Utthana Ekadasi - Disappearance of Srila Gaura Kisora Dasa Babaji

This morning I read this in Sri Nityananda Caritamrta (my emphasis added):

Lord Vishvambhara smilingly replied, "These drunkards [Jagai and Madhai] were already delivered the moment they had Your darshana [Lord Nityananda and Haridasa Thakur]. Since you desire their ultimate benefit, Krishna will soon deliver them."

Hearing this from the lotus mouth of the Lord, all the Vaishnavas immediately began to chant "Hari, Hari." This convinced everyone that now these two drunkards will be saved.

It reminded me of something I read recently in His Holiness Niranjana Maharaja's book, Lectures from a Disciple:

We have to understand that the success in preaching is not based only on the nondevotee's desire but on our own as well. We have to feel the weight of responsibility. Maybe our desire that they take a book is not pure enough. We have to increase our desire. We can not force people to take books, but we can pray to Krishna to inspire them from within the heart.

And also:

Increasing our desire means making our desire genuine and pure, developing our compassion, and praying to Krishna in the heart to inspire the nondevotees to accept His mercy.

After so many lifetimes of self-centered endeavor, how do we increase our desire to genuinely and compassionately distribute the mercy of the Lord?

God Is A Blue Cowherd Boy

From His Holiness Dhanurdhara Swami's most recent journal entry:

God, a blue boy? Yes. It’s reasonable. How? For something to be reasonable it must in some way conform to some type of accepted experience. How can Krishna possibly conform to our common experience? Simple, we perceive two undeniable principles in this world; first, every being moves for their own pleasure, second, that pleasure is love. If there is an Absolute Reality, would it not then be reasonable to assume that it also moves for its own pleasure and that pleasure is love. Is it also not sound to presume that an omnipotent being would not only actualize its desire for its own pleasure, but also enjoy such love to the highest degree? Is it not, therefore, sensible to consider that Sri Krishna - an exquisite blue boy eternally enjoying the highest development of love (rasa) in a world meant to perfectly facilitate that love (Vrindavana) - is a reasonable conception of the Absolute Reality?

Giridhari!

Bolo Giriraja Maharaja ki Jaya!

Govardhana Puja

Today is Govardhana-Puja.

Listen to Srila Prabhupada speak about Krishna's pastime of lifting Govardhana Hill.

Read about Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's extraordinary worship of Giriraja, and His mercy on Raghunatha dasa Goswami.

Read the description of Govardhana-Puja in Srimad-Bhagavatam.

NPR Goes On Vraja-Mandala Parikrama

Maybe it's just a "happy coincidence", but NPR has been airing a series of segments about Vrindavana for Radio Expeditions (just in time for Kartik). The air dates and times are rather unclear just looking at the website, but you can listen to them online at any time. You can also view a "multi-media slideshow" or download mp3 files featuring the sounds of Vraja: a rickshaw ride (to Loi Bazar?), singing on the shores of the Yamuna, ringing temple bells, and a very nice bhajana recorded at Radha-Ramana temple. I was told that Karnamrita Dasi is the female voice in that recording from Radha-Ramana. Prabhupada disciple Ranchor Prime is interviewed for a few segments as well.

Jai Jai Sri Radhe! (Shyam :)