Some suggestions on how to stay inspired.
Somehow, it happens that our motivation in Krishna consciousness may falter. Usually that faltering comes in the form of lacking the desire to do some practical service, associate with devotees, or develop our spiritual practices, such as improving the quality or quantity of our chanting or of our reading of Srila Prabhupada’s books. Whenever this happens to me or a friend, I realize the urgency and fragility of devotional service and the importance of
The Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies (BIHS) is set to host a special hybrid screening of Nature’s IQ, a visually striking documentary that blends science, philosophy, and art. The film is based on the award-winning book Nature’s I.Q.: Extraordinary Animal Behaviors That Defy Evolution by Īśvara Kṛṣṇa Dāsa (Dr. István Tasi) and Balázs Hornyánszky, and is directed by Kristina Danka, Ph.D. (Krishna Lila Devi Dasi).
Scheduled for Saturday, September 27, at 1:00 PM EST, the event will take
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi,
ISKCON Australia’s Women’s Minister, Krishnarupa Devi Dasi (ACBSP), was recently invited to serve as a faith-based project advisor for the “Faith as a Strength: Prevention of Violence Against Women” initiative. The program, launched by Australia’s peak body for preventing violence against women, Our Watch, in collaboration with the Nossal Institute for Global Health at Melbourne University, brought together religious leaders from diverse traditions to develop
As devotees, we don't realise the great fortune of being able to wear the attire of a Vaishnava, apply Tilak on our forehead, wear Tulsi beads on our neck, chant the Holynames of Krishna, associate with His wonderful devotees, engage in His service, honour His prasadam, visit His holy dhamas, circumbulate Tulsi, see His holy deities, hear His Katha, participate in His festivals, read His words in the scriptures. These are by no way ordinary activities. These are blessings of an immeasurable kin
From Back to Godhead
False Prestige heads a list of weeds, such as Lust, Greed, and Anger, that block the growth of the vine of Bhakti.
Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita metaphorically describes love of God as a creeper, or vine. The following story is based on that metaphor.
I reared my head like a cobra, not to strike at someone but to catch the sun. Holding a jumbo glowing flower at the top of my green leaves, I dominated the garden with my presence.
My name is False Prestige, and I call myself an
Lord Kapila was very much satisfied by His mother’s questions because the answers stimulate one’s desire for liberation from the conditional life of material existence. Such questions are called apavarga-vardhanam.
Those who have actual spiritual interest are called sat, or devotees. Satam prasangat. Sat means “that which eternally exists,” and asat means “that which is not eternal.” Unless one is situated on the spiritual platform, he is not sat; he is asat.
The asat stands on a platform which
By Shyama Krsnapriya Devi Dasi
The School of Rupanugas is offering three upcoming online courses in Hindi this fall to help deepen devotees’ spiritual understanding and strengthen teaching capacity within the movement. The ISKCON Disciples Course, Teachers Training Course 1, and Teachers Training Course 2 will all be conducted online, making them accessible to participants across India and beyond.
The ISKCON Disciples Course held from September 29 to October 3 is designed to help devotees bette
From Back to Godhead
There are at least 300 books available at your online bookseller dealing with anger. Many of them just contain pop-culture variety of self-help advice on the dangers of uncontrolled anger. Anger is just one letter short of danger as these experts remind us. Lord Krishna, in the very beginning of the Gita encourages Arjuna to control anger and praises someone who has successfully done it as “a sage of steady mind.” It is quite natural to see many people today disbelie
By Bhaktin Vrinda and Bala Govinda Das,
On Saturday, 6 September, the auspicious disappearance day of Haridasa Thakura, the first-ever Nauka Vihar Utsava (Boat Festival), was joyfully celebrated in the Netherlands. Hosted by ISKCON The Hague Sri Krishna Dhaam, the event brought together uplifting katha, ecstatic kirtan, and delicious prasadam. More than a hundred devotees from across the country gathered for this unique occasion, marking an unforgettable milestone in ISKCON Netherlands’ history
From Back to Godhead
Variety is said to be the spice of life. Imagine a life where you eat the same vegetables daily, wear the same clothes, meet the same people, and visit the same places. So boring, right? This world is full of varieties seasonal changes in the form of summer, winter, autumn, spring; periodic appearance and disappearance of the sun and the moon; cultural differences among people of different nations; the language, the dress, and the eating habits in different parts of the wor
To honor Srila Prabhupada’s historic arrival at Boston Harbor on September 17, 1965, Inner Voice Productions has created a 12-minute film featuring rare footage and dramatic recreations of his 1965 voyage aboard the Jaladuta and his first month in Butler, Pennsylvania, with the Agarwal family. The video premiered today, September 17th, on the YouTube channel Hare Krishna Film Classics.
Watch here: https://youtu.be/cTOlD7o_5dU
Source: https://iskconnews.org/new-short-film-celebrates-prabhupad
By Gopaswami Das
A historic turn of events took place in France the day before Radhastami. For the first time since Srila Prabhupada inaugurated this beautiful community and installed his beloved Sri Sri Krishna-Balarama, both the ambassador of India at UNESCO and the town’s mayor glorified Srila Prabhupada, the New Mayapura community, and ISKCON with astounding words of praise. A first in France after many years of internal and external struggle.
After a first-class lunch prasadam was served in
By Ananda Jita dasa
On Saturday, September 6th, the auspicious disappearance day of Haridasa Thakura, the first ever Nauka Vihar Utsava, the Boat Festival, was joyfully celebrated in The Netherlands. Hosted by ISKCON The Hague Sri Krishna Dhaam, the event brought together uplifting katha, ecstatic kirtan, and delicious prasadam. More than a hundred devotees from across the country gathered for this unique occasion, marking an unforgettable milestone in ISKCON The Netherlands’ history.
Spirit of
Online Hindi IDC Course to Highlight Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Role and Guru-Tattva
A new offering of the ISKCON Disciples Course (IDC) will be conducted in Hindi this fall, from September 29 to October 3, 2025, providing devotees with a structured opportunity to deepen their understanding of the guru-disciple relationship within the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON).
The course, delivered primarily in Hindi with a small portion in English, will be held online via Zoom from 7:0
The Deep Ecology movement is rooted in the conclusions of Professors Lynn White and Arne Naess. By the late 1960s, Prof White, a historian and university president who had studied the development of technology from medieval times to the present, published “The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis”. In that influential article, he identified society’s mentality of anthropocentrism (human-centrism) as the root cause of the ecologic crisis. Shortly after that, Prof Naess, philosopher and enviro
By Sri Nandanandana dasa (Stephen Knapp)
As many of you know, when I was initiated by His Divine Grace, Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, I was given the name of Sri Nandanandana dasa.
When I was to be accepted for initiation, I was told to write a paper on the significance of being initiated. I did the research from whatever books we had back then, and found that I really liked going through my books of Srila Prabhupada and gathering the information for the paper. The paper was then
karmany evadhikaras te
ma phalesu kadacana
ma karma-phala-hetur bhur
ma te sango ‘stv akarmani [ B.g. 2.47]
“You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty”.
The above mentioned verse is one of the most famous verses in Bhagavad Gita, although many know this verse and probably might have recited and heard them many times, very few
The Sri Mayapur Community Hospital project received the blessings and encouragement from ISKCON leaders in North America after a presentation to them at the North American Regional Governing Body (NA-RGB) Conference held in Houston, Texas.
Sri Mayapur Community Hospital Project Director, Harilila Das, traveled from Mayapur to personally present the hospital’s progress and vision to GBC leaders and temple presidents on September 7th. Over the three-day gathering, September 5–7, he met with many l
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi,
In a welcome move for pilgrims and devotees traveling to the holy dhama of Mayapur, Eastern Railway’s Sealdah Division has announced the launch of a new AC EMU train service connecting Krishnanagar and Sealdah, with key stops en route.
In a letter addressed to Dayaram Das, Co-Director General & President of ISKCON Kolkata, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager Jasram Meena outlined the new service details. The train will operate six days a week (Monday to Satu
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi,
Bhaktivedanta University has announced the launch of its second academic pillar, the Faculty of Vocational Education, aimed at revitalizing village life and traditional occupations in the face of rapid urbanization.
With older generations of farmers aging and younger people moving to cities, rural sustainability faces a growing challenge. The new faculty seeks to safeguard the traditional knowledge of India’s villages while integrating modern advancements to m
