dhe Shyam

When by Your sweet will Your sweet holy names come dancing on my tongue , vibrating in my ears ,cooling my mind ,soothing my soul - then only do I feel alive my sweet Lord.
Radhe Shyam Radhe Shyam Radhe Shyam Shyam Shyam
Radhe Shyam Radhe Shyam Radhe Shyam Shyam Shyam
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6713/Ananda-Vardhan/Nothing-Like-Love

Golden Messiah

My dear Sri Gauranga , Golden Messiah , I see so much unhappiness in this world and feel unable to help but I have some faith that by Your grace the unhappy days of this world are coming to an end. Please make it soon my dear Lord , please make it soon. Jaya Sacinandana Gaurahari
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5xvbLsmDVc

Mercy Jesus

Material life means anxiety.Spiritual life means life without anxiety.Sounds good to me.Hare Krishna
Mercy Jesus mercy Jesus Jesus Jesus mercy mercy , mercy Mary mercy Mary Mary Mary mercy mercy. Merry Christmas eveyone.

stay high forever

Discovered the perfect anti-depressant....no side-effects ,no charge, no possiblity of overdose ,take as much as you like and stay high forever.....just keep taking the mantra medicine - Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam ,Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam
and Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Harehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5xvbL

Only You

When will I want only Your loving mercy dear Lord -like a drowning man wants only air,like a desert wants only rain. Jaya Gauranga
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5555/Ananda-Vardhan/Love-Is-Free

Life in Vrindavana

"Hearing the sound of Srimati Radhika playing Her Kacchapi vina accompanied by Sri Krishna playing His Murali flute , the most enchanting , best of deer become stunned with rapture...and swarms of restless bees happily worship Yugala-kishora while humming Their glories..." Sri Vraja -Vilasa -Stava by Srila Raghunatha d...asa Gosvami
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5556/Ananda-Vardhan/Time-Stands-Still

only love

How wonderful it must be when one s every act is an act of devotion , when bhakti , pure love , is the only reason for doing everything , when one s only desire is to please the Divine Couple , Sri Sri Radha Krishna , the perfection of love.
" Let love rule the land instead of fear." Bhakti Vijaya Acharya. Jaya Radhe
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5556/Ananda-Vardhan/Time-Stands-Still

Real existence

Amazing to think that we all have a spiritual body waiting to be manifested which doesnt get old or diseased and which never dies - sac-cid -ananda vigraha - eternal , full of knowledge and bliss , perfectly suited to rendering eternal loving service to the Supreme Diivine Couple , Sri Sri Radha Krishna in Vrindavan , the transcendental abode of ever-increasing happiness. Radhe Radhe

A Lamp in the Darkness

"......wherever the Lord is personally present by His transcendental name , quality,form and so on , there cannot be any darkness of ignorance. He is like a lamp placed in the darkness; He immediately illuminates a dark place. " Deliverance of Mucukunda - Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5556/Ananda-Vardhan/Time-Stands-Still

Golden Volcano

My dear Lord I am ashamed to say that although You have such great love for me , I am so hard-hearted , so ungrateful that I still have no love for You. But You are maha-vadanyaya ,the most merciful , and I am Your eternal servant , so please bless me with just one drop of the tidal wave of Divine Love for You , Gaura -prema , and thus make my life succcessful . Jaya Sacinandana Gaurahari
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5554/Ananda-Vardhana-dasa/What's-Life-Without-Love

Sweet Humility

By Your grace my dear Lord , may I bathe my soul in sweet humility every day - refreshingly soothing and cool. Radhe Radhe
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038

the truly wise

Thinking about the word "gentleman "....a man who is gentle.
"The hallmark of the truly wise is their gentleness and enlightenment , and especially, their ability to see equally the high-born , refined intellectuals and the low-born , unclean beggars as well as to love even the animals, seeing them all as dear to Me. " Bhagavad-gita Ch.5.18
http://www.rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George

shelter

In this ever-changing world there is one constant - the constant shelter, strength, guidance and comfort of Your holy names my dear Lord. Hare Krishna
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5554/Ananda-Vardhana-dasa/What's-Life-Without-Love

SPIRITUAL PLATFORM

Just as a fish on land will only be happy when it remains in the water sinilarly we spirit souls will only find eternal haapiness when we get off the mental platform and stay on the spiritual platform , absorbed in the reality of Radha and Krishna
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6713/Ananda-Vardhan/Nothing-Like-Love

FAITH

i dont mind if i lose my car
i dont mind if i lose my house
i dont mind if i lose my friends
i dont mind mind if i lose my sight
i dont mind if i lose everything
except my dear Lord
may i never lose my faith in You.
Hare Krishna
http://www.rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George

MANTRA MEDICINE

MANTRA MEDICINE
To forget , to not be aware that Krishna, the Supreme Well -wisher is constantly with me , is to be suffering from the root cause of all diseases , namely the disease of maya or illusion. Fortunately , the Supreme Physician , Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu , Krishna Himself , has brought the medicine of mantra to cure that disease of illusion in the form of the constant chanting of the holy names in a humble state of mind - Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5554/Ananda-Vardhana-dasa/What's-Life-Without-Love

in a humble state of mind

The only way I can feel Your loving mercy at every moment my dear Lord , is to always feel myself meek and humble - that is the only way - nothing else attracts You to allow me to be with You .You have kindly descended to this material world in the form of Your holy names , so may I , by Your grace , constantly chant Your holy names in a humble state of mind ,thinking myself lower than the straw in the street , may I be more tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false presige and ready to offer all respects to others. Jaya Gurudeva.Jaya Gauranga. Hare Krishna. Jaya Radhe
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/5554/Ananda-Vardhana-dasa/What's-Life-Without-Love

radio interview - The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe

Here s a link where you can listen to my radio interview on Cape Talk /Radio 702on Sunday 21st November (tomorrow )at 8.30 pm South African time on the Internet. Hope you tune in.How you doing ? Jaya Gauranga . Hare Krishna. Wishing you enduring peace . Andrew Freedman - Ananda Vardhan http://www.capetalk.co.za/onair/tunein/player.asp

Our Highest Attainment

Becoming God-conscious , getting to know and love God -easy to say , yet in one sense quite an overwhelming prospect,a daunting task -that the finite can develop an intimate ,affectionate relationship with the Infinite. Yet on the other hand what could be more natural.In Vrindavana, the Land of Love , these things are possible . So wonderful it is that the greatest lovers of God ,the residents of Vraja-dhama are completely free of any feelings of awe and reverence. Their love for Krishna is so sweet and affectionate . I can only pray to them that one day by their grace I may taste the sweetness of such pure love. Just the descriptions of those loving relationships are themselves so attractive , so far removed from the mundane experience. I can only pray to Gurudeva that my mind become absorbed in thoughts of such descriptions which are "pure and self-enriching ."
And somehow , in a mystical way that treasure of Divine Love has descended to the mundane realm in the form of the congregational chanting of the holy names -golokera premadhana harinam sankirtan -just by chanting these holy names , Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare under proper guidance ,miraculously a change of heart , a softening of the heart will gradually take place , by the grace of Guru and Krishna , and the desire to serve Krishna with affection begins to awaken. That change of heart is a great miracle, that after millions of lifetimes of having an anti-devotional attitude that I should come to the stage of chanting the holy names with love ,giving my heart to Radha and Krishna. Sweet surrender. Lord Caitanya has come to freely distribute that most elevated stage of krishna-prema to the least qualified,the most fallen.The matchless gift.Shrila Sridhar Maharaj says so beautifully,

"The Infinite Lord comes so close to the finite that the finite thinks, “He is one of us.” He plays the part of such nearness – a near friend to us – so much so that we think, “He is one of us.”This is the Lord’s highest grace and kindness towards us. Our highest attainment is also therein His Divine Abode, Vrndavana. "

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN
http:/www.rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6713/Ananda-Vardhan/Nothing-Like-Love
http://www.rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=s&sm=fi&s=Ananda+Vardhan&x=9&y=11
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan

MUSIC VIDEOS
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 - Love is Free
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5xvbLsmDVc - Heavenly Mantra
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6sgLDk2n9o - Nothing Like Love
BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR http://www.purebhakti.com


"When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people
shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who bytheir actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be knownas the warriors of the Rainbow. "(old Native American prophecy)Please join our GROUP Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=147571417624http://purekatha.ning.com/group/madmindmedicinethegaurangarainbowtribe?commentId=687955%3AComment%3A206701&xg_source=msg_com_group

SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM , SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM

WHAT KIND OF FAITH ?

What kind of faith must Arjuna have in Sri Krishna to accept the will of the Lord and kill his own relatives in battle ? Sri Krishna instructs Arjuna - " mam anusmaram uja ca - always remember Me and fight ". Surely that faith is , to say the least , firm , unflinching , beyond doubt. As Arjuna says in the final chapter of Bhagavad-gita "...I am fully prepared to do whatever You expect of me. Just say the word and I shall act ! " BG 18.73 . As we know Sri Krishna and Arjuna emerge victorious in the battle , despite having to fight a far greater army. So wherever there is devotion there is supreme victory - bhakti vijaya . On this the wonderful appearance day of the seventh Gosvami , Shrila Bhaktivinoda Thakur , in the spirit of his wonderful prayers , Sharanagati , I pray that by his grace , I too may be blessed with the spirit of full surrender - atma -nivedanam - and unflinching faith in Sri Guru and Sri Krishna. Hare Krishna

Cradle my soul

Sometimes its not clear what is true and what is not
like stumbling blindly through smoke and dust
holding on to hope and faith.
But I hear that You are always very near ...
its just that I cant always see You
its just that I cant always hear You
its just that I cant always feel Your presence

at those dark times my dear Lord please shine Your loving light
who else but You can cradle my soul ?
Other than Yourself ,who else is my friend ,even when I forget You.Hare Krishna

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://www.rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-Georgehttp://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=s&sm=fi&s=Ananda+Vardhan&x=9&y=11 http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan

MUSIC VIDEOShttp://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 - Love is Freehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5xvbLsmDVc - Heavenly Mantra http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6sgLDk2n9o - Nothing Like Love

BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com/
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR http://www.purebhakti.com/

PERSONAL DELIVERY

All around us ( and inside us ! ) are miracles of existence . Sometimes we get one are two (not that often in my case ) that are marked "Personal Delivery ". They are the " in -your-face -undeniable-miracle" variety that are tailor -made by the Supreme Miracle Maker for one s particular state -of-mind/heart /soul and undeniable even for the most hard-hearted cynic like myself to deny , living proof of the Ever-present , Ever-loving Supreme Divine Person , Shree Krishna and His beloved consort Srimati Radharani , The Ocean of Compassion. "Yes Charlie Brown , there is a God . " Hare Krishna

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://www.rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=s&sm=fi&s=Ananda+Vardhan&x=9&y=11 (full -length previews )http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan

MUSIC VIDEOS
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 - Love is Free
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5xvbLsmDVc - Heavenly Mantra http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6sgLDk2n9o - Nothing Like Love

BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com/
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR http://www.purebhakti.com/

"When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who bytheir actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be knownas the warriors of the Rainbow. "(old Native American prophecy)

Please join our GROUP Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=147571417624
http://purekatha.ning.com/group/madmindmedicinethegaurangarainbowtribe?commentId=687955%3AComment%3A206701&xg_source=msg_com_group
SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM , SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM

Every Breath

EVERY BREATH The so-called comforts and pleasures of this world , are shallow and fleeting , simply " the glamour of external attractions ." Time and again nothing else will do , nothing else will fill the void , except to take shelter of You. You are jana-nivasa - the ultimate resort of all living entities.You have kindly descended to rescue us from this ocean of anxiety in the form of living sound , Your holy names.So I can find you there in Your holy names, feel Your loving comfort there in Your holy names , from one breath to the next.
" Those who desire to be illumined with perfect understanding and to come to the stage of self-mastery should make an offertory of every action and every breath. " Bhagavad-gita Ch.4.27 Hare Krishna

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29(full-length previews

MUSIC VIDEO http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038
BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR http://www.purebhakti.com

"When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of peopleshall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who bytheir actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be knownas the warriors of the Rainbow. "(old Native American prophecy)

Please join our GROUP Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribehttp://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=147571417624http://purekatha.ning.com/group/madmindmedicinethegaurangarainbowtribe?commentId=687955%3AComment%3A206701&xg_source=msg_com_group

SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM , SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM

Your face

"What use the splendor of the worldsYou have put into my heart ?Pale shadows ,these , of Your hidden light ,Blurred outlines of Your true image.Not for me , these; for I yearnto drink of the Source of all sources ,to bathe in the Light of all lights ,to see Your face , Your face. " Psalm 43


Picking sweet Jasmine ,Yesterday Today and Tomorrow , Carnations and other fragrant flowers from our garden to offer to Sri Sri Radha and Krishna. How wonderful it is that They give us such wonderful flowers so that we can offer them back to Them with our love -and the flowers make advancement as well ! So naturally perfect . Krishna is so expert in making flowers - so colorful , so pretty , so fragrant . Reminded that another name of Krishna is Mukunda because His smiling face is just like the beautiful kunda flower which appears to be smiling.May we all be struck by Krishna s pushpabanaya , His flower- arrows of Divine Love .Hare Krishna




SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29(full-length previews

MUSIC VIDEO http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038
BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR http://www.purebhakti.com

"When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of peopleshall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who bytheir actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be knownas the warriors of the Rainbow. "(old Native American prophecy)

Please join our GROUP Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe

http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=147571417624http://purekatha.ning.com/group/madmindmedicinethegaurangarainbowtribe?commentId=687955%3AComment%3A206701&xg_source=msg_com_group

SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM , SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM

Unimaginable Good Fortune

Personally I dont know Shree Radhika or Shree Krishna but for some time I have heard from those who do know Them -namely my spiritual masters. Their descriptions of the Supreme Divine Couple are most wondeful and I have some faith in their words. So I will go on hearing from them. Those descriptions in themselves are also most wonderful. Somehow or other in this dark corner of the universe the light of transcendental knowledge is now shining ,dissipating the darkness of ignorance in my heart ,revealing the reality of life in Vrindavana , the transcendental abode of Sri Sri Radha and Krishna and Their eternal associates. This most confidential knowledge is now being freely distributed by the grace of Lord Caitanya. Somehow or other the unhappy life of this world is coming to an end and by unimaginable good fortune we are entering a Golden Age of spiritual enlightenment by the simple process of sankirtan , the congregational chanting of the holy names of God. So I will take one day at a time , one breath at a time ,step by step striving for the perfection of life and love , and my dear spiritual masters assure me that the day will come when I will know Shree Shree Radha and Krishna and immerse myself eternally in an ocean of love for Them.This is Their wish for all of us.This is the purpose of life.Jaya Gurudeva.Hare Krishna

love and respects Ananda Vardhan

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 (MUSIC VIDEO)

BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTARhttp://www.purebhakti.com

The Beauty and Sweetness of Krishna

Think of someone who is always there for you - forever and ever
Think of someone who is the most attractive person in all creation
the most beautiful
the most famous
the most wealthy
the most wise
the most powerful
the most renounced

who is prema-niketana , the reservoir of all love
who is navina nirada , the colour of a fresh rain cloud
who is rupa manohara , whose form is enchanting
think of your nearest and dearest friend
think of sweet Krishna , the transcendental cowherd boy , the player of the flute who wears a peacock feather crown

think of Radha and Krishna
the eternally youthful Supreme Divine Couple
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare ,Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

The work unethical

So hard to find people who enjoy what they do, their " work "
the "work " word , if it had a colour ,would definitely be grey for me...definitely no fun
what you "got " to do -
what you "should" do
what "good " citizens do
what you "got " to do when you grow-up
in other words its what happens , no question -just got to go to "work "
5 days a week youre dead and the remaining 2 , get wasted so that you forget the next week -

thats the material world

I would rather get a life than get a "job"

so different to what I hear is going on in the spiritual world
a thrill at every moment
serving Radha and Krishna with great love and affection
eternally

Millions of suns

Since we are qualitatively one with the Supreme Soul, Sri Krishna , who is completely independent , therefore we individual souls have minute independence , or freedom of choice , free will . To misuse that independence , to try to exist independent of Krishna , is to lose our illumination , like a spark that falls away from the fire . That darkened condition of the soul is to be in maya ,or illusion , covered by the darkness of ignorance , thinking that one has a life separate from Krishna. Although the soul has more power than millions of suns , conditioned souls ,under the spell of the illusory energy are described as sleeping. Shrila Prabhupada compares the activities of such conditioned souls to fish caught in a net - the net of illusory energy. They are not free , therefore all their activities are useless .They have forgotten their original constitutional position ,their eternal nature i.e eternal servant of Krishna. All their attempts to be free , to be happy, yield only illusory freedom , illusory happiness. So to be released from that net and to truly " breathe the atmosphere of freedom" and to "experience infinite wisdom and total satisfaction " (Bhagavad-gita ) is to be awakened from the sleep on the lap of the witch called Maya. The pure transcendental sound vibration Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare , the sound incarnation of God , will wake us up to eternal ,knowledgeable ,blissful life , our normal ,happy condition of life ,engaged exclusively in the eternal loving service of Sri Sri Radha-Krishna in Vrindavan .



SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full lenght reviews )

Bhakti-devi

In the ocean of birth and death
battered by the waves of illusion

helpless

rescue me sweet Saviour Sri Gurudeva
with your mercy grace
take me to that safe place
that sacred space
beyond fear
beyond lamentation
beyond birth and death

take me to Sri Vrindavana-dham
that Holy Abode
where Sri Krishna herds the cows ,playing the flute
so loving and gentle
in forests filled with flowers and birds that fill the air with the fragrance and sounds of Divine Love
where Bhakti devi reigns supreme
pleasing Krishna with Her bright smiling,
restless eyes,charming speech,
Karuna-mayi
always full of mercy.
Have mercy on me Shrimati Radharani
Have mercy on me.
Jaya Radhe

"I glorify again and again Krishna s dearly prized twelve forests, where armies of intoxicated bees buzz about masses of fragrant flowers. These forests are splendid with many desire trees and wish-fulfilling creepers, and are further beautified by many expansive lakes,rivers and large hills . "Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami - Sri Vraja-Vilasa-Stava

state of the heart

state of the art
state of the heart

facelift
soullift

such a topsy-turvy world

trying to find a place in the sun
trying to make peace with everyone

O pure devotee please show me the way

guiding light , shining bright
take me through darkest night

Jaya Gurudeva
Jaya Gauranga
Hare Krishna

All is well

Listening to your sweet transcendental voice I feel all is well.
Your love is unending, unlimited,unconditional
saying to me that I am loved forever , no matter what -
no matter how many times I falter on the path
no matter how many times I turn away from you
all is well.
Please by your grace may I desire to serve your dear devotees
Jaya Gurudeva

Rainbow Avatar

Hail the Rainbow Comet, Lord Gauranga ,the Rainbow Avatar !

You are destroying the darkness of ignorancebringing colour divine to this grey universefulfillling the promises of all great mystics , saints and scripturesfreely distributing ecstatic love of Godhead , which is ordinarily verydifficult to obtain.

Hail the Rainbow Comet ,Lord Gauranga , the Rainbow Avatar !

"When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who bytheir actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be known as the warriors of the Rainbow. "(old Native American prophecy)

Please join our group Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=147571417624
http://purekatha.ning.com/group/madmindmedicinethegaurangarainbowtribe?commentId=687955%3AComment%3A206701&xg_source=msg_com_group

SHREE GAURANGA JAYA GAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM , SHREE GAURANGA JAYAGAURANGA GAUR GAURANGA NAAM

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-Georgehttp://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29(full-length previews )

MUSIC VIDEO http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=14522558215803 BLOG http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTARhttp://www.purebhakti

Surrender

"I surrender unto the performer of miraculous deeds Sri Krishna Chaitanya the Supreme Personality who delivered the insane universe from the disease of ignorance & then drove the world stark mad with the nectarean treasure of His sweet love divine"' Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam , Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam

Ocean of Truth

Been out in the wilderness oh so long
hard to believe I m going home

been fighting the tide oh so long
hard to believe I m going home

been feeling alone oh so long
hard to believe I m going home

hard to believe in my good fortune
hard to believe in the reality of Radha and Krishna
Reality the Beautiful

Time to swim in The Ocean of Truth
Time to swim in The Ocean of Grace
Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu
Causeless mercy
Hare Krishna

Perfection of Love

Such a journey this is
day after day
year after year
lifetime after lifetime
striving for the perfection of love
the Supreme Destination
the Land of Dedication
Shree Vrindavana -dhama -
the eternal loving service of the Supreme Divine Couple
Sri Sri Radha -Krishna

love and respects Andrew - Ananda Vardhana dasa

When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who by their actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be known as the warriors of the Rainbow. (old Native American prophecy)

Please join our group Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=147571417624


SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 (MUSIC VIDEO)

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com/

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTARhttp://www.purebhakti.com/

Soul comfort and Sweet surrender

Strange how we sometimes think that things can bring us happiness and security - clothes ,furniture , swimming pools, jewelry, cars , houses, ,yachts , private jets, private islands , or even conquering the world - the list is endless - although we are not things . Such is the power of maya , the illusory energy of the Lord. We are not these "mechanical and mundane" bodies ( Bhagavad-gita ) rather we are "spontaneous and spiritual " , indestructible , eternal ,sub-atomic spiritual personalities , one-ten thousandth the size of a tip of a hair , also known as the soul ,situated in the region of the heart .Things are temporary and therefore can give only temporary material so-called pleasure and false security , while we , the living entities are eternal and therefore will only be satisfied with soul comfort , param drishtva , the higher taste , that which gives eternal , ever-increasing happiness , namely the eternal , ecstatic loving service to the Supreme Divine Couple , Sri Sri Radha and Krishna in Vrindavana , the Land of Love.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

pure love can only be ignored for so long but it will have its way
and it doesnt go away
so better to surrender to pure love
sooner than later
better to surrender to Sri Krishna
prema-niketana
the reservoir of Divine Love,
the Lord with the butter-soft heart.
Hare Krishna



SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 (MUSIC VIDEO)

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTARhttp://www.purebhakti.com

Sri Guru -karuna -sindhu

Dont mind if its heaven , dont mind if its hell
dont mind if we feast , dont mind if we fast
dont mind if its hot , dont mind if its cold
dont mind if its stone , dont mind if its gold
Just allow me to be with You


When O when will that day be mine,
when by the grace of Sri Guru Karuna-sindhu
I will properly honour all living beings
and be equal in pleasure and pain
only attached to the holy names.

Hare Krishna. Radhe Radhe



SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

Such a journey this is
day after day
year after year
lifetime after lifetime
striving for the perfection of love
the Supreme Destination
the Land of Dedication
Shree Vrindavana -dhama -
the eternal loving service of the Supreme Divine Couple
Sri Sri Radha -Krishna



When the earth is ravaged and the animals are dying, a new tribe of people shall come unto the earth from many colors, classes, creeds, and who by their actions and deeds shall make the earth green again. They will be known as the warriors of the Rainbow. (old Native American prophecy)

Please join our group Mad Mind Medicine -The Gauranga Rainbow Tribe
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=147571417624


SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038 (MUSIC VIDEO)

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

General amnesty

No more anger , no more shame
hold on tight to the holy name ,
Lord Gauranga our only hope
specially for those who just cant cope

Who can imagine where we would be
without His grace we just cant see ,
out on the streets we need to be
chanting His name in ecstacy

From Maya s prison to set us free
He declared general amnesty
A tidal wave of love He brings
now our souls can truly sing

O Lord my heart is cold and hard like ice -
no tears for me when I chant Your holy names ,
still You gave me a glimpse , a taste
now please do not neglect me

love and respects Andrew Freedman - Ananda Vardhana dasa



SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

MERCY RAYS

Thought you might like to check out the music video of my song Love is Free
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/video/video.php?v=145225582158038

Gaura -Nitai have arisen like the sun and the moon
removing the gloom , O you prophets of doom

Their mercy rays shining in the darkest of nights,
this Age of Kali with its trouble and fights

bringing the Golden Age
bringing peace
bringing love to all
bringing the holy names
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Nitai Gaurapremanande Hari Haribol !!

love and respects - Andrew Freedman -Ananda Vardhana dasa



SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com
FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

THE GREAT CALM

The extraordinary thing about Vrindavana , the topmost planet in the spiritual universe , is that everyone there is madly in love with Krishna. Here are a couple of many such beautiful descriptions of Divine Love .

"O friend ,the birds of Vrindavana are actually sages. They have taken positions on the branches of trees that have new and fresh leaves from where they can easily have darshana (audience ) of Sri Krishna. Sitting there and hearing the sweet vibratrions of His flute , they close their eyes and become immersed in divine bliss. " Shrimad-Bhagavatam 10.21.14

" May we always be protected by Nanda Maharaj s younger brother , Sannanda ,whose complexion is golden and whose beard is black; who is tender,generous and affectionate; who is deeply devoted to his older brother s feet; who is the father of Sunanda-gopi; who is the master of a great herd of buffalo; and who worships his nephew Madhava (Krishna) with every breath and pleases Him by giving Him palatable dishes made with buffalo yoghurt. " Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami. Sri - Vraj -Vilasa-Stava

Interesting that although Krishna is the Supreme Lord and possesses all attractive qualities like wealth , strength, beauty , knowledge , fame and renunciation unlimitedly ,and therefore could be very proud , nevertheless He is humble. For example He personally washes the feet of guests. Its also interesting that although He is the Supreme Controller , nevertheless He Himself is controlled by the love of His devotees , especially the love of His most beloved Shrimati Radharani , who is situated at the topmost level of ecstatic love and who therefore always keeps Krishna under Her control.

All this time searching for the great calm ,
deep peace -
now I know its at Your Lotus Feet

Hare Krishna

IMAGINE A WORLD
Imagine a world without locks and keys
imagine a world with desire trees

Imagine a world without anger and hate
imagine a world with an ecstacy rate

Imagine a world where people dont hoot
because all you can hear is Krishna s flute

Imagine a world made of jewels not clay
where people love saying Radhe Radhe

Imagine a world with water so pure
that its conscious and loving and will always endure

Imagine a world without poisoned oceans
where everyones busy with their devotions

Imagine a world where theres no shortage of love.

I am happy to know such a world does exist
this is no tale with a terrible twist

Sri Guru is leading us there
blissful life in Vrindavana for us all to share

Hare Krishna - Ananda Vardhana dasa- Andrew Freedman

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.
http://www.radiokrishna.com/rkc_archive_new/index.php?q=f&f=%2FNew+Music+%28High+Quality%29 (full-length previews )

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

ya Prabhupada !

Heres an interesting story. This last weekend I went to a local nursery and was wearing a small badge with Shrila Prabhupada s picture. As I walked out into the parking lot one of the carguards sees me and says "Prabhupada !" so I say "Hare Krishna " to him and he says "Hare Krishna Andrew Freedman " (my name ) . I coudnt believe he said my name so I asked him " How do you know my name ? " He says " I heard you on the radio about 5 years ago ! " So I say " Thats amazing that you remember my name but how did you know I am the person you heard on the radio ? " He says , and laughs " I just knew . " So I ask him how he heard about Krishna and he says he went to a second-hand bookshop in Seapoint and saw a picture of Shrila Prabhupada on the cover of Science of Sel-Realisation and he felt "This man is a master , he looks so humble " so he bought the book and also Shrimad-Bhagavatam and Laws of Nature. His name is Anderson and he is a refugee from Congo and a qualified dietician. I invited him to come to our Bhagavad-gita group and he bought a Tulasi necklace from me and I gave him a copy od Shrila Gurudeva s Way of Love. He kept on saying "Shrila Prabhupada is a great master , very rare soul. " So wonderful how Shrila Prabhupada reaches out to sincere souls everywhere , touching their hearts , bringing them to Krishna. His books are indeed conscious. Beautiful , compassionate Prabhupada. Hare Krishna.


SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

Who is Content ?

In this world there are unlimited ways to try and accumulate wealth. How much is enough ? Just over five hundred years ago ,Lord Gauranga , the Golden Avatar descended to distribute the holy names and His prominent disciples the six Gosvamis were very happy living under a tree and having a little buttermilk each day.Our society trains us up to do the opposite - accumulate as many material possesions as possible and that will increase your happiness in direct proportion. But the sad fact is that , like a poor animal chasing the mirage of water in the desert , never to have its thirst quenched , only to become exhausted - similarly the pursuit of riches will never satisfy the soul s thirst for unlimited happiness. That is maya , illusion , one of the four defects of a conditioned soul.
Fortunately Sri Guru , the Lords confidential associate comes to this world and shows us the way to a life of real happiness as distinct from the illusion. He , unlike us , has none of the four defects. He is neither illusioned,he doesnt commit mistakes , his senses are not imperfect and he doesnt cheat. Under his loving guidance we can begin to experience a life without anxiety , a life based on the "sublime and precious truth " , namely that our real life is in Vrindavana , The Land of Love , with Sri Sri Radha and Krishna. No amount of effort to be happy in the material world without Them will be successful. No amount of money is ever enough.

sa vai pumsam paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhoksaje
ahaituky apratihata yayatma suprasidati

"The topmost dharma of human life is krishna-bhakti.This bhakti (devotion ) should be unconditional ,without any kind of selfish desires,regular and uninterrupted. By performing bhakti in this manner , one s heart feels contented , perceiving the blissful form of Sri Krishna."Shrimad Bhagavatam 1.2.6

Remembering how my Guruji said that as the river of devotional service becomes stronger , it washes away all obstacles and flows unimpeded ..... Jaya Gurudeva

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

Hare Krishna

Unconditional Love

My dear Lord Krishna, kind and merciful friend, you know just how much I remain attached to the temporary material world with all its false attractions , yet nevertheless You continue to give Me your Holy Names and the guidance and love of Your pure devotees , ever-patient , calling me to join You in the transcendental abode , Goloka Vrindavana.Thank You for never giving up on me despite my stubborn , foolish mentality. Your love is certainly unconditional. Your name is Krishna , the All -Attractive .Please attract me as well with Your beauty and sweetness and may I be engaged in the eternal loving service of Your most beloved Shrimati Radharani , Karuna-mayi, whose " heart is like a fathomless reservoir that is overflowing with compassion. " Jaya Radhe jaya Krishna jaya Vrindavana.

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

WORDS OF POWER - SACRED SUNSHINE

WORDS OF POWER by Bhakti Vijaya Tirtha Maharaj ( Liverpool, 1984 )

So the Holy Names of God are the supreme words of power. If we study the ancient traditions, if we seek out amongst the natural healers, the medicine people of the native tribes their so-called shamans, we'll find that all of them have their special words of power which they reveal only to the selected few. But by the grace of the Supreme Shaman, Lord Chaitanya who appeared five hundred years ago in Bengal ,the supreme words of power are available to everybody. One doesn't have to go into the Amazon or in search of the lost babajis in the Himalayas and so forth. Anyone, even in the midst of Liverpool , has access to the highest transcendental vibration simply by repeating the Holy Names of God. Actually God has thousands of millions of names and in each one of these names the full potency of God is invested. Just like we can understand inside of a single atom so much power is somehow or another concentrated by divine potency so we can understand that within each recitation of the Holy Name of Krishna all of the power of God Himself is present. The Holy Name of Krishna, the Holy Name of Christ, the Holy Name of Allah - all of these Holy Names bring with them the full power of the Godhead. But of course the potency to which one will feel the presence of the Godhead in the Holy Name will be in direct proportion to the degree of full devotion, full surrender, which exists in the individual heart. So if we want to try to advance along the bath back to home, back to Godhead, then we have to make our hearts more and more receptive to the all-bountiful mercy of the Lord and to make it more and more of a suitable abode for the Lord. Of course within the heart of everyone the Supreme Divine Person is residing, just as within every atom in fact He's residing. But if we want to access Him there, access Her/Him there then we have to take refuge of devotional love because that's the language which God understands. So we can try to sing a little bit more together one very powerful name of God, the Holy Name of Gauranga which is perhaps the supreme word of power in any language, in all languages - the supreme word of power the Holy Name of Gauranga. In this age especially it's recommended that everyone should try to participate in the singing congregationally of the Holy Name of Lord Gauranga, the golden-limbed Supreme Person, the source of all emanations.

SACRED SUNSHINE

Pretense, defense and all other kinds of nonsense - all bricks in the wall of illusion , trying to keep out the love -
such a weight to bear , such a lonely road to no-where -
but Gaurasundara has come , the Golden Mountain of Divine Love
to set us free -
free to feel sacred sunshine in the core of our hearts.
Jaya Sacinandana Gaurahari.

Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam , Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

If I Really Love You

If I really love you what will I say , what will I do ?
Is it good enough to wish you well or or even say " I do " ?

If I really love you what will I say , what will I do ?
Is it good enough to shower you with gifts and promise to be true ?

If I really love you what will I say , what will I do ?
Is it good enough to promise you the earth and even heaven too ?

If I really love you what will I say ,what will I do ?
I will speak about the matchless gift
I will share with you what I treasure most
I will speak of Krishna
I will share whatever love I have for Him with you
If I really love you.


SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

The Invincible One

When the demons of doubt and delusion come strutting their stuff on the stage of my mind with their subtle tricks - trying to deceive, to turn out the lights , to convince me that there is no sun
then I say to them beware - my friend Krishna , the Invincible One , now guards the fort of my mind , vanquishing all aggressors. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN http://purekatha.ning.com/profile/AnandaVardhanadasa

http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

LOVE ENOUGH

Just thinking how wonderful it is that all souls throughout creation have one thing in common - we all have the most intimate, ecstatic ,loving relationship with the same Supreme Divine Couple, Yugala -Kishora , Shree Shree Radha and Krishna in Vrindavan and They are our life and soul. How wonderful it is that They reciprocate individually with each one of us in the most loving and personal way despite there being so many of us ! They have more than enough love to give to all of us - so how loving They must be ! Inconceivable . " Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami prays , " Hearing the beautiful sound of Shrimati Radhika playing Her Kacchapi vina accompanied by Shree Krishna playing His Murali flute , the most enchanting , best of deer become stunned with rapture. With half-chewed grass hanging from their mouths and with deep feelings of friendship , they surround Yugala- Kishora , looking up to gaze upon Their lotus faces . May these charming deer . who are full of love for Shree Yugala , give us the treasure of their ecstatic love and thus delight us at every moment. " Sri - Vraja - Vilasa- Stava.Happy day brothers and sisters. " The supreme law of life is pure love. " Bhagavad-gita. Hare Krishna

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA SPECIAL NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

Gladwrap

Like sadwrap loneliness comes around -
an illusion to be sure ,
just a wayward mind gone off track.
Chant Your holy names
and then its clear
You are right here with me
none so near and dear.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

SONGS FROM ANANDA VARDHAN
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

FOR EXTRA NECTAR
http://www.purebhakti.com

Excavating our real desires

Although so many people in this world are homeless and starving its foolish to think that if they could simply have homes and food that we would have a happy society. Affluent societies still go to war. As Sri Krishna explains in Bhagavad-gita , under the influence of the binding force of nature s mode of passion , the soul is afflicted with "insatiable desire " which translates as frustration - no satisfaction , despite unlimited material prosperity both as individuals and in society at large. This should come as no surprise. After all , the Bible says that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God , which of course also means that God is a person , namely Krishna ,who speaks , and that His words are the source of nourishment and satisfaction for every soul. Our crazy society unfortunately misinforms us with the notion that all you need is money , not love, not Krishna , to be happy and we are provided with unlimited ways to spend that money with the false promise that this is all we need -that happiness comes from without , not from within.

In this mornings reading of Bhagavad-gita the following verse caught my attention. " A great many souls have already come to the stage of taking full shelter in Me , having been purified by penance and the cultivation of perfect understanding. Freed from all false attachments, anxieties and frustrations, they reached the Absolute Reality of My transcendental , loving nature . " Bg Ch. 4.10.Elsewhere also in Bhagavad -gita Sri Krishna advises on the importance of " ...carefully guarding the consciousness against exploitative motivations and false attractions . "

I am grateful that my beloved spiritual masters have come to give me the positive alternative - bhakti-yoga. They are pure devotees of Sri Sri Radha and Krishna. Pure means no material desires , no attraction for anything else except the eternal loving service of the Supreme Divine Couple. I pray that one day I may , by their grace , get off the mental platform and come to have that higher taste , param drishtva , and absorb myself in the reality of Radha and Krishna. "When we see the devotional practice of previous great practitioners of devotion, we become a little hopeless. We have only one hope - the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu (who is Krishna Himself) is flowing everywhere, and even one drop can drown us." Jaya Shrila Gurudeva ! Jaya Gauranga ! May we all drown in that tidal wave of love of God , Krishna-prema !

Vrindavana Life - The Natural Way

Some days when I ve got that fragile feeling , its good to know I have that place to go inside my heart where You are always giving me Your sweet company so loving and serene.

For so long I have been trying to make plans to enjoy , but those plans have not included Krishna. All such plans are full of anxiety . Will I get what I want ? Will something happen to disturb my plan ? Will someone not co-operate with my plan etc etc.The process of Krishna consciousness is teaching me that such attempts are not the natural way - it is better to depend on Krishna. Certainly it is the nature of the soul to want to experience ever-increasing , unending happiness and pleasure - ananda - but I am learning that such a life exists only with Krishna , only with Radha and Krishna , the ever -youthful Divine Couple in Vrindavana , the Land of Love.
Describing that place , Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami says " Even today Sri Madhava (Krishna ) enjoys the sweet nectar of transcendental patimes there , lovingly herding the cows with His brother Baladeva and His dearly beloved sakhas (friends ).The astonishing sweetness of this place appears in the hearts of the rasika devotees. I take shelter of Vraja (Vrindavana ) , which is more precious even than Mathura. " He goes on to say " I worship Madhava s fortunate associates who consider the vast ocean of their own happiness to be as insignificant as a blade of grass , and who ,filled with pure love for Sri Krishna , the enemy of the Mura demon,always lovingly and humbly strive to increase His happiness. "
So better to surrender to Sri Sri Radha Krishna , to Their sweet will , to trying to please them by trying to please Their dearly beloved , my eternal spiritual master , Their most confidential associate. Such surrender begins with surrendering my mind -giving up its plan-making habit and simply chanting Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. As Sri Krishna confirms in Bhagavad -gita , " By absorbing their minds in full consciousness of Me, My divine servants experience transcendental pleasure of the highest order.With passions calmed,they achieve freedom from blame and come to perceive the Supreme Divine Person face to face. " Ch.6.27. May we all drown in His Ocean of Grace.

SONGS BY ANANDA VARDHAN ( ANDREW FREEDMAN )
http://rhythmmusicstore.com/music/6135/Ananda-Vardhan/Song-For-George
http://www.last.fm/music/Ananda+Vardhan ( full-length previews )
http://cdbaby.com/cd/AnandaVardhan1
http://www.adventurebootcamp.co.za/soul.php5.

blog http://www.goldenlava.blogspot.com

http://www.purebhakti.com

Causeless Mercy

"May the Supreme Personality of Godhead in the form of Lord Sri Chaitanya ( Lord Gauranga) bestow His causeless mercy upon us.His smiling glance at once drives away all bereavements of the world ,and His very words enliven the auspicious creepers of devotion by expanding their leaves.Taking shelter of His lotus feet invokes transcendental love of God at once." Sri Caitanya-caritamrita.

WE ARE WHAT WE EAT

We can feed on bitterness
we can feed on hate
we can feed on anger
and stay irate

we can feed on forgiveness
we can feed on love
we can feed on tolerance
be a gentle dove

we can feed on conflict
we can feed on fear
we can feed on loneliness
like a grizzly bear

we can feed on spirit
we can feed on prayer
we can feed on hope
feeling You always , very near

Hare Krishna

Heartsoftener

This morning Mr. Shyam dasa ,(see in the attached picture with my very dear
friend Swami Sajjan ) one of two cats , (the other is Mr. Ram
dasa ) who have moved in to our Milnerton ashram ,woke me up quite early by
licking my nose...indicating it was time to get up and give him breakfast.
He used to bite my nose as well but hearing all these mantras playing every
day seems to be softening his heart so now he goes gently with me. Most of
us use fabric softener ... I highly recommend mantra heart-softener as well
as part of the daily routine.
I am also grateful to Krishna for devising such a cute ,gentle plan for
getting me out of bed , especially on cold mornings. He is indeed the "
kind
and gentle Lord . " May He always pierce our hearts with His pushpabanaya,
flower -arrows of love. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare P.S. Mr. Shyam dasa is also biting
his younger "brother " Mr. Ram dasa a LOT less than before !

The Real World

Sometimes I hear people refer to the "real world " meaning the world of harsh realities . In other words they are saying that an ideal world doesnt exist - better just to face up to the less than perfect one, which they believe is all there is. Not everyone agrees with that point of view however. In Bhagavad-gita , Sri Krishna tells us about that eternal spiritual universe , Vaikuntha , the place of no anxiety , where the residents experience a thrill at every moment and are tasting full nectar at every step in their ecstatic loving relationship with Radha and Krishna , in the topmost planet Goloka Vrindavana .These are not simply flowery words but authentic descriptions validated by self-realized souls , eternal residents of that eternal region who kindly descend to this mortal plane to enlighten us - to give us light, to dissipate the darkness of ignorance. So their revealing descriptions of that real world are so wonderful, so beautiful ,so perfect, so attractive and, most wonderfully ,just by hearing these supermundane descriptions with faith from them ,we become eligible to enter that Divine Realm. Here is one such description given by Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami . " I worship these cows , the daughters of Surabhi , who are always eager to engage Vrajendra-nandana (Krishna ) , Balarama, Sridama and the other cowherd boys in the joyful , daily festival of taking them out to graze and milking them.Worshiped by Krishna and all the sakhas (friends ) , they cover the boys and themselves with a mist of sparkling snow-like dust raised by their hooves as , filled with love, they roam around the dense forests, high mountains and river banks of Vraja . " His Divine Grace Shrila Sridhar Maharaj uses the term "Reality the Beautiful " to describe that region and its residents, who are blessed with " infinite wisdom and total satisfaction." So I have some faith in the truth of these descriptions. Shrila Prabhupada calls it our "normal, happy condition of life. " So its normal to be happy. If I look around here seeing all the unhappy statistics of this unhappy world , we are definitely not in the normal condition of life. Nevertheless I am encouraged and grateful for the example and instructions of my most compassionate spiritual masters who are leading us home , back to Godhead, to the Real World. May I be engaged in their eternal loving service.Hare Krishna

Simply pleasing you

In 1979 I began chanting Hare Krishna. So having chanted for over 30 years I sometimes ask myself - is anything different , has anything changed ? Yesterday the thought occurred to me that the most obvious change is my view on life itself. Before coming to Krishna consciousness I wasnt sure what the purpose of life was , especially my own life , or in fact whether there was any purpose at all . I wasnt focused , wasnt motivated - it was more about getting by day-to-day , trying to be happy without any sense of the bigger picture. These days , although it isnt always plain sailing ,I am focused , I do have a sense of purpose . I am convinced that the purpose of my life is to come to know and love God, Krishna ,and that there is no other purpose .There is a nice verse in Bhagavad-gita which relates to this idea, chapter 2:41, in which Sri Krishna says to Arjuna, " Those of strong faith have only one object of contemplation whereas the intelligence of those who lack spiritual determination is divided into many branches. " So having a little realization of this param gatim ,supreme objective, its now about perseverance on the path. As my Guruji , Vijaya Acharya said , its like having found gold - one then just needs to keep digging - just need to keep chanting Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare under the guidance of my beloved spiritual masters. The following is a little poem I dedicated to them

Here s a list of things to do - we ve all got our own - of things that make us happy - of things we knew already and some that we got shown

Cycling, snorkeling,swimming,walking in the rain - keeping pets and shopping ,and patting baby tigers , provided they are tame

The list goes on forever - we all know its true - but nothings quite as nice as simply pleasing you.
Jaya Gurudeva

Amazing

Its amazing that although locked up in time and space in one tiny corner of this dark material universe ,I have nevertheless got to hear about a planet called Goloka Vrindavan which is the shape of a giant lotus flower in the spiritual universe. Time has no influence there - there is only the eternal present so the residents live in an immortal region , beyond birth and death. Most remarkable is that everything there is fully conscious - the land , the trees , the rivers and of course the birds , animals and millions of cowherd boys and girls ,all of whom are fully devoted to the loving service of the Supreme Divine Couple , the eternally youthful ,Sri Sri Radha and Krishna . Its amazing to think that there is such a place where life is so blissful , so harmonious, so care-free and which ,I am told ,is my real home, my real life.So it sounds wonderful ,almost too good to be true as the saying goes and yet the evidence is overwhelming that it is for real . So many great scriptures , so many great saints and sages , transcendental spacemen like Naradi Muni , and our beloved spiritual masters down to the present day testify that although beyond our mundane vision, this transcendental eternal abode certainly exists and that they have descended to this mundane universe to take us home. After millions of lifetimes here they are saying that our material life is over , that by the grace of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the Golden Avatar , we are all on our way home , released from this dungeon of repeated birth and death. Lord Gauranga is freely distributing ecstatic divine love which is ordinarily very difficult to obtain.This is the ultimate Exodus , this is unimaginable good fortune . Jai Sacinandana Gaurahari

The Nectar Zone

So somehow or other to stay on the spiritual platform - to stay in the "zone of nectar " , that is my daily challenge, despite the ups and downs of the material world. On that platform there is no anxiety , no ill-feeling ,no misgivings ,no doubts. That is the platform of truth as opposed to illusion , the truth being that I am pure spirit soul , eternal servant of Krishna; illusion being that I am this body and everything in relationship to this body is mine.The only way to stay on that platform in this Kali -yuga, this age of quarrel and hypocrisy is, in Lord Caitanya s words - kirtaniyah sada hari - to always chant the holy names Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare . There is no other way. This Kali -yuga is likened to an ocean of faults - everything is contaminated. The only good thing is the chanting of the holy names - golokera premadhana harinam sankirtan - the treasure of divine love has descended from Goloka, the spiritual realm , in the form of the holy names. So I pray to my eternal spiritual masters for a humble state of mind, for more tolerance than a tree, so that by their grace, I may have an ever-increasing taste for the hearing and chanting of the holy names - that is my only hope.

Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami prays , " The name of Radha is unprecedented, beautiful and enchanting like nectar.The name of Krishna is delicious like condensed milk. O my tongue , O you who are faint with hunger , please constantly drink these two unprecedented substances , which are made delightful by the ice of fragrant anuraga ." May Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami have mercy on me and bless me with steady progress on the path of Radha-Krishna consciousness

A gentle understanding

Thanks for the lovely quote, unconditional love indeed ..although at the
same time inconceivable to me to try and comprehend Gods love , especially
His causeless mercy in rescuing us from this ocean of birth and death.
Equally inconceivable to me is the fact that although He is all-powerful
nevertheless He is the most humble. Reminded also of the words in Bhagavad-
gita ... " the supreme law of life is pure love.... "Also brings to mind a
lovely description by Shrila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, " Sometimes Krishna
feeds the calves , lovingly placing small bunches of tender grass in their
mouths , and sometimes He gently scratches and rubs their bodies. Oh , how I
yearn to one day see Krishna s calves jumping and frolicking in Vrindavana.
" Krishna is after all bhakta-vatsala ... one who is affectionate to His
devotees and prema -niketana ...the reservoir of love... so since He is the
reservoir of love , how can we know the unlimited nature of that love ?
(Talking of matters divine have you heard a song by Sinon Webbe called
Grace ....really beautiful. )
Neither for that matter do I have any real comprehension of causeless mercy.
Suffice to know that especially for the neophyte like me .." the mercy IS
the Holy Names " as Bhakti Vijaya said. I remember also Shrila Prabhupada
saying "... Krishna consciousness is not an artificial imposition on the
mind ", the Vedic understanding being that I ,the soul am eternally pure ,it
is only my consciousness which has become impure , because I am Krishna s
marginal energy and I can come under the control of maya-shakti , His
external, illusory energy at which time my consciousness becomes polluted ,
forgetful of my divine, pure nature. By Krishna s causeless mercy and that
of His pure representative , dormant krishna -prema , love of Krishna ,is
awakened. Jiv jago -wake up sleeping soul !
With your kind permission I would like to post your quote and comment and my
response on my blog. Haribol



'Wherever you are in your development, whatever you are doing, with a
strong affirmation of all your goodness and good deeds, with a gentle
understanding of your weakness, God is forever loving you. You do not have
to change, grow, or be good in order to be loved. Rather, you are loved so
that you can change, grow, and be good.'
- John Powell in 'Fully Human, Fully Alive'.
(If the author believes this as a Jesuit, how much more so those who are
aligned to causeless Mercy!) Hare Krishna. Bhakta Felix

APES OR DEMIGODS - WHICH ARE OUR ANCESTORS ?

Apes or Demigods – which are our ancestors?



Remember when the world was flat? Well,no,not really ,but most people believed it was- until science proved otherwise. Most people nowadays believe their ancestors were apes- but science now tells us otherwise. Thats according to Dr. Richard Thompson, a graduate of Cornell University and Michael Cremo ,an investigative journalist and research associate of The Bhaktivedanta Institue, co-authors of the book Forbidden Archeology-The Hidden History of the Human Race.The book is a collection and analysis of archeological reports from around the world of findings of bones and artifacts such as stone tools and utensils.So after eight years of research published in over nine hundred pages ,what do the authors conclude ? To quote "Over the past two centuries, researchers have found bones and artifacts showing that people like ourselves existed on earth millions of years ago. But the scientific establishment has suppressed,ignored,or forgotten these remarkable facts.Why ? Because they contradict dominant views of human origins and antiquity."The book comes highly recommended by top academics such as Dr. Phillip E. Johnson, University of California,author of Darwin on Trial,Dr. Pierce J. Flynn,Department of Arts and Science,California State University, San Marcos and Dr. Siegfried Scherer, Institute for Microbiology,Technical University of Munich, Germany. The World Congress of Archeologists asked one of the co-authors , Michael Cremo, to present a paper on the book at its fourth annual congress at the University of Cape Town. The book documents around 150 archeological reports that are all saying the same thing- our ancestors were not apes. So whose idea was it that our great grandparents high up in the family tree were apes? His name was Charles Darwin and in 1879 he published a book called The Origin of Species in which he proposed the theory of evolution whereby one species evolved into the next starting with the simplest of life forms up to the most complex,the human species. The followers of Darwin therefore believe that apes evolved into humans and that they did so on our doorstep , 40 kilometres west of Johannesburg in the area best known as Sterkfontein which has therefore come to be called The Cradle of Civilzation due to the number of hominid fossils discovered in that area.On the basis of such findings the Darwinians claim that uncivilized humans first evolved around 40 000 years ago.Next time you visit your doctor, why not ask him the question “Where do we come from?” More than likely he will reply that we come from the apes. That’s because current theory of the origins of man is based on Darwin’s theory of evolution. Wits Medical School, arguably the most prestigious in South Africa, teaches Darwin’s theory to it’s students. So what to speak of us mere mortals- dare we believe otherwise?


Certainly according to Thompson and Cremo and the archeological evidence they have uncovered,excuse the pun, we should believe otherwise. Actually in another sense the archeological evidence that man hasn’t evolved from apes comes as no surprise. Darwin himself admitted to the unscientific nature of his own theory in his book The Origin of Species in which he says,

“To suppose that the eye with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light…could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest degree.” Perhaps those who have accepted Darwinian theory have never read his book, which after all was just a theory.But according to Thompson and Cremo there has been a cover-up. They say that the evidence debunking Darwins theory has been there all along- its just been suppressed,ignored or forgotten. If I may quote one such example of suppression from their book."In the early 1950s, Thomas E. Lee of the National Museum of Canada found advanced stone tools in glacial deposits at Sheguiandah, on Manitoulin Island in northern Lake Huron.Geologist John Sanford of Wayne State University argued that the oldest Sheguiandah tools were at least 65,000 years old and might be as much as 125,000years old. For those adhering to standard views on North American prehistory,such ages were unacceptable.Thomas E. Lee complained that he was hounded from his Civil Service position into prolonged unemployment;publication outlets were cut off;the evidence was misrepresented by several prominent authors and that tons of artifacts vanished into storage bins of the National Museum of Canada.Futhermore Lee is quoted as saying that for refusing to fire the discoverer, Lee, the Director of the National Museum, who had proposed having a monograph on the site published, was himself fired and driven into exile." Lee goes on to say that,"..... Sheguiandah would have forced embarrassing admissions and the re-writing of almost every book in the business. It had to be killed. It was killed. " Chilling stuff....to be expected I suppose if you go tramping around glaciers. Seriously though, Thompson and Cremo quote other instances of deliberate attempts to conceal the facts in order to save face





Getting back to our flat earth example for a moment, science proved the earth was round. Similarly if we accept the findings of Thompson and Cremo that our ancestors are not apes then who , according to science,are they? What are the true origins of the human race? We get answers from two sources. One is archeology and the other is Harvard Business School and Microsoft . Well …indirectly. Lets start with the bones and artifacts. May we quote again from the book Forbidden Archeology. " In 1979`,researchers at the Laetoli, Tanzania , site in East Africa discovered footprints in volcanic ash deposits over 3.6 million years old. Mary Leakey and others said the prints were indistinguishable from those of modern humans.To these scientists, this meant only that the human ancestors of 3.6 million years ago had remarkably modern feet.But according to other scientists, such as physical anthropologist R.H. Tuttle of the University of Chicago, fossil bones of the known australopithecines of 3.6 million years ago show they had feet that were distinctly apelike. Hence they were incompatible with the Laetoli prints. In an article in the March 1990 issue of Natural History, Tuttle confessed that we are left with somewhat of a mystery. It seems permissible,therefore, to consider a possibility neither Tuttle nor Leakey mentioned-that creatures with anatomically modern human bodies to match their anatomically modern human feet existed some 3.6 million years ago in East Africa. Perhaps....they coexisted with more apelike creatures. As intriguing as this archeological possibility may be, current ideas about human evolution forbid it ."In other words Thompson and Cremo are saying that based on the archeological evidence we should consider the possibility that one species didnt evolve to another, but rather all species co-exist simultaneously. That view incidentally is the same as information given in the ancient Vedic literature,the oldest on the planet, which states that there are 8,400,000 species simultaneously existing in the universe from aquatics, plant,insects,reptiles animals, humans and demigods. More about that later.Now onto Harvard Business School and Microsoft.Both have been clients of Swami Partha Sarathi , the founder of the Vedanta Academy. He is much sought after by big corporations to help boost productivity. He teaches principles like Concentration, Consistency and Compassion as essential in any successful business. He extracts these principles not from current business surveys but rather from the Bhagavad-gita .Bhagavad-gita is part of the Vedas,hence the name Vedanta Academy.The foremost Vedic scholar of our time gives us a brief history of Bhagavad-gita. "... a rough estimate is that the Gita was spoken at least 120,400.000 years ago;and in human society it has been extant for two million years."Spoken originally in the mother of all languages , Sanskrit, there are currently over 600 translations of Bhagavad-gita in many other languages, including a soon-to-be published first Afrikaans edition we believe, provided funds are forthcoming. Vedic information covers all aspects of life on this planet. Everything from Ayurvedic medicine, political and economic systems, world history, military science, astrology, astronomy and self-realisation etc, is included in the Vedas. In Bhagavad-gita, the essence of Vedic literature, we find explicit information of how we humans came to be here. Shree Krishna, the speaker of Bhagavad-gita, says to Arjuna on the Battlefield of Kurukshetra ,

“In the days long past I illumined the Deity of the Sun with this understanding. He, in turn, gave instruction to the father of the human race, Manu, who in due course revealed these truths to Ikshvaku, the founder of the Solar dynasty.” Bg: 4:1 Interesting how there is the close similarity in the name of the demigod Manu and the word "man".Demigods ,by the way, according to Bhagavad -gita are empowered controllers of the various cosmic departments such as rain ,wind,the oceans,fire,light etc . The Vedas tell us there are 33million such demigods in the universe..Further detail of human origins is given in the commentary of Bhagavad-gita by Shrila Prabhupada." From Brahma(the original creature born out of the energy of the Supreme Lord),all the seven great sages, and before them four other great sages, named Sanaka,Sananda,Sanatana and Sanat -kumara,and the Manus,are manifested.All these twent-five great sages are known as the patriarchs of the living entities all over the universe." The Vedas go on to say that all these 8,400.000 species simultaneously exist; there is no evolution of the species, just an evolution of consciousness as the individual soul transmigrates from body to body,from the lower species to the higher, according to the laws of re-incarnation.

Furthermore Vedic literature gives detailed descriptions of such demigods and their abodes in higher planetary systems including historical accounts of their visits to the earth planet and their interaction with humans. Dr Richard Thompson in his book Alien Identities reveals striking parallels in modern UFO reports with Vedic accounts of inter-planetary travel and extra-terrestial beings. So its up to you now to choose - is it apes , is it demigods ? One things for sure, fossils dont lie.






The above is a summary of a talk given by Andrew Freedman on the 30th August this year at the Body Mind Spirit Tourism Forum at Erin Hall, Rondebosch, Cape Town. Andrew ,a Wits Psychology graduate is a motivational speaker on radio and television,singer/songwriter , editor of Rainbow News and a student of Vedic science. He teaches bhakti-yoga and meditation in Cape Town and his latest Cd "Time Stands Still" (recording name Ananda Vardhan) is available in record shops nationwide

For further information please email Andrew at freedmana@mweb.co.za

ID

" Got any ID ? " asked the officer and I said " Yes sir. I am jivera svarupa haya - krishnera nitya-dasa - I am pure spirit soul , eternal servant of Krishna . " The officer turned to his partner, cracked a smile and said , " Hey Frank , we ve got a joker here - cuff him. " Well there wasnt really such a conversation but in this Dark Age , the Iron Age of Kali, it could quite easily go that way although my answer to the officer was perfectly correct according to the most ancient books of widom , namely the Vedas. Quarrel , hypocrisy and ignorance of spiritual truth are the symptoms of this unfortunate age , so most people believe we are these bodies . Therefore they believe they are male or female, black or white , German or Spanish , housewife or engineer etc., and that these designations are in fact their true identity , their real ID. Thats like wearing a blue checkered shirt and therefore thinking that you are blue and checkered . Its just something you are wearing for a while , its not you. Similarly these gross material bodies ( as well as the subtle material bodies of mind and intelligence ) are simply like temporary garments "worn " by the soul , the eternal spiritual personality within .Yet so deep is this misidentification with the material body that people lay down their lives for it in wars between one race and another or one nation and another. As my Guruji Bhakti Vijaya Acharya once said , the illusion, which has been reinforced for millions of lifetimes , of thinking we are these material bodies , is so thick " ... that not even a jackhammer can cut it loose ! " Fortunately there is something that will cut it loose - Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare , the transcendental sound vibration imported from the topmost planet in the Spiritual Sky , Goloka Vrindavana , shaped like a giant lotus flower where Sri Sri Radha - Krishna are enjoying Their never-ending divine loving pastimes in the company of Their pure devotees .

So yes officer , I do have ID. I am a sub -atomic spiritual particle with more energy than millions of suns and unlike the temporary, miserable material body my perfect spiritual body is sac-cid ananda - eternal , indestructible and full of knowledge , full of bliss - bullet-proof indeed ! So lets chant Hare Krishna and meet again in Vrindavana. Oh and by the way dont bother to bring your handcuffs officer - everyone in Vrindavana is a good citizen. They are all very happy to obey the supreme law , the law of love , love for the Supreme Divine Couple - Radha and Krishna.

Sri Guru

In the Vedic literature our position is nicely described. Our objective is to cross over the ocean of material existence , the ocean of repeated birth and death , and arrive on the safe shores of the transcendental realm , Goloka Vrindavan , the personal abode of the Supreme Divine Couple ,Sri Sri Radha and Krishna and to be engaged in Their eternal loving service. To cross the ocean , this human form of life is described as a good boat , the verses of scripture are the favorable breezes and the expert captain is Sri Guru , the spirtual master, the pure devotee of Sri Krishna . This topmost of all gurus is called an uttama - Guru and the following verse from Shrimad-Bhagavatam 11.3.21 gives his exalted qualifications

tasmad gurum prapadyeta jijnasuh shreya uttamam
shabde pare ca nishnatam brahmany upashamashrayam

" Therefore ( because we cannot attain real peace or happiness in this material world ) , a person who seriously desires to inquire about the ultimate spiritual perfection must take shelter of a bona fide Guru. The qualifications of Sri Guru are that (1) he has fully realised the purport of all Vedic scriptures -shabda-brahma - (and therefore can dispel all the doubts of his disciple and answer all questions ) , (2) has full realisation of the Supreme Absolute Truth (para-brahma Sri Krishna ) , and (3) for whom the mundane world holds no charm whatsoever. "

So without the perfect, loving shelter and guidance of Sri Guru , taking us home , we are endlessly adrift in the vast ocean of material life with no direction, no safe passage , simply being carried away by the waves of illusion - alone without a true friend , without true peace, without true joy.Elsewhere this condition of the lost soul is described by Sri Krishna in Bhagavad-gita chapter 18 as being " ...in the wilderness of the mundane existence ."

So I offer my humble obeisances to my spiritual master who , with the torchlight of knowledge has opened my eyes , which were blinded by the darkness of ignorance. Jaya Gurudeva. Kindly engage me in your loving service.

ambrosia

The storms of material life are inevitable. I dont need to try and stop them.In the immortal words of George Harrison " All things must pass ." The storms will end of their own accord. I just need to weather them by chanting the holy names.


The spiritual world is called Vaikuntha , the place of no anxiety. In contrast , the material world is an ocean of anxiety and I am certainly here in the material world . I am not seeing Sri Krishna face-to -face 24 hours a day like the saints whose eyes are smeared with the ointment of divine love for Him.Nevertheless in Bhagavad- gita encouraging words are spoken by Sri Krishna when he speaks with Arjuna in chapter 14 verse 20 about the three binding forces of material nature - namely goodness , passion and ignorance. He says " If the effects of these three forces can be overcome it is possible for a person to gain complete freedom from all of the miseries of material existence and to relish the ambrosia of life everlasting even while within the body. " Sri Krishna s reference to "...even while within the body " is what I find encouraging. In the same chapter He then gives us the way to overcome these binding forces . He says in verses 26-27 , " Those who follow the sacred path of unalloyed Divine Sevice , communing with Me in transcendental love , are automatically freed from all mundane effects and are enabled to perceive the Realm of pure divine consciousness , that everlasting zone of nectar which is the domain of Supreme Truth and infinite joy and which has its foundations in Me." So from the stress zone to the nectar zone - that is the sacred path under the guidance of the self-realized soul, Sri Guru - even while within the body. Jaya Gauranga. Hare Krishna

In Gods eyes

So today, like every other day , I just need to do one thing - always remember Krishna and never forget Him. That much I have learnt. As it is said in the morning prayer ".. Upon remembering Him a reservoir of all-auspiciousness is produced . " Although a foolish mind , making plans to try and enjoy without Krishna , may tell me otherwise , " friendly intelligence "- suhridatmanaiva - reminds me that , " The only treasure is Krishna, service to Krishna and love of Krishna. " Sri - Caitanya-caritamrita. There is no other treasure .Its time to forgive myself of whatever I have found myself guilty of since time immemorial. I have done my time. Lord Chaitanya , the Supreme Personality of Godhead has declared general amnesty and He alone is the Saviour of the most fallen , the Messiah Himself. In God s eyes no crime can be so heinous that it deserves eternal damnation. Only once I have truly forgiven myself , will I then give myself permission to be happy , to experience joy , to be loved . I also need to pray for the humility to seek forgiveness from those I have offended. I also need to forgive others and give them my love. I need to do my true self , my soul , this favour , namely to embrace the orders of my eternal spiritual masters , my eternal well -wishers , and chant the holy names of God. Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam , Shree Gauranga jaya Gauranga Gaur Gauranga naam. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare , Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.This , in the words of Shrila Prabhupada is the "transcendental remedy " for all my difficulties , all my troubles , all my unhappiness , forever and ever. Lord Gauranga , the Supreme Physician , is mahavadanyaya and audarya , the most merciful , the most magananimous of all incarnations because He is freely distributing this priceless gift which is ordinarily very difficult to obtain , namely krishna -prema , love of God , love for Krishna in gopi - bhava , in the mood of the milkmaids of Vraja . They are the topmost lovers of God , they have the purest divine sentiment , the purest love for the all-attractive Supreme Divine Couple , Sri Sri Radha and Krishna in Vrindavana , the Land of Love.