On September 28th, 2018, Sacinandana Swami has published a new book on chanting, entitled as The Living Name.
Just as the five life airs animate the body with life, the five powerful practices in The Living Name can enliven the chanting of the Holy Name and turn it into a dynamic and transformative experience.
This guidebook one will first learn how to align body, mind and heart (Yojana) to overcome distraction and thus embark on the path of full absorption. From here chanting in deep conne
The Sri Saraswat Gaudiya Vaishnava Sangha, an assemblage of 55 Gaudiya Maths celebrated the 181st Appearance day of Srila Sacchidanand Bhaktivinod Thakur, most prominent Acharya of Gaudiya Vaishnava society, at Surabhi Kunja, Swarupgunj, Nadia district on Saturday 22ndof September. Thousands of devotees of Indian and foreign origin of various Gaudiya Maths and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness attended the festivities.
The celebration began with bhajan
By Caitanya Carana Dasa
The Moment we turn away from Krishna our misery begins.
The American Paradox: Spiritual Hunger in an Age of Plenty, by David G. Myers, is one among several books that use telling facts and revealing statistics to examine the reality behind the globally glamorized American dream of the happy life through wealth and sensual enjoyment. Since 1960:
• The divorce rate has doubled.
• The teen suicide rate has tripled.
• The recorded violent crime rate has quadrupled.
• The pri
By Caitanya Caran das
Imagine a person working on a computer that has viruses. He is busy typing, but the computer is hung. A computer expert informs him, “Sir, you need to install an anti-virus.” He responds curtly, “Don’t disturb me; I am busy.” The expert points out, “But Sir, your computer is not working; so all your work will be fruitless without the anti-virus” He retorts, “I will not be affected by your pessimism.”
Could we be like this thoughtlessly busy person? The Vedic texts explain
By Kadamba Kanana Swami
Can you tell us a bit about the time you entered into the grhasta ashram. How was that a factor in your spiritual life?
Generally sanyasis do not speak about their purva janma (previous life) but since you are asking, I will briefly tell you. I was married for 24 years before I took sannyasa. My former wife is also from the Netherlands and she came to Krsna consciousness 1 year after I did. Even though she was drawn to Krsna consciousness, she was not so sure about the m
From Back to Godhead
Making sense of Vedic Rituals
Are traditional rituals mere acts of blind faith, or are there scientific reasons behind following them?
An envelope protects and carries something valuable. It is the inner content of the envelope that’s actually precious. Similarly empty, meaningless rituals are like an empty envelope: devoid of any substance at best or downright offensive at worst.
Going beyond the externals of religion
Twenty five year old Nitin Sawant, a software engineer,
Written by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami in 1958,
Published December of that Year in Gauḍīya Patrika,
The Magazine of the Gauḍīya Vedānta Samiti.
Verse 1.
I am sitting alone in Vṛndāvana-dhāma
In this mood I am getting many realizations.
I have my wife, sons, daughters, grandsons, everything,
But I have no money so they are a fruitless glory.
Kṛṣṇa has shown me the naked form of material nature,
By his strength it has all become tasteless to me today.
yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ
“I
By Karnamrita dasa
I have been thinking today of friendship and its power of influence over us which indicates the secret meaning of association. What drives us to seek friends and close relationships and what will be the effect on us?
Our heart is compared in the scriptures to be like a clear crystal that reflects what is before it. We become like who we associate with closely or intimately. That means that when we open our heart to someone, and they open their heart to us there is an exchange
An Infallible Justice!
Chaitanya Caran das: Why me! What did I do to deserve this?“ The outraged cry that comes from a person who feels he has been unfairly singled out for suffering by cruel providence.
"Why do bad things happen to good people?” The perplexing question that haunts the minds of many when they see pious people victimized by painful reverses in life.
THE PROBLEM OF EVIL
“The problem of evil” has been the bane of Western theologians and thinkers for centuries together. In simple t
Last year there was an incident where I received a major chastisement because of not having properly understood the unique position of Srila Prabhupada. Well, I thought I understood his position but unknowingly and subtly I got led in way that would have meant exactly the opposite! The repercussion for me was polite but very grave, something I had never experienced in my spiritual or even in my material life. It was something I would carry whole life as it taught me a little what is meant by Gu
Radhanath Swami: Yoga is often misunderstood as merely breath control, asanas or exercises; for some it is about practising some rules and regulations based on morality and for others it is cultivation of scriputral knowledge. But the real purpose of Yoga is to fix our mind on the Supreme.
According to Bhagavad-gita, yoga can not be practiced unless we practice mind control. An uncontrolled mind restricts the soul from reaching its natural blissful state, which a practioner is trying to acheive
A simple definition of meditation is to ‘think deeply about something’. A broader definition includes ‘to think deeply or focus one’s mind for a period of time, in silence or with the aid of chanting, for religious or spiritual purposes or as a method of relaxation.’ Other good words for meditation are – to ponder, reflect, contemplate, muse, ruminate, or lost in thought.
I love this idea of getting ‘lost in thought’ as a description of meditation in the Krishna Bhakti tradition. Our practice
From Back to Godhead
Lord Krishna’s main message in the Bhagavad-gita is clear: He wants us to fully surrender to Him. The most vital part of the Bhagavad-gita deals with the advice Lord Sri Krishna gives to Arjuna on the surrendering process. One of the dictionary meanings of surrender is “to give (something) up voluntarily to another.” Lord Krishna’s simple words of advice on surrendering are easy to understand. So why do most people, including those of us practicing Krishna consciousness, no
By Kadamba Kanana Swami
Tolerance is a quality of the mode of goodness, which is the mode of detachment. This is in contrast with the mode of passion which is one of attachment. In this mode of passion, we want things to go our way and our way only. We have the story of Dhurva Maharaj for example. When Dhruva Maharaj found out that a Yaksha had killed his brother, he entered into the mode of passion where out of anger, he started killing all the Yakshas. This was until the two elderly personali
By Kadamba Kanana Swami
Since you accepted the sanyas order, you have been travelling around the world. Can you tell us a bit about your current preaching activities.
For the last 20 or so years, I have been travelling a lot. I started off as a sanyasi in 1997 and then in 2001 I became a spiritual master. Once I started to have disciples, I had ongoing personal relationships with people across the world. So naturally, my travels related to these relationships, so I could stay in contact with my
Asiatoday got an opportunity to meet a young travelling monk, Chaitanya Charan Das, from ISKCON aka Hare Krishna group. Chaitanya Charan Das is an acclaimed author, scholar, mentor, life coach, and monk. He has been an invited speaker at several international conferences on the interface of science and spirituality, including the World Peace Conference 2006 and World Peace Congress 2008 organized by UNESCO. Based in India, he has given talks at colleges and companies all over the world from Au
Mahatma das: “Sweet words cannot lift someone more than the best medicine whereas no weapon can destroy someone as much as harsh words”
In the Srimad Bhagavatam there’s a story in the Daksha yajna Lord Shiva appeared and Lord Shiva was a meditation when Daksha came and he didn’t stand up and Daksha was very upset that he was disrespected and he began criticizing very heavily, criticizing Lord Shiva and of course Shiva’s wife there, Sati and she became so disturbed that the Bhagavatam explains t
He has given up eating for several days now. Devotees are doing all night Kirtan for him in Bala Hall last night and tonight again.
H.G. Gopal Prabhu’s class about the Acceptance of Sannyasa by Srila Prabhupada, ISKCON Vrindavan
