Planet ISKCON

In spiritual parlance there are ‘thin’ places in the world. These are holy places, sacred spaces, where the line between the spiritual and materials worlds is very thin and the ability to feel and perceive our relationship with Krishna is heightened. It’s easier to chant there, to call Krishna deeply from the heart, and thus to call ourselves to experience our spiritual selves.
There are also thin days (and even thin times in the day). Janmastami is one such day. Although Krishna is unborn and eternal, he ‘takes birth’ in this world to share Himself with us and remind us of our relationship with Him. On this day He is extra-present.

‘Walking Monk’ makes his way through Omaha on long, hot trek across United States.
Maggie O’Brien / World-Herald staff writer: “The Walking Monk” made a stop in Omaha on Tuesday as part of his journey across America to celebrate his faith and promote an active, healthy lifestyle.
“It’s about going back to the basics,” Bhaktimarga Swami said. “Like Gandhi said, a simple life, high thinking. I see this as doing both of those things.”
Swami, 63, is a Hindu monk from Canada. He is walking from New York to San Francisco to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Hare Krishna religious movement, which emphasizes spiritual well-being and clean, simple living.
Swami changed his name from John Peter Vis when he became a monk in 1973. He wears an orange robe and black Crocs on his feet.
He considers walking an ideal form of exercise, he said, because anyone can do it, and it allows time for self-reflection.
This tour is broken into three parts. He started last fall in Boston, went to New York, then into Pennsylvania. The second leg started again in Pennsylvania over Mother’s Day weekend and took him to Ohio, Michigan, Illinois and Nebraska. He arrived in Omaha on Tuesday.
Next up is Grand Island on Wednesday, where he’ll stop his journey before completing the third leg of the trip next summer.
Swami, who also practices yoga, said he started walking long distances to get away from the chaos of the world.
He has walked across Canada four times. He’s also trekked through Ireland (he said it was wet), Israel (dry), Ghana (hot) and Trinidad (humid).
It hasn’t been easy walking through the Midwest, he said. Swami usually gets up at 4 a.m. to beat the heat and averages about 20 miles a day.
“It’s been a hot, sweaty summer,” he said.
Source: http://goo.gl/OEJaux

"The Radharamana temple as embodied community”: Details about the daily worship at the ancient Radharamana temple in Vrindavana. “I spent four months living next door to the temple, because I had learned that [ISKCON’s founder] Srila Prabhupada had instructed some of his pujari disciples to study how they do deity worship there,”. “No one had really done that yet, so I thought, let me do this as a service for ISKCON. While there, I was able to get a copy of their daily worship procedure, which is only eight pages long and is in handwritten Brajabasha Hindi. Continue reading "Krishna is always victorious!
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Does this imply that becoming freed from material desires isn’t quite what real purification is?

The post Gopala-raya asks: Sb 7.10.4, says “…only when one is fully freed from material desires can one be purified, and only in that purified state can one serve the Lord” appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

His Grace Garuda Prabhu is a disciple of A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada and known as Dr. Graham M. Schweig, at the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies of Christopher Newport University in Virginia. Garuda was one of the first ISKCON devotees to pursue a formal education. He saw a great opportunity to reach educated circles by inaugurating the field of Vaishnava studies. He earned his doctorate in Comparative Religion from Harvard University. Recently, Princeton University Press published his thesis under the title “Dance of Divine Love- India’s Classic Sacred Love Story: The Rasa Lila of Krishna." Continue reading "Love of God-Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Jesus Christ – 2nd Avenue
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World Holy Name Festival 2016, ISKCON-Delhi (5 min video)
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2016 Rathayatra in Los Angeles (Album with 102 photos)
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Police escort for The Lovely Lords of the Universe! (1 min video)
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Harinam Sankirtan in Berlin, Germany (Album with photos)
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The U.N. Representative’s Visit to the Storefront is Botched

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When I was in Seattle I had the privilege of staying in the home of Senthil Nallasamy, his wife Sujatha, his son Nithin and daughter Navyah.

Originally from India, they moved to Seattle around 15 years ago and became devotees in 2010. They regularly attend and serve at our temple in Sammamish.

Written by Nimai

London Ratha Yatra (17 July) had been really great and Kadamba Kanana Swami enjoyed it a lot however he needed to take a few days of rest after such an exhausting event so he decided to go to Amsterdam before continuing with his European tour, and he stayed at the flat of Uddhava and Visakha. Maharaj enjoyed living very simple and peaceful there without having to stress about anything. He took me on several walks during our time in Amsterdam. On the first day, Maharaj took me to the Zandvoort beach front and on other days we went to different parts of the city, every time walking an average of almost 10 km per day. We were really nicely taken care of as well, and Uddhava made a lot of pizza on the day before our departure.

Maharaj decided to stop in Cologne for a night (22 July), rather than going to Zurich directly. Our train got cancelled and we had to take the bus but eventually we arrived at the Cologne temple just in time for the evening class. Maharaj spoke in German that day and also spent some time with devotees he hadn’t met in a long time.

The next day we took a flight to Zurich, where we spent two nights at the temple in preparation for the 2016 Swiss Summer Camp. While at the temple Maharaj focused on writing his novel before leaving for the retreat which took place at a hotel a bit higher in the mountains, in a valley called Blümlital which translates to “flower valley”. The hotel was reserved completely for devotees for a whole week.

Maharaj started his sequence of lectures by speaking about Uddhava trying to enter into Vrindavan, a theme which he developed throughout his lectures. It wasn’t focused on only that though, Maharaj spoke about many, many other things as well. When speaking about Vrindavan, Maharaj always shared a few personal experiences and stories. On one of the days Maharaj did a presentation entitled “Gouda Mandala”, where he showed pictures of an excursion to Bangladesh that he had done with a group of devotees in October 2011. The slideshow included pictures of Advaita Acharya’s birthplace, different ISKCON temples, Bangladeshi devotees and more. While presenting the slideshow, Maharaj explained what each picture portrayed and explained its significance. The presentation showed several trees too, representative of different holy places.

Sacinandana Swami arrived a few days after us. Many of the devotees at the retreat were his disciples and they couldn’t wait to see their Guru Maharaj. Sacinandana Swami also showed a slideshow, it was about Vrindavan and was really nice.

Maharaj went on a few walks during the retreat. On one day, Maharaj had been invited to go on a walk by an aspiring disciple who got initiated on the last day and received the name Adishekara Das. Together we walked a total of 12 km to see a beautiful waterfall!

Maharaj also agreed to give a “children’s class”. He told the story from the Krsna book where Kaliya is defeated. Some of the kids got a bit wild at the end and Maharaj said that this always happens when he teaches children because he was like that himself in his younger years and the kids can sense it. On that evening Maharaj sang in the final slot of a 12 hour non-stop kirtan.

On 28 July, we departed Switzerland and travelled back to London.

Visit Flickr to see all the photos. 

Gita verse-by-verse podcast

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13 July 2016 : Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Incorporation of ISKCON in New York by Yogesvara Das (Audio)
A recent presen...

Looking for the Comedy clip cited by Prabhupada in Montreal to the three couples going to London.
We’re writing on behalf of HH Mukunda Goswami to request if anyone might have seen or know of anyone who might have seen the comedy movie clip that Srila Prabhupada narrated to the devotees who were leaving for London to start the movement. It is a clip where Charlie Chaplin (or perhaps Max Linder or perhaps an impersonator) sits on a bench and some boys put glue on it so his coat gets stuck. When he gets up there is a rip and then he starts dancing with a ripped coat tail. He starts to dance with a lot of gusto and enthusiasm that everybody thinks it is a new fashion and they also go and rip their own coat tails and start dancing. In this way he starts a new trend.
Maharaj has been looking for this clip for over 12 years. After talking to film historians we realize that it is even possible that this was not even a Charlie Chaplin movie and could have been done by Max Linder or even an impersonator. If you can kindly spread this message and if we can somehow dig out this piece of our history that would be a wonderful offering to Srila Prabhupada on this 50th year. Our request is if we can share this message on your Facebook pages that might help us reach a much wider group of people who might be able to give us any lead.
If you’ve any leads about this clip, please contact us at: LAGARWAL108@GMAIL.COM
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Vidarbhasuta devi dasi & Lokadhyaksa dasa

Our Founder Acharya A. C. Bhaktivedanta Prabhupada often emphasised that health should be a key priority for all of us. In today’s age, everyone is talking about holistic health which means taking care of the needs of the body, mind and soul. This was the vision of Bhaktivedanta Hospital & Research Institute when it was founded 18 years ago. With inspiration from and under the guidance of HH Radhanath Swami, the 80,000 sq. ft. Bhaktivedanta Hospital was established at Mira Bhayandar, a suburb near Mumbai, in 1998. Today, it is the only hospital in the whole of Maharashtra that provides its patients holistic healthcare services based on true awareness and understanding of the needs of the body, mind and soul. Recently, it achieved the hallmark of becoming an NABH accredited hospital offering world-class super speciality service. Continue reading "Bhaktivedanta Hospital & Research Institute attains NABH Accreditation – A hallmark of excellence in patient safety & quality
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What was it like to be chastised by Srila Prabhupada.
Jahnava devi dasi: In Dallas in 1972, the Deities, Sri Sri Radha-Kalachandji, arrived the same day as Srila Prabhupada, and Srila Prabhupada wanted to install Them in two days.
The Deities were covered with something sticky and little pieces of burlap and cloth were stuck to painted areas like Their eyes and so on.
The head pujari, Ichhamati, was concerned because she knew that when we dressed the Deities in the future we would have some difficulty. So, we tried every solvent that we could think of.
Nothing would get this sticky substance off. When we had tried everything, Ichhamati left me in charge of taking this stuff off. I’d already suggested paint remover, and we had thought about it a little bit.
Finally, she left and I began to use paint remover. My great offense was that I was confident that I could take all the paint off the Deities and repaint them in two days time.
I removed all the paint from the Deities and when the head pujari came back, she was in a state of shock. I said, “It’s all right,” but I understood I had done something in an unauthorized way.
I did not know at that time that these Deities were already installed. I didn’t know that they had been worshipped and that they were 500-year-old Deities, although this does not minimize my offense.
Anyway, I was painting the Deities all night in Srila Prabhupada’s quarters. And the next morning the Deity was totally wet. I was using a Japanese dryer but I could see that something was wrong, it was not going according to plan.
So, Satsvarupa Maharaj informed Srila Prabhupada of the situation on a morning walk.
Srila Prabhupada stopped and said, “Pack my bags immediately. I am leaving this temple. You can do whatever you like with the Deities, but just don’t consult me.”
Naturally, I went into a suicidal state. I was emotionally crying and devastated by my offense of having acted in an unauthorized way.
Then the GBC, the head pujari, the temple president, everyone gathered for a meeting in Srila Prabhupada’s room.
Srila Prabhupada said, “Who has done this?” Everyone said, “Jahnava, Jahnava did it.” Srila Prabhupada turned his glance to me and said, “Who told you to do this?”
At that moment, I was choked with emotion. There was no question of speech coming out of my mouth.
And at the same time, I remembered the Srimad-Bhagavatam where the bull does not blame anyone for his condition. I could have pointed my finger a few places but I didn’t.
I felt that I should not do this. And from within, I felt that Srila Prabhupada appreciated me not blaming someone else. Srila Prabhupada said, “Why did you do this?”
And again, I was choked with emotion. I had been crying hysterically for two hours. Srila Prabhupada began to be disgusted with me, and he started turning his glance and his mercy away from me.
I thought, “Krishna’s kicking and His kissing is the same. I want it. I want whatever Srila Prabhupada has to give me. It’s mine. This is my quota.” So I choked it off.
When Srila Prabhupada asked, “Why have you done this?” I said, “Nonsense, Srila Prabhupada.” Srila Prabhupada said, “Suicidal nonsense.”
Then he asked me, “So, what is to be done about it?” Now he’d changed his tone of voice a little bit and he seemed pleased. I felt a little let off the hook.
I said, “I just called Baradraj in L.A. and explained that the paint is not drying, and he suggested I use …”
Srila Prabhupada said, “Baradraj? Baradraj? I am your spiritual master, and I am sitting right in front of you! Why do you not ask me?”
The sound reverberations of that form of Srila Prabhupada as a servant of Lord Nrsimhadev are going out into the universe, still reverberating to this day.
It took me about two or three years to calm down. It was a wonderful, cleansing process. Srila Prabhupada was disgusted with me, and he turned his glance away from me and said, “What is to be done about this?”
Then Ichhamati said the same thing I did, but with humility. She said, “Srila Prabhupada, if we use an enamel paint, it can dry in six to eight hours. Would it be all right with you if we use that kind of paint?” Srila Prabhupada said, “Do it immediately.”
—Jahnava
Excerpt from “Memories-Anecdotes of a Modern-Day Saint”
by Siddhanta das
www.prabhupadamemories.com

La Reunion Island is located southwest of Mauritius and forms part of a region of France. The La Reunion padayatra lasted a total of three days and traveled through the towns of Saint Pierre and Saint Louis located in the southern part of the island. The organizers were myself, Narasimha Tirtha Dasa from Mauritius, APREVA (Association Pour le Rayonnement des Enseignements Vediques Authentique) and a group of nama-hatta devotees from the island lead by Bhakta Jean Marc. In total we were a group of 15 devotees, all grhasthas including one young child, a baby and two teenagers. There were some devotees who stayed throughout the padayatra and others who joined from time to time during all three days. We set off on July 15th which coincided with the auspicious occasion of Lokanath Swami’s vyasa puja. A group of 10 of us started at the front of the Saint Pierre Municipality building; we then proceeded to walk for 3 hours in and around the town of Saint Pierre. I led the first hour of kirtana, thereafter we all took turns to lead kirtana during the padayatra. All of Bhakta Jean Marc’s nama-hatta group carried maha-mantra banners, and Srila Prabhupada posters throughout the walk. Continue reading "La Reunion: Three Day Padayatra Celebrate ISKCON’s 50th Anniversary
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A new beautiful documentary about the community of Villa Vrindavana in Italy (53 min video)
This is a film about the Hare Krish...

Give Krishna’s Cows a Good Scrub! (10 min video)
Today the Mayapur Community residents in West Bengal, India, were invited to give the beloved cows a bath. This means a good sprinkling with a water pipe. And a good scrubbing too.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/gNf4LH

What is Harinama all about? Watch this video to find out!
Srila Prabhupada: “Sri Krishna, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramatma (Supersoul) in everyone’s heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who relishes His messages, which are themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 1.2.17).
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/OCnIyZ

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Iskcon New Govardhana - Cows, Kookaburras & Flowers - 08 August 2016 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: It is the special mercy of the Supreme Lord that as soon as He knows that one is glorifying His name, fame and attributes, He personally helps cleanse the dirt from one’s heart. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.12 Purport).
Find them here: https://goo.gl/f7Ktur

Since Gandhi ahimsa is seen as non-violent means to an end. In this talk we explore more ancient texts to see other practical applications of ahimsa; how it is the basis of dharma and morality; its importance in our relationships; in leadership, education, and science. Continue reading "Ahimsa as a Way of Life
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The Peace Vigil at the U.N.

5 Ways to Love Janmastami
Janmastami is just one day, but how we spend it can deeply inspire us for the whole year.
Krishna consciousness mean we are conscious of Krishna. He becomes an active part of our life – like a close friend or an affectionate family member we love to be around. Krishna consciousness, then, is loving to be around Krishna.

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Speaking in Los Angeles about the qualities of a devotee, Srila Prabhupada said, "Sympathetic. We should be very much sympathetic. If any of our fellow men fall sick, we must take care of him, give him help. Because, after all, we have got this body, sometimes we may fall sick. So we should be sympathetic. And friendly. Everyone's friend. As Krsna is friend of everyone, suhrdam sarva-bhutanam, so if we are Krsna's representative, how I can be enemy of anyone else? I must be friendly." Reading about Srila Sanatana Gosvami recently, in Sri Bhakti-ratnakara (Fifth Wave), I was struck by how friendly and sympathetic--how loving and caring--he was: "After staying in one town, when Sanatana would go to another town, the people would follow behind him. Whether a young boy or old man, whoever it was, all would lose their patience and cry as the Gosvami would leave. Sanatana Gosvami himself would shed tears as he solaced them and sent them back to their own homes. Only after they all stopped crying and returned to their houses would Sanatana leave for the next village. As Sanatana approached the next village, the people would watch him coming from a distance. Whether young or old, man or women, everyone would say, 'Here is Rupa, Sanatana.' The Vrajavasis displayed wonderful affection. Continue reading "Friendly and Sympathetic
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Gita verse-by-verse podcast

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In the final countdown to the much anticipated first-ever Festival of India in Nigeria, hundreds of thrilled Indians and Nigerians witnessed the colourful Chariot Inauguration Ceremony which took place at the expansive compound of Gaurapad Charities, an ISKCON affiliated Non-Governmental Governmental Organization (NGO), at Maryland, Lagos on Sunday the 31st of July 2016. The three towering, beautifully decorated Chariots are the central spectacle of the Festival of India which has an unforgettable impact on the minds and hearts of its countless visitors and active participants in major cities worldwide. In celebration of ISKCON’s 50th year anniversary, devotees in Nigeria have planned for this year’s Ratha Yatra Festival to be an “international media event for distributing Lord Jagannatha’s Mercy, centred around Vaisnava seva, preaching and entertainment.” The proposed venue for the 2016 Festival is the historic landmark Tafawa Balewa Square, Race Course, Lagos Island where the Governor of Lagos State, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode is participating as the Chief Host. Continue reading "Chariot Inauguration Ceremony Commences Countdown To First Festival Of India In Nigeria
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Mother is first guru.
Padmapani das: When I was a young man preaching in the Persian (Arabian) Gulf countries such as Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and the Sultanate of Oman to the East Indian community there, I was often asked how my mother was doing. Our life members and friends were curious to know what kind of a woman would give birth to a son who became a member of the Hare Krishna movement at an age when most young men would be avidly persuing a career or attending university. It seemed rather unusual to them that a Canadian lady would have a son who eschewed the western way of living to adopt the path of Krishna consciousness. I’ll always remember their oft-repeated comment that “Mother is first guru.” I have to be honest. I didn’t take that comment too seriously then, but now I know different. I was blessed with a mother who was truly a guru to me in all respects. She helped set the scene for me to meet my eternal spiritual master, Srila Prabhupada. For that – and for many other reasons – I’ll always be grateful and indebted to my dear mother, Rita Sarah McNaughton (nee Lindsay), for pointing me in the right direction.
When I joined the Hare Krishna movement fresh out of high school, my mother was very happy for me. She accepted Srila Prabhupada as a bona fide spiritual master and pure devotee of Krishna. She often said that she knew I was in safe hands. From that day on my mother never worried about me even when I was running off to dangerous foreign lands to try and spread Krishna consciousness. And even when I was imprisoned in Beirut during civil war, she knew in her heart that Krishna would save me. “Krishna can do anything” was one of her favorite sayings.
My mother passed away on August 6, 2015. Last year I wrote a eulogy for her which you can read by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page. Some of her Krishna conscious artwork is reproduced there as well. Here are a few entries I wrote on this website one year ago.
August 5, 2015: Momji, one of the first “Hare Krishna Moms,” is now in the final stages of her life. She has been chanting the holy names since 1974 and has performed many services for Srila Prabhupada’s movement and his followers. May we humbly request all devotees to kindly say a prayer on Momji’s behalf. (Momji lives in Victoria, Canada – age 93.) Thank you sincerely.
August 6, 2015 (early morning): Many thanks to all those devotees and friends who have sent e-mails expressing their concern for my mother, Momji. Apologies that I can’t reply to each one personally right now, but please know that every message is most appreciated.
Momji is resting quietly with either live chanting of Hare Krishna, Prabhupada bhajans or her favorite song, “My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison playing in the background. Although she is not moving physically (or taking food and water), her nurses say that she can still hear. Whenever another message arrives, I read it to her aloud. Momji loves the devotees. This has been going on for three days now. Let’s see what Krishna has in mind, but it shouldn’t be too long before Momji departs. Due to her many years of chanting, sincere service and absolute faith in Srila Prabhupada, Momji’s future is a bright one, I’m sure. A picture of Prabhupada watches over her at all times – the same photo which sat above my father’s head when he left his body years ago.
Please join me in prayers and love for a great soul who was always a humble servant and well-wisher of everyone. Thanks again for all your kind words and thoughts. More later as things unfold.
August 6, 2015 (evening): “Momj has left the house.” These are the words Momji herself chose to describe her imminent departure just a few weeks ago in conversation. She said that it perfectly describes the situation of the soul which is just passing from one dwelling to another. No big deal – just moving on, hopefully to a better place.
So the good soul known as Momji has had enough of this place. She left at about 8:00 o'clock this morning (August 6th). No big fanfare or hooplah. Just a quiet passing. She is now free from the burdens of her old body and the weight of the world which she carried on her shoulders.
Thank you, Momji. You left this world a better place because of your presence here. All glories to your genuinely humble attitude and service. We can all learn from your pure example. Your life was not in vain by any means. Quite to the contrary.
I’ll be writing a eulogy soon. Thanks to one and all for your genuine concern and love. Much appreciated indeed.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
Note: In her last hours, my mother was breathing quite heavily. Realizing that her time had come, I encouraged her, “Say Hare Krishna, Mom.” My mother slowly uttered, “Hey Kish-hhhh…” She was unable to say more. I then reassured her, “Don’t worry, Mom, Prabhupada will save you.” She replied with a deep conviction in her dying voice, “Yeahhhhhhh…” Those were her last words.
(In the photo my mother and me in Estevan, Saskatchewan, June 1958)