Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 15, No. 16
By Krishna Kripa Das
(August 2019, part two)
Québec, Dublin, North England, London
(Sent from Newcastle upon Tyne on September 8, 2019)
By Krishna Kripa Das
(August 2019, part two)
Québec, Dublin, North England, London
(Sent from Newcastle upon Tyne on September 8, 2019)
Where
I Went and What I Did
From
August 14–18, I attended the Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival held
at The International Art of Living Centre in Saint-Mathieu-du-Parc,
Québec, about 2 hours by car north of Montreal. On August 19, I did
harinama
in
Montreal, and on August 20, in Dublin. I chanted Hare Krishna on the
streets of Newcastle upon Tyne the next three days, ending with
Janmastami, when several devotees joined me. I took a night bus to
London, where devotees did two harinamas
on
the auspicious Vyasa-puja Day of Srila Prabhupada. I did harinama
and
the monthly program in Leeds the following day, and then four days of
harinama
in
Manchester, before going to Liverpool to do two days of harinama
before
their Ratha-yatra on September 1. I will tell my entire Liverpool
experience in the next journal.
In
this issue I share a couple of inspiring quotes from Srila
Prabhupada’s books. I share excerpts from Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami’s
Free
Write Journal. I
share realizations from Prahladananda Swami, Indradyumna Swami, and
Sri Prahlada, which they mentioned at Pol’and’Rock, the Polish
Woodstock, but which I forgot to include in the previous issue. I
share notes on lectures from the Canadian Vaishnava Sanga festival by
Bhaktimarga Swami, Gokulananda Prabhu, Krishnadas Kaviraj Prabhu, a
Prabhupada disciple who did not want to be mentioned by name,
Laksminatha Prabhu, Mahatma Prabhu, and Jahnava Devi Dasi. I share
notes on a class by Dhananjaya Prabhu in Newcastle on Janmastami. I
share realizations from Radhika Nagara Prabhu and Caitanya Vallabha.
I include notes on Following
Srila Prabhupada, Volume
1, and notes on the Vyasa-puja offerings the devotees made in London.
Many,
many thanks to Paramahamsa Prabhu and the Canadian Vaishnava Sanga
Festival for their very generous donations. Thanks to the attendee of
that festival whose name I did not catch who gave a donation. Thanks
to Satya Medha Gauranga Prabhu and his wife, Andrea, for their
donations. Thanks to the Dublin, Newcastle, and Manchester temples
for their donations. Thanks to Prananatha Prabhu and Radhika Nagara
Prabhu for their donations. Thanks to the Montreal brahmacaris
for
the bus fare to the airport. Thanks to the devotees who picked me up
at the airport on my way into Canada.
Thanks to Aharada Devi Dasi for the photos of our Manchester harinama.
Itinerary
September
8: Great North Run harinama (Newcastle-upon-Tyne)
September
9–11: Dublin harinamas
September
12–25: NYC Yuga Dharma harinamas
September
26–28: Philadelphia harinamas
and
Ratha-yatra
September
29–30: Martha’s Vineyard (visiting relatives)
October
1 – December: NYC Yuga Dharma harinamas
January–April
2020: North Florida colleges
Chanting
Hare Krishna at the Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival
For
the third year, I attended the Canadian
Vaishnava Sanga Festival, which is largely organized by Krishna Dulal
Prabhu and his family and friends from the Ottawa area. We missed the
special ecstasy of Ekalavya Prabhu for harinama
this
year.
Bhaktimarga
Swami, Mahatma Prabhu, and Mahatma’s wife, Jahnava Devi Dasi, did seminars. We had
harinama
in
nearby Shawinigan every day after lunch. Srutakirti Prabhu told Srila
Prabhupada pastimes each evening, followed by prasadam
and
kirtan. Gaura Das Prabhu of Canada contributed to the kirtan, along
with Mahatma.
Of
Vaishnava sanga festivals the one in Canada is special because every
day after lunch we go out and chant in the streets of a local city of
50,000, Shawinigan, Québec, Here Krishna Dulal Prabhu, who organizes
the festival and majored in piano in college, leads the chanting of
Hare Krishna, two boys from the city listen, one playing the shakers
and chanting the mantra, a few other people listen, and an old man
dances to the music. Devotees distributed 12 or 13 books. Fifteen
devotees came that first day, thirty devotees the next day, fifty the
third day, and seventy-four on the final day
(https://youtu.be/HtSYhrBNah8):
The
devotees have a beautiful Hare Krishna mantra sign, and they spend
time playing on the public piano that, although outdoors, is protected
from rain.
Bhaktimarga
Swami chants Hare Krishna after guru
puja
at the Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/WTAlEEYzhmQ):
Krishna Dulal Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan at Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/vXw3GoZiX04)
Gaura
Das Prabhu from Canada chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan accompanied
by Mahatma Prabhu on piano at Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival
(https://youtu.be/8SjalJjriNs):
Mahatma
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan at Canadian Vaishnava Sanga
Festival (https://youtu.be/dJIGC1Ds1E0):
Laksminatha
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan at Canadian Vaishnava Sanga
Festival (https://youtu.be/tHiMem7111g):
Krishnadas
Kaviraj Prabhu from Canada chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan during
Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/3fRNkpUc4-8):
Bhaktimarga
Swami chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan during Canadian Vaishnava
Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/YUeJohZwqWI):
Laksminatha
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna after guru
puja
at Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/iVVRk2iOW3k):
Prana
Gauranga Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan during Canadian
Vaishnava Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/HmjqNqsgW2I):
Krishnadas
Kaviraj Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan again during
Canadian Vaishnava Sanga Festival, and many devotees dance
(https://youtu.be/1HwscS2JyCE):
Mahatma
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Shawinigan, and a bearded man in shorts
and sunglasses has a great time dancing with the male devotees while
carrying a book he purchased (https://youtu.be/qFhrDPfL91M):
Mahatma
Prabhu continued chanting, and many devotees danced. That man who
danced with us while carrying the book danced again as we went
through a cafe where he was sitting (https://youtu.be/cwwHPACd95Y):
Samir
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna after guru puja at Canadian Vaishnava
Sanga Festival (https://youtu.be/w-W-SAg1HJs):
Just
hear
the sweetness of Mahatma Prabhu chanting many melodious Hare Krishna
tunes during most evenings and on the final morning of this year’s
Vaishnava Sanga Festival in Canada (https://youtu.be/AH4IEaE5Yr0):
In addition, Gaura Prabhu also chanted many nice kirtans in the evenings, sometimes playing harmonium and sometimes guitar (https://youtu.be/9O4WtfQE6p0)
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Montreal
I
was happy to learn that for the last several months devotees have
been doing harinama
every
day in Montreal for three or four hours. The day I went out with
them, we had fifteen devotees!
Here
Yasoda
Dulal Prabhu chants Hare Krishna outside Berri-UQAM station in
Montreal (https://youtu.be/Om46CTbAwBQ):
Bhakta
Marshall chants Hare Krishna outside Berri-UQAM station in Montreal
(https://youtu.be/K0BXVOCXfxI):
Bhakta
Bader chants Hare Krishna outside Berri-UQAM station in Montreal, and
devotees dance (https://youtu.be/J_APK_ORX7w):
Bhaktin
Caroline chants Hare Krishna outside Berri-UQAM station in Montreal
(https://youtu.be/NZAGjchqeC4):
One
nice feature in the Montreal ashram is this very convenient tilaka
station,
with water, a mirror, a light, and tilaka.
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Dublin
These days it is often difficult to get people to join me for harinama in Dublin as Ananta Nitai and Premarnava Prabhus are not there. This time, however, Manu’s birthday was coming up, so to celebrate he invited everyone on harinama before the Tuesday kirtan, and thus we had around sixteen people.
Manu Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Dublin, and kids play shakers and dance (https://youtu.be/lxdMfQ7Zelg):
Jayananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Dublin (https://youtu.be/N8VYEQ0ujD8):
Jayananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Tuesday Evening Kirtan in Dublin (https://youtu.be/RlzDaK5Wklg):
Chanting Hare Krishna in Newcastle
Prema
Sankirtana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Newcastle on Janmastami
(https://youtu.be/6KOVWGmjvv4):
Prema
Sankirtana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Newcastle on Janmastami, and
his girls danced (https://youtu.be/7oqh8SSsuSg):
Bhakti
Rasa Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Newcastle on Janmastami, and
devotees dance (https://youtu.be/_c4QBbinqoE):
On
Janmastami, Jiya,
aged nine, led
the chanting of Hare Krishna on harinama
in Newcastle for just the second time this life
(https://youtu.be/A08cdyqqMb4):
Enthused
from the Janmastami harinama, Bhakti Rasa Prabhu chanted Hare
Krishna in the car all the way to the Newcastle temple for the
evening program, and the devotees enthusiastically chanted the response (https://youtu.be/8jBciZiHud4):
Radhika
Nagara Prabhu, who teaches sastric studies in Mayapur, chants Hare
Krishna in Newcastle on Janmastami (https://youtu.be/H0s3z6klp0o):
One
of the best parts of the Newcastle Janmastami for me was the three
dramas. The killing of Dhenukasura, the chastisement of Kaliya, and a
pastime of Krishna and the gopis.
I
made cardamom coconut burfi for the feast, and it was well
received. There were lots of nice items served, but I could not take
as much as I wanted as I had to catch a 1:40 a.m. bus to London for
Vyasa-puja because I like to celebrate the festivals with harinama,
and I knew I could count on them to do that at ISKCON London in
Soho. In fact, we had two harinamas on Vyasa-puja Day!
Chanting
Hare Krishna in London
Balavanta
Prabhu of Mexico chants
Hare Krishna at ISKCON London on Vyasa-puja
(https://youtu.be/H-eYNFfcQwk):
Devotees chant Hare Krishna in London on Vyasa-puja afternoon
(https://youtu.be/PTott7ia7zE):
During that afternoon harinama of Srila Prabhupada’s Vyasa-puja Day, these lucky newlyweds received garlands from the ISKCON London deities and danced with Hare Krishna devotees! What wonderful good fortune! (https://youtu.be/lxqLPEuhnuU)
Devotees chant Hare Krishna on Vyasa-Puja Saturday Night harinama
in London, and many dance (https://youtu.be/pGps2MltlB0):
After
the Saturday night harinama I stayed at Parasurama Prabhu’s
place known as Krishna’s Castle in Holborn, about a twenty-five
minute walk from the Soho temple. He has lots of space for all the
goods he gets donated. He has three kitchens there. Three individuals
live there in their own rooms, and there is one big room where a lot
of helpers, who are mostly youthful travelers, live in exchange for
helping him out using their various skills.
Here
is the altar at Krishna’s Castle.
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Leeds
I
chanted Hare Krishna with Janardana Prabhu and Manoharini Radha Devi
Dasi for an hour before the monthly Leeds program, which is the last
Sunday of the month in the Cardigan Centre. Then after the program I
chanted for two more hours, at first with Manoharini Radha, and then
alone.
While
I was chanting alone, a few drunken ladies came by, eager to play
around with the instruments, and thus hearing the Hare Krishna mantra
a little longer than those who just walk by
(https://youtu.be/IexY3IhtHys):
Chanting
Hare Krishna in Manchester
I
am so impressed with the Manchester devotees. To increase harinama
in Manchester last July, I encouraged the devotees come out with
me and chant on a Monday evening. We had eight or nine people. The
devotees were so positive about it, they decided to do harinama
every other week on Monday evenings from 5 to 8 p.m. This week I
went, and we also had nine devotees.
Here
Gemma chants Hare Krishna
in Manchester, on their new biweekly Monday evening harinama,
and passersby dance (https://youtu.be/nvRUDryDLJs):
Gemma
continues chanting
and kids play shakers (https://youtu.be/nB2sDGkA_0M):
Isa
Prakasa Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Manchester, and a kid plays
shakers (https://youtu.be/VerHg5PXyzU):
One
day in Manchester, Felix, who distributes books and promotes Krishna
consciousness in Manchester, chanted with me the last fifteen
minutes.
He
showed me a flyer he designed to promote Srila Prabhupada’s books.
Harinama
Report
Insights
Srila
Prabhupada:
From
Srimad-Bhagavatam
4.22.24:
“A
candidate for spiritual advancement must be nonviolent, must follow
in the footsteps of great acaryas,
must always remember the nectar of the pastimes of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, must follow the regulative principles without
material desire and, while following the regulative principles,
should not blaspheme others. A devotee should lead a very simple life
and not be disturbed by the duality of opposing elements. He should
learn to tolerate them.”
From
Sri
Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya
24.104:
“Association
with a devotee, the mercy of Krishna, and the nature of devotional
service help one to give up all undesirable association and gradually
attain elevation to the platform of love of Godhead.”
Satsvarupa
Dasa Goswami:
From
Free Write Journal
#52:
“The
male calves are chained in little houses to limit their movements so
that they don’t develop muscles. They are allowed to live a short
life being fed milk so that their bodies remain tender. Then they are
slaughtered for veal. Veal was considered a prime delicacy in Italy,
but because the process was so cruel, it has been outlawed there.”
From “From Amrta Vani by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati” in Free
Write Journal #52:
“Bhaktsiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakura is asked, ‘We consider doing good to others our
religion. What is your opinion in this regard?’ Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati replies that welfare work is good, but it has two defects:
it directly or indirectly encourages godlessness, and it supports
violence to animals and other living entities. Whatever attempts we
make to help others while neglecting the Absolute are useless.
Ordinary altruism is not the goal of life. There is much more
important duty while one is in the human form of life, and that is to
serve God. ‘It is our intention to convert the entire human
population to practicing bhakti.’”
From “Giriraja dasa Brahmacari” in Free
Write Journal #53:
“Glen
Teton was first introduced to Krsna consciousness when Prabhupada and
his devotees held a program at Glen’s college, Brandeis University,
in 1969. Glen arrived at the program late, after our first kirtana
and Prabhupada’s speech. I was leading the second kirtana when he
arrived. Our devotees asked him if he could lend us his car to take
the devotees back to our temple. He willingly did so, and during the
ride, Nanda-kisora’s wife, Jahnava devi dasi, preached strongly to
Glen. He was impressed by her knowledge, and he was interested in
what she was saying. He attended other lectures by Prabhupada in
Boston during Prabhupada’s two-week stay. He met Prabhupada and
attended a lecture in our small storefront ashram. Glen had concocted
ideas of spiritual life and had a sign up in his dorm room, “You
are God.” When he heard Prabhupada’s lecture and presented his
ideas, Prabhupada exposed them as nonsense, and Glen bowed down and
made obeisances before Prabhupada. He started coming to our
storefront temple for lunch. One day, a devotee, Saradiya devi dasi,
asked me, “Since when do we allow hippies to join us?” I firmly
replied, “Glen is not a hippie,” and she was satisfied. I was the
temple president, and in the beginning I guided Glen in the practices
of Krishna consciousness. Glen soon graduated from college, and he
moved into our temple as a brahmacari.
He was so ideal and submissive that he lifted the atmosphere of the
devotee association. In our temple were about 40 devotees who worked
for ISKCON Press, headed by Advaita dasa. They worked devotedly on
the Press machinery for long hours, but they were not dutiful to
attending the morning devotional programs. This caused a conflict for
me, as I tried to get them to act like regular devotees. The Press
devotees even teased Glen for his ideal behavior, taking rest early,
getting up early and attending the temple program wearing devotional
dress. (The ISKCON Press workers wore worker uniforms, dull green
pants.) Glen went out regularly with me and the other devotees on
sankirtana,
chanting in the streets, distributing Back
to Godheads
and asking for donations. He excelled in distributing the magazines
and collecting the money, first in a conch shell and then in a little
money bag with straps. His father, who was a lawyer, was concerned
about Glen joining Krishna consciousness. He offered Glen a big sum
of money if he would quit, and talked to me about his worries that
Glen might be drafted into the Army. We politely tried to pacify his
father, but Glen remained firm in his commitment to ISKCON. After a
while, he was initiated by mail. Prabhupada wrote him a letter and
said that he had observed his good qualities when he was in Boston.
One particular incident bonded Glen and I together. One night a local
gang attacked our building, broke all the front windows and entered
our house. They carried car antennas and beat us with them. We fought
back with fists, pieces of wood, and Uddhava used a small penknife to
stab a gang member, who then tried to scratch Uddhava’s eyes out.
We called the police, and they came and arrested the gang members.
But we heard that while they were in prison overnight, they swore
they would come back and attack the temple again as soon as possible,
and devotees were traumatized in anticipation. We feared their
return. We were in shock. We sent the women down to the Brooklyn
temple to take shelter, and some men also abandoned the temple and
went down to Brooklyn. Myself and Glen also decided to go to
Brooklyn. Immediately Brahmananda and Rsi-Kumara and another devotee
had come up from Brooklyn to help guard the temple. Glen and I
started to drive to Brooklyn. But when we reached the toll entry to
the main highway, we started talking among ourselves how running away
from the fight was not a good thing. It was an act of cowardice. So
we mutually agreed to turn the car around and go back to Boston. When
we arrived at the temple we were warmly greeted by Brahmananda and
the other New York devotees. We had put up wooden bars across the
broken windows. I armed myself with a two-by-four piece of wood and
got ready to stay up all night, anticipating trouble. About 3:00 in
the morning a police car cruised by. I went out to see him carrying
my two-by-four. He was alarmed to see it and told me to put it down
and go back inside the house. There was a court hearing, and the
judge ruled that if any trouble happened in the temple in the next
six months, the case would be opened again. We wrote to Prabhupada
about this, and he said the judge made an intelligent decision. So
things quieted down and there wasn’t another attack. Giriraja
stayed with us for several years. He was our star brahmacari.
When the lease ran out on our storefront and we needed to find new
quarters, Giriraja and some other devotees found a Victorian mansion
in the neighborhood that was for sale. We approached the realtor and
drew up a mortgage contract. We showed it to Giriraja’s father, and
he said it was a good contract. We thought we could make the monthly
payments if we just increased our Back
to Godhead
sales on the street. So Giriraja was very instrumental in helping us
get the new building. Then after a couple of years, Prabhupada’s
secretary Syamasundara sent out a newsletter approved by Prabhupada
asking that all the temples send men to India, because he needed
manpower for his ambitious plans for starting temples in Vrndavana,
Bombay and Mayapur. We didn’t have that many devotees, but we
surrendered to Prabhupada’s request. We decided to send our very
best devotee, Giriraja, as a sacrifice to the order of the spiritual
master. Giriraja was enlivened at the prospect of joining Prabhupada
in India, and the rest is history. Giriraja is just finishing his
600-page book about the adventures of securing the land and getting
permission to build a temple in Bombay. And I heard from devotees
that he is now writing a book on the early days in Boston. He remains
affectionate and grateful to me for my helping him in the early days,
and I have love for him as a great preacher and soul surrendered to
Prabhupada.”
From “Local News” in Free
Write Journal #53:
“We
heard from Prabhupada’s purport that Radharani’s right hand of
benediction enables us to gaze upon Krishna’s lotus feet.”
Bhaktimarga
Swami:
I
have taken this workshop on “nine devotions” to many places like
yoga centers, and I have seen good results. Usually I do it in two
hours. Sometimes people would even say, “I believe in God again.”
Sravana
– the
ultimate reflective listening process
japa,
kirtana, and
lectures.
So
many times conflict arises because of lack of hearing another.
The
prospect for advancement comes in good hearing.
Our
problem is self-imposition on whatever we have heard.
Srila
Prabhupada describes a Vaishnava as someone who always tries.
Many
misunderstandings can be resolved by hearing from the other person.
We
hear the Divine name and prolong the experience by chanting.
Sometimes
when you talk to people, you realize they do not know what positive
thinking is.
In
the developed countries you encounter a kind of cynicism that
ironically is not there in the developing countries.
Comment
by Krishnadas Kaviraj Prabhu: In a suffering state I turned to God,
and it struck me, “Why do I only turn to God when I am suffering?”
That was a turning point in my life.
Comment
by Mahatma Prabhu: I tried mescaline once, and I felt every hormone
in my body was excreting happiness. I thought there must be some way
of getting to this state without drugs. Three months later I met
Bhakta Howard, later to become Hridayananda Goswami, teaching a
Bhagavad-gita class
on campus.
Prayer
by lady from Ottawa: Thank for the struggle. Without the struggle I
would not have come closer to you.
Prayer
by Narayana: Dear Guru Maharaja and Srila Prabhupada, help me to be a
more loving person.
Prayer
by Dan: Please deliver me from conscious unawareness.
Prayer
by Mahatma Prabhu: My Dear Lord Balaram, Please give me the strength
to follow Prabhupada’s instructions and fulfill his desires and to
be a perfect example of his teachings.
This
is an exercise for developing friendships. Find a partner you do not
know well and take turns answering these questions:
What
is your name?
Where
are you from?
What
do you do?
Do
you have a hobby?
Do
you have a pet peeve?
Do
you have a favorite color?
Do
you have an aim?
Gaura
Prabhu, who I know a little, chose me as a partner.
Gaura
Prabhu: I am Gaura Das from Manitoba, Canada. I tell students about
Krishna consciousness. My hobby is to add jazz chords to traditional
Bengali tunes. My pet peeve is when I point out to my Godbrothers
that they are altering Srila Prabhupada standards in different ways
that they become angry. My favorite color is yellow. My aim is to
become the real deal. To have integrity. To have Prabhupada’s
values. Get anartha
nivrtti down. Ultimately
get Krishna prema.
Realize I can depend on Krishna.
Make
a friend every day.
In
Sanskrit plays the stage manager gives some introduction. There was
no blood and guts on the stage in those days. Those sorts of things
would just be implied.
Indradyumna
Swami:
From
an address before kirtan at the Mantra Yoga tent at Pol’and’Rock:
If
you sing your favorite song for hours you will get tired of it, but
we have been chanting this Hare Krishna for 25 years. How is that?
That is because Hare Krishna is a transcendental sound.
Spiritual
life has to be more fun than material life.
If
you want to be happy you cannot be cruel to other living other
beings. You have to be vegetarian to be happy.
Prahladananda
Swami:
From
a conversation at the Pol’and’Rock Festival:
Krishna
consciousness is both knowledge and an experience. If people get just
the knowledge “I am not this body” and “Krishna is God” but
they do not experience “I am not this body” and “Krishna is
God” then they will lose interest.
Gokulananda
Prabhu:
Our
original purpose is enjoy rasa
with
Krishna.
Nature
by providing suffering can remind us we are not where we belong and
should seek out Krishna.
Srila
Prabhupada says that human intelligence is awakened when we begin to
inquire about why we are suffering.
Gopipran
was living in a mental asylum, but he cured himself of his mental
illness by reading Srila Prabhupada’s books and chanting Hare
Krishna.
Comment
by Mahatma Prabhu: When Gopipran met us for the first time, he said,
“I see you chanting every day and you seem to be having more fun
than I am, so I want to join.”
When
I first got a Back
to Godhead, I
read it for two hours. I felt so enlivened as a result. That is the
power of hearing about Krishna from a pure devotee.
In
the assembly of devotees completely absorbed in spiritual
consciousness, people’s lives are transformed.
Krishnadas
Kaviraj Prabhu:
Rohininandana
is name for Balaram because He is the son of Rohini.
After
I shaved my head the people at work said, “What’s with the
haircut?” They especially asked that because of the sikha.
I
said, “It is the Hare Krishna haircut! Haven’t you heard? The
next time you go to the barber, you should ask him to give you one.”
Then I added, “The Hare Krishnas are a spiritual group that
practice spiritual self-defense. We are always being bombarded by all
kinds of distractions that keep us from realizing our higher
spiritual nature, so we have to protect ourselves from this. We do
that by chanting Hare Krishna.” I saw that some of them were
impressed by my description.
Krishna
is there for everybody, and He is always making arrangements for
people to hear about Him.
I
like this festival because in the middle of it we take the
realizations we get from the association of devotees out into the
streets of Shawinigan on harinama.
Comment
by Gaura Prabhu: Srila Prabhupada once asked the devotees who was
stronger, Krishna or Balaram. They did not know, and he replied, “Krishna, because
Balaram is leaning on Him.”
For
that 1/11th of a second of the association of the pure devotee,
people get a glimpse of what it is to be spiritual, and they start
craving more spiritual experiences.
Comments by Srutakirti Prabhu:
When
you were with Srila Prabhupada, you would always have to be watching
him because he would give so many signals.
Because
the previous reader of Krishna
book
had gone back to his temple, I took over that service. The first time
I read, it was a story about a demon. I saw that when we got to the
part of the demon getting killed, Srila Prabhupada would laugh and
laugh, and slap his knees, and tears would come from his eyes. I took
that as a cue that Srila Prabhupada liked those pastimes, so the next
time I got to read I selected the pastime of Dvivida gorilla. When he
got to the part of Dvivida urinating on the sacrifice, Srila
Prabhupada laughed and laughed just like I expected.
A
disciple of Srila Prabhupada:
The
most salient feature of Lord Balarama is that of adi-guru,
the
original guru.
When
my mother was getting older, I asked her how it was going. She said
she had not gone to any funerals that week, so it was a good week.
One
man was taken to Yamaraja at his death, and he complained. “You
took me without any warnings. If you gave me a warning, I could tie
up my lose ends.”
Yamaraja
said, “You were walking with a cane, your teeth fell out, I gave
you so many warnings!”
Srila
Prabhupada was given an instruction by his guru to spread Krishna
consciousness all over the world, and he has given that instruction
to our whole society.
Sacinandana
Swami elaborates on the story of the prostitute who inspired
Bilvamangala Thakura to become dedicated to achieve Krishna. That
night they stayed up all night chanting bhajanas
to
Krishna, and in the morning they left, going their separate ways, and
taking shelter of different gurus and attaining perfection.
None
of my godbrothers who have thousands of disciples ever thought they
would have thousands of disciples when they were new devotees.
When
we actually surrender to the guru, inquire from him, and serve him,
we get his mercy and become qualified.
The
verse guru
na sa syat is
a very heavy order, and we have been given that order as well.
The
parents of the hippies thought they were failures, but Srila
Prabhupada saw the generation of children disenchanted with material
life as candidates for self-realization. He figured out how to
present Krishna conscious to those people according to where they
were at. We have to figure out how to give Krishna consciousness to
the people of today.
We
have to situate ourselves so we will attain perfection, and so we can
inspire others to attain perfection.
The
mission statement of Srila Sridhara Swami (1995) is very
inspirational:
“My
mission is to serve my spiritual master, His Divine Grace A. C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, with all my heart and soul. . . .
“To
achieve this goal has now become my only reason for living. Out of a
great sense of debt for his having shown me the path, I want to
become a sharp instrument to be used by Srila Prabhupada in his
mission of flooding the world with love of Krishna.
“I
will strive to achieve excellence in all my activities. . . . I will
struggle to rise above my lower animal nature, my conditioning of the
lowest of births, and my lack of cultural training. . . . I will
study Srila Prabhupada books regularly and thoroughly. I will do my
best to follow his teachings perfectly and teach others with whom I
come in contact according to my own level of realization.
“I
will be forever loyal to his ISKCON, being always positive and ready
to help in its development. I will be proactive as a preacher,
teacher, facilitator, leader, and spiritual master (servant).
“I
will always be ready to, as Srila Prabhupada put it, ‘do the
needful,’ . . .
“I
will meditate upon and try to imbibe the twenty-six qualities of a
pure devotee.
“I
will not over-endeavor but will strive for quality in my work and
relationships. I will be constantly on guard against committing
offenses to other Vaishnavas.
“Having
realized that in previous years of association with devotees I must
have committed so many offenses due to my gross and careless nature,
I will sincerely try to recognize those offenses, beg forgiveness
from those whom I have offended, and atone for these offenses as best
I can.
“I
will continually evaluate my progress, getting input from my peers.
Despite all obstacles, personal and incidental, I will not cease from
struggling to improve my character and obtain his mercy, to be
finally accepted by Srila Prabhupada.”
Vidura
preached to Dhrstarastra.
Q:
What if you are not qualified to preach?
A:
No one who is qualified thinks they are qualified. You can aspire to
become qualified.
Q:
What if you lack enthusiasm?
A:
Associate with enthusiastic people.
Laksminatha
Prabhu:
The
verse akamah sarva
kamo va includes
the idea mentioned in Bhagavad-gita
catur-vidha bhajanti mam.
Srngi
cursed Maharaja Pariksit, “Just like you insulted my father with a
snake, you will be killed by a snake.”
Agni
wanted to burn the Kandava Forest because he was previously he had
been offered too much ghee in sacrifice and felt the forest herbs
would relieve his indigestion. Indra, however, would shower rain and
frustration his plan. Thus Agni took shelter of Krishna and Arjuna,
and Arjuna will his arrows created an umbrella to keep the rain from
extinguishing the fire. Tarsaka’s wife and son were burned in the
fire, and thus Tarsaka to get back at Arjuna killed his grandson,
Maharaja Pariksit.
The
Bhagavatam is
full of encouragement for us, those having material desires and those
not, who took shelter of Krishna.
Srila
Prabhupada would encourage everyone to come. Come, take prasadam.
But
to stay is another story.
Devotees
make arrangements to fulfill some necessity, but so their
consciousness is free to think of Krishna.
In
the USA there are over 240 victims of mass shootings this year. Just
see how mad people have become. Someone may out of hatred desire to
kill someone, but who kills people they do not even know!
The
grhastha ashrama
is
like using a second regulated fire to extinguish an initial one. A
fire may be moving southward, so they set a fire in the south and
direct it northward so the two fires extinguish each other.
We
have to appreciate Krishna consciousness, what it is doing for us in
our life. Then we may value it and protect it.
The
devotee prays to Krishna be become free of his material desires,
whatever it takes.
If
we are convinced of our product, we will be able to sell our product.
I
recommend if you are thinking of getting married to go a live with a
grhastha couple
for a month so you give up whatever fantasies you have about married
life and see what is actually required.
Q:
Suppose we fulfill material desires so we will be free from them, and
then can focus on Krishna. We could get just entangled in fulfilling
desires and not have time for chanting Hare Krishna.
A:
To know what desires can be fulfilled and what cannot comes from
association.
Mahatma
Prabhu:
Religious institutions are ideal settings for guilt to arise because the
standards are higher than those of the people in general.
Repression
means you push it into the unconscious. Suppression is when you just
run away from it.
As
we avoid bad thoughts by directing our minds away from them, I
thought I could avoid emotions in the same way. One female counselor
advised me not to avoid them but to feel them and confront them in
that way. I protested, “No, then I will act on them.” She said
then, “No. Don’t worry. Try it, and you will understand.”
I
was feeling guilty when starting a business because I could not follow
the spiritual program which I had done for thirty years.
By
facing the emotion, I learned that the guilt was very painful, a lot
more painful than getting up and going to mangala-arati
anyway.
Thus I became more motivated to start going to the morning program
again.
Why
do emotions exist? So we can learn from them.
For
example if a beautiful woman walks into the room, if a brahmacari
becomes
attracted and starts thinking about her, he may repress it or deny
it. If instead, he let himself experience how lust has a degrading
effect on his mind, he could be become humble and turn away from it.
I
was able to fully experience my resentment before, and it was such a
painful experience, I never wanted to have that experience again.
Some
problems recur because we do not experience the emotional pain
associated with them.
Prajapati
had studied in a seminary, and there is a lot stress on guilt in
Christianity, and so he asked Srila Prabhupada the position of guilt
in Krishna consciousness.
Srila
Prabhupada said, “A little guilt is good.”
Suppressing
guilt is bad because guilt is an indicator we went off.
Continual
chanting helps us chant better only when we chant with remorse.
One
counselor who counsels devotees when I asked her the biggest issue
with devotees said, “Guilt about not following the rules and about not chanting.”
She
told them, “You do not have to follow. It is your decision.”
Then
she found many of them began to follow.
Ravindra
Svarupa Prabhu just knows how to say things. “If
I’m fallen, then I’m a divided person. I’ve got an internalized
set of ideals—the voice of the spiritual master, the voice of the
community, the voice of Krishna—saying
to me, ‘This is the way you ought to be.’ And my own perception
is, ‘I’m not that way.’ So one develops an acute sense of being
ill at ease. And there are a few really unhealthy reactions. One is
to indulge in bluffing, hypocrisy, which we’ve seen a lot of in our
time. Another is simply to propagate a different standard. People
start to try to change the philosophy around to accommodate their
actual practices. Or they join some other group, in which other
people will validate their behavior. ‘Better to be a good Christian
than a bad Hare Krishna.’”
I
like workshops where people reveal all their issues because everybody
realizes that everyone else also has issues.
There
is intelligence in emotions. When we experience the emotion, we
access that intelligence.
Comment by Bhaktimarga Swami: I
was very arrogant when returned home for the first time after
becoming a devotee. I burnt incense though my mother did not like it.
I thought I was better than my brothers and sisters. Later on, by reflection, I understood my mistake, and I vowed never to act as a
fanatic again. Be
a “fun addict” not a fanatic.
One
self-help teacher said there are many things that we cannot learn
except by trying and failing.
Bhakti
Vidya Purna Swami uses an analogy of a well dressed person slipping
and falling into a ditch and lying there lamenting about how he got
there and the consequences of being there rather than getting out of
the ditch and going on his way. This is an analogy about wallowing in
guilt.
As
a counselor, I help people rewrite their stories so they see the same
situation in a more positive way.
Seeing
through the scriptures is way of changing our stories.
When
I was temple president in Vancouver, in the beginning it was very
hard to get the devotees to go out on sankirtana.
However,
when I would come to pick them up at 6:00 p.m. they were not eager to
come back to the temple.
The
stories in the Srimad-Bhagavatam
and
Sri
Caitanya-caritamrita are
so extreme that although we may feel we have some issues ourselves,
our issues are insignificant in comparison to the people in those
stories.
Sometimes
we have difficulty controlling our thoughts because they are based on
deep rooted beliefs which have not changed.
If
you are not a vaisya,
you
can go to so many seminars on how to get rich, but you will never be
rich. You will get all the information, but you will not be able to
apply it.
There
are different beliefs a chronic critic might have. He may think he is
better than others. He may not feel good enough about himself so he
compensates by bringing other people down. He may feel he has to get
back at someone. By changing the belief, he can give up the
criticism.
This
is important because we always talk about changing thoughts but we do
not talk about the beliefs upon which our thoughts are based.
A
pure devotee is happy thinking that others are better.
Srila
Prabhupada advised serving someone you are envious of.
You
can display a white sheet of paper with a black dot in the center,
and ask people what they see. Generally people say, “I see a black
dot.” You can ask them, “There is a whole white sheet there. How
is it you just saw the black dot?” That black dot is criticism.
Abraham
Lincoln said, “He who has a heart to help has the right to
criticize.”
Comment
by Gaura Prabhu: It is good if people criticize you. It means they
care about you, and they want you to improve. When people no longer
criticize you, it means they have given up on you.
The
false ego gets us to accept the thoughts in our mind as ours.
Srimad-Bhagavatam
11.20.27–28
verse and purport explain the proper mental attitude of an advancing
devotee.
As
long as you do not give in and believe what your mind is telling you,
you can progress in Krishna consciousness.
I
ask people to say, “I am my mind” and “I have a mind.” Which
feels right? Most people say “I have a mind.”
I
ask people to say, “I am my body” and “I have a body.” Which
feels right? Most people say “I have a body.”
The
best advice I got is, “Why don’t follow your own advice?”
Imagine if we all followed the advice we gave in classes and
seminars!
Until
I forgave I did not realize I had no compassion for that person.
Until
I forgave, I could not realize that I betrayed him four years before.
Sometimes
you do not say anything wrong, but it is the wrong thing. Maybe it is
to the wrong person or at the wrong time.
Bhaktivinoda
Thakura says if you find fault someone you give them your good karma
and you take their bad karma.
Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakura says if someone criticizes you that Lord Caitanya
is trying to make you more humble than a blade of grass. If someone
praises you, they are telling you what they want you to become.
Comment
by Krishnadas Kaviraj Prabhu: My wife, Paurnamasi, came up with a
strategy when driving to deal with people who cut you off. She says, “I curse them to get a Bhagavad-gita.”
Then we laugh and the negative emotion goes away.
I
would say, “Never punish someone when you are full of resentment.”
You may have to punish people because that’s your job.
The
sastra says
that only the vaisyas
do
not forgive people. I do not understand the reason for that.
Comment
by a devotee: In a bar many years ago, one guy was disturbing
everyone, and one lady came up to him and spoke to him as if speaking
to a three-year old, and he completely quieted down.
Forgiveness
means to give up hope for a better past.
Forgiveness
means instead of giving them what they deserve, you give them what
they do not deserve, kindness.
Forgiveness
does not happen logically. It happens from the heart. If you look at
it is logically, you will never forgive. For people who look at
things logically then you can present how it is in their self
interest to forgive.
We
start out saying you should forgive because it is pleasing to
Krishna. Beyond that there are so many material reasons to forgive
because resentment is toxic. Google resentment and cancer if you want
a scare.
Nelson
Mandela said, “Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping
it will kill your enemies.”
You
can forgive people who are no longer here. It is good for you.
Sometimes
people say, “Forgive and do not forget.” For example, if your
business partner steals all your money, you may forgive, but you may
not want to make him a business partner in the future.
I
have a class on how your psychology affects your japa.
A
lot of bad japa
comes
from bad psychology.
Imagine
your life was such that people would learn a lot about Krishna
consciousness from just seeing how you live!
The
greatest service to Srila Prabhupada is to be an example of his
teachings.
“I
know I should, but . . .” is tamo-guna,
determination
which does not go beyond dreaming.
Integration
means you do what you say you will do.
Someone
may say, “I cannot be Krishna conscious at work.” But
why not? You are interacting with people all day. You can practice
being tolerant and being humble while interacting with people at
work.
Interesting
enough, Krishna spoke to Arjuna on his job site, giving practical
guidance for how to act.
When
you become a devotee, at every class you attend you learn something
new. If you do not act according to the new knowledge, you will feel
bad about that. Thus you have to make the effort to try to act
according acquired knowledge.
It
is curious that the Amish became a cult for living how everyone used
to live before industrialization.
The
Amish forgave the man who shot ten of their girls and killed six. In
commenting on that a priest said, “They had been preparing for that
act of forgiveness for a lifetime. It was built into their practice
as people who forgive.”
People
do not see what we think. People see what we do.
Comment
by Krishnadas Kaviraj Prabhu: When my wife, Paurnamasi, had a
stroke, the doctor who dealt with her for the next two weeks after
she had her stroke was surprised that she was consistently happy,
when most people were always depressed. She said, “I believe that I
am not my body. I tell people I am not my body. Now I have to live
it.”
A
brahmacari in
Denver said at a forgiveness workshop, “We are getting unlimited
forgiveness coming down from Srila Prabhupada and Krishna. Should it
stop with us, and turn into resentment?”
When
Mother Yashoda went to check on the boiling milk, Krishna and Mother
Yasoda were 15 feet apart from each other, and they were both feeling
incredible separation from each other. Krishna was jealous that
Yashoda was feeling more separation from Him than He from her.
Bhaktisiddhanta
Sarasvati Thakura says that the atheist sees God nowhere and the theist
sees God everywhere.
As
long as we are trying to taste material things, we cannot taste the
spiritual nectar that can complete satisfy our soul.
Why
do we have difficulty having good relationships? Because we do not value
people or relationships sufficiently. Sometimes we let differing
views get in the way of having good relationships with people.
Even
some devotees I have had horrible disagreements with, if I were on my
deathbed they would help me remember Krishna, I am convinced.
We
have so many standards to judge people by, so we tend to be
judgmental but being judgmental does not improve relationships, and
it also leads to offenses to devotees.
We
have to decide if we want to judge people or have good relationships
with people.
Why
do we judge people? One reason may be we expect senior people to be
examples because it helps us.
Sometimes
we do not meet the expectations of others because we do not know what
others’ expectations are.
Sometimes
leaders are very supportive and affectionate toward people who agree
with them and make life difficult for others. If you are obliged to
work with such people, you have to try not to ruffle any feathers,
otherwise you will have to tolerate a lot of negativity.
If
you focus on the negative, you will become discouraged. So if you
want to achieve something, even if your criticisms are valid, you may
be more effective at attaining your goals to just not worry about it.
Srutakirti
Prabhu:
When
Mr. Nair died, Srila Prabhupada was happy. I wondered how Srila
Prabhupada was happy about someone dying. Then Srila Prabhupada
explained. He caused so much trouble to the Deities and to the
devotees. It was significant that he did not say he caused so much
trouble to himself. He was just doing his service, tolerating the
difficulties.
At
Juhu, the mosquitoes were as big as rats and the rats were as big as
cats.
The
key is to rise above the kanistha-adhikari
level
and stop seeing in terms of good and bad, and just see the good like
Srila Prabhupada did. Just try to assist people in their service,
like Srila Prabhupada did.
It
is a question doing what is necessary for saving Srila Prabhupada’s
movement.
He
was not giving philosophy but showing how to live practically.
Srila
Prabhupada took an hour walk and three hours of massage just to take
care of his health so he could benefit people.
Srila
Prabhupada would walk fast, and he would stop fast. We would not stop
fast because we were spacing out. Sometimes devotees even stepped on
Srila Prabhupada’s feet.
Some
people stopped coming on the morning walks because they got tired,
even though they were only 25 years old.
One
devotee said, “We are your puppets.”
Srila
Prabhupada said, “Yes, but I want you to move like this, and you
are moving like this.” [He would gesture as if manipulating
marionettes.]
Less
talk more action. Srila Prabhupada was all about action.
I
was at the early GBC meetings. They were three days, a couple of
hours, morning and evening, and it was all about preaching.
Every
day was a festival with Srila Prabhupada. I traveled with him for 2½
years. We all had an expiration date. We could last with him so long.
Why? Because he was pure, and we were not.
I
was with Srila Prabhupada twenty-four hours a day. No one after me
did that.
Comment
by Mahatma Prabhu: Mangalananda asked Srila Prabhupada how many
rounds he chanted. He said, “Sixteen like you.”
Once
he was in anxiety about Juhu, and he was chanting very loudly. He
told me, “When you are anxiety, you chant very loudly.”
If
you were fortunate to be with him, he would help you every step of
the way.
Srila
Prabhupada’s strategy to get me to chant my rounds worked because I
saw he cared.
If
you are here, you are here because he brought you here and because he
is keeping you here.
His
desire gave us the ability. He facilitated all of us to serve.
The
first trip we went around the world, fifteen temples in all.
In
a letter Srila Prabhupada said to open up a temple all you need is
one person and the guru’s order.
Treating
guests very nicely is a very important part of Vaishnava culture.
Srila
Prabhupada was lying there in Vrindavan preparing to leave his body.
I came with Madhudvisa from Hawaii. Srila Prabhupada knew how far
Hawaii was, and he asked if we got prasadam
and
had a shower. He was not concerned with himself but with us.
I
carried the deity of Radharani on three flights, en route from India
to Melbourne, Australia, and Srila Prabhupada told me, “Krishna is
pleased with your service.” I felt so satisfied, as if he had
embraced me.
In
August and September of 1974 Srila Prabhupada was so ill they
instituted 24-hour kirtana
all
over the movement at that time.
I
had malaria, and I stayed in a room, between Srila Prabhupada’s
room and the bathroom. We would all eat in that room, but only I
would stay there. Once Srila Prabhupada saw me lying there, and
everyone else was taking prasadam.
Srila
Prabhupada looked at the whole scene, the devotees eating and me
lying there. He asked the devotees eating, “What are you doing for
Srutakirti? Get him a doctor. Get him a bed. Get him a nimba
pani.”
He
said 80% of his leaders were not following and therefore he became
sick.
Srila
Prabhupada hadn’t eaten much for several weeks. He asked me to make
him some upma. I
said Yamuna is right here. He said, “No, I like your upma.”
I went into the kitchen, and said to Yamuna that Srila Prabhupada
wanted upma. She
said, “Great. I will get right on it.” I said, “And he wants me
to make it.” She said, “What do you need?” There was no envy.
We just wanted see that Srila Prabhupada was served nicely.
I
expressed to him that all his disciples loved him so much but I
didn’t feel anything. He didn’t say anything till hours later.
Then
he asked, “Do you like your service?”
“Yes,
Srila Prabhupada,” I said.
Then
he said, “Service is love. Just keep doing your service.”
Srila
Prabhupada did the service he was told to do by his guru until his
very last breath.
The
only day he complained about my cooking was the day I did not cook.
He
said there were two kinds of prasadam:
opulent
and sumptuous. Opulent is for the deities and is with ghee and sugar,
and sumptuous is for the devotees and is so tasty that the devotees
would not even think of eating elsewhere.
For
Srila Prabhupada everything is most important.
His
biggest concern was that we do not change things.
He
told Pankajanghri and Jananivasa Prabhu to serve the deities in Mayapur
for their lives. He told that to all the pujaris,
to
stay and serve the Lord.
Every
temple on that tour [beginning in Caracas] Srila Prabhupada cried,
overwhelmed to see the spreading of the mercy of Lord Gaura and Nitai
all over the West.
When
I went into his room it was quiet and peaceful. You could just stay
there and be happy. Even now you can feel his presence in his rooms
in Vrindavan.
Srila
Prabhupada is here for you. If you do not accept it, then he is not
here for you.
Srila
Prabhupada did not consider the scientists to be have truth because
they consider the body to be the self so all their knowledge is based
on a false premise. Thus he did not take seriously what they had to
say.
When
I first became his servant, he rang his bell.
I
came in and offered obeisances, and asked him, “What can I do for
you, Srila Prabhupada?”
“Nothing,”
he said, “I just wanted to see how fast you were.”
His
joking spirit made me feel completely at ease.
He
was the most humble devotee I never met.
If
you stayed in his bubble of protection, you were protected.
Srila
Prabhupada did not like the sannyasis
to
grow beards on Caturmasya. He never appreciated that. He said that if
they wanted to do Caturmasya, they had to follow everything. He would
make the point that people cannot even follow the basics, and yet
they want to do all these other things.
Srila
Prabhupada just wanted us to spread Krishna consciousness.
Srila
Prabhupada chastised Jayapataka Maharaja for chanting 64 rounds
during Karttika or Caturmasya by saying, “Why? Go out and preach.”
When
Paramahamsa Prabhu was talking about preaching in Vietnam, during the
war, Srila Prabhupada was impressed and decided to give him sannyasa.
At
that sannyasa
ceremony,
Srila Prabhupada said Rupa Goswami and Narada Muni attended. They
never went to Vietnam because they could not get visas, but a year
later, Paramhamsa Swami became Srila Prabhupada’s secretary.
There
was an urgency when Srila Prabhupada was here. We could take up that
urgency even now.
Prasadam
was
the first preaching. By taking more and more prasadam
people
would become purified and qualified to hear.
Srila
Prabhupada was very serious about Deity worship. Because he
emphasized book distribution, sometimes people neglected other
things. But Srila Prabhupada consisted both very important.
In
the temple, the first thing is that you take care of Krishna, then
everything else comes.
Srila
Prabhupada was not into big, big expansion, even while he was here.
He wanted everything maintained very nicely. When he left, he asked
us to maintain what he gave.
If
you endeavor to maintain what Srila Prabhupada gave us, you will find
it is not so hard and you will be rewarded.
Although
there were 108 Radha Damodara devotees there in Atlanta, what he saw
was how nicely Gaura-Nitai were taken care of, unlike in Mexico City,
Caracas, and Miami.
Chant
and be happy. But you cannot do that if you do not surrender. You may
surrender in one moment, but then you have to surrender in the next
moment.
Srila
Prabhupada was happy to see people doing their best according to
their capacity.
It
is important in management to understand the capacity of those under
you.
He
gave me a benediction, after I knocked over the mustard oil for his
massage, “You will be intelligent when you are eighty.”
I
thought for the next half hour how to respond, and said, “Thank
you. I thought it would take longer than that to become intelligent.”
He
laughed and laughed and slapped his knees.
Before
initiation, you get all your doubts cleared, then you surrender. Then
you do what the guru says.
Kirtanananda
Swami asked if I wanted to be Srila Prabhupada’s servant. I said
yes. Kirtanananda Swami said I would be his best servant because I
would never leave.
Srila
Prabhupada accepted whatever arrangement that Krishna made. Even when
a monkey chewed up his shoe in Vrindavan, and I fixed it at his
request, he used it for another month. He was so satisfied with that,
that no one thought to buy him another, even though anyone would
have bought him another one if he asked.
Srila
Prabhupada was tired of brahmacaris
who
were his servants leaving him to get married, so he asked Satsvarupa
Dasa Goswami to be his servant because he would be steady. He was the
only one who had training in serving Srila Prabhupada and that
training came from me. For two days he asked many questions and took
notes. He took notes on massage while watching me massage. Srila
Prabhupada asked him what he was doing. He said he was learning
massage by watching Srutakirti. He said that was like learning to
swim on the bank.
Srila
Prabhupada is maintaining all of us.
Srila
Prabhupada said, “I am ISKCON” and also “ISKCON is my body.”
I feel that connection when I carry out his orders.
He
had a dozen servants in the course of time.
When
I returned to his service, it was like I had never left.
Even
though he was the guru, he did not shout out orders. He was always a
gentleman.
As
soon as I started talking about Srila Prabhupada, he opened the
floodgates.
Krishna
is waiting for us to do something.
Srila
Prabhupada always reciprocated. If I just did service, everything
would be fine.
From
a breakfast conversation:
One
day Srila Prabhupada told me that grhastha
life
is an austerity and brahmacari
life
is an austerity. You have to choose which austerity. Then the next day he
told me that managing his family was more difficult than managing
ISKCON. I did not see it then, but I see now he was giving me his
realizations to help me make my decision which to choose.
Dhananjaya
Prabhu:
Krishna
is not an ordinary person. He is not even an incarnation but the
source of all incarnations.
He
first appeared in the mind of Vasudeva, and then transferred to the
mind of Devaki, and then the heart of Devaki.
Although
very powerful demons attacked Krishna, as a boy He killed them
effortlessly.
Once
one of the cowherd ladies, hid in her house and caught Krishna
stealing, grabbing by Him by the hand. He acted like He did not
realize that it was her house and thought it was His own home, and
her heart melted and He ran away.
Krishna’s
rasa dance takes
place when He was eight years old, and thus the accusation that it was sexual in nature is not reasonable.
As
a business magnate may have his private jet, Krishna has His carrier
Garuda, who can travel without restriction.
Krishna
says in Bhagavad-gita
that
He is attained only by devotional service and in this age it is very
easy because all we have to do is chant Hare Krishna.
Radhika
Nagara Prabhu:
From
a comment during a group reading of Srila Prabhupada’s books:
It
seems to me that devotees who are honest about their material desires
end up being dealt with Krishna in a better way while others
sometimes become even dysfunctional.
Caitanya
Vallabha Prabhu:
From
his Janmastami announcements:
By
bathing the Lord, we bathe our heart.
Jahnava
Devi Dasi:
There
are six human needs. These
are needs, not wants or desires, but needs:
1.
Certainty/Security
2.
Uncertainty/Variety
3.
Significance
4.
Love
and Connection
5.
Growth
6.
Contribution
Individually
we find different ways of satisfying these needs.
We
can meet them in either positive or negative ways.
Positive
ways are empowering. Negative ways are disempowering.
Ideally,
we should satisfy needs in ways that are good for us, good for others
and good for society.
Certainty
Good ways to get certainty:
associate
with competent people
to
plan ahead
Bad ways to get certainty:
addiction
If
you hear people criticize others, you can say that the topic makes
you feel uncomfortable and suggest that we might talk about something
more uplifting.
Comment:
Sometimes people do something to achieve significance, but then they
lodge themselves in an organization where they are no longer the best
person for the job.
Sometimes
we have the problem of worrying about what we can’t do, rather than
focusing on what we can do and doing it nicely.
It
is revealing to ask ourselves how we are meeting these needs.
Srila
Prabhupada shows in this quote how one can meet the need for variety
in Krishna consciousness: “In my room I have a mrdanga so I
play it for a while. When I get tired of that, I do some translation.
When I finish with that, I sing a song on the harmonium. Then I have
correspondence to do. I have one activity after another, all
connected to Krishna.”
People
want a soulmate. Previously God was the soulmate. Now people look for
another human being to fulfill that role which is unrealistic. Also
formerly there were extended families that helped fulfill the need
for connection.
Comment
by a disciple of Srila Prabhupada: People confuse sex and love, and
they think that by engaging in sex they will fulfill their need for
love which is not true. At Radhadesh, one man who had been married
for 35 years was becoming a devotee and wanted to give up sex but his
wife concluded he did not love her, so he bought her flowers, he went
on walks with her, and he had conversations with her, and he told us
that she felt more loved than previously when they were engaging sex
but did not really get to know each other.
There
are vehicles that meet many needs both positive and negative. For
example, someone may take drugs because they experience certainly,
variety, and a kind of perverted connection with themselves.
Comment
by me: Harinama
meets
a lot of needs. The need for variety, significance, and love and
connection are all met by harinama.
Comment
by Laksminatha Prabhu: Actually all the six needs are met by
harinama.
Donald
Trump is quintessential example of a perverse need for significance.
Comment
by Mahatma Prabhu: Not only are we loving Krishna through our sadhana
but
we are loving ourselves.
Comment
by Gokulananda Prabhu: You grow by helping others grow.
I
know that when you help your child grow, you grow so much.
Taking
responsibility, you grow. That is a very good one.
You
can inquire from others in what ways you need to grow.
Comment
by Mahatma Prabhu: One exercise is to ask a question, and then try to
come up with twenty answers.
Comment
by Gaura Prabhu: One neurologist says to always to learn new things is a way
to avoid Alzheimer’s disease.
You
may not be able to get certainty to the extent you want, so you may
prioritize love and connection, and through pursuing love and
connection, you may find your needs for certainty met in that way.
Most
of us focus primarily on two of the six needs. These two prevail over
all others and become the primary driving force in our lives. These
two needs are experienced so intensely that we will do almost
anything to satisfy them.
[I
thought about it and realized that certainty is very important to me, and
if it is not there, I am very uneasy. Contribution is also a big
need. If I am in a situation, and I cannot see how I can contribute,
I would rather be somewhere else, where I can.
It
was illuminating to hear which of the six needs people felt were most
important, and to see how different many people are from me. – KKD]
The
way we prioritize our needs is not out of our control. If you are
unhappy in a significant area of your life, it’s time to reflect on
what your two most important human needs really are. You might then
realize that the way you currently prioritize your needs is not
conducive to your well-being or happiness.
For
example, you might have certainty at the top of your list, and you
might think that because you have a great deal of uncertainty, for
instance, financially, certainty has to be at the top. But that is
not necessarily the case. Many people live with great uncertainty,
and yet they make love and connection their first priority. You can
do that too. You can choose, for example, to put love or contribution
at the top of your list, and you can decide to let love flow from you
no matter how little certainty there is in your life.
Exercise:
Note
your top two needs? Of these two, which one is your top need?
Why
are the two you chose most important?
Are
these needs serving you well?
Can
these top two needs be met right now? Do you need to change
priorities?
From
Following Srila Prabhupada, Volume 1:
On
Srila Prabhupada’s Vyasa-puja Day at ISKCON London, they played the
DVD Following Srila Prabhupada, Volume
1. I took some notes on that:
?:
The
thing that attracted me most was his certainty.
Prabhupada
dasa:
Swamiji
told me, “Simply
join us and that will solve all your problems.”
When
I left he said, “Please come back.”
?:
Srila
Prabhupada was so insistent that his lectures be tape recorded that
he would stop speaking and wait for the tape to be reloaded.
?:
I
asked Srila Prabhupada what I could do for him. He said the duty of
the disciple is to assist the spiritual master in his work. I thought
about it and decided his work was his translating. I noticed a
Dictaphone in a shop and bought it for him. That revolutionized his
book production.
Krishna
provides. That was the famous word. Krishna provides. . . . You
always felt that everything would work out if you were with Srila
Prabhupada because everything did work out when you were with Srila
Prabhupada.
Brahmananda
Prabhu:
Regarding
chanting, Srila Prabhupada told me: “You sing in such a way that
you never get tired.”
I
found a cushion in a sofa that someone threw out. I gave it to Srila
Prabhupada and we used it.
We
did not have any money. In the summer when watermelon was abundant
and inexpensive, we would eat the watermelon and cook the rind as a
sabji.
Shyamasundara
Prabhu:
He
seemed to light up the whole room. We could not take our eyes off
him.
Umapati
Swami:
When
Srila Prabhupada spoke he said, “The supreme Absolute Truth is a
person.” When he said that I realized I met my spiritual master.
He
had me dance carrying the picture of Lord Caitanya and His associates
on the first harinama. I set
it down after a while. He asked why I set it down. I said I got tired
of holding it.
I
complained about different things the devotees were doing and he
said, “If you do not like what they are doing, then you set the
example.”
Another
time I complained, he said, “What can be done! They are trying to
serve Krishna.”
?:
He
wanted me to make a large sign with the holy name on for a program in
Tompkins Square Park.
?:
He
liked to turn the globe and talk about sending devotees to different
places.
Sri
Prahlada Prabhu:
From
an address before kirtan at the Mantra Yoga tent at Pol’and’Rock:
If
you chant these three names at any time or in any place, you will be
uplifted to the transcendental platform.
Notes
on Vyasa-puja Offerings
Jai
Nitai Prabhu:
Ranchor
Prime did the interior decoration of the Soho temple, and built the
vyasasana.
He also built the three top stories of this building, which did not
exist when we bought it.
Ranchor
Prime:
From
his Vyasa-puja offering:
As
the years pass, your influence increases more and more because you
are empowered by Krishna.
Krishna
Kripa Das:
namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracarine
nirvisesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine
In one sense it is very difficult to glorify you because you have done so many glorious deeds and have so many glorious qualities, it is not possible to enumerate them all.
On the other hand, it is easy to glorify you, because your glories are so numerous, it is easy to mention the ones most striking to us.
I cannot understand how dear you are to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Lord Caitanya wanted the chanting of His holy name spread to every town and village of the world, and you greatly assisted him by taking the chanting out of India and personally bringing it to all the major countries of the world. Bhaktivinoda Thakura longed for the day when Westerners would take mrdanga and karatalas and chant the holy names in the street, and you made that come to pass. How dear you are to Bhaktivinoda Thakura!
On this day the last few years I have read this excerpt of a letter of you wrote to Sudama in 1972 describing the amazing success of your mission:
“Yes, from the very beginning I went to New York because I thought that Krishna Consciousness is the most important idea in the world, so let me go to that place, New York, which is the most important city in the world, and if I am able to do anything for Krishna and my Spiritual Master, even I am at the fag-end of my life, at least let me try for it there. So my dreams have all come true, and all of you nice boys and girls are getting the credit. When I was alone in your New York, I was thinking, who will listen to me in this horrible, sinful place? All right, I shall stay little longer, at least I can distribute a few of my books, that is something. But Krishna was all along preparing something I could not see, and He brought you to me one by one, sincere American boys and girls, to be trained-up for doing the work of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Now I can see that it is a miracle. Otherwise, your city of New York, one single old man, with only a few books to sell for barely getting eatables, how he can survive, what to speak of introducing God-consciousness movement for saving the humankind? That is Krishna’s miracle. Now I can see it.” (Srila Prabhupada letter to Sudama, December 23, 1972)
You are a perfect example of having absolute faith in the holy name of Krishna.
You chanted Hare Krishna kirtan in Tompkins Square Park and Hippie Hill, and you encouraged your followers to go out every day and chant Hare Krishna in public. In the early days, in London devotees would regularly get arrested, but you encouraged them to persevere and said they would one day be accepted. Last month at the Monthly Sankirtan Festival in Newcastle, two policemen danced with the harinama party!
At the 40th anniversary of Radha-Londonisvara’s installation devotees recalled how daily they would chant from Bury Place to Marble Arch and back four times each day. That amounts to 12.8 miles or 20 km of harinama. So many people were attracted by meeting the blissful devotees on harinama, who appeared to have found the happiness they were also seeking, that they joined the temple. It was so crowded some devotees had to sleep on the stairs or under the sink in the bathroom!
Another example of faith in the holy name is your faith in the chanting of japa. You had faith that if your disciples just chanted sixteen rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra each day, trying to avoid the offenses, and gave up the four pillars of sinful life, in just one lifetime they would become pure devotees of the Lord eligible to attain the spiritual world.
You said you would be most pleased if your followers attained love for Krishna.
You said the love your followers had for you would be tested by how they cooperated together after you disappeared.
You wanted your followers to expand your mission, and if they could not do that, to at least maintain what you had given them.
You wanted many things: temples, restaurants, self-sufficient farm communities, book distribution, harinama, prasadam distribution, gurukula, preaching to the materialistic scientists, doing outreach in colleges, life membership, etc.
On this auspicious day of your appearance, I pray to you that all of your followers might seriously take up these different aspects of mission and successfully work together to both maintain and expand it, and that by pleasing you in this way, they might attain that love for Krishna. Please be merciful and thus empower all of us.
An insignificant servant of your servants,
Krishna Kripa Das
Jhulan-lila dd:
I
see the books coming alive when going out on sankirtana.
We
can feel safe under your protection.
Radha
Ramana Prabhu:
Although
encountering your books thirty years ago, I see I am getting your
mercy by getting more and more enthusiasm to hear your
teachings by reading your books.
Bhaktin
Brily:
Without
you I had nothing. With you I have everything.
I
will follow. Following you the sky is always Krishna blue.
Ananda
Nitai Prabhu:
By
reading Srimad-Bhagavatam
one can destroy all attachments to our dangerous material life.
I
see I am advancing toward that condition, death, which without your
mercy, would be most fearful.
Indian
prabhu, Damo:
Thank
you for your army of preachers to enlighten us.
My
faith and commitment to you have increased hearing of your position
in the guru disciple course.
Gopichandra
Devi Dasi:
This
day is a chance to glorify you and to thank you.
Neither
this temple nor this movement would exist without you.
By
your mercy, your disciples became expert instruments in your hands.
Dayal
Mora Prabhu:
Many
doubted that this mission could be successful, but you had complete
faith.
You
have given us so much hope against the terrible materialistic life.
You
have given us Krishna and your only request was that we take Him into
our hearts, and love the Supreme Lord.
?
dd:
You
taught by your example.
Devotees
do now harinama
four
to six hours in Columbo, Sri Lanka.
Your
glories are endless. Your teachings are priceless. Your mercy is
matchless.
Nama
Sankirtana Prabhu:
Your
faith in the holy name is unlimited.
One
new initiate, who had difficulty in following the vows, approached
you. You said, “I have given you the holy name. What is the
difficulty?”
Once
you said with emotion, “I have captured Krishna. I am holding Him
here for you. Please come.”
Your
kirtan in Tompkins Square Park is an echo of Lord Caitanya
Mahaprabhu. Those who heard it now are spreading it.
When
a book distributor asked about the unique taste of distributing
books, you said, “This is nothing else but the embrace of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.”
Srila
Prabhupada explained the sannyasa
mantra
as meaning, “To always be ready to do the needful for Krishna.”
When
anyone visits an ISKCON temple he always feels welcome and at home.
Whatever
we have, we have been given by you. Let us never forget that. Let us
not forget humility can turn a mouse into tiger and pride can turn a
tiger into a mouse.
Vamsidhara
Prabhu:
You
said you pity those who come to this movement but still retain a
spirit of enjoyment.
Vamsivata
Prabhu:
I
got to know you better waking and dressing your murti
in
the early hours of the morning. You are no longer just a concept.
Focusing on the many details of the service I feel I have obtained a
personal relationship with you.
Attachment
to our master is seen by how we treat those who are servants,
disciples, and followers of our master. They are gem-like
personalities who have made your service their life and soul.
Because
Londonisvara is Vrindavan Krishna, He demands the spontaneous love
that characterizes the devotees in Vrindavan.
Shyam
Govinda Prabhu:
Padayatra
UK was very transformational for us because we were simply doing what
you wanted.
I
feel I am floating in your mercy for so much as been given.
I
wish to be always be a student of your empowered teachings.
-----
This
verse is important to me because it indicates that Krishna, the Lord
in the heart, and the Vedas, are all the same voice. I learned of the
Lord in the heart being brought up as a Quaker, and I was happy to
learn that Krishna and the Vedas are really that same person. The
verse also reminds us of how dependent we are on Krishna. Whatever we
do, without inspiration in the form of knowledge and remembrance by
the Lord, we have no chance of success.
sarvasya
caham
hṛdi sannivisto
mattah
smrtir
jñānam apohanam
ca
vedais
ca sarvair aham eva vedyo
vedanta-krd
veda-vid eva caham
“I
am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance,
knowledge and forgetfulness. By all the Vedas, I am to be known.
Indeed, I am the compiler of Vedanta,
and I am the knower of the Vedas.” (Bhagavad-gita
15.15)