Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 19, No. 6
By Krishna Kripa Das
(March 2023, part two)
Orlando, Tampa, Gainesville, Tallahassee
(Sent from Tallahassee, Florida, on April 1, 2023)
Where I Went and What I Did
The last fifteen days of March I chanted Hare Krishna for two days in Orlando, five days in Tampa, two days in Gainesville and six days in Tallahassee. In Orlando I had a party of six devotees in Blanchard Park on Friday and ten devotees in Lake Eola Park on Saturday.
In Tampa I had a party of four devotees chanting Hare Krishna on the Tampa Riverwalk and during the week I chanted with one or two devotees at the University of South Florida, except the last day when I chanted alone. I also attended the Wednesday evening program on the campus, which I had been advertising. I was so happy to participate in two harinamas on both Friday and Saturday while in Gainesville. I stayed in Tallahassee for the last six days of March, chanting for three hours each day at Landis Green, behind the Florida State University library by myself, and giving out halava and books, and inviting students to take part in our Krishna Lunch and other programs.
I share quotes from Srila Prabhupada’s Srimad-Bhagavatam and from his lectures and conversations. I share quotes from the writings of Bhaktivinoda Thakura and Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. I share quotes from several books by Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami. I share quotes from Back to Godhead magazine articles by Ramanatha Sukha Prabhu and Visakha Dasi. I share notes on lectures by Vivasvan Prabhu in Tampa and Caitanya Carana Prabhu in Gainesville. I share realizations from devotees from Krishna House and from conversations with my friends.
Thanks to Adikarta Prabhu for his generous donation. Thanks to Prishni Devi Dasi of Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies for paying for my bus from Gainesville to Tallahassee. Thanks to Rasika Prabhu of Orlando for giving me the donations he received on harinama there. Many, many thanks to Adi Shyam Prabhu of Krishna House, who repaired my harmonium so nicely it sounds better than it has for at least a year. Thanks to Avinash Prabhu for kindly getting me at the Orlando airport, for letting me stay with him overnight, for driving me around Orlando, and for helping arrange harinamas in the Orlando area. Thanks to Yogamaya Yajna Prabhu for kindly driving me from Orlando to Tampa, and for picking up a friend on the way. Thanks to Vivasvan Prabhu for his accommodation and transportation in Tampa. Thanks to Kaliya Damana Prabhu his accommodation in Tallahassee and for driving me to and from the campus.
Itinerary
April 1–9: Tallahassee harinamas and college outreach
April 10–14: Krishna Lunch harinama and editing Life Comes From Life
April 15: St. Augustine Ratha-yatra
April 16–17: Tampa harinamas
April 18–25: take care of mother in Albany
April 25: NYC Harinam
April 27: King’s Day harinama in Amsterdam
May 4: Nrsimha Caturdasi at Simhacalam?
May 16–23: NYC Harinam
May 24–25: DC harinama with Sankarsana Prabhu
May 26: Baltimore harinama
May 27: Baltimore Ratha-yatra
May 28–June 9: NYC Harinam
June 10: New York Ratha-yatra
June 12–17: take care of mother in Albany
June 18: Hartford Ratha-yatra
June 19: NYC Harinam
June 20: London harinama
June 21–August 14: Paris harinama
August 15: NYC Harinam
August 16: Montreal harinama
August 16–20: Vaishnava Sanga Festival in Canada
August 21: Montreal harinama
Chanting Hare Krishna in Orlando
The day I left New York, the deities looked more striking than usual, so I took a photo of them at mangala-arati.
I was so happy Avinash Prabhu could arrange a three-hour harinama the day I flew into Orlando from LaGuardia, and we had six people at least for some of the time.
The next day, the day of the canceled St. Augustine Ratha-yatra, I decided to do harinama with friends in Orlando as I could count on more people there than in Tampa, and we had ten devotees altogether.
One devotee who came on the harinama, Visvatomukha Prabhu, recalled Rama Raya Prabhu and me from the 55th Street temple in New York in 1979.
While I was taking a video of the harinama, Arjunananda Prabhu, who was visiting from New York, told me some passersby wanted to learn a dance, and so we taught them one (https://youtu.be/-AC9JE1lVo0):
On Sunday we had a party of four devotees chanting at the Tampa Riverwalk.
Here Rayn Mataji chants Hare Krishna there (https://youtu.be/2YN0w4FTeTc):
I have no videos from chanting outside at University of South Florida because I had too few participants, and so I had to play instruments the whole time and could not take videos.
Here Sridhama Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at University of South Florida Bhakti Yoga Club program in Tampa (https://youtu.be/kVzRCeFgZoo):
Aditya, a student at USF in Tampa, originally from India, told me that on the streets of India, you are actually safer being a cow than being a pedestrian.
The last hour of the last day I chanted in Tampa, I met Rafael, a USF student majoring in English. While traveling in Italy in the summer, he was invited by devotees to live in Villa Vrindavan, which he did for three weeks. He would get up at 4 a.m. and go to mangala-arati, and he loved the prasadam. I signed him up for our campus club and told him of the great festivals we have in our Alachua temple, and I gave him a Science of Self-Realization. He already had Bhagavad-gita.
While chanting Hare Krishna at USF, I gave out thirty copies of Science of Self-Realization to students who were willing to scan the QR code to join the WhatsApp group for our Bhakti Yoga Society there.
Chanting Hare Krishna in Gainesville
I got off my bus from Tampa to Tallahassee in Gainesville, seeking more devotees to chant Hare Krishna with, and I wasn’t disappointed. We had nine chanters at Krishna Lunch the next day.
I chanted first and then other devotees chanted one after another.
Here Janadhan chants Hare Krishna at Krishna Lunch at University of Florida in Gainesville (https://youtu.be/wJJgTxGXueo):
Purusartha Prabhu also chanted Hare Krishna there (https://youtu.be/odA2-jJ8xJg):
|Mayur chanted Hare Krishna there, too (https://youtu.be/3qWbZPmXfbY):
Here Abhaya chants Hare Krishna at Krishna Lunch (https://youtu.be/x7zYj8y2T0k):
Rama Govinda Prabhu chanted the last Hare Krishna kirtan at Krishna Lunch that day (https://youtu.be/bIeEQPBrvhg):
That afternoon I joined eighteen devotees from Alachua in chanting across the street from the entrance to the University of Florida. I was impressed that so many devotees came out.
Here Parijata Devi Dasi chants Hare Krishna with Alachua devotees across from the University of Florida entrance (https://youtu.be/2-G4f9KLODc):
Then Rsi Kumar Prabhu chanted Hare Krishna there (https://youtu.be/1ERqk_I1IyE):
Nistha chants Hare Krishna at the beginning of the Krishna House Friday night program (https://youtu.be/i5LlJP-Vmao):
Abhaya chants Hare Krishna at the end of the Krishna House Friday night program (https://youtu.be/uk5HZhRe-rw):
Toward the end of his kirtan, many attendees danced (https://youtu.be/6CeShso0nxE):
Only one devotee from Krishna House was willing to chant with me at Depot Park on Saturday. Another who would have come, had to work to raise money to go to India, and another was ill.
While we were singing a friendly kid from Mexico who spoke English perfectly and looked like he was about eight-years-old passed by on a scooter. He stopped to say he liked our singing very much. I encouraged him to play the shakers, and he did in perfect time for about five minutes straight. As he left he again said he liked the music very much. I gave him “On Chanting Hare Krishna,” saying it contained the words to the song, and he said that he would sing it every day.
Adi Shyam Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at the end of Saranagati Saturday at Krishna House (https://youtu.be/W2ISmGprwC4):
At the end of his kirtan, the devotees danced (https://youtu.be/gWPZw6BwRHw):
In the evening, eight devotees from Krishna House joined me on harinama. Advaita Acharya Prabhu of Croatia led the chanting, and he would encourage people to chant the mantra by inviting them for a thirty-second meditation.
One couple sitting a table waved, cheered, and smiled upon seeing our party of Hare Krishna chanters. The guy told me he remembered hearing us chant at the football games since he was five years old. He also recalled see us at the Gasparilla in Tampa back in January. I gave him “On Chanting Hare Krishna.”
Advaita Acharya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna with Krishna House devotees and a man with a torch dances (https://youtu.be/fLidnahPpQs):
Toward the end of his performance, I took this video in portrait orientation (https://youtube.com/shorts/Nu5rtHSBlrI):
Advaita Acharya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna with Krishna House devotees in downtown Gainesviile, and security guards play instruments (https://youtu.be/asAGRD-LNT0):
Later the security guards chanted the mantra (https://youtu.be/sH_a2taOZwc):
Advaita Acharya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna with Krishna House devotees, and some guys chant the mantra (https://youtu.be/S9bpyumHWJM):
One young lady, who was sitting at table at outdoor cafe with three friends, seemed more attracted to the chanting than the others. When Advaita Acharya Prabhu began his thirty-second meditation, and Kiara passed out mantra cards, she exclaimed, “Oh, its the maha-mantra!” As we left I asked her how she knew about Hare Krishna, and she said she was dating someone who goes to the Alachua temple.
Chanting Hare Krishna in Tallahassee
One guy said he did not want the free dessert, but he wanted me to keep singing because he liked to listen to it. Another guy stopped to listen to a few mantras. A lady said, “You always sing so nicely when I come through.” I said, “We are trying to create a spiritual revolution through divine sound.” I offered her “On Chanting Hare Krishna,” and she accepted it. I felt welcomed back to Tallahassee after my extended spring break of three weeks.
I made peanut butter burfi for Rama Navami, and by the grace of Radharani, it came out the right consistency and everyone liked it.
The recipe was two 13.5 oz. cans of coconut milk, half a cup of coconut oil, one and a half cups of organic sugar, two tablespoons cocoa or carob powder, and one 28 oz. jar of organic peanut butter. You boil everything except the peanut butter together, until it thickens, and then add the peanut butter, and cook it until it is so thick it will harden when cool.
I promote Krishna Lunch at FSU by giving out free cups of halava and wasn’t too happy that the club tabling next me gave out free donuts. After half an hour the lady most enthusiastically giving out the donuts came to my table and asked for some halava. She is a Krishna Lunch regular and likes the halava better than the donuts, and her friends took some too.
Next year she works in Boston, and she happily took a photo of my ISKCON Boston card so she can get Krishna food there.
Maddie, a Christian girl who likes our banana halava, asked if there was something she could pray for this week for me. I told her to pray that my love for the holy name of the Lord might dramatically increase.
One FSU staff employee who regularly talks to me summarized his thoughts on his vegetarianism by saying, “I just don’t want to eat my friends!”
Our vegan assistant in the kitchen told me he became vegetarian during college when he realized that animals had souls. He also said he did not want to eat something that he was unwilling to kill himself.
Here are the statistics for my Tallahassee harinamas in March:
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 9.10.51, purport:
“If people take to this sankirtana movement of chanting Hare Krishna, Hare Rama, they will certainly be freed from the contamination of Kali-yuga, and the people of this age will be happy, as people were in Satya-yuga, the golden age. Anyone, anywhere, can easily take to this Hare Krishna movement; one need only chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, observe the rules and regulations, and stay free from the contamination of sinful life. Even if one is sinful and cannot give up sinful life immediately, if he chants the Hare Krishna maha-mantra with devotion and faith he will certainly be freed from all sinful activities, and his life will be successful. Param vijayate sri-krishna-sankirtanam. This is the blessing of Lord Ramacandra, who has appeared in this Age of Kali as Lord Gaurasundara.”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.1.41, purport:
“By chanting the Hare Krishna mantra constantly, one can fix the mind on the lotus feet of Krishna (sa vai manah krishna-padaravindayoh) and in this way achieve the perfection of yoga. Otherwise, the flickering mind will hover on the platform of mental speculation for sense enjoyment, and one will have to transmigrate from one type of body to another because the mind is trained only in relation to the material elements, or, in other words, to sense gratification, which is false. Maya-sukhaya bharam udvahato vimudhan (Bhag. 7.9.43). Rascals (vimudhan), being controlled by mental speculation, make huge arrangements by which to enjoy life temporarily, but they must give up the body at the time of death, when everything is taken away by Krishna’s external energy (mrityuh sarva-haras caham). At that time, whatever one has created in this life is lost, and one must automatically accept a new body by the force of material nature. In this life one may have constructed a very tall skyscraper, but in the next life, because of one’s mentality, one may have to accept a body like that of a cat, a dog, a tree or perhaps a demigod.”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 10.1.42, purport:
“The Krishna consciousness movement offers the topmost welfare activity for human society. The saner section of human society must therefore take this movement very seriously for the benefit of all humanity. To save oneself from the repetition of birth and death, one must purify his consciousness. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam tat-paratvena nirmalam. One must be freed from all designations — ‘I am American,’ ‘I am Indian,’ ‘I am this,’ ‘I am that’ — and come to the platform of understanding that Krishna is the original master and we are His eternal servants. When the senses are purified and engaged in Krishna’s service, one achieves the highest perfection. Hrisikena hrisikesa-sevanam bhaktir ucyate. The Krishna consciousness movement is a movement of bhakti-yoga. Vairagya-vidya-nija-bhakti-yoga. By following the principles of this movement, one becomes disassociated from material mental concoctions and is established on the original platform of the eternal relationship between the living entity and the Supreme Personality of Godhead as servant and master. This, in summary, is the purpose of the Krishna consciousness movement.”
From “The Proprietor of the Body” in Back to Godhead, Vol. 57, No. 4 (July/August 2023):
[Edited transcript of a lecture on Bhagavad-gita 2.13 in Frankfurt, Germany, on June 18, 1974.]
“You did not create anything. You did not create even your own body. The proprietor of your body is also Krishna, because as soon as Krishna asks you, ‘Please vacate,’ you must vacate immediately. Can you remain in this body?”
“All over the world, these young boys and girls, because they are chanting the Hare Krishna mantra and because they are eating krishna-prasadam, now they are developing their Krishna consciousness. They are not Vedantists. They have not studied all the Vedas. But how are they understanding? If they are not understanding Krishna, how are they sticking to this life? In this life everything is forbidden: no illicit sex, no gambling, no intoxication. Everything “no.” Material life finished. Why are they sticking, unless they are understanding Krishna? This is the proof. The more you stick to this principle, sevonmukhe jihvadau, engaging your tongue in two businesses – chanting Hare Krishna and eating krishna-prasadam – your life will be perfect.”
From “Getting a Permanent Body” in Back to Godhead, Vol. 57, No. 4 (July/August 2023):
[Edited transcript of a conversation in Gorakhpur, India, on February 17, 1971.]
“In this material world the soul is accepting material bodies. And when he becomes a bona fide servant of Krishna, he’ll be offered a spiritual body. As long as a person is not a soldier, he will not be awarded a uniform. But as soon as he accepts service as a soldier, he is given the uniform.”
“For example, if you purchase something cheap, it goes wrong and you have to purchase a new thing. But if you purchase a real, nice thing, it will continue for good. Similarly, as long as you are getting a cheap body, a material body, you have to change. And as soon as you get the most valuable body, a spiritual body, there will be no more change.”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
From Srila Prabhupada-lilamrita, Volume 4, Chapter 32:
“Mr. Agarwal doubted whether Westerners would be able to stay with Krishna consciousness for very long. ‘Now in the radiance of your company,’ he said, ‘as long as you are here bodily and physically, they may continue to observe all these restrictions. But when your physical influence will not be there, one day when you will have to leave this world, then all these people that have come in contact with you, will they go bad?’
‘No,’ Prabhupada said firmly.
‘Your claim is very tall,’ replied Mr. Agarwal. ‘Can you tell me what is the basic foundation of your claim?’
Prabhupada reminded him that all his disciples had been initiated into the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra and that according to the Vedic scriptures the constant chanting of the Lord’s holy name will save even the most fallen souls and protect them from falling again. Even after his passing away, Prabhupada predicted, his disciples would not fall victim to maya, as long as they continued their prescribed chanting.”
From Upstate:
“We don’t start a new movement, but we make a contribution that doesn’t depend only on the authorities and laws of the institution. We go to the heart of what Prabhupada did, and try to continue something that will continue and not be revised or rejected either by the ISKCON official body, or by the grassroots force of devotees now and in the future. Calculate in that way, what will really last and make your individual contribution. It’s sort of a quiet revolution without having to resort to open rebellion. One wants to live as a citizen in the movement as it is and yet point to something better.”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 1:
“As Srila Prabhupada said (describing the attitude of a pure devotee of the Lord), ‘“Kindly accept whatever little service I can give.” In this way, be humble and offer your feeling and Krishna will be satisfied.’”
From Prabhupada Meditations, Volume 2:
“The Supreme Lord holds all the planets of the universe together in His fist like dust, and similarly, Srila Prabhupada held together all persons, activities, and places of ISKCON when he was present. As Prabhupada wrote, ‘The acarya, the authorized representative of the Supreme Lord, establishes religious principles, but when he disappears, things once again become disordered.’ (Bhag. 4.28.48) But Prabhupada writes further: ‘The perfect disciples of the acarya try to relieve the situation by sincerely following the instructions of the spiritual master.’ No one can stop the movements of time, including the deterioration of all material bodies and material elements, but sincere disciples will never abandon the lessons and orders given to them by their spiritual master.”
From Shack Notes: Moments While at a Writing Retreat:
“This is a poem to my spiritual master.
His speech is sometimes gruff.
He’s a general like Bhisma.
Cuts down false avataras.
He hurt my false ego
when I too-causally said
‘I forgot.’ He touched me.
Prabhupada, forgive me.
You are too great for me to
try writing a poem about.
Some say you are so transcendental
we should not even see you as a human.
But I see your old age,
your missing teeth, your pain
as glorious sacrifice.
Let’s see another old man
equal you. Can’t be done.
You suffered and sacrificed
to manage Krishna’s movement
I see you – far away.
Yet you touched me close too.
O commander of rough voice,
you stand among lances and arrows –
you had to be rough.
I want to see you,
O spiritual master
of many thousands.
You are impressive
beyond compare.
Let us read your books.
And please you,
personal guru,
unfathomable
pure devotee of Krishna.”
Gopala-tapani Upanisad, Purva 50:
“Therefore Krishna is the Supreme Godhead. One should meditate on Him, relish the taste of reciprocating loving exchanges with Him, worship Him, and offer sacrifice to Him.”
Bhaktivinoda Thakura:
[Prabandhavali is a book to be published by Touchstone Media consisting of translations of the Bengali articles that Bhaktivinoda Thakura published in the Gaudiya magazine and which I am proofreading.]
From “The System of Sampradaya” in Prabandhavali:
“To engage in acara [spiritual behavior] or pracara [preaching], one must first learn the religious principles pertaining to saintly persons. After learning these principles, some start to preach even before they themselves practice. This does not yield much result. This is confirmed in the Brahma-vaivarta Purana:
upadesam karoti eva na pariksyam karoti yah
‘By propagating religious principles without practicing them personally, various disturbances are created in the world.’”
“Those who neglect preaching as ordained by saintly persons benefit the world less than the preachers. This is confirmed by the statement of Sri Haridasa, as recorded in Sri Caitanya-bhagavata (Adi 16.284–86):
japa-karta haite ucca-sankirtana-kari
‘The Puranas say that a person who chants the Lord’s name loudly is a hundred times more pious that the person who chants to himself.’
suna, vipra! mana diya ihara karana
‘O brahmana, listen carefully to the reason behind this. One who softly chants the holy names liberates only himself.’
ucca kari’ karile govinda-sankirtana
‘One who loudly chants the name of Govinda, however, liberates himself along with all living entities who hear him.’”
“Nowadays, it is the custom that when someone wants to perform vaisnava-seva, he invites a descendant of some previous celebrated devotee, and with the help of that person’s pujari or followers, prepares a great quantity of rice, sabjis, cakes, and drinks and feeds them, along with other invited persons who are considered to be Vaishnavas. We cannot call this vaisnava-seva. To invite a group of devotees for prasada is simply a matter of enhancing one’s prestige.”
“The present custom of serving Vaishnavas is degraded. A hired person goes aound and invites one hundred Vaishnavas. Immediately, the Vaishnavas leave aside all other engagements and begin to decorate themselves with tilaka, etc. They make a show of devotion while thinking, ‘Today we will have a belly full of puris and cakes, and also get some daksina’”.
“Brahmanas and part-time Vaishnavas are also to be respected, but full-time devoted Vaishnavas must be served. By not caring for ordinary living entities, by not respecting pious persons, and by not showing respect to the brahmanas and part-time Vaishnavas, one incurs sin. But by disregarding and neglecting full-time Vaishnavas, one commits an offence. Sins can be eradicated by simple atonement, but offences are not easily removed.”
“It is to be noted that there is no requirement of initiation, etc., for becoming a pure Vaishnava. The acceptance of mantras suitable for worshiping Hari in His Deity form is termed initiation. That initiation is not required for one who sincerely chants the holy name of the Lord.”
From Blaspheming the Vaishnava: The Four Kinds of Living Entities in Prabandhavali:
“Out of envy, wicked people generally criticize Vaishnavas in three different ways. Whatever faults or bad habits a Vaishnava had before the awakening of pure devotional service becomes the subject matter for discussion by wicked people. When devotional service is awakened, all bad habits or faults are quickly vanquished. During this short period of destruction of faults, whatever leftover faults are seen becomes the subject for wicked people. The third kind of criticism that wicked people indulge in is that even though a pure Vaishnava has no desire for performing sinful acts, sometimes he does so accidentally. Wicked people delight in blaspheming a Vaishnava for this accidental lapse.”
“It is sinful to discuss others’ faults unless one does so with the intention of mercifully guiding them. Blasphemy of a Vaishnava is a most serious offence, and blasphemy of other living entities is sinful. A Vaishnava should not commit any kind of sin. On the other hand, constructive criticism of others has not been condemned in sastra. There are three kinds of good intentions while giving constructive criticism. If the discussion of a person’s sin is meant to benefit him, such a discussion is auspicious. If a person’s sins are discussed for the benefit of people in general, then it is also auspicious. If such a discussion is beneficial for oneself, then it is good, and not bad. For the instruction of people in general, the previous character of Valmiki, Jagai-Madhai, and other historical personalities has been discussed.”
“The advanced devotees’ vision of seeing everyone as a sadhu, which has been described in Bhakta-mala, Prapannamrita, and other devotional books, should not be imitated by intermediate Vaishnavas. If one indulges in such imitation, he exhibits the fault of practising without proper qualification (anadhikar-charcha).”
“While wandering within this world, men have imbibed various cultures, according to the bodies they have received, and have developed various natures, according to their different types of association. This is why someone is inclined toward karma, someone else desires to be a jñani, and another person becomes a devotee.”
From “Association with Saintly Persons” in Prabandhavali:
“Actually, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is one, and the living entities are also of one nature, but people’s different tastes are derived from prejudice, education, and association. Knowledge of the actual truth is attained only by the association of devotees who are free from all material designations and are conversant with the knowledge of the Absolute Truth. Only by the mercy of such saintly persons can that truth be realized. There is no other way to acquire perfect knowledge besides sadhu-sanga and sadhu-kripa.”
It is stated in the Brihan-naradiya Purana:
bhaktistu bhagava bhakta
satsangah prapyate pumbhih
sukritaih purva sancitaih
‘Devotional service is attained only in the association of devotees. Association of devotees is achieved as a result of piety accumulated over many lifetimes.’”
“Having entered this material world, the living entities are wandering about hither and thither like travelers who have lost their way. ‘Which path will lead to happiness, and how will success be achieved?’ Being overwhelmed by such thoughts, they are unable to come to a fixed conclusion. But if sadhu-sanga is attained then all confusion will be removed and the path to the ultimate goal of life will be clearly seen.”
“Those who practice the various limbs of devotional service, beginning with hearing and chanting the holy name of Hari, without endeavoring to remain aloof from non-devotee association, are either Vaishnava-like persons or reflections of a Vaishnava. It is impossible for such persons to achieve the actual benefit of sadhu-sanga.”
“What is sadhu-sanga? Simply talking to a sadhu does not constitute sadhu-sanga. The word sanga implies love, or attachment.”
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Ṭhakura:
From Amrita Vani, “Deity,” No. 5:
“The scripture is revealed transcendental sound that has been visualized in the form of writing. We can hear the transcendental sound vibrations through writings, vibrations that were made by sadhus thousands of years ago. Therefore the sastra, the work of saintly persons, is the deity form of transcendental sound vibration.”
Ramanatha Sukha Prabhu:
From “The Enigma of Gopisvara Mahadeva” in Back to Godhead, Vol. 57, No. 4 (July/August 2023):
“Srila Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami states in his Vraja-vilasa-stava, ‘Each day I worship Gopisvara Mahadeva, who was worshiped with deep devotion by the gopis. He quickly fulfilled their desire to attain the supremely precious jewel in the form of the embrace of the son of Nanda Maharaja.’”
Visakha Devi Dasi:
From “The Search for Satisfaction” in Back to Godhead, Vol. 57, No. 4 (July/August 2023):
“When I was coming of age, I began to make some disquieting observations. While apprenticing under a world-famous photojournalist, I noticed how disturbed he was on seeing his fame ebb as younger photographers replaced him. I also noticed how the fashion models I sometimes worked with obsessed over their appearance, and the commercial photographers who made ample money photographing those models were stressed and perpetually restless. All in all, the people I was around were clamoring for the same things – fame, fortune, power, prestige, beauty – yet possessing those very things clearly didn’t satisfy them. Whatever they had was never enough and never good enough.”
“When we learn something that’s relevant and makes sense, it impacts us. When we meet others living that knowledge, it makes an even deeper impression. And when we try it ourselves and find it a positive influence in our life, we can be permanently altered. The trajectory of our life can change.”
“Although our activities may appear ordinary, behind them is a profound intent – to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If we can please Him even slightly, He will enable us to begin to transcend our activities and feel a growing inner sense of completeness. We’ll become satisfied.”
“For myself, I’m not fully satisfied and spiritually blissful, but I am much more so than I was many years ago.”
Vivasvan Prabhu:
I have been running this temple for 32 years. I have the formula. One day temple management, and the next day book distribution. When you go out on books you forget all the temple problems, and you realize that the people out there have the real problems.
I never liked washing pots. In the beginning I had long hair. Nanda was the cook. I saw the “EXIT” sign above the kitchen door, and I thought, “I can leave anytime I want.” But I then remembered that actually there is nothing out there. I had already tried that. So I stayed and finished the pots.
One Indian said he was waiting for Krishna to purify his heart so he could see Him. Srila Prabhupada told him he had a stone for a heart. We have to be willing to do things for Krishna if we want Krishna to reveal Himself.
The whole point of a temple is to save people. You have to give everyone a chance.
There are two letters by Srila Prabhupada where he said those who pass the standard exams can initiate, both men and women.
When all your questions about life are answered you can have perfect peace.
In the higher stages Krishna speaks to you in the heart, and therefore, wherever you are, you have perfect knowledge.
Advaita Acarya Prabhu:
When Sridhara Swami [the jolly swami] was soon going to leave his body, he said, “I can’t wait to see if everything I learned in Krishna consciousness is actually true!”
Caitanya Carana Prabhu:
Each of the demons who is killed by Krishna in Vrindavan is so arrogant he thinks that he alone could take on Krishna. They never think, “Let’s go as a group.”
No matter how cruel someone is, he does not like to appear cruel, thus instead of killing Krishna directly Kamsa proposes the wrestling match.
Kamsa is so angry that the crowd glorifies Krishna for His victory in the wrestling match, he wants to kill all Krishna’s associates, and even his own father Ugrasena.
Krishna let Kamsa fully express his demoniac sentiments so people could see that it was justified that Krishna killed him.
The demonic have no boundaries. Everyone gets angry, but there is no limit to what a demonic person will do out of anger.
Krishna does not use any weapons in Vrindavan. He kills the demons as a matter of play.
Recollection of the name, form, qualities, and pastimes of a person indicates love for him.
Remembrance indicates an emotional investment, whether by love, by fear, or by envy.
The Bhagavatam demonstrates the power of remembrance of Krishna, even with a negative disposition.
With extreme examples the point is to not standardize the extreme but to emphasize the standard. If even negative remembrance is so powerful, how valuable is the positive remembrance we are cultivating, and how seriously should we try for it!
Spiritual consciousness expands our consciousness beyond our humanity.
The widows of Kamsa’s brothers lamented for the death of their husbands, but they did not blame Krishna for killing them.
Vibhisana did not want do the last rites for Ravana because he was such a bad person, but Rama told him that the soul is always pure and thus should be benefited. His death was sufficient atonement for his evil deeds. Now he should be benefited.
The greatness of God inspires submission. The sweetness of God inspires affection. Both are important.
Increasing Levels of God Appreciation:
Existence
Greatness minus sweetness
Greatness and sweetness (Vaikuntha)
Sweetness minus greatness (Vrindavan)
When awareness of God’s greatness is obscured by ignorance we decrease our connection with Him.
When awareness of God’s greatness is obscured by His wonder we increase our connection with Him.
From a class on “Demystifying Reincarnation”:
Vasudeva is the all-pervading deity who is in everyone’s heart. We invoke that deity to get His guidance.
One out of four people in the Western world accepts reincarnation, and it is only increasing. Of course, in China and India it is greater.
A kid from Turkey, who had seven birthmarks, recalled his name and city in a former life and said he was attacked and stabbed to death in the those seven places.
He went to that city. He fondled his kids from his former family, although he was younger than them. He recognized his former wife, who had remarried. He saw a photo of her with her new husband, and smashed it saying, “You are my wife, and no one else’s wife.”
Four kinds of evidence that make convincing cases for reincarnations:
Recollections.
Recognitions.
Behavior.
Birthmarks and/or birth defects.
Serious researchers do not take seriously celebrity incarnations.
There are twelve cases of Marilyn Monroe incarnations.
Researchers do not take hypnotic regression seriously but use spontaneous memories of children who could not create elaborate hoaxes.
We can demystify reincarnation, if we can show:
1. consciousness has a cause beyond the body
2. consciousness can exist outside the body
3. consciousness can enter other bodies.
These can be shown by:
1. consciousness studies
2. near death experiences
3. past life memories
Dr. Wilder Penfield stimulated different parts of the brain. He could make someone raise or lower their hand by stimulating certain parts of the brain, but there was no part of the brain he could stimulate that would make one feel that they had caused their hand to move. He concluded that the brain is like a computer, but it is programmed by an agency outside itself.
There is an operation standstill. It is used when there is an aneurysm near the brain. They induce cardiac arrest so no blood goes to the brain. They drain the brain of blood. Then they take the brain out of the skull. They cut out the aneurysm. They put the brain in the skull. Then then restart the heart.
It is important the subject is completely unconscious during the operation. They play the sound of a train whistle loudly in the ears to make sure the patient is not in the least bit conscious.
One lady whose brain waves were zero accurately recalled a conversation doctors had while operating. She was asked if there was any disturbance to her hearing the conversation by the loud train whistle sound in her ears. She replied, “My hearing was by nonmaterial means.”
Birthmarks are usually genetic or caused during pregancy, but some are not caused by either.
A critic of dogmatism in science said, “The theories we like we call facts. The facts we don’t like, we call theories.”
Consciousness comes from the soul, through the mind to the body.
There are cases of blind people who never saw anything in their lives who saw during an out of body experience.
Entering into a new body is called reincarnation, and the journey from one body to another is called transmigration.
Some of our memories are stored in our brain, and they are destroyed at death, but others are stored in the mind and are accessible in the next life.
Since only our thoughts go with us to the next life, it is more important to improve the quality of our thoughts than to improve the quality of our external material situation.
Science improves the outer world, but spirituality improves our thoughts.
Scientists are gravitating to the idea that death is a process and not an event. It is difficult for scientists to determine the exact time of death.
Generally we think of death as being when the body gets damaged, but it is actually when the soul leaves the body at the time its karma in that body is up.
Too much recollection of the past makes it difficult to function in the present, and therefore, most of us do not remember past lives.
When there is no closure because of sudden death, in those cases memories from the previous life are more common. When the kids meet the previous family and interact with them, then the closure happens. Then they never wish to return to the previous family, even if the family was more wealthy.
The soul has individuality but how much our present individuality reflects the individuality of the soul is open to question.
Rasika Siromani Prabhu:
Srila Prabhupada said that if we follow the instructions of Rupa Goswami we will attain success in lightning speed. By lightning speed he means one life.
Nitai Gauranga Prabhu:
We try for humility, but actually we have to ask to be blessed with humility to come to a higher level of it.
We attain success by following the instructions that our guru gave us, and thus it is true that his mercy is all we are made of.
Narayani:
I like this song because Bhaktivinoda Thakura reminds us that is by the mercy of the guru we can understand that the pastimes of Lord Gauranga are factual.
Yogamaya Yajna Prabhu:
[My friend Yogamaya Yajna Prabhu got to have a meeting with Kadamba Kanana Swami just days before he left his body, being the fiance of a disciple of his. Here he recounts the end of their meeting.]
I asked Maharaja if he was excited for the next part in his journey, and he said in response that he had given it his best and that he had tried to bring as many people to Krishna as he could. He had no regrets. I then asked if he was excited to see Mahaprabhu and how his experience has been during this transition.
He then replied about how he was in a lot of pain, but before he could go further into the subject matter he had another guest come visit.
That was the first and last time I met him.
He was very kind to grant me access into his life during such an eminent part of his life.
I am grateful and hope to one day be worthy of such association and mercy.
Saint Augustine:
From Confessions:
[Quoted in “The Search for Satisfaction” in Back to Godhead, Vol. 57, No. 4 (July/August 2023).]
“You have made us for Yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in You.”
Theodore Roosevelt:
From “The Search for Truth in a Reverent Spirit”:
[Quoted in Q&A in Back to Godhead, Vol. 57, No. 4 (July/August 2023).]
“There is superstition in science quite as much as there is superstition in theology, and it is all the more dangerous because those suffering from it are profoundly convinced that they are freeing themselves from all superstition. No grotesque repulsiveness of medieval superstition, even as it survived into nineteenth-century Spain and Naples, could be much more intolerant, much more destructive of all that is fine in morality, in the spiritual sense, and indeed in civilization itself, than that hard dogmatic materialism of today which often not merely calls itself scientific but arrogates to itself the sole right to use the term. If these pretensions affected only scientific men themselves, it would be a matter of small moment, but unfortunately they tend gradually to affect the whole people, and to establish a very dangerous standard of private and public conduct in the public mind.”
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The recent writings I have been reading of Bhaktivinoda Thakura stress the importance of sadhu-sanga, association with devotees of the Absolute Truth, for attaining success in spiritual life. One of the important verses from Srila Prabhupada’s books on this subject is from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, and Srila Prabhupada quoted it almost a hundred times:
‘sadhu-sanga’, ‘sadhu-sanga’ — sarva-sastre kaya
“The verdict of all revealed scriptures is that by even a moment’s association with a pure devotee, one can attain all success.” (Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Madhya 22.54)
