J. Krishnamurti - New York 1985 - United Nations Talk - Why can't man live peacefully on the earth?

J. Krishnamurti - New York 1985 - United Nations Talk - Why can't man live peacefully on the earth?

[Archive] - Petition United Nations (human rights in mental health)

Petitions Team

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

United Nations Office at Geneva

1211 Geneva 10, Switserland

+41229179022

Subject : Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment – Complaint to CAT

Dear High Commissioner,

I am very concerned about the situation in a hospital in my city Antwerp. In a clinic for people in a psychic crisis, people often get locked up against their wills for reasons that are negligible in little cells. Afters years of volunteering in health care, I know that there are other, more human ways of treating people.The mystery that I have seen in that hospital is definitely degrading for human dignity and often the reason of trauma after the experience for those patients who have to go through it, mentally it equals torture, for many overthere.

I ask your office to investigate that clinic and to please ask them gently to respect human rights and find other, better ways of dealing with persons in severe crisis, without harming these patients psychically by locking them up against there wills. In the end the goal of a clinic is to make people better, not worse. The way things are at this very moment is a real threat for human rights and human dignity for all people on these particular floors.

The clinic and floors where cruel treatments take place at floor X1 and floor X2 in the following hospital :

ZNA Psychiatrisch Ziekenhuis Stuivenberg
Lange Beeldekensstraat 267
2060 Antwerpen
België / Belgium

I thank you for your attention, for a better world and better conditions for humanity.

The girl who silenced the world for 5 minutes.

Sprookjes enzo

Engelen
Goden
demonen
Dwergen
Elfen
Tovenaars
Wit en zwart
Kerken waarin kinders
worden verkracht
Vergeten we niet
dat het te doen is
Om de Loge in het HART?

Door eenieder stroomt
Eenzelfde bloed
Koning of proletariër
Maakt voor mij niet uit.

Integral yoga

Zwakstes in het karakter
Idées fixes
Complexen
Neurosen
Extremen hoog en laag
Het hoort er allemaal bij
Bij de transformatie

De vrede zoeken,
Doch de oorlog vinden.
Bij progressie,
Gaat alles dwars.

Toch keer op keer,
De moed hervinden,
Zelfs tijdens een overgang,
Met enkel NIKS

Eigen fouten kunnen vergeven,
Met hoofd en HART,
Het centrum in het laatste
Voeten stevig op de GROND
Contact hervinden

En nederig blijven,
Voor wat komt.

Wij

Vooruit met de geit
Het Nu is eeuwig
Alles is van alle tijden
Hebben wij als mensheid
op 5000 jaar tijd iets werkelijk geleerd?

Zondebokken overal
De zwarte, de gele, de witte, de bruine,
de luie, of net iets te slim.

Ze sparen hen er niet minder om
Ubuntu, I am another you
Mooi gezegd

Qua pragmatiek
Voor de wereld
Een heuse les

Noösfeer voor
Teilhard en voor WIJ

Geduld brengt het
eenieder temidden
Vele intriges
Hopelijk nog bij

Stil worden
Twijfelen
Bang zijn
Bidden
Vechten
Eten
Neuken
Het doet er niet toe
Mens, kom toch tot het Wij

Scottish Proverb

Elaine Aaron - Onderzoek hoogsensitieve personen.

Onderzoek door psychologe Elaine Aaron geeft aan dat hoogsensitieve mensen die moeite hebben met het tempo en de druk in de hedendaagse samenleving evolutionair gezien een belangrijke functie hebben. In de dierenwereld voelen de meest sensitieven rampen sneller aankomen en verwittigen tijdig de rest van de groep zodat die kunnen vluchten voor orkanen, tsunami's, stormen en aardbevingen. In het verleden waren de hoogsensitieven de "priestly royal advisors". Vandaag worden ze met de voeten getreden en zijn hooguit goedkoop afval. Aaron raadt deze groep aan hun taak terug op te nemen en zich niet te laten kisten. Geldt ook voor de indigo's die nu jongvolwassen zijn en hun plek in de wereld zoeken [en zullen vinden]. Het onderzoek van Aaron was een eye-opener voor zo'n 20 tot 25% van de wereldbevolking.

http://www.bol.com/nl/p/hoog-sensitieve-personen/1001004001986869/

Slagveld [Naar aanleiding van een dode en een gewonde na vermoedelijk zelfmoorddrama straat verderop]

Slagveld

Mensen sneuvelen

Overal om me heen

Hardheid, haat, hoongelach

en kuiperij

voor wie anders is,

is de regel van de dag.

Onwetendheid, schone schijn,

en bergen van geld,

winnen aan populariteit.

Terwijl de uitgestoten

Soms ware Helden,

edoch onzichtbaar,

niet gezien worden,

Want de mens heeft geen oog voor waarheid en liefde,

De samenleving polariseert, verbrokkelt terwijl eenheid

toch zo belangrijk is.

Misschien is het voetbal dan toch zo slecht niet,

Het brengt mensen samen,

van overal en nergens,

verenigd voor eenzelfde doel.

Ego's botsen hoewel de zielen,

een eenheid vormen.Perfect ben ik lang niet,

ik probeer schoonheid te vinden,

in mijn inperfectie,

en werk yogagewijs verder,

in de hoop dat het tij ooit keer,

en de mens zich als de Ander,

zien kan.

Integrale Yoga

Voor veel mensen in het westen is yoga iets wat met lichaamshoudingen te maken heeft. Integrale Yoga gaat wat stapjes verder. Bij Integrale Yoga kijken we naar de verschillende delen van ons wezen: ons lichaam, onze gevoelens en emoties en ons denkvermogen.
Al deze drie aspecten van het menselijk wezen worden ontwikkeld in de Integrale Yoga en moeten met elkaar in harmonie worden gebracht. Het gaat dus om het integreren van de verschillende delen van ons wezen. Daarom beoefenen we bij de Integrale Yoga niet alleen lichaamsoefeningen, maar ook ademoefeningen, concentratieoefeningen, ontspanning en meditatie.

Integrale Yoga betekent daarnaast het beoefenen van yoga, maar niet als iets wat je af en toe als hobby doet, maar Integrale Yoga integreer je in het dagelijks leven.
Voor deze yoga hoef je je niet terug te trekken in een klooster of in een cel, deze yoga doe je in het dagelijks leven; in je gezin, in je werk of wat dan ook.

Yoga begint bij het stil maken van het denkvermogen. Daartoe worden allerlei oefeningen gedaan, omdat je yoga pas goed kan beoefenen wanneer het denkvermogen tot rust is gebracht. Ook de andere delen van het wezen worden tot rust gebracht.

De verschillende stadia

Yoga betekent vereniging met het Alomtegenwoordige. Deze vereniging voltrekt zich door overgave van je wezen. Het eerste stadium van de Integrale Yoga is aspiratie. Deze aspiratie kan worden als een vuur in de mens die zoekt naar het Ware Zelf. Het tweede stadium is vanuit deze aspiratie te leven. Midden in het leven staan: een baan hebben, een gezin, een bedrijf, noem maar op. Daar moet het gedaan worden. Integrale Yoga vraagt niet een teruggetrokken zijn uit het leven, integendeel, er midden in staan. Het derde stadium is het grote geheim. In deze Yoga wordt gesproken over de Supramentale transformatie.

Actieve meditatie

Wanneer men met gesloten ogen neerzit om stil te worden, wordt men in eerste instantie overspoeld door een stortvloed van gedachten. Ze komen overal vandaan als dolle agressieve impulsen. Er is maar één manier om die oorverdovende herrie te doen ophouden, en dat is proberen en nog eens proberen, geduldig en koppig. Wanneer je hiermee begint wordt het werk overgenomen door een Genade van boven, door datgene waar men naar streeft of door het binnendringen van de oneindigheden van de Geest.

De overgang

We zijn dus op zoek naar een ander land, maar daar moeten we bij zeggen, dat tussen de wereld die we verlaten en die andere, die er nog niet is, zich een niemandsland bevindt dat nogal onplezierig is. Het is een proeftijd die langer of korter kan duren, afhankelijk van onze vastberadenheid. De voornaamste beproeving van deze overgangsperiode is de innerlijke leegte. Na eerst in mentale koortsachtigheid te hebben geleefd, vinden we onszelf terug als een soort herstellenden, een beetje ronddobberend, met een vreemde weergalm in het hoofd alsof de wereld afschuwelijk druk en vermoeiend is en een verhoogde gevoeligheid, die de indruk wekt dat men zich overal aan stoot, aan lompe, agressieve, botte dingen. De wereld lijkt ontzettend absurd.
Dat is een duidelijk teken van verinnerlijking.

De neerdalende kracht

En geleidelijk vult zich de leegte. Wanneer de mentale vrede min of meer een feit is, dan neemt men een eerste verschijnsel waar, dat onschatbare gevolgen zal hebben voor het verdere verloop van onze Yoga. Men voelt rond het hoofd, en meer in het bijzonder in de nek, een soort ongewone druk, die het gevoel kan geven van een niet-echte hoofdpijn.
In het begin kan men het nauwelijks langere tijd verdragen en schudt men het van zich af, zoekt afleiding ‘denkt aan iets anders’. Geleidelijk neemt de druk een duidelijker vorm aan en voelt men een werkelijke stroom die neerdaalt. Een krachtstroom, die niet te vergelijken is met het onaangename van een elektrische stroom, maar veeleer met een vloeibare massa. Men merkt dan dat die ‘druk’ of die niet echte hoofdpijn eenvoudig werd veroorzaakt door onze weerstand tegen het neerdalen van die Kracht, en dat het enige wat men te doen heeft is: de doorgang niet te verhinderen, maar deze te laten neerdalen in alle lagen van ons wezen. In plaats van te putten uit de algemene bron, beneden ons en om ons heen, uit het universele leven, putten we uit wat bóven is. En dat is een energie die veel helderder is.

Bron : http://www.integraleyoganederland.nl/integrale-yoga/

Update - terug aan het schrijven

Ik ben eindelijk terug aan het schrijven geslagen. Het is een vreemde tijd, met tal van risico's voor de toekomst. Het verdriet van België van wijlen Hugo Claus is een beetje mijn achtergrond, gezien de politieke keuzes van sommige familieleden, waarvoor ik niet verantwoordelijk ben, maar wel het familiaal karma met mij meedraag. Ik kan enkel hard aan mezelf werken en mijn toekomst, en zit er niet mee in tot mijn tachtigste of negentigste hard te werken om vooruit te komen, niet alleen voor mezelf maar ook voor anderen. Ik maak mezelf tot een mispunt van kuiperij en hoongelach, maar hoop dat ik toch een groter plan in vervulling kan doen gaan. Ik heb zoveel geleerd en gelezen, en hoe meer ik weet, hoe meer dat ik weet dat ik nog veel te leren en nog een lange weg te gaan. Ik wil alles ooit eerlijk te boek kunnen stellen wat mij overkomen is, wat ik gezien heb, waar mijn fouten en zwakheden lagen, en hoe ik daarmee, als mens onder de mensen ben mee omgegaan. Ik probeer de zin in de waanzin te bewaren temidden de gevaren die ons als samenleving en als wereld bedreigen en blijf de mindset van de integrale yogi te bewaren. Zij die denken dat ik gek ben moeten dat maar denken, ik lever - net als zovele anderen - een harde strijd om temidden een hooggevoeligheid toch niet op te geven, in een samenleving die verhardt en fragmenteert, en een oom die politiek gezien, collaboreert. Wat een familiaal karma, en ik tracht integraal te blijven, niet te oordelen en mijn eigen Pad verder te bewandelen. Om de hooggevoeligheid het hoofd te bieden, en te kunnen blijven werken aan mezelf en naar een toekomst in de wereld, al was het als vrijwilliger, lever ik een harde strijd en probeer zelf nog mensen bij te staan onderweg, zonder er iets voor terug te verwachten, geen geld, geen voeding, niks, noegabollen. Een minimum aan neuroleptica houdt me overeind, gezien mijn achtergrond uit de kindertijd die me nog steeds parten speelt [meer daarover in het boek], de opsluitingen die me ten deel vielen, de mishandelingen en foltering door opsluiting in een isoleercel onder gedwongen statuut hoge doses medicijnen, zadelde me op met een post-traumatisch stresssyndroom, zoals bij oorlogsveteranen. Onbegrip zijn me bekend. Ik ben onhandig en een warhoofd, maar ik doe mijn best, beter dan ooit op school, om als een bewuste nirmanakaya een beschermend schild te vormen rond de planeet met vele anderen waar ik kan, om erger voor eenieder te voorkomen. Laat de wereld maar denken dat dat gestoord is, ik ga gewoon vooruit, het is vechten of sneuvelen in deze mentale strijd. Het middenpad aanhouden is een goede tip van de Boeddha, waarvoor dank. Zelfbeklag, slachtofferrollen, of zondebokmechanismen leveren niks op. Wees vriendelijk tegen iedereen die je ontmoet, als het kan, want iedereen levert een harde strijd (cfr. Plato).

We komen er wel ... die onzichtbare groep mensen van goede wil in alle lagen van de samenleving, van adel tot proletariaat, doen wat ze kunnen, maken een enorm transformatieproces door en trachten het Goede, het Schone en het Ware in de praktijk te brengen. Met die groep verbind ik mij, wetende dat politiek gezien in alle partijen over de hele lijn van het politieke spectrum, mensen zitten die het goed bedoelen vanuit hun gezichtpunt gezien. Oordelen is nooit wijs, dat laat ik aan God over, met respect voor eenieders waarheid.

En nu terug aan het schrijven ...

Wisdom quote

I respect all governments and all parties as a member of the New Group of World Servers

"Don't ask what the government can do for you, ask what you can do for the government"

Ken Wilber - Integral Politics

Interview met Simon Vinkenoog

[Archief] - http://interviewmetsimonvinkenoog.blogspot.be/2009/08/interview-met-simon-vinkenoog-door.html

Kristien De Winter - Ontsnappen aan de druk

Kristien De Winter van Kristalan presenteert haar boek 'Ontsnappen aan de druk' op de Antwerpse regioale zender ATV. Een boek dat zich specifiek richt op kinderen, die in onze veeleisende maatschappij nog moeilijk tot rust kunnen komen. Meer info op www.kristalan.com en www.kristiendewinter.be

Kristien De Winter presenteert haar boek 'De wondere wereld van Florian'.

In een klein bergdorpje in Zwitserland ontmoet de dertienjarige Florian een bijzondere man. Hij heet Joseph, spreekt met een Engels accent en beweert berggids te zijn. Wanneer de gids zijn stafkaarten uitpakt, ziet Florian op deze kaarten geen wegen staan, maar zeven vragen:

Wie ben ik? Wat wil ik? Wat kan ik? Hoe doe ik het? Hoe stel ik mijn grenzen? Waarvoor doe ik het? Kun jij het ook? De wondere wereld van Florian gidst je door verschillende werelden, waarin zombies krijger worden, Dr. Jekyll en Mr. Hyde geen hersenspinsels zijn en je berichtjes kunt sturen naar dewensenvervuller@hetuniversum.com. De stafkaarten leiden tot meer inzicht in je grijze massa, in je lijf en in je hormonen. Bovendien krijg je tips om het zen-gehalte in je leven te verhogen. Dit alles doorspekt met de speciale humor van Joseph.

De wondere wereld van Florian is een uniek boek voor tieners van 12 tot 99 jaar. De praktische voorbeelden uit de leefwereld van tieners zorgen voor een duidelijk houvast voor tieners in deze soms verwarrende, maar uiterst boeiende periode. Ook volwassenen laten zich graag verbazen door de verfrissende en verrijkende adviezen van de berggids.

Swami Vivekananda Wisdom

"Freedom - physical freedom, mental freedom and spiritual freedom - these are the passwords of the Upanishads." - (Swami Vivekananda)

The Vedic Scriptures : http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/

Peace on earth, goodwill to men.

Dalai Lama Wisdom

“The world belongs to humanity, not this leader, that leader, kings or religious leaders. The world belongs to humanity. Each country belongs essentially to their own people."

- His Holiness the Dalai Lama

In order to embrace our very humanity - together!

keep the faith!

The Collective Evolution III: The Shift | Official Release 2014

Het doen verrijzen van de Tien Geestesgesteldheden in de Bodhisattva.

Het volgende is een sectie uit de Mahāratnakūta soetra, bewaard in de Taishô-collectie onder nr. 310. Boeddha richtte zich tot Maitreya en zei, "Maitreya, deze tien geestesgesteldheden kunnen niet tot ontstaan gebracht worden door een gewone verdwaasde en niet van vaardige middelen voorziene mens die nog vol mentale bezoedelingen steekt. Wat zijn die tien?
Als eerste moet je een geest vol onbaatzuchtige vriendelijkheid ontwikkelen naar alle wezens, zonder ze kwaad te willen doen, of schade te willen berokkenen.
Ten tweede moet je groot mededogen ontwikkelen naar alle wezens met een geest die niet gericht is op hen lastig vallen of hen van hun stuk brengen.
Ten derde moet je je leven willen geven waar het alle ware Dharmas (Leringen) van de Boeddha aangaat, en moet je blij zijn dat je ze mag beschermen.
Ten vierde moet je naar alle dharmas (leerstellingen) oneindig geduld en verdraagzaamheid betrachten, met een geest die niet gericht is op hechten of grijpen-naar.
Ten vijfde moeten je gedachten gericht zijn op de ware vreugdevolle geest, en moet je niet begerig zijn naar winst, ondersteuning (door anderen), of respect.
Als zesde moet je Boeddha's wijsheid te allen tijde zoeken, met een geest vrij van vergeetachtigheid en slonzigheid.
Ten zevende moet je naar alle wezens respectvol zijn, met een geest vrij van verachting of minachting.
Ten achtste moet je je niet inlaten met discussies over wereldse zaken maar een vastberaden geest ontwikkelen die de Factoren van Verlichting nastreeft.
Als negende moet je (in je eigen geest) het Boeddhazaad zaaien, met een zuivere geest die niet bezoedeld of bevlekt is.
Ten tiende moet je alle karakteriseren van Tathāgatas (Boeddhas - Zo-gekomenen) opgeven en van je werpen, met een geest die hen voortdurend voor ogen houdt.

Maitreya, dit wordt "Het doen verrijzen van de Tien Geestesgesteldheden in de Bodhisattva" genoemd. Het resultaat van deze geestesgesteldheid is wedergeboorte in de Wereld van de Hoogste Vreugde (=Verlichting) van Amitābha Boeddha. Wanneer iemand deze tien geestesgesteldheden nastreeft, verkrijgt hij eenpuntigheid van geest. Het is dan onmogelijk dat hij, de wens tot wedergeboorte in dat land koesterend, er onder deze omstandheden niet zou geraken; dat is onmogelijk."

Bron : http://www.buddha-dharma.eu/bodhisattvas-verzamelpagina.html

THE INDIGO REVOLUTION BY DOREEN VIRTUE

Re-thinking : Wijsheid van de dag - door H.P.B in 'De Stem van de Stilte" [Dutch]

U kunt het pad niet bewandelen vóór u dat pad (33) zelf bent geworden.

Laat uw ziel het oor lenen aan elke kreet van smart, zoals de lotus zijn hart opent om het morgenlicht in te drinken.

Laat niet de felle zon één traan van smart drogen vóór u die zelf van het gezicht van iemand die lijdt heeft afgewist.

Maar laat elke brandende menselijke traan uw hart raken en daar blijven bestaan en wis hem nooit af voordat het leed dat hem deed vloeien is weggenomen.

Deze tranen, u met een groot meedogend hart, zijn de stromen die de velden van onsterfelijke barmhartigheid bevloeien. Op die grond ontluikt de middernachtelijke bloem van Boeddha(33), die moeilijker is te vinden en nog minder vaak voorkomt dan de bloem van de vogayboom. Zij [barmhartigheid] is het zaad van vrijheid van wedergeboorte. Ze houdt de arhat af van strijd en begeerte, ze leidt hem door de velden van Zijn naar de vrede en gelukzaligheid die slechts bekend zijn in het land van Stilte en Niet-Zijn.

Roei de begeerte uit; maar als u haar doodt, pas dan op dat ze niet uit de dood zal herrijzen.

Dood de gehechtheid aan het leven, maar als u tanha(34) overwint, laat dat niet zijn uit dorst naar het eeuwige leven, maar om het voorbijgaande door het eeuwigdurende te vervangen.

Verlang niets. Erger u niet aan karma, noch aan de onveranderlijke wetten van de natuur. Maar worstel slechts met het persoonlijke, het voorbijgaande, het vluchtige en het vergankelijke.

Help de natuur en werk met haar mee; en de natuur zal u als een van haar scheppers beschouwen en voor u neerbuigen.

En zij zal de deuren van haar geheime kamers wijd voor u openen, aan uw blik de schatten onthullen die verborgen zijn in de diepten van haar zuivere, maagdelijke schoot. Onbezoedeld door de hand van de stof toont ze haar schatten alleen aan het oog van de geest – het oog dat zich nooit sluit, het oog waarvoor in al haar rijken geen sluier is.

Dan zal ze u de middelen en de weg tonen, de eerste poort en de tweede, de derde, zelfs tot aan de zevende. En dan, het doel – waarachter, badend in het zonlicht van de geest, onuitsprekelijke heerlijkheden liggen, door niemand gezien behalve door het oog van de ziel.

APPENDIX

(32) Dit ‘pad’ wordt in alle mystieke werken genoemd. Zoals Krishna zegt in de Jñanesvari: ‘Wanneer dit pad wordt beschouwd, drager van de boog, . . . of men zich nu naar de bloem van het Oosten of naar de academies van het Westen keert, bedenk dan dat het een pad is waarlangs men reist zonder zich te bewegen. Naar welke plaats u op dit pad ook wilt gaan, die plaats wordt uzelf.’ ‘U bent het pad’, wordt de adept-goeroe verteld en deze herhaalt het aan de discipel na de inwijding. ‘Ik ben de weg en het leven’, zegt een andere meester.

(33) Adeptschap: de ‘bloem van een bodhisattva’.

(34) Tanha: ‘de wil om te leven’, de angst voor de dood en de gehechtheid aan het leven, de kracht of energie die wedergeboorten veroorzaakt.

The wisdom offered through Edgar Cayce.

“Edgar Cayce learned that the so-called Battle of Armageddon described in the Bible, is actually a battle fought in the spiritual realms between the souls of light and souls of darkness coming into the world. He explained that the souls from the dark realms wage war with “the spirits of light that come into the earth for the awakening”. Cayce learned that at a time in the future, souls from the lower realms will be completely prevented from incarnating to the earth and only souls from higher realms of light will be allowed to incarnate. Over a period of time, this will result in forces of light on earth overcoming the forces of darkness. Complete spiritual enlightenment on earth will occur.during the time that only souls from the higher realms are permitted to incarnate, Jesus will return and eventually a new era of spiritual awakening and enlightenment will renew humanity and the result will be a thousand years of peace (the “Kingdom of Heaven” on earth). The conflict between the higher and lower self within human beings, or what some call God and the Devil, causes growth until finally the negative or the destructive elements are completely overcome.” For those who don't know, I figured I'd give a short summary about the life of this amazing man.. Edgar Cayce was probably the most gifted psychic in recorded history. When awake he was a sweet, honest, humble man that lived a modest lifestyle. He only had an 8th grade education and was pretty much illiterate. However, he could memorize whole books just by sleeping with a book under his pillow. When he went into a meditative state, he could access divine knowledge from the Universal Consciousness. (Research the Akashic Records to learn more) When given a persons name and current location, he could tell you any medical problems they were having SPOT ON. With proper medical terminology and everything. Not only that, but he would prescribe a natural treatment for their ailment. Not only could he answer questions about health correctly, but he could answer any question he was asked. People even asked him for winning lottery numbers. All his readings were well recorded. He has over 14,000 sessions recorded at the A.R.E. Institute which he established.. And he didn't charge people for it either. He did it all out of the goodness in his heart, even though it took a physical toll on him and eventually played a role in his death. I really recommend you research him. Learning what he could do, will help you understand what ALL humans are capable of, if they put their heart and mind to it. The Mind Unleashed Original post via Dawning Golden Crystal Age If you're interested in this subject, I highly recommend you check out the ARE institute site, as well as search his name on youtube. There are dozens and dozens of videos about him. Here's one of them https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWOGZwXK5fYEdgar Cayce' s Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) - Edgar Cayce readings: Spiritual www.edgarcayce.org

AUM

Important message for all world leaders - Obama finally took action on climate change, we all should, all governments together, united as one! We can do it! And save the bees !!!

Long way to go, Ken - I'll keep on practicing - great quote!

"There are four major stages of spiritual unfolding: belief, faith, direct experience, and permanent adaptation: you can believe in Spirit, you can have faith in Spirit, you can directly experience Spirit, you can become Spirit. Meditation is not primarily uncovering the repressed unconscious, but allowing the emergence of higher domains--which usually leaves the lower, repressed domains still lower, and still repressed. Well, the point, of course, is to take up integral practice as the only sound and balanced way to proceed. If you are interested in genuine transformative spirituality, find an authentic spiritual teacher and begin practice. Without practice, you will never move beyond the phases of belief, faith, and random peak experiences. You will never evolve into plateau experiences, nor from there into permanent adaptation. You will remain, at best, a brief visitor in the territory of your own higher estate, a tourist of you own true Self."
--Ken Wilber, One Taste

Still an inspiring person and teacher ...

Yoga-dagboek

Na mijn periode van 'donkere nacht van de ziel' ben ik vrij onrustig op zoek naar de volgende stap in mij yogaproces. Ik blijf op sommige punten aanmodderen en vastzitten en onderbrak mijn examens om aanwezig te kunnen zijn voor mijn vriendin, mijn tante die plots geopereerd werd aan haar rug (overwerkt, frozen shoulder, na een 40-tal jaar arbeid als OCMW-verzorgster), én een gevaarlijke geval van ziekte in mijn naaste omgeving waar ik ook tijd voor wou vrijmaken. Dit is volgens mij puur familiaal karma en ik heb dus alles van mijn eigen programma laten vallen om als mens mens te kunnen zijn voor zij die me dierbaar zijn. Volgend jaar neem ik een rustiger programma met de focus op webdesign en later ook programmeren in PHP en pik ik de draad in september gewoon terug op. Ik moet die focus op dat graduaat of bachelor-diploma niet als eindtool zien maar gewoon de nodige skills zien te verwerven in de hoop ooit in de verre toekomst met heel wat persoonlijke informatie naar buiten te brengen, een beetje een hoofdstuk gewijd aan het zwartboek van de mensenrechtenschendingen in de zorg alsook in de psychiatrie, waar ik zelf te maken kreeg met machtsmisbruik, gedwongen behandelingen, en opsluitingen in isolatie bij verzet tegen de wanpraktijken daar. Ik heb de begeleidend Kampf-dokteur daar net geen oplawaai verkocht, hij was tijdig gaan lopen. De broekschijter, verder wel gekend om onschuldige vol vergif te pompen, en in mijn geval en dat van een medepatiënt waar duidelijk kundalini in het spel was het steeds weer botsen om het gebrek aan kennis en kunde over dat fenomeen, waar psychiater Jung de raad gaf voor diegenen die met een ontwakende kundalini te maken krijgen, of vooral je mond erover te houden, want men verklaart je gek. Nu ik was dat al dus trek me daar geen zier van aan. Mijn hoofddoel is het verbeteren van de toestand waarin de mensheid leeft, in de hoop integrale, holistische en complementaire geneeskunde te verdedigen voor de toekomst, esoterische geneeskunde als aanvulling op de hedendaagse psychologie, en de eeuwenoude wijsheidsreligies en het sjamanisme als ontbrekende factor voor de zielenkunde (psychiatrie) van de toekomst, zoals de visionaire arts Stanislav Grof terecht al enkele wenken in die richting gaf, waar hij terecht vele prijzen won voor zijn werk.

Moest ik geld hebben en in het verre Amerika wonen, zou ik beslist student zijn geworden aan de Californian Institute of Integral Studies, of aan Naropa University, maar omdat ik maar als arme luis ter wereld kwam, moet ik het vooral van zelfstudie hebben, en als tweederangsstudie me bijscholen in de informatica, met vallen en opstaan, want mijn spiritueel leven blijft een strijd, omdat ik een combinatie van Raja, Agni en integrale yoga toepas, vooral met de nadruk op de integrale van Aurobindo, en dan heb je zoals Sri Aurobindo zelf zegt een evenwicht van graniet nodig. Ik ervaar soms onderhuidse, indirecte en zelden directe aanvallen vanuit de zwarte broederschap op de planeet, de voornamelijk met angst werkt om mensen uit te schakelen, iets waar ik me niet door laat doen. De strijd voor Licht en Waarheid gaat door, ik vernietig wat in de weg staat, vanuit mijn hele sterke Eerste Straalsinvloed, waar ik lang moeite mee had (in het slechtste geval wordt iemand met een vervormde Eerste Straalsinvloed van Wil-en Macht tijdelijk een maniak als Hitler, zoals Alice Bailey al terecht opmerkte). In gezonde toestand kan me die Wil-en Machtinvloed aanwenden ten positieve zoals de psychiater Roberto Assagioli al eens aangaf in zijn boek 'Over de wil'. Als men de persoonlijke wil dan met de Transpersoonlijke Wil kan laten samensmelten, vindt men vaak rust, heelwording, vervulling en balans. Tot dat moment bereikt is, ervaar ik nog vaak perioden van enorme activiteit, aangevuld met periode van slaap, rust en inactiviteit. De balans is tijdelijk zoek sinds de ziektegevallen in mijn omgeving waar ik liefst liefdevol aanwezig wil zijn met raad en daad, zodat ik mezelf nooit kwalijk hoef te nemen dat ik andermans leed niet zag omdat ik teveel met eigen werk en studie bezig ben geweest. Ik heb dan toch van mijn esoterische studie geleerd, dat men alles moet kunnen laten vallen als er iemand anders hulp nodig heeft. Het valt me nog steeds moeilijk in groep over koetjes en kalfjes te praten. Mijn spirituele avonturen en ervaringen zijn niet voor op café, of onderwerp van het gemiddelde gesprek voor als er bezoek komt, omdat ik zo vaak ben verketterd geweest wanneer ik met dingen op de proppen kwam waar men mij als een marsmannetje voor aankeek, toevallig een decennium later vaststellende dat die dingen bespreekbaar werden en meer mainstream. Mijn vriendin noemt mij iemand vanuit de toekomst.

Alle gekheid op een stokje, sinds die 'donkere nacht'-ervaring is het net alsof ik terug van nul moet beginnen, jaren mijn tijd verdaan heb aan nonsens, helemaal niks vooruit geraakt ben en met een gevoel van leegte blijf zitten. Dit moet voorbij waaien tot de volgende stap. Life goes on, en ik zou verdomd graag eens in India terecht komen in mijn leven. Ik denk aan Krishamurti die op een bepaald alles losliet en zijn eigen weg ging. Ik ben op een punt gekomen dat ik terug enorm veel zin krijg om te schrijven, daar ben ik blij om en ga ik werk van maken de komende jaren, ik trek er veel tijd voor uit. Verder tracht ik de woede los te laten tegenover diegenen die me vanuit onwetendheid heel veel leed hebben bezorgd. Ik kan iedereen vergeven en heb jegens niemand kwade bedoelingen, maar ik besef dat ik een enorm vreemd karma heb, gezien de weg waar ik op beland ben. In stilte wacht ik tot het jaar 2025 wanneer verwacht wordt dat er terug een nieuwe cyclus van spirituele groei  Back to basic, meer slaatjes, terug meer vegetarisch eten, en na de zomer back to school. We zien wel waar we uitkomen. Ik heb nu de pech niet het geld te hebben voor een dure opleiding, en niet in California te wonen waar de School of Integral Studies of in Boulder nabij nabij Naropa University. In Nederland schijnt er al wat te bewegen binnen de wetenschap, maar laten we geduld hebben. Verwacht en gehoopt wordt de grote toenadering en huwelijk van religie en wetenschap verwacht. Laten we hopen dat diegenen die dit voorspellen gelijk krijgen. Ik doe geen voorspellingen, dat laat ik aan anderen over, alles kan nog alle kanten uit, maar ik kan alleen maar hoopvol wachten tot de wetenschap ook in onze contreien zijn reductionaire tendenzen die net zoals de Kerk vroeger de wetenschap blokkeerde, de wetenschap nu de nieuwe ontwikkelingen tegenhoudt. Met de kwantumfysica en aanverwanten zijn er toch al een aantal eye-openers gepresteerd. Nu goed, ik ben geen wetenschapper, ben vooral leerling van het leven nu vooral op me afkomen en weet dat ik nog zo weinig weet en heel veel te leren en ontdekken hebben. Ik tracht van de zomer te genieten, laat het op me afkomen, ik wens iedereen het beste, leer nog elke dag bij en wil levenslang blijven groeien. En dat boek dat er ooit moet aankomen, dat is nog een big suprise waar ik later nog wel eens op terugkom. Ik heb enorm veel respect voor wat er in Amerika gebeurt in de wetenschappen. Denk eraan deze zomer nog eens aan het dichten te gaan. Het is tijd om dingen te doen, zoals met Marc afspreken volgende week om eens te brainstormen over het probleem van de bijensterfte, dat toch wel om aandacht vraagt. Als ik veertig ben trek ik mij terug om uitsluitend te gaan schrijven. Ik wil wel naar India of Tibet trekken maar mijn vriendin vindt dat niet zo'n leuke plaatsen. Ik herevalueer mijn leven en contempleer het eigenaardige karma dat me al sedert mijn acht jaar - voor zover ik me kan herinneren - op de rollercoaster van de mystiek brengt. Ik word nederig en stil als ik de wereld zie evolueren, dromend van een evolutie in de goede richting voor iedereen, niemand mag achterblijven of genegeerd worden. Ik kan me soms opboeien om wat er fout gaat in de wereld, maar vergeef snel ... Elke dag is een nieuw begin, overal zitten zovele mooie mensen die hun best doen. Schrijven is op lange termijn het plan, om iets achter te laten voor latere generaties. Mijn ervaringen, bespiegelen, fouten, levenslessen, en de dankbaarheid om het allemaal te mogen ervaren. Facebook moet op termijn ingeruild worden voor activiteiten met gelijkgestemden voor de vooruitgang van de wereld, alle kleine beetjes helpen. Ik heb geld geschonken zoveel ik kon, tot mij dit onmogelijk werd gemaakt van rechtswege uit. Ik hoop dat de V.N. en aanverwante organisaties, zoals UNICEF het geld goed benutten. Verder wacht ik in stilte tot de decennia verstrijken en help ik waar ik kan, in stilte; Silence is Golden :-)

WHAT A SHAMAN SEES IN A MENTAL HOSPITAL

The Shamanic View of Mental Illness

In the shamanic view, mental illness signals “the birth of a healer,” explains Malidoma Patrice Somé.  Thus, mental disorders are spiritual emergencies, spiritual crises, and need to be regarded as such to aid the healer in being born.

What those in the West view as mental illness, the Dagara people regard as “good news from the other world.”  The person going through the crisis has been chosen as a medium for a message to the community that needs to be communicated from the spirit realm.  “Mental disorder, behavioral disorder of all kinds, signal the fact that two obviously incompatible energies have merged into the same field,” says Dr. Somé.  These disturbances result when the person does not get assistance in dealing with the presence of the energy from the spirit realm.

One of the things Dr. Somé encountered when he first came to the United States in 1980 for graduate study was how this country deals with mental illness.  When a fellow student was sent to a mental institute due to “nervous depression,” Dr. Somé went to visit him.

“I was so shocked.  That was the first time I was brought face to face with what is done here to people exhibiting the same symptoms I’ve seen in my village.”  What struck Dr. Somé was that the attention given to such symptoms was based on pathology, on the idea that the condition is something that needs to stop.  This was in complete opposition to the way his culture views such a situation.  As he looked around the stark ward at the patients, some in straitjackets, some zoned out on medications, others screaming, he observed to himself, “So this is how the healers who are attempting to be born are treated in this culture.  What a loss!  What a loss that a person who is finally being aligned with a power from the other world is just being wasted.”

Another way to say this, which may make more sense to the Western mind, is that we in the West are not trained in how to deal or even taught to acknowledge the existence of psychic phenomena, the spiritual world.  In fact, psychic abilities are denigrated.  When energies from the spiritual world emerge in a Western psyche, that individual is completely unequipped to integrate them or even recognize what is happening.  The result can be terrifying.  Without the proper context for and assistance in dealing with the breakthrough from another level of reality, for all practical purposes, the person is insane.  Heavy dosing with anti-psychotic drugs compounds the problem and prevents the integration that could lead to soul development and growth in the individual who has received these energies.

On the mental ward, Dr Somé saw a lot of “beings” hanging around the patients, “entities” that are invisible to most people but that shamans and psychics are able to see.  “They were causing the crisis in these people,” he says.  It appeared to him that these beings were trying to get the medications and their effects out of the bodies of the people the beings were trying to merge with, and were increasing the patients’ pain in the process.  “The beings were acting almost like some kind of excavator in the energy field of people.  They were really fierce about that.  The people they were doing that to were just screaming and yelling,” he said.  He couldn’t stay in that environment and had to leave.

In the Dagara tradition, the community helps the person reconcile the energies of both worlds–”the world of the spirit that he or she is merged with, and the village and community.”  That person is able then to serve as a bridge between the worlds and help the living with information and healing they need.  Thus, the spiritual crisis ends with the birth of another healer.  “The other world’s relationship with our world is one of sponsorship,” Dr. Somé explains.  “More often than not, the knowledge and skills that arise from this kind of merger are a knowledge or a skill that is provided directly from the other world.”

The beings who were increasing the pain of the inmates on the mental hospital ward were actually attempting to merge with the inmates in order to get messages through to this world.  The people they had chosen to merge with were getting no assistance in learning how to be a bridge between the worlds and the beings’ attempts to merge were thwarted.  The result was the sustaining of the initial disorder of energy and the aborting of the birth of a healer.

“The Western culture has consistently ignored the birth of the healer,” states Dr. Somé.  “Consequently, there will be a tendency from the other world to keep trying as many people as possible in an attempt to get somebody’s attention.  They have to try harder.”  The spirits are drawn to people whose senses have not been anesthetized.  “The sensitivity is pretty much read as an invitation to come in,” he notes.

Those who develop so-called mental disorders are those who are sensitive, which is viewed in Western culture as oversensitivity.  Indigenous cultures don’t see it that way and, as a result, sensitive people don’t experience themselves as overly sensitive.  In the West, “it is the overload of the culture they’re in that is just wrecking them,” observes Dr. Somé.  The frenetic pace, the bombardment of the senses, and the violent energy that characterize Western culture can overwhelm sensitive people.

Schizophrenia and Foreign Energy

With schizophrenia, there is a special “receptivity to a flow of images and information, which cannot be controlled,” stated Dr. Somé.  “When this kind of rush occurs at a time that is not personally chosen, and particularly when it comes with images that are scary and contradictory, the person goes into a frenzy.”

What is required in this situation is first to separate the person’s energy from the extraneous foreign energies, by using shamanic practice (what is known as a “sweep”) to clear the latter out of the individual’s aura.  With the clearing of their energy field, the person no longer picks up a flood of information and so no longer has a reason to be scared and disturbed, explains Dr. Somé.

Then it is possible to help the person align with the energy of the spirit being attempting to come through from the other world and give birth to the healer.  The blockage of that emergence is what creates problems.  “The energy of the healer is a high-voltage energy,” he observes.  “When it is blocked, it just burns up the person.  It’s like a short-circuit.  Fuses are blowing.  This is why it can be really scary, and I understand why this culture prefers to confine these people.  Here they are yelling and screaming, and they’re put into a straitjacket.  That’s a sad image.”  Again, the shamanic approach is to work on aligning the energies so there is no blockage, “fuses” aren’t blowing, and the person can become the healer they are meant to be.

It needs to be noted at this point, however, that not all of the spirit beings that enter a person’s energetic field are there for the purposes of promoting healing.  There are negative energies as well, which are undesirable presences in the aura.  In those cases, the shamanic approach is to remove them from the aura, rather than work to align the discordant energies

Alex:  Crazy in the USA, Healer in Africa

To test his belief that the shamanic view of mental illness holds true in the Western world as well as in indigenous cultures, Dr. Somé took a mental patient back to Africa with him, to his village.  “I was prompted by my own curiosity to find out whether there’s truth in the universality that mental illness could be connected with an alignment with a being from another world,” says Dr. Somé.

Alex was an 18-year-old American who had suffered a psychotic break when he was 14.  He had hallucinations, was suicidal, and went through cycles of dangerously severe depression.  He was in a mental hospital and had been given a lot of drugs, but nothing was helping.  “The parents had done everything–unsuccessfully,” says Dr. Somé.  “They didn’t know what else to do.”

With their permission, Dr. Somé took their son to Africa.  “After eight months there, Alex had become quite normal, Dr. Somé reports.  He was even able to participate with healers in the business of healing; sitting with them all day long and helping them, assisting them in what they were doing with their clients . . . . He spent about four years in my village.”  Alex stayed by choice, not because he needed more healing.  He felt, “much safer in the village than in America.”

To bring his energy and that of the being from the spiritual realm into alignment, Alex went through a shamanic ritual designed for that purpose, although it was slightly different from the one used with the Dagara people.  “He wasn’t born in the village, so something else applied.  But the result was similar, even though the ritual was not literally the same,” explains Dr. Somé.  The fact that aligning the energy worked to heal Alex demonstrated to Dr. Somé that the connection between other beings and mental illness is indeed universal.

After the ritual, Alex began to share the messages that the spirit being had for this world.  Unfortunately, the people he was talking to didn’t speak English (Dr. Somé was away at that point).  The whole experience led, however, to Alex’s going to college to study psychology.  He returned to the United States after four years because “he discovered that all the things that he needed to do had been done, and he could then move on with his life.”

The last that Dr. Somé heard was that Alex was in graduate school in psychology at Harvard.  No one had thought he would ever be able to complete undergraduate studies, much less get an advanced degree.

Dr. Somé sums up what Alex’s mental illness was all about:  “He was reaching out.  It was an emergency call.  His job and his purpose was to be a healer.  He said no one was paying attention to that.”

After seeing how well the shamanic approach worked for Alex, Dr. Somé concluded that spirit beings are just as much an issue in the West as in his community in Africa.  “Yet the question still remains, the answer to this problem must be found here, instead of having to go all the way overseas to seek the answer.  There has to be a way in which a little bit of attention beyond the pathology of this whole experience leads to the possibility of coming up with the proper ritual to help people.

Longing for Spiritual Connection

A common thread that Dr. Somé has noticed in “mental” disorders in the West is “a very ancient ancestral energy that has been placed in stasis, that finally is coming out in the person.”  His job then is to trace it back, to go back in time to discover what that spirit is.  In most cases, the spirit is connected to nature, especially with mountains or big rivers, he says.

In the case of mountains, as an example to explain the phenomenon, “it’s a spirit of the mountain that is walking side by side with the person and, as a result, creating a time-space distortion that is affecting the person caught in it.”  What is needed is a merger or alignment of the two energies, “so the person and the mountain spirit become one.”  Again, the shaman conducts a specific ritual to bring about this alignment.

Dr. Somé believes that he encounters this situation so often in the United States because “most of the fabric of this country is made up of the energy of the machine, and the result of that is the disconnection and the severing of the past.  You can run from the past, but you can’t hide from it.”  The ancestral spirit of the natural world comes visiting.  “It’s not so much what the spirit wants as it is what the person wants,” he says.  “The spirit sees in us a call for something grand, something that will make life meaningful, and so the spirit is responding to that.”

That call, which we don’t even know we are making, reflects “a strong longing for a profound connection, a connection that transcends materialism and possession of things and moves into a tangible cosmic dimension.  Most of this longing is unconscious, but for spirits, conscious or unconscious doesn’t make any difference.”  They respond to either.

As part of the ritual to merge the mountain and human energy, those who are receiving the “mountain energy” are sent to a mountain area of their choice, where they pick up a stone that calls to them.  They bring that stone back for the rest of the ritual and then keep it as a companion; some even carry it around with them.  “The presence of the stone does a lot in tuning the perceptive ability of the person,” notes Dr. Somé.  “They receive all kinds of information that they can make use of, so it’s like they get some tangible guidance from the other world as to how to live their life.”

When it is the “river energy,” those being called go to the river and, after speaking to the river spirit, find a water stone to bring back for the same kind of ritual as with the mountain spirit.

“People think something extraordinary must be done in an extraordinary situation like this,” he says.  That’s not usually the case.  Sometimes it is as simple as carrying a stone.

A Sacred Ritual Approach to Mental Illness

One of the gifts a shaman can bring to the Western world is to help people rediscover ritual, which is so sadly lacking.  “The abandonment of ritual can be devastating.  From the spiritual view, ritual is inevitable and necessary if one is to live,” Dr. Somé writes in Ritual:  Power, Healing, and Community. “To say that ritual is needed in the industrialized world is an understatement.  We have seen in my own people that it is probably impossible to live a sane life without it.”

Dr. Somé did not feel that the rituals from his traditional village could simply be transferred to the West, so over his years of shamanic work here, he has designed rituals that meet the very different needs of this culture.  Although the rituals change according to the individual or the group involved, he finds that there is a need for certain rituals in general.

One of these involves helping people discover that their distress is coming from the fact that they are “called by beings from the other world to cooperate with them in doing healing work.”  Ritual allows them to move out of the distress and accept that calling.

Another ritual need relates to initiation.  In indigenous cultures all over the world, young people are initiated into adulthood when they reach a certain age.  The lack of such initiation in the West is part of the crisis that people are in here, says Dr. Somé.  He urges communities to bring together “the creative juices of people who have had this kind of experience, in an attempt to come up with some kind of an alternative ritual that would at least begin to put a dent in this kind of crisis.”

Another ritual that repeatedly speaks to the needs of those coming to him for help entails making a bonfire, and then putting into the bonfire “items that are symbolic of issues carried inside the individuals . . . It might be the issues of anger and frustration against an ancestor who has left a legacy of murder and enslavement or anything, things that the descendant has to live with,” he explains.  “If these are approached as things that are blocking the human imagination, the person’s life purpose, and even the person’s view of life as something that can improve, then it makes sense to begin thinking in terms of how to turn that blockage into a roadway that can lead to something more creative and more fulfilling.”

The example of issues with an ancestors touches on rituals designed by Dr. Somé that address a serious dysfunction in Western society and in the process “trigger enlightenment” in participants.  These are ancestral rituals, and the dysfunction they are aimed at is the mass turning-of-the-back on ancestors.  Some of the spirits trying to come through, as described earlier, may be “ancestors who want to merge with a descendant in an attempt to heal what they weren’t able to do while in their physical body.”

“Unless the relationship between the living and the dead is in balance, chaos ensues,” he says.  “The Dagara believe that, if such an imbalance exists, it is the duty of the living to heal their ancestors.  If these ancestors are not healed, their sick energy will haunt the souls and psyches of those who are responsible for helping them.”  The rituals focus on healing the relationship with our ancestors, both specific issues of an individual ancestor and the larger cultural issues contained in our past.  Dr. Somé has seen extraordinary healing occur at these rituals.

Taking a sacred ritual approach to mental illness rather than regarding the person as a pathological case gives the person affected–and indeed the community at large–the opportunity to begin looking at it from that vantage point too, which leads to “a whole plethora of opportunities and ritual initiative that can be very, very beneficial to everyone present,” states. Dr. Somé.

The Shamanic View of Mental Illness

by Stephanie Marohn (featuring Malidoma Patrice Somé)

(Excerpted from The Natural Medicine Guide to Schizophrenia,

pages 178-189, or The Natural Medicine Guide to Bi-polar Disorder)

Source : http://thespiritscience.net/2014/06/16/what-a-shaman-sees-in-a-mental-hospital/

John Lennon Wisdom

May our leaders find the strength to overcome the obstacles in life ... and remember Lennon as a great soul with his message of Love for the world as a revolution. In one way or another.

Street Pub Wisdom

Towards a free and transformed world with a free humanity ; the year 2025, we can do it, transforming all the tyrannies within ourselves and in the world.

Hercules Invictus Wisdom - respecting Roosevelt

There is nothing mysterious about the foundations of a healthy and strong democracy. The basic things expected by our people of their political and economic system are simple. They are:

Equality of opportunity for youth and others;
Jobs for those who can work;
Security for those who need it;
The ending of the special privileges for the few;
The preservation of civil liberties for all;
The enjoyment of the fruits of scientific progress in a wider and constantly rising standard of living.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Forgive all, judge none, respect the free will of everyone.

A critical view on the demonisation of Vladimir Putin by our mainstream media.

Something to think about :-)

21-06-2014: THE AMBASSADOR SHARES THE DRAGON FAMILY'S VISION FOR HUMANITY

Shared by Michael, my wonderful angelic friend who keeps on sharing knowledge for the benefit of all.

Dalai Lama Wisdom Quote

“Whether one is rich or poor, educated or illiterate, religious or nonbelieving, man or woman, black, white, or brown, we are all the same. Physically, emotionally, and mentally, we are all equal. We all share basic needs for food, shelter, safety, and love. We all aspire to happiness and we all shun suffering. Each of us has hopes, worries, fears, and dreams. Each of us wants the best for our family and loved ones. We all experience pain when we suffer loss and joy when we achieve what we seek. On this fundamental level, religion, ethnicity, culture, and language make no difference.”

― Dalai Lama XIV, Toward a True Kinship of Faiths: How the World's Religions Can Come Together

Anton lavey-His Deathbed Confession

yuga dharma mantra

Kali-yuga and Sakabda

Kali-yuga - first 10,000 years

Ekanath dasa:

Predicted in Brahma-vaivarta Purana 4.129.*. The fourth part of the Brahma-vaivarta is called Krsna-janma-khanda. Chapter 129 is called Golokarohanam, because it describes how Krsna returns to His abode. The general dialogue is between Lord Narayana and Narada Muni. This specific dialogue is between Lord Krsna and Mother Ganga. Verse 49 is a question by Ganga, verses 50-60 are Krsna's answer.

Text 49:

bhAgIrathy uvAca
he nAtha ramaNaSreStha
yAsi golokamuttamam
asmAkaM kA gatiScAtra
bhaviSyati kalau yuge

"Ganga said: O protector, Supreme enjoyer, on your departure for the perfect abode, Goloka, thereafter what will be my situation in the age of Kali?"

Text 50

zrI-bhagavAn uvAca
kaleH paMcasahasrANi
varSANi tiSTha bhu-tale
pApAni pApino yAni
tubhyaM dAsyaMti snAnataH

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Remain on earth for five thousand years of Kali yuga. Sinners will deposit their sins in you by bathing."

Text 51

man-maMtropAsaka sparzAd
bhasmibhutAni tatkSaNAt
bhaviSyaMti darzanAc ca
snAnAd eva hi jAhnavI

"By the sight, touch and bathing of one who worships Me by My mantra all those sins will be at once burnt to ashes, O Ganga."

Text 52

harernAmAni yatraiva
purANAni bhavaMti hi
tatra gatvA sAvadhAnam
AbhiH sArddhaM ca zroSyasi

"There will be chanting of the name of Hari and reading of the [Bhagavata] Purana. Reaching such a place, attentively hear.

[note: In Puranic language, when "Purana" is used alone it refers to Bhagavata Purana. Otherwise it will specify Skanda Purana, Visnu Purana, etc.]

Text 53:

purANa zravaNAccaiva
harernAmAnukIrtanAt
bhasmibhutAni pApAni
brahma-hatyAdikAni ca

"Sinful reactions including the killing of a brahmana can be nullified be hearing the [Bhagavata] Purana and chanting of the names of Hari in the manner of devotees."

Text 54:

bhasmibhutAni tAnyeva
vaiSNavAliMganena ca
tRNAni zuSkakASthAni
dahaMti pAvako yathA

"Just as dry grass is burnt by fire, by the embrace of Vaisnavas all sins are burnt."

Text 55:

tathApi vaiSNavA loke
pApAni pApinAmapi
pRthivyAM yAni tIrthAni
puNyAnyapi ca jAhnavi

"O Ganga, the whole planet will become a pilgrimage site by the presence of Vaisnavas, even though it had been full of sinners and sins."

Text 56:

madbhaktAnAM zarIreSu
santi puteSu saMtatam
madbhaktapAdarajasA
sadyaH putA vasundharA

"In the body of My devotees remains eternally [the purifier]. Mother Earth becomes pure by the dust of the feet of My devotees."

Text 57:

sadyaH putAni tIrthAni
sadyaH putaM jagat tathA
man-maMtropAsakA viprA
ye maducchiSRbhojinaH

"It will be the same in the case of pilgrimage sites and the whole world. Those intelligent worshipers of My mantra who partake of My remnants will purify everything."

Text 58

mAm eva nityaM dhyAyaMte
te mat prANAdhikAH priyAH
tad upasparza mAtreNa
puto vAyuzca pAvakaH

"Those, who everyday meditate only on Me, are more dear to Me than My life. The air and fire become pure simply by their indirect touch."

[Note: Sastra says that of all material elements, fire and air are always pure. Even though the air carries some impurities it always remains itself pure. This verse indicates that the Vaisnavas will purify even the pure elements of fire and air, therefore the purifying potency of the Vaisnavas referred to in this verse is not material but completely spiritual. I.e. the air and fire are _already_ materially pure, therefore the Vaisnavas purity is spiritual and not material.]

Text 59:

kaler daza-sahasrANi
madbhaktAH saMti bhu-tale
ekavarNA bhaviSyaMti
madbhakteSu gateSu ca

"For 10,000 years of Kali such devotees of Mine will be present on earth. After the departure of My devotees there will be only one varna [outcaste]."

Text 60:

madbhaktazunyA pRthivi
kaligrastA bhaviSyati
etasminnaMtare tatra
kRSNadehAdvinirgataH

"Devoid of My devotees, the earth will be shackled by Kali. Saying this, Krsna departed."

The above is supported in 4.90.32-33:

kalau daza-sahasrAni
haris tiSThati medinI
devAnAM pratimA pUjyA
zAstrANi ca purANakam

"(Sri Krsna said:) Lord Hari will stay on this earth for the first ten-thousand years of Kali-yuga. For that time the deities of the demigods will be worshiped and the Puranas and scriptures will also be present."

tad-ardham api tIrthAni
gangAdIni su nizcitam
tad-ardham grAma-devAz ca
vedAz ca viduSAm api

"For half that period the Ganga and other holy places will be present. For half that period the village temples and the Vedas studied by learned brahmanas will be present."

Resulting timelime:

3102 BCE - Kaliyuga begins

+5000 - Ganga on earth (about 1900 CE, 414 Gaurabda)

+5000 - devotees on earth (about 6900 CE, 5414 Gaurabda)

(= 10 000 - Gaura era)

Interestingly, Ma Ganga is still present on earth so these dates may be subject to change, unless there is another explanation. One could be that BVP describes a different kalpa, Rathantara.

Srila Prabhupada suggested in SB 8.5.23 p. 10 000 years long era from the time of Sri Caitanya, i.e. until about 11 500 CE. Similar quotes: CC 3.3.50 ("It is said that the Krsna consciousness movement will be prominent within the next ten thousand years, but after that people will all become mlecchas and yavanas."; 690513RC.COL: "Hare Krsna will be finished within ten thousand years."; SPL 18: "However, the Vedic literature foretells a golden age of spiritual life, beginning after the advent of Lord Caitanya and lasting for ten thousand years-an eddy that runs against the current of Kali-yuga." For this I haven't seen any sastra pramana so far.

Situation in Kali-yuga

According to the Vedic scriptures, our current age, known as Kali-yuga, is one of spiritual darkness, violence and hypocrisy. Srimad-Bhagavatam (12.2.31) records Kali-yuga as having begun when the constellation of the seven sages (saptarsi) passed through the lunar mansion of Magha. Hindu astrologers have calculated this to have been 2:27 a.m. on February 18, 3102 BC. This took place some 36 years after Lord Krsna spoke Bhagavad-gita to Arjuna.

The scriptures like SB 12.2 teach that during the 432,000 year age of Kali, humanity deteriorates and falls into barbarism. Humans begin to kill animals for food. They fall under the spell of intoxication. They lose all sexual restraint. Families break up. Women and children are abused and abandoned.

Increasingly degraded generations, conceived accidentally in lust and growing up wild, swarm all over the world. Political leadership falls into the hands of unprincipled rogues, criminals and terrorists, who use their power to exploit the people. Entire populations are enslaved and put to death. The world teems with fanatics, extremists and spiritual artists, who win huge followings among a people completely dazed by hedonism, as well as by cultural and moral relativism. "Religion, truthfulness, cleanliness, tolerance, mercy, physical strength and memory diminish with each passing day." (Srimad-Bhagavatam 12.2.1)

The saints and sages of ancient India describe the people of this age as greedy, ill-behaved, and merciless. In this age, says Srimad-Bhagavatam, merely possessing wealth is considered a sign of good birth, proper behavior, and fine qualities. Law and justice are determined by one's prestige and power. Marriage ceases to exist as a holy union - men and women simply live together on the basis of bodily attraction and verbal agreement, and only for sexual pleasure.

Women wander from one man to another. Men no longer look after their parents in their old age, and fail to provide for their own children. One's beauty is thought to depend on one's hairstyle. Filling the belly is said to be the only purpose in life. Cows are killed once their milk production drops. Atheism flourishes. Religious observances are performed solely for the sake of reputation.

The Linga Purana (ch. 40) describes the human race in Kali-yuga as a vain and stupid people "spurred on by the lowest instincts." They prefer false ideas and do not hesitate to persecute sages. They are tormented by bodily desires.

Severe droughts and plagues are everywhere. Slovenliness, illness, hunger and fear spread. Nations are continually at war with one another. The number of princes and farmers decline. Heroes are assassinated. The working classes want to claim regal power and enjoy royal wealth.

Kings become thieves. They take to seizing property, rather than protecting the citizenry. The new leaders emerge from the laborer class and begin to persecute religious people, saints, teachers, intellectuals, and philosophers.

Civilization lacks any kind of divine guidance. The sacred books are no longer revered. False doctrines and misleading religions spread across the globe. Children are killed in the wombs of their mothers. Women who have relations with several men are numerous. Predatory animals are more violent. The number of cows diminishes.

The Linga Purana says that in Kali-yuga, young women freely abandon their virginity. Women, children, and cows - always protected in an enlightened society - are abused and killed during the iron age. Thieves are numerous and rapes are frequent. There are many beggars, and widespread unemployment. Merchants operate corrupt businesses. Diseases, rates, and foul substances plague the populace. Water is lacking, fruits are scarce. Everyone uses vulgar language.

The men of Kali-yuga seek only money. Only the richest have power. People without money are their slaves. The leaders of the state no longer protect the people, but plunder the citizenry through excessive taxation. Farmers abandon living close to nature. They become unskilled laborers in congested cities. Many dress in rags, or are unemployed, and sleep on the streets. Through the fault of the government, infant mortality rates are high. False gods are worshiped in false ashrams, in which pilgrimages, penances, charities and austerities are all concocted.

People in this age eat their food without washing beforehand. Monks break their vows of celibacy. Cows are kept alive only for their milk. Water is scarce. Many people watch the skies, praying for rain. No rain comes. The fields become barren. Suffering from famine and poverty, many attempt to migrate to countries where food is more readily available. People are without joy and pleasure. Many commit suicide. Men of small intelligence are influenced by atheistic doctrines. Family, clan and caste are all meaningless. Men are without virtues, purity or decency. (Visnu Purana 6.1).

Padma Purana, Uttara Khanda, Srimad Bhagavata-mahatmya, ch. 1:

Sri Narada replied, 'I came here considering the earth to be the best of planets. Although I travelled to Puskara, Prayaga, Kasi, Godavari, Haridvara, Kuruksetra, Sriranga and Setubandha, I could not find peace in any of those holy places. At present, Kali yuga the friend of irreligion, has completely afflicted the whole earth. Now truthfulness, austerity, cleanliness, mercy and charity are nowhere to be seen. The fallen living entities take pleasure in telling lies and are simply engaged in filling their bellies. They are lazy, less intelligent, unfortunate, and always disturbed. Those who are called saintly are actually pretenders. Though they appear renounced, they accumulate wealth, women, and paraphernalia for sense pleasure. Women rule the family and the brother-in-law is the consultant. People sell their daughters out of greed, and husbands and wives always quarrel. The holy places, asramas of saintly people, and rivers are under the control of the yavanas, who are against Vedic religion. They have destroyed many temples and therefore yogis, siddhas, jnanis and religious people are not to be seen. The processes of liberation are completely burnt to ashes in the fire of Kali-yuga. In this age people sell grains in the market, the brahmanas charge fees to teach, and women thrive by prostitution.

"Thus witnessing the defects of Kali-yuga and wandering over the face of the earth, I reached the bank of the Yamuna where Lord Krsna had performed various pastimes. O best of sages, please hear about the wonder I saw there. A beautiful woman was sitting in a dejected mood while two old men lay unconscious in front of her breathing very quickly. While trying to bring them to consciousness, the young women would sometimes cry. At times she would look around as if searching for her protector, the Supersoul. She was served by hundreds of women who were fanning and trying to console her. I saw this whole scene from afar and out of curiosity went near them. Upon seeing me, the young lady stood up and spoke very piteously. She said: "O saintly person, please stay here for a moment and dispel my distress. Your auspicious vision destroys the sins of materialistic people. By your words I will get relief from misery and become peaceful. Only by great fortune can one get darsana of a person like you."

I inquired, "O virtuous lady, who are you and who are these two men lying here? Who are these ladies serving you? Please explain the cause of your distress in detail."

The lady said, "My name is Bhakti, and these two are my sons Jnana and Vairagya. By the influence of time they have become old and decrepit. These women are the holy rivers, such as the Ganges. They have come here to serve me. Although I am directly being served by these ladies, still I am not peaceful. O sage, whose only wealth is austerity, though it is well known, please hear my story carefully and grant me solace. I was born in the land of Dravida, in South India, and I grew up in Karnataka. I was respected in the state of Maharastra, but when I came to Gujarata, I lost my youth. Rogues influenced by Kali-yuga broke my limbs and for a long time I remained in that condition and thus, along with my sons, I have become very weak and impotent. Upon coming to Vrndavana, I regained my youth and beauty, but my two sons, who are lying here, are still old and tired. I will leave this place and travel to foreign lands, but I feel sad owing to the plight of my sons. We always remain t ogether, so why is it that I am young and they are old? It should be that the sons are young while the mother is old. I am astonished by this and so I lament. You have mystic power and are most intelligent, therefore, please explain this to me."

Narada said, "O chaste lady, from within my heart I see the cause of your misery, therefore I advise you not to lament. Lord Hari will shower all auspiciousness upon you."

Suta Gosvami said, "The best of sages, Sri Narada, understood the reason in a moment and said, 'O beautiful lady, hear attentively from me. Because of this ruthless age (Kali-yuga), good behaviour, yoga, and austerities have all become lost. People are addicted to cheating, irreligious behaviour, and are like the demon Agha, sin personified. At present, saintly people are unhappy and demonic people are enjoying sense gratification. Under these circumstances, if an intelligent man maintains his fortitude, then he is considered a scholar. By and by the earth is becoming a burden for Lord Sesa. At present it is not even worth seeing, what to speak of touching, and I see no auspiciousness anywhere. Everyone neglects you and your two sons. Because of worldly attachment to sense gratification, people are blind. Owing to their negligence,, you have become decrepit. It is only due to the glory of Vrndavana that you have become young again. This land is very auspicious because devo tion always dances here. However, your two sons are being neglected and thus their health is failing, but by the touch of Vrndavana they remain asleep and breathing."

Bhakti said, "Why is it that King Pariksita did not kill this sinful Kali-yuga? Because of Kali-yuga all objects have lost their essence. Why does the most merciful Lord Hari tolerate irreligion? O sage, please remove this doubt. I feel pacified by hearing your sweet words."

Narada said, "O auspicious young lady, now that you have asked, please hear me with attention as I explain everything and thus relieve your misery. Kali-yuga took control and started obstructing auspiciousness the day Lord Krsna left this planet for His abode. When King Pariksita travelled on earth, conquering all the kings, he met Kali, who fell at his feet and took shelter of him. The king, who understood the essence of things just like the bumble bee, decided not to kill him because that goal which is not attainable by penance, yoga meditation, or samadhi, is easily attained in Kali-yuga simply by performing hari-kirtana. Although the king knew that Kali-yuga was useless, he spotted this one essential good quality, and understanding that this would make the living beings happy, he spared him. Because humanity is engaged in irreligious and immoral acts, everything has lost its essence. All objects, including the seeds of the earth, are ineffective. The brahmanas, being gre edy for wealth, are performing Bhagavata-katha in peoples houses and therefore the essence of katha is lost. Immoral, atheistic, and sinful people have begun to reside in the holy places, causing the influence of those places to be lost. Those people whose hearts are always filled with lust, greed and anger make a show of performing austerities, thereby causing the essence of penance to be lost. Because people are unable to control their mind, they have taken shelter of greed, pretence, and immorality, and have given up the study of scriptures, causing the influence of jnana-yoga to be lost. Moreover, the pandits, or scholars, are only expert in producing children and enjoying sex like buffaloes. They are no longer expert in the process of liberation. Furthermore, there are hardly any Vaisnavas coming in bonafide sampradayas and there, everywhere all objects have become ineffective. This indeed, is due to the influence of Kali and is not the defect of anyone else. Therefore, a lthough the lotus-eyed Lord resides near by, He tolerates this."

Suta Gosvami said, "O Saunaka, hearing these revealing words of Sri Narada Muni, Bhakti was very surprised. She replied, 'O saintly person, you are very glorious and it is my good fortune to have met you. Within this material world, association with a saintly person is indeed the cause of all perfection. Just by once meeting you, Sri Prahlada, the son of Kayadhu, conquered Maya, and by your mercy Dhruva Maharaja gained the Dhruva planet. You are the personification of all auspiciousness. I offer my obeisances unto you, the direct son of Lord Brahma.'"

Parasara-smriti (ch. 1) on Kali yuga:

2. Expound, son of Satyavati, the law, which is for the good of mankind, in the present Kali age; and the practice of purification, such as it ought to be.

11.-15. Vyasa having said "(All are) well," thus interrogated him: "If thou art aware of my reverence (for thee), or from affection, thou affectionate to persons revering thee! Expound the law to me, for I am, father, an object of kindness to thee. The rules of law expounded by Manu have been heard by me, and those by Vasishtha and by Kasyapa, and by Garga and by Gautama and by Usanas; the laws of Atri and Vishnu and Samvarta and Daksha and Angira and Shatatapa and Harita and Yajnavalkya, and Katyayana and Prachetas and Apastamba; and the laws of Shankha and Likhita,

16. All these (laws) have been heard (by me as they were) expounded by thee; they embody the sense of the Veda; (they) have not been forgotten by me. (They are) the laws for the four ages, the Krita, the Treta, and the rest, forming parts of this Manvantara.

17. All laws arose in the Krita age; all have vanished in the Kali age. Expound a part of the rules of conduct fit for the four castes, such as are common (to all).

22. In conformity to the character of the age, the rules of law (suitable) for men differ from age to age. The rules for the Krita differ from the Treta rules; the Dvapara laws are not identical with the Kali rules.

23. Self-mortification is the rule in the Krita age; knowledge is said (to be the same) in the Treta; in the Dvapara, (they) say sacrifice (to the gods to be) the sole (rule); and charity alone in the Kali age.

24. For the Krita are suited the laws of Manu; for the Treta, those by Gautama (are) prescribed; for the Dvapara those by Shanka and Likhita; for the Kali, those by Parasara are prescribed.

25. In the Krita, one should quit a country itself; one should quit a village in the Treta; in the Dvapara (one should shun) only the particular family; but in the Kali, one should shun the perpetrator alone (of an offence).

26. In the Krita sin is incurred by one who converses (with a sinner); in the Treta by one who touches (the sinful man); in the Dvapara by taking the sinner's food; in the Kali by a (sinful) act (alone).

27. A curse in the Krita takes effect the moment it is uttered; in the Treta (it does so) in ten days' time; in the Dvapara, in the course of a single month; in the Kali, however, it takes a year.

28. In the Krita (the donor himself) comes up to (the donee) and makes the gift; in each succeeding Treta age, (the donee) is invited and the gift is made; in the Dvapara, the gift is made to one who asks for it; in the Kali, however, gifts are made in exchange for service done.

29. Excellent is the gift made on coming to the donee's side; the gift after invitation is of the middling kind; gift to a suitor is of a low character; but gift for service (rendered) is fruitless.

30.-31. Religion has been overthrown by irreligion; and truth indeed by that which is false; kings have been overpowered by thieves; males have been subdued by females; the worship of fire is dying out; respect to superiors is ceasing to be seen; and maidens are becoming mothers: this is what invariably happens in the age of Kali.

32. Life in the Krita has its seat in the bones; in the Treta it has its seat in the flesh; in the Dvapara the blood is the seat of life; in the Kali, however, life is dependent upon food and the like.

33. Special are the rules of conduct for each cyclical age; and the regenerate castes are guided by the rules that govern the age; no censure (therefore) can attach to them; for the regenerates conform to the spirit of the age.

Now the sinful Kali Age is upon them, when Dharma is destroyed, an Age full of evil customs and deceit. Men pursue evil ways. The Vedas have lost their power, the Smritis are forgotten, and many of the Puranas, which contain stories of the past, and show the many ways (which lead to liberation), will, O Lord! be destroyed. Men will become averse from religious rites, without restraint, maddened with pride, ever given over to sinful acts, lustful, gluttonous, cruel, heartless, harsh of speech, deceitful, short-lived, poverty-stricken, harassed by sickness and sorrow, ugly, feeble, low, stupid, mean, and addicted to mean habits, companions of the base, thievish, calumnious, malicious, quarrelsome, depraved, cowards, and ever-ailing, devoid of all sense of shame and sin and of fear to seduce the wives of others. Vipras will live like the Shudras, and whilst neglecting their own Sandhya will yet officiate at the sacrifices of the low. They will be greedy, given over to wicked and sinful acts, liars, insolent, ignorant, deceitful, mere hangers-on of others, the sellers of their daughters, degraded, averse to all tapas and vrata. They will be heretics, impostors, and think themselves wise. They will be without faith or devotion, and will do japa and puja with no other end than to dupe the people. They will eat unclean food and follow evil customs, they will serve and eat the food of the Shudras and lust after low women, and will be wicked and ready to barter for money even their own wives to the low. In short, the only sign that they are Brahmanas will be the thread they wear. Observing no rule in eating or drinking or in other matters, scoffing at the Dharma Scriptures, no thought of pious speech ever so much as entering their minds, they will be but bent upon the injury of the good. (Mahanirvana tantra 1.37-50)

But since the men of the Kali Age are full of greed, lust, gluttony, they will on that account neglect sadhana and will fall into sin, and having drunk much wine for the sake of the pleasure of the senses, will become mad with intoxication, and bereft of all notion of right and wrong (61). Some will violate the wives of others, others will become rogues, and some, in the indiscriminating rage of lust, will go (whoever she be) with any woman (62). Over eating and drinking will disease many and deprive them of strength and sense. Disordered by madness, they will meet death, falling into lakes, pits, or in impenetrable forests, or from hills or house-tops (63-64). While some will be as mute as corpses, others will be for ever on the chatter, and yet others will quarrel with their kinsmen and elders. They will be evil-doers, cruel, and the destroyers of Dharma (65-66). I fear, O Lord! that even that which Thou hast ordained for the good of men will through them turn out for evil (67). O Lord of the World! who will practise Yoga or Nyasa, who will sing the hymns and draw the Yantra and make Purashcharana? (68). Under the influences of the Kali Age man will of his nature become indeed wicked and bound to all manner of sin (69). (M.t. 1.61-69)

O Vararohe! know that when Vedic and Puranic initiations cease then the Kali Age has become strong (47). O Shive! 0 Peaceful One! when virtue and vice are no longer judged by the Vedic rules, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (48). O Sovereign Mistress of Kaula doctrine! when the Heavenly Stream is at some places broken, and at others diverted from its course, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (49). O Wise One! when kings of the Mlechchha race become excessively covetous, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (50). When women become difficult of control, heartless and quarrelsome, and calumniators of their husbands, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (51). When men become subject to women and slaves of lust, oppressors of their friends and Gurus, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (52). When the fertility of the earth has gone and yields a poor harvest, when the clouds yield scanty rain, and trees give meagre fruit, then know tha t the Kali Age has become strong (53). When brothers, kinsmen, and companions, prompted by the desire for some trifle, will strike one another, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (54). When the open partaking of flesh and liquor will pass without condemnation and punishment, when secret drinking will prevail, then know that the Kali Age has become strong (55). (M.t. 4.47-55)

Spiritual Process

punsam ekaha vai sadhya hari bhaktih kalau yuge
yuga antarena dharma hi sevitavya narena hi

(Padma Purana, Svarga Khanda 61.5)

In Kali-yuga, a person should accept only one process, that is devotional service. According to what process is decided for a particular yuga, that should be followed by everyone without fail.

Related:
Kali Yuga (Mahabharata quotes)

Saka, Sakabda (Saka Era) and Calendar

The most prominent of several eras used in India beginning at the start of the rule of king Salivahana (78 or 79 AD).

Bhanu Swami:

It is interesting to note in this connection that there is an old theory (evidently held by the great Kasmiri historian Kalyana in early 12th century AD) that considered the Saka era to have begun with the victory of the great king Vikramaditya of Ujjain over the Sakas (see M. A. Stein's notes in his translation of Kalyana's Rajatarangini 2.6-7 and 3.125-128). While this theory appears to be a mistaken result of mixing up the Vikrama and Saka eras, which were 135 years apart, it is evident that even by the 12th century there was the need to find some "significant event" associated with the beginning of what became this most popular calendar (later adopted by the Government of India after independence from British rule).

Shyamasundara Das:

The problem that exists between the Vaisnava calendar and the Christian calendar is that the Vaisnava calendar is luni-solar, whereas the Christian calendar is strictly solar.

What does this mean? Well, the solar year is 365.25 days long whereas the lunar year is about 10 to 11 days shorter. This means that after 3 years the lunar calendar will be 1 solar month out of phase with the solar calendar. The Muslims follow a strictly lunar calendar and thus their months have no relation to the seasons which is a solar event. In the course of 36 years the Muslim month of Ramadan will go through each of the Christian months and then come to its starting point again.

The Vaisnava calendar is luni-solar in that the lunar months are always calibrated to correspond with the solar months and fall in the same season every year (not taking into account precessional differences). To achieve this a leap month is added about every third year (there are certain astronomical rules involved so it may not be every third year). That is why you will notice that a big festival like Gaura Purnima will fall on one date this year, then next year about 10 days earlier, and the next year 10 days earlier still then all of a sudden it shoots back up about 30 days and continues the cycle.

There are no simple rules to convert a Christian date into a Vaisnava date and vice versa. May I suggest that if someone would like to really understand how to do this that he request Markandeya Rsi Prabhu for a copy of the report to the GBC that he prepared on behalf of the Vaisnava Calendar committee.

According to Hari Bhakti Vilasa (Bhanu Swami's translation), if an appearance day falls on Ekadasi, i.e. if you were born on Ekadasi, then you celebrate on the following date. Disciples of Satsvarupa dasa Goswami should take note of this. Also in calculating your own birth tithi it is the tithi prevalent at the time of birth that is important, not the tithi at sunrise. Thus Jayapataka Swami's actual birth tithi is Dvadasi, not Ekadasi. Why the time of sunrise is always mentioned is because the Vedic day begins at sunrise. The Christian day begins at midnight and the Jewish and Muslim day begins at sunset.

The standard Vedic calendar starts the month with the first tithi after the new moon, that is the instant after the exact conjunction of the Sun and Moon. This system is called mukhya candra. For example the new year according to the Siddhantas (i.e. classical astronomical texts such as Surya-siddhanta, Siddhanta-siromani, Vasista-siddhanta, etc.) begins with the sukla pratipat of Caitra masa. Meaning the first lunar day after the new moon after the Sun has entered into Mesa (Aries). It is called Caitra masa because often the Moon would be in Citra naksatra on the full moon of that month. Anyway it is the Vedic standard to consider the month (and the year) to begin on a sukla pratipat, first tithi after the new moon.

However it is also acceptable to have months based on the full moon, thus the month and year would start on krsna pratipat, the first tithi after the full moon. If you were to examine the chronological systems in vogue in India you will find that almost every state has its own system with various differing rules. There will also be variations within the regions.

For example in 1989 according to the National Indian calendar the New Year began on Mar 22 (which no one observes). In Bengal, Assam and Tamil Nadu the New Year started on April 14 while in Punjab and Orissa it started on April 13 and in Kerala it started on Aug 17! Other states followed some of these or independent systems. (I wonder why they say that Divali is the Hindu New Year? Must be in Gujarat or parts of UP and Rajasthan. [I found out that it is.])

It should be noted that while the rest of India observes candra masa, Kerala and Tamil Nadu observe saura masa, lunar and solar months respectively. By this I mean that a candra masa is measured from a new or full moon, whereas a saura masa is measure from sankranti to sankranti, solar ingress from sign to sign, but still measured in lunar days.

If this were not interesting enough having months and years beginning at different times, they also follow different epochs or eras. We are familiar with the Christian Era, which is now being secularized as the Common Era, CE or BCE, as opposed to AD or BC. In India there is a large welter of eras that are used, for example: 1989 AD is equivalent to Vikram Samvat 2046, Saka era 1911, Bengali San 1396, Kollam era 1165, Hejira 1410, Buddha Nirvana 2533 (this is wrong however), Mahavira Nirvana 2516, Kali Yuga 5090, and Yudhisthira Saka 5126. There is also Saptarsi Saka which is some years different from that of Yudhisthira Saka (I would have to look it up), plus Brhaspati Samvatsara (60 year cycle) which was #17, Subhana in N India and #3, sukla in S India and last but not least 1989 was 5 Idavatsara in the Vedanga Jyotisa year system beginning on Feb 7. I have not exhausted all the eras current in India. There are many such as Gupta Saka, Vallabhi Saka, and Mallava Gana Saka which are no longer current but of interest only to historians, epigraphists, antiquarians and the like (and me of course).

The point of all this is that in India there is a lot of lee way about calendars and different communities have different calendars. Smartas calculate Ekadasi differently from Vaisnavas.

Anyway, our calendar is gauna candra, calculated from the krsna pratipat of Phalguna masa, i.e. the first day of the waning mooning (the first tithi after the full moon) of the month of Phalguna. In other words Lord Caitanya's birthday is the last day of the year for us. It is because Lord Caitanya was born on a full moon day that the Gaudiyas follow gauna candra masa. However the standard to measure by is always the mukhya candra masa of the Vedic calendar. And our calendar is tied to that. Did you ever wonder why it is, that when we have a leap month it falls in the middle of a regular month and the regular month gets split in two? That is because the deciding factor that determines whether or not a year will have a leap month is based on the new moon months of the Vedic calendar.

The Vedic month begins with the sukla pratipat of the new moon after the Sun's ingress into a sign. Usually there is only one new moon for each sign that the Sun is in. But occasionally the new moon will occur right after the Sun enters a sign and another takes place just before it leaves. Thus you will have two new moons in the same sign. Even rarer (in a weird cycle of 151 years, then 19, then back to 151 years [I think it is 151, it is in that area]) when you have one solar month with no new moon and two solar months with two new moons. This really causes a big mess and confusion. The last time this happened was in 1983 and it was a big cause of concern all over India.

Anyway all these points are covered in the special report to the GBC entitled "Everything You Wanted To Know About The Vaisnava Calendar But Were Afraid To Ask." (Just kidding.) Get it from Markandeya Rsi Prabhu.

Source : http://www.veda.harekrsna.cz/encyclopedia/kaliyuga.htm