a shadow lurking—3 poems | Mitko Gogov
1 year ago
Thursday, 30 April 2009
Prabhupada Letters :: Apr 30th, 1973.
"To err is human, so in the neophyte stage some discrepancies are there. Kindly forgive their small mistakes. The big thing is they have given everything to Krishna - that is never a mistake."
Wednesday, 29 April 2009
Prabhupada Letters :: 1968.
"Try to talk about Krishna Consciousness to whomever you may meet. It doesn't matter whether a man is convinced or not, but by your sincere attempts to convince others you will get superior strength and knowledge."
Tuesday, 28 April 2009
Prabhupada Letters :: 1974.
"The regulative principles are designed to take us gradually. Those who think they have already attained perfection are called sahajiya, or those who take things cheaply and simply imitate."
Monday, 27 April 2009
ISKCON Beliefs:
Their beliefs share much with conventional Hinduism. Their sacred text is the Hindu poem Bhagavad-Gita which contains conversations between Lord Krishna and a soldier Arjuna. A common ISKCON expression is "We are not this body." That is, we are all spirit souls who are temporarily trapped in a material body and its cares and woes. Their goal is to break away from samsara (endless repetitive reincarnations) and return to the kingdom of God.
Their main differences from mainline Hinduism are:
-Liberation from samsara is attained through sankirtana, which is congregational singing of God's names, which leads to Krishna Consciousness.
-Krishna is worshipped as the Supreme God; they believe that one can attain a personal relationship with Him. Jesus Christ is recognized as a directly empowered representative of Krishna.
-Hell as a temporary destination after death for people who have sinned greatly while on earth.
-Devotees need a spiritual master, who is in a line of succession from the guru Caitanya (or one of three other lines of disciple succession who worship Krishna as the Supreme God.)
-Eating food prepared for and offered to God is an act of communion with Krishna. When such food is eaten, Krishna's energy purifies the body of the devotee.
Their "Nine Processes of Devotional Service" are:
1. Hearing about God .
2. Chanting the names of God .
3. Remembering God by reading, associating with devotees .
4. Serving the Lord Krishna in the temple.
5. Worshiping God by preparation of food, decorating the Lord, bringing others to see Him.
6. Praying to God.
7. Encouraging others to chant the names of God.
8. Develop a close personal and intimate relationship with God.
9. Giving everything we have to God including our bodies.
Their main differences from mainline Hinduism are:
-Liberation from samsara is attained through sankirtana, which is congregational singing of God's names, which leads to Krishna Consciousness.
-Krishna is worshipped as the Supreme God; they believe that one can attain a personal relationship with Him. Jesus Christ is recognized as a directly empowered representative of Krishna.
-Hell as a temporary destination after death for people who have sinned greatly while on earth.
-Devotees need a spiritual master, who is in a line of succession from the guru Caitanya (or one of three other lines of disciple succession who worship Krishna as the Supreme God.)
-Eating food prepared for and offered to God is an act of communion with Krishna. When such food is eaten, Krishna's energy purifies the body of the devotee.
Their "Nine Processes of Devotional Service" are:
1. Hearing about God .
2. Chanting the names of God .
3. Remembering God by reading, associating with devotees .
4. Serving the Lord Krishna in the temple.
5. Worshiping God by preparation of food, decorating the Lord, bringing others to see Him.
6. Praying to God.
7. Encouraging others to chant the names of God.
8. Develop a close personal and intimate relationship with God.
9. Giving everything we have to God including our bodies.
About Srila Prabhupada
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada was born in 1896 in Calcutta, India. He first met his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami, in Calcutta in 1922. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, a prominent devotional scholar and the founder of sixty-four branches of Gaudiya Mathas (Vedic institutes), liked this educated young man and convinced him to dedicate his life to teaching Vedic knowledge in the Western world. Srila Prabhupada became his student, and eleven years later (1933) at Allahabad, he became his formally initiated disciple.
At their first meeting, in 1922, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura requested Srila Prabhupada to broadcast Vedic knowledge through the English language. In the years that followed, Srila Prabhupada wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-gita and in 1944, without assistance, started an English fortnightly magazine.
Recognizing Srila Prabhupada's philosophical learning and devotion, the Gaudiya Vaisnava Society honored him in 1947 with the title "Bhaktivedanta." In 1950, at the age of fifty-four, Srila Prabhupada retired from married life, and four years later he adopted the vanaprastha (retired) order to devote more time to his studies and writing. Srila Prabhupada traveled to the holy city of Vrndavana, where he lived in very humble circumstances in the historic medieval temple of Radha-Damodara. There he engaged for several years in deep study and writing. He accepted the renounced order of life (sannyasa) in 1959. At Radha-Damodara, Srila Prabhupada began work on his life's masterpiece: a multivolume translation and commentary on the 18,000-verse Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana). He also wrote Easy Journey to Other Planets.
After publishing three volumes of Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada came to the United States, in 1965, to fulfill the mission of his spiritual master. Since that time, His Divine Grace has written over sixty volumes of authoritative translations, commentaries and summary studies of the philosophical and religious classics of India.
In 1965, when he first arrived by freighter in New York City, Srila Prabhupada was practically penniless. It was after almost a year of great difficulty that he established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in July of 1966. Under his careful guidance, the Society has grew within a decade to a worldwide confederation of almost one hundred asramas, schools, temples, institutes and farm communities.
In 1968, Srila Prabhupada created New Vrndavana, an experimental Vedic community in the hills of West Virginia. Inspired by the success of New Vrndavana, then a thriving farm community of more than one thousand acres, his students founded several similar communities in the United States and abroad.
In 1972, His Divine Grace introduced the Vedic system of primary and secondary education in the West by founding the Gurukula school in Dallas, Texas. The school began with three children in 1972, and by the beginning of 1975 the enrollment had grown to one hundred fifty.
Srila Prabhupada also inspired the construction of a large international center at Sridhama Mayapur in West Bengal, India, which is also the site for a planned Institute of Vedic Studies. A similar project is the magnificent Krsna-Balarama Temple and International Guest House in Vrndavana, India. These are centers where Westerners can live to gain firsthand experience of Vedic culture.
Srila Prabhupada's most significant contribution, however, is his books. Highly respected by the academic community for their authoritativeness, depth and clarity, they are used as standard textbooks in numerous college courses. His writings have been translated into eleven languages. The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, established in 1972 exclusively to publish the works of His Divine Grace, has thus become the world's largest publisher of books in the field of Indian religion and philosophy.
In the last ten years of his life, in spite of his advanced age, Srila Prabhupada circled the globe twelve times on lecture tours that have took him to six continents. In spite of such a vigorous schedule, Srila Prabhupada continued to write prolifically. His writings constitute a veritable library of Vedic philosophy, religion, literature and culture.
At their first meeting, in 1922, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura requested Srila Prabhupada to broadcast Vedic knowledge through the English language. In the years that followed, Srila Prabhupada wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-gita and in 1944, without assistance, started an English fortnightly magazine.
Recognizing Srila Prabhupada's philosophical learning and devotion, the Gaudiya Vaisnava Society honored him in 1947 with the title "Bhaktivedanta." In 1950, at the age of fifty-four, Srila Prabhupada retired from married life, and four years later he adopted the vanaprastha (retired) order to devote more time to his studies and writing. Srila Prabhupada traveled to the holy city of Vrndavana, where he lived in very humble circumstances in the historic medieval temple of Radha-Damodara. There he engaged for several years in deep study and writing. He accepted the renounced order of life (sannyasa) in 1959. At Radha-Damodara, Srila Prabhupada began work on his life's masterpiece: a multivolume translation and commentary on the 18,000-verse Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana). He also wrote Easy Journey to Other Planets.
After publishing three volumes of Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada came to the United States, in 1965, to fulfill the mission of his spiritual master. Since that time, His Divine Grace has written over sixty volumes of authoritative translations, commentaries and summary studies of the philosophical and religious classics of India.
In 1965, when he first arrived by freighter in New York City, Srila Prabhupada was practically penniless. It was after almost a year of great difficulty that he established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in July of 1966. Under his careful guidance, the Society has grew within a decade to a worldwide confederation of almost one hundred asramas, schools, temples, institutes and farm communities.
In 1968, Srila Prabhupada created New Vrndavana, an experimental Vedic community in the hills of West Virginia. Inspired by the success of New Vrndavana, then a thriving farm community of more than one thousand acres, his students founded several similar communities in the United States and abroad.
In 1972, His Divine Grace introduced the Vedic system of primary and secondary education in the West by founding the Gurukula school in Dallas, Texas. The school began with three children in 1972, and by the beginning of 1975 the enrollment had grown to one hundred fifty.
Srila Prabhupada also inspired the construction of a large international center at Sridhama Mayapur in West Bengal, India, which is also the site for a planned Institute of Vedic Studies. A similar project is the magnificent Krsna-Balarama Temple and International Guest House in Vrndavana, India. These are centers where Westerners can live to gain firsthand experience of Vedic culture.
Srila Prabhupada's most significant contribution, however, is his books. Highly respected by the academic community for their authoritativeness, depth and clarity, they are used as standard textbooks in numerous college courses. His writings have been translated into eleven languages. The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, established in 1972 exclusively to publish the works of His Divine Grace, has thus become the world's largest publisher of books in the field of Indian religion and philosophy.
In the last ten years of his life, in spite of his advanced age, Srila Prabhupada circled the globe twelve times on lecture tours that have took him to six continents. In spite of such a vigorous schedule, Srila Prabhupada continued to write prolifically. His writings constitute a veritable library of Vedic philosophy, religion, literature and culture.
Srila Prabhupada's Pranati (prayer) :
nama om visnu-padaya krsna-presthaya bhu-tale
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine
"I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who is very dear to Lord Krishna, having taken shelter at His lotus feet. "
namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracarine
nirvisesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine
"Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Sarasvati Gosvami. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism."
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine
"I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who is very dear to Lord Krishna, having taken shelter at His lotus feet. "
namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracarine
nirvisesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine
"Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Sarasvati Gosvami. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1967
"I have seen in you that Krishna has special mercy upon you and utilize this mercy fully so that in this very life you can be elected as the associate of Krishna in His supreme abode Goloka Vrindaban."
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