Corpus Christi Retreat

Taking advantage of the Corpus Christi holiday, we held another yoga retreat in Pandavas Paradise. It was a four night event, starting on Wednesday and ending after lunch on Sunday.

About half the people came from distant cities for the retreat, some from Rio de Janeiro, some from São Paulo, and about half of them were new-comers. This is one of the characteristics of these retreats. It’s not that these people are Hare Krishnas going to a retreat, these are people who have had little or no contact with Hare Krishnas. For most of our visitors, this is their first contact with ISKCON devotees. And we make sure it’s a very sweet experience!

We also don’t hold back on the spirituality, or water it down, just to make it more “commercial”. These yoga retreats are really full on bhakti experiences: two aratiks a day, 30 minutes of japa, extra mantra sessions, 90 minutes of Krishna consciousness lectures a day… the works! Even the morning (hatha) yoga classes are infused with a good dose of bhakti thanks to our devotee yoga teacher, Radharani dd.  Practically all of our visitors leave with their own japa beads and at least one book, normally 2 and sometimes 3. The yoga retreats serve as springboards for the more spiritually inclined to go on to do weekend Gita courses, more retreats and some to become full on devotees.

One case in point: we had a lady, in her mid-thirties, come to our Carnaval retreat, just 4 months ago. It was her first contact with Krishna devotees. She loved it so much, she started doing our Gita courses and coming to our regular weekly programs in Brasilia. And now, next week, she’s off to New Zealand to join the women’s ashram at Gaura Yoga for 3 or more months of intense training and service!

Now that we have entered the dry season here, the weather for the Corpus Christi retreat was near perfect with shining sun and clear blue skies. As usual we enjoyed the scenic walks, crystal clear waterfalls, and plenty of healthy and tasty prasadam.

You can see more pictures of the retreat here.

Weekend Gita Workshop in Rio de Janeiro

This weekend we had the 2nd module of the Gita Workshop in Rio de Janeiro. We had 10 participants (11 if you count 5 month old baby Theo). Everyone enthusiastically drank the nectar of Krishna’s teachings. We covered chapters 3 and 4.

It never ceases to amaze me how the Gita endlessly gives us more and more, at each and every reading. This time, one of my realizations was that Krishna uses the word “karma” in the sense of ”that dharmic activity one should naturally perform according to one’s gunas“, translated by Prabhupada as “prescribed duty”. We normally think of “karma” as any sort of mundane activity, but here it seems Krishna uses it strictly in the sense of dharmic duty. When Krishna later introduces the term “vikarma“, “bad action”, we get further support for this idea. I also had a new take on the list of yajnas found in the end of the 4th Chapter (verses 25-29). This time I could see that Krishna glorifies them all, without pointing out any faults, even though the list includes things we normally “look down upon”, such as simple pranayama, giving up eating, and demigod worship.

I was also invited to give class at the Sunday Program in Rio’s Jagannatha Temple. I gave the class on verse 4.34, taking the opportunity to present a series of important points on the topic of guru. I described the culture of general respect we find in the Vedas, the psychological advantage of respecting the guru in absorbing the teachings transmitted by him/her, Prabhupada on gurus and how he urged us hundreds of times to become gurus following Lord C’s order*, definitions of a “pure devotee” and an “uttama-adhikari“, gurus in ISKCON and, lastly, the special position of Srila Prabhupada as founder-acharya of ISKCON. Several people expressed their gratitude for the class and for clearing up their confusion on the topic.

In short, it was an amazing weekend, packed full with nice service! Jaya Prabhupada! Jaya Jagannatha!

 

*“yare dekha, tare kaha ‘krsna’-upadesa amara ajnaya guru hana tara’ ei desa”,  Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya-lila 7.128

Weekend Gita Workshop in Porto Alegre

It’s Gita Workshop time!

On the 17th we had our Brasilia Gita Sunday Workshop, in which we studied the 16th chapter. It was our biggest group yet. Some of the participants are from our local outreach efforts, but most are from our Yoga Retreats in Pandavas Paradise.

Last weekend I was in Porto Alegre, doing the 3rd module of our Weekend Gita Workshop. It’s always wonderful to study the Gita and it’s interesting to see how this weekend workshop suits all kinds of people.

For example, in the group I have the daughter of the local Temple President, Radharani (fourth from the left). Though her father is one of the greatest preachers in Brazil, she is still appreciating the course so much. Rossana (second from the left), has known the devotees for 25 years, but really appreciates this kind of deep systematic study. She wrote to me yesterday saying that this last module was one of the most amazing moments she’s had in association with devotees her whole life. Yet the workshop also satisfies the newcomers. Angela (fifth from the left), knew absolutely nothing about KC before starting these Gita workshops and she has practically no contact with devotees out of it. Yet, she is in awe of its contents and feels it’s changing her life.  This is the power of the Gita explained in the light of Srila Prabhupada’s teachings!

This weekend I fly off to Rio de Janeiro, for the second module of our second series of Weekend Gita Workshops there.

Holy Names for a Packed House

On Tuesday, the 12th of May, we were invited to participate in a cultural event organized by the Brazilian House of Congress. The theme of the night was India. They wanted to “spiritualize” the event, and asked us to open it with chanting.

Here is the video of the bhajan, lead by Carana Renu Dasi:

The event was held at the prestigious National Theatre in Brasilia. India is very much in vogue now, in Brazil, due to a very popular prime time soap opera. Devotees in Brazil are taking advantage of this to host “Indian Festivals”, sell more Gitas, etc.

Three years ago another prime time soap opera also hinted at Indian spirituality. Its main theme song was “Mantra” by a musician of the name Nando Reis (divine coincidence – Reis is kings in Portuguese, so we almost have King Nanda). Nando Reis wrote lyrics with the Hare Krishna mantra and invited our very charismatic Chandramukha Swami to play with them in their live shows. Here you can see Nando Reis with Chandramukha Swami and other Vrajabhumi devotees:

During this event they invited another musician to play this same tune. And we were asked to join in!

As such we had the chance to do some more chanting of Hare Krishna.

The place was packed! Though it seats 450, the corridors were full and we estimate there were some 650 people there.

It was a nice chance to share the holy names.

Our Dying World

I recently watched a rather dramatic video with dire warnings (to whom exactly I’m not sure, probably Caucasian Christians) about the upcoming muslim take over of Europe. And, no, the takeover is not by armies or terrorist attacks – but by babies!

 The video points out that native Europeans are dying off. The average fertility rate (that’s the number of children per woman) for the European Union (according to the CIA) is only 1.51, far below the 2.11 replacement value (that’s the value necessary just to maintain the current  population). They claim, however, that Muslim immigration and the far larger Muslim community fertility rate, is radically increasing the percentage of Europeans who are Muslims. They say that 50% of all babies born in Belgium are Muslims. And that by 2050 Germany will be a Muslim majority state.

I became interested in the subject and watched another alarmist documentary, called “Demographic Winter – The Decline of the Human Family”. This 50 minute documentary points out that humanity is dying off, with decreasing fertility rates worldwide, independent of race, religion and continent. This documentary points out the following major factors for this:

1) Increasing participation of women at the workplace, which leads them not to have time to have babies, as well as increasing the “cost” of interupting their carreers to have babies.

2) The sexual revolution, which makes sex come easy and with less and less strings attached.

3) The “divorce revolution”, infusing all marriages with a high degree of uncertainty, thus providing a negative stimulus for having children.

4) Prosperity. Men and women increasingly get married later in life, mostly because they are busy trying to become prosperous, thus having less time to have children. The current economic model of the world makes children an economic burden.

5) Innacurate Assumptions: a) Most of us still think that the world is threatened by a population explosion, when actually it’s just the opposite. The population of the world vastly increased only because longevity increased. But the current fertility rate for the world is below replacement values. b) The idea that less population is economically better is not true – statistics show that countries with the greatest decreases in population (Spain, Russia and Japan, for example) are having acute economic troubles. Increased populations actually promote economic growth and cheaper food prices.

The documentary suggests that the solution to the fertility rate crisis is to revert to a more paternalist society where women are again more dedicated to taking care of the home and children. They also stress the importance of strengthening the institution of  marriage.

All this made me think how carefully planned human society is. Krishna (through the Vedas and other scriptures), so carefully laid out the fundamental rules for a healthy society – the rules for the different varnas, the roles of men and women, the different ashrams, etc. Our attempts to rewrite the rules and traditions, especially in the last 100 years, are leading to massive chaos on so many levels. We are now literally dying off. I’m increasingly aware of how this current lifestyle we have come to consider “normal” is but an artificial bubble which is wreaking ecological havoc and encouraging unsustainable human behavior. I reckon that those of us who will live 50 years or more will see a world culture with more emphasis on religion and traditional values, as well as a much more sustainable, more agrarian and local, economic model.

To end of on a lighter note, I’ll leave you with Dilbert’s take on the death of capitalism:

Nrsimhadeva Festival in Pandavas Paradise

On Thursday, the 7th, we held a festival in Pandavas Paradise to celebrate the appearance of Lord Nrsimhadeva.

This is a picture of our Yoga-Nrsimha deity with Lakshmi Devi and Sesa Naga.

Some of our Brasilia congregation were inspired to drive the 250km to Pandavas Paradise, just to participate in the Festival, driving out the next day very early, arriving in time for their jobs.

Most of the participants were from the local town of Alto Paraíso, though none of them “native” townsfolk. Alto Paraíso attracts seekers and hippies from all over Brazil and even other countries. It’s really the most “far out” small country town I know.

All in all we had about 50 people there.

These locals just love a good Hare Krishna Festival. They’ll sit and chant along for hours. They also pay close attention to the talk. I spoke a little about Lord Nrsimhadeva and together we chanted the Nrismhadeva prayer from the 5th Canto of the SB, spoken by Prahalada Maharaja.

When it’s time for kirtan, they dance very, very enthusiastically!

And they eagerly anticipate the prasadam, eating with great gusto, getting seconds and thirds.

The prasadam for this festival was especially tasty. It was prepared by Karuna Rsi Prabhvi (picture above), from Switzerland.

During the festival I also celebrated my 40th b-day! The crowd chanted a nice “Happy Birthday” and a nice big cake was made.

We had a wonderful time in Krishna consciousness!

You can see more pictures of the festival here.

May Retreat in Pandavas Paradise

This last weekend we had our May retreat in Pandavas Paradise. Though normally May is already the beginning of the long dry season in this part of the world, we had torrential rains for several days before the retreat and the first two days of it. This has never been seen here – I guess it’s just one more weird weather event to add to the global warming list!

We had a group of 12 people this time, smaller than our last Carnaval retreat. But, like the last retreat, there was a strong emphasis on bhakti throughout the retreat. People came to the retreat specifically either looking to deepen their practice of Krishna consciousness or to get to know more about it. 

The group was composed of psychologists, journalists, a public prosecutor, an engineer and a humble baker. The baker, Alexildo, had been studying Prabhupada’s Gita with his brother, on their own, for some time now, but this was his first contact with a temple and devotees.

The schedule was quite intense, with about 3 hours of lectures, 30 minutes of japa, and one hour of aratik and kirtan, every day. I taught them my “Yoga Sutra Summary” seminar, and gave my “Mantras from the Center of the Universe” workshop with the Jambudvip prayers from the 5th Canto.

In the mornings, after japa, they had long yoga classes, led by Radharani DD (PGS). She also offered Thai and Ayurvedic massage.

After breakfast, on the last two days, we managed to get good enough weather to go on nice walks through our beautiful land, heading towards the waterfalls for a invigorating swim.

All the newcomers there bought their own japa beads and books, to continue their practice and study at home.

Click here to see lots more photos taken by my wife, Carana Renu Dasi.

Mantra Workshop

Yesterday, my wife and I gave a Mantra Workshop in a local yoga studio in Brasilia.

This is one of my favorite workshops. What more could a servant of Lord C ask for? Leading people for 90 minutes (or more) in chanting the holy names is always very blissful.

We sang four different mantras, including Hare Krishna.  I also taught them a little about the need to call out for God, to practice some personal meditation through japa, and the importance of our books.

My wife sings beautifully and lead the singing half of the time.

The crowd seemed very pleased. Books and japa beads were sold at the end and a few new people showed interest in doing a retreat with us in Pandavas Paradise and coming to our Brasilia Sunday program.

BBT Trustee and Auditors Visit BBT Brazil

During 16-21 of abril I had the pleasure of hosting here in Brasília the BBT Trustee, Hanuman Prabhu, and the two BBT auditors, the couple Krsnanaam and Amrtanaam Prabhus.

Hanuman Prabhu is from Spain and has some 27 years of BBT experience. He is very, very hard working, serious and dedicated. He has been an inspiration to many devotees in Brazil, and has increased sankirtan here by his efforts. As director of the Brazil BBT, I’ve been working with him for some years now.

Krsnanaam and Amrtanaam Prabhus are wonderful devotees from the Chowpatty Temple, both disciples of Srila Radhanatha Swami. Krsnanaam Prabhu is CFO of the Chowpatty Temple, Co-CFO of the Mayapur Temple and BBT auditor. He’s an example of a very professional coorporate executive doing full time service for Srila Prabhupada’s mission.

On Sunday I invited them to preach to our humble local congregation. 

Amrtanaam Prabhu started by chanting a nice kirtan. Then Hanuman Prabhu gave us a 30 minute talk focused on sankirtan. He quoted Srila Devamrta Swami, who said that two things keep us very close to Srila Prabhupada: reading his books and distributing his books. These two things have a special place in our spiritual lives, giving us great advancement and enthusiasm.

Krsnanaam Prabhu then spoke 20 minutes on the importance and special bliss of vaishnava association. He reminded us how wonderful it is to be able to travel around the world and immediately share a bond of friendship and love with other ISKCON devotees one has just met for the first time. He then explained the core principle at the heart of the Chowpatty Temple success: looking after every devotee of the Lord with great love, pleasing the Lord by pleasing His devotee. The talk was very, very sweet and our little congregation was greatly moved.

Srila Prabhupada ki jay!

Anti Gay Marriage Video

This video is not a GBC production, but I expect that many GBC members would endorse it! 

This campaign has achieved notoriety for its ludicrous format and content.

A very interesting article was written about it in the New York Times – click here to read it.

This shows that the current stand of the GBC on the gay issue is on the furthest fringe of the right. ISKCON is aligning itself with groups that are subject to ridicule and farce. Not a great way to spread our message. It’s especially worrisome because other vaishnava groups, such as Tripurari Swami’s group, are firmly mainstream on this issue and accepting of gay couples. Even Srila Hridayananda Maharaja has “moderated” his opinion that we should “recognize and encourage” gay monogamy, and included in his discourse that gays are, in a sense, “abnormal” and not worthy of the same rights, namely marriage and equal social acceptance of their relationships,  as “normal” heterosexual couples.

For a hilarious response to the above NOM video, click here.