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"When faults in others misguide and delude you – have patience, introspect, find faults in yourself. Know that others cannot harm you unless you harm yourself." - Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur

One time when Jesus was in Jerusalem, he saw some people chasing a prostitute and trying to stone her to death. When Jesus stopped them and asked them why they were doing so. They replied that it is mentioned in the laws of the scriptures that one who commits adultery must be stoned to death. Th
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Lifestyle
 
By Madhava Smullen

With its sparkling beaches, hot surf spots and theme parks, Australia’s Gold Coast is the country’s most popular tourist destination. But what you may not know is that it’s also a GoldMine of Hare Krishna restaurants. Australia, the prasadam center of the Western World, has an incredible twenty devotee restaurants throughout the nation. And no less than six of those are on the Gold Coast alone – all within a thirty-kilometer radius.

So if you want the biggest and most varie

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Rhythm is something that everyone needs in their life.  (Gershwin wrote the song, “I Got Rhythm.”)  Even if you don’t think you are musically inclined, you must admit that you have a heartbeat inside of you and that is rather consistent, otherwise you are dead.  Everywhere there are happy beats, waves and currents all around us, declaring a kind of rhythm.
 
I see walking as a form of rhythm involving movement of body and leg with a consistent contact on and off the earth.  I believe that a ce
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"Chanting attentively is not a matter of circumstance but a matter of choice."

Everyday there is a different reason to not to be chant attentively. Someday, it's because someone hurt us and we keep thinking about it, someday our health is not good. Someday, it's simply because we are not in mood. Someday, it's because a plan of ours didn't work out....And the list goes on and on. Very rarely do we chant attentively.

All these reasons are valid and true. But the question is "When will there be
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By Srimati Dasi

Smiling in which the teeth are slightly visible is called hasita smiling.

One day Abhimanyu, the so-called husband of Radharani, was returning home, and at that time he did not know that Krsna was there. But Krsna immediately changed His dress to look exactly like Abhimanyu and approached Abhimanyu’s mother, Jatila, addressing her thus: “My dear mother, I am your real son Abhimanyu, but just see — Krsna, dressed up like me, is coming before you!” Jatila, the mother of Abhimanyu,

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There was a spring cleaning that went on in the ashram today, resulting in a switch of room, and a switch of beds.  And although in the mundane world such changes are often perceived as sources of distress, in a monastic setting it engenders a form of excitement.  The boys are also making way for a visitor monk, Ekalavya, a single man who hails from New York.  He’ll be with us for a week only, but it is always stimulating for me when he comes.
 
In the ashram, the breakfast is cooked by various
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Woody Allen once said, “You can go to a church, a temple or a mosque but that does not make you into a devotee. You can go into a garage but that does not mean that you become a car.” That is his logic and it is a good line. But then he does not know that you can in fact become a devotee in the temple. Here, you do become a car! (laughter) Here, you do become a devotee! Oh yes, it happens every moment and how does it happen? Because we are being purchased by the devotees around us. These devote

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Giriraj Swami read from Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila,Chapter 6, and spoke about Lord Nityananda’s—and Srila Prabhupada’s—boundless mercy.

“Raghunatha dasa offered his obeisances by falling prostrate at a distant place, and the servant of Nityananda Prabhu pointed out, ‘There is Raghunatha dasa, offering You obeisances.’

“Hearing this, Lord Nityananda Prabhu said, ‘You are a thief. Now you have come to see Me. Come here, come here. Today I shall punish you!’

“The Lord called him, but Ragh

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We are experiencing how everything in this world goes through six transformations. Everything comes into being, it grows, it flourishes, it gives some by-products, then it begins to dwindle and eventually it ceases to exist. Such are the dynamics of this world. This shows us that whatever we have, is not ours. Whatever we have, is actually a gift which we get for a while over time and then Krsna takes it back. Sometimes gradually over time and sometimes very quickly. Suddenly, everything gets t

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Well, we honoured someone’s birthday today, in Govinda’s Dining Room.  We remembered Suniti—a sweet, sweet lady—sweet, sweet devotee.  We dared not ask her age.  She’s from Malaysia.  Her hubby, Keshava, was there, daughter-in-law and grandkids.  It was a low-key event but with great prasadam (food blessed to the max).  Friends came too.
 
After that warm meal, and warm people, a group of four of us left for Bellevue Square Park to chant on the grass.  This place is a favourite.  Karuna and I de
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The first ever ISKCON-London India Retreat was organized by Champakalata Priya devi dasi and Bhaktin Aartee who led around 12 devotees on this beautiful journey in March 2019.

On Friday 8th March, the group arrived at Vrindavana around 6.00am. Later that afternoon they visited local temples such as the Radha Madan Mohan Temple, Radha Raman Temple, Radha Gokulananda Temple as well as other places like the Gopal Bhatta Goswami Samadhi, Nidhivan, Kaliya Ghat, Imli Tala, Advaita Vat and finally th

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Events
 
By Krishnarupa Devi Dasi & Hladini Devi Dasi

On 1 June 2019, devotees from various temples in Australia attended a one-day conference on New Govardhana farm, Murwillumbah, Northern New South Wales. Presenters at the conference were devotees who are developing Vaishnava community welfare services including mentoring, counseling, mental health support, youth support, widows support, palliative care and caring for the sick, women’s support, social justice and more. The conference was attended by

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Fernando is this nice kind of guy who is great with his hands when it comes to renos. He’s also a good, safe driver, so I liked the fact that he agreed to take Karuna, Connor and myself for a ride to the starting point of our morning walk.  The exact location for the start was the very place where I finished walking on the Bruce Trail in the Grimsby area last fall.
 
We commenced ready for a challenge.  The first known challenge was to contend with some mud and moisture since a shower had occurr
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Events

By Madhava Smullen 

As ISKCON UK anniversaries come thick and fast, Govinda’s Pure Vegetarian Restaurant in London is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, snapping up a steady flow of awards and celebrity endorsements and changing more than a few lives along the way.

The Soho St. restaurant, which stands next to London’s famous Radha Krishna Temple, was first launched on Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura’s appearance day in February 1979.

Since then it has served high quality pr

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Two Minds by Bhaktimarga Swami

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I did a meagre three kilometre walk with partner, Karuna, along busy but shady streets. Much later, upon arrival at the home of Dharma and Manasi, my eyes walked over the words of Volume Two of Shamasundar’s book, Chasing Rhinos With the Swami.  Like his first volume of the book of the same name, the story of his capers with our guru is completely compelling.  I urge all to secure copies of these two masterpieces and read them.  They are available on Amazon.   https://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Rh
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Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is mahā-vadānyāya – He is most magnanimous. Devotees are also magnanimous where they will give gifts and receive gifts – dadāti pratigṛhṇāti (Nectar of Instruction, Text 4). This is an important point of the loving exchange of generosity and it is such generosity which is our trademark. 

In the cause of working on the master plan for Mayapur, we came across a man called Charles Eisenstein, not Einstein (laughter). And Charles Eisenstein came up with this idea called ‘Sac

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Daivishakti: In 1974, maybe in August, after Janmastami, Prabhupada was again recovering from his sickness. And we used to cook for Prabhupada, and then after cooking for Prabhupada we would make something for his servants and secretaries to eat.
There were three of them that we were cooking for at that time. I think it was Brahmananda Swami, Bhagavan, Srutakirti and maybe a few others. So we would bring that prasadam for them around to the front, and then a servant would come and drop off thei

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Lifestyle

By Madhava Smullen

Residents of New Vrindaban in West Virginia – ISKCON’s very first farm community – are inviting devotees around the world to make New Vrindaban their summer destination.

“We’d like devotees in all the city temples in North America and beyond to consider New Vrindaban their country home, a place where they can recuperate and regenerate physically and spiritually,” says ISKCON New Vrindaban communications director Anuradha Dasi.

New Vrindaban is a one-stop destination with

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Events
 
By Balimardana Das

Lil’ Krishna Kidz is a spiritual enrichment program that offers Krishna Conscious teaching and activities to kids in a fun-filled atmosphere. Lil’ Krishna Kidz was started in the San Franciso Bay Area, California, USA in May 2011 under the able guidance of Hanumatpreshaka Swami and Vaisesika Das.

These children are in 3-11 year age group. In the past year, total number individual enrollments exceeded hundreds of kids and this unique program designed to present rich Vedic c

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We can see how everything is connected with Krsna. We can see that Krsna is the seed of all existence. We can see that Krsna is present everywhere. Just like it is mentioned in the Bhagavad-gita by Krsna Himself – raso aham apsu kaunteya; I am the taste of water. Prabhasmi sasi suryayo; I am the light of the sun and the moon. Pranavah sarva-vedesu; I am the syllable om in the Vedic mantras. Sabdah khe paurusam nrsu; I am the sound in ether and also the ability in man (Bhagavad-gita 7.8).

So eve

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