The Real Saint Patrick

St. Patrick of Ireland is one of the world's most popular saints.

Apostle of Ireland, born at Kilpatrick, near Dumbarton, in Scotland, in the year 387; died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, 17 March, 461.

Along with St. Nicholas and St. Valentine, the secular world shares our love of these saints. This is also a day when everyone's Irish.

There are many legends and stories of St. Patrick, but this is his story.

Patrick was born around 385 in Scotland, probably Kilpatrick. His parents were Calpurnius and Conchessa, who were Romans living in Britian in charge of the colonies.

As a boy of fourteen or so, he was captured during a raiding party and taken to Ireland as a slave to herd and tend sheep. Ireland at this time was a land of Druids and pagans. He learned the language and practices of the people who held him.

During his captivity, he turned to God in prayer. He wrote

"The love of God and his fear grew in me more and more, as did the faith, and my soul was rosed, so that, in a single day, I have said as many as a hundred prayers and in the night, nearly the same." "I prayed in the woods and on the mountain, even before dawn. I felt no hurt from the snow or ice or rain."

Patrick's captivity lasted until he was twenty, when he escaped after having a dream from God in which he was told to leave Ireland by going to the coast. There he found some sailors who took him back to Britian, where he reunited with his family.

He had another dream in which the people of Ireland were calling out to him "We beg you, holy youth, to come and walk among us once more."

He began his studies for the priesthood. He was ordained by St. Germanus, the Bishop of Auxerre, whom he had studied under for years.

Later, Patrick was ordained a bishop, and was sent to take the Gospel to Ireland. He arrived in Ireland March 25, 433, at Slane. One legend says that he met a chieftain of one of the tribes, who tried to kill Patrick. Patrick converted Dichu (the chieftain) after he was unable to move his arm until he became friendly to Patrick.

Patrick began preaching the Gospel throughout Ireland, converting many. He and his disciples preached and converted thousands and began building churches all over the country. Kings, their families, and entire kingdoms converted to Christianity when hearing Patrick's message.

Patrick by now had many disciples, among them Beningnus, Auxilius, Iserninus, and Fiaac, (all later canonized as well).

Patrick preached and converted all of Ireland for 40 years. He worked many miracles and wrote of his love for God in Confessions. After years of living in poverty, traveling and enduring much suffering he died March 17, 461.

He died at Saul, where he had built the first church.

Why a shamrock?

Patrick used the shamrock to explain the Trinity, and has been associated with him and the Irish since that time.

In His Footsteps:

Patrick was a humble, pious, gentle man, whose love and total devotion to and trust in God should be a shining example to each of us. He feared nothing, not even death, so complete was his trust in God, and of the importance of his mission. 

Info on St. Patrick was taken from Catholic Online.

Glorifying Srimati Radhika

"Radharani is a beautiful crescent moon of nectar born from the ocean of Vrsabhanu's family. The line of red vermilion decorating the lovely part of Radha's hai looks like a sweet river of nectar. I pray that my mind remains eternally fixed on Radhika, who becomes stunned with love for Krsna whenever She hears about His transcendental form and qualities. Kishori binds Her beautiful braids with delicate, fragrant jasmine flowers. Radha's large lotus eyes, restless with amorous desires, condemn the agile movements of khanjana birds.

"Radha's walking is more graceful than the gait of a regal mad elephant. Kishor's sweet golden limbs are more charming than the petals of a golden campaka flower. The golden creepers of Radharani's tender arms are decorated with jeweled armlets and bracelets. The astonishingly wonderful loveliness of Radha's divine form constantly enchants all the beautifulyoung girls of Vraja.

"Radharani's gently smiling face conquers the elegance of the full moon. Condensed fresh sweetness has appeared as Radha's lovely broad hips, which are bound by strings of bells. A wonderfullycolorful blouse conceals the beautiful golden waterpots of Radhika's large breasts. Radha's glossy red lips fillSyama's mind with a great longing to taste the delicious nectar therein. Radharani's shapely chin is splendidly anointed with a charming dot of musk. A large radiant pearl inlaid with gold and jewels hangs from Radha's pretty nose.

"Radhika's blissful divine form is the essence of the sweet ocean of beauty surging with waves of love for Syama. The deer of Krsna's eyes has fallen into the well of nectar known as Radha's enchanting navel. A red sari encircles Radha's divine body, which is made even made more dazzling by Her brilliant earrings, necklaces and anklets. Kishori trembles with amorous passion whenever She sees Gokulacnadra's footprints on the forest path. Those whose hearts are greedy to taste the nectar of vraja-rasa must glorify the incomparably beautiful transcendental body of Radhika as per the descriptions of the expert s in Vrndavana mellows."

                                         -Govinda das Kaviraja
                                           Sangita-Madhava

                                           

Psalm 141

 O Lord, I call to You; come quickly to me.

Hear my voice when I call to You.
May my prayer be set before You like incense;
may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.


Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord;
keep watch over the door of my lips.


Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil,
to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers;
let me not eat of their delicacies.


Let a righteous man strike me-it is a kindness;
let him rebuke me-it is oil on my head.
My head will not refuse it.


Yet my prayer is ever against the deeds of evildoers;
their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,
and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.They will say, "As one plows and breaks up the earth,
so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave."


But my eyes are fixed on You, O Sovereign Lord;
in You I take refuge-do not give me over to death.
Keep me from the snares they have laid for me,
from the traps set by evildoers.
Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by in safety.

Four Qualities

" Sri caitanya Mahaprabhu destroyed the pride of Kandarpa when He stayed in the house of Ramananda. He exhibited His neutrality in the house of Damodara. He taught patience during His stay at the house of Haridas, and He taught humility through Rupa and Sanatana. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu taught all people the four Qualities of a devotee- continence, neutrality, patience, and humility."
                            - From Bhakti-Ratnakara

Mountain Air

Clouds in arms length
Sheds my heart of all fear
In the distance is God's breath
Inhale love... Inhale wisdom


Sunbeams warming
Snow seeks it's shelter in the shade
Chanting in the cool air

The mountain silence makes it easier to concentrate

Christ Mass

By Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupada

From Krishna Kathamrita Bindu issue 241 (The entire issue can be read or downloaded here: http://www.gopaljiu.org/bindu )

Question: If Jesus Christ was a jagad-guru and his instructions are capable of bringing us deliverance, why do we need a spiritual master?

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Prabhupada: We accept both the universal spiritual master and the initiating spiritual master. By accepting only the jagad-guru, we may face many anarthas. If at present we want to follow Christ’s orders by accepting him as jagad-guru and we think we do not require an initiating spiritual master, we will certainly face doubt about how well we can follow Christ’s orders. The Supreme Lord or universal jagad-guru delivers his instructions about the absolute truth only through the disciplic succession. As I sit on the bank of the Ganga in Nabadwip, far from the Himalayas where the Ganga originates, and am able to touch her water here, the initiating spiritual master similarly brings the Ganga of pure devotional service, which emanates from the lord’s lotus feet, and places it in my hand and on my head. Because I am an ordinary, powerless, poor person, I am not able to climb the Himalayas to touch her water there. Similarly, if the flow of the Ganga from the Himalayas is interrupted on the way, I would have to face the danger of accepting a polluted flow instead of the pure Ganga. If the instructions Jesus Christ gave two thousand years ago do not come to us through disciplic succession, or if we have to sort them out from books, then perhaps we may create a blunder and accept a perversion of the truth taught in the name of Christianity. We may even come to accept something opposite from what he taught, thinking it his actual philosophy.

The initiating spiritual master is also jagad-guru because he is a manifestation of the original jagad-guru. Out of his causeless mercy he delivers the message of the original jagad-guru through the disciplic succession. He does not cheat or flatter the disciple, nor does he yearn for any material gain. He is simply a messenger of the absolute truth.

— Amrta Vani, p. 44. Touchstone Media. Mumbai. 2004.

Moving Water

A beautiful poem by Rumi:

"When you do things from your soul, you feel a moving in you, a joy.


When actions come from another section, the feeling disappears. Don't let others lead you.


They may be blind or, worse, vultures. Reach for the rope of God.


And what is that? Putting aside self-will. 
Because of willfulness people sit in jail, the trapped bird's wings are tied, fish sizzle in the skillet.


The anger of police is willfulness. You've seen a magistrate inflict visible punishment. 


Now see the invisible. If you could leave your selfishness, you would see how you've been torturing your soul. 


We are born and live inside black water in a well.


How could we know what an open field of sunlight is? Don't insist on going where you think you want to go. 


Ask the way to the spring. Your living pieces will form a harmony.


There is a moving palace that floats in the air with balconies and clear water flowing through, infinity everywhere, yet contained under a single tent."