Games of your life......

Today, while driving by, I noticed the banner "The games of your life...". Normally, when you add "....of your life" it means the best thing in life or the most important thing - something like that. Can you take it seriously ? No, because, there may be something bigger waiting in life - who knows !!! Even admitting that this might be the biggest games till date, there is no guarantee that it will remain so. Some bigger event will replace this one. So, the so called "happening of your life" keeps changing !!! Remember, change is the only constant in life. Everything keeps changing. Likes and dislikes change. Friends change. Living conditions change.

Even our body changes.

"dehino'smin yahta dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara" (BG 2.13) ...the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age.

So, whats the most important thing - the happening of our lives, so to say ?

We have to agree that everything keeps changing including the body, nothing to speak of the mind which keeps changing faster than we can fathom !!!

The only thing that's a surety in life is death !!! There you have it - the exam of your life.

"Have the time of your life" - the adverts on TV say - somehow, the senses must be indulged. The more you indulge - the more you will have - the time of your life !!! TV is nicknamed the one-eyed guru because, it has only one eye.... And guru because, it dictates your life from the moment you get up till you go to bed at night. The TV tells you - to start with - which toothpaste to brush with, till- which brand of health drink to have at night !!! So, the one-eyed guru instructs and we follow just like how a faithful disciple is supposed to !!! Of course, its a wholly different thing that the guru keeps confusing us every now and then, but then we are used to such inconsistency. So, when the bonafide spiritual master comes along - by mercy of Krishna and gives us consistent instructions - the unchanging - the eternal - the chanting of the maha mantra - Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare -

Now we find that we are not such sincere disciples after all. We find consistency boring !!! Its the same mahamantra - they have been chanting through generations and achieving perfection. But we find it difficult - because we want - "new and improved", "now with iron-shakti", "now with power-packed" blah blah blah.

Little do we realize - this mahamantra is already "power-packed, with transcendental-sakti" good enough to purify naradhamas like Jagai and Madhai !!! Of course, we are much worse, but that doesn't matter, the Hare Krishna mahamantra can still purify. Only we need to chant sincerely, with faith..... Thats the only way we can be prepared for the "day of our lives" !!!

Vijnana - Practical Realization

Today at work, I overheard a heated discussion in Arabic – all I could make out was Barcelona, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Chelsea… For those of you who do not know, these are some of the top European football clubs and it’s a favorite pastime of many people to discuss the lilas of players belonging to these hallowed names !!! In a not too distant past, the writer was also an ardent devotee of some of these demigods of football…. I could make out that the discussion was regarding team performances. Judgements were being dished out indiscriminately – all by potbellied overweight gentlemen who have never played the game in their life. This lead me to think – what kind of practical realization do these people have that make them experts? Factually none – and that would actually make their judgements null and void being devoid of any practical understanding about the subject.

Same thing applies for devotees..........

“To become free from material conditions means to liberate the soul. As soon as one is, therefore, situated in absolute knowledge, his material conception of life is removed, or he emerges from a false conception of life. Thus the function of the pure soul is revived in spiritual realization. This practical realization of the living being is made possible due to his becoming free from the reaction of the three modes of material nature, namely goodness, passion and ignorance. By the grace of the Lord, a pure devotee is at once raised to the place of the Absolute, and there is no chance of the devotee’s becoming materially entangled again in conditioned life. One is not able to feel the presence of the Lord in all circumstances until one is endowed with the required transcendental vision made possible by devotional service prescribed in the revealed scriptures. Arjuna had attained this stage long before on the Battlefield of Kurukñetra, and when he apparently felt the absence of the Lord, he at once took shelter of the instructions of the Bhagavad-gita and thus again he was placed in his original position. This is the position of visoka, or the stage of being freed from all grief and anxieties. SB 1.15.32 (purport)

“The humble sage, by virtue of true knowledge, sees with equal vision a learned and gentle brähmana, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].” (Bg. 5.18) On the spiritual platform, the learned person not only gives up the duality of man and woman, but also gives up the duality of man and animal. This is the test of self-realization. One must realize perfectly that the living being is spirit soul but is tasting various types of material bodies. One may theoretically understand this, but when one has practical realization, then he actually becomes a pandita, one who knows.
[SB 7.12.10 (purport)]

“Knowledge is information gathered from the scriptures, and science is practical realization of that knowledge. Knowledge is scientific when it is gathered from the scriptures through the bona fide spiritual master, but when it is interpreted by speculation, it is mental concoction. By scientifically understanding the scriptural information through the bona fide spiritual master, one learns, by one’s own realization, the actual situation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
(Teachings of Lord Caitanya- Chapter 23- Why study the Vedanta Sutra ?)

“When a person is situated on the practical level of spiritual realization, it should be understood he is actually situated in yoga. It is not that one should continue to attend yoga classes and yet remain the same throughout his life; there must be practical realization. And what is the sign of that practical realization? The mind will be calm and quiet and no longer agitated by the attraction of the material world.”
(Perfection of Yoga - Chapter 5 – Freedom from duality and designation)

The points are very clear – because they are all noted down by Srila Prabhupada. Its right here for all of us to understand, assimilate and emulate in our own lives.

Seeing Krishna's hand in this wonderful creation

I was talking to one of the devotees yesterday. This devotee is an auto-mechanic and a very good one at that. However, he is not a qualified engineer, so his knowledge about the computerized systems in the latest autos is very limited. Since we were on the subject of automobiles, he remarked : “hats off to the man who invented electronics, its just some sand chips and steel wires and everything is inside there. No one can understand how it works inside.” He was quite wonderstruck and I was too, more so because I am not a “scientific man” so to speak. The way electronic gadgets work has always been a source of fascination to me from a very early age. However, this brought my thoughts to a related subject – the creation at large. No doubt, the electronic gadgets are great help to us. In fact, kali-yuga is the ‘iron age’ – so many machines around us and we have become very dependent on them.

But, consider the creation of the Lord. The nature, the beauty and the perfection of Lord’s creation. The variety and the uniqueness of each and every created being. Isn’t it wonderful !!! And nobody can understand how it all comes about….

yad yad vibhutimat sattvam, srimad urjitam eva ca
tat tad evavagaccha tvam, mama tejom’sa sambhavam

“Know that all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of My splendor.” (Bhagavad Gita, 10.41)

Any glorious or beautiful existence should be understood to be but a fragmental manifestation of Krsna’s opulence, whether it be in the spiritual or material world. Anything extraordinarily opulent should be considered to represent Krsna’s opulence. (Purport)

Everything is but a manifestation of Krishna’s opulence. Our secret of success lies in being able to understand and see things as such. Unlike the man-made machines which more often than not let us down in some way or the other, the manifested creation of the Lord is very much different. In fact every human being is very much dependent on what the Lord is supplying through His agency of the material nature – prakrti. Without the supply of basic elements by prakrti, no invention is possible for even the most so-called intelligent man. Alas, our failure stems from the fact that we refuse to acknowledge this simple, straightforward truth. Krsna comments in the Bhagavad Gita :

prakrteh kriyamanani, gunaih karmani sarvasah
ahankara vimudhatma, kartaham iti manyate

“The spirit soul bewildered by the influence of false ego thinks himself the doer of activities that are in actuality carried out by the three modes of material nature.” (Bhagavad Gita, 3.27)

Can the advanced intelligence of man produce the kind of varied wonderful scent produced by the different flowers that we find in nature ? Of course, not… This is just one simple thing – its something we take for granted, in fact. But its an impossible task for the intelligent man !!!

punyo gandhah prthivyäm ca
tejascäsmi vibhävasau
jévanamsarva-bhütesu
tapas cäsmi tapasvisu

“I am the original fragrance of the earth, and I am the heat in fire. I am the life of all that lives, and I am the penances of all ascetics.” (Bhagavad Gita, 7.9)

Punya means that which is not decomposed; punya is original. Everything in the material world has a certain flavor or fragrance, as the flavor and fragrance in a flower, or in the earth, in water, in fire, in air, etc. The uncontaminated flavor, the original flavor, which permeates everything, is Krsna. Similarly, everything has a particular original taste, and this taste can be changed by the mixture of chemicals. So everything original has some smell, some fragrance, and some taste. Vibhävasu means fire. Without fire we cannot run factories, we cannot cook, etc., and that fire is Krsna. The heat in the fire is Krsna. According to Vedic medicine, indigestion is due to a low temperature in the belly. So even for digestion fire is needed. In Krsna consciousness we become aware that earth, water, fire, air and every active principle, all chemicals and all material elements are due to Krsna. The duration of man’s life is also due to Krsna. Therefore by the grace of Krsna, man can prolong his life or diminish it. So Krsna consciousness is active in every sphere. (Purport)

We always hear that the pure devotee is able to see Krsna in everything, everywhere and many times we wonder how !!! The above verse and Srila Prabhupada's purport seems to answer that question very effectively indeed....

Thoughts regarding faith……

When we raise our unmixed faith to the lotus feet of Krsna, everything is revealed. Krsna also says in Bhagavad-gitä (7.1):

mayy äsakta-manäh pärtha
yogam yunjan mad-äsrayah
asamsayam samagram mam

yathä jnäsyasi tac chrnu

“Now hear, O son of Prthä [Arjuna], how by practicing yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.” Simply by raising one’s staunch faith in Krsna and His instructions, one can understand reality without a doubt (asamsayam samagram mäm). One can understand how Krsna’s material and spiritual energies are working and how He is present everywhere although everything is not Him.

However, our situation is something like this...
.....Unfortunately, however, people sometimes do not have staunch faith in the words of the spiritual master who comes by the disciplic succession, and therefore they are unable to understand transcendental knowledge. (SB 7.7.17 purport)

yasya deve parä bhaktir yathä deve tathä gurau
tasyaite kathitä hy arthäh prakäsante mahätmanah

“To one who has staunch faith in the words of the spiritual master and the words of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the secret of success in Vedic knowledge is revealed.” [SU 6.23]

This verse is quoted by Srila Prabhupada in so many places. We can find this verse scattered throughout the purports of Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. It just goes to show how weighty this sloka is. Srila Prabhupada will not repeat a sloka so frequently unless its very important.

By various practices, one may come to the point of controlling the senses, but simply controlling the senses does not bring one to a substantial conclusion. However, by staunch faith in the spiritual master and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one not only controls the senses but also realizes the Supreme Lord.…(SB 7.15.28 purport)

The result of implicit faith….
Such a pure devotee, who has implicit faith in the lotus feet of the Lord, can create sacred places in any part of the world where he decides to remain. Tirthi-kurvanti tirthäni (SB 1.13.10).

This is confirmed in the Upanisads: the import of Vedic instruction is revealed automatically only to one who has implicit faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead and in his spiritual master. One may be materially considered an illiterate man, but if he has faith in the spiritual master as well as in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then the meaning of scriptural revelation is immediately manifested before him.

I think its good for aspiring devotees to do a reality check about one's own faith levels. It helps.......

SRILA BALADEVA VIDYABHUSANA AND THE GOVINDA BHASYA COMMENTARY

Srila Prabhupada dedicated his commentary of Srimad Bhagavatam to "Baladeva Vidyabhusana who wrote the Govinda bhasya commentary to Vedanta Sutra". How did Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana come to write this Govinda Bhasya ? Read below the victory of Gaudiya Vaisnava Sampradaya brought about by this sincere disciple of Srila Viswanatha Chakravarthy Thakura.

SRILA BALADEVA VIDYABHUSANA

Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana was a highly renounced, pure devotee, who had not even a fraction of desire for name or fame. He compiled many literatures in order to benefit mankind. However he never mentioned his birth place or anything about his family background and therefore the details are not known for sure.

Historians have estimated that he was born sometime in the eighteenth century,most probably in Orissa (possibly near Remuna). At a very early age, he finished his studies of grammar, poetry, rhetoric and logic and then went on pilgrimage. During this time he spent some time with the Tattvavadis in SouthIndia and thus became conversant with the teachings of Sri Madhvacarya. He became a powerful exponent of this philosophy throughout India.
During his travels he again came to Utkaladesa (Orissa) and met with a grand-disciple of Sri Rasikananda Deva, Sri Radha-Damodara Deva by name, with whom he discussed philosophy. Sri Radha-Damodara Deva explained the conclusions of Gaudiya Vaisnava philosophy as expounded by Sri Gaurasundaraand requested him to consider the unlimited mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.These talks penetrated his heart and awakened divine love within. Thus, after a few days he was initiated with Radha-Krsna mantra and began to study the Sat-sandarbha of Sri Jiva Gosvami.

In a very short time he became very expert in Gaudiya Vaisnava philosophy.With the permission and blessings of his guru, he moved to Sri Vrindavana Dhama to further study these teachings under Sri Visvanatha CakravartiThakura.

Sri Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura was exteremly pleased to see the humble and gentle nature and the renunciation and profound mastery of the Vedas that characterized Baladeva. He carefully instructed him in acintya-bhedabheda-tattva. Baladeva fully accepted the Gaudiya Vaisnava philosophy and began to preach it with great vigor.

Around this time, the members of the Sri sampradaya began to raise some arguments in the court of the king at Jaipur. They complained that as the Gaudiya Vaisnavas had no commentary on the Vedanta-sutra, they were not qualified to worship the Deity and therefore the worship should be turned overto the Sri sampradaya. They also objected to the worship of Srimati Radharani along with Sri Sri Govinda-Gopinatha as not being authorised anywhere in the sastras.

The king, Sadacari Raja, was initiated within the Gaudiya sampradaya. Thus he quietly sent word to Vrindavana, informing the devotees there of what had happened. But at the same time the king was obliged to remove Radharani fromthe Deity room as well as suspend the Bengali Gaudiya Vaisnava pujaris from partaking in the Deity worship.

At that time Srila Visvanatha Cakravartipada was very aged, so it was not possible for him to make the journey to Jaipur. In his place he sent his student, Sri Baladeva, who was fully conversant with the sastras and thus ableto competently face the challenge. In a great assembly he posed such forceful arguments to the followers of Ramanuja that they could not reply to them. He further explained to them, "The originator of the Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradaya, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, has accepted Srimad Bhagavata as the natural commentary on the Vedanta-sutra, as composed by Srila Vyasadeva Himself. This is proven in the Sat-sandarbha."
The scholars in the assembly, however, refused to accept anything other than a direct commentary on the sutra. Having no other recourse, Baladeva promised to present them with one.

Feeling very aggrieved, Sri Baladeva came to Sri Govindaji's mandira and after offering his prostrated obeisances, informed Sri Govinda of everything that had happened. That night the Lord appeared to him in a dream and instructed him to write a commentary on the Vedanta-sutra. "I will dictate to you what to write and therefore no one will be able to refuse to accept it."
Having seen such a wonderful dream, Baladeva was totally enlivened and felt renewed strengh flow into his heart. Thus he began to write, and within a few days completed the commentary which was titled 'Sri Govinda Bhasya'.

Vidya rupam bhusanam me pradaya kyatim nitya tena yo mamudarah Sri Govindasvapna nirdista bhaso radha bandhubandhurangah sa jiyat: "May He Who so mercifully and munificiently was kind towards me, and bestowed his favour by ordering me in a dream to write down His own commentary, which He would compose, and which attained such renown amongst the learned circles that they bestowed upon me the title 'Vidyabhusana'; may that dear friend of Srimati Radharani, who holds Him dearer than Her own life, be glorified. May that Sri Govinda be glorified."

Bringing the commentary with him, Sri Baladeva again came to the assembly of the Ramanandi scholars. After reading the commentary they were simply speechless. Thus the victory of the Gaudiya sampradaya was announced far and wide and the king, as well as the other devotees, began to float in the oceanof bliss. The scholars then bestowed upon Sri Baladeva the title 'Vidyabhusana'.

This assembly took place in the year 1628 Sakabda, at Golta near the present city of Jaipur. Baladeva Vidyabhusana installed the Deity of Vijaya Gopala there at Golta Mandira, but the whereabouts of this Deity are at present not known. From this day the Maharaja of Jaipur announced that Sri Govinda's arati would be performed first and then the other temples could perform their aratis.

After accepting defeat, the Ramanandi scholars expressed their desire to accept initiation from Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana. However, he declined their request by stating that amongst the four authorized sampradayas, the Sri sampradaya was highly respectable and the foremost adherent of dasya-bhakti(devotion in servitorship). If there was any cause of loss of respect to the sampradaya this might be considered an offense.

Returning from Jaipur to Vrindavana, Sri Baladeva presented the certificate of victory to Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura and narrated all of the events that had transpired. All of the devotees were in great ecstacy to receive this news and Cakravartipada bestowed his full blessings on Sri Baladeva. At this time, Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana began to write a commentary on Srila JivaGosvami's Sat-sandarbha.

Sri Jaya and Sri Vijaya Govinda, residing at Gokulananda Mandira inVrindavana, were worshiped by Baladeva Vidyabhusana personally. According to the opinion of some devotees, the Deities of Syamananda Prabhu, Sri SriRadha-Syamasundara, were installed by Sri Baladeva Vidybhusana.

After Sri Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura finished his pastimes in this world, Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana became the next acarya of the Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradaya.
At the end of Vedanta-syamantaka, Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana acknowledges his spiritual master thusly: "I have been sent here to Vrindavana by one brahmana guru, Sri Radha-Damodar Deva, to present a compositon namedVedanta-syamantaka, composed by his mercy for the pleasure of Srimati Radharani."

Srila Baladeva Vidybhusana became known later as Sri Govinda dasa. He had two well-known disciples: Sri Vidya dasa and Sri Nandan Misra.

He is the compiler of the following books:

Sri Govinda-bhasya,

Siddhanta-ratnam,

Sahitya-kaumudi,

Vedanta-syamantaka,

Prameya-ratnavali,

Siddhanta-darpana,

Kavya-kaustubha,

Vyakarana-kaumudi,

Pada-kaustubha,

Isadi-upanisad bhasya,

Gitabhusana-bhasya,

Sri Visnunamasahasra-bhasya,

Sanksepa-bhagatamrta-tippani-saranga-rangada,

Tattva-sandarbha-tika,

Stava-mala-vibhusana-bhasya,

Nataka-candrika-tika,

Candraloka-tika,

Sahitya-kaumudi-tika,

Krsna-nandini,

Srimad-Bhagavata-tika,

Vaisnava-nandini,

Govinda-bhasya-siksma-tika,

Siddhanta-ratna-tika,

Stava-mala-tika.
(Tthere's a lot more than this:Bhasya-pithaka, commentaries on Gopala Campu, Krsna-bhavanamrta,Samsaya-satini, etc.etc.)

Prabhupada in a dream

The article posted below is very inspiring. It shows that Srila Prabhupada's mercy continues to manifest in varied ways for the sincere follower. For the aspiring bhakta, inspiration is needed - and that too, tonnes of it. In the neophyte stage, as told in the sastras, the faith is very tender - komala sraddha. Its easy to loose the enthusiasm. Incidents like the one below will help bolster our tender faith. Even the advanced vaisnava will relish hearing these experiences of other devotees. Hearing about Lord Krishna and his pure devotees enliven every one whether he is a kanishta or an uttama-adhikari. Hare Krishna.......

Dear Devotees,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Every day, thanks to Srila Prabhupada's love, I have the opportunity to go out and distribute his books.

Recently Lilananda Prabhu and I have been distributing books in a working-class area of Rome known as Centocelle.

Visualize blocks of flats at least seven storys high, working-class dwellings where you find the strangest situations and the worst smells emanating from within. Below the apartment complex is an interminable series of shops where the people, under a high dose of passion, enter and exit without taking notice of anyone around them. Now add all the raucous noises of the city: welcome to Centocelle!

Unfortunately, yesterday I woke up late, and so I could not finish my rounds before our morning program (here it starts at 6:15 am). So after doing various things, I managed to go out at 11 o'clock. While driving toward Centocelle, I was trying think of a place to finish my rounds peacefully, but I could not. Then I had an idea: on previous days I had noticed a street right before reaching "the jungle area" that led to a zone of humble villas that might be peaceful.

Once there, I knew I had done the right thing: there were airplanes in the sky and trains on the tracks, but it was much more peaceful than the rest of the area. I parked the car and went to chant. There weren't many passersby, but every once in a while someone would appear, mostly older people, curiously looking at this strange person dressed in white, with no hair and murmuring to himself. I would say hello in a friendly way and try to put them at ease, but unavoidably the word spread in the area and more than one person "by chance" walked nearby to see the strange sight. After finishing my rounds and honoring prasadam, I went forth to distribute books. After visiting some houses, I reached an old green wooden gate, a young man and woman came to open the gate and invite me into their garden. I learned that they were brother and sister, Antonio and Stefania. After a while their sister Maria joined us; she was very curious to hear about the books. While I spoke, Stefania went away three times, later explaining to me that she had to check on her three-year-old daughter Helena, who was having difficulty breathing. I learned she had difficulty especially during sleep, and so it was very important that special care be taken at that time.
I saw that these people were very simple and innocent, not wealthy at all but very well disposed to hear about Krsna. After some time their parents arrived and Antonio exclaimed, "Mom, Dad, he is a Hare Krsna monk!" The mother jokingly said to me: "I saw you walking back and forth before and thought you had just escaped from a clinic nearby!" We all laughed. The father, in a wise mood, said, "But I told them that you were meditating!" (In fact, I had met him earlier on the street, where he told me that he already knew the devotees and that he was a follower of Father Pio. I sensed then that he was not interested in the books, so I politely greeted him and walked on).

After I had spoken to them for twenty minutes, Stefania, Helena's mother, felt inspired to buy "The Journey of Self-Discovery." Enchanted by this simple family, I decided to give them a BTG for free. Then I invited them to the Sunday Feast and left. When I meet such people, I feel the urgency to improve myself and become a better instrument in Srila Prabhupada's hands to distribute the transcendental knowledge found in his books.

Around 5 p.m. I decided to head back to the temple. While walking to the car, I thought of Maria, Stefania's sister. I remembered how attracted she was by devotional music, and since I had a CD in the car, I decided to go to their home and give it to them as a gift. They had all left such a nice feeling in my heart.
As I approached their house I saw Stefania standing outside. As soon as she saw me she called to me loudly: "Padre Giovanni! Padre Giovanni!"

"I'm coming!" I called.

Breathlessly she continued, "As soon as you left us, my daughter Helena woke up and ran toward me with a very blissful face, such as I had never seen before, and exclaimed, 'Mom, mom, I dreamt of an angel with no hair!!'

"I said, 'Oh! And what was He like?'

"'He was wonderful -- bright-faced, without hair, but with a pony-tail on the back of his head and a sign on his forehead. He was baptizing everybody!'"

Upon hearing that, I was a little confused. Then the grandmother said, "I took your magazine and showed it to Helena, asking her to tell me if she recognized the angel as I turned the pages. When I reached the first page, where there is a picture of your spiritual master in saffron clothes, Helena opened her eyes wide and pointed to him: 'Here he is! It's him! It's him!!'"

At this point, I have to admit, I struggled to hold back my tears. Srila Prabhupada had appeared in the dream of this special soul in the body of a little girl, just as I was in the garden presenting his books!

The grandmother continued: "We were all amazed and asked Helena if he had told her something. She said 'Yes, I remember that he was speaking about books, books, reading books.'" At this point a shiver went up my spine -- it really was Srila Prabhupada!

They invited me into the house to meet Helena. I noticed the little girl playing with her cousin, but when she turned and saw me with the tilak and no hair, she retreated and started to cry: "I don't want to see! I don't want to see!" She hid behind a wall, and Stefania took her into another room.

Meanwhile, the grandmother told me Helena was not new to these miraculous encounters. "Once, while Helena was in the hospital, she told me that Padre Pio was by her side telling her to be peaceful because everything would be ok." Curious, the grandmother had shown her a photo of Padre Pio, and Helena had said that it was him! Another time, Giovanna (the grandmother) dreamed that Pope Jean Paul II entered their house carrying a letter and saying, "This is the letter you are all waiting for. You can give it to Helena. Everything will be ok." At that time the entire family was in anxiety, waiting for a reply from the Vatican Hospital about whether Helena had a certain rare and grave illness. The day after that dream, a letter arrived saying she did not.

Feeling at ease in that house, I started preaching about the importance of book distribution and how this service is so dear to Srila Prabhupada. Helena calmed down but was still afraid of me, so after a little while I gave them the bhajan CD and left. While driving back to the temple I was moved and had a constant thought: Srila Prabhupada in His infinite mercy never leaves us. He is present when we read his books, and much more when we distribute them. At the temple I told the devotees what had happened, and they were all enthusiastic and full of gratitude. They also perceived Srila Prabhupada's presence.

I had an idea: I asked for Helena's birthday details and gave them to Ramanuja Dasa, a devotee from Peru who is living in Rome. He has studied Vedic astrology extensively and teaches it. After a week, during the Sunday Feast, Ramanuja called me aside to show me Helena's astral chart. "You know, Prabhu," he said, "I've been doing this work for about twenty years, but I have seen an astral chart like this one only once or twice! This is a very elevated soul. She has all the planets favorable for spiritual life, she's intelligent, and she has positive karma. For sure in her last life she was a devotee."

Upon hearing those words, I felt very lucky. I've been going on sankirtana for a whole year, but I never had a meeting like this one. I went to visit them again four or five times, bringing them prasadam, garlands, devotional pictures, music CDs, and t-shirts for Helena.

I learned that the miracle continued: From the day of the "meeting with the angel," Helena has told the story to everyone she meets, and even if she cannot read, she opens Srila Prabhupada's books often because, she says, "Prabhupada told me to read." In her room she insisted there be a photo of Srila Prabhupada and one of Gopal Krsna close to her bed. She often wants to hear stories about Krsna, and in particular she likes the maha-mantra. When she listens to the maha-mantra, she insists on wearing a t-shirt with a picture of mother Yasoda and Krsna, and then she dances while chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Simply wonderful!

This is Srila Prabhupada's mercy! Even a child of three can perform devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead! I sincerely hope this story can infuse in the core of your heart the desire to serve more and more this eternal mission, which only Srila Prabhupada could have founded: ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

Your aspiring servant,

Bhakta Giovanni Battista

An appeal that goes straight to your heart......

I found this appeal very inspiring to me personally. In case you feel the same way, maybe you can also do something.....

My dear devotee friend,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Over seventy students are participating in this year's Bhakti-sastri andBhaktivaibhava Courses and everyone is excited about the refinements andenhancements we have implemented in these courses. (Please view our newsletter www.mihet.org/newsletter/pvd1.htm)

As we witness these developments, Srila Prabhupada's words come to us:

"Throughout the whole world there is no institution to impart education inthe matter of spiritual understanding. So we are going to open a big center in Mayapur where this education will be internationally imparted. Students from all parts of the world will go there to take education in this important subject."

It's been hard work getting to where we are today, but we are beginning tosee Srila Prabhupada\'s dream realized.

Along the way, meeting the needs of our students in the best way we can isalways a challenge. But, today I face a challenge that goes beyond the reachof our team in Mayapur.On my desk in front of me is a list of 20 devotees, whom we have admittedinto our courses even though they lacked the funds to cover the courseservice charges.

Like Ram Kumar.

Ram Kumar has completed his studies in the Sri Mayapur International School,and is now eager to study Srila Prabhupada's books in-depth in the MIHETBhakti-sastri Course. Since arriving in Mayapur at 5 years old, Ram Kumar's poor family from near Delhi has depended on scholarship funds for his education.

In the last 10 years, he has made great progress, determined to be a devotee in ISKCON. Bhakti-sastri is the natural next step for him, but we still must find the money to cover his fees. Here at the Mayapur Institute we work hard to keep service charges at a minimum. We are so very fortunate to have wonderful teachers and staff who contribute hours upon hours of voluntary service. Through these efforts,last year we were able to accommodate a limited number of scholarships for needy students.But this year, the demand is much more and the fundraisingwe planned was disrupted by the flooding in Mayapur.

We also have many devotees applying for scholarships for the upcoming GauraPurnima Courses and we want to facilitate their sincere desires to increasetheir services to Srila Prabhupada's movement.

These students and the MIHET need your help, and we've come up with a simple way for you to participate through the Mayapur Institute Annual Fund with a range of membership levels beginning from just $25. Through the Annual Fund, you have the opportunity to provide both scholarship funding for deserving students and to help keep the administrative service charges low by bridging the gap between these service charges and the actual costs. Educational institutions throughout the world depend on public support andthe Mayapur Institute is no exception. With the start of the Annual Fund we hope to begin a vibrant and dynamic relationship with you as both a friend and supporter working together to ensure both the growth and sustainabilityof the Institute.

As a token of my appreciation for your help, I will be very happy to send you our new set of Mayapur Institute Bhakti-sastri Sloka Cards - with many of the important slokas Srila Prabhupada regularly used in his preaching.

And, if you can find a way to contribute more than the basic $25 membership, I've arranged for a variety of additional benefits which you'll find on our online donation form.I'm especially hopeful that you will find it within your means to join at the $108 level or more. With this level of your support, I can take care of at least one scholarship for someone on the list in front of me. And, I will have the great pleasure of sharing with you my appreciation by sending youy our choice of either a copy of Bhurijan prabhu's excellent Bhagavad-Gitastudy guide - "Surrender Unto Me" or our exclusive set of Bhaktivaibhava sloka cards.

Please take a minute to contribute online thttp://www.mihet.org/annual fund. Whatever amount, large or small, will make a significant difference in the lives of our students.

And, while you are there please explore the newly designed web site to learn about our upcoming course offerings and new developments.Thank you for taking the time to hear about this new opportunity.

I hope you can respond as soon as possible so that these wonderful educational opportunities can be made available to deserving devotees regardless of their financial situations.

From Ram Kumar and all our other scholarship applicants, and from the MIHET staff, teachers and me - thank you for your support. And may Sri Pancha-tattva shower you with Their blessings.

Your servant,

Janmastami dasa

Nobody is safe, no place is safe.....

Basically, I am not at all against Indians settling in other countries. But, the point is that they go out of India looking for better lives.......
Then this happens. Read on. This is an article from Hindustan Times...

The Indian community in Adelaide, south Australia, is living under the shadow of terror these days, with increasing incidents of apparently racially-motivated bashings at night by roaming gangs of youths.
In the last six months, there have been 10 such attacks, with eight of the victims being of Indian origin, including students. Police admit they have little information about the gang(s) of teenagers attacking Indians in Adelaide's inner northern suburbs.In most cases, the attackers, generally young men, demanded money from their victims before assaulting them."The bashings might deter foreign students from coming to Adelaide," said the treasurer of the multicultural communities council, Dilip Chirmuley, to ABC Online.Last Wednesday, in the most serious attack so far, a subway employee, Mihir Parakh, was hospitalised after being bashed with sticks by around five men.A police officer is quoted as telling newspaper Australian that it was not known if the same gang was responsible for all the attacks or if they were deliberately targeting Indians.All of the attacks occurred in darkness, before midnight."I've no doubt that the method that's being used would be very intimidating and very scary to the victims involved," the officer was quoted as saying."There's certainly an over representation of members of the Indian community who are victims. We're treating the incidents very seriously and that's why we've got a significant police presence in the area," the officer added.

This brings us to our philosophy - nobody is safe in this world.

samasrita ye pada pallava plavam

mahat padam punya yaso murareh

bhavambudhir vatsa padam param padam

padam padam yad vipadam na tesam

TRANSLATION: For those who have accepted the boat of the lotus feet of the Lord, who is the shelter of the cosmic manifestation and is famous as Muräri, the enemy of the Mura demon, the ocean of the material world is like the water contained in a calf’s hoof-print. Their goal is param padam, Vaikuntha, the place where there are no material miseries, not the place where there is danger at every step.

Sometimes devotees think, "if I go back to India, I will be able to do better devotional service. " Its similar to many people thinking that if they leave India and settle abroad their problems will be solved. Many times I hear about people complaining about the poor standards of life in India as compared to many western countries. They site this and many other reasons like better opportunities for career fulfillment and so on and so forth....

For the devotee, the principle is very simple, wherever he is he will serve Krishna to the best of his ability. That way, his peace, happiness and safety is guaranteed. The verse mentioned above is ample illustration.

We should always think, "Krishna has given me an opportunity now. I shall serve Him right now, right here and the best I can. I shall not wait for anything to happen in the future, I shall not wait for a better opportunity, I shall not wait for more favourable circumstances or situations." If we use our present opportunity as best as we can, Krishna will surely see that and grant us more service.

The First Post...

Hare Krishna,

I am trying this for the first time. If things go well, I shall keep adding posts here.....

Aspiring for vaisnava-pada-renu,

Dasanudasa,

Govardhan Giri Dasa