vanamali

yeah, I tried it, that was really odd /images/graemlins/smile.gif I could do it, but the clockwise circles of my foot became slightly less than circle-like and I had to try really really heard to keep it going in the same direction. so, it's hard to move your hand counterclockwise and your foot clockwise at the same time. got it /images/graemlins/smile.gif

Oh you have asked such a lovely question! Butter is love! Baby Krishna steals the butter of the elder gopis, His mother, etc. His naughty actions infuriate them, but also endears Him to their hearts. Krishna's theft of butter is His charm, which takes love from your heart whether you desire to give it or not! The youthful Krishna also steals butter from the gopi lasses, whose hearts He has also stolen with His charm. Though they may be married to others (just as we are attached to the material world through our relationships) yet when Krishna steals their butter (love) though outwardly piqued, inwardly their hearts melt like... well /images/graemlins/smile.gif... and so they are left with no choice but to take shelter of His lotus feet, just as we are compelled to do!

Seeing how thin Hari's arms were As He carelessly lifted the Govardhana hill She rested Her hand on Hari's shoulder And placed Her feet on His, Wanting to help Him lift the mountain That was out of her reach- Let the empty motions of Radha's hands in the sky Triumph forever! (from Bhoja's SarasvateekaNTaabharaNa 5.493)

aaangikam bhuvanam yasya vaachikam sarvavaangmayam aahaaryam chandhra thaaraadhi tham namah saathvikam shivam

Probably because the right arm is generally stronger than the left, so He uses the smallest finger of the left arm to fully show how very easy it is for Him. I think He would rest His right hand on His hip and give a heroic smile then! (But don't quote me on that) /images/graemlins/wink.gif

you can use the thumb and middle finger or thumb and ring finger. use the right hand. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

The Deity of Earth is Goddess Bhu devi/ Bhumi Mata. Her husband is Sriman Narayana, and She is the best friend of Sri devi/Mother Lakshmi. When the Lord is Krishna, Bhudevi is Satyabhama, Sridevi is Rukmini When the Lord is Ramachandra, Bhudevi is Vedavati, Sridevi is Janaki (Sita) When the Lord is Venkateshwara, Bhudevi is Padmavati, Sridevi is Kamalavati When the Lord is Gauraanga, Bhudevi is Srimati Vishnupriya, Sridevi is Srimati Lakshmipriya Bhudevi is the consort of Lord Varaha Bhudevi is also the Tamil alwar/saint Andal (Goda devi) and composed Tiruppavai and Nacciyar Thirumozhi in praise of the Lord (Sridevi in pink, Bhudevi in Green!)

karmanyevaadhikaaraste maa phaleshu kadaachana...

The moon represents time (because of lunar calendar)

Oh His eyes are red like lotus petals... If Radha's and Krishna's eyes are red from lack of sleep then... ...but I'll say no more!

Krishna is so beautiful. Why? Is it because of His lotus eyes, His beautiful long hair... oh yes, but it is much more than that... His expression is so sweet, His actions are so sweet, His words are sweet, His heart is so SWEET, His overflowing love is so sweeeeet! Ravana was a good looking guy; ten heads full of ego, with ten beautiful haircuts! Does that make him as good as Lord Rama? If you are too attached to appearances you may think so! So learn to see the difference between Rama and Ravana, and a real hero from a guy wearing sunglasses in a movie. If you surrender to Krishna, He will provide for you. But if He doesn't, that doesn't mean you stop having faith in Him. Learn that having Krishna means having everything; then you will never feel a lack of anything. When you go to tirupati and get tonsured, you are losing your hair; but Krishna will see you with long, beautiful black hair... people in the world will see your faults, but Krishna, seeing through the eyes of love, will look for the beauty in your heart... *sigh* I don't know how to explain it any more than this... I will pray for you now and hope you can come back from the "abyss" of your bad haircut! Peace!

I'd rather take birth as a worm than have a puny body like gandhi or his sallow complexion or his bald head and all that. I am a HIndu, destined to look like a hero. --------- If you want to LOOK LIKE a hero, a good haircut will help you. If you want to be a REAL hero, then learn from the lives of the Pandavas. Those were some real heroes. And they didn't always have an easy time, and they made some mistakes (ex. Yuddhistira lost his wife in a dice game) but their only qualification was; they trusted in the Lord, they loved the Lord, and for that reason the Lord also stuck with them... Buddy, if you want to be a real hero, at least be tough enough to weather the occasional bad hair day. That's just the beginning of being able to handle life...

Avalokiteshwara is a bodhisattva, but not a manifestation of the historical buddha of which you speak. The job of the Bodhisattva in "Mahayana" Buddhism is to guide conditioned souls out of suffering into Nirvana. However, since the Bodhisattva has decided to remain forever on the cusp of entering Nirvana until all souls are liberated, they are really much more like deities than anything else.

You know something, perhaps Krishna is trying to teach you something about beauty. Gandhi was bald, missing several teeth... is there a person more beautiful than Gandhi? Krishna is very beautiful as a young cowherd boy, long hair, regal nose, cherry-red lips, ok! But think of Varaha avataram; Bhu devi (in the form of earth) was lost beneath the muck, and He became a hairy boar and dove in! Just imagine our lovely Krishna with a pig face, covered in coarse hair, body slathered in black moss and mud; and all for love! In my mind's eye I can see Bhu devi looking at Him pitifully, soaked to the core, trembling from fatigue. The love that flows between Them as They look at each other at that moment is so overwhelming... this is why Krishna is beautiful. His heart is so melting with love that He would do anything for His devotees, from great Ones like Bhumi Piratti, down to the common everyday devotee. I think He probably is trying to show you what real beauty is, because the beauty of the physical body is bound to fade, if not by unfortunate barbershop mishaps, then by age and disease. If you can understand this now; if you can realize you are still beautiful without "cool hair" and that people will still love you if you're not "cool," then you will have a happy life, and meet old age and death with grace. Just go to the Lord with an open heart, and He will make you so beautiful that even if you are completely bald (as many are!) you will be BEAUTIFUL to the point where people will not be able to resist your loving smile and your warm, gracious attitude! Don't worry, everything is going to be OK!

Radharani wears blue with a red blouse (Krishna's favorite)

HOLY SONNET XIV - by John Donne Batter my heart, three-person'd God, for you As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend; That I may rise and stand, o'erthrow me, and bend Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new. I, like an usurp'd town to'another due, Labor to'admit you, but oh, to no end; Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend, But is captiv'd, and proves weak or untrue. Yet dearly'I love you, and would be lov'd fain, But am betroth'd unto your enemy; Divorce me,'untie or break that knot again, Take me to you, imprison me, for I, Except you'enthrall me, never shall be free, Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.

It depends on how you look at it... but Krishna also has a Personality, and it is a playful one... you know He is tied by devotion, right? He will be willing to play this game with you; He will like you to desire to see Him. Make it so Krishna will want to see you; yes! He will want to see you when He knows you really really REALLY want to see Him!!! And as for the chanting rounds; you will *want* to sing His name, when your desire to see Him and be near Him increases... no "INATTENTIVE" stuff; you will fly out of bed in the morning to chant! But first let yourself long for the Lord, and then the rest will become easy; no, not just easy... it will be fun for you! Don't worry!

He will let you keep thinking about seeing Him (even in a dream) so your desire increases. You should beg Him; beg Him, and probably He will wait to fulfill your desire for a short time, so you get to the point where you feel you will pop if He doesn't give you darshan soon... Then when HE is ready, He will show Himself to you. What a connaiseur Krishna is... He knows just how to get you!

Just think about Him all the time during the day, and ask Him to please give you a darshan while you're dreaming...

I sure hope that is true because if you need to leave behind a certain amount of temples or have distributed a certain amount of books in order to return to Godhead then I am in big trouble. --------- Krishna's is not a businessman. He doesn't care for all these things; only the love that goes with them. If you can't sell books and all these things, fine; just remember Him when you are doing *whatever you are doing* and offer it to Krishna. Even if you do it badly, just do it for Him. He will appreciate it. He just want you to think of Him and love Him. He is very simple. He doesn't want anything from you; only love. That's all

He was telling me how recranation is not true, and that the only true way is jesus christ. --- I always felt that the only way that Jesus could be the only way is if people could reincarnate and have the chance to find out about Christianity. Otherwise it makes God look a little cruel to put some people in Saudi Arabia, Some in China, some in the USA, with only one chance to find Jesus. Unless God gives multiple chances, then how can Christians justify this? Oh well, it doesn't really matter. No use in fighting. Each person has his or her own way of looking at God, relating to God, and God is happy to appear to us as we need Him, whenever we need Him.

Just remember, Krishna's love IS unconditional. It transcends karmic reaction... just love Him, he will accept. It doesn't depend on your actions, no matter how many times people say it does. Just love Him. Don't get overworked about sacrifice and "doing the right thing." Love Him first, and the rest will come...

If Lord Caitanya would kindly just pick me up and open my heart. But that seems to be for others --------------------- Just ask Him. And after you ask, give Him some time to make arrangements for you. Very soon you will come to Him... Just think back, have you ever made a single decision in your life, which at the time seemed insignificant, but later turned out to be THE definitive moment in your life? I have had one such moment. I was feeling that spiritual stagnancy; everything in black and white. I had talked to God about this; at the time I was going to a Christian church. People encouraged me to love Jesus. I would say to Jesus; "Why don't I love You? Why don't I feel anything? Is there something wrong with me? Am I a big sinner? Is that it? What's wrong with me? Help!!" And here is the defining decision of which I speak; I was at a friend's house, and I wanted to borrow a movie. He said, "Oh I have this Irani movie, and this Indian movie, which one do you want?" I picked the Indian movie. Believe it or not, that decision affected the rest of my life... I started liking Indian movies; even though they can be cheesy something about them stuck with me... I met my husband when I was looking at Indian movies in the rental store. He saw me checking out a DVD and said, "Oh, you know what that is? Really?"... We married a few months later. My husband had some audiocasstes of Prof. Prema Pandurang's discourses (on Geeta and Bhagavatam). Her name, Prema, is very appropriate. She has such a strong devotion; I really feel she must be an otherworldly person of some kind... her love is so strong. Anyway, I guess that was some grace of Bhagavan to allow me to hear her speak, because the first time I entered the temple, and saw Krishna standing there... Well, the dam broke... stagnancy ended... this is the Person I've been searching for my whole life... from black and white to full-spectrum... that's Krishna. Just ask Him, He will give. It might take some time. From the time I really gave up, and truly realized it is all in His hands, and I asked for help, to the time I looked into Krishna's eyes, and felt *something* was... I suppose three years. Anyway, He has to mentally prepare you for that moment, depending on your mindset. He will do it as fast as He can. Just trust that He knows what He is doing, and He will take care of you. Just give Him time to prepare you, and know that all those days spent with an empty heart, are more than worth the joy of that moment when your heart first melts before Him. Sorry if you feel I am revealing too much of myself here, but I think you might have needed to hear this... ~me~

I felt stagnant my whole life, till I got the mercy of Krishna though a certain devotee... maybe, just maybe, if I pray for you, some of her/Krishna's mercy will come to you as well. I don't have any qualification, but that I once got mercy from a great devotee, so hopefully my prayers will have some effect. I hope you will also plead MY case before Him! Your servant, ~me~

Personally I like Bheeshma a lot. He was happy to be killed in a dharmic war; he felt Himself indebted to the Kauravas and felt he had to fight on their side. Still he was a good person, and composed Sri Vishnusahasranamam as He died. Even though Krishna fought against Bheeshma in the battle of Kurukshetra, still Bheeshma achieved Krishna... The beautiful moment of one bhakta trying to stop Krishna, one bhakta ready to die by His hand... He Krishna!