Battlefield Bhajans Vol. 28

Battlefield Bhajans Vol. 28

Dedicated to Srila Prabhupada and HG Nama Rasa Prabhu & Rasa Acarya Prabhu

written in Olympia, WA on 20 Nov. 2008

Lord Caitanya’s Army

Things have been stressful with my status in the military. I was informed yesterday that my packet was sent back. It seems that the transition center did not process it correctly, so all the paperwork has to be done over. The fellow in charge of my chapter said it can take from three months to one year before we get an approval. This really crushed my hopes. To make matters worse, my branch manager emailed me saying there was a possibility I was being selected to be part of a Military Transition Team(MTT). The email stated that I would be deploying to Afgansitan for one year and acting as a liaison for the Afghan Army. Though this is not set in stone, I was upset about it for a day but got over it pretty quick. Srila Prabhupada taught us what the mood our prayers should be, he said we should pray, it should always be with the stipulation,”Krsna, if You so desire”. When we are chanting we are begging for whatever service Sri Sri Radha-Krishna give us. We all have our plans, but Krsna has His, and the service He desires us to perform, may not always be what we had thought of.  In the Srimad Bhagavatam, 6th Canto, 17th Chapter, Text 28; Lord Siva is instructing Paravati. Lord Siva says :

näräyaëa-paräù sarve
na kutaçcana bibhyati
svargäpavarga-narakeñv
api tulyärtha-darçinaù

“Devotees solely engaged in the devotional service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Näräyaëa, never fear any condition of life. For them the heavenly planets, liberation and the hellish planets are all the same, for such devotees are interested only in the service of the Lord.”

So we can see from this verse that the devotee of Krishna has no reason to lament, he has no reason to feel fear, nor does he have a reason to desire liberation. He doesn’t care because he is fully engaged in bringing others to Krsna, he is fully engaged in serving the lotus feet of the Lord. Srila Prabhupada once stated that he was prepared to go to hell to make a devotee. Now, I am not a pure soul. But still I have accepted this new situation. I have accepted that I am not the controller, I am not the doer. I am an insignificant atom, a fallen soul trying with all his heart to serve Lord Krsna. I will take this opportunity to deepen my faith in Krsna, the Holy Name. This is another opportunity to give this wonderful process to more souls, that are in great danger. Another chance to help others go back to Godhead by the mercy of the disciplic succession. So I beg the blessings of all the vaisnavas, I beg that you bless me to have the intelligence, strength and purity to act accordingly in any situation. When I was talking to Bhakta Ryan today about going to Afghanistan, he had this to say, ” Dude, you can have another parade for Krsna!” So yes, I will take his statement and start mentally preparing for my new mission in Lord Caitanya’s Army. I will prepare the first ever Afghanistan Ratha Yatra, if Krsna so desires.

Yogi’s Love Books:

I start my service at 6 am, and it usually last for 12 hours each day. By the time I get to the ashram, I am pretty beat. It’s Christmas marathon time, so  I went to downtown Olympia to distribute books. It was cold and raining, so I found an over hang to stand under. I was just stopping people, and talking with them. I explained that I was an aspiring monk, who is out in public to request them to take spiritual life more seriously.  Some were very favorable. After an hour or so, I thought it’s getting late, time to go.  Just as I was packing up a women approached me and asked why I was dressed in traditional Indian cloth. I replied, I am a brahmacari, and I am here to try and assist my spiritual master in spreading Lord Caitanya’s mission. She was taken back and asked about the books I had. It turned out she taught at a yoga studio in Olympia, and was into kirtan. I explained why the names of Krsna are so appealing. After talking for twenty minutes, the women said ok, can I have a book. I said of course, here is a book called the Bhagavad-Gita. She didn’t even opened it up, she placed it in her bag and proceeded to pick up a stack of books. I said, it’s ok, I got it, I am just packing up. She said no, these are for my yoga classes and handed me a donation for about twenty books! I was amazed, how can this be? The words of HG Omkara Prabhu (one of my best friends in the material world) rang out…. “Prabhu, we cannot control when Krsna’s mercy starts pouring.”

Sadhana:
Japa: I am waking up at 2 am everyday and after waking up Their Lordships, I chant japa in front of Them. It feels so powerful and intimate to be so close to Krsna’s Deity form. By Their mercy, all is happening in the material world. They are arranging so many situations for the spreading of Their Glories.
Seva: More Lords have arrived care of HH Bhaktisiddhanta Swami. I called Them transcendental reinforcements. My seva is still striving for improvement. I pray to Their Lordships that I never feel my seva is perfect, I wish to always find ways to improve the quality of service given to the Lord
Reading: Bhagavad-Gita: I am reading and during the day I listen to classes from that chapter I have read. I like this system, because I can read Srila Prabhupada’s purports and hear from his lotus voice. The notebook of nectar is quickly filling up. Almost time for a second book. I am also reading the Krsna book. I will take my first trip to India soon, so I am reading to get into the mood. I want to fully taste the nectar of the Holy Dham. I pray to not see the material situation of India, but to see that India is really Krsna’s birth place.
Sankritana: GO! GO! GO! GO!
small books: 80
maha big hrd: 5
med hrd: 3

I am off to India soon. This will be our first time setting foot in the “motherland”. We are begging the devotee to give us their blessings to see the real  Sri Vrindavan and  Sri Mayapura Dhamas. We are only dependent on the mercy of the vaisnavas. Therefore please pray that I can do some meaningful service to Srila Prabhupada.

Yours in the service of Srila Prabhupada,
Partha-sarathi Dasa