Author Archives: Dandavats

By Praghosa dasa Congratulations to Tarakanatha Prabhu and all his team for securing this wonderful new property in the heart of Cardiff which will serve as the main ISKCON temple in Wales as well as ISKCON’s headquarters there. Wales has produced many…

A visit to ISKCON Kurukshetra – 30th Nov, 2016 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: During correspondence I read a letter from Bhagavata dasa about Bhuvanesvara. Money was scarce. Prabhupada gave the same recommendation he had given in so many let…

Prabhupada said, “This is Vaishnava. A Vaishnava is kind to every living entity. Not this squishing business.”
Sukadeva: Prabhupada said that you have to become like the bumblebee and not like the fly and Prabhupada proved it by his own example.
Once Nara-Narayan—who does not sing like a nightingale—was in the temple room singing and Prabhupada said, “Who is that singing?”
Karandhar said, “It’s Nara-Narayan, Srila Prabhupada.”
Prabhupada said, “Hmm, he keeps very good time.”
Once Hari Sauri’s alarm clock went off and Prabhupada said, “What is that sound?”
Hari Sauri said, “That’s the alarm clock, Srila Prabhupada.”
Prabhupada said, “Oh? Who is in danger?”
I looked at Hari Sauri and thought, “Wow! My spiritual master has a sense of humor!”

By Vishakha Devi Dasi Rupa Goswami describes this type of hope as asha-bandha (“bound by hope”): One thinks, “Because I’m trying my best to follow the routine principles of devotional service, some way or other I will be able to approach the Lord and w…

By Radhaath Swami

Artha Forum, a not-for-profit initiative that aims to bring the relevance of ancient wisdom to modern business, organised the event “Business With a Purpose” on 17th November 2016 at Bombay Stock Exchange, Mumbai. Over 400 corporate heads and entrepreneurs attended. Radhanath Swami was invited to be the keynote speaker. Others who spoke on the occasion were leaders from business and government administration: Ashishkumar Chauhan, the head of Bombay Stock Exchange, one of the leading stock exchanges in the world; Praveen Pardeshi, the principal secretary to the chief minister of Maharashtra state; and Ajay Piramal, the chairman of Piramal Group, a diversified global business conglomerate.

By Shyam Gopal Dasa

The devotees of ISKCON NOIDA performed a 15 day padayatra from October 2nd to October 15th. The route began in NOIDA (Indraprastha) and ended in Sri Vrindavan Dham. NOIDA is approximately 150 kilometres away from Vrindavan. The padayatra, which was organized as of part of the ISKCON golden jubilee celebrations was the first of its kind in the history of Delhi or the National Capital Region[2] (NCR). The inspiration behind the walk was none-other than the Padayatra Minister, Lokanath Swami Maharaja; –it was also made possible by the efforts of Vanshidhar Dasa, Co-President of ISKCON NOIDA and many other devotees from the congregation.

By Giriraj dasa I advise all to preach the teachings of Rupa-Raghunatha (disciples of Lord Caitanya) with all energy and resources. Our ultimate goal shall be to become the dust of the lotus feet of Sri Sri Rupa Raghunatha Goswamins. You should all wor…

By Nila Kamal das

Milan Talukdar (Subhag Swami) was a bright student during his school days. He completed his intermediate studies from the Scottish Churches’ College, Kolkata, where Srila Prabhupada had studied previously. Thereafter in November 1965, he was sent to London to study higher engineering. During the course of his studies, in 1969 he met His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. He was formally initiated by Srila Prabhupada in 1970. After serving at Bury Place, Bhaktivedanta Manor and various places around the UK, he returned to India in 1974 upon the request of the GBC to help in writing and translating Bengali literature. And he never returned again…

By Shaunaka Muni Das The King of Knowledge by Srila Prabhupada came to me at a pivotal time. I got the book without wanting it. My friend wanted to share it with me after he perused it. I had no idea – I was “book distributed!” I was skeptical but on m…

By Nashvin Gangaram

ISKCON’s achievements over the last 50 years have been largely due to the influence of Srila Prabhupada and his direct disciples. We have been standing on the shoulders of giants. However, in the relatively near future, there will not be anyone present who personally associated with Srila Prabhupada. How will ISKCON continue to grow then? This movement will progress with our cooperative spirit to please Srila Prabhupada: “Now, we have by Krishna’s grace built up something significant in the shape of this ISKCON and we are all one family. Sometimes there may be disagreement and quarrel but we should not go away. These inebriates can be adjusted by the cooperative spirit, tolerance and maturity so I request you to kindly remain in the association of our devotees and work together. The test of our actual dedication and sincerity to serve the Spiritual Master will be in this mutual cooperative spirit to push on this Movement and not make factions and deviate.”

By the TOVP Team All ISKCON devotees worldwide are undoubtedly inspired and enthused by the rapid progress of the TOVP construction over the last five years. The temple superstructure is complete, the finished domes and chatris await their kalashes and…

By Visakha Dasi Selfishness is closely related to the inability to hear, as our preoccupation with our self makes us deaf to another’s voice. To overcome this, we can learn to consider all matters thoughtfully with due respect to our spouse’s point of …

By Nayana Manjari Dasi

On a Friday, September 23rd our team embarked on a second padayatra in Bolivia in honour of ISKCON’s 50th anniversary. This time our route followed the ancient Inca roads found in the Andes Mountains. We walked for three-days along a road known as ‘El Chorro’ which starts in the mountains and ends in the rainforest 52 kilometres away. This road is between 500 and 1000 years old and was built by the Tiahuanaco (Tiwanku) and sometime after it was improved upon and used by the Incas. Later, the Spanish conquerors used it and even up until recently it was used to connect the Bolivian highlands with the Amazon region. This road formed part of the Inca highway system known as the Qhapaq Nan (the Great Road) that spanned across six South American countries. Today it is recognized as a UNESCO heritage site. The idea for this padayatra was to spread the holy names to the remote mountain villages of this area.

By Jaganmohini devi dasi and Subal Shyam das As a Manipuri Vaishnava and a studious scientist student from the prestigious University of California – Irvine, USA, Sripada maharaj won the heart of his spiritual master H.D.G. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Pra…

By Gaurangi Dasi When we talk about cow protection, we should not forget that it goes hand in hand, or rather hoof in hoof, with putting oxen to work. Otherwise, what will happen to the all the bulls that take birth? When bulls are neutered they are …

By Ananda Vrindavaneswari Devi Dasi Perhaps one of the more endearing images in the Bhagavad-gita is Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, driving the chariot of His friend, the warrior Arjuna. When we accept the notion of God as a person then w…

By HareKrishna FestivalsUK For the 15th anniversary of the disappearance from the this world of His Grace Tribhuvanatha Prabhu, at the end of November 2016, devotees premiered at Bhaktivedanta Manor a special 30 minute movie featuring footage of histor…

By Purushottam Nitai Das Since the day I came to know about God, I was told that God is the giver of everything and so I should unhesitatingly ask him to fulfil all my desires. And from that day or rather from that moment onwards I have always treated …

By BalGovind Das HG Rasamandala Prabhu, Director of ISKCON Educational Services, facilitated a four day Devotee Care Course-2, pilot course at ISKCON Govardhan Eco Village (GEV), Wada from 27th to 30th Oct 2016. It was organized by Revatiraman Prabhu, …

By Anand Caitanya das ISKCON Govardhan Eco Village, a 100 acre sustainable farming community and retreat center, based near Mumbai, India received the Green World Environment Award 2016 in the international campaign to find the world’s greenest countri…

By Vraja Bihari Das This realization can be a painful experience. Hence to avoid this realization, we may prefer to believe that chanting is one of the many things to be done in devotional service. If we profess that chanting is the most important acti…

By Vaiseshika Dasa

Many “Warriors” are householders who have family obligations and who work during the week to earn their livelihood. But despite their busy professional and family lives, these devotees, eager for the nectar that comes from direct preaching, go out on weekends to distribute Srila Prabhupada’s books. But the “Weekend Warrior” comes in all shapes and sizes: Kids, students, temple managers, retired book distributors, and congregational members of ISKCON are all joining the swelling ranks of the “Weekend Warriors.”

By Members of Krishna Sambandha

November 29, for the first time in the history of Chile and its Courts of Justice, a concert was held in the Hall of Honor of the Supreme Court. Never before had there been a musical presentation in this space of great patrimonial and historical value for our country. The concert, consisting of an exhibition of classical and devotional music from India, was performed by Krishna Sambandha, composed of members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). This activity was initiated with a speech by His Excellency Mr. Hugo Dolmestch, President of the Supreme Court, and was attended by the Minister of Supreme Court, Gloria Ana Chevesich, the National Prosecutor of the Public Ministry, Andrés Montes; Ministers of the Constitutional Court; The President of the Court for the Defense of Free Competition, Enrique Vergara; The first Secretary and Cultural Manager of the Embassy of India in Chile, Mr. Venkataraman and Mr. Shammi Arora; The President of the Indian Federation in Chile, Kishan Dadlani and the leading exponent of classical Indian music in Chile, Master Millapol Gajardo.

By Syama Sakhi devi dasi

Recently, Gurukula principal, Vinod Bihari dasa, joined 29 other principals and Education Minister, Adrian Piccoli, in a meeting organised by the AIS (Australian Independent Schools of NSW) in Sydney. Vinod Bihari gave a presentation on the programs implemented by the Gurukula that have led to such enormous success. Vinod Bihari talked about how the school is focusing on best instructional practices that tailor to student learning. The Gurukula has also pioneered a coaching model whereby a specialist educator from the US gives real-time feedback to teachers in the classroom. Education Minister Adrian Piccoli expressed a genuine interest in knowing more about the Hare Krishna School. The Minister left his entourage to spend some time alone with Vinod Bihari looking at a photographic presentation of the school on a nearby wall, and hearing about the Gurukula’s teaching and welfare programs. Minister Piccoli expressed that after his conversation with Vinod, his impression of the Hare Krishnas changed by 180 degrees for the better. The AIS Public profile page commented how Mr Piccoli specifically noted how much he enjoyed meeting Vinod Bihari. The Tweed Weekly and Tweed Daily interviewed Vinod and published articles acknowledging the school’s ongoing successes.

By Vamsuli Dasa

“Now, our next program will be to organize farming land to set an example to the whole world how people can be peaceful, happy, and free from all anxieties simply by chanting Hare Krishna Maha-mantra and living an honorable life in Krishna Consciousness. In India especially people are religiously inclined. They like to live in village and also like to love Lord Rama, Lord Krishna. This idealism is running through their blood and veins. We have to organize their natural tendency and elevate them again back to Home, Back-to-Godhead. Please think over these points very seriously and as soon as I return we shall take up the program. My beloved sannyasi disciple Swami Pusta Krishna has promised to give me a car, and as soon as I get it I shall move from village to village along with some selected assistants and organize this farming village development program.”

By Ramanuja das

Ram Ghat on the banks of Mandakini Ganga, the caves of Gupt Godavari, the ever pleasing Kamad-giri or the sacred mountain on which Lord Ramachandra set up His residence – which is considered to be as good as Giriraj Govardhan in Vrindavan and many other pastime places of Lord Rama decorate Chitrakoot as beautiful ornaments which have attracted the minds of saintly personalities since time immemorial. Many ashrams would very happily and hospitably welcome the devotees and gladly agree to allow them to take prasadam which they provide free of cost to the sadhus every day. Lecture halls for the six days program as well as accommodation for the devotees were arranged at the Udyamita campus. Seminars on importance of devotee association, simple yet clear lectures by Subhag Swami, tips by Niranjan prabhu, fired up kirtans, chanting at train station and of course dramas depicting pastimes of lord Ramachandra enlivened the devotees. His Holiness Subhag Swami explained the meaning of go to dhama only for sightseeing….this is meant for those who don’t know the real purose of visiting holy places. The dhama is accepted to be holy because the Supreme Lord or His devotees enacted pastimes there and more because advanced devotees reside in these places and constantly speak about the lords pastimes. It is instructed that one visit the holy places because there one can avail the opportunity to hear Krishna katha from self-realized souls and enrich their Krishna consciousness.”

By Sankirtana Das

Is it any wonder that we would want to retreat from a world that offers news of constant strife? What have we to look forward to? A world of uncertainty, a lackluster economy, a people divided, everyone talking past one another, hurtling slogans and accusations, and never connecting nor really listening to one another. With these burdens weighing upon us, meditation doesn’t seem to be enough. Maybe it’s downright ineffective! At the end of her article, Ms. Whippman evokes some studies which conclude that the results of meditation are “underwhelming” and that it might only “bring some small benefits. . . . compared with pretty much any general relaxation technique at all, including exercise. . . .”

By Indradyumna Swami I was remembering this evening one incident about how merciful Lord Caitanya is to even the most fallen, sinful rascals. As Prabhupada mentions, Jagai and Madhai–they were not comical characters; they were deeply sinful criminals…

By Giriraj dasa

We can understand how pure is the service which Tulasi offers to Sri Krsna. So we should always endeavor after becoming the servant of Tulasi devi. I do not know who has taught you that part of a Tulasi plant may be cut off and then replanted? From the Tulasi plant you can cut off only leaves for offering them to Krsna, never for cutting and planting. That is an offence. The manjaris (seeds) can be offered in water and it makes the water fragrant and tasteful. And the manjaris can be planted for growing new Tulasi plants. Yes, the prayer you have enclosed is bona fide. Tulasi devi never goes back to Godhead, she is always with Godhead. She is a pure devotee and thus she has appeared on this planet to render service to Krsna by being offered in all temples throughout the world by being offered up to the lotus feet of Krsna.”

By ISKCON Coimbatore

“Goloka Goshala” was inaugurated at ISKCON Coimbatore temple premises on 27th November 2016, for the pleasure of Their Lordships Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra Devi, by the chief guest, Sri S.P. Velumani. Hon. Minister of Tamilnadu Municipal Administration, in the auspicious presence of HH Bhakti Vinoda Swami Maharaj, Temple President and Zonal Secretary of ISKCON. A special plaque marking the occasion was also unveiled by the chief guest. The inauguration function was graced by the presence of special dignitaries like Sri.P.Nagarajan (Member of Parliament),Sri.P.R.G.Arunkumar( MLA, North Coimbatore), Sri.V.C Arukutti (MLA, Kavundampalayam constituency)and other VIPs. Three healthy cows and a bull were donated to the temple by devotees. HH Bhakti Vinoda Swami Maharaj named the cows as Ganga, Yamuna, Surabhi and the bull as Sudhama.

By Chirag Dangarwala In order to understand what selfishness is, let us first of all examine what the self is, generally speaking people consider the body which is seen with the naked eye to be the self and selfishness in this regard is the tendency to…

By Vaisesika Dasa “Why distinguish between chanting and book distribution? These books I have recorded and chanted, and they are transcribed. It is spoken kirtanas. So book distribution is also chanting. These are not ordinary books. It is recorded cha…

By Sacinandana Swami Devotees of Krishna meditate about things they can be grateful for. They avoid thinking about all those things that they do not have, nor all those arrangements that have not worked out. Instead they focus on what has been given to…

By Tamohara das The ISKCON GBC is pleased to announce that appointment of Kamlesh Krishna das as the International Director of the ISKCON Child Protection Office. He succeeds Champakalata devi dasi in this role, and is already actively involved in the …

By Prahladananda Swami I am happy to introduce the 4 th issue this year of the ISKCON Sannyasa Ministry newsletter. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Prabhupada explained that an advanced devotee and preacher out of humility takes the vows and dress of a…

By Paramadayala Nityananda Dasa

Use of fossil fuel can be described by the Vedic term “ughra karma” or greatly destructive work; but changing to other forms of energy does not address the real problem. Human beings will continue to be a major burden to the Earth until we acknowledge that we are not the owners of the Sun, wind, water or atoms; these are produced and owned by God, and any energy we derive from them must be used for His pleasure. However great the population may be, we are not a burden to the Earth when we use energy in Krishna’s service. But we cannot avoid adverse reactions when we misuse energy for our sense gratification. As a society of Brahmana’s, it is the duty of ISKCON members to inform those who place their faith the Paris Agreement that it does not identify the real problem or give the real solution. This may make us unpopular, but people are suffering due to ignorance, so how can we not tell them the truth?

By Mayapur Sasi dasa You may have heard that the Russian government is trying to stop book distribution. It passed a law that does not allow anyone from any religion to promote his beliefs, and if anyone gets caught, he invites a big fine. When the dev…

By Mahatma das

I once attended a workshop facilitation training in which we were taught that many people will come to our trainings with the mindset of “I already know that.” They explained that they might know of it, about it, or are familiar with it, but they don’t know it unless they live it. So if our audience thinks they already know what we will be teaching, the learning process shuts down for them. So we were taught to joke with the audience by saying, “The three worse words in the English language for learning are, “I know that.” The point of this article is to see how this relates to us I am not the body. I’ve heard it 4000 times. I know this. Or do I?

By Promila Chitkara

It was December – the month of Srila Prabhupäda’s book marathon! We were quite excited when we began book distribution. We remained excited throughout. The thought of reaching out to unlimited number of souls thrilled me. The results we achieved were seemingly in proportion to our efforts. Actually, the mercy we received during this time was much beyond the external effort or internal state. There were times when nothing seemed to work out, but then everything worked out at once. The first time when we got zero response I had this feeling Krishna would do something just before we decided to give up. He did! He always does! (I recalled the past incidents when He intervened just when I was about to give up.)