The Heart Of Krishna

A spiritual guide that cautions against those who offend devotees of Krishna and who perform religious practices and chant the Holy Name without devotion. In The Heart of Krishna, Swami B. P. Puri calls upon those sincerely pursuing the path of bhakti yoga to be cautious in their dealings with devotees, especially those that are the pure devotees of the Lord. In so doing, Swami B. P. Puri reveals the secrets of this devotional tradition through his expert analysis of the pastimes of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Sri Sri Radha, Krishna, and their associates. “One who commits offenses to a Vaishnava becomes incapable of rendering pure devotion because he is committing offenses to the Holy Name. Although it may appear that such an offender is still being shown favor by the Lord as he continues to make a show of chanting without difficulty, the Lord is in fact very displeased with him because of his antagonism toward devotees.” —Srila Prabhupada

Chants of a Lifetime offers an intimate collection of stories, teachings, and insights from Krishna Das, who has been called "the chant master of American yoga" by the New York Times. Since 1994, the sound of his voice singing traditional Indian chants with a Western flavor has brought the spiritual experience of chanting to audiences all over the world. He has previously shared some of his spiritual journey through talks and workshops, but now he offers a unique book-with-audio download combination that explores his fascinating path and creates an opportunity for just about anyone to experience chanting in a unique and special way. Chants of a Lifetime includes photos from Krishna Das’s years in India and also from his life as a kirtan leader—and the audio that is offered exclusively in the book consists of a number of "private" chanting sessions with the author. Instead of just being performances of chants for listening, the recordings make it seem as if Krishna Das himself is present for a one-on-one chanting session. The idea is for the listener to explore his or her own practice of chanting and develop a deepening connection with the entire chanting experience.

Cautionary advice on treading the spiritual path from the most accomplished living practitioner of the Gaudiya devotional line.

Bonus CD includes tracks for personal chanting practice with the author.

In the West, Krishna is primarily known as the speaker of the Bhagavad Gita. But it is the stories of Krishna's childhood and his later exploits that have provided some of the most important and widespread sources of religious narrative in the Hindu religious landscape. This volume brings together new translations of representative samples of Krishna religious literature from a variety of genres - classical, popular, sectarian, poetic, literary, and philosophical.

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhup?da (1896-1977), founder of the Hare Krishna Movement, traced his lineage to the fifteenth-century Indian saint Sri Chaitanya. He authored more than fifty volumes of English translation and commentaries on Sanskrit and Bengali texts, serving as a medium between these distant authorities and his modern Western readership and using his writings as blueprints for spiritual change and a revolution in consciousness. He had to speak the language of a people vastly disparate from the original recipients of his tradition's scriptures without compromising fidelity to the tradition. Tamal Krishna Goswami claims that the social scientific, philosophical, and 'insider' forms of investigation previously applied have failed to explain the presence of a powerful interpretative device-a mahavakya or 'great utterance'-that governs and pervades Prabhupada's 'living theology' of devotion on bhakti. For Prabhupada, the wide range of 'vedic' subject matter is governed by the axiomatic truth: Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Goswami's academic training at the University of Cambridge, his thirty years' experience as a practitioner and teacher, and his extensive interactions with Prabhupada as both personal secretary and managerial representative, afforded him a unique opportunity to understand and illuminate the theological contribution of Prabhupada. In this work, Goswami proves that the voice of the scholar-practitioner can be intimately connected with his tradition while sustaining a mature critical stance relative to his subject. A Living Theology of Krishna Bhakti includes a critical introduction and conclusion by Graham M. Schweig.

Introduces Paramanand, one of India’s poet-saints, his work, and this work’s use in ritual.

Students of religion and Eastern thought will welcome this readable translation and practical commentary on the Uddhava Gita, a Hindu text in which Krishna's teachings introduced in the Bhagavad Gita are extended and nuanced. Krishna's Other Song: A New Look at the Uddhava Gita examines the entire Uddhava Gita in relation to other Hindu scriptures, especially the Bhagavad Gita, and shares its teachings in light of interreligious understanding and nonsectarian spirituality. This edition's elaborate commentary, written by a prominent American scholar of Hindu studies, who is also a practitioner, opens up the text's esoteric teaching to a Western audience for the first time, adding context and relevance that make the book accessible and its teachings practicable for a Western readership. A foreword, written by prominent Hinduism scholar Charles S. J. White joins the author's own introduction to lay out the Uddhava Gita's background, philosophical dimensions, and religious significance. This edition does not include the original Sanskrit, nor does it labor to translate each word verbatim. Rather, it gives the reader all 1,030 verses in plain English, offering accessible commentary that allows the meaning and relevance of the Uddhava Gita to unfold to one and all.

The great Lord, the Flautist, Krishna has come down to kiss us. We cover our cheeks with our hands. We do not want His kiss. We want something else - an I-phone, a larger house, promotion, pay hike -oh it's a long list. Lord Krishna gave Bhagavad Gita to us only to prepare us for His kiss. The kind Lord almost whispered Bhagavad Gita in your ears. Why? Only to remove your hands from your cheeks. So that He can kiss you with His beautiful lips. I beg of you dears, please, remove your hands. Once you taste His kiss everything else in the world will be insipid. And that kiss can even transform an ugly frog into a handsome prince. But once you taste that kiss you will never want to become a prince. You will rather be a frog living in filth, waiting for that kiss for all eternity The name Bhagavad Gita has been translated as "The Divine Song." Or "The Song Celestial." Or as “The Song of Love" Personally I will prefer to translate it as “Krishna's Kiss." Can you think of something better? "This is not a religious book; but a book that will usher in a new religion, a religion of love." - Lalitha Shivaguru, Reviewer