By Nashvin Gangaram
ISKCON is the ultimate welfare organisation. This is a bold claim but I’ll explain. Suppose you came across a lost child, crying for her parents. It would certainly be noble to feed the child, and take care of her. However, a higher consideration would be to reunite the child with her parents. Similarly, all our altruistic and humanitarian endeavours are wonderful, but they find perfection when they are accompanied by reuniting the soul with the Supreme Lord. ISKCON is led by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. He is the Founder and Acharya of ISKCON and is predicted in scripture. “Lord Krishna: ‘After 5,000 years of this age have passed, the great sage and worshipper of my holy names will appear and spread the chanting of my names throughout the world.’” (Brahma-vaivarta Purana) Srila Prabhupada did not seem to perform superhuman feats. However, his miracle was that he gave people a higher taste and a chance at real happiness, which can allow us to overcome our struggles. The happiness experienced in bhakti, or devotional service to the Supreme Lord, is of a different kind altogether. It far surpasses anything else, which includes temporary pleasures and the state of nirvana or the bliss of merging into the effulgence of the Supreme Lord. Therefore the affluent, the simple, the serious seeker, and the party animal, are all attracted to this path. They experience joy that is not found elsewhere.