Bhuta Bhavana dasa, London
Email: bhutabhavana@yahoo.co.uk

Bhuta Bhavana dasa joined ISKCON in 1996 in London, England. Since joining, he has engaged in a number of service activities and initiatives. His current services include giving regular classes at the Sri Sri Radha Londonisvara temple in London, providing training of all kinds for the Bhaktivedanta Manor communications team and the Pandava Sena Youth Mentorship, as well as hosting the media and guests at special events. He is also part of a marketing initiative for the university outreach preaching programs in the UK, and the creation of a training wing for Bhaktivedanta Manor to facilitate all of the training requirements of the temple and congregation. These are a small sample among various other innovative and dynamic initiatives he has, and is undertaking in pursuance of assisting the mission of Srila Prabhupada.

Over the last few years, Bhuta Bhavana dasa has been a motivation and leadership consultant, whilst actively partaking in multiple government, educational and social initiatives, adding value through leadership, motivation, meditation workshops and so on. He is a training provider by occupation, and specialises in skills relating to career and employability. He recently went to Canada and led a number of interactive workshops on "Bhakti Yoga", "Empowerment through Yoga and Meditation" "Leadership from Within" and "Stress Management", often working with university students and young professionals, along with the general public.

Bhuta Bhavana dasa has spent many years working as part of the Pandava Sena youth university presentation scene and is one of the most prolific speakers, trainers and mentors. A disciple of His Holiness Srila Bhakti Tirtha Maharaja, Bhuta Bhavana dasa touches the hearts of all that he meets; not only touching hearts, but changing them too. He is a graduate from the prestigious London School of Economics where he studied Philosophy and Economics. He then went on to obtain a Masters from Birkbeck University in Politics and Sociology and uses his external qualifications to present spiritual life in dynamic ways, relevant to a variety of audiences.

I am a little envious of the direct disciples of Srila Prabhupada, who are allowed to freely worship their Spiritual Master. What about all of us who do not have this privilege.

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Bhuta Bhavana dasa, London, email: bhutabhavana@yahoo.co.uk
Karuna Sindhu dasa, London, email: karuna.sindhu@pamho.net
Ramanrsimha dasa, London, email: ramanrsimha@hotmail.com
Akrura dasa, London, email: akrura@pamho.net

by Visvambhar

On August 18th, the first 24 Kirtan festival was held in New Vrndavan.

Hundreds of participants flocked from all corners of the east coast, driving as far as 15 hours, to attend this historical event. There are no hard and fast rules for chanting the holy names, no specific time or place is required, and so this festival was solely for the purpose of glorifying Krsna in the form of His holy names. No other festivities were scheduled, it wasn’t any specific holiday, just the ‘holy’ day of the holy names!

The author leading intensely

The program began at 8:30 am on Saturday 18th with Swasti Vacanam to invoke auspiciousness. And then from 9am the 18th, till 9am the 19th, it was: Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, nonstop!!! Sri Sri Radha VrndavanChandra seemed to be dancing in ecstacy as the devotees from New York (Ananta, Acyuta, Akincana Krsna, and Caitanyananda) inaugarated the first shift. Next was the Alachua Crew (Visvambhar, Rasika, Balarama Chandra, Kishor, and Jamuna) causing waves of bliss that took the heart on a roller coaster ride of the holy names. Similarly, DC, represented by GauraVani, shook the very core of our hearts, dispelling all unwanted material desires and allowing the cooling rays of the benediction moon to shine through.

Please click below for the rest of the article and more photos (more…)

August 4, Saturday, Los Angeles. Gurukula Reunion and Harinama in Santa Monica.

The annual Gurukula Reunion at Culver City Park starts at 11:00 a.m. "It's not really a reunion for me," says Jahnavi. "I don't know anyone here. It's more like a gathering of youth who have grown up around the Hare Krishna movement." Gradually more and more people trickle into the park and begin to cluster around their friends. A frisbee takes flight over here. A football is tossed over there. I search for gurukulis from my generation. There's Chaits, Bahu, Sri Shyam, Dayanidhi, Shivajvara, Ramachandra, Kirtan Rasa, Giri, Vibhu... The "reunion" seems to attract mostly younger people these days. Several teenage skateboarders from Watseka Avenue and their siblings. I feel like a dying breed. At 35, I'm twice as old as the average attendee, old enough to be their father.


I strike up a conversation with Dayanidhi, whom I haven't seen in years. He is living with his wife and two children in Badger, California, growing a garden, living in nature, the simple life. Chaits is researching the history of the L.A. reunions. We spend a few minutes remembering those involved in organizing the early reunions. Bahu says he wants to revive AS IT IS magazine. I give him my thumbs up and share my interest in recording audio and video interviews with the older generation of gurukulis, to tell their stories, and to rekindle communication.

The reunion feast arrives, late, but worth the wait. Krsna Gauranga Prabhu has prepared lasagna, salad, nectar drink and mango cheese cake. We reminisce that Krsna Gauranga has been cooking the reunion feasts ever since we can remember. After everyone has had their fill, there's leftover cheesecake. I grab a tray and walk around the park, serving extra cheesecake to anyone who will eat it. "Have seconds! Have thirds! A cheesecake eating competition!"

By 4:40 p.m. it's time to head back to the temple to get ready for harinama.

3rd Street Promenade, Santa Monica. Harinama Sankirtana.

Harinama literally means the holy name of Hari, or Krishna. Sankirtana means to glorify or chant with lots of people in congregation. What we have come to refer to as "harinama sankirtana", or harinama for short, means going out in public and chanting the holy names of Krishna loudly, in procession, accompanied by mridanga drums, kartal cymbals, and enthusiastic dancing. This has been a part of our Krishna culture going back to the time of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who held harinama sankirtana with thousands of people in the streets of West Bengal, India, 500 years ago.

3rd Street Promenade is a pedestrian shopping street in Santa Monica, a trendy ocean-front suburb of Los Angeles. Brand name stores line the streets here, from fashion to jewelry to cosmetics to Apple computers. Once a year, Hare Krishna devotees engulf this place in an ecstatic wave of Krishna kirtana, joyfully chanting the holy names of Krishna, blissfully dancing in the streets. Some 200 to 300 devotees who have come for the Ratha-yatra festival participate. And the locals have come to expect it.

I follow behind the harinama party with a video camera, filming audience reactions. I study the faces of the onlookers, of those curiously gazing at the devotees chanting and dancing in apparent abandon. I ask a couple of gentlemen, "What do you think of all of this?" They respond, "It's beautiful. Just beautiful. Thank you so much for coming out here."

This was not the reply I had expected. I had expected people to be annoyed with us. For three hours I continue to follow the harinama party, filming audience reactions. Some people stay for half an hour at a time, watching us, soaking in the exotic visuals and music. I see smiles on faces. Some shake their head from side to side, as if to notion, "I don't understand... what is this?" But they can't stop looking. A Korean father trails behind us, his young son on his shoulders. They follow the harinama party intently, as if to figure out its meaning.

The bus tour girls are now dancing in choreographed unison at the front of the procession. Jahnavi from England is leading the Maha-mantra kirtana. We've taken over the center of the shopping street. A curious couple stops to look. The man is watching our girls dance, saris swirling. I note some discomfort in the facial expression of his girlfriend. Soon she begins to tug at her man, urging him to move along.

It's now half past nine in the evening. The pedestrian zone is illuminated by multicolored signs above shop windows. Most of the shops are closed but people are still gathered in the streets, watching the harinama commotion. Acyuta from New York begins to lead. Normally you'd be completely exhausted by now. Instead, the youth and older devotees swell up with a new burst of enthusiasm and dance like they haven't danced before, sing like they haven't sung before, and the kirtana soars to another level of transcendence. You finally abandon all thought of material comfort--you're hot, thirsty, sweating. You stop worrying about what other people think of you--your tilak and kajal is running all over your face, your dhoti and sari are no longer neatly pleated. You just close your eyes and get caught up in the waves of kirtana... Hare Krishna... Hare Krishna... Krishna Krishna... Hare Hare... Hare Rama... Hare Rama... Rama Rama... Hare Hare! There's nothing but you and the holy names in the three worlds. Everything else loses significance.


August 5, Sunday, Los Angeles Ratha-yatra Festival of Chariots.

Early this morning a team including Premanjana, Haridas, Priya, Krsnapriya, Datta, and Jaya Radhe meet with senior North American leaders about the feasibility of the youth taking over ISKCON St. Louis as a youth temple project. The youth express concern about whether or not they will be given actual responsibility to manage. The senior devotees express concern about the spiritual strength of the youth. Will they be able to maintain Srila Prabhupada's spiritual standards? Both sides are hopeful and positively enthused by the end of the meeting.

By mid morning, Lord Jagannatha, Lady Subhadra, and Lord Baladeva are taken via luxury limousines to the Ratha-yatra parade start, where their four-story tall chariots await them. Jagannatha Ratha-yatra, or the Lord of the Universe's Chariot Festival, is, according to our tradition, the world's oldest continuously observed festival. It has been held annually in the holy city of Puri on the eastern coast of India for the past 5000 years. Puranic histories ascribe the beginning of this festival to the time of King Indradyumna, who purportedly lived in a previous age, tens of thousands of years ago. He desired to see the Lord face to face, which led to the manifestation of the Lord in the deity forms of Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra. During the Ratha-yatra chariot festival, the Lord of the Universe comes out of the temple to bestow His blessings upon the people of the world. On the request of our founder Acharya, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, members of the Hare Krishna movement have been holding Lord Jagannatha's Ratha-yatra festival in major cities around the world for the past 40 years. Los Angeles Ratha-yatra is one of the largest, and has been observed annually in this city for 32 years.

The parade begins to move. The Lord's three large chariots are being pulled with long yellow ropes by hundreds of participants along Main Street in downtown Santa Monica. Three kirtana parties glorify the Lord's holy names, one in front of each chariot. The festival tour youth lead one of the kirtanas. The parade passes the bustling farmer's market. We turn right, then left, onto Ocean Front Walk. We're now entering the city of Venice, and Lord Jagannatha is strolling along Venice Beach. This is tourist mecca. Hundreds of curious visitors walk past the chariot procession and kirtana parties. We pass roadside vendors selling incense, temporary tattoos, air-brushed t-shirts, sunglasses... A handful of fundamentalist Christian preachers have come out to protest in front of our procession. They yell derogatory statements over their megaphones. They inform us that we're all going to hell. They march in front of our parade, as if they're a part of it, with their banners raised high proclaiming Jesus as the only way. I wish they would utilize their energies to hold similar processions glorifying the Lord's holy names, rather than fight over designations.

"Krishna surya sama," the Sanskrit saying goes. Krishna is like the sun. As the sun is known by many names around the world, similarly, God is known by many names. God is one. He cannot be two. He has many names according to time, place, culture. In our millennia-old tradition, God, the Creator, the Lord of Lords, is known as Krishna, or Vishnu (another name for Krishna.) By meditating on Him and His names we come to realize that we are all children of the same Father, and thus develop goodwill and peace towards our brothers and sisters of different creed and color.

Eventually, the Ratha-yatra procession reaches the festival site on Venice Beach. Our tent village is filled with people from all walks of life. Old people, young people, Asian, Caucasian, African American, Latino... a melting pot of designations absorbed in the dazzling cultural display that is Lord Jagannatha's Ratha-yatra Festival. Coming to think of it, Lord Jagannatha is black, His brother Baladeva is white, and Their sister Subhadra is yellow. If that isn't a sign to unify as brothers and sisters regardless of our external designations and skin color, I don't know what is.

Some of our youth take turns serving the free feast. Hibiscus iced tea, pasta salad, peanut butter sweets, potato fritters, peanuts and raisins. More than 10,000 plates of free vegetarian food will be distributed to festival goers today.

The "Changing Bodies" diorama exhibit about reincarnation is popular as ever. Absorbed, people sit on the grass in front of the main stage where Viji Prakash and her dance academy are performing intricately choreographed Bharata-natyam dances. The music stage is well attended. Nirantara and Titiksava Karunika Prabhus entertain with devotional rock music.

At 3:15 p.m. our festival tour youth go on stage to perform DEVOTION. I notice the audience has a hard time sitting attentively in the hot sun. I wish there was a way to provide shade for them. Madhuha Prabhu and I discuss options for a large canopy or parachute hanging over the area in front of the main stage to throw some shade... Maybe next year, if we get a donation for this.

After our performance, Karnamrita leads a kirtana that evolves from blissful to nectarean to ecstatic, as more and more devotees join her, inspiring the audience to get up and dance. Soon the entire crowd of people in front of the main stage is dancing. People are plucking flowers off Lord Jagannatha's chariot, tearing them apart and throwing petals over each other's heads.


Sunset signals time for take-down. For us festival tour youth this means changing into work pants and getting ready to take down the tents, exhibits, and stages. We begin by handing out trash bags and encouraging people to pick up the flower petals that have been strewn all over the lawn in front of the chariots and main stage. Teams begin untying the ropes that secure the tents to concrete blocks. Others carry exhibit panels back to the festival trailer. Soon the tents are empty and ready to be disassembled. It takes four people to carry the smaller ten-foot by ten-foot tents. One person per pole. We lift the tent and start walking towards the trailer where all the festival gear is stored. There, we pull out the poles that serve as legs for the tent, lower the canopy to the ground, unstrap it, fold it and roll it up, and then take apart the poles that form the frame that supports the canopy. The poles are stored in color-coded slots in the trailer. Just as it is described in the scriptures that, at the end of the cosmic cycle all universes enter into the body of Maha-vishnu, so at the end of the festival, all tents, exhibits, and stage pieces disappear into the Festival of India trailer.

It's dark. The wind is blowing chilly spells from the ocean. I put on an extra sweatshirt, flip the hoodie over my head and secure it with a scarf. Using flashlights we search the festival site for remaining Festival of India gear. Once all of our stuff is put away, it's time to start helping the L.A. crew put away their festival gear. It's basically like helping with two take-downs in a row. Ratnabhusana Prabhu has his own set of tents, exhibits, poles, canopies, and stage pieces which we don't want to mix up with our gear. So we take down Madhuha Prabhu's Festival of India equipment first, and Ratnabhusana Prabhu's L.A. festival gear second. After a five-hour marathon, we're finally done. Refreshments await. Leftovers from the various food booths. Strawberry milkshake. Mango milkshake. Curd steaks in tomato sauce. Oatmeal and raisin cookies. Nothing like a midnight snack after a long festival day and extra long take-down. We are just hallucinating about warm Caribbean beaches, palm trees, pinacoladas, when the call comes to use the bathrooms, brush our teeth, and head to bed. The buses will be leaving shortly. Time to get back on the road again. If Jack Kerouac reincarnated as a Hare Krishna, he's probably on the festival bus tour right now.


August 6, Monday, Kings Canyon Sequoia National Park.

His Holiness Radhanatha Swami accompanies us to Kings Canyon this morning. He's riding in the back of the men's bus, on the deck area. About 15 of our young men are gathered around him, on all sides. Maharaja is leading Guruvastakam prayers. The deck is a raised platform at the back of the bus, surrounded on three sides by bunk beds. Some are lying down on bunk beds and others are sitting on the deck... wherever they can fit into this tight space. Radhanatha Swami recalls the time he lived in a cave in the Himalayas, before he joined the Hare Krishna movement. He says this situation reminds him of that time. A modern cave on wheels. He tells stories of the sages he met, and how later, some years ago, he went back to find those same ascetics, to see what had happened to them. He tells the story of one particular yogi, Tatwalla Baba, who wore only burlap loin cloth and would sit in meditation for twenty hours at a time. He was his cave mate.

We arrive at Kings Canyon Sequioa National Park late morning. I notice a signpost for Grant Grove, an area of giant sequioa trees, and ask the bus driver to pull over. Radhanatha Swami mentions that he has never been to this part of the country before, never seen such large trees. We get off the bus and stroll down the circular path that leads to some of the named and more famous trees. The Tennesee Tree. The Robert E. Lee Tree. The General Grant Tree, apparently the third largest tree in the world by volume. Maharaja stares incredulously at these giant trees that have stood here for 2000-plus years. He asks us to consider what these trees would say to us if they could speak. What would their message be, having witnessed hundreds of generations come and go, entire civilizations rise and fall? Maharaja reminds us that Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu requested us to be more tolerant than a tree. He asks us to consider the kind of tolerance the Lord is speaking about. These giant sequoia trees have withstood long cold winters, rain storms, forest fires, strong winds, people and animals picking away at their limbs and bark... For hundreds, even thousands of years. How tolerant the Lord wants us to be.

Breakfast calls. We board our bus and catch up with the ladies' bus that has already arrived at our Dorst Creek group campsite. Breakfast is granola, milk and fruit. One of our older youth and bus tour counselors, Dattatreya Prabhu's grandfather passed away yesterday. Datta found out this morning and has been quite sober and teary eyed. Radhanatha Swami tries to console him and suggests that we hold a kirtana in honor of Dattatreya's grandfather. We spread out a large green tarp under a canopy of red pine trees and place the bus tour Gaura Nitai deities on a table at one end. Maharaja begins the kirtana. Gradually the tarp fills with youth. Observing the deities, we respond to the Maha-mantra kirtana.



Later, we take the ladies to Sherman Grove, another patch of giant trees. Maharaja and I accompany them. We approach the General Sherman Tree, the largest tree in the world by volume, touted as "the largest living thing." Again Maharaja pauses and asks the ladies to ponder the message this tree would impart to us, could he speak. He asks the ladies to share their thoughts on what this tree might tell us. "Stop fighting with one another," says one girl. "Go back to Godhead," says another. "Don't become a tree like me," Varshana says jokingly. We take group photos against the trunk of the world's largest tree, who is estimated to be between 2300 - 2700 years old. On the way out of the grove we see twin sequoia trees, merged at their base. "They must have liked each other in a previous life," someone whispers. "I wonder what kind of karma they've had to spend thousands of years together as trees," another adds.

Radhanatha Swami has an appointment in San Diego and Balarama Chandra Prabhu is here to give him a ride. Sadly, we part. It is always a blessing to have the association of sadhus on the bus tour. To my surprise, Radhanatha Swami gets behind the wheel of the SUV, smiles and waves goodbye as he drives off. Apparently he doesn't often get to drive--people are always chauffeuring him--so he enjoys this opportunity away from formalities where he can drive a car through the rugged countryside of Kings Canyon Sequoia National Park.

Satvata Prabhu, our cook, has prepared a dinner of rice and beans. We spend the evening around the campfire, holding evening arati for the Gaura Nitai deities, telling stories, and playing Krishna conscious charades.


August 7, Tuesday, Kings Canyon Sequoia National Park.

Amal slept next to the campfire last night. He points to where flying embers hit and burnt holes into his sleeping bag. One by one, people wake up and gather around the fire. We've thrown more wood on it early this morning to ward off the chill that happens just as the sun rises and evaporates the dew, cooling the surface of the earth. Some of us get out our bead bags and begin our japa for the day.

I notice leftover beans and rice in the pots from yesterday. I glance at the cozy campfire and wonder if we didn't bring with us an iron skillet and some butter. Jaya Radhe, my wife, rummages through the kitchen at the back of the bus, and a skillet manifests. And it so happens there's some butter left in one of the coolers. With choice ingredients in hand, I simmer butter, beans and rice in a skillet over the glowing embers. "Hot campfire baked beans and rice, anyone?"

"Mmmmh!," the first of the taste testers mumbles. Govi and Jaggi agree. "Mmmh! - Mmmmh!" they echo. Soon, the entire stash of leftover beans and rice has been devoured by the early risers. "Anyone ready for this morning's actual breakfast?" Apparently Jaya Radhe and Mohini have made pancakes in the kitchen at the back of the bus. Aunt Jemima's table syrup and all.

Today's activity is supposed to be a hike to Mist Falls, at the bottom of Kings Canyon. I start the yellow bus (Garuda 2) and am surprised when, a minute later, the engine dies on me. I take a look... there's no fuel in the fuel filter. The fuel gauge reads the tank is just under half full. The bus is parked at an angle. Maybe the gauge is jammed or broken? I try again... no fuel. The bus won't start.

"We have to try and siphon some diesel fuel out of the tank and fill the fuel filter, so the engine will start," I suggest to the gathering of blank stares. Right. Siphon. Yup. People disperse. Not me. Not me either. Nobody wants to get diesel fuel in their mouth. And besides, what hose are we going to sacrifice for this adventure? The only hose we have? The one used to fill water into the bus water tanks? Yup.

I cut the hose and stuff it deep into fuel tank. I suck on the open end but get diesel fumes in my head and have second thoughts. I pause. I look around. Lots of incredulous stares from the peanut gallery. Then a flash of genius hits me. I dip the hose deep into the fuel tank, stick my index finger into the open end of the hose to plug it, and pull it out halfway and try to drain the fuel, to create a siphon. It works! Only one little problem. There doesn't seem to be much fuel in the tank. We are getting droplets and dribbles. Not the gallon of fuel I had hoped for to refill the fuel filter. Maybe the hose is too short. I cut another length of hose, longer this time. Again I feed one end of the hose deep into the fuel tank and apply the stuff-your-finger-in-open-end-of-hose siphon technique. Droplets. Dirty diesel fuel. Maybe the tank is really empty. The fuel gauge must be broken. How else would the fuel filter have run completely dry?

Onto plan B. Forget the drive to Mist Falls. Ain't happening. We look at the Kings Canyon Sequoia National Park map to find an alternative day-trip location. There seems to be a stream with swimming holes a few miles south of our campsite. We could take the boys' school bus and shuttle people there in two trips. Or squeeze all 50 of us into that smaller bus for a short 20-minute drive to this alternate location. Sounds like a plan.


We all mount the 35-foot short boys' school bus, which is outfitted with permanent bunk beds and doesn't comfortably fit more than 20 people. "Girls on the deck in the back, boys on the bunk beds in the middle and front of the bus!" People squeeze in as best they can. We drive to the creek, let everyone off, and then turn the bus around and drive about 30 miles to the only gas station that sells diesel fuel, just outside the park. It's $3.59 per gallon. I don't care. We're filling buckets, coolers, empty 5-gallon water containers, anything we can get our hands on, with diesel fuel to bring back to the big yellow bus stranded at our campsite.

Back at the site, Sacinandana, Dravinaksa and I have rigged a funnel into a hose into the fuel tank, and are transferring half-buckets at a time from coolers into the funnel, straining the diesel fuel as we go. It's a slow process. The sun is high in the sky by now, burning down on us. Beads of sweat run down my forehead. We're covered in fuel. We laugh at our predicament, trying to keep our sanity. The diesel fuel is bright neon yellow. We joke about it being Gatorade. "Anyone thirsty?" Dravinaksa sets aside a few gallons to refill the fuel filter at the back of the engine. We're now 4 hours into this project of trying to resuscitate the big yellow bus. Drav doesn't have the right tools he needs to undo the fuel filter. He tries with several wrenches. Getting it off is one thing. Getting it back on is another. Somehow or other, by Krishna's mercy, 5 hours later, in the mid-afternoon heat, we are ready to try to start that bus again.

I switch on the main power switches inside the battery compartment. I turn the red battery conditioning switches. I walk to the front of the bus and hit the ignition switch. A rumble. The whining of belts and the engine turning over. Then silence. The engine is dry and not burning fuel. We're hesitant to play this game too often, because the batteries can get drained quickly and we're miles away from civilization. Dravinaksa is confident. He says the fuel filter is looking good. He can see the fuel level through it's transparent looking glass, and it's only a matter of time before the engine will suck it up and start. I press the ignition switch again.... the engine turns over and runs dry for about a minute. I can hear it slowing down as the battery drains and drains. There's air in the fuel lines, for sure, that has to be eliminated. I hear a stutter. And another. I pray at this point that the battery will last to keep cranking the engine until the fuel arrives. Another stutter. Now two in a row. Sounds promising. There! A cloud of black smoke from the exhaust! More frequent stutters. More smoke. At last... the engine turns over on its own. "Jaya! -- Haribol!" Sacinandana exclaims, visibly exhausted but happy to see the end result... Dravinaksa smiles. We look at each other contently and begin to clean up the mess. With the engine running on high idle in the background, we wipe diesel fuel off our arms using paper towels, carry the funnel, coolers and buckets over to the campsite water spigot, douse them with laundry soap and scrub away.

We drive the big yellow bus to the gas station, fill the tank to the top with diesel fuel, and pick up the youth by 5:15 p.m. at the swimming hole. We're running 15 minutes late (we told them to be ready for us at 5:00). One of the boys complains that he had to wait for 15 minutes. I swallow a humble pill and choose not to react. I smile and wave him in. "All aboard!"

That evening the day's stresses melt away as my mind gets a chance to bathe in the sounds of sweet bhajans. The occasional crackling of moist wood in the campfire blends with melodious beats from Amal's mridanga, Nani's kartalas, and Kumari's singing Maha-mantra melodies. We're surrounded by old-growth red pine forest, and it's as if these grandfather trees are standing there, participating, in their own quiet way. Unpretentious bhajans like these inspire me on the tour. Nobody is trying to show off. We're just winding down the day, meditating on the holy names, focusing on Krishna.


August 8, Wednesday, Hume Lake. Ekadasi.

It's early morning. Several guys roam out into the surrounding pine forest to collect firewood. Others are busy tucking potatoes into aluminum foil. Dasa and Premanjana build a large campfire to create mounds of glowing red embers. When the fire dies down, Dasa whacks away at the embers to break them up and spread them evenly across the pit. We toss foil-wrapped potatoes onto the embers, followed by dry twigs and branches. The potatoes are being cooked from two sides, by the embers below, and by the resuming fire above. 45 minutes later, we try to retrieve them with chapati tongs and sticks. Mohini inspects one. She unravels the tin foil and breaks apart the potato inside. Soft, thoroughly cooked. She prepares it with butter, salt and sour cream, and offers it to the murti of Srila Prabhupada. Now we're ready for a nice Ekadasi prasadam breakfast.

Time to clean up and load the buses. Nani (Ananda Gopal from Hawaii) is inspired to do service this morning and washes pots for about an hour at the water spigot. After that we're off to man-made Hume Lake in the Sequoia National Forest.

Our goal for today is to fit drama rehearsals into the schedule, to train new actors who are replacing Sundari and Rasikananda. Between them they played Hanuman / Lord Nityananda and Sukadeva Goswami / Yudhisthira / Ananta the carpenter. It will take four less experienced volunteers to replace these two gifted prabhus. Sundari is going back to school, which starts early in Hawaii. Rasikananda needs to make money and has been offered a design job in Los Angeles.

At our pre-trip inspection of the buses, Sacinandana Prabhu notices that the water pump belt on the school bus is cracked and looks like it needs replacement. Upon closer inspection, some of the other belts look worn and are starting to fray. We decide to send the boys' school bus to Fresno, to a truck repair place, to have the belts replaced. We split the youth into two groups, one who prefers to spend the day shopping in Fresno, the other swimming and rehearsing the drama at Hume Lake.

I stay with the group that spends the day at Hume Lake. I help Satvata Prabhu prepare lunch. At the swimming beach, Jaya Radhe, Deva, Jaya, Ani, Dasa, Laksmi, Krsnapriya, and Basab have an involved discussion about the merits of astrology. Is it that if you believe in astrology you don't really have faith in Krishna, that Krishna will take care of you? The arguments go back and forth.

In the evening we drive to Fresno, where we shop for groceries and serve a dinner of mashed potato and vegetable subji in the parking lot of a Target supermarket. By 10:00 p.m. the lights go out in the parking lot. We take it as a sign to board the buses and hit the road again, hauling north along Route 99, then I-5, towards Oregon state.


August 9, Thursday, Crater Lake National Park.

The Klamath River Rest and Recreation Area on the state line between California and Oregon serves as our breakfast stop. We have a bit of a drive ahead of us so it's a short stop. We continue on Interstate 5 northbound. The ladies' bus is blissed out on bhajans... they radio the men's bus over the walkie-talkie, showing off the bhajans they're having, including singing the Brahma Samhita Prayers, Siksastakam Prayers, and Anapayini's rendition of Markine Bhagavata Dharma. The landscape changes gradually from arid scrub to forested to lush and green. There's more rainfall in Oregon than in California. After several hours we arrive at Crater Lake National Park.

This is the only park that gave us an educational fee waiver, which we put in a request for at all the parks we had planned to visit this summer. "To educate our students about the beauty of God's creation." So we present the fee waiver at the park entrance, and are waived through by the rangers.

The winding road climbs up and over the rim of an extinct volcano's crater. As we cross over the top of the rim to the other side, we can see why the rangers gave us the fee waiver. The cobalt blue, almost fluorescent deep blue waters of crater lake are a mysterious beauty of God's creation that have little comparison anywhere else on the planet. 1,900 feet deep, the water has a clarity of 100 feet visibility, and contains almost no dissolved solids due to the absence of any incoming water source like a river. The lake is fed by rain and snow melt, which equals the rate of evaporation. The hard volcanic rim around the crater seeps little sediment into the cold water, preserving its clear, deep blue, mesmerizing color.



I ponder another aspect of the majesty of Krishna's creation, as I try to imagine the peak of this volcano before it blew off and created this huge 6-miles-in-diameter caldera which is now filled with water. I try to imagine the eruption, the sheer force of it, which must have been visible from hundreds of miles away. There's something uneasy about standing inside the caldera of a volcano, even if the geologists say it is extinct. From this vantage point, I can see other, active volcanoes in the distance, to the north and south. We're in the midst of the Cascade Range, a long string of volcanoes, some active, some dormant, some extinct.

There's a path that leads down to the waterline inside the caldera. Most of the youth don their swim suits and climb on down. I stay back, along with a core team of people, to prepare lunch. From the photos they bring back on their digital cameras, it seems like it was definitely worth the hike down the caldera. It seems that some brave people actually jumped into the cold water and swam for a few seconds.

After everyone returns, by about 4:30 p.m., and we do a head count to make sure we're not missing anyone, we serve a late lunch and take group photos with Crater Lake in the background. Then it's time to get back on the buses. We're expected in Seattle tomorrow.

The familiar rumble of the bus engine feels like home away from home. The only constant in a constantly changing landscape.



August 10, Friday, Seattle.

The buses are parked at a rest area south of Tacoma early this Friday morning. We decide to stay until people get up, so they have sufficient sinks and rest rooms to attend to their morning routines. We serve breakfast here. My wife, Jaya Radhe, is getting off the tour today. She's a teacher and needs to fly home to begin teacher's meetings a week before school starts. As it turns out, we have family in Seattle. Jaya Radhe's grandma, aunt, uncle and several cousins.

We drop Jaya Radhe off at the Wild Waves water park exit, where her aunt is waiting to pick her up. Jaya Radhe will spend the day with relatives and fly out late this evening. It's a teary eyed goodbye. Both I and the rest of the crew will miss her. She adds so much life to the bus tour with her good natured, personable approach to the daily challenges. I'm generally introverted. Jaya Radhe is the opposite. She thrives on socializing with people on the tour, being everyone's friend and well-wisher. It's sad to see her leave. After several rounds of hugs and goodbyes, we part.

Today is laundry day. Time to wash a week's worth of dirty clothes that have been piling up on and under our bunk beds, and in our bags. Finding a laundromat is sometimes easier said than done. I finally call 411 directory information, and ask for the Chamber of Commerce for Bellevue, the suburb we're driving through on the way to the temple in Redmond.

"Yeah, hi. I'm with a church youth group from Florida, traveling through Seattle today. We're looking for a laundromat in the Bellevue area where we can have our youth wash their laundry? Would you have any ideas or suggestions for us?"

"Uh, hmmm... let me see. Laundromat? You mean a self-service coin laundry, not one of those dry cleaners, right?"

"Yes, coin laundry."

"Okay, I'm googling "coin laundry" in the Bellevue area right now and... Google is showing me a Kwik 'n Cleaner Laundry and Dry Cleaning on 156th Avenue Northeast."

"Great! How do we get there from the 520 freeway?"

"Let me see. Google says to take the Redmond way exit, then right on 24th Avenue North..."

I am amazed that the Chamber of Commerce help desk person is so helpful, and even more amazed that he's using Google to find all of his information. Makes me think twice about bringing along one of those Internet data cards the cell phone companies are offering... we did it last year but didn't use it that much... it ended up costing us more than $650. The call to 411 directory assistance and to the chamber of commerce is costing me only a $1.

By 5:00 p.m. we've washed and dried our laundry, more or less (some items are still a bit wet), and Satvata Prabhu has cooked a late pasta lunch slash early dinner for us. We eat linner (lunch/dinner) in the parking lot next to the laundromat. Then we head out to find the temporary Seattle temple. They've relocated the deities to an office building in Redmond while they're building the new temple in the Seattle suburb of Sammamish.

Arriving at an office park in Redmond we see a hand-painted sign, "Vedic Cultural Center", pointing towards the back of one of the buildings. We follow the sign. Next we see a giant hand-painted "108" glued to one of the office building windows. There's an open garage door with some devotees cooking on an outdoor burner, camped out in this unusual location. This must be it. I approach them. They show me to the entrance around the corner. ... Lo and behold, a temple room temporarily manifests in the middle of a warehouse building. The deity curtain is open for darshan. I see four sets of large deities, Gaura Nitai, Radha-Krishna, Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra, and Sita-Ram Lakshman Hanuman, on altars raised above the warehouse floor, humbly awaiting their new Vedic Cultural Center to be built. I pay my respects, offering prostrated dandavats.

The devotees and congregation are expecting us to perform here tonight. It was supposed to be a hall program but somehow the promotions didn't work out in time. (The devotees were busy with another festival that happened the week before our arrival.) So Anapayini and I scope out the available space in the temple room and decide on what corner of the room to use as the "stage." Then we put down mats on the floor where the audience will sit, and find an empty room for the performers to change and get ready.

By evening arati, I notice that there are only about 20 guests in the temple room. I search for the performers and give them a little pep talk. "This is going to be a small, intimate performance. There are just a handful of people in the audience tonight. But these few people are the most important people in the Seattle congregation. They are the committed ones. They are building a 4 million dollar Vedic Cultural Center. If you give them your best performance tonight, hopefully they will be so impressed that next year they'll rent a hall for us." The performers agree to give it their best, despite the low turnout.

I sit up against the wall of the temporary temple room to watch the performance. I must have seen it two dozen times by now, but every time there's a new nuance I can appreciate. As I watch each scene, I can see that the performers are really trying their best to stay focused. (Thank you!) It's not easy to tour the country and perform with volunteers, amateur actors, some of whom have never acted before coming on this tour. It's entirely up to their inspiration and devotion if the performance will be good or not.

During the Karna and Kunti scene, I can't hold back my tears. They're just streaming down my cheek. I don't bother to wipe them away. I decide that I am not going to care about people looking at me. If they are watching the play, they're probably crying too.

Within five minutes after the performance is over I'm approached by Harivilas Prabhu and two of the local festival organizers about renting a hall next year. They insist that they will rent a really nice theater they've used in the past, with a capacity of 450 people, and that we should let them know four months in advance so they have enough time to prepare and promote.

The Seattle devotees serve a nice prasadam dinner for the guests and performers. At around 10:30 p.m., we're packing up and loading the buses again, heading ever further north to the Canadian border.


August 11, Saturday, Vancouver Ratha-yatra, Day One.

I wake up due to people getting on and off the bus, making the bus bounce slightly as they step on or off it. We're at the Vancouver temple parking lot once again. Don't ask me why we drove from Vancouver all the way to Mexico and back again. It's a long story. Let's just say that it would save Festival of India and the bus tour tens of thousands of dollars if certain Ratha-yatra festival coordinators could agree to coordinate their dates with one another so we didn't have to drive up and down the Pacific coast twice in one festival season. Grrr. Arrgh.

By Krishna's arrangement, we are at Vancouver temple parking lot once again. The men are helping to set up the festival, on location at Stanley Park, near the ocean. The ladies are helping to pick marigolds in the field behind the Vancouver temple and string garlands to decorate the Ratha-yatra chariots. They're also helping to shuck (de-husk) corn on the cob for one of the festival food booths. Today is the first of a two-day weekend Ratha-yatra festival.

Around 1:30 p.m. we all meet at the festival site. The tent village is set up in historic Stanley Park, on English Bay, right on the shore front, facing the Pacific Ocean. We've set up a children's tent, several food booths, a free feast tent in the center, the main stage with large tents above where the audience sits (for shade), a music stage for bands to perform, questions and answers, mantra meditation, vegetarianism, reincarnation, a deity tent for Lord Jagannatha... now we just need people to show up.

It's 3:00 p.m. We've been scheduled to perform. There are seven people in the audience. Two of whom are devotees. The festival site is empty. It's an overcast day, a little on the cold side out here in the park next to ocean. The logic is that if we perform, then the non-moving living entities will applaud and gradually the moving living entities will find their way into the tent because they see something is going on at the festival site.

Hmmm. Aha. Right. Hmmmm again. Okay. We will perform. Come on, it will be fun. After all, this is our devotional service. Nobody is paying us to do this. Think of it as a dress rehearsal run-through. Performance number 21. We need the practice. So we do it. We get ready (it takes about 45 minutes if we rush it). We perform for one hour and 15 minutes.

Anapayini's father has come to see the performance. He drove up all the way from Seattle to see us perform this afternoon. Overall, the site remains rather empty. The youth are somewhat disappointed. I don't blame them. This is supposed to be Vancouver Ratha-yatra? We could have spent this Saturday in a more productive way, from an outreach perspective. Saturday evenings are a great time for hall performances.

I ask some of the local devotees about the reason for the low turnout. It turns out they did not promote Saturday as being part of the festival. In the press releases, newspaper advertisements, and posters they focused on tomorrow, Sunday, the actual day of the Ratha-yatra chariot procession. They didn't promote Saturday because they thought fewer people would come, and if the press came today, they'd be disappointed.


August 12, Sunday, Vancouver Ratha-yatra. Chariot Parade.

All good things come to those who wait. Lots of people have come out today for the Sunday chariot procession down Beach Street. Devotees and congregation members are getting ready to pull the ropes of the chariots. The television cameras are here. Just as the three chariots begin to move, it begins to rain. People rush to take shelter under the overhangs in front of store windows. It pours for a good fifteen minutes. Then the rain stops, the sun emerges from behind the clouds, and Lord Jagannatha's smiling face blesses all who look upon Him as he rides into Stanley Park.

I dance the entire parade route, in front of Lord Jagannatha's chariot. Several youth dance in front of and behind me, and I try to keep up. Lalita, Narayani, Prtha, Saci, Govinda, Vrajesh and others. I must say I now have a newfound appreciation for those people who can dance like this all of the time. It really requires some stamina of the leg muscles.

At the festival site, I play mridanga with the kirtana party that accompanies Lord Jagannatha, Lady Subhadra, and Lord Baladeva. Gradually Their Lordships descend from Their chariots and are carried to Their festival tent, where They will spend the afternoon accepting visitors who offer fruits, and who get some maha prasadam fruit in return.

I look around and observe the crowds. The free feast tent is busy. People on bicycles who have been riding through the park have pulled into the feast line and are waiting patiently to get a plate. The Questions and Answers tent is well attended.

Once again it's time for our festival tour youth to get on stage and perform DEVOTION. This time the tent is packed with people. I'm glad that so many have shown up and are now watching the performance intently. DEVOTION is a dance drama with live music that features many of the devotional talents these youth have acquired while growing up in the Hare Krishna movement. Musical skills on traditional instruments, singing kirtana, acting, and dancing. The performance gives them a sense of pride in their upbringing, seeing so many people appreciate their skills, talents and abilities. After the performance, the youth mingle with the audience and get to hear their positive feedback.

Sunset signals time for take-down. For the last time this season, we change into our work clothes, put on yellow Festival of India gloves and aprons, and begin to disassemble the exhibits, tents, and stages. Three hours later, the whole place is restored back to its pre-festival ocean-front park-like state. The festival equipment is once again tucked into the belly of the large yellow Festival of India trailer. And we're headed to the temple for a delicious prasadam feast! Set-up, chanting, dancing, feasting, and take-down. Ten times at ten Ratha-yatra festivals across the continent. Plus a dozen hall programs, adventures at national parks... What more can you hope to do with your summer? Join the festival tour.

Stay tuned for details of the final week of adventures. We've yet to perform in Boise, Idaho, Denver, Colorado, and Miami, Florida. And we're snorkeling on the coral reef in Key Largo, Florida.

This is the second part of the Mahabharata Seminar given in Switzerland, July 2007. Kindly provided by Govinda Prabhu. Click here to download (filesize: 47.3mb) (Right click the link and choose either “save link as” or “save Target as”)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Gauranga.
Hare Krishna Prabhus and Matajis.

Many prescriptions about how to control the mind (for the purpose of chanting japa) seem to imply that the mind is an independent agency within the bodily system. Thus these prescriptions often proceed by advising us to coerce the mind in the direction of the sound (of the Holy Name we are reciting ) and to suppliment such coercion by making external adjustments to the surrounding ambience.

This approach may not be the most effective way to achieve the objective in question.
I would like to offer the following as an alternative in which the mind is understood to be, and approached as, an integral of the total bodily system.

In the conditioned state, the heart is overwhelmed with desires for (false) egocentric enjoyment. Consequently the mind is constantly occupied with thoughts of how to fulfill the unfulfilled desires, how to perpetuate existing ones and how to create new ones.
In such a state our attempt to hear the Holy Name can range from near total disinterest to varying shades of occulusion.

If we purify our hearts by CONSTANTLY using our bodily apparutus (and things accessible and available to us in the space-time continuum) to please the senses of Hari, Guru and Vaisnava, a very deep satisfaction will quickly arise within our hearts. As our devotional endeavors become purer (the benefits of our actions are not looped backed onto the false ego via labdha, puja, prathista, etc.) and steadyily this deepening satisfaction surpases the egocentric enjoyment we so vehemently pursued in the conditioned state.

Further, it is also free from the laborious efforts and anxiety involved in creating, and perpetuating, material pleasure. Because this new satisfaction is spiritual in nature (and it's what we were really looking for in the first place), it satisfies the SELF.

One manifest result concomitant upon such satisfaction is that the senses (including the genitals and the MIND) become quiet and subdued without a separate and extraneous effort to accomplish that.

In fact the MIND now develops a proclivity to run towards this newly perceived source of pleasure - Sri Krishna.

Becoming our best friend, the MIND will begin to cooperate with us as we cleanse our heart and become attracted to the Holy Name.

Great personages like Hari Das Thakur consistently chanted (and for many years doing so) a daily quota of 192 rounds on his japamala; this is only possible for someone whose heart is completely devoid of any desire to fulfill a personal agenda , outside of Krishna's pleasure.


Mithuna Das
(New York)

By Shyama gopika devi dasi

For the divine pleasure of Sri Sri Radha-Madhava to enjoy Their sweet swinging pastimes, Mayapur Vaisnava Youth had set up a gorgeous swing adorned with flowers, extensive decorations and lightings.

It struck me like a sad little song. The article was only a measly paragraph, giving the bare facts, not saying much about the victim nor her killers. Maybe any more would have been just too much to bear. The piece, on page 6 of the July 27 NY Times, told of an ‘honor killing.” The culprit was a 70 year old grandmother of 16. I guess she thought she was doing right by her family. It was a Sikh family living in London, and grandma had arranged the murder of her daughter-in-law “because she was having an affair and wanted a divorce.” The victim, Surjit Athwal, was 27 and had been married for 11 years.

We periodically hear about these killings in the news. They probably happen more often than reported. Usually the killer is thinking that they are simply acting as God’s agent in the sorted affair, whether to punish a wayward family member or a suicide bomber against the infidels or the blowing up of an abortion clinic. I’m sure that in a court of law one of them somewhere has brought up the point that the sectarian state has no jurisdiction over them in the matter because they are doing God’s bidding.

But, in the Bible, God declares “Vengeance is Mine.” That means He wants to take care of it. And God has certainly had lots of practice. He’s been killing off people (the good, the bad and the ugly) since time in memorial. But we foolishly think that God’s inept, that He can’t handle it or that He’s too busy with other things and that maybe He’ll forget. So we think, “I have to take care of it -why bother God? And I’ll get brownie points and it will look good on my resume when I get to heaven. I’ll have bragging rights.” This mindset only shows that one has very little faith. God is very capable of dispatching sinners and miscreants in His own way and in His own time.

Anyway, in this age, if He were to kill the sinners, He’d have to kill us all. So in this age, God has wisely developed an alternative plan. He’s appeared in the form of His Holy Name. The weapon of the Name is very subtle. Like an expert physician removing a cancerous tumor, the Name can destroy the miscreant mentality without having to killing the physical body. So yes, God wants assistants; not, however, to kill, but to spread love and mercy through the Holy Name. Like the Beatles sang: “take a sad song (the plight of the conditioned soul) and make it better.” It is written in the ancient texts: “In the age of quarrel and pretense (that’s this age – the kaliyuga) chant the Holy Name, chant the Holy Name, chant the Holy Name. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way.”

So to any would-be avenger reading this: don’t worry your pretty little head. God is on top of it. No one is going to get away with anything.

“The Blessed Lord said: Time I am, destroyer of the worlds. I have come to engage all people.” Gita 11:32

I made, thanks Bindhu! It doesnt work with Firefox but Safari is ok.

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Today I was talking on the phone to someone when I noticed this beautiful peacock opening his plume just out my back window. I had to rudely put them on hold just so I could snap this shot:

 

===================================================================== Thought for the Day--Sunday 26 August 2007 ===================================================================== Dedicated with love to you, our treasured readers, and to ISKCON Founder-Acharya: His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Our purpose is to help everyone awaken...

Reggeli lecke Budapesten a Cc.Madhya-lila 25.43 versből.

• Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Bhagavat-arka-marici-mala (a compilation of verses from Srimad Bhagavatam).

Corporations in the United States are increasingly hiring chaplains for the workplace. These clergymen come into the offices maybe once a week and employees can talk to them if and when they wish. The chaplains give confidential advice on all life’s problems to those people that choose to take advantage of their guidance. They don’t force themselves onto anyone who doesn’t want their help.

A great benefit of the corporate chaplain is that in an increasingly dog-eat-dog world the chaplain is not some good-for-nothing boss, nor a double-crossing so-called mentor who really just has his own best interest in mind. Instead, he is there for just one reason: to care. And a little care and attention is really just all everyone wants, right?

The trend in the predominantly christian USA is to hire christian chaplains, but I see no reason why there couldn’t be successful vaisnava chaplains, too. This is especially so in countries were the traditional churches are mistrusted or frowned upon. However, even in the USA the demand for corporate chaplains far exceeds the supply. There are just not enough spiritually educated people around who are will and able to genuinely care for others. It’s a huge growth industry.

This makes me think of Ameyatma’s article on implementing Varnashra Universities. But why establish external educational institutions that people need to make an effort to visit? Instead here is the possibility of meeting and helping people directly in their workplaces and getting paid for it too.

I think members of the Krishna consciousness network are ideally suited for this kind of non-sectarian, educational, care-given work. Indeed, employees who are getting guidance from Vaisnava chaplains are more likely to be able to lead a mode of goodness lifestyle, free from so many self-degrading activities. They can be happier, more productive and make spiritual progress, all at the same time. It’s a win-win situation.

Someone should try this!

More information in the following articles:

• Economist Magazine
• Christianity Today
• Forbes Magazine
• Financial Times Newspaper

For the divine pleasure of Sri Sri Radha-Madhava to enjoy Their sweet swinging pastimes, Mayapur Vaisnava Youth had set up...

I was approaching one old farm house at the end of a village while at least a dozen dogs started to bark loudly behind its wall. As I came closer this barking become louder and louder, as more and more dogs joined this barking concert behind the wall.

I knocked on the gate and one dirty "Yamaduta" opened it and asked me what I wanted. I showed him books, and he quickly said that he is not interested in reading and especialy not religious books.

Then he started telling me what he is doing. He explained that this was a dog farm, and he described how he is bringing them up, feeding them, and differentiating the strong ones from the weak ones and killing the weak ones.

I was praying to Krishna for something to say to inspire him to take a book.

I said, "Look, this book will tell you that in your next life you can become a dog."

He immediatelly opened his eyes wide and said, "Really? So I will take this one."

Your servant, Gadadhara das

BHAKTIVEDANTA MANOR, LONDON 1 August 2007 I am very happy to see you all. Is everyone doing nicely in Krsna consciousness? Are you all making nice spiritual advancement? Today, just before this meeting I met with the initiation candidates. On the 12th of this month we will be holding the initiation ceremony. I thought we [...]

By Vijaya Das

For the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada this page contains the following results for the month of July 2007: World Totals, Monthly Congregation and Weekend Warriors...

A Journey in the Dark

Is there anything like a part-time book distributor?

If your answer was yes, think again. All you need is to carry books wherever you go. Who knows? You may end up being an instrument of Lord Krishna's plan to give Krishna consciousness to a wandering soul.

In this story Pancha Pandava Prabhu recalls:

It was my birthday and so I decided to visit my parents in Bhiwandi. I boarded the bus to home in the evening. It was a short journey but it was already dusk when the bus started, and soon darkness enwrapped the world.

I looked around. There were just eight passengers in the bus, all sitting in different corners. I had carried with me 'Path of Perfection' and 'Mukund Mala Stotra'.

"Once a book distributor always a book distributor," I thought. Even during a short journey one may get a chance to distribute Srila Prabhupada's mercy. Since the fading light made reading difficult, I decided to chant. After some time, I stretched my arms while fingering my beads.

Two minutes later, someone tapped my shoulder. I looked up. A middle-aged well-dressed man smiled and said, "Can I speak with you?"

"Yes," I answered and made space for him.

"Are you a Hare Krishna devotee?"

"Yes."

He inhaled deeply and spoke, "I know about ISKCON, I have been going to your temple in Juhu for a long time. I have some questions."

He was an intelligent man, a high ranking executive in a big company, and asked very deep questions about the laws of karma and other topics. I was delighted to find a companion with whom I could share my little knowledge of Krishna consciousness. We talked open heartedly, and I explained things for him.

Finally I arrived at my destination.

"I have a gift for you," I said, offering him 'Path of Perfection'. I explained about the book and he readily bought it.

I was delighted; two hours in pure Krishna Katha ending up with distribution of Srila Prabhupada's book. What more could one ask for in a journey!

But a doubt remained.

"How did you know that I was a Hare Krishna devotee?" I asked.

"I was wondering about the questions I asked you while looking out of the window," he replied with a smile. "For a split second, I turned inwards and then I saw you stretching your arms with your beadbag in hand."

Coincidence? Chance? Remember, chance favors a prepared mind.

Every moment offers us an opportunity to distribute Srila Prabhupada's books. When we travel we can carry some books with us. Who knows? We could be the next one to meet and help a stranger.

By Sastra Dana

I am in such maya that for me to go out by my self is a little bit tough or to try to go out and sell books is a little bit tough. The Sastra Dana program where you can go distribute books freely, through the rack program where you stick a bunch of books in somebody’s store and then come back and there is a hundred books distributed without even doing anything….this is fantastic!

Dear Vaisnavas / Vaisnavis

Please accept my humble obeisances.All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

You are invited to attend the Baladeva Purnima festival to be held on Tuesday the 28th of August at Australia Asia house 275 Stirling Street Highgate (East Perth) from 5.30 PM.

The program is as follows

5.30 Bhajans

6.00 Abhiseka

6.30 Lila Kirtan and slideshow with His Grace Bhurijana Prabhu

7.50 Gifts

8.00 Arati and Kirtana

8.30 Feast Please bring a gift for Lord Balarama.

Your Servant Yadu Srestha

 

 

This morning's cookery class was a warm and cosy affair. The rain drizzled down, and the kitchen was certainly a snug and pleasant place to be. This is what we cooked:

“Warm Foods for Cool Days”

Spicy South Indian Tomato Rice Country-style Anise-scented Cream of Fennel Soup Mild Karnataka-style Poriyal of Cauliflower, Potato and Peas, served with Flame-toasted Pappadams & Greek-style Yogurt

Warm Salad of Roasted Haloumi Cheese, Watercress & Lentils Crispy Battered Fresh Panir Cheese (Panir Pakoras), served with fresh Lemon Wedges Easy Pear Tarte Tatin served with Vanilla Ice Cream

The Tarte Tatin, pictured above, was absolutely spectacular. It's the first time I have ever prepared it for a cooking class, and it got rave reviews.

This evening we began the celebration of Jhulana Yatra. Devotees are welcome to come at Gaura arati time and offer some love-tugs for the most beautiful trascendental couple. It will go on only four more days.

See  you there!

YS,

Arya Siddhanta dasa

Dhira in the television program from USA “One Nation”

Kirtan with HH Devamrita Swami

Temple kirtan with HH Devamrita Swami Brisbane

Darshana

Watch this beautiful altar with Srila Prabhupada chanting Radha Krsna bolo bolo

Have darsan of our homealtar with Srila Prabhupada chanting Hare Krsna Mahamantra

A friend wrote me to say that he felt I was on an "unhealthy anti-hierarchy crusade".

I wrote him back:

Rather than "unhealthy anti-hierarchy crusade", perhaps: "anti-unhealthy hierarchy crusade".

As you say: hierarchy is naturally occurring. "Naturally" is a very important qualifier in this phrase.

Example: You gave the example of the body as a naturally occurring system with hierarchical elements. However, there is a difference between having sex and giving birth to a child (natural), and stitching together body parts to create a Frankenstein.

What I am describing in my book are natural principles and processes (given in Bhagavad-gita) that give rise to organic systems with healthy hierarchical elements in them (guna and karma matched with varna).

The basic principle is this:

instead of: "trying to be in charge" and "create a hierarchy"
do: "understand what you are" and "make a contribution from there"

This will create the organic system; which as you say has hierarchical aspects, just as an object naturally has a shadow. The difference is that it has all the parts in the right place, and working together harmoniously.

Focusing on the being in charge and create a hierarchy is like focusing on a shadow, it leads to the shadow of a real organization, with people misplaced and misaligned, and it shrivels up over time.

So I hope this helps to clear up the misconception that I am anti-hierarchy.

Have you read the book yet? 420 people have downloaded it since it was released. Are you one of them? What do you think? Leave a comment or vote in our online poll.

Download your copy of the ebook "On Leadership"

Reggeli lecke Kecskeméten.

Now after transmigrating through millions and millions of species you have finally attained the most auspicious human form. Why is it auspicious? Because it offers you a special opportunity that no other life form offers you. It offers you the chance to become self-realized. After countless eons of suffering in the cycle of birth and death, this...

Janaka Mahajana invited me down to Sri Sri Radha Vrindabancandra’s water and sewage treatment facility, just a short way down the road from the temple. We met up with Tejo Maya Prabhu and his son Gopal, who have been maintaining these services for quite some time.

It was amazing to see how much energy was put into the required process of purifying the sewage water. First the water flows down the hill and splashes into the primary pond. Air is constantly being pumped into this pond, some swampy moss is collected at the same time and then the water is pumped into a big box which captures undesired particles.

In a second pond the water is once again aerated/treated and then it is pumped into a sand pit, which captures a majority of the remaining waste. This sand pit is scraped clean from time to time so that more unpurified water can pass through.

That water then flows into a series of cemented chambers and is treated with a chemical to remove the finer particles, finally ending up dumped into a flowing stream. These devotees are actually down here daily taking water quality samples for both the potable and discharged waters. They then run tests and file the results with regulative agencies. Additionally, they are tending to broken pipes, run down motors, rewiring something or cleaning out the various filters.

One interesting thing Gopal and Tejo Maya noted was that a cardinal regularly follows them around and takes shelter in that area. After a few minutes, sure enough, we spotted the cardinal relaxing in the shade of a nearby bush. There used to be a group of geese down here too, but now only one lone survivor remains. “probably attacked by other animals,” Gopal said.

The temple also has two wells just around the corner from the sewage facility. Unfortunately, the well which usually pumps over 10,000 gallons for the temple daily has a busted pump. Right now the temple water needs are all being supplied by the small 5,000 gallon per day well, which actually is not enough. Considering that we have many festivals coming up, it is a priority to get the larger well repaired, but it will be no small task. In fact we may have to dig another well, as sediment has collected on the bottom, one of the reasons why our water has the sea-like smell to it.

I now have a whole new appreciation for water in the dhama. I pray to Sri Sri Radha Vrindabancandra that I will never waste another drop of that precious well water. Similarly we are appealing to the community to be very conscious of the water situation and do their part to properly utilize the resources Krsna is providing.

raso ‘ham apsu kaunteya
rabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ
praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu
śabdaḥ khe pauruṣaḿ nṛṣuO son of Kuntī, I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable oḿ in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man.

PURPORT (Segment)

The taste of water is the active principle of water. No one likes to drink sea water, because the pure taste of water is mixed with salt. Attraction for water depends on the purity of the taste, and this pure taste is one of the energies of the Lord. The impersonalist perceives the presence of the Lord in water by its taste, and the personalist also glorifies the Lord for His kindly supplying tasty water to quench man’s thirst. That is the way of perceiving the Supreme.

Your Servant,
Arya Siddhanta dasa

Nitai-Gauranga Jaya
Jaya Srila Prabhupada

All the possible arrangements should be made for good Japa. Place, time, enviroment, association and many other factors influence our Japa...but nice arrangements don´t guarantee that our state of mind is at it's possible best.

In the Nectar of Devotion it is mentioned that one who develops a service attitude (towards Krsna and the Vaisnavas) can immediately realise the transcendental nature of the Holy Name.

We are asking Sri Sri Radha-Krsna to give us some service to do. Chanting of course is seva in itself but if we are not chanting for the whole day so other Krsna conscious activities are needed for our bodies and minds also.
But alas! I often find myself trying to find excuses for not doing the seva that the Vaisnavas ask, or doing it in grudging mood.

We should also be afraid of the illusory energy and remember that death is coming.
One of our temple devotees recently left his body at the age of 31. Did I become more serious in my chanting after that?....Maybe for two days. Unfortunately this means that it's a typical goat like mentality. The goat may be in a line for his head being chopped off but still at the last minute they are looking for some grass to chew or some nice female company.

We heard that Madhava prabhu - the nice bhajan singer, has a meditation that every Maha-Mantra that he chants maybe his last and he tries to absorb himself accordingly.

"Tomorrow never comes."

Oh when will the day come that I chant seriously?

Ys Mrd

The BBT’s digital edition of the Monier-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary does work under Windows Vista, once you’ve replaced an old font file with a new one.

Without the fix, a few diacritical characters won’t show up. With the fix, all works fine.

Here’s the fix:

• Download this zip archive. (It’s small: 5 KB).
• Extract the file MWD.FON and put it in your Monier-Williams Dictionary folder, replacing the old version of the file.

You’re done.

Thank you to Ramakanta Dasa, who wrote the dictionary program, for providing the fix.

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Food for Life at Burning Man 2007: The Green Man Burning Man is described by organizers as an experiment in community, radical self-expression, and radical self-reliance. The event draws tens of thousands of activists, environmentalists, techies, and alternative thinkers. 2007 marks the first year corporations have been allowed a presence at Burning Man, but only those sporting [...]

Christians will be given a code of conduct to observe in converting those from traditional faiths to Christianity…

• Meeting with devotees in Szeged.
• Initiative for Hungary is to establish congregational preaching.

A fragment of a discussion between HH Bir Krihsna Maharaja, Kripamoya Prabhu, and Matsya Avatara Prabhu regarding the coming European Leaders' Meeting were published by Vaishnava Blog Feeds recently. The source of this information isn't mentioned and the discussion's context isn't clear, but these three senior preachers provide interesting glimpses into their vision for ISKCON's future development:

Kripamoya Prabhu: What could we do to keep more of our existing members happy and actively engaged?

Bir Krishna Swami: Change our managerial paradigm from domination based to empowerment based. Separate the spiritual leaders from the temporal managers.

Kripamoya Prabhu: How could ISKCON in Europe become widely known as a movement whose members are experts in the field of spiritual development?

Bir Krishna Swami: Change the structural paradigms of our movement.

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Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has manifested His own form, which cannot be compared to anything in the material universe. He is very dear to Advaita Acarya, and Srivasa Pandita is surrendered to Him. He is very respectful to Paramananda Puri. He takes away the ignorance of the material world and delivers the conditioned souls suffering from the threefold miseries. He showered His mercy on Maharaja Prataparudra, the king of Orissa. Will He again become visible before the path of my eyes?

- Srila Rupa Goswami, Stava-mala

Hardly a cookery class of mine goes by without finding out that one of the ladies in attendance is there because her teenage daughter has just become a vegetarian.

From my discussions with these mothers around the dinner table, it seems some girls certainly do become vegetarian for very whimsical or superficial reasons. Of course it is nice that they do stop eating meat, but if they do so without the proper formula for health and menu-planning, it will fail for sure.

In fact, many of my female students frankly admit that they were vegetarians sometime in their youth, but they now eat meat. They did it maybe for the right reasons, maybe for the wrong, but either way they could not keep it up.

In Australia, female vegetarians outnumber males; many more young girls turn to vegetarianism than young boys. The reasons are varied. Not least of these is the issue of body-image, and the perception that vegetarianism will lead to weight loss, a less-than-favourable reason to eschew meat.

I am not sure about the exact statistics here in Australia; close to 5 percent of young women in the United States suffer from eating disorders like anorexia, an obsession with being thin to the point that you starve yourself and exercise excessively, and bulimia, binging on large amounts of food and then purging them from the system.

Though the reasons are complex, the media has a lot to answer for in the upsurge in anorexia nervosa; thousands of young girls are being allured by so many artificial body-image fantasies.

Read this recent news article from the Sydney Morning Herald.

Whilst the article's title and leading paragraph may be a bit sensational, I think it is pretty fair. It does confirm some of my thoughts on the matter, and does seek to shed light on the seriousness of this illness which is a major problem amongst young Australian girls.

And what about the ponies? Read the article..

The recent outcry over the sentence given to a Jehovah’s Witness Elder who abused some 18 children has reminded me of my own experience, I would however like to share my thoughts on the issue.

Firstly some background my farther abused us as children, he was a ministerial servant a well respected member of the local Kingdom Hall. When it came to light that he had abused us he said to the elders that he was sorry, and so kept his position and was supported. This is based on scripture.

Myself I did not agree with this so went to the police. I was approached by the elders and asked to drop the case or I would be disfellowshiped, I chose to continue with my view that he should face the justice system as it stands.

What I feel must be clear is that biblical law has to be followed, this is a given, he said I’m sorry. It is for me to accept this, I didn’t so in biblical terms have fallen down but also shown a lack of respect for my parent.

But above this the law of the land has to also be followed, as a faith the need to support, re-educate and help the individual is important in fact necessary. Whilst the law takes due process, no matter what the outcome.

It is hard to remain subjective when child abuse is involved, I myself continue to carry the scares and suffer in so many ways. But then so does my farther with the accusing fingers and verbal abuse he has to endure each and every day.

Do I hate my farther? No, I love him and miss him so much.

Do I hate the religion? No, biblical law is just that, they are trying to follow as best they can and it is hard.

Remember this the actions of just one or two individuals does not make the whole rotten, but like a few rotten fruit in a basket, these have the most attention.

The devotees have helped me regain some of what I had lost and the fear is going, I am learning a lot and have a long way to go.

It is the responsibility of any religious organization to help both victim and perpetrator as hard as it may seem, than condemning disfellowshiping and isolating.

This is my thoughts I hope it makes sense to those reading.

Interesting angle on Japa time . . . from my experience it is good to chant at the same time everyday, but that is not always possible due to unforseen circumstances that arise.

I would say in the 18yrs that I have been trying to chant Hare Krsna - quality Japa is the most important aspect of chanting.

In the past I have been guilty of rattling off quick rounds so I can move onto other services or activities...but this was a big mistake because those rounds were not attentive and focused - there was no chance of getting the "taste" that we all hanker for.

These days I try very hard to chant attentively, and find that my consciousness benefits greatly from this....you can always tell when you have chanted nicely...I am sure most devotees have experienced this.

Japa is the cornerstone of our spiritual lives...it cleanses our consciousness and let's us serve Krsna with sharp intelligence and a clear mind.

Radhanath Swami is coming! I am excited to once again be with Maharaj in Alachua, so many memories of very sweet association here, but I can't help but feel apprehensive. The last thing Maharaj said to me was I'll see you in India. I have this deep rooted insecurity that Maharaj will reject me or not be happy to see me, or that I will not live up to his expectations.

Of course in Athens he said "I won't see you again this year unless you come to India." And when I mentioned that to him in LA he just laughed and said, "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush."

So as Ananta Govinda Prabhu advised me I am just trying to take every opportunity that I can to get Maharaj's association.

I was somewhat reassured when on my first day in Alachua when Gadagraja Prabhu gave me a signed copy of a Radhanath Swami Vyasa Puja book from the mid nineties. These are very rare because Maharaj no longer allows his disciples to publish a vyasa puja book, and of course the fact that it is autographed makes it very very rare. This gave me the hope that I was not bereft of Maharaj's mercy.

Of course my excuse for coming down here is to visit other devotees because it has been almost two years since I've visited and it will be at least another year and maybe much longer before I will be able to return for another visit.

My visit just happens to coincide with Maharaj's visit, like my visit to my mothers just happened to coincide with Maharaj's visit to LA. I try to justify it in that way so I don't feel like I am following Maharaj around just for my personal sense gratification.

Thus far it has been quite a nice visit. It has been to nice to just catch up with people. In the course of my conversations one question always comes up. It always goes something the along the lines of, "So, what are your plans?" or "How's everything going?" I can always tell by the way they ask the question that they want to know if I am planning on getting married or if I want to remain as a brahmacari. Because I always find indirect questions annoying I ask them, "Are you asking me if I want to get married?" Then they usually get a slightly embarrassed look as if they probably shouldn't be prying into someone's private life in that way. But I always reassure them that there is nothing wrong with the question.

It is a somewhat difficult question for a number of reasons. One is that I don't want to come across as being proud or arrogant and secondly I don't want to be proud or arrogant. And it requires a lot of philosophy to really explain the answer properly. I have to explain how unqualified I am and how much I am dependent on the mercy of guru and Gauranga etc. etc., and the other issue that desire is a tricky concept.

When someone asks me "Do you have any desire to get married?" who are they speaking to? My body and mind, my intelligence, or me, the spirit soul.

One friend, Hanuman asked me, "So, do you have any ambition for marriage?" I was happy to hear the question phrased in that way. For one thing he very clearly asked what he wanted to know, and secondly the word he chose to use, ambition, is the right word.

In the English language the word desire usually refers to sensual desires, but ambition refers more to the function of the soul.

The soul has separate desires from the body as explained by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur:

The awakened soul says in effect to the mind and body, “I am not identical with you. I don not want what you require. I have so long believed that I was identical with yourselves and that our interests were the same. But I now find that I am really and categorically different from you. I am made wholly of the principle of self-consciousness while both of you are made of dead matter. Being matter you act and be acted upon by matter under the Laws of Nature. Nature makes and unmakes you but she has no power over me. I am not benefited by your growth or harmed by your decay. You grow and decay by the laws that govern your relationships with this physical universe. Falsely identifying myself with you, I find myself compelled to suffer pain and pleasure due to physical vicissitudes that overtake you. I find myself unnaturally yoked to your functions such as eating, drinking, producing thought etc. etc. and am forced to believe them to be my own functions by which I am benefited. I shall of course have to stay with you as long as it is intended by Providence that I should suffer the consequences of this unnatural alliance with you. I shall permit you to do only what I consider to be necessary for my well-being viz. getting back into my natural position of free conscious existence unhampered by the unnatural domination by longing for material enjoyment. I refuse to be any more a slave of the sensuous inclinations of the mind and body.”

The desires that we experience as our own are the product of our identification. As long as we identify with the body and continue to act in such a way as to strengthen our identification with the body we will continue to experience the desires of the body as our own. But if we perform activities that strengthen our identification as spirit soul, eternal servant of the servant of the Lord of the gopis, then we will experience the desires of the soul as our own.


ps. Here is a short essay I wrote last year during Kartika. It was originally written for a brahmacari email group but why not share the nectar? In Krishna consciousness everyone, not just the brahmcaris and sanyasis, is supposed to be on the path for cultivating pure devotional service free from all material motives. And Kartik is fast approaching once again.

Bhagavad Gita 2.70
A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires — that enter like rivers into the ocean, which is ever being filled but is always still — can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy such desires.
Purport
Although the vast ocean is always filled with water, it is always, especially during the rainy season, being filled with much more water. But the ocean remains the same — steady; it is not agitated, nor does it cross beyond the limit of its brink. That is also true of a person fixed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. As long as one has the material body, the demands of the body for sense gratification will continue. The devotee, however, is not disturbed by such desires, because of his fullness. A Kṛṣṇa conscious man is not in need of anything, because the Lord fulfills all his material necessities. Therefore he is like the ocean — always full in himself. Desires may come to him like the waters of the rivers that flow into the ocean, but he is steady in his activities, and he is not even slightly disturbed by desires for sense gratification. That is the proof of a Kṛṣṇa conscious man — one who has lost all inclinations for material sense gratification, although the desires are present. Because he remains satisfied in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, he can remain steady, like the ocean, and therefore enjoy full peace. Others, however, who
want to fulfill desires even up to the limit of liberation, what to speak of material success, never attain peace. The fruitive workers, the salvationists, and also the yogīs who are after mystic powers are all unhappy because of unfulfilled desires. But the person in Krishna consciousness is happy in the service of the Lord, and he has no desires to be fulfilled. In fact, he does not even desire liberation from the so-called material bondage. The devotees of Kṛṣṇa have no material desires, and therefore they are in perfect peace.

I recently stumbled upon this verse in again and it was like discovering a lost treasure. I was especially appreciating Srila Prabhupada's wonderful purport. I think that sometimes we have a tendency to become discouraged in the face of what seems to be an insurmountable mountain of material desires, but I think it is very important to understand these desires in the proper perspective. As Srila Prabhupada explains as long as we have a material body we will continue experience desires connected to the body, but he draws a very important distinction between different types of desire. He says, "Desires may come to him like the waters of the rivers that flow into the ocean, but he is steady in his activities, and he is not even slightly disturbed by desires for sense gratification." So it is possible to have desires and simultaneously not have desires. What this means is that there will always be some desires arising from the body, but we as spirit souls also have a choice as to what to desire. We can desire to fulfill the desires of the body and the mind or we can desire to surrender fully to Krishna and serve Him with our body mind and words. So this is really the key to spiritual advancement, and the key to overcoming material desires. We must desire to serve Krishna. As spirit souls part and parcel of Krishna we cannot be without desire, Krishna has desires and we also have desires, so we must purify our desires.

This means we must cultivate positive desires to serve the Lord, we must replace our material exploitative desires with positive desires to serve the Lord and His devotees.

In the beginning of Krishna Consciousness we must cultivate a strong desire to serve the mission of Guru and Gauranga. This provides positive engagement and for the conditioned soul. But simultaneously one must also begin to cultivate a strong desire to participate in the Lord's eternal lila in the spiritual world.

And, Kartika is a wonderful time of year to enter in to a deeper meditation on many of the wonderful lilas of the Lord, and cultivate a deeper desire and attraction to participate in these wonderful exchanges of love.

And this is the most powerful means of curing the disease of the heart. The whole Srimad Bhagavatam is aimed at this, so much time is spent in various ways explaining how we can become liberated, but then in the conclusion of the whole Bhagavatam, the Rasa Dance Sukadeva Goswami finally reveals the real way that we can be free of this disease of the heart, "Anyone who faithfully hears or describes the Lord's playful affairs with the young gopīs of Vṛndāvana will attain the Lord's pure devotional service. Thus he will quickly become sober and conquer lust, the disease of the heart."

Krishna's pastimes are not simply meant for advanced devotees, they are meant for everyone. Srila Prabhupada gave us Krishna Book in the very early days of Krishna Consciousness movement. It is true that only pure devotees can fully relish the nectar of Krishna wonderful activities but everyone can benefit from hearing them. And they can be of great help in turning our desires towards Krishna and away from the perversity of material enjoyment.

In Sri Sankalp Kalpadruma, which is meditation on the eight fold pastimes that Radha and Krishna perform throughout the day, Srila Visvanath Chakravarti Thakur says, "My mind and heart are covered with hundreds of faults. But at the same time, all these intense pure desires for service have taken birth in my heart. Just see how much difference there is between these two directions." From this prayer we can clearly see that this is a book meant for sadhakas who are not completely free from material contamination, of course the subject matter is very elevated and we should not be sahajiyas and take things cheaply, but we must understand the importance of cultivating this desire to attain Krishna. After all Rupa Goswami explains that pure devotional service cannot by had by executing the rules and regulations of bhakti yoga even for thousands of lifetimes, but that it is only by developing intense greed can one achieve pure devotional service.

So we must not under estimate the importance of this aspect of our Krishna consciousness. Especially for those who are renunciates or aspiring renunciates. One time a brahmacari disciple of Srila Prabhupada was reading a copy of Gita Govinda by Jayadeva Goswami and he told Srila Prabhupada, "I don't think this book is for brahmacaris." and Prabhupda responded, "No, it is only for brahmacaris." Srila Bhaktivinode Tahkur sings Ami ghare no jaibo vane pravesibo, o lilera rasa tare, for the sake of relishing the mellows of Radha and Krishna's pastimes I will not go home, I will go to the forest. Traditionally this is the role of the renounced order of life in Gaudiya

Vaishnavism, one renounces all material connection in order to practice internal meditation on the name, form, qualities and pastimes of the Lord. So we must not overlook this aspect of our spiritual practice.

Srila Visvanath Chakravarti Thakur ends Sri Sankalp Kalpa Druma by encouraging us on this path by saying, "O my thoughts, Give up all other desires and worship Vrindaban, the bestower of Krishna prema. Even if you cannot now taste the sweet nectar for the ocean of Radha Govinda's pastimes, please do not give up the longing to taste it. You will quickly attain perfection by taking shelter of this desire tree of sweet aspirations.”

Srila Rupa Goswami and Sri Gauridasa Pandita

Another time, Sankirtana, newly arrived to New Vrindavana, was very thoroughly and devotedly washing the Deity plates after the noon offering and dumping the water down what he thought was a regular sink drain….and washing his own feet in astonishment. You could frequently hear his distinctive voice calling from the kitchen for Ruci to bring him a tissue (something almost unheard of in New Vrindavana at the time) as his eyes and nose streamed in the smoke choked kitchen.

It was a standing joke that there was no such thing as a true drain, or a genuinely straight doorway anywhere in New Vrindavana. On many occasions in the summer, Hladini and I couldn’t hardly see each other standing across and cutting table in the kitchen due to the smoke and flies being so dense.

One wonderful devotee lady who had two young sons was assigned to cook the 4pm offering for Lord Jagannatha (primarily because her husband needed some more opulent prasadam in order to function than was ordinarily available to devotees at the temple). She was a highly educated, refined, and dedicated wife.

After her first day cooking in the smokey kitchen she started doing her service with a pair of wrap around goggles to protect her eyes. This wasn’t just overkill. Two of the main cooks at Bahulavana developed painful styes in their eyes from the constant intense smoke irritation—and Madhuvana kitchen was more smoke filled and less ventilated than the Bahulavana kitchen.

One day, an enterprising, enthusiastic young local college student knocked at the side kitchen door of the temple. He was going house to house around the ridge selling encyclopedias to make money to go to school.

He was a little chagrined to say the least when the supposed lady of the house answered the door with goggles on and smoke pouring out around her through the doorway while two little kids played in what looked like an old burned out farmhouse. But he had seen the mailbox and trying to compose himself and be polite to someone he felt less and less was likely to be a prospective subscriber, he timidly said, “Mrs. Temple?”

Manipuspaka bless her, got him some prasadam and settled him down in the ‘prasadam room’ (the old living room) of the farmhouse. Of course it had no furniture in it and all those pictures of Krishna around plus all the ‘strange’ smells from the temple room and kitchen. He was polite enough to take prasadam, but for some reason he never came back.

Madhuvana had no drains at all: just buckets underneath the sinks that had to been hauled out behind the temple building and dumped down the embankment out back. The big dump buckets’ contents started to look like swirling gallons of primordial soup by the time they were full enough to make it worth the struggling endeavor to get it out to the back of the temple. You really tried to not disturb the surface of the contents any more than you had to ‘cause the noisome smell generated from the ‘soup’ could almost knock you over faster than trying to lift and carry the bucket in the first place.

Then you had to be extra careful not to step on the edge of the cistern cover right smack in the exact middle of the pot room floor and about 3ft across.

If you hit the cistern cover wrong, it tipped up and you dropped suddenly straight down into the black abyss below. Not to worry though, no one ever went clear to the bottom or anything. You would get wedged solid by your elbows meeting the two opposite edges of the rim of the hole and the edge of the raised cover. You would occasionally hear this blood curdling scream out of the pot room, and knew you had to run to help pull someone up that had just ‘gotten eaten by the hole’.

Many devotees became so expert at both dodging the lid despite it’s central location and wide diameter; or leaping in mid air to miss the bone jarring fright of free fall and its abrupt stop, Hladini listed it as one of the ’64 arts of New Vrindavana’ after reading about the 64 arts of the gopis in the Brahma Samhita.

Madhuvana went through about a gunzillion managers. It seems just about every senior man of the old days was at one time or another appointed to be the manager at Madhuvana.

Some were obsessive/compulsively picky. Some were control freaks. Some were derogatory about how Hladini did her service. Some were more or less inert. Some were more concerned with what they saw as politics at Bahulavana. There was only one I could remember who actually felt it was his job to try to help facilitate the service mood of Lord Jagannatha in a real and sustained way with his own attention and offer of assistance. And all of them seemed to feel that if they painted at least what served as the prasadam room they’d made a significant upgrade in the place, ‘proved themselves’ and were ready to move on to more ‘essential’ and ‘bigger’ services.

It may sound like Mahhuvana was a regular train wreck of a place, dilapidated, something right out of the mode of Ignorance. But Madhuvana had a secret. A Big wonderful secret-actually four of Them.

They were Big Lord Balaram, Big Lady Subadhra, and Big Lord Jagannatha. And the fourth secret was the unmotivated, uninterrupted loving devotion Hladini had for Them. If you saw that: if you let yourself be caught up in that, you were indeed in the spiritual world, and the circumstances and facilities that were being dovetailed in that expression became cherishable additions to the aura of Gokula manifested there.