archives

"America's most media-savvy Hindu priest". Hindu priests listen up.

1. Define the agenda - make everyone else respond to it. Zed does not release press releases in response to other people's press releases. He's making the news. He looks for opportunities to create newsworthy events as a strategic platform.
2. Keep pushing your strategic agenda in every press release. In Zed's case he has three things that he is promoting, no matter what else is in his press release: that he is an acclaimed Hindu leader (promoting himself as an authoritative spokesman), that Hinduism has a billion followers and is the third most popular religion in the world (seeking respect for Hinduism and Hindus), and that Hinduism's goal is moksha (promoting a unifying element of an otherwise diverse phenomenon - one that potentially excludes/marginalizes ISKCON). In contrast, see if you can discern ISKCON's Hindu leadership strategy from our press releases. It's not so clear. I couldn't tell you what it is, and I'm a member of the organization.
3. Write your press release as a print-ready article. Zed writes his press release like a news article, and many news sources simply reprint it as is. Readers want to feel the people in the story. Even if you use "we" - have a person say it: "'We believe this,' says Joe Bloggs, senior leader of the organization." In contrast, the ISKCON NA press release has no person in it. You can't have a story without a person. This will reduce its spread.
4. Send it to everyone, personally. Zed sends his press releases to my email inbox. Beat that. No seriously, beat that.
5. Keep on keepin' on. Rajan Zed has a crystal clear strategy and he is working to it. He's not sitting around waiting to react - he's proactively seeking openings to promote his strategic agenda. Two points there - 1. Have a strategic agenda, 2. Pursue it, relentlessly.

Mahaprabhu's strategy was to "hijack" Hinduism - not simply go along for the ride.

Salient points from a recent sermon, courtesy of Pastor Perry Noble - see if you can work these into a class:

• The definition of diligence is doing a little thing a long time until something big happens.
• You will never win if you keep quitting!
• When you are preparing you are out of step with today but in step with what is happening tomorrow.
• The church waits on the world to create a problem & then responds to it–we need to do church in a way that puts the world on its heels!
• Having to be inspired to do what is right is the lowest form of maturity!
• There are people who don’t mind if you fail…but it really bothers them if you succeed.
• Gossip is a symptom of an unfulfilled, boring life. The only way you can focus on my life is because there is nothing happening in yours!
• I want you to be so focused on your future that you don’t have time to talk about other people’s past!

Our son, Prahlad Narasingha Wulf Felix, turned 6 on June 17th, while we were in Cairns. Here he is with his new t-shirt and a statue of Hanuman that Acyuta Bhava gave him.

We flew back to Brisbane that day so he had two celebrations, breakfast in Cairns, and dinner at Atma Yoga. Adina-lila took some photos in the evening. Here's the morning's breakfast - all sweet...

From the age of 0-5 is called kaumaram, or childhood, in Sanskrit. From 6 onwards is called yauvanam or youth. Prahlad has gone from being a child to being a young boy.

The change in him happened overnight. Just like his first birthday, which was in the ISKCON temple in Lima, Peru, where we lived at the time. At the birthday party itself he got up and started walking, right in front of all the guests.

Similarly, he went from one day where he couldn't sleep without snuggling up to me to becoming more independent and self determining.

This is an interesting period of transition now. Up to this point he has not been responsible for what he does. From this point on he takes more responsibility for his actions and the outcomes.

I miss him as a child, but I am excited about the opportunity to help him to grow as a youth. It is helping me to become more conscious and responsible for my actions and the outcomes.

All things in this world must pass, but while they are here before us we have the duty to steward them responsibly. This world is temporary, and it is real.

Brisbane Hindus are preparing to protest outside local theaters screening Mike Myer's new film "The Love Guru" when it opens in Brisbane on July 10.

Brisbane Hindu leader Sita Pati said that the protest is part of a worldwide Hindu backlash against the movie's disrespectful portrayal of sacred Hindu traditions.

Spearheaded by the Universal Society of Hinduism, a global umbrella group for Hindus, the reaction to the movie has mobilised many different Hindu groups. Hinduism is a culture as well as a religion, and many different groups fall under the broad banner of "Hinduism". The response to the movie has united many of these groups in opposition to the movie.

Paramount initially agreed to prescreen the movie for Hindu leaders, but later recanted.

"Paramount would never dare to release a movie that treated Islam in this way." says Sita Pati. "As we saw with the Danish cartoons, disrespect for religious tradition can lead to violence."

More than 100 people were killed in 2005 during worldwide protests following the publication of a series of cartoons mocking sacred Islamic icons in a Danish newspaper.

Local Hindu protestors, however, are more likely to protest by handing out flowers than throwing rocks, evoking images of the famous Hindu advocate of non-violent resistance, Mahatma Gandhi.

The aim of the protest, according to Sita Pati, is to raise awareness of the effects of religious intolerance and insensitivity. "In our increasingly multicultural Australia Hindus are not people living in some foreign country - they are people living next door. It's important to treat each other with respect and understanding. We're not going to knock anyone down, but we're not going to take it lying down either. Hindus are Aussies too!"

Sita Pati hasn't seen the movie "The Love Guru" but says: "Mike Myers has his hilarious moments. I was into heavy metal as a teenager, before joining Hinduism, and I laughed at Wayne's World. Now that Myers has gone on to lampoon Hindus, I'm starting to wonder if he's following me."

Sita Pati, born Joshua Wulf in Auckland, New Zealand, was ordained as a Hindu priest in the Gaudiya Vaisnava sect in 2002.

The Gaudiya Vaisnava branch of Hinduism, popularly known as the Hare Krishnas, is the most well-known and fastest growing branch of Hinduism among western converts. It is a monotheistic faith, similar to Christianity, Judaism, and Islam in its belief in a single supreme God.

The Hare Krishnas are well known throughout Australia for their vegetarian food and for brightening cities streets with their singing and dancing.

The Love Guru, a Paramount Pictures comedy starring Mike Myers (of "Austin Powers" fame), Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake, Ben Kingsley; and directed by Marco Schnabel opens in Australia on July 10.