madhavachari

No, why are you asking?

Would you mind telling us who you are first? Or don´t you have the guts? I totally understand your mentality, you want to make me look bad because you can´t defeat my statements. Which is totally ridiculous. You fail miserably. So what if I was a Gaudiya vaishnava before. As if I am trying to hide that. I never believed Chaitanya was God, only in a symbolic sense (personifying Radha Krishna bhakti). BTW, if you are a Gaudiya, you have to accept Gaura-nagari, because it is part of the tradition. I was never into that, but it is a part of the tradition in West Bengal particularly. I agree with the parts of GV teachings that are genuine, and those I found in Sri Vaishnavism in their pure form. Why should you take whatever I say now with a grain of salt? It doesn´t matter what I did before, if I am telling the truth now.

Yes, it is one of the sattvika puranas and it teaches eternal truths. But, there is no Radha in Bhagavatam even!

As I said, there is no vedic support for a Radha. They are all later texts or the evidence is allegedly in older texts, but they aren´t.

http://www.illustramedia.com/umolinfo.htm I recommend it. "Unlocking the mystery of life".

Divya Prabandhams are hymns of the Alwars, a lot about the pastimes of various avataras and the qualities of Sriman Narayana, etc. Those hymns do not introduce new things which differ from the Veda. Big difference.

Any person who possesses awareness of God and inspires others is empowered in comparison to the rest of the population that merely engages in body/mind related activites. .

Yes they do, but it is not Vedic.

Since there is not even any vedic pramana for Radha, it would be ludicrous to make statements such as, "Radha is the source of all goddesses, even Lakshmi"!

As far as the Vedas are concerned, there is no Radha but only Lakshmi, who is the service potency of Narayana. Together they are called Sriman Narayana. The divine couple, the inspiration for the ideas about Radha Krishna that developed later. There is however, a figure called Nappinnai in the devotional texts of Sri Vaishnavism who is the favourite gopi of Krishna in Vraja lila. This is essentially the Radha of the Gaudiyas.

Yes, a real avatara is mentioned in the scriptures. But, this is misused by cults by misinterpreting scriptures to make their "avatara" seem genuine. Also, such cults compose their own "upanishads" to promote their ideas.

A lot of religious people in India smoke ganja. Shaivas and Ramanandis for example. It is up to you to decide whether it is good for you or not. It isn´t exactly everybody´s cup of tea, or should I say cup of herb?

Madhva Gaudiya etc. The question is though what the Madhva part of the sampradaya is. Getting initiation into for example ISKCON, you receive Hare Krishna mantra, guru mantras, kama-gayatri and Gopala mantra, etc. But none of those mantras are part of the initiation in the line of Madhva. The teachings are not the same either, so it is clearly not a branch of the Madhva line - different teachings and different mantras. Madhvas don´t accept that Krishna Chaitanya is an avatara either.

Obviously, ISKCON is not a "Gaudiya society", in the sense of being a Bengali society. It is rather an International society for Krishna consciousness. ISKCON.

Well, if he isn´t aware of that there is a higher force - God - who is our origin and means and goal of life, there isn´t much you can do about it. It has to come from inside himself, then he will see the relevance of devotion to God.

I can see where that translation is going. However, this is a more accurate translation: "When the seer beholds the self-luminous Creator, the Lord, the Purusha, the progenitor of Brahma, then he, the wise seer, shakes off good and evil, becomes stainless, and reaches the supreme unity."

If you want to follow a Vedic tradition I suggest Sri Vaishnavism.

No pain or screams.

Suchandra > The tapas or brandings are approximately four centimeters in diameter. Guest > Lotus and club are not branded at all. "ThApa SamskAram is highly glorified by the sAstrAs in various places. Some of them are as follows : 1. Brahmasooktha in the Atarva Mahopanishad says " ChakrA in the right shoulder and Sankha in the left shall be worn" . 2. The Pushkala Samhita in Rig VedA says " Oh vishnu ! The learned wear the holy Sankha - Chakra to cross the ocean of samsArA ". 3. Atarva vedA says " By adorning the armour of the Lord , we shall live happily in this world and reach the abode of the Lord ( conveying that others cannot reach Sri Vaikuntam ) " 4. In the Vishnu Tattvam , the passage narrating about NarakalokA says " Wearing of Sankha and ChakrA informs the relationship with Vishnu . The sentries of YamA are afraid of them . The world will perish if they are belittled . The devotees of Vishnu are never seen in YamA's place due to the glory of Sriman NArAyanA " . 5. BheeshmaparvA of MahAbhArathA says " All shall , as ordained in the PAncharAtrA SAstrA preached by Lord SankarshanA ( NArAyanA ) , wear the chakrA mark. They only are eligible to worship BhagavAn Vishnu ( Bhagavad ArAdhanam ) " 6. VarAhapurAnam glorifies the persons wearing the hot seals of the Supreme Lord Sriman NArAyanA on their arms (shoulders) . It says that these devotees ultimately reach Sri Vaikuntam . 7. Garuda PurAnam says that only those who have been affixed with the Sankha and ChakrA are eligible to take part in the ceremony to forefathers." http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/bhakti/archives/jan98/0077.html

I have received pancha-samskara which includes tapa or branding. Chakra on the right shoulder and sankha on the left. And it is done once and lasts a lifetime. Here is some info about it: 1. thApa SamskAram: This is the first samskAram. The AchAryA embosses the impressions of Conch (Shankam) and Discus (Sudarshana chakram) on the left and right arms of the disciple, respectively. To give an analogy in the materialistic world, a sales representive wears a logo representing the organization for which he is working. Factually, we (JIvAtmAs) are servants of the Supreme Lord Sriman NArAyanA. So, we also identify ourselves through the things which uniquely represent Him. NArAyanA holds the Conch(PAnchaJanyam) in His Left Hand and the Sudarshana Chakram in His right Hand. So, we also bear the same way. Any highly fortunate jivAtmA, who becomes a devotee of Lord Vishnu will be very happy about wearing Shankam and Chakram. The AchAryA with great devotion recites the mantrAs to invoke Sriman NArAyanA and His weapons Sudarshana Chakram & PAnchajanyam. The Supremely merciful NArAyAnA abides by it. The Lord and His weapons thus become present in the Agni (Fire). Then, the AchAryA prays specifically to the divine weapons to be eternally present with the disciples for whom Pancha SamskAram is being performed. The emblem of"Sudarshana ChakrA"is heated in the agni and is embossed on the right hand, by chanting a hymn, which translates into "Oh! Sudarshana MahAJwAlA (Highly resplendent), as lusturous as crores of Sun, please show me, an ignorant one, the path of Lord Vishnu". Then, the emblem of"PAnchajanyam"is heated in the fire and is embossed on the left hand, by chanting a hymn, which translates into "Oh! PAnchajanyA! You are capable of driving away the sins of individuals through your sound. Please protect me, a sinner, from this samsArA".

Specific Gaudiya texts certainly say so, but not the Vedic literature. Not even the Bhagavata Purana, which is your favourite place for finding "evidence". By the way, you got another thing wrong, there can be no avatara of Krishna, as Narayana is the source of all avataras. Krishna was a temporary manifestation of Narayana and does not exist eternally in a "Goloka".

No, why should I?

It is a translation of the text, that is all. I don´t see why you are mixing the impersonalists (whoever they are...) into this.

If he was pleased is difficult to say. I don´t think he wanted his followers to believe he was an incarnation of Krishna. It seems his followers made up all those mythical biographies and deified him more or less.

Well, I guess he just chanted it. But I think he chanted the verison that begins with "Hare Krishna" and not the version that is in the Kali-santarana Upanishad that begins with "Hare Rama" as far as I am aware of. And there it simply says, "Hari Om ! At the end of Dvapara-Yuga, Narada went to Brahma and addressed him thus: "O Lord, how shall I, roaming over the earth, be able to across Kali ?" To which Brahma thus replied: "Well asked. Hearken to that which all Shrutis (the Vedas) keep secret and hidden, through which one may cross the Samsara (mundane existence) of Kali. He shakes off (the evil effects of) Kali through the mere uttering of the name of the Lord Narayana, who is the primeval Purusha". Again Narada asked Brahma: "What is the name ?" To which Hiranyagarbha (Brahma) replied thus: 1. Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare 2. These sixteen names (words) are destructive of the evil effects of Kali. No better means than this is to be seen in all the Vedas. These (sixteen names) destroy the Avarana (or the centripetal force which produces the sense of individuality) of Jiva surrounded by the sixteen Kalas (rays). Then like the sphere of the sun which shines fully after the clouds (screening it) disperse, Parabrahman (alone) shines."