Author Archives: Dandavats.com

Chanting And Dancing With Abandon (Album of photos) Giridhari…
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Chanting And Dancing With Abandon (Album of photos)
Giridhari Swami: The third day of Kirtan 50 started just after Bada Haridas Prabhu’s kirtan on Dec. 30, ending at 11pm. The youth then cleaned the temple room and chanted enthusiastically until Mangala-arati. Many talented kirtaniyas continued to chant throughout the day. I was honored to be present during the kirtans of Gopi Gita Mataji and Bada Haridas Prabhu in the morning. After Gaura Arati, Niranjana Swami Maharaja, Geethika Dasi, Kirtan Premi Das, Akincana Krishna Dasa, and Kalindi Dasi chanted beautifully until 11pm. B.B. Govinda Swami Maharaja took over and ended up chanting until 2:30am on Jan. 1. That’s when things went completely wild with devotees chanting and dancing with abandon! We offer our most humble obeisances to Srila Prabhupada, who most mercifully gifted us the Holy Name on behalf of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Hare Krishna maha-mantra ki-jaya!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/h8zysC

Bhaktivedanta Manor: The present children’s playground at…
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Bhaktivedanta Manor: The present children’s playground at Bhaktivedanta Manor is being dismantled and closed. There will be no playground for the duration of the Haveli construction. With the completion of the project in July 2019, a new playground will be opened.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
To learn more about the Haveli project: https://goo.gl/RtM8bF

13.000 youth learn how to lead a meaningful life (Album with…
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13.000 youth learn how to lead a meaningful life (Album with photos)
On 13th Jan 2018, Gaur Gopal Das addressed 13,000 youth in Nagpur on occasion of Yuva Divas. The event was organized by “Khasdar Sanskrutik Mahotsav Samiti” which is headed by Shri Nitin Gadkari. Shri Nitin Gadkari is the current Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Shipping and Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation in the Government of India.
Gaur Gopal Das inspired the youth by presenting the key principles for leading a successful and meaningful life. The event was covered by leading newspapers.
Thank you Shri Nitin Gadkari for inviting for this event.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/hJ16sk

Watching TV and Movies. Sivarama Swami: There are two main…
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Watching TV and Movies.
Sivarama Swami: There are two main defects in this activity, whether they’re done regularly or even occasionally. The first is that this media always includes intoxication, graphic sex life, violence, and gambling. Therefore watching it means to break the regulative principles. What reason do we have that we should go out of our way to observe and watch these activities of Kali-yuga when it’s already difficult enough to stay away from them? So why would I want to bring these things into my own home, to give ideas to children? Answer: because people have material desires and they give into them.
The second defect is that anything you see makes an impression on the heart. So the rampant violence, sex, intoxication, bad language, immoral behavior, fairytale worlds like Spiderman jumping off buildings and flying through the air, these make an impression in the heart, and when they do they become a source of meditation, something to meditate on, because these impressions will come out at a later time. Not only as a reflection of the mind, but something that creates seeds of material desires in the heart and which will also water existing seeds of desire in the heart. So it is a very detrimental practice.
Initiated devotees vow to follow regulative principles. When referring to brahmacaris and sannyasis in this regard, we say that even in the mind if one contemplates these things he is breaking the principles. But while grhasthas might have license, they only have that within their own marriage situation. They don’t have a license to view sexual activities or these other things. So for them to contemplate it, to view it, to enjoy it; it’s all breaking the principles. How then can an initiated devotee do these things with a clear conscience?

And what is the effect of breaking the regulative principles? We commit sin. And by committing sin, we complicate our spiritual lives, entangle ourselves in material existence, and suffer from the results of that sin. Committing sin has an effect on the mind; that is that sinful thoughts linger in the heart. They come up like bubbles from the mud and become the source of other sinful desires, which then become the result of further sinful acts. Ultimately what devotees see on TV and in movies, they’ll end up doing. If they see infidelity, they’ll end up doing it. If they see violence or other activities, they’ll do that. When they become bewildered thinking materialism, egoism, pride in the material body is the ultimate goal in life; they become more body conscious and egotistical.

All these things strangle the creeper of devotional service and make one’s devotional life more or less null and void. Why does a devotee do this? Well, obviously because they’re not doing what they should be doing. One who is not chanting Hare Krishna and hearing Srimad Bhagavatam and Caitanya-caritamrita without offense and who is not doing them enough will not have enough spiritual strength to resist the social pressure from those who are doing these things. Devotional movies are available and will water our seed of bhakti and give further inspiration and lasting satisfaction to the heart.

Sivarama Swami

The All-india Padayatra’s December Book Marathon In…
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The All-india Padayatra’s December Book Marathon In Karnataka.
January 12, 2018 – By Acarya Dasa.
Every year all the ISKCON temples and centers worldwide hold a marathon during the month of December, which corresponds to the Christmas season in the Western world. During that time they profusely sell Srila Prabhupada’s books in order to spread the essence of Vedic wisdom. But on Padayatra India book distribution is a daily ongoing process, in fact it’s the heart of padayatra. Harinama sankirtana and book distribution go hand in hand. During this month we padayatris enhance our book distribution for the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada. This year we were in the state of Karnataka in South India during the December marathon.
School students get inspired by the holy name
On December 17th we were at Subramanya where there is a school named Jnanadeep. The specialty of that school is its daily morning recitation of the Bhagavad-gita by all the students. As the school principal got news that padayatra was in town he personally came to invite us for a small school program in order to chant and also read our Bhagavad- gita As It is to the children. When we reached there we were warmly welcomed by the staff of the school. As we had gone with the cart of Their Lordships all of students assembled in the yard around the cart; the children were amazed to see our big Kankrej oxen with their huge towering horns. They danced with us to the sound of the holy name and many of them took a Bhagavad-gita. The teachers were also very much interested in the program and they also bought Bhagavad -gitas from us. In the evening the children came with their parents for the Gaura arati. The principal had also called newspaper reporters and the next day there was an article about Padayatra India in the well-known local newspapers.

The Lord sends us help in time of need

Sullia (also spelled Sulya) is a beautiful small town and the taluk headquarters in the Dakshina Kannada district. It is surrounded by the evergreen mountains of the Western Ghats range and is located at a distance of 89 Km from Mangalore. As the roads were going through hilly and jungle areas it was very difficult to walk. There were no lights on the road, it was very scary. As we reached the town at 9 pm we tried to communicate with the people there, but nobody could understand our Hindi, and no padayatri spoke Kannada. Finding no place for accommodation we were about to camp out in an open area. It was very cold also, so I was worried about the oxen who would have to stay in the cold all night long.

Suddenly a man came. He was a pharmacist by profession and fortunately he could understand Hindi. He told us to go to the Aayyapa temple. There we met Mr Madhava, who helped us with our accommodation. He was very happy to see us in his town. He had attended the religious convention at Dharmasthali in Udupi and had a desire that padayatra should come to his town. Next day he was with us in nagar sankirtana and he inspired people to buy a Bhagavad-gita. Within just one hour we distributed 500 Bhagavad-gitas, and after that, our stock of Gitas was finished. Then I went to nearby Mangalore and brought more Gitas. At 10.30 pm a few people came and asked for Bhagavad-gita. Mr Madhava had called famous news reporters and the next day news of padayatra were flashed in many newspapers. In Sullia we distributed an amazing 720 Gitas in one day. I thought this was the special mercy of Sri Sri Nitai Gaurasundara during the month of the book marathon. I have the experience that, even though we keep distributing books throughout the year, in December some special events always take place that greatly increase our book distribution scores.

Instant Ratha-yatra and darsana of the holy river Kaveri

From December 22 to 24 we were at Madikeri, a hill station town in Madikeritaluk and a popular tourist destination. It was very cold there, the temperature was going down to about 11° C. Saciputra Dasa, a disciple of Jayapataka Maharaja preaching in that area, welcomed us. He called about 50 Nama-hatta devotees and the next day they organized a Ratha-yatra festival; many people participated in the procession and took books from us. Normally we have our own cooking team, but the devotees insisted on cooking for all of us so our padayatris were free to preach and distribute books. Saciputra Dasa also took us to Talakaveri the source of the holy river Kaveri. The river originates from a spring feeding a tank, which is considered to be a holy place to bathe on special days.The temple there is dedicated to Goddess Kaveriamma.

Buddhist monks enjoy harinama and the Bhagavad-gita

On December 28th we were in the town of Kushalnagar, 34 km from Madikeri. There is a Tibetan Monastery, locally called the Tibet Camp, around 6 kms from Kushalnagar. This Tibetan settlement at Bailkoppa or Baylkuppe is the second largest Tibetan settlement outside Tibet, with over 7,000 monks and students. The 40 feet tall golden Buddha statues are the major attractions. As we went on sankirtana in the area many monks came forward for darsana of our Lordships, which they enjoyed a lot. They were enchanted by our harinama and dancing, and discussed with us the padayatra program and objectives.. They said, ‘we also have dedicated our lives to Lord Buddha, so we are similar.’ They also bought Bhagavad-gitas from us. Thus many books were distributed there. We had many such good experiences during this month of December, by the arrangement of Sri Sri Nitai Gaurasundara.

December book score

Maha big books: 8440

Big books: 356

Medium books: 2

Small books: 1787

Total Books: 10,585

The top 3 book distributors during the month of December

Kaunteyasakha Dasa: 1629 books
Suryavamshi Dasa and Mangal Nitai Dasa: 724 books
Diranayak Dasa: 620 books
More photos: https://goo.gl/1ozWTb

Here’s How ISKCON Juhu Will Celebrate Its 40th Anniversary On…
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Here’s How ISKCON Juhu Will Celebrate Its 40th Anniversary On Sunday.
It’s Iskcon Juhu’s 40th anniversary on Sunday. The celebration will follow a full calendar of festivities starting from January 13-16.
Inaugurated on Makar Sankranti day, January 14, 1978, the Juhu Temple shrine is the national headquarters of the order.
A vast Jagannath Rathyatra will be carried out on Saturday at around 2:00 PM. The yatra will comprise of three chariots which will lead through Lokhandwala Complex and culminate at Jamnabai Narsee ground in Juhu at 6:00 PM.
Temple president Braj Hari Das said that the prasad meals will be served to 10,000 people at night. Plays will be performed by various ISKCON temples. Approximately 100 senior sanyasis and devotees from the USA, UK and Australia have arrived for the event.
On Sunday, the deities will be adorned in new festive clothes. The evening will mark launches of two books, Bombay is my office and ‘Chasing Rhinos with the Swami’ at Jamnabai ground. Among the attendees of this event will be Union Minister Satyapal Singh, Nagaland governor P B Acharya, and actress-MP Hema Malini.
ISKCON Juhu, the second temple of the Hare Krishna order, was opened in 1978. The movement began in Juhu, however, the first temple was built in Varanasi. The land was procured by the founder of the temple Srila Prabhupada and the construction began in 1975.
Spokesperson Parijata Devi said anywhere from 5,000-10,000 devotees visit every day. The temple has lakhs arrive over Janmashtami and new year.
Source: https://goo.gl/LKqzkd

ISKCON Youth Spend Their Holidays Helping Puerto Rico Temple….
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ISKCON Youth Spend Their Holidays Helping Puerto Rico Temple.
Three months after the category 4 Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico on September 20th, the U.S. territory’s infrastructure is still far from recovered. Only 20 per cent of traffic lights are powered; forty per cent of Puerto Ricans, especially in the countryside, are still without electricity, and many have barely any running water.
This includes the U.S. territory’s only ISKCON temple, which had its roof, veranda and porch ripped off in the storm. Devotees are still struggling to clean up and rebuild.
So from December 16th to 30th, nineteen ISKCON youth and young adults, aged 17 to 29, gave up their Christmas vacation to help clean up and repair ISKCON Puerto Rico in the wake of the hurricane.
Youth from all across the United States and Canada also paid for their own airplane tickets there, and contributed a further $300 each towards local transport and rebuilding supplies. The effort was organized by Manorama Das and Jaya Sri Radhe Dasi of ISKCON Youth Ministry, with local logistics arranged by Jaya Sita Dasi.
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/81MECE

The Hare Krishna tree of New York in the news. At a recent New…
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The Hare Krishna tree of New York in the news.
At a recent New York Times article a famous young businessman says: “ After brunch, I go to Tompkins Square Park, where I sit on a bench underneath a tree called the Hare Krishna Tree. The Hare Krishna movement was founded in the park in the 1960s, and I am always inspired when I’m in there. ”
As Sikhi Mahiti das observes: I often judge the result of our ISKCON outreach in terms of who is coming to our temple and how many. But, Srila Prabhupada has affected the lives of millions of people in ways we don’t normally hear about.
Here is an article about a high achieving entrepreneur who takes his inspiration for business by sitting under the Hare Krishna tree in New York City: https://goo.gl/NKqMn7

Lord Caitanya in the Land of Islam (Album of photos)…
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Lord Caitanya in the Land of Islam (Album of photos)
Indradyumna Swami: I had many wonderful and amazing experiences while living in Vrindavan the past 4 months but yesterday’s program in the United Arab Emirates was no less profound or enlightening, for yesterday in Dubai we installed the deity form of the Lord. It wasn’t the first time and it won’t be the last; a number of devotees living here have deities. But just the fact that another two sets of Gaura Nitai deities were officially installed in the heartland of Islam was overwhelming for me. There are obviously restrictions here; mainly that we cannot preach Krsna consciousness to people of Muslim faith. But as our joyful kirtan in a small apartment merged with the sound of loudspeakers calling the faithful to the local mosques, my hair stood on end.
[ Photos by myself and Mohammed Ali Rashid ]
Find them here: https://goo.gl/nPa9bV

Congregational Book Distribution: Monthly Sankirtan…
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Congregational Book Distribution: Monthly Sankirtan Festivals
“Monthly Sankirtan Festivals are a great way to engage the entire congregation in book distribution,” says Vaisesika dasa. “At our temple, we combine the festival with a holy day on the Vaisnava calendar. Our meditation during the Monthly Sankritan Festival is that the sankirtan results are our special offering to the Lord.”
Sankirtan is a Sanskrit term which means the congregational chanting and sharing of the names and glories of Krishna, which is the recommended process for spiritual success. In the Hare Krishna tradition, sankirtan is associated with sharing our spiritual culture with the public via the timeless books, translated by Srila Prabhupada.
Vaisesika Dasa is the Temple President of the ISKCON Silicon Valley (ISV) temple as well as the North American Sankirtan Strategist. Over the last seven years, he has used ISV as a testing ground for different book distribution strategies. The Monthly Sankirtan Festival has proven so successful that Vaisesika is now training other temples in this strategy. The Monthly Sankirtan Festivals have spread to Boston, Houston, New York City, Washington, DC. , Toronto and now to Alachua, FL.
Vaisesika says that the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, wanted everyone to conduct book distribution. He remembers that in the early days of ISKCON, the temples were managed so that even the cooks and pujaris had days when they went out on book distribution.
Why did Srila Prabhupada want all of his disciples to engage in book distribution? “Book distribution has so many benefits,” says Vaisesika. “The most important benefit is that it purifies the distributor. All service, including book distribution, should be performed in a way that purifies the servant. Then, the service expands to purify others who are able to take advantage of the sankirtan movement.”
At ISV, before a devotee is allowed to go out on book distribution, he/she must participate in a training seminar. The seminar focuses on how to perform book distribution in a way that is purifying. The most important principle is that we want to leave everyone with a good impression of devotees. This means that devotees must develop the intelligence to know who to approach and who to leave alone. Leaving everyone with a good impression also means freely distributing prasadam. Vaisesika says, “Book distribution is very purifying if we see ourselves as instruments. It forces us to see others as spirit souls and to treat them respectfully.”

A second benefit of book distribution is that it enlivens the devotees. Vaisesika quotes one of our previous acharyas, who said, “One who has life can preach, and one who preaches gets life.” One who “has life” does not identify with the body, which is dead matter. Instead, he identifies as a living, conscious spirit soul. The third-class devotee identifies with the body. The second-class devotee, however, identifies as a spirit soul. Book distribution is the best preaching for a third-class devotee. By engaging in book distribution, the third-class devotee can advance very quickly to the second-class level and “get life.”
A third benefit is that book distribution forces devotees to move out of their comfort zone. Vaisesika says, “Book distribution is good practice for the time of death, when many of us will be out of our comfort zones.”
At ISV, the leadership emphasizes Vaisnava holy days as special opportunities to receive the Lord’s mercy and purification. Thus, the congregation enjoys the Monthly Sankirtan Festival even more than the traditional feast, because the members know they are on the fast-track back home, back to Godhead. The majority of the congregation participates in the Monthly Sankirtan Festival. On large festival days such as Gaura Purnima, over 240 congregational members will be on the streets, performing sankirtan. Vaisesika says that every member of ISKCON should have the opportunity to make advancement in Krishna consciousness by preaching. He says that he has tested the Monthly Sankirtan Festival concept at ISV, and it is now proving successful in other communities.

Breathing Space. Ananda Vrindavaneshwari Devi Dasi: Last week a…
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Breathing Space.
Ananda Vrindavaneshwari Devi Dasi: Last week a dry cough gripped my breath and made it short. I had the experience we all have – appreciating something when it’s gone or not working well.
Breathing is the in and out of life that happens unconsciously until it doesn’t. The idea of my last breath became a reality. What do I breathe? How do I breathe? Can I do it better when I’m better? These were all questions that stayed with me as I slowed down due to shallow breathing.
That experience helped me create some breathing space in my life – the gift of illness is the gift of time. Nothing became more pressing than healing the cough and yet I needed to give it time by giving myself time to slow down and rest. Who wants to be sick? Too much to do! I should push on! I also couldn’t hurry up the recovery – the illness itself needed breathing space to find its feet and work itself through.

Breathing space is needed when we are sick and it is key to keeping healthy when we are healthy. Exercise and rest create breathing space for the body, listening and meditation make breathing space for the mind, and philosophy and reflections on life and death provide breathing space for the intelligence.

And the soul? How to make breathing space for soul? Answer: Intentional devotional service to Krishna, for His pleasure. Taking time to gaze at the beautiful Deity form of the Lord. Making a tasty vegetarian dish and offering it to Him with love and devotion. Joining a kirtan. Taking japa beads and walking or sitting with Krishna’s name. Listening to talks about Krishna. Sharing thoughts about Krishna through writing or speaking.

My favorite example of breathing space is Krishna providing it to Arjuna minutes before the great battle of Kuruksetra. It made all the difference for Arjuna. Keep breathing space close to the top of your new year’s resolutions list – to have some for yourself and to give to others. It’s guaranteed to make all the difference.

Sastra Dana Sweden Report November/December 2017. Mukunda das:…
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Sastra Dana Sweden Report November/December 2017.
Mukunda das: 360 “Bortom födelse och död”
15 “Perfekta frågor och perfekta svar”
10 “En mästares ledning”
8 Bhagavad-gita
1 Srimad Bhagavatam set
Shastra Dana programme in Sweden has now existed over eight years.
From August 2009 – December 2017 we have distributed app 19.500 böcker.
Srila Prabhupada wrote to Cyavana das 26 December 1971:
”Distribution of books and magazines is our most important activity.
Without books, our preaching has no solid basis”
Special thanks to the following devotees for supporting the book
distribution:
HH Smita Krishna Swami, Sri Jayadeva das, Ella & Sune Hellström, Aja das & Pancavati dd, Magnus Hedström, Sten Bergil, Jayesh das, Muktarama das, Mikael Forian, Mikael Johansson, Robert Åkerman, Cathryn Claesson, Astasiddhi dd, Yogindra das, Bahulashva das, Dharani dd

Distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books under the snow…
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Distributing Srila Prabhupada’s books under the snow (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: These temples, they are just like oasis in the desert for the conditioned souls to quench the thirst of their desire for real happiness. Letter to Ksirodakshayi, January 29, 1973
Find them here: https://goo.gl/mfZN1s

Have Darshans of the Most Holiest site of Naimisharanya! (Album…
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Have Darshans of the Most Holiest site of Naimisharanya! (Album with photos)
Chakratirtha……..
Chakratirtha, considered to be the holiest site in Naimisharanya, is also believed to be the epicenter of Prithvimandala (Earth). In the Satya Yuga, some of the most prominent rishis used to perform continual yagnas here, including- Maharishi Shringi, Maharishi Dalabhaya, Maharishi Udallak, Maharishi Shikamketu, Maharishi Pravaan and many others. It is believed that a huge Manomaya Chakra (wheel) fell on this site and created a round “Kund”, which is known as Chakra Tirtha. Devotees taking bath in this Kund are believed to have their soul cleansed and those who perform charity gain wealth benefits. The body is purified through meditation and people who donate “Pinda” are believed to attain the state of Moksha.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/iBsBMy