Diary of a Traveling Sadhaka, Vol. 19, No. 15
By Krishna Kripa Das
(August 2023, part one)
(Sent from Quebec, Canada, on August 19, 2023)
Where I Went and What I Did
For the first two weeks of August, for all but five days, I stayed at ISKCON Paris at Sarcelles, and I chanted between three and five hours each day with different devotees at different venues in Paris, including one park that we had not chanted at this year. I also gave a Sunday program lecture at ISKCON Paris with Bengali translation and one at Yoga Lyrique in downtown Paris with French translation.
The other five days I went to Lyon, where a party of brahmacaris distributes books almost every day, and I did harinama where they were distributing, and I joined their weekly Saturday harinama and Sunday program in a park. On August 15, I took the Eurostar train from Paris to London, and then flew to New York City, where I caught the last two hours of the final six-hour harinama for the month of Purushottam.
I share notes on Srimad-Bhagavatam, The Nectar of Devotion, Narada-bhakti-sutra, and a couple of lectures by Srila Prabhupada. I share notes from From Copper to Touchstone, a book by Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami about important topics and verses in Sri Caitanya-caritamrita. I also include notes on lectures by Yasoda Dulal and Gaura Nataraja Prabhus in Paris.
Many, many thanks to the Yoga Lyrique devotees who donated to me all the U.S. dollars they had accumulated while distributing books in Paris over the last year or so. Thanks to Yumi for her very generous donation. Thanks to Marat of Russia, a longtime resident of France, who being retired, comes on harinama every day, for his donation. Thanks to Aliya, who attends Yoga Lyrique programs and harinama, for her donation. Thanks to Gaura Nataraja Prabhu for reimbursing my travel expenses within the Paris area, and thanks to Revatinandana Prabhu for offering to pick up three sets of dhoti and kurta of the same shade of saffron for me in India. Thanks to The Times of London for the photo of Paris police on roller skates. Thanks to Ebony magazine for the photo of Rosa Parks. Thanks to Bmazerolles for the photo of the Rosa Parks train station in Paris. Thanks to M.P.PHOTO for the photo of us in Lyon.
Itinerary
August 16–20: Vaishnava Sanga Festival in Canada
August 21–25: Montreal harinamas
August 26–27: Kirtan Festival Celebration in Quebec
August 28: Montreal harinamas
August 29: Albany
August 30–September 8: Syracuse harinamas
September 9–13?: NYC Harinam
September 14–21?: take care of mother near Albany
September 22: Philadelphia harinama
September 23: Philadelphia Ratha-yatra
September 24: Philadelphia harinama
Chanting Hare Krishna in Paris
One time it was raining as I left for harinama, and I was so happy to encounter a garbage bag that was just the perfect size for my harmonium and which could be tied snugly around it.
Here Tulasi Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Les Halles in Paris in front of a vandalized Nike shop (https://youtu.be/vJH0XBC4Tk0):
I hoped that since the windows of the Nike shop were boarded over because they were broken in the riots, there would be less chance the security guards would stop us. They did stop us but only after the rain stopped, and we did not need to take shelter under the awning of the shop anymore.
Gaura Nataraja Prabhu chants Hare Krishna there also (https://youtu.be/AcDrT6K5H4I):
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna there as a benevolent security guard passes by (https://youtu.be/pTaCkZ1AmMY):
Gaura Nataraja Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Saint-Michel, a popular tourist spot with a sculpture of Saint-Michel slaying a demon above a fountain (https://youtu.be/nV8Ku6O1CrA):
Revatinandana Prabhu also chanted Hare Krishna there (https://youtu.be/-oigeShAWmc):
Marat chants Hare Krishna at Saint-Michel, and a street person does a little dance (https://youtu.be/A81gZuGxBZ4):
Chandrashekhara Acharya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Les Halles, and a Pandava Sena girl from Ukraine, returning from New Mayapur, plays the karatalas (https://youtu.be/It8evMr7xuU):
Patita Pavana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Les Halles (https://youtu.be/rvBISL2KZH4):
Rohininandana Prabhu, the organizer of the Thursday and Saturday harinamas in Paris for many years, also chanted Hare Krishna there (https://youtu.be/LLoTrR1ifYs):
For lunch at the temple in Sarcelles was an amazing curd preparation in which the curd, which was soft, was fried with spices, and it was so good!
Gaura Nataraja Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at the very large Bois de Vincennes Park in Paris, and a lady who bought a Bhagavad-gita learns the mantra and dances (https://youtu.be/mCTaRbOrz9E):
Tulasi Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Bois de Vincennes, and kids clap and dance (https://youtu.be/M5N6iIoKSzs):
Chandrashekhara Acharya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Bois de Vincennes Park, and a lady chants and stretches (https://youtu.be/JuzYYHec7mQ):
Marat chants Hare Krishna at Hotel de Ville in Paris (https://youtu.be/DWdx6r8X6uo):
Marat of Russia chants Hare Krishna at the base of Montmartre, and Leonid of Ukraine sings the response (https://youtu.be/HFYsnF1bnZY):
Although from warring countries, from different generations, and not yet spiritually initiated, these two devotees were the most reliable attenders on my Sunday and Monday harinamas during the end of my stay in Paris, the days I chanted with whoever volunteered.
Tulasi Prabhu chants Hare Krishna during the ISKCON Paris Six-Hour Kirtan (https://youtu.be/dVVOnGcA-9Q):
Hari Kirtan Prabhu chants “Jaya Prabhupada” during that kirtan, too (https://youtube.com/shorts/LjWfJyAoNOM?feature=share):
Unfortunately, I was unable to catch his Hare Krishna chant on video as I did not try until late in the kirtan, and it was difficult to get close enough with all the people crowded into the temple room. By the time I did he was ending his kirtan.
For that six-hour kirtan, Tulasi Das Prabhu decided to wear a kirtan T-shirt designed by Mahatma Das Prabhu. If you would like one for yourself, you can order it here https://sattva-apparel.myspreadshop.com/?fbclid=IwAR3xK0I3CAX2Lfx9r7vUiojWLw7lg6OuAGPMSzqmc2XEqIwnijHQ3BS8lwo.
Revatinandana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Les Halles, and a guy dances with Gaura Nataraja Prabhu (https://youtu.be/UOJFiaxAtSs):
Madhupati Prabhu of Ukraine was in Lyon for the first two days I was there. He plays the accordion and has a great enthusiasm for harinama, and it was a joy to participate with him.
Here Madhupati Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Lyon, and a local man participates by clapping on a nearby bench (https://youtube.com/shorts/kMj3AKdPgmg?feature=share):
Later that man danced alongside the devotees (https://youtube.com/shorts/eV7GDss9DuM).
That man also danced as I led the Hare Krishna chant in Lyon (https://youtube.com/shorts/SoFK8voMAbc?feature=share).
Later as I chanted, a kid danced in circles (https://youtube.com/shorts/wlA49IHTo2o?feature=share).
She also did more elaborate steps, and one devotee suggested she was trying to remember dances from a previous life.
Saturday is their weekly harinama day there. Last year devotees in Lyon and the surrounding area joined us on harinama, but this year they were all on vacation, so it was just the book distributors.
Here Doyal Nitai Prabhu, leader of the brahmacari book distributors in Lyon, chants Hare Krishna at Hotel de Ville on their Saturday harinama (https://youtube.com/shorts/86T_z4u_HHI?feature=share):
Here Rasananda Sankirtana Prabhu chants Hare Krishna at Hotel de Ville in Lyon, France, during the weekly Saturday afternoon harinama, and a lady learns the mantra (https://youtu.be/9ixdDKp5Fa4).
After 18 hours of traveling from the Paris temple, I was happy lead the Hare Krishna chant in Union Square (https://youtu.be/vz0VjMhzP1c).
Jayananda Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Union Square (https://youtu.be/QojulRiPbOE).
Jaya Goracand Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Union Square (https://youtu.be/NGmJ-ly3PUg).
Rama Raya Prabhu chants Hare Krishna in Union Square (https://youtu.be/gFTn-HzdJOE).
My journey to New York was a long one, and it did not help that I only slept 3¾ hours the night before. I walked 14 minutes to the suburban train to Paris, took the Eurostar to London, took the Thameslink to Gatwick, flew via Jet Blue to JFK, took the Airtrain to the B-15 bus at Lefferts Blvd. station to the 3 train at New Lots Avenue to the 4 train at Crown Heights to Union Square for two hours of harinama and then the Q train to Brooklyn, and walked five minutes to the temple. That whole adventure I just described took 20 hours.
My nice experiences on the journey were:
The young lady next to me on the Eurostar was happy to accept “On Chanting Hare Krishna” and the card for Yoga Lyrique in Paris, where she lives, and the address of Govinda’s in London, which she is visiting.
In the immigration line in New York one lady who has been to Hindu temples and enjoys the singing was attracted by my Indian dress. She lives in Loudonville, a suburb of Albany. I told her about the weekly programs of chanting and prasadam that the Guyanese devotees have in Schenectady, not far away, and she was happy to receive the contact details of one of their organizers. I also gave her “On Chanting Hare Krishna” so she can learn what a special mantra the Hare Krishna mantra is.
I passed out the free literature on the NYC Harinam, and I found the New Yorkers more favorable than the Parisiens, which I am happy about, as I will be based there several months in the fall. It was also inspired to hear the kirtans of the devotees and to see the dedication of those distributing books.
Special Photos
On harinama in Paris I saw some policemen skate by on roller skates. I could not get my camera out fast enough to get a photo of them, but I found one online.
I learned of Rosa Parks, a famous American civil rights activist, from the transit stations in Gainesville and Jacksonville, Florida, that bear her name.
I didn’t know she was of international renown until I was returning to the temple from Saint-Lazare after harinama, and I glanced at the stops on the Paris suburban line RER E and was surprised to see her name.
Wikipedia tells how the station was so named, “Explaining the name, Annick Lepetit, deputy of Bertrand Delanoë (Mayor of Paris from 2001 to 2014) in charge of transport, stated: ‘We wanted at least 50% female names. There has been much debate, especially with RATP, which favours existing place names, but for Rosa Parks there was a consensus: this is necessary for a tram station, it is a strong symbol’”. (Kleiber, Marie-Anne (6 December 2015). “Gare, tramway: Rosa Parks s’est fait un nom dans le 19e”. Le Journal du Dimanche (in French). Retrieved 13 October 2020.
Photo by Bmazerolles - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45735846
Funny Stories
After the Vodafone Ireland chat person named Ankit competently answered all my questions, I wrote, “Ok. Thank you very much for your help. Hare Krishna!”
He responded, “You’re welcome and thanks. Jai Shree Krishna.”
All their chat people are living in India and working from home!
Originally when I heard their Indian names I thought of inviting them to our temple and restaurant in Dublin, but then I learned they were all based in India.
Insights
Srila Prabhupada:
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 8.5.19–20, purport:
“When demons become powerful, the entire world is placed in an awkward position because demons are simply interested in their own sense gratification and not in the welfare of the world. Demigods or devotees, however, are concerned with the welfare of all living beings.”
From Srimad-Bhagavatam 9.4.25:
“Those who are saturated with the transcendental happiness of rendering service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead are uninterested even in the achievements of great mystics, for such achievements do not enhance the transcendental bliss felt by a devotee who always thinks of Krishna within the core of his heart.”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Antya 4.192:
“At the time of initiation, when a devotee fully surrenders unto the service of the Lord, Krishna accepts him to be as good as Himself.”
From Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Antya 4.194:
[Quoted from Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.29.34.]
[Krishna said to Uddhava: “The living entity who is subjected to birth and death attains immortality when he gives up all material activities, dedicates his life to the execution of My order, and acts according to My directions. In this way he becomes fit to enjoy the spiritual bliss derived from exchanging loving mellows with Me.”
From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 21:
“10. Fluent
“Krishna’s speech, which contains all good qualities in the universe, is described in the following statement by Uddhava: ‘The words of Krishna are so attractive that they can immediately change the heart of even His opponent. His words can immediately solve all of the questions and problems of the world. Although He does not speak very long, each and every word from His mouth contains volumes of meaning. These speeches of Krishna are very pleasing to my heart.’”
“17. Grateful
“Any person who is conscious of his friend’s beneficent activities and never forgets his service is called grateful. In the Mahabharata, Krishna says, ‘When I was away from Draupadi, she cried with the words, “He govinda!” This call for Me has put Me in her debt, and that indebtedness is gradually increasing in My heart!’ This statement by Krishna gives evidence of how one can please the Supreme Lord simply by addressing Him, ‘He krishna! He govinda!’
“The maha-mantra (Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare) is also simply an address to the Lord and His energy. So to anyone who is constantly engaged in addressing the Lord and His energy, we can imagine how much the Supreme Lord is obliged. It is impossible for the Lord to ever forget such a devotee. It is clearly stated in this verse that anyone who addresses the Lord immediately attracts the attention of the Lord, who always remains obliged to him.”
“18. Determined”
“There is another promise by Krishna in Bhagavad-gita to the effect that His devotee will never be vanquished. So a sincere devotee who is always engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord should know for certain that Krishna will never break His promise. He will always protect His devotees in every circumstance.”
From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 22:
“60. The Attracter of Liberated Souls
“The following statement was given by the Kumaras: ‘How wonderful it is that although we are completely liberated, free from desire and situated at the stage of paramahamsa, we are still aspiring to taste the pastimes of Radha and Krishna.’”
“61. Performer of Wonderful Activities
“In the Brihad-vamana Purana, the Lord says, ‘Although I have many fascinating pastimes, whenever I think of the rasa-lila, which I perform with the gopis, I become eager to have it again.’
“One devotee has said, ‘I know about Narayana, the husband of the goddess of fortune, and I also know about many other incarnations of the Lord. Certainly all the pastimes of such incarnations are exciting to my mind, but still the pastimes of the rasa-lila performed by Lord Krishna Himself are wonderfully increasing my transcendental pleasure.’”
“64. Krishna’s Exquisite Beauty”
“His personal beauty was so great that there was no necessity for His wearing ornaments on His body. In fact, instead of the ornaments beautifying Krishna, Krishna’s beauty enhanced the ornaments.”
“In Rupa Gosvami’s Lalita-madhava, it is said, ‘One day Krishna happened to see the shadow of His beautiful form reflected on the jeweled foreground. Upon seeing this bodily reflection, He expressed His feelings: “How wonderful it is that I have never seen such a beautiful form! Although it is My own form, still, like Radharani, I am trying to embrace this form and enjoy celestial bliss.”’”
From Narada-bhakti-sutra, Sutra 5, purport:
“The devotee should patiently follow the rules and regulations of devotional service so that the day will come when he will achieve, all of a sudden, all the perfection of devotional service. He should not lament for any loss or any reverse in his advancement in spiritual life. This patience is the third positive item for advancing in devotional service.”
From a lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.5.18–19 on June 22, 1969, in New Vrindaban:
“Actually, there is no happiness in the material world. Krishna says, duhkhalayam asasvatam – ‘This place is full of misery.’ Full of misery. Now, how you can make it happy?”
“So this chance we have got in this human form of life. I can execute the business of Krishna consciousness very nicely. In other form of life I cannot do that. Even if I try, it is not possible. That . . . dog cannot, because it is not a human being.”
“There is no question of happiness in this material world. If you actually want to be happy, anandamayo ’bhyasat [Vedanta-sutra 1.1.12], if you want to be placed in real happiness, that is Krishna consciousness.”
“We have got dogs, they are keeping company with devotees. That is very nice. His dog life also becoming perfect. It may be some pious man, somehow or other, it has become dog. . . . Krishna has given them the association of the devotees. He’s eating prasadam. . . . He’s hearing chanting. He’s giving some service to the devotees. So they are not in vain. They are not in vain. No. They, they’re acquiring.”
“Anyone who has associated in Krishna consciousness . . . , he cannot forget.”
“Krishna is so nice. Yes. He’s the all-attractive. He hypnotizes His devotee.”
“So Narada, he is astonished, ‘What kind of hypnotism You do, I do not know. [laughter] In spite of being placed in so much inconveniences, their love for You has increased.’ That is the position of Panḍavas. This is Krishna consciousness.”
“In the beginning of the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is said that ‘Srimad-Bhagavatam is so nice that simply by reading, immediately one can capture the Supreme Lord within his heart.’”
“My Guru Maharaja used to give a very nice example, I remember. Just like here is a well. Somebody has fallen down; he's crying, ‘Please get me out! Get me out! Get me out!’ Now, if somebody drops a . . . strong rope and asks him, ‘All right, you catch this rope tightly. I’ll get you out,’ and if he says, ‘No, that I cannot do,’ then how he’ll be saved?”
“You have got the independence. Therefore you have to capture Krishna, and Krishna will do everything. Then Krishna will do everything. Simply you have to capture, that ‘Krishna, from this day I am Yours. Whatever You like, You do.’”
“Bhava-bhakti means always feeling for Krishna. That is the prior stage of loving Krishna.”
“Whatever Krishna gives you, be satisfied. That was the basic principle of Vedic civilization. Nobody was trying to make any artificial economic development.”
“So our main business is how to improve Krishna consciousness. We should not divert our attention in any other material condition of improvement. That is actually not improvement; it is simply illusion, that ‘I am making improvement.’ What improvement? Suppose you are earning now, say, five hundred dollars per month. If you earn, say, five million dollars, so then what? Will you eat more than four capatis? [laughter] You’ll eat the same four capatis.”
“We see the sunshine, the potency of the sun. The sunshine is spread all over, and everything is existing on the sunshine. Even the sunshine has got the so much potency. That we can experience. And how much potential is Krishna, who is the creator of the sun also.”
From a class on Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.1.3 in Delhi on November 6, 1973:
“Krishna’s another name is caitya-guru. Caitya-guru means ‘the guru who is sitting within your heart.’ Caitya-guru. But He does not speak to anyone. He speaks to everyone, but only the devotee can hear.”
“When you are engaged in the loving service of the Lord, beginning with your tongue, sevonmukhe hi jihvadau, by chanting this Hare Krishna mantra and taking prasadam, in this way, gradually, when you will be purified, you will understand what is Krishna. He will reveal. Krishna reveals.”
“To conquer over sleeping is the success of life . . . therefore we have to practice.”
“Unless we come to the Krishna consciousness point, we are simply animals.”
“A devotee should be always alert whether he is wasting time or utilizing time. That is devotee’s business.”
“We have to come to the spiritual platform. We have to be engaged only in spiritual activities.”
“If you are not in Krishna consciousness, then you should understand that you are in maya [illusion]. And if you are in Krishna consciousness, then there is no maya.”
“Krishna’s decision is that anyone who is in this material world, beginning from Brahma down to the small ant, some way or other, they are criminal.”
“The maya’s business is to capture. Just like criminal is arrested by the police, similarly, maya is also engaged for this purpose.”
“Krishna says, . . . ‘Rebelling against Me, you have come to this material world to enjoy. So I have given you all chances. I have given you chance to become Brahma, to become Indra or become Candra, to become Nixon, to become Gandhi, to become Jawaharlal Nehru, to become ant, to become cat, to become dog. I have given you all chances, and you have enjoyed. But you are not satisfied. Now, if you have got sense, just surrender to Me.’”
“Why people are dying nowadays, fifty years, sixty years, seventy years? No. One should live for at least hundred years. But because they unduly indulge in sex life, they die early. Their duration of life is reduced.”
“So Bhagavatam should not be finished . . . Now they have . . . made a business, finish within seven days, Bhagavata-saptaha. So what they will understand [about] Bhagavata? One sloka, you cannot understand in seven months.”
“There is no mention in the Bhagavata that Bhagavata should be heard for seven days. . . . There are many, many big commentators – Sridhara Svami, Jiva Gosvami and Visvanatha Cakravarti, Viraraghavacarya, Madhvacarya. . . . Nobody has mentioned about Bhagavata-saptaha. And in the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is said, nityam bhagavata-sevaya. Nityam: ‘daily.’”
“Sometimes you may dream something very ferocious, and the dog may sleep without any agitation . . . . Sometimes you have to take tranquilizer pill for sleeping. So impartially studying, your sleep is not as nice as dog’s sleep. Is it not? The dogs sleep without any anxiety, and I go to sleep with so many anxieties that the sleeping is disturbing unless I take one pill.”
“The more we are engaged in these animal propensities [eating, sleeping, mating, and defending], more we waste our valuable life.”
“Even formerly, although they were engaged in eating, sleeping, mating, still, they had some responsibility to maintain family. . . . That is grhastha life. . . . Even the grhamedhis, they used to do that. But at the present moment, because it is Kali-yuga, that if he can maintain a family, namely, wife and some children, he’ll be considered as great hero.”
“This is Kali-yuga. A man has to work like an ass simply for bread. Simply for bread.”
“Everyone has got family. Even the dog has got family. Dog has got also wife, and some . . . puppies. And the mother is helping the puppies by giving breast milk. So family you will find everywhere. Even the birds, they have family, two birds, always together, the husband and wife. They have got a nest, and some eggs also.”
“Brahmacari means . . . whose business is only with Brahman [spirit], aham brahmasmi, with spiritual advancement of life. That is called brahmacari.
“That dharma which teaches you how to love God. That dharma. That is first-class dharma.”
“Every religion, simply by rubber stamp, ‘I am Hindu,’ ‘I am Muslim,’ ‘I am Christian,’ but they do not know what is religion. They do not know.”
“Therefore the Bhagavatam you’ll find religion, religious person, who is a religious person, first-class religion. Religious person means who has learned to love God.”
“Impersonalists, they do not know what is love. . . . Their philosophy is oneness. So how there can be love, one? Is it possible? Have you got any such experience, love means one? No. Love means two. There must be two – the lover and the beloved.”
“This is brahmacari life, voluntarily accepting hardship for making life successful. That is brahmacari life.”
“So we should not think like animals. We should think like human beings. That is required. That thinking is, ‘How to awaken my dormant love for God.’ That is required. That is human activity. That is there already. It is not artificial.”
“Now, in this temple, you are all citizens of Paris city. Four or five years ago, you had no idea what is Krishna. But now you are dancing, chanting in Krishna. Why? . . . Why you are dancing in Krishna’s name? What bribe I have given you? Can you answer, any one of you?. . . Therefore, it is to be understood that Krishna was within you. I have simply tried to awaken that consciousness. That’s all.”
“So this movement, we should understand very clearly, that there is no question artificial negation. The question is purification. As soon as you become purified and you become fully Krishna conscious, then your life is successful. That is wanted.”
Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami:
From From Copper to Touchstone:
“It is not enough for people to wake up and realize that they are suffering; they need to become attracted to the spiritual energy.”
“What I like most about this story is Sanatana Gosvami’s determined effort to free himself from material entanglement and to join Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. We all have such a story to tell. Almost all of us had to cross over the obstacles placed before us by our nondevotee friends and relatives in order to join this movement. Sanatana Gosvami’s story ends with such success—it is the story of the spiritual seeker escaping the clutches of the material energy to reach his Lord.”
“The Nawab personifies all those who become angry and threatened when a devotee takes to Krishna consciousness. They charge us with being irresponsible or say that we are cheating, and they threaten to punish us in some way.”
“Actually, Rupa Gosvami and Srila Prabhupada are just like our brothers. They write to us, or for us, in our desperation and save us from despair. They remind us of our deeper purpose and encourage us to act on the transcendental platform.”
“After freeing himself from jail, Sanatana Gosvami stayed off the main roads and traveled through the jungle to meet Lord Caitanya. He who had been such a highly placed officer was now a homeless refugee, a criminal. This is how he renounced all social designation, wealth, and honor. It’s thrilling to contemplate Sanatana’s renunciation of the world in his desire to reach the truth.”
“One significant point to note here is that although Candrasekhara is an eternal associate of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and was always receiving the Lord at his home in that alien city full of impersonalists, he failed to recognize a devotee at his door because of the devotee’s external appearance. We should take a lesson from this: do not judge devotees. If even Candrasekhara could not recognize a devotee as great as Sanatana Gosvami, what can we hope to understand about a devotee’s nature?”
“Actually, it is the Lord Himself who infuses spiritual strength into the disciple so that he may perfectly inquire, hear, and later repeat in his own words the sublime and urgent message of Godhead. The ability to inquire deeply is also an inspiration from God. It is something a devotee can qualify himself to do. Lord Caitanya wants many such inspired devotees to spread the holy name.”
“Srila Prabhupada said that this question is the most important philosophical question that any human being can raise: ‘Who am I?’ It takes intelligence to ask these questions, and it takes intelligence to accept the answers when they come to us.”
“We should also count our blessings. We have received so many blessings in this life and we should not let setbacks hinder our appreciation of that fact. And how auspicious are these blessings! They are extraordinary. After millions and millions of births, we have finally attained a human body. By guru’s grace, our human form is not being wasted by wallowing in sense gratification. Instead, we have been allowed to come in contact with Krishna through Prabhupada’s movement. We are chanting Hare Krishna. Why wouldn’t this make us grateful and hopeful?”
“I heard someone ask Srila Prabhupada whether it was better for a devotee to worship Gaura-Nitai Deities than Radha-Krishna. Prabhupada replied, ‘It is not stereotyped. You have to ask the spiritual master and follow his instructions.’”
“Devotional service has to be personally applied. The guru may tell one devotee to worship Radha-Krishna and another devotee Gaura-Nitai. We cannot generalize. Therefore, we have to communicate with our spiritual master and confirm our practice with him.”
“Disciples of the same spiritual master will naturally all have different relationships with him. We cannot intrude on anyone’s relationship with the guru, nor can we demand that our relationship be the same as the relationship he has with another person. We have to allow the spiritual master to express himself within a variety of relationships.
“‘Although one has affection for many persons, different types of ecstatic love awaken according to the nature of one’s personal relationships.’ (Antya 4.171) Therefore, we should be confident of the relationship we have with the spiritual master, the service that we have, and the way that we are recognized for our service. We should always protect the individuality of that relationship without comparing it to other relationships.”
Yasoda Dulal Prabhu:
So many fights between the demigods and the demons are there in the Bhagavatam and also in the present day.
When someone thinks he is great, he loses his value, because he does not strive for self-knowledge.
The “Sri Guru Carana Padma” song continues after the last line we sing “ebe yasa guhsuk tribhuvana.” Narottama Dasa Thakura next says the dust from the feet of the Vaishnavas is the ornament on his body.
Even on Brahmaloka they do not have the books of Sanatana and Rupa Goswamis.
Lord Caitanya told the father of Srinivasacarya that his son would be an incarnation of His love.
At Vrindavan Research Institute they have the original parchment for the books of Rupa and Sanatana Goswami. You can ask to see them.
King Virhamvir stole the books of the Goswamis, but when he opened the package and touched the books, his heart changed and he felt some remorse for having stolen them.
Srila Prabhupada encouraged the book distributors by telling them that the people will become purified even by touching the books.
Vaishnavas like Rupa and Sanatana Goswami speak from their spiritual bodies, and thus their words are transforming, and awaken us to feelings that cannot be experienced in this world.
There is a sweetness in the holy name which is namamrita.
When chanting the holy name we should be drowning in the nectar of sweetness.
Srila Prabhupada came to give us the highest spiritual nectar.
Sivarama Swami said, “The real journey is into the heart of God.”
By giving us the holy name, Srila Prabhupada, gave us the key to the heart of God.
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura said we should read the Nama-mahatma every day.
We need to open our hearts to Krishna’s name.
We need to cry for the moon beam of Krishna’s name to enter our hearts.
By chanting the holy name of Radha and Krishna, our eternal identity will be realized.
If someone is sincere it is not possible that Krishna will not respond to that person. It is just a question of time.
When we become a disciple of a guru, we become the disciple of all gurus in the line of succession.
Comment by me:
Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji Maharaja once said our spiritual identity will be revealed by the syllables of the holy name.
Gaura Nataraja Prabhu:
Just as inattention is a principal cause of offenses to the holy name, inattention is a principal cause of offenses to Vaishnavas.
Once Indradyumna Swami came on the stage to give Jayapataka Swami a garland. Jayapataka Swami’s servant also came on the stage to offer a garland. Jayapataka Swami, with a slight movement of his hand, indicated his servant should let Indradyumna Swami put the garland on him first, and that the servant should put the garland he had brought on Indradyuma Swami.
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This verse from Sri Caitanya-caritamrita is a great source of inspiration to those who do harinama and book distribution, advising them to take advantage of all possible opportunities in their sharing of the mercy of Lord Caitanya. Acting in this way, we emulate the spirit of Lord Caitanya and His associates of the Panca-tattva, and thus we please them.
patrapatra-vicara nahi, nahi sthanasthana
“In distributing love of Godhead, Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates did not consider who was a fit candidate and who was not, nor where such distribution should or should not take place. They made no conditions. Wherever they got the opportunity, the members of the Pañca-tattva distributed love of Godhead.” (Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, Adi 7.23)
Regarding this verse, Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami writes in From Copper to Touchstone, “These verses are important evidence for the preaching tactics Srila Prabhupada followed. Don’t discriminate or deny any section of the population based on their bodily identity. ‘Without discrimination,’ distribute books, harinama, and prasadam.”
