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By Madhava Smullen

“The Rising Sun: Vrindavan Samadhi Diary” by Alfred Valerio (Bhaktisiddhanta Das), now available on Amazon Kindle, recounts the story of how the Vrindaban samadhi, or mausoleum, for ISKCON’s Founder-Acharya Srila Prabhupada was built. 

Author Bhaktisiddhanta Das, a seasoned professional in bronze casting, fiber-glass and mixed media sculpture, assisted in the design and construction of both the Vrindaban Samadhi and Mayapur Pushpa Samadhi of Srila Prabhupada. He also created s

Amala Ratna is a highly devotional-type of person with a night job. She drives around from skating rink to skating rink in the downtown area for maintenance of those operations. They are all over the city and kids/adults are on a craze about gliding on ice. While walking on an average day I come upon these ice fields in parks and I’m sure, one day, I’ll have the opportunity to meet up with Amala and wish her a “Haribol!” Which means “say the name of Krishna!”

During a phone call today, I spoke

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“Metpally . . . Radha-Krishna installation . . . festival . . .” Our ashram at ISKCON Chowpatty was buzzing with this discussion last week when I visited after a gap of few days. Many brahmacharis were excited about visiting this small town in Telangana, around 800 kms from Mumbai. The temple managers were busy arranging for all the essential services that had to be taken care of in the absence of so many devotees.

Ever since lockdown was imposed in Mumbai and the rest of Indi

By Gauranga Das

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) stands appraised and recognized with one of the highest honors nationally- “IGBC Green Champion Award 2020” during the 18th edition of ‘Green Building Congress’ organized from 29th – 31st October 2020. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), was unanimously chosen as a winner of the 7th IGBC Green Champion Awards under the category of ‘Pioneering Institution in sensitizing the masses by going green

By Madhava Smullen

The Bigelow Institute for Consciousness Studies, founded by American businessman Robert T. Bigelow, is currently running an essay competition on “Best Evidence for Afterlife.” Bigelow is the owner of hotel chain Budget Suites of America and the founder of Bigelow Aerospace.

According to http://www.bigelowinstitute.org/, “The goal of the essay contest is to award contestants for writing papers that summarize the best evidence available for the survival of human consciousness

I have had the fortune of staying in Vrndavana. There were prices of austerities to pay undoubtedly. I had a lot of malaria in the Holy Dhama. In one year, I had it twelve times and each time it took about two weeks to recover. So I was sick for about half of the year. As a result, I lost a lot of weight and they sent me to Australia. When I arrived in Melbourne, I found that the sparrows there were twice as fat as they were in India, and I knew that I had come to the right place! (laughter) I k

A poem I wrote to honor the guru (Prabhupada):
 

Inspiring Captain
 

Bless that a new power be bestowed upon me

To be humbled as if standing next to the big sea.

It’s what I’ve never known, never seen

For behind the ears, I’m embarrassingly green.
 

I am small, I am petite

Searching constantly for what’s labelled as sweet.

Conceit is the weakness that brings this about

Causing an entrance, an exit — I’m in, I’m out.
 

I find a straw-in-teeth so hard to swallow.

Pride ‘n snobbery is what I’m up t

Today is the day when we honor that personality who has brought the descent of Lord Caitanya into this world Shri Advaita Acarya, He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He is Mahavishnu, He is the personality who created this entire cosmic manifestation and knowing the purpose of the cosmic manifestations to send everyone back to Godhead that same Mahavishnu incarnated within this material world slightly over five hundred years ago. He was born in a little village in Bengal called Navagram, h

Today we shall discuss Sri Advaita Acharya and His desire to induce the Lord to appear to deliver the fallen souls, who were so engrossed in material thoughts and activities, by introducing the yuga-dharma of hari-nama-sankirtana.

We read from Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, Chapter Three: “The External Reasons for Lord Caitanya’s Appearance.”

TEXT 96

prakatiya dekhe acarya sakala samsara
krsna-bhakti gandha-hina visaya-vyavahara

TRANSLATION

Advaita Acarya having appeared, He found the world

In a recent ISKCON Leadership Sangha (ILS-2020) Lokanath Swami requested ISKCON Nepal regional secretary Patri dasa to organize a padayatra (pilgrimage) in Nepal. Patri took Maharaja’s words to heart and discussed the idea with the Nepali devotees.

A friend of Patri, Brahmacari Sahastranam dasa from Ukraine, who has been serving in Nepal for twelve years engaged in community and farm services, was inspired by the proposition and used his own money, to buy oxen and construct a cart from his uniqu

The message came from Ohio. It came from a fine fella who considers himself a punk, perhaps an X. His name is Kaustubha and it is good news — I’m sure he doesn’t mind me sharing the message regarding a new trail. Seems like he would go for trail blazing it. That’s his offer. He’s wondering if I still have some steam in my tank for a marathon. My answer is “Yes, most probably, but after some work is done on the knees.” Here is his message:

“Just saw a wonderful article about a new walking/biking

jaya jaya sundara nanda-kumāra
saurabha-sańkaṭa-vṛndāvana-vihita-vasanta-vihāra

“O handsome son of Nanda, O Lord who enjoys springtime pastimes in the fragrant forest of Vrndavana, all glories to You! All glories to You!”
– Srila Rupa Goswami
Vasanta Pancami usually takes place during the month of January or February, and marks the first official day of spring. The spring season signifies new life and joy, and Mother Nature shares that jubilation in the form of blossoming flowers and flourish

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Vishalini Foward: He was so attached to Vrindavana and distributing Srila Prabhupadas books. Leaving his body in Vrindavana exemplifies the quality of Krsnas mercy. Prayers that his soul finally make this journey in peace.

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=93301

Celebrating Sri Caitanya-Caritamrita with the GBC Strategic Planning Team 
 

As part of our efforts to serve devotees worldwide the GBC Strategic Planning Team (SPT) is extending an invitation to every ISKCON devotee to participate in our 5-week online festival “Celebrating Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta”

We wish to stimulate great enthusiasm for Srila Krishna das Kaviraj Goswami’s masterpiece, Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta , and Srila Prabhupada’s wonderful commentary on the same. Towards that goal, we have

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Our Mission
The mission of The Grihastha Vision Team is to support, strengthen, educate and enliven the individuals, couples and families who are or will be involved with the grihastha ashram.

Our Goals
We want to help you spiritualize your marriage and make it an act of seva. Remember, Vaisnava etiquette begins at home.

Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=93303

A true preacher is a true disciple. I believe all of us can agree that a thorough study of Srila Prabhupada’s books is so badly needed in our society in the age of Kali, the age of quarrel, hypocrisy and misinformation.

All of us come across devotees (or sometimes ourselves) answering other people’s questions without proper reference.

Without commiting offenses or looking down upon anyone, these following examples are illustrating pure, innocent ignorance. So these are one of the most bizarre st

2021 marks the 125th Appearance Anniversary Year of ISKCON Founder/Acharya His Divine A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Ambarisa Das and the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium (TOVP) management in Mayapur, India, have decided to officially begin celebrating this occasion on Nityananda Trayodasi, February 25th (24th in the U.S.), and simultaneously launch major promotion for the PRABHUPADA IS COMING! Campaign announcing the installation of the new Prabhupada murti in the TOVP in October this year

Temperamental weather today. The gods are at work. All was melting. Rains came. Wet snow. Then a blast of arctic freeze hit the land. Ice predominated and walking was unfavourable. Walking Monk out of work.

I did receive a vintage pic from my friend Krishnadasa today reminding me that I’m not just The Walking Monk. I’m also referred to as Drama Swami. The content of the photo is of Krishnadasa and myself in the 1980 drama called, “The Pandavas Retire Timely,” titled after a chapter in the book B

Speaking on Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.26.47 on January 22, 1975, in Juhu, Bombay, Srila Prabhupada appealed to us not to be preoccupied with the temporary miserable and happy conditions of life but to put a permanent end to the real problems of life and make our lives successful:

“Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, says personally, ‘These are your miseries.’ What? Janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi: [birth, death, old age, and disease (Gita 13.9)] ‘Repetition of birth and death.’ This is your real mis

Everyone is trying to be happy in the material world. Real happiness however is found on a deeper level. Now, the art is to develop a bigger vision. The Bhagavad-gita, in the beginning, talks about Arjuna, who is a member of a royal family, and has found himself in a difficult situation, a war situation which made him depressed. But then Krsna explained to Arjuna na jayate mriyate va kadacin nayam bhutva bhavita va na bhuyah (Bhagavad-gita 2.20). He explained that the soul never takes birth, th