Living Alone in a Secluded Place?
“A transcendentalist should always try to concentrate his mind on the Supreme Self; he should live alone in a secluded place and should always carefully control his mind. He should be free from desires and the feelings of possessiveness.” (Bhagavad-gita 6.10)
Krishna continues to instruct His friend Arjuna on the prerequisites for meditational yoga. He has already established to perform yoga one must control the mind. Now He adds to controlling the mind the necessity of always concentrating the mind on the Supreme Self [Krishna], of living alone in a secluded place and being free from desires and the feelings of possessiveness.
Here Krishna tells Arjuna if he wants to practice yoga he has to live alone in a secluded place. It is not possible to live in a big city and to practice yoga in a group in some fashionable yoga studio. No. He has to do what the sages who are serious about practicing yoga have done for thousands of years. He has to go to some sacred and secluded place like the Himalayan mountains or the bank of the Ganges river and sit down there alone without any distractions and practice yoga.
Of course for us, living in Kali-yuga, this is not a very practical proposal.
Not many of us can go and live in the Himalayas or on the banks of the Ganges and even these places are no longer as sanctified as they once were. Now they have 100 channel satellite television and so many other distractions in the ‘sacred places’. So we will discover that for a devotee ‘living alone’ means living in such a way that he has no connection with the non-devotees. We can live in the association of devotees but we can take the instructive example from Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu who said that he would rather live in a cage with a wild tiger than live with non-devotees. So as aspiring devotees we have to live in the association of devotees or if we can not find the association of nice devotees we have no alternative but to live alone.
However living alone is not very ideal for a devotee because his mission is to execute the Sankirtana movement and Sankirtana means many men chanting Hare Krishna together. So it is of course ideal for devotees to live together in the association of other devotees to facilitate the Sankirtan movement.
The reason a transcendentalist wants to live alone is his first business is to keep his mind always on Krishna and not forget Krishna for even a moment. Concentration of the mind on the Supreme is called samadhi or trance. So in order to concentrate the mind he should always remain in seclusion and avoid disturbance by external objects. The transcendentalist has to be very careful to accept favorable things and to reject unfavorable things that affect his spiritual advancement.
And he must be determined not to hanker for unnecessary material things that only entangle him further by creating feelings of possessiveness.
All of these perfections and precautions are perfectly executed when one is directly in Krishna consciousness because direct Krishna consciousness means he has set aside all self-interest and is instead working exclusively for the interest of Krishna, in such a position there is very little chance for material possessiveness. Srila Rupa Gosvami characterizes Krishna consciousness in this way:
“When one is not attached to anything, but at the same time accepts everything in relation to Krishna, one is rightly situated above possessiveness. On the other hand, one who rejects everything without knowing of its relationship to Krishna is not as complete in his renunciation.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu)
A Krishna conscious person knows well that everything belongs to Krishna, and thus he is always free from feelings of personal possession. As such he has no hankering for anything on his own personal account. He knows how to accept things in favor of Krishna consciousness and how to reject things unfavorable to Krishna consciousness. He is always aloof from material things because he is always transcendental and he is always alone, having nothing to do with persons not in Krishna consciousness. Therefore a person in Krishna consciousness is the perfect yogi.
About the Author
Madhudvisa dasa My first contact with a Hare Krishna was a most merciful Mataji in Oxford Street, London who sold me a "Higher Taste" cook book in 1984 while I was on holidays there. I started seriously reading Srila Prabhupada's books in Australia 1985 and by 1986 Srila Prabhupada had convinced me "Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead" and "we should surrender to Krishna." I joined the Hare Krishnas in Perth, Western Australia in 1986. Since then I have been chanting Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, reading and distributing Srila Prabhupada's books and preaching as much as I can. That's my life and full-time occupation now really. I like it more than anything I've ever experienced before. Srila Prabhupada's books are so amazing... Even after reading them all many times they're still fresh and new. They are truly transcendental! That's it really. Now I'm just hankering to once again see the world chant Hare Krishna, dance and feast and float away in the ecstasy of Lord Caitanya's Sankirtana movement as it did in Srila Prabhupada's physical presence. Let the whole world drown in the ecstatic flood of love of Krishna!
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Hare Krishna,
All glories to Srila Prabhupada
Prabhuji these books (TLC , nectar of instruction , nectar of devotion , easy journey to other planets , Teachings of Queen Kunti , Bhagavad Gita As it is(deluxe edition)) i saw were available in the U.S Krishna Store but not available in the Indian Krishna Store. So, Prabhuji could you please arrange these books to be available in the Indian Krishna Store so that we devotees in India could purchase them.
Hare Krishna
It is not possible because these books are not in stock in India. You have to purchase the books that are in stock.
We can not ship anything into India from overseas due to the corruption of India Post. India Post create SO MANY PROBLEMS for customers when we send them packages from USA for example.
Many India Post workers are totally criminal and demand bribes from customers to deliver their foreign packages and that makes India Post totally impossible and totally impossible to send anything to India from overseas.
It is terrible. India can not even operate a Post Office without corruption…
It is very important to me to know the answer of the question, so if who are reading this comment, knows the right answer only then recomment to this
Earlier I heard that anyone who abandoned family can live in iskcon without anything and just with Krishna আমাব় প্রভু।। so, can you tell me where to go? I am 16 and thinking of abandoning the family and samsara..
Plz help me..
Not now, not if you are only 16. Better you become Krishna conscious where you are, in your family. You don’t have to change your situation to become Krishna conscious. You can become Krishna conscious in any position. So I do not advise you to leave your family.
Hare Krishna Prabhu!
The first time I heard that ‘chewing the chewed’ refers to chewing a chewed sugarcane is in this comment of yours. But somehow every time I heard this example I could relate it to chewing of a chewed sugarcane. When I read your comment I was amazed. Is this a case of Lord Krishna helping me realizing something? Or is it that I had heard this explanation in some of my past lives and regained the knowledge? Examples given by Srila Prabhupada and in scriptures, especially Shrimad Bhagavatam are very interesting and so real. I have realized some of them to some extent and they help us understand everything perfectly.
Hare Krishna Prabhu
Due to my tough situation I couldnt go to temple. But I miss Dayal nitai and jaganath there. I want to join all the programs the youth organizing but my mental strength is so weak and I’m so insecure. This happened due to an unwanted incident occurred in the temple. I have no friends there. Is it possible for me to perform my service at home for some time. I know it very hard to be devotional without the association of devotees. But now I can’t help myself that I used to go with my sister and she recently transferred to a diff place due to her work. I’m stranded alone again.What should i do please advise me prabhu.
Yes. You can be Krishna conscious anywhere. Just chant Hare Krishna and read Srila Prabhupada’s books…
Hare Krishna Sir..
There is no doubt that Lord Krishna is the supreme absolute truth of this universe and we all are his eternal servitors…
When I read non sense commentary on Bhagwad Geeta by some foolish persons or when I see people not considering Krishna as supreme lord , my mind and heart become full of anger and that time I am not able to control it.
Very nice post. But I want to know whether statements made by Lord Krishna are actually happening in this society or not? I absolutely beleive in him. But for example Krishna said beleive in karma everyone will have experience many things as per his karmas. But we see many bad people committing crimes, behaving wildly and rather cruelly with women’s,wives,parents even small children their daughters. And they live happily and do whatever they like and want so why this supreme power is not able to stop this violence? Why he did not created people who will destroy such cruel people and criminals who are just like animals and are luckyly born as human.
Further I want to know ,that Lord Krishna has told predictions about Kaliyuga 5000 yeras ago. If he was having knowledge about it, why this bad creation took place? I have seen many deserving people who are away from success and possessions only due to bad people. Why this happens? I might be wrong at some points but but please I am in need of perfect answer. I hope I will get it….
Hare Krishna Nikhil
Krishna ultimately creates this material world but actually this material world is created by our desires.
We are all eternal servants of Krishna. That is our natural position. But sometimes some of the servants of Krishna want to become the master like Krishna, instead of serving Krishna, they want to become like Krishna.
Of course in reality this is not possible. Because Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and we are all His servants. That is the eternal truth. But because Krishna has given all the living entities a limited amount of independence He has created this material world as a place where the rebellious living entities can go to and try to become the master.
So this situation of having a world where everyone is trying to become the master, everyone is trying to lord it over everyone else, naturally creates a hellish situation. So it is not Krishna who has created this hell and violence, it is us. We are the ones who have rejected Krishna and come here to the material world to try and be happy separately from Krishna. But it is not possible for us to be happy separately from serving Krishna. We are servants of Krishna eternally. Unless we are engaged in the service of Krishna we can not be happy.
So naturally this material world is a hellish place full of suffering and pain and violence. You can not live happily in the material world. That is not possible. An intelligent person should realize it is not possible to be happy in the material world and inquire if there is some other place where we can go and live and be happy there.
And there is a place where we can live and be happy, that is the spiritual world. So we should stop trying to become happy in the material world, which is impossible, and instead work to become pure devotees of Krishna so that at the time of leaving this material body we do not have to again take another birth in this miserable material world, but that we can go back home back to Godhead.
This subject is covered very elaborately in Srila Prabhupada’s books. PLEASE READ THEM!!!!
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Haribol Prabhu. What is the meaning of chewing the chewed? Hare Krishna.
Chewing the chewed is an example that refers to someone who chews some sugar cane and extracts all the sweet juice from it and then a second person comes along and takes the chewed sugar cane and tries to chew it again. But the second man can not get any sweet taste from it because the first man has already take all the sweet juice. So it is an example used for someone trying to enjoy in the material world. The material world is like the sugar cane that has already been chewed. All the sweet juice is already taken out of it. So no matter how much you chew it you can not experience any sweetness…
In my childhood we can see big plots of land and can sit in a lonely place. But nowadays a lonely land sees in paddy fields only and paddy fields of about 5 or 6 acres are available in our country although these plots belong to 5 or 6 persons. Going there and sitting there at 5 or 6 o’ clock in the morning gives a good feeling which cannot be written. Then if we can chant the name of god at that time we get a precious time in our life and it is luckily an experience of mine.
Thank you for your informations in the e-mails and thanking you
Hare Krishna Prabhu!
All glories to Srila Prabhupad!
I am with my family and chanting minimum 8 rounds. Following three regulative principles. Kindly guide whether we can keep Gaura nitai deities at home. Some devotees adviced us not to keep Gaura nitai deities. Kindly guide us.
First you need to chant at least 16 rounds and follow the four regulative principles. Otherwise what is the point? You have to be serious. These are minimums. You have to at least do the minimum things…
Hare Krishna
How to control the mind, desires, feelings of possessiveness.
I am trying to perform meditation everyday at least for one hour in the early morning, no sooner I get up and only by washing my face, but I am either carried away by sleep or leg pain which forbids me to perform meditation and also laziness.
Please guide me for performing meditation properly.
Hare Krishna
You have to become determined to chant at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra every day and actually do it. It is difficult of course in the beginning. We have to undergo tapasya. It means voluntarily undergoing some suffering for the purpose of advancing in spiritual life. Of course chanting Hare Krishna is not suffering of course. It is the greatest transcendental ecstasy. But in the beginning when we are materially contaminated it seems painful and difficult to chant Hare Krishna. But if we want to advance in spiritual life we have to chant Hare Krishna. There is no other way.
So just forget about the bodily pains and chant Hare Krishna. If you feel sleepy walk up and down while you are chanting Hare Krishna. It is hard to fall asleep if you are walking…
So you just have to adjust and do it. Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
From the amount of comments, this is undeniably an extremely engaging topic. Everytime I return to this post there’s an interesting guest post better than some of the prior ones.
This article is again anver good reminder as so many of them !!!
Hare Krishna
Sri Purandara Dasa who was a great Devotee of Shri. Krishna sang so many Kirtanas on Krishna , also thought to be first Guru of the Carnatic style of music , wrote many many devotional songs on Krishna . He in one of his songs he asks his students \’\’ making a home in the market place can you demand for silence ? \’\’
This statement calls for an introspection of one\’s mind and its activities. Living in the area of a busy market one cannot demand for silence to in to meditation.Same way living in household cannot ask for transcendental meditation . Nor can one leave the household and go to a forest to meditate on Krisha. Transcendental meditation means leaving everything behind and live on Bhagawat consciousness. While being in the meditation perform the duties of a household . But household is very earthly and requires devotion to perform well. So Krishna says \’Yagnah karma samudbhavaha\’\’.3:14BG. Karma are actions. Transcend means surpass.so karma surpasses the results of actions that is called Yagna.
Hare Krishna. Even in the Iskcon you all live in a community and share work and food. You are all all the time striving to keep Krisna consciousness above all. If something is to be done standing on the earth one cannot fly to the skies searching for material for a community living. All materials are here right on this ground that is earth. Transcendental consciousness is possible only when a devotee lives alone and cares for those who come in need of him. Yet in the Bhagavatham we see that King Rishbhadeva despite his transcendental meditation he had to take consequent births due to his attraction towards a deer calf and his attachment to this fawn re knotted him to earthly life. Hare Krishna.
Hare Krishna Premavati
This is all rubbish, nonsense, what you are speaking. Arjuna was the perfect transcendentalist. He was totally transcendental fighting, killing the enemy on the battlefield. This is what Krishna ordered him to do and in following that order of Krishna he was perfectly situated on the topmost spiritual platform. On the other hand when Arjuna suggested leaving the battlefield and going to the forest to meditate Krishna criticized him calling him, indirectly, a fool, “No learned man acts in this way.” So for Arjuna to go to the forest to meditate when Krishna was ordering him to fight on the Battlefield of Kuruksettra would be maya, not transcendental.
So you are speaking total rubbish. Total nonsense. One can be totally transcendental, totally Krishna conscious in family life. One does not have to go to the forest and live alone for this. This living alone means avoiding the association of non-devotees. So that we have to do. But there is a way to live in the world but not be of the world. And we need to learn how to do that. If you take the time to read Srila Prabhupada’s books you can learn the science of being completely transcendental, completely spiritual, completely liberated, in any status of life.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
These are the words that come out from a person who works a night shift and hybernates during the day. But i have not taken to alcohol or other vices.
Guru Ji with lots of res[ponsiblities not able to live a secluded life as has to work without much prospect of leaves. may be in the net life and may be after retirement if i save enough.
You can chant Hare Krishna and read Srila Prabhupada’s books anywhere, anytime. You do not need to live in a secluded place to practice Krishna consciousness. So just ‘make the best use of a bad bargain.’ Become Krishna conscious wherever you happen to be. You do not need to change your situation in life to become Krishna conscious.
also have giving it much thought on having spiritual master to follow and study under,. just i am journying alone and don’t see that all inspirering master in my awareness. he’s not any were to be found at this time
love keeping my mind focused in the gita an focus, but have the world to address dualy. The lord is blessing my life while focussing in spiritual matters , finding that i can still function in my worldy responcebilities. its a journey that i have been working daily all blessings and devotion to the lord. Krishna by way of vishnu. i think.
SIR ,AVAI
IF ONE TRIES HARD TO MEDITATE AND DOESNOT SUCCED WHAT HAPPENS TO HIM IN THIS WORLD AND IN THE OTHER WORLD IS HE A SINNER OR WHAT
Hare Krishna Jatinder
This exact question Arjuna asked Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita. You can look it up there in Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is and find the answer. But very briefly one who makes any advancement in spiritual life at all, no matter how small that advancement is, will never loose that advancement. So any work in Krishna consciousness has a permanent good effect and is never lost. In the material world we do not get the benefit of a thing unless it is completed. If you start building a house but you do not finish, if you don’t put the roof on the house, then it useless, you can’t use it as a house and all the effort you have put into building it is wasted because you did not finish it. But spiritual life is not like that at all. Even the smallest spiritual activity is credited to your spiritual bank account and you never loose that. If you practice Krishna consciousness in this life and become 20% Krishna conscious in this life then in your next life you will start at 20%, you will not loose the advancement you made in this life.
Still there is no reason not to succeed in Krishna consciousness and to become 100% Krishna conscious in this life and go directly back home back to Godhead after we leave this material body.
That we should aim for.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Hi, in addition to what Madhudvisa dasa has said, I would like to point out that the Srimad Bhagavatam says that even at the “end of the age” when all is destroyed, Brahma stores all the life forms, and their state of advancement, in a sort of suspended state before, Brahma himself goes to sleep during the deluge. When Brahma reawakens, he restores the suspended souls back to their last point of advancement, to continue their learning. So even the Big Bang and end of our universe, does not erase the soul’s state of advancement. Hare Krishna.
Hare Krishna Joe
This is wrong and not exactly what the Bhagavatam says. It is a bit like what you say but not exactly.
Brahma does not ‘store the life-forms…’. You have a fundamental misunderstanding as to how things work and what the Bhagavatam says. The ‘lifeforms’ are not ‘stored’. The current consciousness of a given living entity is the consciousness of the spirit soul. So the ‘lifeform’ does not have to be stored. There is a sort of suspension, like a sleep state, where the spirit souls are stored [if you want to use that word] within the body of Maha-Visnu. But that is the spirit soul only and the ‘state of advancement’ is the consciousness of the spirit soul.
The actual ‘life forms’, the material bodies, are not ‘stored’. All the material elements are stored in the Mahat-tattva. And when the creation occurs again the material world is created from the material elements from the Mahat-tattva and Lord Visnu places the same spirit souls within the material creation who were there at the time of the devastation and they again continue with the same consciousness they had at the time of the devastation.
So in essence what you are saying is more-or-less correct. But the details you do not seem to understand clearly. So you need to read the Srimad-Bhagavatam again and get the details more clear.
There are a lot more details I have not included here.
“end of the age” is a rather imprecise and ambiguous term also. There are different types of ‘end of the age’ and there may not always be a complete devastation at the end of every age. It varies. And all the details are there in the Bhagavatam. It is a great science and you do not appear to have a very deep understanding of it.
For example Lord Brahma goes to sleep at the end of his day. That is after 1000 cycles of the satya-dvarpa-treta-kali yugas. So in that time there have been many Manvantara Avataras, there have been so many transitions of yugas, even so many transitions from kali-yuga to satya-yuga, but Lord Brahma does not go to sleep until the end of his day. So you see there are many “ends of the age” that happen when things are quite different from what you describe here.
So you need to read the Bhagavatam and get a much clearer understanding of these things. In ISKCON there is a disease that many devotees do not read the Bhagavatam for themselves, rather they hear bits and pieces from here and there from different devotees, and unfortunately what the different devotees say is often not 100% correct or 100% complete. The result of this is everyone gets and perpuates so many misunderstandings and misconceptions of what “the Bhagavatam says.”
So if we want to actually know what the Bhagavatam says we have to actually take the time and effort to read the Srimad-Bhagvatam ourselves.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
hare krishna prabhuji all glory to the good service you are rendering to mankind all glory to krishna for his arrangement and making it possible for devotees from not going to the mountian for meditation if not devotees would have find it difficult and fall out of faith in service ail glory to the suprem personality of GOD HEAd for making the temple our own mountian and the ganga river for meditation
Hare Krsna!!!!!!!
Swamiji, how can a grihasta lead a secluded life remaining in the family…i do chant the Maha mantra in the morning andthe evening after lighting the lamp,……my main prob is while running the household i am very bound by the responsibilities………will one day i be able to lead a complete Bhaktas life in ISKON ashram??? I am slowly trying to convince my husband also to follow the same….will i ever succeed……Hare Krsna
Hare Krishna
Yes. Of course you will succeed. There are no material impediments to chanting Hare Krishna. Nothing can stop you from advancing in Krishna consciousness except yourself. If you are determined to chant at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily, to strictly follow the four regulative principles and to read and follow the instructions you find Prabhupada giving you in his books then surely you will make rapid advancement in spiritual life in whatever material position you find yourself in.
It is very nice you are slowly trying to convince your husband also and he will gradually follow everything also and that is the best thing. It will give you both strength and will solidify and strengthen your relationship because there will then be a spiritual as well as a material bond between you. It is important that you cook for Krishna and offer the bhoga to Krishna and then feed your husband with Krishna prasadam. He will like it and he will also advance in Krishna consciousness quickly because of accepting the Krishna prasadam.
So the thing is we should not be lamenting our current situation and hoping for some different situation in the future where we can become Krishna conscious. No we should just become Krishna conscious in our current situation. If we make a very sincere effort from our side then also Krishna will help us from His side. He will adjust things in our life so that we will be easily able to serve Him and advance in Krishna consciousness.
It is not necessary to live in an ashram to lead a bhakta’s life. You can lead a bhakta’s life in your own home and that will turn your home into an ashram…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
You can control your mind by becoming Krishna conscious. The process to become Krishna conscious Srila Prabhupada has explained it very nicely in his books. So we have to read Prabhupada’s books and learn how to become Krishna conscious and then we will be able to control our mind and everything. You say you can’t concentrate in another post but that concentration is made possible by chanting at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra a day. It is a process. We are very disturbed in the beginning and we are not going to become pure devotees instantly. It is a process and it takes time. But the process works so if you follow these things, chanting at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily, reading Srila Prabhupada’s books, following the four regulative principles, etc, your mind will become peaceful and you will be able to concentrate. In the meantime you just have to force yourself to chant Hare Krishna and read Prabhupada’s books even if your mind is disturbed. This is called tapasya. Tapasya is agreeing to undergo voluntary suffering for the purpose of making spiritual advancement. We have to do this. it is not always easy to become Krishna conscious. But we have to be prepared to undergo the tapasya…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
hare krisna prabhu.i want keep photos of krisna ,prabhupada,and panchatatva,is that okay prabhu .i am staying in hostel…is that okay if start reading bagavatgeeta.& simultaneously some small books.& is it ok if i offer some fruits &maggi cornflakes
Yes it is OK, just do it…
Dear Madhudvisa dasa ji
Please suggets How one should deal with People who critisize lord krishna Or spread wrong words about him in front of others.
These are envious people, demons, who are criticizing Krishna like this. A devotee avoids the envious, associates with the devotees and preaches to the innocent. So you should completely avoid such people.
Thankful to get this advice sir.
Hare Krishna everyone. I am a dedicated monk, not perfected yet, but on the path to Krishnaloka. I would like to share my experiences living alone, yet surrounded by non-believers.
First, I was born into a Roman Catholic family and was trained in their schools. About the only truth taught me was the concept of the Garden of Eden and our fall from grace there. I always was on a search for the Garden, and how to gain re-entrance. The cities were horrible, so I became what is known as a survivalist, leaving the city. I travelled to many places in my search, including a few Krishna farms and temples in N. America. I didn’t find what I was seeking, but at that stage in my development, I didn’t really know what I was looking for.
I was in Hawaii, and helped a Tibetan Buddist monastery with some electrical wiring, and as a reward, they offered me a chance to be initiated as a White Tara. I didn’t know what that was and they said simply: “You will live long enough to attain enlightenment”. So OK, off I go, still unenlightened, to still more farms and even some Krishna farms and temples. It wasn’t until I met a devotee named Tapapunja in W. Virginia
who took an interest in me, that I was truly awakend. He told me it was seen by the monks there, that I would return to my mother’s house in the city, start to eat meat again, and then be shown the truth. It happened just that way.
From that point on, Krishna was guiding my enlightenment, but it is so odd the way it happened. When my mother died, the house was sold and I had no place to go. My citified relatives turned their backs on me, and didn’t want me at their places, furthermore, I was in a walker, after being “just touched by death”. I was lost, and the only place I could go to was a buggy
hot farm way back in the woods of S. Georgia, where a Buddhist friend let me camp on the property. From a city persons perspective, I was thrown out onto the poor farm, to live in a camp, take cold showers, and generally suffer for the “sin” of not working for the city people.
But here, in the quiet where nothing happens, enlightenment started to dawn in my mind. I feel Krishna, I feel Shiva protecting me, and I can sit for hours just with a quiet mind watching the birds, which I feed, and reading the books by Srila Prabhupada, which I find to be the finest truth there is. Even my Buddhist friend asked for a copy of the Gita, and Krishna conciousness is starting to replace the impersonalist Buddhist beliefs. I bought the printed version with bonus DVD from you, gave the book to my friend, and enjoyed watching Srila Prabhupada.
When I look back on it, it seems that it was all planned for me from the beginning. My unfortunate circumstances of being forced to use a cane or walker, was actually the best thing that ever happened to me, as the story goes in one of the books by Prabhupada, which said everyman should be touched by death, preferrably around the age of 50, to remind him of his mortality. To let you see the gods and goddesses.
I could write a book on my experiences, but let me relate that my biggest problem now, is the low-lifes who occaisionally visit me, are always trying to make me fail. They either push intoxication on me, trying to make me angry or sick, or just become vexations to the spirit of Krishna conciousness by eating cow meat. Christians especially like their cow meat …. no wonder the Christian world is collapsing.
Anyways, it is possible to find a place to live alone, but you pretty much need to accept living poor, in a camp, and not be afraid to die when ailments come one’s way. The funny thing is, I look forward to my death now, why would I want to go to a hospital only to have my life in Kali-Yuga extended?
I really appreciate your newsletters. They seem to come at the most auspicious times, revealing to me truths about my situation.
Finally, I would like to say, that in my situation, I prefer chanting Om Mani Padme Hum to the Hare Krishna chant, as it it is slower and more calming to my mind. Maybe I am not sufficiently enlightened yet, but I am getting there.
I have come to the realization that it might be better for me to be camping on a farm full of devotees, instead of dealing with non-believers, but for now this place suits my needs, as it allows for deep transcendental meditation.
From way back in the woods,
Hare Krishna,
Joe Milosch aka zentara
Hey it’s Sean once again. Madhudvisa dasa, I hope I didn’t alarm you. I just went and read two more of your e-mails and I think they cleared up just about ALL my previous confusion.(Krishna teats me well) so at this point all I have to say is THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU without your emails who knows what could have happened to me in this desperate hour of civilization. Thank You once again, as always, for gracefully bringing the thoughts of Krishna back to the conditioned souls.
wow I did not know that sometimes these comments get actually responses from Madhudvisa dasa himself: I’m so gratefull I almost want to cry. Madhudvisa, I was smart in America had Christ my whole life. Met the Heavenly Father in venice beach, CA by some strange guys in pink robes handing out free books. Became a total devotee on the spot and tried my best. Now the quagmire of drugs and religions like Eckankar/Hadjis have, I’m afraid, committed spiritual death. I’m so off of the platform what I really need is a miracle from Krishna to break my meth and smoking habit. Please help. Sean Strunk Oregon
Hare Krishna Sean
Krishna consciousness requires hard work and dedication and the great fortune of meeting a pure devotee of Krishna like His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. If you do not meet a pure devotee of Krishna there is no chance of becoming Krishna conscious. That is the key to everything. So you have to meet Srila Prabhupada, hear from him, surrender to him, and follow the instructions you find he is giving you. Srila Prabhupada is living in his books so please very seriously read Prabhupada’s books and actually follow the instructions you get from him while you are reading the books. In this way you can easily solve all your problems. But it is not that easy because we are addicted to so many sinful things and do not want to give them up. That is our problem. But we have to give up these sinful activities if we are going to become Krishna conscious. And that, in the beginning at least, we may find rather difficult. This is tapasya. It means voluntarily undergoing some suffering for the purpose of spiritual advancement. So we have to do it. Follow the four regulative principles [no illicit sex, no meat eating, no gambling and no intoxication] and chant at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily, and if we are not prepared to surrender to these things we should not fool ourselves into thinking that we are devotees….
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Hare Krishna Prabhuji,
Please accept my salutations for the great work you are doing & to keep the spirit of Sanātana Dharma alive and spreading the nectar given by Supreme Personality of God Head Shri Krishna!
I appreciate your work & the dedication, and get enlightened by the discussions and your responses to bhaktas! I pray to Lord Krishna to give you & each one of us the wisdom to seek the divine goal and keep trying to be a perfect soul with meticulous guidance from spiritual masters like Srila Prabhupadaji so we all meet together at the Lotus feet of Lord Krishna sooner or later!
Hare Krishna Hare Kirshna, Krishna Kirshna Hare Hare!
Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rame Hare Hare!
||Sri Krishnarpanamastu||
Hare krisna prabhu
because of so many problems in hostel.i am not able perform my spiritual activities like ,chanting,reading bhagvat geeta.what to do prabu.and I am enngineering student.i am facing so many problems not able to concenterate on studies.and one question .is it possible to perform devotion service by having some material desire say xyz
Hare Krishna Arun
You have to organize your own life Prabhu.
I can only let you know what things you have to do if you want to become Krishna conscious. You have to adjust your life in such a way so you can do these things.
You know it will never be easy to be Krishna conscious in the material world. No matter what situation you are in there will be so many distractions and so many problems. But a devotee adjusts to all these things and continues with his Krishna consciousness without any interruption.
Devotional service means giving up material desires and understanding that our real interest and the only way we can be really happy is by surrendering to Krishna and serving Him. A devotee realizes that Krishna is the root of everything and as the way to nourish the entire tree is to supply water to the root of the tree similarly if we offer our service to Krishna then that will be the only thing that will satisfy ourselves and the only way we can help others. Working for sense gratification, wanting sense gratification, that means we are in maya, not in Krishna consciousness.
But of course we will have so many material desires in the beginning. We are not Krishna conscious in the beginning. So we are full of material desires. So we have to accept the process of saddhana-bhakti under the direction of a bona fide spiritual master and he orders us to follow the four regulative principles, which means really we have to give up these sense gratification activities.
But it can not be done actually simply by force. We have to experence a higher taste, a spiritual taste. You have to develop a taste for chanting Hare Krishna and a taste for reading Srila Prabhupada’s books and a taste for devotional service. So then once you are experiencing this ‘higher taste’ you will no longer feel any attraction for the lower taste….
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Hare Krishna!
Thank you for the e-mail on living alone.It is very fascinating. The older that I become, the more I try to depend on myself and the Lord. Thank you again for an interesting piece and…Hare Krishna!
Quoting:“When one is not attached to anything, but at the same time accepts everything in relation to Krishna, one is rightly situated above possessiveness. On the other hand, one who rejects everything without knowing of its relationship to Krishna is not as complete in his renunciation.” (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu)
Does this not imply that studying science is necessary to understand how it can and should be used in His service?So,Why ISKCON does not support such study of science as scientists do instead of so called vedic science/spiritual science/transcendental science which no scientist will look at?Isn’t it even more necessary now that so called discovery of GodParticle purportedly makes science in to a well-knit religion?
Hare Krishna
It is useless to study anything from a fool. Science is so foolish that they are trying to explain the material world only considering the material elements. They believe everything comes from random combinations of material elements. They can only conceive of earth, water, fire, air and some maybe ether. They have no realization of concept of the more subtle material elements of mind, intelligence and false ego, and they completely disbelieve in the existence of the spirit soul, the living entity or brahman and the parabrahman or Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead from whom everything is emanating.
So scientists are childish fools who know nothing of anything beyond the very gross material elements and you would be a fool and become much more foolish by studying from them.
Rather than wasting your time in this way you can spend your time with great profit studying Srila Prabhupada’s books. Then you will become a real scientist with real knowledge and will be easily able to defeat these scientific fools with real transcendental knowledge…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
i m very disappoint and not found any way plz show mw the path
Dear guru maharaj thanks for your reply on my question about the soul. You said that the soul after leaving the body along with subtle body it becomes ghost for sometimes. But is there a way that the soul does not becomes ghost and it goes back directly to the spiritual planets? Thanks for your time.
Hare Krishna
Yes. Krishna says in the gita whoever at the time of death remembers Me, he will at once come to Me. So if you can be chanting Hare Krishna at the time of death, remembering Krishna at the time of death you will go directly back home back to Godhead. That is the actual test of our devotional service. If we can remember Krishna at the time of death. Death is the ultimate test. So really the whole process of Krishna consciousness is to be constantly remembering Krishna by chanting His holy names and reading Prabhupada’s books and by being engaged in the service of Krishna so that at the time of death we will naturally remember Krishna.
It is not that everyone becomes a ghost. Only those who are overly attached to the material world or who die untimely. It is not very likely a devotee will become a ghost, even if he is not perfect and can not immediately go back home back to Godhead he will take birth again in a family of sadhus or wealthy people so he has a nice opportunity to pick up his devotional service from where he left off in this life and continue it.
But we want to perfect our Krishna consciousness in this life and go back home, back to Godhead in this life. So we should try very seriously for always remembering Krishna and never forgetting Krishna…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Hare Krishna,
Is it possible to annihilate the mind and bring it under your control. How can a devotee/non-devotee bring the mind under control if it wavers, no matter how many times an individual focuses on krishna, the mind still wonders. People are saying individuals whom follow krishna, think only Krishna is the only god in the world, i said, there is only one god but has many different names and forms, is that correct? Is the essence of a true devotee and bhagavad gita ensuring that your mind is under your control and not the ego?
Hare Krishna, Kunar
Hare Krishna Kunar
No, it is not possible to ‘annihilate’ the mind. This is an impersonal idea. And it is not possible. The mind is there with the soul and it can not be ‘annihilated’. But the mind can be controlled. And the process to control the mind is to keep it always engaged in serving Krishna, to keep the mind always in Krishna consciousness 24 hours a day. And Srila Prabhupada has written more than 80 wonderful books that elaborately explain the scientific process of keeping the mind always engaged in the service of Krishna. It is not something I can tell you in a couple of paragraphs. So PLEASE READ SRILA PRABHUPADA’S BOOKS! You will find the answers to every question you can imagine there and much more also…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
I live in the USA, How can I get authorized small deities to worship. I’m a beginner, don’t know much.
Hare Krishna Marco
I suggest you first consider that worshiping deities is a serious commitment and you have to be prepared to worship Them every day for the rest of your life. Deity worship develops many good qualities and it is essential for advancement in Krishna consciousness. So you should do it certainly. But you have to take it seriously. It is not that it takes a lot of time. But you have to worship the Deities regularly, every day, preferably morning and evening.
Also in the beginning don’t get Radha-Krishna Deities. You can start with Gaura-Nitai Deities or Jagannatha Deities.
You can get the authorized deities at http://www.KrishnaStore.com and there is also a Deity worship handbook there from Krishna Balaram temple in Vrindavan which describes the process of Deity worship. For your home worship, particularly for Gaura Nitia worship, it can be simplified. You have to offer aroti, bathe and dress the deities and offer food and have kirtan in front of the Deities and this should be done daily. If you can do these things and in the evening also have some kirtan and offering of food and put the Deities to rest and if you can do this regularly every day that will be wonderful for your spiritual advancement…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
//JAI SHREE KRISHNA// Guruji,
I often get angry, is there any way to control my anger???!!!!
Yes… Chant Hare Krishna… The process of Krishna consciousness, devotional service, is so nice that as devotees follow the process of Krishna consciousness they automatically develop all the good qualities. So they become peaceful and tolerant and so many other good qualities also come. But also anger can be used in the service of Krishna. Arjuna, for example, on the battlefield of Kuruksettra, was telling Krishna that he did not want to get angry and fight with the Kurus. And Krishna was telling Arjuna, “No, get angry and fight. That is your duty.” So even anger can be used in Krishna’s service.
But generally speaking anger is a destructive force when it come to Krishna consciousness and usually anger comes because we are on the bodily concept of life and we are attached to something that we want for our sense gratification and when we don’t get it or if we see someone else getting it we get angry…
So as Krishna consciousness raises one above the bodily platform of life this solves the problem altogether.
The bottom line is the answer to your question how to control anger is to become Krishna conscious…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Dear guru maharaj please accept my pranams. i am having a question that is confusing me a lot. After our death the soul comes out of the gross body. But do we become unconcious after death or do we still have conciousness after leaving the body?
Hare Krishna
We are still conscious after death. The consciousness is a quality of the soul, not the body. So when the soul leaves the body the consciousness goes with the soul. There are three bodies: the spiritual body [soul], the subtle body [mind, intelligence, ego [false]] and the gross material body [earth, water, fire, air, ether]. So at the time of death the subtle body and the soul leave the gross body and sometimes they remain within the material world as a ghost. So the ghost is conscious of his surroundings. He is aware of what is going on around him. But having no material body he finds it very difficult to interact with the living entities who have material bodies. But there is no question, a ghost is conscious for sure.
And when the soul travels he takes his consciousness with him. So the consciousness is always there with the soul. The consciousness is covered however by the material body and can only be exhibited to the degree that a particular material body enables it. For example in the human form of life the consciousness of the soul can be exhibited to the greatest degree, and the same soul could enter into the body of a plant, and in the plant’s body he could hardly express his consciousness at all. But still, even in the plant’s body, the consciousness is there, it is just covered and can not be manifested much…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Dear Madhudvisa dasa, You opened my eyes today. A devotee must mingle with other devotees and not non-devotees. In Kaliyuga any place is convenient to
do yoga. After chanting Mahamantra and reading Bhagavad Gita some slokas one can try to do yoga and practice having Prabhupada Photo or Krishna photo
to get concentration of mind.Krishna conciousness help always to eloevate a
person to higher level, I understood.
My pranams to Madhudvisa dasa,
Regards,
Hare Krishna K.V.Rangaswamy.
Hare Krishna Prabhuji,
My humble obeisances to you and Srila Prabhupad.
It is very nice.
Me and mywife are chanting for last 1.5years. She is pregnant now.She is expecting a baby by nextmonth. I heard from some of the devotees that after the delivery of the child, we should not do Arathi and we should not offer prasadam to Lord Krisna for 1 month. Is it correct? Kindly clarify us prabhuji. We could not live happily without doing arathi and without prasadam.
Your servant,
Venkat
Hare Krishna Venkat Prabhu
Devotees say so many crazy things Prabhu. Of course we do not stop serving Krishna for anything. So please keep on doing aroti and offering prasadam. There may be some ancient rules and some traditions in Hinduism and maybe there are some mentions of something like this but Prabhu we can not eat anything if it is not first offered to Krishna and you are not going to feed your new born child anything but Krishna prasadam so how can you stop offering to Krishna? This is a crazy suggestion and please do not listen to it. Just go on serving Krishna. In Kali-yuga actually there are so many technical discrepancies in the process of Deity worship as we perform it. It is not possible to strictly speaking perfectly perform Deity worship in Kali-yuga, but if we simply add the kirtan, the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, then whatever imperfections are there will be immediately corrected and everything will become perfect.
So please continue your service to Krishna by offering aroti and prasadam without any stoppage and continue to chant Hare Krishna and everything will be very auspicious…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
It is a fine Texas day and I just wanted to thank you for sharing information with us.
Hare Krishna
I believe in Lord Krishna. I was getting inspired by teachings of Bhagavat Gita.
I got a Problem in following up the principles which is the base of the teachings and if I don’t follow the principles are useless to me.
Basically I come from a family where my family got a pride of praying to other demi gods. know nothing about the Lord Krishna and the reasons behind his activities when I tried to tell them they used to listen but they laugh at me all the times they see Lord Krishna pic in television or some where else.
I want to follow the principles of Lord as such not eating meat but I was forced to eat not harshly as such by speaking its not fair while all other eating you are eating separately other thing.
more over I could not able to control my anger,other emotions too….
Is it possible for me to change?
I really want to change my self.
To my above situations what could I can do to get the shelter of Lord Krishna? What are primary duties I could do?
Hare Krishna Harsh
Yes. Of course you can change. Of course you can become a pure devotee of Krishna. It is up to you. It is your decision. But you have to become detached from the opinions of the people around you. They are all ultimately non-devotees and will all try to discourage you in one way or another from serving Krishna. So you need to forget about them. Deal with them nicely and politely but officially. And if they tell you to do something you can smile and say ‘yes, certainly.’ But you will not actually take any notice of them at all. Just ignore them and go on with your life serving Krishna. And you should cook separately for Krishna and offer to Krishna and not eat anything cooked by non-devotees.
There is no future for materialists. They are so much concerned with the material body and anyone can see that all around us the people are dying everywhere. Our bodies are going to die and so are the bodies of all our friends and family members and with the death of these bodies all the results of our hard work in the material world will also be finished. So all this work to become ‘successful’ in the material world is a complete waste of time and energy. Rather we should work to become pure devotees of Krishna and engage in the service of Krishna by devotional service. The results of devotional service to Krishna are eternal and will never be lost.
So just follow the instructions Srila Prabhupada gives you while you are reading his books and know that you are on the most auspicious path and also know that for your family the best thing you can do for them is to become a pure devotee of Krishna. Because the family members of a pure devotee of Krishna for many generations will be liberated also…
So you have to start with the basic things: chanting at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily, strictly following the four regulative principles: No illicit sex, no meat eating, no gambling and no intoxication; getting out of bed before 4:00 in the morning and offering Managal Arati and reading, very seriously reading and studying all of Srila Prabhupada’s books. You have to read Prabhupada’s books very seriously and hear from him carefully and follow the instructions you will find him giving you as you read his books.
And forget about your family members and other materialists around you. We are only interested in speaking with people if they are interested in hearing about Krishna from us….
Do not take any notice of their complaints and criticism…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
pamho madhudvisa prabhu agtACBSP,i agreed with some point of view regarding what HG puskaraksa das says in the comment above but not with all of it, i mean nobody in the platform of sadhana bhakti can practice nirjana bhajan says SRILA BHAKTISIDDHANTA SARASVATI THAKUR HE says:dusta mana!tumi kisera vaisnava? o wicked mind! what kind of vaisnava are you? actually this is the age of quarrel and hypocrisy it’s nothing but hypocrisy that push the crowd to hide themselves in a secluded place to find peace of mind but padam padam yad vipadam in this age there is danger at any step even at home use to say SRILA PRABHUPADA but a sannyasi all the time think i’m never alone even if i go to live alone in the dark forest the UPADRASTANUMANTA the supersoul will be all the time next to me but one must clean the mind of all the unwanting anarthas first otherwise one can’t become a yogi, the nirjana bhajan is for the yogi people in the position of brahma nistham beyond the anarthas,we are trying through the daily sadhana bhakti of HDG ACBSP to be transfer to the platform of raganuga bhakti but harinam alone is not enough one must do both harinam and sankirtan association with others genuine sadhakas,then everyone got different gunas and karma due to place time and circumstances but SRI KRSNA says in the SRIMAD BHAGAVAD GITA that by using our present gunas and karma in the best way to keep connected constantly with guru sadhu and sastra ahaituki apratihata, one can come to the spiritual understanding that the moment one forget that is impossible to control krsna in the form of the mind therefore is better to surrender the mind by getting rid of the mental speculation which is the origin of all the anarthas through the jana sanga unworthy association outside the daivi varnasrama dharma,thank you for your sat-sanga and blessing agtys ys a.c seva das haribol
Haribol
Pranams. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to Sri Guru & Sri Gauranga.
I don’t think that what I wrote was intended to generate a debate about whether one should have to agree or disagree with me. I just wanted to shed some light on another form of experience, in the form of my own, after 5 years as a brahmacari and 25 years in the grihastha ashrama.
Krishna has his plans for each one of us; so it is for us to try and measure up to them.
So, as long as we are acting under the instructions and supervision of Sri Guru, I believe we are safe and on the right path…
If you study the life of Srila Prabhupada, as a grihasta and then as a vanaprastha and a sannyasi, you will see that he followed a unique path, which was meant to be his, and was somewhat different from what the main group of his Godbrothers was doing.
So, of course, there is no way one can and should compare himself to a liberated soul, such as Srila Prabhupada. But, we shouldn’t either be so eager to put everyone, including ourselves, in some little boxes, without taking into consideration time, place and circumstances, as well as one’s service and what is meant to be the plan of Krishna for each of us…
Katha Upaniṣad (1.2.23) says:
nāyam ātmā pravacanena labhyona medhayā na bahunā śrutenayam evaiṣa vṛṇute tena labyastasyaiṣa ātmā vivṛṇute tanūṁ svām
The Supreme Self can never be known by any amount of argument, reasoning, intelligence, or by much hearing. To those whom He chooses, however, He may reveal His personal form.
Of course, there may be also be different levels of answers, according to each one’s level of understanding, spiritual maturity and experience. So, it may not be the right forum to discuss any further what is not necessarily meant to be followed by all, at the earlier stages of their spiritual lives.
Nevertheless, nowadays, many practice at home, instead of giving up everything to join ISKCON and live in temples, as we customarily did in the past. Which is why I wanted to pass on some hope and encouragements to those who are not in a position to live in a temple in the association of other sadhakas…
Hare Krishna
Hoping this finds you all well, and happily engaged in bhajan and seva
Das dasanudasa
Puskaraksa das
I don’t know, I think it is good to get out and about. And to work and meet people. Usually I see Krishna everywhere. I’m not arguing The Gita, but I guess when it was written, perhaps the Lord say the gunslingers and violent West. Look at The Wars, from 1490 to 1630 to 1860 to 2000 .
It is good to stay away from that type of life, and drunkards and drug addicts, that are active and drinking and using.
My life has been blessed, since I first knelt before His Divine Grace PB in Venice,California Krishna Temple in 1975, I’ve always been blessed. I live currently in a secluded place, I spend a lot of time talking to my picture of Krishna.
I would like to have a personality of Radha Krihsna with me always, She is beautiful. This is what I ask.
This is what I ask The Lord for, to be with Radha Krishna. I play music, I carry a picture of Radha and Krishna with me, I hope for success, and financial success so I can give more to the Temples and to the Gospel.
I don’t really like being alone all the time. I’m very thankful for the web stuff with Krishna, it is great for my spirit.
I love Krishna and Radha, and Vishnu and Shiva and Jesus and Divine Mother
and The Buddha’s and most of all I love Krishna. I really love Radha she is most beautiful.
I wish they had hare krishna food at the grocery stores, already prepared. I’ve been eating TV diners for 50 years, I have no idea what I’ll come back as, Help.
I love all of you, Hare hare Krishna Krishna
Davy : ]
Prabhuji
i want to have association but since i am contrained due to medical problem i dont get association in temples congregation . nor i have ssen any body seeking association with me. is this correct
Chant Hare Krishna and associate with Krishna personally and read Prabhupada’s books and associate with Prabhupada personally. This is the best association.
Dear Madhudvisa Prabhu
PAMHO AGTSP AGTSG & SG
Being now vanaprastha, I have actually been living alone for one year, renting a separate one room flat.
I found this was conducive to focusing one’s mind annd attention on Krishna and Krishna conscious topics.
Besides increasing one’s dependance on Guru & Krishna, this also enables one to go through the mellows of one’s heart more freely, without any witness, as when one, for instance, cries in one’s hankering for Guru & Krishna darshan…
In that respect, the association of devotees, even though favorable for the accomplishment of some devotional activities, such as public Harinam, is not an absolute must always as, on one hand, the association of advanced devotees is not always available and, on the other hand, as being alone also enables one to dive deeper in the Bhakti rasamrita sindhu, with less external interferences…
Hoping this finds you well and in a blissful mood of Krishna consciousness,
Hare Krishna
Your servant in the service of Srila Prabhupada
Puskaraksa das
PS: I also have some Deities, so I do not live alone…
Besides, a sannyasi is never alone! He is always with Guru & Krishna.
Prabu
Iam working in a college, teaching the students and i will be back home by 06.30 P.M.Then how can I invovle in Sankirtana. Moreover ISKON temple is also not nearby my home. I am also living with my wife and a child and my mother.suggest me some ideas
hare krishna
Hare Krishna Prabhu
You can perform sankirtan in your house. It is best to get a picture of Srila Prabhupada and a picture of the Panca-Tattva [Sri Krishna Caitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhara and Srivasa] and then in front of the pictures, or if you have deities in your house in front of Them. So you can chant Hare Krishna with your wife and child then you can offer the foodstuffs prepared by your wife and after the sankirtan you can read something from Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam together then you can all respect Krishna prasadam.
Then as you become more confident at this sankirtan you can start inviting friends and family members to your house and you can have small sankirtan festivals in your house….
If you just try a little bit to organize this Krishna will help you and it will be very auspicious for you and your family.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Prabhu,
Chanting at home is Kirtan. Chanting in public and spreading the glories of the Holy Name to the general masses is Sankirtan. This is the Yuga Dharma. In most Cities in North America awareness of the Sankirtan movement has almost disappeared. It is now time to revive the movement in North America otherwise this world is heading to ruination.
By waging war against Maya we will get the mercy of Lord Chaitanya and Srila Prabhupada. If anyone wants to join our efforts here in Hamilton Ontario please visit our Facebook Hamilton Bhakti Yoga Group and join our efforts to spread the glories of the Holy Name and make new devotees. This is the highest service.
Hare Krishna
Hare Krishna Visvakrama Prabhu
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
I agree with you 100% Prabhu. You are correct. We are the Sankirtan Movement of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Sankirtan is the congregational chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra in public…
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
So is it okay for us to have a spiritual master who is not in line with the Krishna consciousness and still follow the things that you have said?
Hare Krishna Sanjiya
In any condition we should chant Hare Krishna. Obviously if we want to become Krishna conscious we need a spiritual master in the line of Krishna consciousness. But we are recommending this chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra for everyone. Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu says that the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra is the ‘yuga dharma’ or the religious principle for this age. So the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra is good for everyone, no matter who their spiritual master is.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
I really appreciate your concern thus far.However,i have been trying to understudy the relationgship btw isolation and relationship when the mind is focused on a particular thing;meditaion.But am in Nigeria where most of these parameters dnt work out the way we think of it.Bye,Ck
How to live “alone” with a wife and four cats in Manhattan, now THAT’S a challenge!
Hare Krishna Thomas
For a devotee ‘alone’ means without non-devotee association. So I think the cats are not such a problem in this way and if your wife is not already a devotee you can preach to her and convince her that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and then there will be no problem there. As far as the rest of the people in Manhattan, mostly they are non-devotees so you just have to deal with them as little as possible and in a very official way just to get the things done that you need to do to facilitate your service to Srila Prabhupada and Krishna.
A devotee prefers to live in the association of other devotees than to live alone. But if there are no other devotees then he has no alternative but to live alone.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa