Letters to the editor

Prof. Kalyan-kumar Chakravarty wrote:

Dear Swamiji,
I have looked at the video with deep respect for the hard and sensitive work put in by you and your team in the midst of your whirlwind tour. 
I have attached my comments and corrections for the video sent to me. I can't congratulate you enough for this.
I offer short comments on each interview,

1. Hectar Bejar. A very sensitive commentary on the crisis of market oriented society which places knowledge over values, interests over feelings, the virtual over the reality.
2.  Kalyan Kumar Chakravarty. The designation needs to be changed. If possible it should read as follows: Distinguished Professor and Member, Governing Board, Centurion University of Technology and Management, Bhubaneswar and Visakhapatnam;

Ex-Secretary, Government of India;

Ex-Chancellor, National University of Educational Planning and Administration, New Delhi, GOI; Ex-Chairman, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi, GOI.

JFK School and Graduate School of Art and Science, Harvard University, USA.

M.A., MPA, Ph.D., History, Public Administration, Fine Arts.

The corrections to the subtitles to my article are shown and deletions have been <s>struck through</s>.

5:20 is largely one dealing with

5:28 necessity and <s>enrichment</s> embellishment

5:36 from <s>the</s> their environment

6:04 a lot festivals with them

6:46 I see him <s>is</s> as the only <s>member</s> agent of nature

6:59 The <s>human being</s> humanity

7:15 and <s>their</s> there being no more left

7:18 so it starts <s>to consume</s> consuming itself

7:23 I’ve done a lot of <s>Government</s> governance

7:35 What is called “matsya ”

7:38 Fish eating fish.

Big fish eating smaller fish,

        <s>eating smaller fish</s>

7:56 and you become <s>a</s> part of an <s>automotive</s> automative civilization

8:22 which embodies urban anxiety

8:30 <s>As</s> uch of this art has not

8:51 invaded by a kind of , immediacy

9:24 In <s>this current</s> a surveillance state if

1. Gustavo Buntinx. An excellent summary of philosophical though on the fractured human condition.
2. Jorge Villacorta.  A moving commentary on the cathartic in art, poetry and theology in everyday life.
3. Liliana Galvan. A beautiful statement connecting art with life.
4. Ravi M. Gupta. A sensitive exposition of Krishna Consciousness as a clue to connect sacred and profane.

Dear Maharaja

Pamho, Agtsp

Everyday we are getting your association from soundcloud. It is as if we live next door to your camper trailer and Nashville and therefore we are receiving so much good fortune.

We received your last letter. My better half, Her Grace Dhanesvari Devi Dasi, has contacted Sriman Abhirama Thakura Prabhu and he has kindly offered us some Solaris translation seva.

In terms of Australian art for the grand Arte y lo Sagrado did usted have anything in mind? Indigenous Australians do have their very unique art style and pantheistic story telling.

HpS - EXACTLY!  Start to investigate it as Sankirtan. See if others in Australia would like to contribute to Solaris or even come to Peru.  Maybe you can even get a grant to bring some indigenous people!!

For example their creator god is a snake, like Ananta Shesh maybe - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_Serpent

This page gives nice introduction To Aboriginal Dreamtime and beautiful examples of traditional art- https://www.aboriginal-art-australia.com/aboriginal-art-library/aboriginal-dreamtime/

HpS - Wow!   You are way ahead of us!   We try to look at these tonight.

Maharaja, there is one devotee here at New Govardhana  who is requesting shelter from you. His name is Aja. He saw you when you last visited and says that he really connected with your lectures. He has been listening to your lectures on Desire Tree and Youtube. I gave him the soundcloud link. I have also given him the link and instructions of how to use this blog so I expect he will write to you soon. 

Very much looking forwrad to hearing from you at your next convinience. 

Ys

Dhruvananda Das

HpS - We see there is another letter from your good self, but we wait for 3-days to answer unless it is URGENT.   We wait for Aja!    Srila Prabhupada is our Guru!!!    We are petit-gurus under his orders.

Querido Gurumaharaja: 

Por favor acepte mis respetuosas reverencias!

Todas las glorias a Srila Prabhupada!

Gracias por mantenernos informados de Su Sankirtana y energía.

Estoy muy agradecida por permitirme servirle, disculpe por continuar cometiendo errores por favor. Soy  la penúltima hija del tercer matrimonio de mi padre y lo único que hice es jugar con muñecas... hay una lista en Jayarama y parece que soy 2da discípula mujer y 8vo discipulo de una larga lista,  es un lindo número :) auspicioso para aprender a tomar una amorosa responsabilidad. 

Gurumaharaja tengo unas preguntas sencillas que en nuestros dias cotidianos se platican. 

Se ha vuelto muy popular la dieta vegana en la sociedad con muy buenos argumentos, honestamente prefiero seguir ofreciendo leche y sus derivados a Krsna. Krsna aprecia a los karmis yoguis como yo  pero deseamos mucho avanzar a jñana yoga y ofreceremos con amor y devoción sincera para satisfacer favorablemente al Señor Supremo, a Krsna le gusta los ladhus con mantequilla :) 

Se ha vuelto muy común ver a algunos de nuestros amigos frecuentar lugares veganos de no devotos o personas que son favorables porque te responden  "Hare Krsna" o practicantes de algún proceso  y comprarles preparaciones de granos. 

Mis preguntas

1- Si tengo un restaurante Hare krsna cerca , es mas  importante que sea bhoga- vegano que lacto- prasadam por la violencia que puedo causar ? 

2- un amigo devot@ de ISKCON se reinició, compartimos lindo servicio. 

Después de su reiniciacion es extraño no saludarle como antes ni compartir servicio ( fuera del templo ejm. Trabajos en computadora)  

Alguien me aconsejo tomar distancia para que entienda que  el tomar reiniciacion y rechazar a su diksha guru es una grave ofensa, es correcto tomar esa actitud? 

3- una mataji de nuestro colectivo artisartísco Natabara está muy entusiasta en producir una coreografía de danza de Manipur. Hemos escuchado de Ud. Que requiere mucha práctica.

Se podrá conseguir esa practica viendo vídeos de youtube o es mejor esperar la visita de algún bailarín manipurense?

Muchas gracias y disculpe las preguntas simples. 

Su eterna aspirante a sirviente 

Asta Sakhi dd.

[Traduccion por www.translate.google.com]>>

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Dear Gurumaharaja:

Please accept my respectful obeisances!

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Thank you for keeping us informed of Your Sankirtana and energy.

I am very grateful for allowing me to serve you, sorry for continuing to make mistakes please. I am the penultimate daughter of my father's third marriage and all I did was play with dolls ... there is a list in Jayarama and it seems that I am 2nd woman disciple and 8th disciple of a long list, it is a nice number :) auspicious for Learn to take a loving responsibility.

HpS - Please forgive our offenses. We also come from simple family situation!   We all do, in Kali yuga.

Gurumaharaja I have some simple questions that in our daily days are discussed.

The vegan diet in society has become very popular with very good arguments, I honestly prefer to continue offering milk and its derivatives to Krsna. Krsna appreciates karmis yogis like me but we very much want to advance to jnana yoga and offer with sincere love and devotion to please favorably the Supreme Lord, Krsna likes ladhus with butter :)

It has become very common to see some of our friends frequent vegan places of non-devotees or people who are favorable because they answer "Hare Krsna" or practitioners of some process and buy them grain preparations.

My questions

1- If I have a Hare krsna restaurant nearby, is it more important that I am a bhoga-vegan than lacto-prasadam because of the violence I can cause?

ASA - Srila Prabhupada was talking about healthy diets and said that it is better to die taking Prasadam, but there are also different kinds of Prasadam. He talks about the standard in his mothers kitchen and says that if you take Prasadam that comes from a kitchen like that then immediately you feel refreshed.

In the NOD we remember that one of the offenses in the Deity worship is to offer grains GROWN by non-devotees. So, there is Karma in milk or no milk, vegetables, grains. We try to offer the best of the bad choices available in Kali yuga to Krsna and then we eat His remnants.
The dairy industry in the USA is better than it was when Prabhupada was here. You can get milk from different dairys and they have different quality. Yes, don't take excess for sense gratification, but if we are using our brains, like the King's counselors, then we have to have the sugar and energy that comes from milk. If we are living in the forest and just chanting and worshipping Tulasi then we can live without much milk. The cows whose butter is offered to Krsna as laddus go to Goloka when they die.

2- A devoted friend of ISKCON is reinitiated, we share nice service.

After reinitiated it is strange not to greet him as before or share service (outside the temple eg computer works).

Someone advised me to take distance so that you understand that taking reinitiation and rejecting your diksha guru is a serious offense, is it correct to take that attitude?

HpS - It is probably something very individual eg. He had an ISKCON DIksa guru who fell down. After six years he took shelter of another ISKCON guru.  Seems O.K.    He left nice ISKCON diksa guru because Guru required 16-rounds and took shelter of someone who only requiered 4-rounds. Seems bad.  Yes, by NOI five we can see how to relate to different devotees. Sometimes it is hard to be socially distant to show the truth. That was Arjuna's problem. He didn't want to disrupt his social relations.

3- a mataji of our collective artisartísco Natabara is very enthusiastic in producing a dance choreography of Manipur. We have heard from you. It requires a lot of practice. Can you get that practice watching YouTube videos or is it better to wait for the visit of a manipulated dancer?

ASA - Best to communicate with Gaurangi. Lalita gopi has her address.  Of course, we can pick up something from internet but I don't think too much depth.

Thank you very much and excuse the simple questions.

His eternal aspiring servant

Asta Sakhi dd.

HpS - Espero la traducciones or www.translate.google.com va a ser bueno. Estamos escribiendo en Ingles como el robot puede entender.   Muy bien sus cartas.  Siempre estamos esforzando envolucrar la gente en los significados de Srila Prabhupada.  Mas!   Reverencias a su Esposo!

Letter to the Editorial Board:

Hare Krsna, Prabhus,

AGTSP.  paoho.   Attached is the first draft of Viplavah 2018[3]. It is late because we are selfish, hypocritical, little demons and also because of this eye infection.

Saw Doctor Frank Gowota today and he said that was viral conjunctivitis and is mostly cured now but there is still some inflamation of the cornea so take this steroid for about a week and you should be able to see straight again.

Until then the screen looks blurred and it hurts to read and write, but we go on.

So attached is the first draft. It is going to be a good number. Jiva Goswami Das is already joining us as a future Assistant Acting Editor. He is in Houston and is rumored to have a wife and daughter but nobody ever sees them. <img alt="Emoji" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true" height="16" src="https://s.yimg.com/nq/yemoji_assets/latest/yemoji_assets/1f601.png" title="Emoji" width="16" /> He is like the Gopis in Vraja, they think they have husbands.

Please look through it and when you find your name inserted next to "TTD" please do the thing suggested or something vaguely related.

Also, please give General Opinions.

HpS - ASA.

P.S. We are still shooting for a release date of 29th May. I was thinking we can get someone in North America to format it. Caitanya-caritamrta Das in Houston is great candidate. Copy of this letter to him.

Hire Locally.

Hare Krsna, Prabhus and Prabhinis,
TB, here.

We just finished our Daily SB class from the ASA camp in Murfreesboro. Last year at the North American Symposium on Education in Seattle we gave SB class in the morning and noticed how Srila Prabhupada included it as a requirement in our society. Our realization was that all the Bh. Vai., Bh. Vedanta, study systems that we are developing are very weak unless they include, are even based upon regular, daily SB classes amongst the Yatra. That is how we would primarily identify the Yatra. Not primarily as those people who attend worship the the Deities in a certain Templel building.

Of course, this is a big topic, but here we are just giving a summary.

The main thing was that we were tired. We are confused by our Sankirtan battles but as a regulative principle, order of our Spiritual Master, we had to have Daily SB class. We have tried with several different Yatras/Temples to get this going but have not been able to do it. We even went to the local GBC and could not get a satisfying arrangement. Now we are going to two or three other GBCs and the Ministry of Education, and as they also seem to be confunded like this as others, then we have a right to go to Srila Prabhupada directly. We have a right, responsibility to start it here in our ASA. So, we did it.

It was hard.

Yet, we have finished one week.

Have you got a Bhakti-vedanta curriculim going??

No. We are first going to keep our taste and satisfaction in the matter. Then we are going to see how others join us and learn what is there taste and satisfaction and Sankirtan needs and then out of that a natural system will develop. May take some time but it will have a very strong foundation.

That was our deep realization and satisfaction today. We were not attending, doing the class out of our head. It was coming straight from the heart. "Sraddha sabda..." and we were feeling sure that we don't have to think, speculate, at all how to expand the class. The class, Bhakti-yoga, will do that automatically.

Maybe you can join our class. Maybe you can't but then maybe our class will inspire others.

What do you think?

We could say more but what is your perspective?

BTW, I did a post some time ago giving a longer overview of the books:

https://www.ashishdalela.com/2018/02/26/impatient-guide-books/