Springville Police said Christopher Caru Warden, 79, was traveling south on Main Street near 1400 North when his car went into oncoming traffic. He later died from his injuries. Others who were involved suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=117720

This eulogy honors HG Caru Prabhu as an exceptional disciple and servant, deeply appreciated by his spiritual master and community. He is remembered as a “Prabhupada man”—someone who went above and beyond in dedication and service.

HH Indradyumna Swami highlights his outstanding character: a perfect gentleman with impeccable behavior, compassion, and devotion. What made him especially remarkable was his ability to innovate while preserving tradition, following the example of his spiritual master. He found creative ways to spread Krishna consciousness according to time, place, and circumstance—such as founding a Hare Krishna radio station and building a thriving community in a challenging environment like Utah.

Despite limited support, he and his wife worked tirelessly, demonstrating unity, determination, and leadership. He was also a powerful and captivating speaker who could reach all levels of society.

The eulogy expresses both grief and gratitude: grief from separation, as losing a devotee is deeply painful, and gratitude because he dedicated his life fully to spiritual service and likely attained a glorious destination. The speaker emphasizes that rather than focusing on his death, we should remember how he lived—as a bright spiritual light whose departure leaves the world a little darker.

Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=117736

Our consciousness is a very important factor. The most important factor in anything we do is our consciousness. And if we have material consciousness we will suffer, for sure. And if we have vaisnava consciousness we will be able to assimilate and digest different situations.

It may be one of those situations like walking through fire; and when you come out the other side you’ll be a new person. Many times with think if we walk through fire we will just get burned to ashes. And sometimes Krishna gives us situations which are like walking through fire. And if you surrender to the Lord and you come out the other side you’ll be a new person.

I seriously think that since we made that “mistake” of chanting Hare Krishna and asking Krishna to give us service, and Krishna is like a magician, He’s got big sleeves, and Krishna has got so many things inside of his sleeves, so many tricks that He is planning to use on us to make us walk through fire. Because we asked for it. If we didn’t ask for it – he wouldn’t do it. But we asked for it!

Just remember – nobody ever told you that Krishna Consciousness is going to give you life free from problems.

Everybody told you that coming to Krishna consciousness is the endeavor to attain the highest thing.

Just like the majority of you here went to the university. And you know there’s like a regular diploma and the red diploma. So much work to get the red diploma, so much study and so much sacrifice! So much development of the intelligence. 
Even to get a red diploma so hard work. Two red diplomas – double work. Krishna Prema Bhakti – so hard work!

Sometimes we have to walk through fire. Krishna wants us to walk through fire. And we say “No-no-no, I can’t walk through fire”, and Krishna is going “Come on” and we’re like “No-no-no-no-no”, and Krishna is like “Come on”, and then we walk through fire…

Sarvopadhi vinirmuktam tat paratvena nirmalam, nirmal means spotlessly pure. See just like if you take gold from the ground, you take it out and it doesn’t shine like gold. But they burn it, and they burn it, and they burn it, and they burn it, then it shines like gold. So Krishna will burn us many times – then we will shine like gold. And then we get that stamp: “Yes, this is a Devotee”.

Or what does Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur say? He says: “If you think you’re a Devotee – you’re not a Devotee. If you think you’re a Guru – you’re a resident of hell, permanent resident visa. Because Krishna is our Guru as the knowledge is coming from Krishna. And all of us we are simply meant to repeat the knowledge.

«Become pure devotees!»

All of us we should really be on the first command when it comes to Krishna consciousness. That is my request to all of you wonderful people, all of you wonderful devotees out there. Take it seriously. The only thing that will make us become advanced is deepening our hearing and chanting about Krishna.

If you’re one of the ones who are practicing for over 20 years and sometimes you feel like: “Gosh, when is it ever going to end?”

Increase the quality of your chanting.

Increase the quantity of your chanting.

Read more Srimad Bhagavatam. Read Caitanya Caritamrita. Read prayers.

Acaryas have written so many prayers. Read prayers of acaryas. Pray to Krishna. Krishna will hear you, when you read the prayers of acaryas – He hears you. When you speak in your own words: “Krishna, help. Krishna, save me”, Krishna will hear you.

But if we wish to become advanced we have to take the responsibility to do it.

Take the responsibility to do it. Like I can’t depend on him [points to a devotee in the audience] to make me advanced. I I can’t depend on Sri Krishna to make me advanced. The process is called self realization. Self-realization. So take the tools. The knowledge that comes in these books and the knowledge that comes in chanting Hari Krishna. Become Krishna’s pure devotee… Go back to the spiritual world! Go back to the spiritual world and serve Krishna with love!

And be with Krishna so that He can serve you with love. That’s another enigma, you know, we want to be the servants of God, we want to be the servants of Krishna – He is the best of all servants. He’s the greatest! But no one is as servant than Krishna.

So become a pure devotee and go back to the spiritual world! And it will be based, again, upon what? Hearing and chanting about Krishna. And the foundation of that is what? Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=63232

“So far your question regarding women, I have always accepted the service of women without any discrimination” (Letter to: Gurudasa — Los Angeles 26 May, 1972)

In terms of our personalities and abilities, no two of us are alike. Why should we be? And why would anyone want us to be? Variety, Srila Prabhupada tells us, is the mother of enjoyment. Whatever our personality, whatever our talents, Prabhupada wants us to use them in Krishna’s service.

Yet when we learn from Prabhupada’s teachings that women are to be chaste, tolerant, shy, and subservient, it may seem that while men have variegated personalities, women’s personalities are expected to be uniform. But in fact, in their service to Krishna, women’s personalities differ from one another’s as much as men’s.

To accept the wonderful variegatedness inherent within each of His devotees, Krishna is unlimitedly variegated. Srila Rupa Goswami describes Krishna’s personality in his Bhaktirasamrita- sindhu. Krishna, he says, is dhirodatta, or grave, gentle, forgiving, merciful, determined, humble, highly qualified, chivalrous, and physically attractive. He is also dhiralalita, or naturally funny, always in the bloom of full youth, expert in joking, free from all anxieties, domesticated, and submissive to His lover.

As a dhira-prasanta Krishna is peaceful, forbearing, considerate, and obliging. And as a dhiroddhata He is envious, proud, easily angered, restless, and complacent.

We may ask how someone can have four quite opposing personality traits, but as Krishna is the reservoir of all transcendental qualities and activities, and as He exhibits limitless varieties of pastimes, there’s no contradiction in Him possessing all types of character traits and exhibiting them at different times and in different circumstances.

Krishna’s devotees also have different character traits. Among His wives, for example, Rukmini is grave, always engaged in her service to Krishna, and always feeling satisfied in that service. Satyabhama, on the other hand, has quite a different nature. She sometimes feels inferior to Rukmini, is sometimes envious of her, and competes with her.

When Krishna appeared as Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Rukmini’s mood was exhibited by Gadadhara Pandita. “Gadadhara Pandita’s pure ecstatic love for Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was also very deep. It was like that of Rukminidevi, who was always especially submissive to Krishna. Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu sometimes desired to see Gadadhara Pandita’s affectionate anger, but because of his knowledge of the Lord’s opulences, his anger was never invoked.” (Cc. Antya 7.144, 145). Satyabhama’s mood was present in Jagadananda Pandita: “The affectionate loving exchanges between Jagadananda Pandita and Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu continued in this manner, exactly like the exchanges between Satyabhama and Lord Krishna related in Srimad- Bhagavatam.” (Cc. Antya 12.152)

Srila Prabhupada comments, “In the pastimes of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Jagadananda Pandita was always in disagreement with the Lord like Satyabhama, whereas Gadadhara Pandita was always awed by the Lord’s opulence and was therefore submissive to the Lord under all circumstances.” (Cc. Antya 7.145)

In other words, Krishna engages with His devotees according to their different natures and relishes all the many varieties of loving exchanges He has with them. Similarly, Srila Prabhupada attracted a wide gamut of people, from former pickpockets to PhDs, from the reticent to the rebellious and, whatever we were, engaged us in his service and the service of Sri Sri Radha and Krishna. It wasn’t that we, his followers, had to fit some stereotyped personality, but that we could, while following the principles Srila Prabhupada prescribed, be who we were – both in terms of our qualities and our work – for Krishna’s pleasure. As no one can claim that Krishna loved Rukmini more because she was gentle and Satyabhama less because she was feisty, so because he saw their intent, Srila Prabhupada loved all his followers despite what others might consider character flaws. Prabhupada wrote, “Because devotees are persons, therefore there will always be some lacking – but the difference is that their lacking, because they have given up everything to serve Krishna – money, jobs, reputation, wealth, big educations, everything – their lackings have become transcendental because, despite everything they may do, their topmost intention is to serve Krishna.” (Letter to: Atreya Rsi, Bombay, February 4, 1972)

Among Srila Prabhupada’s women followers, some were (and are) quiet and tolerant, and others, opinionated and outspoken. Prabhupada did not expect strong, assertive women to give up their personalities; he accepted and engaged every type of woman, just as Krishna accepts love from all His wives with all their diverse moods. Characteristically practical, Prabhupada taught us to use our personality in Krishna’s service, because to try to give up something so deeply embedded in us won’t last, will cause needless suffering, or both. In fact, Prabhupada saw that his women followers could help him fulfill the sacred mission given to him by his spiritual master, namely to spread Krishna consciousness throughout the world. He wrote, “In India all the acaryas and their descendants later on acted only from the man’s side. Their wives were at home because that is the system from old times that women are not required to go out. But in Bhagavad-gita we find that women are also equally competent like the men in the matter of Krishna Consciousness Movement. Please therefore carry on these missionary activities, and prove it by practical example that there is no bar for anyone in the matter of preaching work for Krishna Consciousness.” (Letter to Himavati, London, December 20, 1969)

When his female followers avidly distributed his books with amazing success, Prabhupada was very pleased, but some of those followers had some doubts. They found that they couldn’t distribute books and at the same time be shy, a primary feminine quality that Prabhupada emphasized. Rather, they were obliged to be bold. Some presented this quandary to Prabhupada. He responded, “Regarding the problem of how to be aggressive on Sankirtana and submissive in the temple, my request to you is that you should go on being aggressive on Sankirtana. I myself was aggressive in coming to your country. No one invited me. Even you boys and girls did not invite me. But, I came and I preached aggressively, and therefore you are now my disciples. So now you well know you have to approach the men and women of your country, and it may appear that superficially that you have to disturb them. They are doing their business peacefully, and you come and disturb them, ‘Please take this Krishna book.'” (Letter to: Jagaddhatri, Pasupati, Sailogata, and Pamela, Dallas, July 30, 1975)

In Prabhupada’s view, aggressiveness used in Krishna’s service is purifying. He continues in the same letter, “If you are completely aggressive on Sankirtana, there should be no material aggressiveness and pride remaining. You have to distinguish between devotees and non-devotees. Aggression for the cause of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is pure. If you become completely absorbed in such aggression to spread Sankirtana Movement, there will be no question of wanting to lord it over in the temple. Preaching purifies us of these material tendencies for sense gratification. It is simply a matter of time that you will see this. Do not worry. Krishna will help you.”

We are, after all, multi-dimensional creatures. To try to hammer ourselves into a box not meant for us is to make us into dismal caricatures of ourselves – hollow, inconsequential, fleeting, and miserable. Let us not confuse unity with uniformity – with actions, feelings, and words that are identical. This is not unity; it is conformity. Instead, whatever our personality, let us use it in Krishna’s service and for His pleasure. That is unity in diversity.

In Srila Prabhupada’s words, “In the material world there are varieties, but there is no agreement. In the spiritual world there are varieties, but there is agreement. That is the difference. The materialist without being able to adjust the varieties and the disagreements makes everything zero. They cannot come into agreement with varieties, but if we keep Krishna in the center, then there will be agreement in varieties. This is called unity in diversity . if we fight on account of diversity, then it is simply the material platform. Please try to maintain the philosophy of unity in diversity. That will make our movement successful.” (Letter to Kirtanananda, Bombay, October 18, 1973)

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20529

To some people, “devotion to God” may conjure grave activities: prayer, worship, and religious observances. They may not associate joy with devotion. Yet in fact, joy is a natural result of devotion.

One of Krishna’s primary teachings in the Gita is that we are not the body that we inhabit but we are a soul. He says, “As the sun alone illuminates all this universe, so does the soul, one within the body, illuminate the entire body by consciousness.” (Gita 13.34) That soul is not some random, foreign particle but is part of Him, of Krishna, as Krishna Himself declares: “The souls in this conditioned world are My eternal fragmental parts.” (Gita 15.7)

Just as a drop of ocean water has the qualities of the vast ocean, so as part of Krishna, we, as spiritual entities – souls – have His qualities. Krishna, for example, is eternal, and we (as spirit souls) are too, as Krishna explains: na jayate mriyate va kadacin, “For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time.” (Gita 2.20)

Besides being eternal, Krishna is also blissful (ananda). (Brahma-samhita 5.1) And as part of Him, we are also blissful by nature. To be blissful – to be joyful – is our birthright. It’s part of who we are; it’s our natural constitutional nature. And we revive that nature when, with an attitude of devotion, we come in touch with Krishna or His devotees.

In the words of Barbara Holdrege, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California in Santa Barbara, “The joy of bhakti is actually Krishna’s own bliss. What the bhakta is tasting when the bhakta experiences joy is actually just a reflection of Krishna’s own nature that they are partaking of.”

Perhaps we can feel an ember of joy lying beneath our daily weighty problems and stresses. Perhaps when we’re chanting Hare Krishna or serving Krishna in any one of a myriad of ways, we can feel the dichotomy between our deepest identity as a joyful being and what we tend to experience in daily life. In other words, maybe we can occasionally glimpse the fact that this world is not offering us the happiness that’s our birthright; it’s not giving us everything we seek.

Not Getting What We Seek

Govinda Dasi, one of Srila Prabhupada’s early disciples, relates that when she first met Prabhupada he asked her about her life.

When she told him that she’d traveled extensively in Europe, he said, “Oh, you are so young and you’ve traveled so much?”

“Yes,” she said. “But none of it made me happy.”

Prabhupada smiled beautifully and said, “Ah yes, that is required.”

In other words, what can propel us toward devotional service to Krishna is the understanding that this world does not and never will give us what we seek – lasting joy. In Krishna’s words: “Four kinds of pious men begin to render devotional service unto Me – the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.” (Gita 7.16)

But devotional service to Krishna can transform our life: The first symptom of pure devotional service, Rupa Goswami says, is immediate relief from all kinds of material distress.

Just as when a hungry person eats a nutritious meal her hunger abates and she feels pleased, similarly when we, as souls, revive our relationship with Krishna, we feel detached from all that’s material and we feel fulfilled. We feel joyful. In Krishna’s words, brahma-bhutah prasannatma na shochati na kankshati samah sarveshu bhuteshu: “One who is transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything. He is equally disposed toward every living entity.” (Gita 18.54)

Or, in the words of the Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.2.19): “As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature’s modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire, and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then the devotee is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy.”

Another symptom of pure devotional service that Rupa Goswami mentions is that it automatically puts one in transcendental pleasure. Sria Prabhupada elaborates:

It is stated that as the personal attendants and maidservants of a queen follow the queen with all respect and obeisances, similarly the joys of religiousness, economic development, sense gratification and liberation follow the devotional service of the Lord. In other words, a pure devotee does not lack any kind of happiness derived from any source. He does not want anything but service to Krishna, but even if he should have another desire, the Lord fulfills this without the devotee’s asking. (The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 1)

There is, however, much more dimension to the joy a devotee experiences than the joys of religiousness, economic development, sense gratification, and liberation. There’s even more than the external joy that’s so clearly present in the minds and hearts of the devotees when they’re smiling, dancing, and laughing as they chant Hare Krishna and do other services for Krishna’s pleasure.

For example, in the pastime of Krishna’s chastising Kaliya, when Krishna understood that the multi-headed serpent was poisoning the water of the Yamuna River, He jumped into the river and swam around in it, challenging Kaliya. Kaliya grabbed Krishna in his thick black coils and apparently trapped Him there. Seeing this, Krishna’s friends, the cowherd boys, who were on the riverbank, became overwhelmed with grief. They’d devoted their activities, affection, thoughts, and lives to Krishna and knew no one but Him. When the other residents of Vrindavan heard what was happening, they rushed to the riverbank and on seeing Krishna in that condition were, like the cowherd boys, overcome with anxiety and fear and grief. Krishna’s mother, Yashoda, tried to enter the water but, restrained by the others, fainted. Krishna remained seemingly trapped in Kaliya’s grip for two hours, and by that time His friends and relatives on the shore were practically dead from grief. Seeing their condition, Krishna freed Himself, danced on Kaliya’s many hoods, and soundly defeated him.

The fear, anxiety, grief, dread, and near-death state these devotees felt are not what we usually identify as joy, but in the transcendental understanding, these emotions are not just joy, but are extreme joy. They are not due to any material cause, nor are they tinged with anything material. They are purely in relation to Krishna and are therefore ecstatic.

Another example of the absolute nature of emotions in the transcendental realm is when Krishna left His dear girlfriends, the gopis. Their overwhelming sorrow at separation from Him is understood to be the highest of all ecstasies, vipralambha-bhava, the feeling of being apart from their most beloved.

Emotions Beyond Duality

This material world that we know is a relative one. It’s full of dualities: pleasure and pain, enjoyment and suffering, honor and dishonor, good and bad, young and old. In Krishna’s world, however, the absolute world, there are no dualities. Whatever is in relation to Krishna is all good, however it appears externally.

What can we, who are still in the grip of the relativities of this world and have not yet reunited with Krishna enough to feel any sort of ecstasy in relation to Him, do with this knowledge of the absolute nature of spiritual emotions? Chaitanya Mahaprabhu gives us a hint when He prays, “I know no one but Krishna as My Lord, and He shall always remain so, even if He handles Me roughly by His embrace or makes Me brokenhearted by not being present before Me. He is completely free to do anything and everything, yet He is always My worshipful Lord, unconditionally.” Sikshashtaka 8)

This attitude of “Whatever happens, my dear Krishna, whether apparently good or apparently bad, I am Yours” is pleasing to Krishna and pleasing to us, too. It’s a commitment and resolve we can strive for. It means we give ourselves over to Krishna and depend on Him for shelter, knowing that in the final analysis, whatever happens, there is no other shelter anywhere in the creation. By remembering Krishna in good times, those times become better. By remembering Him in difficult times, those times become less difficult.

After Krishna had saved Queen Kunti and her sons from constant dangers – poisoning, arson, cannibals, a vicious assembly, sufferings during their exile in the forest, the great battle of Kurukshetra, and a nuclearlike attack – Queen Kunti prayed, “I wish that all those calamities would happen again and again so that we could see You again and again, for seeing You means that we will no longer see repeated births and deaths.” (Bhagavatam 1.8.25)

This is a world of calamities, and chief among them are the inevitable dwindling, suffering, and demise of the body that we’re in. But Krishna is more powerful than those calamities, and by remembering Him we overcome material calamities and associate with Him.

“He who meditates on Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his mind constantly engaged in remembering Me, undeviated from the path, he, O Partha, is sure to reach Me.” (Gita 8.8)

I, for one, can’t pray as Queen Kunti does; I don’t want calamities in my life. But I can appreciate her mood of complete dependence on Krishna and her implicit faith that by seeing Him we will no longer experience birth, death, old age, and disease. I can appreciate that her mood is the result of becoming detached from this world and taking full shelter in Krishna.

In the Innermost Core of Our Hearts

There’s a fascinating verse toward the end of the Chaitanya-charitamrita (Antya 4.176):

‘dvaite’ bhadrabhadra-jnana, saba—‘manodharma’
‘ei bhala, ei manda’,—ei saba ‘bhrama’

“In the material world, conceptions of good and bad are all mental speculations. Therefore, saying ‘This is good’ and ‘This is bad’ is all a mistake.”

Srila Prabhupada comments on this point in a letter (May 20, 1976): In this material world, to say this is good and this is bad has no value. To us, everything material is bad as it is lacking Krishna consciousness. Just like wet stool and dry stool. Stool is stool, but somebody is saying that wet stool is better than dry stool. What is this good and bad? The top side of some stool is dry and the bottom side is wet, but anyway that you take it, the material world is stool, and it must be given up. Therefore, we are trying to get out of the material world and go back to home, back to Godhead. In this world of duality, this is good and this is bad has no meaning, it is called manodharma, mental concoction. However, the real truth is that Krishna says that duhkhalayam ashashvatam, the world is a place of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. Now is this good misery or bad misery? Misery is misery; and you have to die, good die or bad die. So to us everything material, without connection to Krishna, is to be rejected as stool, otherwise we will waste valuable time needed to solve the real problems of life, namely, birth, death, disease, and old age.

Joy is our birthright because we are part of God and He is joyful. Since joy is inherent to us, we are driven to search for it, but we spend our lives searching in the wrong place – in the material world – having forgotten that we’re spiritual beings. Lasting joy, however, cannot be found anywhere within the material world. It’s there within each of us in the innermost core of our hearts; it’s in our relationship with Krishna, with His devotees, and with everything related to Him. Joy is amply available to us, but we need guidance to access it. When we receive that guidance, the direction of a qualified spiritual teacher, we find there are unimagined facets of joy.

When Srila Prabhupada founded ISKCON, he created seven purposes for it, the third of which is “To bring the members of the Society together with each other and nearer to Krishna, the prime entity, and thus to develop the idea, within the members and humanity at large, that each soul is part and parcel of the quality of Godhead (Krishna).”

And what do the members of the Society – the devotees – do when they come together? Krishna Himself explains: “The thoughts of My pure devotees dwell in Me, their lives are fully devoted to My service, and they derive great satisfaction and bliss from always enlightening one another and conversing about Me.” (Gita 10.9) Simply by keeping the company of and serving Krishna’s devotees we can experience the joy of devotion. And that joy is meant for everyone.

Source: https://btg.krishna.com/joy-of-devotion/

Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 7: The Science of God Chapter 14: Ideal Family Life

Summary

Maharaja Yudhisthira inquired from Narada Muni: O my lord, O great sage, kindly explain how we who are staying at home without knowledge of the goal of life may also easily attain liberation, according to the instructions of the Vedas.

Narada Muni replied: My dear King, those who stay at home as householders must act to earn their livelihood, and instead of trying to enjoy the results of their work themselves, they should offer these results to Krsna, Vasudeva. How to satisfy Vasudeva in this life can be perfectly understood through the association of great devotees of the Lord.

A grhastha must associate again and again with saintly persons, and with great respect he must hear the nectar of the activities of the Supreme Lord and His incarnations as these activities are described in Srimad-Bhagavatam and other Puranas. Thus one should gradually become detached from affection for his wife and children, exactly like a man awakening from a dream.

While working to earn his livelihood as much as necessary to maintain body and soul together, one who is actually learned should live in human society unattached to family affairs, although externally appearing very much attached.

An intelligent man in human society should make his own program of activities very simple. If there are suggestions from his friends, children, parents, brothers or anyone else, he should externally agree, saying, “Yes, that is all right,” but internally he should be determined not to create a cumbersome life in which the purpose of life will not be fulfilled.

The natural products created by the Supreme Personality of Godhead should be utilized to maintain the bodies and souls of all living entities. The necessities of life are of three types: those produced from the sky [from rainfall], from the earth [from the mines, the seas or the fields], and from the atmosphere [that which is obtained suddenly and unexpectedly].

One may claim proprietorship to as much wealth as required to maintain body and soul together, but one who desires proprietorship over more than that must be considered a thief, and he deserves to be punished by the laws of nature.

One should treat animals such as deer, camels, asses, monkeys, mice, snakes, birds and flies exactly like one’s own son. How little difference there actually is between children and these innocent animals.

Even if one is a householder rather than a brahmacari, a sannyasi or a vanaprastha, one should not endeavor very hard for religiosity, economic development or satisfaction of the senses. Even in householder life, one should be satisfied to maintain body and soul together with whatever is available with minimum endeavor, according to place and time, by the grace of the Lord. One should not engage oneself in ugra-karma.

Dogs, fallen persons and untouchables, including candalas [dog-eaters], should all be maintained with their proper necessities, which should be contributed by the householders. Even one’s wife at home, with whom one is most intimately attached, should be offered for the reception of guests and people in general.

One so seriously considers one’s wife to be his own that he sometimes kills himself for her or kills others, including even his parents or his spiritual master or teacher. Therefore if one can give up his attachment to such a wife, he conquers the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is never conquered by anyone.

Through proper deliberation, one should give up attraction to his wife’s body because that body will ultimately be transformed into small insects, stool or ashes. What is the value of this insignificant body? How much greater is the Supreme Being, who is all-pervading like the sky?

An intelligent person should be satisfied with eating prasada [food offered to the Lord] or with performing the five different kinds of yajsa [pasca-suna]. By such activities, one can give up attachment for the body and so-called proprietorship with reference to the body. When one is able to do this, he is firmly fixed in the position of a mahatma.

Every day, one should worship the Supreme Being who is situated in everyone’s heart, and on this basis one should separately worship the demigods, the saintly persons, ordinary human beings and living entities, one’s forefathers and one’s self. In this way one is able to worship the Supreme Being in the core of everyone’s heart.

When one is enriched with wealth and knowledge which are under his full control and by means of which he can perform yajsa or please the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one must perform sacrifices, offering oblations to the fire according to the directions of the sastras. In this way one should worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna, is the enjoyer of sacrificial offerings. Yet although His Lordship eats the oblations offered in the fire, my dear King, He is still more satisfied when nice food made of grains and ghee is offered to Him through the mouths of qualified brahmanas.

Therefore, my dear King, first offer prasada unto the brahmanas and the demigods, and after sumptuously feeding them you may distribute prasada to other living entities according to your ability. In this way you will be able to worship all living entities — or, in other words, the supreme living entity within every living entity.

A brahmana who is sufficiently rich must offer oblations to the forefathers during the dark-moon fortnight in the latter part of the month of Bhadra. Similarly, he should offer oblations to the relatives of the forefathers during the mahalaya ceremonies in the month of Asvina.*

One should perform the sraddha ceremony on the Makara-sankranti [the day when the sun begins to move north] or on the Karkata-sankranti [the day when the sun begins to move south]. One should also perform this ceremony on the Mesa-sankranti day and the Tula-sankranti day, in the yoga named Vyatipata, on that day in which three lunar tithis are conjoined, during an eclipse of either the moon or the sun, on the twelfth lunar day, and in the Sravana-naksatra. One should perform this ceremony on the Aksaya-trtiya day, on the ninth lunar day of the bright fortnight of the month of Kartika, on the four astakas in the winter season and cool season, on the seventh lunar day of the bright fortnight of the month of Magha, during the conjunction of Magha-naksatra and the full-moon day, and on the days when the moon is completely full, or not quite completely full, when these days are conjoined with the naksatras from which the names of certain months are derived. One should also perform the sraddha ceremony on the twelfth lunar day when it is in conjunction with any of the naksatras named Anuradha, Sravana, Uttara-phalguni, Uttarasadha or Uttara-bhadrapada. Again, one should perform this ceremony when the eleventh lunar day is in conjunction with either Uttara-phalguni, Uttarasadha or Uttara-bhadrapada. Finally, one should perform this ceremony on days conjoined with one’s own birth star [janma-naksatra] or with Sravana-naksatra.

All of these seasonal times are considered extremely auspicious for humanity. At such times, one should perform all auspicious activities, for by such activities a human being attains success in his short duration of life.

During these periods of seasonal change, if one bathes in the Ganges, in the Yamuna or in another sacred place, if one chants, offers fire sacrifices or executes vows, or if one worships the Supreme Lord, the brahmanas, the forefathers, the demigods and the living entities in general, whatever he gives in charity yields a permanently beneficial result.

O King Yudhisthira, at the time prescribed for reformatory ritualistic ceremonies for one’s self, one’s wife or one’s children, or during funeral ceremonies and annual death ceremonies, one must perform the auspicious ceremonies mentioned above in order to flourish in fruitive activities.

Narada Muni continued: Now I shall describe the places where religious performances may be well executed. Any place where a Vaisnava is available is an excellent place for all auspicious activities. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the support of this entire cosmic manifestation, with all its moving and nonmoving living entities, and the temple where the Deity of the Lord is installed is a most sacred place. Furthermore, places where learned brahmanas observe Vedic principles by means of austerity, education and mercy are also most auspicious and sacred.

Auspicious indeed are the places where there is a temple of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, in which He is duly worshiped, and also the places where there flow the celebrated sacred rivers mentioned in the Puranas, the supplementary Vedic literatures. Anything spiritual done there is certainly very effective.

The sacred lakes like Puskara and places where saintly persons live, like Kuruksetra, Gaya, Prayaga, Pulahasrama, Naimisaranya, the banks of the Phalgu River, Setubandha, Prabhasa, Dvaraka, Varanasi, Mathura, Pampa, Bindu-sarovara, Badarikasrama [Narayanasrama], the places where the Nanda River flows, the places where Lord Ramacandra and mother Sita took shelter, such as Citrakuta, and also the hilly tracts of land known as Mahendra and Malaya — all of these are to be considered most pious and sacred. Similarly, places outside India where there are centers of the Krsna consciousness movement and where Radha-Krsna Deities are worshiped must all be visited and worshiped by those who want to be spiritually advanced. One who intends to advance in spiritual life may visit all these places and perform ritualistic ceremonies to get results a thousand times better than the results of the same activities performed in any other place.

O King of the earth, it has been decided by expert, learned scholars that only the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, in whom all that is moving or nonmoving within this universe is resting and from whom everything is coming, is the best person to whom everything must be given.

O King Yudhisthira, the demigods, many great sages and saints including even the four sons of Lord Brahma, and I myself were present at your Rajasuya sacrificial ceremony, but when there was a question of who should be the first person worshiped, everyone decided upon Lord Krsna, the Supreme Person.

The entire universe, which is full of living entities, is like a tree whose root is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Acyuta [Krsna]. Therefore simply by worshiping Lord Krsna one can worship all living entities.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead has created many residential places like the bodies of human beings, animals, birds, saints and demigods. In all of these innumerable bodily forms, the Lord resides with the living being as Paramatma. Thus He is known as the purusavatara.

O King Yudhisthira, the Supersoul in every body gives intelligence to the individual soul according to his capacity for understanding. Therefore the Supersoul is the chief within the body. The Supersoul is manifested to the individual soul according to the individual’s comparative development of knowledge, austerity, penance and so on.

My dear King, when great sages and saintly persons saw mutually disrespectful dealings at the beginning of Treta-yuga, Deity worship in the temple was introduced with all paraphernalia.

Sometimes a neophyte devotee offers all the paraphernalia for worshiping the Lord, and he factually worships the Lord as the Deity, but because he is envious of the authorized devotees of Lord Visnu, the Lord is never satisfied with his devotional service.

My dear King, of all persons a qualified brahmana must be accepted as the best within this material world because such a brahmana, by practicing austerity, Vedic studies and satisfaction, becomes the counterpart body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

My dear King Yudhisthira, the brahmanas, especially those engaged in preaching the glories of the Lord throughout the entire world, are recognized and worshiped by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the heart and soul of all creation. The brahmanas, by their preaching, sanctify the three worlds with the dust of their lotus feet, and thus they are worshipable even for Krsna.

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17504

A true spiritual master transforms lives not through external power, but through authentic devotion, personal example, and unconditional love, guiding others back to God.

This talk is a personal, storytelling-based glorification of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, emphasizing how a genuine spiritual teacher transforms lives through simplicity, purity, and deep love for God (Krishna).

Key Themes
1. Seeing the Soul, Not the External
Prabhupada saw everyone’s spiritual potential, even in small acts (like someone bringing a simple gift).
Spiritual life begins with any sincere step toward Krishna.
2. Authenticity Over Image
The speaker shares a mistake: trying to “rebrand” ISKCON professionally to attract donors.
Prabhupada corrected him, teaching:
ISKCON is not a marketing brand
It is a spiritual lineage rooted in truth and guru-parampara
3. Learning Through Personal Example
Many teachings came not just from books, but from:
Prabhupada’s actions
Small details (like respect for sacred texts)
Spiritual understanding is transmitted through lived experience (lila).
4. Power of Simple Devotion
A devotee offered something “ordinary” (powdered milk), yet:
Prabhupada deeply appreciated it
Showing that devotion matters more than material value
5. Journey of Transformation

A dramatic story describes:

A seeker reading the Bhagavad-gita As It Is
Realizing:
Life’s purpose
The reality of Krishna as a person
Understanding that:
“I was searching for a teacher… but the teacher found me.”
6. Prabhupada’s Mission and Sacrifice
At age 69, he traveled alone to America with:
No money
Only books and faith
Faced extreme hardship but succeeded in:
Spreading Krishna consciousness worldwide
Inspiring thousands of followers
7. Spiritual Love as the Core
His power came from:
Deep compassion
Seeing all beings as part of God
This love transformed people across cultures.
8. Call to Action
Build a personal connection with the guru
Practice:
Chanting the Hare Krishna mantra
Reading sacred texts
Follow the path:
“Back to home, back to Godhead”

Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=117715

UPDATE 4/8/26 (See Appreciations below).

With deep sadness, ISKCON News reports that pioneering devotee and disciple of Srila Prabhupada, His Grace Caru Dasa, passed away on April 6, 2026, following a car accident in Utah. A cremation service will be held on Saturday, April 11th, at 9:00 AM at the Walker Funeral Home, 187 S Main Street, Spanish Fork, UT 84660, and a Zoom memorial on April 17th, 2026. Details to follow.

A disciple of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada since 1970, Caru Dasa devoted more than five decades to sharing Krishna consciousness. He was one of the movement’s great community builders, known for his enthusiasm, creativity, and ability to present Krishna consciousness in ways that touched the hearts of people from every background.

Born Chris Warden in Stahlstown, Pennsylvania, Caru Dasa met the devotees in Australia and was initiated by Srila Prabhupada in May of 1970. In the years that followed, he served in a number of important leadership roles in ISKCON, including as temple president in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane, Australia, and later in Berkeley, California. Those who knew him during those years remember his energetic preaching, his determination, and his natural ability to inspire others.

Read more: https://iskconnews.org/remembering-his-grace-caru-dasa/

As ISKCON prepares to celebrate its 60th anniversary, organizers of the upcoming New York City anniversary gala have announced a special Early Bird ticket discount available now through April 30.

The gala will honor the legacy of ISKCON’s Founder-Acharya, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, and forms part of the year-long 60-50 Global Commemoration marking 60 years since ISKCON’s founding in 1966 and looking ahead to the 50th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s disappearance in 2027.

The New York celebration will bring together devotees, leaders, and supporters from around the world. A highlight of the event will be a Legacy Exhibition tracing Srila Prabhupada’s journey from 26 Second Avenue to ISKCON’s worldwide growth.

General admission tickets had previously opened at $350. Devotees are encouraged to take advantage of the discounted Early Bird pricing before April 30 and reserve their place at this historic gathering. To order your tickets, click here.   

Hare Krishna 
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda!
All glories to Sri Narasimhadeva!

As the auspicious appearance day of Lord Narasimhadeva approaches, devotees and well-wishers alike joyfully look forward to this sacred time of receiving His protection, blessings, and mercy. The divine pastimes of Lord Narasimhadeva remind us that sincere prayers are always heard, and His shelter brings strength, courage, and reassurance to all.

As we prepare for this sacred festival:
 "May there be good fortune throughout the universe, and may all envious persons be pacified. May all living entities become calm by practicing bhakti-yoga, for by accepting devotional service they will think of each other's welfare. Therefore, let us all engage in the service of the supreme transcendence, Lord Sri Krishna, and always remain absorbed in thought of Him." (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 5.18.9)

This year, we invite you to take part in the Sri Narasimha Navaratri Yajna, leading up to this most auspicious day.
9 Days of Powerful Yajnas | 12 Sacred Kundas Daily
Yajamana Seva Available — ₹5555

During these sacred days, yajnas will be performed daily in twelve kundas, invoking prayers for protection, purification, and divine blessings. By becoming a yajamana, you directly participate in these offerings and seek the shelter of Lord Narasimhadeva for yourself and your loved ones.
Yajna Seva Options:
* Navaratri Yajna (9 days, 1 kunda) – ₹49,995
* Navaratri Yajna (5 days, 1 kunda) – ₹27,775
* Navaratri Yajna (1 day, 1 kunda) – ₹5,555
* Sri Narasimha Procession – ₹4,001

Kindly take this opportunity to serve and receive His divine protection:
https://www.mayapur.com/festivals/Narasimha-Caturdasi 

May Lord Narasimhadeva always protect you and your family.
Thank you once again for your continued support.

Your servants,
Mayapur.com Team

Source: https://www.mayapur.com/en/blog/narasimha-caturdashi-is-approaching-

According to Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā (126), Sri Ramadasa was formerly Sridama, one of the cowherd associates of Krishna. In the Bhakti-ratnakara (Fourth Wave), there is a detailed description of Sri Abhirama Thakura.

By the order of Sri Nityananda Prabhu, Abhirama Thakura became a great acharya and preacher of the Chaitanya movement. He was a very influential personality, and nondevotees were very much afraid of him. He was always in ecstasy and was extremely kind to fallen souls.

It is said that if Abhirama Thakura offered obeisances to any stone other than a salagrama shila, it would immediately fracture. It is also said that he had a whip, and whoever he touched with it would immediately become an elevated devotee of Krishna.

Approximately ten miles southwest of Champadanga railway station, on the narrow-gauge railway line from Howrah to Amta in the Hugli district, there is a small town named Khanakula Krishnanagara. The temple where Abhirama Thakura worshiped is situated there.

Source: https://ramaiswami.com/abhirama-thakura-disappearance-3/

Developing the quality of empathy has many benefits for aspiring devotees of the Lord.

When I was doing my clinical psychotherapy internship in graduate school, a supervisor stressed connecting with our clients through realized empathy. Most of his interns came from privileged backgrounds, and he felt we needed more than just a theoretical understanding of our clients’ pain.

My first session in “experiential empathy” was with Doris, who suffered from schizophrenia. A slight woman in her early 30s, she had an attractive face, but it was worn from exposure, as she would often choose to be homeless rather than stay in shelters. She would often sit in the waiting room carrying on conversations with imaginary persons who seemed real to her.

Doris wasn’t a strong candidate for therapy, yet her case manager and I would provide her support. Once in a while she would have some respite from her illness and would talk about her numerous losses, including relationships, and her dream of being a teacher.

After my initial sessions with Doris, my supervisor had me spend an afternoon in a session designed to develop empathy for schizophrenics. Through earphones, a myriad of voices began to assault me-calling me names and demeaning my character. While listening to these voices, I was given a list of simple tasks to perform, such as going to the corner store to buy batteries. After two hours of listening to the taped voices and running my prescribed errands, I was spent. Physically and mentally exhausted, I joined with others to share our experiences. The training was effective in achieving its goal. I learned more about people plagued by this most debilitating illness and felt increased compassion for them.

My next client was a middle-aged man with multiple sclerosis. Wheelchair bound, he showed symptoms of depression, and his doctor referred him for mental health counseling.

By now I was familiar with my supervisor’s relentless conviction for experiential empathy, so I wasn’t surprised when I saw a wheelchair waiting for me in his office. For the next hour, he had me running small errands throughout the hospital while awkwardly learning to maneuver the wheelchair.

Reflecting on that internship, I appreciate how my supervisor approached this most important element of therapy-joining through empathy. Empathy helps us care about people by identifying with their suffering. It also helps us avoid falling into the trap of thinking we’re superior to others. And it helps us develop humility-the gateway to making spiritual progress and developing a loving relationship with God.
Krishna’s Help

Krishna helps His fledgling devotees by purifying any mentality that prevents them from coming closer to Him. When we form opinions of people and their situations, we should do so with the desire to be of assistance and to please our guru and Krishna. That kind of thinking will help us advance in spiritual consciousness. But if we evaluate others with a mentality of exploiting them or putting them down-to elevate our own sense of importance-that kind of judgment will hinder our spiritual progress.

One of the most unwanted qualities in the heart of a practitioner of bhakti-yoga is the tendency to judge others without concern for their spiritual welfare. This leads to faultfinding and puts us at risk of vaishnava aparadha, or offending Krishna’s devotees. If we are fortunate, Krishna will correct this tendency in our heart. Sometimes Krishna, the originator of experiential empathy training, will place us in a situation similar to that of the person we are judging. Although this can be disconcerting, it is the Lord’s kindness to help uproot the qualities in our heart that are obstacles to loving the Lord and His devotees.

When I was a young devotee, I was strict about attending all the temple programs. But I found myself critical of devotees who didn’t always attend. One devotee suffered from an illness and did her best to come when she could. But I felt she could do better. Not long after those thoughts contaminated my consciousness, however, I became ill and often missed mangala-arati, the early-morning worship.

Krishna accomplishes many things by one action, and one result of my illness was a diminishing of my critical mentality. Krishna has often placed me in situations similar to those of people for whom I lacked empathy, helping me develop more understanding of others’ difficulties.

The saying atmavan manyate jagat means that we tend to see others as we are. Often the very thing we find reprehensible in another is a negative quality lurking within ourselves. So it is prudent to reflect on this when we form opinions of others and to look within our heart to expose our own faults.
Prabhupada’s Example

By his example, Prabhupada taught us to be lenient with others and strict with ourselves. He was uncompromising in his service to Krishna and his daily spiritual practices. Yet he showed understanding and compassion toward his neophyte disciples, who often struggled to follow the basic practices of bhakti-yoga. As his disciples matured, he would sometimes sternly correct them, but only out of duty, to help them progress in their spiritual lives.

In the early days of the Hare Krishna movement, Prabhupada asked one of his first disciples, Syamasundara Dasa, an expert craftsman, to carve a deity of Lord Jagannatha from wood. At one point Prabhupada came to see how the work was progressing. When he entered the room, he saw a pack of cigarettes sitting on Lord Jagannatha’s head.

“It’s all right,” Prabhupada told his embarrassed, contrite disciple.

Prabhupada didn’t need to become addicted to cigarettes to understand his disciple’s plight. He instructed Syamasundara to reduce by one the number of cigarettes he smoked each day until the habit was gone. Prabhupada was a pure devotee, his consciousness crystal clear. Because he had no contamination in his heart, he was free of the propensity to find fault or condemn.

In the Bhagavad-gita (6.32) Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that spiritually advanced persons can understand both the happiness and the distress of others. Because of their own experience in the material world, they understand that people suffer because they forget the Lord and are happy when united with Him.
Saving the Coat

Like all spiritual qualities, empathy or compassion has a counterpart in the material realm. My supervisor was helping me develop empathy, but because he lacked knowledge of the eternal soul within the body, his conception of feeling another’s pain was based on only the body’s suffering. Prabhupada tells the story of a man who jumps into a lake to save a drowning man and returns with only the man’s coat. Born of the material mind, this kind of empathy will have only temporary value unless employed in our spiritual lives.

Srila Prabhupada deeply felt the pain and suffering of the souls in this world. Once, in Mayapur, he saw a scene from his balcony that brought tears to his eyes. Children were fighting off dogs to get food left on discarded plates. Prabhupada then said that no one within ten miles of the ISKCON Mayapur temple should go hungry; they should be fed with spiritually uplifting prasadam. Prabhupada’s compassion meant elevating people’s consciousness so that they could eventually be freed from all suffering.

Empathy is a natural quality of the soul. Following in Srila Prabhupada’s footsteps, we should cultivate concern for the suffering of others while understanding the ultimate goal of life. That doesn’t mean we have to use the means devised by my supervisor-enacting another’s suffering condition. But we can do practical things to develop empathy.

First is to have a student’s mind-an inquisitive mind that seeks to understand the lessons ever present in our environment. The Eleventh Canto of the Bhagavatam gives the example of a brahmana who describes twenty-four entities whom he considered his gurus. For example, he says that he learned valuable lessons from a pigeon, a honeybee, and a prostitute. Being open to what we can learn from others will help us appreciate the struggles of others and feel a connection we might have missed.

Another technique that can help us understand another’s world is reflective listening. Also known as empathic listening, it requires the listener to summarize both the speaker’s words and the feelings behind them.

Another powerful mindset is to practice seeing people for their potential rather than for who they were in the past or who they are in the present. Everyone is a pure soul with an eternal relationship with Krishna. Remembering this can help us see beyond people’s material conditioning, allowing us to care about them and want to help them.

Finally, we want to be in the mood of service to others. When we look for ways to serve rather than exploit, our hearts open and we naturally feel the connection that eternally exists between all living entities.

These are just a few suggestions for how we can move in the world in such a way that we expand the mentality favorable for developing empathy in our role as a spiritual practitioner.

Because of his spiritual perfection, Prabhupada could always clearly diagnose our suffering and worked tirelessly and patiently to give us the remedy. Despite having once said that our hearts were as hard to clean as coal, he didn’t give up on us. Now that Srila Prabhupada is no longer physically present on the planet, we have to extend his compassionate, empathetic nature to all the living entities who have the opportunity to take shelter in Lord Chaitanya’s movement.

When the guru leaves the world, the disciples have to rise to the occasion and take up the legacy of their beloved teacher. The guru will empower sincere disciples to carry on the mission. Sincere disciples of a Vaishnava guru are themselves Vaishnavas, deserving of the prayer offered in ISKCON temples each morning: “I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaishnava devotees of the Lord. They can fulfill the desires of everyone, just like desire trees, and they are full of compassion for the fallen souls.”

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17712

By His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Teachings of Queen Kuntī, Chapter 3

tatha paramahamsanam
muninam amalatmanam
bhakti-yoga-vidhanartham
katham pasyema hi striyah

You Yourself descend to propagate the transcendental science of devotional service unto the hearts of the advanced transcendentalists and mental speculators, who are purified by being able to discriminate between matter and spirit. How, then, can we women know You perfectly?

Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.20

Even the greatest philosophical speculators cannot have access to the region of the Lord. It is said in the Upanisads that the Supreme Truth, the Absolute Personality of Godhead, is beyond the range of the thinking power of the greatest philosopher. He is unknowable by great learning or by the greatest brain. He is knowable only by one who has His mercy. Others may go on thinking about Him for years together, yet He is unknowable. This very fact is corroborated by the Queen, who is playing the part of an innocent woman. Women in general are unable to speculate like philosophers, but they are blessed by the Lord because they believe at once in the superiority and almightiness of the Lord, and thus they offer obeisances without reservation. The Lord is so kind that He does not show special favor only to one who is a great philosopher. He knows the sincerity of purpose. For this reason only, women generally assemble in great number in any sort of religious function. In every country and in every sect of religion it appears that the women are more interested than the men. This simplicity of acceptance of the Lord’s authority is more effective than showy insincere religious fervor.

Kuntidevi prayed to the Lord very submissively, and this is the symptom of a Vaisnava. The Lord, Krsna, had come to Kuntidevi to offer respect to her by taking the dust of her feet. Because Krsna considered Kuntidevi His aunt, He used to touch her feet. But although Kuntidevi, a great devotee, was in such an exalted position, practically on the level of Yasodamayi, Krsna’s mother, she was so submissive that she prayed, “Krsna, You are meant to be understood by the paramahamsas, the most advanced transcendentalists, but I am a woman, so how can I see You?”

According to the Vedic system, there are four social divisions (catur-varnyam maya srstam). The highest members of the social order are the brahmanas, those who are intelligent, and then come theksatriyas (military men and administrators), the vaisyas (farmers and businessmen), and finally thesudras (ordinary laborers). One’s place in this system is determined by one’s qualities and work (guna-karma). The Bhagavad-gita mentions striyo vaisyas tatha sudrah, and the Srimad-Bhagavatam speaks of stri-sudra-dvija-bandhunam. According to these references women, sudras, and dvija-bandhus are considered to belong to the same category. The word dvija-bandhu refers to one who is born in an exalted brahmana or ksatriya family but who has no qualifications of his own. One’s social standing, according to the Vedic system, is determined by one’s qualifications. This is very practical. Suppose a man is born the son of a high-court judge. This does not mean that he himself is also a high-court judge. Yet because one happens to take birth in a brahmana family, even if he has no qualifications and is rascal number one, he claims to be a brahmana, and although his qualifications are less than those of a sudra, people accept him as a brahmana. This has caused the downfall of the Vedic civilization. The brahmanas in India are sometimes very much against my movement because I train and acceptbrahmanas from Europe and America. But we do not care about their arguments, nor will any other reasonable man. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said:

prthivite ache yata nagaradi grama
sarvatra pracara haibe mora nama

“In every town, city, and village of the world, the Krsna consciousness movement will be preached.”

How is it, then, that Europeans and Americans will not become brahmanas? In fact, one who comes to Krsna consciousness has already surpassed brahmanism. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (14.26):

mam ca yo ’vyabhicarena
bhakti-yogena sevate
sa gunan samatityaitan
brahma-bhuyaya kalpate

“One who takes to bhakti-yoga surpasses the modes of material nature and comes immediately to the transcendental platform [brahma-bhuta].” Not to speak of becoming a brahmana, the person who fully engages in bhakti-yoga attains the highest transcendental platform.

The stereotyped, crippled idea that only a person born in a brahmana family can become a brahmanahas killed Vedic civilization, but now we are reviving the correct understanding that the attainment of perfection is meant for everyone. In Bhagavad-gita (9.32) Lord Krsna says:

mam hi partha vyapasritya
ye ’pi syuh papa-yonayah
striyo vaisyas tatha sudras
te ’pi yanti param gatim

“O son of Prtha, those who take shelter in Me – though they be lowborn, women, vaisyas, or sudras –can approach the supreme destination.” Thus although women, sudras, and vaisyas are ordinarily considered to belong to a lower class, when one becomes a devotee he or she goes beyond such designations. Women, sudras, and vaisyas are ordinarily regarded as less intelligent, but if one takes to Krsna consciousness one is the most intelligent, as stated in the Caitanya-caritamrta (krsna yei bhaje sei bada catura). And Caitanya Mahaprabhu says:

ei rupe brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva
guru-krsna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija

“Among all the living entities wandering throughout the universe, one who is very fortunate receives, by the mercy of the spiritual master and the mercy of Krsna, the seed of devotional service.” (Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya 19.151) The Krsna consciousness movement does not consist of wretched, unfortunate men. No. It consists of the most fortunate. One who has taken to Krsna consciousness is to be considered the most fortunate because he has found the way to act so that his life will be perfect. One who is Krsna conscious and discharging his duties nicely is the most fortunate and the most perfect. This is humbly stated here by Kuntidevi.

Although Kunti had the body of a woman, she was a devotee. Therefore she was not like an ordinary unintelligent woman. Rather, she was the most intelligent, for she recognized Krsna to be the Supreme Godhead: “He has come to me to offer me respect, materially appearing to be my nephew, but He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” Therefore in a previous verse she said, alaksyam sarva-bhutanam antar bahir avasthitam: “You are not seen by ordinary men, although You are everywhere, inside and outside.” In another verse also she said, na laksyase mudha-drsa: “Fools and rascals cannot see You.” This indicates that Kunti saw Him. Unless she were able to see Krsna as He is, how could she say, na laksyase mudha-drsa? She also said, prakrteh param: “You are transcendental to this material creation.”

Now here also, in this verse, Kunti continues to express herself with humility. This humility is very good in devotional service. Therefore Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu teaches us, trnad api sunicena taror api sahisnuna: “One should be more tolerant than the tree and humbler than the grass to make progress in spiritual life.” This is necessary because for one who is living in this material world there will be so many disturbances, just as if one were traveling on the ocean. One cannot expect a very peaceful situation on the ocean; even a big ship may also be unsteady, and at any moment there may be tumultuous waves. Similarly, in this material world we should always expect danger; one cannot expect a very peaceful life within this material world. The sastra, the Vedic literature, says, padam padam yad vipadam (Bhagavatam 10.14.58): at every step there is danger. But if one becomes a devotee, then one can escape (mayam etam taranti te).

If one takes to Krsna consciousness, in the beginning there will be many disturbances caused by Maya, the material energy of illusion. Maya will test us to see how firmly we are fixed in Krsna consciousness. Because she is also an agent of Krsna, she does not allow anyone the freedom to disturb Krsna. Therefore she tests very rigidly to see whether we have taken to Krsna consciousness to disturb Krsna or are actually serious. That is Maya’s business. So in the beginning there will be tests by Maya, and we shall feel so many disturbances while making progress in Krsna consciousness. But if we follow the rules and regulations and chant regularly as prescribed, then we shall remain steady. If we neglect these principles, Maya will capture us immediately. Maya is always ready. We are in the ocean, and at any moment we may be disturbed. Therefore one who is not disturbed at all is called paramahamsa.

Kuntidevi therefore says, tatha paramahamsanam: “You are meant to be understood by theparamahamsas.” The word parama means “ultimate,” and hamsa means “swan.” So paramahamsameans “the perfect swan.” If we give a swan milk mixed with water, the swan will take the milk and leave aside the water. Similarly, this material world is made of two natures – the inferior nature and the superior nature. The superior nature means spiritual life, and the inferior nature is material life. Thus a person who gives up the material part of this world and takes only the spiritual part is calledparamahamsa.

One should know that the activities of the body are due to the soul within the body. That is the real fact. The body is only the outward covering. Similarly, one should know that Krsna is the real center of all activities, and one who knows this is a paramahamsa. Thus bhakti-yoga is for the paramahamsa,one who knows that Krsna is the central fact. Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita, aham sarvasya prabhavo mattah sarvam pravartate: “I am the source of everything; everything emanates from Me.” So one who knows, not only theoretically but practically, that Krsna is the cause of all causes – one who is convinced of this – is a paramahamsa.

Kuntidevi says, “You are meant for the paramahamsas, not for the rascals and fools. You are meant for the paramahamsas and munis.” The word muninam refers to those who are thoughtful or to mental speculators, and the word amalatmanam refers to one who has no dirty things in his heart. The heart of a materialistic person is full of dirty things. What are those dirty things? Lust and greed. All materialistic persons are lusty and greedy, and therefore their hearts are understood to be full of dirty things, but amalatmanam refers to those who are freed from these two contaminations.

Bhakti-yoga is meant for those whose hearts are cleansed, not for the lusty and greedy. Of course, those who are lusty and greedy may try to advance, and gradually they may do so, but once one is situated in bhakti-yoga there is no more lust or greed. Viraktir anyatra ca (Bhagavatam 11.2.42). This is the test – when one is free from lusty desires and greed, then he is situated in bhakti-yoga and is actually a paramahamsa. Kuntidevi humbly submits, “You are meant for the paramahamsas and munis,those who are cleansed in heart and are engaged in bhakti-yoga. But what are we? We are simply women. We are in a lower class. How can we understand You?” Although she understands everything, she still takes the position of an ordinary woman and says, “How can I understand You?” This is humility.

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17762

Founder of the Krishna Temples in Spanish Fork and Salt Lake City, Utah, KHQN Radio, & Utah Holi
HG Caru Prabhu ACBSP, passed away this morning, April 7, 2026, following a car accident in Utah.

Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=117701

ISKCON Resolve stands as a beacon of support and positive change within the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). Since 2002, this invaluable service has been dedicated to helping devotees navigate conflicts and address concerns in a spirit of collaboration and understanding, guided by the teachings of Srila Prabhupada.

ISKCON Resolve offers a comprehensive suite of confidential and neutral resources designed to empower individuals and cultivate a more harmonious community. Their services include:

Ombuds Representatives: Trained listeners provide a safe and confidential space for devotees to discuss their situations, offering guidance and support.

Mediation Services: Facilitating respectful dialogue, ISKCON Resolve helps parties in conflict work towards mutually agreeable resolutions.

Conflict Competence Trainings: Equipping participants with the knowledge and skills to effectively address conflicts that naturally arise, fostering better communication.

Self-Help Tools: Providing practical resources to manage conflict effectively and promote understanding within the community.

ISKCON Resolve’s commitment to fostering cooperation is evident in its mission: to serve Srila Prabhupada’s vision by helping devotees settle conflicts collaboratively, creating a culture of cooperation that he championed. By utilizing ISKCON Resolve’s services, devotees can save time and resources while promoting positive relationships and a stronger sense of community.

Whether you’re seeking guidance, mediation, or tools to improve your conflict resolution skills, ISKCON Resolve is there to support you in building a more harmonious and collaborative ISKCON. Reach out and contribute to a culture of cooperation that honors Srila Prabhupada’s teachings. You can connect via Admin@iskconresolve.org or +91 9354004055

Read more: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=117682

The second Zoom class of a 5-part seminar given by Narayani Devi Dasi on the Prayers of Queen Kunti is dedicated to the verses of Srimad Bhagavatam 1.8.23 through 1.8.27. The video answers the questions:
1. How to deal with calamities in one’s life?
2. What to pray for?
3. How to get Krishna’s lotus feet?
The seminar concludes with questions from disciples.

Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=117701

By Sunanda Das, 

Braja Vilasa and the TOVP Team are pleased to announce our annual matching fundraiser: the Prabhupada 50 12-Day Matching Fundraiser. The fundraiser begins on the auspicious Akshaya Tritiya day, April 19, and ends on the most joyful appearance day of Lord Nrsimhadeva, April 30. ALL donations will be matched by Ambarisa prabhu who has pledged another $10 million for TOVP construction.

This fundraiser focuses on the 50th Disappearance Anniversary of Srila Prabhupada on November 1, 2027, which is now the official opening date of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium leading into a three-month-long celebration. All our beloved Mayapur Deities will be relocated into Their new magnificent palace, along with fifteen new acharya murtis.

The matching fundraiser presents another opportunity to be part of this historic project. You can sponsor the new Prabhupada KRSNA Ring, a replica of Srila Prabhupada;s personal KRISHNA ring (installment payments), or give a donation of any amount. Make an extra-large pledge payment. Every dollar will be matched by Ambarisa to help further TOVP construction.

Read more: https://iskconnews.org/tovp-launches-prabhupada-50-matching-fundraiser/

A recent “behind the scenes” video published by NDTV showcased one of the ISKCON Krishna Balaram Mandir’s most important services, distributing prasadam to the thousands of pilgrims who visit this iconic temple in Vrindavan. Inspired by the teachings of ISKCON’s Founder-Acharya A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who described ISKCON as “the kitchen religion.”

NDTV is one of India’s leading news broadcasters, with its YouTube channel reaching viewers across India and internationally. NDTV broadcasts in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, the Maldives, Nepal, the Middle East, Mauritius, South Africa, Europe, the United States, Canada, and Australia and New Zealand, and the channel has generated more than 15 million views.

The scale of the operation is remarkable, totaling millions of plates served over the decades. According to Vishnunam Das, CFO of ISKCON Vrindavan, the temple kitchen prepares approximately 20,000 plates of khichdi daily, along with 6,000 to 7,000 full prasadam meals each day, rising to 10,000 on weekends and even more during festivals such as Kartik.

To watch the full video, click here.

Read more: https://iskconnews.org/ndtv-highlights-iskcon-vrindavans-prasadam-outreach/