Syamarani didi --- Taste, Prabhupada, Sound --- Grass Valley, 06/11/12

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

June 11, 2012
Grass Valley
Syamarani didi

"Srila Prabhupada said 'This chanting comes from the depths of the soul.' Also - 'When godbrothers argue, it should be considered as clouds passing the sky.' Unnoticed; insignificant.

A water bottle gurgles when being filled and is silent after; thus the Mayavadis argue we should be. But, Srila Prabhupada said, 'Are we an inanimate water bottle? No. When we become spiritual, the real talking begins.'

If someone is a thief, he's nervous and hiding. Always anxious. Similarly, we are always anxious, because we are thieves - of Krsna's property. We think we are anxious because of something else, but really this is why.

Gurudeva said, 'To get taste, associate with someone who has taste.'

I have conviction that Srila Gurudeva and Srila Prabhupada walked right out of these paintings - windows to the spiritual world. Jadurani is the great great great grandmother of Krsna, of the Jadu dynasty. Jadu Krsna is opulent Krsna.

If we hear about Krsna's pastimes before having established that He is GOD, then we'll think the pastimes are imaginary or that they're just magnifestations of impersonal God.

The books are not the books. They are Krsna. They are the people who wrote/spoke the books. 

On falling from the brahmajyoti - Prabhupada said, "How can you fall from a place that is already fallen?"

We get frustrated in our relationships today because 1) we're not this body, made of pus, stool, blood, etc. hard to be attracted to 2) We are meant to have a relationship with Krsna.

I met Prabhupada and Gurudeva by his books, etc. Gurudeva said all of his books are supplementary and complementary to Srila Prabhupada's books. After he leaves, he said people will appreciate his books.

The material world is the shadow energy of Radha. Sound establishes our relationship with this world. Transcendental sound dissolves it."

Syamarani didi --- Siksastakam, reality --- Santa Cruz, 06/07/12

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

 

June 7, 2012

Santa Cruz

Syamarani didi

 

"Hope against hope, even though there's no hope.

Take responsibility for what you're going through. 'O Krsna, you are my only friend.'

Krsna is in every atom. So is Radha. So is Gurudeva! He is in atoms, in pastimes, in all gayatri mantras and in his instructions, and he is present in others - comes through others.

He teaches us how to pray in the book Gauravani.

Thinking we're a general servant of Krsna is not enough to get us out of misery. Go for a specific identity as servant; manjaris of Radhika with specific services.

Syamasundara sikhanda sekhara is a prayer to the manjaris.

We are amnesiacs in an insane asylum. This is the medicine to get out. 

Sometimes Radhika forgets that She's met Krsna before. Sometimes when She gives Him a sidelong glance, He faints. This is how much She controls Him. We are actually Her maid servants. She thinks of Her manjaris as like Herself. This is our intimate relationship with Her. All these other things - "Oh, I have a headache, I'm cold," etc., - are insanity.

As we hear and picture Krsna, this is with material vision, but this is part of the process. We have high moods in us, they're just sleeping. When we sleep we dream crazy things. Our material stuff is all a dream.

The affection of this world is all a dream. I once said, what about godbrothers? Gurudeva said, can two jivas marry each other? [implied no.] Then I asked, what about two godbrothers? Gurudeva said, do you know [name]? Do you know [name]? [No. They are not this body.] This is the only way to go. This is reality.

What is the rasa of my constitutional form? That is the question. There is no other concern. Don't think you're the sweater.

Go through the spiritual motions - this is our CPR, our artificial breathing until we can actually breathe. When we practice, the mercy descends. 

We can keep our priorities straight and keep long term happiness over short term happiness by reading of the reality, chanting, hearing, honoring prasadam, praying, etc. PRACTICE."

Syamarani didi --- Siksastakam, chanting --- Santa Cruz, June 6, 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

Syamarani didi
June 6, 2012
Santa Cruz

"Have a mood of appeal, grief-stricken appeal, when saying these prayers. We can make advancement like this every day. Gurudeva said, if we're not advancing, it is because of offenses. But that's not the end. We can pray even more because of it. And only Gurudeva can give us the mood of grief-stricken appeal. So even more reason to pray!

"ayi nanda tanuja...these phrases reveal how we can solve all problems. We must see leaving Krsna as the cause of all miseries. We think we are in control due to wicked hopes and misplaced anxieties. Instead we should only have anxiety for - 'I am not seeing Radha and Krsna.' Karma is the desire to enjoy the fruits of our actions. It is like trying to grab onto one straw while drowning.

"Force the mind to think positive affirmations - 'Please forgive my faults, because I am without shelter,' not, 'Gurudeva can't save me,' that's down the drain.

"Each phrase and word we say opens up a new world. We pray to be the manjaris, who can see Radha and Krsna in early morning, etc. Can untangle their hair, etc. Sakhis cannot do this.

"The tongue is the most dangerous of all the senses. Unless we control it, we can't chant. Why do we chant? To obtain the service of the lotus feet of Sri Radha. This is why we serve Krsna, pray to him, etc. Everything leads back to serving Sri Radha.

"By keeping the goal in mind, we can obtain it.

"Trying to control the mind is like trying to stop a tornado. But by constancy, practice and detachment, we can."

Syamarani didi - Santa Cruz, June 5, 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

Forgive me for being so tardy with these short hand notes from the 2012 womens' book distribution tour:

Syamarani didi
June 5, 2012
Santa Cruz

"Whatever we think will make us happy will actually make us miserable. As bubbles in the ocean are we; popping up for a moment before disappearing. The anticipated happiness goes as soon as we get it - SREYAS.

"Krsna climbs the trees, eats their fruits, they are his friends. Trees in the material world are suffering - wanted to stand naked, got bodies of trees.

"Being in the material world is like being a blind man in a maze. He is running his stick along the wall but stops to scratch an itch and misses the doorway out. Misusing our human life for material desires is like that man scratching his itch and getting lost again - 8,400,000 species of life.

"PREYAS - I'm holding out for long-term happiness.

"Various material attractions, and the senses' urges, are like the dingaling of an icecream truck. 'Come on, enjoy.' Human beings can't control the six senses, including the mind.

"Q: How to make chanting the holy name most effective?
A:
- the HOly Name is a person
- do not criticize
- only pray for spiritual things
- what we repeat and experience - tv, movies, etc. - becomes part of us. By repeatedly singing bhajans, etc., we get those good impressions.
- pray we destitute appeal and humility
- pray for the ecstatic symptoms you want when chanting
- Gurudeva is IN the holy name, because he is in the pastimes. Pray to him.
- Pray for service to Radha and Krsna.

"Q: How can we resist the urge for short-term happiness and hold out for long-term happiness?
A: When we practice, the mercy descends. Practice very diligently - reading, chanting, etc. These will make impressions."

"Thinking 'I am this body' is like thinking, 'I am a sweater. Now I'm being ironed. Now I'm in the tumble machine. Now I"m covered in list.' This is insane! Especially to those more advanced.

"Gurudeva tells his initiates to remember the power of chanting. No need to worry about anything. Krsna will protect you. As Srila Prabhupada said, "When you $100 problems are solved, your $10 problems are solved.'"

Syamarani didi - Nirjala Ekadasi, Humility --- LA, May 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

  

More shorthand notes -

Syamarani didi
Nirjala Ekadasi
Humility
LA, May 2012

"We are being scorched due to indifference to Krsna. Indifference is solved by bhajan - reading about Krsna, hearing about Krsna, chanting, praying to Krsna, etc.

"Why should we be MORE insignificant than a blade of grass? Grass has natural ego; our ego related to our body is not natural, because we are not this body. It is illusion.

"A tree with no fruits and flowers still stands tall; a tree with fruits and flowers bends over. Similarly, a proud person with no good qualities stands tall. A humble person laden with good qualities bends over in humility.

"If we even correctly criticize someone - our criticizing comment is correct - we go where they are destined to go [for doing whatever bad thing you are criticizing them for.]

"Once, Gurudeva asked Damodara Maharaja, "Who is superior, you, or your stool?" Damodara Maharaja answered, "Me, of course." Gurudeva said, no, your stool is superior, because it can say, 'I was once a nice sweet of cake, but by association with you, I became stool.'

"Nirjala Ekadasi, Nirjala is God, not a day. Gurudeva said, 'If you have any defect in Ekadasi, chant, pray, weep.'

"Take carnamrta on Ekadasi. When doing acamana on Nirjala Ekadasi, only touch water to your lips, don't take any in. Even young boys in India follow Nirjala Ekadasi.

"Day before Nirjala Ekadasi, take no water and have only 1 meal.

"'Chant, and everything will be okay." - Gurudeva"

Syamarani didi - Gangamata Goswamini, Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana --- Los Angeles, May 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

 

Class by Syamarani didi; my shorthand notes -

Gangamata Goswamini
Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana
LA, May 2012

"All of us ladies should follow Gangamata Goswamini. [Gurudeva said we should be like her, I remember.]

Gangamata Goswamini was a princess around the time of Srila Rupa Goswami. She wanted to marry only Krsna. She arrived in Vrndavana after Rupa, Sanatana had already left, when Ragunatha Goswami was still present. She was initiated by a Haridas Prabhu (not Haridas Thakura).

[Prabhupada spoke on the asta satvika bhavas during Syamarani didi's harinama initiation, saying they are our goal in chanting.]

"Haridas put Gangamata Goswamini - Sacidevi - at age 16, under the care of another lady disciple of his, who was 50 years old. He told her would supply her with nothing material. Sacidevi took only what she needed to maintain her life. She was very chaste. She recorded things from her Gurudeva in her heart.

"At age 50 she was told to go to Radha Kund. Her guardian lady passed on, so she went to her guru and asked him what she should do. He told her he would soon leave, and instructed her to go Puri to find the place of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya and do bhajan.

"Many years later, after the Ganga flowed to her lotus feet, after a king and his associates took initiation from her, Gangamata Goswamini had them built a temple at the place of Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya. Just see how guru and Krsna arrange all for us if we simply chant, preach, and do bhajan.

Srimati Gangamata Goswamini

"Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana was born in Orissa by Chilka Lane. This is where Krsna and Balarama - Jagannath and Baladev - bought milk from an old lady on their way to fight for the king of Puri, and gave her Their rings [said to show them to the king who would come by later with his army; when the king discovered that, as he had prayed, Jagannath and Baladev would help him win the fight, he gave the old lady a palace.]

"Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana was expert at vyakarana - Sanksrit grammar. He studied all Vedanta in Udupi. He went to Puri and there met Radha Damodara Prabhu, who came after Syamananda Prabhu and took initiation from him. Then he went to Vrndavana and took shelter of his siksa guru, Srila Vishvanatha Cakravarti Thakura.

"He read all of Srila Jiva Goswami's Sandarbhas. He defeated many. Gurudeva wants us to be scholars.

"Gaudiya are in the Madhva line because Laxmi Tirtha gave diksa to Lord Nityananda and Madhavendra Puri.

"How can we practice defeating people [in spiritual debate] and giving classes? - give classes at colleges and events, repeat what you have heard in harikatha."

 Srila Vishvanath Cakravarti Thakura

Syamarani didi - Sri Siksastakam verse 2-3 - LA, 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

 

 

Here are more of my notes from the 2012 Gaudiya Girls Tour with Syamarani didi:

"10 offenses to the Holy Name - Srila Prabhupada would discuss these at initiations and ask his disciples to recite them.

"All names of Krsna and His plenary portions are powerful, but the most direct ones are more powerful - Krsna, Govinda, versus Nrsingha, etc. The highest names of Krsna are the ones associated with Srimati Radhika.

"We have to become Prahlada, Gangamata Goswamini, etc. before we can be gopis. Ultimately we want to be gopis. We want Vraja Krsna, not Devakinandana.

"If we want something while chanting, nama will give us that thing and then go away - a person, money, etc. Nama is like a desire tree.

"'Samsara dukha jaladhau...

 O Caitanya Candra, I am drowning in the ocean of ignorance in a net, chained by wicked desires, getting bitten by the crocodiles of lust, anger, greed, etc. Please save me!

"If we are remembering this verse while chanting, this is good. Acknowledge that we can't control our minds.

"9th offense to the Holy Name - innocent and ignorant versus envious and aggressive. We do sankirtana for the ignorant. Prabhupada said, it's a risk we take for Mahaprabhu. Even if we are handing out Gopi Gitas; Prabhupada said, if they start thinking that Radha and Krsna are ordinary boy and girl, this is OK. It's a start.

"Innocent and ignorant won't make offenses when they read it. But WE can! We must pray to the pastime potency to protect us and to help us understand. Consciously guard against the 10 offenses. How can we become free from offenses? Chant more!

"How can you tell them Krsna is God, if you have no potency to convert them? Gurudeva has the potency.

"What we say to the people does not matter; they either have the sukriti or not.

"Gurudeva said, pray to whomever can help you while you are chanting.

"Make your japa and mantras priority - when you put small pebbles in a jar first, then the big rocks can't fit. But if you put the big rocks in first, and then the small pebbles, the little pebbles slide in-between the cracks and it all fits.

'If after this class you repeat what I'm saying, it will go in your heart. If not, it will not.'
- Srila Gurudeva

Srila Gurudeva and Syamarani didi

Jesus and book distribution - Syamarani didi - - - LA, May 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

Here is another one!

"If Jesus is actually a pure devotee, than he did not really die, so 'died for his sins,' actually he did not die. He only pretended to die. If Jesus were dead, why worship him anymore? He was resurrected after 3 days. Nowhere in the Bible does it truly say that Jesus died for his sins - that we can keep sinning while he keeps suffering.

"Similarly, 'thou shalt not kill,' etc., what does it mean to accept Jesus? It means to accept guru, accept his instructions. 

"Gurudeva said, the daksina he wants is gratitude.

"If Hindus say that they know everything already [when you try to distribute a book to them], tell them to give the book to their less fortunate friends, or that it is a new publication. Just keep going. It's for Gurudeva!

"This is anxiety-less book distribution. Don't be anxious for the money.

"For Sanskrit titles, tell them it is the oldest language in the world. Give them the meaning of the title in English, so it's more relate-able.

"'How to get high naturally from within without drugs' - line devotees used in the 60s

"Prabhupada said, even if they don't like the books, if they read it, that is smaranam, remembrance.

"Share verses with people you distribute to. Bhagya - van - that person who has all opulences...The names of Krsna that relate to Radha are most powerful because he is most complete with Her. Tell people names of Krsna and stories.

"Think of the people as eternal servants of Krsna, that they do know this [already] and can understand it.

"It is difficult to control the mind but by practice and detachment, you can."

Here's a video I found! Love it!

Srimati Syamarani didi and the Gangamatas

Sukriti and Book Distribution - Syamarani didi - - - LA, May 2012

om ajnana timirandhasya jnananjana salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena tasmai sri gurave namah
"O Gurudeva, you are so merciful. I offer my humble pranama unto you and am praying from the core of my heart that, with the torchlight of divine knowledge, you open my eyes which have been blinded by the darkness of ignorance."

Recently I went on a beautiful book distribution tour with Jadurani/Syamarani didi and a group of young women. We went all around California having blissful festivals in major cities like Los Angeles and Berkeley. Everywhere we were received very sweetly by devotees, and everywhere people were attracted to the spiritual gem literatures given by our vaisnava acaryas. Also Syamarani didi's posters of art, inspired from the hearts of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva, were very popular.

I took some notes during the tour - Syamarani didi spoke on Sri Siksastakam for most of it - and would like to share them.

So here's the first of a series of Syamarani didi posts - my notes are very shorthand and may be difficult to understand. Please forgive me if they are!

Everything in brackets, [], is something she said about herself, so I put it in brackets so that it doesn't get confusing.

Syamarani didi

 

"evam vrtasah priyanarma krtyah...

One who has developed prema is always loving his Lord, dancing, crying, not caring for others. - mood of gopis. If in tune with this mood, then we can be in tune with all entities. We want to be in tune with all living entities. Book distribution is a way to do this.

"As a preacher your mindset changes. [When Syamarani didi does book distribution, all her experiences come into the forefront. She thinks of the Bhagavad Gita As It Is paintings.]

"People gather sukriti - pious credits - by inadvertently serving, too. For example, if someone lets Srila Gurudeva go first in line at the airport - then, they'll get a book, or hear the Hare Krsna mantra, or get a bonafide guru, and surrender to that guru. Even if someone appreciates what we are doing but does not take any book, that gets him sukriti.

"Gurudeva said, 'Keep giving sukriti.' By contact with us book distributors, people get it, and we give it.

"Once connected with Krsna Consciousness, we illuminate, like a light bulb connected to a powerhouse.

Gurudeva said, when you don't know whether your sari is on or off and you're rolling on the ground, then you'll be an effective preacher.

Make your heart one with the goswamis and your gurudeva.

Think of they benefit people are getting, not of yourself. Preach and distribute books for benefit of the humans and the animals. If the humans read these books they won't kill the animals.

Our preaching is like throwing a butterfly wing into a pond - not much ripple created. But if Gurudeva tells us to [preach, distribute books], his power goes with us. Gurudeva is with us making it all happen. He is the doer. 

Practically try to assess the needs of the person, ask them what they're interested in, if they have any questions. etc. 

Gurudeva is more powerful than Visvamitra Muni, Narada Muni, etc. He can come in another body. He can do anything. He is all merciful and his mercy is ever increasing."

Srila Gurudeva, ki JAI!!