Please Everyone, Especially Women, Share Your Thoughts, Ideas, Desires, Suggestions on: Vaishnavi Nun Monastery/Women Devotional School and Training Center in Europe: Need or no need and what need?

Recently, a Male Vaishnava Monastery/Farm Community project has been started in Europe, Latvia. You can find more information about this project here:

http://ourmonastery.wordpress.com/

http://www.iskcondesiretree.net/forum/topics/my-dream-brahmachari-ashram-and-farm-community

Owning another rural property some distance from the Male Monastery property, my husband and I offered to be a part of this project. It has been mercifully suggested by the project leaders to develop a Vaishnavi Nun Monastery/Women devotional school and training center on our property. Very happy to receive such service, we are requesting all devotees, especially women, to kindly share their thoughts, ideas, desires, concerns, questions etc. about such a project. As soon as possible we will develop a web page on this project.

Some of the ideas are:

1) A possibility for all devotee and interested women to attend devotional meetings, programs, seminars, courses etc.;

2)Develop online devotional courses that all devotee and interested women around the globe can take;

3) Organize retreats for Vaishnavis;

4) Offer a possibility to interested devotee women to stay for training periods of 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 1 year etc.;

5) Ultimately, offer a possibility for very dedicated and commited women to serve for their whole lifetime as a Vaishnavi Nun;

6) Offer devotional support for women in crisis situations.

We are highly appreciating your comments on this!

Your humble servants

My own firm conviction is that there IS a need for Vaishnavi Nun Monastery/Women Devotional School and training center. It greatly helped me and changed my whole life that I was given a chance to live in ISKCON Riga Temple Mataji Ashram for 3 years. And even after I was already married it was a most wonderful experience for me to have the association of Matajis in ISKCON Villa Vrindavana temple Mataji Ashram for 1 and a half years.

Women who are seriously interested in Krishna consciousness need good association, training and shelter for the practice of their spiritual life as much as the men do, and many times even more. For women it is especially difficult and, in fact, usually impossible to become fixed in spiritual life simply on the basis of mere philosophical understanding. They need a lot of ongoing good example and good engagement.

Those men who will not stay celibate for their whole life, also need good wives that are trained in Krishna conscious philosophy and culture, not just any women from the street, who will disrupt and spoil their lives by their uncontrolled senses and ambitions. According to the statements of Srila Prabhupada, most divorce cases are caused by women. And Srila Prabhupada also says that good population depends on the chastity and faithfulness of its womanhood.

In both temples where I stayed there were some positive and some negative aspects, as everywhere in this world. I have been contemplating a lot about these different aspects for many years. I asked myself and senior devotees many questions and have found many answers in Srila Prabhupada's teachings and from ISKCON Spiritual Masters and senior devotees about how it could be improved.

One main cause of many problems regarding women's training can be said to be the misunderstandings about the true nature of women and the conscious or unconscious attempt to make women and men equal. It is all due to the Western influence. Women and men are both spirit souls, but their gross and subtle bodies are very different and need to be differently dealt with for the successful practice of spiritual life.

I myself would be very happy to have the Vaishnavi Nun Monastery/Women School and Training Center at our place and I would gladly dedicate my time and effort to serving the devotee and interested women and sharing whatever experiences, skills and realizations I have. I would be most happy to have such an engagement for the rest of my life.

Your humble servant,
Madhavi-lata d.d.

Replies

Gita September 6, 2014 at 7:00pm

Very Good Idea. Here is a sample of what I have been doing as weekend Retreats in UK several times in year with different topics each time.

Ladies only Practical Ayurveda & Spiritual Retreat

at Nilachala Vedic Arts College, Peterborough.

12th Fri. Sept 2014 to 14th Sun. Sept 2014

Couple spaces left 07722473206

Facilitator - Mother Gandharidasi - (Sdg)

Friday 12th arriving anytime afternoon or evening

Prasad, introduction, schedule, orientation & Brahma Samhita.

Saturday 13th

Morning Program, Barefoot Japa walk in the forest, Pranayam

Suryapranam, Tree hugging, Bird feeding.

Quick Nutritional Balanced Ayuvedic Breakfast.

Fully Ayurvedic (hands on) cooking Class for different dosas & Lunch

Afternoon

Chakra Balancing in 5 mins. Course (for Emotional & Physical Health)

Basic Feng Shui (Quick Vastu Class)- Optional

BREAK & Evening program

Preparing Food Remedies for Emotional Health.

Overview Understanding of Daiva Varnashram, Duties & Obligations (optional)

Personal & family health.

Krsna Book Discussions.

Sunday Morning Leicester Kirtan Fest.

Conclusions & Departing.
Volunteer

Madhavi-lata devi dasi June 17, 2013 at 5:49pm

My own firm conviction is that there IS a need for Vaishnavi Nun Monastery/Women Devotional School and training center. It greatly helped me and changed my whole life that I was given a chance to live in ISKCON Riga Temple Mataji Ashram for 3 years. And even after I was already married it was a most wonderful experience for me to have the association of Matajis in ISKCON Villa Vrindavana temple Mataji Ashram for 1 and a half years.

Women who are seriously interested in Krishna consciousness need good association, training and shelter for the practice of their spiritual life as much as the men do, and many times even more. For women it is especially difficult and, in fact, usually impossible to become fixed in spiritual life simply on the basis of mere philosophical understanding. They need a lot of ongoing good example and good engagement.

Those men who will not stay celibate for their whole life, also need good wives that are trained in Krishna conscious philosophy and culture, not just any women from the street, who will disrupt and spoil their lives by their uncontrolled senses and ambitions. According to the statements of Srila Prabhupada, most divorce cases are caused by women. And Srila Prabhupada also says that good population depends on the chastity and faithfulness of its womanhood.

In both temples where I stayed there were some positive and some negative aspects, as everywhere in this world. I have been contemplating a lot about these different aspects for many years. I asked myself and senior devotees many questions and have found many answers in Srila Prabhupada's teachings and from ISKCON Spiritual Masters and senior devotees about how it could be improved.

One main cause of many problems regarding women's training can be said to be the misunderstandings about the true nature of women and the conscious or unconscious attempt to make women and men equal. It is all due to the Western influence. Women and men are both spirit souls, but their gross and subtle bodies are very different and need to be differently dealt with for the successful practice of spiritual life.

I myself would be very happy to have the Vaishnavi Nun Monastery/Women School and Training Center at our place and I would gladly dedicate my time and effort to serving the devotee and interested women and sharing whatever experiences, skills and realizations I have. I would be most happy to have such an engagement for the rest of my life.

Your humble servant,
Madhavi-lata d.d.

This reply was deleted.