The thirty-eighth week of 2025, I lived at Viraha Bhavan, the ashram of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami in Stuyvesant Falls.
I share quotes from Srila Prabhupada’s The Nectar of Devotion and a quote from one of his letters. I share quotes from a new collection of writings by Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, called Among Friends, Journal and Poems, volume 1. I share comments by Sthita-dhi Muni and Krsna-bhajana Prabhus on a presentation I did on chapter 7 of Sadaputa Prabhu’s Maya: The World as Virtual Reality.
Many, many thanks to Nitai Prabhu for his very generous donation.
Itinerary
September 12–October ??: serve Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami
– September 27: Philadelphia Ratha-yatra and Times Square Kirtan Festival
– September 28: ISKCON Schenectady Sunday Feast
October ??–December 31: NYC Harinam
Chanting Hare Krishna in Upstate New York
On Janmastami Prabhu’s last day here at Viraha Bhavan, we had four devotees chanting Hare Krishna in the evening kirtan (https://youtu.be/bCfLWd6gW7c):
I knew Janmastami Prabhu from doing harinama in several European cities, most recently Brussels (https://youtu.be/uk4t7P6GYi0?si=K3Ws9T-ch2PSN4HE):
He is replaced by Ojasvini Radha Devi Dasi, who did harinama with me in Berlin 6 years ago. She is wearing a pink top and distributing books in this video (https://youtu.be/O9mVezSUITA):
Nitai Prabhu, who prints many of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami’s books in India, visited for a few days. He made a podcast-style interview with Maharaja about Vandanam, one of his books on prayers (https://youtu.be/8HRODfNFbBA):
Raghunath Prabhu, who is famous for his band, Shelter, and his podcast, Wisdom of the Sages, with Kaustubha Prabhu, has a property in East Chatham in Columbia County, New York, called Supersoul Farm. Often on Saturdays he does kirtan programs for the local community. He also hosts retreats on many weekends there.
We thought the kirtan was at 7 p.m., but it was at 7:30 p.m. Thus although thinking we were late, we were actually exactly on time. Almost everyone else was late, so I took advantage of the situation and grabbed the harmonium and chanted the evening tune of Hare Krishna for ten minutes until Raghunath Prabhu and the others came.
Here Bhaktivinoda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Supersoul Farm in East Chatham (https://youtu.be/QMNuF1SjW-g):
Keli Lalita Devi Dasi chants “Govinda Jaya Jaya” there too (https://youtu.be/sV7YivkIJw0):
Keli Lalita ended her kirtan with a Hare Krishna tune (https://youtu.be/S6TZMjpz7nQ):
Photos
The day before Krsna Dasi returned I dressed Radha Govinda for the last time.
I also decorated the altar with flowers, including the many roses which bloomed that day.
Ojasvini Radha Devi Dasi, who is a real pujari, made the turban. Guru Maharaja said it was better than mine but not as good as Krsna Dasi’s.
Krishnendu Prabhu impressed me by making five preps for our Ekadasi lunch. The desserts made the biggest impression on my mind.
There was buckwheat cake with a peanut butter / honey topping.
There were puffed lotus buds with coconut sugar and a sweet spice.
Ever wonder what the GPT means in ChatGPT?I decided to ask it:
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 13:
“Rupa Gosvami has stated that five kinds of devotional activities – namely, residing in Mathura, worshiping the Deity of the Lord, reciting Srimad-Bhagavatam, serving a devotee and chanting the Hare Krishna mantra – are so potent that a small attachment to any one of these five items can arouse devotional ecstasy even in a neophyte.”
From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 20:
“The particular loving mood or attitude relished in the exchange of love with the Supreme Personality of Godhead is called rasa, or mellow. The different types of rasa, when combined together, help one to taste the mellow of devotional service in the highest degree of transcendental ecstasy. Such a position, although entirely transcendental to our experience, will be explained in this section as far as possible, following in the footsteps of Srila Rupa Gosvami.
“Without relishing some sort of mellow, or loving mood, in one’s activities, no one can continue to perform such activities. Similarly, in the transcendental life of Krishna consciousness and devotional service there must be some mellow, or specific taste, from the service. Generally this mellow is experienced by chanting, hearing, worshiping in the temple and being engaged in the service of the Lord. So when a person feels transcendental bliss, that is called ‘relishing the mellow.’ To be more clear, we may understand that the various feelings of happiness derived from discharging devotional service may be termed the ‘mellows’ of devotional service.
“This relishing of transcendental mellow in discharging devotional service cannot be experienced by all classes of men because this sweet loving mood is developed only from one’s previous life’s activities or by the association of unalloyed devotees. As explained above, association with pure devotees is the beginning of faith in devotional service. Only by developing such faith in the association of a pure devotee, or by having in one’s previous life executed devotional activities, can one actually relish the mellow of devotional service. In other words, this transcendental bliss is not to be enjoyed by any common man unless he is so extraordinarily fortunate as to be in association with devotees or to be continuing his previous birth’s devotional activities.
“The gradual process of development to the stage of devotional service is explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam, First Canto: ‘The beginning is to hear about Lord Krishna in the association of devotees who have themselves cleansed their hearts by association. Hearing about the transcendental activities of the Lord will result in one’s feeling transcendental bliss always.’ It is also explained in Bhagavad-gita that for one who has actually come to the spiritual platform, the first symptom visible will be that he is always joyful. This joyous life is attained by one’s reaction to reading Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam, or else from associating with persons who are very interested in the spiritual life of Krishna consciousness – specifically those who have made the determination to achieve the favor of Govinda by being engaged in transcendental loving service at His lotus feet. Being encouraged by such a feeling, one who is constantly engaged in discharging the regulative principles of devotional service in such a way as to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead develops two principles of compelling force, which come under the heading of vibhava. Thus one enjoys transcendental bliss.”
From a letter on September 13, 1970:
“In India our preaching work is going on. Practically everyday we have got an outside nice meeting. There is regular newspaper coverage, but the difficulty is that the whole country is now communist infected. People are in very much perturbed condition. All of them are expecting me to do something for ameliorating the situation, but I am simply advising them to chant Hare Krsna because this transcendental sound is the only panacea for all material diseases.”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
From Among Friends, Journal and Poems, Volume 1:
“After all, the best devotees
beyond Sukadeva and Narada,
are the simple girls of Vrndavana.
Of the gopis Prabhupada said,
‘They never asked anything of Krishna!’
But they were not ordinary women.
May we all become
followers of those cowherd girls
who saved their love
for Radha and Krishna.”
“Chanting Hare Krishna mantra together
in the dim room while bright light
emanates from the forms of the Deities—
is the best place in the universe.”
“We can’t prevent our minds and eyes
from flitting and drooping,
but we thank You
for allowing us to bow down
and to taste Your caranamrta [water from bathing the Deities].”
[Comment by gurukula student] “There is even a hell for those who don’t believe in hell!”
“But will I be reborn and have to become a boy again with teachers always telling me what to do and constant duties? Could I become a dog again, with gurukula boys shouting and hitting me with rocks? Why don’t I make more effort in my last decades in this body to get out once and for all, instead of gliding nonchalantly toward respectable old age?”
“Please make me ready to do what I need for further surrender. If I can’t surrender all at once, as I should, please give me the next installments of surrender. Please hear my prayer that I want to be able to say, ‘Yes!’ to You. I want to receive you in my heart, Lord Krishna and Srila Prabhupada. I want to give up my own plans and pride. Please make me intelligent and strong enough to defeat the doubts. Lord, give me courage.”
“I am not able to fully surrender; I admit it. I’m too afraid and too attached for that. And so I should not be harsh (and hypocritical) in my judgment of others who also don’t seem to fully surrender to Krishna. Don’t make fun of people’s funny human habits; you have some habits yourself, and you wish to be accepted without scorn. So be kind, smile; we’re only human. But we are following Prabhupada’s order, going with his protection, all the way.”
“Evening Prayer
“Please help us Lord, to have faith,
to be sincere devotees,
to help each other,
and to fulfill the mission of Prabhupada.
I’m writing this down to be with You.
Although I seem to talk to myself,
I know that You are here.
I want to live with You as my best friend.
Please make me a servant
of the servant of the servant of the Lord.”
“To bow to Krishna and His devotee in Vrindavan is as common as stopping for a red light in California.”
“Early this morning I took a glass of orange juice and immediately got indigestion which stayed with me all day. India is so strict. Ever since arriving here you have so little energy. And yet in Vrindavan I seem to have better spiritual intelligence. There is less danger of being ‘active foolish.’”
“But we are all among the blessed, rare
followers of Prabhupada, Rupa, and Sanatana,
the philosopher-lovers of Radha-Krishna.
I pray to overlook the faults,
appreciate the deep,
sweet drinking water which is
the accessible well of ISKCON.”
(Vrndavana Karttika 1989)
“Being quiet and thinking of Krishna is a positive social act.”
“Walking for japa 6:00 A.M. by Ramana-reti. A mangy dog approached me with gruff barking. I thought, ‘If you come any closer, you’ll get the end of this danda,’ and he went away. Madhu and I then circumambulated the Krishna-Balarama Tree. At the same spot there were two old Indian matajis bowing down in the sand. They smiled slightly at us. Then the same aggressive dog went up to the old lady. She was small and with no stick. To my surprise, she began speaking softly to the dog in low tones. He sat down before her, making gruff sounds. She then disentangled her hand from her bead bag, reached into another bag, pulled out a piece of food and threw it on the ground for the dog. By now we had passed her, and I saw this by looking back. Once again I saw that I had misunderstood the meaning of Vrindavan.”
“While walking through soft sands of Ramana-reti chanting japa, a ‘voice’ within says, ‘Your chanting is nothing at all.’ I ask, ‘Who is saying that?’ I decide it’s the mind and that the mind has been ruining my japa for many years, undermining my confidence.”
“The skeptical mind says, ‘You feel nothing when you chant. Just see. Twenty years of it and nothing.’
“I reply, ‘Bug off monkey, out of my way! It may be twenty lifetimes, but I’m clinging to the hari-nama boat and not letting go. It’s my shelter in the worldly ocean. If you, dear mind, would cooperate, the chanting would be much better. But even if you do your worst, I won’t give up.’”
“For improving japa I know what I have to do; it’s no mystery. I have to quiet my mind of its many passing concerns and simply hear the names Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.”
“Why do they play
pop bhajana tunes
blaring from a loudspeaker?
Why do some of them
cast hostile looks and jibbing words?
I don’t know. I only know
it’s like a covering of mud-scum
while the Yamuna flows on.”
“Thank you, Prabhupada, for letting me
praise you daily in the classroom.
Today we discussed
how almost everything we do
bears your impression.
Like one of those sheep in Ireland
with the splash of red dye,
I’m marked as one of your flock.
I pray for a place
in your eternal retinue.”
“I know nothing,
possess nothing
and I am nothing
except a servant of my master
who kindly accepts me,
but who wants me to do more.”
“You can’t expect to always have
Krishna as Yours only
in a quiet place.”
“Thanks for the troubles ahead by which I will be driven within to seek shelter of my Lord who promises Vaikuntha to His devotee.”
“It’s Prabhupada’s mercy
that I can take gems from his books
and place them in a mosaic
of bhakti-yoga.”
“As one monk wrote: The simple, narrow life helps to protect the depths of the inner life.”
“On the pack of ‘Priyanka Incense,’ made in Bangalore, the manufacturers have printed, ‘Excellent for the worship of God.’ Where else but India could they say it that way? Puja is a matter of fact. Little do they know, though, what they’re actually saying, or who is Bhagavan, and what constitutes His worship. Little do I know, as I light the incense and perform arati to Prabhupada. But I want to do it.”
“O sentimental person,
you don’t deserve to think of Him,
but He has appeared in your mind
with mild playful smile;
His fingers extend as He plays the flute.”
“The Lord who revealed the Vedas
who stands in the midst of the gopis,
resides in Gita-nagari.
He’s worshiped day and night
by followers of Prabhupada.
Go serve Him there.”
“Reading is one of those basics of devotional service which will never leave us. When I think back as little as five years ago, much of what I was doing is now gone with the wind. The large zone I commanded, the car I drove in, the regional secretary who carried out my plans, the army of painting sellers and book distributors—the whole infrastructure has in many ways vanished. But the basics remain. Back then there was chanting and hearing, and there is still chanting and hearing. It is best to put energy into that which will never fail—and that which Srila Prabhupada has emphasized as most important. Every day I want a strong foundation of the basics (sravanam, kirtanam, vishnu-smaranam) and then I can carry out my intrepid plans, which may or may not be lasting.”
Sthita-dhi Muni Prabhu:
Comments on my Zoom talk on Chapter 7 of Sadaputa Prabhu’s Maya: The World as Virtual Reality:
One important question is: “Do hallucinatory drugs open us up to a existing realm not usually perceivable or do they create completely illusory images?”
You cannot suggest ghosts and visions are real to scientists, but . . .
Krsna-bhajana Prabhu:
Comments on my Zoom talk on Chapter 7 of Sadaputa Prabhu’s Maya: The World as Virtual Reality:
There are real life consequences for the atheistic point of view that religious experiences are all delusional.
Lots of people I talked to in the capacity of a counselor told me that they had seen ghosts.
There is no such thing as being objective in science.
The scientists are ready to discount the perceptions of vast numbers of people.
Raghunath Prabhu of Shelter and Wisdom of the Sages:
From a Saturday kirtan program at his Supersoul Farm:
“The mantra does not just make the mind peaceful, it scrubs the mind of desires that will actually not satisfy us.”
“It doesn’t matter if you are a good singer or not because the meditation is just like a cry of love from our heart.”
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In the Vedic literature, the best way to progress spiritually is clearly defined. There is no doubt about it. Brhan-naradiya Purana (38.126), which Lord Caitanya said his guru taught Him, is among the most emphatic verses in this connection.
harer nama harer nama
harer namaiva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva
nasty eva gatir anyatha
“For spiritual progress in this Age of Kali, there is no alternative, there is no alternative, there is no alternative to the holy name, the holy name, the holy name of the Lord.”
We wish everyone well in his/her attempts to take shelter of a favorite name of the Lord, and thus achieve the love of God, which is the goal of this chanting.
