Preaching in Mauritius (Album with photos)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/BDEDYW
Source...www.dandavats.com
ISKCON Desire Tree's Posts (18246)
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October 23. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
At Ananda Ashram, Prabhupada met an important contact in a young man named Harvey Cohen. In the future weeks, we will tell how Harvey played a crucial role in increasing Prabhupada’s followers and influencing his move downtown. Harvey was a newcomer to Ananda Ashram and he had difficulty in beginning to practice hatha-yoga. When he arrived at the morning meditation all the mats were taken up, so he picked a spot at the back of the room where he could lean against the wall. He noticed seated at one side was an older Indian gentleman in saffron cloth and wrapped in a pinkish wool blanket. He seemed to be muttering to himself and later Harvey discovered that he was praying. It was Swami Bhaktivedanta. His forehead was painted with a white V-shaped sign and his eyes were half shut. He seemed very serene.
Source...www.dandavats.com
Ter Kadamba, Nandagaon & Vrinda Kunda Parikrama (Album with photos)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/GJr4h3
Source...www.dandavats.com
A visit to Udupi (Album with photos)
Indradyumna Swami: Yesterday in my travels I had the good fortune to arrive in Udupi on the appearance day of Sri Madhavacarya. I took the opportunity to seek his blessings and those of his beloved deity, Udupi Krishna.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/dxB235
Source...www.dandavats.com
The Damodara Program (6 min video)
The auspicious month of Kartika is just around the corner. The Congregational Development Ministry is encouraging everyone to participate in the Damodara Program which brings auspiciousness to the homes of our friends, relatives, and neighbors. By offering lamps and singing the Damodarastakam prayers, this program is a way by which we can guide others towards taking their first step in Krishna consciousness.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/0tVOrx
Source...www.dandavats.com
By Ishita Bhatia
Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/meerut/Muslim-family-orders-cake-for-cows-birthday/articleshow/49499336.cms)
MEERUT: In times of rising intolerance over cow-related issues, here is a heart-warming story from Hapur. A Muslim family in city’s Sikander Gate colony celebrated the first birthday of their cow, Julie. A 10kg specially-designed eggless cake was ordered and she was also made to wear a birthday cap as guests who came over to attend her birthday relished on pakodas, fruits and sweets.
“Julie and her mother Bholi are just like family members to us. We take care of them like we take care of other kids in the family. So, when time came for Julie’s first birthday, we had to make it big. We started planning it well in advance and invited over 100 people to the birthday bash,” said 29-year-old Mohd Irshaad who works for a Noida-based chemical waste management firm.
“We ordered an eggless vanilla cake, which had miniature cow candies on its top. The guests also brought gifts for Julie; fruits are its favourite, so my friends got watermelon, bananas and pomegranates gift-wrapped for the occasion,” Irshaad said.
The bash cost the family Rs 40,000.
The family has had cows for over 40 years but their birthday parties and naamkaran ceremonies were started only in 2008 after Irshaad’s father, Haji Abdul Gani, insisted on this due to his love for cows. Gani passed away on July 29 this year.
Source...www.dandavats.com
By Basu Ghosh Das
Pictures of the program can be seen by all (no need of being a Facebook user) at this link:
Kondavvedu is a historical place, where Rajas (Kings) of the then Reddy dynasty built a fort on a hill, located in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, in South India.
The ruins of the old Kondaveedu fort on top of that hill, is located near a small village some 25 kilometers West of Guntur city.
More information on the place and it’s history can be seen on the internet here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kondaveedu_Fort
It is significant that the New Capitol of the recently bifurcated State of Andhra Pradesh is going to be constructed at Amaravati, just 50 kilometers North of Kondaveedu. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new capitol of Andhra Pradesh yesterday.
Presently one of the leaders of ISKCON in Andhra Pradesh, Sriman Satyagopinath Das, who is temple president of three temples, at Rajamundry, Anantapur, and Guntur, through his efforts has obtained eighty one acres land from the Andhra Pradesh State Government at Kondaveedu .
Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated two years ago into two States, i.e. Andhra Pradesh remains the name for thirteen mostly coastal districts of the old A.P. State, and a new State of Telangana was formed from land-locked districts surrounding Hyderabad city, and some outlying areas. The word “Telangana” is derived from “Trilinga Pradesh” – the land of three Shiva lingas. The land was allotted before the bifurcation.
Yesterday. October 22, 2015, on the auspicious day of Sri Rama Vijaya dashami, bhumi puja (worship of the earth) and installation of a Deity of Ananta Shesha was performed on the Kondaveedu land.
ISKCON GBC for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Sriman Revati Raman Das, ISKCON Baroda temple president Basu Ghosh Das, ISKCON Nellore temple president Sukhadeva Swami, ISKCON Chandigarh Temple President Bhaktivinoda Das, and Ram Murari Das, temple president of ISKCON Vijayawada were present at the function. Acharya Samskritananda Hari of Kaushalya Pitham at Baroda also was present.
The Swarna Hamsa (Golden Swan) temple will be constructed on sixteen acres of land. The projected cost of the temple and surroundings is Rupees two hundred crores.
Several donors were introduced, and felicitated at the conclusion of the function. Their immediate gifts to the project were announced during the function.
The bhumi puja rituals were performed by Shitalanga Gauranga Das of Udupi. He performed sthala shuddhi, kalasha sthapana, bhagavad avaahnam, shodashopachara and anantadev pratishtha. Also prithivi puja, bhuta and devata bali. Vaastu aradhana, purusha sukta, sri sukta, and vastu yajnas. Prayaschitta homa, vaishnava homa and purnahuti.
Then in a pit excavated for the shilanyaas, he performed the shilanyaas rituals, along with leading devotees and donors. Anantadev and navashaktis were installed in the excavated pit.
Many congregational devotees and donors, mostly from Guntur, attended the function. Three buses of congregational devotees came from Rajahmundry to attend the function.
Students of the Gayatri Nritya kala niketan (dance academy) from Rajahmundry, dancing in the traditional “kuchipudi” style that originated in Andhra Pradesh, performed several traditional dances to entertain the gathering. The performance was well received by audience. The dances, performed in traditional costumes, were quite attractive and well performed.
Prasad (full meals) was distributed to devotees at the function, as well as in the nearby villages. Prasad was prepared for five thousand persons.
Nearby the Swarna Hamsa temple land, ISKCON Kondaveedu is running a goshalla situated on twenty two acres of land. Presently there are thirty six cows, calves, and bulls that reside there.
Source...www.dandavats.com
Sri Raghunatha dasa took his birth in the village of Sri Krsnapura in the district of Hooghly. His father's name was Sri Govardhana, whose elder brother was Sri Hiranya dasa. Both of them were respectable wealthy land-holders belonging to the Kayastha caste. Read More |
By the order of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Raghunatha Bhatta Goswami remained a lifelong brahmacari. His service was constant chanting of Hare Krishna and reading Srimad Bhagavatam. Read More |
He was a famous Vaisnava poet, born in a vaidya caste in Saka 1482 (1560 AD) at Jhamatpur in the district of Burdwan. His parents were Bhagiratha and Sunanda. His brother, Syamadasa, was a physician. Read More |
Saksi Gopala Temple is a very important temple located almost midway between Jagannatha Puri Dhama and Bhubaneswar, in a town called Saksi-gopala, about 20 km west of Jagannatha Puri Dhama. The Saksi-gopala Deity here, being 5000 years old, is an exceptionally special one. It is said that Vajranabha, Lord Sri Krishna’s great-grandson, installed two Gopala Deities in Vraja Mandala namelySaksi-gopala and Madana Gopala (Madana Mohana). The Saksi-gopala Deity is the life-size Gopala Deity who walked from Vrindavana to Vidyanagara, a town located 20 to 25 miles from Rajahmundry on the banks of Godavari River in South India. A great fair is annually held here on the Anla Nabami day in the month of Kartika. Saksi-gopala temple is easily reachable by taxi, bus or Puri-Bhubaneswar train.
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura gives the following summary of the fifth chapter in hisAmrta-pravaha-bhasya. After passing through Yajapura, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu reached the town of Kataka (Cuttack) and there went to see the temple of Saksi-gopala. While there, He heard the story of Saksi-gopala from the mouth of SriNityananda Prabhu.
Once there were two brahmanas, one elderly and the other young, who were inhabitants of a place known as Vidyanagara in South India. After touring many places of pilgrimage, the two brahmanas finally reached Vrindavana. The elderlybrahmana was very satisfied with the service of the young brahmana, and he wanted to offer him his youngest daughter in marriage. The young brahmanareceived the promise of his elder before the Gopala Deity of Vrindavana. Thus the Gopala Deity acted as a witness. When the two brahmanas returned toVidyanagara, the younger brahmana raised the question of this marriage, but the elderly brahmana, due to obligations to his friends and wife, answered that he could not remember his promise. Because of this, the younger brahmana returned to Vrindavana and narrated the whole story to Gopalaji. Thus Gopalaji, being obliged by the young man’s devotional service, accompanied him to southern India.Gopalaji followed the younger brahmana, who could hear the tinkling sound ofGopalaji’s ankle bells. When all the respectable gentlemen of Vidyanagara were assembled, Gopalaji testified to the promise of the elderly brahmana. Thus the marriage was performed. Later, the king of that country constructed a fine temple for Gopala.
Afterwards, King Purusottama-deva of Orissa was insulted by the King ofVidyanagara, who refused to give him his daughter in marriage and called him a sweeper of Lord Jagannatha. With the help of Lord Jagannatha, King Purusottama-deva fought the King of Vidyanagara and defeated him. Thus he took charge of both the King’s daughter and his kingdom as well. At that time, Gopalaji, being very much obligated by the devotional service of King Purusottama-deva, was brought to the town of Kataka.
After hearing this narration, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited the temple of Gopala in great ecstasy of love of God. From Kataka He went to Bhuvanesvara and saw the temple of Lord Siva. In this way, He gradually arrived at Kamalapura, and on the banks of the Bhargi River He came to the temple of Lord Siva, where He entrusted His sannyasa staff to Nityananda Prabhu. However, Nityananda Prabhu broke the staff into three pieces and threw it into the Bhargi River at a place known asAtharanala. Being angry at not getting His staff back, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu left the company of Nityananda Prabhu and went alone to see the Jagannatha temple.
Source...www.dandavats.com
Bhakti Caru Swami - Panihati Festival Class - 2008-06-15 Orlando
Bhakti Caru Swami - Panihati - 2011-07-03 California
Bhakti Vikas Swami - Panihati Festival-The Essence of festivals - 2011-06-05 Atlanta
Giriraj Swami - Panihati - 2008-06-15 Laguna
Giriraj Swami - Panihati - 2009-06-07 Santa Barbara
Giriraj Swami Panihati Dahi Cida Festival - 2010-06-20 Carpinteria
Giriraj Swami - Panihati - 2011-07-03 California
Kadamba Kanaan Swami - Panihati Festival - 2011-06-13 Bhaktivedanta Manor
Radhanath Swami - Glories of Raghunath Das Goswami Lecture US - 2003-06-07
Radhanath Swami 2011-07-03 Various - Panihati - California
Radhanath Swami Mayapur Yatra 2000 Pastimes at Raghava Pandit's House Panihati
Romapada Swami Mayapur Yatra 2008 - Lecture at Panihati - 2008-11-09
Sivarama Swami Festivals - Panihati-Only by mercy of Lord Nityananda - 2008-06-16 Budapest
Bhurijana Prabhu - Panihati Lecture - 2007-06-30
Bhurijana Prabhu - Panihati Utsava - 2006-06-09
Jananivas Prabhu - Glories of Panihati Festival - 2011-06-14
Nirantara Prabhu Festivals - Panihati Festival - 2011-06-13 ISKCON Vancouver
English Pasankusa Ekadashi Mahatmya without Music
Hindi Pasankusa Ekadashi Mahatmya without Music
English Narration: Madan Manjari Devi Dasi (RNS)
Hindi Narration: Madhava Das (BVKS)
Recording, Editing, Music mixing : Madhava Das (BVKS) at Gopal's Studio (ISKCON Desire Tree)
![Shyamasundar: He always made you feel like you were his friend. He listened to what you had to say and took your puniest achievements. First of all he overlooked all your glaring outrages and took your puniest achievements and made them very big. I’ll never forget this. I had worked hard on this Bury Place temple (in the photo) for several months, doing all the building and carpentry. In those days there were only three or four of us and a couple of new English boys. So it was pretty much a one-man job. I was going to stick to the standard I set out when I designed it, even though Prabhupada was in England pushing me day and night to finish this thing so that he could get on with things. But he respected the fact that I wanted it done just right because we were going to be a central showplace in which what was then the most happening city in the world, and right on the main street. And the people who saw it should see something perfect. I was determined to make it that way. Prabhupada went along with that for months, despite his discomfort. One day after it was finished and the Deities had been inaugurated, we took a walk in the park one morning. We were walking back, and Prabhupada looked at the front of the temple. He looked it up and down, and he motioned to either Gurudas or Mukunda and said, “You shall put a plaque on the front of this door (he showed with his cane beside the door where he wanted the plaque), a brass plaque, and you will put on that plaque, ‘This temple has been built by the hard labor of Shyamasundar das Adhikary.’” [Breaks up crying.] We took this idea of just doing anything we wanted for Krishna, no matter how outrageous it might appear to anyone else. It was very common for us to think that there was no such thing as an impossible situation, and we just did everything. And that is a good case in point, because without any building permits we gutted this whole building in downtown London, took out the first-floor story, and made it two stories high. That is, until the building inspectors arrived, Mr. Savage and Mr. Black, typical English bureaucrats. They had seen that we had already done it, so they were quite willing to go that extra mile to help us out a little. But we had to comply with certain regulations. And these steel beams were going to be very expensive. They had to be fifty or sixty feet long, in one single throw. I-beams of very heavy steel. And somehow we had to get them into the ceiling. And we had no money. So I went to Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones and asked him, and he said, “Oh, yes, just have my secretary give you the check.” So he bought them. [Laughs.] Those days we rubbed elbows with those characters, you know. After we lived in John Lennon’s house, we still maintained contact with all the Beatles. We interacted with them whenever we needed something, or when they needed. One day John Lennon called up and asked if I could come and carve a piano for him. Yoko wanted Krishna carved in the music stand in the front of her white piano. The piano was on the ground floor of Apple Studios on Salvo Row, next to the recording studio. It took about a month, and I carved a very nice Krishna in that piano. And during that time Brian Jones had died of the Rolling Stones, and they were breaking in a new guitar player named Mick Taylor. So they had borrowed Apple Studios to bring Mick Taylor up to date on all their songs. So I had live Rolling Stones for a month while I worked. “Hey, you, get off my cloud” over and over. [Laughs.] And we thought nothing of it. This was just an ordinary thing. And Prabhupada made us feel that. He always appreciated going for the top, going for the highest people in realms and spheres of influence to accomplish spreading Krishna consciousness, to accomplish the desire of his spiritual master.](http://41.media.tumblr.com/c9abcd8b1da566c444864e21b4b747f9/tumblr_nwmchaidQk1sbj0vuo1_1280.jpg)
Shyamasundar: He always made you feel like you were his friend. He listened to what you had to say and took your puniest achievements. First of all he overlooked all your glaring outrages and took your puniest achievements and made them very big. I’ll never forget this. I had worked hard on this Bury Place temple (in the photo) for several months, doing all the building and carpentry. In those days there were only three or four of us and a couple of new English boys. So it was pretty much a one-man job. I was going to stick to the standard I set out when I designed it, even though Prabhupada was in England pushing me day and night to finish this thing so that he could get on with things. But he respected the fact that I wanted it done just right because we were going to be a central showplace in which what was then the most happening city in the world, and right on the main street. And the people who saw it should see something perfect. I was determined to make it that way. Prabhupada went along with that for months, despite his discomfort. One day after it was finished and the Deities had been inaugurated, we took a walk in the park one morning. We were walking back, and Prabhupada looked at the front of the temple. He looked it up and down, and he motioned to either Gurudas or Mukunda and said, “You shall put a plaque on the front of this door (he showed with his cane beside the door where he wanted the plaque), a brass plaque, and you will put on that plaque, ‘This temple has been built by the hard labor of Shyamasundar das Adhikary.’” [Breaks up crying.] We took this idea of just doing anything we wanted for Krishna, no matter how outrageous it might appear to anyone else. It was very common for us to think that there was no such thing as an impossible situation, and we just did everything. And that is a good case in point, because without any building permits we gutted this whole building in downtown London, took out the first-floor story, and made it two stories high. That is, until the building inspectors arrived, Mr. Savage and Mr. Black, typical English bureaucrats. They had seen that we had already done it, so they were quite willing to go that extra mile to help us out a little. But we had to comply with certain regulations. And these steel beams were going to be very expensive. They had to be fifty or sixty feet long, in one single throw. I-beams of very heavy steel. And somehow we had to get them into the ceiling. And we had no money. So I went to Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones and asked him, and he said, “Oh, yes, just have my secretary give you the check.” So he bought them. [Laughs.] Those days we rubbed elbows with those characters, you know. After we lived in John Lennon’s house, we still maintained contact with all the Beatles. We interacted with them whenever we needed something, or when they needed. One day John Lennon called up and asked if I could come and carve a piano for him. Yoko wanted Krishna carved in the music stand in the front of her white piano. The piano was on the ground floor of Apple Studios on Salvo Row, next to the recording studio. It took about a month, and I carved a very nice Krishna in that piano. And during that time Brian Jones had died of the Rolling Stones, and they were breaking in a new guitar player named Mick Taylor. So they had borrowed Apple Studios to bring Mick Taylor up to date on all their songs. So I had live Rolling Stones for a month while I worked. “Hey, you, get off my cloud” over and over. [Laughs.] And we thought nothing of it. This was just an ordinary thing. And Prabhupada made us feel that. He always appreciated going for the top, going for the highest people in realms and spheres of influence to accomplish spreading Krishna consciousness, to accomplish the desire of his spiritual master.
Srila Prabhupada’s grand disciple Srimati Radha Vinodini Devi Dasi passed away yesterday morning at 6:37 AM at the Bhaktivedanta Hospice in Vraja. Please pray for a smooth and auspicious transition for this great soul.
Pious Credits in a Cab
A while ago we reported how one cab driver, Yamaraja das, tries to give Krishna to people while on the job. “I try to influence people in any way possible, while maintaining a respectful distance and without imposing my beliefs on them,” he said. A driver must be careful not be perceived as soliciting his customers in any way. Here are a few more examples of Krishna’s causeless mercy operating on the conditioned souls who think they are merely ordering a cab. A student from Santa Fe College was being picked up from school, where he is studying to become a dietician. While inquiring about his studies, Yamaraja prabhu learned that the young man is trying to be a vegetarian. The student had been to India four times, and was influenced there by the ideas of non-violence towards animals. “I also learned in one of my diet courses at Santa Fe that killing animals causes them to release a harmful chemical, thereby altering the meat product in a bad way. The chemical is released because the animal experiences fear and terror upon being slaughtered. That is one of the reasons I am trying to become a vegetarian.” Upon leaving the cab, the student accepted a booklet on Krishna Consciousness. Another customer is a war veteran, who is 100% handicapped. He regularly orders a cab from Yamaraja prabhu. “I am not at all interested in religious topics,” the veteran had made it clear early on. Being severely handicapped due to having experienced the horrors of war, one might say he had lost his faith in God. While Yamaraja prabhu does not pursue the topic, he does instead just cultivate a friendship with the man. As a result, the veteran tries to “help out” his driver friend in his own way. Sometimes he lets the meter run up to $150-200 in Yamaraja prabhu’s cab, for nothing more than a simple errand. So although he is not actively thinking about Krishna, or eating prasadam, surely the veteran’s pious credits are increasing silently by serving a devotee so generously. A small preaching program is also in the works by Yamaraja prabhu for the employees of the cab company, the drivers and the dispatchers. It will meet once every two weeks and also feature guest visits by Acyutananda das.
For more information, please read the article "Only on the Banks of Mother Ganga"
Desires - Just continue service to Krishna with all sincerity. What really matters is no other desire, but to please Krishna. With that attitude serve Krishna and then Krishna will not only be pleased but will be indebted and He will think - "this devotee has done so much for me, how I will be able to repay his debt." Krishna becomes indebted when we render service without personal motivation. We cannot hide our intentions from Krishna. What is required is anyabhilasita sunyam - free from any other desire besides serving Krishna. When we render service with that attitude, no matter how insignificant that service will be, Krishna will reciprocate and He will decide whether to give you a human body in the next life if your devotional process is incomplete or if you have pleased Krishna, then He may call you back home and give a spiritual body. So, test yourself - do you have any desires?
Today marks Sri Rama-vijaya-dasami (Dasara), the day on which Lord Ramachandra vanquished the powerful tyrant Ravana. As described in Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.7.25):
“When Ravana was engaged in the battle, the trunk of the elephant which carried the king of heaven, Indra, broke in pieces, having collided with the chest of Ravana, and the scattered broken parts illuminated all directions. Ravana therefore felt proud of his prowess and began to loiter in the midst of the fighting soldiers, thinking himself the conqueror of all directions. But his laughter, overtaken by joy, along with his very air of life, suddenly ceased with the tingling sound of the bow of Ramacandra, the Personality of Godhead.”
Srila Prabhupada comments, “However powerful a living being may be, when he is condemned by God no one can save him, and, similarly, however weak one may be, if he is protected by the Lord no one can annihilate him.”
Ravana is the personification of lust—and envy—which can disturb the execution of pure devotional service.
May Lord Sri Ramachandra protect us all.
When the rising sun appeared in the East, the jewel of the twice-born, Lord Gaurasundara, awakened, and, taking His devotees with Him, He went all over the countryside towns and villages. The mrdangas (khol) resounded "tathai, tathai," and the jhajas [large metal karatalas that look like small cymbals] in that kirtana played in time. Lord Gauranga's golden form slightly trembled in ecstatic love of Godhead, and His footbells jingled. All the devotees chanted the names Mukunda, Madhava, Yadava and Hari, their mouths being filled with the vibrations. They would announce to the still sleeping people, "You spend your nights uselessly sleeping and your days decorating your bodies! You have achieved such a rare human body, but you do not care for this gift. You remain not serving the darling of Yasoda and slowly fall through your last moments to death. With every rising and setting of the sun, a day passes and is lost. Then, why do you remain idle and not serve the Lord of the heart? This temporary life is full of various miseries. Take shelter of the holy name as your only business. To penetrate the darkness of ignorance and bless everyone's heart, the holy name has risen like the shining sun. Drink the pure nectar of the holy name. There is nothing but the name to be had in the fourteen worlds. It has filled the soul of Sri Bhaktivinoda Thakura.
HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE
HH Lokanath Swami Maharaj gave a very wonderful lecture on "Kirtan and Book Distribution" today 22nd October. This lecture is dedicated to all ISKCON devotees who all are distributing Srila Prabhupad's books for the pleasure of Srila Prabhupad.
https://youtu.be/eBuZPsG77xM
