Walking was meagre. Resting was maximized more than the norm. It’s Labor Day and the last day before school starts. Karuna, K. Chandra, and I wanted to do something, not necessarily laborious but meaningful; devotional. So, we drove to North York and there we met Lila Mayi, who lives but a mere 5-minute walk from Avondale Park. We sat on a madras and started chanting to the accompaniment of harmonium, kartals, tambourine and drum.
“What is that?” asked a young man pointing to the drum.
“This fi
By Sivarama Swami
Some years back, in response to repeated requests to write something about prayer, we published the prayers I recite daily upon rising. The name of the book is My Daily Prayers. While that book is now out of print, Lāl Publishing would like to make it easily available to devotees as an ebook, which can be downloaded from here: https://srsbooks.com/gift/.
At this time our planet and our devotees need prayer. No doubt many devotees have their own prayers. Yet some do not. It ca
George Harrison placed a Hare Krishna sticker on the headstock of Eric Clapton’s famous guitar—the red Gibson ES-335 that he played throughout his career until auctioning it for charity to benefit his Crossroads Centre in Antigua, a residential-care facility dedicated to the treatment of drug and alcohol dependency and addiction.
“‘I think this is the star of the show,’ Clapton said prior to the 2004 Crossroads Guitar Auction at Christie’s, where it sold for $847,500. Even though the guitar was
By Madhava Smullen
After Hurricane Ida hit the US State of Louisiana on Sunday August 29th, the devotees, deities and cows at ISKCON New Orleans and the New Talavana Farm in neighboring Mississippi have been reported safe and unharmed. The temples’ public Janmastami festivals, however, had to be canceled or delayed to next weekend.
Hurricane Ida made landfall as a Category 4 storm the day before Janmastami, but dropped to a Category 1 as it moved inland. New Orleans was hit by gusts over 100 mp
Vaishnavi Ministry NA is organizing a gofundme fundraiser to benefit The Dasi-Ziyad Family Institute and help fund the production of this film.
The film project’s purpose is to pay tribute to Krsnanandini Dasi by presenting her inspiring life and the impact she made on her family, spiritual community, and society at large.
Your donations will help us to preserve Krsnanandini Dasi's life and legacy with a documentary that depicts Krsnanandini Dasi’s journey and
High Park is currently graced with golden rod. To some people, its colour offers an exotic flair, and it is hard to control their spread.
The location where we chant weekly is at a fork in the road, at the main entrance where we are is very visible, but the golden rod is found more in the woods, however, they can be seen in all their glory. It is our experience that pedestrians and cyclists that come through at that entrance cannot but become touched by the kirtan. Perhaps that’s what is the dr
By Titiksu Das and Nitai Gaurasundar Das
London and Paris have much in common as far as Krishna Consciousness is concerned. Srila Prabhupada visited both cities many times.
He installed Radha Krishna Deities in both places and gave Them similar names...Radha-London Isvara (London) Radha-Paris Isvara (Paris). He also installed Jagannatha, Baladeva, Subhadra, and Gaura Nitai in both cities.
Rathayatras in both places attract thousands each year, around 20,000 people in London (since 1969) and ar
By Madhava Smullen
On September 9th, team members of the Food For All charity were invited to meet with the Lord Mayor of the City of London William Russell, at his official residence the Mansion House, to receive the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. Equivalent to an MBE, the QAVS is the highest award given to local voluntary groups in the UK.
Food For All volunteers were told back in June that they would receive the accolade for “preparing and sharing free, hot, nutritious meals with those
We have gathered on the most auspicious occasion of Srila Prabhupada’s appearance day. His Divine Grace appeared in Calcutta in 1896, 125 years ago. And as he wrote of his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, “He lives forever by his divine instructions and the follower lives with him.” So although from the physical point of view Srila Prabhupada is no longer with us, from the spiritual point of view he is: “He lives forever by his divine instructions.” And by following hi
The physio fellow had his mask on. He understood that my cartilage wore down because of an abundance of walking and the need for a new knee. I told him about my powerwalking in the US, Canada and other countries. Over the mask I could see his eyes widen. Then he asked questions.
“You did it alone? Where did you stay at night? Do you use a tent at night? How long does it take from coast to coast? This is amazing!”
I was warmed and charmed by the queries. Then I asked him questions: “How long for
By Madhava Smullen
We have to see that nobody goes hungry within a 10-mile radius,” Srila Prabhupada said during the Gaura Purnima Festival in Mayapur in 1973. Inspired by this statement, volunteers for the non-profit organization Hunger-Free Zone are ensuring that no one within ten miles of their kitchen in Baltimore goes hungry. It’s a much-needed service, as the city has the highest poverty rate in Maryland, 131.5% above the state’s poverty line.
Headed up by Baltimore temple president Nila
We see that by the mercy of the Lord, Hiranyaksa left his body and was greatly blessed. By the touch of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hiranyaksa was slapped and he subsequently died. Hiranyaksa actually became purified from that demoniac mentality and his body was even purified by the touch of the Lord that his body did not decay like an ordinary body. So in this way, we can see that those who are killed by the Supreme Lord are blessed and attain the very auspicious destination. In the ba
Excerpt of a lecture given by HH Bhakti Rasamrita Swami at the Sannyasa Candidate Training Seminar in Mayapura (February, 2012).
There is a verse in the Puranas that states that sannyasa is forbidden in Kali-yuga:
asvamedha gavalambha
sannyasam pala-paitakam
devarena sutotpattim
kalau parca vivarjayet
[Cc. Adi 17.164]
In this age of Kali, five things should be avoided: one is performing sacrifice by offering cows; performing sacrifice by offering horse; and oblation offering to the forefather
At Bhaktivedanta Manor, ISKCON’s flagship centre in the UK, Srila Prabhupada’s 125th anniversary theme was: Srila Prabhupada offers enlightenment to the world through his books.
For the occasion, the stage in the new Haveli was decorated with dozens of candles symbolizing the light of knowledge that Srila Prabhupada brought to the world through his spiritual teachings. Throughout the morning of Vyasa Puja, Srila Prabhupada’s disciples and grand disciples expressed their gratitude to him and app
Janmastami, the sacred occasion of Lord Krishna's appearance, (celebrated on August 30th this year) is a special day that is extremely powerful and inspirational for bhakti practitioners. Devotees often remember their early Janmastami festivals as a foundational experience. Here, three generations of devotees recall some of their favorite Janmastami memories:
One of my favorite parts of Janmastami has always been going through Village of Vrindavan in Alachua, where eve
By Madhava Smullen
ISKCON of Washington D.C. held a three-day Bhumi Puja (ground-breaking) event from August 20th to 22nd, preceding a new 22,000 square-foot temple for Sri Sri Radha Madan Mohan, Sita Rama Lakshman Hanuman, and Gaura Nitai.
The event took place at the current D.C. temple property, which is situated on eleven acres of rolling wooded terrain with a creek running through it. The same property will also be home to the new temple, while the old building will be converted for other p
Video: Click here
Historic Moment Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi ji Released ₹125 Special Coin on the occasion of 125th Birth Anniversary of ISKCON Founder Acharya Srila Prabhupada
First Photo of Special Commemorative Coin ₹125 for 125th Birth Anniversary of ISKCON Founder Acharya Srila Prabhupada released by PM of India Shri Narendra Modi ji - Govt of India.
Video: Click here
Actor Ed Asner passed away today. Back when deprogramming was in the news and devotees were negatively portrayed as cult members, he and his popular T.V. show defended a person’s right to become a devotee of Krishna.
This is from the first year of the Lou Grant television series, and some of it was filmed in the New Dwarka Temple in Los Angeles. That scene begins at 14:58.
On his T.V. show he spoke to an enormous audience of millions in a positive manner about chanting Hare Kri
