Why vaccinations against COVID-19 is the best "mature" choice for all devotees who preach all around the World.
Sadly I notice that many of the very small minority of anti-vaxxers out there, are also less intelligent flat earthers or silly conspiracy theorists.
Here is a Srila Prabhupada pastime on accepting medical care from Western medical doctors, plus the reason why seven senior ISKCON devotees are getting the COVID-19 vaccine -
1 - In early February 1973 in Sydney Australia, Srila Prabhupada developed an infection on his finger from a paper cut while opening mail.
The infected finger got worse over a few days and eventually Prabhupada asked for a doctor who could give him penicillin.
We did this and a doctor came and gave him penicillin that healed his infected finger in a day.
However, one young immature devotee was confused. He saw that Prabhupada was always constantly chanting Hare Krishna, translating Srimad Bhagavatam's 3rd Canto and preaching to the devotees. This devotee could not understand why Krishna did not personally protect His pure devotee.
So this young boy asked Prabhupada,
''You are always chanting Krishna's name, working late at night translating Sastra into English and preaching to the devotees, why didn't Krishna personally heal your finger that caused you so much discomfort?''
Srila Prabhupada smiled and answered the boy showing great faith in Lord Krishna,
''Oh yes Krishna was so kind He immediately helped me, it was Krishna who sent me the Doctor who gave me the penicillin that healed my finger''.
The lesson here is, it's not that Krishna has to personally appear and wave some magic wand and heal his pure devotee, no, it does not work that way, the fact is Krishna wants us to do everything we can to help ourselves, then He will give us what we lack as Bhagavad Gita tells us.
''God helps those who helps themselves''
This is the secret of spiritual life. END
2 - Why I Decided to Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19.
By Indradyumna Swami, ISKCON Guru and GBC.
In light of the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the development of COVID-19 vaccines, many of my students have inquired whether they should get vaccinated or not.
As a result, I wish to share my views on this matter with my students and those who look to me for advice.
Of course, the final decision whether or not to get vaccinated rests with each individual.
After consulting several devotee doctors who have literally saved my life on five separate occasions (three instances of deadly forms of cancer and two instances of septicemia), I decided to get vaccinated and did so March 2, 2021.
These devotee doctors are highly educated, caring and experienced medical professionals.
As I am a layman in medical matters, I prefer to put my faith in such devotee doctors rather than in the unfounded anti-vaccination theories that abound.
I am no stranger to vaccines, or to put it bluntly: I am alive today because I got vaccinated.
As a young boy, I was vaccinated with a precursor to the current vaccination for meningitis.
When meningitis raged through my neighborhood and school, I contracted a less severe case of the disease because I had been vaccinated.
As a result, I survived. Three boys in my school who did not get vaccinated were not as fortunate. They died.
When poliomyelitis (polio), a crippling and potentially deadly infectious disease, broke out in the 1950s, my parents had me vaccinated for that too.
Steven Rushmore, a friend who lived down the street, didn’t get vaccinated. His parents were skeptical of the vaccine.
Steven subsequently contracted polio and was left permanently paralyzed.
In 1995, I was on my way to preach in Mozambique while that country was in the grip of yellow fever. I was advised to get vaccinated, but the vaccination sounded scary.
Being uncertain, I consulted my godbrother, Pusta Krishna Prabhu (Paul Dossick, MD, FACS), who had been Srila Prabhupada’s personal secretary.
I asked Pusta Krishna if Srila Prabhupada had ever gotten vaccinated against yellow fever in order to preach in Africa.
Pusta Krishna confirmed that Prabhupada had. So I did too. Pusta Krishna also mentioned that Prabhupada had gotten vaccinated against the flu on several occasions.
For me, getting vaccinated against COVID-19 was a matter of common sense. Yes, there may be mild reactions to the vaccine and even severe reactions in rare cases, but these are the exceptions to the rule.
What is much more dangerous is that COVID-19 has taken the lives of more than 2.5 million people in the past year.
And there are more than 110 million people who have become infected with COVID-19.
Who can imagine how high the final death toll may be? Just in the United States alone in 12 months, COVID-19 has killed 525,000 people!
That is more American deaths than were killed in World War I, World War 2, Korea, Vietnam and Gulf wars combined over the same period of time!
I agree with the doctors and scientists that if a significant percentage of us get vaccinated, we will be able to get back to living a “normal life.”
And when normal life resumes, Lord Caitanya’s saṅkīrtana movement can get back into full swing, curing people of the real disease, forgetfulness of Krishna. END.
3 - Why I Decided to Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19
By Nrsimhananda Prabhu ACBSP
At the age of 73 years, I am in the so-called “high risk category” for COVID-19 so I decided to get vaccinated.
My vaccination story, however, begins in the 1950s when I was a child and another virus was overtaking America and the world.
As a small boy, I saw scary magazine photos of young children lying inside riveted, cylindrical devices called “iron lungs” (now relics of the past).
Polio, an infectious viral disease affecting the central nervous system, was crippling kids like me or paralyzing their diaphragms so that many couldn’t breath without this “iron lung.”
At the height of the polio outbreak of my childhood, the disease was infecting nearly 60,000 children annually.
Spread virally like COVID-19 today, polio proved fatal for two out of three victims afflicted with paralysis.
Dr. Jonas Salk and Dr. Albert Sabin were virologists who developed separate vaccines to combat the dreaded polio virus, One vaccine was made from killed virus and the other from live virus.
Though millions of parents rushed to get their young children vaccinated, teenagers weren’t interested.
In those days a rock’n’roll singer named Elvis Presley made a guest appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, the most popular TV show of the time.
Unknown to his TV audience of millions, Elvis wasn’t there just to perform. Before singing “Hound Dog,” Elvis rolled up his sleeve and got vaccinated.
Despite the literally crippling effects of the virus and the promising results of vaccination, many Americans simply weren’t getting vaccinated. In fact, before Elvis famously appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, immunization levels among U.S. teens were at an abysmal 0.6 percent.
After Elvis got his jab on the The Ed Sullivan Show, vaccination rates among U.S. youth soared to 80 percent after just six months.
As a veteran of many surgeries from bunions to open heart, I have experienced the benefits of medical science, whether allopathic, Ayurvedic, Chinese or herbalogic.
Many devotees are still with us due to Krishna’s mercy and the sophistication of medical science. Prabhupada told us to use “whatever works.”
Nearly all public health authorities, epidemiologists and virologists recommend getting vaccinated against COVID-19.
Our ISKCON devotee doctors advocate getting vaccinated as well. Why should I dismiss the judgment of hundreds of devotee doctors who are members of the Bhakti Vedanta Medical Association?
Or the learned conclusions of the Chief Physician of the Bhaktivedanta Hospital & Research Institute in Mumbai?
Or the decisions of a majority of GBC members who have gotten vaccinated or are planning to get vaccinated despite the absence of any official GBC policy recommending vaccination against COVID-19?
I have been the beneficiary of the good intentions and talents of medical professionals.
There is always a chance of an adverse reaction, but the risk is statistically insignificant.
Srila Prabhupada got vaccinated. His actions speak louder than any words. END.
4 - Why I Decided that Getting Vaccinated Against COVID-19 Was the Right Choice for Me
By Vaiśeṣika Dāsa
While getting vaccinated against COVID-19, I remembered these words from Āyurveda-śāstra: auṣadhi cintayet viṣṇum.
When taking medicine, one must remember Viṣṇu because ultimately He is the active ingredient that makes any medicine potent.
More prominent in my mind, however, was my recollection of Śrīla Prabhupada’s mood when it came to vaccinations, or for that matter, his approach to life in general.
Srila Prabhupada once nonchalantly commented “All right, let us have,” when getting vaccinated against the Hong Kong flu.
Perhaps he got vaccinated due to his need to travel internationally for preaching, or perhaps at the behest of his disciples. For whatever reason, he got vaccinated and moved on with his mission.
In his approach to life, Śrīla Prabhupāda meticulously followed his guru, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, who emphasized preaching over building temples, solitary bhajana and sometimes even over following some of the details of devotional practice.
For example, he once told a disciple to honor mahā-prasādam on Ekādaśī so that the disciple would have sufficient strength to go out preaching.
This mood is consistent with that of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, who taught us that rules and regulations should not be the masters but the servants of devotional service.
Śrīla Prabhupāda followed this mood. In America, when ISKCON’s book distributors began traveling town-to-town in vans to distribute books, a controversy arose.
These traveling preachers were buying food in grocery stores and offering it to pictures of Śrīla Prabhupāda and Kṛṣṇa in their vans.
An ISKCON leader wrote to Śrīla Prabhupāda complaining that these devotees were not eating prasādam because their bhoga was not offered directly to the Deities in the temple.
However, Śrīla Prabhupāda not only sanctioned the simple in-van offerings but also noted that these offerings would be consumed in the transcendental sacrificial fire of saṇkīrtana.
Śrīla Prabhupāda and Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta prioritized preaching and therefore accepted practical and readily-available means to keep the preaching moving and expanding.
Both of these ācāryas were at times criticized for their utilitarian approaches to spreading the saṇkīrtana movement.
One may ask why take any precaution at all since we are devotees and Kṛṣṇa protects His devotees.
Śrīla Prabhupāda answers this question in his purport to Śrīmad-Bhagavatam 7.9.19, a verse in which Śrī Prahlāda says that without the Lord’s sanction, a doctor’s treatment cannot help a sick patient, parents cannot protect their children, and a boat on water cannot protect a drowning man.
Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “One should consequently depend fully on the causeless mercy of the Lord. Although as a matter of routine duty one must of course accept other remedial measures”
We depend fully on the causeless mercy of the Lord. And yes, we also accept other remedial measures.
All of us in this material world are in an awkward situation. Although we are wholly spiritual beings, we are ensconced in matter. In his purport to Śrī Īśopaniṣad 11, Śrīla Prabhupāda explains how to balance our spiritual practices with the material aspect of our lives:
“To make the best use of a bad bargain is the appropriate expression. The culture of spiritual knowledge necessitates the help of the body and mind; therefore maintenance of the body and mind is required if we are to reach our goal.”
Still, even as we strive to make the best use of this bad bargain, our decisions must facilitate the successful execution of our devotional service.
As Lord Kṛṣṇa says in the Gītā 18.48 “Every endeavor is covered by some fault, just as fire is covered by smoke.”
And Śrīla Prabhupāda comments in his purport that “one should not give up his natural occupation because there are some disturbing elements.
Rather, one should be determined to serve the Supreme Lord by his occupational duty in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is perfection.
When a particular type of occupation is performed for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord, all the defects in that particular occupation are purified. When the results of work are purified through their connection with devotional service, one becomes perfect in seeing the self within, and that is self-realization.”
Our Vaiṣṇava śāstras give us numerous examples of great souls who were confronted with difficult decisions while executing their devotional duties.
Lord Śiva was asked to save the world by consuming an ocean of poison. Dadhīci Muni was asked to donate his bones. My favorite example is when Arjuna was momentarily stymied after receiving contradictory advice about killing Aśvattāmā.
While Draupadī pleaded for Arjuna to spare Aśvattāmā’s life, Bhīma insisted that he be killed. Meanwhile, Kṛṣṇa tested Arjuna by telling him that he had to satisfy both Bhīma and Draupadī by the result of his decision.
Śrīla Prabhupāda writes, “Contradictory orders of different persons are impossible to carry out. Therefore, a compromise was selected by Arjuna by his sharp intelligence . . .” (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.7.55, purport) Kṛṣṇa inspired Arjuna from within to spare Aśvattāmā’s life and to cut only the jewel from his hair, accomplishing the intentions of both sides.
Contentiousness abounds in this world. Indeed, Āyurveda-śāstra sometimes prescribes the use of poison or ordinarily forbidden animal products in its remedies.
Historically, pandemics, such as smallpox and Spanish flu, have aroused a special brand of contentiousness. COVID-19 and the ways people deal with COVID-19 are no exception.
During the process of considering whether or not to get vaccinated, I received conflicting advice and remembered Arjuna’s dilemma.
Although I am no Arjuna, I decided to follow his lead by basing my decision on my master’s example and precepts.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, who famously described the entire material world “a colossal hoax,” got vaccinated on at least one occasion and went on spreading the saṇkīrtana movement.
My heart goes out to those who are agonizing over getting or not getting vaccinated. Because so many devotees have personally written or called me, asking what I think about this issue, I have written this short essay to explain my own choice.
When I was sixteen years old, I chose to follow Śrīla Prabhupāda. Now I’m 64 and still rise early each morning to follow Śrīla Prabhupāda’s example throughout the day.
In getting vaccinated, my intention was simply to follow what Śrīla Prabhupāda did as he pushed on the saṇkīrtana movement in the mood of his spiritual master. END
5 - Why I Decided That Getting Vaccinated Was the Right Choice for Me
By Bhakti Bhringa Govinda Swami
Many times in life we have heard the saying, “A single twig will break, but the bundle of twigs is strong.”
For practicing devotees the connotation was that we always live, practice, and teach in the society of like-minded Vaisnavas. Then we will maintain spiritual strength.
Yet, this past year has given us a new perspective on the simple understanding that in unity we remain strong and withstand weakness.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been a once-in-a-century event that has changed all our lives.
• Festivals, roaring kirtans, invigorating close association with peers and senior Vaisnavas;
• Walking the fields of Vraja from Javat to Ter Kadamba to Asesvara Mahadeva on cool Kartik mornings … with loving groups of katha absorbing devotees; and
• Govardhan and Barsana parikramas, the cool moonlit kirtans beneath the Bakula Tree in the courtyard of Radha Raman Bagicha.
All this very quickly and drastically changed.
As the death toll increased, we were updated on the best practices to avoid getting and spreading the virus. We adapted, as a bundle of twigs, to stay strong.
We stopped traveling, stayed inside as much as possible, started wearing masks and undertook the austerity of smelling our own breath, not just to protect ourselves but to protect others we love and contact.
We took up social distancing. For me this was a challenge as I’m a natural hugger and backslapper. But even I refocused and adapted.
And, I washed my hand-size down from XX Large to a lean medium.
It was an abrupt crash course on a new way of life. But to keep the bundle of twigs strong I adapted. And for better or worse, I, and my close friends, are still here.
Now this brings us forward to vaccines, which I see as another adaptation to remain strong as a group.
As a child my parents had me get all the vaccinations. I got vaccinated for smallpox, diptheria, tetanus, polio, measles, and mumps. I still remember the little scab on my arm from the smallpox vaccine.
My favourite was the polio vaccine that was administered on a sugar cube.
Needless to say, none of my friends ever got those diseases. I can remember at one point coming to India, and I was instructed that I had to get a Hepatitis B vaccine that was made from something not so amenable to Vaisnavism. But to enter the country to do my seva I got the jab.
I recall taking tetanus updates every time I stepped on a rusty nail. And I’ve heard that Srila Prabhupada got vaccinated a few times in his 12 years of world wide preaching, which brings me to the point:
I’ve always done these things to help not only me, but our world family, to remain strong as a bundle of sticks.
In discussion with my doctor friends I’ve understood that beating the COVID-19 pandemic will require a whopping 75% of the world population getting a vaccination.
Then the bundle of twigs will be strong and won’t be broken.
Thus I made a personal decision to get vaccinated against COVID-19. and got my first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine at Vimhans Hospital in New Delhi.
It was painless, and I had no ill effects.
I did not howl at the moon last night, had my full spiritual program today, did beautiful puja of Giriraja and all of His friends, did a fine exercise session and was slamming sets of 20 KG hammers, and put the cherry on the cake this evening by going beyond Devi Atas Village to Vanya Organic Farms where we had an outside, socially distanced kirtan, with our new friends from 11 Flowers Vegetarian Restaurant in Vrindavan.
It was great prasadam, wonderful sanga, sweet Holy Names, no monkeys and no mosquitos.
My dear friends,
My health decisions are my own, and your health decisions are your own. But I feel that together we can beat this pandemic.
If you don’t like that, I trust my professional devotee doctors, scientific data I have read,
I’m 70 years old and make decisions that I feel are good, not only for me, but for the good of us all;
Well, I offer you my humble obeisances.
But it has been said, “To each his own.”
Yes, death is the most certain aspect of life. Yet this last year has played way too much havoc for everyone around the world.
Scientific data has told us that 75% of the world population will need a jab to wipe out this pandemic.
My life has been dedicated to helping others, stopping birth and death, not only for me but for the whole bundle of twigs.
Or as Krishna has said,
“The living entities in this world are my eternal fragmental parts. Due to conditioned life they are struggling hard with the six senses, which includes the mind.”
Naturally, the best help is to offer guidance for self-realisation in Krishna consciousness.
Yet, getting vaccinated can help us all hang on just a little longer to achieve that goal.
So, this is just another chapter in the long story of Govinda Swami.
Please think seriously, make good decisions and do the best for yourself and the benefit of all.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.
6 -Why I Decided That Getting Vaccinated Was the Right Choice for Me
By Radhanath Swami
Many devotees who are very dear to me have physically departed from this world due to the Covid-19 virus. This breaks my heart.
Srila Prabhupada desired that we do the needful to take care of our health. Our health belongs to Srila Prabhupada.
Sincere devotees who are specialist doctors of Allopathy, Ayurveda, and Homeopathy have all strongly urged me to get vaccinated.
Out of respect for them and their care, knowledge and experience, I have been vaccinated against Covid-19.
Regarding personal health, each devotee has the responsibility to decide what is best for him or her. Since several devotees have asked me, I have written this personal statement to share my concerns and let them know what I have done. End
7 -Why I Decided that Getting Vaccinated Against COVID-19 Was the Right Choice for Me
To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate that is the Question!
The answer to this question is not so simple. In this short essay I would like to present my thought processes.
First of all, I do not blindly accept any of the information that has been presented in the lay media either pro or con.
In addition before making any decision especially decisions regarding health, I weigh different factors; especially the risk factors.
Everything we do in this world is risky. As we hear from the Bhagavatam there is “danger at every step.” As far as accidents are concerned, it appears that most occur at home.
Then some occur at public places, the work place and of course on the road. But no one would avoid one’s home
Of course, accidents are not the only cause of bodily harm or death. There are diseases, trauma (physical and mental), medical malpractice, etc.
Living in this world means constantly making judgments to minimize risk. However one can never eliminate risk.
For example a few years ago I had a problem with a hernia. If left untreated there was the risk of intestinal strangulation.
If I had the operation there was a risk of a doctor making a mistake, the anesthesiologist making a mistake, me having a reaction to the procedure, etc.
I made a judgment call and decided that the operation posed less of risk than intestinal strangulation and the risky emergency procedure and consequent after effects.
When I enter a car, I wear seat belts regardless of whether I have to according to the law. Sometimes I am in India out side of major cities and still I wear a seat belt even if the driver is making fun of me for doing so, stating that I am not depending on Krishna.
I understand that under certain situations seat belts can cause more injuries than they prevent. However I weigh the possibilities and come to the conclusion there is a greater chance of survival in a car accident if I wear a seat belt
Getting back to the subject of the covid vaccine: yes, there is some risk of adverse effects from taking the vaccine. The statistics show that the risk is far less than not taking the vaccine, but there is a risk.
I am not going to present the statistics as they are available for all to see although these statistics are oftentimes misinterpreted. This is because most people do not understand the difference between causality and correlation.
Every scientist gets this drilled into his head in his basic training. That is my background.
Let me give you a funny example that proves the point: There is 100% correlation between people who eat and people who eventually die. Yet, can we say that eating is the cause of death?
Apart from weighing the risks from either taking the vaccine or not, it was important for me to understand how the different vaccines work. Having an in-depth knowledge of cellular biology helped me understand this matter.
I did not rely on the popular media, or someone’s opinion. I relied on scientific knowledge.
Therefore, I decided to take the vaccine. It is now over 1 month since I took the vaccine and so far I am still alive with no side effects. Of course there were some normal effects for 2-3 days after taking the vaccine.
These effects were due to my immune system getting primed to fight the virus. The vaccine and any adjustments it made in my body are long gone, except for the enhanced immune response to the virus.
In conclusion I advise people to decide for themselves. Weigh the risk factors, try to understand the workings and ingredients of the vaccine, and consult those who have scientific knowledge of the above factors.
It is an individual decision and no one should make the decision for you.
Yours in Srila Prabhupada’s service,
Bir Krishna das Goswami.
Why I Decided that Getting Vaccinated Against Covid-19 Was the Right Choice for Me
By Jayadvaita Swami
I was neutral, ambivalent and uncommitted about getting a vaccination for COVID-19. On one hand, the available vaccines have been well tested and shown highly effective.
On the other hand, they have not had the benefit of long-term testing, the kind that goes on for years. We do not know how long their effectiveness will last, how effective they may be against variants, and what side effects might show up in the long term.
Apart from that, it seemed that if I came down with COVID I might wind up with one of two results – either I would get over it within two months or I would die.
And I considered either outcome acceptable.
But now we’re seeing widespread evidence of a third result: so-called long-tail or long-haul COVID, in which one recovers from the disease but suffers side effects that can be seriously troublesome or debilitating and may last for no one knows how many months or years. I’m close with several devotees thus afflicted.
Protection against long-haul COVID seemed to me to outweigh the uncertainties and the small inconvenience of the vaccination. And so I’ve had my two jabs. And the rest is up to Krishna.
Jayadvaita Swami
