Author Archives: Dandavats

By Ananda Vrindavanesvari DeviThe Gita teaches that wherever our mind is at the time of death, that will determine our next destination. Better not leave that to chance as our mind is undependable. In a split second it goes off on any emotion, both goo…

By Kesava Krsna dasaWhile performing our services according to ability and inclination, mistakes will be expected. The tendency to highlight those as faults can be habitual, which has the effect of being caught up in a cobweb. If we persist in complain…

By Manali D. Bijlani I was born and brought up in a Hindu family in Delhi, and we used to go to various temples and offer prayers before the gods. Two questions, however, always tickled my mind: Why do we worship so many gods, and who is the real God? …

By Krishna-kripa Das I just wanted to thank you for being a model of dedication to Srila Prabhupada, his Back to Godhead, his society, ISKCON, and his mission. You have been designing, laying out, and taking photos for Back to Godhead ever since I met …

By Niranjana SwamiAnd that is the activity of Lord Hari, when that fear is taken away by remembrance of the Lord. Lord Hari is the ‘One who takes away’, but He also takes away our fear because generally, it’s the fear which is the cause of so much anxi…

By Mahatma Das There is something I’ve noticed about my japa over the years: Bad habits don’t die easily. Prabhupada said chanting produces more chanting. But the question is what kind of “more chanting” does it produce? My experience is that bad chan…

By Kavicandra Swami Whenever a devotee leaves his or her body, we hear so much praise of them. Everyone becomes happy to be absorbed glorifying a devotee. It seems that we do not do enough of praising devotees while they are with us. Of course a de…

By His Divine Grace Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami PrabhupadaThe animal part of a human being necessarily require food to eat, shelter to live in, protection from fear and gratification of senses. These four principles of life are common both to the ma…

Who can describe the peerless glory of Lord Krishnas Holy Name. The Name appears like wawes of nectar delighting the heart, and always lovingly tasted by the tongue. The Holy Name is capable of dissolving sing and removing impediments. The Holy Name p…

By Sridhara Swami Have you ever worked for someone who doesn’t have time for you? Krishna is the controller of everything, but He has all the time in the universe for you. And not only for you but for me too. That’s the beauty of Krishna. He is with al…

By Gopiparanadhana Dasa Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada was the founder and organiser of a large worldwide religious movement; that he developed it in just twelve years, all after his seventieth birthday, shows that he was not only practical,…

By Niranjana Swami The word “Acarya” in Founder-Acarya means that Srila Prabhupada is the ultimate teacher by his own example in ISKCON. Being a perfect teacher by example, therefore, everything he does is instructive because, as followers, we are mean…

By Visakha Dasi In terms of our personalities and abilities, no two of us are alike. Why should we be? And why would anyone want us to be? Variety, Srila Prabhupada tells us, is the mother of enjoyment. Whatever our personality, whatever our talents, P…

By Purushottam Nitai Das Bilvamangala Thakura was a wealthy south Indian Brahmin and belonged to a cultured family. But he got attracted to a prostitute named Cintamani. The attraction soon became attachment. And as it happens when we get attached to…

By Sri Nandanandana dasa As we look over the various cultures and religions of the world, we may ask if all religious systems are divine. Though they seem to conflict with each other on various points, still there are many areas of truth in which they …

Scientists and scholars from the Bhaktivedanta Institute for Higher Studies (BIHS) will host the “Consciousness in Science” Conference – a multi-disciplinary exploration of its possibilities and challenges. The event will be hosted at the historic Thomas Center in Gainesville, Florida, USA on the weekend of 18-19 January 2019.

By Samapriya dasi How can one understand the esoteric personality of Srimati Radharani? She is the principal inspiration for the Lord, and only confidentially revealed in the Vedic scriptures. Yet, She takes shelter within the deepest realizations of p…

By Radhanath Swami In 1971 I was a devotee of Lord Siva, I was traveling from the area Pashupatinatha to Amarnatha for a pilgrimage in month of August. Very crowded third class train, didn’t sit down for about 40 hours. Finally the train stopped and I…

By ISKCON Mayapur

Srila Prabhupada states in his purport to Srimad Bhagavatam5.7.1: “The water of the Ganges is called patita-pavani, the deliverer of all sinful living beings. It is a proven fact that a person who regularly bathes in the Ganges is purified both externally and internally. Externally his body becomes immune to all kinds of disease, and internally he gradually develops a devotional attitude toward the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” The purifying properties of the Ganges water are not only acknowledged in the Vedas, but also by modern science. In 1896 the British bacteriologist Ernest Hanbury Hankin published a paper in which he describes the extraordinary antibacterial properties of the waters from the Ganges and Yamuna rivers.

By Prahlada-Nrsmha Das

Once Online Vedabase is developed enough to be considered as perfect research tool I would like to launch other projects whose purpose will be Online Education. We would like to offer multiple online spiritual courses for all levels of spiritual progress. From introductory course up to Bhakti-vaibhava level. Courses will be available for free for everybody and each student will be able to follow it in his own pace. Each topics will be covered in separate video(s) and between them will be short quizzes to keep students alert and help them to absorb teaching better. Online Education will connected with core Vedabase (library), so referenced scriptures will be easily accessible.

By Karuna Krishna Dasa When Srila Prabhupada began his preaching labor in the West, in New York City, towards the second half of the 1960s, he synthesized in a sentence the essence of ISKCON’s philosophy: “The process of Krishna consciousness is simult…

By Parampadam Dasa

We want to communicate that we are having a lot of success with classroom teachers who are working along with our on-line proposal, using its resources and offering them to its students. This, undoubtedly, would be promoting the “best of each world” and benefiting the actual Vaishnava community which is eager to obtain an integral experience in its learning processes. We invite all teachers of the Krishna Consciousness in Spanish-language to take advantage of the resources e-learning that we offer in our educative campus and in this way improve our services which are vital to the improvement and evolution of our institution and our communities.

This Sunday 24th June marks the 50th ISKCON London Ratha Yatra festival. The procession will leave South Carriage Drive, Hyde Park at exactly 12 noon and arrive at Trafalgar Square by 2pm. Festivities will continue until 5pm. “The first London Rathayatra was held in 1969,” said London Ratha Yatra coordinator Titiksu das, “Six pioneering American devotees came to London to establish a temple to bring others to Krishna by the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra.

By Giriraj Swami Indradyumna Swami’s and my talks at the Panihati Cida-dadhi Festival in Laguna Beach on June 16 “Lord Nityananda was by nature very merciful and funny. Being merciful, He spoke to Raghunatha dasa as follows. ‘You are just like a thief,…

By Hanumatpresaka Swami Like the six blind men approaching the elephant I can only see things from my perspective, either in my siddha-svarupa or currently embodied intelligence. With sincere attachment to my perspective on the elephant (maybe from the…

The ISKCON Ministry of Education’s annual education conference will be held in New Raman Reti Dhama – Alachua, Florida, June 21 through June 24, 2018

By Radha Dasi

Hare Krishna, dear devotees! My name is Radha, I’m 19 years old and I am a student in my final year at Sri Mayapur International School. I want to share with you my incredible experience of book distribution in London this summer. I hope that it will please the senior devotees and reassure them that book distribution is still alive and well. And I hope it will encourage all the devotees of my age to give it a try. Here is how it started: for a long time I had wanted to feel myself like a real, active preaching brahmacarini from Srila Prabhupada’s time.

By Pallavi Jain The Sacred India Gallery in Perth displays the artistic works of resident artist Jagattarini. Jagattarini is an Australian artist but lived in India for over a decade. The artwork at the gallery includes traditional Indian carvings, a m…

By Sukadeva Das

On June 16, 2018, it was our privilege and honour to receive very distinguished guests Hon Matthew Guy, Leader of the Opposition from Victorian State Parliament, Andrew Bond – local candidate from Albert Park and Katie Allan – candidate from Prahran and other prominent members from Indian community at the Melbourne Hare Krishna Temple. They were received by our Temple President HG Aniruddha Prabhu. The guests were briefed on our future building upgrades such as conversion of current theatre into dining hall, upgrading paraphernalia room and converting current dining hall into multipurpose educational/cultural hall.

By Parasuram das We were invited to help at a huge evangelical event at a stadium. We have been cooking for the “Feed the 5,000” events all over Europe for the last decade and now we were going back to the original roots – this event would be Biblical!…

Srila Prabhupada: We have got very nice temple near British Museum, 7 Bury Place. And all Europeans, they come to see our temple—from Germany, from France. Because we have been advertised in cooperation with the Beatles. The Beatles, Beatles, the George Harrison. You do not know his name? He is very famous man. Yes. So we have produced some records in cooperation with George Harrison’s organization. So because the records are produced through George Harrison, we have got a very, very big sale. You see? And that has advertised Radha-Krishna Temple, London.

Srila Prabhupada: Srila Prabhupada: You are mine and I am Krishna’s, therefore you are also Krishna’s. Letter to Gargamuni, June 18, 1968.

By Kesava Krsna dasa Srila Prabhupada’s keen observation picked out the demon word in pan’demon’ium and demon’strate. He likewise slotted in words befitting his siddhantic stance. Democracy did not escape his scathing, if not light-hearted censure. Wha…

By Kurma DasaAnyone who has ever visited a Hare Krishna Temple feast or a Hare Krishna restaurant will have undoubtedly tasted halva. The memory of its sweet, warm, moist, spiritually-infused ‘comfort food-iness’ will no doubt have lingered long after …

By Chaitanya Charan Das

Obesity and all other indulgence-induced problems originate from the presumption that material enjoyment is the only enjoyment available to us – and so we must have it, whatever the cost. But the Vedic scriptures – and indeed all the great spiritual texts – inform us that this presumption is a misconception. We are intrinsically spiritual beings. Our deepest fulfillment comes from having a satisfying relationship with God. The unlimited inner happiness thereof is our birthright, but being spiritually uninformed, we are searching in vain for that infinite happiness in the realm of finite matter. Most people assume that they can’t enjoy life because they don’t have enough money. But obesity statistics show that, even if they get all the money in the world to eat whatever they like as much as they like, still they will not be able to enjoy unlimitedly because their body limits their capacity to enjoy – inescapably.

I had informed the highest leadership of BJP and they were also shocked and agreed with us that the UP government should not have done this. On 13th June I went to Delhi and met with the high command of the BJP and informed them that if this happens i…

By Varsana SwamiA few days later, after the water had drained out of the footer, Bob and I went back up to Govindaji Hill and continued the footer exaction. To our surprise and delight, the rock broke out easily this time. I cannot say definitely that …

By Indira-sakhi Devi Dasi You are right when you say that setting a good example for the boys is the best precept. There is a saying that an example is better than a precept. Our exemplary character depends on strictly following the four principles, an…

By Tirtha-pavana Das

Any structure suggests a kind of pattern, but we aim to make education more personal. We have given local leaders the right to adapt curriculums and different resources, including books, training aids, etc., to the needs of their community. Also, we try to make education inextricably linked with mentoring in order to implement the principles of individuality, practicality, and live guidance in education. Therefore we are trying to organize a considerable amount of home programs, where in small groups, devotees can receive education that meets their needs. So, devotees are able to attend courses of their interest, which are conducted in an informal environment from year to year to develop relationships with the elder Vaisnavas and receive systematic mentoring in their life.