VARNASRAMA FAQS

In addition to the courses we are offering at our Sahyadri Varnasrama College, we are also in the process of developing courses on-line. You may visit the following site for more information. We have not yet started but will be happy to receive any inquiries. Please visit the site www.global-varnasrama-college.com

For more information on internet courses you may write to Parasurama prabhu at Parasurama.BRS@pamho.net.

For more information on direct courses offered at Sahyadri Varnasrama College, you may write to Hrdoya Caitanya prabhu at brs16108@gmail.com

Srila Prabhupada wanted householders who are not in front line preaching to live in a rural setting (localized living in a village
environment), and to be self-sufficient through natural organic agriculture and cow protection. Srila Prabhupada also gave instructions regarding prasadam and how householders especially can make and sell prasadam.

The real opulence as we learn from the Bhagavatam is in having cows and land. But the first objective for having cows and land is not for selling or making business but for maintenance. There are two most important guidelines:

  • Produce only what you need and
  • Use only what you produce.

From cows, not only is milk important but also cow urine and cow dung. If someone from the Ukraine can come to India, they can learn how to make some 20 different kinds of cow products (these include soap, incense, tooth paste, shampoo for hair, eye drops, etc.) and those can be sold. Devotees may learn how to make fertilizer and manure from cow dung and sell that as well.

From milk, yes, devotees may learn how to make ghee and other milk products. But we should be cautious about getting into a whole business mentality. For our maintenance and for preaching purposes, that is fine, but we must side by side learn to grow our own food.

In his essay called GITA NAGARI that appeared in the 1956 Back to Godhead magazine (you can read that in the Folio or Veda-Base) Srila Prabhupada identifies four ways to identify a person’s varna:

  1. By astrological test (need a qualified astrologer)
  2. By study of family hierarchy or family lineage (going back as many generations as possible)
  3. By observation (simple observation to see the behaviour of someone)
  4. By psychological test (I am not aware of any devotee psychological test but some simple psychological tests have already been worked out that could be used). I am in the process of developing one such test.

This assessment of varna was generally done by learned brahmanas in the village when the boys were between the age of 7 to 12 approximately. Once knowing the varna, that would help them chose the type of education for that student (formal or non-formal) and also would help determine the asrama he may chose later in life.

Each community should decide what standards it wants to follow. This needs to be clearly spelled out before a family decides to join a particular community. This decision is generally made by those who are in the category of brahmana and ksatriya or those who are leaders of the community. Not everyone can be a leader. So every community must have a leader, a ksatriya leader, who is guided by a brahmana or a council of brahmanas.

If I understand correctly, you want to know how a family interested to live in a community but who does not have finances to purchase or build a house can do this. A few things to keep in mind.

  1. Initially housing facilities should be very very modest and simple so that the cost or investment is very less. This means also learning to make houses using local materials. I know that in a country like Ukraine this may not be so easy compared for example to India or other Asian countries where the climate is not at all as severe as in Ukraine. But the idea is the same, making a dwelling as simple and less expensive as possible using local materials.
  2. Before moving on the land or before becoming part of a community, a family will need to work to make some laksmi for making a small house.
  3. In Vedic times, the King would assist in different ways by providing free land, wells or ponds, seeds, tools and construction materials for residence. The closest thing we have to such Vedic Kings are rich devotee householders who can help sponsor a family with the idea that the basic cost for building a house will be repaid within a reasonable period of time.
  4. A community may decide to make a few dwellings in advance to attract serious devotees to come and live under some legal contract or legal agreement whereby the intial investement cost is repaid to the community.
  5. Many things need to be discussed before setting up a community and this requires that those interested to live in a community develop a common vision and work towards realizing this vision.

As devotees we should try and understand the importance of what is called AHIMSA MILK. “Ahimsa milk” is pure organic milk from protected cows. If we know that the cows from these “ordinary people” will not be sent to the slaughterhouse or sold and if the cows are being fed organic food and not being injected with hormones to produce larger quantities of milk, etc.,
then yes, that falls in the category of “ahimsa milk” and devotees can purchase from such ordinary people (in that case because they will not kill or sell the cow, they are not actually “ordinary people”) and offer to Krishna. Best of course that we purchase milk from devotees or that we have our own cows.

I request you to communicate with one of our devotees who is involved in presenting these courses, Hrdoya Caitanya prabhu. You may write to him at the following address: brs16108@gmail.com He will be happy to answer other questions you may have.

Responsibility of – Director/Facilitator for VRT

  1. To help establish local VRT groups in different towns and cities.
  2. To interact with, provide training and help various VRT Group leaders.
  3. To keep in close liaison with the IDVM Secretariat in Mayapur and with other National Departments closely connected with some of the VRT activities.
  4. To cooperate with other departments for their needed research work.
  5. To set up and maintain, a national office where various services relating to the National Department of Varnasrama Research Team will be offered to devotees and to the public at large.
  6. To network and interphase with existing VRT groups in India that are following or desiring to follow the aims and objectives of the Global Varnasrama Mission.
  7. To network and interphase with existing VRT Directors/Facilitators or VRT groups in other countries that are following or desiring to follow the aims and objectives of the Global Varnasrama Mission.
  8. To keep abreast of on-going developments and interests in matters relating to the four varnas (such as traditional education, principles of governance, organic agriculture and cow protection, village technologies) and all matters relating to the principles of self-sufficiency, sustainability, localized living and the like.
  9. To maintain records and reports of VRT groups in India that are registered with the Ministry.
  10. To report to the National Minister and IDVM-IC about the VRT activities.
  11. To collect data and prepare Bi-Monthly and Annual report of VRT activities. To submit the same timely to the IDVM Secretariat.
  12. To prepare proposals to be submitted by the IDVM-India to the ISKCON Bureau.
  13. To keep in regular communication with the Minister of IDVM-India.
  14. To take active part as a member of IDVM-India National Council.

Responsibility of – VRT Core

  1. To lead research on various topics.
  2. To keep updated and provide guidance in matter of research activities being performed by teams or individuals.
  3. To assimilate, review, edit and help build up a repository of knowledge from various researches being done.
  4. To provide directions to various varnasrama research works being performed.
  5. To generate regular research material for publishing to various newspapers, magazine, BTG, websites etc.
  6. To advice the director/facilitator of VRT for better working, coordination and expansion of VRTs.

Responsibility of – VRT Group Leader

  1. To preach and involve more individuals interested in Varnasrama Mission to take up various VRT activities.
  2. To organize regular meetings to inspire and coordinate with VRT group members
  3. To keep in close liaison with the IDVM Secretariat in Mayapur and with other national departments closely connected with some of the VRT activities.
  4. To work closely with various ISKCON entities to promote the varnasrama mission.
  5. To build relation with other secular educational, scientific, social, religious and cultural institutions that may have similar goals and objectives.
  6. To help Core Team coordinate research activities being done by group members.
  7. To help group members systematically compile and share the research work done by them.
  8. To set up and maintain, a local office where various services relating to the VRT will be offered to devotees and to the public at large.
  9. To build a small Library and keep books dealing with Varnasrama Mission.
  10. To prepare Bi – Monthly Report of his team activities and submit the same to VRT Director/Facilitator.
  11. To keep in regular communication with the National VRT Director/Facilitator through mails, meetings etc.

Responsibility of – VRT Group Members

  1. To educate self on the importance of establishing Srila Prabhupada’s varnasrama mission.
  2. To take up various VRT activities or VRT research work as per their inclination and qualities.
  3. To compile and document activity reports or researched information.
  4. To regularly attend and help VRT group leader in various meeting and seminars.

Responsibility of – VRT Webmaster

Ideally this task can be taken up by the group set up by Communications Department (IV Web Group). However if the need arises there can be separate webmaster for VRT.

  1. To create and maintain the required software for online repository site.
  2. To train and help VRT Core and Group leaders in submission/update of research materials.
  3. To update and change materials where the member is not able to do.
  4. To regularly backup both the software and the data.

Co-operation of VRT and other National Departments

It is important to understand that VRT is especially meant to serve as a general support to all the IDVM National departments. VRT work is very broad and overlaps with practically all the major departments but it is not meant to do their work. National Departments specialize in their work.

A VRT member, who having received initial knowledge and training in Varnasrama, may naturally become more interested in a particular service. He could then want to enroll into a National Department providing that service and become part of that particular Department while still being part of the local group. While National Departments recruit directly, they may also recruit from VRT groups. However a VRT member may also opt to do more research or just research on that subject before/without committing to service of any other department. He will have the freedom to do so.

It is also foreseen that an active member of a particular National Department may also start or join a VRT Local Group. While directly preaching from some particular National Department he may want to preach further and train and lend additional support utilizing the facility of VRT.

Research is the need of most of the National Departments. Persons leading research in a particular department or particular subject may (or may not) become part of VRT Core. Any member may who wants to do further research (or just research) on a particular subject may directly approach that department or approach VRT group leader or VRT Core for help and guidance. The Varnasrama Research Team is here to help in facilitating the process of learning, involving, researching, and sharing.

Co-operation between VRTs

The main task of VRT Director/facilitator would be to provide training and assistance to new group leaders so that they become independently thoughtful and competent. The VRT group leaders are meant to work independently devising new ways for spreading the Varnasrama mission and engaging more and more people. It is their responsibility to see that their group members are engaged properly in Krishna consciousness, in line with the instructions given by Srila Prabhupada and also that they are trained up properly to become future leaders.

The next important task of VRT director/facilitator is to help in the sharing process. It helps a lot in sharing and inspiring each other, generating a little healthy competition and challenge. Hence VRT groups are meant to visiting, sharing, serving and helping each other, thus building a good relation which is the key to Varnasrama society.

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