Gender

Male

Birthday:

September 24

Name / Initiated name

Sharad bihari dasa

Daily number of rounds of Hare Krishna mahamantra.

16 to 20

When, where and how did you come into contact with the Hare Krishna Movement?

I came in contact In 1971 at Philadelphia Pa. Temple and New York temple on West 55th Street Manhattan.

Name the nearest or most frequently Visited ISKCON temple/ centre and name few of the devotees whom you know.

Haryashva dasa in Philaelphia Pa. Govinda's restaurant on South St. Philadelphia Pa. Ravindra Svarupa

Please describe yourself so that other like minded devotees can find you.

I am in China now struggling to try and please Lord Chaitanya turning my residence into a preaching center. I have cooked in temples for decades. I started out in Philadelphia temple. I traveled on the Radha Damodara bus back in 1975 for a short time. I helped open up the Hare Krishna Food for Life in Philadelphia temple as well as Govinda's restaurant. I have years of experience cooking feasts and for deity offering preparing milk sweets, and a wide repertoire of Laddus, rasagullas , gulabjamins and other Indian sweets, pies cakes and a lot of traditional Indian savories. One of my occupations is an addiction therapist. I was able to introduce God consciousness with my own type therapeutic technique to rehabilitate drug addicts and alcoholics. I play some acoustic guitar. I have been learning harmonium andhave a few years of experience playing Mridanga. On Chinese New Year in China I publically sang a song with the are Krishna Maha Mantra in it in it. I have been teaching English as a second language for 7 years in China. I am considering a move back to U.S. in a couple years. I enjoy writing. I have a 4 hour full morning program here in China. It only costs me $300/mo. for food ret and utilities. I feel the pain separation from association with devotees and would like to correspond.

What are your expectations from this community?

Association and like Krishna says. They derive great pleasure and satisfaction with each other speaking amongst themselves about Krishna. Lord Chaitanya's Sankirtana movement is about congregational chanting about Krishna's names forms and pastimes and qualities. I am quite anxious to share Krishna katha because the taste becomes sweeter. Devotees are the nicest people to associate with birds of the same feather stick together. It's hard to relate to worldly minded people after 44 years of developing Krishna consciousness. My mood is the greed to have association and to share the only thing we all have in common and that is Krishna consciousness

Describe any specific service you would love to offer to Lord Krishna & His devotees?

I enjoy cook for Krishna ad His devotees, clean the temple, offer puja to the deities. I would like to also help them very discreetly and confidentially if they have any addictions to anything that might be an obstacle that impedes their advancement. I believe anything we do that can be dovetailed in devotional service to please Krishna's devotes is good. Just like if a devotee can't walk to the temple, we can be a means to an end and assist them so they can reach their destination