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Hare Krishna News INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS Founder Acharya: His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivendata Swami Prabhuapda HARE KRISHNA NEWS May / June 2020 Art by Mukundanghri Das Special Lockdown Edition Editor’s Note responsible for every other species to go into hiding? The I can’t wait to get back to sastra states this human life is to "normal"! awaken our true selves. To make Bhagavad-gita describes there our way back to what is truly are eight million four-hundred "normal" for the soul. thousand species of life in the material creation. Not all are I can’t wait to get back to found on this earth planet but if "normal"! you consider all organisms, the Where Lord Jagannath, the true Earth hosts a good few million juggernaut, will fill us — I, you of those species. dear reader, and every living entity within this creation is I can’t wait to get back to sad-cit-ananda — eternally free "normal"! from disease and death, full I have a bond, car payments, of knowledge, no uncertainty education fees, insurance, credit about the future, and full of — scary times. We may feel that bliss, an overflowing of pure joy. the wheel of our revered lifestyle has been steamrolled by a juggernaut (a huge, Let’s get back to “normal.” powerful, and overwhelming force). People are becoming desperate, the atmosphere is heavy, Warmest Wishes and domestic abuse is up. Rasa-sthali Dasi I can’t wait to get back to "normal"! I would like to extend my deep gratitude to Have you seen the turtles on the Mumbai beach? my good friend Mukundanghri, who graciously The herds of deer in Yosemite? The dolphins allowed us to use his artworks (the art here, on riding the Durban beach waves? page 4, and of course, the cover). I can’t wait to get back to "normal"! I would love to hear your lockdown realizations. For whom? For the one species who is singularly Write to me: [email protected]. In this Issue How to Contact Us during Lockdown WhatsApp 062 526 3606 or From Tokyo to Durban Outrunning the SA Lockdown 4 Email: [email protected] How to subscribe to the Week Ahead email: A Stranger to Myself 1. Send an email to [email protected]. Type A Lockdown Journal Entry 5 “subscribe” and <yourname> in the subject line. Durban Krishna News 6 How to subscribe to SSRRT News WhatsApp 1. Save this number in your contacts: On the Cover SSRRT News +27 81 759 0191 From Inside Out 7 2. Send a “subscribe” and <yourname> to the above The Vaishnava Chef number Raisin & Chocolate Bread 8 3. You will receive a confirmation notification. 4. Kindly note: this is a no-reply broadcast service. For the Kids The Why Worry Experiment 8 5. You MUST save the number to your contacts and MUST subscribe personally in order to receive the Event Guide 9 broadcasts. Quotes from Srimad Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita, and the pictures on Child Protection Office www.childprotectionoffice.org pages 3 and 9 are © The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc. [email protected] www.Krishna.com. Used with permission. 076 719 6461 Lockdown Lessons fruits, vegetables, and grains; protect the cows; Living with Srila Prabhupada acquire only what is necessary to keep the body By Surabhi Kunje Devi Dasi healthy, and spend most of our time and energy serving Krishna. It’s encouraging to see that Anxiety permeates as we are bombarded with most ISKCON farm communities around the news of suffering and an ever increasing death world, which have implemented this strategy, toll. The world faces a most bewildering time are almost unaffected by the pandemic. as we helplessly watch our “stable” foundation uprooted. How do we process this? Lockdown may seem like a loss of freedom, but we are never really free as long as we are in this People are now practically experiencing what world. We can utilize this time in isolation to Srila Prabhupada taught – this material world deepen our attachment to and faith in Krishna. is a temporary place of misery. He added that Srila Prabhupada exemplified this when he was our eternal home is the spiritual world with alone in Vrindavana, harnessing energy for his the Supreme Lord. It’s easy to ignore this fact plan to spread bhakti-yoga in the West. We and behave as if we will live here forever with have a similar opportunity to firmly strengthen our wealth, home and family. But now we are ourselves in divine consciousness, Krishna reminded that inevitable death can come at any consciousness. While isolation may seem moment in the form of war, hunger, violence or daunting, we are ultimately never isolated – we a pandemic—and our material arrangements are living with Srila Prabhupada in the form of his cannot ultimately save us. books, instructions, and his illustrious followers. And, of course, we are accompanied by the Lord How do we prepare in the midst of global fear? in the heart. Srila Prabhupada compassionately In the Srimad Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhuapda gave us the formula for eternal happiness by advises that we can prepare by seeking shelter which we can cure the ultimate disease of bodily in Krishna: “One must surrender unto the Lord identification. to be saved from the wheel of repeated birth, death, old age and disease” (7.9.23, purport). We can bathe our consciousness in the Fear only exists because we misidentify with the transcendental sound of sacred texts like perishable body, but if we understand that we're Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. Every actually the eternal soul residing within the day we can invite the sages into our homes and body, our anxiety will be cured. Vedic wisdom hearts by tuning in to the many online spiritual states that our human form of life is meant for discussions happening around the world and reawakening our dormant love for Krishna so chant the holy names, which will bring real peace we can go back to Him, and everything we in this fearful situation. experience here is meant to propel us towards this goal. Being in isolation has given me time to introspect and deeply imbibe the spiritual truths that Srila Prabhupada has given. I am reminded that humans are not the true controllers. Krishna is the supreme controller, and we are meant to live in alignment with His desires. Global misalignment includes the mass murder of animals to satisfy the tongue, air pollution due to industrialization, and destruction of nature to make space for corporate machines. Srila Prabhupada predicted that we can’t escape our individual and collective karmic reactions of pursuing enjoyment at the expense of other living entities. This time in quarantine can allow us to reflect on how we can move towards a more holistic lifestyle. Srila Prabhupada Srila Prabhupada at Radha Damodar encouraged “simple living, high thinking”: grow Temple in Vrindavan. From Tokyo to Durban – whilst a pandemic unfolded. With flights being cancelled every hour and my flight 8 hours later, Outrunning the SA Lockdown I could not rest. By Venu Gopal Das Tuesday 24th March 18:00 Germany (misery/ Adhibautika – Miseries caused by other living travel time – 28 hours) entities. I landed in Munich to a deserted terminal, an Monday 23rd March 21:00 Tokyo (travel time – 0 apocalyptic horror movie scene. Sleeplessness, hours) an aching body, starvation, and anxiousness My flights were cancelled…twice within 48 combined as I sat in an empty airport. Hours hours. Japan was our home for seven years, all later airline staff approached along with a few it took was five days to leave; close my accounts, travellers…I feared the worst…turns out there handover documents, a few possessions shipped were only seven passengers and instead of back, not a trace of our existence. I had just said cancelling the flight Lufthansa upgraded us all my heartfelt goodbyes too and now remained to First Class. Thank you Guru Maharaja! at the airport instead of returning to the city. Adhidaivika – Miseries caused by Along with other South Africans, natural forces. including some Springboks, Wednesday 25th March I was somewhat stranded. 08:00 Cape Town (misery/ Two weeks earlier I travel time – 42 hours) checked-in the same It was hot...it was airline counter with crowded, all flights my wife and son. sold out. I was grateful that they did not Wednesday 25th have to know March 15:00 this helplessness. Durban (total The Rugby misery/travel time players with visa- – 49 hours) filled passports Coming from nasty considered Winter, I was warmly vacationing, I welcomed by a troop surrendered asking of monkeys in the Krishna for help. I kitchen feasting on my thought of my Guru lockdown rations. After I Maharaja…he is Dutch but chased them, spent an hour always said Germans were cleaning and experienced my highly efficient and reliable. I found longest shower — my 14-day self- the Lufthansa ticket counter and they isolation with no Wi-Fi began. confirmed a route to Cape Town but Germany was exceptionally volatile. Philosophically, I understood the concept of tri- tapa-yatana — the three miseries adyatmika, Adhyatmika – Miseries caused by the mind and adhibhautika and adhidaivika. I constantly body reminded myself what was occurring was a Tuesday 24th March 02:00 (misery/travel time – combination of the above. I knew these as 5 hours) symptoms associated with this world. Yet the It was 02:00 at Tokyo International Airport when remembrance of knowledge alone did nothing President Ramaphosa announced the country to change the way I felt. Over the 49 hours would soon go into a lockdown.
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