Diary
of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 11, No. 5
By Krishna-kripa das
(March 2015, part one)
By Krishna-kripa das
(March 2015, part one)
Tallahassee,
Gainesville, Alachua, and Jacksonville
(Sent from Potomac, Maryland, on April 10, 2015)
(Sent from Potomac, Maryland, on April 10, 2015)
Where
I Went and What I Did
The
first week in March was the spring break for University of Florida in
Gainesville, so I spent the
first weekend chanting at Lake Ella and Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday,
chanting at Florida State University, both
in Tallahassee, and I spent
Thursday and Friday chanting at the
University of North Florida in Jacksonville. In the middle of the
week, I returned to Alachua County for our Gaura Purnima festivals in
Gainesville and Alachua. Then
Saturday I chanted with
friends from Gainesville and Jacksonville at the annual Jacksonville
Veg Fest. The second week of March I chanted at Krishna Lunch at UF
and spent one day trying to promote our weekly evening program at
Santa Fe Community College. That week culminated in harinama
in
Gainesville with the Alachua devotees, the
Krishna House Holi Festival and the Krishna House Eight-Hour Kirtan.
I
share notes on Srila Prabhupada's books, lectures, and letters,
quotes by Prahlada Maharaja and Bhaktivinoda Thakura, notes on
lectures from many Prabhupada disciples and other senior devotees in
Alachua County, as well as realizations from the students at Krishna
House.
I would like to thank Nanda Kumar Prabhu of Gainesville for his kind donation. Thanks to Mother Caitanya for the money belt and mirror. Thanks to Cayman and Michael for picking me up and dropping me at the bus station, and to Dr. Dina Bandhu for medical advice, accommodation and transportation between Gainesville and Jacksonville. Special thanks to Jaya Sri Vrinda Devi Dasi, who volunteered to proofread this blog and who catches lots of mistakes I miss.
Itinerary
April
8–11: Washington, D.C.
April
12: Albany
April
13–15: New York City
April
16: Toronto
April
17–23: Ireland (Dublin and Cork)
April
24–26: Rotterdam
April
27: Amsterdam (King’s Day)
April
28: Radhadesh, Belgium
April
29: Germany
April
30–May 3: Simhachalam, Bavaria, Germany (Nrisimha Festival)
May
4–July 16: United Kingdom
Chanting
at Lake Ella in Tallahassee
A young guy of American Indian descent approached me with a broad smile as I was singing at Lake Ella, asking what I was doing. I briefly explained. He was a drummer and asked to play my drum, and he played in time. After I while I stuck my business card, which has the Hare Krishna mantra on its back, under the rubber strip that bisects the drum so he could see it, and he sang along as he played the drum. He kept the card when he left. Now that does not happen every day!
Chanting
at University of North Florida
On
Gaura Purnima day, Dina Bandhu Prabhu of Gainesville kindly gave me a
ride to Jacksonville after the abhiseka
for
Lord Caitanya in Alachua. We chanted on the green at University of
North Florida for four and a half hours. Amrita Keli Devi Dasi
brought us invitations, books, granola bars for distribution, and a
blanket to sit on. She
chanted with us for part of the time.
As
far as the fasting was concerned, I think it was easier for me than ever
before. I did not eat anything, and just had a cup of caranamrita
and
a couple of cups of water, but I did not feel fatigued nor did I get
a headache, as often happens. As we finished our final Hare Krishna
tune, just after the break fast time of 6:37 p.m., a guitar player
that Ekendra Prabhu had spoken to much earlier stopped by and glanced
at our books. He was attracted by Bhagavad-gita
and
gave a five dollar donation.
The
Gaura Purnima festival at the Krishna Club was very special.
Twenty-six
people came.
The
guy playing sitar is a music major who ultimately wants to study music
in India.
The
girl playing tambourine and happily singing in the center of this picture came to the club three years
ago as a freshman but did not come again until this year as a senior. She said, as a music major, with all the rehearsals, she was too busy.
We
had two kirtanas, one
led by Dina Bandhu Prabhu and the other led by Tulasi-priya Dasi.
During the second kirtana,
people
offered flowers to the Gaura-Nitai deities. I show excerpts in this
video
[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGerEnGdI0xL8P5w0H7lY7f8mY8T-570Q]:
Dina
Bandhu, Ekendra, Tulasi-priya, and I have been involved in assisting
with the Krishna Club from its very beginning three years ago, and it
was wonderful to be celebrating Gaura Purnima with them.
The
day after Gaura Purnima I chanted three and a half hours at the
University of North Florida. It was cold and very misty. After an
hour and a half, Amrita had to leave to do other things and Dina
Bandhu had to go because he was not dressed for the cold. I kept
chanting. I could only display hard bound books because the mist
would ruin the paperbacks, and even those I had to wipe off every few
minutes. A couple of passersby felt sorry for me, seeing me
struggling with the cold and mist, and helped me relocate my display.
Amrita later told me that couple came to the next Krishna Club meeting.
They chanted sincerely, and the guy took some chanting beads home.
That
night I attended Dina Bandhu Prabhu's program at his home in
Gainesville to celebrate the Jagannath Misra festival with lots of
kirtana and
prasadam, and with many Krishna
House friends. Many people said the final kirtana there, by
Purushartha Prabhu, was a highlight.
The
next day we chanted for about 3 hours at the Veg Fest with Amrita
Keli, Lovelesh, and Lovelesh's mother. Lovelesh distributed all of
Laura's wonderful prasadam cookies
fairly early on, and there was a lot of talk about doing more with
prasadam at the
festival next year.
Prabhupada disciple, Dhira Prabhu (center), resident of Jacksonville, was happy to join us, as was Mallory (right), a regular at Krishna Club.
We
encountered many people happy to see and hear the Hare Krishnas.
Gainesville
Harinama
On
the Gainesville harinama, a
couple of people danced with us.
from
Mother Nitai.
First
Annual Krishna House Holi Festival
Caru
Prabhu at Spanish Fork, Utah,
made Holi a
popular event for Hare
Krishnas,
and in recent years, it is seen by
many temples as an event that
can attract new guests.
Holi has been celebrated in our Alachua temple for three years, and
now at Krishna House in Gainesville. The venue was our Friday night
program, which was started by Prema Rasa Das (then known as Pratik Desai), an Indian engineering student years
ago, and attracts primarily
those of Indian backgrounds. Thus it was striking to see that more
Americans came to the Holi than the usual Friday programs.
Arjuna
Prabhu had the people do some different activities before throwing
the dyes, the main Holi activity.
One
of these included an Indian art of decorating the ground with
colored dyes.
We
had a little chanting going on during the throwing of colors.
All
kinds of people participated.
Eastern
and Western.
Girls
and guys.
Younger.
Krishna
House devotees.
Workers at Krishna Lunch.
Workers at Krishna Lunch.
The
best part was lots of people who had never been to Krishna House
before came for Holi, heard the chanting, took some Krishna food, and
had a great time!
Krishna
House Eight-Hour Kirtan
At
my insistence, the devotees scheduled the eight-hour kirtana after
the spring break, as I thought that way some students could attend.
Just a couple did, but even that made it worth the change. One of
them ended up coming to the Alachua temple afterwards with devotees
for the first time. Originally we were going to have a twelve-hour
kirtana, but the Temple
of the Vedic Planetarium promoters were doing a special event with
Jananivasa Prabhu from Mayapur in the evening, so we had to cut our
event short. That day I had a meeting with Sadaputa Prabhu's
associates, the first one since he departed from this world six years
ago, so the kirtana was
even shorter for me.
Ekendra was sitting in a chair in the corner playing the guitar, and when I returned five hours later, after the Sadaputa meeting, he was sitting in the same chair playing the same guitar. It was striking. Here Purushartha Prabhu is leading. Everyone sang nicely.
Here Tulasi-priya Dasi is singing.
Syamala Kishori Devi Dasi took a picture while I was dancing.
I
think it is great to have a big kirtana event
every semester, and I am glad we are doing it at Krishna House.
To
see other photos I shot but did not include in this journal, please
click on this link:
Insights
Srila
Prabhupada:
From
a lecture on Caitanya-caritamrita,
Adi
7.1, on March 1, 1974, in Mayapur:
“.
. . we do not know what is the destination of the movement in this
age. The trees are not moving, but we are moving. But that movement
has not very much improved our condition. Real movement means to go
forward to reach the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
Through
the teachings of Lord Caitanya, we can reform our habits.
Because
people do not try to understand Krishna through Lord Caitanya, they
fail to understand Krishna.
The
present importance of Vrindavan exists because of Lord Caitanya and
the Six Goswamis.
Because
he is personally teaching everyone about the love of Radha Krishna,
Lord Caitanya is the most magnanimous avatar.
There
are many incarnations, but Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, He is the most
magnanimous incarnation, because in other incarnations, just as Lord
Ramacandra, He killed the culprit Ravana. Krishna also, when He
appeared, He killed so many demons. But Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu did
not kill demons like Jagai and Madhai but delivered them to become
the best type of Vaisnava [devotee of the Supreme Lord].
From
a lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam
1.10.14,
in Mayapur on June
27, 1973:
“That
is the highest perfection of life – to shed tears for Krishna.”
“So
here is the example. Tears by force are coming out: “Oh, Krishna is
going away.” At the same time they want to check: “There must not
be any inauspiciousness for Krishna.” They’re thinking about
Krishna’s welfare, not their own. Not “Oh, I am now crying. I
have become very fortunate. I am crying for Krishna.” No. “My
crying will create inauspiciousness for Krishna; I must check it.”
This is Krishna consciousness.”
From
a letter dated May 17, 1968:
“My
advice to you . . . is that at least for one hour you must all
go to have Sankirtan outside on the streets or in the park. That is
your life and soul, first business. . . . If need be, the whole
temple can be locked, but the outdoor kirtan cannot be stopped.”
From
a letter dated May 14, 1969:
“Regarding
your questions about Sankirtana . . . , I think you should try to
always have Sankirtana going on. All other things are subsidiary.
This chanting is our life and soul, so we must arrange our program
now so that there will be as much chanting on the streets and at
college engagements as possible . . . .”
From
Beyond Beyond and Death,
Chapter
2:
“The
word yoga means 'to link up,' and the yoga systems are
meant to enable us to link with the transcendental world. . . .
originally we are all connected to the Supreme Lord, but now we have
been affected by material contamination. The process is that we have
to return to the spiritual world, and that process of linking up is
called yoga.”
“Just
as a student studies a subject for four or five years and then takes
his examination and receives a degree, similarly, with the subject of
life, if we practice during our lives for the examination at the time
of death, and if we pass the examination, we are transferred to the
spiritual world. Our whole life is examined at the time of death.”
Prahlad
Maharaja:
From
Sri Naradiya Purana:
“One
who loudly chants the holy names of the Lord is a hundred
times greater than one who silently chants, because those who chant
silently purify only themselves, while those who chant loudly purify
themselves as well as those who hear them.”
Bhaktivinoda
Thakura:
“Upon
fully blossoming, the Name takes me to Vrindavan and shows me
His divine pastimes.
He gives me an eternal body, keeps me by Krishna’s side, and
completely vanquishes
this material body, granting me supreme perfection.”
From Navadvipa Mahatmya:
“Seeing
the Yamuna's good fortune of taking part in Krishna's pastimes, the
Ganges performed penances for the same purpose. Krishna bestowed His
mercy by appearing before Gangadevi and saying, 'ln the form of
Gauranga I will perform pastimes in your waters.'”
Brahma-tirtha
Prabhu:
A
good lawyer knows the law. A great lawyer knows the judge.
Caturatma
Prabhu:
If
one tries to attain Krishna without taking shelter of Lord Caitanya,
he will be successful only after a long time. But if he takes shelter
of Lord Caitanya, he will successful very soon because all his
offenses will cease.
The
Lord as Lord Caitanya fills the world with transcendental bliss by
chanting His own holy name.
For
His own pleasure, He came as a hidden incarnation [Lord Caitanya], to
set the standard by acting as a pure devotee.
In
his youth when He had a grammar school, Lord Caitanya kept His
divinity hidden for the sake His pastimes.
Scholars
avoided him because they could not defeat Him.
Although
Nimai Pandit was well off, he would beg in charity from merchants as
a pleasure pastime.
One
fragrant oil vendor told him to take whatever he wanted. For Him
there was no set price. He sat down and poured all kinds of oil over
His body. The shop keeper was very pleased.
He
went through the town, interacting with all the vendors who were His
eternal associates.
One
time he came upon a fortune teller whom He bewildered by showing Him
all the incarnations of Krishna one after another. When He pressed
him for his conclusion, he told Him to come back later in the
afternoon.
Sridhara,
who was apparently very impoverished, but still spending half of his
meager income on the worship of Mother Gangas, was nonetheless very
satisfied with life. Nimai Pandita accused him of having hidden
wealth that was the cause of his satisfaction and demanded that he
share it with Him. Of course, he did have hidden wealth, the great
wealth of devotional service. He protested saying he just had a few
bananas, a few radishes, and a drink with milk and gur, unprocessed
sugar, which He gave to Nimai Pandit.
When
Keshava Kasmiri, the champion scholar, was defeated by Nimai Pandit,
Nimai Pandit's students made fun of him, but Nimai Pandit forbade
them to. We can learn from this that we should not take pleasure in
the suffering of others or in making jokes at the expense of others.
Nimai
Pandit was very charitable and hospitable. One time twenty sannyasis
came
to His house. His mother said they had nothing in the kitchen. Nimai
told her to
look
again. She was astounded to find all kinds foods had suddenly
appeared. Laksmi then cooked a feast for the sannyasis.
Many
demigods disguised themselves as brahmanas
and
mendicants to get food cooked by Laksmi in the house of Lord
Caitanya.
The
main duty of a householder is to take care of guests. By doing this
they conquer the tendencies for untruthfulness and deceitful
behavior.
Jananivasa
Prabhu:
Srila
Prabhupada said that if you can get the President of the United
States and the Queen of England to come to the opening of the Mayapur
temple, Bhaktivinoda Thakura will personally take you back to the
spiritual world.
Commet by Radha Jivan Prabhu: The
niece of the Queen of England has a relationship with the Hare
Krishnas and told the devotees if they give her 15 to 18 months
notice, she said that she could bring the Queen to the opening of the
Mayapur Vedic Temple of the Planetarium.
Kalakantha
Prabhu:
As
we grow older, things that were very important become less important,
and things that were less important become more important.
Gaura
Purnima is like the New Year for us. Choose just one thing you would
like to improve in your spiritual life and pray to Lord Caitanya on
Gaura Purnima for it.
There
are about 10 meters for chanting the verses of the Tenth Canto of the
Srimad-Bhagavatam,
and
they are used to create different effects compatible with the story.
Fear
is a stimulus for approaching God.
Some
people in Islam say that Allah will respond to prayer in one of three
ways:
(1) by fulfilling your desire, (2) by protecting you from misfortune, or (3) by fulfilling your desires in the afterlife.
(1) by fulfilling your desire, (2) by protecting you from misfortune, or (3) by fulfilling your desires in the afterlife.
One
person said that of the things we fear, 90% never happen and 10% we
cannot change anyway.
The
fear of losing things is the main reason we are afraid of death.
Most
of our fears are based on the false ego.
The
verse in the Putana pastimes glorifying Krishna's mercy upon her
despite her demonic attitude is the one that inspired Pundarika
Vidyanidhi with ecstasy.
Laksmimoni dd:
Krishna
had to take into account His own promise to protect His devotee and
Bhimsa's promise to kill Arjuna or else force Krishna to fight.
One
lesson taught by the Battle of Kuruksetra is that the Lord wants to
see His devotees glorified more than Himself.
Bhisma
was completely satisfied when Krishna came rushing toward Him with
the chariot wheel, for whatever Krishna did would be alright with
him.
Brahma
is usually the liaison between the demigods and Vishnu, but when Lord
Vishnu as Nrsimha was in such an angry mood, He pushed Prahlada
Maharaja forward to pacify Him.
Even
though Lord Nrsimha was so angry he had just ripped Hiranyakasipu apart
because He was so cruel to his son, Prahlada, a pure devotee, He was
immediately willing to grant Hiranyakasipu liberation to please
Prahlada.
Lord
Caitanya wanted to kill the constables who whipped His devotee
Haridasa Thakura, but He could not because Haridasa Thakura was
praying for their welfare.
At
the stage of prema,
the
devotee controls Krishna by his love.
The
devotee is so confident that Krishna is going to take care of Him he is
not the least bit worried in any condition of life, no matter how bad
it looks.
Equality
does not mean that Krishna takes care of everyone in the same way but
that he is concerned with everyone.
The
Bhimsa Parva, in which Bhimsa instructs King Yudhisthira, is the
longest section of the whole Mahabharata.
Q:
What is the different between having confidence in Krishna and the
blind faith people accuse us of having?
A:
We start by having a little faith, and we see how Krishna takes care
of us. Also we see how Krishna takes care of His devotees in the
present and in the past.
I
had a stroke and when I got to the hospital I was beginning to feel
better because of the medication they were giving. An Indian man
greeted me and asked if there was any prasadam.
He
then said, “You have a very nice nurse. Her name is Glani.”
Turned
out she was an initiated disciple of Hridayananda Goswami. When I
went into the operating room I had the Hare Krishna mantra written on
a paper, I wanted to give to the doctor to say if anything went
wrong. He was reluctant as he thought it was superstition, so I gave
it to
someone
else. That person was just reading Sri
Isopanisad on
the plane and had a daughter who eats Krishna Lunch. As I was getting
the anesthesia, someone noticed my neck beads and asked if I was a
Hare Krishna, and wanted me to tell them about Krishna. That was last
thing I remembered before I went out. I could see that Krishna was
taking care of me in so many ways.
Nanda
Dasi:
The
rules and regulations are meant to ultimately expand our
consciousness. By following them our minds become peaceful and happy
because we are not driven by our senses. Then we can taste
transcendental pleasure.
In
the beginning we are pushed by the rules and regulations and later we
are pushed to act by our desire to please the Lord.
Once
Srila Prabhupada even said, “If you followed all the rules and
regulations, you would not even get out of the bathroom in the
morning.”
In
my conditioned state I do not like restrictions and therefore I may
be attracted to the spontaneous love of the residents of Vrndavana
simply because there are fewer restrictions, but my consciousness is
like iron compared to theirs which is like gold.
Comment
by Gopala Prabhu: When Krishna says, “What will repression
accomplish?” he is not saying we should not repress the desire to
perform sinful activities but that if Arjuna left the battlefield and
went to the forest he would ultimately recall the offenses of
Duryodhana and fight him anyway.
Sadaputa
Prabhu:
From
a lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam
4.2.31
[https://youtu.be/qCQGq-O4fsM]:
The
present scholarly understanding is still
based on the work of Max Muller. Due to the many flaws of Muller's
methodology, Muller himself has fallen out of favor, but his dating
of the Vedas is still the predominant theory. As an interesting
aside, Max Muller himself said that the Vedas could not be dated.
Sesa
Prabhu:
You
can put a spark out with your hand, but you cannot put the entire
fire out with your hand.
Our
problem is that we are living an unnatural life, experiencing
unhappiness, and ultimate death.
None
of our material conditions are the same.
We
should not settle for such an unnatural condition of life, especially
as human beings, because we can do something about it. The animals
cannot do anything about it. They must simply suffer. The horses are
just standing there, feeling the heat, the cold, and the rain.
We
need a new paradigm of life, what they call on Krishna.com, a bhakti
world view. This begins accepting knowledge from the Vedas.
We
cannot lose our eternal relationship with Krishna.
Because
we do know what we are doing, we keep bumping into things, namely our
karma.
Krishna
describes that this world is temporary and full of misery. Even if we
are so expert that we can avoid all the miseries, our situation is
temporary.
There
is more to loving God than saying “I love God.” There is a
process. The more we practice serving God, the more we become
purified.
It
is so simple, it is practically unbelievable, and yet it is true.
The
stubbornness to rebel against Krishna is rooted in the mind.
I
pray that you all make great spiritual advancement.
“Just
give one life to Krishna. You have had many lives, and if you do not
perfect it, you will have many more. So just give this one life to
Krishna.” This is how the devotees convinced me to join them, and I
have not regretted it.
Before
we lose this form of life, we must take this opportunity seriously.
Anubhava
is
an action that results from heightened affection for Krishna, which
serves to further enhance that affection.
Vyabhicari-bhava
is
an emotional experience that results from intensified affection for
Krishna, which serves to embellish and further stimulate that
affection.
Subuddhi
Krishna Prabhu:
Krishna
will not direct us from within until we want Him to.
Krishna
demonstrated that he was beyond all caste designations as He was born
as a ksatriya,
grew
up as a vaisya,
drove
Arjuna's chariot as a sudra,
and
enlightened Arjuna as a brahmana.
Madhava
Prabhu:
From
a talk on deity worship:
I
started my deity service by doing garlands. Then I got to iron the
deity's gamshas
[undergarments]
every day.
My
parents tried to deprogram me. I escaped, but it was not safe for me
to stay in Boston, so I went to Puerto Rico for a few years. Only
three temple leaders knew where I was and no one else.
We
offered 120 or 130 sweets a day to the deities in Boston.
Deity
worship can sometimes seem mechanical, chanting the same mantras
every day. By reading Jagannath
Priya Nataka I
came to experience deity worship in a deeper way.
I
was both cook and pujari
in
Boston for many years.
When
dressing Gaura Nitai, it is preferred to do Nityananda first, as
indicated in the pastime of the chipped rice festival.
Comment
by Guru Seva Devi Dasi: I saw how my husband Madhava was benefiting
from doing Deity worship, and I felt I was really missing out. I find
that I am appreciating different aspects of the worship from him, but
that is natural because we are different persons.
The
first worship is to the spiritual master.
There
are different numbers of items you can offer. Mostly we offer 16
items, but in other cases 64 may be offered, or just two.
There
are different mudras
with different meanings, greeting the deities, etc.
Our
nima deities
we decided to name appropriately Nimai Nitai.
The
sila is
a direct manifestation of Krishna and does not require to be
installed as carved and sculpted deity forms.
In
Vrindavan, the inhabitants see Govardhan as a loving father, not the
Supreme Personality of Godhead.
To
begin the worship of Govardhan, you must first be given a Govardhan
sila, and
then secondly, you have to ask a resident of Vrindavan for permission
to take him out of Vrindavan.
All
the incarnations of Vishnu have forms as salagramas.
We
begin deity worship by worshiping Gaura Nitai. If someone offers you
Gaura Nitai deities, you should accept them.
We
wanted the nima
deities
because we felt as a married couple, we would not have the time to
properly take of brass deities.
From
a lecture:
Lord
Caitanya came to bring a very high level of love of God that was not
brought before.
I
have dealt with many coconuts in my life but very few have had the
pulp separated from the shell. Similarly the self-realized souls are
very rare.
I
tried to separate the coconut from the shell by heating, and it ended
up cracking. Similarly we cannot artificially attain the advanced
stage of spiritual life.
According
to Bhaktivinoda Thakura, the bodily symptoms of ecstasy occur because
the reciprocation of Krishna with the devotee is so intense the
material body cannot handle it.
Bhadra
Prabhu:
Skanda
Purana says
that Lord Jagannath appeared to King Indradyumna on the day of
snana-yatra.
Because
it is hot in that season in India, they bathe Lord Jagannath then.
During
the Lord's sickness, Laksmi takes care of Him.
The
paints used to paint Lord Jagannath are made with fruits.
Laksmi
does not allow Jagannath back into the temple after the return
Ratha-yatra, although she lets Balaram and Subhadra in.
King
Indradyumna asked for two boons: (1) He did not want a son. (2) He
wanted Jagannath to accept another meal as soon as His hands dried
from washing them after the previous meal.
If
the pujari is
doing the arati in
Puri and
the king comes, the pujari
lets
the king perform the arati.
[The
following two stories Bhadra Prabhu recalled
are from a book on Lord Jagannath by Bhakti Purusottama Swami. They
were so elaborate I could only write down the beginning of them. If
you want to know the end, you'll have to read the book.]
(1)
King Purusottamadeva of Puri visited South India, and the princess of
Kancipuram became attracted to him. Her father was favorable but sent
his minister to Puri to investigate his character. The minister was
favorably impressed until he saw Purusottamadeva sweeping the road
before the Ratha-yatra. The minister recommended against the
marriage
because the king was a road sweeper. King Purusottamadeva was upset
and said he would fight and defeat the King of Kancipuram and take
his daughter. Another condition was the Ganesh deity worshiped by the
King of Kancipuram would come to Puri and be worshiped behind Lord
Jagannath. Purusottamadeva lost the battle and went back to Puri and cried to
Jagannath in the temple, as it was unthinkable to him that Lord
Jagannath would go to Kancipuram and be worshiped behind Ganesh. The
Lord appeared in a dream and said He would help. Ahead of the king's
army were two soldiers on horses, one of light complexion and one who
was dark. They were offered drinks by a vendor, which they accepted,
but when asked about payment they replied they had no money and that
the king, who was just behind, would pay for them, and thus they went
on. When the vendor questioned the king who soon
came,
and
hearing of the incident the king
concluded
the two soldiers were in fact Balarama and Krishna, and he became
encouraged and was victorious in the battle . . .
Laksmi
was visiting her devotees, some of whom came from low class
backgrounds. Jagannath protested. Laksmi appreciated the worship of
her devotees and wanted to reciprocate with them, so she did not take
Jagannath's protest very seriously and left to see her devotees . .
.
At
the end of 1966 Srila Prabhupada drew some pictures of Jagannatha and
asked the Brahmananda to go to the tombstone shop on Second Avenue
and ask them to carve them. He did, but they did not do it.
Srila
Prabhupada said in 1976 in a lecture that if we will accept Lord
Jagannath, He will unite us. We are doing Ratha-yatras all over
Florida to unite our community.
Srila
Prabhupada said that anyone who participates in the Ratha-yatra
attains the spiritual world in the next life.
At
my meeting with the Saint Augustine officials, one policeman said, “I
have never before seen uch happy persons as you guys coming to this town.
You guys have good food.” Turning to the officials, the policeman
continued, “You all should go to their festival.”
Nama
Kirtan Prabhu:
If
everyone tries to act as a brahmana,
all
the other work will not get done.
Even
if one has an insignificant service, if he works to please God, he is
better situated than one who performs a more important service
without an attitude of service to God.
Dina
Bandhu Prabhu:
The
symbols which appear on both the lotus feet of Srimati Radharani and
Lord Krishna appear on the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya, who is an
incarnation of Them both.
If
someone offers us something we should accept it. It is not like we
are trying to get people to give us things, but if someone offers us
something we should learn the art of accepting it gratefully.
A:
Associate with enthusiastic devotees.
Introduction
by Mikey: I used to be in a male fraternity based on degrading
ourselves. Now I am in a coed fraternity based on elevating
ourselves.
Introduction
by Syamala Kishori Devi Dasi: I was praying to Govardhan to be in a
situation where I was living more with devotees and two days later
Mother Caitanya came up to me and said they had a free room in
Krishna House.
Tamraparni
Prabhu:
The
followers of Lord Caitanya had split into the intellectual Goswamis
of Vrndavana and the spirited kirtaniyas
of
Bengal. Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami united these groups by writing
Sri
Caitanya-caritamrita, explaining
the intellectual philosophy of the Goswamis in the Bengali language.
Radha
Jivan Prabhu:
One
poet writes “I would rather die than beg funds for the maintenance
of my own body, but for the glorification of the Lord I will beg
without shame.”
Lord
Nityananda told Jiva Goswami that a wonderful temple establishing the
eternal service of Lord Caitanya will appear in Mayapur.
Srila
Prabhupada told Jananivasa Prabhu, “Take care of Radha Madhava and
make other people pujaris.”
Jananivasa
Prabhu told me that there were two things he desired never to do
after becoming a devotee, (1) to go to America, and (2) to ask for
money, and on this tour he is doing both of them.
Srila
Prabhupada explained that all the Gaudiya acaryas
have
made some gift to Lord Caitanya in Mayapur. Bhaktivinoda Thakura
begged a rupee from many people to build a temple in Mayapur at Lord
Caitanya's birthsite. Bhaktisiddhanta Saravati Thakura established 65
temples throughout India, but his biggest temple was in Mayapur.
Six
million visit Mayapur each year. That is an average of 15,000 a day.
It is the glory of Srila Prabhupada, so many people are coming.
Once
Srila Prabhupada said, “My idea is to bring the whole world to
Mayapur.”
There
are two things (1) mana
(respect)
and (2) dana
(charity).
The Supreme Lord does not need our charity, but we should give him
our respect.
There
is a saying that aptitude does not matter as much as attitude.
Mother
Caitanya:
Before
I became a devotee I could not say I loved God because I did not
really know enough about God to love Him. I was thrilled to encounter
Srimad-Bhagavatam
and
to learn so many details about Him.
Mikey:
We
are always dealing with death, and how we deal with it determines how
we live our life and how we approach our spiritual practice.
The
main problem with Kamsa was his association. He explained
transcendental knowledge to Vasudeva and Devaki, but later returned
to his demoniac ways because of bad association, while Narada,
because of good association, went from being in ignorance to becoming
a great saint.
Whatever
happens to the body does not matter. All the bliss we are getting in
life comes from our devotional service, and that will continue in our
next life.
Comment
by Dhameshvar Mahaprabhu: We have more faith in those who have
already left their bodies, as their life of virtue is complete, while
the living virtuous could always fall down from their positions
before the end of life.
Comment
by Nicholas: There is no situation that is so bad that you can no
longer make spiritual advancement.
Comment
by Dhameshvar Mahaprabhu: The demons in Krishna's pastimes embody the
extremes of human evil.
Comment
by Syamala Kishori Devi Dasi: Kamsa was using the philosophy to his
own advantage. We must also consider whether we are using what
knowledge and facilities we are given for Krishna's pleasure.
Notes from Gauranga Prasada Prabhu's program:
Tell
how you become a devotee:
Gauranga
Prasada Prabhu:
I
had become vegetarian. I was thinking of attending church and seeking
the association of higher vibrational people. Then I met the devotees
at Krishna Lunch. I found vegetarian, meditation, music, and
everything I was looking for.
During
the time we are absorbed in the kirtana
we
are free from material contamination. We thus can get a glimpse of
Vrindavana as the song “Gauranga Bolite Habe” states. It is so
practical. We just have to follow the previous spiritual teachers.
Cayman:
The books really moved me. I just never read anything like them
before.
Chelsea:
My high school teacher was a devotee and had a little murti
of Krishna on his desk. He invited me to the temple for the Sunday
Feast and I and a friend came. We did not fit in, but I kept coming.
Then one week we did japa,
and
it was a very powerful experience.
Varangi
Radha Dasi: Six years ago I met a guy on the campus who knew more
important things than anything I learned in school. I asked him where
he got all this amazing knowledge from. He would not tell me. I kept
hearing from him for several weeks. Then he told me and brought me to
a Friday Gita
class at the Laguna Beach temple.
I
felt my hurts healing and superficial issues resolved so I can
appreciate what Lord Caitanya is giving us.
Naomi:
My
mother would always talk about the devotees, when I was living in
another place.
I
tried being vegetarian before, but I was not successful, until just a
week before I moved into Krishna, when I tried it to see if I really
could, and I found it was possible.
From
the Gaura Purnima festival, I got a sense that Gauranga is a real
person.
Autumn:
I
went to Janmastami and later to a Prabhupada disappearance festival,
and it felt really like home. I got comfortable with the chanting. I
was given the book, Bhakti:
The Art of Eternal Love. Prabhupada
was saying things very similar to what I had written in an aesthetics
paper, and I was very attracted to his philosophy. Once while
chanting Krishna's name, I got a sense that this is just what I want
to do.
Once
you meet the devotees, you are moved in the correct direction.
I
also felt that Gauranga is a real personality.
Vaishnava
Prabhu:
As
a Krishna kid at New Vrindavana we did puja
to little Gaura Nitai deities and learned 50 or 60 Bhagavad-gita
verses. My devotee friends helped me through the years I had to go to
nondevotee schools. It is best if you have some devotional activities
you really love to do, some by yourself and some with others.
Having
the week with the devotees was such a blessing, as I have been busy
with my work.
One
girl came to the Alachua temple for the first time on Gaura Purnima
and was practically crying in happiness.
Mike:
This
girl from New Vrindavan had a crush on me. I did not want to date
her, but she would bring me to meet her parents. Her parents would
preach to me. I kept coming to New Vrindavan. My friend ended up
marrying a guy in Alachua, and they invited me to Gainesville.
This
was a special week. It was the first time I really felt Lord Caitanya
on his appearance day.
Service
is really the key.
Aksaya:
This
summer I read Bhagavad-gita,
and was impressed with the philosophy. Then in December I met the
devotees and was happy to see the principles of the Gita
being followed by so many people, especially when I visited Alachua
and saw so many devotees following.
Kausalya:
I
met the devotees in Bangalore and was very happy to encounter
devotees in the USA. Originally I was thinking of not staying in
North Carolina. I advertised for an ISKCON connected roommate on the
Facebook page for Indian students at NC State. The president of the
Bhakti Yoga club replied. I was so happy.
I
have learned that is not just us and Krishna, but our relationships
with the devotees are more important.
Mansi:
Vikas,
the president of the club invited me for food. Indian food is rare in
North
Carolina
so I would come. I then became attracted by the kirtana
and the philosophy. I have been in and out. I hope to experience the
love that some of you have mentioned.
I
liked coming to the Festival of the Holy Name, so I wanted to come
again.
Puja:
My
mother was involved with Krishna consciousness when I was in high
school. I did not take it too seriously. Then my younger sister
started chanting two rounds and would ask me if I chanted my rounds.
I thought if she could do it, then I could do it. I kept gradually
increasing. I have been chanting 16 rounds for three years now.
Syamala
Kishori Devi Dasi:
I
can see that each devotee has some good quality that I would like to
imbibe. That was my meditation for the spring break Gaura Purnima
week.
-----
kathancana
smrte yasmin
duskaram
sukaram bhavet
vismrte
viparitam syat
sri-caitanyam
namami tam
“Things
that are very difficult to do become easy to execute if one
somehow
or other simply remembers Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. But if
one does
not remember Him, even easy things become very difficult. To
this
Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu I offer my respectful obeisances.” (Sri
Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi-lila
14.1)
