TEXAS FAITH: What words of religious faith should politicians really hear and heed?

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.

Dick Thornburgh, former Pennsylvania governor and U.S. attorney general, gave a speech last month entitled “The Role of Faith in Public Service.” In it, he said not only that his religious faith was important to him as a lawyer, governor and cabinet member under two presidents – but also that he tried to keep “a particularly instructive passage of scripture” in mind. It was Micah 6:8, a well-known passage for many Jews and Christians: “Do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with your God.”

In his speech, Thornburgh explained why he tried to keep that particular passage in mind.

As a prosecutor, Thornburgh said the idea of justice meant making a good-faith effort to combine the toughness necessary to govern with a compassion for people in need. Of kindness, he said: “This admonition encompasses the highest claim upon those of us in public life – that of assisting others.” As for walking humbly, that sometimes means admitting when you’re wrong.

Every faith and spiritual tradition has its verses, phrases, expressions, central ideas. The Bible, the Torah, the Quran, the Bhagavad Gita, Tripitaka, myriad religious texts and spiritual beliefs – each has what Thornburg calls a “particularly instructive passage” providing guidance for people in public life.

The Faith Panel took up the question —What single passage from your faith tradition would you recommend to elected officeholders and those who advise them? Their answers were varied, similar, extraordinarily diverse and amazingly consistent.

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

"Whatever action a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues." Bhagavad-gītā As It Is 3.21

People require leaders who can lead by their practical example. A leader who smokes cannot teach his followers not to smoke. Therefore honest persons do not take the position of leadership without first behaving above moral scrutiny. A leader must not only be an exemplary example but also their leadership should be guided by transcendental wisdom. If the leader does not have a complete understanding of the self he will not be create a peaceful situation. For only the self-realized are peaceful and satisfied.

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

Santa in the Bhagavad Gītā

"The devotees of the Supreme Lord, or the persons who are in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, are called santas, and they are always in love with the Lord as it is described in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.38): premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti. The santas, being always in a compact of love with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda (the giver of all pleasures), or Mukunda (the giver of liberation), or Kṛṣṇa (the all-attractive person), cannot accept anything without first offering it to the Supreme Person." -  Bhagavad Gītā purport 3.13

TEXAS FAITH 115: Where was God in the ordeal that young Lauren Kavanaugh faced?

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.

 

Lauren Kavanaugh

Over the last week, the Dallas Morning News has run a series on the story of 20-year old Lauren Kavanaugh. In “The Girl in the Closet”, you will read a devastating, demoralizing account of depravity. (To access these stories, go to the chapters portion on the toolbar.)

The report tells the story of how young Lauren was locked in a closet, deprived of food and sexually abused by her mother and stepfather over several years. It will tell you how she rose above that horror to later be sexually abused again in her teen-age years. Throughout the story, you will learn of the rise and fall and rise of this young girl. You also will hear many an expert say this was as bad a case of victimization as they have seen.

Here, then, is my question:

Where was God in the ordeal young Lauren faced?

Of course, this is an age-old question, but I would like to hear your views.

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

My sister died when she was just two years old when I was a young boy in middle school. She suffered terribly in the hospital for two years and then passed away. For that reason, I also had this same question.

It is like if you were to walk into a grocery store and the cashier twists your arm behind your back and pushed your face hard down onto the table, all under the purview of the manager. If the manager did nothing to stop this mistreatment, naturally you would see this as bad management, neglect, or cruelty. In this same way, Mother Nature can be seen as the cashier and God is her manager.

Omnipotent means that God not only has the power to stop mistreatment but rather everything happens by His own sanction. Omniscience means that God knows all that is happening. And finally omnibenevolence means that God is the most kind and loving. So how does one resolve this great contradiction?

Since God is the most intelligent, shouldn't there be an intelligent answer? If that person who was at the grocery store was there the day before and they were shoplifting, then it would not be seen as cruelty, mismanagement, or neglect of the cashier and manager, if he were to be accosted and  arrested. Similarly, the only answer that gives a logical framework to the suffering of children and the existence of an all loving God, is that everyone bears the burdens of past karmas of previous lives. Otherwise a solid case for neglect and cruelty could be made against the Supreme Lord.

Why karma, what is the benefit of karma? Karma is material actions of the past that come with their concomitant material reactions. When one acts fully in God consciousness there is no karma, no reactionary bondage to their actions. Karma reminds the soul that the material world is not its home.

The true saint feels compassion and pain towards all other's suffering. A saint will teach by example one how to become fully God-conscious and thus destroy the problem of suffering at its root.

 

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

Walking Dead Carrot - Prahladananda Swami

TEXAS FAITH 114: Did JFK have a greater impact on religion than any modern president?

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 nation and certainly the city of Dallas are coming upon the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s assassination. There are many parts of his presidency and death that our paper and others are starting to examine, from the legacy of his foreign policy to his imprint on civil rights to his use of television to communicate.

One area that hasn’t gotten much coverage is John F. Kennedy’s impact on religion in America. Often, we read about how Jimmy Carter and then Ronald Reagan awakened evangelicals and changed the face of religion in America, particularly in politics.

But did JFK have a greater effect than perhaps any modern president on religion in America?

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

Yes he did, but how so? He was a young, attractive man with an attractive wife and nice children. He had wealth, fame, power, and presidency. He had many people protecting him and his wellbeing. He worked hard to achieve all this but lost it all in just a second.

This predicament affected the lives of many and some that I know began to inquire if life had more to offer than just wealth, fame, power, family, and comforts. Will these temporary things truly fulfill the heart of an eternal being?

Some wise souls began to ask, "Should I be investing in the temporary, am I am actually eternal?" Likewise, they asked, "If the President could lose all that he had worked for throughout his life in a second then what about me?"

For these rare souls his untimely departure was more profound than the works of his life. -Nityananda Chandra Das

 

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

TEXAS FAITH 113: Are people of faith better off focusing their attention on education to schools that reflect their own tradition?Where should people of faith put their focus on education, especially in our big cities? How would you try to move the needle, as the expression goes?

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.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings convened a group at the George W. Bush Institute last Thursday to discuss the role faith-based schools play in American cities. The group drew upon representatives from various traditions, including Catholic, Islamic and evangelical educators.

Later, Rawlings said one of the first big words he learned in Sunday school as a kid was “omniscient.” He said he went on to learn “omnipresent,” which led him to think that if God was indeed everywhere, then he is in schools, too. Rawlings, who identifies himself as a Democrat and Protestant, summed up his feelings this way:

“Surely we can create a new way to educate, to fund the best and the brightest in this country,” Rawlings said. “For me, it starts with God being omnipresent in lives across this country.”

So, here’s what I would like to hear you all discuss:

Are people of faith better off focusing their attention on education to schools that reflect their own tradition?

Of course, I imagine most of you think that public schools are valuable. Many of us probably attended them.

But if you really want to make an education dent, especially getting students to discuss God and larger issues of moral consequence, couldn’t one argue that schools that represent the values of a particular faith tradition are the better place to start?

Certainly, Catholic schools have produced strong results. Speaking at the Bush Institute conference,Father Tim Scully of Notre Dame claimed that 99 percent of students in Catholic high schools graduate. Eighty-five percent of those graduates, he said, attend college. And Latino and African-American students who attend Catholic school are two-and-a-half times more likely to graduate from college.

What do you think?

Where should people of faith put their focus on education, especially in our big cities? How would you try to move the needle, as the expression goes?

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

Educational institutions are not simply meant to create industry and employment but rather education is primarily for the purpose of character development. The ancient Vedic aphorism states that the sign of an educated man is that:

1. He sees all women, except for his wife, as one would view their own mother.
2. He does not covet other people's property, no more than one would covet garbage in the street.
3. He sees the pains and gains of others as his very own and therefore is compassionate towards other's distress and happy for other's happiness.

This wisdom is naturally developed when one studies and practices the science of the soul. In America we have so many educational institutions, yet how many institutions discuss the nature of consciousness? How many institutions can clearly explain the difference between a dead body and a living body?

Everyone in this world wants to be happy, however to be happy one must know the self and how to please the self. Because of mis-identifying the temporary body as the self, people in general look at the opposite sex or same sex as objects of their enjoyment.
Other people's property is seen with envy. And the pains and gains of others are something to take advantage of and exploit. Therefore, if there is no higher knowledge of the self, the modern educational institutions often can increase materialism and unhappiness within society.

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

November 10th Maha Govardhana Puja Festival preparations II

part 1 here

TEXAS FAITH 112: What would Jesus Tweet?

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.

What would Jesus tweet? If Jesus were here today – or if Twitter had been an available app 2,000 years ago – would Jesus have used it as a communication tool to reach larger audiences? More broadly, would Jesus have used social media to spread his message? Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, the Vatican’s media-savvy minister of culture, has suggested that Jesus “used tweets before anyone else.” What he meant was that Jesus made statements that were brief, punchy and full of meaning as a way of spreading his particular message of faith.

Elementary phrases like ‘Love one another’ would have fit within Twitter’s 140-character convention with room to spare for a hashtag. After all, Pope Francis has more than 3 million followers on Twitter. And presumably only the most steadfast Luddite would say that people of faith shouldn’t use every tool necessary to advance the faith. And this is likely true regardless of faith tradition – Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, whatever the spiritual expression of our lives.

But back to the original idea. How would Jesus have used Twitter? What would he have said in 140 characters? The Texas Faith panel considers the question and offers some provocative ideas about technology, faith and the modern world. (What if the Sermon on the Mount had been live-streamed? The clearing of the temple posted on YouTube?)

How would Jesus have viewed social media? What would Jesus tweet?

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

Essential truth spoken concisely is true eloquence. - Vedic aphorism.

In spiritual life there is a principle called vairāgya, or renunciation. But this principle is often misunderstood. Many hold the idea that to give something up is renunciation. Such as, I give up my car, my guitar, my bank balance and so on. But this idea is seated in the notion that oneself is the owner of that item or activity that one is giving up. I give up my guitar because it is mine to give away. That is called phalgu vairāgya or false renunciation.

Yukta vairāgya, or practical renunciation, carries the idea that God is the owner and ultimate beneficiary of all things. Thus by using my guitar to sing the glories of God is the proper use of the guitar and my talent. Just as if one finds a wallet the right thing to is to return it back to the owner.

The wise devotee of the Lord learns how to use everything practically in the service of the Lord and at the same time is ever vigilant to maintain steady spiritual practice by avoiding those things that may impede it.

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

November 10th Govardhana Puja preparations

Every year my wife spends countless nights in preparation of the big day, Govardhana Puja.  Here are some photos & videos to enjoy!

 

and a few years earlier

Unboxing of 2nd set of Nava-Vraja-Mahimā by Śivarāma Swami

Krishna Tech: Kṛṣṇa VS Kåñëa–Balarama Font Macros Converter for Word

Kṛṣṇa’s holy name is transcendental.  Therefore it is not surprising that it remains transcendental, even when altered by the font conversion process.   When pasting on the web a text with Balarama font the name Kṛṣṇa becomes Kåñëa.   That is not too bad as one of Kṛṣṇa’s names is Kanhaiya.  However when words such as Śrīla become Çréla and other words are sometimes very hard to figure out, it becomes frustrating.  However there is a simple solution that will allow you to maintain all your files formatting.  Keeping all your Bolds, your   centered    text, italics, and everything in between.  It is Macros, by using macros one can changes the Balarama diacritic characters to the correct corresponding unicode characters that remain readable one the web and can be seen in most fonts.  This also means that searching become easier to use as well. 

The macros that I was able to put together can be found here.  https://pastee.org/qhp8a It also works on your footnotes as well. 

Notes:

If you have a file that has footnotes it will convert it and save it as is.  If it the files does not have footnotes it will say error and you can choose end or debug.   Press end and save or save as and you are done. 
Do not use files that have fonts that are similar to the diacritics in Balarama but have different corresponding letters to the diacritics letters.  I think Tamal is ok, It seems like the all corresponding letters that are converted are the same as the Balarama font

Kirtan at the Darshan Room

Kirtan & Class with Giridhari Swami, Giriraj Swami, & Gunagrahi Das Goswami

TEXAS FAITH 111: Pope Francis criticizes narrow focus on abortion, gay rights and conception

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.

Pope Francis offered some provocative thoughts last week. Speaking about the hot-button issues of abortion, gay rights and conception, he told a Jesuit interviewer: “It is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time.”

He went on in the interview to say that his church had grown obsessed with those topics.

I have to admit, the church universal seems way too caught up in debates over abortion, gay marriage and conception. So, I happen to agree with his view.

But what do you think? Are people of faith becoming too occupied with gay rights, abortion and conception?

And what do you make of this statement that also came from the Pope:

“The dogmatic and moral teachings of the church are not all equivalent.”

Applying that line to your own religious tradition, how are believers supposed to know which teachings are more important than others?

In my tradition, the Presbyterian Church USA, we have creeds, but we don’t necessarily have a Presbyterian’s guide to the top 10 beliefs, or some such list of priorities.

This could get arbitrary, couldn’t it?

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

All teachings start with a foundation. Without a clear foundation it is impossible to get a translucent picture as to how should one operate in this material world. Otherwise one may have various principles, many of which that have value, but such value will difficult to impart without a clear, logical, and philosophical premise.

The basic idea in the Bhagavad Gita is that the soul is different from the body. That is something that everyone witnesses, whether they know it or not. That body changes but the witness within that body remains the same.

So with this understanding one can evaluate various issues. One can see how the particular issue relates to the soul and that soul’s relationship with God.

If the soul is different from the body and if the soul can be understood to be present by the symptoms of life, then it is easy to understand that there is a soul in body of every human, every fetus, and every animal. To say that there is a soul in the fetus but Fido the dog does not have a soul is illogical.

People of this world will not continue to be satisfied with rules and regulations based illogical and foundationless principles. That is why so many have rejected religion altogether. Therefore anyone who is interested in the All Intelligent Supreme Person, Krishna or God, must seek a logical foundation upon which the proper rules and regulations can rest

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

Citra Kavitvani - Amazing Sanskrit poetry from Rupa Goswami's Stava Mala–Video

Only a powerful genius could compose such an amazing work.  Verses composed of only 2 or even 1 consonant and verses that create almost impossible pictures. 

Expounded upon by Baladeva Vidyabhusana in his last commentary.  This great video has been put together by the Matsya Avatara Prabhu and his students from ISKCON’s Govardhan Sanskrit school, Śrīmad-Bhāgavata Vidyāpīṭham.
Here are some related links
Books by Rupa Goswami - http://j.mp/17oRChW
HH Sivarama Swami - http://www.sivaramaswami.com/en/2008/12/07/citra-kavitvani/
Powerpoint - http://j.mp/15HwkxA

TEXAS FAITH 110: Has college football become too violent for the faithful?

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.

Let’s take a break from the weariness of finding the right strategy for the Mideast and deal with sports. Namely, football.

I confess that I have — again — grown to love college football. I enjoy going to TCU games with my 10-year old son, who loves to run the field before the game and root loudly for the Horned Frogs. In fact, it is hard getting him out of a TCU T-shirt these days.

I enjoy the game because it is fast, exciting and strategic. It also is just fun watching the bands and streamers and frivolity. And, being a fan, I like to see my team(s) do well. (As a graduate of the University of Texas who grew up attending TCU games, I spread my cheering around each weekend!)

But as I watch these games, and see players carted off the field, I often inwardly wince. Am I participating in some kind of modern lions-and-Christians blood-lust? And I am doing this at someone else’s expense? The NFL just settled with retired football players to the tune of $750 million over the concussions some of them received. For some players, they have been life-altering concussions.

Related to all this, I felt sick when I picked up our paper and read that CBS Sports was putting a “Johnny Cam” to cover every move of A&M’s Johnny Manziel in his game against Alabama. The guy is a showboat, but he is still only a kid.

So, are we reaching the point where rooting for college football teams is too much? In this Christianity Today essay, Owen Strachan raises the penetrating question: Should Christian fans step away from such a physically devastating, violent sport?

I would broaden his question to ask this question:

Should people of faith who love college football step away from such a physically devastating, violent sport?

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

As time progresses we invent more and more ways to waste time. Spiritual life is not meant to be belief on the backburner but rather something that actually satisfies. A satisfied soul is not interested in wasting time in material activities.

Why is time important?

Because that which you hold dear to your heart will decided where you go after death. If you are invested in the temporary, you will take birth again in this temporary world. So one should use this valuable form of human life to seek and experience the eternal by developing a loving relationship with God. Hare Krishna.

of life: People misidentify the self/soul with this temporary ever changing material body, this is called ignorance.

To see all responses of the TEXAS Faith panel click here.

Kirtan & Bhakti training at Namah Shivaya Yoga in Dallas

Tej Monga, owner of Namah Shivaya Yoga, invited us to share an experience of the ways of Bhakti Yoga at his teacher training seminar.  Lessons included a talk on the 3 levels of God realization, namely Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan.  The history of kirtan, and then integrated with kirtan participation.  My daughter Visakha came to the event and became the headline attraction.  She first demonstrated yoga poses and also Bharatnatyam classical dance to beautiful bhajans sang by Kalindi Patel back up by her husband Kapil sweetly playing mrdanga with Bhaktin Reivin dancing along.  But the real fun is when  Visakha got the whole group to get up and chant and dance to the Hare Krishna Mantra.   Watch the video below to see the fun.

Chantix VS Chanting–to quit smoking

Before taking to chanting the Hare Krishna mantra daily my wife used to smoke 2 packs of cigarettes every day.  But with the help of this mantra she quickly and easily gave up smoking.

Chantix

The prescription drug Varenicline (Chantix) helps you quit smoking.  It has a standard pharmaceutical list of side effects and warnings.  Here is a few of them.

Allergic reaction.  Anxiety, confusion, depression, restlessness, or mood changes.  Blistering, peeling, or red skin rash.  Chest pain. Fast, pounding, or uneven heartbeat. Lumps on your neck, armpit, or groin.  Numbness.  Red or black stools. 

 

Seeing or hearing things that are not really there. Seizures.  Thoughts of hurting yourself or others.  It may also cause some people to have suicidal thoughts and tendencies or to become more depressed.

So far it has only been linked to 98 suicides, no big deal.   Also it has been linked to murder/suicide cases as well.

vs

 

Chanting Hare Krishna

Chanting the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, is the most effective prescription to give up smoking.  It is proven to work and literally hundreds of thousands of patients have easily given up smoking with this medicine.  Many of whom did it cold turkey.  Here is a list of a few of the side effects and qualities.

• Chanting Hare Krishna awakens love of God.

• Chanting Hare Krishna brings liberation as a side benefit along the way.

• When you chant Hare Krishna, you automatically develop knowledge and detachment.

• Chanting Hare Krishna gets you out of the endless cycle of birth and death.

• It is the most effective means of self-realization in the present Age of Quarrel. Nothing else works nearly as well.

• Chanting Hare Krishna cleanses the heart of all illusions and misunderstandings.

• By chanting Hare Krishna, you become free from all anxieties.

• Chanting Hare Krishna brings you to self-realization—and shows you how to act as a self-realized soul.

• It keeps you ever mindful of Krishna, the reservoir of pleasure.

• There are no hard and fast rules for chanting. You can chant anywhere, any time, under any circumstances.

• Krishna Himself is fully present in the transcendental sound of His name. And the more you chant, the more you realize it.

• All other Vedic mantras are included in the chanting of Hare Krishna. So just by chanting this mantra, you get the benefit of all others.

• Chanting Hare Krishna purifies not only you but every living entity around you. Whoever hears the chanting gets spiritual benefit.

• A person who chants Hare Krishna develops all good qualities.

• You can chant Hare Krishna softly for personal meditation or loudly with your family or friends. Both ways work.

• Srila Prabhupada chanted Hare Krishna, and so did great souls in the past. So why not you?

• It’s free. Chanting Hare Krishna never costs you money.

• Chanting Hare Krishna brings the highest states of ecstasy.

• There are no previous qualifications needed for chanting Hare Krishna. Young or old, anyone can chant—from any race, any religion, or any country of the world.

• Even if you don’t understand the language of the mantra, it works anyway.

• Chanting Hare Krishna brings relief from all miseries.

• Chanting Hare Krishna is easy. When the best way is also the easiest, why make life hard for yourself?

• Chanting Hare Krishna invokes spiritual peace—for you and for those around you.

• When you chant Hare Krishna, Krishna Himself becomes pleased.

• When you chant Hare Krishna, Krishna dances on your tongue.

• By chanting Hare Krishna you can return to Krishna’s world, the eternal abode of full happiness and knowledge.

• Chanting Hare Krishna frees you from the reactions of all past karma. Chanting Krishna’s name even once, purely and sincerely, can free you from the reactions of more karma than you could possibly incur.

• Chanting Hare Krishna counteracts the sinful atmosphere of Kali-yuga, the present Age of Hypocrisy and Quarrel.

• By chanting Hare Krishna you can relish at every step the full nectar that’s the real thirst of the soul.

• The more you chant Hare Krishna, the better it gets.

• If you look through all the Vedic scriptures, you’ll find nothing higher than the chanting of Hare Krishna. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

However chanting Hare Krishna is not without warning.  Do not chant this mantra if you would like to keep attachments to pride, lust, anger, and greed.  It will destroy these attachments. 

New ebook about Lord Balarāma!

http://issuu.com/tvpbooks/docs/balaram_booklet New ebook all about Lord Balarāma!!  I edited the PDF so that it would include a table of contents and a clickable table of contents page, here https://www.dropbox.com/s/t5picfncyc8xjj1/Balaram_booklet_F_web.pdf

I will only acknowledge a Master's Degree from my favorite college

“It doesn't matter, either Hindu religion or Christian religion or Mohammedan religion, anything you like. But we have to test. Just like a student who has passed M.A. examination. Nobody inquires, "From which college you have passed your examination? You have passed M.A. examination? That's all right." And we are concerned, whether you are graduate, postgraduate. That's all. Nobody inquires, "From which college, from which country, from which religion, you have passed your M.A. examination?" No. Similarly, nobody should inquire, "To which religion you belong?" One must see whether he has learned this art, how to love God. That's all. That is religion”

Excerpt From: His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

"Satisfying The Senses"

73/08/15 London, Bhagavad-gita 2.9

download 

Prabhupada, are you a servant of the gopis? How do I serve the servants of the gopis?

Devotee: I read somewhere in your writings that in order to understand the confidential affairs of Radha and Krsna one must serve the gopis who are servants of the gopis, and I assumed that you were a servant of the gopis. Is that correct? Or... How do I serve the servants of the gopis?

Prabhupada: Gopis, they are not conditioned souls. They are liberated spirits. So first of all you have to come out from this conditioned life. Then the question of serving gopi will come. Don't be at the present moment, very eager to serve gopi. Just try to get out of your conditional life. Then time will come when you'll be able to serve gopi. In this conditional stage we cannot serve anything. Krsna is performing it (everything?). But Krsna gives us opportunities to accept service in this arca-marga. Just like we keep the Deity of Krsna, offer prasada under regulation, under principle. So we have to make advance in this way, this chanting, hearing, and worshiping in the temple, arati, offering prasada. In this way, as we make advance, then automatically Krsna will reveal to you and you'll understand your position, how you have to... Gopis means who are always, constantly engaged in the service of the Lord. So that eternal relationship will be revealed. So we have to wait for that. Immediately we cannot imitate serving gopis. That's a good idea that you shall serve gopi, but it will take time. Not immediately. Immediately we have to follow the rules and regulations and routine work. Yes.

"Revive Our Relationship with Krishna"

68/11/27 Los Angeles, Bhagavad-gita 2.8-12

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Prayers to Lord Balarama

Text 28

Then, in Vraja, after five days, in the month of Bhādra (August-September), on the sixth day of the bright fortnight, when Mercury, five exalted planets, and the constellation Libra were on the horizon, at midday, as the demigods showered a beautiful rain of flowers and the clouds sprinkled drops of water, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, illuminating Nanda’s home with His splendor, was born from Vasudeva’s wife (Rohiṇī).

Text 29

Nanda performed the child’s birth ceremony and gave in charity a million cows to the brāhmaṇas. Then he called the gopas and observed a very auspicious festival with the music of many singers and instrumentalists.

Text 30

Coming there with Devala, Devarāta, Vaśiṣṭha, Bṛhaspati, and myself (Nārada), Vyāsadeva was pleased when Nanda washed his feet and worshiped Him in many ways.

Text 31

Śrī Nanda said: Who is this handsome boy, whose equal cannot be seen anywhere? How is it He was born after only five days (in the womb)? O great sage, please tell me.

Text 32

Śrī Vyāsa said: Nanda, you are very fortunate. This child is eternal Ananta Śeṣa. In Mathurā City He was conceived by Vasudeva in Devakī.

Text 33

By Lord Kṛṣṇa’s wish He was brought to beautiful Devakī. O King Nanda, you may see Him even though the great yogīs cannot.

Text 34

I, Vedavyāsa, have come here to see Him. Therefore, please show Him, the Supreme Person who is greater than the greatest and who now displays the form of an infant, to us.

Text 35

Śrī Nārada said: Then Nanda showed them the child Aannta Śeṣa. Gazing at the child in the cradle, Vyāsa, struck with wonder, bowed down, and spoke.

Text 36

Śrī Vyāsa said: O master of the demigods, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, O Lord who grants desires, obeisances to You! Obeisances to You, who are Lord Aananta Śeṣa! Obeisances to You, who are directly Lord Rāma!

Text 37

Eternal obeisances to You, Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa, the maintainer of the earth, perfect and complete, effulgent and glorious, holding a plow in Your hand, and having a thousand heads!

Text 38

You are Baladeva, Revatī’s husband and the infallible Supreme Personality of Godhead’s elder brother. You are armed with a plow. You are Pralambāsura’s killer. O Supreme Person, please save me!

Text 39

Obeisances! Obeisances to You, who are known as Bala and Balabhadra, and who carry a palm-tree flag! Obeisances to You, Rohiṇī’s fair-complexioned son dressed in blue garments!

Text 40

You are the enemy of Dhenuka, Muṣtika, Kūṭa, Rukmī, Kūpakarṇa, and Kumbhaṇḍa. You put an end to Balvala.

Text 41

You divided the Yamunā and dragged Hastināpura. You are the enemy of Dvivida. You are the king of the Yādavas and the decoration of the circle of Vraja.

Text 42

You are the killer of Kaṁsa’s brothers, a pilgrim who goes to holy places, the Supreme Master, and the teacher of Duryodhana. O Lord, please protect, please protect the world!

Text 43

O infallble Lord, O greater than the greatest, O Lord Ananta, O Lord whose fame is everywhere, glory, glory to You! Obeisances to You, who hold a plow and a club and are the master of the demigods, great sages, and regal serpents!

Text 44

A person who regularly reads or recites these prayers attains Lord Hari’s supreme abode. Even in this world he attains all strength. He crushes his enemies. For him are victory, wealth, and followers.

Text 45

Śrī Nārada said: After circumambulating Lord Balarāma and bowing down before Him a hundred times in the company of (the other sages), intelligent Vyāsa Muni, who was the son of Parāśara and Satyavatī, went to the Sarasvatī river.

- Garga Saṁhitā 1.10.28-45