I S KC O N P r i s o n M i n i s t r i e s
F r e e d o m N ew s l e t t e r
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
July, August, September 2008
Yes to Krsna, No to Illusion...
by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
By rendering devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead, Çré Kåñëa, one im-
mediately acquires causeless knowledge and detachment from the world.
...Continued from last issue…
If you hear about Kåñëa, if you chant
about Kåñëa, if you think about Kåñëa, if
you worship Kåñëa, if you render some
service to Kåñëa, if you offer everything
to Kåñëa, you'll see Kåñëa always, twenty-
four hours a day. This is bhakti-yoga. My
students in the Kåñëa consciousness soci-
ety are following these principles: They
are cooking for Kåñëa, dancing for Kåñëa,
singing for Kåñëa, talking for Kåñëa, go-
ing around the world for Kåñëa—
everything for Kåñëa. Anyone can adopt
these principles. Where is the difficulty?
Väsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaù prayoji-
taù [SB 1.2.7]. And if you practice Kåñëa
consciousness in this way, the result will
be janayaty äçu vairägyaà jïänaà ca yad
ahaitukam: Very soon you will automati-
cally attain knowledge and detachment.
The mystic yogés are trying very hard to
become detached from this material
world by the processes of yama
(proscriptions), niyama (prescribed du-
ties), äsana (sitting postures), präëäyäma
(breath control), pratyähära (withdrawal
of the senses), dhäraëä (concentration),
dhyäna (meditation), and samädhi
(trance). This is the eightfold mystic
yogic system. And what is the goal? De-
tachment from the material world.
Nowadays people take the goal of yoga to
be health. But yoga is not actually meant
for that purpose. Yoga is meant to detach
us from matter and connect us with the
Supreme. That is yoga.
Founder Acarya of the International Society
for Krsna Consciousness
bhakti te mukti—Devotion is real freedom
—Çrémad-Bhägavatam 1.2.7
There are various types of yoga, but the su-
preme yoga is described in the Bhagavad-gétä
(6.47) by Kåñëa as follows:
yoginäm api sarveñäà mad-gatenäntar-ätmanä
çraddhävän bhajate yo mäà sa me yuktatamo
mataù
“My students in the Kåñëa con-
sciousness society are following
these principles: They are cooking
for Kåñëa, dancing for Kåñëa, sing-
ing for Kåñëa, talking for Kåñëa,
going around the world for
Kåñëa—everything for Kåñëa. Any-
one can adopt these principles.
Where is the difficulty?”
"And of all yogis, the one with great faith who
always abides in Me, thinks of Me within him-
self, and renders transcendental loving service to
Me—he is the most intimately united with Me in
yoga and is the highest of all. That is My opin-
ion." So the first-class yogi is he who is always
thinking of Kåñëa, and the easiest and sim-
plest way to think of Kåñëa is to chant Hare
Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/
Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare
Hare. By this process your tongue, voice, and
hearing process are all fixed on Kåñëa. That is
samädhi, absorption in thought of Kåñëa.
This absorption in Kåñëa, however, can come
only if we are detached from the sense objects.
As Kåñëa says in the Bhagavad-gétä
(2.44),
bhogaiçvarya-prasaktänäà tayäpahåta-
cetasäm
vyavasäyätmikä buddhiù samädhau na
vidhéyate
Those who are too much attached to
material enjoyment and opulence can-
not attain samädhi, absorption in
Kåñëa consciousness. They are think-
ing that material enjoyment and opu-
lence will make them happy, and so
they are called apahåta-cetasäm, bewil-
dered. But if you practice bhakti-yoga,
detachment will automatically come,
and absorption in Kåñëa consciousness
will follow.
The whole Kåñëa consciousness move-
ment is based on the principles of
knowledge and detachment. Now we
are in ignorance, thinking, "I am this
body, and I am attached to my bodily
expansions—my wife, children, grand-
children, daughters-in-law, sons-in-
law, and so on." In this way we gather
our attachments around us. These at-
tachments should not be rejected at
once, but they should be dovetailed in
Kåñëa consciousness. This principle
has been enunciated by Çréla Rüpa
Gosvämé:
anäsaktasya viñayän yathärham upa-
yuïjataù
nirbandhaù kåñëa-sambandhe yuktaà
vairägyam ucyate
A man and a woman should live to-
gether as householders in relationship
with Kåñëa, only for the purpose of
discharging duties in the service of
Kåñëa. The husband, wife, and chil-
dren should all be engaged in Kåñëa
conscious duties, and then all these
(Continued on page 2)
(Continued from page 1)
bodily or material attachments will disap-
pear. Every family can worship Väsudeva, or
Kåñëa. You can install a small Deity or a
picture of Kåñëa in your house and perform
worship. For instance, everyone has to cook
food to eat. So, cook nice vegetarian foods
for Kåñëa, offer them to the Deity form or a
picture of Kåñëa, and then partake of the
prasädam, or remnants. This is bhakti-yoga.
It is not that the Deity should be installed
only in the temple. Why not in your home?
Although Kåñëa is the viräö-puruña, with a
form as big as the universe, He can also
come within your room as a small Deity.
Aëor aëéyän mahato mahéyän: God is bigger
than the biggest and smaller than the small-
est. That is His greatness.
So everyone can practice bhakti-yoga under
the guidance of a bona fide spiritual master,
one who knows the science of Kåñëa. Don't
lose this opportunity of human life. Practice
bhakti-yoga, be Kåñëa conscious, and make
your life successful. Our mission is to teach
this science. It is not a business—"Give me
some money, and I will teach you." The
knowledge is free. We are simply encourag-
ing everyone, "Chant the Hare Kåñëa man-
tra." What is the difficulty? Simply chant
Hare Kåñëa and dance. Why go to some club
to dance? The whole family can chant and
dance at home. You will be happy. Then you
will understand your constitutional position
as servants of Kåñëa.
This is the main mission of human life: to
understand our position as servants of the
Lord. This understanding naturally results in
vairägya, detachment. Two good examples
are Sanätana Gosvämé and Rüpa Gosvämé,
the foremost disciples of Çré Caitanya Ma-
häprabhu. Before meeting Lord Caitanya
they were the chief ministers of a king,
Nawab Hussein Shah. They associated with
highly aristocratic men. But after they met
Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu they decided to
retire from the king's service and join Lord
Caitanya's Kåñëa consciousness movement.
About them it is said, tyaktvä türëam açeña-
maëòala-pati-çreëéà sadä tuccha-vat: Al-
though they were big leaders of society, they
quickly gave it all up as very insignificant.
Then what did they do? Bhütvä déna-
gaëeçakau karuëayä kaupéna-kanthäçritau:
For the benefit of the whole human society,
they became renounced mendicants and
taught Kåñëa consciousness.
Here the words déna-gaëa mean "the general
mass of poor people." Rüpa Gosvämé and
Sanätana Gosvämé saw that the people were
very poor because they did not know the
aim of life or the means for achieving it.
One is actually poor who is poor in tran-
scendental knowledge. Material poverty is
no consideration. That may come or go, and
one has to tolerate: täàs titikñasva bhärata.
And even if you have enough money, you
will still be unhappy if you are poor in tran-
scendental knowledge. Therefore transcen-
dental knowledge is real wealth. That is why
in India, the brähmaëas—those who were
rich in knowledge because they understood
the Supreme Brahman, Kåñëa—were tradi-
tionally respected even by kings.
So we must become rich in knowledge and
detachment. For so long we have been en-
tangled in the materialistic way of life be-
cause of attachment. We live our life in
ignorance, and after death we get another
life, another body. Then another chapter
begins. In this way our life is going on.
Therefore we must attain detachment from
this materialistic way of life so that we can
end this changing from one body to another.
Unfortunately, people are so ignorant that
they do not take this process of transmigra-
tion very seriously. They think, "Let us go on
as we are. We don't mind getting another
body. Whatever happens, happens." That is
not very intelligent. You must have knowl-
edge. This knowledge is imparted at the very
beginning of Kåñëa's teachings in the Bhaga-
vad-gétä (2.11): açocyän anvaçocas tvaà pra-
jïä-vädäàç ca bhäñase. "Arjuna, you are talk-
ing like a big paëòita, but all your talk con-
cerns this body, which no one should be overly
concerned about." Gatäsün agatäsüàç ca
nänuçocanti paëòitäù: "Real paëòitas are not
very much concerned with this body, but fools
and rascals are simply involved with bodily
problems." This is jïäna, knowledge.
One can achieve this jïäna very easily.
How? Kåñëa explains in the Bhagavad-gétä
(10.10):
teñäà satata-yuktänäà bhajatäà préti-
pürvakam
dadämi buddhi-yogaà taà yena mäm
upayänti te
If you engage in the devotional service of
the Supreme Personality of Godhead—
Kåñëa, or Väsudeva—then Kåñëa, who is
within your heart, will impart knowledge to
you. But that service must be rendered with
love and faith, as we are teaching in the
Kåñëa consciousness movement. Since He is
situated in your heart, Kåñëa knows what
you are. You cannot cheat Him. When He
understands that you are serious about
knowing Him, He supplies the knowledge by
which you can go to Him. That knowledge is
the process of bhakti-yoga, as Kåñëa clearly
says in the Eighteenth Chapter of the Bha-
gavad-gétä (18.55):
bhaktyä mäm abhijänäti yävän yaç cäsmi tatt-
vataù
tato mäà tattvato jïätvä viçate tad-
anantaram
"One can understand Me as I am, as the Su-
preme Personality of Godhead, only by devo-
tional service. And when one is in full con-
sciousness of Me by such devotion, he can
enter into the kingdom of God."
So, you do not need to make any separate
endeavor to acquire knowledge. As stated in
the present verse of Çrémad-Bhägavatam,
janayaty äçu vairägyaà jïänaà ca yad ahai-
tukam: [SB 1.2.7] "By serving Vasudeva, one
acquires causes knowledge and detachment."
Thus a sincere devotee is perfect in knowl-
edge because he is enlightened from within
by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As
stated in the beginning of Çrémad-
Bhägavatam (1.1.1), tene brahma hådä ädi-
kavaye: "From within the heart, Kåñëa gave
Lord Brahmä the intelligence to create the
universe." Similarly, He will also give you
intelligence if you become His sincere ser-
vant.
As soon as you acquire this knowledge, you
will naturally be reluctant to pursue mate-
rial sense enjoyment. In the material world
everyone is working in ignorance, trying to
increase his own sense enjoyment, but in
the spiritual world everyone is working in
knowledge, trying to increase sense enjoy-
ment of the Supreme Personality of God-
head. In two lines the Caitanya-caritämåta
(Ädi-lélä 4.165) very nicely explains the dif-
ference between material and spiritual moti-
vation:
ätmendriya-préti-väïchä—täre bali 'käma'
kåñëendriya-préti-icchä dhare 'prema' näma
"Wanting to satisfy the desires of one's own
senses is called käma, lust, and wanting to
satisfy Kåñëa's senses is called prema, pure
loving devotion."
We see the contrast between käma and
prema in the behavior of Arjuna. At first he
wanted to satisfy his own senses: "My dear
(Continued on page 6)
Page 2
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Page 3
 The Mahä-prasädam Thief
Names have been changed to protect the innocent and the guilty
“…Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu made this
process very easy: He asked people simply
to chant Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa
Kåñëa, Hare Hare / Hare Räma, Hare
Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare and to en-
gage in the devotional service of the Lord
and eat the remnants of foodstuff offered to
the Deity. One who is directly engaged in
all these devotional activities is to be under-
stood as having studied all Vedic litera-
ture….” (Bhagavad-gita 16.24, Srila
Prabhupada’s purport)
“…I would always sit up toward the front,
near Prabhupäda, anxious to receive some
remnants from his plate. Once I was lucky
enough to get a sweetball, which I saved on
the corner of my plate to relish at the end of
my meal. But my Godbrother Jaya Gopäla
had also been eyeing the sweetball. Sud-
denly he reached over and stole it, plopping
it into his mouth in one swift action. I be-
came furious, and because he had no rem-
nants for me to steal in return, I began to
twist his arm in anger, completely forget-
ting that Prabhupäda was siting right in
front of us. Prabhupäda asked, "What is
going on?" "Jaya Gopäla just stole my
sweetball!" Prabhupäda replied, "Very
good, he has just made great advance-
ment." Everyone laughed. Then all the
devotees began stealing each other's
prasädam….”
(From Servant of the Servant by HH Ta-
mal Krsna Gosvami)
"When mahä-prasäda is not available,
there must be fasting, but when the Su-
preme Personality of Godhead directly
orders one to take prasäda, neglecting such
an opportunity is offensive.” (Cc Madhya
2.114)
Many years ago, I was on a Hare Kåñëa
farm. One day, while working in Kåñëa’s
kitchen, I learned that there were mahä
sweets kept in the big fridge over night.
The next day, I told my friend and God-
brother about this and we began to plan
a caper. It was so easy—we simply went
down to the kitchen about 2 am and slid
open the window on the side of the
building. We went inside and grabbed
the sweets out of the fridge. Oh, if you’ve
ever had milk sweets made from Kåñëa’s
whole milk that were offered with love
then you may understand. If not, I can
only tell you they are wonderful! We
couldn’t imagine how anyone, especially
a devotee, could leave them in a fridge
over night. So we began to hit the place
about every couple of weeks. We felt not
to would be offensive!
Then one night we snuck to the kitchen,
but found bars on the window. I felt bad
because we had found the window
locked a few nights earlier and acciden-
tally broke it--just a little--in our attempt
to get the lock undone. But since we
found the window barred, we had to go
through the door, which turned out to
be easy too. The mahä tasted especially
The original prasadam thieves, Lord Krsna and His brother Balarama
good that morning, and I remember the
bliss I felt having stolen the sweets. We
kept hitting the place once or twice a
week, then giving it a few weeks for
things to cool down.
One night, we got into the kitchen al-
right, but we found a small chain and
padlock around the fridge. We about fell
over laughing! It was every easy to
break and repair.
Once after a Sunday feast, we found six
five-gallon buckets of sweet rice. Since
they had already been offered to Kåñëa,
we stole one when no one was looking
and tried to honor the whole five gallons
in one sitting. Eventually, we gave up
and put the remainder in the creek to
keep cool. Then we returned to the Tem-
ple just in time for the Feast. I don’t
know how, but we both honored a big
plate of prasädam. I became very con-
cerned that there would not be enough
sweet rice to go around, but once the
feast was over, we were glad to see a
half a bucket left over. We stole that
too! Every day for a while, we hon-
ored the sweet rice prasädam, until we
couldn’t hold another drop. Now you
might be thinking, “What rascals”--
who’s to blame you?
If you have ever had a sweet rice, made
from whole milk by the best cooks in
ISKCON, you’d of stolen it too! We
did have a problem since we had two
five-gallon buckets and a lid. If anyone
saw us with these, they’d know we had
stolen them. So we buried them down
by the creek.
One night, we went to the kitchen to
do a caper. We had a little white pick
up truck and drove it down to the
kitchen. The kitchen was kind of down
a hill, pretty far away from the other
buildings and pretty much hidden by
the woods. That morning, we got
through the door ok, but found a huge
chain around the fridge, with a huge
padlock. We had to drive up to the
equipment building to get the acety-
(Continued on page 5)
Page 4
(Continued from page 4)
lene torch. We had no problem finding it,
and we were back at the kitchen in mo-
ments, cutting that huge chain and retriev-
ing a large plate of the most tasty mahä
milk sweets for our reward. They were
much bigger than usual.
We always tried to make it look like no
one had been there, even the broken win-
dow could be explained away, we thought.
But, now we had crossed a line. Now on it,
would be ‘do or die’. We hurried to put the
torch back and drove to a high hill over-
looking Kåñëa’s Temple.
It was so blissful that morning, sharing
scriptures about prasädam and talking
about how this kind of greed was good for
us. I felt that one would have to be a fool
not to steal this mahä. It had become my
greatest addiction.
A few weeks later, we just had to do it
again. So we carefully planned it all out,
picking up an acetylene torch before we
went down there. When we got there, we
found a metal door guarding the wooden
kitchen door. I think I remember my part-
ner-in-crime had helped install it. Anyway,
it was just for looks and the door easily
came off. Afterward, we replaced every-
thing. Everywhere I went the devotees
were talking about the “Maha-prasäda
Thieves”. We decided to lay low for a
while—we even swore off doing it. But
within a few weeks our desire became too
big for us. We found ourselves back at the
kitchen’s metal door, but to our amaze-
ment, the hinges were welded. What to
do? We decided to use our truck and
push the door enough to pop it open.
Well, we bent the metal door and the door
behind it! Nonetheless, we finished our
quest and made off with the mahä. That
morning I felt bad and even helped fix the
doors. I felt bad too because the head cook
was in such anxiety. All the devotees were
cursing the thieves, but I managed to keep
a look of innocence and even managed a
smile. I felt terrible! But, I also knew that
I could not stop.
One morning, our desire for sweets got the
best of us once again. We got everything
and drove down to Kåñëa’s kitchen. To our
surprise, we found the doors ajar. We
found the chain around the fridge and
when I turned for the torch, we were
jumped by five devotees. One had a shot-
gun. We were tied up and forced to chant
Hare Kåñëa at the top of our lungs until
the guru woke at 3:30 am. We were taken
before his lotus feet. The guru said, “So, it
was you two this whole time?. Stop
pointing that gun and untie them,” the
guru told our captors, “Why haven’t you
devotees tried to steal the mahä? What
gives you the right to tie these two up?”
He turned his attention to us, “You two
are the most advanced bhaktas I’ve ever
met. You work all day doing service and
hard at night stealing mahä. But—now
you’ve been caught. No more stealing the
mahä!”
We were set free and the matter was to be
forgotten. We paid our obeisances to our
guru and went to mangala-arati. I felt that
getting caught was somehow blissful.
That Friday morning, I was told to report
to the guru’s house at 5:00 pm. All day, I
worried about what kind of punishment
was in store for me? When I got there
and saw my partner-in-crime, I really
thought we were in for it. We were di-
rected to the hall and were told to sit
down. The hall was large and used for
honoring prasäda at noon by the working
crews. The guru entered and we paid our
obeisances. When we sat back down, he
had a big smile. Then this mataji entered
the hall carrying a whole offering of
mahä-prasädam. She gave us plates and
filled each with maha. I asked our guru,
“Aren’t you going to have some?” “No, I
just want to watch you relish this. You
two bhaktas must have maha or you’ll go
crazy.” He joined us after persistent re-
quests. We were instructed to come every
Friday at 5:00 pm. Around the end of our
meal, the guru rose to go back upstairs.
We paid our obeisances and the mataji
gave us mahä-mahä-prasädam from the
guru’s own plate. We could not believe
our great fortune. All the mahä-sweets we
could eat every Friday—and personal
association with the guru. This was bliss
beyond words. We returned every Friday
for years. I’m sad, but also happy to say,
that as I moved around ISKCON, I stole
mahä-prasädam many times. It seems to
be my heart and soul. Now in prison, I
dream of it. Guess, I’ll always be the
Mahä-prasädam Thief!
“When taking mahä-prasädam, one should
not consider the food ordinary prepara-
tions. Prasäda means favor. One should
consider mahä-prasädam a favor of
Kåñëa… Kåñëa eats many nice varieties of
food and offers the food back to the devo-
tees, so that not only are one’s demands for
various tastes satisfied, but by eating
prasädam one makes advancement in spiri-
tual life.”
(Cc Antya 11.20 Purport)
Awakening
by Bhakta Justin Brown,
South Kortright, NY
Dearest Lord Sri Krsna,
O Lord, Supreme Controller,
how fortunate I am to have your mercy.
I bow before You, unworthy and igno-
rant. Your love is so great, that You let
me remember You, for I knew You
before. In my attempt to be the lord of
this nature, I turned away and forgot
You though. All I ask is that I never be
so unfortunate to forget You again.
Use me as You deem fit, dear Krsna.
Help others to become aware of You
once more, by using me in Your awak-
ening. Not so I may gain pride, but so
that no one has to live another moment
in misery. May Your love pour down
upon all of existence and may it wash
the eyes of everyone, so we may see
You. You are behind everything; may
the curtain of sin be lifted so we may
pay our respects and worship You
wholeheartedly.
My savior, may we fulfill our
purpose so you can enjoy and we may
be enjoyed. How foolish I was until
You allowed the dust to be swept from
my heart. May I utilize my time in this
body to learn of Your plan and execute
it thoroughly. If needed, may I use my
next body in the same manner, and
please be so kind as to not allow me to
forget You for a moment. I have
enough control of the senses to not be
drawn down by sense gratifying ac-
tions. Use me as a mirror of You in
every aspect, so that others may be-
come devotees too. Please, grant me
the boon of steadiness of mind, so I
may meditate upon You for each mo-
ment of my imprisonment in material
nature without wavering.
Thank you O Supreme One,
for creating Your inferior energy so
that we may have a ladder back to God-
head. May I never lose my voice, so
that I may chant Your holy names eter-
nally. So be it. Page 5
(Continued from page 2)
My Dreams Come True
Kåñëa, I cannot possibly kill my cousin-
brothers, my grandfather, or my teacher by bhakta Carl
Droëäcärya." But after Kåñëa had im-
parted the instructions of the Bhagavad- I’ll make Them the center, of my love and life
gétä to Arjuna and then asked him, "Now
what is your decision?" Arjuna replied, I’ll give Them my service, I’ll give up my strive
nañöo mohaù småtir labdhä tvat-prasädän I’ll take on Their wishes, I’ll follow Their plan
mayäcyuta
sthito 'smi gata-sandehaù kariñye vacanaà I’ll give up my ego, I sure hope I can
tava
I’ll keep my mind focused, and I’ll persevere
[Bg. 18.73]
"My dear Kåñëa, by Your grace all my illu- Through good time and bad times, They’ll see I’m sincere
sion is now gone and I have regained my
original Kåñëa consciousness." And what is
I’ll pray for Their mercy, and humbly I’ll fall
his conclusion? "My duty is to satisfy You,
not my senses." In this way Arjuna again
I’ll beg for forgiveness, I’ll give Them my all
came to his position as Kåñëa's devotee I’ll always remember, I’ll call out Their names
and fought the Battle of Kurukñetra.
Kåñëa consciousness, pure love of God, is I’ll recall Their glories, Their pastimes, Their fame
not something artificial. In the beginning
you must follow the regulative principles Sri Sri RADHA KRSNA, They’re never apart
of bhakti-yoga. Then after some time you
will naturally get spontaneous love of I’ll never forget how They’re bound at the heart
God. As Lord Caitanya explains to
Sanätana Gosvämé in the Caitanya-
Their smiles, their laughter, Their eternal bliss
caritämåta (Madhya-lélä 22.107),
Their love is the source of all true happiness
nitya-siddha kåñëa-prema 'sädhya' kabhu
naya Sri Sri RADHA KRNSA, though one They are two
çravaëädi-çuddha-citte karaye udaya
If They will accept me, my dreams will come true
"Pure love for Kåñëa is eternally established
in the hearts of all living entities. It is not
something to be gained from another
source. When the heart is purified by hear-
ing and chanting about Kåñëa, that love
naturally awakens."
So, love for God is already there within
each of us because we are part and parcel
of Him, but that love is now covered by
lust due to material association. When a
mirror is covered by dust, you cannot see
yourself reflected in it, but after you pol-
ish it you see your face clearly. Similarly,
the process of bhakti-yoga polishes the
mirror of your heart, and when it is nicely
polished, you will see what you are and
how you should work so that you will be
happy. Everything will be revealed.
Therefore, our request is that you take
this Kåñëa consciousness movement very
seriously and try to apply yourself in the
service of Kåñëa.

The Divine Couple, Sri Sri Radha and Krsna Page 6

 Know Your Gita
Answers to last issue’s questions (chapter 12):

• What does Krsna say in response to Arjuna's inquiry about the relative positions of
the devotee engaged in Krnsa's service (bhakti) and those who worship Brahman, the
impersonal form of Krsna?

Krsna replies to Arjuna, "He whose mind is fixed on My personal form, always engaged
in worshiping Me with great and transcendental faith, is considered by Me to be most
perfect." But "for those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal fea-
ture of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome." Although the "impersonalists"
eventually achieve Him, their path, being indirect, is more difficult. For the devotee
who has fixed his mind upon Krsna, however, worshiping Him in devotional love and
service, Krsna is "the swift deliverer from the ocean of birth and death." (12.1-8)

• How does Krsna describe the devotee who is "very dear" to Him?

The devotee is free from material desires, material dualities and possessiveness, false
ego, anxiety and envy. He is "a kindly friend to all creatures," "equal to both friends and
enemies," and "equal in both happiness and distress," and he engages in devotional ser-
vice with determination, with mind and intelligence fixed on Krsna. (12.13-20)

Questions for the next issue (Chapter 13):

• What are the three subjects discussed in this chapter? What is their relationship?

• What is the result of understanding these three items and their relationship ?

Page 7

Letters
Dear Mother Shyama Priya,
Hare Krsna…
Hearing, chanting and remember-
ing, the first three processes of devotional
service are easily performed. It is supposed to
be a simple process. Right! The truth is be-
fore we can chant there is a whole lot of
attitude that has to…. well, wherever attitude
goes, it has to get there! That never was a
problem until I entered into the Federal
Prison System. Now it’s an entirely different
story. Of course, I had been living in temple
situations for probably 22 years. And, al-
though my main occupation with five chil-
dren and a contrary husband to chase after
was mostly diapers, laundry and cooking, I
can honestly say 16 rounds or 1-½ hours of
chanting fit in somewhere every day. It
might have been at 11pm, but it happened.
Of course, my no gossip zone rule in the
house went a long way towards preserving
the devotional atmosphere. Then my ex and
I went to war and I lost, not that unusual of
a story. A few years after that, chanting went
by the wayside and here I am in a
“situation”. I really cannot complain, like
the Muslims say, “The weather comes from
God, so we are not going to complain about it.”
My first introduction to the fact
that this chanting thing might not be so cool
in prison was with my roommate in the
SHU (Special Housing Unit for the non-
prison initiated) where they lock us bad little
girls behind three metal doors and slide the
food in the slot in the door three times a
day. I was just a visitor, hold-over status, not
sentenced yet, but still. Two months of this,
officers only checking to see if I was alive, is
pretty intense - and then my roommate. It
was all fine to start with except when the
captain came in and shook us down while
she yelled at him. I should have known then,
but this was my first time, silly me. I realized
after she freaked out on me that I mostly
had chanted while she was asleep. At about
2pm on Day 5, after an hour straight of japa
chanting, you know, Hare Krsna Hare
Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare, Hare
Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare
Hare, she lost it. She went cr-azy and had a
big fit, banging on the door and ranting like
a mad woman. She was moved within min-
utes to an empty room. No biggy, I kind of
liked being alone, I realized. Since then I
have pulled the drive-my-roommate-crazy-by-
chanting-incessantly routine only as a desper-
ate measure. It’s a very severe form of war-
fare only to be used with the greatest respect.
What happens exactly?
Our Spiritual Master uses a cook-
ing technique to explain the process of puri-
fication the mind goes through. Srila
Prabhupada likened it to making ghee - puri-
fied butter. The procedure is simple. Four
pounds of butter go into a 4-gallon pot with
a low flame underneath for a few hours.
What happens is the butter gently separates,
golden ghee divides itself from the heart-
clogging cholesterol which falls to the bot-
tom and a crusty brown foam slowly hardens
on the top - no stirring allowed. When you
can crack off the top crust and remove it
with a slotted spoon in pieces, revealing clear
golden ghee all the way to the bottom of the
pot, it is done. Purified non-burning butter
oil!
So similarly our mind bubbles up
all the bad stuff that has been hiding there
and it hits the system, our consciousness, so
to speak. As anger, malice, violent thoughts,
depression, etc. become apparent - let them
go. Pray to the Lord to help you over the
hump. After only a short while of suffering
the realization of our inner toxic waste
dump, with daily chanting - it is gone.
This chanting is amazing; actually frying the
seeds of our future bad karma, nullifying
them. As we attempt to follow Lord
Chaitanya’s peaceful tolerance method, Lord
Jesus Christ’s forgiveness and turn the other
cheek and love one another policy, and put
up with Officers Dumb and Dumber, who
couldn’t get count right the first time if their
very lives depended on it, we are making
some powerful progress. The goal, attaining
pure love of God and direct face-to-face asso-
ciation with Lord Sri Krsna, is easily at-
tained.
Warning: Daily application will
dissolve the material covering. Proceed at
your own risk. Srila Prbhupad says don’t
change anything, just had chanting.
Krsna Krsna
Mother Chandra
Dear bhakta Jerry,
You asked about some realizations I have
had. I think one is the fact that my being in
this current situation is not a mistake. I was
asking Krishna in my “supposed freedom” to
help me find the time for Him again in my
life. Now I’ve got plenty of time to read,
chant and to spread His transcendental
information to others. I was distressed
about my situation with my wife (not writ-
ing me letters) but now I have decided to
request a divorce pro se package from the
law school. I intend to file for a divorce
from her and concentrate on my devo-
tional practice…By not having contact with
her I have realized more and more that I do
not need her to function in life and that
what I thought of as love was actually a
hindrance to my bhakti. I cannot be in
bhakti if my mind is distracted by material
desires for the body. As Chandrasekarha
told me…if it is meant for me to pursue
family I can find happiness with a Krishna
consciousness girl down the road. This is
not a worry to me now. I am concerned
with building up my rounds to 16 a day,
the study of Srila Prabhupada’s books and
having association with the devotees.
Hare Krsna
Bhakta Kevin,
Plymouth, WI
ISKCON Prison Ministries,
We wish to express our gratitude for the
donation you made to our chapel.
We had so few ISKCON books until you
sent the packages, and the inmates here
have already been taking advantage of the
books and tapes/CD's you sent us and are
finding them very helpful. There were a few
inmates that were especially happy to see
the material.
The inmates' options in prison are quite
limited and it is through people/
organizations like yours that help them to
better themselves while in prison. It also
helps to remind them that even though
they are in prison for whatever they have
done, not everyone in society has given up
on them. It reminds them there are still
compassionate people in the world that are
willing to give of themselves to help those
who are less fortunate.
Thank you very much from both the in-
mates and myself.
Dave Sherman, SOU Chaplain
Monroe Correctional Complex
Monroe, Washington
Page 8
 IPM would like to ex-
press our most gracious
appreciation for the do-
nations from the follow-
ing persons:

Anonymous $202

Bhakta Bob $150

Soma Sundaram $101

Peggy Ordonez $50

Vaisnava Calendar for July, August & September 2008 Bhakta Randy $42
Krishna Soppa $20 & books
July 24 Sri Krsna Jan-
Sri Gadadhara Pandita &
mastami: Appearance Inmate Terrance Martin $27
2
Srila Bhaktivinoda Tha- of Lord Sri Krsna Inmate Jayprakash $25
kura Disappearance (fast till mid- Essential Herbs & $23
(fast till noon)
night) Vitamins
4 Sri Svarupa Damodara
Gosvami & Sri Sivananda 25 Srila Prabhupada Ap- Gaura Mani $20
Sena Disappearance pearance
Inmate Michael Walsh $20
(fast till noon)
8 Sri Vakresvara Pandit
Ekadasi Bala Gopal & Lalita 33 Devotional
Disappearance 26
Sundari Cassettes
13 Ekadasi
Vishvamtra Das Case of Teachings
Sept.
17 Srila Sanatana Gosvami of Queen Kunti
Disappearance 4 Srimati Sita Thakurani
Inmate Jason Mathews Stamps & Paper
(Sri Advaita's consort)
23 Srila Gopala Bhatta
Appearance
Gosvami Disappearance Inmate Alan Cotton stamps
25 Srila Lokanatha Gosvami 7 Radhastami: Appear- Bhakta Peter Books
Disappearance ance of Srimati
And a special thanks to Dulal
Radharani
26 The incorporation of Chandra Prabhu for donating over
ISKCON in New York (fast till noon) $500 worth of books
28 Ekadasi 10 Ekadasi 14 Sri Visvarupa Mahotsava
Aug. Acceptance of sannyasa
by Srila Prabhupada
12 Ekadasi 11 Sri Vamana Dvadasi: Ap-
Radha Govinda Jhulana pearance of Lord 21 Srila Prabhupada's ar-
Yatra begins Vamanadeva (fast till rival in the USA
noon on the Ekadasi,
13 Srila Rupa Gosvami & feast today
Sri Gauridasa Pandi 25 Ekadasi
Srila Jiva Gosvami
Disappearance
Appearance
16 Jhulana Yatra ends
Lord Balarama Appear- 12 Srila Bhaktivinoda Tha-
ance(fast till noon) kura Appearance

Srila Prabhupada's de- (fast till noon)

17
parture for the USA
13 Srila Haridasa Thakura
Disappearance Page 9
 Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 4, Chapter 6, Text 49
Translation and purport by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
bhaväàs tu puàsaù paramasya mäyayä
durantayäspåñöa-matiù samasta-dåk
tayä hatätmasv anukarma-cetaùsv
anugrahaà kartum ihärhasi prabho
TRANSLATION
My dear lord, you are never bewildered by the formidable influence of the illusory energy of the Supreme Personality of God-
head. Therefore you are omniscient and should be merciful and compassionate toward those who are bewildered by the same
illusory energy and are very much attached to fruitive activities.
PURPORT
A Vaiñëava is never bewildered by the influence of the external energy because he is engaged in the transcendental loving
service of the Lord. The Lord states in Bhagavad-gétä (7.14):
daivé hy eñä guëa-mayé
mama mäyä duratyayä
mäm eva ye prapadyante
mäyäm etäà taranti te
"My divine energy consisting of the three modes of material nature is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered
unto Me can easily cross beyond it." A Vaiñëava should take care of those who are bewildered by this mäyä instead of becom-
ing angry with them, because without a Vaiñëava's mercy they have no way to get out of the clutches of mäyä. Those who
have been condemned by mäyä are rescued by the mercy of devotees...



  
 



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