Author Archives: Dandavats.com

Do not become angry!
Kadamba Kanana Swami: In the chapter of Srimad Bhagavatam 1.9.25 about the passing away of Bhismadev, in the purport to the verse there is a list of challenges for society at large to improve their quality of life. The first challenge is, “Not to become angry!” We remember Upadesamrta, the Nectar of Instruction Verse 1, vaco vegam manasa krodha vegam, one must control the pushings of anger. So even when anger is pushing, one must somehow or other subdue it. Bhismadev also said that in order to conquer anger, one must learn to forgive because it is very difficult to judge with two types of measurements – measurement for others and different measurements for ourselves. For ourselves, there are so many explanations for our mistakes, “It wasn’t really my fault. It was just circumstances. I didn’t intend it that way…” whereas for others, “How could they do that! This is outrageous.” We judge them different and the same extenuating circumstances are not being considered so Bhismadev points out that we must learn to forgive. We have to see that others make mistakes because then we can overcome anger.

Forgiving is not necessarily the same as forgetting. If someone has committed an abominable activity, we may forgive but it does not mean that we forget. We will remember but we will also keep a special eye – if someone puts his fingers in the money box then after that we keep him at a distance from the money box obviously. So forgiving and forgetting is not necessarily the same. Also, there may be a point when we forget, it depends on the seriousness of the offence.

Sometimes though, anger is required. Sometimes, it is necessary to send out a signal that from now it is too much. This has to stop. BANG, fist on the table! Everyone needs that also. It is not that anger per se is bad. Those who are envious sometimes deserve anger. Those who are envious of devotees, we need to sometimes check it with anger. That is also there. But Bhismadev is referring to uncontrolled anger. Controlled anger has a place. Srila Prabhupada would also get angry at times but his anger was always related to Krsna and to whatever was favourable to Krsna. When there was neglect, Prabhupada was not tolerating that. He would point it out!

Taking Responsibility To Move Forward
Dhirasanta Das Goswami: Once there was a man who liked to eat mangoes. One day he decided to get the sweetest mango available, from the very top of the tree. Mangoes which are most exposed to the sun are the sweetest. So he climbed up to the top, where the branches were thin, he managed to pick up a few sweet reddish fruits, but in attempting to go back down, he slipped and started falling towards the ground.
Fortunately, he caught a branch as he was falling and remained helplessly hanging on the tree. Then he started to call nearby villagers for help, they immediately came with a ladder and sticks but could do little to help him.
Then after some time one calm and thoughtful person arrived – a well-known sage who lived in a simple hut nearby. People were very curious as to what he would do, since he was very famous for solving many people’s problems in the area, sometimes very complicated ones. He was silent for a minute and then picked up a stone, and threw it, hitting the hanging man.
Everybody was surprised. Hanging mango lover started to shout, “What are you doing?! Are you crazy? Do you want me to break my neck?”
Sage was silent. Then again, he took a stone and threw it so that it hit the man in the tree. The man was furious, “If I could just come down, I would show you…!” That’s what everybody wanted, that he comes down, but how?
Now everybody was tense, what would happen next. Some wanted to chastise the sage, but they didn’t. The sage picked up another stone and threw it again at the man, even more forcefully. Now the man in the tree completely flipped out and developed a great determination to come down and get revenge. He then used all of his skill and strength and somehow managed to reach the branches which were safe enough for him to climb down, and he made it! Everybody was amazed.
“Where is the sage?” – exclaimed the rescued man.
“Oh, he is a wise man, so he didn’t wait for you to beat him,” said the villagers.“I will really smash him completely when I get hold of him,” said the man.
“Hey, wait a minute, he is the only one who helped you, he is the one who provoked you, who induced you to help yourself,” said one of the villagers.
Mango freak stopped for a second, thought a little and admitted, “Yes, all your good intentions and compassion didn’t help me, but the sage expertly induced me to do my best and save myself, I should be thankful rather than angry.”
So this is an instructive leadership story. A real leader (teacher) helps you, sometimes in strange ways, to take initiatives in your life. You have to move forward. You have to make your best effort if you want extraordinary results. The best leader helps you to be responsible for your life.

Villaggio Hare Krsna ceiling mural (Album with photos)
Rudradeva Das: “This large ceiling mural, comprised of 56 wooden panels, each approximately 200cm X 150cm X 1cm, has been my most ambitious painting project to date. It also took the longest amount of time to complete, around 5 years. The process went like this: After staining all panels with a terra-cotta colored gesso, I employed a small opaque projector in my darkened studio, to project my miniature drawings onto the proper positions of all panels, and then laid out the design with white pencil. Next it was time to block in the underpainting for all 56 panels. Unlike the ceiling I did in Prabhupadadesh 10 years earlier, where I used oil paint for all layers, this time I employed fast-drying acrylic from jars to get the underpainting laid-in. This worked well, in that this acrylic under-layer dried very fast, and if I blocked-in one panel, it was completely dry and ready for adjustments or changes within 20 minutes time. In the final steps of the overpainting and details, I used artists’ grade oils from tubes, Rowney and Winsor-Newton mostly. When all my painting work was finished, the panels were then affixed to the ceiling by Krsna-ksetra prabhu, employing an ingenious method of using scaffolding, beams, lifts, and precise measuring of spacing in between the panels, to achieve, with a minimum of touch-up by the artists, the appearance of a nearly-seamless mural spanning the entire length and width of the temple ceiling.

All-in-all, this lengthy project provided wonderful substance for meditation for an artist. On one-half of the mural: Krsna & Gopis, Krsna & His cowherd friends, baby Krsna & His parents, and Krsna accepting service from His devotees. And on the other half: The Six Goswamis, The Panca-Tattva, the modern Parampara, and modern-day devotees on Harinam sankirtan. So although ambitious and not always easy, this project was one of the best and most enjoyable services I’ve performed.

During the process, the temple president-GBC-overseer Madhusevita prabhu set deadlines for completion a couple times, but I was unable to meet them, so he kept giving me extensions. But the last one, to have it ready for Janmasthami 2014, was very tight and could not be again compromised. So when I saw that my pace was still too slow to meet this final deadline, we decided to audition some artists to assist me in the final stages. In this way, we finished in time, and the panels were mounted on the ceiling when guests arrived for Janmasthami Day. The aftermath of the project was me and my main assistant, Bhakta Francesco, climbing the scaffolding and touching up all the screw holes, joins, and last-minute corrections and minor improvements. This was done in the 2 months after Janmasthami. Below are some excerpts from an article in “Movimento ISCKON”, the devotee newsletter of the Italian community, Published a few months prior to the unveiling, by Vasudeva datta and Lalita devi dasi:
​
FINESTRE SUL MONDO SPIRITUALE (WINDOWS ON THE SPIRITUAL WORLD)
​
This is how Srila Prabhupada defined the conscious art of Krishna: a chance to look beyond the material. The name, the form, the pastimes and qualities of Krishna are situated on the absolute level. The artistic expression that translates painting a picture of Krishna and His devotees encompasses all these revelations and only a matter of realization divides us from receiving these gifts. Rudradeva Prabhu is undertaking a large painting service, with the collaboration of Bhakta Francesco, producing 56 panels that will occupy the area of ​​about 200m2 of the temple of Sri Sri Radha Ramana ceiling. The ceiling will be divided lengthwise into two halves: in one of these halves, there will be a further division of four parts to represent the four main rasas: Madhurya, Vatsalya, Sakhya, and Dasya. The other ceiling half will be comprised also of four equal divisions: The Panca tattva, the six Goswamis, the Parampara, and an ecstatic modern-day Harinam procession, staged in front of Srila Prabhupada’s present-day Samadhi Building, at ISKCON Vrndavana’s temple complex. Rudradeva prabhu humbly hopes that the final work will help devotees and people in general, to become inspired to continue or increase their spiritual quest, and upon entering the temple room and viewing these depictions on the ceiling, feel compelled to learn more about Srila Prabhupada, and Krsna and His associates.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/gvVPZN

Harinama at Coolangatta (the southernmost suburb of City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia) – 12 November 2017 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The powerful hari-nama is so strong that even if one unconsciously or consciously they imitate; “Hare Krishna.” They have no intention to chant the holy name of Krishna, but they imitate or criticize, “Hare Krishna.” That also has effect. Calcutta, January 10, 1971.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/HN85ro

A Lecture by HG Shubha Vilas Prabhu at the Hare Krishna Temple in Melbourne: Stop Worrying and Start Living! (video)
Watch it h…Read More…

Harinam during the Car Free Day @Bajrasandi Park, Bali 19.11.2017 (Album with photos)
Chant Hare Krishna Maha Mantra and…… Be Happy!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/LRZEKC

A devotee from Radhadesh, disciple of Prahladananda Swami, left his body.
Hrdaya Caitanya Dasa: Dear devotees, Hamsa Avatara Prabhu left his body today at 2 am, Indian time, in the hospital of the auspicious Mathura Vrindavan Dhama, while the devotees in Radhadesh were doing kirtan on his behalf.
Hamsa Avatara Prabhu’s mother, on the advice of the doctors, agreed to stop the life support machine, this was done yesterday at 10 pm Indian time, four hours later he left his body. For the last four hours he was constantly listening to Srila Prabhupada bhajans. He was in the ICU ( Intensive Care Unit ) but on the request of Madhavi Mataji they had moved Hamsa Avatara Prabhu to the next room so that they could chant for him freely. They were also informed by the doctor just before 2 am that he had only a few minutes to live. He left this world in the presence of his mother, Madhavi Mataji and two doctors.
Hamsa Avatara Prabhu joined ISKCON in the early 90’s, took initiation from Prahladananda Swami and dedicated himself for many years to book distribution in the Benelux.
He also took pleasure in studying Srila Prabhupada’s books and was invited in the different preaching centers and Namahatta centers to give lectures. He was very close friends with Prema Siddhi Ananda Prabhu from Radhadesh and Premarnava Prabhu who is now serving ISKCON Soho.
Later on he was requested to serve as Temple President in Amsterdam, in difficult circumstances, where he met Bhaktin Paula, who became his wife and they have three nice children ( Mira, Maya and Abhaya ). He was also a member of the ISKCON Dutch Council.
Recently, in the month of August, when he got to know that he had cancer and that the cancer was already in a developed stage, he became very serious about his spiritual life. He was so happy to meet his Spiritual Master in Radhadesh, on the 26th of September, he had a long meeting that really pacified his heart and he was now ready to go to Vrindavan with his blessings.
Nobody had thought that his last journey would be so short but some or other, he had rented an apartment near the ISKCON tempel and three days ago his health was deteriorating so fast that the guards informed the devotees and they brought him next day to the hospital on the way to Mathura where he was only for last two nights.
Devotees in Vrindavan, this morning after Mangala Arotika announcement chanted loudly the Hare Krsna Maha Mantra for his spiritual benefit.
Madhavi Mataji ( sister of Pitambara Mataji from Den Haag ) was looking after him in the hospital and she is also making arrangements with the authorities for the cremation, she thinks that things will be clarified with the Dutch Embassy and the FRO tomorrow and that the cremation should be taking place on Tuesday morning.
Hamsa Avatara Prabhu did a lot of service for the ISKCON Benelux and Srila Prabhupada’s mercy is with him. Krsna reciprocated so much with him to allow him to leave his body in Vrindavan Dhama in auspicious circumstances. Our prayers are with him.
Your servant,
Hrdaya Caitanya dasa

ISKCON Auckland NZ: Rathyatra 2017 festival time (Album with photos)
Kalasamvara Das: Lord Jagannath, Baladev, and Lady Subhad…Read More…

“Could I be Krishna conscious and still be a soldier?”
Pragosh (ACBSP): When I was introduced to Prabhupada in Washington, Hari Sauri said, “Prabhupada, Pragosh was trying to learn how to sell your books like full sets like an encyclopedia.”
Prabhupada asked, “So how did that go?”
I said, “Well, Srila Prabhupada, Tamal Krishna Maharaj and I had attempted this but it was pretty clear that the BBT didn’t have all the full sets in stock. Also, generally speaking, the common man is not going to be able to buy this many books at one time.”
Then he said, “So what are you doing now?”
I said, “Well, I went right back to the airport, Srila Prabhupada, like I was for the last few years.”
Prabhupada looked at me for a second and he kind of smiled and said,
“Yes, whatever increases book distribution, we accept. Whatever decreases it, we reject.”
It was a simple statement and I took it as a sort of a very specific instruction, which I look back on my life and I realize that I made many decisions that really didn’t increase my book distribution.
Another thing that Prabhupada said in that particular time was when he asked about prasadam distribution in New York.
He asked, “So they are selling prasadam in New York City on the street?”
I said, “Yes, Srila Prabhupada.”
He said, “What are they selling?”
I said, “I don’t know Srila Prabhupada. I’m not sure.”
Then he looked at me and asked, “Kachoris? They are selling kachoris?” His eyes got big.
I said, “I don’t know Srila Prabhupada if they are selling kachoris.”
Prabhupada said, “Oh, they must, they must. First class kachoris cooked in ghee. Then the meat eaters will lose their taste for meat naturally.”
We had all heard about Srila Prabhupada as “kachori mukha” as a child liking kachoris.
Then he asked me, “Do you stay here in Washington?”
I said, “No, Srila Prabhupada, I am living in New York.”
He said, “Oh, I began in New York”, again very childlike.
Then he asked, “Are you coming to Ratha-yatra?”
I said, “I wouldn’t miss it for anything, Srila Prabhupada.”
He said, “Yes, Ratha-yatra in New York City has always been my dream. America is the most important country in the world, and New York the most important city in America. And 5th Avenue is the most important street in New York.”
It was just a very warm and friendly kind of revelation.
It was a very personal interaction.
Previously when I told Srila Prabhupada about the soldier who had given me eighty dollars and took four books, the soldier asked me,
“Could I be Krishna conscious and still be a soldier?”
Srila Prabhupada looked at me and asked, “So how did you answer?”
I said, “I told him that the Bhagavad-gita was spoken to the greatest warrior in human history.”
Prabhupada was charmed because he looked over at Hari Sauri as if to say,
“This guy really knows how to lay it on.” (laughs)
Then he looked back at me, waited for a second and then said,
“You have answered rightly. Arjuna was a military man.”
Just like that.
He was enlivened by the simple frankness of it.
And Prabhupada confirmed it.
—Pragosh

Life Of A Devotee – His Grace Iweshwar Das (video)
“People think that stories are shaped by people. In fact, it’s the other way around.”
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/JinrV9

Srila Prabhupada’s Transcendental Book Distribution ki jaya! (Album with photos)
This is Shyam das. He is 9 years old. He is originally from Ukraine. While we were out on Harinama on the campus in Mayapur, I happen to notice him distributing small books to onlookers. I could see “That Look” in his eyes as he approached people. He had the determination and enthusiasm to distribute Srila Prabhupada’s books. He accepted his invitation to do Big Books in the morning with us. His second day of distributing he managed to do 8 sets of books. There was no quit in Shyam das. He kept on with his seva till there were no guests around. Then and only then did he stop.
Come enjoy his and others association as we give out the nectar every day at 6am in the temple room. It will be a very rewarding 15 minutes of your day.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/C6hAev

Distributing books at Dreamforce, a salesforce conference (1 min video)
At this conference, held from November 6-9 in San Fransisco, I had these experiences.
On the first day, a person came up and told me, “I have read the whole Bhagavad-gita, and I wanted to meet other devotees. It is a miracle that is happening.”
He told me that he chants Hare Krishna whenever possible, and he has never met a devotee before or been to a temple. He took some books and gave a donation.
On the second day, he came again, and we talked for a while and he accepted some prasadam.
On the third day, during the closing hours of the conference, we were talking again, and I casually suggested that he come to the temple with me in the car. He agreed, and he heard the Wednesday evening class given by Shubha Vilas Prabhu. At the end of the serving of prasada, he asked whether he could render service and help clean the kitchen.
Through all the conversations we had, he never looked as though he were a person new to Krishna consciousness. He was saying that before reading Bhagavad-gita As It Is, he read five other editions, and none of them made any sense to him. He was also telling how he has read about many of the sciences of the world (being in the technological field for eighteen years), and this was the culmination of all the sciences he has read.
Here is a video of him speaking about the value of the Bhagavad-gita: https://youtu.be/1Jq9p6joYls
Your servant,
Madhava Govinda Dasa

The Power of Prayer.
For the duration of last year’s Srila Prabhupada’s book marathon I was traveling with Hriman Krishna in the South Island. When we stayed in Dunedin, Hriman Krishna suggested that I do a day trip to Oamaru which is roughly an hour and a half drive north of the city.
When I arrived in Oamaru I grabbed my book bag and enthusiastically jumped out on to the street. For the next 3 hours all I heard was “No!!, I don’t want to know!!” “Go away!!” “Your doing the work of the devil!!” By lunch time I’d had enough, I was thinking that I have driven all this way, a 3 hour round trip and no books are going out. The previous day I had watched a you tube Video of Kripa Moya prabhu explaining that when you are having a tough day on book distribution pray to Narada Muni, Srila Vyasadeva, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and the Parampara to please make me a suitable instrument to pass on this transcendental message to others.
By lunch time, I was definitely ready to offer a sincere prayer. So I begged for the mercy of the Parampara took some Prasad and tried again. It was amazing!! Everything changed! $20 bills were flying out of the wallets of the conditioned souls in to my bag and they were walking away with stacks of books. One exchange was particularly rememberable.
I was at the van reloading with books when I saw a camper van enter in to the car park. the car park was practically empty and of all the places it could have stopped, It parked right in front of me, as the drivers door flung open I raised my arms and shouted “Congratulations! Well done! You made it to Oamaru!”
The lady laughed, I walked over and I placed a ‘Science of Self-realisation’ in her hand and told her that it was a book on yoga and meditation.
Her jaw dropped and she exclaimed “I knew there was a reason why I parked here!”
Laura told me her story. She was from Oxford in England and was engaged to marry a multi millionaire, she had all the wealth and security that a young lady would want in life, but she realised that she wasn’t happy. After breaking off the engagement and selling all of her possessions she moved to New Zealand. It was her hearts desire to start an eco-village in New Zealand but when she found out about the mass carpet bombing of various chemicals throughout the land which had polluted the soil and water, it burst her bubble. That’s when she started seeking for genuine spiritual knowledge.
Extremely elated to have Srila Prabhupada’s books in her hand she happily gave $20 and took an ‘Hiding in Unnatural Happiness’ as well.
Srila Prabhupada’s transcendental book marathon Ki! Jai!
Your servant
Stambha bhava das

Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education – VIHE (Album with photos)
In the sublime atmosphere of Giriraja Govardhana, devotees immersed themselves in the magical world of Krsna’s pastimes in the association of HHSacinandana Svami, HG Bhurijana Prabhu, HG Jagattarini Mataji, HG Madhavananda Prabhu and HG Adi Purusha Prabhu (Retreat Organized by VIHE).
Find them here: https://goo.gl/X99iax

Havi das, a disciple of Srila Prabhupada received recently a Grammy Award for his extraordinary musical career in Venezuela. This is his speech during the ceremony of his Grammy Award: “ Good morning to all, thanks to the Grammy awards for recognition.
As time is limited, I prefer to put the thanks, which are extensive, on social media. But if I would like to take this opportunity to offer Venezuela my most heartfelt gratitude and a loving and special appreciation to my wife Merci Majorca for her talent, her dedication and her enormous contribution to the work that together we did these almost 20 years.
On one occasion Dustin Hoffman asked actor Laurence Olivier: ” what motivates us to do this work we do?“ and Olivier replied: ” it’s very simple: look at me, look at me, look at me!“
And since you are looking at me and listening, I would like to share a short reflection inspired by the sacred texts of India which I consider important.

We talk about democracy, equality, freedom, when since the United Nations project was set up in 1945, we humans have fought 140 wars. Only 240 million people died in world war I. On the other hand, very few are aware that 65 billion animals are slaughtered annually in the name of protein and good food. We sing and talk about love when since 1980, 1.5 billion abortions have been carried out. Not to mention the levels of consumption of alcohol, drugs, pornography, racial discrimination, paedophilia, systematic destruction of forests, water pollution… these are just some of the symptoms of the disease. And nature responds, because every action that is not in harmony with the laws of God and nature will inevitably result in suffering; individual and collective suffering. Karma is stored and when it comes to a critical point, it blows and something happens… conflicts, wars, diseases, earthquakes, tsunamis, miserable governments, etc.

I have a friend, a great devotee of Krishna whom I love and admire. On the occasion of recognition in Las Vegas I told him that I would have liked to say something substantial, something important for the benefit of those who could be watching or listening. At 15 minutes I command this text with which I fully identify:

” there are undoubtedly great causes in this world but the great cause is the one that has the ability to lead us to freedom, looking inward.
Beyond the skin and the bones, it is to discover that we are spiritual and eternal beings as parts of divinity. Only so, from this crucial discovery is that we can be truly useful, by offering the world the best version of ourselves.“

Thank you very much.

Iskcon devotees meet with the King and Queen of Belgium to petition official recognition of their religious status.
A delegation from the Hindu Forum of Belgium (HFB), including two ISKCON devotees, met with the King and Queen of Belgium as well as many influential Indian politicians last week in Delhi, India. Their aim was to gain support to make Hinduism an officially-recognized religion in Belgium.
While all religions have the freedom to operate in Belgium, only six are officially recognized: Catholicism, Protestantism, Anglicanism, Orthodox, Judaism, and Islam. Buddhism is soon to be recognized too. But Hinduism, the third largest religion in the world, is not – yet.
In the photo, Iskcon representative Mahaprabhu Das (left) speaks with King Philippe of Belgium.
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/FBRtvh

Choosing our association (video)
Srimad Bhagavatam class by H.G Braja Bihari Das on 16th Oct 2017 in ISKCON Juhu, Mumbai.
…Read More…

100,000 Youtube subscribers for an Iskcon devotee (Album with photos)
Gaur Gopal das received an award from YouTube for getting 100,000 subscribers. Thank you for everyone who has subscribed and watched his videos so far! Without you none of this would be possible. It’s so encouraging to see the continued support that he has as he tries to create an online community centred around love, gratitude and happiness.
Special thanks for Bhavik Patel, Paresh Kocharekar, Mabick Thappa, Sankarshan Charan das and Vinay Raniga for their support and strategy to grow Gaur Gopal das’ online presence. Mabick has especially excelled in creating high quality films!
YouTube is a platform that has been inspiring people with a purpose to share their message for over ten years now. We want to thank them for this award as it excites and encourages us to what’s possible in the future. If you haven’t subscribed to Gaur Gopal das’ YouTube channel, please do so now. Thank you for joining the ever expanding community. Let’s make a difference!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/m4DJ22

Prabhupadadesh ceiling and wall murals (Album with photos)
Rudradeva das: “I enjoyed painting this ceiling mural very much, as it was a constant meditation on my spiritual master, and afforded me ample opportunity to concentrate on illustrating and producing his many transcendental qualities, through the medium of my oil paints. Along with the temple president, Guru-caran das, we decided to feature Srila Prabhupada in 8 separate activities, divided by an ornamental cornice (frame). The outside of the frame is in the form of an oval, with the temple room’s chandelier in the middle. In each of these 8 portraits, Prabhupada is seen predominantly displaying one of the qualities mentioned and sung every morning by devotees, in the Sri-Gurvastakam verses, the mangala arotik prayer. The frames are not placed in order, 1 thru 8, due to the shape of the panels comprising the oval, and of course, the different orientations of the photos they were taken from. So the order is random, but I think we chose well suitable representations, matching what we thought was Prabhupada’s dominant quality in these various activities, to match the corresponding Gurvastakam verse.

I used oil paint applied over stained-gesso-treated 3/8 inch-thick 5-ply cross-laminated wooden panels, the top layer being knot-free, of course. Instead of the usual method of applying the underpainting in acrylic colors, in this case I decided to create the underpainting in fast-drying oils, same as the over-layer(top layer). As you can see, 4 of the panels are tall (about 7 ft), and 4 panels are more squat, comparatively. I worked on all 8 panels simultaneously, first bringing all 8 to the completed underpainting stage, then working on 2 or 3 at a time, applying the final layers and details of the over-painting. The panels were not worked on “in-place” on the ceiling “Michaelangelo-style”, but rather, I painted them in a small room off the temple room proper. The ceiling of this makeshift studio was barely high enough to accommodate the larger pieces, which were also quite heavy to move around.

Upon completion of my work on all 8 panels, they were moved from my studio into the temple room and affixed to their place on the ceiling by a construction crew of about 4 men. After they were glued and riveted in place, I climbed the scaffolding to carefully caulk over the small screw holes made during the mounting process, and subsequently, touched-up and painted over the screw holes, to hide them.“

Upon completion of my work on all 8 panels, they were moved from my studio into the temple room and affixed to their place on the ceiling by a construction crew of about 4 men. After they were glued and riveted in place, I climbed the scaffolding to carefully caulk over the small screw holes made during the mounting process, and subsequently, touched-up and painted over the screw holes, to hide them.”

Sometime later, two wall murals were commissioned for the temple room, within 2 large circular spaces on one side of the temple room, flanking the main interior entrance to the temple. One was a copy of Murlidhara’s popular Krsna-lila pastime, and the other was copied from Ramanath das’ Gaura-lila, featuring ecstatic harinam sankirtan thru the streets of Orissa, with Lord Jagannath’s Ratha-Yatra cart in the background. The finished murals were well-received among ISKCON devotees and visitors. Madhusevita Prabhu, upon seeing it, was inspired to ask Rudradeva to come to Milan to do a similar project there (see Villaggio Hare Krsna ceiling mural). Radhanath Swami said, “This is the most beautiful temple room”.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/PL1rtb

Harinama Sankirtana at Grand Central Station, New York, Thursday, November 16th (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The hol…Read More…

Conference on Science, Religion and World Peace: A tribute to Srila Prabhupada (Album with photos) All credits for the event goes to His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada for his unlimited blessings and to His Holiness Bhaktisvarupa Dam…

Vimanas.
Drutakarma Das: This is a video of a lecture I gave about vimanas, spacecraft described in the ancient Sanskrit writin…Read More…

The University of Florida names one of its lanes after “Krishna Lunch”.
This is the new sign that just went up on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville, Florida. Great work by Brahmatirtha Prabhu, Kalakantha and the Gainesville devotees for such a magnificent offering to Srila Prabhupada.

Prahlad Maharaja (video)
Srimad Bhagavatam class by H.H.Badrinarayan Swami, 15.11.2017, ISKCON Vrindavan.
Read More…

Harinama in Krasnoyarsk (a city and the administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia) (Album with photos)
Dear devotees, tomorrow, Wednesday 15 November will take place harinama “Rasasthali” on the central streets of Kharkov. Street chanting is the biggest source of bliss for all living beings without exception. You just have to overcome the cocoon of comfort, go out to the people and shake their hand, inviting them to the krishna family. It’s a very simple process, but the bliss that it doesn’t know borders. Tomorrow is the method! Bring your friends!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/9aj2Lt

Famous scientist becomes devotee and becomes an outcast.
Paleontologist Becomes an Outcast After Publicly Renouncing Faith in Darwinism!
Once upon a time, the distinguished paleontologist Günter Bechly was on German national TV celebrating Darwinism, but then something happened. He read books about intelligent design and found them compelling. On a web page, Bechly describes part of his transformation from Darwinist to an advocate of intelligent design (ID)
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/dcgPJB

Three Basic Views Of The World .
Radhanath Swami: There are three basic views of the world we live in. One is the very materialistic view wherein people see this world as the only real reality. Another is that world is an entirely an illusion, and the third is the best of view, that the world is the sacred property of God. It is real but it is temporary in its manifestations.
Now the conception that the world is the only true reality leaves one with the consciousness that it really doesn’t matter what we do as long as we get what we want. If we hurt people, if we trample on moral values, ethical principles, if we get money, fame, power, sensual and emotional pleasures, its all justified because as that saying goes, “eat drink and be merry because tomorrow may never come”. When we believe that this world is the only reality then even our so called moral principles are built on a very weak foundation because when temptation and fear come, why not break our moral and ethical values if I can get something better. Then we become victimized by greed, envy, lust, anger, arrogance and illusion. We see it so prevalent in the world today. This conception that if it feels good now it doesn’t really matter what else. What matters is me. So much is based upon what makes me happy, what can I acquire what I can call “mine”. In other words, its a world that is so much conquered by this tendency of selfishness and egoism, and so much of that is born from the conception that the world is the only reality.

Another conception is that the whole world is nothing but an illusion. It doesn’t actually even exist. The truth is real but the whole world is an illusion. For those who are thinking like this it is a good impetus for liberation after death because if the world is an illusion it doesn’t matter if we live or die, what matters is that somehow or other we get out of it as soon as possible. Now the environmental and ecological conditions of the world today is extremely precarious. This philosophy that this world is an illusion, if we see all these environmental issues happening, who cares. It doesn’t exist. Let everyone pollute the rivers and air because this world is an illusion. Our impetus is to just get out of this crazy contaminated condemned world and what we really leave behind doesn’t really matter because this world is an illusion. Where is the call for action within the world we live. The call of action is only to get out.

But then we have the Vaisnava philosopy of Srimad Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita, that Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Vallabhacarya, Ramanujacarya, Madhvacharya, all these great souls taught. They taught om purnam adah purnam idam according to Sri Isopanisad. The Absolute Truth is the source of everything that exists. It is perfect and compete and everything eminating from the Absolute Truth is all perfect and complete. The material world and the spiritual world – everything is coming from Krishna. Sarvaloka mahesvaram, Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita, this whole world is God’s property. If we see it in this way we are free from that greed, envy, lust and anger because we understand I am not the proprietor, I am the caretaker. If we see someone else doing well we celebrate their good fortune because we understand we are all brothers and sisters, we are all spirit souls, children of God. We are not envious. Exploitation is the symptom of the disease of the selfish egoistic heart. Compassion is the symptom of a person who has actually found inner fulfillment within their hearts.

So this is so important for the world to understand today – that we must build our lives and relationships with other living beings, humans and other species of life, with Mother Earth and the environment on the principle that everything is sacred.

Maya means the energy of God and maya is categorized in two ways: mahamaya and yogamaya. It’s the same energy. This whole material world is God’s energy. All the manifestations within this energy are under the influence of time and therefore are temporary and under the three modes of goodness, passion and ignorance. The spiritual energy is sat-cit-ananda, eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss. But what is the difference between these energies? It really is under the basis of our perception. If we see this world as God’s energy, as Krishna’s property then we are seeing it in its true spiritual nature. But if we don’t see it in relationship to God then we see it as” this is mine, this is yours”. This results in so much conflict. But true religion is meant to unite people not divide people. These religions are all manifestations of God’s grace on humanity to come to this earth to give us an understanding how we are all children of God. Wherever there is life there is a sacred child of God. Everything is the property of God and we are meant to be a family to utilize it properly.

This conception understands that everything in this world is meant to be used for the purpose of seva, or unselfish service. It is our sacred duty to God to honor and respect everything in this world as his sacred property and to use it in a spirit of service. If you own a business, own a house, have a family, have wealth, property, it’s all the property of God and used in harmony with God’s will which is to keep it all very very pure as far as possible. So in order to engineer a better world it has to begin by engineering a proper preceptive and realization of the world. Engineering our own inner consciousness to the degree we actually understand the beauty and the love and the greatness of Krishna, to that degree we will actually love Krishna and we will see everything in this world as a beautiful opportunity to serve Krishna and to elevate people’s lives and consciousness. – Radhanath Swami

Paras Jain, Cabinet Minister, Madhya Pradesh Government Energy Department. Madhya Pradesh, India, posted yesterday this nice photo and comment on his Twitter account.
The translation is: “You have established “ISKCON” (ISKCON) to disseminate Vedic knowledge through English and published and edited several Vaishnava religious texts. #ISKCON founder Abhay Charanaravind Bhaktivedanta. The anniversary of the Master Prabhupada ji. “
See it here: https://twitter.com/parasjainonline/status/930338670233632768

TOVP Bell Test Rings Loud and Clear (2 min video)
Recently, we tested an electronic bell sound from the Main Dome of the TOVP. We are planning to install a permanent electronic bell in the near future to ring every hour of the day in the Holy Dhama of Sridhama Mayapur.
Kindly watch this video with the actual sound and Sadbhuja’s commentary, along with stunning aerial footage of the TOVP.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/7VAayU

The biggest book in the world! Huge Bhagavad-gita comes into being!
The project that Rudradeva is currently working on is an exciting endeavor. In Villaggio Hare Krsna temple (near Milan, Italy), GBC Madhusevita Prabhu is producing an English edition of the classic Bhagavad-Gita As It Is, translated by His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada. The book’s size will measure 2 meters wide X 2.8 meters high. The monumental project of bringing the epic Vedic “Bible” to a scale of this magnitude, will be a first for ISKCON. The cover will feature an 80cm square reproduction of the famous ISKCON painting of The Universal Form, rendered by ISKCON artist Pariksit das. Rudradeva’s part in this will be to reproduce this painting, but re-orienting its’ elements from the vertical original to the square shape required for the center of this huge cover. The book will be printed in Milan, and upon completion, will go on display in Kuruksetra, India, the place where Bhagavad-Gita was originally spoken by The Supreme Lord Krsna to his intimate disciple Arjuna, on the battlefield just prior to the staging of the world’s most significant religious battle. Besides the cover painting, it has been decided that he will also produce a large 80cm square new painting for each of the 18 chapters. You can follow the progress of this painting work by the artist, here: https://goo.gl/9DcV6m

What kind of questions to NOT ask your spiritual master! (video)
Srimad Bhagavatam class by H.G. Mahatma Prabhu, ISKCON Los Ang…Read More…

In Memoriam.
Indradyumna Swami: My dear Braja Vallabhi, Please accept my blessings. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Though you have departed this world I pray that through the transcendental medium my words will be communicated to you wherever you are serving—be it in this world, or at the lotus feet of Radha Syamasundara in the spiritual world. I am convinced it is in the latter, for Srila Rupa Goswami writes in his Mathura-mahatmya, quoting Skanda Purana:
sarpa dastah pasu hatah
pavakambu vinasitah
labda pamrtyavo ye ca
mathure mam loka gah
“Those in Vraja-maṇḍala who are bitten by a snake, killed by animals, killed by fire, water or any other unnatural cause certainly become residents of My very own spiritual planet.”

[ Skanda-purnam, Margasisa-mahatmya, chapter 17, verse 50 ]

My dear spiritual daughter, although I am your spiritual master, supposedly learned in sastra and fixed in devotional service, nothing could prepare me for your sudden and unexpected departure. This is not a weakness, rather it is the nature of love; the love of a guru for his disciple, and a disciple for her guru.

In a letter on September 28, 1966, Srila Prabhupada wrote:

“At his first sight of me my spiritual master also saw me with such love. It was in my very first darsan of him that I learned how to love. It is his boundless mercy that he has engaged an unworthy person like me, in fulfilling some of his desires. It is his causeless mercy to engage me in preaching the message of Sri Rupa and Sri Raghunatha.”

In the same way, Ballabhi, it was from your love for me, demonstrated through your continuous selfless service, that my appreciation and love for you as my spiritual daughter, manifested. Because of your inherent talents, recognized by one and all, you were instrumental in the organization and running of all my major preaching programs for many years; from the Festival of India in Poland, to Krishna’s Village of Peace at Woodstock, throughout the grand festivals in Gujarat and Maharashtra and here in Vrindavan during Kartika. I can honestly say I would not have been successful without you. I was fully dependent on your service in helping me preach Krishna consciousness around the world. What will I do now that you are gone?

It was in this mood that Srila Prabhupada wrote to a disciple on January 22, 1976:

“You cannot survive without my mercy and I cannot survive without your mercy. It is reciprocal. This mutual dependence is based on love – Krishna consciousness.”

Indeed, I was always aware of your excellence in service. Whenever a difficult task came up, such as organizing the Sacred Sounds kirtan mela at New Govardhana, it was enough to simply say to you, “Ballabhi, please get it done.” Things won’t be so easy now that you’re gone—and not as relishable, either. It was your joyful smile, your enthusiasm, and your determination to please others that made performing devotional service such a pleasure in your association. My dear spiritual daughter, I cannot properly express how much I will miss you!

Once again, the wisdom of the poet George Eliot rings true: “Only in the agony of parting do we look into the depths of love.”

Dearest Ballabhi, some of my fondest memories will be of our time spent here in this holy abode of Sri Vrindavan dhama. For many years you assisted Rasika Siromani dasi and her husband, Govinda caran dasa, in organizing large Kartika parikramas. It was an overwhelming task to say the least, but nevertheless you always found time to sit and hear the lectures and relish the kirtans of the holy names. mJust the other night you said to a friend during a particularly enthusiastic bhajan, “I would be happy to leave my body in the midst of such beautiful singing of the holy names.”

And, in essence, that’s exactly what you did. On that fateful day you departed, you were on your way to the Holy Name retreat at Govardhan Hill. Devotees who were in the vehicle with you told me you were enthusiastically chanting japa all the way when, just minutes away from sacred Radha Kunda, the accident happened. You left your body immediately. Though it was a tragic demise, it enabled you to achieve your heart’s desire. Such is the all-merciful nature of Sri Vrindavan. Srila Rupa Goswami writes in Utkalika-vallari:

“O handsome, fragrant tamala desire tree blooming in the Vrindavan forest and embraced by the madhavi vine of the goddess ruling this forest! O tree, the shade of whose glory protects the world from a host of burning sufferings, what wonderful fruits do the people find at your feet?”

[ Srila Rupa Goswami, Utkalika-vallari, A Vine of Hopes, text 66 ]

You were born into a family of devotees, you lived a fully Krishna conscious life and you departed in the holy dhama of Sri Vrindavan chanting the holy names. Let me now describe in detail your journey from that point on. Most surely it corresponds with Srila Rupa Goswami’s description of entering into the eternal realm of Vrindavan in his famous poem, Uddhava-sandesa. Krishna is speaking to Uddhava:

“Oh my brother, the path you will follow to faraway Nadisvara Hill is said to be beautiful, straight and good. When you fall into the ocean of bliss in Gokula I will become very happy. When a friend becomes happy, good persons think themselves happy too. “

“First you should go to the place named Gokarna, where Lord Siva, who captains the ship that leads people out of the ocean of troubles stays. O wise one, nearby you should go to the place where the Yamuna meets the Sarasvati, a place that fulfills the living entities’ desires.”

“It is this place that I first entered Mathura. There I was kissed by waves of sidelong glances from a host of beautiful women who said, ’O slender friend, we have become most fortunate, for the graceful flutist whose music made the gopis’ garments slip now walks on the pathway of our eyes.’”

“From that place, flooded with bliss, please take the nearby path to Ambikavana, where, rescuing Nanda from a snake in Kaliya lake, and delivering a Vidyadhara, I gave a festival of happiness to the cowherd girls of Vraja.”

“O wise one, don’t take your chariot on the path that goes by the hilly place on the Yamuna’s bank where Kuvavalapida again and again attacked Me with his tusks. Saintly persons never take the paths where the demoniac walk.”

“Avoid the southern path. Go north to the king of holy places, a place beautiful with many blossoming sumanah flowers and graceful birds, the place where, by My mercy, Akura first saw the world of the gopas.”

“Even if you don’t wish to pass by the doors of the yajnika-brahmanas who because they slighted Me are not dear to you, you should still glance at the brahmanas’ wives, who are always singing my glories. If you do not wish to see them, your eyes will be cheated of something very valuable.”

“Then please quickly go to the place named Kotika, which is near Mathura city, and which is filled with a great circle of blossoming trees. When I walked through that place, a girl picking flowers uncovered part of her shoulder and smiled at Me.”

Dearest Vallabhi, Srila Rupa Goswami’s beautiful description of a pilgrim’s journey into Vrindavan continues in his poem, as will the Lord’s mercy upon you as He guides you further on this path of pure devotion to His lotus feet. As such your love for Vrindavan and the Divine Couple will blossom day by day. Such things are attainable for those who follow our beloved Srila Prabhupada, as he indicated to one of my godsisters early in our movement:

“As your devotional service becomes mature you shall see Krishna more and more, and more and more you shall realize the qualities of the holy land of Vrindavan.”

[ Letter to Hladini dasi, January 28, 1973 ]

Dear Vallabhi, I once asked my godbrother, Tamal Krishna Goswami, what is the most important characteristic of a disciple. He immediately replied, “Guru-nistha, faith in the spiritual master.” You embodied that faith, and it was your most endearing quality. I then asked him, “What is the greatest challenge in becoming an initiating spiritual master?” He paused for a moment and then replied softly: “Sometimes you are obliged to accept disciples who are more advanced than yourself.”

I am so fortunate to have you, and so many others like you, as my disciples. I will never forget you. Your final words to me, in a prophetic message texted only minutes before you left this world, will always remain with me. We had been discussing how we’d soon be serving in different countries. Little did we know it would be different worlds.

You wrote:

“I will be waiting to serve you Srila Gurudeva.”

Please be patient Ballabhi. I’ll be Home soon enough. And as Srila Prabhupada said, “One day we’ll have our ISKCON in the spiritual world.”

Your ever well-wisher,
Indradyumna Swami

Drutakarma Prabhu’s latest interview about forbidden archeology online in Shadows of Your Mind magazine. It starts on page 42.
To read it: https://goo.gl/XmYJQc

Iskcon participates in the Interfaith Network Conference, Australia (Album with photos)
Iskcon Australia: On Sunday we had an o…Read More…

Lord Chaitanya’s teachings to Nagpur’s entrepreneurs (Album with photos)
On 14th Oct 2017, Gaur Gopal das gave an inspirational talk for Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) Nagpur members at Nagpur.
The Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) is a Global business network of 12,000+ leading entrepreneurs in 170 chapters and 53 countries. Founded in 1987 by a group of young entrepreneurs, EO enables business owners to learn from each other, leading to greater business success and an enriched personal life.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/aWGsNa

GitaWise Bhakti Vrksha Group Wisely Supports the TOVP.
GitaWise – is a Bhakti Vrksha program in Cumming, Georgia, U.S.A. that involves many families in devotional activities and learning experiences through the teachings of Bhagavad Gita As It Is and Srimad Bhagavatam. Part of the education is to learn to contribute to worthy causes. They have donated previously to the TOVP, and recently they sponsored a Chakra abhisheka for Sri Sri Radha Madhava at the Chakra installation ceremony on February 7th, 2018.
Please read more below about this inspiring group of devotees and what they are doing to make a difference in the world by learning and teaching the principles of Krishna consciousness from Bhagavad Gita.
Click here to read it: https://goo.gl/7FZscY

Krsna Village (Album with photos)
Ramai Swami: A lot of people visit New Govardhana and stay in either the asramas, (for the s…Read More…

Render service to Krishna in a mood of devotion (video)
Srimad Bhagavatam by H.H.Bhakti Caitanya Swami, 13.11.2017, ISKCON Vrin…Read More…

Javat Ter Kadamba Parikrama (Album with photos)
Deena Bandhu Das: Our favorite parikrama in Karttika, going to Javat and walki…Read More…

Why take sankalpa (a goal) for book distribution?
Sankalpa makes it easy for us to turn to Krishna in surrender, to achieve our goal. And thus two things are achieved: increased surrender to Krishna and achievement of goal.
I will share two incidents that demonstrate this.
“I want to distribute 25 Gitas in this building,” I prayed, while walking up the steps of the LIC office in Pondy Bazaar.
Very soon a young man told me to meet Mr. Rajesh on the second floor. Rajesh was not in his office, and I went about the two-floor building and distributed books. I checked on Mr. Rajesh again, but he still had not returned to his office. I was disappointed that I could do only 11 Gitas instead of the 25 I wanted.
Just then the young man came up the steps and anxiously asked me, “Did you meet Mr.Rajesh?” I explained that he was not in his office. Then he said, “There he is.” On the steps, with people walking up and down, I showed Rajesh the Gita, and he booked 14 books right away (12 English and 2 Hindi). Total: 25!
That’s the glory of sankalpa: Krishna fulfills the devotee’s desire.
Part 2: “I will not miss Sunday.”
During one period of my life, my sankalpa was door-to-door book distribution every day for an hour or until my books were exhausted. I carried only 15 to 20 small books in a bag. For door-to-door book distribution, Sunday is best, because the men are at home. On other days, when only women are home, they don’t come up so easily with the money. If they don’t take books, I give them japa cards and request them to chant.
One particular Sunday I had a bad headache. I wondered whether I should go out on book distribution or just take rest. Since it was a Sunday, I did not want to miss the opportunity. So I stepped out.
At the first five doors I knocked on, there was no response. It was a hot morning, around 10:00 AM at the sixth house, a young man came out, made me show him all the books I had, and took all the books in one shot!
I was back home in fifteen minutes to take rest.
Sankalpa helps us do our service to Srila Prabhupada without giving maya a chance to lure us in her direction. And it opens to us the amazing love of Krishna in fulfilling the desires of His devotees.
Take sankalpa bravely and share with us your realisations of how Krishna helped you achieve your goals!
Going on book distribution is like going on a walk with Krishna and Srila Prabhupada. Don’t miss it!
Your servant, Tarini Radha-devi Dasi