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by bc vishnupada das
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CONTENTS
Revelation through the Codes of Logic;
PREFACE INVOCATION FOREWARD CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 2 CHAPTER 3 CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 5 CHAPTER 6 CHAPTER 7 The basis; the rhythm of consequence. The thesis; Self realisation. The anti thesis; the fossil philosophy, atheism. The cross examination; the diversity of knowledge. The synthesis; Living in this world of death. The conclusion; the art of dying. The verification; Quotes, aphorisms and insights.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS PROLOGUE
PREFACE
This treatise is about the reality of death and consequence, or karma and the interconnected subject matter that deals with the specifics of why we have to live and die, and is by no means an implement to adulterate the truth in any way, or to trivialise death and dying or the beliefs that others have on these matters. Neither is it a means to prey on the fears of the innocent, or shock the non-believer, but an investigation into the philosophy, of the diverse nature of this world and what the rhythm of consequence means to all living entities, and an exposition of aphorisms, quotes and insights that hopefully, are inspirational to all readers. Initially the reaction I received from eager idealists about this idea, was one of oh, that sounds interesting so it was encouraging to say the least. I have interwoven my own experiences and excerpts from other sources of literature that I have found to be invaluable to my own personal search for the truth, and the enlightened realisations of people who have dedicated their lives with devotion to the highest ideal. We all like to peruse new ideas in literature, as a lot of fictional reading matter becomes repeatedly stale after awhile. [Something I found out while doing a screenplay writing course was that there is only seven storylines in this world!] The art of condensing ideas down to the meanest average can only be as interesting as the creative intellectual understandings of the writer. Having dabbled in a bit of poetry myself, I found it to be no mean feat. So to keep the creative freshness alive I have tried to bring something new to the reader, which, upon inwardly digesting, hopefully will inspire the same creativity that has inspired me to put this treatise together, and how I have applied this philosophical attitude to my way of thinking and how I live my life. The new age environment of the spiritual supermarket is inundated with self help books on every known possible philosophy on how to survive in this world, whether it be physical, emotional, psychological, spiritual, animal or mineral. I have yet to come across anything that can brooch the subject matter I wish to disclose in this treatise, or find many people that want to discuss it even, or to just lightly brush over it for a brief matter of time, even though it is something we live with every moment of our lives. The majority of people cant discuss death without asking quick fix or loaded questions. They then want to use the answers as a means to undermine the ideal, or soothe their wounded pride, because it encroaches into their beliefs or their particular choice of faith or their lack of knowledge. There is no quick fix that can be applied to this complex science that must
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start with a primary education. Death does not discriminate between religions, belief, faith, nationality or whether or not you imagine what happens, it affects everyone in this universe. Thus I have tried to set this treatise out in an ascending chronicle of information, designed to gradually encompass the whole complex ideal, in a brief informative way. Of course the ideas expressed hereon in presupposes that the reader has some understanding of the existence and transmigration of the soul, or reincarnation, and the soul as being a separate energy from this material body that we are so familiar with, and the related schools of thought that coincide with this understanding, which includes the science of reincarnation, the science of karma, the necessity of devotion, and the cultivation of faith, and surrendering to the absolute truth. It is in no way a means of myself trying to be advanced in intellect, or posing as a perceptive sage, or some new age guru, as I am none of the above, except I strive to be a worthy servant to my spiritual teacher to whom I pray for a minute particle of his mercy and grace, so I see it as a basic informative opportunity of enlightening the readers to perhaps expanding some ideas that have not crossed their minds before. Keeping in mind, that anything is possible in this world. The one lifers, or elevationists, [so called for their tendency to exploit other beings to elevate their own position], of this world will probably have difficulty in reasoning with some of the conclusions herein, but hopefully their doubts will be cleared up in some regard to their fears, unhappiness, conceptions and opinions that contribute to their way of thinking. I know that the education systems here in this world do not encourage the pursuit for the higher understanding of life of just who we are, or what we are doing here, or offers any positive alternatives to the sincere student to satisfy the urge to pursue them in any fulfilling way, so my hope is that this treatise will give confidence to this pursuit of higher thinking, and guide you in a positive direction that will give you all the fulfilment you need. By not having this spiritual education in our lives it leaves a huge empty hole in our hearts, which we try to fill with the wrong substances. So as a result there is a lot of misery here in this world. Rich or poor, male or female, young or old, whatever nationality, it affects everyone. I hope you enjoy the following and have success in your own life, to achieve what is nearest to your heart. Om Tat Sat.
INVOCATION
ALL GLORIES TO GURU AND GAURANGA With the utmost respect and some minute gathered humility I present this treatise and my ungainly life to my spiritual teacher, His Holiness Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj Goswami, Who is inspiring the fallen souls of this world to aspire towards the absolute truth. He is the fountain head of all love, affection, mercy and grace and I continually aspire to have His Lotus Feet on my head eternally, and that I become a worthy recipient of what He has so generously bestowed upon me. He is the most magnanimous current world teacher of the absolute philosophical science of simultaneously one and difference, and the living example of the highest form of devotional service to the Supreme Lord. His worshippable form is no different from the original propounder of the philosophy of simultaneously one and difference, the beautiful Sri Krsna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Who appeared in Mathura, West Bengal, India, over 500 years ago. I also humbly attempt to offer myself to all the servants of my teacher and the servants of the teachers of my teacher, without Whose love and affection I would be still struggling with my own frailties, indecisiveness, spiritual myopia and fear of the unknown. I also humbly endeavour to pray to the origin and creator of all things, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krsna, to do with me as He sees fit, I hope to become His servants, servant eternally. My anticipation is that the reader will in due course realise what I have experienced and also approach the Lotus Feet of His Holiness Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj Goswami, to share with Him in His love and affection, His mercy and His grace, as there is no other divine sanctuary to be had in this material world. bc vishnupada das
INTRODUCTION
Originally I was going to call this treatise, Preparing to Die, Preparing for the Inevitable, or The Art of Dying, but somehow these titles did not seem appropriate, because I did not want to draw attention to death in a way where it could be misconstrued under the guise of suicide or euthanasia, or in any other way that made it seem sordid or unrealistic. I do not condone in any way these types of actions at all. Instead it is drawing attention to the real reasons for this treatise in a poetic way by calling it The Rhythm of Consequence, which alludes to all the actions, including death, of karma-yoga, or how we live our lives in this world, on a day to day basis and how these actions affect who we are and what we do, and what these effects have on our future, and our future lives after death, and for most of us it is cyclic, hence rhythmical, as rhythm forms repeated circles. We all must be responsible for our own actions sooner or later, we cannot go on living without any actions, and we all must act, and we all must die. To be individually responsible for our own actions is an inborn trait in our material makeup that manifests at different stages of life in most people, only if we are sincere conscientious human beings. Thus the rhythm of consequence is an ontological guide up to the inevitable, untimely or not, it is also a revealing pathway to transcendental knowledge, with quotes, insights and experiences I hope will help the reader to understand this life, this world, the next world, what makes up this world, what we are made of, how good and bad actions affect us, and the consequences of those actions, what happens at the time of death, the specific nature of that action, and what happens after we die, or leave the body. Not easy subjects to dwell on I know, but death is inevitable, and the subject gets pushed aside every moment of our lives, because we are too busy living. This causes the worst of fears, the fear of the unknown, and the more we shunt it aside, the more we fear that last breath, and the more we dont know, so the more we dread the inevitable, and it is left until that most fearful time comes and then it is too late. Instead of coming to terms with it and trying to understand it more, we live our lives in denial, because quite frankly we all think we are going to live forever, as this is the feeling we have deep inside of us. Scientists and religionists play on this emotion, this dread, and spend masses amounts of time and money looking for the fountain of youth, and surgeons will tell you that you can look like you are in your twenties forever, but we still have to die. Ancient mystic yogis knew that when we are born we are allotted a certain
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amount of breaths, so there is a yoga practise, where, if you slow down your breathing you will live longer. It does not stop you from dying though. The Sanskrit term for these cycles is called samsara, or the cycle of birth and death. This treatise is for inquiring human beings, and it is on a personal level, as I believe that we do not lose our identity at any time. Although there is another philosophy here in this world that would have you believe that after we leave our body, if we have accumulated enough pious credits we will all merge into the great all encompassing energy of the universe and become one with God and lose our identity forever. This philosophy is very dangerous and amounts to quite literally spiritual suicide, so as a human being I do not wish this on any other person in this universe or any other universe, and do not encourage anyone else to follow this philosophy or have anything to do with it. This I take very seriously. I would like to keep things on a personal level, now and forever. Namaste.
I knew there was more to life than what was being bantered around all the seats of learning that we had access to in those days. I can still remember a lot of them. Firstly it was my grandparents, both sides of the family then my mother died of a heart attack when I was seventeen, she was only forty five, it was the first time I saw a dead body, and it made me realise a few things. It was heart wrenching to say the least, the person I had had a loving relationship with, had gone, she was not there in her body, her body was still there, white and cold, as she died in her sleep, but she was gone, so it was my first realisation that the people we reciprocate with, are more than just flesh and blood, or male and female bodies, there was something more to it, something to do with life, not death. But at the time I could not put my finger on it, maybe from shock or the fact that it was pretty mind numbing or just lack of knowledge of what we actually are, and not knowing anything about death or life. So there were more questions to be answered and more emotional pains to heal. That took time and it affected how I related to other people close to me. I was always keeping distance between myself and anyone else, so that took its toll, still I managed to cope and keep an open mind. The law of nature is the fairest, most unbiased way of meting out punishment and reward for the actions we are involved in during our time in this world. Other terms used often are, whatever goes around comes around, an eye for an eye, what you sow, you shall reap, for every action there is a resultant reaction. The Sanskrit word that explains all of these is karma, and action within this world where the fruits of the action are relied upon is called karma-yoga or action within a specific mode of nature. A good example of this is that sometimes we will make a mistake, or do something wrong and think to ourselves, I wont do that again, there was too much pain involved, like say, a hangover from too much alcohol. Then sometime in the future we do the same thing again, make the same mistake, experience the same pain, this I call the rhythm of consequence, but it is actually the law of karma. In this case we are doing the action to ourselves; in other instances we do things to others and to the environment, but the consequences are the same, whatever action you do, a same or similar action will be the consequence. In a nutshell this is the basis of consequence for our actions; it is cyclic, like the phases of the moon and tides. Depending on how much self discipline we have to stop making the same mistakes or actions, will result in being gifted with more intelligence to have more control over our actions. Not an easy feat without higher help, but possible and achievable for even the most uneducated persons. The degrees of goodness and bad are determined by the mode of nature by which one is being governed by, generally we all have a sense of goodness, of right or wrong, and of course there are exceptions to this rule. Like the rules of the
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road, most drivers follow the rules of the road; otherwise it would be more chaotic than it already is. So it is with nature and the law of karma, the more we adhere to these laws the less chaotic and confusing this world is, it becomes very simplistic and comprehensible and bearable, and the result is a more harmonious lifestyle. The basis of material elements or the chemical structure of everything we see in this universe comes from the main physical building blocks including; earth, water, fire, air and ether and above these gross and subtle material substances are the meta-physical essentials of mind, intelligence and false ego. Ultimately everything is a distinct combination of all these elements within this world. You probably have heard the sayings, mind over matter, or I changed my mind, not just word jugglery but actual points to the separation of mind and body and soul. The mind is the controller of the knowledge acquiring senses, sight, hearing, smell, touch and feeling and the intelligence is the guide to the mind, do this, dont do that, keep this, dont keep that, dont do that again. The false ego is the energy that wants to be the lord of all it purveys, this is mine and I am this body, all belongs to me, I am better than them. As Deepak Chopra has put it, I quote, the ego, however is not who you really are. The ego is your self image; it is your social mask; it is the role you are playing. Your social mask thrives on approval. It wants control, and it is sustained by power, because it lives in fear. This is a good explanation of the false ego, of its misunderstanding the reality of this world, or illusion. The Sanskrit word for this misunderstanding or illusion is maya, or, that which is not. The more the false ego has control over the mind the more the soul struggles with his existence here in the material world. The intelligence available to the soul must be in charge of the false ego or one is destined to a lifetime of onerous struggle and pain. This brings us to the main element that holds all the cells and building blocks together, where creation comes from, where the power to grow comes from, where desires come from and where the feeling of living forever comes from, where love comes from. The Sanskrit word for this substance is jivatma or spirit soul, this is the eternal spiritual energy or living consciousness, life force, complete never ending pure energy and if this spirituality, the soul is not present within matter, or material energy, it would be all inert gross material energy, lifeless. This is the starting point of this treatise, all be it, having a perceptive idea of these basic rudiments of creational life here in this world, what the temperament of the soul is, what the purpose of life is and how these elements interact on this plane of temporary experience and the higher plane of fine theistic comprehension and appreciation. The soul proper is the prime constituent of life, the
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basis of spiritual consciousness; it is of the utmost importance to cultivate nourishment for the soul, being the source of happiness it must be fed, and it must be fed soul food, and transcendental knowledge is the absolute fare, there is no other way of sustenance. As this is a fundamental right to continuation, lack of nourishment begets lack of knowledge which degrades the soul to ignorance, with the consequent of confusion and chaos, and with no understanding of the basic laws of continued existence in this plane of material elements, one becomes no better than the animals. This information is designed to elevate the soul or individual consciousness of the human being to a higher echelon by perceptive insights and creative precepts to a complete and holistic understanding of life and death. Focusing on the juncture of death in an enlightening way, as opposed to brushing it under the carpet and ignoring it altogether. After all, death is a transformation rather than an end and through this treatise hopefully any fears or misguided concepts of death can be altogether washed away, to free up your life so you can get on with living. You should certainly know that the soul is beginningless and all bodily, sensual, mental, intellectual, or egoistic transformations, as well as the consequences of the action of the material tri-modes, [goodness, passion and ignorance] based of happiness, unhappiness, lamentation, and delusion are coming from this material world, and that the soul is the passenger only within the material body. When the consciousness of the soul proper is elevated to a finer holistic plane, a life of theistic devotion, these consequences are no longer applicable to the accruement of pious or impious credits, as this condition is measured to be transcendental to the law of karma. Life should be used to find a solution to birth and death, and once a solution has been reached, or realised, it should be acted on, with no hesitation, it has been said that if the whole world is on fire, dont waste time trying to put it out, act on this elucidation without delay. Another Deepak Chopra quotation where he appreciates the nature of the soul and its relationship with this world states, I quote, Each of us is here to discover our true selves; that essentially we are spiritual beings who have taken manifestation in physical form; that were not human beings that have occasional spiritual experiences; that we are spiritual beings that have occasional human experiences. The emphasis is on the words, to discover our true selves, this is the point that all great seers of yore have stressed, to find out who we are, where we come from and what is our relationship is with this world, and our relationship with the creator is. Our true selves, if we question who we are, or what we are, we must delve deep into the knowledge of spirituality to find the answers from the real seers of the absolute truth. Otherwise we will be duped into mental speculation and imitation spirituality, so it is of vital
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importance to be sincere with ourselves when we are searching for the truth as there are many guides in this world who will lead us to the wrong destination. Discovery of our true selves entails the evolution of self realisation, because when you discover who you are, you must follow it through and this is called self realisation.
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Character; the combination of traits and qualities distinguishing the individual nature of a person or thing. Ego; the self of an individual person; the conscious subject. Becoming; suitable appropriate, any change from the lower level of propensity or potentiality to the higher level of actuality, any process of change. Individual; separate or distinct especially from others of its kind; particular, characterised by unusual and striking qualities, distinctive. Aware; having knowledge; cognizant. Personality; being a person; personal existence or identity. Person; individual human being. Soul; spiritual or immaterial part of man, held to survive death. Spirit; animating or vital principle of man; intelligent or immaterial part of man, soul. Rational or intelligent being not connected with material body. Immaterial principle that governs vital phenomena. Karma; sum of persons actions in one of his successive states of existence, deciding his fate for the next; destiny. Sanskrit; the most ancient and sacred language of India, in existence from time immemorial. Transcendentalism; transcendental philosophy; exalted or visionary language. God; superhuman being worshipped as having power over nature and human fortunes, deity, supreme being Creator and Ruler of the universe. Death; final cessation of vital functions, the event that terminates life. Life; state of functional activity and continual change peculiar to organized matter, and especially to the portion of it constituting an animal or plant before death, animate existence, being alive. Philosophy; seeking after wisdom or knowledge especially that which deals with the ultimate reality, or with the most general causes and principles of things and ideas and human perception and knowledge of them, physical phenomena. System of principles for conduct of life. Therefore summing up the term self realisation, it is, becoming consciously aware of a distinct identity. This action of becoming is known to be the ultimate goal of life in this world by the theistic searchers of the absolute truth. Firstly to realisation, [to be
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consciously aware of] it can only be sincerely experienced by the self, because realisation needs the distinct identity of a consciously aware person to have the actual realisation. So the self is that distinct identity and is crucial in experiencing the realisation, as it is an experience of consciousness development, which is when the self becomes aware of his bona fide personal situation. This awakening of consciousness experienced is to the identity or personality of the nature of the self, which is the soul, the eternal spirit, sac cid ananda [cognizant, blissful eternality], and the real identity of the self, and his relationship to the Lord in the heart; this spiritual consciousness expanding is the primary introduction to the seat of knowledge of the absolute truth. Not to do with the false ego which is much aligned to the mental plane of this world, and the false egos nature is to mislead the self into thinking that all I purvey is mine to lord over, so I can elevate myself higher in society by the exploitation of other beings, but this is not the case. The explanation in the dictionary is in one sense right, but it is wrong in the sense that it is our real self, that the self or soul is the ego is wrong, this has been proven by seers of the absolute truth, and they have ontologically determined that the ego is the intermediary of the mind, which is the connection to the soul, and is by nature, material, therefore not of spiritual essence and is separate from the soul, so it is bewildering for the real self to know otherwise. Therefore the temperament of the ego and the mind is to entrap the soul or real self here in this material world. Our importance is of the spiritual world where our factual life is, this is the reality. An eternal spiritual life, where the identity of the soul is never lost, where relationships have no defects and there is no birth or death. Where you are aware of your own distinct identity, the eternal nature of this identity and what its purpose is in this world, and what the selfs connection is with the absolute truth and other souls in the spiritual world. So self realisation is the first step up into the actual spiritual world, not a dimension that is conjured up in the mind, or one of pretence or speculation, it is an actual experience of conscious spiritual awareness. The reality is that it cannot be imitated or pretended, that oh, I am now spiritual, or because of a fragment of knowledge one thinks, I am higher now, I know what the self is, so I can teach others about this. Some of us do have early realisations about this world, and the nature of spirit and go on searching for the real truth, but a lot of us still think that the meta-physical realm, which is the subtle material energy, is the spiritual dimension. The subtle material energies are the mind, the intelligence and the ego, also air and ether, but the mind, intelligence and ego are the subtle energies that are available for us to use within this body. We can use them for our own betterment or the betterment of others, but they can destroy us if there is no compassionate
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governing soul to guide them in the right direction. They are separate from us because they are of the temporary material energies, and we are of the eternal spiritual energy and we are from the spiritual world. This consciousness brings its own connotations, the knowledge of being in samadhi, for it has its own responsibilities and if they are not nourished and cared for, one can fall down from this state of being in self realisation, as lack of knowledge has its own master. The searching for the self with a distinct identity, can lead you to many extraordinary places, but genuineness can make sure you finish up in the correct place, because truthfulness is the best policy, even in spiritual matters, and if you are blessed by the absolute truth you will be shown the way to the right path, from within and without. Of course there are a myriad of paths to choose from, but then it becomes an individual endeavour of what exacting goal you want in this life, because we dont all want the same thing. So the higher the standard you set for yourself, the greater the achievement, and the more you involve yourself into the spiritual dimension the more knowledge and understanding you will draw to yourself. The realisations will be illuminating, blissful and delicate, to how higher-minded you set your goals and achieve them. This is the perfect philosophy of simultaneous one and difference, spoken by the ontological sages of long ago, and combined with the science of identity, is flawless within the codes of logic. It has passed the test of time and all the erudite scholars of both the eastern and western worlds have reputed it to be the only philosophy that is personal, that is, that we are distinct eternal identities and we are able to have a personal eternal relationship with God. It is currently adhered to, propounded by, and passed on by the association of finer intellectual theistic devotional students of this age as well as from times before the western world started recording history, it has been passed down by what is called a disciplic succession back when the only method of accepting knowledge was orally and aurally, or word of mouth, from teacher to student, but since then it has been written down. And it is not something I have fabricated in my mind, I am just relaying what information I have realised from my teachers, [gurus] and their teachers in my life time, and my hope is that it is easily absorbed by the reader. It is the knowledge of the soul, which is the distinct identity of the self, and that it is separate from the absolute distinct identity of God and this knowledge is the king of all transcendental philosophies from time immemorial.
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happier and have more, and this makes the burden so much heavier and we become loathe to even existing. Such is the nature of this world, where birth, disease, old age and death are our only friends, and where there is birth, death is certain for every living thing. For the atheist, the elevationist and the fossilist it is not much to look forward to, where everything ends in death. But still we come up with ways to make the symptoms seem to go away and we live a little longer, our standard of living may drop a few notches but we still hang on that last bit of life, to exploit as much as we can, but why? And we come up with seemingly logical theories to take our mind off death so we cant hear the knocking at the door, theories that give good reasons as to where we come from and where we go, theories that say dont look elsewhere, this is the only knowledge you need to have. Why should we be so afraid of death? Death is already born along with our birth. From the very day we took our birth, we began to die. Every moment, every second we are dying. Why then are we so afraid of death? We are born to die. Final death is inevitable, we may die either today, next week, or in a hundred years; we cannot avoid death, it is a part of everybodys destiny. The fossilists [persons who proclaim that life comes from matter] theory is that matter came first and life evolved from matter, that matter was the only substance available before the big bang and after a few million years life slowly evolved. And they have tacit proof of this because they are eminent scientists, who to the general masses are people to listen to, but if you study what they have said and proclaim, you will see that they are still trying to find the answer to life and where it comes from, these scientific atheists, [because they have no insight into a creator] have so fittingly polluted the minds of multitudes into thinking the same way, it is now taught in the majority of institutions around the world. This way of thinking causes so many conflicts in society and is so ingrained it is hard to dispute. Even the most religious institutions have trouble convincing their followers of the existence of a creator, they have in their doctrines a biased interpretation that this life is all in all, and so what room is there left to accommodate the creator within their holy books, they propose for good or pious deeds another life in heaven or for bad or impious deeds a life of torment in Hades or hell, this is the doctrine of fear, fear of the almighty God or the prejudiced creator, who only serves the followers of a particular sect, so it is understandable that a lot of people who have some small degree of faith, have a fear of this depiction of the arbitrational creator, pointing his finger to a timeless zone of either happiness or distress, with little or no hope of any petition. The one lifers, so called because they believe that this life they have is the only one and at the point of death it is all over, we go into oblivion, nothingness, the deep coma of no return. There is no expectation of any sort of
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amnesty from this prison house of death they propose in their doctrines of fear. You serve your time and thats it, end game. These are some of the symptoms of the philosophy of fossilism or atheism, we only have one attempt and that is it. This alone causes so many problems in society for some, because it is like a cancer; it is hard to find a cure. This leaves no other option except exploitation for the elevationists, to accumulate as much as possible, as there is only one life they think, so this causes selfcenteredness to the enth degree, they have no cares who they take advantage of, if there are no repercussions for who we trample on to get where we are going, there is no consideration for fellow humans or other living beings, it is all for their own selfish egotistical elevation. So this also leads to war with other nations, because there is fear, fear some others may get more than me, take my family, take my land, take my nation, or take my life. It is a fearful situation no matter how you look at it. Atheists are in fear all their lives, because if you ask what are they atheistic about, it is that they have the belief that God doesnt exist, so it is calculated theory based in opposition to the belief that God does exist, so in one sense their belief is based on the fact that God exists, otherwise the premise would not have an origin. In itself it causes fear because their belief is based on opposition to the origin of the premise, which is that God does exist, so for the atheist, it is a way out of suffering the egotistical humiliation associated with having to accept something they are scared of, this zone of the unfamiliar. This mental frailty makes no sense, because it is limited to belief and that belief is a state of mind, generated by the ego and its attempt to liken this world to the only form of existence possible, one life only for the human being, and it is like faith, it can be changed, so it is not a solid constant foundation to be placing any self-confidence into something which causes fear, fear of the unfamiliar. And if you dont have the belief or faith that God exists, what have you? One life and thats it, no recall, no justice and no reward and death is all there is to look forward to, the one lifers have no real happiness to have faith in, all they are hoping for is that the scientists will come up with a pill they can swallow and it will help them live forever. The substances that were existing before the big bang must have come from somewhere, they must have been made by someone, and someone must have caused it to ignite. How immense was this bang? They still say that there are big bangs going on presently out in the cosmos, that is like fireworks displays going off themselves whenever they want anywhere in the world at any time, with no one controlling them, its hard to believe. But they want us to believe them. The fossilists must answer to this, these are legitimate queries, they cant just dig a few holes in the ground and expect to find the answer to life in a few bones, this is not the logical way of attaining the knowledge of life and its origin, and the scientists have
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not yet found any proof of the missing link between humans and apes that has been happening in the last 2ooo years, nor have they found a cure for the main contributor to death, cancer. Its been a few thousand years and there has been no record of apes and monkeys evolving into human beings yet, and they have flown their spaceships to the moon and back and still have not found any sensible reason for the so called common cold. It does not inspire any confidence in their abilities, yet the majority of us still believe their theories on the origin of life, and anything else they purport to be legitimate in their quest for knowledge. Their deep-seated fears are infectious and their egos are massive, but they do not wish to recant their theories in trepidation of ego humiliation or their grants of millions of dollars being taken away from their indispensable studies of the origin of life. Like everyone else, as they unconsciously look forward to death, they taint the lives of the people who are affected by their philosophies.
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food, and the majority of these foods shorten the lives of humans and cause a lot of sickness that is prevalent in our modern society. The majority of medical associations do not want you to be healthy, their jobs will become redundant, yet the health systems in every country on the earth are overloaded with unnecessarily sick people. And they are bewildered by all of this, it is beyond them. So how can we determine what is a healthy lifestyle and what is not? And do we care about how healthy we are when we get older? And does this healthiness contribute in any way to whether we die differently to others who are unhealthy? Firstly as humans we are herbivores as opposed to being carnivores, physically the nature of our bodies is unlike that of the meat eaters, our teeth, digestive systems and our consciousnesses are completely different. For humans to have the various types of meat going through their systems is like trying to run a car on vinegar, it shortens the life of both vehicles. And there are foods available that prolong the life of the body and encourage good health and create good consciousness, but it does not mean the body wont die eventually, because there are higher reasons for keeping the body healthy at the point of death, so you are able to control the destination of the life force by certain yoga techniques, the dignified process of dying, this I will have an explanation for in another chapter. So leading up to the point of death, i.e. from the moment we are born, we should be aware of the consequences and the choices we make, whether or not our actions have any connection with the way we die and not think that health is something we get from our doctors, who by the by, arent really trained to know what causes most diseases or sicknesses but are trained to look for the symptoms and prescribe appropriate medications to alleviate the symptoms only. Cancer is a major cause of death in every country in the world, and there are many causes, yet they have neglected to analyse the root cause of this major killer because of financial phobias, peer demands and collective social myopia from the powers that be. There is no use in pointing any of these out, it will only fall on deaf ears. The focus is to be positive and pro active in our approach to these concepts and move forward with the hope that we are ready in ourselves for death and are prepared for this important event in our own lives. The consequences we deal with on a daily basis are called the science of karma, or action and reaction. These consequences are related to the body only, which consists of gross material elements and subtle material elements, that are; earth, water, fire, air and ether being the gross elements and the mind, intelligence and ego being the subtle elements, so for future reference to the material body, it is the form that consists of these eight elements. So determining on what actions the body is compelled to do there are similar reactions to be experienced accordingly, good or bad. It is also generally called the law
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of nature, which is the fairest system of reward and punishment possible. I have just basically touched on this science here, in itself it contains volumes of literature, so it is just the fundamentals I wish to brooch here in this treatise, so as not to confuse the main subject matter with another complete science. But the law of karma has a prominent association with the termination of the body, in the regard to, determining on what you have done in previous births to raise or lower your consciousness, will determine when your time is up in that particular body, what choices you make, and what type of death you will have, and what type of body you will get in your next life. So it has an integral effect on our lives, and is important to have a comprehensive understanding of the complete science, which I will acknowledge at the finish, through the many books that allude to this science. The denial of the inevitable faced by us all essentially comes from the ego, because the ego lives in fear, it does not want to die, yet it knows that sooner or later it will happen, it is like being on a swing, going back and forth, and the only way the ego has any power is when it has material senses to use. But we the soul are caught in the middle of the egos pendulum, for we know we will live forever, but the power of the egos persuasiveness is all encompassing and really hard to overcome when you are just the passenger in the body. When the soul is controlled by the ego, it is led into making bad choices which culminate into bad actions that fructify at later times in our eternal transmigration in the cycle of birth and death. When the soul is controlling the ego, it is easier to use your intelligence and make better choices, and raise your consciousness to a higher plane with good actions. So it is the easy way out for the ego, to deny or suppress the fact that sooner or later we will have to leave our bodies. We still have to leave our bodies with either good or bad karma, so the idea is to establish what actions are good and what actions are bad, this will depend on how compassionate you are, and whether or not you are sincere. Pleasure is the goal, and it all depends whether we want temporary material pleasure or eternal spiritual pleasure, ask yourself this. I know I have repeated some information here, but remember, this is rudimentary knowledge, and to create an illustration of a particular idea, it is worth repeating relevant facts that are in context with the point being made, because all this information is correlated in the sense that it is chronologically linked to the same end, eliminating any vagueness, ambiguity or misleading information.
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intoxication is not really the ideal way of termination. The pain concerned with death is related to the amount of karma that has been accumulated in ones life, there is a common term used in regard to this, you die small deaths when events happen to you through life, like losing a loved one; a parent, a child, a relative etc, a broken heart, these are all considered small deaths because of the pain involved, depending on your emotional detachment to these events, the degree of pain is more or less and the time of grieving is more or less. Normally its takes two years to get mend a broken heart, thats if the emotional attachment can be severed. Of course there are anomalies to this but generally this is the rule, a close relative of mines son hung himself eight years ago at this point in time and she has still not got over it, and a good friend of mine waited ten years for his wife to come back, it didnt happen, so pain, if you have been experiencing small deaths in your life, does not accumulate, so at that point of having to leave your body the pain is less depending on your detachment, by the amount of small deaths you have gone through, but on the other hand if you have emotionally held on to these deaths inside for a life time, not being able to let go of them, at the point of final death of the body, the pain will be excruciating. Because you will be attached to your body and all the associated by products therein; wives, husbands, children, friends, families, pets, your possessions, everything you have accumulated in your life will be very hard to give up, imagine how hard it is to give them up when you are alive, so the pain of leaving everything behind is heart breaking. There are instances where people have prayed to God for more time to finish some project they are in the middle of, of course when your times up, your time is up. Detachment is the symptom of spiritual intelligence, it is not a callous emotion, as it is sometimes seen to be, but actual wisdom, because the wearer of detachment is exactly that, emotionally detached from this world of temporary life, but generally that wearer is sincerely compassionate about the other souls who are attached to this world and callousness does not come into the equation. There is a mystic yoga process described in the Gitopanishad or Bhagavad-Gita that explains the method of leaving the body free of pain, which was easier to do many millenniums ago, not so easy to do in this present age though, but I recommend the reading of this magnanimous book by any means, which explains this yoga path in a comparatively infinite comprehensive approach on a theistic level. All of which I have given acknowledgements at the end of the treatise. So basically to have a pain free death one must be completely removed from all material attachments and have full control over the mind, intelligence and ego and have a cognizant perception of ones destination prior to the actual leaving.
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What are the positive alternatives available to reduce the affects of karma? What connection do non-violence, vegetarianism, meditation and intoxication have with spiritualism, self realisation and death? I have grouped these two questions together as they are intrinsically linked, because if you are non-violent you will not incur bad karma, which leaves room for the good aspect. It is no good thinking that no action at all will bring any consequences, because we all must act in one way or another. Being a full vegetarian is non-violent and [the pros and cons for this life style is another book in itself, so if you are not a vegetarian please inquire and find out how to become one and what are the best foods to eat], is also not incurring as much adverse karma and to me being a full vegetarian means no meat, eggs or fish or any by products of those items. The addition of transcendental meditation in your life will increase the positive thoughts in your mind and it is better to meditate on an authorised theistic object otherwise one can be heading in the wrong direction away from where real meditation is meant to take you. I wont go into details in regard to what to meditate on in this treatise, but check out the acknowledgements at the end. Intoxication; any sort will shorten your life span and is harmful to self realisation, faith and increases the likelihood of adverse karma; many people are addicted to drugs, alcohol and tobacco and most of them cause other related family problems including gambling, poor health and spousal abuse, etc etc. Most arguments in this world are always over the big three, money, drugs or sex and most of them lead to aggression because it increases the use of violence in many situations when reason is hard to come across. So whether or not the application of the good practices in life are added and the bad ones are left alone will determine the affects of the reward and punishment of the consequences attached to all actions carried out in ones life. It has been said that depending on how big of a false ego you have, the harder it is to give up bad habits. Any intoxication disturbs faith, it is an enemy to faith, only faith can take us to our desired goal, not intoxication, it is on the mundane level, intoxication is only a small thing, and anyone can give it up easily, if they have respect, love and faith in their spiritual teacher and themselves, they can give it up. Why do most religions have different conceptions of death? Firstly the main reason there are so many different religions is that there are different degrees of faith, and different modes of faith, meaning that some people have modest or larger amounts of faith which is determined by their mode of intelligence, some
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people are more intelligent than others so they can see what faith can actually achieve for them, not in a manipulative way either, I have witnessed some people using their power over others to an ill effect. With the general masses it is more often or not blind faith, they were born into a religion lets say for an example. So the different religionists see what they have faith in, which is in their particular book, and most of the books say not to look elsewhere, because this is what we think is going to happen when you die, so it is best if you listen to us, so their faith becomes limited to that religious sect. The party spirit is the greatest enemy of the truth. Therefore there is a different conception about death attached to every religion, the majority of them have no understanding about the soul and its relationship with the absolute truth and they fail to see properly in the terms of theism and religion, and it becomes sentiment. Religion without philosophy is sentimental faith and philosophy without religion is speculative faith. Because they fail to see what dies and what lives, and have limited knowledge about theism, philosophy and self realisation they generally keep their flocks coming back by using the fear of God. But in actual fact the attraction should be love of God. Most religions say if you do well in this life then heaven waits for the pious man, but what part of you goes to heaven if you have no philosophy of the soul, what part of you dies at death, so of course from the different faiths you will have confusing opinions of death, and it is a shame because just having a small amount of knowledge of the soul can help one achieve the highest of goals, self realisation and love of God. Is there a theistic plane where the effects of karma have any consequential implication? How can I dovetail the faith I have in this philosophy to achieve a higher consciousness? How is it possible to overcome the persuasiveness of the ego and the mind? These are all interesting questions because it shows that there is an awareness of the different energies that make this world, and a concept of higher theistic learning. In a nutshell I can unite them all with one answer, it is faith, faith will help you overcome the ego and the mind, it will get you to the theistic plane where there are no consequences for your actions and yes, having faith in this philosophy will help you dovetail it into your life so you can achieve a higher consciousness. And I will have a list of helpful books and websites at the end so you can learn more of this philosophy on the rhythm of consequence to help you dovetail your faith. Whether your faith is growing, or is manifest quite strongly I suggest you take good care of it and dont let
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anyone corrupt it, because faith is that connection to eternal love we all crave for, and if it is nourished properly it will get you to the highest realm of love of God. What does liberation mean in relation to achievable goals, which are different to this philosophy? Liberation is basically the term for the experience of becoming free from this material world used by the impersonalists whose philosophy is to merge with the light or become one with God. They are basically atheists, as they do not believe that God has an eternal personality, and what the achievable goal is for them is only the stepping stone for the personalists, or the people who believe that God does have an eternal personality. So the philosophies are worlds apart, because their philosophy is selfish rather than selfless, where they want God to be the order supplier, and give them what they want and not finding out what God wants. For them the highest goal is striving to achieve a loss of identity in an eternal comate deep sleep, which in their minds is the only achievable way to get themselves free of all the stress of this world of death, but it is just nothingness for them, and they are unable to see that this nothingness is actually somewhere and something for a certain period of time, this is for the personalists spiritual suicide and not something to look forward to. Really liberation in these terms is not real freedom at all, except a temporary limitation for the eternally free individual spirit and hinders one from having and eternal relationship with the absolute personality of Godhead. This is the reality of the situation, reality the beautiful. We have relationships in this material world, all different types, so as it is in the spiritual world, why would it be any different? There is a difference in the nature or essence of the relationships, the same as there is a difference to the spiritual world with this material world. This nature or essence is of an absolute, eternal spiritual flavour of cognizance, beauty and bliss and cannot be corrupted, where as in this world everything is distorted, corrupted and temporary. So living in this world of death can be hazardous to the unaware, the ignorant and elevationists who cling to this world to the last drop of blood and choose repeated birth and death to that of an eternal blissful life of cognizance and beauty and the love and affection of a compassionate God.
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process enables one to purify the mind and the senses, so death is not an obstacle, rather a sublime window to the spiritual world and if one has conquered and attained to the ultimate goal of this process, one will be graced with spiritual vision to be able to perceive the Supreme Personality of Godhead in a loving relationship. Even if you analyse the remains of a body, after it has been cremated, there is only a jar full of dust left, so the majority is therefore water, approximately 80%, so these leftovers are the elements that change, as the saying goes at a lot of funerals, dust to dust, ashes to ashes, and we place so much importance on those changing temporary elements, which isnt who we are, that immaterial vital source of life and suffer ignorance and pain when we fear that we are going to lose this jar full of ashes. So changing ones perspective on the importance of life is also part of the art, and includes having knowledge in the areas of what is good for the essential ingredient that remains constant, the life force or soul and prepare oneself for the change of bodies. As already explained earlier the process of reducing ones karmic activities, being non-violent, staying away from intoxicants, not being promiscuous sexually and applying Bhaktiyoga to ones life can ease the problems associated with this world and elevate one to the mode of goodness which will help one make rational intelligent choices and promote one to the highest level of life. Death does not have to be unknown and feared when one is armed with the bright light of knowledge, because it is only when one is enamoured by the glitter of illusion, death is this fearsome figure that comes in the dead of night to end your life as you know it. It is all unnecessary ignorance, when all this relevant information is available to every soul and is not designated to a particular race or creed, but for everyone here in this universe. The characteristics of every soul are to be eternally cognizant and blissful; therefore death is not an occurrence, only in this temporary material world. Eternal means; no beginning or end, timeless, never ending and to be blissfully aware eternally must mean that we have an eternal identity and to have an eternal identity must mean we have a never ending relationship with the supreme identity that we are blissfully aware of. So the object of life is to attain to this relationship, this is the ultimate goal and mastering this process is the means to achieve this most sort after end, love of God. This relationship is conclusive in itself and there are no other reasons for wanting anything else in your life when this is manifested in your devotional consciousness. After death we do not know our destination, because we are completely under the control of the laws of nature. If we take shelter of the controller of the laws of nature, there will be no fear of being thrown back into the cycle of birth and death and so many other species of life. The wise man is he who has thoroughly understood that he is spirit soul and not simply a
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body. When it comes to choosing which philosophy to adhere to it is very hard because there are so many different conflicting opinions that offer alternate destinations. The great king Maharaj Parikshit asked; What should be the duty of a man who is surely going to die very soon. How should I utilise my energy that it may help me after death. Certain death is approaching towards me and so how can I utilise my time best? This question by Maharaj Parikshit is answered in the Srimad Bhagavatam by Sukadeva Goswami in many volumes of books, and because it is the ultimate question we all must ask, there has been so much emphasis placed on it, as it is the nectar in the answer that is the most pleasing to all who relishes it. Death is ordained for our existence so give to the death that part of you that is ordained to die, and the eternal part of you will remain. Within the purport of Srimad Bhagavad-Gita we find that the purification of consciousness through wisdom arises from materially unmotivated performance of scripturally enjoined duties, resulting in self knowledge, absolute existential knowledge, or divine realisation. In full maturity, this pure, spotless perception culminates in the quest for loving service in pure cognition, in the divine ecstatic realm. The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power, And all that beauty, all that wealth eer gave Awaits alike the inevitable hour: The paths of glory lead but to the grave The English poet Thomas Grays Elegy in Country Churchyard
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something to be coy about, it is the supreme reality, and a serious theistic agenda for the eternal spiritual soul and his relationship with the Supreme Soul. Buddhist Aphorisms; Everything is changeable, everything appears and disappears; there is no blissful peace until one passes beyond the agony of life and death. If a mans body and mind are under control he should give evidence of it in virtuous deeds. This is a sacred duty. Faith will then be his wealth, sincerity will give his life a sweet savour, and to accumulate virtues will be his sacred task. Whether one believes in religion or not and whether one believes in rebirth or not, there isnt anyone who doesnt appreciate kindness and compassion. To be foolish and to recognise that one is a fool is better than to be foolish and imagine that one is wise. Vaishnava Aphorisms; We can measure the quality of the truth we are connected with only by the intensity of our surrender to that truth. Our aspiration and purity of purpose is to be valued, not our eternal position. The recruiters from that side will consider our purity of purpose, not so much our present position and capacity. Purity is measured by sacrifice. The giving of love will conquer more than the giving of law. The ability to recognise divinity descends from above. Faith is the only instrument for the finite to measure the infinite. You must go forward in your life with the spirit that you are willing to do away with this life. The more the eye of devotion is tinged with the salve of love, the more will the transcendental concept gradually manifest itself.
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In the body of a living being, neither the power to speak, nor the power to see, nor the power to hear, nor the power to think is the prime factor, it is life which is the centre of all activities. ~***~ Bhagavad-Gita, Chapter 9 text 2; This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by realisation, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting, and it is joyfully performed. The Hidden Treasure of the Sweet Absolute, Chapter 9 text 2&3 Know this to be the king of secrets, the king of knowledge, supreme, pure and imperishable. It is known by direct realisation [by one eager to serve Me], it is the perfection of religion, and very easy to practise. O Conqueror of the enemy, men who have no faith in this hidden treasure of devotion to Me are unable to reach Me, and so they remain wandering on the path of death in the material world. Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 2 chapter 9 Text 31-36 Please hear attentively what I shall speak to you, for transcendental knowledge about Me is not only scientific but full of mysteries. By My causeless mercy, be enlightened in truth about My personality, manifestations, qualities and pastimes. Prior to the cosmic manifestation, only I exist, and no phenomena exist, either gross, subtle or primordial. After creation only I exist in everything, and after annihilation, only I remain eternally. What appears to be truth without Me is certainly My illusory energy, for nothing can exist without Me. It is like a reflection of a real light in the shadows, for in the light there are neither shadows nor reflections. As the material elements enter the bodies of all living beings and yet remain outside them all, I exist within all material creations and yet Am not within them.
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A person interested in transcendental knowledge must therefore always directly and indirectly inquire about it to know about the all-pervading truth. ~***~ In this world we tend to group with those we can exploit. We are surrounded by those who supply our sense enjoyment, our sense pleasure. We are fully engrossed in their interest and only use them for our own sense pleasure. We are so much engrossed in that sort of false duty that we have not the leisure to find out about our own death that is drawing near towards us. Seeing, but not seeing. It is a plain thing: everyone is going to the jaws of death with the mood, I see but still I cant see. I dont care to see and so I dont see. And this is the peculiar position I hold now. The danger, the final danger is approaching and I am asleep to that. I dont care to take notice of that greater duty. What can be stranger than this? To live here we cannot but consume, and we cannot but create devastation in the environment by our eating. If we go to consume anything, even plants, grasses or seeds, then microscopic creatures are being killed. So the question is how to get rid of this reaction? The Srimad Bhagavatam tells us that we can get relief from that reaction only if we can successfully connect everything with the Supreme Satisfaction, with Him whose pleasure all existence is meant to fulfil. The main point, the real substance of the transaction will be to collect; cook and offer to Him according to His will expressed in the Scriptures. This will help to make us always conscious of why we are taking. This world is maladjusted, and the balancing agents, the unifying factors, are the Vaishnavas. By proper knowledge, proper dealings and proper conduct they set everything in its proper position and create adjustment in the domain of maladjustment. The middle point, we may say, is the golden mean. Love is there. Love does not want to see into the future, but only the present-the concentrated present. Love. For love we may risk the whole future and may not care at all about the past. Act. Act in the living present. Grandness and reverence are not very suitable for love. We are to think that a plain life is the highest position for the transaction of love whereas grandeur disturbs us in our transaction of true love. Excerpts; from the sermons of the Guardian of Devotion His Holiness Sridhar Maharaj. So it is Bhakti-yoga or service in devotion that is the connecting spirit to guide us through this quagmire of material misery, to rectify all that is wrong with our enjoying
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spirit, that desire to exploit our environment and other beings. It will give us that finer theistic intelligence to make the right adjustments to our lives and draw us nearer to the association of vaishnavas and relish in their company. This is the verification we all yearn for in our meagre lives, the verification that there is something worthwhile to live for and consciously aspire to higher goals, and know that death waits at the door, but is waiting in vain. Philosophy is only for the mind to play with like a toy if it is only used to occupy the time, but used wisely it is the most profound tool, still it is only a means to an end. Ultimately when used for the transcendental theistic plane on the material level it is the method of communication used by the holy men to express the purpose of the infinite here in this finite realm. Therefore the final outcome of all philosophy is that the verification is authoritative in its delivery of the facts, that the source of the information is from reliable trustworthy stations, and if the philosophy is of a theistic nature then the verifiable outcome must be of a personal nature where the authenticity is accountable on a transcendental plane and concludes with the Supreme Absolute Truth.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I certainly must infinitely distinguish my spiritual master His Holiness Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj Goswami as the current bona-fide representative of the Supreme Absolute Truth and I hope and pray that one day I will see him with transcendental eyes. ~~~*****~~~ Forty years ago I had the most auspicious, albeit brief, association of His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami, the founder of the world wide Hare Krsna cult, in Auckland, New Zealand when I was living in the temple there. Through His mercy, while sitting at His Lotus Feet in His bedroom with other well wishes, He offered me a sweet ball off His plate, and I graciously accepted it and immediately gave it to my friend, who is now Harimohan Das, He rubbed my head and offered me another one, when I put my hand out to receive it He pulled it away teasing me and asking, are you going to eat this one? I nodded yes and held my hand out again, He placed it in my hand and closed my fingers around it in a gentle way, He was smiling, and said, Hare Krsna. He left the next day. From that point in time I had the most fortunate association of His Holiness Tusta Krsna Swami who was my instructor for service as I still wasnt initiated then, and also the association of an old friend of mine Gauranga Das, who helped me immensely in understanding the principles of worship and service. This worship and service lasted for nearly 10 years, and in that time His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami left our vision and I was serving under His Holiness Siddhaswarupa-ananda Swami but still was not initiated and my enthusiasm for service and association waned for various unrelated reasons. Then for nearly 30 years I had no association, no aspiration to serve or chant the Holy Name, just concentrating on raising my family and doing business, until one day while visiting my son, Sundar Krsna Das, who got initiated before me, and his family, I went with them to the temple at Uki, Sri Govinda Dham, to pay my respects to Mahaprabhu, which is in northern NSW and met His Holiness Govinda Maharaj, not just an ordinary meeting I might
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add, I had forgotten the correct manner in which one should act in the presence of such an elevated pure soul, and lumbered up to Him, stuck out my hand for Him to shake, and He shook it, much to my surprise, as I thought at the time that most Indian gentlemen wouldnt shake westerners hands, He too was smiling and offered me a seat right next to Him and He put his hand around my shoulders and started showing me the photo album He was looking through, they were photos of the temple in Vrndavana that was being constructed, we were rubbing shoulders for quite some time exchanging opinions on the photos before us. He really surprised me in the way He was physically close to me as it was something I hadnt experience before, with such pure souls, they always appeared to me to be really aloof. The time went too fast and as He had things to do He bode me Hari-bol. I did not see Him personally again. That was around the year 1996, it was another brief moment with another pure devotee, which seemed to be reoccurring in my life and I didnt know why or even thought about it, but they have been lasting impressions that have touched my heart and I have never forgotten them. I then returned to my home 2000 klms away and carried on with my life, then in the year of 2010 I meet His Holiness Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj the same way, while visiting my son, and it was the last thing on my mind at the time, but out of the blue something made me take advantage of this opportunity and I took initiation from Him and my life has not been the same since. I have rekindled my association with the philosophy and devotional service gradually, and from reading nearly all the books I could get my hands on, more than once, it has been more like studying for a university degree, and has inspired me to write this treatise. I must acknowledge the fact that this enlightening information would not be available if these exalted souls had not used their lives to distribute this philosophy to the English speaking nations of the world, I know I would not have come across it if it was not the case. The very exalted soul Who is initially responsible for this knowledge to be translated and broadcast worldwide is His Holiness Bhaktivinoda Thakur, a great writer, poet and composer of many of the relevant prayers of worship used today by vaishnavas, and Who is the main inspiration for me to produce this treatise through His invoking writing style and His compassionate unattachment to the religious party spirit that as He Himself declared, is that the party spirit is the greatest enemy of the truth. He is also the father of His Holiness Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddanta Swami, Who is the spiritual master of His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami and His Divine Grace Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev Maharaj whose preaching style is consummate and within it holds a love divine which he shares so compassionately, his sermons have inspired many devoted souls in his manner of delivery, and He is the spiritual master of His Divine Grace Bhakti Sundar
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Govinda Maharaj who is the epitome of love and affection, mercy and grace and whose compassion has touched the hearts of every soul who has had his association, and Who is the spiritual master of my eternal master His Holiness Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj Goswami who is the guardian of pure devotion for the Sri Chaitanya Saraswati Math, which is the main headquarters for the Gaudiya-sampradaya at this present time, and this is the disciplic succession through which this transcendental knowledge has been handed down and is called the Gaudiya-Brahma-sampradaya, and was re-inaugurated by Sri Krsna Chaitanya, the golden avatar for this age, or Kaliyuga, who appeared over 500 years ago in India to implement this process of Bhaktiyoga for this present age that we are contending with in this universe at the moment. Between Them They have produced a multitude of books wherein holds the key to this material universe and beyond and the answers to all questions, and I mean every question you can think of, and yes, even the answer to life if you need to know what it is, although you will find that answer within the knowledge I have present here. I also need to mention about the Buddhist aphorisms from the Dalai Lama and the insights from Deepak Chopra thank you very much, the cheques are in the mail. Although I am unaware at this time whether or not they are aspiring to a relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but I still wish them God speed on their journey. I have been blessed with several physical moments association with these pure devotees, and the verdict of all the scriptures is that, that association awards all success. Imperceptibly, many, many years pass uselessly in the life of a person intoxicated by mundane pleasures. Better if only for a moment he realises that he is losing valuable time, for he may thus become serious to attain his eternal benefit. We must be vigilant to our personal interest, not negligent. What is the necessity of living for ages and ages if we are unconscious of our own interest? Faith is the most subtle thing, and it is also the most tangible. It is not imaginary. We must realise that it is reality; it is concrete, and not merely an abstract sentiment of mere individual consciousness. Faith is universal as the most fundamental element that can connect us with the finest objective. It is the one thing that can help us reach the spiritual world and the highest of all goals, an intimate personal relationship with the Supreme Person. ~***~
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Dealing with the subject matter I have traversed in this treatise, and the great personalities I have referred to herein, can only direct me to appeal for the sublime mercy of Nityananda Prabhu so He may pardon any offenses I may have committed and have mercy on my foolish attempts to present this highly esteemed transcendental knowledge and the use of the pure devotees sermons, quotes and insights in an informal way. My intentions have been completely naive of any unprincipled dealings and have always intended this treatise to be an introductory booklet for the uninitiated and for those searching for the truth. I hope my desire of heartfelt devotion reaches the right destination, and make my ungainly attempts worthwhile. ~~***~~ Books by His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada; Bhagavad-Gita As It Is Srimad Bhagavatam Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita The Nectar of Devotion He has translated many others, which can be accessed from ISKCON.COM ~~***~~ Books by His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj Srimad Bhagavad-Gita, The Hidden Treasure of the Sweet Absolute. Heart and Halo The Golden Staircase Home Comfort Inner Fulfilment Sermons of The Guardian of Devotion, vol.1-2-3-4 The Golden Volcano of Divine Love
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Sri Guru and His Grace Subjective Evolution of Consciousness The Search For Sri Krsna Sri Sri Prapanna Jivanamrtam The Loving Search for the Lost Servant ~~~*****~~~ Many other books, audio lectures, magazines, video lectures, audio books, calendars, and up to date news and events, directly from India can be accessed from these websites. www.scsmath.com also www.scsmath.org also www.scsmath.net nirmalbhakti.net www.undereternityblue.com and all of these sites have links to other relevant sites. Also there is access to the various Gaudiya Math temple websites, established by Srila BR Sridhar Maharaj around the world. ~~***~~
PROLOGUE
Thus we come to the end of The Rhythm of Consequence by bc Vishnupada das, I hope the journey will be fulfilling for you as it has been for me. The subject matter disclosed herein is the sublime message of transcendence designed for this material world, so that the intelligentsia with a finer theistic yearning can find some hope and confidence, as you will, and fill the devotional void that other religious scriptures do not brooch. Of course there is an intense amount of self analysis required and years of strenuous application of faith building, as this is not something that can be bought or traded for, it must be earned with the humble dedication of serving, as there is only one master in all the worlds and we are all his servants. This desire to serve must be ultimately uncovered to be able to move forward in our journey towards self realisation and love of God, otherwise any truth that you aspire for will not be forthcoming and be repressed and you will be unable to have the association of those who bestow this desire in your heart. It is the creeper of devotion, and when the seed of desire has been planted, it is like all gardening one must tend to the weeds and make sure the plant is nourished in the appropriate manner. Thus this eternal information is invaluable to the
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sincere seeker of the axiomatic truth and it will take care of all the unnecessary tribulations associated with this material world, paving the way to a transcendental life of eternal, cognizant bliss, or sac-cid- ananda. Thank you so very much, please accept all my love and affection, bc Vishnupada das. Hare Krsna. Finished on the holiest day of the 3rd of July 2011, Rathayatra of Sri Jagannath Dev
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