The Four Philosophies: Impersonalism, Yoga, Personalism and Voidism

Although there are thousands and thousands of philosophical and spiritual groups around the world most of them are following one of four basic philosophies: personalism, yoga, impersonalism or voidism. There are also a few other athiestic philosophies which try to explain the existence of the universe and the living entities without any spiritual connection but we will not discuss them here. All philosophers and followers of religion naturally question about the nature of the Supreme and they also question what is the ultimate perfection, the destination which the perfect living beings attain:

Those who are personalists understand the Supreme is a person and surrender to Him, worship Him and serve Him. They conclude the ultimate destination is the spiritual world, the ingdom of !od"the place where the Supreme #ord lives"and they want to go there and have a personal relationship and render service to the #ord. The yogis meditate on the #ord within their hearts"the Supersoul"their ultimate reali$ation is the personal form of the Supreme #ord as %aramatma within their hearts. &nfortunately yogis generally get distracted by the yoga-siddhis, the yogic perfections. These mystic perfections enable the yogis to achieve wonderful powers within the material world"but the real perfection of yoga is to reali$e the Supreme #ord within the heart and surrender to Him and serve him"so the perfect yogi will become a personalist, a devotee, ultimately. The impersonalists conclude that the Supreme is an impersonal energy or force. They want to merge with or become one with the Supreme"imagining that when they merge with the impersonal energy of the Supreme they will somehow become one with and equal to the Supreme. The impersonal philosophy is very common because generally the demonic people want to become god"they have no interest in surrendering to and serving anyone"certainly not !od"so this impersonal philosophy allows them to believe there is no god above them, there is no authority, only an impersonal force, an energy and they are thin'ing of becoming one with that energy and becoming the supreme themselves. (ost )ndian gurus and philosophers are impersonalits even though they may spea' something of rishna, *ishnu"but ultimately directly or indirectly, they hold impersonal views and really want to become the supreme themselves rather than surrendering to and serving the Supreme #ord. %ractically the whole +new age, philosophy in the -est is impersonalism. .ecause for the demonic people the idea of becoming one with the supreme is much more attractive than surrendering to the Supreme #ord. The voidists conclude that ultimately there is no supreme"only a void. They do not believe in any ultimate destination at all. They imagine that ultimately everything is void and they are trying to cease to exist. They imagine stopping their existence will be the solution to all their problems. The .uddhists are the typical example of followers of the voidist philosophy. They are atheistic. They do not believe in !od

and do not accept the living entities have an eternal soul and believe that ultimately they can cease to exist. (odern scientists are also generally voidists.

These four philosophies"personalism, yoga, impersonalism and voidism" appear time and time again in slightly different variations all over the world. /eally you can not find any other philosophy. Sometimes there is some mixture but these are the basic four elements. So what is correct0 )n )ndia so many believe +whatever you thin', whatever you accept"that is good for you., This is not true but it is a very common belief among )ndian philosophers. Something does not become correct and good for you 1ust because you believe it. To discover the truth we have to find a reliable authority and all of these philosophers except the voidists2.uddhists accept the *edas as their authority. So the personalists, impersonalists and yogis all share the same authority 2 scriptures"the *edas"while the .uddhists2voidists re1ect the *edas. The void philosophy comes from #ord .uddha who is accepted in the *edas as an incarnation of *ishnu. .ut he preaches against the *edas. He said: +) condemn any scripture that condones animal 'illing, and because the *edas contains references to animal sacrifices he re1ected the *edas and went on to present his own philosophy based on the principle of ahimsa, non3violence. He preached that non3violence is the highest religious principle. Although ) do not have the space to get into it in great detail here but his purpose was special. At the time #ord .uddha was preaching in )ndia the whole country had become meat3eaters and they were 1ustifying the animal3'illing by references in the *edas related to animal3sacrifice. (eat3eaters are not able to understand much philosophy and they were also atheistic. 4ou can not as' an atheist to surrender to !od"he will 1ust get angry. )n this situation in )ndia #ord *ishnu appeared as #ord .uddha"he is the Supreme #ord"but he said +) am not !od5, and he presented a philosophy that was very attractive to the meat3eating atheists of the time. )n his philosophy there is no god, no eternal soul and the ultimate destination is nirvana"the void" nothingness5 .ut #ord .uddha6s main purpose, the main point of his preaching was: ahimsa parama dharma, +non3violence is the highest religious principle., So with this preaching #ord .uddha was able to convince the )ndian people to become vegetarians"and that is really the only purpose of his preaching and his concocted philosophy.

7nce the )ndian people became vegetarians by the strength of #ord .uddha6s preaching they were able to understand more subtle philosophical points and #ord Shan'aracharya who is an incarnation of #ord Shiva, appeared and easily defeated the .uddhist philosophy and re3established the authority of the *edas. Shan'aracharaya is an incarnation of #ord Shiva and he was also unable to give the people the ultimate truth because they were still atheists following the .uddhist philosophy and still unwilling to surrender to the Supreme #ord. So Shan'aracharya presented a misrepresentation of the *edas, particularly the Vedanta Sutra, in which he attempts to eliminate any personal aspects of the Supreme #ord by word31ugglery and false logic. Although the *edanta Sutra clearly describes the Supreme #ord as personal in the ultimate issue his commentary, the sariraka-bhasya, exclusively stresses the impersonal all3 pervasive energy of the Supreme #ord as the ultimate and completely denies any personal aspect at all. The teachings of Shan'aracharya are often referred to as +covered .uddhism, because basically he has presented many of the .uddhist ideas but supported them by a misinterpretation of the VedantaSutra. So he has simultaneously re3established the authority of the *edas and also presented a misinterpretation of the *edas. it is stated in the Padma Purana that #ord Siva appeared as a brahmana in the age of ali to preach the (ayavada philosophy, which is nothing but a type of .uddhist philosophy:
mayavadam asac-chastram pracchannam bauddham ucyate mayaiva vihitam devi kalau brahmana-murtina

#ord Siva, spea'ing to %arvati3devi, foretold that he would spread the (ayavada philosophy in the guise of a sannyasi brahmana 1ust to eradicate .uddhist philosophy. This sannyasi was Sripada San'aracarya. )n order to overcome the effects of .uddhist philosophy and spread *edanta philosophy, Sripada San'aracarya had to ma'e some compromise with the .uddhist philosophy, and as such he preached the philosophy of monism, for it was required at that time. 7therwise there was no need for his preaching (ayavada philosophy. 8Srila %rabhupada SB 4.24.17 purport9 So the athestic impersonal and voidist philosophies that now flood the whole world all stem from the preaching of #ord .uddha and #ord Shan'aracarya. The .uddhist2voidist philosophy is incorrect. There is no factual basis in it at all and any thoughtful philosophically inclined person can easily see the many flaws in it. )t is completely in contradiction with the *edas which every other philosopher accepts"although they have their different interpretations. The .uddhist philosophy is sunyavadi"or $ero. Their idea is to ma'e everything $ero. The .uddhist will loo' at everything in the world and see it is ultimately a

source of suffering so he will say that all these sources of suffering should be eliminated. And then ultimately when everything is eliminated you come to nirvana which means to finish all the varieties and to become $ero. This is of course not a very attractive proposal. -e want pleasure, we want happiness" but the .uddhists are frustrated"they thin' happiness and pleasure are impossible because they only have information about material pleasure which they correctly reali$e is not actually pleasure at all"so they conclude the best thing is to cease to exist"nirvana"to become $ero5 This is, in reality, not possible because the soul is eternal. )t can not be 'illed or cease to exist under any circumstances whatsoever. So this .uddhist2voidist idea ofnirvana is simply impossible. )t is wrong, incorrect, impossible. So for bona3fide philosophies we can reduce the list to only three: personalist, yogi and impersonalist. All these three philosophies are accepted in the *edas as being bona3fide ways of understanding at least a part of the #ords energies. vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam yaj jnanam advayam brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate +The Absolute Truth is reali$ed in three phases of understanding by the 'nower of the Absolute Truth, and all of them are identical. Such phases of the Absolute Truth are expressed as .rahman, %aramatma, and .hagavan., 8.hag. 1.2.119 These three divine aspects can be explained by the example of the sun, which also has three different aspects, namely the sunshine, the sun6s surface and the sun planet itself. 7ne who studies the sunshine only is the preliminary student. 7ne who understands the sun6s surface is further advanced. And one who can enter into the sun planet is the highest. 7rdinary students who are satisfied by simply understanding the sunshine"its universal pervasiveness and the glaring effulgence of its impersonal nature" may be compared to those who can reali$e only the .rahman feature of the Absolute Truth. The student who has advanced still further can 'now the sun disc, which is compared to 'nowledge of the %aramatma feature of the Absolute Truth. And the student who can enter into the heart of the sun planet is compared to those who reali$e the personal features of the Supreme Absolute Truth. Therefore, the bha'tas, or the transcendentalists who have reali$ed the .hagavan feature of the Absolute Truth, are the topmost transcendentalists, although all students who are engaged in the study of the Absolute Truth are engaged in the same sub1ect matter.

The sunshine, the sun disc and the inner affairs of the sun planet cannot be separated from one another, and yet the students of the three different phases are not in the same category. 8from Srila %rabhupada6s purport to Bhagavadgita 2.29 So this is the 'ey to understanding the three philosophies: personalism, yoga and impersonalism. The personalists reali$e rishna"the Supreme Personalit o! "odhead and they reali$e everything. The %aramatma form of the #ord in the hearts of all living entities upon which the yogis meditate is an expansion of rishna"so if one reali$es rishna he also reali$es His %aramatma feature. The impersonal effulgence is simply the glare or shining that is eminating from the transcendental body of rishna. So if one can see the transcendental body of rishna naturally he can also see the shining effulgence emanating from rishna6s body"that is the .rahma1oti, the destination of the impersonalists. So the three types of philosophers: personalists, yogis and impersonalits are all reali$ing different aspects of the same Supreme %ersonality of !odhead, rishna. So they are all studying the same sub1ect however the personalists are able to simultaneously understand and appreciate all the different energies and expansions of rishna but the yogis are only able to see the %aramatma form of the #ord in their hearts and the impersonal energy of the #ord and the impersonalists are only able to reali$e the .rahma1oti, the impersonal, all3 pervading aspect of the Supreme #ord. So the reali$ation of rishna as the Supreme %ersonality of !odhead is the complete reali$ation of the Absolute Truth and the yogis and impersonalists have only partial reali$ation"but they are reali$ing and studying the same rishna" their vision is limited to particular aspects only. There are many different sampradayas or groups of devotees in )ndia and they are reali$ing different aspects of the Supreme #ord or have slightly different philosophical outloo's. -e are the followers of #ord Sri :aitanya (ahaprabhu and Srila %rabhupada describes #ord :aitanya6s philosophy of acintya-bheda abheda-tattvam 8inconcieveably simultaneously one and different9 as: +Attraction for water depends on the purity of the taste, and this pure taste is one of the energies of the #ord. The impersonalist perceives the presence of the #ord in water by its taste, and the personalist also glorifies the #ord for His 'indly supplying water to quench man6s thirst. That is the way of perceiving the Supreme. %ractically spea'ing, there is no conflict between personalism and impersonalism. 7ne who 'nows !od 'nows that the impersonal conception and personal conception are simultaneously present in everything and that there is no

contradiction. Therefore #ord :aitanya established His sublime doctrine: acintyabheda and abheda-tattvam3simultaneously one and different., So there is no contradiction between the personal aspect of rishna in rishna consciousness and the impersonalists or the yogis understandings. However the devotees of rishna ta'e offense at the (ayavadis who following the Sarirakabhasya commentary of Vedanta Sutra by Shan'acharaya try to establish that the impersonal aspect is supreme and that any time rishna appears He is in maya and all of rishna6s pastimes are also maya. 8That is why we call them +(ayavadis,"because they consider that rishna and His pastimes are maya.9 So the *aisnavas have a very big disagreement with the (ayavadis but that will be the sub1ect of another article. :hant Hare rishna and be happy; (adhudvisa dasa
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Hare krishna prabhu ji

I have few questions please answer. 1. When we are already facing the hardship on this planet due to our past karma, then why one has to go to hellish planet or swarga lok. . Is liberation only possible only from this planet or the living inhabitants from the higher planets can get liberation as well, and is birth death disease and old age is also taking place in higher planets as well. !. "he soul goes into #$,%%,%%% spices before getting this human body, are these circle of #$,%%,%%% only on earth or entire 1$ lokas. &o higher planets have some other system. $. Whats the meaning of devotee who worships krishna in passive state and active state. '.How do we enter vaikuntha planet. (ast not least ). *+, e.g. now that we are born in this cosmic of 1$ lokas - and there are

billions of gala.y/s than after death do we go to different gala.y or i mean to say different earth where there are other 1$ lokas or the soul stays in this cosmic world of 1$ lokas till its liberated and enters vaikuntha. requesting your good self to please clear my doubt. hare krishna. ,eply

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,eply
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1hare 2

Madhudvisa dasa
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pran

$ months ago

Hare 3rishna 4ran 1. In the human form of life we are responsible for our actions therefore we have to enjoy or suffer the reactions to our actions in this life. If we act in a pious way we will be promoted to the heavenly planets and if we act in a sinful way we will have to go to the hellish planes. "hese days most are acting in sinful ways so they will have to go to the hellish planets and suffer there. "here is, as you say, suffering and so5called enjoyment on this planet, but there is much more suffering in the hellish planes and much more enjoyment in the heavenly planets. 1o depending on our consciousness at the time of death an appropriate destination will be selected for us. It is not that we have to go to heaven or hell. It is possible to also come back on this planet. 6ut all of the material worlds are hellish ultimately because in every material planet, even in the heavenly planets, there is birth, old age, disease and death. +f course if we think of 3rishna at the time of death we can go back home, back to 7odhead, to 3rishna8s planet, 7oloka 9rindavan, that is the best place to go to... . 6irth, death, old age and disease is going on in every planet in the material world. In the heavenly planets they live very long lives and the disease is not so serious, but ultimately they do get sick, get old and die. 6ut it is less traumatic

than on earth. :nd in the hellish planets of course it is worse than on earth. (iberation is actually possible from anywhere. It is possible for the conditioned souls to surrender to 3rishna on any planet, but it is not very easy in the hellish planets because the suffering it so intense that all the living entities there really have time to think about is how to survive and they are always in such e.cruciating pain that it is very difficult to think about spiritual life. :nd in the heavenly planets they are surrounded by such opulence and beauty and material pleasure with so many beautiful women and so much wealth and so much comfort that they get too comfortable and puffed5up there, they do not see any suffering there really, so they have very little impetus to take to spiritual life. 1o here on earth, a middle planet, that is the best place, because here we can see both the suffering and the so5called enjoyment, and here we can see the futility of both. :nd here of course, earth, is very special. It is only on earth that 3rishna appears for e.ample. 9rindavan is only on earth in this universe. 1o 3rishna does not appear as 3rishna anywhere else in the universe. +f course He is incarnating everywhere in different forms, but earth is very special in this universe because 3rishna appears here, (ord ;aitanya <ahaprabhu appeared here, 1rila 4rabhupada appeared here. 1o we are very fortunate on earth at this time in this universe. We should take full advantage of this great fortune. !. "here are #,$%%,%%% species in the entire universe, in all 1$ lokas. 1o they are not all here on earth. :nd we don8t necessarily have to go through every single one of them. It depends on our consciousness. :nd we fall high not low. 1o it is not that we fall down as a low species. We fall down as a highly evolved living entity like (ord 6rahma, and then gradually, because of misusing our independence we fall down to the lower species like worm in stool... Higher planets do not have any different system. "here are #,$%%,%%% species of life all over the universe. If you travel to the other planets you will find many of the the same species that we have here on earth and some different ones also. *or e.ample there are living entities on the sun planet. "hey have bodies made predominantly of fire. 1o there you will find the living entities are somewhat different because the atmosphere is very different from the atmosphere on earth. 6ut this human5like form, which is actually based on 3rishna8s form, is very common throughout the universe. $. ,ead 1rila 4rabhupada8s =ectar of &evotion for this answer. He answers it wonderfully there in great detail.

'. >ou can enter a 9aikuntha planet if you are 3rishna conscious or more specifically 9isnu conscious and if you are able to think of (ord 9isnu at the time of death. ). We can take our ne.t birth anywhere in the material creation. =ot just in this brahmananda. :nywhere. We can not see beyond this universe. 1o whatever we see the sky, it is all within this brahmananda. "here is a very thick and solid shell surrounding this brahmananda, it is like an egg, and outside there is the causal ocean where <aha 9isnu is lying and from the pores of the body of <aha 9isnu unlimited universes are emanating in seed for and e.panding as He breathes out and when <aha 9isnu breathes in all the universes contract again and reenter His body. 1o the whole universal time is just one breath of <aha 9isnu. :nd we can not see any of these other universes because of the solid covering of our universe. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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1hare 2

Laxman Prashad Adhikary

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$ months ago

4ranam 1wami, I got opportunity to go through your scholarly and deep devoted article as *our 4hilosophies. I deeply regard you for giving opportunities to me to read such articles. I have no capacity and authority to comment and remark.I modestly appreciate and accept. (a.man

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,eply
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1hare 2

Madhudvisa dasa
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(a.man 4rashad :dhikary

$ months ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu "hank you very much for reading the articles 4rabhu. I have no credit in this matter. I am simply repeating what 1rila 4rabhupada is saying in his books and if you like it 4rabhu you can find so much more wonderful nectar in 1rila 4rabhupada8s books so I suggest you start a program to read all of 1rila 4rabhupada8s books. "hat will be a great adventure for you and you will find so much inspiration and knowledge and spiritual advancement from reading all of 1rila 4rabhupada8s books. >ou can purchase them at www.3rishna1tore.com and you can read them online at www.4rabhupada6ooks.com ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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1hare 2

kapil krishna das

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1% months ago

:(( 7(+,I@1 "+ 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&: :(( 7(+,I@1 "+ <:&HA&9I1: <:H:,:B, "he newsletter was very good ....i came to know many facts that i can preach to

my friends . thanking you

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Shubham
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1% months ago

H:,I 6+( B:I :;HH:,>:1 :=& (+,& "HI1 WI(( H@(4 : (+" +* 4@+4(@ "H:" WH> (+,& 1HI9: I=;:,=:"@& :1 1,I4:&: 1:=3:,:;H:,>:C "he 1ecret of (ord 1hiva "he :ctual 1ecret of (ord 1hiva :dapted from 1hri 4adma 4urana, Attara 3handa ;hapters !'5 !). 4arvati 1aid, D+ (ord 1hiva, >ou once told me that one should avoid speaking with 4asandi atheistic demon,and that doing so is worse then talking to candalas outcastes. 4lease tell me of what are the symptoms of such persons and what signs do they wear on their bodiesCD 1hiva replied,D"hose 4ersons who,deluded by ignorace,describw any other deity being superior to 9ishnu,"he (ord of the world, are said to be 4asandis. "hose who,although they do not belong to the 9anaprastha asrama, use skulls, decorate their bodies with ashes and bones, have non59edic marks, matted hair, and wear garments of tree bark, are said to be pasandis. "hose brahmanas who are devoid of the marks and symbols dear to 9ishnu, such as conches, discs,and vertical5lined tilaka worn on the forehead, are said to be pasandis. "hat brahman who does not follow the practices given in the sastra should be known as a pasandi and should be condemned by all people. "hose who have no devotion for the (ord are said to be pasandi. +ne who behaves as he likes and

offers oblations in to the fire for the worship of deities other than (ord 9ishnu should be known as a pasandi, for (ord 9ishnu is the enjoyer of fruit of all sacrifices and is the deity of brahmanas. He who considers (ord 9ishnu as equal to other deities such as 6rahma and myself, ,udra,should always be called a pasandi. "hat brahmana, who with his speech, body,and deeds dose not recogniEe 9ishnu,is a pasandi. What is the use of saying much in this regardC "hose brahmanas who are not devotees of 9ishnu should never be asked any questions, should never be talked to,and should never be seen,D 4arvati said,D+ lord,+ best of gods,I want to ask you something secret. "hrough love for me,please answer. I have a great doubt."he sastras condemn using skulls, dercorating the body with ashes, and wearing skins of animals. >et,you do all these things. Why are these thing condemnedC + (ord of the gods, + highly intelligent one, due to women8s natural fickleness I am asking you these questions. It may be that due to your great power you do not have to follow the sastric injunctions you just described, but previously you had not instructed me in this way. "herefore,+ lord, please pardon my question.D Inquired thus by 4avati in that lonely place free from people,(ord 1hiva e.plained to her the great secrets of his own behaviour. 1hiva said, D+ 7oddess, please listen carefully. I shall tell you a very wonderful secret. >ou should not repeat what I am about to tell you to common people. I shall tell you the since your body is not separate form mine. (ong ago, in the age of 1wayambhuva <anu, there were many great demons like =amuchi F"he demon =amuchi is described in 1hrimad 6hagavatam #.11. !5$%.G who were very powerful and valorous heroes. :ll of them were devoted to 9ishnu, acted purely, and were free from all sins. "hey followed the pratices laid down in the 9edas. 1eeing this, all of gods head by Indra were greatly frustrated. +vercome by fear,they approached (ord 9ishnu and took shelter of Him. D"he devas said,8+ 3esava, only >ou can conqeur these great demons who cannot be conqured by all of the gods and who have washed off their sins with penance.8D (ord 1hiva continued, DHearing the frightful words of the demigods, (ord 9ishnu, 4urushottma consoled the devas,and said to me,8+ ,udra,+ you of might arms, + you who are the best of the gods, for the purpose of deluding the enemies of the demigods prepere a course of conduct to be followed by pasandis. =arrate to them the dark puranas, which will take them astray. + intelligent one, you should create holy te.ts that will cause the demons to become confused.

D8"hrough devotion to <e,and for the good of the world, >ou should approach atheistic sages such as 3anada, 7autama,1akti, Apamanyu, Baimini, 3apila,Fnot to be confused with 3apila,the son of &evahutiG, &urvasa, <rikandu, 6rihaspati, 6hargava, and Bamadagni. @.ert upon them your power of suggestion. 6eing infused by your power they will become powerful pasandis. "here is no doubt about it. @mpowered by you, these brahmanas will narrate to the three worlds the 4uranas and doctrines in the mode of ingnorance. + 1hiva, on your person you should bear symbols like a skull, animal skins, ashes, and bones. &ressed in way you should fully delude everyone in the three Worlds. >ou should also inaugurate the pasupata order F"he pasupates are a group of followers of (ord 1hivaG with its divisions like kankala, saiva, pasanda and mahasaiva. "hrough these persons you should preach a doctrine whose followers wear no particular identifying marks and are outside the 9edic fold. Wearing ashes and bones, they will be bereft of higher consciousness and will consider you to be the greatest god. D8"aking to these doctrines, all of these demons will become averse to <e in a moment."here is no doubt it. + powerful ,udra,in every age in <y different incarnations I too shall worship you to delude the demons. *ollowing these doctrines,they will undoubtedly fall down.8D (ord 1hiva then told 4arvati, D+ beautiful one, after hearing (ord 9ishnu8s words, although I am a good speaker I become helpless snd silent."hen offering my obeisances to (ord 9ishnu, I said, + (ord,if I do what >ou have said,it will certainly lead to my destruction. It is is not possoble for me to carry out this instrustion, yet >our order is not to be disobeyed. "his is very 4ainful.D D+ goddess,hearing my words, 9ishnu spkoke in such way to restore my happiness. He said,8"his will not be the cause of your destruction. &o as I order you for the good of the demigods. I shall also give you the means to maintain yourself while you are preaching these demoniac philosophies. "hen with compassion, (ord 9ishnu gave me the prayers known as 9ishnu5sahasra5nama. 9ishnu said,8Installing <e in your heart, utter <y indestructible mantra. "his very powerful si.5syllable mantra is transcendental and awards liberation to thise who worship <e with devotion. "here is no doubt about this.8 indivar5dala5syamam padma5patra5vilocanam sankhanga5sarngesu5dharam sarvabharana5bhusitam pita5vastram catur5bahum janaki5priya5vallabham shri5ramaya nama ity evam uccaryam mantram5uttamam

sarva5duhkha haram caitat papinam api mukti5dam imam mantram japan nityam amalas tvam bhavisyasi I offer my obeisances to Him, dark like the petal of a blue lotus, with lotus5petal eyes, holding a conch, a disc, and sarnga bow, adorned with all ornaments, wearing yellow ornements, having four arms, and who is the dear lord of Banaki, 1ita5devi."he divine mantra, 8shri5ramaya namah,8 should be chanted. It remones all lamentation and gives salvation to even sinners. +ne who regularly chants this mantra will be free from all contamination.F). !'.$$5$)G D8:ll of the sinful rections due to wearing ashes and bones will all be destroyed and everthing will beacome auspicious due to reciting <y mantra. + best of the gods, being pleased I shall destroy all sin. 6y <y blessings, devotion to no other god than <e will arise. In your heart, worship <e who is the 1upreme 6eing. +bey <y order. &ue to love for <e, everything will be auspicious for you. 8Having thus ordered <e, + goddes, He dismissed the hosts of gods who then returned to their own abodes. "he gods led by Indra then requested me, 8+ <ahadev, 1hiva, Huickly perform those beneficial acts as instructed by (ord 9ishnu.8D <ahadeva then said to goddess 4arvati, D+ auspicious one, for the good of the gods I took to the way of the pasandis and started wearing skulls, hides, ashes, and bones. + auspicious one, as instructed by (ord 9ishnu, I distributed the tamasic puranas and the pasandi 1hiva doctrines. + sinless one, by entering 7autama and other brahmanas with my potency I proclaimed te.ts outside the 9edic fold. :dopting the system I gave, all of the wicked demons became averse to (ord 9ishnu, and were enveloped in ignorance. :pplying ashes to their bodies and performing severe penance, they stopped worship of (ord 9ishnu and worshiped only me with flesh, blood and sandalwood. D,eceiving boons from me, they became into.icated with power and pride. "hey were very much attached to the object of the senses, and were full of lust and anger. In that condition, devoid of goodness, they were defeated by the devas. 6ereft of righteous paths, those who resort to this doctrine of mine alway go to hell. D+ goddess, thus this behavior of mine is only followed by me for the good of the gods. *ollowing (ord 9ishnu8s order, I decorate myslf with ashes and bones. + goddess, these e.ternal marks are meant only for deluding the demons. In my heart I always meditate upon the 1upreme (ord 9ishnu and always chant His mantras. 6y chanting this great si.5syllable mantra I taste the eternal nectar of

ecstatic joy. + (ady with an auspicious face, I have answered all that you have asked me. :ffectionately I ask you, what else do you desire to hearCD 4arvati said, D+ sinless one, tell me about the tamasic scriptures that were composed by the brahmanas bereft of devotion to the (ord. + (ord of the demigods 4lease tell me their names in sequence. (ord 1hiva replied, D+ goddess, please listen. In sequence I shall tell you about the tamasic te.ts. 1imply by remembering them even wise persons become deluded. *irst,I <yself proclaimed the 1hiva, pasupata, and related te.ts. :fter my power had entered him, 3anada preached the 9aisesika 4hilosophy. 1imilarly, 7autama preached =yaya,and 3apila preached the atheistic 1ankhya. 6rihaspati preached the much5censured ;harvaka doctrine, and 6uddha proclaimed 6uddhism to destroy the demons. 4adma 4urana ). !).I mayavadam asac chastram pracchannam bauddham uchyate mayaiva kalpitam devi kalau brahmana rupina D<ayavada or :dvaita philosophy is an impious, wicked belief and against all the conclusions of the 9edas. It is only covered 6uddhism. <y dear 4arvati, in 3ali5 >oga I assume the form of a brahmana -:di 1hankaraJ and teach this imagined philosophy. 4adma 4urana ). !).#5K apartham sruti5vakyanam darsayan loka5garhitam sva5karma5rupam tyajya tvam atraiva pratipadyate sarva5karma paribhrastair vaidharma tvam tad ucyate paresa5jiva5paraikyam maya tu pratipadyate D"his mayavada advaita philosophy preached by me -in form of :di 1hankaraJ deprives the words of the holy te.ts of their acutal meaning and thus it is condemned in the world. It recommends the renunciation of one8s own duties, since those who have fallen from their duties say that the giving up of duties is religiosity. In this way, I have also falsely propounded the identity of the 1upreme (ord and the individual soul.D 4adma 4urana ). !).1%

brahmanas caparam rupam nirgunam vaksyate maya sarva5svam jagato py asya mohanartham kalu yuge DIn order to bewilder the atheists, in 3ali5yuga, I describe the 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead (ord 7auranga 3rishna to be without any form and without qualities.D 4adma 4urana ). !).11 vedante tu maha5sastrera mayavadam avaidikam mayaiva vaksyate devi jagatam nasha5karanat D1imilarly, in e.planing 9edanta mahashastra, I described the same non5 scriptural and inauspicious mayavada philosophy in order to mislead the entire population toward atheism by denying the personal form of my beloved (ord.D F:s described in the seventh chapter of adi5lila of 1hri ;haitanya ;haritamrita, while speaking to 4rakashananda 1araswati and the mayavadi sannyasis of 6enares, (ord 1hri ;haitanya <ahaprabhu cited these te.ts to show how (ord 1hiva had come in 3ali5yuga as 1hripad 1ankaracharya to propound the philosophy of monism and bewilder the souls. ;ited translation of te.ts I,1% and 11 are based on the translation of His &ivine 7race 1hrila :.; 6haktivedanta 1wami 4rabhupada as found in his purport to ;c. :di I.11%.G =ityananda? 7auranga? Hare 3rishna?

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partha sarathi awain

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11 months ago

hare krishna prabhu thanku for ur beautiful article prabhu how can i increase my concentration and memory power by krishna counsciousness give me some tips prabhu hare krishna.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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partha sarathi awain

11 months ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu <y tips are always the same. ;hant at least 1) rounds of the Hare 3rishna mantra daily, strictly follow the four regulative principles Fno illicit se., no meat eating, no gambling and no into.icationG and read 1rila 4rabhupada8s books at least 15 hours a day. It sounds easy but it is not and most people do not follow these tips. @ven I am sometimes struggling to follow these tips. 6ut I do know that none of us will be able to succeed in 3rishna consciousness unless we are prepared to surrender to and follow these tips... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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radha kinker das

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11 months ago

B:I 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&: "HI1 I1 <> HA<6(@ ,@HA@1" "+ 4(@:1@ &+ =+" 1"+4 1@=&I=7 <@ >+A, ,@7A(:, @<:I(1....I H:9@ =+" ,@;& :=> *,+< "H@ (:1" 1L <+="H1. >+A, HA<6(@ 1@,9:="

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Madhudvisa dasa
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radha kinker das

11 months ago

I am working on www.6ack 7odhead.com at the moment and do not have much time for writing eamils. 1o please go to www.back 7odhead.com and read the articles there...

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benjamin CLEMENT
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a year ago

I love ,amana but I8m a bit scared about this non personnaliEation happy end for Bivas, especially because I8m christian also, for who resurrection is the goal of creation, the must?, meaning that purusa and prakti are both holy and eternal, and that prakti is part of the kingom ??? What would you reckon C "hank you. 6enjamin

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Madhudvisa dasa
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benjamin ;(@<@="

a year ago

We are not interested in any impersonal end for the jivas. We are personalists. We will retain our individuality and personality and go back home back to 7odhead as individual persons to serve 3rishna there...

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Anurag
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a year ago

What kind of philosophy do jains followC 4lease tell me what the 9edas say of neminath and mahavira. I =@@& the information. <y Bain friend is becoming an atheist like other Bains . 4lease answer my question 4,+4@,(>.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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:nurag

a year ago

Hare 3rishna :nurag I have no idea at all what is the philosophy of a Bain. I am not a Bain. How would I know. 6ut if I met one I could ask a few brief questions and understand what their philosophy was. 1o if you know one then you should be able to work out what is his philosophy by asking him a few questions and you should be able to see if it is good or not by testing it with the absolute truth you find in 1rila 4rabhupada8s books. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Neha
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a year ago

Hare 3rishna, I have only read few pages of 6hagvad 7ita and not read vedas at all. I have two questions which are as followsM5 1J :re 7ita and vedas different from each other..In your article it8s written that vedas contains references to animal sacrifices...&oes 7ita also says so..CC What should we follow. "he 6hagvad 7ita or the 9edas..CC J 4lease tell me regarding Idol Worship in Hindu philosophy..Which is better..1erving an Idol or serving a begger..CC

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Madhudvisa dasa
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=eha

a year ago

3eep reading and your questions will be answered....

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Srinath
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a year ago

Hare 3rishna? "he void philosophy comes from (ord 6uddha who is accepted in the 9edas as an incarnation of 9ishnu. 1o (ord 6uddha is 9ishnuC

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Madhudvisa dasa
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1rinath

a year ago

>es. (ord 6uddha is an incarnation of 9isnu.

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hanindra
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a year ago

Hare 3rishna, I am thankful for the mail. I find DApanishadsD are called the 89edanta8 and 9yasadev wrote 9edanta 1utra out of them. (ike 1hankaracharya, <adhvacharya, =imbakacharya and 6allabhacharyaN 6aldev has also found out one 6hasya called :chinta vedaved. I do believe ;haityanya <ahaprabhu is a reincarnation of 3rishna. I become delighted with chanting the <ahamantra. "here was another <ahapurusha during 1'th century in :ssam who has not written and 9edanta 9ashya but proponded D@ka 1arana Hari =aam &harmaD. He also gives the most importance to Hari =aam. I like reading 1rimadbhagawat 7eeta and 1rimadbhagawat only. 4lease lead me on to right path. Harekrishna.

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Pram!d
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a year ago

Hare ,ama Hare ,ama ,ama ,ama Hare Hare??? Hare 3rishna Hare 3rishna 3rishna Hare Hare??? ;hant O 7row, :charya 4rabhupada says some story it will sometimes uproot all your concepts, 3rishna will do miracle, it has happened, many are there in that series, Why Iam saying this from our History, all :charya came and initiated 1anathana &harma, I could observe this 3rishna comes with 4rosperity and 1iva comes as &ynamisam, 5 1iva the 4receeding 3rishna 1ucceeding. 1ivoscha Hrudayam 9ishnu?? 9ishnoscha Hrudayam 1iva 5 or there is ;osciousness ans <atter. Hare 3rishna???

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pratiksha bisht
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a year ago

Hare 3rishna "han. again for the mail that talks about four philosophy. throughout the mail i was trying to locate myself in these philosophy but couldnot do that. :nd this making me feel restless how to connect with krishna and how to pray to him. I would also want to ask i see krishna in my dreams but cant understand his signals and what he is trying to say to meC please guide me in this situation C and in one dream i saw that krishba isnt very happy with me plE tell me what can i do in this situation as i8m tryin to follow krishna consciuosnessC but i feel it isnot sufficient plE tell me how to pray to himC your servant pratiksha bisht

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Madhudvisa dasa
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pratiksha bisht

a year ago

Hare 3rishna 4ratiksha 7enerally dreams are not very important. :nd the process of 3rishna consciousness is very simple but people will not surrender to the simple process so it doesn8t work for them. *irst you need to know what 3rishna consciousness is so you have to read 1rila 4rabhupada8s books at least 15 hours a day, otherwise how will you know what 3rishna consciousness isC :nd everywhere you will find 1rila 4rabhupada stressing the absolute importance of chanting the Hare 3rishna maha5mantra on beads at least 1) rounds a day. 1o if you want to become 3rishna consciousness you have to find hours a day or so to chant 1) rounds of the Hare 3rishna mantra. 3rishna consciousness is developed by hearing and chanting. ,eading 4rabhupada8s books is also hearing and chanting, particularly if you read them aloud which is best, and chanting Hare 3rishna mantra is also hearing and chanting. >ou are chanting Hare 3rishna with your tongue and hearing Hare 3rishna with your ears. "his is the process to become 3rishna conscious so if you want to become 3rishna conscious you have to do it, chant at least 1) rounds of the Hare 3rishna mantra daily. :nd there are certain things that will block our advancement in spiritual life so even if we are chanting Hare 3rishna and reading 4rabhupada8s books if we do not give up these sinful activities, although the chanting of Hare 3rishna and the reading of 4rabhupada8s books is still working, it will take a very, very long time if we do not voluntarily give up the sinful activities ofM illicit se. -se. is only for having children in marriageJ, into.ication -including alcohol, smoking, and even to tea and coffeeJ, gambling and meat eating basically our advancement in 3rishna consciousness is blocked.

1o if you truly want to become 3rishna conscious you have to surrender to 1rila 4rabhupada, a pure devotee of 3rishna, and follow the process of saddhana5 bhakti that he prescribes. +therwise if you don8t surrender and don8t follow 1rila 4rabhupada8s instructions then you are not going to become 3rishna conscious... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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M!han
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umar

a year ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu, I red completely about this subject. :nd It is also said that (ord 1hiva Is a 7reat &evotee of 3rishna.-9aishnavaanaam >atha 1hambuhuJ I particularly came from D1hyvaitD 6ackground. I red many of the 1hyva &evotees poems. "hese 1hyva &evotees appeared in the 11th century in south India. &oes 1hyaits are D4ersonalists or Impersonalists..CD

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ravi
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years ago

last time i checked buddhists and adi shankaraya5type hindus were not the ones attacking hare krishna temples or writing te.t books bashing hindus. the biggest threat krishna consciousness comes from christian missionaries and governments around the world that are anti5hindu. i8m not sure why so much attention is given by I13;+= against buddhists, saivites, and hindus who are monists. they are not the ones banning the gita -christian russian governmentJ, they are not the ones closing he krishna temple -muslims in kaEakhstanJ, nor are they making fun in hollywood -american mediaJ.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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ravi

a year ago

Hare 3rishna ,avi It is because no person who has made a little advancement in spiritual life and has developed qualities in the mode of goodness will take a religion that supports animal killing, illicit se., gambling and into.ication very seriously. =o offense to ;hristians, I was raised as a ;atholic and find the teachings of (ord Besus ;hrist to be perfectly good and completely inline with 3rishna consciousness but today8s ;hristians are not interested actually in following the teaching of (ord Besus ;hrist. 1o the point is no person who is philosophically

inclined can be captivated by ;hristianity because really they have no philosophy. ;hristianity is based on faith. >ou have to believe but they have no scientific basis for that belief. It is faith only. :nd they are not against the personal worship of 7od. :t least in the 6ible Besus refers to 7od as his father and attributes personal traits to 7od. 1o the sincere ;hristian has no problem with a personal 7od. "hey have faith in 7od and they believe in 7od and they see 7od as a person. 1o really ;hristianity is no threat at all to 3rishna consciousness. :ctually nothing is a threat to 3rishna consciousness. 3rishna is the 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead and He defeats everyone. 6ut really ;hristianity is completely compatible with 3rishna consciousness and so many ;hristians have gone on to become devotees of 3rishna and see no contradictions between either path. +nly 3rishna consciousness is the post5 graduate study of ;hristianity. :lso 6uddhism is not really a serious threat. "he 6uddhist philosophy is really stupid and goes completely against common sense, it is completely against what is taught in the 6ible and (ord 6uddha specifically and emphatically rejects the 9edas. He does not believe in an eternal soul. He believes the soul can cease to e.ist and that is nrivana. "hat is the ultimate destination according to the 6uddhists, to cease to e.ist. 6ut any spiritual person, ;hristian, Hindu or <uslim, no matter how little they have advanced in spiritual life, knows that he is a spirit soul and as a spirit soul he is eternal. 1o this very basic fundamental spiritual principle is denied by the 6uddhists. 1o they are no threat. :lthough 6uddhism is the religion of the atheists. 6ecause according to 6uddhism there is no 7od... 1o many atheists have accepted 6uddhism but it does not matter because it is such a nonsense philosophy that no thoughtful person can actually take it seriously. However the <ayavadi philosophy is very, very, very dangerous. It is the <ayavadi philosophy which has converted the world into the demonic godless hell that we are currently living in. 6ecause the <ayavadi philosophy is a perversion of the 9edanta philosophy. It is based on 1ankacharaya8s commentary on the 9edanta 1utra, and 1ankacharaya is an incarnation of (ord 1hiva and there is no one, e.cept (ord 9isnu, in this universe who can come anywhere near (ord 1hiva in terms of intelligence and ability. 1o (ord 1hiva was ordered by 3rishna to go to the material world and take birth as 1ankacharaya and to present 8covered 6uddhism8, a philosophy that appears to be the 9edanta philosophy from the 9edas but which in actuality is practically the same as 7odless 6uddhism.

1o what 1ankacharaya has very e.pertly done in creating the <ayavadi philosophy is to take 7od out of the the 9edanta. He transformed it in such a way as to put all stress on the impersonal, formless aspect of the the 1upreme and completely eradicated any references at all to the personal forms of the (ord... "his is because at the time when 1ankacharaya was preaching in India the country was full of godless 6uddhists. :nd his mission was to attract the atheistic 6uddhists to a 8religion8 based on the 9edas. 6ut demons are not interested in 7od and will not become part of any religion that involves service to or surrender to 7od. 1o 1ankacaharaya took the service to 7od and the surrender to 7od out of the 9edanta and instead preaches that Dit is all one and everyone is god...D 1o this <ayavadi philosophy is very dangerous because it is really good philosophy. It is the 9edanta philosophy with a twist. :nd that twist means to annihilate god, to kill god... 1o the <ayavadi philosophy is 9edanta for demons. &emons do not want to surrender to 7od or serve 7od but they may like discussing intellectually stimulating philosophy. 1o that is what the <ayavadi philosophy provides. 7ood philosophy with the conclusion that there is no god, there is no supreme, there is no controller above us and everyone can be god. "hat is @P:;"(> want the demons want to hear... 1o this <ayavadi philosophy is the greatest poison because it contaminates thoughtful people and once they have heard this very attractive philosophy that confirms and encourages their demonic and materialistic activities they are no longer able to understand the actual 9edanta, 3rishna consciousness. "hat is why (ord 1ri ;aitanya <ahaprabhu constantly warnedM mayavadi bhasya suni ye se haya sarva nasaM D:nyone who hears the <ayavadi philosophy is doomed.D India is doomed already because it has been saturated in the <ayavadi philosophy for so long and this doom and gloom in the form of the <ayavadi philosophy has spread all over the world. 6ut not to worry. 3rishna is much more powerful. ;hantM Hare 3rishna Hare 3rishna 3rishna 3rishna Hare Hare Hare ,ama Hare ,ama ,ama ,ama Hare Hare :nd be happy. <adhudvisa dasa

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g!urav patri
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<adhudvisa dasa

1% months ago

hare krishna madhudvisa dasa please forgive me i have some doubts 5 personalist ,impersonalist and even the buddhist atleast have one belief in common that is birth and rebirth cycle and law of karma which islam and christianity does not believe.but apart from buddhism which believes on voidness as you say, what is then the basic difference between personalist-i myself being born in a bhakti family background J and impersonalists or mayavadisC.is it like this that a personalist ways and impersonalists ways are just different but their purpose is one and that is serving god, and though devotional service or chanting may be one way and concentrating on the formless form of the supreme through yoga or sadhana may be one philosophy ,so ways may be different but is the purpose one and only to serve the supremeC one in pure devotion may serve krishna through surrender ,japa ,chanting eating prasadam doing image worship and while other may choose to concentrate on same krishna or allahs formless form or light through sadhana or yoga i think the purpose is same but ways are different.please correct me if i am wrong 5hare krisha .and please my request to you is to write a entire coloumn on krishnas original form as many argue that krishna or god is formless.we should not personaliEe him and give him forms and even imagine him to have a material body like in image and idols

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Madhudvisa dasa
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gourav patri

1% months ago

Hare 3rishna 7ourav >ou are very wrong 4rabhu. "he purpose of the impersonalists L mayavadis L buddhists is "E#$ different from the purpose of the devotees. "he purpose of the devotees is to surrender to 3rishna and serve Him. :nd that is actually the eternal constitutional position of the spirit soul. "hat is the only way we can become happy. +n the other hand the mayavadis L impersonalists and buddhists all deny the e.istence of the 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead and refuse to serve and worship him. "he mayavadis L impersonalists claim that 8it is all one8 and 8namo narayana8, they clam to be =arayana, the 1upreme (ord themselves, and therefor for them there is never any question of surrendering to the 1upreme (ord or service to the 1upreme (ord. "hey want to be the 1upreme (ord themselves. 1o actually 4rabhu these mayavadis and impersonalists are all great offenders to 3rishna and very bad people and we should never, never, never associate with them. "he 6uddhists are no so bad as at lest they openly claim there is no 7od and no eternal soul, etc. 6ut the <ayavadis L Impersonalists are very, very, very dangerous because they will be reading the 6hagavad5gita and studying the 9edas and talking about 3rishna and these days even claiming that they are 9aisnavas... 6ut they are not. "hey the greatest offenders to 3rishna because they claim that really 3rishna is nothing and the impersonal all5pervading brahmin energy is supreme... <ayavadis are aparadhis and if we associate with them we will become poisoned by them and will never be able to understand 3rishna. "hey are so poisonous, so dangerous. (ord ;aitanya and 1rila 4rabhupada so strongly warn us on these points constantly so 4rabhu if you do not know these things I think you are not very seriously reading 1rila 4rabhupada8s books.

;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

o o o
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pranayt!ny
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years ago

hare krsna guru ji? really am feeling happy that am gaining the right knowledge with the bonafide spiritual masters like you,with the article that you presented to me? now in this conte.t i would like to question you guru ji,-i had this doubt for many days from the begining of reading of this holy book srimadbhaghavadgeethaJthat, what are the principles of mayavadisC how we should recognise these peopleC what e.actly shankaracharya told-what is the main theme or the idea in his philosophyJC what is the main point that he is stressing a lotC one saying is there that one who teaches the right spiritual knowledge-knowledge that is related to vishnu,sri hari,krishnaJto this whole world he will be called as the 8jagadguru8-that which e.actly differentiates from the normal gurusJ? we know that 1ri 3rishna 4aramathma is the-real spiritual guruJfirst jagadguru?

but shakaracharya created the mayavada philosophy-which is something related to maya only but not krsnaJ,then why everybody use to call him as 8aadi shankaracharya8 or 8jagadguru shankaracharya8CCCCCCCCC i just want all these answers to all of my questions mentioned above? i think these will really help our spiritual friends n krsna devotees? please answer to me guru ji?

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Madhudvisa dasa
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pranaytony

years ago

Hare 3rishna 4ranaytony :ctually we call the <ayavadis 8mayavadis8. "hey do not call themselves 8mayavadis8. "hey call themselves 8vedantists8. :nd it is very difficult for a neophyte to tell the difference between a <ayavadi and a 9aisnava. 9ery often the <ayavadis pose as 9aisnavas and dress as 9aisnavas but internally they are actually <ayavadis. "he very simple definition of a <ayavadi is one who is using 3rishna consciousness for serving maya. 1o anyone who has some material desire and is trying to fulfill that through some spiritual process is a <ayavadi. 6asically we give the <ayavadis this name because they say that the absolute has no form and no activities. "herefore they claim that when 3rishna appears in this world He is a manifestation of the impersonal brahmin but He has taken on a form made out of the material energy. 1o they say that 3rishna is maya and all of 3rishna8s activities and pastimes are also maya. "he preaching of 1ankacharaya who is an incarnation of (ord 1hiva was for a purpose and that was to convert the population of India who were almost all

6uddhists at that time into followers of the 9edas. 6ecause (ord 6uddha had convinced the Indian8s to give up following the 9edas and in that way stopped them from killing animals and eating meat on the pretense that the animal killing was 9edic sacrifices. 1o 1ankacharaya wanted to reestablish the faith of the 6uddhists in the 9edas again. 1o actually he presented a twisted and contorted interpretation of the 9edanta philosophy which appealed to the 6uddhists. 6asically he twisted the philosophy of the 9edanta so it is practically the same as 6uddhism. "herefore his preaching was very attractive to the atheistic 6uddhists who made up most of the Indian population at the time. "he main point of the philosophy of 1ankacharaya is that he tries to eliminate any stress on the personal form of the (ord from the 9edas and he stresses e.clusively on the impersonal aspect only. :ll the details I can not give here because that would take hundreds of pages and 1rila 4rabhupada has already given all these detains very e.tensively and completely in his purports to the 1ri ;aitanya5caritamrta. 1+ 4(@:1@ ,@:& 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&:81 6++31 :=& >+A WI(( *I=& :(( "H@ :=1W@,1 "+ >+A, HA@1"I+=1 "H@,@. It never ceases to amaEe me why so5called devotees don8t read 4rabhupada8s booksCCCC ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Shubham
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years ago

H:,@ 3,I1H=: <:&HA&9I1: &:1: 4,:6HA BI :=& :((? H:,I 6+( =I">:=:=&: 7+A,:=7: ,:&H@ 1H>:< 1I": ,:< (:P<I =:,:>:=: H:,I 6+( B:I &9:,:3:&I1H

4aramahaQsaM 1ometimes people ask, though, they say, DWhy is it that even among the RcRryas sometimes we find there is a difference of opinionCD

4rabhupRdaM "hey are not RcRryas. "hey are not RcRryas. "here is no difference of understanding between RcRryas. What <adhvRcRrya understands, we also understand. 1uppose you are present also. 1o there is no difference. What ,RmRnujRcRrya understands, we also understand. What ;aitanya <ahRprabhu understand, we also understand. 1o where is the differenceC &ifference should be that the fact that he is not RcRrya. :s soon as he differs from the previous RcRryas, that means he is not RcRrya. +therwise there is full agreement between all the RcRryas. Bust like 3STUa is the 1upreme 4erson, all RcRryas agree. Where is the differenceC &oes ,RmRnujRcRrya differ from <adhvRcRrya, or <adhvRcRrya differ from VrW ;aitanya, ;aitanya differs fromXno. "here is no difference. "hat is 9aiTUava. :ll the 9aiTUavas understand that 9iTUu is the 1upreme. "here may be, sometimes, such as 3STUa is understood as incarnation of 9iTUu, and sometimes they understand 9iTUu as the incarnation of 3STUa. "hat is sampradRya. "hat is sampradRya. 6ut either 3STUa or 9iTUu, He is 1upreme, that is accepted by all.

4aramahaQsaM 1o that point is not so important whether 3STUa is coming from 9iTUu or 9iTUu is coming from 3STUa.

4rabhupRdaM >es, that is not important. 6ecause, actually both of them the same, the 1upreme. "hat e.ample we give that candle, two candles, that so far the power of lighting is concerned, both of them equal. =ow, you may say this is first candle, I say if it is first candle. 6ut so far the power is concerned, there is no difference of opinion. If I love somebody, I8ll say he is first. :nd if you love somebody, you8ll say he is first. 6ut both of them same. Bust like devotees, some devotees are very... Hanumanji, he8ll never accept 3STUa. :nd the gopWs will never accept ,Rma or 9iTUu. 1o far the 3STUa and 9iTUu, they are all the same. What do you thinkC

4aramahaQsaM I think perhaps -indistinctJ 1o actually the differences, whatever little differences may arise, those differences amongst the RcRryas, they are due to different feelings of love for 3STUa or His manifestations.

4rabhupRdaM >ou8ll find in some, among some devotees, they will criticiEe, DWhy you are worshiping ,RmacandraC He could not save even His wife.D -laughterJ :nd some will, D:h, you are worshiping 3STUa. He was so fond of women.D (ike that. In 9SndRvana you8ll find they are different. 1omebody will say, DHare 3STUa,D another will say, D1WtR ,Rma.D "here will be competition. "here is not difference. 6oth of them know that either I worship ,Rma or 3STUa, "hey are the same. -@P;@,4" *,+< @9@=I=7 &I1;A11I+= <:> ), 1KI'J 4,:6HA BI? <y heart gets pained when I hear glorification of only ,adhe 3rishna surpassing incarnations. Isn8t it true that all incarnations are eternal and 9ishnu tattvasC :ren8t they all perfectC We can glorify ,adhe 1hyam for their highest perfection. 4erfect to most perfect. 6ut is it necessary to give our heart to ,adhe 1hyam to be a follower of (ord ;haitanyaC 6ut wasn8t <urari 7upta servant of ,amchandra and 7oursundar at the same time. 4lease convince me. :ren8t $ e.tra qualities of 3rishna reserved for 9rindavanC I am not so much attracted to 9rindavan. I want to glorify ,adhe 1hyam and devotees in 9rindavan. 6ut for that I cannot give up (ord &varakadish8s attraction, although I have only small attachment. I mean 4rabhu ji, is the conversation above is good to console my heartC Hare 3rishna Bai ,ukminiraman

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Madan M!han
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years ago

Haribol <adhudvisa prabhu. :ll glories to 1ri 7uru and 7auranga?

I appreciate your preaching efforts here, and your emphasis on devotee association. Who, specifically, do you recommend as the best association at this timeC I look forward to hearing from you soon.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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<adan <ohan

years ago

4rabhupada is the best association 4rabhu and we have so much opportunity to associate personally with 1rila 4rabhupada by reading his books, listening to his recorded classes, conversations, morning walks, etc. reading his letters, and watching the more than '% hours of film and video we have of 4rabhupada. +nly the association of pure devotees of 3rishna is really valuable. 1o we have so much opportunity to associate with 1rila 4rabhupada and of course we can associate personally with 3rishna by chantingM Hare 3rishna Hare 3rishna 3rishna 3rishna Hare Hare Hare ,ama Hare ,ama Hare Hare 1o just do it, associate with 1rila 4rabhupada and 3rishna and become a pure devotee of 3rishna. "hen you will be good association and you can help others come to the platform of 3rishna consciousness. 6ut do not fall for the trap that so many others have fallen for of advertising yourself as some sort of spiritual mentor before you are yourself a pure devotee of 3rishna... "hat will be a disaster as we have seen time and time again in I13;+=. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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A#$AN
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#%S&NA

years ago

<adhudvisa 4rabhu, please accept my humble obeisances. :ll glories to 1rila 4rabhupada. "hank you for sending me this article. I fully agree with the ideas here. 4lease keep on sending me these transcendental topics forever. ;an8t get enough of them. <ay (ord 3rishna and 1rimati ,adharani bless you in 1rila 4rabhupada8s service more and more. Bai 1rila 4rabhupada???

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Naveenta
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years ago

Hare 3rishna, while chanting how do we focus or heart n mind only on the <ahamantra..when we ve such hustle n bustle around usC at home even..though we play the ;& s of 1ri 4rabhpada..n sit yet severl things

like doorbells,kids interactions or phonecalls or d sound of kids toys..keeps us distractingCno matter we r sitting inside a closed room still..unable to focus. on d other hand we start feeling guilty tat we r unable to do it n serve Him properly.. Hare 3rishna?

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Madhudvisa dasa
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=aveenta

years ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu >ou chant the mantraM Hare 3rishna Hare 3rishna 3rishna 3rishna Hare Hare Hare ,ama Hare ,ama ,ama ,ama Hare Hare and concentrate on hearing it, that8s all. :nd the more you chant the more you will be able to focus on it. >ou have to surrender to chanting at least 1) rounds a day and do it even though in the beginning it is difficult and you can8t focus. >ou just have to chant. :nd that chanting will elevate you to the platform where you can focus on hearing the Hare 3rishna mantra...

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srikanth
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years ago

hare krishna sir. your mails are very interesting.please keep sending more such mails to me.

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Pram!d
0

years ago

We are not speaking our mind we are 4risoning our mind we are not following 3rishna if have really followed 3rishna no invader would have come in India defeted looted our ;ulture >ou know 3rishna had fight with 3amboja :fganisthan 6ut he was letting Agrasena :nd 6alarama :fter he never allowed :dharma people like narakasura eventhough 3rishna was a king He told :rjun fight for &harma He told I will come after and :fter for >ogaksemam 4lease 6ut after the '%%% >ears wgat happened to India which 4hilosophy 9oidisam, Impersonalidsam, mayavada, 4ractical vadan , 4hysics, 6ut sankara in #th century : brahmin from kerala &id the great work it was updation of What 3rishna ;alled for this is the way to follow 3rishna. +nce =arada was taken away bu 9ishnu and showed a farmer who times only chant =:,:>:=: is the greatest 6haktha. please give our @ar to 3rishna 6eacause 3rishna said Hands are more beutifull than (ips, He insisted karmam and >ogaklshemam.

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amit rath!re
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years ago

hare krsna ??? all glories to 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&: i completely agree with the email we love 3,1=: and 4,:6HA4:&: jai jai jai ho H:,I 6+( ???? we will defeat mayavad

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Ashish k!kate
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years ago

Hare 3rishna, 4:<H+ "hank >ou for giving such wonderful difference between these four types of philosophy. :ctually my sister in law was devotee of (ord &atta. 1he got connected to I13;+= now O also she is chanting few rounds everyday.she wants

to 1.know why we dont worship (ord &atta. can u please clarify this doubt. .What is the e.act philosophy of (ord &atta. "hank >ou.

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Madhudvisa dasa
0

:shish kokate

years ago

I have no idea :shish who (ord &atta is what to speak of his philosophy. We are interested in 3rishna and 3rishna8s philosophy and everything is included in that. <aybe it is &atatraya, I don8t know. 6ut in any case all the demigods and sages are devotees of 3rishna, and they themselves are worshiping 3rishna. 1o if we worship 3rishna the demigods and sages will also be very satisfied and because 3rishna is root of everything if we can satisfy 3rishna everyone will be satisfied. 1o there is no need to worship anyone e.cept 3rishna. If we worship 3rishna everyone else will be happy.

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'makant
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years ago

Hare 3rishna Hare ,ama Hare 7ovinda Hare shyam Hare 6agvan

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seva das
0

years ago

pamho madhudvisa prabhu agt:;614 &:<+&:,: <:1: ki jai,is interesting to read all the comments by getting more information regarding the confusing philosophies of kali yuga,of course everyone got the own way to please god in this age but as you mentioned the direct way to please krsna is the best way to get rid of this janasya moho8yam aham mameti- s.bag '.'.#Jbig illusion of the mayavadis who are thinking they are gods when we knows that they are dogs,i heard 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&: to says that a good devotee should offer respect to mayavadis also but unfortunately i8m not that good devotee yet by the daily spiritual advancement through the genuine saddhana bhakti of H&7 :;614, but i have to admit that is working because i got less unwanting things anarthas now then before i have just to do more spiritual progress to get rid of coffee and the tobacco as you know i stopped ganja and girls by getting disgusting as you mentioned me in your previous emails i already reduce tobacoo and coffee by increasing the service through chanting and reading with sat sanga i8m sure i will follow all the rule and regulations again by the mercy of your spiritual website i get more taste for chanting then the months goes and years flying for everyone nobody get younger anymore therefore is better to follow the regulative principles and get out from this confusion of being in the material world, jai prabhu thank you very much for you sat sanga and blessing through your website and emails i appreciate to hear that by a eternal associate of 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&: since the time when H@ were still physically present on this planet dandavats daso smi seva das haribol

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"()alasubramanian
0

years ago

Haare krishna <adudviadas prabhuM It is an accepted truth as per the 9edic literature "he <havavishnu took the avatar of 6uddha and (ord 1hiva took the :vatar of :di 1hankara. "hey are 7ods or demi 7ods the highest devotees of (ord 3rishna. Why it is they taught <ayavadi philosophy or voidism instead of 9asishtadwaita. "hey had a purpose in doing so as per your statement. Why is it that 7ods coming to earth taking avatars did not teach the correct method of salvation. @ven 1rila 4rabhubada in his writings say that :dishankara is not a <ayavadi.His 6hajagovindam clearly says we have to take the name of (ord 3rishna always for a better rebirth. kindly forgive me if I am wrong. Hari bol. manian

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Madhudvisa dasa
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9.6alasubramanian

years ago

Hare 3rishna. +f course (ord 1hiva is the greatest 9aisnava, vaisnava yatha sambu, and (ord 9ishnu is the 4ersonality of 7odhead. 1o they both 8did the needful8 and preached the philosophy that was necessary at the time to Fin the case of (ord 6uddhaG to convince the atheistic meat eaters in India who were presenting themselves as 9edantists to stop the meat eating and in the case of 1ankacharya to defeat the 6uddhist philosophy and reestablish the authority of the 9edas. >ou have to understand 4rabhu that you can not get atheists to surrender to 3rishna, at least not directly. 1o (ord 6uddha at least got them to stop meat eating, and 1ankacharya got them to give up the bogus philosophy (ord 6uddha had given and accept the authority of the 9edas again but because they were still atheists 1hankacharya perverted the 9edanta 1utra with his misinterpretation of it in such a way to make it attractive to the atheistic 6uddhists. 1o what 1ankacharaya prese ted was 8covered 6uddhism8. He is using the 9edanta as his authority but with his word juggelery and misinterpretation he has attempted to eliminate the 4ersonality of 7odhead and to claim that the impersonal brahman is supreme. 1o both (ord 6uddha and (ord 1ankacharaya have presented bogus, incorrect philosophy but as I have e.plained many times it was necessary at the time and it is part of a bigger plan. :nd (ord 1ri ;aiatanya <ahaprabhu is the culmination of this plan. :s 1hankacharaya defeated 6uddhism and reestablished the authority of the 9edas (ord ;aitanya defeated the <ayavadi philosophy of 1ankacharaya and reestablished the fact that 3rishna is the 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead and the cause of all causes -sarva kara karanamJ. >ou know the philosophy (ord 6uddha preached is bogus. :ccording to his preaching there is no god, there is no eternal soul and the ultimate is nirvana, the void and the 9edas are not authoritative... It is a little more difficult to realiEe that the philosophy of 1ankacharaya is also completely bogus. 6ecause 1ankacharaya is preaching on the basis of the 9edas but he is misrepresenting it. 1o for this reason the preaching of 1ankacharya is much more dangerous than the 6uddhist philosophy. It is our business as followers of 1rila 4rabhupada and (ord ;aitanya to defeat the philosophy of 1ankacharaya. >es, he is (ord 1hiva, but his mission at that

time was different55so he misinterpreted the 9edana 1utra to establish that mission. >ou know 1ankacharaya himself did not accept or believe the philosophy he preached. >ou know bhaja govindam bhaja govindam mudha mathe... 1ankacharaya called his followers fools and advised them to worship 7ovinda. 6ut you know they did not listen. "hey are not worshiping 7ovinda. "hey think 7ovinda is maya which is what 1ankacharaya preached and they like that philosophy. 6ut 1ankacharya does not like or believe the philosophy that he preached... 1o we must avoid and defeat the <ayavadis. "hat is our mission. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Anubhav
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years ago

Hare 3rishna it is said that remembering the lord at the time of death will lead us to 9aikuntha.I absolutely agree with that ,but I8ve heard from my grandmother that those who die untimely D:kal mrityuD roam in the spiritual realm and do not get liberation until their actual time of &eath for e.ample : man dies in an automobile accident he will get killed immediately he will not get time to remember the lord so in such situations how will he get liberation or is it the bad karma of past life that leads him to untimely deathC :nubhav

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Madhudvisa dasa
0

:nubhav

years ago

It is true that generally speaking if one is killed untimely, like in a car accident, he will become a ghost and have to wait around in the material world as a ghost. 6ut if he is a devotee and he is trained up to always remember 3rishna and never do anything e.cept serve 3rishna then he must be driving that car somewhere for 3rishna and he must be thinking of 3rishna and he will think of 3rishna at the time of death. 1o he will go to 3rishna... 3rishna takes special care of His devotees55even if they die untimely if they remember Him at the time of death they will go directly to Him.

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Miki
0

years ago

<r. <adhudvisa dasa, I received your reply via e5mail and I8m sorry to say that I8m very dissapointed in your answer as it was more of an attack to 6uddhism.

&idn8t 3rishna say to respect all religions and that it doesn8t matter to whom or to what you pray you8ll be ultimately praying to (ord 3rishnaC :ll you did was compare 6uddhism with Hinduism and showed the defects in that religion instead of preaching. >ou said something about non5violence and vegeterianism not being highest goal and what did you mean by thatC &id you mean to say that sacrificing animals and humans is a good thingC :nd why does 7od need sacrifice if He8s 1upremeC Isn8t love the ultimate string that binds our heart with that of (ord 3rishnaC

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Madhudvisa dasa
0

<iki

years ago

Hare 3rishna <iki 6uddhism is not a permanent philosophy. It is not correct. It was given by 3rishna who incarnated as (ord 6uddha at a particular time for a particular purpose. :nd that purpose was to stop the Indians at that time from killing animals. :t that time the Indians were claiming to be followers of the 9edas and using the mention of animal sacrifice in the 9edas to justify meat eating. 4ractically the whole of India were meat5eating atheists at that time. 1o (ord 6uddha presented a philosophy that would be attractive to the atheists and which would convince them to become vegetarians55to stop killing the animals. 1o (ord 6uddha8s preaching was to stop the gross sinful activities of the Indian people at that time and prepare them for a more correct understanding of the 9edic philosophy which was later presented by 1ri 1ankacharaya. He appeared about 1%%% years after (ord 6uddha and preached another compromised philosophy, but his philosophy was better than 6uddhism and based on the

9edas. 1o the people of India could see this was a superior philosophy and they gave up 6uddhism and accepted the teachings of 1ankacharaya. "hen 6uddhism only continued in some countries outside India, maybe in some very small pockets in India55but the people in general gave it up because they could see it was an inferior philosophy. :s far as your statementM D&idn/t 3rishna say to respect all religions and that it doesn/t matter to whom or to what you pray you/ll be ultimately praying to (ord 3rishnaCD 3rishna did not say anything like this at all. 3rishna said D7ive up all religions and surrender to <eD actually, which is very different from what you say 3rishna said... "he idea is to surrender to 3rishna, if something is helpful for us to surrender to 3rishna it is good55otherwise it should be given up. "here are many, many destinations. It is absolutely incorrect to say that no matter who you worship you will go to 3rishna. "his is 1%%Y incorrect. 1%%Y nonsense. If you worship 3rishna and if you think of 3rishna at the time of death you will go to 3rishna. 6ut if you worship someone else and think of them at the time of death you will go to them. If you have a pet dog and think of your dog at the time of death you will be born ne.t in a dog8s body... "here is no question of thinking of your dog and going to 3rishna. It is nonsense, nonsense, nonsense... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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yamuna
0

years ago

H:,@ 3,I1H=:. please accept my humble obeisances. :(( 7(+,I@1 "+ 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&:. Iam doing 1) rounds. recently i got a problem. iam edicted to pleasure of chantingOiam doing chanting for my pleasureOmindcontrole. iam getting frustration.but iam continuing. if iam doing chanting iam feeling bore. please helpme.how to do chantingC your humble servant.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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yamuna

years ago

Hare 3rishna >amuna In the beginning we have not taste for chanting Hare 3rishna. "he taste comes only when we start to become purified by the chanting. 1o in the beginning we have to have faith and that faith can be created by hearing from 1rila 4rabhupada. 1o if we have the faith that 3rishna and 3rishna8s names are non5 different and that chanting Hare 3rishna is directly associating with 3rishna then we chant Hare 3rishna, even if we become bored while chanting or even if we have no taste for chanting Hare 3rishna and do not seem to be getting any benefits from the chanting.

"his faith is required and surrender to the instructions of the bona fide spiritual master and the most important instructions are to follow the four regulative principles Fno illicit se., no meat eating, no gambling and no into.icationG and to chant at least 1) rounds of the Hare 3rishna maha mantra daily. If we surrender to this and do it even though we have no attachment to chanting Hare 3rishna and no taste for chanting Hare 3rishna that is called saddhana5 bhakti, or devotional service following the rules and regulations. :s a result of this we will become purified and come to the stage of spontaneous devotional service. :t that stage we will actually be getting some transcendental pleasure from serving 3rishna and 1rila 4rabhupada and will automatically want to do our service... 6ut in the beginning we have to surrender to the austerity of chanting Hare 3rishna at least 1) rounds a day even if we don8t appear to be getting any benefit from the chanting. "he benefit is there but we can not perceive it in the beginning... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Lalit
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years ago

Hare 3rishna <adhudvisa, It was great reading the newsletter on four philosophies.I hope you will share more light on this very topic,would be eagerly waiting for the same.@ven though I think I have still not started but feel blessed by reading this topic.6ow to 1rila 4rabhupada Bi for describing (ord ;aitanya8s philosophy of acintya5bheda

abheda5tattvam -inconceivably simultaneously one and differentJ."his makes me believe that no contradiction e.ists at all. Would request if possible to touch the topic of Dinconcieveably simultaneously one and differentD in more detail to help starters like myself. Hare 3rishna (alit

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Cap
0

years ago

7reetings <ahduvisa, "hank you for the emails. I have not received one in a while. I am writing to let you know that these are helping me.

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*ay #aja
0

years ago

Hara 3rishna 4rabhu I am born and raised in (ondon these last few months I have been visiting I13;+= in 1oho (ondon. I find the 8&evottes8 and 87urus8 very rude at times it amaEes me that people who devot themselfs to the mercy of 3rishna can be so rude over very small things it is obvious that they have not learnt much or developed in any kind of way they are just there to eat and live for free they are not qualified in there talks and are just simply rude they think the own 3rishna let8s be honest 3rishna was there before I13;+= and the great master and founder. Hindus in (ondon and India strongly believe I13;+= is damaging our great religion it8s a shame people like yourself are not involved as we need more genuine people like you day in day out I see people turning away from the soho temple as they are just rude with a chip on there shoulder I don8t know what else to say or do.

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"enu
0

!thuri

years ago

Hare 3rishna Hare 3rishna 3rishna 3rishna Hare Hare? Hare ,ama Hare ,ama ,ama ,ama Hare Hare? "hanks for all the good discussion here. I enjoy reading? *or me everything is 3rishna? I see everything in him. Bai 1ri3rishna?

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hidhar
0

years ago

I would like to know if 6uddah was (ord 1hiva incarnation then why would his message change. "he absolute truth suppose to stay the same no matter what age or era it is. Why does 1hiva support monotheism and 6uddah 9oidistC

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kamlesh
0

years ago

Hare 3rishna madhudvisa dasa ji, It is mentioned in 6hagwat 7ita and 1rimad 6hagwat the the type of body one gets is according to his past karma, so naturally all of us will be on diferent scale of conciousness and bound to be at different stages of spritual liberation.With everyone trying to find the right path with limited knowledge will result in some wandering of the path but 6hagwat 7ita also says if their effor"s are true then (ord 3rishna with guide him. :s it is he who is responsible for our knowledge, rememberance and forgetfullness.1o why to be averse to people like <ayavadis etc. who have wandered from the pathC :nd if one is in true 3; then why should he be purturbed. :ctually he should be able to influence others rather than getting influenced by the <ayavadis.I think (ords =ame is powerful enough to change anything.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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kamlesh

years ago

Hare 3rishna 3amlesh It is our business to oppose the <ayavadis. "hey are offenders to 3rishna. "hey are misleading the general public away from the service of the 1upreme (ord. It is (ord ;aitanya8s mission, It is 1rila 6haktsiddhanta8s mission, it is 1rila 4rabhupada8s mission 55 so we have to make it our mission to defeat the <ayavadis. >ou are such a fool that you will not even believe the 1upreme (ord 1ri ;aitanya <ahaprabhu. He stresses all the timeM mayavadi bhasya suniya haya sarava nasa 55 DIf you hear the philosophy of the <ayavadis you will never be able to understand 3rishna consciousness.D "he <ayavadi philosophy is so dangerous. 1o the 1upreme (ord ;aitanaya <ahaprabhu is repeatedly warning his devotees not to associate with the <ayavadis or hear from the them otherwise their spiritual life will be destroyed, but you ignore this instruction, you reject this instruction from the 1upreme (ord. 1o we have to defeat the <ayavadis. If we can not defeat them then we have to avoid them at all costs and never hear from them. It is not that we are adverse to anyone. It is not the people we are adverse to 55 we are adverse to the <ayavadi philosophy. "he people can change and give up this philosophy. We are not adverse to the people we are opposed to the <adyavadi philosophy and our mission is to completely defeat the <ayavadi philosophy and eradicate it from the world.

"his means that we will convince the people who are currently following the <ayavadi philosophy that they are wrong and open up their minds so they can see the beauty and majesty of 3rishna 55 "he 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead. 1o we are not adverse to the <ayavadis 55 we are opposed to the <ayavadi philosophy and we want to eradicate it completely form the world 55 it is such a dangerous and poisonous philosophy. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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kamlesh
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<adhudvisa dasa years ago

Hare 3rishna <adhudvisa dasaji, *irst of all thank you for replying. I/m e.tremely sorry for having offended you in any way. I/m sorry I could not make myself clear. I/m in no way favouring the <ayavadis and their philosophyN in fact I/m totally against it. I/m totally committed to (ord 3rishna, thanks to 1rila 4raphupada swami and the treasure he has left behind in the form of books O lectures. I hope you will continue to correct me whenever I/m wrong and I will try and continue to improve. It is true that we have to defeat <ayavadi philosophy and convince them to follow 3rishna ;onciousness. 6ut (ord 3rishna himself says one out of thousands will seek to understand and desire him and only one out of thousands of those will actually sucecced in their endavour. "hus I think at any given point of time those in 3rishna conciousness will be less in numbers in comparision to others as was the case when (ord 3rishna was himself present. "he siEe of army and number of people against 4andavas i.e. 3rishna was much larger, though they were eventually deafeated.:nd when (ord decided to leave there was infighting

amongst his own clan of yadavas where they all were killed. 1o we never know what does he do and why. "his does not mean that we should not spread 3rishna ;onciousness. :s a piece of magnet attracts an iron from a heap of saw dust and a flower does attract the bee no matter where it is, similarly 3rishna ;onciousness or nam sankirtan will definitly attract all those in whom (ord 3rishna has planted the seed of devotion no matter where they are. Who lead me to read and communicate with youC Its surely not my effort but someone guiding me to you. (ord ;haitanya <ahaprabhu did establish the nam sankirtan movement, but they also had restricted entry -only those who had genuine love for the (ord 3rishna were allowedJ and they had sankirtan yagna behind closed doors."here was even Haridas who actually was momedean.@ven within the three stages that you have mentioned namely personalism, yoga, impersonalism, there will be many sub stages one has to go through. +ne has to keep his eyes firmly on (ord 3rishna and continue to move forward from the lower stages to final.1o there is no question of mi.ing or listening and following on the <ayavadi 4hilosophy. "hanking you once again and looking forward to many more interesting views. 3amlesh.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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kamlesh

years ago

Hare 3rishna 3amlesh "his 1ankirtan movement of 3rishna consciousness is the >uga5dharma for 3ali5 yuga. "hat means it will become the prominent religious system in this age. "hat means it has the power to defeat the <ayavadis and the impersonalists

and it can be taken up by the mass of people. :ctually we do not need the mass we need the class. 6ecause whatever a great man does common men follow. >ou can just look back in the history of India, even 1%% years ago, practically all the Hindus were following the 9edic culture, following the regulative principles and practically every activity had some connection with the service of the (ord. It was the culture so naturally people were serving 3rishna and hearing about 3rishna as part of their daily activities. "he general mass of people just follow the leaders, so if the leaders become 3rishna conscious then they will follow and become 3rishna conscious also. =ot that everyone will be 1%%Y pure devotee, but everyone can believe in 3rishna and follow and perform their duty within the society and the whole society can be organiEed in such a way that the production of the society is used to glorify and serve the 1upreme (ord. 1o because the whole society is engaged in the service of 3rishna everyone who is part of the society is contributing to that. "his is the devi 9arnashrama system. 1o this 1ankirtan movement has the potency to completely transform the whole society and that is the idea. +f course all different types of people are there but that is also accommodated in the 9anashrama system. 6ut these <ayavadi and 9oidists philosophies can be driven out. We have that in the history as well. "he philosophy of 6uddhism was once accepted by almost everyone in India but when 1ankacharaya appeared and preached a better philosophy based on the 9edas almost everyone in India gave up following (ord 6uddha and started to follow 1ankacharaya. 1o we can also by preaching a the superior philosophy of 3rishna consciousness convince the impersonalists and the voidists to surrender to 3rishna. (ord 1ri ;aitanya <ahaprabhu has shown that in practice when he visited 9aranasi and 6enaras. He convinced all the <ayavadis there of the philosophy of 3rishna consciousness and they all surrender to Him and became His disciples. :s far as (ord ;aitanya and His followers they did not e.clude anyone from the 1ankirtan movement. "hey were chanting and dancing on the streets and inundating the whole world with 3rishna consciousness. (ord ;aitanya Himself traveled all over India chanting Hare 3rishna and dancing in public and everyone who saw Him was immediately convinced and became a devotee. 1o there is no question, the sankirtan movement is open to everyone. +f course in 9rindavan the devotees did have kirtans which were limited to the devotees only behind closed doors. "hat is of course natural. &evotees want to associate with

devotees. 6ut that does not mean that 3rishna consciousness is not open to anyone. It is the same in I13;+= in the Dold daysD. We used to have many festivals which were just for the devotees but at the same time we were out on streets daily distributing 1rila 4rabhupada8s books and chanting Hare 3rishna for the benefit of everyone. =aturally the devotees want to associate with the devotees but they also want to distribute 3rishna consciousness to everyone because they have great compassion for the conditioned souls and want them to be happy and the only way they can become happy is if they become 3rishna conscious. +f course we can e.pect that the number of people who take seriously to 3rishna consciousness may be small55at least in the beginning when it is not the culture and when the Dgreat menD in society are not following it55but it does not matter. : few sincere devotees are much more powerful than millions of devotees who are not actually surrendered souls. Half5surrendered devotees can not do anything significant actually. 1o it is far better to have a few surrendered souls than to have millions of not surrendered 8devotees8... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa
o o o
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%kbal
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years ago

Hare 3rishna, I consider myself lucky and thank 7od for getting a chance to ask my doubts and reduce the disturbance in my mind through you. :nd please forgive me for any unknown offences in my questions due to my utter ignorance. 4lease define

me 8What is "ruthC When can we label a statement as a truthC Why the same process is not applied with the present meat eaters which was adopted by 7autam 6udhaC

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Madhudvisa dasa
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Ikbal

years ago

6efore understanding what is truth you have to purify your heart. :nd that purification is possible by following the four regulative principles Fno illicit se., no meat eating, no gambling, no into.icationG and chanting at least 1) rounds of the Hare 3rishna maha mantra daily. "his is the beginning of the process whereby you can understand what is truth. It is a process and you have surrender to and follow the process and gradually the truth will be revealed to you from within. "his is the way. If you are not prepared to surrender to this process then you will not be able to know the truth. (ord 6uddha preached according to the time and the place. His philosophy was good for that time and that place but it now a different time and a different place therefore a different approach is now required. =ow for the current meat eaters what is required is the 1ankirtan <ovement of (ord 1ri ;aitanya <ahaprabhu. "hey need to dance and chant Hare 3rishna in kirtan and they need to eat sumptuous 3rishna prasadam which is cooked by sincere devotees and offered to 3rishna. "hat is now required for today8s meat5eaters. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Anubhav
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years ago

Hare 3rishna, &ear <adhudvidasa "here is something that8s been troubling me for quite sometime now.I8m finding it &ifficult to understand the true meaning of the term D:vatarD because the term has been commercialiEed so many times that I believe the term has lost it8s relevance..1ome people say D:vatarD means incarnation which in their term means Dnew formDwe seen in tv ads that if some product has been altered or changed they call it an avatar if such is a case then all the avatars of 9ishnu is something other than 9ishnu but I find all the avatars of lord 9ishnu same I don8t see any difference between 9ishnu,3rishna,=arayana,<atsya,3oorma,,ama,=arasimha I believe all these avatars are one but the term avatar is quite contradictory and recently a movie about some :lien ,ace was made by Bames ;ameroon and it preaches the same concept that avatar means change into something else please enlighten me the true meaning of the term :vatar...

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Madhudvisa dasa
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:nubhav

years ago

:vatar means one who descends from the spiritual world to the material world. "here are many different types. I suggest you read the :di5(ila of 1ri ;aitanya5 caritamrta for a full scientific discussion of the different types of avatars. >ou can not understand anything by watching Hollywood films...

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seva das
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years ago

pamho madhudvisa prabhu agt:;614 i heard in kali yuga nobody follow all these religions seriously because the influence of kali is increasing day after day therefore whoever chant hare krsna is considered a krpa siddhi that8s the special mercy we got by follow the yuga dharma of sankirtan yajna,my mother is a jeowah witness i call her everyday she is #I years old i told her tell me a place where there is not satan and i go there immediately i heard it from 1,I(: 4,:6HA4:&: she start to laugh i told her that jesus says i don8t tell you everything because you can8t understand, then i told her jesus is been in india was studying the veda which come from the breathing of god before the bible, we found a spiritual connection between krsna and christian philosophy,but they don8t believe to the veda they are waiting for armaghedon they said that satan is very furious nowadays because he knows that after armaghedon satan will be finish,i know a pure devotee of krsna like jesus can8t be a liar i mean he will deliver his sincere followers so i don8t want disturb the mind of my old mother by tell her more about the veda because she is already initiated by jesus even if they lack of knowledge but they got bhakti by follow the spiritual teaching of jesus christ superstar ki jai thank you for all your email and blessing i really

appreciate to associate and hear that from a senior and sincere disciple of H&7 :;614 like you agtys dandavats daso smi seva das haribol

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Shanel
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years ago

hi, madhudvisa. When your friend comes to your house to enjoy your offerings will he offered water to wash his feet O handsC

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*eanine Lig!n
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years ago

Hari 6ol? I am a devotee of (ord 3rishn and His 6eloved ,adha. I was first made aware of the 7ita in 4eacock 4ark, ;oconut 7rove *lorida by a very nice young devotee who was giving a class during one of the incredible 1unday *easts. "his was in 1KI%. "hen 7eorge Harrison came out with D<y

1weet (ordD and everyone started dancing with their hands raised in prase. Well, I have never stopped dancing to namkirtan and chanting the <ahamantra since. It is your turn to pass on the torch and you are doing a fine job. 1t."homas :quinas stated centuries ago, that a devotee of the (ord does not waste his time seeking proof when love is the vehicle, but for a skeptic, all the proof in the world is not enough. 1ri ,amakrishna said that when a nut is green prying will not shake it loose, however, let it ripen and the slightest tap will do. "here are many souls always at the verge of becoming ripe and (ord 3rishn will direct them to find a devotee of His to point the way in the right direction, like He did with me almost $ years ago. <y spiritual development had reached a point, that when I heard the chanting in the park, I was attracted, then I listened to the young man teaching the 7ita and it all fell into place. >ou do what you do and I am sure that those that are ready will listen. It is an eternal dance, and we will all get there one by one as we mature spiritually. :re you aware that 1hankaracharya was in fact a great devotee of ,adha 3rishna and that what is being taught is only his preliminary dissertationC He wrote the D4rabodh 1udhakarD which is the most beautiful treatise on ,aganuga 6hakti. He retired from the world at the age of 1) years old and taught devotion to ,adha 3rishna to his mother and then completely retired from public teaching. DI have renounced all worldly activities and meditating upon the (otus feet of (ord 3rishna, dedicate the rest of my life to His (oving service.D 1hankaracharya left this earth at the age of ! . "his is a fact that very very few people know. He was followed then by three other great BagadgurusM =imbarkacharya, ,amanujacharya -1%1I511!IJ, and <adhavacharya -1!th ;enturyJ. "hen 9allabhacharya -1$I#51'!%J wrote the :nu 6hashya on the 6rahma 1utra and instituted vigraha seva to the &ieties of the (ord at a time when Islam had taken over vedic culture and prohibited public worhip, so people worshipped at home and treated the (ord as the 4roprietor of their homes, and they His servants -beautiful devotional serviceJ. "hen ,adha3rishna appeared in the form of (ord ;haitanya and taught nam sankirtan and consolidated all teachings and taught Dachintya bhedabed vadD which translates as Dinconceivable differential monismD which is the pure e.pression of >ogamaya, which is 1ri ,adharani8s ahladini shakti from which all &ivine (ove e.pression derives right on down thru (ord <ahavishnu -who is a fraction thereofJ creating the universes, etc. 1o it is proven tat +nly "hru 6hakti can one know, love and serve the (ord. I truly appreciate your efforts at passing the torch of 1rila 4rabhupada8s great effort in bringing namsankirtan and devotional service to the world. =amaste and keep on shining. Beanine

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itika kalia
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years ago

radhe radhe..... madhuvisa.... this is my 1st comment here... i wanna your attention on my vry 1st words Dradhe radheD ...... itE mean Drah5deD .... means we say to god please shows the way to lead.......... madhuvisa m very happy to receiving ur mails special on geeta8s adhye.... ur mail realy very motivated...... specially for students.... i fel i m da luckest one those receive ur mails....MJ after readin ur mail i usually asking question to my dad mom my uncle aunty to every one those know about the geeta..n etc aft my questions answers my dad said how could you know about this all then i proudly answerd them jst because of madhuvisa..... special thank you to you n be in touch MJ

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perithvi
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years ago

I would like to know who is much more powerful lord shiva or lord vishnu.I need proof.1o,that i can e.plain it.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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perithvi

years ago

(ord 1hiva and (ord 9isnu are very similar. 3rishna is the 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead, 9isnu is an e.pansion from 3rishna, (ord 6rahma takes birth from the lotus flower which grows from the abdomen of <aha59isnu, and (ord 1hiva is born out of the anger of (ord 6rahma. 1o 1hiva is born from 6rahma who is born from <aha59isnu Who is an e.pansion of 9isnu who is an e.pansion of 3rishna. (ord 1hiva is in a category of His own. "here is 9isnu5tattva, jiva5tattva and shiva5tattva. (ord 1hiva is described as being (ord 9isnu in contact with the material energy. 9isnu is never in contact with the material energy. 6ut 1hiva is an e.pansion of 9isnu who is in contact with the material energy. "he e.ample is given of milk and yogurt. >ogurt is simply milk in contact with some sour element. "hen the milk is transformed into yogurt. 1hiva is likened to the yogurt. He is 9isnu transformed. 1o like the yogurt is composed only of milk, 1hiva is composed only of 9isnu, but also like the yogurt has completely

different qualities to milk, 1hiva has completely different qualities to 9isnu and worshiping 1hiva will not give the same results as worshiping 9isnu. 1piritual knowledge depends on accepting the correct authority. 1o we can understand the correct thing if we accept the correct authority. It is not a question of proof. <any of these things are avan5manasa5gochara. It means beyond the ability of our senses to perceive and beyond the ability of our minds to conceive. 1o the knowledge has to be accepted from the bona fide authority. "hat is the proof. +f course there is proof. *or e.ample (ord 1hiva heard about the <ohini5<urti form of (ord 3rishna and wanted to see it. He thought that he was very powerful but he was completely captivated and defeated by the <ohini5<urti form of 9isnu. We have to find people who are interested in hearing from us and who have a little faith and e.plain the philosophy to them. 4reaching is not about trying to defeat people who have opposing opinions. "hat can be done by very advanced devotees but for the general devotees it is not possible. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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kamlesh kakkad
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years ago

Hare 3rishna <adhudvisa dasa ji,

I can/t e.press the happiness that I had on receiving your mail after a gap. I used to go through your mails and wanted to write something, though couldn/t do all that fast and by the time your mails had stopped.6ut now I/m doing so."hough this might not be directly a comment or a question on the topic of this current mail, but I hope you will take out time to go through it."hank you in advance. I/m indebet to the I13+= and 1rila 4raphupada 1wami for the change in me, though I/m not a formal member of it. I live in a city with an Iskon temple and have this opportunity to be there many a times. I like to be a part of "ulasi puja, sandhya arti and hare nam sankirtan. 6ut in all these times because of some or the other reason I have never interacted to any swamiji. *irst of all I think I don/t have enough knowledge nor I/m not enough advanced in bhakti and with a fear as to how I will be accepted. <ay be that is my fault. 6ut whatever it might be now that I/m communicating with a 3rishna devotee that too from A1: is his kindness and mercy."his is what I have learned, trying to see in which way the (ord 3rishna wants to take you to and follow it. <y relationship started with 6hagwat 7ita in the childhood.:s is coustamary, we also had copies of 6hagwat 7ita at our home, but there were no regular studies or talks on it. 6ut that book left a lasting impression on me. &uring the school we had some verses from 6hagwat 7ita in the course, as any other poem or verse teachers taught their meanings without going deep into its hidden meanings. :fter graduating somehow I was again attracted towards 6hagwat 7ita and started going through it. =ow I know that I had not understood meaning of a single verse. "hen after some years I came across the 6hagwat 7ita by 1rila 4rapbupada 1wami. "hat was some #5K years back and in that time I have gone through it for some ' times. =ow some of the things are getting clear in my mind. It is not that I force myself to do all these but somehow it happens. "he first thing I learnt , which was not there in any other commentary on 6hagwat 7ita that I had read earliar and which you also mentioned in your first mail was, if one has to learn any thing from 6hagwat 7ita he has to be like :rjun and listen to these words as he did. +ne has to have complete faith as :rjun had on (ord 3rishna. "hus I also tried to take some cues from :rjun/s life."his clear message I got from 1rila 4rabhupada 1wamis commentory. *rom the very beginning I used to wonder as to why (ord 3rishna had a dialouge with only :rjun. "he second thing was if what (ord 3rishna was saying so important then why all other 4andavas and other 3ings were not invitedC 1o was the dialouge that we all know as 6hagwat 7ita only a private dialouge for the consumption of :rjun and people having :rjuns qualitiesC 1o does it mean that 6hagwat 7ita was not meant for mass as has been made out todayC

I/m asking this because everyone knows how sacred 6hagwat 7ita is and keep a copy of it in the house, but I/m not sure wether everyone understands its meaning.I have seen many people who regularly read a portion of it and as soon as they keep aside 6hagwat 7ita after reading they behave quite contrary with the teachings of it. =ot for one day but for them it is a daily routine."hen there are people who can recite 6hagwat 7ita verbatim and the recite it everyday but it seems they are doing without their soul in it. I/m saying this because the sign of a bhakt as is mentioned in 6hagwat 7ita is not to be seen in them. I know 1rila 4rabhupada has said (ord 3rishnas name and the words of 6hawat 7ita are trancendental and it works like a good medicine which cures even if taken without knowledge.@ven :jamil was liberated when he took the name of =arayana at the time of death though he was actually calling his youngest son named after (ord. 6ut it is also mentioned that he actually was a learned 6ramhana before who had fallen from his path.6ut to know how sacred 6hagwat gita is and how it can help soul to reach new heights, yet taking its shelter to show to the people how learned we are and indulging in some materialistic works which are against the principles of 6hagwat 7ita, should be an offense. "hose who are doing this are under the false impression that because they are outwardly in contact with 6hagwat 7ita, whatever they do is correct. 6y mentioning all this I don/t want to say that they don/t know anything and I for having got this opportunity to read 6hagwat 7ita for a few times, know more than them. I/m only tring to come to a different point by pointing out generally goes through the world. 6hagwat 7ita and 1rila 4rabhupada 1wami states that nothing can happen without (ord 3rishnas mercy, let it be any material achivement or progress on the path of devotion. I think one cannot just put in hard labour and learn 6hagwat 7ita or to start chanting (ord/s name."here has to be (ord 3rishnas mercy and he decides wether and how a person is to progress in 3rihna counciousness. "here is nothing which we can take pride in. *or this 6hagwat 7ita and 1rila 4rabhupada 1wami say that teachings of 6hagwat 7ita should not be told in front of someone who doesn/t have faith in (ord 3rishna. 6ut people all around including me do go through it and think we can learn something from it. "hough it is clearly mentioned and 1rila 4raphupada 1wami also says that 6hagwat 7ita should be learned from a learned 7uru, in a 7uru shisya parampara. 6ut how can an individual like me with limited understanding come to a conclusion about whom to take as 7uruC I think a lot of people will be having similar problems and to overcome it they join certain groups and suffer emmencely. "here are certain rules about the gurus in 6hagwat 7ita but how can common men decide about itC +ne more question that arises is wether

someone can do both i.e. learning 6hagwat 7ita from the 7uru and his other daily occution, together or does he have to completely stop his other activitiesC *or me actually I have left everything on (ord 3rishna himself. It is his mercy that I/m able to remember his name, if and when he feels that the time has come he will send someone to guide me further. With this I remain for now. "hanking you once again. Hare 3rishna. 3amlesh 3akkad.

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yamuna
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years ago

H:,@ 3,I1H=:. 4(@:1@ :;;@4" <> HA<6(@ +6@I1:=;@1. its my personalquestion. can a women follow $ regulative princlipls after the marraiage also if the husband is not a devoteeChow can we practice k.cCplE help me. her total life will become waste,if she didnot follow. is krishna helps herC your humble servant.

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Pram!d
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yamuna years ago

Hare 3rishna I hope you read the life of <irabai you canoot rise such a question.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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yamuna

years ago

Hare 3rishna >amuna It is a difficult question. 6etter of course for a devotee woman to marry a devotee man. 6ut sometimes the circumstances are unavoidable and we find our selves in very strange situations. >ou have to do what you can. ;hant at least 1) rounds of the Hare 3rishna mantra daily, follow the regulative principles as far as possible, read 4rabhupada8s books, cook and make nice offerings to 3rishna and offer the prasadam to your husband also. Altimately everyone is a devotee, no one is a non5devotee. &evotion to 3rishna is there in everyone8s heart. It simply has to be awakened. 1o if you become a nice devotee of 3rishna then perhaps by your good association your husband will also become a devotee of 3rishna.

3rishna knows our hearts and He knows our desires. 1o if we really have the desire to serve Him, to be His devotee, then sometimes e.ternally we may be forced by the circumstances to break the regulative principles or there may be other apparent imperfections in our devotional service. 6ut 3rishna knows our desire, He knows our heart. 1o if our desire is to serve 3rishna, if our heart is with 3rishna, everything will be successful in the end. 1o the best thing is to chant Hare 3rishna, read 4rabhupada8s books, surrender to 3rishna, knowing that ultimately 3rishna is in control and at the same time do your duty to your husband and see what 3rishna arranges... <aybe the husband will also become a devotee. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa see more

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Arindam Pandey
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years ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu? "hank >ou for the article.

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manmath nayak
0

years ago

"he article clarifies various steps of human understanding and realiEation under broad categories. "his enhances tolerance for different view points as well as sharpens one8s own understanding when ther is opposition. "he ultimate goal is so clearly described with very simple analogies.

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nagendra prasad
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years ago

,espected 1ir, ;ould you kindly e.plain the basic tenets of 8acintya5bheda and abheda5tattvam5 simultaneously one and different8. regards

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Madhudvisa dasa
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nagendra prasad

years ago

Hare 3rishna =agendra I have already e.plained it a little bit but if you want an elaborate e.planation I would suggest you read 1rila 4rabhupada8s 1ri ;aitanya5caritamrta or if you want a shortened version read his D"eachings of (ord ;aitanyaD. >ou can read online at www.4rabhupada6ooks.com or purchase the books atwww.3rishna1tore.com "he meaning is Dinconceivably simultaneously one and different.D It means as followers of (ord ;aitanya we accept the (ord as both one Fin His all5persave brahman aspectG and different Fas 3rishna, the 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odheadG at the same time and this is inconceivable... 1o it requires a little realiEation and advancement to grasp really. 1o ultimately there is no contradiction between the impersonal view and the personal view. "hey are simply different perspective views of the same 1upreme 4ersonality of 7odhead. 6ut much more detail you can find in 1rila 4rabhupada8s 1ri ;aitanya5caritamrta and "eachings of (ord ;aitanya. 4lease read them. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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m(surendranathan
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years ago

respcetd guruji my humble obeisances the article o $ basic types of philosophies is really wonderful and i read $times to understand the contents. still iam not very clear and i have to read more number of times, i have one question many followers of buddism all over the world are not practicing ahimsa and non violence even though lord budda advocated for ahimsa and non violence. whyC surendranathan

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Madhudvisa dasa
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m.surendranathan

years ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu "his is the age of 3ali, the age of quarrel and hypocrisy. <ostly you will find that people who are claiming to follow something are not actually following it at all. "hat is hypocrisy. "hey say they are following something but they are not. "he prime teaching of (ord 6uddha is non5violence, ahimsa parama dharma55Dnon violence is the highest religious principleD, but as you point out so many of today8s so5called 6uddhists are not following this ahimsa principle. @ven the &ali (ama who is supposed to be one of the biggest 6uddhists is a meat eater. 1o this is 3ali5yuga... "hese are not followers of 6uddhism, they are followers of 3ali... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy?

<adhudvisa dasa

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+Adam+
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years ago

4rabhu >ou have yet to answer my previous question you told me to put it as a comment via email and yet no response I hope I have not caused offense. Hara 3rishna and thank you.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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8:dam8

years ago

Hare 3rishna :dam

I apologiEe for the delay. I am a bit behind at the moment. I have your question and will attempt to answer it within the ne.t $ hours. In the meantime chant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Adam
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<adhudvisa dasa years ago

Hara 3rishna 4rabhu "hank you for the reply it is amaEing to see your answers not only to my questions but others I am learning so much and have become stronger in my pursuit of 3; thank you Hara 3rishna.

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rajni
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years ago

It has been my endeavors of late to understand how to live and lead a purposeful life. @verytime I seek some answers, I get frustrated in the process and give up further pursuits. I then contend that when I live a life where I do not harm or hurt anyone and be of some assistance to felowbeings, thats good enough. =a, thats perfect. I tried to pursue 6hagavat7ita. and yet had to give up. Why (ord 3rishna has to proclaim everytime that he is 1uperhead, all supreme and seek sll to surrender to Him. Why to (ord <ahavir too, but He does not ask to surrneder. What I e.perience more fulfilling and satisfying is practices of >oga. *or health and tranquility of mind. I find att @stablishments seeking to glorify themselves, and I can not be a submission to this. >our messages give solace, sometimes soothing, but then what ne.t path I pursueC.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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rajni

years ago

Hare 3rishna ,ajni >es. We do not want to surrender to 3rishna. We want to be 3rishna. "hat is the material disease. 6ut unless we can give up this diseased mentality we will never be happy, we will never find peace. Altimately we have to surrender to 3rishna and the only practical way to do this is by surrendering to 3rishna8s pure devotee. 1o read 1rila 4rabhupada8s books and follow the instructions you find in there and your life will become perfect. :nd when we take to 3rishna consciousness we have to stick to it. "here will be tests of maya, there will be difficult times. We have to keep on chanting Hare 3rishna...

;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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ish!r
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rishna ,as

years ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu, It was a nice article enabling me to remember 1rila 4rabhupada8s @.planations immediatly. &oes ;hristianity fall within personalism. I would beg you to throw some light on this stream of thoughts. >our servant

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Madhudvisa dasa
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3ishor 3rishna &as

years ago

Hare 3rishna 3ishor

I was brought up as a ;hristian and as far as I can tell ;hristianity is a mi.ture of personalism and impersonalism. "here is some idea of 7od the *ather, Besus8s *ather, in Heaven55and He seems to be a person. 6ut the ;hristians have very little actual information about 7od the *ather. 1ome think He is an old man with a big beard. 1o there may be a hint of personalism but no real idea as to what 7od is like at all. :nd there are other ;hristians who are just impersonal, stressing on the Holy 7host, or the impersonal form of the trinity. :ctually there are so many different types of ;hristians with so many different philosophies so I can not really say what they are e.cept that there is a hint of personalism but no clear idea of who the personality of 7odhead is. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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Sadtya
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years ago

Hare 3rishna 4rabhu, "hank >ou so much 4rabhu for sending me this email,It is "he 7reatest 7ift for me. :nd >ou don8t mind please give me some e.planations about my religion matter,for your information I am a moslem that have to face the moslem people everyday with their religions knowledge that they only believe "he 1upreme 7od is :((:H nothing else,and the only religion which is true and got permission from "he :lmighty 7od is Islam. 1o it8s so hard to convince them about 3rishna.1o if >ou don8t mind please help me to figure this out. "hank >ou so much 4rabhu <adhudvisa &as

Bai 1rila 4rabhupada Hare 3rishna

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Madhudvisa dasa
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1adtya

years ago

Hare 3rishna 1adtya In the beginning it is best to become very fi.ed up in 3rishna consciousness yourself. We are not very interested in 8converting8 people who have no interest in 3rishna consciousness. ,ather you can encourage the <uslims to actually follow the good teachings that they are supposed to follow. (ike no into.ication, no illicit se., no gambling, and praying to :llah five times a day, etc. 6asically for talking about 3rishna you need someone who is a little bit interested in hearing. :nd you will find these people also. ,eally we are not interested in converting all the <uslims and ;hristians into Hare 3rishna8s. It is not like that. 3rishna consciousness is within everyone, it simply has to be awakened and most importantly we have to awaken it fully within ourselves first and then we will have the potency to awaken others also. If you give them 3rishna prasadam and let them hear the chanting of the Hare 3rishna mantra and let them read 4rabhupada8s books they will become 3rishna conscious gradually. <any <uslims are interested in philosophy also and they many have noting against reading 1rila 4rabhupada8s books. 1o preaching to <uslims is no different to preaching to anyone else. We don8t want to force 3rishna consciousness on people who are not willing or interested in it but we want to gradually awaken their interest in 3rishna by giving them

prasadam, letting them hear the Hare 3rishna mantra and letting them read 4rabhupada8s books... Hope it helps. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa see more

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pardhasaradhi vutukuru
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years ago

Hare krishna 4rabhu, 4lease accept my humble obesenses unto your lotus feet. I see your mail O noted contents carefully. what you wrote is correct. In yoga some times he will be fallen, for e.Mviswamitra fallen. I agree that without bhakti there is no spiritual advancement. "his is the basement. 6H:"3I,B=:=:,9>,:7><. *irst we should have 6hakti, it wont be <oodha 6hakti, with Bnanam

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shal!ne
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years ago

I have discerned from reading this article that you know little about 6uddhism. 4lease contact a 6uddhist monk or nun to look over your info on 6uddhism before publishing it. Bust as you would like someone writing about 3rishna to contact a true devotee. I personally respect all religions and philosopheies, especially Hinduism, but please inform yourself before you write or repost an article like this again. "hank you.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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shalone

years ago

Hare 3rishna 1halone 6uddha is an incarnation of 3rishna and we have full information of the teachings of (ord 6uddha and the purpose behind his appearance. 1o we do not need to contact anyone in regard to the teachings of (ord 6uddha. We have that information in our own scriptures. If th the 6uddhists you will generally get a different idea from every 6uddhist you contact so that is not a very reliable way to find out what are the teachings of (ord 6uddha. 3ali5yuga Fthe current ageG is full of people claiming to be something they are not. 1o many D6uddhistsD are not even vegetarians, so what

can they know about the teachings of (ord 6uddha when his primary teaching is ahimsa, non5violence. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa

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seva das
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years ago

pamho madhudvisa prabhu agt:;614 thank you for this very instructive news letter on the different religions ,we all are wating to see the power of the hare krsna movement in due course of time because i feel very bad when i go out of door to see the karmi ordinary people to suffer so much just because they do not want chant hare krsna due to their contaminate diet and style of life wich make their lives useless and troublesome not just in london unfortunately but around the world therefore we trying to do our best at least to bring the society at the platform of goodness as used to be before because is not so easy in this beginning of kali yuga to find association completely free from the mode of passion and ignorance therefore we stay all together through your spiritual website which is helping the citiEens of our actuall society to understand the different religions and aim of life with this scientific and wonderful e.planation of the main religions that you give us here,thank you very much for your association and blessing agtys ys seva das haribol

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Pat M- errell
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years ago

&ear <adhudvisa , an interesting and provocative article. However, your knowledge of the depth of 6uddhas teachings is rather incomplete. "he goal of =irvana is not that of achieving Eero or endless voidism, rather of reaching the state of enlightenment, the end of the cycle of rebirth and suffering, to understand the true nature of this and any world, to understand everything we in our human form are usually denied to understand. 6uddhism is a path to find it8s way there, like 3rishna, 6uddha appeared in human form, not as a human, to ease suffering and free the world of aggression and violence ultimately. What happens for those achieving enlightenment is beyond our understanding as much as we don8t know what will happen when we reach the ultimate merger with 3rishna through becoming one in 3rishna consciousness. &ifferent pathway, but perhaps the same goal and it8s not becoming a Eero or void, rather the opposite is true.

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Madhudvisa dasa
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4at <c3errell

years ago

Hare 3rishna 4at

1omewhere between you and (ord 6uddha the philosophy the (ord 6uddha preached has got lost. "he path of 6uddhism, as it was presented by (ord 6uddha, is voidism. It is the realiEation that everything we e.perience in this world is a cause of suffering ultimately and the attempt to negate all these ultimate causes of suffering and if you can negate everything you are left with nothing. "hat is nirvana, the void, the ultimate goal of the 6uddhists. >ou can not Dhave your cake and eat it tooD as they say. If you are a 6uddhist the future is the impersonal, lifeless, feeling5 less, relationship5less void. 6ecause the 6uddhists rightly understand that these things55relationships, personality, feelings, etc55all ultimately cause suffering. 1o because they have no information of spiritual relationships, spiritual feelings and spiritual personality they try to make all these things Eero. >ou can not make 6uddhism into something that it is not. If you do not like the teachings of (ord 6uddha then find a philosophy that is better. &on8t misrepresent 6uddhism. Here you are saying 6uddhism is not voidism but the opposite of thatCC :lso you say you do not know what the goal of 6uddhism is... "hat is not very good. If you are following a philosophy but you do not know what is the ultimate goal of that philosophy then you had better find out. :nd if you do the research you will find out that (ord 6uddha taught that it is the void, nirvana, the ending of the cycle of samsara. :nd because they do not believe in the eternal e.istence of the soul ending the cycle of samsara for the 6uddhist means ending their e.istence. "hey believe they can cease to e.ist and this for them is the solution to the problems and suffering of the material world.... "his is it, this is 6uddhism. >ou can not argue that it is not this, it is something else, but you really don8t know what it is, perhaps it is the same goal as 3rishna consciousness. 1piritual life is not about perhaps and maybe. (ord 6uddha presented a clear but incorrect philosophy for a particular purpose as I have outlined here and in more detail in other articles. He is an incarnation of 9isnu so he is the 1upreme (ord55but for the time it was necessary to present the 6uddhist philosophy. 6ut his purpose was to establish vegetarianism and non5 violence with this philosophy55not to actually describe the :bsolute "ruth. 6uddhism is very attractive to the Western atheists because it is atheism55there is no 7od in 6uddhism, there is no eternal soul, there is no authority to surrender to. :nyone can become the 6uddha. 6uddha purposely designed this philosophy to be attractive to atheists, to convince the atheists to accept non5

violence and become vegetarians. "hat is all. "here is no other purpose for the 6uddhist philosophy. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa see more

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sara T
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years ago

Hare 3rishna, <adhudvisa dasa, "hank you (ord 3rishna for these beautiful clarifications of the four philosophies by your devoted servant. "ruth leads to victory, no matter what others believe. Hare 3rishna, 1ara

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*urgen
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years ago

&ear <adhudvisa. "hank you for the article. 6eing very much a beginner, moreover a humble student, I must nevertheless ask this questionM 7od -3rishnaJwho knows the past , the present , and the future of all living things, moreover has created all living things for his enjoymentN why the imperfection in our journeyC *ree will -if it really e.istsJ must remain free, free of punishment, moreover free of interpretationsZ. I, as a father of ! children, obviously want the best for them. 1etting obstacles in their way, with full knowledge these obstacles can, and likely will, create damage, seems ludicrous, if not cruel. 1ince I know 7od is not cruel but wishes only my best, I don/t understand the purpose of our million year long journey. 6est wishes B[rgen

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Madhudvisa dasa
0

Burgen

years ago

Hare 3rishna Burgen 3rishna did not e.actly create us. He e.panded and we are e.pansions of him. It is quite different from creation. We are all part and parcel of 3rishna55but we are very, very small parts of 3rishna and 3rishna is the complete unlimited e.istence. 1o we are tiny and 3rishna is very great. 6ut we are qualitatively the same as 3rishna. 1o as 3rishna has unlimited free will we as tiny parts and parcels also have a tiny amount of free will. 1o 3rishna has e.panded as all the living entities but as 3rishna is completely independent His e.pansions in the form of the living entities also have a small amount of independence. We are all 8little 3rishna8s.8 3rishna is supremely conscious. He is aware of everything, everywhere55His consciousness is unlimited. We are also conscious, but our consciousness is limited to within this body only55still 3rishna has consciousness and we have consciousness55only the e.tent of the consciousness is different. 1o yes, 3rishna knows the past, present and future. 6ut that does not mean that 3rishna is making the future happen. =o. We are making our own future because the future is made by the collective reactions to all the living entities karma. 3rishna is organiEing things in the material world via His demigod agents to provide a platform where we, the living entities, can take birth in suitable bodies to enjoy or suffer the the good and bad reactions of our actions in the past in both this life and previous lives. 1o it is not 3rishna who is causing us suffering. "he universe has laws which are of course ultimately made by 3rishna, and if we break these laws there are consequences and the suffering is one of the consequences. 1o we commit some sinful action then we have to get some punishment for that. It is like if you rob a bank and the police arrest you and send you to jail you can not blame the police for sending you to jail. >ou are being sent to jail because you robbed the bank, because of your criminal action. 1o if we perform criminal activities we will have to suffer for that, and if we perform pious, good activities the result will be enjoyment or a favorable situation for us in the material world. =othing is free of consequences. "he consequences have nothing to do with the free will. @veryone has the free will to choose if he will rob the bank or not. 6ut robbing the bank is a misuse of one8s free will. 1o if one misuses his free will and robs the bank then there will be consequences. "he police will arrest him and he will suffer in jail. 1o that suffering in jail is a result of his misuse of his free will. It is not at all that if on is to have free will then the free will has to be be free of

punishments as you insist. "hat is incorrect. @verything has consequences. >ou can not avoid the consequences and you have caused the consequences by e.ecuting your free will, 3rishna is not causing these consequences. If you love your children and if they use their free will to do something which puts them in great danger and will not listen to your warnings about this then it is your duty to punish them and that punishment is done out of your love and it will be good for your children. If a young child likes to play on a busy road then you can tell him a few times not to play on the road, but if he does not listen and is still playing on the road in front of the big trucks then out of love you have to punish him so he will not put himself in danger again like this. If you do not punish him and he keeps playing on the road and gets run over by a truck then you have not done your duty as a parent. <aya of course will set many obstacles in our way as we try to make advancement in spiritual life. "hat is her job. <aya is the superintendent of the material world and it is her business to provide the illusion that we can somehow be happy separately from 3rishna. 1o as we try to reestablish our relationship with 3rishna she will put many obstacles in our path... "he thing is we have misused our independence. We don8t want to surrender to 3rishna and serve Him55instead we have come to this material world to try and become 7ods ourselves and to get people to surrender to us. 1o this material world to some e.tent allows us to at lest try to become the controller, the master, but all our attempts will end in frustration and a thoughtful person after suffering frustration like this for many, many births will understand that he can not be happy separately from surrendering to and serving 3rishna. 1o the ultimate purpose of all this suffering and frustration in the material world is to bring us to the point where we want to surrender to 3rishna. :nd that is the only way we can be happy. 1o in this sense all the suffering and obstacles are 3rishna8s mercy because ultimately they will lead us to surrender to 3rishna... ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa see more

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<adhudvisa dasa years ago

&ear <adhudvisa "hank you for your reply. While I understand the concept of 3arma, moreover see the validity of itN my point was that I as a father would not bring obstacles in my children/s path, on purpose, knowing the vulnerability of this action. 7od created -through e.pansionJ <aya, and if her sole function is to set obstacles in our path, then 3rishna must have been aware of the consequences of this e.pansionL action. 1o this begs further questions. What is the reason for us to go through misery before finding our way back to 7odC <oreover, since the material world was created through e.pansion from 7od withinZ, again whyC 6eing but a very small part of 7od, before creation -e.pansionJ must have been bliss, why the e.pulsionC 7od/s splendourZI don/t understand the need to break away, and then only trough countless births, and countless misery in this material world find my way back to where I was in the first place. =ow if the purpose of our creation was to set in motion individual awareness, again, I for one would have rather been a little piece of 7od, without awareness of my own e.istenceLsoul. B[rgen

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Madhudvisa dasa
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Burgen

years ago

Hare 3rishna Burgen >es. >ou do not understand. :nd you can not understand without surrender to 3rishna. 6ut you do not want to surrender to 3rishna. 1o you are here in this material world trying everything but surrender to 3rishna and you will have to go on doing this and suffering in the material world birth after birth forever or until you decide to surrender to 3rishna. "hat is just the way it is. We are meant for rendering service to 3rishna. We have the freedom to reject that service and that is what we have done and that is why we are in the material world. 6ut we can not be happy here. We are like fish out of water. : fish can not be happy out of water no matter how many material faciltities and money and gold and beautiful women he has. He needs to be back in the water. We need to be back in the spiritual world to be happy. 6ut there our business is only to serve 3rishna, but we do not want to serve 3rishna. 1o we can no go there. 1o the cycle of samsara Fbirth and deathG will go on perpetually or until we get enough intelligence to surrender to 3rishna. It doesn8t matter if you don8t understand why the universe is set up like this. "his is the way it works, this is the way it is set up and there is nothing you can do to change that. ;hant Hare 3rishna and be happy? <adhudvisa dasa see more
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<adhudvisa dasa years ago

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&ear <adhudvisa dasa 1orry about my slow response. :llow me to first make a statement. \:ll seekers who honestly try to find 7od, and do it with honesty, not being a hypocrite, deserve to find a way back to 7od. 7od/s mercy is boundlessN it is our human understanding that limits generosity.] 1wami 4rabhupada and 9ishnujana 1wami, no doubt were a voice of 7od, so was *rancis of :ssisi, and so were countless others Z 7od/s manifestation comes in different ways, depending on culture, time, and need. "o be a true 1wami 4rabhupada follower takes a very special person, to be a follower of *rancis of :ssisi also required a very special person. 6oth to be admired, both to be followed by those who hear the callingZ "o believe that a follower of *rancisLor 1wami 4rabhupada is the only way back to 7od is somewhat na^ve. I for one believe my life, although not involved in any religious system at this time, is still a daily quest to life by the 7olden ,ule Z"o do on to othersZ.knowing my short5comings and also knowing the peace I enjoy withinZ to assert that I don/t give my life to 7od, because I don/t chant a certain amount of 3irtan/s dailyZleaves me sad for those who have such proclamation. Having said that , my day often starts and ends with listening to 1wami 9ishnujana Z.but I get the same presence of 7od when I listen to ;arrie Anderwood/s \How great thou art \ "here are many roads to 7odZshortcuts generally failZI13+=, after the demise of 1wami 4rabhupada certainly is prove of that.
o