It was Janmastami, the appearance day of Lord Krishna. Devotees rushed to the temple during Mangal Aarti. It was great to see such a large number of devotees chanting and it was blissful. During festivals, it would be wonderful to chant extra rounds, to get that extra special mercy!

Please share your realisations with other devotees from around the world....simply send me an introduction email and I will be happy to make you a member:

rasa108@gmail.com

ys

Rasa Rasika das

Any successful man should feel grateful to the Lord for all he has achieved.

- Prabhupada

As mentioned, I spent a few days in New Vrndavana for Radhastami. I took a few pictures, which you’ll see below.

It was a great time and Sarah seemed to enjoy it too. Rati and Dwija were wonderful and I even got to meet Dwija’s parents. Woo!

The festival itself seemed pretty dead, though we did our own thing for the feast. But Sri Sri Radha Vrndavana Chandra were, as always, beautiful.

Here are the pictures… (they might look odd if you’re viewing this on Planet ISKCON, not sure - if they do, just go directly to my blog).

And here are Sarah’s pictures and a little write up.

Atman: Hare Krishna, I am a follower of sanatana Dharma. I have read many books of Sri prabhupada. I have the following doubts please clarify 1)How is it that nama sankirtana alone wil help in liberation, without the performance of ones swadharma.

Dhananjay Parajia: Please relish the nectar of the divine celebration and transcendental ecstasy experienced by the devotees at Ahmedabad ISKCON, through our web photo gallery.

On Saturday 6 September, twelve young boys, aged 6 – 10, took part in a Harinama around the campus. The Harinama was arranged as part of Ramananda Raya dasa’s birthday celebrations. It was great fun for the boys as they used the “Harinam Express” rikshaw, which enabled them to go around all the areas, without struggling to walk, so that they could concentrate on the chanting.

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After an almost two-week absence, SriSri Nitai-Mayapur-Chandra made Their re-appearance on Radhasthami. Where were They during this time?Preparing for this special day, to lead Harinama on a new carved wooden rikshaw altar, with newly-painted faces and a lovely deep plum-pink outfits, including tiny toe-rings.

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The verse in Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya 22.107 reads, nitya-siddha krsna-prema 'sadhya' kabhu naya, sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya. "Pure love for Krsna is eternally established in the hearts of the living entities. It is not something to be gained from another source.
When the heart is purified by hearing and chanting, this love naturally awakens.

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Tuesday, September 09/08 - Ireland

I would like to re-name Ireland and call it Indraland. Indra is the rain god and appears to be very generous here. Igor and I tackled the early morning shower. My loose-weared lower-robe called a dhoti become drenched and clung to my right leg causing a tear. This is the second dhoti ruined and ripped since walking here nine days ago. I am learning detachment quickly. If it keeps up I'll leave Ireland as a naga baba, a naked renunciant.

Some motorists stop. Their remarks express concern. "Are you broke down?" "Do you want a lift?" "Please pray for me!" "Pray for my father who is in the hospital!"

The local papers in Carlow also gave their time by mid-day when periodic sun and wind made the atmosphere very pleasant. Our back-road trail led us up a mountain where the air was particularly invigorating until Indra became generous again.

I feel blessed with a great team of players Premarnava, always gentle, is a careful driver as a support. Ananta whips up a fabulous pasta. He is also the more out going one. In the evening he went door -to- door making sales of Bhaktivedanta Book Trust literature. He does crack me up at times. He told me of some comments by people on previous door-to-door ventures.
"I'm a monk!" he said
"Oh! What denomination?" asked the man at his door
" A wet one!" he burst out. The home owner ended up taking several books out of the jovial nature of Ananta.

Another time he approached an English woman after knocking on her door.
" I'm a monk and I ..."
She cut him off. In a tight upper-lip tone she said " Well, be a monk somewhere else! it took Ananta several house calls before he recovered from that. A monk must be prepared to take some punches.

38 Km

Mon Sept 1 / 08

It seems to be unavoidable but every walking marathon which I've started is met by rain. Perhaps it's because I begin at a coastal city. Belfast is no exception, and, besides it is in Ireland. My personal consolation to the dark sky, blue and grey, is that here is the colour of God.

Along with the official start at the City Hall were reporters from the Irish News and the Daily Mail. They were determined to capture the bottoms of my feet for the photography. Before any real media came out enthusiasts in cars honked their happy horns.


My support team for the two week stretch is composed of two very sweet monks. Ananta Nitai from the UK and Premarnava from Belfast. Truly I could not have better company as they walk with me or watch out for me from their mini-caravan. Also accompanying us for three days is Tim McEvitt from Dublin assisting in promotion. He is also sweet. With Ananta we walked the streets in the area of former political uprising in the seventies and eighties. We passed by a memorial for the ten IRA members who died on hunger strike. Bobby Sands was a notable figure at the time of Protestant / Catholic conflict. In some respects those men left a strong gesture of inspiration by their determination. In Belfast's suburb, Dunmurry, a smart looking older home is now a converted temple where I spoke about the wonders of walking for upliftment.

Ananta amazed me when on several occasions he entered a shop, said we were travelling monks, and received donations for our needs on this two-week mission of walking from Belfast in Northern Ireland to Cork in the Republic of Ireland.

37 km

Tues Sept 2/08 - Ireland

Sheep dot the landscape as do cattle against the green. From the town of Moira Tim and I braved the secondary road. There is little space to walk. Pavement to accommodate two lanes leaves no shoulder. There is a narrow strip of elevated grass and then an eternal hedge. Fortunately much of the hedge is comprised of blackberries, now in season. Those little berries kept me physically fueled throughout the day after Tim left for duties and while I was left armed with an umbrella. The towns of Banbridge and Rathfriland were on today's route culminating with the city of Newry where we were hosted by Rajesh and Sonia Dudeja.

There was plenty of interaction with people, but like Canada the obsession for cars is great. There are few people visible outside. Stingy nettle and thorn branches brush the bare ankles. It is almost unavoidable. The ordeal of walking can be painful at times as you take whatever comes of its own accord. Such is the life of a wandering mendicant.

A photographer from Banbridge came out to greet me and a lively interview was conducted at the studio of 101.4FM IUR radio in Newry.

Our travelling crew discussed the principle of "anger" as a trait in all of us that seems to fall from the sky, as it is put in the ancient text Srimad Bhagavatam. Anger is checked by wisdom and reason. When anger rules it checks wisdom and reason.

47 km

Wed. Sept. 03.09.08 - Ireland

By the end of a day’s walk the body is both strong and weak; the mind relatively peaceful and appetite normal. There is a tendency at least for myself to eat more when I am indoors. There seems to be nutrients in the outside air that allows you to sustain for a long period.

Speaking of eating, I had succeeded in turning on my traveling companion monks to what I call Canwalk wraps. Tortillas with cream cheese, herbs and fresh veggies are the ingredients.

The routine walk was pleasantly broken with intermittent catnaps and interviews. Two papers from Newry and one from Dundalk sent reps for questions. One fellow Chris was so intrigued which was demonstrated by his queries. Those moments are always stimulating when a keen interest is shown.

The public had been responsive, motorists and pedestrians. The weather was nasty. Strong winds, rain, little sun.

And here is something you may have heard or read before. It’s so appropriate.

The Irish Blessing:

May the road rise up to meet you
May the wind always be at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face
And the rains fall soft upon your fields
And until we meet again
May God hold you in the palm of his hand.

Author Unknown

40Km

Thursday.September 4/08 - Ireland

GARDA means police in Irish. A Garda car pulled over with two officers in it. They expressed concern all over their faces. "Who is this weirdo?" might best describe their look. Their actual questions" What are you doing?" Where are you going?" "Where do you stay at night? "When all their questions were answered regarding the cross country walk they beamed and nodded in approval and went about their way.

Signage in Ireland is interesting. It's in Irish first then English. One sign said something like "So you like littering the landscape? FINE!"

I had left the beautiful Mourne mountain region behind me now and the Northern Irlandis at least one day behind me as well. I recall having seen a Capucchin monk of the Franciscan order. While wolking on a major street in Dundalk and elderly monk in his dark brown hooded robe came out the shop in front of me, walked some paces ahead and turn a corner quickly to enter another edifice.

In Drougheda I felt dizzy spells more than once and had to stop and sit. I attribute the uneasiness to the cearbon monoxid or fumes from the cars funnnelled into the narrow downtown street. Once I reached the countryside it was over. A phatographer, Paul, came to take shots for the local paper, The Independant. Ananta and Premarnava,the two monks with me (Tim bused it back to Dublin) went to the magnificent cathedral. They were intrigued by the preserved head of Saint Oliver Plunket who was martyed in 1609 during religious conflict.

On the serene road Rout 108 I met a walker way out in the middle of nowhere. Austin is a young traveller, a walker, who trekked across Europe, a distance of over 2000km. He has been on other ventures as well. When I asked him where the village Naul was he gave the perfect walker answer "An hour and forty-five minutes up the road". It was great having met another walking freak.

The weather was good and scenery spectacular! Rolling hills/mountains in behind. Ocean in the distance. The day led into night when hosts Mathura and Katyayani arranged a gathering of Krishna devotees who came to chant with us . Also thanks to Raghupati and Nalini for getting groceries for us monks.

Today I saw images of vines taking down fences and in other places vegetation bringing a slow decay to a stone wall. " Maya", temptation can also suddenly creep up and gradually bring us down to our knees.

A final perk about today's walk earlier on was meeting a Torontonian in his friend's front lawn. He know exactly where I live. Small world.

40 KM

Monday, September 08/08 - Newbridge, Ireland.

When reaching a town or city in Ireland you may come upon a street light like the one's in Newbridge. It is a long wait for a pedestrian, a good one minute and thirty-five seconds. Either this is ridiculously a long wait or I'm just an impatient North American and unworthy of wearing vocational clothes. Like the rain in Ireland this is one more feature of the country I must come to accept.

Igor has been asking questions as we walk togeher. We both favour the quiet back road where it is without engine noises and where we can converse. We end up chanting together. I'm teaching him bhajans such as "Shri Guru Vandanam" a song to praise the guru. The road sometimes becomes a classroom.

Vicky from the paper in Newbridge was lively. I referenced St.Patrick as one who guided people in pilgrimage. Mout Croagh Patrick was the rock he climbed which was done barefoot. I showed Vicky my crocs and she was astounded that this is my footwear in Ireland. The Kildare National also conducted an interview.

Pat Malone and family had invited the four of us lads to his home for Sat-Sang, chanting, discussions and refreshments. What a beautiful devotional family!

42 Km

Sunday , September 07, 2008 - Hare Krishna Island, Ireland.

The followers of Krishna in Ireland were celebrating the birth anniversary of Radha, Krishna 's eternal and beloved consort, this weekend. Innis Rath is a village in the north which has within its' district a 23 acre island called Hare Krishna Island. This became the venue for a glorious service to the Goddess Radha. I had the honor to speak on her behalf by the grace of our guru, Srila Prabhupada, who has written about her in reference to appreciation. Radha is the epitome of devotion. She appriciates anyone who is engaged in devotinal service

As an exercise I asked the full house group of listeners to break into twos and to express to their partner some appreciation that they have never expressed before. Acknowledgment of another's good deed or behaviour can be a Rad principle. The affect was possitive. I allowed five minutes for this .

Happily it was difficult everyone to stop. They were enjoying themselvs so much. I picked up the microphone and asked the assembled people, "please stop appreciating each other!" which didn't seem right but was met with an outburst of laughter.

The morning stretch of the day saw that I had company - Adin Word , a young tallman with long legs. Egor who is also of s similar physical struture , was also with us. We tackle a mere 12 km and walked to the edge of Newbridge.

12 Km

Sat. Sept. 06/08 - Kill, Ireland

At 4:30 am I set foot with three worthy pilgrims - worthy because we started out at this early moment and like real troopers stepped with me every inch of the way. John Francis Leader, his fiance, Vraja Lila (both local), and Igor from Belarus and I took to the streets of Dublin from the City Centre and left south bound. We were met by Friday night strugglers who were delighted to see us and in particular the sober.

Dublin is at the heart of the Celtic Tiger. Ireland as a whole has been booming, in a certain way for the last twenty years and its Capital City, Dublin teams with youthful energy and these days attract tourists in greater numbers than Rome.

John, Vraja and I in particular talked for hours about local Celtic culture, about druids(wondering spritualists) and the way it was before Christianity infiltrated. These are startling resemblances to the culture of ancient India.

After leaving the city we reached the suburbs and then finally the countryside. Of the three contrasting regions it was unanimous when I asked as to everyone's favourite area. It's the place where we interacted with sheep and horses and even a whole community of dogs. Igor said that he felt light after the day's trek and that thoughts were clear. He felt free.

Well, Igor, imagine doing this every day. Imagine the whole world taking to pilgrimage from time to time. It would make a different world.

42 km

Friday, September 5 /08 - Dublin, Ireland

Route 108 is a plesant trail early in the morning but it turned into a monster by rush hour. There is no shoulder but frequent puddles on the pavement's edge. The traffic is thick but tolerant. Europeans are much more used to working in tight spots. No one honked a horn out of agitation. Rain came like hell.

I suggested to my support monks that we move their home (van) to a parallel road to be safe. So we transfered to Route 132. Rain and wind was now horrendous as we commenced walking near Dublin Airport. A major mistake occured. The camper van which I took shelter of for a break was parked facing north. I exited the van and headed in that direction thinking it south (there is no Sun to tell directions) But I was specific about Premarnava staying close by, that I would be struggling just to hold my umbrella and dodge traffic and puddles and to park at every round about or juncture in order that there was no confusion direction wise. Well this mistake in the wrong direction put me in a storm for five hours with no means of comunication. It was a desolate area. Whithout more details I had to console myself by recalling that Krishna, when young, got caught in a storm with a shcool mate of his, Sudhama, they were stuck, lost all night in a forest until found the next morning .

Eventually I made my own way to downtown Govindas Vegetarian Reastaraunt and to meeting the missing monks. Unfortunately I missed my media that there was little interest in Dublin over the pilgrimage story, unlike the smaller places.

The storm persisted for hours today but I belive I came out stronger and will be less intimidated by rain after my Irish stretch is over. When Irish eyes are smiling...

40 km.

By Ekendra dasa

Thanks to the efforts of Brahma Muhurta dasa, we're now able to present his film documenting the efforts of BBT artists Dhriti dasi and Ramdasa Abhirama dasa as they share their realizations and consummate craft for painting Krishna's pastimes in the unique learning environment of holy Vrindavan.

After 21 increasingly successful editions of the India Fest, few people in Utah County are ignorant of the fact that, once a year, you can go to India without spending a lot of money. You can have India right in the middle, of all places, ... Spanish Fork!

Lord Brahma prays, "My Lord, persons who smell the aroma of Your lotus feet, carried by the air of Vedic sound through the holes of their ears, find that You are never separated from the lotus of their hearts. Your devotees can see You through the ears by the process of bonafide hearing, and thus their hearts become cleansed and You take Your seta there."

Srimad Bhagavatam - Canto 3

H.H. Bhakti Vidya Purna Swami gave this very insightful and thought-provoking class on the grhasta ashram (married life) when he visited Brisbane a few months ago.

It is full of examples and analogies that I had never heard before, which is unusual for a class in an ISKCON temple, which usually consists of refreshing and reinforcing things that are already in my head.

I like the feeling of neural rewiring, so I enjoyed it. Useful information too.

• H.H Bhakti Vidya Purna Swami talk on Married Life (Grhasta Ashram)

In 2003, Radhanath Swami invited me to Chowpatty, India.

So. Five years later, I have finally come. I don't know what the next five hours will bring, what to speak of tomorrow, or a week from now. So I simply live in the moment, step by step.

I breathe in the rich, musty air. The roar as waterfalls of rain drench the world - people dashing from cover in their saris or dhotis. Orange cloth (lots of it) billows from bamboo rafters high above, drying in the sun. Rain patters through the fresh green leaves, and there, the pujari is a silhouette from the candlelight inside the little Laxmi Narayan temple.

Chowpatty works a slow magic. I knew it would take time, I knew I needed to be patient - this is a community based on relationships, and relationships take time. And so day by day, the petals of this community blossom for me... so very slowly.

A staggering number of people attend a morning program infused with devotion. This is not simply the dazzled observation of a newcomer. The kirtans are melodic and sincere; everyone dances together, and everyone raises their arms when they sing Hare Krishna. I sense a deep, deep connection with Krishna Consciousness here. And somehow, SOMEHOW, their enthusiasm remains fresh, even after so many years.

Ah... I sense the hands of Radhanath Swami here.

And have I mentioned that every single kirtan is beautiful? The singer, the mridanga, and the kartalas are all eloquent and expert with so much heart. And when everyone sings in response, voices flood the templeroom. Okay, I know, I've mentioned this, but kirtan is a big deal for me, and I am deeply impressed.

I don't know how I will ever attend a morning program again without remembering the soulful kirtans and japa of the people here in Chowpatty.

To those who have given their prayers and assistance for me to come to India, I offer my deep gratitude to you. The blessings of the Vaishnavas allow me to taste the magic here.

Note: The DVD on this community, The Simple Temple, is available from Krishna.com. I guarantee you, it does not exaggerate. This place really is that amazing.

The Large Hadron Collider is being powered up tonight.

Scientists have admitted that it may create a black hole that will swallow the Earth.

Less talked about is the possibility of it opening an inter-dimensional portal and allowing hordes of demons to enter the Earth and terrorize the population. Dude, I am so totally prepared for that. Video games have been demonstrated to be valid training for real life crisis situations, and I spent a few years of my teenage life battling demons in just such a circumstance in an underground base on Mars. BFG ftw!

I'll be at a Judas Priest concert when it happens, so it might be hard to tell whether the portal has opened or the original JP line up are just rocking out! I'll do a double-take if I find myself saying: "Wow, the epicness of this concert is approaching a Disaster Area gig.

So if you haven't done anything with your life, tonight's the night to cut loose - before a zombie pops through a wormhole and munches on your braaaaaaaiiiiiins!

If you haven't got anything else to do tonight, and you're in Brisbane, I recommend dropping by the temple for Nrsimha Kavaca prabhu's presentation on the new Mayapura Institute. Unfortunately I have a prior booking, so I won't make it, but it should be a good note to go out on.

Credit goes to Pandu Prabhu for pointing this out: "I’m reluctant to accept HH Bhakti Caru Swami’s view that we should 'go along with the time' with regard to women working side-by-side with men." Maharaja's words? (bolding added)

What man can do today women can also do that quite easily. And in some cases they can do it even better. That is why it has become natural that women are doing what a man is meant to do. And that is why in today’s world, women are striding side by side with men. My point is that we have to go along with the time, the trend, the way the things are in today’s world. That is why if sometimes women are able to do something we have to give them that facility. It is not that because you are a woman you have to stay at home. Many women will stay at home and will be happy doing that, but there will be many others who will want to go out and do things. So those who have that urge, the facilities and opportunities should be given to them.

Bhakti Charu Swami, "Q&A: Role of Women," 3 May 2008, H.H. Bhakti Caru Swami, 9 Sep. 2008 <http://www.bhakticharuswami.com/?p=596>

Two claims to note:

1. The idea that "we have to go along with the time, the trend, and the way things are in today's world."
2. So those who have that urge, the facilities and opportunities should be given to them.

These claims also happen to be foundational to some ideas, and their corresponding modes of life, that are a hinderance to spiritual (and, for that matter, material) progress.

The first claim is that we have to "go along with the time...". For many devotees, that idea stops right there. Whatever is the trend, we go along with it, chant Hare Krishna, and be happy. However, it's Kali yuga, and the prevailing trends happen to be demonic, materialistic. Prevaling cultural attitudes are realities all preachers have to deal with. Yet preachers are working to change those very cultural attitudes and realities. If you don't, then you're not preaching anymore. You aren't trying to reform a godless, sinful civilization. You're instead trying to make your peace with it. At the moment you decide to do that, then you become a demon. You go back to the "dark side".

As I had elaborated on in my previous post, the "go with the flow" kind of preaching is not counter-cultural, and because it is not counter-cultural, the people who are immersed in that kind of preaching, or who make that their primary program, soon find themselves devoid of desire to promote real, pure, and unadulterated devotional service.

This is not to say that bridge-preaching and other "go with the flow" type presentations do not have a proper place. For a certain class of people, and preacher, it is a step up. But for most of us who have some acquaintence with ashram life, it is a step down--a big step down, kind of like how Shankaracarya's preaching Mayavada to replace Buddhism was a step up for those contaminated with voidism but is a step down for Vaishnavas.

The second claim is as regards to what women want to do. If they have the ability, why not let them do what they want? The answer is that Vedic life is based on restraint--even having the ability to do something does not qualify one to do it. That is why we find this currious statement of Krishna's in the Gita:

sreyan sva-dharmo vigunah para-dharmat sv-anusthitatsvabhava-niyatam karma kurvan napnoti kilbisam

"It is better to engage in one's own occupation, even though one may perform it imperfectly, than to accept another's occupation and perform it perfectly. Duties prescribed according to one's nature are never affected by sinful reactions." (Bhagavad-gita 18.47 trans.)

What could Krishna possibly mean by saying it is better to perform one's own occupation imperfectly than to perform another's occupation perfectly? Isn't that counter-intuitive? Aren't brahmanas to be accepted as brahmanas because of their guna and karma--their nature and activities? If you can perform some other occupation perfectly, then why not be accepted as a brahmana?

In the purport to this verse, Srila Prabhupada elaborates upon this idea:

"One's occupational duty is prescribed in Bhagavad-gita. As already discussed in previous verses, the duties of a brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya and sudra are prescribed according to their particular modes of nature. One should not imitate another's duty. A man who is by nature attracted to the kind of work done by sudras should not artificially claim to be a brahmana, although he may have been born into a brahmana family."

What few tend to realize is that the body is also a product of the modes of nature. The body is also a product of guna and karma. On account of our previous activities, we get certain kinds of bodies which are higher or lower, and this higher or lower status corresponds with higher or lower modes of nature. Hence, in this verse the words svabhava and svadharma are used. We have a certain svadharma, or set of prescribed duties, because we have a certain svabhava, which is the product of our merit (karma-phalam, the fruit of our actions) and our association with the modes of nature (gunas). This is why, for example, many of those born in Hindu families tend to identify their social status (or, at least piety) with their birth and why Western converts to Krishna consciousness sometimes cannot understand why Hindu visitors to Hare Krishna temples sometimes don't automatically regard them as being enlightened souls. Those born outside of India, and especially those who grew up eating cows flesh, did not take births in such low families by accident, they took birth there because of their guna and karma.

(And also, because non-Indian converts to Krishna consciousness often have difficulty accepting that there is such a thing as svabhava, they have a difficult time understanding why, after coming to Krishna, they so easily fall from the path.)

So, svabhava matters, because without svabhava, there is no svadharma. Consequently, people who disbelieve in svadharma, or that that there is no such thing as a fixed nature, tend to reject the idea that there is any such thing as prescribed duties, or svadharma. Especially in the Western countries, this belief is generally known as social constructivism, or the idea that social values, mores, statuses, and notions of appropriate and inappropriate behavior are socially constructed. They believe that society is something that is as maleable as plastic, or putty. But this, of course, directly conflicts with the Krishna conscious notion of the varnashram system. It's Krishna's system, and because it is His, it cannot be wished away. Even though you can efface it, you can't erase it.

So, if svabhava is, at least to a significant extent, a product of birth, then there are prescribed duties that also come along with that birth. In the case of women, this is probably one of the most significant categories of duties distinct from those of the other male occupations.

One of the reasons for this division, for female specific duties as separate from the male occupations is, in fact, to keep men and women from intermingling with one another. As it is described in the first chapter of the Gita, intermingling produces varna-sankara, unwanted population, and unwanted population is, of course, a great disturbance to society. It so happens that this varna-sankara characterizes modern society, and it is indeed a product of illicit intermingling between men and women. This, of course, is a great hinderance to making spiritual advancement.

But some have said that if we know that keeping men and women separate from one another is essential to spiritual life, then why don't we just figure out a way to keep men and women apart from each other and let them pursue their career goals? It seems like a reasonable idea, kind of like having a kind of corporate culture but the women all wear long skirts. Yet the reason it is better to follow shastra and the tradition that has delivered it to us is that shastra is a product of super-human intelligence. Our ideas are a product of imperfect, human intelligence. Even if whatever we come up with seems the perfect plan--too good to fail, and even produces some good results for a while--if its not in line with shastra and the tradition, the parampara, then it's probably a bad idea. It would be kind of like how devotees were doing "sticker sankirtana" in order to pay for other Krishna conscious programs. It worked for a while, but in the end, because it was fundamentally against dharmic principles, it failed spectacularly.

Srila Prabhupada gets the last word:

"So these regulative principles are there. So what is, what is the big plan behind these regulative principles? The big plan is: here is the attraction, pumsah striya mithuni-bhavam -- to cut down this attraction between male and female. This is the big plan. Otherwise there is no need of the varnasrama. Varnasrama means to train the candidates gradually to become free from this entanglement of man and woman. This is the basic principle." (Lecture: Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.5.8 -- Vrndavana, October 30, 1976)

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1965 September 10 : "Today the ship is plying very smoothly. I feel today better. But I am feeling separation from Sri Vrindaban and my Lords Sri Govinda, Gopinath, Radha Damodar. The only solace is Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita in which I am tasting the nectarine of Lord Chaitanya's Leela."
Jaladuta Diary :: 1965

1965 September 10: "I have left Bharat Bhumi just to execute the order of Sri Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati in pursuance of Lord Chaitanya's order. I have no qualification, but I have taken up the risk just to carry out the order of His Divine Grace. I depend fully on Their mercy so far away from Vrindaban."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1965

1972 September 10 : "The solution is simply to go on with Sankirtana. That is Civil disobedience movement. Let them fill their jails with us again and again, but we shall not stop our Sankirtana."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1972

1972 September 10 : "This business of expensive lawyers and going to court will not solve anything. Better to simply depend upon Krsna. So forget this lawyer business and simply go on with Sankirtana."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1972

1974 September 10: "I am very glad to learn that you are reading my books and preaching. That will make you happy, and the audience listening, they will also become happy. I am very glad that you are taking up this active service of preaching."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1974

1975 September 10: "God does not discriminate, but so long we have got material forms, we have to discriminate. Without God consciousness, discrimination is there. If you remain on the material platform and desire no discrimination - it is not possible."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1975

1975 September 10: "There is no question of equality on the bodily platform. Women claim to be equal, now they do not want to become pregnant, so they are killing their own child. What kind of equality creates another's suffering?"
Prabhupada Letters :: 1975

1975 September 10: "I like this place and wish to go there. Please note, I wish to make an experiment in preaching by bullock cart. One cart can hold six to eight men sitting and two men for sleeping."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1975

Tuesday, September 9th, 2008

This week's program was all kinds of special, as we were graced with the presence of our esteemed guest and keynote speaker HH Bhakti-Raghava Swami, who spoke about his vast experience and wisdom in helping to implement the other 50% of Srila Prabhupada's vision, varnasrama-dharma.

One of Maharaja's main points was that Prabhupada very clearly stressed the implementing of daivi-varnasrama, with self-sufficient rural communities as a key practical application, as one of the vital aspects of his mission.

Varnasrama is vast, complex topic. It boils down to simple living, but the path to simple living is very complicated, especially in the West.

We don't know all of the aspects, sacrifices, and joys of simple living, therefore we have the tendency to become unconvinced of its merits, especially in our ultra post-modern world. The true test, the true challenge, is to understand and apply what was in Prabhupada's mind regarding the task of varnasrama.

Maharaja is trying, with body, mind, and soul, to serve Prabhupada with his utmost sincerity and ability in this task. He has helped establish a rural community in Indonesia, which began as a hostel program with university students in Sumatra. Land was bought and developed to expand and preserve the community.

Standing on 150 acres, there are now 27 families living there, and its complete with asramas for unmarried men and women, a town hall, a guest house, and all the time-tested amenities, such as fresh wells for each family. And of course, no electricity.

But who would want to live in such a primitive way? If we have this limiting attitude, then we miss the real abundance and wealth that Mother Bhumi has to offer. When we are in tune, we understand in gross and subtle ways what Bhumi has to offer.

The devotees in Indonesia and also living in similar communities in India that Maharaja has visited, such as New Gokula Dham in Karnataka, are bringing it all back home with traditional village technology, such as weaving their own cloth, using ox power, and creating their own herbal medicines.

Maharaja read about Prabhupada's Four Movements, which he mentioned in a letter to a Gandhi supporter in 1949 and also in his "Essay on Gita Nagari" from a 1956 version of BTG (which can be found in the Folio). The four pillars of Prabhupada's movement are 1. Sankirtana, the distribution of the Holy Name 2. Temple Worship 3. Spiritual Initiation, spiritual training 4. The Classless Society, or daivi-varnasrama, where everyone is a devotee.

The need to establish this pillar of the Classless Society is a visionary one, and the need is for visionary devotees. Prabhupada stressed numerous times that the natural, village way of life is the best way to come to this state of devotional society.

Simple living brings the highest spiritual opulence and also real material opulence (grains and cows), free of all-consuming greed and envy.

Maharaja has written a few books on the subject, such as "Make Vrndaban Villages" and "Varnasrama Education", and you can learn all about it at his website www.varnasrama.org

the Parker family was' in sunny Florida, just south of Tampa, while I was trying to take it easy with a broken foot. It had been pretty relaxing here, having been able to make my mom understand the vegetarian thing more,she hadn't had meat since we had been here, so Jai! Life was easy and relaxing here, but the are two things that always make us antsy to go home...we miss Kalachandji and we miss our temple family. Even tho we don't make it to temple every week, we know that it is just down the road.

My kids don't take the separation from Kalachandji very easily. Every day while in Florida we hear, "Can we go see Krishna?" It's almost as if they KNOW that we were not just 20 minutes away from our temple.It's not easy explaining to an almost three year old that the nearest ISKCON temple is 3 hours away and with gas prices the way they are it's not feasible to go. The last time we were here, I found a tiny Hindu temple that had beautiful deities if Lord Krishna, Radha, Rama, Sita and others. Their altar is open and the deities are so close you can touch them. In an attempt to quiet the kids, especially my very vocal daughter, I agreed to take them on Sunday.

Sunday afternoon was the nicest day we had this trip. It was clear and hot, perfect beach weather. I thought about not mentioning the temple to to the kids and hitting the beach, but my little daughter, Padma, spoke up at lunch and said, "Are we going to see Krishna?" I said, "Don't you want to go to the beach?" "No, I wanna see Krishna" I sighed and said, "Ok, later" Padma said, "No mamma, we have to go now before Krishna is nah nee (sleep)" GRRRR.. I told her ok...

My mom came in from her garden and asked my daughter to come pick flowers with her. Padma went out with her gramma and I could hear her little voice asking, "Can I take some flowers to Krishna?" She came back in with a huge armful of marigolds and tiny white flowers, yelling, "Mamma, look what I picked for Krishna!" Ok, I got the message, I was taking her to the temple.

We loaded up the boys into our van and I tried to take her flowers so I could buckle her in the car seat. "No mamma! I am taking the flowers to Krishna!" I tried to reason with her, (yeah, I know, she's almost three) "Let mamma hold the for you so they dont get crushed" "No mamma, I am taking then to Krishna" I didnt want to argue, it was too hot.

Padma fell asleep in the car, her tiny fist in a death grip with those buds, and I could practically see them wilting by the second. By the time we got to the temple they were limp, and I thought, she can't offer those, they are ruined. She woke up as soon as the van engine died, and was ready to go, fresh from her nap, with a bunch of dead flowers. Again, I tried to reason with her (it must have been the heat), "Padma, they are dead, you can't offer dead flowers" I tried to pry them out of her hand and she started to howl, "Nooooooo" I gave up......

We walked into the tiny temple, there were maybe 15 people there, all Indian. They gave us a friendly smile and watched as my little girl laid her dead flowers at Krishna's feet. "There!" she said, "So beautiful!" I was so afraid that we were making offence by offering obviously dead flowers , and I guess it showed on my face. The pujari smiled and pointed to a plaque on the wall, ......" He who offers Me with devotion only a leaf, or a flower, or a fruit, or even a little water, this I accept from that yearning soul, because with a pure heart it was offered with love".......... So there you go..it wasn't the offering itself, it was the devotion in which it was offered. And I couldn't see that because I was too wrapped up in the material illusion of the flowers.
"I am the same to all beings, and My love is ever the same; but those who worship me in devotion, they are in Me and I am in them"
I walked into the tiny temple seeing dead flowers and walked out seeing Krishna in the heart of my daughter.

There is no better service than serving the vaisnavas. I experienced this during this Radhastami and for me it was an amazing experience. I was on the farm near my city and all the devotees needed someone to cook...others to decorate the temple, others for garlands and even to be a messenger and take information from one devotee to another....I managed to do a little bit of everything and I felt so complete. You may ask what has this to do with chanting and I can say that during the festival you chant after mangal arati...the ones who are supposed to help for the festival need to do other services and chanting needs to be done later.

Hare Krsna to one & all!

Radhastami - Washington, DC

This day is Radha’s birthday. It is the day where all her honeybees get the blessing of seeing the sacred feet of Sri Radha and getting her blessings. I was lucky enough to be in the presence of Radha Madana-Mohan. The kirtans were amazing. When the whole temple lifts their voices in deep prayer for Radha’s mercy it feels like waves of energy and ecstacy are crashing down on us. “Radheyyyyyyyy, Govinda!” The altar was decoratedwith beautiful flowers and garlands of tuberoses hung from Radha’s hands and from Krishna’s turban. It was true kirtan bliss.

Gaura

Hare Krsna everyone!!

Today I've noticed that many of our readers arrive at our site with browsers that have been infected with some nasty adware from FunWebProducts. This software offers smileys, cursors, and other fancy looking stuff for free—but you have to install their "search assistant" and browser toolbar in the process. This will change your homepage settings and generally take you to places you never intended to go.

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Karnamrita das: Before enlightenment stacking wood, After enlightenment stacking wood (with Prema). That time of year--still hot, though change is in the air, whispered by Krishna’s Nature thru the plants and living things.

Cidananda das: As most of us know, agriculture using pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilisers have ruined land in all countries, and the price of such items, being even more expensive each year, farmers are committing suicide, as they can't cope with their financial problems in India, and elsewhere.

Here’s just a reminder of the fasting schedule coming up this week:

Wed. 9/10  Ekadasi (fast till noon for Vamana’s Appearance tomorrow)
Thr. 9/11   Vamanadeva’s Appearance Day - special lunch feast at temple
Fri. 9/12    Appearance of Srila Baktivinoda Thakura (fast till noon)

Dear Devotees:
Everyone is invited to bring a dish to share and gather for a potluck in the field by the apartments this Thursday at 5:00pm.  Please bring the family for light-hearted devotee association and games!

By Ila devi dasi

On Saturday 6 September, twelve young boys, aged 6 – 10, took part in a Harinama around the campus. Harinam Deities make surprise appearance on Radhasthami

By Payonidhi das

Some devotees believe Varsana is the birth place of Radharani, this is a misunderstanding. Actually it is Rawal in Gokula. In the Bhakti Ratnakara chapter 5, it is explained how Raghava Pandita took Narotama das Thakura and Srinivasa Acaray on Vraja mandal parikrama...

Battlefield Bhajans Vol. 22

written at Bhaktivedanta Ashram, NYC

I am sitting in NYC now, looking out the window and thinking how fortunate we are to have this movement. Below on the street, people are running from here to there with no goal or purpose. No realization of what the purpose of this life is. It is very sad, and breaks the heart of a devotee to see. I just arrived from DC, and the monitor in the cab said, ” If eating meat was a religion, then consider us your church.” It was a ad for a steak house. I was blown away, how crazy if Kali Yuga? How fallen is today more advanced society? The only hope for them is for devotees to awaken their soul and engage them in Krsna’s service.

Iskcon Potomac, Washington DC

I arrived and the devotee had a nice fest waiting. It was very nice to sit with devotees and honor the Lord’s prasadam. I missed this while in Iraq. Sometimes the material world can make us forget how special the devotees were. My five days there were action packed. Thursday, I gave morning class. The theme of my class was improving devotee relationships and not taking them for granted. The evening I was invited to a home program and I gave a short class and we had some kirtan. For me is was very nice to be in the association of the devotees and their realizations of the Holy Name were very deep. On Saturday the weather was horrible, so I went to a one a month class at a devotees home and the topic of the meeting was increasing our faith in japa. Because of the bad weather there was a small turn out. But still we chanted and read about the Holy Name.  I asked everyone to share what is the Holy Name to them? The answers ranged from shelter, to friend to protection. It was very interesting to listen to the responses. I used this to show how the Holy Name is non different from Krsna and how each one of us has a personal relationship with the Holy Name. After some amazing prasadam we left for the temple, we received a phone call that the temple had experienced a flash flood! The cows almost drowned but the devotees saved them. When we arrived, the creek over flowed and I ran over to help. Myself, Anuttama Prabhu and some others were trying to redirect the water while also trying not to get washed away and all this with winds and heavy rain. I looked over while standing in knee deep water to see one devotees son, with a small bucket trying to scope the water back into the overflowing creek. It was actually pretty comical, but then it reminded me of the story in the Srimad Bhagavatam about the bird who tries to drink the ocean. I really appreciated his efforts. Myself, well I though wow this must be what Mayapura is like when the Ganges over flows, and Lord Caitanya’s mercy is overflowing and ready to flood the world.  I came to the realization that we are naturally protective of Krsna. How when the Lord or His property are in danger the devotees are willing to do anything, or forgo their bodily comforts to protect the Lord. Amazing that the Lord doesn’t need our protection, but still He creates these situations to develop our love and attachment. That evening the weather cleared and I had the sankritana fever. Myself, and some others went on harinam and distributing books. I never realized how much I missed being out in devotional cloth, giving away Prabhupada’s mercy. By the Lord’s mercy some books went out. One group of youth were very receptive. I saw them watching the harinam and I approached them. They were explaining that they were captivated by the singing and wanted some info. When I explain and told them that I have some books from Srila Prabhupada, they snatched all the books out of my hand, threw a donation in my other hand and walked off.
Sunday was Radhastami, which was really sweet. By Her divine mercy I was allowed to perform some seva on the altar and massage Her lotus feet! Under the guidance of HG Naveen Krsna Prabhu, I decorated the altar and was able to render some service. We had some amazing bhajans lead by HG Gauravani Prabhu. I was asked to give morning class. I choose to read from the Cc Madhya Lila, Chapter 8 text 166. In the purport Srila Prabhupada describes the qualties of Radha. I turned the class into a discussion. I requested all the devotees to speak a realization about Radharani. Gauravani Prabhu gave a very sweet realization. While leading a bhajan he sang a certain tune. he said he learned it in Radha’s birthplace and sang it for Her, because it is Her appearance day. He explained that he wanted Her to feel like She was at home. Such a sweet realization. I had the realization that once a year we can take darshan of Her lotus feet, so we should really take advantage of this oppurtunity. We should pray to Her to allow us to taste pure devotional service.  HH Romapada Swami gave a wonderful presentation on Srimati Radha. I took rest very late, about 11:00 pm.
I woke up in the morning and perform seva for Their Lordships and was off to the airport. I was going through security and was stopped because of the Salgiram Sila’s I travel with. The man asked what They were and i explained They are God in the form of a rock. He was very interested and called some others over. He asked what religion I was and I replied, well I’m a Hare Krsna. The man was taken back a little, he said I heard of you guys but never met any of ya’s. What are you dudes about? I explained the science of Bhakti Yoga and how it is the topmost form of spiritual practice in todays age. He was excited and asked if I had any books. Like I have written before, I always travel with a few small books, so I pulled them out and explained each one. Each of the people gathered around and started asking for a book and by Srila Prabhupada’s mercy I distributed all the books I had. I gave them the temple’s contact info and went off to the gate to wait for my flight.

Sadhana:

Japa:  Our chanting of our rounds rounds is the base of our spiritual life. We should always pray that we can never get the Holy Name off our tongue. It shouldn’t be the mindset of ok, 16 rounds I am done for the day. We should always strive to develop our chanting and increase our chanting.
Seva: Their Lordships are engaging so many in Their service and I can see that He is very merciful. I like the idea of engaging as many people as possible in Their service. In my opinion it would be wrong for me to keep all the mercy to myself.
Sankritan: So many people are eager to learn about Krishna. We just have to search them out. Here are my book scores

Maha Big: 3
small books: 15

We are requesting the devotees to pray for us, that we remain focused. Iraq was so easy to surrender and depend on the Lord. I feel being here now is harder. Its harder because of the false security we have. We think nothing will happen to us, so why should we depend on Krsna? Why should we really apply ourselves, there is always tomorrow. I therefore fall at all the devotee feet and allow me to have the determination to help others and to stay clinging to the orders and instrcutions of my spiritual master.

Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada,

Partha-sarathi Dasa

After offering you over 20.000 photos, hundreds of streaming lectures, and the deluxe prabhupada mp3s, we present “one more thing”.

Introducing:

ISKCON MEDIA VEDIC LIBRARY .

Over 200 books by vaisnava acaryas, study guides, sanskrit courses and essays among other things. Most of the files are in PDF format and distributed under the Creative Commons license. The site is a work in progress but we wanted to start sharing all this as soon as possible. We will keep adding more books and work on the pages we have.

Have a look:

Send it to your pandit friends!:
http://library.iskconmedia.com/

Balaramachandra just left these photos in my inbox along with this note:

here are some advertising pictures. Even though advertising is illegal at burning man i just had to support my sisters business!

Thanks, BcD! As you can see, the brown tee hides the dirt well. For more photos of the Hare Krishnas at this year's Burning Man, click here.

We should not try to invent our own method of bhakti according to our own fertile imaginations. Such invented bhakti systems will not liberate us from this material existence. We must instead follow the pathway chalked out by the great liberated souls of this past. This and only this will bring about our deliverance. Since the great acharyas have personally chanted on japa beads and have also ordered us to chant on japa beads, this is what we must do. By obediently following their instructions we will achieve all success and happiness. However, if we proudly think, "Why I should listen to them and obey them? I will invent my own method." we will not be able to solidly establish ourselves on the pathway back to home, back to Godhead.
The great acharyas prescribe that we should chant the holy names while counting on japa beads. Therefore there is no question that chanting while counting on japa beads degrades the chanting. Rather is quite to the contrary. Chanting on japa beads enhances the absorption of the mind on the transcendental plane. By engaging our various senses in the chanting the holy names the mind becomes captured in the transcendental ocean of the nectar of the names. We engage the tongue in the pronouncing the names. We engage the ear in hearing the names. And we engage the sense of touch in counting our chanting on the japa beads. In this way the mind, the pivot point of the gross senses, becomes automatically absorbed in the names.
The mind can be our best friend or our worst enemy. If we fully absorb the mind in the names, it becomes our best friend. If the mind is not absorbed in the names, it is our worst enemy. Therefore we should intelligently agree to accept whatever means have been given to us by the grace of Sri Krishna and fully absorb our minds in His unlimitedly sweet transcendental names:

The following is a Srimad Bhagavatam class given by Bhakti Charu Maharaja on 5 September 2008 in Ujjain. Editted by Krsna Ashish Prabhu

To download the lecture, right click the download link and choose either “Save link as” or “Save target as”

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.5.21 - Chapter 5: Vidura’s Talks with Maitreya

The following is a Srimad Bhagavatam class given by Bhakti Charu Maharaja on 5 September 2008 in Ujjain. Editted by Krsna Ashish Prabhu To download the lecture, right click the download link and choose either ldquo;Save link asrdquo; or ldquo;Save target asrdquo; Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.5.21 - Chapter 5: Vidura's Talks with Maitreya

Campakalata Sakhi is one day younger than Radharani. Her complexion is the color of a yellow campaka flower. She is expert in logical persuasion and is a diplomat, skilled in thwarting Radha’s competitors. She is an expert sweet cook and an artistic potter. Campakalata is expert at collecting fruits, flowers, and roots from the forest. Using only the skill of her hands she can artistically fashion things from clay. Campakalata is an expert cook who knows all the literature describing the six flavors of gourmet cooking.

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Task focus makes leader a monster.

People focus makes him a loving father.

Inspired people do tasks.

It's good to try to be humble.

If you are too humble, those who are not humble tend to exploit and torture you.

So you have to discriminate how to behave according to people in front of you.