“A full twelve hours of pure unalloyed Krsna Consciousness.” – (Shatadhanya Prabhu)
“How can I ever have a favourite part? The kirtans are fantastic, there is so much senior association, all the devotees want to serve, the management is par excellent, the prasad is delicious, and the Dham is so beautiful! Still hearing from the disciples of Srila Prabhupada is my favourite part.” – (Nimai Sundar Prabhu)
“The parikram brings the pastimes of Lord Chaitanya to life in our hearts.” – (Laxmimoni Mataji)
“Recommend it!? It’s a must! If you haven’t been on the Mayapur Chandra’s Parikrama, 50% of your life is wasted.” – (Pankajanghri Prabhu)

Dear Devotees, welcome to the Mayapur Chandra’s Parikrama. These were some of the realizations from our attending Vaisnavas and their experience, observations, interactions and discussions have joyously revealed that, though the praise was lavish it was far from exaggerated.
Sunrise to sunset there is one goal on this Parikrama - to hear and chant about Krsna, in His Dham, with His dear most devotees. Members of ISKCON from all over the world and all ages flock in annual attendance to this Prema-filled Parikrama. It is just the perfect package!
There are so many devotees, but not too many; the mood stays intimate. The management is perfect, but flexible; any devotee so inspired always has an opportunity for some service. And best of all, no matter how much your mind tries to wander; there is Krsna Consciousness at every step. No one can escape into the shadows of Maya and the result is brilliant, darkness dispersed, everyone happily accepts their fate and absorbs themselves in the names, abodes, and pastimes of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. In six short days, you will get the experience of a lifetime. And though admittedly exhausting, it is equally ecstatic.
Ladies and gentleman, this is not some unreachable utopia, nor a lavish lie. This is Navadwip Dham. It is the spiritual world. Respected Vaishnavas, this is Mayapur Chandra’s Kartik Parikrama.

For those devotees who couldn’t attend this year’s Parikrama, can grab the opportunity for next year’s Parikrama. The dates are 18th,19th,21st,22nd,24th & 25th October 2017 (no parikrama on 20th Goverdhan puja & 23rd Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance day)

Special participants for Kartik Nabadvip Mandal Parikram are H.H Jayapathaka Swami, H.H Kavichandra Swami, H.H Bhakti Purushottam Swami, H.H Bhakti Brihad Bhagavat Swami, H.G Pankajangri Prabhu, H.G Jananivas Prabhu and many more Srila Prabhupada’s disciple and senior devotees.

Your humble servant Adidev Das

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=33914

A recent video we did in New York. Transcendental sound for our friends!
Srila Prabhupada: His [the Supreme Lord’s] existence can be realized by one who has the single qualification of submissiveness and who thereby becomes a surrendered soul. The development of submissiveness is the cause of proportionate spiritual realization, by which one can ultimately meet the Supreme Lord in person, as a man meets another man face to face. [Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila 1.55 purport]
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/v86C5j

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=33916

For the 15th anniversary of the disappearance from the this world of His Grace Tribhuvanatha Prabhu, at the end of November 2016, devotees premiered at Bhaktivedanta Manor a special 30 minute movie featuring footage of historic and pioneering preaching activities around the world and especially in Africa, and audio remembrances of Tribhuvanatha Prabhu and his preaching efforts. They also spoke and shared memories at the program. After the program at the temple they continued for Maha Harinama Sankirtana, more than 100 devotees in Central London attended.

The same video is available now online. In the video below many senior leaders of the movement speak about their memories and realisations about Tribhuvanatha. Here are a few:

Sivarama Swami: “It’s a great loss I remember it must have been in the summer mother Amekhala, Jyestha, we were speaking in the rose garden, and Amekhala said something about Tribhuvanatha Prabhu leaving. I made a comment about that ‘separation from Vaishnavas is a horrible thing’ and she said, “no, but Tribhuvanatha’s not an ordinary Vaishnava, he’s a special Vaishnava”, and I remember that it made me think – it is a fact, there are many Vaishnavas, but I can see from that video even when someone is practically on the threshold of death, like Srila Prabhupada was writing, Tribhuvanatha was chanting, singing, his voice was so weak it was difficult for him to even sing in tune.”

Candramauli Swami: “I always felt that here was a devotee that, I guess, maybe was not given the credit that he actually was due! He really, really was an amazing person! He was just exemplary in all ways!”

Tamal Krishna Goswami: “When I think of how Tribhuvanatha Prabhu left, you can’t leave that easily unless its arranged by Krishna. You can’t die that peacefully and now Tribhuvanatha is with Krishna. It’s very clear that his dedication is complete. It doesn’t matter if we see the moon, it has spots on the moon, but that doesn’t mean in any way mar its greatness its beauty its luminosity and little quirks in character, personalities are not an issue here. Because Tribhuvanatha from everything everyone knows of him was cent per cent engaged in his spiritual master and Krishna’s service. And therefore it’s to be understood that he has gone back to Godhead. He has shown a perfect life. He’s a pure devotee. He’s shown a perfect life.”

Bhakti Vikasa Swami: “Tribhuvanatha had a VERY clear understanding of all the principles in Srila Prabhupada’s books and he was fearless in every respect he wasn’t afraid to go into universities with all professors and just preach Krishna-Consciousness very straight-forwardly and say all evolutionary theory is all bogus and without any scientific background, just with the teachings of Bhagavad Gita as he had heard them from Prabhupada he’d just defeat everyone. Definitely he got the full mercy of Srila Prabhupada! It’s clear that he got the full mercy of Srila Prabhupada.”

In a unique offering for ISKCON’s 50th anniversary, two devotees have made a preaching trip to Antarctica, the southernmost and coldest continent in the world.

The intrepid explorers are Kesihanta Das, a Prabhupada disciple and co-director of ISKCON Alachua’s Save the Cow program, and Trivikrama Das, bass player for Vaishnava hardcore band 108.

The two held the first kirtan in Antarctica and distributed Prabhupada’s books there for the first time, placing the Bhagavad-gita As It Is in several Antarctic research stations.

What’s more, in bringing a murti of Srila Prabhupada himself with them, they have ensured that the ISKCON Founder-Acharya has now visited every continent in the world.

“During the Prabhupada arrival festival at Boston’s Commonwealth Pier last year, many devotees were giving exciting and inspiring talks about Srila Prabhupada’s achievements, saying he went to six continents,” Kesihanta says. “That got me thinking – what about the seventh continent? What about Antarctica?”

Celebrating ISKCON 50, Antarctica-style

Meeting in Miami on November 10th, Kesihanta and Trivikrama flew to Buenos Aires, then took a domestic flight to Ushuaia, Argentina, the southernmost city in the world.

From there, they embarked on a two-day voyage to the Antarctic Peninsula aboard the MV Ushuaia, a small passenger ship originally built for the U.S. National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration.

Because they were upgraded for free to a more expensive cabin, the devotees were able to set up an elaborate altar for Srila Prabhupada, making offerings and holding kirtans for him every day.

Performing arati for Srila Prabhupada at Cierva Cove

On November 14th, the Western calendar day of Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance, the ship crossed the notoriously rough seas of the Drake Passage.

“According to the crew, it was relatively mild this time,” says Kesihanta. “But the ship was still rocking and pitching throughout, sometimes listing over 30 degrees, and many passengers experienced seasickness. Fortunately, we didn’t because we wore prescription motion sickness patches, but it was still a challenge – you’d be walking along, and suddenly have to grab onto the railings so you wouldn’t smash into the wall.”

The devotees managed to secure Srila Prabhupada’s vyasasana so that he wouldn’t tip. Meanwhile, they meditated on his bravery and sacrifice through his much worse sea voyage in 1965, when he experienced two heart attacks aboard the Jaladuta to the USA.

They also observed his disappearance day by fasting till noon, making an offering, and singing the song Je Anilo Prema Dhana for departed Vaishnavas.

Throughout the voyage, Trivikrama and Kesihanta’s dietary restrictions were well accommodated, and so they were able to eat and connect with the other passengers, with whom they shared their mission.

“There were about ninety passengers, from at least twenty countries and ranging in age from early twenties all the way up to seventies,” says Kesihanta. “It’s not a cheap cruise, so many were wealthy world-travelers. We didn’t hide that we were devotees, and made a lot of friends. We met lawyers, psychologists, a high-ranking anti-terrorism operative, a world-renowned doctor and an Academy-Award-winning screenwriter. They were all very supportive and appreciative when we told them what we were doing.”

The screenwriter, a New Yorker in his seventies, had been in New York while Prabhupada was there, and took a copy of Your Ever Well-Wisher, Srila Prabhupada’s condensed biography. His traveling companion, the world-renowned doctor, had been to India many times and took a Bhagavad-gita.

Another woman, a reiki master and world traveler who had been to 76 countries, took a Bhagavad-gita and japa beads from Trivikram, who showed her how to chant, and promised she’d connect with devotees when she returned home. Others, such as one man who was going through a divorce, and a Christian couple who were intrigued to find out more about Krishna consciousness, also befriended the devotees and took books.

Arriving at the Antarctic Peninsula’s Orne Harbor on November 16th, the devotees were encouraged by their expedition leader – whom they also immediately befriended – to take Srila Prabhupada with them on their first venture ashore.

“We suited up in knee-high boots and waterproof pants, took these heavy-duty military-style rafts called zodiacs close to the shore, and then jumped out and waded ashore carrying our huge duffle bag with Srila Prabhupada and all his arati paraphernalia,” says Kesihanta. “Then, while everyone else went off to see the penguins, we set Srila Prabhupada up on his altar on the ice. It was too windy to do a full arati, but we did a kirtan for him right there, with the icebergs and penguins in the background.”

The devotees also did kirtan with inquisitive penguins at Half Moon Island in the South Shetland Islands, considered part of Antarctica. And they planted in the ice a Hare Krishna banner, a “Krishna South” flag, and an ISKCON 50th anniversary flag to claim the final frontier for Srila Prabhupada.

A penguin wanders by a 'Krishna South' flag

Later, Kesihanta and Trivikrama got their chance to offer arati to Srila Prabhupada in Antarctica, performing the worship on the deck of their ship at Cierva Cove, as ice sheets floated in the background.

They also visited the Argentine research station Base Esperanza, a small year-round community of fifty people with families and children, a school, and a church. There, they met station master Lieutenant Colonel Miguel Vazquez, explained to him that they were visiting to commemorate the 50th anniversary of ISKCON’s founding by Srila Prabhupada, and presented him with a Spanish edition of Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is.

Through a translator, the Colonel expressed that he was honored to receive it on behalf of the station, and said he would place the Gita in either its library or its museum, with an explanatory sign for visitors.

“The station’s name – ‘Esperanza’ – means ‘hope’ in Spanish, so we felt that was very apt, as Srila Prabhupada is the great hope for the world,” says Kesihanta.

Entering the Argentine research station 'Esperanza'

Although weather conditions prevented the devotees from visiting Ukraine’s Vernadsky Research Base as originally planned, the expedition leader very kindly promised he would deliver their Ukranian edition of Bhagavad-gita to the Base on his next trip.

In addition, Kesihanta and Trivikrama received word from a woman who works with the three year-round U.S. research stations in Antarctica that she had placed pocket editions of Bhagavad-gita As It Is in their libraries. The stations are McMurdo, the largest research station in Antarctica, Palmer Station on Anvers Island off the coast of the Peninsula, and the Amundsen Scott Station at the South Pole, which sits at the Earth’s axis on a shifting continental ice sheet several miles thick.

The devotees also placed English and Spanish editions of Bhagavad-gita in their ship’s library for future passengers who visit Antarctica multiples times a year from all over the world.

At the end of the trip, the MV Ushuaia’s expedition team included a shot of Kesihanta and Trivikrama with their Hare Krishna mantra banner in an Antarctica 2016 video, which they produced and distributed to all ninety passengers on the cruise from over twenty nations.

Presenting the station master at the Argentine 'Base Esperanza' with Bhagavad-gita As It Is

“The video will undoubtedly be shown to our fellow passengers’ many friends and family when they return to their respective home countries all over the world,” says Kesihanta.

Finally, the icing on the cake came when all the passengers were given certificates commemorating their momentous voyage.

“I thought, wouldn’t it be far out if we could get one of these for Srila Prabhupada!” Kesihanta says.

Extremely supportive and helpful, the expedition leader happily presented them with an “Antarctica Expedition Certificate” signed by himself and the captain.

Holding the first kirtan in Antarctica

The certificate reads: “We hereby certify that Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada has crossed the perilous waters of the Drake Passage onboard the expedition vessel Ushaia from Tierra Del Fuego to Antarctica, and has landed on the Antarctic continent at Orne Harbor. Duly witnessed on Wednesday, November 16th, 2016.”

Returning to Argentina on November 23rd, the devotees made sure to exchange email addresses with several of the passengers they gave Prabhupada’s books to, and will also keep in touch through a Facebook group.

“What began as a joke turned into a wonderful reality,” says Kesihanta. “We did everything we set out to do. I’m just an ordinary guy, but I feel honored that I somehow or other was inspired to do something extraordinary for Srila Prabhupada on the 50th anniversary of his ISKCON.”

He concludes, “When we were doing kirtan for Prabhupada in Antarctica, we felt that he was very pleased with our endeavor and our offering. And that’s what matters.”

The expedition certificate certifying Srila Prabhupada's visit to Antarctica

Source:http://iskconnews.org/devotees-take-srila-prabhupada-on-historic-trip-to-antarctica,5956/

Srila Prabhupada made our lives exciting. He pushed us and he was definitely not accustomed to thinking small. In thinking of what my life was like while Srila Prabhupada walked the planet, I often recall a famous quotation from Helen Keller: ‘Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.’
Life with Srila Prabhupada was and still is a daring adventure.
After arriving in America, at times, Srila Prabhupada barely had enough money to pay his rent. Even during these lean financial times, he wasn’t at all poor. He carried the most valuable currency of all: absolute faith in the words of his guru and Krsna. He took every risk for Krsna. He was fearless at all times.

Because of this, when meeting Srila Prabhupada, young people - with little or no worldly training - became emboldened and went out to conquer the world on Krsna’s behalf. And they did it!

They were convinced that by following the order of their guru, they would not fail. They were correct.

Young boys and girls traveled the world, meeting dignitaries and rock stars, opening temples, making hit albums, organizing festivals, and publishing and distributing millions of magazines and books.

Remembering the miraculous accomplishments of all these devotees, I’m reminded of another quotation, this one by Goethe:

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back” Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.

Speaking of boldness, in 1975 the BBT was moving too slowly to keep up with Srila Prabhupada’s translating. The manuscripts for the Caitanya Caritamrta had been sitting for some time without being published.

Then on a morning walk at Venice Beach in Los Angeles, surrounded by senior devotees and the heads of the BBT, Srila Prabhupada suddenly said that he wanted all seventeen volumes of Caitanya Caritamrta published within two months.

Until that time, the BBT had only been able to publish one book every four months. Now, Srila Prabhupada was ordering that all seventeen be finished in two months! The head of the American BBT, Ramesvara dasa, shocked upon hearing Srila Prabhupada’s order, replied, “Srila Prabhupada, I think that’s impossible …”

Upon hearing this, Srila Prabhupada suddenly stopped walking. He planted his cane in the sand and said, “Impossible is a word found only in the fool’s dictionary.”

The devotees were practically speechless.

But as Srila Prabhupada’s order began to sink in, Ramesvara dasa and the other devotees began to feverishly plan how they would execute his order.

With this, the famous Caitanya Caritamrta marathon began. For the next two months, the devotees worked practically without sleeping or eating to publish the seventeen volumes in just two months.

In Bhagavad-gita 3.15, Lord Krsna says “the all-pervading Transcendence is eternally situated in acts of sacrifice.”

Human life is not for working hard for bodily maintenance, but for reawakening our eternal relationship with the Lord and then going back to Godhead. All this can be achieved by acts of divine sacrifice.

The best sacrifice is to please the pure devotee. Fortunately for us, we’ve been given that chance. Srila Prabhupada has left us with as much service as we like - if we like. It is entirely up to us.

Let us be bold in his service.

Think big.

Don’t hold back.

Go Go Go!

Hare Krishna!
Vaisesika Das

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=33926

By Gaurangi Dasi

A low-key approach in the International City of Gastronomy

Due to the particular situation of the few Hare Krishna devotees in Dijon, a beautiful city of 152 000 people in the East of France, we decided to have a short low-key padayatra on Saturday November 12th . One reason was to reach our goal of 50 padayatras by the end of 2016. Another one was the desire of Rama Gopal Dasa, a 28 old devotee owner of two young oxen, to take his beloved kids on their first big outing as part of their training. He secured the legal permit to walk with them in a section of the city around Lake Kir – not the delicious kind of kheer made of milk- but a visually tasty location nonetheless. Since that weekend also coincided with the annual Dijon fair, we wanted to attract the attention of the public to what many of them would eat there: the well-known beef Burgundy, a traditional French recipe consisting of the dead bodies of unfortunate cows and steers cooked in burgundy red wine. The fair was advertised on posters having a photo of these sturdy white bovines. With our padayatra locals and visitors would meet Bali and Tirou, the endearing live specimens of the very animals who usually end up in their plates and stomachs, and the only ones in the area that would be loved and protected till the end of their lives. In 2018 Dijon, included in the Unesco world heritage list since 2010, will become the International City of Gastronomy. Its aim is to promote the “ French Gourmet Meal”, with an emphasis on wines. No need to say that the number of cows, calves, bulls, goats, sheep, chicken, frogs and snails (another specialty of Burgundy ) that will be sacrificed on the altar of this huge 20,000 m² complex will be phenomenal. Looks like devotees and animal lovers intending to raise the consciousness of humans regarding the treatment of animals have a huge task at hand!

There is no ISKCON temple in Dijon, but a small group of devotees of Krishna. One of them has a vegetarian restaurant in the center of town, Le Shanti, where he plays Srila Prabhupada bhajanas all day long, holds kirtanas/bhajanas every Monday evening in the cozy cellar and regularly invites various Gaudiya sannyasis and sadhus to talk philosophy and Krishna katha. We invited some local devotees to participate in our padayatra, but all of them had to work that day, so we ended up being three with Ravi, a young man from Indian origins studying in Dijon. As we saw this afternoon it was just the right number for our low key approach. I had also invited members of Combactive, a very dynamic group involved in defending animal rights, and opposing cruelty and slaughterhouses, but it turned out they had their own program that day in the center of town. We’re planning to work together in the near future and feature a seriously organized public event, possibly a padayatra, once Bali and Tirou are fully trained to walk in heavy traffic and comfortable to be surrounded by crowds of people.

Since we did not get the permit as a group of Hare Krishna devotees, we did not distribute any of Srila Prabhupada books or magazines or brochures indicating we are Vaisnavas. We dressed normally and did not wear tilaka. I gave invitations to Le Shanti and brochures from an animal rights group exposing the horrors of industrial raising of animals and slaughterhouses, which gave me the opportunity to easily introduce the notion of karma and divine justice to the more receptive people. I knew they could learn more about Krishna and the philosophy in Le Shanti, after enjoying a vegetarian meal and reading some pages of the many books available for perusal.

Tirou and Bali, two adorable Galloway kids

Rama Gopal received his oxcare training in New Mayapur from Jaladuta Dasa, who has been the care taker of his own oxen and the New Mayapur cows for a total of more than 20 years. After moving out from there, Rama Gopal decided to get his own oxen with the idea of putting them to work in the fields, and eventually to haul heavy things, transport goods, and walk on padayatra. He also had in mind to propose oxcart rides to the public, as Jaladuta had successfully done in the south of France. He chose young bulls from the Galloway breed, not very common in France, but because they do not have horns, which might be safer for people around them. He travelled to the nearby Jura mountains to buy his two kids, one year old Bali and six month old Tirou. He soon had them castrated by a veterinarian so they would switch from the passionate mood of bulls to the peaceful behavior of oxen.

According to Wikipedia the Galloway is one of the world’s longest established breeds of beef cattle , named after the Galloway region of Scotland, where it originated, during the 17th century. It was then introduced in many parts of the world, such as Canada, the United States and Australia. After a foot and mouth crisis during the 1970s the breed is enjoying a revival, due to the demands of the beef market, as Galloway have high-quality meat. Due to the climate of their native Scotland they have a thick double-layered coat that is wavy or curly. The coarse outer coat sheds wind and rain, while the soft, fur-like under coat provides insulation and waterproofing. This thick coat of hair insulates their bodies so well that they have a minimal outer layer of fat on their bodies; the coat sheds out in the summer months and in warmer climates. The average Galloway cow weighs 1000 to 1500 pounds and the average bull weighing 1700 to 2300 pounds.The Galloway is naturally hornless, and instead of horns has a bone knob at the top of its skull called the poll. They are naturally very docile animals and can live up to 25 years.

Bali, being older than Tirou, behaves as his older brother; having the same father, they are indeed brothers. They are now three years and two and a half years old respectively, and still behave like children who want to be free to play around. One day Bali, desiring to explore the world around him, ate some hot cinders from a campfire; happily he did not hurt himself, but probably learned a good lesson from that experience. Rama Gopal and his babies moved from one place to another several times over the years, and, due to his parents’generosity, he just bought a small goshala for them consisting of a shed and a small yard. The goshala is located at the edge of Dijon, just a few minutes away from Lake Kir and the surrounding park, in the area of nurseries, which turned out to be a great advantage, as one owner of several nurseries lets Ram Gopal take his oxen to graze the rich grass and weeds between fruit trees. He started to teach them commands just a couple of months ago, after he received a wooden yoke from Jaladuta. Four days a week he puts the yoke around their necks, secures a long wooden pole to the pole to create some weight, and takes them to a meadow around the lake to teach them to respond to the four basic commands: “Dji” means “Right!”, “Ho” means “Left”, “Woo” means “Stop” and Hop” means “Go”. Sunday is their rest day: no training, no work, they can eat as much grass as they want in the meadow and the nurseries. Tirou and Bali are becoming a familiar sight to the many joggers and walkers, and they recently got featured in the internet version of a local newspaper.

By spending time around oxen we can see that they are individuals, with their personality and preferences. Bali has a flickering disposition whereas Tirou possesses a more steady mood. Their personality also changes as they grow. Bali is now in his adolescent period, and he expresses his grumpy moods by mooing a lot. One time he refused to walk and just lay on the ground in protest. When younger, Bali was crazy for banana peels, but he now prefers sweet apples. Tirou is very picky about his food; Rama Gopal has to present several times the same item before he decides to eat it.

Ready at last to circle the KirLake!

As every Saturday, Ravi arrived early at the goshala to take care of Bali and Tirou –by brushing them and cleaning their shed and yard. While I decorated the cart Rama Gopal took advantage of the mild weather to trim some bushy trees surrounding the yard. Ravi’s tender caring gestures were rewarded by a very loving kiss from Bali, which made him really fit his name, as “ravi” means ‘delighted’ in French. I was a little jealous not to get the same treatment, but I had to admit that I did not yet have a relationship with any of these oxen, besides giving them some occasional pats. So when Bali started to swoop on me in a displeased mood, I thought it safer to retrieve behind a door as I did not want to have a close encounter with his 400 kgs curly body, even though this race of oxen does not have horns. Finally, Ram Gopal forgot about his trimming and fixed the cart to a long pole that he connected to the harness fixed around the oxen necks. Everything seemed ready. Only one hour behind schedule! So we headed on the dirt path leading to the bigger road around the lake. But after only twenty meters the cart separated from the pole. No need to be an engineer to figure out what to do: I told Rama Gopal to fix a piece of wood perpendicularly to the pole and attach the rope around their intersection, and it worked. Patience not being one of my virtues, instead of fuming, I decided to do something positive -chant some rounds and help dress up Tirou and Bali.

The oxen looked so cute and elegant in the colorful outfits I had sewn entirely by hand, with a little help from my friends towards the end. The bright colors and designs attracted the attention of people walking a little distance away in the park surrounding the lake. To feel more part of the bovine family so dear to Krishna’s heart, I sported my cow headset, with horns and ears the same color as the oxen. We felt very grateful to Lord Indra to be on our side that day: that Saturday was sunny, just a bit chilly, whereas the previous days had been rainy and colder. There was a good number of people walking their dog, running, jogging and bicycling around the lake.

Meeting many friendly and curious people along the way

Since this padayatra was a long training day, both the oxen and Rama Gopal were tested. For the first half of the walk we heard more ‘Bali dji! Bali ho! Bali woo! and Bali hop!’ than “Hari Hari Haribol”. Good thing Bali is the name of a great devotee who surrendered everything to Lord Krishna. This helped me reflect on the poor state of my own surrender. Young oxen behave a lot like young kids who want to explore their surroundings, have a little fun and enjoy some sweet treats, so Bali was often veering to the side to eat some tasty grass, to walk on the smoother nearby meadow or maybe just to see how his master would react to his mischievous behaviour.

I copied an idea I had seen in Paris at a festival for alternative energies and against food waste : ask people to pose for a photo of themselves with the oxen while holding a panel of their choice. During the Alternatiba festival the panels said “ I will use a bicycle”, “ I will not waste vegetables”, and on this padayatra they said “I do not eat my friends”, “I will stop eating meat”, and “Oxen, cows and calves want to enjoy life also’. But I was so busy talking to the people, distributing brochures and taking photos that I did not have many opportunities to use these panels, even though I suggested it a few times. Will try this out in the future, for sure. Might have been too much of a big step for most people. Neither did I see many of them willing to take a few slices of prasadam mandarins I had put in a basket. Maybe people were a little reluctant to eat food offered to them by people they did not know.

Talking about vegetarianism and cow protection

However, people were eager to pet the oxen and ask questions, such as “What are these?” Our answers: Galloway oxen, Not large goats as some people had suggested before, Neutered bulls, so they can walk and work peacefully, The animals you eat as steaks. “What are they doing here?” : Taking their first big walk, Getting used to roads and people, Reminding you of what you eat. “Where are they from?” They are residents of Dijon, but the owner bought them in nearby Jura. Whenever one of the oxen would loudly bellow, I would translate his verbal message to the listeners, ‘Love me, don’t kill me, don’t eat me! “ Bali and Tirou melted many hearts that day, and at least made some people think of what they eat, or rather of who they’re eating. On my side, it looked like I found a way to Bali’s heart, at least for a while, though his belly, by giving him cut apples. Whereas Tirou showed no interest at all in the fruits, Bali’s eyes lit up and his tongue greedily extended towards my hand to catch the juicy treat as he kept asking for more. I had done the right thing by cutting the apples in two, as I knew that you never give an ox an entire apple, which can get stuck in his throat. Some oxen are indeed very fond of sweet fruits, and I’ve heard stories of one padayatra ox getting drunk on them, and another one throwing a devotee up in the air from behind to grab the oranges in front of her.

One middle age couple transporting their tiny Chihuahua dog in a basket attached to their bicycle were as much curious about the two oxen as was their dog, who kept staring at Tirou and Bali, apparently appreciative of the power and size of these two creatures in front of him. We talked for a while about animals being persons, souls in different kinds of bodies, and the disastrous karmic consequences of mass scale slaughter. The couple agreed with me, that terrorism against animals breeds terrorism against humans, and looked interested to check out Le Shanti vegetarian restaurant. Hard to say what dogs really think, but I noticed that none of them, especially the small ones, dared to venture too close to the oxen; they all kept a safe distance and abstained from any barking comments. They were probably as impressed as the humans were by these two beautiful oxen. One lady run to her nearby garden and came back with fresh organic vegetables and roots for the delighted oxen. When we walked on the most crowded side of the lake, small groups of people gathered around the oxen and listened attentively to what we had to say. As it was getting cooler and the sun was ready to set, we walked back to the goshala, crossing the park surrounding the lake.

The success of this mini padayatra was an indication of the impact it would have once Bali and Tirou were more trained and with a larger group of participants, devotees and animal lovers. We hoped that some of the people we met that day seriously reflected on the plight of the millions of animals tortured and slaughtered and started to change their eating habits. Many people say they are reducing their meat consumption, eat more fish and less red meat, but I point out to them that fish also suffer and that the few animals they eat add up to huge numbers on a national level. The annual statistics for France alone are frightening: 5 millions of bovines, 6 millions of sheep and goats, 25 millions of pigs, 47 millions of eggs producing hens, 60 millions of rabbits, 85 millions of ducks, 700 millions of chicken and billions of fishes.

What a linguistic analysis reveals of French people attitudes towards cows and oxen

In the past I studied latin and linguistics and still have a keen interest in the root of words, their various meanings, how they’re used and what they reveal. About twenty years ago I gave a conference during a Women Ministry meeting in Radhadesh in which I presented a linguistic analysis of the vocabulary used in ISKCON to designate Vaisnavis. Not an encouraging or enlightening list, alas. One of them was “stupid cow”. In fact, I’m the one who was the recipient of that reprimand the day I did a wrong maneuver while backing the sankirtana van on Padayatra UK. Since I love cows, who are very intelligent, wonderful animals very dear to Krishna, I took this as a compliment, but still, it kept me wondering about the mentality and realisations of that male devotee who tried to insult me that day while also offending mother cow.

In France, a very common use of the word “cow” is a very pejorative one, as it indicates someone tough, hard, pitiless, or something unexpected and troublesome . The derivative word “vacherie” also indicates a mean act or word. It’s sad that cows have been associated with something bad and negative in the collective French unconscious, especially because the expression “Mort aux vaches!” (Litt. death for the cows) addressed to the military, police and any kind of authority, was not originally meant to insult cows. The expression’s first originated at the end of the 16th century when Henry IV besieged Paris. Since his flags bore two cows, the Parisians created this insult. The second origin goes back to 1870, at the time of the war between France and Germany. The word “Wache” (sentinel in German) was written on all the German military posts, and the French then shouted “Mort aux Waches! ]”(Death to the [German] sentinels) which became transformed to “Mort aux vaches!” (Death to the cows!). By extension it came to designate members of the police and other authorities. Looks like it’s time to positively affect the collective consciousness of French people by talking more about cows’ value and qualities.

Happily, by looking in the dictionary at the words cow (vache) and ox (boeuf) I discovered that many uses are very appreciative of these animals. It’s not surprising if we know that until a recent past all French farmers used oxen to till their land. My father was one of them, as well as many of the old people we met on our three-month Padayatra France twenty years ago. One of these old farmers was so thrilled to see oxen again that he begged Sundar Gopal, the padayatra organizer, to make a detour to their village on market day. He wanted to show the oxen to all his friends. He was totally oblivious of these strange people with tilak, dhotis and saris, – at that time the Hare Krishnas were considered a dangerous cult in France- he was just mesmerized by the majestic oxen.

Some expressions reveal the place cows and oxen had in people’s life. One of them “le plancher des vaches” (literally the cow’s floor) refers to the earth on which we walk. At the end of the Middle Ages sea travel was at a peak, and it was not rare that some people were at sea for months before they were able to walk on firm ground and see cows again. So these sailors called the earth “the floor for cows” in contrast with the moving floor of their ships. The « montagne à vaches » (Mountain for cows) refers to a mountain one can easily climb. There are still parts of France where in spring herds of cows are taken to small mountains to graze for the summer months. The noun “vache” and the corresponding adverb “vachement” are both used in a complementary way: « une vache de petite maison » means a fantastic house and the adverb “vachement” is a superlative indicating abundance of something. Oxen receive the best share of positive expressions. A person as strong as an ox is obviously very muscular and energetic. “Travailler comme un boeuf” (litt. to work like an ox) refers to hard and relentless work. “ Avoir un success boeuf” (litt. to have an ox-like success) means enormous, prodigious. And the most common expression “mettre la charrue avant les boeufs” (litt. to put the plough before the oxen) indicates to start with a task that should have been done at the end, ie. to do things in the wrong order.

We’ll end this little linguistic analysis with two expressions. The first one is a humorous one,

« Parler français comme une vache espagnole” (litt. to speak French like a Spanish cow), meaning to speak French very badly. Obviously cows, including Spanish ones, do not possess the ability to speak, so how could they speak very poor French? Once again, the expression has several origins, but the most possible one is a combination of pejorative terms used in the XVII century. “Like a cow” had in general a very negative connotation and “Spanish” also referred to something or someone unpleasant. The second one refers to the present horrible life and death of millions of dairy cows in industrial farming. To call someone a “vache à lait” (Litt. a cow meant to give milk) indicates a person who can be unlimitedly exploited in order to get some advantages from her -usually financial- without her protesting, just like the cows, from which humans take milk without much consideration for their well-being. Those who know the inhumane conditions of modern dairies can understand the full import of this expression.

Cow protection and ox power go hand in hand

When we talk about cow protection, we should not forget that it goes hand in hand, or rather hoof in hoof, with putting oxen to work. Otherwise, what will happen to the all the bulls that take birth? When bulls are neutered they are called oxen; they then loose their passionate nature and become very apt, and happy, to use their strength to work in the fields, to pull the handle of an oil-pressing machine, or to haul heavy loads. Padayatra is one of the ways in which to put them to work, and also to directly engage them in the service of Sri Sri Gaur Nitai by pulling Their cart. The experience of oxcart padayatras in western countries for more than thirty years has shown that their presence awakens the interest and affection of the public for these valuable animals, which often results in newspaper articles talking about cow protection.

Lastly, here is a poem I composed to remind us all of the dangers of this age:

THE AGE OF TERROR

By Gaurangi Dasi

Kali Yuga, the age of horror.

Kali Yuga, the reign of terror.

It has all been predicted

Most vividly depicted.

Humanity plunging into depravity,

No more God, peace, sanity,

Hell loose for living entities,

No more caring, no more mercy.

Animals slaughtered by the billions,

Brutally tortured to rake millions,

Entombed in a dark stinky pen,

Treated like objects by cruel men.

All for the pleasure of the tongue,

The list of sins would be too long,

Cows, calves, chicken, calamity!

Sick goose livers, delicacy.

Can’t see the sun, can’t eat the food

That God made for them to feel good.

Stuffed with chemicals to grow fast,

Sick carcasses, we’re left aghast.

For the vanity of elegant looks,

Furrets and hermines are trapped in the hooks.

Chewing their legs off trying to escape.

Beautiful women tempering with fate.

They eat everything that crawls, flies or moves,

Every part they relish, down to the hooves.

Frogs, ants, legs, brains and hearts eagerly devoured,

Discrimination lost, Kali empowered.

In laboratories they make brilliant experiments

To predict the results of car accidents:

Smashing live monkeys just to discover

That hurts do increase, with speed much higher.

They inject shampoo in innocent eyes,

Terrified rabbits perfectly alive,

To test how much their new product is safe

For humans to use, no way to behave.

Let’s all speak up for those who can’t protest

Sensitive beings in lairs, holes and nests,

Brothers and sisters in different species,

For the Lord of all creation to please.

Every year the ‘All India Padayatra’ joins the Vraja Mandala Parikrama during the auspicious month of kartikka, and this year was no different. Our party joined the parikrama on October 16th.  Along with hundreds of other devotees we followed the beloved forms of Sri Sri Nitai Gaurasundar through the streets of Vraja Bhumi.  Our team of padayatris, by the mercy of the Lord, was able to do a little service for the parikrama devotees by serving them prasadam and water. We also led kirtanas and held the aratis during the morning programs.

Vraja Mandala, a special treat for padayatris

The month of kartikka is known as urja vrat, urja means power and vrat refers to a vow. So, as the name suggests, we were given the energy and power to keep travelling throughout India to fulfill the preaching mission of Srila Prabhupada. It was a wonderful experience being on the Vraja Mandala Parikrama and receiving mercy from Srimati Radharani, Nitai Gaurasundar and our beloved Lokanath Swami as well as many other senior devotees. When we are on the streets of India on padayatra, we really do miss the association of sannyasis and senior devotees –but on Vraja Mandala it’s a feast for the ears, eyes and tongue. Every day the nectar flowed from the mouths of vaishnavas who described the different lilas of Lord Krishna. Every day on Vraja Mandal Parikrama was a special day, but the most auspicious one was the Govardhan puja celebrations in Varsana Dhama.

Alas it all ended tooquickly and, with heavy hearts, we had to leave Vrindavan Dhama and the parikrama on November 15th. We travelled for two days till we reached Madurai in the southern part of Tamil Nadu on the evening of November17th to rejoin our padayatra party.

Madurai and the kindness of Balaram Dasa

When we arrived in Madurai, Balaram Dasa, a disciple of Jayapataka Swami happily received us. He had a large guest house which he constructed especially for devotees. It was so large it could accommodate a thousand devotees all at once. We stayed there for three days.  Balarama also made tasty arrangements for prasadam.

During our stay in Madurai we made all the necessary preparations for our travels on the streets of India. The padayatra cart and trolley required repairs, which we managed to complete in those three days. On November 21st, with all the repairs done, we held a grandharinama sankirtana in Madurai. This was the first sankirtana we did after kartikka. Balaram Dasa had made all the arrangements for the sankirtana, he had even invited the local residents to participate in the procession which included a large elephant! We circumambulated the famous Minakshi Temple while doing kirtana and distributing many books.

When we were about to leave when Balaram Dasa gave us a one lakh rupee donation, about $1643.65, for Prabhupada seva. We thanked him for his generosity and for his wonderful hospitality. So, the ‘All India Padayatra’ is on the move again; this time we are heading towards Rameswaram and hope to reach there by December 15th. Thus, by the mercy of Vraj Dham and Guru and Gauranga, we are back on our mission, preaching on the streets of India with all enthusiasm and spiritual strength.

Source:http://www.padayatra.com/all-india-padayatra-joins-the-vraja-mandala-parikrama/

On September 7th the ‘All India Padayatra’ was still in the city of Thanjavur or sometimes referred to as Tanjore. We were busy as per usual, going out daily and doing sankirtana in and around the city. The last time we were in this city was 15 years ago and during that visit the people were very much inspired by the darsana of Sri Sri Nitai Gaurasundar and the programs that were arranged.  This time the local newspaper featured an article about padayatra. 

In the town of Thirumalaisamudram, in the Thanjavur district there is a university called SASTRA (Shanmugha Arts, Science, Technology and Research Academy) University. It is located on the outskirts of the town and is about 10 kilometers away. The university specializes in undergraduate and postgraduate engineering courses, offering courses in engineering, science, education, management and arts. After reading the news that padayatra was in town, the chief of SASTRA University invited us there as guests. He even made arrangements for accommodation, for all of us, in the university guest house. It was so strange that we were on university premises given our vaishnav attire and the fact that we were driving a bullock cart. People who see us often believe that we are not well educated which is why we are going around driving a bullock cart, but the chief of the university was different, he was God’s man. Therefore, he invited us to the university for four days to inspire the students to take up spirituality.

During our stay there we held morning programs, kirtana and gaura arati in the hostel. Akhildhara Dasa gave classes to the students on the importance of spiritual life in modern times. He explained how spirituality can be applied so that one can be happy and prosperous in all fields of life. We also did a question and answer session with them. Afterwards, the students danced with us in sankirtana forgetting all their study-related worries. We were happy that five students started chanting and many took Bhagavad-Gita and other small books.

We had a great experience with the university students and we too felt like we had become students as we danced with them and felt the joy of preaching in our hearts.

All glories to Guru and Gauranga!

Jai Srila Prabhupada!

Source:http://www.padayatra.com/youth-preaching-in-thanjavur-tamil-nadu/

Kadamba Kanana Swami: Preaching will not become successful if we are not endearing ourselves to Krsna. Preaching does not just depend on some techniques otherwise we could all learn hypnosis and with hypnosis, we could take over the world! There are yogis like that who can bring people under their will, “Chant Hare Krsna!” and look into their eyes. This is not the way we want people to chant – by force! We want people to chant voluntarily. We want service to be voluntary.
When Prabhupada invited everyone to come to the Sunday Love Feast, everyone would eat so much, be totally ecstatic and then, they would go home. Prabhupada never asked, he would wait until someone offered to help. If someone wanted to help then he would make them in charge of that particular task. As soon as one extended help, he would take that help but he never forced anyone. In this way, Srila Prabhupada was very expert and captured everyone.

So there are many ways, many fronts in which we can spread Krsna consciousness while dealing with the modes of material nature – battle it out in the soaking rain with a kirtan party or we can stand soaking in the rain with a bag full of books. We can stand in the street with an umbrella and invite people under the umbrella, it was an old system – boys went out in the rain with a big umbrella and then would call someone over and give them a book. Like that, many tricks were employed. Another system was to sit in the car and call people over. They would think that you are lost and you intend asking for the road – people always want to give directions – and then give the books out of the car. Some would stand on the street and knock on the windows of cars.

Anyhow, we have many fronts with which we can deal with people and Prabhupada was broad minded. In this way, this movement is not stereotyped; it is not that there is a particular mould that everyone would have to fit into and that everyone has to be the same. But in one way, everyone must be the same – we have to start taking responsibility for the Krsna consciousness of others. We may do it on our own front, in the area where we are expert, whatever we are good at.

srila-prabhupadaIf we take responsibility for the Krsna consciousness of others, if we keep ourselves preoccupied with that then the mercy will come. If you don’t know what you are good at then we will put you in the book distribution army because that is very powerful.

Prabhupada was good at that. Prabhupada was very good at taking the essence of things from everywhere, from all the teachings of the acharyas, taking it together, taking the spirit and bringing it home to people. The essence which meant surrender to Krsna and if you read Prabhupada’s books, in so many ways, he is telling us to surrender to Krsna. When you read his books, you get hit from so many different angles with the same message: surrender to Krsna.

The real purpose is pure devotional service; the reason is to give up false ego; one should bow down before Krsna, humility means to do everything for Krsna and so on. Finally after you have been reading for a while you think, “Maybe I should surrender to Krsna!” This is what reading does. So in this way, all of us can surrender in our own individual way. That is the one thing we all have in common. We are all very different – some are intellectuals, some are practical – it does not matter!Preaching will not become successful if we are not endearing ourselves to Krsna. Preaching does not just depend on some techniques otherwise we could all learn hypnosis and with hypnosis, we could take over the world! There are yogis like that who can bring people under their will, “Chant Hare Krsna!” and look into their eyes. This is not the way we want people to chant – by force! We want people to chant voluntarily. We want service to be voluntary.

book_distributionWhen Prabhupada invited everyone to come to the Sunday Love Feast, everyone would eat so much, be totally ecstatic and then, they would go home. Prabhupada never asked, he would wait until someone offered to help. If someone wanted to help then he would make them in charge of that particular task. As soon as one extended help, he would take that help but he never forced anyone. In this way, Srila Prabhupada was very expert and captured everyone.

So there are many ways, many fronts in which we can spread Krsna consciousness while dealing with the modes of material nature – battle it out in the soaking rain with a kirtan party or we can stand soaking in the rain with a bag full of books. We can stand in the street with an umbrella and invite people under the umbrella, it was an old system – boys went out in the rain with a big umbrella and then would call someone over and give them a book. Like that, many tricks were employed. Another system was to sit in the car and call people over. They would think that you are lost and you intend asking for the road – people always want to give directions – and then give the books out of the car. Some would stand on the street and knock on the windows of cars.

Anyhow, we have many fronts with which we can deal with people and Prabhupada was broad minded. In this way, this movement is not stereotyped; it is not that there is a particular mould that everyone would have to fit into and that everyone has to be the same. But in one way, everyone must be the same – we have to start taking responsibility for the Krsna consciousness of others. We may do it on our own front, in the area where we are expert, whatever we are good at.

srila-prabhupadaIf we take responsibility for the Krsna consciousness of others, if we keep ourselves preoccupied with that then the mercy will come. If you don’t know what you are good at then we will put you in the book distribution army because that is very powerful.

Prabhupada was good at that. Prabhupada was very good at taking the essence of things from everywhere, from all the teachings of the acharyas, taking it together, taking the spirit and bringing it home to people. The essence which meant surrender to Krsna and if you read Prabhupada’s books, in so many ways, he is telling us to surrender to Krsna. When you read his books, you get hit from so many different angles with the same message: surrender to Krsna.

The real purpose is pure devotional service; the reason is to give up false ego; one should bow down before Krsna, humility means to do everything for Krsna and so on. Finally after you have been reading for a while you think, “Maybe I should surrender to Krsna!” This is what reading does. So in this way, all of us can surrender in our own individual way. That is the one thing we all have in common. We are all very different – some are intellectuals, some are practical – it does not matter!

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=33939

As habitual creatures, we find change very difficult to comprehend and accept at times.  Especially when situations are dramatically altered, practically overnight. As we move throughout our daily lives, it’s evident in conversations, behaviors, the news, social media, etc. that there is a growing sense of unrest in the US. So many people feel as if they are in crisis and are looking for answers on how to stay calm in a crisis.

This crisis management mode creates tension, anxiety, nervousness, restlessness, fear, and uncertainty.  In the healing system of Ayurveda, These are classical symptoms of an imbalance of Vata dosha. Vata is the energy of movement. Too much movement is destabilizing, both physically and mentally.  The mind can’t stop racing and it’s difficult to stay still. You feel as if there is something which you should be doing, but you’re not sure what.  And it’s not a simple task to stay motivated or on task. You doubt yourself and become filled with a sense of dread. How do you get off this cycle? After all, how can you make a difference when you are so ungrounded?

Here are some simple suggestions for how to stay calm in a crisis: the Ayurvedic way.

– Don’t multi-task.  The more that you try and do at once, the more that Vata gets elevated and you actually become more scattered.  So instead of getting more done at once, you actually accomplish less.

– Eat warm, cooked foods.  Ayurveda operates on the tenant of “like increases like”.  Warm, cooked foods fortify the body, giving it strength and solidity to move forward with proper motion.

– Stop snacking on crunchy, dry foods.  They keep the body in motion via habitually snacking and then creating gas and indigestion as these foods are difficult to digest. When you are unable to digest what your body takes in, it creates greater mental tension and your mind has a hard time “digesting” and processing all the sensory input it receives.

– 

Gas, bloating, and indigestion are all signs of Vata imbalances. Intestinal discomfort will create constipation and the feeling of being “stuck”.  Take some herbal supplements to support your digestive tract, so that you can feel empowered to act.

– Do an oil massage before shower with a warming body oil such as ashwagandhaor a vata balancing oil.  That dryness you are feeling internally is also a physical manifestation.   Want to get your creative juices flowing?  It’s hard to do if you are feeling dry and uninspired. That dryness manifests from the inside out when it comes to your skin.  Doing a warm oil massage allows the oil to penetrate into the tissues and create more suppleness and freedom of being.  Constriction will become a distant thought.

– Increased Vata creates anxiety, fear, tremors, ticks, spasms, nervousness, and insomnia. For mental stress, take herbal supplements to calm the mind and soothe the senses.

– Use an essential oil topically to help ground you.  The nose is a gateway to the senses and our senses guide our minds and hearts.  The more steady that you can be in your outlook, the more that you can be a steady presence in effecting positive change.

– Don’t suppress your emotions, but rather, find calm, non-combative ways to express what you feel.  Try journaling daily at the same time, even if for five minutes.

– Take up a meditation practice.  Turn off all electronic distractions. Sit quietly, close your eyes, and focus on your breath. You may wish to repeat a mantra. If thoughts arise, let them pass and return to the breath.

– Engage in grounding yoga poses such as tree (vrikshasana), mountain (tadasana), and corpse (shavasana). These poses allow you to have a point of focus, and steady the breath and the mind. Practice restorative yoga as another method of how to  stay calm in a crisis.

– Go to bed at the same time each night. Avoid using your cell phone or computer in the bedroom and don’t keep a tv there.  Take an herbal supplement to help you sleep if needed.

– Once you are more grounded, seek an objective opinion about your crisis.

– Find tangible methods to deal with the issue at hand.  Focus on what you can change, rather than what you cannot.  Create a strategic plan and break in down into small measurable pieces.  Agree to implement a portion daily/ weekly, etc. Periodically re-assess, re-strategize, and go back to your tasks.  Give yourself credit for each agenda item which you accomplish.

These are some methods of how to stay calm in a crisis via the use of Ayurvedic regimens. For a more personalize plan, please schedule a personalized consultation.

This article was first published at http://www.vedichealing.com/stay-calm-crisis-ayurvedic-way/

Source:http://mayapurvoice.com/svagatam/ayurvedic-tips-stay-calm-crisis/

Prapujaka Das (Per Jäderstrand) is just ‘an ordinary guy,’ as he’ll tell you himself. He’s not a Swami or a guru. And he’s not from India, or even America or England, but from Sweden.

“Nobody knows where Sweden is,” he deadpans.

But all that might make his extraordinary tale “Looking for My Life” – about searching for his identity across India and beyond – more relateable.

“If people see books about spiritual life by sannyasis, they may say, ‘Well, that’s for them,’” he opines. “But if they read my story and realize that an ordinary guy from Sweden can become a devotee, they might think, ‘Maybe I can too!’”

Of course, Prapujaka might be an ordinary guy, but he does come with some pedigree. A Srila Prabhupada disciple, he is related to celebrated Swedish author Selma Lagerlöf, who won the Nobel Prize for literature. And his previous book “A Spiritual Journey,” about his time with the Radha-Damodar Traveling Sankirtan Party from 1974 to ‘77, was dubbed “first class storytelling,” by author Ranchor Prime.

His current book, “Looking for My Life,” (270 pages) was first published back in 2014 in Swedish as Det Måste Finnas by Mandatus Publications, and sold on mainstream bookselling websites in Sweden.

Prapujaka was also invited onto the show People and Faith on Swedish National Radio P1 to talk about it – the kind of achievement that’s extremely rare for devotees in Sweden. There, he spoke with host Tithe Hahn about the Hare Krishna Movement and Srila Prabhupada, resulting in a major increase in book sales.

Looking for My Life has now received its English-language release, and tells the story about Prapujaka’s life before Radha-Damodar.

Brought up by a violent and abusive father in the 1950s and ‘60s, young Per Jäderstrand was left with deep wounds that turned him into a rebellious yet fragile boy. In high school, he became interested in social issues and passionately engaged himself in extreme left wing politics.

After a few years studying at university and some art schools, he began to question the conventional way of life. Unhappy and disappointed with life, he experimented with various drugs, but also turned to existential literature for answers.

His search through books eventually led him to Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha, and onto works of Eastern philosophy, like Rabindranath Tagore, Vivekananda and Ram Dass’ book Be Here Now. He was also profoundly affected by the ideas of the hippie counterculture movement, and became a vegetarian.

Becoming involved in Transcendental Meditation, he asked a teacher at the TM center in Stockholm how he could learn more.

“Go to India,” she said.  

In the summer of 1973, Per set off for India alone, writing in a farewell letter to his art teacher that he had left to “Find a guru who can give me knowledge of God and the soul.”

The cover of Prapujaka Dasa's previous book, 'A Spiritual Journey'

Per followed “The Hippie Trail” that so many at the time were taking overland from Europe to India, an unconventional route that cut costs by hitchhiking or taking cheap buses and trains.

“It was a heavy experience,” he says. “On the bus to Afghanistan, I got really sick and ended up being out for three days with a high fever in some hotel in Kabul. A few other Swedish people I had met on the bus were with me, and they were smoking hashish the whole time in the room – which was tough because I had quit all drugs by this time. But they took care of me, giving me water and taking me to the bathroom when I couldn’t get up myself.”

In India, Per went to Chaurasi Kutia, the same ashram that the Beatles had practiced Transcendental Meditation in under Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1968. He also visited many other spots.

“But I couldn’t find anyone I could accept as guru,” he says. “So I just went back to Sweden.”

In Sweden, Per lived in a flat with his brother, who had bought Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is and was visiting the ISKCON temple in Stockholm.

“We would have arguments, with me arguing for Maharashi’s Gita, and him for Prabhupada’s,” says Prapujaka. “When he was out, I started sneaking into his room to look at Bhagavad-gita As It Is. It wasn’t long before Prabhupada’s Gita took over, and I threw away the Maharishi’s.”

In November 1973, Per spotted some young people chanting Hare Krishna in Stockholm square, as many passersby gathered around them. Among them were Smita Krishna Das – now Swami – Ajita Das, and Vegavan Das, a Swedish devotee who started the Hare Krishna Movement in Sweden.

Impressed by Vegavan’s expertise at explaining philosophy, Per bought a copy of Reservoir of Pleasure from him, and after reading Prabhupada’s explanation of the Hare Krishna mantra in it, began to chant, then to attend Sunday Feasts at ISKCON Stockholm.

“But in my sentimentality, I still wanted to be a devotee in India, not in Sweden,” he recalls. “So I set off for India again in early 1974.”

“Looking for My Life” recounts Prapujaka’s adventures as he visited Vrindavan, staying in the austere Fogal ashram as there was no ISKCON temple at the time. Attending Prabhupada’s lectures in a pandal, he saw the ISKCON Founder-Acharya only from a distance, and struggled to understand his strong Bengali accent. But when Giriraja Swami took Prapujaka on as his assistant and brought him up to see Srila Prabhupada, the young man knew he had found his guru.

“We were alone – it was just Giriraja, me, one Indian devotee, and Prabhupada,” he says. “Giriraja introduced me, ‘This is a boy from Sweden, he wants to be a devotee.’ I felt so privileged to be there, alone with Prabhupada. He didn’t actually say anything – he just looked at me and gave a characteristic ‘Hmm.’ But that was enough.”

Next on the way from Vrindavan to Bombay, Prapujaka met one of his heroes, Vishnujana Swami, on the train.

“He and Tamal Krishna Goswami were in the compartment next to mine, and they preached to me,” he says. “I remember Vishnujana was on the upper bench, reclining, while speaking to me. He seemed so saintly, so at ease. I could see he knew something. It was that experience that made me want to be part of the Radha Damodar party with him later.”

With many other adventures and moving insights into what attracted Prapujaka to Srila Prabhupada and Krishna consciousness, “Looking For My Life” is a fascinating piece of history.

While Prapujaka says that young people now, at least in Sweden, are not interested in Krishna consciousness, he hopes that his book will help them relate to it and understand its draw, and how life-changing it still is today.

“My friend Krishna Ksetra Swami, who writes academic books, was emphasizing to me how important it is for devotees to write different kinds of books,” he says. “Because if not now, at some point in the future people will read these books and may be inspired to take the path I took – the path that helped me discover my identity and my place in life.”

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Email prapujaka.das@gmail.com to order a copy of “Looking For My Life.”

You can order “A Spiritual Journey”, about Prapujaka’s time with the Radha Damodara Traveling Sankirtan Party, athttp://blservices.com/a-spiritual-journey

Source:http://iskconnews.org/swedish-author-tells-extraodinary-tale-of-coming-to-krishna-consciousness,5954/

Photo Credits: Mindful

“I’m making a failed attempt at mindful dishwashing,”  exclaims an exasperated Ruth Whippman in an Op-Ed in the New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/26/opinion/sunday/actually-lets-not-be-in-the-moment.html?emc=edit_th_20161127&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=70036624

What’s this world coming to when we’re having a ‘mindful moment’ and we still feel miserable, not having found the happiness we think we deserve? What’s the value of meditation if it only makes us all the more aware of our mundane reality?  

Is it any wonder that we would want to retreat from a world that offers news of constant strife?  What have we to look forward to?  A world of uncertainty, a lackluster economy,  a people  divided, everyone talking past one another, hurtling slogans and accusations, and never connecting nor really listening to one another.  

With these burdens weighing upon us, meditation doesn’t seem to be enough. Maybe it’s downright ineffective! At the end of her article,  Ms. Whippman evokes some studies which conclude that the results of meditation are “underwhelming” and that it might only “bring some small benefits. . . . compared with pretty much any general relaxation technique at all, including exercise. . . .” 

Uh-oh! I can see millions of folks bailing. Is the multibillion-dollar meditation industry about to implode? Haven’t we already had enough game-changing moments this year.  Maybe we’ve forgotten what meditation is for.  Or perhaps we never fully understood it’s purpose to begin with.  This is a opportunity to take a closer look at what meditation is all about.

“Mindfulness,” explains Ms Whippman,  “is supposed to be a defense against the pressures of modern life.” Well don’t tell Arjuna that. His mindful meditation took place on a battlefield. The Bhagavad Gita, which was spoken by Sri Krishna to the warrior prince Arjuna, is the original and superlative guide to meditation.  A few points: 

* Firstly, the Bhagavad Gita  helps us understand that our existence is beyond the temporal body and mind. 

“Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be. As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.” Gita 2:12-13

* At Arjuna’s inquiry, Krishna goes on to describe the qualities of  those who  live the spiritual life, so that we may ourselves understand what to strive for.

One who is not disturbed in spite of the threefold miseries, who is not elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind. Gita 2:56

“One who can control his senses by practicing the regulated principles of freedom can obtain the complete mercy of the Lord and thus become free from all attachment and aversion. For one who is so situated in the Divine consciousness, the threefold miseries of material existence exist no longer; in such a happy state, one's intelligence soon becomes steady.” Gita 2:64-65

* Meditation helps us to regulate our senses and mind to attain inner peace.

“A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires—that enter like rivers into the ocean which is ever being filled but is always still—can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy such desires.” Gita 2:70

“For one who has conquered the mind, the Supersoul is already reached, for he has attained tranquility. To such a man happiness and distress, heat and cold, honor and dishonor are all the same.” Gita 6:7

“He who is temperate in his habits of eating, sleeping, working and recreation can mitigate all material pains by practicing the yoga system.” Gita 6:17

 * The Gita gives us a true understanding of detachment from worldly affairs and provides insight on how to rise above the dualities of life.

“The intricacies of action are very hard to understand. Therefore one should know properly what action is, what forbidden action is, and what inaction is.” Gita 4:17

“He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady both in success and failure, is never entangled, although performing actions.” Gita 4:22

“The Blessed Lord said: One who is unattached to the fruits of his work and who works as he is obligated is in the renounced order of life, and he is the true mystic: not he who lights no fire and performs no work.” Gita 6:1

* Meditation helps us to see God working in our lives and to reawaken our relationship with that Supreme Transcendent Personality.  

“That very ancient science of the relationship with the Supreme is today told by Me to you because you are My devotee as well as My friend; therefore you can understand the transcendental mystery of this science.” Gita 4:2

“For one who sees Me everywhere and sees everything in Me, I am never lost, nor is he ever lost to Me.” Gita 6:30

“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this perfectly engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.” Gita 10:8

My article is not meant to criticize Ms. Whippman. Her general assessment is correct. Ultimately, most meditational techniques will leave us unfulfilled. But there is one form of meditation that is meant for us at this time.  Krishna puts it quite succinctly  to Arjuna: 

“Always chanting My glories, endeavoring with great determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me with devotion.” Gita 9:14

In our times, the kali-yuga (the age of rampant quarrel, greed, cheating and hypocrisy), the most potent and satisfying meditation is meditation on God’s holy names. God’s names are abundantly found in traditions all over the world. Especially recommended is the maha-mantra, the great mantra of peace: Hare Kṛiṣhṇa, Hare Kṛishna, Kṛishna Kṛishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.  It’s freely given. It can be sung, chanted softly on pray beads or it can even enhance one’s silent meditation by saying the mantra in the mind. The meditation is most effective when performed with humility and gratitude, and complimented with works of devotion.**

* * * 

All quotes from Bhagavad Gita As It Is by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

Sankirtana Das  (ACBSP) is an award-winning author and storyteller.  For more about his book Mahabharata: The Eternal Quest, his ‘cinematic’ rendition of the ancient epic, see www.Mahabharata-Project.com

Source:http://iskconnews.org/the-mindfulness-dilemma,5955/