Please accept my humble obeisance. 3 month back i used to chant daily , i always used to eat krishna prasadam. i always spare my free time while reading books of Prapbhupad, geeta, hearing shrimad bhagwatam. but due to job purpose in the month of December i shift pune with my younger brother and cousin who are living bachelor life here. Here food was prepared by maid includes onion and garlic. because its very hard to eat food without onion garlic for them. also my daily routine get disturbed after coming here. i not visiting iskcon temple on sunday regularly, i stopped chanting regularly. Inspite of knowing that I am living sinful life, i am continuing it. My mind get distract from the right path. again i want it to come back on right direction. But i am unable to manage while living bachelor life with my both brothers. Please do needful, provide me your valuable guidance to return on path.
Hari Bol !
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This is no problem Prabhu. In Krishna Consciousness above all it is earnestness and desire to Serve the Lord that is most important. Even if you dont get time to chant or forced to eat un-offered food; dont feel too bad. Just increase your desire and earnestness to serve Krishna. That is most important. The Lord sees one's heart and immediately provide the means to purify oneself in devotional service. This is key in Krishna Consciousness. I am sure you will see a change in the scene with your burning desire for serving Krishna.
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Thank You Rashmi Mataji for Your kind advice!
Also practically You can search for Devotee Matajis who could cook/make tiffans for You. Maybe dinners and lunches, no?!
You could give some donations and they could do and even bring to Your place if You pay for the transport etc.
What we eat is important. Especially men cannot tolerate hunger. So it is nice if You eat nicely Prabhu.
Or else if You are ready for marriage then that would be also nice. Because usually working man should have a wife who will assist him at home other wise it is very difficult to do many things at a time - home-job...
When I used to stay at the dormitory it was not allowed to cook or even eat there. So we had to manage somehow by eating here and there but only Krishna Prasadam.
Also there was no place for chanting. Sometimes in cold winters I had to go out to the yard and chant Japa there so that others do not see...
So difficulties are there in every situation.
This life is a test, exam. And that is for our benefit only.
And difficulties are given along with abilities to overcome them.
"Surrender that is the way from where we get strength" says HH Radhanath Swami.
We are not masters. So if we accept our depended position on Krishna and beg for help He will surely help.
Your servant,
Hare Krishna
Thank you Mata jee your post is useful for everyone. Thank you for sharing this
Hare Krishna
PAMHO
Thank You Mataji for your valuable suggestion. Mataji I am married, my wife will come to my place by this week end. Due to job purpose she is at different location, but now she resigned from current organization and join us soon. She will definitely support me in eating Krishna Prasadam only as she used to do earlier.
Hari Bol
Your Servant
Hare KRsna Prabhuji,
I am giving you a sample daily routine - you can add to it or take from it whatever is workable for you. This is how you can make your day fully in the service of Krsna.
Wake up at 4.00 am. Take bath, do mangalarati by 5.00 am. Then chant for 2 hours - complete 16 rounds. Then you can read Bhagavad Gita and/ or Srimad Bhagavatam for atleast half an hour. Ideal is 2 hours. You can put some lecture on audio or watch Mayapur.tv in the morning and see the Darshan arati, guru puja and hear the lecture everyday. THat is between 7.00 am to 9.00 am. Then get ready and go to work. In between, you can make it a rule that you will offer something to Krsna everyday and then only eat - maybe you can begin with milk and fruits. That you can do yourself, no need for any servant interference. Ideally, eat only Krsna prasadam, but right now, it doesnt appear feasible for you, so dont tax yourself just now.
In office, you can access vedabase.net or asitis.com or gaudiyahistory.com or dandavats.com or some such site and read in your free time in between works. When you return from work, take bath and do sandhya arati. Then sit and read some literature written by Srila PRabhupada or watch lectures or youtube on Prabhupada or ISKCON. That way, whole day you are in the service of Krsna.
It may sound heavy. I am not asking you to adopt this lifestyle immediately. I have given you the ideal because you asked for it. Do what is workable for you.
Haribol,
YOur servant,
Rashmi
Hare Krishna !
Thank You Mataji for sharing your views. I will try my best to follow that routine.
Hari Bol !
Your Servant
PAMHO! Thank you Mataji for your valuable revert. I will definitely change my routine from now itself. As you suggested Chanting is food for soul, initially i will restart chanting on regular basis so that by the mercy of Lord i will get strength to follow other rules of devotees also.
Hare Krsna Prabhuji,
PAMHO.
The first thing to do is to start chanting regularly. Maybe you can put some self imposed ban - like you will not have water even until you have chanted your regular rounds in the morning. Or maybe, you will not have dinner, if you cant finish your rounds in the morning. The first day you do this, before you start chanting, please pray to the lordships that this is what you have thought, today is the first day you are embarking on this tapa and please help me God. Surely, they will help you. When you finish your rounds, dont feel proud and happy that you have completed your rounds today, humbly pray to them thanking them that you could complete your rounds. Pray to them that today I could complete my rounds by Your mercy, please bless me and make me complete my rounds tomorrow also. Like this you do everyday, you will see, you aer able to complete your rounds miraculously everyday. Please remember that we are nobody to even take their names. Unless the lord sanctions, we cannot take their names even once, what to speak of completing rounds. We have to simply show our endeavour, the rest will fall into place.
Remember - the day you dont eat AND the day you dont sleep is the day you dont chant. In any situation in our life, we always eat and sleep, right. Chanting is as important, it is food for the soul.
Pune has very good congregation. You must visit the temple and ask for devotees congregating in your locality. I think they even have bhakti vriksha there or some sort of congregational preaching, maybe youth. You join and take your brothers also. THis way, instead of you becoming influenced by them, use this opportunity to influence them gently. Its possible. As far as I know, Pune has Govinda's also. Take your brothers there and have prasadam there.
I think you tackle this much first, the onion garlic part will happen. If you try to do everything at the same time, it may backfire. Brothers may protest and it may become a family issue.
Best of luck prabhu.
Haribol,
Your servant.
Hare Krishna
Thank you Mata jee for sharing information it is motivating and useful for everyone
Hare Krishna
Mataji also requesting you to share all the ways of serving Lord in daily routine.
Hari Bol