Practice question

[Guest guest]

As a follow-up question, can you or others in the ISKON movement

share with the group, what is involved in for you? I am

assuming it involves Puja, meditating on Krishna, Sewa, and

Study ... and live the Truths that are taught by Bhagwan Krishna.

 

A specific question in our troubled times in the world .. what is

Srila Pabhupadaji's take on violence in the world and how should one

deal with it?

 

Can you tell you tell us more?

 

Thanks again

 

_/\_ Tat twam asi

 

Uma

 

 

, tatwamasi wrote:

>

>.

>

> Again, I request you Dear Krishnajoe, Please share with us how you

> have experienced the teachings, give us links, samplings of texts,

> prayers, etc and tell us what the teachings mean in the context of

> our daily living, assist members to understand in your own words,

> HOW to apply the teachings in one's turbulent lives.

[Guest guest]

Nityananda! Gauranga! Hare Krishna! All glories to Srila

Prabhupada and all Vaisnavas. Please accept my humble obeisances and

blessings. I pray that this meets you well and in the service/mercy

of Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga.

 

Dearest Tattwamasi Mataji;

 

In your post you ask; What is Srila Pabhupadaji's take on violence

in the world and how should one deal with it?

According to Srila Prabhupada and the Acharyas, the world's violent

situation is due to man attempting to control all aspects of earthly

existance. This mentality is paramount in every stratus of our

society. The reason of so much violence is that mankind does not

live according to religious principle, but according to lust, envy

and greed.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna states the four social orders. In

Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna states, "Brahmanas. kshatriyas, vaisyas

and sudras are distinguished by the qualities born of their own

natures in accordance with the material modes, O chastiser of the

enemy (Arjuna).

The reason I chose this sloka was because many people are familar

with the Gita as opposed to the Srimad Bhagavatam.

In this sloka, the four social orders are given in accordance to

their importance to human society. The Brahmanas (intelligent class)

are the law makers and the providers of religious education. They

keep society in a religious frame of mind, ensure that law is in

accordance to sashtra and that the people are trained properly. The

Kashatryas are the administrative and warrior class. Kings and

government officials are from the Kashatrya class. They closely

follow the instructions of the Brahmanas and impliment laws and pass

judgments in accordance with sashtra. The Vaisyas are the merchant

class. And the shudras are the working class.

Srila Prabhupada has told us in his writings that the reason modern

society is in a state of caoss is because the social structure is

improper. You have those that are unqualified leading countries,

those of the shudra class being presidents and dictators. We have

people making and passing laws, making judgments and leading society

away from the Supreme Personality of Godhead into a self-centered,

egotistical society. When you have individuals of poor qualities in

leadership positions, their own greed, lust and envy take presidence

over what is actually good for the people.

Here in America society is ruled by individuals with a liberal

frame of mind. It is not what is good for the society, but what is

good for the individual that matters. This is why we are subjected

to high cost, especially in the fields of law and medicine. When an

individual is "wronged" it is considered appropriate to take

the "offender" to a Court of Law and sue them. In many instances

making them, and their lawyers mega millionaire with the stroke of a

judges pen. We cannot go to the Doctor's office without paying our

$200 for a fifteen minute visit, especially in the areas of Family

Practice or OB/GYN, because the individual Doctor is paying over

$200,000 a year in malpractice insurance alone. In many cases, what

he is sued for when it comes to child birth is not a mistake on his

own part, but genetic in origin. When sudras are in the position of

decision making, then it only leads to disaster.

Before everyone gets on their "politically correct soap box", look

at what the sloka says. It says "qualities born" not born into.

Being born into a certain sect is not what Sri Krishna is saying.

You may be born a sudra (or lower), but raised up to be a first class

brahmana. In the Srimad Bhagavatam 4.8.54 purport by Srila

Prabhupada, it is stated, "Srimad Viraraghava Acharya, an acarya in

the Ramanuja sampradaya, has remarked in his commentary that

candalas, or conditioned souls who are born in lower than sudra

families, can also be initiated according to circumstances. The

formalities may be slightly changed here and there to make them

Vaisnavas." I state this as a point that it is not one's family that

one's born into, but the inherant abilities that they are born with

that determines their position in the social order.

We have been taught over the past fourty years that to be

politically correct is etiquette. This is not true, because like so

much candy coating it covers the truth. You may call an employee

a "trashman" but to be politically correct he is termed a "sanitation

worker". Same thing, just sound nicer. When a libertarian mindset

is in play, everyone is cheated. Merchants are no longer honest, but

cheat those that come to them with high prices. This is driven by

societies drive for so called material success. The merchants no

longer care for conducting their business in a honest manner

according to religious principle, only to gain materially, after all,

one is judged by their material assetts, not their religious

standards. In todays society, those that live holy lives, no matter

what the religious path are looked down upon in disdain. Those that

are in the Brahmana position that teach have degraded themselves to

the post lower than sudras in that they act dishonorably making

spiritual slaves to all that come to them and exploit them in the

name of god in whatever manner they can. Many rule by fear and

intemidation, becoming rich off of the spiritual starvation of their

members/disciples.

We live in a world that is upside down. What are to be brahmanas

are worse than sudras. Even a low born has his honor and will not

violate it. Those in the position of power exploit those that are

under them to the utmost degree. If they cannot do it legally, then

they pass laws to enact their own desires, manipulating the system

for their own personal gain.

To "deal" with this situation, "God" consciousness and tollerance

needs to be taught. The easiest manner to change a society is to

train the children. In time this changes the social consciousness.

True teachers of religion must be made and tollerance, understanding,

patience and honesty must be paramount. Children that are not

taught prejudice will not be prejudice adults. One will not pass

judgment because another is of another religious path. Srila

Prabhupada taught that God was in every religion. It did not matter

if one was Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Wiccan, God could be

found in each. All truth is in all religious texts. Does not matter

if it is the Torah, Qoran, Bible, Sastras, He wrote them all in

accordance to time, place and circumstance. One religion is not

superior to another, it is man that puts the lables over the door,

not God. Whether we call Him Krishna, Buddha, God, Allah does not

matter either, He answer the sincereity of the heart, not the demands

of the mind.

Srila PRabhupada taught that the main culpret of modern society is

the killing of animals for food. If the slaughter houses were closed

and the people went to a vegitarian diet, then violence would

discontinue. It is proven that a meatless society is a peaceful

one. When a country has and runs slaughterhouses, the price of that

blood has to be attoned for. We have that price paid by wars and

famines. We pay the price for our actions and the workings of nature

dictate that this price will be paid. Srila Prabhupada said that

when cows are killed, then human lives will be lost in war, famine

and natural disasters. When life is not respected, how can we expect

nature to respect our lives. Humans forget that they are part of the

biological makeup of this planet. Yes we are superior to the animal

kingdom in that we are conscious, having knowledge of past, present

and future, life and death whereas animals have limited knowledge of

this. When we take their lives, the laws of nature dictate that

nother life has to pay for it.

 

Your eternal servant;

Nitaipada Maharaja

[Guest guest]

You are the master

How can you be a servant to others?

I t shows your desire to achieve......

Ok

well

Proceed

namasivayam

 

--- Arjunananda Gauranga Nitaipada Maharaja

<arjunananda2000 wrote:

 

>

>

> Nityananda! Gauranga! Hare Krishna! All glories

> to Srila

> Prabhupada and all Vaisnavas. Please accept my

> humble obeisances and

> blessings. I pray that this meets you well and in

> the service/mercy

> of Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga.

>