Kanti-mala

[Yashoda_dd]

In Padma Purana it is said:

"Persons who put tulasi beads on the neck, who mark twelve places of their bodies as Visnu temples with Visnu's symbolic representations [the four items held in the four hands of Lord Visnu--conch, mace, disc and lotus], and who have visnu-tilaka on their foreheads, are to be understood as the devotees of Lord Visnu in this world. Their presence makes the world purified, and anywhere they remain, they make that place as good as Vaikuntha."

 

I wish all the people in this world start putting tulsi beads around their necks and tilak on their bodies, each person who once said "Krishna" in his life (for one who says "Krishna" is a devotee, also according sastra).

 

But, if it happens, sahajism could occur. There must be vaisnava etiquete.

 

The lady I mentioned was a first-initiated disciple of ex-Harikesha Swami. She is convinced that he is not actually fallen, that he will come again, so she is not interested in looking for a poor devotee to continue her spiritual path.

 

Person that says he has a spiritual life, but neglects to hear from a poor devotee, is just like a mother that makes abortion of a baby (Srila Prabhupada used to say that one who does not care about his or her spiritual life is atma-ha). To be guided by show-bottle "guru" is same thing.

 

I pray that she will meet a poor Vaisnav to open her eyes. We all need guidance of siksa guru - very advanced devotees that were initiated by Srila Prabhupada, disciples of "fallen" gurus, new-born babies, persons with and without tulasi beads.

[gHari]

Beware: not all poor Vaisnavas are pure Vaisnavas. I'm so poor I have to rent the air that I breathe, but no one will ever misuse the word pure on me. Even if they did, I would hide in the latrine until they went away.

[Yashoda_dd]

Sorry, gHari. Misspelling.

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna,

All Glories to His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada,

 

Hare Krishna Parbhuji’s and Matajis,

I am trying to promote an Iskcon friendly (independent) website called www.hrhk.com

While this is a discussion forum for philosophical discussions you can contribute to this site by

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Please send all info to krishna@hrhk.com

 

 

Your servant

Murali

[Guest guest]

Recently i heard HG Jaya Vijaya das(author of Mother Ganga)speak and he had some print outs of the Hari-bhaktivilas from which he quoted a verse that said that anyone can benefit from wearing Tulsi beads. Does anyone know where i can get a copy of Hari bhakti vilas or does anyone know this verse? Please let me know cos up until now i have preached that only those following the regs and chanting Hare Krsna can wear these. Please help.

 

Thanks

[Openmind]

If you let me know your email address, I can send the book to you in a word file, with Balaram fonts.

[ShegavichaRana]

while I read your post. The reason is simple. Just 5 months back I lost my mother, a truly God-conscious woman who was a great devotee.

[Guest guest]

It is not true that uniniated devotees cannot wear Tulasi beads. That's not what was done when Prabhupada was here, his standard is what we must use for our line of comparision. Then it was, one line of Tulasi beads around the neck for the unitiated, two for those with first initiation, 3 for sanyasa initiation. Anyone who is sincere can wear them.

 

Sahajiya is something else, and should not be encouraged, but how can we be so sure the initiated can't become sahajiya either? My point is, unless its obvious, we can't always decide who is, and who isn't.

 

It use to be about preaching, so we would try to get beads on the necks of anyone interesed, regardless of whether or not the strictly followed the 4 regs or chanted 16 rounds. That often fell into place automatically anyhow, if we were patient. Need to have faith that the process works, or is so wonderful that people want to take up Krishna consciousness.

 

Dont worry, if they change their mind they often take the beads off anyway, but why we want them to? There is always benefit. That was the mood.

 

YS,

Prtha dd

[Guest guest]

OOPS

 

"one line of Tulasi beads around the neck for the unitiated, two for those with first initiation, 3 for sanyasa initiation. Anyone who is sincere can wear them."

 

----

 

I meant one for the uninitiated, two for first initiated, three for second or brahmana initiation. I forget if sanyasa got an extra strand. Does anyone remember?

 

YS,

Prtha dd

[stonehearted]

Maybe some ISKCON honchos came up with this hierarchy of strands, but I never saw any such thing in Srila Prabhupada. What I did see was him insisting that devotees accepting initiation also accept kanti mala then and there. He preferred three strands for everyone. I even saw, on a couple of occasions, Prabhupada instruct an already-initiated devotee take his neck beads off and put them on the newly initiated devotee. Four strands for sannyasis? That's probably a matter of personal taste. Prabhupada liked three strands, which is what you ususally see in pictures. But four and five strands was fine with him. He mentioned this in a letter to Govinda dasi about how to decorate Pancha Tattva before They were installednot less than two strands. Three, four strands or my Guru Maharaja had five strands."

 

As far as I know, this number of strands according to some "rank" is a concoction of someone else. It may be a harmless concoction, unless it's presented as Srila Prabhupada's instruction for the Church of ISKCON. (shudder!)

 

[yasodanandana]

"As far as I know, this number of strands according to some "rank" is a concoction of someone else."

 

many thanks..

[Priitaa]

 

Maybe some ISKCON honchos came up with this hierarchy of strands, but I never saw any such thing in Srila Prabhupada. What I did see was him insisting that devotees accepting initiation also accept kanti mala then and there. He preferred three strands for everyone. I even saw, on a couple of occasions, Prabhupada instruct an already-initiated devotee take his neck beads off and put them on the newly initiated devotee. Four strands for sannyasis? That's probably a matter of personal taste. Prabhupada liked three strands, which is what you ususally see in pictures. But four and five strands was fine with him. He mentioned this in a letter to Govinda dasi about how to decorate Pancha Tattva before They were installednot less than two strands. Three, four strands or my Guru Maharaja had five strands."

 

As far as I know, this number of strands according to some "rank" is a concoction of someone else. It may be a harmless concoction, unless it's presented as Srila Prabhupada's instruction for the Church of ISKCON. (shudder!)

 

 

Babru, you make many good points! I am glad to hear someone (you) saw Prabhupada do like this. Yet it doesn't mean he didn't start this current standard (or that he did). He was practical. If there were no beads, I could understand him telling an initiated devotee to take his own and have them put on the neck of the new devotee. But if there are enough beads (or whatever potential complicatoins that may arise, didn't), I wonder if he gave two strands to first initiates, and three to brahaman initiation? It wouldn't bother me either way, I just can't write it off without proof.

 

Now, you know about that. haha I wonder if there is anything in the Veda Base, etc?

[stonehearted]

Pritha: I wonder if he gave two strands to first initiates, and three to brahaman initiation? It wouldn't bother me either way, I just can't write it off without proof.

 

All I know is what I saw, and I was present at several initiations. He wanted three strands for first initiation, if there were enough. Two would be okay, but he preferred three. That's what he usually wore himself. No extra beads were ever given for second initiation, just sacred thread for men.

[Priitaa]

 

All I know is what I saw, and I was present at several initiations. He wanted three strands for first initiation, if there were enough. Two would be okay, but he preferred three. That's what he usually wore himself. No extra beads were ever given for second initiation, just sacred thread for men.

 

 

This is good news. And to think they gave me such a hard time over neckbeads and how many strands I was suppose to wear!

[livingentity]

Honolulu 71-11-20

 

ALL SHOULD WEAR TULASI KUNTI BEADS, NOT LESS THAN TWO STRANDS. THREE, FOUR STRANDS OR MY GURU MAHARAJA HAD FIVE STRANDS. .

 

[stonehearted]

I quoted this letter yesterday. It should be noted that it addresses how we chould decorate and dress the Pancha Tattva Deities he was planning to install, not devotees.

[Priitaa]

Thanks LE,

 

Thanks Babru,

 

This letter from Prabhupada has made me feel so good. I am going to mark this thread to keep that information.

 

Just see how we (me!) think something is what Prabhupada started when really it was a concoction. I wonder how it even got started? I feel for it too. It had all ready been established by the time I joined, so I wasn't about to argue.