Planet ISKCON

Yesterday I had another PET or full body scan. I rose around my usual time but had to be especially focused on finishing my morning duties before I had to leave at 7: 15 AM. Thus I chanted my japa, or my morning meditation on the names of God, first thing, read for a few minutes, and jumped into the shower. Donning devotional attire and tilak I went downstairs to wake the Deities with official prayers, and then offering my prayers for the day and my life—to offer it for the best service possible and to benefit as many people as possible.

I began my morning worship of my shilas and all our Deities. Preparing their breakfast and then offering my Lords their bath, arotik, and food offering, I removed the worship paraphernalia and offering trays from the altar and washed everything. I packed up what was now Prasad, or sanctified food, since I had to fast from food and drink. Then I packed all the herbal remedies, potions and pills, and changed into my regular dress. I packed my computer, iPod for listening to lectures, and books to read and distribute. Saying goodbye to my wife and making my last prayers to our Deities that they may accompany and guide me, I was out the door and on the road, on time.

Driving can be a time for listening to lectures and contemplate what I hear, and also a time for deep thought about my life, and life and death in general. We are bombarded with reminders of the four fold miseries (re-birth, old age, disease, and death) on the Net and throughout our day. I am supposed to be happy that the US Air-force killed 250 ISIS fighters, and sad with the unfortunate death of 50 persons at a night club in Florida.

What about all the bugs my car kills on my windshield or grill, or the many animals or “roadkill” splattered on the side or in the middle of the road? Down the road GMO corn is grown, while the bee, song bird and frog populations are diminishing as Roundup poisons go into the groundwater and forests are made into paper. Problems are everywhere.

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Govardhana Trail in New Govardhana, Australia.
Kishori devi dasi: Lying across two states – Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh in India – there is a mystical mountain called ‘Govardhana’. Govardhana is located in the middle of a forest called Vrindavana, the birthplace of the Lord, Sri Krishna. This mountain is considered sacred and non-different from Krishna Himself.
Nowadays there are still some pockets of the Vrindavana forest remaining and although Govardhana has reduced in size externally and is now more of a hill, it still remains lushly green. Here, in Eungella, the Hare Krishna Community is called ‘New Govardhana’, named after this sacred Govardhana in India.
A member of the community at New Govardhana, Maha-mantra dasa has taken up the task of creating a replica of Govardhana at the farm.
Braj Gauranga dasa provided initial funding for the excavation works five years ago, setting Maha-mantra off to a good start.
So far Indian-style bathing steps have been built, lakes dug out and filled, trees planted, a small hill created, with a beautifully painted pavilion built, as well as many shady shelters along the walking path.
Maha-mantra is working towards landscaped gardens and displaying impressive statues and dioramas depicting various pastimes that occurred at Govardhana in India more than 5000 years ago.
He aims to create a wonderful meditative space that everyone can appreciate, both members of the Hare Krishna community as well as guests and visitors

Sew armor and mace. Step by step tutorial.
So the process. I describe the creation of armor for Arjuna, then the costume of Lor...

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NBS # 40: The Ecstatic Dancing Of Lord Chaitanya.
With the upcoming Jagannatha Rath Yatra Festival, this special issue covers Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s ecstatic dancing in the mood of Srimati Radharani during the Rath Yatra Festival.
We pray that this issue brings some pleasure to the devotees of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
NBS # 40 Features:-
1) Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is nondifferent from Srimati Radharani
His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
2) The Cart Festival
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur
3) Ecstatic Dancing Of Lord Chaitanya
Srila Krishna Das Kaviraja Goswami
4) Transcendental Competition Between Lord Jagannatha And Lord Chaitanya
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur
This issue can be viewed through these links:
ISSUU: http://issuu.com/nbsmag/docs/nbs_40
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/doc/317203923/NBS-40

“Worship of Radha-Krishna Deities is the ultimate pinnacle of Deity worship, and it must be done with the utmost caution and attention to every detail of giving opulent service. I am not recommending more temples to install Radha-Krishna Deities until I have become more convinced that they can properly manage. At least five to ten persons must be engaged full time to worship Radha-Krishna properly, and for any small temple especially that is a detrimental factor to maintaining the highest standard in other temple activities besides, because there are not enough men. You may worship Lord Jagannatha, or if you like to install Gaura-Gauranga, Gaura-Nitai, or simply Gaura Deity, He is also very liberal and will forgive and tolerate any service offered to Him even by Jagai and Madhai.” Srila Prabhupada letter to Gunagrahi July 3, 1972

Will Isopanisad change his mind?
Recently, while I was distributing in Ljubljana (Slovenia), I approached a man and offered him an Isopanisad.
I asked him, “What’s your name?”
“My name is Mrtu.”
“Interesting. It sounds like a Sanskrit word. This books tells about higher consciousness and unlocks inner happiness.”
He asked, “How do you feel about the theory of evolution?”
“There is no observable evidence,” I said, “so I don’t accept it as being true. It’s no more than a theory and will never be more than a theory.”
“I agree. And what about creation? How did all of this come about?”
“God is known as satya sankalpa, which means that whatever He wants, happens by His arrangement. There is an immense intelligence behind the creation — it’s not started by chance or the Big Bang.”
He mentioned that he’s a lawyer and speaks nine languages. I was impressed.
So I told him, “You’re very intelligent, and on top of that you have good energy. I want you to read this book. It will reveal to you things you’ve never thought of. We just ask for a donation.”
He said, “I’ll give you a donation, but keep the book.”
“No, no, more important than the donation is that you take the book,”
I said. He took the book and gave a donation, but what’s interesting is that as he gave me a donation he said, “I’ve never believed in God and never will.”
Hopefully the Isopanisad will change his frame of mind.
Your servant,
Vijaya Dasa

Istanbul Q/A.

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ISKCON was formed by His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada who is a perfect student of such literatures. So where is the fault? The fault lies in me, in my heart. Not in ISKCON. Look at it closely, whatever faults are found in ISKCON some are ones that I myself brought into it. Of course, ISKCON was formed so that any man or woman suffering from the pangs of material life can come and learn to free themselves from such troubles. But the troubles and problems I find in ISKCON are not ISKCON's, they are mine. Within ISKCON I will find the perfect yoga system for self realization as taught by numerous saints and sages of the past. I will also find that all of its members, though sincere in their desires, are not perfect, but neither am I. As we enter ISKCON we bring with a bundle of problems with us, which, get dealt out to those devotees around us. I may be a pure spirit soul but I am a pure spirit soul who is conditioned by material nature. Continue reading "Where is the fault in ISKCON?
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It was a hot, muggy day in lower Manhattan during the month of May 1966. I pedalled to 26 Second Avenue where I met the Swami, a friend named Carl and the rental agent, Paul Gardiner, a short, chunky man who was wearing blue denim trousers and a white, short-sleeved t-shirt. We hired the storefront at 26 Second Avenue for $100 per month and a first-storey flat in the same building for $85 per month. The storefront soon became a temple, and the Swami lectured there every day. By October he was hosting philosophical discussions in his small flat. On 13 July 1966 I signed a paper that became the Swami’s first corporation. It was called The International Society for Krishna Consciousness or ISKCON. I didn’t really think it very important at the time and really didn’t care. I thought that whatever the Swami wanted was okay. Continue reading "ISKCON Begins!
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Sivarama Swami talks about his personal experience as a refugee fleeing Hungary in 1956, about his recent encounters with Syrian refugees in Budapest, and about the ancient Indian scriptures' teachings of how to treat people who are "different" from us. The video's timeliness is reinforced again by the increasing xenophobia in the wake of Brexit, Britan's leaving the European Union. A video by Karuna Productions.

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News from TKG Academy: Radhanath Swami Lovingly Listens. (5 min video)
Swamis are most notable for their speech. They share their wisdom through their speech. They sit on a raised platform, amongst hundreds of followers, and impart transcendental knowledge through the spiritual sound vibration and into the blaring microphone. This transcendental sound slices through the ignorance and fogginess of our consciousness, illuminating our hearts with all those qualities that evade us: mercy, compassion, tolerance, austerity, kindness… the list is very long. The very process of bhakti begins with this transcendental hearing. Pin-drop silence is expected when a great personality is speaking. Proper etiquette mandates this.
His Holiness Radhanath Swami, author of international bestsellers, “The Journey Home” and “The Journey Within”, however, visited TKG Academy and did just the opposite. He listened. Yes, I’ll say that again. He didn’t speak first. He listened!
As the teachers shushed the kids, feeling embarrassed that they dare to speak out in front of such a stalwart, world-renowned sage, he smiled and said, “No. Let them speak!” As he asked open ended questions, the room erupted in answers from all the kids, ages 4 to 14! “Shhhh,” the teachers nudged.. “No no.” In response, the Swami shushed the teachers. For more than an hour, he relished listening to the young student’s words. He smiled and laughed. He truly loved hearing their many thoughts. And they could feel it.
If only these children knew who they were sitting in front of. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims join him on pilgrimages all over India, straining to hear even just a few of his transcendental words. Every time he arrives in a temple, it quickly gets filled up with true seekers, wishing to hear from him.
I’ve had the real fortune of knowing him since I was 14 myself. Every time we visited him, he made us feel as if we were the most important, most valuable people he has ever met. He made us feel like this was the most important encounter in his life. Never mind that he meets with and teaches tens of thousands of visitors regularly. Each person gets the same feeling. Growing up, every one of my gurukuli friends felt the same way. We had decided that it must be like this when meeting the Lord in our hearts, Sri Krishna.
Today, our lucky students also got this opportunity! A true well-wisher. A true listener. After connecting with their hearts, he shared the magical pastimes of Sri Nrsimhadeva. He spent time with them, almost as if he was one of them. The adult ego, “I’m an adult, you need to listen to me,” was non-existent. Is there any adult who truly can connect with kids like this? I’ve never met one.
It was one of the best days of the year. On May 16, 2016, His Holiness Radhanath Swami visited us at Srila Prabhupada’s very first gurukula, TKG Academy, in Dallas. Our only prayer is that he can come back again and again and again.
Next time, we may need to tell the kids ahead of time to just “listen”.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/9Il84U

From September 20^th to November 10^th in 2015, Bhaktimarga Swami walked from Boston’s Commonwealth Pier, where ISKCON Founder Srila Prabhupada first reached the U.S. in 1965, to Butler Pennsylvania, where he stayed with sponsors the Agarwal family, to New York City, where he registered ISKCON in 1966. In New York, Bhaktimarga concluded his 907-mile walk by chanting under the famous “Hare Krishna tree” in Tompkins Square Park, where Prabhupada led some of the first public kirtans in the Western World.

In the world’s great wisdom-traditions, prayers are often acknowledged as means for accessing divine power. The prayers by saints often reveal the profound depths of their selfless devotion to God.

Situated in the idyllic mountain scenery of the ISKCON Hare Krishna community in Eungella, NSW, the Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula School is the only Hare Krishna school in Australia. It is a small but enthusiastic school with a current enrolment of 90 students and 17 teaching and support staff. The school was established more than 30 years ago, serving the community and its children by providing quality education that follows the Australian curriculum and offering spiritual guidance and mentorship. The school is a member of the Australian Association of Independent Schools through which it receives the ongoing professional support of educational consultants in relation to its academic program and positive behaviour development. This year, the school opened its first pre-K class in a new purpose-built building adjoining the K-2 classroom in the Primary School campus and just recently proudly announced the opening of Year 11 in 2017 and Year 12 in 2018. Hence, the school has become the only Hare Krishna school in the entire Western world offering a complete educational package from pre-K to Year 12. Continue reading "Education At New Govardhana, Eungella, NSW, Australia
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Moldova, a small landlocked country between Romania and Ukraine, has a unique culture all it’s own. Indradyumna Swami's festival tour was well received in the capitol, Chisinau, and several other towns and villages. A video by Ananta Vrindavan/

A win for tolerance!

On June 18^th, nearly one hundred and sixty yoga teachers attended a Mantra Festival in Buenos Aires in honor of ISKCON’s 50^th anniversary. The free cultural event was held at the Valle Tierra yoga center in Palermo, a hip alternative neighborhood of Buenos Aires that is particularly receptive to vegetarianism, yoga and kirtan. The venue was decorated with an ISKCON 50 banner featuring Srila Prabhupada.

July 1. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Satsvarupa das Brahmacari Bhagwad-geeta ’66 Diary (con’d)
There is no harm in being a householder. No difference between a householder and a sannyasi. But a sannyasi can’t talk with a woman in a lonely place. Swamiji gave a practical example. Fifty years ago, when his guru maharaja was fifty years old, a young man (a disciple, Dr. O.P. Kapoor) and his wife were talking with Swamiji’s guru maharaja. The wife, who was about 22 years old, said to his guru maharaja, “I want to speak with you confidentially.” His guru maharaja was about fifty years old. This woman was like his granddaughter. But he said, “Oh, I cannot speak privately. Whatever you like, you can speak here.”
Swamiji was in his room. I asked him questions. Then he gave me little tasks to do. And the main task for me – typing his essays and the Bhagwatam and Geeta. It’s the best way to be with him all the time. I’m immersed in his teachings day and night. All the devotees are. One way or another – as he wrote on an announcement that’s posted in the storefront – “Do some work, and if you have none, chant Hare Krishna.” He said we could spend all our time simply chanting Hare Krishna as Haridasa Thakura did. But that’s not possible for us. Therefore, we have activities like producing BTG – writing, typing the stencils, printing it on the machine, selling them. He said that in one sense, we do other things because we can’t just chant.
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Satsvarupa das Brahmacari Bhagwad-geeta ’66 Diary (con’d)

Srivasa Pandit, the fifth member of the Panca-tattva, who are, Sri Krishna Chaitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhara, Srivasa, lived in Navadvipa before the advent of Lord Chaitanya.

He often met with Shri Advaita Acharya Prabhu and studied Srimad Bhagavatam praying for an incarnation of the Supreme Lord.

Srivasa’s house was located two hundred metres north of Nimai’s house. It had large comfortable rooms, a high protective boundary wall and lush gardens.

Every night Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu and His dearest friends would enjoy ecstatic kirtans here and taste the mellows of Vrndavan.

Of course, he is enjoying in an ocean of transcendental bliss at every moment but he wants that one person also to be a part of it – that is Krsna. So, if even Krsna is emotionally involved, how can the devotee not be? We are emotionally involved with everyone, not only our own little circle. Open the heart to everyone!

An Honor And A Privilege (Album with photos)
Indradyumna Swami: Our festival tour on the Baltic Sea coast in Poland is up and running. Thousands of people are coming each day to attend our festivals. It’s amazing to see the overwhelming response. Then again, it was all predicted by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Five hundred years ago He stated that one day His holy names would be heard in every town and village of the world. It is an honor and a privilege to be helping to fulfill such a prophesy.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/r4uoZn

“Some people believe holding on and hanging in there are signs of great strength. However, there are times when it takes much more strength to know when to let go and then do it.” A video by Jay (Ghanshyam) Shetty.