A perfect arrangement
Gokul Lila, Saumya Mayi, and I set up a book table outside a bank inPalmerston North for the day, across the street from a busy mall entrance. Two of us would distribute in the mall, while one manned the table, piledvery high with stacks of “Hiding in Unnatural Happiness.” I was standing atthe table, looking down to read a message on my phone, when I heard anenthusiastic voice say, “Check out the table!” I looked up and saw two skateboarders. The enthusiastic one, who was tellinghis less enthusiastic mate to check out the table,...
read moreTime bomb
Recently, in Zagreb, Croatia, I was distributing books at a tram stationnear the main train station. It was crowded. People didn’t show muchinterest in spiritual books, or they said, “We already have our spiritualbook, the Bible.” After some time, a person took an interest in at leastseeing the books, but he didn’t take any. Then I took one step, and the next person stopped me. It was a young woman,and she told me, “I will show you something.” She pulled out from her backpack the first edition of “Science of SelfRealization” in the...
read more1 of 21 The HARE KRISHNA film’s impact
My father in the former USSR knew about Krishna consciousness since 1985,when my brother and I joined the movement. Although my father is very kindand devoted to his family, he has always been skeptical about Krishnaconsciousness. It was in June, 2020, that he had a turning point in his views. It happenedafter he watched the movie HARE KRISHNA! on the life of Srila Prabhupada. Itwas free on YouTube during the lockdown. I watched the entire movie with myfather. After the movie ended, I could see that my father was touched, andeven when he...
read moreRare souls
Recently, as I described the Bhagavad-gita to a young Muslim man at the NYCHarinam book table, he said that he had just been listening to a lecture,advising that one acquire spiritual knowledge; now I was showing him theBhagavad-gita. As I talked, he pointed out things in common with his Islamic tradition.When I showed him the contents of Science of Self-Realization, he noticedthe article entitled “The Human Form of Life is Meant for God Realization.”He enthusiastically agreee with it. I explained that this is a common themein all these...
read moreThe puzzle pieces come together
I was waiting to get picked up from the Cuba Mall in Wellington. Was it a coincidence that the driver was ten minutes late? I met a nineteen-year-old named Taylor. As I put the “Hiding In Unnatural Happiness” in her hand and introduced myself, she exclaimed under her breath, almost in disbelief, “I just had a conversation yesterday . . .” Taylor explained that she is on her gap-year, traveling with her mother after finishing high school in Melbourne. Recounting the previous day’s events, she said that she had argued with her...
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