Archive for October, 2007
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
“We didn’t start the fire, It was always burning since the world’s been turning.”
Someone recently told me that there was a huge fire in Southern California.
Here at the school we are in the section of Bhagavatam that describes a similar situation. Arjuna was faced with a great crisis, he was in danger of being destroyed by the blazing fire of Asvattama’s brahmastra weapon, and amazingly enough in this situation he prayed to Krishna to save him not from the blazing fire of the brahmastra weapon but from the blazing fire of material existence.
“O my Lord Sri Krishna, You are the almighty Personality of Godhead. There is no limit to Your different energies. Therefore only You are competent to instill fearlessness in the hearts of Your devotees. Everyone in the flames of material miseries can find the path of liberation in You only. (SB 1.7.22)”
Apparently a boy has confessed to starting this fire in California, which forced the largest evacuation in history, 640,000.
But the blazing fire of material existence has been burning since time immemorial and it forces everyone to evacuate their bodies.
I still remember the first music video I ever saw on MTV,there is nothing particularly uplifting or profound about the song but I still remember the refrain, “We didn’t start the fire, It was always burning since the world’s been turning,” but taken out of context it is a profound statement.
Aided by damp weather the fire in California may be under control but the fire of material existence blazes on unabated.
The only hope for extinguishing this fire is an extreme downpour of mercy from above.
samsara-davanala-lidha-loka-
tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatvam
praptasya kalyana-gunarnavasya
vande guroh sri-caranaravindam
The spiritual master is receiving benediction from the ocean of mercy. Just as a cloud pours water on a forest fire to extinguish it, so the spiritual master delivers the materially afflicted world by extinguishing the blazing fire of material existence. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master, who is an ocean of auspicious qualities.
Srila Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakura
Gurvastaka, verse 1
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by Gauranga Kishore Das
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
Dog Shoots Iowa Man During Hunt
A man out hunting in Iowa was shot in the leg after a hunting dog stepped on his gun, authorities said.
The accident happened after James Harris, 37, put his gun on the ground to retrieve a fallen pheasant.
One of a pack of hunting dogs following behind stepped on the trigger, and […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by Madhava Gosh
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
Damodar Song — Another English Version
Most of our readers see Brijabasi via feed readers and don’t see the comments. Jaya Murari posted the following as a comment and I think it deserves a wider viewing:
Hare Krsna, this is an English version of that same Damodara Song that was used in the RCV Temple during the “Interfaith Days” at New Vrindban, […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by mg
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
Dipwali and Govardhana Puja! The Festival Is Coming!
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by bc
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
Kamalavati dasi scheduled for surgery on Friday
Dear Devotees, Please accept my obeisances. Jai Srila Prabhupada.
My wife, Kamalavati dasi, is en route to Bremen, Germany where she will undergo two major surgeries, one on her lower back and the second operation on her neck. The discs in her lower back and neck are pinching nerves due to deterioration.
The date of her surgery falls […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by jm
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
Cows
From the July 14, 1975 issue of the Brijabasi Spirit
by Ganendra dasa
All Glories to Srila Prabhupada! Have you ever had a feeling right down in your bones that something inauspicious was about to happen? Well, last week Bhakta Kurt and I got up at one o’clock as usual in the morning to go and […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by jm
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
More Rust Katha
Back a few days ago we were caught up on the topic of rust. Bhimasena commented that there is a very interesting iron pillar in Delhi. I put that on the list of potential things to blog about.
Unfortunately, most of the treatments of the subject I could come up with revolved around the phallic […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by Madhava Gosh
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
HH Purushtraya Swami comes to New Vrindaban!
Programs in New Vrindaban RVC Temple
Srimand Bhagavatam Class - Wednesday Morning 8:00 AM
Gaura Vrindavana Farm presentation –Wednesday Evening 5:30 PM
in the guest prasadam hall
Srimad Bhagavatam Class –Thursday Morning 8:00 AM
MAHARAJA ABOUT HIMSELF:
My name is Purushatraya Swami, Srila Prabhupada disciple, Brazilian, age
62, leading book distributor as brahmacari, Sannyasi initiation in Mayapur
1985, resident of Vrndavana […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by bc
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
Marriage
(Krishna book second song from the first chapter)
Once upon a time there lived a righteous king,
Who ruled over Mathura and whose name was Surasena.
Now Surasena he had a son whose name was Vasudeva,
He married a young maiden, Devaki was her name.
Elephants, horses, chariots and beautiful girls
Followed the young bride into a unfamiliar world,
To ease […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by mg
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
Will the REAL Damodarastakam in English please stand up?
A few days ago, Hrishikesh prabhu posted “An English Version” of the Damodar Prayers as penned by True Peace. As I read it, two really weird things popped into my bald little head.
1) “Oh my GOD! I remember singing the Damodarastakam in English!!” [Totally didn’t remember that!]
and
2) “This isn’t it!”
Way back in the […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by eric
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
Jagannatha Halloween Harinama!
This past Saturday night, the streets of Athens, Ohio was filled with the annual hordes of The Halloween Street Party, a Mardi-Gras type of shindig where the crazy youth of America dress and act even crazier than usual, which is saying a lot. What a perfect time for the all-merciful Lord Jagannatha to make an […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by bc
Tuesday, October 30th, 2007
Kartik Nectar-Freeing Ourselves From Our Kaliya-Like Envy
Our Kartik Nectar Series continues with a lecture from HH Radhanath Swami titles “Freeing Ourselves From Our Kaliya-Like Envy”, spoken during the Vrindavana Yatra of 2004 at Kaliya Ghat.
Download Freeing Ourselves From Our Kaliya-Like Envy-HH Radhanath Swami
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by admin
Monday, October 29th, 2007
Sarva Dharman Parit-say-what?
sarva-dharman parityajya
mam ekam saranam vraja
aham tvam sarva-papebhyo
moksayisyami ma sucah
sarva-dharman — all varieties of religion; parityajya — abandoning; mam — unto Me; ekam — only; saranam — for surrender; vraja — go; aham — I; tvam — you; sarva — all; papebhyah — from sinful reactions; moksayisyami — will deliver; ma — do not; sucah — […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by Madhava Gosh
Monday, October 29th, 2007
Request For Copies of Taru’s Writings
by Madhava Gosh
There has been a request to see more of Taru’s writings. He was the author of the Prasadam Addict series published in the 1970s in the original print version of the Brijabasi Spirit and recently republished here. The idea has occurred to me to collect all that he has written and make it […]
No Comments » - Posted in Contributors by mg
Monday, October 29th, 2007
Kartik Nectar-Kaliya Chastised by Krishna
Our Kartik Nectar series continues with Kaliya Chastised by Krishna, by HH Radhanath Swami from the 2004 Vrindavana Yatra at Kaliya Ghat.
Download Kaliya Chastised by Krishna-HH Radhanath Swami