In Vraja, “Losing is Winning”

29 Dec
"With unabashed fervor, she pressures Krsna and His friends to eat more and more. She achieves such ends via strong words, emotional strength, and direct physical action. Seeing such overt behavior, the boys headed by Sri Rama and Sri Krsna ... Read more »

The Life Giving Nectar of Renunciation

17 Nov
By: Babhru Dāsa It’s an easy thing to get lost in the illusory world with all of its sensory delights. In fact, for the sadhaka-bhakta who is trying to become free from such enjoyments, they witness that the bodily and ... Read more »

Excessive Devotion is the Sign of a Thief

17 Oct
By: Babhru Dāsa “Excessive devotion is the sign of a thief.” It is a very striking idea indeed. But what does it mean? Isn’t intense devotion a great asset to the bhakta? Why would one be a thief for strongly ... Read more »

Siddha-pranali in the, “Sri Bhaktivinode Parivar”

22 Mar
By: Babhru Dasa The topic of “siddha-pranali” in gaudiya-vaishnavism is such a fascinating one, and indeed one of the most controversial and misunderstood ones also. To further complicate things, there are at least several types of processes that could fall ... Read more »

Should You, “Fake it Until You Make it?”

19 Feb
By: Babhru Dasa Most of us who have been involved with bhakti-sadhana for at least a few years have probably heard the saying, “fake it until you make it.” It’s a very interesting saying, but unfortunately one that in some ... Read more »

How Aishvarya-jnana Acts Upon Vraja-madhurya

30 Jan
By: Babhru Dasa The realm of Sri Vrindavan is special in so many ways. It is considered the apex of divine planes and is the atmosphere where the highest forms of divinity enact sweet eternal pastimes (lila-madhurya.) That being said, ... Read more »

Culturing Non-sectarianism in Gaudiya-bhakti

20 Jan
By: Babhru Dasa Sectarianism has always been rampant within the mundane world of duality. In many ways it comes to its climax in the face of social/religious designations. All over the world it can be seen that religious groups fight ... Read more »

Are Mystical Dreams Important in Gaudiya Vaishnavism? (Mysticism-Part One)

14 Nov
By: Babhru Dasa Do mystical dreams play an important role in Gaudiya-Vaishnavism? This is a very important topic and in this essay an attempt will be made to outline several points for consideration. It is the general understanding of most ... Read more »

Lord Chaitanya’s “Manjari-Swarupa”

24 Oct
By: Babhru Dasa Since time immemorial, unscrupulous persons have believed Sri Radha and Sri Krsna to be nothing more than mere “archetypes,” for invoking religious ideals of “love.” Generally speaking, such persons think that everyone is actually God and that ... Read more »