Rathi Krishna dasa October 13th, 2014
The following is a talk Śrīla Dhanurdhara Swami gave to a group he took on parikrama around Rādhā-kuṇḍa on October 9, 2014.
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Rathi Krishna dasa September 21st, 2014
On Tuesday, September 16, 2014, Srila Dhanurdhara Swami gave a talk entitled ‘Aesthetics & Spirituality’ as part of the Tuesday Night Sanga series at the Bhakti Center in New York. After the talk, Maharaja performed a drama based on the Kaliya-Krishna pastime with Meaghan Sloane.
The following is a recording the of the class Maharaja gave before the drama.
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Rathi Krishna dasa August 18th, 2014
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
My obeisances at your lotus feet!
While meditating on writing this year’s homage to you a question came to my mind, “What was the single quality that made Śrīla Prabhupāda more Prabhupāda than any other quality?”
Certainly there are many things you did well and many qualities you possessed. I thought to myself, “Śrīla Prabhupāda was kind, fearless, and expert. He was an abode of compassion and attached to the holy name. All of those qualities are what made him Prabhupāda.”
But when I thought deeply about this question one quality came to my mind:
Faith!
Not faith in just the sense of believing something to be true, but faith as you have defined it:
“Unflinching trust in something sublime.”
You had fully tasted the sublimity of serving Kṛṣṇa and thus possessed unwavering conviction that there is nothing better than it. You were also therefore exemplarily faithful to the order of your spiritual master who directed you in that service.
What a wonderful thing your faith was! You had tasted the sublime and felt true compassion for those bereft of devotion. You were so convinced that you not only gave your life to end their suffering, but by your conviction laden words thousands developed the same faith and surrendered their lives to Kṛṣṇa. And the force of your faith continues to keep your mission vibrant years after your departure.
While writing this another question came to my mind, “What is the single quality that I would need more than any other quality to make me a worthy servant of your divine grace?”
I thought deeply and one quality came to mind:
Faith!
On this auspicious day of your appearance I thus offer my faith at your lotus feet and a pray that by your mercy I can realize the sublimity of devotion and thus feel true compassion for those bereft of devotion.
Humbly in your service,
Dhanurdhara Swami
Rathi Krishna dasa May 23rd, 2014
The following is a talk given by Dhanurdhara Swami at Yogamaya New York, on Friday, May 16, 2014, entitled “Can God Be Blue?”.
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Dhanurdhara Swami May 15th, 2014
Below is some of the interesting correspondence I have received after my seminar on humility at Yogamaya last month.
From Amanda:
Last Saturday morning at breakfast, I dropped this question on a friend… what do you think the difference is between humility and self-esteem? I wanted to share his answer not only because of its succinctness, but it takes it out of a spiritual context making it totally inclusive.
“A lack of self-esteem is thinking yourself lesser than others. Humility is to not see yourself greater than others.”
I’m not sure that a requisite for humility is a belief in something higher than one’s self, although I do think it is an important part of any spiritual path. I have met and know many “atheists” that are more genuinely humble than some I have crossed calling themselves “spiritual”.
Look forward to hearing what others have been chewing on about this the last week!
With love,
Amanda
My response:
The initial quandary that my seminar attempted to tackle was how to not be inhibited in spiritual pursuits that are founded in humility when often the feelings and expressions of a truly humble person parallel one with low self-esteem.
My conclusion was that the feelings and expressions of a person who sees people as better than themselves does not have to be just a result of psychological trauma (low self-esteem). They can also be an expression of a genuine spiritual experience, where one feels the majesty and love of God, an experience that makes one feel happily small and naturally invokes a mood of reverence and service towards others. As God is everywhere one tends to be humbled (less) before everything.
Sri Caitanya (my lineage) instructed his followers that the following was so important that one should wear it around ones neck:
One should chant the holy name in a humble state of mind
Think oneself lower than the straw in the street
More tolerant than a tree
Devoid of all sense of false prestige
And ready to offer all respect to others
In such a state of mind
One can chant constantly
So that’s how I reconcile the feelings of humble person that often parallel expression of low self-esteem.
I think what Amanda is pointing out is that there is another type of humility where one doesn’t necessarily feel less than others, but just not greater than others. If humility is a modest feeling of one insignificance then that is obviously a valid definition. What I was trying to discern is if there is a type of humility where one feels even lower than others that is not a product of low self-esteem. I think there is.
Humility is certainly not the property of those who believe in a deity.
I think an atheist with high moral values is connecting with something higher than themselves.
If they don’t accept absolute moral values can they be humble?
Rathi Krishna dasa May 12th, 2014
The following is a class entitled “The Power and Culture of Humility: Developing Self-confidence Through a Humble Heart” given at Yogamaya New York on April 18, 2014.
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Waves of Devotion May 21st, 2013
The Skill of Happiness
In the latest of Yogamaya New York’s Sat-Sanga series, Srila Dhanurdhara Swami gives a talk entitled “The Skill of Happiness.” In this talk Maharaja describes the importance of happiness in one’s life, what real happiness is, and how the path of bhakti facilitates true happiness.
The Skill of Happiness (Sunday, May 12, 2013 – Yogamaya New York)
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Waves of Devotion April 24th, 2013
On April 6, and April 7, 2013, Dhanurdhara Swami gave an extensive 12 hour seminar on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali as part of Yogamaya’s teacher training in New York City.
Dhanurdhara Swami at Yogamaya (Photo by Lisa Bermudez)
You can find the recorded seminar here:
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali Seminar at Yogamaya April 2013 Part 1
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Waves of Devotion April 22nd, 2013
Yoga Psychology at Down Dog Yoga
The following is a class Srila Dhanurdhara Swami recently gave on April 2, 2013, at Down Dog Yoga in Reading, Pennsylvania, entitled “Yoga Psychology,” based on the question “Is there therapy in the Vedas?” which Maharaja addressed in his essay of the same name.
Yoga Psychology at Down Dog Yoga
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Waves of Devotion April 13th, 2013
Dhanurdhara Swami discusses his recent lecture to a group of conservative Christians and the reception he received.
Dhanurdhara Swami and Graham on his farm.
A Talk in Middle America (Sunday, April 7, 2013)
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Waves of Devotion is the personal site of Dhanurdhara Swami. Here Dhanurdhara Swami shares his personal insights on the devotional process of bhakti-yoga.