Planet ISKCON

7th June, 2016. Gurgaon

Krishna’s lotus feet

Last few weeks one term that I have been constantly reading is Krishna’s and Guru’s lotus feet. Somehow the terms lotus feet was jumping out from every lecture and every reading I was doing. Taking that as a sign for me I have compiled this post for the pleasure of the devotees of the lotus feet of Supreme Lord. My own attachment for Krishna’s lotus feet went up a few notches higher simply by searching on this topic!

Krishna’s lotus feet should be our first priority!

When a devotee wants to see the transcendental form of the Lord, he begins his meditation on the Lord’s body by first looking at the feet of the Lord.

(SB 4.24.52p)

One should begin to see the Lord from His lotus feet, gradually rising to the thighs, waist, chest and face. One should not try to look at the face of the Lord without being accustomed to seeing the lotus feet of the Lord.

(SB 1.8.22p)

By his constitutional position, Lord Siva is always great and auspicious, but since he has accepted on his head the Ganges water, which emanated from the lotus feet of the Lord, he has become even more auspicious and important. The stress is on the lotus feet of the Lord. A relationship with the lotus feet of the Lord can even enhance the importance of Lord Siva, what to speak of other, ordinary living entities.

(SB 3.28.22p)

It is stated herein by the Kumäras that the lotus feet of Lord Krishna are the ultimate reservoir of all pleasure.

(SB 4.22.39p)

Their unsurpassed beauty

The beauty of the lotus feet of the Lord is compared to the petals of a lotus flower which grows in the autumn season. By nature’s law, in autumn the dirty or muddy waters of rivers and lakes become very clean. At that time the lotus flowers growing in the lakes appear very bright and beautiful. The lotus flower itself is compared to the lotus feet of the Lord, and the petals are compared to the nails of the feet of the Lord.

(SB 4.24.52p)

Why are they called Lotus feet?

The spiritual planet, Goloka Vṛndāvana, the eternal abode of Lord Kṛṣṇa, is shaped like the whorl of a lotus flower. Even when the Lord descends to any one of the mundane planets, He does so by manifesting His own abode as it is. Thus His feet remain always on the same big whorl of the lotus flower. His feet are also as beautiful as the lotus flower. Therefore it is said that Lord Kṛṣṇa has lotus feet.

(SB 1.16.6p)

Pure devotees are attached to Krishna’s lotus feet.

The pure devotees are always hankering after the lotus feet of the Lord. The lotus has a kind of honey which is transcendentally relished by the devotees. They are like the bees who are always after the honey. Srila Rupa Gosvami, the great devotee acharaya of the Gaudia-Vaishnava-sampradaya, has sung a song about this lotus honey, comparing himself to the bee: “O my Lord Krishna, I beg to offer my prayers unto You. My mind is like the bee, and it is after some honey. Kindly, therefore, give my bee-mind a place at Your lotus feet, which are the resources for all transcendental honey. I know that even big demigods like Brahmä do not see the rays of the nails of Your lotus feet, even though they are engaged in deep meditation for years together. Still, O infallible one, my ambition is such, for You are very merciful to your surrendered devotees. O Mädhava, I know also that I have no genuine devotion for the service of Your lotus feet, but because Your Lordship is inconceivably powerful, You can do what is impossible to be done. Your lotus feet can deride even the nectar of the heavenly kingdom, and therefore I am very much attracted by them. O supreme eternal, please, therefore, let my mind be fixed at Your lotus feet so that eternally I may be able to relish the taste of Your transcendental service.” The devotees are satisfied with being placed at the lotus feet of the Lord and have no ambition to see His all-beautiful face or aspire for the protection of the strong arms of the Lord. They are humble by nature, and the Lord is always leaning towards such humble devotees.

(SB 1.11.26p)

No need to visit any holy place!

Lord Govinda, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is described here as Tirthapäda. Tirtha means “sanctified place,” and päda means “the lotus feet of the Lord.” People go to a sanctified place to free themselves from all sinful reactions. In other words, those who are devoted to the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, automatically become sanctified. The Lord’s lotus feet are called tirtha-päda because under their protection there are hundreds and thousands of saintly persons who sanctify the sacred places of pilgrimage. Srila Narottama dasa Thaukura, a great acharay of the Gaudiya Vaishnava-sampradaya, advises us not to travel to different places of pilgrimage. Undoubtedly it is troublesome to go from one place to another, but one who is intelligent can take shelter of the lotus feet of Govinda and thereby be automatically sanctified as the result of his pilgrimage. Anyone who is fixed in the service of the lotus feet of Govinda is called tirtha-päda; he does not need to travel on various pilgrimages, for he can enjoy all the benefits of such travel simply by engaging in the service of the lotus feet of the Lord.

(SB 4.6.25p)

They are the source of everything

The lotus feet of the Lord are known as mahat-padam; this means that the total source of material existence rests on the lotus feet of the Lord. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (10.8), ahaà sarvasya prabhavaù: everything is emanating from Him. This cosmic manifestation, which is compared to an ocean of nescience, is also resting on the lotus feet of the Lord. As such, this great ocean of nescience is minimized by a person who is a pure devotee. One who has taken shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord need not cross over the ocean, for he has already crossed it by virtue of his position at the Lord’s lotus feet.

(SB 4.23.39p)

And easy to attain

By hearing and chanting of the glories of the Lord or the Lord’s devotee, one can become firmly fixed in the service of the lotus feet of the Lord.

(SB 4.23.39p)

Krishna’s lotus feet can liberate everyone but..

Lord Krishna is the fountainhead of the principle of vishnu-tattva, and therefore shelter of His lotus feet can deliver one from all sins, including an offense committed by a king unto a brahmana. Maharaja Parikshit, therefore, decided to meditate upon the lotus feet of Lord Sri Krishna, who is Mukunda, or the giver of liberations of all description. The banks of the Ganges or the Yamuna give one a chance to remember the Lord continuously. Maharaja Parikshit freed himself from all sorts of material association and meditated upon the lotus feet of Lord Krishna, and that is the way of liberation. To be free from all material association means to cease completely from committing any further sins. To meditate upon the lotus feet of the Lord means to become free from the effects of all previous sins. The conditions of the material world are so made that one has to commit sins willingly or unwillingly, and the best example is Maharaja Parikshit himself, who was a recognized sinless, pious king. But he also became a victim of an offense, even though he was ever unwilling to commit such a mistake. He was cursed also, but because he was a great devotee of the Lord, even such reverses of life became favorable. The principle is that one should not willingly commit any sin in his life and should constantly remember the lotus feet of the Lord without deviation. Only in such a mood will the Lord help the devotee make regular progress toward the path of liberation and thus attain the lotus feet of the Lord.

(SB 1.19.7p)

Ecstasy simply by meditation on Krishna’s lotus feet

There is such transcendental bliss in simply meditating on the lotus feet of the Lord that one can forget everything but the Lord’s transcendental form.

(SB 4.4.27p)

The soles of the Lord’s lotus feet are marked with çaìkha-cakra-gadä-padma—conchshell, disc, club and lotus—and also by a flag and a thunderbolt. When Krishna walks on this earth or in the heavenly planets, these marks are visible wherever He goes. Vrindavan-dhama is a transcendental place because of Krishna’s walking on this land frequently. The inhabitants of Vrindavan were fortunate to see these marks here and there. When Akrüra went to Vrindavan to take Krishna and Balarama away to the festival arranged by Kansa, upon seeing the marks of the Lord’s lotus feet on the ground of Vrindavan , he fell down and began to groan. These marks are visible to devotees who receive the causeless mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The demigods were jubilant not only because the appearance of the Supreme Lord would do away with the burdensome demons, but also because they would be able to see upon the ground the transcendental marks from the soles of the Lord’s lotus feet. The gopis always thought of the Lord’s lotus feet when He was walking in the pasturing grounds, and, as described in the previous verse, simply by thinking of the Lord’s lotus feet, the gopis were fully absorbed in transcendence. Like the gopis, one who is always absorbed in thought of the Lord is beyond the material platform and will not remain in this material world. It is our duty, therefore, always to hear, chant and think about the Lord’s lotus feet, as actually done by Vaishvanas who have decided to live in Vrindavan always and think of the Lord’s lotus feet twenty-four hours a day.

(SB 10.2.39p)

Even Krishna wants to taste His own toes!

As the Supreme Personality of Godhead, You have taken birth from my abdomen. O my Lord, how is that possible for the supreme one, who has in His belly all the cosmic manifestation? The answer is that it is possible, for at the end of the millennium You lie down on a leaf of a banyan tree, and just like a small baby, You lick the toe of Your lotus foot.

At the time of dissolution the Lord sometimes appears as a small baby lying on a leaf of a banyan tree, floating on the devastating water. Therefore Devahūti suggests, “Your lying down within the abdomen of a common woman like me is not so astonishing. You can lie down on the leaf of a banyan tree and float on the water of devastation as a small baby. Therefore it is not very wonderful that You can lie down in the abdomen of my body. You teach us that those who are very fond of children within this material world and who therefore enter into marriage to enjoy family life with children can also have the Supreme Personality of Godhead as their child, and the most wonderful thing is that the Lord Himself licks His toe.”

Since all the great sages and devotees apply all energy and all activities in the service of the lotus feet of the Lord, there must be some transcendental pleasure in the toes of His lotus feet. The Lord licks His toe to taste the nectar for which the devotees always aspire. Sometimes the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself wonders how much transcendental pleasure is within Himself, and in order to taste His own potency, He sometimes takes the position of tasting Himself. Lord Caitanya is Kṛṣṇa Himself, but He appears as a devotee to taste the sweetness of the transcendental mellow in Himself which is tasted by Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, the greatest of all devotees.

(SB 3.33.4+p)

Summer Children’s Day Greeting in the Iskcon Temple of Budapest, Hungary (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Krishna is everywhere. Simply you have to catch Him. And He’s also ready for being caught. Yes, if somebody wants to catch Him. Suppose you are a devotee. If you want to catch Him, He comes forward ten times than your desire. He’s so kind. Therefore, we have to simply receive Him. London, August 21, 1973.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/uzYNnG

Religious Studies Project: ISKCON in Britain. (23 min podcast)
This year the ISKCON Movement (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) celebrates its 50th anniversary. Fittingly, for this podcast Professor Kim Knott, BA (Leeds), MA (Leeds), PhD (Leeds), provides an overview of the Hare Krishna movement in Britain from its inception in 1966 to the present day.
Recognisable by their distinctive appearances and chants, ISKCON practitioners grew in number in the UK due to a number of reasons, ranging from young people’s fascination with Indian spirituality in the 1960s, to its celebrity endorsements from George Harrison and the Beatles.
Knott considers the most notable events in ISKCON’s fifty year history in Britain, and discusses how the movement has adapted to British lifestyle, and what the future may hold for ISKCON education.
Watch it below or here: https://goo.gl/RDBAeY

The post Daily Darshan: June 7th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

The post Srimad Bhagavatam predicts Srila Prabhupada’s spiritual revolution appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

A super serious future kirtaniya is practicing (2 min video)
Vaikuntha children under practice to spread Krishna consciousness in the whole world! :-)
Srila Prabhupada: Punya-sravana-kirtana refers to the process of devotional service. Even is one does not understand the meaning of the Lord’s name, pastimes or attributes, one is purified simply by hearing or chanting of them. Such purification is called sattva-bhavana. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.12 Purport).
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/3pJAJm

The rath (chariot) was bedecked with flowers, paper lanterns and garlands of fruit.

And of course, images of Lord Krishna.

A four-wheel wooden chariot, nearly two storeys in height, it made its way slowly through the streets of Brisbane CBD on a Saturday morning in early May.

Built to resemble a temple, with a colourful red and yellow pillar made of cloth topped by a golden coloured dome, it carried the idols of Lord Krishna and Sri Prabhupada, founder of the International Society of Krishna Consciousness.

It was hand-pulled by over three hundred ISKCON devotees, who used thick strong ropes with much fanfare. The catchy tunes of Hare Rama and Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare filled the air.

With police escort and roads in the Brisbane CBD cordoned off, this was the grand celebratory occasion of ‘The Festival of Chariots’.

“The Festival of Chariots originated in Puri, Orissa over 2000 years ago and is now celebrated in every major city across the world,” Niti Sheth, one of the festival coordinators, told Indian Link.

It was marked originally at the Jagannanth Temple in Puri (from where the term ‘juggernaut’ comes) when the deities, to this day, are put in a massive chariot and taken for an annual tour of the city.

“This is one of the few times that we come out to the streets to really share the love. It’s all about giving. Our tagline for this year is ‘Joy of devotion”.

Where did the chariot come from?

“It has travelled all the way from ISKCON’s farming community in Murwillumbah from northern NSW,” Niti revealed. “We bring it up once a year for the festival. It also travels further south to Melbourne.”

For Radha Dasi, the pulling of the chariot holds a special significance. “We are remembering the Lord of the Universe today,” she said. “We are pulling this Chariot, so that Lord Jaganath (Krishna) can come and live in our hearts and can remain in our hearts forever.”

Winding through the streets of the CBD for over an hour, onlookers were in awe, trying to get a selfie or two. The Chariot was finally brought to King George Square, where a number of festivities were lined up for the day.

There was free food from the ‘Food for Life’ tent, interactive games for children, stalls selling sweets and treats, henna and a card reading stall that imparted Vedic wisdom.

A free-for-all event, the henna stall seemed to be quite popular with the Australians. Neha Attal, henna artist, told Indian Link, “Henna comes from the leaves of a plant, Lawsonia Enermis. The scientific reason behind applying it is, it reduces body heat. It is catching up real quick in Australia and people thoroughly enjoy applying henna on their palms or a tattoo.”

Indian Link also popped into the card reading tent to get an insight into a bit of Vedic wisdom. The card read by Ranganath Das said, ‘Know that all beautiful, glorious and mighty creations, spring from, but is a spark of, my splendour.’ It forms the basis of one of the songs Lord Krishna sang to Arjuna on the bloody battlefields of Kurukshetra, a religious war that was fought to safeguard the principles of religion.

Crowds thronged King George Square to revel in the festivities. Smiles, greetings, and enjoying oneself were the order of the day!

Source: http://www.indianlink.com.au/juggernaut/

Ratha-yatra Festival, Rijeka, Croatia 2016 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The tapasya of chanting and glorifying the name, fame and attributes of the Lord is a very easy purifying process by which everyone can be happy. Therefore everyone who desires the ultimate cleansing of his heart must adopt this process. Other processes, such as karma, jnana and yoga, cannot cleanse the heart absolutely. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.12 Purport).
Find them here: https://goo.gl/SrSDrP

US returns over 200 artifacts worth more than $100 million to India
The New Indian Express - June 7, 2016
The US today returned over 200 cultural artifacts estimated at $100 million to India at a ceremony, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at Washington DC.
“For some, these artifacts may be measured in monetary terms but for us this is beyond that. It’s a part of our culture and heritage,” the Prime Minister said at the ceremony held at the Blair House.
Items returned included religious statues, bronzes and terra cotta pieces, some dating back 2,000 years, looted from some of India’s most treasured religious sites.
Among the pieces returned is a statue of Saint Manikkavichavakar, a Hindu mystic and poet from the Chola period (circa 850 AD to 1250 AD) stolen from the Sivan Temple in Chennai, which is valued at $1.5 million.
Also included in the collection is a bronze sculpture of the Hindu god Ganesh estimated to be 1,000-year-old.
The artifacts that speak to India’s astounding history and beautiful culture are beginning their journey home, US Attorney General Loretta E Lynch said.
“It is my hope – and the hope of the American people– that this repatriation will serve as a sign of our great respect for India’s culture; our deep admiration for its people; and our sincere appreciation for the ties between our nations,” she said.
“Protecting the cultural heritage of our global community is important work and we are committed to identifying and returning these priceless items to their countries of origin and rightful owners,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson said in a statement.
“It’s the responsibility of law enforcement worldwide to ensure criminal smuggling organizations do not profit from the theft of these culturally and historically valuable items,” he said.
The majority of the pieces repatriated in the ceremony were seized during Operation Hidden Idol, an investigation that began in 2007 after Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) special agents received a tip about a shipment of seven crates destined for the US manifested as “marble garden table sets”.
Examination of the shipment in question revealed numerous antiquities. This shipment was imported by Subhash Kapoor, owner of Art of the Past Gallery, who awaits trial in India.
HSI’s Operation Hidden Idol focused on the activities of former New York-based art dealer Kapoor, currently in custody in India awaiting trial for allegedly looting tens of millions of dollars worth of rare antiquities from several nations, a media release said.
Artifacts were also found in the Honolulu Museum and Peabody Essex, who promptly partnered with HSI to surrender illicit cultural property stemming from Kapoor.
HSI special agents have executed a series of search warrants targeting Kapoor’s New York City gallery, along with warehouses and storage facilities linked to the dealer.
Additionally, five individuals have been arrested in the US for their role in the scheme, a media release said.
More: http://goo.gl/cFcCdp

By Sthita-dhi-muni dasa

Recently a devotee lent me a paperback book distributed by one of our prabhus at this past year’s Mayapura festival. Titled Srila Prabhupada’s Challenge, it is concerned with Prabhupada’s views on science. Unfortunately, this book features several misquotations. While undoubtedly a sincere effort, these shortcomings were likely unwittingly incorporated. The devotee promoting this book appears to have been distributing on his own with a book bag along one of the main thoroughfares of the Mayapura campus.

There are specific concerns. Whereas the front cover boldly declares—“Srila Prabhupada’s Challenge”—the reverse cover features a provocative misstatement that is again highlighted on page three. (The Kindle edition does not have a reverse cover.)

The featured misquotation states:

“The wrong conception of life is based on Darwin’s theory and so we have to challenge it—protest and defeat it. This will be our work.”

Yet Srila Prabhupada never said this in the cited May 3, 1973 conversation. As such, would it be fair to wonder why promote a crafted misquotation as a central Prabhupada argument? Or to put it another way, if the argument is in fact central, why didn’t Srila Prabhupada speak this way in the first place?

That being said, if someone wishes to promote a slogan like this, perhaps it would be better to find an actual quotation that states the issue in this manner. Or short of that, print the original as spoken by Prabhupada and then offer commentary explaining the preference for an alternate expression. Ignoring scholarly protocol, risks fostering both intellectual muddiness, and devotional miscommunication. At any rate, this statement, published as it is, is not historically accurate. In any such situation, why risk misquoting Srila Prabhupada?

What follows is an account of the actual conversation readily available in easily accessible archival recordings and transcripts. Included is a Vanisource.org link that offers complete digital access to both the Bhaktivedanta Archives conversation transcript and the digital file for the original audio recording, for this specific exchange.

http://vanisource.org/wiki/730503_-_Morning_Walk_-_Los_Angeles

In the original, Prabhupada focused on the utility of the “life comes from life” argument. That is what he is promoting as his central point of attack against the “wrong conception”—that life is reducible to matter. Prabhupada expands on this point more than a half dozen times throughout the discussion. Meanwhile, the word “Darwin” occurs but once. In its original context, it appears to be used as an example of material reductionism, and not as an essential cause suggested by the misquotation.

This first excerpt is from the start of the conversation held on May 3, 1973 in Los Angeles. The discussion begins with Prabhupada articulating a very specific challenge:

Prabhupada: … the whole world is running on a false theory that life is born out of matter. But that is not a fact. So how to defeat this theory? That is our business. We have to defeat this rascal theory. We have to challenge all these rascals and defeat them. How it is possible?

Svarupa Damodara: By logic.

Prabhupada: By logic, by science. …

Not long after this introduction, follows the exchange from which the misquotation is drawn. As mentioned, this is the only time Prabhupada refers to Darwinism in the entire conversation (albeit also unflattering), and the context appears to consider it one of the “so many” arguments “based on this foolish theory, wrong conception of life.” In addition, Prabhupada again repeats his blunt declaration: “In all respects we have to prove that life does not come from matter.”

This section begins at the 06:10 mark of the digital recording.

Prabhupada: … Life is existing. Life has no change. The change is outward, material things. In all respects we have to prove that life does not come from matter. Matter generates from life, stays for some time, and it is finished. Again begins another chapter.

Svarupa Damodara: The original source is life.

Prabhupada: Life, yes. They are searching after the original source. That is life, Krsna, sarva-karana-karanam (Bs. 5.1), cause of all causes. So this is not theory; this is fact. Now we have to prove it. Then the whole program of these rascals’ theory will be changed, and people will be happy. Because they are standing on a wrong theory, all their calculations are wrong, and people are suffering. The rascal Darwin’s theory, so many, based on this foolish theory, wrong conception of life. So we have to challenge, protest, defeat. This will be our work. …

In another quotation from this same section, Prabhupada discusses that although “life comes from life” will prove effective for defeating material reductionism, in another sense it is not an essential contention since the Vaisnava tradition considers life eternal.

Prabhupada: This is a fact, that…, that life comes from life. In another sense, life does not come; life is existing. It is not exactly the word, that life generates. No. Life is existing. The matter is generating. Matter is generating, and it stays for some time, again it is vanished. Just like this body. This body is born at a certain date, and it will be finished at a certain date. This is matter.

Prabhupada references his use of the “life comes from life” argument to Brahma-samhita 5.1. This verse proclaims that “Krishna who is known as Govinda . . . is the prime cause of all causes.” As Prabhupada explains it, Krishna is life, and life comes from life. Prabhupada boldly asserts that this “is not theory; it is fact.”

Interestingly, Prabhupada also mentions, “Now we have to prove it.” Even though professional science falls short in facilitating the conclusive proof of anything, due to its reliance on material methodology, still, logic and reason remains of central importance when considering evidence from the natural world. Ultimately, for Gaudiya Vaishnavas, the proof of the pudding is in the bhakti.

Maha-ashraya Prabhu, ACBSP, left his body while living in Manaus, Brazil. Last May 30th, close to midnight. He was born in Chicago and was 61. He surely went to Krsnaloka to take part in Krsna’s pastimes.
Srila Prabhupada: “For one who wants liberation from the fruitive reactions of material activities, the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra, or glorification of the name, fame and pastimes of the Lord, is recommended as the most perfect process of atonement because such chanting eradicates the dirt from one’s heart completely.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.12).

By Ananda Maya Dasi

Sacred chanting on the Emerald Isle will mark 30 years of blissful service.

The title read, “Now Irish Eyes are Smiling”, an article in the Back to Godhead magazine by Mathuresa Dasa covered the installation ceremony of Sri Sri Radha Govinda, the presiding deities at ISKCON Northern Ireland’s Govindadvipa temple. The year was 1986, Ireland was still in the midst of a guerrilla warfare conflict, and it was a cover feature and multiple page spread in the publication that was the mainstay of ISKCON media coverage in the pre-internet and social media era. The installation of the most beautiful Deity form of Radha and Krishna came just under two years after the Hare Krishna island, locally known as Inis Rath (island fort), was purchased by the devotees.

The temple building, an old manor house, once witnessed top business families, associates of Lords and Ladies and even the famous Winston Churchill, all of whom used the scenic area of Upper Lough Erne in the border Lakelands of Ireland for hunting. Now it was claimed as a religious settlement and home for Krishna and His devotees, continuing the other tradition of the region, monastic settlements and religious prayer albeit previously in the Christian tradition.

In weeks of rain, mass activity and imported help, a crew of devotees excitedly worked to prepare for the big event the installation of Their Lordships presided over by Satsvarupa dasa Goswami. Late night construction, sewing and cooking all climaxed in a splendidly sunny day when Sri Sri Radha Govinda were greeted by hundreds of people eager to see this ancient Vedic ritual for calling God into His murti form. Multiple fire sacrifices were held simultaneously, dignitaries spoke, the local community came for the first ‘open day’ on the island. Entertainment continued in a major festival atmosphere, which was covered by the television, national and local media. A helicopter repeatedly brought people high overhead to witness the spectacle. The first arati/worship ceremony took place and everyone thronged to see the beautiful forms that have now graced Govindadvipa for 30 years!

Fast forward to 2016 and ISKCON worldwide are celebrating 50 years of serving founder acarya’s vision for an international and worldwide society that preached love of God, Krishna, on a mass scale. Ireland is also celebrating the 30^th anniversary of the installation of the most beautiful forms of The Lord, Sri Sri Radha Govinda.  Like many other centres, changes in management, fluctuations in resident numbers and financial demands have been issues, but still the worship goes on. Some of the same personnel are present and Their Lordships look as beautiful as ever. Others that were involved all those years ago will also attend the celebrations witnessing how the legacy that they were involved with at the start still continues.                  

A weekend of kirtana (congregational sacred chanting) is planned to mark the 30^th Anniversary, commencing on 22^nd July (Friday evening) and finishing on 24^th July (Sunday evening) with a focus on kirtana being the fundamental way to preach love of God in this age and accessible to all.  IT is expected that this will build into the annual Govindadvipa kirtana festival reflecting the revived interested and mood in the movement. While facilities are limited and simple, camping is available and the devotees welcome people to join in this celebration. It is hoped that those who have had the great mercy of visiting and seeing Sri Sri Radha Govinda will share memories and support the occasion and these can be done via a Facebook page by following the link where readers will also be kept up to date on scheduling and sponsorship/birthday gift opportunities. Simultaneously a crowd funding appeal has been launched to repair the temple on Go Fund Me.

With memories come videos and photographs, reflecting the pre-digital age, and invitations to share these between devotees from the global community are open. These can be uploaded up-loaded to the Facebook link or emailed directly for inclusion to rg302016@gmail.com.  Devotees old and new are welcome to participate and devotees worldwide can get involved by logging onto the Facebook page where birthday gift ideas and necessities are listed, sponsorship opportunities and updates to the schedule.

Useful Links:

Facbook: Sri Sri Radha Govinda 30^th Anniversary 2016

Web: https://radhagovinda.wordpress.com/

Facebook: Krishna Daily Darshana

Web: www. krishnaisland.com

Temple fund campaign: https://www.gofundme.com/5swd4r2k 

June 7. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Satsvarupa dasa Brahmacari Diary, 1966.
The notes I keep on Swamiji’s lectures are an exercise to help me remember and understand Krishna consciousness. Unless you hear from a pure devotee, you cannot know Krishna. There are some books circulating in the storefront on Hinduism. Still, the all-important thing is to hear from Swamiji. I don’t know anything else. I am safe as his student. I can’t go wrong that way.
I want to read his Srimad-Bhagwatam and type for him – that is an excellent way to learn philosophy. You can’t learn philosophy unless Krishna reveals it in the heart. He will do that when you serve His realized pure devotee.
Notes from lecture of BG 6.40-43
He (the fallen yogi) takes birth in a brahmin’s family. Brahmins are very pure, very clean. Or the fallen yogi takes birth in a rich family.
Swamiji told of his own life. His father was very pious and worshiped Krishna. When Swamiji was 5 or 6 years old, he asked his father for Radha-Krishna deities. His father purchased Them, and Swamiji as a child offered his food to Them in imitation of the offerings his father made. They also visited a temple of Krishna. Swamiji as a child watched for hours. These are the gains of being born in a family like that.
Narada says even if you come to Krishna consciousness because you are crazy, all right, still it is good.
The third kind of family the fallen yogi is born into is a family of yogis. This is the best kind. The brahmin may think he has nothing to learn. The rich man’s son may become a drunkard. When you are born in one of these families, you start to remember what you learned of Krishna in the previous life.
Swamiji said: “I MAY TELL YOU THAT THOSE WHO HAVE TAKEN THIS SOCIETY, KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS, VERY SERIOUSLY, THEY ARE NOT ORDINARY PERSONS. THEY MUST HAVE HAD SUCH CULTURE IN THEIR PREVIOUS LIVES. NOW THEY ARE AGAIN TRYING TO REVIVE IT.” The asset is there.
That was very interesting that Swamiji said we must have been yogis in past lives and that is why we are taking to Krishna consciousness now. I don’t remember anything from my past life, especially about Krishna, but he said so according to the Bhagwad-gita.
I want to go on carefully listening to his lectures. Umapati keeps exact notes for publishing in BTG. Mine are more for myself. This is the only writing I am doing now.
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=9

Satsvarupa dasa Brahmacari Diary, 1966

She was the sister of Bali, the Daitya “demon” who had conquered all the gods.

When Vāmana and approached Bali, she fell in love with him, “What a wonderful boy, I wish I was his mother!”

But when she saw how he manipulated Bali and stole everything from their family, her feelings turned to hatred, “I wish I could kill that boy!”

When Viṣṇu-Vāmana later appeared as Krishna, she became Pūtana, who tried to kill baby Krishna by playing the role of his mother – poisoning her breast milk.

When Krishna sucked out her prāṇa through her breasts, she died but did not attain the same type of liberation most enemies of Krishna attain. Most enemies relinquish their ego entirely and become homogenous within consciousness itself, brahman. But Pūtana instead developed a bhakti-ego and attained thereby a personal form in Krishna-līlā, as one of his wet-nurses. 

Because her initial, primary feeling was one of affection for him, Krishna held on to this and disregarded her secondary, later feeling of anger over his arguable treatment of Bali. This shows that Krishna is not flawed by pride, anger, or unforgiveness. 

One of the verses in Bhāgavatam about this is one of the three verses Vyāsa sent his students into the forest reciting, which succeeded in bringing Śukadeva Goswāmī back to learn the whole Bhāgavatam from Vyāsa.

Vraja Kishor

www.vrajakishor.com

Giriraj Swami read and spoke from Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.3.22.

“Only attention engaged in the service of the Lord, especially in dressing and decorating the temple, accompanied by musical kirtan and spiritual instructions from scriptures, can save the common man from the hellish cinema attractions and rubbish sex-songs broadcast everywhere by radios. If one is unable to maintain a temple at home, he should go to another’s temple where all the above performances are regularly executed. Visiting the temple of a devotee and looking at the profusely decorated forms of the Lord well dressed in a well-decorated, sanctified temple naturally infuse the mundane mind with spiritual inspiration.” (SB 2.3.22 purport)

Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.3.22, Bethesda

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 10 October 2013, Melbourne, Australia, Srimad Bhagavatam 2.3.14)

This movement of Caitanya Mahaprabhu is a mercy movement but we have to take it seriously; we have to take responsibility. A devotee has to take responsibility for what he does wrong and then correct it. We can’t just say, ‘Oh, these things are just happening to me, what can I do? I mean, I am trying so much but it’s just not working, it’s out of control!’

No, IT is not out of control – YOU are out of control! We say, ‘My mind is out of control!’ No, it is not your mind that is out of control, you are out of control – you see the point? But we tend to just shift responsibility away from ourselves, ‘My mind is out of control, kali-yuga is out of control, everything is out of control – what can I do? There is nothing I can do, it’s all out of control. If things were more in control then I will chant Hare Krsna! I would… I want to be a devotee, I really want to.’ No, nothing is out of control, except you!

So begin to get yourself under control – maybe you cannot conquer everything within one day, but do something. Start to do the things that you can do. Some people lament about what they cannot do, ‘I really want to chant sixteen rounds but I cannot!!’

No problem, do what you can first. What can you do? Can you do some service, can you clean? Okay, then clean! Can you wash pots? Yes, come and wash pots, wash sixteen pots! After washing sixteen pots for a while, then try it again – maybe you would be able to chant sixteen rounds.

It works like this, while doing the things you can do, you get purified and after a while you can start doing things you could not do before. Take responsibility for what you are not doing right and correct it step-by-step. Don’t do it again, stop it and correct it. For example, ‘How can I stop smoking?’ By stopping! When you drive a car you simply push the brakes and stop.

But we are not used to taking responsibility and we have excuses – millions of excuses. ‘It’s my mom, it’s my dad, it’s my big brother – because of them I am not doing these things. Because of what they did to me, now I am doing all this nonsense.’ Endless excuses to justify and to shift our responsibility away.

But we must take responsibility because Hari-katha is not just some automatic thing. Sometimes in India, people consider it to be. Some of these pandits give very dry lectures; they sound like a door squeaking and everyone is in deep sleep but they go anyway because sat-sanga is considered a religious thing. Even if it is very painful, still we must do it. They take it that you just do these things and then you get the blessings – some automatic ritual and you get the blessing.

No! It is not like that! Through hearing we get knowledge and then WE have to make arrangements to change. We, us! We have to do it, change ourselves. But we say, ‘Oh, but I cannot change.’ Who says you cannot change? You changed a lot so far but now you have to change in a certain direction, in the direction of Krsna rather than change in the direction of maya. So one has to take responsibility – with intelligence.

Giriraj Swami read and spoke from Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Antya-lila 8.

“Regarding the offense—to not have complete faith in the chanting of the holy names and to maintain material attachments, even after understanding so many instructions on this matter—I once asked Bhurijan prabhu what the connection was. He explained that you hold onto material attachments because you don’t have complete faith in the holy name—you don’t have faith that the Holy name will give you everything you need. We  don’t have faith that the need and desire we have to love and be loved will be satisfied by Krishna so we hold on to some attachment. Even more materially, we don’t know if Krishna will take care of us so we have to keep working hard and accumulating more money at the cost of our spiritual life—because we don’t have complete faith. Yes, we should take precautions, but we should realize that what will really stay with us is our relationship with Krishna and his associates and we should not not invest too much in what will stay behind at the cost to what is permanent.”

How to Live and Die Gloriously, IFAST

Stress Management Program for Delhi Police Officials @ ISKCON Punjabi Bagh (Album with photos)
What would you think If you see more than a dozen Police Cars/ Motor bike and over 50 Police Officials entering hurriedly in your neighborhood ?Is there a terrorist attack/ Murder/Theft/ Crime ?
This was certainly what some of neighbors of ISKCON Punjabi Bagh were thinking. But no, they were not there on any such mission. They were in fact there to learn how to Handle Stress which is an innate factor in the kind of services they render to society.
A program on “Stress Management” was organized by ACP, Delhi Police @ ISKCON Punjabi Bagh on 1st June for over 50 officials.
Atmosphere of mistrust, negative public image, irregular working hours, Dissatisfaction due to non grant of leave, death of colleague on duty, staying away from family and children, presence of weapon at home are some of the factors they have to constantly deal with among the daily hassles of stressful events.
Many down to earth, practical practices from Srimad Bhagawat Gita were discussed by HG Rukmini Krishna Pr (Temple Co-President) which would be helpful in empowering them to deal with stress. The program ended with the most effective stress buster: Ecstatic Kirtan and prasadam for all.
Many participants had genuine queries and they all finally left with Srila Prabhupada books in their hands.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/qafQ0Q

By Gaurav Masand

Hindus have always believed in the principle of “Vasudeva Kutumbakam”, meaning the whole world is a huge family and the way to express our love is through sharing the meals we prepare.

Founded in New York by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in 1966, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) has always been a centre for spiritual growth, promoting the philosophy that anyone who comes to the temple should not go empty handed or hungry.

The ISKCON Temple in Melbourne is continuing with this tradition through its Food for Life program, providing nutritious food to those in need.

Food for Life is the largest food relief agency in the world, serving 1.2 million free meals in India alone. It is a global network across 60 countries, and consists of huge kitchens, vans, cafes and mobile services providing free ‘prasadam’ to the homeless or those less fortunate. The organisation is also involved in rehabilitation projects during natural disasters.

Currently, the Melbourne kitchen has a distribution of 5500 meals per week, run from facilities in outdated condition and at maximum capacity.

After receiving a grant of $500,000 from the Victorian government, and planning permissions from the local council, the ISKCON Temple recently held a ‘Ground breaking Ceremony’ and has begun construction of new kitchen facilities along with a redevelopment of the dining area.

In order to support the growing needs of the community, the new kitchen will output at least 25,000 meals per week, which equates to 1.3 million meals yearly, in Melbourne alone!

On the occasion, Temple President Aniruddha Das spoke about the importance of the program for the social fabric of the society.

Aniruddha Das

“Over the next five years we hope to expand our free food relief programs and further develop our collaborative outlets in Melbourne’s outlying suburbs to help even more people in the community.” This will include opening a range of Crossways Restaurants and Gopal’s style outlets.

The ground breaking ceremony was attended by the likes of Martin Foley MP, Margaret Fitzherbert MLC and other eminent supporters. All speakers congratulated ISKCON and pledged their support for this noble cause.

Ted Baillieu, former Premier of Victoria, who has been actively involved with this initiative, paid tribute to the great service provided by Food for Life Melbourne as embodying a timeless message of peace and harmony. “This project will provide a boost to a service which has contributed so much to the multicultural heart of the most livable city of the world,” he said.

Martin Foley MP

Father Bob Maguire said he considers the kitchen “a boon to many poor single parents, students and those who work on low incomes”.

The ISKCON Food for Life kitchen initiative is one of the best examples of how communities can help those less fortunate to survive and perhaps get back on their feet.

The ISKCON Melbourne Temple has outlined that their strategy for the funds also includes integrating the existing rural programs with the broader community and expanding their educational facilities and programs.

It is said, when we give away the excess, be it time, money or help, it returns to us, multifold in blessings. This community kitchen is a collective effort to give a better life to fellow Australians who are living below the poverty line.

The distribution of these sanctified vegetarian meals served with love will help many. As Aniruddha Das said, “Chant Hare Rama Hare Krishna, eat Prasadam and be happy!”

Source: http://www.indianlink.com.au/food-for-life/

Lord Krishna protects Iskcon Delhi from terroristic attack.
Times of India: NEW DELHI: In the winter of 2015, when Indian agencies were busy tracking down alQaida modules, two Jaish-eMuhammed terrorists had quietly sneaked into the capital. Intelligence sources said the duo rented a room in Lajpat Nagar, assembled six improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and recced at least four places for a strike, including the Taj Mahal and two city spots -Iskcon temple and the Select Citywalk mall in Saket.
The IEDs were specially prepared, using ingredients such as shampoo, a highly placed source told TOI. By mid-December, the two were ready to carry out the strike. A control room was set up in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and instructions were being passed by the handler, who was in touch with the mastermind, codenamed MAR.
Fortunately, things went wrong. During a dry run a day before the attack, an IED “leaked” while being detonated in the bathroom. This led to a thick cloud of smoke in the building, caused the Jaish duo to panic and hurriedly flush the IEDs and all other material down the toilet.
Still out of the Indian agencies’ radar, the two men took a return flight to Kabul.
Their act may have remained under wraps forever. But things changed in 2016. Since January this year, the noose around Jaish tightened after the attack on the Indian consulate. Four terrorists neutralized in that attack wrote about the planned 2015 strike being a revenge for Afzal Guru, who was executed for his role in the Parliament attack of December 2000.
Two months later, around Holi, the Kabul police arrested two Jaish operatives named Ahamd Khan Durrani, an Afghan national, and Abdul Qadri, a Pakistani, and recovered explosives and ammunitions from them. During interrogation, they spilled the beans on their plot to attack the Indian capital. Their travel details corroborated their claims. The Indian consulate was informed and the intelligence establishment taken in loop.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/LWSmiQ

The temple building, an old manor house, once witnessed top business families, associates of Lords and Ladies and even the famous Winston Churchill, all of whom used the scenic area of Upper Lough Erne in the border Lakelands of Ireland for hunting. Now it was claimed as a religious settlement and home for Krishna and His devotees. The year was 1986, Ireland was still in the midst of a guerrilla warfare conflict.

Small temples are where the big action is! ISKCON Nellore is famous as a fired-up preaching center in Andhra Pradesh. Under the leadership of His Holiness Sukadeva Swami Maharaj, the temple is doing exceedingly well on all grounds. Preaching is on full steam, with their large congregation now actively preparing for the upcoming “Gudur Rath Yatra,” set to happen in another one month. Devotees also distribute books regularly. During a recent program, they distributed 300 copies of Bhagavad Gita As It Is at Jammalpalem, near Kavali, on the occasion of Antyesti of late Ketureddy Kesava Reddy.

The post Revati-ramana tells the story of the greedy jeweller appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

 In the winter of 2015, when Indian agencies were busy tracking down alQaida modules, two Jaish-eMuhammed terrorists had quietly sneaked into the capital. Intelligence sources said the duo rented a room in Lajpat Nagar, assembled six improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and recced at least four places for a strike, including the Taj Mahal and two city spots -Iskcon temple and the Select Citywalk mall in Saket. 

The post Daily Darshan: June 6th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

The one-hour film “Cost of Silence,” that was released on Nrisimha Caturdasi, raises serious questions for the ISKCON society and its leadership in regards to child abuse and child protection, as well as the authority and effectiveness of the ISKCON Child Protection Office. These are important questions and deserve thoughtful reflection and an energetic response.

Rathayatra in Rome 2016 (playlist of 5 videos)
Srila Prabhupada: Instead of actively taking part in politics, saintly persons should engage in the chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. By the grace of Lord Caitanya, by simply chanting this Hare Krishna maha-mantra, the general populace can derive all benefits without political implications. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 4.14.12 Purport)
Warch them below or here: https://huzzaz.com/collection/rathayatra-in-rome-italy-2016

West African Iskcon devotees recently visited ISKCON JUHU, Mumbai, and astonished everybody with their energetic and joyful chanting and dancing. You have to see it to believe it :-) (2 videos 3 and 4 min each)
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/nR28T5 and here: https://goo.gl/3l4cyK

George Harrison embraced Hinduism in 1969 after a meeting with Swami Prabhupada.. He recalled that the impact of the meeting was similar to a door opening in his sub-conscious.

Vaishnava marriage in New York: Devi Kumari’s Wedding (Album with photos)
Indradyumna Swami: Some year’s ago I met a young lady from America - a spiritual seeker - who was visiting Vrindavan. I preached to her and encouraged her to take up the path of Krsna consciousness. I have enjoyed seeing her make nice spiritual progress through the years under the shelter of HH Radhanath Swami. Just this morning I learned she was getting married at the Bhakti Center in New York, so I drove 2 hours down from Newburgh to New York with several devotees and surprised her at the wedding. We could only stay for 30 minutes because of another program we had back in Newburgh. So while Ananta Vrindavan took a few photos we wished Devi Kumari dasi and Wojciech a wonderful Krsna conscious marriage and proceeded on our way. Everyone send them your blessings!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/DuRdod

A kid participates with enthusiasm in a Stockholm Harinam, Sweden (5 min video)
Srila Prabhupada: Others, who are not devotees, may think, “How can people devote so much time simply to talks of God?” The chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra is simply the repetition of three words, Hare, Krishna, Rama, but still devotees can go on chanting this Hare Krishna mantra twenty-four hours a day without feeling fatigued. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 4.13.1Purport)
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/2RGEBn

George Harrison embraced Hinduism in 1969 after a meeting with Swami Prabhupada, the founder of the international Hare Krishna movement. He recalled that the impact of the meeting was similar to a door opening in his sub-conscious. Once he stepped through, everything changed. Referring to himself thereafter as "Closet Krishna", Harrison continued to visit India regularly throughout his life and never lost faith in the simple message of love of Lord Krishna. After his spiritual awakening, Harrison’s music took on a strong spiritual aspect. Often combining elements of American religious music, such as gospel choirs, with Sanskrit lyrics and Indian instruments, the songs he wrote in the 1970s are among the more beautiful and melodic expressions of spiritual longing in all of popular music. While his first solo album,1970’s All Things Must Pass, is perhaps the most "spiritual" of his many records, yielding classic cuts such as What is Life and My Sweet Lord, Harrison’s India/Hindu oeuvre is far richer than that one album. This week we take a look at several other lesser-known compositions that every Harrison fan should be familiar with. Continue reading "Six lesser-known spiritual songs of George Harrison, the Hindu Beatle
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