Must read for American born Indian devotees of Krsna

[Guest guest]

“I Think”

 

The Thoughts and Ideas I Encountered Through Life…

 

 

Hari Bol, everyone! Being an Indian teenager growing up in America, and at the same time, practicing Krsna Consciousness was quite a challenging task. However, by the grace of Sri Guru and Gauranga, I came through, with ups and downs. Many issues and interesting events occurred in my life. Many of wish I would like to share with you. Please be considerate in the fact that it is a very personal diary, which I am opening for the world to see. If you have any questions, please e-mail me and I’ll be happy to respond to you. Thank you! Hare Krsna

 

 

 

 

 

I. Religion… Many Paths and Rocks

 

 

 

Hare Krsna! I guess my religious background story are like waves. It starts very rigorously but calms down towards the end. I was born as a Hindu. It is very easy to say, “I am a Hindu.” Later, in life I realized, “How many Hindus are there?” In my case, my Hinduism would be defined as to which temple was close by. If I was near as Swaminarayana temple, I would be a Swaminarayana. I was next to a Sai Baba temple, I would be a Sai follower. This attitude is no different from a Mayavadi who would think everything is one and the same. I was born into the Swaminarayan religion. My paternal grandparents were followers of Swaminarayan. My maternal grandparents were worshippers of Aurobindo and his female disciple who they claim to be the most recent avatara of Durga Devi. So, I am considered an Aurobindo Swaminarayana mix. Weird!!! We moved to Heidelberg, Germany in 1985, where the former Harikesa Swami (then known as ‘Visnupada’ by his followers) lived. By Lord Krsna’s grace, I got a mundana samskara where my hair was cut by then. I heard my first kirtana of jaya sri krsna caitanya prabhu nityananda in a Raga Jhinjhoti fashion. In my immature years, when I watch the video of my haircut, I say, “Get rid of it!!” since I had no interest in any religion at all. I wasn’t trained in religious principles, even though I was trained in moral principles. I came back to states in 1987 and lived at Fort Bragg, NC. I got closer to my grandparents. In fact, I knew my grandparents’ alter: from Mayavadis like Sahajananda Swami (who claims to be Lord Visnu), and his followers, to more general pictures that you see in every Hindu temple like Krsna, Sita Rama Laksmana, and Hanuman as if he was a supreme entity. Of course, Dattatreya, Durga, Ganesa, and Siva were common ones. Since I was close to my paternal grandparents, I was more toward Swaminarayan bhajans. I remember in late 1990, my late grandfather taught me how to read and write Gujarati, and in 1993, he taught me how to read and write Hindi. In 1991, when I was a first grader, I met the current disciple in their succession, Pramukh Swami. I remember he told me to eat good food. (don’t ask!!! lol)

 

 

 

In 1992, I never really cared too much about God and I gave up the Swaminarayan devotion. I was devoted to the Nintendo that year. In 1994, I was devoted to Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, since it was a fad back then. I never really cared about God and I would always hate to go to anything about religion. My anger toward it grew when I was forced to go to visit this so-called swami in North Carolina in the spring of 1995. He was (and still is!) a nutcase. He talks about how “pray God” was the answer to everything. Yes, true. But he never showed us who God is. Later, he taught us a Ganesa prayer. He asked us all to memorize it. With my memorization skill back then, I memorized the prayer (and I still have it in my memory! ekadantam mahakayam lambodara gajananam, vighnanasakaram devam herambam pranamamyaham “I offer obeisances to Lord Heramba who destroys obstacles and has a gigantic elephant face and large pot-belly.”). The next day we were supposed to come, he randomly chose each student to chant this verse. I was chosen and I chanted the verse, too. I was waiting for the audience to hush down. “Ekadantam” and the audience still wasn’t quiet. “Ekadantam” and the audience was getting softer… “Ekadantam” and then the swami said, “Three times?? Did you forget?” With laughter from the audience, I still chanted the entire verse, despite the swami insulting me. Everyone did and some got it to memory. But, all of a sudden, the swami chose three of the people and called them the winners of this competition and the “new” teachers. They won pens. I didn’t like the fact that it was a competition. My mom criticized me on the way home that I was a horrible student and I should learn from them. My mom said things so personal to me that I got upset very much. My parents realized that I was ok, the way I was, but the swami shouldn’t have insulted me. They personally spoke to the swami and told them how I felt. The swami wanted to talk to me personally, but I was in so much ire, that even at 10:00 PM the next time, I was not willing to go. I saw the swami again, but I didn’t let him know I was there. I didn’t care if he realized me or not. He left America the next day. One month later, he was arrested for child abuse. Krsna’s mercy??

 

 

 

After the swami ordeal, summer of 1995 came, when I ended fifth grade ready to enter sixth, I used to listen to “R” rated Hindi songs which are not decent to listen to at all. Eventually, my mom got me a “Trikal Sandhya” tape. Trikal Sandhya are three different sets of prayers meant for three different times of day (namely waking, eating, and sleeping). These prayers are used by the followers of “swadhyay.” The word “swadhyay” is from Sanskrit, svadhyaya which literally means, “The study of self” but it is implied from Srila Prabhupada’s translation as the study of Vedic literature. I had never been to swadhyay before, but this music (in Trikal Sandhya) was okay. I used to sleep to the selected verses of the Srila Bilvamangala Thakura’s song “Sri Govinda Damodara Stotra”, “Gayatri”, and the Yogesvar Arati. One interesting note is that they view Lord Krsna as originally, Yogesvara. Without knowledge of this, I kept listening to this. As I moved into West Point, NY in late 1995, these songs became still on the tip of my tongue. When we got to the first swadhyay we knew in New Windsor, NY, I kinda liked it. I guess it was because of the prayers even though I lacked the knowledge of Sanskrit. The new year came and it became 1996. I found the “Jiva-Bhavana” book and saw more swadhyay prayers in there. Although it was quite boring, because there were just an “x” number of prayers and “y” number of bhav-geets (similar to the bhajan, but unbonafide). Still, it was good. I finished sixth grade and the swadhyay prayers were still on my tongue. I became a seventh grader in late 1996. Here is where my life made a significant turn.

 

 

 

Seventh grade is considered one of my happiest and re-livable years! For two reasons! One reason is that I started to understand one important called love. What is love? Second reason is that I became in something totally new. Before seventh grade, I used to hate anyone of the opposite gender. Yes, the cooties and all that immature junk. But, seventh grade was the year where I started to understand the opposite gender. I guess this is the year where compassion started to kick in. I wasn’t a pure vegetarian, but I had somewhat compassion. Instead of listening to Trikal Sandhya, I started to listen to “Anmol Bhajans Vol 3.” It is reproduced versions of old bhajani lyrics in old films such by Bollywood legends like Late Mohammed Rafi, Late Hemant Kumar, Manna Dey, Late Geeta Dutt, Lata Mangeshkar, Mahendra Kapoor, and Asha Bhosle. The songs that really got me was “O Duniya Ke Rakhwale (Mohd. Rafi for Baiju Bawra)”, “Tu Pyar Ka Sagar Hai (Manna Dey for Seema)”, and “Tora Man Darpana” (Asha Bhosle for Kajal). I used to listen to these so much that I memorized the O Duniya Ke Rakhwale in Raga Darbari Kanhada. When 1997 came, I found a tape with old old Jagjit Singh bhajans. It is the “Samarpan” tape. I liked the tunes of the songs, even though I never changed my ways. I heard the Hare Krsna mahamantra, which sounded nice, but I still didn’t give it much thought. It ‘haunted’ me but it was a nice cozy feeling. That feeling didn’t jump out until April 17, 1997. The day I went on that class excursion trip to SONY Studios in New York City, where street chanters were there. By curiousity’s sake, I checked it out and was amazed “Krsna” and “Rama” were chanted by Americans. How could it be??? By hearing the Hare Krsna mahamantra chanted by pure devotees, I knew that Samarpan was the tape I wouldn’t convert away from. I grabbed a hold of Laksmi Shankar’s bhajan tape, Hari Om Sharan’s “Prabhupad Krpa.” Describing the summer of 1997 was priceless. Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare! Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare!

 

 

 

Although it took time, and let me admit a lot of time, to get my four regulative principles to kick in. But I had the interest. I used to watch Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Sri Krsna films. They were so powerful to glue on to their seat! I spent my last 15 days of the summer of 1997 watching the entire Ramayana. At this point, I realized how dull swadhyay was. I was philosophically unaware of how swadhyay operated, but the swadhyay songs started to sound dull, since they were monotonous.

 

 

 

It took me until 1999 to kick in the real vegetarianism. I also had an AOL account so I was able to contact my first friends who are still to this day, my best friends worthy of worship. I really read the Bhagavad Gita As It Is and concluded that the swadhyay I went to was just “b.s.” if you will. You still must be wondering what swadhyay, Swaminarayan, and all them teach.

 

 

 

THE PEOPLES COURT OF CRAZINESS

 

 

 

Swadhyay is found by Pandurang Sastri Athvale often known as “dadaji” to the followers. He developed a Sankaracarya-based religious ceremony with many centers. It is mostly a Mayavadi, and according to an ex-swadhyayi (current Krsna devotee), they use deities that are not considered bona fide by standards set by previous Vaisanva acaryas. They also use bits and parts of the Bhagavad Gita that they like and they discard everything else. They see Bhagavad Gita as a “karma” tool and how to live on karma. They never see that Krsna is the Supreme Lord. They always sing worship of demigods. One thing that really upsets me is that fact that they took three Vaisnava songs and abused to become unbonafide to those who wrote the songs! 1) Tvam eva mata ca pita tvam eva 2) Invocation of Sri Isopanisad (still singable though) 3) selected verses of Srila Bilvamangala Thakura’s Govinda Damodara Stotra. (sri krsna govinda hare murare he natha narayana vasudeva) It’s because of this that Srila Prabhupada banned his devotees from singing this. Once a devotee in the New Jersey temple sang this song and Jayadvaita Maharaja stopped the kirtana and was terribly displeased. See how much this boils the blood of a neophyte Vaisnava?

 

 

 

I earlier mentioned Swaminarayan. They are very interesting people in that they are considered in ritualistic and belief sense as Vaisnava. But it’s the fact that they worship a fake god called Swaminarayan (not Lord Narayana or Narayana Maharaja from Gaudiya Math). Although very orgnanized, Swaminarayan is not bonafide. They worship a human being that is no even predicted by the sastras, nor is authorized as a bonafide guru worthy of worship. Speaking of Swami-narayana, I was to sing at a classical bhajana concert. Of course, everyone has favorite bhajans. Of them, is “Ho Rasiya Mein To Sharan Tihari” written by Premananda Swami from the Swaminarayana group. It is okay in wording, but knowing that it is written by a Mayavada will impurify real meaning of bhajana. It is arguable that Sankaracarya written bhajans, which is still able to be sung, but let us not forget, that Sri Sankaracarya was really a devotee, Lord Siva, in the form of Sankaracarya to fool the atheist Buddhists. Words like, “bhaja govindam bhaja govindam….” prove his authority. Premananda was a Mayavada though. Hence, we are not permitted to sing any song by the Swaminarayana devotees. Along with Premananda comes Brahmananda, Niskulananda, and Muktananda Swamis who are predominately famous amongst the realm of popular Hindi bhajans.

 

 

 

So, as I came in deeper in Krsna Consciousness in fall of 1999, I went to Chicago, IL to meet some family. I found it quite disturbing that my maternal aunt was worshipping Sai Baba singing bhajans. Even scarier was that their neighbor was a Sai Baba follower. Their entire house was covered with Sai Baba. Before I go into the details of my rather disturbing experience, let me first introduce who this Sai Baba is. According to them, there are three incarnations of “Sai-baba.” The first one was Shirdi Sai Baba, who take place in the early 20th century. He tried to prove himself God by wrapping a tightly strong bandage on his head. Such pressure of the bandages to cut circulations on his brain, and he died. However, later he claimed to have awakened from his grave, but he died. That, obviously, did not prove anything, except that he is a ghost. This fact was even taken on the TV show “Ripley’s Believe it or Not.” Later, in the middle 1920’s, there was the second incarnation of “Sai-baba” called “Sathya Sai Baba.” He is the “current Sai-baba.” If you go walk on West Devon Ave, near the ISKCON Chicago temple, you will see so many Sai Baba pictures! You won’t see Sai-baba floods in New York and New Jersey Indian plaza roads! See how New York rules?? J The current Sai Baba also claims to be an avatara of the product of Krsna and Siva, which is a very absurd thing. He is currently in major trouble, by telling people he was God. Saying it’s a “divine touch” and “God’s order” when males get initiated, he would ask them to strip for oral sex. He would even go to the point by sucking Siva linghas. Anywho, the third Sai Baba who is yet to come is known as “Prema Sai Baba.” Don’t know anything bout it. Won’t comment on it. Since you have a background on the Sai cult, I unfortunately met the big-wig himself and by using magic, he gave his hair dust to people, and they accepted it as prasada. He was a scary guy that was a homosexual and may I never be near him again!!!!!

 

 

 

My mother and her family was a follower of Aurobindo, a Bengali nationalist, who had a female disciple. Everyone calls her “mataji”, because she claimed to be the most recent incarnation of Durga Devi. Their asrama is based in Pondicherry, India. My maternal grandparents are devout followers of Aurobindo. Although, what really gets me upset is that they try to equate everything. They made the equality of Srila Prabhupada and Aurobindo. They never liked the fact that I sang Bengali bhajans. Bengali bhajans are perhaps the most purest of bhajans, since majority of Vaisnava bhajans are Bengali. They always sang “Kabir-ized” bhajans. A very few of Kabir bhajans are worth something. Kabir bhajans however, did not glorify the Lord, but just use philosophy over and over again. Kabir is known for this, “yeh samsara” jargon which tends to be used and abused by people who are weak in spiritual knowledge. Anyone, I was singing a bhajan, “Raja-rani Mira Bikharini Giridhari Tomar Lagiya…” on my graduation, and she said, “Bengali culture is trashy.” You can imagine how much loss of respect resulted. She wants to me sing Gujarati bhajans. There is perhaps only one bona-fide Gujarati bhajan and that is by Narsi Mehta. “Vaisnava Jana To Tene Kahiye.” I haven’t included that in my song-book yet.

 

 

 

By the Lord’s mercy and by the kindness Srila Prabhupada, I have been sticking along with the Krsna Consciousness movement. Been associating with more devotees, and learning more about Krishna Culture. Something I know I will definitely not change from. From the 1999 trip to Chicago onto 2000, things got better and better, until September of 2000 where a friendship conflict caused my downfall, but didn’t ruin my sparks. On Christmas of 2000, I had to go this party full of Indians. It was a very disturbing party, since there were a whole lot of meat-eaters and beer drinkers. Teens were playing sex games, and it was definitely a disaster. What caused things to be much more of a sad shock was when this one person who was eating chicken and drinking beer was talking to met about religion. How I should be more religious. I had a strong debate with him on every field of religion. I even showed how the un-bona-fide bhajan “om jaya jagadisa hare” was bad to sing. His wife kept criticizing me about happiness and sadness, etc. This beer-chicken eater was a pujari from a local Hindu temple. Because of that, I never wanted to visit any Hindu temple.

 

 

 

There was an incident where I visited a Hindu temple in Fair Oaks, NY (near Middletown, NY). Their deities were so Mayavadily arranged, that they put Krsna on the bottom of the “hierarchy.” This was definitely an anger. So what if the Deity is small? Do you think that just because a person is small in size means that the person is small in rank? Lord Vamanadeva was a little boy dwarf, but in two mere steps got back His universe, which was never really stolen from him anyway. That just shows ignorant they are.

 

 

 

Another crazy thing about Hindu tradition is that they allow kids to get their brahminical initiation (they call it a janoi) when they are young. Without realization or importance or knowledge of its significance, the parents just get the kids janoi just to have family over to visit. It’s retarded. My younger cousin brother had been really bad from the start (let’s not get into the details) and his parents wanted to get the janoi for him. I obviously was not supportive of this. But the ceremony, with great pomp and show took place at the Hari Om Mandir in Medina, IL. I saw a brahmana with a long beard and he seemed pretty excited to Hinduism. He would run to Durga Devi and say, “Mata Di!! Matadi! Matadi! Matadi!!” It was funny, but I was like, “Okay… a sadhu. Whatever.” He offered food to Krsna, as I saw him do. Poor guy offering food to Krsna, I bet Krsna would help him out. He wouldn’t let me sing Jaya Radha Madhava when people requested it. I was thinking, “Maybe a quiet person.” But at night, I saw him smoke marijuana. Damn! He makes cigarette smokers look bad! He was smoking a lot and when he came in, he smelled like pot. I knew, because I remember the smell here and high school. Even though it isn’t right to say this, but I feel that most local Hindu temples have corruption, no matter what!

 

 

 

I feel like I came to the Krsna Consciousness movement, which is runned by the most purest devotee, Srila Prabhupada. I can’t imagine seeing this craziness, how I would end up. However, despite personal struggles, I humbly thank Lord Krsna for not making me fall down to the bottomless pit. I also thank all the Vaisnavas and my personal friends who have been there for me in the ups through the downs. They are so dear to me, and I pray that they will always be successful, spiritually and materially. Jaya! Thank you, Hare Krsna!

 

 

 

II. A. B. C. D (American Born Confused Desi) and F.O.B.s (Fresh-off the boat)

 

 

 

Hare Krsna! As I have mentioned previously in my religion story, there is another branch that is definitely worth focusing: India. When an American is asked to describe India, the following thoughts come up: Hinduism, flying yogis, Ganges, ancient civilization, and some other facts worth noting. I was born in Fort Campbell, KY in 1984, but that same year, I moved to Heidelberg, Germany. I only visited India for a month in 1986, when I was two years old. I moved to Fort Bragg, NC from 1987 until 1995. West Point, NY was my home from 1995 to 2001. I am currently living (2002) in Buffalo, NY. Hence, my entire life, being born and raised in America, I am what is popularly known amongst Indian-Americans as an “A.B.C.D.” which stands for “American Born Confused Desi.” (Desi literally means ‘one who lives in the country.’ Derrogatory for Indian) I was indeed confused about Indian culture from childhood throughout elementary, and middle school. I was dragged to go visit Hindu temples in Raleigh, NC and eat Indian food (which I am still not too favorable to these days) and attend Diwali Garba. There were no depth, no solidity to it. It was like there was no purpose for them, unless you just wanna party around with dandiya sticks. Let’s not forget Morari Bapu Kathas! My goodness! We would travel 6 hours just to visit Morari Bapu to do Rama lila narration that wasn’t even acceptable in the first place. When you chant Rama Nama, you don’t talk about casinos. Anywho, after coming to Krsna Consciousness, by the grace of Srila Prabhupada’s books, I understood what Indian culture is. Indian culture means Krishna culture. Many Mayavada sannyasis have developed “American” habits such as smoking, drinking, and wearing suit and tie. Srila Prabhupada didn’t compromise his standards and taught all devotees how to wear dhoti, kurta, sari, and how to eat with their hands. That’s why all devotees are beautiful! J

 

 

 

Let’s examine India. India, also known as Bharata-varsa, is the home of many of the Lord’s pastimes. In fact, the entire world was India. Slowly as Kaliyuga came out, India has grown smaller and smaller. Srila Prabhupada often said in his lectures that it is duty of those born in India to spread Krsna Consciousness throughout the world. I have never personally been to India at an age where I can discriminate, so I cannot comment on how India is like. However, I will talk of India in the form of the F.O.Bs (also known as ‘Fresh Off the Boat’). Assuming India is a cultured nation, its sons and daughters would be cultured people. Living here as a sophomore in the University at Buffalo, my three (sort of four) roommates are international students. I was initially living with an American student who was a mess. While setting up my room, my mom saw some Indian kids and my mom asked them who they were: They were international students. My mom suggested that I be friends with them. I was like, “Yeah yeah... whatever.” Little did my mom know about Indians. “Sare Jahan Se Acha Hindustan Hamara.” (Of all places, our India is the best place). With the residence hall management deciding to change my room, I was moved to the room filled with Indians. Yet, I hear a lot of crazy loud music. I thought they were Americans, yet they were Indians. They were listening to worse of worse American songs with big speakers and subwoofer. I feel like my head is gonna explode. On top of that, they drink, and they party frequently. There is no religion amongst them. LOL In a film by Karan Johar called “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” there is a scene where actor Shah Rukh Khan plays with Rani Mukherjee’s head by asking her to sing a quick song in Hindi. She sings the Mayavada arati song, “Om Jaya Jagadisa Hare.” My roommate fast forwarded the arati. They may be Hindu born, but in fact, they are purely atheist. Even some Muslims have religious tolerance!! On Janmastami, I could not celebrate peacefully, since there was just too much nonsense. It was purely depression that day.

 

 

 

THE FREEDOM FIGHTERS OF INDIA AND ASSES THAT DEVELOPED

 

 

 

There are many people who try to use Vedic scriptures for their own needs and people worship them for that. They are the “freedom fighters.” Examine the revolutionary Bhagat Singh. It is quite difficult to describe Bhagat Singh other than using the following analogy. Martin Luther King Jr. is to Gandhi as Malcolm X is to Bhagat Singh. The term “Shaheed” (one who dies for country) is used for him. When he was in jail, he would be reading some scripture. But, he had no faith in God. Mohandas Gandhi was different however. Gandhi wanted India to retain its Indian culture. Gandhi was a pious man. He would read the Bhagavad Gita. However, he was not a God Conscious person. Quoting Video 8 of H.H. Bhakti Caru Swami’s classic serial “Abhay Charan:”

 

 

 

Indian: But our leader Mahatma Gandhi was God Conscious

 

Abhay: He was a great man, but he’s not really God Conscious. He took up many sentiments, but that is not enough. Unless one knows God and understands who He is, then how can he be called “God Conscious?”

 

 

 

Perhaps a very important dialogue that hard-core Indians would never care to understand! These days, they have a picture of Gandhi with a Gita in temple altars across India. In fact, the typical altar consists of Siva, Krsna, Laksmi, Durga, Ganesa, father and mother, and some other family members. For the bonus, they include Gandhi! Why? Because he was a very ‘holy man’ who fasted and went against the British with non-violence. If you examine the last few statements, you will see how there are many faults. First, pious action leads to karma. Karma means “reaction with result.” He obviously gets good karma for doing good. However, Krsna said in the Gita, “sarva karma phala tyaga.” However, renouncing fruits of action means to give your fruits to Krsna, not India. India may be Krsna’s favorite place, but India is not equal to Krsna. Vegetarianism does not mean Krsna Consciousness. Benjamin Franklin was a vegetarian, yet he was certainly not God Conscious. Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian too, yet he was neither pious nor God Conscious! Those two example clearly state the vegetarianism is a pious quality, but not necessarily a Krsna Conscious quality. Fasting in accordance of scriptures is acceptable. Fasting, overall, is good. However, fasting for the sake that Hindus and Muslims get together does not mean that it is religiously stated. You cannot take a personal pious act and call it a religious act. It is actually an offense! You cannot take parts and bits of the Gita just to prove your point! Srila Prabhupada was so merciful that he even wrote a letter to Gandhi in December 1947 offering him to preach the Gita. Yet, Gandhi never replied and as fate predicted, Gandhi was killed by a Hindu fanatic.

 

 

 

That was an example of a pious man. Now, an example of an ass is Jawaharlal Nehru! Nehru came soon after Gandhi’s assassination. After Gandhi took those hurdles to remind India of its Indian culture and how, as Indians, we must follow it, Nehru just did the opposite. When I think of this, I think of American economic history. From 1865 till 1896, America was based on laissez-faire, which meant no government interference. After unregulated business practices came about, the Sherman Anti-trust Act ended all this rubbish and started the Progressive Era which McKinley, Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson took so much effort in cleaning up America and making it one of the most successful and organized economy. When Harding became president in 1929, he basically thought of “return to normalcy” which erased all of the efforts of the previous presidents’ efforts to make America a more organized nation. Harding, along with Grant and Clinton, is considered one of the worst presidents of the United States. Nehru is no different than Harding. Nehru wanted Westernization since he thought of India as a third-world country. As a result, India has been Westernizing to great extents. Nehru also favored a secular government as well as an atheistic cabinet. Even though all of the foolish Indians worshipped Nehru as Gandhi, true Indian cultured people object him.

 

 

 

People these days talk of Islam fanatics, especially after September 11th. However, a Hindu fanatic called Bal Thackrey came about in the early 1990s. He, himself, was not a Hindu, yet he kept on causing problems in India that Hinduism was becoming a least popular religion. In fact, Bal Thackrey is so much hated, that he is often referred as “the Hitler of India.”

 

 

 

My comment on modern India: Glories to Indians who take part in Krsna Consciousness. Glories to those sacred land of Vrndavana, Mathura, Puri, Dwarka, Mayapura, Ayodhya, etc. Boo-hiss to those who defy India like Nehru, Vivekananda, Ramakrishna, Thackrey and others. Hare Krsna!

 

[Guest guest]

source: http://www.geocities.com/vedicger108/

[Guest guest]

Welcome Bhakta Krsna Dhenu!It's been a while since I talked to you.Hope you are in great spirits!

 

Joy

[Guest guest]

I apologize if you assumed I was the author of the above writing. I happened to come across his website and found it interesting. Anyways, I'm sure Bhakta Krsna Dhenu would be a beneficial member if he decided to participate in this forum.

 

-Anand

[Vaishnava_das108 1]

I happen to have been a member of a in which VedicGer108 was also a member. We used to have many interesting discussions, and I also used to question him about his experiences, some of which are related above.

 

That group then started receiving nasty verbal attacks on Krsna-conscious philosophy by Advaitins, and caused em to leave. I remember that VedicGer then decided to open his own group. This was quite soem time ago.

 

I have been looking for that Gruop and also VG108's group but was unable to find it.

 

Thanks to "Guest" who posted VG's experiences here. I am now one step closer to joining his group and meeting an old friend! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

[madhav 0]

thanks for clarification.

do you buy all that he (abcd man) said in the article, Anand ji?

 

first thing i noticed about abcd man was that he thinks swaminarayns are advaitis. they are not. they are vaishnavas in the line of sri sampradaya (however sri sampradaya do not recognize them). although they do not tell they are vaishnavas, they tell they are swaminarayans.

 

then i noticed that he is talented with music and ragas.

these ragas are compsoed by rishis of sanatana dharma (vedic culture). some day he will give credit to rishsi.

 

then i saw that he saw some hindus he came in contact with are malpraticing hinduism. rather than blaming individual malpracticeners, he blamed hinduism or all hindus.

 

this abcd young man did not get chance (as many others) to know the psoitive side of hindus or hinduism. this is the price the hindus pay when they live in western countries.

 

school/college home work is so much and sometimes nonsense un-educational that it saps al lot of time of the students. then the TV and nintendo/videos take up a lot of time. there is hardly any time left for learning gita or hinduism. consequently one does not know what cultural herigage one has got.

 

some parents themselved donot know what hinduism really is.

so their children also do not know it. it is very fortunate that abcd finally got krishna bhakti.

but still he hates his mother culture - hinduism/hindus.

hope it will change with time, with krishna's mercy.

 

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I have been searching for the Samarpan album sung by Jagjit-Chitra Singh. This came out 6-8 years back, and I have not been able to find it for a long time. Can you help me get it ? I would really appreciate.

 

sumeet_seth@hotmail.com

 

Thanks,

Sumeet

[Guest guest]

sare jahan sai acha hindustan hamara

where can i download tht song from

[Guest guest]

 

Try

http://www.musicindiaonline.com/

 

Jai shree Krishna

[Guest guest]

I FEEL THAT YOU REALLY NEED HELP!!

[Guest guest]

i am an american born hindu youth and i thoroughly enjoyed reading that post...your points are extremely valid and we're on the same wavelength...keep more coming!

[Guest guest]

"then i saw that he saw some hindus he came in contact with are malpraticing hinduism. rather than blaming individual malpracticeners, he blamed hinduism or all hindus."

 

well maadhav...i guess he's allowed to do that since i've noticed you always do that when you use the acts of a couple of individual muslims or christians to paint a poor picture of islam or christianity...it's a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

 

"this abcd young man did not get chance (as many others) to know the psoitive side of hindus or hinduism. this is the price the hindus pay when they live in western countries. "

 

back off on hindus living in western countries...i have lived both in india and in UK and in the USA and my experience is that hindus living in western countries are a lot more curious about their religion that hindus in india. In most cases, if not convinced by their religion, they are more likely to resort to aetheism or convert to some other religion rather than malpractise the religion. to imply that western countries have a lot more "ignorant hindus", than india is ridiculous...i'm sure all countries have their fair share of rotten apples...and whats your problem...turns out you live in a western country too?

 

"school/college home work is so much and sometimes nonsense un-educational that it saps al lot of time of the students. then the TV and nintendo/videos take up a lot of time. there is hardly any time left for learning gita or hinduism. consequently one does not know what cultural herigage one has got."

 

I have no idea whether by this statement you intend to stereotype teenagers in western countries or teenagers all over the world (including india)...but it annoys me that you would stereotype an entire generation. Bottom line is if a teen wants to read the Gita, he/she will...regardless of TV or nintendo..or any other hobbies. Its simply a matter of interest on the teenagers side and persuasion on the parents' side.

 

"but still he hates his mother culture - hinduism/hindus."

 

i did not feel he hates his mother culture. He's a hindu and he displays a good knowledge of hinduism.

 

 

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna!

 

All glories to Srila Prabhupada! I offer my humble obeisances unto Him!

 

Yes, you are correct, I totally accept because Maadhav has the same impression on Muslim based on muslim leaders who invaded India and plundered India which was wrong. No offense Maadhav. But, you cannot judge the entire Muslim religion based on Muslim invasion and their expolitation.

Personally, I dont condone Muslim religion because it does not fit the age of Kali and that also goes for Advaitism and other Vedic philosophies.

 

In my experience till now, I have lived abroad and in India for a certain period of time. I cannot talk about the ABCDs in US as I dont have much experience but I can talk about the Hindus in India. Most of them I know do not talk about Vedic scriptures or not interested in it at all. I think people in general are more interested in mundane activites than Gita and temples and Vedic scriptures. This is true everywhere and just because we are Hindus does not qualify us as better. We can be Hindus, or Christians or Muslims, but no matter what faith we are in, if we practice the unalloyed devotion and love for GOD- HE or SHE is a VAISHNAVA. They dont have to be born to a Gaudiya Brahmin but can be a Muslim and if He spreads the love of God, then he is a Vaishnava, this is my opinion.

I think we should educate ourselves in terms of people who love and serve God V who do not and not based on faith and birth. IF a person no matter what religion or faith serves GOD, he/she automatically is in the mode of GOODNESS which means they wiil be vegetarians and everything associated wiht mode of goodness.

 

Haribol!

 

anand

[Guest guest]

please email me....quietstrm345@ or teesh345@hotmail.com

 

i would like to talk to u....im a 22yo living in NY trying to understand the vastness of hinduism

 

i would definately like to meet another one