Dear devotees, today I want to share with you a very important message and that is that the most important thing we have in life is to understand that this human form of life is an adventure to get to a higher place.
This form of human life is not a casual experience. It has nothing to do with chance, on the contrary ... it's rather extreme, intense and dedicated. The nature of this world; do or die ... nothing more.
Life is not boring, it is very interesting. Even breathing is not something boring. If you observe your breathing you realize that it is something wonderful. Every breath in your breathing is something magnificent. What is meant by the statement that there is nothing casual in life...is that whether we can see it or not see it, there are wonders behind everything. Sometimes things take time, even Srila Prabhupada took time to achieve all that he did. This idea that life is not something casual also means there is always something to achieve in life. It is about defining what we do with our lives and how we do it. Life is a sacred duty and sacred duty as the runs. What to say about going out and giving someone a book about Krishna. To spread the message of love that we have received: That's what life is about. Tell people that Krishna is there and He is the Lord of their heart. Asking them to please not ignore Him. We are communicators of love, the love of Krishna. That's what our life is about.
Chaskis, communicators of love. And if that vibrates into their hearts, people are delighted with it. Art is not measured on the basis of the quality of art in itself, it is measured in relation to the quality of the artist's feelings and how they are transmitted. We are communicators of love, that is what our life is about. And we are very lucky, because the message we communicate is the message that Srila Prabhupada gave us, which is the message of Krishna Himself and His love for us all. Love vibrates in the heart and it is transmitted through actions, through art, through music and if it vibrates, people are delighted with it. Unity in diversity, Krishna loves us all, even though everyone is an individual and distinct entity. And if we want to reciprocate the love of Krishna, we must also give that love to others. Do you have any questions about it?
Do not let your life become something common and ordinary. Do not think your love has no value. Do not think that there is something else that is more important than your love. Neither money nor politics, nor sports. There is nothing more important than the love that you can give to Krishna and to others. That's my message today, appreciate the valuable treasure that we have received and share it with others without distinction. All my affection from Bolivia.
Jay Srila Prabhupada!
Your always well-wisher
B. A. Paramadvaiti Swami.
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Compassion. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Compassion. Mostrar todas las entradas
Forming communities 01.19.2014 Colombia
Conference.
Dear devotees
Today is my last day in Colombia . Important days of the mission.
Today I travel to Ati Quigua, Costa Rica to meet with Dr. Vandana Shiva. This meeting will be historic. The reunion of two ancient cultures.
Ati Quigua seeks to strengthen ties between the Sierra Nevada and India. I am very happy with this, as these meetings are very auspicious for everyone. Our main campaign is to restore and protect traditional values. Offering an education based on spiritual values that include respect for all cultures.
Ati Quigua is traveling as a representative of Ikwashendwna taking a message of peace and universal love. Ikwashendwna or the global conscious pactc is the union of the people for a better world, for the respect of values. Krishna is manifesting all this by His mercy. And we are instruments of this great plan.
What do we do to alleviate the suffering in the world?
First know, why do we suffer? What is our suffer for? The oida therapy gives us the answer to this in a scientific way. Now that we know why, what do we do? How do we apply the lessons learned? We learn many things in this world but do they have practical application in life? Most information we learn are oriented in the end to economically maintain us.
We did not have spiritual education that compliments other education and meaning to our lives. The sages of India gave us a lot of spiritual information. The mystical school of India is rich in wisdom, such as the Srimad Bhagavatam. There are 18,000 verses designed to awaken spirituality in society. Information that serves even an atheist. An atheist can say he does not believe in God but believes in values.
But who defines or set the values? From where do they arise or how are they taught? How is there education in values?
Sometimes I find these atheists and ask them if they worship the cosmic mother, the creator of life, and they say sure, how wouldn't I, then I tell them well then you are very religious.
I want to acknowledge the Mamos, the grandparents and teachers of the Sierra. They are an example of a culture that has fought and are fighting to protect their values; and that is found in the love and in the generosity that they have towards each other, even though they were abused by the misuse of the word religion.
I am their humble apprentice. I was one of the hippies of Europe looking to live in a community, we made many attempts to form small communities of which I was part of, but I saw them form and saw them get canceled, that is what happens with these communities. While Arhuaca communities have thousands of years existing and they still care for each other, they make offerings and are here sharing with us.
These days I attended a reunion of the eco villages in Varsana but it was much more than eco villages, it was the need of each living being to find a community and to have a sustainable relationship with the earth, with other brothers, with forests, rivers, with the trees, the animals and everything around us. So what I saw was a meeting of the heart.
What unites us is the cosmic mother, the source of all that makes our biodiversity, and happy life, and it is also the ability to cope with different situations and conflicts. The conclusion of this meeting is that we should not see enemies even if we know people who do horrible things, we must try to stop them but we only have complex little brothers who we must wake up and include them in good.
And the good, in its different varieties, show them that murderers have to do with violence, well we suffer collectively or with something that unites us. I ask you this, "do you guys internally feel that everyone in the group must receive the reactions of the actions of a specific person or a specific group?
We need to weave a web that goes beyond sectarianism, we must identify elements that bring us together such as the protection of animals, mother earth, values, and of these we have much in common.
From the Vedic view the goal of life is liberation. We can say that we have bought the ticket to liberation but we lose that if we do not help others to grab their ticket. We should all leave this world, we must have a healing community where it fits all and salvation is the way of life we lead. This is the role of the eco villages, educational centers of the healing culture.
In an eco village two very nice concepts exist. The leader doesn't feel himself to be a leader, he is a trainer, educator of leaders. And there is no concept of private property even if it is privately owned. They feel that what they have is borrowed and they feel as guardians . For them it is very clear : we are not owners but guardians of Mother Earth.
Spirituality is a self -evident truth of the law, it is what unites us by law, by necessity. Spirituality represents beauty and not torture and inquisition, so I feel blessed to find the ancestral solution because a community without law is going to end in nothing, where you will fight even for a pin, as is the mentality of hegemony who remove everyone for the army so they can leave their rotten power flow. The leader of a spiritual community inspires others under rules that everyone agrees to accept because they accept them as beneficial, to form, to generate, to sustain your personal and group development. That's a big sacrifice.
An ideal materially solidifies when there is a selfless sacrifice from someone willing to help and receive all with love. We know there is justice in the universe and if someone starts making trouble then by universal law we know that person will get what they deserve, but that law is not written, it is something that we have at heart.
Cult is culture, it is our due. Forming community, finding values that I want to sacrifice for, finding leaders who inspire me because they sacrifice the most.
You can have the desire to have an eco village, then you must give your land to the community and agree to what the grandparents say about rules and regulations, because they sacrifice and they have the common good in mind, that worship is for the welfare of all.
The environmental movement has a great negligence basically by part of the humans towards animals, and now the united nations mentioned the importance of refraining from meat eating, but large organizations such as Green peace do not have as their primary concern. Many animal organizations recommend caring for pets but they do not mention that in India they should stop the sacrifice of animals, that it must be avoided. If you need to do it then you pay your due where you kill the animal with your hands and say that he will have the right to do the same with you in the next life. Spirituality is the defense for the motherland, to love others and to follow a leader who is capable of sacrifice without fanaticism, without thinking that he is the only one worthwhile to do it.
I wanted to convey the experience of a community that has and promotes values such as gratitude, purity and compassion and at its base are meetings where members discuss how to protect those ideals together. Within these communities are authorities but no fear. For me, spirituality is the ideal of a community, especially those who have a close relationship with each other or where greater strength is the base on the common belief that we all share.
I am speaking about the Eco villages, we had the most important meeting for the eco villages here and the concept includes all spiritual communities. Do you have a spiritual community? Then it is part of this network.
A spiritual family and a community. If you open the door to your brothers to talk of universal values and have a community...The future depends on communities working together in their ideals. So I was happy in this meeting with the many leaders who share their experiences and exist for a better world.
Thank you Srila Prabhupada. Thanks for this great gift and this gift is definitely for you too. Srila Prabhupada ki jay!
Your always well wisher,
Swami B. A. Paramadvaiti .
The temple should run like a symphony. 3/11/13 From India.
Today's message comes straight from my heart and I want to share it with you all. It's a personal opinion which I will try to explain in a poetic way .
What I want to convey today is related to the expertise of the orchestra conductor. One way or another, all things in life should be conducted in a way that it all ends up being harmonious. Now I will explain something in reference to our own preaching activities .
The sheet music is written and should be read as that defined score, but they still need an orchestra conductor, a leader who put his own style and can take the full orchestra to a harmonious result . A preacher, for example, should always speak in a way that encourages people to delve into the meaning of what they are saying.
An Inbound Yoga teacher , for example, should lead students in such a way that excites them to maintain themselves according to their own qualities and make them stay connected with Paramatma . In other words, the conductor must guide people to an intense joy for what they are doing . When you conduct something it must be done in a very harmonious and satisfying manner.
If we apply this same concept in the temple istagostis we will see that the president is able to allow each member of the ashram to feel as a valuable part of the orchestra. The temple should be ran like a symphony : the kitchen should be tuned, the reception should be tuned, volunteers must be tuned, the online promotion department must be tuned, etc. . The directing of a temple is like that of conducting a symphony. Sometimes even in the orchestra the conductor makes different members perform a "solo". A skilled leader will always bring others to their best potential. That also applies within music, dance, architecture, engineering, in all aspects. The ability to combine and harmonize the different elements and personalities is an art. Leading a spiritual community requires art, collection , preaching , music, sitting together to share, study, cooking, etc. . There are many elements to consider. The same applies to grhasta families.
We should never do things based on fear, on the contrary, we must increase the spiritual growth of each of the members of the community. A good leader is always ready to share with others . I myself consider a leader to also be one who is also trying to learn how to become a good one, so I think that communication is one of the most important things to keep alive. The failure of a leader is his limited capacity in communication, for example, now I have to communicate with all those who will remain in India for six months, I must communicate a plan to each of them and tell them what area in they will develop in.
Here in Vrinda Kunja we are committed to doing aratik nightly in Brahma Kunda, it is our responsibility and as the leader of the temple in giving others their delegated responsibilities so that everything is taken care of the way it should be and for that you need to be clear in what has to be done.
Our spiritual master , Srila Prabhupada was an excellent leader who managed to do amazing things in a few years. He is the perfect example of a leader. I insist that the main theme for a good leader is communication and for that we must be practical and have everything neatly annotated on lists with tasks to delegate to others. Do not rely on our short memory. My job as a leader is to transfer the responsibility of each department to the different leaders of those departments and who will get things done, and the symphony can get moving .
When you're a leader and your actions influence others you must be very careful with them and never discourage anyone. The leader's performance should be organized so that everyone is encouraged to participate and that everything flows smoothly. Everything must be in place and function properly. For each activity there is a science that is behind it defining how it should be done, and the number one rule is that no one should ever be unhappy. That's the tip of Krishna Consciousness .
Are you going to pass or shall we do that here?
Now, to be a good leader one should also stand out being transparent. A good leader should be honest, loving and trustworthy to be able to lead a spiritual symphony .
To become a good leader you have to be very aware of all the things you have to do to qualify yourself as such : become an expert in all areas and then lead others in the symphony. We have to take responsibility, without liability nothing will manifest. If we accept in becoming leaders we must know what that means so we can become efficient managers and implement our service. And if we make mistakes, we must be humble enough to apologize for them.
To become a good leader one should also be a good crier,someone who cries for mercy, a beggar of love. In other words, conducting the symphony of a spiritual family is a big task and one can not do any nonsense, it is not something you're going to be able to give up tomorrow, it is for life ... and never let anyone fall, never let anyone feel bad. And if you ever let someone down humbly beg for forgiveness. But never become a scoundrel who is unmoved by anything.
Responsibility and accountability at every level of life in which you are a leader, in a temple, in the family, at the Academy of yoga, in preaching, vegetarian programs ... in any area in which you develop, always taking on more responsibility and serving others, without thinking that it is yourself who gets things done.
Each of us has a symphony to lead.
A leader has the lives of others in their care, so they have to be very responsible and if not a very experienced leader, then you should lead slowly and with great care. A leader must consider many aspects when leading. Also, we must take into account many details to become good leader.
Your always well-wisher,
Swami B. A. Paramadvaiti .
What I want to convey today is related to the expertise of the orchestra conductor. One way or another, all things in life should be conducted in a way that it all ends up being harmonious. Now I will explain something in reference to our own preaching activities .
The sheet music is written and should be read as that defined score, but they still need an orchestra conductor, a leader who put his own style and can take the full orchestra to a harmonious result . A preacher, for example, should always speak in a way that encourages people to delve into the meaning of what they are saying.
An Inbound Yoga teacher , for example, should lead students in such a way that excites them to maintain themselves according to their own qualities and make them stay connected with Paramatma . In other words, the conductor must guide people to an intense joy for what they are doing . When you conduct something it must be done in a very harmonious and satisfying manner.
If we apply this same concept in the temple istagostis we will see that the president is able to allow each member of the ashram to feel as a valuable part of the orchestra. The temple should be ran like a symphony : the kitchen should be tuned, the reception should be tuned, volunteers must be tuned, the online promotion department must be tuned, etc. . The directing of a temple is like that of conducting a symphony. Sometimes even in the orchestra the conductor makes different members perform a "solo". A skilled leader will always bring others to their best potential. That also applies within music, dance, architecture, engineering, in all aspects. The ability to combine and harmonize the different elements and personalities is an art. Leading a spiritual community requires art, collection , preaching , music, sitting together to share, study, cooking, etc. . There are many elements to consider. The same applies to grhasta families.
We should never do things based on fear, on the contrary, we must increase the spiritual growth of each of the members of the community. A good leader is always ready to share with others . I myself consider a leader to also be one who is also trying to learn how to become a good one, so I think that communication is one of the most important things to keep alive. The failure of a leader is his limited capacity in communication, for example, now I have to communicate with all those who will remain in India for six months, I must communicate a plan to each of them and tell them what area in they will develop in.
Here in Vrinda Kunja we are committed to doing aratik nightly in Brahma Kunda, it is our responsibility and as the leader of the temple in giving others their delegated responsibilities so that everything is taken care of the way it should be and for that you need to be clear in what has to be done.
Our spiritual master , Srila Prabhupada was an excellent leader who managed to do amazing things in a few years. He is the perfect example of a leader. I insist that the main theme for a good leader is communication and for that we must be practical and have everything neatly annotated on lists with tasks to delegate to others. Do not rely on our short memory. My job as a leader is to transfer the responsibility of each department to the different leaders of those departments and who will get things done, and the symphony can get moving .
When you're a leader and your actions influence others you must be very careful with them and never discourage anyone. The leader's performance should be organized so that everyone is encouraged to participate and that everything flows smoothly. Everything must be in place and function properly. For each activity there is a science that is behind it defining how it should be done, and the number one rule is that no one should ever be unhappy. That's the tip of Krishna Consciousness .
Are you going to pass or shall we do that here?
Now, to be a good leader one should also stand out being transparent. A good leader should be honest, loving and trustworthy to be able to lead a spiritual symphony .
To become a good leader you have to be very aware of all the things you have to do to qualify yourself as such : become an expert in all areas and then lead others in the symphony. We have to take responsibility, without liability nothing will manifest. If we accept in becoming leaders we must know what that means so we can become efficient managers and implement our service. And if we make mistakes, we must be humble enough to apologize for them.
To become a good leader one should also be a good crier,someone who cries for mercy, a beggar of love. In other words, conducting the symphony of a spiritual family is a big task and one can not do any nonsense, it is not something you're going to be able to give up tomorrow, it is for life ... and never let anyone fall, never let anyone feel bad. And if you ever let someone down humbly beg for forgiveness. But never become a scoundrel who is unmoved by anything.
Responsibility and accountability at every level of life in which you are a leader, in a temple, in the family, at the Academy of yoga, in preaching, vegetarian programs ... in any area in which you develop, always taking on more responsibility and serving others, without thinking that it is yourself who gets things done.
Each of us has a symphony to lead.
A leader has the lives of others in their care, so they have to be very responsible and if not a very experienced leader, then you should lead slowly and with great care. A leader must consider many aspects when leading. Also, we must take into account many details to become good leader.
Your always well-wisher,
Swami B. A. Paramadvaiti .
Life without the association of devotees is very terrible.10/20/13
Very dear devotees .
We just finished a tour of a large part of the Vrinda Mission , from Europe and South America. First I want to make one thing very clear : I am grateful for all these kind attentions from the devotees, their great efforts to spread Krishna Consciousness in the most diverse ways and I am very happy to see how they care for our programs, and the visitors who come to the temple, or as they strive to organize many different aspects and progress of the mission. This has been a wonderful experience because at the end of this tour 2013 we celebrate the 60th birthday of being together on this planet .
I have one very special reflection , especially on the subject of the association of devotees . The association of devotees is so precious that it allows one to remember daily that life is more beautiful than one might have wished. The association of devotees keeps one in the right path, without their association and the mercy to serve, life is not so happy . At this point I believe that life is unbearable without devotees. Something was said by Ramananda Roy, that life without the association of devotees is very terrible. They allow one to have a chance again to remember the Srimad Bhagavatam , Bhagavad Gita and all spiritual messages .
The messages of the scriptures comes directly from the spiritual world, just as there are images that are like windows to the spiritual world, in the same way the messages that fall into the category of "revelations " are mystical transmissions from the spirit world . This occurs when there is an honest intention to serve. When one wants to serve Krishna these transparent transmissions occur. Although one is not so deserving of this nor very qualified, when you want to deliver the message of Krishna , He appears and inspires the devotee to say things that are enlightening about the Supreme Lord and His sankirtana movement .
I'm happy to be back in India, in the Holy Land , continuing projects like Vrindavan cleaning, for that reason I brought a team of artists and painters to make many artistic projects. As long as Krishna wants, He manifests in a most merciful way because he wants us to go to His home . He is interested in this, He invited and instructed us how to get there. He sent his devotees to rescue you. He manifests His Dhama in this world so we feel attraction to be with Him and for this reason He also gives us different services.
At the same time, now that I was in the Eco Truly Park, in Coroico or Eka Chakra, at Varsana or Vrindavan Ecological Gardens, I also felt in Vrindavan. I do no feel as if something is missed there because they are wonderful places and when I see the beautiful devotees who are serving I feel happy, but we're still struggling with the mind. It's a pleasure to see the devotees who are making plans to preach Krishna Consciousness, such as mother Gopala, who is stepping up for Govindas Ecological Gardens in Plamponita. Also I am thinking of the Coast, in this land that was donated for the University of House of Wisdom by Kirtan prabhu, mother Vrinda , Prabhu Jagannath and mother Radha Damodar.
And at the same time I think about prabhu Uddhava and his wife Priya Nama who transformed downtown Barranquilla into a dynamic center of Krishna consciousness. Sure, the whole movement of the mercy of Krishna is Krishna's mercy. One should not think it's mine. But mercy is manifest when one proposes it, I also think of Maha in Bogota ,in the temple of Cali , Medellin, in Bello mandir, everything is absolutely a surprise of love. So much love that the devotees are putting into the different programs. In their magazines, the Eco Yoga Festival, in their publications such as the surprise that we're going to give tomorrow. The surprise for Vrindavan . And so, all the devotees work projects,that too, because we want to serve fairly . We prepare and give people all the nice things we have received. Similarly, Vrindavan in India or wherever devotees gather is one thing. If we want to think more about Krishna , he will enlighten us in more ways , and always has and always will. For anyone who wants to deliver Krishna Bhakti , Krishna makes all arrangements for that to be possible. So Krishna manifests the ways in which we may be associated with His devotees.
The association of the devotees is the least expected of mercy. As beautiful as Maharaj Ashram program in Concepcion or downtown Florianopolis in Brazil . Here are some devotees who just surprised me with a center in Villarrica, one of Chile's most beautiful sites. Sure, you do not know what you have until you lose it and you always fall into this story thinking that the grass is always greener on the other side. You think there is better prasadam on the other side, etc. . but not really.
I ask that you to tell all the devotees not to be sad if they can not be in Vrindavan now and we will soon continue with the preaching tour, because while this body allows I will continue to follow the example of my gurus and preach all the time. Just ask them to bear with me if I can not be in all places at the same time, as projects continue to grow and time remains the same, so to be on the road at times I have to change a bit the way and the process how to visit, for example, perhaps devotees gather in one place and then I do not need to go to all the cities, but even though I like to visit the devotees in all corners, it is not always possible.
Recently I was in Cordoba and before that I was in Uruguay seeing all the beautiful things they are doing. So devotees everywhere are making beautiful things . Now we have a new sannyasi who will visit the temples of Paraguay and Bolivia. Krishna has many surprises .
On the other hand, when I'm not traveling we are doing work for you, for all the temples and so news is sent constantly, like this Chat now which we are sending from the Garden of Radha Gopinath which we just cleaned. A place where they had only stones and is now completely green and beautiful.
So , I ask you to bear with this old man who is traveling with the pleasure of his heart to visit, but if I can not get to all the places I ask you do not get angry because that hurts me. Sure, Prabhupada solved this problem very easily, he said he was going to the temples where more books are being distributed, and so began the marathon spirit, and indeed in that time we won the marathon of 76 in December with the most literature distributed. It was a wonderful experience. At that time Prabhupada had departed, but in those transcendental games we won, even the group of USA, but Brazil Yatra enthusiastically was born in that year. It was very sweet. Sure, I do not want to make a competition to make someone sad, but the more devotees do nice things the more you want to run to visit them, and at the same time one wants to go to places where things are less developed to help them grow.
prithivite ache yata nagaradi-grama
"In every town and village of the world, My name [the holy name of Krishna] will be preached."
That is a task that Srila Prabhupada gave all his disciples and that I have conveyed with the addition that you have the ability to open a temple where you want, but do not have the right to close any temple. Thus , we are committed to open many centers for Krishna and fight to keep them . So I was very happy with Goura Sundar and mother Laksmi to open a temple in Baños or Puyo , where centers had closed but for different reasons. All that is done in this sense is a special mercy of Krishna. To those who I can not visit constantly asked them to forgive and try to stay connected with these messages and all regional projects, the chaski fests, Vrinda pages, services to the ancestral communities and environmentalists, all this is for nothing more than a service to bring joy to all people and yourselves. Well, I have no other aim than to please the devotees of Krishna .
- What we do need are your blessings in the form of making the best effort for service and to never be defeated by Maya ; when Maya wants to disturb you then go be with enthusiastic devotees and everything will be better, because where there is Krishna the darkness of ignorance can not manifest .
krsna surya-sama maya haya andhakara
" Krishna is like the sun and Maya is equal to the darkness. "
With these words I leave you from this beautiful garden of Radha Gopinath.
By the grace of Srila Prabhupada we have access to Sri Vrindavan Dham and to worship the deity . We pray that they stay forever in our hearts, for when we pray meditating in Sri Vrindavan Dham, we are in Vrindavan .
I thank each of you who have come up here with great effort to be together during this month ... and to all those in the West struggling to keep small Vrindavans, save us from the darkness of this world.
These days we have two meditations for Kartik , one is the question: Who is Srila Prabhupada for you ? and the other question is : What is it you're willing to give up in order to attain the divine position of being able to please Lord Caitanya and His associates ?
- You can reflect on them and answer them ... this month is a period of much meditation and introspection.
I leave you all my affection from here .
Jay Srila Prabhupada!
Your ever well wisher,
Swami B.A. Paramadvaiti
Vishnu Priya Ashram From Guatemala 8/25/13
Conference.
My very dear devotees,
Accept my affection from Guatemala.
Today I want to speak of Vishnu Priya Ashram and the beautiful opportunity we all have to become Vaishnavas or vaishnavis.
The illusory condition in which we find makes us waver between good deeds and bad deeds all the time. Men can behave in positive or negative ways as well as women. Vaishnava and vaishnavi is synonymous with sainthood. A person who intends and tries to be a Vaishnava or vaishnavi is on the path of holiness. Sure, a true Vaishnava or vaishnavi never consider themselves Vaishnavas. They see themselves as not "Vaishnava" and see all others as Vaishnavas. A true devotee should think: I'm not a Vaishnava, I'm not a vaishnavi. If I think others are not Vaishnavas, I become offensive and if I think I am a Vaishnava then I have gone crazy. That's the secret of success: seeing all others as Vaishnavas, but thinking of oneself as a Vaishnava. That is the correct Vaishnava mind, humble and respectful.
Now I want to refer specifically to vaishnavis. But I do not just mean how men should view women, but as men should see and appreciate the vaishnavis and further more, how the same devout vaishnavis should see and appreciate the other vaishnavis and Vishnupriya Ashram, the place of the vaishnavis.
The number one lesson here is:
-That all women belong to Vishnupriya Ashram, but even if a mother does not live in the Vishnupriya Ashram, she is part of it. Each devotee should engage herself in having a concrete link with Vishnu Priya Ashram. Why? Because spiritual education of women is the basis of society.
Also, something very important is that both our family and the mission of Mahaprabhu in general is full of mothers. Even if we did a count among which we are now in this room, we can see that there are more mother devotees. Imagine! This was not so in the beginning of our own Mission. Actually, the fact that more men or women is not the main point. The important thing is to understand that women are mothers, are vaishnavis and that they are the "secret weapon" of Srimati Radharani. "Secret weapon" of Srimati Radharani means that they are the best preachers and moralizing agents, that mothers can maintain the standard of Vedic culture, as the vaishnavi is also a representative of Mother Earth, they are the basis of religion.
Women are much more inclined to religion than men. As soon as a woman has a child all the potential of protection and conservation blooms because a child is not a fad, a child means responsibility and care to minutest detail. If we get to the plane of preaching, each new soul that comes to the temple, each new bhakta is like a son to care for. And the same care that is required by the new bhaktas is also needed by the Deities, the administration of the temple, the Laksmi of Krsna, etc. Well, it all belongs to Srimati Radharani in Her service to Sri Krishna.
Those who look after the children, who are the future of society, that responsibility and care also comes from the mothers. Therefore children are born from the womb of women and not men's arms :) God knows how things are organized. The design of God is perfect, we need not correct it ... but now human nature has become so crazy that they think they can do it as well.
So think a bit and analyze the position of women:
She is the guardian by nature, cautious and steady.Therefore they are compared to the Goddess of Fortune, because they are full of qualities. Thus, a Vishnu Priya Ashram is the refuge of vaishnavis serving Srimati Radharani. They are sites of protection to women, mothers, young women. Protection of women by women. Women should be protected, but never feel independent, that is against their nature and their own psychology. So the role of men is to become guardians of the mothers and where there is no man who fulfills this role, a senior mother should give the other mothers the greatest care. In a spiritual family there is also the guru and his supporters like the sannyasis, who are the protectors of all, both men and women, however, mothers need guidance in daily life and for that there is no one better than another mother who the can protect them if there is no husband to do so.
A Vishnupriya Ashram is the site of maximum protection for women and children. Therefore, our spiritual family must be aware to always support the Vishnupriya Ashram, our daughters, sisters and mothers should never feel abandoned. The reality of the spiritual life is that we are servants and to Krishna we are all feminine in nature, Krishna is the only Purusha, and we are all Prakriti.
The temporary male or female body is just that, temporary. No matter the rank or role we have, what matters is how we develop it, because if not properly used it becomes useless. So women in our family are protected, they are never abandoned, they are not independent and yet are empowered to do all that is at their fingertips.
The Vishnupriya Ashram school is for mothers to become pure devotees, servants and protective experts of Vedic values, family and society. Several of the larger projects we are doing are headed by women in our family: the House of Wisdom, the Oidatherapy, the Spoon Revolution, the Global Awareness Compact ... most are mothers who bring the pulsing beat of these services. Therefore devotees should become qualified to become true protectors of mothers, responsible true leaders of deep religious values, otherwise, without these they will be guided only by their own mind which will seek to satisfy the senses. So men should work hard to be trustworthy people, 100 percent, and fulfill their guardianship to mothers in all circumstances.
A devotee should strive to become a great devotee and set aside anything which is unfavorable to the development of bhakti. A devotee, just one vaishnavi is someone very powerful. So I started the Vishnupriya Ashrams, to encourage them to take leadership, to preach and to protect other mothers. Every devotee is able to establish a new Vishnupriya Ashram, making programs, preaching, etc.. A mother must recognize the validity in all that has been received and refrain from being exploited by others, not to be minimized or belittled, there in Krishna Consciousness there is magic , because you can transform the karmic qualities into the service of Lord and His devotees.
Vaishnavi Dignity in action. Mothers who have been abandoned by their husbands, single mothers, etc.. are only the symptoms of Kaliyuga and a society of irresponsible sex addicts. There should be no unprotected women and single mothers. However, all of them can find refuge in the Vishnupriya Ashram. The capacity that mothers have are wonderful and those who minimize this are fools who does not understand anything. Even in some of our churches there are mothers who are temple presidents who have done their service much better than all the devotees who came before.
The submissive nature of the mothers qualify them for such things. And that submission is very important in the spiritual process, it is the submission to the Guru and the Vaishnavas what makes someone to assume more responsibility in their service. Spiritual life without service, just does not work. The Guru can not be present in every little detail, especially when the family grows and spreads quickly, so leaders need confidence to help you make your service better and protect others. Men and women who are responsible. Thus a vaishnavi decides to abandon a life of worldly womanhood and instead of becoming a fool watching TV or running after men, or someone influenced by consumerism she decides to assume the role of a representative and protector of dharma.
My dear vaishnavas and vaishnavis, this is an invitation to a life rendered in service and backed by sincerity, a life dedicated to the service of the Lord and the Vaishnavas. So I am giving this lecture today, because I want each of you understand the importance of Vishnupriya Ashrams and become committed to supporting the protection and development of the vaishnavis. Without the Vishnupriya Ashram one can not guarantee the protection of children, or the conservation of dharmic values. And all those pious youth living in Vishnupriya Ashrams like brahmacarinis and are doing service, but also have aspirations to find a good devotee with whom they can establish a beautiful family in service to Sri Krsna, they will achieve that only with lioness preaching ... preaching and serving so selflessly and honestly.
It is the spiritual intelligence of women and the vaishnavi's qualities which allow a family to remain united and dedicated to God. The essence of our life is to serve, serve and serve and thus the Vishnupriya Ashram school teaches one to learn to serve. We must move away from the exploitative and selfish mentality that has been spread throughout the material world of illusion and help dedicate lives to service.
Whoever worships Krishna becomes someone very special and if you do so from the bottom of your heart, all imperfections disappear soon. So we continue in appreciating the Vaishnavas and Vaishnavis who worship Krishna. From Guatemala I leave you with a special greeting with great fondness. I am very happy to see the pioneer devotees here. Preaching and pioneering is very nice. It is the best use of one's life that can be done in this human birth. When I see the work that the couple of Rupa Manohar Prabhu and Mother Parvati in Guatemala have done I get excited by seeing the power and mercy that Krishna delivers to a family dedicated in their service to Him. At the same time I am very happy that tomorrow I get back to my Datadesh prabhu, where Sri Krishna allowed me to do service over the years.
I believe that every day that I can do service it is an extraordinary gift that Srila Prabhupada has given me in life. I firmly believe that the essence of this process is to be happy with what you have and the people around you, because only when you learn to appreciate what you have and you are happy with it you can make others happy. I feel really happy in Mexico, Guatemala and am now in Colombia. Happiness is unique to each site. I ask you, my dears, do not stagger over the inconsistencies. That is the happiness I wish for all of you and it is the happiness I'm experiencing anew for approximately the last forty years.
Of course, there is also sadness in the way and certainly the highest sadness is not able to meet any of you, or worse, not even knowing how you are. Srila Prabhupada once said: "I receive too many letters, but still I feel anxious when I do not receive a letter from you" :) Imagine, Srila Prabhupada had such tenderness for each of us. With these words I say goodbye for today is my last day in Guatemala and there are many things still to be done.
I leave you with a big hug from the heart.
Srila Prabhupada ki jay!
Your always wisher,
Swami B. A. Paramadvaiti.
How to Become a True Disciple From Vrindavan Ecological Gardens Ecuador 6/23/13
From Ecuador.
Accept my affection from Vrindavan in Ecuador. A paradise of Mahaprabhu in the jungle. I send my prayers for you welfare in every sense of the word.
We had very nice days with the devotees of Ecuador. Good leadership seminars and a super seminar for families in Krishna Consciousness, organized by Mriganath prabhu.
Today I want to talk about a recurring theme in spiritual life. Especially when the preaching starts to grow and new members arrive at the temple. The issue is about how to become a teacher of others, but without ceasing to be a disciple. That is an essential secret of spiritual life. Here we test the true understanding of the practitioner. The condition of the preacher is rather delicate, even more delicate than that of a surgeon who has the lives of many in his hands. A preacher does not "become one" with his preaching alone, but rather by their actions. A preacher speaks not only of philosophy, but practical application; A preacher must become a living example, someone exemplary 24 hours a day, for preaching means caring for people with sincerity ... not just learning a few verses of scripture. A disciple becomes a master, when he shares with others what he has learned and takes responsibility to become a serious practitioner and strives to give an example of what he is preaching.
Srila Prabhupada teaches us to love all beings and bring them to Krishna Consciousness, therefore becoming a teacher means to follow the example of Srila Prabhupada. The preachers of Mahaprabhu's sankirtan movement are the true revolutionaries of this Age. Sri Caitanya himself started this revolution. A clear example of this is the pastime of Mahaprabhu with Chand Kasi, who wanted to end the Harinam-sankirtan of devotees and ended becoming a bhakta himself. Imagine thousands of devotees with torches chanting the Holy Names of the Lord, heading towards Kasi, led by the Lord Himself ... a moving image. Imagine something like that in South America ... a revolution of the Holy Name. That is what the preachers who go out every day do, carrying the sankirtan SEVA materials to all the suffering souls ... they really take one of the flaming torches of Sri Caitanya, to free others from the darkness.
So, then why not say that they are true masters? Of course as long as they fight and act accordingly to what they are preaching. It is useless to be a preacher who in their private life is lazy, sleepy or just pleases his senses. So back to the beginning question of the chat: how do you become a teacher while being a disciple?
-As a disciple one should always remember his Gurudeva. In the role of teacher, the devotee must be a brave representative, but in the role of disciple one always feels like a fool in front of his Guru. If the preacher is not really surrendered to his Guru, then all his preaching becomes a farce. That test of sincerity is presented each time. You feel incapable to take up the service of guiding others, but only by being following the instructions of the spiritual master, he manifests and one becomes capable of such service. For me it's very special to keep in touch with all of you always, when we meet on my visits to the temples, when I write an email, when you read my messages of the Sunday Chats. Do you know why? Because even though you may not know, you are the representatives of Srila Prabhupada. You make me feel the living presence of my spiritual master.
Srila Prabhupada invited us to this family. It is thanks to him that each of us are here. And thanks to each of you that I can remember and serve Srila Prabhupada every day. Srila Prabhupada left us a very high goal, but it was very demanding for our own benefit. Also, you help me be consistent. In this way I feel compelled by your love in representing my teacher in the best way possible to all of you, even if it is very difficult.
I do not know how. All I know is I'm longing to serve my Gurudeva wholeheartedly. The material energy puts difficulties before us, but the love of Srila Prabhupada and every one of you continues to maintain my life air and allows Hari-katha to remain as my only reason to exist. So, I can confess that the only thing of Guru in me is the infinite grace of Prabhupada who took over my life and put me in touch with all of you who thirst to serve the Truth. They are my saviors and my true friends. So my dear, we turn back to ask: How to become a disciple of truth? Just by following the Guru and being freely available.
- Free disposal means available to others at any time, without reward, without enjoying the benefits, no private life ... As an emergency physician ... they are always available for any emergency. We aspire to become doctors of the soul ... emergency doctors of souls waiting for the medicine of the Holy Name.
Sadhana, daily practice, the chanting of the Holy Name and preaching are the tools that allow us to develop this desire to serve unconditionally, to serve with determination. Remember remunerated service is not service, the devotee does their service without expecting any reward ... and if something comes, use it for the service of Krishna. Many souls are looking to bargain with God, but the true disciple does not seek this, only seeks to serve humbly. Charitable suicide: die from material life, but live to serve all the time ... day and night. That is our aspiration. That is consciousness of Vrindavan.
We're part of the squad of Mahaprabhu. People think that acting this way one will lose some, of course ... Material sense gratification is lost ... worldly fun is lost, but people do not know that if they do not change the direction of their life soon, they will also lose the human lifestyle. So instead of sticking to service they are born life after life ... and again chewing the chewed. What lamentation! Therefore, a devotee should be very compassionate to the suffering souls, because they understand that the root of suffering is ignorance, and armed with the torchlight of the revolutionary movement of Mahaprabhu's sankirtan, bring the knowledge that will remove the darkness .
Learning to preach is a training course in learning to truly love. Learn to have true compassion.Dedicate yourself to the right agent. Having wonderful programs that people come to know about the science of the soul. Keep the temples transparent, welcoming and very well organized, where each of the members feel they can give the best of themselves for the development of the community ...
Just as our Gurudeva has been compassionate and caring and made each of his disciples feel as the dearest and most important to him, in the same way we must act and show compassion to those around us. So the preacher should make everyone feel very welcome, and we must learn to listen to people and convey that which Srila Prabhupada taught us.
The preacher's work is sometimes a bit hard and bothersome ... clearly, bothersome to our false ego and our laziness, because we are so conditioned that we have come to see with indifference the suffering of others. However, in preaching, one realizes the true state of human suffering, the suffering of the soul. Just becoming a true disciple, a true preacher, you become a teacher. Just preaching, preaching and preaching ... and practicing, practicing, practicing. One who craves more devotion must remember that you will find it in the preaching and practice. The more you preach and the more you practice the more precise you are, the cleaner you become, a better worker ... you come closer to the nature of devotion.
There in daily practice, is the real ecstasy. Sustainable spiritual life is a life of compassion and dedication. In this way it is impossible to get discouraged. Without compassion enthusiasm will leave quickly ... Without compassion we do not even have the capacity to be lifted up. But if in your mind lives the 5, 10, 100 or whatever the number may be of people that is in your care, then there is no reason to get discouraged or bored at any moment. He who does not feel anything for another does not understand their Guru ... what to say about understanding Srila Prabhupada or all of our preceptors.
If you do not understand this much less understand the reason why you are in the process of Krishna Consciousness,,, The Supreme Lord is called Dina bandhu, the friend of the Fallen, the afflicted ... well, the devotees of Lord Krishna should also become friends of the afflicted ... Helping others and do not take advantage of them. Who wants to take advantage of others is not a preacher at heart. However he who wants to open his heart to others 100 percent, who wants to give his heart for the love of the truth, that's a perfect preacher. Give the best of each of you ... that's the secret. And that's what I want for each of you: to be able to give the best of yourselves. Therefore I speak so directly, so you feel my heart and so that way you can share your heart when you preach or teach classes.
Beloved, we must preach to the end. Die in the Battle of preaching the Holy Names of Krishna on our lips, and we remain with Krishna, no doubt.
Thank you very much for sharing this fight and for helping to serve Srila Prabhupada
I hope we can stay together like this forever.
With all my affection,
Jay Srila Prabhupada
Your always wisher
Swami B. A. Paramadvaiti.
Accept my affection from Vrindavan in Ecuador. A paradise of Mahaprabhu in the jungle. I send my prayers for you welfare in every sense of the word.
We had very nice days with the devotees of Ecuador. Good leadership seminars and a super seminar for families in Krishna Consciousness, organized by Mriganath prabhu.
Today I want to talk about a recurring theme in spiritual life. Especially when the preaching starts to grow and new members arrive at the temple. The issue is about how to become a teacher of others, but without ceasing to be a disciple. That is an essential secret of spiritual life. Here we test the true understanding of the practitioner. The condition of the preacher is rather delicate, even more delicate than that of a surgeon who has the lives of many in his hands. A preacher does not "become one" with his preaching alone, but rather by their actions. A preacher speaks not only of philosophy, but practical application; A preacher must become a living example, someone exemplary 24 hours a day, for preaching means caring for people with sincerity ... not just learning a few verses of scripture. A disciple becomes a master, when he shares with others what he has learned and takes responsibility to become a serious practitioner and strives to give an example of what he is preaching.Srila Prabhupada teaches us to love all beings and bring them to Krishna Consciousness, therefore becoming a teacher means to follow the example of Srila Prabhupada. The preachers of Mahaprabhu's sankirtan movement are the true revolutionaries of this Age. Sri Caitanya himself started this revolution. A clear example of this is the pastime of Mahaprabhu with Chand Kasi, who wanted to end the Harinam-sankirtan of devotees and ended becoming a bhakta himself. Imagine thousands of devotees with torches chanting the Holy Names of the Lord, heading towards Kasi, led by the Lord Himself ... a moving image. Imagine something like that in South America ... a revolution of the Holy Name. That is what the preachers who go out every day do, carrying the sankirtan SEVA materials to all the suffering souls ... they really take one of the flaming torches of Sri Caitanya, to free others from the darkness.
So, then why not say that they are true masters? Of course as long as they fight and act accordingly to what they are preaching. It is useless to be a preacher who in their private life is lazy, sleepy or just pleases his senses. So back to the beginning question of the chat: how do you become a teacher while being a disciple?
-As a disciple one should always remember his Gurudeva. In the role of teacher, the devotee must be a brave representative, but in the role of disciple one always feels like a fool in front of his Guru. If the preacher is not really surrendered to his Guru, then all his preaching becomes a farce. That test of sincerity is presented each time. You feel incapable to take up the service of guiding others, but only by being following the instructions of the spiritual master, he manifests and one becomes capable of such service. For me it's very special to keep in touch with all of you always, when we meet on my visits to the temples, when I write an email, when you read my messages of the Sunday Chats. Do you know why? Because even though you may not know, you are the representatives of Srila Prabhupada. You make me feel the living presence of my spiritual master.
Srila Prabhupada invited us to this family. It is thanks to him that each of us are here. And thanks to each of you that I can remember and serve Srila Prabhupada every day. Srila Prabhupada left us a very high goal, but it was very demanding for our own benefit. Also, you help me be consistent. In this way I feel compelled by your love in representing my teacher in the best way possible to all of you, even if it is very difficult.
I do not know how. All I know is I'm longing to serve my Gurudeva wholeheartedly. The material energy puts difficulties before us, but the love of Srila Prabhupada and every one of you continues to maintain my life air and allows Hari-katha to remain as my only reason to exist. So, I can confess that the only thing of Guru in me is the infinite grace of Prabhupada who took over my life and put me in touch with all of you who thirst to serve the Truth. They are my saviors and my true friends. So my dear, we turn back to ask: How to become a disciple of truth? Just by following the Guru and being freely available.
- Free disposal means available to others at any time, without reward, without enjoying the benefits, no private life ... As an emergency physician ... they are always available for any emergency. We aspire to become doctors of the soul ... emergency doctors of souls waiting for the medicine of the Holy Name.
Sadhana, daily practice, the chanting of the Holy Name and preaching are the tools that allow us to develop this desire to serve unconditionally, to serve with determination. Remember remunerated service is not service, the devotee does their service without expecting any reward ... and if something comes, use it for the service of Krishna. Many souls are looking to bargain with God, but the true disciple does not seek this, only seeks to serve humbly. Charitable suicide: die from material life, but live to serve all the time ... day and night. That is our aspiration. That is consciousness of Vrindavan.
We're part of the squad of Mahaprabhu. People think that acting this way one will lose some, of course ... Material sense gratification is lost ... worldly fun is lost, but people do not know that if they do not change the direction of their life soon, they will also lose the human lifestyle. So instead of sticking to service they are born life after life ... and again chewing the chewed. What lamentation! Therefore, a devotee should be very compassionate to the suffering souls, because they understand that the root of suffering is ignorance, and armed with the torchlight of the revolutionary movement of Mahaprabhu's sankirtan, bring the knowledge that will remove the darkness .
Learning to preach is a training course in learning to truly love. Learn to have true compassion.Dedicate yourself to the right agent. Having wonderful programs that people come to know about the science of the soul. Keep the temples transparent, welcoming and very well organized, where each of the members feel they can give the best of themselves for the development of the community ...
Just as our Gurudeva has been compassionate and caring and made each of his disciples feel as the dearest and most important to him, in the same way we must act and show compassion to those around us. So the preacher should make everyone feel very welcome, and we must learn to listen to people and convey that which Srila Prabhupada taught us.
The preacher's work is sometimes a bit hard and bothersome ... clearly, bothersome to our false ego and our laziness, because we are so conditioned that we have come to see with indifference the suffering of others. However, in preaching, one realizes the true state of human suffering, the suffering of the soul. Just becoming a true disciple, a true preacher, you become a teacher. Just preaching, preaching and preaching ... and practicing, practicing, practicing. One who craves more devotion must remember that you will find it in the preaching and practice. The more you preach and the more you practice the more precise you are, the cleaner you become, a better worker ... you come closer to the nature of devotion.
There in daily practice, is the real ecstasy. Sustainable spiritual life is a life of compassion and dedication. In this way it is impossible to get discouraged. Without compassion enthusiasm will leave quickly ... Without compassion we do not even have the capacity to be lifted up. But if in your mind lives the 5, 10, 100 or whatever the number may be of people that is in your care, then there is no reason to get discouraged or bored at any moment. He who does not feel anything for another does not understand their Guru ... what to say about understanding Srila Prabhupada or all of our preceptors.
If you do not understand this much less understand the reason why you are in the process of Krishna Consciousness,,, The Supreme Lord is called Dina bandhu, the friend of the Fallen, the afflicted ... well, the devotees of Lord Krishna should also become friends of the afflicted ... Helping others and do not take advantage of them. Who wants to take advantage of others is not a preacher at heart. However he who wants to open his heart to others 100 percent, who wants to give his heart for the love of the truth, that's a perfect preacher. Give the best of each of you ... that's the secret. And that's what I want for each of you: to be able to give the best of yourselves. Therefore I speak so directly, so you feel my heart and so that way you can share your heart when you preach or teach classes.
Beloved, we must preach to the end. Die in the Battle of preaching the Holy Names of Krishna on our lips, and we remain with Krishna, no doubt.
Thank you very much for sharing this fight and for helping to serve Srila Prabhupada
I hope we can stay together like this forever.
With all my affection,
Jay Srila Prabhupada
Your always wisher
Swami B. A. Paramadvaiti.
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