25 Aug 2016
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Festivals, Krishna Consciousness, Krsna Book, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: Birth of Lord Krsna, Janmastami, Krishna, Krishna Janmastami, Krsna
As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, the Lord says that His appearance, birth, and activities, are all transcendental, and one who understands them factually becomes immediately eligible to be transferred to the spiritual world. The Lord’s appearance or birth is not like that of an ordinary man who is forced to accept a material body according to his past deeds. The Lord’s appearance is explained in the Second Chapter: He appears out of His own sweet pleasure. When the time was mature for the appearance of the Lord, the constellations became very auspicious. The astrological influence of the star known as Rohiṇī was also predominant because this star is considered to be very auspicious. Rohiṇī is under the direct supervision of Brahmā. According to the astrological conclusion, besides the proper situation of the stars, there are auspicious and inauspicious moments due to the different situations of the different planetary systems. At the time of Kṛṣṇa’s birth, the planetary systems were automatically adjusted so that everything became auspicious. (Krsna Book Chapter 3)
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25 Aug 2016
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Festivals, Free Downloads, Free eBooks, Janmastami, Krishna, Krishna Consciousness, Krsna, Krsna Book, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: free scanned download, ISKCON Press 1970 edition, Krishna Janmastami Celebration, Krishna Janmastmi, Krsna Book
Today, being Krsna Janmastami, we are offering a free scanned copy of the original ISKCON Press 1970 Edition of KRSNA Book Vol. 1, which you can download. Just click on the following link to began downloading. This could take a while depending on the speed of your connection. This free scanned copy includes all the original art work as well.
KRSNA_Book_Vol.1_1970_ISKCON_Press_edition_SCAN
22 Apr 2016
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Balarama, Krsna Book, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Balarama, Balarama Rasayatra, full moon, Krsna Vasanta Rasa, Lord Balarama, rasa dance, rasa lila pastime, springtime rasa lila, Srila Prabhupada's books
Last night I noticed that the moon was full, and it reminded me that this must be Balarama Rasayatra, or the night that Lord Balarama danced the Rasa dance with the Gopis. It was also Sri Krsna Vasanta Rasa, the Lord’s springtime rasa lila pastime. We honor these pastimes with a chapter from the Krsna Book, entitled “Lord Balarama Visits Vrndavana”.
…Lord Balarāma could, of course, understand the ecstatic feelings of the gopīs, and therefore He wanted to pacify them. He was expert in presenting an appeal, and thus, treating the gopīs very respectfully, He began to narrate the stories of Kṛṣṇa so tactfully that the gopīs became satisfied. In order to keep the gopīs in Vṛndāvana satisfied, Lord Balarāma stayed there continually for two months, namely the months of Caitra (March-April) and Vaiśākha (April-May). For those two months He kept Himself among the gopīs, and He passed every night with them in the forest of Vṛndāvana in order to satisfy their desire for conjugal love. Thus Balarāma also enjoyed the rāsa dance with the gopīs during those two months. Since the season was springtime, the breeze on the bank of the Yamunā was blowing very mildly, carrying the aroma of different flowers, especially of the flower known as kaumudī. Moonlight filled the sky and spread everywhere, and thus the banks of the Yamunā appeared to be very bright and pleasing, and Lord Balarāma enjoyed the company of the gopīs there.
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23 Sep 2015
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A. C. Bhakthvedanta Swami Prabhupada, appearance of autumn, Autumn, autumn season, first day of autumn, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Today is the first day of Autumn. As is my custom, I like to read chapter 20 of the KRSNA Book, entitled “Description of Autumn”. Srila Prabhupada gives a very beautiful description of the Autumn season.
…Everything becomes naturally beautiful with the appearance of the autumn season. Similarly, when a materialistic person takes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and spiritual life, he also becomes as clear as the sky and water in autumn. The autumn season takes away the rolling of dark clouds in the sky as well as the polluted water.
…Soon all the water reservoirs became very clean and pleasing, and refreshing air was blowing everywhere because of the appearance of autumn. The sky was completely cleared of all clouds, and it recovered its natural blue color. The blooming lotus flower in the clear water in the forest appeared like a person who has fallen down from yoga practice but again has become beautiful by resuming his spiritual life.
…Because of the appearance of the autumn season, the water of the ocean becomes calm and quiet, just as a person developed in self-realization is no longer disturbed by the three modes of material nature.
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14 Sep 2015
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna-katha
Tags: A. C. Bhakthvedanta Swami Prabhupada, Kaliya, kaliya serpent, Krsna's childhood pastimes, Lord Krsna, Subduing Kaliya, Yamuna river
Krishna’s Punishment to the Serpant Kaliya was Actually a Benediction
I love the stories and pastimes in the Krsna Book, and never tiring of hearing them. I ran across the above image on the Internet, I found it so sweet, that I opened up the Krsna Book and re-read the story of Krsna Subduing the Kaliya Serpent.
…When this story was being narrated by Śukadeva Gosvāmī, Mahārāja Parīkṣit became eager to hear more about Kṛṣṇa’s childhood pastimes. He inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī how Kṛṣṇa chastised Kāliya, who was living in the water for many years. Actually, Mahārāja Parīkṣit was becoming more and more enthusiastic to hear the transcendental pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, and his inquiry was made with great interest.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī narrated the story as follows.
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05 Sep 2015
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Festivals, Krishna, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Spiritual Life
Tags: A. C. Bhakthvedanta Swami Prabhupada, apearance of Lord Krishna, Birth of Lord Krsna, Janmastami, Krishna Janmastami, Krsna Janamastmi, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, mother yashoda bathes lord Krsna
click on image to enlarge
Joyous Celebration at Krishna’s Birth
Today we celebrate the birth of Lord Krsna, or Krishna Janmastami, with a full day fast and a feast after his appearance at Midnight tonight. We honor this auspicious day with a post from the Krsna Book.
The joyous vibrations at Krsna’s birth ceremony could be heard in all the pasturing grounds and houses.
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02 Sep 2015
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Gopis, Krsna Book, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A. C. Bhakthvedanta Swami Prabhupada, gopis, gopis of vrndavana, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, KB 1.34, Krsna Book, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, The Gopis feelings of Separation
Kṛṣṇa, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Vol. 1, Chapter 34
The Gopīs’ Feelings of Separation
The gopīs of Vṛndāvana were so attached to Kṛṣṇa that they were not satisfied simply with the rāsa dance at night. They wanted to associate with Him and enjoy His company during the daytime also. When Kṛṣṇa went to the forest with His cowherd boy friends and cows, the gopīs did not physically take part, but their hearts went with Him. And because their hearts went, they were able to enjoy His company through strong feelings of separation. To acquire this strong feeling of separation is the teaching of Lord Caitanya and His direct disciplic succession of Gosvāmīs. When we are not in physical contact with Kṛṣṇa, we can associate with Him like the gopīs, through feelings of separation. Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental form, qualities, pastimes, and entourage are all identical with Him. There are nine different kinds of devotional service. Devotional service to Kṛṣṇa in feelings of separation elevates the devotee to the highest perfectional level, to the level of the gopīs.
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04 Jul 2015
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A. C. Bhakthvedanta Swami Prabhupada, Govardhana Hill, Krishna, Krishna Balarama, Krishna consciousness, Krsna Book, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead
click on image to enlarge
KRSNA, The Supreme Personality
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Volume 1, Chapter 26
Wonderful Krsna
Without understanding the intricacies of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and without knowing His uncommon spiritual opulences, the innocent cowherd boys and men of Vṛndāvana began to discuss the wonderful activities of Kṛṣṇa which surpass the activities of all men.
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26 Jan 2015
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A. C. Bhakthvedanta Swami Prabhupada, Kṛṣṇa, Krsna-katha, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
…The position of Mahārāja Parīkṣit and Śukadeva Gosvāmī is unique. Mahārāja Parīkṣit is the right person to hear about the transcendental pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, and Śukadeva Gosvāmī is the right person to describe them. If such a fortunate combination is made possible, then Kṛṣṇa-kathā immediately becomes revealed, and people may benefit to the highest possible degree from such a conversation.
This narration was presented by Śukadeva Gosvāmī when Mahārāja Parīkṣit was prepared to give up his body, fasting on the bank of the Ganges. In order to assure Śukadeva Gosvāmī that by hearing Kṛṣṇa-kathā he would not feel tired, Mahārāja Parīkṣit expressed himself very frankly: “Hunger and thirst may give trouble to ordinary persons or to me, but the topics of Kṛṣṇa are so nice that one can continue to hear about them without feeling tired because such hearing situates one in the transcendental position.” It is understood that one must be very fortunate to hear about Kṛṣṇa-kathā seriously, like Mahārāja Parīkṣit. He was especially intent on the subject matter because he was expecting death at any moment. Every one of us should be conscious of death at every moment. This life is not at all assured; at any time one can die. It does not matter whether one is a young man or an old man. So before death takes place, we must be fully Kṛṣṇa conscious.
At the point of his death, King Parīkṣit was hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from Śukadeva Gosvāmī. When King Parīkṣit expressed his untiring desire to hear about Kṛṣṇa, Śukadeva Gosvāmī was very pleased. Śukadeva was the greatest of all Bhāgavata reciters, and thus he began to speak about Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, which destroy all inauspiciousness in this age of Kali. Śukadeva Gosvāmī thanked the King for his eagerness to hear about Kṛṣṇa, and he encouraged him by saying, “My dear King, your intelligence is very keen because you are so eager to hear about the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa.” He informed Mahārāja Parīkṣit that hearing and chanting of the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa are so auspicious that the processes purifies the three varieties of men involved: he who recites the transcendental topics of Kṛṣṇa, he who hears such topics, and he who inquires about Him. These pastimes are just like the Ganges water which flows from the toe of Lord Viṣṇu: they purify the three worlds, the upper, middle and lower planetary systems.
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06 Nov 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna Consciousness, Krishna's flute, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Rasa Dance, Tulasi-saligram Vivaha
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, autumn season, Caturmasya, full moon in autum, full moonlight, gopis, Kartika, Kṛṣṇa, Krsna, krsna consciousness, Purnima, rasa dance, rasa-lila, Sri Krsna Rasa-yatra, Srimati Tulsi Devi, The Rasa Dance, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Tulasi-Saligrama Vivaha
Today being Purnima (the Full Moon), is also the End of Kartika, Sri Krsna Rasa-yatra (the purnima or full moon of Damodara month is the second full moon of the autumn season, and rasa lila is again celebrated), Tulasi-Saligrama Vivaha (this is the celebration of the marriage ceremony of Srimati Tulsi Devi and Lord Sri Krishna), and the Last Day of Caturmasya.
In honor of this auspicious day, we are posting the Introduction to the Rasa Dance, Chapter 29 of the Krsna Book.
…The appearance of the moon increased Kṛṣṇa’s desire to dance with the gopīs. The forests were filled with fragrant flowers. The atmosphere was cooling and festive. When Lord Kṛṣṇa began to blow His flute, the gopīs all over Vṛndāvana became enchanted. Their attraction to the vibration of the flute increased a thousand times due to the rising full moon, the red horizon, the calm and cool atmosphere, and the blossoming flowers. All these gopīs were by nature very much attracted to Kṛṣṇa’s beauty, and when they heard the vibration of His flute, they became apparently lustful to satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa.
Immediately upon hearing the vibration of the flute, they all left their respective engagements and proceeded to the spot where Kṛṣṇa was standing. While they ran very swiftly, all their earrings swung back and forth. They all rushed toward the place known as Vaṁśīvaṭa. Some of them were engaged in milking cows, but they left their milking business half finished and immediately went to Kṛṣṇa. One of them had just collected milk and put it in a milk pan on the oven to boil, but she did not care whether the milk overboiled and spilled–she immediately left to go see Kṛṣṇa. Some of them were breast feeding their small babies, and some were engaged in distributing food to the members of their families, but they left all such engagements and immediately rushed towards the spot where Kṛṣṇa was playing His flute. Some were engaged in serving their husbands, and some were themselves engaged in eating, but neither caring to serve their husbands nor eat, they immediately left. Some of them wanted to decorate their faces with cosmetic ointments and to dress themselves very nicely before going to Kṛṣṇa, but unfortunately they could not finish their cosmetic decorations nor put on their dresses in the right way because of their anxiety to meet Kṛṣṇa immediately. Their faces were decorated hurriedly and were haphazardly finished; some even put the lower part of their dresses on the upper part of their bodies and the upper part on the lower part.
While all the gopīs were hurriedly leaving their respective places, their husbands, brothers and fathers were all struck with wonder to know where they were going. Being young girls, they were protected either by husbands, elderly brothers or fathers. All their guardians forbade them to go to Kṛṣṇa, but they disregarded them. When a person becomes attracted by Kṛṣṇa and is in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he does not care for any worldly duties, even though very urgent. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so powerful that it gives everyone relief from all material activities. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has written a very nice verse wherein one gopī advises another, “My dear friend, if you desire to enjoy the company of material society, friendship and love, then please do not go to see this smiling boy Govinda, who is standing on the bank of the Yamunā and playing His flute, His lips brightened by the beams of the full moonlight.” Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī indirectly instructs that one who has been captivated by the beautiful smiling face of Kṛṣṇa has lost all attraction for material enjoyments. This is the test of advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness: a person advancing in Kṛṣṇa consciousness must lose interest in material activities and personal sense gratification.
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05 Nov 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Damodara, Kartika, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, brahmanas, gopis, handcart, hither and thither, Krishna, Krishna's childhood pastimes, Krsna, Nanda Maharaja, Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vedic hymns, Yasoda, YMother Yasoda
Continuining our month long attempt to stay focused on the childhood pastimes of Krsna, during this month of Damodara (Kartika), we bring you another exciting chapter from; Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Today we are posting the chapter entitled “The Salvation of Tṛṇāvarta”.
…Baby Kṛṣṇa had been placed underneath a hand-driven cart, and while He was kicking His legs, He accidentally touched the wheel of the cart, and it collapsed. Various kinds of utensils and brass and metal dishes had been piled up in the handcart, and they all fell down with a great noise. The wheel of the cart separated from the axle, and the spokes of the wheel were all broken and scattered hither and thither. Mother Yaśodā and all the gopīs, as well as Mahārāja Nanda and the cowherd men, were astonished as to how the cart could have collapsed by itself.
…If someone takes advantage of hearing the pastimes of the Lord, the material contamination of dust, accumulated in the heart due to long association with material nature, can be immediately cleansed. Lord Caitanya also instructed that simply by hearing the transcendental name of Lord Kṛṣṇa, one can cleanse the heart of all material contamination. There are different processes for self-realization, but this process of devotional service–of which hearing is the most important function–when adopted by any conditioned soul, will automatically cleanse him of the material contamination and enable him to realize his real constitutional position. (Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead)
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22 Oct 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Childhood Pastimes of Krsna, Damodara, Kaliya Serpent, Krishna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Ppabhupada, black serpent kaliya, books of Srila Prabhupada, childhood pastimes of Krishna, Damodara, Kaliya, Kartika, Krsna Book, Lord Krsna, month of Damodara, pastimes of krsna, Yamuna river
“O Lord, although You are able to give all kinds of benedictions, I do not pray to You for liberation, nor eternal life in Vaikuntha, nor any other boon. My only prayer is that Your childhood pastimes may constantly appear in my mind. O Lord, I do not even want to know Your feature of Paramatma. I simply wish that Your childhood pastimes may ever be enacted in my heart.” (Damodarasatka prayers)
Continuining our month long attempt to stay focused on the childhood pastimes of Krsna, during this month of Damodara (Kartika), we bring you another exciting chapter from; Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Today we are posting the chapter entitled “Subduing Kāliya”
Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Sixteen
Subduing Kāliya
When He understood that the water of the Yamunā was being polluted by the black serpent Kāliya, Lord Kṛṣṇa took action against him and made him leave the Yamunā and go elsewhere, and thus the water became purified.
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20 Oct 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, B. G. Sharma Art, Childhood Pastimes of Krsna, Kartika, Krishna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nalakuvara and Manigriva
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, art of B.B. Sharma, B.G. Sharma, demigods, ecstatic love, Gokula, Krishna's childhood pastimes, Krsna, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, liberated, Lord Krsna, lotus feet of the Lord, Mother Yasoda, Nalakurvara and Manigriva, Narada Muni, ropes of Yasoda, wooden grinding mortar
click on image to enlarge
“O Lord Damodara, in Your form as a baby, Mother Yasoda bound You to a grinding stone with a rope for tying cows, You then freed the sons of Kuvera, Manigriva, and Nalakuvera, who were cursed to stand as trees, and You gave them the chance to become Your devotees. Please bless me in this same way, I have no desire for liberation into Your effulgence.” (Damodarastka Prayers)
So…continuining our month long attempt to stay focused on the childhood pastimes of Krsna, during this month of Damodara (Kartika), we bring you another exciting chapter from; Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Today we are posting the chapter entitled “The Deliverance of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva”.
Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Ten
The Deliverance of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva
The story of the cursing of Nalakūvara and Maṇigrīva and their deliverance by Kṛṣṇa, under the all-blissful desire of the great sage Nārada, is here described.
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16 Oct 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, B. G. Sharma Art, Kartika, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Pabhupada, Bakasura, bifurcate, bifurcated, bifurcating his mouth, cameli flower, cowherd boys, dakasura demon, denizens of the heavenly planets, drums and conchshells, Kamsa, Kartika, Krsna and Balarama, Krsna Book, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, month of Damodara, river yamuna, The Krishna Art of B. G. Sharma, vibration of bugles
So…continuining our month long attempt to stay focused on the childhood pastimes of Krsna, during this month of Damodara (Kartika), we bring you another exciting chapter from; Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Today we are posting the chapter entitled “Killing the Demons Vatsāsura and Bakāsura”.
…All the cowherd boys would daily go to the bank of the river Yamunā to water their calves. Usually, when the calves drank water from the Yamunā, the boys also drank. One day, after drinking, when they were sitting on the bank of the river, they saw a huge animal which looked something like a duck and was as big as a hill. Its top was as strong as a thunderbolt. When they saw that unusual animal, they became afraid of it. The name of this beast was Bakāsura, and he was a friend of Kaṁsa’s. He appeared on the scene suddenly and immediately attacked Kṛṣṇa with his pointed, sharp beaks and quickly swallowed Him up. When Kṛṣṇa was thus swallowed, all the boys, headed by Balarāma, became almost breathless, as if they had died. But when the Bakāsura demon was swallowing up Kṛṣṇa, he felt a burning fiery sensation in his throat. This was due to the glowing effulgence of Kṛṣṇa. The demon quickly threw Kṛṣṇa up and tried to kill Him by pinching Him in his beaks. Bakāsura did not know that although Kṛṣṇa was playing the part of a child of Nanda Mahārāja, He was still the original father of Lord Brahmā, the creator of the universe. The child of mother Yaśodā, who is the reservoir of pleasure for the demigods and who is the maintainer of saintly persons, caught hold of the beaks of the great gigantic duck and, before His cowherd boy friends, bifurcated his mouth, just as a child very easily splits a blade of grass. From the sky, the denizens of the heavenly planets showered flowers like the cāmeli, the most fragrant of all flowers, as a token of their congratulations. Accompanying the showers of flowers was a vibration of bugles, drums and conchshells.
This description of Krishna killing the demon Bakasura by bifurcating his mouth, has always intriged me, and after years of hearing and reading this story I finially decided to look up the word bifurcate.
bi·fur·cate
verb
past tense: bifurcated; past participle: bifurcated
ˈbīfərˌkāt/
divide into two branches or forks.
“just below Cairo the river bifurcates”
(from Merriam Webster dictionary)
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14 Oct 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Damodara, Kartika, Krishna Consciousness, Krsna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, damodarastka prayers, Kartika, Krsna, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, month of Damodara, Mother Yasoda Binds Lord Krsna, spiritual subject matter, spiritually enlivening, transcendental subject matter
click on image to enlarge
The beauty of Transcendental subject matter is that it never gets old, but rather, becomes more relishable with every reading. For instance, every year we celebrate the month of Damodara or Kartika, with the reading of “Mother Yasoda Binds Lord Krsna”, and singing the Damodarastka prayers, and every year, it becomes more enjoyable and spiritually enlivening. That is the nature of Spiritual Subject Matter.
Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Nine
Mother Yaśodā Binds Lord Kṛṣṇa
Once upon a time, seeing that her maidservant was engaged in different household duties, mother Yaśodā personally took charge of churning butter. And while she churned butter, she sang the childhood pastimes of Kṛṣṇa and enjoyed thinking of her son.
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02 Oct 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna Consciousness, Krsna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktvedanta Swami Prabhupada, aghasura demon, associates of the Lord, cowherd boyfriends, cows and calves, Krsna Book, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krsna, pious activities, residents of Vrndavan
click on image to enlarge
This story of the Killing of the Aghasura Demon, has always been one of my all time favorite stories in the Krsna Book. It is a good example of faith and trust.
….Only after accumulating heaps of pious activities were those boys promoted to personally associate with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Who can estimate the transcendental fortune of the residents of Vṛndāvana? They were personally seeing the Supreme Personality of Godhead face to face, He whom many yogīs cannot find even after undergoing severe austerities, although He is sitting within their hearts.
… “Dear friends, this figure appears to be a great animal, and he is sitting in such a posture just to swallow us all. Just see—is it not a big snake that has widened his mouth to eat all of us?”
Then they further consulted among themselves:
“If we all at one time entered into the mouth of this great serpent, how could it possibly swallow all of us? And even if it were to swallow all of us at once, it could not swallow Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa will immediately kill him” (excerpted from chapter 12 “The Killing of the Aghāsura Demon”)
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15 Aug 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Festivals, Janmastami, Krishna, Krsna Consciousness, Krsna God, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, birth of Lord Krishna, Janmastami, janmastami festival, Krishna, Krsna, Krsna Book, Sri Krishna Janmastami, Srimad Bhagavatam
click on image to enlarge
With the advent of Lord Krsna’s birthday celebration (Janmastami) rapidly approaching, it seemed fitting that we do a post on the birth of Lord Krsna. So the following is the entire third chapter from the Krsna Book entitled “The Birth of Lord Kṛṣṇa”.
…As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, the Lord says that His appearance, birth, and activities, are all transcendental, and one who understands them factually becomes immediately eligible to be transferred to the spiritual world. The Lord’s appearance or birth is not like that of an ordinary man who is forced to accept a material body according to his past deeds. The Lord’s appearance is explained in the Second Chapter: He appears out of His own sweet pleasure. When the time was mature for the appearance of the Lord, the constellations became very auspicious. The astrological influence of the star known as Rohiṇī was also predominant because this star is considered to be very auspicious. Rohiṇī is under the direct supervision of Brahmā. According to the astrological conclusion, besides the proper situation of the stars, there are auspicious and inauspicious moments due to the different situations of the different planetary systems. At the time of Kṛṣṇa’s birth, the planetary systems were automatically adjusted so that everything became auspicious. ( from Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead Chapter 3)
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19 Jul 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Krishna Consciousness, Krishna Nectar, Krsna Consciousness, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vaisnava Vocabulary
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, chanting Krsna, cowheard boys, hearing and chanting about Krsna, Krsna Book, krsna consciousness, krsna nectar, Krsna the suporeme personality of godhead, nityanavanavayamana, transcendental subject matter
I am so much enjoying my reading of the Krsna Book every morning. Although I have read and re-read it so many times before, it is more relishable with each new reading.
It is said that it is the nature of a devotee to constantly apply his mind, energy, words, ears, etc., in hearing and chanting about Kṛṣṇa. This is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and for one who is rapt in hearing and chanting Kṛṣṇa, the subject matter never becomes hackneyed or old. That is the significance of transcendental subject matter in contrast to material subject matter. Material subject matter becomes stale, and one cannot hear a certain subject for a long time; he wants change. But as far as transcendental subject matter is concerned, it is called nityanavanavāyamāna. This means that one can go on chanting and hearing about the Lord and never feel tired but will remain fresh and eager to hear more and more.
It is the duty of the spiritual master to disclose all confidential subject matter to the inquisitive and sincere disciple.
And thus in the Krsna Book, Srila Prabhupada reveals the activities of the Supreme Person Krsna as is evident from the following excerpt:
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17 Jul 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Demons, Krishna Nectar, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Tags: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Aghasura, aghasura demon, demon, inhabitants of Vrndavana, Krsna, Krsna and Balarama, Krsna Book, Krsna The Supreme Personality of Godhead, mahima, mahima-siddhi, mystic powers, Vrndavan, yoga system, yogic siddhi
click on image to enlarge
This is one of my favorite stories from the Krsna Book. I always enjoyed how fearless the cowherd boys were. They were free of any fear. This is the benefit of Krsna Consciousness; “Any material arrangement for protecting oneself from death is always unsure, but if one is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then immortality is confidently assured.”
…Aghāsura, thus deciding to kill all the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana, expanded himself by the yogic siddhi called mahimā. The demons are generally expert in achieving almost all kinds of mystic powers. In the yoga system, by the perfection called mahimā-siddhi, one can expand himself as he desires. The demon Aghāsura expanded himself up to eight miles and assumed the shape of a very fat serpent. Having attained this wonderful body, he stretched his mouth open just like a mountain cave. Desiring to swallow all the boys at once, including Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, he sat on the path.
The demon in the shape of a big fat serpent expanded his lips from land to sky; his lower lip was touching the ground, and his upper lip was touching the clouds. His jaws appeared like a big mountain cave, without limitation, and his teeth appeared just like mountain summits. His tongue appeared to be a broad traffic way, and he was breathing just like a hurricane. His eyes were blazing like fire. At first the boys thought that the demon was a statue, but after examining it they saw that it was a big serpent lying down on the road and widening his mouth. The boys began to talk among themselves: “Dear friends, this figure appears to be a great animal, and he is sitting in such a posture just to swallow us all. Just see—is it not a big snake that has widened his mouth to eat all of us?”
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05 Jul 2014
by The Hare Krishna Movement
in A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Bhagavad-gita, KRSNA The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna-katha, Meditation
Tags: Bg 4.9, Bg. 9.11, cleanse the heart by hearing, complete beauty, complete fame, complete knowledge, complete renunciation, complete strength, complete wealth, hearing about the lord, hearing the transcendental name of Lord Krsna, is always full of six opulences, Kṛṣṇa, Krsna Book, Lord Caitanya, material contamination, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Todays post revolves around the first three paragraphs in chapter 7 of the Krsna Book and the associated verses from the Bhagavad-gita.
…Hearing is an opportunity to associate with the Lord; to hear His activities is to evolve to the transcendental nature–simply by hearing.
If someone takes advantage of hearing the pastimes of the Lord, the material contamination of dust, accumulated in the heart due to long association with material nature, can be immediately cleansed. Lord Caitanya also instructed that simply by hearing the transcendental name of Lord Kṛṣṇa, one can cleanse the heart of all material contamination.
Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes are not only beautiful; they are also very pleasing to the mind. (Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Chapter Seven “Salvation of Tṛṇāvarta”)
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