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By Ananda Vrinavana Devi Dasi

In spiritual parlance there are ‘thin’ places in the world. These are holy places, sacred spaces, where the line between the spiritual and materials worlds is very thin and the ability to feel and perceive our relationship with Krishna is heightened. It’s easier to chant there, to call Krishna deeply from the heart, and thus to call ourselves to experience our spiritual selves.
There are also thin days (and even thin times in the day). Janmastami is one such day.

While attending the Janmastami festival at the ISKCON farm in Czechoslovakia several years ago, I was asked to give a lecture about the appearance of Lord Krishna. Afterwards I asked for questions and an elderly, red-haired lady raised her hand. Since almost all the devotees there spoke only Czech, I was surprised when she began to speak in English. She said, “Satsvarupa Gosvami, could you tell us something about Prabhupada, because you knew him very well?”

I started out by remembering Janmasta

From Ananda Vrindavan Champu by Srila Kavi Karnapura Translated by Bhanu Swami & Subhaga Swami.

Now we will discuss the truth about the transcendental birthplace of Bhagavan and the appearance of Lord Sri Krishna. Once upon a time, Bhumi, the predominating deity of the earth, felt overburdened by different demons posing as members of the royal order. Feeling aggrieved upon seeing her miserable condition, the lotus-born Brahma appealed to Ksirodakasayi Visnu, the maintainer of the universe, sayi

By His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

If, in our marriage, we focus on what we need and negate the needs of our partner, the relationship can’t last. If we give up who we are to please our partner, we may suffocate and become frustrated, resentful and depressed. One who is self-controlled doesn’t need to lord it over another, and neither does that person need to be overpowered by another. Marriage is a balance between satisfying our self and satisfying our partner. It means maintaining an awareness of the other person and their des

Krsna and His brother Balarama passed the childhood age known as kaumara and stepped into the age of pauganda, from the sixth year up to the tenth. At that time all the cowherd men conferred and agreed to give those boys who had passed their fifth-year charge of the cows in the pasturing ground. Given charge of the cows, Krsna and Balarama traversed Vrndavana, purifying the land with Their footprints.
Accompanied by the cowherd boys and Balarama, Krsna herded the cows and played on His flute thr

From Back to Godhead

In the Bhagavad-gita (7.14) Lord Krishna refers to maya, the deluding material energy, as mama maya: “My maya.” We Vaishnavas accept His word on this, with profound philosophical implications.

The chief philosophical opponents of Vaishnavas are the Mayavadis, or impersonalists, who posit ultimate reality as one homogeneous impersonal energy, with no second thing: All the unique entities we perceive, whether things or living beings, are merely mirages. Variety and individual

Sometimes people say that they want to see God, or that God is not perceivable. And this is confirmed in the Vedic scripture, but with additional points of instruction on how we can perceive the Supreme Being. The Svetasvatara Upanishad (4.20) explains “His form of beauty is imperceptible to mundane senses. No one can see Him with material eyes. Only those who realize, through deep pure-hearted meditation, this Supreme Personality, who resides in everyone’s heart, can attain liberation.”

Krishna

The practice of serving the Lord’s lotus feet is one of the fundamental processes of devotional service. Srila Prabhupada mentions it in his writings and spoken words nearly twenty-thousand times! It is recommended by Prahlada Maharaja in Srimad-Bhagavatam. Pada-sevanam is listed among the nine activities which are technically called bhakti.

Pada-sevanam, or service to the Lord’s lotus feet, is the constitutional position of an accomplished servant of Krishna such as Laxmi devi. Laxmi exemplifi

First Meaning: –

Srila Jiva Gosvami reveals the meaning of each of the sixteen Names in the Hare Krishna Mahaamantra in his Mahaa-mantrartha Dipika as follows: –

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

(1-Hare)
Krishna steals the minds of everyone, yet Radha steals even His mind by Her divine expertise. Thus She is known as Haraa.

(2-Krishna)
He forcibly attracts Sri Radha with the sweet sound of His flute, therefore that Lord of all enchantin

We read from Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Chapter Three: “Karma-yoga.”

TEXT 41

tasmat tvam indriyany adau niyamya bharatarsabha papmanam prajahi hy enam jnana-vijnana-nasanam

TRANSLATION

Therefore, O Arjuna, best of the Bharatas, in the very beginning curb this great symbol of sin [lust] by regulating the senses, and slay this destroyer of knowledge and self-realization.

PURPORT by Srila Prabhupada

The Lord advised Arjuna to regulate the senses from the very beginning so that he could curb the great

From Back to Godhead

If God is inconceivable, as the scriptures state, can we really know anything about Him?

Sri Isopanisad states that Krsna is simultaneously very far away and very close. The Vedic scripturesencourage us: The best way to know Krsna and bring Him closer is to hear about Him.

As we open any book about Krsna, we’ll immediately feel the richness of the clear and scientific knowledge it contains. We’ll also come to understand that Krsna is by nature inconceivable to finite beings

(English version of the ‘Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu’ by Sri Rupa Goswami)

Edited by Tridandi Goswami Abhay Charan Bhaktivedanta Swami

Text

Akhilla, Rasa, Amrita, Murti, Prasrmara, Ruci, Ruddha, Taraka, Pali, Kalita, Syama, Lalita, Radha, Preyan, Bidhu, Jayati.

Akhila=All inclusive, Rasa=Mellow, Zest, Amrita=Nectar, Murti=Form, Prasrmara=Expanding, Ruchi=Attractive features, Ruddha=Controlling, Taraka=of the name, Pali=of the name, Kalita=Influenced by, Syama=of the name, Lalita=of the name, Radha=

Sri Krsna Madhura Utsava There are various festivities where Lord Krishna's rasa lila is celebrated - this festival being just one of them. 

The purnima or full moon of Damodara month is the second full moon of the autumn season, and rasa lila is again celebrated. This second rasa yatra is celebrated more in Bengal, whereas the first one is celebrated more in Vrndavana. 

On this day one should perform full worship of Radha and Krsna with many flowers, and place them in a rasa mandapa surrounded

“Vedic Culture Hasn’t Been Preached Properly”

Chapter 13 of the book “Civilization and Transcendence”

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Next question, Śrīla Prabhupāda. “Do you envision a different role for the Vedic culture in the Western countries, where the influence of other great religions has been felt for centuries?”

Śrīla Prabhupāda: No. There is no “different role.” God is one. God cannot be two.

As Kṛṣṇa states in the Bhagavad-gītā [7.7], mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: “There is no author

As we read the scripture and hear from the spiritual master, we will hear both easy and difficult instructions. We’ll naturally be attracted to those that seem easier to follow, but the two types of instruction have a unity of purpose.

One of the most encouraging verses I have found in Bhagavad-gita is 2.40: “In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.” A similar verse can be found in the ninth chap

Have you ever experienced the sensation that your mind is without a clear purpose, akin to a playful child stirring up mischief? If you have, rest assured that you are not alone. Our minds, by their very nature, can be unruly, much like an unsupervised child in a room. To restore order, we must become the responsible adult in charge of our thoughts.

This concept is not only relatable but also rooted in profound wisdom from the Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. In these ancient texts, we disc

FIRST CONTACT WITH THE HOLY SOUND

My life took an apical turn when I stumbled across the Hare Krishnas. Being born in India I had some knowledge of “Krishna” but I was like most Indians are – conscious of Krishna but not Krishna Conscious. Being just “conscious of Krishna” didn’t mollify my thirst for happiness. When I was introduced to the programs conducted by the Hare Krishnas near our college campus new hope dawned upon me. What mesmerized me the most in these programs was the chanting of t

By Sri Nandanandana dasa (Stephen Knapp)

(An Excerpt from “Advancements of Ancient India’s Vedic Culture”)

As devotees and followers of the Vedic path, we already accept the premise that Lord Krishna appeared 5,000 years ago and spoke the Bhagavad-gita in the Mahabharata war. But it is always nice when scholars, other researchers and science can add support to what we already propose. So let’s take a look at this.

One aspect that can show us the early nature of Vedic society, and with a little

By Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami

It was Janmastami, the annual celebration of the advent of Lord Krsna some five thousand years before. Residents of Calcutta, mostly Vaisnavas (devotees of Lord Krsna) but also many Muslims and even some British, were observing the festive day, moving here and there through the city’s streets to visit the temples of Lord Krsna. Devout Vaisnavas, fasting until midnight, chanted Hare Krsna and heard about the birth and activities of Krsna from Srimad-Bhagavatam, one of