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The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) joins the world in mourning and remembering the legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, The Nightingale of India.

Acclaimed singer Lata Mangeshkar took her last breath at Breach Candy Hospital, Mumbai on Sunday, February 6th, 2022, she was 92. The singer was cremated at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park with full state honors. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and many others paid their respects to Mangeshkar.

Daughter of Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar and Sh

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Day With Families by Bhaktimarga Swami

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Nimai picked me up. We left for Brampton to see Pavan at his home. That makes two families joined together, and me.

A Chinese meal was on the menu, all cooked by Pavan and all offered to Krishna to become prasadam; blessed by the best. We chanted. We studied. It was the beginning of the Gita, made interactive through Zoom with a group from Niagara Falls.

Why was there a need for another rendition of the Gita when other renditions were already there? The introduction of Bhagavad-gita As It Is po

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10078427669?profile=RESIZE_584xToday is Advaita Saptami, By his mercy, Lord Caitanya came. We always remember him prior to any nama yajna or any festival. By his appearance, Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityananda appeared. Today is a very sacred day. Advaita Gosai is very merciful. By his mercy, one can get the mercy of Gauranga and Nityananda. It has been predicted in 11th canto that He will come in kali yuga accompanied by His expansions. Lord Nityananda is His first expansion. Advaita is expansion of his expansion. Virachandra

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When Lata Mangeshkar sung for Iskcon

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India’s “Nightingale” Sings for Krishna
Lata Mangeshkar, the world’s most prolific recording artist (with more than twenty thousand songs to her credit), recently went on a rare concert tour of North America.
Lata Mangeshkar known as “the nightingale of India,” the humble Miss Mangeshkar has won the Padma Bushan, India’s highest national award, and so many “Filmfare” awards (her country’s equivalent of the Oscar) that she’s had to declare herself ineligible for more. Time magazine called her “

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Live to Give ’21

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This last Live to Give campaign from the BBT ran from September 21st, 2021 through January 7th, 2022. Several devotees around the world participated. Many full-time sankirtan devotees, traveling sankirtan parties, participated as well as families, children, and congregations members participated part-time and weekends for this occasion. This year’s campaign tried many new approaches to preaching and book distribution:

  • Devotees set up tables/displays for Gita Jayanti (also known as World Gita D
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By Saki Rangadevi Devi Dasi 

Each and every one of us wants two things in life: to love and to be loved. Devotee Care is one such initiative by ISKCON that takes care of the devotees and embeds the culture of care using different platforms. Their vision and mission is to provide contentment to the devotees both spiritually and materially by looking after their diverse emotional, spiritual, physical, and social needs. The idea behind the project is to help devotees feel valuable and comfortable

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Vasantha Panchami Feb 6th, 2022

…Of course spring is a season universally liked because it is neither too hot nor too cold, and the flowers and trees blossom and flourish. In spring there are also many ceremonies commemorating Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes; therefore this is considered to be the most joyful of all seasons, and it is the representative of the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa.

BG 10:35
Of hymns I am the Bṛhat-sāma sung to the Lord Indra, and of poetry I am the Gāyatrī verse, sung daily by brāhmaṇas.

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I decided to pace along on the temple/ashram’s balcony floor and in the course of it, chanted some rounds on my beads. The japa, or chanting, with a good dose of faith, is the means to elevate my consciousness. Altering consciousness is a lifetime endeavour, if not several lifetimes.

For our meditation, I would like to bring to the readers attention verse 2.54 from the Bhagavad-gita.

Arjuna said: O Krishna, what are the symptoms of one whose consciousness is thus merged in transcendence? How do

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Day Snow Walk by Bhaktimarga Swami

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I walked on ice, asphalt, rock-salt and snow

This is much like the make up of the world we know

They are elemental surfaces that exist under our feet

Diverse they are in colour, texture along the snowy heap

 

When walking in the winter you see less folks on the prowl

They are seasonal movers like some choosy night owl

The quiet is conducive for good meditational time

Which might get interrupted at a snow bank climb

 

Snuggled in coat, pants and favourable footwear

It becomes an exercise in brea

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Don’t Worry About This World

10068299868?profile=RESIZE_400xDevotee: Hiraṇyākṣa was taking the gold from the earth. Now they are taking the oil. So the weight, the oil makes weight in some parts of the globe, no? So when they take it and they put it some place else or they convert it in the earth, the earth is losing weights in some parts. That is no going to cause…

Prabhupāda: I think I have explained this. Instead of contemplating what will happen to this world, you have got a short duration of life, say fifty, sixty years. You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and go

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The plight of man is a wonder indeed!

10068298268?profile=RESIZE_400xOnce a man was chased by an elephant in a forest. Seeing no respite, he climbed a tree but he slipped, was about to fall before he could hold on to a branch. He looked up and found that the elephant is waiting to devour him and two rats, one black and one white, were slowly nibbling the branch he was hanging on to. He understood that very soon the branch would fall to the ground.
As the man looked down, he discovered that there were many snakes. Suddenly a drop of honey fell on his face. He pull

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From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 11:

“In the Hari-bhakti-vilasa there is the following statement about self-surrender: ‘My dear Lord, a person who has surrendered himself unto You, who is in firm conviction that he is Yours, and who actually acts in that way by his body, mind and words, can actually relish transcendental bliss.’”

“In the Nrsimha Purana, Lord Nrsimha-deva says, ‘Anyone who prays unto Me and takes shelter from Me becomes My ward, and I protect him always from all sorts of cal

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Everyone Is Eternally Servant of God

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Pressman: Do you know how many followers there are in the United States now?

Prabhupāda: Unlimited. (devotees roar) Some of them admit and some of them do not admit. That’s all. (laughter) Everyone is eternally servant of God, but some of them admit and some of them do not admit. That is the difficulty. But anyone who does not admit, he is servant of somebody. That is a fact. He cannot be master. Everyone is servant. But one who knows that “I am servant of Kṛṣṇa,” his life is perfect. That’s al

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Twenty-four Gurus by haktimarga Swami

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Based on a story from Canto 11 of the Bhagavatam, I have this literary piece to offer the readers:

 

Twenty-four Gurus

 

A monk had come to visit a king in his royal town

And the king asked the monk why he wanders around

“You are wise, wonderful, and ever so competent

What is it that molded you to be ever so confident?”

 

The monk replied, “Your majesty, nature sent me twenty-four gurus

Each one taught me a lesson, so they became my truths

If you have the time, I’ll reveal my meaningful list

Fo

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Nityananda Trayodasi Sevas

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We want to use this opportunity to warmly invite you for this year Nityananda Trayodasi celebration which falls on the 14th of February 2022. With pleasure we want to invite you and your family to participate in this festival and receive the mercy of Sri Nityananda Prabhu. We hope you will join us in serving Lord Nityananda Prabhu with your time, energy, and donations.

Sri Nityananda Trayodashi is the auspicious appearance day of Sri Nityananda Prabhu. The Supreme Lord Sri Krishna appeared in N

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On Being Subordinate

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Srila Prabhupada Conversation.

The following conversation between His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and a guest took place in September 1968 at the Seattle Krsna center.

Guest: Can you explain subordination?

Srila Prabhupada

Srila Prabhupada: Subordination? Yes, it is simple. Everyone must be subordinate to somebody else. Are you not subordinate to somebody?

Guest: Yes, in a material sense. But in the spiritual sense, I don’t feel subordinate to anyone.

Srila Prabhupada: When

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The Yoga Dictionary

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The Sanskrit language is rich in words to communicate ideas about spiritual life, yoga, and God-realization.

Aham brahmasmi. This is an aphorism from the Vedic literature, expressing the essential identity of each living being. Aham means “I am.” What am I? Aham brahmasmi: I am Brahman, or spirit.

In materialistic life, one identifies himself with bodily designations thinking, “I am American” or “I am English,” “I am black” or “I am white.” One has to become free from such bodily designations

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A few weeks ago I bumped into someone I hadn’t seen for nearly 40 years, way back then he was an old school friend of mine and he had some interesting thoughts on all things Hare Krishna!

He began by letting me know (in colorful language), that at the time he thought I was ‘nut-job fruitcake’ when he heard I had become a Hare Krishna devotee, however now he considers that it was not so strange after all. His logic went something like this – it now seems that half the people he knows are private

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Sounds by Bhaktimarga Swami

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Perhaps it’s the season, winter, that permits sounds to be more crisp and distinct. Whether inside or outside, noises subtle or loud had somehow got my attention today. Thank God for noise, sweet or sour.

Practically every hour the train just north of our temple/ashram shakes the window panes ever so lightly and with its companion is the gritty noise of its wheels gripping against the tracks.

You’d be lucky to hear the choo-choo whistle. While I sat, momentarily at a bench near those tracks, I

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