series - Blog - ISKCON Desire Tree | IDT2024-03-28T08:38:51Zhttps://iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/seriesRichard L. Thompson Lecture Series Inaugural Eventhttps://iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/richard-l-thompson-lecture-series-inaugural-event-12023-04-01T11:50:06.000Z2023-04-01T11:50:06.000ZISKCON Desire Treehttps://iskcondesiretree.com/members/iskcon_desire_tree<div><p style="text-align:center;"><em><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}11018927901,RESIZE_584x{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="11018927901?profile=RESIZE_584x" width="500" /></em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>“The process of bhakti-yoga is regulated by a theory of knowledge that strictly<br /> rules out unjustifiable speculation and extrapolation, and in this respect bhakti-yoga<br /> is methodologically superior to modern science, and goes beyond modern science<br /> by providing the individual with practical methods of developing higher<br /> cognitive powers that lie dormant in the conscious self.”</em></p>
<p style="text-align:center;">(Mechanistic and Nonmechanistic Science, p. 10)</p>
<p>The Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies launched an ongoing lecture series based on the books of Richard L. Thompson (Sadaputa das, 1947-2008) with a hybrid (online/in-person) event at the BIHS Headquarters in Gainesville, FL, on February 4, 2023 (Sadaputa’s birthday!). Six of Thompson’s books will be covered chapter by chapter with a lecture summarizing the contents and highlighting the chapter’s essential messages, followed by a discussion session.</p>
<p>Three very special guest speakers opened the Series by offering their realizations concerning the impact of Sadaputa’s research, lectures, and publications on their personal life, and on both the devotional and scientific community.</p>
<p>Jayadvaita Swami (Jay Israel), who served as an editor for nearly all the books published by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada during His lifetime, focused on Thompson’s “wonderful fertility of mind and openness of thought” as he “set a direction and a high bar by his probing mind and probing intelligence.”Having worked closely with him for many years as an editor for Back to Godhead magazine, which featured over 40 articles by Thompson spanning three decades, Maharaja was keenly aware of his “gift for taking complex ideas and making them accessible to ordinary persons”:</p>
<p>Sadaputa stands out for his conviction that something is really being said here, Sukadeva Gosvami has something profound to say – not just a religious doctrine, or a Hindu belief, or traditional wisdom – but there’s deep substance to it.</p>
<p>While accessing the past and future impact of Thompson’s published material, Jayadvaita Swami praised his ability to understand “where were the opportunities for discourse,” and thus produce a legacy empowering future generations “to be able to look at Sadaputa’s work, and be informed by it, provoked by it, and guided by it. It is so valuable!”</p>
<p>Badrinarayan Swami (Robert Morrill), who has served as a Governing Body Commissioner since 1987, described his intimate dealings with Thompson during his tenure as Temple President in San Diego from 1978 to 1995. He remembers his “friend and hero, Sadaputa Prabhu, as a gentle, refined, and sophisticated person with an abiding sense of humor.” After relating several humorous anecdotes, Maharaja highlights Thompson’s sincerity: “He was absorbed in his service of presenting a scientific view of the Vedic understanding,” and was “very serious about his sadhana – he loved the morning program!”</p>
<p>Recalling one of their many philosophical discussions, Badrinarayan Swami explained how Thompson “deepened my faith in the Bhagavatam: if you accept the principle of a multi-dimensional universe, then the whole thing opens up and becomes plausible.” His closing words reveal an abiding appreciation of Thompson’s life’s work:</p>
<p>One cornerstone of Sadaputa’s approach to his studies – if something was in the Bhagavatam, he accepted a priori, axiomatically, that it was true. But his mission was to understand and share with others HOW it was true. And he gave his life to that mission. We can never repay Sadaputa. He’s one of my heroes, and one of our heroes.</p>
<div><strong>Read more: </strong><a href="https://iskconnews.org/richard-l-thompson-lecture-series-inaugural-event-2/">https://iskconnews.org/richard-l-thompson-lecture-series-inaugural-event-2/</a></div></div>Richard L. Thompson Lecture Series Inaugural Eventhttps://iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/richard-l-thompson-lecture-series-inaugural-event2023-01-21T14:12:52.000Z2023-01-21T14:12:52.000ZISKCON Desire Treehttps://iskcondesiretree.com/members/iskcon_desire_tree<div><p><em><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10946151066,RESIZE_584x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="500" alt="10946151066?profile=RESIZE_584x" /></em></p>
<p><em>“The process of bhakti-yoga is regulated by a theory of knowledge that strictly rules out unjustifiable speculation and extrapolation, and in this respect bhakti-yoga is methodologically superior to modern science, and goes beyond modern science by providing the individual with practical methods of developing higher cognitive powers that lie dormant in the conscious self.</em></p>
<p><em>(Mechanistic and Nonmechanistic Science, p. 10)</em></p>
<p>The Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies will inaugurate an ongoing lecture series based on the books of Richard L. Thompson (Sadaputa dasa, 1947-2008) with a hybrid (online/in-person) event at the BIHS Headquarters in Gainesville, FL, on February 4, 2023 (Sadaputa’s birthday!), 11 AM to 1 PM EST. Special guest speakers will include Hrdayananda Das Goswami, Jayadvaita Swami, and Badrinarayan Swami. The public is welcome to attend in person or via Zoom (see links below).</p>
<p>Six of Thompson’s books will be covered chapter by chapter with a lecture summarizing the contents and highlighting the chapter’s essential messages, followed by a discussion session. The series will begin with an introduction tohis first book,<em><a href="http://richardlthompson.com/book/mechanistic-and-nonmechanistic-science">Mechanistic and Nonmechanistic Science</a>: An Investigation Into the Nature of Consciousness and Form</em> (1981), by BIHS Director Brahmatirtha dasa. In this publication, Thompson discusses how the mechanistic theories dominating modern science have difficulty explaining phenomena like consciousness, complex biological form, and inspiration, and how these disparate phenomena could be unified through engaging the non-mechanistic analytical paradigms offered in the<em> Bhagavad-gita</em>.</p>
<p>This work makes a sober, thorough, carefully reasoned, and well-documented case that the prevailing theories of physics and biology have grave shortcomings which can be traced to their reliance on an underlying mechanistic framework. Dr. Thompson shows how physics is incapable of dealing with the phenomenon of consciousness and how biology is unable to account for the existence of complex living forms. Arguing that valid scientific theory does not have to be mechanistic, Dr. Thompson outlines a nonmechanistic science that would complement mechanistic science and round out the human quest for understanding.</p>
<p>Two Nobel Prize winners offered favorable reviews:</p>
<p>I liked the third chapter of <em>Mechanistic and Nonmechanistic Science </em>very much. In particular it acquainted me some with the Bhagavad-gita. I learned that the basic philosophical ideas of this on ‘existence’ are virtually identical with those which quantum mechanics lead me to. – <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1963/wigner/biographical/">Eugene Wigner</a><a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1963/wigner/biographical/"> (Physics 1963)</a></p>
<p>In <em>Mechanistic and Nonmechanistic Science,</em> Dr. Thompson makes a number of cogent arguments against the usual scientific picture of life and evolution (which do not accept the existence of higher or subtler levels of organization). He also presents a clear alternative model. I think it is an important book, which would be of interest to many people. – <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1973/josephson/auto-biography/">Brian Josephson</a><a href="http://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/1973/josephson/auto-biography/"> (Physics 1973)</a></p>
<p>In a lengthy review published in <em><a href="http://www.zygonjournal.org/issue1984_3.html">Zygon: The Journal of Religion and Science</a> </em>19(3), <a href="https://www.cmc.edu/academic/faculty/profile/granville-henry">Granville C. Henry</a>, Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy at Claremont McKenna College, wrote:</p>
<p>The attractive quality of this book is that Thompson writes as a scientist about science with a clarity, accuracy, and objectivity that should engender respect both from scientists and from those whose religious persuasions are other than his own. He presents the philosophical instabilities of contemporary scientific theory in a clear scientific language without recourse to ad hoc religious explanations.</p>
<p><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10946151300,RESIZE_584x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="472" alt="10946151300?profile=RESIZE_584x" /></p>
<p>Five more of Thompson’s books will be included in the Lecture Series, in chronological order:</p>
<p><em>Vedic Cosmography and Astronomy (1989)</em></p>
<p><em>Parallels [Alien Identities]: Ancient Insights into Modern UFO Phenomena (1993)</em></p>
<p><em>Mysteries of the Sacred Universe: The Cosmology of the Bhagavata Purana (2000)</em></p>
<p><em>Maya: The World As Virtual Reality (2003)</em></p>
<p><em>God & Science: Divine Causation and the Laws of Nature (2004)</em></p>
<p><em> </em></p>
<p>To register for the Feb. 4 inaugural event, and receive zoom links for each of the following lectures in the series, please click [<a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe2Y6qdGehb3ssRPCEijiX9qYlz3YtTtXZMTr2BbZrOHCsnOA/viewform">here</a>].</p>
<p>To attend in person and join us for a sumptuous 1 PM prasadam buffet at the BIHS Headquarters (224 NE 10th Ave, Gainesville, FL), please reserve your spot by contacting Prishni (<a href="mailto:prishni108@gmail.com">prishni108@gmail.com</a>) no later than January 15, 2023.</p>
<p>Please check the <a href="https://bihstudies.org/events/">BIHS Events</a> page for up-to-date schedule information and current lecture zoom links.<br /> <br /> <strong>Source: </strong><a href="http://www.dandavats.com/?post_type=post&p=105516#">http://www.dandavats.com/?post_type=post&p=105516#</a></p></div>A Bond of Love Interview Series Connects Viewers With Srila Prabhupadahttps://iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/a-bond-of-love-interview-series-connects-viewers-with-srila-prabh2021-07-27T09:52:08.000Z2021-07-27T09:52:08.000ZISKCON Desire Treehttps://iskcondesiretree.com/members/iskcon_desire_tree<div><p><strong><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9317839677,RESIZE_584x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="450" alt="9317839677?profile=RESIZE_584x" /></strong></p>
<p><strong>By Madhava Smullen</strong></p>
<p>A Bond of Love, a series of online interviews that began as a promotional strategy for the book of the same name, sees Vaishnavi disciples of Srila Prabhupada sharing their memories and realizations about their spiritual master twice a month, and thus connecting multiple generations with ISKCON’s Founder-Acarya.</p>
<p>The series is livestreamed every alternate Saturday around 11am PST on the Vaishnavi Ministry North America Facebook page and Youtube channel simultaneously, although times vary to accommodate interviewees from different timezones.</p>
<p>The interview series is inspired by the 600-page book A Bond of Love: Srila Prabhupada and His Daughters, in which over 300 Vaishnavis share memories of their interactions with Srila Prabhupada, and discuss how he impacted their lives. According to publisher Mayapriya Dasi of Bookwrights Press, the intention of the book is to “document Srila Prabhupada’s exchanges with his female disciples for the benefit of existing and future members of ISKCON, as well as for anyone interested in knowing more about our beloved spiritual master and how he deeply and personally affected the lives of his beloved female disciples (spiritual daughters).”</p>
<p>The accompanying interview series begin in December 2020, soon after A Bond of Love was released, as a way to promote the book and hear from the Vaishnavis who shared in its pages.</p>
<p>Organized by Vaishnavi Minister for North America Govinda-Priya Dasi as well as Ministry members Carly, Victoria, Tiffany, and Shyama Sakhi, the series also aims to give devotees a chance to hear from Srila Prabhupada’s disciples while they are still present with us.</p>
<p>So far interviewees have included GBC Malati Dasi, who was sent by Srila Prabhupada to bring Krishna consciousness to the UK; author Visakha Dasi, who served as Prabhupada’s official photographer and is now the temple president at Bhaktivedanta Manor in the UK; Shrutirupa Dasi from Alachua, who served as Srila Prabhupada’s cook; and author and preacher Narayani Dasi, who served Srila Prabhupada in his time by doing deity worship and traveling book distribution.<br /> <br /> <strong>Read more:</strong> <a href="https://iskconnews.org/a-bond-of-love-interview-series-connects-viewers-with-srila-prabhupada,7930/">https://iskconnews.org/a-bond-of-love-interview-series-connects-viewers-with-srila-prabhupada,7930/</a></p></div>A Bond of Love Interview Series: Kusha Devi Dasihttps://iskcondesiretree.com/profiles/blogs/a-bond-of-love-interview-series-kusha-devi-dasi2021-03-08T10:18:01.000Z2021-03-08T10:18:01.000ZISKCON Desire Treehttps://iskcondesiretree.com/members/iskcon_desire_tree<div><p style="text-align:center;"><strong><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3hW2FP2f3BU" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></strong></p>
<p><strong>About Kusha Devi</strong><br /> She became a devotee at the age of 17, moved into the temple as soon as she turned 18 in 1969. Govinda dasi deputed Jayasri Prabhu and her to grow the first Tulasi plants in the western world. In 1970, Govinda dasi was asked by Srila Prabhupada to make Gour Nitai Deities. So she deputed Kusha Devi to sculpt the clay form of Lord Caitanya, the first in our Iskcon. She was put on the board of Trustees of the Vrinda Kund Project, maintaining a non profit corporation in which to raise funds to build the Vrinda Kund Temple. Till today she is still one of the board of Trustees to that project. SheI was instrumental in the production of the Book, “What is the difficulty!”and produced a website called Srila Prabhupada Uvacha for Srila Prabhupada’s Centennial.<br /> She has served in Iskcon Hospice Forum for three years (2016-2019), trying to improve hospice conditions and was part of Vrindavan Management Council (2017-2019) and presently serving as the Iskcon Honolulu Temple President since April 2019.<br /> She is a loving mother to 2 sons and a daughter, and a grand mother to five grandson’s two grand daughters, three great grand sons.<br /> <br /> <strong>Source: </strong><a href="http://www.dandavats.com/?p=93692">http://www.dandavats.com/?p=93692</a></p></div>