From the very beginning, the body was given by father and mother. In the childhood, as the father and mother say, “Sit down here, eat this, don’t go there,” everything is controlled by the father and mother, and originally given by the father and mother. So how we can claim, “This is my body”? From the very beginning. Then, somebody else maintains you. Suppose you are working in an office, in a factory. So actually that body belongs to him, the maintainer. In this way, up to the point of death,
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A second Vivek, who owns and runs Karma Café, took me to a Burrito restaurant in Saskatoon, which is now a commercial chain in the province. It is a father and son business which arranged to accommodate my vegetarian needs. During the lunch, I sat and chatted for an hour with this dynamic duo who happen to be Gujaratis from Surat, India. I was impressed by their efforts to promote the plant-based diet (for the most part). The ahimsa concept is very firmly held onto by these gentlemen.
By Manorama das
Peter Leggieri, the editor-owner of “The East Village Other” (EVO), wrote the “Save Earth Now” article about the Hare Krishna movement in 1966 under the pen name Irving Shushnick. Here’s an excerpt from the EVO website where he mentions how that article came to be.
“I was the anonymous Other, the one editor-owner unknown to the public. I did not party. I did not schmooze with the literati or seek publicity. I had no time for such things. I worked seven days a week, 20 hours a d
By Lalitanatha dasa
For the past 13 years ISKCON’s Ministry for Cow Protection and Agriculture (IMCPA) has organized a European conference for ISKCON farmers and anyone interested in agriculture and cow protection. The idea is to create networks and unite everyone towards Srila Prabhupada’s goals for cow protection and simple living. This year, 2019, the conference was hosted at the Krishna Dvur community in the Czech Republic between the 30th of August and the 1st of September. The participant
By Madhava Smullen
Srila Prabhupada’s Palace is one of ISKCON’s most impressive achievements. Built by young, inexperienced devotees who trained themselves in construction and artisanal skills, it began in 1973 as a simple residence for Prabhupada. The devotees’ love for their guru, however, saw it become more and more elaborate.
Srila Prabhupada reciprocated, constantly encouraging the team and asking for reports on their progress. “I am expecting very soon to go there and live in my propos
I heard a beautiful talk by Srila Prabhupada, Los Angeles, January 5, 1974, on Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.16.8, which says, “Living beings who are under [Yamaraja’s] grip should take advantage by hearing the deathless nectar in the form of this narration of the transcendental pastimes of the Lord.” And Srila Prabhupada glorified Srimad-Bhagavatam and the importance of book distribution:
“This is the Bhagavata. There is no comparison. There is no literature throughout the universe like Srimad-Bhagavata
In the Gaudiya way of bhakti, you offer everything to Krsna, the good, the bad – your life. You share everything with someone you are close to, the barriers are low, close friends are intimate. In bhakti this is called mamata, a strong sense of ownership, or relation to the Lord, that “He is mine and I’m His”. This type of love can be attained by two types of devotional service, as it is stated by Narada Muni in Sri Brhad-bhagavatamrta: “One develops that love by practicing the devotional servi
Unless we are on a total media fast, we have likely heard of the notion of tidying our home with the KonMari method of asking the question of our belongings – ‘does this spark joy for me?’. If not, we thank it for being in our life and bid it farewell.
What’s powerful about this is the experience of personalism. When we are more conscious about the things in our life and how they affect us, we value them more and treat them better. This will spill out into how we treat ‘living things’ – the ali
Beginning from Chaturthi till Vijay Dashami or Dusherra as popularly known in India, spread over almost a week, Durga Puja celebrations are the biggest and most glamorous festival of Eastern India, especially West Bengal. The Durga Puja festival has become more of an expression of art, extravagance, than performing rituals.
To add to the glitz, fun and frolic mood of the people, over the years it is in vogue that celebrities and political leaders inaugurate Durga Puja at various places i
Towards the end of the rainy season during the months of August-September-October, the water levels of Ganga increases, filling up all the low lands around the banks. This swelling of the river is caused by excessive rain from up north and the release of large quantities of water from barrages.
Due to the recently released large quantities of water from barrages, Ganga has swollen covering all low lands and is flowing by the Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Marg road.
On the release of insurmountab
I heard a wonderful talk by Srila Prabhupada in which he spoke of love and service, that love must be accompanied by, or expressed through, service. He said, “Real love, engaged in the service of the Lord—then our life is successful. If you sacrifice your life for serving Krishna, you will always remember Krishna. You are taking so much trouble, going place to place to give one book to somebody. Why? Because you love Krishna, and you are thinking, ‘If this gentleman takes one book, never mind s
By Nilachala Caitanya Dasa
Here is the yatra going on at Vrindavan. 1000 Nepali devotees yatra with HG Patri Prabhu at Vrindavan. Yatra Stories. Wonderful Kirtan and Katha. It’s super thrilling! Special Address and warm welcome to Nepali Devotees from Member of Parliament (Mathura), Smt. Hema Malini ji. We are really honored by your loving reciprocation and devotees of Nepal will always remember this special day.
By Felipe Araujo
James Edwards was 16 and partying at Lollapalooza when a Hare Krishna devotee handed him a book called Easy Journeys to Other Planets.
Intrigued by its descriptions of meditation and yoga and how our spirits can transcend our material body, he says the encounter made an impression on him as a teenager. Looking back, he recalls that he felt he had found a kind of truth. “This is what I have been looking for,” he thought.
Edwards, who is now known as Jai Nitai Dasa, became a vege
Foreword
Sacred texts lie at the very heart of human history, where they are much more than pieces of paper bound between covers. Sacred texts are dynamic literary creations that possess incredible beauty and power, which can be applied for a variety of purposes. The Bhagavad-gītā, for example, has been recited orally for generations, published in hundreds of editions, translated into dozens of languages, performed on stage, painted on canvas, debated in courtrooms, employed in daily worship
In response to my last blog ‘Turning distress into an opportunity‘, I received a few calls from devotees on taking shelter of Krishna in times of distress. In all the calls the crux was the same- Should we trouble Krishna with our material problems? Shouldn’t bhakti should be practiced without any motivation. My response was- of course bhakti should not be motivated, which means we practice bhakti for no other purpose than to please Krishna. But when faced with challenges in our lives then whos
Krsna’s beauty is not only external. His beauty is not only in His form and in His lotus eyes and so on, the beauty is in His very nature. Krsna is very noble. Our Krsna is extremely kind. When Draupadi was in the assembly of the Kurus and Shakuni was carrying out his tricks with the dice and cheating, the Pandavas lost everything. Even Yudhistira himself was totally lost. He lost all his brothers, then he lost himself and then he wagered Draupadi. So Draupadi was saying that it was not a prope
While Toronto was getting twenty-nine degrees Celsius, Regina received a temperature of plus one, but the coolness suited me fine. No sweat! It was perfect for a brisk walk along a quiet country road through Regina’s east end, which led to Victoria Avenue, past a new and already popular Costco store. Costco is the epitome of box-store culture, but I like the fact that now trees line the entrance lane. I asked the two work persons, “Why the white wrappers around the trunks?”
“To keep the
"The main thing is to keep the main thing as the main thing."
Here are few musings from the books of Radhanath Swami. Simple, little stories but with profound meanings that can permanently alter our consciousness if we allow them to.
The first is a story from his memoir, "The Journey Home". During his travels in the Himalayas, he reached the holy city of Rishikesh. There, he took a month-long vow to fast and meditate on a rock in the Ganges to receive enlightenment. After successfully completin
The first is a story from his memoir, "The Journey Home". During his travels in the Himalayas, he reached the holy city of Rishikesh. There, he took a month-long vow to fast and meditate on a rock in the Ganges to receive enlightenment. After successfully completin
By Brahma-vaivarta Purana
Chapter Two
Sridama-Radha-kalaha-varnana
Description of the Quarrel Between Sridama and Radha
1-2 On whose request did Krsna come to the surface of the earth, what the Lord did before He returned to His own abode, how He removed the earth’s burden, and how He killed the demons, of all these I will, carefully thinking of what happened, tell you the story.
3 Listen and I will tell you of Lord Hari’s descent as a cowherd boy. His arrival in Gokula, and Radha’s descent as
By Gargamuni Das
October – November 1966: NEW YORK CITY, “Happiness on 2nd Ave.”
We used to make these leaflets called “Stay high forever.” People really got a kick out of those.
Gargamuni das: We had a big tape recorder that weighed 50 pounds. I was in charge of that.
Brahmananda would bring it down from Prabhupada’s closet every night.
So my job was to set up the tape for Prabhupada’s lecture.
Prabhupada was very insistent in having his lectures tape recorded – so much so that when the tape r
