Delighted
The article “Cancer or Krishna” (BTG January 2011) was an eye-opener. It had two climaxes: one when the author’s grandma was wrongly diagnosed with cancer, and the other when the doctor who suggested grandma “enjoy life” himself died of a heart attack. Both scenes shocked the readers, forcing us to contemplate where we are going and how seriously we should both accept Krishna consciousness and try to distribute it.
Yugavatara Dasa has been contributing to BTG for a long time, and each of his articles is no less than a raja-bhoga treat for devotees. Actually, all the articles in this issue were fantastic. I express my heartfelt gratitude to all the contributors of BTG and the whole BTG team, which is making so much effort to enlighten the lives of wretched people like me. I pray to Srila Prabhupada and all Vaishnavas that BTG gets published at least weekly. Waiting a whole month is too long and unbearable! (Narsimharupa Dasa, Pune)
Scared and Anxious
Why do I feel scared, and why do I have anxiety? (Mitu,)
Our reply: Anxiety comes from a lack of knowledge. In Bhagavad-gita Krishna says that our weapon is knowledge of our real self and our relationship with Him. He says that peace comes when we understand that He is the supreme controller, the supreme proprietor, and the supreme friend. With that knowledge, we shouldn’t be in anxiety.
Chanting Krishna’s name helps us remember Him and should free us from all anxiety. When you are scared or in anxiety, call out to Him with faith and conviction. But it’s best not to wait for those times. Practice daily calling out to Him by chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, which means “Please accept me; please engage me in Your loving service.”
Reincarnation Article Clarification
The article on Reincarnation (April 2010), proposing past life matches for famous Indian celebraties, raised concerns among our readers like Sri Giridhari Dasa and Candru Ramesh. As per the suggestion of a reader Mohana Krishna Dasa, the BTG team requested HH Jayadvaita Swami Maharaja, former editor of BTG and Srila Prabhupada’s disciple, to review the article. We have paraphrased his comments on the past life claims:
1. The author should have been more critical in accepting the evidence presented in the book Born Again. He has gullibly accepted all the conclusions.
2. The article proposed that if A reincarnated as B, often B had similar facial features as A. Maharaja said that facial resemblance was weak evidence.
3. Evidence for other matches was flimsy.
4. Giving one page for movie stars’ matches put us with sensationalists. It will attract people but put BTG in a lower bracket. No serious person will accept it. The author did not verify the claims. The use of spirit medium to suggest past life matches does not make for strong argument.
The BTG team accepts responsibility for the inadvertent oversight in publishing the reincarnation article and thanks the above readers for helping us improve our future services to all of you and to Srila Prabhupada.