Gargamuni Das | The Hare Krishna Movement

Horse-driven Cart New Vrindaban

11 Mar 2024 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Gargamuni Das, Hayagriva das, New Vrindavan, Simple Living, Uncategorized Tags: Gargamuni Das, Hayagriva collection, horse driven cart, Krishna, New Vrindaban, Simple Living, Srila Prabhupada

I had to laugh when I saw this posted on Facebook. But it is both beautiful and practical, and is good for the planet and the garden.

Horse-driven cart New Vrindaban

Can be used both for carrying goods and passengers…………

The carriage board should be balanced on the wheel beam and then it will be weightless for the horse who can then very swiftly draw the whole load without any difficulty. By this at least half ton of load or 10 passengers can be easily drawn.”

—Sketch and handwriting by Srila Prabhupada.

From the Hayagriva Collection.

Gargamuni Prabhu Facebook

Is there Sex Life in Vaikuntha?

24 Nov 2023 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Gargamuni Das, Krishna Consciousness, sex life Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna, Krsna, krsna consciousness, sex life, Srila Prabhupada, Srimad Bhagavatam, vaikunta

I have been very much enjoying the daily post that Gargumuni Prabhu is posting on his Facebook page. Questions & Answers.

Is there Sex Life in Vaikuntha?

Prabhupada: For example: sex life, the most prominent feature of this material world. This sex life is explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam, 3rd Canto, in the explanation of Vaikuntha world, when it is said that in the Vaikuntha planets, the women or the fair sex is many many more times beautiful, well-constructed, their face and smiling more attractive, their breasts and hips are very high, and they clearly and freely mix with male devotees,, But their strong sense of devotion towards the Lord and being absorbed in Krishna Consciousness, all the features of womanly beauty cannot stimulate their sex passion. In the material world the same reflection of beauty and bodily features at once stimulate sex passion. Therefore, the enjoyment of opposite sex in the Vaikuntha world has no action of sex life whereas in the material world the perverted reflection of beauty has resultant action of sex life which is the cause of dragging material existence. So the description of the Vaikuntha life is nirguna, and the description of worldly life is sahaguna. Our devotional activities are executed by transferring epithet; our senses are there, they are acting pervertedly and putting us into difficulty. (Letter to: Janardana — Los Angeles 21 January, 1968)

Prabhupada: The women there are hundreds and thousands of times more beautiful than the women here in this material world, and the spiritual atmosphere is also many times better. Yet despite the pleasant atmosphere, the minds of the denizens do not become agitated because in the spiritual world, the Vaikuntha planets, the spiritualistic minds of the inhabitants are so much absorbed in the spiritual vibration of chanting the glories of the Lord that such enjoyment could not be surpassed by any other enjoyment, even sex, which is the culmination of all pleasure in the material world. In other words, in the Vaikuntha world, in spite of its better atmosphere and facilities, there is no impetus for sex life. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (2.59), param drstva nivartate: the inhabitants are so spiritually enlightened that in the presence of such spirituality, sex life is insignificant. ( SB 4.6.30)

Good Management

02 Jul 2023 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Brahmananda das, Devotee's, Gargamuni Das Tags: Brahmananda das, disciples, Gargamuni Das, guru, Iskcon, Kirtanananda, Satsvarupa, Srila Prabhupada, temple president

“…Prabhupada had an uncanny way of knowing how to engage different disciples in various services according to their natures”

Good Management

by Gargamuni Prabhu

The first acting officers of ISKCON were appointed by Prabhupada in the Fall 1966. We were sitting in Prabhupada’s room, only five or six of us, when He asked, “So Who should be president?” Everyone looked at each other and then Brahmananda suggested, “I think that Kirtanananda should be the president because he was the first to join.” There were other suggestions but Prabhupada didn’t approve, and then said, “No. I think that Brahmananda should be the president.” Why? Because he was actually maintaining the temple by giving his entire paycheck; $400 a month, as a NYC public substitute school-teacher. We both stayed in the temple-storefront. All the other working devotees had apartments and so they couldn’t give much money or time. So Brahmananda became the first president of ISKCON and Satsvarupa was appointed as secretary. I became the first treasurer/accountant. Prabhupada had an uncanny way of knowing how to engage different disciples in various services according to their natures. I was sure that he chose Brahmananda because he was a natural leader. He had been the president of his senior-high school class, and was captain of the football team and was captain of the wrestling team, for which he received a scholarship to the USA Naval Academy at Annapolis. He had a natural tendency to lead. He had his own club called The Playmakers, for which he was president, and they had their own jackets which they wore to school. He was a born leader and Prabhupada knew that just by looking at him. He made Satsvarupa the secretary because he was an intellectual—an excellent writer and editor. He made me the treasurer because I was by nature interested in business. When I was seven I started my own business selling cherry bombs (a very powerful kind of firecracker) at school. The kids would buy them and blow up mailboxes. The police were called and they found out it was me, but because I was only seven, they didn’t do anything. Even as a child I made my own office out of card-board and played with my father’s old business letters. I never told Prabhupada about my business activities, but he knew my nature just by looking into my eyes. It is a common understanding that the eyes are the ‘mirror of the mind’. I didn’t know anything about accounting but Prabhupada taught me. He explained accounting the following way:

The Story of Spiritual Sky

26 Apr 2023 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Devotee Bussiness's, Devotee's, Gargamuni Das, spiritual sky Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Gargamuni Das, Krishna Conscious, spiritual sky, Spiritual Sky Incense, Srila Prabhupada, the Hare Krishna Movement in Germany

This is an interesting story/history, of the beginning of the Spiritual Sky Incense business started, as told by H.G. Gargamuni das.

How I started Spiritual Sky Incense

by Gargamuni das

This is the Story of How I started Spiritual Sky Incense in the winter of 1968 at 61 2nd Ave Iskcon NYC– with the motto, ”Krsna Makes the Best Scents” (Sense), which increased Sankirtan Literature Distribution 20 times. Myself and Brahmananda thought of the name Spiritual Sky, with Srila Prabhupada’s blessings in the winter of 1968. I started making the Spiritual Sky incense in the very small cellar at the temple. I not only made stick incense but I also packaged resin incense, which I bought from an old East European man who was 90 years old. He used to make frankincense that was used in churches. He had several other mixes with spices and resins which were very fragrant. You would put these on self-igniting charcoal. There were little round charcoals, you would light a match and touch it, and it would self-ignite. Then you would sprinkle on these resins with spices and you’d get very nice fragrance. I made different names with small containers, and sold them to the stores. I also bottled fragances in designer dripless perfume bottles. In this way, I was practically the only one making extra money for the temple.