By Achyut Gopal Das
"At the end of the day I would rather be humbly sitting at God's feet than proudly bowing down to illusion." - Mahatma Das (Author, Spiritual master and Lifestyle trainer)
Better to be a servant in the spiritual world than a King in the material world because the King of this world also has to call it a day. As the Italian proverb goes - "Once the game is over, the King and the pawn go back in the same box." That's why all the scriptures and saints from all traditions impl
By Sri Nandanandana dasa (Stephen Knapp)
While visiting Madurai and the surrounding area, it is easy to catch the early morning train for Ramesvaram. It is a relaxing ride (about six hours) as we head toward the coast. The first time I went there, it was a pleasant train ride all the way there, but the second time several years later everyone had to jump off and change trains about half-way there. Ramesvaram is a tropical island surrounded by coral reefs and sandy beaches with coconut palms and
From Back to Godhead
By Vishakha Devi Dasi
To ensure the health of our spiritual life, we must transform material hope into spiritual hope.
Hope—the recognition within the human heart that something better is attainable—can mean the difference between life and death. In Man’s Search for Meaning, Holocaust survivor Victor Frankl writes that the rate of deaths in the concentration camp increased after Hanukkah, even though there was no change in camp’s already horrible conditions. Why did more di
By Chaitanya Charan das
Question: Is the Ramayana, comprising as it does stories from ancient times, practically relevant today?
Answer: Yes, it is relevant because the stories, though from an ancient setting, embody timeless values.
From “me” to “we”
One of the primary values that it conveys – selfless sacrifice – is especially relevant in our present times that are characterized by obsessive selfishness. Contemporary culture largely glamorizes the “me” paradigm, which impels people to seek th
By Sri Nandanandana das (Stephen Knapp)
As of late, in the year 2007, the idea of whether Lord Rama exists or not has been called into question, by no less than some of the politicians in India. So it is a wonder how such persons can be accepted as leaders of the people of India who should be concerned with preserving and protecting the culture of the country. Obviously, they are neither concerned nor aware of the depths of information that can be found in support of the traditions for whi
By Madhavananda Dasa
“A brahmana sees through the sastras.
A king sees through his spies.
A cow sees through its nose. (to detect eatables)
And, an ordinary man sees through his eyes.”
Canakya Pandit
The above quote (also quoted at the beginning of Shyamasundar prabhu’s article) would very firmly establish that Sri Lanka IS the Lanka of Ramayana as there are innumerable shastric references to confirm this fact. I feel that the main premise for Syamasundara prabhu to not accept Sri Lanka as
By Giriraj Swami
“Although the sight of Lord Ramacandra is naturally blissful, when He is with His beloved Janaki, with Laksmana, and with His best servant Hanuman, His beauty increases manyfold, and whoever sees Him becomes immersed in the most exceptional ecstasy. This picture of Lord Ramacandra together with Sita, Laksmana, and Hanuman depicts the Supreme Lord in His especially compassionate mood.” (Sri Brhad-bhagavatamrta 2.4.259 commentary)
We pray for their loving, compassionate glance.
H
“Lord Rāmacandra is the ideal king for maintaining and protecting the highest culture of humanity, known as brahmaṇya-dharma. The Lord is specifically the protector of the cows and the brāhmaṇas, and hence He enhances the prosperity of the world. Through the agency of Viśvāmitra He was rewarded by the administrative demigods with effective weapons to conquer the demons.” (SB 1.12.19, purport)
The building of the bridge to Lanka is a favorite part of the Ramayana. Not only because it was done mainly by an army of monkeys and other animals, but it was built around one central idea – when the name of Rama was written on the rocks they floated on the water.
My big take away from this is that mantra meditation, the recitation of the names of the Lord, will help us build the bridges to where we need to go to on our spiritual journey. And that our hearts, without Lord Rama, are hard and he
Shri L.K. Advani (Former Deputy Prime of India) along with his daughter Smt. Pratibha Advani & Family visited ISKCON Delhi Temple, performed an Aarti to Sri Sri Radha Parthasarathi, offered prayers to Srila Prabhupada and took darshan of the ‘Astounding Bhagavad-Gita’ one of the biggest religious books in the World.
By Hari Narayana Das
That morning, clouds hung over the Tugu Pahlawan Surabaya, the hero monument located in Surabaya. However, this did not necessarily dampen the enthusiasm of hundreds of Surabaya people who were cramming in to take a closer look at the Surabaya Vaganza show which was a part of 726th Surabaya City Anniversary commemoration agenda, celebrated each year, on Sunday, 24th March 2019. The parade carried the theme Puspawarni, as a place to unite the diversity of people living in Su
By HH Sacinandana Swami
There is a reason why we are here in this world and why we often feel bewildered and afraid. It is because we have turned away from Krsna. Srila Jiva Gosvami gives an analogy: in Indian villages people used to gather in the evening and sometimes an entertainer would stand before a lantern and use his hands to project shadows on a wall while telling a story. Sometimes children and simple villagers would then become afraid because of seeing demons and witches on the wall.
By Vijaya Dasa
I was distributing books at a university when I motioned for a student to come to my table. He came over, and I began explaining some of Krsna’s teachings in the Bhagavad-gita. He didn’t show much interest. From his bulging muscles, I could tell he lifted weights and worked out a lot. I said, “It’s good that you’re taking care of your body, but did you know that while we’re talking right now your body is dying? Every second you’re getting closer to death, and in a relatively shor
By Madhava Smullen
The Yamuna Boat Festival on March 30th captured the sweetness of serving Sri Sri Radha Krishna in Vrindavan.
The celebrations began at 5pm, with an enthusiastic kirtan procession from ISKCON’s Krishna Balaram Mandir to Sringar Vat temple, on the banks of the Yamuna river.
In Sanskrit, sringar means decoration, while vat means banyan tree. Sringar Vat is known as the banyan tree where Lord Krishna decorates Srimati Radharani.
According to the temple’s website, the spot sho
By Bhaktimarga Swami
