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In ISKCON, we have many varieties of devotees from entry level to advanced. While all of them look similar externally, they are not internally. The mood and prayer of a devotee is very difficult to judge by one's external outfit or behavior. To a certain extent, one can judge based on one's words and actions, however, even that can be deceptive. Therefore, we have to be careful as to who is elevated and who is not. To really understand who is elevated requires understanding of lives of great va

Bhakti is about detail, little things. Big things are wonderful, but even more wonderful are the little things within the big things. And if you don’t have a big thing, equally wonderful is the little things.

The culture of bhakti is something very deep. In the Bhaktivedanta Hospital the big things are the machines and the surgeries going on. But when someone comes around and offers charnamrta or Jagannath’s chariot comes around, its the small detail that changes people’s heart. Devotees kindne

HRD Ministry sets up exclusive panel on Sanskrit promotion

The human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry has constituted a 13-member expert committee exclusively on Sanskrit in its attempt to revive interest in the ancient language.

Headed by N Gopalaswami, the former chief election commissioner (CEC) and now Chancellor of Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth in Tirupati, the committee has been asked to recommend measures to integrate the study of the ancient language with other disciplines such as ph

Burglers broke a hole in the roof to get in, then they went through the whole building, smashing up anything of value on their way, and stealing cash and valuables, which were used in the worship there.

Govindas is home to a vegetarian cafe, and is the local Temple for the Hare Krishnas. They are well known and liked in the area, being in this location for the last 15 years. I personally have very fond memories of my time there 15 years ago. The community of devotees is a wonderful, selfless co

One More Time Around! (9 min video)
Indradyumna Swami: There are devotees of the Lord who circumambulate Govardhana hill two, or even three times, a day. Busy with visiting other holy places in Vrajamandala our group of 350 devotees only managed to do parikrama around Giriraja twice during our stay in Vrindavan. But what a wonderful parikrama the second one was! At the southern tip of Govardhana Hill we performed abhiseka for Giriraja at an ancient temple of Lord Nrsimhadeva. Devotees enjoyed

Anuttama was joined by Dr. Michael Langone, the Executive Director of the International Cultic Studies Association. Both discussed potential prob

Dharmakala Cooking Biscuits in RVC Temple devotee kitchen – 1984.

By Madhava Smullen

Dharmakala Dasi’s destiny seemed set from the start – she grew up with the smell of fresh baked bread and cookies lingering throughout her home.

“My parents had eight kids, so we didn’t really go out to eat – my mother just cooked constantly to feed us all,” she says. “So being around it all the time, I started cooking myself when I was a little kid. I baked my first brownies at the age of seven.”

But with all

Bhakti primarily has two components. One is aversion or natural disliking towards materialistic enjoyment such as pleasures related to the body/mind such as entertainment, family, employment etc. The other component is the cultivation of taste (rasa) towards spiritual activities such as chanting, reading, and listening about Krishna. 

A talk by Giriraj Swami, November 22, 2004, Dallas

Today is the disappearance day of Srila Gaurakisora dasa Babaji Maharaja, a great devotee–maha-bhagavata. He was a disciple of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura and was very renounced. Earlier, he had lived for many years in Vrndavana, roaming the twelve forests, chanting the holy names of Krsna, eating by begging alms, and sleeping under the trees. Later, after Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura discovered Lord Caitanya’s birthplace in Mayapur, Srila Jaganna

By Urmila Devi Dasi

On a visit to schools for the deaf, Hare Krishna devotees find more evidence that bhakti-yoga is for everyone.

It’s easy to imagine being blind. A simple close of the eyelids in a somewhat dark place or a walk through an unlit room at night, and we can empathize with those who cannot see. Making oneself temporarily deaf, however, is almost impossible. First of all, it’s hard to completely seal the entrance to the ears. Putting our hands over our ears or using earplugs blocks

November 22nd, 2015

 Sri Krishna Kathamrita Bindu is always free from politics and institutional bashing or promotion. Just simply nectarean Krishna Katha! 

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Srila Prabhupada praise His Guru Maharaja, the exalted Srila Gaura Kishora dasa babaji

excerpted from: Srila Prabhupada Lectures : Bhagavad-gita 4.24-34 — New York, August 12, 1966

Indian: Because if we go wholeheartedly to God without proper understanding, there is also a flaw.

Srila Prabhupāda: No. There is no question of understanding. Suppose this process… Just like Kṛṣṇa says, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate: [Bg. 7.19] “After many, many births of culture of knowledge, the pe

By Tamoharadasa

I have seen time and again how devotees who have undergone brahmacari training, and who later take up the reins of householder life, enter the workplace with skills far above those of the average man or woman. It is not that the skills and mentality of the devotional training have no value in the work theatre. On the contrary, the training as given by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada raises the devotee to a level above that of others.

The first thing that a brahmacari

Of course, today, India is a conglomeration of various thoughts, and culture. Still, I feel there are places all over the country with edifices so old no one can estimate its origins. When people visit India as a tourist spot, they approach India from a 21st century mindset coupled with their time frame. If a westerner visits India, he or she is used to the biblical time frame which at the most is 6000 years old or so and within that time relevance experience India. If one is a rational thinke