From Back to Godhead
A discussion on the options for the soul under the influence of Krishna’s material energy.
A controversy arose during a Sunday discussion at ISKCON’s Saranagati Village, in British Columbia, Canada. Some devotees quoted a famousBhagavad-gita verse (3.27) where Krishna says, “The spirit soul bewildered by the influence of false ego thinks himself the doer of activities that are in actuality carried out by the three modes of nature [goodness, passion, and ignorance].”
In othe
By Indira-sakhi Devi Dasi
Srila Prabhupada stressed that character development was an inseparable part of education. He explained that the teachers themselves should be exemplary role models to successfully impart Vedic knowledge to the students.
You are right when you say that setting a good example for the boys is the best precept. There is a saying that an example is better than a precept. Our exemplary character depends on strictly following the four principles, and this will conquer the
From Back to Godhead
The Vedic contribution to one of the central debates in Western philosophy.
Sam Surya goes to his city’s orphanage one day and makes a large donation. Elsewhere in town, Andy Andhakara robs a bank. What led these two to make such drastically different choices? Was it their own volition, or the force of some other factor? In other words, were their actions predetermined, or did Sam and Andy have free will?
These questions concern one of the pivotal debates in Western philoso
(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=
“Update on HG Caitanya Candra prabhu,initiating guru and president of Gadai Giri temple, who has been in ICU in Bhuvansevara hosptial for over one month. He is the senior disciple of HH Gaura Govinda Maharaja and has many disciples in Orisssa, Europe and elsewhere. He has been suffering severely from pneumonia and being diabetic the condition deteriorated leading to hospitalisation. other complications developed and now his condition is extremely serious. Please keep him in your prayers and tho
By Nrsimhananda Das
In the early 90’s, Gopavrndapal prabhu (now B.V. Giri Maharaja) and I were enrolled by HH Bhakti Caru Swami to write the treatments for the first episodes of his opus, “Abhay Charan.” We were roomed together in the Juhu guest house where we were tasked with creating drama from the milestones of Srila Prabhupada’s life. In a month of intense research, discussions, and writing, we somehow squeezed out 18 treatments. I flew to Los Angeles where I gave those treatments to Amala-
Have you checked, if your heart longs for Krishna or is still attached to things of this world?
Externally we may dress perfectly, speak expertly, recite shlokas scholarly, sing melodiously but these qualities may not attract the attention of the Lord. Maybe we are doing it to seek people’s attention and self-glorification.
Krishna hardly bothers about our externals instead he directly peeps into our heart to see whether our heart longs for him or it hankers for something else.
When Duryodhana
Religious News Service (RNS), a global leader in news coverage of religion, ethics, and spirituality, recently published an article on the challenges that ISKCON devotees in Ukraine have experienced over the past few years. The article’s author, Tori Luecking, interviewed Niranjana Swami, Acyuta Priya Dasa, and Ukrainian devotees for the profile. Ukraine is home to an estimated 15,000 ISKCON devotees.
You can read the full article here.
Devotees worldwide are invited to celebrate a 24-Hour Kirtan event in Birmingham, UK, to be held on May 4-5, 2024. The occasion promises to be an unforgettable spiritual experience as it marks the 25th year of the gathering and will be held in a new venue that can accommodate up to 2,000 guests.
“For a quarter of a century, we have come together every year to immerse ourselves in the chanting of Lord Krishna’s name, inspired by Aindra Das and Tribhuvannatha Das,” said Mayapur Madhava Das, one o
It was a long day and night rather a big blur off time, coming from an eastern time zone, headed west back to Canada from India on a 16 hour flight.
There's not too much to report. I occupied myself in japa meditation and saw a few wildlife documentaries. Also there was a beautiful song that was ringing in my ears, it was the piece, a spiritualist song, quite bluesy, which we incorporated in our drama, "The Age of Kali." Here it is.
PART 1 Hush, hush, somebodies calling my name
Hush, som
Many of our ācārya have said and written on Gauranga-Nāma. Bhakti-vinoda Ṭhākura has written in his Gaurāṅg-līlā-smaraṇa-maṅgala Stotram as follows:
nāmāparādhaṁ sakalaṁ vināśya
caitanya-nāmāśrita-mānavānām
bhaktiṁ parāṁ yah pradadau janebhyas
taṁ gauracandraṁ praṇamāmi bhaktyā
"With devotion I bow before Lord Gauracandra, who for they who take shelter of the name Caitanya destroys all offenses to the holy names, and who gives transcendental devotional service to the living entities."
Even if one has
On December 26th, 2023, around 25 ISKCON youth from around the world gathered at the Senator Hotel in Kolkata for the 2nd Annual Global Youth Retreat in Kolkata and Mayapur. The much anticipated transformative 10-day retreat, organized by Inner Yoga Retreats, is a youth yatra led by Vaisesika Dasa and his wife, Nirakula Devi Dasi.
The retreat was designed to help youth who are on their winter vacation immerse themselves in Krishna Consciousness in the holy dham. This year, we explored Srila Pra
On March 26th, UK devotees performed at a special live music event in honor of Alan Ginsberg. They came at the invitation of musician and producer “Youth,” who hosted the event, which raised money for Food for Life prasadam distribution efforts.
“Poet Allen Ginsberg had a lot of personal association with Srila Prabhupada whom he helped on a number of occasions in New York, San Francisco, Columbus and elsewhere,” said a Food for All statement, “While being interviewed in various magazines, journ
There is this nice policeman who comes to participate in the early morning temple program at 4.30am. Now it's just my first time seeing him but I'm told he's a regular attendee. I've been out of town.
There he is in full police regalia just come off of his shift from work. He is ever so pleasant and stands up, like on duty, throughout the mangal territory.
I joked with him. "You make us feel safe in your company." He smiled.
I'm happy for him not only because he renders a valuable servic
By Bhaktin Diksha and Bhaktin Khusi (IGF Akola)
A fifth Vaishanvi padayatra was held recently in Amravati. Our Vaishanavi’s group at Akola’sISKCON Bhaktivedanta Vedic Cultural Centrewas much inspired by the event and with a desire to please our spiritual master, Lokanath Maharaja, and the constant motivation ofAmravati’s Jayabhadra devi dasi, we organized a Vaishnavi padayatra for March 17, 2024.
We had very little time to prepare but we had online meetings withJayabhadra devi dasi to understa
Dear follower of Srila Prabhupada,
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Thank you for submitting so many heartfelt homages to Srila Prabhupada last year. You can view the full 2023 Vyasa-puja book here:
https://gbc.iskcon.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/spvp2023.pdf
This year we request you to submit your homage by April 2, 2024 by emailing it to vphomages@iskcon.net. Below are the standard parameters.
Hoping this meets you well, we remain
Your servants on the Sr
By Atma Tattva Das
In Zambia’s vibrant landscape, amidst the bustling cities and serene countryside, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) has cultivated deep roots, fostering spiritual growth and sporadic community engagement for over four decades. ISKCON Zambia’s journey reflects not just a spiritual effort but a tapestry of challenges, triumphs, and a vision for a harmonious society.
The seeds of ISKCON’s presence in Zambia were sown over 40 years ago when devotees led
A package arrived just before the strike of noon. Sent from a distance Florida, through USPS the contents were special - a strand of japa meditation beads. They belong to a Deborah Lynn, a resident of Florida. The timely arrival of this paraphernalia was set for Deborah's initiation who through a zoom call with Floridian friends on board and where within seconds at 12 Noon I was to kickstart an initiation ceremony called diksha.
My God, Krishna works in mysterious ways with time. Deborah is
The connection between a devotee and Laddu Gopal is deep and profound. But still many devotes are not aware how to worship and dress laddu gopal. In this article we have a short guide for you.
It’s true that by worshiping Laddu Gopal, we invite the divine presence of Lord Krishna into our homes and lives. The process of worshiping Laddu Gopal involves not only offering prayers but also dressing him in beautiful laddu gopal dress, which holds significant importance.
