Texas Faith 18: Are Texans immoral for supporting the death penalty?

Dallas Morning News,

Each week we will post a question to a panel of about two dozen clergy, laity and theologians, all of whom are based in Texas or are from Texas. They will chime in with their responses to the question of the week. And you, readers, will be able to respond to their answers through the comment box.

The storm over the Cameron Todd Willingham case has focused public
attention on the death penalty and stirred debate in the Texas governor's
race. Willingham was executed in 2004 for setting a fire that killed his
three children. He maintained until his death that he was innocent, and
evidence in the case presents a mixed picture. Several independent experts
have challenged whether it was arson. The governor and the prosecutor are
confident he was guilty.

In Texas, more than 400 people have been executed since capital punishment
was reinstated by the Supreme Court in 1976. Ours is the busiest death
chamber in the nation - and Texans overwhelmingly back the death penalty.
Polls indicate that nearly three-quarters of Texans support capital
punishment.

What is the moral dimension? Supporters say the question is not whether
the state is justified in taking a life, but when - for example, in
self-defense or in order to save someone else's life. There is the
argument of deterrence. And justice - "an eye for an eye."

Opponents make two arguments: 1) the death penalty is immoral and 2) the
death penalty is flawed because an innocent person could be put to death.

So here's the question: Is it moral to support capital punishment? Or are Texans immoral because they support the death penalty?

The responses from our Texas Faith panelists are varied, provocative and well worth reading amid this political and faith-based debate:


NITYANANDA CHANDRA DAS, minister of ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness), Dallas

Everything has its proper utility, and a man who is situated in complete knowledge of the self knows how and where to apply a thing for its proper utility. Similarly, violence also has its utility, and how to apply violence rests with the person in full knowledge of the eternality of the self. Although the justice of the peace awards capital punishment to a person condemned for murder, the justice of the peace cannot be blamed, because he orders violence to another person according to the codes of justice. In the Vedic scriptures it is supported that a murderer should be condemned to death so that in his next life he will not have to suffer for the great sin he has committed. Therefore, the government's punishment of hanging a murderer is actually beneficial. Such a sinful person who has murdered is better suffering in this life rather than greater sufferings in his next lives. A surgical operation is not meant to kill the patient, but to cure him.

Capital punishment also stands as a powerful deterrent for future criminals. Politicians, afraid of being implicated in their own laws, often shy away from a strong stance.
Hare Krishna :)
Your humble servant,
Nityananda Chandra Das
To see all the responses from the Texas Faith Panel click here

Halloween Block Party Maha Harinam Kirtan 2009

(led by Caitanya Chandra Das, and HH Giriraja Swami)

(led by Nityananda Chandra Das)

About 100,000 people every year attend this event in Oak Lawn, the gay & lesbian district of Dallas Texas.   Each year thousands upon thousands of Martians, animals, zombies, presidents, popes, cartoon characters, seasons, babies, and so on joined in singing and dancing in the kirtan.  


His Holiness Giriraj Swami, who drove in from Houston to attend this event, remarked in the Sunday feast class that everyone is getting Krishna mercy through the Holy Names.  That the souls of the ancient Romans, and Vikings and so many other types of beings are out there now in so many new bodies.   They are now appreciating the holy name. 

His Grace Mishra Bhagavan said,  "I heard in a class that Srila Prabhupada gave in New York 1976 that once someone dances in the harinam sankirtan Krishna takes note of it and makes sure that person soon goes back home, back to Godhead."


I had to leave at midnight but the rest of the devotees stayed to 2:30 am.  Haridas took the kirtan to another level after we had left.  He gave out several dance orders of "throw your hands in the air"  "squat of the ground," "Now jump up high" and several others that the crowd obediently followed. At this time the crowd dancing with the devotees was in the hundreds.  The police at that time asked the devotees to stop, telling them that the festival is supposed to end at 2am and that if the devotees did not stop their kirtan no one would leave.  


One of the dancers, Frankie Hart, took the following photos.

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

Originally uploaded by frankie hart

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

, originally uploaded by frankie hart.

Your humble servant,
Nityananda Chandra Das

Here is a video that an onlooker caught on camera last year.

How to build the King of the Hill, Giriraja Govardhana out of cake.

Every is big in Texas, each year we have an 8ft carob cake for Govardhana Puja / Diwali Festival.  But it seems that the hill gets  bigger every year.  

We are little spoiled here in Dallas.  Years before devotees noticed that if the hill was made out of carob cake rather than the usual halava it was more likely to get devoured faster.   Not in the mood wasting the Lord precious food, carob cake is the steady staple.


So how to build a massive hill out of cake?  
Well unless you have 5,000+ people you will need some filler. First we start off with an 8 ft by 4ft board covered  in tinfoil.
   Then  we take sheets of Styrofoam boards and cut away at them to make it look sort of like an Aztec pyramid.  Cover the whole thing with tinfoil.  
Bake about 30 trays of soft carob cake and make about a gallon of frosting.  Followed by 2 gallons of halava to cover the ground level and touch ups.
   Cover the whole hill with cake cement all the building blocks (cakes) with frosting.  Then cover every thing with green colored coconut flakes as grass.  Then you can take baked crust to be the beds of lakes and fill them with blue sweet rice pudding.  Decorate the entire hill with all sorts of inedible animals, and edible vegetation.  Then underneath the hill you can make a Vrindavan village as seen in the video blow.

Here is the finish product. We ended up with about 900+ guests and about 30 students from Mountain View College who came to View Govardhana Mountain. 

Hare Krishna
Your humble servant,
Nityananda Chandra das

Govardhana Puja

Govardhan Puja being just around the corner I thought that I might share some photos of previous years.
Every year with the help of all devotees my wife and I are able to set up a huge 8 foot Govardhana hill made entirely of carob cake..

Here are some photos from 2008, we also remodeled the temple before the festival and all the translucent photos were replaced with new vivid photos.









Bhaktin Angela and server other devotees meticulously hand painted these temples for the hill and topped them with gold plated chakras


Thanks to Rupa Madhurya Prabhu we have a copy of the finished hill. 





All these photos from Flickr can be clicked on to download a higher res photo.

2007

Teaching Krishna in High School

Every year during Karttik, the month of mercy, I get an opportunity to share some the wisdom and culture of Krishna Consciousness with many students.   "When it rains, It pours" does not only describe the weather in Dallas during this time of year, but is also a good description the large groups of students that come during this time of year.  Every year during this time,  without fail, hundreds upon hundreds of students visit the temple.  Some are from colleges, some are from high schools, some are from churches, and elementary students as well. 

Two weeks ago I taught a total of about 200 high school students of Rockwall High about Krishna Counsciousness.  Starting from first class at 8:30am to the last class ending at 4pm.  Then this week I taught 30 students from another public high school, Brewers High. 

[Here is a student proudly showing her copy of the Science of Self Realization that picked up from Bhaktin Angela at the Warped Tour back in July.  She was very happy to see the devotees.]


[CHECK OUT # 5!]



[Students getting books]

[Students visiting the temple from Brewers High School. ]

Hare Krishna
Your humble servant,
Nityananda Chandra Das

Texas Faith 17: Sex in the office

Dallas Morning News,

Each week we will post a question to a panel of about two dozen clergy, laity and theologians, all of whom are based in Texas or are from Texas. They will chime in with their responses to the question of the week. And you, readers, will be able to respond to their answers through the comment box.

David Letterman dramatically confessed on his "Late Show" program that he had been the target of an extortion attempt having to do with sexual affairs he had with office subordinates. The Letterman affair -- or, so to speak, affairs -- has caused a lot of talk about the ethics of office romances, especially between supervisors and subordinates.

We asked the Texas Faith panel this week:

If your friend confided that his boss's ongoing affair with a co-worker greatly troubles him, how would you advise him to handle the situation?

Read on to see how our panelists respond:


NITYANANDA CHANDRA DAS, minister of ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness), Dallas


I would first try to help person come to the spiritual platform of consciousness.

What must an adulterer do to continue adultery without causing suspicion? Generally such person will be more dutiful at home and at the job as to not cause any suspicion. So although they may behaving like a loving spouse, their mind is completely engrossed in thinking of another lover. This scenario is good analogy of a pure devotee of God. A pure devotee of God works in this world, perhaps more harder than the average Joe. However although he is working in the world his heart is always on God. So that would be my first endeavor, to help that person to come to the spiritual platform. On platform of Bhakti, a loving relationship with God, God protects the soul so that he/she may progress nicely.

Now on to the next issue. Would I suggest to my friend that he/she should inform the authorities? Depends on the details, but most likely I would lean on the side of informing on the principle of honesty.
Hare Krishna :)
Your humble servant,
Nityananda Chandra Das
To see all the responses from the Texas Faith Panel click here