A Journey of Surrender E-Book

Yaśomatīnandana Dāsa

• Herausgeber: epubli
• Kategorie: Ratgeber
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 68

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

It's my humble request to present to you realisations and practical thoughts from the depth of my heart for the pleasure of the Guru parampara. All the ācāryas, great examplerary teachers, commented in one way or the other on the words of previous ācāryas. It's a tradition to hear the words and repeat them in accordance to sadhu, guru and shastra. Not all of the ācāryas wrote, but still, they used the spiritual lineage to propagate the message of Godhead, just as one would use the vast flow of a river to purify oneself. The source of this vast river of transcendental knowledge is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Śrī Radha-Kṛṣṇa, who appeared as Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu in Māyāpur, Navadvip, West Bengal, India. Śrī Chaitanya wrote only eight verses as a testament to the perfection of chanting the Holy Names of Kṛṣṇa. This instructive poem which was compiled in Sanskrit by Śrī Chaitanya is called Śrī Śikṣāṣṭakam, eight prayers to instruct about the glorious name of Govinda, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In every temple of the International Society for Kṛṣṇa Consciousness this prayer is recited, either in the morning, or sometimes in the evening, or sometimes at the auspicious appearance day of Śrī Chaitanya. The wonderful thing is that Śrī Chaitanya appeared to taste love of Godhead, exemplifying the ecstatic life of a devotee to Lord Kṛṣṇa. It's a phenomenal theology; God appearing as His devotee, to taste His mellow in relationship with Him. The missionary activities are also incapsulated in the eight instructive prayers of Lord Chaitanya, who inaugarated the nāma-saṅkīrtanam movement, the 'complete' or 'congregational' chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare.

Leseprobe

A Journey of Surrender

Realisations by Yaśomatīnandana Das

A Vaisnava reader for the pleasure of Śrīla Prabhupāda Śrī Chaitanya Śikṣāṣṭakam with original Sansnkrit, word-to-word transliteration, English Translation and personal Realisations

“Realization means you should write, every one of you, what is your realization. What for this Back to Godhead is? You write your realization, what you have realized about Kṛṣṇa. That is required. It is not passive. Always you should be active. Whenever you find time, you write.

Never mind, two lines, four lines, but you write your realization. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam, writing or offering prayers, glories. This is one of the function of the Vaiṣṇava. You are hearing, but you have to write also. Then write means smaraṇam, remembering what you have heard from your spiritual master, from the scripture. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ: (SB 7.5.23) about Viṣṇu, not for others. Don't write any nonsense thing for any nonsense man. Useless waste of time. Viṣṇu.

Write about Viṣṇu, Kṛṣṇa.”

(Śrīla Prabhupāda - Lecture on Brahma-samhita, Verse 32 Excerpt -- Los Angeles, August 14, 1972)

More about ‘Writing for Guru & Gauranga’:

http://www.prabhupadaconnect.com/Srila-Prabhupada-on-Writing.html

http://vanipedia.org/wiki/Srila_Prabhupada_Training_Disciples_-_on_writing

From: "Teachings of Lord Chaitanya"

A.C. Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Prabhupāda

Original version 1968

Word-to-word meanings by Vanipedia

(http://vaniquotes.org/wiki/8_verses_of_Sri_Chaitanya_Mahaprabhu%E2%80%99s_Siksastaka)

© YOGA PLUS (freelance Yoga instructor) 2025

www.linktr.ee/YashomatinandanaDasa

Books by Yashomatinandana Dāsa (Jan Wolter):

Travel, Learn, Grow book series (2013-2023)

compiled during world travel:

Kṛṣṇa Consciousness Basics

Soul Searching

Teachings of Saints, Holy Places and the sacred

Travel, Learn, Grow

texts.

Where We Will Wænder

Overall Balance

Little writings - Essays on God consciousness (2023)

Homecoming

Four Principles of Freedom (January 2024)

Via Medium (February 2024)

Arcana - a taste of Deity Worship in Sridhama

Wisdom of Veda & Yoga: Learning the Art of Spiritual Mayapur (March 2024)

Travel

Śraddhā - Beyond Faith & Blind Trust (April 2024) All One, yet Different (Summer 2024)

Peace Love Union (2022)

Monk's Minimalist Mindset (Fall 2024)

Eternal Journey (2022)

Spiritual Gentleman (Winter 2024/25)

Be Bliss! (2022)

Blissful Bonds (2022)

Green Living (2022)

Journals: Personal Diaries of a spiritual Traveler

Atmārāma - the source of all bliss (2022)

Minimalism - Simplicity in Yoga (2022)

Bhakti (Autumn 2023)

Bhajan (Winter 2023)

Pada Sevanam (Summer 2023)

Spiritual Traveler: Books for Inner Freedom

Prachar (Spring 2023)

Join the Party (Spring 2024)

Travel + Freedom: Storytime (2015-2022)

Spiritual Traveler - Seven Acts Drama (2023)

More books and diaries in the German language

The Art of Spiritual Travel (May 2024)

available

Inner Revolution Poetry (2016-2025)

I offer my respectful obeisances to Śrīla Prabhupāda who saved me from drowning in the material ocean of ignorance.

Dedicated to all who are chanting the Names of God.

Invocation

harer nāma harer nāma

harer nāmaiva kevalam

kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva

nāsty eva gatir anyathā

‘For spiritual progress in this Age of Kali, there is no alternative, there is no alternative, there is no alternative to the holy name, the holy name, the holy name of the Lord.’

Purport by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada For progress in spiritual life, the śāstras recommend meditation in Satya-yuga, sacrifice for the satisfaction of Lord Viṣṇu in Tretā-yuga and gorgeous worship of the Lord in the temple in Dvāpara-yuga, but in the Age of Kali one can achieve spiritual progress only by chanting the holy name of the Lord. This is confirmed in various scriptures. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there are many references to this fact. In the Twelfth Canto (3.51) it is said: kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ

kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet

In the Age of Kali there are many faults, for people are subjected to many miserable conditions, yet in this age there is one great benediction — simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra one can be freed from all material contamination and thus be elevated to the spiritual world.

Similarly, the Kali-santaraṇa Upaniṣad states, “Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare — these sixteen names composed of thirty-two syllables are the only means to counteract the evil effects of Kali-yuga. In all the Vedas it is seen that to cross the ocean of nescience there is no alternative to the chanting of the holy name.”

(CC Adi-Lila 7.76)

Introduction

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

dear devotees of the Lord. Please accept my humble obeinsances - all glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda!

It's my humble request to present to you realisations and practical thoughts from the depth of my heart for the pleasure of the Guru parampara. All the ācāryas, great examplerary teachers, commented in one way or the other on the words of previous ācāryas. It's a tradition to hear the words and repeat them in accordance to sadhu, guru and shastra. Not all of the ācāryas wrote, but still, they used the spiritual lineage to propagate the message of Godhead, just as one would use the vast flow of a river to purify oneself. The source of this vast river of transcendental knowledge is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Śrī Radha-Kṛṣṇa, who appeared as Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu in Māyāpur, Navadvip, West Bengal, India. Śrī

Chaitanya wrote only eight verses as a testament to the perfection of chanting the Holy Names of Kṛṣṇa. This instructive poem which was compiled in Sanskrit by Śrī Chaitanya is called Śrī

Śikṣāṣṭakam, eight prayers to instruct about the glorious name of Govinda, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

In every temple of the International Society for Kṛṣṇa Consciousness this prayer is recited, either in the morning, or sometimes in the evening, or sometimes at the auspicious appearance day of Śrī Chaitanya. The wonderful thing is that Śrī Chaitanya appeared to taste love of Godhead, exemplifying the ecstatic life of a devotee to Lord Kṛṣṇa. It's a phenomenal theology; God appearing as His devotee, to taste His mellow in relationship with Him. The missionary activities are also incapsulated in the eight instructive prayers of Lord Chaitanya, who inaugarated the nāma-saṅkīrtanam movement, the ‘complete’ or ‘congregational’ chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare.

When I joined the Hare Kṛṣṇa Ashram in San Diego in January 2017, everything was new to me, except the Sanskrit and taste of prasadam. It seemed familiar, somewhat distinct from a past life. When I heard the Bhagavad-Gītā recitation for the first time, my ears and heart opened up and I was eager to receive this transcendental knowledge. It took many travels, back to Germany, to India and around the world, to re-establish my lost connection to a bona fide spiritual teacher, who could impart knowledge unto me. In summer 2022, I took formal initiation by His Holiness Kadamba Kanana Swami, a genuine and friendly guru who understood my desire. I felt chosen and empowered by him to preach and made this my life and soul. After His Holiness’ departure, I found shelter with Janananda Gosvami Maharaja who takes book distribution and harināma in France very seriously. He gave me mantra diksha and engaged me in services in Paris, one of those capitals of Kali. This was 2024. Now in 2025, I started traveling again, for personal purification and to attend specific functions like the Kumbha Mela festival, which happens every 12 or 144 years. As I am writing these words from the ISKCON Kumbha Mela Camp, I'm eager to start a new writing adventure to scrutinisingly study and authoritatively comment on the wonderful verses of Śrī Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. As we are almost on the way

to Māyāpur for the annual Gaura Purnima festival, I want to use this time to deeply penetrate into the Śrī Śikṣāṣṭakam to explore writings like Śrī Chaitanya caritāmṛta and others. Following in the footsteps of Śrīla Prabhupāda who wanted his disciples (and grand-grand disciples) to write their own realisations in order to please the guru-parampara, thus I'll proceed and follow the system that Śrīla Prabhupāda enacted. Even if my realisations are immature or sometimes childish, please forgive me. Even if they might be incomplete or lack-luster, please bare with this fallen servant of Śrīla Prabhupāda.

It is said: Search & Thou shall find

This might be true, for me and for you,

but isn't it just my restless mind?

What is the heart of a spiritual journey,

an adventure and blissful discovery,

a soujourn of inner revolution poetry?

Isn't it purity?

The driving force of spirituality.