namahatta.org - Congregational Development Ministry

This week the ISKCON New Govardhana farming project in Australia received organic certification from the national Organic Growers Association. After several rigorous inspections, the farm was granted a certificate of compliance which allows all fruit and vegetables grown to carry the official OGA logo.

It's me, leading a discussion on "The Real Cost of the Necessities of Life".

I'll be using these two articles:

• Walking to the shops ‘damages planet more than going by car’
• Why walking to the shops might not damage the planet "more than going by car" after all

In a discussion with professors from the University of Durban (Oct 8, 1975) Srila Prabhupada proclaims “forget religion.” Prabhupada wants the discussion to revolve around very practical and scientific principles. He goes on to say that “knowledge of God should be (have a) practical application in life.” The idea of presenting the practically of Krishna Consciousness was one of the reoccurring themes in his converstaions.

So in a world that has indeed forgotten religion, or distorted religious principles, the preaching, more and more, has to make Krishna consciousness relevant to people’s lives in a practical way. And maya, in serving the devotees, is more and more turning the materialistic culture topsy-turvy and thus giving devotees the opportunity to offer solutions.

The article that I linked to the other day, Why I changed my mind about Water Fluoridation poignantly illustrates the dynamic that I described in my 2006 article What's really going on?

Most people are innocent and easily mislead. They in turn mislead others. A "conspiracy" doesn't require people to keep a secret, it just requires them to truly believe in what they are doing, even though it's wrong.

by HH Jayadvaita Maharaja

Twenty years ago, no one gave a damn. You could gum up a river with factory sludge, chop down rain forests wholesale, spray fluorocarbons into the air like a kid sprinkling confetti, and no one would say boo.

No longer. Grade-school kids want to grow up to be ecologists. New York tycoons sort their trash to recycle. Rock singers play concerts to save prairies and wetlands. Political candidates tell us they’re worried about the fate of the three-toed baboon.

Caring about the environment helps you feel good about yourself. At the supermarket you choose paper instead of plastic. You write your thank-you notes on cards made from ground-up newsprint and cotton waste. You chip in a few dollars for Greenpeace. Hey, you care about the earth. You’re a righteous human being.