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Ekendra das, Alachua, USA: All The Day-Glo Freaks Who Used To Paint Their Face Have Joined The Human RaceWe recently spent a few nights at a hotel in my “hometown”—a concept which first seemed weird to me, because I grew up there but I have absolutely no actual home there. Our stay there coincided with a “Record and CD Fair” being held in the hotel ballroom. Record fairs are where fifty-somethings go to find 45 rpm vinyl discs with large holes in the middle. It’s kind of like a horse and buggy festival, except horses and buggies are perpetually useful. At first I thought, “Oh, boy! Record and CD fair! Record and CD fair!” but after a couple deep breaths, I realized I had all the music I wanted, plus I’m going to India so I can’t carry anything anyway. But it occurred to me that any Record and CD Fair in my hometown would likely attract some of my old record-collecting music freak friends. I poked my nose into the Fair early Sunday morning, after the hotel’s treadmill started spewing smoke while I was walking on it. The ballroom was filled with folding tables covered with boxes of old, musty vinyl albums and singles. A selection of t-shirts with vintage-looking old record labels printed on them (such as “Sinful Women” by Elmore James) caught my eye. At each booth was a fiftysomething guy with gray hair, either reading a newspaper or talking very animatedly to a potential customer about the latest Roger Waters tour. Around the maze paced a horde of fifty-and-sixty somethings in leather jackets—die-hard rock and rollers frantically looking for That Special Limited Edition Release They Couldn’t Afford To Pay Eleven Dollars For Thirty Years Ago But For Which Now Will Pay Two Hundred. At one end of the Fair was a PA system blaring some vague, twangy rockabilly music. Occasionally a D.J. would make some announcements about some Exclusive or Rare Find available at Booth X. I scanned the room, looking for faces that matched my age-progressed description of anyone I might have known thirty years ago. I noticed one codger with long white hair and a beard in a leather jacket, going through a bin of $2 LPs, and recognized the manager of the record store where I myself used to sell records twenty-four years ago. The last time I saw him, his long hair and beard were brown. Many walls of his house were dedicated to floor-to-ceiling record shelving units. I held out my hand and introduced myself. He had a lot to say about the state of the music business. He gave up on retail when he saw everything going digital and online, and he got into the landscaping business. “There’s no record stores anymore. Any seventeen year old girl these days can go on Google and instantly find out anything about any song off album by any band that it took me thirty-two years to find out the hard way, and buy it online.” The Record Fair DJ interrupted our conversation, “If anyone finds a walking cane, please bring it to the DJ area. Again, someone has dropped their walking cane, so if anyone finds it, please bring it to the DJ area.” H.G. Sankarshan das Adhikari, USA: Tuesday 2 November 2010--My Birthday--and--How to Fully Absorb Mind in Krishna's Name?=============================================================== Thought for the Day--Tuesday 2 November 2010 ================================================================== Dedicated with love to ISKCON Founder-Acharya: His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and to you, our treasured readers. Our purpose is to help everyone awaken their... Most agree that guilt is a negative emotion, and modern therapists would mostly agree that one should try and feel good about oneself and give up guilt. Krishna Consciousness takes a different approach to these so-called negative emotions. "Rupa Gosvami says that as long as we are in this material world we have to act; we cannot cease acting. Therefore if actions are performed and the fruits are given to Krishna, then that is called yukta-vairagya." - B.g. 9.28p From the relative viewpoint of material consciousness, guilt seems bad, but if we can step back and analyse the fruit of this consciousness we can properly classify it. If the guilt leads us towards Krishna, it is good. If it leads us into material consciousness it is bad. For example, if we feel guilty about not chanting attentive rounds yesterday, and that leads us to chant attentively today, then that guilt helped us in Krishna consciousness and we are grateful. On the other hand, if guilt makes us want to withdraw from the association of devotees and take shelter in material pursuits, then that guilt is bad, and we don't take any notice of it. In the Caitanya Caritamrita it is said that Rupa and Sanatana Goswamis felt guilty for being in the materialistic government, and this made them want to humbly surrender to the Lord's service. This is an example of guilty feelings leading to higher consciousness. By using such seemingly negative emotions in the Lord's service one actually becomes cured of them, because they don't "disappear", but they become spiritualised. If we try to just negate such emotions, as some would suggest, they will continue to be there in an impure form, because it is the nature of our soul to have all these emotions in one form or another - the only choice we have is whether to have them in their pure or impure state. Guilt - from Nectar of Devotion 29 When a person blames himself for committing an inappropriate action, his feeling is called guilt. One day Srimati Radharani was churning yogurt for Krishna. At that time the jeweled bangles on Her hands were circling around, and She was also chanting the holy name of Krishna. All of a sudden She thought, "I am chanting the holy name of Krishna, and My superiors—My mother-in-law and My sister-in-law—may hear Me!" By this thought Radharani became overanxious. This is an instance of feeling guilty because of devotion to Krishna. One day the beautiful-eyed Srimati Radharani entered into the forest to collect some flowers to prepare a garland for Krishna. While collecting the flowers, She became afraid that someone might see Her, and She felt some fatigue and weakness. This is an instance of guilty feelings caused by labor for Krishna. There is a statement in Rasa-sudhakara that after passing the night with Krishna, Radharani became so weak that She was unable to get up from bed. When Krishna took Her hand to help Her, Radharani felt guilty about having passed the night with Him. Bharatavarsa.net: Bhakti Vikasa Swami: thirty key verses -- more>From "Life With The Perfect Master" by SDG One morning in Bombay, while I was sitting chanting silent japa in Prabhupada's back room and Srila Prabhupada was reading one of his books in the front room, his disciple Pancadravida Swami came to visit him. Pancadravida Maharaja had been preaching in South India, and after visiting Prabhupada for a few days, he was about to set off again on another tour to the South. Prabhupada gave him encouraging words and blessings. He told him that the mission of the Krsna conscious movement is to turn a section of the population into ideal men. Prabhupada said we cannot expect everyone to join. "If by this way or that way," said Prabhupada, "you can bring one person to Krsna, He is very pleased to have one of His sons returned." Pancadravida Maharaja asked how he could prepare himself to preach against South Indian panditas who knew the sastras thoroughly. Prabhupada replied that if he could just memorize thirty of the key verses of Bhagavad-gita, he would be able to defeat Mayavadi arguments. Prabhupada also emphasized that Pancadravida Maharaja should preach on the basis of the varnasrama-dharma, explaining that in order for society to be sane it should be organized according to four orders and classes. Sutapa das, BV Manor, UK: Soft, cozy bedsMy alarm went off at 3.45am this morning. It was cold… I was tired… and I had a hard decision to make. Luckily there are no soft cozy beds in our monastery, just simple mats on floors. I finally decided to jump out of my sleeping bag and scramble into the shower. As usual, I felt fine 20 minutes later. Bad habits, they say, are just like soft cozy beds - very easy to get into, but extremely difficult to get out of. Good habits, on the other hand, are extremely difficult to form but very easy to lose.
Japa Group: Executing Our Spiritual DutiesFrom this we can understand how we have to be very cautious in executing our spiritual duties by observing the rules and regulations and regularly chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. If we neglect doing this, we will eventually fall down. Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.8.8 Kurma dasa, AU: Steak and Chips
Attention all vegetarians: Don't panic! The photo above is from 'Cooking with Kurma', my second cookbook. The 'steak' is made from fresh panir cheese. S from Malaysia wrote and suggested I shouldn't call them 'steaks', but rather 'patties'. I guess the name 'steak' conjured negative emotions for him. Sorry S, but 'patties' just doesn't 'cut the mustard' with me. You're not going to convince a meat-eating bloke to 'have a pattie'. Why convince a meat-eating bloke at all, you say? In fact my Spiritual Master, Srila Prabhupada instructed us in Melbourne of 1974 during an impromptu cookery class, that fried panir cheese is ideal for converting the meat-eaters. He suggested that a dish made with fried panir cheese would be 'a meat eater's delight'. Subsequently fried panir chunks and fried potatoes in a spicy whey-based gravy became a classic Australian Hare Krishna Temple Sunday Feast item, and became lovingly known as 'Meat Eaters Delight' or MED. So I will continue to call them 'Panir Steaks' with a clear conscience. And here's the recipe for the photo above. Panir Cheese Steaks with Chips and Salad Curd cheese, or panir, is rich in protein and extremely versatile. It can be deep-fried and used in vegetable dishes, crumbled into salads, made into sweets, stuffed inside breads and pastries, and creamed into dips. Curd cheese is the simplest kind of unripened cheese and is made by adding an acid or other curdling agent to hot milk. The solid milk protein coagulates to form the soft curd cheese, the liquid whey is separated, and the cheese is drained, pressed, and then used as required. Because curd cheese is not commonly available in shops, and the home-made product is vastly superior, I have included the simple recipe for making your own. The quality and freshness of the milk will determine the quality of the curd cheese. The higher the fat-content of the milk, the richer the curd cheese. Different curdling agents will produce different types of curd. The most common curdling agents are strained, fresh lemon juice, citric acid crystals dissolved in water, yogurt, cultured buttermilk, or sour whey from a previous batch of curd cheese.
5 litres fresh milk, 3-4 cups yogurt or 6-8 tablespoons lemon juice, oil for pan-frying, ½ teaspoon yellow asafetida powder, tamari or soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, crusty bread, salad greens and chips for serving. Heat the milk to boiling point in a heavy-based saucepan. Stir in three-quarters of the yogurt or lemon juice. The milk should separate into chunky curds, leaving a greenish liquid residue called whey. If not completely separated, add a little more yogurt or lemon juice. Drape a double thickness of cheesecloth over a colander sitting in the sink. Scoop out the curds with a slotted spoon and place them in the cheesecloth. Pour the whey and whatever curds that remain in the saucepan into the cheesecloth. Gather the ends of the cloth together and hold the bag of curd cheese under cold running water for 30 seconds. Twist the bag tightly to squeeze out extra whey, return it to the colander. Press under a heavy weight for 10-15 minutes. Carefully remove the curd cheese from the cloth. Your panir is ready. Slice the panir into steaks.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan placed over fairly high heat. Sprinkle in the yellow asafetida powder and saute momentarily. Carefully transfer the panir cheese into the hot pan and cook on both sides, turning when required with a fork or tongs, until golden brown and crusty. Splash on the tamari or soy sauce, toss the pan or turn the panir, then pour on the sweet chili sauce and repeat until the sauces combine to a thick glaze. Quickly remove the panir and serve immediately with hot chips and salad. I also present panir cheese on a bed of sweet potato mash with tangy dressed rocket leaves like so:
In Govinda's restaurant in Dublin, the most popular dish on the menu is bowlfuls of fried panir cheese fried to golden brown and simmered in a rich tomato gravy. Two thousand litres of the local creamy fresh farm milk is made into panir cheese every week.
You can also simmer fried chunks of panir cheese with peas and spicy tomato sauce for the classic Indian dish 'matar panir'
Subliminal advertising session is over. You will now immediately go to the kitchen and make panir. Go on, off you go...
Dandavats.com: Invitation for New Orleans Rath Yatra festivalRohininandan das: On behalf of ISKCON New Orleans, we would like to extend an invitation to all devotees and guests to join us in our annual Rath Yatra festival David Haslam, UK: Form R1After the events here in my little valley community it has been decided they need to know a bit more about me and so I have been sent away with the form R; although saddened in some respect that despite serving at The Manor for over four years a question mark is hanging over my [...] Akrura das, Gita Coaching: THEY SHOULDI hear people saying "they should". "They" refers to various people: leaders, politicians, parents, children. Subhvavilasa das ACBSP, Toronto, CA: Krishna, please accept my humble service. Aṇor aṇīyān mahato mahīyān.A very nice quote from Srila Prabhupada during a lecture reffering to a question I asked Srila Prabhupada earlier after going to see other temples in Vrindavan.
Vṛndāvana, September 24, 1976 Just like immediately our Śubhavilāsa Prabhu was asking me that “We have seen so many temples. Why they are so neglected?” Is it not your question? And why they should not neglect it? The, mostly, the temples, they have become the means of livelihood. That is the defect. Temple is not meant for means of livelihood. Then it will deteriorate. How long you can falsely worship Deity and make show of ārati? You cannot go on very long time. That is not possible. You’ll be disgusted. Unless there is feeling, bhāva, that “Here is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa has very kindly come here to receive, to take, accept my humble service. He’s so great that He cannot be approached by a person like me.” Aṇor aṇīyān mahato mahīyān. ~ His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Srila Prabhupada through you I pray that Krishna, please accept my humble service. Vrndavana Vinodini dd, Toronto, Canada: Purity in the MomentMesmerized. I was trapped. Nay, I was ensconced in the maha mantra. Framed by two sweet girls, a mere eight years in age, I was rendered speechless. The sound of the holy names emanating from their lips reverberated through the ignorance and materialistic cavern that I call my heart. Completely untainted. Their voices unhurriedly chanting Krsna's names. The purity of their heart, uncluttered with screaming desires pierced the ether. Just for a fraction of a moment I could feel it. The potency. The strength. The love. Akrura das, Gita Coaching: "I FORGIVE YOU"To me, "I forgive you" is a proud statement. Hari Sauri das, Mayapura, IN: BRC boonNovember 1 2010 An added bonus from my visit to Mumbai was meeting a good friend of ISKCON, Srimati Srilekha Bose. Mrs. Bose is the sister of Sri Tarun Kanti Ghosh, who was a big government minister in W. Bengal during the 1970s. He was a strong supporter of ISKCON, and the chief guest of our 1977 Gaura Purnima festival. He had several darshans of Srila Prabhupada as seen here on Gaura Purnima day 1977: But the connection goes much further back to the late 1800′s. The grandfather of Tarun Kanti and Srilekha was a well known Vaisnava, Mahatma Shisir Kumar Ghose. The Ghosh family owned several prominent newspapers — Amrit Bazaar Patrika, Jugantar, Jugantar Press and had tremendous influence not just in W. Bengal but in India. Shisir Kumar Ghose was a prominent author as well as newspaper baron and he was a personal friend of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura. It was he who named Bhaktivinoda Thakura the “Seventh Goswami”. This is mentioned in Rupa Vilasa dasa’s book of the same name: “The Thakura’s association with the famous Sisir Kumar Ghosh has been documented by Paramananda Vidyaratna and in a scholarly book called Vaisnavism in Bengal by Dr. Ramakanta Chakravarti. Sisir Kumar Ghosh (1840-1911) was a famous journalist, the founder and editor of the Amrita BazarPatrika and formerly a Brahmo (a follower of Rammohan Ray). He had great respect and reverence for Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, having read some of his books, such as Sri Krsna-samhita. Being very attracted to the purity of the Thakura, he initiated a correspondence with him. He came to consider the Thakura to be on the level of the Six Gosvamis, and in fact, he once wrote to him: “I have not seen the Six Gosvamis of Vrndavana, but I consider you to be the seventh Gosvami.” He published a book about the life of Lord Caitanya in English called Lord Gauranga or Salvation for All in 1897, being inspired by the Thakura’s book Shree Chaitanya Mahaprabhu-His Life and Precepts. He wrote biographies of Lord Caitanya’s followers and published an edition of the Caitanya-bhagavata. He also preached the glories of the holy name in the Calcutta area and many villages in Bengal, being inspired again by the Thakura’s example. His Vaisnava journal, Sri Visnu Priya O Ananda Bazar Patrika was published under the editorship of the Thakura on a fortnightly basis starting in 1890. Later it became a monthly.”
[SG 23: Preaching and Publishing Until the Last]
Shisir Kumar Ghose also wrote the famous news article describing and supporting the Thakura’s attempts to collect funds for the building of a temple at the newly discovered birth site of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu: “On December 6, 1894, an article appeared in the Amrta Bazar Patrika that describes how, just after the Thakura’s retirement from government service, he began going from door to door in Calcutta, begging donations for Lord Caitanya’s Temple in Mayapura in a spirit of perfect humility: “Babu Kedar Nath Dutt, the distinguished Deputy Magistrate, who has just retired from the service, is one of the most active members. Indeed, Babu Kedar Nath has been deputed by the committee to raise subscription in Calcutta and elsewhere and is determined to go from house to house, if necessary, and beg a rupee from each Hindu gentleman for the noble purpose. If Babu Kedar Nath Dutt, therefore, really sticks to his resolution of going round with a bag in hand, we hope, no Hindu gentleman, whose house may be honoured by the presence of such a devout bhakta as Babu Kedar Nath, will send him away without contributing his mite, however humble it may be, to the Gaur Vishnupriya Temple Fund.” [SG 21: Retirement and Expansion of Preaching] Srila Prabhupada referred to this connection between Shisir Kumar and Bhaktivinoda Thakura in a letter to Tarun Kanti Babu on March 11 1974: “Since I attended the meeting last night I am feeling a new enthusiasm, over how potential the Krishna Consciousness movement is, based on the teaching of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Your good family has very great interest in Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and especially your grandfather Mahatma Sisir Kumar Ghose was a great friend of Bhaktivinode Thakura. So we are coming down in disciplic succession from Bhaktivinode Thakura and you are coming in family succession from Mahatma Sisir Kumar Ghose, so if we combine together in preaching the message of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, it will be a great benediction to human society for mitigation of all kinds of problems of material existence.” With this background it was with great pleasure then that we met Mrs. Bose in Kolkata early this year. At the behest of her nephew Tamal Kanti Ghosh, the son of Tarun Kanti, she came to visit the BRC. Srilekha Bose, niece Rita Datta, nephew Tamal Kanti Ghosh She was very impressed with our efforts and promised to look for literatures to donate to the BRC from their extensive family library. Since the passing of her brother in 1996, the family estate has become scattered and the library has been broken up so she wasn’t sure what she could find. True to her word though she rang me several months ago to say she had found several books written by her grandfather which were now rare and out of print. Since she lives in Mumbai she told me to visit whenever I was over that side and she would donate them to the library. So on Saturday Oct. 31 I went to her home and today she visited Hare Krsna Land. She handed me copies of several titles by Shisir Kumar Ghose, including a third edition printed in 1923 of the two volume book mentioned above, Lord Gauranga or Salvation for All. It was their personal family copy but she is entrusting it to the BRC because of the high quality of our library. As it happened HH Bhakti Charu Swami, a major donor of the BRC, was on hand to meet Mrs. Bose along with BBT manager Bhima prabhu and Hare Krishna Land temple president Braj Hari prabhu: HH Bhakti Charu Swami, BBT in chief Bhima prabhu, temple president Braj Hari prabhu and Smt. Srilekha Bose with a rare copy of Lord Gauranga or Salvation for All. Mrs. Bose has promised to put us in touch with her niece Rita in Kolkata who knows the whereabouts of the rest of the family library. Our hope of course is to find some rare treasures for the BRC. Considering the decade long publishing collaboration between Mahatma Shisir Kumar Ghose and Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura we may find more than just books to add to our archive. Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1958 November 1: "My dear Brother, please excuse me if I have offended you by calling you my dear Brother. Actually you are my dear brother and when you know me you shall be pleased that I have called you as such." Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1968 November 1 : "The wife is the shareholder of the husband's pious activities. Actually he cannot check you in the matter of your service either to Krishna or to me, but we must take care by following the ordinary rules." Akrura das, Gita Coaching: BHAGAVAD GITA - FREE AUDIOBOOKClick on the title to listen to the jewel of Eastern wisdom Bhagavad-gita As It Is online - for free.
Mayapur Online: In appreciation of Devaki Mayi ddWe humbly request worldwide devotees to pray for HG Ekanatha Gaura prabhu and HG Devaki Mayi mataji (Ekanatha prabhu’s wife) and HG Sarva Sakti mataji’s quick recovery. They had met with a very bad car accident in Guayaquil,Ecuador. HG Devaki Mayi mataji is in intensive care unit. Ekanath Gaura prabhu is a long time traveling secretary/servant of HH Jayapataka Swami. H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami: 1193:44 A.M.Namamrta by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada: ‘Results of giving up chanting’
“[Sukadeva Gosvami to King Pariksit]…Being attached to raising a deer, Maharaja Bharata forgot the rules and regulations for the advancement of spiritual life, and he gradually forgot to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead. After a few days he forgot everything about his spiritual advancement. “From this we can understand how we have to very cautious in executing our spiritual duties by observing the rules and regulations and regularly chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. If we neglect doing this, we will eventually fall down. We must rise early in the morning, bath, attend mangala-arati, worship the Deities, chant the Hare Krishna mantra, study the Vedic literatures and follow all the rules prescribed by the acaryas and the spiritual master. If we deviate from this process we may fall down, even though we may be very highly advanced…Even if one is in the renounced order, he should never give up the regulative principles.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.8.8) If one cannot complete the fixed number of rounds he’s assigned he should be considered to be in a diseased condition of spiritual life. Krishna sends a sincere person a bona fide spiritual master and the combination of Krishna and the spiritual master is the cause of one’s receiving the seed of Krishna consciousness. If you have a seed of any nice plant it is your duty to not lock it up in a safety valve at the bank. Your duty is to sow it in the ground. You should sow it within yourself, and after sowing the seed you have to pour water on it, and the water is chanting and hearing. The process should not be stopped by the thought that because one is initiated there is no need of hearing and chanting. It should go on continuously. If you stop pouring water on a plant it will dry up; it will not produce any fruit. Similarly, even if you are highly elevated in Krishna consciousness, you cannot stop this process of hearing and chanting because maya is so strong, so powerful that as soon as she sees, “Ah, here is an opportunity,” at once she will dry up. In the Nectar of Instruction, text 5, Prabhupada writes, “We have witnessed that some of our contemporaries who are supposed to be great preachers have gradually fallen into the material conception of life because they have failed to chant the holy name of the Lord. The impersonalist may ask why one should bother chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra continually for so many years instead of stopping and trying for kaivalya, liberation, or merging into the existence of the Lord. In answer to this Maharaja Prthu maintains that the attraction of this chanting is so great that one cannot give up the process unless he is an animal. I woke up after a night’s sleep about 1 A.M. But for some reason my chanting went very slowly. By 3:30 I have only chanted eight rounds. My chanting was not very alert, and I found myself pushing to gain the accumulation of rounds towards the quota. A quota should accumulate naturally, without great effort, by a consistent and pleasurable chanting of the holy names. I think I was feeling tired and that was the reason I could not chant so quickly. Only an animal will
H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami: One Hundred Prabhupada Poems# 76
Prabhupada wishes me well in any honest
I say “preach” and “spread Krishna consciousness” so many times!
He explains why
It’s the best way to worship.
In any photo of Prabhupada, he is actually
H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami: Beyond CynicismGod is worshipped as adi-sukara,
My old college friend does not like
He used the battlefield as a
I know I cannot convince my old
That is a poor excuse for
Human life is meant
I like my college buddy
H.H. Satsvarupa das Goswami: His OwnFree WriteI turned at random to Canto 3, Chapter 19, text 31. “Sri Maitreya continued: After thus killing the most formidable demon Hiranyaksa, the Supreme Lord Hari, the origin of the boar species, returned to His own abode, where there is always an uninterrupted festival. The Lord was praised by all the demigods, headed by Brahma.” In this situation the Lord assumed the form of a boar to kill the demon Hiranyaksa and pick up the earth from the Garbha ocean. Thus He became adi-sukara, the original boar. In the material world a boar or pig is considered most abominable but the adi-sukara, the Supreme Personality of Godhead was not treated like an ordinary boar. Even Lord Brahma and the other demigods praised the Lord’s form as a boar. The verse confirms that the Lord appears from His own abode just to kill the demons and miscreants. The statement that the Lord returned to His own abode indicates that He has His own particular residence. Although the Lord has His particular abode He is all-pervasive. The impersonalists accepts the all-pervasive aspect, but they cannot understand His localized situation in His transcendental abode where He is always engaged in transcendental pastimes. Utsava means “pleasure”. Utsava, the expression of complete happiness is always present in Vaikuntha-loka, the abode of the Lord, who is worshipable by demigods like Brahma, to say nothing of other less important entities such as human beings. Indra approached Krishna stealthily because he was afraid and repentant after what he had done in Vrndavana. With Indra came his elephant and a surabhi cow. Indra bowed down his head at Krishna’s feet and although Indra’s helmet was shiny, he touched it to the ground. He pleaded to Krishna, after all I am a demigod, one of Your servants who always fights against the demons. So won’t you please forgive me? (Brahma prayed the same way after Krishna humbled him when Brahma stole the boys and calves.) Fools like me, Indra said, fail to recognize You are the Supreme Lord of the universe. He carried on at some length, berating himself and asking to be spared. Krishna said, “I spare you but just don’t forget who is the supreme master.” The surabhi cow then came forward and thanked Krishna for His protection. “You are our Indra,” she said and she sprayed Krishna with an abhiseka of milk. Indra also received an abhiseka from the trunk of his elephant. So the disturbing affair was settled, and Indra was humble without being punished. I’m going to have Saci and the evening reader go back to the beginning of the Govardhana-lila and read it to me again so I’ll have it memorized for the lecture I’ll give on Govardhana-puja in a week. They specifically want the speaker to tell the story of Govardhana. I’ll be relaxed and sure of what to say, then I can make it a little colloquial. I’ll try not to speak too long, a half hour at the most. Kaulini Mataji will offer arati to her Govardhana-sila, and the devotees will circumambulate around a mound of prasadam. Don’t forget to say the huge separate form of Krishna who ate the feast kept saying “Aniyora!” More! More! and the Vrajavasis kept bringing more rice, dahl, capatis, subji and sweets. That will relate to the fact that after the speech and arati we will be feasting, aniyora, aniyora. Akrura das, Gita Coaching: THE CHOICE MAPClick on a title to get your free copy of a Choice Map - a wonderful personal success tool. H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Saturday, October 30th 2010Begin Now!
H.H. Bhaktimarg Swami: Friday, October 29 th, 2010Never Bleak
Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1968 November 1 : "I am getting gradually older, therefore even if I remain in your country, I shall restrain my moving and my main business will be henceforward to train you all my disciples for preaching work. I think you will approve of my program." Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1970 November 1 : "He is actually surrendered soul, but Maya is so strong. The poison is personal ambition. Our duty is to be very, very careful. Doubts may come about, but one should be firmly fixed up." Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1971 November 1 : "It was a great shock for me to hear about the death of Jananivasa and Will, so untimely. In such case we should hold special condolence meeting and pray for his being taken to Krishna Loka." Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1972 November 1 : "It appears you have been poisoned by some rascals who cannot do anything to push on the mission of Lord Caitanya but can put hindrances in the path of spreading Krishna Consciousness all over the world." Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1972 November 1 : "I am very sorry that you have fallen a victim of such poisonous serpents. Because such easy going rascals are unable to assume the position of 'Prabhupada' or unfit for the post, they are so envious and you are talking on their behalf." ISKCON Toronto, Canada: Deity Darshan: Sunday, October 31, 2010Photos taken by Rishi Kumar Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1973 November 1 : "In the beginning we must treat the Lord with awe and veneration. Later on when we are perfectly on the spiritual platform, we treat Krsna more intimately. But in the beginning, we never imitate the Brijbasis as do the sahajiyas." Srila Prabhupada's Letters 1973 November 1 : "I have been hearing about your successful preaching. Stick to this work allotted to you by Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Always pray to Caitanya Mahaprabhu for strength and go on with your preaching." H.H. Sivarama Swami: Syama Dulali dd and Bn Eleanora ask why there are demons and demigods in VaikunthaWhy Yamaraja did not go back to Godhead and should Vaisnavas be always forgiving. Why there are demons and demigods in Vaikuntha. H.G. Sankarshan das Adhikari, USA: Here is the 2010 Vyas Puja Homage Book for His Divine Grace Sri Srimad Sankarshan Das Adhikari ...Dear Devotees, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva. Today, 1 November 2010, is Vyasa Puja, the divine appearance day of my spiritual master and the spiritual master of many of the readers of "Thought for the Day", His Divine Grace Sri Srimad Sankarshan Das Adhikari Gurudeva. For his appearance day... Hari Sauri das, Mayapura, IN: GBC Strategic Planning meetings Day 2November 1 2010 Here’s a few more shots of some of the participants in the Strategic Planning meetings here in Mumbai: Who’s this saffron clad photographer? I am sure everyone recognises this smiling ever-youthful Swami. Badrinarayan prabhu addresses the body Narayana kavaca prabhu, two devotees whom I don’t know the names of (sign of the times-we are getting so big I don’t even know some of the GBC deputies anymore), Bhaktarupa prabhu Bhakti Rasamrta Swami (formerly Devamrta prabhu) Ajita prabhu, Prabhavisnu Swami, Virabahu prabhu Basu Ghosh prabhu My left foot (I have no idea how this occurred, it was entirely by chance — the photo that is, not my foot, to which I am quite attached) Tirtharaj prabhu, Haridas prabhu, Bhakti Raghava Swami GBC secretary Ananda Tirtha prabhu Aniruddha prabhu, Akrura prabhu Bhima prabhu, Bhaktivinoda Swami Kaishori dd, Laxmimoni dd Kaunteya prabhu Sivarama Swami addresses the body about his Hungarian farm project Hrdaya Caitanya prabhu, Bhanu Swami, Tamohara prabhu At least here’s one man who is not bored with the meetings Ramai Swami, Harivilasa prabhu, (in the background Sura prabhu and Ganga prabhu) Bhakti Bhusana Maharaja is sharing a room with me. This is his first attendance at a mid-year GBC meeting. ISKCON Melbourne, AU: Daily class - Gopa-vrndesa PrabhuSrimad Bhagavatam 11.26.15-16 - Lower propensities for material sense enjoyment are removed neither by repression nor expression, rather by experiencing a higher spiritual taste. For example, in the Damodarastakam prayer. Japa Group: Prepare Your Heart For Krsna
"Govinda in your heart if you prepare yourself properly. This is stated in the Brahma-samhita [5.38]: premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilokayanti [Bs. 5.38]. There is a television within your heart; it is not that you have to purchase the television set—it is there in your heart. And God is also there. You can see Him, you can hear Him, you can talk with Him, provided you repair the machine. And this repairing process is Krishna consciousness." Srila Prabhupada Quest for Enlightenment How can we prepare ourselves to, our hearts to see the Lord, one of the processes is by chanting and hearing the holy names, you chant and hear and little by little your heart you be prepared to see Krsna. May this week be blessed. your servant, Aruna devi Gouranga TV: Holy name festival 2010 New Vraja-dhamaHoly name festival 2010 New Vraja-dhama Dandavats.com: Guru Kripa Prabhu’s Fake profile on Face BookGuru Kripa Das: Recently somebody has created a fake profile of mine on the social networking site, Facebook and has been using it to send highly offensive and improper messages to the devotees. I wish to inform all the devotees that I have NO connection with the profile or the content going through it and I DON'T HAVE an account on Facebook More Recent Articles
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