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Comments Posted By Suresh das

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We remember Jayananda Prabhu on the Vaishnava calendar. Perhaps days can be added to remember similar powerful contributors to the Sankirtan Movement as well who have now passed away. Although I personally am not inspired by TKG, having many painful and unpleasant experiences in relationship to him, I can at the same time understand that others might feel inspired by him and his service, and wish to remember him.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 24.02.2010 @ 06:07

GBC Meeting Report #4

For myself, I can no longer chant 16 rounds per day. I no longer feel qualified to represent ISKCON, so I don’t for instance distribute books anymore, or do temple services like Akruranath alluded to,since I don’t chant all my rounds. At the same time, I believe that nice quality rounds should be chanted, so each day, after work, I perform a ritual in my home temple room. I light candles for all my Deities. I offer fresh flowers from the garden. I offer the Deities fresh water to drink in silver cups. I burn nice incense. I bath and put on clean cloths, tilak, etc. I play a CD of Srila Prabhupada singing in the background. Then I sit down and chant as many rounds as I can, but it is usually just one or two. I am much older now, and my life has slowed way down. When I chant japa now, I like to chant along with the older japa recording of Srila Prabhupada. According to Parama Rupa Prabhu who recorded the Japa CD, Srila Prabhupada used to chant one round with the devotees, either each day, or for the Sunday feast. They would all chant very slowly together. That’s how I chant my rounds now, very slowly and carefully.

I think it is important to encourage devotees who have left ISKCON to continue chanting. In speaking with Akruranath Prabhu, he stated to me that there can be no compromise in the chanting 16 rounds by initiated disciples, and yet at the same time there are many initiated devotees who have completely given up all japa, because they can’t chant 16 rounds any more. I like to encourage devotees to continue. Start with one round each day, and go from there. It should be a pleasurable, non-forced service.

I knew one initiated disciple of Srila Prabhupada and former head pujari, who was living only one block from the temple, but who never went again, because she was widowed in her early 20’s, when her husband took sannyasa, and she could not accept being a widow, so she left ISKCON. She could not go to the temple, even though it was only one block away out of embarressment and resentment as well. I always tried to encourage her just to do her best, however small and not give up.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 04.03.2010 @ 02:51

I believe it is important to address one type of member of ISKCON that has often been ignored. What type of member does one become in ISKCON if he was once an initiated disciple of a bonafied spiritual master, with a initiated Vaishnava name, but is no longer following strict principles, such as the chanting 16 rounds each day, or following the four regulative principles? It was once unthinkable that such a thing could happen within ISKCON, but today it is quite commonplace. There may be thousands of devotees in this catagory. What happens when someone leaves. What are they stripped of by ISKCON, and how does their membership status change?

Apparently membership designations can change too. There a sannyasis who left the order, and became householders again. There are some younger women, whose husbands left them at an early age to take sannyas, but who will not accept the status of widow. There are four ashrams and varnas of life, according to Vedic culture, but at least in the West, many people don’t fit into any specific group. That is one thing I always appreciated about our philosophy. A living entity can rise higher by his actions, but he can also move to lower positions as well.

ISKCON is a type of honor society. How can you verify if someone is really chanting 16 rounds per day or not? You can really only take it on someone’s word if they are following or not. The same holds true for the four regulative principles. Cheating is easier to hide for some of the principles more than for others. You might easily detect if someone is taking intoxication such as drinking wine or taking drugs. However, there are many subtle ways to enjoy illicit sex, that are not as blatant as being in direct physical contact with the opposite sex, but are still to be considered subtle falldowns by scriptural definition.

One thing I have always appreciated about ISKCON though is you can travel to any ISKCON temple, anywhere in the world, and the same strict principles and standards are being followed almost universally.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 28.02.2010 @ 23:28

Is Astrology Useful in Krishna Consciousness? Part One – The Panchang

I learn from past predictions that I receive from my astrologer to be very specific in my inquiries, to remove as much ambiguity as possible, such as when exactly something going to happen, and where exactly it will it take place. What I find uncanny about this year’s chart for me, is that the predictions as to my current state of consciousness and karma are not for some time in the future, or for so time in the past, but instead in the here and now, and it’s accurate this time. It has forced me to pay attention and to be much more serious than in past readings. I used to laugh in the past when dire predictions were made for me that didn’t come to pass, but I am not laughing now. The main astrological prescription for me in this time, and perhaps that is the advantage of having an astrologer who is a devotee of the Lord, is to increases my sadhana and reading Srila Prabhupada’s books to decrease my suffering. I have often wondered though, if everything is predestined anyway, how do you change your karma, such as reducing your suffering, by engaging in pious acts? I am just trying to understand scientifically how the process works.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 06.02.2010 @ 22:41

Suicide, Krsna-prema, and Bhagavad-gita

Quoting Srila Prabhupada’s comment from his purport “We have practical experience in discharging our missionary activity that some people come and apply themselves to Krsna consciousness with some hidden motive, and as soon as they are economically a little well-situated, they give up the process and take to their old ways again”, will not work as a one-size, fits-all explaination of why people have left Krishna Consciousness in the past. There are many reasons why people have left, and many different types of scenarios. It is important to study all the various reasons, and find ways to win back devotees and supporters. Without fixing the reasons though, of why people left in the past, the problem is, because human nature tends to stay the same, history may only repeat itself again and again.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 05.01.2010 @ 03:05

A BG perspective on Avatar movie

I was very disappointed with the final conclusion of the “DaVinci Code”. The ultimate realization that Christianity was originally based on simple Goddess worship, seemed a little tame to me, compared to the vast ocean of information from the Vedas about the Personality of Godhead. On every page of Srila Prabhupada’s books are so many ingenious details and aspects of God’s personality and intelligence.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 05.01.2010 @ 03:11

My favorite part of “Dune” was how a mantra can be used as a weapon. My father told me, in the 1950’s, that the U.S. Army was experimenting with sound vibration weapons.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 02.01.2010 @ 01:43

Holy Places?

I like the saying by Ted Turner “lead, follow, or get out of the way”. It is often easier to get attention for myself here at this site and other places by complaining or expressing negative viewpoints that I have, releasing all the poison I accumulated and am holding on to. In the larger picture, I am realizing that I might be better off if I stay out of the way, as quietly as possible. I have to keep reminding myself to listen to the devotees here, and talk less, as well as search for alternative methods of healing myself. For some reason, a series of events and experiences, threw me out of the service of the Sankirtan Movement, and left me with many deep emotional and physiological wounds that are difficult to resolve, except by talking about them with the devotees. There aren’t many places to go to find relief, I have found, except in public forums.

I come to Dandavats because I want to remain as an ISKCON devotee. I want the process of Krishna Consciousness to work for me. I am open to new ways of approaching the Krishna Consciousness process that Srila Prabhupada introduced, and hearing from devotees who have become successful in their application of bhakti-yoga. There are many other forums I can visit for devotees wishing to extinguish their Krishna Consciousness, and who sometimes openly decry Srila Prabhupada and the devotees. That’s why I like coming here instead, because that is not my intent.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 03.01.2010 @ 21:53

Fortunately there is Youtube. I have been enjoying and participating in the many festivals in Vrndavan and Mayapur through the videos of our ISKCON devotees chanting. I like to sing along with the devotees, such as Aindra, Lokanath Swami, and Vyasaki Prabhus. I have played the Youtube of the Aindra bhajan in Srila Prabhupada’s room in Vrndavan over and over, hundreds of times. Even though it only lasts about 1 minute, the chanting always makes my hairs stand on end. At my work, I daily play Hare Krishna kirtan CD’s throughout the day, and sing along. I have been doing this for many years. I also like to play Srila Prabhupada’s bhajans and chant along with him and the other devotees. I possess weak physical and mental health. I can barely make enough to break even in my work, and having been gliding down in loses in recent years, along with my health. I don’t foresee actually physically visiting the holy places any time soon, but I am there in spirit.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 01.01.2010 @ 21:33

Perhaps the many problems you are describing regarding the degradation of the holy places, is occurring due to lack of proper zoning laws, and proper enforcement of existing laws. In many ways today’s India parallels America in the 1950-1960’s, a time of great expansion and prosperity in the United States. India has come into its own, in terms of material advancement and industrialization of the country. India, along with China, is considered the two most important emerging market industrialized nations of the world today. What that potentially means is total destruction of the environment, just as it occurred in the United States and other Western developed nations in their industrial revolutions.

Rivers, streams, and other waterways became so polluted with industrial waste and sewage that they could no longer relied upon for bathing and drinking, which is India’s current dilemma. India enjoys the presence of holy rivers and dhams that are being ruined by reckless and unbridled business enterprise. Western developed nations have only too gladly dumped their most polluting industries on India and China, knowing that the governments of those places will look the other way, for the sake of money, and not enforce existing laws designed to protect their environment.

The leaders and the people of developed Western nations have finally come to their senses, and have begun the process of cleaning up the environment, preserving historical heritage sites, and protecting it as well from future development. India it seems has not evolved to this point yet.

What is needed is common sense, at least from a business point of view, to preserve holy places, at the very least to attract international spiritual pilgrims as well as tourists. The holy places have the potential to be considered great places of learning as well. People all over the world are attracted to the philosophies of the East, especially Vedic and Vaishnava philosophy. They won’t come to a place that is wretched and degraded. They want a place that is clean, pure, uplifting, and spiritual. Proper zoning laws, that are actually enforced, have the potential to protect the environment of the holy places and preserve a peaceful atmosphere as well. Strong, spiritually advanced government is also needed to enforce scriptural injunctions, and protect the integrity of the holy places.

Comment Posted By Suresh das On 27.12.2009 @ 22:04