fBhakta Jim's transcendental call

[JRdd]

 

 

911:

 

An emergency wake up call for Krishna Consciousness

 

By James S. Seymour, II

 

(Aka Bhakta Jim)

 

I was moved to write down some thoughts about Krishna Consciousness

in light of the shocking events that transpired in New York City on

the 11th of September 2001. First off, please permit me to give the

readers some background on how I personally came into the orbit of

Srila Prabhupada's teachings and Krishna Consciousness.

 

As a public high school teacher (and football coach!), I had the very

good fortune of having some devotee children enrolled in my school

district's independent study program. The way the program works is

that students meet with me once a week for all their assignments, and

then turn the work back in the following week. This allows students

the flexibility of pursuing subjects not offered in the regular

curriculum, and also the time to work in family businesses, etc.

Anyway, by Krishna's causeless mercy, I got to gradually associate

more and more with this wonderful devotee family. Now after about

three years, I am holding bhakti yoga classes twice a week in my own

home! There is a growing number of young people here in my community

who are realizing that the only way to solve their myriad problems is

to chant the Holy Names of Krishna, and in their own individual

fashions, to weavePrabhupada's teachings into the fabric of their

daily lives.

 

This summer, I was sent to a US History teacher workshop (on the

Revolutionary War) in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. I decided that

while I was back east, I should explore not only the origins of the

United States, but of Krishna Consciousness in America! So, with a

dual "karmi/Krishna" angle of vision, I made plans to visit

Washington DC, Philadelphia and Boston, along with Tompkins Square

Park, 26th Second Avenue, New Vrindavana, Prabhupada's Palace of

Gold, etc. Wow! What an incredible "education" I received this

Summer. I spent the entire month of August on the east coast.

 

It is truly amazing, how seeing the world through Prabhupada's

teachings just totally transforms your reactions to everyday people,

places, and things. I am working on getting my private pilots

license, and being the son of an airline pilot, I thought for sure

that a visit to the National Air and Space museum at the Smithsonian

would be a real rush. I have to admit that it held no fascination

for me. In fact, it was a very disturbing experience, especially in

light of what Prabhupada had to say about America's moon landings.

To witness thousands upon thousands of tourists just "ooing and

awing" over the marvels of our scientific and technological

achievements actually made me sick to my stomach.

 

Maya is so thick, so insidious, and so completely all consuming, that

I realized; without the Holy Names, without Krishna Kirtan, this

planet is a sinking ship of misery and suffering. All I could do for

relief was to quietly chant Hare Krishna to myself, and constantly

think about what Prabhupada actually did for this planet's suffering

living entities, by personally risking everything he had for our

benefit. For an "All-American guy" like me to come to Krishna

Consciousness relatively late in the game, (I'm 36 years old), it is

still very uncomfortable at times to live here in America, knowing

what I now know. But fear not, the story definitely gets better from

here! After "doing the Capital thing" in DC under a full moon in

Pisces, I made my way over to West Virginia to see a dear friend of

mine who also happens tobe a neophyte Krishna devotee- and get this-

a Major in the United States Army! We went together (on Janmastami)

to see New Vrindavana and the Palace of Gold. While there, we met up

with two wonderful devotees, Balabhadra das and his wife Chayadevi.

Obviously, the Palace of Gold was awe inspiring, and a beautiful

tribute to our eternal Spiritual Master.

 

However, as an environmentally oriented educator, I was deeply moved

with the Cow Protection work being done by these humble and dedicated

devotees of Prabhupada. Especially after the events of September 11,

(and what they might signal with regard to global conflict),

karmically speaking, Cow Protection takes on a whole new urgency. I

recall now where Prabhupada taught us that widespread animal

slaughter is the cause of world wars. So as we lurch ahead into the

future of Kali Yuga after these terrorist actions, it is indeed a

very profound thing to ponder.

 

Probably the most incredible and enlivening experience on this summer

sojourn was what lay ahead for me in New York City itself! By

Krishna's arrangement, I found myself at the St. Mark's Place Sri

Radha Govinda Temple, right inthe thick of the lower east side! I

felt a deep historical significance beingable to stay so close to the

elm tree in Tompkins Square Park, where everything started back in

1966! As luck would have it, the very first Harinam of my life

started right there at the elm tree, with devotees coming from several

different temples to join in. It was an intense synchronicity for me

that right after touring the capitol of the United States of America,

I would be in the capitol of Krishna Consciousness in America! We

circled the elm tree several times, and then made our way all through

the Bowery, finally ending up at the 26th Second Avenue Temple. I

got to walk into the back courtyard where that famous picture of

Prabhupada standing next to a fountain was taken. I thought to

myself, "this is where history was made, not in Valley Forge or

Philadelphia!" But that's not all! I got to actually live for a week

in the St. Mark's Place temple, and finally experience "a sliver" of

devotee life. It was a very purifying experience for me, because up

until that time, the daily reality of being out on the streets was

all just a mental concept. We would go out everyday and have kirtan,

while distributing Prabhupada's books. New York is a wonderful place

to preach Krishna Consciousness because overall, everyone really

loves the Krishnas.

 

The week wrapped up with some very climactic events. I got to join

with several other devotees and have a rousing harinam in Times

Square on a Saturday night, as well as chant Hare Krishna with other

devotees who were riding in a big yellow truck right down Madison

Avenue in the India Day Parade!

 

I'd like to conclude this little story by saying that before I

learned about Krishna Consciousness, (i.e. as a karmi), I really

have "been there, and done that". I grew up in southern California

and graduated from college at UC Santa Barbara, which is a

real "party school" to be sure; where drinking alcohol and chasing

girls are the focal points of life. I've traveled the world many

times over, made tons of money, played music on MTV, worked on a

blockbuster film, hob-knobbed with boozing politicians at the

National Republican Convention, scuba dived on the Great Barrier

Reef, and basically done my fair share of wild, crazy and really

stupid things early on in this lifetime. So I can honestly say, with

100% conviction, that there is no single activity in this material

world that is more thrilling, more enlivening, more blissful, more

potent, more purifying, and utterly more important for the future

ofthis planet than the congregational chanting of the Lord's Holy

Names!!!

 

I am making an urgent, honest, heartfelt plea to the Krishna Devotees

of the world, but most especially to those in New York City!!!

Please, as Srila Prabhupada's followers: organize yourselves and

converge in large numbers upon this disaster zone of America, and

bombard the atmosphere with the Holy Names of KRISHNA.

 

If other karmi groups can organize everything from "million man

marches", to gay pride parades to Super Bowls, why can't all the

different temple groups of Hare Krishnas re-energize Lord Caitanya's

Sankirtan Movement, and zero in on New York City? This is a

perfect "launch window" of opportunity!

 

It's no coincidence that Srila Prabhupada chose New York as the

epicenter of Krishna Consciousness in the western world. New York

City sets the pace for the rest of the world in every sphere of

activity, from finance and fashion, to art, music and cuisine. If

devotees could stage kirtans around the clock all through the city,

with special focus around the damaged areas, they could not only help

to counteract the glaring effects of Maya, but could also focus

international media attention on Prabhupada's Movement! This

terrorist event is actually the wake up call for all the Krishna

Devotees of Prabhupada's Society to transcend the "little sectarian

differences" that have preoccupied and stagnated the movement! This

in-house quarreling has not only turned-off multitudes of potential

new devotees, but it has kept existing devotees from the real work

that is so urgently needed, RIGHT NOW, which is widespread,

intensive, and focused efforts to invade New York City with Krishna

Kirtans!!! As an ex football coach, believe me! There's nothing

like a "COMEBACK KID"!

 

Why not start a massive, second wave of Krishna Consciousness in

America? With a constant onslaught of kirtans all over the city,

devotees could get media coverage on Larry King Live, Oprah Winfrey,

20/20, Nightline, you name it! (Besides, all the other religious

groups are banding together to pray for the victims of the terrorist

disaster, and they're getting media attention!) So, it is in this

spirit of national urgency that I urge all the leaders of ISKCON,

plus any and all other Krishna groups to unite in the Holy Names,and

really BOMB New York with the one sound that can end all quarreling

and dissention:

 

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare

Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare!

 

So, "who's game"? To quote President John F. Kennedy, "If not you,

who? if not now, when?"

 

Thank you all very, very much for reading this, and All Glories to

Srila Prabhupada!

 

Hare Krishna!

 

 

My email address is: james_seymourii@e..., jimmy171@j...

 

 

Very Sincerely,

 

Your most fallen, eternal servant,

 

James S. Seymour, II.

 

AKA (Bhakta Jim)

 

 

[Tarun]

Chanting parties are going out 5 days/week here in Gainesville/AlachvAnanda area.

New York City certainly needs more HarinAm.

New York City has also been so overbuilt, too crowded, very poorly planned.

It could be heavenly; they've made it so hellish.

Yet another reason why what happened happened the way it did.

[JRdd]

Just had to share this enthusing post by Locanananda prabhu, who leads a harinam every Saturday night at Times Square; has been doing this for years:

 

Bhakta Jim's idea is fantastic! I am totally in favor of uniting all

of the various groups of devotees to make a concerted effort to

spread the chanting of Hare Krishna throughout New York City and the

world, for that matter. Srila Prabhupada often spoke of the World

Sankirtana Party as the way to fulfill the prophecy of Lord Caitanya,

but to organize such a venture will require very strong leadership

and a strong sense of unity and common purpose amongst the vaisnavas.

 

Srila Prabhupada used to say, "When you see an opportunity, take it!"

Devotees who love to preach tend to see all such cataclysmic events

as opportunities to preach Krishna consciousness. Devotees are also

very compassionate towards others who are experiencing great

suffering. Arjuna was feeling great compassion and was shedding tears

even before the battle of Kuruksetra had even begun. This soft-

heartedness is a quality of a devotee. The devotee's suffering is to

see the suffering of others, and we know that all suffering is caused

by forgetfulness of Krishna. Sankirtana is the process introduced by

the Lord Himself to relieve the conditioned souls of their suffering

in the kali yuga.

 

The Kali yuga is marked by war and terrorism. The whole atmosphere of

the world is surcharged with anger and hatred. Only the sankirtana

movement can defeat the evils of modern civilization and bring

humanity back to a normal condition of harmony. It is the sankirtana

movement alone that can hold back the tide of kali yuga, so if

devotees do not unite to propagate the chanting of Hare Krishna in

the most systematically effective way, then whose fault is it if kali

yuga continues to deteriorate the finer attributes of mankind? I have

heard Iskcon leaders explaining that those killed at the World Trade

Center "got what they deserved", but is that how devotees show their

compassion in times of tragedy? It is just like telling devotee

children who were abused in Gurukula that they were "getting their

karma". I have heard that the Hare Krishna's are first in philosophy

and last in compassion. Why not first in both? Titiksava karunika.

A devotee is tolerant and compassionate. In fact, a devotee is

supposed to be an ocean of mercy. Not that we should lament for the

loss of the material body, but devotees must speak the truth

palatably especially at times when there is extreme suffering.

 

I am afraid that people will remember the devotees as being

conspicuous by their absence during this hour of need. Later,

devotees will be approaching people to solicit support for their

preaching efforts, but people will respond with, "Where were YOU when

YOUR help was needed?" So I believe that Bhakta Jim is correct in his

analysis of the situation. Bhakta Jim joined our Harinam party at

Times Square and was our most enthusiastic dancer. He was jumping

high in the air and was head and shoulders above the rest of us.

Perhaps that is why he can see what others cannot. I hope that Bhakta

Jim will be inspired by Krishna from within to return to New York to

help coordinate the preaching effort here. Even if the best he can do

is get the various groups to go out separately (but daily) by

appealing to their sense of compassion he will have accomplished more

than anyone else has to date.

 

The rebuilding of New York City is going to take years and we will

continue our sankirtana activity here as long as there is a New York

City, and without interruption. We will not decrease. And if there is

an awakening of a cooperative spirit amongst the vaisnavas, we will

be overjoyed to be able to chant together in glorification of the

Supreme Lord. And if we are not able to do that, it is just another

symptom of the advancement of kali yuga.

 

Your servant, Locanananda dasa

 

 

[amanpeter]

I have heard Iskcon leaders explaining that those killed at the World Trade Center "got what they deserved", but is that how devotees show

their compassion in times of tragedy? It is just like telling devotee

children who were abused in Gurukula that they were "getting their

karma". I have heard that the Hare Krishna's are first in philosophy

and last in compassion. Why not first in both? Titiksava karunika.

A devotee is tolerant and compassionate. In fact, a devotee is

supposed to be an ocean of mercy. Not that we should lament for the

loss of the material body, but devotees must speak the truth

palatably especially at times when there is extreme suffering.

RIGHT ON!

[dasanudas]

I've been so saturated in World news that I missed this delightful post but all glories to Bhakta Jim and the glowing Spirit of Mahaprabhu that lives in him. Glad he left his Email.

[Tarun]

I'm returning to NYC next week.

Looks like Boddhayen Mhrj won't be coming to AlachvAnanda on time.

He's stuck in Costa Rica with Ramesh till they lift the moratorium on international flights.

I'll be rejoining that Timessquare HarinAm Party zo snel mogelijk.

There's an eternal saying which atheists despise:

"God respects you when you work; but God loves you when you sing."

[amanpeter]

Originally posted by Tarun:

I'm returning to NYC next week.

Looks like Boddhayen Mhrj won't be coming to AlachvAnanda on time.

He's stuck in Costa Rica with Ramesh till they lift the moratorium on international flights.

I'll be rejoining that Timessquare HarinAm Party zo snel mogelijk.

There's an eternal saying which atheists despise:

"God respects you when you work; but God loves you when you sing."

Dear Tarun Krsna prabhu, Glad to hear you're returning to NYC. PLease report back to us after witnessing `ground zero`!