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The movement of Lord Caitanya is accommodating all kinds of people but that is not an excuse to stay how we are. We bring all this negative stuff with us, in our hand luggage… just like how when you fly onRyanair, you put on a coat with big pockets and stuff each possible pocket because you not going to let them cheat you out of your money for that extra little kilo. No way! There are devotees who have special vests with special pockets; like a forty kilo vest. Anyway, that is going on and at

IN THE NAME OF philanthropy … people are feeling compassion for suffering humanity throughout the world,” (SB 5.8.10) Srila Prabhupada writes. But “no one knows where compassion should be applied. Compassion for the dress of a drowning man is senseless. A man fallen in the ocean of nescience cannot be saved simply by rescuing his outward dress the gross material body.” (Bg. 2.1)

“Without knowing the need of the dormant soul, one cannot be happy simply with emolument of the body and mind. The b

Tilak, the clay “V” marking found on the foreheads of devotees of Krishna around the world, is called Gopi Chandan, but sastra says the Gopi’s tilak is made from sandalwood, not clay. So why the name?

It is sometimes thought tilak is clay from the bank of the sacred Ganges, but this is also not correct. If you do a little research, you will find that tilak is mined from a dry river bed in Dwarka, Gujarat, nowhere near Vrindavan.

So what’s the connection with the Gopis?

It is in the Gargha Samh

Lecture on Chaitanya Charitamrita Madhya Lila 09-319-335 by Sesa Prabhu  on 21 May 2016 at ISKCON Alachua
(Sesa Dasa was initiated by Srila Prabhupada in 1974 while he was traveling as a member of the initial Bhaktivedanta Book Trust library party. Sesa Dasa has a portfolio of two ministries: Minister of Educational Development and Minister of Justice, under which ISKCON Resolve works.)

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Small temples are where the big action is! ISKCON Nellore is famous as a fired-up preaching center in Andhra Pradesh. Under the leadership of His Holiness Sukadeva Swami Maharaj, the temple is doing exceedingly well on all grounds. Preaching is on full steam, with their large congregation now actively preparing for the upcoming “Gudur Rath Yatra,” set to happen in another one month. Devotees also distribute books regularly. During a recent program, they distributed 300 copies of Bhagavad Gita

Lecture on The most direct sacrifice by HH Niranjana Swami on 11 May 2016 at Minsk

(His Holiness Niranjana Swami was born on December 10, 1952, in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. In 1972, his spiritual search took a turning point when he saw a Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, on the counter of a bookshop in Washington, DC.)

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Sacred chanting on the Emerald Isle will mark 30 years of blissful service.

The title read, “Now Irish Eyes are Smiling”, an article in the Back to Godhead magazine by Mathuresa Dasa covered the installation ceremony of Sri Sri Radha Govinda, the presiding deities at ISKCON Northern Ireland’s Govindadvipa temple. The year was 1986, Ireland was still in the midst of a guerrilla warfare conflict, and it was a cover feature and multiple page spread in the publication that was the mainstay of ISKC

Lord Krishna protects Iskcon Delhi from terroristic attack.
Times of India: NEW DELHI: In the winter of 2015, when Indian agencies were busy tracking down alQaida modules, two Jaish-eMuhammed terrorists had quietly sneaked into the capital. Intelligence sources said the duo rented a room in Lajpat Nagar, assembled six improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and recced at least four places for a strike, including the Taj Mahal and two city spots -Iskcon temple and the Select Citywalk mall in Saket.

Lecture on Bhakti is joyful and fruitful by HG Chaitanya Charan Prabhu

(Bhagavad Gita Chapter - 10, Text - 17)

(His Grace Caitanya Charan Prabhu is a monk and spiritual teacher in the time honored tradition of bhakti yoga. He is a editor of Back to Godhead, which is the official international magazine of the Hare Krishna movement.)

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Hearing good news about others affects people in different ways. Personally, the feelings it evokes within me serves as a barometer of how emotionally healthy I am and my relationship with the individual. Feelings of joy and "they totally deserve it" are what I aim for. However, in instances where it dredges up not so pleasant emotions, I realize I have internal work to do. 

Just as pain serves as an indication that something is wrong with the body, similarly, negative emotions can serve as a

I received this gift of a figurine on the first day of Kartik, the sacred month we are presently observing. Since I’m mostly confined to my recovery room it has been a welcome gift. I look at it many times during the day and remember the lilas (sacred stories) connected to it.

The figurine is of baby Krishna and His mother, Yasoda. If we are all ready to accept God as a person then it means there are other persons around him. He has parents, aunts, uncles, friends, lovers, community –  interac

The problem is not really the storms. We know they will come sooner or later. The problem is the shelter.

We are all blasted at some point – hit hard by inevitable pain due to loss or damage. Sometimes it’s a huge nature storm that will take our house away or an emotional storm due to loss and broken-heartedness. It could be a disaster that forces big changes in our lives that is totally our doing and we saw it coming, or something that seemed to come ‘out of the blue’. And don’t think that ju

There comes a time, sometimes regularly, where we may feel, Oh, Krishna. I can’t do this anymore. This ‘this’ will be different for everyone. It happened to Arjuna in the Gita – he wanted to give up, not to fight, and go off to the forest to be alone. He did not want to deal with people and life’s problems. He told Krishna: I’m not fighting, I can’t do it, I can’t see the point, better if I don’t act and move to the side.

If it can happen to Arjuna, who had everything going for him, including

High streets are intriguing places; a microcosm of modern life. It’s where people descend in their thousands, searching for something extra to enrich their existence. These urban hubs are a melting pot of entertainers, campaigners, shoppers, beggars and advertisers, a marketplace for the latest commodities and ideas, a space for meeting, sharing and exploring. Here you’ll find people from every imaginable socio-economic background, swarming like bees around a hive.

Enter the monks. Yes, you r

Tell me if I am wrong. There is a growing trend among ISKCON  devotees including seniors to shy away from three very important aspects of the movement.

1. Hesitation to use always the name KRISHNA while referring to God

2. Wearing of TILAK in a clear and Eye catching manner. It would be nice if devotees from West choose to apply Tilak with Radha Kund Sacred Mud which will contrast with their white skin.

3. SHIKA. It appears the days of shaven heads with golden shikas  are gone. More and more devote

Just as a very good sweet will have something hidden inside of it, or a company will have the inner group of key people, the Gita has a core made up of four verses. These are called the Catur Sloki (catur = four, and sloki = verses), and they summarize the entire Gita.

The eighteen chapters of the Gita are themselves divided into 3 parts. The middle six chapters focus on bhakti and are “protected” on either side by teachings on karma-yoga (the first six chapters) and jnana yoga (the focus of t

JPS

Like Maharaj JPS

a devotee of Krishna hardly there is

how much he did and still he does  

to his Gurudev Srila Prabhupada please

 Mayapur is blooming like a big lotus  golden

 with  petals billion

 under Maharaj's  supervision

 Round the globe even now he goes

 despite health issues and bodily woes

 to push forward mission Mahaprabhu's

 Everyone  knows

 He is carrying on back his

 the karmic cross 

 of his disciples not serious

 and knives thrown by knaves

 whom he gave spiritual lives

 Still acc

I found today’s blog in a shop window. ‘Give Presence’, the sign said. How clever I thought. In the gifting season of the year, the greatest gift of all is the gift of our presence, on all levels. Whether it is being present in a conversation, being present with our meditation, being present while driving – what does ‘being present’ or ‘giving presence’ mean?

It’s simply ‘being with’. Not half being with, not almost being with, but fully being with. We can’t do this all the time, but we surely

True spirituality teaches one how to live a dutiful life of contentment and true compassion.

Contentment comes from sincere service to God and all living beings. True compassion is to engage a living being in the service of the Lord so that that living being can find contentment.

Contentment is the foundation of real happiness and since the Lord is eternal, contentment in His service leads to everlasting happiness. Contentment does not mean passivity; it means to be happy with one's sincere e