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My father had a sudden brain stroke in March 2015 and was rushed to the hospital where he was operated twice. He was in a coma for some time, then he appeared to recover slowly, but was not able to talk. So my mother and sisters couldn't communicate with him. Eventually after a few months his health became worse and worse. He died in August last year (2015). My mother arranged for a catholic funeral and I also performed the shraddha ceremony in September. We were shocked by his sudden departure

On the 7th of March the Institute for Spiritual Culture conducted their annual program in Mayapur. This year the overall theme was "The Glories of the Vanaprastha Ashram" - a topic which attracted attention since it is not so widely discussed. 

The program took place on the premises of the Old Gurukula on the way to the Goshala. A big pandal was constructed to conduct the event, and another little one with tables and chairs for the VIP prasadam - both with open sides which allowed a pleasant br

KOLKATA: The devotees of Iskcon Mayapur celebrated Narsimha Chaturdashi, the divine appearance day of Lord Narsimha Deva in the temple on Friday, May 20. To commemorate the occasion, discourses from Srimad Bhagwatam , glorifying the pastimes of the Lord Narsimha Deva was recited by H.H Bhakti Purshottam Swami in the morning followed by “Darshan Arti”. At dusk “Maha-Abhisheka” of the deity was performed by using sandalwood oil and other precious oils. Hundreds of devotees raised their arms and

World class International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) will construct Shri Radharaman temple at Chouwkital Lamhetaghat over 4 acre land at the banks of Narmada. Gaushala, Free Food for Life, Gurukul, Hospital, Vedic study centre construction has also been proposed. Temple Manager Aditiputra Das said that it will be the third largest temple in Madhya Pradesh. The biggest temple is situated in Indore, while second largest temple is situated in Ujjain.

Founder of ISKCON Acharya Bhakt

More than 300 thousand devotees and pilgrims from all over India and from more than 70 countries visited Sri Mayapur Dham on Gaura Purnima day 2016. Please note that we are not talking about the whole festival that started on the 5 of March and went on until the end of the month. We are talking about the Gaura Purnima day alone! During this very special day for all the devotees of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, ISKCON Mayapur did its homework and those who visited Mayapur were overwhelmed with a var

Krishna-valley in Somogyvamos, Hungary is one of the fastest growing villages in the area. In the past two decades, due to the hard work of the devotees, the 275 hectars of land has become Europe’s largest eco-village. 

At the moment, Krishna-valley has 150 inhabitants, and there are an additional 30,000 people yearly who visit there or participate at religious festivals.

People gathered in front of the new school building.

There are 50 children living in Krishna-valley, who, by know, outgrew

When he was 19, Richard Slavin, a nice Jewish boy from the suburbs of Chicago, went backpacking in Europe for two months.

“Hey,” I told him. “I have a son about to do the same thing.”

“But,” Slavin added with a twinkle, “I never came back!”

With that he gave a hearty laugh as jolly a sound as the ice cream man’s bell. Pure joy. He could laugh now he was laughing now, in a conference room in Midtown, in town for a book tour because at 60-something and bald, he is no longer the wandering hippie

Dawn is yet to streak across the horizon but at 4.30 am at The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple at Juhu, the air is thick with the fragrance of flowers, burning incense sticks and the clash of cymbals and drums to the rhythmic loud chants of Hare Krishna, Hare Rama. There is a clutch of devotees who sway and clap their hands as they chant. As the day progresses, one sees silk clad women with diamonds twinkling on their noses and ears and some celebrities of the ci

Professor Ravi M. Gupta (Radhika Ramana Das) is the newly appointed Charles Redd Chair of Religious Studies, and Director of the Religious Studies Program at Utah State University.

It’s a prestigious position that brings to mind a gruff, silver-bearded elder. But Radhika Ramana flips that idea on its head. At a youthful 34, he’s got a beaming smile of pearly whites and a full head of black hair. He’s also disarmingly unpretentious despite his astonishing academic journey.

Homeschooled by his mo

Our Founder, Srila Prabhupada, said that the love a mother has for her child is the closest thing to pure love in this world. We will examine that love as it manifested in famous mothers in the Vedic tradition as well as how it still manifests today. From a Sunday lecture in ISKCON of DC

Source:http://m.dandavats.com/?p=21442

Giriraj Swami read and spoke from Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.7.14

“When Krishna comes home from the pasturing grounds in the late afternoon, his body is sprinkled with the dust raised by the hooves of the cows and calves as they walk before him. The residents of Vrindavan see that Krishna’s beauty is enhanced by the dust and beads of perspiration that decorate His body. Every element accentuates Krishna’s beauty. Similarly, when devotees see Lord Nrsimhadeva splattered with the blood from Hiranyakasip

On Saturday, May 7, Radhanath Swami spoke before a capacity crowd at The Rubin Museum of Art in New York City. The Rubin Museum is dedicated to the preservation of the art and cultures of the Himalayas, India and neighboring regions. On the eve of the release of his upcoming book The Journey Within, Radhanath Swami was interviewed by yoga teacher and social activist, Dana Flynn on the topic of how to live spiritually through yoga in an increasingly materialistic and impersonal world.

Following

“Svayam-rupa Krishnachandra does not give those whose hearts are polluted the power to realize His Gaura pastimes, which are meant for instructing all. Without the mercy of Sri Nityananda no one has the qualification to serve Sri Gaurasundara, to understand Him, or to attain love of Krsna.” (Source: Shrila Bhaktisiddhant Prabhupad’s commentary on CB 3.2.114)

In the above commentary Shrila Bhaktisiddhant Saraswati Thakur writes that if our heart is polluted than Krishna does not give us the power

The highest form of ignorance (avidya) for a living entity is to consider transcendental personalities and objects as ordinary and mundane. We are not able to understand the transcendental nature of Hari, Guru, Vaishnavas, Their activities, the Holy Dhams, the Deities, and the Holy Names. We are always trying to impose our contaminated mundane conception on them. This is the real reason why we are still in the material world.

Lord Krishna tells Arjuna,

janma karma ca me divyam
evam yo vetti tattvat

Every conditioned soul wants to be special. Most souls in this world realize sooner or later that they are just one amongst millions and with no special attributes. They want to be heroes but are in fact quite ordinary. They rejoice in others’ heroic deeds secretly hoping to be in the heroes’ shoes someday. If the hero happens to be an acquaintance, their mind squirms in unexpressed envy. Even if a soul is relatively well-placed materially, he is painfully aware of others who are better placed

Like any nice Jewish boy ought to, I decided to have lunch at a Hare Krishna temple.

Govinda’s Vegetarian Restaurant opened in 2007 in the basement of the ISKCON New York Hare Krishna temple at 305 Schemerhorn Street (just off Nevins Street) and it’s only open Monday through Friday from 12pm – 3:30pm.

“If you eat, healthy, good fresh home cooked food, you’re gonna feel happy and lighter and it’s gonna elevate your consciousness,” said Satya, who is both the manager and the chef.

I was surprised

ISKCON pins hopes on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Krishna temple in Moscow
Indiatimes.com (http://goo.gl/InVviV) Moscow, May 1 (IANS) 

It was in the forefront to stall a ban on the Hindu holy book, the Bhagavad Gita, in a Siberian city, but somewhat like the story of Lord Krishna, whose address at birth was said to be a gloomy dungeon in ancient Mathura, the address to Moscow’s only Krishna temple is in a basement in a rented building.

And quite like the story of persecution of Lord Krishna

Radha Kunda Seva - April 2016 Photos and Updates. 
We are excited to share photos with you of the progress on the building of Srila Prabhupada’s temple on the property adjacent to ours in Govardhan. The dome has appeared and is clearly visible from the Govardhana Parikrama path! Construction for the kitchen is scheduled to begin as soon as the temple is complete. 
If you’d like to be a part of Prasadam distribution in Radha Kunda, this is an excellent opportunity. More about the project at http