SEPTEMBER 2000

Let us offer our respectful, humble obeisances to ISKCON Founder-Acarya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Srila Prabhupada; and let us offer our obeisances to our own Spiritual Master, His Holiness Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Swami. We once again salute all of the spiritual warriors.

CROATIA

For several years, His Holiness Bhakti-Tirtha Swami has been invited to Croatia and Russia for various yearly festival activities, but previous commitments prevented his participation. This year, however, he was able to attend and was delighted to have such blissful association with hundreds and hundreds of devotees. His travel route took him first to Zurich where he stayed for half a day before flying on to Croatia.

His Holiness had not been in this part of the world for over 21 years. When he was a brahmacari, he distributed Srila Prabhupada's Srimad Bhagavatam and Caitanya-Caritamrta throughout Eastern Europe. At that time, the countries that are now Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, etc., were then parts of former Yugoslavia. In those days, there were no active devotees and in most of these countries, there were only a few people here and there who were seriously taking to Krsna consciousness. Therefore, it was quite a reunion for him to revisit this part of the world. A special feature for this trip was meeting with H.G. Krsna Ksetra, who is presently a guru, and one of the devotees that Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Swami Maharaja traveled with throughout Eastern Europe over two decades ago. He associated with many other devotees who benefited from the initial seeds that were planted. His Holiness, of course, is one of the gardeners who also planted some of the earlier seeds and so to now associate with H.G. Krsna Ksetra was a glorious event.

The Croatian festival has been going on for a couple of years now with devotees meeting at a campsite. This year devotees came from over 17 countries with the majority from Croatia. Other devotees came from Slovenia, Bosnia, Macedonia, Germany, England, etc. There was an array of ongoing festival activities i.e., workshops, seminars, classes, swimming, and other recreational activities. The presenters of the seminars were H.H. Jayapataka Swami, H.H. Satcianandana Swami, H.G. Krsna Ksetra Prabhu, and H.H. Bhakti-Tirtha Swami.

H.G. Krsna Ksetra Prabhu presented a seminar on deity worship; H.H. Sacianandana Swami gave a seminar on connecting with the Lord in the heart; and H.H. Jayapataka Swami gave several seminars on congregational preaching. Another sannyasi, Smita Krishna Maharaja, also attended the festival for a few days. Nearly 500 devotees were in attendance. The programs were held beneath a main tent and at any given time, one of the seminar leaders was speaking. Instead of scheduling several seminars simultaneously, where devotees had to choose one presentation over another, each seminar took place consequtively so devotees could attend and hear each presentation. At first, His Holiness thought that the large numbers of devotees would make it somewhat difficult to retain the interactive format of his classes. But, as usual, Maharaja expertly adapted to the situation and sometimes simply divided the entire assembly into ten or so groups.

His Holiness said he was impressed on many accounts: He noted that Croatia has the largest number of devotees per capita than any other country in the world; Many people are coming forth to participate in Krsna consciousness, even though there are only a few temples in this whole area. Most of the preaching is in the nama hatta or bhakti-vrska format with devotees meeting weekly at someone's home. At these gatherings, devotees have discussions and encourage each other in their Krsna consciousness. His Holiness said it is amazing that, in the West, many people are leaving the temples and they are not so eager to live in the dhams. In Croatia, however, people are standing in line begging to live in temples, but because there are not sufficient temple facilities, many have to live outside.

His Holiness landed in Zagreb first, where he was met by Bhakta Daniel. An hour or two later Bhakta Fez flew in from England and joined His Holiness, Bhakta Daniel and his fiancee. They visited the Zagreb Temple for a few hours where Gurudeva gave class and stayed long enough for devotees to take prasadam. Then, they drove for several hours to the farm in Pula, which is one of the tourist towns in Croatia.

His Holiness said Croatian devotees are all around the world. He is noticing that they are wonderful and had a first-hand opportunity to see and experience why. He encountered some of the most amazing and aspiring devotees of different ages and from diverse, economic and professional backgrounds. He is happy to see that so many people are saying "yes" to Krsna consciousness, and that they are so eager and respectful to sadhus. Often, he stressed that the Croatian devotees are melting his heart; and that he feels so naturally connected with them.

Bhakti-Tirtha Maharaja's classes emphasized different points about community development, and were similar to other workshops he has given on this topic. These workshops included reading letters from gurukula students around the world who have expressed how they feel the Krsna consciousness Institution could improve and in what areas there should be more concentration and focus. He explained that the workshop is designed to help devotees be more introspective. He underscored this by advising everyone to bring handkerchiefs because it would be a class that equally produces outrageous laughter and/or tears. Of course, this was the nature of the course which turned out to be quite revealing and very introspective. One evening, His Holiness and H.H. Jayapataka Swami had a question and answer session together for all of the devotees. 

On Janmastami, there was a wonderful abhisheka with H.G. Krsna Ksetra Prabhu, H.H. Satcianandana Swami, and His Holiness giving a class together on Krsnalila. On Srila Prabhupada's Appearance day, all three of the leaders gave classes on their realizations of and associations with Srila Prabhupada. When His Holiness initially agreed to give the seminar in Croatia, he was not aware that he would be doing so on Janmastami and Srila Prabhupada's Appearance day. But, once he had committed himself, he followed through. (Normally, Maharaja prefers being at one of his own temple projects for these special festivals.) After he met so many wonderful devotees, however, he realized why Krsna had arranged for him to associate with the Croatian devotees during these most auspicious days.

During the sharing, which was very profound, some devotees were shedding tears. On Janmastami, His Holiness appealed to devotees to make a closer connection with the Lord in the form of the Deity. It is important, he notes, to offer a gift for one's birthday. The greatest gift, he stresses though, that one can offer Krsna is oneself, because Krsna does not need anything. After the sharing, Maharaja led very powerful kirtanas, with devotees reciprocating quite nicely. 

AUSTRIA

After six days at the campsite, His Holiness had to leave two days early for engagements in other countries. Before he left, many devotees asked for his e-mail address to stay in touch with him, others requested that His Holiness become their siksa or diksa guru. One of the greatest surprises is finding out the large number of Croatian devotees who have been reading all of Gurudeva's books. Visnumurti, the distributor for Europe, arrived and began selling Gurudeva's books. After two days, he completely sold out, and had to take back-orders. 

His Holiness was especially moved by one young girl from Bosnia who is studying law. Of course, Bosnia has been engaged in a lot of conflict. As a matter of fact, His Holiness comments that, it is quite amazing that, even though these devotees are from different countries that are normally in conflict and at terrible war with each other, devotees did not get caught up in such sectarian distinctions. Ironically, some devotees were soldiers engaged in wars in their respective countries; but when coming together to serve Krsna, everyone is harmonious. One girl from Bosnia particularly touched Maharaja's heart. She was so eager to read Bhakti-Tirtha Swami's books that in order to afford purchasing his books, she fasted for two days. All devotees attending had to pay for individual transportation and purchase prasadam daily. Therefore, her funds were low and her budget was very tight. She was so eager to hear and to connect with His Holiness' presentations of Krsna consciousness that she joyfully fasted. Immediately after buying Gurudeva's books, she went into isolation, read profusely, and tried to finish his books before she left. When His Holiness had darsana with her, he was so impressed with her determination. Later, she wrote to him and he arranged for her to receive complimentary copies of all his books that she does not currently have. It is obviously important for an author to know people are eager to read one's books. His Holiness is getting letters weekly from devotees all around the world expressing their happiness about his books. Every time he gets such feedback, it is quite wonderful, refreshing, and encouraging to him.

In Vienna, he spent two days at a facility called The Seminar Center. This center was created by a very special devotee couple and is similar to The Institute for Applied Spiritual Technology in Washington, D.C. Courses are held there and they rent out the facility to religious and New Age groups and also have programs for devotees.

The first night, His Holiness gave a class on Paradise Lost,explaining our search for the paradise from which we have come. He explained in very eclectic terminology how we can regain our paradise consciousness and go back to the environment of the spiritual world.

Installation of the Radha-Krshna Deities took place the next day with Maharaja playing a key role. Actually,His Holiness was supposed to come to Austria some months ago, but as we remember in a previous report, he was called back to the states for the gurukula reunion in New Vrndavana. He was, therefore, surprised to learn that devotees had postponed installing the Deities until he could return. 

His Holiness was impressed with this particular couple because they maintained a very clean, and beautiful building. As well as being quite intelligent, they cooked and preached together. They do not depend so much on outside help, which is minimal, but rather depend on each other. His Holiness said he was impressed that they were so focused on preaching. This is a good example of householders who are determined to serve Krsna with quality in a pioneering spirit.

After the Deity installation in Graz, Austria, His Holiness went to Vienna where he gave the Sunday feast lecture and Srimad Bhagavatam class. He is delightfully excited and impressed that this is a temple of devotees from different Vaisnava groups. He said it is a very sweet environment with sweet association. He met two other spiritual masters. After talking with them, he discovered that they are disciples of a very dear godbrother from Hungary. This godbrother was part of the team of devotees who risked their lives to distribute books in Eastern Europe during the early days to make Krsna consciousness available. He left his body in a car accident many years ago, and his disciples were quite delighted to hear from H.H. Bhakti-Tirtha Swami, especially when he relayed some of the pastimes he had experienced with their spiritual master.

Gurudeva gave class emphasizing the potency of unity and diversity. He explained that it is important to maintain chastity, to avoid fundamentalism, and to honor chastity and diversity simultaneously. After leading a very powerful kirtana, there was a wonderful bonding with the devotees from the different Vaisnava groups. This is the first time an ISKCON guru has come to Vienna since its present establishment and he is very happy that devotees are focusing on quality association.

His Holiness agreed to keep in touch. One of the gurus is quite the scholar; he teaches at the university and is very active in printing, translating, and overseeing many temples in Hungary. We are always happy to see our Guru's mood of encouraging all devotees. He has a great disgust for sectarianism and fundamentalism, but realizes the power of being focused, chaste, and dedicated to one's spiritual line. Much of Gurudeva's activity is a good sign of healthy diversity while honoring unity.

MUNICH

After a short stay in Austria, Bhakta Daniel drove His Holiness, and accompanying him were Bhakta Fez and Bhakta Daniel's fiancee. Munich has quite a small temple. The president is a young bhakta who is managing the temple while finishing a degree at the university. The Munich devotees had invited His Holiness some time ago. Some of them have been reading his books, and they were pleading for him to visit. It was only a few hours drive from Austria, so he gladly stayed for two days. 

His Holiness led powerful kirtanas and presented intriguing classes. Once again, he was happy that Krshna allowed him to meet so many nice devotees. After his short visit to Germany, he went to Zurich.

ZURICH

Switzerland is also one of His Holiness' GBC areas. Though he was able to preach, he had to be a little more concerned with managerial issues there. The sankirtana devotees had been out traveling for some time, and they arrived three days after His Holiness. He gave Bhagavatam classes every day and had darsana as much as possible. His schedule allowed him to be there for Radhastami.

For Radhastami, Maharaja gave the devotees a special assignment: to write letters and make prayers to Srimati Radharani and then to share what they had written. First, he asked the devotees to write thankful notes and prayers to Srimati Radharani. Second, he asked the devotees to write a letter about their challenges and failures in devotional life and to make a sincere prayer to Srimati Radharani to help them improve in these difficult areas and times. 

While visiting Zurich, His Holiness went to Govinda's Restaurant. This was his first visit and while there he obtained a better idea of their format for successfully distributing prasadam and for preaching. Each time he goes to Zurich he appreciates the devotees more and more. The devotees are struggling with many setbacks and are working very hard to maintain their Krsna consciousness. His Holiness wants to assist and encourage the devotees as best he can.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

After one week in Zurich, His Holiness returned to America to find out that The Institute was relocating. He stayed in Washington for a few days to help Madhavacarya Prabhu and Mother Kunti find another house. He also assisted the devotees in packing and moving. For those of you frequenting The Institute from time to time, the new location is in a more suburban area; it is a pleasant little house on top of a hill and a very cute facility. In this new house, the emphasis will not be so much on programs only being held there. It will be a focal point since the Radha-Gopinatha Deities are there and His Holiness stays there when he is in Washington. Now, however, the emphasis will be on rotating various programs at different members' houses. This way more people can be exposed to Krsna consciousness, and more devotees can play their part in furthering the mission.

GITA NAGARI

Gurudeva went to Gita Nagari for three days to assess the new temple situation. He was happy to find out that devotees are moving full speed ahead with arrangements for the new temple and are on a marathon to raise funds for the temple opening on November 11. His Holiness said the devotees have tried so many ways to raise funds, but it was just not coming together. Now because devotees are determined, working very hard and being very prayerful, Krsna has mercifully arranged for the construction to resume.

His Holiness left for New Vrndavana for a wonderful memorial festival honoring Mother Hladini and the six devotees who left their bodies with her in Liberia. It has been ten years since the devotees were assassinated. His Holiness has been having a memorial service practically every year, and now devotees from around the world have requested a formal memorial service. Simultaneous services were held in New Vrndavana and in Alachua, Florida, with the Sunday feasts held in honor of Mother Hladini.

NEW VRNDAVANA

The memorial ceremony at New Vrndavana had been abruptly changed and moved forward one week. This rescheduling allowed H.H. Radhanatha Swami to attend, since he was leaving America before the originally scheduled date. It was very important that His Holiness and H.H. Radhanatha Swami be in attendance. The change put quite a strain on His Holiness' schedule, but he said that he was still delighted to be a part of the ceremony. 

Devotees in Gurudeva's zone and other places have been honoring the disappearance of Srimati Hladini Dasi and the other devotees practically every year. This is something special because several other temples want to take part. After one decade of her departure, New Vrndavana arranged a formal memorial service. This is most fitting since most of her devotional service was performed in New Vrndavana. H.H. Bhakti-Tirtha Swami, H.H. Radhanatha Swami, Mother Malati, Mother Jaya Sri, and most important, Mother Yamuna were the brains behind arranging this particular memorial service.

The memorial service was held at the Old Vrndavana site where Mother Hladini engaged in most of her services. Old Vrndavana is a very isolated part of the New Vrndavana community and, at this time, no devotees are living there, because the temple is abandoned. This made it particularly special because devotees thought it would be especially wonderful if they could have a ceremony at Old Vrndavana at least once or twice a year. The environment is very simple and highly exhilarating. It was as if devotees were reliving the moments of great austerity, great pioneering, great growth, and great acceleration.

At one point, Mother Hladini was practically staying in Old Vrndavana by herself. She cared for the Deities, cooked, chopped wood, and involved herself in so many other duties in such a devotional spirit.

Many devotees in America also honor the disappearance of Jayananda Dasa. He was known as a very special devotee who was pure. Srila Prabhupada said when he left his body, due to leukemia, that he went back to the spiritual world. Jayananda Dasa impacted many devotees' consciousness in such a unique and powerful way. Many devotees are beginning to realize that Jayananda Dasa is so dear to the devotional community. His picture has been placed on many of the ratha-yatra carts, since one of his main services was helping to facilitate ratha-yatra. Now, in New Vrndavana and Gita Nagari, Mother Hladini's picture is also put on the ratha-yatra cart every year. The devotees who know of her realize that the female counterpart of Jayananda Prabhu is Mother Hladini. She is one of the greatest souls that Srila Prabhupada attracted to assist him in his mission, but even so, today, most devotees in the world do not know of her. His Holiness is hoping that, in the future, many devotees will hear more about her wonderful pastimes. To know that we have had such very powerful devotees in our midst will help devotees to become more faithful in Krsna consciousness. This came forth in the honoring of Mother Hladini as the various devotees spoke, including Nityodita Swami, about their pastimes and their association with her. It was astounding to everyone to hear that her life is an example of one of the great devotees we read about in Caitanya-Caritamrta. 

Men and women spoke about Mother Hladini in a moving way. Some of the presentations were so intense that there were tears from the speakers as well as the audience. Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Maharaja explained that those who did not have her association might think that the speakers were being sentimental, but he assured them that those who did have her association had been profoundly and genuinely moved by this great entity.

Devotees spoke about the changes Mother Hladini went through. She was quite an introverted person for most of her devotional life but never refused any type of service. She was always fixed in Deity service. She always encouraged those to whom she preached or those who came near her. She had so much love and faith in Prabhupada and Krsna that her love constantly spilled over onto others.

His Holiness described her powerful preaching in Africa, intensity for studying the scriptures, and capacity to be the servant of the servant and friend of the most fallen. She was also very attracted to encouraging the children. Whatever the situation, she always managed to bring it back to Krsna. 

There was a wonderful kirtana led by H.H. Radhanatha Swami followed by sumptuous prasadam in Mother Hladini's honor. The kirtana devotees lovingly offered flowers to her photograph.

His Holiness had come to New Vrndavana with three devotees: Mother Vrajalila, Mother Mangala Arotika, and Bhaktin Emily. These same devotees accompanied him to Detroit, Michigan, later that day. It was quite an austere experience. They drove about six hours from Gita Nagari to New Vrndavana and stayed at the memorial service until the evening. Then, after His Holiness spoke with various devotees, in the late evening, they drove another eight hours to Detroit. His Holiness did not have much choice because the next morning several programs were scheduled. He was so determined to be a part of Mother Hladini's ceremony that he stayed for half a day in New Vrndavana, drove to Detroit, arriving at 4 a.m., slept for a few hours, and rose early to attend the first program.

DETROIT

Once again, Purusa-Sukta expertly arranged several nice preaching projects for Gurudeva. The first program started on Saturday. It was a lecture at the University of Detroit's Mercy School of Business. The participants were graduate students who were rather mature adults. Many of them had been in the work world for several years and had continued their studies to acquire more expertise in the business arena. Gurudeva spoke on principle-centered leadership. Professor Mike Widdy was using a textbook entitled, The Corporate Soul of Business, and is focused on visionary leadership concerns that involve a high level of ethics, morality, and integrity. Prof. Widdy was extremely happy with the presentation that His Holiness gave. The students, also responded very nicely and asked interesting questions at the end of the lecture. The class was two hours long and it gave His Holiness a chance to present some basic points for an hour and to receive questions for the next hour. Prof. Widdy asked to keep in touch with His Holiness. What really impressed the Prof. Widdy was that His Holiness is not just teaching in academic settings, but is interacting in the international field presenting conscious raising workshops, seminars, and lectures to reach more people. 

The devotees were on a tight schedule, even though they had only a few hours of sleep. After leaving the University of Detroit Mercy, we went to the Body, Mind, Spirit Festival at Oakland University. This is the same festival at which His Holiness spoke several months ago in April. He recalls having a wonderful time signing books for many people who were eager to purchase his books. 

PhenomeNEWS puts this festival on twice a year, and the normal policy is that they have new speakers each time. Therefore, His Holiness did not give a lecture for this occasion, but he was very happy to hear from the organizers that his previous lecture was the best received of the entire festival. They are eager for him to speak again, but he will have to wait until next year. Ten devotees were already awaiting Mahraja's arrival at the fair. Most had come earlier to set-up, man the table and to wait until Gurudeva and others came from the first engagement.

The table attractively displayed Gurudeva's and Srila Prabhupada's books, along with audiotapes, videotapes, and prasadam. Not as many people bought books this time, but people were stopping at the table practically every minute browsing through the books and having discussions with the devotees. His Holiness stayed at the Body, Mind, Spirit Festival for three hours. At the end, he joined a bhajana group that was chanting almost the whole day. Thousands of people had come to the pavilion, and most seemed to be quite pious. They were very friendly and it was easy to interact and talk with them.

After speaking to people, signing books, and joining the bhajana group, the devotees packed up and went to bookstore The Shrine of the Black Madonna bookstore, where His Holiness was to speak and to sign books. Mother Paramesvara arranged this program and had arrived early to set up. Mostly devotees were in attendance who had come from different environments, but His Holiness was still happy to be there. He talked with the devotees answering many questions they had about his books. The Shrine of the Black Madonna has been selling His Holiness' books for several years now, so he felt quite at home being in a place where he was known through his literary works.

By the time the third program ended, it was 7 p.m. The whole day had gone by without His Holiness taking time to eat. He barely had a chance to sleep, since he drove from West Virginia in the middle of the night. However, he was still quite vibrant after preaching all day long and was grateful that he could serve Srila Prabhupada in this way. 

The next morning, at Fisher Mansion, His Holiness attended managala-arotika, performed the guru-puja and gave Srimad Bhagavatam class. In the afternoon, and before the Sunday program started, students studying Eastern religions from Eastern Michigan University gathered in Srila Prabhupada's library to hear His Holiness. Gurudeva explained that we are a part of the Hindu family. However, he specifically emphasized some of our spiritual philosophical and theological positions. Taking the emphasis away from sectarian religious subject matters, he revealed how to apply spiritual technology to their daily lives. His delivery was informative but also challenging.

After speaking for an hour and answering questions, the students joined His Holiness downstairs in the temple room. Upon entering, he immediately began leading the chanting, propelling everyone into ecstasy. There was a rather cosmopolitan group of devotees of all ages. At first, the professor and his students were up in the balcony observing the devotees. Later, it was evident that the enthusiasm of the devotees drew them in. They came down to the temple room and one by one, got pulled in by the different devotees to join in the singing and dancing. After a short time, the professor himself voluntarily jumped into the circle and began dancing wildly with the devotees around the temple room. Those who came from the class had an interesting experience of the culture of devotion.

After the kirtana ended, His Holiness gave the Sunday feast lecture which emphasized that one should never neglect any Vaisnava. He told several stories which highlighted how Krsna is dear to all of His devotees, and His great devotees are surely dear to Him. Gurudeva further stressed the benefits, along with chastisements and problems, that are associated with assisting the Vaisnavas. After the lecture, Maharaja continued sharing wonderful Vaisnava stories. Because of the time factor though, he did not take any questions in the temple room. It was very late and the kirtana had gone on for quite some time. By the time the class started, it was already quite late in the evening. All had so much enjoyed the kirtana led by His Holiness that everyone became oblivious to the time. Instead of taking questions in the temple room, His Holiness decided to have a question and answer session in the Library to address and answer any pressing questions, or questions on any general spiritual topics. He continued to serve the devotees in this way. As usual, quite a nice crowd came, even though most had not eaten. Rather than going directly to take the feast after the lecture, many opted, instead, to have a feast in their ears. His Holiness was pleased to see the enthusiasm of the aspiring devotees.

On Monday after such an ecstatic Sunday program, Gurudeva again gave Srimad Bhagavatam class, this time narrating the story entitled, 'Kardama Muni Desires a Wife'. His Holiness explained that it is important for girls to be protected and that a nice arrangement be made for a husband. This pastime tells how Kardama Muni meditated on the Lord for 10,000 years and Valmiki Muni meditated for 60,000 years. During the meditation, however, Kardama Muni became attracted to his wife's desires to have sexual intercourse at an inauspicious time. This story illustrates that one must be careful to do the right thing in the right way, especially in controlling the senses. Otherwise, certain inauspicious consequences will take place.

In the afternoon, devotees as well as Gurudeva had a wonderful surprise. He was invited, once again, to be interviewed on a very popular radio show that has a listening audience of over one million people. He thought it would be similar to previous times when he was in Detroit, and he spoke about his books. To everyone's surprise, the host of the show was Gil Hill, president of the City Council. Mr. Hill, knowing local and international politics, was quite impressed with Maharaja. As powerful, if not more so, than the Mayor, Mr. Hill oversees many important responsibilities and duties and has great influence throughout the whole city. He was quite amazed with His Holiness' record of international achievements and expressed on the air his awe as His Holiness shared certain amazing insights.

In the evening, after returning to the temple to take prasadam, devotees assembled in Prabhupada's room in the Fisher Mansion to hear one of the newest entries from The Beggar III, which is not yet in print. Purusa-Sukta had arranged an intimate, reading series entitled, "Transcending the False Ego." His Holiness spoke and commented on various challenges and techniques in relationship to transcending the false ego.

The first night, Gurudeva read from and commented on "My Coach, the False Ego." He intimated that the false ego is coaching him in almost every area of his life, and he presented spiritual technologies for understanding how to transcend the false ego. The reception was so good that everyone was shocked at how many people from the community were coming each night to hear His Holiness speak. Instead of reading from Beggar III for the next two days, he wanted to serve the devotees as effectively as possible. So he decided to hold question and answer sessions so devotees could ask any type of questions they were pondering. 

The next day, he had another engagement at the University of Detroit Mercy in the Business Studies Department. This time there were younger students. Unfortunately,devotees got lost enroute and we arrived quite late. Nonetheless, Maharaja gave a short presentation, focusing on some of the powerful qualities of a true leader.

After half an hour break, His Holiness went to Henry Ford College where he spoke to an introductory religion class. Purusa-Sukta had initally arranged for him to speak to four separate classes, but His Holiness thought it was better to merge the classes. Gurudeva spoke to the first class, and the devotees spoke to the second class. The main interest was a sociological and biographical investigation of why and what impels one to connect with the Krsna consciousness movement? Taking the emphasis away from himself, Gurudeva explained the reason in a very powerful and scientific way. He described certain basic details one should look for when trying to understand any philosophy, teaching, etc. He expressed that other religions were not sufficient for him personally and why. He made it clear that he is not sectarian, but that religion is a vehicle and the important point is to have a good vehicle that will carry us to our desired destination. The students were very impressed as His Holiness captivated them for an hour and a half. Professor Bill Seacrest was especially impressed. 

Back at Fisher Mansion, instead of continuing to speak from Beggar III, that night His Holiness received questions. There was an even larger audience than the previous night. As he had suspected, certain issues that had been on devotees minds for some time were shared for which he was able to give clarification and some solace.

The next morning of his last day in Detroit, Gurudeva was scheduled to give another university class. Instead, he arranged for devotees who accompanied him to the previous University programs, to give the class. Mother Vrajalila began, and each devotee shared briefly why he or she had joined the Krsna conscious movement.

That afternoon His Holiness was the featured guest on a television program called "Out of the Ordinary into the Extraordinary." He was questioned by the interviewer, Robert Taylor (Bhumadeva Das), on many psychic topics and concerns. The show went very well and as usual, His Holiness saw this as another battlefield on which to serve Krsna better.

The last evening's program was to have been a disciple's meeting. However, given that people were still coming so consistently, Maharaja felt it would be better to have another question and answer session so that everyone could participate. 

The visit to Detroit ended just as it started: devotees driving long hours to arrive at the next destination in time for the next program. The devotees vigorously committed themselves to represent Prabhupada nicely, going to another field of activities to increase the level of their service many times over. His Holiness wants us all to remain aware of the fact that we want to develop more spiritual greed, more natural selflessness, and more compassion so that we receive strength to move through all of our challenges.

While in Detroit, His Holiness stayed at Sri Nandanandana's house and tried to be available for darsana with as many devotees as possible. You can imagine that it was not easy, as he was having sometimes four back to back programs a day. However, he was eager to assist as many devotees as he could, realizing that it is a wonderful way for him to serve Srila Prabhupada by being the servant of the servant.

After being in Detroit for five days, devotees left to return to Gita Nagari for a day or two. His Holiness had to prepare for a major presentation in Washington, D.C., at Rev. Massey's church.

REVEREND MASSEY/GALBRAITH A.M.E. ZION CHURCH

For years, the devotees at The Institute have had a very wonderful relationship with Reverend and Mrs. Massey of the Galbraith A.M.E. Zion Church. As you know, Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Maharaja has presented workshops, seminars, and lectures in all different types of environments: mainstream media, churches, non-traditional spiritual groups, universities, and devotee communities all over the world. One of his specialties is interacting with traditional ministers and priests who are going deeper and deeper in desiring to develop a personal connection with God. He has enjoyed this kind of interaction for over 15 years. Maharaja has visited monasteries, shared his books, interacted with monks, and given major sermons on Sundays and special occasions at various churches. This was the first Sunday of the month and the day of communion for members of the Galbraith A.M.E. Zion church. The entire congregation had heard quite a lot about Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Maharaja. As a matter of fact, for the past seven years, Rev. Massey has used Maharaja's books as the focal point for serious, indepth, spiritual study groups. For weeks prior to Gurudeva's speaking engagement there, study group members came together weekly to discuss Maharaja's Spiritual Warrior III book.

This special 'first Sunday' program began at 3 p.m. in the afternoon, with devotees serving out sumptuous prasadam that was specially prepared for the occasion. Two hours later, His Holiness arrived to meet with Rev. Massey in his office for a while; the Reverend then escorted His Holiness to the pulpit from which he spoke. It was a short program, so His Holiness could have an extensive question and answer session for members of the church. A deep, soul stirring rendition of 'Amazing Grace' was sung in acapella by Mrs. Massey's sister, an accomplished gospel vocalist. This was followed by a short reading from the Book of Psalms emphasizing unity. Next, our own Brahma Dasa played on his saxophone a wonderful song praising God, entitled "How Great Thou Art." Each offering made a very nice introduction for His Holiness, which created an inspirited atmosphere before he spoke. Rev. Massey introduced His Holiness once again to the congregation. He made it clear that His Holiness is not a new personality to the congregation; because many of them had been reading his books in the past. There was no need for a long introduction, he commented, because the church members were given His Holiness' biography during the morning service. Everyone was eager and ready to receive Gurudeva's message. Many audience members were taking copious notes and capturing points as Gurudeva spoke. It was wonderful to see the love that Gurudeva has for Rev. Massey and vice-versa. Not only does, Rev. Massey have a picture of Gurudeva in his office, but in his introduction, he referred to Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Maharaja as his spiritual mentor.

Rev. Massey is a very vibrant, wonderful preacher, as well as his wife. Their spirituality runs very deep, and they have personal relationships with members of their congregation. His Holiness is always happy to see people of the cloth who really walk their talk and who are genuinely interested in becoming greater servants of God. He sees the Reverend Masseys as such people. Both ministers, they are a special husband and wife team and the love they share between each other, is extended to the congregation in a very powerful, selfless way.

His Holiness delivered an interesting sermon that stressed ten major indicators of falling civilizations or cultures. He quoted interesting statistics from material references, showing that not only do we preach from spiritual connections, but that there is so much material information which supports the spiritual conclusions as well. He identified many of the materialistic gurus who are empowered for destruction; he showed how they brought great calamities and disasters to the planet by the kind of philosophies and messages they have imposed upon humankind. He discussed such people as Charles Darwin, Adam Smith, Freud, Carl Marx, and Francis Bacon. He explained clearly that these personalities, seemingly, had great abilities but did a disservice to humanity by the kind of teachings they propagated. He gave statistics supporting that the majority of Americans have tremendous faith or belief in God and many have the understanding that we are in very serious times. His Holiness said it is amazing that so many Americans are aware that these times are difficult. At the same time, they act so ridiculous and expect to be unaccountable and to go to heaven even though their lives are mostly sinful. He gave wonderful explanations from Christian mysticism about the lives of certain great powerful Christian mystics. As we go deeper and deeper in the mindset of "Dear Lord, Thy Will be done," we will gradually become empowered as Krsna works more and more in our lives. He emphasized the position of a genuine spiritual teacher versus those who are hypocrites and exploiters.

Visibly embracing Gurudeva's presentation, the audience was very enthused and many sat on the edge of their seats as His Holiness spoke. During the question and answer session, it was even more revealing that people were listening closely to the lecture because they had been studying his book Spiritual Warrior III. Many of them were studying all of his books and were, therefore, quite at home with the presentation and with the author. Because of this, several opened their hearts and asked questions to which they were eager to hear the answers. Maharaja's direct and poignant responses would enable them to make significant changes in their lives.

As in a few other lectures His Holiness has previously given, he asked each person to look at three areas in their lives where they are having the most spiritual difficulty and to make a vow, commitment, plan, or strategy to be freed of these problems within the next three months. He gave the audience one month to work on each serious issue, and wanted to support and encourage them in being proactive. Gurudeva was not there to entertain them; He simply wanted to offer the best service that he could. He felt the best way to help was for them to have a shift in consciousness, becoming more fixed in devotional life.

The program ended on a very sweet note, but the best was yet to come. After His Holiness left the pulpit, devotees set up a book signing table. Rev. Massey asked everyone with a book by His Holiness to come forth for him to personally sign it. Rev. Massey stressed, however that in the interest of time, for everyone in line to refrain from asking him any questions, but to simply move quickly and get their books signed. In less than five minutes, quite a long line of people had assembled. In many cases, the books were quite visibly worn, showing that they were sources of serious study by the owners. It was very blissful to see a wonderful line of such nice people parading by His Holiness so quickly. He mangaged to autograph every single book. The devotees were in ecstasy. His Holiness was in ecstasy. The Reverend Masseys were in ecstasy. The few ministers who came were in ecstasy. It was quite an experience! Everyone felt such a bonding of love and a real chance to appreciate genuine interfaith working on a deeper level. Everyone is happy to see that Maharaja is making himself available in all types of environments.

After the program at Reverend Masseys' church, His Holiness had only a day and a half to pack and prepare for a weeklong seminar in Russia. There,he will give a workshop and seminar for 2,000 devotees. After visiting Russia via Amsterdam, he will be on a rather extensive tour for one month in South Africa. In our next report, we will share with you Gurudeva's experiences in Russia and South Africa, so please benefit as much as you can from this recent report. Be ready for the next report, so we can travel from continent to continent with such a spiritual warrior as our beloved Spiritual Master, His Holiness Bhakti-Tirtha Swami.

Compiled by Paramesvara Dasi 
(with notes and commentary from His Holiness Srila Bhakti-Tirtha Swami.)