Travel Journal#11.12: Chanting at a London Rally, Stonehenge, Paris Ratha-yatra and More

Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 11, No. 12
By Krishna-kripa das
(June 2015, part two)

The North of England, London, Stonehenge, Oxford, and Paris
(Sent from Siemyśl, Poland, on August 10, 2015)

Where I Went and What I Did

After the London Ratha-yatra on Tuesday and Wednesday, I traveled with the Sutapa Prabhu, devotees from Bhaktivedanta Manor and the Harinama Ruci world harinama party to different cities in the Manchester area and did harinama and book distribution. I went on my own trip on Thursday to do harinama with Joe, Geoffrey, and three others in Sheffield, and Friday I went on the usual afternoon harinama on Oxford Street in London. Saturday we went with Parasurama Prabhu to a demonstration in London protesting inappropriate government spending and did harinama there. That evening some of us went to Stonehenge to chant all night at the Solstice Festival there. Later Sunday morning I went to Oxford for their 8-hour summer kirtana, a new event for me. I spent half a day in Newcastle recovering partially from two sleepless nights, and went to Edinburgh to do harinama and their Tuesday evening program, returning to Newcastle for harinama and our Wednesday evening kirtana program. Thursday I chanted with Govardhana Devi Dasi, John, and Doug in Blackpool and then in Preston, where Tony joined us, and Friday I chanted with Govardhana and John in Southport and Liverpool. Friday night I returned to Newcastle for the eight-hour kirtana on Saturday. Saturday night I took the train to London and the bus to Paris for Sunday's very festive and enjoyable Ratha-yatra, followed by a stage show, and a very lively harinama. Finally, I chanted with the Harinama Ruci traveling harinama party in France for the last two days of June and enjoyed the association of Janananda Goswami in Paris.

I share a lecture quote from Srila Prabhupada, a couple quotes from Sanatana Goswami's Brhad-Bhagavatamrita, an excerpt from Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Sri Navadvipa Bhava-taranga, quotes from a book of and the online journal of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, notes from a recorded lecture by Tamal Krishna Goswami, and notes on lectures I heard by Janananda Goswami, Jagadatma Prabhu, Rasesvari dd, Murli Manohara Prabhu, and Sadbhuja Prabhu.

Thanks to Dvijapriya dd for many great pictures of the harinama at the End Austerity Now rally and one from Stonehenge. Thanks to Govardhan dd for her pictures of Blackpool and Preston. Thanks to Harinama Ruci for their pictures of the Paris Ratha-yatra. Thanks to Janardana Prabhu for his picture of the Leeds harinama.

Thanks to whoever put £20 in my money belt while I was sleeping in the van after Stonehenge. Thanks to Lucas and Malini of Edinburgh for their kind donations. Thanks to Alan Miles and the Liverpool Nama-Hatta for their kind donation to my travels. Thanks to Vishnujana Prabhu for contributing to my travel in Paris.

Itinerary

August 9–19: Festival of India on Poland's Baltic Coast

August 20–23: Trutnov (Czech Woodstock)

August 24: Prague / London

August 25–26: Newcastle

August 27: Preston

August 28: Liverpool

August 29: Manchester

August 30: Leeds

August 31–September 1: Newcastle

September 2–3: Sheffield

September 4–7: Ireland
September 8–18: New York City Harinama 
September 19–21?: Boston 
September 22–25: New York City Harinama 
September 26–27: Albany  
September 28–November 15: New York City Harinama
November 16–18: Washington, D.C., Harinama

November 19: Jacksonville

November 20–December 16: Krishna House, Gainesville

December 17: Jacksonville?

December 18–January 3: New York City Harinama

Harinama in Liverpool and Manchester

The first day, our party consisting of Sutapa Prabhu, devotees from the Manor, Sadbhuja Prabhu and another devotee from Germany, and the Harinama Ruci traveling world harinama party chanted at two cities in The North of England, Liverpool and Manchester, our base.

I was impressed that at least three devotees from the congregation joined our harinama in Liverpool.

In Manchester a family danced with us

(https://youtu.be/ZCJ-uZocS8g):

 So did a three-person street music act from Costa Rica

(https://youtu.be/w2x5nZLuTxQ):

 A local boy also danced.

And more as well.

Harinama in Leeds and Bradford

The second day, three devotees from our Leeds congregation joined our party while we chanted for two and a half hours in Leeds. 
 

One older man, who had positive memories of the Hare Krishna, danced and bought a book.
 

One lady enjoyed dancing with the devotees immensely.

One guy in a bar encouraged us to come in and play

(https://youtu.be/y1zbdWw4VnI):

Priya Sundari Devi made a nice lunch for our party which we ate in the Cardigan Centre, the venue for our weekly and monthly programs.

We planned to go to York, but we were delayed and decided it was more practical that Bradford be our second city. Apparently, Bradford has the highest percentage of Muslims of any English city. Gaura Karuna Prabhu was very happy as he was able to distribute many books to the Muslims. I even distributed three books in Bradford, though mostly not to the Muslims, and one book in Leeds. While dancing I would watch for persons who were obviously interested but who the several book distributors had somehow missed, being engaged with others.
 

While in Bradford, one older guy took pleasure in playing the flute with us.

Muslim kids were attracted and sometimes danced.

Harinama in Sheffield

While Sutapa Prabhu and his party chanted in Blackpool and Preston, I went to Sheffield to support my friend Joe, who had organized a harinama there. I was happy to see that we had six people chanting for a good part of the two hours we were there. Joe and Geoffrey who are the most regular attenders at our Sheffield programs chanted as did Jackie, who has come on and off for many years join us, as well as Nigel, who used to come regularly many years ago, and Chris, who is a new devotee of Hare Krishna chanting who came from the kirtana programs at the multi-faith Burngreave Ashram. I hope that Joe can make that a regular program and that people keep coming.

Harinama in London

I returned to central London where Harinama Ruci and Sadbhuja Prabhu did harinama for a couple days, the first day beginning on Oxford Street as usual and the second at a rally.

One guy really enjoyed swinging around with Harinamananda Prabhu, and his female associate enjoyed photographing it.

Mr. Britannia always delights in doing a little dance with the Hare Krishnas whenever they come by (https://youtu.be/mt2gfFC-ivk):

In Leicester Square a group of youthful tourists delighted in dancing with us (https://youtu.be/c1NuW5httx8):

Two other groups and some guys also danced with us (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGerEnGdI0xK4uq7KJGdrceXGtLbDMX9F):

 One Oriental lady really enjoyed dancing with us.

Some ladies danced with the devotee ladies:
 

First in a circle.
 

And then in a line.

One worker in shoe shop played karatalas briefly with us (https://youtu.be/_A9NfNfbrQI):

Shoppers in front of a Lush Cosmetics shop enjoyed listening and moving with the music as did at least one shop worker (https://youtu.be/TpA9BEh1l7I):

Once in front of the temple a couple danced with us.
 

They continued dancing in a circle with the other devotees.

Harinama at the End Austerity Now Rally in London
 

Parasurama Prabhu invited devotees to join him in chanting Hare Krishna at the End Austerity Now Rally in London which was protesting government spending cuts for humanitarian programs while military spending continues.
 

Parasurama Prabhu played the ukulele.
 

Gopinath played the bass.
 

Harinamananda Prabhu danced as usual.
 

Prabhupada disciples, Dharmatma Prabhu (in the white dhoti) and Dviyapriya Devi Dasi (in a sari), joined us and took many nice pictures.

In the beginning just a few individuals, like this young lady would dance.

I took a video when several protesters danced with us

(https://youtu.be/TKraijEnmSc):

Young ladies even chanted with us
(https://youtu.be/gJkPOOIUd64):

 

There were many peace signs and signs with humanitarian slogans.

It reminded me of when I used to join my mother at demonstrations, including the climate change rally in New York City last September.
 

Rather than remaining with Parasurama Prabhu within the procession, we decided to chant alongside, so that all the protesters would hear the chanting as they marched by.
 

Two guys enjoyed dancing with us and Erzsebet gave them garlands. Later they encountered us again, dancing with their garlands on.

We continued chanting on the underground to Oxford Circus (https://youtu.be/1KAoyrb9gl8):

Then we chanted down Oxford Street back to the temple.

The London Temple Open Day

While we were chanting at the rally, the devotees at the Soho Street had an Open Day, encouraging the public to visit. Guests would get a tour of the temple, hear a little philosophy, do some meditation, and get some spiritual food.
 

The devotees set up a kirtana party right on the sidewalk to attract attention. 

 

A couple of devotee ladies chanted.

Later Sakhya Prema Prabhu joined.
 

One devotee passed out free lassi.

Chanting at the Stonehenge Summer Solstice Festival

Parasurama Prabhu brings enough food to serve 1,000 people, along with his Ratha-yatra cart, each year to the Stonehenge Summer Solstice festival, attended by about 30,000 people. Other devotees join from Bhaktivedanta Manor and the Soho Street temple. 

 Mahavishnu Swami, who loves sharing the chanting the holy name with others, was the life of our party. 
 

 As usual when there is good weather, we had Ratha-yatra around 1:00 a.m.
 

Festival goers take pleasure pulling the cart.
 

They also dance with their friends.

Some play drums with us.

I recall talking to a student who lived in Sheffield but was going to college in Newcastle, and I told her about the programs we had in both places.

It was beautiful to see many people who really enjoyed the chanting and the dancing.

I asked one young lady who was really into ito the chanting and dancing if she had encountered Hare Krishna before. She said she had, and asked where. She replied, “Everywhere!” 

 

I gave my prasadam garland to her as a reward for her enthusiasm.

This was the best sunrise in the six years I have attended the festival, as the horizon was very clear. Fifteen minutes afterwards the sky clouded up and that was the end of the sunshine for awhile.

I took eight useable video clips totaling about fourteen minutes which give you a feel for what it was like. The scene reminded me of videos of hippies dancing with the devotees in the early days. I alternate a couple scenes each of slow and fast chanting, then show the special moment when the sun rose, then some more chanting, then chanting as we walked back to the parking lot, and the end of the final kirtana. I hope you like it (https://youtu.be/Sro-ud1sd7E):

Chanting at the Oxford Summer Kirtan

I have wanted to participate in the Oxford Summer Kirtan, formerly the Oxford Six-Hour Kirtan, ever since it started three years ago, but I was always busy in The North of England.

This time the Oxford Summer Kirtan was the day of the solstice, and Oxford was on my way from Stonehenge to The North of England so it was possible for me to go.

I would like to thank Krishna Sharana Prabhu and Ali Krishna Devi Dasi for kindly allowing me to take a nap and prasadam at their place, to recover from the all-night Stonehenge experience enough to participate in 4½ hours of the 8-hour Oxford event.

When I got to the parking lot of the school where the event was held, hearing the loud melodious kirtana made me forget my fatigue, and the whole event was wonderful.

The kirtana singers were mostly local, and many were the children of devotees. It was not an event where they bring celebrated singers from other places but one where you encourage the local devotees to sing for Krishna.

I was happy that I was able to find a few guys who I was able to dance together with. That does not happen everywhere. Often the guys do not want to dance, or they want to dance independently or in a way that is too complicated for me to join and meditate on the kirtana at the same time.

It was great hearing Krishna Kshetra Swami sing, and it was nice to see Saunaka Rsi Prabhu again.

Harinama in Edinburgh

I was happy to have some people to chant with in Edinburgh for three and a half hours before their Tuesday program. In beginning one lady named Madri dd, who met Srila Prabhupada when he visited Edinburgh in 1972, joined our party. Although meeting Srila Prabhupada back then, she had only a year ago taken initiation from Janananda Goswami, because of having a guru from another group for many years. When walking with Prabhupada in 1972, she saw that Prabhupada had a walking stick that was nothing more than a tree branch, and she had her son get him a proper walking stick.

We always meet one or two people who are happy to hear of our programs when we chant in Edinburgh.

Chanting in Newcastle

I am hoping to establish a two-hour harinama on the streets of Newcastle before our two-hour Wednesday kirtana night in Newcastle temple, and this was our second successful attempt. Again for part of the time we had at least six devotees chanting on the streets, Caitanya Candrodaya Prabhu, Radhe Shyam Prabhu, Madhuri dd, Veera, and Priyanka.

I was impressed that Jake, who just graduated from secondary school and who had just been associating with devotees for no more than a year, knew how to play a sweet Hare Krishna tune on the harmonium and was not too shy to do it in public.

Madhuri dd led a very lively kirtana as usual.

A couple times people were brave enough and wild enough to dance with us, as you can see in these video clips (https://youtu.be/8ajuIAKEO-Y and https://youtu.be/5TroHtDTgGw):

I hope my friends will be inspired to keep the new program going when I leave.

At the Wednesday two-hour kirtana program, Prema Sankirtana Prabhu led a tune that got everyone dancing (https://youtu.be/PukNG6wGuFI):

Chanting in Blackpool

I had never chanted in the Blackpool before, but Janananda Goswami likes us to go to places we do not usually go, and in England, Blackpool is a popular resort, especially in the summer. 

Doug (in the center), who lives Preston and works in Blackpool, took a day off to chant with Govardhan Devi Dasi and John, her husband, and myself in both cities. You could tell people were less familiar with the devotees in Blackpool, but there were still favorable people. Govardhan was happy to sell a small Gita to a real spiritual seeker.

As at other tourist areas, in Blackpool there were horses and buggies to give tourists rides through the town. 

Govardhan decided many people would hear the kirtana if we chanted on such a horse-drawn vehicle. The driver was excited. He had carried all kinds of people, including Ronald McDonald, but never a Hare Krishna monk. I found it difficult to distribute invitations riding on the horse cart, but I did give out one. I saw a young lady smiling as she saw our party. I showed her the flyer from the horse driven cart, and then I threw it in her direction. It landed on the road just a foot from the curb, and she walked over and picked it up.

Here you can see Govardhan and John, the driver of the horse cart, and the Blackpool Tower in the background.

Chanting in Preston

Tony (on the left), a key organizer in the Preston nama-hatta, joined us in Preston and passed out hundreds of invitations during the hour and a half we chanted there.

After chanting for 3½ hours with Govardhana, John, and Doug in Blackpool and Preston, I decided to chant alone for an hour and distribute books. One boy came by who bought The King of Knowledge from Sutapa Prabhu's party the previous week, and he bought two more books from me. I invited him to the evening program, but he said he had to work. Later that evening I was surprised to see him at the Preston evening program after all. His boss had too many workers report for duty, so he got the evening off. At the end of the evening, he took japa beads home with him. Krishna's mercy! That is the second time in a row someone has seen me chanting alone in Preston and come to the program as a result.

Tipped off to the existence of an anti-fracking protest nearby while I was chanting alone, I decided to go and invite the protesters to chant Hare Krishna. One of them said their rally was not religious. I explained that the Hare Krishna mantra raises people's consciousness to a level where they do not do stupid things that destroy the environment like fracking, and several of them chanted with me for five minutes. 

 

After the protest was over, some protesters chanted some more,  and we made this video (https://youtu.be/OJMEBKJFIlA):

Chanting in Southport

Southport is the biggest city between Preston and Liverpool, and we do not know of anyone chanting Hare Krishna on its streets in recent years, if at all.

Someone said Hare Krishna to us, another greeted us with joined palms, and one Indian man walked with us and chanted for three minutes. One older lady with a scowl on her face, got a book, and began to smile as a result. We chanted through an indoor market, and no one complained. Altogether we spent an hour and a half chanting in Southport.

Chanting in Liverpool

Unfortunately, no one joined us in chanting in Liverpool, other than Barbara who came for ten minutes after shopping.

Once a Tesco manager asked us to relocate after we chanted outside his shop for about 45 minutes. As we were packing up, a Tesco employee told us he did not know why the manager was so disagreeable.

We met some nice people though, and John interested one lady in a small Gita.

One passerby offered to take some video of us
(https://youtu.be/p21t4fhXgxg):

Newcastle Eight-Hour Kirtana

As usual the Newcastle eight-hour kirtana was characterized by a great cooperative spirit among the devotees, enthusiastic chanting and preparation of varieties of tasty prasadam. One devotee even came three hours by train from London to take part.

It was so lively I thought of recording a little video of each of the singers, but I did not actually get around to do it until three hours had passed. Still these video clips will show you, at least in part, what it was like.

Radhe Shyama Prabhu sang one Hare Krishna tune playing the guitar (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGerEnGdI0xL1ITta9L_Qx8vNj6JUekhV):

Then Vishnu Priya Devi Dasi sang a pretty tune that I would also like to learn how to play (https://youtu.be/xX3PJ3Gdheg):

Prema Sankirtana Prabhu, who is so named because of his enthusiam for kirtana, sang a very lively melody getting people dancing (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGerEnGdI0xLT_l_beh4tQ2JnCfrw87XF):

Dhananjaya Prabhu, who often plays the bass, also sang, and Bhakti Rasa and Prema Sankirtana Prabhus got into dancing (https://youtu.be/JK7GuU0Gm0A):

There were more singers, but I had to catch the train to London, so I could get a bus to Paris for the Ratha-yatra the next day, and I left two hours early.

Paris Ratha-yatra

In Paris I saw residents participate in our Ratha-yatra who were not officially Hare Krishna devotees, but who are regulars at the Ratha-yatra. 
 

There were several young Paris women, some with painted faces and some with fancy clothing, who really delighted in dancing.
 

Mangalavati Devi Dasi would get them dancing together in a pattern.
 

One girl loved dancing the whole parade.
 

Then she danced at the stage show.

She told me that she had lived in India for a year. She happened to walk out of the door of a building at the start of the parade, and was delighted to see it.
 

There were also groups of Asian men who liked the chanting and dancing.

At one point we danced in lines of devotees facing each other, and we were all very happy (https://youtu.be/k620GnCtkko):

When we passed cafes, Lord Jagannath, His cart, and His singing and dancing devotees attracted people's minds (https://youtu.be/5EbE3xIsGyI):

Some people watched from the windows of the buildings we passed.

 

Janananda Goswami added a lot of life to the event as usual.

During the stage show, Jayadeva Prabhu led a very energizing kirtana, getting a lot of people into it (https://youtu.be/NQQiXKL_b7E):

 At one point Harinamananda Prabhu did a stage drive and went crowd surfing.

Syama Rasa Prabhu also led a lively kirtana as you can see in this video clip (https://youtu.be/kwRKI051lDo):

At one point a couple and a kid from the crowd joined the devotees on the stage (https://youtu.be/xW-e2Qraxp8):

Paris Harinama

My first Paris harinama was from Les Halles, the site of our stage show after the Ratha-yatra, with the Harinama Ruci world harinama party. 

 

Mangalavati Devi Dasi invited three enthusiastic ladies who were having a great time dancing with her during the stage show to come along from the harinama and they did, for almost an hour.
 

They were so happy, afterward they gave their contact information to the devotees, so they could learn about other Hare Krishna opportunities.

You can see from this series of video clips how lively it was (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGerEnGdI0xKKzk61vFbjCQKvpspRN3h_):

After taking the train home from Paris to Sarcelles, we took the bus to save time after a tiring day, and we continued singing (https://youtu.be/byqHkFuKTHI):

We chanted around Paris for two more days with Harinama Ruci. Some people were happy to participate (https://youtu.be/wh31JQ737uM):

The first day, Parividha Prabhu chanted so nicely in the main train station, Gare Du Nord, there was always a crowd listening (https://youtu.be/jLbyXzmXv5I):

Special Pictures

I never saw such a colorful donation box as this one in Newcastle.

Cartoons can be a nonthreatening way to share spiritual wisdom.

Devotees are always thinking of innovative ways to share spiritual wisdom and spiritual practices. In the UK they have what they call MHK, an acronym for “Meditation the Hare Krishna Way.” It is an app for your smart phone to teach the chanting of the Hare Krishna as a meditation. They have at least two different colorful cards they distribute to promote it:

 

 One looks like this on one side.

 And like this on the other.

 The second looks like this on one side.

 And this on the other.

To see other pictures I did not include in this issue, click on the link below:

https://picasaweb.google.com/103872792410945983719/TravelJournal1112?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCInf0ciep9__ngE&feat=directlink

Insights

Srila Prabhupada:

From a lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.21 in New York City on April 13, 1973:

“We chant every day. That sense gratification is ananda-cinmaya, in the spiritual world. Not this third-class ananda with these bodily senses. This is not ananda. This is an illusion. We are thinking that 'I'm enjoying,' but that is not ananda. This ananda is not fact, because we cannot enjoy this material sense pleasure for long. Everyone has got experience. It is finished. But spiritual enjoyment does not finish. It increases. That is the difference.”

Sanatana Goswami:

From Brhad-Bhagavatamrita, Second Part, “The Glories of Goloka”:

“Though the capital of the opulent king of the cowherds shines forth in the region called Nandisvara, the Vrajavasis in tune with Krishna’s liking always think more highly of His pleasure pastimes in the groves and other places in the forests. O brahmana, the satisfaction and ecstasy one tastes from living in Goloka Vrndavana are beyond describing. To what can they be compared?”

“Because devotional service to the Supreme Lord is so wondrous those who truly know say that the residents of Vaikuntha taste a happiness much greater than that of mere liberated souls. And the happiness of souls who reside in places like Ayodhya and Dvaraka is said to be even greater because of certain various special tastes. But the happiness of the residents of Goloka far exceeds any other. It transcends reason so how can it give room for words? Only those who live in Goloka and always perceive that happiness know its true nature, because the Lord has such friendly feelings toward them.”

Bhaktivinoda Thakura:

From Sri Navadvipa Bhava-taranga:

Text 38

Even though Lord Nrsimha is terrifying toward
the sinful souls, He offers great auspiciousness
unto the devotees of Lord Krishna headed
by Prahlada Maharaja. When will He be pleased
to speak words of compassion unto me, a worthless
fool, and thereby make me fearless?

Text 39

He will say, "Dear child! Sit down freely
and live happily here in Sri Gauranga Dhama.
May you nicely worship the Divine Couple
and may you develop loving attachment for Their
holy names. By the mercy of My devotees, all obstacles
are cast far away. With a purified heart,
just perform the worship of Radha and Krishna,
for such worship overflows with sweet nectar."

Text 40

Saying this, will that Lord delightedly place
His own divine lotus feet upon
my head? Suddenly I will experience sublime love
for the Divine Couple Radha-Krishna and
undergo the ecstatic transformations called sattvika.
Falling on the ground, I will roll about
by the door of Sri Nrsimha's temple.

Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:

From Japa Transformations:

“Chanting is progressive. You become more expert, learned and happy with the practice. You just have to keep it up. Don’t fall back into old ways. It takes some effort, but it’s well worth it. You grow stronger, and your muscles stay stronger. You become more fit to chant Hare Krishna. It’s all a matter of consistency and stick-to-itiveness. To the sincere chanter goes the prize. Radha and Krishna begin to reciprocate, and you know They are there. Your faith builds.”

From “Poem for June 12” in Viraha Bhavan:

“The harinama devotees
come from different backgrounds
and ethnic groups, but
they have a solidarity
of purpose. They live
together harmoniously and
are all followers of Srila Prabhupada
and Sri Caitanya. They are
spirit-souls dedicated
to the yajna of congregational
chanting. When they
go out in public,
they perform as a tight unit, each
playing their part
in the group kirtana.
Each is an individual
but they work as a group
effectively delivering the
message of sankirtana to
the conditioned souls. Their amicable teamwork
is appreciated by Krishna, just as He
praised the Pracetas for their
friendly behavior with one another.”

From “Poem for June 14” in Viraha Bhavan:

“In my japa report I wrote
that kirtana is prayer.
The same thing Prabhupada said
about the mantra in japa
applies to kirtana. The harinama
singers should pray, “O Radha
O Krishna, please engage
me in Your service.” And they
should follow Prabhupada’s
stark advice, “Just hear.”
They should avoid the
ten offenses and be
particularly careful to
be attentive to the names.
The uninformed may
think that harinama
is an exhibitionistic show,
but the experienced know
it is a powerful internal
meditation. Congregational
chanting is superior
to japa because while japa blesses
the individual, loud kirtana blesses
the many who hear it, even unaware.”

From “Poem for June 18” in Viraha Bhavan:

“The harinama chanters
lead a charmed life.
They are charged with
the heavy responsibility
of going out every day
rain or shine
and singing for many
hours in public.
But they take it as pleasure
to serve Mahaprabhu
and Prabhupada in this way.
They enjoy chanting
the maha-mantra in different
tunes and tasting the
nectar of the names. They take it as their
responsibility to expose
to as many people the
transcendental sound
vibration knowing it can do immense
good to the karmi listeners.
If someone jeers at them,
'Get a job,' they smile,
knowing they already have
the supreme occupation.”

From “Poem for June 21” in Viraha Bhavan:

“Brahmananda was a resident of Vrndavana.
When he was gravely ill, they decided to
send him to the hospital. Brahmananda insisted he be carried
in an air-conditioned ambulance.
But while they were waiting for the ambulance
Brahmananda passed away. His brother Gargamuni said
that in 1967 when Brahmananda engineered Prabhupada’s
escape from Beth Israel hospital, Prabhupada promised
him that he would never have to die in a hospital.
So the prophecy came true and he passed away
in the auspicious sacred land of Vrndavana.”

Tamal Krishna Goswami:

From a lecture given on Nov. 29, 1978, in St. Louis, on Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.10:

The anxiety of the devotees to benefit the people in general spiritually is not the same as material anxiety.

Due to intoxication with different types of sense gratification and absorption in one's own suffering, people do not have time to consider the suffering of others.

Regulation makes the body strong. Srila Prabhupada drew so much strength from his very regulated life. All his personal servants can tell you.

Deity worship insures a regulated life. We have to get up for mangala-arati. We eat pure food at regulated times.

I used to come up at 4 a.m. to see Srila Prabhupada, and he would just be finishing his 16 rounds.

As we accept service from others, we become indebted, and our life span can become be reduced.

We were watching some drunks at the London airport, buying each other drinks, lighting each others' cigarettes, etc. This was their whole relationship – killing each other.

Janananda Goswami:

A beautiful young boy playing on his flute, enticing the girls and playing with the boys is not really what you think of when you think of God, so Lord Brahma had some doubts about Krishna's divinity.

By penance Lord Brahma attained his position.

The creation is not just to punish the fallen souls but to awaken their Krishna consciousness.

Just as in a drama, as you have really identify with your part to play it properly, so maya makes us really identify with body in this world to play our role.

Distress can be good if it inspires to take shelter of the pure devotees of the Lord.

The Supersoul does not just speak through the heart but through other living entities.

In the Brahma-vimohana-lila, one can say one thing Brahma wanted to accomplish is to make it clear that Krishna is Supreme and not himself or Lord Shiva.

The Supersoul guides the pure devotees from within. In Markine Bhagavata Dharma, Srila Prabhupada makes that point.

Markine Bhagavata Dharma is to me the mission statement of ISKCON. It also shows the complete humility.

Srila Prabhupada explained that the qualification of the maha-bhagavata that he is always taking shelter of Krishna.

Penance is to follow the instructions of the pure devotees of the Lord.

Can we imagine what would have happened if Srila Prabhupada had not stepped off the Jaladuta?

Literally those who came later are living off of Srila Prabhupada's remanants. He created a preaching field.

If someone does become an instrument, Krishna can use him to do anything. It does not matter his other qualifications.

The Paris Ratha-yatra was wonderful with so many people dancing and plenty of prasadam.

People are looking for bliss, whether by getting drunk in the pub or going to the football match, but the pleasure we find in Krishna consciousness is absolute.

It is wonderful in Paris that they have a route in the center of the city for Ratha-yatra.

Comment by Nitai Gaurasundara Prabhu: There was one man in beginning of the parade who was complaining to everyone including, the police. He was saying that in this country we have the right to demonstrate but not to promote religion. I said we are demonstrating that we are happy people, and he shut up.

We are here because Srila Prabhupada was willing to sit down with drug addicts and basically people who were crazy, to try to connect them to Krishna.

Jagadatma Prabhu:

We think of matter as being inert, but the material energy is not inert, she is bewildering.

One pilot asked Srila Prabhupada why evil exists. Srila Prabhupada explained that everything comes from God whether you consider it good or evil. Evil is like the back of God and good is the front of God. Now forget that. On the sun, is there any darkness? No, there is only light. In the same way, God is only good. If we face the sun we see only light, but when we turn away we see a shadow. Similarly when we turn away from God, we see evil, otherwise there is only goodness.

As the sun can never be covered by a cloud, which is created by its own energy, God can never be covered by His illusory potency. We, however, because we are small can have our vision of the sun easily be covered by a cloud, and similarly, we can be covered by Krishna's illusory energy.

Persons bewildered by the material energy always talk nonsense.

Examples of such nonsense talk: This is my body, and I can do whatever I like. This is mine, and if you come here, I will kill you. I am a Prabhupada disciple, and therefore, you have to respect me. I am very learned as I have been a devotee for thirty years.

They have nuclear weapons which they say act as a nuclear deterrent so there will not be war, but they have a war on terrorism, because of the terrorists that arise from the nuclear deterrent.

All this nonsensical talk arises because of a lack of Krishna consciousness.

Those who are Krishna consciousness are always respectful to others and do not demand respect for themselves.

When Srila Prabhupada was glorified, he said it was all by the mercy of his spiritual master. If he had any credit, it was because he was trying to follow his spiritual master.

Parvati plays musical instruments and happily assists her husband, Lord Shiva, in singing, in the eternal abode of Kailasa, which is intermediate between the spiritual and material worlds.

Everything is coming from the body of Krishna.

Krishna has His own taste like we have our own likes and dislikes. He has a certain way he likes to dress.

The jnanis have difficulty explaining subjectivity.

Our likes and dislikes are based on the three modes of nature which we have acquired. The impersonalists theorize that when liberated from material nature we will have no likes and dislikes and be neutral and in a state of equilibrium.

The impersonalists consider that people imagine a god according to their tastes.

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura says about Krishna's body. “The concentrated all-time presence, uncovered knowledge and inebriating felicity have their beauty in Him. . . . It follows that the conception of the indistinguishable formless magnitude (Brahman) which is an indolent, lax, presentment of cognitive bliss, is merely a penumbra of intensely blended glow of the three concomitants, viz., the blissful, the substantive and the cognitive.” (Brahma-samhita 5.1, commentary)

There are gamers who hook themselves up to computer games so completely and get so absorbed they do not want to leave the game. They have developed a taste for it. Our situation in this world is similar because we get absorbed in these bodies of matter which are no more significant than lights flashing on a computer screen.

We have senses because Krishna has senses, but our senses are very limited compared Krishna's.

Because we are so strongly identifying with the material body to enjoy the pleasures of this world, we must suffer the material miseries of this world.

To achieve the spiritual world, you have to go beyond impersonal liberation. That is difficult because the impersonal liberation has an inebriating effect.

The beauty of Krishna is not material. We may be attracted to a beautiful woman but a horse would not be attracted by her, whereas a male horse would be very excited by a female horse while we would be indifferent. In the case of Krishna, however, all men, women, animals, birds, etc., are attracted by His beauty.

Rasesvari Dasi:

[To introduce new people to the Gita, she reads the titles of its 18 chapters.]

The Gita gives the blueprint for intelligent life.

Srila Prabhupada told us that simply by chanting, reading, associating with devotees, and taking prasadam we can become qualified to go back to the spiritual world.

To Srila Prabhupada, his books were the most important thing he could bring to the West.

 
Murli Manohara Prabhu:

Some say this politician is our enemy or this country is our enemy, but Krishna says our real enemies are lust, greed, and anger.

We observe the lust, greed, and anger within ourselves, and we must use our free will to control them.

Sadbhuja Prabhu:

A materialist would analyze that Sanatana Goswami was having midlife crisis when did began to question his identity.

Before they met Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu at Ramakeli, Sanatana and Rupa Goswamis had made replicas of the pastimes places of Krishna in Vrindavan, and thus they were already highly advanced spiritually.

Lord Caitanya indicated by repeatedly glancing at Sanatana Goswami's valuable blanket that he did not approve of it. This demonstrates that communication can be quite subtle, and the disciple must be alert to the indications of his guru (spiritual master) to advance.

Knowledge is very important in our modern civilization, but in Vedic civilization realization was considered more important. Sanatana Goswami knew theoretically that he was not his body and was a servant of Krishna. What he wanted from Lord Caitanya is know how to attain that realization.

In the early days of ISKCON, Prahladananda Swami as a new brahmacari hitchhiked to Miami wearing a dhoti with no money because he heard that devotees there needed more help. Somehow or other he found the devotees chanting in a park. Although they had little money, somehow they had cooked a stack of chapatis. They gave Prahladananda five chapatis.

Thirty million people died when in trying to implement their classless society in Russia, they sent the teachers to the fields and the farmers to the colleges, because the teachers did not do such a good job in the fields, and people did not have enough provisions. This shows what happens when we do not follow Krishna's varnasrama system, where people are engaged according to their qualities and activities.

Comment by Syamananda Prabhu: Yamuna says in her book, “The way you do anything is the way you do everything.”

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pātrāpātra-vicāra nāhi, nāhi sthānāsthāna

yei yāńhā pāya, tāńhā kare prema-dāna

“In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead.” (Śrī Caitanya-caritāmrita, Adi 7. 23)