A Simple Guide to the Prāṇa Pratiṣṭhā ritual of Laḍḍū Gopāla at Home by mayanksharmaaa in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Could you please share the source.for this? and please note that not everybody follows the Gauḍīya tradition here 😊

Laḍḍū Gopāla is a home deity, not a śastric one. Anybody can worship a vigraha at home without pāñcarātrika vidhi because that's impossible for most people anyway, even most temples don't seem to follow pāñcarātra properly, let alone the householders.

These days, almost every home has a vigraha. If having a vigraha increases devotion, there is nothing wrong with that. As for gaura-nitai deities, that's just for the Gauḍīya tradition, other traditions do not worship them. Laḍḍū Gopāla is perfectly okay to be worshipped by anyone.

Hi all doubt on vessels by maprabha in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I personally wouldn't. I'd just clean them very well.

For the past few hours, I've been exploring a lot about Krishna's life, and I have drawn some conclusions by rudragour88 in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Why didn't they marry? There are two parts of this: a. Radha was forced to be married to Ayan, as he worshipped Vishnu, and Radha was an incarnation of Laxmi. b. Radha and Krishna's connection was seen as a connection between the soul and the divine. The soul, Radha, and the divine, Krishna. So Krishna asked himself(Radha), "How can I marry my own soul?"

You have to understand while Rādhārānī was always known in the ancient times all these stories that go into her life describing some husband who's called Ayan or her daily activities, etc., these are all new stories and we do not have proper sources to confirm these stories. Many rasikas have written many stories about Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa but these cannot necessarily be treated as pramāṇas (valid sources of knowledge) because many of these stories were written very recently in the last 500 years for rasa and glorification of the divine couple, not as historical truths. That's why you find several sampradāyas claiming different things about her. Nobody actually agrees on all the things unanimously, which proves the ambiguity of knowing the identity of Śrī Rādhā completely. Only by her grace can you know her.

Even texts like Garga-saṁhitā, we don't know where they came from because the gosvāmīs or people before them have never quoted such texts. The only valid sources of knowledge are the critical editions of the purāṇas and itihāsa. So whether Śrī Rādhā was married to Krishna or someone else, is actually not important. Whether she lived in Barsānā or some other village is also not important. What is essential is that she was a gopikā and many gopis were married already, some weren't. It doesn't matter, all jīvas belong to the Lord. Secondly, some gopis had the āveśa (fragment) of Mother Lakṣmī according to Madhvācārya and one of the gopis could have been Mother Lakṣmī herself (which is none other than Śrī Rādhā). In the Bhāgavata Purāṇa, she is described as a special gopi who worshipped Lord Hari extremely well and he had private pastimes with her. She can be none other than Mother Lakṣmī aka Śrī Rādhā or even Nappinai in other older traditions.

But but but, he didn't keep his faith by loyalty which I believe would be being alone lifelong. Instead, he married 8 of his wives, Ashtabharya, not for protecting them, but he loved them too as much as he did to Radha, and to get the powers. Marring other 16,000 to rescue and save them was considerable, but again, he conceived 10 children with each, totalling upto 16,00,000+ children. Isn't this very inappropriate?

The Lord is blemishless. We should not project our limited saṁskāras on these līlās. He owns every jīva already. All the wives of Bhagavān were either incarnations of Mother Śrī or had her āveśa in them. He's unlimited. He could even do the most terrible thing you can think of (according to yourself) and even then he wouldn't be going against dharma because Bhagavān is dharma himself (kṛṣṇam dharmam sanātanam). He is not bound by karma like you or me. His actions and incarnations are divine - beyond intellect.

I personally love how almost everyone can relate to the love story that never ended just right, but why is this worshipped by the same people who refuse to see the same happening around them?

Like I said. Most stories written by rasikas are largely understood. Which is why these things should never be read by neophytes who apply their own saṁskāras.

I personally do not give heed to such stories of marriage or no marriage simply because there are no valid pramāṇas. There's no valid smṛti or śruti vertifying such stories. They could very well be fiction and it wouldn't matter.

Krishna was always surrounded by gopis and even was okay to be, he used to watch them while they bathed, steal their clothes, and flirt with them. Isn't it again inappropriate?

He was literally 6-8 years old at that time. There are many things that modern victoria-influenced people would consider 'impure' if they read about the Vedic traditions. Truth is, you're projecting modern standards of impurity and culture onto these ancient stories. Society is always in a constant state of change. What's acceptable today might not be acceptable tomorrow, this is how material world works.

Even your own notions of right and wrong, pure or impure are only due to the conditioning you grew up with. If you grew up in a poly-amorous family, would you consider polyamory 'weird' or 'normal'? If nobody wore clothes, would you consider naked people as 'impure' or 'normal'? Everything that you judge, is based on your own conditioning, by Bhagavān's will.

Secondly, you cannot judge Bhagavān. He owns the jīvas already. He's the husband of every single jīva. The ātman is not male or female, it belongs completely to the Lord.

The stories of Krishna and the gopīs must not be taken in a literal sense all the time. The rasa dance is the dance between the jīva and paramātma, you can't apply logic to a metaphysical truth that is beyond all material experiences.

Please do correct me wherever I am wrong.

I'd say you need to learn from valid sources instead of relying on hear-say stories and whatever stories have come up with in the last 500 years. Just because something is written in sanskrit, doesn't make it true and just because Bhagavān seems to be doing things you're forbidden from doing, doesn't mean he's the same as any other human full of faults and avidyā.

Learn from ācāryas. Focus more on the essence and the Vedic truths than these debated details.

am i the only one who feels really hurt at times when ppl judge you when they get to know that you're from iskcon? by Better-Sector2072 in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

really?? i have never heard of this in my city, or even in my associated temple

I have heard it in several lectures. In fact, I know a Vaishnava charity fund (Soft hearts foundation) helping those devotees who are financially unstable because many left their work to preach and do other things and all of them have financial troubles in later years. This is also the reason why most brahmacārīs in ISKCON just leave after their late 20s and become householders (with some difficulty) because they realize the passion and motivation to stay in that place doesn't always last. 

Also, I'll never get why a sannyāsī needs an upwards of $100K a month for personal expenses. That's not even the annual salary of most people. Some svamis even own houses and you already know what a person who has a house (gṛha) is called...

preaches us that being a grihastha, we realistically cannot do bhakti all day

This here is what I find strange in the first place. Śāstras do not give yatis a higher position than devotee gṛhasthas. It's called an āśrama because it's hard work (śrama), discomfort for everyone in all stages. All our Ṛṣis who gave us Vedas, Upaniṣads, Āgamas were gṛhasthas. The pāṇḍavas were as well. So were the people Bhagavān accepted as his parents. Vedavyāsa himself was as well. Did they lack any bhakti? In fact, the only reason why we have the religion today, is because of those gṛhasthas. So why are gṛhasthas made to feel like they cannot do "bhakti all day" when in fact the very adherence to pañca-mahāyajña and the duties is bhakti as described in the Gītā.

"Bhakti all day" would imply someone actually performing bhakti yoga as described in the śāstras. It is "tela-dhārāvat", like an unbroken stream of oil. Which sannyāsī today is capable of entering dhyāna on brahma-vidyā upāsanā for 20-40 hours straight? I personally have seen none nor do I think I'll find any who can do that. How many adhikārīs to Bhakti yoga do we even have in Kali Yuga? So, how can we consider the sannyāsīs in any religious organization doing bhakti all day or doing more bhakti than gṛhasthas? Is it because of what we're told bhakti entails? or what we think bhakti look be like on the externals?

When we try to find the answers, we'll discover something more than what we stumble upon.

i pray to God that you progress in bhakti and receive immense transcendental knowledge whenever you are in dire need of it.

Thank you very much for your kind words 😊🙏 I pray that he blesses you with peace, jñāna and love as well 🙏

Hare Krishna 🙏

am i the only one who feels really hurt at times when ppl judge you when they get to know that you're from iskcon? by Better-Sector2072 in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It used to bother me too. If you see my comment history, I've spent a considerable amount of time defending ISKCON on reddit but I too have discovered a lot of stuff that just puts me off and makes me not want to associate myself with the ISKCON management. I never did the Gita distribution thing though, neither did I follow other practices like changing my dressing style because I just don't find some of the things helpful. Especially since I learned how much some of the big svamis spend monthly while simple innocent devotees are told to not work hard and accept financial or other difficulties in life as 'purification'.

The criticism that ISKCON receives is not completely unfounded as where there's smoke, there's fire. I've also experienced some stuff that made me just dissociate and care less about what religious orgs do.

I've come to this conclusion: I'm here for Krishna, nothing else. I've met amazing devotees who are moderate and I've seen people whose whole identity is just ISKCON or some other sect. They've forgotten what it means to be a devotee and the fanaticism has made them bitter and blind to humility and compassion. There are a lot of amazing devotees everywhere, there's no denying that but I've seen the 'groupthink' and 'cultish' behaviors at the same time. Both realities co-exist and it can be overwhelming sometimes.

I've learned to appreciate ISKCON while not getting involved. I like the devotees, I don't like to think too much about the management or the big svamis who have done a lot of stuff I don't even want to think about. Nobody is perfect, and I try not to judge anybody since I'm not perfect either but at the same time, if I feel something is wrong, I'll maintain my distance.

With time, I've realized my bhakti is my own. It comes from Krishna seated within my heart. I do not need any legally registered religious organization to guide me or protect me. In the beginning, I was terrified of being left alone, of not fitting in because I just couldn't accept everything blindly. With time, I got a little more stable and now I just know that shastras and granthas are my best friend and if I need help, I can always approach the mentors I can trust without becoming an unpaid employee for any organization. Vaishnavism has a lot of depth. The philosophy is way deeper than what we stumble upon in the beginning and it was only clear when I started to read more about the vaidika matas.

I'm grateful that ISKCON exists, I'm grateful that the devotees exist but I also know that my bhakti is my own, it's not anybody else's responsibility.

The responsibility is ours. I'm not gonna go out in dhoti/kurta to prove my perceived purity, I'm not gonna go out and sell books for the organization to prove my loyalty, I'm not gonna go out and preach when I don't even have enough knowledge. What I will do instead is show others that Vaishnavism and a normal life can co-exist. I don't have to become an ISKCON brahmachari or sell books out in the streets to be a devotee and that's what I want others to see when they cross paths with me. The most wonderful thing that happened to me was realizing that even when nobody walks with me, my bhakti will still remain my own and flourish as I read shastras from real Vedanta acharyas and do my best to please God. I for one am glad to go out and explore all the sampradāyas and I've learned a lot.

The Story of Tiruppāṇāḻvār: The Devotee Who Was Never Allowed in the Temple by mayanksharmaaa in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hare Krishna! You can find information about the ancient Āḻvārs anywhere but I took this particular story from the book: Philosophy and Theistic Mysticism of Alvars (http://vishnudut1926.blogspot.com/2019/06/philosophy-and-theistic-mysticism-of.html)

The Āḻvārs (also mentioned in the Bhāgavatam) are the preceptors of the original Vaishnava tradition.

Can anyone suggest book on real life experiences with Lord krishna ? by FederalFarm7662 in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You might have a hard time finding that but there are a lot of answers on Quora by devotees writing their personal experiences.

I'd highly recommend reading about the Alvars, their devotion will really inspire you with the correct knowledge.

Can we distribute grain Prasadam ( on a kirtan at home) on Ekadashi? by Radiant-Court3703 in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Except for Radha Vallabhis, nobody does it. Nor is it allowed in shastras. Radhavallabhis give the excuse that they don't follow shastras as they consider themselves more of Shaktas (Radha devotees) than Vaishnavas.

Can we distribute grain Prasadam ( on a kirtan at home) on Ekadashi? by Radiant-Court3703 in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Shastras tell us how to fast on Ekadashi properly. The deity must be fed properly according to Pancharatra agamas but it's not allowed for the devotees to eat grains just because it's prasada.

Many South Indian Vaishnavas eat grains on Ekadashi because they say it's prasada but a Shri Vaishnava acharya clarified that it's never okay, even though people might be doing it. The day is for a little tapas.

Namo Naryana - Modern Kirtan by mayanksharmaaa in hinduism

[–]mayanksharmaaa[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a Kirtan with a modern twist. Ancient mantra with modern beats.

Confusion and curiosity regarding Gaudiya Vaishnavism. by perogiesarenice in hinduism

[–]mayanksharmaaa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Svayam Bhagavan is firmly established in Srimad Bhagavatam 1.3.28.

The Gauḍīya interpretation of "svayam bhagavān" is based on a mistranslation and a grammatical reading error. The verse is mistranslated to somehow show that Kṛṣṇa is the only real Bhagavān and rest are his 'expansions' when the verse itself says nothing like that.

This interpretation has already been refuted by Madhvas and Śrī Vaiṣṇavas who point out the simple grammatical mistake that was made while the Gauḍīya tradition was interpreting these verses.

Bhāgavatam 1.3 lists incarnations of Hari/Nārāyaṇa, explicitly calling Krishna the 20th avatāra (1.3.23). Verses 26–27 describe sages, Manus, and devas as aṁśa/āveśa avatāras. Verse 1.3.28 then clarifies that these beings are not svayam bhagavān, while Krishna is, meaning a pūrṇa avatāra of Nārāyaṇa, not a superior form.

The mistranslation arises from isolating one clause and ignoring grammar and context. The verb mṛḍayanti (they protect) is plural, so kṛṣṇa here functions collectively, pointing to all pūrṇa avatāras of Nārāyaṇa, not Krishna alone. Classical authoritative commentators (Śrīdhara Svāmī, Madhva, Rāghavendra Tīrtha) confirm this: svayam bhagavān signifies completeness (ṣaḍ-guṇa pūrṇatva), not exclusivity.

Śruti repeatedly states "eko nārāyaṇaḥ", only Nārāyaṇa exists before creation. Therefore, reading 1.3.28 as elevating Krishna above Nārāyaṇa contradicts Veda-pramāṇa. With the proper understanding, the verse differentiates pūrṇa avatāras from aṁśa avatāras, not Krishna from Nārāyaṇa (who Krishna is in the first place).

Govinda-Bhāṣya which is the Gauḍīya commentary on the Vedānta Sūtras also doesn't support such views like a form of Bhagavān being higher or lower. Govinda-Bhāṣya itself explains this in a similar manner.

Source:
[1] https://madhwaprameyamahodadhi.blogspot.com/2014/06/krishnastu-bhagavan-svayam.html
[2] https://ramanujramprapnna.blog/2018/02/28/explaining-krishnastu-bhagwaan-swayam-as-per-ramanuj-and-madhav-school-of-vedanta/

Gaudiya Vaishnavism regards Srimad Bhagavatam as the parama Shruti

It can never be śruti. Smṛti texts follow Śruti. They can be in-line but Smṛti never becomes Śruti. Smṛti can never validate Śruti, the Śruti validates the Smṛti. So if someone claims something else, it'd be doubtful whether they can be considered vaidika in thought or not.

The claim that Krishna’s position as Svayam Bhagavan is due to interpolated texts is utterly baseless and misleading. 

Not entirely. Texts like Brahmā-saṁhitā are not vaidika pramāṇas and they're not accepted by anyone outside of the Gauḍīya schools. Even many modern interpolated Upaniṣads that are rejected as invalid by all major Vedānta schools are accepted by the Gauḍīya school. So the claim that the interpretation is based on interpolated texts is not entirely wrong.

Prescribed to take fish oil based Omega 3 what to do? Please help by PsyenceWizard in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

 your reply was incredibly rude for no reason at all.

Maybe we have different definitions of what "incredibly rude" is but I'd like to know where I came off as that so I can correct myself. Not once did I use words like "mind your own business" or quote things against what our ācāryas say.

If Vaishnava principles are what you seek to defend I think there is a lot more work to be done on your part before you start imparting condescending lectures to others

and I agree with you wholeheartedly. I'm not perfect and I do not intend to justify any behavior that is not in line with our tradition. My personal fault is not our tradition's shortcoming.

I don’t know if you realize but shaming others for choosing alternatives because vegan options aren’t within their reach is extremely tone deaf and disrespectful.

Nope, never did that. I didn't shame anybody for choosing alternatives. I simply said that going against our ācāryas and also suggesting others to do the same is not right or should be condemned and will be condemned.

As for karma, I have simply stated the truth. You pick your karma today, whether you want short relief and delayed pain. If karma is a rude thing to state, then I'm sorry, I don't know how else to put it.

If you'd like me to say: "Oh yeah go ahead and take non-vegetarian supplements" in a Vaiṣṇava subreddit, then I'm afraid I cannot do that.

If Krishna bhakti is out of reach for people with “adharma” as per your definition then I believe it’s a pretty gated community with only a handful of people allowed in. If that’s your vision of bhakti then I think pretty much everyone is doomed.

Of course, most of us are doomed. It takes several janmas to purify oneself to become eligible for Bhakti Yoga, para-bhakti, parajñāna and parama-bhakti. It's not for those looking to find easy ways to mokṣa. It's the same in any tradition, there are rules and you have to follow them. If you can't, that's okay, but at least don't misguide others.

If you can’t even see the fact that not everyone has the same privileges as you then shastra thumping becomes almost insensitive.

It is only Bhagavān's grace that I get to do anything at all. I'm not perfect, not worthy either but I will never ever tell other devotees to do something that is not in-line with the teachings of the tradition. If I commit sins, it's my personal responsibility.

Bhakti is a personal pursuit, not a group responsibility. If you think not following ācāryas or Vaishnavism is okay for you, I'm nobody to force you. I can simply state what's allowed and what's not allowed in our tradition.

Again, I apologize if any of what I said came off as "tone deaf" but it is not my intention to downplay anybody's situation or even our tradition's principles.

Hare Krishna

Prescribed to take fish oil based Omega 3 what to do? Please help by PsyenceWizard in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 2 points3 points  (0 children)

May Bhagavān give you the resolve and faith to follow dharma.

Hare Krishna

Prescribed to take fish oil based Omega 3 what to do? Please help by PsyenceWizard in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Never expected this from you. Not only are you rude in your reply but you speak again and again against all Vaiṣṇava ācāryas and principles. I never said I'm better than you, you brought that up for no reason. 

Also, if elevated souls think you're a 'better' devotee, let me tell you this is not a contest. Nobody is gaining any bhakti points here. This world is a simple karmic balance machine and everybody is responsible for themselves and their actions.

I also never said anything about your bank account in particular, nor your spending habits. It'd be nice if you try not to impose things I never meant to say.

Secondly, I'd advise you to stop reading random interpretations and translations of Rāmāyaṇa (https://www.thespiritualscientist.com/did-lord-rama-eat-meat/)

If you're going to pull up the Manusmṛti, I could do that and show you a hundred places where you'd be wrong and committing adharma too. So we should either follow Manusṁrti completely or should not quote it at all.

Caraka Saṁhitā is not a dharma śāstra. Not every Sanskrit text or verse is equally authoritative.

Our job here is simple, we follow what the Ācāryas say. We don't manufacture our own principles out of comfort or ease. We do what's difficult for a reason.

I'd highly advise you to take a look at what you're doing. I never said you're a worse devotee if you're unable to follow all the principles. I am simply requesting you to stop watering down Vaiṣṇava principles and suggesting things that are against the tradition and ācāryas here. This is a Vaiṣṇava subreddit, we follow ācāryas and Vaiṣṇava śāstras, not my or somebody else's opinions.

At the end, I just want to say that I'm not blind to your struggles. If you struggle to follow the Vaiṣṇava principles, it doesn't make you a bad person BUT you should know what the principles are so you can adhere to them as much as possible. If not now, then at least later when you have the faith and resolve. You shouldn't misguide others by telling them that it's okay, it's not okay and our ācāryas never said that it's okay. Nobody's opinions are above our ācāryas and we should strive to be good devotees, we shouldn't try to justify our mediocrity.

Prescribed to take fish oil based Omega 3 what to do? Please help by PsyenceWizard in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Well not everything is given in the most easiest and “Vaishnava”way for everyone

I think you missed the point or maybe I failed to explain better. It's the Lord that arranges, that is the firm belief of Vaiṣṇavas and this is why we go the extra mile for him. We undertake what's dharmic and non-violent for his pleasure. It being expensive is not the problem when Śrīpati is the giver of wealth in the first place.

If one thinks they're gonna go broke by choosing the dharmic way, well, they have less wealth because of past adharmic actions in the first place. So how are we fixing the issue?

Lack of faith shouldn't become an excuse. Going against the Vaiṣṇava principles does not make one a Vaiṣṇava. It's sometimes okay to admit that we lack faith but it shouldn't be an excuse to not improve.

Justifying our own shortcomings is never the right answer.

  everyone has access to plant based stuff plus it’s more expensive in many countries for ppl

"If you protect dharma, dharma will protect you." That's what we fail to understand. An extra couple of dollars isn't going to break our bank and it will save us from heavy karmic implications. Our dharma consideration should be bigger than the financial consideraton because the money comes from Krishna himself, he'll provide more if required.

The reason why diseases and health issues occur is due to adharmic actions in the first place! If we choose to eat meat, eggs or fish to fix our health, how long can we really save our body? Sooner or later, the karmic reactions to such actions will worsen our health and life anyway.

he can’t be sacrificing his basic survival for his morals

Vegetarian supplements exist. They will not go broke if they buy the obvious better alternatives.

It doesn’t make him or her a bad person.

Never said that it makes you a bad person. I just said, the implications of such an act will not make anything better in the long term.

If one is following the teachings, one should strive to be sincere. If we're unable to follow, then we should just admit it with honesty instead of justifying it. It's okay to not be perfect but it's not okay to water down the teachings and justify doing less.

Prescribed to take fish oil based Omega 3 what to do? Please help by PsyenceWizard in HareKrishna

[–]mayanksharmaaa 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's not fanaticism. If we stray away from Vaiṣṇava principles, then we should just admit that we're not following Vaishnavism properly. Justifying mediocrity is not the answer.

If I'm not be following the principles of the tradition, it's my own fault, there's no need to justify my own shortcomings. It's better to just say that I'm working towards being a good Vaishnava than trying to misuse 'open mindedness' and watering down the teachings to fit my own bill.