Congratulations to Bhakta Michael who accepted diksha initiation. What a fine person he is! A gourmet chef and caterer, he is also a good devotee. His Sanskrit name now is Mukunda Madhava.
Offering initiation to Mukunda Madhava is one of my reasons for coming to Vancouver. I’m also here to participate in an event called “Sage the Earth.” I just finished a poem on the topic.
Sage the Earth
She goes by the Vedic name Bhumi
And is worshipped by many a sage and muni
Sometimes she’s described as
By evening I was able to reflect on the day’s affairs as I strolled down on Marine Drive. It was past the sun’s setting. The air was cool; good for contemplation. I’ll add that overall, it is the coolest spring (and now the dawn of summer) that I’ve ever experienced.
A five-hour flight from Toronto and a three-hour time-zone change threw the biological clock a slight bit off course. I settled down in a room by the ISKCON facility, visited Govinda’s Restaurant for physical and spiritual nourishm
One of Prabhupada’s intimate followers after Prabhupada’s departure had a period where it was difficult to connect. For many devotees after Prabhupada left, it was not so easy. Those disciples of Prabhupada who had his association and who were there during his time, were there during the difficult period when Prabhupada left and ISKCON went into the hands of new leaders. As a result, many withdrew. So as they withdrew, the standard of Krsna consciousness also went down a little bit, or external
Krishna Das and I invited two young guys who bought a book to the temple of Villa Vrndavana. They came, stayed a while, and then we left in a week.
After a year, we went back to the Villa with a group to do harinamas. I went to the dining room to eat prasadam and sat down with the Italian devotees. I saw a devotee, and his face looked familiar to me.
I asked, “Do I know you?”
He replied, “Did you forget me? You came last year, you distributed a book to us and I stayed here.”
He began to follow
I put hours into drama practice. It’s coming along – the production “Demon.” I’m blessed once again with a good team, but it’s hard work. Following that came a visit to Adi Kurma’s. He’s a good cook. He pulled together everything I like – spiced avocado, boiled asparagus (lightly, then sauteed), sweet potato, moong dahl paratha and a lime-mint drink sweetened with maple syrup. All offered to the Lord. Thanks chum, I loved it!
A rush back to the temple/ashram landed me at another Zoom call with
Many of my friends thought life was just a huge meaningless game.
But I always felt there was something more and I had to find it
I was born near Boston in 1958. My father had a Masters in architecture from Harvard, my mother a B.A. in literature from Smith. They were well-to-do, yet they instilled in me the understanding that money wasn’t the ultimate cause of happiness. Before I was born they had moved out of Boston to the country, to bring up their family in a place where they felt moral val
By Madhava Smullen
What has kept the International Society for Krishna consciousness going for 54 years now, “systematically propagating spiritual knowledge to society at large” as Srila Prabhupada wrote when incorporating the movement in 1966?
Much has been down to the steady efforts of quietly dedicated devotees, doing their services day in and day out for decades – the pujaris, the teachers, the mothers, the cooks, the cleaners, the maintenance workers, the accountants, the book editors, the
In the middle of the night I vividly dreamed about the Bhagavad-gita being held in someone’s hand. I had never seen or heard of the book. But in the morning, I couldn’t get it out of my mind. So I looked on the internet and then went to some bookstores looking for it. No luck.
Then I had an urge to go to Byron Bay, an hour and a half north of where I live, which is just north of Sydney. I got a hotel room and went walking around Byron Bay. One man approached me and offered me the Bhagavad-gita.
The flight from Winnipeg on Air Canada was early, at 5:35 a.m. Usually at such an hour you can bet that passengers on a full flight like this will be fast asleep. Such was the case for all, except the pilot and flight attendants. I sat at the emergency exit seat, struggling to stay awake to fit in some japa meditation. It was hard. Fortunately, we are looking at a mere two-hour flight.
Nanda Maharaja Das picked me up in Toronto and zoomed me over to our Brampton ISKCON Centre.
“Happy Father’s D
After a two-year hiatus due to the global pandemic, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness of Harrisburg (ISKCON of Harrisburg) is gearing up to celebrate the 12th Annual Hare Krishna Festival of India on Saturday, July 9, 2022, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at City Island in Harrisburg.
The devotees of ISKCON of Harrisburg are extending their warm welcome to one and all to attend the festival. The unique, 1-mile long, 63-acre City Island, is conveniently located just across the walking b
SPECIAL 2-DAYS CONFERENCE & WORKSHOP
Today there is an increasing awareness of environmental and ethical dealings with the planet and the food production chain, there is a call to reintegrate with Mother Earth and bring spirituality to the heart of this understanding.
The introduction of positivism into science and technology has led to the widespread adoption of the paradigm of industrial agriculture. This type of agriculture currently represents 30% of the world’s food supply. It accounts fo
Not long ago, the father of Daniel Garland
(Brahma-muhurta Dasa) wrote to his son.
Dear Daniel,
I have probably said this before, but if so, pardon the repetition. My visit with you there was a very moving, total experience, and I know I will never be the same again after that visit. I think you are all a tremendously impressive and dedicated group of young men and women, who have dedicated your lives in as total, beautiful, and significant a way as anyone possibly could. Also I am certain the
In Paraparamu, I met a young man, Ash, who told me that in 2014, his friend gave him a Bhagavad-gita. He told me he read the whole thing and started living his life according to the principles.
I asked him if he meditates, and he casually responded. “Yeah, I do some mantras. I use a few, but mostly just chant Hare Krishna for thrity minutes every morning and night.”
How exciting that there may be people like him out there just waiting to contact a devotee. I hope he can come to Bhakti lounge so
The annual festival of Jagannath Rath Yatra will be celebrated at the global spiritual headquarter of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Sri Mayapur Dham, Nadia.
Each year the devotees endeavour to raise the bar by adding new dimensions to the celebrations. The deities of Lord Jagannath, Baldev and Subhadra will be seated on three different carts and taken out in a grand procession. The scriptures mention that whoever takes darshan of the gleeful grin of Lord Jagannath se
Hare Krishna,
Jai Sri Sri Jagannatha, Baladeva, and Subhadra Maharani!
All glories to Sri Mayapur Dham
Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Lord Jagannatha after being away from the eyes of everyone from Snana Yatra day, the Lord emerges very beautifully after 15 days of recovery to give Darshan to all His beloved devotees waiting!
With immerse joy, it is our pleasure to formally invite you, your family, and friends to come forward and seize this very rare oppor
“O Arjuna, I am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge & forgetfulness. By all the Vedas, I am to be known. Indeed, I am the compiler of Vedanta, and I am the knower of the Vedas.” (Bg 15.15)
Krsna is here saying that he is situated in everyone’s heart as Supersoul or Paramatma. It is he who gives us remembrance, forgetfulness & knowledge. Without Supersoul, the body is a worthless bag of chemicals. Because of Krsna present in our hearts, we can actually get knowled
At our last sankirtana festival in Durban, a 12-year-old boy joined us. His name is Sudarshan, the son of Pisima Dasi, a single parent.
He joined us at a mall. We are not allowed in malls, so we went undercover. Sudarshan was so eager to distribute Srila Prabhupada’s mercy that he distributed many Zulu books entitled Introduction to Bhagavad-gita.
A student ask him why he was doing book distribution in the sweltering summer heat. Sudarshan responded that he want to give people the opportunity t
Bhaktivedanta Manor is a pivotal force for disseminating Krishna-conscious culture, and knowledge and building spiritual relationships in the community. The key to its success in these areas has been the quality and exemplary character of devotees that have spearheaded the community’s development. One such personality is Sutapa Das, a local lad born in Wembley west London, in 1981.
In a packed Haveli including a wide range of devotees and well-wishers from across Europe, on 26th June Sutapa Das
Lat week my travels led me to Quebec and before that the Maritimes, where all those places are mountainous, at least hilly, but today, after a good flight to the Prairies, I landed on ultra-flat terrain. A nice change. In fact, levelness reminds me of where I was born and raised, in southwestern Ontario.
With the fine arrangements of Vrnda and Visvambhar my greeting party at Winnipeg’s Airport brought me to the countryside in the town of Lorett, population 5000. Members of our Winnipeg communit
