Looking for new ways to preach. 03/24/13 Vrindavan.

Dear devotees Vrinda family.
A hug from Sri Vrindavan Dham heart. Thanks to the mercy of Srila Prabhupada we are once again in Sri Vrindavan Dham. I have two days here before going to Europe.

These days in Mayapur we had a nice seminar on Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur's Saranagati. We were meditating on how to remove anything that is not favorable to devotional service. When will be the day that I can fully surrender my heart? One should meditate. My Lord is always watching over me certainly. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura glorifies Sri Yamuna and encourages us to surrender to Krishna.

Once, when we were working on the project of returning Yamuna Devi to the ghats of Vrindavan, we found a Balaram deity and then placed Him on the altar. There is also a project that began with the name Balaram.  This project has been functioning for quite some time. Someone said Mr. Gill, who led the project, was doing Balarams service, to bring the Yamuna back to her place. It sounds funny but that's how it is, Mr. Gill was inspired to do this service and did it for the joy of all in Vrindavan. Thus we meditate on Sri Vrindavan, on how the Lord continuously manifests His desire, not only in the past but in the present, every day.

In this chat today I want to clarify an issue, especially for devotees who are with me for many years. Many of you have seen how it has developed Vrinda mission. Sometimes something particular has been emphasized at different times. Or we have seen many attempts to do something nice. All of these are offerings to Srila Prabhupada and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. First and wholeheartedly, if I have bothered someone at some point, this would give me a lot of grief. If this occurred, I sincerely apologize to them. Apologies if I've bothered someone to make them feel that some innovations that new ideas to expand Krishna consciousness are absolute and that it must be done without having to do anything else. Indeed, as I put in the book: The temple president: These instructions are applicable depending on the number of devotees who are in one place, depends on what you can do.
For example:

If a Hindu community in the city, you have to pay attention to them. I'm always thinking in my mind of how to engage people in services. Create options, options to expand Krishna consciousness. Educating our children. Involve people who are away from their family, who still are not vegetarians, or who feel solidarity with Mother Earth but have had no contact with the mystique of Vedic wisdom. Now a day there are many people scared with the state of the environment. And try to do something but never heard a Vaishnava's interpretation of these issues. Unaware of holistic living, spiritual respectfulness, simple living high thinking. A higher taste, they have not known this. I always think of how to engage others. Engage more people to understand the treasure of love, bhakti. That is one of our major efforts. Even SEVA our publications have had this direction. For example, I published many Vedic wisdoms because I thought there lacked a basic introduction to why Krishna consciousness is so important.

Mysterious India also published a work of Walter Eidlitz and we also tried to post the Yoga Correspondence Course. All these works, in my mind, have a good justification. Some motivation to help, some innovation with the aim of giving more people Krishna. And give more variety of service to the devotees as well. Sometime Srila Prabhupada said that all they have to do is sell books and everything else will come by itself. But when you're in a town like Copiapó and La Serena or other tiny towns, you need other forms of income after distributing books in the streets, in three months all know the books or they say, I have it. Then to preach in such places we must have other ideas. Here we enter the flexibility like the emergence of the devotees bakeries, restaurants, retreats, all ideas that can fund one idea or on the other a project to have a wide variety of activities. At the same time, sometimes I refer to something that seems to be all important at the time but with new idea I am not making light reference to the prior idea. In other words, as a devotee told me: if you try to follow all the instructions you will become crazy. And I give the reason for that is too much and no one can do everything. So this requires a certain power of discrimination. And judging a certain spirit of the time, place and circumstance. Because for example, in each country, the legalities are different. Some countries may be able to do one thing and others may not. In Mexico, a devotee can collect, in one day, $ 200. That is a heavy sankirtan day, the same devotee does that in Bolivia, with the same energy, or Venezuela, and collects $ 20. Not that the work is less but sometimes somewhere there are more facilities compared to other places. There are also devotees who are experts in something somewhere and I try to talk about them to other devotees trying to share with them the success they are experiencing. Either way from Mexico to Argentina and Europe, Lord Krishna has ensured that our Vrinda mission remains always very humble and poor. Well, not everywhere because to have a farm like Varsana or Ecotruly Park is a great opulence. But at the same time if you know how it got up like New Vrindavan in Argentina, with a loan from Gurudeva Atulananda and the repayment is to be done in 8 years or so.

Also the energy of many creative devotees has humbly produced materials such as a yoga course. Rather, what I would call as high intelligence of the Vrinda mission is completely absorbed in creating new branches or ways of preaching like the House of Wisdom or how there are many centers, and to the majority they must manage one thing and another thing at the same time, etc. All this has helped us be  present in the development of spirituality but if we analyze it from a business point of view we are of very small scale. Maybe you felt uncomfortable by the number of instructions that I give every Sunday in the Chat. You may say: oh no, not another idea. We're still on the previous idea that did not work and now comes a new idea and then comes the next. How are we going to do all that with five devotees? Of course, this is also of a certain immaturity because those who know me know that I follow the spirit of Srila Prabhupada which is not imposition, is not required and most of all I hope no one is afraid. I do not want to work under the pressure of fear, much less want to frighten others for what they are doing. That has never been my intention. Neither fear nor troublesome.

I try to give ideas, I try to give news. I try to bring variety and color as the Kumbha mela with our costumes that have shown up at all the press in India. Everything was very nice, everyone realized our work. Virtually without many words we got a strong message across in favor of the Ganga and the Yamuna  that was heard up to the Parliament of India and lately they have some resolutions in  favor. We stand behind the Yamuna water reaches Vrindavan pure, if this happens then our little effort had some value. But you have to keep fighting against the greed that is destroying our Mother Nature. And some may understand this differently or some more than others, for example Damodara Maharaj in Chile is very active in such awareness campaigns.

Other devotees working in the Sierra Nevada, one of the most beautiful places in the world, felt the call to protect this place before the threat of corporations. So for some people this type of work is very important while a pujari, for example, has nothing to do with it. The deity worships and serving the people who come before the deity. Or the cook does not care about the finances, until no more rice or salt is given, then at that point they will begin to worry about the economy of the temple. So, there are different areas naturally as varnas: sudras, vaisyas, ksatriyas and brahmanas all have their respective areas of activities. But in a temple, a Vaishnava can do any work of the four social classes, because when you do a service to Krishna with love there is no problem doing whatever is necessary. It is also true that if one engages in a specific activity then they have little opportunity to get into other areas.

So I want to make this clear in this chat that I only suggest, and my suggestions should not bother anyone nor should anyone feel pressured. And when devotees have other ideas, I also support them and give them suggestions. I'm always listening to what others say, because listening to the devotees and seeking ways of preaching is the highest form of mercy obtainable. I think with this I said everything I wanted to say to clarify that which may not be clear. I think for many it is clear, that is the case, but do not forget my dears that when I make a visit to a country in a week, it is mathematically impossible to meet all the projects of the yatra. And that is that Krishna wants you to grow. And apply the time, place circumstances to ideas. For example, I spent many years with Srila B.R. Sridhar Maharaj and he never asked me how many temples we have. At that time we had about 36 temples and it was a lot to handle. Today there are over 36 but the problem is the same. No time to attend all properly, partially of me but on your part you can still do and you will grow spiritually attending and receiving the ideas.

In the development of service tests are presented, which enable one even if difficult. There are positive challenges, beauties such as someone arriving and giving a farm as well as wanting to do a project there. So one is left scratching their heads and thinking about how to help there. As for Puri Maharaj in Brazil, he came to me and said: I have this land. I went there and saw that the place was so far away that the jeep I took died out when we arrived. The place was on a mountain and it was nice to be situated in the nothing, from there you could see a waterfall 30 km away. Then I told Puri Maharaja that best to find another place and by Krsna's arrangement and this land was exchanged for what is now Vrinda Bhumi. And now it is a beauty and it's expanding. And that they gave to me as a gift. Puru Maharaj came to me with this land and said "what shall we do?" I said, "what we do with it, you must do it". Thus came the new yoga Vrinda Bhumi Monastery.

So in preaching surprises will occur, virtually all Vrinda family estates were given as gifts. Or at least the resources. Everything that comes from Krishna is a compromise. And if they give us something we have to take care of it. All that development one can say: Mercy challenge. I do not know what is coming tomorrow. So, if you have ideas, let me know. I'm open to ideas from you. And work with all the devotees around that they also have a chance to develop, to increase awareness of Krishna. And take a lot of responsibility. We will see many more surprises, do not hesitate.

Next year marks 30 years of the Vrinda mission, 30 years of surprises. We will see more surprises and I hope that they be very pleasant surprises for all of you. Because it will grow and be prepared to reach the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada which is the only destination that cent per cent I know. The lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada are those who walked this earth. And walking this earth, those lotus feet, awakened Krishna consciousness in my heart and in many souls. Prabhupada retired from this world to go where Krishna is and he is waiting for us there. Because he did not just throw this message to the world and then stopped worrying about us. His heart is too big and beautiful. Srila Prabhupada Ki Jay,
Thank you for connecting to the Chat Srila Prabhupada
Haribol!

Your ever well wisher,
B.A. Paramadvaiti