Author Archives: Dandavats

By Bhakti Madhurya Govinda Goswami

This is, this is the poetry and also the full knowledge of Srimad Bhagavatam, and so we can get that by milking the surabi cow of Srila Prabhupada purport. That’s what happens in the opening statement by Srila Prabhupada, it’s in once sense it’s a shocker I don’t know if you caught that. It’s a shocking statement. I will read it again because that’s why I like to go through these purports incumbently because that way we can milk the most out of it. We will cover the whole purport but want to make sure this extraordinarily points and then understand why this opening statements by Srila Prabhupada are shocker.

By Braja Vilas das

Yet another year has passed in our lives as we approach Gaura Purnima 2017, and we wish to take this opportunity to once again thank you for your support and encouragement. Your dedication has inspired us spiritually, and has helped us practically to achieve our goals and maintain the construction pace over the years. In many ways this is the real New Year celebration for all ISKCON devotees, as we observe Mahaprabhu’s appearance and make our vows and commitments to continue to help expand His mission throughout the world and deepen our own Krishna consciousness.

By Purushottam Kumar Yudhisthira, an Indian king, who ruled about 5000 years ago once said that the most astonishing thing in this world is that people see others are dying every moment but they never ever believe that one day they too would die Read M…

By Chaitanya Charan dasAction is what catches our attention. For example, in a cricket test match, when the action slows down as the batsmen start playing defensively, our interest sags. But when the action rises – the bowler delivers a googly that cle…

By Mathuresha Dasa While Lord Krishna enjoys the informality of intimate dealings at home with devotees who are in the mood of family and friends, in the office of creator Lord Maha-Vishnu attracts worshipers who prefer a God primarily endowed with gra…

By Nila Kamal das Bhakti Ananda Hari das Goswami was born on the 6th of March 1956 in a village named Chandamleikai, Asaam (North East India). Born in a traditional Manipur Vaisnava family, he was a devotee of Lord Krishna from his very childhood and a…

By Harinarayana Das

When all the participants performed their cultural presentations in front of the stage of honour then the devotees entered with the gopi dancers in front. The leader of ISKCON in Indonesia His Grace Vrajendra nandan prabhu presented a mahaprasad flower garland already offered to the Lord and a Bhagavad-gita to the mayor of Solo. They were delighted to receive the book. Then they were amused seeing the Lord on the chariot. The carnival finished at the mayor’s office yard. Many participants took the opportunity to take picture in front of the chariot. Many also asked for the flower garland that decorated the chariot. The prayer to the Lord Nrashinga deva concluded the ratha yatra. Devotes then took rest and prasadam was distributed to all. Book distribution team distributed 150 Srila Prabhupada’s books, and people scrambled to get Lords’ maha parasadam. An officer of Sragen regency approached Garuda Prabhu and Tapana Misra prabhu to invite the devotees to participate in the carnival in his city. It means that Lord Jagannath already captivated the heart of people in Central Java and paved His way into the next city for yet another enchanting Ratha Yatra festival.

By Yogesvara Dasa

A groundbreaking museum of science – the Vedic Planetarium – seeks to reveal what the eye cannot see. Recently, the “Back To Godhead” Magazine published an article with the above title to reveal some of the facets of the planetarium within the main dome of the TOVP. (On behalf of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium Executive Committee) Illustrations by Alexey Klimenko, Duncan Smith, and Nina Tara.

By Sivarama Swami

It needs to be clear for all the members of Krishna Consciousness movement, when we are talking about Srila Prabhupada as the founder Acharya, it means that Srila Prabhupada is our Mahajan, and Srila Prabhupada‘s teachings in textual for us and his teachings, his examples, his instructions, all the instructions of the other Mahajan. Otherwise Prabhupada will use the other example, you cannot jump over. Jumping over means, you think, well Srila Prabhupada said this but such and such Acharya, Jiva Goswami, Vishwanath Cakravarti Thakura, said something different. So no, Srila Prabhupada didn’t say anything different, it’s just the matter of we don’t understand the context in which Srila Prabhupada is saying the same thing as what the Acharyas say. Because ultimately that is the qualification that the Divine Grace would repeatedly emphasize, that I haven’t changed anything I just follow my spiritual master.

By Visvambhar Dasa Gaura Purnima is the celebration of most auspicious and adorable advent of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu – The Golden Avatara. The Supreme Lord Sri Krishna appeared as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to establish Sankirtana Movement – the yuga …

By Prahladananda Swami Srila Prabhupada gives the analogy that just like a parent, especially a mother, if they see shoes in the street, they are not very much impressed. Just like when you go outside here, there are so many shoes on the shoe rack. Mos…

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devotees The day which was already overwhelming with bliss became more ecstatic. We visited the house of Kolaveca Sridhara and we heard about his glorious vaishnava qualities. So inspiring! After a delicious feast and rest…

By Naveen Sharma

In pursuance of the great desire of Srila Prabhupada (Founder-Acharya of ISKCON), the new temple will be a center for disseminating the profound message of Bhagavad-Gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. Delivered in a modern context to people irrespective of color, nationality, background or gender, the spiritual teachings are aimed to free mankind from the sufferings of material existence and help people find everlasting peace and happiness in Krishna Consciousness. The new temple will have a beautiful deity alter with Sri Sri Radha Shyamasundar and will also offer seminars, workshops, expanded Sunday school programs for children’s education, summer and winter camps for children and young adults, and congregational outreach programs for spiritual education in multiple languages.

By Brajsunder Das GBC Minutes 2017 – Sannyasa Waiting List. The following are the candidates for sannyasa along with their respective waiting periods. “During the time of Lord Chaitanya, the influence of Shankaracarya in society was very strong. People…

By the TOVP team

On February 26th, under the direct inspiration and guidance of His Holiness Bhakti Caru Maharaja, the TOVP Fundraising Team consisting of Jananivas prabhu, Ambarisa prabhu, Mother Svaha and Vraja Vilas prabhu held a fundraiser at the Kolkata temple and raised an incredible $400,000 in pledges to everyone’s amazement. Led by the Lord in the form of His Padukas and Sitari, the TOVP Team inspired the devotees with the vision of this great world-changing project, bringing not only a sense of unity to all the devotees for the local preaching, but for the worldwide mission of Lord Gauranga’s samkirtan movement. Momentum is building as more and more devotees become enthused to help complete the TOVP construction and see the fulfillment of Srila Prabhupada’s vision. This is due to the fact that it is bringing the members of ISKCON together for a common worldwide cause, above and beyond their local interests, and that this worldwide cause is, in fact, inspiring the local causes to expand and grow.

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devotees Parikrama is coming to its conclusion. Today we reached Rudradvipa which corresponds to the process of sakhyam, friendship. First we left our camp early morning at 5:30 am to board the very awaited boat ride across…

By Krishna-kripa das

Kalakantha das: Two major challenges in ISKCON: 1. Lack of reading Srila Prabhupada’s books. 2. Lack of qualified leadership Solving lack of reading challenge: 1. Personal vows. 2. Study groups. 3. Bhakti Sastri courses. Lack of qualified leaders: 1. GBC College, which has been going on for three years The initial GBC was 100% American. Now it is 60% American. Of those in the GBC college now, none are Americans, yet they come from all other parts of the world.

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devotees We were at house of Saranga Murari as well as that of Vasudeva Datta. HH Gopal Krishna Maharaja spoke to the devotees about the uncommon character of Saranga Murari by telling the pastime of his first initiated dis…

By Bhaktivedanta Research Centre devotees The BRC Manuscripts Mission Team found an entire manuscript collection solely related to Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy. Over 100 such manuscripts were cataloged and digitized. “In all of West Bengal, we have not…

By Nitai Candra dasa The perigee (the point situated nearest the earth in the orbit of a celestial body around the earth) of the orbit of Venus (the gross planet out there) coincides with the outer coast of the ocean of ghee (clarified butter). The per…

By Lokanath Swami Prahlada Maharaja said: O Supreme Lord, because You are so merciful to the fallen souls, I ask You for only one benediction. I know that my father, at the time of his death, had already been purified by Your glance upon him, but becau…

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devotees We heard from HH Jananivas Prabhu about the process of Ritudvipa named, archanam (worshipping the deity). He gave a most beautiful description about how deity worship descends from Goloka Vrindavan. Specifically fr…

By Hari Narayana Das Our ever grateful obeisances are due to HH Kavichandra Swami and HH Ramai Swami, the GBCs of Indonesia, for their support and guidance to always look for new avenues for sankirtan. Our humble obeisances to HH Subhag Swami for his i…

By Krishna Kshetra Swami

The number of sannyasis grows from year to year in the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, to well over 100; and those who take the vows of this final ashram of renunciation are, since recently, receiving formal training over and above what they receive individually in the course of their devotional lives and through the guidance of their sannyasa mentors. In pursuit of this aim of formal training, on February 18 – 22 we held a Sannyasa Candidate Training Seminar in Sridham Mayapur, with some 30 sannyasa candidates—all senior brahmacaris or vanaprasthas—attending. This was the second time such a program has taken place.

By Krati Garg

Garlands have been pinned to the wheels of the chariot and curries seasoned to perfection for prasadam (a religious offering), while Krishna’s idol is adorned with jewels for public viewing. The occasion is Rath Yatra, or Chariot Festival, organised by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). Held annually to emulate a similar large-scale Rath Yatra at Puri, in India, the festival attracts thousands of Australians to see the Hindu God Krishna — or Jaggannath (Lord of the Universe) — step out of the sanctum of his temple in Albert Park onto the streets of Melbourne for his darshan (viewing). This year, a record 25,000 people took part in the yatra at St Kilda’s Catani Gardens, reflecting Hinduism’s rising popularity in Australia, which is expected to be confirmed in the latest Census as the nation’s fastest growing religion.

By Tate Blanchard

Protests took place Thursday and may have paid for those wanting to protect sacred grounds. The case had just wrapped up before 5 P.M. involving the Rover Pipeline in Federal Court according to an attorney for Rover Pipeline, LLC, William Wilmoth with Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. There were a number of parties in attendance in Federal Court with concerns about where the Pipeline would be located as it makes its way through the Ohio Valley. Wilmoth said, the last group to be addressed in the last minutes was the Hare Krishna group and Rover had agreed to re-engineer and re-located their plans for the pipeline in a way that will not interfere with the Krishna sacred grounds. That is something Wilmoth said his clients take very seriously and they never want to disrupt any grounds that are sacred to anyone.

By Bhakti Vijnana Goswami Bondage of karma. Karma bandana. Karma bandana is the problematic reactions in our lives. Unless we drastically change these reactions, by the means of hearing and chanting, unless we change this, we cannot claim that we are f…

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devotees Today Parikrama had one very special program: Harinam sankirtan through the streets of Navadviapa town. This Nagar sankirtan was led by HG Agnideva Prabhu, who made the sound of mridangas, kartalas, and gongs accom…

By SRR Sacred India A Sacred Exchange. The Sacred India Gallery is an ISKCON-affiliated community arts space in the scenic Swan Valley region of Western Australia. In a beautiful cross-cultural exchange, the gallery recently hosted Dr Anne Aly MP for…

By Giriraj dasa There are three things that are inconceivable: the position of Lord Siva, hladini sakti, and, yes, guru-tattva. Among all the spiritual personalities the position of Lord Siva is unique. I used to worship lord Shiva. After coming into…

By Visnu Murti dasa

In the ecstatic mission to bring Srila Prabhupada teachings to the forefront; our volunteers have frequently connected with me to express their realizations & breakthroughs in their spiritual lives while performing their services for Vanipedia.  It is their experiences and insights that have actively nurtured our convictions in driving Vanipedia’s growth through the years. We wish to thank them for their inspired contribution for the advancement of Srila Prabhupada’s vani on the internet on such a grand scale.

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devotees He reminded us that Srila Prabhupada’s purports are his spiritual ecstasies. Reading and hearing is non different, therefore we get the direct association of Krishna and Srila Prabhupada simply by reading the Bhaga…

By Devamrita Swami

Remember, right before Prabhupada’s departure he said something very extraordinary, because devotees were concerned, they have the big concern, how they would know what to do after Prabhupada’s disappearance in this world. I’ll speak in the context of what previous speakers have informed you that during our sanyasi GBC guru Sanga, so many senior Vaishnavas brought up the point that reading Srila Prabhupada’s book. How we get tremendous renaissance when reading Prabhupada’s books. So, if you recall right before Prabhupada’s departure, the devotees asked, they went in anxiety totally justified how do we know what to do, how do we know how to make the right decisions after your departure. Srila Prabhupada. And he responded very interesting, very interestingly he said come together read my books and discuss them everything will become clear and how to proceed in the future? So we should remember that. Try it because at first our material intelligence will tell us, Look I have got many practical consideration, logistical considerations strategic consideration to make. Just get in together with Vaishnavas, opening Prabhupada’s books, reading them and discussing them, the way forward is with all my practicalities in the material world, they all will become clear, we should try it. We need a renaissance in this approach, then we can evaluate the results. Let’s take this instruction of Srila Prabhupada deeply into our hearts.

By Chandan Yatra Das When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu was in Mayapur, Chand Kazi was the Chief Magistrate of Navadvipa. It is described in Sri Navadvipa Dhama Mahatmya by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, when Lord Nityananda Prabhu while taking Jiva Gosvami o…

By Navadwip Mandal Parikrama devoteesThere are about 1.400 devotees in the International party this year. Out of them 800 devotees are camping. Parikrama is the time when you can be fully engaged in hearing, chanting and remember Lord Caitanya’s holy …

By Dhaniya devi dasi

The Dominican Republic proved itself to be not only a hotbed of enthusiastic, powerful local devotees, but also a wonderful place for preaching. The people are inquisitive, receptive and looking for an opportunity to learn more about God consciousness. Latin America is brimming with chances to spread the Holy Names and any and all services are welcome from any devotees looking to participate in next year’s festival.

By Romapada Swami Tamala Krsna : What is the way to draw the line between the following three things: blasphemy, fault-finding, and calling a spade a spade? Prabhupada: A spade a spade… Just like I am saying that “What you are? You are small fig onl…

By Giriraj Swami Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji lived to a very old age. In fact, some Vaishnavas say he was just waiting for Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura to come—someone to whom he could impart his special knowledge and realization, for the benefit of hum…

By Vijaya Dasa Mexico City did very well in January: 8,563 book points made it No. 2 in Latin America. A very nice devotee, Aravinda Prabhu, is the sankirtan leader, and he oversees the BBT activities in Mexico. He’s dedicated to distributing Srila Pra…