Lord Siva: Who is He??

By: Nandagopal Jivan Das [Narender Nolakha]

Lord Siva is actually most dear to Sri Krsna, and therefore Krsna can give him services which He cannot give anyone else. When the demigods and demons were churning the Milk Ocean in order to obtain the nectar of immortality, the first substance produced was a powerful and dangerous poison, burning the entire world. The demigods appealed to Sri Krsna, and He advised them to request Lord Siva to drink the poison. Thus, they worshiped Lord Siva and prayed, “Please save us! Only you can protect us!” Lord Siva collected the poison and took it in his mouth, but he hesitated to swallow it, considering, “Lord Krsna is in my heart. The poison will affect Him.” He therefore kept the poison in his throat, which was burned, and his neck turned the color blue. And therefore he is also called Neel-kantha.

Cheating the Cheaters

It is sometimes seen that Lord Siva having given benedictions to Lord Krsna’s enemies. To fulfill his Lord’s desires, he had given benedictions to demons like Ravana, Vrkasura, Salva and Jayadratha, and thus he had performed many activities that were seemingly opposed to Krsna and krsna-bhakti. But whatever He does is to please Lord Krsna and to assist Him in His pastimes, for the benefit of all beings. He may have many times given benedictions to His enemies. But those benedictions are not foolproof; they always have some loophole. Actually, He cheats these beneficiaries in order to please Lord Krsna.

A Loophole

The great epic Mahabharata tells of King Jayadratha, one of the many demons who received such a clever benediction from Lord Siva. Duryodhana, the paternal cousin of the five Pandava brothers, had given his sister Dushala in marriage to King Jayadratha, and therefore the king had also become like a brother-in-law of the Pandavas. Once, Jayadratha tried to kidnap the Pandavas’ wife, Draupadi, desiring strongly to make her his own wife. As he forced her onto his chariot, she admonished him, crying, “I am the wife of the Pandavas. When they catch you, they will punish you and kill you!”

Jayadratha’s arrogance prevented him from hearing her, and he continued his abduction. Meanwhile, the sage Narada approached the Pandavas and informed them, “Oh, I saw Jayadratha taking away Draupadi, and she was weeping!”

Two of the Pandavas, Bhima and Arjuna, immediately chased after Jayadratha. Bhima dismounted his chariot and ran faster than Jayadratha’s horses. With his bow and arrows, Arjuna created a fire that surrounded the chariot of Jayadratha, who was then captured and could not move. Severely beaten by Bhima and arrested by Arjuna, Jayadratha was bound to the chariot and taken to where Yudhisthira Maharaja had been staying with Draupadi.

Bhima and Arjuna spoke to Yudhisthira, their respected senior brother. Bhima urged him, “I want to kill Jayadratha. Please order me to kill him.”

In support of Bhima, Arjuna said, “Jayadratha has performed a heinous act and should be killed.”

King Yudhisthira replied, “The offense was committed against Draupadi. We should take the case to her, and we will do whatever she orders.”

When Jayadratha was brought at the feet of Draupadi, she mercifully told her husbands, “Don’t kill him; forgive him. He is our brother-in-law. If you kill him, your cousin-sister will be widowed and she will weep for the rest of her life.”

Bhima and Arjuna then approached Lord Krsna and appealed to Him: “What should we do? We have vowed to kill Jayadratha, and now Draupadi tells us to forgive him.”

Krsna replied, “For one who has been honored, dishonor is worse than death.”

Arjuna then shaved King Jayadratha’s head, leaving few hairs, and he shaved one side of his face, leaving the other side unshaven. Jayadratha felt humiliated, and after being released by Bhima and Arjuna he considered it better to have died. He thought, “I will somehow take revenge.” Thus absorbed, he went to Gangotri in the Himalayas and undertook a severe type of penance to please Lord Siva.

After some months he gave up all food, water, and bodily activities, and was about to die. At this point Lord Siva came before him and asked what boon he wanted as a result of his austerity. Jayadratha replied, “I want revenge against the Pandavas. I want to defeat and kill all of them.” Lord Siva told him, “You can defeat the Pandavas, but only Yudhisthira, Bhima, Nakula and Sahadeva; not Arjuna.” Jayadratha said, “If you cannot benedict me to my full satisfaction, then please grant that neither Arjuna nor anyone else will be able to kill me.” Lord Siva replied, “I can grant you this: if your head is severed and falls on the ground, the person who caused this will die immediately. Your life will be saved and your head will rejoin your body. You may be ‘killed’ hundreds of thousands of times, but you will not die. On the other hand, if your severed head falls into your father’s hands and he throws it on the ground, then you will die.” Jayadratha was satisfied, thinking, “My father would never do this.”

When the battle of Kuruksetra began, Jayadratha took the side of the Pandavas’ enemy, Duryodhana. One evening during the battle, as the sun was setting, Jayadratha’s father was absorbed in prayer and making an offering of water to the Sun-god. Arjuna saw this opportune moment. With the skillful release of an arrow, he severed Jayadratha’s head from his body and caused it to fall into the hands of his meditating father. Startled and without thought, Jayadratha’s father tossed the head on the ground. Then, opening his eyes he exclaimed, “What was that wet thing?” Seeing that he had just thrown his son’s head, he began to cry, “Oh my son! Oh my son! You are dead now!”

In this way, the benedictions given by Lord Siva to the enemies of Lord Krsna always have a weak point – a loophole. Lord Siva is extremely clever, and he is always serving his Lord, Sri Krsna. Siva is very near and dear to Krsna, and in a way non-different from Him. Try to always honor him, for he is Krsna’s greatest devotee.

nimna-ganah yatha ganga
devanam acyuto yatha
vaisnavanam yatha sambhuh
purananam idam tatha

"Just as the Ganga is the greatest of all rivers, Lord Acyuta (Krsna) the supreme among deities and Lord Sambhu (Siva) the greatest of Vaisnavas, so Srimad-Bhagavatam is the greatest of all Puranas."[Srimad-Bhagavatam 12.13.16]


Siva-Tattva
Siva-tattva – is extremely complex. The principle of Brahma is not as complicated, because Lord Brahma is always a jiva, a finite spirit soul. Sometimes, when there is no qualified jiva, Lord Vishnu (Krsna’s expansion) personally takes the post of Brahma, but that is very rare. Lord Siva is not like that; he is not a finite soul.

After passing through the eight material coverings, and after crossing the Viraja (the river that divides the material world and the spiritual world) and the planet of Lord Brahma (the highest material planet), one comes to the planet of Siva. There he is known as Sadashiva, a manifestation of Lord Vishnu.

Sometimes, When Krishna, the Lord Himself, accepts the management of the modes of ignorance, He is called Siva. So Siva is God, but because He is in the department of ignorance, therefore his name is Siva. Another meaning of Siva is "auspicious." The inauspicious persons who are in ignorance, for them worship of Lord Siva is recommended so that gradually they come to the modes of passion and goodness, and then they are liberated. He has got connection with this material energy, and he is meant for destruction. Material energy is under the control of this Siva-rupa of Krishna. Therefore He is called father and the material energy is called mother. And because He has connection with this illusory energy, therefore He is not exactly God. God has nothing to do with this material energy, illusory energy. He is never illusioned. But Lord Siva has connection with Durga, the material energy. Therefore His position is between the living entity and Krishna.

Once when the heavenly Ganges River was descending onto the earth, the weight of its force would have crushed the world, so Siva accepted it on his head, wherein it stayed until it was ready to be released. The Ganges River is considered to have entered the universe when the Supreme Lord in His incarnation as Vamanadeva kicked the outer shell of the universe with His toe, thus letting in some of the water of the Karanadakashayi Ocean (Viraja River). This became the holy Ganga. Thus, it is considered the foot wash of the Lord. So Lord Siva takes this water on his head.

The Bhagavatam (3.28.22) relates: “The blessed Lord Siva becomes all the more blessed by bearing on his head the holy waters of the Ganges, which has its source in the water that washed the Lord's lotus feet….”

Krishna's Devotees are dear to Lord Siva & Lord Siva is Dear to Them
Siva works for the benefit of everyone, and tries to help the living beings make spiritual advancement. This is why he has his own line of disciplic succession or sampradaya called the Rudra-sampradaya [now known as vishnu-swami sampradaya or vallabhacharya sampradaya]that comes directly from him. Its adherents say that ultimate liberation comes from devotion to Krsna. And Siva, they say, showed how to be the perfect devotee. Even Siva himself confirms that one can achieve the supreme destination only by the mercy of Vishnu. Lord Siva says, “There is no doubt that Vishnu is the deliverer of liberation for everyone.”

This is also why he says to the sons of King Pracinibarhi:

“A person who is directly surrendered to Lord Krishna, or Vishnu, in unalloyed devotional service is immediately promoted to the spiritual planets. I, Lord Siva, and other demigods attain these planets only after the destruction of the material world. You are all devotees of the Lord, and as such I appreciate that you are as respectable as the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself. I know in this way that the devotees also respect me and that I am dear to them. Thus no one can be as dear to the devotees as I am.”

In this way, a devotee of Krishna does not disrespect Lord Siva, but worships him as the greatest of devotees of Lord Krishna. A Krishna bhakta also prays to Lord Siva, but asks Siva to assist him in attaining the favor of Lord Krishna, and not merely for material benefits.

Lord Siva’s Position
In Srimad Bhagavatam (4.3.23), Lord Shiva himself tells his wife, Sati, He is always engaged in worshiping the Supreme Personality known as Lord Vasudeva, Krishna, who is revealed in pure consciousness, by offering obeisances. In the pastimes of Lord Krishna in Vrindavana, we find that Lord Siva had also tried to enter the rasa dance between Krishna and the gopis, the cowherd damsels. The Mahadeva Gopisvara temple in Vrindavana is said to mark where Lord Siva desired to become a gopi in order to enter the dance with Lord Krishna. So Lord Siva was trying to enter into the most confidential pastimes and devotion of Sri Krishna. Prior to this, Lord Siva had asked Sri Krsna for the boon to witness His childhood pastimes. Krsna ordered him to situate himself in Nandagaon in the form of a hill. Siva followed this order and became Nandisvara Hill, and he thus became known as Nandisvara.

In another place in the Bhagavatam (8.12.10), when Lord Shiva was bewildered by the Supreme Lord’s form as a beautiful woman, Mohini-Murti, Lord Siva admits his weakness in being unable to fully understand the illusory nature of this material creation. Later, Lord Siva, who is often pictured in meditation, explains to his wife who it is that he meditates on while in trance. He says, “O Goddess, You have now seen the illusory energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the unborn master of everyone. Although I am one of the principal expansions of His Lordship, even I was illusioned by His energy. What then is to be said of others, who are fully dependent on maya? When I finished performing mystic yoga for one thousand years, you asked me upon whom was I meditating? Now, here is the Supreme Person to whom time has no entrance and who the Vedas cannot understand.”

So the difference between Krishna and Siva or Shambhu is more clearly described in the Brahma-Samhita (verse 45) as follows: “Just as milk is transformed into curd by the action of acids, but yet the effect curd is neither the same as, nor different from, its cause, viz., milk, so I adore the primeval Lord Govinda of whom the state of Shambhu is a transformation for the performance of the work of destruction.”

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta goes on to explain in the purport to this verse that Siva is not a second Godhead other than Krishna. In fact, those who entertain such a discriminating sentiment commit a great offense to the Supreme Lord. The position of Shambhu is subservient to that of Govinda, Krishna. Hence they are not really different from each other, as the above verse indicates. But as yogurt comes from its initial cause, so Siva is manifest according to his initial cause, which is from Krishna through Maha-Vishnu. So God takes a subservient position to His direct forms when He attains a distinct personality by the addition of a particular element of adulteration, which is the form of Lord Siva or Shambhu, through which the Lord comes in contact with the material energy, since Maha-Vishnu never does touch the mundane energy. However, Siva has no independent initiative or ability.

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta further describes that in this way, Govinda manifests Himself as a plenary portion which, in this case, is a guna-avatara in the form of Shambhu, lord of tamo-guna or the mode of darkness... Thus, Shambhu, in pursuance of the will of Govinda, works in union with his consort, Durga-Devi, by his own time energy.

It is explained further by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta that Lord Krishna has sixty divine qualities in their fullest measure. While 50 of the divine qualities of the jiva souls are present along with five additional qualities in Lord Brahma, yet in Siva these fifty-five qualities are also present but in greater degrees than in Lord Brahma. (Brahma-Samhita, verse 49, purport)

This makes it clear that the form and position of Siva is eternal, but only in the context of the endurance of the material creation. Lord Siva is the lord of tamo-guna and material nature, but not of the spiritual world. It is Lord Krishna who is described as the Supreme Being and controller of both the spiritual and material energies.

Conclusion
In his commentary on Sanatana Gosvami’s Brhad-bhagavatamrta [1.2.86], Srila Prabhupada’s disciple Gopipranadhana Prabhu, drawing on Sanatana Gosvami’s own commentary, writes, “The Padma Purana includes…a list of ten offenses against chanting Lord Vishnu’s names. Therein it is said, ‘One who sees differences between any of Lord Siva’s qualities and names and those of Sri Vishnu is an antagonist to hari-nama.’ Lord Vishnu cannot tolerate offenses against Lord Siva, because Lord Siva is the greatest of Lord Vishnu’s empowered incarnations. Lord Siva is especially empowered to distribute in the material world the elevated tastes of pure devotional service.”

Lord Siva is unique among the devas. He is an incarnation of Krishna, but he is somewhat different from Krishna, as curd is milk but not milk. He possesses qualities beyond those of any living entity and has an eternal dominion beyond matter. But to think that the name & personality of Lord Siva are equal in every way to those of Krishna is offensive. And it is also offensive to se them as different.

The perfect way to reconcile the positions of Siva and Krishna is to worship Siva as a changed incarnation of Krishna who considers himself Krishna’s devote and servant {somewhat similar to Lord Ananta}. In his incarnation as Siva, Lord Krsna acts as all destructive time and as the father of all living beings. As Krishna, he is aloof from matter; as Siva, he consorts with the personified material energy. When we properly worship Krishna, Siva is included and pleased. But if we worship Siva other than as a Vaisnava, Krishna’s devote, then neither is Siva fully pleased or satisfied nor is Krsna properly reverenced. [Urmila Devi Dasi, Srila Prabhupada’s Disciple, Back To Godhead, March/April 2006, Page 41]

Thus, the position of Lord Siva has been described relative to his purpose and function within the material creation, and his form as an expansion of Lord Krishna.

Nitai-Pada-Kamala: The Source of Spiritual Strength!!

By: Nandagopal Jivan das

Nityananda Treyodashi is the divine appearance day of Lord Sri Nityananda Prabhu. Nityananda Prabhu is Baladeva, Baladeva- tattva. Srila Narottama Dasa Thakura has sung in one of his songs,

vrajendra-nandana yei, saci-suta haila sei,
balaräma haila nitai

“He who formerly was the son of Nanda Maharaja has now appeared as the son of Saci Devi i.e. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Balarama is Nitai- Nityananda Prabhu” So on this most auspicious occasion, we’re trying to serve the lotus feet of Sri Nityananda Prabhu. Without Nitai’s Mercy, no one can get the mercy of Sriman Mahaprabhu.

Our Vedic literatures proclaim nayam atma bala-hinena labhyah: “One cannot understand the absolute truth without bala.” Bala means strength. Strength doesn’t only mean bodily strength. No! The strength- bala- required to understand the Absolute Truth is Spiritual Strength. The difficulty nowadays is that although we’re moving on account of spiritual strength, we’ve no information of spiritual strength. We are thinking of material strength.

That is expressed by Narottama Dasa Thakura’s song:

ahankäre matta hoiyä, nitäi-pada päsariyä,
asatyere satya kori mäni

This misconception is due to ahankära. Lord Krishna explains this in Bhagavad-Gita as: Ahankära-vimüdhätmä kartäham iti manyate [Bg. 3.27].

Under false pretext, false prestige, everyone is thinking that "We are independent. We can find out the solution of the problems of life by material adjustment". That is our material disease. For instance, if we happen to meet a very strong man, very powerful man, very good brain, very good scientist... So where is the strength? The strength is ätmä. As soon as the ätmä, or the soul, goes out of this body, body is nothing. That is the difference between dead man and the living man. As soon as he lies down, he is lying down on the floor, and if you kick him on his face, he'll not protest. So where is that strength? The strength is gone. That is spiritual strength. On the spiritual strength, the body moves.

That spiritual strength is Balaräma. Bala means strength. Therefore we have to take shelter of the lotus feet of Balaräma, guru-tattva.

Balaräma means guru-tattva. Balaräma represents guru. Yasya prasädäd bhagavat-prasädah. If we want to understand Caitanya Mahäprabhu, if we want to understand Krsna, then we must take shelter of Balaräma. Näyam ätmä bala-hinena labhyah. This Vedic injunction means "Without the mercy of Balaräma you cannot understand, you cannot realize your spiritual identification. So that Balaräma comes as Nityänanda Prabhu. Balaräma hailä nitäi. Therefore we must take shelter of Balaräma. We must take shelter of lotus feet of Lord Nityananda. And how They are like? That is sung by Narottama Dasa Thäkura. Nitäi-pada-kamala, koti-candra-sushitala. Below is the purport to the said song by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, Founder-Acharya of ISKCON.

Please sing the following song while you read:

nitai-pada-kamala, koti-chandra-sushitala,
je chayay jagata juray
heno nitai bine bhai, radha-krsna paite nai,
drdha kori' dharo nitair pay

se sambandha nahi ja'r, brtha janma gelo ta'r,
sei pashu boro duracar
nitai na bolilo mukhe, majilo samsara-sukhe,
vidya-kule ki koribe tar

ahankare matta hoiya, nitai-pada pasariya,
asatyere satya kori mani
nitaiyer koruna habe, braje radha-krsna pabe,
dharo nitai-carana du'khani

nitaiyer carana satya, tahara sevaka nitya,
nitai-pada sada koro asa
narotamma boro dukhi, nitai more koro sukhi,
rakho ranga-caranera pasha

Nitai-pada-kamala, koti-candra-sushitala, je chayay jagata juray. Narottama Dasa Thäkura was a great äcärya of the Gaudiya-vaisnava-sampradäya. So here he is singing that "The whole world is suffering under the blazing fire of material existence. Therefore, if one takes the shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Nityänanda...,". So we should relish this instruction of Narottama Dasa Thakura that in order to get relief from the pangs of blazing fire of this material existence, one should take shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Nityänanda because it is as cooling as the moon rays combined together of millions of moons. That means one will immediately find peaceful atmosphere. Just like a man works whole day and if he comes under the moonshine he feels relief. Similarly, any materialistic man who comes under the shelter of Lord Nityänanda will immediately feel that relief.

Then he says,

nitai-pada-kamala, koti-chandra-sushitala,
je chayay jagata juray
heno nitai bine bhai, radha-krsna paite nai,
drdha kori' dharo nitair pay

He says that "If you are anxious to go back to home, back to Godhead, and become associate with Rädhä and Krsna, then the best policy is to take shelter of Nityänanda" Then he says, se sambandha nähi jä'r, brhä janma gelo tä'r: "One who has not been able to contact Nityänanda, then one should think of himself that he has simply spoiled his valuable life.”

Brthä janma gelo, brthä means for nothing, and janma means life. Gelo tä'r, spoiled. Because he has not made connection with Nityänanda. The Nityänanda, very name, suggests... Nitya means eternal. Änanda means pleasure. Material pleasure is not eternal. That is the distinction. Therefore those who are intelligent, they are not interested with this flickering pleasure of material world. Every one of us, as living entity, we are searching after pleasure. But the pleasure which we are seeking, that is flickering, temporary. That is not pleasure. Real pleasure is Nityänanda, eternal pleasure. So anyone who has no contact with Nityänanda, it is to be understood that his life is spoiled.

se sambandha nähi jä'r, brthä janma gelo tä'r,
sei pashu boro duräcär

Narottama Dasa Thäkura says that such human being is an animal, an uncontrollable animal. As there are some animals that cannot be tamed, so anyone who has not contacted Nityänanda, he should be considered as an untamed animal. Sei pashu boro duräcär. Why? Because nitäi nä bolilo mukhe: "He never uttered the holy name of Nityänanda.” And majilo samsära-sukhe, "and become merged into this material happiness,” Vidyä-kule ki koribe tär. "That nonsense does not know that what will his education and family and tradition and nationality will help him?” These things cannot help him. These are all temporary things. Simply, if we want eternal pleasure, we must contact Nityänanda.

Vidyä-kule ki koribe tär. Vidyä means education, and kula means family, nationality. So we may have a very nice family connection or we may have very nice national prestige, but after ending this body, these things will not help me. I'll carry my work with me, and according to that work, I shall have to accept by force another type of body. It may be something other than human body. So these things cannot protect us or give us the real pleasure. Then he says, ahankäre matta hoiyä. "Being maddened after false prestige and identification...” False identification with the body and prestige of bodily relationship, it is called ahankäre matta hoiyä. One is mad after this false prestige. Ahankäre matta hoiyä, nitäi-pada päsariyä. Due to this false prestige we are thinking, "Oh, what is Nityänanda? What can He do for me? I don't care.”

So these are the signs of false prestige. Ahankäre matta hoiyä, nitäi-pada päsariya..., asatyere satya kori mäni. The result is that I am accepting something which is false. For example, I am accepting this body. I am not this body. Therefore, with false identification I am becoming entangled more and more. So one who is puffed up with this false prestige, ahankäre matta hoiyä, nitäi-pada päsariya..., asatyere satya kori mäni, he accepts something wrong as right. Then he says, nitäiyer korunä habe, braje rädhä-krsna päbe. If you are actually serious about going back to home, back to Godhead, then please seek after the mercy of Nityänanda...

nitäiyer korunä habe, braja rädhä-krsna päbe,
dharo nitäi-carana du'khäni

"Please catch up the lotus feet of Nityänanda.” Then he says, nitäiyer carana satya. One may think that as we catch hold of so many shelter, but in this material world later on they prove false, similarly, suppose we catch hold of the lotus feet of Nityänanda; it may also prove false. But Narottama Dasa Thäkura assures that nitäiyer carana satya: "It is not false. Because Nityänanda is eternal, His lotus feet is also eternal.” Tähära sevaka nitya.

And anyone who takes to the service of Nityänanda, they also become eternal. Without being eternal, nobody can serve the eternal. That is the Vedic injunction. Without becoming Brahman, one cannot approach the Supreme Brahman. Just like without being fire, nobody can enter into the fire. Without being water, nobody can enter into the water. Similarly, without being fully spiritualized, nobody can enter into the spiritual kingdom. So, nitäiyer carana satya. If you catch nitäiyer, the lotus feet of Nityänanda, then you become immediately spiritualized. Just like if you touch electricity, immediately you become electrified. That is natural.

Similarly, Nityänanda is eternal happiness, if you touch Nityänanda some way or other, then you become also eternally happy. Tähära sevaka nitya. Therefore one who has in contact with Nityänanda, they have become eternal.

nitäiyer carana satya, tähära sevaka nitya,

Nitäi carana satya, tähära sevaka..., nitäi-pada sadä koro äsä. Therefore we should always expect to be under the shelter of nitäi-pada-kamala. Narottama boro dukhi. Narottama Dsa Thäkura, he is äcärya. He is presenting himself... That is äcärya. Means he is not dukhi, but he's presenting himself as dukhi. That is äcärya. Äcäryas, they are never dukhi. But taking the common man's position, he says, narottama boro dukhi. Or, in other words, Narottama means the best of the human being.

So here in this material world one may be the best of the human being, very exalted position, but everyone is dukhi, unhappy. Narottama boro dukhi, nitäi more koro sukhi: "Only Nityänanda can make me happy. Otherwise not possible.” Rakho ranga-caranera pasha. We shall always pray to Nityänanda Prabhu, "Kindly keep me under your shelter... I am very dukhi; I am very unhappy. Under the shelter of Your lotus feet I shall be happy.” And that is real happiness. Hare Krishna!

WHY CHANT HARE KRISHNA ONLY?

By: Nandagopal Jivan das

Many times, infact, all the times, IYF sessions end with one common point i.e. chanting of Hare Krishna Mahamantra. One may question the necessity of doing this. So, here we’ll present some proofs of importance of chanting of Krishna’s Holy names in this age based on Vedic Literatures like Bhagavad Gita, Puranas and Upanishads:

• Chanting of Hare Krsna awakens the dormant Love of God in our heart.
• When we chant Hare Krsna then knowledge and detachment naturally appears in us.(Because chanting Hare Krsna is the most intelligent act on our part.)
• It’ll free us from the vicious circle of birth and death.
• In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy, Kaliyuga, there is no other way as easy and as simple as the chanting of Hare Krsna.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna removes all the illusion from our heart.
• By chanting Hare Krsna only, we can be free from all kinds of tensions.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna takes us on the level of self- realization and it teaches us how to act & behave like a self- realized soul.
• It helps us remember Krishna always who is the source of all the happiness.
• There are no hard and fast rules for chanting Hare Krishna. We can chant- anytime, anywhere and in whatever condition we are in.
• Lord Sri Krishna is personally present in His Holy names. More we chant, more we’ll realize this.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna includes all the mantras described in the scriptures. We can get the benefit of chanting all the mantras only by chanting Hare Krsna. That’s why it is called as “Mahamantra”.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna not only purifies us but it gives eternal spiritual benefit to all the living entities who hears the chanting of Mahamantra.
• One who is Chanting Hare Krsna very quickly develops all the good qualities.
• We can chant softly for our personal benefit as well as do the congregation chanting with our friends and family members. Both the ways are recommended and beneficial.
• Srila Prabhupada chanted Hare Krsna, all the previous Acharyas’, from the time of its inauguration,chanted Hare Krsna and to top it all, Supreme Lord himself in form of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu chanted this Mahamantra day and night then Why not us?
• It’s for all of us. Chanting of Hare Krsna doesn’t involve any expenses. It places us on the topmost spiritual level where there is no end to bliss.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna doesn’t need any kind of qualifications. Youth or old or even a small baby can chant and dance in Kirtan irrespective of cast, color, creed and nationality and to which religion we belong to. Even if we don’t understand the meaning of the mantra then also it’ll benefit us.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna gives us freedom from all dangers and inauspicious conditions.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna is very easy. When the topmost of all paths of God- Realisation is so easy then why accepts the hard path?
• Chanting of Hare Krsna brings spiritual peace- both for us and for others too.
• When we chant Hare Krsna, Lord Krishna is very happy with us.
• When we chant Hare Krsna, Lord Krishna dances on our tongue.
• By chanting Hare Krsna, we can go to abode of Lord Krishna (Krishnaloka- Goloka Vrindavana) which is eternal, full of knowledge and bliss.
• Chanting of Hare Krsna frees us from all the sinful acts of all our previous lives. Even if we chant Hare Krishna once offencelessely then it can free us from as much sins as we can’t even commit.
• Chanting of Hare Krishna can nullify the sinful environment of Kaliyuga.
• When we chant Hare Krishna, we can taste such nectar at every step of our life which can quench the thirst of soul.
• If we see Vedic Scriptures then we’ll find that there is nothing higher than chanting of this Hare Krishna Mahamantra- Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
• Lord Brahma, the first living entity in the universe also says in Kali Santaran Upanishad:

hare krishna hare krishna

krishna krishna hare hare

hare rama hare rama

rama rama hare hare

iti sodasakam namnam

kali-kalmasa nasanam

natah parataropayah

sarva-vedesu drsyate

“The sixteen words of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra- Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, are especially meant for counteracting the contaminating influence of the age of Kali. After searching through all the Vedic literatures, one cannot find a better a better method.”

So, let us not waste this opportunity to chant the Mahamantra!! At least give it a chance. We’ve nothing to loose but everything to gain. So, please chant: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare…and make your life sublime…!!!

Celebrating the 521st Anniversary of the Appearance Day of Lord Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu

Published by IYF- Delhi On Behalf of the Sri Mayapur International Festival Committee

Celebrating the 521st Anniversary of the Appearance Day of Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu

On behalf of the Sri Mayapur International Festival Committee and all the assembled residents of Sri Mayapur Project we enthusiastically invites all ISKCON devotees to attend the 2007 Gaura Purnima Festival.

Srila Prabhupada emphasized that when devotees associate together they should take the opportunity to relish sad-priti-laksanam, the six kinds of loving exchanges described in the Upadesamrita (Nectar of Instruction). This is the underlying theme of the Gaura Purnima festival, and the festival committee is intent on developing and expanding the ways in which we can experience these loving exchanges while staying in the most auspicious abode of Sri Mayapur, which ampliies our service a thousand times. This year the festival will inaugurate a special emphasis on this theme including all six varieties as described by Srila Prabhupada:

1) giving charity to the devotees,
2) accepting from the devotees whatever they may offer in return,
3) opening one’s mind to the devotees,
4) inquiring from them about the conidential service of the Lord,
5) honoring prasada, or spiritual food, given by the devotees, and
6) feeding the devotees with prasada.

In this spirit the festival will immerse everyone in kirtans, seminars, celebrations and other innovative programs, highlighted by free prasadam provided by our festival sponsors. Srila Prabhupada saw his Sri Mayapur Project as an “international home” where all devotees could feel cared for and sheltered. The residents and volunteers who are organizing the festival are anxious to care for their visiting brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles with all these varieties of loving exchange and to help forge a strong, caring atmosphere in our ISKCON family that extends to every corner of the world.

Highlights of Gaura Purnima Festival 2007

* 521st Birth Celebration of Lord Gauranga
* Sponsored MIHET Sat-sanga Seminars (No Service Charges)
* Srila Prabhupada’s Disciples Reunion
* Pancha Tattva Abhishek of the Holy Name - Ecstatic Evening Kirtans
* Attractive Cultural Programs
* Navadvipa Dhama Parikrama
* Free Prasadam (except during the period of the Parikrama)
* No festival fee

Festival Cochairmen: HH Jayapataka Swami, HG Praghosa dasa

Festival Coordinator: HH Bhakti Purusottama Swami - bps@pamho.net
Phone: +91-(3472)-245-481 Mobile: +91-9434-506-434

MIHET Seminars: The Mayapur Institute for Higher Education and Training will engage many ISKCON leaders and senior devotees in offering “Sat-sanga Seminars” that will have no service charges. These sponsored seminars will directly address the needs, concerns, and challenges of ISKCON devotees. For more details please visit www.mihet.info

Mayapur Festival Room Booking: Racitambara dasi
Phone: +91-(3472)-245-494 / 245-620; e-mail: mghb@pamho.net;
Online booking: www.mayapur.com/booking
Room booking will start from the last week of October 2006 only.

Navadwip Dhama Parikrama Booking: Parikrama fees $38
Purananda Das - Phone: +91-(3472)-245145; e-mail: purananda.jps@pamho.net

Transportation from Kolkata to Mayapur: Sharadendu dasa
Ph:+91-(3472)-245-728; Mobile: +91-9333-773-425; e-mail: purananda.jps@pamho.net

Heroine in New Avatar!

Meena Iyer
[ 4 Nov, 2006 2324hrs IST, TIMES NEWS NETWORK ]

MUMBAI: Enter the sanctum sanctorum of Mumbai’s Iskcon temple and the last person you expect to encounter is Mick Jagger’s heroine from the 1970 outlaw adventure Ned Kelly.

But there she is. The pleasantly plump Australian film and television actor Janne Wesly. Clad in a red-printed sari, her head covered with her pallu and a daunting chand tilak on her forehead, Jane stands out tall. In her new avatar Janne Wesly is called Ma Jagattarini Devi.

Wesly says life changed when she met Srila Prabhupada, the founder acharya of Iskcon in the United States way back in 1970, the same year her film with the Rolling Stones star Jagger released.

Wesly says she was barely 22 then. And had the world at her feet. “In fact I was in LA to attend the premiere of Ned Kelly. And later I was to join Mick Jagger in London to pursue my film career. But after I visited the Krishna Temple in Los Angeles everything else lost meaning for me.”

About co-star Mick Jagger she says, “He was very restless too. He was basically a musician at heart and couldn’t handle the slow pace of an actor’s life. He was hugely famous, but somewhere within I sensed he was bored.”

Wesly says behind the arc-lights, she longed for a more spiritual existence. “I was sure the world of films couldn’t get me the answers I was seeking. I thought of people like Marilyn Monroe who were up there on the list of famous faces. But I just felt that deep within, even Monroe longed for something different.”

Wesly continues, “Since I would have to drop my standards radically to pursue a film career I knew I wouldn’t be happy with the compromise. So I chucked it all and opted for a purer form of life.”

With her husband Bhurijana Prabhu, Wesly plunged into working selflessly to build the first Hare Krishna temple in Hong Kong.

Though she currently resides in Perth, Australia, Wesly is constantly on the move, helping to spread the message of Lord Krishna. She has never looked back at her showbiz career.

But life has come full circle for Wesly whose son Jay Weinstein is now in Mumbai trying to find a career in Bollywood.

source

I feel Krishna is my son: Hema Malini

Here is an interview with Hema Malini, famous bollywood actress, printed in HT Style

Kshama Rao/ HT Style

Mumbai, November 14, 2006

“I completely believe in Him and His ideologies. He is adorable and accessible,” says Hema Malini. She’s not referring to her actor husband Dharmendra, but to Lord Krishna.

The actress-MP-danseuse is paying a tribute to the ‘Jagadguru’ in a two-day festival on November 18 and 19 (Ravindra Natya Mandir). The beautiful dancer’s belief in Krishna is well known. She has not only performed dance ballets on His life but is also associated with ISKCON.

Ask her if she has ever experienced divine intervention in her personal life and she replies: “Yes, the fact that I am putting up this performance is His instruction. Otherwise, why should I have thought of this now? Whenever I have had problems in my life or faced any difficulties, I have turned to Him. Why just me, He is around you too and everybody. He’s one God who’s accessible to everybody .”

Hema Malini rehearsing for the dance ballets she is performing as a part of the Krishna Rasa, a two day dance event on the life of Lord Krishna...The dance event is being planned on a big scale by Hema’s dance institution and she says it will not just showcase her ballets on the life and times of Krishna but go right through from his birth to the vatsalya phase with Yashoda, the madhurya rasa, his growing up years, as a romantic lover with Radha, his role as a sakha or a friend to Draupadi and the bhakti rasa with His devotee, Meerabai....

...Speaking of Yashoda and Krishna , does she miss a son in her life? “Not really, my two girls have given me a lot of happiness. But when I am performing as Yashoda on stage, I feel Krishna is my son, who is doing a lot of mischief.”

The actor believes that Krishna’s teachings, the Gita, is relevant even in today’s fast paced times. “Yes, that’s right. Each and every shloka, all the principles he’s explained in the Gita, make sense even today. You can put all his principles into practice, in your day to day lives and situations, His teachings do make life easy to live.”

She says that she’s not “well read about all his teachings but I do whatever I can through my dance. As a child, and when you are growing up, you may not necessarily understand the significance of his lessons but at a later stage in your life, when you are more mature and experienced, everything that’s been said in the Gita makes sense and helps you understand better.”

Ludhiana Ratha Yatra

This Message is published by IYF-Delhi On Behalf of H.G. Rajsuya Prabhu.

Hare Krsna, PAMHO!! All Glories to Srila Prabhupada!!

Bhagwan Jagannatha Rath Yatra Maha Mahotsav Ki Jai!

Dear Members,

11th Historic Bhagwan Jagannatha Ratha Yatra 06 will be held in Ludhiana on 18th Nov.06.The parade will start at 2 PM from Durga Mata Mandir and will end at Nav Durga Mandir, Sarabha Nagar Ludhiana. On 19th Nov. there will be Hare Krsna Utsav at Maharaja Palace in the evening at 6 PM. We cordially invite you on this grand festival and we are sure you will come and join us in this festival of chariots. Please confirm your visit earlier so that your boarding and lodging can be arranged in advance.

Yours servant,

Rajsuya dasa

TP, ISKCON, Ludhiana, India.

Email: Iskcon.ludhiana@pamho.net

Web: www.iskconludhiana.com

Contact No. #: +91-93169-70600 ; +91-161-2770600