Krsna cures Kansr/cancer

[krsnaraja]

The real life of a Hare Krishna

By JOCELYN BREWER
When I was in Year Ten I was an Australian Army Cadet. That's right, on Fridays after school, I chose to spend three hours in an unflattering khaki uniform marching around like a solider at an army base in the western suburbs of Sydney. Truth be told I did it because there was a very high ratio of boys to girls and I liked both taking and giving orders. It was like Girl Guides, with guys and without baking.

Apart from activities like making shelters called 'hootchies' from sheets of plastic tied to trees and wandering round the bush conducting search and rescues of lost hypothetical parachutists, we did things like attempt not to faint while holding Australian flags along the Pool of Remembrance on ANZAC Day and attending community events like the Granny Smith Festival.

It was at this celebration of apples that I first met a Hare Krishna devotee. A man in orange robes gave me book called Chant And Be Happy that had two of The Beatles and a very cheerful Indian man on the cover. Fascinated, I poured over it with my friends (Corporals and Sergeants), only to be very disappointed that the book preached not only vegetarianism, but celibacy - two things that were about as appealing as hairy legs and bible study to a 15 year old in 1993.

Fast forward to the end of of first year university and my first trip to Byron Bay on the CountryLink XPT with my friend James who lived in my suburb (not many people like me lived in Auburn). I skated, worked at General Pants, had tattoos and smoked pot. On the Saturday evening we wound up at the community centre, at the weekly Hare Krishna feast. I still have the little flyer that invited us to eat and chant stuck in my journal. I had no idea that what I was about to hear and taste would spiritually influence me more in an hour than 13 years at a Catholic School ever did.
The overwhelming feeling I remember having was of being awakened. Sounds clichéd? It was. The room was quite full of every stereotype of Byron hippie you can imagine standing, swaying, clapping and dancing along to the Maha Mantra - the great transformative sound that devotees around the world chant repetitively. My feet were cemented to the carpet, I was so self-conscious of moving and being moved that I couldn't find the courage to do anything but stand there. Internally I was rejoicing. I actually had a feeling like on the inside I was lit up. I'd discovered something buried, like a spiritual artefact accidentally dug up on archaeological adventure.

We shared in the vegetarian feast, another sensory explosion - as if I was tasting flavours for the first time in my life - then headed off to the Epicentre to listen to trance music and lick tabs of acid. The full Byron experience was complete.

Back in Sydney I found the local Hare Krishna centre on King Street in Newtown. I made friends with devotees, Lauren and Rachel who had both joined with their boyfriends in their late teens, as well as Malati, Jahnavi and Dhara - who had all grown up in the movement. Their parents were initial disciples of Srila Prabhupada - the smiling Indian pharmacist who had renounced his family life and travelled to the USA in 1966 as one of the first Hindu missionaries to the west. His timing was pretty auspicious, he landed in New York's Tompkins Square Park and gathered original hipsters around him just as The Age of Aquarius kicked off and the counter-culture sought new resources for the New Age. Over in San Francisco and then London, the movement known as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) spread and grew.

Put simply, the Hare Krishna movement is a branch of Hinduism whose followers have worshipped flute-playing, cow-loving Krishna (an incarnation of Vishnu, who along with Siva is one of the most well recognised of the religion's millions of Gods and Goddesses) across India for a few thousand years. The specific traditions are largely based on the 16th Century teachings of a Bengali social reformer called Caitanya Mahaprabhu - who, concerned that the caste system excluded low classes from spiritual practice, revived the worship of Krishna, recommending distribution of free prasadam (food that has been offered to the deities and blessed) and chanting of the Maha Mantra for everyone, openly and across the world. Over the centuries, the teachings have been passed down by networks of disciples and Gurus in succession directly to Srila Prabhupada.

I devoured the sacred texts (there are thousands of texts in the canon known as the Vedas), the philosophy, the rituals, the language, the rich history and succession of disciples, teachers and scholars - relishing the challenge of the alternative ways of thinking about life, death, the universe and everything. I kept my eyes fairly wide open at the same time, scouring the (still relatively nascent) internet for information on cults and sects, the history and corruption of the all-male governing body which was set up to keep ISKCON running after Prabhupada 'left his body' in 1977 (it now includes two women and a range of cultural backgrounds).

Happily I stopped eating meat and eggs, and volunteered at the Newtown Food For Life Centre during many of my lunchtimes at uni, rather than hanging out at Manning Bar. I spent weekends in the ashram at the temple, completing rounds of japa mala (meditative chanting on beads) and seva (volunteer work) which formed a part of the prescribed Bhakti yoga (devotional deeds). On Saturday nights you could find me alternatively at a Whitlam's gig (it was the 90's) or dressed in a sari chanting and dancing my way up and down George Street - a practise called sankirtan, public devotional singing - believed to purify and bring about higher consciousness.

My Catholic family were bemused, shaking their heads when Sanskrit phrases showed up as tattoos on my body along with a palm sized image of Lord Jaggantha - the beaming face on the 'smile' stickers devotees distribute across the world.

When my friends were taking initiation from their spiritual masters, and changing their names to Rati Keli, Radhika and Sivani, I was completing my degree and working in a video store. I struggled with wanting to completely surrender and fully 'join up' and maintaining my other interests in film, theatre and music. I wasn't ready to pack everything in and distribute books on the street, though I did purchase a 5-acre property not far from the farm community in Murwillumbah with the aim of raising a family outside of the city. I travelled through India to Vrindavan - Krishna's equivalent of Bethlehem - and other holy cities to study and practise yoga. India felt like home, I have never felt as content as I did wandering the streets of Rishikesh, patting cows literally for hours on end and sitting by the Ganga and doing cartwheels with local kids. When I landed back in Sydney and in a postgraduate education degree a version of 'reality' best described as the 'daily grind' cloaked me.

Slowly over time, my links to the community loosened. Like any organised religion, cracks in the management of the institution, especially the role and treatment of women, were obvious to me and my ability and interest to lobby and change them slipped away. I got busier, I started teaching in a demanding school and worked long hours, dated meat-eating boyfriends and started drinking. My friends got divorces and joined me at music festivals and clubs, instead of at temple.
Sixteen years later I still have a network of wonderful friends who I met through my association with the Hare Krishnas, some are still active in the movement, others have moved on. We still love Krishna, his lilas (stories of his past times) and gifts, and have a shared background from which we understand the struggles of life as 'spirit soul' in a material world. I guess you can never really stop being a devotee of Krishna, I am just hoping that in the next lifetime I can be a better one.
www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/life/8217435/The-real-life-of-a-Hare-Krishna

[krsnaraja]

The Goal of Life

The goal of human life is to re-awaken our original pure love for God, Krishna. We souls exist to have an intimate loving relationship with Him. We can never be happy by rejecting that relationship and denying our true nature.

The things we do in this world indicate our true, eternal nature. We have to love; it’s unavoidable. Having turned away from Krishna, we try to fulfill our need to love and be loved by searching for ideal relationships in this world. But exchanges of love here are never perfect and cannot last forever.
Awakening pure love for Krishna is perfection. Nothing else will satisfy us. Everything that exists in the material and spiritual worlds is meant to support our relationship with Krishna. Human life is a chance for us to reestablish that relationship. That endeavor should be the focus of our lives.

Because love includes service, pure love for God is called pure devotional service, or Bhakti. The ways to awaken Bhakti are the substance of the practice of Bhakti yoga.


www.krishna.com/goal-life

[krsnaraja]

Krishna's Nature

Krishna is loving by nature. In our original pure state, we love Him fully. In the exchange of complete love, Krishna considers His devotees greater than Himself. In the spiritual world He always stays with His devotees, and in this world He resides in every heart as the Supersoul. He wants His children in the material world to return to Him to enjoy with Him eternally.

Krishna is completely independent, and we cannot comprehend Him completely. He cannot be conquered by knowledge. But He can be conquered—and seen directly—through pure love.

God has feelings: He is satisfied when someone offers Him a nice prayer. Even though He is great, He can be moved by our love. He responds to us according to how we approach Him.

"I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me, and I am also a friend to him." –Sri Krishna, Bhagavad-gita 9.29
www.krishna.com/krishnas-nature

[krsnaraja]

Inside the world of a Hare Krishna

By Bernard Wilchusky , Central Florida 
It began with a chant. In a small house off Rouse Road, in the center of the shrine room's wood-paneled floor, a bald man in saffron robes shifted from foot to foot, singing the words of his faith: hare krishna, hare krishna, krishna krishna, hare hare, hare rama, hare rama, rama rama, hare hare.

It's a form of worship called mantra meditation. It's one among a number of methods of devotion practiced by the members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness — known colloquially as the Hare Krishnas — as a means to come closer to their God and a state of mind called Krishna Consciousness.

"Chanting clears the mind; it's a way of attracting God to us," said Trivikrama Swami, the temple's elder acolyte. "People falsely believe they are at the center of the universe, so Krishna created the physical world to fulfill that belief. Chanting reminds us that we are not the center of the world, that there are things greater than us in the cosmos."

"I felt that, well, I've been all over the world, I've practiced in pretty much every country, but I figured I'd be more effective here, as an American," Trivikrama Swami said. "After my spiritual master left the world in 1977, we [his disciples] had a bit of leeway to choose where to go and practice."

The ISKCON Temple in Orlando was established in 2003, though its members have been practicing in the local area for many years beforehand, using space provided at various Hindu temples in the local area. The temple boasts a shrine, vegetable garden, community kitchen and living space for its six resident devotees, in addition to serving as the community's focal point for festivals and high holy days.

Life for the temple's resident devotees begins promptly at 4 a.m. They wake, wash and begin chanting on a string of prayer beads before the temple's first service at 5 a.m. Service lasts for two hours, after which devotees may tend to the garden, study or prepare food prior to the evening ceremony at 6 p.m.

Services are open to the public, and often students from UCF appear among the temple's regular cast of members to experience firsthand the Hare Krishnas' unique form of worship.
"I thought everyone was so open, enthusiastic and happy about their worship," said Andrea Sullivan, a freshman international and global studies major. "It's very different from what I'm used to [as a Catholic] where everyone is so serious and formal."

In addition to its ceremonial services, the temple supports a student organization called the Bhakti Yoga Club. The club provides a means for students to practice mantra meditation and to learn more about the Hare Krishna faith.

For international students such as Naman Mehta, a master's candidate in optics and the Bhakti Yoga Club's current president, it provides a link to his home in India. Mehta, a practicing Hare Krishna, moved to America to study at UCF. The club and the ISKCON Temple provide him an outlet for stress and a way to place his life into a larger context.

"I focus on one simple thing: I try my best, to the best of my ability, to serve him [Krishna]," Mehta said. "Everything else follows from that. Sometimes I don't know how I can do it — the studying, the club, moving from India. So long as I believe, so long as I worship, I know that whatever happens is the best for me."

www.centralfloridafuture.com/story/news/2014/10/29/inside-world-hare-krishna/18132951/

[krsnaraja]

My Experiences with the Hare Krishna Mantra

Here I am, with a post on my personal experiences with chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. This was due a long time ago, but I had exams and assignments to work on, so my apologies.

So here’s all the coolio stuff that happened to me with regard to the mantra:

The first time I heard a studio recording of the Hare Krishna mantra with careful attention, I found myself crying. I didn’t know why. There’s a possibility that I was crying over something that was perhaps locked somewhere in my subconscious. But I remember feeling very overwhelmed and completely absorbed in the song. I listened to it and sang it many times after.

One of the most distinct memories I have of the power of the Hare Krishna mantra is this:

I woke up one morning, after having a really weird/bad dream about ghosts and spirits and stuff. (See note at end to read about the dream.) I was horrified and really distressed, like I usually am after dreaming about anything to do with supernatural or paranormal forces. It had also confused me because I couldn’t understand the dream. Maybe it didn’t mean anything, but it was disturbing, nevertheless. So I was walking around the room and I was thinking that I should probably chant to get rid of all this negative energy that’s building up inside me. I was a bit hesitant and unwilling to chant. Yeah, you can call me Karmie. Then this line from a song by People of Faith (now known as Mayapuris I think) came to mind: “Holy shelter is in the Holy Name”

That was enough to get me going. I started to chant. Then I started to feel like Krishna was watching and he was enjoying it. I felt like he was playing his flute to my chanting. I started to dance. Like really dance. It was a very slow, light garba that I had seen Hare Krishnas perform in YouTube videos. My body was airy and I don’t know the proper dance (it is a traditional Indian dance) but I was feeling it, you know? Like really feeling it.

And it was the best feeling in the world.

Other times, while chanting, I have felt Krishna’s presence. I have felt Krishna and Radha looking at me, watching over me while I sang their names. Many times, I have anticipated Krishna’s moods. I have sensed him laughing and giggling in amusement after playing little pranks on me. Like I mentioned above, I have heard him playing the flute along to my singing. Yeah, I do wonder if I concoct these things myself, sometimes. Like, I wonder if I’m just imagining it. Either way, Madhav is present so it’s more than enough. I remember one time I could hear a very sad melody in my head – I was very sad at the time because something awful had happened and I was crying. And then I could hear a very sad melody and I felt as though Madhav was feeling a lot of pain, simply because I was devastated. He really is the Father of the universe. He is the perfect Friend. He is the most adorable Son. The best part is, he is anything you want him to be. And he is that because he is Love.

Hari hari bol.

NOTE:

I dreamed that there was a ghost or spirit around that was controlling me and constricting my body movements. Like a force that put my body in freeze mode. And this was happening while I was washing my legs in the bathroom. The door was closing itself and I called out to someone to hold it open. He held it open and then went away. Then a South Indian lady came in (she was wearing a cross around her neck). I told her to hold the door open (because the spirit was closing it). And I asked her if it was difficult to hold it open and she said it wasn’t. Then I kept watching to door to make sure it wouldn’t close because I had to get the soap off my legs. Afterward, I cried out in exasperation, “Oh Jesus!” Then I spoke to a Christian woman that I know and in the dream she told me that she would try to get rid of the spirit in whatever way she could, i.e. through Jesus.



bloggingupthedrainpipe.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/my-experiences-with-the-hare-krishna-mantra/

[krsnaraja]

What do the Hare Krishnas believe? Who are the Hare Krishnas?

The Hare Krishnas (officially named the International Society for Krishna Consciousness or ISKCON) began in 1486 when founder Chaitanya Mahaprabhu taught that Krishna was the supreme lord over all gods. It was founded as ISKCON in New York City in 1966 to grow the practice of bhakti yoga. This movement taught that followers began a relationship or connection with Krishna by expressing allegiance through dancing and chanting. Since Krishna is considered a manifestation of Vishu, a Hindu deity, there is some overlap with Hinduism.

The goal of life for adherents of Hare Krishna is to exist in loving relationship with Krishna. Followers choose a guru who guides the follower to maturity. Followers often live in a communal setting with a guru whose teachings are closely studied and practiced. Many teachings follow those of the Bhagavad Gita, a holy book of Hinduism.

In the teaching of ISKCON, the four legs of dharma (teaching) include mercy (daya), self-control (tapas), truthfulness (satyam), and cleanliness (saucam). Four principles given by Swami Bhaktivedanta, a leader in ISKCON, include: 1) no eating of meat or eggs, 2) no illicit sex (only within a marriage), 3) no gambling, and 4) no intoxication (alcohol, tobacco, drugs, or caffeine).

Because many of its teachings are Hindu, Hare Krishnas believe in karma, reincarnation, a different holy book, and no biblical view of sin or need of salvation. As such, Hare Krishna teachings are incompatible with biblical Christianity. In the Bible, the Triune God of Father, Son, and Spirit is God, not Krishna. The human problem is one of sin that can only be changed through Jesus Christ (Romans 6:23). Salvation empowers a person for service in this life and offers eternity with God in the life to come (John 3:16).

Also concerning is the strict allegiance in the Hare Krishna movement with a guru. Many ex-members have expressed concerns over these arrangements. In addition, the many ethical or social teachings demanded of adherents leads to a life focused on self-denial and spiritual growth based on works rather than the grace of God. Instead, the Bible teaches that salvation is based on God's grace through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone: "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). As Acts 4:12 teaches, "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

www.compellingtruth.org/Hare-Krishna.html

[krsnaraja]

Psychedelic Drugs and Krishna Consciousness

Feb 1, 1967 | Discussion, Volume-01 Number-07

Due to the recent psychedelic drug movement in America, many people have come to us and asked about the Society's stand regarding LSD, gunga (marijuana), peyote, mescaline, psylocibin, yage, etc. in reply, we would like to say that as a society, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness has nothing to do with drugs or drug intoxication. We are neither for nor against the use or repression of such drugs. We are not qualified to judge positive or negative effects, and therefore our policy is one of non-interference, especially in regards to legalization, administration, etc. Believing that people naturally do what they like, we feel that it is not our mission to condemn the actions of others but to suggest, in a positive way, their adopting Krishna Consciousness and chanting the Maha (Hare Krishna) Mantra. Drugs and drug movements are not our concern. We are interested in the eternal Reality, which is Krishna, the Supreme Lord.

However, members of the Society and those seriously pursuing Krishna Consciousness, following the Vedic Way and the injunctions of the Spiritual Master (guru) Swami A.C Bhaktivedanta, do not take intoxicants such as alcohol and drugs. Our authorities are the Spiritual Master, the Bhagavad Gita, and, of course, Lord Krishna and none of these recommend the use of drugs for spiritual development.
There are a number of reasons we do not encourage psychedelic drugs for those who are interested in pursuing Krishna Consciousness.

1. We believe that our natural state of consciousness is one of ecstasy. Therefore it is not necessary to attempt to alter our consciousness by a chemical process. In actuality, we are eternally in samadhi, in union with God, being His eternal parts and parcels. This is our constitutional position-it is not a position brought about by fasting, vigils, drugs, self-mutilation, etc. the position is already there. If we do not see our position or understand it, it is due to our ignorance. They way our of ignorance is Krishna Consciousness, which helps us to attain our natural unconditional state of freedom and bliss (Sat-Chit-Ananda) in Krishna. To the best of our knowledge, drugs only construct a reliance on a material substance and lead to bondage to that substance therefore, for our purposes, they do not lead to unconditional freedom, but to spiritual regression.

2. Drugs, as an artificial means of exhilaration, are not new. Psychedelics in the form of peyote and "magic" mushrooms have been known to American Indians for hundreds of years, and thousands of years ago, "soma" and similar drugs are recorded to have been used in India. Over the centuries, psychedelics have been known to and rejected by great saints, mystics, sages, incarnations and spiritual leaders. A 130 years ago, the American transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson was also aware of attempts to attain cosmic consciousness by abortive, artificial means:

It is a secret which every intellectual man quickly learns, that beyond the energy of his possessed and conscious intellect he is capable of a new energy (as of an intellect doubled on itself) by abandonment to the nature of things; that beside his privacy of power as an individual man, there is a great public power on which he can draw, by unlocking his human doors, and suffering the ethereal tides to roll and circulate through him; then he is caught up into the life of the Universe….For if in any manner we can stimulate this instinct, new passages are opened for us into nature; the mind flows into and through things hardest and highest, and the metamorphosis is possible…This is the reason why bards love wine, mead, narcotics, coffee, tea, opium, the fumes of sandalwood and tobacco, or whatever other procurers of animal exhilaration. All men avail themselves of such means as they can, to add this extraordinary power to their normal powers.

(From Essays, 2nd Series, "The Poet.")

However, Emerson makes it clear that he does not condone such artificial means, which he considers to be used by an inferior type of man. He also deems the results to be imperfect and temporary, for in actuality deterioration and dissipation are provoked by reliance on external stimuli.
Never can any advantage be taken of nature by a trick. The spirit of the world, the great calm presence of the Creator, comes not forth to the sorceries of opium or of wine. The sublime vision comes to the pure and simple soul in a clean and chaste body. That is not an inspiration, which we owe to narcotics, but some counterfeit excitement and fury. Milton says that the lyric poet may drink wine and live generously, but the epic poet, he who shall sing of the gods and their descent unto men, must drink water out of a wooden bowl…His cheerfulness should be the gift of the sunlight; the air should suffice for his inspiration, and he should be tipsy with water.

(From "The Poet")

3. The great mystics, incarnations, sages, religious leaders, etc through the ages never used drugs in their spiritual undertakings nor advocated their adherents taking them. This includes Lord Krishna, Brahma, Vasudeva, Narada Muni, Shakara, the great Indian Acharyas, Lord Chaitanya, Lord Buddha, Lao Tzu, Huang Po, Confucius, Mohammed, Socrates, Plato, Lord Jesus Christ, His apostles and disciples, St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. John of the Cross, innumerable other Christian saints and mystics, the metaphysical poets, Milton, Dante, William Blake, the American transcendentalists, Emerson, Thoreau, Emily Dickinson and Whitman the list can extend indefinitely. And typically, the principle religions of the world Buddhism, Taoism, Mohammedism, Christianity, Judaism, and Hinduism forbid the use of drugs by their adherents. Obviously, drugs are not necessary for spiritual realization, and they are not recent discoveries. Children feel no need for them; nor will adults if they only see things as they truly are.

4. Krishna Consciousness involves a firm belief in Krishna, the Supreme Lord, Who is the Absolute Controller and Proprietor of all things. He has not given any indication that drugs provide a legitimate means for reaching Him. He sets down the way by which man may reach His Supreme eternal Abode in the Bhagavad Gita, and no mention is made of drugs. Quite the contrary, He condemns those who follow their own way to the exclusion of Scriptures (Gita 9.3; 16.23-24).

5. From our personal observation of LSD-users who have come to the Society under the influence of or shortly after an LSD "trip," we have found them to been generally confused, disoriented, and badly in need of help. Their conversations have not indicated them to be enlightened beings. Many have had to resort to hospitalization, psychiatrics, etc. Not only are the drugs'results artificial and imaginary, but it they tend to make the user think himself to be further spiritually progressed than he actually is. Many young "avatars" have dropped by the Society to teach Swami Bhaktivedanta about God. In fact, some have claimed to be the Shining, Omnipotent One.

6. The effects of the drugs are only temporary; the drug user is "up" shortly after taking the drug, but after a few hours he "comes down." Krishna Consciousness teaches how to "stay high forever" without bringdowns, by chanting one's way into eternity. Nor do drugs free one from material hankerings such as food, sex desires, etc..,but sometimes rather provoke desires.

7. Some members of the Society experienced psychedelic drugs extensively before meeting Swami Bhaktivedanta, and they now no longer take them. Some consider their previous drug experiences as a kind of spiritual "undergraduate" study and now consider Krishna Consciousness to be graduate school study. Krishna Consciousness teaches one how to swim in the spiritual ocean without water-wings.

In conclusion, we would like to encourage the positive and age-old method of Krishna Consciousness, approved by the great acharyas (spiritual masters) of India, as a true method of spiritual advancement and development. The results are eternal. Through sincere practice, one can come to know his relationship to God, to the world, God's relationship to the Universe and to the individual soul, and ultimately one can attain realization that one is not matter but spirit soul eternally related to the Supreme, and, through Krishna's grace, reach His supreme and eternal Abode. We encourage psychedelic drug users to finish their experimentation, graduate once and for all, and take up God realization under a qualified spiritual master such as Swami Bhaktivedanta. Then they can chant their way into eternity and face God independent of "sugarcubes."

Issued by:

The International Society

for Krishna Consciousness

26 Second Avenue

New York, New York
www.backtogodhead.in/psychedelic-drugs-and-krishna-consciousness/

[krsnaraja]

Transcendental Methods for Controlling Stress


by Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami


Learning how to cope with stress in daily life is not a newly discovered gift from modern psychologists. Mental illnesses from anxiety, as well as expert cures for stress, are as old as humanity itself. The Vedic knowledge of ancient India, as taught today in the form of Krishna consciousness, goes to the very source of the problem and gives solutions not only for how to cope effectively with stress but how to remove permanently the very causes of anxiety, which prevent us from realizing our full potential of happiness and productivity.

Modern psychology’s approach is often based on the concept of a human as a biological and mental being, and doesn’t take into account the spiritual dimensions of life. The psychologists’ research and advice is, therefore, helpful only up to a certain limit. Thus they have prescribed certain favorable mental attitudes and drugs to combat anxieties that arise from inevitable human crises. But despite the successes of their techniques, psychologists know little of how to remove the root cause of stress.

Researchers at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston have even introduced meditation techniques for helping people adjust to stressful events. Apparently, a time of relaxed meditation blocks the effect of norepinephrine, an “emergency” hormone that raises the blood pressure and increases the heart rate. Health magazine (“Meditation: Medicine?” July 1982) reports:

To meditate, a person sits comfortably in a quiet environment, repeats a word, prayer, sound, or phrase, and maintains a passive attitude toward intervening thoughts. The aura of calm that meditation evokes is known as the relaxation response—characterized by a drop of blood pressure, heart rate …

As Krishna conscious devotees we are pleased to see this mention of meditation on a sound or prayer—known in Vedic language as “mantra meditation”—advised as a psychiatric healing method. (This is hardly the “brainwashing” or hypnotism as charged by the anticultists.) But we cannot make a complete endorsement of this use of mantra meditation. Certainly the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra has beneficial mental and bodily effects, as indicated by the Beth Israel research team, but if we are to get the full benefit, we should understand and practice mantra meditation with knowledge of its spiritual nature.

The original purpose of every genuine form of meditation is to tap the existential, spiritual reality, which is at the heart of human consciousness. Real relief from life’s miseries as well as relief from undue anxiety over those miseries can come only when we understand our constitutional position as eternal spirit souls. This ultimate well-being should be sought and discovered, and we should not be satisfied merely with a cover-over “medicinal” approach that does not remove the cause of anxieties.

In the transcendental epic Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krishna gives directions to His friend Arjuna, a warrior who is suffering in a situation of extreme stress on a battlefield. Krishna observes that Arjuna has become overwhelmed by fear and ignorance and has failed to see beyond the fear of death. Krishna therefore begins His instructions by informing Arjuna of a higher knowledge.

While speaking learned words, you are mourning for what is not worthy of grief. Those who are wise lament neither for the living nor the dead. (Bg. 2.11)

Lord Krishna then proceeds to teach Arjuna the nature of the real self, beyond the body and mind. The spirit soul, which is our real identity, is not subject to any kind of destruction that might befall the body. It is also by nature full of bliss and knowledge, and it can be realized by direct perception. Bhagavad-gita teaches the techniques of yoga and meditation for awakening us to an enlightened state in which we can remain strong even in adverse conditions.

In that joyous state, one is situated in boundless transcendental happiness, realized through transcendental senses. Established thus, one never departs from the truth, and upon gaining this, he thinks there is no greater gain. Being situated in such a position, one is never shaken, even in the midst of greatest difficulty. This indeed is actual freedom from all miseries arising from material contact. (Bg. 6.21-23)

The comprehensive transcendental science of the Bhagavad-gita—including knowledge of karma and reincarnation, techniques for doing devotional service to God even while in normal occupational situations, and directions for following the path leading to the highest liberation of love of God—are all completely relevant to life in the twentieth century. These teachings are not sentimental or imaginary, nor do they promise instant salvation without inner purification. Since the Bhagavad- gita goes so much to the depth of the human condition, we recommend it for study, not as a matter of religious faith, but for anyone interested in transcending the anxieties of daily life.

Each of us faces a battlefield encounter every day, as we are threatened by inevitable attacks from disease, old age, and ultimately death. If we have no more to rely on or depend on than the resources of our body and mind, then we are sure to suffer anxiety, since our support system is fallible and, in fact, sure to fail us. Attempts to buttress our ego or well- being by such psychological techniques as positive thinking or by the impersonal approach to meditation will also fall short. Only when we understand the strength of our position as eternal spirit souls, in relation to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and under His protection, will we be assured and confident, even as we move through the battlefields of life.

Mantra meditation, under the guidance of a spiritual master who knows its purpose, will be especially effective in this age. Former techniques of meditation are practically impossible today, because they require extreme austerities and conditions of seclusion that are neither advisable nor possible nowadays. Chanting the Hare Krishna mantra—Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare—is easy and can be done in any situation. Not only will it adjust the flow of adrenalin, regulate heart rate and the bodily metabolism, increase the alpha brain waves, and lower the blood pressure, but far more importantly, it will allow us always to see beyond the anxieties of the temporary body and mind and thus enable us to work within this world for the ultimate benefit of ourselves and others.



www.krishna.com/transcendental-methods-controlling-stress

[krsnaraja]

Hare Krishna and Buddhism
In the Srimad-Bhagvatam, Lord Buddha is accepted as a saktyavesa avatara, a specially empowered incarnation of the Supreme Lord. Srimad-Bhagvatam, which was compiled by Vyasadeva five thousand years ago, foretold the incarnation of Lord Buddha who appeared just 2,600 years ago, saying Buddha will appear in Gaya Pradesh, in the province of Gaya. "In the beginning of Kali-yuga, the Lord will appear as Lord Buddha, the son of Anjana, in the province of Gaya, just for the purpose of deluding those who are envious of the faithful theist." (Srimad-Bhagavatam 1:3:24). Kesava dhrta buddha sarira - Krsna has accepted the body of Buddha. That is the Vaisnava conception of Lord Buddha.

Lord Buddha appeared at a time when the so-called religionists were falsely using the Vedas to justify violent acts like meat-eating and animal sacrifice. It was the desire of the Supreme Personality of Godhead to end violence being committed in the name of the Vedas. Taking compassion on the poor animals, he appeared as Lord Buddha to preach ahimsa, non-violence, leading the fallen people away from such false interpretations.

At the time of Lord Buddha's appearance, many people had become atheistic, and Srimad-Bhagvatam states that Lord Buddha appeared in order to bewilder this atheistic class of men. Due to their ignorance, the people were being implicated in innumerable sinful activities by unnecessary animal killing in the name of religion. In his preaching, Lord Buddha declined to accept the Vedic principles because the animal-killers would have simply pointed to evidences that in the Vedas there is mention of animal-killing for sacrifice. Therefore, Lord Buddha established a system of religion on the platform of non-violence to stop the nonsense they were engaging in due to a lack of knowledge.

Lord Buddha preached atheism so that the atheists would follow him and thus be tricked into devotional service to Lord Buddha (Krsna). By obeying Lord Buddha, they were actually following God. In order to take the bewildered atheists under his control, he collaborated and said, "Yes, there is no God, but you hear me." Being an actual incarnation of God, this was a kind of transcendental cheating. Those who were followers of Vedic religion, however, did not accept Lord Buddha's religion because it was against the Vedas. In other words, this philosophy is actually meant for bewildering the atheists and should not be accepted by devotees.

Lord Buddha was criticized by the Vedic brahmanas for stopping animal sacrifice, which is recommended in the Vedas as a means of creating new life under very special circumstances. But because the brahmanas had become corrupted and were taking this injunction as a very general thing, Lord Buddha refused to accept the Vedic principles and instead criticized them. Consequently, strict followers of the Vedas would not accept him. The devotee understands why Lord Buddha took this position, however, and while a devotee does not accept the philosophy of Buddhism, he accepts Lord Buddha as incarnation of Lord Krsna and offers obeisances to him. This is the Vaisnava position.

Buddhism spread during the reign of Emperor Asoka, a Hindu king. Lord Buddha, who appeared in the family of a high-grade ksatriya king, was patronized by Maharaja Asoka and Buddhist philosophy was consequently broadcast across the Far East. After the great teacher Sankaracarya soundly defeated the philosophy, Buddhism was driven out beyond the borders of India, and Jainism and similar religious principles became more visible. Eventually, Buddhism all but disappeared in India, taking root instead in China, Burma and Japan where it remains a predominant religion.

The Buddhist philosophy does not accept the existence of God or the soul. Consequently there is no possibility of bhakti-yoga, because they do not recognize the Supreme Lord existing as the supreme objective. While Buddhists do not believe in God they do have love for Lord Buddha, so love is there. Some Buddhists say that because they show devotional service to Lord Buddha, they should be considered devotees, but the Vedas do not accept as a devotee one who does not reach the conclusion of the supremacy of the Personality of Godhead. In essence, Buddhists simply philosophize on the material elements, and want to dismantle the material elements by the process of reaching Nirvana. Even those personalities like Lord Buddha, who did not accept the existence of Godhead and preached morality and ethics in the spirit of atheism, never preach that there is any possibility of attaining eternal peace and prosperity in this material world.

"Buddhism is concerned largely with the predicament of the body. Due to the interactions of the three modes of material nature, which are acting on our material bodies, we experience various pains and pleasures. Buddhism teaches that one can be relieved of these pains and pleasures as soon as one dismantles the combination of the material elements in the shape of the physical body. Nirvana, the goal of Buddhism, is the state attained when a person has finished with the material combinations. After all, pains and pleasures are due to possessing this material body. However, Buddhist philosophy does not provide information about the soul, the possessor of the body. Thus Buddhism is imperfect.

Buddhist philosophy is incomplete, but that does not mean Lord Buddha did not know the complete truth. A teacher may have received his Masters degree, yet he still teaches the ABC's to his students. It is not that his knowledge is limited to the ABC's. Similarly, any especially empowered incarnation (saktyavesa avatara) will preach God consciousness according to time, place, and circumstances. The teacher holds his Masters degree, but the students may not be qualified to receive the high instructions that the teacher is competent to teach.

Therefore there are different schools of religion, like Buddhism and Sankaracarya's Mayavada philosophy. Both the Buddhists and the Mayavadis encourage their followers to try to get free of pain and pleasure, which are due to sensual activities. No genuine philosopher urges his followers to pursue sensual activities. Buddha finishes with matter: to achieve nirvana one must first dismantle the material combination of the body. In other words, the body is a combination of five material elements: earth, water, fire, air, and ether, and this combination is the cause of all pain and pleasure; so when the combination is at last dismantled, there will be no more pain and pleasure."

Second Chance, Chapter 11

"It is stated that mercy is one of the qualities of a Buddhist, but mercy is a relative thing. We show our mercy to a subordinate or to one who is suffering more than ourselves. However, if there is a superior person present, the superior person cannot be the object of our mercy. Rather, we are objects for the mercy of the superior person. Therefore showing compassion and mercy is a relative activity. It is not the Absolute Truth. Apart from this, we also must know what actual mercy is. To give a sick man something forbidden for him to eat is not mercy. Rather, it is cruelty. Unless we know what mercy really is, we may create an undesirable situation. If we wish to show real mercy, we will preach Krsna consciousness in order to revive the lost consciousness of human beings, the living entity's original consciousness. Since the Buddhist philosophy does not admit the existence of the spirit soul, the so-called mercy of the Buddhists is defective."

Caitanya-caritamrta, Madyam lila 9:49


www.harekrsna.com/philosophy/gss/sadhu/religions/buddhism.htm

[krsnaraja]

Chant Hare Krsna & be rid of Kansr/Cancer

Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna HHare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare

[krsnaraja]

Education
The goal of life according to the Vaishnava, or Krishna conscious, teaching is to awaken within each soul knowledge of their original spiritual nature, thus bringing the individual to the platform of God consciousness, or devotional service to God.

Thus for ISKCON, education is an integral part of its communities. Temples around the world sponsor adult educational programs as well as Sunday Schools for children. ISKCON also has a wide spectrum of online and classroom courses ranging from the fundamentals of spirituality to the advanced concepts of Gaudiya Vaishnavism; from communications to developing spiritually focused family life.
Srila Prabhupada wanted to provide opportunities for all people to gain a systematic understanding of the profound Vaishnava philosophy. Thus, his followers have developed systematic studies of the texts fundamental to Krishna consciousness such as a preliminary Bhakti-sastri course that focuses on the famous Sanskrit texts Bhagavad-gita and Sri Isopanisad along with later writings, the Bhakti-rasamrita Sindu (Nectar of Devotion) and Upadeshamrita (Nectar of Instruction).

ISKCON also offers short term programs on leadership and management, conflict resolution, discipleship, etc. ISKCON and its affiliates thus enable students to improve their academic and vocational potentials, apply Vedic principles to contemporary lifestyles, and make positive contributions in society.
ISKCON also has two affiliated colleges, the Bhaktivedanta College in Belgium and the Bhaktivedanta College in Hungary. Both offer full degrees in affiliation with government and academic accrediting boards. The Bhaktivedanta College in Belgium has collaborative partnership with the University of Chester in the United Kingdom offering a Theology and Religious Studies degree program. Hungary’s Bhaktivedanta College for Religious Science (BCRS) is the the first fully accredited Vaishnava Theology College in Europe. It has over 300 students.

In recent years, ISKCON affiliates have parterned with the UK Government in establishing a series of Krishna Avanti Schools, the first state-funded Vedic, or Hindu, schools in United Kingdom. ISKCON also has several affiliated schools for children in India, including Vrindavana, Utar Pradesh, and Mayapura, West Bengal. These programs and others internationally are designed to give children the opportunity to grow to their highest potential — academically, socially, emotionally, and physically — all the while developing their spiritual identities in a nurturing and positive environment.

In all these programs ISKCON promotes an inclusive worldview through a variety of cultural studies and experiences. We foster an understanding that our essential spiritual self transcends all designations of race, ethnicity, gender, and economic status—and that ultimatey we are all children of God.

www.iskcon.org/education/

[krsnaraja]

Chanting the Hare Krishna Mantra

The first principle in devotional service is to chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra (maha means “great”; mantra means “sound that liberates the mind from ignorance”)

Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare

You can chant these holy names of the Lord anywhere and at any time, but it is best to set a specific time of the day to regularly chant. Early morning hours are the best.

The chanting can be done in two ways: singing the mantra, called kirtana (usually done in a group and accompanied by musical instruments), or chanting the mantra to oneself, called japa (which literally means “to speak softly”). Concentrate on hearing the sound of the holy names. As you chant, pronounce the names clearly and distinctly, addressing Krishna in a prayerful mood. When your mind wanders, bring it back to the sound of the mantra. Chanting is a prayer to Krishna that means “O energy of the Lord [Hare], O all-attractive Lord [Krishna], O Supreme Enjoyer [Rama], please engage me in Your divine loving service.” The more attentively and sincerely we chant these names of God, the more spiritual progress we make.
Since God is all-powerful and all-merciful, He has kindly made it very easy for us to chant His names, and He has also invested all His powers in them. Therefore the names of God and God Himself are identical. This means that when we chant the holy names of Hare, Krishna and Rama we are directly associating with God and his transcendental potency, thus we are being purified. Therefore we should always try to chant with devotion and reverence. The Vedic literature states that Lord Krishna is personally dancing on our tongues when we chant His holy name.

When we chant alone, it is best to chant on japa beads (available from the “KrishnaStore” link on the bottom of any page of this website). This not only helps us fix our attention on the holy name, but it also helps us count the number of times we chant the mantra daily. Each strand of japa beads contains 108 small beads and one large bead, the head bead. Begin on a bead next to the head bead and gently roll it between the thumb and middle finger of your right hand as you chant the full Hare Krishna mantra. Then move to the next bead and repeat the process. In this way, chant on each of the 108 beads until you reach the head bead again. This is one “round” of japa. Then, without chanting on the head bead, reverse the beads and start your second round on the last bead you chanted on.

Initiated devotees vow before the spiritual master to chant at least sixteen rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily. But even if you can chant only one round a day, the principle is that once you commit yourself to chanting that round, you should try to complete it every day without fail. When you feel you can chant more, then increase the minimum number of rounds you chant each day – but don’t fall below that number. You can chant more than your fixed number, but you should maintain a set minimum each day. (Please note that the beads are sacred and therefore should never touch the ground or be put in an unclean place. To keep your beads clean and protected you can carry them in some type of bead bag, also available from the Krishna Store. If your handy with a needle and thread you can make one yourself.)

Aside from chanting japa, you can also sing the Lord’s holy names in kirtana. While you can perform kirtana individually, it is generally performed with others. A melodious kirtana with family or friends is sure to enliven everyone. Krishna devotees use traditional melodies and instruments, especially in the temple, but you can chant to any melody and use any musical instruments to accompany your chanting. As Lord Caitanya said, “There are no hard and fast rules for chanting Hare Krishna.” 
www.krishnapath.org/how-to-become-a-devotee/

[krsnaraja]

Can 'Hare Krishna' Chant Cure Depression?

The global Hare Krishna sect has floated a new wing to counsel students who are depressed, demoralized and even addicted to drugs.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) sect, headquartered in West Bengal's Mayapur town, says distressed students are getting back their zest for life by chanting "Hare Krishna" and listening to regular religious discourses.

The sect's counseling centre, called the Youth Forum, is run at its premises in the city. "We started the forum a couple of months ago and the response has been tremendous," said ISKCON official Ananga Mohan Das.

The forum is now visited by about 176 students "and the number is growing by the day".

At these sessions, held every Sunday, students listen to discourses by ISKCON monks, chant hymns, meditate and discuss their problems with the monks.

"The students come from the best of colleges and universities and also from very reputed families," Das said.

Besides its endeavour with students, ISKCON is planning programmes for reformation in the state's jails.

The sect wants to conduct regular religious sessions in jails in the hope that it would awaken spirituality in convicts and make them better human beings.

The proposal, already submitted to the state government, is that ISKCON volunteers would introduce convicts to meditation and religious discourses.

ISKCON monks want to distribute Hindu religious texts such as the Bhagwad Gita and hold its readings regularly. They also want convicts to chant "Hare Krishna".

ISKCON philosophy says a convict is not to be blamed for his crime, but it is society that is responsible because it could not impart the right lessons to the sinner.

Source: Times of India

[krsnaraja]

Krishna and Jesus Christ
Many people often wonder what is the view of Lord Jesus Christ in the Krishna consciousness movement.

Srila Prabhupada, the foremost exponent of the Krishna

consciousness movement explains that Jesus is Krishna's representative, son of God, and spiritual master.

Below are excerpts from Srila Prabhupada's books, lectures, and conversations about Jesus Christ and his

relationship with Krsna.

"If one loves Krishna, he must love Lord Jesus also. And if one perfectly loves Jesus he must love Krishna too. If he says, "Why shall I love Krishna? I shall love Jesus," then he has no knowledge. And if one says, "Why shall I love Jesus? I shall love Krishna", then he has no knowledge either. If one understands Krishna, then he will understand Jesus. If one understands Jesus, you'll understand Krishna too"
(Srila Prabhupada - Room conversation with Allen Ginsberg, May 12, 1969 / Columbus - Ohio)

As Lord Jesus Christ said, we should hate the sin, not the sinner. That is a very nice statement, because the sinner is under illusion. He is mad. If we hate him, how can we deliver him? Therefore, those who are advanced devotees, who are really servants of God, do not hate anyone. When Lord Jesus Christ was being crucified, he said, "My God, forgive them. They know not what they do." This is the proper attitude of an advanced devotee. He understands that the conditioned souls cannot be hated, because they have become mad due to their materialistic way of thinking. In this Krsna consciousness movement, there is no question of hating anyone. Everyone is welcomed to come and chant Hare Krsna, take krsna-prasada, listen to the philosophy of Bhagavad-gita, and try to rectify material, conditioned life. This is the essential program of Krsna consciousness.

(Path of Perfection Chapter 3: Learning How to See God)

Christian, Muhammadan, Hindu-it doesn't matter. If he is simply speaking on behalf of God, he is a guru. Lord Jesus Christ, for instance. He canvassed people, saying, "Just try to love God." Anyone-it doesn't matter who-be he Hindu, Muslim, or Christian, is a guru if he convinces people to love God. That is the test. The guru never says, "I am God," or "I will make you God." The real guru says, "I am a servant of God, and I will make you a servant of God also." It doesn't matter how the guru is dressed. As Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "Whoever can impart knowledge about Krsna is a spiritual master." A genuine spiritual master simply tries to get people to become devotees of Krsna, or God. He has no other business.

(Science of Self Realization Chapter 2: Choosing a Spiritual Master)

So Lord Jesus Christ said, "My Lord, hallowed be Thy name." He wants to glorify the name of the Lord. And some people says that there is no name of God. How? If Lord Jesus Christ says "Hallowed by Thy name," there must be name. The name is there, but he did not pronounce it because the people at that time will not be able to understand or maybe some reason, but he says there is name. So we are making this propaganda, Krsna consciousness movement, the "Hallowed by Thy name. My Lord Krsna, the Personality of Godhead, let Your holy name be glorified." This is our movement. It is not a sectarian...(Lecture: Bhagavad Gita 3.27 Melbourne June 27, 1974)

Sometimes Sri Krsna descends Himself, and sometimes He sends His representative. The major religions of the world-Christian, Hindu, Buddhist and Moslem-believe in some supreme authority or personality coming down from the kingdom of God. In the Christian religion, Jesus Christ claimed to be the son of God and to be coming from the kingdom of God to reclaim conditioned souls. As followers of Bhagavad-gita, we admit this claim to be true. So basically there is no difference of opinion. In details there may be differences due to differences in culture, climate and people, but the basic principle remains the same-that is, God or His representatives come to reclaim conditioned souls.

(Raja Vidya Chapter 6 :Knowledge of Krsna's Appearance and Activities)

Just like Lord Jesus Christ. He was so badly treated and still he was thinking, "Father, they do not know what they are doing. Please excuse." This is suhrdah. He is praying to God This is sadhu, mahatma. Suhrdah prasanta. Not that... In India there are examples like Haridasa Thakura, Prahlada Maharaja. And the Western countries also, Lord Jesus Christ, he is saktyavesa-avatara, God's son. And he tolerated so much. These are the examples of mahatma. Don't misunderstand that we are preaching that mahatmas are only in India. No. By the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead there are mahatmas even amongst the birds, even amongst the beasts, even amongst the lower than animals. Because this Krsna consciousness movement is going on in different places, in different circumstances.(Srimad Bhagavatam 5.5.3 --vrndavana Oct 25, 1976)

www.harekrishnatemple.com/chapter27.html

[Reefs]

Krsnaraja, please keep in mind that the purpose of this forum is discussion of spiritual matters.