From Back to Godhead
How the Gita teaches the eight steps of hatha yoga, the topic of Patanjali’s Yoga-sutras.
According to a survey by the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, an estimated 13.4 million Americans practice yoga, and many more experiment with it every year. Yoga is everywhere—from Mumbai to Moscow to Monte Carlo. But while yoga is meant to bring one closer to God, many of today’s yogis have a different agenda, the most common being to keep their bodies in shape.
“They’re not
On Saturday, June 1st, 2024, the vibrant community of ISKCON Minnesota came together to launch their first-ever Monthly Sankirtan Festival at Minnehaha Falls, the largest park in Minneapolis.
“Minnehaha is a Lakota tribe word that means ‘waterfall or jumbling water.'” said Rama Kisora Dasa, a member of the community, “When sitting by the falls, I have always thought of it as ‘dancing water’ as I watch it spill down from above.” The 53-foot waterfall at the park attracts more than 850,000 visit
Just outside the city of Kazan in Tatarstan, a Muslim state in the Russian Federation, I was distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books near a market with a friend. We had planned to distribute for about three hours and then leave for lunch, but by the end of the third hour, I still hadn’t distributed a single book, so I started to pray.
Near us a few old ladies were selling knitted items and apples from their gardens. One of them—a small, elderly lady wrapped in a shawl—came over to me and started
It's morning time, 6am, and I'm noticing that all those young folks sitting cross-legged chanting on their meditation beads might just like my proposal to get out for a stretch and continue with their japa meditation.
"How many of you would you like to go for a japa walk?"
Spontaneously, I'see about a dozen of them spring off their mats and head for shoes. There we are, touching nature, breathing the best air, into a park's green and having a piece of each other. And that's what a brief, l
Date: June 9, 2024, Location: Hainault, London
By Yogesvara Gopinath das
The Krishna Capital Gate Centre was inaugurated with great enthusiasm and joy. This newly established centre marks a significant milestone in the efforts to support humanitarian aid and community service. The event was graced by the presence of the Mayor of Redbridge, Sheila Bain, who was the chief guest, Pushpita Gupta and Nav Johal the Councillors from Redbridge. We also had the presence of Dayal Mora Das, Temple Preside
By Atma Tattva Das
Akhandadhi Das (Martin Fleming) opened the workshop with a summary of Vaishnava Vedanta and Sankhya metaphysics which could address the problematic gaps in current thinking about the interaction of the conscious agent, the mind and the brain.
The Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies (BIHS) made a significant achievement by participating in the University of Arizona’s Conference on Consciousness in Science, April 22 – 27, 2024. The event brought together researchers, phi
Off to the east we go. Nityananda and I embarked on a flight to Fredericton and then a car ride, compliments of Vyas. It was a year ago that this man of good company took diksha or initiation and he is doing well as the co-ordinator for the local Krishna community. He drove us to the city of St. John and the Irving Nature Park for a 7 kilometre coastline trail walk.
As soon as we hit that lovely trail our nostrils were aroused with effervescent fragrances of soft wood trees and wild flowers. Wh
Modern research supports the validity of the Vedic alternative to Darwinian evolution.
The question of human origins has always been a hot topic among philosophers and scientists. Today, most of them accept the Darwinian account that humans like us came into existence about 100,000 years ago, having evolved from more apelike ancestors. But the Vedic literature gives us another account of human origins. I call this account human devolution. To put it in its most simple terms, we do not evolve
I wasn’t having a good day at all today. Breathing was difficult and I’d vomited blood in the morning and had a black out, and was generally unwell so when the phone rang I picked it up with a heavy heart, not really wanting to answer. It turned out to be one of my customers who I also send Harinama videos to every week.
I said, “Hello?” and I got a reply, “This is Ryan.”
I asked, “How are you doing?” and an eery silence followed. Eventually he said, “You remember I told you my wife was very i
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi
The Krishna Center for Empathic Communication, an online platform under the guidance of Bir Krishna Das Goswami, is hosting an online workshop called “Seeking Harmony Within and Without” from June 16 to August 18, 2024, led by Madhuri Radhika Devi Dasi.
The workshop meets weekly for two hours, focusing on practicing Empathic Communication (EC) in small groups to promote harmony and cooperation through mutual encouragement and support.
Bir Krishna Das Goswami s
By Kulavati Krishnapriya Devi Dasi
In a recent interview, Harilila Das, head of ISKCON Mayapur’s Health Care Division, shared the latest updates on the Sri Mayapur Community Hospital project. The ground-breaking initiative is spread across an area of approximately five acres and will have a palliative care facility, a birth center, and a nursing college.
The unique integration of healthcare, educational, and spiritual elements in the design is aimed at uplifting individuals and the surrounding
My final step before turning back to home, back to ashram, was on a park bench at the park, when a young man, James sat next to me.
"I'm just waiting for some buddies," he informed me. "Your day is full?" he asked.
"Yes, quite. I'm Bhaktimarga Swami. Swami for short."
"I'm James Ensley." We shook hands and it didn't end there. Like most people, meeting a monk is a first, let alone a walking monk.
I had a similar exchange just a few minutes before. I was sitting down to chant my gayatri ma
Both in living and in dying, this senior disciple of Srila Prabhupada's exemplified the essence of Krsna consciousness.
On June 5, 1986, Gauri-devi dasi passed from her body in the holy land of Vrndavana, India. For seventeen years she had been devotedly serving her spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada, within the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Gauri was a sincere and dedicated preacher, giving herself fully to Srila Prabhupada's mission and working tirelessly to distribute his
On Thursday, the new Boeing Starliner made history by successfully docking with the International Space Station (ISS). One of the two astronauts aboard, Sunita Williams, brought some “essentials” along on the mission, including the Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, and some homemade samosas.
Navy Officer Williams was first selected for NASA’s astronaut program in 1998. This flight is her third space mission and the first time a woman has piloted a new orbital spacecraft. Williams, 59, the daugh
Over Memorial Day weekend 2024, more than 3,100 devotees gathered in Frisco, Texas, for the 11th annual US-based Sadhu Sanga Kirtan Retreat, organized by Indradyumna Swami. The sold-out event was held at the Frisco Convention Center near Dallas, Texas and welcomed devotees from 46 states and 14 countries.
Attendees enjoyed 24 hours of joyful kirtans from Acyuta Gopi Dasi, Bada Haridas, Gaura Vani Dasa, Indradyumna Swami, Madhava Dasa, Mayuri Gandharvika Priya Dasi, Mukunda Datta Dasa, Vaisesika
The Bluffs, situated at the west coast of Lake Ontario, are a real gem to visit. The cliffs and accompanying what appears like huge ant hills are a sight to see, so for our Tuesday morning outing, our local Bhakti Academy students and I went for some hours to explore. The beach is clean, so is the water, the trails and trees are a paradise. The peninsulas formed (by man) are pleasant parks and to some degree protect the bluffs from erosion. The natural beauty and the human implementation are a
Bhakti-yoga involves practice, and therefore repetition, but done right, it never gets stale.
Like Lord Krishna Himself, the regulated practice of devotional service to Him never gets old when undertaken with seriousness and sincerity.
Srila Prabhupada had an extraordinary ability to say something repeatedly, something we’d heard him say many times before, but say it in such a way that we appreciated it afresh. We’d hear the statement as if we’d never heard it before, although in fact we’d hea
A life of Krishna consciousness provides plenty of freedom to satisfy our inspiration to create.
Our creative urge, born of our being part of Krishna, will be most fulfilling when connected with His purposes.
Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the original creator. In the Bhagavad-gita (10.8) He says,
“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me.” Th
On June 5th, 2024, a group of Greek-Catholic seminarians visited the ISKCON Kyiv temple with their professor as part of their religious studies curriculum, which includes learning about other spiritual traditions.
Under the guidance of Acyuta Priya Das and Bhakti Caru Das, the group of seminarians experienced a warm and welcoming atmosphere at the New Navadvipa Mandir Temple. The guests actively participated in a lecture, posed thoughtful questions, and were treated to prasadam and kirtan. In
By Radhapriya
The Muskoka Cultural Centre in Huntsville, Ontario celebrated its Grand Opening during the 3rd week of May 2024, with the aim of spreading Krishna Consciousness, prasadam, and kirtan in a welcoming environment to the local and larger community.
By Srila Prabhupada’s mercy, devotees are always trying to spread goodwill through the preaching of bhakti-yoga. One aspect of that is bringing people access to Vedic literature, darshan of the Lord, prasadam, kirtan, and association throug
