Diary of a Tryleaveling Sadhaka, Vol. 18, No. 15
By Krishna Kripa Das
(August 2022, part one)
Paris, Lyon, New Mayapur, Tours, London
(Sent from Tallahassee, Florida, on August 22, 2022)
Where I Went and What I Did
I spent the first two days of August chanting Hare Krishna in Paris for three hours each day, as I had done for the previous month and a half. On August 3 I split my three hours of chanting evenly between Paris and Lyon, where I visited an ashram of enthusiastic young male book distributors for four days, hoping to inspire them to add daily harinama to their program. After that, I drove with the Lyon Ashram devotees on Ekadasi to New Mayapur for a five-day kirtan mela and Balaram festival, doing an hour of harinama with them in Roanne on the way. After the Balaram festival I went with Harinama Ruci and other festival attendees to Tours where the New Mayapur devotees do two or three hours of harinama on Saturdays. Because they only did two hours that day, I chanted for an hour outside the nearby Saint-Pierre-des-Corps train station from which I took a train to Paris that evening. The next day I chanted Hare Krishna with the Yoga Lyrique devotees at Montmartre for two and a half hours after their Sunday morning program. The next day was a bank holiday so a few more devotees could come out than usual to join Acarya Prabhu, who travels with Harinama Ruci, for a walking harinama from Saint-Michel to Les Halles. On August 16, I was happy to take a train to London and give the lunch program lecture there and do three hours of harinama with Harinamananda Prabhu and devotees I knew from London and other places.
I share notes from my reading Srila Prabhupada’s books and from reading Caitanya Bhagavata by Vrindavan Dasa Thakura and with commentary by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. I share notes on the writings of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami from his Free Write Journal, which I proofread each week, and from two books that I am proofreading for reprinting, Truthfulness, the Last Leg of Religion and Prabhupada Appreciation. I share notes on lectures by Janananda Goswami and Gopiswami, Parividha, and Madhavendra Puri Prabhus, speaking at New Mayapur in France, Akshayananda Prabhu speaking in Paris, and Bhakta Evan (later initiated as Ekanatha Das) speaking in Lyon.
Thanks to Jiva Prana Prabhu for his donation from Yoga Lyrique and for the video of our harinama at Montmartre. Thanks to Rohininandana Prabhu for booking and paying for my trains from Paris to Lyon and from Tours to Paris. Thanks to Rajesh and Radhika for the dinner of doshas. Thanks to all the devotees who joined me on harinama in France, and thanks all of the members of the public who gave me donations on harinama.
Itinerary
August 22–September 14: Tallahassee, Gainesville, Tampa harinama and outreach
September 15–20: Syracuse harinamas
September 21: visiting mother in Albany
September 22–September 25: Philadelphia harinamas and Ratha-yatra
September 26–November 22: NYC Harinam
November 23–December 14: three weeks of service to Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami
December 14–January ?, 2023: NYC Harinam
Chanting Hare Krishna in Paris
Gaura Nataraja Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Montmartre in Paris (https://youtu.be/h2xU4VQcxVE):
Nitai Caran Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Montmartre in Paris (https://youtu.be/D5O34Lww2pQ):
The young man next to me on the train to Lyon asked if I was singing outside the Gare de Bercy in Paris where our train left from. I said yes, and he asked about Hare Krishna. I spoke briefly and offered him Beyond Birth and Death in French. He gave a euro and read it continuously till he got off the train 3 hours later! I gave him a card for Yoga Lyrique, as he studies geopolitics in Paris, and my email.
After returning to Paris from New Mayapur and Tours, I attended the Sunday morning program at Yoga Lyrique and arranged for a harinma at the nearby Montmartre afterward. Many, many people were visiting Montmartre that day, much more than usual, and lots of people appreciated our chanting party, including those who danced with us here in front of Sacré-Cœur (https://youtu.be/9T2ELppqFNg):
On my last harinama we started at Saint-Michel where we encountered a Christian Ratha-yatra. August 15 is religious holiday called the Assumption of Mary. It was celebrated with a cart with a statue of Jesus on it followed by a procession of worshipers with decorated flags, and a guy doing an amplified Christian song and others singing along. Church officials asked us to be quiet for five minutes for their service. We were planning to do a walking harinama anyway, so we used it as an invitation to start walking!
Acarya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna along the streets of Paris, from Saint-Michel to Les Halles via Notre Dame, inspiring folks to chant the mantra (https://youtu.be/AV0t3ZB1eZg):
Dayal Nitai Prabhu is in charge of a party of book distributors based in Lyon.
Here he is after a successful sale.
We would do a walking harinama from the bus stop to the sankirtana venue each day. The devotees switch between a few different venues for book distribution in the city.
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at a Lyon bus stop, and kids play shakers and moms take videos (https://youtu.be/ETQYMCwHeMg):
That video clip came from this longer video of the whole kirtan which ended when our bus arrived (https://youtu.be/dXmYmTE4Pj8):
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Lyon Saturday afternoon harinama (https://youtube.com/shorts/iy-BAWjt8rk?feature=share):
Jivananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Lyon Saturday harinama (https://youtu.be/bTfScpTNp94):
Jivananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Lyon, and kids chant and dance (https://youtu.be/rNyM6D41QYI):
Jivananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna along the streets of Lyon (https://youtu.be/9L5C_FU-8t0):
The Lyon Ashram devotees do a program in Parc de la Tête d’Or in Lyon on Sundays from 3 to 6 p.m. They told me there was half an hour of kirtan in the beginning and another half an hour at the end. I went two hours early so I could do three hours of public chanting that day, but as it turned out the devotees did a whole hour of chanting at both the beginning and end of their program, so I got an extra hour of chanting that day!
One victory for me personally was that a young man who met me and Rupa Raghunath Prabhu when we had chanted near Lyon Part Dieu, when I had arrived from Paris at that train station four days before, came to the program and stayed until the end. I could have easily decided I was too tired after chanting for an hour and a half in Paris and riding the train for five hours to Lyon, and not done that harinama at the train station, but then this guy would have missed out on the mercy.
Many passersby were attracted by our program in the park as you can see in the videos:
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at the Sunday park program in Lyon (https://youtu.be/Sx7zEaBgV4s):
Rupa Raghunath Prabhu chants Hare Krishna, and college girls play shakers (https://youtu.be/jbKVUnHGMp4):
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna, and an old lady, a young lady, and a couple play shakers and dance (https://youtu.be/UFhosSRijr8):
Devotees chant Hare Krishna during their Sunday program in Parc de la Tête d’Or in Lyon, France, and passersby participate (https://youtu.be/1HBc7_ZBOU4):
One Monday we went to New Mayapur, but on the way we stopped at Roanne, a city of about 33,000, where we did harinama for one hour. Police stopped us when we just had fifteen minutes left and told us we could sing but not distribute books.
Chanting Hare Krishna at New Mayapur Balaram Festival
Nitai Sacisuta Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Jhulan Yatra on day 1 at New Mayapur (https://youtu.be/7gAb7JYTpI0):
Nitai Sacisuta Prabhu continued chanting Hare Krishna in the New Mayapur temple lobby after Jhulan Yatra (https://youtu.be/UXwDexUPYkc):
Syama Kisora Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at New Mayapur (https://youtu.be/FwUyREDziU8):
Janananda Goswami chants Hare Krishna at New Mayapur (https://youtu.be/N-77EUWoQCU):
Janananda Goswami chants Hare Krishna at Gaura Arati in New Mayapur (https://youtu.be/1ROFKgALIEA):
Sundara Gopal Prabhu, who runs the restaurant, Le Gopal, in Tours, chants Hare Krishna at the New Mayapur Balaram Festival on Tuesday night (https://youtu.be/wb7P8EJNCMU):
Sundara Gopal Prabhu ended his kirtan at 9:30 p.m. and as the evening kirtan was scheduled to go to 10 p.m. I volunteered to sing when I saw no one else enthusiastic to do so. I was surprised that practically every one left, even a couple people I used to chant with on harinama. Vishnujanananda Prabhu stayed for a while to play drum, but then he had to leave to clean up. One young lady who helped with the farming stayed a couple minutes but then left. The clean up crew told me to stop at 9:52 p.m. because they wanted to go to bed. I felt really hurt by this. If anyone else had volunteered to sing, I would have played the karatalas or drum for them, if they did not have assistance, and stayed till 10 p.m., but apparently no one had any interest in doing that for me. Negativity because of this lingered in my mind till the next day when Jivananda Prabhu asked if I wanted to sing during the time given to him. I considered that he had the chance to sing a couple of kirtans already, and so it was good for me to get a chance. I offered to split the time with him, but he let me take the whole half-hour slot.
Janananda Goswami chants Hare Krishna at Guru Puja (https://youtu.be/OBn5iORT3_8):
Madhava Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Wednesday night (https://youtu.be/lNZRQNsWzhs):
Janananda Goswami chants Hare Krishna Thursday morning at Tulasi Puja in New Mayapur (https://youtu.be/pLXE6nCe5i8):
Madhava Prabhu chants Hare Krishna midday (https://youtu.be/ENxncGVpMUI):
Ojasvi Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Thursday evening in New Mayapur (https://youtu.be/bmZR70palkg):
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Jhulan Yatra on Day 4 (https://youtu.be/5mKopWXgal8):
Madhava Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Thursday night (https://youtu.be/Zw7hdobSHWg):
Krishna and Balaram looked attractive in their night dress on Balaram Purnima morning.
Here Janananda Goswami chants Hare Krishna at mangala-arati (https://youtu.be/ltH7OcOg_FU):
Acarya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Tulasi Puja (https://youtu.be/ydhPVf87Bzg):
Krishna and Balaram looked splendid in their day dress. Their beauty is glorified by the gopis in the “Venu Gita” (Chapter 22) of the Tenth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, verses 7 and 8:
“O friends, those eyes that see the beautiful faces of the sons of Maharaja Nanda are certainly fortunate. As these two sons enter the forest, surrounded by Their friends, driving the cows before Them, They hold Their flutes to Their mouths and glance lovingly upon the residents of Vrindavan. For those who have eyes, we think there is no greater object of vision. Dressed in a charming variety of garments, upon which Their garlands rest, and decorating Themselves with peacock feathers, lotuses, lilies, newly grown mango sprouts and clusters of flower buds, Krishna and Balaram shine forth magnificently among the assembly of cowherd boys. They look just like the best of dancers appearing on a dramatic stage, and sometimes They sing.”
A couple cowherd associates increased the beauty of the altar.
Madhava Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at the abhishek (bathing ceremony) of small Krishna-Balaram deities (https://youtu.be/PWCcO6_BzhY):
Acarya Prabhu and Harinama Ruci chant Hare Krishna on New Mayapur Temple grounds after lunch on Balaram Purnima (https://youtu.be/8Wgmft4RzT4):
They made so much cheese cake for the Balaram Purnima feast that it did not run out, and I grabbed a third piece as our harinama passed the dining area.
Madhava Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in the evening (https://youtu.be/KkuZ6Iwv5AY):
Nitai Sacisuta Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in New Mayapur lobby after Jhulan-Yatra (https://youtu.be/wtn-xoeK9oA):
Ojasvi Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in the final kirtan of the evening, and devotees dance enthusiastically (https://youtu.be/-a_CnW2nl1o):
Ojasvi Prabhu kept chanting till 11:00 p.m.when Janananda Goswami suggested that he call it a night, and many young devotees were happy to participate in his kirtan. I stayed till 10:00 p.m., when it was scheduled to end. I like to get enough sleep so I am happy to get up for mangala-arati, which Srila Prabhupada often mentioned he wanted us to attend.
There was so much sweet rice, that it was served for dinner and breakfast the next day as well.
The muesli was really good with sweet rice instead of milk.
Chanting Hare Krishna in Tours with Harinama Ruci and New Mayapur Devotees
Acarya Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna in Tours (https://youtu.be/nrEKGQcgXhQ):
A visiting Ukrainian brahmacari chants Hare Krishna in Tours (https://youtu.be/BYEIgQxwtUk):
Citralila Devi Dasi of New Mayapur chants Hare Krishna in Tours (https://youtu.be/LzsdzWcn020):
Since we did only two hours of harinama in Tours, I decided to chant for another hour at the nearby Saint-Pierre-des-Corps train station where I was to catch a cheap train to Paris two hours later.
A devotee who had come to the New Mayapur festival from Paris and who was taking the same train chanted with me for part of the time. I did not want to chant directly in front of the station as the authorities might object nor did I want to chant in the sun. I selected a place off to the side. There were some guys, perhaps in their twenties, sitting in chairs about thirty feet away smoking, but I did not think they would be too bothered. As it turned out, one threatened us, saying they would beat us up if we did not move. I hate moving and was really annoyed, but as it turned out, I set up near the entrance to the train station, and the authorities did not stop me. I met some really nice people who gave donations and took invitations and literature, so I felt victorious.
Chanting Hare Krishna in London
On the way from Paris to NYC, I did harinama in London with devotees I knew from different places: Harinamananda Prabhu from Harinama Ruci, Rangavati dd from the Polish festivals, Jagadisa Hari Prabhu from Newcastle, and Harini dd from Paris. In three hours many people enjoyed interacting with our party.
Harini Dasi chants Hare Krishna in London and engages passersby in dancing (https://youtu.be/BvcZAYA5slg):
Here is more of Harini’s kirtan https://youtu.be/XKoKZYM1Vt0):
Harinamananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Chinatown in London, and passersby chant and dance (https://youtu.be/rO6EzCBdF3o):
While Harinamananda Prabhu continued chanting Hare Krishna those same passersby who enjoyed chanting and dancing with us before returned, looking for some more fun, and then others joined in too! (https://youtu.be/iaBB0_oZ-c4):
I never saw a sankirtana devotee distribute a book to a man on a conveyance like this before.
I was staying near Montmartre the day before my Lyon journey, and I decided to take a japa walk and watch the sunrise from that great hill.
Other people had the same idea.
I checked the time of the Paris sunrise online, and I was amazed to see it came up exactly on time at 6:26 a.m.
Between the first and second photo 3:33 minutes elapsed.
As I was coming down the hill, I saw a street with the sun shining down it. I chanted a round of the japa in the sunshine.
I was asked to make breakfast one day a week at the Paris temple, and part of the menu is chapatis, which I do not usually make. Somehow by Krishna’s grace most of them puffed up.
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
From Bhagavad-gita 4.13, purport:
“And as Krishna is transcendental to this system of the four divisions of human society, a person in Krishna consciousness is also transcendental to all divisions of human society, whether we consider the divisions of community, nation or species.”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 23.13:
“When that ecstatic emotional stage intensifies, it is called love of Godhead. Such love is life’s ultimate goal and the reservoir of all pleasure.”
From Krishna, Chapter 39:
[The gopis speaking to Providence:] “It is very abominable that you arrange to show us beautiful Krishna, whose bluish curling hair beautifies His broad forehead and sharp nose, and who is always smiling to minimize all grief in this material world, and then arrange to separate Him from us. O Providence, you are so cruel!”
Vrindavan Das Thakura:
From Caitanya-Bhagavata, Adi 17.25:
“The Lord desires to be the servant of anyone who always desires to be a servant of the Lord.”
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura:
From Caitanya-Bhagavata, Adi 17.27, commentary:
“The unalloyed devotees can never give up the service of the lotus feet of Lord Vishnu, who is very affectionate to His devotees. The Lord also never gives up His unalloyed devotees. In other words, the Lord and His devotees can never be separated for even a moment, rather the Lord always protects His devotees in all respects. The devotees also protect the Lord from the attacks of the impersonal Mayavadis. Delivering the Lord from the cruel hands of those who are hostile to Him is a display of the devotees’ compassion. Moreover, by always broadcasting His glories through His devotees, the Lord protects the nondevotees from immediate destruction.”
From Caitanya-Bhagavata, Adi 17.50, commentary:
[Bhaktivinoda Thakura wrote in Kalyana-kalpa-taru:]
“The real benefit of visiting any holy place is to achieve the association ofthe pure-hearted devotees of the Lord living there. Establishing intimate and friendly relations with such great souls, let your heart be captivated by performing the charming worship of Lord Krishna in their association. Wherever the Lord’s devotees are living, that place becomes a place of pilgrimage. Therefore you should become fixed by constantly remaining in the company of such devotees.”
From Caitanya-Bhagavata, Adi 17.105, commentary:
“The phrase mantra-diksa is defined in the Bhakti-sandarbha (207) asmantra-diksa-rupah anugrahah—‘receiving mercy in the form of initiation.’ According to the passage, mananat trayate yasmat tasman mantrah prakirtitah, a mantra is that which delivers one from manana, or absorption in the separate temporary objects of the temporary, external, enjoyable world, or that which delivers the material enjoyer from the principle of enjoying material existence.”
“Diksa is the process by which one can awaken his transcendental knowledge and vanquish all reactions caused by sinful activity. A person expert in the study of the revealed scriptures knows this process as diksa.”
“By the influence of mantra-diksa, a living entity attains freedom from the bondage of material existence. Then, by attaining perfection in chanting one’s mantra, knowledge of the Lord and His holy names awakens in one’s heart and one becomes qualified to serve the lotus feet of Krishna.”
From Caitanya-Bhagavata, Adi 17.115, commentary:
“The transcendental symptoms that Sri Gaurasundara exhibited in the external world after engaging in the cultivation of Krishna consciousness by meditating on His worshipable mantra are indicative of His vipralambha-rasa, or feelings of separation from Krishna. At that time, in spite of being with Krishna, He felt that He had not achieved Him, so shedding tears became His principle activity. Feelings of separation alone are the means and nourishment for sambhoga, or conjugal love in direct contact. In order to remove illusions born of the false conclusions of those who accept sambhoga rather than vipralambha as their sadhana, the Lord, who proudly considered Himself a servant afflicted with separation from Krishna, the supreme goal, taught that the mood of separation is the means of achieving the goal of life. Actually, the Lord appeared in this world from the spiritual world, Goloka, simply to preach the glories of the radiant exalted mood of separation from the Lord in this world.
From Caitanya-Bhagavata, Adi 17.120, commentary:
“One should discuss the following verse from Caitanya-caritamrta (Adi 4.147): “The beauty of Krishna has one natural strength: it thrills the hearts of all men and women, beginning with Lord Krishna Himself.” It is also stated (Antya 3.268): “The holy name of Krishna is so attractive that anyone who chants it—including all living entities, moving and nonmoving, and even Lord Krishna Himself—becomes imbued with love of Krishna. This is the effect of chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra.”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
From Truthfulness, the Last Leg of Religion:
“Although the Mayavadis may say that Brahman is beyond discussion, this has never stopped them from writing thousands of books and giving lectures on the inexpressible, the void, or the indefinable. In doing so, they give many analogies to establish impersonal oneness and to deny the personal individuality of the Absolute Truth. A favorite example is, ‘All is one; just as the rivers enter the ocean, so we can all enter the Ultimate Oneness.’ This analogy has a certain mystical appeal but doesn’t bear up under scrutiny.
“Although the river does enter the ocean, its place in the ocean is not permanent. The water will repeatedly evaporate into the sky, form clouds, and fall back onto the land. In order to flesh out the argument that in spirituality everything becomes one just as the river merges into the ocean, the Mayavadi would have to address the actual conclusion that the water will again fall back onto the land. Similarly, those spirit souls who try to merge into the Absolute must again fall back into the material world.”
“The impersonalists say that we are all Supreme Truth and only in illusion do we forget that we are the eternal truth. But the Vaishnavas say that our actual illusion is to forget that we are the eternal servants of the Supreme. We cannot rightly claim that we ourselves are each the Supreme One, as the Mayavadis assert. If that were true, how could ‘the Supreme’ have become covered by illusion? Is illusion greater than God? Why is ‘the Supreme’ forced to take birth and suffer as a human or an animal? The Mayavadis have no good answers to these questions.”
“Although western philosophers are almost entirely speculative, there is an apparently strong agreement among them that at least man can attain and share the truth. According to the Introductory essay ‘Truth’ in Great Books of the Western World, “the philosophers and scientists from Plato to Freud seem to stand together aginst the extreme sophistry or skepticism which denies the distinction between true and false, or puts truth utterly beyond the reach of man.”
“I am faithful but aware that Truth is distant from me. And yet the Truth is so beautiful and radiant that even from a great distance its rays warm my soul.”
“Everyone is waiting to see if the truth in Srila Prabhupada’s books is manifested in the lives of the devotees. If not, then people may conclude that the Vedic philosophy is idealistic—it existed once five thousand years ago and occasionally it reappears at great moments, such as in the lives of Lord Caitanya and Srila Prabhupada—but it’s not here now; it’s not for us.”
“I have no purpose in trying to enjoy the world or to alleviate its misery by social-political means. This world will consume me and kick me back-and-forth like a soccer ball. I want to know myself as a servant of Krishna, and that means I cannot be a servant of man or servant of country or family. I have to flee the world. I can flee into the temple, or I may flee into the shelter of a Krishna conscious grhastha life. Or if my family turns out to be too much opposed to spiritual life, I can flee to the vanam, the forest. But I must flee, and if you call it ‘escape’ I reply, ‘Yes, I’m escaping from the grip of maya, at last. Why don’t you come also?’”
“From the account of his early life, Tapana Misra sounds like many truth seekers. Not only do they fail to find the ultimate truth, but they take pride in their eclectic knowledge. A truth seeker may develop ethical honesty and appreciation of world philosophy, but this is not enough to bring one to the end of knowledge. For that, one needs the mercy of the Absolute Truth, or His pure devotee.”
“The most important thing for someone hearing about Krishna is to accept the existence of Krishna in a literal way. Otherwise, even if nectarean lila of Krishna or the advanced states of devotional service are described, the hearer will think it is mythology.”
“But the astounding fact is not simply that Prabhupada traveled widely, but wherever he went he convinced people to give up all their previously held material conceptions and accept Krishna consciousness. This he did by his purity and his faithfulness to the parampara. He was a true servant of the Absolute Truth, and everyone may appreciate this in his books.”
From Free Write Journal #207:
From Meditations and Poems:
“I am however, waiting for that, for Krishna to appear in me more than He has done so far. I don’t want to peter out with less and less Krishna consciousness due to old age and disease. I like my Krishna consciousness to flourish. You become more auspicious, and even as you die you are not condemned but auspicious. The peaceful devotee goes to Krishna because he’s full of Krishna.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 1:
“When the devotee becomes confused or doubtful, he places his inquiry before the Lord: ‘This is my doubt, O Krishna, and but for Yourself, I have found no one who can answer it.’”
From Daily Compositions:
“No loving attention to the holy names but at least warming myself by them—happy, chirpy knowledge that I am safe within this Krishna conscious realm.”
“But you have to be ready for whatever Krishna wants. He moves everyone around just like a player moves pieces on a chessboard. He’s free to do as He likes, and He has special care for His devotees. There is always a purpose behind His moves.”
From Prabhupada Nectar, Chapter 5, Number 35
“Upon arriving at the Bhaktivedanta Manor, Prabhupada asked, ‘Where is Revatinandana Swami?’ Revatinandana Swami came out of the kitchen. ‘I’m in the kitchen, Prabhupada, cooking,’ he said. ‘I’m a kitchen swami.’
“‘Ah,’ Prabhupada answered, ‘that’s Radharani’s department.’ Then Srila Prabhupada said that Krishna would leave Radharani if He were not so attached to Her cooking.”
“‘If, in the cooking process, food falls on the floor, if it is raw and can be washed nicely, then it can be offered. But if it is prepared and cannot be washed, then it is not to be offered, but can be eaten rather than wasted.’
—Letter of February 15, 1968”
From Srila Prabhupada Smaranam: Photographs 1966–1977:
“We also have many sung bhajanas which capture Prabhupada’s emotional ecstasies in the songs of the acaryas. Professor Larry Shinn declared that Prabhupada’s bhajanas captured his piety and essence as a pure devotee and are important evidence of his devotion to Krishna.”
From Karttika Moon:
“I could be
trying again, what a lone
sannyasi should do
cleaning in the kitchen is
also Bhagavad-gita if
you do it right,
chant, think ‘I’m
serving Krishna
with this work.’
Make it clean.”
From Free Write Journal #208:
“Here is a poem called ‘A Writing Life,’ which I wrote on January 23, 2010, in the Delaware diary. It still remains unpublished, but it is relevant to my present thoughts:
“I have given my life to
choosing words of praise to
Prabhupada and Krishna,
and I feel they have empowered
me. May it go on after I
am gone, may my books
stay in print and be read
by eager readers. That is
all I ask: that I be read
in the generations to come
and that my books and postings
help people in Krishna consciousness.”
“From Stavavali by Srila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami
Sri Vraja-vilasa-stava: Prayers Glorifying the Pastimes of Vrndavana
4) The disembodied demigod, Cupid, who attained a body by continually tasting the nectar of the sight of the Divine Couple, eternally illuminates this entire land of Vraja with a jubilant festival of Lord Krishna’s amorous pastimes. When shall I lovingly gaze on Sri-Sri Gandharva-Giridhari (Sri-Sri Radha-Krishna), the crowning garlands of all charming couples?”
From Every Day, Just Write, Volume 3: A Sojourn in Tapo-bhumi:
“I want to be a devotee,
make a beeline to His lotus feet,
but ecstasies must be paid for and
samadhi is no joke.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 1:
“‘Using any language, you should submit to Krishna, and you should feel that ‘I am worthless. My Guru Maharaja has given me this chance to serve Krishna, to offer to Krishna . . . my Lord, I am worthless. I have no capacity to serve You. But on the order of my Guru Maharaja, I’m trying to serve You. Please do not take any offense. Accept whatever I can do.. . . I am offensive, so kindly excuse me.’ In this way be humble, meek, and offer your feeling, and Krishna will be satisfied. Not that you have to show how you can speak in the Sanskrit language.’
—Conversation, Hyderbad, April 12, 1975”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 4:
“Now we can see that despite all difficulties, it is important to stay with Prabhupada’s followers. They are the only ones who can understand our experience of Prabhupada; they are the only ones who can understand our feelings of indebtedness to him. That sanga provides solace. Our spiritual sentiments are soft and vulnerable, and even in the association of devotees they sometimes get bruised. But the benefit of devotee association is so great, the possibilities of Prabhupada-remembrance so pronounced, that the possibility of a little emotional pain caused by the mixed motives of others is worth the risk. We have to have faith, and most of us have the experience that only devotees can appreciate another’s love for Prabhupada. In this way, Prabhupada has formed our present. He has bound us by love and duty to preach and pray in the association of those who love him. He has bound us to his society.”
“Satsvarupa dasa brahmacari diary 4.6
“Go to Swamiji. No one who has been involved in my life up until now encourages me or even understands what’s happening with me. I can’t think of even a single person. I gave up trying to share it. My parents rejected me over Krishna consciousness, even though they didn’t reject me when I was strung out on LSD and speed and had long hair. But now they have completely rejected me.
“I wrote a letter to Uncle Sal and Aunt Mary, but they never wrote back. My sister rejects me, too, and so does her husband. And Murray, my ‘real friend,’ is not even interested in this journey. We parted on the street. He went into the bar I used to go to with him. Goodbye, his face frozen in time (like a movie still) as he turned back to face me one last time. Other friends acted the same.
“I am strongly pulled toward Krishna consciousness, but it has withered up all my friendships. So many people can’t relate to what I am doing, to the Swami or to God or a ‘foreign religion.’ But I see now that no one really matters that much. I felt an initial sadness at the break of each friendship, but now my life from before I met Swamiji is completely over. Now I have new friends.”
From Vaishnava Behavior:
“Basic Principles and Rules of Vaishnava Behavior
“‘It is better to maintain a devotee than to try to convince others to become a devotee. . . . Your first job should be to make sure that every one of the devotees in your zone of management is reading regularly our literatures and discussing the subject matter seriously from different angles of seeing, and that they are somehow or other absorbing the knowledge of Krishna Conscious philosophy. . . . What good are many, many devotees if none of them are knowledgeable?’—Letter, June 16, 1972 to Satsvarupa dasa Goswami”
“‘We have often heard the phrase “love of Godhead.” How far this love of Godhead can actually be developed can be learned from the Vaishnava philosophy. Theoretical knowledge of love of God can be found in many places and in many scriptures, but what that love of Godhead actually is and how it is developed can be found in Vaishnava literatures. It is the unique and highest development of love of God that is given by Caitanya Mahaprabhu.’—Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Introduction”
In writing to one temple president, Srila Prabhupada asserted that attendance at mangala-arati and chanting of sixteen rounds were the most important points of the Krishna conscious process. ‘But make it so that people may not think it too repressive so they will not go away, impressive but not repressive, that is the system.’ (Letter, February 13, 1972 to Hayagriva dasa)
From Prabhupada Appreciation:
“We also have to accept him [our guru] as a transcendental person. In my own case, in the beginning, I was serving Srila Prabhupada mechanically, and yet I expected him to love me. But he told me, ‘If you love me, then I will love you.’ It is up to each of us to approach Srila Prabhupada and to love him. We also have to learn to accept his reciprocation in whatever form it appears, as an expression of his love for us. As soon as we become appreciative of the gifts that Prabhupada is offering us, then the question of how to please him is easily answered. If you love a person, you will find a way to please him; the desire to please him will fill your thoughts.”
“And Prabhupada seemed to be easily pleased. There are countless letters and statements wherein he expresses his satisfaction with the offerings of his disciples. He was pleased, for example, with book distribution, with preaching, with temples opening, with disciples executing nice Deity worship. He was pleased by the artists, pleased that a husband and wife were cooperatively preaching, pleased that someone was trying to understand the guru-disciple relationship, and pleased that disciples were trying to serve with body, mind, and words.
“Srila Prabhupada strongly encouraged special services, such as book distribution. But he was pleased by anyone who was fulfilling the spirit of Visvanatha Cakravarti’s statement that the disciple should take the order of the spiritual master as his life and soul. Pleasing Prabhupada is not determined by the type of service one renders, but by engaging wholeheartedly in his service. This is the actual conclusion of how to please Srila Prabhupada.”
“In 1975, some devotees in ISKCON were debating the relative merits of one service over another. Some claimed that sankirtana was the highest and Deity worship was for neophytes. Proponents of this argument claimed that Srila Prabhupada was most pleased by book distribution. But Prabhupada responded by saying that such discussions were childish.
“‘In Krishna’s service, there is no inferior and superior… One who distinguishes a particular type of service as inferior or superior does not know the value of devotional service…. Krishna is the enjoyer of varieties of service. It is not stuck up with any particular type of service.’”
Janananda Goswami:
From a post to the WhatsApp group “Sankirtana France”:
“Govinda dasi found some old Indian newspapers from the 1970s in her attic, in boxes, and one had an article about Srila Prabhupada written by an astrologer: ‘Nobody can read this chart; if they say they can they are simply lying. This personality comes and goes at his own sweet will; he is not bound by anybody or anything. The stars are lined up perfectly—there is no question of karma. He is working directly under the will of God. And when he writes, his pen does not have in it ink. His pen has in it fire which will burn the ignorance of the whole world.’”
It is good to be enthusiastic, but it is better to give the senior devotees the chance to chant the verse first. If we do not respect the senior devotees, we will not progress even if we do a lot of service and a lot of chanting.
Devotional service never stops. It is eternal. It just becomes purer, and more and more pleasing to Krishna.
The sankirtana movement is a manifestation of the causeless mercy of the Lord in giving everyone a chance to engage in His devotional service.
Srila Prabhupada said three times that the prime symptom of a pure devotee is that he wants to see the chanting of the holy name of the Lord spread all over the world.
The real purpose of this movement is to awaken pure love of God.
Both enthusiasm and patience both have to be there.
We tend to want instant prema like we want instant mashed potatoes.
By practice alone we do not obtain prema but by the Lord’s mercy.
The more we are attracted to the kirtans at this kirtan mela the more the Lord will free us from material contamination.
Impure chanting may have beneficial effects, but it will not awaken your love of God.
There are many Vaikuntha mantras, but the Hare Krishna mantra is a Goloka-Vrindavan mantra.
The prime activity in devotional service is the chanting of Hare Krishna. The other activities are to help us attain pure consciousness.
Srila Prabhupada explained the nine offense, which is described as “preaching the glories of the holy name of the Lord to the faithless” by saying, “We do not initiate people who are not qualified.”
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura said that the gateway to pure chanting is service to the guru and the Vaishnava.
Martin lives in a town of 20,000 in Czech Republic, and he serves 150 customers prasadam at his restaurant. [He also did a lot of cooking at the festival.]
The best exercise for me is jumping up and down in kirtan.
People do not work hard enough in this age, and thus they have so many mental problems.
[Maharaja had the initiates offer obeisances to himself, then Srila Prabhupada, and then the deities before accepting their names and making their vows.]
This is your greatest opportunity in lifetimes traveling all around the universe.
Thirty of us at Trafalgar Square on a platform in 1972 got initiated by Srila Prabhupada in groups of three.
[Bhakta Evan became Ekanatha Das.]
Thank you for fixing yourself on this ISKCON branch of the tree of Lord Caitanya.
[Vishnujana became Vishnujanananda Das.]
I wrote several friends who are familiar with Sanskrit to ask if Vishnujanananda was an appropriate name. None but Dravida replied, and he answered in five minutes. It means he who gives bliss to the devotees.
[Martin became Makhancora Das.]
[Joseph became Jaya Dharma Das.]
Maintain those qualities of dharma, and you will be victorious.
[Prativa became Priyarani Dasi, servant of the one most dear to Krishna]
comment by Jiva Prana Prabhu: She has small body but strong character
From a lecture on Balaram Purnima:
In the spiritual world, everything is alive.
In the material world, without the presence the soul, there is no movement.
Mahavishnu Goswami is an ideal example of absorption in Srimad-Bhagavatam. Two weeks before he died I saw him, and all he was doing was quoting from Srimad-Bhagavatam, although he was ninety years old.
One is fortunate to receive the chastisement of Lord Balarama, and one can receive it through the disciplic succession of diksa and siksa gurus.
There are a thousand names of Lord Balarama.
We used to name our sankirtana vans Mahavan, Bahulavan, etc.
We perform sadhana but we are not so fixed so we depend mostly on the mercy of the disciplic succession.
Bhaktivinoda Thakura says the devotee has to personally work to remove the anarthas represented by the demons killed by Lord Balaram.
Denuka in his former life was a demigod who disturbed Durvasa Muni in the course of enjoying with his many girlfriends, thus the Muni cursed him to become a donkey because of his foolishness.
In India even now you see a kid with a small stick controlling many cows.
Gopaswami Prabhu:
There are consequences to disobeying the laws of God. The atheists do not see these, and they do not want to see them.
The Lord really wants us to relate to Him in a proper way, and He is ready to help us.
If we are humble we can hear the words devotees speak for our benefit.
Lord Caitanya’s program is to be happy and chant the beautiful and powerful holy names in the association of devotees.
Srila Prabhupada said we need spiritual strength from Lord Balaram to continue with the practice for a long time.
I did not see the devotees jumping to the ceiling for forty years as they did at today’s mangala-arati. [The mangala-arati was lead by Syama-kisora Prabhu.]
If you have difficulties, as Srila Prabhupada said, “Go in front of the deities, and say, ‘Sir, this is the problem.’”
Q: You told me a few things about what Srila Prabhupada said when he was here.
A: Chant Hare Krishna and be careful of the hellish materialistic life in the cities. He spoke about cows and gurukula. He spoke about false politicians. He spoke about giving shelter to people both materially and spiritually.
Srila Prabhupada changed the name of this place to New Mayapur. Mayapur is the place of Lord Caitanya’s birth and activities.
We have a house made with just materials from the New Mayapur.
Comment by Janananda Goswami: Srila Prabhupada said every day here in the temple at New Mayapur there should be sankirtana going on.
In the history of New Mayapur, once there was such an ecstatic mangala-arati with kirtan leaders including Indradyumna Swami, B. B. Govinda Swami, and Locanananda Prabhu, that it ended at 10:00 a.m.!
Hare Krishna Prabhu:
From Intelligence or Chaos?:
“We are simultaneously one with and different from God, because both part and whole possess the most distinguishing of all attributes within the universe, which is consciousness. Consciousness inherently implies a degree of freedom and independence, despite the elementary connectedness and unity between the part and the whole. This paradox of simultaneous oneness and difference permeates all levels of reality within the universe. It also stands at the bases of all the mind boggling and brain wrecking philosophical, mathematical and scientific paradoxes.”
“Hume doubted everything, including doubt itself.”
“Many atheists see Darwin’s theory as the completion of the atheistic worldview, and in the words of Dawkins, ‘Darwin made it possible to become an intellectually fulfilled atheist.’”
“According to a New York Times article published on July 6, 2003, over the past 3,400 years humans have been entirely at peace for just 268 years, or just 8% of recorded history. That means there were wars going on for 3,132 years somewhere on the planet. These wars have claimed between 150 million to 1 billion casualties. That’s not a very good statistic, and it says a lot about the human condition and the quality of our civilization.”
“Many historians and scientists believe that no other scientific theory has changed the thought of man as dramatically as Darwin’s theory of evolution.”
“There is, however, one major problem regarding the multiverse theory that adherents such as Martin Rees frankly admit: it can never be empirically proven. The reason is very simple: all these parallel universes will exist fundamentally in different dimensions, with other laws of nature in another timespace continuum. We will never be able to observe them and, as Rees states, we can only conclude that they exist by means of assumptions and derivations. Therefore, such an approach completely undermines the empirically based scientific approach that atheists claim to be the foundation of their theories and arguments.”
“Atheism, which fundamentally embraces pluralism, inevitably struggles with entropy. Entropy does not allow for complex and stable structures to exist perpetually, no matter how much ‘chance’, ‘coincidence’ and ‘randomness’ we inject into the interactions of material particles.”
“Sir Fred Hoyle says the following about these improbable numbers: ‘Indeed, such a theory (that life was designed in an intelligent way) is so obvious that one wonders why it is not widely accepted as being self-evident. The reasons are psychological rather than scientific.’”
“The biologist Stephen C. Meyer says the following about the chance that life came into being by coincidence in his book Signature in the Cell: ‘The complexity of the events that origin-of-life researchers need to explain exceeds the probabilistic resources of the entire universe. In other words, the universe itself does not possess the probabilistic resources necessary to render probable the origin of biological information (and therefore life) by chance alone.’”
“This is a truly ironic turn of events. In the past scientists accused religious thinkers and theologians of using fundamentally unprovable hypotheses, but we now see that some scientists are seeking refuge in fundamentally unprovable hypotheses themselves, such as the existence of the multiverse.”
“In the last 40 years, there has been an increasing amount of doubt about the fossil record as empirical evidence for the theory of evolution. The former cited scientists Gould and Eldredge therefore formulated their theory of the Punctuated Equilibrium. But this theory has also been criticized, especially since the theory is not verifiable.”
Parividha Prabhu:
It is good to learn the meanings of the words in the songs so we can sing them with feeling.
For me, gratefulness is the most beautiful quality of a devotee. We should always remember those who have helped us.
Srila Prabhupada recommended having a morning and evening program.
I practically always go to mangala-arati. Sometimes you have leave the evening kirtans early, although they are very attractive, so you can make it to mangala-arati.
There are Brghu readers who can tell past, present, and future. They are waiting for you outside their residence because they know you are coming.
There is a story of a very good son and a very rascal son who went for a walk. The good son stubbed his toe, and it split open. The rascal son found 100 gold coins. The good son asked an astrologer why. He said actually you should have lost your leg but because of your good behavior it was minimized, and your brother was very generous in his previous life and was due to get 1,000 gold coins, but because of his rascal behavior that was also minimized.
It is good to attend the whole event, like the swinging of the Lord, rather then just swing him and go talk with your friends or have something to eat.
Madhavendra Puri Prabhu:
As Lord Krishna has twelve principal gopas [cowherd boy friends], so Lord Balarama also has twelve principal gopas.
Gauridas Pandit is the incarnation of one of the gopas of Lord Balarama.
The intimate associates of Lord Caitanya are either eternal associates of either Radha-Krishna or Krishna-Balarama.
Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityananda traveled to Ambika Kalna on a boat to see their great devotee, Gauridas Pandit, and when they arrived, Lord Caitanya presented the oar they used to make the journey to Gauridas and told him he could cross the ocean of material existence with it and take others with him. You can see that oar as well as a Bhagavad-gita written by hand by Lord Caitanya even today at that temple in Ambika Kalna.
Gauridas Pandit would cook elaborately for the Lord each day, and when that became difficult for him, and the deities personally told him that he did not have to cook so elaborately because it made him so tired.
Hridaya Caitanya was Gauridas Pandit’s disciple, and his disciple was Syamananda.
Rupa Goswami is the general of the whole Gaudiya sampradaya.
Srila Prabhupada has said that The Nectar of Devotion is the lawbook of ISKCON.
The Muslims have gurus called mulabi. The mulabi of the King of Bengal, Hussian Shah, told him his kingdom would flourish if he hired the two brahmana boys Rupa and Sanatana, and so he did.
The Muslims leaders would hire Hindus to play certain governmental roles because they considered them more trustworthy than the other Muslims.
The King gave them much wealth, and they used it to transform their estate to a replica of Vrindavan. They would discuss the sastra, and people came from all over India to visit them.
Our necessity is pure love of God. That is given by Raghunatha Goswami.
Rupa Goswami was lamenting they could not find the deity Radha Govinda. A boy appeared and asked what was wrong. Rupa Goswami explained. The boy said, “There is a place where a beautiful surabhi cow is showering milk into a fissure in the rock. Look there.” So he did and they found Govinda deity.
There is a school in Varanasi where they study the only the books of Jiva Goswami which are more voluminous than all the Puranas combined, 400,000 verses.
Akshayananda Prabhu:
Often acaryas say the Srimad-Bhagavatam is so sweet it does not matter where you read it. It is all relishable. Now we are coming into the middle of the story, but that does not matter. It is like a gulab jamon which is filled with syrup.
Contacting the Srimad-Bhagavatam we encounter the transcendental taste of rasas with the Supreme Lord.
Krishna is so captivated by the love of the devotees that He appears as the child in the family of devotees or appears as a friend of devotees.
Some qualities like intelligence, strength, and beauty are not counted as devotional qualities.
The primary quality of the devotee is that he does everything for Krishna.
The second quality is that he is completely satisfied by his devotional activities, and he has no interest in anything else.
Some people think that we should first situate ourselves in sattva-guna, the quality of goodness, and then engage in devotional service. The acaryas, however, say that every living being can become a devotee, not even just human beings, what to speak of just human beings situated in goodness.
Krishna often puts His devotee in the position of a king so that he can inspire others.
Here Krishna makes that point that one who does not have good behavior cannot please the Lord simply by performing sacrifices.
Often we think if we perform devotional service very nicely that Krishna is obligated to us, but that is not actually true.
The easiest and quickest way to please Krishna is to please His devotees.
If a devotee comes, you can stop your service to Krishna on the altar to serve the devotee, then you can resume your service to Krishna.
When you serve a devotee, you serve both the devotee and Krishna, because Krishna is always there with His devotee, as he says, He is in the heart of His devotees.
If we appreciate Krishna in our heart, then we perceive Krishna everywhere through all our senses. We see Krishna is here, Krishna is there, Krishna in everything.
Sometimes Krishna makes it clear to us that He wants us to serve Him in a certain way.
Every devotee has some extraordinary quality which Krishna appreciates.
Krishna superficially appears unkind when He kills His enemies, but this is actually kindness because he was considering the future benefit of their souls.
The twenty-six qualities of a devotee are not acquired but rather become manifested.
In sadhana-bhakti we act as a bhakta and the qualities of a bhakta become manifested.
If the disciple does not always follow the guru, he loses the opportunity to develop the good qualities that would be developed had he been more obedient.
The devotee does not quarrel with others because he is not attached to anything.
Sometimes devotees are so attached to the idea that a service be done in a certain way that they create quarrel with all the other devotees. Do you think that is Krishna is satisfied by that service?
We have many goals, but there is an ultimate goal and that is more important than the intermediate goals. For the devotee, to satisfy Krishna is the ultimate goal.
Even if we are not able to meet some devotional goals, if we are thinking at the time of death that our life is useless because we did not attain Krishna, that is itself success.
A wise man considers that a person who has no devotion to God now is not in a hopeless state because in the future he may acquire such devotion just as he himself may not had devotion to the Lord in the past but acquired it.
When a devotee is described as faultless that means he is faultless from the point of view of Krishna.
Haridasa Thakura was born in a family that later converted to Islam. People in the Hindu tradition consider that to be a fault and criticized him, but Lord Caitanya appreciated His chanting of the holy names and brought him prasadam and embraced him. His only desire was to die looking about the face of the Lord and chanting His name, and Lord Caitanya fulfilled that desire. Lord Caitanya even danced with his body.
The Supreme Lord, if He sees that we are attached to anything that is disturbing our progressive spiritual advancement, will take it away, whether it is our house, our health, or whatever.
We become proud because we think we are right and someone else is wrong, but there may be a way that the other person is also right.
At anartha-nivrtti we begin to notice that we have bad qualities. Before that we may think we only have good qualities.
In relating with other devotees, we cannot impose, “I am a guru, and you should listen to me.” You cannot instruct someone you have no relationship with.
Relationships with other devotees naturally develop by serving them.
Bhakta Evan in Lyon (later intiated as Ekanatha Prabhu):
The distributing of books seems like a material affair, but the books are completely transcendental, and thus it is a spiritual activity. By distributing Bhagavad-gita, I can give people a chance to contact Krishna.
By absorbing ourselves in a variety of devotional acts, we will always remember Krishna.
If we neglect our spiritual practice we can immediately see how our consciousness becomes covered.
Srila Prabhupada stresses that meditation on the holy name by chanting japa is the most powerful meditation in this age.
The opportunity for devotional service is there for anyone who has faith.
Q (by me): It seems the problem is very few people have faith. How can people acquire faith?
A: By engaging in kirtan with devotees and taking prasadam one can increase one’s faith in the process. When one becomes sincere, Krishna will send him a guru, and by following the guru, one can become more faithful to Krishna.
Comment by Rupa Raghunath Prabhu: It is said that in Kali-yuga that the demons are within, so to kill the demons within you cannot use weapons but the maha-mantra.
We should perform the sankirtana-yajna so we understand that we are souls and have an relationship with the supreme being.
At the same time of day we see people with a different focus. One person is delivering flowers and another is looking for incompletely burned cigarettes on the ground.
Srila Prabhupada likened the temple to a hospital and the devotees to patients hoping to become cured of the material disease.
People are mostly in the mode of ignorance eating meat, taking intoxication, gambling, and engaging in illicit sex so they cannot understand very much from the spiritual point of view.
When Krishna was present, thousands of people saw Him, but not as the Supreme Personality, mostly just the residents of Vrindavan and Dvaraka saw Him in that way.
One devotee was distributing 60 books a day, with a very fixed schedule, then one day he could not distribute any books at all. His realization was that Krishna was just testing him, and he said that was his best day of the marathon.
Acharya Prabhu, who distributed books in Paris for some years with great struggle, is now preaching in India. He recalls the time in Paris was his best time because he could remember Krishna.
We did a program in Bratislava every Friday with two hours of chanting in a park. We served halava, and we had a harinama after. Many people joined because the program was very regular.
We also did harinama at the Saturday market in Bratislava, and people would donate three trolleys full of vegetables, enough for the Sunday feast. At the beginning they did not like us, but after several weeks they became very favorable. One week we did not come, but we resumed the next week, and people said, “Where were you? We saved some vegetables for you.”
We experimented with cooking with ghee. It cost 20 euros more, but because the devotees were more satisfied, they ate less, so it balanced out.
-----
A devotee was paraphrasing this verse in a class or Vyasa-puja offering recently, so I decided to share it.
Krishna is famous for his greatness and also for his sweetness. Regarding people who only appreciate His greatness, He says:
aisvarya-jñanete saba jagat misrita
“All the universe is filled with the conception of My majesty, but love weakened by that sense of majesty does not satisfy Me.” (Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi-lila 4.17)
Even a great man in human society appreciates those who love him for his personal qualities and not just because he is a dignitary, and so it is with Krishna.
The process of sadhana-bhakti purifies our consciousness and awakens awareness of Krishna’s sweetness, and that begins with the chanting of His holy names. Then we can serve Him in spontaneous affection.
