I had been careful with my footsteps as Yonge Street was quite slippery last evening when a First Nations woman saw me. She was lost and asked, “Where is the Eaton’s Centre?”
“The Eaton’s shopping mall? If that’s the case, then you’re in the wrong direction.” She was heading north towards her home, North Bay. I told her she had to go south, the way I was going.
“Okay, thank you!” she said with gratitude. She was intending to say farewell, but it just so happened that we were both now
By Srila B.R Sridhara Maharaja
In his last days for some time he told us his heart was damaged and then some sort of treatment, by a Kaviraji and other party that was arranged. But gradually he became weaker and weaker. Then October of ’36 he went to Puri along with some of us to Purusottama Math on the Catak Parvat. There is one sandhill, hillock there and he lived there in his bungalow and so many of us also went with him.
He was very fond of hearing that sloka of Dasa Goswami, nijane katim va
Srila Prabhupada: In 1936, just on the 13th, December, I wrote him one letter. Not 13th. I think by the beginning of December, 1936, I wrote one letter to Guru Maharaja. I knew he was little kind upon me, so I wrote that “Guru Maharaja, you have got many disciples. I am also one of them. But they are doing direct service to you. Some of them are brahmacaris, some of them sannyasis, but I am a householder. I cannot…” Of course, I was giving sometimes some monetary help, but I could not give any
A Talk by Giriraj Swami
December 19, 2005
San Diego
We are gathered on the most auspicious occasion of the disappearance anniversary of His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja Prabhupada, the spiritual master of our Srila Prabhupada. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura was born in Jagannatha Puri as the son of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, who was a magistrate and the superintendent of the Jagannatha temple in Puri. At that time, during the British rule, the position
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, Srila Prabhupada’s spiritual master, is my grand spiritual master, but I feel that I never really knew him very well until I read his biography Sri Bhaktisiddhanta Vaibhava, by my godbrother Bhakti Vikasa Swami. Many of the quotes and references below come from that work.
We are all here by the mercy of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and the Supreme Lord, Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. There’s a line through which the mercy desce
Birthplace of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura
at Sri Jagannatha Puri Dhama
By Chandan Yatra Das
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura was a foremost scholar and Lord Krishna’s devotee of his day. Born on 6 Feb 1874 at Jagannatha Puri, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura is the child that Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura prayed to Lord Jagannatha for, wanting an able assistant to preach Krishna Consciousness. His divinity was evident from birth. When he was born, his umbilical cord was wrapped
By Arya Devi Dasi
The Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies Launches New Podcast Series “The Insight Stream: Science Meets Philosophy.” The podcast aims to bridge the gap between scientific inquiry and philosophical exploration, fostering a deeper understanding of topics such as consciousness, intelligence, ethics, and the nature of the universe. By encouraging dialogue between scientific and philosophical perspectives, The Insight Stream seeks to inspire curiosity and engagement in the pur
By Yudhisthira Dasa
In 1976, Michael Cassidy (Mangalananda Dasa) wrote and recorded a song called “A Change of Heart,” which captivated tens if not hundreds of thousands of listeners. I remember playing it again and again, singing along to the lyrics. Fond memories. Here is a link to the song and lyrics which say:
A caterpillar changed his mind, and woke to find himself defined
His old self had to die for him to be a butterfly.
He tired of walking on the ground, and so around himself he wound
A
It was a whole night and half a day that I was up in the air, I’m not always stepping on the ground. It was such a pleasure to be greeted in Argentina by Muktinath, one of the actors I’ll work with, Daksha, who runs a successful Veg restaurant, an Meru devi, coordinator for the weekend Chariot Fest. Once we reached the ISKCON Centre, I wasted no time.
I was graced with a welcoming committee doing kirtan, got well fed and dove into practice for the play, “ The Jagannatha story” in Spanish. I a
By Atma Tattva Das
This year, the Krishna Balarama Youth Group (KBYG) in Johannesburg marks a monumental milestone—21 years of fostering devotion, community, and transformation within ISKCON South Africa. Over two decades, KBYG has been a beacon of inspiration, not just for youth in Johannesburg but for devotees and seekers across the nation and beyond. As they celebrate this occasion, they reflect on their journey, challenges, contributions, and the enduring spirit that has shaped the platform
“Man proposes, God disposes” has been the cause of immense frustration for humanity since time immemorial. The best plans are often foiled forever in a single moment by factors beyond human control. Misery can be said to be the condition in which we are unable to get what we want and / or are forced to accept that which we don’t want. A thoughtful person can perceive that misery is an unavoidable, inescapable companion during the sojourn through this world (Bhagavad Gita 8.15). Everyone is put
An allegory from the Srimad-Bhagavatam sheds light on the mind/body connection.
This article was originally presented at ‘Toward a Science of Consciousness,’ an international conference attended by leading scientists, physicians, philosophers, and other scholars, and hosted by the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Is There A Conscious Self distinct from the physical mechanism of the body? Is there a mind distinct from the brain? Those who answer yes to such questions are called dualists, and th
By Adi Purusa Krsna Dasa
The construction of a new temple extension hall at ISKCON Adelaide, South Australia, was finally completed, and its doors opened to the public on Saturday, December 7, 2024. The occasion was celebrated with a grand inaugural ceremony, which was accompanied by mantra-chanting, ecstatic kirtans, and gaiety.
We faced many trials and tribulations during this arduous journey. Still, ultimately, by the mercy of the presiding deities, Sri Sri Radha Syamasundara, we prevailed.
According to science, compassion is not something that we are born with or that we have or don’t have; it is cultivated by deliberate effort. In November 2024, Bhaktivedanta Academy’s 7th-10th grade students in Alachua, Florida, were engaged in a month-long project entitled “108 Random Acts of Kindness.” To see highlights of the initiative, click here.
To follow Bhaktivedanta Academy, please visit their website and like/subscribe to their Facebook and YouTube accounts.
Source: https://iskconnew
On September, HH Radhanath Swami was in New York City to speak at The Bhakti Center for their 3rd Annual Pearl Festival, celebrating Radhastami (the Divine appearance of Srimati Radharani). A special feature of this festival is that all guests received the opportunity to write a prayer on a paper pearl and offer it, along with a real pearl, to Radharani. All the real pearls were then collected, strung into a necklace and offered to Radharani as a gift. Below are some excerpts of his talk.
“The
By Aisvarya Kisori Devi Dasi
Gitanushilanam 2024 is the world’s largest online Bhagavad-gita competition dedicated to ISKCON Founder-Acharya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. It is the annual flagship event of Learn Gita Live Gita (LGLG) to celebrate the Gita Jayanti 2024.
Learn Gita Live Gita is an initiative under the leadership of Lila Purushottam Das (Director-IIT Mandi, Director-BGIS Vrindavan) to bring success and happiness to every person in this world, irrespective o
This year’s Live to Give Campaign is surging around the world, as more and more devotees are accepting the challenge to share 4.2 million copies of the Bhagavad-gita As It Is. To help inspire seasoned and starting book distributors, several devotees, in cooperation with the BBT (Bhaktivedanta Book Trust) have produced two music videos. Additionally, this weekend, they will host a Super Sunday online gathering.
The first music video offering is “Then Comes A Hand!” by Bhakta Srikar and NYC Harin
With days being so short and darkness long, there’s little opportunity to see the solar body. Its day number 2 for our conference which is in a nice basement facility
A windowless situation it is, so you feel something missing.
6 am was our agreed upon starting point for a trek in an urban sprawl. Though gloomy we had the 8 of us had each other. We decided quite spontaneously to make the ISKCON temple the Radha Govinda Cultural Centre our destination. Sumeer was on foot on foot with us an ext
Excerpt from the lecture by HH Nirañjana Swami
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 8.16
Śrī Māyāpur Dhāma, March 4, 2014
The following is a partially-edited transcription of an excerpt of a lecture given on March 04, 2014 in Śrī Māyāpur Dhāma – CC, Ādi-līlā 8.16
This verse stresses the importance of chanting the Holy Name so that one can achieve the ultimate goal of this chanting. I wanted to read something also in connection to this. It is short but very relevant to this verse. In the words of our p
