Letters to the editor

All Glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Please accept my humble obeisances! 

I have not written to you in a while Maharaj.. Sorry about that. I can't say I've been particularly busy with much. 

I am on holidays now. Term 3 of Year 12 is complete - apparently the most important, stressful term. After this week completes, I have another term remaining. This term only has 6 weeks and then I'm free. I'm free from the imprisonating clutches of high school :) But then I have to go to uni, more study yay ;) I've had to put my application in, for which courses I choose to do. For now, the road is business; it is broad and simple. If something I like reveals itself to me, perhaps I may change later on. 

Anyway, regarding our holiday Maharaj, the flights have been booked. We will be departing Australia on the 24th December for Azerbaijan. We will stay there for 3 weeks and then go to India. We will then stay in India for one week (quite short unfortunately). We will arrive back to Australia by the 25th of January. I very much hope that somehow you will grace us with your visit to Australia. 

HpS -  Oooof!    We arrive in India, Bombay, on the 23rd of January. Now it looks like we will not get to Australia, but Dhruva and Dhanesvari and their two kids will be arriving in Peru in one week.

Maharaj, I'm also thinking of taking initation from yourself at some point. I am not, as of yet, chanting 16 rounds a day, but hopefully I will be in the near future. Of course I am the most unqualified person to be taking initiation,

HpS - There are a few people less qualified than you, <img alt="devil" height="23" src="https://hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/devil_smile.png" title="devil" width="23" /> but I think among others it would give some satisfaction to our Sriman Raktaka Das, wherever the devil is now!

. . . but, it is a thought of mine. Time is running out and I need to be as vigilant as possible. Hopefully, as you are doing already, you may impart ever more of your wisdom unto my insignificant self. 

Besides that, as usual, I have some questions :)

1. This may be perhaps a sensitive question.. Sorry for my bluntness... As in ISKCON, killing life is considered wrong, what is the view on abortion? Especially, sometimes people ask, what if the woman was forcefully impregnated, under severe circumstances.. Does she then have the right to abort the baby? Will that be her karma? The baby's karma? 

HpS - ASA --- We tried to write most of our thoughts in: https://hps.monkeywarrior.com/node/9640. O.K.?

2. Should devotees be able to keep pets? What is ISKCON view of keeping pets? Should it be allowed? Or is that enslaving the soul? 

HpS - Krsna has many, many pets. His pet peacock is named Tandavika and he has a house dog and a big tough mean dog who helps to protect the cows. See http://www.jayarama.us/archives/rkgd.pdf. You can have a parrot and take it on Hari-nama Sankirtana and feed it grapes when it chants the Maha-mantra. 

3. What is your view of devotees becoming Vegan? As we know, cow torture is horrendous today.. but also, if we offer the milk of the cow, is it not liberated? How shall we go about this? Sourcing Ahimsa milk is not always convenient and easy...

HpS - Basically if you live in a forest and don't have much brain work then you can live on roots and fruits, but if you have to be counselor of a King then you are going to need the cerebral nutrition that milk gives. Cows were treated worse when Srila Prabhupada was here but he showed that milk was important food for us and that we can take the public milk. Of course, we can do finer and finer things. Like getting Ahimsa milk etc.

4. Also Maharaj, should it be acceptable for devotees to eat from fast food places? For example, sometimes buying milkshakes or chips from outside? Is that okay?

HpS - It is offensive to offer grains GROWN by non-devotees. So we have to be as pure as we can. Of course, the standard for fast food places will not be so great so chips may, and probably are, cooked in non-vegetarian fat. Be a pure as you can. I would say that milkshakes are O.K. but not the chips unless they swear that it is vegetable oil.

Sorry for the overload of questions... :) Please excuse my foolish self.

As always Maharaj, I hope your health is in best condition! I hope to receive your reply soon :) 

Your foolish servant, 

Lakshmi

HpS - We all thank you for your letter. Our health is pretty good. For 70-year old Berkeley graduate it is a miracle.   AGTSP!

We had like three hours of consulting today and some rest from the stress of La Paz (13,333 feet [no oxygen]) so we cannot get to to many letters. Now it is getting dark and in 15-minutes we start and evening program!   Jaya!

Life is fun if you are a devotee.  Our respects to you divine mother and sister and aunts and uncles and The Bhimasena!

All Glories to Srila Prabhupada!! All glories to Guru Maharaj HpS!!

Radha Krsna Ki Jay, Gourananga Mahaprabhu Ki Jay and Goura Bhakta Vrnda Ki Jay.

Dandavat Pranam Guruji Maharaj!

HpS - It is such a grand pleasure to hear from you. We are just returning to Lima from La Paz. In La Paz it is 4km altitude and no air. Wonderful preaching programs. Look at the letter we just posted about India tour!  When shall we go to Manipur and the rest?

Please accept our humble obeisances ontu Guruji’s padmacharan that I am continuing reading of Bhagavatam Tenth Canto 2^nd Chapter. In the purport of sloka 31 of this chapter it is clearly mentioned that after wandering throughout the universe, a fortunate person within this material  world seeks shelter of such a Guru, or acarya, who trains the devotee in the suitable ways to render service according to the circumstances so that the Supreme Personality of Godhead will accept the service. This makes it easier for the candidate to reach the ultimate destination.

Likewise, a neofide bhakta needs Diksa Guruji’s or Shiksha Gurui’s guidance. Our main objective is to serve Sri Krsna after taking permission of Gouranga Mahaprabhu but without the help of Nityananda Prabhu we could not approach directly Sri Gouranga Mahaprabhu and without the help of Srimati Radha Thakurani we could not directly approach Sri Krsna. One more important thing is that without getting personal Sakhi, Manjari we could not enter Brindavan. Then how we will serve Sri Krsna? It is my strong eagerness. Guruji please highlight me in this confusion.

HpS - We personally heard from the lips of Srila Prabhupada when one reporter asked him, "Swamiji, what will happen to your movement when you die", and Srila Prabhupada answered firmly, "I will never die. I will live forever in my books!".  So, if you are sincere you can get personal instruction from Srila Prabhupada's books and that will tell you how to get Lord Nityananda, the ant and me as Gurus.

In the song, "Gauranga bolite habe...", CC Adi 7.17, it explains that we can enter Vraja by the mercy of Lord Nityananda but to enter the confidential pastimes of Radha and Krsna within Vraja, more than relations to Gopas or Mother Yasoda, we need the mercy of the Manjaris. We can get thatn through Rupa and Raghunatha and then the same thing is there. We can get that mercy through service to Nectar of Instruction or Nectar of Devotion. Read the books with sincere desire to apply them.

Jitatmana prasantasya... BG ...  when we become even Goswami's, control the six pushes, then we get solid inspiration from the Paramatma how to advance.

So, please look at the India Tour post here in the Blog and give us your suggestions. Maybe we pass Gaura-purnima in Manipura.

Yours fallen servant,

Yamunesvara Das

Hare Krsna Dear Gurudev,
Please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
All glories to Guru parampara.

Gurudev, got inspired internally to double the rounds so thinking to start 32 rounds from coming ekadashi.
It will be life long.

So if you have any advice or comments please help me to know.

Thank you so much Gurudev.

your fallen servant,
Girivaradhari-Gopal Das

HpS - We wrote and answer to this yesterday but we could not post it from La Paz.   According to our understanding it is best to take this vow for two weeks, like from the the next Ekadasi to the following. See the result and then with more consultation maybe take it for one year. Then ...

All Glories to Srila Prabhupada
All Glories to Sri Sri Goura Nitay

My obeisances Maharaja.

I want to thank you for your always so clarifying answers, I appreciate it. I will have more progress in this topic and I will tell you how I have been working on it. I want to use Vaisnava psychology and philosophy for this, is it adequate?

HpS - Yes. Being an ISKCON devotee. Following the general process. Is great. If you need some specialized physical or mental help then being a devotee you can see that and then have good intelligence who to pick for a doctor.

On the other hand, I want to tell you that in the month of November Maharaja Dhanvantari Swami visits us, apparently they will be together on the same date in our yatra. I have thought about taking advantage of the instance and asking for refuge, although I think that would be complicated since I am involved in supporting the cases of sexual violence that have occurred, for which we have been very badly cataloged for creating protocols and forming a protective team Vaisnava I hope that this is not a difficulty, please give me your blessings so that with the mercy of Srila Prabhupada I can take refuge in my spiritual master and go forward on this path, which I promise that every day I do my best.

HpS - Hare Krsna!!!   We will be very happy to see Maharaja!

No more to say for now! I say goodbye Maharaja. Already counting the days to have your association in our country.

ASA - Photos attached.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada All glories to Sri Sri Goura Nitay My obeisances Maharaja Dear Maharaja, how are you? Here in Chile feeling the separation of your association

. . . .

First, a small report: 4 principles: OK Japa: Not so Ok. I am aware that I must improve my singing.

Now, I want to tell you that as a result of the call to a meeting in the temple about "Caring for the devotees", a public denunciation of a fact of child sexual abuse committed by the one who was a member of the congregation is made, at present and for efforts of the victim herself, this person is prohibited from entering all the temples. On this topic, the devotees began to talk about respect among Vaisnavas, and to address issues of sexual violence .. . .

HpS - [As you have asked we are not publishing the details of the situation but have shared your letter with Jiva Goswami Das in Houston who is our student and finishing his work for his Master of Social Work diploma]

Please, Maharaja help us in this struggle with his light and his words. Your servant, Ma. Soledad.

HpS - ASA - This is the material world, even when Krsna was personally present in Vrndavana there were demons causing so much terror that the girls were having miscarriages. There is no real peaceful way to live in a mental hospital, except becoming doctors, good patients, with the aim of getting people out.

Considering who we are we don't want to stay in ISKCON Chile. We should only look at it as a transit place to ISKCON Goloka.

O.K.?

Beyond this you can contact the GBC Secretary, Zonal Supervisors. I have done this and was not satisfied on certain issues, so I took it to two more GBC Secretaries and was still not satisfied. It may not be that they are less competent or sincere than I am, but just that the way the institution is structured, the world is structured they cannot help.

Then, we can and have gone to Srila Prabhupada directly. We pray to him etc. and are working to solve the problems ourselves. Of course, it is hard but we don't feel frustrated. We are doing what we can.

You can do that.

O.K.?

If you DO SOMETHING then knowledge will come how to do more. It is the DOING, Bhakti, that gets the progress, not just making extended plans.

Be eveyone's well wisher. The Evil One is the one who is suffering the most. Find His fault and help him.