suchandra

Good points, what seems astonishing, in Tibet, the oldest child is forced against its will when still a child to become a monk - the youngest daughter inherits everything, because she can serve the parents for the longest span of time. Looks according our western law somewhat like the tilted position of violation of human rights. Similar like the Acoma, Tibet is a matriarchal society and the youngest daughter inherits the home of the parents. After all it is the youngest daughter that most likely will be the best able to care for aging parents.

The Dalai Lama might now be well-known but few really know much about him. For example, contrary to widespread belief, he eats meat. He has done so (he claims) on a doctor’s advice following liver complications from hepatitis. When checking with several doctors none would agree that meat consumption is necessary or even desirable for a damaged liver. What has the Dalai Lama actually achieved for Tibetans inside Tibet? If his goal has been independence for Tibet or, more recently, greater autonomy, then he has been a miserable failure. He has kept Tibet on the front pages around the world, but to what end? The main achievement seems to have been to become a celebrity. Possibly, had he stayed quiet, fewer Tibetans might have been tortured, killed and generally suppressed by China. In any event, the current Dalai Lama is 72 years old. His successor — a reincarnation — will be appointed as a child and it will be many years before he plays a meaningful role. As far as China is concerned, that is one problem that will take care of itself, irrespective of whether or not John Howard or Kevin Rudd meet the current Dalai Lama.

ok, I read it to you, where is he? He is quitting the GBC to be in GOLOKA.

What you mean, I clearly answered the question.

At Wikipedia it still says that, Marchese Guglielmo Marconi [guʎ'ʎe:lmo mar'ko:ni] (25 April 1874 - 20 July 1937) was an Italian inventor, best known for his development of a radiotelegraph system, which served as the foundation for the establishment of numerous affiliated companies worldwide. Prabhupada points out below, wrong, it was Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose. Harikeśa: It shocked a lot of people when they made the test of bringing a scissor to a plant, and they put some electrodes on it and they found that the plant was reacting with fear. Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. That machine has been discovered by Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose. He discovered this wireless telegram, radio. But Marconi took from him, and British government helped him. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: The British again. Prabhupāda: Britishers were advertising outside India that “Indians are uncivilized. Therefore we are making them civilized. Therefore we should stay there. Don’t object.” Because United Nations, they were asking, “Why you are occupying India?” So they used to forward this argument, that “These people are uncivilized. We are making them civilized.” Now, how there should be Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose? Therefore they used to suppress always. Everything Indian wanted to do, they would suppress: big businesses, this mining… They would suppress. This Morarji, Sumati Morarji, her father-in-law started that… He had to face so many impediments from the Britishers to start the shipping company. Formerly there was no shipping company, Indian. Now, before that, there was shipping, not shipping company, but navigation was there from India to Rome, Greece, Turkey, there was regular business of spices and fine cloth. Later on, this large-scale shipping industry, that was done by the Europeans. So when Indian wanted to start, they would supress. The Tata iron industry, he had to face so many difficulties. Formerly, even if you wanted to bring some iron frame, it would come from Sheffield. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: From where? Prabhupāda: Sheffield. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Oh, England. Prabhupāda: England. So everything Indian required, they would supply, and they would govern and they would exploit. Therefore they became so rich—simply by exploiting India. And Indian soldiers, they expanded empire—Africa, Burma. That’s all, all Indian exploitation, Indian men, money, and exploitation. As soon as they lost India, they lost whole empire. Cyavana: Now they are also suffering. Prabhupāda: Eh? That… That must be. They will be suffering more and more. They will be beggars. They have done so much sinful activities for expanding their empire. Now they will have to become beggars. And within two hundred years, everything finished. They started their exploitation from seventeenth, eighteenth century. And in the twentieth century, everything finished. The French people and the English people… This is also one of the examples. Both the nations came here to exploit. That was the competition in… The French people and the English people, they would go for colonization, fight, and establi… America was also that, Canada, everywhere. But because they were their own men, they were given dominion status. Almost free. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Greedy. Very greedy. Brahmānanda: At one time all of Africa was controlled by the European nations. Completely. Prabhupāda: Yes. Mainly these French and… Brahmānanda: French, British, Germans, Portuguese, Dutch, Spanish. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: In South Africa, the British also tried to take over South Africa. There was a war called the Boer War. Prabhupāda: Yes. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So during World War I and World War II many of the South Africans, they actually sided with the Germans because they were against the English so much. Prabhupāda: African means black Africans. No? Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: No. South Africans, they were Europeans. The British started the first concentration camp. They took these “Afrikaners” as they call them, Europeans. They put them on an island called St. Helena. That was actually the first concentration camp, by the British. Prabhupāda: This is going on. Still, even the opposite party, they are not disgusted—“This material life is not very peaceful.” They are not disgusted. Brahmānanda: Now they are thinking, “We’ll be independent…” Prabhupāda: Yes. That… They are trying to be independent. And India… Just like India has got independent, and now the position is “emergency.” They do not think in this way, that “Independence or dependence, we are actually dependent under the laws of nature.” That they do not think. They are thinking… The same example as I gave, that “This boil is here. Why not here? It is very painful,” like that. They have no sense that so-called dependence or independence, he has to suffer. That he does not know. Mūḍha nābhijānāti. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: In the Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa explains, vāsudeva sarvam iti, that He is everything and that He is everywhere. Prabhupāda: Yes. Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So this verse, mūḍho ’ya nābhijānāti, that the mūḍhas, they can’t perceive Kṛṣṇa. So actually it’s simply that we’re covered, isn’t it? But Kṛṣṇa is always there. Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is always there, but yogamāyā-samāvṛtaḥ. He does not know Kṛṣṇa on account of being covered by the curtain of yogamāyā. Nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yogamāyā-samāvṛtaḥ [Bg. 7.25]. But we can make them all happy by Kṛṣṇa consciousness, if they follow our instruction, even in this material world. Pūrṇaṁ sukhāyate. Full happiness we can give them if they follow our principle. Morning Walk Conversation with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda October 3, 1975, Mauritius full conversation: http://causelessmercy.com/t/t/751003mw.mau.htm

Australian devotee: Śrīla Prabhupāda, in New Zealand we have a situation where the main industry is killing animals, the biggest industry, yet there is so much rain, so much nice atmosphere over there. Why is this? Why is there such a nice atmosphere but they are killing so many cows? Is that that they are innocent and they do not know and so Krishna is not punishing them so much? According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there were 854,122 legal induced abortions in the US in 2003 WIKIPEDIA Prabhupāda: Yes, they will be punished....so many motor accidents. And there will be war. Then wholesale punishment. Then killing, being killed within the womb of the mother. They are being punished. Nowadays these things have been introduced. Now this child which is being killed by the mother, they are all these sinful men. They cannot come out even, out of the womb of the mother. There they are killed. Nature’s law is very strict. Morning Walk Conversation with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda May 23, 1975, Melbourne

Prabhupada as well as Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja might have considered that to appoint successor gurus who initiate their own disciples would split up the movement and render it too weak in order to fight the materialists who don't leave without a struggle in this age of kali-yuga. So they both seem to have tried to first of all make the preaching strong and not break it up at the beginning stage by creating camps, or, even worse, installing unqualified parampara gurus. Prabhupada preached in the West for only 10 years. So how to expect that his movement was strong enough for such kind of experiments like they're documented above? Of course, Krishna's movement cannot be even defeated when run by only 5 devotees who strictly follow. But there has to be someone who really follows. Otherwise even the biggest Vaishnava institution can be brought down by the non-Vaishnavas within a short period of time.

Files are pretty huge - recommended to use a download manager in case there's a break up. Albums Check out the Sample Pack which contains 2 files from each album Download the albums below www.iskconmedia.com

Vrindavana Widows Film http://en.epochtimes.com/news/8-4-30/69991.html <table class="author" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td align="left">By: Madalina Hubert Epoch Times Toronto Staff </td> <td align="right">May 10, 2008</td> </tr></tbody></table> A widow from the Association of Widows Alone, Rajasthan, India Photo by Noemi Weis (courtesy of HotDocs.ca) Widows are second-class citizens in India. They are stigmatized, neglected and seen as a burden to society. But it is time for change. This is the message sent by The Forgotten Woman, the touching documentary by Indian born Canadian director Dilip Mehta, which premiered at the Hot Docs Festival in Toronto on Thursday. The film follows on the trail of award-winning movie Water (directed by his sister Deepa Mehta) which first brought the plight of Indian widows to international audiences in 2005. But while Water was a fictional story set in the 1930s, The Forgotten Woman is a very real depiction of the life of widows in India today. This distinction was emphasized by Deepa Mehta at a Q&A following the screening (she is also the executive producer/writer of the documentary). With 45 million widows facing widespread discrimination, poverty and abuse, the issue certainly needs to be addressed. The film focuses primarily on the temple city Vrindavan, where poverty dominates and women come as much for food as for spiritual liberation. Vrindavan is a place of refuge for many West Bengali women who are shunned or abused by their own families following the death of their husbands. While there are many factors contributing to the plight of Indian widows today, including antiquated traditions and ignorance, the gradual decline of the extended family also shoulders some of the blame. The film takes the viewer on a journey from the rural to the urban, from poor villages to Vrindavan to New Delhi. But it is almost like entering different worlds--the contrast between these women's lives is striking. The poor women of the slums of Vrindavan, forced to beg for a mouthful of rice, are a far cry from the educated middle class widows of New Delhi. But despite that, they all share the discrimination faced by widows in Indian society. Hauntingly melancholy music and stunningly beautiful photography (director Dilip Mehta is an award-winning photojournalist) frame the stories of these women and capture both the deep pain and humiliation, but also the strength and dignity of the human spirit living in adversity. It is a testimony to the power of the camerawork that one does not only witness these women's lives, but one almost becomes a part of their lives. Ultimately the film is about hope. The film introduces the viewer to two women who are actively trying to enact change in the lives of these women. Dr. Mohini Giri has been actively working to provide shelter and support for many of the widows of Vrindavan, while Canadian born Ginny Shrivastava aims to educate and empower women to overcome their dire circumstances through her organization Strong Woman Alone. Their work shows that through persistence and determination, even deeply embedded prejudice can change. As Dr. Giri reminded the audience at the Hot Docs Festival, real change comes from the community not necessarily from the government. Fundamentally the film is about awareness – after all, only through the power of awareness can one ensure that widows are no longer the forgotten women of India. The Hot Docs Festival is the largest documentary film festival in North America, screening over 170 films. It ran from April 17-27 in Toronto, Canada.

Could be that Jayadvaita Swami has the answer - it is due the GBC: Jayadvaita Swami: This year certain things done (and not done) by the GBC body and by some of its members and functionaries have sorely alienated me. I see sustained and determined behavior I look upon as spiritually offensive, philosophically off track, ethically crummy, and pragmatically ill advised. I have therefore chosen to distance myself from the GBC. I have resigned from the only GBC committee of which I was a member. And though I'm still on the "GBC-BBT Relations Committee" ex officio, I have stopped taking part in it. I skipped the Ratha-yatra festivals in New York and Los Angeles. And this year, for the first time since the "zonal acarya" days, I expect to skip the Mayapur festival. I respect that the GBC body is the ultimate managing authority for ISKCON, and I wish the body well.

National patriot Abanti Bhattacharya says, India reveals flawed Tibet policy By Abanti Bhattacharya http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/IL07Df01.html The recent decision by India's ruling United Progressive Alliance government to bar ministers from attending a felicitation ceremony for the Dalai Lama is an indication not only of the blunders committed by the government in its foreign policy decision-making, but more perilously it exposes the flawed nature of India's policy towards Tibet. India has so far failed to understand the nuances in Chinese diplomatic practice and negotiating tactics. It has time and again fallen into the Chinese trap, sacrificing its national interests in the process. Clearly, China is tackling its Tibet problem at two levels. One, it is involving the Dalai Lama's representatives in fruitless talks on the resolution of the Tibetan problem, while also disparaging him as a "splittist" who aims to disintegrate China. Two, it is arm-twisting India on the border dispute by raising the Tawang district issue and asking India to remove its army bunkers from its outposts at Batang La near the India-Bhutan-China tri-junction, while at the same time mesmerizing the Indian leadership with rhetoric on India-China joint leadership in bringing about an Asian renaissance. China's Tibet policy forms the linchpin of its nationalist project. Its sovereignty over Tibet has significant ramifications not only for its national integrity but also for stability in its other minority areas, particularly Xinjiang. If Tibet falls from China's grip, Xinjiang would follow suit. The bottom line of China's Tibet policy thus has been the maintenance of its sovereignty over Tibet through military and economic means, whereby the region is fully integrated with the mainland and Tibetans are reduced to a minority in their own province. More importantly, China's Tibet policy has significant external security ramifications owing to the entanglement of the Tibet issue in the Sino-Indian border dispute. India inherited the British policy of sustaining Tibet as a buffer zone and Tibet's de facto independent status under Chinese suzerainty suited its national security interests. In the post-1949 period, when the People's Republic of China came into being, India urged China to let Tibet be an autonomous region, as this would be in line with its historical status, its religious, cultural and political identity, and minimize China's military presence in the region. However, the entry of 20,000 PLA (People's Liberation Army) troops in 1950-51 into Tibet ended its independent status. The Chinese occupation of Tibet brought to the fore the issue of India-China border. During his visit to China in 1954, Jawaharlal Nehru raised the issue of inaccurate border alignment in some Chinese maps to which Chinese premier Zhou Enlai replied that those maps were reproductions of the old Kuomintang maps and that the Chinese government had had no time to revise them. Ironically, these two developments formed the undercurrent of the Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai era (India and China are brothers)when India signed the agreement with China on trade and intercourse between India and Tibet on April 29, 1954. Under the agreement, India gave up all extra-territorial rights and privileges that it had inherited from the British Indian government and recognized Tibet as part of China. The first official Chinese statement on the Sino-Indian border dispute came on January 23, 1959, in response to Nehru's letter of December 14, 1958, in which he had drawn Chinese attention to the incorrect Sino-Indian border alignment shown in Chinese maps. Zhou Enlai wrote saying that the Sino-Indian border was never delimited and that China had never recognized the McMahon Line. It may be recalled that the British had delineated the McMahon line as the boundary between India and Tibet following a tripartite agreement among the British India, Tibet and China in 1914 but the treaty was not ratified by China. After the India-China 1962 war China went on to claim about 90,000 square kilometers of Indian territory in the eastern sector and 38,000 square kilometers in the Aksai Chin area. China's Tibet policy thus had brought to the fore a serious border dispute between India and China, and it has remained intractable till date. Indeed, China's claim over Tawang (Arunachal Pradesh) on the basis of old Tibetan religious and monastic links is a reminder of the fact that the Tibetan issue is far from over. In fact, the 11th round of the meeting between the special representatives of the two countries in September 2007 ended on an inconclusive note partly because of the Tawang issue. The former Chinese ambassador to New Delhi, Zhou Gang, said that as the Chinese people would never accept the "McMahon line", India would have to make substantial adjustments in the Eastern sector by giving Tawang to China. India's policy towards Tibet has suffered because of its many dilemmas. In the 1950s, though India opposed China's invasion of Tibet, it refused to sponsor a Tibetan appeal to the United Nations, turned down US proposals for cooperation in support of the Tibetan resistance and persuaded the young Dalai Lama not to flee abroad but to reach an agreement with the Chinese government. All this forced the Dalai Lama to sign a 17-point agreement with Beijing in May 1951. This Indian policy stemmed from the need to preserve Tibet as an autonomous region within China, while simultaneously advancing ties with Beijing. Consequently, India signed the 1954 agreement with China on Tibet, in which it virtually surrendered its Tibetan card. The 1956 uprising in Tibet exposed the insincerity of the Chinese towards granting autonomy to Tibet and in an effort to retrieve the lost ground India granted asylum to the Dalai Lama in 1959. But Beijing saw the granting of asylum to Dalai Lama and enabling him to mobilize international support as an anti-China policy. Consequently, in all subsequent India-China joint statements, it ensured the insertion of a clause on India's acceptance of Tibet as a part of China. By repeatedly reiterating over the years that Tibet is a part of China, India diluted its leverage not only in shoring up the Tibetan cause but also in its border negotiations with China. At the same time, China continues to fear that India might use the Tibetan card at some point in the future. Despite these Chinese fears, India has steadfastly avoided using the Tibetan card as a bargaining strategy. Given its tradition of pursuing an independent foreign policy, it is incomprehensible why India is buckling down under Chinese pressure on Tibet. It is well known that given the present dynamics of India-China relations with greater synergy as the goal, New Delhi is not likely to take up the Tibetan cause actively. But at the same time, it is well within the parameters of Indian foreign policy to regard the Dalai Lama as Tibet's spiritual leader. When China hosted the World Buddhist Forum, no eyebrows were raised though the event had significant political import. India, being the land of Buddha, should take the initiative to felicitate the Dalai Lama. After all, the Dalai Lama is not demanding independence but is only legitimately demanding the preservation of Tibetan identity, religion and culture within Chinese frontiers. India lacks the political will to creatively use the Tibetan card and is losing an important leverage in its negotiations with China. India has the Tibet card if it chooses to use. The very presence of the Dalai Lama in India along with 120,000 Tibetan refugees spread across 35 settlements is leverage for India. Further, the Dalai Lama recognizes the 1914 Simla agreement, in which case the Chinese claims on Tawang on the basis of history do not hold ground. In any case, historically, the Tawang tract did not belong to China. The Chinese side in their dialog with the Tibetan Task Force have tried to persuade the Tibetans to accept Arunachal Pradesh as Chinese territory, to which the Tibetans have firmly refused. Interestingly, while the Chinese are trying to solve the border dispute with India through special representatives group meetings, they are also simultaneously holding talks with the Tibetans on the Tibet issue. This indicates entanglement of the Tibetan issue with the India-China border dispute. Therefore, the problem of Tibet including the fate of Tibetan refugees in India and the border dispute cannot be solved effectively without a tripartite participation of India, China and Tibet. India should explore ways to involve the Tibetans in the border resolution. In fact, an effective solution to the India-China border dispute would depend on involving the Tibetans as representatives in the ongoing border negotiations. It may be similar to the Sino-Japanese history issue where a joint committee has been set up to resolve the history question. India-China-Tibet need a joint historical research to resolve the "leftover" of history. Dr Abanti Bhattacharya, associate fellow, Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses (IDSA), Delhi.

Right, except that you support it by paying tax, see below. Slightly remember that we become implicated in karma by consciously donating for a sin, but this may be not true? For example you donate for people who buy drugs with your money. Could be however that many Vaishnavas also smoke dope. But so far I found the Theist Vaishnavas are nowadays the most nice and liberal people on Earth, they even praise folks like Hugh Hefner and his Playboy mag as sincere and respectable ideal for modern society. http://www.atmayogi.com/node/508 <!-- end leadin graphic --> <hr noshade="noshade" size="1"> <!-- standing head --> BRAVE NEW SCHOOLS <!-- end standing head --><!-- head --> Prof teaches 'being gay' with taxpayer funding <!-- end head --><!-- deck --> 'Being homosexual doesn't mean you don't learn how to become one' http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59627 <!-- end deck --> <hr size="1">Posted: May 11, 2008 1:00 am Eastern <!--- copywrite only show on NON commentary pages as per joseph meeting 8/23/06 ------> <!-- copyright --> © 2008 WorldNetDaily.com <!-- end copyright --> <!-- begin bodytext --> A University of Michigan class that earlier prompted state lawmakers to consider a 10 percent budget penalty for the school and is taught by a homosexual professor openly endorsing the "uncompromising political militancy" of "lesbian and gay is returning. But so is the opposition. <table align="right"> <tbody><tr> <td width="146"> David Halperin</td> </tr> </tbody></table> The class at the tax-funded University of Michigan in Ann Arbor is called "How to be Gay: Male Homosexuality and Initiation," and is taught by David Halperin. It surfaced in 2000, returned the following year and again a couple years later. Now university officials have confirmed it is returning, and Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, said "it was and remains an outrageous abuse of taxpayer dollars." "Each time it has been offered we have renewed our objections to it. The first time around the Michigan House of Representatives came with a few votes of cutting the university budget by 10 percent," he said. He said Halperin "makes no bones about it on the other side of the world, knowingly using tax dollars to promote the militant political agenda of homosexuality." Glenn was referring to Halperin's writings on his activities as part of his work in Australia, where he spends part of each year. There, Halperin has written, "The fact is that lesbian and gay studies simply is the academic wing of the lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgender movement … no one in the field has ever (to my knowledge at least) contested this…" "Let there be no mistake about it: lesbian and gay studies, as it is currently practiced in the U.S., expresses an uncompromising political militancy," he wrote. "We have lobbied universities and professional associations to adopt and enforce anti-discrimination policies, to recognise same-sex couples, to oppose the U.S. military's anti-gay policy, to suspend professional activities in states that criminalize gay sex or limit access to abortion, and to intervene on behalf of human rights for lesbians, bisexuals, and gay men at the local and national levels," he wrote in Australian Humanities Review. "Just because you happen to be a gay man doesn't mean that you don't have to learn how to become one," he writes in the University of Michigan course description. "Gay men do some of that learning on their own, but often we learn how to be gay from others, either because we look to them for instruction or because they simply tell us what they think we need to know, whether we ask for their advice or not." Further, he advises potential students, "the course itself will constitute an experiment in the very process of initiation that it hopes to understand." University officials posted a defense of the decision to allow the course on the university website, a tacit acknowledgment of its controversial nature. "This course is not about encouraging people to become gay, but about how individuals in our society create meaning and beliefs about gay culture from literature and the arts," explained Robert M. Owen, associate dean for undergraduate education. "The course also makes no assumptions about the sexual orientation of its students." "We are aware that much of the concern is with the title of the course and acknowledge that the interpretation of that title is very troubling for some people. The English Department … approved this course," he said. Provost Paul Courant boasted of the evolution of the school into one "of the finest public institutions of higher education in the world" and attributed that to "the free and open exchange of ideas." He said Halperin's course "is similar to literature courses taught at many other universities in our state and across our country." Concerns over Halperin's actions were raised even within the homosexual community. In an online forum for homosexuals, one wrote, "Having a course in initiating young people into the gay lifestyle? Isn't that what Christian Fundementalists (sic) claim actually goes on in the gay community? Thank you Dr. Halperin for confirming their suspicions." Halperin also has written that, "I still find the possibility of an open, uncensored, honest, and sexually explicit gay male literature thrilling, and I expected my students to do the same…" "Lesbian/gay studies necessarily straddles scholarship and politics …. It would be hard to be more explicit than that," said Halperin, who is has written several homosexual-oriented books. In the past, Glenn promised, "Every time U-M offers this ludicrous class, you and I cannot fail to speak out against it." Reports said in 2003, Halperin refused to meet Glenn's offer for a face-to-face public debate on the merits of the class.

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja also didn't consider to compromise - in fact it seems that he was quite strict in every respect. Of course this not always makes friends, but in this way we can also better understand Srila Prabhupada's strictness like he followed his guru's example. Prabhupāda: Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura was so strict that because Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur married twice, he used to say, “strī- saṅgī, attached to woman,” even his father. He was very strict. Sometimes when he would be angry, he’d, “You strī-saṅgī.” And don’t discuss this thing. He was very strict. No excuse, no compromise. Tamāla Krishna: That’s where you got all of that from. Prabhupāda: My is imitation, but his was real. All these Navadvīpa people were afraid of him. Tamāla Krishna: Afraid. Prabhupāda: Strong-hearted. They made a, what is called, conspiracy to kill him. Hṛdayānanda: Who did this? Prabhupāda: Oh, the Navadvīpa gosvāmīs. They raised 25,000 rupees and wanted to bribe this police officer that “You take this money. We shall finish him. Don’t take any action.” Tamāla Krishna: But the policeman said? Prabhupāda: Refused. “Yes, we take bribe, but not in such cases.” Morning Walk Conversation with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda February 10, 1976, Māyāpura

Jatropha grows at badlands, doesn't need special care and produces a Diesel with much less sulfur than any fossile fuels. India's farmers immediately took the chance to grow Jatropha big-style. Chhattisgarh plans to earn Rs.40 billion annually by selling seeds after 2010. The central government has provided Rs.135 million to Chhattisgarh this year for developing jatropha nursery facilities. http://sandeepozarde.rediffiland.com/scripts/xanadu_diary_view.php?blogId=1126511311&postId=1162443188 Jatropha: Biodiesel in India My compilation on Jatropha, this is really exciting to see such a rapid development in India. Jatropha the wonder plant produces seeds with an oil content of 37%. The oil can be combusted as fuel without being refined. It burns with clear smoke-free flame, tested successfully as fuel for simple diesel engine. The by-products are press cake a good organic fertilizer, oil contains also insecticide. Jatropha curcus is a drought-resistant perennial, growing well in marginal/poor soil. It is easy to establish, grows relatively quickly and lives, producing seeds for 50 years. It is found to be growing in many parts of the country, rugged in nature and can survive with minimum inputs and easy to propagate. Medically it is used for diseases like cancer, piles, snakebite, paralysis, dropsy etc. this is amazing! Jatropha grows wild in many areas of India and even thrives on infertile soil. A good crop can be obtained with little effort. Depending on soil quality and rainfall, oil can be extracted from the jatropha nuts after two to five years. The annual nut yield ranges from 0.5 to 12 tons. The kernels consist of oil to about 60 percent; this can be transformed into biodiesel fuel through esterification. Family: Euphorbiaceae Synonyms: Curcas purgans Medic. Vernacular/common names: English- physic nut, purging nut; Hindi - Ratanjyot Jangli erandi; Malayalam - Katamanak; Tamil - Kattamanakku; Telugu - Pepalam; Kannada - Kadaharalu; Gujarathi - Jepal; Sanskrit - Kanana randa. Distribution and habitat It is still uncertain where the centre of origin is, but it is believed to be Mexico and Central America. It has been introduced to Africa and Asia and is now culti-vated world-wide. This highly drought-resistant spe-cies is adapted to arid and semi-arid conditions. The current distribution shows that introduction has been most successful in the drier regions of the tropics with annual rainfall of 300-1000 mm. It occurs mainly at lower altitudes (0-500 m) in areas with average an-nual temperatures well above 20°C but can grow at higher altitudes and tolerates slight frost. It grows on well-drained soils with good aeration and is well adapted to marginal soils with low nutrient content. Botanical Features It is a small tree or shrub with smooth gray bark, which exudes a whitish colored, watery, latex when cut. Normally, it grows between three and five meters in height, but can attain a height of up to eight or ten meters under favourable conditions. Leaves It has large green to pale-green leaves, alternate to sub-opposite, three-to five-lobed with a spiral phyllotaxis. Flowers The petiole length ranges between 6-23 mm. The inflorescence is formed in the leaf axil. Flowers are formed terminally, individually, with female flowers usually slightly larger and occurs in the hot seasons. In conditions where continuous growth occurs, an unbalance of pistillate or staminate flower production results in a higher number of female flowers. Fruits Fruits are produced in winter when the shrub is leafless, or it may produce several crops during the year if soil moisture is good and temperatures are sufficiently high. Each inflorescence yields a bunch of approximately 10 or more ovoid fruits. A three, bi-valved cocci is formed after the seeds mature and the fleshy exocarp dries. Seeds The seeds become mature when the capsule changes from green to yellow, after two to four months Flowering and fruiting habit The trees are deciduous, shedding the leaves in the dry season. Flowering occurs during the wet season and two flowering peaks are often seen. In permanently hu-mid regions, flowering occurs throughout the year. The seeds mature about three months after flowering. Early growth is fast and with good rainfall conditions nursery plants may bear fruits after the first rainy season, direct sown plants after the second rainy season. The flowers are pollinated by insects especially honey bees. Ecological Requirements Jatropha curcas grows almost anywhere , even on gravelly, sandy and saline soils. It can thrive on the poorest stony soil. It can grow even in the crevices of rocks. The leaves shed during the winter months form mulch around the base of the plant. The organic matter from shed leaves enhance earth-worm activity in the soil around the root-zone of the plants, which improves the fertility of the soil. Regarding climate, Jatropha curcas is found in the tropics and subtropics and likes heat, although it does well even in lower temperatures and can withstand a light frost. Its water requirement is extremely low and it can stand long periods of drought by shedding most of its leaves to reduce transpiration loss. Jatropha is also suitable for preventing soil erosion and shifting of sand dunes. Biophysical limits Altitude: 0-500 m, Mean annual temperature: 20-28 deg. C, Mean annual rainfall: 300-1000 mm or more. Soil type: Grows on well-drained soils with good aeration and is well adapted to marginal soils with low nutrient content. On heavy soils, root formation is reduced. Jatropha is a highly adaptable species, but its strength as a crop comes from its ability to grow on very poor and dry sites. +++ Wild jatropha stirs hope of biodiesel bounty Firms are contracting villagers to grow the hardy, oil-rich plant Hari Ramachandran. Malegaon Reuters: The glow from burning jatropha seed torches has often saved Maruti Chindu from treading on snakes, but now he carefully nurtures them for a use that he never imagined before — running cars and trucks. On the hilly grasslands of Maharashtra, near the village of Malegaon, Chindu and his tribe of some 40 men and women busily plant jatropha saplings. The saplings are expected to bear seed in three to four years, one of dozens of new biodiesel projects being planned by private firms to feed the nation’s galloping energy needs. Once the trees start bearing seeds, they will continue the yields for the next 30 years without a break. “When electricity came to our village eight, 10 years ago, everybody just forgot about the jatropha trees,” said Chindu. “We could not believe our ears when people offered to pay us to cultivate jatropha trees on our lands,” he added. In anticipation of the rapidly evolving biofuels market, dozens of private firms are contracting villagers to grow the hardy, oil-rich plant in their mostly barren plots of land. In the past, the tribes — who have suffered caste discrimination for years — would randomly pluck the fat, green seeds of the jatropha and set them on bamboo spikes to make torches. But now they treat the plant almost reverentially. India plans to replace around five per cent of its current 40 million tonnes of annual diesel consumption with jatropha biodiesel within about five years. Nearly half a dozen states have set aside a total of 1.72 million hectares of land for jatropha cultivation and small quantities of the oil were already being sold to industry. However, it might take around four years until jatropha fuel is sold at the pump, said a senior government official. +++ Biodiesel in India Jatropha is a genus of approximately 175 succulents, shrubs and trees (some are deciduous, like Jatropha curcas L.), from the family Euphorbiaceae. Plants from the genus natively occur in Africa, North America, and the Caribbean. Originating in the Caribbean, the jatropha was spread as a valuable hedge plant to Africa and Asia by Portuguese traders. Currently the tree is widely used for getting Biodiesel in India, and is being promoted as a very easy to grow biofuel crop in hundreds of projects throughout India and the third world. The rail line between Mumbai and Delhi is planted with Jatropha and the train itself runs on 15-20% biodiesel. The mature small trees bear male and female inflorescence, and do not grow very tall. Here are some selected species, with use: - Jatropha aconitifolia, leaves of this tree were boiled and eaten by the Maya. - Jatropha cuneata, stems are used for basket making in Mexico. - Jatropha curcas, also called physic nut, is used to produce the non-edible Jatropha oil, for making candles and soap, and as an ingredient in the production of biodiesel. The trees produce 1600 liters of oil per hectare. The cakes remaining after the oil is pressed out can be used for cooking, for fertilizing, and sometimes even as animal fodder, while the seed husks can be used to fuel generators. Large plantings and nurseries of this tree have been undertaken in India by women's Self Help Groups, using a system of microcredit to ease poverty among the nation's semi-literate population of women. Extracts from this species have also been shown to have anti-tumor activity. The seeds can be used as a remedy for constipation, wounds can be dressed with the sap, and the leaves can be boiled to obtain a malaria and fever remedy. - Jatropha gossypifolia, also called bellyache bush, its fruits and foliage are toxic to humans and animals. It is a major weed in Australia. - Jatropha podagrica, was used to tan leather and produce a red dye in Mexico and the Southwestern United States. May also be used as a house plant. +++ Jatropha has been selected by the Indian Government as one of the plants to provide alternative fuel for the coming years. The government has identified 400,000 square kilometres (98 million acres) of land where jatropha can be grown, hoping it will replace 20% of diesel consumption by 2011. This has provided much needed employment to the rural poor of India and also a means to energy Independence to India. The Indian Railways has started to use the oil (blended with diesel fuel in various ratios) from the Jatropha plant to power its diesel engines with great success. Currently the diesel locomotives that run from Thanjavur to Nagore section and Tiruchirapalli to Lalgudi, Dindigul and Karur sections run on a blend of Jatropha and diesel oil. The President of India Dr. Abdul Kalam is a strong advocate of jatropha cultivation for production of bio-diesel. In his recent speech, the President said that out of the 60 million acres (240,000 km²) of waste land that is available in India over 30 million acres (120,000 km²) are suitable for Jatropha cultivation. Once this plant is grown the plant has a useful lifespan of several decades. During it life Jatropha requires very little water when compared to other cash crops. Recently the State Bank of India provided a boost to the cultivation of Jatropha in India by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with D1 Mohan to give loans to the tune of 1.3 billion rupees to local farmers in India. Farmers will also be able to pay back the loan with the money that D1 Mohan pays for the Jatropha seeds. +++ Chhattisgarh has decided to plant 160 million saplings of jatropha in all its 16 districts during 2006 with the aim of becoming a bio-fuel self-reliant state by 2015. Chhattisgarh plans to earn Rs.40 billion annually by selling seeds after 2010. The central government has provided Rs.135 million to Chhattisgarh this year for developing jatropha nursery facilities. In May 2005, Chief Minister Raman Singh became the first head of a state government to use jatropha diesel for his official vehicle. Chhattisgarh plans to replace with jatropha fuel all state-owned vehicles using diesel and petrol by 2007. +++ Maharashtra to offer 30,000 ha to pvt sector for jatropha cultivation THE Maharashtra Government is planning to make available 30,000 hectares for jatropha cultivation to the private sector. It is learnt that Reliance Industries has already approached the State Government to get the land allocated for jatropha cultivation. The Maharashtra Government's plan is to cultivate jatropha on 60,000 hectares in the State. According to the sources in the Maharashtra Department of Non-conventional Energy, the State Government is likely bring out a Government Regulation by the year-end. Cultivation of jatropha would be undertaken on wastelands, which are owned by the State Government. Poor and underprivileged sections of the society, women and self help groups would be given 50 per cent of the land for cultivation and management while rest of the land would be given to the private sector, the sources said. The State Government not only wants to earn revenue through cultivation of jatropha but is also aiming to create rural employment and prevent soil erosion. It wants to create a model of energy self-sufficiency for the rural areas. Earlier, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd had joined hands with Maharashtra State Farming Corporation Ltd (MSFCL), a State Government undertaking, for a jatropha seed based bio-diesel venture. A pilot project has already been initiated, under which, jatropha would be cultivated in 500 acres in Nashik and Aurangabad. According to the latest report on jatropha cultivation and processing, prepared by the State Agriculture Commissioner, Maharashtra plans to give a minimum of 10 hectares and a maximum of 25 hectares to NGOs involved in jatropha cultivation. Individuals would get two hectares of land for 30 years. They would have to cultivate 1,600 jatropha trees per hectare of land. Out of the total revenue generated, 20 per cent would have to be given to the State Government. +++ Oil from a Wasteland - The Jatropha Project in India In a simple process plant oil is converted into bio diesel fuel. Crossing India a Mercedes-Benz C-Class tested the fuel on the road. From Jatropha Oil to Biodiesel Parallel to the search for the most effective way to cultivate the jatropha plant, the project partners are pursuing another important goal: the development of a simple and economical process for converting the plant oil extracted from the oilseed into high-quality biodiesel fuel. For this purpose, the scientists at CSMCRI have set up three small pilot plants in Bhavnagar that have a combined production capacity of 100 liters of biodiesel per day. In these chemical mini-factories, the jatropha oil is subjected to a process called transesterification. Plant oils - those derived from jatropha as well as the oilseed rape and soya beans from which biodiesel is produced in Europe and the U.S. - consist mainly of triglycerides, the fatty acid esters of glycerin. They are extremely viscous and tend to resinification - qualities that are not desirable inside a fuel tank. Transesterification, in which the glycerin is replaced by methanol, makes it possible to use the processed plant oil as fuels. However, that’s only the first step in the transformation of plant oil into biodiesel. After transesterification, the resulting raw product is centrifuged and washed with water to cleanse it of impurities, such as glycerin and excess methanol. Only at the end of this process is the biodiesel of usable quality. The CSMCRI team was not willing to wait until after the first harvest in order to start the search for the right process for refining jatropha oil, so it bought eight tons of jatropha nuts that farmers had gathered from wild plants in various parts of India. By spring 2004, the team had extracted a total of 1,300 liters of high-quality biodiesel from this raw material using a variety of processes. The biodiesel was passed to DaimlerChrysler India, which used it to fuel an eye-catching round trip through the country. A Mercedes-Benz C 220 CDI specially modified to use jatropha biodiesel toured the country between April and May 2004, covering around 5,900 kilometers and visiting 11 major cities on a route extending from Pune to Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi. Powered by diesel fuel made of jatropha seeds this Mercedes-Benz C 220 CDI covered a distance of 5900 kilometers across India. The results of the experiment have been very satisfactory for two reasons. Firstly, it has revealed that jatropha-based biofuel can be used without any problems in modern CDI engines adapted for biodiesel. What’s more, this fuel produces only half of the unburned hydrocarbon emissions and one-third of the particulate emissions produced by diesel fuel derived from crude petroleum. Secondly, the team from DaimlerChrysler India received a tremendous amount of public interest. According to George Francis from the project team headed by Klaus Becker in Hohenheim, two more Indian states are now in the process of setting up and financing jatropha cultivation in wasteland areas. The fuel specialists at DaimlerChrysler Research, under the leadership of Rudolf Maly, have now taken an in-depth look at the quality of biodiesel made from jatropha. “This fuel has not yet reached optimal quality, but it already fulfills the EU norm for biodiesel quality,” says Maly. “That’s a remarkable achievement, in view of the simple production processes involved.” Maly’s team subjected the emissions associated with jatropha biodiesel to tough laboratory tests that confirmed their Indian colleagues’ observations of the advantages of this fuel. In addition, this renewable fuel’s high cetane values, very low sulfur content and high oxygen content give it excellent combustion properties. “What’s more, the CO2 balance of fuels derived from renewable energy sources is much better than that of fuels based on crude oil,” Maly adds. After all, the combustion of biodiesel releases only the amount of CO2 that the plant removed from the atmosphere when it was growing. Only the amount of energy used for the cultivation, harvesting and transport of the plants plus the energy needed to produce biodiesel affects the CO2 balance. And in principle, it is possible to significantly reduce that energy figure. Source: DaimlerChrysler, Reuters, Wiki, DNA, Jatropha World, Jatropha Bio Diesel

Yes, at interview below Hari-Dhama prabhu (Henry T. Dom, PhD) says something similiar, atheists don't want to experience any pain and often put forward the request for dying unconsciously. Innovations in End-of-Life Care an international journal of leaders in end-of-life care source: http://www2.edc.org/lastacts/archives/archivesNov99/intlpersp.asp Q: By contrast, how might the spiritual needs of someone from a Western nation (a European or American), who may not believe in God, be addressed? Hari-Dhama prabhu (Henry T. Dom, PhD): In my experience, atheists are not concerned with life after death. They are mainly concerned about being pain-free, sometimes requesting to be unconscious during the dying process, and are primarily interested in being at peace with themselves, the world and others. Speaking from my own Ayurvedic perspective, atheists seem to have the greatest difficulty in moving through the dying process, because it can be the occasion for a huge struggle between the "under-developed" spiritual intellect and the "developed" material intellect. It is the counselor's responsibility to facilitate a mental state in which the dying atheist can be comfortable and peaceful--often a huge challenge, since from my experience, atheists are very earthbound and attached to the material, which for them is the only reality. Q: At your hospice in India, a spiritual care plan is an integral part of the overall plan of care, on a par with the medical and nursing care plan. What does a spiritual care plan consist of, specifically? The spiritual care plan is an independent plan, which is implemented interdependently with the nursing and medical care plans. It forms part of the holistic approach to patient care. The ultimate goal of this aspect of care is to elevate the spiritual consciousness of the patient through his or her own spiritual/religious/cultural affiliations and practices, under the guidance of a spiritual counselor, who is either a priest or brahman. Although the plan is coordinated by the spiritual care counselor, it is informed by multidisciplinary perspectives from the rest of the care team. The plan includes information taken from interviews with the patient, his/her relatives, community care professionals and spiritual/religious leader(s), relevant to the patient's religious, psycho-social and cultural needs. It will identify spiritual strengths and how these are fulfilled through various practices, worship, rituals, and sacraments and how it could contribute to the healing of the patient. The plan also will identify spiritual needs (weaknesses) and how the hospital's multi-disciplinary team can meet these needs through mutually agreed upon strategies, based on aims, objectives and outcomes. The plan is continuously assessed, reviewed, updated and adjusted according to the needs of the patient and his/her family members. The patient is greatly involved in developing and executing the content of this plan. If the patient is discharged to home, the aims and objectives of the care plan can be adjusted, with the patient's consent. We encourage contact with the patient long after discharge or with the family members should the patient have died. Q: How do Hindus explain the causes of disease? Disease is explained by dysfunction in the family context as well as within the self. Therefore, as a first step in treating an Indian person, a health care provider needs to do a careful and systematic analysis of the family dynamics and how the individual perceives him/herself in relation to their God and all other living entities. In the Indian context, the individual would be asked questions about their own principles and values, based on his or her own scriptural injunctions, i.e., what/who is his or her true identity? What is the difference between matter and spirit? What does eternal life mean? What does he or she understand by karma? Who/what is God? Re-evaluation of their duties as individuals will then take place, and ultimately, through the practice of bhakti-yoga (devotional service), mantra meditation, and karma yoga (or service to the family and community)-all of these activities in combination with other therapies will restore balance and harmony into the patient's life. Q: In the Indian context, if the family dysfunction is repaired, yet the person still suffers pain and dies, how is that understood by the patient and family? The explanation and acceptance of the disease, pain and physical death lies in a deep understanding of the law of karma- you reap what you sow, to put it simplistically. The law of karma (action-reaction) is extremely intricate and complicated. Repairing a dysfunction only alleviates spiritual pain and makes the dying process easier. Ayurvedic belief accepts that suffering and some degree of pain will always be there. Q: Is there an understanding of healing apart from cure in the Ayurvedic system? Yes, spiritual healing. This happens when the dying patient's consciousness is actively engaged, through various means already mentioned earlier, in thoughts of God. Indian scriptures teach that if you think of God at the moment of death you will attain Him/Her. That is the ultimate goal of all Hindus. And if that is not achievable in this life, then a transmigration of the soul will give you another opportunity, wherein your next birth should be better than the one from which you have just departed. This attainment is dependent on the quality of the consciousness at the moment of death. The body can temporarily be cured, but the spirit needs to be healed. To be healed spiritually means that the soul will return to its original destination: the spiritual world where there is no duality, through re-establishing a lost relationship with God. This return can only happen when a detachment from the material world takes place. Q: How does this understanding of healing comfort people at the end of life? It happens when all the working senses of the patient are engaged in bhakti-yoga, devotional service to God through either chanting mantras, tasting sanctified foodstuff, seeing images of God and His/Her associates in the form of deities, hearing transcendental sound vibrations, touching religious paraphernalia, reading scriptures or being read to, smelling religious items offered to God, such as flowers. Being engaged in this way lessens physical, emotional and spiritual pain. The atmosphere in which the patient dies, therefore, must be spiritualized. Q: How would a Western hospital or hospice have to change to accommodate these beliefs and this kind of practice? A Western hospital or hospice would need to be sensitive to the cultural/religious/spiritual needs of the non-Christian patients, by * involving the family in the physical care of the patient; * making the care environment homelike; * accommodating dietary needs; * allowing or encouraging patients and families to engage their own spiritual leaders in the spiritual care of the patient; * adjusting the "chapel" in the institution to make it suitable for the spiritual practices of non-Christians; and * making the care environment less institutionalized overall. When health care professionals show visible interest in the faiths and cultures of others, for example, by visiting a Hindu temple, it can go a long way to building a respectful relationship. Some other very simple modifications that would help include not using white sheets on the bed, personalizing the bed area and piping music from the patient's own religious or cultural traditions to the patient's bedside. Other things include making wards smaller and more personal, with fewer patients in each ward and providing overnight facilities for families and friends. The multi-disciplinary care team should be kept small, yet effective, and should cultivate a more personal, less professional (distant, superior) demeanor by wearing street clothes rather than uniforms. I believe it could be helpful to engage patients more in occupational therapies, complementary therapies, and to gradually introduce therapies from the East, such as ayurveda and pancha karma. At St Christopher's Hospice, for example, the staff have a continuous liaison with spiritual leaders from different faiths in the community, attend inter-faith gatherings, make an effort to share in the celebrations of patients' religious holidays, and visit their places of worship. We request families to identify patients' special and specific needs regarding religious and spiritual practices. We allow spiritual leaders, family and patient to perform informal rituals at the bedside, and our chapel houses scriptures and icons of all the major faiths.

Special Assignment: Palace Of Gold http://www.wtov9.com/news/16187021/detail.html <embed id="videoplug" src="http://www.wtov9.com/videofiles/16199010/playlist.asx?qs=t;speed=high;adtarget=inline" filename="http://www.wtov9.com/videofiles/16199010/playlist.asx?qs=t;speed=high;adtarget=inline" stretchtofit="1" type="application/x-mplayer2" autostart="1" showcontrols="1" transparentstart="1" showstatusbar="0" showtracker="0" height="100%" width="100%"> Video: Special Assignment: Palace Of Gold The palace of gold, built as a tribute and home for the founder of the Hare Krishnas. It took Marshall County members 7 years to build the palace in the 1970s.The New Vrindaban community sits on 3,000 acres in Marshall County. In the 1980s, it was the largest Krishna community in the country with close to 1,000 followers. Now a little over 100 followers live here.It was during those turbulent times in the 1980s that the local Krishnas couldn't escape the headlines. Marshall County Sheriff John Gruzinskas was a West Virginia state trooper in the 1980s and he spent years investigating crimes committed in New Vrindaban. The investigation led to the conviction of the former leader of the commune, Swami Bhaktipada. Bhaktipada was convicted on a variety of racketeering, mail fraud and conspiracy charges.Another community member, Thomas Drescher, was convicted of the murders of two former Hare Krishna followers. He's now serving life in a West Virginia prison.Another crime involved the school that all of theyoung boys in the commune were sent. Gruzinskas said they had several instructors that not only physically abused the children but also sexually abused the children.The stain from those past troubles is still being dealt with by believers who blame the former swami. Gopa said the swami got carried away wit the power and the money. He felt like he could do whatever he wanted. Terry Tapa said most people have gotten over it. The problems that were there in the sense the people who were causing the problems are long gone..Judy Logsdon has lived near the Krishnas for years and has noticed the difference. Logsdon said the community is pretty low keyed now, not as busy as it use to be years ago.While the Krishna community has stabalized over the past several years, authorities have not closed the books on several unsolved crimes including two murders that may be connected to New Vrindaban. Gruzinskas said there was a fellow found burned up in a pile of brush and his wife was worth about $2 million. Gruzinskas said the man didn't want to give the money up to the swami like was told.And another unsolved case, a man from the Midwest who has been missing for years was reportedly last seen at New Vrindaban.And Gruzinskas said state police are also intensifying efforts to identify the remains of a naked body dumped 25 years ago along U.S. Route 250. Gruzinskas said Drescher is a possible suspect in the murder.As police continue to investigate, the Krishna community is trying to move forward, but lawsuits connected to the crimes have led to financial troubles. Despite that, community members say they have a lot of plans and a lot of hope.<!--stopindex--> Copyright 2008 by wtov9.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Just found this; "So this is the movement how to make an adhīra dhīra. Everyone is adhīra. Who is not afraid of death? Who is not afraid of…? Of course, they are too much agnostic, they forget. But there is suffering. We can see how one suffering at the time of death. There are some men dying… Nowadays it has become a very common… Coma. One is lying in the bed for weeks, two weeks, crying. The life is not going. Those who are very, very sinful. So there is great pain at the time of death. There is great pain at the time of birth, and there is pain when you are diseased, and there are so many pains when you’re old. The body is not strong. We suffer in so many ways, especially rheumatism and indigestion. Then blood pressure, headache, so many things. Therefore one should be trained up how to become dhīra. These things, disturbances, make us adhīra, and we should be trained up to dhīra. That is spiritual education. One has to know it. Mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ. These sufferings, mātrā-sparśāḥ, tan-mātra. On account of the senses, sense perception, we suffer. And the senses are made of material nature. So one has to become above the material nature, then he can become dhīra. Otherwise, one has to remain adhīra. Dhīrādhīra- jana-priyau priya-karau." Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.7.18 by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda Vṛndāvana, September 15, 1976 Anxious to Save Themselves from Death At the time of death people become very anxious to save themselves, especially those who have been sinful. Of course, the soul itself is not subject to death (na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre [Bg. 2.20]), but leaving the present body and entering into another body is very painful. At death the living entity can no longer bear to remain in his present body—the pain is so acute. http://causelessmercy.com/SC4.htm

"There is no pain at the time of death. Ignorant people have created much horror and terror regarding death. In the Garuda Purana and the Atma Purana, it is described that the pangs of death are tantamount to the pain caused by the stings of 72,000 scorpions. This is mentioned only to induce fear in the hearers and readers, and force them to work for Moksha. In spiritualism, there is unanimous report from the enlightened spirits that there is not even a bit of pain during death. They clearly describe their experiences at death and state that they are relieved of a great burden by the dropping of this physical body, and that they enjoy perfect composure at the time of separation from this physical body. Maya creates vain fear in the onlookers by inducing convulsive twitchings in the body. That is her nature and habit. Do not be afraid of death pangs. You are immortal, Amara." SOURCE: http://www.dlshq.org/messages/death.htm Pain caused by the stings of 72,000 scorpions - quite severe type of pain. Above it says, this is not true, everything is peace? source: http://www.lifeawarenesscenter.com/Research1.html

Since there're still many tapes missing you cannot exhibit such certainty in what you're claiming and speak like a professor. Prabhupada considered his sannyasa program as failure and wanted to stop it. "He gave his young disciples the roles of full fledged parampara diksa-gurus", don't forget to mention that there're thousands of devotees who say, no, this is not true, he did the same like his guru and did not appoint any successors.

Good point, additionally the rank&file devotees were quite confused and not really convinced about the fast takeover the very next day after Prabhupada's departure of the original 11 to be the new gurus after Prabhupada. If Sridara and Narayana would have spoken up against it, it would never have went so far. Instead they even tried to reinstall already collapsed and broken down Jayatirtha and in this way pushed him right into the position to exhale his life. He could have been saved but the pressure upon him was too strong.

<table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="800"><tbody><tr><td colspan="2" valign="top">Our Neanderthal Ancestors? </td> <td valign="top" width="18"> </td> <td height= valign="top" width="4"> </td> <td valign="top" width="9"> </td> <td valign="top" width="130"> <!----> </td> </tr> <tr> <td height="3" valign="top" width="136"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="17"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="20"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="383"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="18"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="4"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="9"></td> <td height="3" valign="top" width="130"></td> </tr></tbody></table> <table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="800"><tbody><tr> <td valign="top" width="17"> </td> <td colspan="2" valign="top">Modern humans do not have Neanderthal ancestors in their family tree, a new DNA study concludes. The DNA extracted from the ribs of a Neanderthal infant buried in southern Russia 29,000 years ago was found to be too distinct from modern human DNA to be related. "There wasn't much, if any mixture, between Neanderthals and modern humans," said William Goodwin, of the University of Glasgow, UK. "Though they co-existed, we can't find any evidence of genetic material being passed from Neanderthals to modern humans." The new work, published in the journal Nature, contradicts recent evidence from ancient remains of a child found in Portugal, which appeared to combine Neanderthal and human features. Those researchers concluded that some interbreeding must have taken place. Last of the Neanderthals The bones from the Neanderthal infant were very well preserved and the child must have been among the last of the Neanderthals as they died out about 30,000 years ago. Exactly what happened to them is a mystery. Conflicting theories suggest that they were massacred, out-competed for food or simply absorbed by interbreeding with modern humans. The research by Dr Goodwin and his Swedish and Russian colleagues agrees with the findings of the first analysis of Neanderthal DNA in 1997. That study of DNA, taken from the first Neanderthal skeleton found in the Feldhofer Cave in Germany in 1856, supports the theory that modern humans replaced Neanderthals. Little diversity According to Dr Goodwin, the DNA sequence from the infant was very similar to the specimen from the Feldhofer Cave, proving that there was little diversity among Neanderthals. "If they had been very diverse at the DNA level, they could have encompassed modern humans. The fact that these two Neanderthals are closely related and not related to modern humans implies that they don't have the diversity to encompass a modern human gene pool," said Dr Goodwin. DNA comparisons also showed that different ethnic groups do not have any links to Neanderthals. In a commentary on the research in Nature, Matthias Hoss, of the Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research, said the two studies provide the most reliable proof so far of the authenticity of ancient DNA sequences. The similar features of the two samples "argues against the idea that modern Europeans are at least partly of Neanderthal origin," he said. BBC </td></tr></tbody></table>

Mayapur village, must be Navadvipa? The Wall Street Journal: Farmers, rice mills play waiting game in Bengal http://www.livemint.com/2008/05/07223336/Farmers-rice-mills-play-waiti.html Mill owners are looking at softer buy prices while farmers are expecting higher prices for their produce West Bengal: Purna Chandra Halder is a broken man. The 50-something farmer from Mayapur village in the Arambagh subdivision of West Bengal’s Hooghly district has just finished harvesting the boro paddy grown on his one-acre plot, but he is now facing a huge loss. sowing hopes: A file picture of farmers planting paddy saplings. Prices of almost all varieties of paddy have been falling for the past few weeks “No rice mill wants to buy my paddy. The few that have offered to buy my crop have offered rates at which I wouldn’t recover costs,” says the distraught father of five. Haldar had sown the Miniket variety of fine-grain rice last October. Boro, or spring rice, is sown in October-November and harvested by April-May. Production last year was estimated at 4.4 million tonnes by the West Bengal government. Paddy grown between October and April is largely dependent on irrigation as those months don’t receive enough rain. Hence costs are slightly higher. “I had borrowed heavily from the local moneylender and bought fertilizers on credit,” says Halder, who has been offered Rs560 for a 60kg sack of paddy. “They (moneylenders) want their money back and are pressuring me to sell at this price even though I want to hold on till the price improves a bit.” Each such sack of paddy yields 40kg of rice. Miniket rice is retailing in Kolkata, 70km from Arambagh, at around Rs22 a kg, Rs8 more than the price Halder would have realized by selling paddy at Rs560 a bag. His fate is shared by thousands of farmers in the paddy-growing belt of Tarakeshwar, Pursura, Arambagh, Dhaniakhali, Singur and Haripal in Hooghly district and Memari, Purbasthali and Monteshwar in the adjoining Burdwan district. They say the demand for the crop has fallen because the government has banned export of rice. <box></box>Demand for rice has gone down because of export ban, say farmers <embed style="width: 135px; height: 0px;" class="sIFR-flash" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" sifr="true" bgcolor="#ffd3ad" wmode="" flashvars="txt=&textcolor=#968e8c&w=135&h=0" quality="best" src="http://www.livemint.com/Articles/RetinaCDBold.swf" height="0" width="135"> <embed style="width: 155px; height: 0px;" class="sIFR-flash" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" sifr="true" bgcolor="#ffd3ad" wmode="" flashvars="txt=&textcolor=#000000&w=155&h=0" quality="best" src="http://www.livemint.com/Articles/RetinaCDBold.swf" height="0" width="155"> “Bangladesh was a big market for us but the ban has spoilt it all,” says Dinabandhu Ullal, manager at Ma Gouri Rice Mill in Arambagh. Many mills have even shut down for ‘maintenance’, and some mill owners say their employees have gone home for the panchayat polls starting Sunday. Mill owners and farmers are playing the same game, but from opposite sides of the table. While farmers are waiting for the price to harden, mill owners are waiting for it to weaken. And so far mill owners have called the shots—with every passing week, prices of almost all variants of paddy have been falling by about Rs10 a 60kg bag, say farmers. Even the coarse paddy, which is cheaper, isn’t getting too good a response with Swarna Masuri fetching the farmer Rs450, and Ratna, Rs435, a 60kg bag. These are at least Rs15-20 less than last year, and indications are that the prices are going to weaken further. “How is it that the retail price of rice is increasing while our income is decreasing?” asks Abu Sufiyan Laskar, a farmer in Pursurah, who has just sold 100 bags of Swarna Masuri to a mill in Arambagh. There is no conclusive proof, but economists at Kolkata’s Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) blame intermediaries for this situation. “The export ban theory doesn’t sound credible—very little was exported out of Bengal. I suspect intermediaries are responsible for paddy prices being low,” says Abhirup Sarkar, professor of economics at ISI. His colleague Chiranjib Neogi, too, is of the same view. The agriculture department of the state government, however, doesn’t seem to be worried at all, though last month an indebted potato farmer in Burdwan district killed himself because he couldn’t recover costs. West Bengal agriculture minister Naren De, who represents the Forward Bloc party in the state government led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist), or CPM, said he wasn’t aware of the fall in paddy prices, and hence couldn’t comment on it. His party colleague Naren Chatterjee, who heads the state’s agricultural marketing board, said: “We can’t do a thing in this state. So, what is the point of even pondering over these problems? The government does what only the chief minister wants. So why don’t you ask him what farmers or the government should be doing in this situation?” Lately, the Forward Bloc party, which has traditionally controlled the state’s agriculture department, has been bickering with the CPM over a range of issues including allowing private players in large format retail. Find More Articles On: West Bengal Rice Demand Rice Mills Find More Articles By: Rajdeep Dutta Roy

Sometime ago I heard a saying, something like "never trust a politician", but that's again, outdated and false? Russia’s new president "auspicious" says Krishna devotee Love for Medvedev in the stars, in wax and on wall 8 hours ago MOSCOW (AFP) — Russia's new president Dmitry Medvedev has barely moved into the Kremlin but the power of the office already has everyone from bureaucrats to astrologists to the Hare Krishna flocking to show support. Medvedev was sworn in as president in a grand Kremlin ceremony on Wednesday, watched by his predecessor Vladimir Putin, who is to become prime minister. After eight years as Russia's leader, Putin's picture adorns bureaucrats' offices and state-controlled television follows his every move in unabashed awe. It may be early days for Medvedev but there are already signs he will get the same treatment with his portrait being snapped up for offices around the country, according to Russian press reports. Medvedev also won the praise of astrologers and the Hare Krishna who on Wednesday said that the inauguration date augured great things. "Medvedev will be lucky," astrologist Pavel Globa told daily newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda. With Mars and Jupiter not in the ascendent, Medvedev will have a predictable, calm term, he said. The stars are in perfect alignment for "reform of state structures and the bringing in of new personnel," Globa said. "It is a good sign that Medvedev's inauguration comes on the same day as the Akshaya-Tritiya holiday," said Yury Pleshakov, spokesman for the Hare Krishna community speaking of the Hindu holiday. "The holiday is the starting point for important deeds.The choice of the inauguration is no accident and behind it is some kind of plan by God," said a Hare Krishna priest. The Hare Krishna movement has previously accused Russian authorities of harassing Hindus in Russia. "We want to see the continuation of Vladimir Putin's course in improving Russian-Indian relations," said Pleshakov. Medvedev is the first Russian leader to practise yoga, the spiritual exercise which originated in India.

First try to understand what is the soul, then try to understand who is Krsna. "The impersonalist followers of Sankaracarya, as well as the Vaisnavas following in the disciplic succession from Lord Sri Krsna, acknowledge the factual existence of the soul, but the Buddhist philosophers do not. The Buddhists contend that at a certain stage the combination of matter produces consciousness, but this argument is refuted by the fact that although we may have all the constituents of matter at our disposal, we cannot produce consciousness from them. All the material elements may be present in a dead man, but we cannot revive that man to consciousness. This body is not like a machine. When a part of a machine breaks down, it can be replaced, and the machine will work again, but when the body breaks down and consciousness leaves the body, there is no possibility of our replacing the broken part and rejuvenating the consciousness. The soul is different from the body, and as long as the soul is there, the body is animate. But there is no possibility of making the body animate in the absence of the soul." ~ BBD (Beyond Birth & Death,) Ch 1, titled: We Are Not These Bodies

Alzheimer's disease affects approximately 4.5 million Americans and nearly 50% of Americans aged 85 years or older, according to an estimate by the National Institute on Aging. As the baby-boom generation ages, Alzheimer's disease is likely to become an even greater public health issue over the next 20 years. Current research in Alzheimer's disease and other dementias is focused on a variety of factors related to diagnosis, prevention and treatment. Now coming to see this disease from an esoteric point of view - it is actually quite equally spread all over the world - and as medical scientists explain, Alzheimer's disease is a controlled shutdown of different parts of the brain's functions. For example, the brain controls even while we sleep, so many life-supporting functions of our body like circulation, digestion, breathing, growth, nerv regeneration, etc etc. But these life-supporting functions are not shut down, only at the end of the disease what can take approx. ten years. What however happens is that the functionality of features what makes our brain a human brain are gradually more and more reduced. Even when using a psychosomatical approach one could argue, well, could that mean that the human brain has the capacity to process content relating to the field of activity concerning the purpose of human life and if the brain is not used for this, this causes the gradual shut down of the brain's functions? And the change of consciousness expressed by the human brain gradually transformed into a much simplier mental operating system. Reincarnation means change of body, however, if the human form of live is so extremely opposed as we find people's lifestyle today - totally absorbed in materialsim - this could explain why the functionality of the human brain is so drastically reduced like seen in the course of disease of Alzheimer's.