Ultimate Self Realization

Today after three super ecstatic days of sharing the secrets of the ultimate self-realization science here in Tallinn, Estonia we are heading out to Tartu, Estonia's second largest city, where I will be giving a widely advertised lecture entitled "Simple Living and High Thinking" at the public library. One of the things I love the most about Krishna consciousness is that it gives me the opportunity to do the highest good for so many people. The more that people can become trained up in this science, the more that they will become peaceful and happy. There is truly no greater satisfaction than giving the highest happiness to so many people. Indeed the entire world can be transformed into a paradise by the wide scale introduction of the Krishna consciousness science. Churning the Ocean of Nectar Tallinn, Estonia-28 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Self Development vs. Self Realization Before becoming Krishna conscious I attended a se

There are certain things we have no control over such as birth, death, old age, and disease. But there are other things that we have complete control over such where we place our consciousness at every minute. There is no sense being frustrated over things we cannot control. These things we must simply learn how to tolerate. But in regards to those things that we do have control over, if we take complete mastery over them under the guidance of the bona fide spiritual master, we will attain the platform of unlimited happiness, pure Krishna bhakti. Explaining the Supreme Science of Reconnecting with the Origin of Existence Tallinn, Estonia-28 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Sinful and Pure Chanters I am very happy that you have given me the meaning of pure devotional service. Thank you very much. I want to know about the verse in which Lord Krishna says that He will destroy all our sins if we completely surrender to Him and chant His name. There m

Philosopher Sam Harris says that we should ditch religion, that we should abandon it. The problem with these atheists and even many theists is that they do not understand the real meaning of religion. They do not understand religion as the science of reconnecting oneself with the source of one's existence. Whether we are theists or atheists we all come from the same origin. Just as a light bulb has no value when it is not connected with the electrical powerhouse, our situation becomes problematic both individually and collectively when we are not connected in a harmonious relationship with our origin. When religion is properly understood in this way as reconnecting with our origin everyone will naturally agree to practice religion because religion simply boils down to being your original, natural self. After all, who would want to be in a discombobulated state of consciousness when they can instead be in a blissful, loving, enlightened state of perfect harmony with the source of

27 March 2010--After a few wonderful days in which I shared the amazing science of Krishna bhakti in Belgium at Radhadesh giving some Srimad Bhagavatam classes and a six session course on uttama bhakti, pure devotional service, we are now heading today via Brussels and Helsinki to the Baltic region of eastern Europe. One of the the amazing things about this transcendental science is that it has the potency to transport those who present it, hear it, or read about it with devotion into the transcendental existence far beyond the realm of time and space. To what degree one factually experiences this is dependent on one's degree of devotion. Therefore it behooves the devotee to always strive for the topmost degree of devotion in all of his thoughts, words, and deeds in all times, places, and circumstances. Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: When Did Krishna Walk on the Earth? I wonder when did Krishna walk on the earth. Because one can say based on the guru parampa

The life and soul of the disciple is to faithfully obey the orders that he has received from his spiritual master. Sometimes I am criticized that I am accepting disciples. But what can I do? My spiritual master instructed that I should be doing this? So who should I put my faith in: my spiritual master or those who tell me that I should not obey my spiritual master? The answer to this question is given as follows in the Vedic wisdom: yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ prakāśante mahātmanaḥ "Only unto those great souls who simultaneously have unflinching faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of Vedic knowledge automatically revealed." --Svetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.23 So the answer is clear. I must obey my spiritual master, not those who tell me to disobey my spiritual master. ISKCON Radhadesh, Belgium Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Why So Many Temples? My question is very simple

We may have a first class lamp. But if it is unplugged, it will not be able to function properly. When, however, it is plugged in it will function very nicely and provide nice illumination for an entire room. Now at the present moment in this material existence we have full facility for the peace and prosperity of every single living being throughout the entire universe. Why then are we besieged by an ever-increasing plethora of perplexities? The answer is simple. We are not plugged with the power house, the ultimate source of all energies, the Absolute Truth. The process of pure devotional is the authorized system given in the Bhagavad-gita by the Supreme Absolute Truth Personality of Godhead Lord Sri Krishna. If we can plug in, the entire universe will become illuminated with spiritual bliss and all living beings will live in perfect peace an prosperity. When will the politicians wake up and take notice of these simple truths, that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead a

There is no doubt about it. Not only is pure devotional service the ultimate nectar. It is also the only nectar. These word may seem exaggerated or fanatical. But for someone who has actually fully tasted the ultimate nectar of pure devotional service they are a scientific reality. If you want to verify the truth or untruth of what I am saying, there is only way to do that. You have to experience first hand what is pure devotional service. And then you will know for sure. I am teaching a two day mini-course on pure devotional service here in Radhadesh. You are welcome to tune into our live stream at the above link. Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Confused by Two Views Dear Maharaja, Hare Krishna. Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. I refer to yesterday's question in "Thought for the Day" in which you answered by giving a list of our disciplic succession beginning with Krishna rightdown to the disciples of A.C. Bhakt

There is no reason to be depressed or to psychologically punish ourselves for our faults. Such depression is simply another way of diverting our attention away from God and placing it on ourselves. Spiritual life is a positive redirection of the consciousness towards the Supreme Person, Krishna or God. Depression, which is directed towards ourselves instead of God, is therefore material, not spiritual. So how does one who has trapped in a depression syndrome escape? The simple solution is to remember that simply by calling the names of the Lord with love one becomes freed from more sins that he is capable of committing in millions of lifetimes. Instead of being concerned with one's own happiness and distress which should think instead of pleasing the Supreme Person by all one's thoughts, words, and deeds in all times, places, and circumstances. As soon we take our attention away from our own happiness and distress by being concerned instead of always being pleasing to the Lor

The supreme fun is to realize who you are and revolutionize the universe. This ultimate happiness is what has been bestowed us by the combined mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Srila Prabhupada. I cannot think of any other life that is more worth living. Everywhere we go we should always be planting the seeds of spiritual revolution on behalf of the great predecessor acharyas. In this way we will always be swimming in the unlimitedly nectarean ocean of their mercy. Once we fully taste this nectar of bhakti bliss no taste of this material world can ever attract us again.  Planting the Seeds of Spiritual Revolution London, England-21 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Worship and Pure Devotional Service Thank you for the answer to my previous query. I want to know what is the difference between worship and pure devotional service. Ruchika Answer: Worship is One of the Items There are nine ways to render pure devotional service to the Lord: 1.

I cannot think of any more wonderful and fulfilling life than trying to completely revolutionize this planet under the guidance and blessings of the most empowered Vaisnava acharya in history, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. If he were physically here with us today, he would certainly be spearheading this greatest paradigm shift attempt in the history of the Kali yuga. In his absence what can we do? We have to carry on undaunted in our attempt to see that every person on this planet is blessed with the supreme, eternal happiness of Krishna consciousness by faithfully following the many instructions that Srila Prabhupada has so mercifully given to us. Srila Prabhupada Mercifully Instructs His Disciples Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Are Martial Arts Krishna Conscious? Gurudeva, Hare Krishna! All glories to Srila Prabhupada and you for your wonderful glorious work around the world! I was thinking about my involvement in martial arts an

Today we will be on an airplane heading from the holy land of India to London, where an enjoyable evening after a grueling day in the office means standing on the street chatting and drinking liquor outside of a pub. What a far cry from ecstatic kirtan in the holy land! Chasing after temporary minimization of suffering by dulling our brains with alcohol is not a very effective way of becoming happy. Instead of losing by boozing it is better to relish the supreme unlimited intoxication of Lord Sri Krishna's holy names. There are no harmful side effects. It does not cost anything and instead of causing people to become like wild animals it elevates one's consciousness to the highest platform of saintliness. Try to get that out of a bottle! London Entertainment Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: Can Real Love Exist in this World? Srila Gurudeva, Please accept my humble obeisances. All Glories to Srila Prabhupada. I have one question. Real love means to t

This is our last day in Vrindavana on this trip. The last day in Vrindavan is invariably bitter-sweet. While on the one hand it is the sweetest nectar to be here in Lord Sri Krishna's most holy transcendental abode, to be on the verge of leaving it always adds a pinch of melancholy to the sweetness. This is the site of innumerable pastimes of the Supreme Lord and his pure devotees. Simply by coming here in a mood of pure devotion one gets an immediate connection with all of these amazing pastimes. It was here 500 years ago that the six Goswamis of Vrindavan discovered the lost sites of Krishna's pastimes and compiled a huge quantity of transcendental literatures to guide the conditioned souls of this material world how to go back to home, back to Godhead. The six Goswamis are Rupa Goswami, Santana Goswami, Jiva Goswami, Ragunatha dasa Goswami, Ragunatha Bhatta Goswami, and Gopal Bhatta Goswami. Now on our last day here, we are especially begging these six Goswamis to bless u

A pure devotee of Krishna is empowered by Krishna to act in inconceivably amazing ways. This is why one pure devotee can deliver the entire world from ignorance and suffering. By his influence those who associate with him and follow his instructions will become pure devotees and they can in turn inspire others to become pure devotees, who can in turn inspire others to become pure devotees, etc, etc. In this way simply by the influence of one pure devotee of Krishna the entire universe can be delivered. We had the good fortune to associate with one such pure devotee, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who ordered us to become pure devotees. So now we are trying to be pure devotees and inspire others to be pure devotees who can inspire others to be pure devotees, etc. In this way, the entire world can quickly be inundated in an ocean of Krishna bhakti by the influence of one pure devotee. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. This Pure Devotee Can

This material world is a full of so many varieties of uncertainties. As soon as we feel that everything is okay, another calamity befalls us. We arrived in India on 7 March minus our lost luggage, but it was all recovered within several days. Now as we prepare to go to Europe, where I will teaching a mini-course on pure devotional service at Bhaktivedanta College in Radhadesh, we find out that our flights to Brussels have been canceled due to a strike by the airline employees. Now after a half day's endeavor, we have finally managed to book an alterative means of getting to Europe in time to teach the course. Such upheavals are par for the course in this material existence. Therefore the intelligent thing to do is to be always expecting them and stay in cool-headed Krishna consciousness by always depending on Krishna in all circumstances. Ecstatic Mangala Arati at Prabhupada's Samadhi 4:10 am-9 March 2010-Vrindavan, India Answers According to the Vedic Version Quest

There is nothing more glorious than bhakti or devotional service because it is only through bhakti that we can purchase Krishna. One may be surprised to hear that God can be purchased. But Srila Prabhupada explains that by developing pure love for Krishna He becomes our personal property. Therefore there is nothing more important than going deeper and deeper into the mood of bhakti or devotion each and every day. Here in Vrindavan the entire atmosphere is permeated with bhakti. Therefore this is an ideal place to cultivate this supreme essence of existence. And we can carry this same Vrindavan mood with us wherever we are throughout the world by always putting Krishna in the center of all of our thoughts, words, and deeds. Reconnecting with the Essence of Existence Vrindavana, India-11 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: If Suffering is Karmic, Why Relieve It? Today I want to ask a question which often disturbs me. Often I have heard from my elders

Vrindavana is a wonderful place to dive deep into the unlimited ocean of Krishna bhakti. This is the place where Lord Sri Krishna displayed His most intimate pastimes 5,000 years ago. Just by being here in this holiest of all places, one can become greatly inspired in one's spiritual life. Every square inch of this land is sacred. It is blessed unlimitedly by inconceivable pastimes of Lord Sri Krishna and His pure devotees. Therefore one gains benefit and can relish the sweetest nectar by visiting this most holy land or even by remembering it, no matter where one may be in this material world. At Madan Mohan Temple Vrindavana, India-11 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: What Motivates You to Carry the Torch of Knowledge? After your practicing Krishna consciousness for 39 years what now motivates you to carry the transcendental torchlight of knowledge for your Gurudeva, Srila Prabhupada? N.K. Answer: The Mercy of Srila Prabhupada I personally

What does one gain by maintaining a spirit of ill will towards anyone? Nothing at all. Therefore the pure devotee always manifests well-wishes towards all living beings. Ill will is born out of an artificial sense of superiority based on the conditioned soul's false idea that he is the center of the universe. If such an illusioned soul feels that someone is a threat to his so-called superiority, he tries to defend his artificial position by manifesting ill will towards that person. Therefore we can conclude that ill will is simply born out of ignorance. Those who are enlightened with transcendental knowledge always manifest good will towards all, even those who have ill will towards them. Such enlightened souls are very, very dear to the Lord. Blissful Meeting with Disciples Vrindavana-13 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: How to Find an Enlightened Guru? Dear Swamiji, I am really in need of your precious advice. For the last ten years I have b

One cannot simply purchase an airline ticket to Delhi and hire a cab to Vrindavan for entering into Sri Vrindavana Dhama because one can only enter in the Lord's holy dhama by the mercy of the bona fide spiritual master. Therefore when we want to visit the Lord's most holy Sri Vrindavana Dhama we should always beg our spiritual master for his blessings that we can truly enter into the holy dhama. Otherwise, without the mercy of Sri Guru, we will only experience the shadow of Vrindavan. The Holy Land of Vrindavana Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: How to Attain Moksha? I would like to know what are the stages/steps for attaining moksha in your Krishna consciousness society. I am very interested to know in detail since I am very, very much attracted to your ISKCON philosophy. I want theoretical explanation fully. Please kindly provide suitable reference so that I am convinced. Manjunath, Bangalore Answer: Surrender to Krishna Under Guru's Gu

I thought I was God until I realized that I am dog. In other words, in this material world each of us has the tendency to think, "I am the center of the universe. Everything revolves around me." Again and again we fail to realize that we are tiny insignificant specks in the vast creation of the Lord. It is often thought that the formula for happiness is to inflate one's pride to the greatest possible extent. But nothing could be further from the truth. The real formula for happiness is engage oneself as the humble servant of the Supreme Lord. In this way the insignificant fragmental part of parcel of the Supreme Lord becomes supremely significant in the eyes of the Supreme Lord. This is why Krishna says: sādhavo hṛdayaṁ mahyaṁ sādhūnāṁ hṛdayaṁ tv aham mad-anyat te na jānanti nāhaṁ tebhyo manāg api "The pure devotee is always within the core of My heart, and I am always in the heart of the pure devotee. My devotees do not know anything else but Me, and I do

Religion nowadays is accepted as a system of taking God as one's order-supplier, that I approach God to fulfill my material desires. Of course, it is God undoubtedly who is supplying us all of our material necessities. But this does not mean that we have to petition Him for this purpose. Does a child have to beg his parents every day to feed him? No, of course not. Because the parents love the child they will naturally feed him. No begging is required. What will satisfy the parents greatly is if the child will inquire from them, "How can I serve you?". So this is how we should approach our supreme father. We should simply beg Him for pure bhakti, pure devotional service. This will give Him immense pleasure. And the more we please Him, the more we will be pleased.  Teaching Pure Bhakti in Vrindavan 10 March 2010 Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: If We're Not the Body, Why Does It Feel Pain? I was asked a question by a friend that if

In this material world the conditioned soul is very much distracted from his original all-knowing, all-blissful nature as Krishna's eternal servant because he is carried away by the so-called taste of material sense gratification. This artificial taste is encouraged and exploited by the materialistic propaganda mongers who make a handsome profit by misguiding the people in general promoting cigarettes, liquor, prostitution, meat eating, etc. The foolish sense enjoyer tries to become happy by squeezing as much pleasure as possible out of these things, but because there is no factual pleasure in sense gratification, the poor soul is ultimately left in a state of frustration and bewilderment. If, however, he will reconnect with his original transcendental nature diving deep into his eternal identity as the servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he will taste a pleasure that is unlimitedly sublime and will go on increasing forever. Answers According to the Vedic Version Qu

What to do when turmoil hits? Even though we do not like turmoil, as long as we are in this material existence by the laws of this material nature we will be hit by turmoil again and again. How we deal with turmoil will either make us or break us on the pathway of spiritual enlightenment. Therefore it behooves us to learn how to deal with turmoil in the proper Krishna conscious manner. Twehe first thing to remember is that everything is going on under the superintendence of Krishna. This means that we have absolutely nothing to fear except forgetfulness of Krishna and that if even in the midst of the greatest turmoil we can always remember Krishna we will never be defeated in any circumstance. This is guaranteed as follows in the Bhagavad-gita: yatra yogeśvaraḥ kṛṣṇo yatra pārtho dhanur-dharaḥ tatra śrīr vijayo bhūtir dhruvā nītir matir mama "Wherever there is Krishna, the master of all mystics, and wherever there is Arjuna, the supreme archer, there will also certainly be

8 March 2010--Today we landed in Delhi, India. Krishna blessed us immediately with a wonderful lesson in the dualities of material existence. First He gave us the pleasantry of breezing through customs within a scant five minutes. This is quite good because it can easily take from 30 minutes to an hour depending on where you are in the queue. One naturally feels happy when things are going nicely like this. But when we got to luggage claim, fate did a complete flip flop on us. We had to wait until everybody else had claimed their luggage for ours to arrive. And then it still did not arrive. It was lost, and even after the lost luggage help desk ran a tracer on it, it still could not be found. So we had to depart for Vrindavan in clothes we had worn non-stop for two days and two nights without any information of where in the world our luggage could be and without any change of clothes also. In this regard Lord Sri Krishna states in the Bhagavad-gita: na prahṛṣyet priyaṁ prāpya nodvi

Today we will be returning to Sri Vrindavan Dhama, the Lord's transcendental abode. This is Krishna's extreme kindness upon us that He makes Himself so easily accessible in Sri Vrindavana Dhama. Srila Prabhupada has wonderfully described Sri Vrindavana Dhama in his purport to Caitanya Caritamrita, Madhya Lila, Text 104 as follows: "When we consider impartially all the unlimited pastimes of the Lord, we find that His pastimes as a human being on this planet -- wherein He sports as a cowherd boy with a flute in His hands and appears youthful and fresh like a ballet dancer -- are pastimes and features that are never subjected to material laws and inebrieties. The wonderful beauty of Krishna is presented in the supreme planet, Gokula (Goloka Vrindavana). Inferior to that is His representation in the spiritual sky, and inferior to that is His representation in the external energy (Devi-dhama). A mere drop of Krishna's sweetness can drown these three worlds -- Goloka Vrind

I never cease to be amazed by this transcendental science of Krishna consciousness, which enables one to directly experience God at every moment. I am flying now from Austin to Chicago. It's 10:15 am on the 6th of March 2010. I have at least a good hour of quality writing time ahead of me before we land. When I booted up my computer a few minutes ago I was blessed on my desktop screen with the sublime darshan of Sri Sri Radha Govinda as you see them pictured above. They have been my all merciful companions ever since I first discovered them at a store in downtown Denver in 1968. After landing and changing planes in Chicago it will be onwards to Sri Vrindavan dhama in India after another change of planes in Europe. I can't think of any life more sublime and enlivening than this. Although all around me I see a world that is unnecessarily drowning in an ocean of misery, I am blessed the desire and the means to change it, hoping to succeed in doing so before inevitable death remov

This morning we are heading out on our Spring 2010 around-the-world lecture tour. It is always an ecstatic feeling to be heading our for spreading Krishna consciousness all over the world because this Krishna consciousness movement is the prime necessity of the suffering humanity. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss and enables everyone to experience the taste for which they have been hankering for millions of lifetimes. Since the more you give bliss, the more you get bliss, there is truly nothing more enlivening, uplifting, and joyful than pushing forward the tidal wave of Krishna bhakti all over the world. Answers According to the Vedic Version Question: How to be Protected from Maya? How can we protect ourselves from Maya devi's influence? Thank you, Vishal Answer: Full Surrender to Guru and Krishna The way to be protected from the Lord's illusory energy, known as Maya devi, is to become fully sold out to guru and Krishna. Maya devi is Krishna's

If we advise the people in general to prepare themselves for death, they will complain to us that we are being too negative and morbid. They would prefer to live in the illusion that death will never come so that they can go on blissfully gratifying their senses. This is like a rabbit who when being chased by a predator simply sits still and closes his eyes thinking that in this way the problem of the attacking predator will go away. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. It is better that he is fully aware of the whereabouts of that predator so that he can take sufficient steps to protect himself. And so it is better that we are always aware that death can come at any moment. In this way we can be fully prepared and instead of squeezing out some cheap thrills of temporary sense gratification, we can relish the unlimited bliss of Krishna conscious at every minute undaunted by any and all material circumstances. So Krishna consciousness is not morbid or pessimistic at all

Being always ecstatic in Krishna consciousness boils down to one simple principle: Always remember and never forget Krishna. Of course, due to material conditioning this is easier said than done. But if we diligently endeavor to always follow this principle and sincerely beg for Lord Krishna's help, we will find that it becomes amazingly easy. When we attain this stage of 24 hours ecstatic trance of Krishna consciousness, known as samadhi, we will feel that we have gained something more valuable than anything else than can be obtained in all of existence. In the Bhagavad-gita Lord Sri Krishna describes this perfectional stage as follows: "In the stage of perfection called trance, or samadhi, one's mind is completely restrained from material mental activities by practice of yoga. This perfection is characterized by one's ability to see the self by the pure mind and to relish and rejoice in the self. In that joyous state, one is situated in boundless transcendental happ