Shack Notes

6:30 A.M. I just wrote a letter to a woman newly coming to Krishna consciousness. She asked questions about how to approach a spiritual master. She thought she could get initiated right away, and that there were a group of initiating gurus to choose from who lived in different zones, as it used to be. […]

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Distribute Books

A letter was drafted and signed by Tamala Krishna Goswami, the G.B.C., and Prabhupada signed also, on a line marked “approved.” The letter stated that all traveling and temple sankirtana parties should always wear tilaka, dhotis, neck beads, and sikha, and depend on Krishna rather than disguises to help distribute books. At the bottom of […]

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Can a white man be an Haribol?

Introduction St. Augustine said that perceptions made free of past or present associations provide “presages of the Divine.” By living with our sense perceptions in present time, even if what we see is not absolute, we can find ourselves pointed to the Absolute—if that’s where we wish to go. Krishna hints at this when He […]

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ISKCON in the 1970s

October 20 Detroit I have been hearing of the activities of a demon in the U.S. called the deprogrammer, who is paid by parents of Hare Krishna devotees to kidnap and torture the devotees into giving up Krishna consciousness and returning to nondevotee life. Last night I woke from a dream and felt like I […]

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My Relationship with Lord Sri Krishna

We are not alone. Krishna is in our hearts. The yogis and sannyasis know this, and they are never afraid. Krishna protects us, but we should worship Him. For example, we can develop a relationship with our temple Deity. Most of the ISKCON temples have Radha-Krishna Deities. If someone is interested in his relationship with […]

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Can you practice Vrindavana-bhajana in the West?

Smaller tree bushes sway in a breeze but the pines don’t move much. This is the Lord’s external energy. As those who don’t have love of God are requested to bathe in Radha-kunda again and again, so we have to repeatedly bathe our minds in the pastimes of Radha and Krishna—we want to think of […]

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Entering the Life of Prayer

Dark this morning. The trees on either side of the road are almost meeting in the center like an arch. They are so full of green and stretching out, but it is a cold summer, cold even for Ireland. Prayer is not just recitation, it’s a whole life. I was reading in Therese of Lisieux […]

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One Hundred Prabhupada Poems

# 9 How could devotees gather on a farm in Poland and in cities of Poland except that Your Divine Grace wanted it? Of course, Lord Caitanya wanted it, but He picked you to deliver the Hare Krishna movement which is carried on now by your followers. Going through the samsara song, happy to see […]

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