INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS Founder Acharya: His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada HARE KRISHNA NEWS November / December 2020 Hip Hop Gita page 6 A Bitter Fate page 8 Festive Churros Art by Guna Mani Nitai Dasi page 13 In this Issue How to Contact Us Call 031 403 3328 or WhatsApp 062 526 3606 Special Feature Email: [email protected] Cheating Death Part 2 4 How to subscribe to the Week Ahead email: Soul Poetry 1. Send an email to [email protected]. Type The Gita 6 Till the Last Breath 6 “subscribe” and <yourname> in the subject line. Hip Hop Gita 6 How to subscribe to SSRRT News WhatsApp A Bitter Fate 8 1. Save this number in your contacts: SSRRT News +27 81 759 0191 For the Kids Krishna in Our Hearts 9 2. Send a “subscribe” and <yourname> to the above number Oh Govinda Faith Makes You Fearless 10 3. You will receive a confirmation notification. 4. Kindly note: this is a no-reply broadcast service. The Vaishnava Chef Festive Churros 13 5. You MUST save the number to your contacts and MUST subscribe personally in order to receive the broadcasts. feasible and less messy to paint digitally when you have young kids! The work on the cover is entirely digital and was done in the Procreate App on an iPad Pro. I wanted to create a candy-coloured outlook of the spiritual world. I had a specific perspective in mind so I simulated Krishna’s and the gopis’ postures in an app called Easypose to get the proportions right. I am inspired by art with a variety of textures and bright colours and I hope to inspire others that way too. This particular piece “Swing Festival” was inspired by the Jhulan Yatra festival, which is when I started the painting. When I worked in the Member Services Office at the Melbourne Temple, every year we were always on the hunt for newer and fresher artwork to make the festival posters. So, I guess I tried to add to the repertoire of choices for others in that same quest. I was hoping to represent the joy and youthfulness of the ever-fresh activities of the spiritual world, which is an actual reality. Swing Festival Working on such a piece helps to enhance my meditation On The Cover of the absolute goal and destination. Art by Guna Mani Nitai Dasi The greatest take away for me with this artwork is I am originally from Mauritius but moved to Melbourne, perseverance. I wanted to give up on this painting many Australia in 2007 to complete my Bachelor of Commerce times. For hours and hours I was unhappy with the outcome degree. That is where I started my devotional life and but the silent yet firm voice of the Supersoul rang: “Keep met my beloved spiritual master. I had the great privilege going! You’ve got this.” Krishna is the best inspirational to tour South Africa with His Holiness Kadamba Kanana coach! This painting took 22hrs 36mins to complete and Swami in October 2011 where I met many wonderful was done over the course of two and a half months. I devotees. tend to be impatient so I seek results quickly. But at the same time the perfectionist in me doesn’t want to call it I have been painting for as long as I can remember. As complete until it is perfect … if there is even such a thing a child I was extremely shy and reserved and painting as perfection in the material world. Whatever may be, I with vibrant colours was my way to express my internal stuck at it; painted over many of the different elements exuberance. I majored in art in high school with a 2-metre many, many times and this is the final outcome. I hope tall painting of my grand-mother, which ranked 3rd that this painting will inspire you as much as it inspires me. nationwide. About a year ago I began digital art thanks You can view my collection on Instagram & Facebook to the encouragement of my husband. It is so much more @g.m.nitai_art ISKCON Durban SRI SRI RADHA RADHANATH TEMPLE DurbanKrishna Child Protection Office: [email protected] • 076 719 6461 +27 31 403 3328 | [email protected] | www.iskcondurban.net www.childprotectionoffice.org The Prabhupada Effect Living with Srila Prabhupada An excerpt from A Bond of Love: Srila Prabhupada and His Daughters Alarka Devi Dasi knew what was on my mind and looked at the good When she was in high school in New York in 1970, things there, not the bad things. He cared about all Alarka started coming to the temple and chanting of us. thirty-two rounds because she thought a round was both ways on the japa beads. In April of 1971, When we were on 55th Street in New York, Prabhupada came to New York for a week. Prabhupada handed cookies out to all the kids. Then all the brahmacharis wanted cookies but I moved into the temple a month before Prabhupada Prabhupada said, “Women first,” and at that time I came. When I first saw him, he was coming out of got a cookie from Srila Prabhupada. the airport elevator and looked effulgent, as if he wasn’t from this planet. It was purifying to be in his The day Prabhupada passed away I was looking out presence. I felt fortunate and sensed he knew me over Manhattan at sunset feeling so much sorrow for from beyond time and loved me, a soul. the Earth and all the living entities on it, because this pure devotee had left and was not longer blessing Srila Prabhupada came every year and to be in his us with his presence. presence made all our austerities worth it. Whatever we did, our whole meditation was, “We’re going to Prabhupada saved me not just spiritually but see Prabhupada soon, we’re going to get his mercy.” materially also because I was not moving in a positive In my initiation letter, Prabhupada wrote that we direction. Through him I feel strongly connected to should distribute the little booklet, The Reservoir of Krishna and His protection. The underlying feeling Pleasure. We distributed millions of those. Once at that Krishna is present has kept me going on all these the airport he told us to distribute the Perfection of years. I chant sixteen rounds and feel my spiritual life Yoga, so we immediately started selling them. That is a personal, inward relationship between Krishna was the biggest book distribution day I ever had. and me. Later, four of us from the New York sankirtan party I’m fortunate I got Prabhuapda’s association and went to Vrindavan and Mayapur. Once we were was able to imbibe a small amount of the Krishna waiting to get on a plane in India when Prabhupada consciousness he emanated. No matter who you wanted us to have a kirtan. I was playing the mridanga were, it was hard not to get affected by Prabhupada. and Prabhupada was looking at me, nodding his Everyone could feel his love and beauty. head and smiling. He was happy I was playing. He You can purchase A Bond of Love on amazon.com Vaishnava Calendar 15 Jan 2021 Friday Ekadasi 11 Dec 2020 Friday Srila Jiva Gosvami’s Disappearance Break Fast 12 Dec 2020 Saturday 04:48 - 09:29 Ekadasi 24 Jan 2021 Sunday 25 Dec 2020 Friday Break Fast 25 Jan 2021 Monday 05:18 - 09:51 Advent of Srimad Bhagavad-gita 28 Jan 2021 Thursday Ekadasi 26 Dec 2020 Saturday Sri Krsna Pusya Abhisek Break Fast 27 Dec 2020 Sunday 04:55 - 09:36 2 Feb 2021 Tuesday 29 Dec 2020 Tuesday Srila Gopala Bhatta Gosvami’s Appearance Katyayani vrata Ends 3 Feb 2021 Wednesday 3 Jan 2021 Sunday Sri Jayadeva Gosvami’s Disappearance Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur’s Disappearance 4 Feb 2021 Thursday (Fast until noon) Sri Locana Dasa Thakur’s Disappearance Ekadasi 9 Jan 2021 Saturday Ekadasi 7 Feb 2021 Sunday Break Fast 10 Jan 2021 Sunday 05:05 - 09:44 Hare Krishna News Editor and layout & design by Rasa-sthali Dasi. Write to [email protected] Krishna News Editor and layout & design by Rasa-sthali Dasi. Write Hare Break Fast 8 Feb 2021 Monday 06:58 - 09:56 Cheating Death supreme pure. This association through the names Part Two creates spiritual samskaras, specificallybhakti By Pranada Dasi samskaras. It works something like this: If we have a glass filled with black ink and we pour in pure milk, And we need to die to the false self. How do we do the ink will gradually be removed if we keep on that? pouring. Jnanis traditionally sat naked on the ground In addition to purifying the citta by displacing surrounded by a ring of fire in the midday summer its mundane contents, when we keep company with sun, or submerged themselves up to their necks in the Supreme in His names, our affections for Him are the freezing waters of a river in winter. Yogis, also by aroused. Thus we cultivate pure love and become sheer force, whipped the mind into submission by inclined to act lovingly toward Him and everyone continuous breath control with pranayama and body else. As love matures, our heart becomes fixed on control through asanas. Bhakti’s way is more gentle. the object of our meditation, preparing us for a It is the way of heartfulness, of developing divine very different experience of death and modifying love, primarily through mantra meditation.