The flight to Toronto from Halifax is a mere two hour event. A nice man, Panchal, was there, on the jiffy, at the pick up lone to take me to the home of Kishor Mani, and the two purposes of my coming was to attend a Yajna, or sacrifice, in honour of his son, Arnav. Secondly, I had come to see my dear friend, BB Govinda Swami, who conducted an ecstatic kirtan the night before at Mani's house. Sorry, I missed it. We had our own ecstasy in Halifax the day before.
Arnav, by the way, is a master ch
By Karuna Shakti Devi Dasi and Radha Krishna Devi Dasi
On Sunday, June 23, 2024, in the heart of the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada, a colourful and jubilant parade wound its way through Kelowna’s lakeside City Park. The Festival of Chariots was a first for the city, and it was met with much excitement from locals, with an unexpected 1,500 people in attendance.
VIP guests included the “Walking Monk” himself, Bhaktimarga Swami, Mayor Tom Dyas, Councillor Mohini Singh, and Kelowna La
The biggest concern for today’s Ratha Yatra Chariot Fest, was the weather conditions. All week long the sun was with us but repots were indicative of rain for this day. The forecast was quite accurate. It became a wet day, however, the spirit of the organizers for making it a happy day for God, Jagannatha, was admirable. And when you consider that this is Father’s Day weekend, we have every reason to be grateful to the greatest creator, provider and protector of them all. Jagannatha means “Lor
Srila Srivasa Pandit, the fifth member of the Panca-tattva, appeared in Srihatta, West Bengal, about 30 years before the appearance of Lord Gauranga. Srivasa Pandit lived in Navadvip before the advent of Lord Chaitanya.
Living the traditional brahminical life, he and his younger brothers, Srinidhi, Sripati and Srirama, worshipped Lord Krishna, performing devotional service and bathing thrice daily in the Ganges. On his order, they moved to Navadvip and began to associate with the senior and re
Srivasa Pandita is one of the members of the Pancha-tattva: sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu-nityananda sri-advaita gadadhara srivasa. Vedic authorities state that in the current Age of Kali, Krishna came as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Balarama came as Sri Nityananda Prabhu. Similarly, Maha-vishnu appeared as Advaita Acharya, Srimati Radharani as Gadadhara Pandita, and Narada Muni as Srivasa Pandita.
panca-tattvatmakam krsnam
bhakta-rupa-svarupakam
bhaktavataram bhaktakhyam
namami bhakta-saktikam
Ecstatic kīrtans and nectarean discourses on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. All night long this was the typical sight observed in the house of ŚrīvāsaPaṇḍita. Why was ŚrīvāsaĀṅgan chosen? What was its specialty? Dive below to know more.
With hands folded and head finely tilted to its left stands the tall deity of Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita – the fifth member of the Pañca-tattva – at the alter in Śrīdhāma Māyāpur. Hailing from Śrīhaṭṭa[modern day Sylhet], he was the second among the five sons of his father Śrī Jaladhar
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a personal relationship with Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu? To talk with Him face-to-face, and have loving exchanges with Him? It’s not something we can speculate about or artificially induce. But we can hear about such loving exchanges, learn from them and become attracted and attached to entering into them as a humble servant of the servant. Today, let’s visit the world of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His very dear associate and servant, Srivasa T
By Ramacarya Das
The ISKCON Saint Louis, Missouri Center celebrated its 2024 Chariot Festival on Saturday, June 22nd, at Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park. The popular park is located in a diverse neighborhood in the heart of the city where many people come to walk and enjoy the beautiful lake amenities.
After the success of last year’s Chariot Festival, the anticipation of celebrating yet another successful one was running high among devotees who excitedly prepared for this year’s event. Hundred
By Gandharvika prema Dasi
In May, the 2024 Eco Odyssey Conference was held in Krishna Valley, Hungary. It brought together hundreds of attendees and renowned experts to explore practical and theoretical aspects of social sustainability. Highlighting Krishna Valley’s sustainable initiatives, the event provided valuable insights and tangible solutions for a sustainable future.
The devotees in Hungary held a major conference in Krishna Valley (New Vraja-dhama), focusing on various aspects of socia
I got to that trail along Governor’s Lake and the Chain of Lakes extension nice and early at 4.30 am. I certainly was the only one there but before long a heron squawked, and a loon cried its long-drawn-out sound indicating the morning has begun. A wild rabbit scurried across the trail. When a human appeared, I was told by that friendly morning person that she saw a beaver in the lake working on home improvement. It was on top of its lodge adding wood branches to its dome.
To me, these are a
haktivedanta Manor was delighted to welcome Mathili Takur, the Cultural Ambassador of the Year as awarded by Prime Minister Modi. During her first visit to London, Takur performed the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra, and several bhajans dedicated to Lord Rama, captivating a full haveli with her soulful renditions.
In addition to her mesmerizing performance, she spent quality time with the ISKCON Pandava Sena youth group, engaging with the young devotees and sharing her musical journey and cultural ins
Sri Badrinath Dhama Yatra
1. Sri Badri Vishal Temple
2. Charana Paduka – Footprints of Lord Nara-Narayana
3. Neelkantha Mountain – The Shining Pyramid
4. Keshav Prayag and Sarasvati River at Mana Village
5. Vyasa Gufa - The Cave of Vyasadeva
6. Bhima Pul - Bridge of Bhima
7. Leela Dungi - Appearance site of Lord Nara-Narayana
8. Urvasi Temple
9. Mata Murti Templ
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi
On June 22, 2024, devotees worldwide celebrated the Snana Yatra festival with great love and devotion.
Held on the full moon day of the month of Jyestha, the festival signifies the bathing of Lord Jagannatha, Baladeva, Subhadra, and Sudarsana chakra. After the holy bath, the Deities are dressed in Their Ganapati or Hasti Vesha (elephant outfits). Under the plea of catching a fever, Their Lordships retire from public view for two weeks, reappearing to the publ
By Uttamasloka Das
Once again, The Lord of the Universe, Lord Jagannath, along with His brother Baladeva and Sister Subhadra, have decided to enact Their Rath Yatra pastime on the streets of Chicago, Illinois. This year, the parade and festival took place on June 16th (Father’s Day), beginning just one block north of the prestigious Loyola University, and the ensuing festival took place at Loyola Beach Park, just under a mile from where Their Lordships preside with Sri Sri Kisora Kisora and Sri
I was told of a secret entrance to the trail along Governor’s Lake. Anchal and Ambarish, my hosts, hinted, “Go behind Trinity Church and there you will see a worn-out path leading to a small bridge over the creek and there you’ll find the Trans Canada Trail.” I took the advice, hit that path and trekked my way along until meeting Hiren. Now both of us edged forward with japa beads in hand and for that relatively short stretch we met a cyclist originally from Montreal, who stopped.
“This is H
Discipline methods should be in harmony with our educational goals. And what is the goal of gurukula education? Many devotees have proposed their own objectives. Here are a few: to produce moral citizens, to produce “not hippies,” to produce productive members of the outside society who can maintain devotional principles, to produce book distributors, to produce temple devotees, or to produce varnasrama members.
To help us decide the proper goal of gurukula, let’s look at the often quoted descr
From Back to Godhead
We all worship someone all of us but the question is…
One of the principles of worship is at traction. When you are reverentially attracted to someone, you have the desire to establish a relationship with that person, and when the relationship is established then you want to perform some worship. Therefore the most important principle is attraction. So the question is what makes a person attractive?
In a spiritual discourse if we announce beforehand that there will be a lec
At the request of the Volunteers Care Council (VCC), Bhagavati dasi and Palika dasi built a relationship with Vasanti Gosai who is based in Brook Water House care home in Palmers Green.
Since January they have been discussing scriptures with her, and together they sing small kirtans.
This was very much appreciated by the care home: So Vasanti , her family and the devotees organised a program for other residents, and their friends and family.
During the event, Mahimarnava das and Bishal came fr
After an 18-month hiatus, the Sankirtan On! Podcast is back for its second season. Sankirtan On!, an initiative of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, began four years ago and has already shared nearly 50 episodes of inspiring content. The podcast aims to be a “hub for captivating Sankirtan stories, practical tips and tricks, and boundless inspiration from around the globe.”
Episode One of Season Two, hosted by Manya and Radhakirthi, is a conversation with Vaisesika Dasa, an early pioneer in book dis
It’s good to be back on television again. Not since 2017, the summer, when I did my U.S. Walk did, I have had much opportunity to get on the TV camera. This morning it was Global TV that interviewed Savyasachin and me with host Paul Brothers, as we talked about the weekend Chariot Fest.
I was introduced with my Sanskrit name and the more common “The Walking Monk.” And after Savya gave details of what’s to come with the fest at Citadel Hill, and my pilgrimage ventures, it was Paul who started to
