dtcp090604 Diary of a Traveling Creature by Buck White (PIGGY) ANJANA SUTA ACADEMY www.JayaRama.US 2009 June 4 - June 22 ============================================ 2009 June 4 Yaroslav (RUSSIA) t h u r s d a y 11:08AM - R(20) G(1) Hare Krsna, Dudes! We just had lunch. It was great. We got up at 2AM. Chanted rounds. Went and got warm water from the stove. Cleaned the bathroom. {[((Ugh!) etc.)]} Bathed, and did our laundry. Then Mangala-arati and everything and at 6AM we had breakfast: One nice Prasadam grapefruit, 1½-digits of Russian-bhakta bread, one Ba-na-na, 1-Walnut. Sun was up at 5:00AM. Ekadasi breakfast. We are working on the TPPBG Afterwords. We did Chapters 9 & 10 today. Is O.K. (for us.) At breakfast, in the Cafeteria, we saved our oatmeal (Kasha) and 330ml of Russian cottage Yogurt and one Ba-na-na in our pot. HpSwami wants to eat our picnic once a day in the afternoon, but it's a hell of a strain on Brother Ass, the body! (I know, I'm Brother Pig!) to wait so long, and just once a day! [MONKEY: Yeah, but if you eat good-fud-plenty like this everyday you'll get fat! (Fatter!) Haw! Haw!] PIGGY: Robust, not fat... ...And only if you don't get out and get some fresh air. We are going for a walk soon. [MONKEY: O.K. O.K. You seem to finally have some rythm figured out for this place, but at 7:00PM we are on the road again - Ivanov, Ribinsk, Moss Cow, Spain...] PIGGY: Hare Krsna. M: O.K. ~2AM - Get up, and get your rounds done good. ~9AM - Cafeteria (Pack a Picnic). Hare Krsna. (Go for a long walk. [Talk and Talk]) ~5PM - Tea Tyme (Banana Slyme)! PIGGY: If you would go back up to the Crow's Nest to watch for Pirates, we could work on the 'Kapi Dhvaja'. MONKEY: Hmmmf! ~+~ HpS started the Kapi-dhvaja in May 1979. It had a different name. It is very old. We appeared later. The $$$ column is there every fool-moon issue. He makes a lot of mistakes but we try to keep the reporting and accounting grossly accurate. [MONKEY; Haw! Haw! Haw! Grossly] (from way up top in the Crow's Nest) <> Then there is the Calendar. That's tough. So many ways to look at Time. Ultimately it is the external manifestation of the Super-soul, but even for the regular Calendars we got pretty good system. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna. Well, I guess that's it - KD Calendar and $$$ Monkey kind of does the 'Wandering Miscreants' column. And the ABC column we all do. O.K. Let's do dollars!!! Some day you have to take one of Uncle Gismo's ASA, Information Management Seminars. He has a weirdly wonderful accounting system. It's especially designed for Sannyasis. ~+~ 9:06PM R(25) G(3) Well, we've arrived in Ivanovo. It was about a 1½-hour drive in a swift auto with Albert Prabhu. Brahmacari Jita-krodha is with us too. He was our cook and valet on the visit last year. He speaks about 60% English. He was worried because there wasn't a clothes press in HpS's room. We're in one of these little farm house places alongside the street with others. Nice older atmosphere. We brought one mosquito from Yaroslav in our luggage to suck our blood. The reception committee was one Brahmacari, Sakatari das, who will translate, he knows like 80% English, and 7-women. One is the Temple Presidentess. Temple is clean and nice with little bows on the walls. Prabhupada looks very strong. "Our" room's on the ground floor. View of lots of trees in the front yard. Rooms all new finishing but one hole in the floor and no books in the book case. <> We suggested give a "Light of the Bhagavata" seminar for the three nights we are here. They were delighted. Two pictures of Krishna with His flute on the wall and one Rasa-lila. Hot Milk! And now???? (KRSNA>>=> book) When the material world is booring or deadly handed near, then it's natural to chant, a place devoid of fear! Air France jet went down without noise with 250 passengers and crew over the Atlantic. We cross the Atlantic on Thursday. I wonder if any of the Stewardesses were furious with any of the Stewards? The lights go out. The engines die. We're going down. We cannot fly. Does eveyone scream in the dark? Hare! Krsna! Hare Krsna! Do we grab the lady next to use and try to take her home? We must be so detached from matter wherever we do roam. But that means attached to Krsna, and for that we must hear His song. O.K Krsna book, come along. ============================================ 2009 June 5 Ivanov (RUSSIA) f r i d a y 9:39AM - R(19) G(1) Hare Rama - Xape Pama Electricity just died. Pleasant day. Sun, and trees dancing outside our windows. We have a front room on the bottom floor. Neighborhood dogs bark-king. Little old man pulling a little old cart, with two robust, old milk cans on it. One mosquito! Still a <<>> food poisoning. About 20-devotees for class. Sakat-ari translated pretty nice. AND. He has Srimad Bhagavatam and Caitanya-caritamrta in ENGLISH! Was SB 4.24.73. Srila Prabhupada talks exactly about evolution. So, we gave the structure of the Bhagavatam - Cantos 1-2 are Krsna's lotus feet, 3-7 discuss children of Svayambhuva Manu etc. That brought in discussion of creation of Manus et al by Brahma, so we explained in more detail our idea of the origin of the species: First there is a blueprint for the house. Then it passes through different levels of developement until people occupy it and there is kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room. So in the beginning everything is like steam, clouds. Lord Brahma can create species just from agitating his intelligence, sub-conscious. Then clouds, steam, becomes water, then water becomes ice. So all the species are there in a subtle form first, then they come down to our level. If I show you a block of ice and say this was a cloud, you might laugh and call me a fool, but you are the fool. We are here for three days. ~+~ 10:35AM R(20) G(1) God save us! Breakfast came and it was a "Sannyasi Feast"! ... and ... ... and ... ...we ate like Pigs! [MONKEY: You are a Pig.] {PIGGY: Oh, I forgot! I thought I was Hanumatpresaka Swami. Ooooof! That's a relief.] T O D A Y ' S Breakfast Menu Cheese, tomato, carrot, cabbage, buckwheat, Russian-yogurt, almond, sour-cream, bannana, (Rupanuga bread-bit), Carana-amrta Kitri. [MONKEY: One meal does it all!] PIGGY: I promise to God that if we don't die, I will hardly never, ever, eat like this ever again (except at 5:00PM. [Tea-time. {We saved a few nutz and grapes. ((We'll be hungry by then.))}]) [MONKEY: Well, if you keep moving, do light work, you can digest it all. Devotional service is so powerful that it can penetrate anything. It sounds like a reasonable breakfast, once in a week, when you put it all together.] ~+~ Let's read CC, now that we got it. This one-volume edition was HpSwami's idea! ~+~ 1:29PM R(20) G(2) HeadACHE! But we were 81% successful in our internet session. Had to walk for 7-minutes to the flat of one devotee Mataji, who was kindly letting us use her computer. About 15-emergency and VIP and regular letters. headACHE! But Mataji's computer wouldn't recognize our Memory Stick. More effort. More effort, pull out the computer, get down on your hands and knees in back of the metal box, insert the cable. They recognized each other. They chatted. They loaded Bhakta NEO. We transfered the last DTC etc. We went to the "NEW" Globat. Our password had expired. We renewed it. Uploaded the DTC. Tried to quickly edit the Web Page but no luck. Mataji was staying home from work for us, so we satisfied ourselves with that effort and logged off, and came back to the Temple. Maybe day-after-tommorrow we try to use it again. We got the KD 7.2 uploaded to Yahoo Drafts from Bhakta NEO. HarekrsnA HarekrsnA That's the only advice we have. Thoughts, battle-plans, will always be there, and to select them, edit them, we just need to be situated at the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada and chant, Hare Krsna, Hare Rama!!! Our nap. CC! & class to-night! ============================================ 2009 June 6 Ivanov (RUSSIA) s a t u r d a y 9:22PM R(25) G(3) Hare Krsna. Still light outside. People are passing on the lane. Saturday night. This is not such a big nightlife city. Mostly simple pleasures like walking with peers, smoking, skating, sipping beers. Every night the Vanaras, headed by Angada, Jambavan and Hanuman would re-group and exchange information about the day's search. Morton was looking a Monkey's letters to Srivasa Pandit in Silicon Valley. They were pretty. Colored paper glued here and there. Artistic handwriting. Monkey was a real craftsman. The letter was nice. He described the day's activities. Regular morning program from 2AM. 1½-hour SB class. Frustrating with very poor translation. So, frustrating. Such hard work. Then... ... ...breakfast. Was finally pretty good. Little rest and off into the streets of Ivanov leading a little army of 12-devotees in Hari-nama Sankirtana. Was GREAT. Matajis danced in front in colored Sarees. We lead with a little sound system with two b'caris. Sakatari das in secular dress sold 30-small books! Grhastha family with daughter and baby carriage. People were surpised. It's like the North Pole in Summer here. Everyone comes out of their caves and what do they see: Hare Krsnas in their little city. Got back at 4:30PM and there was Lima bean soup Prasadam as requested! So, nice. Almost dying of hunger. Robust lunch after 2-hours of chanting, dancing, playing the drums. Reading CC and little rest and evening program. There is a predominance of ladies here, about 2.1 to 1. They led nice Kirtana and then <> translator, so Jita Krodha translated. Sakari was still on Sankirtana. Was even more hellish than SB class. After about ¼-hour of struggliing Sakari came and was like SB class. We did our second LOB picture, Varna-ashrama-dharma. Many good questions about how to develope ISKCON here in a practical VAD way. 2-hours. Then three more rounds and here we are. The letter had a nice drawing of the Hari-nam. Morton had liked the Hari-nama also. It was just like sailing the ABC. You had to catch the current of the devotees' energy, the public's energy and aim for the Spiritual World. Such a precise Yajna: Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna. It was intense. It was unlimited. Just by chanting and dancing, Gandharava Veda, you can go to Krsna, go to Goloka. Well enough for one day. There is nothing nicer than to be engaged in devotional service all day! Tommorrow the 'Kapi Dhvaja' goes and the Sunday feast. Send the KD means updating all our files, calendars etc. It is a perfect tool to keep the ASA integrated. KD Ki Jai! ~+~ MM = ABORTION: A Third Choice? 1) Adam and Eve. 2) Atoms and Molecules. 3) Atmas and Param-atma. A satisfying and practical explanation of what is life, love, this world, atoms and Eden from the corollaries of Vedanta. Blind faith is condemned. See for yourself. ============================================ 2009 June 7 Ivanov (RUSSIA) s u n d a y 3:42PM R(21) G(2) Well, the KD just went. It was hell. Computers with Cyrilic letters. ¡™£¢§ § ø ¥¨® á߃©æ÷ µ~çØ. Globat's all new, improved, (useless) control panel. Brisk fifteen minute walk in the fresh air to an arrogant, spoiled, upper-middle-class computer who wouldn't talk to Bhakta NEO. Some Urgent mail. Back to Temple for our picnic lunch and here we are. Monkey is telling Morton about adventures he had in different lives serving Sita Rama. Basic fact. The demons can have all the cards stacked in their favor, but when you are trying to do good for Sri and Rama, then something auspicious always pops up out of the Blue to make the magic happen! Honestly, we should rest. Sunday feast lecture coming with translators who don't speak Ingish good. And after that 1-1/2 hour Sunset drive to Yarolsav. Picnic lunch Prasadam was pretty damn good! ~+~ 9:24PM R(25) G(3) Yaroslava (RUSSIA) Oink! HOnk! whwOOP! WHOOP! AGTSP paho. ARRIVED Again we are in Yaro-Slava. Everytime with more Bhava. We drove with Alfred, King of men, From Iva-anov, at velocity, one-hundred-ten. As we crossed the city-center roads, We realized that's it's just a step, From where our Temple finds abode. Turn left not right as you take flight, And you'll another land of passion light. I guess it's just the same for Goloka dhama. The more you chant, you remember Rama! I mean, if we go out on the main road near the Temple and turn right, we know all the stuff in that direction: The Kremlin, the Trinity, the Inernet place, Bazaar. But driving in we realized that if you turn left on the main road, its just a 15 minute max walk to the more political center of the city. We've never gone that way. So many things to experience. Haw! Haw! Haw! But our guide in life is not the pleasure of the mind in passion of matter, but what makes Guru happy. Your body (ignernce) or Your mind (pashuuun!) like it, but we want to know what makes Prabhupada happy. Look at his face. What makes him happy! Take rest - 9:43PM. ============================================ 2009 June 8 Yaroslav (RUSSIA) m o n d a y 10:40AM - R(19) G(1) HARE KRSNA (BooK) -- Fool morning prOgram. We gave SB class and Sakata-ari das (Enemy of the cart-demon - Sakatasura) translated. Was O.K. End of Vamana-lila, Canto Eight. We always learn so much when we teach! B'FAST P'SADAM = ~2-pears - 1.65 ba-na-na, ~yogurt-raisins-nutz, ~buckwheat/soup.... [When will we go to Ribinski? {I don't know, I ask? (Car will come in some time for you. [We go with Visitha? (I don't know, I don't think so. So, we take our laundry out into the abandoned factory yard and hang it in the wind under the dappled sunshine in the cold fresh air while the sea gulls circle above in the sky and shriek and cars come and go from the other light industries in the complex (they still make furniture here, but not so big as before). And chant three rounds. What use is Bhakti-sastri in a world like this? (Haw! Haw! Haw!) Systematic study of Prabhupada's books? We read LOB Text 37 and noticed some wonderfool things. GUess we will naturally take interest in the next TPP Unit, LOB 37-48. (Makes us think of Nitai-gaurasundara Prabhu and his broad Scriptural intelligence). .He LaughS. ¡SUCH a nice BOOK! ~+~ 12:25PM R(19) G(1) We are just crossing the bridge outside the temple and turning right at the Kremlin. We are with one nice couple from Rybinsk. Gentleman is blind, friendly, very expert business guy. Wife is driving. [MONKEY: Very wise] and will be like 3-hours to Rybinsk, I guess. Vasistha will be there, I guess. The police won't stop us for a regular check, I guess. No!!! We are going to Vasistha's in-laws flat to get him now, I guess!!! O.K. Here we go (Gayatri). ~+~ 2:01PM ... Rybinsk. Same flat, same room, but now it is <> . One hour trip. We did pick-up Visistha Prabhu. Let's write our Tpp LoB Step-Four Afterwords. ~+~ 3:26PM - Just finished lunch and today's quota of LOB Afterwords, Texts 37-40. BIG BIG SASTRIS Our society, friendship and love, Are all those we find, At the feet of Sri Sri Radha Madhava. Can you imagine little monkeys, At the feet of Prabhupada. They restrain their playful natures, But not completely odd. They are waiting and are watching, The things he also sees. All ready to be messengers, When he hands them "ABCs". I want to know many, many, books from Prabhupada, but not so much in my head, rather a heap of pages at heart. It's an art! Know your part! Building your body of knowledge is like building a boat of made of reeds. It even includes a garden and a row of pineapple seeds. Takes time. It's gotta float. An indestructable, submersible boat. Over it's demise not even Godzilla will gloat. Knowledge is always in conjunction with Guru. It's like gas pumps are always in conjuction with automobiles. So, our knowledge is always practical in terms of the orders and services that Guru is giving us: Go here! Do that! Deliver this message!! ~+~ 8:48PM R(22) G(2) Just got back from the evening program. Very nice young couple with nice old house that they are fixing up with gardens etc. His father is one of the directors of one of the two gigantic grain silos here in Ribinski. His father doesn't like Hare Krsna, so the programs they have have to be a little on the sly. Yet, about 65 devotees there tonight. Very nice Kirtan. Then we just talked about LOB 37-40. So easy to preach. Vasistha read the Russian Text translations and one full purport and then we discussed it and gradually read the other translations and summarized the purports. Very nice. Varna - ashrama - dharma: Past fifty the waves of passion and ignorance in Grhastha ashrama become calm and we should take Vanaprastha. One Mata said, "You have described nicely the VAD for men but what about ladies?" So, we explained that focusing on marriage and specific storys like Paul Dillion's experiences in Nepal, Prabhupada's marriage. Very nice devotees. Many young and middle age Gharstha couples. Many older folks also. After every program we distribute Prasadam. They have Simply Wonderfuls made with banana that are incredible! So, every night we can discuss the LOB verses that we write forTPP during the day. Varna-ashram-dharma is the highest material attachment. We can only surpass it when you make friendship with a devotee. Srila Prabhupada Ki Jai! Can he accept us as we are? Can we be with Him without help of others? L ~ ~ ~ ~>>> A ~ h a r e k r s n a ~ G ~ ~>>> : P ~ h a r e r a m a ~ O ~ ~ ~ ~ ~>>> L ~> > E [:::::::] ============================================ 2009 June 9 Rybinsk (RUSSIA) t u e s d a y 1:41PM - R(19) G(2) How are you?! It's quiet here now. Visistha Prabhu is napping on the couch. He does a lot internet work with his VIHE and other Bhakti-sastri students. Lunch is supposed to come in a few minutes. We've had our bath and washed our clothes, which takes some Bhakti because we have to heat the water on the kitchen stove and take it to the itty bitty tiny bathroom, and then hang it on the itty bitty tiny clothes line on the balcony. Also, we got out for a walk around a few of the buildings. So many kinds of wild herb plants burst out here during the Russian Summer. Many babies in strollers. Hare Krsna! It is quite shocking for them to see us walking dressed like Sannyasi. They look concerned sometimes and pull their babies closer. Hare Krsna. Japa, in our room, Mangala-arati, bath and laundry, breakfast, Monkey Missle to Caitanya-caritamrta Das, mind trying to sort out our computer archives and then time to write our TPP LOB 41-44 Afterwords and this DTC. After lunch we go for computer work at a seven story walk-up! The stair wells in these places all smell terrible. Honestly have to breath through our Choddar not to get sick from the gas! Up, up, up. The cats are King here. So many and no one bothers them. Mother Russia! ~+~ 8:25PM R(20) G(2) Morton and Monkey ambled down the lanes of Puri looking for inspiration for how to find Srimati Radharani. The streets were very old and twisty and the people were dressed in colorful handmade attire. Flags and festoon danced proudly in the breeze. Even though it was sometimes night, the activity never stopped. It just changed it's character. Craftsmen were honing their tools and making fine boxes for Nilacandra's service, inlaid with copper and ivory. Monkey and Morton both stopped by a shop that displayed incense burners. Monkey had never seen anything like them before. He could see how the chips of different wood and herbs would burn on the coals in one place and then rise up through different channels to the sky and to heaven. Thus, there would be offerings to the Gandhavas in the sky and gods in the heavens, and ultimately to Nilacala-candra in Vaikuntha. Some also had dripping water. Others had two or three burners and complex channels so that different fragrances would compete or augment each other and exit through different channels and grills. Monkey wondered if one could go on ABC? Smelling incense offered to God gives you strength to do Sankirtana he observed. Morton could understand that. At every moment there was a chance to make broad, lasting changes to things if one had they proper intelligence. Hare Krsna, Hare Rama. Jaya Radha Jaya Shyama! ============================================ 2009 June 10 Rybinsk (RUSSIA) w e d n e s d a y 2:56PM - R(23) G(2) Hare Krsna, Hare Rama, Jaya Sri Vrndavana-dhama! We are sitting in Yogesa-priya Das' flat. It is the 7-story computer walk-up one. His good Mother and Visitha Prabhu are unpacking lunch in the kitchen. We had a lot of erotic dreams last night! Too much sugar late at night. Krsna warned us, I think, but no, Sir, we wouldn't listen. Well, we hope that we are learning. Our morning program from 1:48AM was pretty damn strong. Chanted with lot of concentration even if it wasn't yet with Bhava. Honored breakfast Prasadam also with unprecedented concentration and petition: Oh, Hara, we pray to You at the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada to pray to Rama and Krsna that this Prasadam be entered entirely into Their service and that it agitate our senses only for Their service. Please pray to Them, Hare Rama, Hare Krsna. Regular class at 9:00AM, about 8-devotees. We are reciting and discussing the 'Arunadaya-kirtana - Udilo aruna puraba bhage...' by Bhakti-vinode Thakura. We should really make it a standard ASA Bhajan. It is super, super, super for preaaching. You can introduce Bhaktivinode Thakura, Lord Caitanya, Indian/Vedic culture, the basic principles of our philosophy from matter to the Holy Names. Then we counted the Rubles donations, about 32,000 (=$1,000), and then went off to the country to a <> recently contructed hydro-electric late. Was <> refreshing to bath in the crisp water. The arthritis in our elbows disappeared. Gayatri. Walking, Back to Yogespriya's flat for lunch! HpS was chanting Bhajana and playing the flute. all the time. ============================================ 2009 June 11 Rybinsk > Moscow (RUSSIA) t h u r s d a y 3:39PM - R(24) G(2) SNIFFING OUT THE TRAIL HAre Krsna. Hare Rama. Jaya Radha, Jaya Shyama! Sergio's driving, And Visistha's along. We're all going to Moscow As we sing on this song. All morning we're packing, And now we are in route, To Moscow then tommorrow, Fom Russia we're out! But here, there or elsewhere, Our aim is the same, To find sweet, fair, lost Radha, And deliver Krsna's refrain. Then return to the Book Trust, With Her dollars and cents, So they know where exactly, The Books should be sent. Dapper-do Dapper-up. It's four hours on your fanny, With lunch from a cup. DYNAMIC (DIE-NAMIC) Rybinsk to Moscow, Moscow to Madrid, Madrid to Brihuega, The home of El Cid. Then the Madrid farm to Brussels And Brussels to D.C. D.C. to sweet Nashville, And that's the end of small me. We are all electrons trying to dance under the charge of Hara. All we can do is stay in touch with Her orders and do what we can in the situation were we find ourselves! ~+~ 8:14PM R(24) G(3) We finally made it here to the B'cari ashrama in Moscow. Our 4-hour trip turned into 7-hours! So, must stress and strain. Our butt was sore. Is nice here. 50-b'caris, library has English books, we got the KRSNA book! Have O.K. room! All the buildings are new log construction. Said good-bye to Vasistha. We are so sad to see him go! ...! But we have to go forward with the conviction that nothing is ever lost in Krsna consciousness. Tommorrow is another long journey. Is like dying. You can't do anything. The environment is monotonous, so is good chance to learn to serve Radha and Krsna in our heart of hearts. O.K. Bath, laundry, drink water, read the KRSNA book. Sun seems to have set, although still reading light in the sky. Hare Krsna Hare Rama!! ============================================ 2009 June 12 Moscow, Domodevo Airport (RUSSIA) f r i d a y 6:00AM - R(8) G(1) HAre Krsna. AGTSP paoho. We are sitting in the Transit Lounge in Domodevo Airport, Moscow. We got up at 2AM. Bathed, ironed our clothes dry and smooth, worshipped Hanuman Prabhu, packed up, chanted 2-rounds and Saci-suta Prabhu was at the door for our luggage. One hour drive to the airport. Did Mangala-arati bhajan/kirtana together while driving. Then... forms for declaring money etc. Security Check. Took about 1-hour for everything. This part of the airport is new and modern. Starting to look like a proper shopping mall (Haw! HAw!). We are sitting looking out at the sun in the sky, honored 10-filbert and one cucumber Prasadam. Let's chant some more rounds, no? Hare Krsna! Hare Krsna! Hope we find Radha in the hearts of all men, and She takes Vedic books, free from all sin. ============================================ 2009 June 14 Madrid (SPAIN) s u n d a y 7:08AM - R(16) G(1) Hari Bol! Estamos en la coche, we are in the car of Jayanta Das speeding across the plains of Spain, from Madrid to Alicante. We left right after Mangala-arati, 6:15AM, and are in route to visit the new property of the Temple for rural development. Yesterday, we had internet!!! And went with Yasoda, his wife and baby and Maite to New Vraja Mandala farm. There was the wedding of Antonio and Desiré in the patio behind the Temple. It was very, very nice, and then, just 25-feet from the wedding place, in the reception room of the temple, Param-purusa das was lying, barely conscious, breathing heavily, preparing to leave his body. We went and did Kirtana for him for about 1/2-hour. Actually it was very nice. He seemed to be in very peaceful consciousness and it was just a matter of some more purification before he could depart for Goloka! Then back to Madrid and reading CC and speaking in Spanish for an evening class. Afterwards we felt very nice. To bed, but our back window faces onto the street and packs of party people go by all night singing and howling. There is a club right across the alley called "Groovey". Look it up: www.groovey.com! The streets and buildings are old and narrow and twisty and up and down. Lot of character. If they used it for Krsna. Up at 2AM. Pretty good Japa. Bath, Puja, internet and TPP work (a Computer) and Mangala arati and here we are. S a n k i r t a n a ! ~+~ 8:26AM R(19) ... Now we are in Jayanta's little farm house. So much natural opulence. Surrounded by farms, olive orchards. He has little house and little plot of land he is renting. Very famous monastery near here. Our theory is confirmed. He has Roosters and Hens. He got them because there were so many scorpions and such when he came, but now they are all gone. Chickens ate them and he protects the chickens from the foxes. He has a safe place for them at night. Co-operation. Everywhere we see signs that say "ITV", ISKCON Tele-Vision. Big handwritten bill-boards say "Dhira". The name of Tirthakirti's band. It was 108 Km. to Avila. The near-by town is named Rama-castañas. It's just like California where we grew-up?!! Maybe we are supposed to stay here and start a movie industry. Such nice smells. So far no hay fever. Two cherry trees in the yard with innumerable sweet, fat, black cherrys on each one. Less than two hours from Madrid. Hare Krsna! Neighbor is doing some work with a tractor. ============================================ 2009 June 15 Madrid (SPAIN) m o n d a y 6:44PM - R(21) G(2) Hare Krsna, Hare Rama. Parama-purusa Prabhu left his body at 1:30AM. Think he must have gone up, so is happy event. After Jayanta's cabin we went to the new land that Mother Earth and the Madrid Temple are thinking of buying. Many questions, but seems like it has a lot of possibilities. Robust stream runs right along the lower boundry. $80,000. NOt big but possibilities for a comnunity and all the devotees involved are preachers, not looking to become happy in the country in the material world. We want to stay in touch. But of course, our eternal problem, Hay Fever. Maybe we adjust if we actually live there. Back in the car, back to Madrid, Sunday Feast! Nice crown of people. We had to lecture in Spainish, no translator. Then today, little diarrhea from the fresh cherrys and regular work. Lot of work on TPP. Lot more to do. (Found a big can of condensed milk in the Bhoga refrigerator and ate a lot). . . Hare Krsna. That's an extract, but the Maha-mantra is the fact. Let's chant Japa and prepare for the Evening class! Hare Krsna, Hare Rama, Returning Radha to Ghana-shyama! ============================================ 2009 June 16 Madrid (SPAIN) t u e s d a y 8:12AM - R(16) G(1) We are reading "Sri Caitanya.bhagavata", Vrajraj Press, 2004, here in Spain: "She (Mother Yasoda) was feeling anxiety thinking about the visit of Akrura, and she would hear the sound of Krsna's flute and Balarama's horn", Anyta-khanda, Chapter 1, Text 148, Purport (Bhakti-siddhanta Sarasvati Prabhupada). "The Lord said: 'This Danda was My only companion. Now today, by Krsna's will, it was broken' Purport From the mundane point of view the only asset of a Sannyasi is his Danda. One who carries a Danda maintains himself by begging door to door and by accepting a Danda he protects himself from the attack of the external world...", CB 3.2.232 ============================================ 2009 June 17 Brussells (BELGIUM) w e d n e s d a y 2:28AM - R(-2) G(0) Hare Krsna! *** **** Here we are in Trans - Sit, With Bhakta Petr Vacha. The Temple is a flat maintained, By a devotee of Sri Rama. It's just skip, a hop and a jump, From the ancient royal church, You can find Krsna here if you look, And the devotees help you make the search. The congregation is very nice, You don't have to call them twice. They're eager to chant and dance, And about the First Romance. Reading "Upadesamrta", Texto number ten plus one. We pray to God that we can learn, The Sanskrit and teach it just for fun. 2:45AM - R(-3)... 3:03AM - R(0)... Would be so nice to write a NOI Grammar, learn Sanskrit from NOI. 3:30AM - R(4)... How is Text 10 related to Sankirtan? Do we mean to say to people, "Come to Radha Kunda! This is the best place to invest your talents. This is the place that Krsna likes the most." Also, "Hara He! Please call to Krsnah and Ramah to help us to find You so that You can return to Your Kunda muy pronto, because They are so unhappy there without you". We actually see that was the condition of our Lord Sri Ramacandra when he saw the Spring season in separation from Sita Mataji. How nice is Spring. How important to Krsna's pastimes! 4:24AM - R(12)... We are fruitive workers. We want Radharani to be happy as the result of our work. That's the result of His Divine Grace. ~+~ 10:48AM - R(22) G(1) It is amazing how many things happened from whence we last wrote. Now, we are in the Brussels airport waiting area. There is a pleasant gentlemen seated on the same bench as us two seats to the right. We are both seated across the walkway from Gate B11. UA flight to Washington will start boor(d)ing there at 11:15AM. At first we were boored to sit here and chant Holy Names. We feel hesitant to chant loudly, naturally, because that is revealing the intimate glories of the Holy Names to the unfortunately Karma minded. The arquitecture, art, all around us is all booring. Yet, then we thought of looking at the people, many, who are walking by. Then it has become quite interesting. If you really look at people, each one seems to have a story. Some of them are quite expressive. You can see employees walking in pairs with their two-way radios. The police walk very differently, from the shoulders, not from the waiste or lower. The children are quite interesting. I saw one child. Of course, like he had his bag(s), but he was alone. I was looking for his guardian. Then I realized, every child must have a guardian. It is just a fact. I thought, we the Jivas, are like that. We have to be under the authority of Radharani or Durga. Of course, we have some freedom. This child was under a liberal authority who came down the concourse only a few moments later. He was a young Jewish father, with black Jewish suit, and black Jewish hat. On and on like that. Hare Krsna. Everyone is a story. We must look, look, look for those who's story is ready to include the appearance of Krsna as we can offer Him. (We are such poor preacherS) Alas, "Hare, Hare! Please, pray to Krsna and Rama to put us in Your path-way so that even we insincere slobs can do you service." ~+~ 3:48PM R(30) G(2) Dulles International Airport, Washington D.C. It's 9:48PM in Brussels, but we are not tired (much). We watched some stoopid Kung Fu movies on the airplane and chanted Hare Krsna and tried to see all the characters in the movies as Krsna and His associates. Did seem to make the trip much easier on the body, but there has to be a better way! Monkey wrote his hand-written diary. We had cake, apples and nuts from Brussels, and two cans of apple juice from the airplane. Man next to us did not want to talk! Our cane fell on somebody's head when we opened the overhead bin. We aplogized and he said it was alright. What value was their for Krsna in the flight? Little direct result from diary writing, but mostly was just experiencing first-hand the actual environment which makes many peoples daily consciousness. You don't have to think then. You automatically talk to them in their language, but you see it from the perspective of Krsna because of constant Japa. "If you are looking for a woman you must go where there are women", Sri Hanuman Two more hauls: Dinky ship to Nashville and car to Franklin. (Will he make it or will he die of a heart-attack? Will he chant Hare Krsna, Rama all the time?) ============================================ 2009 June 19 Franklin (TENNESSEE, USA) f r i d a y 2:38AM - R(-3) G(0) Oooof! We are so tired! Where can we go for shelter! Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna... ! Under the shelter of Srila Prabhupada's lotus feet. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna... ! We remember: We are not made to enjoy. We are not made to survive. We are made to find Mata Hara and see that She is still alive!!!! Hare Krsna, Hare Krsnaaaa!!! O.K. Some more Japa and we will have intelligence. W.E. Are reading CC3.16 now. "Lord Caitanya Tastes Nectar". It is . It says thee that Kali Dasa was Raghunatha Goswami's uncle! <>. Did you ever hear that before? How was he such an advanced devotee, much more than his brothers, Govardhana and Hiranya, and we haven't heard about him elsewhere, before?? Also, the two prayers we chant to Lord Nrsmhadeva for the protection of ISKCON and Guru after Arati are mentioned right in this Chapter. These are the two prayers that Lord Caitanya would chant at the temple of Lord Nrsmhadeva before entering into the temple of Lord Jagannatha proper! 2:44AM - R(-3)... 3:18AM - R(0) and finished CC3.16. Incredible. Lord Caitanya is explaining the mood of the Gopis at Vraja. This is "Venu Gita", no? The Gopis only remain alive because They hope to get the nectar of Krsna's lips! Hare Krsna, Hare Rama! ~+~ We don't know ISKCON, we don't know GBC. We don't even know what's on TV. We only know your footprints, Prabhupada, As you walk in Vrja dust, Ahlada. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna... ~+~ 5:00PM - R(13) G(2) Still spaced-out from the trip, but better. Lot of work to do: Answer important letters (They are all important), got the Web-page working, making some calls with Tandavika's cheap system, looking for a replacement cell-phone charger. ATT doesn't sell our cell anymore. Go to the internet, go to the 800 numbers, go to the internet,l locate ATT store nearest us. Call them ... ... ... 1-1/2 hours finally discovered how to order the rascal, or maybe even it's for sale at Radio Shack. Ooof! But we are trying to establish communications, office tools. Takes time. (Haw! Haw! Haw! Takes mercy). So, guess it was a pretty good day. Now chant some more rounds, go to NGD home for Friday night program and that's enough!!! ============================================ 2009 June 20 Franklin (TENNESSEE) s a t u r d a y 7:20AM - R(10) G(1) Got up at 3:00AM, one hour later, because we didn't get home last night until 11:30PM. Today we take Tandavika Das to the airport and then drive to NDG's Ashrama. So, we did internet work right after Managala-arati. Pretty good. Letters to and from devotees. Then went ahead and purchased the tickets for Miami (7> Sep) and Bolivia (11> 18< Sep) -- Takes time. Takes money. Gave us a headache. Haw! Haw! Haw! ~+~ Uncle Gismo read Harry Lorayne's, "Page a Minute Memory Book". The best book of memory techniques that we know. It works. And, AND, A N D we discovered after scouring all our bags, and the entire house, and internet, that Tandavika Prabhu, actually never took the Cell phone charger from NGD's house where we forgot it. It was still plugged into the wall. Ayeeee e e e e!1!! (O.K. Could be worse. Try not to forget stuff!) ============================================ 2009 June 22 Murfreesboro (TENNESSEE, USA) m o n d a y 7:01AM - R(4) G(1) This is the end my friend. This Diary has come to an end. It is Amavasya, no moon, day. And we must review this DTC and say what we have to say. Actually we see that we can die at any moment from heart failure, frequently from air or travel accidents, or for sure from exhaustion of the body from our life of youthful sin. Hare Krsna!! We have got to Ashrama of Shyama Gopal Prabhu in Murfreesboro, TN, USA. Here we seem to have computer and all other office supplies. We can go to the Ashrama of Nitai-gaurasundara Prabhu daily for soup Prasadam, walking, studying. So, get to work. Write the 'Kapi Dhvaja'. Write your "TPP Afterwords" and publish them. NOW - Let's Review this DTC ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 8:56AM - We did the review. Fell asleep on the keys, So little nap and fit to continue readint what everyone sees. It's O.K. ASA traveling Sankirtana Party. Hope it's useful to you also. Thank you for coming with us. P.l.e.a.s.e, give us your citique! Now we do four more rounds. Then edit the pictures from Russia into a PPT show! HAre Krsna, Hare Rama, Finding Radha from Krsna and Rama! (Next body is just starting) .....