The Famous Kaunas Send-Off

One of our all-time favorite places to visit on our around-the-world and European preaching tours is the ISKCON center in Kaunas, Lithuania. Why is that? It is because of the famous Kaunas send-off. When we depart from the temple the devotees assemble on the drive way and crank up a super-enlivened kirtan. Then as our car heads down the drive way to the street, they serenade us singing and dancing with unbridled enthusiasm until our car disappears in the distance down the street. In the clip below you can see yesterday's super send off:

http://www.backtohome.com/video/Kaunas-sendoff.wmv

In yesterday's send-off one of the lady devotees, Nareshwari devi dasi, and a little devotee boy expressed their affectionate desire that we not leave by grabbing hold of the car making a show of trying to prevent us from leaving by holding the car back. Of course, it was an affectionate show only. They did not succeed in stopping the car. But their expression of loving attachment to our association captured our hearts. We will include surely Kaunas on our next European preaching tour in the spring, and we will never forget these sweet loving devotees.

We will fulfill their desire.

Kaunas Send-off Photos

Sankarshan Das Send-off Photos, Kaunas

Sankarshan Das Send-off Photos, Kaunas

Sankarshan Das Send-off Photos, Kaunas

Sankarshan Das Send-off Photos, Kaunas

Answers According to the Vedic Version

Question: How to Achieve Spiritual Perfection?...

How can I achieve spiritual perfection ?

Priytosh

Answer: Take Shelter of a Bona Fide Guru...

I am very happy that you have inquired from me regarding how you can achieve spiritual perfection. To inquire in this way is the purpose of our human existence. Otherwise, if we simply engage in eating, sleeping, mating, and defending, we are no better than the animals, and factually we become lower than animals.

It is the current population of non-spiritually inclined human beings who have turned this planet into a virtual hell. It does not have to be this way. It can be like a heavenly planet here. It is naturally meant to be that way. But because we have become totally engrossed on the material, bodily platform we are not able to taste the sweet nature of the spiritual reality which is the origin and underlying principle of everything. Therefore your inquiry is most glorious.

The answer to your question is given by Srila Rupa Goswami, one of the most highly realized and advanced spiritual masters in the history of the universe. He was on this planet 500 years living in Sri Vrindavan Dham researching the vast Vedic wisdom and compiling highly enlightened literatures for the upliftment of the fallen mankind. His answer is presented as follows in his Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu:

adau gurvasrayam

"The first business of a person who who wants to achieve spiritual perfection is to take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master." From the spiritual master the disciple receives transcendental knowledge and is engaged in spiritual disciplines for his purification and deliverance from the ocean of repeated birth and death.

Sankarshan Das Adhikari

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