Letters to the editor

PAMHO AGTSP

      ASA - Jaya!   AGTSP!!!!   We had a dream last night with you in it!  Can't remember the content!

Dear GM Thank you for your reply. I do not have much to say about myself that is new or interesting or worthwhile for this blog audience to hear about. My sadhana is not as strong as it probably should be and I'm not fully up to the iskcon standard, but that does not mean I am not Krishna consciousness. Of course, I am still wrapped up in body consciousness to a degree. This seems to go with household life to some extent. I do some reading and listening to lectures most every day. I am currently reading the nectar of devotion.

ASA -  Do you have Waves of Devotion by Dhanurdhara Swami?   Availbable on internet.  He gives fantastic expalation of the Sanskrita words tat Prabhupada is translating so quickly.  Puts in grafic charts they show what Prabhupada roughly describes.  The NOD is an EXTREMELY analytical book.  Without Waves of Devotion I think only an advanced Paramatma realized person could get a lot a benefit from the whole book!

I listen to your lectures and some from a few of the other devotees in iskcon. I have been watching the memories of Srila Prabhupada on YouTube recently. The issue for me over the years have been to develop the intelligence to have proper faith. It is a very large world out there and there are many things which test our faith. So sravanam and kirtanam are important and I am hoping will develop more steady smaranam. I haven't any association to speak of here so I rely on lectures through the Internet and reading. Although I'm not a fan of speaking about myself (I am self-absorbed enough as it is), please feel free to ask me any other questions. I have a few questions: Is there a good site for accessing your more recent lectures over the last few years? Is it correct that there is not a reply button on this blog site and that in order to reply or respond to a letter or comment, I have to post a new letter? What is your current email address? By the way, if my English seems rather colloquial that is because I'm using Siri. YHS tcsd

            HpS - Jaya!     Yeah, I think the way it's set up you have to post a new letter.          We don't answer letters besides the Blog currently, except for specific things, like Itenarary, Bhakti vedanta College, etc.   If you'd like to write about a more confidential topic then you could write to Monkey's Mail Bag at [email protected] we usually get all the mail from him after he "chews it over".     He is a very tight lipped guy.

We are running to the airport now!        I have to aske Srinivasa Das if he has more current lectures.  Right now we are working on a serious book for San Marcos University....  See you in Chile!

 All Glories to Srila Prabhupada !

Please accept my humble obeisances

Dear Maharaja

We are always grateful to receive an answwer from you, we know how much each letter takes precious time and what precious every letter you write to us is.  We are fortunate to have had the mercy of serving you in the past and have an association with  such a pure devotee of Krsna and disciple of Srila Prabhupada,  this is beyond luck is pure mercy from The Lord.   The Kapi Dhvaja is full of news and ispiring teachings.   Your eyes and hands have been working tiresly on this program and many more.  Panchatatva  ki  jaya ! 

You are right when you say the raditions are build and passed on orally.  We are trying to put our breath to the service of theLord by learning devotional ragas and singing them, oue eyes to read Prabhupada`s book and admire the deities, our mind to filled up with the teachings and lilas of Lord Caitanya and his associates, we consider you one of them serving Srila Prabhupada.  Our book found interesting dramatic center in one of your lectures in Catolica University in `99 probably, we have the video and we received the mercy of translating live.  So much we`ve received from you, again thank you !   The book is called The Infinity Lotus and deals with the journe of a very young guy who slowly and with the help of Siksa Guru discovers bhakti and finally  Bhagavan.  We are using the theme of  begining from the most pantheistic side of the Vedas with their demigos and  building up towards Purusotama - Adi Purusa  Govinda.  

amazing news from Peru !     Chiclayo, The jungle,  New Vrndavana everywhere...

your humble servant

Raul GC    

            ASA -  Jaya!   AgtSP!!    TKU ur letter.        We are just running to the airport for Santiago and the internet is running very bad..  ha!   Ha!    Ha  (re)!        We see you there!!!

      Todas las glorias a Srila Prabhupada.  Por favor acepte mis más humildes reverencias. Por favor perdone todas mis ofensas.

   Querido Gurudeva, ahora estoy en el templo de Barcelona, descubriendo otro humor dentro de la cociencia de Krishna. 

    4 principios regulativos, 20 rondas y todos los dias el programa de la mañana del cual estoy dando alguna pequeña lectura-clase de Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Ahora  me levanto a las  3:45/3:50. Todo gracias a su misericordia, y a la compañia de los devotos. Ayudo en la cocina  y a veces limpio el restaurante (debe haber sido un arreglo de Sri Krishna porque antes solo limpiaba); (asi limpio mi corazón). Tambien estudio ingles con la madre de Nimai Pandita Prabhu, 2 veces por semana a traves de skype. 

    Guru Maharaja hace unas semanas tuve una discusion sobre el tamaño del alma, en la BG 2.17 Srila prabhupada cita This soul is described as one ten-thousandth part of the upper portion of the hair point in size.  "When the upper point of a hair is divided into one hundred parts and again each of such parts is further divided into one hundred parts, each such part is the measurement of the dimension of the spirit soul." (Svet. 5.9) 

Las preguntas que surgen: ¿tiene realmente el alma tamaño o es solo el tamaño en el mundo material? ¿si en el mundo espiritual nada es medible, alli no tiene tamaño? ¿es solo una analogia? ¿porque en el verso anterior 2.16 Krishna dice que en lo eterno no hay cambio, y en el verso 2.18 Sri Krishna define el alma como inconmensurable (no medible).  Bueno le hago esta pregunta, porque me a roto un poco los esquemas y pienso que para predicar es más facil ceñirse a lo más sencillo y medible que irse acercando a temas misticos que estan fuera de nuestro alcance. Cuando uno se cree que más sabe, descubre que menos aprende.

  Seguire intentando el poder servirle algun dia; mi deseo es su bienestar y estoy tambien muy contento con su visita a España.

 Jharikhanda-gaura Das

              HpS - Jaya!!!!   Muy buena carta, noticias!,  TlgaSP   Pfanrh.....  Como yo entiendo es un analogia.  Es como medir una manzana un espejo.   La alma es mas subtile de una idea.  Por ejemplo donde esta quimica?????     Claro es un Cuerpo de Ideas.  Tiene forma, pero no bien relacionado con espacio.  Claro.  Los libros de Quimica en la biblioteca occupand espacion mediable, pero Quimica es un Cuerpo de Conocimiennto.  La alma es esto y mas.....  Immortal y compuesto de amor!!!!

Super fotos!!

Hare krisna!!
Pamho, agtSP,

Dear gurudeva, your intelligence is far far beyond our comprehension, connected to paramatma, pure, so i feell little aukward giving you this advice.
i read in your last Kdh that poison ivy is gone but now you have allergic reaction, all of this seeems to have same origin.  Ama in bowels increasing pitta in body.
My advice is take only raw food as breakfast, take prasadam in a strict schedule everyday at the same time, avoiding to skip meals or changing times (uff, with your travelling schedule this seems almost impossible, so drink lot of water if it is time for a meal and you can not have it), and drink plenty of  fresh water along the day between meals. Of course diminishing traveling would be good but i think that is a matter far beyond body affairs.

One question what is the meaning of this entry in your calendar?

I will be there then.
Aspiring to become your servant,
Bhakta Nicasio.
 

HpS - Jaya!    Rupanuga Das has given us practically speaking the same analysis with a diet including aloevar and perihil and ghee massage and regular sleeping schedule.    We are 70% pitta, at least.  This means that unless we have fire in the body it doesn't exist.  O.K.  but the problem is that fire has to flow.  If it accumulates, in the skin for example, then the skin burns up.  So th answer is not to reduce the fire in the body too much unless you want to die, rather to keep it down, but to keep it flowing, like you both suggest.  Thing is that Ayurvedic people seem to not contemplate chanting and dancing as part of the regulation.  it;s a fact, no?   Dancing in love of God will keep the fire moving in the right direction, right throught the skin also, no!   SMILE!     Smile!   smILE!

                       This body does not get diseases, this body is a disease.

                        No more disease  ....  !!!   no more body  !!!              Your body is NOT your Buddy!        See you this Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hare krisna!!

Please accept my humble obeisances,
All glories to Srila Prabhupada,

Dear gurudeva, last  6 months were very intense for me, i feel krisna is puting me in a big crossroad, now time to make a big decission in my life. i'm going to visit you in chile from nov 9 to nov 12. I would like to discuss this issue in private with you. My enthusiasm for KC is high, waking up at 5.30, 16 rounds every day, preaching intensly, more patients assisitng to our programs, yatra is growing, nectar is increasing, anandambudhi vardhanam.
Hope you are in a good health condition.
Aspiring to become you servant.
Bhakta Nicasio.

         HpS -  Jaya!   AGTSP   paoho.  At 64 years old, with all white hair on our chest, all of our advice and consulting is now informal. We just give our thoughts as a part of our casual life, but can be useful if you don't expect a Communist Manifesto. Very useful.

Your "cross roads"  sound like it might be the same problem that Harsh brings up in his "Sankhya Scholar" letter. Of course, it might be different, but a basic principle that we find is that in natural culture most of the Brahmanas don't get married.    Out of five Brahman brothers, one gets married to keep the gene-pool going and the other four stay single and become doting uncles for their sister-in-law and brothers children.   Sounds pretty good for the girl: One nice husband, five kids and four funny, helpful, intelligent, single brother in laws.  Would make you feel pretty secure.

Of course, I'm not suggesting polygamy or brahmacari ashrama.  No these are jist ideas I'ver heard from Uncle Gismo.

Hare Krsna Maharaja Pamho, AGTSP,

We are writing to you because you talk in terms in which we understand. We again feel sorry to distrub you with a non-sankirtana perspective. we need your help to be a sane human being, and moreover we think our question may help some body. 

1.In reply to one letter[1815] you wrote " The Temple is for b'cari training.  We should get a little bit of religious training, how to pray effectively, and how to live a simple civilized life - celibate, single or with children and wife.      But after that training unless we are Brahmanas we move out and serve in the community"

Maharaj you mentioned four things [1] religious training [2] how to live simple civilized life with wife and children [3] how to pray effectively  [4] serve the community.

Our concern now how to learn these 4 things when we are not in temple, esp in our condition...we are having big probelm with live with wife and children,( other three are also required)...
we attended some training sessions in Chowpatty, and they were talking of emotions, respect, care etc....

Maharaj can you cognitvely/sankhya explain/define of these words [emotions/respect/care] to us. We are getting hampered by this a lot we think in making relation with atleast devotees..---unfrotunately we grew up as loner worked as a loner so we are more of impersonalist---but i think which is not for householder life. now we need to work on our subtle body.. which section of scripture we should read more to work on our abilities....
 

We contacted mother Umila on Facebook. and got guidance from her she recommended two books [1] man of steel and velvet [2] men are mars and women are from venus..

we never knew that we would be non-sastric books... but seems there is no other alteranitve---we dont exepct u to solve our household life , but as sannyasi we expect that u will ahve better knowlege,realization and application of scripture...
we will keep it short -- we will try to make everything we ahve krsna sambanhe under ur guidance --NOI 3.

regards,
caballo tryint to be human

            HpS - ASA -   Hmmf!      AGTSP    paoho.      We had the same problem.  In the 1st level, 1st grade, report to our parents the teacher said, "Huber can accomplish huge quantities of work when he works alone".    Hmmm.  It's always been that way.   We have heavy Sannyasa karma.   It was stooooooooooopid for us to get married, but there was no option within the parameters of this Western industrialized life. Now we see B'cari and Sannyasa life can also be a part of culture.  Have you read "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus"?  As I remember it is very, very nice.  It is the ideas of SB but in modern perspective, easier to apply.
          Report on the book but I think you and your good wife, family, will have to put up with a son, husband, who by nature is a civil deadman. Of course, the good aspect of this is that such people don't become adulterers.