Dear Manjari dasi, the daughter of Mother Gayatri and Amarenda Prabhu ACBSP (ISKCON lawyer) passed away.
Please send prayers for her family and friends and for her journey onwards.
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Culture are subtle forces or activities which condition or influence how individuals think and behave in every facet of their life; culture largely depends on a country’s or group’s conviction and purpose for existence (belief system); ones convictions are largely formed by knowledge or education (ideas or wisdom); therefore, we can conclude that knowledge and education changes culture, which then ultimately translates to changing individuals behavior and thus their destiny. In Bhārata-varṣa, I
From Back to Godhead
In a unique form, Lord Krishna is worshiped in a famous temple in Puri, India, and at Rathayatras (chariot festivals) there and around the world.
I was born in a conservative Orissan Vaishnava family in Puri, on the east coast of India. The Supreme Lord Jagannatha and His devotees were at the center of my life. As a child, I played with dolls of Jagannatha, Baladeva (Balarama), and Subhadra, the deities in the famous Puri temple. I still remember how my mother gave me enorm
By Damodarlila dasa, Maharashtra Padayatra leader
Since the India-wide lockdown was announced in March 2020, the Maharashtra Padayatra has been under the shelter of the Sawantwadi ISKCON centre. The devotees here have been taking good care of us, especially temple president Vasusresta dasa. As we can’t leave the centre due to the lockdown, we have faced a shortage of grains and grocery items. After one of the morning programmes, I discussed the issue with congregation devotees Avadhut Krishna d
By Sakhipran Devi Dasi
During these trying times of the pandemic, for devotees who are not working and stuck at home, ISKCON Nashik, India, is offering a great opportunity to participate in an online Chaitanya Caritamrta contest (CCC-2020).
Part one of the contest consisting of Adi-lila has already been successful wherein nearly 400 devotees from all over the word (India, UAE, Australia, USA, Canada, Qatar etc) participated. The contest was conducted online on May 3rd, 2020, based on the ve
Dear devotees, please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Amphan, the strongest cyclone ever recorded in the Bay of Bengal, reached Sridham Mayapur on Wednesday’s evening. The wind gusts were very severe, reaching the speed of 160km/h, accompanied by torrential rain and tumultuous sounds.
The community devotees were informed of the approaching cyclone and recommendations were given of how to prepare for the forthcoming nature’s disaster. Sarasvati Nagar was expected t
I was inspired to walk upon the sun’s movement in the western sky. I couldn’t see the glowing disc itself for the trees, the buildings and the time but I could perceive it through the colours it left. It was a mix of warm colours, from reds, to pinks to an almost purple. I wanted to gaze at it for some time but my measly mission was to walk. And for that I must watch the sidewalk, the curbs, the traffic and the pedestrians.
Oh yes, you really have to be cautious about pedestrians. And as
By Madhava Smullen
According to NPR, fear of food shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic has spurred people on to plant more vegetable gardens; while community supported agriculture programs (CSAs) are booming.
In New Vrindaban, West Virginia, ISKCON’s first rural community which Srila Prabhupada earmarked as an example of sustainability to the world, resident devotees have a headstart, and are using the pandemic to push themselves closer to their goal of self-sufficiency.
A few weeks ago,
My dear Indradyumna Swami Maharaja,
Please accept my prostrated obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. And all glories to your service.
I could speak for many days about your service to Srila Prabhupada and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and for many hours about how you have helped me personally. But today I wish to focus on one area in particular in which you have helped me—my writing, which Srila Prabhupada said I should take up as my “first business” and which thus is my
I took a chance, a risk… It was starting to sprinkle. Tiny drops from the sky made polka dots on the stairs.
I had finished one of those live-stream presentations on Iskcon Toronto’s Facebook page on the topic of “The Art of Forgiveness,” then joined our crew for the pot-banging in support of health caretakers after which I decided to put in my allotted time for my daily trek.
Whether those polka dots were going to stay for seconds or if they were to fill in to be a solid wetness on the con
Courtesy of Covid-19, the sky-high prices of vegetables and having to contend with dried-up herbs pushed us to start our own little garden. My husband was planning about organic fertilizers, timings for watering and ensuring adequate sunlight. However, as I fingered the fertile soil; I realised that the nutrients and strength that Mother Earth provides to those plants was being ignored. We focus on the externals; we praise the gardener’s skills, the fertilizers, right timings of water and sunli
On August 15, 1968, in Montreal, I was initiated at the age of 16-an unqualified person meeting such a great and unprecedented saint as Srila Prabhupada. At the same time, the six pioneers from San Francisco, on their way to London received their Gayatri mantra, or second initiation.
To listen to the transcript of my initiation, please click on this link: https://prabhupadavani.org/transcriptions/initiation-rukmini-dasi/
Written transcript begins here:
[Yamuna starts kirtana with “Hare Krsna.”
HG Padmakshi Vinodini Mataji and HG Govinda Vallabha Mataji (from Left to Right)
For the warriors of COVID-19
Reported by Dr. Chetan Hazaree
We often hear that devotees live a life of mature compassion. They perform multifarious activities out of their compassion for the welfare of all living entities. While performing these compassionate acts, their vision is set on serving the Supreme Lord and begging for mercy, not for themselves, but for others. Each mature devotee performs different acts o
By Madhava Smullen
When Ghanashyam Das first began his chaplaincy service in New York City, little did he know that he would end up on the frontlines of a global pandemic, risking his own health every day to provide spiritual and emotional support for patients dying of Coronavirus.
Ghanashyam, now 42, joined ISKCON in 2000 at 26 2nd Avenue in New York, the movement’s first ever temple. Later, he moved to the Bhakti Center in Manhattan, where he lived as a monk for eleven years, and where his
By Badrinarayan Swami
Hare Krishna,
This message is to report the sad news that the Los Angeles Ratha Yatra, usually held in August, has been canceled due to the Covid pandemic. The City of Los Angeles is not granting permits to any large gatherings for the summer.
We are all sorry to have to report this news. We look forward to seeing you next year at the lotus feet of Lord Jagannath.
Devavrata Prabhu writes: Recently, I asked a boy whom I have been cultivating during the Corona-virus shutdown to write a testimony of his experiences in Krishna consciousness. I hope that devotees are finding it inspiring to reach out to the people we have met and to nourish the relationships.
Here is what Chris wrote:
When I met my wife, she was practicing an Indonesian martial art known as Poekoelan Tjiminde Tulen. It was deeply traditional, and I was struck by its cultural authenticity. I,
As a walker who prefers moving through green spaces, I can’t help noticing the plants to either side of me. For instance, I’m noticing the very invasive garlic mustard with its tiny white flowers. It’s supposed to be fairly good for the health and all agree that it gives off a spicy bite to a tossed salad. It’s also good as a pesto when prepared like basil. The problem with it is that it takes over the forest floor.
Stingy nettle is also making its appearance in the foresty ravine. This wild v
Varnasrama College — ONLINE (www.varnasramacollege.com) will be officially inaugurated tomorrow, 15 May 2020 (Friday) with a global Go-Vrishabha Puja in conjunction with Vrishabha Sankranti. The main puja will be conducted at 7:30 AM India Standard Time at Nandi Sanctuary in Sridham Mayapur, West Bengal, India.
Several groups of devotees around the world will also be participating in the global Go-Vrishabha Puja, including members of the Saranagati Village Community in Western Canada, GAURI at
By BB Govinda Swami
I had a pleasant call from Niranjana Swami Maharaja, he told me he is in Mayapur and he was trying to express how happy he is actually feeling in being there. How happy he is being in a place where he can be regulated. He is just having an excellent time in Mayapur. For us people who are always traveling, this arrangement of not traveling is a miracle. We have regulation. We have the proper time for sleeping. We eat at regulated times. We have regulated time for sadhana and
My heart is like a desert, hot with the rays of the sun. This is my internal mental condition. The desire for temporary, material things cannot satisfy me because by nature they are death producing. And not one or two, but thousands of such death-producing desires have taken shelter in my mind. So, my subconscious region is always burning. This is my condition. But somehow, by the grace of sadhu and my guru, the holy name of Krishna with its infinite prospect has entered through the holes of my
