Travel Journal#14.18: Mayapur, Newcastle, Dublin

Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 14, No. 18 
By Krishna-kripa das 
(September 2018, part two) 
Mayapur, Newcastle, Dublin 
(Sent from Radha-Govinda Mandir in New York City on October 5, 2018)

Where I Went and What I Did

I continued being based in Mayapur through September 28, leading a very joyful life experiencing the beauty of the deity worship and the kirtan of the holy names there, both in the temple and around our campus. For one week of my stay I chanted lots of japa at Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi on Godrumadvipa, the island which the Thakura advocates as a great place to attain perfection by chanting Hare Krishna. One day I traveled with Bhakta Nir of Israel to Ekacakra the celebrated birthplace of Lord Nityananda Prabhu, where we have a relatively new ISKCON temple. I spent the last two days of September in Newcastle and Dublin doing harinama with local devotees.

I share notes on lectures by Srila Prabhupada and by Bhakti Charu Swami played for Srimad-Bhagavatam class in Mayapur. I share notes on classes given by Bhakti Vidya Purna Swami, Hari Sauri Prabhu, and Jananivasa Prabhus in Mayapur. I share notes on a class by Kurma Prabhu in Dublin. I share notes on an impromptu address by Praghosa Prabhu to members of the Mayapur Dham Harinama party. I share excerpts from articles in Back to Godhead magazine by Nagaraja Prabhu and Adi Purusa Prabhu.

Thanks to Tara Prabhu for his very generous donation toward book distribution on harinama. Thanks to Baladeva Vidyabhusana Prabhu, servant of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, for sending prasadam cookies to my mother for her birthday, since I was in Mayapur and could not do it myself. 

Thanks to Karen for her photo of my mother and the cookies. Thanks to Caitanya Simha Prabhu for his photos of the Mayapur Dham Harinama party. Thanks to tripadvisor.in for the rasgulla photo.

Itinerary

October 1–: New York City Yuga Dharma Harinama Party

October 27: Bhagavad-gita class at 26 Second Avenue

December 24: Albany, New York, for Christmas Eve

Mayapur Memories

We often participate in events where we share Krishna consciousness with many people, and sometimes we wonder if any of the people will take it seriously. 

I had one sweet experience Radhastami morning in Mayapur when one lady came up to me and said, “Were you in Rishikesh five or six years ago?”

Because I go to India every second year, I replied, “It would have been six.”

For several years, Navina Nirada Prabhu, arranged a program of harinama and book distribution in Rishikesh for two weeks in March, which I attended several times, including 2012.

She replied, “I remember your smile.”

Then she went on to say, “I encountered the Hare Krishna mantra for the first time and got japa beads from you people in Rishikesh. . . .

“ . . . Then I saw you in Union Square in New York.”

[She is wearing a yellow shirt and playing karatalas.]

Recalling that encounter, which I had written about in my blog, I said, “Are you from Kazakhstan?”

She said, “Yes. You encouraged me to put my son in the gurukula, and I did that and he had a great time, and now I am here to enroll my younger son in the gurukula in just a few days. My daughter also likes living here in Mayapur.”

Showing me her neck beads, she said she was now initiated, and she told me her name which I unfortunately forgot. She said her guru is Caitanya Candra Caran Prabhu, a popular Russian-speaking guru originally from Kazakhstan. I congratulated her on her initiation, and I thanked her for taking seriously what we are offering. I took it as a manifestation of Radharani’s kindness to reveal on Her auspicious appearance day that some people are taking seriously our gifts of Krishna consciousness.

As with Janmastami, the abhiseka [bathing ceremony] of Radha and Krishna on Radhastami was beautiful, as was the chanting accompanying it.

The bathing of the deities in flowers at end of the abhiseka was especially festive (https://youtu.be/wr95lJXERkY):

Here devotees in Mayapur delight in dancing on Radhastami in the evening kirtan (https://youtu.be/BgQhIvEVJ2U):

The sweetness of these two festivals, Janmastami and Radhastami, which focus on Radha and Krishna, reminded me of my favorite festival in Mayapur, and my favorite festival in the Hare Krishna movement. That is the Radha Krishna boat festival which occurs for the first seven days of Candan Yatra in April or May each year. It is combination of a Ratha-yatra, Jhulan Yatra, offering of lamps like we do to Damodara during Karttika, as well as a boat festival. The small Radha Krishna deities are taken on a palanquin with a kirtan procession [like Ratha-yatra] to the lake at the Srila Prabhupada Puspa Samadhi. Everyone in the community is allowed and encouraged to bring an offering of food for Them. They are situated on an altar on a boat, and the arati ceremony is performed, and everyone can offer them lamps. Then They go around the lake for some time, and when They come out, They board a swing, and everyone can offer Them flowers and swing Them. The festival goes on every evening for an entire week, and you become so attached to it that when it ends you feel a great void due to separation from the sweetness of serving Radha and Krishna, which is the essence of the Gaudiya Vaishnava understanding of perfection and the eternal activity of the spiritual world.

When they served rasgullas at the Radhastami feast in Mayapur it reminded me of question/answer session with male Kolkata college students and Jayadvaita Swami. A student inquired if it was OK to worship Krishna without Radha. Jayadvaita Swami replied, “Why would you want to worship Krishna without Radha? That would be like having a rasgulla without the juice!”

In Mayapur my blissful afternoon and evening routine was to join the Mayapur Dham Harinama party for two hours, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. They are an international party with many devotees from Russia and Indonesia, and anyone is welcome to join them. Many in the party have great taste for chanting, dancing, and playing the musical instruments, and it was inspiring to have their association.

On harinama sometimes I lead the chanting, sometimes I dance, and sometimes I distribute the free literature. 

In Mayapur, there were plenty of devotees very enthusiastic to lead the chanting and we had no free literature, so mostly I would dance.

Often the pilgrims would interact with our party, and I would take videos of that.

Once Praghosa Prabhu, Prabhupada disciple and famous book distributor, happily joined our party. Playing his own kalatalas, he delighted in chanting Hare Krishna (https://youtu.be/Zsb6F3KIp4E):



Praghosa was very pleased to see our Mayapur Harinama party regularly going out and spoke words of praise and encouragement.

Vasanta Devi Dasi once chanted an especially enthusiastic kirtan (https://youtu.be/wfF_YsEdw5A):

Indulekha Devi Dasi leads Hare Krishna chant in Mayapur (https://youtu.be/CXRIqsFVrwo):

Vishnurata Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Mayapur Harinama and both male and female pilgrims dance (https://youtu.be/sxqIOkbWhb4):

Mayapur harinama devotees usually take Monday off, but after doing a program at school in one Monday morning, before putting their instruments away they chanted for over 80 minutes next to the Temple of Vedic Planetarium. This was the last day of the World Holy Name Festival. An older devotee passing gave them 500 Rs. I told them that Krishna was encouraging them to go out chanting Hare Krishna every Monday. Here Yudhisthira Prabhu of Ukraine leads the Hare Krishna chant (https://youtu.be/ejqETjsTQjw):

Vishnurata Prabhu chants Hare Krishna next to the Vedic Temple of the Planetarium site (https://youtu.be/wefDU5EX6Bw):

Here Yudhisthira Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Mayapur, and visiting devotees dance (https://youtu.be/JpMBH8MNRiQ):

Here Vishnurata Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Mayapur, and visitors participate more and more (https://youtu.be/ZWpQ_hujLA8):

Here Isharani Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna in Mayapur, and visitors dance with devotees (https://youtu.be/ycbOXH2IqqY):

At end of my stay Kamala Kantha Prabhu, the leader of the Mayapur Dham Harinama party, showed me these Hare Krishna mrdanga straps which are popular among the devotees from Indonesia. He sells them for Rs. 1,500 during the festival times but would sell them for Rs. 1,000 now. I told him I could take a photo of them and mention them to my Facebook friends and see if anyone was interested. I did that and my Facebook friends wanted seventeen of them! I decided, I could only take eight in my luggage of limited size. If they appeal to you, you can contact Kamala Kantha Prabhu using WhatsApp at +91 81454 84114.

After the daily harinamas, at 6:30 p.m., I would attend the Gaura Arati kirtan in front of the magnificent Panca-tattva deities with at least two hundred resident devotees joyfully singing and dancing, back and forth and sometimes spinning around. There would be even more visitors than residents. The Mayapur Gaura Arati kirtan is definitely the most ecstatic Gaura Arati in ISKCON, and it was a high point of every evening for me! Here is a sample of an average day (https://youtu.be/EKh5xmn1RNE):

In addition to the Gaura Arati kirtans, ISKCON Mayapur also has the most ecstatic Tulasi Arati kirtans, and here is a sample (https://youtu.be/bwSnwCO5_n8):

After the Gaura Arati I would join the kirtan before Sri Sri Radha Madhava Asta Sakhi Vrinda for an hour, singing the response, offering prayers, and dancing for the pleasure of and meditating on the beauty of the deities, another very joyous experience.

Just seeing the happy faces of the sakhis, the girlfriends of Radha and Madhava, we are reminded that real happiness lies in serving the divine couple. Thus they are educating humanity simply by their blissful smiles! All glories to them!

I never knew before that at least six of the eight sakhis there on the altar of Radha-Madhava have birthdays within a week of Radharani’s! Visakha’s is on Radhastami itself. Lalita’s is two days before, according to the Vrajavasis. One day after Radha is the birthday of Campakalata, and three days after Radha’s is Indulekha’s.

Rangadevi and Sudevi on the extreme right of the altar, who are twins, share a birthday a week after Radha. The young ladies are decked out with extra jewelry, garlands, and an effulgence on their birthdays, as you can see here.

A description of their qualities and activities is posted below the altar.

For the last seventeen days of my stay, I ate dinner in the Brahmacari Kitchen. 

It was great having hot milk every night and sabji and chapatis. One day instead of a container of hot milk, there were two containers, one of curd and another of whey. I have not been in a place where devotees celebrate Caturmasya, with its fast from milk for the third month, in so long I almost forgot about it. Traditionally in ISKCON we would serve a drink of sweetened curds and whey mixed, but in Mayapur they keep it separately, perhaps so you could mix the curd with your rice or sabji or eat it with your capati.

After my free meals at the Brahmacari Kitchen ended, by the grace of the Lord I had an invitation to lunch for seven days in a row so I just had to buy my own dinners. Sankarsana Prabhu, Prabhupada disciple and president of the ISKCON Jagannatha temple on Godrumadvipa invited me to have lunch there on Friday, September 21. The next day was Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s appearance day, and the pujari at his samadhi invited me to have lunch there. SachiKripa Devi Dasi, who remembered me from America, invited me to join her and her friends in honoring Radha Madhava’s mahaprasadam the same day, so I went over there afterward.

She had the most amazing deities at her place – Radha and Krishna and Their eight principal girlfriends – most rare on a home altar!

The next day I had lunch with Radhika Nagara Prabhu and the day after with Tara Prabhu. The day after that I had lunch with Pancaratna and Atitaguna Prabhus, and the day after I had mahaprasadam lunch with the Mayapur Dham Harinama party in Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi. The next day I went to Ekacakra Dhama with Bhakta Nir, who kindly paid for my lunch at our temple there. The day I left Mayapur to go to Kolkata Airport, for lunch I bought dosas, one of my favorite Indian culinary items, at the Radha-Madhava Mahaprasadam shop between the Brahmacari Kitchen and Vamsi Bhavan.

When I left Mayapur there was a sense of voidness in separation from such a wonderful afternoon and evening experience of harinama, Gaura Arati, and dancing for Radha Madhava. I also missed the nice dinner at the Brahmacari Kitchen.

Vow to Chant Extra Japa on Godrumadvipa

I wrote to my diksa-guru, Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, “In reading Jaiva Dharma, one encounters Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s great enthusiasm for chanting Hare Krishna on the island of Godrumadvipa. I was thinking I could spend one of my three weeks in Mayapur in the Jagannatha ISKCON temple on Godrumadvipa and chant 64 rounds a day and visit daily Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s house with the view to becoming empowered to preach Krishna consciousness in the West. Do you think that is a good idea?”

When I had just thirteen days left in Mayapur, he wrote me back, “Regarding your desire to spend a week in Mayapura in Jagannatha ISKCON temple in Godrumadvipa, chanting 64 rounds a day and visiting Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s house. I think it is a good idea and will help empower you to preach Krishna consciousness in the west.”

Because I could stay for free at the Senior Brahmacari Ashram in Mayapur, I decided to commute to Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi each day after mangala-arati, and chant sixty-four rounds starting when the boat attained Godrumadvipa, across the Jalangi from Mayapur. I had all these luncheon engagements back in Mayapur, so I had to chant in a really focused way to complete my chanting in time to go back to Mayapur for lunch. I found Godrumadvipa, and especially Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi, to be the easiest places in the entire world to chant japa and the rounds would just fly by. I would look at the deity of Bhaktivinoda Thakura the whole time. I would think about how all of us who are chanting Hare Krishna the West are doing so simply because Bhaktivinoda Thakura was desiring it back in the 1800s here on Godrumadvipa. I would recall how Bhaktivinoda Thakura said that there is nothing of substance in the entire material world but the holy name of the Lord. The first three days I chanted 78, 75, and 84 rounds respectively, 64 on Godrumadvipa, and the rest in Mayapur. Because of all the japa I found was getting behind on my proofreading, my harinama, my laundry, my bathing, my correspondence, and my sleep, and I was feeling very frustrated about that, so for the last four days I just chanted fifty rounds on Godrumadvipa, and at least fourteen more in Mayapur to attain sixty-four all together. I would pray every day to Bhaktivinoda Thakura, asking him to empower me to execute his mission in the west. I liked doing the vow of increased chanting on Godrumadvipa, and especially at the samadhi of Bhaktivinoda Thakura, and I recommend it to others. I will probably do it again.

I found the pujari, the garland makers, and the kirtan performers at the Bhaktivinoda Thakura Samadhi to have steady, inspiring devotion.

Either to or from Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi, I occasionally stopped at the temple at Surabhi Kunja, where there is also a form of Bhaktivinoda Thakura, but Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi was the main place I chanted.

Ekacakra Dhama, the Birthplace of Lord Nityananda

I was not planning to go to Ekacakra Dhama during this brief trip to Mayapur, but Bhakta Nir of Israel, who remembered me from our Soho Street temple in London and who chanted with me on Godrumadvipa at Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi one day, wanted to go and was looking for someone to go with him. Thus, even though it was my last full day in Mayapur and I had planned to prepare for my journey back to Europe, I decided to go to Ekacakra. 

We have an new ISKCON temple there which I had never seen before, as during my one and only visit there previously it was not yet constructed. 

The full size figures of devotees on nagara-sankirtana, standing up and playing instruments is beautiful and impressive.

We went to all the places that one visits there, seeing this deity of Lord Nityananda at His birthplace. I tried to chant Hare Krishna kirtan as much as possible between each place and at each place.

This tree was touched by Lord Caitanya in His ecstasy of love of Godhead when he visited Nityananda Prabhu’s birthplace with His own guru, Sri Isvara Puri. It is said that you can get Krishna prema by touching that tree.

Chanting Hare Krishna in Newcastle

I was very impressed that Cami, a Newcastle University student who has been attending programs at the temple for a year or so and who moved into the Newcastle temple a few months ago, was so enthusiastic as to come for three hours on harinama. 

Satya Medha Gauranga Prabhu joined us near the end. It was a stretch for me to do harinama after an overnight flight from India, but by Krishna’s mercy it was possible.

Now many devotees who like kirtan are living in the Newcastle temple, and Priyanka was visiting from Manchester and I was visiting on the way to the USA, so we had some kirtan in the temple in the evening:

Here Keshavananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Newcastle (https://youtu.be/4VCC8HnrRAo):

Syama Priya Devi Dasi chants (https://youtu.be/0y9CY2P9xx4):

Priyanka chants Hare Krishna (https://youtu.be/IiIwL7ca0F4):

Chanting Hare Krishna in Dublin

I planned to do harinama both before and after the Sunday feast in Dublin, as I had a good experience doing so back in April.

Pat, after doing some book distribution on his own, joined me for almost two hours before the Sunday feast in chanting Hare Krishna on O’Connell Street, with one young Indian man joining us at the end. We always meet Indians who are studying or working in Dublin and have not yet found out about our temple and restaurant, so we are able to inform them.

Here Kurma Prabhu, a Prabhupada disciple known for his cooking and his writing about Srila Prabhupada in Australia and who is now based in Ireland, leads kirtan before his Sunday feast lecture in Dublin (https://youtu.be/GaR2y07_AKM):

Ronald, originally from South Africa, but who spends a lot of time in Spain and who remembers chanting with Premarnava Prabhu, Ananta Nitai Prabhu and me in Dublin several years ago, chants Hare Krishna on O’Connell Street after the Dublin Sunday Feast. Later more devotees joined us, mostly those who were attending the Sunday feast, and at one point we had seven singers altogether (https://youtu.be/sOoOsieT5U4):

On the two harinamas, we collected €14.22 and distributed nine books, with ten devotees participating in singing for Krishna on Sunday, September 30, my fifty-ninth birthday, thus ending the month of September.

Striking Photos

In the West, you do not encounter dogs sleeping on the streets, but in India it is commonplace. Thus it appears that in India, even the dogs have faith in ultimate protection by God.

In India, even ads for businesses remind one of Krishna such as this ad for Shyam Steel.

Seeing this six-foot (two meter) high photo of a cigarette box on the wall of the Winston Smoking Lounge in the Dubai Airport reminded me of Krishna’s description of the lowest grade of happiness a man enjoys, happiness in the mode of ignorance: “And that happiness which is blind to self-realization, which is delusion from beginning to end and which arises from sleep, laziness and illusion is said to be of the nature of ignorance.” (Bhagavad-gita 18.39) 

Why would any sane soul seek pleasure in something that reduces the duration of one’s brief life!

Insights

Srila Prabhupada:

From a lecture in London on August 29, 1971:

“Radharani is hari-priya, very dear to Krishna. So if we approach Krishna through the mercy of Radharani, then it becomes very easy. If Radharani recommends that ‘This devotee is very nice,’ then Krishna immediately accepts however fool I may be. If you go by the speculative process to understand Krishna, it will take many, many lives. But if you take devotional service, just try to please Radharani, and Krishna will be gotten very easily.”

From a conversation with reporters in Melbourne, Australia, on June 29, 1974:

“There is no second religion. There is only one. That is the right idea; that is genuine God consciousness. Now, as soon as you designate ‘Christian,’ ‘Hindu,’ ‘Muslim,’ that is upadhi [designation] – it falls short of the genuine spiritual conception. Just as God is one person, so genuine religion is one thing. Designated religion – conceiving of ‘our Christian God’ or ‘our Hindu God’ – falls short.

“For example, now you are in a black coat. Tomorrow you may be in a white coat. So I could designate you as ‘black Mr. Such-and-such’ or ‘white Mr. Such-and-such.’ But there is no need, because you are not actually that black or white coat. That black or white coat is not you, but simply a circumstance.

Similarly, due to our so-called sophisticated mind, we say ‘Christian religion,’ ‘Hindu religion.’ To describe some particular historical circumstance we may use these designations. But religion is one thing. It means to glorify God’s holy name and abide by His laws. That is the spiritual platform.”

From a class on Bhagavad-gita 10.1–3 in New York City on December 30, 1966:

[Commenting on Bhagavad-gita 10.3, “He who knows Me as the unborn, as the beginningless, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds—he only, undeluded among men, is freed from all sins”:]

“It is in our interest to know God. We are always full of anxieties. Nobody is free from anxieties. Nobody is free from the miseries of this material world. And here is the process for becoming free. . . .

“Here it is said that anyone who understands without any doubt that God is the supreme proprietor becomes freed from all sinful reactions. Immediately.”

From “Back to Godhead,” the opening article in the first edition of Back to Godhead in 1944:

“Godhead is one without a second, and all living entities are His eternal subordinate transcendental servitors. Realization of this transcendental relation will be the attempt of this paper [Back to Godhead], and therefore there is no bar for anyone in the world, irrespective of color, creed, and nationality, to go back to Godhead.”

From Bhagavad-gita 14.16, purport:

“Brahmanas are the symbol of spiritual education, and cows are the symbol of the most valuable food; these two living creatures, the brahmanas and the cows, must be given all protection—that is real advancement of civilization. In modern human society, spiritual knowledge is neglected, and cow killing is encouraged. It is to be understood, then, that human society is advancing in the wrong direction and is clearing the path to its own condemnation. A civilization which guides the citizens to become animals in their next lives is certainly not a human civilization.”

Srila Vyasadeva:

From Mahabharata, Anusasana-parva 51.32:

“That country or nation where cows are protected and live without fear of slaughter becomes exalted and the sins of that country are washed away.”

Vasudeva (Lord Krishna’s father):

From Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.5.25:

“Many planks and sticks, unable to stay together, are carried away by the force of a river’s waves. Similarly, although we are intimately related with friends and family members, we are unable to stay together because of our varied past deeds and the waves of time.”

Bhakti Charu Swami:

I prefer to hold Srila Prabhupada Memorial Festivals rather than Vyasa-pujas on the consideration that by watering the root of the tree, all the branches, twigs, and leaves are nourished.

After Srila Prabhupada left, the new gurus accepted worship practically on the same level as Srila Prabhupada. This made a lot of devotees so disturbed that they actually left the movement.

It is always better to take a humble position. After all, we are only one ten-thousandth the tip of a hair in size.

It is said the gateway to the spiritual world is very small, and unless we become one ten-thousandth the tip of a hair in size we cannot pass through it.

The more we understand the greatness of Krishna, the easier it is for us to appreciate our actual insignificance.

A deep sense of natural contentment and serenity result from becoming humble.

The benefit of going back to Godhead and becoming completely free from material bondage can be attained only by devotional service. Other kinds of practices like mystic yoga will not ultimately be effective. One may rise to a high level, but the higher you go, the harder you fall. Those who rise to the Brahman platform, but do not take shelter of Krishna, come back as stones practically devoid of consciousness.

We selfishly think in terms of “I” and “mine.” First we think in terms of “me,” then “me and my family,” and then “me and my society,” but it is all thinking about “me,” and thus, it is ultimately selfish.

Gandhi was successful in attaining freedom from British rule for India, but what is the result? All the rogues and rascals are taking advantage of India’s freedom.

Bose came to Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura to recruit his young male followers for his Indian army to drive out the British. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura asked Bose if he believed in reincarnation. He said yes. Then he asked Bose, “If you are born in England next life, will you fight for them?” Our situation is so temporary.

From the world of death attain the world of immortality. And it is easy. Just surrender to Krishna. If you surrender to Krishna, Krishna will take care. Krishna will take care to the extent that we surrender.

Two disciples of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura were despondent, feeling that despite so much practice they were not progressing. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura told them, “To feel that you are not progressing is actually good.” To think, “I have made so much progress. I am such a great devotee.” is not good.

With your body, you serve Krishna. With your mind, you think of Krishna. Let all the activities of your body and mind be in service to Krishna.

We should always remember we have come to ISKCON in order to serve.

Having attained the path, proceed. Do not hold back.

Recognition leads to correction. Then a higher taste will come.

The simple answer to your question about how to achieve success in Krishna consciousness is:

1. Chant sixteen rounds.

2. Follow the four regulative principles.

3. Read Srila Prabhupada’s books.

4. Render service according to the instructions of your authorities.

Bhakti Vidya Purna Swami:

The six philosophical schools contain all the points.

Q: Devotees pull differ ideas from different places to put forward their own views. Is that OK?

A: You have to look at the motive. Is it to please Krishna? If so, it is OK. Are you trying to indulge in your attachments or are you trying to connect them to Krishna so you become purified?

If you water the weeds and the devotional creeper both, the weeds tend to crowd out the creeper so it does not grow properly.

If they are always trying, if they have a humble mood, if they are not criticizing, there is a good chance their program is progressive.

The first six cantos of Srimad-Bhagavatam deal with connecting your attachments to Krishna. For instance, brahmacari Kardama Muni became married in service to Krishna.

Someone situated nicely in devotional service is moral, but morality is not required to practice devotional service.

To think righteousness is the cause of bhakti is totally mundane.

If you put a drop of water in the ocean, it does not experience the joy of the ocean. It is remains located in just a small part of the ocean.

If someone is too conservative it appears we are talking too liberally, and if someone is too liberal it appears we are talking too conservatively.

If all there is is nothingness, then why do the Buddhists and Mayavadis make such a big deal about it? Because in reality the asat (the ephemeral) is substantial, being the energy of the sat (the eternal).

If you ask people from the Abrahamic religions if God is a person, they say, “Yes.” If you then ask what He looks like, they say He has no form.

We only perceive the present although we may think of the past or future.

Time moves forward imperceptibly.

Krishna is not interested in sensory functions but devotion.

The Vedas regulate your sensual experience so you come to realize in sense gratification there is nothing there.

Where does the opportunity for spiritual life lie? Between the lasagna and the pizza – between this sense gratification and that sense gratification.

Materialists regulate society for sense gratification, but the Vedas regulate society for self-realization.

If you look at the picture of addicts before their addiction and after, you will see they look happier before than after. If what they are addicted to is so great, then why are they not happy?

Maya is attractive because of its connection to Krishna, so why not directly connect with Krishna?

Surrender means we stop competing with the Lord.

Although we experience the long term effects of aging and deterioration over the course of time, we do not perceive these processes as they are happening.

Although the Lord makes arrangements for the living entities’ sense gratification, He is not personally interested in it any more than the parent is attracted by the mashed up prunes he made for his baby to eat.

The Vedas are always explaining the material and the spiritual as well as rasa and tattva.

Devotion to Krishna is truth, and things related to that are also truth.

When you have Krishna, you have everything.

The devotees are humble because they see all the temporary useless activities they were entangled in performing while Krishna just notices their devotion through all these.

Sometimes the people in general come to understand the wisdom of the spiritual authorities and come to follow them. Still it is the sages we follow and not the people in general, whose sentiments can change in a moment.

Some mantras stress the sameness of God and His creation while others stress that God and His creation are different. This is because in fact God and His creation are inconceivably simultaneously one and different.

The greater the devotees are, the more things they can see in relationship with Krishna.

Just because you see that everything is connected with Krishna does not mean you can do anything since bhakti means just to do things that are pleasing to Krishna.

Krishna expands into everything into this world, but He is not controlled by the manifestations of this world.

The sahajiyas do not take the tattva seriously, thinking that the rasa is everything. They do not understand that the tattva supports the rasa.

Madhvacarya is preaching to the people who maintained their Mayavadi stance of oneness despite Ramanujacarya’s preaching, and thus he stressed duality even more.

Those in heaven enjoy thousands of times more than we on earth. Indra enjoys thousands of times more than the other residents of heaven. Brahma enjoys thousands of times more than Indra. The spiritual pleasure of brahmananda is thousands of times greater than what Brahma enjoys, but that is just a drop compared to the ocean of enjoyment of devotional service to Krishna. Not only is the pleasure of devotional service eternal, but it is a lot better.

The first fifty qualities of Krishna we have in common in our pure state and are used in relationship with the Lord. The next ten are the qualities of majesty of the Lord, and the final four are Krishna’s special qualities of sweetness.

Hari Sauri Prabhu:

In the schools in some places in Britain and Australia they are trying to encourage students not to identify with a particular gender. Other the other hand, genetic scientists say there 6,500 genes that produce distinctly male or female attributes, so it is not something you can choose.

When one disciple of Srila Prabhupada was confused about his gender, Srila Prabhupada told him to choose one and stick with it.

When Rama went back to Godhead, all the citizens of Ayodhya also went back with Him because they could not tolerate His separation.

It is not possible to follow varnasrama now as strictly as in previous ages.

The scientists are very proud thinking they can get control of the material nature and then do whatever they what.

The story of King Sudyumna becoming a woman is in the Bhagavatam to show that the soul which exists beyond the body is more important than the body.

Leaders such as the communists teach that there is equality on the material platform, although it is not a fact, for the purpose of getting control of people and manipulating them.

If we allow ourselves to be controlled by Krishna we can be freed from the control of different leaders trying to manipulate us for their own ends.

The British stopped the teaching of Sanskrit in the schools in India to cut the students off from their original culture so they could convince them that British culture was superior.

When the members of society understand how to engage their own natures in Krishna’s service, society becomes very peaceful.

Rasajna was very ill with cancer in Austin, Texas, and devotees were talking about taking her to Vrindavan, which at that stage of her illness seemed very impractical. Rasajna had a dream in which Krishna appeared and told her, “Vrindavan is in your heart.” After that she was pacified.

Jananivasa Prabhu:

Radharani is difficult to understand, but the Lord, as well as Radharani, has come, in the form of Lord Caitanya to make understanding possible. Otherwise such understanding would not be possible.

Rukmini was crying as she was massaging Krishna’s lotus feet in Dvaraka. Krishna asked why she was crying, and she replied, “You cannot understand the joy of serving Your lotus feet, nor can you ever understand, because you are situated differently.” Narada came to visit, and Krishna said to him, “I just heard the most amazing thing. Rukmini was saying that I cannot understand the joy My servants feel serving Me.” Thus He decided to come as Lord Caitanya to experience that.

In Vrindavan, everyone loves Krishna more than themselves, and thus Krishna is willing to put Himself in the hands of the devotees there.

Srila Prabhupada said, “You can have Krishna in your pocket if you surrender to Him.”

In one Indian city Srila Prabhupada went into trance singing “Jaya Radha Madhava.” He said, “This song is so nice. It is a description of the spiritual world.”

A main reason Krishna comes is allay the devotees’ feelings of separation from Him.

As a result of an argument, Sridhama cursed Radharani to come to the material world and to feel separation from Krishna for one hundred years.

Radha and the gopis sometimes experienced Krishna returning to Vrindavan and sometimes dreamed Krishna returned to Vrindavan. Sometimes they could not understand whether Krishna had come or they just dreamed that Krishna had come. That is perfect samadhi.

Whatever mood Krishna is in, there is a gopi who can satisfy Him in that mood, and Radharani can assume the moods of each one of the gopis, so She is the best of all.

When we enjoy by pleasing Krishna, that is the maximum enjoyment we can have because that is our constitutional position.

The gopis make themselves beautiful because they know their beauty is pleasing to Krishna. If they enjoy by pleasing Krishna, there is nothing wrong with that.

Krishna is compared to a tamala tree, and Radharani is compared to a creeper or vine surrounding that tree. The other gopis are compared to the leaves of the creeper, and the manjaris are compared to the buds.

A cobra suddenly appeared in front of Radharani, hissing loudly. Radha said, “Shhh! You’ll wake Jatila.”

The separation results in heightening of love. Then when the love is heightened the joy of meeting is increased. And then the subsequent separation is even more intense because of the heightening of the love. Thus meeting and separation nourish each other.

In the spiritual world the gopis are not married, but there is a feeling there that they are so that parakiya rasa can proceed.

How to unite Radha with Krishna is what is going on in the spiritual world. The sakhis enjoy glorifying Radha and Krishna.

These topics are confidential and not mentioned much in the scriptures, but Lord Caitanya is making them available. Thus if we follow the teachers in His line, who are His personal associates, we can be sure of entering into the service of Radha-Krishna at the end of this life.

From a talk on Radhastami:

Radha is the most important of Krishna’s potencies because Krishna’s business is pleasure and She is Krishna’s pleasure potency.

Krishna tells Narada that His mercy is not effective without Radha’s mercy.

Krishna tells Narada that if he is interested in prema then he should worship Radha with devotion.

The Rg Veda says there is no more beautiful couple than Radha and Krishna.

Kurma Prabhu:

Arjuna is Krishna’s devotee and Krishna’s friend, and he becomes Krishna’s submissive student.

If you do not understand who Krishna is, the Bhagavad-gita will remain a mystery for you.

We should understand that we are suffering, and we should understand how to get out of it.

Srila Prabhupada explains that a serious spiritual aspirant wants to find the answers to these three questions:

Why am I suffering?

Where do I come from?

Where will I be going after death?

Srila Prabhupada says we should not interpret Bhagavad-gita nor should we just accept the parts of the Gita that we like. The reason we should not interpret the Gita is that we have the four defects of the conditioned souls.

By chanting a chapter of Bhagavad-gita every day you are getting Krishna’s association every day.

My wife and I read a chapter of the Gita every day, and then we go back and read a single verse and purport from the chapter.

If we always lived for the moment, we would have never have stopped playing all day when our parents told us it was time to go to school. We would be illiterate and unable read, and life would be very difficult for us, so this philosophy of living for the moment is not very practical. We have to plan for the future.

If you do not study the whole semester but just the night before the exam, it is likely you will fail. Similarly it is likely we will not remember Krishna at the end of life if we do not practice now.

Babies in all species are cute by nature’s arrangement so the adults will be inspired to take care of them.

The child who is kicking in the womb is not kicking because he having fun.

One devotee related to Srila Prabhupada a story about his mother leaving her body.

The mother did not like her son becoming a devotee and was frustrated about it. She would never chant, but she did like prasadam. When she died, she said, “So where is your Krishna now?” Thus somehow or other she remembered Krishna at the time of death as Krishna recommends for those who desire to attain Him.

My mother practically took a vow to never say “Hare Krishna.” I would say “Hare Krishna,” and my mother would say “Hello.” This went on for thirty years. Then my mother got Parkinson’s disease and dementia, and she forgot about her vow to never say “Hare Krishna.” I would say “Hare Krishna,” and she would say “Hare Krishna.” In fact, the last thing that she said to me was “Hare Krishna.”

Nagaraja Prabhu:

From Peace, Cows, and BTG” in “Back to Godhead, Vol. 53, No. 1 (Jan/Feb 2019):

“As I write this, the website warsintheworld.com, which keeps track of armed conflicts, lists 68 countries involved in wars, most of these instigated by 801 ‘militias-guerrillas and terrorist-separatist-anarchic groups.’”

“Yes, we all want world peace. But why is it so evasive? The Vedic scriptures teach that violence begets violence and that a prominent source of man’s violence toward his fellow man is his violence toward animals, particularly the cow.”

“Almost everyone today has a basic idea of the concept of karma. Yet, as happens with any profound idea adopted by popular culture, the concept – or, rather, universal law – of karma in the popular mind generally fails to include what we do to animals. Prabhupada would often point out that we fall short when we rely on our imperfect sense of right and wrong instead of the perfect directions of the scriptures and enlightened souls. From them we learn that killing the peaceful cow that provides us with a vital food in exchange for a little grass is a heartless act of violence. A world where cow slaughter is commonplace cannot have peace.”

Praghosa Prabhu:

From an impromptu address to the Mayapur Dham Harinama party:

This chanting of Hare Krishna is the main thing. Everything else is a consequence of this.

When people see us chanting they wonder:

What are they doing?
Why here?
What does it have to do with me?

In Dublin one lady who got a Science of Self-Realization from me the previous week came up to me and said, “You ruined my life. I got a book from you. Now I can’t cook meat. I can’t look at meat. I can’t think of where it came from.” I consoled her and told her to cook whatever she had to to please her husband but to add the chanting of Hare Krishna to her life, and gradually everything would be adjusted. Hearing my words, she went from being angry with me to thanking me.

Bhimipati and Isvara Prabhus:

From Pauranic Caritavali:

“The wives of the sacrificial brahmanas rejected their husbands, who were more fond of sacrifice than the Lord of sacrifice.”

Adi Purusa Prabhu:

From Bhagavan: God the Person” in “Back to Godhead, Vol. 53, No. 1 (Jan/Feb 2019):

“Our boyfriends, girlfriends, friends, pets, and so on could leave us at any moment. Yet even in our darkest hours we can count on Krishna to be there for us, ready to embrace us. Moreover, the Lord can also preserve whatever we have and carry to us what we lack.”

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As I spent hours each morning for a week chanting Hare Krishna on beads at Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Samadhi, this verse from his song “Arunodaya-kirtana 1” appeared in my mind. We are distracted from our focus on the sound vibration of the holy name because we erroneously think there is something of substance in this material world other than the holy name of the Lord. If we remember all the temporary manifestations and situations surrounding us are insignificant in comparison to the holy name, God’s own manifestation in the form of blissful divine sound, then we will not be so distracted.

krishna-nama-sudha koriya pan

jurao bhakativinoda-pran

nama bina kichu nahiko aro

caudda-bhuvana-majhe

“Drink the pure nectar of the holy name of Krishna and thus satisfy the soul of Thakura Bhaktivinoda. There is nothing except the holy name within all the fourteen worlds [comprising the entire material universe].” (“Arunodaya-kirtana 1,” verse 8)