Letters to the editor

PAMHO! AGTSP!!

Hare krishna Maharaja!! How are you? i hope that you are very well!!

In the last letter you asked me about the actual situation and news.

I returned to the temple at the begining of september. We had the Ratha Yatra!! It was so nice!!  I was all the time in the chariot, with the deities and the break of the car. It was an amazing experience the city was FULL of people thousands of persons! The kirtan and the program was excellent!! 

Now I have a new service in the temple, I am one of the two persons that have the responsability of the money, at first i didnt like a lot (this service), the money makes me feel  a little nervous. I know that its necesary but for example i don't like to count or to touch a lot... i know that the money is vey important to support differents things like: light, bhoga, wather, etc...  Now i more comfortable that at the begining.

We have a computer program and im learning how to do countability. Every day that pass i try to put more care in this service and try no to loss nothing and do the payments and things like this at time. Also i buy the differents things that the temple needs, the other day i did the first online shopping: bhoga and other products of cleaning.

My sadhana i think that is a little better than some months cause now im going to sleep more earlier, im sleeping around seven hours and now the time of japa is much better that some months ago. Im trying to be more tolerate and flexible with all, we had differents programs with Akrura prabhu about devotee care. It was very interesting and useful. Try to take care of the devotees its an amazing service and i think that its very motivating to see how a devotee are developing his spritual life and all his skills.

The past week we had the Seminar for disciples in ISCKON, i like a lot now im working in a document i must to finish before the week end, and in the first days of November we will have the Bhakti Sastri Exam.

About the initiation im very happy and i have many motivation to do it!! For me is an honor and i want to say you thanks for take this responsability, I think that take initiation its one of the most important things for the spiritual life and take diksa of one person that for me its an example of how to serve to Srila Prabhupada its a really mercy. I try to follow what you said me some months: Full program and 4 regulations stricts!! Also i trying to give my best to the temple and try to develope the services that the authorities gives me. Im  in extasis when i saw that they are happy with the resoults! I have many fails but im trying to be better!

The authorities of the temple said me that they will do a festival in christmas in New Vrajamandala and they think that maybe its a  good moment to take initiation, for me its OK! What do you think about that? What is the best method that you think  for my situation? I really want to take diksa, but i think that the authorities and you will have the best ideas to do it and i have a lot confidence in you and in them.

Thanks a lot for all!! If you have some instructions about anything please say me!! It will give me many motivation!!

Your servant Marcos.

HpS - Jaya! - AGTSP.  Of course, we started as Treasurer for the Temple in San Francisco when we joined and had the same problems with the service that you had. I guess we could assemble all the devotees you developed as Treasurers in ISKCON and compare our personalities and how we advanced in that line.
Your report sounds very nice!!
Thank you!

Jaya Jagannatha.. . .      Christmas sounds like good time. Our Vyasapuja is Christmas day or the day after.

Let us know more details.
http://vedabase.com/en/bg/10/23
"vitteśo yakṣa-rakṣasām"

Hare Krsna ,Pamho, AGTSP,AGTHpS, AGTTB, AGTUG,AGTBW

Seeing the condition of brother ass, it remains puzzle how all of you are able to manage your services to Srila Prabhupada. Could be some mystic power!!!!

Did HpS talked to Prof Bandyopadhyay?

HpS - ASA(BW, TB, UG ...) - Yes, we had a very nice discussion. We were arranging for him to meet with Sri Hari Das and Aja-govinda Das while he has in Delhi. Now we will call him with NGD and see what Krsna arranged.

Was HpS able to meet Mr Modi ?
HpS - Even if not, we are getting a lot of practice at doing it and involving a lot more people!

Does HpS has any service, where horse can help?
HpS - You are doing so much help just "growing up". Every time you chant Hare Krsna under the shelter of Srila Prabhupada you are "growing up" and can do more and more work. We expect th next book to be published soon, maybe in Bombay, so Dr. will visit there and you can help him then. They with Goloka Education we can start to distibute it (and the last one).  All your hard work in Kolkatta will give fruit!

Horse is very thank ful to all of you for starting ASA and esp BHvai. Horse has been behind the standards, but still as back bencher he has understood a lot.

Horse was thinking about his helpful naturs in general. Then he read http://vedabase.com/en/sb/5/8/10/ . "Material conditions are already established by the superior administration according to one’s karma. They cannot be changed. "

then he was confused to understand the contribution of red cross society, Mother teressa. Esp Ksatriyas are supposed to provide material comforts. Horse understands that SB 5 is for Sannyasis, but what can people with Ksatriays tendency learn from it.

trying to be a monkey,
passionate horse
 

HpS - ASA - Yuddhisthira asked, Bhisma while lay on the bed of arrows which was more powerful destiny or effort. Bhisma responded that the Ksatriya is basically a man of action. Destiny and personal effort at both important, but of the two personal effort is prominent. Without personal effort it is even difficult for destiny to act.

If you are really a Ksatriya then take some Karate classes. I would say you are more like a Royal Counselor. So work hard within your nature. Set some goals like that.

What will they be tell us some good life goals for a person like you!

 AGTSP !

 Please accept my humble obeisances

 Dear Maharaja

 We are back in DC again, urgent family matter, sister was very affected emotionally and all levels,  but thanks to Srila Prabhupada's mercy and yours we could advice and practically bring sister back to life.   She's listening to kirtans, chanting and learning Gita plus learning about Caitanya Mahaprabhu.   We'll take her to Govardana Puja tomorrow.   About the recomendation letter seems the senior manager devotee we asked 6 months ago forgot about it. Brahmacharis  advised me to get the Diksa also.  They are listening to your lectures and love them all very much.   But they are still out of town seems fixing a vehicle problem.  We apologize for the delays and foolishness.  Will get some sankirtan leader to write letter.   Please Maharaja have some rest,  your bodily heath is precious,  Krishna !  

your servant

Raul  

<img alt="angel" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/angel_smile.png" title="angel" width="23" /> Monkey -   <img alt="angel" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/angel_smile.png" title="angel" width="23" />Piggy -- ASA - AGTSP paoho. Yes, KC is universal. We can give the best advice, example, to EVERYONE as we become devotees. Jayananada Prabhu would naturally attract everyone and then they would start talking with him while they were fixing the walk-in refrigerator etc.

Then he would answer by saying something like, "Well, I don't know, but my old Grand-daddy used to say.". Then he would put some advice, perspective from Srila Prabhupada on their plate and they could hear it with interest and some respect.
Sounds like your sister has good chance of becoming perfectly happy in this lifetime!

Letter for recomendation has to come from The Temple President! <img alt="angel" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/angel_smile.png" title="angel" width="23" />

Hare krishna maharaj ! Please accept my humble obeisansces.

All the glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Thank you Maharaj ! I am relieved and happy to know that you can make some exceptions! [To not intitating much more after this year].

I hope I am worth to make an exception I have continued chanting 16 minimun rounds every day and following the regulative principles. As you asked me, regarding to service I have started doing service in a group of bhakti Vriksha on tuesdays .

It is very inspiring , so many new people chanting , reading bagavad gita and eating prasadam !! This tuesdays we did a japa class , everyone doing japa together , then offering ghee lights to Damodar ! it was very nice Iam very happy to be part of this service:) !

I will ask Mahahari Prabhu the recomendation letter .

Thank you for the information on where to read about grhasta ashram , I will read it !!! Hare krishna Hare Rama !

HpS - ASA - We are all going to die. Our "guru" is going to die. Krsna was Arjuna's best friend, but one day he would also see Him, "die". Secret to get out of the "box" and see our relations from the viewpoint of eternity.
<img alt="angel" height="23" src="http://www.hps.monkeywarrior.com/sites/all/libraries/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/angel_smile.png" title="angel" width="23" />

All glories to Sri Sri Gouranga Nityananda
All glories to Srila Prabhupada
All glories to Sri Hanumatpresaka Swami Maharaja

Please accept my humble obeisance
I really hope that all of your plans are pleasing Krsna and your health is very strong. My name is Indranila Mani dasa (ex-Ignacio González) from Valparaíso, Chile.

Let me start asking for your forgiveness. . . . 
. . . Indranila Mani dasa

P.S: Please Gurudeva, don´t publish this letter in the blog. Just because . . .

HpS - ASA - Jaya! AGTSP Very nice to hear from you. You should have written, called us, sooner as you had different problems. Maybe we could have helped. In general, we have to publish all letters that we read from girls because we are Sannyasis. From guys, we can be a little more liberal and just put in ". . ." for the more individual stuff. If someone wants us to not Publish a Letter then they should make that declaration BEFORE they letter rather than after. Then we have the option of not publishing and also NOT READING it.

Jaya! Also, we just can't handle individual letters in much detail. Our eyes won't handle it.

In general, also, let me say that 90% of the people reading this Blog have problems just like you, so there is not too much detail that we can't discuss here, among friends. Yes, some very particular details, let's exchange e-mails, but that is so, so, so, so very hard for us.

In general (as your General):
1. 99% of the world's population has no resort other than sex, drugs and movies. So as we have Srila Prabhupada in our perspective at all we are doing very well.
The SB is full of Fall-downs. Srila Vyasadeva fell down. The Praceta's fells down. Chayavana Muni fell-down. However, the reality is that we are immortal. You can't kill your soul. You will come back again and again.  Yes, in the beginning it is not unnatural to have robust moral falldowns. Later there are subtle falldowns. Even to want to not serve Krsna with intense spontanseous love is enough to make us fall-down from Mathura to Ayodhya.

2. How do we get back up?
We must learn from the failures then they are GOOD!.
We must be everyone's well-wisher, even those who have "hurt us".
Then it all becomes easy. We chant as much as we can.
We fix a certain number of rounds to do daily for the next ________ week or weeks and do them! Something we know we can do. Maybe we are so twerked out that all we can do is one round once a year on Janmastami and Gaura-purnima, but do something you really know you can do for afixed time and see the result.

Bong!     Do we want out?

Bong!   Bing!  Bang!  Japa, reading, hanging out with devotees...  Realize that our problems are NOT small problems. What we are going through is very much between me and Krsna: Family, friends, society, they are never going to be clear relations, NEVER, until I have some reasonable idea about who am I and who is Krsna (Prabhupada ISKCON...).

O.K? Give us some thoughts we can discuss here. Look at the discussions with others. We very much want your association

Hare Krsna Guru Maharaj,

Please accept our humble obeisances.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

We had a couple of issues that came up this week that seem pressing. Thank you for your tolerance! And thank you for your last reply Maharaj. We are not on the level to feel that we can transcend this body and even think about getting a spiritual body because we are so immersed at times by the  troubles created by our own mind and body!! It is good to hear that is the goal though, thank God... At times we can differentiate that's the mind, that's   the spirit soul!  Usually this depends on how sincerely we are chanting and doing service.

Here is a question Maharaj, thank you very much for listening. My boss's husband Madhava Chandra and  also my Bhakti Shastri  teacher said I shouldn't be getting up at four because I'm not on the level of a Mahatma! Prabhu said that to do this one must take a nap during the day but if you're working full-time nine to four this is not a good idea. Please maharaj let us know if Mangal Arati and time for japa is different for the 9-4 householder bunch??

HpS - ASA - - -  "Devotional service means transcendental activities. On the transcendental platform there is no contamination by the three modes of material nature. This is called viśuddha-sat-tva, the platform of pure goodness, or goodness free from contamination by the qualities of passion and ignorance. In this Krsna consciousness movement we require everyone to rise early in the morning, by four A.M.,and attend mańgala-ārati, or morning worship, then read Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, perform kīrtana, and so forth. Thus we hold continuous activities in devotional service twenty-four hours daily. This is called sato vrtte, or following in the footsteps of the previous ācāryas who expertly filled every moment of time with Krsna conscious activities" NOI-3
Srila Prabhupada says, "everyone", here, not just Sannyasis or others.
In his presence he required the Grhasthas to also be up for Mangala arati. Krsna stopped the Rasa-lila for Mangala arati. He left Rukmni in bed for Mangala-arati.
If Prabhuji would like to write to the Blog also we could discuss the comment also.
Of course, 4AM means Brahma-muhurta, no? So this means 1-1/2 hours to 3/4 hours before sunrise. At different times in the year, in different places, this might change for 4AM to other times, but if we don't get up for Mangala arati, kirtan, Japa, SB, then we will not have enthusiasm in our daily service. We will have pure intelligence.

Of course, the contamination may ne subtle. Vyasadeva was not smoking cigarrettes or going to bars, but he still deviated, made a mistake. He presented Krsna so indirectly in the Vedas and Puranas that no one could figure understand what was he real purpose of religion.

He was not satisfied, Narada Muni, his Guru, told him that Buddha would basically have to come and deny all that he had done before SB to get things back on line.

So, yes, get up early and get your rounds done with enthusiasm.

For the devotees who were up to 10PM closing the first restaurant in ISKCON Prabhupada tod them STILL they had to get up for Mangala arati. Yes, you may have to go to bed earlier. You may have to take a nap. BhVinode Thakura was up early, but he had a nap before breakfast.

O.K?

The other question is regarding how to have patience and be excepting of the situation with St. Nicholas prabhu. Prabhu doesn't want to spend time together now and wants to act as single parents again because he says that I seem too detached when I'm around him. I have explained that I want to work on the marriage and I want to give Aja a Krsna Conscious family but he is saying that it seems I have lost respect for him and that I show it (It may be due to losing some trust). I feel very fallen in this situation Maharaj because I want to do my duty and I want to follow instructions. I understand that the problem is in my mode of how I am approaching the situation. What if we do things out of duty but our feelings and heart may not be 100 percent behind it?? Is Krsna still pleased? I'm praying for realizations so I know how to have more heart and feelings behind doing my duty and to not do something reluctantly or with my guards up. I have a hunch that to move through this my realizations need to be so so much deeper....

HpS - ASA -- Have fun. Tell him how you feel. Listen to how he feels. In NOD we remember Prabhupada saying that in the beginning there is a tendency to impersonalism because we are fried with material variety and we don't yet have spiritual reality.

So it is natural in our devotional dealings in family life this will always be there in the beginning also. We don't have this "respect", "love", based on the body of our family members: "Oh, how beautiful you (r body and singing) are!", "Oh, what big brains you have!". You have just as big a challenge to become a pure, normal, devotee of Krsna as me or Hari-vilasa or Srila Prabhupada or Queen Kunti... You are not facing small challenges, so don't be surprised that it takes time and effort, love, affection and having lots of adventure and fun. The result is eternal, absolute and all pervasive. The Supreme Lord of unlimited numbers of universes, master of all the gods, will become your personal confidant.

Nick has fre will also. His progress is also his free choice. Let's see what happens. The Soap Opera of "Kama and Nicky in Hell's Reform School!"

I pray for sincerity and good rounds so I do not get to mental about this. Thank you thank you for listening to this banter!!! We know you are very very busy.

Your fallen servant,

Kamagayatri dd

HpS - ASA -- Oink! AGTSP paoho