Sankirtan Stories, Part 2 BY: MANIDHARA DAS (ACBSP)

[Tamohara dasa ADMIN.]

Sankirtan Stories, Part 2

BY: MANIDHARA DAS (ACBSP)

Oct 22, 2012 — COPENHAGEN, DENMARK (SUN) —

THE RAINY DAY

I still remember that small town in the middle of Germany where we parked our car. The town was indeed very small and on top of that we had already days and days of rain pouring down on our water soaked books and bodies.

Getting sick, I chanted in the hotel my rounds in a dizzy type of condition, trying to get my feverish mind under control. Finally arriving in the middle of the town I watched the devotees getting out of the car, with great roar and determination once again ready to push Srila Prabhupada's books into the laps of the stubborn and obstinate (German :-) conditioned souls. I decided to stay back for little while, hoping that the fever will somewhat be reduced during the day. But after a few minutes sitting in an empty cold van, I could see the first karmis passing by the condensated water covered windows of the car I was imprisoned in. The sight became untolerable.

I decided to get some books into my sankirtan bag and "try it out at least for few minutes". Maybe it was possible to overcome my mind, which indicated to me that I am indeed a sick man.

I got out of the van and felt truly weak. A women passed by and I just turned around, not taking even one step and whispered: "Hello". She stopped instantly. Caught by surprise by such instant response following such a little action, I kept on whispering my distribution mantra, not believing that she can hear me at all. She looked seriously at me and then at the book ,took out her money bag and bought it. I thought, "Well at least one book I sold today."

Then I took few steps, turning to a man passing by. He stopped also instantly, but not being able to hear me, came very close. I simply whispered again my mantra, thinking how wonderful Srila Prabhupada is that He allows me to be here. My voice choked at the memory of Srila Prabhupada's gratitude towards His disciples He so wonderfully demonstrated in one of His Vyasa-puja lectures. I lost the contact to the man standing in front of me, but somehow he didn't lose contact to me. He asked me how much the book did cost and....bought it.

Next person passed me by, but stopped and came back. Almost like in a silent slow motion movie, I passed over the book and like in some sort of dream returned to the car to fill up my bag again. Whole day passed by and I started to cry, not believing that I could still walk and whisper. It was getting dark and so I returned to the car where already the rest of the sankirtan party was sitting ,counting the laksmi and exchanging their ecstatic sankirtan stories.

Seeing me, soaken wet from the rain, dragging my feet along, practically popping into the car with only one ability left, to start it, the bhaktas compassionately looked upon me and asked: "How many books did you do?" I whispered again:"I don't know I have to count them".

This was the first day in my life I did 108 books in one day. This was at that time the ISKCON record. And it was the day I felt most weak, most desperate and most dependant on Srila Prabhupada's mercy.

Next day I woke up, more refreshed, felt much better, chanted my rounds in much more concentrated spirit and full of passionate enthusiasm jumped on the street with another load of Srila Prabhupada's books. I laughed at the first approaching man and pushed the book into his hand. He looked angrily at me and said loudly:"Get lost!" .....I struggled the whole day.

MORAL

Krsna's mercy cannot be attracted by our pathetic heroism, youthful passion or heavy duty sadhana. It's our pride Krsna sees and He is not impressed. After all, He is the Supreme Person and can clearly see what our true motivation is. To impress the world with our heroic deeds puts us in comparison with Krsna's gigantic display of His energies, and into the category of fools and comedians.

[Tamohara dasa ADMIN.]

Manidhara das and his Forgotten Godbrothers from the Sankirtan Van

BY: GAURAKISHOR DAS

Oct 23, 2012 — BERLIN, GERMANY (SUN) — Manidhara das is without a doubt Europe's greatest book distributor of Srila Prabhupada's original books, and also someone who could manage to always take his Sunday feast in the room of the GBC. A rare soul as explained in Bhagavad-gita: sa mahatma su-durlabhah [Bg. 7.19] - and out of millions of jnani, one becomes mukta. And out of millions of mukta, one becomes bhakta. This is the description given by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Srila Prabhupada often mentioned how he is pleased with the book distribution activities of his disciples in that region ("...And now they are excelling in book distribution. Just see this financial report. There is no scarcity of money"), which rises the question: what actually happened with all of Manidhara das's lost godbrothers? Where have they gone?

Because they have read Prabhupada's books there were times when temples were bursting with newly joined devotees and ISKCON gurus all day busy counting all those new devotees.

What happened during those times, senior devotees, hundreds of Prabhupada disciples were marginalized and pushed over board in the name of welcoming, giving way to all those newly joined bhaktas.

The range of Krishna conscious services is simple to learn, and quickly all those senior Prabhupada disciples found themselves removed from their services -- temple presidents, cooks, pujaris, Sankirtan leaders -- exchanged with 16, 17, 18-year old new bhaktas.

Is there survival of the fittest, delayed gratification also among Vaishnavas who are supposed to be an ocean of mercy? Are Vaishnavas not always concerned to help others, para dukha dhuki, unhappy to see others suffer? Are Vaishnavas callous about what happened to so many driven out devotees?

Of course, all those hundreds of Prabhupada disciples who were tossed overboard in the name of clearing the way for new devotees, they accepted to sit out that "special treatment" by ISKCON's elite: "Don't worry, Prabhupada's movement is expanding, that's the only thing that counts, prabhu! Was nice though, having been evolved through Manidhara prabhu's Sankirtan van."

However, since at Europe's crisis-shaken ISKCON all those previous zonal empires collapsed, or were collapsed by superior arrangement, one would expect that there is now some kind of return -- "maybe we made some mistake....?" Instead we find the opposite. Those very same individuals who supported all this rigorous "temple recycling" with utmost force, now engaged in self-praise as long-serving heroes.

Not that we expect some confession or apology. That train has left -- after so many years this would be no more authentic. It is rather just for reminding that there is another side of the coin, things that nowadays are jubilantly brushed under the carpet.

Oh, did I forget to mention, all over Europe, 99% of the ex-disciples of fallen gurus joined the Gaudiya Matha? Just for clarification, not because what you heard, "They dislike Prabhupada, blooped because they were neophyte"… no, never, wrong account! It is because they no more felt welcome by unscrupulous ambitious ISKCON leaders who are simply after all those buildings, properties, farms, castles and villas collected by former generations of hard working devotees and meanwhile worth hundreds of millions. Same as what Srila Prabhupada also experienced: "..that was the only endeavor, how legally he (Tirtha Maharaja) could occupy the bricks and stones of Gaudiya Math." (January 13, 1977, Allahabad)

Something that Prabhupada warned us about. Letter to GBC:

"All my disciples they are good boys, intelligent, and hard working. I pray to Krishna that you (GBC) all may use your intelligence for Krishna's service and not for any personal ambition. We have worked very hard and established a great institution, but if we (GBC) think for our personal benefit then it will become ruined. This is my only concern."

(Letter to HH Cyavana Swami, 1 November, 1974)

Thank you for being with us!