November Retreat in Pandavas Paradise

Our latest yoga retreat at Pandavas Paradise (our environmental reserve and bhakti yoga ashram in Chapada dos Veadeiros) was held over the long weekend of October 30th to November 2nd.

Most of the participants were first-timers and had previously had no previous contact with Vaishnavism. It’s a blessing to be able to meet new people, coming from many different paths. We had people from Sao Paulo, Porto Alegre, Rio de Janeiro and Brasilia.

During the retreat I gave a seminar on “The Path of Knowledge and Peace in Yoga”. In this seminar we studied the definition of knowledge and peace given by Krishna in the Bhagavad-gita, and how to achieve it, as well as techniques to achieve peace given by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutra. Due to rain, instead of the walk that we had scheduled for Sunday, I presented another seminar, “Karma: what it is and how to get rid of it.”

As always, we had two aratiks and 30 minutes of japa every day. It was the first time that most had tried mantra meditation but they liked it!

We had Radharani DD as our yoga teacher. This time she also brought her fiancé, Tulasi Prabhu. Our guests always appreciate her yoga classes, as well as her ayurvedic and thai massages. No stress can survive a few days in nature, with mantras, yoga and massages!

The guests loved the prasada. We used several products from our organic garden, including sweet passion fruit, strawberries, blackberries, mulberries, bananas, chilis and a variety of herbs.

It was mostly rainy, but we managed to get enough sunshine on the last day for nice walk and a swim at our invigorating water falls.

Here are some comments we received from the guests after the retreat:

“I would like to thank you for sharing this Paradise! It was wonderful! I was in need of a refreshing moment of pause to remind me of myself and to connect with this important aspect of life. “- Cecilia

“… I came back feeling very well, as if I had taken a one month vacation. I am very grateful to you all for the hospitality. I hope to always come back and to bring more people to enjoy such wonderful retreats. “- Gina

“I can only thank you for letting me know and spend some time in this Paradise G_d has lent you.” – Claudia

Click here to see lots more pictures!

Architects, Engineers and 3D artists wanted for Vedic Planetarium model

We are putting together a team of architects and engineers to further develop a practical, physical model of the universe according to the Srimad Bhagavatam.

The basic idea for this model has already been worked out by Carana Renu dasi (PhD in Astrophysics, previously the coordinator and a leading researcher of the official Vedic Planetarium Reseach Project).  Now we require some architects and engineers to work with us to figure out how to create a real-life, rotating, physical design for this model to fit into the main dome of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.  This will involve details about the types of materials to be used, lighting, the mechanics, electronics and computerized control of the motions, how the physical model will be integrated and mounted into the overall structure of the main temple dome and walls, as well as the general aesthetic considerations of the installation.

A basic outline of the physical design will be presented to the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium design team through the use of sketches, 3D models, and animations.

Unfortunately there is no funding available for this project, but we are asking devotees who are keen to render some valuable service to this important and historic project, for the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada and the devotees, to please offer their time.  If you have any of the relevant skills to contribute to this project, and would like to be involved, please contact me, the team coordinator, Giridhari Das: gd@pandavas.org.br as soon as possible.

The Devi Ashram: Openings for an ashram leader and ashram residents

Introduction

The Devi Ashram is a new International Vaishnavi Training and Retreat Centre in Brazil that will offer ladies of all ages an opportunity to come and learn or teach all aspects of a Krishna conscious lifestyle, or just relax and read/study Srila Prabhupada’s books in a good devotional atmosphere. The resident students at the ashram will receive training in the philosophy of the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam, and learn to cook, give classes, worship deities, preach, play our traditional instruments, lead kirtans, even grow their own vegetables, and more. Those who come for reading retreats will be free to participate in all student activities or simply relax and study Prabhupada’s books. All the ladies at the Devi Ashram will also be able to take advantage of our nature trails, fresh water pools and waterfalls.

We are an ISKCON project located in the beautiful natural surroundings of Pandavas Paradise (Paraíso dos Pândavas) at Chapada dos Veadeiros, a famous eco-tourism and spiritual-tourism destination about two hours from Brasilia, the capital of Brazil. The temperatures are warm all year round, the air is clean, and the water at our natural pools and waterfalls is crystal clear. We have various nature trails for taking walks in the most bio-diverse savanna on the planet, and many types of fruits and vegetables are growing in our organic garden.

Ashram leader wanted

We are looking for a female ashram leader to begin in December 2009 or January 2010. This is a temporary position for 6 months only.

The main duties of the ashram leader will be to:

• oversee the daily activities of the other ashram members, students and guests
• provide some spiritual guidance to those under her care
• give classes on Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam
• teach some basic practical aspects of Krishna conscious life
• ensure that all the ashram members are following the rules of the ashram
• participate and assist in our regular spiritual retreats

The ideal candidate will be initiated, have some ashram experience, be well-read in Srila Prabhupada’s books, and be able to work with ladies of all ages from all backgrounds and at all levels of experience in Krishna consciousness.  Being able to speak either Spanish or Portuguese as well as English is very important for this role.

In return for her service, the ashram leader will receive healthy prasada, comfortable single room accommodation and basic maintenance during her stay with us. We will also pay in full for her round trip to Brasilia provided she stays for a whole six months. This is a great opportunity for anyone looking to perform some pioneering preaching service in a unique and exciting new project.

Openings for ashram residents and students

We are also open for applications from potential ashram residents and students for stays of up to 6 months beginning January 2010 or later. The main qualifications for acceptance are

• a serious commitment to the process of Krishna consciousness
• a desire to serve Srila Prabhupada’s ISKCON

The main duties of ashram residents and students are to:

• participate in the ashram’s training activities and temple programs
• follow the rules of the ashram and the ashram leader
• participate and assist in retreats at Pandavas Paradise
• study Prabhupada’s books independently for at least 1.5 hours every day

Ashram residents will be expected to pay a minimal monthly fee in return for the training, accommodation and prasada that they receive. Some yoga classes will also be provided.

We are able to cater to individual requirements in terms of study, service, diet, sleeping arrangements etc. – your stay with us will be highly personalized.

Visit us

Anyone interested in visiting the Devi Ashram for a short-term spiritual retreat, study break or to teach a course is also welcome to contact us for further information.

Contact

To apply or for further information on any of the above, please contact us through Carana Renu Dasi: cr@pandavas.org.br.

Interfaith Dialogue in Brazil

On October 19 and 20, I participated in an interfaith event organized by Amisrael, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) with international activities aimed at peace between peoples and nations.

The theme was, “The Agenda of Religions in the Postmodern World.” I participated in two panels – one was on “Religion and Globalization” and the other was on “Religion and Communications”.

When I spoke on “Religion and Globalization”, I raised the point that this was not the first globalization. I said that the Vedic texts report that there was a globalization thousands of years ago, with the difference that the center of civilization was then Southeast Asia. Europe and the Americas were mainly forests and grasslands, inhabited by simpler civilizations. I emphasized that the main difference is that in Vedic culture there is a natural understanding that God is seen differently by different people and that historically there are few cases of religious violence or wars motivated by religious hatred in this culture. This, I pointed out, is very different from what happened in Europe and the Middle East, the perpetrators of modern globalization, where religious hatred and intolerance was a dominant aspect of the expansion of their cultures. I concluded by saying that now, with the world having greater access to Vedic culture and the spiritual science of yoga, our hope is that this Vedic mentality, of religious tolerance and the understanding that there will always be different religious expressions, can be part of global consciousness, replacing the sectarian nature of the Abrahamic religions.  The organizers and some of the participants told me they appreciated my presentation very much.

For the panel on “Religion and Communication”, each representative spoke a little about the communication efforts made by their religion. I was surprised with what I heard. A representative of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism said that of the 40 temples that they have in Brazil, 20 are closed. He said that they have no systematic communication work – they do not use websites, blogs, mailing lists… nothing. He said that practically all of the monks in Brazil (and they’ve been in Brazil for some 40 years!) do not speak Portuguese. As a result, not surprisingly, their mission is running the risk of becoming extinct. A representative of Islam said that they do not believe in using the Internet, mailing lists, blogs, etc. In their religion, he emphasized, only person to person communications count. He also said that one of the main problems of Islam in Brazil is that few of their missionaries speak Portuguese and Arabic well enough to do their work. The representative of Judaism showed that they were making use of mailing lists, websites, downloadable lessons, etc., but to me it didn’t seem very impressive. I confess that it was with some degree of pride that I explained how much we are doing in the Hare Krishna movement. I spoke of our thousands of websites, mailing lists, blogs, twitter accounts, etc. I said that in just a single website (www.iskcondesiretree.info) we have more than 29 thousand lectures for free download with more being added every day. I told them about our MP3 audio books for free download (in Brazil we have the SB First Canto, the Krishna Book and Sri Isopanishad), our video broadcasts online, and how an increasing number of our temples have live Internet video feeds. The presentation caused some surprise among the participants, who saw that our group, though so small and young compared to theirs, was taking full advantage of the modern means of communication.

I also had the opportunity to participate in interviews with the press, where I talked about Krsna consciousness and our vision of certain global issues.

At the event there were some important figures, such as the “Pope of Judaism”, Yona Metzger, the chief rabbi of Israel (in the picture with me here).

Gurus in ISKCON

(you can download a PDF version of this essay here)

ISKCON is still trying to perfect its guru system. I’m convinced some critical adjustments must be made for the good of the institution and the spiritual lives of our members. I’d like to contribute to this discussion by offering my views and recommendations on the subject of gurus in ISKCON. Basically there are three key problems: 1) the criteria and governing rules we currently have for identifying diskha-gurus, 2) misunderstandings as to the role of the diksha-guru and 3) not recognizing the vast importance of our shiksha-gurus and the founder-acharya, Srila Prabhupada.

Preliminary Assumptions

First, I believe Srila Prabhupada has given us all the core knowledge we need to go back home, back to Godhead and reunite with Krishna in an intimate blissful relationship. He has given us so much transcendental knowledge in his books, approximately 30 thousand pages, that few devotees even manage to once read it over, what to speak of actually study it in detail and fully absorb it. Because we now have his printed books in so many languages and his recorded lectures, letters and conversations available to anyone, anywhere in the world – Prabhupada’s presence today is actually greater than it was when he was physically present in the planet.

Secondly, I believe that despite the vast store of knowledge brought to us by Srila Prabhupada, we all need gurus to help us first find out about Krishna Consciousness, help us understand it, engage us in practical service, remove our doubts, give us encouragement, etc.

Lastly, ISKCON is a society of gurus. A missionary society is one that is dedicated to teaching spiritual knowledge – and teaching spiritual knowledge is exactly what makes one a guru. I firmly believe all active members of ISKCON, from the newest enthused bhakta or bhaktin to the most senior GBC or sannyasi members, are gurus.  Further, we live in the Internet and Information Era. Never before has information been so abundant, and this applies to spiritual information as well. Members of ISKCON have a vast selection of devotional classes in audio or video, essays, websites, blogs, tweets, social networking sites, etc. – in all these there is a chance to learn more about Krishna. And anyone who comes in contact with any of our active members, in person or via some other media, has come in contact with a guru and has a chance to make progress in Krishna consciousness.  For a typical member of ISKCON today, literally hundreds of such gurus will contribute to his or her progress, from the very beginning to the very end.

The role of a guru

The role of a guru is primarily to teach (for me this includes encouraging, guiding, being an example, etc.). I here firmly reject all mystical claims as to the role of the guru. These claims are not to be found in the Bhagavad-gita or Srimad Bhagavatam. Any such claims made by our acharyas, including Srila Prabhupada, are to be properly understood in light of the scriptures, not in contradiction to them. Krishna Consciousness is a spiritual science – things are rational and make sense. There is no reason to throw in mystical claims which are not a prominent part of the teachings of Krishna as seen in the Gita or Srimad Bhagavatam.

Though in normal circumstances a diksha-guru in ISKCON should have a prominent role in the life of a disciple, his or her role must be properly understood in light of the fact that we have so many active shiksha-gurus in our life and, above all, we have Srila Prabhupada. The current emphasis generally given to the diksha-guru in ISKCON simply does not properly take into consideration this fact. As such, I believe it is not an overstatement to say that no diksha-guru in ISKCON is our lifeline to Krishna or our ticket to Vaikuntha. No diksha-guru in ISKCON is our sole and only source of transcendental knowledge. No diksha-guru in ISKCON is the only one capable of engaging us in service, nor is service to the diksha-guru our main concern. The reality in ISKCON is very different. All those wonderful verses we find about the guru in our tradition do not apply exclusively to the person of our diksha-guru. For members of ISKCON they refer to the sum total of the gurus in our life, first and foremost in the person of Srila Prabhupada, but also extending to our past acharyas and including the thousands of other gurus in ISKCON.  If one’s diksha-guru should happen to quit his or her practices, change his or her mind, commit a terrible mistake or reveal to the world that he or she has always privately been struggling with one or a sum of character flaws – this in no way affects one’s spiritual life. This fact must become common knowledge in ISKCON. We must demystify the role of the diksha-guru in ISKCON.

So who should be our diksha-guru in ISKCON?

Of these hundreds of gurus one comes in contact with in his progress in Krishna Consciousness, generally one assumes a more prominent role. One experienced member with whom we connect, create a bond of trust, have good and easy communication with and whose life we feel honors and reflects well our spiritual goals. There should be a real relationship between these two, the guru and the disciple. They should work together, talk, and see one other. If the guru feels the disciple is sincere and has met ISKCON standards, he or she can accept him. If the disciple wants this person to be his guru then this special shiksha-guru should become his diksha-guru. This is the traditional method. This is the Vedic system.

I believe it would be much healthier in general if diksha-gurus were local, or at least local in the sense of being the most active and present guru in our lives. A guru who is close to us will be able to help us much more than one that is not – this is just simple common sense.

Contrary to common belief in ISKCON, a guru need not be a liberated soul, nor the most advanced kind of devotee. There is both scriptural confirmation and the teachings of Srila Prabhupada to support this statement (see CC Adi-lila 1.47, for one such example).

A disciple of such a non-perfect guru has nothing to lose in ISKCON, because all of us have Srila Prabhupada and access to hundreds or thousands of other gurus in ISKCON who constantly offer their guidance, teachings and practical help. Diksha is our formal, official connection to this wonderful Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, to Srila Prabhupada and to the ever-growing and rich association of sincere practitioners of Krishna Consciousness, of gurus, we find in ISKCON.  We are thus not limited by our diksha-guru as someone in the past might have been, when the relationship was that of an individual with another individual, in isolation, without the resources we have at hand, and without full access to a powerful founder-acharya.

Practical recommendations

ISKCON should, therefore, abolish the ecclesiastical guru stamp. Instead, it should empower its thousands of active missionary devotees who today are not properly recognized as gurus. ISKCON should allow its members to choose their own diksha-guru as they see fit. The burden of verifying the guru’s qualities should rest with the disciple, not the GBC, not the administrative authorities. The decision of accepting a disciple should rest with the guru (of course following minimum ISKCON requirements). This system has worked for thousands of years and it can work today, to the benefit of ISKCON as an institution and the individual members.

This is not a new idea. It’s the suggestion made by the Shastric Advisory Committee (SAC) to the GBC years ago. Click here to read that report.

The following is a quote from a Srimad Bhagavatam class by Bhakti Caru Swami on October 5th in Vrindavana [no year is given]:

“…but since we are not putting the importance on shiksha, Srila Prabhupada’s position as the pre-eminent shiksha guru of this movement for all the devotees for all time has been minimized.”

ISKCON is a society and as such it naturally polices itself. Bad Temple Presidents, GBCs, congregational members, lecturers, etc. are quickly identified and dealt with, to minimize damage to the society. The same thing will naturally happen with those acting as diksha-gurus – it need be no different. The pre-approval of the authorities has not protected the society from damage caused by diksha-gurus gone bad. Our society has dealt with diksha-gurus gone bad many times. The situation, however, was made worse by the very fact that there was a pre-approval by the authorities and by the unrealistic understanding of the role of the diksha-guru in ISKCON. Without this pre-approval and with a more realistic understanding of the role of the diksha-guru, we will be much better equipped to deal with such fall downs.

This is a more practical, safer, more Vedic, more down to earth view of gurus in general and especially of diksha in ISKCON. Such a system would end the suffering caused by guru misconceptions in ISKCON, end personality cults, would more appropriately put the focus on Srila Prabhupada, end the parallel lines of power created by bigger-than-life gurus, and empower thousands of sincere preachers.

Srila Acharyadeva in Govardhana Lila Ashram

After leaving Nova Gokula, on Monday, the 21st, Srila Acharyadeva went to Campos de Jordão, to the beautiful Govardhana Lila Ashram. Campos de Jordão is a famous tourist destination in the mountains, about 2.5 hours from São Paulo.

Govardhana Lila Ashram is very impressive. Good taste abounds and it’s beautifully maintained. Everything is very classy. It’s the result of decades of work by the couple Govardhana Das and Krishna-lila DD, both disciples of Srila Acharyadeva.

The surrounding area is charming, set in a remote valley in the mountains, at an altitude of 1300 m. (4000 ft).

They maintain 46 cows, 4 horses and 6 dogs. They grow their own rice and beans, as well as all kinds of vegetables and fruits (including strawberries, blackberries and blueberries).  Everything is organic, of course.

With the milk of the cows, they produce delicious types of cream cheese, semi-hard cheese and milk sweets. They also produce celestial jams with their fruits.

They have a beautiful yoga space, with breathtaking views of the valley. They also have dozens of suites, with charming decoration.

About 130 devotees came from Nova Gokula to spend the day with Srila Acharyadeva. They were given lunch, spent the day doing kirtan and, at night listened to a talk by Srila Acharyadeva. Unfortunately, many of the devotees had to leave at night, after the talk, under a torrential downpour.  The lights also went out (because of the storm). Things got a little chaotic, but, in the end, everyone got back on the highway safely.

The famous yoga teacher and devotee, Regina Shakti, was also there. She runs a very successful yoga business, sells thousands of her DVDs, books, CDs, etc. She always comes to visit Srila Acharyadeva when he visits Brazil. Despite her great success, she is very humble and likeable.

About 30 devotees, including Chandramukha Swami, spent the night there. The following day Srila Acharyadeva japa-strolled around the farm and talked with the devotees. He was finally able to get some rest and relax a bit, after 3 intense weeks of preaching in Brazil. We had some very sweet and humorous moments – it was quite special.

From there Srila Acharyadeva went to Pindamonhangaba for his last program in Brazil, before setting off to Chile (he travelled on the 23rd). Unfortunately, I had to say goodbye to him in Campos de Jordão, as I headed back to Brasília.

Srila Acharyadeva was very pleased with his Brazil tour. Devotees organized his trip very well and everything pretty much went according to plan.

Click here to see more pictures of Govardhana Lila Ashram and Srila Acharyadeva.

Srila Acharyadeva Visits Nova Gokula

I had the good fortune of being able to accompany Srila Acharyadeva on his visit of Nova Gokula, this last weekend.

Over 500 devotees travelled to Nova Gokula to get Srila Acharyadeva’s rare and transformative association. Nova Gokula is the most important rural community and temple in Brazil. It was started 31 years ago and is situated in a beautiful valley of the Mantiqueira mountain range, about 30 minutes away from the city of Pindamonhangaba, in the state of São Paulo.

He arrived on Friday, the 18th of September. As usual, he got out of the car well before the entrance, so as to enter Nova Gokula on foot. The devotees went down the road to receive with great fanfare, a garland and kirtan.

A local news team from one of the major TV channels was also there, to report on his arrival and interview him.

He first paid his obeisances to Srila Prabhupada and the beautiful deities of Nova Gokula. In Nova Gokula we have deities of Radha-Gokulananda, Sita-Rama-Lakshmana-Hanuman and Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai. It’s the most beautiful altar in ISKCON Brazil.

He then gave a talk in the temple. He spoke a little about his trip through Brazil. After that he emphasized the importance of ISKCON being a movement and not just a religion, in the sense of the members of ISKCON prioritizing the diffusion of Krishna consciousness (KC), the expansion of the Society, as opposed to merely taking care of their private spiritual lives.

Later that same day, at night, he gave a darshan in his house, answering questions. Amongst other things, he spoke about the many different endeavors necessary to distribute KC and about the dangers for a devotee entering politics.

On Saturday morning devotees with academic careers met with Srila Acharyadeva to present their lines of research to him and the assembled devotees. As in other countries, Acharyadeva has emphasized in Brazil the importance of having qualified devotees in the academic world.

In the afternoon, he spoke at a wedding that took place in Nova Gokula. The wedding attracted quite a bit of media attention, because all things “Indian” are in vogue here due to a successful soap opera set in India by the country’s top TV station. In his talk, Acharyadeva pointed out that the position of a married devotee (grihastha ashram) is superior to that of a celibate student (brahmacari ashram).

Sunday was quite intense for Srila Acharyadeva. He started out by giving a phenomenal Srimad Bhagavatam class, which is already being considered a historic lecture here in Brazil. It was over two hours long. He explained the importance of adjusting the details of the presentation of Krishna consciousness, while preserving the fundamental aspects. He also spoke about the dangers of misinterpreting Srila Prabhupada, ignoring Srila Prabhupada’s own descriptions of himself.

We’ll be posting all of his lectures in Brazil online, but here is a link to the video of this particular class (all in Portuguese, of course). Later, I intend to post some excerpts of this class, translated into English.

After the class, he had a private meeting with the disciples of Param Gati Swami. It lasted for over two hours (and this was just after a two hour class!).

In the evening there were initiations. Here we see Bn. Rosângela being initiated as Rasanandi Devi Dasi. After receiving her beads and new name, she asked for the microphone. She told the assembled devotees that she was 50 years old and that people should know that it’s never too late to take up their spiritual lives.

After the initiations he had to go to an administrative meeting with all the Nova Gokula residents. In Brazil we have just re-instated a National Council for Nova Gokula, composed of senior devotees, to manage this important project better.

On Monday, Acharyadeva had several private darshans. Then he said good-bye to the deities and the devotees and set off to Campos de Jordão, a famous tourist destination in the mountains of São Paulo, to visit the impressive Govardhana-lila Ashram, set up by a couple who are disciples of his. In my next post I’ll describe his visit there.

You can see over a hundred pictures of Srila Acharyadeva and Nova Gokula from the past weekend here.

Srila Acharyadeva Visits Pandavas Paradise

Srila Hridayananda das Goswami Acharyadeva’s visit to Pandavas Paradise this last weekend was a historic occasion. Pandavas Paradise was started by me because, 10 years ago, my spiritual master, Srila Acharyadeva, requested that I set up a rural project in that region. It was a one line email, just saying he wanted me to “bring Krishna to High Paradise”. (The nearest town is called Alto Paraíso, which means “High Paradise”).

There were no further consultations. I did not ask from him, nor did he give me, any other details on the project. What to do? Where to do it? What to build? How big, how many, when??? But I just set off to do it, constantly praying for guidance and inspiration from Krishna.

So, ten years later, when the time finally came for him to see what had been done, I confess I was quite anxious! What if he didn’t like it? What if he thought I had spoiled it?

We organized a retreat there with Srila Acharyadeva, as part of his Brazil Tour. People came from all over the country. It was our biggest retreat yet, with some 50 people there. We had to buy extra pots, pans, plates, cups and cutlery for it.

We got there before most other guests had arrived, so Acharyadeva could look around in peace, have a quiet lunch and get ready for the evening program. To my great relief, he immediately liked it! He loved the beautiful scenery, the distant horizons, the deep blue of the sky, and the grassy plains. He loved the crisp pure 4000 ft (1300 m) altitude mountain air. He liked our guest rooms, our log buildings and our vegetable garden. Phew! I couldn’t believe my good fortune!

Throughout the retreat he remarked on what had been done there. He said it was very inspiring and it had been very important for him to have gone there. He said that he had all kinds of realizations there. One point that struck him most was that we had created a bubble of transcendental reality. Because the place is so big (800 acres, 397 hectares) and far away from everything (from all sides you can only see in the distance a few other farm houses), the outside world is left behind and one becomes absorbed in the prevailing Krishna conscious atmosphere.

Acharyadeva gave two main lectures during the retreat. One covered the existence of the personal soul and personal God concept in different religions. The other was a Gita lecture on verse 10.10 were he stressed the need for understanding God in order to understand oneself and the importance of the holy names.

For the second lecture, we had some guests come from the local town. We started off with aratik and kirtan, led by my wife, Carana Renu DD.

Acharyadeva danced in ecstasy!

We also had a special guest there, Jagad Vicitra Prabhu. He was one of the first Prabhupada disciples in Brazil and is the brother of Dhanvantari Swami (also a Prabhupada disciple and one of the pioneers of KC in Brazil). Jagad Vicitra Prabhu opened dozens of temples in the North and Northeast of Brazil in the early days, under the command of Srila Acharyadeva. He deeply loves and appreciates Srila Acharyadeva. He gave two classes, one was just glorifying Acharyadeva, the other was on the glories of the Srimad Bhagavatam. His second lecture was so effective one of the retreat guests bought a whole collection! People laughed and cried at his lectures – he’s an amazing story-teller and a very captivating speaker.

On Saturday we walked to the waterfalls. It was a beautiful day and people had a great time.

Early on Sunday, we had to leave for the airport (3 hours away), as Acharyadeva was off to Porto Alegre.

I was very grateful for his visit, for Prabhupada’s mercy and for Krishna so kindly letting me take part in such sweet transcendental adventure.

Click here to see more pictures of the retreat with Srila Acharyadeva.

Click here to see pictures of the lecture he gave in Brasilia, the day before we travelled to Pandavas Paradise.

Social Marketing and Sankirtan

Yesterday I experienced the power of social marketing. In 12 hours I sold 169 books online!

I’m currently about to print a new edition of my first book, “Ciência Espiritual – Uma Introdução à Sabedoria do Yoga” (only available in Portuguese, but the translated title is, “Spiritual Science – An Introduction to the Wisdom of Yoga”). I recently got an ISBN code for it, allowing me to sell it in bookstores, etc. I also had a new cover made, which I really liked (see below). But the problem was that I still had 165 volumes in stock, which would normally take months to sell, and I wanted to sell them before printing the new run.

So, I sent a message to my Pandavas Paradise email list (it only has 624 people on it, but it’s always growing), telling people about it and asking for their help. I asked for 15 people to buy 11 books each, for a discounted price, suggesting they could then give it away as they pleased.

I first thought I’d get maybe one or two people. To my surprise I got more than I needed within 12 hours!  The books are now completely sold out!

I think what made this campaign work is:

1) I don’t usually ask for things. I usually just give.
2) I explained the reason behind it, and it was a good one. I think people need a story to go with a plea. Just asking people to buy books because Prabhupada likes it, because they’ll be blessed by it or because other people will benefit is not enough.
3) I made it easy by not asking for anything too difficult and it was zero time consuming.

I’m now looking for ways to do this more, both with my books using our Pandavas Paradise list and also with BBT books using our Amigos de Krishna list (currently with 9000 members!).

What to do with Narayana Maharaja’s Disciples?

I’ve come across three types of difficult situations in my interactions with the followers of Narayana Maharaja.

1) When a devotee from ISKCON is convinced to join their ranks.

This is the worst case scenario and the subject of heated debates and a lot ill-feeling between ISKCON and NM’s followers. When the devotee is already initiated by an ISKCON guru in good standing, then it’s a disgrace to re-initiate them. Sometimes the devotee convinced to join NM is not already initiated in ISKCON but had been carefully taken care of within ISKCON, in some cases for years and years. If you’re a preacher it’s not a nice feeling. You’ve invested so much time and care with that devotee, and one day they show up and they’ve taken initiation from NM. It happened to me and the woman, later, in tears, begged forgiveness for having taken initiation from NM, but said that she was too fallen to chant 16 rounds a day and she desperately wanted to be initiated. I told her, though, that because she had willingly and purposefully taken initiation from another instititution, that I could no longer help her as before, nor could we engage her fully in our activities. My reasoning was that it would be unethicial of me to act as her siksha-guru, giving her instructions according to ISKCON philosophy and giving her service in ISKCON, as that would likely contradict the desire of her new diskha-guru.

2) When an innocent person gets initiation from NM without having any idea of what’s going on and actually prefers to be in ISKCON.

Because the NM camp have effectively lowered to zero the requirements for initiation, I often come across cases in which people have attended, for the first time in their lives, some public program by the followers of NM, and have left there duly initiated, with kanthi beads and a spiritual name! No vows, no idea what just happened. Personally, I think it’s a sham. An embarrasment to the Vaishnava parampara. I have a member in our small congregation who, after coming to our program for months, told me she was very worried about this flash initiation she had gotten without any idea of what was going on. She said that she wanted to be in ISKCON and to be freed of her connection to the NM camp. I told her that, in her case, the flash initiation was not valid, as she was not informed of what it was at the time. This was a few years ago. She is still with us, coming to our programs and retreats.

3) When a person becomes attracted to KC and willingly takes initiation from NM, but then approaches ISKCON for service and guidance.

It’s nice to see the NM camp actually making devotees, and not just stealing them from ISKCON, but it’s a complicated situation when their members approach ISKCON for spiritual help. Out of mercy and compassion, one should freely give spiritual instructions and engage people in Krishna’s service. But on the other hand, training and guiding these people seems like a bad idea to me because my goal in life is to engage people in Prabhupada’s mission, and I cannot do so with them. I am also left with the feeling that the followers of NM should do a better job in taking care of their own family. When these people approach me, it’s like having to take care of someone else’s children. Sure you want to help the innocent child, but you can’t help thinking that this is the parent’s duty! So, I feel divided between my natural desire to help and my more pragmatic intuition that this is not my job and it will not ultimately please Srila Prabhupada to cultivate members of other institutions.

I’d appreciate more discussion and thought on these points by ISKCON devotees in general, and perhaps some clearer guidance from the leadership.