cbrahma

Isn't it obvious? But then again there's a lot of older 'boys' acting like gurus.

Right that's all it takes to be guru.

This sounds suspiciously like impersonal moksa, merging into the brahmajyoti. It is unclear what is meant by 'fulfil their human birth'. The goal of human life is to question its purpose and to realize 'aham brahmasmi' (I am spirit). Perhaps that is what she is saying. I am spirit, however, doesn't mean I am the Divine Spirit, One and the Same - what she calls the Self. But she may be a true self-realized jnani - which is actually an advanced state - far more than being a mudane karmi.

Shouldn't we be weaning ourselves off of oil?

She is Amma, sometimes know as Universal Mother, or Durga . Her 'husband' is Sri Bhagavan who claims he is an avatar - a Visnu-tattva avatar. Of course this is fraudulent. Religion without philosophy, in fact religion without truth is sentimentality. </OBJECT> </OBJECT> </EMBED></OBJECT>

Well if the managers were new immature disciples I would understand it, but the senior disciples were mean mean mean, not just to me but to each other. Puffed up and mean.

He's still on the Vatican's Index Librorum Prohibitorum. I guess that's all we need - another big book bonfire. Farenheit 451

I've read it. He got in trouble with the Vatican of course.

I had to listen to brahmana initiated disciples of Prabhupada hurl insults at each other while preparing prasadam for Rukmini-Dwarkadish. Really transcendental. Needless to say, I'm not impressed with the religious process of bhakti-marga, with its exclusive elite membership. A joke.

I can find friends. Material firiends. And there are my Christian godbrothers and godsisters who BTW are much friendlier and welcoming than any devotee who isn't on the sell.

I give you no argument here. If you want an incentive to live materiallly, live in a temple, especiallly associate with the 'brahmanas' in the Deity kitchen. I've never seen so much offensive high drama. It's really scary.

I don't know where you get the impression that I'm sooo unhappy. Because I criticize ISKCON? That's standard practice on this forum. Association without envy, I have found to be next to impossible. I guess that's the real issue. So much attention to 'advancement' and diksa and all the religious accoutrements. It's too much really.

I am told that to think you have attraction is sahajiya.

I would actually get up at 2:30 am and go to the LA Temple and attend the whole morning program and chant 12 rounds , 4 of which I would finish during the day. I was trying to follow SP. But when I get happy , it seems the ISKCON members get unhappy and start criticizing. I experienced this many times at differnt temples.

No I didn't have ecstatic symptoms. I just felt happier than I ever felt in my life. I stopped chanting.

This I have experienced but then there are sahajiyas who chant spontaneously , claiming to have ecstatic symptoms. I am concerned about this counterfeit and am not sure whether to maintain a chanting sadhana because I almost always experience sweetness. It is very unfortunate so I have stopped.

http://www.newtalavana.org/

I didn't live in New Vrndavan and I still don't get your point.

I wasn't a big sankirtana devotee. But towards the end with Rameswara it wasn't called that. They went out under all disguises but nobody called it that.

the 'pick'?

New Vrndava was not a self-sustaining rural community?

I don't follow you. Vaisnavism may be inclusive of Christianity, but churchianity is not. The concept of a congregation is borne of clericism. I know that is defnitely not what Prabhupada intended. Without going into the details, varna-asrama is supposedly a universal principle for organizing material society quite unrelated to 'joining up' to a temple.

I'm talking philosophy and you're talking PC politics. It is what it is. There is nothing dogmatic about citing the facts and correct definitions. It is the GBC which is dogmatic. ISKCON doesn't have to mimic churchianity to be effective. They can delude themselves that Hindu congregation are somehow devotees but that is not the case. ISKCON's rate of making devotees is so meagre compared to the pre-congregational days.

My understanding is that one preaches and lets Caitya guru in the heart do the rest.

But that is what the bhakta should do -preach so that everybody can become familiar. Yes?