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Seated in an auto-rickshaw that had found the red light at a busy city intersection, what else could I expect but black smoke? Destiny, however, surprised me with a little sweet encounter. I spotted a street urchin who darted from vehicle to vehicle, begging. Moments later she reached me, her expression pleading for charity. I deftly reached my handbag's front pocket to pull out the box in which I always carry cookies for such occasions. The little angel was quick to translate my body language and expectation twinkled in her innocent eyes. Suddenly I realized the box wasn't to be found. Not wanting to disappoint her I reached my pockets for coins. All I found was a five hundred rupee note; if I gave that to her, we had to exchange positions! Mortified at the thought of breaking her heart, I settled the matter with a sorry smile, but made sure to add extra affection into that. She left. I felt good about what I had done and fixed my vision on the traffic light. It turned green and all vehicles honked in unison, impatient to race ahead. As my driver waited for the line of vehicles in front to start moving, suddenly the urchin reappeared. This time she didn't hold out her open palms; our eyes met and through her eyes I could hear a faint voice of gratitude that rose above the noise of traffic all around. I found in her expression an element of surprise; perhaps she had received many things from many, but hadn't received affection from any. Our exchange happened in a flash, before my vehicle sped ahead, and I never saw her again. Soon, I knew, I would forget about this brief incident, but I prayed never to forget the lesson I had learnt: affection touches the heart, and if we see closely within, we are all desperate for that touch. Years later, while learning the mysteries of Bhakti yoga from Radhanath Swami, I came to know how Bhakti is all about affection-affection exchanged between the Supreme Lord and we spirit souls. If two tiny spiritual beings can exper

This section examines the common Misconceptions related to Bhakti Yoga that prevents us from accessing the rich benefits of the practise.

The Hare Krishna chant involves moving the fingers on the beads and vibrating the chant softly. As the tongue vibrates the divine sound, the ears take in the vibration, and the fingers steadily move the beads, we potentially enter a divine realm.

The Hare Krishna meditation is truly beneficial. I urge everyone to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to lead a spiritual life of happiness and peace.

Thank you very much for sharing the words "One should be humble like a blade of grass and tolerant like a tree. One should be eager to offer all respects to others and not expect any respect for one self. In this mood one can chant Hare Krishna forever"

Great post with lots of imporntat stuff.

The Hare Krishna meditation works on filling the heart with this sublime desire and hence contributing to the experience of more meaningful happiness in life

We may never have come to know the importance of controlling the mind if devotees of Lord would not have approached us to tell that how much we are suffering under the illusion. Thank you very much Maharaj for waking us up from sleep.

"Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu glorified devotees as if He had five mouths. " This shows the importance of not criticising Vaishnavas. I pray to Guru and Krishna that I may inculcate this culture. Hare Krishna.

Lord Krishna explains that whether you have all material attachments, no material attachments or whether you desire liberation or not, you just approach Him; gradually you'd be purified and obtain the purest and highest state of consciousness. (Srimad Bhagavatam 2.3.10).

This is exactly what happened to me years ago. Just that I got sick long before I practised KC. The problem is that healthy people do not realise the emotional and physical burden illness places on a person. For one. Getting up at 4 becomes a nightmare especially if your medication causes drowsiness and fatige. I would recommend chanting maybe and hour or two after getting up in the morning. The other thing is that while initially devotees might support one, people get tired of helping someone and they see no improvement. I was so ill and depressed that devotees just stopped calling all together. I never avoided them. Another thing is that sometimes being ill takes much strain on the finances. This can cause a problem maybe to visit the temple etc. I could not travel to temple anymore as most of my money went to medication and doctors fees. The devotees knew this, but never once offered me to come and fetch me or come and do some kirtan at my home. So my advice would be is to first enquire if there is anything you can do to make it easier for him to come to temple. Eg, arranging transport, bringing prasad on regular basis. I would also advise that a senior vaisnavah visit with him to encourage him and give him spiritual support. Sometimes the older devotees struggle with many more problems, and they can be an invaluable source of strength.