After I visited Columbus for one week, I moved on to Toronto in Canada - my last stop on this year's tour around North America. During Srila Prabhupada's times, the devotees secured a former church as a temple building, which is today the home of Sri Sri Radha Ksira-Chora Gopinath, Sri Sri Gaur-Nitai and Jagannath, Baladev and Subhadra.
HG Laxmimoni Mataji was serving in Toronto in the early days, and she
describes the arrival of Their Lordships as follows:
"After we unpacked Lord Krishna, I wrote to Srila Prabhupada and mentioned
that the Lord was a bit chubby in the stomach. When we heard back from Srila Prabhupada by telephone, he said that our Krishna should be named "Ksira-Chora Gopinath", because He loved ksira, sweet rice. Srila Prabhupada instructed us to offer ksira daily. At that point he also named our center New Remuna after Lord Ksira-Chora Gopinath's home in India." There is also a tree near the entrance where Srila Prabhupada sat, and which carries today a little plaque remembering Srila Prabhupada's presence.
describes the arrival of Their Lordships as follows:
"After we unpacked Lord Krishna, I wrote to Srila Prabhupada and mentioned
that the Lord was a bit chubby in the stomach. When we heard back from Srila Prabhupada by telephone, he said that our Krishna should be named "Ksira-Chora Gopinath", because He loved ksira, sweet rice. Srila Prabhupada instructed us to offer ksira daily. At that point he also named our center New Remuna after Lord Ksira-Chora Gopinath's home in India." There is also a tree near the entrance where Srila Prabhupada sat, and which carries today a little plaque remembering Srila Prabhupada's presence.
Since my last visit to this community about eight years ago, the preaching has expanded enormously, with many extension centres and temples springing up. Toronto is spread over a vast area, and because the main temple is located near the city centre, it is a long drive for most congregational members to attend temple programs. In this way, there is an urgent need for many temples to develop all around the area of Toronto. Some even celebrate their own Ratha Yatra and other festivities, offering a great opportunity for devotees to get involved and mature in their devotional development.
My return to Germany was approaching, where I would withdraw and go on a writing retreat to work on my next book. Within my mind, I started to meditate on the topic....
Srila Prabhupada does not hesitate to openly discuss the subtle science of conception, including the factors that influence whether a boy or a girl is conceived. After all, nothing occurs by chance; even the gender of a child is understood to arise according to specific laws and conditions. In the purport to the Srimad-Bhagavatam (3.23.11), Srila Prabhupada explains:
"Sexual intercourse in which the husband is attracted to the wife is sure to produce a male child, but sexual intercourse based on attraction of the wife for the husband may produce a girl. That is mentioned in the Ayurveda. When the passion of the woman is greater, there is a chance of a girl being born. When the passion of the man is greater, then there is the possibility of a son."
The fact that Devahuti and Kardama Muni gave birth to nine daughters could possibly illustrate the validity of the principle illustrated above. After all, initially he fulfilled her desire for sense gratification, and the outcome was the appearance of nine daughters. Only when she requested for a son to be born, they intentionally invited the Lord to appear as Kapila deva.
In the purport to verse 4.28.3, Srila Prabhupada further elaborates:
"Now female descendants are increasing because young men are very weak sexually. A male child will be born if the husband is sexually stronger than the wife, but if the female is stronger, a female child will be born. Thus it is essential to practice the system of brahmacharya if one wishes to beget a male child when one is married."
The longer we can follow celibacy before the act of conception – even within marriage – the more powerful the semen will be. In Journey of Self-Discovery (7.3), Srila Prabhupada goes into further details:
"When men have more sex, they lose the power to beget a male child. If the woman is sexually more powerful, a girl is born, and when the man is more powerful, a boy is born. This is Ayurvedic science. For instance, in the Punjab State of India, there are fewer women because the men are very stout and strong. So when women are very easily available, the men become weak and beget female children. Sometimes they become impotent. If sex life is not restricted, there are so many disasters. And now we are actually seeing them: impotency, no marriage, increased female population. But no one knows why these things are happening or how human psychology can be controlled to avoid them. For this they must look to the perfect system of Vedic civilization.
Our prescription is that in the beginning of life the child should be taught self-restraint (brahmacharya) and when he is past twenty he can marry. In the beginning he should learn how to restrain his senses. If a child is taught to become saintly, his semen rises to his brain, and he is able to understand spiritual values. Wasting semen decreases intelligence. So from the beginning, if he is a brahmachari and does not misuse his semen, then he will become intelligent and strong and fully grown.
For want of this education, everyone's brain and bodily growth are being stunted. After the boy has been trained as a brahmachari, if he still wants to enjoy sex he may get married. But because he then has full strength of body and brain, he will immediately beget a male child."
Although we equally welcome boys and girls to take birth in the sankirtan movement, nevertheless Srila Prabhupada felt more enlivened when devotees gave birth to boys; the facts above may explain Srila Prabhupada’s global vision – he thinks in terms of human society developing at large. If the female population increases, there will be less men to protect the women. Already now we are facing the situation in ISKCON, that it can be difficult to find a responsible and qualified husband for ladies. The female population is increasing.
In Dialectic Spiritualism (XIII, Psychoanalysis), Srila Prabhupada discusses the matter further with Syamasundara Das:
"And now young girls are almost going naked, and the female population is increasing everywhere. As soon as there is an increase in the female population, the women say, "Where are the men?" There then must be disaster because every woman is trying to attract a man, and men will take advantage of this situation. When milk is available in the market, what is the use in keeping a cow? The more men become attached to women, the more the female population will increase."
Syamasundara Das: "How is that?"
Srila Prabhupada: "When you have more sex, your power to beget a male child is diminished. When the man is less potent, a girl is born, and when a man is more potent, a boy is born. If a man's discharge is larger, there will be a male child. If the woman's discharge is larger, there will be a female child. When women are easily available, men become weak, and they beget female children because they lose their power from overindulgence."
On the 29th of May I arrived in Cologne/Germany...
Your servant, Devaki dd
Please visit www.theholynameretreat.net
www.therootsofspiritualculture.net
https://www.facebook.com/instituteforspiritualculture/
My return to Germany was approaching, where I would withdraw and go on a writing retreat to work on my next book. Within my mind, I started to meditate on the topic....
Srila Prabhupada does not hesitate to openly discuss the subtle science of conception, including the factors that influence whether a boy or a girl is conceived. After all, nothing occurs by chance; even the gender of a child is understood to arise according to specific laws and conditions. In the purport to the Srimad-Bhagavatam (3.23.11), Srila Prabhupada explains:
"Sexual intercourse in which the husband is attracted to the wife is sure to produce a male child, but sexual intercourse based on attraction of the wife for the husband may produce a girl. That is mentioned in the Ayurveda. When the passion of the woman is greater, there is a chance of a girl being born. When the passion of the man is greater, then there is the possibility of a son."
The fact that Devahuti and Kardama Muni gave birth to nine daughters could possibly illustrate the validity of the principle illustrated above. After all, initially he fulfilled her desire for sense gratification, and the outcome was the appearance of nine daughters. Only when she requested for a son to be born, they intentionally invited the Lord to appear as Kapila deva.
In the purport to verse 4.28.3, Srila Prabhupada further elaborates:
"Now female descendants are increasing because young men are very weak sexually. A male child will be born if the husband is sexually stronger than the wife, but if the female is stronger, a female child will be born. Thus it is essential to practice the system of brahmacharya if one wishes to beget a male child when one is married."
The longer we can follow celibacy before the act of conception – even within marriage – the more powerful the semen will be. In Journey of Self-Discovery (7.3), Srila Prabhupada goes into further details:
"When men have more sex, they lose the power to beget a male child. If the woman is sexually more powerful, a girl is born, and when the man is more powerful, a boy is born. This is Ayurvedic science. For instance, in the Punjab State of India, there are fewer women because the men are very stout and strong. So when women are very easily available, the men become weak and beget female children. Sometimes they become impotent. If sex life is not restricted, there are so many disasters. And now we are actually seeing them: impotency, no marriage, increased female population. But no one knows why these things are happening or how human psychology can be controlled to avoid them. For this they must look to the perfect system of Vedic civilization.
Our prescription is that in the beginning of life the child should be taught self-restraint (brahmacharya) and when he is past twenty he can marry. In the beginning he should learn how to restrain his senses. If a child is taught to become saintly, his semen rises to his brain, and he is able to understand spiritual values. Wasting semen decreases intelligence. So from the beginning, if he is a brahmachari and does not misuse his semen, then he will become intelligent and strong and fully grown.
For want of this education, everyone's brain and bodily growth are being stunted. After the boy has been trained as a brahmachari, if he still wants to enjoy sex he may get married. But because he then has full strength of body and brain, he will immediately beget a male child."
Although we equally welcome boys and girls to take birth in the sankirtan movement, nevertheless Srila Prabhupada felt more enlivened when devotees gave birth to boys; the facts above may explain Srila Prabhupada’s global vision – he thinks in terms of human society developing at large. If the female population increases, there will be less men to protect the women. Already now we are facing the situation in ISKCON, that it can be difficult to find a responsible and qualified husband for ladies. The female population is increasing.
In Dialectic Spiritualism (XIII, Psychoanalysis), Srila Prabhupada discusses the matter further with Syamasundara Das:
"And now young girls are almost going naked, and the female population is increasing everywhere. As soon as there is an increase in the female population, the women say, "Where are the men?" There then must be disaster because every woman is trying to attract a man, and men will take advantage of this situation. When milk is available in the market, what is the use in keeping a cow? The more men become attached to women, the more the female population will increase."
Syamasundara Das: "How is that?"
Srila Prabhupada: "When you have more sex, your power to beget a male child is diminished. When the man is less potent, a girl is born, and when a man is more potent, a boy is born. If a man's discharge is larger, there will be a male child. If the woman's discharge is larger, there will be a female child. When women are easily available, men become weak, and they beget female children because they lose their power from overindulgence."
On the 29th of May I arrived in Cologne/Germany...
Your servant, Devaki dd
Please visit www.theholynameretreat.net
www.therootsofspiritualculture.net
https://www.facebook.com/instituteforspiritualculture/
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