Letters to the editor

Hare Krishna Maharaj,

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

When we discussed in May about the online private school for kids who are stuck at home, I was not completely ready. Having spent a month in working out details with the help of our friend Priya Carana Mataji, I am confident that I can do this. I am planning to just take up K-4 for now. After talking to interested parents, we have two options for the school either half time or full time.

Halftime includes Japa, Kirtan, Scriptures and Sanskrit. Full time includes academics also. Although planned to just do it for friends and family initially we opened it up for a few more like minded devotee families. We decided to keep the name "Gaura Rasa" which you have kindly given us for Sugopi's college club. We will use it for any teaching endeavors we may take up. Please bless me that I may be able to help the kids advance in Krishna Consciousness while pursuing their academics.

Your servant,

Sundari Radhika dd.

HpS - Super news!!! Saturday school. After school. Supplement to normal school. Sunday school. All of these individual, then collective, then stand alone school. Of course, wherever you go, whomever you meet tell them about Krsna. That is great school!!!!!!

News!

Life of celibacy is full of courage, adventure, humiliation, discipline, devotion, struggle and bliss, and much more.

ASA - Wow! AgtSP! It sounds like being alive! Most people now are dead!!!

Later, I will explain how.

First of all I would like to clarify that celibacy I am speaking of is better represented by the sanskrit word ‘brahmacharya’ which literally means ‘to dwell on brahman’. In simple words, it means to always be absorbed in thoughts of God.

In Vedic lifestyle, to follow brahmacharya means not to indulge in following-

1. Think about opposite gender.

2. Speak about sex life.

3. Dally with opposite gender.

4. Look lustfully at opposite gender.

5. Talk intimately with opposite gender.

6. Decide to engage in sexual intercourse.

7. Endeavor for sex life.

8. Engage in sex life.

Now I come back to the question, how is it to live the life of celibacy. In Vedas, celibacy is recommended for quick advancement in spiritual life. So celibacy must be observed for making spiritual progress. As a celibate, I found the life of celibacy to be a life of-

Courage- Whole civilization is promoting sense enjoyment and celibacy is just the opposite. So it certainly needs great courage to walk on the path.

HpS - ASA - All these apply to devotees in female body! Just have relations to become nice mother or marry Krsna!

Adventure - If something is very difficult to achieve, it becomes adventurous. In kaliyuga, whole atmosphere is surcharged to promote atheism and sensuality. To live in such society and still maintain high degree of purity is certainly very difficult. Many great warriors like Saubhari and Vishwamitra Muni also got wounded on this path. So to follow celibacy in Kaliyuga is certainly adventurous, it is very difficult to follow.

Humiliation- A brahmachari is supposed to live a vedic lifestyle. Vedas recommend that a celibate/monk should not do jobs. Rather should spend his time in cultivation of spiritual life and spreading spiritual message to others. But often people tend to take it as unproductive work, parasites for society ….. Those who don’t understand the value of spiritual life tend to ridicule the monks, and monks have to go through that. This humiliation keeps a celibate humble, which is far better than being proud.

Discipline - We follow the discipline of getting up early in the morning 3–4 am (no matter whether in Kashmir or Rameshvaram, summer or winter), taking bath and attending morning rituals, following the instructions given by Guru, doing practical services etc. These is no holiday for us, though our everyday is holy.

Devotion- We do have the facility to use our 24 hours in service of God, as we have no material responsibility. This is very helpful for always being God conscious. We can spend much more time in reading holy scriptures, developing its understanding, practically applying it in life, worshipping Lord etc.

Struggle At times services needed are quite challenging and we need to struggle to complete things on time. Also mind and senses tend to run here and there and we must struggle to keep it back on track. There is struggle to strike a balance between our services, personal spiritual practice and relationship with other fellow monks. There is struggle to maintain good relation with the superiors and managers of organizations.

Bliss, God is source of all happiness and more we connect to Him, our own life gets filled with joy and happiness. This inner bliss is so great that it keeps us from going astray. Lord Krishna says in Gita 6.22 -

yam labdhva caparam labham

manyate nadhikam tatah

“ In that joyous state, one is situated in boundless transcendental happiness, realized through transcendental senses. Established thus, one never departs from the truth, and upon gaining this he thinks there is no greater gain. Being situated in such a position, one is never shaken, even in the midst of greatest difficulty.”

*****

Of course the list is endless, this is a brief answer.

If one stays in family life then principles of Brahmacharya can be applied in following ways

1. Don’t have sexual connection with anyone other than one’s own spouse.
2. Within married relation, union must take place only when one wants to beget a good child, and not for any other purpose.

HpS - ASA - Thank you. Now.... can you give practical examples of each of these from your own experiences this year in ISKCON!!!?

Todas las glorias a Goura Nitay

ASA - Nityananda! 'nitai pada kamala...." buen cancion memorizar. tambien texto CC. Adi. 1.2. "Vande Sri Krsna Caitanya..."

Todas las gloria a Srila Prabhupada

ASA - !!!!!!!!

Hare krishna Guru.M comienzo mi reporte,

contando que comenzó el frío aquí en santiago de chile pero a pesar de esto hago todo mi SADHANA, mejorando cada día en cantar unas buenas rondas leer y estudiar a pesar de que hay temas que me cuestan me esfuerzo para lograr un buen entendimiento, preguntar hasta que quede claro. sigo hablando con las chicas por teléfono una vez a la semana riendo y preocupada por sus dudas ,(son las chicas del jardín) . también en casa comenze plantar en maceteros algunas plantas (orégano, romero, albahaca y otras.. para krishna están creciendo bastante bien. cada día medito en hacer un buen servicio y mejorar mi vida espiritual para ser un ejemplo, muchas gracias por su inspiración se despide su humilde sirvienta Raman Reti devi dasi

HpS -- Muy bien!!!!! A abajo orden de Sr. Chaitanya, "amar ajnay guru haya..." convierta Jagat Guru. Paso por paso.

All glories to sti sri gaura nitai, all glories to srila prabhupada, all glories to you.

yes, I do not sing japa, I do not feel the interest, I only read the new testament, or sometimes the nectar of the instruction, also some books of saints .. I am doing studies online because cannot travel because of the virus(lie).. In less than a year I will be taking medicine (if I don't die) I feel the need to help people, I don't know what I'm doing here, I feel useless and what am I going to do? talk about my good activities? I'm a mess, I don't like lying. I don't like lying to you and this is how I feel. Today I feel other needs and help people and do a job of introspection but I am not constant with my japa. I want to be consistent with helping others. thank you gurudeva for your letter and my obeissances to you.

Ys. Ter kadamba devi dasi

HpS - Thank you!! Very nice. Did you restring our beads one time?

"Debemos conocer la necesidad actual de la sociedad humana." https://vedabase.io/es/library/sb/1/preface/

Eso es nuestra idea. Si, necesitamos ayudar todo el mundo vivir in tranquilidad. Pero no somos gorillas o gorillinis. En bondad materialment y entonces buscamos algo mas alto.

Lea la Kapi Dhavaja e haz so commentario aqui. Letters to the Editor.

Please accept my humble obeisances, all glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Guru maharaja, thank you again for your responses to my letters. You had asked for my phone number, so here it is 1 (619) 436-xxxx.

Your servant,

Nityananda-rama dasa

ASA - We just Whatsapped you!

Got it?

All Glories to Sri Sri Goura Nitay,

All Glories to Srila Prabhupada,

All glories to Guru Maharaja Bhakti Bhusana Swami,

ASA - Jaya!

All Glories to Hanumat Presaka Swami. Maharaja, please accept my humble obeisances.

ASA - Paoho....

It has been a while since I had the idea to write to you… My main motivation is to thank you for allowing me to participate in your morning program group and I would also like to offer Krishna some service by serving you, if you allow me to do so… of course.

Maybe you can find a service that can match my profile. Even if I have lots of Anarthas and I am not a great devotee,

I really feel inspired by your example and of course the debt will never be paid.

It would be impossible to reciprocate, but serving you is an idea that comes to my mind every day during the morning program… As I am not your disciple, I don’t know how I could do it, but at least I have the desire in my heart….

HpS - I like Bh. Bhusana Swami a lot. I empathize with his mood, mode, a lot, like Bhanu Swami and others. So, your service to Maharaja is already service to us.

If you can help The Abhirama Thakura Das with Solaris that would be nice!

It seems to me that the right thing to do is to introduce myself first. So here I go… I am a Bhakti Bhusana Swami disciple. I have been participating in the ISKCON movement for 12 years approx. I took my vows 2 years ago (1^st initiation: Santiago, July 7^th 2018). I was born in Bogota, Colombia and I have been living in Santiago, Chile for the past 20 years. I live alone and I have a job I like (international commerce and logistics in a multinational company –Headquarters in Germany). This job allows me to organize my life in a good way without depending on anyone except on Krishna and to be able to contribute to the temple needs.

I chant 16 rounds (to chant GOOD rounds, concentrated is my main challenge). I follow the 4 principles. Before the lockdown I had a fix service at the Iskcon Temple in Santiago. (Cooking for the Deities every Sunday: 1^st offering in the morning).

I have been leading a Bhakti Vriksa program for the last 8 years. (Until the lockdown. Afterwards, we have tried to keep on meeting on line, but now there are so many nice activities with the different spiritual masters, that all of us privileged those meetings). I have never had any responsibility position at Iskcon.

ASA - Every position in ISKCON is a 'responsible position'!!!! Jaya!

My Sadhana has improved, mainly after I could join your gotomeeting group. I really appreciate your kindness to let me participate into this group.

HPS - If we did not have the association of the people in the group we would not only be animals we would big, bad animals!

I take advantage to apologize for any offense I could have done there. I worship Sri Sri Goura Nitay Deities and a Tulasi plant at home (I live just across the temple which allows me to have close contact with the temple residents). I finished the Bhakti Sastri course and the Bhakti vaibhava one until the 4th Canto with Param Padam Prabhu. I have not taken any of the tests yet.

I studied Ayurveda last year at a yoga academy (I have not taken the final test). I have also tried to learn some palm reading lately (after the lockdown) with videos on youtube.

I graduated from the National University of Colombia (Filology and languages) and I fluently speak some languages. I was thinking it could be useful for some service, taking into account what Tapan Misra Das Prabhu (Iskcon Education Ministry) said today in his presentation at the Symposium (2^nd session day 2) in the sense that translating some learning materials would be useful: I speak Spanish (native language) English B2 level and French B2 level (95% DELF Diploma) (As per the European Union proficiency levels).

After the Symposium and while listening to your students presentations I really got motivated to keep on learning, and maybe to finally take the exams (I have not done it yet because I am not very good at memorizing verses).

HpS - We memorize them if we use them!

I have given some classes at the temple (BG, SB and CC classes). I plan to buy the Bhakti Vaibhava books on amazon as they said today on the symposium. It seems Iskcon gives the students some credits that can be kept on record. Do you think I could join any of your courses? Please…

HpS - ASA does not have any BOEX accredited courses yet. We try to keep our info on this stuff in the Kapi Dhvaja. COmments on it are so useful.

As per what I understood from the symposium, the on line courses are ok, but Iskcon leadership + headquarters seem afraid of being able to pass the vedic knowledge but not the vaisnava qualities/way of being.

ASA - It is one challenge. Another is to communicate to Devotees that the Titles are not a 100% certification of spiritual character developement!

In your opinion, should I wait for a Bhakti Vaibhava course in Latin America to arrive to the 4th canto and continue from there? Or should I study an on line course abroad as they one in India they presented today? (I was not able to ask if it was a course only for men… no women on the pictures…)

HpS - Vidya-pitta residence is 99% brahmacari course. I recommend getting a study partner. Joining some regular Sanga. Maybe our morning program and then working to adjust it to your needs! Suggest how our program can be improved.

I bought the Caitanya Caritamrita books and recordings last time I went to India on March 2017 and since then this is what I read (and listen to) the most, almost every day. I really love it and I have this dream of doing a small Caitanya Caritamrta reading group in Santiago.

ASA - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfHnzYEHAow

Joining with some neighbor devotees and some temple residents. I have listened to the Caitanya Bhagavata as well (only recordings as I do not have the book).

Maharaja, any service I can do for you is also to please Krishna and my Guru Maharaja Bhakti Bushana Swami. I would be glad if I can serve you in any way you decide. If there is not any particular service to do, I will also fully understand. 

 I will be more than happy to have an answer from you, but if it is not possible, I also understand that you are a very busy person.

HpS - Yes, try an help (the sometimes confused) Abhirama Thakura Das with Solaris. You can develope as you like!