Great Expectations

The last week of the year 2011 & all over America there is a huge surge for people to get into buying mode as it is holiday seasons.

At Iskcon Silicon Valley there was harinam scheduled the day after Christmas in San Francisco.

I took the train to SFO. There were some families in the train with their kids , i could see excitement in their eyes to see & experience one of the most famous city in the world --- San Francisco.!!!!

I reached Market & Powel intersection ...... probably the most crowded place in SFO.

As i was climbing the steps from an underground BART station i heard the distinct sound of Kartals (cymbals) & a smile came on my face .

There they were devotees holding flags of mahamantra & kartals & mridangam chanting the Holy name . Devotees were distributing books too.

" Hi .. Have you heard about Bhagavad gita ?? "

"These are books on Yoga & meditation & teach you how to get free from Stress. you have heard of stress before right ??"

Thousands of people were pouring in from all direction like rain water gushes out from all places after a fresh rain.Some were coming out of various shops & huge malls which were advertised with 50% discount billboards & posters. Hundreds were entering into these malls & simultaneously hundreds were coming out of it.

It was like a river of people all around & the lotus of harinam & its devotees were not touching its water.I took part in harinam & then started doing some book distribution.

It was good to do book distribution when harinam was around as people could see the connection of music & the books .

But when the harinam party went for touring around busy corners of SFO  i tried my best to distribute books but people were taking me as any other salesperson, aiming to cheat them 

This made me uncomfortable & i was thinking the harinam should be present so that people can experience higher bliss & take books 

   Then HG Vaisesika Pr decided to go union square, i too joined him & after reaching there he lead a wonderful kirtan with 10 devotees dancing in circles 

The book distribution picked up in the shelter of holy name banyan tree .

I could distribute a chinese book first time & got donation from him. Last time i had tried at chinese mall & people over there laughed at me making me embarrassed.but today i felt nice & victorious.

 Sri Krishna Purushottam pr another book distributor came to me & said " I too got good donation from a chinese "  

Thats a rare thing in book distribution but i could witness by my own eyes that under the shelter of holy name anything is possible 

I simply prayed let me distribute Bhagavad gita today & a young man stopped in front of me with his ray ban goggles hiding his eyes.

I showed him the bhagavad gita & in my talk with him he said " I am from idaho & i am a soldier" .I told him this book was said at the time of battlefield to a soldier 

who was under stress of his duty & this helped him to perform his duty well.

He immediately took the book & gave $10 & i prayed with gratitude to Lord Caitanya to having my wish fulfilled so quickly.

As it started becoming more & more darker we closed our harinam & i started back to the train station. As i reflected back on the day i thought people out there the whole day were moving with GREAT expectations. An expectation for some pleasure somewhere.

There were so many faces with this great Hope & expectations that i felt touched by their endeavors for pleasure & peace.

Had it not been for Srila Prabhupad who brought this package of joy of harinam i would have been one of the same faces in the crowd looking desperately for pleasure & peace. !

The following words of Mahajan Prahalad sums it all.

7.6.4

tat-prayaso na kartavyo

yata ayur-vyayah param

na tatha vindate ksemam

mukunda-caranambujam

TRANSLATION

Endeavors merely for sense gratification or material happiness through economic development are not to be performed, for they result only in a loss of time and energy, with no actual profit. If one's endeavors are directed toward Krsna consciousness, one can surely attain the spiritual platform of self-realization. There is no such benefit from engaging oneself in economic development.

All expectations are fulfilled when turns to the Supreme Lord Krishna & his devotional service.Just like Hiranyakasipu had all , he was a king of 3 universes had full control of all powers of nature but his one expectation of obedience from his own son Prahalad costed him his life & his whole endeavor to rule over the world was lost in a second.Where as Prahalad was completely satisfied in his devotional service to Lord & had no expectation from material  world.

O my mind , my heart & my soul let me pray as follows as Prahalad did to get rid from the desires of expectations from this material world.

 7.10.7

yadi dasyasi me kaman

varams tvam varadarsabha

kamanam hrdy asamroham

bhavatas tu vrne varam

TRANSLATION

O my Lord, best of the givers of benediction, if You at all want to bestow a desirable benediction upon me, then I pray from Your Lordship that within the core of my heart there be no material desires.