Both the Gregorian and Vedic calendars comprise twelve months. But whereas the number of days in each month varies in the Gregorian calendar, the Vedic months are all of the same duration: about fourteen days from the new moon to the full moon and from the full moon to the new. The day of the new moon is known as amavasya, and the full-moon day is known as purnima. And just as the Gregorian calendar is periodically adjusted during years known as “leap” years, the Vedic calendar is also adjusted,
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My feet didn’t go far today but, on a set of wheels, I did venture to Oakville. We were going to have our first ISKCON Oakville gathering but due to the number of Covid-19 victims rising, that was canceled. It was regrettable, however, Kasyapa and Panchami saved the day. This couple, who have successfully run a centre in Saskatoon for eight years, are back in the Greater Toronto Area, and they opened up their home for a smaller group event.
I asked them if I could bring Cameron, Chris, Nick and
You can tell when someone is reading Srila Prabhupada’s books:
So this actress looking middle eastern lady and her young son parked their Porsche, walked past my book table and went inside the grocery store. I actually remembered meeting them in the past and how she was kind of puffed up, so I didn’t expect much.
When they came out of the store, they walked straight towards me with a big smile and the boy was holding a $20 bill to give me. The mother was so warm this time and all happy to see me
We celebrate the auspicious occasion of the 85th birthday of our dear Rose Forkash.
When Srila Prabhupada first arrived in America, it took some time—almost a year—before people began to take his message seriously. But gradually, after he moved to New York, some young men and women did join him. And after starting the first center, on Second Avenue, Srila Prabhupada sent some disciples to San Francisco. Soon thereafter, he went, too, and it was there that he inspired and celebrated the first Rat
When our children grow into teens, many of us find that inspiring them in Krishna consciousness becomes much harder. They are no longer enthusiastic to imitate us or join in with the devotional activities we initiate. I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about what we can do to keep them close and hopefully inspired. Here are some of my thoughts.
The first priority is always to take care of the relationship. As the saying goes—they may not remember what we say, but they’ll always remember h
Some of us will never forget this date—September eleventh—a sad day in human history. On a positive note, it is also the date that marks the birthday of a dear follower of Krishna. His name is Keshava and I remember this day of his, not because he is a terrorist, by any stretch. He is a kind-hearted Malaysian Canadian. I wish him well. Very well!
I walked to Saint Jamestown, to a clinic, to intimate a medical check-up for next week. A queue of people were standing in the hall, waiting for the gr
This short video is a talk given by Sri Nandanandana dasa (Stephen Knapp) called “The Power of the Ramayana,” given at the 2nd World Ramayana Conference held in Jabalpur, India, in January 26-29, 2020. He was a special invited guest for the conference, and his talk explains from the Valmiki Ramayana the different ways it helps uplift humanity from the ordinary miseries of life, up to and including liberation or freedom from material existence altogether. At 17:53 in the video, it shows Dr. Akhil
Once one engages in criticising Vaisnavas, it becomes part of one’s nature. One will do it again and again until ultimately one offends Krsna!
Once one engages in criticising Vaisnavas, it becomes part of one’s nature. It sets in and one will do it again and again and again until ultimately one offends Krsna. He who offends Krsna, how can such a person approach Krsna? Such a person removes himself from Krsna and comes to a greater distance from Krsna. This is great misfortune. Raghunatha Bhatt
A brahman (priest) had just finished dealing with the call of nature, and took a quick look at what had come out of his system, remarking, “You are so disgusting!” His output responded back saying, “I was a sweet ladhoo until I entered your company for a few hours.”
That was, perhaps, a lesson in gross humility.
I was chatting today with the foreman overseeing the renovations going on in our ashram. He was speaking about the sewage pipeline in our building. “This building, which is well over 100
From Back to Godhead
Which way does one go in moments of despair?
LORD KRSNA HAS TWO ENERGIES, material and spiritual, but they can be used interchangeably if one knows how. Just as the same electricity can be used to heat or cool a building, so Krsna’s energies can be used for different purposes according to the living entity’s desire.
That doesn’t mean that the living entity can control Krsna’s energies, only that he can use them. When a conditioned soul wishes to exploit the material nature,
When we start our devotional practices it is possible to keep them up for a while out of a sense of duty. For a while it is possible to practice devotional service mechanically out of a sense of “I have to do this.” But in the end we are not machines! We cannot practice for a long time, if we only do it mechanically, and not experience the taste of it. We can only continue steadily if we get a genuine taste for it – the sweet and relishable taste of bhakti.
You must know that there are two form
When I was young we spent time at our aunt’s farm in the south of Ireland. She had 5 milking cows, all had names, and when she sat and milked them in the morning and evening, great conversations would be had. With the cows that is.
It was there I learned to milk a cow, to hear the sound of the swish-swish into the bucket. To see the bucket fill up with white goodness, and to marvel at the natural wonder of cows and milk. It was there I saw the connection between human and animal as I watched my
A last little touch of the boreal forest marked the end of my stay in Thunder Bay. The Beaver Meadows Trail takes one through a sweet boreal forest, a forest that occupies so much of Canada, holding a treasure of a huge collection of freshwater. Check out maps of this extraordinary spread of trees, ancient rocks and lakes. People speak of rainforests, such as the Amazon but, as I understand, the boreal bush impacts the globe in a similar, environmental way.
If you are a walker you have to love n
The 2020 worldwide Bhadra Campaign saw devotees triple the Srimad-Bhagavatam set distribution of previous years, obliterating their initial goal of 10,000 sets. All told, over 22 countries and 150 cities participated to distribute more than 23,000 sets despite the challenges of COVID-19.Happy recipients of Srimad-Bhagavatam in North America
The Bhadra Campaign was launched in 2017, inspired by the Srimad-Bhagavatam verse 12.13.13, which states, “If on the full moon day of
It’s easy to take mothers for granted. Some researchers recently followed around one such mother for a week in an attempt to estimate the monetary value of her ‘motherly love’. She took the kids to school, so they calculated how much a taxi driver would cost. She cooked the breakfast, lunch and dinner so they approximated the wage bill of a chef. The mother also played the role of a cleaner, psychologist, accountant and nurse to name but a few. They calculated the overtime the mother put in, and
By HH Sacinandana Swami
As I’m sitting here in Vrindavan, as the minutes, hours and days go by, I am more and more interested in the close God, not so much the distant God. I’m less interested in the God, Who is only thought about, but not experienced, Who is philosophized about, but not seen. As I chant, I think deeply about how to establish real contact with the Lord.
What he says is, “My Lord, I am directly calling out to You now, I am directly approaching You now, by Your various names. And
The New Govardhana farm community has opened its third Govinda’s restaurant, located in Kingscliff, New South Wales in Australia, to a very warm welcome. A bus advertises Govinda's
New Govardhana launched two previous Govinda’s in Burleigh Heads in 2009 and Coolangatta in 2019, which provide the bulk of the farm’s income. Altogether, the Kingscliff location is the eighth Hare Krishna restaurant between New Govardhana and the Gold Coast, demonstrating the Australian appetit
Nature was conjuring up a storm of water. Ominous clouds were ever present in the sky and lightning made its periodic flash, accompanied by the rumble of thunder. Hey, that’s the name of this place!
It was at this time, early afternoon, that I began my mere two kilometre walk (my physiotherapist suggested I reduce daily treks and work on stretches to counteract stiffness). In any event, I decided to go at strides at a critical hour of nature. I don’t mind the reminder to be humble. The elements
By Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami
The pure devotee’s first month in the West. “Who would expect to meet a svami in someone’s living room in Butler, Pennsylvania? It was just really tremendous. In the middle of middle-class America. “
Srila Prabhupada was met at the dockside by a man from Travelers Aid who escorted him to the Port Authority Bus Terminal. New York’s midtown streets were far more intense than the Boston pier. Assisted by the guide, Srila Prabhupada got on the “Pittsburgh” bus. Travelers
