George Has Left

[stonehearted]

Originally posted by livingentity:

Dear Stonehearted, You are mistaken as I never responded to anything you wrote on this thread nor did make any heated remarks that were removed. Nothing you said "peeved" me as you say. I had only made a general request that this thread attempt to remain argument free.

I apologize for my mistake. Apparently it was something gHari posted, and it was apparently changed before I saw it. What was on the board when I logged on yesterday didn't seem particularly insulting.

 

[stonehearted]

Originally posted by jndas:

Sometimes we rely on our material vision to judge that which is immeasurable. . . .

Then we take our misconceptions one step further, and conclude, "He may have been chanting Hare Krishna at the time of death, but at different times in his life he smoked. Whats so great about him?"

 

The shastras warn us about looking for defects in the devotees of the Lord.

Point taken. When I mentioned that, it was not meant to denigrate him in any way, but to point out that "we" didn't own him. He was his own person and had his own relationship with Srila Prabhupada. I never intended to minimize his spiritual advancement (which, if you measure it by preaching, certainly surpasses mine immeasurably), but to suggest that he is multi-dimensional, as are we all.

 

Again, my deepest apologies to anyone disturbed by that particular remark.

 

Babhru das

 

[talasiga]

Originally posted by jndas:

Sometimes we rely on our material vision to judge that which is immeasurable. ..............................

Thus we come to conclusions like, "Oh, he may have done devotional service, but look he smoked!" ...............................

Then we take our misconceptions one step further, and conclude, "He may have been chanting Hare Krishna at the time of death, but at different times in his life he smoked. Whats so great about him?"

 

The shastras warn us about looking for defects in the devotees of the Lord. ...........................................

 

Stonehearted never said these things.

 

The fact that you see his statement

"He also liked to race cars, smoke cigarettes, and other things we may be less than excited about acknowledging",

as necessarily pointing out some defects,

shows that you yourself see these aspects

as defects.

 

Stonehearted also posted other statement of facts such as:-

"Yes, he supported some Krishna conscious projects, but he also supported many other activities, such as helping those suffering in war-torn Bangladesh and raising money for the Natural Law Party."

 

This doesn't look like a put down to me at all.

 

He is also courageous enough to suggest:

" But let's get a grip on ourselves and resist the tendency so prevalent in our culture to get carried away by celebrity."

This appears to be an appeal to our sense of integrity.

 

I find very little that is is defective

in devotee Stonehearted's posting.

 

 

 

[talasiga]

Originally posted by JRdd:

I too welcome Stonehearted's comments. (The snide remarks being made about his character simply lend an acid flavor to this otherwise wonderful thread. No devotee likes to see another devotee insulted.)

 

Originally posted by livingentity:

Dear Stonehearted, .................................

Nothing you said "peeved" me ...............................

 

 

 

[stonehearted]

I'm really sorry to have messed up the thread . . . so, back to George.

 

I remember that in the spring of 1970 a rumor was going around Honolulu that the Beatles woudl come to perform at the June Crater Festival (held inside Diamond Head crater). My old friends came to the temple sometimes, and they shared this news with me. This was extraordinary news, since they had already broken up, and this would have been a reunion. Well, the devotees were probably more excited than anyone else, because we were naive enough to think that if the rumor were true, they would probably stay with us at the temple. (Yeah, I know. . . .)

 

As it turned out, the rumor was not true, but it did serve to arouse a little extra interest in Krishna consciousness for a little while.

[Ananga]

Someone once told me what George's Sanskrit name was many years ago, but I forgot what exactly it was. Does anyone have any info. on this?

[Gauracandra]

"The model is ready. Work would start in May-June once we get the money," said Das. The Radha Krishna Chandra temple will be built on a plot of land spread over two acres in the next five years.

I really hope that prior to building the temple that they will create a website with the plans and design. I would love to see what sort of ideas an artist like George Harrison would plan for in building a temple.

 

If anyone has any connection to the Varanasi team undertaking this project, please forward this idea (website) to them. I may never make it to Varanasi, but I'd like to be able to admire the temple from afar.

 

Gauracandra

[gHari]

George writes in his autobiography, I-ME-MINE that "AWAITING ON YOU ALL is about Japa Yoga meditation which is the repitition on beads (mala) of mantras. A mantra is mystical energy encased in a sound structure, and each mantra contains within its vibrations, a certain power. They are constructed from the fifty letters of the Sanskrit alphabet (Devanagari - language of the Gods) and they turn the mind toward the Chakras of the body.

 

"Most mantras for Japa utilise the many names of God, and the maha-mantra has been prescribed as the easiest and surest way for attaining God-Realization in this present age. (It can also rebuild the atoms in the body and make your life sublime!)

 

"Hari Bol"

<center><font color=blue>AWAITING ON YOU ALL

 

You don't need no love in,

You don't need no bed pan

You don't need a horoscope or a microscope

To see the mess that you're in

 

If you open up your heart,

You will know what I mean

We've been polluted so long

Now here's a way for you to get clean

 

By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free

The Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see

 

You don't need no passport

You don't need no visas

You don't need to designate or to emigrate,

Before you can see Jesus

 

If you open up your heart,

You'll see he's right there

He always was and will be

He'll relieve you of your cares

 

By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free

The Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see

 

You don't need no church house,

You don't need no Temple

You don't need no rosary beads

or them books to read

To know that you have fallen

 

If you open up your heart

Then you will see what I mean

We've been kept down so long

Someone's thinking that we're all green

 

While the Pope owns 51% of General Motors

And the stock exchange is the only thing He's qualified to quote us

 

But the Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see

By chanting the names of the Lord you'll be free

</center></font>

For Mahaksa

[gHari]

From George's I-ME-MINE: "THE LORD LOVES THE ONE THAT LOVES THE LORD - I wrote after Swami A.C. Bhaktivedanta came to visit me one afternoon. His life is an example to us all. The things that most people are struggling for is fame or fortune or wealth or position: always that's their main ambition and desire in life, to be rich or famous or to have a good reputation, and really none of that is important because in the end, death will take it all away. So you spend your life struggling for something which in effect is a waste of time. After talking with Swamiji about all that I wrote the song Lord Loves The One. It's as he said (paraphrased):"

 

<center><font color=blue>THE LORD LOVES THE ONE

(That Loves the Lord)

 

The Lord loves the one that loves the Lord

And the law says if you don't give,

then you don't get loving

Now the Lord helps those that help themselves

And the law says whatever you do

comes right back on you

 

We're all making out

Like we own this whole world

While the leaders of nations

They're acting like big girls

With no thoughts for their God

Who provides us with all

But when death comes to claim them

Who will stand, and who will fall?

 

The Lord loves the one that loves the Lord

And the law says if you don't give,

then you don't get loving

Now the Lord helps those that help themselves

And the law says whatever you do

It comes right back on you

 

We all move around,

with objectives in mind,

to become rich or famous,

With our reputations signed,

But the few that can reach,

to this coveted slot,

don't escape old age creeping,

through their bodies like a rot

 

While the Lord loves the one that loves the Lord

And the law says if you don't give,

then you don't get loving

Now the Lord helps those that help themselves

And the law says whatever you do

comes right back on you

 

</center></font><font color=red>

A postage-type stamp with a picture of and the name of "Lord Chaitanya" is found on the song's manuscript (as well as the stationery's Hare Krishna logo). George had also doodled a Sanskrit 'Krsna' beside the title as he wrote the song.

[gHari]

<center><h1>WORLD KIRTAN BEGINS</h1><img src=http://www.thesun.co.uk/picture/0,,2001560983,00.jpg width=428 height=382><h1>ONE MORE TIME</H1><font size=-3><font color="#dedfdf">

 

 

 

[This message has been edited by gHari (edited 12-06-2001).]

[stonehearted]

Originally posted by gHari:

You don't need no love in,

You don't need no bed pan

You don't need a horoscope or a microscope

To see the mess that you're in

 

If you open up your heart,

You will know what I mean

We've been polluted so long

Now here's a way for you to get clean

 

By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free

The Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see

 

You don't need no passport

You don't need no visas

You don't need to designate or to emigrate,

Before you can see Jesus

 

If you open up your heart,

You'll see he's right there

He always was and will be

He'll relieve you of your cares

 

By chanting the names of the Lord and you'll be free

The Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see

 

You don't need no church house,

You don't need no Temple

You don't need no rosary beads

or them books to read

To know that you have fallen

 

If you open up your heart

Then you will see what I mean

We've been kept down so long

Someone's thinking that we're all green

 

While the Pope owns 51% of General Motors

And the stock exchange is the only thing He's qualified to quote us

 

But the Lord is awaiting on you all to awaken and see

By chanting the names of the Lord you'll be free

</center></font>

For Mahaksa

Stone: Ki Jaya! In the early '70s, we played this song quite regularly on our weekly radio show on KPOI-FM, in Honolulu. I did that show with Balabhadra and Turiya das prabhus. We used George's songs every week, and this was one of my favorites.

 

Thanks.

 

[This message has been edited by stonehearted (edited 12-06-2001).]

[Bhakta Don Muntean]

All Glories to Shrila Prabhupada

 

After seeing the Coverage at Time.com I had to send them a Message:

 

RE: Time.com's Coverage of George Harrison's Faith

 

Dear Editors @ Time.com:

 

Why does your Story about Mr. George Harrison Report that He embraced the Maharishi Yogi's Trancendental Meditation Movement--into the Present?

 

It would be sad for Mrs. Harrison and Her Son Dhani to read such an 'inaccuracy'--at Time.com!

 

Please do not confuse that Movement with what He was really Dedicated to: the International Society for Krishna Conciousness and its Founder--His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

 

George: I think Prabhupada's accomplishments are very significant; they're huge. Even compared to someone like William Shakespeare, the amount of literature Prabhupada produced is truly amazing. It boggles the mind. He sometimes went for days with only a few hours sleep. I mean even a youthful, athletic young person couldn't keep the pace he kept himself at seventy-nine years of age.

 

George left the Trancendental Meditation Movement in the 1960's.

 

Time Reports "History" not just the "News"--please consider the deep Historical Context of Mr. Harrison's dedication to 'Hare Krishna' and the International Society for Krishna Conciousness.

 

Please find enclosed a very informative Interview with Mr. Harrison in 1982--I humbly ask that Time.com cover some of these Facts about Mr. Harrison's actual 'Faith':...

 

I enclosed the 1982 Interview with Mukunda Goswami with this letter to them--we shall see if they decide change the Articles!

 

Your Servant,

 

Bhakta don

 

 

[gHari]

News of George's will may be incorrect. It appears that the story that seems to have begun in the India Times from an undisclosed Indian source was the input to the rest of the media stories. It does, however, seem quite likely that George has arranged to build a million dollar Temple in India.

 

http://chakra.org/articles/2001/12/07/g.harrison.false.reports/index.htm

 

I fear I too have spread this story around before being certain that it was accurate. After seeing it in several places I foolishly assumed it had come from several sources. And it did make sense, from a variety of points of view. Certainly if Krsna wants George to come back to continue to serve Him, then making ISKCON strong and building a Temple at one's favorite retreat spot would heighten one's chances and speed in finding devotional service again, avoiding those grey cloudy lies of mundane existence without Him. Indeed, that is my only fear.

 

Well at least if George does return, right from the womb he will be listening to My Sweet Lord all over the radio. I can see a certain karmic poetry there.

 

"O almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor do I desire beautiful women, nor do I want any number of followers. I only want Your causeless devotional service birth after birth." - Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Siksastaka 4<font size=-3><font color="#f7f7f7">

 

[This message has been edited by gHari (edited 12-07-2001).]

[Tarun]

Tomorrow 8Dec01 we chant at Strawberry Fields again...

For another Beatle...

who, after purchasing 100 bulletproof vests for NYPD...

was indubitably assassinated by our federal government.

www.JohnLennonmurder.com

 

[mahak]

haribol, and thanx for the song, gHari. In Kauai, I remember a great treat for the brahmacaris. We all went to the ol movie theater in Kapaa to see the concert for bangladesha when it first came out. Ravi was incredible, and apple jam was also sublime, but I had a hard time with leon russell, but "beware of Maya" just happened to be the very first thing my very first devotee encounter (with Visnujnana) produced, so I let it go.

 

speaking of billy bee (balabhadra), have ya heard from him and chai lately, babhrudasa? hope yer well, brah, ys, mahaksadasa

 

ps I am very attached to the real old george songs, even the ones he wrote prior to meeting Srila Prabhupada. A little insight there, because it kinda shows that "ordinary" folks dont really take to Krsna Consciousness, and his early stuff (like inner light and northern song) shows a certain propensity for submissive inquiry.

 

Ill print a few of em next week to see if yall see what I mean.

[stonehearted]

Originally posted by gHari:

<center><font color=blue>DEVIL's RADIO

 

Gossip, gossip

Gossip, gossip

 

I heard it in the night

Words that thoughtless speak

Like vultures swooping down below

On the devil's radio

Now he may find a need to revise the song to include the 'net (and its message boards).

 

 

[stonehearted]

Originally posted by mahak:

haribol, and thanx for the song, gHari. In Kauai, I remember a great treat for the brahmacaris. We all went to the ol movie theater in Kapaa to see the concert for bangladesha when it first came out.

 

speaking of billy bee (balabhadra), have ya heard from him and chai lately, babhrudasa? hope yer well, brah, ys, mahaksadasa

 

ps I am very attached to the real old george songs, even the ones he wrote prior to meeting Srila Prabhupada. A little insight there, because it kinda shows that "ordinary" folks dont really take to Krsna Consciousness, and his early stuff (like inner light and northern song) shows a certain propensity for submissive inquiry.

We didn't have such facility in Honolulu (going to flicks). We did have some next-door neighbors who often played loud music, which usually irked us. However, they often played the Concert for Bangladesh album quite loudly, and we didn't really mind that. How does George open when he comes on stage? "Hare Krishna."

 

I agree with your assessment of his pre-KC work, too. Most folks called him the "quiet Beatle." I always thought of him as the cool Beatle."

 

I haven't had much contact with Balabhadra and Chaya lately. Seems we were in touch more when I was donating to ISCOWP regularly. That's really where their lives are focused.

 

Laytah, cuz.

 

[gHari]

<center><font color=blue>DEVIL's RADIO

 

Gossip, gossip

Gossip, gossip

 

I heard it in the night

Words that thoughtless speak

Like vultures swooping down below

On the devil's radio

 

I hear it through the day

Airwaves gettin' filled

With gossip broadcast to and fro

On the devil's radio

 

Oh yeah, gossip

Gossip, oh yeah

 

He's in the clubs and bars

And never turns it down

Talking about what he don't know

On the devil's radio

 

He's in your TV set

Won't give it a rest

That soul betraying so and so

The devil's radio

 

Gossip, gossip

Gossip, gossip

(Oh yeah) gossip, (gossip) oh yeah

(Gossip) oh yeah, (oh yeah) gossip

 

It's white and black like industrial waste

Pollution of the highest degree

You wonder why I don't hang out much

I wonder how you can't see

 

He's in the films and songs

And on all your magazines

It's everywhere that you may go

The devil's radio

 

Oh yeah, gossip

Gossip, oh yeah

 

Runs thick and fast, no one really sees

Quite what bad it can do

As it shapes you into something cold

Like an Eskimo igloo

 

It's all across our lives

Like a weed it's spread

'till nothing else has space to grow

The devil's radio

 

Can creep up in the dark

Make us hide behind shades

And buzzing like a dynamo

The devil's radio

 

(Gossip) oh yeah, (gossip) oh yeah

(Gossip) gossip, (gossip) gossip

Oh yeah, gossip I heard you on the secret wireless

Gossip, oh yeah You know the devil's radio, child

Gossip, gossip

Gossip, gossip

 

</font>George Harrison 1987

</center>

[Bhakta Don Muntean]

All Gloires to Shrila Prabhupada

 

Dear ghari:

 

Hare Krishna!

 

I just wanted to add something [for those who did not know] about the Photo of Shrila Prabhupada, George and His 'Wife'.

 

That is not Olivia His Wife.

 

That girl in the Picture is His Ex-wife [and friend?]. People aught to know that.

 

Your Servant,

 

Bhalta don

[mahak]

Haribol, so what's the point, bhakta don?

 

We got to quit seeing the Vaisnava according to materialistic vision. This is most important, of course we see all beings as spirit, yet we seem to forget that it is most important that we do not consider "perceived" faults in the devotee.

 

We all got em, bro, we all got our cigarettes, and pot-past, and messed up familial affairs, but we also see them as blades of the fan turning, even though the electricity has been turned off.

 

This Bhakti yoga is not magic, it is practically applied science. The acarya always looks way beyond the faults of his disciples. And, yes, he does accept as disciple those he had not formalized such. The quality of guru and disciple does not diminish by any external and viewable perceptions.

 

The fact is, there has been few to succeed in spreading Vaisnavism worldwidem as Brother George. The fact that he haD A FAILED MARRIAGE AND SMOKED CIGARETTES IS NOT A DISQUALIFICATION TO SUCH UNUSUAL EMPOWERMENT THAT oNLY kRSNA CAN BESTOW. (i HAVENT started yellin, my fat fingers accidently hit the all caps button, I am very calm, dont worry)

 

But anyway, when I hear folks limit any vaisnava, I get sad, but I also know that envy takes a role, because, alas, we all have such shortcomings, and we are not very happy at the success of our peer Vaisnavas, so we say "Ah ha" when we catch em nearing our pitiful level.

 

But, all things must pass, and the Lord is awaiting on us all to awaken and see. Hare Krsna, ys, mahaksadasa

 

 

[Ananga]

Part of an interview with George was just published in People magazine, wherein he states that he never really 'joined them', just in spirit. He also said that if SP knew that his disciples were ripping people off in airports, they would have had their 'behinds kicked'. The overall tone of his statements was that he respected SP, but did care much for his followers. I guess a couple that he stayed in contact with (like Mukunda) were the exception.

 

[stonehearted]

I'm not quite sure what Don meant by "everyone aught [sic] [sorry for that--I'm an English professor and editor] to know that," but I hope he was just making this point to clear any possible confusion. Of course, that was Patti (sp?), George's first wife. Because of his own commitment to Krishna consciousness, two wives had the opportunity for service and association with devotees.

 

The main thing is that this picture is an olod favorite of many devotees, and we're grateful to gHari for posting it.

 

[Bhakta Don Muntean]

Originally posted by stonehearted:

I'm not quite sure what Don meant by "everyone aught [sic] [sorry for that--I'm an English professor and editor] to know that," but I hope he was just making this point to clear any possible confusion. Of course, that was Patti (sp?), George's first wife. Because of his own commitment to Krishna consciousness, two wives had the opportunity for service and association with devotees.

 

The main thing is that this picture is an olod favorite of many devotees, and we're grateful to gHari for posting it.

That is all--I just wanted to point it out--so there was no confusion.

 

I was not disrespecting anyone.

 

Your Servant,

 

Bhakta don

 

 

[This message has been edited by Bhakta Don Muntean (edited 12-08-2001).]

[Gauracandra]

Remembering George

Friends and family recall a man of spirit, song and humor.

Keith Richards, 57, Rolling Stones guitarist: "To me George was, always will be, above all, a real gentleman -- in the full meaning of the word. We held similar positions in our respective bands, which formed a special knowing bond between us. Let's hope he's jamming with John."

 

Michael Palin, 58, former member of Monty Python: "The last time I saw George was in August, in Switzerland, on the Swiss-Italian border, where he was undergoing treatment for cancer. He played us all these old Hoagy Carmichael records. George had a lot of enthusiasms at various times, whether it was Bulgarian choirs or whatever. Once there was something he was enthusiastic about, he wanted the world to know."

 

Mia Farrow, 56, actress and fellow student of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in the '60s: "George Harrison was not only a musical force in my lifetime, but a spiritual force. One of the things that was so inspiring was his lifelong search to know his God. And if God exists, I don't doubt that George has a place near him."

 

Steve Winwood, 53, rock musician who played on the 1979 album George Harrison: "He was a bit of a practical joker. The first time my wife, Eugenia, and I went over to his house he had a photograph of the Queen and Prince Philip inscribed, 'To George, from Liz and Phil.' And my wife, who is American, said, 'Fantastic. Did they sign it for you?' He answered, 'No, I wrote it.' He had that down-to-earth Liverpudlian wit."

 

Louise Harrison, 70, sister: "He said being rich and famous took the fun out of life. He told me that all he had to do was sign his name to get any kind of house he wanted. He said, 'I can't go out and look. I have to tell a Realtor what I want, and I pick out the home from pictures. I don't get to experience the struggle of working to pay the mortgage every month.' "

 

Peter Max, 64, artist: "One time we were talking about gurus, mantras, where is God. George said, 'I'd give up everything if I could be a monk who walks from one side of India to another.' "

 

Yoko Ono, 68: "His life was magical, and we all felt we've shared a little of it by knowing him. Thank you, George. It was grand knowing you."

 

Terry Gilliam, 61, film director and former Monty Python member: "One of the most extraordinary things he did in the last years of his life was plant 400 or 500 maples in his garden. He was one of the great gardeners of the world. I think his true spirit was there. He had 37 acres to play with! He created an incredibly beautiful place with a Russian dacha and huge arches made out of the roots of trees. In the last couple of years, he started putting in these gigantic lumps of stone. It was truly a magical place. You thought life was worth living when you went over there."

[This message has been edited by Gauracandra (edited 12-08-2001).]

[gHari]

<font color=blue><center>

<h3>The Answer's At The End</h3>

 

Scan not a friend with a microscopic glass

You know his faults, now let the foibles pass

Life is one long enigma, my friend

So read on, read on, the answer's at the end

 

Don't be so hard on the ones that you love

It's the ones that you love we think so little of

Don't be so hard on the ones that you need

It's the ones that you need we think so little of

 

The speech of flowers excels the flowers of speech

But what's often in your heart, is the hardest thing to reach

And life is one long mystery, my friend

So live on, live on, the answer's at the end

 

Don't be so hard on the ones that you love

It's the ones that you love we think so little of

Don't be so hard on the ones that you need

It's the ones that you need we think so little of

 

Oh, we think so little of the ones that we love, sometimes

Isn't it a pity how we hurt

The ones that we love the most of all

The ones we shouldn't hurt at all

 

You know my faults, now let the foibles pass

'Cause life is one long enigma, my friend

Live on, live on, the answer's at the end

 

Don't be so hard on the ones that you love

It's the ones that you love we think so little of

Don't be so hard on the ones that you need

It's the ones that you need we think so little of

 

The ones that we love

We hurt the most of all, sometimes

And isn't it a pity how

We hurt the ones that we love</font>

 

 

George Harrison 1975