Srila Prabhupada’s Beloved Disciple

In 1971 Srila Prabhupada had told Yamuna, “Don’t think that physical presence is the only way to associate with the spiritual master. You try to hear.”

Yamuna: For me this was a tremendous learning moment. Up until then, I couldn’t conceive of being separated from Prabhupada or that he would die. But at this time I realized that there would be a point in the future when I would be physically separated from him and I would have to come to terms with that.

From the

Renunciation, 1975

In 1975 Gurudasa took sannyasa. On the occasion Srila Prabhupada said, “Now he is Gurudasa Swami . . . . I got him married. His wife is also a great devotee, Yamuna. So now Yamuna has taken a very nice path. She has also become sannyasini. Although there is no sannyasini for women, but she has voluntarily taken. She is doing very nicely; therefore I advised her husband, 'You also take sannyasa.'" (July 21, 1975)

Yamuna and her friend Dinatarine began worshiping small Radha-Krish

India, 1970

Yamuna: The two weeks we spent in Bombay were two of the most powerful weeks in my life because at this time Srila Prabhupada allowed us to taste kirtana in Lord Krishna’s Bharatavarsha. The center of our activity every day was nagar sankirtana. Our kirtana party was like a family, a tight family. We were shoulder to shoulder, just like godbrothers and godsisters, with so much affection and respect for each other. We felt that Srila Prabhupada was our father and we were his spiritual

London, 1968

Swamiji had complete faith in Krishna and faith that his disciples’ bold, enthusiastic, and confident preaching would establish Krishna consciousness in Europe just as it had in North America. At Swamiji’s request, the same three couples who had started the San Francisco temple Mukunda and Janaki, Syamasundara and Malati (now with their infant daughter, Sarasvati), and Gurudasa and Yamuna went to London.

In London, with little money, living as separate couples in different parts of th

London, 1968

Swamiji had complete faith in Krishna and faith that his disciples’ bold, enthusiastic, and confident preaching would establish Krishna consciousness in Europe just as it had in North America. At Swamiji’s request, the same three couples who had started the San Francisco temple Mukunda and Janaki, Syamasundara and Malati (now with their infant daughter, Sarasvati), and Gurudasa and Yamuna went to London.

In London, with little money, living as separate couples in different parts of th

London, 1968

Swamiji had complete faith in Krishna and faith that his disciples’ bold, enthusiastic, and confident preaching would establish Krishna consciousness in Europe just as it had in North America. At Swamiji’s request, the same three couples who had started the San Francisco temple Mukunda and Janaki, Syamasundara and Malati (now with their infant daughter, Sarasvati), and Gurudasa and Yamuna went to London.

In London, with little money, living as separate couples in different parts of th

London, 1968

Swamiji had complete faith in Krishna and faith that his disciples’ bold, enthusiastic, and confident preaching would establish Krishna consciousness in Europe just as it had in North America. At Swamiji’s request, the same three couples who had started the San Francisco temple Mukunda and Janaki, Syamasundara and Malati (now with their infant daughter, Sarasvati), and Gurudasa and Yamuna went to London.

In London, with little money, living as separate couples in different parts of th

London, 1968

Swamiji had complete faith in Krishna and faith that his disciples’ bold, enthusiastic, and confident preaching would establish Krishna consciousness in Europe just as it had in North America. At Swamiji’s request, the same three couples who had started the San Francisco temple Mukunda and Janaki, Syamasundara and Malati (now with their infant daughter, Sarasvati), and Gurudasa and Yamuna went to London.

In London, with little money, living as separate couples in different parts of th

San Francisco, 1967

After her ten-day trip to New York, Joan returned to Oregon along with Mukunda and Janaki. Swamiji had asked the newly married couple to try to start a Krishna conscious temple on the West Coast, and en route they picked up two old friends, Sam Speerstra (later initiated as Syamasundara Dasa) and his girlfriend, Melanie Nagel (Malati Devi Dasi), as well as Joan's boyfriend, Roger Siegel. In Oregon’s quiet forests these three couples began chanting Hare Krishna together and Joa

Who is Sankaracharya?

Jagadguru Sri Adi Sankaracharya was the greatest exponent of the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta and a savior of Vedic Dharma. Salutations to Sankara, who is an ever shining star on the sky of Indian philosophy. 

The existence of Vedic Dharma in India today is due to Sankara. The forces opposed to Vedic religion were more numerous and powerful at the time of Sankara than they are today. Still, single-handed, within a very short time, Sankara overpowered them all and restored the

New York City, 1966

Joan: Little did I know what kind of wedding it would be. All I knew was that they had received the names Mukunda and Janaki from a swami. When I saw the Swami he was sitting beside the window in his front room, bathed in sunlight, distributing prasada to the devotees who were sitting around him. Mukunda introduced me, and Swamiji offered me some prasada. Because I was a devotee of macrobiotics, thisprasada was very unpalatable to me, yet this radiant and beautiful person was

New York City, 1966

Joan: Little did I know what kind of wedding it would be. All I knew was that they had received the names Mukunda and Janaki from a swami. When I saw the Swami he was sitting beside the window in his front room, bathed in sunlight, distributing prasada to the devotees who were sitting around him. Mukunda introduced me, and Swamiji offered me some prasada. Because I was a devotee of macrobiotics, thisprasada was very unpalatable to me, yet this radiant and beautiful person was

The Heart of a Vaishnava 

The Heart of a Vaishnava 

The Heart of a Vaishnava 

So this is the divine, the best, so there was best music, best dance because the best dancers Radha and Krishna and gopis they were involved, there was whole team.

“brahma-ratra upavrtte, vasudevanumoditah, anicchanto yayur gopyah, sva – grham bhagavatt-priyah” (S.B 10.33.38) brahma-ratra, brahma-ratra upavrtte as long as the night of Brahma, this dance lasted, that long and then Lord brought that to closer. Even then gopis anicchanto gopis where not willing to go away. But vasudevanumoditah, Lor

Gradual Elevation to Perfection

Dear Prabhujis and Mathajis,

Hare Krishna! Please accept my humble pranams! All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Gurudev!

In devotional service we talk about ecstasy/transcenden tal taste and so many things, but how can we experience it ? Srila Prabhupada gives a nice explanation of science of devotional service and how to achieve the transcendental stage, in one of his transcendental purports in Srimad Bha

Hare krsna

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Can’t we enjoy in this life and engage ourselves in Krishna’s service in our next life? Prahlāda Mahārāja answers, “We are now in material entanglement. Now I have this body, but I will quit this body after a few years and then have to accept another body. Once you take up one body and enjoy as your body’s senses dictate, you prepare another body by such sense enjoyment, and you get another body as you want it.” There i

Hare krsna

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada