It was a grand fest to honour Lord Ram. From the quarters where I stay in the temple/ashram complex I could hear, one floor below, the beautiful chants, a talk delivered by a visiting friend from Florida, Kalakantha, that triggered applause, and the sounds of drums and bells.
“I’m missing it all,” I contested, due to my inability to walk around. I’m crutch dependent.
I opened the doors to hear more and perhaps peak at the crowd from an above angle and then it hit me – an immediate whiff of coll
Hanuman Janam-Utsav is a Hindu religious festival that celebrates the birth of Lord Sri Hanuman. On this auspicious day, devotees of Lord Hanuman celebrate him and seek his protection and blessings.
Lord Hanuman is an ardent devotee of Lord Sri Rama and is widely known for his unflinching devotion to Sri Rama. Hanuman is the symbol of strength and energy.
Hanuman is also endowed with many other wonderful qualities, all of which he uses to serve Lord Rama.
It is stated in the scriptures that whe
On Ram Navami, at ISKCON Juhu, His Grace Payonidhi Das suffered a tragic accident and left this world. Originally from Orissa, he was a loving servant of Lord Jagannath, and he was a full-time resident living as a Brahmachari (monk). He was currently serving in ISKCON Kharghar but had traveled to attend the temple’s Ram Navami celebration.
Payonidhi Prabhu and a few other Brahmacharis were taking Prasadam in the Govindas Garden -ISKCON Juhu (Shri Rama Navami Kalash Donors Prasadam Area) at aro
People say that, Prabhupada went back to Godhead. That is in a way minimising Srila Prabhupada because Prabhupada never left Godhead!
Watch the full lecture below or on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohjtLrW_5OA
Source: https://www.kksblog.com/2022/04/never-left-godhead/
Appreciating the celebrations of Rama Navami at the Varachha branch of ISKCON in Surat, the Prime Minister of India, Sri Narendra Modi pointed out the relevance of the teachings of Lord Ramachandra to modern times.
Murtimaan Das President of ISKCON Varachha said, “The Prime Minister compared Lord Rama’s own ideal example of compassion with the activities of ISKCON based on compassion and commitment, and the selfless service the organisation extends to society in line with the teachings of Lord
On March 30, 2022, Washington County Circuit Court Judge Brandon Thompson found Sean Lawrence Michel-White guilty of two counts of first-degree bias crime, second-degree bias crime, two counts of fourth-degree assault, and harassment in a bench trial. He was then sentenced to three years of formal probation after serving seven months in jail. Deputy District Attorney Mitchell Diesko prosecuted the case against the defendant.
On August 29, 2021, the defendant went to an ISKCON Temple located in
During the current Covid 19 pandemic threat period, to share and care deeply about each other is very important at the same time as Krishna devotees we should have an implicit faith in Krishna. avasya raksibe Krishna visvasa palana leaving it upto Krishna.. mar bhi rakha bni jo icch tohara Nitya dasa prati tuva adhikara (Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s saranagati songs) Relevant to this Covid 19 situation, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur wrote a short article during the period of the Bubonic Plague outbr
Leading up to next month’s appearance of the original child protector – Lord Nrsimhadeva, this is the perfect time of the year to focus on the Lord as the protector and ourselves as His instruments.
This month ISKCON’s Child Protection Office is sharing child abuse prevention and response resources via newsletters and daily Facebook postings. This is a time for devotees to feel encouraged to share information and insights on child protection from all points of view – scriptural, legal, ecclesia
On October 17, 2019, the BBT and GBC cooperatively appointed an Editorial Review Panel (ERP) to address devotees’ concerns about making changes to Çréla Prabhupäda’s books after his physical departure.
Formed with the mandate to review all proposed and previously published edits to Çréla Prabhupäda’s books in the English language, the ERP has now been convening for more than a year, and they are making progress in their review. The panel consists of devotee scholars and editors who were nominate
The winter retreats offered by the sacred village of New Vrindaban, West Virginia were a wonderful endeavor. The four-night mini-retreats ran every week from Thursday through Sunday, starting on January 5th until the end of March. It opened many avenues for newcomers and experienced devotees alike.
For new devotees, there were Japa meditation classes, lessons on how to wear tilak, and sessions on how to perform achaman- purification ritual. The newbies were also welcomed to meet residents of Ne
I had a sore craving for some leftover pear slices in the lunch room’s fridge. It was after midnight and insomnia hit me so I made it down the stairs, picked up two garbage bags outside Govinda’s Restaurant, which is adjoined to our ashram, to toss in the trash room. The bowl of small pear bits was still there. I transferred them into a small katori dish and made my way up with the fruit securely in hand.
The clock had turned to be April Fool’s Day and I don’t think within the somewhat strict r
As I write this article there are pictures on the news of hundreds on people lying on the ground simulating the unjust death of George Floyd, a black man, by an officer of the law. People on the streets all over the country are demanding action, demanding that the police be reformed, defunded and/or disbanded. Cries of “racism” echo throughout the land. In the news, some of the talking heads are saying it’s “a few bad apples” and others warn of a more systemic problem. Is it individuals on the
When I first went to India, Lord Ramachandra was the first deity I ever saw because the first temple I went to was of Lord Ramachandra and that was my temple! It was a small round temple and later on, they renovated and made it into a big marble temple. Oh, I miss my small round temple; it was so nice; the deities were really close but now they are high up and far away.
Then, when I went to Benares, I picked up the “Sri Rama Jaya Rama” mantra from a temple. It was playing twenty-four hours a day
Festival days such as Rama-navami are a prime opportunity for spiritual advancement and purification. Srila Prabhupada stated in a Rama-navami lecture in Hawaii on the 27th March, 1969:
“There is no difference between His form, His name, His pastimes, and Himself. He’s absolute. Therefore either you chant the holy name of Rama or you see the statue of Rama or you talk of His pastimes, transcendental pastimes, everything, that means you are associating with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Ramachandra
Appeared on this earth in the lineage of Raghukula, in Ayodhya
As the son of King Dasharath and Queen Kaushalya
Elder to the princes Bharat, Lakshmana and Shatrughna
He is ever seen in the company of Mahalaksmi as Sita
His eternal servitor Hanuman, and loving brother Lakshmana
Both brothers wielded a bow and arrows and other weapons
As shatriyas, it was their bounden duty to protect their citizens
Lord Ram is maryada purushottam, the most per
Shabari’s Caves at Hampi Dhama
Kishkinda Ksetra
Shabari was a tribal lady and had unflinching devotion for Lord Rama. She took the shelter of great sage Matanga Rsi as her spiritual master. During the last days of sage Matanga, Shabari served him with great attention and care. Pleased by her service, Matanga Rsi blessed her that one day certainly Lord Rama along with His bother Laxmana will come to meet her. Having undeterred faith in the words of her spiritual master, every day, Shabari col
The good news is that one of our newly-formed communities on the east coast, Halifax, is hosting their first Ratha Yatra this summer. Ratha Yatra is that exciting festival featuring Krishna Himself in beauty black with ecstatic eyes and oceanic smile. The event actually takes the shape of a parade of sorts. Krishna as Jagannatha, which translates as Universal Lord, is set proudly on a conveyance resembling a chariot. There is no horse-power applied (although horses are invited; any species for
I will read a verse from Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto Three, Chapter Two, Text 23. This verse is very significant. Not only is the verse beautiful, but it also has historical significance, because when Sukadeva Gosvami came out of the womb, after sixteen years, he left home immediately, and his father, Srila Vyasadeva, followed him into the forest. And when he came close enough to him, he recited two verses from Srimad-Bhagavatam, one describing Krishna’s beauty, from the Tenth Canto, and one descri
