As they walked together under a steel bridge, Prabhupada pointed upward with his walking cane, “Look”-a sign under the bridge read UNALLOYED STEEL-“they have unalloyed steel, and we have unalloyed devotional service.
"What if people don’t want to hear our message?” Pradyumna asked.
“The people might not understand our message, but Krsna will be pleased,” Prabhupada replied. “And that is our mission. They thought Jesus Christ’s mission was stopped. They killed him. But his mission was attained. He preached three years only, but so many followers. He pleased Krsna. We must not be disappointed that no one is hearing Krsna consciousness. We will say it to the moon and stars and all directions. We will cry in the wilderness, because Krsna is everywhere. We want to get a certificate from Krsna that "This man has done something for Me.” Not popularity. If a pack of asses says you are good, what is that? We have to please Krsna’s senses with purified senses.”
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Mukhya Devi Dasi (President of Iskcon’s Raman Reti community in Alachua): We’ve spent the past week in the rarefied atmosphere of Sri Vrindavan Dhama, by the mercy of Srila Prabhupada and Krishna. ISKCON’s Krishna Balaram Mandir is chock full of life: kirtan, seva and bhakti vibrating from end to end. Just watching the pilgrims stream through during sundara arati and hearing the 24 hour kirtan in full swing begin dancing as they have darshan of Sri Sri Gaura Nitai, Sri Sri Krishna Balaram and Sri Sri Radha Shyamsundar, is an evening activity for us. There is nothing like it in the three worlds. We are charmed and humbled by their natural devotional feelings. Many classes going on from morning to night, in many languages, with many devotees in attendance. There’s even a class for guests that happens right after mangal arati, in an office within the Temple itself.
The holiest of holy tirthas, for me, is here too, Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi, his resting place. His huge murti form emanates a unique expression of compassion, certainly Krishna was guiding the hands of the artist who created this most extraordinary murti. In one form the pure devotee remains within his Samadhi to give mercy to faithful and sincere devotees, and here one can receive inspiration and enthusiasm in his devotional service. Each day after the morning program we leave for parikrama, visiting one or two temples where we can sit and read and chant, before getting into the market for shopping. Some of where we’ve been:
Gopiswara Mahadeva Temple (this linga was installed 5,000 years ago by Lord Krishna’s grandson Vajaranabha) Here we take permission to enter the holy dhama Vamsi Vata (where Krishna called the gopis to dance with Him)
Govindaji Mandir Even after desecration and deterioration, this huge mandir which was originally seven stories high made of huge red sandstone block, intricately carved domes and lattice work screens, seems like an architectural marvel. Somehow they take us right up onto the altar here, then down a secret stairwell to have darshan of an ancient deity of Yogamaya (Krishna’s sister).
Braja Mohan Temple. The deity of Narottam das Thakura, this lovely well maintained, quiet (and monkey proof) spot is one of our favorites. We sit here a while and chant the songs of Narottam das and feel our good fortune. His Holiness Indradyumna Swami gave a donation here to fix up the temple, and they are very nice and personal with us.
Radha Vinode, Radha Gokulanada, deities of Lokanatha Goswami and Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakur. We also visits the Samadhi garden here, chant and circumambulate.
Radha Kunda
We did a half day parikrama of Radha Kund with Dina Bandhu prabhu. The only way to go! We really understood why they say only mad dogs go out in the noon day sun, it was painfully hot for us, but Dina Bandhu was cheerfully carrying on, being respectfully and happily greeted by every baba we met.
64 Samadhis, all the major goswamis and preachers of Vrindavan have either a full or a pushpa, nama, or smrita Samadhi here.
Purnamasi Temple. The mother of Sandipani Muni, everyone considered her on all matters, and she made arrangements with Vrinda devi for Radha Krishna’s pastimes. Situated at a corner of Seva Kunj.
Bath in Yamuna, she was very shallow this week, but cool and refreshing nonetheless.
Radha Damodar Temple. “the center of the spiritual world.” The bhajan place of Rupa Goswami, where he would daily hold discourse on Srimad Bhagavatam with the other goswamis and their close associates. Also here is the Govardhan sila of Srila Sanatana Goswami which has the footprint of Lord Krishna impressed upon it. Srila Prabhupada’s rooms are here, beautifully maintained ‘as they were’. We spend extra time here reading aloud Bhagavad Gita, and chanting bhajan.
We were happy for the chance to visit with His Holiness Gunagrahi Swami, who is absorbing himself in kirtan, nice association, hearing-chanting-remembering. We had a nice chat, sharing realizations and memories. Two more days and we leave for the airport on a very very long trek home. Be it ever so humble…I will be very happy to get there.
Everywhere I go I am praying for all the residents of New Raman Reti, may we always stay engaged in service at Srila Prabhupada’s lotus feet.
It is quite easy to find health benefits of a particular food item especially when we like its taste. This is the reason modern food industry keeps adding some sort of taste to anything they sell. Some companies add taste even to packaged water (and spoil it) in order to make it stand out. The other tactic they use to sell their products is add flavor. Although the word “flavor” sounds attractive you may have noticed that you cannot stand particular flavors that may be favorite of your next door neighbour. For example, if you believe in good and clean food, you cannot stand someone around you cooking or eating filthy stuff like non-veg. To some, even onion and garlic fall in the same category.
Wait a minute, you may ask: non-veg obviously stinks, but why punish onion and garlic? In fact you may be one of those neighbours who love the smell of onion and garlic. After all, onion and garlic are glorified even by the modern medical science for their ability to cure some chronic diseases. Why abandon them just because of their smell?
“While onions and garlic cloves do give off strong odors, the sulfur compounds responsible for those aromas are the same substances that provide health benefits if you eat onions and garlic, the Linus Pauling Institute says.” –http://www.livestrong.com/article/387792-what-are-benefits-of-onion-and-garlic/
Research shows that garlic helps balance good (HDL) and bad (LDL) cholesterol in the bloodstream. Garlic produces a great amount of cells in the blood that can help fight different kinds of infections as well as tumors. Garlic also reduces the risk of blood clots which cause strokes. A compound called allicin in garlic is believed to have potent medicinal properties. Although nutritious, garlic has very few calories. It can combat cough and common cold. The antioxidants compounds in garlic could help prevent Alzheimer’s disease and Dementia. Garlic can also help detoxify heavy metals in the body.
Similarly, onion also has multiple health benefits. Its antibiotic, antiseptic, antimicrobial and carminative properties helps one stay away from infections. Onions are rich in sulphur, fibers, potassium, calcium, vitamin B, vitamin C and they are low in fat, cholesterol and sodium. If applied correctly, onions can help cure fever, common cold, cough, sore throat, allergies, and other similar diseases. A small piece of onion, when inhaled, can stop or slow down the bleeding through the nose. It is said help in sleeping disorders and digestive system. Onions are also used to cure burnt skin or insect bites.
Onion and garlic have many similarities so far their good and bad effects are concerned. Onions give protection against head, neck and colon cancers, osteoporosis and atherosclerosis. Since it is found to increase the insulin level in the body it can treat diabetes. Similar to garlic, onion also burns the bad cholesterol and protects the good one.
There are many other medicinal as well as nutritional benefits of onion and garlic when consumed or applied under proper supervision. The ones mentioned above are well-known and have repeated mentions on number of websites including this one. Indeed, there is a lot to say in praise of onion and garlic especially when it comes to their usage as medicine.
But, but, but….
Nothing comes free in this world. By the law of nature, good and bad come bundled together. Those who are intelligent weigh this carefully and accept or reject based on the result. Very good stuff can be very bad if misused. The same applies to onion and garlic.
Adverse effects of consuming Onion and Garlic distinctly outweigh their medicinal benefits
For example, onions can cause drastic decrease in blood sugar level, gastric burning, skin irritation, heartburn, foul breath, low blood pressure and so on. Similarly, there are risks associated with garlic also.
Botulism is probably the most serious risk associated with garlic. Its sulphurous nature makes it a prime breeding ground for botulism (clostridium botulinum). Botulism is a nasty toxin that can result in major stomach illness sometimes leading to death. The worst danger from botulism comes if raw garlic is stored in oil at room temperature – or even for too long in the refrigerator. Never store raw garlic in oil at room temperature.
Garlic can interfere with certain prescription medicines, especially some anti-coagulants used in surgery. In addition, research published in 2001 concluded that garlic supplements can cause a potentially harmful side effect when combined with a type of medication used to treat HIV/AIDS. Raw garlic is also known to have antiplatelet properties which may present a risk of bleeding to patients taking blood thinning medication such as warfarin. Garlic can also be allergic. Any serious allergy can be potentially life-threatening. As mentioned above, garlic contains allicin, which is extremely powerful and can cause skin reddening, irritation and soreness, and could even damage the digestive tract. (Source)
Because both onion and garlic come from the same allium family they are found to have similar properties.
Acknowledging that modern science repeatedly goofs up and oftentimes the reality comes to light only after the damage is done, onion and garlic advocates may argue that the negatives mentioned above are questionable. The argument could be that anything taken in access is harmful, so why single out onion and garlic?
Again, wait a minute! What about Ayurvedic opinion? As we know, ayurveda is India’s ancient medical science given by none other than Lord Dhanvantari, who is celebrated in the Vedas as Lord Vishnu’s incarnation. Despite widespread propaganda against Ayurveda by the modern medical industry, this ancient science is quickly coming back as the world recognizes its matchless ability to accurately treat and cure many so-called terminal diseases.
Ayurveda warns against consuming onion and garlic for various reasons ranging from its adverse effect on physical to mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Ayurveda places both onion and garlic in the category of tamas, or the mode of ignorance. The other two modes being rajas and satva, and satva being the best among all. Being tamasic in nature, onion and garlic induce aggravation, agitation, anxiety and aggression.
Ayurveda believes in the principle of “what you eat is what you think”, and we all know that what we think and contemplate on is what we eventually want to do. In other words, if you eat tamasic food like onion and garlic, you invariably invite tamasic qualities in you. According to Bhagavad Gita (14.8) these qualities are madness, indolence and desire for excessive sleep. It is explained in verse 14.10 that all three modes of nature struggle to control one another and that when the mode of ignorance takes over, darkness, inertia, madness and illusion are manifested.
Kurma Dasa, the famous “Australia’s Vegetarian Guru” has following to say about why he doesn’t take nor use onion and garlic in his recipes.
“The Taoists realized thousands of years ago that plants of the alliaceous family were detrimental to humans in their healthy state. In his writings, one sage Tsang-Tsze described the Alliums as the “five fragrant or spicy scented vegetables” – that each have a detrimental effect on one of the following five organs – liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, and heart. Specifically, onions are harmful to the lungs, garlic to the heart, leeks to the spleen, chives to the liver and spring onions to the kidneys. Tsang-Tsze said that these pungent vegetables contain five different kinds of enzymes which cause “reactions of repulsive breath, extra-foul odour from perspiration and bowel movements, and lead to lewd indulgences, enhance agitations, anxieties and aggressiveness,” especially when eaten raw.
Back in the 1980’s, in his research on human brain function, Dr Robert [Bob] C. Beck, DSc. found that garlic has a detrimental effect on the brain. He found that in fact garlic is toxic to humans because its sulphone hydroxyl ions penetrate the blood-brain barrier and are poisonous to brain cells.” – http://kurma.net/essays/e19.html
He adds that according to Reiki practitioners, along with tobacco, alcohol and pharmaceutical medications, garlic and onions are among the first substances to be expelled from a person’s system. Even Homeopathic medicine comes to the same conclusion when it recognizes that red onion produces a dry cough, watery eyes, sneezing, runny nose and other familiar cold-related symptoms when consumed.
For the followers of Vedic scriptures, especially Brahmans and Vaishnavas, there are more compelling reasons for not eating onion and garlic. There are sastric injunctions prohibiting certain food items during normal course of life, while performing certain rituals, and during certain days or months. We have to understand that not a single word of the Vedas is non-scientific. If modern scientists and researchers can find out the reasons behind certain food restrictions given in the Vedic scriptures, it will be considered their success. If they cannot, it does not, in any way, dilute the authenticity of such injunctions. So far their findings conform to the directives given in the Vedas, we accept their views; if they differ, we reject them. It is that simple. The above-mentioned scientific findings on onion and and garlic, especially about their benefits, are welcome as they conform to the information given in the Vedic scriptures. Until now, modern science has not understood the dangers of consuming meat and wine but if they advance in the right direction it is sure to bring them to Vedic conclusion of no non-veg, no onion and garlic, and no intoxication.
There are mentions in the Vedic scriptures of how onion and garlic were originally produced. One story says it came from the meat of a cow that was being sacrificed in fire by a sage. As per the ritual, any animal sacrificed in fire by the priest is rejuvenated by chanting Vedic mantras. This is the power of Vedic mantras but these days there is no qualified brahmana who can vibrate such mantras perfectly so animal sacrifices are prohibited in this age. When the sage was creating a new body for the sacrificed cow, he found a piece of flesh missing as his wife had thrown it in a nearby place. From that grew onion and garlic.
Another story suggests that onion and garlic were produced from the mixture of blood of two demons and the nectar that came out after churning of the milk ocean by suras and asuras. The two demons, whose heads were severed by Lord Vishnu by His Sudarshan chakra while they were about to swallow the nectar, are Rahu and Ketu. It is said that onion and garlic were produced from the blood that fell on the ground. It is further explained that since the blood was mixed with nectar, its product, namely onion and garlic possesses powerful properties to cure diseases, but because it was demon’s blood, those who consume it become victims of demoniac mentality. This is what is referred to as tamasic qualities in Bhagavad Gita, and this is why Ayurveda has put onion and garlic in the category of tamasic food.
One more incident is described in Varaha purana wherein it says that formerly in the fight between devas and asuras, King Bali was defeated by the suras. From his wounds drops of blood gushed out and from them onion and garlic grew up.
We also hear a story supposedly told by Srila Prabhupada to some congregation members. It says that a yavana king used to slaughter cows on regular basis but before the slaughter he would call a brahmana priest to chant mantras to the effect that “in this life these people slaughtering you, but in the next life you will get the chance to slaughter them”.
“So one time a brähmana came there but he felt lusty and he wanted to eat the cow’s flesh also. However, the system was that he was not allowed to see the slaughter going on, he was supposed to offer his prayers and then leave. So he hid in a corner and witnessed the butchering. After the Muslims had all taken their share of the dead cow and departed, the brähmana came to that spot and he found an ankle of the cow. Because he was not supposed to eat any meat, he took the cow’s ankle into the forest and buried it with the plan that he would return in the night, cook it and eat it. When he came back he dug out the cow’s ankle and found to his great surprise that it had turned into onion and garlic.
Haridäsa said that Prabhupäda told the Malhotras that the cow’s hoof transformed to garlic and the ankle became onion; garlic looks like a cow’s hoof, and just as the cow’s ankle has several layers of flesh similarly the onion has several layers and is the color of flesh. He finished the narration by telling them that when you eat garlic it makes a bad smell come in your mouth and when you cut onion it makes tears come out of your eyes. The tears come because the cow was crying that in Kali yuga even the brähmana wants to eat onion.” (Transcendental Diary by Hari Sauri Dasa)
We can see there are different historical references found in the Vedic scriptures. This may raise a question as to which is story is the right one. The answer is, all of them. The central point is, onion and garlic have blood and bones as their origin.
Apart from historical accounts, some Vedic verses directly prohibit consumption of onion and garlic along with other items. The following scriptural reference are taken from http://www.iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/why-onion-and-garlic-is. The same references are found elsewhere as well.
In the Kurma Purana it is said: “One should avoid eggplant, plantain, safflower, asmantaka, onion, garlic, sour cereal, and the sap of trees.”
In the Padma Purana, Padma Purana, Brahma Khanda 19.10, Srila Sukadeva Gosvami says:
palandu lasunam sigrum alambum grjanam palam bhunkte yo
vai naro brahman vratam chandrayanam charet
TRANSLATION: O sages, one who eats garlic, onions, sigrum (a kind of plant), turnips, bottle gourd and meat, that person should observe a chandrayana fast.
Here the recommendation to observe chandrayanda fast is meant for prayaschitta, or atonement. In other words, eating the above items are considered sinful.
Quoting from Kurma purana, Hari Bhakti Vilasa 8.158,159 says:
vrntakam jalisakam kusumbha smantakam tatha
palandu lasunam suklam niryasan chaiva varjayet
grjanam kinsukan chaiva kukundan cha tathaiva cha
udumbaram alavun cha jagdhva patati vai dvijah
TRANSLATION: One should not eat eggplant, banana leaves, sunflower leaves and asmantaka leaves, onions or garlic. One should not eat sour gruel (a thin watery porridge) or the juice of the tree. One should also give up turnips and beetroots, carrots, kinsuka, forest figs, and white pumpkin. If the twice born persons eat these things, they all become fallen.
Garuda Purana 1.96.72 says:
palandulasunadini jagddhva chandrayanam charet
sraddhe devanpitrnprarcya khadanmamsah na dosabhak
TRANSLATION: By eating garlic and onion one becomes sinful and as atonement one should perform Chandrayana.
Saknda purnana 40.9 says: “Onion, stool-thriving pigs, Selu, garlic, Goplyusa (milk of a cow before the lapse of ten days from calving), Tanduliya (a grain growing in faecal rubbish) and mushrooms- all these are to be avoided.”
Shiva Purana 7.10-12 says: The householder taking the rite shall avoid heavy indigestible pulses like Nispava, Masurika etc., stale food, defiled food, brinjals, gourds, cocoa-nuts, garlic, onion, intoxicating beverages and all kinds of meat.
Padma purana Vol. 42, 4.56.19b-24 says the following:
(But) “he should avoid stalks of lotuses, safflower, gold or silver, onion, garlic, sour gruel, a thick fluid substance; so also chatraka (a kind of mushroom), vidvaraha, greasy milk of a cow during the first seven days of calving, vilaya (a particular product of milk) and mushrooms. By eating the small red variety of garlic, blossoms of kimsuka, a gourd, so also udumbara, bottle-gourd, a twice-born becomes fallen.”
Similarly, Varaha Purana 16.11b-15 advises to avoid the following items in a Sraddha ceremoney: Garlic, onions, globular radish and Karambha (groats or flour mixed with curds), and other articles devoid of smell and with no taste. According to Manu-samhita 5.5, garlic, leeks and onions, mushrooms and (all plants), springing from impure (substances), are unfit to be eaten by twice-born men, and Manu samhita 5.19 declares that a twice-born man who knowingly eats mushrooms, a village-pig, garlic, a village-cock, onions, or leeks, will become an outcaste.
In conclusion, while onion and garlic may have their own benefits, the risk associated with it outweighs the benefits. Those who are practicing spiritual life must refrain from onions and garlic as they simulate sex desires, which is the worst enemy of spiritual progress. Apart from that, as we read above, these alliums are said to have non-veg origins. And on top of all, Vedic scriptures and previous acharyas have prohibited their consumption for aspiring spiritualists.
There was a time when I also ate onions and garlic. Now I don’t. And you know what? I am so happy about it. What do you think? Do you want to give up eating onion and garlic but have difficulty doing so? Find out from others how they did it and hear from them how they too are happy about it. After all, giving up onion and garlic is in the interest of our own health; physical, mental, and spiritual.
Source:http://mayapurvoice.com/svagatam/good-bad-onion-and-garlic-comprehensive-guide/
Srila Prabhupada: If we simply place ourselves at the lotus feet of Krishna by taking to Krishna consciousness and keeping always in touch with Him by chanting the Hare Krishna mantra, we need not take much trouble in arranging to return to the spiritual world. By the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, this is very easy. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 7.15.53 Purport)
Manual Of Daily Temple Guest Reception
INTRODUCTION:
The process of Krishna consciousness involves realizing the presence of the Supreme Lord Krishna in His material manifestation, in His Deity form, in His devotees and in the hearts of all living entities.
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada the Founder Acharya of International Society for Krishna consciousness (ISKCON) who toiled hard to make mercy of the Supreme Lord available so easily by establishing Radha-Krishna temples all over the world. He gave us wonderful preaching programs such as book distribution, food for life, Deity worship, Harinam Sankirtan by which many conditioned souls get an opportunity to receive the mercy of the Lord. The purpose of all outdoor programs is to invite people to come to their real eternal home. When new visitors and devotees come to the temple, they should feel Srila Prabhupada’s love for them. They should feel that they have come to their real home.
In Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir, ISKCON, Chowpatty. There is a department consisting of devotees whose service is receiving guests at the temple.
Every guest coming to the temple is warmly welcomed with folded palms and cordially received.
Since our movement is a preaching mission, in the International Society for Krishna consciousness (ISKCON), the proper reception of guests is very important. As followers of Srila Prabhupada, the founder Acharya of ISKCON, we should consider any guest in the temple to be his guest. Proper reception of a guest can make a difference between a person coming once to the temple and never returning, or becoming a regular visitor & ultimately becoming a devotee of Krishna. Therefore each and every guest should be dealt with great care and hospitality. Their names and addresses should be collected. They should be sent some gift and relevant information about the temple.
The compilation of this manual is a small attempt to guide the devotees, who are taking care of the newcomers.
One may not be able to develop a large congregation through this service, however those who become serious can become part of the counselor system and can be engaged in varieties of devotional services.
The contents of this manual have been taken from different sources like Bhakti Vriksha Manual, Pancharatrika – Pradipa books, Srimad Bhagavatam & Chaitanya Charitamrita.
Also through the lectures, letters & personal instructions of His Holiness Radhanath Maharaj.
This service was started under the able guidance and vision of His Holiness Radhanath Maharaj.
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Dealing With Different Categories Of Visitors
One should anticipate different types of people visiting the temple, therefore one should be expert in dealing with them.
While speaking/discussing with individuals:
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One should know what to speak (which topic to be discussed with them.
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How much time to speak.
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To let them express their views.
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How to conclude the topic.
Depending upon one’s relations with them one should deal with them. The discussions need not to be philosophical always.
One should have balanced approach towards all different types of people, whether individually or collectively (while addressing to a small group.)
While speaking to a group, whether it may be:
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One family,
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College students,
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Professional group.
One should try to give attention to everyone equally.
One should know who is the center of attraction in the group and try to please that person (e.g. in a family if you please small child you can please everyone), however others should not be neglected.
One should remember that in a group the relationships are interwoven, therefore one should become expert in his/her words, behavior, & dealings.
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To Newcomers :
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To give them temple pamphlet and prasadam.
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To inform about upcoming festivals, BG-course, etc.
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To direct them to satsang programs nearby to their staying place.
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To note down their name, address, phone numbers for further follow – up.
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To show them books of Srila Prabhupada.
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To explain Deities in our temple.
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To Students:
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To explain them about upcoming BG-course, yoga retreat, PRERANA- youth festival programs, camps, etc.
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To guide them to college preachers.
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To small children / Gurukul children :
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To make them happy by giving them Maha prasadam.If they insist on taking more prasadam do not argue with them.In fact you can please their parents by pleasing their children.(Srila Prabhupada gave the example: “If you love me, love my dog.”)
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To give them small picture of Sri Sri Radha Gopinath.
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Not to become frivolous with them.
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Never beat children, it is very bad P.R.
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Always remember that they are young Vaishnavas and in the future they can become good leaders of ISKCON.
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Ladies/Gents:
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Generally gents should be received by a male devotee and ladies to be received by a female devotee. (If temple management can make that kind of arrangement, it is good for the service.)
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One should very respectfully guide them to meet with the same gender without offending them. However in case of dealings one should observe Vaishnava etiquette very carefully.
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To senior citizens:
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Just treat them nicely.
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Do not preach them heavily.
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To ISKCON devotees:
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Observe Vaishnava Etiquette while dealing with them.
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Make them feel at home.
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To Life Members:
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No need of preaching to them, just be courteous.
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Give them Prasadam and Charanamrita.
Since they are in a mood of knowing everything, be very careful. Just inquire about their well being.
8) Press reporters/Journalists:
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Generally these people come unassumingly, so be very careful in giving information.
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If you do not know, do not exaggerate.
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It is better to direct to them the president or senior devotee, who can give them relevant information.
9) V.I.P.s:
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Although all types of people are treated properly, sometimes members of upper class societies, socially, politically influential people may come to visit the temple they should be treated very respectfully.
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Someone should personally guide them, show them the temple campus, and explain about the deities.
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They can be offered Prasadam, place for resting etc, as much as possible.
10) Suspicious people:
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Sometimes suspicious/doubtful people may visit the temple. So do not become angry upon them. Just give them only Prasadam.
(For more details for dealing with different categories of devotees, please refer ‘Vaishnava etiquette manual’.)
Instructions to G.R. devotees:
Things to strictly avoid:
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People demanding money, books – politely refuse.
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Dealing with children-
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Do not pinch their nose, cheeks.
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Do not beat them, even the grownup ones.
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Do not demand money from people.
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Do not force them to read the books.
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Do not force them to chant.
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If they can not come for Sunday programmes, or any temple programme, do not insist them to attend.
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Do not give wrong bodily signals (body language is important.)
Many visitors at a time:
It may happen that there are many visitors at a time especially at peak hours. At such time, it is better if two devotees are there for receiving guest. One who is expert in preaching and dealing to many people at one time should take lead role of preaching and explaining the activities of temple. Other devotee should give them Prasadam and small cards of Sri Sri Radha Gopinath.
How to take care of more number of visitors?
Here in Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir, the numbers of visitors on weekdays are manageable by 2 or 3 devotees. On Sundays, some congregational devotees assist in the service. In this way no. of visitors get personal attention.
However, where there is more number of visitors some other method of giving them proper attention should be followed.
E.g. 1) Groups of 50-60 visitors can be made and shown slide show about ISKCON activities, Srila Prabhupada (The duration should not be more than 20-25 minutes). Even in a small group of 10 – 15 visitors slide – show may be effective.
At the end they can be requested to fill the response form, whereby their contacts are collected for further follow-up.
2) Somebody can give them tour of the Temple complex. Diorama, exhibition, paintings on walls, different departments can be explained. In this case more number of devotees are required.
At the end they should be given some prasadam and/or small picture of the Deities. They should never go empty handed.
Please see these new scenic shots that were taken from the top of the side Dome Kalash. These images we captured when the final measurements on the Kalash frame were made.
Savyasachi Prabhu, Jagadananda Prabhu, and the Russian Egineer,Yurii Tereshkov, were the brave servants that climbed to the heights (67 meters / 220 feet high) to take the measurements and record the footage for us.
Source:https://www.facebook.com/sadbhuja.das.18/posts/1744295682497411
Giriraj Swami and Rtadhvaja Swami spoke at the Sunday Krishna Fest, referring to Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.7.6.
“It is a great transcendental science and begins with the process of hearing and chanting the name, fame, glory, etc., of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Revival of the dormant affection or love of Godhead does not depend on the mechanical system of hearing and chanting, but it solely and wholly depends on the causeless mercy of the Lord. When the Lord is fully satisfied with the sincere efforts of the devotee, He may endow him with His loving transcendental service. But even with the prescribed forms of hearing and chanting, there is at once mitigation of the superfluous and unwanted miseries of material existence. Such mitigation of material affection does not wait for development of transcendental knowledge. Rather, knowledge is dependent on devotional service for the ultimate realization of the Supreme Truth.” —Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.7.6 purport
Prabhupada said, “No, you have the spark. The same quality that’s in me is also in you. You should join this movement. It is very important.”
Atma Tattva: In the early ‘80s in Bangalore, I was required to make at least two Life Members a month. I was a bad Life Membership maker and one month I had only ten days left.
I was looking in the telephone directory for Bengali names and I found a 'Ganguly.’
I called and said, "I’m speaking from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. I want to come and see you today.”
Mr. Ganguly sounded positive. He said, “Oh, you are from the Hare Krishna Movement? Please see me at eleven o'clock.”
I took the membership form, a small set of books, a poster and so on, and I went to see him.
To my surprise, I found that his was a huge place, almost equal to the aeronautical engineering place in Bangalore.
I lost hope—there was no way this man was going to become a member.
I went to one secretary, then another, then another, and when my appointment time came I was still with secretaries.
Ganguly was the top man. I thought, “Since I came all this way, I should see him.”
Finally they brought me into a big air-conditioned cabin where a meeting was going on.
Ganguly told everybody, “I have to talk to the Hare Krishna now, so you all go,” and he closed the meeting.
I came in, spread the books on his table and put the poster up. I knew that I wouldn’t have much time with him, so I was brief.
I said, “I’m sure you know about this movement. We have a branch here and we have applied for land. You are a Bengali, you should be proud of this because our Guru Maharaj is also a Bengali and he has spread the Hare Krishna movement all around the world. I’m sure you appreciate this service, so would you become a Life Member?”
He got his checkbook and said, “What is the amount?” I said, “Two thousand two hundred and twenty-two.”
He said, “I’ll give you a donation, and you can also make me a Life Member.”
He wrote a check for ten thousand and gave it to me.
I was moved. I said, “Thank you very much. This is a nice gesture.”
He said, “I wasn’t convinced by your preaching.”
I said, “I didn’t think I convinced you either.”
He said, “I want to tell you something. My father grew up in Calcutta and was a classmate of your Founder Acharya. Every day Abhay came to our house on his bike, carrying his little lunch tiffin, and he and my father played chess. The stake for the chess game was lunch —whoever lost the game had to feed the other. Almost every day Abhay won.
Later this man’s father received a Ph.D. in Sanskrit and became a professor in the local university.
He would tell people, "The Maharaj who founded the Hare Krishna movement was my classmate and he came to my house every day when we were growing up.”
He said that Abhay told him, “You should help me later on when I do something.”
He would ask, “What is that something?” but Abhay did not explain what he meant.
Years later this senior Ganguly learned that the same Abhay became Bhaktivedanta Swami, went to New York and so forth, that there was a local Calcutta center on Albert Road and that Prabhupada was coming to visit.
By this time, the junior Ganguly, who I was speaking with, was in high school and for three days he came to see Prabhupada in the Calcutta ISKCON temple.
Since he looked like his father, Prabhupada recognized him. The junior Ganguly said, “I am the son of such and such.”
Prabhupada said, “Where is he? He didn’t come? Tell him I want to see him.”
Later, the son told the father, “Maharaj wants to see you.”
His father said, “How can I go and see him? He is the guru of the world and I am a grihamedhi.”
His son said, “But he wants to see you and tomorrow he is going to ask me, 'Why didn’t you bring your father?’”
Feeling shy and small the father said, “Tell him that I am sick.”
The next day Prabhupada asked the junior Ganguly, “Your father didn’t come?” “He is feeling sick.” “Oh, he’s sick. Okay, I will come and see him.”
When the junior told his father that Prabhupada would come, his father said, “How will he come to our house?”
The next morning instead of his usual route, Prabhupada, followed by some disciples, walked down one alley after another, arrived at the Ganguly house and rang the bell.
The son came to the door and saw Prabhupada, his disciples and a huge crowd of onlookers in front of his house.
Prabhupada and a couple of devotees went in and Prabhupada went straight to the bedroom where the senior Ganguly was laying down, not sick, but tired and broken.
Prabhupada sat next to him, poked him like a friend does, and said, “Hey, you didn’t come to see me,” in Bengali.
The senior Ganguly was shocked to see the Hare Krishna devotees in his house. He asked his wife, “Please bring something for them.”
Prabhupada said, “My disciples need to learn Sanskrit. I told you, you should help me. Come and teach them Sanskrit. You can travel around the world with me and teach them. Why don’t you do that? You come, I will take you”.
Ganguly said, “Oh, Swamiji, I am very old and I don’t have any spiritual energy.”
Prabhupada said, “No, you have the spark. The same quality that’s in me is also in you. You should join this movement. It is very important. Bharata-bhumite manusya janma haila yara. You should perfect your life. Better late than never.”
Prabhupada took a rasagulla and drank water.
He told his disciples, “I used to come in the morning and from here we took that road to go to school. He was a very intelligent student. He used to score higher than me.”
Around three o'clock that afternoon, when junior Ganguly came back from school, his father asked for some water.
Then the senior Ganguly leaned back and said, “Bhaktivedanta Swami will take me,” closed his eyes and passed away.
Junior Ganguly said, “In the morning, when Prabhupada said to my father, "You come, I will take you,” I thought Prabhupada was saying, 'You come to ISKCON and I will take you to America or something. We understood what Prabhupada actually meant after my father passed on.“
Junior Ganguly said to me, "When you called I asked you to come because I wanted to share this with you. In fact, we are already Life Members.”
After that, even though he was a busy man, he would regularly come to our Sunday programs.
—Atma Tattva
Excerpt from “Memories-Anecdotes of a Modern-Day Saint”
by Siddhanta das
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Personal Preaching:
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Dealings:
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Understanding – First of all it is very important to understand a person properly, before one starts actually preaching about Krishna Consciousness philosophy to newcomer.
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Opening the talk – One must open the talk on the right footing. This requires little practice & sensitivity. One can begin with some basic questions like
where do they stay?
Whether they are having their own business/service?
In case of students: What are they studying?
How did they come to know about the temple?
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Developing the Talk – Having known these basic points & their interests one can begin co-relating basic Krishna Conscious philosophy with their particular field. One can preach according to the level & interest of the person.
In this way one can develop the talk.
Time – If person seems in hurry, don’t take their valuable time in going into details, but just explain the basic things like timings of the temple, schedule of different spiritual talks in our temple or the programs nearby their place of staying.
Such talks should be brief & meaningful.
Closing the talk – what to speak while departing is also important aspect of dealings.
Don’t close the talk with pushy words.
e.g. if a person is not showing any interest in chanting
don’t close the talk by saying “Chant and be happy.”
Just thank them for coming to the temple.
Appreciation – Many times visitors brings different types of offerings (like flowers, fruits, sweets, tulasi leaves, etc.) All these items should be used in Lord’s Service. These offerings should not be kept here and there.
This service done by visitors should be appreciated. It is the duty of devotees who receive these offerings to be used in the service of the Lord.
Srila Prabhupada writes letter in this regard:
“ The system is that anyone (who) comes to the temple, he brings something … to offer to the deity …That is he beginning of love (to) give something… If I love you, I must give you something, and whatever you’ll give me, I shall accept it. So give something to Krishna and take His instruction. If people take advantage, automatically he becomes devotee, lover of Krishna. That is the success of life.
(Srila Prabhupada’s letter, March 18,1976.)
Be warm – If you are friendly people come close to you. Others also come and reveal their hearts to you. Preconceived notions about a person will obstruct our warmth. E.g. Srila Prabhupada and Giriraja Maharaj’s mother.
Pleasant – as far as possible. Don’t become repulsive. Welcome with a smile.
Courteous – Basic manners and rules.
E.g. Srila Prabhupada saw lady walking near airport with child in arms and allowed the lady to enter first, opened the door and allowed her to go first.
Helpful – This makes a person really feel that you are really serious about preaching. E.g. people at reception desk at a hotel “How can I help you?” If you don’t know solution to a particular problem, but if you know and can direct to someone who can solve that problem – that’s part of help.
Concerned – Mayapur festival 1975 Srila Prabhupada’s guru puja. Thousands of disciples assembled. Srila Prabhupada spotted injury of one amongst those thousands disciples and immediately arranged for his medication.
Hospitable – Making arrangements for comfortable stay, prasadam, etc. Esp. for Srila Prabhupada’s disciples, devotees who have brought recommendation letter from their temple presidents.
Demanding money – Somebody unknown person demanding money, then politely refuse – A person may demand money after showing some interest by coming regularly over sometime. Still you should not give.
Learning From them – Somebody more experienced in their particular field may give some suggestions regarding improving the particular service. In such cases one should be open-minded.
One should accept such guidance.
One should not totally neglect it.
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Be a good Listener:
Unless you listen carefully, you cannot expect other person to
hear from you.
E.g. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s hearing from Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya.
Best way of respect is to keep quiet and hear.
iii) Always give Prasadam:
Nature of prasadam- One remembers the prasadam, though one may not remember what you preach.
Srila Prabhupada’s pastime of giving prasadam to a guest, directly from the altar.
iv) Be prepared to deal with one’s material problem:
Give sympathetic hearing to problems of the person, when you are preaching.
A: at one’s outset,
B: after one starts chanting.
e.g. overflowing jar of milk. If one is fully occupied with his problems, he may not be able to take up your instructions.
e.g. – plants will not thrive even you may have best seed, best soil, but unsuitable environment. For the person to progress in bhakti, he needs a favorable environment for practice of devotional service. Problems are not material, because it is related to spiritual life. Preaching is to win the faith of the person.
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Don’t be overly aggressive:
Be careful with the devotee dealing, if not, may end up with no more devotees.
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Florida University student later becoming bank manager immediately sanctioned loan for devotees – we never know when we are preaching.
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While giving prasadam be courteous, don’t be aggressive. Some families have stopped coming to temple because they are not treated properly.
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Develop nice personal relations:
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Keep personal relations with all.
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Srila Prabhupada was loving and caring for all devotees.
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George Harrison became devotee just by Srila Prabhupada’s reciprocation.
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Devotees for fund collection harassed him, but Srila Prabhupada’s gesture of giving him his ring before his departure made him appreciate.
Encourage them to read books:
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Keep track of their reading.
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For that, you have to read and Srila Prabhupada’s books properly.
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Chanakya says: You may be surrounded with books but knowledge hasn’t entered you.
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Having books but not reading them is like having money, but not in your own hands. Vidya should not be stored personally.
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Chinese saying: You give a man fish, he immediately eats it, if you teach fishing, he will get to eat throughout his life.
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Greatest problem in ISKCON is people are not reading my books. People keep coming with problems. You spoon feed solutions, but if you encourage them to read books, they will find the solution automatically.
viii) Preach according to one’s level
After having understood the person properly, one should try to guide him/her to a devotee or a counselor group who have similar interests. One should not try to solve all of their problems at the beginning, one should guide them to the proper devotees.
E.g. person of medical field to be guided to devotees doctors, college students to be guided to college preachers.
Also, one should preach according to one’s level of understanding.
E.g. Srila Prabhupada `s preaching to motor car racer. He was champion Srila Prabhupada started talking about car races; talk went about 1 hour… accidents leading to death. Next two hours Srila Prabhupada was speaking about overcoming death.
ix) Don’t get into heated arguments:
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This is the biggest loophole. Some understand easily, but some take a lot of time.
We want our speech to be fully accepted.
Srila Prabhupada: If opponent is in a challenging mood, then best to give him prasadam.
In such heated arguments, actually we may want to show
how many books we have read.
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Don’t give anything cheaply, invite inquisitive persons to the temple.
2) Preaching by Personal Example:
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Practice what you preach. (actions speak louder than words).
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Simplicity of Character (Non-duplicity, straight forwardness).
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A devotee has no hidden agenda, so that people may not doubt “What is his reaction for his coming to this movement?”
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Simplicity means not to show ourselves as something greater than what we are. You are aware of your shortcomings, and humbly trying to repeat message of parampara.
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If you are not simple, you become contaminated. E.g. Duplicitous behavior.
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Making life members just for money.
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Preaching to opposite sex with desires to enjoy.
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Do whatever you are told.
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Sincerity, commitment and dedication:
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Sincere – You are trying best from your side.
E.g. You are not doing much Book Distribution, but you are
doing it everyday.
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Commitment – in spite of obstacles, you continue, you do not stop.
E.g. preaching program very few people come, continue the
program.
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You are sold out – advanced stage of commitment. E.g. Srila Prabhupada told his managers (when they told management is too much “you may retire. But I cannot retire from managing ISKCON” – to keep well being of the society.)
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Dedication: fraternal relation – Take care as baby.
From dedication you will get inspiration.
Strong Sadhana:
Unless properly nourished by hearing and chanting, weeds of anarthas grow and loose inspiration to preach. Preaching is in-built safety system. If you preach you have to practice
Srila Prabhupada at Juhu temple: I don’t hear any kirtan.
Haridas: All devotees have gone for collecting funds.
Srila Prabhupada: I have given morning and evening program to do kirtan, Unless you perform kirtan, you cannot preach. If you are not having proper Sadhana;
(By grains of Krishna katha and kirtan) then weeds of anarthas will grow and you will not feel inspired to preach.
Humility:
To be instruments in hands of previous Acharyas. Just to be postal peon in hands of, previous Acharyas. To Srila Prabhupada some devotee said ” This picture Srila Bhakti Sidhanta Saraswati Thakur looks like you”. Srila Prabhupada said,” My guru is gold; I am like iron. Though we both are metals.” Respect will come when you reach. You have to be very careful. To the extent you take credit for yourself without passing to the parampara, to that extent you hold the bad karma of people, and then you’ll no longer remain in devotional service. Profit, adoration &distinction are stumbling blocks to spiritual advancement.
So there are two options: either you be like Jadabharat (by which you will go Back to Godhead but others will go to hell) and the better option is to Preach and remain humble:
vi) Spirit of sacrifice:
Like Christian missionaries live in village for 50 years and spread Christianity. Srila Prabhupada wrote diary in 1965: I am missing all my God brothers celebrating Gaura poornima at Yogapeeth.
3) Other Aspects of Preaching:
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Dress and Appearance:
One should dress in a proper traditional Vaishnava way with proper Vaishnava tilaka and kanthimala.
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Being Polite:
One should be polite in all the dealings. For Example:
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If somebody wants to meet any temple resident or any contact person of some devotee, kindly guide them to (Telephone operator/Receptionist).
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Sometimes they want to conduct their program (esp. singing), kindly guide them to current Temple President (Telephone operator/ Receptionist). (In the situations where you are not in a position to take decision, then it is better to consult higher authorities.)
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Commitment:
If you commit something to them, you should fulfill that commitment at given time.
(E.g. If you commit to send some information by e-mail or by post, you should fulfill it at proper time.)
Internal Meditation:
Before starting the service, one should pray to Srila Prabhupada and to the Deities to shower their causeless mercy upon anyone who visits our temple. We should feel ourselves to be servants and them to be special guests of Sri Sri Radha Gopinath and Srila Prabhupada.
Taking initiative:
Sometimes visitors come and they sit in the temple or they are expecting someone to explain about temple timings. Sometimes they may be leaving without taking prasadam or charanamrita.
In all such cases one should take initiative and explain to them about temple timings, give prasadam etc.
Overcoming internal barrier:
Many a times we have internal struggle whether the new comer is interested or not. What could be his/ her reaction.
In such case we should pray to the previous Acharyas and to the Deities to give strength to preach.
Many a times people become favorable to Krishna consciousness in such situations.
e.g. when I was doing this service, one gentleman walked out of the Temple Hall door. I ran out to give him prasadam. He was very much appreciative. Gradually the relations developed. Now he is helping in rendering valuable service and gradually becoming favorable.
We do not know what will change people’s hearts. It is not what we give but how we give matters.
Remaining composed:
Sometimes some visitors may leave without taking prasadam or meeting a devotee. Or even after talking with them they may not be interested in knowing more things, in such cases one should not feel discouraged. One should remain composed & cultivate patience in preaching. One should not be attached to the results of preaching. (It takes gallons of blood to make someone devotee.) At the same time one should maintain the enthusiasm in the service.
A few years ago, I was involved for a while with the Mayapur Master Plan and one of the plans was to create a special exhibition using hologram technology. It was interesting because they showed us a film that was made of a 3D presence on stage of Michael Jackson after he had passed on. Michael came on stage, he did his shuffle and then he sat down on a big throne. Some girls were offering him trays; I think he had seen pictures of Krsna and the gopis because it looked exactly like that. Michael was sitting there and being worshipped.
The august assembly of vaisnavas, the Swamis, the crème de la crème of ISKCON were watching Michael Jackson! We were all looking at it and we thought it was great because our plan was, and I do not know if it is ever going to happen but the plan was, to do the same with a figure of Srila Prabhupada! To make Prabhupada come in on stage and Prabhupada would turn and give his beaming smile. Then Prabhupada would be there on his vyasasana being worshipped by many devotees… all this in 3D. You will see him as much as you see me here, right now, amazing – hologram! It will cost you an arm, a leg and a bit more than that but it is impressive though.
So Krsna is seeing how we are all playing with the material energy and Krsna is not going to interfere. If Michael Jackson wants to act as if he is Krsna and sit on a throne and be worshipped by these girls and served by many and if he wants to be known as the king of dancers, that is alright. But that title we know very well does not belong to him. Krsna is known as Nataraj, he is the king of dancers. Krsna is ultimately the only one. Krsna may have so many gopis but Krsna can also satisfy them. That is not so easy as every married man knows because, what can we say, it is hard work. That is how it is. But Krsna, he can do it not because he is unlimitedly powerful but because of his unlimited love. Therefore, Krsna can. That is ultimately only what can satisfy the heart!
Source:https://www.kksblog.com/2016/09/impressive-technology/
The Gita is a book about change. It’s protagonist, Arjuna, is changing his mind about leading the fight. He is having a ‘reality’ check as he faces his opponents, many of whom he knows. He is also facing the consequences of this war – no matter how important or needed, there will be much loss and disruption.
As Arjuna moves through his crisis, asking questions and seeking guidance, we learn so many things about change – both change that happens to us and change we can make happen. It’s a book to help us navigate life as it presents itself before us. We are not Arjuna, but certainly do have our own battles, and face the challenge of change in many similar ways.
Below are some excerpts from the the translations and purports to Bhagavad-gita As It Is that explore the topic of change. While some of us might be experiencing a boring, soul-killing unchanging life, and others struggling with too much change and complexities, either way the Gita can help us respond to questions or situations we may face, and support us in the decisions and choices we have to make.
May the following excerpts inspire you to dig deeper into this great book of knowledge and access its potential to bring deep and lasting change to your life.
On changing our karma:
“The effects of karma may be very old indeed. We are suffering or enjoying the results of our activities from time immemorial, but we can change the results of our karma, or our activity, and this change depends on the perfection of our knowledge. We are engaged in various activities. Undoubtedly we do not know what sort of activities we should adopt to gain relief from the actions and reactions of all these activities, but this is also explained in the Bhagavad-gita.”
Introduction to Bhagavad-gita As It Is
On the constant change in life and ultimately at death:
“As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change.”
Bhagavad-gita 2.13
On changing bodies:
“Those who are seers of the truth have concluded that of the nonexistent [the material body] there is no endurance and of the eternal [the soul] there is no change. This they have concluded by studying the nature of both.”
Bhagavad-gita 2.16
On the unchanging soul:
“This individual soul is unbreakable and insoluble, and can be neither burned nor dried. He is everlasting, present everywhere, unchangeable, immovable and eternally the same.”
Bhagavad-gita 2.24
On changing desires:
“Arjuna is hearing the science of God from Krishna. The living entity, if he submits to this hearing process, will lose his long-cherished desire to dominate material nature, and gradually and proportionately, as he reduces his long desire to dominate, he comes to enjoy spiritual happiness. In a Vedic mantra it is said that as he becomes learned in association with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he proportionately relishes his eternal blissful life.”
Purport to Bhagavad-gita 13.22
On changing consciousness:
“Here the living entity is described as isvara, the controller of his own body. If he likes, he can change his body to a higher grade, and if he likes he can move to a lower class. Minute independence is there. The change his body undergoes depends upon him. At the time of death, the consciousness he has created will carry him on to the next type of body. If he has made his consciousness like that of a cat or dog, he is sure to change to a cat’s or dog’s body. And if he has fixed his consciousness on godly qualities, he will change into the form of a demigod. And if he is in Krishna consciousness, he will be transferred to Krishnaloka in the spiritual world and will associate with Krishna.”
Purport to Bhagavad-gita 15.8
Back when I was a new aspiring devotee, and was hearing and learning the stories from the Srimad-Bhagavatam for the very first time, the story of King Indra cursed to take birth as a hog, was without a doubt one of my favorites. I first read it in the Raja-Vidya, then heard it repeated so many times in Srimad-Bhagavatam class’s, and it became more relishable with each hearing.
…At one time, Indra, the king of heaven, committed an offense at the feet of his spiritual master, and his spiritual master cursed him to take the birth of a hog. Thus the throne of the heavenly kingdom became empty as Indra went to earth to become a hog.
Seeing the situation, Brahma came to earth and addressed the hog: “My dear sir, you have become a hog on this planet earth. I have come to deliver you. Come with me at once.” But the hog replied:. “Oh I cannot go with you. I have so many responsibilities—my children, wife and this nice hog society.”
Even though Brahma promised to take him back to heaven, Indra, in the form of a hog, refused. This is called forgetfulness. Similarly, Lord Sri Krishna comes and says to us, “What are you doing in this material world? Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg. 18.66].
Come to Me, and I’ll give you all protection.” But we say, “I don’t believe You Sir. I have more important business here.” This is the position of the conditioned soul—forgetfulness. This forgetfulness is quickly dissipated by following in the path of disciplic succession.
We become so attached to our so-called material enjoyment, but what is this enjoyment? Our situation is not always so good, and there is birth, death, disease, and old age, but still we are attached; to my hog wife, my hog children, my hog pen. Lol, this seems to be our situation.
Full Chapter from Raja-Vidya
Rāja-Vidyā The King of Knowledge
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Five
Paramparā Knowledge Through Disciplic Succession
śrī bhagavān uvāca
imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ
proktavān aham avyayam
vivasvān manave prāha
manur ikṣvākave ’bravīt
“The Blessed Lord said: I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvān, and Vivasvān instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Ikṣvāku.” (Bg. 4.1)
Many ages ago Kṛṣṇa imparted the divine knowledge of Bhagavad-gītā to Vivasvān, the god of the sun. To the best of our knowledge, the sun is a very hot place, and we do not consider it possible for anyone to live there. It is not even possible to approach the sun very closely with these bodies. However, from the Vedic literatures we can understand that the sun is a planet just like this one but that everything there is composed of fire. Just as this planet is predominately composed of earth, there are other planets which are predominately composed of fire, water and air.
The living entities on these various planets acquire bodies composed of elements in accordance with the predominating element on the planet; therefore those beings who live on the sun have bodies which are composed of fire. Of all beings on the sun, the principal personality is a god by the name of Vivasvān. He is known as the sun-god (sūrya-nārāyaṇa). On all planets there are principal personalities, just as in the United States the chief person is the President. From the history called the Mahābhārata we understand that formerly there was only one king on this planet by the name of Mahārāja Bharata. He ruled some 5,000 years ago, and the planet was named after him. Subsequently the earth has become divided into so many different countries. In this way there is usually one and sometimes many controllers of the various planets in the universe.
From this first verse of the Fourth Chapter we learn that millions of years ago Śrī Kṛṣṇa imparted the knowledge of karma-yoga to the sun-god Vivasvān, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who imparts the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā to Arjuna, here indicates that these teachings are not at all new but were enunciated many ages ago on a different planet. Vivasvān, in his turn, repeated these teachings to his son, Manu. In turn, Manu imparted the knowledge to his disciple Ikṣvāku. Mahārāja Ikṣvāku was a great king and forefather of Lord Rāmacandra. The point being made here is that if one wants to learn Bhagavad-gītā and profit by it, there is a process for understanding it, and that process is described here. It is not that Kṛṣṇa is speaking Bhagavad-gītā to Arjuna for the first time. It is estimated by Vedic authorities that the Lord imparted these divine instructions to Vivasvān some 400 million years ago. From the Mahābhārata we understand that Bhagavad-gītā was spoken to Arjuna some 5,000 years ago. Before Arjuna, the teachings were handed down by disciplic succession, but over such a long period of time, the teachings became lost.
evaṁ paramparā-prāptam
imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ
sa kāleneha mahatā
yogo naṣṭaḥ parantapa
sa evāyaṁ mayā te ’dya
yogaḥ proktaḥ purātanaḥ
bhakto ’si me sakhā ceti
rahasyaṁ hy etad uttamam
[Bg. 4.3]
“This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost. 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.” (Bg. 4.2–3)
In Bhagavad-gītā a number of yoga systems are delineated—bhakti-yoga, karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, haṭha-yoga—and therefore it is here called yoga. The word yoga means “to link up,” and the idea is that in yoga we link our consciousness to God. It is a means for reuniting with God or re-establishing our relationship with Him. In the course of time, this yoga imparted by Śrī Kṛṣṇa was lost. Why is this? Were there no learned sages at the time Śrī Kṛṣṇa was speaking to Arjuna? No, there were many sages present at the time. By “lost” it is meant that the purport of Bhagavad-gītā was lost. Scholars may give their own interpretation of Bhagavad-gītā, analyzing it according to their own whims, but that is not Bhagavad-gītā. This is the point that Śrī Kṛṣṇa is stressing, and a student of Bhagavad-gītā should note it. A person may be a very good scholar from the material point of view, but that does not qualify him to comment on Bhagavad-gītā. In order to understand Bhagavad-gītā, we have to accept the principle of disciplic succession (paramparā). We must enter into the spirit of Bhagavad-gītā and not approach it simply from the viewpoint of erudition.
Of all people, why did Śrī Kṛṣṇa select Arjuna as a recipient of this knowledge? Arjuna was not a great scholar at all, nor was he a yogī, meditator or a holy man. He was a warrior about to engage in battle. There were many great sages living at the time, and Śrī Kṛṣṇa could have given Bhagavad-gītā to them. The answer is that despite being an ordinary man, Arjuna had one great qualification: bhakto ’si me sakhā ceti: “You are My devotee and My friend.” This was Arjuna’s exceptional qualification, a qualification which the sages did not have. Arjuna knew that Kṛṣṇa was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore he surrendered himself unto Him, accepting Him as his spiritual master. Unless one is a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s, he cannot possibly understand Bhagavad-gītā. If one wants to understand Bhagavad-gītā, he cannot take help from other methods. He must understand it as prescribed in Bhagavad-gītā itself, by understanding it as Arjuna understood it. If we wish to understand Bhagavad-gītā in a different way, or give an individual interpretation, that may be an exhibition of our scholarship, but it is not Bhagavad-gītā.
By scholarship we may be able to manufacture some theory of Bhagavad-gītā, just as Mahātmā Gandhi did when he interpreted Bhagavad-gītā in an effort to support his theory of nonviolence. How is it possible to prove nonviolence from Bhagavad-gītā? The very theme of Bhagavad-gītā involves Arjuna’s reluctance to fight and Kṛṣṇa’s inducing him to kill his opponents. In fact, Kṛṣṇa tells Arjuna that the battle had already been decided by the Supreme, that the people who were assembled on the battlefield were predestined never to return. It was Kṛṣṇa’s program that the warriors were all destined to die, and Kṛṣṇa gave Arjuna the opportunity of taking the credit of conquering them. If fighting is proclaimed a necessity in Bhagavad-gītā, how is it possible to prove nonviolence from it? Such interpretations are attempts to distort Bhagavad-gītā. As soon as the Gītā is interpreted according to the motive of an individual, the purpose is lost. It is stated that we cannot attain the conclusion of the Vedic literature by the force of our own logic or argument. There are many things which do not come within the jurisdiction of our sense of logic. As far as scriptures are concerned, we find different scriptures describing the Absolute Truth in different ways. If we analyze all of them, there will be bewilderment. There are also many philosophers with different opinions, and they’re always contradicting one another. If the truth cannot be understood by reading various scriptures, by logical argument or philosophical theories, then how can it be attained? The fact is that the wisdom of the Absolute Truth is very confidential, but if we follow the authorities, it can be understood.
In India, there are disciplic successions coming from Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Nimbārka, Viṣṇusvāmī and other great sages. The Vedic literatures are understood through the superior spiritual masters. Arjuna understood Bhagavad-gītā from Kṛṣṇa, and if we wish to understand it, we have to understand it from Arjuna, not from any other source. If we have any knowledge of Bhagavad-gītā, we have to see how it tallies with the understanding of Arjuna. If we understand Bhagavad-gītā in the same way that Arjuna did, we should know that our understanding is correct. This should be the criteria for our studying of Bhagavad-gītā. If we actually want to receive benefit from Bhagavad-gītā, we have to follow this principle. Bhagavad-gītā is not an ordinary book of knowledge which we can purchase from the market place, read and merely consult a dictionary to understand. This is not possible. If it were, Kṛṣṇa would never have told Arjuna that the science was lost.
It is not difficult to understand the necessity of going through the disciplic succession to understand Bhagavad-gītā. If we wish to be a lawyer, an engineer or doctor, we have to receive knowledge from the authoritative lawyers, engineers and doctors. A new lawyer has to become an apprentice of an experienced lawyer, or a young man studying to be a doctor has to become an intern and work with those who are already licensed practitioners. Our knowledge of a subject cannot be perfectionalized unless we receive it through authoritative sources.
There are two processes for attaining knowledge—one is inductive and the other is deductive. The deductive method is considered to be more perfect. We may take a premise such as, “All men are mortal,” and no one need discuss how man is mortal. It is generally accepted that this is the case. The deductive conclusion is: “Mr. Johnson is a man; therefore Mr. Johnson is mortal.” But how is the premise that all men are mortal arrived at? Followers of the inductive method wish to arrive at this premise through experiment and observations. We may thus study that this man died and that man died, etc., and after seeing that so many men have died we may conclude or generalize that all men are mortal, but there is a major defect in this inductive method, and that is that our experience is limited. We may never have seen a man who is not mortal, but we are judging this on our personal experience, which is finite. Our senses have limited power, and there are so many defects in our conditional state. The inductive process consequently is not always perfect, whereas the deductive process from a source of perfect knowledge is perfect. The Vedic process is such a process.
Although the authority is acknowledged, there are many passages in Bhagavad-gītā which appear to be dogmatic. For instance, in the Seventh Chapter Śrī Kṛṣṇa says:
mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat
kiñcid asti dhanañjaya
mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ
sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva
“O conqueror of wealth (Arjuna), there is no Truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.” (Bg. 7.7)
Śrī Kṛṣṇa is saying that there is no authority greater than Him, and this appears to be very dogmatic. If I say, “There is no one greater than me,” people would think, “Oh, Swāmījī is very proud.” If a man who is conditioned by so many imperfections says that he is the greatest of all, he blasphemes. But Kṛṣṇa can say this, for we can understand from the histories that even while He was on this earth, He was considered the greatest personality of His time. Indeed, He was the greatest in all fields of activity.
According to the Vedic system, knowledge which is achieved from the greatest authority is to be considered perfect. According to the Vedas, there are three kinds of proof: pratyakṣa, anumāna and śabda. One is by direct visual perception. If a person is sitting in front of me, I can see him sitting there, and my knowledge of his sitting there is received through my eyes. The second method, anumāna, is auricular: we may hear children playing outside, and by hearing we can conjecture that they are there. And the third method is the method of taking truths from a higher authority. Such a saying as “Man is mortal” is accepted from higher authorities. Everyone accepts this, but no one has experienced that all men are mortal. By tradition, we have to accept this. If someone asks, “Who found this truth first? Did you discover it?” it is very difficult to say. All we can say is that the knowledge is coming down and that we accept it. Out of the three methods of acquiring knowledge, the Vedas say that the third method, that of receiving knowledge from higher authorities, is the most perfect. Direct perception is always imperfect, especially in the conditional stage of life. By direct perception we can see that the sun is just like a disc, no larger than the plate we eat on. From scientists, however, we come to understand that the sun is many thousands of times larger than the earth. So what are we to accept? Are we to accept the scientific proclamation, the proclamation of authorities, or our own experience? Although we cannot ourselves prove how large the sun is, we accept the verdict of astronomers. In this way we are accepting the statements of authorities in every field of our activities. From newspapers and radio we also understand that such and such events are taking place in China and India and other places all around the earth. We’re not experiencing these events directly, and we don’t know that such events are actually taking place, but we accept the authority of the newspapers and radio. We have no choice but to believe authorities in order to get knowledge. And when the authority is perfect, our knowledge is perfect.
According to the Vedic sources, of all authorities Kṛṣṇa is the greatest and most perfect (mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya [Bg. 7.7]). Not only does Kṛṣṇa proclaim Himself to be the highest authority, but this is also accepted by great sages and scholars of Bhagavad-gītā. If we do not accept Kṛṣṇa as authority and take His words as they are, we cannot derive any benefit from Bhagavad-gītā. It is not dogmatic; it is a fact. If we study scrutinizingly what Kṛṣṇa says, we will find that it is right. Even scholars like Śaṅkarācārya, who have different opinions from the Personality of Godhead, admit that Kṛṣṇa is svayaṁ bhagavān—Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord.
Vedic knowledge is not a recent discovery. It is all old revealed knowledge. Kṛṣṇa refers to it as purātanaḥ, which means ancient. Kṛṣṇa says that millions of years before He spoke this yoga to the sun-god, and we do not know how many millions of years before that He spoke it to someone else. This knowledge is always being repeated, just as summer, autumn, winter and spring are repeated every year. Our fund of knowledge is very poor; we do not even know the history of this planet more than 5,000 years back, but the Vedic literatures give us histories extending millions of years ago. Just because we have no knowledge of what happened 3,000 years ago on this planet, we cannot conclude that there was no history then. Of course one can disclaim the historical validity of Kṛṣṇa. One may say that Kṛṣṇa, according to Mahābhārata, lived 5,000 years ago, and this being the case, there is no possibility of His having spoken Bhagavad-gītā to the sun god so many millions of years before. If I said that I gave a speech on the sun some millions of years ago to the sun-god, people would say, “Swāmījī is speaking some nonsense.” But this is not the case with Kṛṣṇa, for He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Whether we believe that Kṛṣṇa spoke Bhagavad-gītā to the sun-god or not, this fact is being accepted by Arjuna. Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Lord, and therefore he knew that it was quite possible for Kṛṣṇa to have spoken to someone millions of years before. Although Arjuna personally accepts the statements of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, in order to clarify the situation for people who would come after him, he asks:
aparaṁ bhavato janma
paraṁ janma vivasvataḥ
katham etad vijānīyāṁ
tvam ādau proktavān iti
“The sun-god Vivasvān is senior by birth to You. How am I to understand that in the beginning You instructed this science to him?”(Bg. 4.4)
Actually this is a very intelligent question, and Kṛṣṇa answers it in this way:
bahūni me vyatītāni
janmāni tava cārjuna
tāny ahaṁ veda sarvāṇi
na tvaṁ vettha parantapa
“Many, many births both you and I have passed. I can remember all of them, but you cannot, O subduer of the enemy!” (Bg. 4.5)
Although Kṛṣṇa is God, He incarnates many, many times. Arjuna, being a living entity, also takes his birth many, many times. The difference between the Supreme Personality of Godhead and a living entity is, tāny ahaṁ veda sarvāṇi: Kṛṣṇa remembers the events of His past incarnations, whereas the living entity cannot remember. That is one of the differences between God and man. God is eternal, and we are also eternal, but the difference is that we are always changing our bodies. At death we forget the events of our lifetime; death means forgetfulness, that’s all. At night, when we go to sleep, we forget that we are the husband of such and such a wife and the father of such and such children. We forget ourselves in sleep, but when we wake up, we remember, “Oh, I am so and so, and I must do such and such.” It is a fact that in our previous lives we had other bodies with other families, fathers, mothers and so on in other countries, but we have forgotten all of these. We might have been dogs or cats or men or gods—whatever we were we have now forgotten.
Despite all these changes, as living entities, we are eternal. Just as in previous lives we have prepared for this body, in this lifetime we are preparing for another body. We get our bodies according to our karma, or activities. Those who are in the mode of goodness are promoted to higher planets, in a higher status of life (Bg. 14.14). Those who die in the mode of passion remain on earth, and those who die in the mode of ignorance may fall into the animal species of life or may be transferred to a lower planet (Bg. 14.15). This is the process that has been going on, but we forget it.
At one time, Indra, the king of heaven, committed an offense at the feet of his spiritual master, and his spiritual master cursed him to take the birth of a hog. Thus the throne of the heavenly kingdom became empty as Indra went to earth to become a hog. Seeing the situation, Brahmā came to earth and addressed the hog: “My dear sir, you have become a hog on this planet earth. I have come to deliver you. Come with me at once.” But the hog replied:. “Oh I cannot go with you. I have so many responsibilities—my children, wife and this nice hog society.” Even though Brahmā promised to take him back to heaven, Indra, in the form of a hog, refused. This is called forgetfulness. Similarly, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa comes and says to us, “What are you doing in this material world? Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66]. Come to Me, and I’ll give you all protection.” But we say, “I don’t believe You Sir. I have more important business here.” This is the position of the conditioned soul—forgetfulness. This forgetfulness is quickly dissipated by following in the path of disciplic succession.
Source:https://theharekrishnamovement.org/2016/09/29/forgetfulness-of-god/
Photo Credits: farectification.wordpress.com
"Back in the third century A.D., King Ts’ao sent his son, Prince T’ai, to learn leadership lessons under the great master Pan Ku. Upon arrival, the master sent him alone to the Ming-Li Forest, instructing him to return and describe the sounds of the tropics."
Looks can be deceiving, and often far from the full story. It is said that one who laughs too much, even at small and insignificant things, may well be harboring dissatisfaction and sorrow within. A person who feels impelled to keep talking and communicating, could be experiencing loneliness and lack of meaningful camaraderie. The insensitivity and harshness that individuals exhibit, is likely connected to an internal weakness and existential insecurity. Some people seem to be compulsive critics and chronic faultfinders – there is a good chance that they are suffering from spiritual stagnation and a lack of personal growth. Interesting and revealing. Instead of reacting to people’s words and acts, it helps to invest some time and energy in understanding what’s behind it. We must venture into the invisible world in order to hear the unheard.
Back in the third century A.D., King Ts’ao sent his son, Prince T’ai, to learn leadership lessons under the great master Pan Ku. Upon arrival, the master sent him alone to the Ming-Li Forest, instructing him to return and describe the sounds of the tropics. When Prince T’ai returned, he began his description. “Master”, said the prince, “I could hear the cuckoos sing, the leaves rustle, the hummingbirds hum, the crickets chirp, the grass blow, the bees buzz, and the wind whisper and holler.” Wholly unimpressed, the master sent him back to the forest and told him to stay there for a year!
For days and nights on end, the young prince sat alone in the forest listening. But he heard no sounds other than those he had already heard. Then one morning, as the prince sat silently beneath the trees, he started to discern faint sounds unlike those he had ever heard before. The more acutely he listened, the clearer the sounds became. A feeling of enlightenment enveloped the boy. “These must be the sounds the master wished me to discern,”he reflected. When prince T’ai returned to the temple, the master asked him what more he had heard. “Master,” responded the prince reverently,” when I listened most closely, I could hear the unheard – the sound of flowers opening, the sound of the sun warming the earth, and the sound of the grass drinking the morning dew.” The master nodded approvingly. “To hear the unheard,” remarked Pan Ku, “is a necessary discipline to be a good ruler.”
Powerful and poignant. Deepening our spiritual consciousness empowers us to read the hidden story. Otherwise, we hear but don’t really hear. The Bhagavata Purana also talks of one who sees but doesn’t really see (pasyan api na pasyati). We must listen closely to people’s hearts, hearing their feelings uncommunicated, pains unexpressed, and complaints not spoken of. Relationships break down when we mechanically react to someone else’s superficial words and instinctive actions. We must penetrate beyond so we can ascertain the true opinions, feelings and desires of the people we relate to. Then we achieve substantial growth and make real progress.
Source:http://iskconnews.org/spiritual-awareness-hear-the-unheard,5831/
Photo Credits: The Hindustan Times
The mythical Saraswati forms the Hindu holy triumvirate along with the Ganga and Yamuna, and the hypothetical confluence of these three rivers in Allahabad is the source of humanity’s biggest gathering every 12 years during the Kumbh Mela.
Scientists at the Dehradun-Based Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG) have debunked established belief that river Saraswati is just a 5,000-year-old myth.
They claimed to have found after extensive research that the river did exist during ancient times, but got buried because of tectonic changes in the Himalayas.
The mythical Saraswati forms the Hindu holy triumvirate along with the Ganga and Yamuna, and the hypothetical confluence of these three rivers in Allahabad is the source of humanity’s biggest gathering every 12 years during the Kumbh Mela.
Scientists said the Saraswati flowed from its origin at Adi Badri in the Shivalik range of Haryana’s Yamunanagar to its meeting point with Chautang river in the plains. This is the course the river followed when it flowed in the Vedic era.
I would like to share an interesting thing that happened with Brahmankar
Prabhu and me. A few years back, an employee of Refinery named Laxman, who
was also a pujari in a Shani/Ayyappa temple in one of the interior slum
areas of Vashinaka, invited us to do book distribution during one of the
biggest festivals in December organized by his temple.
Many people were expected, so we were very hopeful. We took books in all
languages and with great difficulty reached the temple area, located on a
hill with narrow lanes. Our car could reach only up to a certain point. We
carried boxes of books to the spot.
We stayed at the stall for two to three days. Laxman used his influence and
requested many guests to take the Gita and other books by Srila Prabhupada.
He announced the books many times. But there was minimal response. We
distributed hardly any books. We thought it is one of those fruitless
efforts, but we were happy that we did some books and forgot about it.
After three years, the same Laxman started taking a couple of Gitas from
Brahmankar every day.
Brahmankar asked Laxman about this, and Laxman said, “Many people in the
slum
areas come to me with a lot of problems. I tell them all only one thing:
'Reading the Gita will solve all your problems.' ”
Many of them happily came back to him and said their problems were resolved
after reading the Gita.
Within three days, recently he sold twenty books. It's really amazing. Three
years back we toiled hard to give out books on his invitation and could not
succeed. Now the same person is selling them fast. And the best part is his
faith in the Gita. We are so amazed and at the same time blissful about
Srila Prabhupada's unending mercy.
Remuna Dasa
Chowpatty congregation
HPCL colony
mumbai
27th Sep is the World Tourism Day. On this occasion, Association of Tourism Service Providers of Bengal in association with India Tourism ( Govt. of India), Kolkata & Consumer Affairs, Ministry of West Bengal, Rotary Club of Kolkata, East zone, organized a tour for 50 Senior citizens to ISKCON Mayapur and Tarapith. After an inauguration festival in Kolkata, trip started at 11 am and arrived at Mayapur at 3 pm. They were greeted with warm Vaisnava welcome by Mayapur Tourism. Mayapur Tourism organized a short program of bhajan& kirtan, talk on glories of Mayapur dhama, Caitanya Mahaprabhu & harinam. Small books of Srila Prabhupada were distributed to all the members as gifts. Many of them enthusiastically took Bhagavad Gita. They were served lunch prasadam at the Tourism Center. Bhajan das & Soumik das of Mayapur Tourism took them on campus tour & they had darshan of Sri Radha-Madhava, Sri Panca tattva & Sri Narasimhadeva.
‘Our experience in Mayapur is highly knowledgable & we enjoyed it very much. Thanks to all people in Mayapur Tourism.’ said Swarup Bhattacharya of ATSPB. Gopijana Vallabha das, head of Mayapur Tourism requested all the visitors to visit again for at least two days stay in Mayapur. Discussions are underway with officials of India Tourism, West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation to promote packages to Mayapur. WBTDC has in its official website launched the facility to book packages to Mayapur. He remarked that Srila Prabhupada wished people all over the world to get attracted to Mayapur & receive Lord Gauranga’s mercy. This is a small step in fulfilling his desire.
Sri Mayapur dham ki Jai!
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the incorporation of the International Society for Krishna
Consciousness (ISKCON) in New York by our dear Srila Prabhupada. As a special offering to His
Divine Grace, the ISKCON Perth Temple with the help of the congregational devotees had planned
to hold one program every day on the Holy Name during the 18 day span of the celebration.
1. Opening Special Kirtana
Thursday 28th July represents the actual day of ISKCON’s 50 years - the astrological day when
ISKCON was incorporated exactly 50 years ago. To commemorate such a special day and to reflect
on Srila Prabhupada's great gift to us and to the whole world, an evening Kirtana session was held
at the Temple. This was then followed by a wonderful video about “The Life and Contribution” of
His Divine Grace.
2. Street Harinamas in Perth City
This time, the WHNW 2016 offered us the
opportunity to have at least 3 Street Harinamas in
Perth City on Friday 29th July, 5th and 12th August during
the duration of the event.
Another Harinama on Saturday 6th August was
added to the list as the planned Park Sitting Harinama
at the Esplanade, Fremantle, had to be cancelled
beforehand because of the forecasted bad weather. To
everyone’s surprise, it turned out to be quite a bright
sunny morning and the Harinama did attract a fairly good attendance. This was just one of the
unlimited tricks of the Supreme Lord.
Also, on Sunday 14th August – the last day of the
WHNW 2016 celebration, a special Harinama was
organised in the Perth CBD in view to commemorate the
first ever Sankirtana that stepped into the public outside
India. Srila Prabhupada had then led a group of initial
devotees to the Washington Square Park in New York in
August 1966 to hold ISKCON’s first public Kirtana.
By coincidence, the Universities of Australia
happened to have an Open Day for their Science Fair on that Sunday 14th August along James Street
Mall next to the Perth Cultural Centre. The Sankirtana Party had to make its way through the crowd
T
to the amazement and joy of all the onlookers. May be it was the desire of Their Lordships Sri Sri
Gaura Nitai that the Holy Name be distributed to those fortunate souls.
3. Mantra Meditation Yoga
On Saturday 30th July, a session on Mantra Meditation Yoga was organised at the Belmont
Community Centre. The attendees were introduced to the concept of Yoga whereby technics were
demonstrated to develop the proper mood to set us up for the bliss of meditation.
They were then initiated to the chanting of the Maha Mantra – the perfect means to connect
to the Supreme Lord and only way for deliverance from the miseries of the material world.
4. Bhakti Vriksha Vyuha Program
To date, the Perth Yatra has got quite a few Bhakti Vriksha groups running. The Sunday Feast
session on 31st July was restructured into a Vyuha Program whereby the various educational
facilities within ISKCON for the upliftment of our spiritual well-being were presented.
The highlight of the program was the award of a certificate of recognition to all the
participants of those different groups for their effort in regularly chanting between 1 – 16 rounds of
the Maha Mantra.
5. Evening House Programs
In order to complement the various activities over
the 3 week-ends during the WHNW 2016 celebration, a
series of House Programs were conducted during the 2
weeks from Monday 1st to Thursday 4th August and then
from Monday 8th to 11th August. The family hosts were
devotees of the Perth Congregation who were
approached either directly or via the Bhakti Vriksha
groups.
Those 8 programs, being during the week, were kept short and compact, where the focus
was on the Maha Mantra and the importance of chanting. We were blessed to have the association
of HG Sankarshan Nitai Prabhu and HG Ananda Mohun Prabhu from ISKCON Mayapur during 2 of
those evening programs.
6. 6 Hour Kirtana
A 6 hour Kirtana was organised at the Temple on Sunday 7th August in lieu of the normal
Sunday Feast Program. Starting at 1pm, it gave the chance to the local and aspiring kirtaneers to
display their talents for the pleasure of Their Lordships Sri Sri Nitai Sacinandana.
A 1-hour slot was, however, reserved for a class by HG Sankarshan Nitai Prabhu who gave a
wonderful exposé on the Holy Name. This was then followed by an ecstatic Gaura Arati getting all
present to sing and dance to the tune of the Maha Mantra.
7. Park Sitting Harinama
The planned sitting Harinama in Hyde Park, Perth City, on Saturday 13th August was
welcomed with a splendid weather to the delight of those
devotees who had pencilled that event in their diary.
Held next to Srila Prabhupada’s Tree, the set up
was such that the melodious and enlivening Kirtana did
catch the attention of almost everyone using one of the
main pathways through the Park by either slowing down
or even stopping for a minute or so. A book table with the
ISKCON 50 magazines was also put on display.
8. Special Sunday Feast
In order to conclude the WHNW 2016 celebration in a grand manner, ISKCON Perth had the
privilege to have the association of His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami during the Sunday Feast
Program on 14th August. Everyone present within the packed Temple had the opportunity to relish
the sweet Kirtana as well as a very informative lecture by His Holiness.
9. Acknowledgement
The WHNW 2016 organising team for the Perth Yatra would like to show its gratitude to the
ISKCON Perth co-presidents, HG Sita Ram Lakshmana Prabhu and HG Yadu Srestha Prabhu, for their
support before and during the event as well as to all the devotees who had in one way or the other
contributed their efforts thereto.
A special thanks also goes to the participants in the series of the Harinamas as well as to the
8 family devotees who had kindly accepted to host the evening House Programs.
Krishna-kripa Prabhu wrote that at the Baltic Summer Festival in August,
in Lithuania, Bhakti Caitanya Swami shared this memory:
In the 1970s I was distributing books in Birmingham, and by 4 p.m. I had
not distributed one book.
I decided to pray to Srila Prabhupada, “I am trying to distribute your books
for your pleasure without concern for myself. Please help me.”
Then using the same lines I had used all day, I sold one book and then
another. I decided that Krishna must be pleased with my mentality so I
decided to become more fixed in it. In half an hour, I distributed ten books
in a row. From then on we would distribute 100 books a day, or on a bad day,
at least 80 books. We had a saying: A hundred books a day keeps maya away.
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Dear Devotees,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila
Prabhupada.
Attached is the Samadhi Newsletter. I hope someone can print it out
to post it on your temple noticeboard. Srila Prabhupada is sitting in
Samadhi in Vrndavan in the most beautiful Mandir --out of this world. Most
of us think, "Oh, it's finally built, and that's the end of it". But, as
everything else in this world, it still has to be maintained, and it costs
money. Sometimes I'm able to do some creative projects, but I continually
have to make sure of the upkeep of the whole project.
Maybe it doesn't sound so exciting to think about donating for
cleaning, repairing, termite control, and other mundane maintenance stuff.
But it's for Srila Prabhupada, and it's my pleasure to actively participate
in these absolutely transcendental menial activities---because it's directly
for Srila Prabhupada. Some of you are regular donors. I hope many more of
you will feel inspired to help me with this wonderful service, even if it
doesn't sound so grand as cow seva, prasad seva, or Deity seva. None of this
would be going on if Prabhupada hadn't raised us to that level. Therefore, I
am so grateful to have such a service to remind me that all I am made of is,
after all, a menial servant of my beloved Spiritual Master, and I have to be
mindful not to neglect even the smallest details.
We are slowly building up a Fixed Deposit that will cover daily
expenses with the interest and take care of things that go with aging of the
structure. By Krishna's grace, the VEB (Vrndavan Executive Board) passed a
resolution ruling that no one may take this money without VEB permission. We
are relieved that the Samadhi Maintenance Fixed Deposit will stay fixed!
Your donation will eternally serve His Divine Grace in his Samadhi.
Hope this meets you well.
Your servant,
Parvati devi dasi, for Vrndavana Samadhi
By Daamodara Dhananjaya Das
Today, one of the best avenues to reach out, not just to the masses, but also to the upper most class of people, is through the Press or the Print Media (Newspapers) and the Electronic Media (TV News & Entertainment Channels and Radio Channels). Reading newspapers and watching TV News Channels, is now one of the preeminent necessities of life. These days apparently oxygen seems to be of the secondary importance, as compared to the need of the Media. So much so that the preachers too, in order to keep up with the pace, sometimes are forced to surrender to this bewitching incarnation of Mayadevi. Hence, at ISKCON Ahmedabad, somewhere around 2007, we too decided to cultivate our relationship with the Media, so as to spread the Holy Name to each and every dwelling, where Mayadevi has her encroachment through them.
Normally a Press Conference is considered to be the best way, as compared to the advertising agencies, for conveying our message to the Press & Media. But, in order to cultivate a personal relationship and to make sure that they cover our event well, a personal visit to their offices is very important. Back in 2007, His Grace Jashomatinandan Prabhu (ACBSP) (President, ISKCON Ahmedabad), very kindly inspired us to cultivate this relationship and to develop faith in them for our movement. Here is a brief summary of our modus-operandi:
Generally, two senior devotees visit the news agency, approaching the centre head/bureau-chief/chief-editor to begin with, along with a special (VIP) invitation card of the event, a press-note/press-release with point-wise complete description of the event, a good quality prasadam box, a bag full of gifts such as Bhagavad Gita (or any other start-up books by Srila Prabhupada), a packet of incenses, some mementos like something for their office desk, car or their homes, a calendar, a good photo frame of the local Deities (or a painting) and a Maha-garland (as per the post and importance of the person). Even if one just leaves a press-note with the receptionist of any of the media agencies, they are generally bound to publish it. But this won’t help in building a personal relationship. Hence, with all our good intention and sincerity, we invite the chiefs, along with their family and friends, to grace our event. We assure them that they would be well taken care of, when they arrive. Simultaneously, we discuss about their plan to cover our event and the facilities they need to do the same. If they are a TV News Channel, we inspire them for a ‘Live Coverage’ of our event, for which they may require some space to park their OB (Outside Broadcasting) vehicles; in case they aren’t using the modern compact OB kits. After inviting the chiefs, we try to meet other subordinate, but important staff members and invite them too, for our event. Ultimately, in this way, we develop a relationship with many employees in a particular news agency. These bureau chiefs and the reporters keep changing the agencies frequently, looking for higher salaries and recognition. But due to our personal relationship with them, wherever they go, they help us in building newer relations with these agencies. Gradually these relations permeate and percolate to form a family like network with them. As a result, we now have established a direct communication with almost all the employee levels in the world of Press & Media and have added them to our WhatsApp group too, making them even more communicable. WhatsApp broadcast message is much better alternative to a group, which makes them feel comfortable and more personal.
Here is another aspect of how we look after them, when they arrive at our temple, during a festival:
During the events such as Janmastami, we form a team of young, energetic and presentable devotees for welcoming, escorting and assisting the Media and the VIP guests. We place a welcome booth at both the gates of the temple and as soon as they arrive, we welcome them warmly, note down their details, collect their visiting cards, give them an ID badge specially designed for them, escort them to the temple, assist them to secure their positions, assist them to take interviews or bites and inform them about the importance of the festivities and various aspects of the event. Finally, before they leave, we hand over a parting gift pack to them with prasadam and if they wish, we also provide full meal prasadam to them. If the bureau chiefs arrive, the senior devotees welcome and escort them, as for the dignitaries.
The dignitaries, after they hand over their vehicles to our valet parking team, are welcomed at the booth, escorted to the temple, provided with a plate of Aarati to offer to the Deities and if they are very prominent leaders, are requested to perform Abhishekam of Gopalji, led to the Jhulan/Hindola, escorted to the Prasadam area and finally to the main Pandal, where our cultural programs and the guest honouring programs are organized.
The process as such is very simple, but needs a demonstration of genuine care and respect, along with love, which is not at all difficult for the devotees, being anyway trained to be meek & humble and to have a serving attitude always. Hence, if we exhibit our true feelings, abstaining completely from any mock or formal pretention, this intellectual class of people will happily support our prime cause of the deliverance of the fallen conditioned souls.
Here is a brief summary of the result of this outreach process we just experienced, during Janmashtami 2016 festival:
Press – Media agencies which covered the festival:
DD News, Zee News, India TV, ABP News Network, India 24×7 News Channel, Sahara, CN 24 News, Live Gujarat News, ABP Asmita, Z News, ETV, TNI-TV News India, City News, Atulya Gujarat, Sandesh News, ETV News Gujarati, TV9, VTV News, GSTV, Divya Bhaskar, Times of India, Ahmedabad Mirror, Sandesh, DNA, Sambhav, Gujarat Samachar, Rajasthan Patrika, Nirman, GTPL, Vishva Samachar, Gujarat Journalist and many other local news agencies.
The dignitaries who graced the festival this year:
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Honourable Deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Nitinbhai Patel
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Hon. Mayor of AMC (Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation), Shri Gautambhai Shah
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Hon. Standing Committee Chairman of AMC, Shri Pravinbhai Patel
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Hon. Mayor of Gandhinagar, Shri Pravinbhai Patel
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Hon. Chairman of AUDA (Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority), Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel
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Ex-Mayor of AMC, Shrimati Meenakshiben Patel
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MLA, Shri Bhusanbhai Bhatt
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MLA, Shri Kishorebhai Chauhan
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Director General of Police – Gujarat, Shri P. P. Pandeyji (IPS)
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Collector of Ahmedabad, Shrimati Avantika Singh Aulakhji (IAS)
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Convenor of Gujarat, Shri Maheshbhai Kaswala
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Municipal Corporator, Shri Devangbhai Dani
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Municipal Corporator, Shrimati Diptiben Amarkotiya
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Chairman & Managing Director of NIRMA, Padmashri Dr. Karsanbhai Patel
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President of GCCI (Gujarat Chamber of Commerce & Industry), Shri Bipinbhai Patel
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Chairman of the Green Environmental Society, Shri Shankarbhai Patel
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Ex-Chairman of GPCB (Gujarat Pollution Control Board), Shri Kanubhai Mistry
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Chairman of Shyam Textiles, Shri Hanumanprasad Guptaji
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Chairman of Honest Group, Shri Vijay Guptaji
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Chairman of Chiripal Group, Shri Brijmohan Chiripalji
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Chairman of Nandan Exim-Chiripal Group, Shri Deepak Chiripalji
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Chairman of Bansal Group, Shri Ashok Bansalji
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Chairman of Cubit Health Care, Shri Ashok Agarwalji
and many more IAS – IPS officers, government officers, business tycoons and other honoured personalities graced the festival.
For further details please feel free to contact us at:
ISKCON Ahmedabad Core Committee <i-acc@googlegroups.com>
Some more Pictures.
