Flora

Dear Tenali, If you are a hindu then your question doesn't make any sense because you should then agree that what we are is not a mere body but individual souls, our material body is like clothes that we change from one life to another. Individual souls are eternal and immortal: "there was never a time when you, me and all those kings did not exist...And it is also faulse to think that in the future we we will not be" said Krishna. in the Gita chpt 2. Thus when it is said that Shri Raghavendra is still present in the Vrindavan, most probably what is meant is that his soul is still there, although of course his physical body has been consumed as any other material element. Second for what regards Raghavendra's swami's life, it is very wrong to treat him as "fake" because even if you don't believe in the miracles he has accomplished, still he was a great Acharya and a Saint and model for all of us as a devotee, so for this reason only he deserves immense respect.

Then if Iskon members recognise that Krishna's skin is dark blue, why their Idols are always white?

Many times in my life the idea of dedicating my whole life in the study and teaching of philosophy and religious scriptures has occured to my mind, and during my studies of the same I have never found any prohibition in doing so. But when looking at the vidyapeetha I realised that only men seem to be allowed, and really i don't understand why it is so. Of course in Ancient times, women were not supposed to take part in vedic studies and little access to knowledge as they were not considered as equal. But today that we recognise that women have same spritual & intellectual capacities, really I cannot understand why it is still so. When reading Bhagavadgita or any of its comments I never feel that God is adressing to men only, he is adressing mindkind as a whole and there is no discrimination because afterall we are all Souls. I feel that if women couldn't be great devotees and dedicate their lifes to God, He would have made clearly this distinction, but i can't see any of such in His words...