losing my passion as an activist

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna Dear Prabhuji`s

Please accept my respect for all you people who are practicing Krishna Consicousness ! All Glories unto Srila Prabhupada.

 

Since a year of five I am very much into this KC and before that time I was a really heavy vegetarian almost vegan, since I ' joined' I am much more in peace with the people who meat and the things that are going on in the world when its about animal factories etc.

 

Nevertheless since a while I am agian really emotional concering animal rights and the things that the bio industrie etc does. I saw some documentairies whom broke my hart again

so much that I would really feel the urge to work as a voluntere in a organisation such as Peta to some how put energie to improve the animal conditions as cruealty puts me in tears.

I understand that this way of acting is very much in the mood on Passion and ignorance. although I believe that by making people consiousness about what is going on inbetween those walls of factories, their ignorance ( concerning meat) will change-

most meateating people do not know were there food comes from and how the animails are treathed.

 

please give me advice if i can enter such a activisme to releave my passion for animals, or do I only heat up my fire by listening to it ??

 

your servant

bhaktin in passion

[Guest guest]

What's wrong with being into educating other human beings and having tears of compassion for other living beings? I think it sounds great to me!

 

 

 

According to some schools of Hinduism, each of us is a wonderful being with a special mission to fulfill in service of the Divine. Finding out what makes you happy and enthused is called "artha" in Hinduism, or "right livelihood" in engaged Buddhism.

 

What if everyone wanted to be a temple pujari, then how is anything that is needed to sustain a Temple going to get done in the external world?

 

And if you educate others then even those who are pujaris and preachers can learn how to better select products to use for the pleasure of the Deity and be in harmony with Mother Earth if you share with them what you learn from PETA or whatever organization touches your heart.

 

 

 

What you learn in these organizations can be used to help devotees to be better and more conscious devotees and more sensitive to other living beings, improve their health, and reduce papa [negative karma].

 

Everyone is a very special person. We need all sorts of people in Hinduism: doctors, lawyers, parliamentarians, engineers, teachers, constructions workers, nurses, you name it! Those who love animals and also serve Krsna would be dieticians, farmers, veterinarians, etc.

 

 

 

Krsna loved animals so why shouldn't you also? Krsna understood the language of animals and could converse with them. What you learn can help ordinary people to reduce papa and gradually come to the transcendental platform in this or future lives. It is a type of preaching.

 

So I see no problem with your interests as long as you don't hurt anyone in the process and create more papa.

 

 

 

One analogy is when Lord Rama was building the bridge to Lanka to free Sita then everyone was involved. Even spiders and ants were picking up pebbles and throwing them into the ocean to build the bridge.

 

When Hanuman scoffed at this then Rama said that everyone was helping according to their ability. So the bridge we are all working on together is the bridge to the Divine: discovering our higher nature and then helping others to do the same.

 

 

 

Thus everyone has a mandate in Hinduism to become proficient in whatever field of endeavor that interests them. We move from dharma to artha then kama and moksa. First we learn the Dharma, the ABCs of spiritual life. Then we learn a trade or an occupation in which we can serve others and be self-supporting; this is called Artha.

 

Next from doing something that we love we feel pleasure and happiness or Kama. When we feel good, joyful, happy, and fulfilled then we can focus on even higher things like do sadhanas to help us discover who we really are and what our relationship is with God, Goddess, and the universe.

 

 

 

It all works together hand in hand. Hindusim is a beautiful natural system. Find what you love to do and then offer it to the Divine. Then so many blessings you will receive. If you love animals then there are so many different kinds of jobs you can do to work with animals and protect them.

 

Related to your interest in animal protection, one method of preaching that I find successful is the local library system has a "free box". So I put a book called The Perfection of Yoga in these library free boxes along with a DVD of a PETA video called Meet Your Meat. So I have found that educating people about animals can go hand in hand with preaching very successfully.

 

You can even tie in your preaching with World Vegetarian Day or Vegetarian Awareness Month. Your love for animals can tie in with the Hindu diet of ahimsa with so many different fields of endeavor to help educate others and make life nicer and more sattvic in your little corner of the world.

 

To keep it sattvic I have found it helpful to meditate on Shunryo Suzuki's maxim to "shine a light on your little corner of the world." Maybe we can't save the whole world but we can each shine a light on our small corner of the world. And if everyone does a nice Dipavali puja like this with their daily thoughts, words, and deeds then "what a wonderful world this could be."

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna spirit soul!

thankyou very much for taking the time writting all those nice words.

I really loved reading them, you really give me a different point of view. ( the view of ' seeing it as a service' .

I pray that its will please Krishna and if not, that He will let me know...

Haribol!!!!

[Guest guest]

I am inspired by you already! It is wonderful to hear someone feeling concern for other living beings.

 

I am sure that Krsna has a wonderful plan for you. I learn many things of how to be a better person even from "non-devotees".

 

There are so many people in the world so much better than I am who have devoted their life to studying vegetarian nutrition, taking care of animals by opening up and maintaining animal sanctuaries, etc.

 

There are so many wonderful people in this world and wonderful things being done. Sometimes we tend to just hear about the bad and sad things.

 

But when I hear about all of the wonderful people doing kind, loving, and selfless things in this world, then I am reminded that Krsna is in their heart. And truly all are devotees because Krsna is in the heart of all.

 

Just some people have realized the self and some have not yet, from the Hindu perspective of some schools.

 

I feel sure that you will be doing wonderful and amazing things! You have energy and drive and inspiration, that is great! Keep on reminding yourself that "I am a wonderful being with a special mission to fulfill" and I feel sure that you will be able to meet with many affectionate and like-minded individuals who will help you to do what you came here on this Earth to do.

 

In my opinion I feel that it's a blessing that you feel so strongly about something positive to do with your life. Then you can get right to the tasks of why you are here on this planet at this time.

 

It is a great blessing to help others and by working diligently on these tasks then this sustained intensity and focus helps individuals to develop the deep inner resources and strength needed for self-realization.

 

We burn away the dross of the ego or ahamkara by our selfless acts until what we are left with is our beautiful essence or saccidananda.

 

It is a beautiful path, this Sanatana Dharma. Enjoy your unique unfoldment and journey in Life the Great Experience! Selflessly caring about and helping other living beings is intrinsic part of the path of all religions.

 

It is so beautiful and can help you to see Krsna everywhere the deeper you go into your right livelihood and selfless service aka Sivathondu. You will bring joy to yourself and others. Haribol!

[zara]

Dear Prabhuji-

All Glories unto Srila Prabhupada who did so much for us !

All Glories unto all those wonderful devotees pleasing <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> and are spreading love and friendship into this world.

Thanks again for you taking the time the write quit some stuff!

I was really thinking about it and spoke with some other devotees also I listened to a seminar from HH Jayadvata Swami. ( rlg.amieo.com) about welfare work ( as I am studding Social Work) but really although it looks good, its always better to preach KC than helping people or animals. In this lecture he was again pushing on that point…

So actually ( and I knew this already but didn’t want to hear ;-)) I should distribute books to the butchers or farmers who treat all this pour souls horrible…yeah I am full of ideals but it’s a matter of time and determination…

But as I really want to wake up some people who really have no clue I signed as an activist ..of course I will not be rough as I am also presenting KC as I will of course let know that I am a fan of <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place>. I think when we are friendly to others even when we do not agree what they are doing they will appreciate it ( we do not know what we did in our last life…and its not me to judge ..)I can only discriminate and show my borders and listen to us. Prabhupda was the example of this…so friendly to people, but he was clear about the things he was standing for !!!

What I also wanted to say according that what you also wrote whom I totally agree, that we should find a healthy balance between our ‘gift’ to the world and the consciousness that we are longing for and willing to distribute…like you said everyone has some taste for something some special thing…. We can do wonderful things for the world en the devotees with the knowledge that God gave us…we are responsible to do something with it and not hide ourselves…or artificial lamentation that we are such a low worm in the stool…yeah we are maybe but we have tools to make us and helping others uplifting out of that stool…

If I want to be a volunteer on the KC point of view it would be better to do more service for the temple…on the material point if view I will jump in an animal right organization.

Uhm like I said ..I will check it out what it does with me and try to be honest …

I do not want to end as a aggressive person who is claiming everyone is a murder J

Well that’s it

I just wanted to thank you for your feedback!

Bhn zara

[Srimanta]

 

Hare Krishna Dear Prabhuji`s

Please accept my respect for all you people who are practicing Krishna Consicousness ! All Glories unto Srila Prabhupada.

 

Since a year of five I am very much into this KC and before that time I was a really heavy vegetarian almost vegan, since I ' joined' I am much more in peace with the people who meat and the things that are going on in the world when its about animal factories etc.

 

Nevertheless since a while I am agian really emotional concering animal rights and the things that the bio industrie etc does. I saw some documentairies whom broke my hart again

so much that I would really feel the urge to work as a voluntere in a organisation such as Peta to some how put energie to improve the animal conditions as cruealty puts me in tears.

I understand that this way of acting is very much in the mood on Passion and ignorance. although I believe that by making people consiousness about what is going on inbetween those walls of factories, their ignorance ( concerning meat) will change-

most meateating people do not know were there food comes from and how the animails are treathed.

 

please give me advice if i can enter such a activisme to releave my passion for animals, or do I only heat up my fire by listening to it ??

 

your servant

bhaktin in passion

 

Mode of passion is mode of ignorance. So why should you be passionate for Krsna? Engage yourself with loving services to Krsna. You will be dissolving within nectar day by day.

[Guest guest]

To drop meat eating in the long term takes spiritual consciousness, otherwise it's just a mental thing that may change at a whim. You mentioned distributing Srila Prabhupada's books. That would have the best long range effect, as his books purify the reader and introduce a new paradigm for society at large. The next step is to show people how to practically live off the land and protect the cows and other creatures. There is a great curiosity among people regarding how humanity can live in balance with nature and the answers are their in Srila Prabhupada's books, waiting for someone to put them into practice. If you are in the USA, Radha Damodar TSKP will gladly send you a case of books to distribute. Contact dougyes@peoplepc.com

[theist]

Maharaja Pariksit wasn't distributing books when he came upon the sudra beating the cow and bull. Please stop all this robot mentality that everyone has to walk around with a book bag. Someone has to do the hard work of actually practicing what those books say. Someone has to to actual protect the cows instead of just walking around telling others to.

 

You can take any subject and add Krsna consciousness to it and it becomes perfect. Animal rights is a good example. You can take a stand against the torture and slaughter of innocent animals and offer that work to Krsna. If you use a little thoughtfullness you can use it as a tool for preaching Krsna consciousness. Why not kill a cow in a slaughterhouse? Then explain karma. How you the soul exists beyond death and are reborn to experience the effects of your previous actions. Compassionate acts bring compassion acts from others back into our own lives. Explain how the soul in the cow body is the same as the one in human form and thus deserving of the same respect. It is one thing to sell books but to take the knowledge in those books and intelligently inject that knowledge into is not in anyway lower.

 

 

I hope the original poster follows their natural inclinations and offers them to Krsna. It's called Karma Yoga-Action in Krsna consciousness. Arjuna's natural inclination was to fight and so Krsna engaged him in that way. If your inclination is to protect the helpless animals please do it and ignore the advice to falsely renounce those tendancies.

 

Engage your passion in Krsna service. That is how you renounce it not by sitting down and trying to ward it off artifically. This is not the TM movement. It worked for Arjuna.

 

Hare Krsna

[Guest guest]

I never found devotees like Pragosh, Vaisasika, and others who dedicate their lives to giving Srila Prabhupada's sacred texts to the conditioned souls as "robots". And Srila Prabhupada was quite pleased with them. Personally I've never been a book distributor but worked on the farms inspired by what I read in those books. But lately I've kept Srila Prabhupada's original books in stock and even helped reprint a few. You can take it or leave it, but my feeling is that Srila Prabhupada has been very pleased with those actions. It's not one sided. It's synergistic.

[theist]

 

I never found devotees like Pragosh, Vaisasika, and others who dedicate their lives to giving Srila Prabhupada's sacred texts to the conditioned souls as "robots". And Srila Prabhupada was quite pleased with them. Personally I've never been a book distributor but worked on the farms inspired by what I read in those books. But lately I've kept Srila Prabhupada's original books in stock and even helped reprint a few. You can take it or leave it, but my feeling is that Srila Prabhupada has been very pleased with those actions. It's not one sided. It's synergistic.

 

The point is that is not the only way to serve. One should assess their own natures acquired in this world and work in that way for the satisfaction of Krsna. To think so and try to turn everyone into a book distributor is the robot mentality that I am speaking of. What I am saying is basic Bhagavad-gita.

 

Arjuna wanted to renounce the world but Krsna insisted he fight in the war. We have to give up the lazy thinking that recommends a 'one size fits all' approach to devotional service.