Jahnava Nitai Das

Neckbeads break away pretty easily if they are the cheaper variety. All that holds them together is the melted end of the nylon thread, which breaks with very little pressure on it. Probably the beads would break if they ever got caught on anything. One strand would come off right away, but two or three strands could choke the child, as it is wrapped around his neck multiple times and wouldn't come off automatically.

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Ativadi Apa-sampradaya by Sripada Swami B. G. Narasingha ------------------------------ Krsna Talk No. 32 Devotee: Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura has written that there were thirteen apa-sampradayas that developed after the time of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. aula, baula, kartabhaja, neda, daravesa, sani sahajiya, sakhibeki, smarta, jata-gosani ativadi, cudadhari, gauranga-nagari tato kahe, ei terara sanga nahi kari One of these apa-sampradayas is called ativadi, which means too great. Can you please explain how those who are 'too great' have become an apa-sampradaya? Narasingha Maharaja: If the quality of humility is the crest-jewel of the Vaisnavas, and indeed it is, then undeniably its antithesis is pride. If one is falsely proud due to his greatness, or falsely proud due to his scholarship then one becomes an ativadi, too great. To chant the Holy Name without offense, one must first become free from dambhika, or pride. A dambhika-brahmana is one who is proud of his scholarship and thus becomes offensive to the humble Vaisnavas. A true Vaisnava is always meek and humble. He sees every living entity as constitutionally a servant of Krsna and he never mistreats others, or looks upon them as his inferior. In the words of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, "One who thinks he is the highest is actually the lowest and one who thinks himself the lowest is actually the highest." Real humility can only be attained by strictly adhering to the instructions of Sri Guru and by preaching the glories of the Holy Name. However, a hypocrite in the guise of a Vaisnava (kapota-vaisnava) sometimes makes a show of his learning simply to attain cheap adoration and followers. Such persons are known as ativadi, too great. The first pseudo sect of Vaisnavas to be known as Ativadi was founded by one Oriyan brahmana named Jagannatha Dasa. This Jagannatha Dasa lived during the time of Sri Caitanya. Jagannatha Dasa came from a tradition of professional Bhagavatam reciters and due to his sweet voice he attracted many followers. Jagannatha Dasa claimed to be a disciple of Srila Haridasa Thakura, but he later broke his connection with Haridasa and began to preach his own concocted philosophy. Initially Jagannatha Dasa resided in an asrama donated to him by Maharaja Prataparudra, but after his rejection of Thakura Haridasa the king took the property back and Jagannatha Dasa and his followers founded their own matha called the Sat-lahiri Mandira. This story has been narrated in a Gaudiya Matha publication compiled by one of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta's disciples. Jagannatha Dasa once approached Mahaprabhu without getting permission from the Lord's personal servant. Jagannatha Dasa had written his own translation of the Bhagavatam and desired to recite it for the Lord. This translation was in Oriyan and happened to contain five new chapters of the author's own invention. In order to avoid hearing this concocted creation of Jagannatha Dasa, the Lord told him, "A fallen jiva such as Myself is not worthy to hear the Bhagavatam composed by a poet like you. You have become too great, ativadi. An insignificant soul like Me can have nothing to do with you." Being covered by false pride Jagannatha Dasa and his many followers took Mahaprabhu's sarcastic statement to be one of praise rather than condemnation. The followers of Jagannatha Dasa then propagated his Bhagavatam throughout Orissa. The true followers of Sri Caitanya, however, reject the Bhagavatam by Jagannatha Dasa. If one examines the cult of Jagannatha Dasa, it becomes quite clear why Mahaprabhu shunned his association. Jagannatha Dasa and his followers among other things claimed that Jagannatha Dasa was the incarnation of Srimati Radharani, that he was the personification of Srimati Radharani's laughter. Certainly such a claim could hold no bearing over the followers of Sri Caitanya. Another reason why Sri Caitanya rejected Jagannatha Dasa was because Jagannatha Dasa contradicted the original text of Vyasadeva and he sometimes leaned towards mayavadi impersonalism. Later, after being rejected by Sri Caitanya, Jagannatha Dasa began mixing freely with women. His melodious singing attracted many unsuspecting women folk to hear his Bhagavatam recitations and serve him in various ways such as massaging his body. Eventually this came to the attention of Maharaja Prataparudra and Jagannatha Dasa was arrested and interrogated by the King. When the King asked him about his behavior Jagannatha Dasa replied, "I see no difference between men and women." Maharaja Prataparudra then had Jagannatha Dasa imprisoned for some time. The Ativadi sect also claims that Lord Jagannatha reveals to them secret revelations of apocalyptic visions of the end of the world. It is indeed amusing that in recent times these Ativadi prophecies have even duped some western Vaisnavas to travel to Orissa to have a glimpse of the future from an Ativadi priest known as the Copper-plate Baba. This Copper-plate Baba has been consulted numerous times by some western gurus and sannyasis in ISKCON. Little do they know that the Copper-plate Baba is the representative of Jagannatha Dasa and the Ativadi sect. Unfortunately, in olden times the ativadi mentality also entered other Gaudiya Vaisnavas and caused their fall down from pure devotional service. During the seventeenth century a man from the Surma valley in Assam entered the Vaisnava communities of Bengal and Vrndavana. Eventually he took diksa from Sri Krsna-carana Cakravarti and became known as Rupa Kaviraja. This Rupa Kaviraja studied Srimad Bhagavatam under Sri Mukunda Dasa, a well known Vaisnava of the time. The residents of Radha-kunda felt great happiness to see Rupa Kaviraja engaged thus. Gradually though he became proud of his learning. Soon after the disappearance of Sri Mukunda Dasa, Rupa Kaviraja made a grave offence to the great Vaisnavi Srimati Krsna-priya Thakurani. One day, all the Vaisnavas assembled to hear Rupa Kaviraja recite the Bhagavatam. Before he began, Krsna-priya Thakurani arrived and the devotees offered her all respects. Rupa Kaviraja however, did not show her any respect. During his recital, Rupa Kaviraja noticed that she was chanting and he became disturber at this. With anger, he asked Krsna-priya Thakurani, " How is it possible to be doing two things simultaneously? It is very disturbing to see how you are chanting while I am reciting the Bhagavatam." With great humility, the Thakurani replied, "It is simply the habit of my tongue to chant continuously -- it doesn't impede my hearing at all." Hearing this, Rupa Kaviraja sat back and fumed in anger. From this moment he was ruined. He offended Krsna-priya Thakurani, then later he made offences to his guru, his parama-guru and other Vaisnavas. Then Rupa Kaviraja became more and more proud of his learning and was ultimately robbed of the results of his spiritual advancement. Since that time the Gaudiya Vaisnavas have referred to Rupa Kaviraja as being an Ativadi, one who is too great or knows too much. Later on Rupa Kaviraja published a manuscript supporting the sahajiya conceptions and claimed that it had been written by Srila Rupa Gosvami. For all of his outrageous activities, the daughter of Sri Srinivasa Acarya, Srimati Hemalata Gosvamini tore the kanti-mala from his neck and ostracized him from the Vaisnava community. After this, the followers of Rupa Kaviraja began to wear only one strand of tulasi-beads since he was only left with one strand after they were broken by Hemalata. According to the false doctrine of Rupa Kaviraja, known as Sauromya, one should imitate the gopis of Vraja in ones sadhaka-deha in order to gain entrance into the confidential lilas of the Divine Couple. Rupa Kaviraja was also against the worship of Tulasi and Salagrama and the following of ekadasi-vrata since the damsels of Vrndavana do not follow these vidhis. In time the luster of Rupa Kaviraja disappeared and he soon contacted leprosy which spread rapidly throughout his entire body. Reduced to a decaying wretch, Rupa Kaviraja fled to Bengal and tried to gain entrance into his guru's asrama pretending that everything was normal. But the Vaisnavas of Bengal had already heard of his offenses and he was forced to leave Bengal. He then traveled to Orissa and stayed in the village of Khuriya-grama. There his body became thoroughly eaten up with leprosy and in great pain he slowly died. It is said that he became a ghost who would haunt those who committed Vaisnava-aparadha. The following paragraph is from an article by Srila Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura on the life of Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti which appeared in The Harmonist (Vol.18, No.18. 1922): "Srinivasa Acarya's famous daughter, Srimati Hemalata Thakurani, rejected an envious disciple named Sri Rupa Kaviraja from the Vaisnava society. This Rupa Kaviraja is counted amongst the deviant sub-branch of the Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradaya known as Ativadi -- he spread his own concocted philosophy (against Gaudiya tradition), stating that only a person in the renounced order of life is capable of acting as acarya. He claimed that it was not possible for a householder to become a spiritual master. Fully disregarding the vidhi-marga, or path of devotional rules and regulations, he also tried to preach a philosophical path of raga-marga, or spontaneous devotion, which was completely unregulated and undisciplined. He also claimed that smarana (remembrance) was possible without the help of sravana and kirtana (hearing and chanting). Thus, Rupa Kaviraja propagated a path that was contrary to the path shown by the Gosvamis. Therefore, Srila Cakravarti Thakura has refuted these false conclusions in his Sarartha-darsini commentary on the third Canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. Actually, this refutation is a rendering of the truths outlined in Srila Jiva Gosvami's Bhakti Sandarbha." One may be very learned in the scriptures, one may be adept at quoting many slokas, one may have some understanding of the Vaisnava siddhanta and be proficient in explaining its subtle details, but if one is devoid of the quality of true humility then all these attributes are simply like decorations on a dead body. Srila Rupa Gosvami has explained in Bhakti-rasamrta-Sindhu that a devotee should not read too many books (bahu-sastra-vyakhya-vivadi tyagah, or renouncing the study of many scriptures in order to make novel explanations and arguments). This point is also mentioned by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself in the Caitanya-caritamrta (Madhya 22.118) - bahu-grantha-kalabhyasa-vyakhyana varjiba "One should not partially study many scriptures just to be able to give references and expand explanations." Nowadays there are some pretentious devotees that deem themselves as very learned, traveling here and there, they speak on so-called high topics and compete for the cheap admiration of people who are ignorant in these matters. These so-called devotees expertly speak novel interpretations to the scriptures and sweet illustrative stories, but such discussions simply fall on the deaf ears of the unqualified audiences having only the impact of aranya-rodana-nyaya, crying out in the wilderness. Learning alone does not qualify one as an advanced Vaisnava, especially if by one's learning one becomes proud and offensive to other Vaisnavas. Study, or svadhyaya, is meant only to cultivate devotion to the Supreme Lord. Too much learning, even of a good thing, may sometimes cause one to become puffed up and proud. Great learning must therefore be balanced by great Vaisnava humility, otherwise one becomes an Ativadi, too great.

As water changes according to the soil through which it flows, so a man assimilates the character of his associates. By knowing his thoughts, a man's mind is discovered. By knowing his associates, his character is revealed. -Tirukkural 46:452-453

An email from Bombay:

It is certainly important to find a guru or spiritual master to guide you on your spiritual path. Such a guru is not a small or cheap thing. He will manifest to you as your sincerity and dedication become firm. The spiritual master is known as the sat-guru, or eternal guide. In the intitial stages you should be like the honey bee, searching for a little nectar from each flower. Go where there are like minded people, inquire from them, discuss with them and develop your spiritual knowledge. When you become serious you will take up a daily sadhana, or spiritual practices and vows. These help purify one's heart and expand one's consciousness. As one progresses on this path, the Lord in the heart, known as Paramatma, personally guides you and directs you to His representative, the sat-guru. Yours in service, Jahnava Nitai Das, Bhaktivedanta Ashram & Bhaktivedanta International Charities http://www.foodrelief.org

The icons got renamed and mixed up. So smile.gif became a thumbs down. I will fix it a little later.

Airline says all its flights free on Sept. 11 August 7, 2002 Posted: 4:07 AM EDT (0807 GMT) FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (CNN) -- With airlines reporting a drop in bookings for flights on September 11, Sprit Airlines announced Tuesday it will not be charging airfare for any seat on the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks. "We are saying 'thank you' to the American public and our valued customers for flying with us throughout this past year," announced chief executive Jacob Schorr. "Had it not been for the support of our passengers and their willingness to get back in the air after the tragedy last year, then Spirit Airlines may not have survived." The free seats, he said, are intended as a way to support the recovery of business and personal travel. "I want to personally encourage the public to travel on September 11 and exercise our freedom as Americans," Schorr said. About 13,000 seats are available for that day, and bookings will be taken through September 8 or until all seats have been filled. Customers must book online at www.spiritair.com with a credit card or through a travel agent. Any passenger who has already booked a flight for September 11 will receive a future flight credit for the amount they paid for that day, the airline said. Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Spirit, the largest privately held airline in the United States, expects to fly a full schedule of more than 90 flights to 15 destinations. American Airlines and United Airlines announced last week that a decline in reservations for the somber anniversary had led them to revise their schedule, in some cases canceling entire flights.

I just wanted to revive this thread, as I am sure there are people with something to add to this. I will post something tonight when I get more time.

I guess it starts in Golden Gate Park. Which area does it start in? I'm sure there are some readers in the Bay Area who may be able to show up.

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The Heart of the Bhagavad-gita By Steven J. Rosen On an ancient battlefield in India’s mythic past, God descended to earth in the form of Krishna and served his devotee as a charioteer. The devotee in question, Prince Arjuna, was in the midst of a devastating civil war, and although Krishna vowed not to take sides -- for, as God, he must remain ever impartial and loving to all -- he agreed to give Arjuna moral support as his chariot driver. It is in this context that Krishna brings the mighty bowman’s chariot in between the two armies, soon to engage in battle, where Arjuna sees friends and family on both sides, ready to fight each other. This is where the Bhagavad-gita, the classic Indic text, begins -- Arjuna is bewildered by mixed emotions and decides not to fight. Through a complex series of philosophical arguments, Krishna persuades him that, in this case, fighting would be in everyone’s best interest. Although widely published and read by itself, the Bhagavad-gita (literally, “the Song of God”) originally appears as a 700-verse episode in the Sixth Book of the Mahabharata, an epic poem of more than 110,000 Sanskrit couplets. It is often referred to as Gitopanishad. In other words, it follows the style and philosophical conclusions of the classic Upanishads. In fact, there is a popular tradition wherein the Upanishads are compared to cows, and Shri Krishna, God Himself, to the cowherder who lovingly milks these cows. Naturally, in this analogy, Arjuna is compared to an endearing calf, and other men and women who attentively hear the Gita are likened to swan-like personalities of purified intellect -- the fortunate drinkers of the Gita’s ambrosial milk-nectar, the distilled essence of the Upanishads. High philosophy is not uncommon in India, and the Gita’s philosophical sermons are among the highest. Not surprisingly, then, it has been commented upon by great teachers throughout the ages in an attempt to make it more accessible to each successive generation. All such commentaters agree that bhakti, or devotion to God, is the Gita’s central teaching, overriding ideas about karma and reincarnation, and more important to the text than even Jnana-Yoga, the pursuit of knowledge in the yogic tradition. It becomes clear that the Gita cherishes “heart” over “head,” and emphasizes the inescapable conclusion that passionate devotion far outweighs silent meditation and the pursuit of knowledge. In an attempt to show the centrality of devotion and “heart over head” in the teachings of the Gita, one seventeenth-century text, the Chaitanya-charitamrita, tells the story of an unnamed illiterate brahmin in South India. The portion of the text that focuses on this brahmin appears below in its entirety. This is the story of a Vaishnava Brahmin from the land of Ranga. He would go to the temple every day to recite the Bhagavad-gita. During recitation, he would feel great bliss and his eyes filled with tears as he read all eighteen chapters. His reading, however, was imperfect, for his Sanskrit left a great deal to be desired. And so, people would make fun of him. Nonetheless, in his state of bliss, he was unconcerned that some would laugh and mock him. Totally absorbed in reading the Bhagavad-gita, visible signs of bodily ecstasy, such as tears, quivering, perspiring - all these would engulf him while reading. Witnessing this, the great Master (Chaitanya) became overjoyed. The great Master asked him, “Dear brahmin, please indulge me. What is the cause of your unequaled happiness?” The Brahmin said, “I am a fool and clearly uneducated. I do not know the meaning of these intensely philosophical words, or whether I am reading the Gita correctly or not. I am simply abiding by the order of my teacher. And I see this: Krishna is in Arjuna’s chariot, holding the reins in His divine hands. He sits with His devotee, appearing dark and exquisitely beautiful. He is offering Arjuna His laborate teachings, but, more importantly, He offers His compassion. And just visualizing Him, in this situation, causes a wave of bliss to overtake me. As long as I read this, however imperfectly, I can have a vision of Him. For this reason, I cannot cease reading the Gita.” The Master said, “You are the proper authority of the Gîtå. You know it better than the greatest of scholars. You know the essential meaning of the Gita, for you view it with your heart as opposed to merely your intellect.” —(CC 2.9.93-102, my own translation from the Bengali) This short story confirms that Indic spiritual tradition ultimately values a heart steeped in devotion over any other metaphysical commodity, be it philosophical acumen, intellectual prowess, or yogic perfection. The South Indian brahmin rightly perceived that Krishna condescended, out of love, to become His devotee’s charioteer, that God became His servant’s servant. This, said the South Indian brahmin, is the real teaching of the Bhagavad-gita. Higher and lower, up and down, material and spiritual, master and disciple -- all begin to lose meaning when love enters the heart. Chaitanya, the great Master mentioned in the story, inundated Medieval India with his Bhakti renaissance of love of God, transforming a culture that valued asceticism and philosophy above all else, into one that appreciates the virtues of a loving heart.

That Lou Grant show is available on Video from ITV.

My guess is next we will probably hear how this bishop supports abortion, gay marriages, etc. Is it possible to be a catholic and not accept the pope?

Could someone post the date, time and location for the San Francisco Ratha Yatra? I assume its this Sunday?

Does anyone know the storage life of vegetable renet? How long can it be kept? Also does it need to be refrigerated?

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Foreigners view bath ceremony of Lord Jagannath in Puri Puri, June 28 (ANI): Thousands of Hindu devotees and tourists thronged the coastal town of Puri in Orissa on Tuesday to witness the sacred bath ceremony of Hindu God, Lord Jagannath, prior to the world famous Rath Yatra (chariot festival). Amid blowing of conchshells and beating of cymbals, the giant limbless wooden images of three deities --Lord Jagannath, his elder brother Lord Balabhadra and sister Subhadra -- were taken out of the temple in traditional gear and given bath by priests of the temple. Hundreds of foreign tourists also witnessed the ceremony, one of India's biggest religious events. Many of them said they came to witness the ritual since the temple is out of bounds for foreigners. "I actually came here twice," said a foreign tourist. "Years ago, I came here for the first time because I know this is a special event for all India. I came here because I know Lord Jagannatha means Lord of the Universe, therefore I came to see him. I know I am white and I can't go inside, but two times in a year, I can see Lord of the Universe at the "Snan Yatra" (bath ceremony)." Said another: "It was my dream to come to Puri and see Lord Jagannath because western people are not allowed to go inside the temple. It is therefore rare luck to see Lord Jagannath." After the sacred bath ceremony, the three deities were taken around in a procession around the town. People lined up along the streets to have a view. "This is a first-time experience for me. I have never been here before. I was always keen to see the sacred bath ceremony. I am lucky that I could see it today, one feels great. I plan to spend the whole day here," said Dilip Sahu, a devotee from West Bengal. The Chariot Festival involves a ten-day trip by Lord Jagannath to his aunt's house with sister Subhadra and Balaram. The main ceremony of the event consists of pulling of the three giant chariots by devotees. The journey is a round trip from the main temple to another nearby temple where the idols rest for seven days before their return to the main temple. At the termination of the ceremony, the chariots are broken up and used to manufacture religious relics. Every year, new chariots are made. The festival, which falls in July-August, is being celebrated for the last ten centuries. The Jagannath temple, about 60 kilometres from the state capital Bhubaneswar, is one of the holiest places for the Hindus in India. The building is 65 metres high, mounted on the mystic "Chakras" or wheels. According to the believers, Lord Jagannath is the incarnation of Lord Vishnu, the Preserver, one of the trinity of the Hindu pantheon. The other two are Brahma, the Creator and Shiva, the Destroyer.

You need to use [ , not <.

So far everyone who has voted says its Krishna.

You have to go to the bottom of the reply page and manually copy the parts of the message you want to reply to (highlight it and press control-c), then go to your reply, and press control-v to paste it. Then you need to add the [ quote ] before the quote and [ /quote ] after the quote. A little more work.

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