By Darpa-ha Krishna Das
Miracles are not uncommon in the pastimes and seva of the Lord, and certainly the TOVP Euro Tour is a current example of how the Lord reciprocates with His devotees, blesses them and simultaneously fulfills His own purposes, in this case the building of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium and manifestation of His own prophecy of the adbhuta mandir.
From April 10th – 27th, history was created as Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus, led by Lord Nityananda’s Padukas and Lord
By Karnamrita Das
Who are we really—
beyond who we settle for
without thinking too deeply
as most just blindly accept
as normal, conventional identities
that we’ve learned from others
and from our educational system
so it must be true, right?
Is it really a fact that
we’re our past sad or happy history?
What about our genes, race, ethnicity,
our skin color, occupation,
economic status, religious
institution, sect, or sanga,
state or region, political party,
conservative or liberal bend,
or our
By Karnamrita Das
While the experience that prompted this free verse poem wasn’t planned, it was welcome, and seen as an occasion for reflection. Association with saints is desirable for developing good qualities, and yet being with our peers or people in general can also foster our personal and spiritual growth, because in their company who we are as a person is revealed and we may discover part of the spiritual work we have left to do. Anyone can be our teacher if we have the humility to be op
My Dear Vaishnava’s,
Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
With the increase in the number of our congregational members and being inspired by our beloved His Grace Gargamuni prabhu and under the blessings of His Holiness Bir Krishna Das Goswami, we have started a Vaishnava Care Team (VCT) here in ISKCON Suva, Fiji Islands so that our devotees and members can be taken care off when they are in desperate needs.
Now that many of our devotees are getting old, becoming
Kirtan means that we have to listen. Just like in chanting japa, in kirtan there is also inattentive chanting. Inattentive chanting means that we sing something else than what the leader is singing and that is what you are doing. Of course, it is very beautiful what you are singing but it is something else. So let us try again. There are some varieties in the tune, it is not just staying the same all the time which means that you have to really listen each time and not go on automatic pilot. Th
By Chaitanya Charan Das
Sometimes when we commit mistakes, we may become embarrassed, irritated or enraged with ourselves. If we become excessively disturbed, that often becomes a second mistake. By fretting or seething, we waste the time and energy that could have been used for rectification. Certainly we need to learn from our mistakes, but learning requires calmness, which is lost when we let ourselves over-react.
To calm ourselves, we can contemplate how Krishna is always in control and ho
By Ananda Vrindavaneswari Devi Dasi
We often speak about the importance of carefully hearing the maha-mantra while we chant our japa (meditation with beads). We don’t often speak about being as careful when we sing the maha-mantra together in kirtan.
Perhaps it’s because it’s easier to tune in the mind when there are instruments, and a variety of tunes and rhythms, and lots of voices in the chorus. Music is so powerful. But one can also easily tune out. Hearing sacred sound with intention allow
Dear Maharajas and Prabhus,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
This is to inform you of some important changes in the management of the Bhaktivedanta Research Centre (BRC) in Kolkata.
As you know the BRC has for the last nine years been collecting and preserving important historical documents of our Gaudiya Vaisnava lineage as per the instructions of Srila Prabhupada. We have a current catalogue of over 20,000 works.
For example:
· We recently acquired from the
By Mukunda Bhakti Das
Devotees of ISKCON Nandankanan make the prisoners dance in ecstasy.
10th May was the day of immense joy of the Hindu Prisoners of Chittagong prison-house. With the help of Chittagong jail administration and the support of ISKCON chittagong divisional committee in Bangladesh, devotees of ISKCON NandanKanan Sri Sri Radha Madhav temple & Sri Sri Gour Nitai Ashram organised a wonderful event inside Chittagong central jail for the hindu prisoners. ISKCON Nandankanan distribute
TRANSLATION
Compassionate Mahatma Vidura could not stand to see the Pandavas distressed at any time. Therefore he did not disclose this unpalatable and unbearable incident because calamities come of their own accord. [SB 1.13.13]
PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada
According to Niti-sastra (civic laws) one should not speak an unpalatable truth to cause distress to others. Distress comes upon us in its own way by the laws of nature, so one should not aggravate it by propaganda. For a compassionate sou
It is well known that chanting the holy name in good company is easier than doing so alone. This holds true both for japa and kirtan. When we chant in a group of devotees, we co-create a devotional energy and atmosphere that we get to enter into together. It is therefore said that sankirtana (kirtana performed with others) can create such extraordinary delight in the chanter that he or she will find it easy to remain focused on the holy name and experience divine taste in chanting.
But alas, ch
Dear Srila Prabhupada,
Please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet.
There was a time in 1976 when you were being driven from Heathrow airport to Bhaktivedanta Manor. The M25 did not exist at that time, so you were moving along the road towards the village of Denham. We young men were excitedly following you in our yellow Ford parcel van. The windows were open and we were singing kirtan at the tops of our youthful voices. Guru and happy disciples on the A 412.
Then we realised that the
By Ramai Swami
ISKCON Wellington’s Higher Taste restaurant has been operating for many years and is still going strong. There are lots of people who come throughout the day, right up until 8.00pm, Monday to Saturday.
TP Jagjivan took me in one evening and even though it was late, there were people having their dinner there. I was fortunate enough to get a sample serving of the delicacies on offer, which I enjoyed very much.
Around twenty-five young persons attended a residential youth camp organized by ISKCON Youth Forum Varchha in Surat, which had a unique activity-based format of learning, modelled using techniques from the Institute of Education at the University of London.
“The camp taught the same key messages of the Bhagavad-gita to a young audience, but instead of long lectures, we had a range of activities and games, which enabled them to learn the same lessons in a format tha t was engaging and fun,” exp
Between May 7-10th 2018, the European Council of Religious Leaders (ECRL) holds its annual conference in Budapest, Hungary.
The European Council of Religious Leaders consists of senior religious leaders from Europe’s historical religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam together with Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs and Zoroastrians. ECRL is one of five regional Interreligious Councils within the Religions for Peace global network. Religions for Peace – accredited to the United Nations – is the worl
It is very interesting how Vrindavan is the abode which can offer pure devotional service. Both qualitatively and quantitatively, Krsna consciousness is established (in Srimad Bhagavatam) and therefore Srila Prabhupada wanted us especially to distribute Srimad Bhagavatam. He said that Srimad Bhagavatam should be placed in every house on the planet. To really make the Bhagavat the knowledge of the entire world, the basis, the foundation of knowledge of the world.
It is also said in Caitanya Cari
By Sunanda Das
Departing New Yoga Pitha Dhama, Slovenia and Sri Sri Pancha Tattva on Wednesday, April 25th, we drove 3½ hours for the program at Prabhupada Desha in Albettone, Italy, and then another 2 hours to Milan for the program on April 26th. As usual, we felt the Lord guiding us every step of the way.
The temple programs, though attended by a small number of devotees due to the holiday season in Italy, were still most ecstatic and inspiring. Greeting the Padukas and Sitari, we were met by
By Vrsabhanu dasa
Since the very beginning of ISKCON Srila Prabhupada encouraged the devotees to set up farm communities and become self-sufficient, depending on the land. Two of his disciples responded to an ad about a rural ashram in West Virginia and subsequently purchased an old farmhouse there. This was the start of New Vrindaban. It was meant to be a replica of Vrindavan in India.
The community has gone through many different phases and at present the temple is a very busy place with lots
By Matsyavatara Dasa
In the great myths of Bhakti-vedantic and biblical tradition, as in many other millenary civilizations, even before the creation of the human being, the divine mind manifests special beings who immediately play different roles in the good and in the evil.
The biblical tradition tells about angels and demons existing before the world, before the creation of man. These two sets of archetypes (the archetype of light represented by the angels headed by Michael, and the archety
Dear leaders and respected Prabhus,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
I would like to invite you and the devotees serving in your temple and surrounding areas to a Leadership and Management Course (LMC).
After 6 years of serving as a temple president, without a proper training, it has become so clear that all the mistakes I made were sadly enough having a deep impact on the direct lives of the devotees.
I have also noticed that goodwill (such as what most of
