Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 19, No. 1
By Krishna Kripa Das
(January 2023, part one)
New York City and Florida
(Sent from Tallahassee, Florida, on January 21, 2023)
Where I Went and What I Did
This year was the most memorable New Year’s Day in my whole life. I led a small party of devotees, mostly from ISKCON NYC in Brooklyn, on harinama across the Brooklyn Bridge, to the Hare Krishna tree in Tompkins Square Park, and to ISKCON’s first center at 26 Second Avenue. It was so fulfilling to spend New Year’s Day connecting with those important sacred places frequented by Srila Prabhupada in the early days of his movement. That evening I gave the lecture at the Sunday feast program at Sunanda Prabhu’s Krishna Balaram temple in Queens. The rest of the week I chanted four hours each day with Rama Raya Prabhu’s NYC Harinam party, except Saturday when I left early to do the Gita class at 26 Second Avenue. It is such a treat to chant with people who have such a deep commitment to sharing the holy name. As I sing by myself in Tallahassee, I feel separation from them. The morning of Sunday, January 8, I flew to Miami for their Ratha-yatra that afternoon in Coconut Grove’s Mango Strut Parade. I chanted Hare Krishna at Florida International University the next day, at University of South Florida in Tampa for three days after that, and at Florida State University in Tallahassee for two days after Tampa. In Tampa I was blessed to have several friends join me on harinama. Next I spent two days in Gainesville, chanting at Depot Park each day with devotees from Krishna House, and also attending the Sunday feast program in Alachua.
I share notes on Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is and The Nectar of Devotion. I share notes on the Caitanya-bhagavat of Vrindavan Das Thakur with the commentary by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. I share a quote by Bhaktivinoda Thakur from Kalyana-kalpa-taru. I share excerpts from the Free Write Journal of Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami. I share a quote each from Bhakti Vikasa Swami’s Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Vibhava and Sadaputa Prabhu’s Vedic Cosmography and Astronomy. I share notes on classes in New York by Candrasekara Swami, Rama Raya Prabhu, Radhe Shyam Prabhu, and Matanga Prabhu. I shares notes on classes in Tampa by Ramiya and Vivasvan Prabhus, in Alachua by Mitrasena Prabhu, and in Gainesville by Kalakantha Prabhu.
I thank Atmanivedana Prabhu, who maintains the Bhagavad-gita class at 26 Second Avenue, for his very generous donation. I would also like to thank Gadadhara Krishna Prabhu, Madhava Krishna Prabhu, and Bhaktan Deva, all of whom chanted with me at USF in Tampa, for their very kind donations. Thanks to Sunanda Prabhu and Shyam Prabhu of Queens for their donations. Thanks to Rama Raya Prabhu, Elena, Carlos, Ailen, and Joshua for their videos and/or photos of me on harinama.
Itinerary
January 10–mid April: harinama and college outreach in Tallahassee and Tampa
January 28: Ratha-yatra in Gasparilla Parade
February 3: harinama at UF Krishna Lunch and with Alachua devotees
February 4: BIHS program in Gainesville
February 7–9: harinama at USF and Wednesday Bhakti Yoga Society meeting
March 18: St. Augustine Ratha-yatra
April 1: Tallahassee Ratha-yatra
April (3rd week): 3 days of harinama with Sankarsana Prabhu in Washington, D.C.
April 27: King’s Day in Amsterdam
May 4: Nrsimha Caturdasi festival at Simhachalam in Bavaria, Germany
May 20: Newcastle Monthly Sankirtana Festival
May 27: Baltimore Ratha-yatra
June 10: New York Ratha-yatra
July and August: harinama in France
Chanting Hare Krishna in New York City
On New Year’s Day, the temperature was in the low 50s (10–12 degrees C), warm enough that we could chant outside. I was very happy to find some friends to sing with me, as Rama Raya Prabhu’s party does not chant in public on Sundays.
Here I stand with Ryan, who moved into the ashram recently.
I led kirtan on the way to the bridge, then Arjunananda Prabhu, and finally, Maryrose, took over. I could not film the first two kirtans as I was playing instruments.
Here Maryrose chants Hare Krishna on Brooklyn Bridge on New Year’s Day (https://youtu.be/ScxmZGDxSo0):
Here is a longer landscape video of her kirtan on the bridge (https://youtu.be/M1_hhmoYbEU):
Here I chant Hare Krishna at the Brooklyn Bridge subway station on the uptown platform, en route to Astor Place to do harinama to Tompkins Square Park and the Hare Krishna Tree there (https://youtu.be/saVB_aLSYVQ):
At Tompkins Square Park, we chanted Hare Krishna and read from the description of the first kirtan there in Srila Prabhupada-lilamrita. It is always so ecstatic to read that section there.
Here Maryrose chants Hare Krishna under the Hare Krishna Tree at Tompkins Square Park on New Year’s Day (https://youtu.be/dkRohvSaWtI):
Here is another video from the Hare Krishna Tree in landscape orientation (https://youtu.be/yrSIA01kZjo):
When we arrived at 26 Second Avenue, we found some NYU students who were looking in the window. They were happy to find out that we had the key and could let them in, and they participated in the kirtan, some playing the shakers that I passed out.
Here Maryrose chants Hare Krishna at 26 Second Avenue on New Year’s Day with devotees from ISKCON NYC and students from NYU (https://youtu.be/l2TUltrh_Yk):
I had seen Maryrose often on NYC Harinam, but she just chanted the response. Apparently from seeing these videos of her leading kirtan on harinama, Rama Raya Prabhu, began to invite her to sing.
Amrita chants Hare Krishna at Times Square subway station above the downtown A train (https://youtu.be/QMfxlJuEKDk):
Kearston chants Hare Krishna at Times Square above the downtown A train (https://youtu.be/naG5BFJMAEQ):
While Kearston chanted Hare Krishna, a passersby danced (https://youtu.be/-cbKwfTvoCg):
Rama Raya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Times Square subway station, and several people dance (https://youtu.be/hvK_SlM5e7Q):
Jagaddhatri Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna at Atlantic Avenue / Barclays Center subway station (https://youtu.be/Ddy5ouTWiPA):
One lady talked to the devotees at the book table, and then sat down and played the shakers in the kirtan for awhile.
Here Divyangi Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna at Atlantic / Barclays, and that lady plays shakers (https://youtu.be/orwnvD1unpk):
Kearston chants Hare Krishna chants Hare Krishna there too (https://youtu.be/iDtKb-7HusU):
Natabara Gauranga Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Atlantic Avenue / Barclays Center subway station (https://youtu.be/cjFJy-q0JLY):
Bhakta Nate Prabhu chants Hare Krishna there also (https://youtu.be/01isHE7ztM4):
Sometimes the deities look more beautiful than usual. January 4 was such a day.
That was also the day that Candrasekhara Swami led a lively Tulasi kirtan (https://youtu.be/PcAy72wFgqI):
Divyangi Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna at Times Square, and a passerby plays a bass guitar (https://youtu.be/ZxFVq-HXQZg):
Ishan Thakura chants Hare Krishna in Times Square, and a guy plays shakers (https://youtu.be/XF4-k-UMvwE):
Divyangi Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna at Fulton Street, a little girl really enjoys playing the shakers, and I try to interest passersby in Krishna consciousness (https://youtu.be/omp7yQy2w6w):
While I chanted Hare Krishna at Fulton Street, Jagaddhatri and Sevika Devi Dasis danced (https://youtu.be/bdqiSIsbFxo):
Bader Soma chants Hare Krishna at Jackson Heights / Roosevelt Avenue subway station in Queens (https://youtu.be/ZaAaThvKcW8):
Priya Krishna Prabhu chanted Hare Krishna at Jackson Heights too (https://youtu.be/cxPoyP67A_Y):
I also chanted Hare Krishna there in Jackson Heights, and several people danced (https://youtu.be/U94yEXmOSBk):
Maryrose chants Hare Krishna at Jackson Heights / Roosevelt Avenue subway station in Queens (https://youtu.be/xkub8t_QLeM):
Rama Raya Prabhu chants the final Hare Krishna kirtan at Jackson Heights (https://youtu.be/mrdcwIJcjzU):
Natabara Gauranga Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at the Times Square subway station above the 7 Train (https://youtu.be/fxYZdPycdDg):
I also chanted Hare Krishna there at Times Square for the final time during this visit to New York City, a family played shakers, and others interacted positively (https://youtu.be/oRdyKmBEP5E):
Just as I was about to queue up to board my American Airlines flight to Miami for the Ratha-yatra that day, an airline employee asked me to play a tune on my harmonium to cheer her up because she had a bad day. I was surprised; 6:40 a.m. is early to have had bad day! She explained that she had two bosses, a good one and a bad one, and that she just had some negative dealings with the bad one. I played and chanted one mantra of each part of a two-part Hare Krishna tune, and she said, “Thank you. You have vastly improved my day!” 🙂
When Jayadhvaja Prabhu visited New York in June for our Ratha-yatra, he invited me to the Miami Ratha-yatra, and I was happy to be able to attend.
Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at the beginning of Miami Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/mpp0RBbVDXI):
Onlookers delighted in playing my shakers during the Miami Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/QrflZiYePkw):
The older lady wearing red with the blue shakers bought them from me for $20 although in Mayapur I bought them for $0.28! I told her I was not interested in selling them because they came all the way from India and thus it was difficult for me to replace them, but she insisted and made an offer I couldn’t refuse!
Laksmi Nrsimha Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Miami Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/6Kr3P4hHz0w):
Devotees chant Hare Krishna in Miami Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/dS9Mq-26LDc):
Nandini Kishori Devi Dasi dances with onlookers during Miami Ratha-yatra, thus increasing their devotional service and their joy (https://youtu.be/rlhke4kqJSg):
Interesting characters with costumes of their own joined the Miami Ratha-yatra procession (https://youtube.com/shorts/8_yulrr5RFQ?feature=share):
Young devotee lady chants Hare Krishna at the end of the Miami Ratha-yatra (https://youtu.be/ZHJ3l5Adxtg):
Onlookers enjoy dancing to Miami Ratha-yatra Hare Krishna kirtan (https://youtu.be/iCUO8G9Xdr8):
Members of a band called Roadkill enjoy jamming with the Hare Krishnas after the Mango Strut Parade ends (https://youtu.be/TAq0dS9ASso):
Devotees chant Hare Krishna after Mango Strut Parade ends while walking toward the ISKCON temple in Coconut Grove (https://youtu.be/zLKf2mVVYzM):
One young man was distraught because his girlfriend left for work in an angry mood, although he had treated her so nicely that day. In that distressed state he met the devotees chanting back to the ISKCON temple and decided to join them.
I met him at the temple, and I told him we were going to have lunch at the ISKCON Miami Outreach center a few blocks away, and he decided to come. As I like to do three hours of harinama each day and I was a bit short, I played harmonium and chanted during the fifteen-minute walk. He joined me in chanting, having some familiarity with yoga, and took some video of us. After taking prasadam and talking with the devotees, the distress caused by his girlfriend’s angry mood had completely vanished. I mentioned to him that that shows how powerful our spiritual practice is, and that the best possible outcome would be if he and his girlfriend could take it up.
A devotee named Jiva Goswami Prabhu has a portable pizza oven, and he came to ISKCON Miami Outreach to supplement the lunch prasadam.
Some friends gave me some of his pizza, and the sauce and crust were better than any pizza I had had in recent memory.
The next day I chanted Hare Krishna in Miami by myself at Florida International University South Campus near the Green Library (https://youtu.be/4D9fwkUgqjk):
It was a new college for me, and I was happy to find a busy location with no competition and no restriction by authorities. I met several nice students, including Ailen, who took this video.
When I got to Tampa I found a couple Polish friends I knew from Ireland were staying their briefly after having worked malls for the Christmas season for my friend, Kishor Prabhu, and they were both very happy to do harinama with me. Here the most enthusiastic in kirtan of the two, Gadadhara Krishna Prabhu, chants Hare Krishna at University of South Florida Library (https://youtu.be/nHShgPCMEsc):
Gadadhara Krishna Prabhu chants Hare Krishna near the University of South Florida College of Education the next day (https://youtu.be/uMOj1--qe48):
Gadadhara Krishna Prabhu chants at the weekly USF Bhakti Yoga Society program on Wednesday evening (https://youtu.be/gyw3Kx99o7A):
Bhaktan Deva took a video in portrait orientation of me dancing in that kirtan (https://youtube.com/shorts/dwxWDudPxi0?feature=share):
Gadadhara Krishna Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at University of South Florida Library the next day, when we had the good fortune of having Rayn Mataji to play the drum (https://youtu.be/ivsZlSJB4ew):
Carlos, a traveling book distributor, took this video (https://youtu.be/47a7PisnDCU):
Later I propped my phone up against the library sign, and I took this video (https://youtu.be/XDL_3WlilTs):
I chanted Hare Krishna the next two days in Tallahassee at Florida State University in front of the main library.
I decided to distribute the leftover pineapple coconut halava from Krishna Lunch, and I was happily surprised that one day 23 people were willing to accept it.
I went to Gainesville Sunday and Monday as I did not think I could get anyone to join me in chanting in the Martin Luther King March in Tallahassee. I did it once before in Tallahassee, and only one devotee joined me. In Gainesville, I could chant in Depot Park on Sunday, and also attend the Sunday feast program in Alachua, and then chant in the Martin Luther King March on Monday.
I was happy some devotees from Krishna House were willing to sing with me on Sunday.
Here Kevin of Krishna House chants Hare Krishna at Depot Park in Gainesville (https://youtu.be/gEn1rVXjH7g):
Here is video of that in portrait orientation (https://youtu.be/_G51pdI87K8):
Here Bada Haridas Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Alachua Sunday Feast (https://youtu.be/oOYTNFxwxNQ):
I was amazed during that Sunday afternoon I spent in Alachua County, I met four devotees I knew from the UK! Lila Purusottama Prabhu, who I knew as Lucas, and who let me stay at his place in Edinburgh, Cintamani Devi Dasi, who I knew as Cammy, and who met devotees in Newcastle, England. Shyamamayi Devi Dasi, who I did harinama with in Belfast, and Mokshalakshmi Devi Dasi, the wife of Parasurama Prabhu, whose many festivals and harinamas I attended in the UK and Scandinavia.
For years on Martin Luther King Day, there would be a program at noon at the Bo Diddley Plaza which would end at 12:45 or 1 p.m., and then there would be the march. This year, however, the program only lasted fifteen minutes, and thus by the time we caught up to the march, it was already over. Thus we decided to chant again in Depot Park.
Here Christina of Krishna House chants Hare Krishna at Depot Park in Gainesville on Martin Luther King Day (https://youtu.be/Gobea2mR5x4):
Later Prabhupada Priya Devi Dasi led the Hare Krishna chant there (https://youtu.be/DRqN770VOZ4):
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
From Bhagavad-gita 4.36, purport:
“Proper understanding of one’s constitutional position in relationship to Krishna is so nice that it can at once lift one from the struggle for existence which goes on in the ocean of nescience. This material world is sometimes regarded as an ocean of nescience and sometimes as a blazing forest. In the ocean, however expert a swimmer one may be, the struggle for existence is very severe. If someone comes forward and lifts the struggling swimmer from the ocean, he is the greatest savior. Perfect knowledge, received from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the path of liberation. The boat of Krishna consciousness is very simple, but at the same time the most sublime.”
From Bhagavad-gita 4.38, purport:
“There is nothing so sublime and pure as transcendental knowledge. Ignorance is the cause of our bondage, and knowledge is the cause of our liberation. This knowledge is the mature fruit of devotional service, and when one is situated in transcendental knowledge, he need not search for peace elsewhere, for he enjoys peace within himself.”
From Bhagavad-gita 5.2, purport:
“As long as one is engaged in activities aimed at improving the standard of bodily comfort, one is sure to transmigrate to different types of bodies, thereby continuing material bondage perpetually.”
“Renunciation is complete when it is in the knowledge that everything in existence belongs to the Lord and that no one should claim proprietorship over anything. One should understand that, factually, nothing belongs to anyone. Then where is the question of renunciation? One who knows that everything is Krishna’s property is always situated in renunciation. Since everything belongs to Krishna, everything should be employed in the service of Krishna.”
From Bhagavad-gita 15.5, purport:
“One has to get out of this false notion that human society is the proprietor of this world. When one is freed from such a false notion, he becomes free from all the false associations caused by familial, social and national affections. These faulty associations bind one to this material world. After this stage, one has to develop spiritual knowledge. One has to cultivate knowledge of what is actually his own and what is actually not his own. And when one has an understanding of things as they are, he becomes free from all dual conceptions such as happiness and distress, pleasure and pain. He becomes full in knowledge; then it is possible for him to surrender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
From The Nectar of Devotion, Preface:
“Lord Caitanya’s principle is universal. Anyone who knows the science of Krishna and is engaged in the service of the Lord is accepted as being in a higher position than a person born in the family of a brahmana. That is the original principle accepted by all Vedic literatures, especially the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. The principle of Lord Caitanya’s movement in educating and elevating everyone to the exalted post of a gosvami is taught in The Nectar of Devotion.”
“A living entity cannot steadily remain either in sense enjoyment or in renunciation. Change is going on perpetually, and we cannot be happy in either state because of our eternal constitutional position.”
“Bhakti-rasa, however, the mellow relished in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, does not finish with the end of life. It continues perpetually and is therefore called amrita, that which does not die but exists eternally. This is confirmed in all Vedic literatures.”
“Adoption of bhakti-rasa, or Krishna consciousness, will immediately bring one to an auspicious life free from anxieties and will bless one with transcendental existence, thus minimizing the value of liberation. Bhakti-rasa itself is sufficient to produce a feeling of liberation because it attracts the attention of the Supreme Lord, Krishna.”
“When the purified senses are employed in the service of the Lord, one becomes situated in bhakti-rasa life, and any action performed for the satisfaction of Krishna in this transcendental bhakti-rasa stage of life can be relished perpetually.”
“The basic principle of the living condition is that we have a general propensity to love someone. No one can live without loving someone else. This propensity is present in every living being. Even an animal like a tiger has this loving propensity at least in a dormant stage, and it is certainly present in the human beings. The missing point, however, is where to repose our love so that everyone can become happy. At the present moment the human society teaches one to love his country or family or his personal self, but there is no information where to repose the loving propensity so that everyone can become happy. That missing point is Krishna, and The Nectar of Devotion teaches us how to stimulate our original love for Krishna and how to be situated in that position where we can enjoy our blissful life.
“In the primary stage a child loves his parents, then his brothers and sisters, and as he daily grows up he begins to love his family, society, community, country, nation, or even the whole human society. But the loving propensity is not satisfied even by loving all human society; that loving propensity remains imperfectly fulfilled until we know who is the supreme beloved. Our love can be fully satisfied only when it is reposed in Krishna. This theme is the sum and substance of The Nectar of Devotion, which teaches us how to love Krishna in five different transcendental mellows.”
“The material comforts of life alone are not sufficient to make us happy. The vivid example is America: The richest nation of the world, having all facilities for material comfort, is producing a class of men completely confused and frustrated in life. I am appealing herewith to such confused men to learn the art of devotional service as directed in The Nectar of Devotion, and I am sure that the fire of material existence burning within their hearts will be immediately extinguished.”
“Missing Krishna means missing one’s self also. Real self-realization and realization of Krishna go together simultaneously.”
From The Nectar of Devotion, Introduction:
“He [Krishna] is the supreme attractive form, and by His universal and transcendental attractive features He has captivated all the gopis, headed by Taraka, Palika, Syama, Lalita, and, ultimately, Srimati Radharani.”
“The author of Bhakti-rasamá¹›ta-sindhu, Srila Rupa Gosvami, very humbly submits that he is just trying to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world, although he humbly thinks himself unfit for this work. That should be the attitude of all preachers of the Krishna consciousness movement, following in the footsteps of Srila Rupa Gosvami. We should never think of ourselves as great preachers, but should always consider that we are simply instrumental to the previous acaryas, and simply by following in their footsteps we may be able to do something for the benefit of suffering humanity.”
“A Krishna conscious person engages his words in preaching the glories of the Lord. This is called kirtana. And by his mind a Krishna conscious person always thinks of the activities of the Lord – as He is speaking on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra or engaging in His various pastimes in Vrindavan with His devotees. In this way one can always think of the activities and pastimes of the Lord. This is the mental culture of Krishna consciousness.”
“From the date of initiation by the spiritual master, the connection between Krishna and a person cultivating Krishna consciousness is established. Without initiation by a bona fide spiritual master, the actual connection with Krishna consciousness is never performed.”
“Any activities done in devotional service, or in Krishna consciousness, are directly under the control of spiritual energy.”
“One who is serious about spiritual life is given by Krishna the intelligence to come in contact with a bona fide spiritual master, and then by the grace of the spiritual master one becomes advanced in Krishna consciousness. In this way the whole jurisdiction of Krishna consciousness is directly under the spiritual energy – Krishna and the spiritual master. This has nothing to do with the material world.”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
From Free Write Journal #228:
“At Viraha Bhavan we don’t take intoxicants or even stay up until midnight for New Year’s. We go to bed early and look forward to every day being a fresh start on a new year. Devotional service is never dull. We don’t have to make up reasons to have parties. In the spiritual world, every day is a festival. We try to make every day suitable for saying, ‘Happy New Year!’”
From Wild Garden:
“I have always been blessed with undoubting faith, as have many ISKCON devotees, in Srila Prabhupada. I pray to sustain it. I may deepen, mature, reconsider, and that’s not unfaithful. But I will never leave the lotus feet of Abhay Caranaravinda Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada. As Govinda dasa says, bhajahu re mana sri-nanda-nandana-abhaya-caranaravinda-re. Taking shelter of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami means taking shelter of the lotus feet of Krishna. May he keep us there despite our foolishness. And may we teach this to others.”
“When you gain realization and attachment (asakti), then you don’t notice whether it’s cold or not. You don’t find satisfaction in long spells of tamasic sleep. You don’t notice what clothes you are wearing. You always think of Krishna and serve Him and weep.
“It’s like the difference between thinking about quenching your thirst and actually drinking water. We can therefore conclude we are thirsty and unsatiated. We only repeat what we have heard. But we have faith.
“Can we attain realization by keeping company with those who have realization? Yes, to some extent. But we have to practice and one day, in some lifetime, attract Krishna’s mercy.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 4:
“I remember Swamiji sharing an apple with us as the last act of the evening at 26 Second Avenue. When he said, ‘All right,’ it meant we had to leave. It was sad. Although we had just had such a nice meeting, it had to end, just like everything else in the material world. ‘All right,’ those souls who want to can return to their maya in Manhattan.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 2:
“Swamiji’s Converts
“When I speak of my own conversion, I may also speak for other devotees who joined with me at this time. One thing we all had in common is that we were suffering from material life and we admitted it. Prabhupada said that what he was teaching would bring us freedom from anxiety. We wanted that. Swamiji himself appeared to be free of anxiety, and he was ‘fixed.’ He said that we could do it just by chanting Hare Krishna. We tried it, and when we did not feel much change, Prabhupada would assure us, ‘You will, eventually.’ He told us to be patient.
“But for ourselves, did we experience anything? Yes, undoubtedly; something. I attained release from my bad personal habits and addictions. This was something tangible; I knew for sure. In a more general sense, I also experienced a new meaning to life, a willingness to be part of the adventure of living and hearing from the Swami. To speak psychologically, I would say that Krishna consciousness fulfilled a deep need in my psyche, a desire to be like a monk, someone who would seriously approach a guru. I had perhaps never thought of it exactly in those terms, but I had read about it in novels like Hermann Hesse’s The Glass Bead Game and Siddhartha. The idea of discipleship was not entirely strange to me. These are some of the things that the Swami had going for him in his battle against our cynicism—the battle to save souls, to convert us.
“When I heard about the 16,000 wives, I blurted out, ‘I can’t accept this.’
“Prabhupada replied, ‘You cannot? The greatest scholars cannot.’ My doubt aroused his concern. There I was, another ignorant person who could not accept Krishna. Why did not I accept Him? ‘Why don’t you believe it?’ This was another strength of Prabhupada’s—he could answer questions with cool logic, but he was also deeply involved in what he said. He was more involved in his conviction than you were in your doubt.”
From Free Write Journal #229:
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 4:
“Prabhupada came and set the example for preaching in this city. We have to follow. When he first arrived, no one was interested in Krishna. If it seems difficult now to impress Krishna consciousness, just imagine how much more difficult it was when there was no precedent for accepting ‘the foreign God.’”
Vrndavana Dasa Thakura:
From Caitanya-bhagavat, Adi-khanda 17.51‒52:
[Lord Caitanya said to Isvara Puri:] “If one offers oblations to the forefathers in a holy place, then the forefathers are delivered. But one delivers only he to whom the oblation was offered. By seeing you, however, millions of forefathers are immediately freed from material bondage.”
From Caitanya-bhagavat, Adi-khanda 17.105–110:
“On another day the Lord went privately to Isvara Puri and in sweet words requested him for initiation.
“Isvara Puri replied, ‘What to speak of mantra, I can give my life to You.’
“Then in order to instruct everyone, the Lord accepted the ten syllable mantra from Isvara Puri.
“The Lord then circumambulated Isvara Puri and said, ‘I fully surrender Myself unto you. Please glance mercifully on Me, so that I may float in the ocean of love of Krishna.’
“Hearing the Lord’s words, Sri Isvara Puri embraced Him.”
Bhaktivinoda Thakura:
From Kalyana-kalpa-taru:
“The real benefit of visiting any holy place is to achieve the association of the pure-hearted devotees of the Lord living there. Establishing intimate and friendly relations with such great souls, let your heart be captivated by performing the charming worship of Lord Krishna in their association. Wherever the Lord’s devotees are living, that place becomes a place of pilgrimage. Therefore you should become fixed by constantly remaining in the company of such devotees.”
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura:
From Caitanya-bhagavat, Adi-khanda 17.44, purport:
“Understanding that these lotus feet of the Lord [Vishnu as Gadadhara] had appeared in the material world [at Gaya] to give pious persons who are free from the clutches of impersonalism an opportunity to serve the Lord’s lotus feet, the Lord [Caitanya Mahaprabhu] became overwhelmed with the eight transformations of ecstatic love.”
“The eight transformations of ecstatic love manifested in the body of the Lord as a result of seeing the lotus feet of Gadadhara marked the beginning of His propagation of loving devotional service.”
From Caitanya-bhagavat, Adi-khanda 17.50, purport:
“Just by seeing the spiritual master, one’s unauthorized, mundane, sensual, argument-based knowledge is checked and the topmost shining glories of devotional service manifest in the heart.”
From Caitanya-bhagavat, Adi-khanda 17.66, purport:
“It is seen that pilgrims offer excessive respect and donations to the priests at Gaya. What to speak of this, the foolish, most greedy pandas of Gaya have pilgrims worship their feet with flowers and tulasi leaves and thus accumulate grave offenses. That is why the Lord, rather than encouraging such offensive activities, satisfied the pandas simply with sweet words.”
From Caitanya-bhagavat, Adi-khanda 17.105, purport:
“By the influence of mantra-diksa, a living entity attains freedom from the bondage of material existence. Then, by attaining perfection in chanting one’s mantra, knowledge of the Lord and His holy names awakens in one’s heart and one becomes qualified to serve the lotus feet of Krishna.”
“In the advanced stage of uttama-adhikari, the principle of neglecting those who are averse to the Lord is slackened and, as a result, one obtains indirect cultivation of Krishna consciousness by which the conception that everything in the world is meant for the service of Krishna awakens and thus one always and everywhere continually remembers the Lord.”
Bhakti Vikasa Swami:
From Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Vaibhava:
“In the early days of the mission Srila Sarasvati Thakura occasionally led kirtana; however, not being very musically adept, later on he did not lead kirtana or play instruments but simply joined in singing with others. He would say, ‘If you don’t know how to sing, open your lips anyway and recite the holy name. Even if you don’t sing expertly, chanting the name is kirtana.’ He spelled out the necessity and method of performing Hari-kirtana: Hari-kirtana is the perpetual and natural function of all the faculties of the jiva in the state of freedom from all affinities to this changeable world, because the Absolute Truth is identical with Hari. Hari has to be served exclusively, constantly, and by all faculties of the soul. The only function of the voice is to chant Hari-kirtana, which is nondifferent and inseparable from simultaneous service to Hari by all the other senses. One who does not employ his voice incessantly and exclusively in chanting Hari-kirtana has no access to Hari-seva by any other means. Therefore Hari-kirtana must be chanted while being humbler than a blade of grass. There can be no streak of worldly vanity or seeking after any worldly advantage. The only object should be to please Hari.”
Candrasekhara Swami:
Simhika, the sister of Prahlada, is the mother of Rahu and Ketu.
Some people ask, “Why doesn’t God eliminate all the demons once and for all?”
And some accuse God of being nonexistent because there is evil in this world, or of having sadistic tendencies and enjoying seeing people suffer. Neither are true.
The demons have a role in giving people their bad karma.
Physicalism is materialism that includes the energies that physics studies in addition to matter.
One who is fixed in physicalism has to deny all kinds of supernatural phenomena, such as ghosts, UFOs, out-of-body experiences, past life memories, remote viewing, ESP, etc. And usually we have all encountered at least one of these so it is hard to find a pure physicalist.
That science has so little to say about something as fundamental as consciousness is an embarrassment for the scientists.
Q: How can one have faith in the Vedic literature with all its supernatural elements?
A: The Vedic literature deals with many fields of knowledge in a consistent way, it is followed by many people, and it is ancient, and thus it is worthy of being considered. If you follow the path of self-realization described in it, you will become happy, and that is something you can verify yourself.
Comment (by Narada Muni Prabhu): Devamrita Swami makes the point to scientists that we are presenting a science, and that to reject it without making an experiment is dishonest.
Hansarupa Prabhu:
In 2008 NPR did a story called “What You Need to Know About Hare Krishnas”:
Mitrasena Prabhu:
I read to an elderly lady who had never encountered Krishna before from the Srimad-Bhagavatam sections on Krishna’s leaving Hastinapura and Krishna’s entering Dvaraka. After about twenty minutes I said that the Bhagavatam shows you Krishna and then takes Him away, and that in this way, one comes to understand that meeting with and separation from Krishna are nondifferent. Hearing that, she surprised me by replying, “It’s working.”
In Srimad-Bhagavtam 1.11.26, Srila Prabhupada quotes the Rupa Goswami song Krishna Deva Bhavantam Vande, an important song that we do not often sing.
Kalakantha Prabhu:
After George Harrison recorded the devotees chanting Hare Krishna and other songs, all the devotees were crashed out because it was about 2 a.m. Yamuna played “Bhajahu Re Mana” on the harmonium from memory as she had heard many times tapes of Srila Prabhupada singing it. George recorded it and told Yamuna he would put it on the album.
The love in this world brings us happiness and distress.
The things other than Krishna that we invest our love in are not going to give us the happiness we desire.
It is important to understand the things of this world will not satisfy us.
We have to recognize that we are addicted to sense gratification.
To be respected is the most powerful sense gratification, and thus Lord Caitanya advises humility.
We have to stimulate our intelligence through the philosophy and then use our intelligence to control our minds to get beyond our material habits.
The material tendency is to think, “If you scratch my back, I will scratch yours,” whereas the devotee thinks, “What can I do to enhance your experience of life?”
Initiation means I am not going to try to enjoy the four forbidden activities any more this life.
We have to know where we are going, just like when we travel we need to know our destination to type it into our GPS.
In my experience there is no more intoxicating taste than sharing Krishna consciousness with others.
Beginning to trust Krishna indicates a development of love.
Comments by me:
Happiness in the mode of passion is like nectar in the beginning and poison in the end. People in the mode of passion remember the nectar in the beginning and are excited to go for it, but the people in the mode of goodness remember the poison in the end and thus have no interest in it.
Ceto darpana is quoted by Srila Prabhupada 553 times, indicating how important he considered the process of sankirtana to be in cleansing our consciousness.
Prayer can help us to become free from material attachment and to become attached to the spiritual. In The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 9, there is one such prayer, “My Lord, I know that young girls have natural affection for young boys, and that young boys have natural affection for young girls. I am praying at Your lotus feet that my mind may become attracted unto You in the same spontaneous way.” Imagine if you recited that every day for a year!
Ramiya Prabhu:
Our spiritual identity is what we are deep inside throughout all the changing situations we have experienced.
By adopting the yoga lifestyle we attain deep internal peace.
Vivasvan Prabhu:
Srila Prabhupada criticized modern society for its absorption in breaking and building.
Bhaktivinoda Thakura said that the material advancement of society is not good as it distracts from self-realization.
Some traditions consider there is a evil being called Satan, but how can God have an opponent who He cannot overcome? They do not have an answer for that.
Our conception of equal rights is that we give everyone a chance to go back to Godhead.
Srila Prabhupada said if you start a temple and no one comes, then go on to the next city.
Devotional service is to the spiritual master and Krishna. The spiritual master informs us of Krishna, so we can serve Him.
It is important for us to be fully engaged in devotional service because just see what we do with our time when we do not fully engage in devotional service!
I was living with some hippies, and it was not so much fun. The devotees gave me some broken beads, and I chanted on them and I felt so blissful. The devotees suggested I live in the temple, so I hitchhiked home and got my knapsack and moved in. A few days my friends came and asked me to pay my part of the rent. I showed them in The Nectar of Devotion where it says that one who completely dedicates himself to Krishna is no longer indebted to anyone. They said, “Whatever.” and left.
People say I am a one-man show, but because I have to do everything to maintain this temple, I have very little time for maya, so it is actually good.
Kali-yuga is a great field for distributing Krishna consciousness because everyone is in maya.
Listen to the brahmanas, cooperate with the ksatriyas, work with the vaisyas, and engage the sudras.
ISKCON is like a corporation and people see becoming sannayasis and gurus as getting a promotion, but it is not like that. Those positions are to be attained by realization.
Srila Prabhupada’s reputation is all over the world. All over the world people are aware of his ISKCON.
We have dreams at night. What we experience during the day is also a dream but stretched out longer.
By saying “no one comes to the Father but through me,” Jesus was stressing the importance of accepting a spiritual master.
This Bhagavad-gita is really meant for politicians. Arjuna was a politician. Politicians are meant for organizing society.
Srila Prabhupada considered it would be austere and inconvenient in New Vrindaban in the beginning but that they should keep the vision of simple living and high thinking, and ultimately success would be there.
Srila Prabhupada kept a picture of his guru on his desk.
We have to recognize Krishna as the supreme scientist because all the scientists are getting their knowledge from Him although they do not admit it.
Srila Prabhupada would have people get initiated after following the temple program for six months. If you could continue it for a year, you could get second initiation.
I got second initiated with Adi-kesava and Niranjana, and in the initiation letter, Srila Prabhupada stressed that only serious people can get second initiation.
One devotee blooped and Srila Prabhupada said, “He should never have been initiated.”
Srila Prabhupada often told the GBC men, “You are not the controllers of the temples. You are the advisors of the temple.” One GBC man could not remove a person from a position. Rather the whole GBC body should discuss the situation.
In 1976 in Mayapur, I heard Srila Prabhupada say, “So the brahmacaris want to get married, and the grhasthas want to take sannyasa. This is maya.”
Sadaputa Prabhu:
From Vedic Cosmography and Astronomy:
“The learned say the circumference of Manasottara Mountain is 95,100,000 yojanas.” The meaning [of Manasottara] is: manasas means “the moon.” Uttarah means “others beyond the moon, up to Saturn.”
Rama Raya Prabhu:
Whether one is situated in bhava or asura-bhava, Krishna is still the loving father of all His children.
As devotees we can travel to different places, but the deity stays in one place.
Some devotees are really fixed in their service to the deity. Vibhu Caitanya never left the compound of the Krishna Balaram temple except once to go to a hospital.
Radha Govinda want Their mission enacted here in NYC and are willing to stay here to make it happen.
The best thing to do at the holy places is to hear and chant about Krishna.
Although the demigods were eager to see the demon Hiranyaksa killed, they appreciated his glorious death by the Lord.
Ultimately, pleasing the spiritual master pleases everyone.
One man, foreseeing the consequences of Hitler attaining power, relocated 669 children from Prague to England before war broke out 1939, and he was glorified for that work. The work of saving people from the cycle of birth and death by giving them the topmost love of God is far greater work.
Srila Prabhupada said regarding Vrindavan, seven days of parikrama and then full service. The idle mind is the devil’s workshop.
Srila Prabhupada said, “Vrindavan is for inspiration only. Our real work is the West.”
Vrindavan is for renounced and retired life.
Radhe Shyam Prabhu:
I appreciate ISKCON NYC for the daily harinama sankirtana and the outreach to young people.
The vibrant atmosphere exists because of people following Srila Prabhupada’s program.
If a species becomes extinct, the scientists cannot recreate it.
The Cambrian explosion cannot be explained.
God is one from whom everything emanates. If someone does not accept that, then ask them what is the source of everything. If they cannot answer, then tell them they must accept our answers, as Srila Prabhupada did.
The Supreme Lord’s compassion is oceanic. He is making so many arrangements, even for people who are inimical to him.
The government provides food and medical treatment for thieves in prisons because the goal is their reformation.
In all religions there are both personal and impersonal descriptions of God.
In om namo bhagavate vasudevaya, om refers to the impersonal feature and bhagavate refers to the personal feature.
The Lord gives more access to Him as one goes from jnani, to yogi, to bhakta. To the atheist He gives no access.
When you see the natural beauty of the birds and the flowers, you get an indication of the heart of the Lord. The order in the universe comes from the intelligence of the Lord.
The scientists are plagerizing that which is from God.
The scientists want to steal the faith of the people which is meant for God.
While material is in contact with Krishna, it is spiritualized.
Comments by me:
Adi is there in nrsimha adim saranam prapadye.
Thanks for quoting Bg. 8.9, which Mahavishnu Goswami of Gujarat liked because it lists so many qualities of Krishna.
When we hear of demigoddesses giving birth to snakes, it is hard to imagine. Sadaputa Prabhu explained that the male demigod would assume the form of a male snake and the female demigod would assume the form of a female snake, and the species of snakes would be produced from the conjugataion of the two snakes. This makes it more conceivable.
The scientist is defying God by using the brain which was created by God. Srila Prabhupada challenged them to make the brain of another scientist.
Because Brahma was the creator of everything in the universe, He concluded the boar who appeared from his nose must be the Lord.
Also Varaha manifested His shyama color, which revealed that He was the Lord.
Akandhita is used to describe Aindra Prabhu’s uninterrupted kirtana in Vrindavan.
*** This ends comments by me. ***
At Advaita Bhavan Srila Prabhupada prayed to Advaita, who induced Lord Caitanya to appear in this world, that He may bring Lord Caitanya in the form of His teachings to the West.
If you have controlled your mind and senses, people will naturally be inclined to listen to you.
I listed all the names of the doctors for the different parts of the body. Then I explained that means each part of the body can give you misery, therefore the body is called klesa-da, or giving misery.
Comments by me:
As Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura did not think the British rule had to end to preach Krishna consciousness, Lord Caitanya Himself did not feel He had to overthrow Muslim rule present during His advent to preach Krishna consciousness.
Q (by me) Is Sadhguru coming in a bona fide succession?
A: He says he has a mystic guru. He takes some knowledge from Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and one or two other gurus. He worships Shiva. Gurus like Sadhguru are bringing people from passion and ignorance to goodness. Then they can come to ISKCON. We do not criticize these gurus. We point out that they are doing something, and we can bring people from that point to the spiritual platform.
Matanga Prabhu:
The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit root yuj which means to connect.
Patanjali, who wrote the yoga-sutras is an incarnation of Ananta-sesa.
Yoga is similar to Sankhya philosophy.
Patanjali explains that the mind can keep us in bondage or give us liberation, and the yoga system is to train the mind to give us liberation.
Citta is the conditioned consciousness.
Rajas and tamas agitate the mind.
One of the niyamas is surrender to the Supreme Lord, isvara-pranadana.
Yamas
a. ahimsa is nonviolence in thought, speech, and action.
b. satyam is truth in thought, speech, and action.
c. asteyam, not stealing in thought, speech, and action, is a negative way of expressing contentment.
Niyamas
a. Saucam is internal and external cleanliness.
b. Santosa is satisfaction.
c. Tapas indicates generation of heat. One is meant to get a taste for a life of austerity.
d. Svadhyaya is study of scripture without blind acceptance or unnecessary doubt.
e. Isvara-pranadana is surrender to the Supreme Lord.
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Now I am reviewing Chapter 9 of Bhagavad-gita. It ends with a famous verse that is almost repeated verbatim in Chapter 18 as verse 65. It lists four simple devotional acts that Krishna recommends:
man-mana bhava mad-bhakto
mam evaisyasi yuktvaivam
atmanam mat-parayanah
“Engage your mind always in thinking of Me, become My devotee, offer obeisances to Me and worship Me. Being completely absorbed in Me, surely you will come to Me.” (Bhagavad-gita 9.34)
