Spiritual Life Is Difficult, but Material Life Is Impossible

by Madhumangala Dasa (South Africa)

One Sunday in Dar es Salaam, Bhakta Deepak suggested we go visit a friend of his who was a top executive at Pepsi Cola. "Maybe we could interest him in Prabhupada's books," Deepak said. "I preached to him before, but had no luck. Maybe you'll do better."

When we arrived the executive invited us into his apartment as Deepak introduced me to him and his wife and daughter. When he mentioned that he was f

So we are planning, one after another, various plans to be very happy in this material world. But they will not make us happy -- that's a fact -- because this place is certified by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as duhkhalayam asasvatam: [Bg. 8.15] "This is a place for misery." This material world is a place for misery. This body is meant for suffering miseries, and the land is meant for suffering miseries. That we do not understand. But we are placed in a miserable condition all round. That

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupad

In 1962, four nervous young musicians played their first record audition for the executives of the Decca Recording Company. The executives were not impressed. While turning down this group of musicians, one executive said, "We don't like their sound. Guitars are on the way out." The group was called The Beatles.

When Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, he tried over 2000 experiments before he got it to work. A young rep

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupad

The husband and wife gifted themselves a new car for their first wedding anniversary. They drove downtown, watched a movie, and finally returned home. They didn't have the garage facility. So the car was parked in the street. To their utter shock, when they woke up the next morning, the car was missing. The car was stolen. First car, first wedding anniversary gift, and they had enjoyed the car for just a day. The wife cou

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupad

“Asatī means a woman who has become a prostitute. A prostitute has no reputation for good womanly qualities. Similarly, the tongue, which is given to the human being for chanting the Vedic hymns, will be considered a prostitute if it is engaged in the matter of chanting some mundane nonsense.” [SB 2.3.20-21]

Our spiritual life begins from the tongue (Jihvādau). Atah śrī-krishna-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaih, sevonmuk

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Madana, or Cupid means sex attraction and Krishna is called Madana-mohana. One can neglect even sex attraction if one is attracted to Krishna. Madana is attracting in this material world – everyone is attracted by sex life. The whole material world exists on sex life. This is the fact. Yan maithunādi-grhamedhi-suhkham hi tuccham. Here, the so-called happiness – is maithuna, or sex. Here happiness begins from sexual inte

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Material things mean forgetfulness of Krishna. Otherwise there is nothing material. It is illusion. Illusion means actually there is nothing material. How can it be material? If the Supreme Lord is the Supreme Spirit and everything is coming from Him, so what we call the material energy, is also coming from the Supreme. Inferior energy means where there is possibility of forgetting Krishna.

Actually, that is the fact. Pe

Dear and Respected Vaisnavis,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. On behalf of the Vrindavana Institute for Higher Education, I am heartilyinviting you to take part in the upcoming third International VaisnaviRetreat, to be held at the foothill of Sri Giriraja Govardhana from February20 to 24, 2013.

We have organized this year's schedule so it includes Sri NityanandaPrabhu's appearance day festival. Thus the theme of the retreat seminars andactivities will be: "In

1)AFFIRM- Affirm and continue to affirm until you believe that with Sri Krishna's help you can cope with the difficulty.

2)NO PANIC- Let there be no panic, for a difficulty can never be handled emotionally. Always keep it cool.

3)ORGANISE- Organise the difficulty. Take it apart and study its component elements. New insights will come to you.

4)THINK- Always apply sound and reasonable thinking.

5)WHY ME?-  Do not ask, "Why me?" or feel imposed upon when any difficulty comes. That is the way life is.

Sri Krsna's form glistens with the black mascara of the sweetness of His nectarean handsomeness. His complexion is the color of a blue lotus flower or a sapphire.

His complexion is as enchanting as an emerald, a tamala tree, or a group of beautiful dark clouds. He is an ocean of nectarean handsomeness. He wears yellow garments and a garland of forest flowers. He is decorated with various jewels and He is a great reservoir of the nectar of many transcendental pastimes.

He has long, curling hair and

Sankirtan Enthusiasm in Toronto

Dear Prabhu,
Hare Krishna!

Please accept my humble obeisances.All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Please find some Sankirtan nectar from one of our Sankirtan warriors in Toronto. He not only goes out personally often but is encouraging many many others to go with him. He is not very proficient with English but his initial words were rewritten by one of his Godbrothers in Toronto.

Your Servant,

Mahabhagavat Das

*SANKIRTAN ENTHUSIASM IN TORONTO*

Hare Krishna Everyone! Please

I aimed at a beautiful flower in the branches of a tall tree. But I lost my balance and consequently fell into a pond. I was disappointed. My eyes were filled with tears. But when I regained calmness, I saw many beautiful lotus floating around me. This is life. God makes you fall at times, to fill your life with good virtues. God takes away what you desire, to give you more than what you desired for.

Jai Shree Krishna............

So if you want to be not fearfulness, no more fear, abhayam sattva-samsuddhih, if you become out of fearfulness then you have to take shelter of the lotus feet of Krsna. Therefore Krsna is begging. Because we are Krsna's sons or we have got very intimate relationship with Krsna and we have given Him up and we have forgotten Him, therefore we are suffering. So Krsna, being father, Krsna, being friend of everyone, He comes, and He canvasses, and at last He says, "You rascal," sarva-dharman paritya

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Hare Krsna

Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Synergistic Preaching with Vaisesika Prabhu

I had a most uplifting time at the Toronto temple this past weekend because I had the exhilirating association of His Grace Vaisesika Prabhu. I was standing outside the temple, waiting to drive the devotees to Kensington Market to do book distribution and Harinama. An older Indian gentleman I had met in the washroom introduced himself as Davinder, and now he came up to me and started to glorify Srila Prabhupada.

He said, "Srila Prabhupada performed mira

Report from Malawi

Malawi, in Africa, is a place where very few have heard of Krsna. But there are many people here who are always ready to buy the books, and as soon as they look at them, they say how beautiful they are.

Once I went into a bakery named Ali Baba Bakery and showed the books to the fair-skinned man at the cash counter. His name was Nicholas and he was immediately interested. He took SSR, Raja Vidya, Beyond Birth and Death, and Perfection of Yoga. He paid half the amount and asked me

Exploring the Roots of Spiritual Culture

A New and Tremendously Transformational Course for Ladies

While serving in Bangladesh for the last twelve years and observing the power and beauty of its still intact Vaisnava culture, we meditated upon and developed this course to empower ISKCON's Vaisnavis to enter into this culture regardless of where they live in world.

We facilitated 'Exploring the Roots of Spiritual Culture' for the first time last January in Mayapur, and then in Ukraine during June, a