Thursday, February 23rd, 2017

Mayapur, India

Heating Up

I still don my socks in the morning.  At 4 a.m., stone-tiled floors are nippy on the feet at that hour, despite the current rise of temperature during the day.  At 12 noon they come off.  At Maha-Sringha’s home some of our Canadian devotees, as well as Russian, along with Bengali brahmacaris, warmly (in more ways than one) sat in kirtan.  It was a jam session, in some ways, with guitar and saxophone.  It was marvelous—musicians playing the maha-mantra.

Still more heated up, came the kirtan mela (chanting festival) which I led from 4 to 5 p.m.  Here we incorporated traditional mrdunga drum and kartals (hand cymbals,) along with gong and harmonium, to invoke a beautiful form of praising Krishna.  Dancing—I insisted upon—so we had the entire hall of people moving to steps of devotion.

It’s great when we all work and move together.  That’s called co-operation.

I have been rather strict with diet, a low purine one, which means low in protein.

“Now, just add some barley to your eating.  It’s the major source of B₁₂, which is lacking in many vegetarians,” said one Ayur-veda doctor.

We did have meals between exuberant chanting sessions—a way to burn up cells that consumption brings.

“Work now, Samadhi later,” our guru, Srila Prabhupada used to say.  Samadhi means “chill-out” in a most spiritual way.

Behave.

May the Source be with you!

5 km

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2017

Mayapur, India 

Just Like the Sparks

On this last day of our AGM I was asked to read this passage from a lecture by our guru, Srila Prabhupada, recorded on Feb. 22/1967, fifty years ago in San Francisco:

“So as soon as we are separated, that is our conditional state.  How we are separated?  Just like the sparks of the fire, as soon as he's come out of the fire and falls down on the ground, it loses its illumination immediately.  Immediately.  That illuminating spark which was dancing with the fire, as soon as falls down, it becomes black, charcoal.  It is just like carbon.  So [a]long with the fire, it is just like, as good as fire, illuminating.

“So our position is like that.  We are sparks, energy.  As from the energy of the fire, there are so many dancing, similarly, we are all sparks of the Supreme Lord.  But as soon as we come out of the fire, as soon as we want to become independent of the Supreme Absolute Truth, that spiritual energy becomes almost extinguished.  It is never to be extinguished, but it appears, it appears.  Just like fire covered with ashes.  So again, when ashes are removed, the fire comes.

“So our position is like that.  We are now covered by the ash of this material energy and, as soon as this will be removed...  The removal process is Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa—ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12), cleansing process.  As soon as we are completely cleansed, we are as good, I mean, as illuminating as Kṛṣṇa.

“So this is the process.  We shall study again tomorrow.  Thank you very much.”

May the Source be with you!

6 km

Tuesday, February 21st, 2017

Mayapur, India

Like Henry the Eighth?

Bhavananda mentioned to me, “I heard you had gout.”

“Yes, I do.”

“Henry the Eighth had gout.”

“Oh, please don’t compare me to that monster.”

“Yes, he was a monster.  At one point he only ate meat.”

“But please, don’t compare me to him.”

It’s Bhavananda’s usual way of teasing, having fun, and putting a spark into your day.

That brief exchange put light in the morning.  It was in the morning that I had also attended the Sridham Mayapura International School (SMIS) for their opening day.  On their campus, a full four hours was given to drama presentations by the various grades of students.  They were adorable, from pre-schoolers to teens.

I also wanted to report the beautiful tribute made to the late Jagajivan, an inspiration to many of the Krishna pioneers of South America.  He was always lively and upbeat, and offering a moderating influence when the atmosphere was heavy with emotions.  He died last fall from the effects of a stroke.  Isn’t it good to know that the spirit persists?

Today was the final day of our performance of “Mr. Puri.”  That’s the sixth showing to a capacity four hundred crowd, each time.  Mind you, so many people told  us they’ve come two, three or four times.

“Best production ever,” says Bhakta Priya, the widow of Jagajivan.

Thank you for that remark and all the best to you.

May the Source be with you!

7 km