1. Find a jar and put your change in it at the end of each day. Whenever your friends come to visit, ask them to add to your jar. Explain how you will use the money and they will happily help. When you have enough saved, donate the money to a charity such as Food For Life Global. Here you can see wonderful work done in places where there is a dire need, such as in Haiti and all over the world. Food For Life Global is the largest vegan relief organization in the world. Look at the site. It’s awesome. Or go to Food for Life Vrindavan and read about the wonderful school and other programs these Bhaktas manage. We have visited the Sandipani Muni School and sponsored a little’s girl’s education. Food for Life Vrindavan educates the poorest little girls, reforests Vrindavan, digs wells for fresh water in villages, and cares for the cows that wander Vrindavan’s dusty streets. We have so much to be grateful for, let’s spread the mercy!

2. Load some kirtan on your ipod and listen to it instead of your usual fare of rock, or rap. Think about the lyrics and music you feed through those earbuds directly to your brain. What’s in your (you are the atma/soul) best interest? Good kirtan is all over the web. On iTunes you can find the music of Dasi (Karamrita dasi), Havi dasa, Agnideva dasa, Aindra dasa and others. The lyrics will elevate your consciousness, and the music is beautiful.

3. Take time to sit quietly and chant the Maha Mantra on japa beads. Life is hectic and complicated, and so you might be thinking, “I’m already busy, and you want me to set time aside to just sit and chant a mantra?” Yes, that’s right. Sometimes what starts out seeming like an additional complication to life, can actually simplify it. Try rising earlier in the morning to chant before your hectic day begins. Time set aside regularly for chanting has so many benefits. First, as our teacher would say, when you chant, you are directly associating with the Supreme. If you chant my name, unless you are in the same room with me, I won’t respond. But the Supreme is present in His name. By associating with the Holy Names, we slowly, over time, become holy too. It’s true. It cleanses the mind, intelligence, and consciousness. And then there is the peaceful feeling we get when we clear out all the static and noise in our heads, and chant, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare. We sell japa beads at our center, or you can get some from the devotional paraphernalia purveyors on the internet. Start with one round (108 beads) and work your way up to 16. Each round takes only a few minutes.

4. Sing kirtan, or chant—as you walk, wash dishes, or do the laundry. Srila Prabhupada said that we don’t have to change our situation in life, we just have to change our consciousness. We can bring ourselves close to Krishna (Krishna means “One who is attractive in every way”—as God should be!) by finding every opportunity to remember Him through song or mantra—even while performing the simple tasks that we need to accomplish during the day.

5. Put the Bhagavad-gita or another transcendental literature (email us if you want some suggestions) next to your bed and read before taking rest. The Bhakti tradition is rich in literatures of all types. The Gita, the Srimad-Bhagavatam, books by Jiva, Rupa or Sanatana Goswamis, and over 80 books by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, etc. Start by reading one of them. If you read right before going to sleep, Krishna and Bhakti yoga will be the last thought in your day. That’s a good thing.

6. Before you take rest each night, offer the activities of your day to Krishna. It’s a grateful person who thanks those who give them a gift. Krishna gave us the gift of life, and most of us have much to be grateful for.  We may not be able to think of Krishna BEFORE we act, in the early stages of Bhakti, but we can offer the results up after the fact, as an offering of gratitude. Gratitude is powerful and it breeds sincerity and humility. “Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, and whatever austerities you perform—do that as an offering to Me” (Krishna speaking in Bhagavad-gita 9.27)

7. Make an effort to become friends with people who will pull you toward spiritual life—not pull you down. Srila Prabhupada told us that whom we keep company with is terribly important. That is why he established ashrams all over the world where we could learn, and make friends with peers who also wanted to advance spiritually. At the Bhaktivedanta Center the Bhakti Yoga Club members become friends and encourage each other in their spiritual aspirations. You should seek out those who encourage conversations about spiritual life, and most particularly those who are ahead of you on the path, as they can answer your questions and help you over the rough spots. Such association is called “Sadhu sanga”  (community with sadhus, or those attempting to live a saintly life). When you associate with sadhus, find ways to help them. Seva (service) to those who are serving Krishna helps us advance. Srila Prabhupada said that Krishna looks more favorably on service to His devotee than on service directly to Him.

8. Whatever you cook, whatever you eat, first offer it to the Krishna. A Bhakti yogi cooks for the Supreme. Everything we cook, we do so with Krishna in mind. We don’t taste the preparation as we cook, and we keep ourselves and the kitchen we cook in very clean. After we are finished cooking a meal, we make a plate (it is nice to keep a special plate and silverware just for this purpose) and we offer it first to Him.  After it has been offered, it is considered to be “prasadam” (mercy) that is spiritually surcharged, for Krishna says, “If one offers me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it.” (Krishna speaking in Bhagavad-gita 9.26)

9. Look around you and appreciate the artistry of Krishna’s Creation. There is a masterpiece in every direction, we just require the eyes to see. A flock of birds flying in formation, a beautiful sunset, a fawn at the edge of the woods at dusk, the laughter of a child, the smell of a flower, the sound of the wind—everywhere we can experience the artistry of the Supreme. Take the time to stop and appreciate it and to acknowledge the Mastermind behind it all. “Know that all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of My splendor.” (Krishna in Bhagavad-gita 10.41)

10. Talk to someone about something you’ve learned in your reading or study of Bhakti literatures, or from your association with other Bhaktas. Bhakti is a compassionate philosophy. If you saw that a house was on fire and there were people asleep inside, wouldn’t you try to awaken them to prevent them from suffering? This world is difficult and full of suffering. Bhakti philosophy helps people make sense of the world, while they advance spiritually. Share what you have learned. If you are interested in Bhakti, expect that others might also be interested, and give them a chance to learn by talking about it when the opportunity arises. When you teach what you have learned from those who have mentored you—you complete the circle.

Buttery Cauliflower with Glazed Tomato

In this recipe, the snowy white cauliflower and the tomatoes and pepper flavors blend well. The cauliflower becomes buttery soft, and the tomatoes are reduced to a glaze. The edamame provides a pretty bright green contrast and provides a mild, delicious protein to the dish. Serve with well cooked brown rice and warm whole wheat bread. Serves 4.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 head cauliflower broken into 1 inch pieces

4-5 ripe large roma tomatoes (skinned and quartered)

1 cup edamame (available frozen in bags in the healthy food sections of groceries)

1/3 sweet red pepper, 1/3 sweet orange pepper, 1/3 sweet yellow pepper (or one full pepper of any of them) cut in strips about 1 inch long

2 tablespoons of ghee (or olive oil if you don’t have ghee)

sprinkle of black mustard seeds (sprinkled lightly across the ghee)

sprinkle of turmeric (sprinkle across the ghee)

sprinkle of hing (sprinkle lightly across the ghee)

salt and pepper to taste

PROCEDURE

Heat ghee in wok, add mustard seeds and when they begin to pop, add hing, and turmeric. Add pepper pieces and stir fry a minute over medium high heat. Add cauliflower and continue stirring (so it doesn’t stick) over medium high heat. Fry the cauliflower until slightly browned. Add the chopped tomatoes and frozen edamame, reduce heat to low and cover, cooking until tomatoes are broken down and cauliflower is soft. If the dish starts to dry out too much as it cooks, add a few tablespoons of water to keep it moist. Salt and pepper to taste.

“Out of the bosom of the air
Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken,
Oer the woodlands brown and bare,
Over the harvest-fields forsaken,
Silent, and soft, and slow
descends the snow.”
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The Bhaktivedanta Center is in rural Virginia, not far from Charlottesville. In winter, we have practically 360 degree mountain views. It’s beautiful, and quiet—especially after it snows. We take a japa walk during a deep snowfall, across the fields of the nearby farm, and into the woods. It’s quiet, save for the falling flakes of snow and the crunch of our steps. We marvel at the beauty of Krishna’s creation. Always changing, eternally fresh.

Looking toward the sky, the flakes seem to spiral up to infinity, each falling alone, and yet part of the complete whole.

“How full of the creative genius is the air in which these are generated! I should hardly admire more if real stars fell and lodged on my coat. Nature is full of genius, full of Divinity: so that not a snowflake escapes its fashioning hand.”
—Thoreau

The huge flakes rest on the arm of my dark jacket; I examine them. Each is crisp, beautiful, chiseled to perfection. Every flake individual, unlike the next…so beautiful, and yet, so temporary.

“Nature is ever at work building and pulling down, creating and destroying…”

—Thoreau

Looking at the sculpted flakes, I think how ironic it is that something so beautiful, and perfect, will last only seconds. But then I am reminded of our own tentative position, of how quickly pass our individual lives—and how fragile they really are. Viewed in perspective, our time in each body is just like that of the snowflakes. We are tiny sparks of the Supreme perfection. Each jiva (soul) is an individual, housed in temporary form (in our case, these bodies). We have cycled through millions lives, each building on the successes and failures of the last. But we are still here, inside the cycle of birth, disease, old age, and ultimately, death. Why is this? What do we have to do to truly move on? What must we accomplish to cease being the melting snowflake on the coat of the material world? What will make us permanent?   Complete?   What is our perfection?

The invocation to Sri Isopanishad:

om purnam adah purnam idam purnat purnam udacyate purnasya purnam adaya purnam evavasisyate

Translation:

The Personality of Godhead is perfect and complete, and because He is completely perfect, all emanations from Him, such as this phenomenal world, are perfectly equipped as complete wholes. Whatever is produced of the complete whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the complete whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance.

Prabhupada explains that the complete whole, the Personality of Godhead, Krishna, has immense potencies, all of which are complete in and of themselves. Thus this material world is also complete in itself. Everything this world needs to maintain itself has been supplied by Krishna and it functions on its own timetable set in motion by Krishna.

Because we do not know that there is a complete arrangement in nature for our maintenance, we make efforts to utilize the resources of nature to create a so-called complete life of sense enjoyment. Because we cannot truly enjoy the life of the senses without them being dovetailed to the complete whole (Krishna) the misleading life of pursuing sense enjoyment is considered a life of “illusion.” The hand of a body is a complete unit only as long as it is attached to the complete body. If the hand is somehow separated from the body, it may appear like a hand, but it actually has none of the potencies (abilities) of a hand. Similarly, living beings are the energy of the Supreme, and if they are separated from the complete whole, Krishna, by their minds and actions, they cannot be fully satisfied.

Prabhupada explains that the completeness of human life can only be realized when one engages in the service of the complete whole, Krishna. All the different types of service we can perform in this world—whether they be social, political, communal, international or even interplanetary—will remain incomplete until they are dovetailed with Krishna, the complete whole. When everything is dovetailed as service to the Supreme, then we also become complete. And we do not have to make a separate arrangement for our own pleasure because, just as watering the root of a tree satisfies all the parts of the tree, serving the Supreme is the most satisfying activity.

VIDEO: Karnamrita sings

During this retreat I would like to go deep into myself, leaving all the different layers behind. I know that deep down in the very bottom of my heart a treasure is waiting for me. I can find it by the process of “spiritual archaeology.” I feel that this treasure will give me the strength required to deal with the compromises I make in my life that keep me in the so-called comfort zone. It is a dangerous zone that gets darker each time I act in a way contrary to what I know to be true.

Spiritual Archaeology

Once a boy only sixteen years old went to his two brothers. He said to them: “It is my desire to take you to a mysterious place, a place where you shall learn the truth about yourself.”

But his brothers were afraid. “Please, let’s stay home. We already have had enough adventures with you.”

But the young boy told them: “Either you come with me or I will never speak to you again.” In this way he forced them to come along. They walked for a long time and arrived later the same day. They found themselves at the side of a deep well.

The boy told his oldest brother: “I want to put a rope around your waist and lower you into the well. Look carefully at what you find at the bottom.” When the oldest brother was only one-third down the well he began to scream and cry. Fear to face the darkness and loneliness inside the well attacked him from all sides: “I’m dying! I’m dying!” Hearing his cries, the young boy pulled him out because he saw what kind of person his oldest brother was.

Next the middle brother was hoisted down into the well. He went halfway down and then he also began to scream, “Help! Help! Save me! Bring me up!” The youngest brother, seeing what kind of person his middle brother was, pulled him up. When the youngest brother’s turn came he said, “Listen. Even though I may cry and scream, don’t pull me up. Lower me down into the well until you feel there is no weight on the end of the rope— then you will know that I have reached the bottom.” His brothers pleaded with him: “You are our youngest brother. Why do you want to leave us?” But the boy was firm, and they lowered him by the rope until he reached the bottom of the well.

I first heard this story from my grandfather when I was a young boy of sixteen years, and I remember that I became intrigued. I wanted to know how the story would end. But my grandfather surprised me. He looked deep into my eyes and said, “It’s not just a nice story about someone else. It should become your story. What will you find, when you go down that well to the bottom of your heart?” Shortly afterward, I decided to move into a temple to seriously start my spiritual journey.

We have become expert at filling our lives with the noise of ten thousand little things. We are always surrounded by a hum of activity coming from our fast lives. Even if there is nothing going on around us, our psyche continues to vibrate from the joys and frustrations we experience. The modern person finds it very difficult, therefore, to be alone with him/herself. Always some diversion is needed; some TV, some music, some talk, etc.

The French mathematician Blaise Pascal once wrote: “All man’s miseries derive from not being able to sit quietly in a room alone.” That was the problem of the two brothers. They felt scared when they had to go deeper and separate themselves from the usual noise of their busy lives.

Our spiritual journey will bring us through lonely places—places we have never been to before. Sometimes these inner regions are so lonely that we may not immediately find recognizable sign posts to tell us which way to go. At that time, we have to struggle to orient ourselves and sometimes, even when we think we finally have found the sign posts, we might find that we can’t read them. When that happens, we have to turn to Krishna (the All-attractive Supreme) in all seriousness.

The Cave of the Heart

About ten years ago I went on a pilgrimage accompanied by three others into the solitude of the Himalayas. We visited a place near Badrinatha and went to the historic cave in which King Muchukunda, after being awakened from his long sleep, met Lord Krishna. This cave is high in the mountains and we could only find it with the help of an experienced guide. When we arrived I immediately wanted to go inside but the guide warned us, “Don’t go there, there are dangerous snakes at the bottom of the cave.” This intrigued me even more (smile). So I told him we would find our way back to Badrinatha alone, gave him his money and sent him on his way. My temptation was heightened because I remembered the story of my grandfather and how he said, “Go deep and you will find your treasure.”

In Sanskrit the heart is sometimes metaphorically referred to as ‘guha’, meaning a cavern, cave or a deep and secret place. With this in mind we turned to the cave and began our descent. One of us waited outside. King Muchukunda physically went into a cave in the Himalayas where he rested his battle-tired body and waited for the Lord to appear. After a long sleep he finally awoke to find Lord Krishna standing before him, illuminating the cave with His effulgence. Overwhelmed with gratitude Muchukunda prayed: “With your effulgence you dispel the darkness of this mountain cave, and with your jewel like knowledge you destroy the darkness of ignorance in my heart.” (Sharartha-darshini 10.51.29).

In much the same way, anyone who goes to the bottom of the heart-cave will meet the Lord there. He is described as “sitting unseen within the cave of the heart like the fire dormant within kindling wood” (Shrimad-Bhagavatam 11.37.10–11).

Although Krishna did not appear to us in his transcendental form in that Himalaya cave, we still felt we had been rewarded. At that holy place we held kirtana and read the pastime of Muchakunda from the Krishna Book. Also as we carefully directed the beam of our torchlight into that enormous cave we found Krishna’s footprints sculpted in marble. They had been installed there in the distant past.)

Krishna is the Supersoul who dwells within the heart of all living beings. Even though we cannot always see Him with our covered eyes and conditioned mind, He is there, hidden just like the fire within wood. And just like there is an ancient process for kindling fire from within wood there is an ancient process by which we can discover the Lord and experience His presence more and more in our hearts. The Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad tells us: “One must see the Lord, hear about Him, think about Him and meditate upon Him with fixed concentration.” (Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad 4.5.6).

Shrila Vishvantha Chakravarti Thakur explains how we can see the Lord. “The idea here is that one should directly see the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” The means for achieving this are then explained by him:

“One must first hear from a bona-fide guru and take the words of such a spiritual master into one’s heart by offering him humble service and striving in all ways to please him. One should then continuously ponder the message of the spiritual master with the aim of dispelling all one’s doubts and misconceptions. Then one can proceed to meditate on Sri Krishna’s lotus feet with total conviction and determination.”

Sacinandana Swami

Born in Hamburg, Germany, in 1954, Sacinandana Swami is a disciple of Sri A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami and a sannyasi (monk) in the Gaudiya Vaishnava Sampradaya. He has developed a number of innovative programs for sharing devotional knowledge with large audiences thoughout Europe. He has also spent many years on pilgrimage, developing his own personal sadhana and sharing the sacred places with others. His publications include The Nectarean Ocean of the Holy Name, The Gayatri Book, The Way of the Great Departure, The Art of Transformation, Spiritual Tonic, and Divine Names, a double CD with bhajans.

Delicious Three Bean Dal Soup

This soup is easy to make, cooks quickly, and is great with a good bread and a salad

2/3 cup dried split red lentils

1/3 cup dried mung beans

1/3 cup dried chana or split peas

2 small potatoes cut into small cubes

4 mini carrots  cut into 4-5 pieces each

3 chopped fresh tomatoes  (skinned or not)

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp chili powder

5 cups water

1 tsp. sambar masala

1 cup spinach

1 Tbs. ghee

1 tsp. salt (add more after offered if not enough)

In a stock pot add the first 8 ingredients to 5 cups water. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the split peas are cooked through. The other two beans will cook faster. When all the dal beans are cooked, add the sambar and spinach.

In a small fry pan melt ghee. Add cumin seeds and fry briefly until they change to a darker color. Pour ghee with cumin over dal, and add salt.

Notes:

If you do not have all three dal beans listed, you can make this dal using just one or two of them. Whole Foods has all three of these dals, as do Indian groceries.

Ghee. Even though there is only a tablespoon of ghee in this recipe, it is an important ingredient. Can you make this dal without it and it will be good, but the ghee makes it taste very hearty and robust. Ghee is available from some grocery stores in the Indian foods section or at Whole Foods or an Indian grocery.

Sambar Masala is a spice blend that is available at Indian stores. It can be used in many other recipes, like curries.

The Journey Home

By HH Radhanatha Swami