Getting back on track...

5 years, 11 months ago by etasa in Personal Sadhana Reports

Hare Krsna, AGTSP, PAMHO

Dear Gurudeva,

It has been a year since I moved out the ISKCON Chicago temple, yes, I did some "progress", can’t complain. I teach piano to over 25 students currently (if teaching fine arts can be considered brahminical), and I spend the rest of my time between two part time jobs, my college classes and looking for grad schools. However, things does not unfold always the way I plan, and that is frustrating. I neglected quite a bit my sadhana and overall spiritual health for the sake of moving as fast as possible in the race of getting some “social status” that is far from manifesting soon. Lately, after getting some life punches, I turned back to Krsna for shelter. It has been such a thrilling experience. Listening to kirtans and some classes are enough to make hair stand on end and make me remember sweeter times with devotees.

No preaching, just getting my things done, but after this reawakening, I am visiting Kishore Kishori more often, reading sastra alone on daily basis and with devotees on Saturdays and chanting japa the best I can, trying to get back on track. I am also writing you this letter after a while.

A couple of friends told me that they saw you in Tennessee. They said you were as usual, happily engaged in the transcendental loving service of Krsna. That brought happiness to my heart. Thanks for everything you do Gurudev. 

(Picture next to my piano professor and classmates at Northeastern Illinois University Spring 2019)

Respectfully,

ys Etasa Krsna Das

HpS - My God. Hoping to great from you for years! Lost in the Beast. Most important thing is to keep good intelligence. ... I am going to die. Krsna is unhappy without my service. How can I escape the Witch and go to Him

Soon!

Reciba Ud. Mis reverencias Su Santidad Hanumatpresaka swami.

5 years, 11 months ago by wilfredo in Special Category A

Hare krishna. Aqui en Lima ingresando nuevamente a su blog y contarle que sigo tan entusiasta en el servicio de asistente de pujari y de la compra de flores para las deidades de Lima Wilson Mandir, cantando y siguiendo principios regulativos. Ademas sigo estudiando el BG y asistiendo a clases en las noches, recuerdo también la entrevista personal que tuvimos el 13 de junio de este año 2019. Esperando siempre su divina misericordia.

HpS - TlgaSP. Casi muerto pero predicando en Argentina. Nos vemos en Chosica Domingo para ceremonia de iniciación!

Haz gran cosas para Krsna:

Lea cartas aquí para otros!


Here we are still alive

5 years, 11 months ago by LalitaMadhavadas in Personal Sadhana Reports

Accept my obeisances dear guruji

Forgive my little communication, day to day is present in my acts and offerings.

HpS - For us is the same. AgtSP!

Summing up my activities, after a year of being in charge of the kitchen of the deities, the temple board has appointed me as the restaurant's manager for 5 months with Manjulali DD.

HpS - No meat, no fish, no tomato sauce with onion our garlic.

Manjulali DD is a very important pillar in the development of all my processes nowadays.

HpS - A good man is hard to find.

If before the problems were not so many nowadays they have multiplied, but, with a great satisfaction that what I do is for the service of the Lord.

Every day we try to maintain a good conscience of service and attitude of kind preaching for our visitors.


Important question:

Years ago i am reciting day after day hanuman chalisa, strangely, some things started to go slightly wrong, it was the year of having dengue in India and one followed by bad events.

This year I start singing again and I feel that things are a little strange again.

As extra information, at the altar I only have murti of Sri Hanuman, not of Sita Ram lakshman, along with my other deities, Sri Radha Krishna, Sri Gopal, Guru Parampara, Saraswati.

I hope not to be doing the wrong things so that Sri Hanuman gets angry.

HpSwami ur it - Hanuman chalisa is committed with some ego by author. Chant prayers by Hanuman in Fifth Canto. All else is fine. BG 10.11

I hope you are in good health and forgive my ingratitude dear guruji

Dandavats Pranams

HpS - Fifth Canto! Thank you so much! Got to see you soon!

deseando que esta carta pueda mirar sus ojos de Loto

5 years, 11 months ago by jambavati dd in Personal Sadhana Reports

Hare Krsna

Jambavati Devi Dasi!

TlgaSP! Pfanrh. Esta carta viene sin contenido, pero es gran honor, felicidad, fortuna bueno, oportunidad no común ser en contacto con su divina ser.

Era súper hablar con Vd en Chosica. Ya estamos en Sama, Centro de Ayur veda y salud espiritual, de devotos en Argentina, Mar de Plata.

Somos con energía un paso de cero pero aun feliz. Somos siguiendo sus pasos y enofocando en distribución de libros.

somos en Lima otra vez 24 Julio Esperamos ver Vd. Pero si no, nos vemos en Sankirtan

Reverencias y Hare Krsna a su papá y esperamos cartas de Vd con contenido.

Urgent - Education & Sacred, India, & I must not wanna see Krishna.

Dear Maharaja,

Please accept my humble(?) obeisances. 

All glories to your service. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Dr Mabbett Education and the Sacred

I have sent an email to Dr. Mabbett inviting him for an interview for Education and the Sacred. More to come soon...


India October

My good wife has given me serious instruction to go on pilgrimage to India later this year. If you have some service for me in October I will gladly take it. Otherwise, if you cannot tolerate me, I will go to Radha Kunda and chant and offer dandavats to you when you walk past

A Vaisnava Siddhanta Question

When I take into consideration these five points points...


  1. The fact that the jiva is tatashta shakti, never leaving the spiritual world objectively, projected into the material delusion by kshirodakashayi Vishnu to fulfill material desires, in constant generation from Mahavishnu's body, on the border of the material and spiritual realms.
  2. That our material bodies are made from Krishna's inferior energy (BG 7.4), and that our spiritual bodies are "furnished with a form that is a special manifestation of His [Krishna's) own splendor" (from Jiva Goswami's definition of Bhagavan found in one of Radhika Ramana Prabhu's books.
  3. That shanta rasa is the basis of all other rasas, which is closley linked to steady-state brahman, the anchor point at the base of the mirrored banyan tree — Exploitation on the bottom and Madhurya Rasa on the top.
  4. That Srila Prabhupada’s definition of the the statement “Back to Godhead” as given on the cover of Back to Godhead magazine is “Godhead is light. Nescience is darkness. Where there is Godhead there is no nescience.” Godhead is “light” — cit? Yo quiero ananda!!!
  5. That I cannot see Krishna's personal form; I can only see Him indirectly.


...Firstly, I can sympathize with the nivirshesha-sunyavadis (impersonalists and mayavadis) — who are so prominent today, especially in the intelectual and the yoga communities, who think that God is a formless, universal, oneness of consciousness, who needs the physical world to express Himself. They are convinced, therefore, that He, the One, brakes up into many — us living entities — and that's all there is. 


Once one realizes the nature of the living entity minus the material body, it is easy to assume that Parabrahman is of the same quality of formless consciousness — consciousness which can attach itself to things, but itself is not a thing. When I learn that when I get a spiritual body, it is made out of Krishna energy — so it is not actually me, its a gift to do seva with in the spiritual world — it makes me contemplate how Krishna's own body could be the same. These mayavadis would say that formless brahman only is truth and Vrindavan is a temporary lila that brahman expresses Himself through, just like materialists express themselves in material life. Indeed, the mayavadis use this technique to try and establish themselves as equal to God and according to our acharyas, this is the greatest offence and the last snare of illusion. 


But I trust the glorious Gaudiya Vaisnavas when they say that actually Krishna and His associates, and His places of pastimes, are the true reality and that what I am experiencing is just a thin layer of consciousness touching the surface of the inferior energies of Krishna (the physical and psychological world provided to us as a kind of virtual reality through which we can imitate Him). The reason I trust them is because they are oozing with Krishna Prema. But I accept what the vaisnavas say on authority alone. It is not something I have experienced. 


My questions are these:


In short, how can I see the real Krishna? 

HpS - By learning how to steal butter for Him without being caught

Is it through hearing — like, do I fall through a portal of sound at the level of atma (ego) and wake up in the border of the Spiritual realm and then get given a suitable body to go be with Him? 

HpS - We are our spiritual body. Just compressed now. Chanting sincerely. Hara, give me some service, and we wake up.

Is it just my material desires keeping me in ignorance, or do I need some special mantra or something to pass through?

HpS - Just gotta take all the rocks off your head. One manta at a time.


How can I experience that Krishna is not just an idea that brings the best out of people if after all these years (lifetimes) I have only seen mental images of Him and the only spirit that I see is the negation of matter. I feel the paramatma, I feel Krishna, my intelligence accepts Their presence and factuality (BG Ch 10), but I cannot see Him. Please, please, please help me, Maharaja.


I know that for a vaisnava, knowing is an unnecessary requirement — the Gopis for example will get upset with you if you talk philosophy all day, telling them how Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and instead they will ask you “why aren’t you making a nice garland today, for when He returns?” — but even though this is the case, it would be lovely to see Him. 


My experience of my relationship with Krishna is that I am serving a friend who is away currently, but He will be back soon — I am doing some little service for Him but cant see Him — but at the level of some kind of low-class sahajiya, of course. 

HpS - You know I've heard of Their romance, but I've never really seen Them dance.

Some day it will just happen. Then you will be as dead as a skunk run over by a furniture van.

Keep praying to be enlightened in your service. Who to squirt when.

Chant mo' rounds bettah.

Thank you for correcting Dr Mabbett. Will www be in the same places in October? Calendar on Kapi Dhvaja...

Your servant

Dhruvānanda Das


Bhaktivedanta Course (Bhagavatam canto 7 -12)

5 years, 11 months ago by parampadam in Special Category A

Hare Krishna Maharaja!

Please accept my humble obeisances

All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

I am writing to get some information about Bhakivedanta Course (Srimad Bhagavatam Cantos 7-12)

Is there any formal acreditation yet? Any news?

 Last year seven student finished Bhakti Vaibhava course in my college, and next december another students group are finishing too.

 They ask to me to continue with Bhaktivedanta Course. What I would have to say them?

 Any information about this is very usefull for us.

Thank you very much!

I hope you well

Ys.

Parampadam das

HpS - AgtSP Paoho. Nice to hear from you. I will send Atul Krsna Das address to your email. He is Director of Board of Examinations

At your service

HpS