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ISKCON Durban held its 36th annual Festival of Chariots, or Ratha Yatra Festival, over the Easter weekend in Durban, South Africa. Thousands joined the colorful multi-day celebrations which reflects the diversity of the region’s rich diversity.  Held at Durban’s north beachfront, the procession, festival-goers were treated to kirtans, prasadam, book tables, dance and cultural presentations, mantra meditation, spiritual discussions, and more. Short workshops and seminars were also held, along wi

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On Saturday, April 6th, more than three hundred people –political, religious, and other community leaders, along with leading congregational members of ISKCON of DC – gathered for the Temple Grand Opening Ceremony in Potomac, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, DC. The diversity of participants reflected the decades-long bonds the Hare Krishna community has cultivated in the region. Guests expressed their congratulations on the opening of the newly constructed temple building and gratitude for IS

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I met people by Bhaktimarga Swami

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“I’m from Nepal. When I saw you I immediately made the connection,” said the young man. I had no doubt about his origins. He looked like where he comes from and even has this monk hairstyle all shaved except for a small tuft of hair in the back. “See!” He said as he turned around to illustrate the Vaishnava trademark.

It slightly threw me off when he expressed his allegiance to Buddha, and moreso when he declared, “I’m hoping to be the next Buddha.”

“Really, well I wish you the best in get

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SAVE THE DATE: ISKCON LEADERSHIP SANGA (ILS) 2025

Dear Leaders,

Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

The GBC is pleased to announce the next ISKCON Leadership Sanga (ILS) 2025.

About ILS:
The ILS has been the prime gathering of ISKCON’s current and future leaders since its inception in 2012. Srila Prabhupada instructed the leaders of his society to gather once a year at Sri Mayapur. The ILS offers leaders an opportunity to engage and associate with leaders from

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April 12, 2024 – On April 10, during a meeting of the Mayapur Executive Board, or MEB, it was decided that for the safety of the devotees, staff, and pilgrims to Mayapur, the two elephants Vishnupriya and Laxmipriya will be permanently shifted out of Mayapur.

“The MEB was unanimous in its decision that the safety of the devotees, staff members, and visitors to Mayapur must come first,” said Tapan Misra prabhu, one of the five Co-Directors of Mayapur. “While we are all sad to see these two belov

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Three Lessons by Bhaktimarga Swami

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I was happy to deliver three classes today. The first a Bhagvatam class from Canto 4 highlighting the story of Puranjana, allegorically rich in themes. I recall the figurative story of the foolish king who beat the bull and injured him so. Three legs broken representing the legs of austerity, mercy and cleanliness with remaining the one standing leg of truthfulness. These metaphors add colour. 

Class two in Scarborough captured the theme of 2.64 of the Gita which is mercy or in Sanskrit prasada

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From Back to Godhead

Just to attract us to His service, God appeared on earth more than one million years ago as Lord Ramacandra the most benevolent ruler and valiant hero the world has ever known.

The incarnations of Godhead are as numerous as the waves of the sea, yet Krsna, the original Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the source of them all. Just as from one original candle we may light many other candles equal in potency, so Krsna expands Himself in many incarnations, each as powerful as

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[The following history from the Valmiki Ramaya is full of import for anyone who wants to be a guru, GBC, temple president or leader in ISKCON or any spiritual institution.]

The incident of Lord Rama and the Dog

From Valmiki’s Ramayana Uttara Khandha between chapters 59-60

Part one

Thereafter in the bright morning Sri Rama, of lotus-like eye having performed forenoon rites, took his seat in the Royal Council-chamber along with the Brahmanas, who were masters of the Vedas the priest Vasistha and

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Hawaii, March 27, 1969

Spoken by His Divine Grace
Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

ramadi murtishu kala-niyamena tishthan
nanavataram akarod bhuvaneshu kintu
krishnah svayam samabhavat paramah puman yo
govindam adi-purusham tam aham bhajami
[Bs. 5.39]

This is a verse from Brahma-samhita in which the incarnation of Lord Ramacandra is described. Ramadi. Not only Rama, but there are many other, innumerable incarnations. They are compared with the waves of a river. As the waves of the rive

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By Shyamasundara Dasa ACBSP

The name of King Kulasekhara Alvar is well known to the followers of Srila Prabhupada. His Divine Grace used to relish with great ecstasy the Mukunda Mala Stotra written by this great saintly king. This stotra is commonly known in ISKCON as the Prayers of King Kulasekhara.

Though his name is well known, for most devotees, very little is known about Maharaja Kulasekhara. We shall now try to remedy this lacuna by presenting a concise synopsis of his life.

But before we

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By Srila Vyasadeva

SB 9.10: The Pastimes of the Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra

This Tenth Chapter describes how Lord Ramacandra appeared in the dynasty of Maharaja Khatvanga. It also describes the Lord’s activities, telling how He killed Ravana and returned to Ayodhya, the capital of His kingdom.

The son of Maharaja Khatvanga was Dirghabahu, and his son was Raghu. The son of Raghu was Aja, the son of Aja was Dasaratha, and the son of Dasaratha was Lord Ramacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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Sri Rama Navami by Giriraj Swami

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We read from Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto Two, Chapter Seven: “Scheduled Incarnations.”

TEXT 23

asmat-prasada-sumukhah kalaya kalesa
  iksvaku-vamsa avatirya guror nidese
tisthan vanam sa-dayitanuja avivesa
  yasmin virudhya dasa-kandhara artim arcchat

TRANSLATION

Due to His causeless mercy upon all living entities within the universe, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, along with His plenary extensions, appeared in the family of Maharaja Iksvaku as the Lord of His internal potency, Sita. Under th

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This is a compilation based on the works of Srila Prabhupada.

Compiled by Premanjana Das

(Pranjal Joshi)

1)

“If you sit down and write some article on Krsna, that means you have to concentrate on Krsna’s activities or Krsna’s devotees’ activities, and that very process will purify your heart. Therefore we always recommend to our students that you write articles, read our magazine, read our book. In this way if we keep ourself… Work for Krsna. This… We have come here in this pandal or in this Ku

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By Savitri Devi Dasi  

The Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education (VIHE) is pleased to announce its latest on-site Bhakti-vaibhava course covering Cantos One and Two, which will be held from June 26 to October 30, 2024. The full course facilitates the systematic study of the first six cantos of Srimad-Bhagavatam in the association of devotees under the guidance of senior teachers, with reference to Srila Prabhupada’s books and the works of previous acaryas. It aims to expand devotees’ devotio

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By Sangita Devi Dasi

On Saturday, March 30, 2024, our local Vaishnavas CARE Team Volunteers and several ISKCON Philadelphia congregational members decorated 200 “Spring Baskets” with organic fruit first offered to Lord Krishna along with fresh baked “Srila Prabhupada cookies” (an old “ISKCON favorite” from the early days), two transcendental books by Srila Prabhupada, and other goodies with Hare Krishna mantra labels on them and distributed them throughout the neighborhood near our Philadelphia

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Our program repeated itself this morning - an early drive to the beach for that essential walk at Belle Mare. We stuck to our Japa and were free of the very common, as of late, torrential rains. They went on and off most of the night, but the great lord of rain, Indra, gave us a break.

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There are many stay dogs in Mauritius many of which breed in the sugar cane fields. And Belle More has a shore of such dogs. We were left alone by their agitation at least this morning.

What about the sea? Any

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Rama-navami Observance & Fasting

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Pdf download link: http://www.dandavats.com/wp-content/uploads6/Rama-navami-fast-SAC-March-2018.pdf

                      Maṅgalācaraṇam                     

 

namo brahmaṇya-devāya rāmāyākuṇṭha-medhase
uttamaśloka-dhuryāya nyasta-daṇḍārpitāṅghraye

O Lord, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who have accepted the brāhmaṇas as Your worshipable deity. Your knowledge and memory are never disturbed by anxiety. You are the chief of all famous persons within this world, and Your lotus feet a

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The ISKCON Environmental Initiative (IEI) will be hosting an online presentation by Krishna Kshetra Swami, Ph.D. entitled, “Cow Care is Earth Care: Can We Connect the Dots?” on Earth Day, April 22, 2024, 7 am EDT. The offering is part of the IEI Seminar Series: Divinity and the Environment.

The IEI was established to promote Environmental stewardship in ISKCON temples and the community through sustainable environmental practices like the Green Team Vision. It also provides education, training,

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