Poem: Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
The 28 December 2020 edition of Thought for the Day entitled "Which side of the bars are you on?" describes when I was put in jail for preaching Krishna consciousness in Leesburg, Florida. Now I have a poem describing that most glorious adventure:
I was a young monk out to the save the world
By teaching pure love of God
Distributing a magazine, “Back to Godhead.”
Do you find that to be quite odd?
At a mall in Leesburg Florida
Showing folks how to attain the divine.
But the police came and put me in jail
For committing this most heinous of crimes.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
They gave me a solitary cell,
But I did not feel all alone
Because I knew that God is with me
In my newly attained humble home.
I didn’t touch their garbage food
Not prepared as an offering to God.
I was happily serving His mission
Even though they considered me slipshod.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
As I gazed through the bars out the window
At the world that is said to be free
I could see that that world was stuck behind bars
And that the prisoner was surely not me.
I was ecstatic in my liberated world
Fully absorbed in the divine.
Blessed with an amazing adventurous life
That is inconceivably sublime.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
After 36 hours I was bailed out
Of my recently acquired address
To continue my mission of liberating a world
That is dying and full of duress.
When I think back to that time
When they stuck me in jail to put the brakes on me
I remember that as the most glorious time
And pray that the world can now become free.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
What do I do now?
Thanks,
Ashish
Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
To taste the pleasure you must strictly avoid the ten offenses, which are as follows:
(1) To blaspheme the devotees who have dedicated their lives for
propagating the holy name of the Lord.
(2) To consider the names of demigods like Lord Siva or Lord Brahma
to be equal to, or independent of, the name of Lord Vishnu.
(Sometimes the atheistic class of men take it that any demigod is
as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vishnu. But one who
is a devotee knows that no demigod, however great he may be, is
independently as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Therefore, if someone thinks that he can chant "Kali, Kali!" or
"Durga, Durga!"and it is the same as Hare Krishna, that is the
greatest offense.)
(3) To disobey the orders of the spiritual master.
(4) To blaspheme the Vedic literature or literature in pursuance of
the Vedic version.
(5) To consider the glories of chanting Hare Krishna to be
imaginations.
(6) To give some interpretation on the holy name of the Lord.
(7) To commit sinful activities on the strength of the holy name of
the Lord. (It should not be taken that because by chanting the holy
name of the Lord one can be freed from all kinds of sinful
reaction, one may continue to act sinfully and after that chant
Hare Krishna to neutralize his sins. Such a dangerous mentality is
very offensive and should be avoided.)
(8) To consider the chanting of Hare Krishna one of the auspicious
ritualistic activities offered in the Vedas as fruitive activities
(karma-kanda).
(9) To instruct a faithless person about the glories of the holy
name. (Anyone can take part in chanting the holy name of the Lord,
but in the beginning one should not be instructed about the
transcendental potency of the Lord. Those who are too sinful cannot
appreciate the transcendental glories of the Lord, and therefore it
is better not to instruct them in this matter.)
(10) To not have complete faith in the chanting of the holy names
and to maintain material attachments, even after understanding so
many instructions on this matter.
It is also offensive to be inattentive while chanting.
Every devotee who claims to be a Vaisnava must guard against these
offenses in order to quickly achieve the desired success, Krishna
prema, pure love of God.
Strictly avoid these offenses and you will be swimming in an ocean of unlimited bliss when you are chanting.
I hope this meets you in the best of health and deep sea diving in the nectarean ocean of Lord Sri Krishna's holy names.
Your ever well-wisher,
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
Sankarshan Das Adhikari is one of the spiritual masters of the worldwide Hare Krishna Movement. He has dedicated the last 50 years of his life for bringing a spiritual revolution to planet earth by spreading the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna all over the world. He is based in Austin, Texas and when there is no pandemic he regularly travels all over the world teaching his audiences how to attain Krishna consciousness, the highest stage of spiritual awakening. He is available for media interviews and to speak to groups and organizations either in person or via the internet.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
I was a young monk out to the save the world
By teaching pure love of God
Distributing a magazine, “Back to Godhead.”
Do you find that to be quite odd?
At a mall in Leesburg Florida
Showing folks how to attain the divine.
But the police came and put me in jail
For committing this most heinous of crimes.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
They gave me a solitary cell,
But I did not feel all alone
Because I knew that God is with me
In my newly attained humble home.
I didn’t touch their garbage food
Not prepared as an offering to God.
I was happily serving His mission
Even though they considered me slipshod.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
As I gazed through the bars out the window
At the world that is said to be free
I could see that that world was stuck behind bars
And that the prisoner was surely not me.
I was ecstatic in my liberated world
Fully absorbed in the divine.
Blessed with an amazing adventurous life
That is inconceivably sublime.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
After 36 hours I was bailed out
Of my recently acquired address
To continue my mission of liberating a world
That is dying and full of duress.
When I think back to that time
When they stuck me in jail to put the brakes on me
I remember that as the most glorious time
And pray that the world can now become free.
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Which Side of the Bars Are You On?
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
From My Liberated Position I Gazed Out at the Material World that Was Behind Bars.
My special thanks to my disciple Atma Medha Das for editorial work on the photo below:Answers According to the Vedic Wisdom
Question: No Pleasure from Chanting. What to Do?
I am chanting the Hare Krishna mantra daily but I don't feel any real pleasure. Why do you keep saying there is unlimited pleasure when I feel none? My mind keeps going back to material rubbish all the time.What do I do now?
Thanks,
Ashish
Answer: Avoid These Ten Offenses
My Dear Ashish,Please accept my blessings.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
To taste the pleasure you must strictly avoid the ten offenses, which are as follows:
(1) To blaspheme the devotees who have dedicated their lives for
propagating the holy name of the Lord.
(2) To consider the names of demigods like Lord Siva or Lord Brahma
to be equal to, or independent of, the name of Lord Vishnu.
(Sometimes the atheistic class of men take it that any demigod is
as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vishnu. But one who
is a devotee knows that no demigod, however great he may be, is
independently as good as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Therefore, if someone thinks that he can chant "Kali, Kali!" or
"Durga, Durga!"and it is the same as Hare Krishna, that is the
greatest offense.)
(3) To disobey the orders of the spiritual master.
(4) To blaspheme the Vedic literature or literature in pursuance of
the Vedic version.
(5) To consider the glories of chanting Hare Krishna to be
imaginations.
(6) To give some interpretation on the holy name of the Lord.
(7) To commit sinful activities on the strength of the holy name of
the Lord. (It should not be taken that because by chanting the holy
name of the Lord one can be freed from all kinds of sinful
reaction, one may continue to act sinfully and after that chant
Hare Krishna to neutralize his sins. Such a dangerous mentality is
very offensive and should be avoided.)
(8) To consider the chanting of Hare Krishna one of the auspicious
ritualistic activities offered in the Vedas as fruitive activities
(karma-kanda).
(9) To instruct a faithless person about the glories of the holy
name. (Anyone can take part in chanting the holy name of the Lord,
but in the beginning one should not be instructed about the
transcendental potency of the Lord. Those who are too sinful cannot
appreciate the transcendental glories of the Lord, and therefore it
is better not to instruct them in this matter.)
(10) To not have complete faith in the chanting of the holy names
and to maintain material attachments, even after understanding so
many instructions on this matter.
It is also offensive to be inattentive while chanting.
Every devotee who claims to be a Vaisnava must guard against these
offenses in order to quickly achieve the desired success, Krishna
prema, pure love of God.
Strictly avoid these offenses and you will be swimming in an ocean of unlimited bliss when you are chanting.
I hope this meets you in the best of health and deep sea diving in the nectarean ocean of Lord Sri Krishna's holy names.
Your ever well-wisher,
Sankarshan Das Adhikari
The Bona Fide Guru Reveals the Highest Truth
Sankarshan Das Adhikari is one of the spiritual masters of the worldwide Hare Krishna Movement. He has dedicated the last 50 years of his life for bringing a spiritual revolution to planet earth by spreading the teachings of Lord Sri Krishna all over the world. He is based in Austin, Texas and when there is no pandemic he regularly travels all over the world teaching his audiences how to attain Krishna consciousness, the highest stage of spiritual awakening. He is available for media interviews and to speak to groups and organizations either in person or via the internet.
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