Dharma Prana is a loveable guy who spent the best years of his life serving the mission, especially in the area of book distribution. These books that are published by Bhaktivedanta Book Trust are the most cherished material on the subject of self-actualization. Dharma Prana is an outstanding devotee and disciple of the author of these fine books, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
Since the mid 80s, Dharma suffered from a stroke and has not been able to form whole sentences in his speec
It came quite spontaneously. Vascapati, a U of T student, called me up for a break from his studies. I asked him if he wanted to go for a walk. After all, the sun was shining, temperature was 14ºC. “Let’s take the trail where I started my long-distance training for walking,” I suggested. He had the time. So, we left for the path that was ours and so many others’. We were not the only ones with the idea of a version of escapism.
Traces of Halloween were still in the residential atmosph
In preparation for an upcoming leaders’ meeting, I have compiled a poem on the topic. Here it is:
THE ABCs of SERVANT LEADER
The ideal good leader
Is never a browbeater
But who empowers, encourages
Sees that everything flourishes
A servant leader is ACCESSIBLE
Being present a
Praharana is my godsister and also a student or disciple of Prabhupada, like myself. She heard I was going to the farm in Caledon called Gir Farms, and wanted to come. Our driver was Pradeep. Also coming along was Cameron, an Australian who spends considerable time at a cow shelter (goshala) in Vrindavan, India. He’s a natural with the animals and with keeping their quarters clean,
Praharana, on the other hand, is not a farmer. She told us so during a walk on a nearby trail and after view
It was ten years ago that I began my US walk starting from Boston in New England. By the time I reached Middle Atlantic in Pennsylvania, it was Halloween time. Homeowners had really spruced up their properties with all kinds of ghoulish décor. I recall walking by a countryside home where the place was elaborately done up. A man from the UK travelling for business stopped to see the spectacle and remarked, “Boy, here everyone really gets into it,” meaning in Europe the event is rather toned
I was at the street corner of Ave & Dav (Avenue Road and Davenport) with Harakumara, our treasurer, when an elderly gentleman hurriedly ran up to us and in a childlike excitement said, “I’m the one who rings the bell at the Church of the Redeemer. Do you ring the bell at your temple?”
Both Harakumara and I didn’t expect that remark. He was enthusiastic. We didn’t have the time to explain that we don’t have a bell to ring in our belltower. He continued, “A friend of mine also rings the bell
There are signs that indicate we are growing. What I mean by that is we, as a society and culture, are expanding, at least in Canada and the southern-most part of the country, also in sections of the USA, India, Eastern Europe, and I’m sure there are other locations. This is glorious.
Nityananda drove me to North York to meet some businessmen from our community to make an offer for a larger building in the eastern section of Toronto-Scarborough. What we have currently for weekend functions
Every year in the month of Damodhara, which is now, Amal, who represents the Bangla community, holds a memorable kirtan chanting session at his tiny home. In attendance there are no less than one hundred persons who relish the chants, the rituals, and the prasadam (sacred food). I must say, the Bengalis and the Bangladeshis churn out incredible food. Their veg prep called sukta is very tasty, and their version of shak (mixed greens) is out of this world. Then, there are the Bengali sweets s
Members of the VHP had invited us to Queen’s Park, the Legislative Assembly Building for the Province of Ontario to a Diwali function. At 8 am, a dozen of us devotees from the temple ashram turned up, including myself, along with delegates, ministers of various portfolios with the government. People with those statuses and services spoke briefly about the importance of Diwali, the festival of lights, carrying the theme of goodness over evil. Certificates were given to those who achieved pro
I was told by a number of folks, the ones we met at Radhadesh, Den Haag, and Naalwijk, that we were very lucky in regards to the weather during our trekking in Holland. “You had practically no rain – unusual for this time of year.”
I consider myself blessed on many counts. Our first nine hours were spent at Radhadesh’s castle. The class I delivered was on the topic of renunciation. I told the listeners of how my dad, while I was in the tub and he was shaving in the washroom, out of nowhere
It is a day of rest, perhaps deserved. Yes, we have been going strong over the last eight days at twenty kilometres. A pause is always good. Downtime. A handful of us on the “Walk for Devotion” project are taking it easy in this tiny town, Durbuy, and specifically at beautifully showcased Radhadesh. It is an oasis of a tastefully done tourist trap and includes a Radha Krishna temple, restaurant, bakery, boutique, art museum, a cow shelter, a playground, an extensive walking trail, land to
I believe I’m the most fortunate person in the world because I have just an outstanding team to work with on this walk. The navigation to what is such an excellent route is all taken care of. I have company. Each day there are core coordinators along with fresh and new troupers. We talk about light and deep topics when we are not chanting on our individual japa beads. There’s never a dull moment, really. The scenery is just charming – earthy, green, and prosperous.
At Amersfoort, which i
The glorious starting point for a team of seven was at the North Sea, Zandvoort Beach, and we explored on foot Bennebroek by some amazing sand dunes, the forests at mansion Buitenplaats Leyduin, numerous residences at Heemsteds near Haarlem and Zwaanshoek to the finish point, Hoofddorp. The initial companions were Yadu, an avid cyclist, Helga, our filmmaker, Stephan, whom we called our safari master, Namacharya, and Rabindra Svarupa, who are my hosts. Others joined at certain junctions and so
How does a walking marathoner get his ‘steps’ in when flying distances that don’t allow? Well, here’s how I achieved some numbers after a six-hour flight. The Schipold in Amsterdam where I landed in the late morning, covers about 4,500 football fields, or 27.87 square kilometres, and I traversed a small portion of that. With Air Canada losing my check-in baggage, I was forced to walk from carousel 19 at arrivals to the oversize outlet or odd-size to carousel 16 and back in a triangle again a
Ram Lila, my host, said, “You go ahead. I’ll catch up to you,” indicating the Albion Trail which runs along the East River. Fine, so I did leave just a little bit after 8 AM. Nice trail. Apple trees with wormless fruit are spotted here and there. The sun was shining on the river which appeared like glass. No ripples at all. After a few minutes I heard a shuffling of footsteps behind me. They belonged to Ram Lila and his 8-year-old son, Achintya.
As a threesome we plodded along starti
If you’re a monk in a mega city
You just can’t sit there looking pretty
In the ashram there are programs on the go
That operate at a pace that is not slow
Humanity has needs you don’t want to miss
Keeping active is truly a state of pure bliss
Community interests never put you on pause
While outreach efforts are a regular, ‘cause
Mindfulness is the direction to the transcendental
Let’s be practical and deal with the dental
Some intense days you could cut with a knife
Striking that balance in the
Things are back to normal, back in regular gear. Children are back at school, and in general, vacation is over with adults also in full tilt situated at their workplace.
Construction goes on in various locations of the city like most contemporary urban areas of the world. Roads need repair. New edifices need to rise up to accommodate the growing population.
And what about Chinatown? It is always busy, no sign of death there. With such an industrious community, there will always be a
Our visiting monk from Florida, Brhat Mrdanga, showed me the notes he took from my class involving the theme of shifting gears in life, or altering one’s career and what people often call paradigm shifting. The focus in the class was based on a Canto Nine avatar, Parasurama, who was born a brahmin (priest), but took on the disposition of a ksatriya (warrior). He felt he did the needful due to oppressive force from unruly kings. In other words, he demonstrated how, in certain circumstances,
One of our most outstanding devotees was honoured today at his cremation at St. John’s Crematorium. Vaishnava Das, AKA Willy Pillay, passed away on the 11th due to heart and other complications. His life was full, complete, rich. If you live life deeply as he did, you don’t die. And Thoreau once said that if you see death as law, then that’s dignified and don’t see it as an accident.
I recall when he and his family, Janaki, wife, and three daughters first came to our temple to do what
The most glorious weekend is over. The Chariot Fest has major positive effects on the public. If it is not the sights and sounds of the parade and stage that left impact, then the vibrations of mantra and kindness of Vaishnavas do leave a residual blessing.
There was a sector of society, a sole person, perhaps, who didn’t necessarily agree to all the mercy of Jagannatha. On the day of the parade, Saturday, from the height of a condo residence, eggs plummeted down on the crowd. Fortun
