Lynchburg, Tennessee
Here they tell us about their self-sufficient spiritual community in the Appalachian foothills.
In the southern Appalachian foothills, near Lynchburg, Tennessee, you’ll find another kind of farming community.
“We started out in 1976,” says Balavanta Dasa. “At first we figured we’d just plant corn or some other cash crop and make a lot of money for Krsna. But when I told our spiritual master Srila Prabhupada, he sat back thoughtfully and said, ‘Making money on our farm? That
We are all very fortunate, whether we are present in person or whether we are present through electronic means, because it does not really matter. It is transcendental sound vibration and it is the connection with this sound that is very important. Srila Prabhupada was very unique because he had faith in recordings and he recorded the Holy Name and he had faith that all the potency was in this Holy Name. This was revolutionary! Prabhupada would give second initiation by tape where he would spea
Bhagavad-gita is having an influence on a friend of mine and on my sister-in-law.
I received a shipment of these books and asked Krishna to help me distribute them to those ready to receive this knowledge. So far, I distributed two Gitas.
The first was to my sister-in-law, who has always been searching for this sort of knowledge. Like me, she searched high and low, only to be dissatisfied with the results of her searches.
When I received the book, I instantly understood that what it contains is
On my way to speaking at Ohio State University (OSU) last night, I visited Hitchcock Hall, where Srila Prabhupada and Allen Ginsberg had presented a program. And I reread the account of the event in BTG, which began, “On the night of May 12, 1969, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and poet Allen Ginsberg filled a campus auditorium at Ohio State University in Columbus to twice its capacity. About two thousand students flooded the stage and aisles, and soon after His Divine Gra
Last Sunday our Bhakti Academy group had a reading from the Krishna Book about Govardhan Hill and the torrential rains sent forth by the angry god of thunder, Indra. Since that time, it has been raining every day, and today was no exception. Torrential? No! But wet? Yes.
A window of opportunity for a walk arose when the same group felt a dry spell this afternoon, but then drizzle and double/triple time came, just as they, and I, entered Ramsden Park. The only shelter from Indra’s liquid was the
Q.
Dear Bada Haridas,
I led my first kirtan yesterday evening! I was wondering what is the role of the kirtan leader? I know that practically speaking they are playing an instrument and singing the mantra for the group to repeat, but what is their job spiritually?
I felt a little bit nervous to take on the task at first and was wondering if you could share some of your wisdom in that regard. Hare Krishna!
A.
Glad to hear you are leading kirtan. Thank you for asking such a nice question and for
By Sri Nandanandana dasa (Stephen Knapp)
There have been some people who have declared that the worship of Deities or images or the murti in the temples is but a recent invention of Vedic culture. However, that is not an accurate point. It is true that according to the different yugas or ages (such as Satya-yuga, Treta-yuga, Dvapara-yuga, and Kali-yuga) there are different processes for spiritual development that have been more recommended than others. For example, meditation was the recommende
In Kingdom of God, there is no hunger, thirst, birth and death, old age, disease, etc. Thus without these sufferings that draw our consciousness in the material world, keeping us absorbed in sorting out problems of life in material world, one can simply focus on service to Supreme Lord without any impediments.
The Vaikuntha residents while travelling in their Airplanes condemn the fragrance of Madhavi flowers in ponds, which indicate
Though Prabhupada was present for only the first eleven years of ISKCON’s fifty-year history, he continues to guide and inspire his followers to expand what he began.
“It’s an astonishing story. If someone told you a story like this, you wouldn’t believe it. Here’s this person, he’s seventy years old, he’s going to a country where he’s never been before, he doesn’t know anybody there, he has no money, has no contacts. He has none of the things, you would say, that make for success. He’s going
ceto-darpana-marjanam bhava-maha-davagni-nirvapanam
sreyah-kairava-candrika-vitaranam vidya-vadhu-jivanam
anandambudhi-vardhanam prati-padam purnamrtasvadanam
sarvatma-snapanam param vijayate sri-krsna-sankirtanam
“Let there be all victory for the chanting of the holy name of Lord Hari, Lord Krishna, which can cleanse the mirror of the heart and stop the miseries of the blazing fire of material existence. That chanting is the waxing moon which spreads the white lotus of good fortune for all l
By Thomas Haribol
Devotees worldwide have sent their heartfelt prayers to His Holiness Sivarama Swami Maharaja, who was recently hospitalized in Budapest on Sunday, June 25th. He has faced several health challenges over the last few months, most especially chronic spinal issues, making walking difficult. He successfully underwent minimally invasive surgery on Monday. Despite less-than-ideal conditions, he continues to work on his writing projects.
Today, he hosted nine doctors and nurses for pr
June 28- Tragedy struck during a ‘Phera Rath’ (return chariot) procession in Kumarghat, Tripura, where multiple devotees died of electrocution when a chariot top made contact with a 133kv overhead cable during the parade. The fatal incident occurred around 4:30 pm on Wednesday. Emergency personnel were on hand to help extinguish the flames and give medical aid to victims, many of whom have now been transported to a local hospital.
Different news outlets are reporting the number of deaths betwee
When you pet a cat it gives a purr
Showing there's so much contentment in her
When a cat starts to whine
It is clearly then a sign
She is indeed not flaunting
But expressing she is wanting
I think the Earth is like that
Yes, like that of a cat
When you walk on Earth's surface
It does not make her nervous
Your footsteps are actually a massage
You are treating her like a Maharaja
It is a form of pampering
Something for which she is hankering
Now, I've been doing the walking marathon
And Earth ma
From Back to Godhead
The Vedic king Rantideva showed what
realization is required for true compassion.
WHAT WOULD modern-day social services make of a man who gives away the food meant for his own children to satisfy the hunger of strangers? How would they judge this man, whose family “shivered for want of food,” while he persisted in his unusual dedication to charitable impulses?
The story of this man, King Rantideva, who lived thousands of years ago, is told in the Ninth Canto of the Srima
The luxurious growth of one of Krishna’s greatest devotees, who appears in a special form, attests to the devotion of two of her dedicated caretakers.
Srila Prabhupada once quoted an atheist as saying, “What is the use of watering the Tulasi plant? It is better to water eggplant. By watering the eggplant one can get some fruits, but what is the use of watering the Tulasi?”
Rudrani Devi Dasi, one of Tulasi’s caretakers at ISKCON Vancouver, responds to this challenge.
“Tulasi is not an or
By Dayal Gopal dasa (Nepal Padayatra leader)
I had a nice experience when a group of Noida’s full-time devotees recently spent seven days with the Nepal Padayatra.
It was a precious time. Where would I get such an opportunity to be with full-time devotees for a week? By the mercy of Sri Guru and Gauranga, I got their association and liked it very much! I felt good as there was no duplicity, no reservation, we were all brahmacaris together as a team – new devotees, senior devotees and also exper
By Mathura Lilesvari Devi Dasi
HARRISBURG, June 27, 2023 – The International Society for Krishna Consciousness of Harrisburg (ISKCON of Harrisburg) is gearing up to celebrate its 13th Annual Hare Krishna Festival of India on Saturday, July 8, 2022, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at City Island in Harrisburg. Harrisburg is only a short drive from most major cities on the East Coast – 3 hours from New York City and 2 hours from most towns in New Jersey, Baltimore, and Washington D.C.
The festival will s
On June 7th, 2023, hundreds of devotees gathered in “Old Vrindaban” at the historic original farmhouse temple to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the installation of the Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Nath Deities there in 1973. Five years earlier, in 1968, this wood-framed farmhouse was the only homestead on the 133 acres devotees leased. A year later, in 1969, Srila Prabhupada stayed in this farmhouse for over a month. This extended stay was the first of four visits he made to the fledgling farm co
Jaya Govinda and I slept in a tight but true 10 feet by 10 feet cabin, as are the other two off-the-grid cabins, one is a washroom. I took my shower early and headed for one of the best trails you can find in the Saltair district. The passenger train is no more, but next to the old rail is a finely shaped trail that links some of the towns on Vancouver Island together. Slugs and bunnies crossed the trail while I simply stepped clearly in its rather straight direction.
Back we go to return to th
