Verse for today

Someone told me the other day that my day has come and gone. I am not quite sure what they meant. But the fact is that the day of Hari Katha will never go. I have been pressing on, for better or worse, on this path for nigh on forty years, now. How different things would be today if I had remained an Iskcon sannyasi. But that day came and went. There is no end to days, and there is no end to Hari Katha. God is infinite and each person's adventure in yoga is infinite.

Anyway, this verse is from Canto I, Narada telling Vyasadeva about how he developed rati. Some versions give ruchi as the last word in this verse, but we accept the Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu reading.

tatrAnvahaM kRSNa-kathAH pragAyatAM
anugraheNazRNavaM manoharAH
tAH zraddhayA me'nupadaM vizRNvataH
priya-zravasy anga mamAbhavad ratiH

There, by the mercy of those sages who sang about Krishna, I was able to hear these charming descriptions of the Lord every single day. Since I was listening attentively and with faith at every moment, my love for the Lord, whose topics are so sweet, awakened. (1.5.26)
That is all, my friends. Bless me that I may have the chance to glorify my beloved Divine Couple, and that I may serve you by so doing.

Comments

Anonymous said…
I don't know you, but I read your blog. I just want you to know that your experiences and writing have been very helpful to me. I have been a devotee now for so many years--we are of the same era--but am just now developing a real, well-grounded idea of what it means to be a yogi. Thank you for your perseverance and your willingness to share it. Jaya Radhe Syama!
Sunday, 09 March, 2008
Jagadananda Das said…
An incoherent post by William Morgan did not pass scrutiny.
Tuesday, 11 March, 2008
Anonymous said…
Whatcha doin? Jagat watcha doin? Why could
you not concieve of my - posts - being
coherent? Could i pleas ask a favor? Go say Hi
to bhaktipada. Its for your own good, right?
Friday, 14 March, 2008
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

O Mind! Meditate on Radha's Breasts

Image
Flickr As I go through the dāna-līlā episode of Chandi Das's Śrī Kṛṣṇa Kīrtana , there are many songs in which Krishna describes Radha's beauty, and a regular feature of that includes descriptions of her breasts. In fact, breasts are a subject that is prominent in all Sanskrit poetry, and is even standard in prayers to goddesses. There does not seem to have been any inhibition in talking about breasts in the ancient Indian culture, even though I dare say, there is more of one in the modern society, in spite of Bollywood. There is, however, an apparent restriction in talking about genitals, male or female, in the so-called erotic poetry of India--Sanskrit or vernacular--even when lovemaking etc., is described. Such descriptions would automatically fall into some other genre. In Radha and Krishna descriptions, I cannot recall ever seeing or hearing a passage that mentioned genitals or overt sexual activity. It is nearly always spoken of somewhat euphemistically. I remember
Read more

Swami Vishwananda's Bhakti Marga and Parampara

Image
It has been a little strange here at Jiva these past few days. Swami Vishwananda is here with his troupe of disciples, of whom there are a goodly number, perhaps 80 or so. When I arrived in Vrindavan already a couple of weeks back, almost the first thing I noticed at the corner of Mathura Road and the Parikrama Marg was a big billboard with Swami Vishwananda’s charming smile and glowing tilak staring charismatically out at the world and announcing that he would be giving darshan on March 8 at the Jiva Institute. Below him, in a smaller frame was Satyanarayana Dasa Babaji, who besides being his host will be speaking on the Bhāgavatam at the darshan event. This is not the first time that Vishwananda and his group have been at Jiva. Satyanarayana Dasaji calls Vishwananda a friend, and indeed the relations between the two are very cordial. Vishwananda's group is mostly young and enthusiastic, predominantly European (German and points east), who are very enthusiastic about
Read more

Erotic sculptures on Jagannath temple

Image
This was written on the basis of Sundarananda Vidyavinode's Sri Kshetra and intended for a devotee audience, as it was done on a commission by disciples of Bhakti Promode Puri Maharaj. It has never been published. I decided to put this on line since there was a discussion on Facebook on the subject and I thought I would revisit what I wrote here nearly twenty years ago. This is from chapter ten on temple renovations. Please note that I have removed the images that I had found of some of the sculptures. I have been blocked from posting links to this blog on Facebook for some infringement of its "community standards". The only thing I can think of on this blog that might have offended some prudish person in cyberspace is this. I do not have much hope for redemption as it has been over six months since my ban is "under review" and there has been no sign of action. Needless to say, I find this heavy-handed action on the part of Facebook dangerously authoritar
Read more