ancient_paztriot

I think the "this wafer is the body of Christ" and "this wine is the blood of Christ" is weird. You're eating your spiritual master? I mean what is the bottom line?

Hayagriva dasa: Mill saw it more like an actual struggle between God and Satan, or evil. Srila Prabhupada: There is struggle because the demons are always transgressing God’s rules. A demon is one who rejects God’s rules, and a demigod is one who accepts them. That is the main difference, as stated in the sastras. Hayagriva dasa: But Mill pictures God Himself as struggling hard in the fight to conquer the demons. Srila Prabhupada: God has no reason to struggle. According to the Vedas, He is so powerful that He has nothing to do. Just as a king may have many servants, ministers, and soldiers to carry out his desires, Krsna has many energies that act according to His order. Krsna Himself has nothing to do. he is playing His flute and enjoying Himself. That is ananda. Although He is enjoying Himself, the universe is going on in accordance with his orders, through the agencies of His multi-energies. There is no question of God struggling. He doesn’t even have to fight. His various agents can easily enough kill all the evil elements in the world.

Hayagriva dasa: Whereas Descartes emphasized the importance of reason, Pascal believed that the principles that are understood by the heart are absolutely certain and adequate to overcome all skepticism and doubt. It is because the Supersoul speaks within the heart? Srila Prabhupada: Yes. Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita: tesam satata-yuktanam bhajatam priti-purvakam dadami buddhi-yogam tam yena mam upayanti te “To those who are constantly devoted and worship Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me.” (Bg. 10.10) Every living entity is living with God, but out of ignorance he does not know this. As we have stated before, there are two birds situated in the tree of the body. One bird is enjoying the fruits of the tree, while the other bird is witnessing. God gives instructions whereby we can return home, but nondevotees will not accept these instructions. A devotee strictly follows the orders of God, but the demoniac act according to their own whims, even though knowing God’s desires. There is no doubt that God is giving instructions. Instructions are given externally through God’s agent, the spiritual master, and through the scriptures. Instructions are given internally through the conscience, the Supersoul. Syamasundara dasa: Pascal was a mystic who believed very deeply in God, but he was also a skeptic in the sense that he believed that we cannot prove the existence of God by our reason or any other way. Therefore he emphasized that we have to believe in God with our heart. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, that is a fact. You cannot prove the existence of God by your material senses. atah sri-krsna-namadi na bhaved grahyam indriyaih sevonmukhe hi jihvadau svayam eva sphuraty adah “Material senses cannot appreciate Krsna’s holy name, form qualities and pastimes. when a conditioned soul is awakened to Krsna consciousness and renders service by using his tongue to chant the Lord’s holy name and taste the remnants of the Lord’s food, the tongue is purified, and one gradually come to understand who Krsna really is.” (Padma Purana) The senses are incompetent to appreciate God, but if you are anxious to know God, you should render Him service. Then He will let you know what He is. The more we engage in God’s service, the more He reveals. He cannot be perceived by our senses; therefore His name is adhoksaja, which means that he is beyond our sense perception. We worship the Deity of God in the temple, but the gross materialist with his sense perception can never understand that hte Deity is God. He will say that it is simply a stone carving. Therefore we have to believe in God with our heart. Because the atheist does not believe in God with his heart, he sees only a piece of stone.

Syamasundara dasa: Kierkegaard sees self-realization arising out of the expression of the will. The more self-realized a person is, the more will he has. When we are fully ourselves, we are fully willed, and able to make the proper decisions. Srila Prabhupada: But if you are part and parcel of the whole, you have to take decisions from the whole. You cannot make the decisions. A finger does not make decisions for the entire body. The only decision you can make is the decision to serve Krsna. The orders come from the superior. Arjuna was ordered by Krsna to fight, and at the conclusion of Bhagavad-gita, he decided to abide by Krsna’s will or not. Krsna or His representative makes all the other decisions. Syamasundara dasa: then what is the meaning of full will? Srila Prabhupada: Full will means to surrender fully, to follow absolutely the orders of the Supreme.

… the leaders don't even want the public to know the numbers of "them" dying. http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/South/04/22/mortuary.photos.ap/index.html

Hayagriva dasa: Kant strongly advocated the right and duty of every man to judge for himself in religious and secular matters. “Have courage to make use of your own intellect” was his motto. He emphasized individual freedom and the ability of man to intuit the truth. Srila Prabhupada: Does this mean that whatever anyone does is perfectly right? If we are given that freedom, then anyone can do as he likes. Hayagriva dasa: At the same time, Kant considered the Bible to be the best vehicle for the instruction of the public in a truly moral religion. Srila Prabhupada: This mean that he has accepted some authority. Where is his freedom then? Hayagriva dasa: The individual can intuit truths within, but can be helped from without by scripture. Srila Prabhupada: This means that we should not be totally independent. We should be dependent on some authority, and that authority should be recognized. Then knowledge is possible. That is Vaisnavism. Syamasundara dasa: Descartes believed that knowledge comes through inate ideas, and Hume opposed this by saying that knowledge comes from sense experience. Kant tries to unify these extremes. Srila Prabhupada: Knowledge comes from purified sense experience. That is seva. I may see Krsna, whereas others may see a stone. This means that my eyes and vision are different. premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilokayanti yam syamasundaram acintya-guna-svarupam govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami “I worship the primeval Lord, Govinda, who is always seen by the devotee whose eyes are anointed with the pulp of love. He is seen in His eternal form of Syamasundara situated within the heart ofthe devotee.” ( Brahma-samhita 5.38) When our eyes are anointed with the ointment of love of God, we can truly see. The same applies to the rest of the senses. Unless our senses are purified, we can neither see nor know. Syamasundara dasa: In Critique of Pure Reason, Kant wrote: “Thoughts without content are empty, perceptions without conceptions are blind… Understanding can perceive nothing, the senses can think nothing. Knowledge arises only from their limited action.” Srila Prabhupada: When you try to understand through the senses, that is called pratyaksa. There is knowlede through direct perception, pratyaksa, and knowledge received from higher authorities, aparo ’ksa. When we apply our senses and come to the same conclusion, that is anumana. For instance, a higher authority says that there is a spiritual world. Now, how can we come to this conclusion? Obviously, we have to apply our senses. We can reason, “I am a combination of spirit and matter. That is a fact However, I cannot see the spirit at the present moment, but I know that there is spirit.” If we understand that there is a material world, we can also understand that there is a spiritual world. We can arrive at this conclusion by applying our senses and reason. If a material world is possible, certainly a spiritual world is possible. This is preliminary knowlede. When we see a dead body, we understand that something is missing. We see this with our senses, and from higher authority, from Bhagavad-gita, we understand that this something that is missing is eternal. avinasi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idam tatam vinasam avyayasyasya na kascit kartum arhati “Know that which pervades the entire body is indestructible. No one is able to destroy the imperishable soul.” (Bg. 2.17) That consciousness is spread throughout the body. It is eternal and spiritual. Through our sense experience, we can also understand that the body is constantly changing from the body of a child to that of an old man, and that this consciousness is continuing. Despite the different bodily changes, consciousness is enduring. The basic principle of knowledge are received from higher authorities, just as preliminary mathematical information is given by the teacher when he informs the student that two plus two equals four. God has given us reason, senses, and consciousness, and by applying them, we can arrive at the proper conclusion.

Pretty cool… http://guru.krishna.org/Articles/2003/03/003.html

I lost your number. Give me a quick call. (I won't try to engage you).

… lookin' after YOU! ............................... Hayagriva dasa: Jung also felt that materialistic progress could be a possible enemy to the individual. “A favorable environment merely strengthens the dangerous tendency to expect everything to originate from outside,” he writes, “even that metamorphosis which external reality cannot provide, mainly, a deep-seated change of the inner man… ” Srila Prabhupada: Yes, everything originates from inside, from the soul. It is confirmed by Bhaktivinoda Öhakura and others that material progress is essentially an expansion of the external energy, maya, illusion. We are livng in illusion, and so-called scientists and philosophers cannot even understand God and their relationship to Him, despite their material advancement. Material advancement and knowledge are actually hindrances to the progressive march of Krsna consciousness. To live a saintly life, we minimize our necessities. We are not after luxurious living. We feel that life is meant for spiritual progress and Krsna consciousness, not for material advancement. Hayagriva dasa: To inspire this deep-seated change in the inner man, Jung feels that a proper teacher is needed, someone to explain religion. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, according to the Vedic injunction, it is essential to seek out a guru, who, by definition, is a representative of God. Saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair (Sri Gurv-astaka 7). The representative of God is worshipped as God, but he never says, “I am God.” Although he is worshippped as God, he is the servant of God. God Himself is always master. Caitanya Mahaprabhua requested everyone to become a guru. “Whatever you are, it doesn’t matter. Simply become a guru and deliver all these people who are in ignorance.” One may say, “I am not very learned. How can I become a guru?” Caitanya Mahaprabhu said that it is not necessary to be a learned scholar, for there are many so-called learned scholars who are fools. It is only necessary to impart Krsna’s instructions, which are already there in Bhagavad-gita. Whoever explains Bhagavad-gita as it is is a guru by definition. If one is fortunate enough to approach such a guru, his life becomes successful.

Hayagriva dasa: Jung feels that modern man should ask himself, “Have I any religious experience and immediate relation to God, and hence that certainty which will keep me, as an individual, from dissolving in the crowd?” Our relationship with God ultimately assures our own individuality. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, all living entities are individuals, and God is the supreme individual. According to the Vedic version, all individuals are subordinate to Him. Nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam (Katha-upanisad 2.2.13). The supreme individual is one, and the subordinate are many. The supreme individual is maintaining His subordinates, just as a father maintains his family. When the children learn to enjoy their father’s property without encroaching upon one another, accepting what is allotted to them, they will attain peace.

Consciousness…( That Is…) Hayagriva dasa: Jung believes that individual consciousness cannot supersede world consciousness. He writes: “If there were to be a conscious existence after death, it would, so it seems to me, have to continue on the level of consciousnes attained by humanity, which in any age has an upper thought variable limit.” Srila Prabhupada: It is clearly explained in Bhagavad-gita that although the body is destroyed, the consciousness continues. According to one’s consciousness, he acquires another body, and again in that body, the consciousness begins to mold its future lives. If a person were a devotee in his past life, he would again become a devotee after his death. Once the material body is destroyed, the same consciousness begins to work in another body. Consequently, we find that some people quickly accept Krsna consciousness, whereas others take a longer time. Bahunam janmanam ante (Bg. 7.19). This indicates that the consciousness is continuing, althought the body is changing. Bharata Maharaja, for instance, changed many bodies, but his consciousness continued, and he remained fully Krsna conscious. We may see a person daily, but we cannot visualize his intelligence. We can understand that a person is intelligent, but we cannot see intelligence itself. When one talks, we can understand that there is intelligence at work. when the gross body is dead and no longer capable of talking, why should we conclude that the intelligence is finished? The instrument for speech is the gross body, but when the body is finished, we should not conclude that consciousenss and intelligence are finished. After the destruction f the gross body, the mind and intelligence continue. Because they require a body to function, they develop a body, and this is the process of the soul’s transmigration. Hayagriva dasa: Still, what of Jung’s contention that the individual’s level of consciousness cannot supersede whatever knowledge is available on this planet? Srila Prabhupada: No, it can supersede, provided we acquire knowledge from authority. You may not have seen India, but a person who has seen India can describe it to you. We may not be able to see Krsna, but we can learn of Him from an authority who knows. In Bhagavad-gita, Krsna tells Arjuna that there is an eternal nature: paras tasmat tu bhavo ’nyo ’vyakto ’vyaktat sanatanah yah sa sarvesu bhutesu nasyatsu na vinasyati “Yet there is another nature, which is eternal and is transcendental to this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme and is never annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part remains as it is.” (Bg. 8.20) On this earth, we ncounter temporary nature. Here, things take birth, remian for some time, change, grow old, and are finally destroyed. There is dissolution in this material world, but there is another world in which there is no dissolution. We have no personal experience of this other world, but we can understand that it exists when we receive information from the authority. It is not necessary to know it by personal experience. Paroksaparoksa. There are different stages of knowledge, and not all knowledge can be acquired by direct perception. That is not possible. Hayagriva dasa: Jung believed in the importance of consciousness elevatin. he writes: “Only here, in life on earth, can the general level of consciousness be raised. That seems to be man’s metaphysical task… ” Srila Prabhupada: Yes, our consciousness should be developed. As stated in Bhagavad-gita: prapya punya-krtam lokan usitva sasvatih samah sucinam srimatam gehe yoga-bhrasto ’bhijayate atha va yoginam eva kule bhavati dhimatam etad dhi durlabhataram loke janma yad idrsa tatra tam buddhi-samyogam labhate paurva-dehikam yatate ca tato bhuyah samsiddhau kuru-nandana “The unsuccessful yogi, after many, many years of enjoyment on the planets of the pious living entities, is born into a family of righteous people, or into a family of rich aristocracy. Or he takes his birth in a family of transcendentalists who are surely great in wisdom. Verily, such a birth is rare in this world. On taking such a birth, he revives the divine consciousness of his previous life, and he again tries to make further progress in order to achieve complete success.” (Bg. 6.41-43) So if one’s yoga practice is incomplete, or if he dies prematurely, his consciousness accompanies him, and in the next life, he begins at the point where he left off. His intelligence is revived. In an ordinary class, we can see that some students learn very quickly, while others cannot understand. This is evidence for the continuation of consciousness. If a person is extraordinarily ntelligent, his previously developed consciousness is being revived. The fact that we have undergone previous births is also evidence for the immortality of the soul.

................................. Hayagriva dasa: Fichte believes that true atheism consists in “… refusing to obey the voice of one’s conscience until one thinks that one can foresee the succes of one’s actions and thus elevating one’s own judgement above that of God and in making oneself into God. He who wills to do evil in order to produce good is a godless person.” Srila Prabhupada: If you do not know God or His orders, how can you verify your duty? Do you simply manufacture your duty? Anyone can do that. First of all, you must understand what is meant by duty. Duty means following the orders given by your superior, but if you have no superior, if you have no conception of the Supreme and His order, how can you knwo your duty? Of course, you may imagine your duty. Is this what he advises? ................................. Hayagriva dasa: Comte distinguishes between atheism and Positivism in this way: “Atheism, evenfrom the intellectual point of view, is a very imperfect form of emancipation; for its tendency is to prolong the metaphysical stage indefinitely by continuing to seek for anew solutions to theological problems instead of setting side all inaccessible researches on the grounds of their utter inutility… The true Positivist spirit consists in studying the How instead of the Why.” Since religious questions can never be answered, they had best be forgotten. Srila Prabhupada: How can man forget? If man does not believe in God, God comes as death. How can man counteract death? From Bhagavad-gita we understand that God appears as death for the atheists, and in this way God convinces the atheists, “Here I am.” No one can avoid this. No one can become independent by atheistic speculation. ................................. PS: Hayagriva dasa: Comte equated intellectual and moral improvement with material progress. He writes: “A nation that has made no efforts to improve itself materially will take but little interest in moral or mental improvement.” Srila Prabhupada: The standard of material improvement is not actually fixed. One person may be satisfied with certain material conditions, while another may be dissatisfied with the same conditions. The question is, “What should the standard of material life be?” As far as Vedic civilization is concerned, the material necessitites are eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. These are present in both the animal and hman kingdoms. Standards, however, vary, according to different cultures.

The Future of an Ilusion Hayagriva dasa: Still, Freud considers belief in God as infantile. In The Future of an Illusion, he writes: “Man cannot remain a child forever; he must venture at last into the hostile world.” Instead of continuing to dwell in such a nursery, man should try to rid himself of the psychic crutch of religion. Srila Prabhupada: What is his definition of childishness? Everyone must be a child, and everyone must have a father. Just as we cannot deny our biological father, we cannot deny the ultimate Supreme Father. Hayagriva dasa: It is not that he is denying biological fathers, but the idea of a Supreme Father, which he felt arouse out of man’s initial helpless state. Srila Prabhupada: Helplessness is always there, because the threefold miseries will always exist in material life. There will always be miseries arising from the body and mind, miseries inflicted by other living entities, and natural catastrophes. In addition, there is always birth, old age, disease, and death. it is only a fool or a rascal who hopes against hope and makes plans to overcome all these difficulties. However we may plan, nature is so strong that it will smash our plans to pieces with the kick of death. Man hopes against hope to adjust material things so that he can be happy in this world, but this is foolishness. Man is helpless at every step. Hayagriva dasa: Freud felt that belief in God the Father is “so patently infantile, so incongruous with reality, that to one whose attitude to humanity is friendly, it is painful to think that the great majority of mortals will never be able to rise above this view of life.” Srila Prabhupada: So what is his reality? Belief in god may be infantile to him, but what is he except a child? How is it that he is more than a child? Can he give an ultimate solution that will rid man of his helplessness? Hayagriva dasa: Well, he personally hoped that psychoanalysis would provide the answers. Srila Prabhupada: How can a common man understand psychoanalysis? The fact is that there is a supreme controller who is present everywhere. Psychoanalysis should begin with this point. Why is he defying this fact?

Hayagriva dasa: He sincerely believed that the maturation process necessarily entails ridding oneself of religion. He writes: “If one attempts to assign religion its place in man’s evolution, it seems not so much to be a lasting acquisition as a parallel to the neuroses which the civilized individual must pass through on his way from childhood to maturity.” Srila Prabhupada: He has reached this conclusion because he has seen so many sentimental religions, but first of all he must understand what religion actually is. Religion is not possible without an understanding of God, and a religion without God cannot truly be called a religion. According to the Vedic system, religion refers to the orders of God; therefore if we have no conception of God, we cannot be said to have a religion. If we do not know God or His nature, how can we know the orders God is giving? ..................................... Hayagriva dasa: Although often avoiding the very subject of religion, Freud sometimes took an agnostic stand. He writes: “Of the reality value of most of them, of most religions we cannot judge; just as they cannot be proved, neither can they be refuted.” Srila Prabhupada: First of all he does not know what religion is. As we have said, religion means the orders given by God. Since he has no conception of God, how can he know anything of god’s orders? He is acquainted only with fictitious religions, which have been described in Srimad-Bhagavatam as kaitava––cheating religions. Real religion is law. Just as you cannot manufacture laws in your home, you cannot manufacture religion.

Again, no serious reply; just emotional appeal. That makes more since than me? …Cheap entertainment and a logistical failure. I'm going back to my policy of not answering these foolish guest(s) and those of their ilk.

No action. Nothing but a bluff. I would expect all the clones to act alike. Can you make a more objective argument? Or is your opinion and hypocrisy enough? (May be enough for you).

You just don't know what you are talking about. As for anger - everyone should be mad as hell at what is going on. And if it takes anger to motivate and move people, then that's good. Properly directed, anger can be a great liberator. Who shows more anger, the aggressor or those exercising defense?

They're wanting something for nothing. [Entitled that is.] After all, Jesus pays the price for "my sins". (He's a free ticket baby!) (May be popular. But is it true?) I'll bet not. I think he made the ultimate sacrifice to give others a chance to advance… not to be accountable for any nonsense his supposed followers do. There's not much spiritual philosophy to support Christianity. (More mysteries than answers) (It's easy to exploit another's ignorance) (Preferrable for most I think).

"First of all books, then loan. However, we cannot hold up printing. That is not possible. This, you must always keep in view. We are not going to… The surplus money we are going to pay. Not that at the cost of stopping printing. You must always keep it in view. When you require money for printing, there is no question of loan or temple building. This should be (our principle)." .............................................. Guest: I would like to show them a path so they won't be cheated any longer. Prabhupada: Provided you know the path. Guest: I'm trying to learn. Prabhupada: So first of all, learn it. Otherwise, you'll be cheating. If you do not knowe the art, and if you want to do some benefit to others, then that is cheating. Suppose a physician he does not know what is the medical science, and if he wants to become a physician, that is cheating… Quack. … Prabhupada; DVD Acharaya 5 series.

Everybody Plays the Fool Ok, so your heart is broken You're sitting around mopin', cryin', cryin' You say you even think about dying Well, before you do anything rash, baby, dig this Everybody plays the fool, sometime There's no exception to the rule, listen baby It may be factual, it may be cruel, I ain't lying Everybody plays the fool Fallin' in love is such an easy thing to do But there's no guarantee that the one you love, is gonna love you Oh, loving eyes they cannot see a certain person could never be Love runs deeper than any ocean, it clouds your mind with emotion Everybody plays the fool, sometime There's no exception to the rule, listen baby It may be factual, it may be cruel, I ain't lying Everybody plays the fool How can you help it, when the music starts to play And your ability to reason, is swept away Oh, heaven on earth is all you see, you're out of touch with reality And now you cry, but when you do, next time around someone cries for you Hey, everybody plays the fool, sometime Use your heart just like a tool, listen baby They never tell you so in school, I wanna say it again, Everybody plays the fool Everybody plays the fool, sometime There's no exception to the rule, listen baby It may be factual, it may be cruel, I ain't lying Everybody plays the fool Every plays the fool, sometime There's no exception to the rule, listen baby It may be factual, it may be cruel, I wanna say it again Everybody plays the fool – Aaron Neville

Krsna argues there is no reason to lament death from either a material or spiritual perspective. …So just don't do anything to invite death unless you're sure it's spiritual. The law won't chase you for being decent. Will they? You have a preooccupation with death? Could it be the same 3rd World threat trying to devour the world? (Maybe death is better than the future they have for you.) (If you're messing with Krsna's devotees, you're in no position to warn of impending disaster.) I think anyone who's verified that Krsna is there, certainly does not try to cheat death. Rather, death becomes their friend… however it may appear to anyone else. I think if people remember death in an advantageous, serious, sober way, it will make them humble. If they are callous with it and make a jesting ploy? Who Knows Who? The Lion Sleeps Tonight We-de-de-de, de-de-de-de-de de, we-um-um-a-way (drum fill) We-de-de-de, de-de-de-de-de de, we-um-um-a-way A wimoweh, a-wimoweh a-wimoweh, a wimoweh A wimoweh, a-wimoweh a-wimoweh, a wimoweh A wimoweh, a-wimoweh a-wimoweh, a wimoweh A wimoweh, a-wimoweh a-wimoweh, a wimoweh In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight In the jungle the quiet jungle the lion sleeps tonight (repeat Wimoweh chorus--with vocal ad lib similar to the intro in theforeground) Near the village the peaceful village the lion sleeps tonight Near the village the quiet village the lion sleeps tonight (repeat wimoweh chorus) Hush my darling, don't fear my darling. The lion sleeps tonight. Hush my darling, don't fear my darling.The lion sleeps tonight (repeat wimoweh chorus with vocal ad lib) – The Tokens

SB 8.3.6 An artist onstage, being covered by attractive dresses and dancing with different movements, is not understood by his audience; similarly, the activities and features of the supreme artist cannot be understood even by the demigods or great sages, and certainly not by those who are unintelligent like animals. Neither the demigods and sages nor the unintelligent can understand the features of the Lord, nor can they express in words His actual position. May that Supreme Personality of Godhead give me protection. PURPORT A similar understanding was expressed by Kuntidevi. The Supreme Lord exists everywhere, within and without. He even exists within the heart. Sarvasya caham hrdi sannivisto [bg. 15.15]. isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese ’rjuna tisthati [bg. 18.61]. Thus it is indicated that one can find the Supreme Lord within one’s heart. There are many, many yogis trying to find Him. Dhyanavasthita-tad-gatena manasa pasyanti yam yoginah [sB 12.13.1]. Nonetheless, even great yogis, demigods, saints and sages have been unable to understand the bodily features of that great artist, nor could they understand the meaning of His movements. What then is to be said of ordinary speculators like the so-called philosophers of this material world? For them He is impossible to understand. Therefore we must accept the statements given by the Supreme when He kindly incarnates to instruct us. We must simply accept the word of Lord Ramacandra, Lord Krsna and Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and follow in Their footsteps. Then it may be possible for us to know the purpose of Their incarnations. janma karma ca me divyam evam yo vetti tattvatah tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so ’rjuna (Bg. 4.9) If by the Lord’s grace one can understand Him, one will immediately be delivered, even within his material body. The material body will no longer have any function, and whatever activities take place with the body will be activities of Krsna consciousness. In this way one may give up his body and return home, back to Godhead. SB 8.3.10 I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the self-effulgent Supersoul, who is the witness in everyone’s heart, who enlightens the individual soul and who cannot be reached by exercises of the mind, words or consciousness. SB 8.3.14-15 My Lord, You are the observer of all the objectives of the senses. Without Your mercy, there is no possibility of solving the problem of doubts. The material world is just like a shadow resembling You. Indeed, one accepts this material world as real because it gives a glimpse of Your existence. My Lord, You are the cause of all causes, but You Yourself have no cause. Therefore You are the wonderful cause of everything. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You, who are the shelter of the Vedic knowledge contained in the sastras like the Pancaratras and Vedanta-sutra, which are Your representations, and who are the source of the parampara system. Because it is You who can give liberation, You are the only shelter for all transcendentalists. Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto You. SB 8.3.17-28 Since an animal such as I has surrendered unto You, who are supremely liberated, certainly You will release me from this dangerous position. Indeed, being extremely merciful, You incessantly try to deliver me. By your partial feature as Paramatma, You are situated in the hearts of all embodied beings. You are celebrated as direct transcendental knowledge, and You are unlimited. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. My Lord, those who are completely freed from material contamination always meditate upon You within the cores of their hearts. You are extremely difficult to attain for those like me who are too attached to mental concoction, home, relatives, friends, money, servants and assistants. You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, uncontaminated by the modes of nature. You are the reservoir of all enlightenment, the supreme controller. I therefore offer my respectful obeisances unto You. After worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead, those who are interested in the four principles of religion, economic development, sense gratification and liberation obtain from Him what they desire. What then is to be said of other benedictions? Indeed, sometimes the Lord gives a spiritual body to such ambitious worshipers. May that Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is unlimitedly merciful, bestow upon me the benediction of liberation from this present danger and from the materialistic way of life. Unalloyed devotees, who have no desire other than to serve the Lord, worship Him in full surrender and always hear and chant about His activities, which are most wonderful and auspicious. Thus they always merge in an ocean of transcendental bliss. Such devotees never ask the Lord for any benediction. I, however, am in danger. Thus I pray to that Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is eternally existing, who is invisible, who is the Lord of all great personalities, such as Brahma, and who is available only by transcendental bhakti-yoga. Being extremely subtle, He is beyond the reach of my senses and transcendental to all external realization. He is unlimited, He is the original cause, and He is completely full in everything. I offer my obeisances unto Him. The Supreme Personality of Godhead creates His minor parts and parcels, the jiva-tattva, beginning with Lord Brahma, the demigods and the expansions of Vedic knowledge [sama, rg, Yajur and Atharva] and including all other living entities, moving and nonmoving, with their different names and characteristics. As the sparks of a fire or the shining rays of the sun emanate from their source and merge into it again and again, the mind, the intelligence, the senses, the gross and subtle material bodies, and the continuous transformations of the different modes of nature all emanate from the Lord and again merge into Him. He is neither demigod nor demon, neither human nor bird or beast. He is not woman, man, or neuter, nor is He an animal. He is not a material quality, a fruitive activity, a manifestation or nonmanifestation. He is the last word in the discrimination of “not this, not this,” and He is unlimited. All glories to the Supreme Personality of Godhead! I do not wish to live anymore after I am released from the attack of the crocodile. What is the use of an elephant’s body covered externally and internally by ignorance? I simply desire eternal liberation from the covering of ignorance. That covering is not destroyed by the influence of time. Now, fully desiring release from material life, I offer my respectful obeisances unto that Supreme Person who is the creator of the universe, who is Himself the form of the universe and who is nonetheless transcendental to this cosmic manifestation. He is the supreme knower of everything in this world, the Supersoul of the universe. He is the unborn, supremely situated Lord. I offer my respectful obeisances unto Him. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Supreme, the Supersoul, the master of all mystic yoga, who is seen in the core of the heart by perfect mystics when they are completely purified and freed from the reactions of fruitive activity by practicing bhakti-yoga. My Lord, You are the controller of formidable strength in three kinds of energy. You appear as the reservoir of all sense pleasure and the protector of the surrendered souls. You possess unlimited energy, but You are unapproachable by those who are unable to control their senses. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You again and again. ................................. From (my) personal experience, – which doesn't meran much to most of you [i get] – chanting the Holy Names of the Lord is very subtle and impossible to execute mechanically. If you are a bhakta and have not taken vows, then reading Prabhupada's literatures may do more for the speculative mind. (You can commit many offenses while you chant). The utmost importance is getting yourself in the mood… "Hearing is the basis." …Thus, preaching is the basis.

Just a reminder… Bg 17.11-22 Of sacrifices, that sacrifice performed according to duty and to scriptural rules, and with no expectation of reward, is of the nature of goodness. PURPORT The general tendency is to offer sacrifice with some purpose in mind, but here it is stated that sacrifice should be performed without any such desire. It should be done as a matter of duty. Take, for example, the performance of rituals in temples or in churches. Generally they are performed with the purpose of material benefit, but that is not in the mode of goodness. One should go to a temple or church as a matter of duty, offer respect to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and offer flowers and eatables. Everyone thinks that there is no use in going to the temple just to worship God. But worship for economic benefit is not recommended in the scriptural injunction. One should go simply to offer respect to the Deity. That will place one in the mode of goodness. It is the duty of every civilized man to obey the injunctions of the scriptures and offer respect to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Bg 17.12 But that sacrifice performed for some material end or benefit or performed ostentatiously, out of pride, is of the nature of passion, O chief of the Bharatas. And that sacrifice performed in defiance of scriptural injunctions, in which no spiritual food is distributed, no hymns are chanted and no remunerations are made to the priests, and which is faithless—that sacrifice is of the nature of ignorance. The austerity of the body consists in this: worship of the Supreme Lord, the brahmanas, the spiritual master, and superiors like the father and mother. Cleanliness, simplicity, celibacy and nonviolence are also austerities of the body. Austerity of speech consists in speaking truthfully and beneficially and in avoiding speech that offends. One should also recite the Vedas regularly. And serenity, simplicity, gravity, self-control and purity of thought are the austerities of the mind. This threefold austerity, practiced by men whose aim is not to benefit themselves materially but to please the Supreme, is of the nature of goodness. Those ostentatious penances and austerities which are performed in order to gain respect, honor and reverence are said to be in the mode of passion. They are neither stable nor permanent. And those penances and austerities which are performed foolishly by means of obstinant self-torture, or to destroy or injure others, are said to be in the mode of ignorance. That gift which is given out of duty, at the proper time and place, to a worthy person, and without expectation of return, is considered to be charity in the mode of goodness. But charity performed with the expectation of some return, or with a desire for fruitive results, or in a grudging mood, is said to be charity in the mode of passion. And charity performed at an improper place and time and given to unworthy persons without respect and with contempt is charity in the mode of ignorance.

Now wait a minute! I can show you I understand the source of the lighbulb power… watch me unscrew it!

Clone! (Mr. Smith, you don't wanna see part III!) (Must be what all the clones are for: to show real vaisnavas are interested in such advanced topics). The ad (STING… to those who know): I mean if other advanced vaisnavas have recently come here to act like me, then it was arranged by providence… (and we really are suppose to reach KC through challenge and intimidation… because of coarse, we're right… WHEN YOU agree with "qualified" me). (I hope they don't ask me my qualifications… %%**… My number? …Uh, that's a government secret… cross our hearts and pray… but don't let me see you do it where others can see.) (CERTAIN peeple may not like that).