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The third verse of the Siksastakam is trnad api sunicena – “one should be humbler than a blade of grass.” You may wonder, “How can I be humbler than a blade of grass?” Let’s look at one way this is possible.

May you always think of Krsna.

Mahatma Das
 

Do Not Resist

Bhaktivinoda Thakura explains that grass doesn’t resist when it is walked on or thrown around. It doesn’t complain or scream out, “How dare you step on me or throw me here and there?!” As we say in California, “It goes with the flow

I took a stroll to Yorkville where cafes are cool and people are too. For me it’s always interesting to see people’s reactions to some monk gliding through at an early night hour. The place is pretty harmless.

Two young men were passing in front of me. One looked back and spotted me. He touched the waist of his buddy and mildly moved him out of the way. He turned around and immediately got out of the way. “Make way for the monk.”

I passed by a man and his companion dog and said to his pet, “Now

From Back to Godhead

If God is inconceivable, as the scriptures state, can we really know anything about Him?

Sri Isopanisad states that Krsna is simultaneously very far away and very close. The Vedic scripturesencourage us: The best way to know Krsna and bring Him closer is to hear about Him.

As we open any book about Krsna, we’ll immediately feel the richness of the clear and scientific knowledge it contains. We’ll also come to understand that Krsna is by nature inconceivable to finite beings

From Back to Godhead

“Oh, these ropes of desires are strange indeed! A person tightly bound by them runs all around seeking happiness, but one freed from them stays calmly in one place.” (Niti-shastra)

“What’s it like to go back home to Krishna?” wondered ten-year-old Kiran at the weekly gathering for children from our congregation.

I responded by speaking about Goloka Vrindavana, our real home, where we aspire to

Chapter Ten: Spiritual Marriage and Balanced Training

“The soldiers in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement must always possess physical strength, enthusiasm and sensual power. To keep themselves fit, they must therefore place themselves in a normal condition of life. What constitutes a normal condition will not be the same for everyone, and therefore there are divisions of varṇāśrama—brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacarya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa.” (SB. 8.2.30, purport).

Śrīla P

Dear Devotees,

On the occasion of the Gaura Purnima Festival 2021, we announce the launch of a new book “The Spark of Renaissance”. Lord Gauranga Mahaprabhu was present in India and as a mere by- product of His presence on this planet; He sparked the energy that hit Europe and caused the Renaisssance. You can download from Amazon Worldwide

Click on the below link:
https://amzn.in/eH2s6Wp

Please pass this message to your groups on Social Media and your communities worldwide. Some more about the

In spiritual life, liquor is not really glorified like one of the material pleasures in life. It is rather condemned. It is placed in the same category as poison. Well, it is true that it is not nourishing the cells in the body. Each time you take some liquor, you are burning some brain cells and you begin to see it in the regular drinkers at the bars. Their faces are a bit puffed up. Some have red veins showing and their hands also are a bit swollen and reddish. And their brain is dull and not

The weather these days could not be better. Though we were met by an exhilarating storm overnight, replete with lightning, thunder, wind and rain. Thankfully the storm settled down by the moment Krishna Chandra and I took to a stroll before dawn. We found an atmosphere of peace. The calm was incredible. Bushes, flowers, plants and trees were happy. They had a good bath. They were shining in a kind of splendour as the light reflected from city lampposts. It was indeed a wet look and most beautif

In Brihad-Bhagavatamrita, Sanatana Goswami beautifully narrates the journey of a soul to the kingdom of God. Gopa Kumara is that fortunate soul who decides to go back to the kingdom of God, Goloka Vrindavan.

In this world we are on a never-ending journey. We have been wandering in this material world away from God for an uncountable number of years.

Sometimes we travel to the upper planetary systems to enjoy good karma. Sometimes we are compelled to go to the lower planetary systems to suffer b

During our residence on this planet, humanity has experienced many horrors- slavery, apartheid, concentration camps and many other nasty histories. Many countries celebrate independence from foreign subjugation, which were in many cases far from peaceful. Thus we can see what can go wrong when we become dependent on selfish leaders- Exploitation. Exploitation may be gross or subtle. People fear exploitation, but in general, we find exploitation everywhere. Some people are exploited and these sa

Or the downfall of Western civilization. The Manu-samhita (8.304-309) describes how a king or ruler of a country receives one sixth of the total karma of the subjects he rules. If the majority of people are pious and spiritually oriented, and the ruler protects those citizens to maintain a peaceful society in which such people can flourish, then the king will also share in the good activities and good karma of the citizens. Otherwise, if the ruler does not properly protect and maintain the citi

By Sri Nandanandana dasa (Stephen Knapp)

(An Excerpt from “Advancements of Ancient India’s Vedic Culture”)

As devotees and followers of the Vedic path, we already accept the premise that Lord Krishna appeared 5,000 years ago and spoke the Bhagavad-gita in the Mahabharata war. But it is always nice when scholars, other researchers and science can add support to what we already propose. So let’s take a look at this.

One aspect that can show us the early nature of Vedic society, and with a little

Devotees often ask what the meaning of steadiness is: some consider that chanting sixteen rounds a day and following the four regulative principles means that one is steady, while others say it is steadiness in one’s service; yet others give different variations of what they consider steadiness to mean. But these things mentioned—regularly chanting and regularity in serving—are physical symptoms that may or may not indicate real steadiness.

Suddha-bhakti-cintamani deals with the subject of stea

In his Discourse on Sanskrit and Its Literature, given at the College of France, Professor Bournouf states, “We will study India with its philosophy and its myths, its literature, its laws and its language. Nay it is more than India, it is a page of the origin of the world that we will attempt to decipher.”

In History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature , Max Mueller observed, “In the Rig-veda we shall have before us more real antiquity than in all the inscriptions of Egypt or Ninevah. . the Veda is

As we read the scripture and hear from the spiritual master, we will hear both easy and difficult instructions. We’ll naturally be attracted to those that seem easier to follow, but the two types of instruction have a unity of purpose.

One of the most encouraging verses I have found in Bhagavad-gita is 2.40: “In this endeavor there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.” A similar verse can be found in the ninth chap

Lessons about the Inner World & Social Psychology

A Frequent Flyer devotee recently expressed to me his liking of one particular airline for the broad choice of good movies and rock music they offer. He meant what he said, and I wondered: “Is he aware of his compromised standard and honestly confessing, or is he denying his weakness and making light of the ideal which we aspire for?” I know many devotees who are stricter and who earnestly attempt to internalize a more elevated ideal. As a resul

Journalist Thomas Paine in 1776 sparked the American Revolution by writing and widely distributing his pamphlet, Common Sense. Fidel Castro – while in a Cuban prison – crafted his speech History will Absolve Me, had it smuggled it out of the prison and distributed to the masses. The result? The Cubin public overthrew the government and installed Castro as their leader.

And for thousands of years, our own acaryas have invested their time and energy to write and publish transcendental literature

Somehow, we are struggling to surrender in this movement. And in the end, for our half-baked surrender which was there anyway, we get glorified for it. Who can say that they have surrendered out of pure love for Krsna? I was a pujari for three months and I fell asleep during the pujas. I kept nodding off. I was not a very good pujari at all. I was doing it mechanically, it was completely clear to me. I had no feeling there. I was just waving the lamp and falling asleep during an aarti.

However,

there's nothing in the world so sweet
as Krishna's early childhood play
please hear this transcendental treat
and let it take your heart away

intended to invoke our love
and leave our sorrows far behind
inviting us to rise above
the plane of our conditioned mind

when Krishna was a little child
He was a naughty cowherd boy
He liked to play and always smiled
to spread around His bliss and joy

surrendered to His mother's care
Yasoda Mata was her name
He happily engaged to share
His glory and His widespread fame

pa

a stunning case of faith and glory
revealed within this nice ballade
presenting you the wondrous story
about the little boy Prahlada

a noble and enlightened soul
of great appeal and little needs
devoted to his only goal
to please the Lord in all his deeds

his evil and nefarious father
the dire Hiranyakasipu
was geared to give him so much bother
and even tried to kill him too

he harshly ruled the universe
and filled each tender heart with fright
his presence was an outright curse
that turned each day into a nig