Author Archives: Dandavats

By Vrsabhanu das At the recent GBC Meetings in Sridham Mayapur, the GBC College was pleased to present 32 graduates from the GBC College to the assembly of GBC members. As HG Rupanuga Prabhu (President of the GBC College) called out the names of the g…

By Vijaya Dasa About a hundred people were in the room for our presentation. We started with a kirtan. Then I spoke about the glories of the Bhagavatam. I said, “There is so much news about the world. It’s not good news. But the Bhagavatam is good…

By Prahladanda Swami “In Alabama the police asked why I was wearing a dress. I didn’t know it, but devotees had already been arrested there for “wearing a dress.” That’s what it was like in the South in 1971″ He hitchhiked from Miami to Houston wearing…

By Iskcon Nepal ISKCON Founder Acharya: His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada says, “Bhagavad Gita is the essence of Vedic knowledge and one of the most important Upanisads in the Vedic literature whose purpose is to deliver mankin…

Srila Prabhupada’s mission was to write and distribute transcendental books far and wide so that it can change people’s lives. He has quoted that even 1% become devotees, it will change the entire world. As we are continuing to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of ISKCON, here is an opportunity to learn the art of distributing his books through a dynamic and hands on seminar. After a successful and inspiring seminar last year, on the request of devotees, we present the Sankirtan Orientation Seminar 101 (SOS 101) once again for your pleasure. We are also adding a new location in the east coast (Toronto) this time.

By Chaitanya Charana Dasa “It’s an astonishing story. If someone told you a story like this, you wouldn’t believe it. Here’s this person, he’s seventy years old, he’s going to a country where he’s never been before, he doesn’t know anybody there, he ha…

This symbol they created for Food For Life Global instills a devotion to spiritual equality, respectively drawing inspiration from the famous ‘Tilak’ symbol that shows a sacred commitment to the teachings of Krishna. This is a mark the Food For Life community already identifies with and the way in which the Tilak has been structured, it can be interpreted as a person with their arms reaching out – suggesting openness, joy, and acceptance.

The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust was present at the American College and Research Library Conference in Baltimore, Maryland, held March 22nd – 25th 2017. This event was attended by thousands of College Librarians and Faculty Administration looking to add n…

Mukunda dasa: The Shastra Dana programme has now existed for almost eight years. From August 2009 – March 2017 we have distributed approx 18,550 books Srila Prabhupada wrote to Cyavana das on the 26th December 1971: ”Distribution of books and magazines is our most important activity. Without books, our preaching has no solid basis”

Gaurangi Hillel: We teenagers go through a very special phase in life. We want to gradually establish ourselves in this world, and we want to be accepted as individual and almost grown-up personalities, with our own desires, talents, inclinations, hopes and plans for our future. We don’t like to be corrected and instructed by our parents any longer – we have heard this for so many years! Now we need other role models, heroes and mentors, who guide and inspire us. It does not mean that we are ungrateful to our parents – no, we are forever grateful for all the care and love our parents have given to us, but now we want to be treated and respected as adults, and we want to see our parents as friends to whom we may turn whenever we feel like.

By Anand Caitanya das​​

On behalf of Govardhan Eco Village, Vrajendra Nandan Prabhu, ISKCON India Communications Head went to receive the Water Digest Award. The Awards were graced by several prestigious personalities such as Shri Vipul Goel, Cabinet Minister for Ministry of Industries and Commerce, Ministry of Environment & Ministry of Industrial Training, Government of Haryana; Ms. Dana Kursh, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of Israel; Mr Mitrasen Bhikajee, Senior Programme Specialist, Natural Sciences, UNESCO; Hon’ble Justice Dr. Mukundakam Sharma, (Former Judge, Supreme Court of India); Mr. D.S. Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM & Shri. K. B. Biswas, Chairman, Central Ground Water Board

By Iskcon vrindavan

Born and brought up in the countryside in America, in a very liberal household, Sripad Aindra Prabhu was from his very childhood an expert musician and was inclined towards spiritual realization. Although in his childhood he was exposed to various influences of this age of kali, as soon as he came into the association of devotees, within a very short span of time he gave up all his relations in this material world and took the process of Krishna consciousness to heart. In the year 1973, Aindra Prabhu joined the International society for Krishna consciousness and dedicated his entire life to the movement for the pleasure of his spiritual master Srila Prabhupad. In the beginning years he was engaged in distributing books, performing sankirtan and also helping with deity worship, till the year 1986, when he visited Mayapur for the festival marking the 500 hundred years of Mahaprabhu’s birth. In Mayapur he had a desire to start a travelling Sankirtan party but for various reasons this idea of his did not manifest and he came to Sri Vrindavan dham, where he was to spend the rest of his life in the service to the lotus feet of Sri Sri Radha Shyamsundar.

By Mayapur Sasi dasa For the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada this report contains the following North American results of book distribution for the month of February 2017. North American Totals, Monthly Temples, Monthly Weekend Warriors. Monthly Top 100 I…

By Kalakantha Dasa Srila Prabhupada’s purports (commentaries) illuminate for us the verses spoken by Krishna and Arjuna. The following condensed version of their historic conversation combines key points from the verses and purports in the same sequenc…

By Burijana dasa Teachers wishing success in their service must cultivate the mode of goodness. But wait a minute! Am I hearing protests from hard-pressed devotees sincerely striving to serve their Lord with a passion? Are they not crying out from …

By Purushottam Nitai Das We live in a fool’s paradise when we think that money is the ambrosia for all our material sufferings. Rarely we are content with our accumulated wealth. “I want more is the common call”. Money is considered to be the gateway t…

Today being Ekadasi, I was considering whether or not to go out on an errand, and I recalled an incident that took place on Ekadasi in Madras in 1971. Achyutananda, Bhavananda, and I were based in a supporter’s house, and Bhavananda and I were in the mood to go out and preach. Acyutananda, however, said, “No, it’s Ekadasi. We shouldn’t go out. It’s inauspicious. And besides, it looks like rain.” But we thought, “Oh boy, he is so attached to external rules and regulations. We have the real spirit of preaching. We are not going to worry about Ekadasi or some rain.”
When we went out, there was only a light drizzle, but within minutes the sky poured down rain. And the rain didn’t stop; it came down heavier and heavier. In Madras then, at least where we were walking, there was not much of a drainage system—just an open ditch two or three feet deep, lined with concrete. And as the storm continued, the channel filled with water, and soon we couldn’t distinguish between the water on the street, the water in the ditch, and the water in the fields beyond.

By Anuradha Devi Dasi On Tuesday, March 14, 2017, the Department of Sport, Recreation and Culture of the city of Durban, South Africa, hosted a panel discussion at the prestigious Durban International Convention Centre entitled, “Healing Historic Divi…

The Deities looked gorgeous in Their new outfit and a new unique Mridanga. When the curtains opened for darshan, devotees were showering petals on the Deities and the Mridanga. They had to be told by the pujaris to stop throwing petals on the Mridanga …

By Indradyumna Swami

Yesterday on parikrama with a group of devotees in Gokul, Vrindavan we passed by Karshni Ashram run by Sharanananda Ji Maharaja. When we noticed a small crowd gathering outside we stopped to inquire what was happening. Much to our amazement we were told that His Holiness the Dalai Lama was visiting. We were even more surprised when the leaders of the asrama invited us to meet with him. We spent part of the morning discussing spiritual topics with him and then participated in a yajna and Siva puja in his honor. Later in the afternoon he did a public program that was attended by many important spiritual leaders from Vrindavan. As we drove away after the program I turned to one of our devotees and said, “It’s pretty amazing isn’t it? Of all places, we met the Dalai Lama in Gokul, Vrindavan!”

By Madhava Smullen

Ananda Vidya and Lalita Gopi’s service is often not easy. In the wintertime temperatures regularly drop below freezing. The couple have to break the ice in the water trough so that the cows can drink. They struggle to clean the barn when the cow dung is frozen to the floor and the shovel. And they’ve had to wear heavy layers of clothes and gloves, still shivering because the freezing wind blows right through cracks in the doors and walls. Recent developments, fortunately, have made winters more manageable. Former ECO-V project manager Mukunda Das installed foam insulation in the barn, filled up all the cracks, added a layer of paneling on the walls, and put in new insulated doors; while Mother Jayasri’s son Vasudeva Gosh donated a powerful heater, turning the barn into a warm shelter.

By Parama Karuna DasIt was Gargamuni’s idea [to do the prasadam program]. He felt that the best way to attract students was to have a program every day. It was some chanting and then a brief lecture and then prasadam. [Gargamuni] learned how to cook fr…

By Parvati Devi Dasi When you are in Vrndavana, please take the opportunity to visit the awesome newest display of 39 of our Brahma Madhava Gaudiya Sampradaya Acaryas framed inside those beautiful carved marble archways directly above Srila Prabhupada’…

By Deena Bandhu das On Saturday evening March 18, ISKCON Vrinda Kunda very ecstatically celebrated the annual Yamuna Boat Festival on the opposite side of Yamuna from Sringar Vat. All the devotees gathered at Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi in the afternoon…

By Uma devi dasi

When Arjun Bhattacharyya started telling us that Agnideva Prabhu, the legendary Agnideva Das, was coming to Detroit, most of us didn’t believe him. In the spirit of serving a dear and surrendered disciple of Srila Prabhupada, many of us offered to assist in preparing his residence. But our hearts weren’t quite ready to accept that he would actually come; it would be too painful if it didn’t work out and with Prabhu so in demand, we had every reason to think it wouldn’t. But Krishna can make anything happen and He sure did! Agnideva Prabhu came and his depth for kīrtan and bhajan stole the hearts of Detroit, Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, Novi, Farmington Hills… the heart of Michigan.

By Daiva dasa

Iskcon Silicon Valley has a most solid reputation for taking wholeheartedly the order of guru and Gauranga, with ‘books are the basis’, as their battle cry. There is no doubt that this community of hard-working, humble and empowered Vaishnavas, will manifest amazing results with this latest venture into cow culture, knowing that all the books that have been distributed, all the seeds of bhakti that have been planted will one day result in millions of people wanting to take up the life of bhakti.  Then we will be sufficiently ready on the farms, where the ‘cows and bulls create the oasis’, for all to take up ‘simple living, high thinking’, living as Krishna Himself lives surrounded by cows and bees in the land of milk and honey.

By Chandan Yatra Das Sri Caitanya Caritamrta Madha-lila chapter 9 verse 79 describes: Sri Ranga-ksetra (Srirangam) is a very famous place. It lies in the district of Tiruchchirapalli, about ten miles west of Kumbhakonam and near the city of Tiruchchir…

By Hari Priya Devi Dasi On the 24th of February the Institute for Spiritual Culture conducted their annual program in Mayapur. This year the overall theme was “The Glories of Our Vaikuntha Children”, bringing attention to the importance of moving our c…

Pusta Krishna das: This morning, March 17, 2017, our friend and godsister, Gayatri devi dasi, passed on. Read More…

Radha Mohan das: This focuses on the ancient Indian treatise The Surya Siddhanta and its similarities with Modern Astronomy. As well as drawing upon remarkable consistent data between the Surya Siddhanta and modern calculations, I also touch on the v…

A few days ago, Niranjana Swami wrote me a letter in which he said, “I meditate a lot on Sridhar Maharaja. I miss him.” And when I asked him to tell me more about his meditation, he replied, “I honestly can’t fully explain it. He became so unbelievab…

By Indradyumna Swami My dear godbrother Sridhar Maharaja, numerous godbrothers, disciples, friends and well-wishers have gathered around the world and are enjoying sweet memories of your glorious activities in spreading the samkirtan mission of Lord Ca…

By Indradyumna Swami I’ll never forget the wonderful reception the devotees gave you in Mayapura. They knew you were coming to the holy dhama to leave your body, and they rushed to greet you and express their appreciation for your years of service. Ou…

By Kripamoya Das

On the day of initiation you will be promising to follow the regulative principles and to chant sixteen rounds every day. You may also be promising to read Srila Prabhupada’s books and to remain faithful to his society. Your guru will give a talk either on the significance of initiation or on the ten offences to the Holy Name. Three strands of tulasi beads will be placed on your neck. You will be asked to perform acaman – a purifying ritual involving sipping water and saying a mantra. You will then be called forward to make your obeisances to Srila Prabhupada and to your guru. Then you will be asked to recite the vows. You’ll be handed your chanting beads, and then given a name ending in dasa or dasi, indicating that you are now initiated. A fire sacrifice follows during which you’ll join in the chanting of prayers to the members of the Vaishnava parampara and the Deities. During the fire sacrifice you will be directed to offer grains into the flames. It is traditional for the new disciple to beg for some alms to give to the spiritual master immediately after the fire sacrifice.

By Radha Krishna Das

The Awards ceremony which was held at Y B Chavan Auditorium Mumbai on 16th March, 2017 saw a gathering of eminent individuals from various sectors like FMCS, Transport, Finance, Healthcare and Social Work. The event was presided over by the esteemed panel consisting of Mr Deepak Premnarayan – President IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Niraj Bajaj – Chairman, IMC RBNQ Award Trust, Mr Suresh Lulla- Chairman IMC RBNQA as well as members of the Managing Committee of the IMC. The Chief Guest for the evening was Dr R. A. Mashelkar, FRS – National Research Professor & President, Global Research Alliance. Dr Anil Kakodkar – Chairma, Rajiv Gandhi Science & Technology Commission was honored with the IMC Juran Quality Medal 2016.

By Chaitanya Charana Dasa The Ramayana features an emotionally and intellectually riveting conversation about the interplay of destiny and human initiative. This conversation occurred at one of the epic’s defining moments: the moment when Rama, about t…

By Madhava Smullen

On the tenth anniversary of the first Kulimela, Kulis explore how to create a new and better world for future generations. There’s a consensus that focusing on healthy marriages and happy families will make for a stronger ISKCON. Kulis are encouraged to invest in the future by teaming together on projects that positively affect children in their local communities. They also discuss making lots of small specialized groups in their communities to encourage members’ interests and make them feel like they belong. The conversation is always empowering. “We are the community, we are the temple, we are ISKCON,” says audience member Syamasundari Dasi from Alachua. “So if something needs to be done, we must step up and do it ourselves.”

Shyamasundara Dasa: In 1980-81 I was living in Calcutta, which at that time was ruled by Jyoti Basu’s communist government.

By the Sannyasa Ministry Welcome to volume 5 of the Sannyasa Newsletter. I would like to congratulate those who have been accepted by the GBC to take sannyasa this year. I would also like to remind those who are taking sannyasa, that as Lord Caitanya M…

By Bhakti Rasayana Sagara Swami Prahlad Maharaj, he is the best example of someone who is so happy in devotional service. Prahlada, Pra lada is a joy or pleasure, like we have the personified pleasure potency, Haladini Shakti who is Radharani herself. …