At the occasion of ISKCON’s 5Oth anniversary, the residents of New Mayapur are organizing  5 short padayatra walks for peace in the center of France. Each day the group of walkers will drive near 4 large cities  (Loches, Amboise, Châteauroux and Valençay) within a maximum of 50 kms radius from the temple and the nearby village of Luçay-le-Mâle.  The devotees will then do harinama through the city for up to 3 hours and will then drive back to New Mayapur. Janananda Goswami is planning to join the group every day.

On the last day, after harinama in Luçay,  Jaladuta Dasa will take his two oxen to carry the deities of Gaura Nitai for the last 2 kms all the way to the New Mayapur castle.  Unfortunately, due to some  health regulations, he’s not allowed to take them far from their goshala.  After a speech by Janananda Goswami and the friendly mayor of Luçay, Mr. Taillandier, there will be  a slide show of  Srila Prabhupada and Padayatras worldwide and a delicious prasadam.

Source:http://www.padayatra.com/france-you-are-invited-to-the-5-day-padayatra-in-the-area-around-new-mayapur-august-1-to-5/

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan congratulated ISKCON on turning 50 after ISKCON London’s Temple President, Jai Nitai dasa and Temple Secretary Bhava Bhakti devi dasi presented him with a box of cupcakes and copies of the 50th magazine on 13th July. The Mayor even tweeted this kind gesture to his followers on social media. The meeting was part of the special outreach initiative to express gratitude to the city of London in which 5000 cupcakes were distributed in key locations in London during morning rush hour to say, “Thank You London!”.

ISKCON London celebrated Incorporation Day with an all-day festival at their temple on Soho Street. The Deities, Sri Sri Radha Londonishvara were adorned in luminous new golden outfits offered to Them in honour of the occasion. The altar was decorated with white and gold flower garlands and decor. Srila Prabhupada’s Vyasasana was decorated with flower arrangements and artwork depicting the seven purposes of ISKCON. 

Special lectures were organised through the day on themes such as ’50 years of ISKCON’, ‘Seven purposes of ISKCON ’ and ‘The next 50 years of ISKCON’. A sumptuous prasadam feast was served which included a special 50th birthday cake. Devotees then set out on London’s bustling Oxford Street for a maha harinam, chanting and dancing along the way distributing delicious mango burfis.

In the evening, a special arati ceremony was followed by  the singing of melodious bhajans including ‘Markine bhagavata-dharma’ written by Srila Prabhupada while on board the Jaladuta and ‘Yadi Prabhupada na hoite’ composed by HH Jayapataka Swami. 

In appreciation of the efforts for the festival and the media and outreach activities, ISKCON50 Coordinator for London, Devaki devi dasi, said: “It was a truly glorious day. You could really see that Sri Sri Radha-Londonisvara – the Lords of London – and the first installed Deities in ISKCON, personally installed by Srila Prabhupada himself – wanted to spread the glories of Their dear devotee, Srila Prabhupada, to the wider London community. At a personal level, it was definitely the most enlivening day of the year yet and shows what can be achieved when we serve together as a team to glorify and appreciate Srila Prabhupada for everything he has given us.” 

Source:http://iskconnews.org/london-mayor-congratulates-iskcon-on-turning-50,5711/

Srimad Bhagavatam 4.22.19

sangamah khalu sadhunam
ubhayesam ca sammatah
yat-sambhasana-samprasnah
sarvesam vitanoti sam

TRANSLATION
When there is a congregation of devotees, their discussions, questions and answers become conclusive to both the speaker and the audience. Thus such a meeting is beneficial for everyone’s real happiness.

PURPORT
Hearing discussions among the devotees is the only means to receive the powerful message of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. For instance, Bhagavad-gita has been well known all over the world for a very long time, especially in the Western world, but because the subject matter was not discussed by devotees, there was no effect. Not a single person in the West became Krsna conscious before the Krsna consciousness movement was founded. But when the same Bhagavad-gita was presented as it is through the disciplic succession, the effect of spiritual realization was immediately manifested.

Sanat-kumara, one of the Kumaras, informed Prthu Maharaja that his meeting with the Kumaras benefited not only Maharaja Prthu but the Kumaras as well. When Narada Muni questioned Lord Brahma about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Brahma thanked Narada Muni for giving him a chance to speak about the Supreme Lord. Therefore questions put by a saintly person to another saintly person about the Supreme Personality of Godhead or about the ultimate goal of life surcharge everything spiritually. Whoever takes advantage of such discussions is benefited both in this life and in the next.

The word ubhayesam can be described in many ways. Generally there are two classes of men, the materialist and the transcendentalist. By hearing discussions between devotees, both the materialist and transcendentalist are benefited. The materialist is benefited by association with devotees because his life then becomes regulated so that his chance of becoming a devotee or making the present life successful for understanding the real position of the living entity is increased. When one takes advantage of this opportunity, he is assured of a human form of life in the next birth, or he may be liberated completely and go back home, back to Godhead. The conclusion is that if one participates in a discussion of devotees, he is both materially and spiritually benefited. The speaker and the audience are both benefited, and the karmis and jnanis are benefited. The discussion of spiritual matters amongst devotees is beneficial for everyone, without exception. Consequently the Kumaras admitted that not only was the King benefited by such a meeting, but the Kumaras were as well.

Niranjana Swami

This verse is part of the conversation between Sanat-kumara and Prithu Maharaja. The Four Kumaras appeared before Prithu Maharaja and Prithu Maharaja, immediately recognizing their identities, took advantage of their presence by inquiring from them. He said, “There’s no need to ask about your good and bad fortune because you’re always absorbed in bliss. Therefore I’m going to take advantage of your presence and ask you about how I can attain good fortune.

Prithu Maharaja had inquired from the sages, “Persons entangled in this dangerous material existence because of their previous actions, could such persons, whose only aim is sense gratification, be blessed with good fortune?” That was his question… a very relevant question. He’s taking the humble position of a person entangled in a web of sense gratification by asking, “How can I attain any good fortune in his life?”

Sanat-kumara replied, “Thank you”, and then says, “I’ve been very nicely questioned by you. Such questions are beneficial for all living entities especially because they are asked by you, because you’re always thinking of everyone else’s welfare. Although you know everything you ask such questions because that is the behavior of saintly persons.”

We see this exchange in many places of the Bhagavatam where the Bhagavatam speakers express their gratitude to the audience.

munayah sadhu prsto ‘ham
bhavadbhir loka-mangalam
yat krtah krsna-samprasno
yenatma suprasidati

TRANSLATION
O sages, I have been justly questioned by you. Your questions are worthy because they relate to Lord Krsna and so are of relevance to the world’s welfare. Only questions of this sort are capable of completely satisfying the self. (SB 1.2.5)

Suta Goswami thanked his audience for asking relevant questions in the same way as Sanat-kumara is thanking Prithu Maharaja. “Thank you for asking how to obtain good fortune. And although you say that you don’t have to inquire about my good fortune because you see that our status is always auspicious, I can see that not only is my status auspicious, but your status is auspicious too because you are interested in hearing such topics.

Therefore today’s verse explains the essence of Sanat-kumara’s answer to Prithu Maharaja. “When there is a congregation of devotees, their discussions, questions and answers, become conclusive to both the speaker and the audience. Thus such a meeting is beneficial for everyone’s real happiness.”
When the sages of Naimasaranya gathered to perform a sacrifice, they were performing a sacrifice for the benefit of the entire world. What was their sacrifice?…hearing Srimad Bhagavatam. It’s not that they sat in front a sacrificial fire, poured ghee into the fire and then expected that that was sufficient to benefit all humanity. They performed the ultimate sacrifice for this age. They gathered to hear, to discuss, and to glorify the topics related to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and that’s why Suta Goswami was so pleased by their questions.

The sages of Naimasaranya began the sacrifice by asking, “What is the supreme occupation for all mankind? In other words, “What dharma should all living beings engage in? The answer was the famous verse:

sa vai pumsam paro dharmo
yato bhaktir adhoksaje
ahaituky apratihata
yayatma suprasidati

TRANSLATION
The supreme occupation [dharma] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self. (SB 1.2.6)

So the only solution for satisfying the hankering, or the needs, of the eternal soul is to establish his connection with the Supreme.

Srila Prabhupada explains in a Bhagavad-gita commentary that the living entities in the material world suffer due to want of an ultimate goal in life. Without establishing an ultimate goal, people will continue to aspire for the fulfillment of so many lesser goals and will still not feel sheltered upon receiving the fruits of their efforts.

In other words, the only way the self can be perfectly sheltered and satisfied is by being fully engaged in devotional service to the Lord. And what is the means for obtaining devotional service? If devotional service is the ultimate goal, is the only activity which can satisfy the hankering soul, then a person should become eager to know how to obtain it.

In the conversation between Lord Caitanya and Ramananda Raya, Ramananda Raya answers this question:

krsna-bhakti-rasa-bhavita matih
kriyatam yadi kuto ‘pi labhyate
tatra laulyam api mulyam ekalam
janma-koti-sukrtair na labhyate

TRANSLATION
“‘Pure devotional service in Krsna consciousness cannot be had even by pious activity in hundreds and thousands of lives. It can be attained only by paying one price — that is, intense greed to obtain it. If it is available somewhere, one must purchase it without delay.'” (Caitanya Caritamrita, Madhya 8.70)

One has to develop a greed to have it. There is no other way to obtain it. If one doesn’t become greedy to have it, it’s not going to just immediatley fall from the sky and immediately transform our hearts. Therefore when one obtains the association of a devotee of the Lord, that association is called divine grace. That’s why we refer to Srila Prabhupada as “His Divine Grace.” By His Divine Grace, even a person who previously had no inclination for devotional service can immediately develop an attraction to obtain it.

That desire is awakened in the heart. It’s already there, but it needs to be awakened.

nitya-siddha krsna-prema ‘sadhya’ kabhu naya
sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya

TRANSLATION
“Pure love for Krsna is eternally established in the hearts of the living entities. It is not something to be gained from another source. When the heart is purified by hearing and chanting, this love naturally awakens. (Caitanya Caritamrita, Madhya 22.107)

Once it’s awakened, what does one have to do? Once it’s awakened, one has to make some effort. It’s not only by the effort of somebody else.

For example, if you have a very important engagement on a particular day, and somebody comes and wakes you up, “It’s time to get up.”

“Oh, I’m so tired.”

And they come back again, “Prabhu it’s time to get up.”

“Oh I’m just so tired, so tired.”

Even modern society takes all this into consideration. Now all alarm clocks always have a “snooze” button. Isn’t it? Every morning, they can count how many times they hit the snooze button. “Five more minutes. I can get five more minutes.” Then after five minutes passes, they think, “Well I can get five more. Why not?”

So either somebody comes and shakes you every five minutes or your alarm goes off every five minutes, but you have an important event that day. Once somebody wakes you up, you have to make the effort to stay awake. Whether it’s your alarm clock or somebody else coming and waking you, you still have to make the effort, “OK. I’m going to get up, and I’m going to take a cold shower. And then I’m going to stick my hand in my bead bad and stay awake.”

Isn’t it? The first thing we do when we wake up in the morning is offer our obeisances to our spiritual master. Then we have to make the effort to stay awake.

Lord Caitanya is calling, “Jiv Jago, Jiva Jago. Wake up sleeping souls. How long are you going to sleep on the lap of the witch called Maya.” So Lord Caitanya is making the call to everybody, “Wake up!” He’s making the first call. “OK. Time to wake up.” But are we going to expect him to keep on coming back to say, “Wake up. Wake up”… again and again and again. He’s got better things to offer you than to tell you to wake up.

We have to make the effort to stay awake and therefore that effort is our responsibility. How to stay awake. So by the mercy of “His Divine Grace”, he wakes up the sleeping soul. He tells us that we are the eternal servants of Krsna. Our constitutional nature is to render pure, loving, unmotivated, devotional service to Him. And then he has so many more things to tell us after we’re awake… about how to stay awake. How to realize our actual spiritual identity. That realization awakens in those who are eager to obtain it. We have to make the effort.

atah sri-krsna-namadi
na bhaved grahyam indriyaih
sevonmukhe hi jihvadau
svayam eva sphuraty adah

TRANSLATION
“‘Therefore material senses cannot appreciate Krsna’s holy name, form, qualities and pastimes. When a conditioned soul is awakened to Krsna consciousness and renders service by using his tongue to chant the Lord’s holy name and taste the remnants of the Lord’s food, the tongue is purified, and one gradually comes to understand who Krsna really is.’ (Caitanya Caritamrita, Madhya 17.136)

Krsna can only be understood by spiritual senses which become purified, beginning with the tongue. When the tongue is used for discussing transcendental topics about the Lord, then either by speaking about Krsna or by inquiring about Krsna, we can then take responsibility. We might say, “I’m not Krsna conscious.” But then you can inquire about Krsna. That’s exactly what is happening right here in this exchange between Prithu Maharaja and Sanat-kumara.

Prithu Maharaja took the position of being very fallen and engrossed in sense gratification and he said, “This is a very dangerous material existence because I’m entangled because of my previous actions in this material existence. How can any person who is so entangled in sense gratification have any good fortune in life? How can they be blessed with good fortune?”

So he took the position of asking, although he could have spoken. All realization was there but he took the position of asking. And Sanat-kumara says, “Oh thank you so much. You are helping me. I’ll benefit from this opportunity. You’re engaging me in devotional service.” He was so grateful. “You’re so merciful that you are giving me an opportunity to speak about transcendental topics. I know I can’t speak about anything else because you’re not interested in hearing anything else. I’m so grateful. I know I won’t get away with talking about Maya to you because you don’t want to hear anything about Maya. You are so kind. For my benefit you’ve asked this question. Thank you.”

Therefore both the speaker and the hearer, they benefit because the only topic is transcendental subject matter.

There are many things that I wanted to speak about this morning but we have a schedule to follow today. I want to end at the appropriate time, at 9:00. I was going to read this later, but I’ll read it now because I want to make sure it’s read. It’s a very wonderful verse from the fifth canto of the Bhagavatam. I really like it. It’s spoken by Jada Bharata to Maharaja Rahugana.

“Who are the pure devotees mentioned here? In an assembly of pure devotees, there is no question of discussing material subjects like politics and sociology. In an assembly of pure devotees, there is discussion only of the qualities, forms and pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is praised and worshiped with full attention. In the association of pure devotees, by constantly hearing such topics respectfully, even a person who wants to merge into the existence of the Absolute Truth abandons this idea and gradually becomes attached to the service of Vasudeva.”

PURPORT
The symptoms of pure devotees are described in this verse. The pure devotee is never interested in material topics. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has strictly prohibited His devotees to talk about worldly matters. Gramya-varta na kahibe: [Cc. Antya 6.236] one should not indulge in talking unnecessarily about news of the material world. One should not waste time in this way. This is a very important feature in the life of a devotee. A devotee has no other ambition than to serve Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This Krsna consciousness movement was started to engage people twenty-four hours daily in the service of the Lord and in His glorification. The students in this institution engage in the cultivation of Krsna consciousness from five in the morning to ten at night. They actually have no opportunity to waste their time unnecessarily by discussing politics, sociology and current events. These will go their own way. A devotee is concerned only with serving Krsna positively and seriously. [End of purport] (SB 5.12.13)

These will go their own way! In other words, they will go on anyways and it will be their own way. Of course, someone might say, “Well this verse is speaking about an assembly of pure devotees, but I’m not a pure devotee.” But we already established that the only real solution to the problems of life is to become purified. Any effort we make to try to counteract one fruitive activity by another fruitive activity is going to entangle us further. That’s exactly what material life is. Material life is a constant endeavor to counteract reactions to past sinful life. And that’s why Prithu Maharaja said, “I’m a sense gratifier and my current situation is simply the result of my previous activities.”

He didn’t say, “How do I counteract the results of my previous activities?” That’s how materialists think. How to avoid suffering to obtain happiness and to mitigate distress. Prahlada Maharaja explains:

“In this material world, every materialist desires to achieve happiness and diminish his distress, and therefore he acts accordingly. Actually, however, one is happy as long as one does not endeavor for happiness; as soon as one begins his activities for happiness, his conditions of distress begin.” (SB 7.7.42)

An intelligent person should try to stop the cycle. Not “How do I counteract my past sinful reactions so that I can be [so-called] happy now.” This happiness is temporary. Therefore Lord Rsabhadeva instructed his sons, instead one should look for “brahma saukhyam”, real happiness, which is transcendental to material happiness and which continues forever.

An intelligent person looks for the real solution. He becomes greedy for attaining the opportuinty to hear about Krsna, the only solution. Therefore when devotees get together, they utilize their time to its full potential. They don’t waste time discussing politics, sociology and current events. These will go their own way!! They are going to go their own way. Why should we waste time discussing these things? No solution comes by discussing these things! They will still go their own way. Better I become Krsna conscious. Better I get together to discuss topics related to Krsna. It’s in my hands. It’s my responsibility to utilize my life wisely. In other words, it’s my responsibilitiy to stay awake!

Certainly by “divine grace” somebody will come and tell us to wake up. Don’t stay sleeping in the lap of the witch called Maya. But how to stay awake? The way to stay awake is to utilize this human life to it’s full potential… and the best opportunity for this is in the association of devotees. A devotee will be eager to ask, “Please, can you tell me something Krsna conscious?” And we should say, “Thank you. You saved me. My tendency would have been to talk nonsense but you saved me by asking the right question.

Then when devotees become inspired in this way, what is the result? Prabhupada explains that in the commentary today. He says,

“The word ubhayesam can be described in many ways. Generally there are two classes of men, the materialist and the transcendentalist. By hearing discussions between devotees, both the materialist and transcendentalist are benefited.”

In other words, when devotees become inspired by topics about the Supreme Lord, then anybody who comes in contact with such discussions can also obtain divine grace. Devotees can be carriers of divine grace. Materialists become devotees by association with such devotees.

Both the devotees are benefitted and the materialists are benefitted. Or as it is stated in verse that we just read from the fifth canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, “Even the impersonalists become devotees. The verse states that, “…by constantly hearing such topics respectfully, even a person who wants to merge into the existence of the Absolute Truth abandons this idea and gradually becomes attached to the service of Vasudeva.”

So therefore when the sages asked their question to Suta Goswami, “What is the supreme sacrifice, or highest activity, meant to benefit all humanity?”, the sages then performed that sacrifice by sitting and hearing the topics of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Anyone who comes in contact with such discussions are reminded of the need to wake up. Once awake, they then become eager to stay awake.

That’s why it’s so important for devotees to regularly come together to discuss transcendental topics. When devotees come together, sometimes they think, “What are we going to do with each other? Should we play football? That will keep us all engaged. Good exercise. What else? There must be other things that we can think of to keep us busy so that we don’t fall into maya.”[Devotees laugh]

It’s so clear. Well someone may say, “Well I don’t have any taste for that. Well then Bhagavatam states that one should seek out the association of devotees who will give you some taste.

ta ete sadhavah sadhvi
sarva-sanga-vivarjitah
sangas tesv atha te prarthyah
sanga-dosa-hara hi te

TRANSLATION
O My mother, O virtuous lady, these are the qualities of great devotees who are free from all attachment. You must seek attachment to such holy men, for this counteracts the pernicious effects of material attachment. (SB 3.25.24)

The pernicious effects of material attachments will be counteracted and a natural taste will awaken. But even if I still don’t have taste, Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, that a sages should act for his own purification.

“The yogis, abandoning attachment, act with body, mind, intelligence and even with the senses, only for the purpose of purification.” (Bg 5.11)

An intelligent person will therefore think, “Yes. Even though I don’t have a taste, because it’s pleasing to Krsna and it’s pleasing to the Vaisnavas, I’ll do it for my own purification.”

susrusoh sraddadhanasya
vasudeva-katha-rucih
syan mahat-sevaya viprah
punya-tirtha-nisevanat

TRANSLATION
O twice-born sages, by serving those devotees who are completely freed from all vice, great service is done. By such service, one gains affinity for hearing the messages of Vasudeva. (SB 1.2.16)
And what do devotees ask those who serve them to do? What did Prabhupada ask his tender, neophyte followers to do when they came and heard from him in 26 Second Avenue? He took them out and introduced them to giving the holy name to others.

In the “Prabhupada Lilamrita” there is a wonderful description of the first harinama the devotees went on without Prabhupada. The devotees were just so ecstatic because they were so eager to go back and tell Prabhupada what they did. They couldn’t wait. They burst into his room, “Prabhupada. We went out and we chanted today!” And Prabhupada was so pleased. Oh yes. Now you are understanding. Now you understand what pleases me. This makes me very happy. You have understood my message. Thank you so much.

This is how to serve the devotees. Even if we don’t have taste. We do it for our own purification because by serving them, we develop some taste. We benefit and anyone who comes in contact with us benefits. We don’t water down. We give the essence because it is the essence which purifies the heart, puts us on the path of pure devotional service and keeps us on the path. It keeps us awake, so that we won’t fall back asleep again and forget what the purpose is of this life.

So Sanat-kumara is saying, “Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to speak and then he said, “This is the solution.

“When there is a congregation of devotees, their discussions, questions and answers become conclusive to both the speaker and the audience. Thus such a meeting is beneficial for everyone’s real happiness.”

This is a partially-edited transcription of a Srimad Bhagavatam lecture (SB 4.22.19) given on May 17, 2014 during the Ukrainian Counselor Retreat.

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=29942

Ananda Vrindavana Devi Dasi: Before I pick up my beads to do my chanting meditation, I have 3 points of focus – I’m not this body, God is a person, and I have a relationship with Him.
I’m not this body is one of my favorite meditations. I like to sit quietly and hold my body still. I am the observer. I am conscious of my hands, my breath, my thoughts. I remember – yesterday, years ago, minutes ago. I think ahead – tomorrow, old age, the next hour. When I remember I am not this body I feel relief, more complete, and a real sense of freedom.
My second meditation, another favorite, is that God is a person. Although I heard this from a very young age in Catholicism, it wasn’t until I studied the path of Bhakti yoga that it made more sense to me. Krishna, the Sanskrit name for God, makes the idea of a personal God very attractive. The source of all life has to be credibly incredible. When I meditate on the premise that God is a person, I sense His presence, I sense protection, grounding, connection and belonging.
My third meditation is another, another favorite. Here my meditation is that I have a relationship with Krishna. When I hold still, slow down, or rise early I reflect on this. What does this relationship look like? Is it one of fear or love or both? How do I present myself? What do I ask for, or not? What does Krishna ask of me? What does the best, most complete form of this relationship look like?
When I pick up my beads and begin to chant the mantra, I am facing into that relationship. My 3 meditations have brought me here. Now I connect. Throughout the chanting I find myself returning to them in different ways. I chant with a longing to return to the spiritual world, a desire to engage in service, and a wish to develop affection and love for Krishna.
I also ask not to blow it – that I don’t lean too much on spiritual rules that my emotions are tied, or fall too much on the human side that I don’t touch transcendence. I pray for balance – that my humanity can nurture my spirit and that my spirit reminds me to be a better person, and a better human.

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=29945

We bhakti yogis exercise a lot. We exercise our voice and ears for several hours everyday chanting our mantras, we exercise our heart to love Krishna, exercise our intelligence to control the mind (which never stops exercising it’s desires).  We do, however, tend to neglect exercising our body.

This may be due to our understanding that we are ‘not the body’. As it is said, we are a soul with a body, not a body with a soul. We may think it more spiritual to nourish our soul and not worry about the body.  Actually, neglecting either body or soul is a mistake – for we are together for as long as we are in this body and we need to take care of both.

We may say we are too busy or lazy. If we are honest, that the lazy reason is generally more accurate.

Srila Prabhupada would end each letter with, “I hope this meets you in good health.” He would walk briskly everyday, and have a one hour massage.

To be healthy takes work, and exercise is an important part of the job. The benefits of exercise are well known – it moves stress out of our body, it lifts lethargy and depression, clears the head for better thinking, helps us sleep better, be more creative, have a stronger immune system, and experience less aches and pains in the joints. The list goes on and on.

Who has time to exercise? We should ask – Who has time not to? Yes, we do get busy but let’s remind ourselves that taking time out to exercise saves time in the long run (pun intended). We may walk, or swim, or do yoga, or get on the elliptical, or bicycle ride–find the exercise that works for you and do it daily. 20 minutes is the minimum.  It will have a powerful effect on your energy level for both your spiritual practices and regular life living.

And finally, my secret tip: find an exercise buddy. Pair off with a friend or partner and report to each other daily – send a quick text. Having to report to someone is super helpful when it comes to pushing ourselves off the couch and out the door to exercise.

What exercise tips would you like to share to keep ourselves fit for serving Krishna? Use our new comment stream below and join the conversation!

http://iskconofdc.org/the-yoga-of-exercise/

It is written in the Bhakti teachings that inattentiveness while chanting is a type of madness. Imagine inviting someone to our home. We half open the door when they arrive, and all evening we are distracted – phone calls, text messages, conversations with others, glancing at the TV in the background, looking out the window. Our guest feels unwelcome, unwanted, and indeed wonders why he was invited at all. But we keep inviting them back again and again! Madness!

Giriraja Swami reminds us,  “When we chant the holy name, we are inviting Krsna, and we should treat the holy name with all the respect, all the reverence, all the care, all the attention, and all the devotion that we would show Krsna if He came personally. It is a very serious practice. But at the same time it is a very blissful activity if we really give ourselves to it.”

Gone With the Wind

Can I go with You? On the sound of Your holy name?
I am running to keep up, but easily distracted.

With a nod I am off with my mind
Linking arms, walking in deep conversation about anything and everything.

Please wait for me, let me walk with You.
You are so undemanding. Immediately You leave
When others arrive and I forget

Then look around and find You in the shadows.
Come! Come! I want to give You my full attention
I promise I won’t leave You anymore

Then I am gone again – gone with the wind
And You patiently await my return. Like a dropped stitch
I must come back and pick it up and I realize, it is not You who leave – but I.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/gone-with-the-wind/

Mayapur, West Bengal, the birthplace of Lord Caitanya. It’s a very special and beautiful place, lush and green and filled with pilgrims and kirtan. Starting at 3.30am every day a devotee ringing a bell will walk through the large guest ashrams and call us to life. This poem is for him.

The Bell Ringer of Mayapur

The bell ringer of Mayapur
Banishes the night
His bell grows from soft to loud
As it reaches my door
‘Jiva jago! Jiva jago!
Awake awake spirit soul
Do not sleep in the lap
Of the witch called maya.

For yet another day has come
As will another tomorrow
I will leave behind yesterday
It is over now and cannot be returned

The bell ringer calls forth the future
Rise up and prepare yourself
Be ready to come before the sun
The earth and others
Prepare the balance needed
to live both sides
being strong, yet dependent
knowing, yet not
listening to speak
seeing with heart

The bell ringer has come
To take you to another day
Go happily with light step
For it cannot be another way
And you cannot hide forever.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/the-bell-ringer-of-mayapur/

I open the door to the early morning air. It’s 4am and all is quiet. I pull my beads out of their bag and find the starting point. Deep breath. Short prayer of respect to my teacher, another short prayer to the giver of this chanting meditation, Sri Caitanya. Then I begin my daily walk of 16 rounds.

The dark night sky welcomes me.  Most of the world sleeps.  My mind also sleeps, thankfully.  Thoughts of yesterday and later today have not begun to line up for attention.  It’s just me and Krishna.

The morning walk starts the night before.  If we want to be serious about our meditation practice, our morning spiritual workout, we have to get to bed reasonably early. We have to plan to want to be there, to show up with as much energy as possible. If, as it is said in the teachings, that this mantra has the power to purify the mind so we can perceive the self within, then we owe it to ourselves to give it our best attention. If we are tired we will not last.

The mantra walk can be done sitting or walking.  Once you get into a few rounds a rhythm will start. If walking watch out for distractions along the route.  Walking up and down the same stretch can minimize that. Walking in a quiet park on along a river is wonderful. Sitting under a tree is powerful.

If you can’t make the whole 16 rounds in one sitting, then it is good to do it in blocks of 4. That takes about a half hour.  Again, like any activity, the best result will come from attentiveness. Try to keep your focus on the sound of the name.  In the words of Srila Prabhupada – “Try to hear yourself chant sincerely.” The transcendental sound vibration will do the rest.

Add a daily walk to your schedule. At home, at the office, or join us here at the Temple in the early morning. It’s an exercise that will have a positive impact on your whole life.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/the-daily-walk/

I remember well the first time I received the Bhagavad-gita. Someone gave it to me as a gift, and I was ready for it. I thought it the most practical and common sense book I had ever read. It confirmed a lot of my suspicions about the material world – there had to be more than this life of birth and death, there had to be answers for the unfairness that I saw everywhere, the concept of many lives, the broader details of the world and the universe, and the understanding of consciousness being the presence of the soul – ‘I think, therefore I am.’

I couldn’t put the book down. It turned my sense of self on it’s head. I was not this body carrying around a light called a soul, I was the soul, carrying around this body, in all it’s shapes and sizes.

For me, reading the Gita for the first time was like meeting an old friend, someone I had known before. There was immediate connection and understanding, a big ‘Aha’ moment. I felt freer than I had ever felt in my life. I loved the world and everyone in it. I felt connected and detached – at the same time!

It’s been thirty two years since I got my first Gita and my love for it has not waned. It’s at times so complex and deep that I feel I am in way over my head, and then so simple and direct that I marvel at it’s audacity. Death is as simple as changing your clothes. Get it?

The Bhagavad-gita, like all sacred books, has secrets and insights for us all, hidden in its pages. One has to approach it with an open mind and a sincere desire for something different. The Gita can change your level of thinking and experience of the world. If you let it.

Check out our Gita Marathon page or join me in my Gita Walk…

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/my-first-book/

When I arrived at the homeless shelter for men in Rockville there was no shortage of hands to help me carry the hot, freshly cooked prasadam supper into the building. The men, of various ages and backgrounds, were grateful and thanked me many times. We had cooked for one hundred.

As I drove away I felt light-hearted and happy. I had taken time to help others in need. I was also grateful  – that I am not homeless, that I have the opportunity to serve, and that I am part of movement that actively cares about the welfare of others.

The supper not only addressed the mens immediate need to eat, but because it was prasadam it had the power to affect their consciousness. We call it the yoga of eating. Yoga, a sanskrit word, means to ‘link up’. By eating food that has been cooked and offered with love to Krishna, the soul is nourished, the mind is cleansed, and one is connected to the source of all existence. That connection brings real and lasting change.

These men without a home also reminded me of our existential homelessness. As souls we are temporarily housed in various bodies and we travel lifetime after lifetime in search of happiness. Between birth and death we have a temporary sojourn in this world. Whether housed in a mansion in Potomac or a hut in shanty town, death, the great equalizer, will move us on. Where then is our true home?

It is said that home is where the heart is – but that is also temporary if the heart is linked to things material. Only with the heart connected to Krishna will we find our true home, that place beyond the temporary nature of this world. Until then we are as homeless as those I met in the shelter in Rockville.

Remembering this can be an impetus to serious spiritual practice, to deepen our relationship with Krishna. When that happens our surroundings in the material world won’t matter. Our destiny may have us live in large or small homes, or even to live without a home – we won’t be bothered. We will have found ourselves in the heart of the bhakti practice, in love. We will be home.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/without-a-home/

We wait for trains, planes and summer rains
we wait in line all the time,
we hold our breath and wait for the score
we wait as a loved one moves to breathing no more
We wait wondering what it’s all about
this life between birth and death and throughout
We wait as we chant for the ego to lift
We wait as we serve for love as the gift
We wait before judging, trusting the good
we wait for grace, knowing we should
Too often we wait till the end of our life
to question the craziness, question the strife
too often we panic when waiting is there
don’t run, wait, and all will be clear
Waiting for Krishna makes everything sweet
no matter how trying the obstacles we meet
never give up, wait with cool head
chant and serve with love it’s said
For one day this existential wait will end
this feeling of not being at home,
of not being complete,
of being bound in time, hands and feet
Wait for the time to come to be free
That wait, is where our waiting should be.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/waiting/

Srila Prabhupada: If a devotee once utters the holy name of the Lord, or if it penetrates his mind or enters his ear, which is the channel of aural reception, that holy name will certainly deliver him from material bondage, whether vibrated properly or improperly, with correct or incorrect grammar, or properly joined or vibrated in separate parts. (Sri-Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 3.60)

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=29890

Annual Radha-Krishna Boat Festival and Family Picnic at Mission Bay, San Diego

New Govardhana Family Picnic 2016
Srila Prabhupada: Worship of the Lord, whose name is like the sun, for just as a slight appearance of the sun dissipates the darkness of night, so a slight appearance of the holy name of Krishna can drive away all the darkness of ignorance that arises in the heart due to greatly sinful activities performed in previous lives. (Sri-Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 3.62) 
Find them here: https://goo.gl/C1fp3U

Interviewer: Do you think most of the Hare Krishna members will participate in the election in November? Do you think they will register and vote?
Prabhupada: Personally I never give votes.
Interviewer: Will they follow your example and not vote?
Prabhupada: I do not know, but our principle is that I vote for this man or that man if there is some spiritual benefit. That is our point. (Interview with the religion editor of the Associated Press in New York, 16 July 1976)
I have never given vote. Since we have got this sva-raj, Indian independence, as soon as the vote question comes up, I go away. I think, “Why shall I give this nonsense person my vote? None of them are liked by me.” So I avoid it. I don’t believe in it.
(Room Conversation in Bombay, 8 January 1977)

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=29898

Villa Vrindavan, in Italy, almost looks too old to have a future, but the humble devotees there are confident it will. ISKCON’s oldest building probably, the villa is four centuries old. Naturally, not everything works. A sunken semicircular fountain does not spout. The front roof nobly displays a stopped clock; the bell over it no longer chimes times. When devotees moved in with Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, putting their faith in the Lord’s names and graces they named the hundred-and-twenty-acre estate after India’s transcendent village where Krishna enacted a humanlike childhood. How and why is the project now moving ahead?

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Before I pick up my beads to do my chanting meditation, I have 3 points of focus – I’m not this body, God is a person, and I have a relationship with Him.

I’m not this body is one of my favorite meditations. I like to sit quietly and hold my body still. I am the observer. I am conscious of my hands, my breath, my thoughts. I remember – yesterday, years ago, minutes ago. I think ahead – tomorrow, old age, the next hour. When I remember I am not this body I feel relief, more complete, and a real sense of freedom.

My second meditation, another favorite, is that God is a person. Although I heard this from a very young age in Catholicism, it wasn’t until I studied the path of Bhakti yoga that it made more sense to me. Krishna, the Sanskrit name for God, makes the idea of a personal God very attractive. The source of all life has to be credibly incredible. When I meditate on the premise that God is a person, I sense His presence, I sense protection, grounding, connection and belonging.

My third meditation is another, another favorite. Here my meditation is that I have a relationship with Krishna. When I hold still, slow down, or rise early I reflect on this. What does this relationship look like? Is it one of fear or love or both? How do I present myself? What do I ask for, or not? What does Krishna ask of me? What does the best, most complete form of this relationship look like?

When I pick up my beads and begin to chant the mantra, I am facing into that relationship. My 3 meditations have brought me here. Now I connect. Throughout the chanting I find myself returning to them in different ways. I chant with a longing to return to the spiritual world, a desire to engage in service, and a wish to develop affection and love for Krishna.

I also ask not to blow it – that I don’t lean too much on spiritual rules that my emotions are tied, or fall too much on the human side that I don’t touch transcendence. I pray for balance – that my humanity can nurture my spirit and that my spirit reminds me to be a better person, and a better human.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/3-meditations/

Vaiyasaki das: On our way back driving through the Himalayas, we passed an apiary with beehives, and, knowing that Prabhupada was in Vrindavan, we thought, “Wow, wouldn’t that be great to get Prabhupada some real Himalayan honey?”
We got a big bottle. Jagadish was Prabhupada’s secretary at that time, and he knew Satyanarayan and me, so he arranged for Prabhupada to see us.
We went into Prabhupada’s room when Prabhupada was sitting with Gopal Krishna and speaking to an Indian gentleman. When we came in he turned around and said, “Here are two very nice boys.”
We sat down, and Jagadish introduced us. Satyanarayan explained that we were in the Library Party and had been preaching in Kashmir.
Prabhupada was very pleased that we were distributing his books. When he heard we were in Kashmir, he opened his eyes really wide and said,
“Ah, Kashmir. I went to Kashmir. Do you remember when you come over the crest of the hill and you see the Kashmir valley?” We said, “Yes, Prabhupada, we saw it.”
He said, “Yes, I distributed my books there.” Then I said,
“Srila Prabhupada, I met that gentleman. He bought your first three volumes from you, and now he has taken the whole set, a standing order.”
Srila Prabhupada was reminiscing about that and spoke about the importance of preaching.
After five or ten minutes, just before we left, he looked me right in the eye and said, “So, wherever you go and whoever you meet, just tell them about Krishna, and in that way, by Lord Chaitanya’s order, become a guru.”
That left a big impression on me, because he was looking right at me. When I left I thought, “Wow, if I don’t tell people about Krishna, I’m in total maya. This is my mission.”
We gave Prabhupada the bottle of honey, which he graciously accepted. Later Palika, who was Prabhupada’s cook, told us that every morning Prabhupada had a little bit of that honey with his breakfast.
It was wonderful to travel with Srila Prabhupada in an airplane. The first time Srila Prabhupada went to Australia to bring the Deities there, Vegavan prabhu was with him, carrying one of the Deities.
They brought their lunch with them, and after the plane took off they unpacked it, Srila Prabhupada served it, and everyone took prasadam.
When they had finished, Prabhupada rinsed his mouth and washed his hands. Then he started cleaning his front teeth with a toothpick.
Vegavan thought, “Oh, you have to clean your mouth after you eat,” and he pulled out a toothbrush and toothpaste from his bag.
Prabhupada said, “What you are doing?” Vegavan said, “I’m going to brush my teeth, Srila Prabhupada.”
Prabhupada said, “That you do before you take prasad. After prasad, you use a toothpick, because the little pieces in your mouth are also prasadam.”
Ever since then, I’ve always picked my teeth with a toothpick after prasadam.
Gargamuni told Srila Prabhupada that two men on the Library Party were distributing Prabhupada’s books to the universities in Indonesia, a Muslim country.
At that time, other devotees, like Padmapani and Tribhuvanath, were also in Muslim countries.
Prabhupada was pleased that devotees were going to preach in the Muslim countries, and he told Gargamuni, “I put on my head the dust from the feet of whoever preaches in the Muslim countries.”
When we heard that, we were in ecstasy. That was wonderful. After Indonesia, we went on to the libraries in Java and then Bali.
It was in Bali that I found out that Prabhupada had left the planet.
That morning I was ready to go to a college for distribution, when I thought I would call our secretary, Aravindaksi devi in Jakarta, to find out how things were going and if books were being sent out and so on.
She said, “Have you heard the news?” I said, “No, what?” She said, “You didn’t know?” I said, “I didn’t know.”
She said, “I just heard from the devotees in Singapore that Prabhupada left the planet.” I was shocked. I hung up the phone.
I didn’t know what to do, but I thought Prabhupada would want me to go and preach in this college, so I drove there. It was at the other end of Bali.
I arrived at the college, met the librarian, and got two standing orders. As I came out, I met the Minister of Culture in Jakarta, who we had met about a month earlier trying to distribute the books to the library in the Cultural Ministry.
He said to me, “Have you heard about your Guru Maharaj?” I said, “Yes, I did. Thank you.”
I was amazed that even in a little town in Bali, everybody knew that Prabhupada had left the planet.
After that I met Satyanarayan, who hadn’t heard. I had to break the news to him. Immediately he broke down and sobbed uncontrollably, crying and crying.
I realized that I was stonehearted. I hadn’t broken down and sobbed. I was sad, and tears came to my eyes, but I saw that Satyanarayan had so much love for Prabhupada, and I respected him for that.
I felt, “If only I could have such a relationship with Prabhupada; if only I could have felt that.”
—Vaiyasaki
Excerpt from “Memories-Anecdotes of a Modern-Day Saint” 
by Siddhanta das
www.prabhupadamemories.com 

Source:http://www.dandavats.com/?p=29920

Uddhava is very broadly described in our scriptures. Uddhava was a devotee of the Lord from his childhood. Advanced souls get the chance to take birth in a devotee family; the liberated soul never forgets Krsna. Vidura is actually Yamaraj who had been cursed to be born as a sudra. When Vidura met Uddhava and inquired about Krsna, Uddhava would get overwhelmed.

Uddhava mentioned that Krsna had just left Vrindavan recently and is in Mathura. He had already killed the elephant and popped-out Chanura’s eyes. Krsna had “accidentally” killed Kamsa too! He wanted to kick-off Kamsa’s crown but Kamsa died from falling. Then they forced Krsna to become the ruler of Mathura.

Nanda Maharaj asked Krsna to come home to Vrindavan. Krsna told him that the Yadus would insist that he stay and not leave again thus Krsna wanted to send a messenger to Vrindavan. Uddhava was the only suitable one to send as a messenger as they were best friends.

Uddhava and Krsna had a secret language because Uddhava spoke such a difficult language that only Krsna could understand. Uddhava spoke the Bhagavatam in 100 000 verses in the heavenly planets. In the heavenly planets, the level of Vedic knowledge exceeds ours. Bhaktivinoda Thakur explained that only 6% of Vedic culture was existing and many years have passed since he said that.

But ultimately, we don’t depend so much on all other scripture because we have the essence in the Srimad Bhagavatam therefore we are not missing out. Almost all that is inauspicious in the heart will be destroyed by reading the Bhagavatam. But why not ALL inauspiciousness? There is one complication which is that as one gets learned, one may get proud! Pride is the one thing that will not be removed by reading Bhagavatam BUT when we chant japa, pride is destroyed!

In kirtan one may still get really proud, “I’m feeling bhava or ruci!” but while chanting japa no one feelsbhava. (Laughter!) We realize that we do not have taste yet as we do not chant in ecstasy. Therefore, we need the mercy of vaisnavas!

So why was Uddhava chosen as the messenger? He was well learned because he was educated by Brihaspati and Uddhava looked almost the same as Krsna, especially from a distance. When Uddhava got to Vrindavan and said to the gopis, “Krsna is everywhere, why are you lamenting?” he was able to generate some faith in the gopis because Uddhava looked so much like Krsna, and because he knew Krsna’s heart.

Uddhava was the most intimate associate of Krsna outside of Vrindavan. Rohini is in the Vrindavan and Dvaraka pastimes, and so is Balarama, therefore Krsna got them to bless Uddhava because if one wants to go to Vraja one needs the blessings of one who has access. One cannot go to Vrindavan by mundane transport. Uddhava saw Krsna in every tree on the way to Vrindavan – uddipan, how things remind us of Krsna.

Krsna is all pervading but so what, the residents of Vrindavan still want personal exchange. They do not care about philosophy; only personal association matters to them. Uddhava could not understand the mood of the residents of Vrindavan.

Back to Vidura now. Vidura saw that Uddhava as an extraordinary devotee. Krsna was supposed to meet Duryodhan to discuss and try to avoid the war. He was invited to the big palace but he stayed at Vidura’s place because he could not stay at the place of one who was envious of the Pandava’s. How exalted Uddhava and Vidura are! And how far away we are… Uddhava was praying to be a blade of grass at Kusum Sarovar. We consider Uddhava as a prototype and we follow in his footsteps. 

Source:https://www.kksblog.com/2016/07/the-uddhava-lecture/

Throughout 2016, our international Hare Krishna movement has been celebrating our 50th anniversary.  While the teachings of our Hare Krishna culture have existed for thousands of years, the modern "Hare Krishna movement" was incorporated in 1966.  Grand celebrations have been taking place all around the world!

Wednesday, July 27, 2016 marks the 50th Anniversary of ISKCON's incorporation, as calculated by the lunar calendar model.  We invite you to join us for small celebrations at our temple from 6:30pm onwards.

There will be readings, appreciations, sharing of realizations, prasadam, and hopefully more!  Please also see what is going on in ISKCON around the world - to commemorate this 50 year anniversary by visiting http://iskcon50.org/  

Source:http://iskcontoronto.blogspot.in/2016/07/small-iskcon50-celebrations-july-27-2016.html

As I write this it is snowing yet again. It’s early morning and along with the silence of the snow I can hear birds sing. It’s as if they are trying to bravely hold on, waiting for spring to fully arrive. Today they are my heroes.

There is an analogy that compares the soul to a bird in a cage, the body being the cage. If we just take care of the cage and neglect to feed the bird, then the bird will die. Similarly, our soul will “die” if we don’t nourish it. As the Bible says, “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?”

The early morning song birds also reminded me of the story of a sparrow and her determination. She laid her eggs on the beach, but the tide came in and took them away. She asked the ocean to return her eggs, but he laughed at her. “All right,” the small sparrow said as she stood at the edge of the vast ocean. “I will dry you up, drop by drop, until I find my eggs.”

And so she began, one drop at a time, to empty the ocean. She worked day after day and because of her determination she caught the attention of the great bird carrier of Vishnu, Garuda. He came to the side of the ocean and talked to the tiny sparrow. He then turned to the ocean and with a booming voice told the water to return the eggs at once lest he will take up the sparrow’s task. The ocean got the message and immediately returned the eggs.

The lesson here? Be determined to do the right thing, even if it seems impossible. By that endeavor alone help will come – often in the most unexpected ways.

As I watch the snow fall, and hear the birds sing, I see and feel the hand of Krishna. Life will be difficult and all we can do is respond as best we can. Keep singing and keep moving in the right direction. Help is always there and will come at the right time and in its own way. Just keep the doors of trust, faith, and love open.

Source:http://iskconofdc.org/hearing-the-birds-sing/