Author Archives: Dandavats

By Padmapani das

One of the most enlivening times for me was when devotees used to lead the chanting of Hare Krishna in the barn for the pleasure of the cows. They all seemed to enjoy the chanting as they happily chewed on their bunches of hay. Milk production increased and we became overwhelmed with surplus amounts. Some cows even gave two full buckets per milking. The Deities were offered many nice milk products made with butter, ghee, curd and whey—so the devotees never went hungry. By serving the Lord and His cows, we all got a taste of what life in Vrindavan must have been like when Krishna Himself lived there 5,000 years ago. It was simple yet sublime.

By ISKCON Leicester

Devotees speaking on the 35th anniversary of the installation of Sri Sri Radha Madhava in ISKCON Leicester. With HH Jayadvaita Swami, Praghosa Prabhu, Shaunaka Rishi Prabhu and many others. So many sweet memories of Radha Madhava’s installation 35 years ago!

By Acarya Dasa Anjeyanadri Hill is surrounded by lovely plantain and paddy fields. The hill has 572 steps to reach the top and offers a lovely view of the valley and of the Tungabhadra River. The Hanuman Temple at the summit is one of the attractions o…

By Abhay Charan Nimai Dasa

One day I met Akhila Dhara Prabhu, a senior disciple of Srila Prabhupada, who told me boldly, “If you want to experience the real nectar, then go on Padayatra”. So I decided to go, thinking, “If I am not going for ever, then at least I should go for a week.” So, on March 13th I joined the Padayatra India party, then in Bangalore, Karnataka. First I saw the magnificent oxen of the Kankrej breed, and I immediately paid my obeisances to them. They are huge and have well shaped body and horns. The two devotees taking care of them, Damodar Lila and Janardan Prabhus, allowed me to help feed and give water to the five oxen. I was told their names were Krishna, Nandulal, Kaliya, Jaya and Narasimha. Having walked 10 years with the padayatra, Narasimha is the senior.

In August 2018 we will have our first ever Transcendental Art Seminar in New Mayapur France. This seminar will be given by Dhriti dasi and Ram Das Abhiram Das, senior disciples of Srila Prabhupada who were personally guided by Srila Prabhupada to creat…

By Chandan Yatra Das

The beautiful state of Manipur is in North-East India. Manipur has a unique culture and is also known as ‘Land of Gandharvas’ and ‘Switzerland of East’. Manipur is a Vaishnava state with Krishna Consciousness been practiced widely amongst the common masses. “Royal families at Manipur and Tripura are descendants of Arjuna’s son Babhruvahana”, as stated in Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 1 chapter 12 verse 21 purport by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the Founder-acarya of ISKCON. Arjuna begot a son named Babhruvahana by the womb of Citrangada, the princess of Manipur.

By Hari Narayana Das Sunday night, Cilegon was hot. The moon is not round yet, dimly lighted lights on both sides of the road stretching approximately 250 meters full of people on both sides. Young-old, male-female. All liked getting out of the corner…

By Kesava Krsna Dasa For some reason the subject of womanhood and the roles they play within our midst has raised strong feelings, usually centred on celibacy and the potential for victimisation. This shows that women are not really the problem – our …

The cow is like our mother. Here is a tribute to three special mothers in the ISCOWP herd. They have been through significant difficulties living in the same dairy before they were rescued by ISCOWP members. Through grace and courage, they have forged…

By Bhakta Mohana Rangan

Many prominent Sri vaishnava Scholars and many eminent Social leaders and eminent media celebrities also graced the event. They spoke on the need for more information and awareness on God consciousness of ancient India and congratulated Sri Giridhari Prabhu for his work in this field. The honorable chief minister of Tamilnadu though couldn’t make up for the event but send an appreciation note. A part of which is as follows “I appreciate the activities of ISKCON spreading devotion to all without any discrimination of caste or religion. “I believe that release of this Chaitanya Caritamritam in Tamil will establish peace in society and serve as a great contribution to Tamil literary world. ”

Iskcon Mayapur: “Your program of speaking in colleges…is very much liked by me; in this way, try to penetrate every school and college and introduce our books profusely…That is the method recommended by my Guru Maharaja

By TOVP staff

The usual program was held in the evening with kirtan, abhisheka and presentations by Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus. And once again, the devotees were so overwhelmed by Lord Nityananda’s mercy that, although only twenty five devotees were present, 65,000 Euros/77,000 USD was pledged. The temple President, Krishna Premarupa prabhu was so enthusiastic that even after we left and despite a large monthly mortgage payment, at the Sunday program he raised an additional 10,000 Euros/12,000 USD for a total of 75,000 Euros/90,000 USD. This is the type of sacrifice that brings the blessings of the Lord. We would like to thank the GBC, Dina Sharana devi dasi and temple president Krishna Premarupa das for their support and cooperation which inspired the generous response from all the devotees. All glories to Lord Nityananda! All glories to Lord Nrsimha! All glories to all the devotees of the Lord! The tour is now completed and the Padukas and Sitari have returned to Their places on the altar in Sridhama Mayapur.

By Hari-sauri das The future is very bright. We are organizing research projects and conferences in collaboration with Universities such as Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and Stockholm University. We are also in the process of affiliating with Kolkata…

By Mukunda Bhakti DasPrisoners danced in ecstasy with the devotees during the concluding kirtan. The total environment of Jail changed all on a sudden. ISKCON Nandankanan distributed sumptuous Krishna Prasad among the prisoners. The prisoners were bles…

Now that many of our devotees are getting old, becoming sickly, leaving bodies, there is a special need to help them remember Krishna at the time of death so that it makes their journey back home back to Godhead more pleasant.Read More…

Around twenty-five young persons attended a residential youth camp organized by ISKCON Youth Forum Varchha in Surat, which had a unique activity-based format of learning, modelled using techniques from the Institute of Education at the University of L…

By TOVP staff The temple programs, though attended by a small number of devotees due to the holiday season in Italy, were still most ecstatic and inspiring. Greeting the Padukas and Sitari, we were met by bight faced devotees who enthusiastically chant…

The devotes from Kiev, Ukraine, made these very attractive preparations for the Vyasa Puja of HH Niranjana Swami. Hopefully they taste as good as they look!Read More…

By Garuda das

IT is important to explore and disclose how–perhaps even why–we are going to speak about Christian and Yogic theism before conducting an exploration on theism in comparative relation between the two traditions. In this kind of discussion, it is inevitable that working definitions of key terms be provided, particular terms that will be clarified and offered to facilitate the discussion. In this study, I examine and draw from the particular studies of three scholars in the field who address the relationship between Christianity and Yoga in order to illuminate the dialectical tension between a resistence toward and the persistence of the development of a yogic theism. I will argue that Yoga as explicated in the Yoga Sūtra possesses a strong and natural theological character, containing a distinct, open-ended raw theism that necessitates the expansion of the domain and definition of the term.

By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami PrabhupadaKrishna is described as akhila-rasamrita-sindhu, “the ocean of rasas.” There are five primary rasas. Rasa means the mellow or the taste we enjoy in every activity. Everything is done with some tas…

By TOVP staff

Lord Nityananda poured His blessings on all the devotees incessantly. After greeting the Padukas and Sitari with kirtan and abhisheka, and speeches by His Holiness Chandramauli Swami, Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus, once again the ecstasy began to flow. Devotees from Croatia were also present and a total of eighty devotees started making their pledges. Eleven pledges were made for Silver Srivas Coins (9,000 Euros/11,000 USD) along with many other large and small pledges. The astounding fact is that before coming to the program many devotees did not expect to give anything significant, and some nothing at all. Yet, due to Lord Nityananda Prabhu’s influence their hearts were changed. The sacrifice of these devotees, like at all the other European temples, is very exemplary and significant, and a sign that our Lord Nitai is anxious to complete the temple.

ISKCON devotee Yashodamayi d.d. (Ieva Zasimauskaitė) will be representing Lithuania in a popular international song competition Eurovision. She is a disciple of Srila Prabhupada’s disciple and initiating spiritual master HG Sankarshan das Adhikari. We encourage everyone to vote for her on the 8th of May (information on how to vote is given below).

By Prahladananda Swami

This is Issue Number Eight of the Sannyasa Newsletter. Revealing one’s mind in confidence is one of the six loving exchanges between devotees that nurture the creeper of bhakti. I hope that this sannyasa katha inspires in you a deeper sense of commitment to the mission of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu under the guidance and example of Srila Prabhupada and his sincere followers.

By Mauricio Garrido, Ph.D. One of the strongest points of tension that often comes up in cosmology between science and religion is the age of the universe. Some interpretations of the Bible calculate it to be about 6,000 years old, while the most recen…

By Drutakarma Dasa Cosmology is defined as the study of the origin, purpose, structure and functioning of the universe. Vedic cosmology gives a vast amount of information about not only the structure of the phenomenal universe as we see it, but also a …

Arjuna said: My dear Krishna, O infallible one, my illusion is now gone. I have regained my memory by Your mercy. I am now firm and free from doubt and am prepared to act according to Your instructions.Read More…

By Hari Narayana Das Parigi Moutong District is one of the Second Level Regions in the province of Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. The district capital is in Parigi. Parigi Moutong district covers most of the eastern coast of Central Sulawesi and Tomini …

By Sruti Dharma Das The last month has been a rollercoaster journey. For over 40 years I have spoken about the harsh reality of life in lectures, funeral sermons, congregational gatherings and personal meetings. Now I am facing those same realities in …

By TOVP staff Leaving the wonderful temple of Sri Sri Dayal Nitai Vijay Gauranga in Budapest, Hungary, we traveled by car three hours to Vienna, Austria arriving on Monday, April 23rd. This small Gaur Nitai temple was started less than three years ago …

When Srila Prabhupada began to promote Krishna Consciousness in America, he found a lot of young energetic followers. Many of these new devotees came from the Hippy culture and were disillusioned with the state of the world.Read More…

We had wonderful celebration of Nrisimha caturdasi festival @ ISKCON Salem, Tamilnadu, India.Read More…

Material enjoyment resides in the novelty of things,” he said. “We may be excited about a new phone or a new car, but how long does it last? A week? A day?”
“—this is the nature of material enjoyment. It is fleeting. But this is not the case with spiritual bliss. Lord Krishna is always new!

By TOVP staff The Hungarian Yatra has been personally built up and developed with the oversight and guidance of Sivarama Maharaja for over thirty years. It is a smooth running and well organized zone with many Krishna conscious activities, and self sus…

Giriraj Swami: Two days after I first saw Srila Prabhupada and the devotees at Brandeis University in Boston, on Nrsimha-caturdasi, May 1, 1969, he gave a beautiful talk about the nature of a Vaishnava, how a devotee is an ocean of mercyRead More…

Millions and millions of obeisances to the protector of the devotees. Millions and millions of obeisances to the killer of the demons! Millions and millions of obeisances to the Supreme Personality of Godhead! Millions and millions of obeisances to L…

By Chandan BhatiaThe Place Where Lord Nrsimhadeva Came To Take Rest And Wash The Blood From His Hands After Killing Hiranyakasipu. Sri Nrsimhapalli is located on the eastern and southern boundaries of Navadvipa Dhama and is known by the names Nrsimha P…

By TOVP staff

Although the tour is nearing completion in a few days, already over $1 million U.S. has been pledged from only 7 temples, many of them very small and having only 20-30 devotees and congregation! This is a total reverse of expectations and a sign that the Lord in everyone’s heart is giving inspiration and intelligence for His service, and He is eager to see this great Temple of the Vedic Planetarium manifest and benedict the world with the mercy of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu: “An astounding temple will appear and will engage the entire world in the eternal service of Lord Caitanya.” (Lord Nityananda, Sri Navadvipa-Mahatmya, Parikrama Khanda, Chapter 4)