Author Archives: Madhava Smullen

ISKCON UK has been amongst the worst affected communities by COVID-19, with twenty-one confirmed cases at Bhaktivedanta Manor and Soho St in London, and five devotees passing away.

The government began with a quarantine in 79 districts across India recognized as COVID-19 hotspots, before officially locking down the entire nation – 1.3 billion people – on March 23rd in a bid to stop the spread of the vir…

Hare Krishna charity Food for All has been given government approval to serve free vegetarian meals to London’s homeless people during the UK’s Coronavirus lockdown.

This unprecedented environment has also created an unprecedented state of affairs for ISKCON, with all events cancelled, and temples across North America closed to the public, as well as to devotees except temple residents.

The first annual UP Devotional Arts & Film Festival, which took place on March 8th at Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi Auditorium in Mayapur, focused on screening music videos by devotee artists from around the world. 

With different countries around the world at different stages of COVID-19 precautions, ISKCON Mayapur has introduced its own safety measures for visitors, community devotees, and stranded foreign devotees.

A newly-published booklet, entitled “ISKCON and Hinduism: Exploring the Hare Krishna Movement and its Broader Traditions,” will be used to help students and teachers in schools, as well as visitors to ISKCON temples, better unders…

“Many people today are confused about what constitutes real spiritually, about the qualities of a real leader, and as to how we can attain real peace and prosperity in these troubled times,” says award-winning storyteller Sankirta…

In Italy, the worst hit country in Europe, neither the general public nor devotees can visit the temple because all places of worship – churches, mosques, temples – have been closed down, and everyone has been quarantined in their…

Over 500 people, including congregation members and the local community at large, are expected to attend the April 4th Foundation Stone Ceremony for ISKCON of New Jersey’s grand new temple in Parsippanny. The ceremony is set to launch c…

Although he took on the post of temple president at Bhaktivedanta Manor in 2009, Srutidharma Prabhu served at the Manor for over forty years, starting back in 1978. In his final hours he was serene and without discomfort. His passing was…

At least 1,200 children in North America are enrolled in official ISKCON Sunday Schools every week. Sunday School educators are set to gather for a Sunday School and Youth Education Conference at ISKCON Baltimore from May 29th to 31…

“For me, the mridanga has always been a special companion,” says Thakura. “So I like to share with students that they’re starting this new relationship they’re going to have for their entire life.”

ISKCON India Communications Director Yudhistir Govinda Das and Vakreshvar Pran Das developed the idea, meeting with the Railway Minister and officials to discuss it.

A new ISKCON temple is set to open in the historic town of Velletri in the Castelli Romani hills, Italy, about an hour south of Rome city center.

From letters Srila Prabhupada wrote to his disciples, we know that he envisioned New Vrindaban as, among other things, a holy place of pilgrimage in North America, where devotees could gather for spiritual education.

Narada Das (Nathan Hartley) appeared on the BBC’s regional Bristol radio station to share a spiritual message of equality with 135,000 listeners on February 20th, quoting the Bhagavad-gita and Srila Prabhupada.

The Temple of the Vedic Planetarium has just reached a major milestone with the grand opening on February 13th of its massive 100,000 square-foot pujari seva facility to serve Sri Sri Radha Madhava.

Villa Vrindavana Yoga Center is providing yoga enthusiasts an authentic experience in a spiritual community, as well as a non-judgemental, pressure-free zone where they can decide how deep they want to dive.

In the U.K., devotees from ISKCON Leicester’s congregation joined a total of nearly twenty families for a groundbreaking scheme called ‘Come Dine Together,’ designed to build friendships and understanding between Hindus and …

To avoid the bumpy, risky roads and pollution when traveling to the Mayapur Gaura Purnima festival this year, travelers can instead book the Jaladuta boat service organized by the Mayapur Tourism department and enjoy a relaxing cruise down th…

A new project, The Pilgrimage, is providing luxury spiritual retreats and online education for corporate clients, while also offering ISKCON devotees the chance to earn a living amongst Vaishnava peers.

For devotees and spiritual people looking for devotional music in a different genre than kirtan, but just as transformational, Russian husband-and-wife duo Nilambary’s debut album, the lush film-score-like “Eternal Prayers,”…

First established by Brahmananda Das in the 1970s, ISKCON of Tallahassee, Florida closed down before restarting in a new building in the 1990s. After struggling with financial and organizational challenges in more recent times, the center is …

Back in 2009, when devotees in Radhadesh, Belgium held a small kirtan weekend with Sivarama Swami and Madhava, just 100 people attended. It was a similarly intimate group the next year, when festival coordinator Manu Magnin, then 19 years old…

When 13-year-old Josh Menheere first noticed graffiti around the surf town where he grew up in Queensland, Australia, and learned techniques from his cousin who was dating a graffiti artist, he didn’t know that one day his own street ar…

The Living Name Retreat is a unique experience focused on reigniting one’s relationship with the Holy Name.

The Bhakti Center’s community is what its team are most proud of, fostering incredible transformation. Its latest report, shares several “Bhakti Journey” stories from everyday New Yorkers who were searching for something mor…

Starting at London’s Radha Krishna Temple, and now based in Croatia, Akrura has coached more than one thousand devotees over the past twenty years.

TV Asia was the first coast-to-coast entertainment and information channel for the South Asian community settled in the U.S. It airs regularly scheduled programs in Hindi, English, Gujarati and other regional languages 24 hours a day, seven d…

A popular Zoom conference, Wisdom of the Sages, has gone public and become a daily podcast, delivering transformational wisdom, Bhakti-yoga philosophy, and profound stories with fun and energy on Youtube, Instagram and most podcast platforms….

The latest tour by ISKCON Youth Ministry saw youth help put on four Rathayatras in the Caribbean, and some become inspired to take on active roles in the Hare Krishna Movement.

If you’re looking for mantra music beyond traditional kirtan – say, a fun, sunny mix of soft rock, folk, and funk via the French Riviera and the Pacific Rim – you might want to try out Confused Soul’s new single &ldquo…

The podcast is facilitated by the BBT’s Marketing, Communications and Innovations dept and was conceived by the department’s director Vaisesika Das as a way to make sankirtan (book distribution and harinama) relevant to a younger …

Starting in September last year, bush fires have been causing widespread devastation in Australia, particularly in New South Wales. According to ISKCON Australia Communications Director Bhakta Das, no devotees have been injured, as the f…

The exhilarating experience has been a tradition for ISKCON Ireland for over three decades, and is well known to the Dublin public. 

Seventeen children and youth, aged two to eighteen, took three months to complete the movie and worked on every part of the production from set building, special effects, and lighting, to voices, puppeteering, filming and editing. The film pr…

Vaisesika shares why goals are important in Krishna consciousness and in other aspects of life; and how to set your New Year’s Resolution goals effectively in a way that will lead to success.

A new ISKCON-endorsed online training program, Karuna Care Education, is equipping devotees with the basic tools to offer  compassionate care in hospitals, hospices, prisons, airport chapels, homeless shelters, and more.

ISKCON devotees in Bolivia threw a Christmas party with a twist when they held Bhakti Yoga Fest on December 22nd.