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University Student Living Commences Construction of Student Housing Development Near Syracuse University
Press Release (ePRNews.com) - Marlton, NJ - Jun 06, 2017 - University Student Living (USL), the student housing company of The Michaels Organization, has started construction of The 505 on Walnut, a new purpose-built student housing community located near Syracuse University.
University Student Living (USL) will develop, own, and manage 505 on Walnut, which is scheduled to open in August 2018. USL's joint venture partner, Chris Geiger, Owner and President of Geiger Property Management Inc., is a graduate of Syracuse University. The well-established local company, Heuber-Breuer Construction Co., is the general contractor.
"We look forward to adding The 505 on Walnut to our successful New York portfolio."
"New York State presented partnership opportunities that were well-suited for our company," states Joe Coyle, President of University Student Living. "We have been very pleased with the success of our two other student housing developments in New York: Twenty91North in Amherst near SUNY Buffalo, and The Lodge, which opens this August near the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). We look forward to adding 505 on Walnut to our portfolio."
The 126 unit, 363-bed student housing community will offer a selection of furnished studios, one, two, three, and four bedroom apartments. The community is leased by the bed rather than by the unit, allowing residents to be responsible for only their rent according to their individual lease agreement.
Featured amenities are gated and controlled access covered parking, private bedrooms and bathrooms, full-size kitchens, washers and dryers in each unit, fitness center, multiple study lounges, an outdoor courtyard, shuttle service, an interior dog wash station, and a café. Leasing information is available online at www.the505onwalnut.com.
About USL and The Michaels Organization
University Student Living is an independent operating company of The Michaels Organization, a family of companies dedicated to excellence in affordable, mixed-finance, military and student housing. Serving more than 135,000 residents in 370 communities across 35 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, The Michaels Organization is a national leader in the residential real estate industry, offering full-service capabilities in development, property and asset management, construction, mortgage finance, and tax credit syndication.Source : The Michaels Organization
The Michaels Organization
3 East Stow Road, Suite 100 PO Box 994
Marlton, NJ 08053
Phone: 856-596-0500
Website: http://www.TheMichaelsOrg.com


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Firefox Vs Chrome Vs Chromium
Chrome & Firefox are my current favourite browser. I was previously using chromium but stopped using because of this bug.
Since then I switch between chrome and firefox. Chrome is fastest, better UI & UX. Firefox is stable.
Today I faced issue with my flash player in chrome(Ubuntu 64 bit OS). All the youtube video starts playing at 2x - 3x speed. After few mins video plays in normal speed. This is been really annoying me a lot, whereas there is no issue with Firefox.
Stable vs Fastest
I never faced any wierd issue like Chrome or Chromium in firefox but what bothers me using Firefox is speed.
Firefox memory management is entirely different from chrome. Every tab on chrome is separate process whereas in firefox they share the same memory as result, switching between tabs and response time of firefox icons isn't as fast chrome.
Other reason I love Chromim/chrome is writing extension/addons is dead simple.
Now I am confused whether to use the stable browser or fastest browser.
See also
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subset: commoncrawl


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CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos
- In stoc Showroom Cotroceni
Gidon Kremer - vioara
Vladimir Mendelssohn - viola
Thomas Demenga - violoncel
Brass Ensemble Staatsorchester Stuttgart
The Hilliard Ensemble
Dennis Russell Davies - dirijor
Susan Bickley - alto
Lynne Dawson - soprana
David James - contratenor
Rogers Covey-Crump - tenor
Christopher Bowers-Broadbent - orga
Pärt's 1987 release, Arbos, shows the composer working within his medium, bringing forth a body of music sacred in sound and message and presenting new compositional techniques. Utilizing a limited palette of tones, arranged in repeating patterns, these works are often (understandably) categorized with the works of Glass, Reich, and Riley. The tonal palette is often borrowed from European medieval styles, and this, in conjunction with the liturgical subject matter, make these new compositions feel centuries old. His Pari Intervello, originally scored in 1978 for wind instruments, is here recorded for solo organ. One of his more famous pieces, Stabat Mater, is presented here -- an airy piece that floats just on the threshold of awareness. Scored for vocal trio and string trio, this is a simply beautiful piece -- very expressive and lilting. [ AllMusic ]
Prezentare generala CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos
Gidon Kremer - vioara
Vladimir Mendelssohn - viola
Thomas Demenga - violoncel
Brass Ensemble Staatsorchester Stuttgart
The Hilliard Ensemble
Dennis Russell Davies - dirijor
Susan Bickley - alto
Lynne Dawson - soprana
David James - contratenor
Rogers Covey-Crump - tenor
Christopher Bowers-Broadbent - orga
"The journey begins with the title piece, a terse blast of energy scored for brass and percussion. While cacophonous and chromatic, it is also perpetual and dark, providing the core for the "Dies irae" of Pärt's later Miserere. On its own, it swirls into a self-sustaining galaxy that becomes more ordered with distance.
An den Wassern zu Babel saßen wir und weinten renders the well-known "By the rivers of Babylon" passage from Psalm 137 in a series of lilting triads, alternating between men's and women's voices. Here and elsewhere throughout the album one encounters the essence of the composer's "tintinnabuli" style. Sustained tones from organ thread a line of subdued vocal beads, reaching ever higher, only to fall like kites whose strings are cut.
Pari Intervallo provides respite from denser surroundings. Comprised of gravid lead tones resting on a blanket of softer commentary, it is a funereal postlude, waiting and watching as the end draws near, promising not cessation but new life in its reverberant heart. It is a sublime meditation on the meaning of divinity and the divinity of meaning, a soul left unscripted by the wayside, where it can be captured neither on paper nor in sound. And yet, here we find an attempt to sketch its contours against our better judgment, against our feelings of inadequacy, against our assumptions of complexity in all things spiritual. In this piece we find the fibers that bound the garments of Christ on the cross, the creaking of knees of those who knelt at his feet. Pari Intervallo shimmers like heat distortion, moving with the force of a slow tide before receding into a still sea.
This is followed by Pärt's stunning De Profundis, which also makes an appearance in the Miserere, if augmented by a broader choral palette. Different also here is the recording, which is less spacious (the bass drum, for one, is far more present). The voices are allowed to luxuriate in their own fallibility, in that beauty of impermanence that makes them human. In exposing its fragility so readily, the music becomes resilient. An organ provides the waters upon which this vessel of music floats, while a gong adds a dual note of ceremony. Whereas this piece brings us to the end in Miserere, as a standalone composition it seems to suggest a beginning.
Es sang vor langen Jahren sets a German poem (text and translation available here) by Clemens Brentano (1778-1842) for alto, violin, and viola. Alto Susan Bickley weaves a delicate song in this bare setting. Her tone is rich, as if residing somewhere in the back of her throat, heard before it is seen. The strings are like a lectern upon which the poetry rests, its pages bronzed with age.
Next is Summa in its original choral version. It is the quintessential Pärt composition: balanced, lush with triadic splendor, and concise. Along with Fratres in its many guises, Summa is a red thread in Pärt's oeuvre and shines in this heartfelt performance."
REVIEW-URI PENTRU CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos
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Subiecte de pe AVstore.ro/blog/ care au legatura cu CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos
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Vezi specificatii tehnice, review-uri si pareri despre CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos (CD1325).
Disclaimer: Echipa AVstore.ro încearcă să menţină acurateţea informaţiilor la CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos dar rareori acestea pot conţine mici inadvertenţe, ex: accesorii neincluse în preţ, specificaţii tehnice diferite, informaţii neactualizate despre preţ şi stoc. Ne poţi contacta oricând pentru a clarifica eventuale nelămuriri. Nu uita să menţionezi în corespondenţa ta numele exact al produsului - CD ECM Records Arvo Part: Arbos


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PEVs get their day in the sun
Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) offer numerous advantages to their owners: significant savings in fuel and maintenance costs, quiet operation, and excellent low-end acceleration, among others. They also offer a powerful tool for patriotic Americans to ensure our national security by reducing the flow of petrodollars to hostile regimes, and for western North Carolinians to improve our local and state economies by keeping our energy dollars closer to home. But there's no shortage of mis- and disinformation being spread about the cars, and the truth can be hard to discern.
To better inform the public about the realities of modern PEVs, Plug-In America, the Electric Auto Association, and the Sierra Club have organized National Drive Electric Week. During the week of Sept. 15-21, PEV owners in more than 100 cities will gather to answer questions, give rides, and celebrate the arrival of modern electric transportation.
Asheville events include the following:
Wednesday: Screening of Chris Paine's documentary film "Who Killed the Electric Car?" with post-film discussion, hosted by the UNC Asheville mechatronics engineering program.
Thursday: Screening of Chris Paine's sequel, "Revenge of the Electric Car" and another post-film discussion, also at UNC Asheville.
Friday: Land of Sky Regional Council will host a workshop on workplace charging at the Asheville Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center, 36 Montford Ave.
Saturday: Informational display at the Asheville City Tailgate Market, 161 Charlotte St.
Sunday, Sept. 21: Extensive vehicle gathering, dealer ride and drives, and displays at the solar-powered EV charging station, 161 Charlotte St.
Details of these and many other activities can be found at https://driveelectricweek- .org/event.php?eventid=157
A wide variety of PEVs are expected at the main gathering on Sept. 21. Some, like the Nissan Leaf and Tesla Model S, are pure battery electric vehicles (BEVs), powered entirely by electricity. Others, like the Chevy Volt and Ford C-Max Energi, are plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), capable of running on electricity or gasoline or both. The BMW i3 is available as either a BEV or a PHEV. The organizers of Asheville's National Drive Electric Week invite you to see and drive these exciting new cars, and experience "the EV grin" for yourself.
In 32 years as an automotive engineer, Dave Erb has developed vehicles using gasoline, diesel, biodiesel, alcohol, natural gas, electric and (since 1986) hybrid electric power trains. He lives on a small lot within walking distance of UNCA, where he teaches mechatronics engineering.


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Affordable Car Diagnostics & EPC Catalogs
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October 25, 2014
Hello, Golden Arrow readers!
First off, I would like to welcome you to my column. It is here that I will discuss the oddities of my life as they occur. I originally pictured my series of columns as insightful, deep and thought-provoking, but I have a feeling that by the end of the year the theme will shift to me writing about my puggle, Turbo, more than anyone would care to read (even though he is pretty adorable.) In order to prevent that from happening, I have made it my goal to gather and share as much inspiration as I can throughout the year. With that being said, here are some strange facts about me to help you get to know me a little better before you dive deeper into my mind.
– I am an English nerd. Math is a terrible thing. I don't want to talk about it.
– I drive a 1967 Beetle and his name is Ray.
– I hate cats.
– "The Catcher in the Rye" is my favorite book. Don't say mean things about Holden Caulfield; it hurts my feelings.
– I am an old soul; I've always felt a strong connection to those older and wiser than I, like teachers and authors. Basically, I never liked sitting at the kids' table.
– I like to knit, but I'm not very good at it. I made half a sock this summer.
– I absolutely love fashion, and I think that clothing is the best form of self-expression.
Noelle Roys


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R&B singer Amy Winehouse kept it gangsta at the Glastonbury music festival Saturday. After taking the stage, the troubled âRehabâ singer climbed down into the pit and scuffled briefly with a event-goer. It was unclear what sparked the altercation but witnesses say the fan tried to grab Winehouse. Winehouse sang for about an hour in front of an estimated crowd of 80,000. Despite the scuffle, Winehouse was reportedly in fine voice as she performed songs from her Grammy-winning album Back to Black, including "Rehab" and "You Know I'm No Good." The performance came just after she was hospitalized. Her father says she developed emphysema from smoking cigarettes and crack cocaine, although her spokeswoman has said she only has pre-emphysema symptoms. See Video of Mini Scuffle:
Since 2005, Singersroom has been the voice of R&B around the world. Connect with us via social media below.View all posts by Singersroom →


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The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has requested for the immediate opening of Churches in Lagos, Ogun and other states that are yet to do so.
In a statement issued by the President, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), His Eminence, Rev (Dr) Samson 'Supo Ayokunle through Adebayo Oladeji, his Special Assistant on Media and Communications on behalf of the association asked the Lagos State Government as well as other states yet to do so to reopen worship centres, saying, "the continued lockdown order on the places of worship is no longer acceptable and reasonably justified".
Following the initial closure of worship centers in March as part of measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease, the association believes they have played there part well enough and demand for the opening of worship centers in states that have yet to do so.
Read Also: COZA ministry Launches New TV Station
They also argued that despite the directive on the reopening of religious centres in the country by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, the states were yet to comply "Despite the directive given by the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 with regards to the re-opening of places of worship nationwide, some states like Lagos and Ogun are yet to allow worship places, especially churches, to be reopened. What sin have the places of worship committed?
"With the sudden emergence of the coronavirus pandemic, the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), at all levels, agreed with the government on the need to close down the places of worship, economy, schools and every other facet of life". Ayokunle said in a statement
"But with the reopening of the economy, especially markets (both organised and unorganised markets) along with the reopening of airports and schools, the closure of churches anywhere in the country is no longer tenable and acceptable.
"In what ways are the open or road side markets more organised than the church which warranted their reopening? Is it not our members in the places of worship that do go to markets and other sectors that are reopened? Why are they allowed to go to markets and disallowed from going to places of worship? Is it because marketers cannot contact the virus in markets and airports?"
Ayokunle said while the government and other relevant stakeholders are working hard to get cure for COVID-19, the Church too had a role to play in seeking divine solution to the pandemic, hence the need to reopen churches.
"As much as we believe that COVID-19 deserves attention, it is our belief that the affected state governments would not turn a deaf ear to our quest, but allow worship to return"
Source : selahafrik
Source : selahafrik


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There are plenty of advantages of having a VA home loan compared to a conventional mortgage, including a minimal down payment requirement, no Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI), and competitive interest rates.Read More
A continued increase in housing prices and lagging new home development in California have continued to make it more difficult for buyers to afford a home purchase. Lower mortgage interest rates were unable to balance out the seasonal increases in housing prices, further continuing the extended housing affordability crisis in the Golden State.Read More
Before you get the keys to your new home, there are a few steps you'll need to go through first. After you've got your credit and finances in order, got pre-approved for a mortgage, found a reputable real estate agent to work with, and found the home of your dreams, the actual real estate transaction can begin.Read More
The thought of moving into a new home can quickly go from exciting to overwhelming when you think about all the stuff that needs to be hauled from one place to another. The moving process isn't exactly a fun time, but there are some things you can do to make the process a lot easier and less stressful.Read More
Bamboo has become one of the most popular "green" and environmentally-friendly materials used in many aspects of home construction and decor. This sustainable material is not only durable, it's also attractive, and can be taken outdoors and incorporated into a wonderful landscape design.Read More
California has a ton of hot markets from top to bottom. There is plenty to choose from for any real estate investor looking to snatch up valuable properties to rent out for top dollar. Regardless of precisely what you're looking for, the Golden State certainly offers plenty.Read More
Considering the magnitude of the purchase, buying a home requires a lot more than just scoping out a few listing on the internet, scheduling a couple of showings, and slipping in your offer. You'll need to take your time on this one, and make sure you tick off a bunch of to-do's before you dive into a home purchase.Read More
The real estate market in California lost a bit of momentum in August as a result of continued issues with housing affordability and a shortage of inventory, according to the California Association of Realtors (CAR). While home sales have managed to stay over the 400,000 pace for five straight months, sales have decreased year-over-year for the sixth month in a row.Read More
Keeping your home safe is a crucial component to being a homeowner. After all, we've all got locks on our doors and windows for a reason. Other homeowners have added other layers of protection, including installing security cameras or alarm systems. While these are very helpful, home security systems have evolved a great deal over the years thanks to the emergence of digital technology.Read More


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David Letterman reacts to John McCain suspending campaign.
Thanks to soxanne for pointing this out to me.
* * * * *
I'm a little confused. Let me see if I have this straight....
* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic,
* Grow up in Alaska eating moose burgers, you're a quintessential American story.
* If your name is Barack you're an unpatriotic Muslim.
* Name your kids Bristol, Piper, Willow, Trig and Track, you're a maverick.
* Graduate from Harvard Law School and you are unstable.
* Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're well grounded.
* If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran's Affairs committees, you don't have any real leadership experience.
Obama worked in the Illinois State Senate, with both Democrats and Republicans to create programs like the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which in three years provided over $100 million in tax cuts to families across the state. He pushed through an expansion of early childhood education, and after a number of inmates on death row were found innocent, Senator Obama worked with law enforcement officials to require the videotaping of interrogations and confessions in all capital cases.
His first law was passed in 2006 with Republican Tom Coburn, a measure to rebuild trust in government by allowing every American to go online and see how and where every dime of their tax dollars is spent. –wait, didn't Palin just say she was going to do that? We should tell her it got done two years ago. He has also been the lead voice in championing ethics reform that would root out Jack Abramoff-style corruption in Congress.
As a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, Senator Obama has helped Illinois veterans get the disability pay they were promised, while working to prepare the VA for the return of the thousands of veterans after Iraq and Afghanistan. Recognizing the terrorist threat posed by weapons of mass destruction, he traveled to Russia with Republican Dick Lugar to begin a new generation of non-proliferation efforts designed to find and secure deadly weapons around the world. And knowing the threat we face to our economy and our security from America's addiction to oil, he has worked to bring auto companies, unions, farmers, businesses and politicians of both parties together to promote the greater use of alternative fuels and higher fuel standards in our cars.
Now that's some impressive inexperience! I wish I were that inexperienced!
* If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people (leaving it in debt and in litigation over title over the land on which she built her famous hockey arena), 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you're qualified to become the country's second highest ranking executive.
* If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years
while raising 2 beautiful daughters, all within Protestant churches, you're not a real Christian.
* If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the next month, you're a Christian.
* If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.
* If, while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence And allow no other option in sex education in your state's school system while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant, you're responsible.
* If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a
prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city
community, then gave that up to raise a family, then your family's values don't represent America's.
* If your husband is nicknamed "First Dude", with at least one DUI conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.
OK, much clearer now.


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All hands on deck! It's the "Eddy Duchin Show", a late 1940s syndicated public service show created for the Naval Reserve.
In program 4 of the series, we hear guest Maxine Sullivan singing "Molly Malone". Duchin and the band perform "Sweet Sue", "Embraceable You" and a medley of "three old favorites. The show is a tribute to the Civil Engineering Corp, so we get to hear some info on how you can use your skills building things for the US Navy.
The show was transferred from a vinyl Allied Radio transcription, matrix D-33998 FS-ABC-ND-140-1. There's a total of 13 shows in the series that I'll be posting over the next few months.


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James Kavanagh will be fronting one of Simon Cowell's shows on TV3
A great day for the parish.
You'll soon be seeing plenty more of James Kavanagh.
The Snapchat personality is coming to a bigger screen in the new year - he'll be presenting Ireland's Got Mór Talent alongside Xposé's Glenda Gilson.
James revealed that he'd landed the gig on his Instagram page last night.
⭐ I'VE GOT NEWS ⭐Soooooo, I'm co-presenting Ireland's Got Mór Talent with @glendagilson! ?? It'll be on @tv3ireland after the main show each week starting in the new year. It'll be a delve behind the scenes and chats with contestants & judges. Currently filming and having a bleedin blast with the crew ✨ PS @michellevisage is a DREAM to work with & a total gas bish ?
Needless to say, everyone is buzzing.
Omg yaaaas @JamesKavanagh_ is co hosting Ireland's got mor talent ? so happy for him
— ?Ashley? (@bramwell_ashley) December 4, 2017
So @JamesKavanagh_ and @michellevisage on the same screen now that is tv goals #bish
— EMM∆ (@emmagunning7) December 4, 2017
The Got Talent format, created by Simon Cowell, has been popular with audiences in the UK and the US for over a decade but this is the first time it's come to Irish soil.
The main show will be presented by Lucy Kennedy while Louis Walsh, Denise Van Outen, Michelle Visage and Jason Byrne will all appear as judges.
The series is set to run from January on TV3.
This won't be the first time James has appeared on telly.
He and his partner William came runners-up in RTÉ's The Taste Of Success with their food business Currabinny in 2016 and he took The Late Late Show by storm earlier this autumn with his brother John, who's a coach to Conor McGregor.


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Direct flights to Bangkok from here, being introduced by Air Asia from early in 2018, will make it easier for people to visit Thailand.
A host of measures like a tourism roadshow, on the sidelines of the five-nation Asean car rally in January, mutual tourist transfers and a meet between Thai and Assam tour operators – to be sponsored by the Assam Tourism Development Corporation – will pave the way for an increase in tourist arrivals and departures. A three-day Northeast India Festival will be held for the first time in Bangkok from May 3.
These measures were agreed on when the Tourism Authority of Thailand, New Delhi, represented by its director Isra Stapanaseth and information officer Deepak Arora, met Assam Tourism Development Corporation officials and tour operators of the city on Sunday to facilitate tourism between Assam and Thailand.
More than a million tourists from India visited Thailand between January and September this year. Thailand is positioning itself as a preferred destination for Indian tourists and has followed this up by introducing direct flights to Bangkok from tier 2 and tier 3 cities like Chandigarh, Jaipur and Bhubaneswar through Thai Airways.
The number of flights from the metros has also been increased and low-cost carriers like Indigo are starting flights between the two countries. Air Asia will soon start direct flights from Guwahati to Bangkok.
Stapanaseth dwelled on the appeal of Assam for Thai visitors by saying, "We have a lot in common with the people from this region. We share a common culture, food habit and tastes. The Thai language is very similar to the Tai-Ahom language. We should start with cultural bonding and getting to know each other better. It is a two-way process. Tourism will increase automatically."
"Thailand is promoting its art and crafts, culture and activities like snorkelling, diving and golfing to draw more tourists. New routes to connect places like Pattaya, Phuket, Kochang island, Krabi, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai with Bangkok have been introduced.
Thailand is also expanding a special interest market by placing itself as an ideal destination for weddings, golf, honeymoon and family holidays with a well-developed health and wellness sector. New tourist attractions like Show DC, Dinosaur Planet and Frost Ice City have been set up. We have launched a new advertisement campaign titled Discover Amazing Stories in the print and electronic medium, added Stapanaseth.
Read full article at The Telegraph India: https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/north-east/flight-boost-to-thai-tourism-197719


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If you have a few years of experience in the Java ecosystem and you'd like to share that with the community, have a look at our Contribution Guidelines.
Getting the Week Number From Any Date
Last modified: June 18, 2020
1. Introduction
In this article, we'll study several options that we can use in Java to get the week number for a given date. We'll start by looking at a few options for legacy code using classes prior to Java 8. Afterward, we'll take a look at the newer Date Time API in the java.time package that was introduced in Java 8.
2. Before Java 8
Prior to Java 8, date and time calculations were performed mainly using the Date and Calendar classes. Typically we create a Calendar, and then it is possible to extract the information we need from it by using different constants.
2.1. Get Week Number Using Calendar Fields
Let's look at our first example:
Calendar calendar = Calendar.getInstance(locale);
calendar.set(year, month, day);
int weekOfYear = calendar.get(Calendar.WEEK_OF_YEAR);
We simply create a Calendar instance for the given Locale and set the year, month, and day, and finally, we get the WEEK_OF_YEAR field from the calendar object. This will return the week number within the current year.
Now, let's take a look at how to invoke this method from one of our unit tests:
public void givenDateUsingFieldsAndLocaleItaly_whenGetWeekNumber_thenWeekIsReturnedCorrectly() {
Calendar calendar = Calendar.getInstance(Locale.ITALY);
calendar.set(2020, 10, 22);
assertEquals(47, calendar.get(Calendar.WEEK_OF_YEAR));
We need to be careful when adopting this approach, as the month field in the Calendar class is zero-based. This means if we want to specify December, then we need to use the number 11, which can often lead to confusion.
2.2. Get Week Number Using Locale Setups
In this penultimate example, we'll take a look at what the effect of applying some additional settings to our Calendar can have:
Calendar calendar = Calendar.getInstance();
calendar.set(year, month, day);
int weekOfYear = calendar.get(Calendar.WEEK_OF_YEAR);
The Calendar class defines two methods:
- setFirstDayOfWeek
- setMinimalDaysInFirstWeek
These methods have an impact on how we calculate the week number. Normally, both these values are taken from the Locale when creating the Calendar. But it is also possible to set the first day in the week and the minimal days in the first week of the year manually.
2.3. Locale Differences
Locale plays an important role in how the week number is calculated:
public void givenDateUsingFieldsAndLocaleCanada_whenGetWeekNumber_thenWeekIsReturnedCorrectly() {
Calendar calendar = Calendar.getInstance(Locale.CANADA);
calendar.set(2020, 10, 22);
assertEquals(48, calendar.get(Calendar.WEEK_OF_YEAR));
In this unit test, we've only changed the locale of the Calendar to use Locale.CANADA instead of Locale.ITALY and now the week number returned is 48 instead of 47.
Both results are correct. As mentioned previously, this happens because each Locale has different settings for the setFirstDayOfWeek and setMinimalDaysInFirstWeek methods.
3. Java 8 Date Time API
Java 8 introduced new APIs for Date and Time to address the shortcomings of the older java.util.Date and java.util.Calendar.
In this section, we'll take a look at some options for getting the week number from the date using this newer API.
3.1. Get Week Number Using the Numerical Values
Likewise, as we saw before with Calendar, we can also pass year, month, and day values directly into LocalDate:
LocalDate date = LocalDate.of(year, month, day);
int weekOfYear = date.get(WeekFields.of(locale).weekOfYear());
The benefit over our pre-Java 8 examples is that we don't have the problem of the month field being zero-based.
3.2. Get Week Number Using Chronofield
In this final example we'll see how to use the ChronoField enumeration, which implements the TemporalField interface:
LocalDate date = LocalDate.of(year, month, day);
int weekOfYear = date.get(ChronoField.ALIGNED_WEEK_OF_YEAR);
This example is similar to using the Calendar.WEEK_OF_YEAR int constant that we saw previously, but using ChronoField.ALIGNED_WEEK_OF_YEAR.
4. Conclusion
In this quick tutorial, we illustrated several ways of getting the week number from a date using plain Java.
As always, the full source code of the article is available over on GitHub.


text:
The Forgiveness charity has called on people to bring any hearing impaired kid to this centre from every part of the country.
Dr Mohammad Taqi Khorsandi, a co-founder of the charity centre, has told Fars News Agency that "since two decades ago, with the advancement of medical science, children born deaf for genetic reasons are being treated with a cochlear implant surgery."
However, he noted, this adds a huge amount of cost on the family, and as a result, many poor families put the treatment off due to the lack of money. "Therefore, the child is sacrificed and secluded forever and gets deprived of hearing."
Every year, 1,500 deaf children are born in Iran. Of these, 1,300 children are enabled through cochlear implant surgery. The first three years of life is a golden time for cochlear implant, and the cost of this surgery is about 5,000 USD. If the deaf children undergo surgery before the age of three, the government will pay 90% of the costs, and each family will pay 500 dollars. However, many families cannot pay even this money due to poverty. And after the age of 3, the child loses the golden opportunity to live like ordinary people, Khorsandi went on to say.
"Some families do not even have the ability to pay taxi fare from their remote villages to the city centre and the hospital, let alone paying the costs of surgery. Years ago, when we encountered such cases, we performed the surgery at our own expense, but after a while, with the cooperation of open-handed physicians, we decided to launch a charity centre for the hearing disabled kids."
"Within two years, we raised surgery costs for 540 deaf children. There were also some parents in remote areas who did not even know that the cochlear implant can save their child. For this reason, the slogan of our charity is: Wherever you see a deaf kid, introduce him/her to Bakhshsesh."
Genetic tests can prevent the birth of a deaf child, but these genetic tests cost a lot and many families cannot afford to pay or do not even know about such tests.
The charity centre's officials say they have 11 cochlear implant centres across Iran, and a genetic advisor works at every centre at the cost of the organisation.
Families with a deaf kid or cousin marriages are more at risk and they can prevent the birth of a hearing impaired child by genetic testing prior to pregnancy. The cost of these genetic tests is paid by Bakhshesh Centre.
In the past two years, genetic testing costs have been paid for 309 needy families and the birth of 309 deaf children was prevented. The cochlear implant surgery gives hearing ability back to the kids, but this is not the end. Servicing cochlear implant pieces' costs 200 dollars annually; an amount that poses a serious challenge to needy families. Unfortunately, cochlear implants are imported from abroad, and Iran has not yet succeeded in localising them. Their parts need repair every year.
Moreover, economic conditions make things harder and unfortunately, the children of needy families, who cannot afford the costs of cochlear implant's repair, cannot hear sounds and get nervous and aggressive.
In the past two years, Forgiveness Charity has paid the service costs of 2,013 cochlear implants to the needy families.
Forgiveness Charity Centre hopes that no hearing disabled child in Iran would be deprived of the pleasure of hearing because of poverty.


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by Krishnakant
In this paper we shall look closely at a number of objections raised against Srila Prabhupada remaining the diksa guru for ISKCON in relation to the eternal principles of guru, sadhu and sastra. We shall show that the continuance of Srila Prabhupada as the diksa guru for ISKCON is in total harmony with these principles, and that specifically with regards Srila Prabhupada's books, it is an unavoidable natural consequence of our theology. We shall demonstrate that Srila Prabhupada's position as the diksa guru for ISKCON cannot but prevail if our preaching is properly in line with Srila Prabhupada's teachings.
|'Guru, Sadhu and Sastra'
One common objection to keeping Srila Prabhupada as ISKCON's diksa guru, through the use of representatives as outlined in the July 9th letter, is that it is not supported by 'guru, sadhu and sastra'. There are two forms to this objection:
- It is argued that the July 9th letter alone, whilst admittedly issued by a guru, is not in and of itself sufficient evidence to substantiate the pro-ritvik position since it is not supported by sadhu and sastra.
- It is also argued that the July 9th letter could not possibly be endorsing the ritvik system for after Srila Prabhupada's departure, since to do so would be out of line with 'guru, sadhu, sastra'.
One point which is often missed by those who quote this 'guru, sadhu, sastra' principle, is that if the guru is bona fide, then his teachings and instructions will automatically be in line with sadhu and sastra:
"Sadhu sastra guru-vakya, tinete kariya aikya. Sastra is never changed. And the sadhu... sadhu means who follows the sastras. He is sadhu. He also does not change. Sadhu, sastra and guru? Guru means who follows the sastra and sadhu. So there are three, the same."
(S.P. Lecture 30/11/76,Vrindavana)
Since Prabhupada, of course, is such a bona fide guru, a fact that is not disputed by anyone in ISKCON. Thus we know that when we follow the orders of Srila Prabhupada, the bona fide guru, sastra and sadhu will automatically be satisfied.
If we accept any generally applicable teaching or instruction issued by Srila Prabhupada we are automatically, by definition, situated in line with sadhu and sastra. Such teachings and instructions,
when issued by a bona fide guru, are all 'vedic version', sastric or as good as scriptural evidence (as long as we only accept a 'mukhya vritti', or face-meaning interpretation of them) and are thus accepted by all genuine sadhus as proper and sublime. It is thus not
necessary to try and satisfy each of these three elements separately. To argue, as some have done, that we must check Srila Prabhupada's teachings against the opinions of other sadhus, or
with some lesser mortal's limited understanding of sastra, is tantamount to arguing that Srila Prabhupada is not actually a bona fide guru.
After all, only a bogus guru would propose something which was not in line with sadhu and sastra.
Having established this point, let us now return to (A) and (B) above.
Since the July 9th letter is an order issued by our bona fide guru, objection (A) can immediately be seen to be false. We know that whatever Srila Prabhupada ordered us to do in the July 9th letter would automatically be in line with guru, sadhu and sastra.
Furthermore, we can know if a teaching is against sadhu and sastra simply by testing if it violates the teachings of the guru. Since, thus far, no one has been able to locate a single teaching or general instruction from Srila Prabhupada that the continued application of the ritvik system would contravene, the ritvik system cannot be against 'guru, sadhu and sastra'. Thus objection (B) is also shown to be false.
|Ritvik 'Philosophy' is not in Srila Prabhupada's Books.
The above is a common objection to the arguments that have been put forward in favour of re-instituting the ritvik system. These arguments are sometimes presented by the GBC and their apologists as some sort of alien 'philosophy', or 'vada', which is nowhere to be found in Srila Prabhupada's books, and is therefore bogus. Although this is just a variation on objection (a) above, since an institutional directive is still the word of the guru, let us nevertheless explore what IS stated in Srila Prabhupada's books. (Please note that in doing this one could also argue that we are satisfying the 'sastra' part of the 'guru-sadhu-sastra' equation, since Srila Prabhupada's books are of course sastra.)
Before we can discuss the lack of reference to the so-called 'ritvik philosophy', we must first define exactly what the 'ritvik system' involves. There are two principal aspects:
|Aspect a)
|Initiations are performed through the use of representatives with no external involvement from the guru.
|Aspect b)
|The guru gives initiation even though he is not on the same planet as the disciple.
|Aspect a)
We know for a fact that aspect a) was implemented and directly approved by Srila Prabhupada before he left the planet, and that this system is not specifically mentioned anywhere in his books. So immediately the argument that the ritvik system must be rejected, simply because it is not specifically described in the books, is proven to be false, since its bona fide operation 'pre-samadhi' is not mentioned either.
To get around this, the GBC would need to locate the following sastric rule:
'Only post-samadhi activities need to be mentioned in the books. Pre-samadhi activities can be bona-fide even if they are not mentioned in Srila Prabhupada's books.'
Leaving aside the fact that this rule is clearly a concoction, with no authority from Srila Prabhupada, we can immediately point to bona fide 'post-samadhi' activities that are also not mentioned in his books, such as managerial details surrounding the functioning of the BBT and the GBC.
To overcome this anomaly the GBC would need to locate the following sastric rule:
'Only post-samadhi activities that the GBC decide are not managerial need to be specifically mentioned in Srila Prabhupada's books to be deemed bona fide.'
The following rule would then logically follow:
'All post-samadhi activities that the GBC decide do fall under the category of management can be considered bona-fide, even if they are not mentioned in Srila Prabhupada's books.'
Again leaving aside the fact that the above rules are concocted out of thin air, we also now have the added complication that the GBC's classification of what constitutes management may also be inaccurate.
Even accepting this two-level arbitrary system of rules, we know for a fact that the 'method of initiation' employed within ISKCON has in the past fallen under the umbrella of management since the GBC, the ultimate managing authority for ISKCON, passed related resolutions when Srila Prabhupada was still on the planet:
"Method of initiating Sannyasis." (Resolution No. 2, March 27th, 1975)
The use of representatives for the 'purpose of performing initiations' within the ritvik system is clearly another 'method' which was to be employed within the institution. As shown above, such methodologies were all part and parcel of ISKCON management. This is not in dispute since even to this day ISKCON accept that the issue of when and how initiations can take place is a management issue, to be controlled and voted on by the GBC.
Being that all the above rules are concocted, the GBC's position suffers from self-referential incoherence; since, in claiming to enforce Srila Prabhupada's real instructions on initiation the GBC would need to invent all kinds of intellectual structures which were never once 'instructed' by Srila Prabhupada! So from every angle of vision, there is no legitimate objection to aspect a) of the ritvik system.
Let us look once more at aspect b) of the ritvik system.
|Aspect b)
The guru gives initiation even though he is not on the same planet as the disciple.
To object to the ritvik system in relation to Aspect b) is to assume that the distance between the guru and disciple, at the time of diksa initiation, is somehow profoundly significant. Now, in proposing that aspect b) must be explicitly mentioned in Srila Prabhupada's books in order for such initiations to be bona-fide, the GBC are proposing yet another concocted sastric rule which would go something like:
'In order for any initiation to be bona-fide the distance between the Guru and disciple, at the time of initiation, must be stated in Srila Prabhupada's books.'
By studying Srila Prabhupada's books we find there is no mention of all these possible distances between gurus and disciples at which initiation can legitimately take place. Distance is never an issue as far as diksa transmission is concerned. As far as we know no previous acarya ever used sophisticated measuring equipment to ensure he was within the correct radius of his prospective disciple's ceremonial fire pit. Again to get around this problem, the GBC would need to come up with the following sastric rule:
'There is no need for specific sastric references to all the possible distances between gurus and disciples at which bona fide initiation can be performed, just as long as they are both on the same planet when the ceremony is performed.'
As before, the above inclusive sastric allowance for all possible earth bound distances has no mention in Srila Prabhupada's books. Such a rule does not exist in bhagavat philosophy.
In fact in the most famous example of diksa transmission in Srila Prabhupada's books we have evidence of inter-planetary diksa taking place:
"The Blessed Lord said: I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvan, and Vivasvan instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Iksvaku."
(Bhagavad Gita, 4:1)
"So there was no difficulty in communicating with Manu or Manu's son Iksvaku. The communication was there, or the radio system was so nice that communication could be transferred from one planet to another."
(BG lecture 1968)
The GBC would then be forced to concoct the following sastric rule:
'Only if the guru and disciple are on different planets at the time of initiation, does there need to be any mention in Srila Prabhupada's books in order for it to be bona fide.'
The above rule is also absent from Srila Prabhupada's books, and hence does not exist in our philosophy. As mentioned previously, the GBC's proclivity to invoke non-existent sastric rules is itself an example of self-referential incoherence, and thus renders their position philosophically untenable.
Perhaps the biggest flaw in such an approach, at least as far as clear thinking is concerned, is that the GBC has decided in advance what the truth must be, regardless of what Srila Prabhupada's books actually state. They determine what the books should or should not contain based on what they have already decided is the truth. A vigorous knowledge filter is thus in place, whereby devotees are only seeing in Srila Prabhupada's books the things they are told they should see. For example, many times we have heard the most senior 'gurus' in the movement stating categorically that one must have a 'living guru'; and yet this is never once stated anywhere by Srila Prabhupada. Not only does no-one challenge such statements, but more frighteningly, devotees have actually come to believe that these statements are truth, and that the truth is a lie!
Ultimately we are dealing with institutionalised circular thinking:
In order for X to be correct it must be - or not be in the books.
Then regardless of what is in the books a conclusion is reached:
Since X is - or is not in the books it must be correct.
For our own sanity let us see what is actually stated in Srila Prabhupada's books with regards aspect b). When we do we see that the only consideration for taking initiation is that the spiritual master must be agreeable to the arrangement, and be the current bona fide link in the chain of disciplic succession:
"Unless one is initiated by a bona fide spiritual master, all his devotional activities are useless. A person who is not properly initiated can descend again into the animal species."
(Madhya 15:108 (p), quoting Hari Bhakti Vilasa, 2.6)
"...in order to receive the real message of Srimad Bhagavatam one should approach the current link, or spiritual master, in the chain of disciplic succession. After being initiated by the proper spiritual master in that chain of succession, one should engage himself in the discharge of tapasya in the execution of devotional service"
(S.B. 2.9.7, purport)
There is certainly no mention that the above stated principles must be modified by a consideration of the distance between the guru and disciple at the time of initiation. On the contrary the desire of the guru is the paramount factor:
"As far as the time of diksa (initiation) is concerned, everything depends on the position of the guru. [...]
If the sad-guru, the bona fide spiritual master agrees, one can be initiated immediately, without waiting for a suitable time or place."
(C.c. Madhya, 24.331, purport)
Thus the real sastric rule is to get initiated by the bona-fide spiritual master who is the current link. This is the actual principle. This is what Srila Prabhupada taught.
The ritvik system was set up personally by Srila Prabhupada in order for future devotees to take initiation from him as their bona-fide spiritual master. It is the GBC who have proposed a MODIFYING RESTRICTION to this general principle of taking initiation from the bona-fide spiritual master. Their sastric rule in this regards appears to be along the lines of:
'Initiation can only be bona-fide if the distance between the guru and the disciple, at the time of initiation, falls within whatever diameter the planet inhabited by the disciple happens to measure.'
Thus it is this MODIFYING RESTRICTION that needs to have specific mention in Srila Prabhupada's books, not the so-called ritvik system, which is simply following the general process of initiation mentioned throughout the books and perpetuated by an explicit final order.
When we look at the curious features of this RESTRICTION, we wonder how anyone could possibly take it seriously:
- Notice how the RESTRICTION is so specific - not only in terms of distance - but also in terms of time - only at the exact moment of initiation does IT apply. After the initiation yajna takes place, this over-riding need to be within this arbitrary distance, is for some reason no longer relevant.
- Notice also how the restriction serves no discernible purpose. The Guru does not need to: perform pariksa, accept the disciple, chant on the beads, give the spiritual name, give the gayatri mantra or perform the fire yajna. He must simply be existing on the same planet!! And even then ONLY for the exact moment the initiation takes place. Thus the RESTRICTION appears to exist just for the sake of existing - it serves no practical purpose whatsoever.
- Further the whole non-material spiritual nature of the Guru-disciple relationship, as described in Srila Prabhupada's books, in any case renders this RESTRICTION absurdly obsolete, as the following quotes will demonstrate:
"So we should associate by vibration, and not by the physical presence. That is real association."
(Lectures SB, 68/08/18)
"It is sometimes misunderstood that if one has to associate with persons engaged in devotional service, he will not be able to solve the economic problem. To answer this argument, it is described here that one has to associate with liberated persons not directly, physically, but by understanding, through philosophy and logic, the problems of life."
"Reception of spiritual knowledge is never checked by any material condition."
(S.B. (1987 Ed.) 7.7.1.
"The potency of transcendental sound is never minimised because the vibrator is apparently absent."
"The spiritual master by his words, can penetrate into the heart of the suffering person and inject knowledge transcendental which alone can extinguish the fire of material existence."
(S.B. (1987 Ed) 1.7.22)
"He lives forever by his divine instructions, and the follower lives with him."
(S.B. (1962 Ed) Preface)
"The influence of the pure devotee is such that if someone comes to associate with him with a little faith, he gets the chance of hearing about the Lord from authoritative scriptures like Srimad Bhagavatam and Bhagavad Gita. This is the first stage of association with the pure devotee."
(Nectar of Devotion, (1982 Ed.), p146)
"Krsna and his representative are the same. Similarly, the spiritual master can be present wherever the disciple wants. A spiritual master is the principle, not the body. Just like a television can be seen in thousands of place by the principle of relay monitoring."
(Letter to Malati, 28/5/68)
"These are not ordinary books. It is recorded chanting. Anyone who reads, he is hearing."
(Letter to Rupanuga Das, 19/10/74)
"Eternal bond between disciple and Spiritual Master begins from the day he hears."
(Letter to Jadurani, 4/9/72)
Since the elements of initiation, or diksa, are not in any way related to physical considerations, we thus have clear evidence from Srila Prabhupada's books that physical distance is not a consideration to the successful transmission of diksa. Also, by his own practical example, Srila Prabhupada demonstrated that diksa could occur without any physical contact either before or after the initiation. So from every angle of vision there is no legitimate objection to aspect b).
To summarise this section, we have shown that any instruction from Srila Prabhupada must automatically be in line with guru, sadhu and sastra since he is a bona fide spiritual master. We have also shown that the two principal aspects of the ritvik system do not in any case violate anything in Srila Prabhupada's books, indeed the system is fully supported by the basic principles of guru tattva elucidated therein.
|What Initiation System Does Srila Prabhupada's Books Support?
In their attempt to denigrate the ritvik system devotees often claim that only the M.A.S.S., is fully sanctioned in Srila Prabhupada's books. In this section we shall look closely at precisely what system, if any, is alluded to in Srila Prabhupada's teachings, and see if it is compatible or not with the continued application of the ritvik system. When one studies Srila Prabhupada's books the following points become apparent:
- The procedures surrounding initiation in ISKCON are only specifically mentioned 3 times in Srila Prabhupada's books. This is of course excluding the numerous references to general principles of guru-disciple relationships, the meaning of initiation, or the rules and regulations required to be followed. We are only including references that give the specific method for applying and implementing these principles to execute INITIATIONS in ISKCON - in other words the topic at hand. Here are the three occasions:
"Thus in the beginning the students of our Krsna consciousness movement agree to live with devotees, and gradually, having given up four prohibited activities-illicit sex, gambling, meat-eating and intoxication-they become advanced in the activities of spiritual life. When one is found to be regularly following these principles, he is given the first initiation (Hari-nama), and he regularly chants at least sixteen rounds a day. Then, after six months or a year, he is initiated for the second time and given the sacred thread with the regular sacrifice and ritual."
(C.c., Adi 17:265)
"Due to the necessity of these activities, we do not immediately initiate disciples in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. For six months, a candidate for initiation must first attend arati and classes in the sastras, practice the regulative principles and associate with other devotees. When one is actually advanced in the purascarya-vidhi, he is recommended by the local temple president for initiation. It is not that anyone can be suddenly initiated without meeting the requirements. When one is further advanced by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra sixteen rounds daily, following the regulative principles and attending classes, he receives the sacred thread (brahminical recognition) after the second six months."
(C.c., Madhya 15:108)
"In our Krsna consciousness movement, the requirement is that one must be prepared to give up the four pillars of sinful life-illicit sex, meat-eating, intoxication and gambling. In Western countries especially, we first observe whether a potential disciple is prepared to follow the regulative principles. Then he is given the name of a Vaisnava servant and initiated to chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, at least sixteen rounds daily. In this way the disciple renders devotional service under the guidance of the spiritual master or his representative for at least six months to a year. He is then recommended for a second initiation, during which a sacred thread is offered and the disciple is accepted as a bona fide brahmana."
(C.c., Madhya 24:330)
- On each occasion the following identical arrangement is described:
- The candidate must follow 4 regulative principles and chant 16 rounds for 6 months.
- If these requirements are met, he is automatically recommended for initiation by the Temple President.
- Then the candidate will automatically become initiated by Srila Prabhupada.
Interestingly the above arrangement is identical to the ritvik system.
- Step c) above follows from the fact that the books are describing the exact system that was in place when Srila Prabhupada was on the planet - the system in which he was the sole initiator. Thus if we are to properly follow the books we would have to reconstruct the same system that was in place when they were written. That system had Srila Prabhupada as the ONLY INITIATOR. This is identical to the ritvik system.
It maybe argued that Srila Prabhupada was only describing the system as it was then, not necessarily the system that was to continue long into the future.
This proposition suffers from the following problems:
- There is no mention of this relevancy restriction in the books themselves.
- The instructions are given in a generic sense, and not restricted in applicability to any limiting time frame, i.e. - "In our Krsna Consciousness movement". There is no reason why someone receiving and reading this book now would not conclude that this system was still operative within the "Krsna Consciousness movement" TODAY. The only time limit implied in Srila Prabhupada's books is the duration of the "Krsna Consciousness Movement" itself.
- Why would Srila Prabhupada describe a system that would only have relevance for 2 years, in books which were to remain the standard law for up to ten thousand years?
(The Caitanya Caritamrta was only fully published in 1975).
It is quite clear Srila Prabhupada never said that the system of initiation, as described in his books, should be restricted to only when he was on the planet. Nor would we expect him to since, as mentioned above, his books were meant to guide the movement and humanity at large for up to the next ten thousand years. Significantly the GBC have never argued- either -that these initiation instructions were only applicable for whilst Srila Prabhupada was on the planet (unlike the July 9th order); indeed they themselves have borrowed some of the details of it for their own concocted M.A.S.S. system.
Thus the initiation system mentioned in Srila Prabhupada's books, was intended to be continued for the duration of ISKCON.
- This same system was also, of course, outlined in the July 9th letter, with the elaboration of an extra detail not specified in the books - namely the use of priestly representatives to accept the initiates by giving them their spiritual names ON SRILA PRABHUPADA'S BEHALF. Controversy has thus engulfed a very simple issue, purely because this last detail involves the entities who perform this ceremonial function being given the unusual title - 'ritviks'.
- Thus the burden of proof to justify changing an initiation system that was in existence during Srila Prabhupada's physical presence, and which is also stated in his books for the future of ISKCON, is on the GBC.
One thing however, is for certain. The above quotes from the C.C., outlining the system of initiation within ISKCON, are definitely not applicable to the current guru system. In dissecting the M.A.S.S. we expose below a two stage multi-step process that differs radically from the system Srila Prabhupada sanctioned for ISKCON in his books:
|Stage 1
- New bhaktas first accept Srila Prabhupada as their principal SIKSA Guru for the first 6 months.
- Srila Prabhupada's pranam mantra will be by chanted during this initial induction period.
- During this trial period the bhakta must demonstrate his ability to follow the 4 regs, chant 16 rounds and attend the morning program.
- By the end of these 6 months he must pass an examination.
- Having passed these hurdles satisfactorily, the local temple authority will a recommendation to that effect.
- The candidate is now qualified to enter stage 2.
|Stage 2
- Entry to Stage 2 signifies that one is ready and qualified to choose a guru.
- However, the selection can only be made from a list generated through the GBC's elaborate majority vote 'no objection' procedures.
- When ready, the candidate will make his choice and inform his local authority.
- The candidate then requires the formal acceptance of his chosen guru.
- Once this approval is obtained the candidate will change the pranam mantra being chanted to that of his newly chosen guru.
- The purpose of stage 2 is for mutual testing between guru and disciple to determine each others qualifications.
- One will then have to follow strictly for at least another 6 months.
- At any time during stage 2, both the prospective disciple and guru can reject each other.
- At the end of the second 6 month period the local authority must give his formal approval for the initiation to take place.
Even at this stage the guru, if he so wishes, can reject this recommendation and not proceed with the initiation.
(All the above details are taken from 'Gurus and Initiation in ISKCON', GBC, 1995)
Given a multiple acarya system, the elaborate procedural arrangements of stage 1 and stage 2 are absolutely essential. The far more streamlined system alluded to by Srila Prabhupada in the above C.c. quotes can only be applicable within a 'single-guru' system, where there is just one guru in the movement who is known to everyone, and who will automatically initiate anyone who is willing to follow strictly. This is why Srila Prabhupada makes no mention of the disciple needing to CHOOSE a guru and then obtain permission from the chosen guru before aspiring to him, or of the disciple needing a period to 'test' the guru; steps which would be essential in a new multi-guru system, and without which the system could not function. These stages could only be omitted if there was only ONE initiating Guru, who was always THE SAME PERSON, and who was ALREADY known to be bona-fide. It should be obvious that since such a singular system is described in Srila Prabhupada's books, descriptions which perfectly mirror the system in place when Srila Prabhupada was on the planet, that Guru being referred to must be Srila Prabhupada. Thus Srila Prabhupada's prescribed system differs completely from the current GBC guru system in both essence and detail.
It is also interesting to note that Srila Prabhupada's system was standardised, with initiations being granted automatically providing the basic rules had been followed. Srila Prabhupada is thus outlining a standard system for the duration of ISKCON that can ONLY have HIM as the initiator.
The one thing Srila Prabhupada's books definitely do not mention is the current multiple guru system in ISKCON.
It may be argued that whatever system is given, it was meant to be adapted in accordance with the overriding 'law of disciplic succession' (as found in letters to Tusta Krishna etc). And that therefore all these other steps do not need to be included. This proposition itself, however, holds a fatal flaw:
Since the original objection to the ritvik system was the fact that it lacked reference in Srila Prabhupada's books, the above argument cannot be used, since there is no mention of either the 'law of disciplic succession' , nor the fact that it must modify the system of initiation given by Srila Prabhupada, in any of these very same books. Thus the use of this argument would invalidate the very point it was initially put forward to support - that the initiation system used can only be bona fide if it is stated in Srila Prabhupada's books.
- The system of initiation for ISKCON is only mentioned a handful of times in Srila Prabhupada's books.
- When the system is mentioned it is not restricted to any time period.
- Thus the system must be linked to when the books are in circulation, i.e. pre AND post 1977.
- The system described must therefore be applicable both pre and post 1977, and the same system used pre- 1977 must continue.
- The system described only matches a 'single guru system', not a 'multiple guru system'.
- The system described assumes the Guru is a constant, since there is no requirement for selection, permission or initial acceptance.
- Since this description matches perfectly the system in operation pre-77, it can only be referring to Srila Prabhupada as the guru, since he was the ONLY guru then - this is the ritvik system.
- The descriptions in Srila Prabhupada's books are definitely not applicable to the current ISKCON system.
- That future Gurus can change such a system is not mentioned, in fact it is impossible for them to legitimately do so for however long the 'lawbooks of ISKCON' remain valid.
- One cannot argue that the exact details of the current ISKCON guru system do not need to be specifically mentioned in Srila Prabhupada's books without contradicting the original objection, i.e., that the ritvik system should be rejected since it is not mentioned in the books.
|To conclude this section:
- The Books definitely do not mention the current ISKCON guru system.
- They definitely do mention a system that precisely mirrors the system in place when Srila Prabhupada was on the planet.
Thus the only system of initiation mentioned for ISKCON is the same system that was in place when Srila Prabhupada was on the planet. The same system we are proposing be re-instituted now. This is the ritvik system.
There is no mention that the system being described in the books will be invalidated as soon as Srila Prabhupada left his body. Nor is there any mention that the system was to be radically revised to accommodate new gurus as part of a new multi-guru system. On the contrary, the fact that the system is mentioned in ISKCON's 'lawbooks', is evidence that Srila Prabhupada wanted it implemented and continued within ISKCON.
|The Diksa Guru Cannot Change
The very notion that the initiation system, as outlined by Srila Prabhupada in his books, can be hijacked and adopted by all future current link diksa gurus, in itself raises serious questions. In this final section we show that it is actually impossible for any future diksa guru to legitimately operate within the philosophical framework established by Srila Prabhupada.
One characteristic that denotes that initiation has been taken from a specific Diksa Guru is the fact that the initiation vows taken relate specifically to that Diksa Guru. These vows may differ greatly from one acharya to the next- on down the disciplic succession. Thus the 16 rounds and 4 regulative principles package that allow one to be initiated by Srila Prabhupada was unique to him and him alone. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta, his spiritual master, had insisted on 64 rounds. If one went back a thousand years one would find gurus in our line preaching a different philosophy, what to speak of initiation vows. Thus successive diksa gurus are not restricted to prescribing the same diksa vows. If a devotee is required to follow the vows given by a particular diksa guru then it can only mean:
|That the devotee is initiated by that diksa guru
In ISKCON we have a situation where some people are presented as successor diksa gurus to Srila Prabhupada. These successor gurus all follow, and are required to have their disciples follow, Srila Prabhupada's initiation vows. This implies the following sastric rule:
'Successor diksa gurus must always follow, and have their disciples follow, exactly the same initiation vows as established by the previous acarya.'
The above principle is enshrined in ISKCON law. No future ISKCON guru can legitimately alter these basic initiation vows. This situation will remain for as long as the society exists, which could be up to ten thousand years.
In point of fact the above concocted rule violates Srila Prabhupada's teachings:
"Srimad Viraraghava Acarya, an acarya in the disciplic succession of the Ramanuja-sampradaya, has remarked in his commentary that candalas, or conditioned souls who are born in lower than sudra families, can also be initiated according to circumstances. The formalities may be slightly changed here and there to make them Vaisnavas."
(SB, 4.8.5, purport)
"Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was an ideal acarya. An acarya is an ideal teacher who knows the purpose of the revealed scriptures, behaves exactly according to their injunctions and teaches his students to adopt these principles also. As an ideal acarya, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu devised ways to capture all kinds of atheists and materialists. Every acarya has a specific means of propagating his spiritual movement with the aim of bringing men to Krsna consciousness. Therefore, the method of one acarya may be different from that of another, but the ultimate goal is never neglected. Srila Rupa Gosvami recommends:
tasmat kenapy upayena manah krsne nivesayet
sarve vidhi-nisedha syur etayor eva kinkarah
An acarya should devise a means by which people may somehow or other come to Krsna consciousness. First they should become Krsna conscious, and all the prescribed rules and regulations may later gradually be introduced. In our Krsna consciousness movement we follow this policy of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. For example, since boys and girls in the Western countries freely intermingle, special concessions regarding their customs and habits are necessary to bring them to Krsna consciousness. The acarya must devise a means to bring them to devotional service. Therefore, although I am a sannyasi I sometimes take part in getting boys and girls married, although in the history of sannyasa no sannyasi has personally taken part in marrying his disciples."
(C.c., 7:37, purport)
Earlier we saw how, in his books, Srila Prabhupada insisted that all future initiated disciples must be following his prescribed diksa rules and regulations.
This point is made again in his last will and testament:
" ... provided the new director is my initiated disciple following strictly all the rules and regulations of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness as detailed in my books ... "
(Last Will and Testament)
The above can only mean one of two things:
- That all future disciples were to be initiated by Srila Prabhupada:
- That all future initiations were to be conducted by persons who could not function with the basic freedoms and rights Srila Prabhupada taught were available to all bona fide initiating acaryas. They would be restricted to initiating their own disciples employing identical terms and conditions to Srila Prabhupada, for the next ten thousand years.
Please note that though there is nothing to prevent one acarya having the same initiation standards as the previous acarya, it is not obligatory - there is a choice. However, Srila Prabhupada has specifically set up a situation in his society in which there is no choice whatsoever.
It seems that within ISKCON, the type of entities we have presently initiating bare little resemblance to the current-link diksa gurus Srila Prabhupada describes in his books. These ISKCON 'entities' are required only to enforce the diksa terms and conditions of their predecessor acarya, Srila Prabhupada. These are the types of restriction one might expect in a system employing officiating priests, or ritviks, but not fully-fledged current-link initiating acaryas. According to the GBC then, we have the self-referentially incoherent situation whereby future prospective disciples are supposed to follow Srila Prabhupada's books, but must select diksa gurus who are not allowed the basic freedom expressed in these very same books!
"The formalities may be slightly changed here and there to make them Vaisnavas."
"Therefore, the method of one acarya may be different from that of another, but the ultimate goal is never neglected."
Nowhere did Srila Prabhupada ever revoke the above sanction with regards bona fide initiating acaryas. Thus we know that the entities presently operating in ISKCON cannot be initiating current-link acaryas, since they are only allowed to operate within the terms and conditions set out by the predecessor acarya, Srila Prabhupada. (The argument that there are large A and small a initiating acaryas is refuted in 'The Final Order' pages 40-42).
It may be argued that Srila Prabhupada has given a standard that does not need to change for the next ten thousand years, and that that is why he has insisted on this standard for all future initiations. However this is simply avoiding the most obvious conclusion:
For a guru to institutionalise only his diksa standards, is proof that it was his intention to remain the diksa guru for as long as that institution existed. In this way Srila Prabhupada has institutionalised himself as the only diksa guru for ISKCON, for as long as it exists.
Srila Prabhupada would be contradicting himself quite badly if - on the one hand he asked all his disciples to become the next current-links (current GBC siddhanta) and then- at the same time deny them the freedom to change standards. As and when they saw fit; the basic prerogative of any current-link diksa guru. One would at least have expected Srila Prabhupada to mention that the above sanction to make changes to standards would not apply to any future diksa gurus within ISKCON. The fact that he did not do this further supports our contention that there were not meant to be any future diksa gurus within ISKCON- other than Srila Prabhupada.
Further we note the following statements:
"As far as the time of diksa (initiation) is concerned, everything depends on the position of the guru.[...]
If the sad-guru, the bona fide spiritual master agrees, one can be initiated immediately, without waiting for a suitable time or place."
(C.c. Madhya, 24.331, purport)
"So without waiting for me, wherever you consider it is right... That will depend on discretion."
(SP Room conversation, 7/7/77, Vrindavan)
In the first quote above Srila Prabhupada states that as far as initiation goes, everything is dependent on the agreement of the diksa guru. We then see Srila Prabhupada give that agreement via the July 9th letter. Below he sets the parameters for all future diksa guru activity:
"Due to the necessity of these activities, we do not immediately initiate disciples in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. For six months, a candidate for initiation must first attend arati and classes in the sastras, practice the regulative principles and associate with other devotees. When one is actually advanced in the purascarya-vidhi, he is recommended by the local temple president for initiation. It is not that anyone can be suddenly initiated without meeting the requirements. When one is further advanced by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra sixteen rounds daily, following the regulative principles and attending classes, he receives the sacred thread (brahminical recognition) after the second six months. "
(C.c., Madhya 15:108)
Thus according to Srila Prabhupada's books, any future theoretical 'diksa' gurus:
- Could not alter diksa vows.
- Could not alter pre-requisite initiation standards, or any other aspects of the initiation process.
- Could not refuse any disciples initiation - as long as they followed the standards given in Srila Prabhupada's books.
- Would not need to interact with, or give his permission to accept, any future disciples.
The above system is standard law for the next ten thousand years. This being the case those performing initiation cannot, by definition, be diksa gurus since- according to Srila Prabhupada's books- such entities could not have such restrictions imposed upon them.
The above restrictions are nevertheless perfectly befitting a system in which Srila Prabhupada remained the diksa guru, with ritviks as his representatives.
- Srila Prabhupada's books do not contain any instructions that would invalidate the ritvik system.
- Srila Prabhupada's books do not contain any instructions that detail the current ISKCON guru system.
- Srila Prabhupada's books do contain instructions detailing a system fully supporting himself as the only diksa guru for ISKCON.
- Srila Prabhupada's books do contain instructions applicable only if Srila Prabhupada remains ISKCON's diksa guru.
Please note that in the above paper we have shown how ontologically through the instructions found in Srila Prabhupada's books, Srila Prabhupada must remain as the Diksa Guru for ISKCON. We have also used a similar 'proof by ontology' on the July 9th letter, to demonstrate how the July 9th letter must also apply post-samadhi as well.
EITHER of these proofs alone can be used to resoundingly demonstrate that Srila Prabhupada is the Diksa Guru for ISKCON.
Used TOGETHER however,
Srila Prabhupada's position as the Diksa Guru for ISKCON becomes unassailable.


text:
PHP Namespace is a feature in PHP that helps you to better organize your PHP Classes and Functions.
Within each php file, you can declare a Namespace and any Classes or Functions that you write within that particular file will belong to that Namespace
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The above code shows a Class name
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Now if you want to instantiate the class
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You might noticed the part,
require 'index.php'. Yes, you still have to require the file. There is another way where you can autoload PHP Classes but we will discuss that in another post.
Why not just use
Now, some might think, if I have to require the file, what's the point of declaring Namespaces, as long as I require the file, I will still be able to use it.
Well, you are NOT wrong. But think further and deeper, chances are right now you are working on a project or application that can be considered as small to medium size.
As time passed, you realized that your application gets bigger and more complex, your php files count increase and you end up with lots of Classes and Functions.
Now, how do you make sure that you won't end up with problem having the same Class Name?
Using Namespace, you can avoid the problem having multiple classes with the same Class Name.
WAIT, if PHP Namespace only allows me to have multiple classes with the same name, what's the point then?
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