By Swami B. A. Ashram
About 500 years ago, Lord Krishna personally appeared as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the place of the avatar for the age of Kali. Lord Chaitanya had two purposes for coming: to experience first-hand the bliss of serving Krishna and to spread pure love for Krishna, which is very rare. Writing about Lord Chaitanya’s plan for making His mercy widely available, Srila Krishna das Kaviraja Gosvami says, “sri-krishna-chaitanya-daya karaha vichara, vichara karile chitte pabe chama
You cannot follow nicely unless you hear nicely, and you cannot lead nicely unless you have learned to follow nicely.
Yamuna: From the very beginning of our programs in Bombay, Srila Prabhupada became known as one “who is startling India with kirtan.” Our kirtans were full of so much excitement—they were so thrilling—that we were like one throbbing heartbeat, the heartbeat of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s mission of Krishna Consciousness.
It is difficult to describe how much potency we felt in the
The new Govinda’s restaurant at the ISKCON temple complex in Houston, Texas is set to receive a grand opening on March 11th, just before Gaura Purnima, with local TV channels, newspapers and radio stations to get a free meal and tour.
Govinda’s already had its “soft opening” back in July 2016, launching with no fanfare or advertising. But according to manager Shyamasundara Das it’s been a success from day one, often packing out the large 130-person capacity space, and drawing a 4.6 rating from
One month into 2017; an appropriate time to review our resolutions. Realistic, achievable and still alive? Need some tweaking? If Plan A is falling apart don’t worry – there are another 25 letters in the alphabet! In fact, modern-day motivators reassuringly remind us that the most successful people in the world are those who wholeheartedly embrace and execute Plan B. Chop and change, experiment and innovate, somehow or other, find a strategy that works. Keep progressing forward, and avoid dying
Once we understand what the goal of human civilisation is, everything becomes clear. Until then, we risk squandering our precious life away. We have the golden opportunity that a human birth affords, lets use it wisely, developing ourselves with meaning and purpose on the level of enlightenment.
Everyone knows about the global ecological crisis. You would think that knowing this would cause human society to respond with vigor and with speed. But it hasn’t happened. Humans have responded with extraordinary inertia instead. We are stuck—caught in a mass consensual trance—a trance that keeps us blissfully ignorant of the reactions to our actions.
Bhakti-yogis respond to this situation with knowledge. They say that we need comprehensive knowledge of the relationship between consciousness an
Last week the construction of the bas-relief dedicated to the first saint of ISKCON Jayananda Thakur has been completed. The artwork is situated near the samadhi of Jayananda, on wall of the Lord Jagannatha temple complex in Mayapur.
Three sections of the bas-relief depict scenes from the life of Jayananda, glorifying his outstanding contribution to the development of the mission of Lord Caitanya, and his spiritual master Srila Prabhupada’s love and gratitude to him.
Bhaktisiddhanta Das, the s
With mouth-watering flavors and gorgeously artistic and realistic scenes, Anuradha Dasi’s cakes – made for devotee life events and festivals at Bhaktivedanta Manor, UK – are astonishing, and have to be seen to be believed.
Anuradha started learning her craft by helping out temple devotees when she joined the ashram at ISKCON’s Bhaktivedanta Manor, near London, in 1988. After getting married, she assisted her husband, Manor head pujari Gadadhara Das, who remains her baking partner.
She then took
Watch the video for this lecture here:
http://mayapur.tv/wowzaplayer/
From Sri Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir
Date: February 8, 2017
Speaker: HH Bhakti Gauravani Goswami
Subject: Varahadeva's Appearance Day
Maharaj sings “Dasavatara Stotra by Jayadeva Goswami”.
Sri Varaha deva mahatosav ki
Let us begin by considering the philosophical truth of Krishna’s incarnations, so that way we will get the perspective on His descent to this material world.
Srila Prabhupada spoke about this in 1977. This is exac
Your mind is wandering all over the universe when you chant.
Chant anyway!
Your mind is wandering to the past and future when you chant.
Chant anyway!
You are not able to concentrate on Krishna’s names while you chant.
Chant anyway!
You have no taste for chanting.
Chant anyway!
You have lusty desires.
Chant anyway!
You are making offenses in chanting.
Chant anyway!
You are not praying to Krishna to help you chant better.
Chant anyway!
You often chant late at night.
Chant anyway!
So WHY? Why sho
Caitanya Caritamrta describes how the happiness of Lord Nityananda is so overwhelming and so intoxicating that he becomes drunk. He is drunk by that happiness, and one knows well that a drunk man cannot see clearly. So in this case, Lord Nityananda does not see clearly who is fallen and who is not fallen! It is too complicated. He gives mercy to everyone. He does not select anymore. It is Lord Nityananda who does not select, who just gives out the mercy regardless, due to his intoxicated state
If money is the means, then what is the goal? Over 2,300 people around the world tuned in Live where 200 selected local industrialists and leaders gathered in the heart of Cape Town to hear from an ISKCON Swami and celebrity banker on this topic.
With admission by invite-only, individuals considered cream-of-the-crop in the South African white community made up 80% of the gathering. The Provincial Minister of Economic Opportunities in the Cape Town government, Mr Alan Winde, joined the assemb
Dear Prabhus,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to Sri Nityananda Rama Prabhu!!
Every year on the glorious appearance day of Sri Nityananda Prabhu I offer this short story for the pleasure of the Vaishnavas.
vande çré-kåñëa-caitanya-
nityänandau sahoditau
gauòodaye puñpavantau
citrau çan-dau tamo-nudau
I offer my respectful obeisances unto Sri Krsna Caitanya and Lord Nityananda, who are like the sun and moon. They have arisen simultaneously on the
From a seminar of Bhagavata Purana prabhu on karatalas:
Six important things are to understand about karatalas.
1. Direction
2. Pitch
3. Volume
4. Speed
5. Open and closed beats
6. Upbeat and downbeat
In the Prabhupada beat the final beat is half open and half closed.
The thumb is supposed to be fixed on the strap so you do not lose control of your instrument. Use your fingers not the thumb to dampen the sound.
The singer and the mrdanga player work as a team, and everyone else follows the mrda
The lotus feet of Lord Nityananda are essential. Without the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda, one cannot ever get the mercy of Radha and Krsna. In other words, one cannot ever be an eligible candidate to go back to the spiritual world therefore we need the mercy of Lord Nityananda.
I just noticed that it is 70 years ago today that Sadaputa Prabhu (Dr. Richard L. Thompson), who made a special and important contribution by writing many books on science and the Vedic worldview and who I worked with 17 years, appeared in this world. To honor him, I share with you my favorite quotes from his book, Parallels, which I recently proofread, because they are fresh in my mind, and I thank you for reading them:
“The inhabitants in a virtual reality actually exist outside of the false,
“Now our PhDs must collaborate and study the 5th Canto to make a model for building the Vedic Planetarium” proved a mandate from Srila Prabhupada that entered deep into the heart of his disciple Sadaputa dasa, in 1976. Having received his PhD in Mathematics from Cornell University just two years prior, he would soon be inducted as one of the founding members of Prabhupada’s Bhaktivedanta Institute.
In that capacity, he devoted over 30 years researching Vedic perspectives on cosmology and the na
Dear Devotee,
Recently an unmarried female devotee told me that a man was interested in getting to know her, and in their discussions he mentioned that ‘the husband is the guru.’ She asked me for guidance on the subject.
This article is what I wrote to clarify for her (and him) what it means for a husband to be a guru – and what it doesn’t mean; for misunderstanding what this means will be the cause of an unhappy marriage.
Even though Prabhupada writes that a failed marriage is usually the woma
Padayatra arrival lecture given by His Holiness Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja in Bhubaneswar, India (December 30th, 1995)
How long will you sleep in the lap of the ugly witch Maya? How long? You have already slept for such a long time, lakhs and lakhs of lives. Do you want to sleep in the lap of the ugly witch Maya? Mahaprabhu is your only well-wishing friend. He loves you so much that He descended here,
tomare loite ami hoinu avatara ami bina bandhu ara ke ache tomara
“For you I desce
Samapriya devi dasi: Betrothed by Srila Prabhupada the holy name to wed,
vowing not to put another in His sacred bed.
You rest upon my tongue, taking me a journey far,
throughout the worlds and inner space revealing who You are.
You are my husband and I pledge to stay with You forever,
I pray to keep You in my heart, no earthly thing will sever.
As Your wife I make an oath to serve You as I can,
placing You upon my lips surrendered to Your plan.
You are first in everything of duties I perform,
