Hare Krishna Beloved Gurudeva,
Please accept our humble obeisances,
All Glories to Srila Prabhupada,
Dear Gurudeva,
I hope this message finds you in perfect health and spirits. It greatly pleases us to always see you so full of enthusiasm and so dedicated to the service of your spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, and to the mission of ISKCON. Your example of unwavering devotion and purity is a source of inspiration for all of us, and we feel happiness for the devotees who will have your association, both in Spain and in Manipur. How unfortunate we are in South America, as few great devotees come to visit us anymore. How to survive in Patala?
We deeply thank you for always being there, offering us your association and mercy every morning. Today, however, our heart is afflicted, as a devotee very dear to our community, and of our same age, has left his body after a long battle with cancer. Recently I had the opportunity to visit him, and I was deeply shocked to hear his words about beef. It caused me great concern to hear him say that beef was perfect and delicious, as he were consuming it as a means of survival. This revelation generated a profound worry for his state of spiritual consciousness. At that moment, all we could do was urge him to communicate with his own spiritual master and explain what he were going through, and to not abandon the practice of chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra.
This event leads us to reflect on the inevitability of our own final journey, as you describe it, and on the importance of preparing for that transcendental moment.
At the same time, we reflect on the precious opportunity to associate with pure devotees, a blessing that will not always be available. Although you no longer visit South America frequently, we are certain that we will remain connected through your teachings (vani). We wonder if we have fully taken advantage of the mercy that you and Krishna have bestowed, or if we have wasted our life in mere material existence.
Often, we feel frustrated seeing so many deceivers and so many people willing to be deceived, and we wonder why, if we have something valuable to offer, people do not accept it. Is this simply our karma, or is there something we can do to improve our situation?
We are doubtful about how to know when it is necessary to improve our material situation to enhance our service and when it is better to simply focus on chanting the holy name of the Lord and let everything else flow from there. We understand the theoretical answer that one can make plans to serve Krishna, but that it is best to chant Hare Krishna. However, the challenge lies in how to apply this principle in practice and discern when we are neglecting our chanting by getting too involved in material affairs, or when we are not giving our full potential in this plane by focusing solely on chanting.
Despite these difficulties, we feel a deep connection with you and with Srila Prabhupada through your instructions and our vows. We are happy to see that the yatra in Mar del Plata is flourishing, with a very active preaching center that attracts new people interested in our philosophy. We are also making progress in legal and administrative aspects that will strengthen the sustainability of our rural project Sri Govardhan, whose goal is to create a Krishna-conscious environment for the cultivation and deepening of the spiritual practice of the devotees.
As for my family life, everything is calm. My eldest son, Manu, continues his journey through Europe, and I am pleased to see him interacting with the children of other devotees, the next generation. Benja, the middle one, continues his studies and is a good boy. My daughter Margarita grows up happy and attached to the devotees and to Krishna, which fills me with joy. My wife is also happy with her life and her daughter, and together we make a good team.
These are the news from Mar del Plata. We thank you for your purity and your sincere desire to serve Srila Prabhupada. We hope never to lose the infinite mercy of having known you.
With humility and gratitude,
Your insignificant servant,
Nikunja Bihari Das
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HpS/ASA AgtSP. Paoho.
Problem with the Blog, but Sriman Prahlada Nrsmha Das fixed it.
Just as much flavor and protein in beans and ghee as beef, no?
Lot more healthy.
Lot less violent.
Hmmm. Sounds like some madness!!!
Hope he escapes!
In one respect we are trying to do something sincerely. We are not Rupa Goswami.
So, we should not panic, no?
Yes, push to be more sincere to know how to help people.
Another aspect = This is the material world and what to speak of anything spiritual it is hard to even find anything good!
We keep trying.
There will always be some result that will be eternal and Krsna can build on it more and more.
--- Yes, just chank HKas much as possible, but when we can't do that make decisions about getting resources in the association do devotees, with reference to all the advice in SB, BG, Bh. Vedanta Purports, and intuition from sincere chanting.
Same thing is happening to you as happened to us when Srila Prabhupada left, as happened to Srila Prabhupada when Bh. Siddhanta Prabhupad left!
Krsna is pushing us to learn to fly our airplane solo, like we do in the Spiritual World.
Be good asscoation for our Patalitos.
Learn to get the best out of whatever, whoever you have.
O.K. Going to return some misfitting blades to the store.
Thank you. Very inspiring letter for all of us.
All over he world there are people like you all, by His Divine Grace.
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Hare Krishna, amado Gurudeva,
Por favor acepte nuestras humildes reverencias,
Todas las glorias sean para Srila Prabhupada,
Estimado Gurudeva,
Espero que este mensaje lo encuentre en perfecta salud y ánimo. Me complace enormemente verlo siempre tan lleno de entusiasmo y tan dedicado al servicio de su maestro espiritual, Srila Prabhupada, y a la misión de ISKCON. Su ejemplo de devoción inquebrantable y pureza es una fuente de inspiración para todos nosotros, y sentimos felicidad por los devotos que van a tener su asociación, tanto en España como en Manipur. Que desafortunados somos en Sudamérica, pocos grandes devotos vienen ya a visitarnos. Cómo sobrevivir en Patala?
Le agradezco profundamente por estar siempre presente, brindándonos su asociación y misericordia cada mañana. Hoy, sin embargo, me encuentro con el corazón afligido, ya que un devoto muy querido por nuestra comunidad, y de mi misma edad, ha dejado su cuerpo tras una larga lucha contra el cáncer. Recientemente tuve la oportunidad de visitarlo y me impactó profundamente escuchar sus palabras acerca de la carne vaca. Me causó gran inquietud oírlo decir que la carne de vaca era perfecta y deliciosa, ya que la estaba consumiendo como medio de supervivencia. Esta revelación me generó una profunda preocupación por su estado de conciencia espiritual. En ese momento, lo único que pude hacer fue instarlo a que se comunicara con su propio maestro espiritual y le explique lo que estaba atravesando y que no abandonara la práctica de cantar el maha-mantra Hare Krishna. Este evento me lleva a reflexionar sobre la inevitabilidad de nuestro propio viaje final, tal como usted lo describe, y sobre la importancia de prepararnos para ese momento trascendental.
Al mismo tiempo, reflexiono sobre la preciosa oportunidad de asociarnos con devotos puros, una bendición que no siempre estará disponible. Aunque usted ya no visita Sudamérica con frecuencia, tengo la certeza de que seguiremos conectados a través de sus enseñanzas (vani). Me pregunto si he aprovechado al máximo la misericordia que usted y Gurukrishna han otorgado, o si he malgastado mi vida en la mera existencia material.
A menudo, me siento frustrado al ver a tantos engañadores y a tantas personas dispuestas a ser engañadas, y me pregunto por qué, si tenemos algo valioso que ofrecer, la gente no lo acepta. ¿Es esto simplemente mi karma, o hay algo que pueda hacer para mejorar mi situación?
Me surge la duda de cómo saber cuándo es necesario mejorar nuestra situación material para potenciar nuestro servicio y cuándo es mejor enfocarse simplemente en cantar el santo nombre del Señor y dejar que todo lo demás fluya a partir de ahí. Entiendo la respuesta teórica de que uno puede hacer planes para servir a Krishna, pero que lo mejor es cantar Hare Krishna. Sin embargo, el desafío radica en cómo aplicar este principio en la práctica y discernir cuándo estoy descuidando mi canto por involucrarme demasiado en asuntos materiales, o cuándo no estoy dando todo mi potencial en este plano por enfocarme únicamente en el canto.
A pesar de estas dificultades, sentimos una profunda conexión con usted y con Srila Prabhupada a través de sus instrucciones y nuestros votos. Nos alegra ver que el yatra en Mar del Plata está floreciendo, con un centro de prédica muy activo que atrae a nuevas personas interesadas en nuestra filosofía. También estamos progresando en aspectos legales y administrativos que fortalecerán la sustentabilidad de nuestro proyecto rural Sri Govardhan, cuyo objetivo es crear un ambiente consciente de Krishna para el cultivo y profundización de la práctica espiritual de los devotos.
En cuanto a mi vida familiar, todo está tranquilo. Mi hijo mayor, Manu continúa su viaje por Europa, y me complace verlo relacionarse con los hijos de otros devotos, la próxima generación. Benja el del medio sigue sus estudios y es un buen muchacho. Mi hija Margarita crece feliz y apegada a los devotos y a Krishna, lo cual me llena de alegría. Mi esposa también está contenta con su vida y su hija, y juntos formamos un buen equipo.
Estas son las noticias desde Mar del Plata. Le agradezco por su pureza y su sincero deseo de servir a Srila Prabhupada. Esperamos nunca perder la infinita misericordia de haberlo conocido.
Con humildad y gratitud,
Su insignificante sirviente,
Nikunja Bihari Das
