Kishan

This article is taken from: "The Spiritual Scientist - a cyber magazine from ISKCON youth forum, Pune" Is work worship? Certainly work is worship, but the question is - whose worship? The object of one's worship can be determined from the goal of one's work. Most people work for the sole purpose of earning money so as to enjoy to the fullest the bodily pleasures offered by the senses. For such people who do not give much importance to the Almighty God, their senses become almighty; their senses control and direct their lives. Just as a devoted worshiper constantly meditates on how to satisfy his object of worship, such people always think of how to satisfy their senses. Thus their senses are their objects of worship and their work is worship of their senses. Even those who profess to be working not for themselves but for their families are also at more or less the same level; their families are extensions of their own selves. For example, parents shower great love and affection on their own son, but not on their neighbor's son or on an orphan on the street. Why? 'Because he is my son. Through him and his glory I experience pleasure.' What is the result of such worship of the senses? In a world with limited resources and unlimited wants, the desire for sense enjoyment (which is nothing but lust) leads to cut-throat competition. The media blitz which bombards practically everyone in the modern world tends to multiply lust disproportionately. As lust increases, it is bound to be unfulfilled due to limited ability to enjoy and finite resources with which to enjoy. Dissatisfied lust transforms into anger, which manifests itself in various forms of violence. The increasing violence that the world is experiencing is thus the end result of the worship of the senses. Hence if work is meant to worship the senses, such worship is tantamount to courting global disaster. What about those people who want to 'be good and do good' - those who are relatively pious and charitable? They are certainly at a higher level than those who are grossly materialistic. They do not seek much personal sense enjoyment. What is their object of worship? Their object of worship is subtler; their charity is motivated by the desire to be known as noble-hearted, magnanimous souls. Even if miniscule fraction of them give anonymous charity, still they feel gratification within, thinking, 'Just see what a great soul I am.' Even if they have some concern for those in need, their real goal in giving charity is egoistic aggrandizement. Thus their object of worship is their ego. And what does such worship of the ego result in? Suppose a wealthy person opens a hospital giving free medical care to the poor. A diseased drunkard from the slums goes there, avails of the free treatment and gets cured. He then starts drinking again and returns home to start beating his wife again. This is no exaggeration. Most beggars use the alms they get for smoking and drinking; they have their sources for filling their bellies. The point here is not that the needy should not be helped but that most people who avail of charity continue with their self-destructive behavioral patterns. Therefore such worship of the ego fails to do any lasting benefit to anyone. Hence the key question is: who is the right object of worship? By whose worship will the worshiper and everyone else be benefited? The world's most ancient philosophical masterpiece, the Bhagavad-gita, states: yatah pravrttir bhutanam yena sarvam idam tatam sva-karmana tam abhyarcya siddhim vindati manavah 'By worship of the Lord, who is the source of all beings and who is all-pervading, a man can attain perfection by performing his own work.' (Bhagavad-gita 18.46) This verse states that God is the father of all living beings; He has created everyone. Not only has He created everyone, but being a responsible father, He has also provided for the needs of everyone. Heat, light, air, water, even food are all provided by God. Even if one may claim to be working to earn one's daily bread, where does one get the body and the intelligence with which one works? From God. Thus God in His position as the Universal Father has made complete arrangement for taking care of the needs of everyone. Therefore for cultured human beings - those who understand how much God has done for them and who feel grateful to Him, God is the specific and exclusive object of worship. And what is the result of such worship of God? In a family when the children love their father, then out of that love they tolerate their mutual differences and live peacefully. But when there is no strong love for the father, then their mutual differences lead to the breakup of the family. Similarly when one had devotion for the Supreme Father, one's love for God naturally results in love for all of His children. One therefore sees all living beings as one's brothers and learns to live peacefully with them in spite of any differences that might be there. But when God is relegated to the background as in the modern times, people see no common point among each other and thus quarrel, fight and even have wars over trifles. Srila Prabhupada would therefore assert that the first requirement for universal brotherhood is the acceptance of the Universal Father, God. So how can one worship God through one's work? For this the goal of one's work and indeed of one's life should be God. This is possible only when one has devotion to God. For such devotion to be steady and not just sentimental, one must understand the science of God. Like any other science the science of God has a theoretical aspect and a practical aspect. The theoretical aspect can be understood by studying under proficient spiritual scientists - wise saintly persons who have studied deeply and practiced diligently the principles of spirituality stated in the authorized textbooks of spirituality - the scriptures. And the practical aspect involves connecting one's consciousness with God through the simple and sublime process of mantra meditation i.e. the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha mantra or any other bona fide name of God. An aspiring spiritual scientist i.e. one who wants to worship God through his work has a daily regulated program of spiritual practice or sadhana - ideally at the start of his working day in the morning. This spiritual practice creates a foundation of spiritual consciousness on which he can build the work of the rest of the day. Through mantra meditation and scriptural study, the spiritual scientist imbibes devotion to God. And when one works with that devotion, then and then alone does one's work become worship. This is actual yoga, which according to the Bhagavad-gita is 'the art of all work'. By this simple process, anyone - right from a scientist to a farmer, from a doctor to a street sweeper, from a scholar to a housewife - anyone can transform their ordinary mundane work into divine soul-uplifting worship. By such a combination of worship and work, one will find lust transforming into love, greed into satisfaction, anger into tolerance and envy into respect. One will find one's work and indeed one's life becoming a joyful journey, in which one is peaceful and content at each moment and is simultaneously advancing at every moment towards the ultimate fulfillment of life. In conclusion work become worship only when it is done in divine consciousness. One can have such divine consciousness possible only when one gives time for exclusive worship of God. Without such exclusive worship, work is simply fruitive activity, which results in bondage, suffering and the repetition of birth and death. NO TIME? 'I live a very busy life. Though I would like to, I just can't see how I can spare time for exclusive worship of God. Is there any way out?' 'Do you worry - about your work, your family, your future?' 'Well, sometimes?' 'Sometimes?' 'Well, actually I am constantly worried - about practically everything.' 'Bhagavad-gita does not ask you for your work time but for your worry time.' 'What?' 'When you spare time for exclusive worship of God, God reciprocates by giving you faith and inner strength by which you can stay unshaken through the upheavals of life. Knowing that God is your best well-wishing friend, you no longer dissipate your energies in useless worrying. Rather you channelize your bodily, mental, intellectual and spiritual resources towards finding constructive solutions to the challenges facing you. Thus you become an integrated, creative and productive individual. Therefore stop worrying, start chanting.'

I have a big dream in my life. I hope that all the devotees from Madhva, Sri, Gaudiya and any other sampradaya come together and join hands so that we can all stand on a common ground. I'm sure we can all agree on atleast few common points mentioned in the scriptures. This is the time for all the Vaishnavas to respect other Vaishnavas from different sampradayas. All of us have to understand that the main aim of all these various sampradayas is to devote ourself and glorify the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Though I'm not very much qualified to discuss the growth of Madhva philosophy, I can say by experience that Madhva Vaishnavism is practiced nicely in South India (especially in states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh). I don't know how good it is in Tamil Nadu and other states. I have seen 2 types of Madhvas: 1) Who support the Hare Krishna Movement and agree that the Hare Krishna Movement is a sub-division under Madhva Sampradaya. 2) Who do not support the Hare Krishna Movement. They even avoid their children from visiting Radha Krishna temples. These days by the efforts of ISKCON devotees, this has been reduced to a great extent. We can see more Madhvas in ISKCON temples these days. From my personal experience, I have seen many great teachers of the Madhva community appreciating the efforts of ISKCON. One thing I can say is that Madhavas (those who are really devoted) are more co-operative in the recent days and are not very caste conscious at this time. There are many great teachers in the Madhva line to whom we have to humbly bow down.

Please visit the following URL for more information: http://www.vedicfriends.org/a_personal_invitation_to_join_the_VFA.htm

PUNE: A peppering of science has added the zing to traditional Hindu ceremonies. Thanks to a breed of specially-trained priests by the Jnana Prabodhini's Santrika section, you will no longer find people stifling a yawn or mindlessly repeating mantras after a priest. The head of Jnana Prabodhini, Yeshwant Lele, says more and more people are now curious about the rituals they have been performing blindly over the years. The priests trained by the society explains the mantras to the gathering and make the ceremonies more lively, he adds. Thirty people, mainly from a scientific background, irrespective of caste and sex, have recently finished their four-month course on how to conduct Hindu marriages, naming ceremony, thread ceremony, completion of 60 years, last rites and other sacraments after death, enshrining of Ganesh, Satyanarayana puja and Vastushanti. When Amita Nagarkatti conducted Vastushanti and Satyanarayan puja, she called a priest from Jnana Prabodhini, who explained the mantras to her. ``I wanted to know the relevance of each mantra,'' she says. Businessman Atul Thakar says: ``Whether it is a thread ceremony, marriage, house-warming or last rites, it makes an impact when the priest makes it a point to explain the mantras.'' Lele says: ``Our Marathi and English booklets enable every family member to chant the mantras. The booklet gives the requirements for each ceremony and has an introduction and translation of each mantra. Our gurujis and purohitas involve everyone present. So, instead of only the yajman (the man who performs the ceremony) repeating the mantras, everyone present takes part. Explanations of certain rituals involve physics, chemistry, logic, philosophy and psychology.'' Manjusha Mungi, a student of electronics who has trained under Lele, adds: ``The whole family is involved. Since most come from science backgrounds, they understand the transfer of energies, negative waves and sound energies.'' Mungi, who conducts three ceremonies a week, says the rituals are in an abridged version. There is no duplication of mantras and so the ceremony is not lengthy, she explains. Parag Kulkarni performed the ekkodishtam (homage to the departed) of his father, and was given a detailed explanation. ``The meaning is explained in an easy-to-understand manner for kids to know why I was performing the ritual,'' Lele says. Vijayrao Datar, a priest says: ``People want to know what is what. Many families conduct the thread ceremony only after the child reaches an understanding age.'' Another priest, Yeshwant Kulkarni, said when mantras are chanted together ``it generates positive sound energy''. http://www.newindpress.com/Newsitems.asp?ID=IEO20030309110014&Title=This+is+Indi\a&rLink=0

Dear friends and devotees, You can visit this URL to see our dear Lord Krishna and Srimati Radharani in various attractive colors: http://www.iskconmontreal.com/htm/gallery.html Click on the colors at the bottom of the page to see Them in different colors.

Why do scientists call it "re"search when looking for something new? Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice"? Why is it called a building when it is already built? If a book about failures doesn't sell, is it a success? Why does your feet smell, and your nose run? If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting? If work is so terrific, how come they have to pay you to do it? If you're not supposed to drink and drive, then why do bars have parking lots? Is it possible to be totally partial? If you got into a taxi and he started driving backwards, would the taxi driver end up owing you money? If pro is the opposite of con, then is progress the opposite of congress? Why is it when someone eats something that tastes bad they say "Aw, this tastes gross!" and turn to you and say "Try it!" Why would I want to try it, If they already told me what it tastes like? How do you know when invisible ink pens run out of ink? If you drop a chameleon in water, will it turn clear? If tin whistles are made of tin, what do they make fog horns out of? Why is hamburger called hamburger, when it is made out of beef not ham? If vegetable oil's made of vegetables, and olive oil's made of olives...what's baby oil made of? Why do they call it a Leap Year if you ADD another day, rather than subtracting one? What do you do when you see an endangered animal that eats only endangered plants?

It's very simple now. - Kishan

Just check this URL: http://www.cyberglass.co.uk/assets/Flash/psychic.swf I have never seen such an amazing site. Think about the logic behind this.

Dear Gaurachandra Prabhu, Please accept my humble obeisances. I'm sorry for replying so late. I did not check the messages on this thread all these days. Yes, this is the original deity of Balaji in Tirumala. This is a self manifested deity. When the Lord wanted to go back to Vaikunta after his pastimes with Goddess Padmavati, Akasharaja, the father of Goddess Padmavati, requested the Lord that he could not bear the separation of the Lord. At this time, Lord Srinivasa told him that He would give the king a deity. He told the king, "This deity is myself". Yes, you are right...many of the temples prohibit photographs of the deities. The main reason is that they do not want people to disturb the Lord with their cameras. There are also some other reasons..I'll do a bit research and let you know the reason within few days. Jaya Sri Radhe !!!

Prabhuji, Thank you so much for giving me your association. I have realized that life is totally waste without the assocication of the Vaishnavas. Please accept my humble obeisances at your feet prabhuji. The reason I use the computer as an aide to sadhu sanga is that I like to associate with as many devotees as possible and after I read your reply to Bhakta Don, I felt completely convinced. Thank you so much once again for sharing your memories and experiences with Prabhupada. You are so lucky to have heard Prabhupada's voice and I'm so lucky to hear this experience from you. I can imagine how kind Prabhupada's voice would be...Prabhuji..why are you feeling sorry for telling us this wonderful memories with Prabhupada. I just feel that you please continue telling such nice memories about Prabhupada and all Audarya members will relish it again and again...and yes, I can never forget to pay respect to all the Vaishnavas...my humble obeisances to all the devotees....Haribol..Jaya Sri Radhe!!!

HE is the most compassionate guru I've ever seen. He showed us how to love Krishna, believe and have faith in Krishna. He distributed the causeless mercy of Lord Chaitanya to all the people in the world. He proved that Krishna is for everyone irrespective of caste, color, background and nationality. He is the UNIFYING AGENT among all the devotees. Without him, I would not know Krishna as He is. He is JAGAT GURU. Just like Leyh, even my eyes are struggling to see him clearly. Jaya Prabhupada.

Haribol All !!! This is one of the rare and original picture of Lord Venkateshwara at Tirumala. Tirumala is located near Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh, India. I'm sure many of the devotees have already seen this picture of the Lord. You can view the picture of the Lord at: http://etirupati.tripod.com/lord.htm

Yes, you are perfectly right. In the Bhagavad Gita Krishna tells Arjuna to declare boldly that his devotee never perishes. Even if we fall down in our sadhana in this life, we will continue again from where we had left. So, it's always advantageous when you are with Krishna and his devotees.

Yes, you are perfectly right. In the Bhagavad Gita Krishna tells Arjuna to declare boldly that his devotee never perishes. Even if we fall down in our sadhana in this life, we will continue again from where we had left. So, it's always advantageous when you are with Krishna and his devotees.