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Govardhan Japa Thoughts VIII If

November 22nd, 2001

Govardhan

Japa Thoughts VIII
If we meditate on the form of Krishna in Vrindaban, a simple villager, how will we avoid envy and scorn, unless we know that He is not a simple cowherd, but God, or we have an intimate relationship with Him. And if we see Him as God, then are we meditating on Krishna in Vrindaban? Pray for sambandha jnana, an understanding of our relationship with Krishna, so that we may think of Him in Vrindaban, as just a cowherd, without misconception or malice. At least be cognizant that ultimately He is our friend, child or lover.

Japa Thoughts IX
Srila Prabhupada gave us Krishna, but couched in tattva, knowledge of His supreme position, so that we may respect and worship Krishna, even as a simple cowherd boy in Vraja, and gradually realize our intimate relationship with Him.

Govardhan Japa Thoughts VII My

November 21st, 2001

Govardhan

Japa Thoughts VII
My japa prayer is for visrambha guroh seva, worship of the guru with deep intimate attachment, not just obligation, but attachment that impels selfless and
loving service to his inner wishes and mission. That attachment is transferred to Krishna and qualifies us for His company. Can one enter Vrindaban without intimate attachment, and if it is lacking for His devotee will it manifest for God?.

I wish Srila Prabhupada were still here. His manifest form and visible loving reciprocation would certainly propel my heart further in His loving service. I search in the holy name and search in his mission for visrambha guroh seva. It?s the foundation of spiritual life, what Srila Prabhupada exemplified, what Srila Prabhupada taught, His main bhajan siksa (instructions for spiritual practice), but it is not sentimental or cheap. It takes sincerity of purpose and the mercy of the holy name.

Govardhan Japa Thoughts VI Prayer

November 20th, 2001

Govardhan

Japa Thoughts VI
Prayer is the earnest entreaty of the heart for purity. It is the essence of spiritual life and the essence of chanting Hare Krishna. Effective devotional service, effective chanting, chanting that absorbs the mind, must be done with feeling. Otherwise it is mechanical and tasteless. I pray to the holy name and by the holy name. I pray to Guru, I pray to God, the acaryas and the vaisnavas, past and present. I pray to the Deities, the Dham, the holy places and Lord?s eternal associates. I pray for myself, to understand myself, and I also pray for others. I pray for strength and I pray for humility, by notable prayers and my own words too. I seek mercy in all the Lord?s manifestations of grace. Such chanting absorbs the mind.

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Govardhan Japa Thoughts IV To

November 19th, 2001

Govardhan

Japa Thoughts IV
To perceive something, we must use the intelligence. Don?t void oneself of intelligence when seeking the holy name. The holy name will not come by our intelligence, but when the holy name comes use your intelligence to understand Him. Think deeply upon each word and search for meaning. It is part of attentive chanting.

Japa Thoughts V
Srila Prabhupada taught clearly the value of chanting with feeling and a proper conception in his simple instruction, “One should chant the holy name as a lost child crying for his mother.”

Govardhan Japa Thoughts V The

November 16th, 2001

Govardhan

Japa Thoughts V
The root of prema (love of Godhead) is dainya (humility). What is the question of love without humbly serving and submitting oneself to ones lover? Even a powerful man who falls in love willingly submits, and serves, the desires of his beloved. True love invokes humility, and true humility invokes love, for it enables one to serve others.

By the Hare Krishna mahamantra we are glorifying God and begging for His service. Can a proud man put his heart in such words, and if one can?t chant with
sincere feeling what is the question of chanting with devotion and relish?

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu thus instructs:

“One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking 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 respects to others. In such a state of mind one can chant constantly.”

Only the humble soul can put his heart into the incantation of Hare Krishna and give it real meaning beyond just syllables and sounds.

Moral: If we want an attraction for the holy name we must serve, pray and chant for dainya (true humility).

Govardhan – Govardhan Puja It?s

November 15th, 2001

Govardhan – Govardhan Puja

It?s auspicious to celebrate a festival of Lord Krishna, or remember His pastime, on the day and in the place where it occurred. Such days and such places offer special opportunity to awaken devotion. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur describe this by a simple metaphor, “the days of Lord Hari give birth to devotion (bhakati janani madhava tithi). Everything in Krishna consciousness is personal. On special Vaisnava celebrations, the day, the place and the pastime thus all have potency to reciprocate our worship by opening the channel of mercy to the flow of bhakti. I am fortunate to be at Govardhan on the auspicious day of Sri Govardhan Puja.

Although I am glad to be here, I still opted to more or less continue my regular program of sadhana, rather than fully participate in the festivities. I don?t want to be distracted from my vow. However, as it is principle of devotional service to lavishly celebrate festivals of the Lord according to ones means, I build a little mountain of sweets for my Giriraj Maharaj with a variety of exotic sweets purchased at the famous Giriraj Misthan Bandhar (sweet shop) just down the road.

His Holiness Narayan Maharaj is now in Govardhan with his parikram party. Some of his disciples saw me on the road and told him I was here. One devotee therefore came to our ashram with a message from him inviting me to visit. Considering the tension between his mission and ISKCON I am never sure of the welcome there. By etiquette if a senior vaisnava calls one should go immediately, or at least as soon as possible. Tomorrow I go to Vrindaban, so I will visit him the day after tomorrow. I sense it will be a better day for meeting him as his party will be out on all day on parikram. The setting might be more personal.

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Govardhan Japa Thoughts IV A

November 14th, 2001

Govardhan

Japa Thoughts IV
A symptom of honesty is uniformity between what one is and what one portrays. An honest devotee faces his actual standing in devotion. It is thus paramount to
the cultivation of bhakti as it nourishes humility, the foundation of bhakti. Better to not chant ones rounds and admit it, than to not chant ones rounds and pretend to be chanting. The candor will foster modesty, a disposition helpful to chanting. It will also make it easier to fix at least some standard by which to proceed. Real integrity is to meet ones vows, but pretending will certainly doom progress.

Moral: Don?t bluff. Be who you are and then go forward in devotional service with sincerity.

I’m doing a lot of chanting, but without parikrama it appears more difficult to sustain the intensity of one’s focus. Parikrama naturally seems to maintain the force of one’s devotional practices. I miss it a lot, but can’t go yet. Still sore.

Occasionally in the evening, after my duties are finished, I catch a few minutes of the BBC news on my shortwave radio. Today I am sad to hear about another disaster in New York as a plane crashes in Queens. They interview the local residents. I appreciate one fireman’s realistic response to the reporter when asked how he’s personally handling such crisis after crisis:

“It’s unfortunate, but we are getting expert at disaster.”

The response is very matter of fact, and I see also a universal message. Material life is disaster after disaster and then we die?the ultimate disaster. We must become expert at disaster, ultimately dealing with inevitable death. We should all become expert at disaster by coming to the stage of pure chanting and thus transcending all dualities of the material world. Are we getting “expert at disaster”?

Govardhana I finish my afternoon

November 13th, 2001

Govardhana

I finish my afternoon chanting by 6PM and stroll outside my room on the roof of the palace ashram. Govardhana Hill rises in front of the ashram and is always a welcoming sight. I hear a lecture coming from the Modi Bhavan, the large dharmasala (guest house for pilgrims) next door, who are hosting a local Vaishnava sadhu. I listen carefully:

“Krishna’s beauty is ever expanding and manifests according to the love of His devotees. As the gopis have the greatest love for Krishna, He is most beautiful in their presence?especially in the presence of Srimati Radharani, the greatest of all gopis. When Srimati Radharani’s love is at the stage of transcendental pique (maan), Krishna becomes desperate to pacify Her. He humbly approaches Radhika to beg Her forgiveness. He is sweating, His hands are folded, He bends slightly from the waist, and streams of tears are pouring from His eyes. His beauty is unlimitedly enhanced by His sweet humble mood. No other person but Sri Radhika can bring out in Sri Krishna such a sweet temper, and thus in the presence of no other person is His beauty so stunning.”

I was struggling this evening to complete my chanting. After listening to the sadhu say a few words I thought, “This is the fruit of my chanting today krishna-katha.”

Japa Realizations III
Taste in chanting requires some nice thoughts of Krishna so that His name is understood properly and can manifest naturally with all His glory.

Govardhana Japa Realizations II The

November 12th, 2001

Govardhana

Japa Realizations II
The holy name is non-different from Krishna, but can we create Krishna by our lips and tongue? It is not a mechanical construct. Rather, the holy name descends and takes the form of syllables and sounds to one who is eager,dependent, and humble?one who invokes at least a dim reflection of the holy name by approaching Him without offense. Perfection therefore requires mercy. Mercy requires humility. Chant and beg for Krishna to appear on our tongue for His descent in His own sweet will.

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Govardhana When I awaken this

November 11th, 2001

Govardhana

When I awaken this morning, I can barely walk to the bathroom; the feet are that bad. I dress and shuffle slowly to the temple, but I cannot stand during mangal-arati. I have to be more careful about vows that require physical austerity, because the body has limits. I should have been more prepared. Still, I’m very disappointed. I’ve failed to maintain my vow.

There is some solace, however. I can still take shelter of my nama-vrata, and perhaps my afternoon chanting will be more attentive. It is difficult to hear while I’m concentrating on negotiating rough roads with sore feet.

Nama-vrata, a vow to significantly increase the number of rounds daily, sounds like a great austerity. Normally it would be, but not at Govardhana. Chanting here is much easier. Of course, the struggle is there and determination is required, but the dhama gives a strength and enthusiasm in Krishna consciousness that is difficult to imagine elsewhere. Even newcomers experience a substantial surge in their spiritual capabilities here, provided their approach is proper. And when one performs a little austerity here for the purpose of increasing one’s devotional service, peacefulness and enthusiasm inevitably blossom?especially prayerfully circumambulating Giri-Govardhana and begging for the mercy for the holy name.

I am writing this journal entry by the window of my room, which looks out onto the beautiful Dan-ghati view of Govardhana?the place where Krishna enacted the tax pastime. My vision has significantly changed in only a week. Giriraja no longer looks distant. He is friendly and inviting, eager to fulfill the desires of his devotees, whatever they may be. It’s better to ask for krishna-prema.

Bolo Giriraja Maharaja ki jaya!

Japa Realizations I
Harinama is a prayer, but what are we praying for? Our chanting should be thoughtful, not mindless. We should concentrate on hearing each syllable, but why? For us it is not a mechanical ritual adopted from our forefathers, but a dynamic process of realization that we have boldly embraced in this lifetime for enlightenment. Why we came is why we should chant?at the very least. If we are not cognizant of our prayers, has Krishna appeared on our tongue?

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