By Sunanda Das
Prabhupada Placing Ananta Sesha in the TOVP Foundation Pit, 1972
1972 was a year in Sridhama Mayapur filled with many beginnings. The Radha Madhava Golden Jubilee Festival from March 2 – 5 commemorates four of them. These include:
In a
Someone sent me a question asking about the status of coco. The sender found out that some Vaishnavas of the bhakti tradition consume chocolate. “So where do we stand?” was his basic question, a question worthy of asking his guru.
My answer to him was that our guru, Prabhupada, was not favourable to chocolate because of its caffeine content. When Prabhupada heard that some of his disciples were consuming hot chocolate in the evening as things were winding down, he wanted a stop to it. My good f
Last week I was asked, “What’s the most important practice for advancing in spiritual life?” Srila Prabhupada said chanting of Hare Krishna is most important. Some have suggested that devotee association is more important because without it, most of us wouldn’t have the strength to chant Hare Krishna.
I agree. But I think there is a principle even more fundamental than this.
OUR VERY DESIRE TO ADVANCE IN SPIRITUAL LIFE IS THE CORE CONDITION UPON WHICH OUR ADVANCEMENT IS BUILT.
“One’s devotion a
One of the people who comes on board for the Thursday Gita class, sourced from Alachua, Gainesville, is a Godsister by the name of Sankalpa. She is one of the rock pillars of our weekly group, which is a closely-knit group that enjoys each other’s company. Sankalpa is European, married to American born Janmasthami, and they have two boys (of marriageable age), Prahlad and Devala. I’ve engaged both boys in dramas in the past. She is a saintly person and lives a responsible life. In a picture tha
Understanding Different Perspectives of Srila Prabhupada’s Statements
Recap of ISKCON Communications Global Conference
More than 100 leaders and devotees doing communications services from around the globe including India, the US, the UK, South Africa, and Europe joined the online conference on Saturday, January 22nd.
The headline event for the conference, “Reconciling Different Perspectives on Srila Prabhupada’s Statements”, by Radhika Raman das (Utah State University Professor, Vaishnava scho
Ancient Vedic texts address the notion that no amount of material accomplishments can deeply satisfy us. Our consciousness has been affected by the material atmosphere, and as we try to exploit resources, we are in fact getting more and more entangled in mundane complexities. Vedic wisdom attributes this condition to a lack of spiritual awareness. The Vedic scriptures share with us that we are all spiritual beings and that we can elevate our c
The material world is toxic, always was and always will be. The Vedas speak of the three energies (modes) that trigger this confusion (Bhagavad-gita 7.13). The cause of this misfortune and its sustainability is also stated in the Gita, text 7.27. Verse 9.12 reveals that those who are bewildered arrive at whimsical conclusions. Hence toxicity continues.
I observe more and more that people are nasty to each other. The trying times of COVID are bringing out the worse in people, especially through
Social trends are currently moving toward traditional family values. Ms. Faith Popcorn (that's really her name), president and founder of BrainReserve, a Manhattan firm specializing in detecting consumer trends, attributes America's return to Mom-and-Pop ethics to a backlash from the excesses of the recent past The fear of AIDS is the coup de grace, prompting a return to stable, long-term relationships. But in a PhiladelphiaInquirer interview, Ms. Popcorn warns that as soon as an AIDS cure is
On January 10, my beloved disciple Palika Dasi left her body in South Africa. Kindly read Madri Dasi’s beautiful description of this wonderful devotee.
Bitten by the Krishna Bug: Honoring the Life of Palika Dasi
By Madri Dasi
A few days ago, I heard of Palika’s transitioning from this mortal world. I did not want to cry because her life was over, but I smiled.
Palika was always “on the go.” During recent calls with her illustrious children and other family and friends to offer my condolences, we
Prabhupāda: So you all become bhagavad-dūta, bhagavad-dūta, messenger of God. That is perfection of life. Otherwise you shall be obliged to become the servant of the senses. Go-dāsa and gosvāmī. The bhagavad-dūtas are gosvāmī, and the servants of the senses are go-dāsa. Unfortunately the go-dāsas are claiming to be gosvāmīs. That is the cause of falldown of Indian Vedic civilization. One has to become gosvāmī. Gosvāmī means refuse to follow the dictation of the senses. Simply he has to follow t
By A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
On the 16th of February 1957 a meeting was held at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan to discuss the above subject matter. Distinguished gentlemen from different categories spoke on the subject, but practically nobody could give us a definite direction as to what actually the matter was that was troubling the whole situation. This feeling of pinching in the existence of our life is a good sign for progress. It is an urge for enquiry what is the wrong in the world
This is the annual UK Sankirtana Festival, recognising everyone who distributed either one book or a thousand books during the Srila Prabhupada marathon! We hope you will enjoy the appreciation of all those devotees and of course all the fun that comes with this festival!
Watch it here: https://schoolofbhakti.zoom.us/rec/share/tLbjHESV6M0j2qb9aDk7BOF59AMj48kN90QHCjZ_XDVfgaelHfFK_7obz2If-3bX.0Bt22k9w0c0eXKUy
Access Passcode: Z7t!Sx=5
Source: https://dandavats.tumblr.com/post/673357541148868608/
Empowering Leaders Across USA and Canada
ISKCON North America Leadership Annual Conference
More than 140 leaders from across the US and Canada attended the weekend conference held last weekend January 14-16th to network, share resources and empower leaders to serve their respective communities.
The first day of the conference the mood was one of initiative and support. New projects were introduced from the work of the past two years “ISKCON 3.0” initiative that brought together next generation
Avast torrents is a popular and secure bit-torrent client software program. It helps P2P style downloads and boasts almost 8 private and protect P2P hosting space. Its free sample version enables you to test it before you order it. The free rendition is easy to download, however, you should be aware of feasible security dangers. This program might block unwelcome advertisements and monitor your web activities, and is downloaded from official internet site for a limited time.
The free download c
On January 12, 2020, Shyamasundar das was a guest on The Beatles Channel of Sirius XM for one of their Fab Forum interviews.
By Janatari Devi Dasi
An international committee advisory committee advocated that processed and red meat as high priorities for assessmentby the IARC Monographs Programme. The endorsement was suggested due to epidemiological studies alluding to the possible risks of cancers associated with the ingestion of both red and processed meats.
According to the Global Burden of Disease Project, an independent academic research organization, approximately 34,000 cancer deaths worldwide can be attribute
In the world of modern science, consciousness is reduced to a fading epiphenomenon, leftover after the brain has been physically explained.
It seems to arise when matter is suitably organized, but scientists and philosophers have been unable to explain why complex organization should produce anything beyond complex physical behavior. Yet consciousness won’t go away. This groundbreaking book shows how conscious beings
Overwhelmingly, Srila Prabhupada preached that vegetarian or non-vegetarian was not the issue.* He nearly always took the opportunity to preach Krishna bhakti no matter what food a person chose to eat. At the same time, he indicated that eating foods in the mode of goodness helps one become wiser.
The effect of developing the mode of goodness in the material world is that one becomes wiser than those otherwise conditioned.
Read more: https://iskconnews.org/movies-for-devotees-the-game-change
I learned about a couple that survived a 4-month walk from Mexico to Canada along the Continental Divide. In 2017, I crossed the Divide in Colorado and it was at that location that a journalist caught up with me and said, “You’re on the highest point at this watershed. If you pee here, half of the fluid will go to the Atlantic and the other will flow to the Pacific.”
In any event, the American couple trekking this heroic trail exercised true social distancing with their backpacking. Their names
Learning to appreciate the devotees is a Vaisnava etiquette that helps us in our quest for purification, especially the appreciation of senior devotees.
I have always been slow to understand this but as time passed I began to develop a certain admiration for those devotees who came before me. This is due largely to the fact that I have become a senior devotee.
I can’t say that I always act like a senior devotee so I guess I am senior by default, simply because of time only. But the arrogance an
