Srila Turiya Das Mahasaya Performs Fire Ceremony At Three Universities

July 10, 2003

Carrying forward the banner of peace and goodwill for humanity, His Grace Srila Turiya Das Acharya Mahasaya (website), a senior disciple of A.C. Bhaktivedenta Swami, recently completed a three week tour of the U.S. including the performance of traditional Vedic fire ceremonies (yagnas) and lectures on Vedic philosophy at three major American universities. Visiting the University of California Santa Barbara (April 12), Harvard University (April 19), and the University of Miami (April 25), Acharya Mahasaya performed yagnas which attracted close to 200 spectators for each event, each followed by a classroom lecture. Along the way, His Grace visited the ISKCON temples of Berkeley, Boston, and Miami giving Sunday feast lectures and daily classes, and inspiring and enlivening devotees with a reminder that kindness and compassion are the foundation of Krishna consciousness.

Arriving at the Berkeley ISKCON temple on April 8 from his home on the island of Maui, Hawaii, Acharya Mahasaya began a series of inspiring and instructive lectures aimed at bringing the junior devotees to a deeper understanding of Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy and practice. As a senior disciple of Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada initiated in 1969, His Grace shared his unique and profound realizations of the subtleties of devotional life and Srila Prabhupada's message. Perhaps the most moving of his Berkeley lectures was on a Monday evening "Prabhupada Night," when Acharya Mahasaya shared remembrances of the early days with Srila Prabhupada:

"When we got back to Los Angeles [after the 1971 Ratha Yatra in San Francisco], we got the opportunity to see Srila Prabhupada one last time before returning to Hawaii. So myself and a few other devotees were there and Prabhupada began to talk about the success of the Ratha Yatra festival. And he was so happy, so pleased and he asked us, 'Why have we gone through all this trouble to put on this grand festival?' Prabhupada began to explain that Vaishnavism means compassion. That the conditioned souls are in such a terrible state that naturally the Vaishnava feels the pain of the conditioned souls. As Prabhupada began to talk about compassion, explaining how this whole festival of Ratha Yatra really is an expression of the Vaishnava's compassion in bringing the Lord to the people, to give them the opportunity to see the Lord, to chant the Holy Name, to take prasadam, all these things, then tears began to come from Prabhupada's eyes. He said, 'Vaishnavism means compassionŠthis is Vaishnavism, this is Vaishnavism.' And at this moment, Srila Prabhupada became so choked up with tears that he couldn't speak anymore.

And so he waived his hand signaling that we should all go. Everyone paid obeisances and was leaving the room and I was thinking, 'This is the last time I'm going to see Prabhupada again for some time.' So I decided to wait a little bit and be the last one out of the room. And when everyone had filed out and I was still standing there Prabhupada looked up and then gave me the garland that was on his Deities. And I thought, 'Somehow in this moment of great compassion he has offered me this garland.'

This was my first encounter in meeting Srila Prabhupada, to see the heart of the Vaishnava, the pure devotee, which is actually full of compassion for the conditioned souls. We say 'vancha kalpa tarubhyas ca...,' giving our respect to the Vaishnavas who are full of compassion for the fallen conditioned souls. But this was the very living example of such compassion, with tears coming from his eyes, feeling the pain of the conditioned souls and wanting to help us by preaching Krishna consciousness. It was for this reason that he came."

The devotees were visibly moved and throughout the week many expressed their gratitude and appreciation for His Grace's insightful and enlivening presentation of Krishna consciousness. Meeting with many Bay Area devotees to give personal guidance and counsel, some approached to inquire about initiation and virtually everyone asked Acharya Mahasaya to return as soon as possible.

Arriving in Santa Barbara on the morning April 12, His Grace prepared to present a traditional fire ceremony and lecture to students and professors at UC Santa Barbara that same evening. Santa Barbara seemed the ideal place for such a presentation, with a beautiful backdrop of mountains coming down to the sea and clear sunny skies. All the arrangements were made and at 5:30 p.m. the setup for the yagna began on the UCSB campus. An ideal amphitheater location had been selected, and by 6:30 p.m. close to 200 people had gathered for the event including the Mayor of Santa Barbara and a representative of the local Chumash Native American tribe.

The audience of bright-eyed college students was mesmerized by the chanting of Vedic mantras as Acharya Mahasaya expertly explained the essence of Vedic philosophy:

"Today we are going to be performing a traditional fire yagna. 'Yagna' is sometimes translated to mean sacrifice, or ceremony. 'Yaj' means 'to worship.' In the ancient Bhagavad Gita there is reference to that yajna:

saha-yajnah prajah srstva

purovaca prajapatih

anena prasavisyadhvam

esa vo 'stv ista-kama-dhuk

'In the beginning of creation, the Lord of all creatures sent forth generations of men and demigods, along with sacrifices for Visnu, and blessed them by saying, 'Be thou happy by this yajna [sacrifice] because its performance will bestow upon you everything desirable for living happily and achieving liberation" (Bhagavad Gita 3.10)

This ancient ceremony is always performed at times of change in one's life, the beginning of education, birth of a child, a marriage, etc. It is meant to invoke auspiciousness.

The sacred fire is called forth, not an ordinary fire, but a fire that is ignited along with mantras and divine hymns invoking the presence of the Supreme Lord. Even in Biblical times it has been described that the Supreme Lord manifested Himself in the form of a blazing bush. And of course fire or light, like the word 'enlightenment,' represents something higher than the material element itself . . .

In a world filled with ignorance and darkness, the fire of spirituality must awaken within humanity. That spirituality must go beyond sectarian considerations, 'My religion, your religion,' even beyond the concept of 'Hinduism,' to arrive at something called 'Sanatana Dharma' or the 'Eternal Religion of the Soul.'

Of course, the heart of the matter is one of love and devotion to the Supreme and everything that has manifested from Him. We are also a part of that Supreme, just like the fire emanates many sparks, and within each and every spark the qualities of fire are also present. The Divine nature of the living being must be sought out, as we are part and parcel of that Supreme Lord, and this ceremony is for the purpose of awakening our true spiritual nature."

His Grace proceeded to perform the yagna, explaining the various parts of the ceremony and inviting the audience to participate by tossing grains into the fire. After the yagna, as the audience circumambulated the fire and received a dab of holy ash from Acharya Mahasaya, the Mayor of Santa Barbara and the Chumash tribe were presented with copies of Bhaktivedanta Swami's Bhagavad Gita As It Is.

The audience was astounded by the ceremony and one 16 year old attendee commented, "It was awesome!" Then, approximately 30 students gathered for a classroom lecture on Vedic philosophy presented by Acharya Mahasaya. A number of students came to meet individually with His Grace the next day to ask more questions and to learn how to chant japa on beads. The UC Santa Barbara newspaper, the Daily Nexus, also ran a photo of the yagna on the front page the next day.

On April 14, His Grace was off to Boston to perform a fire yagna at Harvard University for the second consecutive year. (Please see last year's VNN article: http://www.vnn.org/world/WD0005/WD12-5939.html ). Arriving at Boston's ISKCON temple, Acharya Mahasaya began another round of enlivening classes aimed at deepening the understanding of the junior devotees. Presenting the Sunday lecture on April 15, His Grace explained:

"The Lord is speaking so lovingly to Arjuna, in fact, He is speaking so lovingly to all of us. We simply have to hear this messageŠthat we are forced to act either under the dictates of the false ego or under the directions of the Supreme Lord. So Srila Prabhupada founded this International Society for Krishna Consciousness so that we could learn to act in a way that is pleasing to the Lord. After all, this is devotional service. Devotional service means to act in a way that the Lord will be pleased.

We should try to understand what mode of action will please the Lord. The science of Bhagavad Gita is the science of learning how to engage in the activity of pleasing Krishna. How to please Krishna. Srila Prabhupada's formula was 'add Krishna to your life'. Everyone can add Krishna to his or her life, and that is done through the chanting of the Holy Name. So we encourage everyone to practice this sankirtana yagna.

But you have to make time for Krishna. This is the point of determination that will change your life. When you make the decision to commit yourself to hearing and chanting regularly, this will lead to remembrance of the Lord. So the first and foremost principle of remembering Krishna is to hear and chant about Krishna."

On April 19, for the second consecutive year, Acharya Mahasaya presented a fire yagna and lecture on Vaishnava philosophy at Harvard University. The steps of the Memorial Church in Harvard Yard again provided an ideal setting. Massive columns, a towering church spire, and the historical architecture of the university all created an atmosphere of gravity and importance. The notoriously unpredictable Boston weather devas again cooperated, providing a clear, cloudless sky despite predictions of heavy rains.

By 6:30 p.m., approximately 150 people including Harvard Religion Professor Diana Eck and other scholars had gathered for the yagna. The audience was again mesmerized as His Grace expertly performed and explained the significance of the fire yagna. After the ceremony, the devotees from Boston's ISKCON temple performed a melodious harinam sankirtan with all of the audience joining in as they circumambulated the fire and received a dab of Holy ash from Acharya Mahasaya. (Photos of the event can be viewed online at: http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2001/04.26/community.html and http://iskcon.net/boston/html/galleries/harvard_yajna/index.htm)

Acharya Mahasaya then presented a classroom lecture where he gave a discourse on Vaishnava philosophy to approximately 50 people:

"The religion that goes beyond all sectarian considerations was termed 'Jaiva Dharma' by a great saintly person, Bhaktivinoda Thakur about 150 years ago. This term means the 'Religion of the Soul.' The Bhagavad Gita is not actually a 'Hindu' scripture, it is a scripture for all humanity. The Bhagavad Gita helps us to understand the reality of our spiritual nature, the Jaiva Dharma, or Religion of the Soul. Dharma is sometimes translated as 'religion,' but this is a faulty translation. In the most precise definition, it means that which is most natural to the Self. Bhaktivinoda Thakur gives an example. When we say water, we understand that the constitution of the water is wetness. So the dharma of the water is wetness. For sugar, it is sweetness. Dharma is that which is characteristic of the thing itself.

And so to find the constitutional nature of the soul, this is the real quest or search that humanity should be on. We are in a great institution of learning, yet often my own spiritual master would say that material knowledge is just a different aspect of avidya, or ignorance. This is because we have no understanding of our true spiritual nature.

If we start an equation faultily, if we begin something on a false premise, then from that point onward everything is incorrect. If we begin an equation with one plus one equals three, everything else will be wrong. So Krishna begins with the basics in the Bhagavad Gita, explaining that we must build our life, our civilization, our very existence, on the premise that we are spiritual beings. If we build our life on the premise that we are simply physical animals, then that idea sets everything up incorrectly. Then no matter how well a civilization is built from that premise, there is one flaw: deep inside we are not happy. This is a flaw because we've missed a natural truth, the truth of our spiritual existence.

Krishna states in Bhagavad Gita,

bahunam janmanam ante

jnanavan mam prapadyate

vasudevah sarvam iti

sa mahatma su-durlabah

'After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.' (Bhagavad Gita 7.19)

The quest for knowledge must lead us to the reality of our relationship with God. That is true knowledge. So Krishna bases His talks with Arjuna on the premise that we are spiritual beings. We are the essence that is within the body, the Soul."

The audience was enthralled, and many stayed on afterwards to ask a variety of questions. However, preparations for the next day's travel had to begin.

Saying goodbye to the Boston devotees, and receiving many enthusiastic requests for his return, Acharya Mahasaya left to Miami on April 20. After a Sunday feast lecture and several days of classes at ISKCON's Miami temple, the day finally came for the fire ceremony at the University of Miami. Though South Florida had been experiencing the worst drought in recorded history and no rain had fallen for several months, it so happened that Lord Indra decided to send torrential rains the day of the ceremony, April 25. Having faith that after months of planning Lord Krishna wouldn't let the final event of the tour be spoiled, Acharya Mahasaya and his assistants continued their preparations until the last moment. Sure enough, just at the time the yagna was scheduled to begin, 6:30 p.m., the rains stopped and the setup for the ceremony could take place.

Despite the dark rain clouds circling around the university, somehow this weather had a mystical significance. Though threatening to "rain out" the ceremony, it seemed an auspicious sign that the drought had finally ended on the day of the yagna; these were the first rains of summer. And despite the threatening weather, 150 people appeared just as the rains subsided.

Acharya Mahasaya explained the principles of Vedic philosophy to yet another grouped of enthusiastic and mesmerized college students and professors:

"Namaste- I offer my respects to all of you, because within the core of your heart resides the Supreme Divinity. Nama astute.

I will begin with a Sanskrit verse as an invocation:

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya

caksur unmilatam yena tasmai sri gurave namaha

'I offer my respectful obeisances to my Spiritual Master, who has opened my eyes with the light of transcendental wisdom.'

Although we have physical eyes, these eyes are interdependent on the presence of light. Similarly, the spiritual eyes, which we all the the capacity to see with, also require the element of transcendental knowledge, called divya jnana. In the ancient text Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says:

"As a blazing fire turns firewood to ashes, O Arjuna, so does the fire of knowledge burn to ashes the reactions to all material activities."

The fire we will ignite this evening represents this fire of knowledge mentioned by Lord Krishna. We have decided to perform these ceremonies in the University setting in order to awaken an interest in spiritual science, the science of the spiritual reality apart from the physical world.

The soul is present within the body and the symptom of the soul is consciousness. We are part of the eternal conscious being. The Upanishads describe:

nitya nityananam

cetanas cetananam

eko bahunam yo vidadhati kaman

'We are eternal conscious beings who are a part of that one Supreme Eternal Conscious Being.' Like so many sparks that come from the fire, each containing heat and light, we each posess within us the qualities of the Divine. This ancient ceremony, which is technically called an agni-hotra or fire ceremony, is a means by which we invoke the Mercy of God into our lives. There is a need for a medium through which humanity can contact the Divine. So this is accomplished by various methods such as prayers, recitation of hymns, and meditation, which are a part of ancient spiritual practices. But the primary goal is to draw the Mercy of God into our lives.

As we identify the sunshine with the sun, we identify various forms of energy with their source. Conciousness is of a Divine nature, but in contact with this world it requires the awakening of spiritual wisdom. And so the transmission of transcendental knowledge through the practice of meditation and scriptural study opens the eyes of the soul, so that we can see Reality."

Acharya Mahasaya's presentations were enthusiastically received at Universities and temples alike by students, professors, and devotees. At every place he visitied, people asked him to please come again. His Grace is hoping to return again next year, as well as to add additional universities to the list. Following in the footsteps of his spiritual master A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, who carried with him the "message of Peace and Goodwill" for all humanity when he came to America in 1965, Acharya Mahasaya continues his mission of sharing the message of kindness, compassion, and positive remembrance of Lord Krishna with all living entities.

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His Grace Srila Turiya Das Mahasaya was initiated by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami in 1969. "You are well-qualified to worship the Deity at highest standard . . . please increase the Deity worship and teach others to become a very good pujari like you," were the instructions given to him by Srila Prabhupada, an order that he has faithfully executed for nearly thirty years. Appointed as Head Pujari at the Krishna Balarama Mandir in 1976 and serving there up to the time of Srila Prabhupada's disappearance, His Grace has since carried on his spiritual master's mission of sharing the liberating message of Gaudiya Vaishnavism with the Western world. His Grace currently resides on the island of Maui, Hawaii and serves as ISKCON's Regional Secretary for the state of Hawaii.

For more information about His Grace Srila Turiya Das Mahasaya including photos, lectures, and contact information, please visit his website at: http://www.harekrishnatemple.org