travel journal#4.6: Chowpatty and London

Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 4, No. 6

By Krishna-kripa das

  (March 2008, part two) 

Chowpatty and London

 (Sent from London, England, on 3/31/08)

 

 

Where I Am and What I Am Doing

 

After a great Gaura Purnima in Chowpatty, I came to London to do harinama. I love our London temple, with its lunch program, harinama program, and evening program. This place is really alive. Being a central location, many sannyasis also come through here. Externally speaking, I am worse off because I got sick due to the cold. I have to just tolerate it, or vow to never live in a place where it gets cold, at least during the season I am there.

 

Devotional Tips

 

Lord Krishna taught devotional service theoretically, but as Lord Caitanya He wanted to demonstrate by His own example how to be fully absorbed in thoughts of Krishna. Our surrender is engaging our mind in Krishna, becoming His devotee, worshiping Him, and offering obeisances to Him (Bg. 18.65). Anyone who chants with firm faith in the process Lord Caitanya has given can attain success.—Niranjana Swami, Gaura Purnima lecture, Chowpatty

 

   Gaura Purnima is the greatest of holy days. It is the Deity in the form of day.—Radhanatha Swami

 

   What is the qualification to get the mercy of Lord Caitanya? The qualification is simply to realize one's fallen position.—Niranjana Swami

 

   The value of a moment's association with a devotee is more valuable than material prosperity. Better one moment of full consciousness than a life inexperienced by years in this world. How does one get this one moment of full consciousness? By one moment's association with a devotee. The Lord incarnates as the holy name, but the devotees make the holy name available to others. The holy name can give the fruit of love of God. We simply have to desire it. This Krishna consciousness movement is for the cultivation of the desire for love of God (Bg. 12.9). By hearing and chanting the seed of love of God is watered. One must hear from the mouths of Vaishnavas. Otherwise we cannot get that seed. The most elevated conjugal love of God, Lord Caitanya came to give, in the form of the holy name.—Niranjana Swami

 

   If some calls us Prabhu [master], we should think, "This person is so elevated that he can see even me as Prabhu." We should not think, "Everyone is calling me Prabhu. It must be true."—Radhanatha Swami

 

   We should not think that a beggar is begging, and I am giving. We should think I am begging for service, and this person [appearing as a beggar] is giving me an opportunity [to serve]. —Radhanatha Swami

 

   The consciousness with which we serve the agents of the holy name is the consciousness we serve the holy name. —Radhanatha Swami

 

   To the degree we are happy to see others getting Krishna's blessings, Krishna will be inclined to bestow His blessings upon us.—Radhanatha Swami

 

   If you say everything is God's but you use everything for yourself, then you are thinking that you are God. —Radhanatha Swami

 

Notes from Jayadvaita Swami's classes:

 

   Better not to take a vow than to not to keep one. Then at least we will be considered honest.

 

   Bhisma vowed to be a lifelong celibate not in front of the Lord but in front of a fisherman, but he kept his vow.

 

   Why does a cockroach move when you try to step on it? He wants to live forever. Not that he thinks, "I have lived long enough, you can kill me."

 

Q: Why are people attracted to spiritual life, and why people not attracted?

A: We are spiritual beings by nature so spiritual life is attractive to us, but we have been conditioned by many births in the material world and therefore we also have a tendency to remain absorbed in material life and neglect it.

 

Madhudvisa Prabhu Remembers Srila Prabhupada

 

Visiting the site of the Ratha-yatra cart construction, Srila Prabhupada offered obeisances to cart saying, "The Ratha cart is as good as the Deity."

 

I can see that you feel frustrated and confused and because you are in the material world, it is not a bad thing that you are feeling frustrated and confused. But do not think that by taking shelter of drugs that things will improve, rather you will become more frustrated and more confused. Better you take shelter of chanting Hare Krishna and taking Krishna prasadam. Then you will be happy.—Summary of  Srila Prabhupada's 1970 Ratha-yatra lecture in San Francisco

 

You never knew how Srila Prabhupada would answer a question because he spoke for the benefit of the particular individual.

 

Srila Prabhupada's mood was, "Whenever someone comes to the temple, I feel he has been sent by my Guru Maharaja, so I must take care of him."

 

 

Darshan with Radhanatha Swami

 

Karuna Sindhu Prabhu invited me to a darshan with Radhanatha Swami. He and a friend were reporting to Maharaja on their program of cultivating foreign tourists. They had different strategies including taking the foreigners on tours of a few notable sites in Mumbai, ending with the Radha-Gopinath temple—Gandhi, Gardens, and God's House. Many people enjoyed the tours and some developed some interest in Krishna consciousness. Radhanatha Swami mentioned that both Giriraja and Sridhara Swamis had said that one of Srila Prabhupada main desires for Mumbai was to have a program for cultivating the foreign tourists. Because of other extensive projects in India, practically no one had done anything in this area, and Radhanatha Swami was excited about his disciples' preliminary results and plans for the future, which include tours of the devotees Mumbai food distribution program and farm in the country.

   I thanked Maharaja for the festival, saying, "You are the only person who can put on such a nice Gaura Purnima festival that people will feel happy leaving Mayapur to come to it." Mother Shyama Sakhi, one of the Bhakti-sastri teachers in Mayapur, in queue with her husband for the next darshan, voiced a loud agreement. (About nine of us Mayapur residents had come to Chowpatty for the festival this year.) Maharaja kindly gave me an incredible beautiful picture of Radha-Gopinath and Lalita and Visakha which I certainly do not deserve. It is a rare shot, as beautiful as the Deities Themselves. He also gave us all cookies. We are always indebted to Radhanatha Swami who is the personification of affectionate exchanges with devotees. I said I hoped to come back when Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami visits Chowpatty next winter. Radhanatha Maharaja fondly recalled how Satsvarupa Maharaja had enjoyed his visit to Chowpatty this year.

 

Harinama in London

 

Each harinama is unique, most having some memorable features. The first day, a young Indian attendee of the temple, coming from work, dressed in coat and tie, joined us for the last hour of harinama. He played the drum and suggested some melodies. After the two-hour event was over, he was so invigorated he insisted we continue another fifteen minutes. He later said Janananda Swami once told him he should go on harinama whenever he had the chance. The next day, Madhukari Dasi, a young and enthusiastic disciple of Tripurari Swami, joined our party and convinced one girl to chant, engaged three people in dance, and distributed eight of Srila Prabhupada's books. Also taking part was Srinivasin, a Chowpatty attendee, probably in his thirties, wearing a suit but with prominent tilaka, here in London for two days on business. There were five of us, and we all took turns leading. Everyone participated so nicely together, it was very blissful. The day after, Victor from Portugal come out to resolve his doubt, "How could anyone stay out on harinama for two hours?" His realization was that as time goes on, it becomes more and more enjoyable, and to see the positive reactions of the public gives one inspiration to continue. One young Canadian man, attracted by our party, held his cell phone up to the mouths of both the lead singer and then a responder as they chanted "Hare Krishna." As he was leaving, he said, "I love you guys! You make the city of London happy!"

   Saturday night is especially lively. A group of six teenaged black girls delighted in moving to the rhythm of the kirtana for a while. Then Superman and a band of five male and two females wearing leotards in the chilly London evening, danced for five minutes. Spectators found that scene particularly humorous. I wished I had a camera. Other people also took great pleasure in dancing with us. That evening I passed out a couple Higher Tastes and many restaurant invitations.

 

Conversation with Traveling

 

   I talked to a Moslem man for an hour or so while waiting for my flight to London from Mumbai. I asked him if he offered his five prayers a day to Allah. He said did. He had familiar misconceptions of Hinduism that I tried to correct, that (1) Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are all on the same level, that (2) Krishna is an incarnation of Vishnu, and the (3) the goal is to merge our spiritual self with the Supreme Spirit. I explained that we have an eternal relationship with God in the spiritual world, as we have relationships with other people in this world. For example, Arjuna is Krishna's friend and Radha is Krishna's beloved. I asked about the situation of those who attain perfection in Islam. He talked about gardens and beautiful girls, and it reminded me of the situation of heaven but not the kingdom of God. Srila Prabhupada has given us such a wonderful goal, to take part in pastimes of love with the Supreme Lord Krishna in one of five completely satisfying relationships. What a wonderful opportunity!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

travel journal#4.5: Mayapur Festival and More

Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 4, No. 5
By Krishna-kripa das
(March 2008, part one)
Mayapur, Kolkata, and In Between
(Sent from Chowpatty, Mumbai, India, on 3/20/08)

Where I Am and What I Am Doing

I have been in Mayapur doing harinama, proofreading Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Vaibhava, Nature's IQ, the second edition of The Uddhava Gita, and the Friends of the BBT Newsletter, and reading over the articles for an anti-Darwinian BBT book timed to coincide with the bicentennial of Darwin's birth in 2009. I have been selling of few of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami's, my diksa guru's, books at the Mayapur festival as well. Now I have come to ISKCON Chowpatty for their Gaura Purnima festival, especially because Niranjana Swami, the wonderful devotee who advised me to live in the temple originally, and Radhanatha Swami, also a great realized devotee and lecturer, are both here. I wish you all a wonderful Gaura Purnima wherever you may be. After the festival, on March 26, I plan to go to London, and do harinama, and from there to other European cities.

Devotional Meditation

Our philosophy is so wonderful. We all have an eternal relationship with an incredibly beautiful person, which becomes more blissful as time goes on. This material world with all its hellish conditions is temporary and illusory, and when we wake up we become free from it. Sometimes it is very intense just to motivate us to wake up.—from an SB class

Devotees Are Everywhere

On March 13, I was meeting devotees left and right in Kolkata, many I knew. Vaishnava youth Kumari, a bharat-natyam dancer studying in Chennai, and who once lived in Alachua, came to my Srimad-Bhagavatam class and liked it. I had breakfast with Ahovalam Nrsimha Prabhu and his son Rsabha who I knew from the Poland tour and from Mayapur. He is happy to use his French to enlighten visitors to Radha-desa in Krishna consciousness, rather than just teaching gurukula and his son is enjoying his studies at Bhaktivedanta College. Later I met a friendly Gaudiya Matha devotee at the Foreign Tour Quota office and two Russian devotees on the ferry to Howrah station. Then I met Gaura Krishna Prabhu and his brother on the train back to Navadvipa. Many people smiled and laughed to see three Western men balanced on a rickshaw from the train station to Mayapura Ghat.

Conversations While Traveling

I had some nice experiences sharing Krishna consciousness with others. As I left the Kolkata temple, I decided to purchase a Bengali book, in case I met someone nice in my travels. The brahmacari at the counter insisted I take two. On the bus to the tourist quota office, one friendly man who works in elections helped arrange my seating and baggage. I showed him the small 6 rupee book on Lord Caitanya's life and instructions, and he got some change from the bus fare collector and bought it. He said he liked music and rightly sensed that I was not up on the latest popular music. He mentioned he really liked a group called Kulasekhara and a title called Govinda. I heard that Kulasekhara was a Hare Krishna devotee from friends who are more into the music scene. The man was so enthusiastic about that group, he told me I should pickup their music the next time I return to America. It was a nice exchange, and I thanked him for his help as I left the bus.

On the train I met a computer science student going to school in Kolkata but originally from Navadvipa where we were both going. I told how I myself got a computer science degree in American back in 1982. I mentioned how Lord Caitanya had predicted this chanting of Hare Krishna would spread all over the world, and although for centuries, people thought it was allegory, now the prediction was coming to pass. I showed him the English and Bengali books I had, but he said he didn't believe in it. I said well it is a historical fact that the prediction was made 500 years ago, and it is coming true. He said Nostradamus has so many true predictions. I said that is true, but those predictions do not have to do with people awakening love for God! I was in shock—I was talking to an atheist from the home of Lord Caitanya's pastimes. I asked if he had adopted another religion or he had an atheistic view and he revealed his atheism. I talked to him about Forbidden Archeology, and all evidence dug up that is inconsistent with presently formulated theory of human evolution. Then I discussed the inability of scientists to explain the cause of consciousness, and how past life memories and out-of-body experiences provide evidence consistent with the Vedic explanation of consciousness. He was interested in the ideas, and I got his email address, and promised to send him the URL for the online version of Origins magazine.

My Experience of the Beginning of the Mayapur Festival

What can one say about the Mayapur festival? So many events attractive to our spiritual senses compete for our attention. One cannot attend them all. Seminars, harinamas, dramas, and kirtanas, all ways of associating with great souls, who bless us with faith in Lord Gauranga, His surrendered representative, Srila Prabhupada, and the holy name of the Lord.

I recall the varnasrama seminar of Bhakti Raghava Swami was popular among many. His disciple gave me Bhakti Raghava Swami's book on the subject to pass on to my guru since Maharaja wanted all the leaders to get one. Varnasrama was a popular topic in the ether this year, and my friend Akhiladhara Prabhu induced me to promise to visit a new self-sufficient varnasrama farm project near Belgaum in northern Karnataka, which he and others predict will fulfill Srila Prabhupada's dreams in that area.

New things making this festival a level above the last included Dravida Prabhu's morning poetry reading prior to the announcements. He has creatively worded English translations in poetic form to profound literary contributions of the previous spiritual teachers, to attract our ears, minds, and hearts to Krishna and His pastimes. One about the delightfully tasty beverage of the holy names of Radha and Krishna was particularly sweet and well received:

Stavavali, by Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami

radheti nama nava-sundara-sidhu mugdham
   krsneti nama madhuradbhuta-gadha-dugdham
sarva-ksanam surabhi-raga-himena ramyam
krtva tadaiva piba me rasane ksud-arte

An excellent fresh nectar drink with endless subtle tastes --
Such is the name of Radha, by whom all three worlds are graced.
Condensed milk that is wonderfully delicious, thick and sweet --
Such is the name of Krishna, in whom all attractions meet.
Now mix these drinks, O thirsty tongue, and add the fragrant ice
Of love, a prize the wise will try to buy at any price.
And then at every moment drink this beverage most fine,
And make my heart supremely blissful, peaceful, and divine.

Another nice new feature was Russian Service Day when the over eight hundred Russian devotees made special contributions to serve the holy dhama and the other devotees. Forty or more Russian devotees cleaned the temple after the noon arati with great delight. They also, with great joy, took over the serving of lunch prasadam, creating a most pleasing mood by their enthusiasm to serve.

The stage show was highlighted by the wonderful dramas, both by the very professional Bhaktivedanta Players, and Bhakti Marg Swami, who directed a cast of mostly local and youthful devotees, in enacting tales from the Mahabharata about Kunti and Karna. The visiting brother of devotee from England said that fight scene in that play was among the best he had ever seen and that all the performances were very professional. That convinced me of their value since it is all too easy for us to glorify our own performers, who often are our personal friends, but when those with no great attachment to devotional service or devotees appreciate, the acting must be truly well done.

Also on stage in the evening, Dravida Prabhu, with his delightful poems, reminded us both of the limitless beauty of Krishna and the fact that poetic is one of the qualities of great devotees. One of his poems was a transcendent rap piece following one of Rupa Gowami's poems, with very creative rhymes. Another was a truly beautiful one about how the holy name is really all that is:

It makes this world appear like bits of straw upon the ground.
It splendorously reigns Supreme—Divinity in sound. . . .
O what great sorrow, what great pain, the worst calamity,
For people to forget the holy name of Sri Hari!
Although the name's a priceless gem, mere broken glass they see.
The holy name of Sri Hari is surely all that be!

There was more to the stage show, but I had my regular service to attend to, my guru's books to sell, and my computer in disrepair, so I could only catch a little nectar here and there.

When you have evening kirtanas led by Lokanatha Swami, Radhanatha Swami, Sivarama Swami, and Aindra Prabhu, you have a lot of devotees smilingly dancing with great happiness, and a lively scene which went past 10:00 p.m. every night. It reminded me of what Mayapur is meant for. One time in Mayapur, Srila Prabhupada overheard a wonderfully melodic bhajana coming from the temple, and remarked that he wanted all the devotees to come to Mayapur and experience the wonder of chanting kirtana together here. The leaders were in anxiety calculating how much it would cost. Yet Prabhupada was eagerly thinking of sharing the great mercy Gauranga had come to give.

Personally I love meeting all my friends from America, Europe, and India, all in one very spiritually invigorating place, one friend after the other. I rejoice in their great victory, the attainment of the transcendental land where the son of Mother Saci eternally performs His pastimes. Living on the East Coat of America, I never see my friends from the West Coast, except when we occasionally and unexpectedly meet in Mayapur. My service for the winter in Mayapur was what we call in America harinama or what they call in Bengal nagar sankirtan. We chant for three hours each day, from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m., either to the bhajana kutir of Bhaktivinoda Thakura, the Yoga-Pitha, Jagannatha Mandir, the town of Navadvipa, or a couple villages, one on each side of the Ganges, where we distribute prasadam, spiritual food. The party is very international with regulars from Russia, Nigeria, Ghana, Bulgaria, Australia, Italy, Bengal, and the USA. I encouraged everyone I knew who came to visit Mayapur to come out with us at least once. Some unexpectedly fell in love with the program, coming out almost every day. These included a Prabhupada disciple from Alachua along with his daughter, and an Indradyumna Swami disciple from Poland, who I knew was fond of Deity worship but appeared to develop a great taste for harinama as well.

People who live in Mayapur before the festival time, see how the variegated opulence of the festival covers the peaceful charm of Mayapur, to a large extent, and it is harder for us to focus on our favorite service to Krishna in our favorite place. But we know at heart it is Srila Prabhupada's will, that of his spiritual predecessors, and that of Lord Gauranga Himself. Seeing all the pilgrims, Bengali and international, I recall how Srila Prabhupada told his earlier followers in Mayapur, "If we advertise, 'Bhaktivedanta Swami will speak under a tree,' who will come?" Therefore, Srila Prabhupada wanted to build big temples to invite people to visit and hear about Krishna from self-realized souls and to make their lives successful. In Mayapur that is always going on in a big way, and during the festival, the great mercy is spreading even more. If you didn't come this year, don't miss out again! Commit to coming to next year's festival today! Mayapur Gaura Purnima Festival, ki jaya!

Concluding Verse about Lord Caitanya

anarpita-carim cirat karuṇayavatirṇaḥ kalau
  samarpayitum unnatojjvala-rasam sva-bhakti-sriyam
hariḥ puraṭa-sundara-dyuti-kadamba-sandipitah
  sada hṛdaya-kandare sphuratu vaḥ saci-nandanah

May the Supreme Lord who is known as the son of Srimati Saci-devi [Lord Caitanya] be transcendentally situated in the innermost chambers of your heart. Resplendent with the radiance of molten gold, He has appeared in the Age of Kali by His causeless mercy to bestow what no incarnation has ever offered before: the most sublime and radiant mellow of devotional service, the mellow of conjugal love (Sri Caitanya-caritamrita Adi 1.4).