter
May I know what Rupa is
Who unfolds to me the loving pair
Let my mind fixed up in them
Narottam shall not be in despair.

(3)

Glory to Radha and Krishna in Vrindaban
Equally to Govinda Gopinath and Madanmohan.
Shyamkunda Radhakunda hilly Goverdhan
Kalindi Jamuna river and forest Mahaban.
Keshighat Bansibat and dozens of garden
The places of pastimes by Nanda's son
Glory to Nanda Yasoda and cowherdsmen
Sridam and friends who follow amen.
Glory to Vrisvanu his wife beautiful
Glory to the fullmoon and the town of bull.
Glory to Gopiswar at Vrindaban fixed
Glory to the Brahmin who Krishna mixed.
Glory to Ramghat and Rohini's son
Glory to all who reside Vrindaban.
Glory to the Brahmin's wife and marmaid
Who in devotional service respects paid.
Glory to the arena where dance performed
Radha and Shyama who bamper stormed.
Glory to the zest of excellent mellow.
Paramourous feeling in-trance of kilo.
It's Krishnadas poet who chants
Lotus feet of Jahnava he remembers.

Anonymous said...

Treatment of mind means controlling the senses. Yoga indriya-samyamaḥ. Mind is the leader of the senses. So if the treatment of the mind is done properly, then the senses work properly.

Room Coversation with Psychiatrist and Indian Boy -- May 12, 1975, Perth:

Devotee: Śrīla Prabhupāda, does the soul, the ghost, enter into the other man's body? The soul is occupying one body, and the ghost, as another soul, does he enter that body? There's two souls in the one body?

Prabhupāda: Not exactly enters, but he catches the body. But because the ghost has no gross body—he has got his subtle body, mind, intelligence, and ego—you cannot see him, how he has attacked that body. You cannot see the body of mind, intelligence. You know I have got my mind; I know you have got your mind. But you do not see my mind; I do not see your mind. So ghost is within the subtle body: mind, intelligence, and ego. So with that subtle body, he attacks the man, but you cannot see. He does not enter into him. The enter is the soul within the body. Therefore sometimes ghost is walking in the room. We cannot see. But he takes away something. We see that the thing is going away. (laughter) Because you cannot see his gross body. And because he hasn't got gross body, he can move very swiftly. Now he is here; he can go ten miles away immediately. But there is ghost. And they attack specially woman.

Paramahaṁsa: Is that because the women are weaker?

Prabhupāda: No. Woman is attractive for any man, even in ghostly life. The other day, who was telling that a big poet of India, he said that "God's most wonderful creation is woman's body"?

Śrutakīrti: I think Brahmānanda Mahārāja mentioned? Acyutānanda.

Prabhupāda: So, everyone is attracted with the woman's body. In your country I have seen the advertisement: "bottomless," "topless..." That is the material attraction. Everyone is in this material world on account of attachment. And similarly, for woman, the man's body is beautiful. So in this way both of them are attached to one another. That is the basic principle of material life. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham kaṇḍūyanena karayor iva duḥkha-duḥkham (SB 7.9.45). They become attached. On account of sex life, they become more attached, and therefore both of them remain almost perpetually in this material world, and to satisfy different desires they transmigrate from one body to another. And on account of accepting this material body, there is always miserable condition. Therefore everyone requires the psychiatric treatment so that the mind may be transferred from matter to spirit soul. Then he will be cured. The disease is of the mind. Harāv abhaktasy kuto mahād-guṇa mano-rathena. Everyone is riding on the chariot of mind. And the mind is taking him here and there, here... And the yoga practice is also treatment. This is also yoga, bhakti-yoga, and this ordinary haṭha-yoga, that is also treatment of the mind. Treatment of mind means controlling the senses. Yoga indriya-samyamaḥ. Mind is the leader of the senses. So if the treatment of the mind is done properly, then the senses work properly. The example is the madman. Because the madman's mind is not controlled, he is acting in a way—people say, "Here is a madman." So everyone is more or less a madman in this material world, or, in other words, you can say anyone who is in the material world, he is a madman. He requires treatment.

Anonymous said...

This treatment is in the beginning just cleansing the mirror of the heart. That is the treatment. Just like a mirror, when it is overcast with dust, it requires cleansing. So the mental mirror is covered with material dust. So it has to be cleansed. That is the treatment. And when it is cleansed, you can see your real face in the mirror. Similarly, as soon as our heart disease, contaminated by the modes of material nature, is cleansed, you can understand what is your real position. That is the success of psychiatric treatment. One comes to know, "What I am." Ahaṁ brahmāsmi: "I am spirit soul; I am not this body." That is called brahma-bhūtaḥ stage. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54). He becomes immediately happy. And happiness means na śocati na kāṅkṣati: "He does not lament, neither he desires." Our present disease is we hanker after things which we do not possess, and when that thing is lost, we lament. So hankering and lamenting. So when one is cleansed in the heart, he has no more hankering or desire. This is the symptom.

Anonymous said...

Equality in Krsna Consciousness

BY: SHYAMASUNDARA DASA

Jan 19, 2013 — INDIA (SUN)

"We give Krishna consciousness both to the man and to the woman equally. We do not make any such distinction. But to protect them from exploitation by man, we teach something that 'You do like this. You do like that. You be married. Be settled up. Don't wander independently.' We teach them like that. But so far KC is concerned, we equally distribute. There is no such thing that 'Oh you are woman less intelligent or more intelligent therefore you cannot come.' we don't say that. We welcome women, men, poor, rich, everyone, because in that platform equality. We don't refuse anyone. That is equality.

We do not say that because you are less intelligent women that you cannot come and engage in devotional service. But, we do have separate roles for the men and the women. Both are engaged in service, but different duties in society are still there. "

(Srila Prabhupada Room Conversation, Philadelphia, July 1975)

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

"By the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead there are mahatmas even amongst the birds, even amongst the beasts, even amongst the lower than animals. Because this Krsna consciousness movement is going on in different places, in different circumstances."

Anonymous said...

"Up to 50 percent of all food on Earth left uneaten"

Srila Prabhupada..

So this theory, that there is a shortage of food or overpopulation, we do not accept it. God is so powerful that He can feed everyone without any difficulty. Simply we are mismanaging.

So this is devotee’s willing. Kṛṣṇa accepts everyone’s devotional service if it is offered with love and affection. He says in the Bhagavad-gītā, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati. Kṛṣṇa said “Anyone who offers Me a little flower, a little water, a little fruit, with love and affection, I eat them, I accept them.” So if something offered by you to Kṛṣṇa is accepted by Him, then you should know that your life is successful. So there is no question of offering God so many things very gorgeously prepared, but you can offer a little flower, a little fruit and little water with love and affection. That means even the poorest man in the world can worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead. There is no hindrance.

Devotional service cannot be checked by any material condition. If anyone wants to worship God, he can do in any condition of life. There is no restriction. There is no restriction of cast and creed or country or nation. Anyone can worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead according to his means, and our, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a propagation to teach people how to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is our mission, because without relationship with God, without reviving our eternal affinity with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we cannot be happy.

est said...

-
if i may

when arjuna did not want to take up battle against/with his peers and kin

krishna said to him,
-ha no one dies-what you are-never dies

what you should seek, is the death of attachment, forthwith

so in this context, we must let go of absolutely - everything

then, with our arms free we can
embrace eternity-yes, as one
-

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

You simply try to awaken your Kṛṣṇa consciousness, which was impossible in other living conditions. Either going to the heaven planet or going to the hell planet or becoming Brahmā or ant... Do not try for all these elevations. Simply try for awakening your Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then why so many people are trying for happiness? The answer is: tal labhyate duḥkhavad anyataḥ sukhaṁ kālena sarvatra gabhīra-raṁhasā. Nobody tries for distress, but distress comes; similarly, even if you do not try for your happiness, if you are destined, happiness will come. But if you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is simply happiness. There is no more distress. If we become steadily situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then it is simply happiness.

Anonymous said...

via Homer..

est, here is an instruction on the real and eternal attachment/desire component.

Srila Prabhupada..

Yes, material life is a projection of the material will, or material desire.

The living entity cannot be desireless, because he is an eternal spiritual being. Thus, even when he finishes his material desires, he still has spiritual desires. In the materially conditioned state, these spiritual desires are covered by material desires, but in any case desire is the constant companion of the soul, or living entity.

Hayagriva dasa: What about the Buddhists? They advocate a state of desirelessness.

Srila Prabhupada: They believe that if you dismantle this material body, there will no longer be will, desire, or suffering. But this is not a fact. The fact is that you are an eternal spirit soul; you do not die after the destruction of the body. Consequently, thinking, feeling, and willing are actually carried from this body to another body in the process of transmigration. When the body dies, the living entity's will carries him away, and according to the quality of his will, he receives another body. That body may be the body of a demigod, a dog, a human, or whatever. In any case, will or desire is the carrier.

Hayagriva dasa: Then will, or desire, can never be annihilated?

Prabhupada: No, not even for a second. It is stated in the Bhagavad-gita [3.5] that we cannot live for a second without desires. Because we are living, we must will and desire.

It is the individual soul who is willing. If the soul succeeds in stopping this flickering willing, what next? Even the stopping of the will is temporary. You may stop one kind of willing, but you will adopt another kind of willing and another kind of satisfaction.

We must understand that behind the whimsical will is the spirit soul. When that spirit soul understands his real identification as the eternal servant of Krsna, his will is purified. One should not be satisfied by simply annihilating the whimsical will. One should understand the real will of the real person. That is the beginning of spiritual life.


"Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be.."


backtogodhead.in/nirvana-annihilation-or-devotion/

Anonymous said...

via Homer..

est, remember also Krishna told Arjuna - "you are acting ignobally, in an unAryan manner."

After the Bhagavad Gita was sung by the Lord, Krishna said to Arjuna - "now you choose."

This is Vedanta; end of Veda. Conclusion of Vedas. Surrender to God.

"Now you choose." Same for you or me or Jesus or Brahma or Satan.

Absolutely the same.

est said...

-
yes homer

here we come to the contrast
between krishna and buddha

devotion equals surrender
selfless service and sacrifice

the self dissolves in the totality
everything folds into it-self


on the other hand there is no
individual self, only emptiness

there is no separate self, nor can there be, in any manner

in other words [mine], we are
not popping into other bodies

what we really are is awareness
and this life is our one chance

how do you escape the circle
of life and death coming and going ?

only by realizing what we really are [again] then the cycle ends

i believe we are the living light
in a much too dark, world

i am no sage from india
i am a thinking, feeling man

i have done my search and research and this is who i am
-
and i ain't coming back, in any
way shape fashion or form
est

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

Guru is One

One may ask whether the guru is absolutely necessary. The Vedas inform us that he is:

tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet
samit-panih srotriyam brahma-nistham
(Mundaka Up. 1.2.12)

The Vedas enjoin us to seek out a guru; actually, they say to seek out the guru, not just a guru. The guru is one because he comes in disciplic succession. What Vyasadeva and Krsna taught 5,000 years ago is also being taught now. There is no difference between the two instructions. Although hundreds and thousands of acaryas have come and gone, the message is one. The real guru cannot be two because the real guru does not speak differently from his predecessors.

Some spiritual teachers say, "In my opinion you should do this," but this is not a guru. Such so-called gurus are simply rascals. The genuine guru has only one opinion, and that is the opinion expressed by Krsna, Vyasadeva, Narada, Arjuna, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and the Gosvamis. Five thousand years ago Lord Sri Krsna spoke Bhagavad-gita, and Vyasadeva recorded it.

Srila Vyasadeva did not say, "This is my opinion." Rather, he wrote, sri bhagavan uvaca, that is, "The Supreme Personality of Godhead says." Whatever Vyasadeva wrote was originally spoken by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Srila Vyasadeva did not give his own opinion.

Consequently, Srila Vyasadeva is a guru. He does not misinterpret the words of Krsna but transmits them exactly as they were spoken.

If we send a telegram, the person who delivers the telegram does not have to correct it, edit it or add to it. He simply presents it. That is the guru's business. The guru may be this person or that, but the message is the same; therefore it is said that guru is one.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

In the disciplic succession we simply find repetition of the same subject. In Bhagavad-gita Sri Krsna says:

man-mana bhava mad-bhakto / mad-yaji mam namaskuru
mam evaisyasi yuktvaivam / atmanam mat-parayanah

"Engage your mind always in thinking of Me, become My devotee, offer obeisances and worship Me. Being completely absorbed in Me, surely you will come to Me."

These very instructions were reiterated by all the acaryas—Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya and Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The six Gosvamis also transmitted the same message, and we are simply following in their footsteps. There is no difference. We do not interpret the words of Krsna by saying, "In my opinion, the Battlefield of Kuruksetra represents the human body."

Such interpretations are set forth by rascals. In the world there are many rascal gurus who give their own opinion, but we can challenge any rascal. A rascal guru may say, "I am God," or, "We are all God." That is all right, but we should find out from the dictionary what the meaning of God is. Generally, a dictionary will tell us that the word God indicates the Supreme Being. Thus we may ask such a guru, "Are you the Supreme Being?" If he cannot understand this, then we should give the meaning of supreme. Any dictionary will inform us that supreme means "the greatest authority." We may then ask, "Are you the greatest authority?" Such a rascal guru, even though proclaiming himself to be God, cannot answer such a question. God is the Supreme Being and the highest authority. No one is equal to Him or greater than Him. Yet there are many guru Gods, many rascals who claim to be the Supreme. Such rascals cannot help us escape the darkness of material existence. They cannot illumine our darkness with the torchlight of spiritual knowledge.

The bona fide guru will simply present what the supreme guru, God, says in bona fide scripture. A guru cannot change the message of the disciplic succession.

In Bhagavad-gita Sri Krsna says:

evam parampara-praptam / imam rajarsayo viduh
sa kaleneha mahata / yogo nastah parantapa

"This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost." (Bg. 4.2)

Arjuna accepted his guru, Sri Krsna Himself:

karpanya-dosopahata svabhavah / prcchami tvam dharma-sammudha-cetah
yac chreyah syan niscitam bruhi tan me / sisyas te 'ham sadhi mam tvam prapannam

"Now I am confused about my duty and have lost all composure because of weakness. In this condition I am asking You to tell me clearly what is best for me. Now I am Your disciple and a soul surrendered unto You. Please instruct me." (Bg. 2.7)

This is the process for accepting a guru.

Anonymous said...

"Superficially we engage from four o'clock in the morning till ten o'clock at night, and that is resting time. But when one is advanced in devotional service, while sleeping he also serves Krsna. That means twenty-four hours, satatam."

(Lecture on Srimad Bhagavatam 5.5.24 -- Vrndavan, November 11, 1976)

Anonymous said...

"...and the function of the head can be fully utilized when the head is engaged in bowing down before the Lord and His representative."

(Krsna Book, Ch 80)

Anonymous said...

Prabhupāda: So today, the appearance day of Nityānanda Prabhu… Nityānanda Prabhu is Baladeva, Baladeva-tattva.

“Who was formerly the son of Nanda Mahārāja, He has appeared as the son of Śacīdevi.” Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s mother’s name was Śacīdevi. So Kṛṣṇa… Kṛṣṇa is Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and Balarāma is Nityānanda Prabhu.

So Balarāma… In the Vedic literature it is said, nāyam ātmā bala-hinena labhyaḥ; na bahunā śrutena. So bala means strength. Sometimes some rascal philosophers, they take it that bala means bodily strength. They propagate this philosophy that “Unless you are bodily stout and strong, you cannot achieve spiritual salvation. You must be very strong and stout and eat meat and fight, and then you’ll get next spiritual birth” No. This bala, this strength, is different. This is spiritual strength.

So if we want actually peace of mind, if we actually want to be free from this material fatiguement, then we must take the shelter of Nityānanda Prabhu.

The dog, from the childhood he’s searching after food, searching after food. And cannot get food. Unless a dog has got a master, he’s street dog and he’s always unhappy. So better to become a dog of Nityānanda Prabhu. Then we shall be happy. Instead of becoming dog of so many other people… Everyone is dog. Everyone is searching after to serve a master. But none of them are satisfied because that is false master. You take real master, Nityānanda Prabhu. You’ll be happy.

est said...

-
well yes homer
i read that and more

i would say that krishna
represents the emotional aspect

while buddha is more the
intuectual way [made that up]

whether these individuals lived
is not the point, for me

i am alive now, that i know
and what i am, will never die

in that way, i claim my existence

and vouchsafe all that came before
-

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

When we speak of Krsna, we mean God. Everyone has some vague idea of God, but no clear idea. Therefore God descends to show what He is. If we speculate on God, someone will think one thing and another person will think another. This is the result of speculation. But if God Himself comes and shows Himself as He is and speaks about Himself, that is perfect knowledge. This Krsna consciousness movement is spreading that message.

In Bhagavad-gita, God Himself is speaking about Himself: I am like this; My form is like this; My activities are like this; My address is this and that. If you like, you can come back to Me. There is no restriction-everyone can come to Me."

All this information is there in Bhagavad-gita, where God speaks about Himself and presents Himself as He is. We have simply to take that information; then we can understand Him. And when we understand God. Krsna, we can go back to Him. It is a very simple thing. Krsna says.

janma karma ca me divyam
evam yo vetti tattvatah
tyaktva deham punar janma
naiti mam eti so 'rjuna

"One who knows the transcendental nature of My .appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body. take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode. O Arjuna." [Bhagavad-gita 4.9]

Hare Krishna

Anonymous said...

Sri Brahma-samhita..

yam krodha-kama-sahaja-pranayadi-bhiti-
vatsalya-moha-guru-gaurava-sevya-bhavaihai
sanchintya tasya sadrishim tanum apurete
govindam adi-purusham tam aham bhajami

I adore the Primeval Lord Govinda, the meditators of Whom, by meditating upon Him under the sway of wrath, amorous passion, natural friendly love, fear, parental affection, delusion, reverence and willing service, attain to bodily forms befitting the nature of their contemplation.

Anonymous said...

Srila Prabhupada..

" . . . Everything is there. Satam prasangan.

From a bona fide spiritual master you receive knowledge, because he will present as he has received from his spiritual master.

He'll not adulterate or manufacture something. That is the bona fide spiritual master.

And that is very easy.

To become spiritual master is not very difficult thing.

You'll have to become spiritual master.

You, all my disciples, everyone should become spiritual master.

It is not difficult. It is difficult when you manufacture something.

But if you simply present whatever you have heard from your spiritual master, it is very easy.

If you want to become overintelligent, to present something, to interpret something, whatever over you have heard from spiritual master you can make some further addition, alteration, then you'll spoil whole thing.

Then you'll spoil whole thing.

Don't make addition or alteration.

Simply present as it is.

Therefore, we have begun Bhagavad-gita As It Is.

Don't try to become over spiritual master.

Then you'll spoil.

Remain always a servant of your spiritual master and present the thing as you have heard.

You'll be spiritual master.

This is secret.

You should know it.

Don't try to become overintelligent.

That will spoil . . ."

Anonymous said...

My Dear Saradia,
Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your recent letter and I have noted the contents with pleasure. Your kind thoughts which you expressed are very nice and encouraging to me. Also you have asked some intelligent questions and I am answering them here.
You have asked how Krishna is with the spirit soul in the spiritual world and the answer is that Krishna is the heart of the spirit soul, or spiritual body. So Krishna is never apart from us. Either He remains in the heart of the material body, or He remains in the heart of the spiritual body. This is Krishna’s Causeless Mercy to all of His beloved children, or living entities.
To answer your second question, you should know that Arjuna and Kunti Devi are not in Krishna Loka. They are eternally associated with Krishna only in the material world. Just like Krishna is always in the spiritual world, so similarly He is always in the material world and His Pastimes are going on there also.

In the material world, Krishna also has eternal associates, such as Arjuna and Kunti Devi. There is a difference between the body and soul of Arjuna and Kunti Devi. But although Arjuna is with Krishna in innumerable different material universes at one time, still there is only one spirit soul who is Arjuna.
This spirit soul expands into many different bodies and thus you can understand that there are also incarnations of devotees as well as incarnations of Krishna. This is the power of the spirit soul, that it is unlimited. Such conception cannot be understood while one is still in the conditioned state.
Regarding your third question, both incidents are correct. I hope these shall answer your questions. Please convey my blessings to Satsvarupa, Jadurani, Devananda, Rukmini and all others. Hope you are all well.
Your ever well-wisher,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Anonymous said...

Reason and Love

From 'The Temple of Jagannath at Puri' by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur, September 15, 1871.

"We do not mean to say that Reason is a foolish principle. On the contrary we do not find better admirers of Reason than our humble selves. We hold that man's superiority amongst all created beings consists in man's possessing the noble gift of Reason.

What we maintain is this, that independent of this noble principle there is another higher gift in man which goes by the name of Love. Reason helps Love to maintain its proper bounds in the Spiritual world. Love often tends to degrade itself by exercising its function on objects other then God and converts itself into lust for women, wine, meat and gold. Here Reason advises her to rise higher till she reaches her proper sphere above.

Thus we find that the object of Reason is to help Love and not to create it. Reason may be properly styled as the servant of Love and must always be subject to her in all her hopes, aspirations, and holy works.

The Rationalist on the contrary considers Reason as all and all! This is a degredation of humanity! The progressive Rationalist, on the other hand, believes in the principle of love, but attempts to make her the maid-servant of Reason! This is another error! He makes spiritual love sometimes a prisoner in the jails of Reason! Love wants to soar on her spiritual wings to a realm where the Jailor (Reason) cannot go and the latter is sure to tie up her wings for fear lest she goes to an unworthy place!

Love utters sounds of a spiritual character peculiar to herself, but Reason, having no pervious experience of it, mistakes it for a disease and administers medicine for her cure!! Thus it is that the natural strength of the Queen of our Soul is crippled by artificial administration of the dry principle of Reason and she rests in us as if a bird taken in a cage! Oh! What a havoc doth Reason commit by abuse of his power. Oh! Shame to the Rationalist! God help the man!!

Theist take care of those amongst you who mix with you only by assuming the name of Theist but are in fact Rationalists of a very dry character. They are divisible into two classes vis. the designing and the dupes. The designing Theist is he who is in fact a Rationalist but by assuming the name of Theist wants to degrade the sincere by his bad influence. He that calls himself a Theist in order to get rid of the name of Rationalist but still holds Love in subjection to Reason is a dupe because he is unable to find out his own position. The sincere Theist should however take care of both of them and preserve the sovereignty of Love over Reason and his comrades."

Anonymous said...

Ram Navami- The appearance day of Lord Ramachandra - 20th April 2013

So Ramacandra’s life, God’s activities, pastimes, if we hear, that means we are associating with Ramacandra. There is no difference between His form, His name, His pastimes, and Himself. He’s absolute. Therefore either you chant the holy name of Rama or you see the statue of Rama or you talk of His pastimes, transcendental pastimes, everything, that means you are associating with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So we take advantage of these days when the incarnation of God appears or disappears, and we try to associate with Him. By His association we become purified. Our process is purification. Krsna consciousness means simply we are purifying our consciousness.

Anonymous said...

What a information of un-ambiguity and preserveness of
precious experience about unexpected feelings.

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