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Sunday, October 30, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== Special Announcements: Don't be cheated by false gurus. Discover the qualifications of a bona fide spiritual master at the following web page: http://www.ultimateselfrealization.com/articles.php?articleId=52 =========================================================================== Sankarshan Prabhu is residing in Vrindavan up until 10 November and is available for personal meetings. He may be traveling to Jaipur for one or two days within this time period, but the rest of the time he will be in Vrindavan. If you would like to meet with him for guidance on how to make your human form of life perfect you may meet with him. He is staying in MVT-Bhaktivedanta Ashram behind the Krishna Balarama Mandir in Building 101, Apartment #A17. If you plan to come send an email to: vrindavan_meet@backtohome.com =========================================================================== Today I have one half hour until the bus leaves for Nanda Gao, the place where Krishna grew up with Nanda Maharaja and Mother Yasoda. This has to be brief. What can be said of these holy places of Lord Krishna's pastimes? They are most auspicious than anything we can conceive of even in our wildest dreams. The key is to take everything in context. There is a danger in Vedic studies to "not see the forest for the trees." This means to take one statement as the all-in-all without seeing how it fits into the complete picture. This sort of approach tends to make us narrow and fanatical. We have to take the Vedic wisdom in toto in order to become properly situated in self-realization. By taking every statement in the context of the overall message we understand the meaning of each verse clearly and clearly understand who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. |
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Saturday, October 29, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== Special Announcements: Don't be cheated by false gurus. Discover the qualifications of a bona fide spiritual master at the following web page: http://www.ultimateselfrealization.com/articles.php?articleId=52 =========================== Sankarshan Prabhu is residing in Vrindavan up until 10 November and is available for personal meetings. He may be traveling to Jaipur for one or two days within this time period, but the rest of the time he will be in Vrindavan. If you would like to meet with him for guidance on how to make your human form of life perfect you may meet with him. He is staying in MVT-Bhaktivedanta Ashram behind the Krishna Balarama Mandir in Building 101, Apartment #A17. If you plan to come send an email to: vrindavan_meet@backtohome.com =========================================================================== Living in Vrindavan at Every Minute Sri Vrindavan Dham is known as tirtharaja, the king of all holy places. Just by touching this holy dust of Sri Vrindavan Dham one receives the blessings of every holy place throughout the entire universe. It is extremely important to note in this connection that one cannot enter into Sri Vrindavan Dham by purchasing an airline ticket to Delhi and then catching a cab to Vrindavan. It is described in authoritative scripture that the spiritual master is the revealer of the holy dham. This means that the only way one can enter into the actual holy dham is by the mercy of the bona fide spiritual master. |
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Friday , October 28, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== Special Announcements: Don't be cheated by false gurus. Discover the qualifications of a bona fide spiritual master at the following web page: http://www.ultimateselfrealization.com/articles.php?articleId=52 =========================== Sankarshan Prabhu is residing in Vrindavan up until 10 November and is available for personal meetings. He may be traveling to Jaipur for one or two days within this time period, but the rest of the time he will be in Vrindavan. If you would like to meet with him for guidance on how to make your human form of life perfect you may meet with him. He is staying in MVT-Bhaktivedanta Ashram behind the Krishna Balarama Mandir in Building 101, Apartment #A17. If you plan to come send an email to: vrindavan_meet@backtohome.com =========================================================================== Journey Beyond Time and Space We've just returned from a journey beyond time and space into the ultimate dimension of reality. On the most holy day of Ekadasi, in the most holy place of Vrindavan Dham, in the most holy month of Kartik, beginning at the most holy time of the day during the Brahma Muhurta hour (before sunrise) we have just completed the six miles parikrama (walking around as a pilgrim) of the town of Vrindavan. Vrindavan has 5,000 temples. By walking around even one temple one receives immense spiritual benefit. So it becomes inconceivable to imagine how much spiritual benefit we have received today by doing the parikrama of the 5,000 temples and innumerable other holy pastime places of Lord Sri Krishna located in Vrindavan. After attending Mangala Arati at the Krishna Balarama temple we proceeded to the parikrama trail which encircles Vrindavan. After reaching the path we bowed down in its sacred dirt and offered our respectful obeisances to the holy land of Vrindavan. The holy dham must always be worshipped with great awe and reverence. By offering our obeisances to Vrindavan Dham at the beginning of the parikrama we beg the Lord's blessings for an auspicious parikrama. We found ourselves in the company of thousands of other pilgrims who were doing just the same thing that we were. As it was completely dark, I used a flashlight to illuminate the way down the dark trail. After some time we came to the a huge goshalla, the place of cows where ISKCON is maintaining and protecting hundreds of cows. With great joy with the help of my flashlight I gazed very briefly upon Krishna's peaceful cows. I did so very briefly so as to minimize any disturbance the cows may feel. As we proceeded further we came to Kaliya Ghata where still standing is a famous Kadamba tree that is over 5,000 years old. This is the tree from which Krishna jumped into the River Yamuna to subdue the Kaliya serpent 5,000 years ago. We departed briefly from the parikrama trail to walk around the tree and offer it our respects. We can hardly begin to imagine how great a devotee of the Lord that tree is to have been blessed with the touch of Krishna's lotus feet. Thinking what a great devotee that tree is I begged it to bless me with pure devotional service to Lord Sri Krishna. Further down the pathway we saw the silhouette of the beautiful Madan Mohan temple standing atop the famous Dvadasaditya Hill upon which Krishna warmed up in the sun after subduing the Kaliya Serpent in the River Yamuna. On that day the Sun god appeared in 12 forms and then manifested as 12 suns simultaneously so that Krishna could quickly recover from the chill of being in the water. As we proceeded further we caught our first faint glimpse of the River Yamuna in the predawn darkness. Srila Prabhupada explains that the River Yamuna is 100 times more sanctified than the River Ganges because Krishna touched the Yamuna so many times in His sporting pastimes. It was a mystical sight to behold. Many villagers were there taking their baths. One lady was offering arati to the Yamuna, worshipping it by offering it a ghee lamp. I sat down to chant my morning Gayatri mantras in a state of awe in the peace and quietude of that incredibly serene and sweet setting. After that Mataji and I carefully made our way down the steep bank to the water where we respectfully took three drops of it upon our heads. Then up the bank to resume our walk. In this way we continued to Keshi Ghata where Krishna killed the Keshi demon. Everywhere people were chanting Hare Krishna the name of Krishna's topmost devotee Srimati Radharani. After about five miles of tasting the sweetest nectar of Vrindavan, feeling that I had entered into a state of existence more wonderful than heaven, I noticed to my right that a number of sadhus (saintly persons) in saffron cloth suddenly appeared. I was very happy to see there standing on my right just a few feet away my very dear Godbrother, His Holiness Indradyumna Swami. I smiled and told him, "Maharaja, today I am blessed by your sanga." He smiled back and offered me his folded palms in respect. I cannot imagine how much nectar is available in the sublime process of Krishna consciousness. Today I tasted a few insignificant drops from the vast unlimited ocean of Krishna prema. Those few drops were enough to fill up the entire universe. Sankarshan das Adhikari =========================================================================== Which is Greater, the Hare Krishna Mantra or the Gayatri Mantra? You have told us to chant the Hare Krishna mantra. I accept this. But why not chant the Gayatri mantra also? Is Hare Krishna the only way? The Gayatri mantra is how old we don't know. All our sages all our forefathers has done it from thousands of years? Why are you saying not to maximize. While speaking to our Swamiji of Shankar Math he told that do minimum 108 time of japa for 3 times or do maximum number of japa as much as possible he told. But you are telling to minimize it? Now which is greater the Gayatri mantra or the Hare Krishna mantra? Please give me light on this. Dwarkesh =========================================================================== All Mantras are Great. We Follow the Vedic Injunctions The Vedas are full of many powerful and beneficial mantras, and the Gayatri mantra is no doubt one of them However, for understanding which mantra is most beneficial we take help for the same Vedic wisdom which has given us the Gayatri mantra. We are not interested in the opinion of this or that. We want to know what is stated in the authoritative scriptures. It is clearly stated in the Kali Santarana Upanishad: |
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Thursday, October 27, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== Special Announcements: Today is the Vyas Puja day, the transcendental appearance day, of His Grace Sriman Sankarshan Das Adhikari. In honor of this occasion disciples are to write and submit to him by email a Vyas Puja homage, fast until noon, and offer him a feast and an arati at noon along with singing the Gurvastakam prayers. Sankarshan Prabhu is residing in Vrindavan up until 10 November and is available for personal meetings. He may be traveling to Jaipur for one or two days within this time period, but the rest of the time he will be in Vrindavan. If you would like to meet with him for guidance of how to make your human form of life perfect you may meet with him. He is staying in MVT-Bhaktivedanta Ashram behind the Krishna Balaram Mandir in Building 101, Apartment #A17. If you plan to come send an email to: vrindavan_meet@backtohome.com =========================================================================== The Meaning of Vyas Puja Today my disciples are celebrating this day of my appearance in this world, the tenth day of Kartik. It is the duty of the spiritual master to accept ervice and worship from his disciples on behalf of the previous acharyas. The spiritual master never personally feels that he is worthy of such worship and service. To the contrary, he feels that he is most unfit to receive to such service and worship. But yet, he is duty bound to accept these in order to give his disciples full access to the realm of pure devotional service. This is so because Krishna only accepts our service when it is offered to Him through the medium of the spiritual master. We should never think that the spiritual master is feeling very proud thinking that he is being worshipped by so many followers. In this regard we should understand that the spiritual master never considers anyone to be his disciple. He simply sees his disciples as representatives of his Guru Maharaja, who have been sent by his Guru Maharaja for him to engage in Krishna's service so that they can be liberated from this material existence. Krishna speaks very, very highly of the spiritual master. In a conversation with Uddhava he states, acaryam mam vijaniyan navamanyeta karhicit na martya-buddhyasuyeta sarva-deva-mayo guruh "One should know the acarya as Myself and never disrespect him in any way. One should not envy him, thinking him an ordinary man, for he is the representative of all the demigods." Srimad Bhagavatam 11.17.27 The original spiritual master is Vyasadeva, and worship of him is called Vyas Puja. In order for the spiritual master to be bona fide he must come in the line of disciplic succession from Vyasadeva. When we worship our spiritual master that worship is transferred up the line of disciplic succession to Vyasadeva. This means that when we worship our guru we are actually worshipping Srila Vyasadeva. Therefore the special worship that we give our spiritual master on the day of his appearance in this world is known as Vyas Puja. Sankarshan das Adhikari =========================================================================== Vyas Puja Homage from Ahaituki Bhakti devi dasi My dear Srila Gurudeva, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. It rains and snows here in Helsinki this evening. The sky looks like one huge heavy cloud that is hanging over the city where the people hurry here and there with their black umbrellas. I was there too but without an umbrella. Still I felt very much protected from any inconvenience because I was there for serving You. This way it was not aimless wandering but it was auspicious, purposeful activity, because it was done for pleasing You who are my eternal spiritual father. Gurudeva, I like it so much how You say in a lecture (Denver, Jan 05) that “Prabhupada had so much affection and therefore the devotees had so much affection for him” and that how there is no way, no way we can ever give Prabhupada more love than he is giving us because his love is so pure and selfless. We can only try and do our best and then Prabhupada will shower even more love. So on the most auspicious day of Your appearance I beg that You please accept this offering as a humble attempt to somehow or other reciprocate with Your causeless mercy. Furthermore, I beg that You kindly remove the black umbrella of ignorance that is presently covering me so that I can properly receive and follow Your instruction and try and serve Your lotusfeet with ever-increasing purity, love and devotion. Your servant, Ahaituki Bhakti devi dasi =========================================================================== Situated in Transcendental Bliss My Dear Ahaituki Bhakti, Please accept my blessings. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. You have very nicely and poetically described the dark condition of material existence. The spiritual master delivers us from this dark condition by carrying with him the shining lamp of knowledge. It's a fact that by always serving Sri Guru the disciple is situated in transcendental bliss billions of light years beyond the chaotic, bewildering condition of material so-called existence. I very much appreciate your desire to become completely free from ignorance so that you can serve your spiritual master with ever-increasing purity, love, and devotion. This is the proper mood for the disciple to always be absorbed in. There is nothing that pleases the spiritual master more than to see his disciples steadily advancing in Krishna consciousness. In fact all of our activities in devotional service are for this purpose. Continue as you are doing serving Guru and Vaisnavas in the most sublime ISKCON movement of Srila Prabhupada and your life will be a glorious success. I am hoping this meets you in the best of health and in an ecstatic mood. Always wishing you the very best, Sankarshan Das Adhikari Top of Page |
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Wednesday, October 26, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== Blessed by Sickness in Sri Vrindavan Dham Now all of sudden I've gotten very sick. I've got a heavy cold that appears to be quickly turning into a bronchial infection that will require a cycle of anti-biotics to knock out. Krishna says that we have to tolerate the dualities of material existence without being disturbed. So I am taking this heavy energy-draining sickness to be an opportunity to become more detached from this material body. Especially when we are in Vrindavan we must be very, very detached from material sense gratification and purely engaged in Krishna consciousness at every minute. Therefore to be sick here is a great blessing. Our happiness is in on the spiritual platform, not the material platform. We can take advantage of when suffering comes to us by using it as springboard to reach even higher plateaus within the spiritual dimension. Sankarshan das Adhikari =========================================================================== The Significance of Kartik (October-November) I would like to know the significance of the month of Kartik (October-November). Why is it in this month that whatever devotional service that we do is magnified by 1,000 times? Thank you for your spiritual guidance. Hare Krishna Presha =========================================================================== Remembering Krishna's Most Ecstatic Pastime The month of Kartik (October-November) is auspicious in any part of the world because it is an opportunity to increase our remembrance of Lord Sri Krishna's most ecstatic pastime of being bound with a rope by Mother Yasoda. But it is especially auspicious in Vrindavan. I have never heard that we get 1,000 times the benefit for our devotional activities during the month of Kartik, but it is a fact that any devotional service done in Vrindavan gives us 1,000 times the benefit. Srila Rupa Goswami glorifies the month of Kartik in his Mathura Mahatmyam: "To they who worship Krishna in Vrindavan, the Lord gives them their original spiritual forms. The perfect atonement to purify the sins of a lifetime is to worship Lord Damodar in Vrindavan during Kartik. The month of Kartik spent in Vrindavan brings the supreme destination." Sankarshan Das Adhikari Top of Page |
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Tuesday, October 25, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== |
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Monday, October 24, 2005 Broadcast from the Ecstatic Road Back to Godhead In the Most Amazing Transcendental Abode of Sri Vrindavan Dham in India =========================================================================== Swimming in an Ocean of Unlimited Sweetness We have finally arrived in Sri Vrindavan Dham, the most sacred place in the entire material world! This most holy of all pilgrimage places is non-different from the spiritual world. Srila Rupa Goswami describes it in the Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu, "The results of traveling to all the places of pilgrimage in the three worlds is achieved simply touching the holy land of Vrindavan." Srila Prabhupada describes, "On this earth, Vrindavan, ninety miles southeast of Delhi, is a replica of that supreme Goloka Vrindavan located in the spiritual sky. When Krishna descended on this earth, He sported on that particular tract of land known as Vrindavan, comprising about eighty-four square miles in the district of Mathura, India." Instead of answering emails on my laptop computer as our taxi came within 20 kilometers of Sri Vrindavan Dham I took Mataji's expert advice and simply meditated on Sri Vrindavan with intense devotion by repeatedly singing these lines from the song entitled, "Sri Vraja-dhama-mahimamrta" (The Nectarean Glories of Vraja-dhama [Sri Vrindavan Dham]): jaya radhe, jaya krishna, jaya vrindavan sri govinda, gopinatha, madana-mohan (All glories to Radha and Krishna and the divine forest of Vrindavan! All glories to the three presiding Deities of Vrindavan -- Sri Govinda, Gopinatha, and Madana-mohana!) syama-kunda, radha-kunda, giri-govardhan kalindi jamuna jayav, jaya mahavan (All glories to Syama-kunda and Radha-kunda, Govardhana Hill, and the Yamuna River (Kalindi)! All glories to the great forest known as Mahavana, where Krishna and Balarama displayed Their childhood pastimes!) keshi-ghata, bamsi-bata, dwadasa-kanan jaha saba lila koilo sri-nanda-nandan (Glories to Keshi-ghata, where Krishna killed the Keshi demon! All glories to the Vamsi-vata tree, to which Krishna attracted all the gopis by playing His flute! Glories to all twelve forests of Vraja! At these places the son of Nanda, Sri Krishna, performed His pastimes.) We are here up until 11 November. It is the most auspicious place to be. Just by entering into this holy land one's dormant propensity to love the Supreme Person naturally becomes stimulated. Sankarshan das Adhikari =========================================================================== I Love Your Work I just want to say "Thank you," for this wonderful email. One doesn't often hear about how truly nice some people can be. I love your work. It's the only email material I read consistently. I have been a member of SRF for 30 years or more. Thank you very much. Chris Kolivas =========================================================================== It Is All by the Grace of My Spiritual Master I am very happy that you so much appreciated my email describing the wonderful service mood of the devotees in Doha, Qatar. All the credit of course goes to them for their wonderful saintly qualities. I am simply trying to be an honest reporter. Thank you very much for being such a generous, loving person. Your admiration of my humble attempt to spread the science of self realization all over the world on the order of my spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, is a great encouragement to me. Whatever I have been able to accomplish is all by his grace. I wish you all success on your pathway of self-realization that you may quickly and easily realize the Absolute Truth in full. According to the Srimad Bhagavatam, the Absolute Truth is realized in three phases: vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam yaj jnanam advayam brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate "Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramatma or Bhagavan." Srimad Bhagavatam 1.2.11 Realization of Brahman is called auspicious. Realization of the Paramatma is called more auspicious. And realization of Bhagavan is described as most auspicious. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Top of Page |
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Saturday, October 22, 2005 |
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Friday, October 21, 2005 Giving Up the Enjoying Mood The greatest enemy of spiritual advancement is to be in an enjoying mood.
Such a feverish state of consciousness constantly buffets one back and
forth between happiness and distress. The solid, stable position of
transcendental bliss can only be experienced when one is situated beyond
the enjoying mood. This position of self-realization is described in the
Bhagavad-gita as follows: =========================================================================== Can I Accept Srila Prabhupada as My Diksha Guru? Hare Krishna. =========================================================================== We Must Follow Srila Prabhupada According to Srila Prabhupada's teachings diksha (initiation) can only be
accepted from a spiritual master who is physically manifest on the material
plane. Siksha (instruction), however, may be accepted from all spiritual
masters and devotees throughout all of eternity. |
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Thursday, October 20, 2005 |
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Wednesday, October 19, 2005 |
