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73/08/18 London, Bhagavad-gita 2.12

By His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Pradyumna (leads chanting, etc.):

na tv evaham jatu nasam
na tvam neme janadhipah
na caiva na bhavisyamah
sarve vayam atah param
[Bg. 2.12]

“Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be.”

Srila Prabhupada: This is a very important verse. The modern scientists, philosophers, they say that after finishing this body, we no more exist

From Back to Godhead

“Whom are we worshiping in the temple? This query of mine was unanswered till I reached ISKCON.”

I was born and brought up in a Hindu family in Delhi, and we used to go to various temples and offer prayers before the gods. Two questions, however, always tickled my mind: Why do we worship so many gods, and who is the real God? As I never got answers to my questions, I considered all the gods equal, and in my teenage years all religions and faiths became one for me. Be it Hin

Drumila Dasa: Mystical Story!

A friend of mine Jude Acer, a big name in the world of chess (tied Bobby Fisher when he was younger), told me a great chess celebrity was going to be here today. So I tried my best to make it, but was late, and he was already gone. I was having a particularly tough day, so bad that I turned back the other way to head back towards my car, (wasn’t quiting, just changing my usually route) and I never ever do that, I always tough it out. Then I realized that he was at

Roads have been quiet. Silent night was early. People preferred to stay at home. Snow had accumulated to levels that made it restrictive to travel. Snow plows were doing their best to clear but it takes time. This area isn’t ready for such a dumping dynamic.

The sun shone through.

I had to cancel on delivering the class this morning. My right leg is in too much pain. I attribute it to a seizing of the leg muscles from the cold. The temples furnace broke down and the floor tiles have been rather

Today is “Makara Sankranti” which is celebrated when the Sun begins the northward journey, marking the beginning of the “uttaraayaNa puNyakaalam”. Sun enters the sign of “Makara”, (Capricorn) from Cancer currently. (This is also called equinox when the day and nights are the same). Starting from this day, the duration of day starts to increase until “dakshiNaayanam” comes.

Traditionally, this period is considered an auspicious time and the veteran Bhishma of Mahabharata chose to die during this

Arjuna is known as Paranthapah because he is a chastiser of the enemy. He enters the Kurukshetra battlefield with a fighting spirit on a chariot bearing the flag marked with Hanumān being driven by Krsna and drawn by white horses. He wanted to see the combatants and asked Krsna to maneuver the chariot into the midst of the armies of both parties.

Arjuna observed the opposing side and got bewildered for participating in the annihilation of his whole clan. Arjuna loved, respected, and revered man

A snowstorm hit Vancouver Island just as it did on the mainland. All night long – isn’t that a song? Anyway, here’s a poem about Norm:

I met a man by the name, Norm

At the time of a big snow storm

He is 66 and has no legs

But substitute bionic pegs

He is no scholar like Socrates/Plato

And explained he became a couch potato

He’d been clicking the one-eyed monster

Switching channels, faster and faster

His sedentary roll made him quite fat

With 380 pounds all under his hat

 One day he got electr

सीतानाथ समारम्भां रामानन्दार्य मध्यमाम्।

अस्मदाचार्य पर्यन्तां वन्दे श्रीगुरू परम्पराम् ।।

As said in Sudarshan Samhitā,

राघवस्य गुणो दिव्यो महाविष्णुः स्वरुपवान ।

वासुदेवो घनीभूतस्तनुतेजः सदाशिवः ।।

मत्स्यश्च रामहृदयं योगरुपी जनार्दनः ।

कुर्मश्चाधारशक्तिश्च वाराहो भुजयोर्बलं।।

नारसिंहो महाकोपो वामनः कटिमेखला।

भार्गवो जंङ्घयोर्जातो बलरामश्च पृष्ठतः।।

बौद्धस्तु करुणा साक्षात् कल्किश्चित्तस्य हर्षतः ।

कृष्णः श्रृङ्गाररुपश्च वृन्दावनविभूषणः ।।

ऐते चांशकलाः सर्वे रामो ब्रह्म सनातनः ।

[Narad Panchratra Sudarsh

To get to this lovely town, located on Vancouver Island, you take a ferry from the mainland and sail to Nanaimo, then drive for 30 minutes. The arctic factor appears to have hit the island with snow flurries for the better part of the day and night.

At the home of Gadadhar and Manoharini I met Norm Thompson, 66, who came to our program of “Tales from the Trails.” Due to the imposing storm few people turned up, but it was Norm, who was determined, regardless of the weather, to see me. Recently,

Topic of separation is difficult to enter.

Because to experience separation you need to experience Krsna.

But by the mercy of Vrndavan dust, Govardhan, just by sitting here, some perception of this deeper reality comes. The deeper reality is the sweetness of dealing is very attractive.

To enter we need to primarily become what? A servant.

We can’t enter Vrndavan in a mood of Krsna’s competitor. We know who will win and who will loseJ.

anyabhilasita sunyam

jnana-karmady anavrttam

If we want to b

* A New Year Message from the ISKCON Governing Body Commission *

Dear ISKCON Members and Friends,
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Looking back on 2022, we want to thank you for your many continued services to Srila Prabhupada, and to Lord Caitanya’s mission of spreading Krishna consciousness to every town and village in the world.
After several years of differing degrees of being isolated from one another and from our communities due to the pandemic, we loo

The Yaksha inquired, ‘What is it that makes one a true brahmana: birth, behaviour or learning?’
Maharaj Yudhisthir replied, ‘It is behaviour alone that qualifies one as a true brahman. Thus, brahmanas must be very careful to exhibit exemplary behaviour. One whose behaviour is faultless will never meet with obstructions on the path of life. Teachers and students alike, who are addicted to sinful habits, should be considered illiterate, even though they may be very leaned in the shastra. Only one

It’s not so usual to be receiving the white stuff we call snow in the Vancouver area. This area is more rain prone. This morning it came down in abundance. It left a blanket of pureness. Pretty for sure. The unique thing is that at approximately 7am thunder sounded and lightning flashed. This was heard and witnessed by several of us in and outside of the temple hall where we were at the time. Most unusual during a snowfall.

After a lively program, including a discussion on Indra, the rain/snow

“In this age of Kali the propensity for mercy is almost nil. Consequently there is always fighting and wars between men and nations. Men do not understand that because they unrestrictedly kill so many animals, they also must be slaughtered like animals in big wars. This is very much evident in the Western countries. In the West, slaughterhouses are maintained without restriction, and therefore every fifth or tenth year there is a big war in which countless people are slaughtered even more cruel

I was reading some writings of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur and he was speaking about diksha guru and siksha guru and he was saying that the diksha guru is basically giving the name and explaining the meaning of the name and the siksha guru gives so much relevant instruction about spiritual life and how to practice devotional service. Now, it seems that in our movement, this separation about diksha guru and siksha guru is not so rigid. This is because when Srila Prabhupada was in Mayapur, one of h

The night kicked-in and that was the sign for me to take a walk down by the perfect black and flat soil, where houses and green bushes are in abundance. It was also where a pair of coyotes meandered for food and fun.

I turned the corner from Marine Drive, and entered the quiet of the farmland described above when a thought came. There are two types of people that can walk endlessly – a monk and a criminal. A monk walks about, exercising detachment from the world. A criminal walks about and just

In the Caitanya-caritamrta, Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami has given us a verse which is an open invitation. He is saying that if you are interested in logic and arguments, then apply them to the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. By doing so, you will experience amazement in your heart. So that is the foundation of this movement that the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is flowing, and the topmost love of God is made available to the most fallen. That is what happened and what is still happen

Things are moving along with the recording of the audiobook for The Saffron Path. I have completed forty-three chapters and I am well into walking the United States to reach the Elm tree at Tompkins Square, Park, NY. It’s fun going through the book’s content again. It feels like I’m on the road again. Nice to see some people purchasing the book as a Christmas gift.

Being stuck in a tight studio for the recording restricts the opportunity to mobilize the body. And on top of that, there are obliga

If a devotee were to ask, “Please bless me so that I’ll never take birth again in this horrible material world,” would this be asking for some kind of liberation? Hundreds of times, Srila Prabhupada encouraged us to “Go Back home, back to Godhead.” Would it be a form of boldness or naiveté to desire to come back to this world and serve by preaching?

That would depend on our level of perception and spiritual progress. There were times when some disciples indicated to Srila Prabhupada that they w