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Debate
• is oppositional: two sides oppose each other and attempt to prove each other wrong
• has winning as the goal
• lets one side listen to the other side to find flaws and to counter its arguments: “listening to refute”
• defends assumptions as the truth
• causes critique of the other position
• defends one’s own positions as the best solution and excludes other solutions
• creates a dosed-minded attitude, a determination to be right
• prompts a search for glaring differe

Since I became a monk in the spring of ’73, I’ve made it a practice to have my japa beads (meditation beads) near me. This is how I was trained. My mentor at the time insisted, “Anything can happen at any time! It’s good that your beads can be within reach.” I was also cautioned that Lord Yamaraja, the God of death can appear at night, in your sleep, and with his agents, the Yamadutas, can drag you from your gross body preparing you for a torturous ride.

Krsna is everywhere because He is all-pervading. Not only is the brahmajyoti (effulgence) of Krsna present everywhere, on which everything is resting, but Krsna Himself is present everywhere in different forms. Sometimes He is in the form of Nrsimhadeva, sometimes He is in the form of Varaha and other times He is in His sweet form playing His flute. So basically, Krsna’s mercy is constantly there.

The dust jacket of the First Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam is very special as Srila Prabhupada de

“While teaching Rupa Gosvami, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, guru-krsna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija: one can achieve the seed of devotional service by the mercy of the guru, the spiritual master, and then by the mercy of Krsna. This is the secret of success. First one should try to please the spiritual master, and then one should attempt to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura also says, yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasado. One should not attempt to please the S

Many people say “By your mercy, I will surrender” or “Give me your blessings so that I will surrender” or “When Krishna wants”. Srila Prabhupada says these are spoken under “FALSE PRETENSE”–These are just “PLEA’S” Not to Surrender.

Srila Prabhupada: Surrender is willing. If you don’t like to surrender who can make you obliged to surrender? Surrender is voluntary. “Yes I surrender.” Determination, “Yes I surrender.” Who can make you obliged to surrender? Nobody can make. Even Krsna can not work.

This essay is taken from the book “The Art of teaching” by Burijana dasa. It is written for gurukula teachers, but is equally applicable to all devotees.

Teachers wishing success in their service must cultivate the mode of goodness. But wait a minute! Am I hearing protests from hard-pressed devotees sincerely striving to serve their Lord with a passion? Are they not crying out from the distance that there’s no need for goodness? Are they not emphatically stating that devotees are transcendental

We have to conquer in relationships. We can never take them for granted and we can never think, “Now this person’s commitment is assured, so there is no need to put in effort.”  When there is a marriage and the ring goes on the finger, it does not mean much; it is just a little piece of metal. Marriage actually means that one has to conquer. So we should not think that now that the ring is there, there is no need to conquer the other person.

This is the same in the relationship between a guru a

The real point is that narayana-paranmukham. Without thinking of Narayana or Krsna or Visnu, no method will be able to purify you. Vita-raga-bhaya-krodha, mam upasritah… [Being freed from attachment, fear and anger, being fully absorbed in Me and taking refuge in Me, many, many persons in the past became purified by knowledge of Me – and thus they all attained transcendental love for Me. (Bhagavad-gita, 4.10.)] – the simple process to become purified. And that simple process is this chanting. Ch

Hare Krishna Vaishnavas! Dandavats Pranam! Jai Srila Prabhupad!

Many of you may not be aware that HG Govardhan Lila Mataji has been having severe health challenges.

She has survived 2 open heart surgeries because she is always very eager to continue serving their lordships here in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S.A.).

She will be going through a very risky and complex procedure for her heart on May 26 at 12:00 PM EST. This procedure will take approximately 3 hours at Emory hospital.

The procedure is calle

If crying is the preserve of advanced devotees steeped in devotional mellows, should it bother us to display a show of apparent weakness? Shedding tears in lamentation, as a plea for sympathy, as ostentatious syrupy hype or as a tantrum disguised as frustration, can all be good enough reasons not to appear less than masculine.

Yet tears are required while treading the path of devotion. For the ‘average’ practitioner who plods along, pacing himself as if running a super life-long marathon, conse

My beloved, exalted disciple Kamala devi dasi left her body in Mauritius two days ago. Everything about her departure was auspicious, and her consciousness was fixed on Goloka Vrindavan. She was ably assisted in her final journey by HH Bhakti Brhat Bhagavata Swami; Karunika dasi; Vrajesvari dasi; Manasi Ganga dasi; Arcana Siddhi dasi; and her devoted daughter, Dhira Prasanta dasi, and son, Lesh, in Mauritius; and by Krsnagi dasi and others from afar.

I have attached a photo of Kamala devi when s

Pancharatna Prabhu, ILS 2020 Seminar: "Pathways - Successful Strategies for Nurturing New Contacts"

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Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=85824