Satsvarupa das Goswami | The Hare Krishna Movement

Srila Prabhupada Cuts a Record

01 Mar 2023 2 Comments

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, chanting, Chanting Hare Krishna, Happening Album, Hare Krishna Maha Mantra, Satsvarupa das Goswami Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, chanting Hare Krishna, happing album, kirtan, Krishna, krsna consciousness, Srila Prabhupada

Srila Prabhupada Cuts a Record

(from ‘Broadcasting Krsna’s Glories’ by Satsvarupa dasa Gosvami)

“At the studio, everyone accepted the devotees as a regular music group. One of the rock musicians asked them what the name of their group was, and Hayagriva laughed and replied, “The Hare Krsna Chanters.” Of course most of the devotees weren’t actually musicians, and yet the instruments they brought with them — a tamboura, a large harmonium (loaned by Allen Ginsberg), and rhythm instruments — were ones they had played during kirtanas for months.

So as they entered the studio they felt confident that they could produce their own sound. They just followed their Swami. He knew how to play, and they knew how to follow him. They weren’t just another music group. It was music, but it was also chanting, meditation, worship.

The Biography of a Pure Devotee

30 Sep 2019 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Dr. Misra, Satsvarupa das Goswami Tags: Bopgraphy of a Pure Devotee, Dr. Misra, guru, Satsvrapupa dasa Goswami, spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, svami

For a while Srila Prabhupada lived
In this building, in a windowless fifth floor room.

The Biography of a Pure Devotee
Srila Prabhupada in New York City, 1965 – Struggling Alone
by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami

On arriving in New York, Srila Prabhupada had nowhere to stay but the asrama of an impersonalist svami. To see students submissively listening to a speaker who denied the Personality of Godhead was painful for the pure devotee. But was he to go homeless and beg in the streets? A holy man might have been able to do that in India, but not in Manhattan.

Srila Prabhupada knew no one in New York City, but at least he had a contact. In India he had met a publisher of religious books, Paramananda Mehra of Bombay, who had, written a note introducing him to a guru based in New York City, Dr. Rammurti Misra, While still in Butler, Pennsylvania, Srila Prabhupada had sent Mr. Mehra’s note and one of his own to Dr. Misra. He had also phoned Dr. Misra, who had told him he was welcome to come join him in New York.

A student of Dr. Misra’s met Srila Prabhupada on his arrival, from Butler and brought him directly to an Indian festival in the city. There he was introduced to Dr. Misra, as well as to Ravi Shankar and his brother, the dancer Uddhar Shankar. Srila Prabhupada then accompanied Dr. Misra to his apartment at 33 Riverside Drive, beside the Hudson River, The apartment was on the fourteenth floor and had large windows facing the river. Dr. Misra gave Srila Prabhupada a room to himself.

Srila Prabhupada’s Visit to Mexico

03 Feb 2014 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in Remembering Srila Prabhupada, Satsvarupa das Goswami, Spiritual Life, Spiritual Master, Spiritual World, Srila Prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta Tags: Citsukhananda das, Cuernavaca, happies, hatha yoga, hippies, India personified, kirtan in mexico, Laksmi-priya dasi, mexico, Mexico City, prabhupada, Spiritual world, Srila Prabhupada, yoga, yoga in mexico

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I was talking with one devotee the other day about Puerto Vallarta Mexico. We both agreed that it was a very beautiful and magical place and the devotee informed me that Srila Prabhupada had once visited there, liked it very much and said it reminded him of the birth place of Bhaktivinoda Thakur. This prompted me to do a search on Srila Prabhupada’s visit to Mexico…

Prabhupadanugas

07 May 2013 2 Comments

by The Hare Krishna Movement in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Diksha, Disciplic succession, Guru & Disciple, Prabhupadanugas, Remembering Srila Prabhupada, Satsvarupa das Goswami, Spiritual Master, The Hare Krishna Movement Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Bhakti Caru Swami, buddha, Buddhists, Christ, Christians, devotees, Founder Acarya, Iskcon, prabhupadanuga, prabhupadanugas, Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami, spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada Lilamrta, The Final Lesson

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Perhaps it was Krsna who directed me to the last chapter of Śrīla Prabhupāda-līlāmṛta, by Satsvarūpa dāsa Goswāmī. The famous book chronicling The life of our Founder-Acarya His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. In this last chapter entitled, “The Final Lesson”, last sentence of this voluminious book, Satsvarūpa dāsa Goswāmī concludes with this statement:

“Our hope is that by hearing about Śrīla Prabhupāda the reader will become himself a Prabhupādānuga, a follower of Śrīla Prabhupāda. We can wish no better fortune upon anyone.”

Update:
this came as a comment…

This is probably the best thing Satsvarupa Maharaja ever wrote.

When a devotee decides to join the Hare Krishna movement as a full-time member, they are announcing to the world their acceptance of Srila Prabhupada as the empowered representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By mature realization they will come to recognize Srila Prabhupada as their eternal spiritual master. These lifetime servants of the spiritual master are called Prabhupadanugas.

Those who mould their lives in such a way that they can always think of the lotus feet of the spiritual master will live with him eternally. Because of Srila Prabhupada’s transcendental position, there is no separation in time or space between us. He is present in our lives and is guiding us back to Godhead through his written and spoken word. By his unlimited blessings we continue to move forward in Krishna consciousness and surely we will one day reach the ultimate goal of love of Godhead. The more we advance toward that goal, the more we will understand the greatness of Srila Prabhupada’s compassion upon us and his concern for the conditioned souls of this world who are all part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krishna. (Locanananda das)

Sometimes the ISKCON devotees refer to Prabhupadanugas as some splinter group, not belonging to the mainstream devotees. But in fact we can plainly see from some of the writing of the senior members of our society that becoming a follower of Śrīla Prabhupāda is exactly what is needed. For instance in Bhakti Curu Swami’s, Disappearance Day offering to Srila Prabhupada, given June 16, 2010, he states:

…everyday, in all the temples of ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada is worshipped by everyone. Then why do we hesitate to tell a new comer who is searching for a guru that Srila Prabhupada, the best guru the world has ever seen, is still here, and one can surrender unto him and go back to Godhead very easily? When we have such a great good fortune, why do we not take full advantage of it? It is only when we do so that the glorious days of ISKCON will come back again and we will witness Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s sankirtan movement starting to spread in leaps and bounds all over the world.

If we really love ISKCON and if we sincerely want the Krsna Consciousness movement to spread all over the world in every town and village, then let us broadcast all over the world that Srila Prabhupada is still with us and that anyone who wants to receive his mercy can approach him and establish his eternal relationship with him.

Full Chapter of the “The Final Lesson” More

The Killing of Kamsa

02 May 2013 1 Comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in Back to Godhead, Kamsa, Satsvarupa das Goswami Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhpada, bhagavad-gita, Devaki, Lamsa. Back to Godhead Magazine, Lord Krsna, Satsvarupa das Goswami

The Killing of Kamsa
Excerpted from Back to Godhead Magazine Volume 01, Number 67, 1974
by Satsvarūpa dāsa Goswāmī

Bhagavad-gita states that Lord Krsna descends to this world to vanquish miscreants and rescue His devotees. Once when the world was overburdened with demoniac forces, the demigods prayed for the appearance of the Lord. Lord Krsna accepted the prayer, and He decided to appear as the son of two pure devotees, Vasudeva and his wife, Devaki. Years before Krsna’s actual advent, on the day Devaki and Vasudeva were married, Kamsa, the brother of the bride, was driving the couple to Vasudeva’s home. In the middle of the joyous procession, a voice suddenly rang out from the sky. “Kamsa,” the voice said, “you are such a fool! You are driving the chariot of your sister, but you do not know that the eighth child of your sister will kill you!”

Lord Krsna’s Friend Sudama

07 Dec 2011 Leave a comment

by The Hare Krishna Movement in Back to Godhead, Krishna Consciousness, Satsvarupa das Goswami, Spiritual Life, Spiritual World Tags: back to Godhead, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna, Krsna Book, Lord Krsna, Satsvarupa dasa, Sudama

…It is related that by his constant association with the Lord, Sudama had wiped away from his heart whatever contamination was remaining, and he was very shortly transferred to the eternal spiritual kingdom, which is the goal of all saintly persons in the perfectional stage of life. It is stated in the Krsna Book that whoever hears this history will become qualified like Sudama and will be transferred to the spiritual kingdom of Lord Krsna.

Lord Krsna’s Friend Sudama
Published in Back to Godhead Magizine 1971 Vol. 1, Number 49
By Satsvarupa dasa adhikari

The wonderful history of Krsna and His friend Sudama is told in its entirety in the Krsna Book, Volume II, by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada is kindly presenting to the western world the pastimes of Lord Krsna, which can act as a merciful shower upon the hearts of all of us. It is true that we have forgotten our eternal, blissful and loving relationships as servants of Krsna or God. The remedy to forgetfulness or ignorance of God is to hear about Him from the lips of His pure devotee. This is the view of authorized scriptures.

When Krsna descends from His eternal abode in the spiritual world and appears to this mundane world, as He did 5,000 years ago, He engages with others just as if He were an ordinary human being. Although He is unborn, He appears to have a mother and father. In the village of Vrndavana Krsna plays as a cowherd boy. He enacts these pastimes for His own transcendental pleasure and to attract all the suffering living entities back home, back to Godhead. Sudama was among those devotees who were childhood friends with Krsna, and Sudama was also His intimate school friend.