There’s a nice verse in the Caitanya Caritamrta that says: “In time, great scientists may be able to count all the atoms of the universe, all the stars and planets in the sky, and all the particles of snow, but who among them can count the unlimited transcendental qualities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead? He descends on the surface of the globe for the benefit of all living entities.' (Madhya 21.11). I thought to include this in a Thought for the Day, because elsewhere Srila Prabhupada says that modern scientific discoveries andinventions’ have already been performed as mystic powers or `siddhis.’ He writes about this in his books. For example, in the purport to Madhya 19.164 (CC) he writes: “The highest achievements of the yogis are the eight material perfections, such as anima, laghima and prapti.”

It was the brainstorm of Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati to produce a “spiritual newspaper” called Nadia Prakash. Apparantly someone had once challenged him that it would not be possible to produce news of the spiritual world frequently and regularly. Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati is said to have replied that there is enough news from the spiritual world to result in a newspaper being published every second. “The fallen souls are very eager to receive novel information every day, and the transcendentalists like Vyasadeva or Narada can supply such eager people in general with unlimited news from the spiritual world.” (excerpt from Srila Prabhupada in conversation, June 25, 1976, New Vrndavan, USA).

Many English words beginning with “gl,” such as glitter, glare, glassy, glimmer, and glisten refer to bright, shiny and smooth things. So when Srila Prabhupada described Krsna’s complexion like that of a “fresh rain cloud” (clouds being wet) this added yet another dimension of moist, shimmering smoothness to an already beautiful and inexpressible blue-black skin color.

Srila Prabhupada’s concept of humility can be said to be the knowledge that everything belongs to Krishna, everything is enacted by Krishna, and that all power is derived from Krishna alone. In a Hyderabad lecture in 1972, he said, “People say so much about me, that I have done some wonderful thing. But I say that I am not a magician. I’m not a magician. My only credit is that I am presenting Krsna as He is. That’s all. I am not diluting Krsna. That is not my business. And therefore, because it is pure, pure ghee, therefore everyone accepts. And if you place dalda [10th rate cooking oil], mixing with ghee some rascal thing, then nobody will accept. Therefore, so many swamis went before me in the Western countries, and they presented adulterated, and there was not a single person became a krsna-bhakta. Now, by thousands, they are becoming. Why? Because it is presented pure thing. Pure thing will be accepted everywhere. I give this example. In a, in Delhi, there is… I have seen. One, there is a confectioner’s shop. He rigidly prepares in pure ghee all the sweetmeats. So you’ll find always hundreds of customers there.”

We have heard that the residents of the spiritual world can change their forms. “They have assumed forms with colors and shapes similar to those of the Lord they have worshiped as most dear, and even non human forms, such as those of some animals. This verse indicates that Vaikuntha devotees who appear in nonhuman forms, such as those of some animal or plant, have worshiped similar forms of Lord Narayana, who by His expansion appeared in those same species. These devotees, each in his own way, have realized the perfection of sarupya, having attained forms that look just like those of the Supreme Lord.” ( Brhad-bhagavatamrta, Part Two, chapter entitled, “The Spiritual Kingdom,” text 141.)

In his Srimad Bhagavatam rendering, Srila Prabhupada refers to a well-known Biblical proverb without giving the source. By doing this he indicates that certain Biblical sayings have been so seamlessly incorporated into the English language that they do not need attribution. The section appears in the Fourth Canto, Twenty-eighth Chapter, in the purport to Text 24: “When we say, ‘Dust thou art, and into dust though shall return,’ we refer to the body. When a city is attacked and bombarded by enemies, the citizens generally leave, and the city ceases to exist.”

Sridhara Swami and Visvanath Cakravarti Thakura reveal to us that the avadhuta brahmana who speaks in the Srimad Bhagavatam (11.9) is none other than Dattatreya, one of the principle incarnations of Krishna. Hridayananda Maharaj and company bring this to our attention in the purport to the 32nd verse of this chapter as follows: ‘Srila Sridhara Svami gives evidence from Srimad-Bhdgavatam that the brahmana avadhuta was actually the incarnation of Godhead Dattatreya. The Bhagavatam (2.7.4) states, yat-pada-pankaja-paraga-pavitra-deha yogardhim apur ubhayim yadu-haihayadyah “Many Yadus, Haihayas, etc., became so purified, by the grace of the lotus feet of Dattatreya, the Lord, that they obtained both material and spiritual blessings.” This verse mentions that Yadu was purified by contact with the lotus feet of Dattatreya, and similarly the present verse states, vandito sv-arcito rajna: King Yadu worshiped the lotus feet of the brahmana. Thus, according to Srila Sridhara Svami, the avadhuta brahmana is the Personality of Godhead Himself, and this is confirmed by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura.’

The Srimad Bhagavatam uses the analogy of fire in wood as the unmanifested soul. When conditions are right, the fire blazes. Similarly, the pure soul is awakened when access to pure spiritual life is available. The vibration of the Hare Krishna mantra – Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare – awakens the soul to its original, happy condition, and enables it to become fully manifest.

Published 23 October 2001 SERVICE IS a tricky word. It is our nature to serve something or someone – a child, a parent, a grandparent, a pet, a manager, a teacher, or an elder. Selfless service, one with no expectation of immediate return, is something that every parent experiences. But even parents expect or at least hope that when they are old and feeble, their offspring will look after them. These days, service with no thought of return is indeed rare. Service may be a popular topic, but ‘devotional service’ is a sure conversation stopper. The tendency to exploit is so prominent, and so much is based on the unspoken assumption that ‘might makes right’, that it?s considered downright stupid to be selfless. But there are signs of change. Why did so many affluent Westerners flock to Kolkata – sometimes referred to as the derriere of the world – to be part of Mother Teresa’s mission? The tendency toward charity is still alive. But charity without God is missing. Religion has become increasingly social, a stepping-stone to and a part of material success. The trivada principle of artha, kama and dharma – without moksha – has become a way of life. It’s fair to say that spiritualism is dead or dying. Religion has become a no-no and the G-word (God) is pretty much taboo, just as the S – and F ? words were a few decades ago. When it comes to God, the public square is naked. Our democracy is increasingly secular. In the minds of many, service to humanity is service to God. But for the aspiring spiritualist, the reverse is what counts. Agni Purana states that “One who builds or helps build a temple for Lord Vishnu becomes liberated along with eight forefathers”. At least in this country, there is a strain of God consciousness in people’s blood. The unprecedented popularity of the Ramayana telecast is testimony enough. What we lack as a society is spiritual purity ? giving with no expectation of return. The problem is that too many of our godmen, rishis and gurus are counterfeits. The Fourth Tempter in T. S. Eliot’s play Murder in the Cathedral refers to the arrogance of martyrdom. The pride of the archbishop leads to his downfall. We live in a world where there are a thousand charlatans for every genuine person of God. Even among the ‘holy’ there is pride; pride that generates the pollution of consciousness and a hypocrisy that thinking people simply cannot tolerate. True saintliness is marked by genuine humility, and humility is based on the principle that everything belongs to God, including all the ‘good’ qualities of the sadhu.

Cloning and scanning to make duplicates, identical copies, legal facsimiles and so forth, has become common place. However the original concept goes back to the Purusa Avatars, or as Srila Prabhupada said in common sense language, an original candle lights another candle and you can’t tell the difference. Yet the original candle remains. That is Krsna.