BACK TO GODHEAD

Founded 1944. Vol. 18 No. 3 March 2020

Visit us at www.backtogodhead.in

Contents THE TASTE OF KÅÑËA 6 10

DON’T JUST BE GOOD, BE SHREWD TOO 10

FEATURES

INDIA’S FIRST CIVIL

DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT 14
TRANSCENDENTAL COOPERATION 18
14
THE KURUKÑETRA IN RÄDHÄ’S EYES 24
AGING IN KÅÑËA CONSCIOUSNESS 26
DEPARTMENTS

Disclaimer: BTG does LETTERS 4

not endorse any claims
made by advertizements EVERY TOWN 26
in the magazine. We
AND VILLAGE 30
recommend reader VAIÑËAVA
discretion and due CALENDAR 33
diligence.
EDITORIAL 34

OUR PURPOSES
• To help all people discern reality from illusion, spirit from matter, the eternal from the temporary. • To expose the faults of
materialism. • To offer guidance in the Vedic techniques of spiritual life. • To preserve and spread the Vedic culture. • To celebrate the
chanting of the holy names of God as taught by Lord Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu • To help every living being remember and serve Çré
Kåñëa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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BACK TO GODHEAD 3
BACK TO
GODHEAD
The Magazine of the
Hare Krishna Movement
FOUNDER
(under the direction of His Divine Grace
Çré Çrémad Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté
Prabhupäda) His Divine Grace A. C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupäda -
Founder-äcärya of The International
Society for Krishna Consciousness
BTG INDIA: EDITOR Çyämänanda Däsa
• SUB-EDITORS Mukunda Mälä Däsa,
Nanda Duläl Däsa • EDITORIAL
CONSULTANT Caitanya Caraëa Däsa
• PROOFREADERS Revaté Vallabha
Däsa, Gautam Saha • PUBLISHER
Yudhiñthira Däsa (Ujwal Jajoo)
• GENERAL MANAGER Pänduraìga
Däsa (Rajendra-kumar Pujari)
• PRODUCTION Saccidänanda Däsa
(Sanjiv Maheshwari), Sundar Rüpa Däsa
(Sudarshan Sapaliga) •ACCOUNTS
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Mukundamälä Däsa, Çyämänanda Däsa,
Sundar Rüpa Däsa
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Lunagariya.
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4 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
LETTERS
WHY ARE YOU
AGAINST THE MOVIES?
I have read amazing articles by
Hare Kåñëa devotees about amazing
movies like Star Wars. I even read
an article about the 2009 film
Avatar and an editorial from an
Indian BTG issue in English that
was about Harry Potter. At the same
time, you write articles that attack
people’s love for going to the
movies, thus forcing them to stop.
Why are you against this fun and
exciting experience of going to the
movies? Are you against
entertainment or something? Please
write back. And please don’t give
me a “What do you think?” Because
I don’t have a clue.
—Narottam Cecil
Via the Internet
Our reply: As the editors of
BTG, we’re always somewhat
uncomfortable when devotees
submit articles about movies. Çréla
Prabhupäda clearly did not want his
disciples to go to movies, and when
a devotee writes about a movie,
that suggests he or she went to see
it, whether or not that’s true. We
know that at least one article you
mention was written by someone
who didn’t see the movie but only
read about it. In any case, your
letter suggests that our concerns are
warranted, since you seem to have
taken devotees’ writing about
movies as possible justification for
going to movies. One could argue
that seeing a movie to write a Kåñëa
conscious article about it is ok. Still,
the general rule is that everything
in a devotee’s life should be
directly connected to Kåñëa. The
purpose of the rules devotees
follow is to always remember
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Kåñëa. Even if you occasionally
remember Kåñëa while watching a
movie, the practice of Kåñëa
consciousness is to do things
directly connected to Kåñëa, such as
hearing about Him and chanting His
holy names. Mundane movies are
not in that category. With few
exceptions, going to movies is
sense gratification, pure and simple,
and serious devotees are diligently
trying to replace sense gratification
with Kåñëa consciousness and
devotional service. The practice is
bhakti-yoga, and it requires
discipline. Neither Çréla Prabhupäda
nor any of his disciples with
disciples of their own would
recommend going to movies. You
might think it’s enjoyable, but that
enjoyment is harmful to your real
self-interest, your progress in
spiritual life. Here’s one example of
the many times Çréla Prabhupäda
spoke against movie-going: The
materialistic persons, they are
simply busy for satisfying the
senses. Go to the hotel, satisfy the
tongue, go to the cinema, hear the
cinema song, see nice girls, and so
on, so on. But these devotees are
not interested at all. The cinema is
here, a few steps away, but you
will never see a student or a
disciple of Kåñëa consciousness go
to that nonsense place. . . . It is
practical. The more you engage
yourself in devotional service, the
more you will forget your sense
gratification process. And as soon as
you become completely detestful of
sense gratification, then you are a
liberated person, fit for going back
to home, back to Godhead. This is
the process. (Lecture, Bombay, 26
November 1974) If you find these
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 points hard to accept, we suggest
you read books by Çréla
Prabhupäda and his disciples and
become more convinced of their
essential message. Life is short,
and success in life – attaining
pure love for God – is difficult to
attain. We don’t have time to
waste by watching movies.
Besides, once you taste the
spiritual pleasure of Kåñëa
consciousness, the so-called
enjoyment of anything this word
has to offer will pale in
comparison.
A GHOSTLY PROBLEM
After reading the Bhagavad-
gétä, I’ve realized that Kåñëa is the
only goal of life. To reach His
abode is the ultimate destination.
I am trying to make my family
(wife and three young daughters)
Kåñëa conscious. I started
chanting every morning, and we
visit the nearest ISKCON temple
whenever possible.
It is my dream and wish that
we are initiated devotees one
day. My biggest problem is that
there is always some evil spirit on
my wife. She’s had this problem
for the past fifteen years. We’ve
tried many people to destroy it,
but to no success. My children
sometime see black shadows in
our house, which scares them.
Most of the time there’s a lot of
negativity surrounding my wife,
which results in arguing amongst
us, creating a very dull
atmosphere at home. Sometimes
when we do pray together, her
facial expression changes to like
that of a demon with big eyes and
a grunting noise. It is very hard
for me right now to convince my
family to become vegetarians and
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take to Kåñëa consciousness, wife herself chant, read
although I know this will help our Prabhupäda’s books, eat only
problem and will eventually lead vegetarian food offered to Kåñëa,
us to eternity. What do I do? and so on. The best solution is
Please advise me. Please help always the spiritual one. May
me, O dear Lord Kåñëa. Lord Kåñëa bless you in your
—Viron attempt to fully spiritualize your
Via the Internet home.
Our reply: We’re very sorry to
hear about your wife’s problem Please write to us at: BTG, 3rd
and its effect on your whole Floor, 302, Amrut Industrial Estate,
family. While we can’t say for Western Highway, Mira Road (E)
certain that the cause is an evil 401104.. btgindia@pamho.net.
spirit, it might be. In principle,
any of us should be able to chase
away ghosts, because they do not
like to stay where Kåñëa’s holy
names are chanted. Çréla
Prabhupäda once chased away a
ghost from a house that no one
would buy because of the ghost.
He walked all through the house,
chanting Hare Kåñëa. The ghost
left, he bought the house at a
discount, and never had any
problems with ghosts there.
We recommend that you try to
permeate your house with Kåñëa
consciousness and Kåñëa
vibrations as much as possible. FOLLOW US ON
We know it’s difficult to make
changes like this, but if your
house becomes filled with the
sound of devotees chanting the
holy names (on recordings) rather Check our Facebook page on
than the sound of the TV, for www.facebook.com/btg.in
example, that can make a big
difference. If the ghost is
persistent, the only solution is to
be more persistent. SUBSCRIBE TO OUR
Becoming a devotee of Kåñëa
means we have to take shelter of
Him, which might require some
sacrifices on our part. If the CHANNEL
atmosphere becomes highly
spiritual day and night, the ghost
will not be able to tolerate it. Most WEGOBTG
important, of course, is that your
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 5
F O U N D E R’ S L E C T U R E E X C E R P T S Bhagavad-gétä 7.8, Mumbai, February 23, 1974

THE TASTE
OF KÅÑËA
The Supreme Lord reveals Himself to us through His countless energies.

By His Divine Grace

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupäda
Founder-äcärya of The International Society for Krishna Consciousness

raso ’ham apsu kaunteya
prabhäsmi çaçi-süryayoù
praëavaù sarva-vedeñu
çabdaù khe pauruñaà nåñu
Translation: O son of Kunté, Arjuna, I am
the taste of water, the light of the sun and
moon, the syllable oà in the Vedic mantras. I
am the sound in ether and ability in man.
(Bhagavad-gétä 7.8)
This verse describes the all-pervasive
nature of the Supreme Personality of
Godhead. We should mark the important
word in this verse: aham. Aham (“I am”)
means that Kåñëa is a person. Kåñëa never
says, “I am impersonal.” The impersonal
aspect is a feature of Kåñëa, which He
refers to in the Ninth Chapter. Kåñëa says,
mayä tatam idaà sarvaà jagad avyakta-
mürtinä: “I am all-pervasive by My
energy.”
Kåñëa has multi-energies. Paräsya çaktir
vividhaiva çrüyate. The Vedic version is that the
Absolute Truth, the Supreme Person, has multi-
energies. The Viñëu Puräëa states that whatever we
experience is simply Kåñëa’s energy. We can
experience Kåñëa by His energy, just as we can
experience the sun by its heat and light. Although
we are ninety-three million miles away from the
sun, by the sun’s energy—heat and light—we can
understand the constitution of the sun globe.
The Supreme Lord’s energy is working even in
the water, so you can perceive His energy within
the water. We are daily using water. We are tasting
water. So you can perceive Kåñëa’s presence,
Kåñëa’s all-pervasiveness, even while you drink
water. In the taste of water, Kåñëa says, “Here I am.”
That taste is Kåñëa’s impersonal feature,
but behind the impersonal feature is the
person. Kåñëa says mayädhyakñeëa
prakåtiù: “Material nature is under My
supervision.” Water is one of the products
of material nature, but behind the existence
of water is Kåñëa.
You can understand Kåñëa by studying
His energy. Therefore Kåñëa says,
“Although you cannot see Me just now, you
can see Me in these energies.”
Raso ’ham apsu kaunteya. You have to drink
water; you cannot avoid it. Apsu means any liquid.
Whether you drink milk or even wine, you get some
taste in any liquid. So Kåñëa says, raso ’ham apsu
kaunteya. “My dear Kaunteya, Arjuna, I am the taste
in that liquid.”
Just see how easily it can be done. No one goes
without drinking some liquid. Coca-cola or water or

6 BACK TO GODHEAD
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this or that—you must drink
something. So Kåñëa says, “I am
that taste.”
“HERE IS KÅÑËA”
So where is the difficulty in
understanding Kåñëa?
People say, “Can you show me
Kåñëa?”
“All right. Here is Kåñëa. See.”
We all use the word “see” to
mean direct perception in some
way. When I say, “Let me see
what this mango is like,” I mean
that I want to taste it—because I
am seeing it already. In this case
“seeing” means tasting. We have
so many senses, and we “taste”
through different senses. By the
senses we get experience. So try
to experience Kåñëa by this
process: Whenever you drink
something liquid and taste it very
Kåñëa says, ”I am the taste of water.”
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F O U N D E R’ S L E C T U R E
nicely, consider, “This taste is to say, “The taste of water is
Kåñëa.” Is that a very difficult way Kåñëa,” that may be different. But
to get Kåñëa realization? Kåñëa says, raso ’ham apsu
That taste actually is Kåñëa, kaunteya.
because water is Kåñëa in the So why not think of Kåñëa?
sense that it is the energy of Thinking of Kåñëa is one of the
Kåñëa, just as heat is the energy of nine processes of devotional
fire. Heat and fire are not distinct; service. If you remember Kåñëa,
they are the same. Still, heat is not you advance in your spiritual life
fire. This philosophy is called and you become a perfect yogé.
acintya-bhedäbheda: How?
simultaneous oneness and yoginäm api sarveñäà
difference. Idaà hi viçvaà mad-gatenäntar-ätmanä
bhagavän ivetaraù. The whole çraddhävän bhajate yo mäà
universe is Kåñëa, but it appears sa me yuktatamo mataù
different from Kåñëa, Bhagavän. “Of all yogés, the one with
You have to understand this great faith who always abides in
point by purified senses. But this Me, thinks of Me within himself,
is the beginning: raso ’ham apsu and renders transcendental loving
kaunteya—”I am the taste of service to Me—he is the most
water.” intimately united with Me in yoga
Kåñëa says this. We have not and is the highest of all. That is
manufactured this idea. If I were My opinion.” —Bhagavad-gétä
6.47
As soon as you
drink anything,
simply think,
“Now here is
Kåñëa.” You must
drink so many
times each day. If
you remember
Kåñëa each time,
you gradually
become Kåñëa
conscious. Kåñëa
is prescribing
such a simple
way to remember
Him.
Kåñëa then
gives another
method:
prabhäsmi çaçi-
süryayoù—”I am
the light of the
sun and the
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 7
moon.” As soon as you see
sunshine in the morning, you can
remember, “Here is Kåñëa.” Or at
night, when there is no sun, there
is moonlight: “Here is Kåñëa.”
Then, praëavaù sarva-vedeñu.
If you are a serious student of
Vedic mantras, you will chant
oà, because Vedic mantras
begin with oà, as in oà tad
viñëoù paramaà padaà sadä
paçyanti sürayaù, or oà bhür
bhuvaù svaù tat savitur
vareëyam. Oà, or the oàkära, is
Kåñëa. Many people are fond of
chanting oàkära. That is also
nice, because oàkära is Kåñëa.
If we simply remember, “This
oàkära is Kåñëa,” then we
become perfect, because the
goal is to become Kåñëa
conscious.
So you can become Kåñëa
conscious while drinking, while
seeing the sunshine, while seeing
the moonlight, while chanting
oà. And—çabda khe—even if
you hear any sound and
remember that Kåñëa is that
sound, you can become Kåñëa
You can become Kåñëa conscious while
drinking, while seeing the sunshine, while
seeing the moonlight, while chanting oà.
conscious.
Also, pauruñaà nåñu—”I am
the ability in man.” You meet so
many men in your dealings with
the material world. There are
many very big, big men. Big, big
industrialists, big, big scholars,
big, big manufacturers, big, big
bankers. A man in such a position
is called pauruñam—one who
8 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
has attained perfection in the
material world. Instead of
envying him you can simply
think, “He has attained material
success because he has received
a little power from Kåñëa.” Yad
yad vibhütimat sattvaà … mama
tejo ’àça-sambhavam. Anything
wonderful done by any person is
done by Kåñëa’s energy.
It is not at all difficult to
become Kåñëa conscious. There is
no expenditure, there is no loss.
Simply by your daily dealings you
can become Kåñëa conscious.
That is the program here. We
are advising everyone, “Chant the
Hare Kåñëa mantra.” Kértanéyaù
sadä hariù: the Hare Kåñëa mantra
should be chanted twenty-four
hours a day. But if the chanting
becomes difficult or hackneyed,
then you can remember Kåñëa in
other ways: while drinking water,
while seeing the sunshine, while
seeing the moonlight, while
chanting Vedic mantras, or even
while hearing some sound in the
ether.
We are hearing so many
sounds, so we can remember
Kåñëa by hearing any sound if we
remember this verse of the
Bhagavad-gétä. The sound “Hare
Kåñëa” is transcendental, but if you
don’t like the sound “Hare Kåñëa,”
take any sound and remember
Kåñëa. Any sound is also coming
from the original sound and is
simply covered by mäyä, illusion.
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MATERIAL OR SPIRITUAL?
What is the difference
between spiritual and material?
Everything is spiritual. Sarvaà
khalv idaà brahma. But when
something is covered by mäyä, it
is material. That’s all. And what is
mäyä? Forgetfulness of Kåñëa.
Water is spiritual, because it is
Kåñëa’s energy. So how can it be
different from Kåñëa? And since
we have to deal with water in so
many ways, how we can forget
Kåñëa?
The Kåñëa consciousness
movement is spreading the
knowledge of Bhagavad-gétä as it
is. How can one become Kåñëa
conscious very easily without any
loss but with great gain? By taking
advantage of the Kåñëa
consciousness movement. If you
become Kåñëa conscious in this
way, the profit is very, very
great, because the more you
become Kåñëa conscious, the
more Kåñëa becomes revealed to
you.
Sevonmukhe hi jihvädau
svayam eva sphuraty adaù. With
the blunt senses you cannot
understand Kåñëa, you cannot
realize Kåñëa. Our present senses
are blunt because they are
covered by forgetfulness of
Kåñëa, or mäyä. Therefore they
have to be purified. Our
forgetfulness of Kåñëa has to be
removed. This is the process:
raso ’ham apsu kaunteya.
When you follow this
process—remembering, “The
taste of this water is Kåñëa”—
some percentage of your
forgetfulness of Kåñëa is
removed. Similarly, you can
remember Kåñëa when you see
the sunshine or the moonshine,
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 when you chant oàkära, or in so
many ways prescribed in later
verses. Try to understand Kåñëa in
these ways. That doesn’t require
any advancement of education or
Vedic knowledge.
Devotional service means
purifying the senses. At the
present moment our senses are
covered by mäyä, and mäyä can
be removed simply by
remembering Kåñëa at every step.
Sevonmukhe hi jihvädau. Simply
engage your jihvä. Jihvä means
“tongue.” Sevonmukhe hi
jihvädau: “The beginning of
purification is to use your tongue
in devotional service.”
We prescribe therefore that
you use your tongue for chanting
the Hare Kåñëa mahä-mantra and
tasting Kåñëa’s prasädam, food
offered to Kåñëa. That is not at all
difficult. There is no need to
study higher Vedic knowledge.
That knowledge will
automatically be revealed.
You can also become Kåñëa
conscious by applying your ears.
As stated in the Çrémad-
Bhägavatam, çåëvatäà sva-
kathäù kåñëaù puëya-çravaëa-
kértanaù: “Hearing and chanting
about Kåñëa are pious activities.”
Now you are hearing the words
of Bhagavad-gétä. These are
Kåñëa’s own words.
There are nine methods of
devotional service, beginning
with hearing. We are opening so
many centers just to give people
the chance to hear about Kåñëa. If
you simply hear about Kåñëa,
then Kåñëa becomes pleased:
“Oh, now he’s hearing about Me.”
Then what does He do? Çåëvatäà
sva-kathäù kåñëaù puëya-
çravaëa-kértanaù. Whether you
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understand what you hear or not,
Kåñëa takes that hearing as a
pious activity on your part. And
the more you become pious, the
more you can understand Kåñëa.
Impious persons cannot
understand Kåñëa. But one free
from impious activities can
understand Him. Hearing about
Even if you do not understand the vibration of
the Hare Kåñëa mantra or the reading of
Bhagavad-gétä, if you simply chant you’ll be
Kåñëa is pious activity. If you
understand, it is very good. But
even if you do not understand the
vibration of the Hare Kåñëa
mantra or the reading of
Bhagavad-gétä, if you simply
chant you’ll be purified.
SEE KÅÑËA AT EVERY STEP
Simply try to understand Kåñëa
in every step of life. Many ways
of perceiving Kåñëa will be
explained in this chapter. The
beginning is tasting. Everyone
drinks water or something else.
So try to taste the liquid while
thinking, “This taste is Kåñëa.” In
the morning you see the light of
the sunshine: “Here is Kåñëa.” In
the evening you see the
moonlight: “Here is Kåñëa.”
Whenever you hear any kind of
sound you remember: “This
sound is Kåñëa.” Çabdaù khe. And
whenever you meet any very
exalted, very extraordinarily able
person, understand, “This ability
is Kåñëa’s mercy.”
In this way, if you practice, if
you chant the Hare Kåñëa mahä-
mantra, and if you hear from
realized souls about Kåñëa, then
you gradually become advanced
in Kåñëa consciousness. And
when you come to perfection,
Kåñëa’s activities will be revealed
to you. Svayam eva sphuraty
adaù. When Kåñëa becomes
manifest, then you understand
what Kåñëa is, what His name is,
what His activities are, what His
pastimes are. Everything
becomes revealed. Then you can
understand perfectly. We cannot
understand Kåñëa perfectly, but at
least as far as our ability allows
we can know Him.
And if we understand Kåñëa a
little bit, then our life is
successful. Tyaktvä dehaà punar
janma naiti mäm eti. After giving
up the body, we go to Kåñëa.
Ordinarily, we give up the
body and accept another. Tathä
dehäntara-präptiù. That we have
to stop. We are trying our best to
solve all the problems of life.
The real problems are janma-
måtyu-jarä-vyädhi: birth, death,
old age, and disease. But you
can conquer them. No more
birth. “Then am I finished?” No,
you are not finished. Tyaktvä
dehaà punar janma naiti mäm
eti. “You come to Me.” You go
back home, back to Godhead.
This is the process of Kåñëa
consciousness. It is very easy.
Everyone can adopt it. Why
should you give it up? Take it
very seriously and be happy.
Thank you very much. Hare
Krishna!
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 9
 Don’t just be
Good, be
Shrewd too
Sétä’s service attitude
exploited by Rävaëa

By Caitanya Caraëa Däsa

F
ew things cause us as much
agony as when our good
intentions backfire on us.
When we try to do something
good for someone, but that very
person exploits our goodness and
hurts us, we feel betrayed,
enraged, shattered.
RÄVAËA EXPLOITS SÉTÄ’S
SERVICE ATTITUDE
Such was the situation that led
to the abduction of Sétä. She was
living in the forest in a cottage
with Räma and his brother,
Lakñmaëa. At that time, she
became the victim of a
conspiracy hatched by the
demon-king Rävaëa. With the aid
of the shape-changing wizard
Märéca, he had Sétä’s two
protectors side-tracked. Then he
approached her in a garb that
would lower her guard: the garb
of a sädhu, a wandering
mendicant. By asking Sétä for
alms in that garb, he cynically
exploited her service attitude and
her respect for sages.
When Sétä saw a sage asking
for alms, she folded her hands in
respect and said, “O venerable
one, please take a seat on this
log. My husband will soon return
and offer you food.”
Rävaëa replied, “O fair lady, I
am hungry. Please give me
whatever alms you have right
away.” Sétä had been warned by
Lakñmaëa, “Don’t go out of this
protective circle I am drawing
around the cottage.” He had
infused that circle with mystical
power so that anyone who tried
to step over would be burnt.
Remembering his words, Sétä
said, “O sage, I can’t come out of
this circle. Please wait.”

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 Impatient Rävaëa tried to step cheats behind the referee’s back, we act virtuously, we usually
over the circle and was then the opponent needs to expect to be appreciated, not
immediately scalded by the carefully guard against such manipulated. Even if we are not
flames that arose from the circle. tricks. ego-driven, we expect that our
Stepping back in alarm, he And what makes us especially good actions will produce good
paused and decided to exploit vulnerable to such manipulation is results for us and for others. But
Sétä’s tender sensibilities. “Will our vices. If we have vices such as the world is a cruel place — it can
you let a sage die of hunger? If lust or greed, we can be easily take advantage of our goodness. It
you don’t step out and serve me manipulated by those who promise is good if we are charitable, but if
some food, I will leave and you to gratify our base desires. We are we give charity indiscriminately,
will have offended a sage. Do all fighting a war against the forces then people may exploit us by
you want to do that?” of illusion, which try to delude, milking us for money. We may
In traditional dharmic cultures, degrade and destroy us. In this war, end up poverty-stricken, with our
offending a sage was among the our vices are like enemy wealth being exploited and
worst things that one could do; it strongholds inside our abused by those who abused our
could lead to severe reactions.
Virtuous people were trained to
respect sages and avoid
offending them at all costs.
Naturally, Sétä became
apprehensive on hearing the
sage’s words. “I can’t become the
cause of Räma having to suffer
the reactions of offending a
sage.” Thinking thus, she stepped
across the protective circle. And
Rävaëa soon pounced on her and
abducted her.
Rävaëa played ugly. Suppose
two boxers are playing a boxing
match. If one of them plays
according to the rules and the
other plays loose with the rules,
then the rule-abiding nature of the
first boxer makes him vulnerable Sétä had been warned by Lakñmaëa, “Don’t go out of
to their opponents’ dirty tricks. this protective circle I am drawing around the cottage.”
Usually, a referee is meant to
catch anyone who breaks the consciousness. If we don’t want to charitable nature.
rules. And in the game of life, the be sabotaged from within, we need Therefore, we need to be on
law of karma does act as a referee, to be cautious about not pandering guard not just when dealing with
giving everyone their dues. But to our vices. Fostering such our vices, but also when dealing
often karma gives people their cautiousness, wisdom-texts contain with our virtues.
dues in its own time. In the many directives and narratives
meantime, we might suffer at the about how dangerous even a minor WHEN GOOD INTENTIONS
hands of unprincipled opponents pandering to vices can be. ARE NOT GOOD ENOUGH
if they are manipulative and we But what we often overlook is The virtue of Sétä that made
are naive. If a player is known to that we may be vulnerable her vulnerable was her uncritical
be unprincipled and cunningly because of our virtues too. When service attitude, a desire to serve

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BACK TO GODHEAD 11
not regulated by caution. To
understand how something as
noble as a desire to serve can
backfire, let’s consider a medical
metaphor.
Suppose a doctor is treating
patients in an epidemic area. The
doctor may have the best of
intentions to treat the patients.
But if the doctor gets infected,
then they can’t help anyone. In
fact, those care-givers who could
have helped the patients will
have to spend their time and
energy in caring for the doctor.
Lack of caution on the doctor’s
part ends up reducing a giver of
help to a needer of help. No
matter how urgent the patients’
needs are, the doctor needs to
first get the necessary protection
such as vaccines or masks. If a
doctor does not temper
compassion with caution, they
won’t be able to show any
compassion in the future.
Similar was Sétä’s situation. Her
service attitude was laudable.
Still, it was important for her to
remember that she was alone in a
dangerous forest, and that danger
could come from the most
unexpected of places. Not so
When we learn to complement
good engagement with good judgment,
our good intentions are more likely
to be translated into good results.
long ago, she had the experience
of danger coming from
unexpected places. While they
had been in the seeming safety
and prosperity of Ayodhyä,
Kaikeyé had suddenly turned
inimical and had them exiled. In
12 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
the light of that experience and in
the context of her present
vulnerable situation in the forest,
for her to step over the protective
circle was inadvisable, even if it
was for serving a sage.
Of course, the point here is not
to blame Sétä. “Victim blaming” is
reprehensible. Those who exploit
and abuse others need to be
condemned and punished in the
strongest possible way. And Räma
did just that by ending Rävaëa’s
reign and life. Sétä’s abduction was
because of Rävaëa’s viciousness
and deviousness.
Simultaneously and
regrettably, the world will always
have vicious and devious people.
Law enforcers need to regulate
and, when necessary, even
eliminate such evil elements. Still,
some other people will become
evil. Evil people can’t be entirely
eradicated from society; that’s
why virtuous people need to be
cautious.
For example, the police have
the duty to prevent robbery. But
some people will still be looking
for an opportunity to rob.
Suppose a wealthy person walks
through a lonely dark street with
a lot of currency notes bulging
out of their pocket. They will be
mugged. Suppose they are going
on that dark street on a mission of
compassion, say, to give money
in charity for the treatment of a
poor person on the verge of
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death. Still, a mission of
compassion doesn’t alter the
disposition of those without
compassion. Robbers will still
rob. And when that charitable
person is robbed, the culpability
lies with the robbers. The police
need to catch those robbers,
punish them and recover the
money. Simultaneously, the
police would advise the kind-
hearted person to not walk again
through those streets with so
much money showing so visibly.
The point to learn from Sétä’s
abduction is that just being good
is not good enough; we need to
be good and shrewd. Here, we
use ‘shrewd’ in its positive sense
— having a clever awareness or
resourcefulness, especially in
practical matters — not in its
negative sense: disposed to by
artful and cunning practices. If
we aren’t shrewd enough to make
sound judgments, good actions
can also lead to bad results.
When we learn to complement
good engagement with good
judgment, our good intentions are
more likely to be translated into
good results.
DEVELOPING GOOD
JUDGMENT BY
RESPECTING BOUNDARIES
When Sétä was abducted,
multiple factors contributed to that
tragedy: the conspiracy by which
Rävaëa to send Märéca in the form
of a deer, thereby getting Räma out
of the picture; the confrontation
between Sétä and Lakñmaëa which
resulted in Lakñmaëa departing to
aid Räma and leaving Sétä
defenseless; the assumption of the
garb of a holy man by Rävaëa; and
Sétä’s stepping over the protective
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 circle.
Among these factors, Sétä’s
stepping over was the tipping
point. Again, the point here is not
to blame her, but to understand
what we can do to prevent
unnecessary problems in our life.
There is enough unavoidable
trouble in life; if we can ensure
that we don’t compound it with
avoidable trouble, we can go
through our life with lesser
trauma and tragedy.
We can compare the
protective circle drawn around
the hermitage to the regulatory
guidelines given in scripture.
Lakñmaëa can be compared to the
guru who provides us those
scriptural guidelines that can best
protect us. Sétä can be compared
to the soul who is prone to be
overpowered by demonic forces
represented by Rävaëa. If we
respect the boundaries that are
meant to protect us, we are more
likely to be safe.
While danger exists
everywhere in the world, it is
more in some places than others.
Consider walking on a road. We
might be walking on the footpath
and may be hit by a drunk driver.
But if we are walking in the
middle of the road without
considering the vehicles on that
road, we are much more likely to
be hit. The traffic rules that
regulate walking on the streets
are meant to protect us. If we
respect the rules that are meant to
protect us, we stay protected.
The same applies to ethical and
spiritual guidelines too. Indeed,
this is the mood of a celebrated
aphorism from Mahabharata:
dharmo rakñati rakñitaù: “Those
who protect dharma are protected
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by dharma.” Echoing this theme,
the Bhagavad-gétä (16.24) states
that if we mold our lives
according to the guidance of
scripture, we can all create a
better future for ourselves.
Apart from the standard ethical
and spiritual guidelines given in
scripture, we can consider what
boundaries we require, given our
particular vulnerabilities. First, we
need to recognize the need for
boundaries; then, we need to
construct those boundaries; and
then, we need to respect those
boundaries. For example, if
First, we need to recognize the need for
boundaries; then, we need to construct
those boundaries; and then, we need to
respect those boundaries.
someone is trying to recover from
alcoholism, then an essential
boundary for them would be: don’t
go to a bar or, in general, don’t
keep alcohol readily accessible.
Boundaries to avoid bad things
are easy to understand, but
boundaries in doing good things
require more contemplation to
understand. For example, suppose
we are euphoric and we promise
something to someone, even if it
be some charity. Our euphoria
may cloud our judgment and make
us do things that we later regret.
That’s what happened to
Daçaratha when in the joy of
Rama’s upcoming coronation, he
promised Kaikeyé that he would
fulfill any desire she had. When
she asked that Räma be exiled and
Bharata be installed instead, he
was left shocked and shattered.
Ultimately, boundaries are
most effective not when they
restrict, but when they connect.
Put another way, we can best stay
within boundaries when we find
something so relishable inside the
boundaries that we no longer
crave for what lies outside them.
And if the boundaries help us to
connect more with what lies
inside them, that’s even better. If
someone is happily married, then
the boundaries of marriage help
them connect better with their
spouse, and those boundaries
don’t seem restrictive.
The same principle applies to
our eternal bond as souls with the
supreme soul. Various ethical and
spiritual guidelines are ultimately
meant to help us become better
connected with the Divine. As he
is the source of all pleasure,
connecting with him devotionally
enables us to access the supreme
pleasure. When we thus find
inner fulfillment in our
connection with the Lord, we
don’t feel inclined to transgress
any protective boundaries, for we
no longer crave for the things that
lie outside those boundaries.
Caitanya Caraëa Däsa is the
associate-editor of Back to
Godhead (US and Indian
editions). To read his daily
Bhagavad-gétä reflections, please
subscribe to Gitadaily on his
website,
thespiritualscientist.com.
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 13
 INDIA’S FIRST
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT
Centuries ago, the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself
had inaugurated this against the local, oppressive government.

By Puruñottama Nitäi Däsa

I
ndia has always been glorified sanctify the places. The king of glory. It is the land where Lord
as the land where sacred all the mountains, the Himalayas, Räma and Lord Kåñëa appeared to
rivers effortlessly flow to as her crown brings her great enjoy many pastimes — they

14 BACK TO GODHEAD
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walked, they danced, they sang,
they played in this blessed land.
But sadly, this great land of
ours slowly began to see the
downfall. Scriptures tell that in the
age of Kali-yuga, in which we are
currently living, irreligion will gain
prominence. So it’s not surprising
that the Indian society, despite
having its roots in spirituality,
began seeing the deterioration of
spiritual culture and values.
As the society began to
weaken from within, many
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foreign invaders began attacking
the country to loot her of the
riches. Thousands of temples
were desecrated, and thousands
of people were forced to give up
their religion.
Although people carried on
with their daily routine and reli-
gious practices, within their
hearts they remained in fear of
being persecuted. It was not just
the foreign invaders whom the
people feared, but even the
brähmaëas, who had all the say
in religious life of a person and
had begun exploiting the com-
mon people. Religious practices
which uplifts one’s consciousness
and connects it to God had taken
backseat. Instead mere rituals,
which were against the spirit of
the Vedas, gained prominence.
People had become utterly mate-
rialistic.
A REVOLUTIONARY
REFORMER APPEARS
Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu
appeared during this time when
India was suffering from within
and without. He appeared in
1486 in Mayapur, West Bengal, in
the district of Nadia. Through his
teachings and life’s example he
singlehandedly ended the mo-
nopoly of priestly class, the
brähmaëas, who had introduced
rigid hereditary caste system to
gain unparalleled control over
day-to-day life of the people.
As per the laws of the caste
brähmaëas, the general masses
were forbidden to worship the
deities, to read Vedic scriptures,
perform any rituals and chant any
mantra. They had appointed
themselves as the blessed repre-
sentatives of the Lord and it was
through them only anyone could
attain any favor from the Lord.
Scriptures never ask anyone to
discriminate others. The social
divisions that the Vedas talk about
are meant for smooth functioning
of the society. This division is not
based on birth but on one’s work.
(Bhagavad-gétä 4.13) Caitanya
Mahäprabhu had come to re-
establish the true teachings of the
spiritual books. He came to break
the shackles of an unjust caste
system and to give an equal
opportunity to all to practice
devotion to the Supreme Lord.
THE SAÌKÉRTANA MOVE-
MENT WAS BORN
He introduced the saìkértana
movement i.e. the congregational
chanting of the Hare Kåñëa mahä-
mantra. Quoting Çrémad-
Bhägavatam (12.3.51), he said
that chanting is the only effective
way by which one attains salva-
tion in this age of Kali-yuga.
The Hare Kåñëa mahä-mantra
was not a new mantra. Chanting
was not a new process. In fact,
the chanting of Hare Kåñëa mahä-
mantra has been going on since
eternity and not just on earth but
even on all the higher planets.
But unfortunately, people had
forgotten this and had subjected
themselves to a miserable state of
life. Chanting can be done indi-
vidually or collectively; when
done together along with several
people, it becomes congrega-
tional chanting.
All were eligible to chant the
names of the Lord. So called upper
caste and lower caste, men and
women, rich and poor, Hindus and
non-Hindus all were welcomed.
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 15

At the house of Çréväsa Öhäkura, who was one of the prominent
followers of Caitanya Mahäprabhu, a mådaìga was even broken.
First time in their life they began
to experience deep connection
with the Lord. Thousands of
people began chanting. From
almost every house in Navadvipa
one could hear the holy name of
Kåñëa being chanted. And those
unfortunate souls who refused to
chant always heard the chant. It
spread like wildfire.
This fire also began destroying
the hegemony of the caste
brähmaëas, the priestly class.
They were furious. The Muslim
rulers feared being overthrown
by the united Hindus. Seeing
many non-Hindus participating in
congregational chanting was a
cause of great concern.
The caste brähmaëas ap-
proached the Muslim rulers. They
together devised a plan to stop the
saìkértana movement. Chand
Kazi, the then magistrate of
Navadvépa, issued an order.
“Chanting must stop immediately.
Anyone who defied the order will
be severely punished.” His sol-
16 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
followers of the Vedas. “No one
is powerful enough to stop the
chanting of the Lord’s name.
None we must fear. We will defy
the discriminatory order.”
Caitanya Mahäprabhu’s clarion
call brought great hope to all.
They had complete faith in the
leadership of Caitanya
Mahäprabhu.
Mahäprabhu, along with
thousands of followers launched
the Civil disobedience move-
ment, hundreds of years before
Gandhiji used it as a weapon to
overthrow the British regime.One
hundred thousand men carrying
thousands of mådaìgas and
karatälas (hand cymbals) fear-
diers went to houses warning
people against chanting. At
the house of Çréväsa Öhäkura,
who was one of the promi-
nent followers of Caitanya
Mahäprabhu, a mådaìga was
even broken.
The common men and
women who enjoyed chant-
ing the Lord’s names were
devastated. The limited
freedom with which they
had to practice their faith
was totally taken away.
They had only two choices
now: to live they had to give
up chanting, or to chant they
had to give up their life.
THOUSANDS COME ON
THE STREET TO
PROTEST
They approached
Caitanya Mahäprabhu, their
leader, their savior. He who
had reinstated the true Caitanya Mahäprabhu spoke politely
teachings of the Vedas had and logically with Chand Kazi.
to now save the life of the
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 lessly sang and danced on the And so today, be it the streets of basis of caste, creed, religion,
streets of Navadvépa. The chant London or New York, Moscow or gender or economic status. Also,
of the great mantra, the Hare Cape Town, Mumbai or Sydney, we the seekers should fearlessly
Kåñëa mahä-mantra, filled the one can find thousands of devo- practice devotion to Kåñëa, having
entire atmosphere. They began tees joyfully singing and chanting complete faith that Mahäprabhu
marching to the house of the the Hare Kåñëa mahä-mantra. The will protect us in any difficult
Kazi. The powerful soldiers saìkértana movement started by situation.
were helpless; they fled. Caitanya Mahäprabhu around 500
Caitanya Mahäprabhu decided years ago in Navadvipa has spread Purushottam Nitäi Däsa is a
to meet Kazi to challenge his all over the world, and millions of member of congregation at
order. Seeing the mammoth people are now participating in it. ISKCON Kolkata. He works at IBM
crowd, which stretched for miles, Sri Caitanya Mahäprabhu came as an Advisory Consultant. He
the Kazi had hid himself inside to teach us that we all are children writes at https://
the inner chambers of his house. of the same God, and so no one discoverursupersoul.com/
Reluctantly he came out. Caitanya should be discriminated on the
Mahäprabhu had a long conversa-
tion with the unjust ruler.
Mahäprabhu wasn’t harsh with
him; he was not there to harm
him. He spoke politely but logi-
cally. His reasoning had a great
impact. The Kazi understood his
mistake, and heart was now
transformed. With tears in his
eyes, he said, “To as many de-
scendants as take birth in my
dynasty in the future, I give this
grave admonition: No one should
check the saìkértana movement.”
(Cc. Ädi 17.222) The devotees
were jubilant. They were now
free to practice devotion to Kåñëa.
Caitanya Mahäprabhu, whose
advent had been predicted in the
Vedas, was a revolutionary social
reformer. He laid the foundation
of a worldwide saìkértana move-
ment.
Çréla Prabhupäda, the founder-
äcärya of ISKCON and one of the
foremost followers of Çré Caitanya
Mahäprabhu, has played a signifi-
cant role in carrying forward the
saìkértana movement. He
worked tirelessly to make sure
that millions of people of this
world too become recipient of the
mercy of Caitanya Mahäprabhu.

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BACK TO GODHEAD 17
 TRANSCENDENTAL
COOPERATION
vs. “My Way or the Highway”
Although easier said than done, devotees’ striving
to serve harmoniously is “Kåñëa’s way.”
By Särvabhauma Däsa
S
HORTLY BEFORE his
departure in 1977, Çréla
Prabhupäda made a request
to his disciples regarding the time
he would no longer be physically
present. “Your love for me will
be shown by how much you
cooperate to keep this institution
together after I am gone.” He
had previously noted in his
Teachings of Queen Kunté
(Chapter 23), “With Kåñëa in the
center, there can be full
cooperation between the trees,
animals, human beings, and all
living entities.” The challenge,
then, is to put Kåñëa in the center,
because we embodied souls in
the material world generally
place ourselves in the center –
not God.
According to Queen Kunté, the
Päëòavas’ saintly mother,
“dissensions between living
beings” – such as the rivalries that
flare up between different parties
or individuals in today’s world –
arise from “social intercourse,”
18 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
18 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2019
just as friction between twigs or
leaves can cause fire. Doggedly
competing for sense enjoyment,
innumerable souls take birth and
struggle to eat, sleep, mate, and
defend themselves. Billions of
human beings contend with each
other, especially in Kali-yuga, our
current age noted for quarrel (kali
means “dissention”).
Çréla Prabhupäda explained,
“Since most people are
nondevotees, they regularly
compete, fight, disagree and war
among themselves, for everyone
wants to enjoy and satisfy his own
senses. Therefore, unless such
demons become Kåñëa conscious
and are trained to satisfy the
senses of the Lord, there can be
no question of peace in human
society.” (Bhägavatam 8.8.38,
Purport) In these contentious
times, we all need such training,
because it is said that in each of
our hearts there is a figurative
“good dog,” or devotee (sura),
and a “bad dog,” or demon
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MARCH 2020
ARCH 2019




BACK TO GODHEAD 19
BACK TO GODHEAD 19
(asura). We need to feed the
good dog and ignore the bad one.
Vedic literature provides positive
devotee role models to help us
emulate good dogs and reject
their undesirable opposites.
The bad-dog mentality
motivated the demons who
selfishly argued over nectar
churned from the ocean of milk,
as described in Çrémad
Bhägavatam’s Eighth Canto. The
asuras demanded, “I must drink it
first. Me first, not you!” Çréla
Prabhupäda noted the dramatic
contrast between the cruel asura,
We need to feed the good dog and ignore the
bad one. Vedic literature provides positive
devotee role models to help us emulate good
dogs and reject their undesirable opposites.
or demon, Hiraëyakaçipu and his
saintly devotee son, Prahläda
Mahäräja, yet he concluded that
anyone can become a “perfect
sura,” or devotee. (Indeed, within
“asura” is “sura”; within a demon
is a potential devotee.)
Prabhupäda said, “Even born in
the asura family, one can become
a sura. Just like PrahlädaMahäräja.
His father [Hiraëyakaçipu] was an
asura, but he was a perfect sura.
That is possible. It is not
prohibited to anyone.” (Lecture,
January 27, 1975, Tokyo)
Fortunately, most of us aren’t
full-fledged Hiraëyakaçipus. Yet
at the same time, we’re not pure
devotees like Prahläda; rather, we
are works in progress. Though
we may aspire to always put Lord
Kåñëa in the center – rather than
ourselves – it’s not always easy to
do. Hence it is sometimes difficult
20 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
to serve harmoniously with
devotees who are of different
levels of seniority, spiritual
advancement, opinions, ages,
races, genders, nationalities, or
social and educational
backgrounds. In nitty-gritty real-
life situations, cooperation in this
material world is challenging.
TOSSING OUR FLOWERS
Our humble efforts on the path
of bhakti, or devotional service,
may be compared to trying to toss
our little devotional flowers into
the center of a sacred pond, the
pond’s center being the pleasure
of Lord Kåñëa and His devotees. If
flowers tossed by two devotees
each hit that transcendental target,
the waves they generate will be
complimentary and concentric.
They won’t clash or cancel each
other out. In fact, their influence
will expand. But to the degree
that our flowers miss the center,
their ripples will clash or
interfere with each other. The
good news is that although we
are works in progress whose aim
is not yet perfect, if we sincerely
and offenselessly keep chanting
the holy names of the Lord and
follow the path of the great
devotees, we will come closer
and closer to the sacred target.
“COOPERATION” AMONG
MATERIALISTS
At times it may appear that
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materialists cooperate for material
goals more harmoniously than
devotees do for spiritual ones.
Çrémad Bhägavatam describes
demoniac King Kaàsa’s alliance
with many materialists, such as
Jaräsandha, Pralamba, Baka,
Cäëüra, Tåëävarta, Aghäsura,
Muñöika, Ariñöa, Dvivida, Pütanä,
Keçé, Dhenuka, and Bäëäsura.
In today’s world, political or
business rivals sometimes join
forces to pursue mutually
attractive “pots of gold.” Thieves
or materialists pull off intricate
bank robberies or shrewd coups
with impressive teamwork. To
attain superficial material goals,
they toss rocks (rather than
flowers) into the pond, and their
rocks may hit close to one
another, but they totally miss the
center. Temporarily, they may
“make waves,” or a “big splash,”
but because their goals, or waves,
are material, according to the
Bhagavad-gétä their intelligence is
bahuçäkhä, splayed out, and
whatever unity the demoniac
muster is unstable. An extreme
example of the fragility of
materialists’ bonds is given in the
Mahäbhärata by the sage Närada,
who recounts how two demoniac
brothers – Sunda and Upasunda –
fought over a ravishingly
beautiful damsel, Tilottamä, and
killed each other, like two
opposing waves that cancel each
other out.
In the Bhagavad-gétä (2.41),
Lord Kåñëa states that serious
devotees “are resolute in
purpose, and their aim is one.”
Therefore they will eventually
“hit the target.” Unlike
materialists, pure devotees aspire
to cooperate eternally to please
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Närada Muni advises Dhruva to have respectful,
devotional dealings with others.
the Lord without cessation
(apratihatä) and without material
motives (ahaituké), beginning in
this world and continuing in the
spiritual world.
NÄRADA’S ADVICE
TO DHRUVA
Devotees are on different
levels of Kåñëa consciousness.
(That’s one reason why our
“flowers” may miss their mark
and land at different spots).
And pure devotees are
extremely rare. Therefore, great
devotees, or the Lord Himself,
teach us – whatever our social
position or spiritual qualification
(adhikära) – how to cooperate
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through ideal devotee behavior,
or Vaiñëava etiquette, which
pleases God. Närada’s advice to
Dhruva Mahäräja in Çrémad
Bhägavatam (4.8.34) is
particularly helpful in this regard:
Every man should act like this:
when he meets a person more
qualified than himself, he should
be very pleased; when he meets
someone less qualified than
himself, he should be
compassionate toward him; and
when he meets someone equal to
himself, he should make
friendship with him. . . .
If we as aspiring devotees on
any level or of any social standing
sincerely implement Närada’s
instructions in our lives – if we
follow Vaiñëava etiquette based
on scriptural guidelines for
cooperative and respectful
devotional dealings – the
obstacles to working together in
devotional service can be greatly
lessened. The guidelines of
Vaiñëava behavior may be
compared to a devotional GPS, or
Godly Positioning System. If we
avail ourselves of it, our inability
to hit the target of pure
devotional service can be
gradually overcome by the
merciful guidance of (1) guru: the
Lord’s representative, a bona fide
spiritual master in disciplic
succession, (2) sadhu: saintly
persons, and (3) çästra: scripture.
Yet Çréla Prabhupäda frankly
states that we are often unwilling
to cooperate within this
devotional guidance system.
“Generally when we find
someone more qualified than
ourselves, we become envious of
him; when we find someone less
qualified, we deride him; and
when we find someone equal,
we become very proud of our
activities.” (Bhägavatam 4.8.34,
Purport)
When we’re driven by envy,
derision, or pride – instead of
appreciation, compassion, or
cordiality – whether we are in a
so-called superior, inferior, or
equal position, we may proclaim,
“My way or the highway,”
meaning, “Do it my way – or go
away!” Çréla Prabhupäda explains
why such defiance is self-
defeating:
[T]he Supreme Lord is the
enjoyer and creator, and we, as
subordinate living beings, are
meant to cooperate to satisfy
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 21
Him. This cooperation will
actually help us, just as food
taken by the stomach will help all
other parts of the body. If the
fingers of the hand think that they
should take the food themselves,
instead of giving it to the
stomach, then they will
be frustrated. The central figure
of creation and of enjoyment is
the Supreme Lord, and the living
entities are cooperators. By
cooperation they enjoy.
(Bhagavad-gétä As It Is,
Introduction)
Like the hand in relation to the
The central figure of creation and of enjoyment
is the Supreme Lord, and the living entities are
cooperators. By cooperation they enjoy.
body, each of us is a tiny part
within a supremely orderly,
intricately designed gigantic
cosmic organism, the universal
body of God. Given our
infinitesimal status within this
mind-boggling, vast cosmos –
whose laws we can’t change one
iota – it is generally to our own
advantage to serve harmoniously
even in our appropriate worldly
dharmas (kula-dharma, family
duties; jäti-dharma, community
or societal roles; etc.) and
ultimately in our sanätana-
dharma, our eternal spiritual
occupation of service to Lord
Kåñëa and His devotees. If we
refuse to cooperate, there are
consequences, as Mr. Hand soon
discovers when he refuses to
cooperate with Mr. Stomach.
In the Bhagavad-gétä, Arjuna
demonstrated how not to
cooperate, when his Gäëòéva
22 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
bow slipped from his grasp and
he declared defiantly, “I shall not
fight.” When Arjuna initially
refused to perform his societal
duty as a warrior (thus opposing
Lord Kåñëa’s plan), his temporary
“my way” stance and his resultant
frustration were like the foolish
hand whose attempt to ingest
food by itself – ignoring the
stomach – just doesn’t work. Like
an instruction manual, the Vedic
literature guides us to properly
act as human beings in service to
God, just as the hand should serve
the stomach.
TEAMWORK, NOT
IMPERSONALISM
As with the hand and stomach
in the body, similarly with sports,
families, businesses, government,
military, or spiritual organizations:
specific roles or duties need to be
performed. Hence individuals
within the framework of a larger
group generally assume, or are
assigned, specific duties – such as
president, janitor, secretary,
driver, treasurer, coach,
accountant, doctor, trainer,
quarterback, goalkeeper, and so
forth. To deny such differences
and to artificially claim that we
are all “one” – the same in every
respect – is a form of
impersonalism, a misleading
oversimplification, as when the
hand claims, “I’m just as important
as the stomach; why do I have to
cooperate with him? After all,
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we’re all one!” Çréla Prabhupäda
poked fun at such a blurry,
impersonal misunderstanding:
This philosophy was discussed
by Caitanya Mahäprabhu and His
mother. He was eating dirt, and
mother gave Him sandesh [a
sweet]. So He did not care to take
sandesh; He was eating dirt. Then
mother came. “My dear boy, why
are You eating dirt? Here is
sandesh. I have given
You.”“Mother, what is the
difference between sandesh and
dirt? They are all the same.
[Laughing.] They are all the
same.”“Yes, my dear boy, You are
an impersonalist philosopher. But
it is required. Just like the water
jug is also earth, made of earth. It
is earth. And this ground is also
earth. But when you have to
keep water, you require this
water jug, not this earth.”
(Morning Walk, December 20,
1973, Los Angeles)
Just as dirt and sandesh are
different, Bhagavad-gétä (2.12)
explains that each soul (jéva) is
distinct from all other individual
souls, and distinct from God
(éçvara) as well. Vaiñëava
scriptures explain that in the
spiritual world we have distinct
roles to play and as long as we
find ourselves in the material
world we will inevitably assume
various temporary roles, or
dharmas, here too, due to our
differing natures and karmic
backgrounds. For instance, all the
members in a family are not
exactly equal. Being elders, the
father and mother naturally have
the right to assume greater
authority to make family
decisions than their young,
immature children. A man on the
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 street or on the Internet may
voice his opinions and fashion
himself a political pundit, but an
elected official, however
imperfect, is generally better
positioned to get things done.
Lord Caitanya advised us to give
all respect to others, but due to
envy, we are often reluctant to
respect anyone, especially those
with greater authority or
qualification than ourselves.
NATURAL HIERARCHIES
In the Bhagavad-gétä Kåñëa
identifies four broad natural social
divisions, or varëas, present in
every society: intellectuals,
administrators, businesspersons,
and laborers. The Lord stresses
that a person’s qualities and
behavior – not birth – indicate
where in the social order one can
best serve. In a meeting with
Indologist Professor C. G.
Kotovsky of the University of
Moscow, Çréla Prabhupäda
explained that a truly classless
society, with no individual
distinctions regarding
occupational roles, is not only
impractical; it is impossible. “To
fulfill the necessities of your
body, there must be a brain
[brähmaëas], arms [kñatriyas], a
stomach [vaiçyas], and legs
[çüdras]. . . . [I]n any society
you can see that unless there are
these four [occupational]
divisions, there will be chaos.”
Although in modern India this
system is improperly practiced to
favor those of a so-called higher
birth, and attempts are made
around the world to artificially
create a classless society, classes
of intellectuals, politicians,
businesspersons, and laborers
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remain, even in socialist or
communist countries. Therefore,
instead of trying to do away with
misapplied social divisions
altogether, we need to simply
follow the Lord’s perfect original
system. But to do so requires a
revival of Kåñëa consciousness.
Whether we like it or not,
wherever we are we will have
roles to play. In regard to
devotional service, whether a
visitor to a temple, a janitor,
temple president, book
distributor, priest, gardener, cook,
pot washer – it is clear that if we
simply cooperate as much as
possible in devotional activities,
we can please the Lord and
thereby attain satisfaction
ourselves. In this regard, in
Çrémad Bhägavatam (4.30.8) the
Lord lauds the cooperative
camaraderie of the saintly
brothers known as the Pracetäs:
”My dear sons of the King, I am
very much pleased by the
friendly relationships among you.
Because our mutual goal is to please Lord Kåñëa, we
devotees should cooperate among ourselves as much
as possible, despite our faults and shortcomings and
the innumerable complications we face.
All of you are engaged in one
occupation – devotional service. I
am so pleased with your mutual
friendship that I wish you all
good fortune.”
Among Çréla Prabhupäda’s
disciples, a most beloved
cooperator was the late
Jayänanda Däsa, whose jovial,
irrepressible devotional spirit
magically convinced derelicts and
hippies to help build Rathayäträ
chariots; inspired vendors to
donate fruits and vegetables;
charmed city officials to
cooperate for festivals; and
motivated devotees to work
together. Today, in every temple
or community of devotees,
unsung heroes and heroines –
like salt in a meal – often go
unnoticed, but play vital roles as
sincere cooperators for the Lord’s
pleasure, such as the decades of
behind-the-scenes service to
Back to Godhead by the late
Yamaräja Däsa in design, layout,
photography, and more.
WHEN NOT TO COOPERATE
Because our mutual goal is to
please Lord Kåñëa, we devotees
should cooperate among
ourselves as much as possible,
despite our faults and
shortcomings and the
innumerable complications we
face. But non-cooperation with
nondevotees may be advisable.
Because Çréla Prabhupäda’s
mission was to establish Çré Kåñëa
as the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, he opposed voidist
(çünyaväda) and impersonalist
(mäyäväda) philosophies. In
November 1977, shortly before
his passing away, he warned his
disciples to avoid impersonalists.
“Vrindavan is full of Mäyävädés. . .
. Stop this class of men from
speaking in our halls.” He also
(Continued on page 30)
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 23
SUBHÄÑITA
The Kurukñetra in Rädhä’s eyes
Translation by Hari Pärñada Däsa,
Commentary by Chandrahas Pujari
arjunaù kåñëa-saàyuktaù
karëaà yatränudhävati
tan-netraà tu kuru-kñetram iti
rädhe! måñämahe
arjunaù — Arjuna; kåñëa-
saàyuktaù — with Kåñëa;
24 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
karëam — towards Karëa; yatra
— where; anudhävati — runs
behind; tan-netram — that eye of
yours; tu — but; kuru-kñetram —
is Kurukñetra; iti — this; rädhe —
O Rädhä; måñämahe — we
perceive.
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Translation: “In
Kurukñetra, Arjuna accompa-
nied by Kåñëa chased after
Karëa. O Rädhä! We perceive
the same Kurukñetra in your
eyes. [In her eyes, the white
parts (Arjuna) and black parts
(Kåñëa) are pointing toward
the ear (Karëa)]
This verse uses astonishing
word-play to share two devo-
tional meditations simultaneously:
one of the beauty of the Lord’s
consort and the other of the
potency of the Lord’s devotee.
The word-play centers on two
meanings of three words: Kåñëa
(the Supreme Lord and the dark
color), Arjuna (Kåñëa’s devotee
and the white color) and Karëa
(Duryodhana’s friend and ear).
The direct reading of the
verse describes the beauty of
Çrémati Rädhäräëé’s face, specifi-
cally her sidelong glance. Be-
cause of her shyness, Rädhä
doesn’t look directly at Kåñëa,
but often casts a sidelong glance
at him. At such times, her eyes
seem to be looking at her ears.
Thus, the black and white por-
tions of her eyes (iris and sclera
respectively) seem to be chas-
ing her ears, which seem to be
running away as she turns her
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 head to have a better look at
Kåñëa. This facial situation
seems similar to the martial
situation on the Kurukñetra
battlefield where Kåñëa and
Arjuna on the same chariot
pursued Karëa. That martial
situation is this verse’s second
reading.
With this verse’s two readings
as our departure point, let’s
contemplate two aspects of
bhakti.
The literary exquisiteness of
bhakti poetry: Word-play is often
used to convey points memora-
bly, humorously, poignantly.
Using similar-sounding words is
common enough in figures of
speech such as puns (Even when
England didn’t have a kidney
bank, it still had a Liverpool).
More uncommon are figures of
speech such as zeugmas that use
the same word in its different
senses to link different parts of a
sentence (He and his driving
license expired last week). To
have one word-play in a sentence
is creative; to have three word-
plays in the same sentence is
specially creative; to have triple
word-play and convey two devo-
tional meditations simultaneously
is incredibly creative.
The devoted naturally want to
offer the best to their beloved
Lord. And if they have a poetic
inclination, they want to glorify
the Lord using the best poetry.
The Bhagavad-gétä (01.10)
features a similar word-play.
Therein, while Duryodhana
compares his forces with those
of the Päëòavas, he deems his
strength unlimited and the
Päëòavas’ strength limited. But
the pertinent Sanskrit word
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aparyäptam can mean not just sively and spontaneously. Thus,
unlimited but also insufficient. in verses glorifying Vishnu, there
And its antonym paryäptam too might be names of Kåñëa; and in
has two meanings: limited and verses glorifying Kåñëa, there
adequate. In this second reading, might be the names of Rama.
Duryodhana unwittingly ends up After all, they are the one same
admitting that his strength is no Lord who manifests in a multi-
match to the Päëòavas’ strength. plicity of forms.
Thereby, he indirectly acknowl- Love and grace link the
edges Kåñëa’s potency, whose Vrindavan vision of Rädhä and
presence on the Päëòavas tilts the Kurukñetra vision of Kåñëa-
the scale decisively in their Arjuna pursuing Karëa. While the
favor. Lord’s Vrindavan pastimes cen-
Building on the time-honored tered on his love for his divine
tradition of using wordplay to consort, Rädhä, are considered
glorify the Lord, this verse uses the highest displays of love, that
triple wordplay to enhance our same Lord also exhibits his love
In verses glorifying Vishnu, there might be
names of Kåñëa; and in verses glorifying
Kåñëa, there might be the names of Rama.
After all, they are the one same Lord who
manifests in a multiplicity of forms.
absorption in our Lord. for Arjuna during the Kurukñetra
The interconnectedness of war by helping Arjuna overcome
devotional absorption: Kåñëa- formidable enemies such as
bhakti in Vrindavan and Karëa. The same divine grace
Kurukñetra have significantly that enabled Arjuna to bring
different moods. Yet it is the down Karëa also enables Rädhä
same Lord who is the object of to captivate Kåñëa so much that
devotional meditation. And he dances to her tune.
while relishing his remem- This verse stands as a signa-
brance, a devotional heart can ture example and reminder for all
cross-fertilize visions from of us to use our creativity to
various moods to discover enhance our devotional absorp-
fascinating connections and tion.
correlations.
In his Govinda Bhashya
commentary to the Vedanta Hare Kåñëa Hare Kåñëa
Sutra, the great bhakti scholar
Baladeva Vidyabhushan states Kåñëa Kåñëa Hare Hare
that when the devotee is ab- Hare Räma Hare Räma
sorbed in the Lord, their ecstasy
Räma Räma Hare Hare
can make them remember vari-
ous forms of the Lord succes-
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 25
 AGING
in Kåñëa
Consciousness
While it seems the majority of old people mainly want
comfort, aging devotees have higher aspirations.

By Näräyaëa Däsa

I
N MANY DEVELOPED countries
today, retirement communities
come with a gamut of material
facilities – multiple-cuisine
restaurants, parks, emergency-aid
facilities, assisted living, even
exclusive dog parks. The idea is to
make old-age living comfortable,
even enjoyable, for the elderly who
can afford the price.
In India, where I live, the trend to
set up exclusive facilities for “senior
living” is catching on. Typically,
advertisements show happy elderly
couples engaged in outdoor
activities in perfectly landscaped
surroundings, seemingly without a
care in the world.
Increasing average life-
expectancy in most countries is one
reason for this trend. In countries
like India, changes in social and
family structures that accompany
economic development are another
factor. But improvements in material
living conditions do not address the
basic problems associated with aging.
Can redesigning the physical living
environment redefine the way we
experience aging itself?
To those exposed to Kåñëa
consciousness, the futility of coping
with aging through material
adjustments alone is perfectly
obvious. Çréla Prabhupäda writes,
“Wherever there is the influence of
eternal time, there is this set of
tribulations, namely birth, disease,
old age and death, and all of them are
invincible.” (Bhägavatam 1.13.19,
Purport) How do devotees of Lord
Kåñëa cope with these problems?
The Hitopadeça gives a hint: A
wise person performs religious
duties “as if Death had seized him by
the hair.” What is true of the wise,
regardless of age, will certainly
apply to a true practitioner of Kåñëa

Candrävalé Devé Däsé offers ärati to Jagannätha, Baladeva, and

Subhadrä Devé, worshiped alongside Çré Çré Rädhä Londonéçvara in London.

26
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2727
consciousness. Like the elephant
king Gajendra, each one of
us is in the crocodile-like grip of
eternal time. (See Bhägavatam,
Canto 8, Chapters 2–4.)
While aging does make the
inevitability of death more
tangible, devotees know that
one’s life can end any day
without warning. Çréla
Prabhupäda quotes the venerated
Our Kåñëa consciousness movement has actually
declared war against the illusory energy, in which
all the living entities are rotting in a false
understanding of civilization.
Cäëakya Paëòita: “The duration of
one’s life in the ma terial world
may end at any moment, but if
within this life one does
something worthy, that
qualification is depicted in history
eternally.” (Bhägavatam 9.13.3,
Purport)
Devotional service is what
makes a devotee’s life
worthwhile, and it is the means
by which the devotee wages the
constant struggle with mäyä. This
makes it important to stretch one’s
ability to continue devotional
service into old age. Hence it is
enjoined upon devotees to take
due care to protect their physical
and mental faculties. Çréla
Prabhupäda writes:
[T]he living entity entangled in
the illusory energy cannot come
out of it without the help of the
body. . . . The Vaiñëava
philosophy therefore
recommends yukta-vairägya. It is
not that all attention should be
diverted for the maintenance of
the body, but at the same time
28 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
one’s bodily maintenance should
not be neglected. As long as the
body exists one can thoroughly
study the Vedic instructions, and
thus at the end of life one can
achieve perfection. (Bhägavatam
8.19.39, Purport)
And, stressing the mental
poise necessary to wage the
constant struggle with mäyä, Çréla
Prabhupäda writes:
[W]e may take the lesson that
in our fight with mäyä we should
not be in a position in which our
strength, enthusiasm and senses
will be unable to fight vigorously.
Our Kåñëa consciousness
movement has actually declared
war against the illusory energy, in
which all the living entities are
rotting in a false understanding of
civilization. The soldiers in this
Kåñëa consciousness movement
must always possess physical
strength, enthusiasm and sensual
power. To keep themselves fit,
they must therefore place
themselves in a normal condition
of life. (Bhägavatam 8.2.30,
Purport)
DHÅTARÄÑÖRA’S EXAMPLE
Aside from physical
disabilities, old age predisposes
one to increased worries
stemming from memories of life’s
inevitable mistakes, failures, and
disappointments. Consider
Dhåtaräñöra, the head of the
Kauravas. His lifelong indulgence
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of his wicked son Duryo-dhana in
regard to Duryodhana’s repeated
misdemeanors landed Dhåtaräñöra
in the most unenviable situation
in his old age: Every one of his
sons died in battle, and he and his
wife were reduced to
dependence on their righteous
nephew Yudhiñöhira, whom
Duryodhana had sought to
destroy at any cost.
Dhåtaräñöra was eventually
guided out of his miserable plight
by his half brother Vidura, who
tried to intercede with Dhåtaräñöra
on the eve of the Mahäbharata
war by urging him to make peace
with the Päëòavasby granting
them their share of the kingdom.
But Duryodhana, obsessed with
destroying his cousins, soundly
rebuked Vidura. The deeply
offended Vidura left the royal
palace forthwith and proceeded
to numerous places of
pilgrimage, eventually reaching
the ashram of Maitreya Åñi, who
enlightened him on many details
of the science of the Absolute
Truth.
When Vidura returned to
Hastinapura, he confronted
Dhåtaräñöra, pointing out the utter
anomaly of his spending his last
days dependent on the hospitality
of the Päëòavas, who were the
targets of his acts of enmity.
Vidura urged his aged half
brother to get out of the palace
with the least delay.
Vidura’s words had the desired
effect. The course that Dhåtaräñöra
adopted thereafter and the way
he ended his life (Bhägavatam
1.13.51–57) reveal that he was
well aware of the means to
liberate oneself from the material
world but delayed to do so owing
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 to spiritual blindness.
Vidura’s experience is relevant
to our discussion in another
important respect. As Çréla
Prabhupäda points out: “For a
saintly person like Vidura, any
disturbance due to worldly affairs
is insignificant. Such disturbances,
however, are sometimes
favorable for higher realization,
and therefore Vidura took
advantage of a family
misunderstanding in order to
meet Maitreya Åñi.” (Bhägavatam
3.1.2, Purport)
APPLYING THE LESSONS
The circumstances of Vidura’s
setting out on his pilgrimage
were certainly unique, but in our
times, disturbance to normal
conditions of life occur in a
variety of ways. For example,
one could be diagnosed with a
serious ailment, of which there
are increased chances in one’s old
age. As with Vidura, such
disturbances provide a devotee
with the opportunity to detach
from life’s nonessentials and
focus on the main purpose of
human existence.
Kåñëa devotees are particularly
well-equipped to do so in that the
Çrémad Bhägavatam, which
provides the most complete
guide to dealing with life’s
terminal problems, is integrated
into their daily lives.
Consider, for instance, the
lessons Çréla Prabhupäda draws
from the life of Sväyambhuva
Manu:
The existence of material
enjoyment can endure as long as
life is fresh, but at the fag end of
life everything becomes tasteless,
and everything appears to be vain
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and painful. The life of Emperor
Sväyambhuva Manu, however,
was not tasteless; as he grew
older, his life remained as fresh as
in the beginning because of his
continued Kåñëa consciousness.
The life of a man in Kåñëa
consciousness is always fresh.
Manu’s life did not become
stale after some time, for he
engaged himself always in
chanting about and meditating
upon Lord Viñëu. When he
talked, he talked only of Kåñëa
and Viñëu, the Personality of
Godhead; when he heard
something, it was about Kåñëa;
when he meditated, it was upon
Kåñëa and His activities.
(Bhägavatam 3.22.35, Purport)
We should emulate
Sväyambhuva Manu’s example.
Normally, a devotee practitioner
will share some of Sväyambhuva
Manu’s attitude, but may also
The system of varëäçrama religion sets aside
a part of one’s life completely for the purpose
of self-realization and attainment of salvation
in the human form of life.
have some of Dhåtaräñöra’s
weaknesses. The course to adopt
is thus self-evident. As a devotee
advances in age, the need to
disengage from family and other
attachments gains in urgency.
Çréla Prabhupäda does not mince
words in his advice to all
devotees, based again on Vidura’s
counsel to his half brother: “The
system of varëäçrama religion
sets aside a part of one’s life
completely for the purpose of
self-realization and attainment of
salvation in the human form of
life. . . . To stick to family life to
the end of one’s human life is the
grossest type of degradation, and
there is an absolute need for the
Viduras to educate such
Dhåtaräñöras, even at the present
moment.” (Bhägavatam 1.13.24,
Purport)
And on the means to promote
detachment: “Constant thought of
the Lord is the antiseptic method
for keeping oneself free from the
infectious contamination of the
material qualities.” (Bhägavatam
3.1.32, Purport)
Çréla Prabhupäda expands on
this idea: “It is said that it is the
nature of a devotee to constantly
apply his mind, energy, words,
ears, etc., in hearing and chanting
about Kåñëa. This is called Kåñëa
consciousness, and for one who is
rapt in hearing and chanting about
Kåñëa, the subject matter never
becomes hackneyed or old. That is
the significance of transcendental
subject matter in contrast to
material subject matter.” (Kåñëa,
the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, Chapter 13)
Bombarded as we are by
material attractions from all sides,
deliberately planning to increase
the time we allot to the practice
of Kåñëa consciousness would
seem the path for aging devotees
to follow. In practical terms, for
many this would mean invariably
starting the day with maìgala-
ärati at home and regularly
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 29
offering food to the Lord, which
in turn involves a range of
activities connected with service
to the Lord. For devotees within
easy access to a temple, attending
the temple programs without fail
would meet the same objective.
DISABILITIES CONSIDERED
What about physical and
mental disabilities that could
impede normal devotional
service in old age? Pilgrimages to
holy places associated with the
Lord could be ruled out in
advanced age, and even
attending temple programs could
be strenuous. But when the aim is
to connect as many of one’s
activities with Kåñëa as possible,
one can continue devotional
services of basic types, such as
chanting and hearing. And
advances in technology, despite
all their negatives, also offer
devotees opportunities to follow
temple programs from their
homes, including listening to
temple lectures and kértanas.
Physical disabilities need not
impede devotees’ continuing
endeavor to improve their standard
of spiritual practice, particularly the
quality of their chanting. For a
family devoted to Kåñëa
consciousness, mutual support
among family members can help
smooth the rough passage into old
age. And lastly, heeding
Prabhupäda’s repeated stress on
association with fellow devotees
can provide the support devotees
need in their closing days.
Näräyaëa Däsa is a disciple of
His Holiness B.V.V. Narasiàha
Swami and an ISKCON Life
Member since 2004. He lives in
30 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
Trivandrum with his wife, Prema
Kamala Devé Däsé, and their
daughter, Sugéta Väëé Devé Däsé.
Candrävalé Devé Däsé offers
ärati to Jagannätha, Baladeva,
and Subhadrä Devé, worshiped
alongside Çré Çré Rädhä
Londonéçvara in London.
...
Transcendental....
(Continued from page 23)
cautioned devotees to avoid
intimate association with sense
enjoyers. “The präkåta-sahajiyäs
generally chant the Hare Kåñëa
mahä-mantra, yet they are
attached to women, money and
intoxication. . . . Such people
should be respected within one’s
mind, but their association should
be avoided.” (The Nectar of
Instruction, Text 5, Purport)
Appreciating the cooperative
spirit of the Pracetäs, Çréla
Prabhupäda explained:
Since the sons of King
Präcénabarhiñat were all united in
Kåñëa consciousness, the Lord was
very pleased with them. The unity
of the individual souls attempting
to satisfy the Supreme Lord or
rendering service to the Lord is
real unity. . . . Disunity between
individual souls is so strong within
this material world that even in a
society of Kåñëa consciousness,
members sometimes appear
disunited due to their having
different opinions and leaning
toward material things. Actually, in
Kåñëa consciousness there cannot
be two opinions. There is only
one goal: to serve Kåñëa to one’s
best ability. If there is some
disagreement over service, such
disagreement is to be taken as
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spiritual. Those who are actually
engaged in the service of the
Supreme Personality of Godhead
cannot be disunited in any
circumstance. This makes the
Supreme Personality of Godhead
very happy and willing to award
all kinds of benediction to His
devotees. (Bhägavatam 4.30.8,
Purport)
Unfortunately it’s far easier to
write about cooperation, or to
read about it, than to actually do
it. But if we sincerely try to avoid
the ten offenses (aparädhas)
detrimental to chanting and
devotional service – especially
disrespecting devotees of the
Lord (vaiñëava-aparädha) and
disobeying or minimizing the
spiritual master (guru-aparädha)
– and if we recite the following
prayers that Çréla Prabhupäda
advised, that will help us develop
a mood of congeniality:
väïchä-kalpa-tarubhyaç ca
kåpä-sindhubhya eva ca
patitänäà pävanebhyo
vaiñëavebhyo namo namaù
“I offer my respectful
obeisances unto all the Vaiñëava
devotees of the Lord. They can
fulfill the desires of everyone,
just like desire trees, and they are
full of compassion for the fallen
conditioned souls.” (Çré Vaiñëava
Praëäma)
ananta koöi vaiñëava vånda ké
jaya!
“All glories to the unlimited
millions of Vaiñëavas, the
devotees of the Lord!”
Särvabhauma Däsa, a disciple
of Tamäl Kåñëa Goswami, lives in
Houston, Texas.
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EVERY TOWN & VILLAGE
RADHADESH MELLOWS DRAWS RECORD
1,400 DEVOTEES FROM 50 COUNTRIES
development of Mayapur Heritage City, was held on
January 9th, 2020, at prominent Indian businessman
Sajjan Jindal’s office.
The meeting was initiated by Devakinandan Das,
Zonal Secretary and Vice Chairman of Member of
Mayapur Executive Board (MEB), and saw the
participation of some of the most distinguished
members of the corporate world namely Sajjan Jindal
(Chairman - JSW Group & Advisory Committee), BK
Goenka (Chairman - Welspun Group), Ajay Piramal

Radhadesh Mellows is one of the biggest kirtan

festivals in the world. This year the event, from
January 23rd to 27th, drew a record 1,400 devotees
from fifty countries, and from every continent. A
further 100,000 tuned into the livestream online.
On Thursday, as everyone arrived, kirtan went
on in the Radhadesh temple room until 9:15pm,
featuring a beautiful lamp-lit darshan of Çré Çré Rädhä
Gopinätha and an inaugural address by Çacinandana (Chairman - Piramal Group), Ashok Goel (Chairman -
Swami, setting the mood. A host of devotees Essel Group), Harshvardhan Neotia (Chairman -
experienced in facilitating deep dives into the holy Ambuja Neotia Group) and Sanjiv Goenka (Chairman
name led the chanting, including Çacinandana - RP Industries Ltd). Other businessmen who are
Swami, Kadamba Känana Swami, Candramauli members of the Committee but were unable to
Swami, Baòahari Däsa, Mädhava, Jahnavi Harrison attend the meeting are Shri Gautam Adani
and her sister Tulasi from the UK, Amala Harinäma (Chairman, Adani Group), Shri Anil Agarwal
and his wife Nadiya Mani, Acyuta Gopé and Ananta (Chairman, Vedanta Resources) and Puneet Dalmia
Govinda from New York, and twins Kishor and (Dalmia Bharat Group).
Ananta.
NEW JERSEY DEVOTEES APPEAR ON TV
HARE KRISHNA! FILMS OPENS ASIA TO OVER 1.5 MILLION VIEWERS
IN 20 CITIES IN ITALY
The hit film on Srila Prabhupada’s life, HARE
KRISHNA! The Mantra, the Movement and the
Swami who started it all opens in 20 cities in Italy
starting Jan. 23 and running through March 15. There
is the possibility of releasing the film in up to 100
cities throughout the country if it continues to draw
crowds.

PROMINENT INDIAN CORPORATE

BILLIONAIRES INITIATE EFFORTS TO Devotees from ISKCON of New Jersey appeared
DEVELOP MAYAPUR HERITAGE CITY on TV Asia’s live call-in talk show, “Focus Live,” on
The first meeting of the Advisory Committee for January 2nd at 8pm Eastern Time to answer

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BACK TO GODHEAD 31
questions and present Krishna consciousness to an
audience of 1.5 to 2 million viewers. First founded
in the UK in 1990, TV Asia was also the first coast-
to-coast entertainment and information channel for
the South Asian community settled in the U.S. It airs
regularly scheduled programs in Hindi, English,
Gujarati and other regional languages 24 hours a
day, seven days a week.
ISKCON YOUTH HELP PUT ON
FOUR CARIBBEAN RATHA YATRAS
The latest tour by ISKCON Youth Ministry saw
youth help put on four Rathayäträs in the Caribbean,
and some become inspired to take on active roles in
the Hare Krishna Movement. A total of about
twenty-five youth participated throughout the tour,
with fourteen from around the US being joined by
about five local youth in both the Dominican
Republic and Puerto Rico.
GITA MELA DRAWS THOUSANDS
OF TOURISTS TO MAYAPUR
Gita Mela is an event organized by ISKCON
Mayapur dedicated solely for interacting with the
tourists. A winter festival that is held from December
32 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
to January in Mayapur, West Bengal, focuses on
providing guests an insight into the importance of
the Bhagavad-gétä. Also called the big ‘fair’ of
knowledge, the guests are allowed inside the Gita
Mela Campus to see big dioramas explaining the
Bhagavad-gétä’s main teachings, they attend the
question and answer session, buy spiritual books
from the store, get to know the BBT, watch a video
presentation about ISKCON around the world, have
japa session, and there is kids play area in the
gaming section.
ISKCON LAW DEPARTMENT HOLDS
1ST GLOBAL CONFERENCE OF
DEVOTEE ATTORNEYS
On January 9-12, 2020, thirty devotee attorneys,
jurists and law students hailing from several
countries around the world attended the 2020
ISKCON Global Conference of Devotee Attorneys at
the Historic Thomas Center in Gainesville, Florida.
The term “devotee attorney” refers to any devotee
or friend of Krishna, who is an attorney, jurist or law
student. Created by the GBC Body at its 2018 GBC
Annual Midterm Meeting in Kanpur, India, the
ISKCON Law Department is led by Singaporean
devotee attorney, Devakinandan Das, in his role as
ISKCON General Counsel.
The dual purpose of the Conference was (1) to
enable devotee attorneys from around the world to
get acquainted in an atmosphere of collegiality and
devotion to Çréla Prabhupäda and Lord Kåñëa, and (2)
to develop an integrated network of legal service
providers capable of meeting the 21st-century needs
of ISKCON and its devotees. The ISKCON Law
Department is intended to make sound and timely
legal advice available to ISKCON decision-makers at
the temple, zonal and GBC levels.
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 The International Society for Krishna Consciousness
CENTRES IN INDIA
Founder-Äcärya: His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivendanta Swami Prabhupada
ANDHRA PRADESH: Hanumkonda—(08712) 77399;
Hyderabad—(040) 2474-4969/ vedantacaitanya@pamho.net,
Nellore—0861-2314577, 9985058550/
sukadevaswami@gmail.com; Secunderabad—(040) 780-
5232; Tirupati—(0877) 6900009, 9703526677/
guesthouse.tirupati@pamho.net; Vijayawada—(08645)
272513/ mmdasiskcon vijayawada@gmail.com;
Vishakhapatnam—(0891) 5537625/ samba.jps@pamho.net;
Warangal—(08712) 426182; ASSAM: Cachar—(03842)
34615; Guwahati—(0361) 254-5963/
iskcon.guwahati@pamho.net; Karimganj—(09430) 76821/
nrisimhanandadas@gmail.com; BIHAR: Patna—(0612)
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Surat—(0261) 2765891/ surat@pamho.net; Vallabh
Vidyanagar—(02692) 230796; HARYANA: Faridabad—
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PRADESH: Allahabad—(0532) 2416718/
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mayapur.chandrodaya@pamho.net; Nadia—(03473) 281150/
shyamrup.jps@pamho.net; Siliguri—09800865104/
abd@pamho.net
V AIÑËAVA CALENDAR
Nov 1 – Dec 15 2019
6 Mar: Fasting for Ämalaké-vrata Ekädaçi
7 Mar: Break fast 6:37 – 9:30 (LT) Çré
Mädhavendra Puré Disappearance
9 Mar: Gaura Purëimä: Appearance of Çré
Caitanya Mahäprabhu (Fasting till moon-rise)
10 Mar: Festival of Jagannätha Miçra
16 Mar: Çré Çrévasa Pandita Appearance
20 Mar: Fasting for Päpamocani Ekädaçi , Çré
Govinda Ghosh Disappearance
21 Mar: Break fast 6:21 – 07:57 (LT)
29 Mar: Çré Rämänujäcärya Appearance
2 Apr: Räma Navamé: Appearance of Lord Çré
Rämacandra (Fast today)
4 Apr: Fasting for Kämadä Ekädaçi
5 Apr: Break fast 6:05 – 10:16 (LT)
Damanakaropana Dvadasi
8 Apr: Çré Balaräma Räsayäträ, Çré Kåñëa Vasanta
Räsa, Çré Vaàçévadana Öhäkura Appearance, Çré
Çyämänanda Prabhu Appearance
14 Apr: Çré AbhirämaÖhäkura Disappearance,
Tulasé Jala Däna begins.
MARCH 2020
BACK TO GODHEAD 33
EDITORIAL
CORONAVIRUS
W
ith more than 20,000 people affected and
at least 200 dead, the Coronavirus is the
biggest threat to public health today.
Before that there was the SARS, MERS and Avian-flu
type of viruses. Of course, the Chinese government
is confident that they will come up with some
vaccine soon and they might as well succeed. What
could be the root cause of these deadly viruses? Will
humanity ever be able to find it? Or an even more
important issue is what are we doing that is wrong?
Dr. Rene Dubos was a physician who did
extensive research on this subject in the fifties and
wrote a book called, Mirage of Health: Utopia,
Progress and Biological Change. In this pioneering
study of medical history Dubos declared: Progress
toward some utopia of health is an illusion. Disease
will never be “conquered.” Disease is so
inescapable a part of our human condition that
today’s remedies inevitably become the agents of
tomorrow’s ills.
Dubos gathered enough evidence to come to the
conclusion that the diseases we suffer from arise out
of the complex social, political, and economic
dynamics of our particular society; as society
changes, our ills change with it. Some diseases fade
away, while others rise to take their place.
Those who beat the drum of fantastic medical
progress will quickly point out that we no longer die
from smallpox, typhus, typhoid, diphtheria, and the
other microbial plagues of the past. Instead the ultra-
modern human of the 21st century dies from
prostrate cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, cirrhosis
of lever, the opiod crisis, emphysema and a host of
mental disorders.
Dubos further states that modern medical
research has had little to do with the eradication of
infectious diseases. The socio-economic reforms that
came after industrialization should be given the
credit for that. But while these old foes were driven
away into oblivion new ones were taking their
34 BACK TO GODHEAD
MARCH 2020
places. Dubos warns that it would be foolish to
consider them conquered, they can re-enter human
history given the conditions are favorable. In the
Rämäyaëa, there is a description of Lord Rama
shooting arrows at Rävaëa and no sooner than one of
his ten heads would fall another one would grow
up.
We need to look much deeper into the issue of
our health. Let us begin with the basics. The
physical body is a covering for the real self—the
spirit soul—which is eternal, individual, and part of
the Supreme Person, Lord Kåñëa. Like each of us,
Kåñëa is an individual person, but unlike us Kåñëa is
never encaged in a temporary, physical body. He is,
rather, the creator and controller of the physical
world. Both Kåñëa’s body and His abode, the
spiritual world, are eternal, full of unending
happiness, and without a trace of birth, old age,
disease, and death. Since originally we reside in this
deathless, spiritual world, it’s quite natural that we
yearn for a life free of disease and other miseries.
But the health-care industry can’t help us attain this
kind of life, because it’s impossible to live an
eternal, deathless, disease-free life anywhere in the
temporary, physical world. The health-care industry
has its place, of course, but to exaggerate its
benefits is self-deluding.
Çréla Prabhupäda throws light on this issue by
stating, “We are trying to exploit the resources of
material nature, but actually we are becoming more
and more entangled in her complexities. Therefore,
although we are engaged in a hard struggle to
conquer nature, we are ever more dependent on
her. This illusory struggle against material nature can
be stopped at once by revival of our eternal Kåñëa
consciousness.” Thus unless we cultivate the human
spirit along with the activities of keeping our body
free from disease (as much as possible) there will
always be a virus waiting for its time to attack.
—Çyämänanda Däsa
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