Miss The Boat ?

If we are not careful then we miss the boat, it doesn't feel good to miss the boat… "Not at all!"
I have been once on an island and there was suddenly overnight, an army came in and got mobilized and there were tanks everywhere, guys dug into manholes and it really looked like:
"It is now time to get out of here!!!"
But there was no way to get out of there, there was no transport.
So most people just gave up, but there were a few people and I was amongst them and said now "We're going"
And we paid a local to take us through a path, a forest path and then walked right through the jungle! Something like thirty kilometres to the other side of the island!
Then there , there were lots of stranded people at the ports and there were boats and there were some tickets available for the boat still - but they were going for crazy prices!
"I paid the money!"
I paid the money and I was on the boat - and there were others who didn't want to pay the money and the others who first didn't want to walk through the jungle and then the ones that didn't want to pay the money. Those who were misers and didn't pay the money, they didn't get on the boat and we were waving at them as they were standing on the shore!!!

So in another words don't think that we are going to get it cheap, Krishna Consciousness. Don't think we are going to get it for nothing!

(Kadamba Kanana Swami , September 2010, Pretoria)

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to KKS Blog using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

 

 

 

 

 

 

Atheist Can Have Perfect Morals?

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, University Talk, South Africa)

Kadamba Kanana Swami: It is not easy to avoid cheating because to avoid cheating you must have great modern strength and where will you get that when you are bombarded:
"Come one, just do it , come on don't be square!
Come on come one - come on!"
So how are we going to avoid it? So for moral strength you will have to take up spiritual practices otherwise you can't have moral strength.
If you regularly chant Hare Krishna Mahamantra as we are regularly doing, then you can rise above cheating, otherwise no…it won't work.
Ok, any questions, comments

Student: That 's a very big generalisation because an atheist can have perfect morals and do really well without any spiritual practices.

Kadamba Kanana Swami: Oh you think so?

Student: I think so

KadambaKanana Swami: Well let's get into it…



...According to the Vedic scripture they say that the problems in this world for all living beings is that they are having some fundamental defects on the mental plane and the fundamental defect is that everyone is under attack of lust, greed, anger, madness illusion and envy. So these are explained as influences that attack the mind – and everyone is struggling with that –everyone: atheist, religionists, I don't care who, everyone.
Who is free from lust greed or anger.
Lust I'm talking about , notwhen you're in love with your girlfriend – lust that makes people attracted to other's wives… all kinds of things: lust, when the lust becomes excessive. So a percentage of of society is suffering from excessive lust, a percentage of society is suffering from excessive greed…anger. We have courses on anger management – envy , these are fundamental problems which can not be overcome simply by humanism.
Atheism at it's most moral platform is humanism- like where we try to be perfectly moral at the same time, but humanism alone can not save us from these inner weaknesses that we are fighting.
So that's where these spiritual process can help us more to rise above these inner weaknesses.
So I'm not like trying to attack.. I myself am a man who is trying to rise above these enemies, I'm not saying that I am the angel but I have found that I battle with these things and nothing seems to work and just great ideas… what do I have as an atheist, at best I have great ideas from great philosophers, that the best I can have, I don't have any other way.
How do I rise, how do you rise above the primitive drifts that are just pushing us – spiritual process is the only thing you can do.

Student: Or you could identify with things, like you could identify yourself in two parts, you have yourself a consciousness which you could identify as spirituality and you have your form as ahuman as the ego, and you have all these characteristics and traits that form part of your ego in nature, and by acknowledging and identifyingthese traits you have taken a step further to being enlightened, so just because you don't believe in a higher form or god or soul..as an atheist that is, you can still identify with that and be spiritual at the same time.

KadambaKanana Swami: Yeah but that 's ok. Let's say we have certain qualities that we connect that to spiritualism, selflessness, doing good for others, tolerance, honesty and all these kind of moral qualities and one can identify with them…but one is stillattacked by lust, it is strong – you may be a moral married man and when you get attracted to the secretary, you get attracted to the secretary , what can you do?

Student: Is that wrong?

KadambaKanana Swami: Well, it will hurt your family a lot..
Student: If you act on that impulse…

Kadamba Kanana Swami: If you act on that impulse, and maybe you won't, but maybe you will – because the mind is willing, the flesh is weak..you get a little to close, a spark comes in and it gets out of hand.
Again, I'm not condemning just acknowledging that we are human and we are not strong – and that's why looking at it: an atheist can do his best, a noble person can certainly try to be very moral but:
"Boy , will it be hard to keep it up for a lifetime"
A lifetime is a long time and too never ever let it all hang down, if it's deep inside and you have to fight and fight and fight what's deep inside is very hard.
I know a little bit. In my own life, for one thing, I am a sanyassi, which means I have a lifetime vow of celibacy - so when you go for something like that, well then you realise now the pressure is on – the pressure is on and you start to realise if you would do such a thing only on the strength of self control, moral conviction… on strength of moral conviction I go for self control that is very difficult to maintain over time –
One really has to do it on strength of a higher inspiration - and what will that be:maybe that I will place my life I n the service of mankind, that does give some strength, that does give some inspiration but even that leaves something empty, some emptiness.
So how long can one live with emptiness, so ultimately you will have to fill it with something…maybe the love for a woman: great , "our lovvve"
but then most of these loving relationships turn into something really more down on the ground, that is love but it is not the all overwhelming everything love from the fairy tales – it's a pact, you know. It's an agreement. It's hard to be fulfilled in life.
And only when you are fulfilled can you be truly moral, you can be perfectly moral. So in an atheistic way it is not that easy to find fulfillment, one will remain an empty seeker, looking here and there, found some happiness here for a while, then found somewhere else, somewhere else and somewhere else.
Only a spiritualist can find a resting point, where he can stay.

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, University talk, South Africa)

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to KKS Blog using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are No Problems

(KadambaKananaSwami , 17th September , Pretoria)

We worry about everything:

'What will go wrong? –what doesn't go wrong?"

"Why isn't it going wrong?"

"Can't be already three days and no problem! Nothing is wrong- There must be a problem! There must be something to be in anxiety about!"

"There must be something to disturb me"

"There must be something, there must be something I urgently need to discuss."

There must be a problem that I need counselling for, there must be - it's urgent. And if it's not here today then something is wrong"

"Can I speak to you, something is really wrong, I have no problems today!! What do I do about that?!" ...

...

Kadamba Kanana Swami: The key to success in spiritual life is not : so much fighting and fighting with our lower nature, fighting and fighting with our material desires, fighting and fighting with our senses -that's not really the issue.

That we do by regulation, by situating ourselves in a good regulated programme – then the senses and the mind come under control, by being in good association… Our focus is to put as much Krishna or as much service to Krishna as possible in a day – and if we simply do that then that will carry us to the spontatneous platform and that is what is going on.

Therefore there is no need to worry – where am I, how free am I from material desires, this and that…Don't worry about it! Just don't make time for material desires.

Just create more and more opportunities for serving Krishna and everything will come automatically. So there is no need for anxiety. Automatically..(Sanskrit) Everything will be revealed.

There is no problem at all. Automatically attachment to Krishna will come. Automatically taste will come. Automatically the desire for devotional service will increase. Automatically we will become more detached from material things and attached to Krishna.Automatically we will get more and more knowledge and deeper understanding of Krishna. Automatically.There is no need for anxiety.

All this anxiety is an old habit. We bring it from the material world. Instead of being very optimistic we always worry, we worry about everything:

'What will go wrong? –what doesn't go wrong?"
"Why isn't it going wrong?"
"Can't be already three days and no problem! Nothing is wrong- There must be a problem! There must be something to be in anxiety about!"
"There must be something to disturb me"
"There must be something, there must be something I urgently need to discuss. There must be a problem that I need counselling for, there must be -it's urgent! And if it's not here today then something is wrong"
"Can I speak to you, something is really wrong, I have no problems today!! What do I do about that?!"

In this way we are addicted to finding problems, making problems and bringing problems up for discussion instead of saying, you know:
"Forget problems, forget them!"

The best way to deal with problems is to just forget them. Don't bother with them. Let them be, let them be. Be what they are:
"We don't have time for them."

Fixing the material situation…well that may not work so let's just tolerate. If it's really that bad that we do have to do something, well do something quick and get back to serving Krishna.

Don't waste too much time with these material problems. They are not worth it. They won't bring any good result. They will never be solved, just when one is solved another one is already there so then you can talk about that and then all that you do is just talking about problems. So that we won't do.

We are optimistic, we are saying that everything is really nice, everything is really wonderful because all the blessings are there. Everything is here.

We have the Holy Name and surely it will be successful and without a doubt because the Holy name is so powerful, nothing ..Nothing can obstruct it because the Holy Name is Krishna…and what in the world can obstruct Krishna…Nothing!!!

He is Supremely powerful and the Name is non different from Him, so the Name is supremely powerful so what are we worried about:
Chant Hare Krishna and everything will be great!

(Kadamba Kanana Swami , 17th September , Pretoria)

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to KKS Blog using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE LAW OF ACCUMULATION

Devotional service rendered to the Personality of Godhead never goes in vain. Since the Personality of Godhead is eternal, intelligence applied in His service or anything done in His relation is also permanent. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that such transcendental service rendered unto the Personality of Godhead accumulates birth after birth, and when the devotee is fully matured, the total service counted together makes him eligible to enter into the association of the Personality of Godhead. Such accumulation of God's service is never vanquished, but increases till fully matured. SB 1.6.24 Purport
***
Get better a little bit every single day, and your improvement will accumulate over time to make you perfect.

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Gita Coaching using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

 

 

 

 

 

 

4 STEPS TO IMPROVE

Four different steps you can take to improve the quality of your life and work:

1. You can do more of certain things.
You can do more of the things that are of greater value to you and which bring you greater rewards and satisfaction.

2. You can do less of certain things.
You can deliberately decide to reduce or discontinue activities or behaviors that are not as helpful as other activities or which can actually be hurtful to you in accomplishing the things you really want.

3. You can start to do things that you are not doing at all today.
You can make new choices, learn new skills, begin new projects or activities or change the entire focus of your work or personal life.

4. You can stop doing certain things altogether.
You can stand back and evaluate your life with new eyes. You can then make definite decisions to completely discontinue activities and behaviors that are no longer consistent with what you want and where you really want to go.

Focal Point

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Gita Coaching using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites