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Rules Srila Prabhupada’s Lived By

Don’t blindly follow until you can follow blindly
Question everything. If it is false, leave it; but if it is true surrender to it.
“You must test the spiritual master for one year. And when you are convinced that here is a person I can follow blindly, then you accept.”

Live your why
Know your purpose and deeply connect with it. Never deviate from you mission and enroll others to help you fulfill it.
“My mission is to save human society.”

No personal agenda
Pur

By JG.Carand Das, Assisting Manager

Introduction:

I recently spoke with a dear friend who left ISKCON to join an evangelical movement. When I asked him why he made such a change, his answer was eye-opening. He said, “In my heart, Krishna will always be there, but I joined the evangelicals because I felt important, taken care of, and loved in their congregation.”

What Is Congregation and Why Do We Need Them?

According to the dictionary, a congregation is a gathering of people, especially for rel

Mahendra dasa was vice president of the Pittsburgh temple when I joined there in 1972. I was an inexperienced 19 year old and he was a worldly grownup of 27 so he naturally became my mentor. When Srila Prabhupada came to Pittsburgh that year Mahendra took the lead in preparing for that visit, which included renovating the temple which he mostly did himself. He also helped to organize Visnujana Swami’s Transcendental Rock Opera performance, wherein Prabhupada spoke, at a prestigious concert hall

There is just a little more I wanted to say in regard to yesterday's flight. After meeting Eli, a young Asian student who took keen interest in my garb and what it all stood for, another person on this plane approached me with a big smile.

"Do you remember me? We only met on the phone. It was during the pandemic 2 1/2 years ago when I was telling you of my 'God experience'. You told me you were sitting on a park bench when we talked."

"Yes, I do remember that bench and the talk," I said. I was g

By Atma Tattva Das

In the heart of Manila, a unique artistic journey awaits as the Krishna Balaram Ashram (ISKCON Manila) prepares to host its much-anticipated Krishna Bhakti 3 art exhibition. Emerging as a collaborative initiative driven by a common Krishna Conscious vision, this exhibition promises to transcend the boundaries of artistic expression and spirituality, inviting attendees to experience a blend of creative ingenuity and profound devotion.

The Krishna Balaram Ashram, originally foun

Walking by yourself through foliage can be a beautiful experience. It's the green that is your company and maybe even your canopy. But tonight, by my two sides, are friends of the Bhakti Academy, Uday and Ambarisha. Always eager for an adventure are these two younger chaps.

Our spontaneous decision to go to a local ravine was enough to satisfy anyone who wants to buld up gratitude for what the Creator has done for us. The colours, smells, textures, and tastes cannot be purchased. You pay by app

Transcend, by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust India, is a divine collection of summarized Vedic knowledge written by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder-acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).

Explore a power-packed library of over 600 eBooks and 8000 hours of audiobooks in 11 languages, including Srimad Bhagavatam, Bhagavad Gita, and Chaitanya Caritamrita. Artistically crafted with world-class narration, each audiobook from Transcend b

Simply put, the chanting of the Hare Krsna mahamantra is our main interest. In the Holy Name, there are 3 words – Hare, Krsna and Rama. In this, we can see that Hare is representing Srimati Radharani, Rama is representing Lord Balarama and Krsna is representing the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna Himself. Besides Krsna, we can see that Srimati Radharani and Lord Balarama are our main focus. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur explains that for those who are liberated and in the madh

The Balarama Pranams

namas te halagraha
namas te musalayudha
namas te revati-kanta
namas te bhakta-vatsala

namas te dharani-dhara
namas te balanam srestha
pralambare namas te ‘stu
ehi mam krsna-purvaja

From Garga-samhita Canto 8: Chapter Thirteen

Text 1

duryodhana uvaca

balabhadrasya devasya
pradvipaka maha-mune
namnam sahasram me bruhi
guhyam deva-ganair api

Duryodhana said: O great sage Pradvipaka, please tell me the thousand names of Lord Balarama, names kept secret from even the demigods.

T

Naturally, during the course of a month, I think about my biological family. Surving are five siblings. In order of age they are Connie, Jerry, Rose Ann, and set of twins, Paul and Pauline. I am the oldest. When there is a birthday among us, we share in a congratulations over the phone. We talk silly at that time. What’s unique about us is that we are all a year or a year-and-a-half apart from each other, so in our time growing up together, we were quite close in our dealings with each other. T

By Kaliarupa Jagannath Dasa

ISKCON Hamburg on the 19th August 2023, celebrated their Annual Rath Yatra Festival starting from Saturn, Mönckebergstraße. Amongst the participants were Sri Shashi Tharoor – Indian Member of Parliament & Smt. Soumya Gupta – Consul General of India in Hamburg, Germany. Sri Shashi Tharoor was ecstatic & shared “Delighted to participate in a Rath Yatra in Hamburg organised by ISKCON & do my share of pulling Lord Jagannath’s chariot through the neighbourhood! Smashed t

By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi

London Mellows is an annual kirtan festival organized by a committed team at ISKCON London for the temple congregation and the wider devotee community in the UK. This year the event was held on August 12th, 2023. In addition to UK-based kirtaneers, the event welcomed visiting kirtaneers, including Amala Harinama Dasa, Nadiya Mani Dasi, Ananta Gauranga Dasa, and Lilarani Gaurangi Devi Dasi.

The first London Mellows event took place in July 2016 as a special off

By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi

On August 25, 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the temple president of ISKCON Greece, Dayanidhi Das. In the private conversation, which lasted about 15 minutes, Dayanidhi Das shared a copy of “Bhagavad-gita As It Is” in Greek and spoke about ISKCON’s initiatives and objectives in Greece and worldwide.

Prime Minister Modi applauded Dayanidhi Das in a tweet for spreading Indian culture amongst the Greek youth and his active participation in community

By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi

The UN 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual international campaign aimed at addressing gender-based violence and promoting respect and fair treatment of women. From a Gaudiya Vaishnava perspective, the campaign emphasizes the importance of treating all individuals with respect and recognizing their inherent worth, regardless of material circumstances such as gender. In Bhagavad Gita 12.15, Krishna identifies those qualities that endea

Radha Krsna Jhulan Yatra (or swing festival) starts on ekadasi of the waxing moon of Sridhara month. Many temples in Vrndavana celebrate Krsna’s swing festival, some for one day, others for more days.

Traditionally, many of the Deities of the Lord wear various clothing with green over this period until Balaram Purnima. It is a wonderful service for Their pleasure.

Monsoon season is humid and the temperature is hot despite the cooling rains. With so much water coming from the sky and just about

What is a sangha really all about? It has everything to do with brotherhood, sisterhood – family. It appears that this weekend’s program has succeeded in establishing a bonding between some really great people.

In addition to the seminars presented at the meditation hall, there was an organized kirtan scheduled in town, yet rains came that really deterred outdoor events. Yet, one local woman had arranged something called “Evolution” which drew a group of free-spirited people to a beautiful lot.

Padayatra reached Zaregaon on July 17, 2023. It’s a small village in Karmala Taluka and Solapur district. The villagers welcomed us with beautiful garlands. The roads were decorated with rangoli. One of our devotees named Panduranga Jadhav belongs to this village. He invited us for prasadam and prepared Maharashtrian puran poli, a very famous Marathi dish. In all festivals, Maharashtrians make Puran poli. It was offered to our Lordships and we all honored prasadam.

The next day we went for naga

By Krishna Premarupa Dasa

At the age of 70+, Srila Prabhupada travelled fourteen times around the world and planted seeds of devotion to Sri Krishna wherever he went. It’s described in Shastra that wherever a pure devotee places his Lotus Feet, that place turns into a place of pilgrimage (1).

Last weekend we celebrated the 50th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s first visit to Switzerland (2). Srila Prabhupada arrived at Zurich Airport on Sunday, April 1, 1973. From there, his disciples brought

By Thomas Haribol

Last week, the Parliament of the World’s Religions (PoWR) gathered thousands of people of faith, spirituality, and ethical convictions to Chicago, USA, for their 2023 convention. This year’s theme was “A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom & Human Rights.” The historic gathering welcomed participants from around the world to the emblematic city where the first Parliament was held 130 years ago. 

It is one of the world’s largest inter-faith gatherings, with 6,500 participatin