Women in ISKCON are all devotees and therefore glorious. Some of them are clearly advanced from their previous lives. They should be regarded with all due respect—from a distance. If they are serious devotees, they will respect your strictness.

Due to lack of training or attachment to women’s lib ideas, women devotees may sometimes act improperly with you. Better let it pass, and not make a scene out of it. Women are supposed to be trained in chastity, but modern women aren’t. We men also may sti

If one can stay a brahmacari without being unduly agitated by sex desire, that is by far the best situation from which to aim at going back to Godhead. Without the heavy burden of family responsibilities, the distractions of social life, and the ever-present opportunity for sense gratification, the brahmacari can live simply and peacefully and dedicate his whole life and energy to understanding Krishna. Without having to cater to the expectations of often-materialistic relatives, his only obliga

“You must be crazy”, yelled the manager on hearing that we practise celibacy and live in a monastery. I was presenting spiritual literature in the streets of Mumbai to a group of software professionals and their leader asked me about my life. I told him we get up early in the morning around 3.30 to 4.00 am and our day is packed with various services. He interrupted me and expressed shock at our schedules. I reasoned that we are happier now with this lifestyle than we were earlier. He wondered ho

One of the important qualities that an apprentice monk (also known as brahmachari) needs to cultivate is the quality of tolerance. The ether all around is filled with the vibrations of exploitation and wild fulfillment of one’s sensual desires. Even a seasoned brahmachari, if he is not careful and alert could be affected by these vibrations. Having decided to practice celibacy, a monk confronts many challenges, primarily from his own mind and senses. Hence it isn’t an easy going life; on the con

5 Habits for a Celibate Monk (Vidyarthi Pancha Lakshana)
1) Kaaka Snaan (bath like a crow)
2) Baka Dhyaan ( Meditate like a Stork)
3) Alpa Bhojan ( Eat only little food)
4) Svaan Nidra ( Sleep like a Dog)
5) Videsh gaman ( always away from home)
Kaaka Snan: If you happen to see a crow taking bath, he is super quick. Similarly a celibate should take bath very quickly. Of course that doesn’t mean a celibate should remain unclean. What it means is we should take a good clean bath, but avoid spending a

Preaching to nondevotees should generally not be about celibacy, but about the need to become Krishna conscious. If they take up Krishna consciousness then everything else will follow. Newcomers to Krishna consciousness are sometimes discouraged by so many restrictions, especially those on sex. They should be encouraged to chant, take prasada, and associate with devotees. If they want sex life, that is not forbidden—in the grihastha-ashrama. On the other hand, if a young man is ready to be a bra

How many of us would not be tempted when someone offers us a Mercedes Benz car as a gift? We will be floored by the honour. However there is a small catch. The car contains a bomb which can explode any time. How many of us will be delighted to be the proud owner of such a car now? We would think that no sane men will ever think to own such a car. But is it so? We daily ride in a vehicle which has the same destination as that of the car with a bomb. And the vehicle is our ‘body’. Death can come a

As Garuda is the enemy of snakes, as impersonalism is the enemy of devotion, so lust is the enemy of the conditioned soul. It is the first of three gateways to hell. (Bg. 16.21)  Lust is so powerful that it may seem impossible to overcome. The brahmacari vows to fight sex desire, and may sometimes think he is winning the battle, only to find himself again plunged into the ocean of material desire.

This is due to previous samskaras (impressions in the citta, subconsciousness). Every activity, thou

Shréla Prabhupäda wanted gurukulas, to give children the opportunity to easily perfect their lives and go back home, back to Godhead. Shréla Prabhupäda: “If one practices devotional service from the beginning of his life, surely he will return home, back to Godhead, without a doubt.” (SB 9.9.42) Whatever deficiencies ISKCON gurukulas may have had, they are special because they are centered around Krishna. Because Shréla Prabhupäda saw the modern schools as indoctrinating the helpless children in

TOVP Asks One Square Foot

TOVP Asks Every ISKCON Devotee for One Square Foot

http://news.iskcon.com/node/4875#ixzz2JNnUW1jW

By Madhava Smullen for ISKCON News on 25 Jan 2013

“Nityananda Prabhu predicted that there will be an Adbhuta Mandir in Mayapur. Adbhuta means something very different."

At a meeting of the ISKCON Bureau of India on January 10th, Radha Jivan Das laid out his new plan for funding Srila Prabhupada’s passion project, the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium in Mayapur, West Bengal.

In his

Every being is an individual. All the rules and regulations in the world can’t snuff out a person’s individuality. So despite the brahmacäré’s adherence to a strict regime, there are all kinds of characters in the brahmacäré-äshrama. Eccentricity is not uncommon amongst those who strive for the extraordinary, and brahmacärés are no exception. Everyone has idiosyncrasies, and these become more apparent when we live lives of constant endeavor with little or no privacy—there are quite a few singula

“Carrying pure kusha grass in his hand, the brahmacäré should dress regularly with a belt of straw and with deerskin garments. He should wear matted hair, carry a rod and waterpot and be decorated with a sacred thread, as recommended in the shästras.” (SB 7.12.4)

This is Närada Muni’s description of a brahmacäré’s apparel. Shréla Prabhupäda, the äcärya for the modern age in the line of Närada Muni, dressed his brahmacärés in saffron and had them shave their heads.

ISKCON brahmacärés should have a

A pure devotee of Krishna is satisfied to do any service for Krishna, however menial it may appear to be. The brahmacari is trained like that—to do whatever is asked of him. Even if he is highly qualified, a brahmacari is always ready and willing to do the needful in Krishna’s service, including all kinds of humble services. The ideal brahmacari performs all kinds of services quickly, efficiently, and cheerfully.
In the traditional gurukula system, young children are strictly disciplined. As the

Good association is essential to help maintain the determination necessary for making strong progress in spiritual life. On the other hand, bad association can easily and quickly destroy whatever spiritual development we have made. Throughout his books Shrila Prabhupada again and again stresses the need for proper association. A few quotes:

“Without the association (of persons who are Krishna conscious and engaged in devotional service) one cannot make advancement. Simply by theoretical knowledge

“Of all the living entities who have accepted material bodies in this world, one who has been awarded this human form should not work hard day and night simply for sense gratification, which is available for the dogs and hogs that eat stool. One should engage in penance and austerity to attain the divine position of devotional service. By such activity, one’s heart is purified, and when one attains this position, he attains eternal, blissful life, which is transcendental to material happiness an

“My dear Arjuna, O winner of wealth, if you cannot fix your mind upon Me without deviation, then follow the regulative principles of bhakti-yoga. In this way develop a desire to attain Me.” (Bg. 12.9)

Good sadhana is the basis of steady advancement in Krishna consciousness. Brahmacari life is traditionally centered around sadhana: chanting mantras, studying the scriptures, and worship.

Shrila Prabhupada gave us a standard morning program of mangala-arati, tulasi-arati, Deity greeting, guru-puja, a

This material world in which we live is too strong to deal with. As a soul we have a unique ability to adapt ourselves to any situation, however unpleasant it might be. Once Indra, the king of heaven, committed some grievous mistake and as a result he was cursed by sage Narada to take birth on earthly planet as a hog. So, Indra became a hog and started living on earth. In due course of time he grew, got married and became the proud father of dozens of piglets. He even became the leader of the ho

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Two Wolves Within Us

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all."

"One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego."

"The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolen

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Criticism is something all of us must face

The truth is, critics are a fact of life, and criticism is something all of us must face. In fact, the only way to avoid criticism is to live an isolated life where people aren’t exposed to your work, personality, or behavior. Sometimes the criticism we receive is valuable, even helpful. 

If you think about it, a landslide political victory would be one where the winner received 6