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An Appeal for Your Help On the order of his spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, Sankarshan Prabhu has dedicated his life for the most urgent work of spreading Krishna consciousness all over the world. The more that Krishna consciousness spreads, the more that the suffering, scarcity, and hate on this planet will be replaced with bliss, abundance and love. This is a golden opportunity for us to do the highest good for all living beings and receive the special blessings of the Lord. Therefore we should, as much as possible, sacrifice our time, energy, and resources to assist Sankarshan Prabhu in his most important work. If you would like to help out to any extent, little or big, kindly inform Sankarshan Prabhu of your desire. |
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Thursday 31 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: If They Only Knew If the people of this world only knew what is the sublime taste of reawakening their dormant enlightened consciousness what a wonderful loving, peaceful atmosphere would be all-pervading on this planet. But because they are in ignorance, the entire world is being dragged into an increasingly more chaotic quagmire. They are blinded by sense desire into thinking that gross and subtle material pleasures are the all in all, that there is nothing more this. But these pleasures do not satisfy us. At best they only give us a temporary sense of titillation which goes away quickly. If however, one comes to transcendental platform, Krishna consciousness, he or she attains a pleasure which is unlimited, never ending, and ever increasing. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Guarantee of Not Falling Twice? We are all eternal servants of Krishna and have lost our sense of identity due to misuse of independence. Hence we are in the material world. Krishna promises in the Bhagavad-gita that once, through the process of bhakti, we return back to the spiritual world there is no return to the material world. What is the guarantee that we will not misuse our independence again after reaching spiritual planets just as we did before and came down to this material world although we were eternal servants of Krishna? I humbly submit myself to you for clarification. Your humble servant -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Possible, but Highly Unlikely... There is no guarantee that we will not again misuse our independence. However, it is highly unlikely that we will. Once burned, twice shy. A child may stick his hand in the fire once in spite of being warned by his parents. But having been burned, is it likely that he will stick his hand in the fire again to become burned again? Although possible, it is highly unlikely. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Wednesday 30 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Your Life Will Be Ecstatic! We are not meant to live selfishly and irresponsibly. In this human form of life we are meant to live for the welfare of al living beings. How do we do that? We should make ourselves spiritually perfect and then engage in the supreme welfare activity of the spiritual enlightenment of all living beings. Such a life of selfless service is millions and billions of times more satisfying than a life dedicated to sense gratification. In fact, there is really no comparison at all. "Millions and billions of times more satisfying" is simply a crude approximation to give us a rough idea of the difference between material sense gratification and Krishna consciousness. It does not come even close to an accurate comparison of the difference. The only way to really comprehend the difference is to personally taste the supreme nectar of Krishna consciousness. This taste defies classification and intellectualization. If you want to know it and understand it, you must taste it. There is no other way to realize it. So try tasting it today. Chant these names with pure love and devotion: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare You'll be glad you did! Your life will be ecstatic! Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: I Want to to Merge with Krishna... Respected Sir, My humble salutations to you. Sir, I am in a very pathetic condition due to Krishna's wish. I wanted someone who could give me light hence joined your esteemed course. Sir, I know what I want to ask may show my ego but that is the truth. I want unison with Krishna. I don't have any other wish except for merging with Him completely. Kindly, provide light and forgive me if I said something wrong. Regards and humble salutations, Your student -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Serving Him is the Ultimate Perfection... Kindly allow me to enlighten you with the transcendental wisdom that is revealed by Lord Sri Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita. Our pathetic condition in this material existence is not due to the wishes of Krishna. It is due to our foolish misuse of our independence. Your desire of unison or becoming one with Krishna is a desire which is against the teachings of the Bhagavad-gita. In that most esteemed of all holy books Sri Krishna states that we are all eternally existing as individuals. Therefore the desire for unison is unnatural and impossible and will keep you always in a state of frustration. The actual goal of spiritual liberation is not a state of unison with God. It is rather a state of harmony with God. In that perfectional stage both you and God exist side by side in a state of perfect loving relationship. So now if you want to come out of all varieties of suffering conditions within this material existence, all you have to do is fully surrender yourself unto Lord Krishna as His eternal servant according to the instructions that He gives in the Bhagavad-gita. This will make you completely satisfied. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Tuesday 29 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Illuminating like the Sun One of the symptoms of the present Age of Kali is that day by day the quality of forgiveness is disappearing more and more from the human society. Formerly what was forgiven now becomes a reason to fight and kill somebody. Even the slight disagreement can turn into a ghastly murder scene. If one wants to advance in spiritual knowledge, he must develop the quality of forgiveness because without this quality one's mind can never become sufficiently peaceful to be fully absorbed in chanting the holy names of the Lord. Therefore one should excuse the offenses of others; he should not hold grudges against others within his heart. In this connection Srila Prabhupada explains: "The duty of a brahmana is to culture the quality of forgiveness, which is illuminating like the sun. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, is pleased with those who are forgiving." --purport to SB 9.15.40 Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: How to Overcome Lust... How can we over come lust? Can you tell me the process of overcoming this lust? your servant -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Beg Krishna... The only way to overcome lust is to realize that the pleasure of bhakti is millions of times greater than the pleasure of lust, and then to beg Krishna to save you from lust with great intensity every time the lusty desires come. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Monday 28 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: We Need One World Religion What the world needs now more than ever is one religion that is intellectually powerful enough to convince even the atheists that there is God and broad enough in its perspective to acknowledge God's presence in all religious traditions. The problem with religions nowadays is that they lack sufficient intellectual strength and they also lack broadminded perspective. Therefore people are taking more and more to atheism. Such a world religion cannot be something manufactured by a human being. It must be the original pure form that religion had when it was originally given by God to mankind before it was tampered with by politically minded individuals who decided to use the power of religion for exploiting others. So how we will find that pure essential teaching that is the actual world religion? For that we must look to God Himself. Where has He spoken directly to mankind in full detail in a broad inclusive way that applies to everyone in all times, places, and circumstances? This He has done in the Bhagavad-gita. What He has presented in the Bhagavad-gita does not exclude anyone who is sincerely trying to awake the dormant love of God within their heart. The science of God as presented in the Bhagavad-gita includes all genuine lovers of God on the highest platform of human evolution. Therefore we request that all those who are seeking one world religion that will unify the entire world into one peaceful and happy global family should look to the Bhagavad-gita. They should carefully study, understand, and implement its sublime teachings. The entire planet will be transformed into a paradise. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Absent-Minded or Focused Japa? Can japa be chanted absent-mindedly (such as when doing other work) or must it be with one-pointed mindfulness in order "to count"? What is authentic japa....silent or aloud? your Catholic devotee -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Focused is More Beneficial... Although highly focused japa is more beneficial than absent-minded japa, whether japa is absent-minded or a highly focused meditation, in either form it is beneficial. It is simply a matter of degrees of benefit. Those who take initiation vows commit themselves to 16 rounds of highly focused japa every day on their japa beads. (Each round is 108 repetitions of the Hare Krishna mantra.) This minimal amount of focused japa is necessary for one who wants to completely purify his consciousness from all the dirt accumulated over millions of lifetimes. Japa means to chant aloud but softly. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Sunday 27 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Blessings in Disguise As long as we are in this material world we are going to face one difficulty after another. That is the nature of this material world. It is a place of difficulties. If we are going to advance steadily on the transcendental path of perfection we have to remain steady in our practice of Krishna consciousness through all varieties of difficult and non-difficult situations. This is why we take a vow to every day without fail chant at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra on our japa beads and to faithfully follow the four regulative principles of freedom: no illicit sex, no intoxication, no meat eating, and no gambling. Remaining true to our vows keeps us solidly fixed on the path, no matter what may be happening in the world around us. In this way we can always remain solidly fixed in transcendence and gradually, gradually realize how each and every difficulty is actually nothing more than a blessing in disguise. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Karma Counter Set to Zero? I have very recently enrolled in this program of self-realization. However I have associated with devotees for nearly 6 months, chant 16 rounds, and occasionally attend the weekly program at local ISKCON centre. In one of the recent Bhagavatam Class, lecture was there on Text 3:30:34 reading as "........and when one is purged of sins, he is again reborn as human being". I want to know whether when one is born as human being, are all his sins are purged? Is the counter of Karma reset to zero? And if so , then why disparities? Kindly enlighten. Regards Ramesh -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Only By Krishna Consciousness... The verse you are referring to states: adhastan nara-lokasya yavatir yatanadayah kramasah samanukramya punar atravrajec chucih "Having gone through all the miserable, hellish conditions and having passed in a regular order through the lowest forms of animal life prior to human birth, and having thus been purged of his sins, one is reborn again as a human being on this earth." --Srimad Bhagavatam 3.30.34 This purging does not mean he is completely free from all sinful reactions. It means that he is purged enough to qualify for a human. And then as a human being he undergoes further purging. If he takes to Krishna consciousness, he will then become 100% purged and then be qualified to go back to home, back to Godhead. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Saturday 26 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Dealing with Pain How does one deal in an enlightened Krishna conscious way with chronic pain? The first thing is that one should never panic in any circumstance, no matter how extreme. One should always remember that Lord Krishna is fully in control and that He has a plan and a purpose for everything. If we find ourselves in a condition of extreme pain, we should try to alleviate it by all available means and at the same time we have to be tolerant of that which cannot be relieved by remedial measures without allowing our minds to become disturbed. By cultivating such a peaceful spirit of equanimity we will be able to take complete shelter of Lord Sri Krishna's holy names even under the more dire circumstances. This taking shelter of Krishna's names will be our ultimate deliverance from all anxieties of this material existence. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: The Anti-Christ... Please help me to understand your intent. I am split because of what I have been taught thus far in my life. On the one side I have been taught that in the end we will have a new world order or one world order with one religion and one ruler (the anti-Christ). The anti-Christ will be charming. He will talk of peace and love. Then the anti-Christ will kill many. Are you helping him to come about? If so, are you on the side of evil? I am not trying to accuse or insult, I truly want to understand your organization's intent for the world. Do you think the anti-Christ might be using you without your knowledge? I do not want to help the evil one in anyway. On the other side of my thoughts, I can see how beautiful and wonderful it would be to have world peace and unity. However, because God created all peoples, one must respect all of our diversities He created. Life would be so boring if we all were the same. Peace is on the inside of each of us because Jesus left His peace within us individually. He taught that it was not in this world. We will always have pain and suffering but with His peace and promise we can overcome. Please know that I love all living things and I love peace and goodness. I just truly need to know the answers to my questions. Peace be with you -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Bringing Christ's Principles Back to the Center... Thank you very much for your sincere inquiry. I wish everyone would be willing to make a sincere inquiry before they pass judgment. We want to bring the principles taught and exemplified by Jesus Christ, i.e. pure love for God, back to the center of the human society. If we are accused of being anti-Christ for doing this, our accusers are anti-Christ. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Response: Good Feelings... Thank you for your response and for not getting defensive to my sincere questioning. I do receive good feelings from the messages and lessons from you and yours. I have always wanted to help others find peace. I have never understood war and the cruelty I see all around me. Thank you for your answer. Your Friend |
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Friday 25 May 2007 from Bhaktivedanta Ashram, Austin, Texas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Dreaming of a Global Spiritual Renaissance As I travel through so many major population centers around the world I am saddened to see how much the human society is lost in the mire of delusion. They have strayed so far away from human existence that it is downright shocking to see their grossly ignorant mentality. I want to reach out and help them, but they do not understand. It is only an extremely rare soul who can actually comprehend the merciful and enlightening message of the Bhagavad-gita. One has to be very fortunate to understand this transcendental message. On the order of my spiritual master I am trying to do whatever I can, along with his other followers, to bring about a global spiritual renaissance, even though it seems from the material point of view that the odds are hopelessly against such a thing ever happening. Such a life, of living for the welfare of all on the order of the Lord and his pure devotee, is most exciting and fulfilling. But I will never be fully satisfied until I see this entire planet fully embracing the process of Krishna consciousness. Until then my heart bleeds to see the unnecessary misfortune of those who are completely captivated by illusion. I am praying for their deliverance. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Das Adhikari Plants the Seeds -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Thursday 24 May 2007 from Amsterdam, Netherlands -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Who Wants to Suffer? I am seated here in the at Schiphol airport in Amsterdam spending the last few minutes of my Spring 2007 European lecture tour reflecting on what an ecstatic two-and-a-half months this has been and writing "Thought for the Day" so I can upload it before I board my flight for the USA. This tour has been truly phenomenal! It never ceases to amaze me that no matter how blissful it becomes to practice and spread Krishna consciousness, it just keeps getting more and more blissful all the time. This phenomenon of the ever-increasing unlimited nectar of Krishna consciousness has me absolutely convinced that someday the entire world will take to this process. After all, who wants to suffer when they can be happy? Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Das Adhikari Gives Class in Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Wednesday 23 May 2007 from Bruges, Belgium -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Self-Proclaimed Messiah? The other day I received an email in which the writer accused me of being a self-proclaimed messiah. Perhaps he was thinking that because so many people all over the world look up to me as a spiritual guide that I must be promoting myself as someone who is very great. But the real fact is that I do not at all consider or claim myself to be great or to be a messiah, savior of the world. I am simply the humble servant of my spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. He has given me a message which carries the potency to deliver the entire world, and he has instructed me to make this message as widely known as possible all over the world. I am trying my level best to obey his order. It is only by Srila Prabhupada's grace that thousands of people all over the world are taking advantage of my humble attempt to spread the teachings of Krishna. In this connection I cannot take any credit. If I have any credit at all, it is simply that I have always dutifully obeyed the instructions which I have received from my spiritual master. This is my only claim. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Why Americans Took Krishna Consciousness and Not the Indians? I have question that is linked up with "Thought for the Day" from 22 May 2007. I am referring to the below extract written by you: "He (Srila Prabhupada) tried for years and years in India to attract people to join this movement but not one person came. But after arriving in America in 1965 within one year he was able to successfully launch ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, which is now powerfully pushing forward a worldwide spiritual revolution." Is there any specific reason for the Hare Krishna movement getting firm grounds in USA as compared to India? Please let me know, because I always marvel at this miracle. I know it is beyond my reach of understanding, but I will try to grasp as much as I can. Your humble servant, Sukshma -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Americans Were Materially Frustrated... The reason that the Hare Krishna movement was able to take its original root in America instead of India was that at the time in the 1960's a large segment of the youth of America had become completely frustrated with the advanced materialism of the Western world and were looking for a spiritual alternative. At the same time in India everyone was interested in how they could advance materially to become like the Western countries. Srila Prabhupada's arrival in America could not have been timed better. This was the perfect arrangement of Krishna. Srila Prabhupada arrived just at the right time and in the right place to meet those persons who were the most enthusiastic to receive his message. When Srila Prabhupada took the American youths to India and the Indian people saw that the Americans were taking up Krishna bhakti, they become inspired like anything and came forward with great enthusiasm to assist and join Srila Prabhupada's movement. Now that ISKCON has become solidly established in India, the current generation of Indians are realizing how India's traditional Vedic culture is far, far more important than any advancement of material civilization. In this connection there is andha-pangu-nyaya, the logic of the blind man and lame man. On their own each of them is useless. But when the lame man with his good vision gets on the shoulders of the blind man who has strong legs, combined together as a team they become very effective. So India has spiritual vision, but is materially lame. And the Western world has material strength, but is blind in spiritual vision. If there is a combination of Western material advancement with India's Vedic wisdom, the entire world can live happily in a new era of peace and prosperity. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Tuesday 22 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Heading Back to the USA After 2 and a half months here in Europe we are heading back to our headquarters in the USA. The USA is a very special place on this planet because it was the USA that gave Srila Prabhupada the facility to start the Krishna consciousness movement. He tried for years and years in India to attract people to join this movement but not one person came. But after arriving in America in 1965 within one year he was able to successfully launch ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, which is now powerfully pushing forward a worldwide spiritual revolution. Just as America has in many fields led the world, it is also America which has led the world on the pathway of Krishna consciousness, because it was the American devotees who traveled all over the world on the order of Srila Prabhupada and established this movement in every corner of the globe. Here in this photo you can see Srila Prabhupada, a brave lone preacher, introducing his movement to the youth of America in 1966 in New York City's Tompkins Square Park:
It is always with a sense of appreciation that I consider how America has rendered such nice service to His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada. It is a great credit to the American people that they were the first who seriously heeded the teachings of Srila Prabhupada. |
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Monday 21 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Spreading the Ultimate Nectar in Latvia Saturday 19 May 2007 was an especially nectarean day. After giving the morning lecture at the temple I then traveled to the outskirts of Riga where we did a program with kirtan, lecture, and prasadam at the home of a bank executive. Then immediately after that program we traveled to a distant city known as Cesis where a public hall had been rented for an advertised Vedic culture program. The hall was packed with an eager audience who had never been exposed before to Vedic culture. As I began my lecture I was doubtful whether or not they would warm up to such a high level subject matter. They responded very favorably with many intelligent questions and they swarmed our book table at the end of the lecture to purchase Bhagavad-gitas. There is one secret I have learned. The more we distribute the nectar, the more we taste the nectar. Therefore I always like the distribute the ultimate nectar of Krishna consciousness as far and as wide as possible. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sharing the Nectar of the Holy Names at a Home Program
Sharing the Ultimate Philosophy, Srimad Bhagavad-gita
Distributing the Supreme Bliss in Cecis, Latvia
Bhagavad-gita, the Key to Unlimited Happiness -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Sunday 20 May 2007 From Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Deliverance from the Existential Quagmire I can never forget how much I was suffering in this material world before I got the shelter of the lotus feet of my eternal spiritual father, my most beloved spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. I was tortured by the meaningless of my existence and was intensely desiring to find a way out of this seemingly hopeless existential quagmire. Since that glorious day when I realized that there would be nothing more beautiful and wonderful than to give my life fully to Srila Prabhupada I have tasted nothing but the sweetest happiness. Later on I found out that by taking complete shelter of the bona fide spiritual master that I had acted in full accordance with the Vedic injunction which is stated as follows: tasmad gurum prapadyeta jijnasuh sreya uttamam sabde pare ca nisnatam brahmany upasamasrayam "Any person who is seriously desirous of achieving real happiness must seek out a bona fide spiritual master and take shelter of him by initiation. The qualification of a spiritual master is that he must have realized the conclusion of the scriptures by deliberation and arguments and thus be able to convince others of these conclusions. Such great personalities, who have taken complete shelter of the Supreme Godhead, leaving aside all material considerations, are to be understood as bona fide spiritual masters."--Srimad Bhagavatam 11.3.21 So my best advice to any of my readers who are serious about achieving real happiness is that they should do exactly as I have done. They should seek out and take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master by initiation. Such a course of action will elevate them to the plane of unlimited happiness. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Only Devotees Utilize Free Will? I have subscribed to your daily "Thought for the Day" since one year. You have helped to shed the ignorance in me. Thank you for showering so much mercy on me and all others who are reading your daily Thought for the day. I appreciate you valuable service. I have a question in regard to the question put forward by Sandeep Gera: How is it possible that only devotees utilize free will? I was under the impression that all souls have both free will and are also in the grip of the karma chakra. Please kindly help me to understand this. Thank you, Deepa -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Everyone Uses or Misuses It... Everyone has free will, and they utilize it either to fully manifest their freedom as spiritually liberated beings by surrendering to Krishna or to suspend their freedom by allowing themselves to be slaves of Maya, the material nature. Those who use their free will to come the spiritual platform achieve an eternal life full of knowledge and full of bliss. Those who abuse their free will in a futile attempt to imitate God end up becoming slaves of the material energy helplessly dragged from one situation to the next according to predestination as dictated by the stringent law of karma. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Saturday 19 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Mission Impossible We have been given a mission by our spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, to save the suffering humanity from the ignorance of material consciousness. When one sees how deeply entrenched the modern day civilization is in ignorance, one can easily conclude that it would be impossible for the world to be saved from such deep, deep ignorance. But possibility or impossibility is not an issue when it comes to the orders received from one's spiritual master. One must simply meditate upon and worship his orders and try one's very best to successfully carry them out. Then by the grace of Sri Guru and Sri Krishna even the most impossible thing can easily become possible. In this connection Srila Prabhupada states: "A Krishna conscious being is always engaged in planning how to take all of suffering humanity back home, back to Godhead. Even if one is not successful in reclaiming all the fallen souls back to Godhead, still, because he is Krishna conscious, his path to Vaikunthaloka is open. He personally becomes qualified to enter the Vaikunthalokas, and if anyone follows such a devotee, he also enters into Vaikunthaloka." --from purport to Srimad Bhagavatam 4.12.36 So a devotee is detached from the results of his activities, but he still tries his level best to bring about the enlightenment of the suffering souls of this world and leaves the results up to Krishna. Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Clarify God's Position... Srila Prabhupada said that God is not Muslim, Christian, or Hindu, that God is God. Can you please clarify this? Best regards, Your very low servant Daniel -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: God's Mercy is for All... Just as the sun is not American, Russian, German, or Australian, in a similar way we cannot tie God down to a particular designation. He is Jagannatha, the Lord of the Universe. He is not described as only being the Lord of the Christians, the Muslims, or the Hindus. He is the God of all. Just as the sun shines everywhere, similarly God manifests His mercy upon all. Therefore He can be addressed by all of His names such as Allah, Christ, or Krishna. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Friday 18 May 2007 via mobile phone from the road to the Latvian border -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Blissful New Gokula On 16 May 2007 our sweet, humble driver, Gediminas, drove us from Vilnius to the northern side of Lithuania just south of the Latvian border. We were on our way to visit the rural devotee community, New Gokula. It is amazing to see how there are so many different pockets of devotees scattered throughout Lithuania. It's very easy to feel very much at home in this country. The harsh Lithuanian winter had disappeared and given way to Krishna in the form of His always most welcome manifestation, the flower-bearing spring. rtunam kusumakarah "Of seasons I am flower-bearing spring." Bhagavad-gita 10.35
We left the main highway for a remote road and then after some time took an even a more remote road. I noticed a beautiful home off in the distance and thought that must the devotees' home. Sure enough. Gediminas turned off and we approached a series of beautiful buildings custom built under the direction of the devotees. They were all expertly put together from squared off logs. Below is the temple building as seen in the early morning just before sunrise. In the background is the water and furnace building. Not shown are guest houses, one already completed and another one under construction.
There is a wonderful natural feel to the buildings with the real wood everywhere inside and outside. New Gokula is so nicely situated in the countryside with a forest on one side and beautiful flowers everywhere on the other side. This sublime atmosphere makes it very easy to peacefully absorb the mind in the supreme meditation, the Hare Krishna mahamantra.
There is truly nothing sweeter than to be in the association of saintly persons who are sincerely trying to revive their dormant loving relationship with the Supreme Person.
As we carry on with our worldwide preaching activities we will always carry in our hearts the sweetest memories of these few hours we spent in New Gokula, Lithuania. Whether we remember Krishna or we remember His devotees, either way we remain fully absorbed in Krishna consciousness and qualify ourselves for entering into the supreme abode at the time of death. |
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Thursday 17 May 2007 via mobile phone from the road in Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Free from all Calamities On 16 May 2007 in Vilnius, Lithuania I lectured on one of my favorite verses in the entire Vedic wisdom. In this amazing verse Queen Kunti, the aunt of Lord Krishna, reveals the most amazing secret of how to become completely transcendental to all of the calamitous conditions of this calamity ridden material existence. Her technique is so powerful that it can awaken you into another realm of consciousness in which all calamities you were experiencing will be seen as nothing more than a bad dream that you once had when you were still asleep in the realm of material consciousness. In this prayer she addresses Lord Krishna: vipadah santu tah sasvat tatra tatra jagad-guro bhavato darsanam yat syad apunar bhava-darsanam "I wish that all those calamities would happen again and again so that we could see You again and again, for seeing You means that we will no longer see repeated births and deaths." --Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.25 The trick is to appreciate every calamity as a great blessing to help you feel ever-increasingly dependent on Lord Sri Krishna. By mastering this art you will no longer be afraid of calamities. Rather you will welcome them. That calamity you thought was about to devastate you will evaporate and you will realize that you are an eternal fully death-proof spiritual being in quality one with that Lord Who is lovingly protecting you at every minute. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sriman Sankarshan Das Lectures -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Wednesday 16 May 2007 From Vilnius, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: The Brilliant Krishna Sun Since there are no facilities available for our staying at our Vilnius temple, we are staying just outside of Vilnius at the home of Ashvini Kumar Das and his wife, Yamuna devi dasi. We are situated in the middle of a beautiful forest area and are commuting twice daily to the temple in central Vilnius so I can give the morning and evening classes. It is very easy to remember Krishna when seeing the natural beauty. The wonderful sunrise this morning immediately reminded me of the beautiful, wonderful dawning of Krishna consciousness that gradually arises in the heart of the devotee who carefully and steadily chants the holy names of the Lord under the guidance of the bona fide spiritual master.
Even though we find the morning sunrise to be very beautiful, it is nothing compare to the arising of Krishna consciousness within the heart. Krishna consciousness is the one switch that when flipped on immediately turns on the entire world. |
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Tuesday 15 May 2007 from Vilnius, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Consciousness Revolution Takes Root in Lithuania The times are changing. There is a consciousness revolution taking place right now on planet earth. People are sick and tired of the same old birth, death, old age, and disease. They want something better. More and more people are refusing to be held back from their constitutional birth right of eternity, knowledge, and bliss by the bogus propaganda of blind materialists. This consciousness revolution is happening on the cutting edge of world history. It is the biggest news event happening anywhere in the universe, but the foolish media is so much steeped in illusion and confusion that they do not have any idea of covering it. This is the hottest thing happening, but yet it amazingly remains unknown. This is why Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita that this is raja-guhyam, the most secret of all secrets. Here in Lithuania I have been very much relishing the powerful spiritual awakening that is taking root around Krishna's holy names and the Bhagavat philosophy. So many people have been steadily and enthusiastically attending my kirtan-lecture sessions. May the seeds of this amazing consciousness revolution spread everywhere and powerfully germinate in every, town, city, village, and hamlet throughout the entire world as soon as possible! Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Consciousness Revolution Manifests -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Monday 14 May 2007 from Kaunas, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: On the Road in Lithuania On Saturday 12 May 2007 after I gave the morning Srimad Bhagavatam lecture at our Kaunas center, we traveled for three hours by car to Visaginas, a remote city 200 kilometers away where there is a strong, enlivened community of devotees. I led Hare Krishna kirtan and gave them a class on the Bhagavad-gita (10.7). Following the class there were many questions from the devotees regarding how to successfully practice Krishna consciousness while at the same time taking care of their material duties. I explained to them that the key is to rise early in the morning and chant their 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mahamantra during the brahma-muhurta hour, the early predawn time, when the mode of goodness is predominant and it is very easy to absorb oneself in chanting and hearing the holy names of the Lord. To be able to do this steadily one has to go to bed as early as possible the night before. They were especially appreciative of my coming to guide them in their practice of Krishna consciousness because I am the only spiritual master who has come Visaginas in the last five years. I am humbled and inspired by their sincere desire to advance in Krishna consciousness. May Lord Krishna bless the Visaginas devotees with all happiness and success in their practice of Krishna consciousness. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Teaching Bhagavad-gita in Visaginas, Lithuania
Vaisnava Farewell from Visaginas Devotees -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Sunday 13 May 2007 by mobile phone from the road in Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Turn Your Home into a Temple One of the regulative principles for those who want to advance on the self-realization path is that they must live in a holy place like Mathura or Vrindavan. So what to do if you are tied down to a job and family situation and cannot manage to pull up stakes and re-locate to one of India's holy places? How will you make spiritual advancement living in the middle of a materialistic city? The answer is quite simple. All you have to do is turn your home into a temple by establishing an altar for Lord Krishna and making it the center of your life. We recently had the pleasure at staying in such a home temple in Russia. Every morning before sunrise we all rose before four am, took our morning showers, and chanted our japa. Then at five am we all assembled before the altar (pictured below) and sang the Guruvastakam prayers and the Hare Krishna mantra. Whatever meals were taken were first offered to Lord Krishna on the altar. You can also do this in your home. Start off with a simple altar consisting of a photograph of Srila Prabhupada, Sri Panca Tattva, and Sri Sri Radha Krishna. Rise early and chant your japa before your altar. Offer all of your meals there. Such a system will make it very easy for you to keep your mind always where it is supposed to be, fixed in Krishna consciousness. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Home Altar in Kaliningrad, Russia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Saturday 12 May 2007 From Kaunas, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Introducing the Lithuanians to Their Forgotten Identity On Thursday evening 10 May here in Kaunas I spoke to a gathering of Lithuanians at a publicly advertised lecture in a meeting hall. The hall was packed to capacity. It was a golden opportunity to teach them what they have forgotten--who they are and how to be who they are. After an ecstatic Hare Krishna kirtan I lectured for 45 minutes and then answered many questions from the interested audience. There is nothing more wonderful and attractive than Krishna and Krishna consciousness. Anybody from any culture or any walk of life who opens their mind to hear this king of all philosophies explained in full by an experienced devotee cannot help but be attracted. Krishna consciousness reconnects the conditioned soul with his eternal identity that has been forgotten since time immemorial. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
"Know Who You Are, and Be Who You Are." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Friday 11 May 2007 from Kaunas, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Transcending the World of Calamities Nobody likes calamities, but yet calamities are being repeatedly forced upon us by the stringent laws of material nature. We don't like to hear or admit this, but the fact is that these calamities are coming to us one after another as reactions from our previous sinful activities. This principle is known in the Vedic literatures as the law of karma. It is described in the Bible also: As you sow, so shall you reap. Even Sir Isaac Newton has presented it in his third law of motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. So what can we do about these calamities? Can we stop them? Or do we just have to somehow or other tolerantly suffer through them? The answer is, "Both." There is no doubt that we have to patiently endure the reactions to our previous sinful activities. But at the same time while we are doing that, we can live our lives in such a way as to gradually become completely liberated from all kinds of karmic reactions. This is done by completely surrendering to Krishna. The Lord confirms this in the Bhagavad-gita as follows: sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami ma sucah "Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear." Bhagavad-gita 18.66 So there is no need to be a fatalist thinking that there is nothing that can be done to alter your fate. You can now take your destiny completely into your own hands by full surrender at the lotus feet of that inconceivably attractive Lord Sri Krishna. Such a life is a life of full freedom completely transcendental to this world of calamities. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Devastating Tsunami Wreaks Havoc on Coastal City -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Thursday 10 May 2007 from Kaunas, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Hearing is the Secret The secret of how to quickly and easily advance along the pathway of self-realization is to hear the knowledge of the Bhagavad-gita and the Srimad Bhagavatam from the proper source. What is that proper source? That is the bona fide spiritual master, the spiritual master who is coming in an authorized line of disciplic succession from Lord Sri Krishna. Even if one has no other qualification, if he can simply attentively and submissively hear the transcendental message of the Gita and the Bhagavatam from the bona fide authority very soon the Supreme Personality of Godhead will become established within his heart. This is confirmed as follows in the Srimad Bhagavatam: dharmah projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsaranam satam vedyam vastavam atra vastu sivadam tapa-trayonmulanam srimad-bhagavate maha-muni-krte kim va parair isvarah sadyo hrdy avarudhyate 'tra krtibhih susrusubhis tat-ksanat "Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhagavat Purana propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhagavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyasadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhagavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart."---Srimad Bhagavatam 1.1.2 So if you want to realize the highest truth, do yourself a favor. Regularly hear the transcendental Vedic wisdom from the bona fide spiritual master. You will relish like anything the supreme bliss. It will gradually become more and more manifested, the more you go on hearing. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
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Wednesday 9 May 2007 from Kaunas, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Global Conflict Resolution in the Age of Conflict I was recently invited to speak on global conflict resolution at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas, USA. Due to already having a lecture booked in Vail, Colorado on the same day I had to decline the invitation. This topic is most important because the present age of Kali, in which we are so deeply immersed, is the age of conflict. Conflict pervades the society on all levels. Persons and nations cannot get along peacefully with each other. Atrocities that were formerly unthinkable have practically become a daily affair in today's conflict torn world. There is so much fear now that you cannot even carry water anymore on an airline flight because the authorities are afraid that it might be some kind of explosive liquid. The scenario is not improving. In all likelihood things will continue getting worse.
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Tuesday 8 May 2007 from Kaliningrad, Russia to Kaunas, Lithuania via mobile phone on the road -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: On the Road in Russia It is now 7 April 2007. It is 12:36pm. We are on the road now from Kaliningrad, Russia to the border crossing that will take us back into Lithuania. It has been a wonderfully uplifting experience to be here with the Russian devotees. We have very much opened our hearts to each other. It was an experience I will never forget. We are even starting to learn a little Russian. This is our ninth country on our Spring 2007 European Lecture Tour. We've got one more to go, Belgium, before we head west across the Atlantic Ocean for a summer of sharing the ultimate nectar in North America. There is truly no sweeter life than traveling all over the world for spreading the topmost benediction of Krishna consciousness to a world that now needs it more than ever. I am ever indebted to my spiritual master for blessing me with the ultimate lifestyle, spreading Krishna consciousness all over the world. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Prabhu Instructs a Soon-to-Retire Russian Gentleman to Dedicate the Remaining Portion of His Life to Preaching Krishna Consciousness -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Monday 7 May 2007 from Kaliningrad, Russia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Our Gentle Nudge This morning (6 April 2007) after observing Mangala Arati and Tulasi puja I still had two rounds to go to complete my daily vow of chanting at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra on my japa beads. I was thinking that a brisk morning japa walk in the cool morning air would be both enlivening for my consciousness as well as good for my health. When I expressed this idea to go to my host, Gopinath das, all the devotees present at his apartment decided to come with me. So it was quite a jolly scene: a large group of Vaisnavas sporting their traditional tilak and garb with bead bags in hand chanting the holy names like a transcendental bee hive. Gopinath told me that it was the first time a spiritual master had ever walked the streets of Kaliningrad. We ventured into a wealthy neighborhood where every house had a big dog and all of sudden all we could hear was dozens of dogs barking from all directions. We decided to turn around and seek a more serene street for our morning walk. When I told Gopinath that the wealthy neighborhood was "Sabakaloka", which means a planet of dogs, he had a hearty laugh. (Sabaka is the Russian word for dog, and loka is the Sanskrit word for planet.) It felt really good to be one of a large contingent of devotees enthusiastically displaying Vaisnava dress, tilaka, bead bags, and mantra chanting for the benefit of a suffering Russian society that is still so deeply steeped in illusion and misery. Such cultural expressions have a profound uplifting impact on the materialistic civilization to gently nudge it in the direction of spiritual awakening. May that day come soon. May that day come soon! Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Prabhu Expounds Gita Science in Russia
Early Morning Walk in Kaliningrad
Coining the term "Sabakaloka" Answers According to the Vedic Version: |
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Sunday 6 May 2007 from Kaliningrad, Russia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Transcendental Knowledge for the Russians Now we are in Kaliningrad, Russia for an ecstatic weekend of distributing transcendental knowledge. The local population is going about their activities in complete ignorance of the transcendental reality which is easily within their reach if they will simply open their ears to hear about it. Because of false pride, however, practically no one is interested. Sadly, this is the nature of this material world. Because of pride and ignorance, in spite of everyone's hankering for a life full of happiness, hardly anyone is actually finding it. So we have come to Russia hoping to be of service to those who are sincerely seeking spiritual awakening. In the Bhagavad-gita Lord Sri Krishna very nicely explains the benefit of transcendental knowledge: na hi jnanena sadrsam pavitram iha vidyate tat svayam yoga-samsiddhah kalenatmani vindati "In this world, there is nothing so sublime and pure as transcendental knowledge. Such knowledge is the mature fruit of all mysticism. And one who has become accomplished in the practice of devotional service enjoys this knowledge within himself in due course of time."--Bhagavad-gita 4.38 Kindly take advantage of the wisdom of the Bhagavad-gita. Your life will become unlimitedly sublime! Sankarshan Das Adhikari -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: How to Chant 16 Rounds Daily? I keep on enrolling people to your course. I really want people to follow your sayings. Please advise me how can I become fully Krishna conscious. I chant, but I can never finish 16 rounds. I am so tired with people and politics in my organization, I am so disturbed that I can not concentrate. How can I become little tough to handle these? I feel so tired that I keep sleeping till 7:00 AM. How will people like us, who are drained out in the office, find the time and inner quietude to be able to chant 16 rounds daily? Please help me. Sincerely yours -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Answer: Early to Bed, Early to Rise... Thank you very much for introducing others to our course. This knowledge can save the entire world from all varieties of miseries. There is truly nothing more valuable than this knowledge. The key for increasing the quality and quantity of your chanting is to go to bed as soon as possible as soon as you get home from the office in the evening. The earlier you go to bed, the earlier you can get up. When you rise early and chant before you begin your work day, your mind will not be cluttered with thoughts of the office politics. You will be in much better situation for fully concentrating your mind on the sweet sound of Lord Sri Krishna's names: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare In this way if you will chant 16 good quality rounds of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra before leaving for the office, your spiritual battery will be fully charged and you will never feel drained no matter how hectic your day at the office may become. Sankarshan Das Adhikari |
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Saturday 5 May 2007 from Kaunas, Lithuania -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: An Ocean of Bliss in Lithuania Our brief overnight stop in Kaunas, Lithuania on our way to Russia was the sweetest nectar. The warm hospitality of the Lithuanian devotees is second to none in the entire world. The surest and quickest way to advance in Krishna consciousness is to engage in the six kinds of loving exchanges with the Lord's devotees. And there is no better place in the entire world to do this than in Kaunas, Lithuania. The six loving exchanges as listed by Srila Rupa Goswami as follows: dadati pratigrhnati guhyam akhyati prcchati bhunkte bhojayate caiva sad-vidham priti-laksanam "Offering gifts in charity, accepting charitable gifts, revealing one's mind in confidence, inquiring confidentially, accepting prasada and offering prasada are the six symptoms of love shared by one devotee and another." --Nectar of Instruction: 4 After several days of super sweet Krishna conscious association in Russia we will be coming back for an entire week of nectarean loving exchanges in Kaunas, Lithuania. Stay tuned in for more reports from the ocean of bliss. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
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Friday 4 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: On the Road to Russia I am writing this "Thought for the Day" it is 5:49 a.m. on 3 May 2007 in Riga, Latvia. This morning we are departing Riga for an overnight stop in Kaunas, Lithuania from where we will proceed on to Kaliningrad, Russia tomorrow. It is with great happiness that I am going to Russia. The happiness is that we now have the opportunity to spread the Krishna consciousness movement in Russia. Formerly during the communist era it was not so. Our movement was at that time completely underground and being pursued vigorously by the KGB (Soviet secret police). Our devotees at the time were being very cruelly persecuted. Some of them were tortured and some of them died as a result of this mistreatment by the Soviet authorities. That our devotees risked their very lives to practice Krishna consciousness is a great testimony to their unflinching faith in our Founder-Acharya, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, and in Lord Sri Krishna. When I met one of our devotees who had been tortured by the communists and asked her about her experience, she could not even speak about it. The memories were too painful. Here is a picture of His Grace Sriman Sacisuta Das, who was tortured to death in prison for the crime of being Krishna conscious:
The following moving video footage is from 1988 when 25 Hare Krishna devotees were in Soviet prisons for the "heinous crime" of chanting Hare Krishna. The Hare Krishna children in Australia made an appeal to the soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, to please release the Soviet Hare Krishnas:
During his visit he discussed philosophy with Prof. Kotovsky, a Soviet scholar of Hinduism, but most significantly met with one young, educated Russian boy who later became his first and only initiated disciple from the Soviet Union, Ananda Shanti. This Russian boy single-handedly started preaching the eternal message of Bhagavad-Gita, and in this way the teachings of Srila Prabhupada became known to the hundreds and hundreds of Soviet people, so much so that in the beginning of the 1980's the KGB declared ISKCON one of the greatest threats to the Soviet nation. In this way, the war was declared............the war of the totalitarian state against the handful of first devotees of Krishna in Soviet Russia. |
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Thursday 3 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Waking Up from the Dream This material existence is a dream. Even though it has a reality, it is not at all what is appears to be. In this material world we are dreaming "I am this body." We are thinking ourselves to be of a particular gender, race, and nationality. But actually our gender, race, and nationality have nothing at all to do with our actual self. They are simply coverings hiding our actual self. When we wake up from the sleep of material existence and become reconnected with our original, eternal identity which exists far, far beyond the prison of birth, death, old age, and disease, we will then taste the actual happiness of existence in a state of perfect harmony with God. In this connection Srila Bhaktivinode describes how Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is calling out to us to awaken us from our millions of lifetimes old slumber: jiv jago jiv jago gauracanda bole kota nidra jao maya-pisacira kole "Wake up, sleeping soul! Wake up! Why are you sleeping on this lap of maya, the illusory energy? Get up!" It's time we heed His call and come out of the nightmare of material existence into an eternal life, full of bliss, and full of knowledge. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Lord Caitanya is Imploring Us, "Wake Up from the Dream of Material Existence."
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Wednesday 2 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: The Revolutionary Srimad Bhagavatam The most revolutionary knowledge which has ever been revealed within this universe is carefully preserved in the ancient text known as the Srimad Bhagavatam. That beautiful Bhagavatam is full of choice poetic descriptions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna, and His pure devotees. In that sweet Srimad Bhagavatam is recorded a conversation which took place thousands of year ago between the great sage Srila Narada Muni and his disciple, Srila Vyasadeva, who is famous for being the compiler of the Vedic wisdom. Narada Muni mercifully enlightens Vyasadeva in the following words: tad-vag-visargo janatagha-viplavo yasmin prati-slokam abaddhavaty api namany anantasya yaso 'nkitani yat srnvanti gayanti grnanti sadhavah "That literature which is full of descriptions of the transcendental glories of the name, fame, forms, pastimes, etc., of the unlimited Supreme Lord is a different creation, full of transcendental words directed toward bringing about a revolution in the impious lives of this world's misdirected civilization. Such transcendental literatures, even though imperfectly composed, are heard, sung and accepted by purified men who are thoroughly honest."--Srimad Bhagavatam 1.5.11 The revolutionary impact of the Srimad Bhagavatam has not diminished with age. It is just as powerful and potent for completely revolutionizing the human society as it was 5,000 years ago. Simply what is required are people who are purely practicing it and teaching it throughout the world. On the order my spiritual master I have fully dedicated my life for traveling and preaching all over the world to enlighten as many people as possible in the true meaning of the Srimad Bhagavatam. I know that by the divine power of the Srimad Bhagavatam that if I simply present it purely as it is without any adulteration that there will in fact be a powerful positive impact for the respiritualization of the entire human society. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
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Tuesday 1 May 2007 from Riga, Latvia -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today's Thought: Using Your Talents for Krishna Whatever material talent we have should be utilized in Krishna's service. In this connection Srila Prabhupada states, "Whatever capacity you may have, either you are a scientist or a lawyer or an engineer or a rich man, a capitalist, whatever you may be. Your duty is to utilize your talent for Krishna consciousness. That's all. That is perfection." A nice example of this is my student, Ugis Polis, here in Riga, Latvia. He is very talented in radio broadcasting and is using this for Krishna. He began his radio career in Riga at the age of 13 on a children's radio program and soon became a radio journalist interviewing other children for special short features. As he grew up he had his own program. At that time Latvia had only one radio station, the state radio station. Ugis got his big break when the Russians took control of the Latvian state radio station and the Latvian government realized it would be to Latvia's advantage to license private radio stations. When the first license was granted in 1991 it went to Ugis. He took his station on the air in 1992. As I am writing this, it is April 30, the fifteenth anniversary of Ugis' radio station, European Hit Radio, first going on the air. It is one of the most popular radio stations in all of Latvia and has broadcast towers throughout the nation. Since his programming is restricted by government regulations, he uses the advertising portion of his broadcasts to promote various Krishna consciousness programs such as Hare Krishna Food for Life free food distribution, festivals, and special lectures given by devotee speakers. In this way, through advertising, he is introducing a major segment of the Latvian population to the idea that Hare Krishna Food for Life is the nation's leading charity and that Vedic knowledge will solve life's problems. Thus he is making a major contribution to the spreading of Krishna consciousness in this eastern European former Soviet bloc nation. Ugis chants 16 rounds daily of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra and follows the four regulative principles of freedom: 1) No illicit sex, 2) No meat eating, 3) No intoxication, and 4) No gambling. At the same time, he manages European Hit Radio with its large staff and is launching two new stations. I encourage all of my students to see Ugis' example and find the ways and means that they can be solidly fixed in the practice of Krishna consciousness by good sadhana and by utilizing their talents and abilities in the service of Krishna. If more and more people can do this, it will bring in a new era of peace and happiness for the entire global society. Sankarshan Das Adhikari
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