paul108

Yogi Bhajan's mother's name was Hare Krishna.

That's pretty much the way I see it. Hare Krishna

That's pretty much the way I see it. Hare Krishna

Debbie, Maybe if you send an e-mail to Theist, he can reply to you. Hare Krishna

And I always thought people who called Native Americans "Indians" were just silly. Hare Krishna

I scored a 37. The category description fit pretty well. Hare Krishna

After taking a brief look at the http://www.krishna.com/newsite/GitaRevsExplained.html page, I can't help but wish that I could read a complete bhagavad-gita transcript, as dictated by Srila Prabhupada. For instance, the page says that some of Srila Prabhupada's original words in the Introduction were, "There is one scriptures only," and "And there is one God for the whole world-Sri Krsna." Yet in both editions of Bhagavad-gita, it says "Let there be" in place of "There is." It seems like a big difference to me. "There is" is bold, authoritative; "Let there be" is like a plea, admitting that it is not yet true but would hopefully be in the future. Hare Krishna

Krishna attracted me to Srila Prabhupada's movement by showing me how his presentation of Bhagavad-gita is spiritually perfect. This was the 1983 edition. I am confident that the first edition is also of this same quality. Materially this 1983 edition also has errors, for instance I have found inconsistencies between the Devanagari and Roman with diacriticals, but our purpose is not to find material perfection (which is an oxymoron) but to find spiritual perfection. The fact that both editions can be transcendental although materially different increases my appreciation of Srila Prabhupada and the devotees who humbly serve him as editors. Hare Krishna

I accessed these by simply clicking on the links and when the page opened, each time I saved the page using the File > Save As command. The trick then is to convert the whole document to the Balarama font, which makes the Sanskrit diacriticals readable. I think I got the whole of both cantos this way. Hare Krishna p.s. I was quite happy to get these cantos in digital format.

There was a superbowl yesterday? How do they manage to stretch football season into the end of January? Hare Krishna

The thing with the grits was advice given by others on an e-mail list I'm on dealing with vermicomposting. I've never bought instant grits, but a few people on that list suggested it for getting ants out of their worm bins. One person mentioned that they use Quaker Quick Grits. I was thinking to try the grits if the watering didn't seem to work well enough, because the grits will kill the ants. So the soil doesn't have to be so wet when trying this. You could put the grits on a little flat stone, or something, on the surface. Before attempting to kill ants, I would also request that you attempt to communicate with the ants. My understanding of ants is that they are a somewhat psychic, especially the queen ant, and they tend to be respectful. If you sit and meditate for a little while, contemplate the consciousness of the queen ant, and explain the situation to her in simple terms. Be nice. Remember that the Supersoul is present, and that Krishna is in control. This has worked for me in dealing with ants. Hare Krishna

Keeping the soil wet for a long time (too frequent watering) can cause root rot, but it's good to give a thorough watering periodically. I like to water Tulasi enough so that some water comes out the bottom of the pot, then not again until her soil is dry. This works best in clay pots because of more rapid drying and the ability of air to penetrate the sides of the pot. If I see her begin to wilt a little, then I immediately give profuse water. I know this is probably not standard care for Tulasi, but it has proven quite successful for me. What I'm suggesting in dealing with the ants is to water sufficiently to drive the ants out, then prevent them from coming back by using a barrier such as petroleum jelly or some other goop or sticky substance. Hare Krishna

I would first try a good watering. Ants like dry soil. Hopefully she's in clay pots, which is better for profuse watering (and clay pots are generally first class). If it seems like there's a lot of ants, like they might harm Tulasi, then you might try sprinkling some instant grits on the soil. (Keep the grits dry.) I've read that ants will eat the instant grits and then die from it (severe indigestion). Of course it's better to try to get them to leave. After you've gotten the ants out, apply a ring of petroleum jelly around each of the legs of her stand, so ants can't get back up. Good luck, and keep us posted. Hare Krishna

I recall reading that Guru Nanak was once in a kirtan with Lord Caitanya. I'll have to see if I can find where I read it. Hare Krishna

get your kartalas ready!

My wife and I are homeschooling our daughters. Our oldest is 6 years old; the next is 2 1/2, and the youngest is 7 months old. One challenge has been sorting through what to teach. I have a lot of science education, and have a talent for math, but I have different goals for our kids. I want them to serve Krishna and to rely on Him for their maintenance. It's a pretty big challenge overcoming my own education. Mostly I've been teaching from my heart, but also the basic subjects like reading, math, and what little Sanskrit I know. My main concern is that our children learn about Krishna. I don't see much good in the way things are going in the world, and I don't want our kids to get mixed up in it. It reminds me of the Isopanisad verse that says that cultivation of nescience is bad, but cultivation of so-called knowledge is worse. Everything they learn about Krishna is real knowledge, but what kids learn in school is worse than learning nothing. Right now we live 80 miles from the Gita-nagari farm community, and we're looking for a house as close to the community as possible. My employment situation should make for a fairly easy move to that area, if Krishna is favorable to that. Living there should make for a very good situation for our kids, since there are many kids around our daughters ages, and some of the parents there are also interested in homeschooling. Hare Krishna

My wife and I are homeschooling our daughters. Our oldest is 6 years old; the next is 2 1/2, and the youngest is 7 months old. One challenge has been sorting through what to teach. I have a lot of science education, and have a talent for math, but I have different goals for our kids. I want them to serve Krishna and to rely on Him for their maintenance. It's a pretty big challenge overcoming my own education. Mostly I've been teaching from my heart, but also the basic subjects like reading, math, and what little Sanskrit I know. My main concern is that our children learn about Krishna. I don't see much good in the way things are going in the world, and I don't want our kids to get mixed up in it. It reminds me of the Isopanisad verse that says that cultivation of nescience is bad, but cultivation of so-called knowledge is worse. Everything they learn about Krishna is real knowledge, but what kids learn in school is worse than learning nothing. Right now we live 80 miles from the Gita-nagari farm community, and we're looking for a house as close to the community as possible. My employment situation should make for a fairly easy move to that area, if Krishna is favorable to that. Living there should make for a very good situation for our kids, since there are many kids around our daughters ages, and some of the parents there are also interested in homeschooling. Hare Krishna

I probably should not have extrapolated my experience with Krishna to others, because it is only my own experience that I know. Even that is quite a mystery to me. Sometimes I think I have some understanding, and other times I feel totally clueless about Him. If only I could always live up to the advice I give, but perhaps that is not Krishna's plan. Krishna remains a mystery to me. As I follow my various desires, Krishna follows me. I think Krishna finds this amusing. When He recruited me to associate with His devotees, He was laughing at my foolishness. "You think you're a yogi," He said, just before showing me who is yogesvara. Oh what a fool I am. Hare Krishna

If you were to see Krishna today, how would you react? If your only desire is to serve Krishna because your only feeling is pure love of Him, then I'm sure He would take great pleasure in revealing Himself to you. If, however, you have any other desires at all, then Krishna would cheat you by offering you the other things that you want so that you would forget Him. This is exactly like the plight we are already in. We formerly were well-acquainted with Krishna, but somehow a little selfish desire entered our hearts, and Krishna fulfilled that desire, and gradually we have forgotten Krishna, pursuing His gifts instead of Him. So if your heart is pure, having only one desire - to serve Krishna with pure love, then it should be fine for you to see Him, you would not even have to try. It is no more difficult for His pure devotees to see Him now than it was 5000 years ago, but He does not care to be seen by selfish people. Some selfish people saw Him then, but they could not recognize Him as He is. The best advice I can give is to just try to serve Krishna's devotees, who can help you restore your pure condition without such danger of getting mixed up with Krishna's opulence. The goal is not to see Krishna; rather it is to offer Him your love. Hare Krishna

So to come up to par with having a string tied around my japa beads, is ther anything else I should know? Any specific length, thickness, material, or type of knot? Hare Krishna

What thread? I've never heard of this. Nor have I heard of anything regarding any distinction of certain beads representing the 8 principle gopis. During a japa workshop that was held instead of the regular bhagavad-gita class one recent Sunday, I noticed that the instructor was passing the beads in a different direction than I was accustomed to doing. I asked him about it, and he said I was doing it wrong. The way I had been doing it, the beads were first passing over my little finger, then ring finger, then middle finger. I've since switched to comply with his instruction. It was a tough habit to break, taking about a week to get it right. Some rounds took a very long time as I was slipping back and forth into each method, sometimes ending up where I started, sometimes reaching the end. A couple of years ago I was teaching my daughter how to count up to 108, and I thought to show her on my japa beads. I proceeded to count 109 beads (not including the Krsna bead). How weird! I bought a new set of japa beads. When will I get it right?!? At least I know how to chant Krishna Hare.

This is strange; I was taught to begin with the largest bead at the start of the day's chanting. Anyone care to offer a tie-breaker? Hare Krishna

God can be thought of as the Person who makes the rules. So why should He play according to the rules that the scientists propose (in the middle of the game)? I don't think He's going to take their bait.

From the New York Times, January 9, 2003: "Indian laborers used drills yesterday to reak up a 108-foot statue of the Hindu god Lord Krishna that fell Monday as it neared completion outside New Delhi. A poor foundation was blamed for the collapse, in which three workers were killed. The statue had been under construction for six years." I guess those three guys went back to Godhead.

They don't consider the fact that so many people have had positive proof of God. He just doesn't reveal Himself to people who think that logic can either defeat Him or reach Him. Too bad for them.