It was rush, rush in both Atlanta and Johannesburg airports. However, when I landed at Durban – no lo luggage. I left my filled out form to recover my three suitcases with the office at King Shaka Zulu Airport. The relief I felt from this minor anxiety (worse things could happen) was meeting the greeting team comprised of Rasasthali, Wesley, Sookie, and his brother Sudevi – all actors whom I worked with in the past. They bore happy faces and happy hearts.
I tucked myself to bed after the long f
Lord Nrsimha roars loudly and causes others to roar. With His multitudes of arms, He tears the demons asunder and kills them in this way. He is always seeking out and tormenting the demoniac descendants of Diti, both on this earth planet and in the higher planets, and He throws them down and scatters them. He cries with great anger as He destroys the demons in all directions, yet with His unlimited hands He sustains, protects, and nourishes the cosmic manifestation. I offer my respectful obeisa
Our theme for the morning class on bhakti was regarding fear. Fear is a very real emotion felt by all. This emotion is initiated by what’s to come, a sensation connected to the future, a dealing with the unknown, an apprehension trigged by a notion of danger.
The discussion on the topic was sparked by the story of Ajamil, a rather shady character in the Bhagavatam who was vile in his behaviour and was due to suffer karma. Whenever karma is of a negative nature, one can expect a form of what som
SB 1.1.2 … sadyo hrdy avarudhyate ‘tra krtibhih susrusubhis tat-ksanat …As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhagavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.
Ref. VedaBase => SB 1.1.2
By the hearing process Krsna IMMEDIATELY (sadyo) is established in the heart.
Please note the word RAPT [attention, in the previous quote] – there is a consistency in the Bhagavatam methodology. One has to hear attentively.
The sadhana of hea
Who is qualified for spiritual life? Only brāhmaṇas? Or sannyāsīs, or human beings, scholars, or Indians!? – Whether one is a man or a woman, householder or a renunciant, Indian or an American, aristocratic or underprivileged, rich or poor, educated or illiterate, child or an elder, human being or an animal, everyone is a child of God and is spiritual. Therefore, to love God and serve God is the innate characteristic (dharma) of every living being.
BHAKTI IS NOBODY’S MONOPOLY
Bhakti or devo
On the Zoom Gita Chat this evening, I was pleasantly surprised to find one of the listeners/viewers was someone I hadn’t really seen in thirty years. He used to live in the ashram with the team of us monks. He was happy. He learned how to cook and do many things devotionally.
Well, he moved on, got married, got a job, the usual pattern with family. It was just so great having him on board for a penetrating hour where we probed into the Gita’s message about sacrifice and accepting some austerity
Quotes from Radhanath Swami
1) From letters
“The culmination of all our preaching efforts is when a sincere soul experiences his or her spiritual home when they visit our temple. I cannot overestimate the great importance the service, which you have accepted as a guest receptionist. I am most indebted to you for taking this service so seriously. Any person who ever visits our temple should feel so personally welcomed that they feel they have made a true friend. A devotee who genuinely is con
Context and Crux of Uddhava-gita
Bhagavad-gita is the great philosophical song by Lord Krsna on the battlefield of Kuruksetra to motivate His bewildered friend Arjuna. There is yet another Gita that Krsna sang in Dvaraka to pacify another of His friends named Uddhava. Famous as Uddhava-gita it forms the longest philosophical section of the magnum opus literature Srimad Bhagavatam.
Lord Krsna’s descent into this world was requested by the devatas headed by Brahma, to reduce the burden of the ear
The ISKCON Communications Europe Executive Committee (ICE EC) members met for the second time this year in Brussels to meet representatives of European Union Institutions and European faith communities. The meetings aimed to establish contacts, develop trust and cooperation, and specifically organize an interfaith conference on Religion and the Environment at the European Parliament in the autumn of 2023.
The ICE EC members are Mahaprabhu Dasa from Belgium as the chair, Hrishikesha Dasa from L
Narsimhadev Monthly Abhishek Update For 2023
We are excited to inform you that the Monthly Abhishek Seva to Sri Narasimhadev Bhagavan has resumed and will commence today, the 5th of April 2023. Do keep this in mind as we shall update you on the subsequent dates for the coming months.
For all Abhishek Sponsorship, visit us at www.mayapur.com or click on our general donation link https://www.mayapur.com/serve-mayapur/general-donation/ for general donation seva.
Sri Narasimhadev Bhagavn Kijai!
H
Recently, a person from Australia asked me to recommend which books to read on the science of bhakti (devotion), and I suggested the four texts that our guru, Prabhupada, encouraged his students to study. They are Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Bhagavatam, Nectar of Devotion, and Chaitanya Charitamrita (or Teachings of Lord Chaitanya).
I said in my correspondence that if you get these publications down, familiarizing yourself and applying the practices, you are doing very well in the devotion category
Hare Krishna Maharajas, Prabhujis and Matajis. Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. 19th of March till the 30th of March marked the most glorious Silver Jubilee Celebrations of ISKCON Delhi.
Lord Garuda appeared on the Lord’s flag that was hoisted at the inauguration of the festival by HH Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaja and HH Atma Nivedana Swami Maharaja. The Inspirational Rama Katha by HG Vrajendranandan Pr from 19th to 25th was followed by the ecstatic Sita Ra
By Giacobazzi Yanez, HG Kuladri das, and Thomas Haribol
Tucked away in San Francisco’s expansive Golden Gate Park is a lovely lake with an island called Stowe Lake. It was a favorite spot for Srila Prabhupada to circumambulate during his daily morning walks. “One of the great pleasures for devotees in San Francisco was taking these early morning walks with Srila Prabhupada,” said HG Malati Devi Dasi. “The main place where that occurred was Stowe Lake.”
To provide a spiritual touchpoint for de
By Ananda Tirtha Das
The *2022* GBC Resolutions have finally been released. Unfortunately, due to the global pandemic, the GBC Body couldn’t conduct in-person meetings, and therefore the 2022 AGM (Annual General Meeting) was conducted online. Thankfully, the 2023 AGM, however, began as a regular in-person meeting in Mayapur and will continue online in the upcoming months.
The GBC met online weekly throughout 2022 (and continues to do so in 2023) to discuss matters of global importance and vote
Roman and I parked right outside of the high rise that Ajamil lives in. The only thing is that we parked right behind a police car that had just arrived – a police car that wheeled over the curb and partially onto the sidewalk. Our parking right behind them aroused some suspicion in the two occupants of the police car, and so they immediately came over to correct us about our irregular parking. They were nice about it, especially when they saw a monk (me) and Ajamil struggling to get his harmon
From Back to Godhead
God is a person, and out of His infinite kindness He allows us even in
our present condition to render Him personal service.
In the Srimad-Bhagavatam, the devotee Prahlada Maharaja, a great spiritual authority, says, “Hearing and chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, paraphernalia, and pastimes of Lord Visnu [Krsna], remembering them, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, offering the Lord respectful worship …, offering prayers to the Lord, becoming H
Who is a guest?
The Sanskrit word atithi means ‘not scheduled’. An ‘unscheduled’ or unexpected guest is considered a representative of the Supreme Lord, since his arriving unannounced is just what the Lord might do to test His devotee and see how ready he is to serve Him in any situation. With this understanding, we should offer the unexpected guest full hospitality.
Members of the general public, invited guests, life members, V.I.P.s, visiting Vaishnavas, relatives of Vaishnavas all should
I learned how to chant in Krishna last night. So I guess I can say that I am a mild member of the religion. I wrote this, I’m not sure if it’s a monologue or what, just to get my thoughts out, based on not only how I was led to His wisdom and away from the standards of my area, but also the aggravating community service I involuntarily volunteered for six days.
It doesn’t have a title yet, and I guess it might be a continuing piece, based on how I am in the religion of Krishna. And I needed som
[Note: as of today, only 30 homages have been sumbitted from around the world, and the deadline ends in two weeks]
Dear follower of Srila Prabhupada,
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
NOTE: This year a new team of devotees will be producing Srila Prabhupada’s Vyasa-puja book. Therefore please do not send your homage to Dravida Das at dravida108@gmail.com but rather to Ananda Tirtha Das at Ananda.Tirtha.pvs@pamho.net.
Kindly submit your homage to Srila Prabhup
HG Anuttama Dasa, Minister of ISKCON Communications, will hold a Communications Course at Bhaktivedanta College/Radhadesh on May 12-15th, 2023. The four-day course is a rare opportunity to learn about approaches and techniques for communicating with key audiences such as interfaith groups, media, politicians, Hindu communities, academics, and our internal ISKCON community and members. “Many past participants have shared that the skills they learned were helpful not only in terms of professional
