By Ramai Swami
Christmas is celebrated by millions all over the world. Thousands of the ISKCON congregation, although not Christians, visit our temples on Christmas day. Carparks are full and temple rooms packed out.
Srila Prabhupada commented on Jesus Christ many times:
“Jesus Christ was such a great personality–the son of God, the representative of God. He had no fault. Still, he was crucified. He wanted to deliver God consciousness, but in return they crucified him–they were so thankless. Th
By Giriraj Swami
“Now these Christmas holidays have begun in your country. Throughout the whole month of December you’ll observe nice festivities. Why? It began with God consciousness. Jesus Christ came to give you God consciousness, and in relation to him these festivities are going on. It may have degraded into another form, but the beginning was God consciousness. Now we may have lost it. But people cannot be happy without reviving God consciousness. It may be named differently—‘Krishna cons
Nṛpanāpitaputra nyāyaḥ (king and barber's son)
A king once asked his barber to find and bring nicest boy, which he can find. The barber set out, and searched all over the kingdom for a long time, but did not find suitable candidate. He finally returned home. Being charmed by the beauty of his own son, he decided to show him to the king. When king first saw this boy's deformed stature and ugly frogface, he became angry. But he quickly calmed down being sympathetic with barber's liking and loving
By HH Krishna Ksetra Swami
I presented a copy of my book ‘Cow Care in Hindu Animal Ethics’ to Dr. Nanditha Krishna, President of the C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation and author of several books, here in Chennai. Dr. Krishna kindly wrote an endorsement for the book, on quite short notice, prior to its publication (included in the book’s front matter):
“The cow is integral to the economic, cultural and spiritual well being of Hindus and is central to the natural, human and divine spheres of life,
Is there an evidence that the Holy Name is still powerful nowadays, in 2019?
Being the doubtful person that I am, Krishna removed all doubts from my mind in the last few weeks.
In 2018 we purchased a house for helping devotees with accommodation alongside facilitating a Krishna Conscious Airbnb, that house is also called Yashoda House Detroit.
When we got the house in 2018, it seemed like it’s just going to be another material struggle.
But this year, a miracle has happened that proved that the
ISKCON’s Governing Body Commission (GBC) recently ended a lengthy, detailed consideration of the Vaishnavi diksa guru question that has been under consideration since 2003. The Vaishnavi Ministry welcomes the new resolution, which upholds important spiritual principles and Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition while accommodating concerns about local communities having different cultural standards. The resolution permits Vaishnavis to initiate disciples while allowing regional leaders
Greta and the Veda
Dear Greta,
My congratulations for achieving so much during such a short a time! At the same time – in the second part of my letter – I would like to inform you about a really important issue.
In 2018 as an innocent girl you started to demonstrate on your own in front of the Parliament of your country because of the global warming. It turned out that you are an expert on the science of the problem. At the same time, you are also emotional about it. You have been chiding the p
Chennai, India - The ISKCON Communications Ministry hosted the Fifth Annual Vaishnava Christian Dialogue in India, December 16-18. The Dialogue is part of a global effort by the Ministry to promote understanding between members of ISKCON and other major religious communities.
Previous dialogues were held in Tirupati, India. This one was held at ISKCON’s temple in Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu.
In India, the dialogue takes the form of a three-day meeting between Gaudiya Vaishnavas,
Krsna is described as the source of all opportunities. This is a fact. Krsna says: sarvasya caham hrdi sannvistho mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyo vedanta-krd veda-vid eva caham (Bhagavad-gita 15.15). He says that He is in the heart of all living beings and from Him comes remembrance and from Him comes forgetfulness.
Srila Prabhupada explains that Krsna helps us to remember Him and Krsna also helps us to forget Him. So the opportunities are entirely in our hands
Hari bol, everybody,I’m going to share my spiritual experience with you all..
‘Radha-pada vina kabhu krsna nahi mile’ -without taking shelter of lotus feet of Radha,one can never personally meet Krsna.
Vrindavan is a place of vrindabaneswari,Radha rani. While doing this Parikrama I was feeling like she is still there, taking care of every devotee and fulfilling their desires.Sometimes you might feel that as if she is sitting just beside you,silently listening to you.Radha rani is so kind hearted,
Nīrakṣīra viveka nyāyaḥ (discerning milk mixed with water)
A swan has a God-given ability to extract and drink just milk from the mixture of milk and water.
This instruction is of great practical moral and spiritual value. On a materialistic level this is a way how to be not morose, but happy, and liked. Nīti-darpaṇa 1.16 states:
viṣād apy amṛtaṁ grāhyam
amedhyād api kāñcanam
nīcād apy uttamāṁ vidyāṁ
strī-ratnaṁ duṣkulād api
A wise man will extract nectar from the pot of poison, takes a piece of
The Story of Back to Godhead Magazine Logo [back in 1944]
“From his front room at 6 Sita Kanta Banerjee, Abhay conceived, wrote, edited, and typed the manuscript for a magazine. He designed a logo, a long rectangle across the top of the page. In the upper left-hand corner was a figure of Lord Chaitanya, effulgent with rays of light like rays from the sun. In the lower right were silhouettes of a crowd of people, in darkness but groping to receive light from Lord Chaitanya. And between Lord Chai
About my Vrindavan days from “By his example”:GOVARDHAN HILL
A few days hence, before sunrise, with a group of about thirty people, we began our walk around sacred Govardhan Hill. The entourage included the Maharaja of Bharatpur, two queens, the prince, various relatives, zamindhars (landowners loyal to the king), agents, a doctor, and eight soldiers dressed in Jat military uniforms, part of the Maharaja’s private army. Twelve servants carried the supplies and the largest incense sticks I have
After years of collective dedication in devotional service by the community, in December 2019 the management of New York’s Bhakti Center made the final mortgage payment to own the 25 First Avenue building outright.
It was the community members’ heartfelt contributions have made it possible for the people of New York to find their spiritual home and enter the family of Srila Prabhupada, Sri Gaurachandra, Sri Sri Radha Muralidhara and the beloved community of devotees for generations to come.
Indradyumna Swami: Last week here in Durban, South Africa, I visited my dermatologist – a skin specialist. Unfortunately, he found a Malignant Melanoma skin cancer on my face. The tumor was very near to the first one I had five years ago. It is called recurrence cancer. I had a PET/CT scan to see if this second tumor had metastasized (spread) throughout my body. The result came back clear. It had not spread. Nevertheless, as a precaution, my oncologist (cancer doctor) asked that while surgicall
Message from the Director
When we started our OCHS journey twenty years ago, I was focused on the study of my own Hindu denomination. I thought it time for that tradition to engage in a critical assessment of itself. We should use the apparatus of scholarship to compare its perspectives with those of other world views, and provide a basis for discussion and dialogue in a more public and global context.
In the association of wonderful scholars, such as Prof. Keith Ward, Peggy Morgan, and Prof.
By Vidura Dasa ACBSP
In Nairobi, many moons ago, Kenya was hosting the annual meeting of the African Union where the heads of state of all countries in Africa gather. We happened to have recently received a container of Bhagavatams and Gitas cleared through customs. I went to the Kenyatta Conference Centre and tried my luck at getting in. If you think Western politicians are paranoid about security you should see these African ‘Boss Men’ and their ever nervous heavy dudes. Somehow, in dhoti, ku
