Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 15, No. 14
By Krishna Kripa Das
(July 2019, part two)
(July 2019, part two)
The North of England, Ireland, Berlin
(Sent from Saint-Mathieu-du-Parc, Québec on August 14, 2019)
Where I Went and What I Did
I chanted in Newcastle upon Tyne for four days and then took two trains to Sheffield on Saturday, where I chanted for three hours in the afternoon with devotees from different parts of the UK at an event called Tramlines. After chanting there, I took another train to Leeds where I chanted in the evening with two devotees for an hour. The next I day I went to the Birmingham Ratha-yatra, and I did harinama in Manchester the day that. The next day I chanted in Sheffield and spoke at the nama-hatta program there, now on the second and fourth Tuesday at the Quaker Meetinghouse. The following day I flew from Manchester Airport to Dublin to join Harinama Ruci in doing harinama to advertise the Ratha-yatra there the next Saturday, which I also attended, along with the Belfast Ratha-yatra the following day. Then next day I flew to Berlin en route to the Polish Woodstock festival. I chanted in Berlin with one devotee that rainy evening for three hours, and we both took the train to Kostrzyn, Poland, for the Woodstock the next day. I will describe all of the Polish Woodstock experiences in the next issue which covers the first half of August, although the first two days of it were in July.
I share quotes from the classes and books of Srila Prabhupada and from a later canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam by his followers. I share excerpts from the Free Write Journal of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami. I share insights from Back to Godhead articles by Nagaraja, Satraraja, Caitanya Carana, and Nandini Kisori Prabhus. I share notes on talks by Bhakti Prabhava Swami and Dayananda Swami at the Birmingham Ratha-yatra. I share notes on a class by Adikarta Prabhu in Newcastle and by Harinamananda Prabhu in Dublin.
Many,
many thanks to Satya Medha Gauranga Prabhu of Newcastle, who is
always my biggest benefactor in the UK. Many thanks to Adikarta, Jaya
Krishna, Vrajendralal, Saradiya, Yavat Vasi, and Adi-Guru Prabhus for
their kind donations. Thanks to the people who gave donations on
harinamas
in
Newcastle, Manchester, Sheffield, and Berlin. Thanks to Vishnujana
Prabhu for his donation of British coins in Dublin. Thanks to
Janardana and Priya Sundari Prabhus
for letting
me stay over at
their place in Leeds and
for the awesome pasta.
Thanks
to Vrajendralal Prabhu for driving me from Birmingham to Manchester
and to Prananatha Prabhu for maintaining
me while there. Thanks to Aharada Devi Dasi and Hare Krishna Festivals for their photos of our harinama during Tramlines in Sheffield.
Itinerary
August
14–18: Vaishnava Sanga Festival (Canada)
August
20: Dublin harinama
and Tuesday Evening Kirtan
August
21–22: harinamas
in the Newcastle area
August
23: Janmastami in Newcastle
August
24: Vyasa Puja at Soho Street
August
25: Leeds harinama
and program?
August
26: Manchester harinama
August
27: Sheffield harinama
and program
August
29: Accrington program?
August
30: Liverpool harinama
and program
August
31: Liverpool harinama
September
1: Liverpool Ratha-yatra
September
2–6: Newcastle area harinamas
September
7: York harinama
and program
September
8: Great North Run harinama
(Newcastle-upon-Tyne)
September
9–10: Dublin
September
11–December: NYC Yuga Dharma harinamas
January
– April 2020: North Florida colleges
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Newcastle
I
was happy that Krishna sent me assistants to chant with
for
all four days I spent in Newcastle.
A
special thanks to Satya Medha Gauranga Prabhu, who came out twice.
One
day a man, accompanied by his wife, asked me if I knew Brian, the legal name, of Bhakti Rasa
Prabhu. He recalled doing printing for the temple perhaps fifteen
years ago. He remembered the nice food that Bhakti would bring him,
and he gave a donation and took a book.
Here
Dayananda
Swami chants Hare Krishna with Prema Sankirtana Prabhu and family in
front of Fenwick’s on Northumberland Street in Newcastle
(https://youtu.be/KQ_gOZOvui8):
Later
Vishnupriya
Devi Dasi, the
wife of Prema Sankirtana Prabhu,
chanted
Hare Krishna (https://youtu.be/ltkXDmB37mI):
On
Friday, Adikarta
Prabhu chanted
Hare Krishna between a Burger King and a casino on Northumberland
Street with two other enthusiastic book distributors, Adi-Guru Prabhu
on the karatalas
and Caitanya Vallabha Prabhu on the drum, and along
with
myself (https://youtu.be/LOWSoyhlrNA):
At
one point Adikarta Prabhu sang Hare Krishna to the tune of the famous
Christian hymn, “Amazing Grace” (https://youtu.be/fy4azhfEnzE):
As
you can see, comparing this earlier
video to the two above, Caitanya Vallabha Prabhu really
added
a lot to the kirtana
(https://youtu.be/FEYJD7OiXRc):
Here
Adi-Guru
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in the
Newcastle
upon Tyne temple at the
Friday
evening program (https://youtu.be/n0hYLA9BeHw):
Then
Adikarta
Prabhu chanted
Hare Krishna during the same
Friday
evening program (https://youtu.be/XuvzeATi3nA):
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Sheffield
For
three years devotees have been taking advantage of Tramlines, a music
event in Sheffield, to share the chanting of Hare Krishna with many
people there. I went last year and this year.
I sang in the beginning as I was impatient to start, having to leave early and catch a train to Leeds.
Later I played the drum for Dayananda Swami.
Mostly I distributed free literature to people who seemed interested.
Here
Dayananda
Swami chants Hare Krishna at Tramlines, joined by devotees from
London, Manchester, Newcastle, Blackpool and other places, and two
guys play djembe (https://youtu.be/B2D5PQ1e5iI):
allowfullscreen>
Here
Karsna
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna, accompanied
by his wife, Aharada Devi Dasi, on the harmonium
(https://youtu.be/EecJifZk5uQ):
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Leeds
Last
year I learned that the Leeds devotees had sometimes done harinama
on
Saturday night by the bars in Leeds and reached a lot of people
partying in the street. Thus I decided to arrange a harinama
with
them in
Leeds
in the evening after the Tramslines harinama
in
Sheffield
last year.
Because it worked out so well, I decided to do it this
year too.
Here
Janardana
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on Greek Street in Leeds, and ladies play
shakers and dance, encouraged by Manoharini Radha Devi Dasi
(https://youtu.be/Eb4ufEAkwro):
Later
I chanted Hare Krishna on Briggate Street in Leeds, and two ladies
played the shakers and danced in great happiness as their male
companions watched with curiosity. (https://youtu.be/U5zktSy3q_M):
Immediately
after that, members of a bridal party called “Pink Ladies” took
pleasure in trying to play all our instruments and dancing as well
(https://youtu.be/A-2umX3iHPw):
It was amazing to me that although we were just a party of three devotees and we only sang for an hour, so many more people participated by playing instruments and dancing than in Sheffield earlier in the day when we had fifteen devotees chanting for three hours!
Chanting
Hare Krishna at the Birmingham Ratha-yatra
I
did not take much video of the beginning of the Birmingham
Ratha-yatra as in
the beginning the sound system was so loud I did not want to be
anywhere near the kirtana
party.
The
Ratha-yatra
route
there
is
very minimal, and so Birmingham is probably my least favorite
Ratha-yatra, but still Ratha-yatra is Ratha-yatra and always worth
going to!
The
Ratha-yatra cart always attracts attention of passersby by.
These
Muslim girls were happy to play the shakers along with the music.
Here
Bhakti
Prabhava Swami chants Hare Krishna in the Birmingham Ratha-yatra
(https://youtu.be/Tdq321-EWUs):
Nitai
Kirtan Prabhu chants Hare Krishna as Lord Jagannatha dismounts His
chariot in Birmingham (https://youtu.be/c7IlE6YJGpY):
Khushali chanted
Hare Krishna at the
Birmingham
Ratha-yatra stage show (https://youtu.be/VXblM6hj5zg):
Here
Parasurama
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Birmingham Ratha-yatra stage show, and
one Muslim girl has a great time dancing with the devotee ladies
(https://youtu.be/UA3Z4TgVtEo):
After
the line for the free feast considerably diminished, the servers
left, so I ended up serving the last hour or so by myself. I felt
happy serving prasadam
because
I know that
both Lord
Jagannatha and
Srila Prabhupada are
very enthusiastic to see that as many people get as much prasadam
as
possible. Parasurama
Prabhu cooked the feast, and the curd sabji
and
the srikhand
were
excellent as usual. I
also helped clean up, which I do not usually do. Thus I feel I got
some special mercy.
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Manchester
Karsna
Prabhu, his wife, Aharada Devi Dasi, and his son, Mark, chant Hare
Krishna, along with three other Manchester harinama
regulars on Market Street in Manchester. Two devotees left earlier,
so we had nine altogether on this rare Monday evening harinama
(https://youtu.be/vWHDJgOaz0k):
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Dublin with Harinama Ruci
I
was very happy that although I missed chanting with Harinama Ruci in
London before the London Ratha-yatra, I was able to join them in
chanting in Dublin before the Dublin Ratha-yatra.
Dublin
is a great place for chanting Hare Krishna because the people are
religious, musical, and charitable.
As
you arrive at the airport, a clock tower near the parking lot
proclaims, “God is love”!
Dublin
is more peaceful, the devotees are able to take a little more variety
of items from the restaurant, I always get enough sleep there, and I
think the people are more likely to interact with us, so it is just
as well.
So
many people had a great time chanting the Hare Krishna mantra and
dancing with us I would take 6 GB of video a day of the highlights,
and it took me so long to edit, upload, and describe it all!
Here
Harinamananda
Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna in Dublin and many dance
(https://youtu.be/ORWR2OUNtP8):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna in Dublin, and many
dance, including several groups of visiting students
(https://youtu.be/efjutRyUA1c):
In
addition to chanting and dancing, sometimes people would play the
shakers.
Waitresses
at Le Petit Parisien cafe in Dublin delight in chanting Hare Krishna
and dancing with Harinama Ruci, led by Harinamananda Prabhu
(https://youtu.be/LOh-WhGhLvU):
Harinamananda
Prabhu, leading the chanting of Hare Krishna for Harinama Ruci,
boldly decided to bring the party into The International Bar. The
young man behind the counter seemed uncertain about what to do, but
the customers were happy to interact with us by singing, dancing,
taking photos and banging on the instruments
(https://youtu.be/6PUGzVUN-2g):
Here
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna accompanied by a
Brazilian guitarist in Dublin (https://youtu.be/0AvD4zCaAFE):
Later
the Brazilian
guitarist sang
My Sweet Lord”, and Sundar Nitai Prabhu sa“ng
the Hare Krishna chorus (https://youtu.be/gwIKG5XVH_M):
Here
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu chants Hare Krishna accompanied by a
Dublin
bass player, and passersby dance (https://youtu.be/stxvaQaE_CQ):
Later
some youthful Italian tourists, who used to dance together for fun,
enthusiastically danced to the Hare Krishna chant
(https://youtu.be/jlQUeVCcReM):
Later
those Italian youths joined us in chanting Hare Krishna in the Lush
Fresh Handmade Cosmetics shop (https://youtu.be/7bBVntpAQ08):
The
Lush cosmetics workers enjoyed the experience so much they gave
everyone in our party some natural deodorant in charity!
Harinamananda
Prabhu of Harinama Ruci engages Dublin residents and tourists in
chanting Hare Krishna and dancing (https://youtu.be/DEANsh_ne-s):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna in Dublin on the
Friday before Ratha-yatra and induces many to chant and dance
(https://youtu.be/mjiW68cmD64):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci engages a whole
group
of Dublin tourists in chanting Hare Krishna
(https://youtu.be/_OcI26l0zN8):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci engages still
more
Dublin tourists in chanting Hare Krishna and dancing
(https://youtu.be/-GEbFkKe0zc):
Sometimes
street performers would interact with us.
Vishnujana Prabhu encouraged this group of youths to dance.
He also tried to interest people in spiritual literature.
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna in Dublin while
street performers act (https://youtu.be/vsosrsUS1bA):
Kurma
Prabhu of Australia, now based in Ireland, chants Hare Krishna
wonderfully at Dublin Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/Hp9TWRYzOZw):
People
on passing tour buses would take photos of the Ratha-yatra
procession.
Janananda
Goswami, who
is full of spiritual enthusiasm,
chants Hare Krishna in Dublin Ratha-yatra
(https://youtu.be/i6BpDDXYs1w):
Emma,
one young lady who had been to India and was vegetarian, followed
almost the entire procession and came to the stage show afterwards.
Here she plays shakers along with her boyfriend.
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu chants Hare Krishna as Srila Prabhupada, followed by
Lord Baladeva, Lady Subhadra, and Lord Jagannatha, enters St
Stephen’s Green Park where we have the stage show after the Dublin
Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/LlMJDK5SCFU):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in the Dublin Ratha-yatra stage show
final kirtan in St Stephen’s Green Park
(https://youtu.be/dAjq3wQdZuo):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu chants Hare Krishna on the way back to the temple from
Dublin Ratha-yatra, and passersby dance with Harinamananda Prabhu
(https://youtu.be/JBdN9PTsDoE):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in the midst of a crowded street,
and several people dance (https://youtu.be/wb3D7DOC2JE):
Sundar
Nitai chants Hare Krishna while a guy plays bagpipes and ladies dance
in Dublin (https://youtu.be/Eo681oTacSg):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Dublin, and two ladies happily
play shakers and dance (https://youtu.be/DqLxe3FqINA):
Sundar
Nitai Prabhu of Harinama Ruci chants Hare Krishna in Carrolls Irish
Gifts shop
(https://youtu.be/Z6EKF-FZ45Q):
That night Lord Jagannatha stayed in the Dublin temple en route to Belfast for the next day’s Ratha-yatra, rather than returning to Inis Rath Island, his home, which was out of the way. Karunesari and Silavati Devi Dasis dressed Him in the evening, and encouraged me to perform mangala-arati for Him the next day, which I did. All glories to Lord Jagannatha, the Lord of the Universe.
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Belfast
Savyasaci
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in the rain before the Belfast Ratha-yatra
(https://youtu.be/PXCLceF6od4):
Savyasaci
Prabhu continues
to chant
Hare Krishna in the rain as Lord Jagannatha boards
His
cart, and Janananda Goswami dances (https://youtu.be/0GgFaDDf60c):
Savyasaci
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna as Lord Jagannatha, Lady Subhadra, Lord
Baladeva, and Srila Prabhupada are carried from the Ratha-yatra cart
to the Shaftesbury Community & Recreation Centre, where a program
of chanting and prasadam
distribution was held after the Ratha-yatra in Belfast (https://youtu.be/wS0HMivTca0):
The
one day I was in Belfast two devotees told me how the writings of
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami saved their spiritual lives. Ananda Hari
Prabhu, who has home programs at his place in Wicklow, said it was
difficult for him to read Srila Prabhupada’s books but he found he
could read Srila
Prabhupada-lilarmrita, and
in that way greatly deepen his appreciation of Srila Prabhupada. Thus
he expressed great gratitude to Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami for that
book. Sri Rupa Prabhu, who is now living near the Inis Rath island
and appreciating the devotional association there, said that he
learned by reading Gurudeva
and Nimai that
it is alright to be yourself in Krishna consciousness, an important
lesson that saved his devotional life.
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Berlin
I
advertised on Facebook that I wanted to do harinama
in
Berlin, and Gaura, originally from Greece, but living in Germany for
many years, was the only one who took me up on my offer. As it was
pouring rain we decided to chant at a train station where we would be
protected from the downpour. We lasted seven minutes at the S-Bahn
station
at
Berlin-Gesundbrunnen, before security asked us to move. During that
time, however, Gaura was able to sell a German Krishna
book
which was auspicious. We continued for the remainder of the three
hours we planned to chant, at the U-Bahn station nearby. Although
authorities and locals encouraged us to reduce our volume, we were
permitted to continue. Some people moved to our music, others gave
donations, one
girl played the shakers briefly,
and some people
were
genuinely curious about what the chanting was all about. I was
encouraged by the response.
Harinama Report
I decided to record and report where I do harinama each day, how long we chant for, and how many devotees participate. The numbers of the devotees for the Ratha-yatras are just estimates. In this two week period at the end of July only one day did I chant by myself, which is better than usual. Thanks to all the devotees who assisted.
Srila
Prabhupada:
From
a class on Srimad-Bhagavatam
1.15.32 in Los Angeles on December 10, 1973:
“‘Krishna
is mine, and I am Krishna’s.’ This is immortal consciousness.
When you come to this consciousness – that is called Krishna
consciousness – then you are saved.”
“Perfect
in Krishna consciousness means no more material desire. That’s all.
Only Krishna. That is perfection. So long you will have a pinch of
material desire, you will have to take birth. According to your
desire, Krishna will give you facility.”
“So
if you simply think of Krishna only, then you get a body where by
which you can go to Krishna. You can go to Krishna. Tyaktva
deham punar janma
[Bhagavad-gita
4.9]. It is very scientific and very practical. So by going to
Krishna, you can talk with Krishna personally. You can play with
Krishna personally. You can dance with Krishna. That is Krishna-loka.
Just like we have got a picture, rasa
dancing. Here is picture, Krishna’s. Everyone can get this
opportunity. Therefore Krishna comes to show practically how
enjoyable life with Krishna in Vrindavan. Krishna is simply jolly,
anandamayo
’bhyasat.
In Vrindavan life you will see, everyone is jolly. The birds, trees
and the water, the land, the cows, the calves, the inhabitants, the
cowherd boys – everyone is happy simply by loving Krishna. Simply
by loving Krishna. So Krishna therefore manifests His lila
that ‘Why you are rotting in this material world? Come to Me and
enjoy life eternally.’ That is Krishna business. He is so kind.”
From
“Krishna, the Supreme Controller” [an edited transcript of a
lecture on Bhagavad-gita
7.2
in San Franscisco on September 11, 1968] in Back
to Godhead, Vol.
53, No. 6 (Nov./Dec. 2019):
“You
cannot deny God just by saying, ‘There is no God.’ God is the
controller, the supreme controller. You cannot say that you are not
controlled. There is a controller. . . . And the supreme controller
is Krishna. There is one controller over another controller. If you
go on searching out who is the ultimate controller, then you’ll
find Krishna.”
“Always
remember that Arjuna surrendered himself to Krishna and therefore
Krishna is speaking to him.”
“God
and how things are working and how things are being controlled –
these are to be known. We should not go simply by sentiment.
Religious sentiment is good for persons who follow blindly. But at
the present moment people are advanced in so-called education.
Bhagavad-gita
gives you full information so that you can accept God with your
reason, with your arguments, with your knowledge. It is not blind
following. Krishna consciousness is not a sentiment. It is backed by
knowledge, or jñana,
and practical knowledge, vijñana.”
“The
process to understand this knowledge is to be a surrendered soul.
Therefore one becomes a disciple, or one who accepts the discipline.
Without accepting discipline, we cannot make any progress. It is not
possible. If you want to be aware in any field of knowledge, any
field of activity, scientifically and factually, then you should
accept the controlling principle.”
“When
we are fully convinced that ‘I am part and parcel of Krishna,’
that is Krishna consciousness, and that is purification of your
senses.
“As
part and parcel of Krishna you have to serve Krishna. That is your
pleasure. Now you are trying to satisfy your senses, your material
senses. When you realize that you are part and parcel of Krishna,
then you’ll satisfy the senses of Krishna, Govinda. And by
satisfying His senses, your senses will be satisfied.”
From
Srimad-Bhagavatam
4.21.25,
purport:
yat
karosi yad asnasi
yaj
juhosi dadasi yat
yat
tapasyasi kaunteya
tat
kurusva mad-arpanam
‘Whatever
you do, whatever you eat, whatever you give in charity and whatever
penances you undergo should be done in Krishna consciousness, or for
the satisfaction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.’ If all the
people of the state, including the government servants, are taught
the techniques of spiritual life, then although everyone is liable to
be punished in different ways by the stringent laws of material
nature, they will not be implicated.”
[King
Prithu said:] “I request all the pure-hearted demigods, forefathers
and saintly persons to support my proposal, for after death the
result of an action is equally shared by its doer, its director and
its supporter.”
From
Srimad-Bhagavatam
4.21.26,
purport:
“Since
the Krishna consciousness movement going on at the present moment is
genuine, perfect and authorized and is following in the footsteps of
Prithu Maharaja, anyone who cooperates with this movement or accepts
its principles will get the same result as the workers who are
actively propagating Krishna consciousness.”
From
Srimad-Bhagavatam
7.7.21:
[Prahlada
Maharaja said:] “An expert geologist can understand where there is
gold and by various processes can extract it from the gold ore.
Similarly, a spiritually advanced person can understand how the
spiritual particle exists within the body, and thus by cultivating
spiritual knowledge he can attain perfection in spiritual life.
However, as one who is not expert cannot understand where there is
gold, a foolish person who has not cultivated spiritual knowledge
cannot understand how the spirit exists within the body.”
The
servants of Srila Prabhupada who finished translating
Srimad-Bhagavatam:
From
Srimad-Bhagatavam
10.87.25, purport:
“The
Yoga-sutras
acknowledge the Personality of Godhead in an oblique way, but only as
a helper whom the advancing yogi
can utilize. Isvara-pranidhanad
va: ‘Devotional
meditation on God is yet another means of achieving concentration.’”
(Yoga-sutra
1.23)
“As
the Katha
Upanishad
(1.2.5) says: avidyayam
antare vartamanah svayam dhirah paṇditam-manyamanah janghanyamanah
pariyanti mudha andhenaiva niyamana yathandhah
‘Caught in the grip of ignorance, self-proclaimed experts consider
themselves learned authorities. They wander about this world
befooled, like the blind leading the blind.’”
“Srila
Sridhara Svami prays: ‘For the bewildered soul wandering within the
darkness of those exalted philosophies promoted by the harsh methods
of false logic, the path of true knowledge of You, O Lord of
magnificent glory, remains invisible. O Lord of Madhu, husband of the
goddess of fortune, when will I become liberated by joyfully chanting
Your names – Madhava, Vamana, Trinayana, Sri Sankara, Sripati and
Govinda?’”
Satsvarupa
Dasa Goswami:
From
Free
Write Journal
#49:
“My
most widely-accepted book, Srila
Prabhupada-lilamrta,
was begun almost immediately after Prabhupada’s disappearance. I
was commissioned to do the authoritative biography of His Divine
Grace by the GBC. I worked with a team of devotees who assisted me in
getting interviews, typing, editing, etc. While I wrote the Lilamrta,
I felt personally empowered by Prabhupada and Krishna to continue the
work, volume by volume. The warm and enthusiastic reception of the
biography as it was published volume after volume was very inspiring
to me. My writing career was validated by that one book.”
Adikarta
Prabhu:
The
Vedas are meant to give knowledge, and the highest knowledge is
Krishna consciousness.
The
highest realization is to understand Krishna is God.
One
time Srila Prabhupada said that the trouble with my disciples is they
want to go to the heavenly planets.
The
devotees who sacrifice everything for Krishna are the most satisfied.
England
is great because we have the freedom to chant Hare Krishna in public.
That is not true everywhere, for example, the Middle East.
It
is hard being in a materialistic country. When the Russians come to
America, they become less generous than they were in Russia when they
had less.
It
is amazing that the mayor of London is a Muslim. A lot of places
would discriminate against such people but the British are liberal in
that way.
I
feel I was able to fulfill practically whatever material desires I
had in my Krishna conscious household life so I do not have so many
material desires.
I
used to listen to all kinds of music, but I do not now. The people
who play that kind of music are not satisfied, so how can we be
satisfied by hearing it?
I
feel that if I did not go out preaching and experience that bliss, I
would probably have a lot more material desires.
Nagaraja
Prabhu:
From
Essential Qualities” in “Back
to Godhead, Vol.
53, No. 6 (Nov./Dec. 2019):
“Learning
the philosophy of Krishna consciousness should naturally make us
enthusiastic. Prabhupada writes, ‘One should accept this
opportunity to return home, back to Godhead, very enthusiastically.’
Enthusiasm in our spiritual practices shows that we
truly
understand what has been made available to us.”
“Patience
is not a quality our modern lives tend to inspire. Today we can get
almost anything we want very quickly. But material things are
impermanent, and therefore not of ultimate value. Being patient about
reaching the perfection of Krishna consciousness shows that we truly
appreciate its value. As Prabhupada repeatedly told us, ‘Don’t
take it as a cheap thing.’
“There’s
simply nothing more valuable than entering our relationship with
Krishna. Our longing for it and our determination to work for it for
many lifetimes, if need be, are the attitudes that will inspire
Krishna to grant us His priceless company.”
Satyaraja
Prabhu:
From
“Bhagavata Mahatmya: The Journey and Rejuvenation of Bhakti Devi”
in Back
to Godhead, Vol.
53, No. 6 (Nov./Dec. 2019):
“The
Bhagavata
Mahatmya
gives readers inspiration to read this best of all Puranas. ‘After
the Bhagavatam’s
recitation,’ the Bhagavata
Mahatmya
tells us, ‘Jñana, Vairagya, and Bhakti were at their best. Being
young and enthusiastic, they attracted the hearts of all living
entities. . . . In the midst of everyone, Bhakti, Jñana, and
Vairagya danced like expert performers.’”
Bhakti
Prabhava Swami:
Simply
by pulling the cart of Lord Jagannatha we purify our hearts
so we can experience love of God, the greatest love, for we all
aspire to love and to be loved.
Dayananda
Swami:
It
said it is better to give than to receive. Why? Because we feel
pleasure when we give.
In
Ratha-yatra, Lord Jagannatha is teaching us how to give.
Srila
Prabhupada said that everyone who sees Lord Jagannatha on His cart is
ultimately liberated.
Caitanya
Carana Prabhu:
From
Lust Bites the Dust” in “Back
to Godhead, Vol.
53, No. 6 (Nov./Dec. 2019):
“The
Ramayana
is an Itihasa,
a genre of spiritual literature based on historical accounts. Yet its
significance extends far beyond mere historical reporting. It depicts
timeless values that can guide people through all times in history to
attain the world beyond history – the timeless spiritual arena of
existence.”
“Seen
from this value-centered perspective, Ravana’s reappearing heads
might represent our lower desires. Even if we reject one such desire,
others keep appearing, as did Ravana’s heads. Just as Rama
succeeded only when He directed His arrow not towards the heads but
towards the heart, similarly we can succeed when we direct our
purificatory effort not towards specific desires but towards our
heart, towards the misdirection of our love away from the Lord to
the world.”
“Ravana’s
ten heads were conspicuous. Yet his strength lay not there, but in a
less conspicuous part: his heart. Similarly, gross wrongdoings are
conspicuous. But what corrupts us most is not such specific
wrongdoings, but our fundamental wrongdoing of being disconnected
from divinity. Wrongdoing refers not just to the wrong we do, but
also the right we don’t do. As long as we don’t do the right of
connecting devotionally with our Lord, we will keep succumbing to one
wrong desire or another – the heads will keep reappearing. When we
make our heart right by practicing bhakti-yoga
diligently, our lower desires soon get exiled from our heart, fully
and forever.”
Nandini
Kisori Devi Dasi:
From
MotelGita: Solace for the Traveling Soul” in “Back
to Godhead, Vol.
53, No. 6 (Nov./Dec. 2019):
“It
was business as usual at a Ramada Inn in New Jersey. The receptionist
was busy at the front desk when suddenly a customer stormed through
the door. While the receptionist assigned him a room, the man, who
appeared angry, noticed a random book on the counter. He grabbed the
book along with his room key. The next morning, he emerged from his
room peacefully, and gladly thanked the hotel’s manager for the
book. “I checked into your hotel last night to commit suicide,”
he said. “But I found this book, Bhagavad-gita
As It Is.
I read, and kept reading, and forgot my plan. This book saved my
life.”
“Seventy
percent of motels in the United States are owned by Gujaratis. This
widespread venue for planting the Gita
has the potential to spiritualize the lives of countless people for
many years to come.”
Harinamananda
Prabhu:
Desire
brings us to the material world, and desire can get us out of the
material world.
If
the desire for unalloyed for devotional service is not present then
we will have desires for sense gratification.
We
develop all kinds of desires simply by hearing.
Q
(by Ananta Gauranga Prabhu): How can we engage fully in devotional
service if we have material desires?
A:
My spiritual master, Kadamba Kanana Swami, says what you do is you
put all your material desires in a box, and just fully engage in
devotional service. Then later when you look in the box you find that
Krishna removed them.
I
was engaged by the devotees in cutting fruits for Krishna in the
morning during the morning program. I was not inclined. I did it
anyway, but after awhile I developed a taste for it, and I looked
forward to it.
-----
Why
perform devotional service to Krishna? The sages tell us, from their
own experience, that it enlivens the soul. I recall loving this verse
ever since the mid 1980s:
ato
vai kavayo nityam
bhaktim
paramaya muda
vasudeve
bhagavati
kurvanty
atma-prasadanim
“Certainly,
therefore, since time immemorial, all transcendentalists have been
rendering devotional service to Lord Krishna, the Personality of
Godhead, with great delight, because such devotional service is
enlivening to the self.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam
1.2.22)