There was a certain crafty tradesman who was an expert in acquiring goods by shady dealing. He had a real talent for unloading some inferior item on a person and getting in return for it something of real value. One day he came home with a load of excellent coconuts. He felt himself very clever…

A very protective mother forbade her son from bathing in the river lest he drown. One day a neighbor said to the woman, “Did you ever stop to think that by your policy of preventing this boy from going to the river you are also preventing him from ever learning that which would really save…

I was very happy with this teaching practice. So many things that I had only theoretically conceived of were brought to into some resolution here. I have to admit also that the points stressed in Prof Studies class were indeed the things that gave me a good start with my students. They were also the…

A young man named Kaminimohan lived in Nabadwip. He was very introverted, and didn’t like to leave the confines of his own home. When a friend invited him to come with him to Mayapura Dhama and hear a lecture by a great personality on Krsna-bhakti, Kaminimohan was very reluctant to go. So the friend, eager…

A certain learned pandit named Bhagavan was much favored by his king. This special royal patronage also earned him the envy of the king’s regular ministers. These ministers hatched a curious plot to drive Bhagavan out of the land. They informed the palace guards that the king no longer wished Bhagavan to set foot in…

Today my son was born. Sheldon Janardana Pattillo weighed 4kg – born @ 5:32 am

On September 17th, 2004 at 5:32am our son Sukha-sindhu das was born amidst the chanting of the holy names and the loving supervision of the devotee mothers here in Christchurch, New Zealand. Specifically Ramila Mataji, Saci Mataji and Pandurani Mataji were overwhelmingly helpful in assisting my wife Seva Kunja dasi through the entire birth. We…

This morning, September 17th at 5:32 AM New Zealand time, our son was born. His name is Sheldon Janardana Pattillo. (pronounced: Janaardan) He weighed in at exactly 4KG (8lbs 13oz). He is a quiet baby (so far) and is in good health. I will post more here as I get the chance. Love, Edward

A wealthy landlord established a temple and arranged for elaborate worship and costly offerings. He engaged a priest whose character was not very good. The priest, now responsible for opulence far beyond his wildest dreams, thought, “So many valuable ornaments! So much nice foodstuff! And all I get is a measly monthly salary. I’d like…

Two very lazy persons lived jointly in a room. One winter night the house they lived in caught fire. Their room soon was burning on all sides. One of the lazy persons, feeling extreme heat on his back, awoke. But he was too lazy to even open his eyes. He alerted his friend by merely…

Today I taught a few classes. They had photo shoots which really stuffed up my lessons. I guess that’s all part of the job though so I better get used to that stuff happening. What that translates into is not simply doing the lesson tommorrow that we had planned today – no, we have to…

A village pandit was very devoted to the memory of his departed father. He used to say, “The father is God incarnate. We are able to enjoy earthly pleasures by his mercy only. I do not accept any other deity except that of my father.” The pandita’s favorite verse was pita svarga pita dharma pita…

Today went pretty smoothly – nothign too exciting though. The students took to my design lesson pretty enthusiatically. That’s good because they will be doing it for the next three lessons. As we were told in Prof Studies – preparation is so essential to good teaching. As a new teacher I can see that if…

This expression, “the right whip for the right dog”, derives from a verse spoken by Srila Sukadeva Gosvami in SB Canto 10, chapter 68, verse 31: nunam nanamadonnaddhah santim necchantyasadhavah tesam hi prasamo dandah pasunam lagno yatha [Lord Balarama said] “Clearly the many passions of these scoundrels have made them so proud that they do…

Today I taught a few classes. One was on databases. It was interesting because I made a few mistakes in my teaching. I accidentally chose an example that did not work out according to plan. It was glaringly obvious that I did not think this out well ahead of time – but I’m glad I…