It was with great satisfaction that I conducted a Kirtan Standards course along with the Bhakti Academy students. The feedback that I received from this three hour interactive workshop/presentation were words like “informative,” “educational” and “clarification on things.” It was felt that before these students develop some habits regarding Kirtan (chanting) that fall in the realm of divergent, why not get it right in the beginning?
It was the founder-acarya of the movement, Prabhupada, who est
Our spiritual practice should nourish us, it should supply us with a taste that is better than the taste that material activities and sense gratification provide us with. When our spiritual practice lacks this taste, the temptation of material life which then allures us with a seemingly greater taste is always close to us. And at that time we are in danger. However, if we can find taste in our spiritual practice we are safe on the spiritual platform.
The chanting of the Holy Names is recommende
From Back to Godhead
How we value, acquire, use, and relate to money reflects our inner state of being.
Sri Sukadeva Goswami said, “Money does not stay in one place. It passes from one hand to another. Ultimately no one can enjoy money, and it remains the property of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.14.24) Money is God’s energy. He created it, He owns it, and He controls it: “Everything animate or inanimate that is within the universe is controlled and owned by the Lord
Prabhupada’s Money Analogy and the Politics of Doing the Right Thing
- Satyaraja Dasa (Steven J. Rosen)
According to Srila Prabhupada, one can gauge a person’s spiritual status by how they react to finding money on the street: Do they keep it for themselves? Do they leave it lying there? Or do they look for the original owner? What would you do?
In Sanskrit, there are three terms that cover the gamut of possible reactions to finding money in the street: bhoga, (enjoyment); tyaga (renunciation)
Sri Namamrta
1. The Holy Name Revives One’s Dormant, Eternal Krsna Consciousness
2. The Role of the Holy Name in the Progression of Devotional Service
3. The Holy Name Frees One from the Reactions to Sins
4. By Chanting the Holy Name, the Mind Becomes Controlled
5. The Holy Name Protects One from Pride
6. By Chanting, One Develops Forbearance
7. The Holy Name Eradicates Material Desires and Sinful Activity
8. The Holy Name Cleanses the Heart and Frees One from Material Contamination
9. The Holy
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
Kartamasa das: The first time I met Yamuna devi, my life changed forever.
I was in Saranagati for the Christmas holidays in 2000 having a reunion with my closest childhood friends. We were all in our early twenties, and having recently finished our university education and started work, we spent our time together recalling our childhood activities. One day we decided to have kirtan, but in a rather irreverent way, mocking the showy, elaborate vocal and instrument style we had all absorbed growi
From Back to Godhead
A look at Lord Caitanya’s “Eight Instructions” and their relevance to japa, the individual practice of chanting Hare Krishna.
A friend once told me this analogy about spiritual life: a flock of geese share strength by flying in a V formation, but if one goose goes down, the others can’t help. Similarly, though seekers of enlightenment help each other, success ultimately depends on personal effortand the kindness of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krishna.
Krishna’s kindness appears i
When we talk about sankirtana, we are, of course, talking about the congregational chanting of the Lord’s holy names, specifically in the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. For many people, this is the first way they come in contact with the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra, and with Lord Chaitanya’s sankirtana movement, by hearing the devotees chanting the holy names. But what is it about this process that makes it so effective, and so important in the way people are first exposed to it?
To answer th
Why such a question you might ask? In one sense anyone can lead a kirtan, but let us consider a few things first. I write this as much for myself as others as I too am prone to egoism and a lack of proper attitude at times in my service.
There are few leaders, such as Indradyumna Swami and Sivarama Swami, who will only have capable devotees lead a kirtan, those who know how to keep a steady pace and stick to the same melody. I am not of the opinion that
anyone can lead at any given time, maybe
Angiras, who is our gracious host, accepted diksha or initiation this morning. He took on the name Ambarish. He invited many of his friends to the ceremony, conducted by Kadamba Priya, and they were curious about this rite of passage. “Do you change the name on your passport now?” asked one comrade. As I mentioned in my talk at the event, which was a packed crowd in our host’s basement, “It doesn’t really change anything too much except that the candidate picks up speed in his/her spiritual ende
Written by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami in 1958,
Published December of that Year in Gauḍīya Patrika,
The Magazine of the Gauḍīya Vedānta Samiti.
Verse 1.
I am sitting alone in Vṛndāvana-dhāma
In this mood I am getting many realizations.
I have my wife, sons, daughters, grandsons, everything,
But I have no money so they are a fruitless glory.
Kṛṣṇa has shown me the naked form of material nature,
By his strength it has all become tasteless to me today.
yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ
“I
After a two-year hiatus from the annual Sadhu Sanga Kirtan retreat, it is back! The Sadhu Sanga retreat is the offering of His Holiness Indradyumna Swami, one of Srila Prabhupada’s most distinguished disciples. This year’s event is a weekend of enthusiastic kirtan, world-class prasadam, and devotional classes which will take place Memorial Day weekend (May 27 – 30th) at the gorgeous Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple in Spanish Fork, Utah. Registration is currently closed as the event sold out in jus
From Back to Godhead
Are we the makers of our destiny or is life pre-destined? Find out here . . . .
In the Mahabharata, Vidura explained to Dhritarastra, “Destiny determines the consequences of our actions, not our actions themselves.” This means that we are not like programmed robots that have no free will, or no choice. Our past karma does determine what will happen in our life, but it does not determine how we will react to it.
Destiny is something like a weather forecast on a journey. A we
In honor of Jayananda Prabhu’s disappearance day on May 1, we submit the following account, derived from a letter by Kalindi Dasi to her spiritual master, Candramauli Swami.— Giriraj Swami
A Hospice Miracle—Serving Jayananda’s Mother
In mid-July I started wearing tilak to my work at the hospice. I thought that since many other spiritual practitioners were expressing their faith by wearing crosses, doves, silk threads, pentacles, and other items, I would wear mytilak, which tells the world t
SB 1.1.2 … sadyo hrdy avarudhyate ‘tra krtibhih susrusubhis tat-ksanat …As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhagavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.
Ref. VedaBase => SB 1.1.2
By the hearing process Krsna IMMEDIATELY (sadyo) is established in the heart.
Please note the word RAPT [attention, in the previous quote] – there is a consistency in the Bhagavatam methodology. One has to hear attentively.
The sadhana of hea
By Jayabhadra devi dasi
On February 26, 2022, we had a one-day Vaishnavi padayatra at Wadad village 15km from Amravati. As a district Medical Officer, I am well acquainted with our health workers, so while our ISKCON Girls’ Forum team did advance party work a few days before padayatra I liaised with fellow employees Anganwadi and Asha and they agreed to join us for padayatra.
Our group received an early-morning welcome at Wadad with the village ladies enthusiastically singing and dancing with us
Hare Krishna Dear Devotees,
Here is a link to some ecstatic and melodious Hare Krishna Kirtan that was captured during the ISKCON Laguna Beach Kirtan Mela in March 2022.
It features Indradyumna Maharaj, Vaisesika Dasa, and Agnideva Prabhu along with local talent.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKKaC0m0HIfOU58X_lPXD1x_GV5gh3XUS
Please Chant, Dance and be Happy!
We are deeply saddened to see the suffering faced by people who are victims of the escalating conflict and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. The Ukrainian people are in need of our sincere prayers. While we are staying warm and comfortable in our homes with our families, in Ukraine it is getting harder and harder for people to get hot food, shelter, medications, and in some places, even drinking water. Can we help? Yes! What we can do as a community is to gather and chant together, pray for peace
We are deeply saddened to see the suffering faced by people who are victims of the escalating war and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. The Ukrainian people are in need of our sincere prayers. While we are staying warm and comfortable in our homes with our families, in Ukraine it is getting harder and harder for people to get hot food, shelter, medications, and in some places, even drinking water.
We are doing all we can to support the humanitarian aid efforts of The Lotus Trust UK team who are c
