Guest guest Report post Posted June 5, 2003 Haribol! Does anyone have any information about this (Vaisnava?) spiritual teacher? Thank you very much! Om Shanti! http://www.har-tzion.com/enghome.php Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 5, 2003 At least once a month someone (perhaps the same person, who knows!) ask basically the same question or otherwise tries to direct us to this site. The "spiritual teacher" in question changes his name every other month and also his story. When I first saw this site he was under some other name - I think it was something like Swami Radhakrishnarama. He claimed to be a disciple of TKG then he was ritvik disciple of Srila Prabhupada then he was a disciple of Kirtanananda and then he was the one and only disciple of a deceased Babaji in India. He appears to only have female sannayasi's who have also changed their names as often as their guru does. Not sure who he really is and I read his site a couple of times trying to figure out his teachings but only became confused. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stonehearted 0 Report post Posted June 5, 2003 This guy has certificates out the wazoo! He's benn certified a Krishna Bhakta by Vishnudevananda and a Bhakti Vedanta by Srila Bhaktipada! What's more, although I couldn't find their pix today, I remember that his girl sannyasis are babes! Sing me up, dude! This character looks like the classic "spiritual" entrepreneur (actually, I'd call him an opportunist). Is there anyone he hasn't met and had his picture taken with? (Yeah--Siddhasvarupananda.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 5, 2003 I got the feeling from his site that he came from well-off family. He has traveled extensively and yep, seems to have met everyone and had his picture taken with them. I got extra confused when I read his forums because he would contradict some of what was written on his site. Somewhere I read he was from Israel and then he somewhere he said no. I tried but I never could figure out his teachings and beliefs. Honestly, I don't mean any offense but shouldn't he stick to one story. Hmmm....I wonder what the male followers look like...... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest guest Report post Posted June 5, 2003 I just got excited and sent him a question in the mail! I hope he is not some kind of a fake. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
I_love_krishna_ 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 If he is a fake, now I know. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gHari 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 He writes in his introduction to the Srimad Bhagavatam:<blockquote>The editions of this work which have most attracted my attention are that of Kamala Subramanian and that of C.L. Goswami. I also was quite fond of the consistent publication by Gunda Charan Sen and the Bengali translation by Amalendu Sen. I believe we can not ignore the beautiful translation of his Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad, and alike is the work of His Holiness Krishna Balaram Swami, whom I had the great honor of personally knowing in Vrindavan. We should also remember the famous Basumati edition. He ordered the Cantos and chapters according to its original form, presenting many commentaries and texts. </Blockquote> However, we see "Books On-line", but when we click we only can access a short introduction. The blank Sri Caitanya-caritamrta says "Translation in progress". His Deities include "Goura-Nitai". The spelling of "Prabhupad" is suspect. It would be nice if the Guest who made the first post here could verify that he/she is not associated with the Har Tzion ashram. If they are, it would be much better to be just straight-forward about the agenda here. If they are not it would be interesting to find out how they discovered Har Tzion. gHari Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 I have not looked through the site again but I think I will to see what changes have happened. I couldn't agree more with you on this gHari. A while back someone named David came in promoting this same link. He put it in several different categories that time. The interesting thing is that on one visit to the site I discovered that Har-Tzion's first name is David. Hmmm.... It would be nice if the Guest who made the first post here could verify that he/she is not associated with the Har Tzion ashram. If they are, it would be much better to be just straight-forward about the agenda here. If they are not it would be interesting to find out how they discovered Har Tzion. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 I remember when I saw the pics of the female sannyasis that they had on make-up most obviously lipstick. I thought that was kinda odd - lipstick sannyasis!! The colors did not go well with the saffron. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gHari 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 I liked seeing the picture of HH Bhagavan das Maharaja. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stonehearted 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 I'm not particularly disturbed about his spelling of "Prabhupad" or "Goura-Nitai; it's kind of a vernacular spelling. Srila Prabhupada constistently spelled Gaurasundara das's name "Goursundar." What's more telling is how he buries Srila Prabhupada's presentation of Bhagavatam among all the others, starting with Suramaniam and ending with Krishna-Balaram Swami. Those two spots are power spots. The strongest place is the end. The guy is a hodge-podge poseur who apparently invokes everyone and follows no one. I would steer inquirers away from him. The pix of Kirtanananda and Bhagavan frankly give me the creeps. The only person he lists who I accept as a guru with any standing is Atulananda prabhu from South America. On my list is to see if I can write him to ask what he knows about this man. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 are additions that I had not seen plus there are some other changes. I did find where I had learned his name. It is in the pictures of his many certificates. I noted that his books seem to have the topics of judaism, buddhism and bhakti yoga. Is his philosophy a mixture of all of these? I am just not understanding it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gHari 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 There are a lot of pictures of Srila Prabhupada's murti and a beautiful ISKCON temple. In 1979 I happened onto the New Vrindavan farm on my return from Louisiana where I had been visiting my estranged son. Since I had an Eldorado, I was assigned to drive to the Pittsburgh airport to pick up Bhagavan das Maharaja and take him to New Vrindavan. I didn't know who he was, except that he was one of the new eleven. Sitting beside another devotee guide in the airport, suddenly all the farm and simple folk around me started chanting "Vishnu, Vishnu". Still stunned by that, I then saw coming around the corner a man with a brilliant beacon shining from his heart. The devotee beside me dropped to the floor; eventually I realized this was the proper move. I remember how Bhagavan smiled when he saw the gold letters "KRISHNA" on the trunk of the car. It's a rather long story after that, but I could never speak negatively about Bhagavan das Maharaja, even though I've heard all the stories, some firsthand from his secretary from France. gHari Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 The "O" for "A" and dropping "A" in the middle and end of the word is one of those confusing Bengali language things that don't really seem to have any grammatical rules that I can find. I think the dropping of the "A" or "O" in the middle of the word has something to do with the inherent vowel. They are pronounced but not written. Srila Prabhupada constistently spelled Gaurasundara das's name "Goursundar Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stonehearted 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 gHari: There are a lot of pictures of Srila Prabhupada's murti and a beautiful ISKCON temple. I think those are at Krishna-Balaram Mandir in Vrindavan. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest guest Report post Posted June 6, 2003 How do you know Atulananda Prabhu? He was my first TP. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 Just out of curiosity...well, ok actually, noisiness - what part of Louisiana did you go to? I was raised in Slidell. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stonehearted 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 I haven't met him myself, but he's respected by devotees I respect. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gHari 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 They were in a little town past New Orleans called Morgan. I remember a town called Jeanerette too. Fortunately there was a typical tropical storm with a two foot flood. I used that plus the racial intolerance I encountered in disbelief to convince the Canadian courts to stop my ex-wife from taking my son back there. Her boy friend had to move to Canada to marry her. My son is glad I did, and that is all that matters. Hey, Slidell; I think my son and I went through there on the way to the Mississippi New Talavan farm. Ms. Entity, could we talk about the Folio Converter software in the test area for a few seconds? gHari Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
livingentity 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 Yep, you had to drive through there to get to the New Talavan Farm. It was a tiny place back then (Slidell, I mean) but has grown a lot since. We lived out on a bayou and when it would flood we would get alligators and all sorts of creatures in our yard. Anyway, sure I will head for the test area now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest guest Report post Posted June 6, 2003 Dear gHari, Haribol! No, I am not a chela of Har-Tzion. I was just curious about him and wanted to have your opinions. I didnt knew that he was such a popular topic on this forum. Thanks! Max Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest guest Report post Posted June 6, 2003 Hare Krishna! You wrote: The only person he lists who I accept as a guru with any standing is Atulananda prabhu from South America. On my list is to see if I can write him to ask what he knows about this man. Yes, please! I would love to hear about it! Thank you! Max Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gHari 0 Report post Posted June 6, 2003 Classy, Max. Thanks for responding. It's not actually a popular topic here. We all just seemed to have not much else going on. And the pictures were interesting. It definitely appears that David Har Tzion embraces Gaudiya Vaishnavism. My website below is also dedicated to Sri Caitanya, and could give you some more background information about that heritage. Thank you for raising this question on the forums here, Max. I enjoyed visiting the Har Tzion website. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
