Surviving And Preaching in a Post-Oil World

The recent events in Kazakhstan are a wake up call for devotees everywhere. I live in the US, which has a history of religious tolerance and respect for human rights, but in recent years, since 9/11/01 to be specific, there has been a systematic attempt by this federal government to dismantle basic civil rights even here. When you examine the contents of the Patriot Acts, the Military Commissions Act and several other similar laws that have been passed since 9/11/01, it becomes evident that the complete... Read more »

Chanting - The Only Means of Deliverance

Krsna-nama-maha-mantrera ei ta svabhava Yei jape, tara krsne upajaye bhava “It is the nature of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra (the great mantra of deliverance) that whoever chants it immediately develops loving ecstasy for krsna.” (Chaitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila 7.83) Unadulterated love for Krsna is eternally present in dormant state in the hearts of all living entities. When hearing and chanting purify the heart, the living entity naturally awakens. The processes of hearing and chanting-sravanam... Read more »

Sex Life is Abominable

Sex is the driving mechanism of modern society. Godless life induces people into lustiness long after the high of youth has subsided, causing them to stay emotionally immature throughout their lives. Forgetting the eternal relationship with the supreme personality of godhead, lord Sri Krsna, they absorb media propaganda and remain perpetually indulgent in lust, having no knowledge of the necessity to resist the itch of this basal sexual urge. Rampant sensual titillation however, increasingly dulls... Read more »

Srila Prabhupada’s Presentation of Sastras

Srila Prabhupada did not present Shastra as a dry academic subject to be theorized and armchair-philosophized about. Instead of giving abstruse explanations, he spoke and more importantly lived the essense of shastra. He repeatedly emphasized the point of all sastra: “You are not this body. Surrender to Krsna.” Srila Prabhupada repeatedly said that by reading his books we get in touch with the previous acaryas. Indeed, his purports to the sastra draw on the realization of the previous... Read more »

Reincarnation - Is It Credible?

To start with, let us assume that reincarnation indeed takes place. What do the Vedic literatures tell us as to why it does take place? Two reasons have been given: Firstly, we’re being given a chance to live out our desires. Secondly: We’re being given repeated opportunities to attain spiritual realization, break free from material entanglement, and resume our eternal nature in the spiritual world. The Vedic writings are meant to guide us in achieving this goal. However, if we do not... Read more »

Controlled Senses and A Krishna Conscious Diet

A devotee realizes that the source of his miseries in this world, the senses, can also be the cause of his liberation and perfection in Krishna consciousness. Generally it is thought that sense control means severe austerity or joyless puritanism, but there is no need to negate the senses or ignore the senses in Krishna consciousness. One simply has to engage the senses in Krishna’s service, recognizing that Krishna is the proprietor of the senses. The spiritual master and the Vedic literatures... Read more »

What Might Make It Easier To Wake Up And Start Chanting

So, for example when we are absorbed in something, particularly at right before we go to sleep that very subject matter is processed during the night and affects our consciousness when we wake up in the morning. It is said that that half hour before sleep is critical and that whatever we are conscious of during that half hour will enter into our subconscious mind. I will give you one experience I had many years ago when I was a teenager. My father had bought me a manual shift car, but I did not know... Read more »

Grihasta Ashrama - A Platform for Renunciation?

Grihasta, or householder life is the second spiritual stage in the Varnasrama parampara. In this phase the grihasta lives along with his wife and children in their house and leads a religious (dharma) and productive (artha) life, which allows some resources of enjoyment (kama). This asrama is the only economically productive asrama and therefore the householders have to support other asramas by giving charity in exchange for spiritual knowledge. Srimad Bhagwatam (11.18.43) states “A householder... Read more »

Krishna is the Reservoir of all Beauty and Krishna’s Energies

Krishna, the Supreme Lord, has three types of energies: 1. Material, 2. Spiritual, and 3. Marginal. The material energy is the dull matter that has no consciousness. The spiritual energy is the conscious energy that is devoted to His service. The marginal energy consists of the living entities–individual souls, such as ourselves, that have the choice of either identifying with matter or spirit. In actuality, the marginal potency (individual spirit souls) is also spiritual. Because of his marginal... Read more »

Remembrance, Forgetfulness, Knowledge And The Perverted Material World

Remembrance, Forgetfulness and Knowledge are important and connected. Krishna, as the Supersoul in everyone’s heart, ‘helps one to fulfill one’s desires in this world. According to our aspirations, we require to forget some things (such as God if one is an atheist), we require to remember other things, and we need knowledge. Even the animals have instinctually based behavior that coincides with their desires. This so-called instinct is actually Krishna in the heart helping them... Read more »