“Goodness is not defined by its opposite, but by its correspondence with the divine order. In other words, good can exist by itself, whereas evil is a negation of the divine order. Error is misguided truth, but truth is not simply a misguided error. Hate is a lack of love, but love is not simply a lack of hate. War is absence of peace, but peace is not simply absence of war......

Karma does not simply mean predestination. Karma means causality, i.e. the law of cause and effect. And the most important cause is always the will of man (how free our will is depends on the purity of our consciousness). We have free will because we are parts of God and because God “has” consciousness and will.

If the Absolute is only seen as an entity - without will and consciousness - we would not have free will either. We would be will-less playthings in the flow of action and reaction.

Or to put it metaphorically: light is everywhere, but light is not everywhere. Namely not where it is dark. But “light is everywhere”, so where it is dark, it can also become light again. Light does not create darkness, but allows darkness if someone wants to separate himself/herself from “it”.

This differentiation is important, because this is where it is decided whether we justify evil or recognize it as such in order to heal it. As long as we justify it with monistic philosophies, we strengthen it, just as if we are afraid of it, hate it or ignore it.

The primary challenge today is all-encompassing healing. First and foremost, this requires clear diagnoses. Distinguish without judging.” Not an easy task, but extremely helpful.

Nine young guests from different countries had a special kind of lasting life experience when they visited Goloka Dhama for two weeks as part of the Erasmus program to do voluntary service and get to know the Vaisnava culture. For five guests, this was actually their first contact with devotees, and they were not disappointed, as was evident from their entertaining final presentation.

We would also like to take this opportunity to once again draw your attention to the top-class Easter retreat on the topic of “Bhakti Immersion”, which will take place from April 17 to 21, 2025. If you would like to fully immerse yourself in the experience of Bhakti - out of everyday life - you should not miss this unique opportunity.

Your servant, Gaurabhavani dd

for an on behalf of Goloka Dhama