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Vikram Ramsundar

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Posts posted by Vikram Ramsundar


  1. I think it is great time that Gaudiya Vaisnavas stop wasting their energy taking these speculative figures seriously. The followers of Ramanujacarya and Madhvacarya, for example, see no conflict between Vaisnavism and modern science because they, rightly, disregard these unrealistic truth claims such 8.4 million yonis etc. The Bhagavatam was written in about the 7th to 8th century CE in South India, and even though much of the basic Puranic material was already present in the subcontinent thousands of years prior to that, almost all of the Puranas available today, or at least the existing recensions of them, date from a few centuries before the composition of the Bhagavata to as late as the 1300s, which is the scholarly accepted time frame for the Brahma-vaivarta. There was no scientific knowledge as we know it in our own time back then. The pre-scientific poet/s who was/were the authors of the Bhagavatam often let their unbridled imagination run wild. For instance, it is mentioned that Ugrasena had four billion bodyguards. Elsewhere, we find absolutely astronomical numbers of horses (90 million) and servants (9 billion) being given by King Nagnajit on the occasion of the wedding of his daughter to Lord Vasudeva. No one in his right mind would even think of defending the veracity of these ludicrous instances of poetic license.

     

    Let us instead focus on the essence of vaisnava-dharma and thereby advance in our sadhana. The scriptures available to us, no matter how imperfect, are here principally to guide and throw light on our chosen paths. Let us therefore heed the wise words of Srila Saccidananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura and try to become Saragrahi Vaisnavas. In other words, we should sift through received wisdom and sort the important and necessary bits from the less essential content. Whether one believes that there are 8,400,000 or 9,131,562 species is not germane to the practice of dharma and attainment of moksa in reality. If one is sincerely engaged and puts in the required effort in the right mental frame, the desired results are certain to follow. Sri Sri Radha-Krsna want our humble, loving devotion, not fanatical commitment to negligible elements of sastra.

     

    Radhe Radhe


  2.  

    Eating meat and intoxication are not parts of spiritual practices. Nor are they necessary in any spiritual sadhna including tantra dakshin marg! What's wrong with devi worship? Arjuna worshipped devi too! So did Barbarik blessed by Lord Krishna. What's wrong with that? Some of the greatest sages worshipped devis. Devi is power. Shri Gaudiya Vaishnavas chant the Gayatri mantra. And Gayatri devi and her sadhna was opened to the world by Shri Vishwamitra. This is a blessing. Whether it is saraswati, Lakshmi or kali, all are part of Lord. Lakshmi is consort of Lord Vishnu! We don't ignore her. Offering obeisances to Guru mata is offering obeisances to Guru as well.

    jai shri Gauranga!!

     

    Yogkriya

     

     

    Beautiful indeed. This is the right way to go about it and this is also the true spirit of Sanatana-dharma. You deserve my obeisances, Yogkriyaji. May Lord Sadasiva and Maa Gauri shower their unlimited blessings upon your gracious self.

     

    Om tat sat

     

    Radhe Radhe


  3.  

    but as u rightly noticed that Hinduism is a term given to the followers of Vedas, Vedic practices and Sanatana Dharma!

     

    Correct indeed. The word "Hindu" is not a Sanskrit word, and Guruvani is right when he states that it is nowhere to be found in the classical indigenous literature of Bharata-varsa, whether one is referring to the Vedas, Vedic Samhitas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas, Upanisads, Puranas, Itihasas, Agamas or Tantras. The term used in the sastras to describe India's spiritual wisdom is Sanatana-dharma, and this encompasses vaisnava-dharma, saiva-dharma, sakta-dharma, advaita-vada, and a host of other genuine traditions, such as the system delineated in the Yoga-sutras of Patanjali and so on. As I have personally said uncountable times before, an individual soul is primarily drawn to a particular type of mysticism as a result of his mental impregnation, i.e. his own karmic inheritance from prior births coupled with a natural inclination that can be gradually developed depending on family, country, exposure etc etc. There is no doubt, though, that Sanatana-dharma has, over the centuries, evolved into an entity which has come to be known as Hinduism, and a wise person, in my humble little opinion, is one who takes valid knowledge from wherever he can find it, and progress in his own chosen sadhana with a view to reach his desired sadhya.

     

    For my part, I am a non-ISKCON Gaudiya Vaisnava, and I request all friends who are sometimes sickened by holier-than-thou claims of being THE rightful heirs to the religion of OUR forebears by certain people, not to themselves commit a grave aparadha by abusing Gaudiya Vedanta generically, because of the ungainliness and clumsiness of just one modern sect. Real Gaudiya Vaisnavas seek harmony, and this is easily visible to any objective observer. For instance, Gaudiyas, who are emphatically personalistic in orientation, show a much higher level of respect for Sripada Adi-Sankaracarya, the father of Advaita Vedanta, than many other Vaisnava lineages. Tolerance, humility and pure Gaudiya Vaisnavism are inseparable as a matter of fact.

     

    Those who have read my other posts will know that I really respect all the religions of the world, what to speak of Hindu philosophies other than my own. My main purpose on this forum is to try in my small way to counter sectarianism and exclusivism as much as I can. That does not mean that I consider all paths to lead to the same goal or even that all have equal theological merit; I am deeply committed to Caitanya Vaisnavism, but I prefer to follow Sriman Mahaprabhu's siksa to his followers and at least attempt to be humble and tolerant, rather than seek to destroy the faith of anyone who does not to my ideas.

     

    My pranams to everybody.

     

    Om tat sat


  4.  

    Vikram prabhu ... I agree with everything you said about Guruvani.

     

    I seriously think Guruvani needs psychiatric help. Too much bitterness and envy to the point that it drives him crazy.

     

     

     

    Haribol Prabhu

     

    Let us put an end to all this madness, and prove ourselves worthy of the mercy of Srimati Radharani and Guru-tattva. We cannot eliminate sectarianism by behaving fanatically ourselves. It is for Krsna and Mahaprabhu to decide who is deserving of receiving their attention.

     

    Sri Sri Guru Gaurangau Jayatah


  5.  

    It is not a matter of faith or preference, but Sadhan is an exercise in finding the truth for oneself. Sanatan Dharm as understood and practiced all over India is a testimony of the unspoken wisdom.

     

    Duality is easily perceivable, just as "I" and the "rest". The first step in Sadhan is to over come this differentiation. Lord Shiv, the Lord of duality is therefore worshiped by becoming one with him or like him, to end the duality. All sadhan originate from Lord Shiv and he is the author of all rituals. A sadhak, to become like Him, ought become clean physically, mentally and spiritually. One can see the physical form of such purity being practiced, as bathing, simple clothing, jata (or shikha), jahnavi (thread), asan (seat), jap (chanting), havan, etc. Mentally the sadhak removes all thoughts and desires to enter into a zero state, a state of vacuum. This is what is meant by non-duality, that is becoming one with Lord Shiv. And, Lord Shiv is for ever meditating on Lord Vishnu, so Sadhak can perceive Lord Vishnu only through such oneness with Lord Shiv. Lord Vishnu is also the Lord of non-duality, so he is worshipped as separated from oneself. Lord Vishnu himself worships Lord Shiv by becoming one with him. Everyday, He offers one thousand lotuses to Lord Shiv. One thousand Lotus is Sahasrar Chakra, which means one's entire consciousness. The sadhak at this stage starts perceiving duality that exists as maya of Lord Vishnu and he sees Him everywhere. When the consciousness is merged, all differentiation is lost. "Everything I see as separate from me is really me".

     

    So, as the saying goes, the self is Shiv and the other is Vishnu. This can be seen practiced all over India. The "other" is always revered first. For example, a guest is fed first. Some Vaishnav sects in India worship each other by touching the other's feet. (Example of self is Shiv and the other is Vishnu). Some address each other as Prabuji. In essence, everyone is practicing to become Shiv to perceive Vishnu. So, the end result is the same, irrespective of the path chosen. For, the paths are not really different, only the emphasis differs depending on the moment, one's mental make up, one's personality and such factors. And the influence of the family, whose wisdom and past practices are natural allies in Sadhan.

     

    The Supreme Lord has no name, no form and therefore is difficult to worship. His two forms that are worshiped are specific and precise for the effect they produce on the Sadhak. The Sadhak becomes one with Shiv but remains separate from Vishnu. In day-to-day practice, he is strict with himself but generous to all others. In short, when one wishes to worship the divinity in oneself, then it's Lord Shiv. When one wishes to worship divinity in others, it's Lord Vishnu. This is very much a living wisdom of India which has survived through thousands of years and will survive in future.

     

    Typical Advaitic platitudes which have been opposed time and time again by personalistic schools of thought, whether one thinks of the Brahma-sutra commentaries of Sripada Ramanujacarya, Sripada Madhvacarya, Nimbarka Maha-Muni, Sripada Visnusvami or the Gaudiya Vedantacarya Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana. I'm not saying that what you wrote is incorrect. It is correct, but only up to a certain point. I am a follower of the Brahma Madhva Gaudiya Vaisnava Sampradaya, and if properly understood, Gaudiya Vaisnavism favours a very inclusive conception of Divinity. Whilst many modern Gaudiyas are deplorably exclusivist, the theology of this sect in its absolute form embraces a superior domain where God is both personal and impersonal, Krsna and Siva, Paramatma and Brahman, and so forth. God can only be everything simultaneously, if one carefully ponders over the issue with the help of the revealed scriptures. You are obviously an Advaita Vedantist, and Brahman is your sadhya. For my part, I wish to serve Radharani in Goloka for eternity, as an aspirant Gaudiya Vaisnava. I respect your svabhavika spiritual option. Hope you afford me the same generosity.

     

    Om tat sat


  6.  

    So really it's not just me that your venom and hatred is aimed at.

    You also have the audacity to presume to know better than the siddha Maha-Bhagavat.

     

    Like they say:" A fool goes undetected as long as he doesn't speak, but as soon as he speaks his ignorance is exposed".

     

    Vikram babu has shown the darkness that haunts his own soul with his foolish criticism of an empowered acharya who is actually svarup-siddha.

     

    A rotten grhamedhi like Vikram certainly has no position to be making such critical assessments of AN ACHARYA.

     

     

    Guruvani or whatever your real name is, take a good look into the depraved depths of your own hopelessly fallen self before you get on your high horse whenever somebody says something that touches your chord. If an award could be given for committing the most Vaisnava-aparadha on these forums, you would win it hands down. You have yourself said the most nonsensical absurdities about more than one very senior Vaisnava acaryas who are from Gaudiya lines other than the one you profess to follow. These devotees are in fact situated on an infinitely higher platform than your own lowly being and there is way more Krsna consciousness in their toenails than in anything you have ever done in your miserable, pathetic existence. As far as I am concerned, my initial introduction to Radha-Krsna was via the beautiful teachings of Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, and I shall remain forever extremely grateful to His Divine Grace for that. I was simply making a specific point by painting a nuanced view of his amazing preaching pastimes, and if you could not read in between my lines properly, blame your own intelligence for it.

     

     

     

    Such filthy talk as that is simply the babbling of an asura.

     

    Half-baked version of Sanatan-Dharma?

     

    As if India isn't the empire of pseudo-gurus, swamis and yogis?

     

    Most Hindus in India are so confused and befuddled with the kaleidoscope of bogus avatars that they don't know Sanatan Dharma from a hole in the ground.

     

    In India there is an avatar on every street corner begging for a rupee.

     

    Trying to find a Hindu that knows Sanatan Dharma is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

     

    Let the decision about who has the more asuric tendencies be made at another level. To quote yourself in a previous message, your own opinion is worth nothing more than the posterior of a rat, so evidently nothing that emanates from your end should be taken seriously, not by me nor by anybody else.

     

    Concerning the other part of your post, no, you are right, nobody knows anything about anything. We should all turn to Guruvani for guidance. How about that? Feeling elated now? Regarding filth, it actually appears that YOU are on these forums principally to smirch dirt around. You cannot discuss one issue rationally without at some point emitting obscene vulgarities, slinging personal insults and using garbage language that certainly does not belong here. I think that the readers are intelligent enough to discriminate between gentlemanly conduct and thuggish hectoring. Let them give their verdict.

     

    Lastly, I have only myself to blame for allowing this worthless war of words with an ill-mannered fellow like you gather momentum. I have been expending my valuable time uselessly and stupidly, and this is only proving detrimental to my consciousness and progression in Krsna-bhakti. I seriously have to check this harmful proclivity to want to reply to any valueless piece that gets posted. This is deleterious to myself more than to any other person. I have definitely given you much, much more of my time than was warranted.

     

    In any event, I have no personal enmity with you, and since you obviously love Lord Krsna and Srila Prabhupada a lot, like I do for that matter, I pray that They shower some of Their blessings on both of us, so that we both become more knowledgeable and advanced souls than we are at present.

     

    I wish you the best in your secular life and devotional practice.

     

    Radhe Radhe


  7. My humble pranams to all.

     

    The Gaudiya understanding of Lord Siva's topmost abode of Sadasivaloka is delineated in the Brahma-samhita and Srila Sanatana Gosvamipada's Brhad-bhagavatamrta. It is clear to any one with half-a-brain that Sadasivaloka is an eternal dhama, beyond the material world, and the Param-guru of all Sarasvata Vaisnavas, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada, himself uses the term indestructible to describe the loka of Mahadeva, in his English commentary on the Brahma-samhita. Sivaloka is not destroyed by any means at the time of pralaya or maha-pralaya for that matter. Only a nincompoop would dare argue otherwise.

     

    Of course, there is a modern deviant "Gaudiya" sect which has, over the years, mutated into an apa-sampradaya, and very few individuals who owe their sole acquaintance with Sanatana Dharma to that particular quarter know any Sanskrit whatsoever. Their knowledge, or should I say lack of it, of Dharma is palpable to any normal person, since they only consult BBT translations, or what passes for translations, as their only reference material. These people are for the most part rude, arrogant, and often succumb to the worst type of sectarianism one can find, almost on a par with violent Jihadis or zealous evangelical missionaries. Devotees from the traditional Gaudiya Parivaras or different Gaudiya Mathas largely ignore them for being so ignorant and uncouth. There are some good, reasonable, thoughtful Vaisnavas even from the mission concerned, but these tend to be in the minority.

     

    If any of you friends who are outsiders to the Gaudiya sampradaya wish to know in any real depth our actual views on the subject matters being debated here, I suggest you extract this information from senior Vaisnava practitioners who have significant realisation to their credit, not from a low-consciousness life form who spends most of his time insulting and attempting to defeat anyone and everyone who disagrees with him.

     

    The fact is that both Sadasivaloka and Brahman are just as real and eternal as Vaikuntha. Where one wants to go is a matter of faith and personal preference, and each sadhaka should choose his sadhya/desired destination for himself, and follow the sadhana/spiritual practice required in order to attain that goal. Sanatana Dharma is absolute and all-encompassing. Not many people can fully grasp such a broad concept. Those accustomed to simplistic black-and-white paradigms are definitely ineligible, unless they drop their reductionistic idiocies and embrace a more universal and inclusive conception of Divinity.

     

    Hari Om and Hari Bol!


  8.  

    Vikram are you connected to the sevaits at Radha-Syamasundara?

     

    I know Krishna Ballabha and Mahesh. My Gurudev took us to have lunch at Krishna Ballabha's house adjoining the Mandir one time. I gave the first donation for the restoration work to complete the new temple of Krishnadas Kaviraja Goswami which is beside Radha-Syamasundara and Krishna Ballabha's house. It was a great honour to give that donation, because Krishnadas Kaviraj wrote most of the Chaitanya Charitamrta there.

     

    Haribol Muralidhar Prabhu,

     

    No, I am not that fortunate or advanced to personally know those great souls. In fact, I am of Indian origin but was born and bred in Mauritius, and this is where I reside. My wife is from India proper and the only time that I get to visit holy places is when I travel to Bharata with my family. Since it is hard to get much good devotee association on this small island, I tend to turn to the Internet as a means of staying connected with the Lord's dhama. I posted a message on the Radha-Shyamsundar website guestbook which the moderators appreciated, and they got in touch with me and did me a huge favour by asking me to assist them in my small way popularise the glories of this beautiful mandir. I was glad to get the opportunity to do some service and jumped on the occasion.

     

    Otherwise, it is wonderful to read your own experience at the Radha-Shyamsundar mandir and the donation you made. I wish for a similar chance to serve Their Lordships someday. If I am not mistaken, your Guru Maharaja is Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja, isn't it? Srila Sridhara Maharaja is indubitably one of the most inspirational acaryas to have graced this world in modern times. His writings contain some of the most spiritually and intellectually stimulating Vaisnava material available anywhere. You are indeed lucky to be connected to such a maha-bhagavata.

     

    My humble obeisances to you.

     

    Your servant,

    Vikram Ramsundar


  9.  

    Maybe, when he said "half-baked", Vikram Prabhu meant something like Papa Murphy's "take and bake" pizza, where one takes the uncooked pizza home, puts it in their own oven and bakes it to perfection. Wouldn't that be a fair characterization of what Srila Prabhupada did? He gave us the raw materials in hopes that we would bake them to perfection with our sadhana and sadhu-sanga.

     

    The terminology used by Vikram-ji may be offensive to some, but, certainly no one would contest if it was phrased like so: Srila Prabhupada presented the sweetest conception of Divinity to his Western disciples in a manner which might be comprehensible to them given their particular conditioning. He gave them everything they needed if not everything that exists.

     

     

    That is in essence what my drift was, Murali_Mohan_das Prabhu. Let those with the capacity to understand nuance understand. Whose soul is haunted by darkness is clearly visible to any objective reader who goes through the posts on this thread. I wish you all the best in your life and sadhana too. Let us both focus on what really matters instead of frittering valuable time with cry-babies who have to resort to name-calling and mud-slinging at every turn, and make them feel in the least bit important. How useless and meaningless their existences are is out here for all to see.

     

    My humble obeisances to you for exemplifying good Vaisnava etiquette so nicely.

     

    Radhe Radhe


  10. Sri Shyamsundar is the only Deity in this complete creation who is manifested from the lotus heart of Srimati Radharani and is the most beautiful and reciprocative Deity. His smile is so enchanting that anyone can loose His heart as easy as the melting of fresh cream. Sitting eternally in Sri Vrindavan Dham, Shyamsundar bestows His unlimited mercy to all of them even to those who even think of Him. For the first time in the world He has descended on this cyber space too to give His darshan out of His causeless mercy. Now let us all join hands to give Him His palace in Sri Vrindavan Dham.

     

    Anyone can take darshan of Their Lordships and read about the wondrous katha of Sri Shyamananda Prabhu and the temple history at http://www.radhashyamsundar.com/ and in addition those interested can become members of the created for the Radha-Shyamsundar mandir at http://www.radhashyamsundar - all interested souls who are fortunate enough to bless themselves with the darshan of the three sets of Radha-Krsna deities in this wonderful mandir will simply become addicted to seeing and drinking the nectar of these most charming of murtis.

     

    Radhe Radhe


  11. God is infinite and unfathomable. He manifests to an individual worshipper in the form that best corresponds to that practitioner's psyche and karmic status. To seek to impose our own prejudices on Divinity by artificially metamorphosing the entire concept of the Absolute Truth into a reducible, black-and-white yes or no equation is so very unintelligent that nothing more needs to be added frankly. That attempt is in and of itself damning to those who persist in it.

     

    One final word may be in order. The people who have got this irrepressible urge to proselytize vigorously and try to bring the whole world under their perverted control are as far away from God as the most hardened of atheists. Such folks are only fighting with themselves in the ultimate issue.

     

    Radhe Radhe


  12. I can only paste one of my previous posts here. I think it holds true for this discussion as it did in the one in which I originally wrote it.

     

    Here it comes:

     

    A person is drawn to a particular religion or sect within a wider religious framework as a result of the impressions left on his or her consciousness by the experiences accumulated over millions upon millions of births. I am attracted to Krsna and Mahaprabhu because of my karmic inheritance - well, thanks to the Lord Himself for imbuing my mind with some attraction to Him, but that is another matter. In similar vein, this applies to a Saiva, a Sakta or an Advaitin. Many, many births from now, if I succeed in realising the perfection of Gaudiya Vedanta, hopefully, Radharani will be persuaded to allow me in Goloka Vrndavana so that I can perform my eternal service there. At that time, there will be no greater reality than Vraja-lila for my humble self.

     

    For the revered Sri Hanumanji, no dhama is beyond Saketa/Ayodhya and no Lord above Bhagavan Sri Ramacandra. For Garudadeva, Catur-bhuja Sriman Narayana is Param Brahma, and the source of everything manifest and unmanifest. Likewise, for Nandisvara, Devadideva Mahadeva is the Supreme Lord, and there is no one higher than the blue-throated Lord with matted locks. For a Siva-bhakta who has attained Kailasa or Sadasivaloka, the service of Gauri-Sankara is second to none. And I may also add that to a follower of Advaita Vedanta like Sivananda Swami, who was accepted as a jivan-mukta (liberated even whilst still present in his body on earth), the Brahman effulgence is all. There was never, and there will never be a time when all of humanity will to one single spiritual ideal.

     

    Hare Krsna


  13. On a humorous note, I think the difference between the two can be grasped by contrasting two contemporary Vaisnava practitioners. In my opinion, these two best illustrate the sharp nuance between scepticism and mysticism, even in individuals subscribing to the same fundamental philosophy. On the one hand, there is Jagadananda Dasa/Jagat, the well-known Canadian devotee and Sanskrit scholar, and on the other hand, there is Atmatattva Dasa, the South Indian sadhaka. Those in the know will see what I'm referring to. Interesting, the marked difference between these two senior Gaudiyas!


  14. Just to get back to the subject matter under discussion here. For me, the posts of Jahnava Nitai Prabhu best illustrate how to go about comprehending parts of sastra that can be a source of confusion. It is clear that he is an experienced devotee with a lot of service to his credit, as opposed to the many self-appointed scholars who spend most of their time sitting in ivory towers and reading books.

     

    I think the example of Ranchor Krsna aptly demonstrates this point. Was Vasudeva scared of Jarasandha when he left Mathura and settled with the Yadavas in Dvaravati? Obviously not. But still the Lord found it appropriate to act in the way he did and thereby earned the appellation Ranchor.

     

    We need to view the Narasingha Bhagavan/Virabhadra story in the same light. By the way, I too consider this incident to be fictitious. In the instance that there is some truth to it, there exists certainly an explanation somewhere which does not affect Lord Narasingha's divinity and at the same time preserves the rationale behind this inclusion in scripture.


  15. In any event, if my words have offended anybody, I offer my heartfelt apologies. Please forgive my ignorance. I have written quite a bit on humility - now is the time for me to show that this is a virtue that is present to a minor extent in my personality, not just an idea I have read or heard about from somebody whom I consider to be authoritative.

     

    My apologies to one and all.

     

    From a Kali-yuga patita,

    Vikram Ramsundar


  16. A skeptic is of course one who suspends belief until after something has been empirically proven. The problem with this, however, is that most scientists do not fall under this category, based upon my definition. The Big Bang and neo-Darwinian evolutionary theories are still just that, i.e. theories, and have not been conclusively established by any stretch of the imagination. Mainstream scholars, though, accept them by an act of faith.

     

    A mystic is a person who is attracted to and practices any of the contemplative or ritualistic traditions, or both, in which the experiential results are generally confined solely to the practitioner, or to a few select subjects. Those not privy to these mysteries can only accept or for that matter reject them by an act of faith also, because of the absence of first-hand experience.


  17. Guruvani being a hopeless case who draws practically all he knows about Sanatana Dharma from the half-baked version of Vaisnavism that ISKCON's founder presented to the Western world, I shall not waste one single more word trying to get him to shed some of his extreme bigotry.

     

    I am rather more interested in what Murali_Mohan_das Prabhu wrote. Of course, his criticism of me is valid and welcome. Thank you for reminding me of my fallen position, Prabhu. I pray that sincere persons like yourself keep doing that so that I always remain on my guard and never let false pride and its associated negative qualities fill my head. What I wrote to Guest 3 on the other thread was a disgrace, and I am certainly not proud of the words I used then. If you scroll down to the last post of the thread in question, you will see that I repented for being such a boor (to use your own words), and thanked HariShibdas Prabhu profusely for imparting a few very valuable instructions to me. To Guest 3's credit, he did write a brief message also apologising for letting things get out of hand. However, I notice that his message has been deleted for whatever reason. This is plainly disingenuous of the part of the moderators. At the very least, it shows that there are many pseudo-devotees posing as Vaisnavas in contemporary society.

     

    Radhe Radhe

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