# Back to Godhead Magazine #42 *2008 (01)* Back to Godhead Magazine #42-01, 2008 PDF-View ## Welcome IN THIS ISSUE Satyaraja Dāsa shows that the Western concepts of monotheism, pantheism, and panentheism reflect teachings from the *Gita,* in many ways a compendium of Vedic thought. Besides the Vedic culture's deep theological tradition, another of its venerable aspects is the protection of cows from mistreatment and slaughter. In this issue, we get a report on the World Cow Conference, held last year in India. Some Hare Kṛṣṇa devotees attended and learned more about the value of cow byproducts. Elsewhere in India, Sitarama Dāsa, from South Africa, tells how he found renewed attraction to Kṛṣṇa and then a congenial place to serve the Lord: ISKCON's new temple in Ujjain. Serving Kṛṣṇa, as Śrīla Prabhupāda tells us in this issue, is the essence of our eternal spiritual identity. All that we do in life should align with who we really are. One of the chief ways to serve Kṛṣṇa is by chanting His names. Bir Kṛṣṇa Swami suggests how we can enter more deeply into our chanting. We can also serve the Lord's form as the Deity, at home or in a temple. An interview with an exemplary family from Mumbai shows how a low income need not hinder excellent service to the Deity. Hare Kṛṣṇa.—*Nagaraja Dāsa, Editor* Our Purposes • To help all people discern reality from illusion, spirit from matter, the eternal from the temporary. • To expose the faults of materialism. • To offer guidance in the Vedic techniques of spiritual life. • To preserve and spread the Vedic culture. • To celebrate the chanting of the holy names of God as taught by Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. • To help every living being remember and serve Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead. ## Letters *Love Letters from God* I want you to know how I am feeling inside after reading the article "Worthwhile Endeavor" [Śrīla Prabhupāda, September/October]. The whole article is divine. I feel that I am getting love letters from almighty God, Lord Kṛṣṇa, through the spiritual master His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda. I realize now that Kṛṣṇa, the spiritual master, and all the devotees love all of God's children more than we can ever dream. I know that love is Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Art Noldon Crescent City, Florida *The Most Secret of Secrets* I really appreciated Arcana Siddhi's article "The Secret Behind 'The Secret.'" [November/December] She very clearly explained the difference between real knowledge, which can help us achieve the highest goal of life, and information in the guise of knowledge that can distract and confuse us on our spiritual quest. As Kṛṣṇa says in the *Bhagavad-gītā* (9.2), this knowledge is the most secret of all secrets and the purest knowledge. Pasupati Dasi Alachua, Florida *Vegetarian Christians* Your editorial [Carnivore Nation," November/December] makes some good points, although sometimes it sounds like Christian bashing. Of course, many are misled by Kali-yuga and think that it is God's order that they eat meat. Currently there are some strong exceptions. For starters, look up www.christianveg.com. They say that the best way to glorify Jesus is to be a vegetarian activist. "The Bible says kindness towards all creatures. Animals are creatures." Their main theme is that Jesus could not tolerate seeing the cruel way that animals are being treated. See http://hallelujahacres.com/home/home.asp. The founder is a Christian minister who is inspiring many thousands of Christians to become "health ministers": "teaching healthy living from a Biblical perspective." They promote basically a vegan diet. I recently met a Primitive Baptist pastor in Lynchburg, Tennessee (home of Jack Daniels Brewery and many meat-producing farms), who has sent three from his church to become health ministers and is teaching his philosophy weekly in his church. I would say that this is due to Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings being spread so widely. Kavicandra Swami Via the Internet *Caring for Children In Kṛṣṇa's Service* Dayananda Dāsa [Letters, November/December] wrote to protest the submission from the woman who says that taking care of her child is unmotivated and uninterrupted service. When I read her letter, I thought, "Unmotivated and uninterrupted service is a very high platform." The writer appeared to present caring for children in Kṛṣṇa's service as inherently a pure activity just by the nature of the activity itself, regardless of her consciousness. As for Dayananda Prabhu's point, well, he's right but not right. It is true that caring for children is not part of the nine processes of *bhakti*. It is, indeed, an activity that can support *bhakti*. He is correct in distinguishing between the nine processes of *bhakti* and duties in *varnasrama* dovetailed with *bhakti*. But he is also wrong, because when one dovetails the activities of *varnasrama* (such as begetting and raising children) in *bhakti*, they become *bhakti*. They become as good as hearing and chanting about Kṛṣṇa. They become spiritualized, like iron in the fire. We could say that the writer of that paragraph to which he objects may not be operating on that platform, but then one could say that the hearing and chanting of the neophyte is not unmotivated or uninterrupted *bhakti* either, but is sadhana-*bhakti*, or practice *bhakti*. If we consider sadhana-*bhakti* to be *bhakti*, however, then the dovetailed activities of the world are also *bhakti*. There is also a way in which begetting and raising children is, indeed, part of the nine processes of *bhakti* rather than being dovetailed *varnasrama*. One of the processes is *pada-sevanam,* serving the Lord's lotus feet. Such service includes serving the devotees of the Lord, who are always at His feet. Raising children can be considered serving Vaisnavas if one thinks, "To have been born in a Vaisnava family, my daughter must have been a Vaisnava in her last life. Let me take care of her so that when she comes of age, she'll choose to continue her spiritual progress." Here are some quotes about spiritualized activities: Unfortunately, Mayavadi philosophers consider devotional activities to be bodily activities. They cannot understand the simple explanation in the *Bhagavad-gītā* (14.26): > mam ca yo 'vyabhicarena > bhakti-yogena sevate > sa gunan samatityaitan > brahma-bhuyaya kalpate "Anyone who engages in spiritual devotional service without motivation, rendering such service for the satisfaction of the Lord, is elevated immediately to the spiritual platform, and all his activities are spiritual." *Brahma-bhuyaya* refers to Brahman (spiritual) activities. —*Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi* 14.29, Purport Everything that exists is situated in that *brahma*jyoti*,* but when the *jyoti* is covered by illusion (*maya*) or sense gratification, it is called material. This material veil can be removed at once by Kṛṣṇa consciousness; thus the offering for the sake of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the consuming agent of such an offering or contribution, the process of consumption, the contributor, and the result are—all combined together—Brahman, or the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth covered by *maya* is called matter. Matter dovetailed for the cause of the Absolute Truth regains its spiritual quality. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the process of converting the illusory consciousness into Brahman, or the Supreme. When the mind is fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is said to be in *samadhi,* or trance. Anything done in such transcendental consciousness is called *yajna,* or sacrifice for the Absolute. In that condition of spiritual consciousness, the contributor, the contribution, the consumption, the performer or leader of the performance, and the result or ultimate gain—everything—becomes one in the Absolute, the Supreme Brahman. That is the method of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. —*Bhagavad-gītā* 4.24, Purport Scientific knowledge engaged in the service of the Lord and all similar activities are all factually *hari-kirtana,* or glorification of the Lord. —*Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* 1.5.22, Purport Marriage on the principles of religious life is therefore current in all civilized human society because that is the way for restricted sex life. This restricted, unattached sex life is also a kind of *yajna* because the restricted householder sacrifices his general tendency toward sense gratification for higher, transcendental life. —*Bhagavad-gītā* 4.26, Purport [As for activities] specifically related to begetting and raising children, even in sex life [one] can see Kṛṣṇa. [Sex] is considered abominable, but even in sex life, if you are following the rules and regulations, you can see Kṛṣṇa —Śrīla Prabhupāda lecture, Bombay, February 25, 1974 How can one "see Kṛṣṇa" in begetting children? Kṛṣṇa says that He is the *act* of religious begetting and the *desire* for married relations to beget children. Act: "I am sex life which is not contrary to religious principles." (*Bhagavad-gītā* 7.11) Desire: "Of causes for procreation I am Kandarpa, the god of love." (*Bhagavad-gītā* 10.28) Purport: "Kandarpa is the sex desire for presenting good sons; therefore Kandarpa is the representative of Kṛṣṇa. Sometimes sex is engaged in only for sense gratification; such sex does not represent Kṛṣṇa. But sex for the generation of good children is called Kandarpa and represents Kṛṣṇa." Urmila Devī Dāsī BTG Associate Editor *Gauna-dharma Reconsidered* After reading and rereading Dayananda Prabhu's letter about the raising of children and its identification as **gauna-dharma*,* I must respectfully disagree with him. Though he utters the sacred name of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvati—and that of *Brahma-saṁhitā*—to invoke a sense of authority for his readers, he merely uses these sources to define *gauna-dharma*. Its relation to the *grhastha asrama* and to raising children comes from his own extrapolation. *Gauna-dharma,* as the phrase implies, refers to duties affected by the modes of material nature: We may do service to Kṛṣṇa, but if we are under the modes such duties will be impure and accepted by Him only out of His mercy. Why isolate *grhasthas* and the service of raising children? All service prior to pure devotion can be seen as *gauna-dharma*. Gaudiya Vaisnava philosophy describes two kinds of *dharma*: (1) *mukhya* (primary) and (2) *gauna* (secondary). Gauna-*dharma*, or subsidiary devotional activity, refers to acts conducive to the development of *bhakti* by dint of their results being offered to Lord Kṛṣṇa. Again, this applies to just about everything we do until we are pure devotees. Because we serve under the direction of Śrīla Prabhupāda and the disciplic succession, our service is accepted even though it isn't pure. In Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura's book *Jaiva Dharma,* when Babaji Mahārāja speaks of *kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs,* who are not pure, he talks about even their primary devotional activities as **gauna*-dharma*. "Consequently," says Babaji Mahārāja, talking about a fledgling devotee, "his hearing and chanting do not assume their primary identity, but are manifest in a *gauna* (secondary) form. Furthermore, whatever arises from the three *gunas—sattva* (goodness), *rajah* (passion), and *tamah* (ignorance)—is known as *gauna*." So, while I agree with Dayananda Prabhu that certain activities in the rearing of children might smack more of *gauna-dharma* than others—e.g., helping them brush their teeth may be less directly *bhakti* than reading to them about Kṛṣṇa—I would not categorize the entire project as a function of *gauna-dharma*. Indeed, depending on the purity and intent with which it is done, it might actually be considered pure *bhakti*. When a *sannyasi* searches out bamboo shoots to make his *danda* or a temple president pays bills to keep the temple running, are those acts *gauna-dharma*? Maybe, but then the distinction between that and pure *bhakti* becomes somewhat blurred, and who among us is qualified to single out such a category of devotional service as inferior to the rest? A hard-working Kṛṣṇa conscious parent is more in the line of pure devotional service than a renunciant who doesn't focus on Kṛṣṇa. Satyaraja Dāsa BTG Associate Editor [*Dayan*and*a Dāsa declined our invitation to comment on these letters, as well as other, more impassioned, ones. He wrote, "I can definitely write in support of my comments. However, the relationship between* bhakti *and* varnasrama is controversial, *and* my comments may provoke further impassioned response."—Editor] *Please write to us at:* BTG, P.O. Box 430, Alachua, FL 32616, USA. E-mail: [email protected]. Founder’s Lecture: Our Only Duty *Geneva, Switzerland—June 7, 1974* *Kṛṣṇa tells us how to return to Him, and everything we do in life should aim at fulfilling that goal.* ### By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda Founder-*Ācārya* of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness > arjuna uvaca > kim tad brahma kim adhyatmam > kim karma purusottama > adhibhutam ca kim proktam > adhidaivam kim ucyate "Arjuna inquired: O my Lord, O Supreme Person, what is Brahman? What is the self? What are fruitive activities? What is this material manifestation? And what are the demigods? Please explain this to me."—*Bhagavad-gītā* 8.1 THESE ARE THE subjects of knowledge. First Arjuna asks, *kim brahma:* "What is *Brahman*?" *Brahman* means the biggest. It is already the biggest, but it is still increasing. That is called *brahman*. For example, this universe is already the biggest, but it is increasing. Modern science says that the universe is increasing. In our Vaisnava philosophy, "the biggest" means Kṛṣṇa, because He is the richest, the strongest, the wisest, the most beautiful. In these ways He is the biggest. If a man is very rich, we consider him the biggest man in society. But nobody can hold all the riches of the world. Only Kṛṣṇa can. Kṛṣṇa has all the riches of the world. *Sarva-loka-mahesvaram* [*Bhagavad-gītā* 5.29]. Kṛṣṇa says, "I am the *mahesvaram,* the supreme owner of all the planets." Actually Kṛṣṇa is Parabrahman; He's not only Brahman but Parabrahman, the Supreme Brahman. That is accepted by the authorities. *Kim adhy*atma*m*. *Atma* means the body, the self, or the mind. But Arjuna is asking, "What is the real meaning of *atma*?" *Atma* means the soul. You are *atma*, and I am *atma*. Every one of us is a minute particle, part of Kṛṣṇa. *Kim karma*. *Karma* means to work. That is material. Working is required in the material world. Without working you cannot get anything. Here you have to keep your body and soul together. Therefore you have to work. Work can be divided in different ways, but one has to work. One may work as a *brahmana,* one may work as a *ksatriya,* or one may work as a *vaisya* or a *sudra*. In Vaikuṇṭhaloka, the spiritual world, you can live eternally without working, without endeavor. *Vaikuntha* means "without anxiety." Here we are full of anxieties. *Purusottama*. Arjuna addresses Lord Kṛṣṇa as *Purusottama*—*uttama-*purusa**. *Purusa* means the male, or the enjoyer. There are three kinds of *purusa*: *uttama-*purusa**, madhyama-*purusa*, *adhama*-*purusa*. Adhama means the lowest. We are also *purusa*. At least, we have taken the position of *purusa* to enjoy the material world. But we are *adhama*-*purusa*. Again, *adhama* means the lowest. We cannot enjoy independently. We require so many favorable circumstances. For example, we cannot see without the sunrise. Still, we are very proud of seeing. We say, "Can you show me God?" Well, can you see God? You cannot see without sunshine, and still you are so proud of your eyes. Kṛṣṇa is the Purusottama, the *uttama-purusa*. The *madhyama-purusa* is the Supersoul. He is between Kṛṣṇa and us in status. *Adhibhutam:* the five elements of matter. Arjuna wanted to know everything from Kṛṣṇa. He accepted Kṛṣṇa as the spiritual master, the authority. Unless you accept that someone is quite fit to become your authority, he cannot be your spiritual master. You must be satisfied by the authoritative statements of the spiritual master. You cannot argue. That is the principle of authority. *Adhidaivam:* the demigods. The demigods control the universal affairs. For rain, the demigod known as Indra is in charge. For heat and light, the demigod Suryadeva is in charge. Candradeva, the moon-god, is in charge of activating the vegetables. All these demigods have power invested in them by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They are agents. They are called demigods. There are thirty-three **crore*s* of demigods [*crore* = ten million], and they control our activities also. Now Text 2: > adhiyajnah katham ko 'tra > dehe 'smin Madhusudana > prayana-kale ca katham > jneyo 'si niyatatmabhih *Adhiyajnam. Adhiyajna* is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Narayana or Visnu. *Katham ko 'tra dehe 'smin madhusudana:* "Where does the Adhiyajna, the Supersoul, live within the body?" *Prayana-kale ca katham jneyo 'si niyatatmabhih:* "How do *yogis* or devotees meditate upon You, and how do they pass away?" > sri-bhagavan uvaca > aksaram brahma paramam > svabhavo 'dhyatmam ucyate > bhuta-bhavodbhava-karo > visargah karma-samjnitah > adhibhutam ksaro bhavah > purusas cadhidaivatam > adhiyajno 'ham evatra > dehe deha-bhrtam vara "Bhagavan replied: The indestructible, transcendental living entity is called Brahman, and his eternal nature is called *adhyatma,* the self. Action pertaining to the development of the material bodies of the living entities is called *karma*, or fruitive activities. "O best of the embodied beings, the physical nature, which is constantly changing, is called *adhibhuta* [the material manifestation]. The universal form of the Lord, which includes all the demigods, like those of the sun and moon, is called *adhidaiva*. And I, the Supreme Lord, represented as the Supersoul in the heart of every embodied being, am called *adhiyajna* [the Lord of sacrifice]." [Bg 8.3-4] Remembering Kṛṣṇa at Death After explaining all these items—*adhibhutam adhiyajnam,* the Supersoul, the material creation, Purusottama—then Kṛṣṇa says [Bg 8.5]: > anta-kale ca mam eva > smaran muktva kalevaram > yah prayati sa mad-bhavam > yati nasty atra samsayah This is the ultimate end of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. *Anta-kale:* "at the time of death," "at the end of life"; *ca mam:* "unto Me"; *eva:* "certainly"; *smaran:* "remembering." Deity worship is especially meant for this purpose. If you go on worshiping the Deities of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, naturally you'll be practiced to think of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa always within your heart. That practice is required. *Anta-kale ca mam eva smaran muktva.* By remembering Kṛṣṇa at death one gets *mukti*. *Mukti* means to get no more material bodies. We are now conditioned by our material body. In the material world, we are changing one body after another, but there is no *mukti*, no liberation. *Mukti* doesn't come simply by changing the body. *Mukti* means to change this body and not accept any more material bodies but to remain in our own spiritual body. It is like recovering from a disease and regaining your original healthy body. It is not that *mukti* means to become formless. No. The same example: You are suffering from fever. To become free from fever does not mean that you become formless. Why should you become formless? Your form is there, but it is no longer disturbed by fever. Similarly, a snake gives up its skin, but it remains in the body. It gives up the extra covering it has grown. I have my original body already, but it is covered by this material coat, this body. When there is no more material coat, that is called *mukti*. That can be achieved when you go to Kṛṣṇa, back home, back to Godhead. At that time you do not become formless; your form remains. As I have my individual form, Kṛṣṇa has His individual form. *Nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam* [*Katha Upanisad* 2.2.13]: Kṛṣṇa is the chief of all living entities. You can have *mukti* if you can remember Kṛṣṇa at the time of your death. That is possible. If we are practiced to think of Kṛṣṇa always, naturally at the time of death we will think of Him. If we are so fortunate that we think of Kṛṣṇa—His form—then we become materially free. No more material bodies. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We must practice. *To Kṛṣṇa Without a Doubt* Here it is said*, yah prayati sa mad-bhavam yati. Mad-bhavam* means the spiritual nature or spiritual world. This world is also Kṛṣṇa's world, but this is not the spiritual world. This is the material world. We have already discussed that Kṛṣṇa has two energies, material and spiritual. The material world is the manifestation of Kṛṣṇa's material energy. He has a spiritual world also, because spiritual energy is also one of His energies. Because Kṛṣṇa remains in the spiritual world, He says *mad-bhavam,* "My spiritual nature." This is the simple process. *Yati:* "He goes." *Na asti atra samsayah:* "Do not doubt it." If you have taken Kṛṣṇa as the supreme authority and Kṛṣṇa says there is no doubt about it, then why should you become doubtful? Why should you disbelieve Kṛṣṇa? This is the process: Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa; always remember Kṛṣṇa. Death may take place at any time. There is no guarantee that you'll die only after so much time has passed. At any moment you can die. There is no guarantee about when you will die. But it is guaranteed that you must die. That is guaranteed. Therefore we must be prepared for death at any moment. A devotee is not afraid of death. Death may come at any moment. Nowadays, death is very cheap. We are using cars, airplanes, ships, and other things for transportation, and at every moment there is danger of an accident occurring. So we must be prepared for death at any moment. There is no guarantee: "I am not yet old enough. I am not yet eighty years old, ninety years old. Why shall I die?" No. You may be twenty years old, twenty-five years old, or younger than that. Death is assured, and it can take place at any moment. Therefore our only duty is to think of Kṛṣṇa, Purusottama, so that if we die at any moment we attain spiritual salvation. That is our only duty. We have no other duty but to remember Kṛṣṇa twenty-four hours a day. That is the greatest process of *yoga* perfection. *Yoginam api sarvesam mad-gatenantar-atmana* [Bg 6.47]: "The first-class *yogi* is the one who is always thinking of Me." The Hare Kṛṣṇa *maha-mantra* is so nice that as soon as you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa you remember Kṛṣṇa. Go on chanting; that means remembering. While chanting, if there is death and I am remembering Kṛṣṇa, what is my fear? I am going to Kṛṣṇa, back home, back to Godhead. It is so nice. Always be engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa *mantra*. Then you are sure and safe in this life, and you are going home, back to Godhead. It is such a nice thing. Thank you very much. Defining the Divine—East and West *Conceptions of God in the* Bhagavad-gītā *encompass those of other traditions and give a full picture of the Absolute Truth.* > By Satyaraja Dāsa THE *Bhagavad-gītā* teaches a pantheistic view of God," he said, his confidence and years of learning clear from his authoritative tone. "The massive *visvarupa*—Kṛṣṇa's universal form, which encompasses all material phenomena, including time—tells us much about God in the *Gita*." His friend, another scholar of some renown, seemed to disagree. "The *Gita* goes beyond pantheism. It shows us how to perceive God in all things. The Tenth chapter, especially, shows us how Kṛṣṇa is the superlative exemplar in seventy categories, how He exists in the perceivable world." A third colleague gave his considered opinion as well: "The *Gita* ultimately teaches *bhakti,* devotion to Kṛṣṇa, the supreme personal Deity. In this sense, it is not unlike the great monotheistic traditions of the West. I think you've both missed the point." I was attending a panel discussion at a conference of the American Academy of Religion, and as I listened, I noted that all three scholars were correct, each in his own way. I considered deeply their individual perspectives, and I realized something: The *Gita* has it all! In the West, theologians tend to speak of God in three ways, using the terms pantheism, panentheism, and monotheism, with a few variations in between. That is to say, Western theology speaks of God (1) as impersonal, diffused throughout all we see and beyond, or as nature itself, (2) as existing both within and outside everything, or (3) as the Supreme Being, omnipotent, omniscient, and all the rest. Those familiar with Śrīla Prabhupāda's *Bhagavad-gītā As It Is* will immediately recognize the correlation between these conceptions of God and Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan, the three levels of Godhead expressed most succinctly in the *Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* (1.2.11): "Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan." *Pantheism and Brahman* Pantheism is understood in several related ways. First of all, *pan*theism equates God with nature, saying that He exists as everything and that everything is God. In Greek, *pan* = all, and *theos* = God. According to this view, the universe, including all matter and energy, is a metaphysical entity that is more than what we perceive. The *pan*theistic "God"—both impersonal and nontheistic (if we consider the usual sense of theism)—is entirely immanent, or close by, if only we had the eyes to see it. The doctrine of pantheism often goes further, espousing "a belief that every existing entity is only one Being, and that all other forms of reality are either modes (or appearances) of it or identical with it."1 This is clearly a Western articulation of God as Brahman. The *Vedas* describe Brahman as a transcendent impersonal divinity. The *Rg Veda,* in particular, tells us in a prayer known as the *Purusa-sukta* (10.90.4) that Brahman, here in a more personalized form, expanded a portion of Himself as the created world, where He exists, without personality or form, as its essence. This is perhaps the earliest reference to pantheism—even if it doesn't use that word—in any religious literature, East or West. In the *Gita,* one can find hints of pantheism (specifically God's oneness with the universe) in the Seventh Chapter, where Kṛṣṇa identifies Himself with various material phenomena: He is the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the sound in ether, the ability in man, and so on. A closer look, however, shows that these are manifestations of His energy and He stands quite apart from them. Still, He does say that He is, in a sense, everything that exists (*vasudevah sarvam iti*), and the *Gita's* Ninth Chapter tends to confirm this fact. (See texts 4, 5, 6, 16–18.) The Lord elucidates His all-pervasive nature again in Chapter Ten, identifying Himself with the best of everything: He is Siva, the ocean, the lion, Garuda, the Himalayas, the letter A, inexhaustible time, Brahma, truth itself, victory, adventure, and so on. But clearly, again, this is not all there is to Kṛṣṇa, and He says so Himself by describing all of the above, and more, as a "mere indication" of His glory (*esa tuddesatah proktah,* 10.40) and but a spark of His splendor (*mama tejo 'msa-sambhavam,* 10.41). A pantheistic view seems somewhat more apparent in the *Gita's* Eleventh Chapter, wherein the Lord reveals His universal form (*visvarupa*). Details of this form appear in the *Śrīmad-*Bhagavatam*,* Second Canto, particularly in chapters one and six. Here we learn that "the gigantic manifestation of the phenomenal material world as a whole is the personal body of the Absolute Truth..." (2.1.24), and that, "the sphere of outer space constitutes His eye pits, and the eyeball is the sun as the power of seeing. His eyelids are both the day and night, and in the movements of His eyebrows, Lord Brahma and similar personalities reside." (2.1.30) In this way the *Bhagavatam* goes on to deliver an elaborate meditation on the Absolute, allowing practitioners to virtually "see" Him in the material world. However, the *Bhagavatam* (1.3.30) is clear: "The conception of the *virat* universal form of the Lord, as appearing in the material world, is imaginary. It is to enable the less intelligent [and neophytes] to adjust to the idea of the Lord's having form. But factually the Lord has no material form." Thus, the universal manifestation of the Supreme is meant to take practitioners from an impersonal understanding of the Absolute to a more developed, personal conception of Lord, and to help them realize that while He has no material form, He does have a spiritual form. Because this universal vision of the Lord equates God with the phenomenal world—that is, as being wholly amalgamated with, or inseparable from, visible nature—it is a form of pantheism, and one needs to go further to understand God's spiritual nature. A pantheist who fails to look beyond the complex, majestic manifestations of matter may even be regarded as atheistic, having overlooked their all-attractive, transcendent, personal source. That being said, a more liberal view of pantheism can also be found in the teachings of the *Gita*. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: Pantheism in its higher status does not permit the student to form an impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth, but it extends the conception of the Absolute Truth into the field of the so-called material energy. Everything created by the material energy can be dovetailed with the Absolute by an attitude of service, which is the essential part of the living energy. The pure devotee of the Lord knows the art of converting everything into its spiritual existence by this service attitude, and only in that devotional way can the theory of pantheism be perfected. (*Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* 2.1.20, Purport) Here Prabhupāda suggests that the pantheistic perspective may be an imperfect preliminary stage that can lead to a more mature or complete realization of the Absolute Truth as something far greater than can be found in material nature. This correlates with the Vaisnava view of Brahman realization as a low-rung, impersonal conception of God. *Panentheism and Paramatma* While the *Gita* views *pan*theism as immature or incomplete, it more readily embraces a *pan**en*theistic view, seeing all things as imbued with God's pres*en*ce and all things as being in God as well. As opposed to *pan*theism, which sees God as everything, *pan**en*theism sees God in everything (*pan* = all, *en* = in, and *theos* = God) or everything in God. The word is used in both ways.2 The term *panentheism* is attributed to German philosopher Karl Christian Friedrich Krause (1781–1832), who wanted to reconcile monotheism and pantheism. From a Vaisnava point of view, *panentheism* has some redeeming features. For example, Kṛṣṇa says in the *Bhagavatam* (11.15.36), "I exist within everything as the Supersoul and outside of everything in My all-pervading feature." The *Gita* (6.30) encourages us to see everything in Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa in everything: *yo mam pasyati sarvatra sarvam ca mayi pasyati.* And the *Brahma-saṁhitā* (5.35) tells us, "All universes exist in Him [Kṛṣṇa], and He is present in His fullness in every atom." Clearly these are all panentheistic statements. Now, for God to fit within everything He would have to be smaller than the smallest, and for everything to fit within Him, He would have to be larger than the largest. He would have to simultaneously be both, inconceivably. In fact, this is precisely how He is described in numerous scriptural passages. The *Katha Upanisad* (1.2.20), for example, tells us that God is smaller than the smallest and larger than the largest (*anor aniyan mahato mahiyan*). The *Gita* tells us that God is both the smallest (*anor aniyamsam*, 8.9) and the greatest (*vibhum,* 10.12), and it also reveals that all beings are in Kṛṣṇa (*mat-sthani-sarva-bhutani,* 9.4). The alternate side of the same concept, that God is within everything, brings us to the subject of Paramatma. Panentheism, in this case, might be considered a Western equivalent for Paramatma realization, wherein one views Kṛṣṇa (or His expansion Visnu) as all-pervading—existing within every human heart and within every atom. This is a more localized, personal feature of the Lord, as compared with the pantheistic Brahman conception. But all is not so easy. There are differences between panentheism, as commonly understood, and the Vaisnava conception of Paramatma. While the similarity of "God in all" exists in both, Paramatma goes much further, putting a "face" on panentheism's God. The critical factor here is *form*. Both the *Gita* and the *Bhagavatam* (2.2.9), especially, are quite specific about Visnu as He appears in every atom: "He has four hands carrying a lotus, a wheel of a chariot, a conch shell, and a club, respectively. His mouth expresses His happiness. His eyes spread like the petals of a lotus, and His garments, yellowish like the saffron of a *kadamba* flower, are bedecked with valuable jewels, and He wears a glowing headdress and earrings." Moreover, while the panentheistic view holds that everything is in God and sometimes that God is in everything, it is never quite clear about the relationship between God perceived in nature and the transcendent being who is the source of all we see.3 The *Bhagavatam* and the *Gita* give us a much more developed, or shall we say sophisticated, idea about this source. Those Vaisnava texts tell us that Kṛṣṇa is the root of all divine manifestations and that Paramatma is an emanation from that original source, partaking fully of His transcendent nature. The omnipotent Supreme Person can reproduce His essential being by appearing in "an extended personal form of Himself," as Prabhupāda describes Paramatma. Thus, if we may offer new terminology to the Western theological tradition, let us call the theology of Paramatma "Personal Extensionism." This differs both from the view that God is in one sense identical with all that is (pantheism) and that He is impersonally within all things we see (panentheism). But this is still not monotheism proper. *Monotheism and Bhagavan* When scholars talk about "the three great monotheistic traditions," they are usually not talking about Vaisnavism or the tradition of the *Bhagavad-gītā*. Rather, they are talking about Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. But if they would look just a little beneath the surface, they would perhaps find the earliest monotheistic tradition. True, one should be cautious when applying the terms of one set of religious traditions to another with its own history, insights, and ways of thinking about spirituality. People who identify with the Judeo-Christian tradition have very particular ideas in mind when they refer to monotheism, and that should be respected. The same might be said about the terms *pantheism* and *panentheism*. But given that caveat, the God of the *Gita* is clearly a Supreme Being and the recipient of monotheistic worship: Kṛṣṇa is described as God of gods (10.15), the origin of all other gods (10.2), the primeval person (11.38), the Lord of the worlds (5.29), the creator and sustainer of everything (8.9), and on and on. As Arjuna says, no one is equal to or greater than Him (11.43). Kṛṣṇa's supremacy is so blatant, in fact, that one wonders why there would be any question at all. Perhaps it is because He is contrasted with other gods—demigods, or specially empowered beings—who serve as universal administrators. Indeed, this is why various forms of Indian religion are often described as polytheistic, or endorsing the worship of many gods. But, at least in terms of the *Gita,* such charges cannot stand. Though other gods may exist, Kṛṣṇa is clearly supreme. Biblical scholars might want to stop us here, claiming that, since other gods are even acknowledged, the *Gita's* religion is not really *monotheism* in the traditional sense of the word. It should be remembered, however, that early Israelite tribes practiced "monolatry" as opposed to strict *monotheism*: they worshiped one Supreme God among many. And besides, as already stated, we use the term *monotheism* with caution. It should also be noted that the *Gita's* monotheism is distinct, deserving terminology of its own. Apropos of this, Graham M. Schweig, associate professor of religious studies at Christopher Newport University, Virginia, c*all*s the *Gita's* Vaisnavism "polymorphic monotheism," that is, a theology that recognizes many forms (*ananta-rupa*) of the one, single, unitary divinity.4 Since it is here stated that God has many forms, one could superfici*all*y accuse the tradition of polytheism. But those who understand the tradition well know that it hereby merely acknowledges God's capacity to be in many places and forms at the same time. This is not to say that *all* forms are God's. The Vedic literature is quite clear about what constitutes a form of the Supreme Lord, and only those are to be worshiped. The *Gita* promotes the worship of one Supreme Personality of Godhead, also known as Bhagavan.5 But the monotheistic worship of Bhagavan, lovingly adored as Kṛṣṇa or Visnu, is unique in the history of religions, for here we actually get to see, or visualize, the Lord of our prayers. If the scriptures place a face on Paramatma, as He exists within every atom, they do so much more for Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Devotees become privy to His numerous ecstatic features and His day-to-day activities with eternal associates in the spiritual world. *Three Aspects Of the Same Truth* I would agree with the three scholars mentioned in the beginning of this article, accepting their diverse views. Like the first of these well-meaning men, I acknowledge that the *Gita* promotes a type of pantheism, God's presence as a metaphysical dimension of nature. But I would hasten to add that the *Gita*'s pantheism goes beyond the kind we usually hear about in the West. It shows us that there is a person behind the divinity perceivable in the natural world. I agree, too, that the *Gita* shows us a form of panentheism, sharing with its readers God's immanence and how we might perceive that immanence in our day-to-day lives. And finally, of course, I agree with the third scholar most of all—that the *Gita*'s ultimate teaching is *bhakti,* or devotion to a Supreme Personal Godhead. This is the *Gita*'s crowning glory. What I disagree with is how the three scholars address the **Gita*'s* diversity. The *Gita* gives us several views of God, all legitimate and each revealing different aspects of the divine. It's not that if one of these aspects is correct then the others must be wrong. Rather, the *Gita* revels in multi-faceted reality, taking its readers from fundamental conceptions of the Absolute Truth to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan are three aspects of that same Truth, manifesting variously according to the realization and wisdom of the practitioner. Those who approach God through knowledge tend to realize His eternality aspect, and in perfection this is Brahman realization. *Yogis* and mystics meditate on the Lord in the heart, and the highest point of such meditation is called Paramatma realization. This is where one realizes not only eternality but the ultimate end of all knowledge as well. Finally, the highest and most inclusive theistic pursuits culminate in devotion to God. Those who adopt this process focus on Bhagavan, the worship of whom leads to divine love. Here one reaps the benefit of all other processes, affording the practitioner the zenith of not only eternity and knowledge, but bliss as well. This is the best that pantheism, panentheism and monotheism have to offer. *Satyaraja Dāsa, a disciple of Śrīla Prabhupāda, is a BTG associate editor. He has written over twenty books on Kṛṣṇa consciousness and lives near New York City.* ## Spiritual Places *ISKCON Ujjain - A New Temple in an Ancient Holy Place* *A South African cultural terrorist gives up his caustic rhetoric and finds peace at a new temple in the heart of India.* ### By Sitarama Dāsa RECENTLY, after a long absence, I was invited to return to spiritual life by His Holiness Bhakti Caru Swami, with whom I had developed a firm relationship. He helped my family move from South Africa to ISKCON's one-year-old Rādhā-Madana-Mohana Temple in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. Having given up my hedonistic artistic life, I was filled with trepidation, uncertainty, and fear. It had been twenty-two years since I became an initiated disciple. In the early eighties I was the first black South African to step back from the apartheid struggle and cross the divide to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, away from the violent maelstrom of political upheaval endemic to my life. Filled with violent hatred of the apartheid regime, I was fortunate to cross paths with the Hare Kṛṣṇas through the gift of a *Bhagavad-gītā*. Mesmerized by the lyrical and spiritual quality of its revelations, I became disgusted with the continual ritual of violence—domestic, social, political, and even academic—that accompanied my existence. I decided to jump ship from my Rastafarian, ganja-smoking lifestyle and join the search for true meaning. The adventure took me to ISKCON UK's new-devotee program in the English Midlands, followed by initiation at Bhaktivedanta Manor and devotional service at the Soho Street temple in London. I left the Society in the mid-eighties and again took up arts activism in South Africa. During this time I got married and became the infamous iconoclastic cultural terrorist Zebulon Dread, renowned for fearless satirizing and vilification of society. I published six books and ten wickedly puerile, profane, and publicly denounced fanzine magazines, and I performed onstage in self-penned one-man shows with the distinct aim of vomiting caustic humor upon society. After two decades of being "the great upsetter," I had enough and jumped ship again. This time, by Kṛṣṇa's plan, I brought an entire family along. *Dropped into India* Mumbai was hot, sticky, noisy, and alive at 2:00 A.M. when we got off the plane. Our first time in India, we were to take a train to Ujjain, with no idea of what to expect. The person delegated to assist us forgot to hand over the train tickets in Mumbai. Amazingly none of the train officials threw any tantrums. Everyone was helpful, and before long a telephone call arrived confirming our ticket reservation numbers, and the situation was amicably resolved. The helpful conductor was most pleased to receive some *prasādam* from Rādhā-Rasavihari, the presiding Deities of ISKCON Mumbai. I was impressed by the placid, cool, and mature handling of the whole matter. In the morning, after a journey that gave us only small glimpses of Indian life through the darkness, the train stopped at the umpteenth station and, looking outside at what seemed a rural backwater, we leaned back thinking that this could not possibly be it. But then a helpful and intrepid fellow traveler made it known, in a frantic pitch, that this was indeed Ujjain—and we'd better move quickly. Many hands joined in the frenetic race to help the family quickly disembark. The ride through the streets of Ujjain was an eye-opener. Cows stood chewing the cud in the middle of the road. Traffic crisscrossed like Japanese kamikaze pilots. A camel, an elephant, a bullock cart, and numerous handcarts vied for space on the road. My daughters screamed with surprised delight, absorbed in the maddening chaos. Upon asking our guide, Laksminatha, if this was normal, he simply laughed. There were people everywhere! Eventually a huge billboard announced ISKCON Ujjain. I had earlier asked Laksminatha about the many temples dotting the landscape outside town. He said Ujjain has many temples of Lord Siva, but it is where Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma studied sixty-four subjects in as many days under the tutelage of Sandipani Muni, whose ashram is still a much-visited holy place. Ujjain is home to the Mahakaleshwar Temple complex, where a beautiful Siva-*linga* is worshiped. Ujjain is revered as one of the seven places where Siva eternally resides as the protector of the holy site. *Ujjain Kumbha Mela* Ujjain is traditionally considered one of India's seven holy cities and one of the four places where the eternal nectar of the demigods fell upon the earth after a major struggle with the demons. This ancient occurrence has given Ujjain the spiritual gravitas that marks the Kumbha Mela, a festival that takes place every twelve years. During that time the city is packed to the rafters with millions of pilgrims from all over India. Also in Ujjain, on the bank of the holy Shipra River, is Rama Ghat, revered and worshiped as the site where Lord Ramacandra bathed eons ago. *A Stunning New Temple* Amid this ancient environment that resounds with loud bells is the new kid on the block: the contemporary temple complex of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Madana-Mohana, a marble masterpiece. Bedecked in the white marble of Makrana, Rajasthan, which also decorates the Taj Mahal, it stands proudly as a testament to the resolve of the ISKCON devotees to continually expand the mission of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Impressed by the temple's pedigree, we eagerly take *darsana* of Their Lordships Rādhā-Madana-Mohana, Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma, and Gaura-Nitai (Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Nityānanda Prabhu), who adorn intricately carved gold-leafed wooden thrones that shine forth like shafts of molten gold under the delicately balanced light. An effulgence emanates from the altar that gives us a soothing feeling and a welcome that defies poetic description. The gold leafing, we are informed, is a meticulous procedure that requires oodles of patience, dedication, and devotion. For the first time in my life I see the Supreme Lord in His blue-black rain-cloud color and immediately desire to one day take Him home to South Africa. Everyone should perceive His well-dressed three-bending form prancing about for the delight of His eternal consort, Śrīmati Rādhārāṇī. I quietly make a vow that, if He allows me to stay and reform my incorrigible character, I will one day build Him a gorgeous temple and worship Him as Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Syamasundara Africa-lsvara. Śrīmati Rādhārāṇī emits a radiantly coy smile and alluring, loving looks. The *gopis* Lalita and Visakha accompany Rādhā-Madana-Mohana. Seeing them blush in delight, my overly dramatic daughters gasp with joy. The altar is a bustling spiritual universe of dramatic color, and the air is redolent with that fragrance known only to devotees who have lived in a temple. It stays with you for a lifetime. Getting my first whiff, I breathe deeply and quietly weep for having been away so very, very long. Looking up, we are all astonished at the fresco adorning the ceiling—a splendid depiction of the Lord in His *rasa-līlā*. Superlative skill has brought to life this innocent dance that melts the hearts of the staunchest transcendentalists. *The Inspiration Behind the Construction* The temple is still a work in progress but stands as a testimony to the resolve of the devotees, inspired by their leader, to finish the main construction within one year. With only a host of young devotees with very little or no building experience, Bhakti Caru Swami cajoled, chided, energized, and inspired his team to pull out all the stops to make this amazing vision a reality. "Sometimes I wonder how we managed to build this temple in ten months," Bhakti Caru Swami told *Avantika,* the temple magazine. "The only thought that comes to my mind is that it happened by Kṛṣṇa's mercy. This actually proves that if we sincerely try to serve Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa helps, and as a result of that all kinds of wonderful things happen." A short while after our arrival, a group of devotees arrived from Taiwan. They charmed Ujjain with their tinkling Mandarin and infectious enthusiasm underscored by Chinese humility. On seeing the Deities, they gasped and gorged their eyes on the feast of resplendent outfits that shimmered on the effulgent Lords. Seeing these devotees was a stark reminder that Śrīla Prabhupāda created a home for the whole world to live in. The members of the Taiwan group were some of the first visitors to enjoy the fully functional twenty-eight-room guesthouse. Govinda's Restaurant, on the ground floor, is slowly cutting its niche with gourmet vegetarian fare in a sanctified environment free from the ubiquitous Bollywood music that pollutes the atmosphere wherever you go. On the top floor an auditorium awaits fresh ideas for Kṛṣṇa conscious theater, as well as classical music, traditional dance, and devotional conferences. In an adjoining building resides the *brahmacari* ashram, with its ground-floor *prasādam* hall and central office complex. Like the guesthouse, it is covered in white marble. In Ujjain, generous appreciation for this magnificent achievement abounds. The temple has become a new Ujjain holy site, visited by thousands who have turned this once dusty plain into a festive arena. They marvel at the well-tended gardens and the lively *kirtanas* and avail themselves of the bookstand and *prasādam* kiosk. I was pleased to watch passing motorists and cyclists stop, disembark, and offer obeisance from the road on the way to their daily activities. It is a heart-melting miracle for Ujjain to have Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma back after fifty centuries. This city renowned for its educational institutions and its culture has proudly welcomed this new entrant to its stellar spiritual history. People who have never before seen such lavish worship stand in awe. I sometimes wish I could understand what the garrulous and always animated villagers are saying. The temple is a moving mass of humans at every evening *arati* as Śrī Kṛṣṇa, by slow devotional degrees, turns them toward the Supreme Truth that is Himself. I muse that Lord Siva, the greatest devotee, must be very happy. *Feeling at Home* As our spiritual life takes shape, my family and I absorb many special elements of the Vaisnava culture. In a corner, tucked away on the northwest side of the temple, a *tulasi* garden sprouts beautiful bushes used in the everyday devotional rituals. It is a nook for meditation on Vṛndāvana. Alongside, a small cow-pen hints at what will become a thriving cow-protection program. My daughters screech with delight upon witnessing the birth of two calves. Enchanted by this mystical life, they constantly sing the many new songs pouring into their hearts. I have never allowed them to enter the public schooling system. They are untouched by modern popular culture. Many majestic plans pepper the ISKCON Ujjain future, some already taking shape. A midday-meal project is kicking into action with the goal of feeding 21,000 schoolchildren one nutritious meal a day. A *murti*-making project supplies Prabhupāda Deities all over the world. An IT center and a film studio are in the pipeline, and land is being acquired for a primary school. Family residences will augment the guesthouse. "This is just the beginning," says Bhakti Caru Swami. "We came here to achieve something so wonderful that the world will watch in wonder and recognize the greatness of India. We therefore invite all to come and join us to achieve this glorious mission." ## Hare Kṛṣṇa People *Exemplary Service in a Humble Home* *In a tiny one-room house, a family serves the Lord with opulence seemingly beyond their means.* ### Interview by Murari Gupta Dāsa SATURDAY, 11:30 A.M. Vamsi Vihari Dāsa, Vrajabasi Dāsa, Ripin, and I arrive in Lal-bagh, a section of Mumbai. We've come to interview a devotee named Satish, having heard about his and his family's exemplary devotion. His tiny one-room house serves as both their home and a temple of Jagannatha, Baladeva, and Subhadra. Although he's a low-salaried office clerk, he and others regularly cook a feast of fifty-six preparations for the Deities, following a centuries-old tradition of service to Lord Jagannatha in Puri. As we stand in front of a building, trying to locate Satish's house, a tea-stall owner calls out to us. "Hey, you Hare Kṛṣṇas, take a left and go behind this building." We looked at each other, bemused. Then Ripin sums up our collective sentiments: "It seems Lord Jagannatha is quite famous here." We walk past a few buildings with peeling paint and enter a similar one. "Welcome!" Satish greets us and then takes us inside his one-room house. In the ten-by-twelve-foot room, along one wall is a big platform on which stand two-foot-tall Jagannatha, Baladeva, and Subhadra Devi, each beautifully decorated with flower garlands and attractive dresses. Behind them is a panoramic view of Lord Jagannatha's temple in Puri. On our right is a cooking range and atop it the kitchen vessels, neatly arranged on a metal rack. On the left is a long bench piled with containers of produce. On the floor two women fry vegetables on a single stove and two others cook on a shelf. A small girl, five or six years old, washes a carrot with her tiny hands and then passes it to her mother. Despite the onerous job of cooking dozens of preparations on three stoves, the atmosphere is peaceful and unhurried. Devotees cook quietly while a sweet Hare Kṛṣṇa *kirtana* plays on a CD player in the background. The room is clean, and there is no choking smoke, although there is only one window and we don't notice any exhaust fan. We take some photographs, and then Satish escorts us to the house of another devotee. We sit on straw mats and conduct our interview. BTG: Please tell us how these Deities came here? Satish: In 2003 I went to Jagannātha Purī for the Rathayatra festival. I saw these Deities in a shop outside the temple and spontaneously fell in love with them, especially because Jagannatha's face was exactly like that of Jagannatha in the Puri temple. But I didn't have enough money to buy them. I decided to return to Mumbai and save money to get them. Before leaving I prayed to Lord Jagannatha: "Please stay here. Next year I will definitely come and get You." I promised Jagannatha, Baladeva, and Subhadra that if they were to come to my house, I would regularly offer them fifty-six *bhoga* items. [*Bhoga,* meaning "enjoyment," is food to be enjoyed by the Lord.] Back in Mumbai, for one year I tried to collect 9,000 rupees, the required sum, and my friend Vaikuntha Dāsa contributed whatever was short. In January 2004 I again went to Puri, but I had forgotten the location of the shop. I checked various shops and saw many Deities, but not the ones I wanted. Dejected, I began to walk aimlessly, when suddenly the same old shop appeared before my eyes. The same Jagannatha Deities were there, standing at the same place I had seen them a year earlier. Only some dust had gathered upon them. Immediately I entered the shop, settled the transaction, and got the Deities for 8,000 rupees. My family welcomed the Lord with open hearts. My mother and father were very happy. When Jagannathaji arrived, local people welcomed Him with a shower of flowers. Initially, we had a bed where you see the altar presently. We threw the bed out and made a platform for Their Lordships. BTG: Why do you have such special attraction for these Deities? Satish: During the Rathayatra in Puri in 2003 an amazing thing happened to me. When I climbed onto the *ratha* [chariot] of Jagannathaji, as is the custom, it was so crowded that I couldn't see Him. Suddenly the crowd parted, and somebody pushed me from behind. I landed right on top of Lord Jagannatha. My hands fell on His face and then parted sideways in an embrace. I was face to face with the Lord for a long time and noticed His features very closely. I touched His nose. It was so soft that I began wondering, "People say that He is made of wood, but how can wood be so soft?" So, when I saw these Deities I immediately felt attracted because they look exactly like the Deities in the Puri temple. BTG: When did you begin offering fifty-six *bhoga* items? Satish: In 2004 we put on a local Rathayatra, and every day for one week we offered the Deities fifty-six *bhoga* items. After the Rathayatra we decided to offer fifty-six *bhoga* items regularly. Initially we decided to offer them once a month. Later other devotees joined us in serving Their Lordships, and now we do so every week. BTG: How much does the *bhoga* cost? Satish: Around 1,000 rupees a week. BTG: If you don't mind our asking, what is your income? Satish: Six thousand rupees a month. BTG: How can you afford to spend so much on *bhoga*? Satish: Everything is the mercy of Jagannathaji. My income has increased since He arrived, and my father also has some income. BTG: How can you manage all this? Satish: Everything is the mercy of Jagannathaji. For example there is a vendor from whom Vaikuntha Dāsa used to buy vegetables for the offering. When Vaikuntha told him about our offering fifty-six *bhoga* items to Lord Jagannatha, he came and took *darsana* of Jagannathaji and began giving vegetables for free. And, mind you, he is not a rich vegetable vendor; he runs a small vegetable stall. On Saturdays we do a special flower decoration. We design the clothes, and our neighbor, a tailor, stitches them for free. Jagannathaji engages everyone in His service. Someone announces, "The *bhoga* is ready. Please come for the offering." We return to the room. In front of the Lord are large vessels, bowls, plates, and a tower of preparations, one atop another. After making the offering, we have to come out because there is no place to stand. Satish's mother and other ladies who were preparing the *bhoga* now join us. Satish's mother is simple and shy, a traditional middle-aged Maharashtrian housewife. It takes a lot of cajoling from everyone for her to open up. BTG: How do you manage this cooking in a kitchen of this size? Suvarna Gandhi (Satish's mother): Lord Jagannatha gets everything done. We work in batches. On Friday we buy, wash, and cut the vegetables and prepare dry items like *laddu* and other sweets. Saturday morning at 6:30 we set up the pressure cooker and boil rice, *dal*, potatoes, and so on. It is soon time to remove the offering, so we end the interview. *The Great Feast* Satish points to the only window of his house. "Many people, while going to work, take *darsana* of the Lord through this window." He points to a house directly opposite the door to his house. "A drunkard lived there. Now he has stopped drinking and daily offers *arati* to Lord Jagannatha from his house." We enter the room. There is place for only four or five people to sit and honor *prasādam*. We sit down with the first group. The most amazing thing is that after the hard labor of the entire day, Satish's mother is not interested in honoring *prasādam* or resting; rather, she is there enthusiastically serving *prasādam*. She perfectly embodies the service attitude of a real Vaisnava. Even after we refuse, she lovingly serves us handfuls and spoonfuls of preparations. And what a feast! There are more than ten types of curried and dry vegetables, fifteen types of sweets, numerous types of savories, as well as rice, *raitas,* chutneys, *dahibhallas, bhel, dals, chapatis, parathas, papads,* pickles, and what not. After serving **prasādam*,* Satish's mother prepares three bags full of dry *prasādam* for us to take to the devotees back at the Chowpatty temple. We are totally moved by gratitude. Seeing how these devotees have engaged their mind, body, soul, and all their resources in the service of the Lord, we feel like offering obeisances at their feet. Seeing their selfless surrender and devotion to Lord Jagannatha, we feel like atheists. What better example of the Supreme Lord's mercy can be given than His incarnation as the Deity? He comes personally in the Deity form and makes Himself easily accessible to His devotees for rendering devotional service. And He doesn't need opulent surroundings. Here He is, in a small corner of Mumbai, surrounded by faded buildings in a tiny one-room house, enacting amazing pastimes with seemingly ordinary people. Unless the Lord reciprocated the love of His devotees, how could these devotees continue to render selfless service in the most trying conditions? POSTSCRIPT—With the help of savings and donations, Satish has bought the adjoining house and moved there, leaving the old house to serve solely as the temple, with an air conditioner. The devotees have increased their service of the Deities and now do daily dressing and have a *kirtana* before Their Lordships rest at night. *Murari Gupta Dāsa is part of the production team of the Hindi and the India English editions of BTG. He serves at ISKCON's Chowpatty (Mumbai) temple and teaches Kṛṣṇa consciousness to college students in Mumbai.* ## Finding The Nectar In Kṛṣṇa’s Names *Suggestions for improving our chanting and getting a real taste for the holy names.* ### By Bir Kṛṣṇa Swami THE NAMES of Kṛṣṇa are the repository of all happiness and the greatest wealth. If we chant properly, we will not experience material miseries, but we may experience what the materialist might mistake as misery: the spiritual joy of intense separation from Kṛṣṇa. Since that joy comes from proper chanting, we might wonder how we can chant with attention and concentration, even if we are not yet pure devotees of Kṛṣṇa. How can we control the mind? How can we keep ourselves from thinking of a million and one other things besides Kṛṣṇa's names? Chanting properly takes practice, and the first point is to approach the practice positively. When we approach the holy names negatively, we often think more about what we should not be doing rather than what we should be doing. It is said, "You can't do a don't." So, instead of thinking: "Now I have to control my mind and not think of other things," we can think, "Now I will concentrate on Kṛṣṇa's names, which are identical to Kṛṣṇa. By concentrating on Kṛṣṇa's names, Kṛṣṇa will give me full intelligence, and I will love Him more and more." Besides a positive way of thinking, there are other ways to stay focused on Kṛṣṇa's names. We generally chant in two situations: in *kirtana,* or group singing, and in *japa,* or private soft chanting. We can approach each one somewhat differently. In **kirtana*,* we need to give our attention to the holy names regardless of the musical quality of the *kirtana*. For example, it used to really bother me when the person chanting could not keep a tune, or was a bad singer, or couldn't keep a beat. Sometimes it seemed that I was surrounded by people who struggled in those ways. I was sometimes in places where almost everyone seemed to lack musical abilities. Then I realized that Kṛṣṇa had arranged the situation so that I could appreciate His names. *Two Levels of Taste* *Ruci,* the stage of deeply relishing the holy name, has two levels. On the first, one has a taste for *kirtana* only when the person leading is an expert singer and the instruments are all in tune and are being played by experts. On the second level, one has a real taste for *kirtana* regardless of the musical expertise of the persons leading or accompanying the *kirtana*, as long as the name is being chanted by devotees who are strictly following the process of loving service to Kṛṣṇa. It is said that Prabhupāda's *guru*, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvati Ṭhākura, would sometimes have the worst singer lead *kirtana*, just to encourage devotees to come to the higher level. So, I realized that by the grace of my spiritual master, Śrīla Prabhupāda, and my spiritual grandfather, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvati Ṭhākura, I was being pushed to come to a higher level of appreciating the holy names. Finally I surrendered, and I understood that the musical accompaniment was just the vehicle in which the holy names arrived, and that I should not be attached to the vehicle. I should be attached to the passenger in the vehicle: Kṛṣṇa in the form of His names. So with practice I was able to focus on the holy names—Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare / Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare—and not be concerned with the musical abilities of those performing the *kirtana*. When I did that, I began to relish every *kirtana*. One can find the holy names amazing. Devotees who truly relish the holy names feel they can never get enough of them. As Śrīla Rupa Gosvami writes, one will pray for millions of tongues and millions of ears to chant and hear. My previous attachment to the vehicle was like someone attached to the dinner plate rather than the **prasādam*,* spiritual food, on it. Imagine rejecting tasty *prasādam* because it was served on a leaf plate rather than on a silver one. It doesn't make sense. When attending **kirtana*,* one can simply hear the *maha-mantra* and think of its meaning: We are begging Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa to situate us at Their lotus feet; we are begging Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa for Their mercy. If I meditate on how I am begging Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa to give me compassion and other devotional qualities, then *kirtana* becomes a joyful prayer session regardless of the quality of the musical accompaniment. After practicing hearing like this for some time, I find it hard to relate to someone who says something like, "That was an ecstatic *kirtana*!" (which indicates that some other *kirtana* wasn't ecstatic), or to someone who thinks he has to travel hundreds or thousands of miles to experience an "ecstatic *kirtana*. " Ecstatic *kirtana*s are there for everyone all the time. Of course, when we present Kṛṣṇa consciousness to others, it is important that the musical accompaniment be first class. And we should not force the above understanding on those who are not ready to take that leap. *Focused Japa* To focus on the holy name during *japa,* it usually helps to sit with one's back straight. Elevating one's bottom on a cushion and crossing one's legs on the floor can also be helpful. One can then consciously relax every muscle in the body, so that the only task is to pay attention to the holy names. With a relaxed mind, one then focuses on the sound of Kṛṣṇa's names. It's very good to be conscious of some specific request made to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, as mentioned above in the *kirtana* section. The request should be in the mood of begging Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa with emotion. When we chant, we should always have a *sankalpa:* a spiritual desire or purpose. Then just let the holy names flow. No forcing. No fighting with the mind. Just the relaxed chanting of Kṛṣṇa's names. When you sit down to relax the body and chant *japa,* tell the mind in a positive way to focus on the sound. If you repeat this several times, the mind will obey. With the proper desire and understanding, our mind will naturally be attracted to the holy name, and we'll swim in an ocean of nectar. Nothing else will matter, and time and space will dissolve. It is important to be strict about not using your *japa* time for any other activity. For some devotees, the *japa* period in the temple is used for socializing or management. Except in emergencies, I don't interrupt my *japa*. We don't want our *japa* time to be a social break. We should take it as seriously as if we were leading *kirtana* and someone wanted to talk to us during *kirtana*. Certainly we wouldn't stop the *kirtana* unless it was an emergency. We should chant and hear as the *Bhagavatam* (2.3.10) recommends, *tivrena bhakti-yogena yajeta purusam param:* we should worship the Lord with great intensity. Good chanting in the morning starts the night before. What we do right before sleeping at night affects our consciousness not only while we are resting but also the next day, particularly in the morning. The *Vedas* describe two stages of sleep—unconscious and dreaming—and they involve different activities of the mind. For example, while we dream, we process (what we received in the past), predict (work through events we might have to go through in the future), and vent (throwing out unnecessary or unwanted data). These activities involve the subconscious mind. So, for example, if our thoughts are absorbed in something right before we go to sleep, we process those thoughts during the night and that affects our consciousness when we wake up in the morning. Many years ago when I was a teenager, my father bought me a manual shift car, which I didn't know how to drive. Every attempt I made was unsuccessful. So I studied the movements and theory behind shifting the car, meditated on it, and dreamt of it, and the next morning I was able to drive a manual shift perfectly. Śrīla Prabhupāda understood this principle well. That is why he advocated an evening devotional program, and especially reading his book *Kṛṣṇa: The Supreme Personality of Godhead* before resting at night. If you absorb yourself in *krsna-katha* (topics of Kṛṣṇa) before you take rest at night, during the night your mind and brain will process *krsna-katha*, you will likely wake up thinking about Kṛṣṇa, and your subtle body will be purified. What a nice way to become conscious of Kṛṣṇa! It might happen that when we read *krsna-katha* at night we become so excited by the Lord's pastimes that we start bouncing off the walls and can't sleep. That, I guess, is an occupational hazard! So, one should pick a type of *krsna-katha* that is meditative. *Chanting Upon Awakening* How should one wake up in the morning? Generally people wake up groggy, but that's less likely if you're hearing *krsna-katha* at night. Still, in whatever state we wake up, we can immediately start to chant the *maha-mantra* out loud. I sing when I go through my bathroom routine. I often take this opportunity to practice new *kirtana* tunes. Sometimes singing like this is so nice that I have to remind myself that I have other things to do in the morning than chant in my house to myself. An alternative is to listen to a class or *kirtana* by Śrīla Prabhupāda. It is important to listen only to a class or *kirtana* by someone practicing devotional service. We should be very discriminating in that way. By listening to the chanting or speaking of someone not strict in the Kṛṣṇa conscious practices, our consciousness can get covered by the modes of nature. The *Padma Purana* states: > avaisnava-mukhodgirnam > putam hari-kathamrtam > sravanam naiva kartavyam > sarpocchistam yatha payah "One should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa from a non-Vaisnava. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by a non-Vaisnava are also poisonous." So, the above two suggestions—what to do before resting and what to do when waking—prepare the mind for chanting proper *japa*. Approaching the holy names with care during *kirtana* and *japa* will bring us to understand how simple and sublime spiritual life can be. *Bir Kṛṣṇa Swami, an ISKCON guru, is a governing body commissioner with responsibilities in Fiji and parts of Eastern Europe and the southern United States. He lives at the ISKCON center in Hillsborough, North Carolina.* Svayambhuva Manu's Example *By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda* SVAYAMBHUVA MANU enjoyed his household life by following these principles. It is stated here that early in the morning there were musicians who used to sing with musical instruments about the glories of the Lord, and the Emperor, with his family, personally used to hear about the pastimes of the Supreme Person. This custom is still prevalent in India in some of the royal families and temples. Professional musicians sing with **sahnai*,* and the sleeping members of the house gradually get up from their beds in a pleasing atmosphere. During bedtime also the singers sing songs in relationship with the pastimes of the Lord, with *sahnai* accompaniment, and the householders gradually fall asleep remembering the glories of the Lord. In every house, in addition to the singing program, there is an arrangement for *Bhagavatam* lectures in the evening; family members sit down, hold Hare Kṛṣṇa *kirtana*, hear narrations from Śrīmad-*Bhagavatam* and *Bhagavad-gītā,* and enjoy music before going to bed. The atmosphere created by this san*kirtana* movement lives in their hearts, and while sleeping they also dream of the singing and glorification of the Lord. In such a way, perfection of Kṛṣṇa consciousness can be attained. This practice is very old, as learned from this verse of **Śrīmad-Bhagavatam*;* millions of years ago, Svayambhuva Manu used to avail himself of this opportunity to live householder life in the peace and prosperity of a Kṛṣṇa consciousness atmosphere.—*Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* 3.22.33, Purport ## Śrīla Prabhupāda Speaks Out *The Apt Use of Technology* *This exchange between His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda and some of his disciples took place on a morning walk in Chicago, July 1975.* Disciple: Earlier you were saying that the Western world is spiritually blind and that India is technologically lame, but that if they combine their resources, then both India and the West will benefit. Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. If the Western world, the blind man, takes India, the lame man, on its shoulders, then the lame man can point the way spiritually and the blind man can sustain them materially, technologically. If America and India pool their technological and spiritual resources, this combination will bring about perfect peace and prosperity all over the world. How blind these Americans are! They have attained the human form of life—such an intelligent form of life—and yet they are utilizing it for riding motorboats in the lake. You see? A human being should use every moment for regaining his God consciousness. Not a single moment should be wasted—and these people are simply finding new ways to waste time. Of course, the Americans are doing things in a very nice way, with great technological advancement, but what they are doing is blind. You may be a very good driver, but if you are blind, then how well will you drive? You'll create disaster. So the American people must open their eyes spiritually, so that their good driving capacity will be properly utilized. Now they're trying to see through microscopes. But as long as they remain blind to their own spiritual identity, what will they see? They may have microscopes or this machine or that machine—but they are blind. That they do not know. Disciple: I think most Americans are more interested in raising a family than in self-realization. Śrīla Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not hindered by family life, one way or the other*. Ahaituky apratihata*. God consciousness cannot be checked by anything—if you are sincere. In any circumstances you can be engaged. You can execute Kṛṣṇa consciousness in four ways*: pranair arthair dhiya vaca—*by your life, by your money, by your intelligence, and by your words. So if you want to be a family man—if you cannot dedicate twenty-four hours daily—then earn money and use it to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And if you cannot earn money, then use your intelligence. There is so much intellectual work to do—publication, research, and so on. If you cannot do that, then utilize your words to tell people about Kṛṣṇa. Wherever you may be, simply explain to someone, "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Just offer your obeisances to Kṛṣṇa." Finished. So where is the scarcity of opportunities? You can serve Kṛṣṇa in any capacity, provided you want to serve. But if you want to engage Kṛṣṇa in your service, that is a blunder. People are going to church—"Kṛṣṇa, serve us; give us our daily bread." People manufacture their own problems. Actually, there are no problems. *Isavasyam idam sarvam:* God has arranged everything. He has made everything perfect and complete. You see so many fruits for the birds—so sumptuously supplied. *Purnam idam:* Kṛṣṇa has already supplied everything in sufficient quantity. But these rascals are blind—they do not see this. They are trying to "adjust:" Why do they need to make an "adjustment"? Everything is already sufficient. It is just that people are misusing things. But otherwise, they already have sufficient land, sufficient intelligence—everything is sufficient. In Africa and Australia they have so much land—and instead of relying on nature's bounty of crops, they are raising cattle to kill them. This is their intelligence. People are growing coffee and tea and tobacco, even though they know these things hurt their health. In some parts of the world people are dying for want of grain, and yet in other parts of the world people are growing tobacco, which will only bring disease and death. This is their intelligence. The problem is that these rascals do not know that life is meant for understanding God. Ask anyone. Nobody knows. They are such fools. Don't you see how much care they are taking for dogs? They're blind: they do not know whether they'll be God conscious or dog conscious. The dog runs on four legs, but people think they have become advanced because they can run by car—on four wheels. They think they have become civilized, but their business is running, that's all. Disciple: And the purpose for the running is the same—eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. If the purpose is the same as a dog's, then what is the use of running by car? Of course, you can use the car for reaching people with the message of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You can use everything for Kṛṣṇa. That is what we teach. If there is a nice car, why should I condemn it? Utilize it for Kṛṣṇa: then it is all right. We don't say, "Give it up." No. When you have produced something by your God-given intelligence, it is all right—if you use it for God. But when you use it for other purposes than Kṛṣṇa, then it is nonsense. Take this car—so nicely decorated. If I say, "It is all nonsense," is that very intelligent? No. "The purpose for which you have created this car—that is nonsense." So we simply want people to change their consciousness. We don't condemn the things they have produced. For instance, with a knife you can cut vegetables and fruit, but if you use it for cutting your throat, that is bad. So now people are using the knife of technology for cutting their own throat, for forgetting all about self-realization, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is bad. *Nr-deham adyam sulabham sudurlabham plavam sukalpam:* our human body is just like a good boat—with our human intelligence we can cross the ocean of nescience, the ocean of repeated birth and death in this material world. And *guru-karnadharam/ mayanukulena nabhasva-teritam puman bhavabdhim na taret sa atma-ha:* we have a favorable wind—Kṛṣṇa's instructions in the Vedic literature—plus we have a good captain, the bona fide spiritual master, who can guide us and enlighten us. With all these facilities, if we cannot cross the ocean of nescience, then we are cutting our throat. The boat is there, the captain is there, the favorable wind is there, but we are not utilizing them. That means we are killing ourselves. ## In your own words *What do you do to give Kṛṣṇa consciousness in your workplace?* *In the 1970s I lived the life* of a preaching mendicant in Śrīla Prabhupāda's service. Since 1980 I have been an orthopedic surgeon. Seeing all living beings as parts of Kṛṣṇa, I always try to inject spiritual reality and hope into my interactions with patients. When possible, I give out the *Bhagavad-gītā As It Is* and invite patients to the temple, where I often give discourses in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. As a result, a number of my patients and their children have become initiated devotees. Pusta Kṛṣṇa Dāsa Santa Cruz, California *I work in a high-stress real-estate business,* where I attract a lot of attention by singing the *maha-*mantra** to relieve my stress. When someone asks, "What's that song?" I reply that it's a *mantra* that takes away all the bad and brings only good, inspiring some of my coworkers to write down the words and sing them quietly. Those who accompany me for exercise during lunchtime also inevitably see me chanting on my beads. I tell them about my sixteen rounds, and that usually starts a spiritual discussion. Finally, both my office voice mail and my cell phone have the greeting "Hare Kṛṣṇa, you have reached Krishnapria Kashyap." Having known me for so long, my co-workers sometimes leave a message starting with, "Hey, Hare Kṛṣṇa to you too!" Krishnapria Kashyap San Diego, California *I work in palliative care* with people near death. I bring them as much *prasādam* as I can, and although work rules say I can't chant the *maha-mantra,* I chant *Govinda Jaya Jaya* and other *bhajanas,* as these are considered "ethnic songs" and hence acceptable. Work within the rules and there's always room to help others and ourselves. Caitanya Candra Dāsa Burnaby, Canada *My workplace is pretty intense*. Some days it's an IED (Improvised Explosive Device); some days it's incoming mortars. I'm in the U.S. Army. During my day-to-day life, I try to give as many soldiers as possible the joy of reading Śrīla Prabhupāda's books. Prabhupāda said that by simply holding his books, one makes advancement. If sometimes I must put myself in harm's way to do this service, oh well—I can handle it. I can see the change in the soldiers' hearts from receiving Śrīla Prabhupāda's books and *prasādam* offered to the Lord. Partha-sarathi Dāsa Talfar, Iraq *I am a practicing attorney, and I distribute prasādam* to the clerks, bailiffs, and administrators in Alachua County, Florida, at both the criminal and civil courthouses. They all love it and often send me thank you cards. I also have the opportunity to speak the philosophy more directly to clients suffering from protracted litigation. One woman asked me if I was a Hare Kṛṣṇa, which led to an hour-long discussion on philosophy. "Jesus says that he has many flocks," she told me as the conversation ended, and promptly asked for a sari. The next day, I brought her one and showed her how to put it on. She loved it and promised me she'd wear it to church. Lorraine Sherman Gainesville, Florida *I work in a telesales office,* where I'm known by the name Gauranga. On every one of the 1,500 phone calls I make every day, I say, "Hi, my name is Gauranga. I am calling on behalf of..." Sometimes children pick up the phone. "Mom," they holler, "it's Gauranga on the phone!" Followed by a bewildered, "Who?" "Gauranga!" That makes my day. I also give my coworkers Prabhupāda's books as Christmas gifts and *prasādam* sweets on my birthday and special occasions. Sometimes I give out Deity garlands, incense, and for the particularly brave, even *tulasi* leaves. Angela M. Witham, England *My workplace is in a taxi,* driving around the city of New Orleans. A laminated card on my dashboard informs customers that I will explain *dharma* and *yoga* to them if they like. I am not allowed to bother people with my own agenda while working, but I have had a number of people ask me for details. I try to explain to them how the goal of both *dharma* and *yoga* is *bhakti*. I also have some Kṛṣṇa conscious brochures and books in the cab for those who are interested. Citraketu Dāsa New Orleans, Louisiana *I manage a conference center,* where I am up front about being a devotee. I have framed photos of Śrīla Prabhupāda and my Deities in my office. I am shaved with a *sikha,* and I talk about Kṛṣṇa regularly with my staff. I also try to let Vaisnava qualities such as compassion show in my work and my dealings. So many people are spiritually empty—for me it's important to show that Prabhupāda has touched my life in a profound way. Dhirasanta Dāsa Hobart, Australia *I'm a professional truck driver*. In my profession I'm known as a "training engineer," jargon for someone who teaches new drivers. Students come with me on the road for two weeks for some practical experience. Since it's not allowed to openly preach, I give them Kṛṣṇa in a more subtle way. My wife, Mahatma Dasi, cooks for the Toronto temple and prepares *prasādam* for me to take on the road. So for two weeks my driving students have to listen to the *maha-mantra* CDs I play and eat maha-*prasādam*. Once in a while I also leave a book behind at a truck stop. Hadai Pandita Dāsa Toronto, Canada *I own a store, and I play bhajanas over the speaker system* throughout the day. All my employees love it, and some even repeat the mantra. My wife makes *prasādam* cookies, which I keep in a jar and offer to all my customers, along with Śrīla Prabhupāda's books in Spanish. I also have an altar and pictures of Kṛṣṇa on the walls, attracting questions constantly. On the main highway in Panama, I have a billboard advertising my products, along with a huge picture of Lord Nrsimha. The same picture appears on the trucks that transport my goods. When people ask who He is, I tell them that He is a form of the Lord who protects everyone. Syama Candra Dāsa Colon, Panama ## Cutting the Roots of Crime ### By Kṛṣṇa Dharma Dāsa SOME 80,000 PEOPLE are incarcerated in Britain's prisons. Twice as many as ten years ago, and the number is still rising. Strangely, though, crime figures are supposedly falling. That's a debatable point, however, as many will argue that people are increasingly disinclined to report small crimes, seeing that hard-pressed police are unlikely to respond, and even if they do it will serve little purpose anyway. The chance of getting back stolen goods or having an offender apprehended in minor cases is remote. Nevertheless, those offenders who do find themselves before a judge are more likely to receive a custodial sentence than ever before. This at least is the view of the Prisons Reform Trust, who say that although the number of guilty findings in courts has stayed more or less the same, there has been a "creeping inflation of sentences and a lack of confidence in effective community measures." They put it down to a number of factors, such as public demands for stiff sentences in the wake of high-profile reviled crimes like child murders. But especially it derives from the prevailing political view that "prison works," a phrase coined by Michael Howard when he was Home Secretary some fifteen years ago. Soon after that New Labour came into power with their manifesto promise of "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime," a policy pursued till today. *Making Bad People Worse* But does prison work? Figures show that some sixty percent of prisoners re-offend within two years of their release. Prison is an excellent place to meet other criminals and learn a few new tricks. The Vedic scriptures point out how our consciousness is quickly shaped by our association, which in prisons is hardly of the best kind. Seeing this fact, another Home Secretary, David Waddington, said in a government paper, "Prison is an expensive way of making bad people worse." In fairness it has to be said that training and rehabilitation courses try to rectify criminals. But while these may be helpful in some cases, it seems they are not enough. So is the solution more training? According to the Vedic scriptures the answer is yes, but it has to be of a certain kind, and preferably delivered before we find ourselves detained at Her Majesty's Pleasure. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, "Simply enforcing laws and ordinances cannot make the citizens obedient and lawful. That is impossible. Throughout the entire world there are so many states, legislative assemblies, and parliaments, but still the citizens are rogues and thieves. Good citizenship, therefore, cannot be enforced; the citizens must be trained." He goes on to say that the training must be in *varnasrama,* the Vedic system of organizing society into occupational and spiritual orders, with the ultimate aim of reviving our eternal Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In such a properly educated and organized society, crime would decrease for different reasons. First, the *varnasrama* system would reduce the number of untrained, unemployed, and possibly needy persons who feel forced into crime. But the main benefit, and one that tends to be absent from present government programs, is spiritual. Vedic training in spirituality or God consciousness makes one peaceful. It reduces the root cause of all moral transgressions: material desire. Because we think that having more means being happier, we will generally stop at little to get more, including breaking the odd law or two if we can get away with it. *The Challenge Of Implementation* Implementing *varnasrama* and engaging everyone according to their propensities, which it entails, is of course a major challenge, but its essential aim of awakening our Kṛṣṇa consciousness is something we can do right now. In a conversation with the mayor of Evanston, Illinois, which at the time was experiencing a serious crime problem, Śrīla Prabhupāda asked that ISKCON be given a large building for Kṛṣṇa *kirtana* and *prasādam* distribution. He said that this was the way to cure a person of the "material infection" that leads to crime. "So if we cure that infection," said Prabhupāda, "again he becomes good. So this is the curing process. It is not an external, artificial thing, imposed upon somebody. No, his goodness is there." In other words, we are all intrinsically good, being parts of the supreme good, or God. We just need to revive our original spiritual nature and that goodness will emerge. Being cured of the material infection also means finding within ourselves the happiness we futilely seek elsewhere. Beguiled by an endless array of ads prompting us to buy products we don't need and can hardly afford, we are gripped with desire and then with frustration and dismay when either we fail to procure these items or, if we do, they fail to satisfy us. Hence we see spiraling statistics for depression, as well as a concomitant upsurge in the use of alcohol and drugs, major contributors to crime. The only way to reverse this trend is to connect ourselves to Kṛṣṇa, the source of all spiritual bliss. Then peace and contentment will surely prevail. Otherwise our programs of social reform, devoid as they are of spiritual content, will always struggle. *Kṛṣṇa Dharma Dāsa lives in Manchester, Engl*and*. He has written retellings of the* Mahābhārata, Ramayana, *and* Panca Tantra. ## Get a Spiritual Life, Why Don't You ### By Madhava Smullen WHAT WOULD YOU like to do for fun today? Do you enjoy spending the day at the beach, playing Frisbee with your buddies, and getting a tan? (Or if you're Irish, like me, getting a beautiful red hue that makes you look perpetually embarrassed.) Or do you prefer browsing the mall, trying out new clothes, and buying ice cream? Well, for only $9.95 a month you can now do all those things and more from the comfort of your own swivel chair. And there's no chance of getting a sunburn. Or a tan. Or any sun at all. Hey, don't even worry about shelling out for new clothes—you'll still be wearing those old wrinkled sweatpants smelling vaguely of Doritos from last week. What else would you be wearing if you've been staring groggily at your computer screen since Tuesday, maneuvering a tiny pixelated version of yourself around with your mouse? That's right: The place where over five million people now like to have a good time is Second Life, a 3D virtual online world created in 2003 by the San Francisco company Linden Lab. And if you're thinking, "Well, it must be a good game if it's played by over five million people," Second Life is *not* a game—it doesn't have points, scores, levels, winners or losers, or any other game elements. It's just, well, that thing most of us do between birth, death, watching sitcom reruns, and logging on to the Internet: *life*. In hopes of enticing you, the official website says brightly, "Imagine tinkering with the steering and handling program of a motorcycle while your friend tweaks the shape of the fuel tank and gives it a wicked flame paint job, in-world and in real-time, before you both take it for a spin down a newly created road to look for some land to buy." Which makes you wonder: Could you also work for a living, get stuck behind old people in traffic jams, and spend quality time with your mother-in-law in Second Life? *Woo-hoo*! This could be the start of a whole new age of not actually doing stuff! Blogger Darren Barefoot hit the nail on the head so hard that it said "ouch" when he published his Second Life parody www.getafirstlife.com. His fake web links include "Find out where you actually live," "Access your closet to build your first life look," and my personal favorite, "Go outside, membership is free." "Oh, he's so right," I hear you chuckle, shaking your head. "These people could be experiencing so much in real life, and instead they're staring at a computer screen day and night, with their only real sensations being the occasional slap upside the head from their indignant wife—or, if they’re under thirty-five, their mother. What losers!” Well, stop it. Firstly, that’s extremely politically incorrect towards geeks, nerds, and dweebs. And secondly, that’s probably *exactly* what Kṛṣṇa is thinking as He sits in our hearts. “They’re so lovable, but what a bunch of nerds!” This is because He knows we’re creatures of spirit encased in matter and that our inherent makeup cries out for us to be serving Him in the spiritual world. The pale reflection we’re trying to enjoy just won’t do. Think about that Second Life player hunched over his keyboard in a dark room, watching a bunch of pixels schmooze at parties, play beach volleyball, and hit on attractive lady pixels, while the real thing awaits him just outside his door. That’s us. Śrīla Prabhupāda described the real thing to a disciple in a 1970 letter: “One who is in full knowledge desires only to fulfill his constitutional position of eternal existence as servant of Kṛṣṇa, and such service is complete and perfect and the supreme pleasure for the living entity. Who can enjoy more than one who is always enjoying Kṛṣṇa?" Perfect and supreme pleasure. Sounds like more than one could expect from First Life, what to speak of Second Life. So how do we make the upgrade? The first step is awareness. We are already covered by a material body, which the *Bhagavad-gītā* likens to a coat thrown over our true self, and are living in the material world, a pale imitation of the spiritual world. And now some computer whiz-kid's gleefully yelling, "Hey, guys, I've got the solution! Let's get a second life that's a pale imitation of a pale imitation!" Sure, another layer is what you need—as long as you're the sort of person who enjoys wearing a blindfold, a pair of sunglasses, and an industrial-sized saucepan over your head and running headlong into lampposts. But if you'd like to really see where you're going and what life's all about, you must enquire. An intelligent person wants to know who he is and why his existence in this world is never a completely happy one, never feels quite *right*. When Sanatana Gosvami got the chance to speak with Lord Caitanya, he immediately asked, "Who am I? Why do the threefold miseries always give me trouble? If I do not know this, how can I be benefited?" And of course, Śrīla Prabhupāda repeatedly emphasized that the human life form is the perfect chance to find out who we really are—as opposed to lesser life forms such as, say, gossip columnists, who think that human life is the perfect chance to find out what kind of cornflakes Brad Pitt had for breakfast. Once we've enquired about reality from an authorized spiritual teacher, the way to discover the true meaning of life is by starting to do the things that are true to us: serving Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. It may be hard at first, but we'll start to find that when we chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, or dance in a *kirtana,* or hear stories about Kṛṣṇa, or help and care for fellow Vaisnavas, it feels *right*. We may still be attached to our pale, pixelated second life, but little by little, the more we do, the more we'll want to do. Then we'll look out the window and discover that there's a whole world out there, where people are experiencing *real* happiness, *real* sensations, *real* love. It's time to get a spiritual life, dudes. Let's stop being such nerds. Let's go back to Godhead. *Madhava Smullen grew up in the Hare Krishna movement in Ireland*.* He now serves on the editorial staff of* BTG*.* ## Celebrating Cow Culture *At the World Cow Conference, Hare Kṛṣṇa devotees inspire others with Śrīla Prabhupāda's vision of cow protection.* ### By Chaya Devī Dāsī ANOTHER COLD, dark day as I broke the ice on the water trough to allow the cows to drink the refreshing well water. Clothed in my Carhart overalls, with vest, scarf, boots, facemask, and insulated gloves, I could last a few hours helping Caitanya Dāsa feed out hay in the barn before the pain of freezing temperatures penetrated to my skin. It had been an exceptionally cold week, with temperatures holding at freezing and below. My husband, Balabhadra Dāsa, ISKCON's minister for cow protection and agriculture and chief cowherd on our ISCOWP farm in West Virginia, was traveling to various cow protection programs in India and Europe to encourage, educate, and inspire other cowherds and learn from them as well. While he was away, Caitanya Dāsa and I were caring for the cows during the winter. Balabhadra and I incorporated ISCOWP, The International Society for Cow Protection, in 1990. Śrīla Prabhupāda, our spiritual master, inspired us to protect cows throughout their lives so that they could live a peaceful life away from the stun gun and the butcher's knife. By nature, we both felt a connection with animals and affection for them. But after we learned from Śrīla Prabhupāda the spiritual and material significance of cows, our feelings solidified into action. While spreading the hay in the feed aisle with a pitchfork, I meditated on the eager faces of Gita, Jaya, and Asha, three of our beautiful cows. I also thought about the email I had just received from Balabhadra from Vrindavan, India: Mr. Sadashiv Montimar came from Delhi specifically to meet me. He had come one month earlier to the Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma Mandir and spoken with Devamita Dāsa, the temple president, about the Vishwa Gou Sammelan [World Cow Conference], a huge cow conference that his *guru* and temple are sponsoring in South India. Besides doing all of the things we talk about doing, they are protecting and breeding 27 of the remaining 33 Indian breeds of cows left in India. Mr. Montimar told me that his *guru*, Shree Raghaveshwara Bharathi Swamiji, the *guru* of Shree Ramachandrapura Math, quotes from our articles and uses my name as a reference to the quotes. He gave me a lot of literature and a personal written invitation to attend the conference. It is a nine-day conference on all aspects of cow protection. They are expecting a half million people to attend over the nine days. The conference is April 21-29 in Hosanagara. It's not an undoable time frame, and it would definitely be reaching out to a huge field of new people who are all into cow protection in a big way. I think it is worthwhile. In the twenty-first century, cow protection is a challenge, requiring a counterculture mindset, and therefore difficult to practice even without freezing temperatures. Cow protection originated in India, a warm climate where the cows can pasture all year long. In such a climate, as long as there's enough grazing land, there's no need to grow hay, harvest it, and store it before feeding it to the cows. *Understanding Cow Protection* What exactly is cow protection? Hearing the term, people typically react in two ways. Some think protection is for endangered species, and since there are billions of cows, it's better to concentrate on whales or the African elephant. Others think "cow protection" may refer to some pagan worship of animals—the "sacred cow" image. The philosophical reason for cow protection is that all living creatures deserve protection from slaughter and other violence at the hands of humans. All animals are souls, the same as we are. They are all children of Kṛṣṇa, all dear to Him. With this view in mind, animal slaughter can be seen as a form of murder. The cow is our mother. Vedic philosophy teaches that there are seven mothers: (1) the birth mother, (2) the wife of the spiritual master, (3) the wife of a *brahmana,* (4) the queen, (5) the cow, (6) the wet nurse, and (7) the earth. The cow is one of the seven mothers because she gives her milk to nourish us. We should hold all mothers in a position of respect. Since we don't kill or eat our mother, we shouldn't kill or eat the cow. Likewise, the bull is our father because he can plow the earth to produce food grains. One does not kill and eat one's father and mother—even when they are old and less economically useful. Five thousand years ago Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, appeared on earth to protect His devotees and to demonstrate His pastimes. Among those pastimes was His childhood role as a cowherd boy. The cows were very dear to Him because of their affectionate and gentle nature as well as their contributions to human society, and in return He was kind to them and protected them. We should follow His example. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, "From the Lord's personal activities, human society should learn how to give protection specifically to the *brahmanas* and cows. Then the protection of religious principles, fulfillment of the aim of life, and protection of the Vedic knowledge can be achieved. Without protection of cows, brahminical culture cannot be maintained; and without brahminical culture, the aim of life cannot be fulfilled." (*Śrīmad-Bhagavatam,* 8.24.5 Purport) *Protecting the Bull* In contemporary practice the first principle of cow protection, surprisingly, is ox employment. The cow's main usefulness is seen as milk production, but she will not give milk unless she has a calf. Half of all calves are bulls and will never produce milk. The expense of feeding the bulls will be a deficit to the farmer unless he realizes their potential for alternative energy by employing them in activities like tilling the fields and hauling. Farmers in most countries make money by selling bulls for meat, either directly to the slaughterhouse; to the cattle industry, where they live in crowded feed lots until they are fat enough for profitable slaughter; or to the veal industry, where bull calves live a short life crammed into a tiny crate for sixteen weeks. The cow is also sold for meat when she cannot produce the required quantity of milk. But regardless of milk production, the dung and urine of a cow or bull is valuable. Instead of slaughtering all bovines that do not produce milk, why not use their dung and urine in fertilizers, compost, medicines, pest repellents, cleaning products, and biogas fuel, to name a few useful and saleable items? Śrīla Prabhupāda said, "Now, practically, in India they accept it, and it has been found by chemical examination, that cow dung contains all antiseptic properties. That is a fact. One Dr. Goshal analyzed [it] in his laboratory ..., and he found that... cow dung is full of antiseptic properties." The modern system of agriculture is ignorant of the alternative energy potential of the bull calf and the variety of useful bovine dung and urine products. Therefore, slaughtering becomes the only economically viable means of management. Most people, accustomed to this viewpoint and seeing no alternative, will throw up their hands and agree, even if they prefer a less violent solution. That's only because they don't have the facts. They don't know that the overall value of the ox is greater when he is used for work than when he's slaughtered for meat, and that even when not productive, a cow or ox produces useful urine and dung. *The Gou Sammelan* After much debate, we decided to attend the conference, mainly to represent Śrīla Prabhupāda in his country of origin. As his American disciples, we would give credence to the power of his teachings. We hoped to attain contacts for spreading cow protection. And we wanted to learn more about cow care, the use of cow dung and urine for medicines, and the efficacy of these byproducts. Late at night on April 20 we arrived at the Shree Ramachandrapura Math, founded by Sankaracarya more than thirteen hundred years ago. "Hare Rama! Gou Mata [Mother Cow]! Hare Rama! Gou Mata!" chanted a crowd of the *math's* disciples. We replied, "Hare Kṛṣṇa! Hare Rama!" Then they chanted back, "Hare Kṛṣṇa! Hare Rama! Gou Mata!" It was a spiritually potent beginning to an experience of a lifetime. Shree Raghaveshwara Bharathi Swamiji has dedicated himself to preserving the indigenous breeds of Indian cows. He has inspired not only the Sammelan but other social, cultural, educational, and environmental programs, many based on cow protection. One example is the *math's* Goubank, which gives Indian cattle to people on the condition that they will not sell them, crossbreed them, or practice artificial insemination. The bank accepts cattle when farmers find it difficult to maintain them. This helps the rural farmer and also helps Swamiji achieve one of his objectives: to educate Indian farmers and others about the benefits of rearing and protecting Indian cows. Throughout the nine-day conference, scientists, doctors, lawyers, farmers, activists, cow protectors, and other experts from around the world gave lectures, presenting their knowledge and understanding of cow protection. Some of the topics: scientific research and analysis related to the uses of cow urine; medicinal values of products of Indian-breed cattle; the role of indigenous cattle in organic agriculture; the relevance of bullock draught power in Indian agriculture and rural transport; and opportunities for cow-related products as an industry. The Sammelan took place on approximately two hundred acres. On display were the twenty-seven Indian breeds the members of the *math* protect and breed for preservation. There were also exhibits of ox-powered machines and equipment; household items run on cow urine; cow urine and dung medicinal and beauty products; cow-related sculptures and paintings; and plays, music, and other forms of entertainment centered on the cow. Our tour guide and president of the Ramachandrapura Math, M.K. Janardan, showed us reproductions of ISKCON Kṛṣṇa paintings in the exhibition hall. He said the **math*'s* members recognize Lord Kṛṣṇa as a cowherd boy and an example to be followed. When the Vishwa Gou Sammelan ended, Shree Raghaveshwara Bharathi Swamiji announced the building of the world's tallest statue of Lord Kṛṣṇa in front of the *math* in appreciation of the event's success. *Spiritual Contribution* Balabhadra gave two lectures, one before a thousand people. He emphasized Śrīla Prabhupāda's vision of cow protection. "Absolutely extraordinary speech," said Sunil Mansingha, chairman of one of the symposium sessions. "For the first time, a speech only about the spiritual aspect of cows. I feel so encouraged due to your enlightenment." Mr. Mansingha is also the coordinator of the Govigyn Anusandhan Kendra in Nagpur, an organization that conducts scientific research on the efficacy and use of cow dung and urine in medicines and other products. Later, Balabhadra received an award for his spiritual contribution. Balabhadra encouraged devotees from various ISKCON farms to attend the conference. Some of the devotees who attended were Govindanandana Dāsa and Rādhā Kanta Dāsa from the ISKCON Hungary farm and Hrimati Dasi and Dr. Nanda Krishna from ISKCON Māyāpur, India. Balabhadra and the devotees who accompanied him received much press coverage. "Cow Protection, ISKCON Fully Behind" was the translated title of one article. It appeared in several newspapers after a thirty-minute press conference that featured Balabhadra showing his arm tattoos of an Indian cow and Lord Nityānanda's lotus feet. Rādhā Kanta, Govindanandana, and I appeared in several newspapers as "experts who have forayed into the field of cow protection and organic farming from Hungary and the USA." We even had people come up to us and ask for our autographs, telling us they had seen us on TV. We were pleased to be representing Śrīla Prabhupāda, Lord Kṛṣṇa, and the importance of cow protection. We left the Vishwa Gou Sammelan once again reminded of the Indian culture in which the majority of the population consider the cow sacred and not meat for their hamburger. The association of thousands of people who came to the Ramachandrapura Math to honor the cow helped us face the challenge of presenting cow protection in the West. *To learn more about ISCOWP and the Vishwa Gou Sammelan, visit iscowp. org.* ## From the Editor *The Soul of Bhakti* A HARE KRSNA DEVOTEE who is a skilled flute player recently visited our community here in Alachua, Florida. After he'd left, I heard that when he was first learning to play the instrument, his teacher insisted that he play the same note for a full year. Before he moved on to other aspects of flute playing, his teacher wanted him to master tone. To achieve mastery in any field requires dedication and commitment. One especially has to master the basics, setting up a solid foundation upon which to build. Achieving mastery in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is no exception. The *guru*, or spiritual master, is qualified to accept disciples by dint of having mastered the subject of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, in both theory and practice. To rise to that level, one has to build from a solid base. Just what does a solid base in Kṛṣṇa consciousness entail? I suggest that it requires understanding that the heart of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is service. Śrīla Prabhupāda used the terms *Kṛṣṇa consciousness* and *devotional service* synonymously because *devotional service* is the essence of *Kṛṣṇa consciousness*. Being conscious of Kṛṣṇa is not the full picture. Even Kamsa, who wanted to kill Kṛṣṇa, was always conscious of Him. More is required. It's essential to understand right from the beginning that *Kṛṣṇa consciousness* means service, specifically *devotional service*, or service in love. I could also say, more simply perhaps, that the essence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is to love Kṛṣṇa. But, as Śrīla Prabhupāda repeatedly stressed, love implies service. There's no Kṛṣṇa consciousness without service to Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. Aspiring devotees need to grasp this point from the beginning and hold on to it. We can easily get sidetracked by secondary aspects of the Kṛṣṇa conscious culture. For example, lots of enjoyable things are part of the Kṛṣṇa conscious way of life, but we have to carefully remember that the essence is service. How do we nurture an appreciation for the primacy of service? Mainly by hearing. The quality of our hearing is revealed by the quality of our service. Faithful hearing from Śrīla Prabhupāda and his dedicated followers inspires us to serve Kṛṣṇa. To master a musical instrument, hearing a master musician play is essential. The flute player trying to get the tone right must first hear it from a teacher who has mastered it. When we hear from Śrīla Prabhupāda and other pure devotees, we hear the perfect tone of devotional service. We might also call that "mood." Prabhupāda's followers often speak of his particular mood of service. He taught by word and example that Kṛṣṇa consciousness means selfless service to our spiritual superiors: God and His pure servants. In *Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* Prahlada Mahārāja lists nine kinds of devotional service, or **bhakti*,* beginning with hearing about Kṛṣṇa and chanting His holy names. Not only are these *bhakti* practices service in themselves, but they inspire us to want more service. It's important for us to remember, for example, that while performing the *bhakti* practice of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa *maha-mantra,* we are begging Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa for nothing else but the privilege to serve Them. Fortunately, even if our *bhakti* foundation is weak, we can still strengthen it. We may tend to forget the essence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but Śrīla Prabhupāda left us everything we need to remember it again.—*Nagaraja Dāsa* ## Vedic Thoughts If one does not take to the path of disciplic succession, it is not possible for one to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one understands the Supreme Lord through devotional service with faith in the disciplic succession and then advances further, he awakens his natural love for God, and then his success in life is assured. His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda *Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* 7.7.17, Purport Sins accumulated by words, actions, or the mind are removed only by remembering the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Brahma-vaivarta Purana Quoted in *Hari-bhakti-vilasa* (3.55) Devotional service is the process of worshiping the Supreme Lord. It consists of fixing one's mind upon Him by renouncing all material desires for enjoyment in this world and the next. Indeed, this is true renunciation. *Gopala-tapani Upanisad, Purva* 15 Because it is filled with pure transcendental knowledge, and because it is thus the best of all conclusions, the conclusion accepted by all noble-hearted and spiritually intelligent persons in all countries and at all times past, present, and future, and because it is the root from which all truths have come, devotional service is the highest truth, the conclusion better than all other conclusions. Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura *Tattva-sutra* 48, Commentary Devotional service is the supreme goal, the supreme wealth, the supreme abode, and the supreme bliss. All varieties of ecstasy arise from it. *Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad* 4.3.32 An expert geologist can understand where there is gold and by various processes can extract it from the gold ore. Similarly, a spiritually advanced person can understand how the spiritual particle exists within the body, and thus by cultivating spiritual knowledge he can attain perfection in spiritual life. Śrī Prahlada Mahārāja *Śrīmad-Bhagavatam* 7.7.21 The Lord is the master of matter and the *jivas* and is endowed with all good qualities. *Svetasvatara Upanisad* 6.16 One should abandon all doubts and fear of the various philosophers who speak nonsense under the sway of their own *karma* and the force of time. One should then incessantly meditate upon Lord Hari, Kṛṣṇa, who by His charming sweetness steals away the mind of those endowed with *prema,* pure love of God. Śrīla Visvanatha Cakravarti Ṭhākura *Sarartha Darsini* 10.87.50, Commentary