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Haribol! I have a very busy March coming up, with the grace of Krishna. My next two events are talks: The first is a talk about how I wrote my book 'Follow The Cowherd Boy' and the challenges of writing it. I'll be discussing how I did my research and travelled around India and also the technical aspects of writing a book like this. The talk will be delivered to the Southwest Writers' Group of Dallas on March 3rd, from 1-3pm. If anyone is a member of this group then please come along. Audience members will be able to buy copies of my book at the end. The second talk is about the craft of novel writing and I'll also be discussing the pros and cons of self publishing vs traditional publishing. It will be delivered on March 7th, at Preston Royal Library in Dallas from 6:30-8pm and is for ages 17 and up. Everyone will have the opportunity to buy copies of my book at the end of the talk. Next up I have three book signings planned in Texas: March 8th, The Twig Book Shop in San Antonio, 5-7pm. March 9th, Borders Express in Killeen, 2-6pm. March 10th, A Thirsty Mind Book Shop, 11am. Till then, Jai Shri Krishna! Jai http://www.trafford.com/06-0382

She's the second one of my readers to tell me that. That's the amazing thing about books, isn't it? They can open whole worlds for us, they can even open the spiritual world. I was so lucky to be able to read certain books and learn from them. I first read the Bhagavat Gita when I was twelve years old and could barely understand it. I'm so fallen, I still can't understand it. Mostly I just love to read "Shri Bhagavan Uvaca". Jai

That makes sense, I'm sure there's truth to it, Prabhu. Still, I'd rather be married to Krishna! Haribol! Jai

Wow, Bija, thanks for the blessings! It's always so nice to know a Vaishnav is pleased with my efforts. Mirabai was a most exalted devotee and I highly recommend that you learn more about her. She was in full Gopi Bhava. I was very happy yesterday as one of my readers sent me a message to say that she finished reading the book and was in love with Mira. She said that she studied Hinduism in university but now she wants to learn more about it and about Krishna. How cool is that? I am very lucky to have the family background I do. Both of my parents taught me the importance of having a balanced perspective and gave me the freedom to choose my own Ishta, who is Krishna. Shiva is very special to me and I've had the wonderful opportunity to visit some of his jyotirlinga dhamas - Somnath, Kedarnath, Omkareshwara and Mahakaleshwar. Did you know that the Nageswara Jyotirlinga is just outside of Dwarka? It's beautiful. I'm adding Harihara-Kshetra to my list of dhams to visit! Shri Harihara willing, I will be blessed with the oppotunity. Haribol! Jai

Shri Harihara is beautiful. Thank you for giving me this darshan, Bija Prabhu. Haribol! Jai

So then the debate became so heated that they both dropped dead while clasping hands? Jai

Maybe they're a couple of men locked in a death grip. That would be funny wouldn't it, considering that all those archeaologists think they're Romeo and Juliet. Jai

Or maybe it's a couple of men in love in that way. Jai

Haribol! Apologies, y k, if I offended you. I think you are right in the sense that there is a misunderstanding where Lord Shiva is involved. Still, people respect Shiva as a Vaishnav and know that he is in a very elevated position. I've never experienced anyone insulting Shiva or disrespecting him the way guestbc says they do. I think that it is a matter of perspective. If we walk around expecting to be insulted then we will see insults everywhere. But if we walk around expecting to be treated with good will then we see good will everywhere. Shiva himself is an example of this. He sees the good in everyone and accepts everyone. This is why even tamasic beings worship him. He is very gracious and kind, indeed. Jai Bholenath! Jai

Haribol! Your problem is that you still do not understand that tamasic is not a BAD thing. Humans misuse tamasic activities, therefore they become bad. Shiva NEVER misuses his tamasic abilities, therefore he is always GOOD. I don't know how to explain this further if you will only continue to insult me. Insulting others is not Vaishnav, nor is it Shaiva. Allow me to tell you that my mother is a Vaishnav and my father is a Shaiva. Both Shiva and Krishna are worshipped in my house and I would never denigrate Lord Shiva. And y k , why did you agree to my explanation, only to retract and agree with guestbc? That is an example of an unsteady mind, as you agree with whoever you've just spoken to. It happens to be a tamasic trait, so I would carefully consider all my thoughts, if I were you. Guestbc, I cannot believe that you would regard my post as a 'hate writing' such as the Christians wrote about the Jews! As far as I know, Shaivas and Vaishnavs have never hated each other, nor have they fought each other. If Shiva and Vishnu can show such examples of love and devotion to each other, why can Shaivas and Vaishnav's not show that same love and acceptance of each other? Please do not take my posts to be denigrations of Shiva, I would never insult him or support anyone who did. Haribol! Jai

Indeed, Brajeshwara Prabhu, it is all just speculation. That is what I was doing - speculating. Those skeletons might yet turn out to be two men instead of a couple. Who knows? Haribol! Jai

Haribol! I'm sorry, Prabhu, by what is wrong with the colours blue and red? Forgive my ignorance but I've never heard of such a thing before. Jai

Haribol! Who says those skeletons were not devotees? Obviously this is all just speculation but simply because they loved each other does not mean they did not love god. Do we not have devis in our scriptures who were satis? Are there not purusha in our shastra who sacrificed everything to protect their wives? ie Rama and Sita. If those two skeletons turn out to be a woman and a man, how do we know she did not love him as Krishna? How do we know he did not love her as Radha? I think that picture is very romantic and sad and beautiful. We should see the good in the world, not the deficiencies. And I hope that if I ever get married then I love my husband that way too, like he is Krishna come to me in human form and I could never bear to be parted from him, even in death. Jai

Haribol! Shiva and Vishnu are above the three modes of material nature. However, by the lila they perform, they are put into the catergories of Vishna as Satva, Brahma as Raja and Shiva as Tamasi. This does not mean that Shiva is ignorant or evil. It simply means that the necessary activities he performs in the universe are of tamasi nature. All the three modes are necessary to the universe. There must be destruction just as there must be creation. Lord Shiva's tamasic activities are necessary and he performs these tasks for the benefit of us all. That is why demons and asuras can worship him. Have you ever heard of an evil asura being able to worship Vishnu? No, they worship Shiva because, in his mercy, he allows them to worship him according to their tamasic nature. Shiva is known as Bhootnath, which means Lord of Ghosts. So even ghosts, who are very tamasic, can worship Shiva. This is evidence of his supreme compassion. All the living entities that cannot possibly reach Vishnu because of their tamasic nature may reach Shiva and through Shiva, find a way to Vishnu. This is why Shiva is refered to as tamasic. It is not an insulting term or a misunderstanding. This is how I understand the situation, Prabhus. Jai Bholenath! Jai

Haribol! It is stated in the Ramayan and the Shiv Maha Puran that Lord Shiva meditates on Lord Rama. When Sati Mata asked who the ascetic prince in the forest was, Lord Shiva told her that was Rama, the one he meditated on. When Sati refused to believe this and tested Lord Rama by taking Sita's form, Shiva abandoned her. He couldn't accept her as his wife as she had taken the form of his mother, Sita. I remember hearing that once, Yudistira asked Krishna who he meditated on as he was the supreme so who else was there to meditate on? Krishna replied that he meditated on his devotees, he remembered them and loved them. In this way, Shiva and Rama meditate on each other, with a love that is incomprehensible to our fallen minds. Jai Bholenath! Jai Shri Rama!

That's really cool, Bija Prabhu. Thanks for the post. Haribol! Jai

Haribol! My talk with the young adults of Skillman Southwestern Library went really well. The children responded and were very interested in my returning to do a storytelling talk. I've been wondering what story I could tell them. I'm thinking it will be something from the Ramayan. If you have any suggestions then let me know. I have a grand tour of the southern states coming up in March. I'll be posting a long list of all my locations and dates soon, as soon as I tie up some loose ends. Till then, Jai Shri Krishna! Jai Joshi

Haribol Prabhus. I don't usually post threads in the spiritual discussions area because I don't feel qualified but I had an amazing experience on Friday that I wanted to share. I've recently published my book on Mirabai and have been organising book signings and writer's talks to promote it. For months I've been thinking to myself that I want to get Indian people interested in the book, teenagers in particular, as it could really help them to understand their history and culture and heritage. The problem is that Indian people never get interested in anything, especially when they live in America. I can't promote the book in the temples because they're non-profit and won't allow it. So for months I've been worrying that I live in Texas and there's nowhere I can go to encourage people to read the book. On Friday I went to Office Depot to get some bookmarks printed. I walked in and saw a man standing at the counter. Then I noticed that this man was wearing anklets and not just thin little chains that westerners think fashionable but big fat silver anklets with big bells that make a lot of noise. I looked further up and saw that this man was wearing a sari. I looked up past the coat and noticed that he was wearing a huge kumkum bindi and gold earrings. I thought that this must be some amazing Hari Bhakti in Gopi Bhava but didn't say anything as I wasn't sure and didn't want to embarrass myself. I was so surprised that there might be someone like this person in the middle of Texas. As I walked closer to the counter, I noticed that this man was having a book bound. The picture on the front was unmistakably Mirabai. I had to say something then so I smiled and asked him if that was indeed Mira. He said that it was and I told him that it was an amazing co-incidence as I'd just written a book on her. He was amazed and asked me all about it. I think he must have been trying to figure out if I was geniune as he asked me whether I'd travelled for my research and where I'd gone in India. He asked me particular questions about temples that only someone who'd gone there would know. I answered everything as best I could and then asked him about himself. He told me that he's a devotee of Mirabai and has written 6 books about her. He had even opened a temple to her 10 minutes away and was compiling all her bhajans and poetry in Gujarati and Hindi for people to read and learn from. He invited me to the temple and said that he wanted to give me a set of his books. We exchanged contact information (his name is Swami Radhanandaji) and I went home astounded at this incredible discovery. I told my mother about it but she was worried that perhaps I'd been fooled by this person and he wasn't genuine. So I called him and went with my mother to the temple the next morning. The temple is 10 minutes away from where we live, in a huge house and the deities of Krishna and Mira are beautiful. They told us that Mira's murti was made in Jaipur and took 12 years to carve. He gave me a set of his books and I gave him a copy of mine. My mother was convinced that this swami was the real deal and we had a wonderful satsang about Mira and Krishna and the shastras. He and his disciple, a sanyaasini who's been with him for years, give Gita classes to children and ladies of the community and they invited us to attend. I never mentioned it but they said that they wanted to help me promote my book within the Indian community. Reflecting on this experience, I'm again struck by how Krishna arranges things. All these years of living here I never knew that Mira's devotees were living so close and that there was a temple that I could go to and experience satsang at any time. If I hadn't decided to go to Office Depot at that time, I might never have known about Swamiji. I'd always hated Texas but now I finally see that there was a reason Krishna brought me here. There are devotees here that I can learn from and do kirtan with. I cannot believe how merciful Giridar is to me! Jai Shri Krishna! Jai Mirabai! Hari Haribol! Jai

The greatest devotees of all are the Gopis - women. Great sages performed penance for thousands of year to attain the bodies of women and serve Krishna as his loving Gopis. Jai

The truth is that only people who are arrogant, who still hold on to their egos, can be insulted. A devotee who has surrendered his ego can never be insulted, nor feel humiliation. The Pandavas were not fighting because the Kauravas had insulted them, they were fighting because they were protecting society from adharma and injustice. If the Kauravas had remained in power then no woman would ever have been safe. No saintly person would have been allowed to practice Bhakti. No laws would have restrained the Kauravas from taking whatever they wanted from anyone. So they had to be defeated. If it had been about their egos and the insult given to them, Yudhistir would never have agreed to the proposal of the Kauravas giving him five villages. He was an emperor, why would he want just five villages? That would be humiliating! But in the interests of peace and re-establishing dharma, he was ready to accept five villages rather than his beautiful kingdom of Indraprastha. No one should accuse the Pandavas of arrogance. Jai

Haribol! I'll be giving a talk called 'Writing as a Career' for young adults at the Skillman Southwestern Library in Dallas on February 12th, 8-7pm. I've very excited as my last talk on writing and motivation at the MLKJr Library went very well with the audience members being very interested in Indian history and culture. I'll be promoting 'Follow the Cowherd Boy' too while I'm there and audience members will be able to buy a copy once the talk is over. I hope I can connect with this audience as well as the last one and that they are inspired to learn more. If you are 12 to 21 years old and are interested in meeting me and learning about writing as a way to serve, please come! The address is: Skillman Southwestern Library, 5707 Skillman St, Dallas, TX 75206. Go to my webpage www.trafford.com/06-0382 for more details. Haribol! Jai

That's lovely, Mahak! Jai

Sanjeev, I've been to Ujjain too and have visited many of the places you mentioned and described. The Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga was amazing and we also drove two hours east of the city to visit the Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga that sits on the banks of the Narmada. That was beautiful. We went to Sandipani Muni's ashram, the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple, and the Gopal Mandir. I loved the Gopal Mandir! While we were in Ujjain, it happened to be Navratri and the Harsiddhi Mata Mandir was lit up so beautifully. I felt blessed to be there and took a prasadi chundari back to London for some of my friends who are devi bhaktas. The holy Shipra is so clean and pure that bathing there wasn't just a spiritual pleasure, it was a bodily pleasure too! I was very lucky to be there in 2004, in April, just before the Kumbh Mela started so the river had been cleaned in preparation. There were tents and campsites erected everywhere and the atmosphere was very exciting with sadhus and sants arriving from all over Bharat. One other thing is that we were not harassed by people who wished to perform poojas or vidis for us as often happens in other places in India. Instead, we were made so welcome and the Brahmins were so polite that we felt blessed to have met them and be in their presence. Ujjain was one of my favourite places and I hope and pray that I shall go to that holy city once again. I thank Mahakaleshwar and Harsiddhi Mata for showing my such mercy that I had the opportunity to have darshan of them. It is a very special place. Anyone who has not already gone should go! Haribol! Jai

Thank you mahak and guest for those beautiful insights in to Kaali Mata. She is our mother and is always viewed as beautiful even if her mood is angry and violent. All Glories to Srimati Kaali Ma, the beloved of Shiv and mother of us all! Haribol! Jai

I heard that the name Rome is in connection to the name Rama. Stephen Knapp mentions it in his book 'Proof of Vedic Culture's Global Existence'. He also mentions how the Vatican comes from the Sanskrit word 'Vatica' which means garden, and that the Vatican was once a sacred sanctuary for rishis and sadhus. You should be able to buy Stephen Knapp's book online maybe on amazon or from the Bhaktivendanta Book Trust. Jai http://www.trafford.com/06-0382