Srila Prabhupada would be found reading his own books. Someone asked, “Srila Prabhupada, you are reading your own books?” Prabhupada said, “I did not write these books, Krsna dictated these books. These books are pure and transcendental, descending from the spiritual world. The knowledge in these books is absolutely perfect.” Where in the world do you find that? We have advertisements everywhere – advertisements in our faces, trying to convince us that we need this and that to make us happy. It
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In Stratford, I met Sandy, a Westpac Bank worker from New Zealand, who told me that she has most of these books and LOVES reading them. She said that every time a devotee comes through, she buys another book.
“These are not books you just read once and move on,” she said. “I read them through fully, then after a few months I re-visit them and start reading them over again.”
She was so inspired, and she really takes shelter of Prabhupada’s books. This time, we sat on a park bench, and I showed h
By Muralimohan dasa
On April 3, 2022, my team and I from ISKCON’s Ahmedabad temple, also known as Sri Radha Govinda Dhama, held a one-day padayatra at Nani Devti gram, about 30km southwest of Ahmedabad in Gujarat.
We arrived at the village to hear that a samuha chandi yajna was being conducted and many people had assembled at one place. Moving ahead we started sankirtan and as we reached the yajna everyone there was pleased to see a group of devotees performing sankirtan and asked us to say som
As we know from the “Teachings of Lord Caitanya,” there are no hard and fast rules for chanting Hare Krishna. Similarly, there are no hard and fast rules for distributing books. I was distributing books at a college, and I saw a security guard coming my way. Sometimes people complain. He was some distance away, so I went into a nearby building. After going through the door, I walked fast to avoid him. I made the first left, and it turned out to be a restroom. I thought, “I’ll just hang out here
What did I learn today from sastra (scripture) or from the words of the guru?
In the Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna asks Krishna appropriate questions, with all of them being answered, of course.
Another item that I read from the book Chasing Rhinos, by Shyamasundar, left me satisfied:
“Sometimes, just like the wild tiger, you have got to control by repression. But when the tiger is under control, there is no question of repression. You can play with the tiger; he becomes your friend. So, repression is
When delivered by His pure representative, Krishna’s message attracts and transforms people young and old.
Touched by Srila Prabhupada Books
Haribol Nani!“ I greet my grand mother as I enter her home.
Unable to get up to receive me, she stretches out her arms, ready to welcome me into her warm embrace. Although her face is wrinkled with time and herbody is diseased with old age, her radiant smile and loving mood reveal her inner beauty. My eighty-five-year-old grandfather, lying on a bed nearb
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Preface and Introduction
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam begins with the definition of the ultimate source. It is a bona fide commentary on the Vedānta-sūtra by the same author, Śrīla Vyāsadeva, and gradually it develops into nine can
From The Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 11:
“In the Hari-bhakti-vilasa there is the following statement about self-surrender: ‘My dear Lord, a person who has surrendered himself unto You, who is in firm conviction that he is Yours, and who actually acts in that way by his body, mind and words, can actually relish transcendental bliss.’”
“In the Nrsimha Purana, Lord Nrsimha-deva says, ‘Anyone who prays unto Me and takes shelter from Me becomes My ward, and I protect him always from all sorts of cal
By Madhava Smullen
Up till now, one of the main methods of getting your Bhakti Sastri Degree in ISKCON involved taking six months off from your job or service to study in person in Mayapur or Vrindavan. This made it elusive and difficult for many to get the “family transcendental diploma” based on Srila Prabhupada’s books which Prabhupada wanted all his “spiritual sons and daughters” to inherit.
This system also required anyone who taught the Bhakti Sastri program to have a Bhakti Sastri degree
By Madhava Smullen
The long-awaited new book, “Yamuna Devi: The Study of Seva-Puja,” is here. The work presents and expands upon the original “Deity Book,” a parchment-paged binder about deity worship and dress which Yamuna Devi, a much-loved ISKCON pioneer, and early Prabhupada disciple, created and brought with her to each ashram she resided in.
Guests frequently asked her to publish the book, and now, nine years after her passing, Dinatarini Devi, her companion in devotional life for 37 yea
By Madhava Smullen
Books are the Basis Week, run by the ISKCON Ministry of Education from September 22nd to 28th, is encouraging devotees worldwide to read Srila Prabhupada’s books by providing resources and guidelines, and facilitating grassroots level engagement.
The Week is part of a larger effort to “enhance the culture of reading Srila Prabhupada’s books globally.” It was officially added to ISKCON’s calendar in 2020, after the society’s Governing Body Commission (GBC) accepted a proposal f
By Madhava Smullen
This year, as we celebrate the 125th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s appearance in 1896, an excellent way to become absorbed in the pastimes and teachings of the ISKCON Founder-Acharya is the latest, fifth volume of Memories: Anecdotes of a Modern Day Saint.
The series all began back in 1991 when Siddhanta Das, the devotee behind the project, was working with ISKCON Television (ITV) and tested out some new video cameras by taping Srutakirti Das, who had served as Srila Pra
By Madhava Smullen
New paperback editions of Srimad-Bhagavatam: A Comprehensive Guide for Young Readers Cantos 1, 2, and 3 are now available on Amazon.com, along with the just completed Canto 4. The first three cantos in the series, compiled by Aruddha Dasi, were originally each released in two parts starting in 2016. However the new editions, redesigned by Raghu Consbruck, and featuring new illustrations by a variety of artists, have been revised into a single volume per Canto, making them mo
New ministers In Caribbean country Trinidad and Tobago, take oath on Bhagavad Gita as it is of ISKCON Founder-Acarya His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada ki jai…. Srimad Bhagavad Gita ki jai…
Source: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=90233
You can tell when someone is reading Srila Prabhupada’s books:
So this actress looking middle eastern lady and her young son parked their Porsche, walked past my book table and went inside the grocery store. I actually remembered meeting them in the past and how she was kind of puffed up, so I didn’t expect much.
When they came out of the store, they walked straight towards me with a big smile and the boy was holding a $20 bill to give me. The mother was so warm this time and all happy to see me
By Madhava Smullen
A new interactive webinar by Global Duty Officer for Book Distribution Vaisesika Dasa, entitled “Be A Sage Page by Page,” will teach participants how to upgrade their lives by reading Srila Prabhupada’s books. Set to take place at 7:00am PDT on August 22nd on Zoom, it will also be broadcast on Facebook and Youtube. (Register here: https://beasage.carrd.co/)
The webinar will ramp up enthusiasm for Shravanam Week, an initiative by the ISKCON Ministry of Education to facilita
This book distribution story needs a little background. It’s like many stories from so many devotees all over the world, which give us a sense of the unexplainable magic of book distribution.
Those deeply mystical points in time, those strange moments, when synchronicity only gives a vague explanation for what just happened. Points in time when you just know deep down in your soul that Paramatma, the Supersoul, is actually the person doing everything. He is in the heart of the distributor, He i
By Radha Sakhi Dasi
The age-old friendship of Touchstone Media and Torchlight Publishing is now evolving into a merger to operate as a single unit. Advaita Chadra Das, Director of Torchlight Publishing and Isvara Das, Director of Touchstone Media have been planning to work together for quite some time and now that they’ve both joined hands. “We have joined forces to passionately strive to provide everyone with real matter for soul-nourishment and assist them to live spiritually balanced, heal
By Krishnarupa devi dasi
Many ISKCON members are aware of the formation of the Revisions Review Panel (RRP), but they may not be informed of how it came about and exactly what its task is. This article I hope serves to communicate more of these details.
In February 2019, the BBT/GBC Relations Committee conversed about meeting with the GBC body to discuss Srila Prabhupada's books edits and to form a group that would review revisions.
At the BBT general meeting in June 2019, the BBT resolved to
Dear Vaisesika Prabhu,
Please accept my humble obeisances, all glories to Srila Prabhupada!
My name is Caitanya Chandra dasa, disciple of HH Bhakti Dhira Damodhara Swami (BTS). I joined ISKCON in 1992 and my main service is book distribution. I travel in the south of Brazil during most of the year, doing book distribution and trying to spread Krsna Consciousness in small cities.
Few years ago, my Guru Maharaja gave me the mission of distributing books and teaching others about book distribution