Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared in Mayapur in the town of Nadia just after sunset on the 18th of February 1486. The moon was eclipsed at the time of His birth, and the people of Nadia were then engaged, as was usual on such occasions, in bathing in the Bhagirathi with loud cheers of Haribol.
His father, Jagannatha Misra, and His mother, Saci-devi, both descended from ‘brahmana’ stock originally resided in Sylhet. Mahaprabhu was a beautiful child, and the ladies of the town came to see Him with
Prabhupada wanted us to understand that we shouldn’t think, “Now I am very big, I can take over my spiritual master’s position.”
Dina Bandhu: Around 1970, we drove from Boulder to L.A. and were present when Prabhupada started playing the tape of the Govindam prayers. Although it’s taken for granted now, before that time we didn’t play that tape of Yamuna singing.
But on the second or third day that we were there, Prabhupada came into the temple, the tape was put on, and he paid his obeisances.
“sādhu-vartmānuvartana” seems to sometimes be controversial when explained to people with a certain background. It is an extremely important principle, evidenced by the fact that Śrī Rūpa puts it immediately after the very first principles related to guru.
It establishes that bhakti (practiced by implementing the instructions of theguru) must be within the philosophical and moral framework established by the Vedas and exemplified by the sādhus.
Śrī Rūpa Goswāmī makes this very clear by quoting
Gaura Purnima celebrations at Iskcon of Silicon Valley! Ecstatic Kirtan lead by Vaisesika Dasa Prabhu and amazing prasadam! Haribol!!
Srila Prabhupada: The sound of the spiritual world is nectarean and eternal, whereas the sound of the material world is hackneyed and subject to end. The sound of the Holy Name – Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare – everlastingly increases the enthusiasm of the chanter. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 3.21.22 Purport)
Source: http://m.dandavats.com/?p=1
By: for ISKCON News on March 23, 2016
Harinama on Australia's Gold Coast
When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu performed His sankirtan pastimes 500 years ago, He predicted that His holy names would one day be chanted in every town and village throughout the world, thus benedicting the fallen souls of Kali Yuga. Over the centuries following the Lord’s disappearance, His dear associates spread His mission far and wide, culminating with Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur’s establishment
MAY WE BE BLESSED TO MEDITATE ON, UNDERSTAND, APPRECIATE, AND APPLY TO OUR LIVES, THE UNPARALLELED MERCY OF SHRI KRISHNA CHAITANYA MAHAPRABHU, THE KIRTAN AVATAR, ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF HIS APPEARANCE IN THE WORLD: For me, on appearances day of any incarnation of God, or great devotee, I question myself on how much I appreciate their special teaching and gifts to the world. Today, I am thinking of both the beauty and insanity of being in the material world, and what it would be like to have never
An Instrumental Tribute To The Son of Mother Sachi
On the auspicious occasion of the appearance day of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, we offer two Esraj songs unto His divine lotus feet. These songs, ‘Ujjvala Varana Gaura Vara Deham’ and ‘Nava Gaura Varam’ were composed by Srila Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya. The melody has been taken from the albums of H.H. Bhakti Charu Swami.
Esraj is an important instrument in traditional vaisnava music and by the 1980s the instrument was nearly extinct. Of late, this
By Mahaprabhu das
On Tuesday, March 22nd, 2016, a terrorist attack with multiply blasts has shaken Belgium’s capital Brussels killing and injuring dozens at Zaventem Airport and in the subway.
On March 23rd, ISKCON Belgium has issued the following statement:
“ISKCON Belgium deplores the atrocious acts of violence committed by monsters that do not represent or practice any spiritual tradition but on the contrary, only represent and practice hatred, madness, envy, violence and terror.
Our prayer
Question: How can we know that the shastra is correct? The ancient traditions are oral and only recently in historical time were they written down. And we all know that when a story is told it changes from one person to the other. The new testament of the bible was written 70-100 years after Christ’s death. Here your talk about thousands of years.
Even the Mahabharata is known to be full of corruptions. So, how can one be sure that all the other texts were not altered also? You assume the former
“Prema-bhakti is the essence of bhakti. If we prepare a garland of flowers, one thread is required and it is woven together. Similarly, when the question ofnāma-prema-mālā comes, what is the thread of that garland? That thread isprema. The mālā is woven together with the thread of prema. It is nāma-prema-mālā. The example is the japa-mālā. With our japa-mālā we are chanting. That means you should chant the Holy Name feeling acute pangs of separation from Kṛṣṇa. Then
More from the Temple of Vedic Planetarium in Mayapur.
Sadbhuja Das: This is a sample of our first ‘gold-leafing’ experiment, just to see how the effects and color will be matching for the inside- & outside of the altars, and chamber pillars.
Source: http://m.dandavats.com/?p=19942
It has become alarmingly apparent that commercially farmed soils around the world are lifeless and inert. This is because the dependence on chemical or unnatural intervention in the soils, the produce may look the same but it’s nutritional value is lost. The only way to undo this damage is, heal the soil for a few years with cows, bulls and calves.
A friend of mine related a story of a dentist who notice that in the 1940’s the clients jaws began to show signs of deformity (most people need te
From Back to Godhead
(Kadamba Kanana Swami, December 2011, Pretoria, South Africa, Caitanya Caritamrta Lecture)
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu explained to Sanatana Goswami that we must follow in the footsteps of the eternal residents of Vrindavan. We must always act for the pleasure of Krsna. In our sadhana, Krsna must always be in the centre.
My first big festival in the temple was Gaura Purnima. I was celebrating it at the Bhaktivedanta Manor and I had just returned from India. We were in a very big room and we, the
Mahatma das: I happily and enthusiastically welcome the holy names every japa session.I easily chant my prescribed number of rounds with focus and attention.When I chant, I chant.I get to chant, I want to chant, and I love to chant.I treat the maha-mantra as Radha and Krsna, fully present in sound.I receive and feel Krsna’s presence, mercy and love in His holy names.I chant in full awareness that the holy name is my greatest treasure.I chant to please Radha and Krsna, not to gain anything mat
“Man is not what he thinks he is; he is what he hides” – Andre Malraux (1901-1976, French Novelist)
Vraja Bihari Dasa: “Wow! He really looks stunning; is he some demi-God?” I asked innocently, looking at a huge billboard.
Sishir, my friend laughed, “He’s known as a Greek God and you should know more than others that appearance is deceptive”
“Well err”, I flustered. I was expected to be well acquainted with the spiritual philosophy of the shallowness of it all.
“Yeah, I don’t see movies, but h
click on image to enlarge
So today is Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s appearance day. We will honor it with a full day fast, which we will break at the appearance of the full moon with a nice prasadam feast. Also in honor of this auspiscious day, we share with you a lecture given in Mayapur India, on the Gaura Purnima day, in 1976. Hare Krishna!
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Lecture 7.9.38
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Māyāpur, March 16, 1976
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: “In this way, my Lord,
We’re pleased to inform you of the latest happenings at the TOVP: 3 of the 8 chatris have been completed with blue tiles and kalashes.
More segments have been put onto the 3 domes, in preparation for the kalashes. The 4th stage (out of 6) of the decorative sandstone features has been completed.
Also 2 more Demigods; Lord Brahma and Laksmi Devi are nearly completed, while the life-size clay model of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur is going on.
“You started 108 temples all over the world. Today, you have over 700 centers worldwide. But now, here comes the most important center of them all, the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.”
Dear Devotees,
We have something very special for you today. A brand new film from Kriyate, called “For Tomorrow”, was released on the disappearance day of Srila Madhavendra Puri, which is also the celebration of Sri Advaitacarya’s Shantipur festival. This film reveals the timeless sacred beauty of Mayapur th
MAY WE BE BLESSED TO MEDITATE ON, UNDERSTAND, APPRECIATE, AND APPLY TO OUR LIVES, THE UNPARALLELED MERCY OF SHRI KRISHNA CHAITANYA MAHAPRABHU, THE KIRTAN AVATAR, ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF HIS APPEARANCE IN THE WORLD: For me, on appearances day of any incarnation of God, or great devotee, I question myself on how much I appreciate their special teaching and gifts to the world. Today, I am thinking of both the beauty and insanity of being in the material world, and what it would be like to have nev
