“Lord Sri Krsna encouraged Arjuna outwardly just to test Arjuna's sense of duty. It is not that Arjuna was incomplete in the sense of his duty, nor was Lord Sri Krsna unaware of Arjuna's sense of duty. But Lord Sri Krsna puts many of His pure devotees to the test just to magnify their sense of duty. The gopis were put to such tests as well. Prahlada Maharaja also was put to such a test. All pure devotees come out successful in the respective tests by th
The significance of rathayatra reached the far corners of the globe now and especially where ISKCON temples are located ever since Srila Prabhupada organised the first rathayatra in San Francisco in 1967 as briefed below. The rathayatra was scheduled on a Sunday the 9th July. On Saturday, 8th July, Jagannatha Deities were brought from Stinson Beach and draped in cloth. Although some rathayatra posters were the only official announcements, everyone in the Haight-Ashbury was talking about the fes
The mercury had been hovering at 45º and the Indian summer heat was scorching as ever. May is the hottest month in Hyderabad. Undaunted by the heat, a pack of devotees were packing their luggage to go to a village located about 45-50 kms away from Hyderabad, in Narsapur, called Peddagottimukla.
May 28, 2017 was not an ordinary day; it could not be so for the events to unfold. It was to become a day when another village would be on the way to become Vrindavan village. The day had come when the d
Question: How are we to see Krishna’s hand when sincere, dedicated devotees depart prematurely in tragic circumstances?
Short Answer: Krishna as death is kindly freeing those devotes from all that is material to enable them to focus undistracted on the spiritual.
Detailed Answer:
Death can seem cruel when it takes away a dear one. The Bhagavad-gita may seem to add to the bewilderment when it asserts (10.34) that the death which steals away everything is a manifestation of Krishna. Why would Kri
By ISKCON Wellington
The six loving exchanges between devotees articulated in the nectarean words of Srila Rupa Gosvami do not discriminate by gender or relationships. Neither do the etiquettes of Vaishnava association further elucidated by Srila Prabhupada in the Nectar of Instruction. Advancement in Krishna Consciousness depends upon the attitude of the follower; that indeed begins with our attitude towards those who are closest to us.
Nestled amongst native wilderness, trees and a short walk
For many years I have wondered why it is so difficult to find devotees who are inspired to not only correspond with inmates but to do so steadily as well. It’s been quite a bottleneck since there are far more inmates who write than there are volunteers to reply to them.
It seems that often the devotees who volunteer with IPM have an unrealistic, romantic view of what this service is and they get discouraged when reality turns out to be different. I am wondering if, in some way, this IPM NEWS it
The participants of “Unraveling the Mysteries of the Sacred Universe Level 1” were asking themselves this very question while attending this informative workshop co- sponsored by the Bhaktivedanta Institute of Gainesville and the Krishna Institute in Alachua on May 20-21.
How we view the universe impacts our understanding of ourselves. Additionally, the more we push the boundaries of knowledge, the more knowledge expands before us. In the Vedic literature it is said, sa-tattvato ‘nyatha-buddhir
This message was given to me on a magnet many years ago from a friend who sold it at her store. It is a cute and funny saying, but never more true for me than at this time. For those of you in anxiety trying to figure out your life mission or calling, take some solace that I am still figuring that out for myself at 67! You can do it at a much younger age than I have. I am learning what I want to do when I grow up, and for me that time is now, and every day thereafter!
I just got pushed out of t
O expert and thoughtful men, relish Srimad-Bhagavatam, the mature fruit of the desire tree of Vedic literatures. It emanated from the lips of Sri Sukadeva Gosvami. Therefore this fruit has become even more tasteful, although its nectarean juice was already relishable for all, including liberated souls.
(SB 1.1.3)
Hare Krishna dear devotees,
Please let us relish as we read, chew, nibble or feast upon the nectarean introduction of Srimad Bhagavatam by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura:
The clou
Sri Adikesavaperumal Temple
On April 4th we arrived at Thiruvattar to visit the Sri Adikesavaperumal Temple. The temple is one of the 108 divya desams (divine places) and is a holy site for all Vaisnavas. It is located in a picturesque area surrounded by three rivers: Kothai, Pahrali and Thamirabarani. The temple houses a 22 foot (6.7 meter) long deity of Lord Sri Adi Kesava Perumal in His bhujanga sayanam posture (sleeping with His head facing south and His feet facing north). In order to have
Remembering Not to Forget: But if its amnesia you want, Krishna will give it to you
It’s funny how if you give Krishna, God, an inch, he gives you a mile. I remember in my earliest days as a devotee, I had left the movement for some time. I was home, watching TV with my family. All of a sudden, right on the screen there was an ad for the television station with a photo of New York City streets. There he was, my Godbrother Bhaktivinoda, with a close-up of the Channel Two logo below his chin. I h
One of the first devotees to land on Irish soil in the early seventies did so on a motorbike, with the intention of getting a slot on the famous TV program, ‘The Late Late Show’. That devotee was Tribhuvanatha and being Irish, he knew this would be an excellent opportunity to introduce the fledgling Krishna movement to the people of Ireland. Although unsuccessful in his attempt, it would not be too long before the first group of devotees began to sing and dance on the highways and byways of
A historic event for ISKCON was the acquisition of 60 acres of land near NH-2 for construction of the new eco-friendly campus for Bhaktivedanta Gurukula and International School (BGIS)
The construction work in the new school begun with the auspicious Bhumi Puja ceremony in the presence of HH Gopal Krishna Maharaj and former honourable PWD minister of UP, Shri Shivpal Yadav on 16th May 2015.
A lot of progress has been made since then.
A new exclusive road of 3 KM length named ‘Bhaktivedanta Gur
“There is no harm. If one could not proceed, it doesn't matter. Failure is the pillar of success. Then try. Again you will try.” - Room Conversation with Madhudvisa and others -- August 17, 1977, Vrndavana
By then the ropes attached to the back of the cart had been retracted and the Gurukula kids dispersed into the crowds, hopefully under the supervision of their respective teachers. Jayapataka Maharaj had been waiting on the top of the deck with the d
A new book is being released this summer featuring the individual voices of 108 women in the Bhakti tradition. Over the last three years, Krishna Kanta Dasi—founder of the Vaishnavi Voices Poetry Project—has been collecting the poetry of vaishnavis, or female practitioners of bhakti, from all over the world to produce Bhakti Blossoms: A Collection of Contemporary Vaishnavi Poetry.
This rare collection of poems offers honest and inspiring glimpses into the spiritual journeys of contemporary wome
Many things are considered justified in the name of sankirtan. You know, in the name of sankirtan, you can do any damn thing! I wouldn’t think so.
I think that even in the name of sankirtan, sankirtan devotees should be careful and should avoid unnecessary suffering to other living beings. We should be strict about what we eat, we should read the E-numbers and if they’re the wrong ones, we should not eat it.
(Australian accent) “Anyway, who cares about these things! Can’t be fanatic. You know,
People from Panamanian, Colombia and Venezuelan backgrounds attended the talk in the five-star Hotel El Panama
Talks on intriguing subjects at five-star hotels in Panama are drawing professionals, and attracting them to become regulars at ISKCON’s Bhakti Yoga Center in the Central American country.
On May 7th, well-known “spiritual scientist” Chaitanya Charan Das, a former engineer who has an online following of some 400,000 spoke on the topic “Reincarnation – Myth Versus Reality” at the f
At the end of the day, we are not going to be super-devotees. We would like to be but the reality is that we are not. There is Srila Prabhupada. We cannot imagine the magnitude of Srila Prabhupada´s love for Krsna, his surrender in service to Krsna and how Krsna empowered him. It is inconceivable!
We should know that whenever we do some service for Srila Prabhupada, everything will become magic. We know what he wanted. He wanted the whole world to become Krsna conscious – nothing less and it
The following conversation between Srila Prabhupada and Mr. Malhotra recorded in Poona, December 22, 1976, is a good instruction on our relationship between guru and disciple.
Prabhupada: Not equal; representative. Not equal. I send one representative of this man, and he may be very expert, doing very good business, still he cannot be equal with me. He is acting as my representative, that’s another thing. But not that he has become the original proprietor..
Disciple Never Becomes Equal t
