When one becomes serious
To follow the mission of the Spiritual Master,
His resolution is tantamount to seeing
The Supreme Personality of Godhead.
SB 4/28/51 Prabhupada's purport
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His body and mind were completely attached to Vrindavanadhama. The divine Was of Radha-Vinoda played in his heart. His ears existed only to hear the Shrimad Bhagavatam. "Anyone who reads the Shrimad Bhagavatam," said Lokanatha Goswami, "he is my friend." (In the images: Shrila Lokanatha Goswami).
A personal associate of Lord Gauranga, fully absorbed in pure love, Shri Lokanatha Goswami was the eldest of the Goswamis living in Vraja-bhumi. He shunned name and fame so much that he asked Krishna Dasa Kaviraja to keep his name out of Chaitanya-charitamrta.
His body and mind were completely attached to Vrindavanadhama. The divine Was of Radha-Vinoda played in his heart. His ears existed only to hear the Shrimad Bhagavatam. "Anyone who reads the Shrimad Bhagavatam," said Lokanatha Goswami, "he is my friend."
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Once Shri Krishna Himself appeared and gave Lokanatha a Deity of Radha-Vinoda. Lokanatha Goswami carried his Deity all over Vraja in a cloth bag hung around his neck.
Alth
AUGUST 7
In this age,it is more important to create devotees then to construct temples.
Hawaii,7,1969
Srila Prabhupada
"Among all the living entities wandering throughout the universe, one who is most fortunate comes in contact with a representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and thus gets the opportunity to execute devotional service. Those who are sincerely seeking the favor of Kṛṣṇa come in contact with a guru, a bona fide representative of Kṛṣṇa. The Māyāvādīs indulging in mental speculation and the karmīs desiring the results of their actions cannot become gurus. A guru must be a direct representative of Kṛṣṇa who distributes the instructions of Kṛṣṇa without any change. Thus only the most fortunate persons come in contact with the guru." (Prabhupada purport SB 5.17.11)
***NARADA MUNI Visits Srila Prabhupada Regularly***
One night an extraordinary thing happened.
Prabhupada led the first kirtan and then
gave a lecture.
I sat on the floor just to his right with the
harmonium, and after the lecture, I began
leading the second Hare Krishna kirtan.
All of a sudden, Srila Prabhupada’s voice cut
through the auditorium with the potency of
Lord Nrisimha, right in the middle of my
chanting.
I had never heard Prabhupada do that, nor
had I heard the words he chanted.
‘Narada Muni bhajaya vina radhika ramana
namne,’ he sang. And then again he
repeated it.
I looked up, and he looked down at me,
signaling me to carry on.
So I continued chanting Hare Krishna, and
he continued singing his prayer to Narada
Muni into his microphone.
I closed my eyes and carried on, not
knowing what was happening. Then he
started leading with me.
We could all understand that something
inexplicable but amazing was happening.
Everyone was literally jumping off the
ground, leaping in the
Personality of Godhead - Part One
by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda
The difference between dharma and adharma lies in the admission or denial of the Personality of Godhead.*
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* A loose translation of the word dharma is ‘intrinsic religion,’ which refers to ‘right living’ in accordance with the absolute good of all living beings and especially the Supreme Being. The word adharma refers to the negation of the same.
There are different ways of denying the Personality of Godhead. We hope to examine that aspect of the issue elsewhere. Our present topic is the Personality of Godhead. We therefore assume that those who accept the existence of the Personality of Godhead do not necessarily agree with one another. It is our purpose to trace out the differences found among them.
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam has explained the function of dharma in a way that is difficult to misunderstand. The function of all unalloyed souls is defined in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as consisting of a
Shri Gopala Bhatta Goswami.
Shri Gopala Bhatta Goswami (the son of a Vyenkata Bhatta, a Shri Vaishnava brahmana) appeared in Shri Rangam, South India. Lord Chaitanya once stayed four months in his home, and converted the family to Gaudiya Vaishnavism. A mere boy at this time, Gopala personally served the Lord. Shri Chaitanya treated him affectionately giving His remnants and blessings to' become an acharya.
During His four month stay, Lord Chaitanya developed a close friendship with Vyenkata Bhatta, which Krishna Dasa Kaviraja describes as "sakhya rasa." Freely conversing with each other, they would often laugh and joke together. One day in a humorous mood Lord Chaitanya asked Vyenkata:
"Why does your worshipable goddess of fortune, Shri Lakshmidevi, abandon the happiness of Vaikuntha and her service to Her Lord Narayana? Why does she go to Vrindavana and perform severe austerities to attain the association of My Lord Gopala, the cowherd boy of Vraja?"
"I can't understand these
The appearance anniversary of Srila Vyasadeva, the compiler of the Vedic literature. This event really is directed towards Srila Vyasadeva, thus in some sampradayas they refer to Guru Purnima as Vyasa Purnima. Traditionally it is the day when the guru is worshipped. In the book Festivals, Fairs and Fasts of India (Shakti M Gupta. 1991. Clarion books. page 88-89.) It says: Guru Purnima "……is observed on the full moon day in the month of Ashadha in honour of the sage Vyasa, by keeping a fast, worshippig him for His blessings and to gain wisdom. Formerly on this day, gurus who were the traditional teachers, were honoured by their pupils. The river Beas is believed to have been so named as Vyasa practiced penance on its banks and compiled the four Vedas, the Mahabharat and the Eighteen Purana there. Since it is not possible for one man to have compiled so much in his life-time, and oer a tim span of a hundred years, it is believed that the name Vyasa must have been applied to many sages. Gene
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Shri Sanatana Goswami appeared in 1488, five years before Shri Rupa Goswami, in a Sarasvata brahmana family in Bengal. Sanatana and his two brothers, Rupa and Anupama, were always absorbed in bhava bhakti from early childhood. Remembering Vrindavana, they named the forests in which they played after Vraja's twelve forests (Talavana, Madhuvana, Kamyavana, Mahavana). (In the image: Shrila Rupa and Shrila Sanatana Goswamis).
Shri Sanatana Goswami appeared in 1488, five years before Shri Rupa Goswami, in a Sarasvata brahmana family in Bengal. Sanatana and his two brothers, Rupa and Anupama, were always absorbed in bhava bhakti from early childhood. Remembering Vrindavana, they named the forests in which they played after Vraja's twelve forests (Talavana, Madhuvana, Kamyavana, Mahavana). They called their favorite bathing ponds Radha-kunda and Shyama-kunda.
In his youth, Shri Sanatana dreamed that a beautiful brahmana boy gave him a Shrimad Bhagavatam. Feeling ecstatic he awoke. But se
Once upon a time, there lived many fishes in a pond. Everyday, they would wake up in the morning with a dread - the fisherman’s net! The fisherman would be there every morning, without fail to cast his net. And without fail every morning, many fishes would get caught in it. Some would be taken by surprise, some caught napping, some would not find any place to hide while some others, even though aware of the lurking danger, would simply find no means to escape the deadly net.
Among the fishes was one young fish that was always cheerful. It had no fear of the fisherman’s net and it seemed to have mastered the art of being alive and staying lively. All the senior fishes wondered as to what might be the secret of this little fish. How could it manage so well when their cumulative experience and wisdom were not enough to save them from the net.
Unable to bear their curiosity and desperate to find a way to escape the net, all the fishes went to this little fish one evening. “Hey little one! We
YOU ARE UNHAPPY; I AM ALSO UNHAPPY
HDG, SP; "So Māyāvādī wants to prove that the ultimate truth is nirākāra, or impersonal. So Kṛṣṇa gives you intelligence: “Yes, you put this forward. Put forward this logic, this logic, that logic.” Similarly, Kṛṣṇa gives… There is a Bengali proverb that how God works, that one man, a householder is praying to God, “My dear Lord, there may not be any theft case, burglary, in my home this night. Please save me.” So one man is praying prayer, praying like that. Another man is praying, the thief, “My dear Lord, this night I shall commit burglary in that house. Please help me to get something.” Now, what is Kṛṣṇa’s position? (laughter) Kṛṣṇa is everyone’s heart. So Kṛṣṇa has to satisfy so many prayers. The burglar and the thief and the householder, so many prayers. So Kṛṣṇa’s adjustment… But He’s still… That is Kṛṣṇa’s intelligence, how He adjusts. He gives everyone freedom. And everyone is given facilities, but still He’s in botheration. T
Hare Krishna!
One day Krishna & Arjuna were taking their usual walk, when they came across an old Brahmin begging, taking pity on his condition, Arjuna gave him a bag of gold coins.
The man was overjoyed. On his way to home, he was robbed by a thief in the forest. He cursed his fate and the next day set off to beg again.
Arjuna & Krishna saw him again & got to know his story. Arjuna once again took pity and gave him a large diamond.
The man took it home and kept it in an old pot which had been unused for many years inorder to keep it safe and went to sleep.
The next morning before he could wake up, his wife went to fetch water from the river & on her way back, she slipped and her pot broke. She immediately remembered the pot at home which lay unused and brought it to fill it with water. Just as she dipped the pot in to the river the diamond escaped the pot and went in to the river.
When she returned home the Brahmin was desperately searching the house for the pot & when he saw it in his wife
"I will never hesitate to do it. I will never hear from anyone but my guru. Those who are saying something different from this teaching coming through bona fide parampara, coming from Sriman Mahaprabhu - we will never listen to them. If somebody says something different, then like Bhimasena, with my fist, I will crush it. I will destroy it. I will defeat it. I am so proud. With just one speck of dust from the lotus feet of my guru, crores and crores of people of this world will be delivered. You should understand how powerful one little speck of dust of my guru's lotus feet is. There is no such a scholar as my guru. I will never accept anyone else as a scholar. There are no such teachings as those that my guru has imparted, to be found in any human being, or in any demigod, I know it very well. No one else can give such teachings. There is nothing in this world that is as heavy as a tiny speck of dust from the lotus feet of my guru, SRILA PRABHUPADA. This is the follower of true paramp
Deus Nexus said; A spiritual warrior is one who RESISTS any and all attempts at the corruption of their mind/soul matrix. A spiritual warrior does not follow the flow of the turbid stream of mediocrity, homogenization and annihilation. A spiritual warrior defends to the bitter end– individuality, humanity, innocence, truth, beauty and decency. This world is in dire need of more people who are willing to go to their grave for these principles.
So some way or other, if you be in touch with this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, then your life is successful;
Sāṅketyam. You keep your children’s name just like he kept, Nārāyaṇa. He actually became delivered because he kept his son’s name Nārāyaṇa. Sāṅketyaṁ pārihāsyam. Joking. Sometimes they joke: “Oh, these people are chanting ‘Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa,’ ” and they joke also, “Hare Kṛṣṇa!” sometimes seriously, sometimes joking. So joking, they are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa—that is taken to their credit, although he is joking; he is not serious. Sāṅketyaṁ pārihāsyaṁ stobham. Sometimes we make fun. To complete one sentence sometimes we, “Hari,” “Kṛṣṇa,” we add it. So that is also accepted. And then helanam eva vā. Helanam eva vā. Just like sometimes in the Western countries there is propaganda, as it was in Germany. Now they are going in Japan: “These Hare Kṛṣṇa people are very bad.” But he’s chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. While saying that “Hare Kṛṣṇa people are very bad,” but the “Hare Kṛṣṇa
THIS IS SAHAJIYA . THIS IS NOT MATURE DEVOTEE
The Gosvāmīs, they also, when they were in Vṛndāvana, they never said that “I have seen Kṛṣṇa.” Although they were the most perfect, they never said that “I have seen Kṛṣṇa.” Their prayers were like this: he rādhe! vraja-devīke! he nanda-suno! kutaḥ. He rādhe, Rādhārāṇī, he rādhe! vraja-devīke! ca. Rādhārāṇī does not remain alone. He (She) remains always with His (Her) friends, vraja-devī, Lalitā or Viśākha and other damsels of Vṛndāvana. So the Gosvāmīns are praying, in their mature stage, when they were living at Vṛndāvana, they were praying in this way, he rādhe! vraja-devīke! ca lalite! he nanda- suno! kutaḥ: “Where, Rādhārāṇī, where You are? Where are Your associates? Where You are, Nanda-suno, the son of Nanda Mahārāja, Kṛṣṇa? Where you are, all?” They were searching after. They never said, “I have seen Kṛṣṇa dancing with the gopīs. Last night I saw.” (laughter) This is sahajiyā. This is not mature devotee. This is call
The chariot festival in which Lord Krsna in the form of Lord Jagannatha rides with Lord Balarama and Subhadra Devi in Jagannatha Puri, India. - See more at: http://harekrishnacalendar.com/vaishnava-calendar/return-of-ratha-yatra-2015/#sthash.JLyqslLc.dpuf
Devotee (9): What I meant to say is he does not want to chant with women in the temple room. I have seen this before. He says, "I do not want to chant in a room with women. I would rather be away from the women."
Prabhupada: That means he has got distinction between men and women. He is not yet pandit. Panditah sama-darsinah. He is a fool. That's all. He is a fool. So what is the value of his words? He is a fool.
Indian man (4): So he'll go first to make...
Prabhupada: He should always consider, "There is woman, that's all. She is my mother." That's all. Matrvat para-daresu. Then what is the...? Suppose you sit down with your mother and chant. What is the wrong? But he is not so strong; then he should go to the forest. Why he should live in the Nairobi city? On the street there are so many women. He will walk on the street closing the eyes? (laughter) This is all rascaldom. They are rascals. They are not devotees, simply rascals.
Conversation - November 2, 1975, Nair
"Those favored by God find their paths set by thorns."
(Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura)
"Sometimes Krsna may put us into some difficulty just to purify us and force us to advance in Krsna consciousness. The devotee should always see his difficulty in this light, that Krsna is so kind upon me for creating this condition of struggling, thus He is relieving me of so many billions of lifetime of sinful reactions by this very insignificant and temporary condition of suffering something."
(Srila Prabhupada letter, Dec. 29, 1972)
"A devotee always accepts his distress as minimized by God’s mercy; although he would have to suffer many more times the suffering. Anyone who accepts this philosophy of God’s mercy in suffering conditions, and still makes progress in Krishna consciousness, it is said that he is sure to go back to home, Back to Godhead."
(Srila Prabhupada letter, February 13, 1968)
"A pure devotee of the Lord accepts tribulation as favours from the Lord. Sinc
From Bhagavad-gita lecture, 3.18-30, L.A., 12/68, Srila Prabhupada said:
"So a Kṛṣṇa conscious person should not be disturbed whether his preaching work is being accepted by the people or not. It doesn't matter. My Guru Mahārāja used to say that... If somebody said that "We went to preach in such and such place. Only there were three or four, attendance." So my Guru Mahārāja used to encourage them and it is factual—that "Why, two, three men were there was sufficient. If there were none, you could speak and the walls would hear you." You see. "Why you are disappointed?" So even the walls, they hear, then our kīrtana is sufficient. You don't mind. Because only fortunate persons... Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante [Bg. 7.19]. Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu [Bg. 7.3]. So to become God conscious, Kṛṣṇa conscious, is not very cheap thing. It requires a great amount of austerity, penance to come to this stage. So never be disappointed that because people are not responding. You see?
There are many
Since age 16 I've been representing.
Now I'm sixty of body years,
grown tough and curt
so many tough times,
so often hurt,
no time left for baloney,
though i love bhakti poetry.
I've fought against Maya a battle unrelenting.
Do i seem a bit shell-shocked and rude in my venting?
sorry but i really meant it.
This life, Krsna sent it
I just grabbed ahold and went with it
I did not create or invent this
I am simply one of the Magician's apprentices.
