May 4, 2007

I mentioned that I would write about living longer in the present body. In
order to understand this topic one has to understand the larger topic of how
the material energy affects the bodies and minds of devotees whether or not
they are aware of it or even in denial of it.

If we had the siddhis that yogis have such as laghima (become light enough
to float on a sunbeam) or mahima (becoming very big or heavy-and I am not
talking about getting fat), or prapti (being able to reach out and grab
something from a distant locale) we could definitely ignore certain aspects
of the material nature.

But since we don’t have these siddhis it behooves us to be aware of how the
material nature affects our bodies.

It is amazing to me how devotees are oftentimes in denial of this: in our
diet, sleeping habits, use of spiritual paraphernalia, eating habits, safety
procedures, etc.

There are certain laws of Nature (of course Krishna is the Supreme Law Giver
who has made these laws).

There is the law of gravity for example. Whether you are a devotee or
non-devotee if you jump from a 20 story building you will end up on the
ground with a splat! There are some notable exceptions to this though such
as the yogis I mentioned previously and special devotees like Prahlad
Maharaj who was thrown off a cliff and saved by the Lord.

But, I assure you, if you try this Krishna will not catch you. You will wake
up in a brand new body with the same problems and lack of Kcon that you have
in this life and with the additional bad karma of killing yourself. Don’t do
it or try it.

There is a story that one time devotees were driving all night long and got
into a car accident where several devotees died. Prabhupada was asked
whether or not this was Krishna’s mercy and he replied that it was not
Krishna’s mercy, rather it was the devotees foolishness and they would have
to take birth again. Then Prabhupada gave the order that devotees should not
be driving more than 1 hour after their normal bed time.

I am here in New Orleans and about a year and half ago we had devotees who
were driving all night long coming back from Los Angeles after the
Rathayatra (spiritual journey). They had a disastrous accident in Texas, the
result of which was that one devotee passed away, two devotees were severely
injured and the rest lightly injured. Those who were severely injured and
the devotee who passed away were not wearing seat belts. Had they been
wearing seat belts they wouldn’t not have been so badly injured or would we
have had the death of that one devotee.

Many times I have been in cars with devotees and I have been told by them
that seat belts are maya and that we should depend on Krishna. My reply is
that Krishna has given us seat belts and the intelligence to use them. If we
don’t use them we are in one sense rejecting Krishna (the facility and
intelligence He has given us).

Prabhupada tells the story of a man who was a great devotee of God and was
always dependent on the protection of God. One day there was a big flood and
the water was rising and threatening to engulf his home. A boat with the
rescue squad came by and he was invited to jump in. He refused and told them
that God was protecting him. Then the waters rose higher and higher and the
man was forced to take shelter on the roof of his home. Then a helicopter
came by, and lowered a rope so that he could grab it and be taken to safety.
He refused again, stating that the Lord was his only protection. Finally the
waters rose so high that the many was left without any place to stand and he
was washed out to sea where he died.

After his death, his soul went to God and asked Him: “Why didn’t you save
me? You promised in the Gita that you would always protect me, and that I
should not fear.” God replied: “You fool! Didn’t you see the boat and
helicopter I sent to save you?”

So the point is that God has given us plenty of facility (intelligence,
strength, knowledge, etc) for understanding how to live in this material
world. We should use that facility to take care of this body which belongs
to Krishna.

Now comes the controversial part where I attempt to explain how many of our
habits (that we confuse with Kcon) or activities may be harming us or at
least not contributing to our health.

Lets take eating for example. Most of us were brought up in Kcon eating tons
of Halvah, Sweet Rice, fried foods, etc. We thought: Its prasadam, so how
can it be bad for our bodies?” Well I got news for you. A saturated fat or
sugar even if it offered to Krishna has the same affect on our arteries,
kidneys, liver, etc. that a saturated fat has when it is not offered to
Krishna.

That may be a radical statement but it is true. Ask any devotee who is
suffering from high blood pressure, kidney disease, liver disease, diabetes,
etc. whether it is true or not.

Ask an ayurvedic physician about the saturated fat, high sugar diet and see
what he says about it. He will advise you to avoid this type of diet.

Even in the face of all this evidence we may deny reality.

Another example is most of the kirtans that we have in our ISKCON temples
and programs. We think that because we are chanting the holy name no ear
damage will occur even the sound level is high enough to freak out a regular
disco club customer.

Now we have many devotees with tinnitus (constant ringing of the ears) or
partial deafness. As we know, the ears are the most important sense in
Krishna consciousness, so we need to keep them functioning properly.

I now carry a decibel (sound level) meter with me and have seen that it a
rare kirtan in ISKCON that falls within the safe level (below 90 dB) or is
softer than the sound of a jet taking off from 50 ft away.

Another example is that we ignore the fact that the byproducts of combustion
(ie: incense, etc.) may cause cancer or lung disease even if it is spiritual
combustion or even if the ingredients are completely natural and organic.

Interestingly enough, we oftentimes ignore even Ayurvedic injunctions in the
name of religion. But, the Ayurveda has been given to us by Krishna.

For example one Ayurvedic injunction is that one should wait at least 6
hours between heavy meals.

Nowadays in ISKCON (it wasn’t like that in the early days) devotees will
load up on a super heavy meal for breakfast (that is usually eaten too late
due to a much too long morning program), then eat lunch 4 hours later (10 AM
to 2 is 4 hours for you non- mathematicians).

There are many other examples of devotees ignoring reality (such as sleeping
habits, safety habits etc), but my intention is not to attack those things
that are near and dear to you (habits that you may have confused with
Krishna consciousness), but to help you understand how to live longer in the
present body so that you can serve Krishna and Prabhupada with more energy
for a longer period of time.

I state these things simply out of a desire to serve the Vaisnavas. It pains
me to see devotees unnecessarily suffering or leaving their bodies. I have
seen too many of my fellow devotees succumb to illnesses that could have
been prevented, by lifestyle adjustments.

So, please do not be in denial of reality in the name of religion.

I am not going to prescribe a diet for you or lifestyle for you, but I am
going to advise you to do some research into Ayurveda and common sense
nutrition. Don’t do things because: “that’s the way we always did things.”,
or “that’s the way I was taught to do things.”

A number of years ago my health was declining because of improper lifestyle
habits. My diet was full of saturated fats (I loved cheese on everything and
also fried foods in ghee), tons of salt, etc. I got a wake up call when I
collapsed one day with heart pain (it wasn’t an attack but some indication).
I had high blood pressure (180/108 an auspicious number!).

I refused to take medication but chose to change my lifestyle (no salt, more
exercise-even some sports, more rest). I was able to reduce my BP to 118/76
which is completely normal and even great for a person of my age.

About two years ago when I was suffering from some allergic reactions I
decided to reduce the saturated fat (fried foods, pan fried foods, heated
oil, cheese, paneer) in my diet. Now the reactions are gone and my body
feels ten years younger.

I am not saying that my lifestyle is the ideal for everyone nor am I
prescribing it for anyone. I know this body is temporary, but it does belong
to Krishna, and Prabhupada not me, therefore I have to take care of it
nicely as a service.