I distributed some books on Janmashtami day door knocking (mostly Indian families) and invited few of them for the program. I am hoping people get interested to discuss more about Krishna.
Below are some pictures.
Hare Krishna
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Chappan bhog
I and my wife cooked up fifty six items for Lord Jagannath, Baladev and Subhadra. Technically this sort of offering is called "chappan bhog" meaning fifty six offerings. This is my first attempt and I pray the Lord accepted the offering. It took approximately 12 hours to cook and offer. At the end it was worth the effort. We also distributed the Prasad to few devotees here.
I distributed some books on Janmashtami day door knocking (mostly Indian families) and invited few of them for the program. I am hoping people get interested to discuss more about Krishna.
Below are some pictures.
Hare Krishna
I distributed some books on Janmashtami day door knocking (mostly Indian families) and invited few of them for the program. I am hoping people get interested to discuss more about Krishna.
Below are some pictures.
Hare Krishna
Friday, August 10, 2012
Deepest gratitude to His Divine Grace!
Today is the appearance day of our beloved spiritual master Srila Prabhupada.
I would like to dedicate this post to him and express my deepest gratitude for helping me understand the importance of human life. Srila Prabhupada toured the world more than ten times in the eleven years he preached in the West. He wrote more than seventy volumes of books on Krishna consciousness and its importance in the 21st century. He showed love and affection to each one of his devotees, although he could not show individual care to each devotee, yet the devotees under him felt they were taken care of by Srila Prabhupada regardless where they lived. Although I have not physically met Srila Prabhupada in this lifetime, I feel a close connection to him through his books and the urgency to understand Krishna.
Generally, God or anything related to God is treated as the last priority in a person's life. But Srila Prabhupada instilled in us that how by actively pursuing God in everyday life, we can make Him number one priority. By doing so, our life become successful. We do not relegate God to a weekend or hobby but His Divine Grace has actively taught us to make Krishna a household member and treat Him as such. Although I do not possess any high realization in that matter, I do understand the value and importance of making Krishna a part and center of my household.
With the deepest gratitude and humility at my behest, I sincerely pray to the Lord so I remain your humble servant now and forever. I pray I have the determination and enthusiasm to be part of your mission. On this auspicious day, I have nothing significant to offer except my Thank You!
Thank you very much for showing me your causeless mercy so I can chant the Hare Krishna Mahamantra and eventually perfect my life.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Changing bodies
In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says that just 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. What Krishna essentially is saying here is that the sense of being or self or "I am" is the same even as the body gets older.
If we are indeed our body made of flesh and blood then our sense of self also should feel aged and dying. But we never feel aged or dying at any point in our life. We may feel depressed or anxious experiencing our old bodies but our sense of self never becomes "old". In that sense there is a contradiction between a feeling of a never changing self versus changing body. Therefore by deduction, Krishna concludes that the "self" is not the same as the "body". The soul (self) within the body occupies different bodies such as boy body, youth body, and old man body. Modern science interprets the same phenomenon as one person growing old. But that cannot be true as the "person" never feels old or growing as it is the body that ages and not the person.
Below is a series of pictures taken every five years by five individuals in the same spot with the same body language. They have been doing this for the past three decades. The pictures illustrates the changing body but the persons are the same - "The seven pictures to date are framed and hang on the wall of the cabin. The men still listen to the same '80s music they were listening to when they were 19 years old"
- editor CNN.
Bodies grow but sense of being does not. Below is a vivid example. As time passes on, persons will be missing from the picture and onto other bodies. This is the law of nature as spoken by Krishna.
Hare Krishna
If we are indeed our body made of flesh and blood then our sense of self also should feel aged and dying. But we never feel aged or dying at any point in our life. We may feel depressed or anxious experiencing our old bodies but our sense of self never becomes "old". In that sense there is a contradiction between a feeling of a never changing self versus changing body. Therefore by deduction, Krishna concludes that the "self" is not the same as the "body". The soul (self) within the body occupies different bodies such as boy body, youth body, and old man body. Modern science interprets the same phenomenon as one person growing old. But that cannot be true as the "person" never feels old or growing as it is the body that ages and not the person.
Below is a series of pictures taken every five years by five individuals in the same spot with the same body language. They have been doing this for the past three decades. The pictures illustrates the changing body but the persons are the same - "The seven pictures to date are framed and hang on the wall of the cabin. The men still listen to the same '80s music they were listening to when they were 19 years old"
- editor CNN.
Bodies grow but sense of being does not. Below is a vivid example. As time passes on, persons will be missing from the picture and onto other bodies. This is the law of nature as spoken by Krishna.
Hare Krishna
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
We have to benefit from human life
In Krishna consciousness, Srila Prabhupada and our previous teachers stress a lot on the value of human life. Srila Prabhupada once answered his disciple that degrading to lower species of life is the most dangerous thing and by spreading Krishna consciousness, we can help people avoid that. So from a spiritual perspective, human life is very rare and hence very precious.
I was sitting in my cube today and one person stopped by to chat. He was talking about his friend who got cancer. The patient did not know about cancer till January of this year and in eight months dies. He said it like it was a normal thing. I was amazed at how the person explained the cancer story in a such a nonchalant way. To him cancer was like catching cold or something. He also said his father had colon cancer and survived. Anyways, as he was saying the story I was thinking on the unpredictable nature of this world. Recently, I also know of another individual (know him for eight years) who just got diagnosed with cancer and is in serious condition.
In both the cases, life was normal for the individuals with no glaring symptoms till one regular doctor's checkup changed everything. People plan their lives in short term and long term till retirement and accordingly make decisions. But little do they plan for such life altering crisis. Any intelligent person can see that life yesterday is not the same today and will not be the same tomorrow. It amazes me how when we talk about death as a reality, people simply slither in their seats like they have seen a snake. This is how much deep we are in illusion. If we do not meditate on death as a reality, when it comes, we will not know what to do. Therefore great saints such as Srila Prabhupada stress on the value of spiritual life in our day to day affairs. If we cultivate Godcentric spiritual consciousness and live our life thinking that earthly existence is temporary, then when our time comes, we will be well prepared to leave.
Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita that how we leave determines our next destination. So it is important we leave thinking of Krishna and not in lamentation for the people and things of this world. Both the cancer stories reminds me of how life is so much on the tottering platform that at any moment it can fall. If we do not take shelter of Krishna, our next destination can be anything and slipping to animal or lower species will be our greatest peril and failure.
Please chant Hare Krishna, cultivate a spiritual mindset and inquire into the higher sublime truths of life. This is our chance.
Hare Krishna.
I was sitting in my cube today and one person stopped by to chat. He was talking about his friend who got cancer. The patient did not know about cancer till January of this year and in eight months dies. He said it like it was a normal thing. I was amazed at how the person explained the cancer story in a such a nonchalant way. To him cancer was like catching cold or something. He also said his father had colon cancer and survived. Anyways, as he was saying the story I was thinking on the unpredictable nature of this world. Recently, I also know of another individual (know him for eight years) who just got diagnosed with cancer and is in serious condition.
In both the cases, life was normal for the individuals with no glaring symptoms till one regular doctor's checkup changed everything. People plan their lives in short term and long term till retirement and accordingly make decisions. But little do they plan for such life altering crisis. Any intelligent person can see that life yesterday is not the same today and will not be the same tomorrow. It amazes me how when we talk about death as a reality, people simply slither in their seats like they have seen a snake. This is how much deep we are in illusion. If we do not meditate on death as a reality, when it comes, we will not know what to do. Therefore great saints such as Srila Prabhupada stress on the value of spiritual life in our day to day affairs. If we cultivate Godcentric spiritual consciousness and live our life thinking that earthly existence is temporary, then when our time comes, we will be well prepared to leave.
Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita that how we leave determines our next destination. So it is important we leave thinking of Krishna and not in lamentation for the people and things of this world. Both the cancer stories reminds me of how life is so much on the tottering platform that at any moment it can fall. If we do not take shelter of Krishna, our next destination can be anything and slipping to animal or lower species will be our greatest peril and failure.
Please chant Hare Krishna, cultivate a spiritual mindset and inquire into the higher sublime truths of life. This is our chance.
Hare Krishna.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Perfect Questions and Perfect Answers
Q: What is mental equilibrium and self control?
A: Absorbing the intelligence in Me constitutes mental
equilibrium. Complete discipline of the senses is self-control.
Q: What is the actual meaning of tolerance and steadfastness?
A: Tolerance means patiently enduring unhappiness. Steadfastness
occurs when one conquers the tongue and genitals.
Q: What is the greatest charity?
A: The greatest charity is to give up all aggression toward
others
Q: What is real austerity?
A: Renunciation of lust is understood to be real austerity.
Q: What is heroism?
A: Real heroism is to conquer one's natural tendency to
enjoy material life.
Q: How are reality and truth to be described?
A: Reality is seeing
the Supreme Personality of Godhead everywhere. Truthfulness means to speak the
truth in a pleasing way, as declared by great sages.
Q: What is cleanliness?
A: Cleanliness is detachment from fruitive activities
Q: What is renunciation and what is wealth?
A: Renunciation is the sannyāsa order of life. The true
desirable wealth for human beings is religiousness.
Q: What is considered gain in life?
A: The supreme gain in life is devotional service to Me
Q: What is the best education?
A: Actual education
is nullifying the false perception of duality within the soul.
Q: What is actual humility?
A: Real modesty is to be disgusted with improper activities.
Q: What is real beauty?
A: Beauty is to possess good qualities such as detachment.
Q: What are happiness and unhappiness?
A: Real happiness is to transcend material happiness and
unhappiness. Real misery is to be implicated in searching for sex pleasure.
Q: Who is learned, and who is a fool?
A: A wise man is one who knows the process of freedom from
bondage. A fool is one who identifies with his material body and mind.
Q: What are the true and the false paths in life?
A: The real path in life is that which leads to Me, and the
wrong path is sense gratification, by which consciousness is bewildered.
Q: What are heaven and hell?
A: Actual heaven is the predominance of the mode of goodness.
Hell is the predominance of ignorance.
Q: Who is a true friend?
A: I am everyone's true friend, acting as the spiritual
master of the entire universe.
Q: Who is a rich man, and who is a poor man?
A: One who is enriched with good qualities is actually said
to be rich. One who is unsatisfied in life is actually poor.
Q: Who is wretched, and who is an actual controller?
A: Wretched person is one who cannot control his senses. One
who is not attached to sense gratification is a real controller.
Q: What are the primary disciplinary principles?
A: Nonviolence, truthfulness, not coveting or stealing the property of others, detachment, humility, freedom from possessiveness, trust in the principles of religion, celibacy, silence, steadiness, forgiveness and fearlessness are the twelve primary disciplinary principles
Q: What are prescribed duties?
A: Internal cleanliness, external cleanliness, chanting the holy names of the Lord, austerity, sacrifice, faith, hospitality, worship of Me, visiting holy places, acting and desiring only for the supreme interest, satisfaction, and service to the spiritual master are the twelve elements of regular prescribed duties.
Questions by Uddhava
Answers by Lord Krishna
Dated 3000 BC
Source: SB 11.19.28-45
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Questions worth asking and answers worth knowing
Q: How should one react to people who insult you by their rudeness and arrogance?
A: If one does not become angry when insulted by another, then he takes away all the pious merit that person may have accumulated by good deeds. In addition he transfers to the abuser his own sinful reactions. After all what is the value of praise or blame when uttered by a vulgar fool? A person who praises someone in his presence but criticizes him behind his back is no better that a dog.
Q: How should one debate with an unscrupulous person?
A: In a debate the tactics of a truthful person are limited, but a deceitful person can utilize any abominable method. However if the truthful person were to use the same tactics as his opponent, he will find himself at a greater disadvantage, for he is acting contrary to his nature. Therefore a truthful and honest person should always avoid an argument with an unscrupulous person.
Q: How should one behave towards a more powerful enemy?
A: Even though the swift current of the river can uproot and carry huge trees, the canes survive since they bend with the current. Similarly in order to survive an enemy more powerful, one must yield while staying firmly anchored to the roots.
Q: What should a weak person do if out of foolishness and pride he provokes a powerful enemy?
A: O King, the weaker person must repent and thus appease the stronger enemy.
Q: What is the origin of all sin?
A: Greed, the hankering to posses more than one’s naturally ordained quota is the origin of all sin. The desire to posses that which belongs to another is insatiable and gives rise to anger, lust, loss of judgment, arrogance, miserliness, lack of compassion, enviousness, mistrust and many other evils. Ignorance is made up of the same material as greed, though if analyzed it can be seen that ignorance also comes from greed. As one’s greed increases, his ignorance also becomes more dense.
Q: What produces the highest merit?
A: Self-restraint surpasses all other activities in this regard and is therefore considered to be the highest virtue. Because self-restraint purifies and controls every aspect of one’s life it is more important than giving in charity and the study of the Vedas. By self-restraint alone one can achieve liberation from the material world. Self-restraint comprises sense-control, freedom from anger, non-enviousness, impartiality, truthfulness, steadiness and contentment. However, the essential quality of self-restraint is austerity. Thus no good can be achieved without austerity.
Questions by Yudhisthira Maharaj
Answers by Grandsire Bhishma
A: If one does not become angry when insulted by another, then he takes away all the pious merit that person may have accumulated by good deeds. In addition he transfers to the abuser his own sinful reactions. After all what is the value of praise or blame when uttered by a vulgar fool? A person who praises someone in his presence but criticizes him behind his back is no better that a dog.
Q: How should one debate with an unscrupulous person?
A: In a debate the tactics of a truthful person are limited, but a deceitful person can utilize any abominable method. However if the truthful person were to use the same tactics as his opponent, he will find himself at a greater disadvantage, for he is acting contrary to his nature. Therefore a truthful and honest person should always avoid an argument with an unscrupulous person.
Q: How should one behave towards a more powerful enemy?
A: Even though the swift current of the river can uproot and carry huge trees, the canes survive since they bend with the current. Similarly in order to survive an enemy more powerful, one must yield while staying firmly anchored to the roots.
Q: What should a weak person do if out of foolishness and pride he provokes a powerful enemy?
A: O King, the weaker person must repent and thus appease the stronger enemy.
Q: What is the origin of all sin?
A: Greed, the hankering to posses more than one’s naturally ordained quota is the origin of all sin. The desire to posses that which belongs to another is insatiable and gives rise to anger, lust, loss of judgment, arrogance, miserliness, lack of compassion, enviousness, mistrust and many other evils. Ignorance is made up of the same material as greed, though if analyzed it can be seen that ignorance also comes from greed. As one’s greed increases, his ignorance also becomes more dense.
Q: What produces the highest merit?
A: Self-restraint surpasses all other activities in this regard and is therefore considered to be the highest virtue. Because self-restraint purifies and controls every aspect of one’s life it is more important than giving in charity and the study of the Vedas. By self-restraint alone one can achieve liberation from the material world. Self-restraint comprises sense-control, freedom from anger, non-enviousness, impartiality, truthfulness, steadiness and contentment. However, the essential quality of self-restraint is austerity. Thus no good can be achieved without austerity.
Questions by Yudhisthira Maharaj
Answers by Grandsire Bhishma
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
The First Expansion of God
Today is the auspicious day of Balaram Jayanti. One who is aspiring to become spiritual, has to take shelter of Lord Balaram. Who is Lord Balaram? From the little I know, He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself. It is said that the only difference between Lord Balaram and Lord Krishna is that Krishna has a bodily hue of a rain cloud and Balaram has a bodily hue of a spring cloud.
It is said there is only one Supreme Absolute Truth from whom everything emanates and dissolves. The first ever expansion of that Godhead is Lord Balaram. Balaramji sustains and maintains everything in facilitation towards Krishna. He appears before Krishna just to make sure everything is in place so Krishna can enjoy His pastimes. So Balaram is eternally in the mood of serving Krishna is so many varieties of ways. Balarama means one who gives us spiritual strength.
So what I am to do with this information? Because Lord Balaram is in the mood of servitude towards Krishna through different rasas and also a giver of spiritual strength, as an aspiring devotee of Krishna, we have to seek the mercy and shelter of Lord Balaram. Then accordingly He will purify us, give us strength and engage us in service to please Krishna.
The science of God according to Krishna consciousness is intricate and very personal. It is very much the opposite to the science of this world where everything is generalized and impersonal. It is also very much different from other world religions where God is characterized as a distant entity who either punishes or rewards us. There is no information beyond such an impersonal God.
By worshiping Lord Balaram, all our desires can be fulfilled provided we pledge our loyalty in the service of Krishna.
Hare Krishna
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