Ultimate Self Realization

Lord Caitanya's mercy is alive and well. It's flourishing all over the universe. One simply must learn how to connect with it. His sweet mercy is readily available for those who take shelter of the holy names of God: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare Rama, Hare Rama Rama Rama, Hare Hare Lord Caitanya is Krishna Himself. He appeared 500 years ago in what is now West Bengal, India, and He bestowed what no other incarnation of God has ever freely given, pure love of God. Once you solidly connect yourself with His mercy, you will be blessed with a taste for loving and serving the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna. So if you want to be successful in spiritual life, you can easily be successful if you will simply beg for the mercy of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Lord Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Krishna's Blessings Before Initiation? Respected Sir, may you

Krishna consciousness is so nice that you can be happy every day, no matter what is going on around you. Such a state of consciousness is what everyone is hankering and endeavoring for, but they never fully achieve it because they are going about it in the wrong way. People think that by becoming wealthy, powerful, or famous that they can achieve a position of uninterrupted happiness. But nothing could be further from the truth. We see again and again the examples of people who achieve wealth, fame, and power but who are extremely miserable in that position. If we want factual happiness all we have to do is turn to the Srimad Bhagavatam and follow its principles. By engaging in unalloyed devotional service, we will taste the sweetest nectar at every minute: ato vai kavayo nityam bhaktih paramayā mudā vāsudeve bhagavati kurvanty ātma-prasādanīm "Certainly, therefore, since time immemorial, all transcendentalists have been rendering devotional service to Lord Krishna, the Pers

Things don't always go right in this material world. In fact, all too often things go wrong, sometimes quite wrong. How are we supposed to deal with this when it happens? The best thing to remember is that everything is happening for a transcendental purpose. When the reverse conditions come we should simply think how to use the situation as best as possible in Krishna's service. As soon as we take this mood we will see how even the most extreme reverse conditions are actually a blessing from Krishna. In this way we can always be nicely situated in Krishna consciousness in all circumstances and make steady advancement into the realm of pure devotion. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: How to Tackle Evil Doers? Please clarify that in this dense Kali Yuga how should noble people deal with evil-doers? Sri Krishna would just finish the wicked people, but we cannot do so. Then what should we do? Amit Answer: First Conquer the Ev

26 September 2007--Today we head out on the highway from Sillamae, Estonia to Riga, Latvia. This traveling for spreading the ultimate self-realization science is truly ecstatic. It is a living meditation. The deeper you get into it, the sweeter it gets. And the sweeter it gets, the more you become inspired to go even deeper and deeper into it ad infinitum. Of course this unlimited gold mine of nectar is not only available to itinerant preachers. It is also fully and equally available to anybody in any walk of life. It is simply a matter of adding the missing ingredient, Krishna, to the recipe of your life. Krishna bhakti is an unlimited ocean of nectar. You can dive deeper and deeper and deeper into it for all of eternity. Wherever you are, no matter what your occupation is, you can dive deeper and deeper into the ocean of bhakti each and every day. Simply chant these names and regain your original eternal idenity: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare Hare R

The kirtans we have been having here in Finland and Estonia these days are really glorious. In fact they are super glorious, truly far out of this material world. Hare Krishna is the ultimate airplane because it takes you quickly and easily out the dimension of birth and death into the realm of eternity, knowledge, and bliss. All you have to do is fully absorb yourself in Hare Krishna kirtan, and before you know it you are flying free in the Spiritual Sky. There's no way I can fully describe it to you. If you really want to understand what I am talking about, there is only one thing for you to do. You must dive deeply and fully into ecstatic Hare Krishna kirtan. Then and only then will you know what I mean. Get a musical instrument like a harmonium or a mridanga drum. Or you can use a guitar. Or if you have nothing else just clap your hands. Gather as many people who would like to chant with you as possible, and then take off for the ultimate airplane ride of your entire life: Har

In this world everyone gets persecuted, and those who are trying to be the Lord's devotees are no exception. I am sometimes very strongly criticized for my dedicated attempt to serve the mission of my spiritual master. But because I have complete faith in my spiritual master and the instructions I have received from him, I do not let these critics disturb my enthusiasm for doing my duty of cultivating pure Krishna consciousness within my heart and trying to spread it all over the world. My spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, one time advised a disciple who was being discouraged by criticism to be callous to that criticism. Of course if I am being rightly criticized, I will take the correction and adjust my behavior and attitude accordingly. But if I am being wrongly criticized, why should I take it? I will not. Those who wrongly criticize me will just have to be content with their criticism because I am not going to give up my duty to try to please them. My only duty is to

Early this morning we hit the road again for Krishna. This time the road will be water. We will make a three hour journey by boat crossing the Gulf of Finland to Tallinn, Estonia and will then traveling another two hours by car to a small Estonian town named Sillamae near the Russian border. In Sillamae there is a wonderful small community of Krishna devotees who gather regularly in residences to hear and chant the glories of Lord Sri Krishna. I am eagerly awaiting diving into this supreme of all delights in the company of such wonderful transcendentalists. We can experience in Sillamae that Krishna consciousness does not depend on temple buildings. It simply depends upon an enthusiasm to hear and chant the glories of the Lord. But of course, temples of Lord Krishna in which bona fide spiritual masters teach are the ideal place to get a taste for this topmost nectar. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: 4 Regs My question is one regardin

If we can simply be honest with ourselves, we can solve all problems of our existence. We have to admit that we don't really know where we've come from, where we are going, and what is the purpose of our existence. And we have to sincerely seek to discover these things. If we can simply make an honest effort in this regard, the Complete Whole Supreme Person will reward us unlimitedly, and we will be blessed with perfect knowledge of the Absolute Truth. If on the other hand, we choose to hide ourselves in the so-called comfort of dishonesty by refusing to even consider the purpose of our existence, we will be rewarded by nature with a miserable, ignorant existence lifetime after lifetime. Only a greatly unfortunate soul, when offered the choice between a life of enlightenment and life of illusion, would opt for a life of illusion. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Inaction in Action? Please explain me what is the meaning of Bhaga

There is no one more expert at enjoying than Krishna. He has the best of everything. He has the right to enjoy everything because He owns everything. No one can compete with Him in the matter of proprietorship and enjoyment. No one even comes close. He is truly the supreme connoisseur. There are those, however, who try to compete with Him in enjoyment. Even though they cannot be successful, they imagine themselves to be enjoying on the highest level. They come to this material world as false lords and try to exert their proprietorship over that which is merely slipping through their fingers. Those who are spiritually enlightened do not try to compete with the Lord. Rather they choose to participate with Him in His enjoyment. Thus they enjoy on an equal level with Him. They attain a state of consciousness known as desirelessness. This state is defined as follows by Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī in his Sandarbha: bhajanīya parama purusa sukha mātra sva sukhatvam "One should feel hap

20 September 2007--Helsinki, Finland. We arrived here yesterday after taking a three hour boat ride across the Gulf of Finland. Today is Radhastami in Finland, a wonderful occasion to remember and call out for the mercy of Srimati Radharani. This afternoon the rain let up and the sun beautifully appeared. This gave us a wonderful opportunity to take the holy names of the Lord out onto the streets to share with the people of Helsinki. Armed with khartals (small hand cymbals), mridanga drums, a portable sound, system, and a crew of enthusiastic singing and dancing devotees we headed out in procession in mid-afternoon downtown Helsinki. By the power of Krishna's wondrous holy names the entire atmosphere of Helsinki became transcendentally surcharged. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Helsinki Harinam Party Shares the Bliss Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Life's Financial Requirements Please clarify that what are the necessary financial requirements in life, along wi

Nowadays especially, if something is not scientific people do not want to accept it. So is Krishna consciousness scientific, or is it just a matter of blind faith? If my chemistry teacher tells me that H20 = water, is that scientific or is it simply a matter of belief? This formula is accepted as scientific because it is verifiable in the laboratory. I can go to the laboratory and personally prove the scientific truth of this formula by combining two parts of hydrogen with one part of oxygen and producing water. And no one will criticize me for accepting the truth of this formula, even if I do not personally prove its authenticity in the laboratory, because it has been proven in the laboratory countless numbers of times. Similarly Krishna consciousness is verifiable in the laboratory. Our formula is that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Krishna has been personally realized countless numbers of times throughout history by persons who have developed pure love for Him. And

Modern scientists are trying to find evidence in the fossil record to prove that human beings and apes both evolved from a common ancestor. But to date they still have not been able to do so. It is an interesting situation that the scientific community blindly accepted Darwin's theory and then was obliged to go out and find the evidence to prove that his theory was correct. Even though they have still have not come up with the evidence, they still tenaciously cling to the so-called truthfulness of Darwin's theory. If they are truly interested to find the missing links between the species, we can enlighten them in this regard. The missing link connecting one species to another is consciousness. Whatever consciousness one has upon a leaving a particular body, that consciousness will carry him to his next body. He can evolve to a higher form. He can devolve to a lower form. Or he can remain at the same level. If he makes his consciousness perfect by absorbing it in Krishna, he es

Would you like to have an eternal existence full of knowledge and bliss? Or would you prefer a temporary existence full of ignorance and misery? Anybody in their right mind would obviously choose an eternal existence full of knowledge and bliss. So why then does 99.99% of the world's population opt for temporality, ignorance, and misery? This is due to the expert marketing job of the material energy. The material nature is such an effective propaganda machine that it convinces us that temporality, ignorance, and misery is actually eternity, knowledge, and bliss. And it also convinces us that the real eternity, knowledge, and bliss is in fact temporality, ignorance, and misery. So in this way bewildered by the influence of the material nature, we are not able to see our way out of the dense forest of delusion. And we remain entangled for countless lifetimes in the repetition of birth and death. Therefore those who are factually spiritually enlightened fully dedicate themselv

In the present age it is becoming increasingly difficult to become spiritually enlightened. This is because of the deteriorating influence of the present age of Kali, the age of quarrel and hypocrisy. In this age very few people are interested in spiritual life. And of those who are, because of insufficient guidance, even fewer are fortunate enough to be properly situated on the pathway of spiritual perfection. Nowadays we see that many people want to concoct their own pathway of spiritual perfection. But only a liberated soul can show us the way out of bondage, not a conditioned soul. Therefore if we are serious about becoming delivered from the cycle of birth and death we must be careful to choose the association and guidance of those who are factually liberated from the cycle of birth and death, not the so-called guidance of those who are still in the grip of maya or illusion. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Non-Physical Form? Nam

15 September 2007. While I was standing in a long queue waiting to clear customs at London Gatwick airport I spent some quality time blissfully chanting the Hare Krishna mahamantra on my japa beads. Then, since I had arrived in the home of the Beatles, I thought deeply about the concept "nothing is real", which they popularized in one of their songs. To say that nothing is real is an absurdity because if nothing is real, the statement "Nothing is real" is also unreal and therefore has no meaning. Even the mere utterance of "Nothing is real" articulates the reality of a philosophical principle. In other words the principle "Nothing is real" cancels itself out and therefore cannot be accepted as true. And if we consider the other philosophical position that something is real, the statement "nothing is real" is of course untrue. So, no matter how you look at it, it cannot be true to to say that nothing is real. Therefore we can logi

Traveling to Europe I am getting a good opportunity to witness first hand the mental state of the present day human population. It is indeed sad to see how deeply they are steeped in illusion. Their consciousness is absorbed in family affairs and in the current events of this material world. Even though every living being is the eternal servant of Krishna, they have become infected by the disease of forgetfulness and thus they misidentify themselves with their material bodies and take more interest in the materialistic way of life than in Krishna consciousness. My spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, explains in this connection: "This world of maya is called durāśraya, which means 'false or bad shelter.' One who puts his faith in durāśraya becomes a candidate for hoping against hope. In the material world everyone is trying to become happy, and although their material attempts are baffled in every way, due to their nescience they cannot

Today I am heading out to Tallinn, Estonia for a month long lecture tour in eastern Europe. Krishna has blessed me with the greatest opportunity to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world, both through traveling lecture tours and through the internet. There is certainly no greater happiness than sharing the supreme science of bhakti with everyone that we meet. This reconnects everyone with their original spiritual identity, which is eternal, full of bliss, and full of knowledge. There is no reason for even one person on this planet to be in a suffering condition. Simply everyone must revive their dormant Krishna consciousness, and they will relish the sweetest pleasure within their hearts at every minute. The more we distribute the bliss, the more we experience the bliss. This is the wonderful compensation program of Sri Krishna. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: What Survives Death? Namaste. My question today is: Whenever

The only thing you have to do if you want to attain the supreme happiness is open your heart to the Supreme Person, the source of all existence. He's definitely out there. He is not a figment of your imagination. In fact He's more real than everything else because everything exists only by dint of His desiring it to exist. Of course, we cannot realize Him simply by twisting our brains this way and that through mental speculation. We can only realize Him when He so kindly reveals Himself to us. This He has most kindly done in His famous conversation with Arjuna 5,000 years ago in India at a place known as Kurukshetre, which is still there even today. You can go there and visit that place. This most glorious of all conversations, known as the Bhagavad-gita, has been recorded and passed down to us in its original pure form by a great disciplic succession of enlightened spiritual masters. If you will simply, sincerely and carefully, follow the instructions given in the aut

Even though we can't see it or touch it, our mind is either our best friend or our worst enemy. Our state of mind will make us either highly successful and happy or it will drag us down into a miserable quagmire. If we make the mind our best friend by bringing it completely under control, we will be blessed with supreme success. And if we allow it to run wild, our life will be an utter disaster since we will be forced by laws of nature to glide down to the animal kingdom in our next lifetime. So how do we bring it under control? This is the most important question. Krishna gives us a hint in the Bhagavad-gita: yathā dīpo nivāta-stho neṅgate sopamā smṛtā yogino yata-cittasya yuñjato yogam ātmanaḥ "As a lamp in a windless place does not waver, so the transcendentalist, whose mind is controlled, remains always steady in his meditation on the transcendent self." ---Bhagavad-gita 6.19 So the secret of success is that we have to keep the mind always focused on Krishna, th

There is no reason for humanity to be divided into different religions that are constantly fighting with one another, because religion is one, to become a lover of God. There is one Supreme Being of Whom we are all a part. It does not matter if we are designated as Christian, Hindu, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist, or atheist. We are all still coming from the same place, the Supreme Person. Human life is meant for getting to know that Supreme Person intimately well and thus naturally developing more and more love for Him. One should adopt whatever means is most practical and effective for becoming fully absorbed in loving service to Him. That state of full absorption in His service is known as samadhi or Krishna consciousness. Throughout the world everyone should be encouraged and trained how to become fully absorbed in Krishna consciousness. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Guru's Willingness to Initiate Disciples In Spite of Taking Thei

As long as we base our understanding of reality on what we perceive through our imperfect senses, we can never know things as they are. We will always be more or less in a state of illusion. And because of being in illusion we will make so many mistakes. And if in spite of these mistakes we consider our vision of reality to be perfect, we are cheating both ourselves and others. Therefore we must base our understanding of reality on something other than our imperfect senses. We should base our understanding of reality on the knowledge that is revealed to us by the source of reality, i.e. Krishna or God. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Explaining Krishna Consciousness to Christians On Sunday 9 September 2007 I spoke to a hall full of Christians at First United Methodist Church, in Georgetown, Texas. They very eagerly, respectfully, and joyfully heard my half hour lecture on the philosophy and practices of Krishna consciousness. Then for twenty minutes up until the end of the allotted time I a

Krishna instructs us in the Bhagavad-gita to always be glorifying Him 24 hours a day. Therefore for those who are devoted to Him there is nothing to do except to constantly glorify Him. One type of glorification is on the lips only, to say that Krishna is great, but fail to follow His instructions. That sort of glorification is not very important. The real glorification is to be engaged 24 hour in executing the orders of the Lord. So what has the Lord ordered? He has appeared 500 years ago as Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and ordered us to inundate this entire world in a tidal wave of Krishna bhakti. So if we are actually serious about glorifying Krishna, we must obey His order and sacrifice everything for bringing about a complete spiritual revolution on this planet. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Complaint: Forgive Me If I Am Wrong Respected Guruji, Please accept my humble obeisances. I am reading your mails daily and they guide me a lot spirit

The perfection of consciousness is to become fully Krishna conscious. This is the original, natural, pure state of being that we all enjoyed before we fell into this material existence. Now through following the sublime teachings of Krishna as given in the Bhagavad-gita, we can regain our original, pure state of consciousness. The key is that we have to follow the instructions of Krishna exactly as He gives them to us. It is not that we can manufacture our system of so-called spiritual emancipation. Such a concocted program will keep us in the repetition of birth and death. Only the exact process given to us by Krishna can save us. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: How Much Chanting? Do I chant my beads 16 times a day? I thought it was just once a day? Valerie Answer: 1,728 Mahamantras Those who have accepted initiation vows chant the Hare Krishna mantra 1,728 times daily: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare R

Now that the Janmastami and Vyas Puja celebrations have been joyfully celebrated, it is time for me in the next week to make the final preparations for my 2007-2008 world tour, which is detailed in the schedule below. The self-realization process is practical. It is not mere theory. We are meant to rise early every day to chant the holy names of God and study the revealed scriptures. Then, as much as we are able, we are meant to engage in practical activities for the deliverance of the suffering souls of this age from illusion. Krishna has very kindly blessed me with the facility to dedicate my full time as a traveling transcendental missionaries in this regard. I pray for his blessings that my endeavor will be a grand success. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Everybody is Confusing Me There are many disciplic traditions claming authenticity for themselves. But many of them are rivaling each other. How to find what which is genuine and auth

Learned transcendentalists realize that the tongue needs to be brought under control. They understand fully well that one becomes diseased and diverted from the path of spiritual realization if one takes more food than is necessary to keep body and soul together. Therefore they restrict themselves to a simple sattivic diet of of fruits, vegetables, milk products and grains. But they don't stop there. Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita that we should only eat foods which have first been offered lovingly to Him. Therefore the highest level transcendentalists always offer their foods to Krishna before eating. Unless an eatable has first been offered to Krishna with love, they will not put it in their mouth. These devotees cook for Krishna. They don't cook for themselves. They make Krishna the tastiest, most nutritious meals, and then after offering to Him, they partake of the remnants of the Lord's offering. Such divine dining is the perfection of the tongue. By such eating on

I offer myself eternally as a servant at the lotus feet of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, my eternal spiritual master and spiritual father. In 1971 he saved me from countless rotations in the cycle of birth and death by accepting me as his duly initiated disciple. Since that wonderful day, when I fully dedicated my eternal existence to him, I have been tasting the sweetest nectar engaging myself and others in his service and spreading the sublime Krishna consciousness science all over the world. It was only Srila Prabhupada who gave us access to that science, because it was only he who presented to us the Bhagavad-gita exactly as Krishna spoke it to Arjuna. Although there are hundreds of other Gita editions, I have personally seen how the other translators twist the words of Krishna to suit their own concocted vision of reality. But Srila Prabhupada's Bhagavad-gita As It Is contains no such distortions. From him we receive the pure unadulterated teachings of Lord Sri

We have no greater friend than the devotee of the Lord. Why is that? Krishna declares Himself in the Bhagavad-gita as the best friend of all living beings, and His devotee is His pure representative. Therefore just as Krishna is the best friend, His devotee is also the best friend because in all ways he simply acts as the Lord's messenger. So there is nothing more beneficial for our spiritual life than to take shelter of the Lord's devotee. By doing so we come into immediate contact with the Lord and all of our anxieties of material existence are quickly extinguished. The devotee is the well-wishing friend of all. He fully dedicates his life for sharing Krishna with the entire world. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Janmastami Prayer My obeisances to you! Shall we pray on Janmastami for everyone to become a pure devotee of Krishna? Gayathri Answer: First Save Ourselves, then Others Praying on Janmastami for everyone to becom

In the modern day society we are all out of balance, both individually and collectively. We do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Therefore we act in so many ways that are against the laws of nature and inevitably have to face the unfortunate karmic results of our misdeeds. How much we are in need of enlightened guidance! But when seeking such guidance we are most unfortunately victimized by so-called gurus, counselors, leaders, and teachers who occupy their prestigious positions only for the sake of name, fame, and gain. By following the guidance of such unenlightened fools things become even more out of balance than they were previously and our lives become more and more disoriented and miserable. However, if we are fortunate to come into contact with a bona fide spiritual master, and if we submissively hear from him and sincerely apply the science of the Absolute Truth, our lives will become completely transformed. We will come into a blissful state of per

Don't remain in illusion dreaming that this material world is a place of happiness. There is happiness here, no doubt. But that happiness is only temporary. It does not last. Therefore even the happiness of this world is tinged with anxiety. If we want actual happiness, we have no solution except to come the spiritual platform. We have to wake up to the reality beyond the dream of material existence. It is there and there only that we will find true, lasting happiness. Sadly most people cling tightly to illusory happiness refusing to give it up and thus can never taste real happiness. Hopefully some day everyone will realize the blissful truth which lies beyond this miserable material existence. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: On Gurus Namaste. It is my understanding that a guru is one who guides the initiate into a meaningful relationship with God. Do you acknowledge that there are gurus in the world who are not ISKCON dev

Where are the qualified leaders in today's society? It is very easy to find leaders who occupy a post to serve their own purpose. But it is very difficult to a find even one leader who is dedicated to working for the deliverance of his constituents from the cycle of birth and death. This is the actual duty of a leader. He must be qualified to deliver his followers from the cycle of birth and death. Otherwise his leadership is srama eva hi kevalam, a useless waste of time. We need leaders who can liberate us from birth and death. This is real leadership. Until such leaders emerge on the face of this planet, we shall continue experiencing an ever-more disintegrated and chaotic global society. Sankarshan Das Adhikari Answers According to the Vedic Version: Question: Homosexual on Self Discovery Quest I am a homosexual man and I am battling with spirituality because I keep on thinking it is sinful being who I am. The thing is that I did not chose to be attracted to the same