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" Why Me? "

A Beautiful Message  by Arthur Ashe , 

The legendary Wimbledon Player who was dying of AIDS , which he got due to Infected Blood he received during a Heart Surgery in 1983 !

during his illness , he received letters from his fans , one of which conveyed : 

" Why did God have to select you for such a bad disease ? " 

To this Arthur Ashe replied : 

 ⁃ 50 Million children started playing Tennis , 

 ⁃ 5 Million learnt to play Tennis , 

 ⁃ 500 000 learnt Professional Tennis , 

 ⁃ 50 Thousand c
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The Power of a Family Prayer Group

By Karnamrita Das

Couple praying together

At at a couple's retreat in South Africa in 2009 my wife and I gave couples different tools to help their marriages, and also different ways of thinking about themselves and their problems. One of my topics was family or couple's prayer. The subject of prayers groups I feel "passionately" about—i.e, strongly, intensely--since I have first hand experience of its power. Here is one way to think about prayer which might help you see it differently.

Everything is energy

Everything in existence is ene

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By Niranjana Swami

So, this afternoon I just opened up and started to read from this book Amrta-vani, teachings from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja. I read a lot from this book, I like different references that are given here. They are very philosophical and I see how Prabhupada was speaking so much about these points.

Of course, someone may say, “Why don’t I just read from Prabhupada’s book? Because these points are there in Prabhupada’s books”

But this book was made availabl

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In this week's episode with Pancharatna Prabhu, we listen to something that could be really helpful for you if you're a book distributor or a preacher in any way. One of the problems in book distribution that we've observed is that devotees who distribute books, they're really focused in giving the books out, but often there's not much follow-up.

Even devotees that put in the effort to follow up, it's really hard because you know, your focus is on distributing books and getting as many books out

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Activism

By Madhava Smullen

About 150 students, professors and other interested persons attended a one-day open conference at Utah State University on October 18th entitled “God and Smog – The Challenge of Preserving our Planet.”

Subtitled “Scholars and Religious Leaders Confront the Issues,” the event was organized by USU’s Religious Studies Program, headed by Director Dr. Ravi Gupta (Radhika Ramana Das).

Darren B. Parry, tribal council chairman for the Northwest Band of the Shoshone Nation, led the c

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Arts
 
By Madhava Smullen

A breathtaking new single printing of Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is, dubbed “The Astounding Bhagavad-gita,” will measure 2.80 x 2.00 meters (9 x 6.5 ft) and weigh an astonishing 800 kgs (1,763 lbs).

The giant book is funded by ISKCON Italy through donations and designed by the Mediterranean branch of the BBT, which claims it will be the largest sacred text in the world. 

Trustee and managing director Madhusevita Das clarifies that while there are bigger books

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Goosebumps and bliss!

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By Kesava Krsna dasa

Chant and dance in ecstasy! Experience the bliss! Just let go! Many a time we may have felt heightened exhilaration during kirtan or other devotional activities and wondered if it was some form of ecstatic symptom like bhava! If it was bhava, does that make one a maha-bhagavat? If it wasn’t, what was it? An uninformed student may think he has reached the acme of his devotional career with such a feeling and wondered if there is still more bliss ahead.

The whole range of emo

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Practice Loving Krsna

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From Back to Godhead

By Sridhara Swami

Through bhakti-yoga we can finally reunite with the person we’ve wanted all along.

A lecture given on December 12, 2000, at 26 Second Avenue in New York City, ISKCON’s first temple.

WE’LL READ TONIGHT from the Sixth Chapter of Bhagavad-gita, which discusses dhyana-yoga, or meditative yoga. Texts 13-14 say: “One should hold one’s body, neck, and head erect in a straight line and stare steadily at the tip of the nose. Thus, with an unagitated, subdued mind,

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Sri Radha-Madhava Elephant Procession

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Saturdays around 5:00 pm in Mayapur… Magical moments of Sri Radha-Madhava Elephant Procession.

Mystical sounds could be heard by every single living entity anywhere near ISKCON Mayapur campus. Very intense thundering of large drums beating to the rhythm of two elephant’s hearts, was the best way to bring back to mind some very sweet pastimes of our dear Lord Krsna in Dwarka.
Every Saturday evening, Sri Radha Madhava leave their altar carried by one of our leading Pujari, HG Jananivas prabhu and

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Amazing Pastime of Lord Narasimhadeva!

Hare Krishna,

My name is Andharupa dasi initiated by Srila Prabhupada in 1975 at Miami Florida. I was asked to tell my story of my cure from Hepatitis C.

The summer of 2004 His Holiness Jayapataka Maharaja visited New Ramana reti temple in Alachua Florida. I approached Maharaja and asked him for his blessings for my departure from this world. My illness: Hepatitis C of 3rd stage fibrosis of the liver. I was undergoing medical treatment for a duration of 48 weeks with only 45% chance to be cured

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By Sunanda Das

On Monday, November 26th the TOVP Management Team held their all important end of the year meeting in Sridham Mayapur headed by TOVP Chairman, His Grace Ambarisa prabhu who flew to India especially for this occasion. Devotees from various departments of the TOVP attended as well as our representatives from Cushman and Wakefield, the world-renowned Project Management Consultancy now working closely with us to complete the TOVP by 2022.

The focus of the meeting was to officially in

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Keynote Speech

Men’s Retreat    New Vrindaban, October 6, 2018 (to listen, click here)

Presented by Professor Burke Rochford

The telling of history is almost always a narrative about men. When historians dig out historical documents as they seek to reconstruct and analyze history, it is inevitably a project that tells us far more about men than about women or children. Due to men’s power and position historically, the documents historians find are typically the product of men and written from t

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Dear Devotees,

I have been serving at Bhaktivedanta Manor for almost four decades now. Over those years I embraced whatever services were given to me. As you may know my health remains a challenge, it all came very unexpected and now it is taking most of my time and energy. As such I now have to resign as Temple President and Trustee of the temple. I ask for your prayers and whatever blessings I may have, I give them all with a humble generosity for the future.

I wish to thank you from the bott

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Book Distribution done by 500 devotees during the annual Kartik Yatra with His Holiness Romapada Swami at Purushottam Kshetra Sri Jagannath Puri Dham from October 26th to Nov 4th 2018.

This year Maharaja expressed his desire that all yatra participants should engage in Book Distribution and that made this yatra even more special. Special slots were scheduled for Book Distribution, 15 groups each consisting of 30 devotees were formed for logistic purposes and devotees from four continents, speak

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Bhagavad-gita As It Is - 14.2

TEXT 2
idam jnanam upasritya
mama sadharmyam agatah
sarge 'pi nopajayante
pralaye na vyathanti ca
SYNONYMS
idam—this; jnanam—knowledge; upasritya—taking shelter of; mama—My; sadharmyam—nature; agatah—attain; sarge api—even in the creation; na—never; upajayante—comes in; pralaye—in the annihilation; na—nor; vyathanti—disturbed; ca—also.
TRANSLATION
By becoming fixed in this knowledge, one can attain to the transcendental nature, which is like My own nature. Thus established, one is not born at the time o
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Vrindavan Braj Parikrama – Day 9

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By Kadamba Kanana Swami
 
Written by Rukmini devi dasi
 

Sri Giriraj stretches out before us as if in an early morning yawn, so close we could reach out and touch Him. Kadambavan, a path of the softest sands cushions our feet. Oh feet, sink deep in the holy dust of Govardhan and let it rise up and purify your existence. We walk against the flow of the pilgrims, a quirk of the buses that spew us out somewhere in Vraj and leave us scrambling to find our location. But all is auspicious with the a

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Vrindavan Braj Parikrama – Day 8

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By Kadamba Kanana Swami

Written by Candrasekhara das

Most of us on the parikrama are from the West and accustomed to different comforts. Whilst Vrindavan offers its inconveniences, we must remember that Vrindavan is home and that home is nowhere else. We carry this important meditation by Kadamba Kanana Swami from Day 7 into Day 8.

We begin Day 8 with an hour-long drive from bustling Vrindavan to the clear sky-ed Brahmanda ghat. Being more rural, Brahmanda ghat is serene, peaceful and calming t

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Verse number: Srimad Bhagavatam 9.8.23

Date: 01 Dec 2018

Speaker: HH Chandramouli Swami

taṁ tvāṁ ahaṁ jñāna-ghanaṁ svabhāva-
pradhvasta-māyā-guṇa-bheda-mohaiḥ
sanandanādyair munibhir vibhāvyaṁ
kathaṁ vimūḍhaḥ paribhāvayāmi 

Translation:

O my Lord, sages freed from the influence of the three modes of material nature — sages such as the four Kumāras [Sanat, Sanaka, Sanandana and Sanātana] — are able to think of You, who are concentrated knowledge. But how can an ignorant person like me think
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By Sacinandana Swami

We are discussing the road of sharanagati – taking shelter, which leads us to Lord Krishna.
Our third step is goptritve-varanam or accepting the Lord as one’s sole maintainer.
On His way through South India Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu sang: 
“Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna
Krishna Krishna pahi mam
O Lord Krishna! Maintain me. “
Now, seeing the Lord as one’s maintainer requires faith. Bhaktivinoda Thakur sings a song which creates such faith. He says:
“O youthful prince of Vraj

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Bhagavad-gita As It Is - 14.1

TEXT 1
sri-bhagavan uvaca
param bhuyah pravaksyami
jnananam jnanam uttamam
yaj jnatva munayah sarve
param siddhim ito gatah
SYNONYMS
sri bhagavan uvaca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; param—transcendental; bhuyah—again; pravaksyami—I shall speak; jnananam—of all knowledge; jnanam—knowledge; uttamam—the supreme; yat—which; jnatva—knowing; munayah—the sages; sarve—all; param—transcendental; siddhim—perfection; itah—from this world; gatah—attain.
TRANSLATION
The Blessed Lord said: Again I shall dec
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