$title="12th September 2002 - GM in Finland"; include("../sys/top.php"); ?>
Dear Godbrothers and sisters.
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada,
All glories to Guru Maharaja!
As Muniraja pr. informed, Iīll write something about GM's visit.
These moments are really those most important in one's life.
He arrived from Amsterdam Thursday afternoon. While driving from the airport
we exchanged the latest news and the discussion went to various issues.
I looked a little bit exhausted after having travelled about 5000 kms
during the previous month and having preached a lot in colleges and
preaching programs. So I said to Him that itīs amaizing how He is able to
travel and preach so much.
He said that the travelling is for sure stressing His body. And it becomes
worse while becoming older. He said He needs more time to recover after
traveling.
I took up the issue about the challenges in voluntary organisations. From
the managerial point of view it is many times so demanding when the devotees
do some service for a short time and then they change.
When economy and many services are based like that, to make some arrangement
for expanding is difficult.
He said that this is a kind of internal contradiction that our
philosophy encourages us to an absolute surrendering and at the same time to
the above-mentioned situation. Then He gave a long answer with many examples
how this all comes from the today's society.
We picked up Muniraja das and bh. Jani from the railway station.
It was Janmastami marathon and they were distributing there.
GM greeted them happily and we continued our drive to the temple.
Temple devotees were welcoming Him with kirtan.
I presented Him the schedule, which was following:
Friday 30.8 SB class in the morning
saturday 31.8. SB lecture in Sri Krishna Janmastami festivals
Sunday 1.9. Srila Prabhupada VP lecture
Monday resting day for the whole temple
Tuesday SB morning class
Wednesday personal meetings (darsans)
Thursday BG - evening class
Friday 6.9 flight to Odessa
He agreed to follow the timetable.
In all of His lectures He has been helping the whole yatra so much. Like one
devotee said He seems to speak to everyone. From the managerial point of
view He clarifies all the questions which have arised.
for example;
*how to deal with the different opinions coming from the different
sadhus - that He connected to Maharaja Pariksit's situation
and it is a whole lecture, BG in Thursday night
Amazingly He covers all the issues needed.
Like one morning our temple commander (they are changing in two months)
was expressing me some problems and questions he had in his mind.
I could answer something, but engouraged him to pray that Maharaja will
clarify that in His next lecture.
And so it also happened, GM was explaining on Thursday so deeply and clearly
the reasons behind his or anybody's doubts and the medicine for that.
It was very interesting to see how deeply he really touches the hearts
of devotees.
Also Bhrigumuni das was asking if we are too much in the material
consciousness the scriptures are not very palatable. How can we sugar coat
them?
GM gave a long answer and first explained the well known example of a person
having jaundice. He said that these questions can be heard in many places and
they all come to the same point. Then He shifted the whole thing to the
original reason of the problem. Which is that we are still thinking that we
are the enjoyers. He was explaining the issue much more and the way
which was so valuable to all of us and really satisfying the heart.
Same with Muniraja's questions. How to recognize whether our mind and nature
have any influence on our practice and preaching.
Please listen to these from the tapes, they really lift us from this
dualistic platform to the trancendental one. I was also asking if there is
the difference in the surrendering process given in
Bhagavat Gita and given in Caitanya Caritamrita.
Sri Krishna Janmastami gathered more than 400 people. It was even more
than last year. Like last year the audience were standing up and welcoming
GM with laud and sweet kirtan. Lecture remained me from those lectures He
has been given in India in those big programs.
Indian people and Finnish for sure love that kind of strong preaching.
The spirit was lifted more and more and the ambassador of India came
to thank GM after the lecture.
Ambassador was actually participating in the whole program with his wife.
Like always most of the staff of the embassy comes here regularly.
Ambassador gave a speech, in which he was gloriying the good results of the
kirtan even to the physical body. And the good work ISKCON is doing.
He invited us next week to the embassy and is now personally pushing the
politics and city officials to give us better facilities for our temple
activities. This place is already much to small. He even engaged his
secretary in that service. ISKCON is their spiritual shelter and they support
us wery nicely.
Monday and Thuesday went like it was scheduled.
On Wednesday the day was full of darshans. One of those visitors were my
parents an my aunt. They came a long way here just to meet GM. He met them
at the entrance of the temple and with big big smile He greeted them all. My
mother met GM twelwe years ago in Turku and GM remembered her.
After taking prasadam they went to GM's room to have few questions. They have
been facilitating the sankirtan by giving a place to stay in their house, by
rendering a lot of service and by giving donations more than 10 years. Also
some sannyasis have visited them, so they were familiar with the etiquette.
My father had two questions:
one was dealing with his experience of his last life. GM confirmed that.
The other question dealed with the Supersoul and GM answered so nicely to
both of them.
The spirit was so sweet. When I joined, my father was so attached to
my army status that it was really a struggle for all of us to go on.
But already many years ago he gave up that mentality and he
is now one of the donors related to my preaching activities.
My mother thanked GM for their son having found this wonderful thing.
And she was saying that all the glories belong to GM. My father kept repeating
that with great admire. GM responsed very humbly that He was just a servant
of a servant and all the glories go to Srila Prabhupada.
Mother's sister made also few questions. She had been reading our books about
20 years and is really favorable. She had many companies that sell
shoes. Now her daughter is taking care of them, but she is so depressed
because the business world is so cruel.
GM said that there is no higher medicine for the depression than good
association. She asked one more nice question.
At the end they gave nice donations to GM and we were taking photos.
They are all over 75 years old, so what a mercy they still got.
On Tuesday there was the evening lecture and as I said,
it was really clarifying. These explanations are actually backing up
perfectly the basic activites we are doing. Listening regularly SB,
distributing Srila Prabhupada's literature etc.
We took a drive early in the morning to the airpot and like always
GM was wery mercifully answering to all of my questions.
First I asked about my own studies and about the plan to go to Kansas City
for few months in autumn.
We had few more issues and like always the time goes too fast.
We also changed some observations about the nature of the Finnish
people.
He told a joke based on reality which deals with the diffent natures of
different folks. This one was dealing with Finns. We laughed so much that it
was difficult to step out of the car to the airport.
He said that Finnish people are actually very nice from their heart, but
they have quite heavy coverings.
While leaving to Odessa He indicated that "letīs meet here on Wednesday
evening". The friendly sign with His hand made the same impression on me
like the owner gives to his dog. Sit and wait here.
And one feels so happy to be a dog of such a master like Guru Maharaja!
Today GM is coming from Odessa. Tomorrow evening there will be very
interesting lecture in the University of Helsinki.
There is an association amongst academics who are mostly
PhDs and professors. They were eagerly inviting GM to the lecture
and the topic GM gave them is "The Vedic Doctrine of the Absolute Personalism".
Friday I promised Him a day off. My experience about those Russian style
nectarian festivals is that one needs one week to recover.
At least in my case.
Then Saturday GM will be lecturing on Radhastami festival and on
Sunday morning He will fly to Oslo.
Hoping this shares some of those nectarian moments
Your servant
Tattvavada dasa