Author Archives: Giridhari das, Brasilia, Brazil

In regard to the GBC’s recent discussion of Krishna West in Mayapura, and their request to me, I wish to explain the following: 1. As everyone must know, there are few, if any, secrets in ISKCON and therefore the GBC … Continue reading →

Srila Hridayananda Maharaja has finished a new translation of the Bhagavad-gita. The translation is very literal and academic. The book will include an introduction, footnotes and a description and summary of each chapter. The proposed title is: “Bhagavad-gita – An Insider’s … Continue reading →

Question: In an interview with a reporter in 1975*, in New York, Srila Prabhupada says that devotees use dhotis and saris to be recognized as Hare Krishnas, comparing that to the use of uniforms by policeman. At the same time, … Continue reading →

Question by a lesbian devotee in a monogamous relationship who wants to have her own child: I want to raise my own child and not adopt. The only literature I have read on the topic of gay parenting is academic … Continue reading →

Question: How can we overcome all our material problems and unhappiness and attain the perfection of life? Answer by Srila Hridayananda das Goswami: The best way to overcome all sorts of unhappiness is to remember who we really are: pure … Continue reading →

Question: Srila Prabhupada says in the book Teachings of Lord Chaitanya, that when we chant Hare Krishna, Hare Rama not only do we invoke Krishna and Balarama but also Lord Caitanya and Nityanada. You said that when we chant japa, … Continue reading →

Question: Do you think that the increased food distribution to poor children and the opening of hospitals by ISKCON (in India) compromises ISKCON’s purpose as established by Srila Prabhupada, or diminishes its purity of distributing pure spirituality?   Answer by … Continue reading →

Comments by Srila Hridayananda das Goswami when asked to review the article “A Hindu Response to Gay Rights” (Huffington Post):   A) The notion of a ‘trtiya prakrti’, or ‘third gender’ tends to distort the Shastra view. The Shastras do not … Continue reading →

Questions: How to balance philosophy and religion in ISKCON?   Answer by Srila Hridayananda das Goswami: Inevitably in every religion there will be a theological divide between those who seek to combine philosophy and religion, as Prabhupada recommended, and those … Continue reading →

Question: If we cannot remember our previous lives, how are those previous experiences a learning experience?   Answer by Srila Hridayananda das Goswami: I explain that Freud’s real contribution was the discovery that many of the primary forces that motivate … Continue reading →

Questions: What does it mean when the Vedas state that men should protect women?   Answer by Srila Hridayananda das Goswami: Prabhupada and Shastras do teach the protection of women. Krishna also says in the Gita: yad yad acarati sresthas… “people … Continue reading →