Fan The Spark

There are two things I want to impart that could be helpful. We find that a lot of times people are walking around with earbuds because they are listening to music, and they are seemingly impenetrable—but they are not.The technique that we have been using to stop people who are listening to music or something else (and who then have a tendency to not stop, generally) is this: when we see them coming, we start pointing to our ear like that, and we point to them and go like this. I would say about 70% to 75% of the time, they stop.

When they pull their earplug out, we ask them a question. In fact, what we tell them is: "We have been having a debate here. When we saw you coming, he said you’re listening to classical music; this person said that you’re listening to hip-hop. What are you listening to?" They always get really into it, and say, "Oh, no, I’m listening to this, or that" —whatever it is—because they identify with their music. As soon as they say that, we say, "Fantastic then! Here, this is for you," and we hand them a Bhagavad-gītā or whatever books we have. So, it’s not hopeless when people have earbuds; in fact, we are finding that sometimes they are better.

The other little tip I was using yesterday: we were in a downtown area; we show people the book and I say, "There’s no obligation. We ask for a donation—no obligation whatsoever—but there is an opportunity. If you would like to take advantage of the opportunity, you can give a donation. We use it to spread spiritual knowledge." There is something about the juxtaposition of these two words. One is 'no obligation,' and then we say 'opportunity for you to give.' It turns it into a very positive exchange when first, you take the pressure off them, and then you give them an opportunity. It has nothing to do with 'yes, but'; it’s just cleanly their free will to help with something beautiful. I found that most people respond very positively to that.


Be Brave | Live to Give- Super Sunday with HG Vaisesika Dasa | Oceania | 30 Nov 2025
https://youtu.be/meWCMZUk0ls?t=1088

4 weeks ago | [YT] | 102

Fan The Spark

Around this time of year, I like to think about preparation for the next year, and advocate at this time of year for taking time to think about what we've done, what I've done, what we've all done together, what you've done individually, can think about for yourself over the last year. It can be very healthy. Nirkulā and I every night, have taken to a practice of reviewing our day together, and it's sometimes amazing to see that we have to think hard what we did during the day to remember what things happened that particular day. But when we do remember them, we are thankful that we had the opportunity to do them.

What to speak of thinking back for a whole year? It may take a little time to stop and maybe write down the things that you've done since the beginning. Can you remember where you were on January 1st last year, or at the beginning of the year? What happened during the first quarter, second quarter, third quarter? It's nice to go back and think about it. Maybe write it down. It'll come out more and more as you think, and then write down some goals for the next year. What would you like to improve on?

Making a list of any of those places where you felt like you wasted time, you could put it on a "no fly list." In fact, it would be an interesting experiment to write down 100 things on your "do not do" list. What if you could get 101 things on there? Do you think you could come up with that many? Just by elimination of things you do not do, might give us a lot more time for the things that we really want to do, and eliminate a lot of cognitive dissonance. It's a real shame, oftentimes, when we know what we want to do and what's most important, and then other things pull us away from it. This builds some type of anxiety, and being able to winnow out those things that are not essential can be very helpful.That's why there are āśramas ideas. You find an environment in which you can focus on everything that's important and leave behind the other things that aren't important. We can do that in our lives, in whatever place we live, by being introspective and purposeful.

The Seeds We Plant Determine Our Future | HG Vaisesika Dasa | ISV | 15 Dec 2025https://youtu.be/sJtOdEqfFfg

1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 122

Fan The Spark

Haridāsa Ṭhākura says in the Harināma-cintāmaṇi that we not only chant, but we must cultivate sambandha-jñāna daily. Which means a consideration of what our relationship with Kṛṣṇa, and our non-relationship with the material world is. So take time every day to have a balanced program where you hear about why you are doing it. Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasized that you should write about it too. Whatever your realizations are, he said, write them down, because that way you are able to readily recall them in your mind.Write about the Holy Name: when you get a point, write it down. Articulate it, research it. This is also part of sambandha-jñāna. So that way, when you chant, you have ready recall, and already you have the perspective: “Here’s what I’m doing.”

Best of all seems to be going on Harināma though, because it’s quite natural as we were sitting yesterday, the greatest show on earth was conquering a section of the city—which we did yesterday, quite handily. We owned that place. In fact, they kicked us out a few years ago, and now they’re all shut down—every one of them—and we own that whole street now. It’s like: “What street is this? It’s Hare Kṛṣṇa now.”

The Harināma was going on constantly there. And of course, inundation of books—thousands went out yesterday. When you watch the reactions of people, you can see in real time how the Holy Name is affecting them and then you remember how nice Hare Kṛṣṇa is. People don’t know what it is—it just drives them crazy. Some people get curious, some people try to run away, others smile and others laugh and dance. Watching the reactions is like a touchstone: it is not revealed until it touches things. But then the next day, when we’re chanting here, don’t you think of all those people and the effect of the Holy Name? and then you think back to the time when you got hit by the power of the sound of the holy name, and then everything changed. Then you reflect: What am I doing now? Chanting. What effect is this having?

Every Bead is a New Decision: https://youtu.be/Ry7BzYY-zUI
Annual Day After Thanksgiving Harinam: https://youtu.be/oubfJ8rSCjg

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1 month ago | [YT] | 97

Fan The Spark

Be brave and be part of the *One World Team* 🌎👨‍👨‍👦‍👦👩‍👩‍👦‍👦🌏

Distribute Bhagavad Gita today and *Live to Give*! 🕊️🤍

#livetogive
#LTG2025
#bhagavadgita
#BeBrave #bookdistribution

1 month ago | [YT] | 33

Fan The Spark

People like to accumulate. In fact, the whole airline interest industry is supported and based on the reward systems they have. They wouldn't exist today if they didn't have the frequent flyer programs. I saw a documentary about it. They got that idea from an idea that was in America, circa 1960. I remember it well: it was Blue Chip Stamps. You used to get these little stamps you could paste in a book when you bought things. And once you filled out a certain number of pages, you could trade it in for exciting prizes. Even though the prizes were not that significant, the whole idea gave people this compulsion to collect Blue Chip Stamps.

The airline industry figured it out—that people seek some reward. So they started this reward system, and it's the only reason they hold it together today. People are compelled, like, "I'm going to fly this airline because I get points, I get miles, and then I could trade it in for an upgrade someday." And what do you get on that? A little plastic red carpet you can walk on and you are like, "I'm over here, you guys are over there.You guys are losers."

'Puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtana'..even if we have a sense of, "What do I get out of this?" Bhāgavatam says, puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtana: just by hearing, you are accumulating this spiritual asset that will come to bear someday, that you'll be able to use. You have to have that asset. It's also mentioned in the Bhagavad-Gītā. Kṛṣṇa says that the human life is meant for daivī sampat, and Prabhupāda gives it in that context that you are collecting it. You should get daivī sampat, or spiritual assets, so that you can be strong and take to spiritual life; otherwise, people fade away.

So, hear, chant, remember, and perform devotional service with the idea that "I'm preparing myself so that I can stand on my own two feet." And that's called niṣṭhā. We come to a point when we have enough spiritual asset that we are no longer pushed around by the lower urges. And that day comes for anyone who sticks to the process of devotional service. There are two ways to do it. If you chant haphazardly or offensively, then you'll come to the goal someday, but it'll take a long time. But if you become focused and regulated and apply yourself, then the process is very quick. It's described in many places as coming very quickly: 'satāṁ prasaṅgān mama vīrya-saṁvido bhavanti hṛt-karṇa-rasāyanāḥ kathāḥ taj-joṣaṇād āśv.' Āśu means very quickly. It happens more quickly than you might think, if you stick to the process. But it's always up to Kṛṣṇa. So this is the process given to us by our great ācāryas. And we have all the spiritual necessities and paraphernalia necessary. We just have to apply ourselves.

An observation: the mind can become overwhelmed and think, "Oh, I can never do this," but there is enough encouragement from Kṛṣṇa that, "Yes, you can," and even a little application will have an inordinate result. Therefore, we should be encouraged by Kṛṣṇa's words that whatever we can do, do. A little bit is better than nothing. If we feel that, "I wish I was more advanced," don't worry. Just do what you can now, and more will come as you're able to taste the flavor of The Holy Name and as Kṛṣṇa gives more facility in your life, or as is naturally available because of changes of different periods in your life, you get more opportunity. Just be ready for it, to take advantage when it comes.

A Little Bit is Better Than Nothing | HG Vaisesika Dasa and HG Nirakula Dasi | UK | 10 Nov 2025
https://youtu.be/FPf6_iMlduw

1 month ago | [YT] | 52

Fan The Spark

The sages of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam tell us that before the creation of the material universe, everything exists in subtle potential within the consciousness of the Supreme Lord. When He glances upon material nature, His will awakens the machinery of manifestation. The universe begins to print itself into being, one layer at a time, from subtle to gross, from vibration to form, from thought into thing. This process is mirrored everywhere around us, and even within us.

In the age of machines, the simplest metaphor is that of a 3D printer. The 3D printer begins not with paper or ink, but with information: invisible sequences of digital data, code, shapes, colors, ideas are sent from the mind of a creator into a mechanism that translates them into visible form. The machine does not invent the content; it merely reveals what has been conceived.

The same principle governs the cosmos. The material universe is not a random explosion, but a deliberate unfolding, an act of divine printing. The Lord's glance over Prakṛti or material nature is like pressing the "Print" button. The information—the blueprints of galaxies, atoms, and souls—is already encoded in the divine mind. The material energy serves as the printer, the instrument through which that information takes on perceptible form. Just as a printer cannot produce anything unless data is supplied, nature cannot act without consciousness. The Bhāgavatam describes material nature as inert, a machine that awakens only when the glance of the Lord touches it. That glance is consciousness; that glance is will; and it brings everything to life.

And Japa is the sound that prints the spiritual world. In the same way, our consciousness is constantly printing our personal reality. Each thought and desire-vibration we emit becomes a line of code in the architecture of our life. This is why the Vedas say, "manomaya prāṇa śarīra netra: The mind is the architect of form."
When we chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, we are sending transcendental information into our hearts and the subtle layers of the universe. These sounds are not material; they are Śabda-Brahman, pure spiritual energy in the form of vibration. They contain within them the entire reality: Kṛṣṇa, the source of everything, His names, His pastimes, and His devotees.

So, just making a parallel to remember that whatever vibration we're making is forming the world around us and within us. Japa is the means through which we transform the instrument of our mind to a medium where we can see Kṛṣṇa. And it requires some practice, because in the beginning, the mind is agitated by various thoughts, moving in different directions. And then talking to somebody recently who is studying the subtleties of the mind and the process of meditation, I came up with this phrase: "benign discomfort." When one practices sitting to chant the holy name of the Lord, one has to tolerate benign discomfort, as the mind might want to move here or there. We should stay in the practice of bringing the mind back to the mantra until it becomes ekāgratā, or one with the mantra. And then we can find great benefit in being fully absorbed in the mantra. So, we're printing our world as we speak and as we chant, and we have to tolerate benign discomfort. There's great fruit in staying the course. If we can achieve one-mindedness with the mantra, we can achieve absorption. And all benefits, spiritual benefits, come from that absorption.

Japa: The Sound That Prints The Spiritual World | HG Vaisesika Dasa | ISV | 15 Nov 2025
https://youtu.be/D2cjFJ5i3dA

1 month ago | [YT] | 58

Fan The Spark

Many moons come and go, but the Kārtika Moon is the most heartfelt, because it's a time when we take stock that we are giving our whole lives to Kṛṣṇa. And one year after another goes by, and when those add up, then there's more and more possibility that one can make a complete success in life. So, it's good to get on a roll and really add up the successes by just sticking to one's service.

Lecture on Kartik Purnima Day | HG Vaisesika Dasa | 29 Nov 2020
https://youtu.be/gMBpEWIR4yA

2 months ago | [YT] | 67

Fan The Spark

The topic today is 10 Principles to Develop Determination. Let's think first about the word determination. It has the word terminus in it, and that means, essentially, that one can finish what one starts. If you have ever started to read a book and then found that you only got to the second chapter, or if you had an idea to write in your notebook every day for the year, but you found in your drawer five to seven notebooks that were a quarter filled because you started and then you stopped, then maybe you felt frustrated and thought, 'Why couldn't I finish?'

What to speak of finishing devotional practices, many people take vows and then later on, they give them up. It's practically commonplace. In fact, those who do follow vows stand out because people say, 'How is it they're still doing it?' And Prabhupāda told us, once, "Don't be amazed at who stops following their vows, be amazed at who does, as it's far more extraordinary." Those who do have the determination to continue and at least put together one lifetime in full dedication to Kṛṣṇa are notable.

So, let's talk about some of the principles of determination today. My intention by mentioning these principles is that you can take them with you. Many of them are very practical, and you can enact them yourself, especially if you make a note or listen to this later and go through the ten and find out how you can execute each one of them. I guarantee you'll find an increase in the determination in your life, and maybe other benefits will come from this as well.

As a preface to expressing how to develop determination, I'll start with the precursors—how to prepare the field to enact these ten that I'm going to mention today. And first is...

Ten Principles to Develop Determination | HG Vaisesika Dasa | GEV | 30 Oct 2025

2 months ago | [YT] | 40

Fan The Spark

I never got very much personal association with Prabhupāda, and one of my realizations came the day that Prabhupāda departed. I was in New York City. The day Prabhupāda left, we—my saṅkīrtana partner, Praghośa (it's another Praghośa, not the GBC), and I—had come back to the temple. We practically stayed up all night chanting, and the next morning, with very little rest, he came to my room and he said this: "Of all days, we have to go out and do our service." And I said, "Yeah, you're right."

We packed up and went to the airport where we were distributing books. I just remember the experience of thinking, "Well, Prabhupāda is gone." But when I stepped onto the floor of the segment where I would do my book distribution every day, when my foot touched the floor, I had this visceral experience that "Now I'll never be separated, because I have my service."

So that visceral experience must be there at some point in order to relish service in separation—that, "Okay, I'm connected." By the same token, you can, of course, have the vapu, and your mind can be somewhere else. There are some experiences where people came to serve, and they were very close, but then they were distracted. They wanted to be somewhere else. Either way, the main point is to be absorbed in service.

#50 | The Lord’s Attempt to Go to Vṛindavana-2 | Govardhana Readings | 10 Oct 2025https://youtu.be/GzxDR2fpZFo

2 months ago | [YT] | 92

Fan The Spark

The secret to success for approaching Śrī Śrī Rādhākuṇḍa, according to our ācāryas, is to be very, very humble. Think, "How can I be the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant," and take on the lowliest task that nobody else will take and do the needful to help spread the saṅkīrtana movement. And by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa, the Dhāma, Holy Names and, most importantly, the vaiṣṇavas and our Guru-paramparā, we can gradually develop in this lifetime an inclination to hear about Kṛṣṇa.

Pray to Get Ever-expanding Appreciation for Krishna Katha | HG Vaisesika Dasa | KIR | 21 Oct 2025 https://youtu.be/0hV31vKvOnU

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2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 102