Letters to the editor

Anjana Suta Academy

www.JayaRama.US

SB 7.1-4

Module Review

(rev. 170925)

As we remember Śrīman Upendra Das pushed us to have Module Reviews. We study Srimad Bhagavatam systematically. Naturally the Chapters group themselves into different topical modules of about four each. Take them to heart.

A MR should include a Summary of the chapters, specific Cogent Points and Essay Topics. How does this all relate to our focus of book distribution? What points can we make for the teacher and future revisions? Under what circumstances was this MR made?

Example: Canto Seven Chapters 1-4, The Advent of Hiranyakasipu.

We are writing this Module Review as the first for our Anjana Suta Academy (WWW.JayaRama.US) Bhaktivedanta Curriculum Development Team. To our perspective we are faced with fundamental problems in developing Sastric Studies in ISKCON and we are involved in the politic of the matter as is delightful for a Sannyasi of His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada.

Module Summary:

(Mostly we just edited the first paragraph of the Chapter Summary)

In Chapter One, in response to a question by Mahārāja Parīkṣit, Śukadeva Gosvāmī gives his conclusions concerning how the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although the Supersoul and friend of everyone, killed the demons for the sake of Indra. He totally refutes the argumentthat the Lord is partial.  A second question raised by Parīkṣit Mahārāja concerns how Śiśupāla, although always blaspheming Kṛṣṇa from his childhood, attained salvation when Kṛṣṇa killed him.

As described in the next chapter, after the annihilation of Hiraṇyākṣa, his relatives were very much aggrieved. Hiraṇyakaśipu as his brother reacted trying to diminish the religious activities of people in general and instructed his nephews about a history just to diminish their aggrievement.

Chapter Three describes how Hiraṇyakaśipu performed a severe type of austerity causing great distress throughout the universe. Even Lord Brahmā became somewhat disturbed and personally went to see Hiraṇyakaśipu.

Finally, Chapter Four describes how Hiraṇyakaśipu obtained power from Lord Brahmā and misused it by harassing all the living entities within this universe. It finishes as Nārada Muni describes the characteristics of Prahlāda Mahārāja and how his father envied his own qualified son.

Cogent Points:

 (Of course these can be basis for Short Answer Questions)

Chapters 1-3 ASA we ask ASA team member Candramukhi Devi Dasi to do them as part of her Module Review presentation at the Saturday Morning ASA ABC Workshop.

Chapter Four:

From the Summary - “…he began enjoying life in great luxury and thus became mad.” … All the brāhmaṇas… they cursed him with determination.

7.4.2 – “If one possesses more and more, a benediction itself may become a curse, for just as achieving material opulence in this material world requires great strength and endeavor, maintaining it also requires great endeavor.”

“…one should not take benedictions one cannot enjoy peacefully.”

SB 7.4.5-7 – NDX – Sankirtan; science.

SB 7.4.8 - Therefore the upper planets cannot be appraised by imperfect men using imperfect man-made instruments.

12 – “No one in the three worlds can live in peace and prosperity without disturbance.”

13 – “There are three [ndx – cosmology] kinds of demigods — the Ādityas, the Vasus and the Rudras — beneath whom are the other demigods, like the Maruts and Sādhyas

14 - I myself [brahma] . . . offered prayers to him again and again just to glorify him.” [Devotees accept these arrangements as Krsna plan to annhiliate the demons]

19 – “In spite of achieving the power to control in all directions and in spite of enjoying all types of dear sense gratification as much as possible, Hiraṇyakaśipu was dissatisfied because instead of controlling his senses he remained their servant.”

21 – “If from the very beginning [of any endeavor] we seek shelter of the supreme friend, there will be no cause of danger.

30 – “Hiraṇyakaśipu had four wonderful, well-qualified sons,…”

32 – “…and he considered his teachers, spiritual masters and older Godbrothers to be as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”

33 – “Prahlāda Mahārāja . . . was neither directly nor indirectly interested in the fruitive activities…” [Siksastakam: Fruitive activities described in flowery language. Na janam na dhanam]

37 – “For a small boy to give up playing is impossible…”

44 – “Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (3.25.25), satāṁ prasaṅgān mama vīrya-saṁvido bhavanti hṛt-karṇa-rasāyanāḥ kathāḥ” [Refresh it!]

Essay Topics:

(Others can add these during the meeting Saturday, CMDD can edit them in and send everything to Srivasa-pandita Das’s administrative team for archiving, no?)

1. Why can we say that Krsna is equal to everyone if he killed Vrtasura and gave liberation to Sisupala?
2. How do you see Srila Prabhupada adopted these principles to his preaching?
3. Is Hiryanyakasipu’s cremation ground lecture correct?
4. Discuss some of the technical aspects of Hiranyapasiku’s austerities and relevance to ISKCON yoga.

Hare Krsna!

AGTSP! Paoho.

After a 45-minute conversation with Srivasa Pandita Das from ISKCON Silicon Valley educational projects, last evening, we want to share our current views on Sastri education in ISKCON.

Of course, these are our views as one of the several blind men trying to understand the elephant. Please contribute your understanding from your point of view.

A lot of the impetus of the conversation was the SB class that we had just finished with ISKCON Boise, Idaho yesterday moring. For us it was a colossal effort involving Temple President, Ananta-rupa Das, Radhika-raman Das and many others.

It was one of the nicest experiences in our life and confirmed our idea that ISKCON Temple means a community of devotees organized around daily, morning study of Srimad Bhagavatam.

Of course, this can mean members who can physically attend the programs in the Temple Building, but with Srivasa Ji we were very much discussing (some times with great zeal and alacrity) that this can also mean Grhasthas studying the texts in their own homes in the morning and then discussing together on a weekly basis what they have studied.

From our perspective, hearing opinions of many others also, Sastric studies in the Western hemisphere, is in a very dangerous, little reliability, situation. There can be local programs promoted by local gurus that are very nice, but we feel that without a global educational network coordinating these and offering these programs to others we will always be lacking in essential features to make a healthy ISKCON educational aspect.

We need local gurus and global integration.

Our first product aim in Anjana Suta Academy, Sastric studies, is learning how to associate with teachers, fellow students and our students. Then we are concerned with didactic methods, calendars, and finally learning facts.

We feel that we are lacking in the extreme with proper association between the ISKCON Administrators and Brahmans which are the two pillars of happiness for the community in general.

This is our view and of course 60% of the problem is our fault, 20% others faults and 20% God's arrangement.

So, we propose to go ahead trying to integrate Temple President's et al with ISKCON Ministry of Education. We will go ahead with niscayena and put our heart into it but we depend 60% on your mercy.

Of course, we are certainly continuing with our own responsibility of regular, daily, SB study and how that is developing systematically you can see at our web-site, www.Jayarama.US, through our News.

Annual Report

Hanumatpresaka Swami

September 24, 2017

We traveled representing NIOS, ISKCON, Anjana Suta Academy, from September to December to Chicago, Richmond, Raleigh, Washington D. C. and Mexico. We also participated in the Gala Event in Houston.

End December to beginning March we had a very hard trip from Mexico City to Houston that was then supposed to go to Delhi, but got rebooked in route four times. Twenty-four hour trip became like 54-hours and we were have severe chest-pains by the end of the trip, but we visited the Indian Council on Philosophical Research, Prof. Kalyan Kumar Cakravary, former Director, of the Lalita-kala Academy, Indians, fine arts academy, presented a paper at a symposium on the Srimad Bhagavatam organized by the University of Madras and Oxford Center for Hindu Studies. Then in Kolkata we did programs with Presidency University and one other. We travelled through the remote North East to Assam, Tripura, Manipur and then Pune, Navi-mumbai and Mayapura. Meeting Directors of biggest NGOs et al.

With ISKCON Kolkata, Delhi et al we did extensive lecturing with hundreds of Society Member and Guests and Brahmcari Ashrams. With Dr. Samaresh Bandhyopadyay we worked on our ISKCON publications: Man Making book, Promtional Brochure, Stapathyam. We finished in Delhi with a visit to Dr. Lokeschandra and the ICCR (Indian Council on Cultural Relations). He proposed to send five scholars from India to participate in Art and the Sacred in Peru in June 2018.

Back in USA we worked with NIOS Nashville. The Peruvian National Library changed their Director three times and the Indian Ambassador for Peru, Dr. Sandip Cakravorty, was re-stationed to Washington D. C. so we could not get a firm sponsor for Art and the Sacred and lost the opportunity.

However, Abhirama thakura Das, Alejandro Salazaar, and other staunch NIOS supporters in Peru pushed ahead The Second Symposium on Psychology and the Sacred in June.

It only had one evening in the National Museum this time for the public and then with the Jesuit University and San Marcos University we organized two more days of extremely potent and informative symposia at universities.

We published the second edition of ‘Solari’ our magazine but will not post it in English.

We have a clip of the events in Peru at www.youtube.com with a keyword search for “psychology and the sacred 2017”.

Besides these massive events in Peru we then continued to Chile where we presented Arjuna and Hamlet at the National Library’s marble hall with the National Poet Laureate, Raul Zurita, and Jung and the Bhagavata at the best Community Cultural Center in Santiago. All these programs and many more were packed with excellent and influential audience members.

We also did programs in Bolivia and worked in a very concentrated effort with local ISKCON educators such as Mathuresa Das on developing education in ISKCON as a NIOS project.

We were one of the principal organizers for the Third Annual Symposim on Education with ISKCON in Seattle. It was attended by 25+ of the best educators and educational institutions in ISKCON and we are working on the editorial board of ‘Viplavah’ the newly formed ISKCON Ministry of Education Journal. The first issue has come out and many educators are asking for more.

We took advantage of NIOS facilities in Murfreesboro to revive our energy. We had traveled through 26-airports from 1 June through 1 August.

We have worked and have a Webmaster: Joshua and Grants-lady: Ambika in Houston and Corresponding Secretary: Dr. Ayus Goyal in Texas.

We are now working on this project: Art and the Sacred, with requirements that Abhirama get a signed proposal for Sept-Oct in the Ricardo Palma Cultural Center in Miraflores, Lima, Peru. They have 4-exhibition halls and guarantee 40,000 people will see displays each week. In their theater we hope to premier our move, “Art and the Sacred: A pilgrim’s progress”. Participation in this symposium and movie are from top Hispanic and International Directors, Artists and Art Historians.

Of course, many people came forward with generous donations which are reported in the Annual Financial Report.

Now we are headed for India and Australia to do interviews for Art and the Sacred, work with Dr. Samaresh and help develop Education with ISKCON.

Of course, at 70-years old this is all happening by Krsna’s will and quite seriously we can die of heart failure and any moment and plan to die of old age November 2024, God willing.

Next year, 2018, is the last year we will serve as General Secretary of the Advisory Board of NIOS.

There are other projects so please ask us questions as you wish.

Financial Report &  Reporting Prospectus

NIOS

2016 July 1 – 2017 June 30

Compiled by Hp Swami, General Secretary of Advisory Board, from Sm. Abhaya Narain, Treasurer, notes etc.

INCOME

Donations

         NIOS International – 26, 135

         NIOS Nashville – 731

         Vedabase.com – 8,374

         SUB-TOTAL – 35,240

Book Sales

         NIOS Int’l – 258.70

         NIOS Nashville – 100.00

         SUB-TOTAL – 358.70

TOTAL – $35,598.70

EXPENSES

1.   Anjana Suta Academy – 7509*

2.   India Dr. Sanaresh Bandhyopadyaya & others for printing and publication – 2,650*

3.   Car Purchase - $3,500

4.   Car Registration etc. - $639.25

5.   Meta-soft Membership – 4,995*

6.   Misc. Expenses – 205.18

7.   South America Tour Including “Psychology and the Sacred”, printing ‘Solaris’ magazine - $2,000

8.   Nashville Kirtan - $356.84

TOTAL – 30,229.27

SURPLUS

$5,369.43

BALANCES

(2017 Sep 24)

1.   NIOS International - $21,648.63

2.   NIOS Nashville - $45,211.26

3.   US Bank Visa – 0

          SUB-TOTAL - $66, 859.89

4.   Integro, Oscar Natars, Professional Cinema Services Due - $2,000

5.   Goloka Education, Ramanan Nagarajan, Sunday School Curriculum Design Services Due - ~$6,000 of $10,000 original contracted.

6.   Automobile ~ $3500

         SUB-TOTAL – 11,500

TOTAL -  78,359.89

* NOTES:

Expenses

1.   Anjana Suta Academy (Hanumatpresaka Swami) - While traveling we receive and pay NIOS funds through ASA and keep simple but usually adequate records. Any money ASA received from NIOS should have been accounted and adjusted by 30 June 2016. We will try to find out the cause of this but for certain it was NIOS printing, publication or event expenses in Europe or South America.

2.   India Dr. Samaresh – These are for publication of works such as the book Bharatiya Sanskriti and the forth coming Education in Ancient Indian and Making in Modern Times.

3.   Meta-soft Membership – Is for professional help in obtaining grants from foundations.

PROSPECTUS

To improve accounting in this fiscal year we are proposing the following Chart of Accounts (COA):

1.   Assets

1.1.                Bank Accounts

1.1.1.                   NIOS International

1.1.2.                   NIOS Nashville

1.1.3.                   USB Visa

1.1.4.                   Petty Cash

1.2.                Physical Assets

1.2.1.                   Inventory

1.2.2.                   Office Equipment

1.2.3.                   Building and Auto

1.3.                Copyrights

1.4.                Accounts Receivable

1.5.                Misc.

2.   Liabilities

2.1.                Accounts Payable

2.2.                Misc.

3.   Income

3.1.                Donations

3.1.1.                   Vedabase.com

3.1.2.                   HpS – Traveling Programs

3.1.3.                   Misc.

3.2.                Sale of Books, Videos etc.

3.3.                Misc.

4.   Expenses

4.1.                Office and Property Maintenance

4.1.1.                   Web-page

4.2.                Book, CD, Periodical Publication

4.3.                Projects

4.3.1.                   ‘Solaris’ magazine.

4.3.2.                   “Education in Ancient India and Man-making in Modern Times” book.

4.3.3.                   Vedabase.com

4.3.4.                   Art and the Sacred

4.3.4.1.  Movie

4.3.4.2.  Symposium Oct 2018, Lima, Peru.

4.3.5.                   Nashville Annual Labor Day Festival

4.4.                Misc.

Hare Krishna beloved Gurudev please accept my humble obeisances all glories to Srila Prabhupad.

You was asked me if I associate with Brahmanas.

My situation is like that, I live in Serbia far away from the Iskcon temple or asram,and here are not many initiated brahmanas I can associate with.

When I am in Norway, where is my employer based in Oslo, there is Iskcon temple and I associate with devotees and temple president who is initiated Brahmana grihasta, his name is Maha Bhavi das. that is most of time on S.F.program. When I have free day from the work. Like you know my dear Gurudev  I'm work like truck-bus driver, and driving around the Europa. Have little possibility to associate with devotees, but when I have a time I do it.

So I am thinking if second initiation can help me to be better devotee and servant of devotees, I wish to take it. I feel that Lord Krishna arranged to me to go to Vrindavan to see you and serve you my dear Gurudev. I take truck, boat and helicopter,who knows if I will get an another chance to do it again. I already have passed age of 50. Live is short. Health is not very good...

I'm accept what ever you decide, you are my beloved Gurudev. Please forgive me my offences and accept my humble obeisances again and again.

Hare Krishna

All glories to Srila Prabhupad

HpS - ASA -- Many things to discuss. No rush. We can try to arrange initiation ceremonies wherever we are. Especially second initiation can be more like a formality. Jiva Goswami explains that in the current time Hari-Nama Diksa is sufficient. Second initiation is more like a formality.

This is not an "urgent" topic, short-quick-answer. For sure let us discuss it in person in the next few days.

Thank you.

AGtSP!!! Paoho.
P.S. It is very nice to hear more about your regular life. 

Dear Guru Maharaj PAMHO AGTSP I received this mail and I am very happy and exciting to meet you soon. I was thinking for long time for my second initiation but was shy to ask you about it.

I don't know what are you decide about initiation of Sahil,nephew of Raktak Dasa,maybe we can be initiated together

I'm surrender toYour and Krishna's mercy and praying Lord Krishna and Balaram to be initiated in Vrindavan.

Your servant and disciple

Indradyumna das

Hare Krishna

HpS-ASA -- Let us discuss it here with all the devotees. Do you have any Brahmana association?