guru

"By practice one comes to the point of the mode of goodness, and by surrendering or fixing the mind upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one becomes a very great personality, or mahatma. In Bhagavad-gita it is clearly said, sa mahatma su-durlabhah, "Such a great soul is very rare." (Bhag. 3.26.31, purport) "But if one wants, he can develop, by practice, the mode of goodness and thus defeat the modes of ignorance and passion. One can similarly develop the mode of passion and defeat goodness and ignorance. Or one can develop the mode of ignorance and defeat goodness and passion. Although there are these three modes of material nature, if one is determined he can be blessed by the mode of goodness, and by transcending the mode of goodness he can be situated in pure goodness, which is called the vasudeva state, a state in which one can understand the science of God." (Bg. 4.11, purport) "A person who is situated in the mode of goodness is certainly more intelligent than others. Therefore he can practice the brahminical activities namely speaking the truth, controlling the senses, controlling the mind, remaining always clean, practicing tolerance, having full knowledge about one's self-identity, and understanding devotional service. In this way, if he engages himself in the loving service of the Lord as an actual brahmana, his aim to achieve the final interest of life is attained." (Bhag. 4.21.33, purport) Gaura Hari Dasa

There is nothing sweeter than the association of people who are Krishna conscious. They are like a tidal wave of mercy inundating this vast wasteland of material existence. Their mere presence on this planet is the greatest benediction because by that presence they are driving away the vicious age of Kali which is at every step trying to tighten its grip more and more upon this ever-increasingly devastated world. Such devotees of the Lord are worshipable saints. They bless us with the greatest gift of Krishna consciousness. Intelligent persons in every corner of the world should now take advantage of that inundation of love of Godhead and happily drown themselves in it. saj-jana, durjana, pangu, jada, andha-gana prema-vanyaya dubaila jagatera jana "The Krishna consciousness movement will inundate the entire world and drown everyone, whether one be a gentleman, a rogue or even lame, invalid or blind." CC Adi Lila 7.26 Sankarshan Das Adhikari

Our main disease is to collect objects that are not related to Krishna (God). - His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura

Today, we see a world in chaos and confusion, compounded by the fact that no one is really prepared to admit that they're at a loss as to what to do about it. Instead, we bluff our way through the overwhelmingly difficult odds and somehow as time passes, scrape by until the problems have faded into the oblivion of the past. The Weakest Link by Sakhyarasa Prema das Yes, there are so many issues of concern in today's world; politics, religion, famine, wars, terrorism, crime, natural disasters, personal tragedies, financial concerns, health and sanity, the list seems to increase endlessly... Yet there is one problem that stands way above all others. Why? Because this problem is the major root cause of all problems we face in this world. Before I attempt to reveal what it is, and you'll be surprised how obvious and yet evasive this fact of life can be, please allow me to tell you a relevant story. Once there was a great teacher or guru who came from a very prestigious line of masters. All his students were hailing from aristocratic families with the nobility of blood lineage. One day an unknown and poorly dressed youth approached the master and requested that he become his student. Upon seeing him, the other students mocked him and considered his request foolish and a waste of time. The master however, saw something in this boy and asked what his family line, or gotra, was. The boy had no idea and this added further to the mocking of the on-looking students, who by now were laughing hysterically at his audacious request. Still the master asked him to go home and find out what his gotra was. Later, the boy approached his mother and asked about his father's hereditary descent. His mother, who was a prostitute by profession had no idea since she had known so many men that she didn't even know who the boy's father was. Disappointed and dejected, the boy returned to the ashram and in the presence of all the students, told the master the honest truth that he had no idea what his gotra was due to the fact that his mother had known many men and couldn't ascertain the identity of his father. This also meant he was an illegitimate child and was automatically unqualified to even approach the master to be educated and trained in the higher subject matters, what to speak of receiving them. By now the students were openly ridiculing the boy and throwing insult after insult upon him. At this point the master raised his voice above the crowd, thus quieting them and announced that this boy is actually qualified to become not only his student, but also his best student and he will immediately accept him without any need for further qualifications. This completely stunned the whole assembly into silence and no one could faintly understand why their great master would accept such a low class person, who was totally unqualified and with no aristocratic background as his students. Then one of the older students asked the master to please explain why he'd accepted this urchin so easily. The master replied: "Because he has spoken the truth without any fear or duplicity and is most simple in character, I deem him a thousand times more qualified than all of you put together! He shall be my most brilliant student and is a true brahmana, possessing a rare gem in the form of the quality of 'arjavam' or nonduplicity. All of you are coming from highly graded lineages, yet you are still duplicitous and proud and with many prejudices. He has already passed through all the stages of material and spiritual development in previous lives and is now fit to become your master"! In this way the boy was accepted by the master, Gautama Rsi and he became a great master himself, thus continuing the parampara line to modern times. Simultaneously the pride of all the aristocratic students was broken and they learned this all-important quality of a brahmana from their new peer, the quality of arjavam or simplicity. I hope you enjoyed this true story from the Vedic smrti. I have always found it truly enlightening and a cutting-edge piece of Vedic history. So now I ask you the question: What is that major problem we all face that none of us can actually see, even though it's constantly right there in our face 24 hours a day for the whole duration of our lives? Come on think! No, no, no... don't read further to find out from me! You know it well, because it's right there in your heart, in all our hearts and we've been hiding it, and hiding from it for millions and millions of lifetimes. Yes, you've guessed it, it's our age old friend... Mr Hypocrisy! Hurrah, hurrah! The very opposite of arjavam or simplicity. And this is the specific age of hypocrisy... Kali Yuga... surprise, surprise! Well, well, well and another well as well! So this is it! This is where the buck stops dear reader. This is the point of no return! This is... the 'weakest link'... goodbye... or should I say hello? For more information contact Anne Robinson to get your false ego smashed to bits on TV in front of millions of viewers! If there was any other way around this I'd go there, but this is the actual fact. Because we are 99% hypocrites in this world, meaning duplicitous, meaning liars, meaning not really being what we pose ourselves to be, meaning we are actually hiding from the truth rather than searching for the truth... what to speak of the Absolute Truth! Due to this fault in our character, we tend to lose sight of the goal and get side-tracked into the side benefits which are only there to help us achieve the real goal. The main quality that enables one to achieve the goal of life, 'prema pumartha mahan' is karunika and we cannot develop that exalted quality unless we are situated in arjavam. In the Bg. 18.42 Lord Krishna describes some of the prominent qualities of a brahmana who's described in Srimad Bhagavatam as the head of the body of the social order. Ksatriyas are the arms, vaisyas the stomach, sudras are the legs that work for the rest of the body. In a famous S.B. lecture in Los Angeles in January 1975, Srila Prabhupada stresses the importance of the head in the social body. Quote: "We can live without arms, legs and even stomach, but when the head is removed everything is finished"! The verse 1:16:16 discusses the government of Maharaja Yuddisthira and how he had a consulting board of highly qualified brahmanas with whom his executive governmental board would take all guidance from for practical application in the kingdom or country. These brahamans were great souls and were blessed with all auspicious attributes, of which arjavam was prominent. The transliteration of 'arjavam' in the Gita verse is 'honesty'. But this honesty goes much deeper than the superficial honesty we know and deal with on a practical daily basis. The type of honesty referred to in this word is that honesty which is of the highest kind and completely free from any duplicity. Just like our young boy in the story, his honesty was a painfully open honesty and an honesty totally free from mundane pratistha. His motives were pure and clear, he had no hidden agenda for mundane profiteering, fame or seeking a powerful and influential position. He was open and truthful regarding his obvious disqualifications. Yet hidden within his apparent unqualified condition was the jewel of the highest qualification, and because Gautama Muni was already qualified in this way, he could immediately see it and therefore could understand the exalted position of the boy. In Nectar of Devotion, Srila Prabhupada says that a pure devotee can easily see another pure devotee and this particular quality of arjavam is the essence of that vision. In the past, there are some members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in leadership positions who have exhibited this brilliant quality of arjavam by honestly admitting their obvious disqualifications as leaders, sannyasis or initiating spiritual masters. Unfortunately, due to the social climate in the society at the time, their honesty was grossly misunderstood and they became objects of criticism by other senior and even junior members. This is indeed unfortunate, as such reaction by seniors automatically sets a precedent for the younger members to follow. Thus a culture of 'cover up consciousness' becomes the norm and the ability to admit one's failings becomes increasingly abnormal. This creates a disastrous situation where it becomes ever more difficult to cultivate the essential brahminical quality of arjavam. The results of this weakness will be noted in the historical accolades of ISKCON's rise and fall and eventual rise to glorious heights. I'll finish up on this point and hope that you come to your own practical conclusions regarding this topic of our own weakest link. "...we are 99% hypocrites in this world, meaning we are actually hiding from the truth rather than searching for the truth" Srila Prabhupada: "a pure devotee can easily see another pure devotee..."

Today, we see a world in chaos and confusion, compounded by the fact that no one is really prepared to admit that they're at a loss as to what to do about it. Instead, we bluff our way through the overwhelmingly difficult odds and somehow as time passes, scrape by until the problems have faded into the oblivion of the past. The Weakest Link by Sakhyarasa Prema das Yes, there are so many issues of concern in today's world; politics, religion, famine, wars, terrorism, crime, natural disasters, personal tragedies, financial concerns, health and sanity, the list seems to increase endlessly... Yet there is one problem that stands way above all others. Why? Because this problem is the major root cause of all problems we face in this world. Before I attempt to reveal what it is, and you'll be surprised how obvious and yet evasive this fact of life can be, please allow me to tell you a relevant story. Once there was a great teacher or guru who came from a very prestigious line of masters. All his students were hailing from aristocratic families with the nobility of blood lineage. One day an unknown and poorly dressed youth approached the master and requested that he become his student. Upon seeing him, the other students mocked him and considered his request foolish and a waste of time. The master however, saw something in this boy and asked what his family line, or gotra, was. The boy had no idea and this added further to the mocking of the on-looking students, who by now were laughing hysterically at his audacious request. Still the master asked him to go home and find out what his gotra was. Later, the boy approached his mother and asked about his father's hereditary descent. His mother, who was a prostitute by profession had no idea since she had known so many men that she didn't even know who the boy's father was. Disappointed and dejected, the boy returned to the ashram and in the presence of all the students, told the master the honest truth that he had no idea what his gotra was due to the fact that his mother had known many men and couldn't ascertain the identity of his father. This also meant he was an illegitimate child and was automatically unqualified to even approach the master to be educated and trained in the higher subject matters, what to speak of receiving them. By now the students were openly ridiculing the boy and throwing insult after insult upon him. At this point the master raised his voice above the crowd, thus quieting them and announced that this boy is actually qualified to become not only his student, but also his best student and he will immediately accept him without any need for further qualifications. This completely stunned the whole assembly into silence and no one could faintly understand why their great master would accept such a low class person, who was totally unqualified and with no aristocratic background as his students. Then one of the older students asked the master to please explain why he'd accepted this urchin so easily. The master replied: "Because he has spoken the truth without any fear or duplicity and is most simple in character, I deem him a thousand times more qualified than all of you put together! He shall be my most brilliant student and is a true brahmana, possessing a rare gem in the form of the quality of 'arjavam' or nonduplicity. All of you are coming from highly graded lineages, yet you are still duplicitous and proud and with many prejudices. He has already passed through all the stages of material and spiritual development in previous lives and is now fit to become your master"! In this way the boy was accepted by the master, Gautama Rsi and he became a great master himself, thus continuing the parampara line to modern times. Simultaneously the pride of all the aristocratic students was broken and they learned this all-important quality of a brahmana from their new peer, the quality of arjavam or simplicity. I hope you enjoyed this true story from the Vedic smrti. I have always found it truly enlightening and a cutting-edge piece of Vedic history. So now I ask you the question: What is that major problem we all face that none of us can actually see, even though it's constantly right there in our face 24 hours a day for the whole duration of our lives? Come on think! No, no, no... don't read further to find out from me! You know it well, because it's right there in your heart, in all our hearts and we've been hiding it, and hiding from it for millions and millions of lifetimes. Yes, you've guessed it, it's our age old friend... Mr Hypocrisy! Hurrah, hurrah! The very opposite of arjavam or simplicity. And this is the specific age of hypocrisy... Kali Yuga... surprise, surprise! Well, well, well and another well as well! So this is it! This is where the buck stops dear reader. This is the point of no return! This is... the 'weakest link'... goodbye... or should I say hello? For more information contact Anne Robinson to get your false ego smashed to bits on TV in front of millions of viewers! If there was any other way around this I'd go there, but this is the actual fact. Because we are 99% hypocrites in this world, meaning duplicitous, meaning liars, meaning not really being what we pose ourselves to be, meaning we are actually hiding from the truth rather than searching for the truth... what to speak of the Absolute Truth! Due to this fault in our character, we tend to lose sight of the goal and get side-tracked into the side benefits which are only there to help us achieve the real goal. The main quality that enables one to achieve the goal of life, 'prema pumartha mahan' is karunika and we cannot develop that exalted quality unless we are situated in arjavam. In the Bg. 18.42 Lord Krishna describes some of the prominent qualities of a brahmana who's described in Srimad Bhagavatam as the head of the body of the social order. Ksatriyas are the arms, vaisyas the stomach, sudras are the legs that work for the rest of the body. In a famous S.B. lecture in Los Angeles in January 1975, Srila Prabhupada stresses the importance of the head in the social body. Quote: "We can live without arms, legs and even stomach, but when the head is removed everything is finished"! The verse 1:16:16 discusses the government of Maharaja Yuddisthira and how he had a consulting board of highly qualified brahmanas with whom his executive governmental board would take all guidance from for practical application in the kingdom or country. These brahamans were great souls and were blessed with all auspicious attributes, of which arjavam was prominent. The transliteration of 'arjavam' in the Gita verse is 'honesty'. But this honesty goes much deeper than the superficial honesty we know and deal with on a practical daily basis. The type of honesty referred to in this word is that honesty which is of the highest kind and completely free from any duplicity. Just like our young boy in the story, his honesty was a painfully open honesty and an honesty totally free from mundane pratistha. His motives were pure and clear, he had no hidden agenda for mundane profiteering, fame or seeking a powerful and influential position. He was open and truthful regarding his obvious disqualifications. Yet hidden within his apparent unqualified condition was the jewel of the highest qualification, and because Gautama Muni was already qualified in this way, he could immediately see it and therefore could understand the exalted position of the boy. In Nectar of Devotion, Srila Prabhupada says that a pure devotee can easily see another pure devotee and this particular quality of arjavam is the essence of that vision. In the past, there are some members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in leadership positions who have exhibited this brilliant quality of arjavam by honestly admitting their obvious disqualifications as leaders, sannyasis or initiating spiritual masters. Unfortunately, due to the social climate in the society at the time, their honesty was grossly misunderstood and they became objects of criticism by other senior and even junior members. This is indeed unfortunate, as such reaction by seniors automatically sets a precedent for the younger members to follow. Thus a culture of 'cover up consciousness' becomes the norm and the ability to admit one's failings becomes increasingly abnormal. This creates a disastrous situation where it becomes ever more difficult to cultivate the essential brahminical quality of arjavam. The results of this weakness will be noted in the historical accolades of ISKCON's rise and fall and eventual rise to glorious heights. I'll finish up on this point and hope that you come to your own practical conclusions regarding this topic of our own weakest link. "...we are 99% hypocrites in this world, meaning we are actually hiding from the truth rather than searching for the truth" Srila Prabhupada: "a pure devotee can easily see another pure devotee..."

The Magic of Sixty-four Rounds Sri Chaitanya's Wish - Sixty-four Rounds By citing the following verses, Bhaktivinoda Thakura and the previous acharyas have proven that chanting at least one nirbandha (sixty-four rounds of japa) will give one all perfection. In addition, Lord Chaitanya will personally take food from the hand of one who chants sixty-four rounds daily. prabhu bole-harinama ei mahamantra, iha japa giya sabe kariya nirbandha iha haite sarva-siddhi haibe sabara, sarvaksana bala ithe vidhi nahi ara "Lord Chaitanya personally taught, 'Please happily hear form Me the maha-mantra of Lord Krishna's names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare 'Everyday chant one nirbandha of japa of this maha-mantra, and you will attain all perfections. Chant at any time and in any circumstance, because there are no other rules for chanting.'" (Cb. Madhya 23.75-78) prabhu bale-jana 'laksesvara' bali kare? prati-dina laksa-nama ye grahana kare se janera nama ami bali 'laksesvara' tatha bhiksa amara, na yai anya ghara The Lord replied: 'Do you know who is laksesvara? He is someone who chants one laksa, or one hundred thousand holy names everyday. I call such a person a laksesvara. I only take meals in that person's house, no one else.' (Cb. Antya 9.121-2) Sarasvati Thakura on Sixty-four Rounds "Everyone living in the Gaudiya Math must make an effort to chant one lakh (sixty-four rounds) of holy names daily. Otherwise, different types of material attachments may creep in one's heart that will hamper one's devotional service. In fact, the Lord does not accept food offerings from one who does not daily chant one lakh of holy names per day and also perform his other allotted duties." (Art of Pure Devotion) "The name should be chanted keeping a careful count. One should try to increase this to one lakh of holy names daily. Not being able to do so means one is simply 'fallen'. One should rise up from this state by chanting seriously." (Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura) 64 Rounds - The ISKCON Standard Following the perfect example of his predecessors, Srila Prabhupada tried to introduce a daily standard of 64 rounds for his initiated disciples in the early days of ISKCON. The disciples responded to Srila Prabhupada's order with silence and astonishment. They argued about the shortage of time, and some flatly rejected saying, "impossible." Perhaps, this is the time when Srila Prabhupada uttered his famous quote, "Impossible is a word in a fool's dictionary." Out of compassion for his struggling followers, Srila Prabhupada relented, and reduced the minimum daily quota to sixteen rounds. And that became the standard for initiation in ISKCON. But why should we just chant sixteen rounds of japa and stop? Who wants to be considered "fallen" in the eyes of his grandfather? Stand up and fight. Maintain the high standard of our exalted spiritual tradition coming down from Lord Chaitanya. The merciful Lord of love, prema purushottama Sri Chaitanya, is so easily offering all perfections for a mere few rounds in trade. By the movement of few fingers one can achieve the most valuable treasure in creation. The golden avatara of unlimited compassion, Lord Gauranga, is extending His soft sweet hand to eat from ours - purified by Tulasi's touch and a count of sixty-four. Are we so lazy, fallen and foolish that we will let the divine magic pass us by while mumbling to ourselves, "Impossible! Impossible! Impossible!" Take strength from Sri Guru and Gaurahari and kickout the word impossible from your dictionary. The number of rounds "should be increased" from 16 a day, to 20, to 32 and then 64 per day. But never decrease the number of daily rounds. Sixty -four rounds is Mahaprabhu's magic number of peace, happiness and all spiritual perfection in love of God. We should cry out to Krishna for mercy, and with great determination try to chant more and more and more. The instructions of Srila Prabhupada are eternal. At any time or place, or in any circumstance one can sincerely surrender and become spiritually empowered to fulfill Prabhupada's order: "You must chant 64 rounds a day on your beads." Here is a brief history of the transition from sixty-four rounds a day to sixteen: "In 1967 at San Francisco, Srila Prabhupada asked me [Mukunda dasa], 'What is your definition of Krishna?' I said, 'Krishna is God. He is the Supreme Being. Our duty is to worship and serve Him.' Swamiji [srila Prabhupada] seemed fairly satisfied, and then he said, 'You must chant sixty-four rounds per day on your beads.' "I was shocked at this and could not answer. I did not know if there was any need to answer. I just kept looking at Swamiji, and he looked at me. After sometime he said, 'Or at least you can chant thirty-two rounds a day.' Still silence. I considered it to be ery difficult to chant even sixteen rounds. I was wondering how I could possibly chant thirty-two rounds. After some time, Swamiji said, 'At the very least you must chant sixteen rounds every day.'" (Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta) Hayagriva dasa described the same incident in Hare Krishna Explosion: "Now that you have beads," Swamiji says the next morning, "you should chant sixty-four rounds everyday.Sixty-four rounds?" to pronounce every word of the mantra distinctly, we require five minutes to chant a round. Sixty-four rounds would take over five hours. "Impossible!" we say. "We'll never have time.All right," Swamiji says, "Thrity-two rounds.Impossible," we say. "We'll never be able to do it. It's a way too much.All right," Swamiji says. "Sixteen rounds. No less." "We have our students to finish sixteen rounds chanting minimum. Sixteen rounds is nothing. In Vrindavana there are many devotees that chant 120 rounds. So sixteen rounds is the minimum. Because I know in the western countries it is a difficult job to finish sixty-four rounds or 120 rounds. The minimum of sixteen rounds must be finished." (NOD Lecture 20/10/72) Some years later in 1975, Srila Prabhupada again mentioned sixty-four rounds while explaining the need to increase the daily quota of Hare Krishna japa. Prabhupada: "then he should try to chant Hare Krishna maha mantra. Instead of sixteen rounds, sixty-four rounds. That is the way. Sixty-four is the minimum. Otherwise Haridasa Thakura was chanting 300,000 names daily. So you have to increase. That is the only remedy. If one has got determination, he will make progress without any trouble. That determination is very difficult, that "I must be Krishna conscious fully." (SPC 14/5/75) Lokanatha: Some devotees have fixed a different number than sixteen. Some are chanting twenty minimum or twenty-five. Prabhupada: Yes. It should be increased. But don't decrease; increase. Therefore one number is fixed. "At least this much I shall do." That is sixteen rounds. Lokanatha: But you are recommending sixteen as a minimum, and some devotees are recommending twenty as a minimum. Prabhupada: So who forbids? Who says that "Don't do it?" That is wanted. But because you cannot do it, therefore we have fixed up this minimum. Sankhyata asankhyata. Sankhyata means with a vow, numerical strength. And asankhyata means there is no limit. (SPC 10/11/75) "The Krishna consciousness movement prescribes sixteen rounds daily because people in the western countries cannot concentrate for long periods while chanting on beads. Therefore the minimum number of rounds is prescribed. However, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura used to say that unless one chants at least sixty-four rounds of japa (100,000 names), he is considered fallen (patita). According to his calculation, practically every one us is fallen, but because we are trying to serve the Supreme Lord with all seriousness and without duplicity, we can expect the mercy of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is famous as patita-pavana, the deliverer of the fallen." (NOI mantra 5 p.) A Practical Approach to Sixty-four Rounds Srila Puri Maharaja once gave the author the following practical advice on chanting sixty-four rounds daily: "It is not hard to chant a lakh (100,000 names or sixty-four rounds) a day. It only takes four sittings a day of two hours each! Listen, you get up at four a.m., chant till 6 a.m. and you will have done sixteen rounds. Then do whatever, like bathing, puja, reading and taking a little prasadam. Then sit and chant 16 rounds before noon. That is 32 rounds by 12:00! Then sit down two more times and finish 32 rounds by evening. So it's easy. You only need four sittings of two hours each to finish 64 rounds a day. At most it takes only eight hours to chant 64 rounds. You still have sixteen hours left to do other things. It may not be as easy as the Maharaja says to chant sixty-four rounds every day. But whenever we get the time or situation in our lives where we can , then certainly we should try our best to chant sixty-four rounds of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare - Excerpts from Srila Mahanidhi Swami's 'Art of Chanting Hare Krishna'.

The Magic of Sixty-four Rounds Sri Chaitanya's Wish - Sixty-four Rounds By citing the following verses, Bhaktivinoda Thakura and the previous acharyas have proven that chanting at least one nirbandha (sixty-four rounds of japa) will give one all perfection. In addition, Lord Chaitanya will personally take food from the hand of one who chants sixty-four rounds daily. prabhu bole-harinama ei mahamantra, iha japa giya sabe kariya nirbandha iha haite sarva-siddhi haibe sabara, sarvaksana bala ithe vidhi nahi ara "Lord Chaitanya personally taught, 'Please happily hear form Me the maha-mantra of Lord Krishna's names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare 'Everyday chant one nirbandha of japa of this maha-mantra, and you will attain all perfections. Chant at any time and in any circumstance, because there are no other rules for chanting.'" (Cb. Madhya 23.75-78) prabhu bale-jana 'laksesvara' bali kare? prati-dina laksa-nama ye grahana kare se janera nama ami bali 'laksesvara' tatha bhiksa amara, na yai anya ghara The Lord replied: 'Do you know who is laksesvara? He is someone who chants one laksa, or one hundred thousand holy names everyday. I call such a person a laksesvara. I only take meals in that person's house, no one else.' (Cb. Antya 9.121-2) Sarasvati Thakura on Sixty-four Rounds "Everyone living in the Gaudiya Math must make an effort to chant one lakh (sixty-four rounds) of holy names daily. Otherwise, different types of material attachments may creep in one's heart that will hamper one's devotional service. In fact, the Lord does not accept food offerings from one who does not daily chant one lakh of holy names per day and also perform his other allotted duties." (Art of Pure Devotion) "The name should be chanted keeping a careful count. One should try to increase this to one lakh of holy names daily. Not being able to do so means one is simply 'fallen'. One should rise up from this state by chanting seriously." (Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura) 64 Rounds - The ISKCON Standard Following the perfect example of his predecessors, Srila Prabhupada tried to introduce a daily standard of 64 rounds for his initiated disciples in the early days of ISKCON. The disciples responded to Srila Prabhupada's order with silence and astonishment. They argued about the shortage of time, and some flatly rejected saying, "impossible." Perhaps, this is the time when Srila Prabhupada uttered his famous quote, "Impossible is a word in a fool's dictionary." Out of compassion for his struggling followers, Srila Prabhupada relented, and reduced the minimum daily quota to sixteen rounds. And that became the standard for initiation in ISKCON. But why should we just chant sixteen rounds of japa and stop? Who wants to be considered "fallen" in the eyes of his grandfather? Stand up and fight. Maintain the high standard of our exalted spiritual tradition coming down from Lord Chaitanya. The merciful Lord of love, prema purushottama Sri Chaitanya, is so easily offering all perfections for a mere few rounds in trade. By the movement of few fingers one can achieve the most valuable treasure in creation. The golden avatara of unlimited compassion, Lord Gauranga, is extending His soft sweet hand to eat from ours - purified by Tulasi's touch and a count of sixty-four. Are we so lazy, fallen and foolish that we will let the divine magic pass us by while mumbling to ourselves, "Impossible! Impossible! Impossible!" Take strength from Sri Guru and Gaurahari and kickout the word impossible from your dictionary. The number of rounds "should be increased" from 16 a day, to 20, to 32 and then 64 per day. But never decrease the number of daily rounds. Sixty -four rounds is Mahaprabhu's magic number of peace, happiness and all spiritual perfection in love of God. We should cry out to Krishna for mercy, and with great determination try to chant more and more and more. The instructions of Srila Prabhupada are eternal. At any time or place, or in any circumstance one can sincerely surrender and become spiritually empowered to fulfill Prabhupada's order: "You must chant 64 rounds a day on your beads." Here is a brief history of the transition from sixty-four rounds a day to sixteen: "In 1967 at San Francisco, Srila Prabhupada asked me [Mukunda dasa], 'What is your definition of Krishna?' I said, 'Krishna is God. He is the Supreme Being. Our duty is to worship and serve Him.' Swamiji [srila Prabhupada] seemed fairly satisfied, and then he said, 'You must chant sixty-four rounds per day on your beads.' "I was shocked at this and could not answer. I did not know if there was any need to answer. I just kept looking at Swamiji, and he looked at me. After sometime he said, 'Or at least you can chant thirty-two rounds a day.' Still silence. I considered it to be ery difficult to chant even sixteen rounds. I was wondering how I could possibly chant thirty-two rounds. After some time, Swamiji said, 'At the very least you must chant sixteen rounds every day.'" (Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta) Hayagriva dasa described the same incident in Hare Krishna Explosion: "Now that you have beads," Swamiji says the next morning, "you should chant sixty-four rounds everyday.Sixty-four rounds?" to pronounce every word of the mantra distinctly, we require five minutes to chant a round. Sixty-four rounds would take over five hours. "Impossible!" we say. "We'll never have time.All right," Swamiji says, "Thrity-two rounds.Impossible," we say. "We'll never be able to do it. It's a way too much.All right," Swamiji says. "Sixteen rounds. No less." "We have our students to finish sixteen rounds chanting minimum. Sixteen rounds is nothing. In Vrindavana there are many devotees that chant 120 rounds. So sixteen rounds is the minimum. Because I know in the western countries it is a difficult job to finish sixty-four rounds or 120 rounds. The minimum of sixteen rounds must be finished." (NOD Lecture 20/10/72) Some years later in 1975, Srila Prabhupada again mentioned sixty-four rounds while explaining the need to increase the daily quota of Hare Krishna japa. Prabhupada: "then he should try to chant Hare Krishna maha mantra. Instead of sixteen rounds, sixty-four rounds. That is the way. Sixty-four is the minimum. Otherwise Haridasa Thakura was chanting 300,000 names daily. So you have to increase. That is the only remedy. If one has got determination, he will make progress without any trouble. That determination is very difficult, that "I must be Krishna conscious fully." (SPC 14/5/75) Lokanatha: Some devotees have fixed a different number than sixteen. Some are chanting twenty minimum or twenty-five. Prabhupada: Yes. It should be increased. But don't decrease; increase. Therefore one number is fixed. "At least this much I shall do." That is sixteen rounds. Lokanatha: But you are recommending sixteen as a minimum, and some devotees are recommending twenty as a minimum. Prabhupada: So who forbids? Who says that "Don't do it?" That is wanted. But because you cannot do it, therefore we have fixed up this minimum. Sankhyata asankhyata. Sankhyata means with a vow, numerical strength. And asankhyata means there is no limit. (SPC 10/11/75) "The Krishna consciousness movement prescribes sixteen rounds daily because people in the western countries cannot concentrate for long periods while chanting on beads. Therefore the minimum number of rounds is prescribed. However, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura used to say that unless one chants at least sixty-four rounds of japa (100,000 names), he is considered fallen (patita). According to his calculation, practically every one us is fallen, but because we are trying to serve the Supreme Lord with all seriousness and without duplicity, we can expect the mercy of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is famous as patita-pavana, the deliverer of the fallen." (NOI mantra 5 p.) A Practical Approach to Sixty-four Rounds Srila Puri Maharaja once gave the author the following practical advice on chanting sixty-four rounds daily: "It is not hard to chant a lakh (100,000 names or sixty-four rounds) a day. It only takes four sittings a day of two hours each! Listen, you get up at four a.m., chant till 6 a.m. and you will have done sixteen rounds. Then do whatever, like bathing, puja, reading and taking a little prasadam. Then sit and chant 16 rounds before noon. That is 32 rounds by 12:00! Then sit down two more times and finish 32 rounds by evening. So it's easy. You only need four sittings of two hours each to finish 64 rounds a day. At most it takes only eight hours to chant 64 rounds. You still have sixteen hours left to do other things. It may not be as easy as the Maharaja says to chant sixty-four rounds every day. But whenever we get the time or situation in our lives where we can , then certainly we should try our best to chant sixty-four rounds of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare - Excerpts from Srila Mahanidhi Swami's 'Art of Chanting Hare Krishna'.

One who is too much attached to material enjoyment and sense enjoyment cannot approach the Lord. He cannot understand what is real devotional service. One has to have great determination. What is the nature of that determination? That you are willing to pay any price for Krishna's mercy. There is nothing so dear to us that will come between us and the mercy of Krishna. When you have that determination, when you have that desire that is when the Lord makes all arrangements for liberation. We are just struggling for existence. And yet we are so attached to this existence that for the sake of enjoying this, we don't have time for Krishna consciousness. Are you willing to live on the street as a beggar if that is what is required to get Krishna's mercy? If you are, I am not saying you have to do it but you should be willing to do it. That is the price. It is not cheap. It is not that you chant the mantra and you become pure. You have to understand what is the determination in which to chant the mantra. H H Radhanath Swami Maharaj

Excerpt from a lecture by HG Devamritha prabhu on Saturday 17th January 2004 - Why should we take to spiritual life in the young age? This session is meant for the youth. Not youth in age, but youth at heart. 1. We can die at any time. There is no rule that one will die only at ripe old age. Canakya Pandita says, if you want to be strong in spiritual life, you should think that you are going to die next moment. And if you want to be successful materially, you should think you will never die. Otherwise you cannot survive. If you want the goal to be an illusion, your initial assumption should also be an illusion. 2. The senses, mind, intelligence are all very strong and easier to learn anything new. It's very difficult to learn anything new in the old age. "You cannot teach old dog new tricks". 3. Anything valuable should be offered fresh. Sometimes people think that, when young one should enjoy sense gratification. And when one is old and is invalid, one can offer himself to Krishna. If you want to offer a rose as a gift to someone dear to you, you don't offer it when it is stale or dry. You offer it when it is fragrant and fresh. Similarly one should offer one's service to the Lord when fresh and young. 4. At a young age, we can make faster progress either materially or spiritually. At young age, one can learn the spiritual process quickly and practice them for perfection easily. One cannot do the same at older ages. 5. Youth is an age of high energy. So it has to be channelized properly. At a young age, we feel highly energetic and are ready to do anything. And if this high energy is not properly channelized, we can create havoc to our lifestyle. 6. Life is a preparation and death is the examination. For ex. If we as a student don't study and the night before the examination, we ask our friends what are the syllabus for the exam, etc. Rarely we can get through the examination. Similarly, if we don't prepare for the exam called death, we will be bewildered. And we should not wait till the point of old age/ death. 7. When we are young, we can train easily. Training in an early age is very easy. As the mind is flexible, it's easy to train. Old people have already garbage filled in their brains and it is very difficult to train the process. 8. The responsibility of youngsters is less. When we are young, the only obligation is education. As we are older, responsibilities of family life/ work etc are more and one does not get enough time to learn spiritual life. 9. Youth is the time to make habits. During the youthfulness, we make many habits based on our friend circle. Every activity that we do makes an impression in our consciousness. Ex. If once you drink alcohol, that makes an impression and we will be forced to accept this later. There is a saying - "If you do anything 21 days consecutively, that becomes an habit". Unless we make the right habits, it is difficult to remove them. "Bad habits die hard". 10. In childhood, Consciousness is a blank slate. You can write anything in it. As we grow older, the consciousness is filled with filth. In childhood, it is easier to be simple and learning Krishna consciousness is very easy. 11. At younger ages, we accept someone superior to us (natural). At older ages, it is difficult to accept someone superior to us. 12. If today's youths are not trained.. When they grow up, they create the next generation. And definitely the new generations will not be trained. Sometimes, we find that parents come to the temple and inform us that their children speak lies, steal etc. But the parents themselves don't want to change and they expect the children to be pure. 13. According to Sri Prahlada Maharaja and sastras, Spiritual life should be started at balya. Infact, Sri Prahlada started his krishna consciousness in the womb of his mother. 14. Definition of Old Age - Means time before death. But no body knows when we are going to die. This is the reason, we always say, we are 15 years old boy or 20 years old girl. We ask how old are you. And not how young are you. Every moment we are becoming old. If someone says that spiritual life has to be taken at old age. We are already old. 15. During old age, the physical body gives lots of problems. The health is not good. Predominantly, the topic of discussions among the old people is health. I have back pain, stomachache, digestion problem etc. So we cannot concentrate on spiritual life. 16. Death is badly painful. It is compared to the pain caused by 70000 scorpions biting. If we are not trained to be a devotee, we will have to face this pain. 17. Every age has a natural inclination to do certain things. Sri Sankara sings... Boy hood - Attachment for playing Youth Hood - Attachment for opposite sex. Old Age - Attachment for global problems, What will happen to wife, family, country, society, creation etc without me? Where is the time for attachment to God? 18. Sometimes so called elderly people say that young age is for sense enjoyment. Then when one is old, they will have natural renunciation and that will last long. By doing sense gratification and facing the pain, they will have the realization of renunciation. But just because of pain, there is no renunciation. Ex. Many mothers complain that the labor pain is severe that they will never want another child. But again after sometime, same thing happens. According to Canakya pandita, lalayet panca-varsani dasa-varsani tadayet prapte tu sodase varse putram mitra-vad acaret One should fondle his son up to the point of five years old. Thereafter one should administer punishment for the next ten years. But when one's son reaches the age of sixteen one should act as a friend towards him. One extra point - Why should one wait till the old age to experience the bliss of sankirtana, association of devotees, and Prasadam?

Dear Devotees, Please accept my most humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada On January 23rd His Majesty The King of Nepal Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev awarded His Holiness Jayapataka Swami amongst 4 leaders of the World Hindu Federation for Their contribution towards the preservation, promotion and protection of Hindu Dharma in a special and very sumptuous function at Pragya Pratisthan Kendra (The Royal Academy) in Kathmandu - Nepal. This event was organized by The World Hindu Federation during the 16th executive meeting. At the same function the main donors who have offered big support to the WHF in Nepal were also awarded by the King. It is important to mention that HH JPS gets this special award due to his preaching activities around the world for more than 35 years. Once, one of the leaders praised HH Jayapataka Swami Guru Maharaja for his preaching and for inspiring too many people to become followers of the Sanatan Dharma, but HH JPS humbly replied that this is not because of him but because of the Bhagavad-Gita and Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. HH Jayapataka Swami is one of the founders of the World Hindu Federation since 1981. During our meetings we could hear from other Hindu Leaders glorifying the extraordinary work of all ISKCON devotees in preaching around the world and in performing great services to the community as well as in having important programs in the fields of education, social work, preaching the Vedic culture, making other people be interested in Vedic culture and in Sanskrit language, giving courses on sastras, converting people into vegetarians, distributing free food (FFL), preaching non-violence and love for Godhead, developing the conditions of the holy places and main tirthas in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, implementing Namahattas and Bhakti-vrkshas in communities and basically villages where actually there is a high risk in converting Hindus into other religions, etc. HH Jayapataka Swami as He mentions and feels that this award or recognition from the World Hindu Federation, the King & government of Nepal (the only Hindu kingdom in the world) is for all ISKCON devotees and for their preaching of God Consciousness everywhere to everyone as well as for helping others to understand the real meaning of life. After this ceremony, Their Majesties King Gyanendra and Queen Komal visited the 'DHAM DARSAN-Exhibition-2004' where ISKCON have organized a Photo Exhibition about Sri Mayapur Dham. Their Majesties chatted with us about the Vedic Planetarium temple as well as about the activities of our society in the Holy Dham, They were very impressed and interested in our the activities of our society and about the Vedic Planetarium temple,( we had and exhibition about Sri Mayapur Dham, Food For Life, Srila Prabhupada's life biography with Pictures that we brought from Malaysia for this special occasion and Books. we also invited Their Majesties for the opening ceremony of the Vedic planetarium temple in the future, at the end we offered few books as gifts to the special guests.(we also distributed Bhajans and kirtans CD's as well as books to all the executive members). It is also important to mention as I could read in the news papers that during the last meeting of the WHF in Gorakhpur, His Majesty the King was named The Emperor of all Hindus in the world over since He is the only Hindu King at present. On the 24th and 25th The Executive Members of The World Hindu federation had their 16th extraordinary meetings in Kathmandu inaugurated by the Honorable Prime Minister of Nepal. - Tusti Mohan Krishna Das www.jpsoffice.com <font color="red"> </font color>

Dear Devotees, Please accept my most humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada On January 23rd His Majesty The King of Nepal Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev awarded His Holiness Jayapataka Swami amongst 4 leaders of the World Hindu Federation for Their contribution towards the preservation, promotion and protection of Hindu Dharma in a special and very sumptuous function at Pragya Pratisthan Kendra (The Royal Academy) in Kathmandu - Nepal. This event was organized by The World Hindu Federation during the 16th executive meeting. At the same function the main donors who have offered big support to the WHF in Nepal were also awarded by the King. It is important to mention that HH JPS gets this special award due to his preaching activities around the world for more than 35 years. Once, one of the leaders praised HH Jayapataka Swami Guru Maharaja for his preaching and for inspiring too many people to become followers of the Sanatan Dharma, but HH JPS humbly replied that this is not because of him but because of the Bhagavad-Gita and Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. HH Jayapataka Swami is one of the founders of the World Hindu Federation since 1981. During our meetings we could hear from other Hindu Leaders glorifying the extraordinary work of all ISKCON devotees in preaching around the world and in performing great services to the community as well as in having important programs in the fields of education, social work, preaching the Vedic culture, making other people be interested in Vedic culture and in Sanskrit language, giving courses on sastras, converting people into vegetarians, distributing free food (FFL), preaching non-violence and love for Godhead, developing the conditions of the holy places and main tirthas in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, implementing Namahattas and Bhakti-vrkshas in communities and basically villages where actually there is a high risk in converting Hindus into other religions, etc. HH Jayapataka Swami as He mentions and feels that this award or recognition from the World Hindu Federation, the King & government of Nepal (the only Hindu kingdom in the world) is for all ISKCON devotees and for their preaching of God Consciousness everywhere to everyone as well as for helping others to understand the real meaning of life. After this ceremony, Their Majesties King Gyanendra and Queen Komal visited the 'DHAM DARSAN-Exhibition-2004' where ISKCON have organized a Photo Exhibition about Sri Mayapur Dham. Their Majesties chatted with us about the Vedic Planetarium temple as well as about the activities of our society in the Holy Dham, They were very impressed and interested in our the activities of our society and about the Vedic Planetarium temple,( we had and exhibition about Sri Mayapur Dham, Food For Life, Srila Prabhupada's life biography with Pictures that we brought from Malaysia for this special occasion and Books. we also invited Their Majesties for the opening ceremony of the Vedic planetarium temple in the future, at the end we offered few books as gifts to the special guests.(we also distributed Bhajans and kirtans CD's as well as books to all the executive members). It is also important to mention as I could read in the news papers that during the last meeting of the WHF in Gorakhpur, His Majesty the King was named The Emperor of all Hindus in the world over since He is the only Hindu King at present. On the 24th and 25th The Executive Members of The World Hindu federation had their 16th extraordinary meetings in Kathmandu inaugurated by the Honorable Prime Minister of Nepal. - Tusti Mohan Krishna Das www.jpsoffice.com

Excerpt from a lecture by HG Devamritha prabhu on Saturday 17th January 2004 - Why should we take to spiritual life in the young age? This session is meant for the youth. Not youth in age, but youth at heart. 1. We can die at any time. There is no rule that one will die only at ripe old age. Canakya Pandita says, if you want to be strong in spiritual life, you should think that you are going to die next moment. And if you want to be successful materially, you should think you will never die. Otherwise you cannot survive. If you want the goal to be an illusion, your initial assumption should also be an illusion. 2. The senses, mind, intelligence are all very strong and easier to learn anything new. It's very difficult to learn anything new in the old age. "You cannot teach old dog new tricks". 3. Anything valuable should be offered fresh. Sometimes people think that, when young one should enjoy sense gratification. And when one is old and is invalid, one can offer himself to Krishna. If you want to offer a rose as a gift to someone dear to you, you don't offer it when it is stale or dry. You offer it when it is fragrant and fresh. Similarly one should offer one's service to the Lord when fresh and young. 4. At a young age, we can make faster progress either materially or spiritually. At young age, one can learn the spiritual process quickly and practice them for perfection easily. One cannot do the same at older ages. 5. Youth is an age of high energy. So it has to be channelized properly. At a young age, we feel highly energetic and are ready to do anything. And if this high energy is not properly channelized, we can create havoc to our lifestyle. 6. Life is a preparation and death is the examination. For ex. If we as a student don't study and the night before the examination, we ask our friends what are the syllabus for the exam, etc. Rarely we can get through the examination. Similarly, if we don't prepare for the exam called death, we will be bewildered. And we should not wait till the point of old age/ death. 7. When we are young, we can train easily. Training in an early age is very easy. As the mind is flexible, it's easy to train. Old people have already garbage filled in their brains and it is very difficult to train the process. 8. The responsibility of youngsters is less. When we are young, the only obligation is education. As we are older, responsibilities of family life/ work etc are more and one does not get enough time to learn spiritual life. 9. Youth is the time to make habits. During the youthfulness, we make many habits based on our friend circle. Every activity that we do makes an impression in our consciousness. Ex. If once you drink alcohol, that makes an impression and we will be forced to accept this later. There is a saying - "If you do anything 21 days consecutively, that becomes an habit". Unless we make the right habits, it is difficult to remove them. "Bad habits die hard". 10. In childhood, Consciousness is a blank slate. You can write anything in it. As we grow older, the consciousness is filled with filth. In childhood, it is easier to be simple and learning Krishna consciousness is very easy. 11. At younger ages, we accept someone superior to us (natural). At older ages, it is difficult to accept someone superior to us. 12. If today's youths are not trained.. When they grow up, they create the next generation. And definitely the new generations will not be trained. Sometimes, we find that parents come to the temple and inform us that their children speak lies, steal etc. But the parents themselves don't want to change and they expect the children to be pure. 13. According to Sri Prahlada Maharaja and sastras, Spiritual life should be started at balya. Infact, Sri Prahlada started his krishna consciousness in the womb of his mother. 14. Definition of Old Age - Means time before death. But no body knows when we are going to die. This is the reason, we always say, we are 15 years old boy or 20 years old girl. We ask how old are you. And not how young are you. Every moment we are becoming old. If someone says that spiritual life has to be taken at old age. We are already old. 15. During old age, the physical body gives lots of problems. The health is not good. Predominantly, the topic of discussions among the old people is health. I have back pain, stomachache, digestion problem etc. So we cannot concentrate on spiritual life. 16. Death is badly painful. It is compared to the pain caused by 70000 scorpions biting. If we are not trained to be a devotee, we will have to face this pain. 17. Every age has a natural inclination to do certain things. Sri Sankara sings... Boy hood - Attachment for playing Youth Hood - Attachment for opposite sex. Old Age - Attachment for global problems, What will happen to wife, family, country, society, creation etc without me? Where is the time for attachment to God? 18. Sometimes so called elderly people say that young age is for sense enjoyment. Then when one is old, they will have natural renunciation and that will last long. By doing sense gratification and facing the pain, they will have the realization of renunciation. But just because of pain, there is no renunciation. Ex. Many mothers complain that the labor pain is severe that they will never want another child. But again after sometime, same thing happens. According to Canakya pandita, lalayet panca-varsani dasa-varsani tadayet prapte tu sodase varse putram mitra-vad acaret One should fondle his son up to the point of five years old. Thereafter one should administer punishment for the next ten years. But when one's son reaches the age of sixteen one should act as a friend towards him. One extra point - Why should one wait till the old age to experience the bliss of sankirtana, association of devotees, and Prasadam?

One who is too much attached to material enjoyment and sense enjoyment cannot approach the Lord. He cannot understand what is real devotional service. One has to have great determination. What is the nature of that determination? That you are willing to pay any price for Krishna's mercy. There is nothing so dear to us that will come between us and the mercy of Krishna. When you have that determination, when you have that desire that is when the Lord makes all arrangements for liberation. We are just struggling for existence. And yet we are so attached to this existence that for the sake of enjoying this, we don't have time for Krishna consciousness. Are you willing to live on the street as a beggar if that is what is required to get Krishna's mercy? If you are, I am not saying you have to do it but you should be willing to do it. That is the price. It is not cheap. It is not that you chant the mantra and you become pure. You have to understand what is the determination in which to chant the mantra. H H Radhanath Swami Maharaj

SRILA PRABHUPADA ON SADHANA BHAKTI I THE RESULT OF PERFORMING SADHANA BHAKTI 1. In spiritual strength there will be no scarcity of money. 2. Please do not neglect yourself in the prescribed duties for maintaining your spiritual strength. Without keeping spiritual strength there is no question of any accomplishment. 3. If this routine work is always done nicely and never neglected, then our all success is guaranteed in whatever we do. 4. Simply become more concerned with increasing the spiritual content of our lives, and in this way all other problems like management will be easily solved. 5. If this program is strictly maintained amongst the devotees, they will remain pure. 6. I am confident that if you simply take our principles very seriously and follow them rigidly, everything will come out successfully. 7. I am very glad to note that you are seeing that the devotees are maintaining the devotional practices. This is the secret to success. Therefore, I am stressing it. 8. Make certain that your routine work is going nicely, then all other programs will be successful. II THE RESULT OF NOT PERFORMING SADHANA BHAKTI 1. Follow the simple process or be victims to women and wealth. 2. Please do not neglect to engage yourself in the prescribed duties for maintaining your spiritual strength. Without keeping spiritual strength there is no question of any accomplishment. 3. If we are not very careful to always stick to the point of regulative principles and purest standards of high living, then everything will spoil very quickly and the whole show will be a farce. 4. But if this our regular Krishna consciousness program is allowed to slacken, then everything we try will fail. 5. If we neglect even for a moment our routine work, if we allow the regular program to become slack, then everything else we may try will fail. 6. If you yourself remain always pure, then your preaching will have effect. As soon as there is little impurity, the whole thing will deteriorate and go to hell. 7. The smallest neglect or inattention to these matters of routine practices will cause our other programs to fail. III THE NECESSITY FOR PERFORMING SADHANA BHAKTI 1. Monetary matters are secondary. On principle, we should better starve than neglect our rules and regulations. 2. Everyone must rise by 4:00 a.m. and attend mangal arati. 3. All the temple members, without exception, must rise by 4:00 a.m. and attend mangal arati. 4. My instruction is that all of my disciples must attend mangal arati and chant 16 rounds daily. IV SADHANA AND TEMPLE PRESIDENT / LEADERSHIP 1. Managers must remain vigilant that everyone follow sadhana. 2. All the presidents of our centers should see that all the members are strictly observing the brahminical standards, such as rising early, cleansing at least twice daily, reading profusely, attending arati, like that. 3. You must be the perfect example of Krishna conscious devotee. 4. If temple worship is not attended better stop the press. V OTHER 1. And if you simply keep to our standard program that means chanting daily 16 rounds, rising early, attending mangal arati, like that, if this program is strictly maintained amongst all the devotees, they will remain pure, and if preaching is pure, automatically leaders, managers, funds, everything will be given profusely by Krishna - without doubt. 2. That is of utmost importance, do not fail to chant 16 rounds daily, rise early, come to mangal arati, come to classes, and follow the four regulative principles. In this way your life will become free from all anxieties. 3. I am also glad to hear that in your temple no one misses mangal arati and that everyone is becoming steady and peaceful in their service. Life will flourish.

Hare Krishna! Chanting on beads are ideal but one must act according to time, place and circumstance. When the sadhaka shows sincerity in chanting Hare Krishna, the Lord kindly paves way for a situation where the sadhaka can practice devotional service as per the standards prescribed by the previous acharyas and Srila Prabhupada. However till such time one has to be patient and consistent in his sadhana to attract the mercy of Krishna. Hare Krishna!

I THE RESULT OF PERFORMING SADHANA BHAKTI 1. In spiritual strength there will be no scarcity of money. 2. Please do not neglect yourself in the prescribed duties for maintaining your spiritual strength. Without keeping spiritual strength there is no question of any accomplishment. 3. If this routine work is always done nicely and never neglected, then our all success is guaranteed in whatever we do. 4. Simply become more concerned with increasing the spiritual content of our lives, and in this way all other problems like management will be easily solved. 5. If this program is strictly maintained amongst the devotees, they will remain pure. 6. I am confident that if you simply take our principles very seriously and follow them rigidly, everything will come out successfully. 7. I am very glad to note that you are seeing that the devotees are maintaining the devotional practices. This is the secret to success. Therefore, I am stressing it. 8. Make certain that your routine work is going nicely, then all other programs will be successful. II THE RESULT OF NOT PERFORMING SADHANA BHAKTI 1. Follow the simple process or be victims to women and wealth. 2. Please do not neglect to engage yourself in the prescribed duties for maintaining your spiritual strength. Without keeping spiritual strength there is no question of any accomplishment. 3. If we are not very careful to always stick to the point of regulative principles and purest standards of high living, then everything will spoil very quickly and the whole show will be a farce. 4. But if this our regular Krishna consciousness program is allowed to slacken, then everything we try will fail. 5. If we neglect even for a moment our routine work, if we allow the regular program to become slack, then everything else we may try will fail. 6. If you yourself remain always pure, then your preaching will have effect. As soon as there is little impurity, the whole thing will deteriorate and go to hell. 7. The smallest neglect or inattention to these matters of routine practices will cause our other programs to fail. III THE NECESSITY FOR PERFORMING SADHANA BHAKTI 1. Monetary matters are secondary. On principle, we should better starve than neglect our rules and regulations. 2. Everyone must rise by 4:00 a.m. and attend mangal arati. 3. All the temple members, without exception, must rise by 4:00 a.m. and attend mangal arati. 4. My instruction is that all of my disciples must attend mangal arati and chant 16 rounds daily. IV SADHANA AND TEMPLE PRESIDENT / LEADERSHIP 1. Managers must remain vigilant that everyone follow sadhana. 2. All the presidents of our centers should see that all the members are strictly observing the brahminical standards, such as rising early, cleansing at least twice daily, reading profusely, attending arati, like that. 3. You must be the perfect example of Krishna conscious devotee. 4. If temple worship is not attended better stop the press. V OTHER 1. And if you simply keep to our standard program that means chanting daily 16 rounds, rising early, attending mangal arati, like that, if this program is strictly maintained amongst all the devotees, they will remain pure, and if preaching is pure, automatically leaders, managers, funds, everything will be given profusely by Krishna - without doubt. 2. That is of utmost importance, do not fail to chant 16 rounds daily, rise early, come to mangal arati, come to classes, and follow the four regulative principles. In this way your life will become free from all anxieties. 3. I am also glad to hear that in your temple no one misses mangal arati and that everyone is becoming steady and peaceful in their service...Life will flourish.

In kali-yuga the mind is so lazy that it wants to quit without even trying. If one is not immediately successful in any attempt, his mind will balk, stammer, and whimper. "Oh, I cannot do it, its too hard, I quit!" working on a steady job, maintaining a relationship, performing bhakti-sadhana, fasting on ekadasi, and finishing one's rounds of harinama are Herculean tasks in this techno age of fast living and low thinking. Krishna teaches Arjuna that the mind can be strengthened by constant practice and detachment. An empowered mind serving the will of en enlightened master is a most helpful friend on the path of life and devotion. The determination to complete a task requires mental concentration, endeavor, surrender and the mercy of the Lord. Achieving success in determined acts nourishes determination and enthuses one to undertake more difficult duties. Determination, being a mental power, becomes stronger by practice. Though somewhat simplistic the following suggestions will help increase one's powers of concentration and determination to chant the holy name. The vow of one- chanting one mala (108 beads) of japa is complete service offered for the pleasure of Radha Krishna appearing in Their most merciful maha mantra form. One should not stop in the middle of a round, hang the mala outside the bead bag, or mark it with an "alligator clip" to save it for later. Finish the round! Could you imagine a mangala arati where after offering the ghee lamp the pujari just walked off the altar leaving Radha Shyamasundara behind? Offering mangala arati is complete service that takes 25 minutes. Similarly chanting one mala of nama japa is a complete service that takes about 7 minutes. You cannot stop in the middle. It may seem impossible, but make a vow to chant one round with full concentration. Sit straight with eyes closed and simply hear the holy name. Practice tolerance - don't give into the forceful pushings of the mind. Focus and concentrate! Don't follow the wayward thoughts. Nothing should move but the breath, tongue, lips and heart in gentle waves of affection. Don't scratch, fidget, slouch, wiggle, rotate, crack the neck, or speak to anyone. Seven minutes may seem like seven millenniums. Nevertheless, focus full heart and attention on the transcendental sound vibration - Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. The vow of four - Harinama-cintamai says, "Four rounds on the beads make one granthi. Four granthis makes 16 rounds and sixteen granthis equals 64 rounds." Since the word granthi means knot, it can be said that a group of four rounds forms a type knot that binds the devotee more firmly top the lotus feet of Radha Govinda. If one has successfully followed the vow of one, he can try to observe the vow four. Following the same rules as above, one vows to sit in one place without moving until completing four rounds of japa. The vow of sixteen - one will increase his powers of concentration and determination by successfully completing the above vows. Now make the vow of sixteen, which means to observe all the rules above while chanting sixteen rounds in one sitting. The vow of sixty-four - on any auspicious day like ekadasi, Gaura Purnima or Radhashtami one can make a vow to chant sixty-four rounds of Hare Krishna japa in order to please Sri Guru and Radha Govinda. Take a vow to sit down four times during the day and finish four granthis as done in the vow of sixteen. But if you are a maha-yogi, then sit before Tulasi-devi and chant all sixty-four rounds without getting up. - Excerpts from Srila Mahanidhi Swami's "Art of Chanting Hare Krishna"

Attitude to attract the all attractive golokera prema-dhana, harinama sankirtana, rati na janmilo kene tay The treasure of love of God has descended form the spiritual world of Goloka Vrindavana: appearing in this world as the sankirtana movement of chanting Hari's holy names. Alas! Why am I not attracted to it? (Prarthana) In this bhajana, Narottama Dasa Thakura says that goloka prema, pure love ofGod in the mood of Vraja, has descended from the spiritual world in the form of chanting vibration. Although the all-attractive sweet Lord Krishna is approaching everyone through His holy names, He cannot be perceived without the proper attitude. Attitude refers one's mood, mentality, approach, view point, or mind-set regarding a person or activity. One should chant japa with an attitude of service an surrender - begging for Krishna's mercy. Chanting the holy name without a service attitude produces but not divinity. Such bogus, imitative sound is lip deep but not heart deep; like a gun firing blanks instead of bullets. Pure devotional service alone can connect or link Vraja Gokula with the material world. Vraja Gokula, Krishna, His associates and all His wonderful pastimes descend to this world (golokera prema dhana)and manifest in the heart filled with seva-bhava. Chanting must be saturated with a mentality of selfless service; desiring only to please Krishna. Srila Prabhupada always said chanting means begging to please for service: "O my Lord! [Krishna] O my Lord's energy! [Hare, Radha] please engage me in your service." The transcendental name of Krishna can be heard only through the serving mind not through the material ears of the enjoying mind. "By a service attitude, if you chant the Hare Krishna mantra without any offense, then Krishna will reveal Himself (SPT 22/10/72) "Our progress depends on the favor of the higher side. It does not depend so much on our own ability, but on our submission and surrender - our hankering for mercy. My attitude must invite the higher authority to come down to my level and help me, favor me. To attract the Lord's attention we shall require surrender, submission and humility. "We can press our position by praying: "O my Lord I am in the worst need; without Your grace I cannot stand. I am helpless. I cannot endure without your favor.' 'If we truly feel ourselves to be low and in want, then the supply of mercy will come from the higher plane. Everything moves according to Krishna's sweet will. Our problem is how to draw His attention. This will be possible only by increasing our negative tendency by proving to Krishna in a bona fide way, that I am the most needy." (Subjective Evolution, adapted) - Excerpts from Srila Mahanidhi Swami's "Art of Chanting Hare Krishna"