Congregational preaching

9 years, 10 months ago by bhaktakenny in Sankirtana / Temple Activity Reports

Dear Swamiji, AGTSP, PAMHO.

My visit to Manila in March has left me with a taste for preaching and now Krishna is fulfilling that desire. The Sunday feast crowd will be divide into 2 groups. I will give class to the younger and newer devotees. I am thinking of starting with Sri Isopanisàd, then move on to NOI and Light of the Bhagavata? I want to bring them to rhe point where they can take the ISKCON Disciple Course.

Because soon the IDC will be a requirement for initiation. Whether or not I go to open new temples I want to become more involved in training and education of devotees.

HpS - Jaya!!!!!  AGTSP.   Prabhupada Lilamrta is available also? That is very nice book also for new people. Lilamrt and NOI the same time maybe. Isopanisad is very technical. I think Prabhupada only did it so that we would have SOMETHING that is Sruti, directly from the Vedas, for big, big, proud scholars.

bhaktina isabelle_sadhanna report

9 years, 10 months ago by Isabelle in Personal Sadhana Reports

Hare Krishna Gurudeva!<img alt="smiley" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png" title="smiley" width="23" />

Please, accept my humble obeisances

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

I hope this letter finds you well. We don't have internet at home, I miss read your blog more often <img alt="sad" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/sad_smile.png" title="sad" width="23" />. We are excited about your next visit and everything  that  being organized. I want to thank you for all the blessings that we are receiving, there is a lot of service to do and daily I ask Srila Prabhupada for enough intelligence to balance the service and  home duties in the best way possible. We are almost for two months in Chosica. The atmosphere here is very peaceful and friendly, living near Radha Madhana Bihari and the devotees is so good that it seems otherworldly.

Seva, study and realizations: Many good things have happened ,Gurudeva. I'm taking the worship course with Gaura Gadadhara mataji, she is very good and inspires us a lot, she is teaching us about brahminical culture, which I like more and more. In addition, recently I finished the Guru-disciple course with Param Padam Prabhu and it has been very good, with many very interesting topics.  I learned more about the position of Srila Prabhupada as maximum siksa guru of ISKCON and I have also learned more about the responsibility that involves receiving initiation, I feel more aware of the line of disciplic succession, so I feel an immense gratitude for all the previous acaryas, Srila Prabhupada and you. Receive initiation and all that involve,  is really the maximum mercy that Krishna can give us through His pure devotee,  it's also a great responsibility and I really do not find big words to show you my eternal gratitude for giving protection to this flea, who is trying to serve you. I know I'm not qualified, but  by the causeless mercy of Krishna, I have a lot of enthusiasm for it. All educational projects that develop inspire me greatly, to the point that I want to pursue a career in the university  that allows me to serve you properly with what is going on here in Perú, Gurudeva. The school project inspires me a lot, Prabhu Gandharva is also excited.

On the prospect of being parents, we have discussed and we conclude that this responsibility would involve a lot of energy, time and laksmi, issues currently not spare us but is ok for two of us. I have 30 and he is 47,  thought we could invest that energy in educational projects. We are not going to have children and this idea is giving us much more determination for our service. Prabhu Gandharva agree and give me all his support so that I suddenly can start a career and simultaneously start the Bhakti Sastri, but first I need to know what you think about this?, I would like to have your guidance and blessings before I start go on with this initiatives.

HpS - ASA -- AGTSP!     paoho.    Looking at your situation through electric cables, three thousand miles away, I would advise that you wait for the Bhakti-sastri until you get first initiation. O.K?  You can do other reading and studying, KRSNA book with other devotees, Caitanya-caritamrta.  Informal.

Career?? It is mostly the teachers that you will have and not the subject, no?  Find good teachers, but some careers we see that might be good would be journalism, history, law, education, communication, publication, social work, psychology. Even try a wide range to start. Hotel/Restaurant - Tourism.

Sadhana, readings: I'm trying to improve my sadhana beginning at 3:45 a.m so i can finish my 16 rounds before 7:30 am, That is the goal, for now I'm doing it at least 4 times a week. We regularly attend mangalaratik and sing for Sri Sri Radha Madhana Bihari. On my readings, before the Bhagavatam, I thought it was good to finish the books I have not finished before, so I'm in Chapter 60 of the Krishna Book (so far I can not believe i have in my hands a book that talks about the Supreme Personality of Godhead hobbies!) and then the teachings of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, where I stayed in half.

HpS - Very nice. The amazing thing is that each time your read the KRSNA book it becomes more intense and you would swear that there are things in it that were not there the last time you read it. Probably Lord Caitanya hears Srila Prabhupada's Krsna book daily, no????

Questions: There are issues that I cannot understand. On one hand always Srila Prabhupada explains the omnipresence of Krishna within His 3 energies, what puzzles me is His personal form. I assume, that He knows everything, just as I assume that Lord Baladeva and His expansions are equally aware of everything, but there are some pastimes in the Krishna Book where it seems not always is like this, for example, during the Govardhan Hill pastime, Krishna blushes as He thought that Lord Baladeva discovered Him observing the chest of the gopis, however Baladeva was smiling at the frightened faces of the gopas. How does the absolute Krishna consciousness  works? and how He seems to have a limited consciousness sometimes? As happens in this pastime, he does not know what goes on in the mind of one of His expansions as Sri Baladeva?

HpS - Ahhh!  Very intesting.  I would say from what we have learned that our modern industrialized culture is very much Jnana oriented. The Britannica also supports this. We believe that knowledge and logical ability is supreme, that is how to understand and control matter and even organize communities and personal relations. Our view, the Vedica view, is that people come first.

Radharani refuses to know,
   Radharani refuses to grow.

         She 'knows' what She needs to know to enhance Her service.   If you were God and were all powerful would you want to 'KnoW'  everything???  Of course, not.  How much fun is it to know what all the wrapped packages are at your birthday party!??  Stupid. Of course, you don't want to know.  So Krsna is not primarily omni-scient.  He is primarily all-blissfull.  (sat)-cit-ANANDA.
O.K?  He knows what he needs to know. His other expansions take care of the details.

Thank you very much for you time, mercy and patience Gurudeva.

I say goodbye respectfully 

May Lord Nrisimhadeva always take care of you.<img alt="smiley" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/regular_smile.png" title="smiley" width="23" />

Your servant

Bhaktina Isabelle
HpS - ASA --  Thank you.  Our respects to the Prince and Princess!  We will be in Peru in just six weeks!

Urgente - México

9 years, 10 months ago by Asta Sakhi Devi Dasi in Calendar Development

Querido Gurumaharaja : 

Por favor acepte nuestras respetuosas reverencias !
Todas las glorias a Srila Prabhupada! 
Estamos viendo detalles de organización con respecto al reporte del Congreso Norteamericano que se dará  en el Distrito Federal y Monterrey. Queremos pedirle  si por favor podemos hablar con Ud. por skype en esta semana, después de 1:00 pm  estaremos disponibles tanto Monterrey como DF. el día que Ud. considere. 
Agradecemos mucho Su atención. Disculpe las molestias por favor. 
Vuestra eterna aspirante a sirviente : Asta Sakhi dd. 


HpS - ASA ---- Hoy dia???     No molesta.   Misericordia sin causa, gracias. . .   \'o'/  Pero somos hora San Francisco aqui. A las 4.30PM vamos a programa en casa de Bali mardan Das hast descansar.

DTC Mo(29)

9 years, 10 months ago by hps in DTC


paoho - Am insane!   Aaaaaaaaaaaaeiaa!      (more than normal)    .     looking back      .      we got up early saturday morning for our 4.30-5.30 am, on-line program, then sandhya arati here in srivasa, malini and gita das' home. then we had our online bh-vai program on-line. we reviewed all six cantos. then drove to the San Jose Temple and gave class from 7.30-9.00 with about 25-55 devotees and big on-line audience. then back to newark, dave picked us up and we drove for three hours to sacramento on hi-way 80. There were thousands of cars and somtimes the super-expressway was crawling at five minutes per mile for 15-minutes. Of course, LOT of wonderful 'guhyam akyati prcchati' with dave and then 60-70 - devotees, full hall, for the regular saturday program in sacramento, drove to Dave and Kalindi's home, got settled into their new home, waited up  a little late for Jaya-krsna Das to come with our Japa beads that we had left in the rush in the downtowm Sacramento center. Up Sunday morning for mangala arati, FMP, on-line. Then home program with 40-devotees, youths, families, new people who had had out of the body experiences. INTENSE questions, challenges, local plums, oatmeal and cream, back in the horse-less carriage and back across the Central Valley in the beautiful semi-arid savanah with golden hills to Fremont where the pipes had  broken and water was gushing down the stairs out into the street.

Crocodiles had come to play but Gita (age 7) didn't let them bite or smoke cigarrettes. Rested and then Dave took us to the San Jose Temple. While Srivas and Mother Malini called the contractors. The San Jose lecture was Isopanisad and again, packed Sunday Feast lecture of software engineers and Silicon Valley executives. Had to cut the Question and Answer session short because the arati was starting. Went outside under the trees during the arati and about 15-devotees followed us and more intense personal questions, presentations of 'In God We Trust' documents that we kept trying to collect properly. Good-bye to Dave and another devotees took us back across the Bay to Fremont and ***rested*** (after a bowl of ice-cream).    Ooooof!

Piggy: And you don't have any time for anything else, no?

HpS: No...  We have all the pressure of the programs in Texas and South America etc, but as you can see, we just don't have the psychological and emotional strength to deal with these things.

Devil: Look, this Texas program is your idea, HpS, and unless its a big success we are going to cook your soul in hell for ever!

HpS: Aaaagh!   We agreed that a committee would do the work and we would just have to give direction.

Devil: No, excuses, so what if people have other engagements.

Piggy: Hari Bolo! Haw!!   Haw!!

... Srivasa Pandita Das just came and said that M. Malini has made pancakes for all of us.  O.K.  We will take some.  Got 14 rounds done today (3 from yesterday) and full morning program. Didn't get any call from Peru and we were to weak to push the class.   Guess we are doing O.K.  We have kind of manageable paperwork load today. Or new phone is doing well.

Hare Krsna.   See you in a minute.

M/P/UG/HpS

Things are just the same for you, no?

Haw!   Haw!!!!       Haw Ray!

Urgent Oscar Natters

9 years, 10 months ago by candra108_mukhi in Sankirtana / Temple Activity Reports

Hare Krsna Beloved Gurudeva:

AGTSP

PAMHO

I received this news today:  Oscar was awarded as the best theater director 2014....

I am attaching the picture ¡¡¡
ys
CMDD

HpS - AGTSP!     Interesting, but this is June 2015. He just got the award? Why so long to give the awards?  Who gave the award?  We will all send a letter of congratulations as soon as you tell us the details!

DTC Fr(26)

9 years, 11 months ago by hps in DTC

AGTSP

Paoho ...  6.01 PM.   In Srivasa Pandita's ashrama in Fremont, California. Most of the day Uncle Gismo was directing Brother. Srivasa Pandita Prabhu offered us a Nokia 1520 as upgrade from our 520. It is heavier but the screen is bigger. The 520 was deadly on our eyes.
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/mobile/phone/lumia1520/?&dcmpid=bmc-src-google.Brand
 

So, we had to go get a SIM card, chat with ATT twice to upload the new card etc. etc.

Also, we still have so much to learn about offering and honoring Prasadam. Yes, we are lusty to enjoy a rasa with our tongue and body by good food and good drink, but... it also is just a matter of deeping our experience of serving Krsna (good food). So, we ate a little too much and then our breathing, Prana, is shallow, so we must work on that by pranayama. Hold your breath while you work and force your body to pull "air" from a deeper level. Ass maintanance for Krsna!

O.K. Lets look at the Yahoo.mail and then at 6.30PM we get read to go on Hari-nam Sankirtan in Palo Alto (Stanford University).