I have always liked the following verses from the Sri Caitanya-caritamrta. They remind me to slow down, chant nicely, and don’t be attached.
Since Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was omniscient, He could understand Raghunātha dāsa’s mind. The Lord therefore instructed him with the following reassuring words.
“Be patient and return home. Don’t be a crazy fellow. By and by you will be able to cross the ocean of material existence.
“You should not make yourself a showbottle devotee and become a false renu
Learning from Srila Prabhupada how to see beyond the material coverings to perceive the real dhama
I bend down to get through the door and enter a small, sparsely furnished room. Suddenly, I’m face to face with Srila Prabhupada. He’s sitting on the floor behind a low desk piled with books and papers.
“Jai!” he says. “Our Hayagriva has arrived.”
I pay dandabat obeisances by prostrating myself and touching his feet with my right hand. Then I place my hand to my forehead. To remember the spiritual
I love how the days are now
Lingering between hot and cold
How the morning cool touches
And draws us together, pulling
Out sweaters and wraps
And tucking away summer
I love how autumn brings
A different kind of change
Its own time, yet only a time
Between summer and winter
Time to leave one and receive the other
Time to be ok with getting old
Time to be ok with death and dying
Time to see the colors of aging
The winding down of life
In leaves upon the ground
Autumn is different than spring
More
Expecting respect from others, even subtly, burdens our heart and complicates our lives. Giving all respects to others, no matter who it is, lightens our heart and simplifies our lives.
Source:http://thebandwagonofmoltengold.blogspot.in/2016/10/giving-respect.html
The Bhagavad Gita is the essential summary of all Vedic literature. To follow a message that is not supported by the Bhagavad Gita is like rejecting fundamental Vedic principles. Do that at your own risk.
Source:http://thebandwagonofmoltengold.blogspot.in/2016/10/the-bhagavad-gita-fundamental-vedic.html
Many times we do what we do, not because it's the best option, but only because our mind craves for it. What's more, choosing the sub-optimal option makes us feel independent - why should I follow someone else's opinion? I am free to choose my way of life. I will decide for myself - always. Thus, it's just egotism that controls our decisions, not timeless wisdom. And we are proud of it.
This false sense of ego and bloated sense of importance about one's own opinion makes us deaf to any principle
I ran across this above image this morning on Facebook, and was inspired to do a post on chanting.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare
“Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy. Thank you. Hare Kṛṣṇa.” (Srila Prabhupada Lecture & Initiation Seattle, October 20, 1968)
“…chant dance, take prasadam and be happy.” (Srila Prabhupada Letter to Saksi Gopala 6 December, 1975)
“Following in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness mo
A journey through India: border to border, bhoga to prasadam.
The importance of golden ghee in cooking Krsna prasadam is very evident when we consider books of Vaisnava literature such as Sri Govinda-lilamrta and Sri Caitanya-caritamrta. In Govinda-lilamrta we find descriptions of the great range of uses for ghee, as it’s described in the conversations between Mother Yasoda and the gopis who are arranging so many nice foodstuffs for Krsna.
In Verse 53, Mother Yasoda is telling Kilimba that they
As a part of celebrations going throughout the whole world to glorify the Golden Jubilee of the foundation of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), ISKCON Bangladesh has recently organized “Bhaktivedanta National Students Competition- 2016” . More than 10,000 students from different parts of the whole country took part in this competition. This competition took nearly five months for its completion and was held in four levels – zonal level, district level, divisional level a
What is this? Oh my, Srila Prabhupada appearing with Allen Ginsberg? On the same stage? How is it possible?
It was true. We put these posters all over the Ohio State University campus. I was in the room when Srila Prabhupada was talking to Sriman Allen Ginsberg before the event. I was shocked, quite honestly, at how humble Srila Prabhupada was, how he was asking Ginsberg’s opinion on the venue. It was amazing. Anyway, about 2,000 midwest teenagers from the “All American City” of Columbus, Ohio
When one is chanting and purposefully commits sinful activities, what happens is that Krsna withdraws himself from the holy name. One may still chant but all that is there is an empty shell; one may chant for many, many births and still not get the benefit from such chanting. So one should try to avoid sinful activity. There may be accidental fall-down and Krsna may let you off on an accident, but we must be very careful to remain pure.
As of late, many devotees have confided in me that they so
Charuhasa das joined Srila Prabhupada’s movement in the early pioneering days as a successful talented musician. Later he became a great painter at Srila Prabhupada’s request.
Previous to that he had not held a paint brush, but Prabhupada had empowered him. Caruhasa das painted many paintings in the Krishna conscious books and at temples over the years.
He continued his service, in multifarious ways. Over the years he has produced radio shows and television shows, and courted many celebrities a
Dear Devotees
Hare Krishna
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada
All glories to ISKCON 50!!
The holy and auspicious month of Kartik commences on 17 October 2016. This
year we have been commemorating ISKCON’s Golden Jubilee Anniversary. 2016
has been filled with so many glorious activities commemorating this
milestone in the history of ISKCON.
This year is really and truly special. The theme for this year’s
Vraja-mandala Parikrama carries forward the 50th Anniver
Austin, Texas – November 22nd, 2015, was a special occasion for me. I was invited to see a drama put on by the devotee children in Austin Sunday school program, many of whom I knew very well. The drama was a culmination of a semester’s learning, and looked to be wonderful.
This was also the first time I met Guruvani Mataji, the lead teacher. Before the drama began, during the bustle of children putting on elaborate costumes, Prabhus setting up cameras and mics, and Matajis applying makeup, I
During last summer ISKCON Laguna Beach held its first ever Gita Champions League event. It was organized as part of ISKCON’s 50 year anniversary. The program was announced in April with local core ISKCON 50 team. It was advertised using social media, stores and door to door to reach out to a wider audience.
A total 30 kids signed up and prepared for 2 months. Additional guidance and preparations were taught at the Sunday school in Laguna Beach. According to Krishna “This knowledge is king of
Mukunda dasa: We distributed:
150 “Beyond Birth and Death”
60 "Perfect Questions, Perfect Answers”
8 Bhagavad-gitas
5 Krishna books
3 Srimad Bhagavatams
Panca-Tattva’s Shastra Dana program has now existed for seven years.
From August 2009 to September 2016 we have distributed approximately 17,000 books.
Srila Prabhupada wrote to Cyavana das on the 26th of December 1971: ”Distribution of books and magazines is our most important activity. Without books, our preaching has no solid basis”
A Durga Puja Pandal in West Bengal resembling Temple of Vedic Planetaurium
You won’t believe how many people are waiting in a looooong line to get a plate of prasadam!
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/767Iz8
Iskcon 50: Message from the EO (Executive officer – appointed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh) of the TTD = Tirumala Tirupati Devastaanams - the managing authority for the Tirupati “Balaji” (Srila Prabhupada told us – I visited Tirumala with him during April 1974 - for a brief 3 day visit - that “Balaji” means “Baal Krishna”, that is Lord Krishna’s childhood [baal] form.) temple - India’s most visited and wealthiest Hindu temple, congratulating ISKCON on ISKCON’s 50th anniversary.
Tirupati
Let Nirantara prabhu narrate you the following events in a professionally recorded audio-production.
01 Arjuna Arrests Ashvatthama
02 Arjuna Deals with Ashvatthama
03 Krishna Delivers Uttara
04 Yudhishthira Laments
05 Yudhishthira Returns to the Scene of the Massacre
06 Bheeshma-deva Speaks
07 Bheeshma Answers Yudhishthira
08 Bheeshma-devas Prayers
09 the Reign of Maha-raja Yudhishthira
10 Krishna Departs Hastinapura
11 the Ladys of Hastinapura Glorify Krishna
12 Krishna Enters Dvaraka
13 Dvar
