If you’re a monk in a mega city
You just can’t sit there looking pretty
In the ashram there are programs on the go
That operate at a pace that is not slow
Humanity has needs you don’t want to miss
Keeping active is truly a state of pure bliss
Community interests never put you on pause
While outreach efforts are a regular, ‘cause
Mindfulness is the direction to the transcendental
Let’s be practical and deal with the dental
Some intense days you could cut with a knife
Striking that balance in the
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The Vande Arts Team would like to offer this special drama script depicting Srila Prabhupada’s epic voyage on the Jaladhuta.
Devotees are welcome to use the script for there own celebrations of Srila Prabhupada’s arrival in the USA and throughout ISKCON.
For the soundtrack and slideshow please contact Damodara Pandit das
yakdas@hotmail.com
Swamiji at Sea
Written by
Yasomatinandana das (ACBSP) & Damodara Pandit das
Music by
Indradyumna Swami & Sri Pralad das
Soundtrack by
Ekendra das
Actors
It’s still early morning, the sun is starting to rise over the horizon, and it’s reddish—it reminds me of Srimati Radharani’s tilak upon Her beautiful broad forehead. And the glowing of the sun, the rays that it casts everywhere, paint the village nearby and the field in front of me a golden color.
There are flowers everywhere, and those flowers are growing in tall grass, knee-high grass, which sways to one side and then another. It’s like the way the Brijbasi’s sway under the winds of their pr
Kirtan Fest Houston 2025 marked the powerful return of one of the community’s most beloved celebrations. Organized by the youth of ISKCON of Houston, the festival brought together thousands of people for a weekend filled with sacred music, flowers, devotion, and community spirit. Over three days, more than 2,500 people attended the event, experiencing the joy of kirtan and the warmth of a community united in service.
The centerpiece of this year’s festival was the Flower Festival on Sunday night
By Prabhupada Ashraya Dasa
The sacred village of Aravade once again blossomed with transcendental joy as ISKCON Aravade hosted its grand three-day Janmāṣṭamī festival, drawing over 50,000 devotees from across Maharashtra and beyond. The celebrations, held from August 15th to 17th, were a vibrant offering of love, devotion, and service to Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa and His pure devotee, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Day 1 & 2: Janmāṣṭamī Mahotsava
The first two days were dedicated to the divine appearance of Lord Kṛṣ
By Atma Tattva Das
In Budapest, a grassroots initiative led by Ishvara Krishna Das and Bhakta Szabolcs Tárkányi is exploring one of the most unexpected tools for Krishna-conscious outreach: artificial intelligence. Their project, which blends AI-generated music with a vision for community engagement, aims to spark inspiration among devotees and seekers while highlighting both the promise and the pitfalls of technology in spiritual life.
The Seed of Inspiration
“Although we have reservations abou
On the occasion of the Vyasa Puja Mahotsava of H.D.G. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda, the newly formed Śrīla Prabhupāda Connection–Mayapur Team (website to be launched soon), in collaboration with the Bhaktivedanta National School (BVNS), Mayapur, organized a special competition for children on August 14, 2025.
Here is a relevant reference for this initiative:
sunanda-nandāv ūcatuḥ
bho bho rājan subhadraṁ te
vācaṁ no ’vahitaḥ śṛṇu
yaḥ pañca-varṣas tapasā
bhavān devam atītṛpat
Trans
Things are back to normal, back in regular gear. Children are back at school, and in general, vacation is over with adults also in full tilt situated at their workplace.
Construction goes on in various locations of the city like most contemporary urban areas of the world. Roads need repair. New edifices need to rise up to accommodate the growing population.
And what about Chinatown? It is always busy, no sign of death there. With such an industrious community, there will always be a
I first see him just after crossing the Bowery at Houston Street. As he passes before the iron-mesh fence of a playground, I distinctly glimpse the aura of saintliness. I watch him through the rushing traffic and stumbling derelicts.
He strolls almost jauntily down the sidewalk. He is an old man whom age has never touched. Aloof from the people and bustle about him, he walks proudly, independently, his hand in a cloth beadbag. He wears the saffron robes of a sannyasi, and on his feet are quaint
On the occasion of the Vyasa Puja Mahotsava of H.D.G. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Śrīla Prabhupāda, the newly formed Śrīla Prabhupāda Connection–Mayapur Team (website to be launched soon), in collaboration with the Bhaktivedanta National School (BVNS), Mayapur, organized a special competition for children on August 14, 2025.
Source: https://www.dandavats.com/?p=116079
A recent Pew Research Center post, drawing on a global Nature Communications study, maps out how religious engagement has diminished across generations in 111 countries between 2008 and 2023. The research identifies a consistent three-stage pattern—coined the Participation-Importance-Belonging (P-I-B) sequence—whereby religious decline tends to unfold first in reduced participation (such as worship services), then in lessening personal importance of religion, and finally in a decline in formal r
By Satyamedhā Gaurāṅga Dāsa
Tapana Miśra Dāsa, Minister of ISKCON’s Ministry of Education, warmly invites devotees worldwide to unite in celebrating the foundational role of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s books in our spiritual lives and the global mission of Krishna consciousness through the “Books Are The Basis Week 2025.”
This annual observance, held from September 7th to 13th, is a time to reflect on the transformative power of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s writings, which continue to illuminate hearts, inspire m
The ISKCON Kirtan Ministry has officially invited devotees and well-wishers worldwide to join the upcoming World Holy Name Festival (WHNF), taking place September 17–23, 2025. The annual festival, an initiative of the ISKCON Governing Body Commission (GBC), commemorates Srila Prabhupada’s historic arrival in America on September 17, 1965, when he began spreading the chanting of the holy names across the globe.
“This year’s theme remains simple yet profound: ‘Chant, Dance, and Be Happy,’” said Sr
Hare Krishna!
Please accept our humble obeisances.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
We are happy to share that, for the ease and convenience of all devotees and pilgrims, Eastern Railway has announced a new AC EMU train service between Sealdah Krishnanagar.
Please find the official announcement letter attached. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zBMi_6uPrBRI8FV7dVrj8NTbHuNv1Ogr/view?usp=sharing
We humbly request all devotees to kindly spread this news so everyone can take advantage of this wond
It has been a busy season for festivals and fun. We were just as happy as the squirrels are currently with nuts as they begin to harvest in their trees. I am keeping in my memory bank the good times of a golden period when a group of young Krishnaites made their presence known. We built up from scratch a bhakti tree of many branches. I spent time at three of them.
Now, this evening with some trail-trekking people, I walk in thought of those days, of this weekend, for instance, in the open
Sri Siddha-Bakula is located near Gambhira Temple on Bali Sahi road in Sri Jagannatha PuriDhama.Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu personally arranged for Srila Haridasa Thakura to reside atthis place. This is the place where he performed his daily bhajana of chanting 192 rounds (3,00,000 names) of Hare Krishna maha-mantra:
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare |
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare ||
Since Haridasa could not enter the Jagannatha Temple, being of a Muslim family,Sri
Today is the divine disappearance day of Namacharya Haridasa Thakura. So we shall read from Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, Chapter Eleven: “The Passing of Haridasa Thakura.”
INTRODUCTION
The summary of this chapter is given by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura in his Amrta-pravaha-bhasya as follows. In this chapter it is described how Brahma Haridasa Thakura gave up his body with the consent of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and how the Lord Himself personally performed the funeral ceremony and carried
Oh born of Moslem parents Haridas!
And trained in youth in Moslem creed
Thy noble heart to Vaishnava truth did pass
Thy holy acts thy candor plead!
Is there a soul that cannot learn from thee
That man must give up sect for God
That thoughts of race and sect can ne’er agree
With what they call Religion broad
Thy love of God and brother soul alone
Bereft thyself of early friends
Thy softer feelings oft to kindness prone
Led on thyself for higher ends!
I weep to read that Kazis and their men
Oft p
If you visit the town of Puri on the Bay of Bengal, you will find, amid palm trees and small houses, a stone shrine marking the place where the great saint Haridasa Thakura sat alone or with a devotee companion and worshiped Krsna. There he passed almost the whole day and night simply chanting the Hare Krsnamaha-mantra. He softly repeated the sacred syllables hour after hour, keeping count on his prayer beads until, long after sunset, the holy names had crossed his lips no less than three hundr
