The Wishing Well

But I know what your're wishing for, yeah
 ... love in a peaceful world
 ... love in a peaceful world
 ... love in a peaceful world, yeah

(From the song "Wishing Well" by Free)

Purely Beautiful

When I was in Bhubaneswar, sitting at the lotus feet of Srila Gour Govinda Swami, hearing Srimad-Bhagavatam daily, day after day, month after month, till the best part of 1994 dissapeared into oblivion, I heard so many amazing things from sastra, so many amazing pastimes of the Lord and His devotees, but most of all I became besotted with Srila Gour Govinda Swami himself.

For those who took sufficient time out from material life to sit with him, often, through the heat of summer, a mere handful of thirty to fourty souls gathered with him, to live life his way, to experience a more simple existence; one that revolved around loving, caring and belonging, encouragement, acceptance, and being together in an harmonious fraternity, wherein Srila Gour Govinda Swami, whilst clearly the leader, by a country mile and then some, was somehow, just one of us.

"Just one of us individuals"; thrown together in this phantasmagorical existence that for many us was was at once consuming and bewildering; we saw ourselves sucked into material life, unwillingly we were part of this life in it's vulgar state, but like lotus blooms, we struggled to rise above the mud that both spawned and stifled our creative essence. By the grace of His Grace we were often able to achieve this. Such is the munificence of Krishna's devotee.

A Vision of Magnificence

Srila Gour Govinda Swami showed us by his own leading example that we could be much more than this material existence. The sastric evidences pointed to it, the ceremonies and practices we followed both pointed to it and glorified it. We saw a vision of how life really is, for those whose hearts are wholesome, accommodating, caring and positively joyous. Indulgence became, for the most part, so unnecessary, superflous, and through all our individual ups and downs, Srila Gour Govinda Swami, was our guide, demonstrating how our hearts could unfold; he was to us (and still is) a perfect friend, one whose friendship and association is sought out by the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna Himself.

So attractive are saintly persons; so attractive are Sri Sri Radha Krishna. Friendship, fraternity, belonging, were all part of our daily routine, and while we, ourselves, still infected by the disease of material dirt, clung tightly to the unimaginably beautiful purity that is the heart of Srila Gour Govinda Swami, we set our sights on a destination that was more than some vague, undefined term like spiritual world, Vrajaloka, or even the words of wonderful books like the Krsna book or Sri Brahma Samhita.

Sri Sundarananda Syamasundara

We were shown a clearly definite realisation of where we were headed, by personal love and kindness, personally demonstrating to us that the spiritual world is a world of sweet, sweet love where we are individually encouraged rather than herded as an amorphous crowd, we were so sweetly mollycoddled into the knowledge that this lifestyle, as the loving servants of our Sri Sri Radhe-Radha Ramana is the goal of our existence, and nothing less could satisfy our longings and our needs. The beauty of pure love, in fact, almost any love at all, needs no description; it is self-evident, overwhelmingly attractive, and sweet beyond the scope of poet, pen and paper.

Return from Forever

Back in Australia, devoid of the purity of Srila Gour Govinda Swami's loving gaze, I gradually descended into a kind of an amalgam of the Bhubaneswar life and the western dream (as demanded by local customs, government authorities, and the demands of those with whom I found myself associating). I occasionally spent time with my dear friend and guide, Srila Gour Govinda Swami, when he visited, but the mood, somewhat sullied by my mind being affected by western materialism, was never quite as beautiful as the gifts he gave us within the purity of Sri Bhubaneswar.

Rasa ki Jaya

Next came Srila Narayana Maharaja, who took on the task of becoming my diksa guru; a soul as dedicated to sweet love as any could be, so much so that he's earned himself the epithet of rasa acarya, a title that needs no justification to those who've tasted the beauty of his expansive heart. A friend in every sense of the word. A guide through the wilderness of bewilderment and reactivity. No words could aptly glorify the beautiful heart of this magnamous soul.

Humbly I Come with Cap in Hand

But lately, here in "Mura-willumbah", I begin to wonder if even devotee association is to be considered good for my spititual life. The term friendship in Murwillumbah seems to embody a bizzare abberation of the concept I understood in Orissa. Sweetness seems displaced by domination. Attempts at being oneself are not encouraged and supported, on the contrary, they are opposed. Stepping outside of the social status-quo is met with conflict and derision, or at best, being ignored. Indulgent reactivity to almost any and every situation seems to be the order of the day.  A genuine material rat race complete with the scrambles to achieve high ranking within the pecking order. So rarely it seems that friends genuinely enquire as to one's personal condition; socialising seems to be little more than a game of increasing levels of one upmanship fuelled by competitive quotes from sastra. It's difficult to feel at ease in such a competitive environment.

Oddly enough the lion's share of devotees here in Murwillumbah are simple hearted, straightforward, devotees, keen to tolerate and cooperate and work things out among us but the few disturbing elements within the community create such a disruption for everybody else that anxiety, suspicion and mistrust are holding everyone back enough of the time, as to represent a serious threat to social stability, invoking less than optimal behavior from the best fraction of our community.

I have no wish to sound offensive, so please forgive any attempt by my words to incite the contrary view within your mind, but, I begin to wonder if it's possible to engage in friendships within the confines of the prison house of Durga Devi. Perhaps our minds are too distorted by the filth of the selfish desires we attempt to discard.

It is with some trepidation that I voice my opinion here, due to breaking trust with the "positive attitude" that is demanded of me for I know that I am bound to offend those who wish to be offended, whilst others perhaps those abovementioned offended souls, within the imaginarium of immunity that is their sanctimonious shadehouse, resplendant with obesiances and pleasantries, all the while seeking their own selfish ends, engage in a rampage of negativity, taking advantage of almost any situation to further their own goals under the guise of serving Srila Gurudeva. Almost everything one says and does will be used against you by those looking for leverage.

Unable to be as pure as my Srila Gurudeva(s), I can merely sit back and watch my brothers and sisters destroy themselves. The west, it seems, is far too infected with impersonal materialism wherein devotees utilise previous service as an indication of their own purity, thus lording it over others. "Don't you know who I am?" as Srila Gour Govinda Swami so often described for us.

Taming the Beast

If your political opponent were a scorpion or an enormous spider, surely you'd offer him more respect than you're currently offering. Srila Gurudeva has accepted him as his beloved disciple, surely that counts for plenty of understanding, affection and respect. But, of course, we also keep our distance from danger.

Nevertheless, I have some relationships which are truly beautiful, but as always, the disease of materialism entwines its grimy fingers even there, coldhearted and demanding as often as nourishing and supportive, it seems all too impossible for a useless, half hearted, indulgent being such as myself, to enliven others with the vision of pure love that Srila Gour Govinda Swami and Srila Narayana Maharaja personally embodied in their each and every deed.

Seedlings Need Nourishment and Shelter from the Heat of the Sun

The seedling of love that grows within my feeble heart, seeks rich organic nourishment, but all too often recieves only artificial, chemical, toxic, commercial fertiliser, and dirty water from a rapidly decimated well, is all the irrigation that is available. Well-wishing so often assumes the role of mere lip service. And when the same people always seem to be the ones embroiled, one begins to wonder who are the actual culprits. What amazes me is these people, due to their belligerent ignorance, think that they are doing the right thing, in much the same way as the Tweed Shire Council think that they are doing what's good for the people of the Tweed by making rules that create difficulties that bar us from freely operating a Hare Krishna temple. If only they could understand. It's their very opposition to others that makes it obvious to others exactly where they are coming from. We can tolerate such people but surely we can't permit despots to control Krishna's resources to their own "advantage."

It's clear that even the worst of devotees has ample good qualities, to the extent that we can overlook their faults, or at least find ways of working around them, even if not WITH them, instead of demonising them. We must, I emphasise, must, see the good qualities in each other, even if we cannot avoid their glaring faults. We must encourage them to grow, not oppose them.

Critter-cism

If I find that almost all of the time I am not inclined to speak critically, but then with certain people, I find that I do become inclined to speak critically (especially if I also hear criticism from said people) then I honestly have to consider where my loyalties lie. Better to have no friends here in the material world and still be good friends with my two beautiful Gurudevas than to go against the mood of my Gurudevas and have so called friends here in the material world who accept me because I am willing to submit to their line of thought, to fit within their social and philosophical parameters, but who encourage neither myself nor others to be themselves, who do not wish to tolerate and cooperate, merely to have others tolerate them and cooperate with them; to follow them. I wonder what to do in such a situation. Gurudeva wants us to tolerate and cooperate, but shouln't I avoid becoming a political pawn?

A somewhat difficult decision ensues as I have no wish to offend anyone, especially those persons who have, on occasion, been kind to me, and who surely will take offense should I voice any doubts regarding the degree of their integrity.

Nevertheless, I know where my loyalties lie. Let us hope that sanity and a higher level of consciousness pervades the community very soon and makes such worries a thing of the past. I know that Sripad Tirtha Maharaja is an highly elevated soul and despite the fact that we are HIS servants and not vice versa, I can only hope that, due to the presence in Murwillumbah of His Holiness, our level of consciousness gets a good shot in the arm and we can once again think and function like Vaisnavas/Vaisnavis.

Shelter from the Storm

The Holy Name is our dearest friend. Better to drink deeply of the nectar of the japa mala than to foolishly attempt to bring sanity into the madhouse? Perhaps a retirement to one's own space, a kind of singular cloister, where peace knows few interruptions, may be in order. But what of those who struggle in darkness? Is it even possible for a fallen soul like me to be of value to those souls?

I can only try my best to encourage those whose hearts are filled with joy whilst drinking the nectar of Sri Krishna Sankirtana, bhajaneers and kirtaneers, attracted by the beauty of the Holy Names, drowning in the loving pastimes of the spiritual world, rejecting the stark harshness of the cold snows of impersonalism and aggression.

But what of those who are thinking that they are serving spiritually yet all the while acting anathemically to the spiritual paradigm? If they are convinced that they already know what is true, who can help them?

Honestly folks, the difference between Sri Bhubaneswar and Sri Murwillumbah and I use the term Sri purposely since Srila Gurudeva and other amazing devotees stayed here and turned Murwillumbah into a tirtha (best NOT to move to some other locality despite what some people profess) BUT, I digress. The difference between Murwillumbah and Bhubaneswar is one of polar magnitude.

Srila Gurudeva has assembled us as a yatra. If we simply tolerate and cooperate like Gurudeva always requested then surely our communal spiritual growth will be quick and prolific.

I pray that soon I may leave this world and be united with my true friends, as we skip, hand in hand, towards the sacred groves on the bank of the Yamuna, drowning each other with playful splashing and laughter, eyes flashing with delight at the sight of our beloved conspirators in loving pastimes giving happily of their own immeasurable love, bonding heart to heart with ties that can never be slackened let alone broken. A world wherein offence has long ago atrophied into non-existence.

My brothers and sisters, please try to love each other. Even angry words, if uttered in the mood of a true well-wisher are supported by Bhakti-Devi, but better if harmonious dealings are created, for they make our efforts more efficient in achieving the goal of our many, many lives. All knowledge, all endeavours, all status, all of your hopes and dreams are nothing but mist in the wind if not enacted in the mood of the kind hearted, true well wisher. That, my friends, is the wishing well of devotional life.

Servant to ALL the devotees
tarunkrsnadas

Emails

Inbox Clutter and More

Megamails

Over the past few weeks there has been so much clutter in my email inbox that at times I began to consider opting out of the devotee emailing list.

Might I remind you all that there is a perfectly good, easy to join and use, forum available on YOUR GroupSpace that I set up for you ages ago, which is mostly ignored despite the fact that there are about 60 recipients on the devotee email list and at most about ten sending emails out to the rest of us. Subol Krsna confided in me one day that he also finds that devotees ignore the gifts he offers.

(How would you feel if you cooked a feast which nobody accepted and it all went to waste?)

http://groupspaces.com/giriraja

Manadena

It would be nice if you could respect our inbox space and use the GroupSpace instead of cluttering up the devotees' email inbox. Respect is of immense value if you really want to become a Vaisnava. I don't need your respect BUT you need to GIVE respect, just as I need to give respect. It's a fundamental part of Vaisnavism, without it ... you can guess the rest of this phrase.

Content of Emails

Nevertheless, I read almost all of the spam emails :) that arrived in my inbox, sometimes even replying or commenting (rarely), felt rather depressed regarding the outpouring of what appeared to be mostly nonsense (although I clearly recognise that the writers thought otherwise) and felt rather happy to read the occasional email that made a lot of sense and revealed the author as a sane, intelligent, thoughtful person.

Not that I imagine that any of us rabble are anywhere near perfect, except that some appear to be way ahead of the pack.

One beautiful email moved me to reply with the following, which I think is important. Accept it or reject it as you choose. You are free to do as you wish; although I do wish to move a motion at a future meeting, that persons who disrupt meetings or gatherings of devotees be ejected for a minimum of 30 minuites up to exclusion from that meeting. Devotees evicted from three meetings become subject to a review of their behavior by a board of their peers which may result in permanent or semi-permanent expulsion from all meetings, although nobody should be excluded from chanting, hearing and prasadam seva, unless they are extremely offensive.

The Email Reply

I have had time to focus on reading your nice email. I tend to agree with you. The only problem I can see is when devotees become frustrated by thinking that their idea is not being HEARD because the community aren't interested and then the devotee(s) feeling excluded, raise their voice at meetings, become angry, etc, instead of simply understanding that the community don't find their idea(s) appealing. Worse than this is when devotees practice deceitful dealings and campaigning (read: politics) to lend impetus to their desired agendas/ideals. Despite divine advice to the contrary, anger becomes commonplace.

This appears to be going on, where devotees push the same dead ideas year after tired year, or struggle to be in control, or more important than others (all materialistic, anachronistic, useless, valueless desires/anarthas).

These devotees don't want to tolerate and cooperate, they only want themselves and their ideal(s) to be adopted by the community, so that they appear important. This is kanistha and it goes on. We need to recognise it as what it is and work around it, not against it.

Tolerance, humility, and the desire to actually act like a Vaisnava/Vaisnavi are pleasing to Srila Gurudeva, so is effort ("service"). But service is of extremely limited value to anyone at all, whether Sri Guru or fellow man, if it is not done in the mood of tolerance and humility coupled with the desire to act like a real devotee. Without this sweet mood, conflict errupts. This is where we need to direct our attention; to generate more awareness of and attraction to each and every devotee ALWAYS acting in this sweet mood, regardless of the dealings going on around them.

WE ALL NEED EACH OTHER so very very much. Understanding this is very important. No one is better than any other devotee, except by consensus. We all accept Marahajas, Syamarani, Uma Didi, etc, as our superiors by consensus. The rest of us are all peers and each of us is fault ridden and is humbly tolerated by our peers; for this reason, and many others, we need to practice deep, sincere humility when dealing with each and every one of our peers, whether singly or collectively.



Servant of ALL the devotees
tarunkrsnadas
A demon humbly embarking upon this bhakti margha by the strength invested upon us all by our beloved Srila Gurudeva.

Anger

What's It For?

Anger is to be used against those who blaspheme the Lord's devotees, not against those who oppose your plans.

Just a friendly reminder
Servant to ALL devotees
tarunkrsnadas

Healing Murwillumbah

My dear devotees of  Murwillumbah and associated sanghas.

Reflecting on the results of the recent social and political upheavals in Murwillumbah I have come to the conclusion that, assuming everyone else's consciousness suffered as did my own, we are in need of some spiritual healing, so, it makes sense that we come together without lies, without cheating, without anger, without any ulterior motive and just be bros and sisters, chanting Hare Krishna together. 

Remember: harinama sankirtana is the soundtrack to the story of universal, spiritual development.

With Sriman Tirtha Maharaja coming to Murwillumbah in the very near future, I guess that his tour represents the perfect time to commence the healing of our yatra. I wrote an email to some senior devotees overseas requesting them to appraise my idea and to offer their own suggestions. Some very nice ideas were forthcoming. Some, like the below, very pertinent.

Remember that we are surrendering our independence. It is important to seek advice from senior devotees whenever important decisions are to be made. It's important to have faith in spiritual guidance. Taking shelter of the Dep't or Justice and fighting for your karmic rights is not any shelter.

We need the shelter of the "Dep't of Mercy," Srila Gurudeva, available via his senior disciples and followers.

:) :) :)

Mercy by email

What follows is a back and forth series of emails between tarunkrsnadas and our esteemed senior sister Syamarani didi and another (anonymous) devotee ...

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From tarunkrsnadas
to Syamarani

My dear devotees, most esteemed senior devotees and faithful guides of our wonderful world wide sangha.

Please accept my very humble obesiances to the dust that glitters on your ... feet.

As, I am sure that you are all aware, Srila Gurudeva has recently tested the devotees here in Mura-willumbah and, judging by the mess we've made, we didn't fare all that well. Even, despite attempting to keep out of the foray myself, once I realised how much criticism was flying around, I feel that my level of consciousness is at an all time low. How easily disturbed we are. It's as if the entire community are spiritually linked together and ups and downs of one devotee affect the stability of the whole community, what to speak of a divided community, each side championing its own cause, employing any or all of political campaigning, misleading information, criticism, anger and ill-will against the opposing team.

The general level of consciousness within the community is damaged but I am sure that if enough of us are sincere, then Srila Gurudeva will show us how to get back to where we were at an all time conscousness high when Srimati Uma didi and Srimati Syamarani (to mention only some of the positive influences) were here with us, as I am sure you all are, in spirit, right now.

Myself, I am pushing to re-connect in a humble, loving mood with my beloved Srila Gurudeva, japa, bhajana and harinama, my deities, and my fellow devotees, with Radha-Krsna pastimes featuring as the focal sadhana and sadhya.

On a community level, I think that the next step for our community is to raise our level of krsna consciousness and re-establish peace in the heart. I feel that we all need to settle back into a positive routine.

With Sriman Tirtha Maharaja visiting Australia soon I intend to encourage all the devotees who have already contributed towards the purchase of the Masonic Hall, to request a refund, which can then be applied (if they wish) towards making a successful Hari-Katha Sadhu-Sangha festival for as long as His Holiness Tirtha Maharaja is willing and able to stay with us. I believe the hiring the Masonic Hall for this festival would not be untoward.

Anyway, I am hoping for the best for the devotees of Murwillumbah, and I pray that you will all comment on what I have written above, perhaps adding new and better ideas, wishing all encouragement to the Murwillumbah sangha which I shall pass on to them.

I could write to you all about "who did what" and "who was a cheat, offender, etc" but I am convinced that you have neither need nor wish to hear such accusational hearsay. My main concern is that the spiritual health of our community is restored, quickly and effectively. Any assistance in this urgent matter would be greatly appreciated.

tkd
An evil demon cleverly disguised as a devotee, and even fooling himself into half believing it.


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From Syamarani
to tarunkrsnadas

Dandavat Pranams Tarun-Krsna prabhu,

All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga.


Thank you for your sincere letter. I feel I am to blame for the contamination of warring, because I was there and I am so impure. L

You ask for comments. It is stated in scripture to associate with those who are likeminded. I have seen all over the world that when there are teams of likeminded devotees, they can do wonders. I have been encouraging the Murwillumbah sanga, whenever I am asked (since the past so many years), that instead of having groups that try to get the other groups on their side – like a tug of war – let each group of like-minded devotees do their own projects (or buildings, or temples, or whatever), and respect and appreciate other devotees and devotee-groups for what they are doing. It is not necessary that everyone in a city has to do the same thing. J

Even in Vrndavan Gurudeva has 4 good temples (Krsna-Balarama, Rupa-Sanatan, Gopinath Bhavan, and Giridhari Gaudiya Matha in Govardhana), and another one across the river (Durvasa Ashrama), and another one in Mathura (Kesavaji Gaudiya Matha). In Delhi there is the Raman Bihari Gaudiya Matha, and an hour from there is the group of Rohini-nandana prabhu, which also has about 100 devotees.

It’s not that you need a ton of devotees to do a project. There are millions of non-devotees we can engage to help.

Anita and Vasanti and I have a couple of projects that we are doing together, like the gvp booksponsorship program and the library program and the prison program.

They are all smooth-running because we get along and are like-minded.

The GVP publishing group is also going on successfully for the same reason.

Etc., etc.

Vaisnava-sevabhilasi,

Syamarani dasi


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tarunkrsnadas
   
Apr 22
       
to Syamarani

Thank you very much my Syamarani didi.

I shall take your advice on board because I see that there is already an inclination to form the sangha into groups.

When you were here in Murwillumbah we were at our peak, you share absolutely no blame for our foolish choices.

...

Thank you again my Didi.

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Email from a devotee who wishes to remain anonymous ...

I would like to share this quote from an article by Srila Vamana Gosvami Maharaja. It may or may not apply, but it is a point worth hearing:

Whenever one who had had any connection with Prabhupada came to Gurupada-padma, be he a temple devotee, a renunciant, a householder or an ordinary person, Gurupada-padma would become overwhelmed with bliss, thereby open-heartedly manifesting his deep intimacy with Prabhupada. “Guru-sevaka haya manya apanara – the servant of guru is honourable for us.”

Gurupada-padma would feel grateful and indebted to anyone who had served Prabhupada in any way and thus would develop a relationship with that person. And since Prabhupada was the sole object of his heart’s affection, he would even offer that person financial assistance if needed. He was naturally bound in affection with those connected to Prabhupada. On the other hand, he was as hard as a thunderbolt with those who, on the pretext of performing seva for Prabhupada, acted against him. All this is natural when there is a true relationship. [NB: This does not refer to those with opposing opinions, even if you think they are acting against Gurudeva, lol. It refers to something insidious, like openly opposing the tattva-siddhanta of one's gurudeva and gathering support for that, or desiring to enjoy the opulences of one's gurudeva, like temples and money, even followers. No one in M'bah fits into this.]

Gurudeva is the sole custodian of all service to Sri Sri Radha-Govinda. Any type of service to Them is in fact service to gurupada-padma. Gurudeva is so adjusted with the pleasure of Krsna that his only bliss lies in giving Him pleasure – he has no other source of happiness. Therefore, in rendering service to Krsna for His pleasure, one indeed performs service to sri gurudeva. In this way, everyone is in fact the servant of gurudeva. Since Prabhupada is the only wealth of his heart, Gurupada-padma would feel indebted to anyone who had ever served him, even if for but a moment.

This unprecedented guru-nistha of Gurupada-padma is his primary quality. His countless other qualities, specialties and characteristics are all subordinate to this main quality. For want of time, it is impossible to appreciate or discuss all these divine characteristics.


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From Syamarani dasi
(regarding the above quote)

Dandavat Pranams,

All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga.

I forgot to say what I got from your excellent quote in relation to Murw.

It is that we can have different sub-sangas, and at the same time appreciate the services of the other sub-sangas, even though their views on how to serve are different from ours – knowing that our guru-varga accepts all kinds of services, big and small from our point of view, and they love all kinds of servitors. Is that right?

Vaisnava-sevabhilasi,

Syamarani dasi

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From tarunkrsnadas

to Syamarani dasi

This is how I understood it myself. Groups within the main group, functioning somewhat separately so as to avoid conflicts but still respectful and appreciative, even of those who are not so in tune with sadhu's mood of love and compassion since those people cannot be expected to understand who has lower, and who has a little elevated consciousness, thus are unable to appreciate the qualities of their brothers.

Those of us who have been fortunate enough to have some of sadhu's mercy need to understand the limitations of many devotees and accept them as they are, and encourage them, acting, ourselves, as brahminically as possible.

That, I believe is the problem in  Murbah, a shortage of brahmins to advise the ksatric leaders. We cannot expect smooth sailing when we place kanisthas and vaisyas at the helm.

I have found that all I can do is to watch others and learn who they think they are and try to be their friend. I am not strong enough to act as a proper brahmin given my environment, but I slowly learn, because, ultimately, Srila Gurudeva assembled this sangha and it is perfect for those who hang in, tolerate and cooperate, and eventually earn the right to advance to higher association.

Srila Gour Govinda Swami taught me that my surrender is conditional, so whilever that prevails it's important to create favourable conditions. It makes sense that the entire community can benefit from favourable conditions.

I very much appreciate any assistance available to further that aim. You are ... gems and are helping considerably. The problem will be getting the devotees to accept your advice; if they don't listen to Gurudeva, they're certainly not going to listen to me, but still I must try, for everyone's sake.

tkd
Your humble, lowly brother.

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From Syamarani
to tarunkrsnadas

Dandavat Pranams prabhu,

All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga.

Thank you for your beautiful and excellent letter. Srila Gour-Govinda Maharaja and Srila Gurudeva taught you well.

You need not convince all the devotees to follow our suggestion. Again, we don’t need to convince anyone to think like us. You can share with everyone our letter exchange, and that is sufficient. If you can get a small group of devotees who are like-minded to you and you can join to do something wonderful, then you are teaching by example.

Vaisnava-sevabhilasi,

Syamarani dasi

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From tarunkrsnadas
to Syamarani dasi

OK, thanks Didi. I look forward to your sweet vaisnavi association in the future.
t

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:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

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So there you have it. Make of it what you will.

Another thing that surfaced as a result of this exchange of emails was this beautiful letter by Srila AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to Atreya Rsi ...

 Bombay

4 February, 1972

72-02-04



My Dear Atreya Rsi,

Please accept my blessings. I am in due receipt of your very nice letter of January 10, 1972, and I am very much pleased by the sentiments expressed therein.


It is not so much that because there may be some faults in our godbrothers and godsisters, or because there may be some mismanagement or lack of cooperation, that this is due to being impersonalists, no. It is the nature of the living condition to always have some fault.


Even in the Spiritual World there is some fault and envy--sometimes the Gopis will quarrel over Krishna's favor, and once Krishna was so much attracted to Radharani that by mistake he tried to milk the bull instead of the cow, and sometimes when the Gopis used to put on their dress and make-up for seeing Krishna, they would be too much hasty and smear kumkum and mascara in the wrong places and their ornaments and dresses would appear as if small children had been trying to dress themselves and they were not very expert, like that. There are so many examples. But it is not the same as material fault or material envy, it is transcendental because it is all based on Krishna. Sometimes when one Gopi would serve Krishna very nicely, the others would say, Oh, she has done so nicely, now let me do better for pleasing Krishna. That is envy, but it is transcendental, without malice.


So we shall not expect that anywhere there is any Utopia. Rather, that is impersonalism. People should not expect that even in the Krishna Consciousness Society there will be Utopia. Because devotees are persons, therefore there will always be some lacking--but the difference is that their lacking, because they ave given up everything to serve Krishna--money, jobs, reputation, wealth, big educations, everything--their lackings have become transcendental because, despite everything they may do, their topmost intention is to serve Krishna. ``One who is engaged in devotional service, despite the most abominable action, is to be considered saintly because he is rightly situated.''


The devotees of Krishna are the most exalted persons on this planet, better than kings, all of them, so we should always remember that and, like the bumblebee, always look for the nectar or the best qualities of a person. Not like the utopians, who are like the flies who always go to the open sores or find the faults in a person, and because they cannot find any utopia, or because they cannot find anyone without faults, they want to become void, merge, nothing--they think that is utopia, to become void of personality.


So if there is sometimes slight disagreements between devotees, it is not due to impersonalism, but it is because they are persons, and such disagreements should not be taken very seriously. The devotee is always pessimistic about the material world, but he is very optimistic about the spiritual life; so in this way, you should consider that anyone engaged in Krishna's service is always the best person.


I am very pleased that you are assisting your godbrothers so nicely. Yes, this is our real position, to be servants of the servants of the servants. And by your quiet and humble attitude, you shall set the example of Vaisnava so that all may learn from you, and very soon their puffed-up attitude will disappear and they will come to you and seek your advice in matters.


I am also encouraged that you are preaching to many businessmen acquaintances. That is very important work, so speak to them very frankly and with strength and conviction, and they will see, that even you are yourself a big businessman with high position and salary, still, you are a devotee, and they will also become devotees if you ask them. And if only a few of such big businessmen become devotees, they can change the whole world. So it a very great and responsible task, now do it very boldly and Krishna will reward you with all success. The secret is to engage everyone, even big businessmen; so at first engage them in some small way so they will not feel threatened, but they will enjoy that small service so much, automatically they will desire for more, and then gradually you convince them by strong arguments and engage them more and more, and then they will perfect their lives in Krishna Consciousness, and go back Home, back to Godhead.


Hope this will meet you in good health,


Your ever well-wisher,

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami




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Please try to calm down, be understanding rather than offended and please, please remember that pleasing Srila Gurudeva by your sweet compassionate mood is much more important than any activity done in the mode of passion.

Servant to ALL the devotees

Humbly

The lowly

tarunkrsnadas