By Basu Ghosh Das
Pictures of the festival can be seen by anyone (even if you do NOT use Facebook), here (cut and paste the link into your web browser):
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Over this past weekend, from Friday May 6 through Sunday May 8, the South Vrindavan temple, at Puthur village, Thrissur District, Kerala, was inaugurated.
Deities of Sri Sri Radha Vrindavan Krishna, Jagannath, Baladev, Subhadradevi, and Sri Sri Gaur Nitai were installed in the temple.
The temple is promoted by ISKCON Bahrain temple president Udarakirti Chaitanya Das, and devotees from Bahrain, named “Balaramdesh” by HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj.
Situated on 12 acres of land, and surrounded by the homes of Balaramdesh devotees who are relocating to South Vrindavan, the temple was built in Kerala style, but with modern building materials. There are a number of beautiful paintings and relief artworks that decorate the temple.
Senior ISKCON devotee from Mayapur, Bhadra Charu Das performed the installation with the help of ISKCON Vrindavan head pujari Mukunda Datta Das. Other senior ISKCON devotees who participated in the inauguration festival were Bhakti Vikas Swami, Radha Raman Swami, Bhakti Vinoda Swami,
(ISKCON zonal secretary for Kerala), Basu Ghosh Das (Temple President ISKCON Baroda), Murali Mohan Das (Co-President, ISKCON Vijayawada), Patri Das
(Regional Secretary for ISKCON Nepal), Atul Krishna Das (Director of the Mayapur Institute, Sridham Mayapur), Ekalavya Das (of ISKCON Calcutta), Nityananda Ram Das (Vice President, ISKCON Baroda), and Pundarikaksha Govinda Das (General Manager, ISKCON Juhu, Bombay). Nandaputra Das from Nagarcoil, Jagadsakshi Das (Temple President, ISKCON Trivandrum), and Vikram Govinda Das (Manager, ISKCON Kanyakumari) were also present.
Many other devotees came from around India and from Bahrain, as well as from Dubai and Sharjah in the U.A.E. Brahmachari kirtaneers from ISKCON Chowpatty, Bombay, were also in attendance.
The function was blessed by HH Jayapataka Swami in a letter sent to the organizers of the program. Maharaj was unable to attend due to the renewal of his US green card, and had to meet a deadline to enter the USA by May 10.
Kerala is known throughout India as “God’s own country” for profuse coconut trees, jackfruit trees, araca nut trees, black pepper vines, and several exotic varieties of banana trees. The hills, rivers, greenery, and the way old Hindu/vedic culture has been preserved in so many ways makes Kerala a very attractive place for devotees of Lord Krishna!
On behalf of the organizers, you are all invited to visit!
Nearby South Vrindavan, about 15 kilometers West, is the famous temple of Lord Krishna known as Guruvayoor, the most popular place of pilgrimage for Keralites, and one of the most popular places for Tamil Nadu residents as well!
One of the features of the Guruvayoor temple is the daily procession in the evening where the “utsava” (festival) Deity of Lord Krishna is taken on parikrama (circumambulation) around the temple on top of a male elephant!
The temple maintains 65 elephants in an elephant sanctuary, near by the main temple.
More information on Guruvayoor can be seen on the internet, here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guruvayur
Just 10 kilometers East of South Vrindavan is district headquarters Thrissur
(tri-Shiva in Samskritam), where there is an ancient temple of Lord Shiva, Vadakkunnathan, that is also one of the popular pilgrimage places in Kerala. Kerala “Pooram” festival held annually during Pooram nakshatra in the Keralite month of medam – it falls usually during April.
More information on the Pooram festival can been seen on the internet, here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thrissur_Pooram
Harinama in Jacksonville Beach, Florida (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: If the surface of the globe is overflooded with the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra, the people of the world will be very, very happy. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 4.24.10 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/K6mZF7
Beneath a solitary tree, Krishna manifested his form as four-armed Lord Narayan, replete with divine symbols in his hand, Kausthuba gem and crown. The boys spotted Krishna’s blackish effulgence from a distance and raced to be the first to touch him. But when they arrived at the tree they stopped short, seeing before them the […]
The post Chakra Narayana – Chandan Yatra Day 7 appeared first on Mayapur.com.
Gomati Vesa – Chandan Yatra Day 6 (Album with photos)
While herding, Krishna runs amongst the cows. While the cows rest, He lies with them. To purify Himself, Krishna enjoys smearing His divine limbs with the dust raised by the cow’s hooves. Krishna considers the cow’s and bulls of Vrindavana His mothers and fathers. He greets them each morning with loving words, “O mother! Have you rested well? O father! Are you happy?” Their horns are plated with gold and set with jewels, and their hooves are decorated with sapphires. I pray that these Surabhi cows may protect us all.
Small or utsava deities of Sri Radha Madhava looked very beautiful in their new outfits surrounded by many cows and calves all jumping with their tails raised high in the air. May Sri Radha-Madhava increase our attraction to serve His dearmost Surabhi cows!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/kC8UQl
May 15. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: The First Time I Bowed Down.
One time, my supervisor, Mr. Rice, shouted over in my direction, “Mr. Guarino, you are gonna have to complete the Garcia case so that she can get a check this afternoon. I want you to stay in the office and do it, so don’t go out to lunch until one. Is that all right?” It was not all right, but what could I say? So I went to the hallway phone booth and dialled the Swami’s number. The thing I was most attached to in the world was going every day at noon to have lunch with the Swami and the boys. So Mr. Rice’s command drove me to the radical move of phoning up the Swami. This was in the early days, before I was initiated.
I heard the phone ring and the Swami answered, “Hello?”
I said, “Swamiji, this is Steve. Do you remember me?”
Swamiji said yes, he remembered me.
I said, “I won’t be able to come today at noon for lunch because I have to stay in the office and work. But I’ll come over at one o’clock. Could you ask the devotees to please save some prasadam for me?”
“Yes,” said Prabhupada. He made it sound like it was not a problem. As I hung up, I was very pleased that I had made the phone call. Nowadays, it doesn’t seem like the proper way to treat Prabhupada, and in the later years of ISKCON with Prabhupada there was no question of doing such a thing. First of all, you wouldn’t be able to reach Prabhupada by phone; you would reach his secretary. But in those days it was right, and it was nice. It was a way to surrender and develop friendship. I very much wanted to go and be with him and eat his prasadam.
It turned out to be a better treat than usual, because by the time I got there all the boys were gone. Swamiji was there and the rug was still rolled back. The office had been demanding – so much bureaucracy and talk and nonsense, and now I had only one hour left before I had to plunge back into it. I came to take shelter with the Swami.
He told me to sit down, and so I waited alone in the room. He made up the plate and then came in and put it before me on the floor. I said, “Thank you,” and I bowed down before him.
He said, “Yes.”
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=8
The First Time I Bowed Down
Giriraj Swami read and spoke from Bhagavad-gita 9.14 in the Darshan Room of Sri Sri Radha Kalachandji Temple.
“Always chanting My glories, endeavoring with great determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me with devotion.” (Bg 9.14)
“From a certain point of view it may seem impossible to always engage in kirtan. Of course there are some liberated souls in Vrindavan who almost literally chant all the time. That is a very advanced stage. But, for most of us to actually chant always is not practical. But, we can do things that in a broader sense are glorification of the Lord if those activities further the glorification of the Lord. Therefore Srila Prabhupada called this process of devotional service ‘practical samadhi‘. One engages in various activities but the purpose of all the activities is to please Krishna. In order to please Krishna we have to know what Krishna wants. Therefore we have to read books like the Bhagavad-gita and take advice from experienced devotees who know from scripture and parampara what Krishna wants. When Krishna is pleased the devotee feels pleasure.”
Bhagavad-gita 9.14, Dallas
(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 03 May 2016, Vrndavana, India, Bhagavad-gita 3.34)
We may not be fully Krsna conscious, our love for Krsna may not be so deep and there may be other desires. But this is just restlessness. How much faith do we have in these other desires? Which devotee can claim to have full faith in sex life? We may be attracted to sex life but do we have full faith that it will make us happy? After having heard transcendental knowledge, it is hard to have full faith in material enjoyment. Still, we may have a flirtation with these desires here and there sometimes. For a moment we may be in the pink cloud of illusion, but then we come back to the hard reality of suffering and again, we endeavour more seriously to get out of the material world.
By Jagabandhu das By His Divine Grace I would learn what true broadmindedness really was from the great heart of someone so transcendentally magnanimous that he could "build a house the whole world could leave in." Without being intimidated by other's beliefs or converting anyone to anything but pure God Consciousness Itself. Unconditional friendliness towards all jivas reaches it’s zenith and is perfectly exemplified by Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and his boundless affection which suffused all his dealings. My favorite story of His Divine Grace is how when a disciple happily remarked, “Srila Prabhupada, everyone likes you!” Srila Prabhupada beamed his great transcendentally beautiful smile before replying, “That’s because I like everyone.” Continue reading "Any Colour You Like
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From Back to Godhead
By Vilasini Devi Dasi
AS I WAS RETURNING home from the temple on my usual 38 bus, I stared forlornly through the grimy window at the gray sky. I hadn’t seen the sun for days, and then only briefly, through breaks in the clouds.
“How is it possible to be healthy and happy in a place where the weather is constantly dreary and cold?” I thought.
I remembered Srila Prabhupada’s statement in a purport to the Srimad-Bhagavatam (4.24.36): “When there is sufficient sunshine, the mind remains clear and transparent in other words, the sun-god helps the mind of the living entity to become situated on the platform of paramahamsa [‘topmost swan,’ or transcendentalist].” Does it not follow, then, that with insufficient sunshine the mind becomes hazy and opaque and stays on the platform of a crow? After all, Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita that He is the light of the sun and moon, and Prabhupada affirms in the purport to that verse that “the light of the sun and the moon originally emanate from the brahmajyoti, which is the bodily effulgence of Krsna.” For one’s spiritual life, wouldn’t it be better to live in a place where one could bask in the rays of thebrahmajyoti and be elevated effortlessly to the paramahamsa platform? Isn’t it described in the Gita that unnecessary austerities that torture the body or mind are in the mode of ignorance? If Krsna is all-pervading, isn’t He also in sunny California? Aren’t there thousands of conditioned souls there that I could help find Krsna consciousness?
Just as I was about to get off the bus, step into a travel agency, and buy a ticket to San Diego, my intelligence somehow grabbed hold of my runaway mind and shook it into silence. My intelligence brought up a verse from Sri Caitanya-caritamrta:
krsna surya sama; maya haya andhakara
yahan krsna, tahan nahi mayara adhikara
“Krsna is just like the sun, and maya is just like darkness. Where there is sunshine there can be no darkness.” Krsna, as the source of the sun, must be brighter and more powerful than the sun. So one in direct contact with Krsna must derive all the benefits of the sun and more. The sun provides light and heat, makes water sparkle, adds vibrancy to colors, illuminates the material landscape, and so on. But Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita that He is the shining lamp of knowledge that destroys the darkness born of ignorance. Darker than any gray day in London is ignorance, which cannot be brightened by a thousand material suns. So real illumination is to see everything in relation to Krsna as His creation and property and to be in His service.
One can contact Krsna directly by chanting His holy name. So no matter how miserable the weather may be, a person chanting Hare Krsna with attention will see the world bathed in light and knowledge, and his mind will be clear and transparent. As for heat, when one’s heart is filled with love and happiness, one feels warm and contented in any weather. When chanting Hare Krsna, one is suffused with the steady warmth of love of Krsna.
Dependence on the unpredictable sun for happiness is a precarious position, for even tropical climes have cloudy days and sometimes hurricanes to disturb one’s tranquillity.
With this, the intelligence rested its case.
I conceded that it was certainly worth trying to be absorbed in chanting Hare Krsna before running off to California. I settled down in my dusty seat, closed my eyes, and fixed my mind on chanting the maha-mantra, which I articulated carefully, with as much devotion as I could muster. Within minutes my anxious mind and heart were peaceful, and I resigned myself to staying in London for as long as I have service here for Lord Krsna.
By Visakha Devi Dasi Sita Follows Her Conscience: In the Ramayana, Sita Devi first clearly expresses her own will by disobeying Lord Rama, who wants her to stay behind when He leaves for His exile to the forest. She decides that to be with Rama in all circumstances is her sacred duty. The unequivocal voice of her conscience will not allow her to do otherwise. By insisting on going with her husband to the forest, Sita defines for herself what a devoted wife is. To convince Rama to allow her to go with Him, Sita says, “Every day I will serve You and practice self-discipline. I too will live on fruits and nuts and will not interfere with Your austerities. Taking shelter in Your arms, O Rama, I will become fearless.” Rama replies, “O frail lady, in the forest wild beasts will lurk on all sides, waiting to attack, and we will have to sleep on the bare ground with scorpions, worms, mosquitoes, and gnats as constant nuisances. Abandon this idea of coming with Me. If you are truly devoted to Me, you will follow My instructions.” “O Rama,” Sita says, “all these hardships will seem like blessings to me. If You protect me, I can tolerate anything.” Seeing her determination, Rama finally agrees with her decision. On His request, Sita gives all her valuable possessions to the brahmanas and Vaisnavas, and she and Rama go to the forest with Laksmana. Continue reading "Sita Devi’s Inner Harmony
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Sunday Love Feast for All |
 | When? | | Sunday,May 15,2016
Program starts at 11am | | | | 6 George Street South
Brampton, Ontario
L6Y 1P3, Canada
Park underground(free) @ City Hall
Phone:416-648-3312 | |  | New! Listen | | | Click here to listen to previous class recordings on our blog | | | | | |
 Bhagavad Gita As It Is (18.66)sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami ma sucah Translation Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.  11.00- 11.15 Tulsi Puja 11.15 - 11.30 Guru Puja 11:30 –11:55 Aarti & Kirtan 11.55 - 12.00 Sri Nrsingadeva Prayers 12.00 – 1:00 Vedic discourse 1:00 – 1:30 Closing Kirtan 1.30 _ 2.00 Sanctified Free Vegetarian Feast About His Grace HG Vidhurpriya DasaH.G Vidur Priya prabhu is a Senior Disciple of His Holiness Gopal Krishna Maharaj. He graduated in Civil Engineering from MNREC Allahabad in 1990, Masters in Structural Engineering from University of Arkansas in 1992. His first ISKCON interactions was in 1996 and was initiated in 1999. Under the guidance of his Spiritual master he returned back to India in 2005 to render full time service in ISKCON New Delhi. He is currently the Director at the Delhi ISKCON Museum and is responsible for Architecting and oversees the operations aspects for the Museum which attracts 1000-1200 visitors daily  Japathon-Congregational Mantra MeditationNext meeting on May 14 ,2016(5.30am-9.30am) at ISKCON BramptonThe chanting is a spiritual call for the Lord and His Energy to give protection to the conditioned soul.japa, when performed with focus and attention, can subdue the agitating effects of one’s mind and senses. The senses, of which the mind is also one, are constantly being stimulated by the external world - by gross and subtle matter. If you have not chanted before, and would like to participate in this program, we will be very happy to show how you can do this. All welcome. We’ll loan you a set of Beads! Monthly sankirtan Festival(MSF)“One who has life can preach, and one who preaches gets life.”(Previous Acaryas) Every member of ISKCON should have the opportunity to make advancement in Krishna consciousness by preaching.We encourage everyone to come out and participate and make Srila Prabhupada happy. Please contact:Rasaraj Dasa- rajrushika@yahoo.com/ 647.887.5736(Mississauga and Brampton regions) Narahari Dev Dasa- naraharidev@gmail.com ( Etobicoke region)
COMING UP AHEAD
 Fasting For Mohini EkadasiFasting.....................on Tue May 17th,2016
Breakfast.................on Wed May 18th,2016 b/w 5.48am-10.24amEvery fortnight, we observe Ekadasi, a day of prayer and meditation. On this day we fast (or simplify our meals and abstain from grains and beans), and spend extra time reading the scriptures and chanting the auspicious Hare Krishna mantra.By constantly ‘exercising’ our minds through regular japa we can train our senses to push the threshold of contentment. English audio glorification of all Ekadasis is available here  Appearance of Lord Narasimhadev(Fasting Till Dusk)
Celebration on May 20,7pmSri Narasimha Jayanti is the appearance day of Lord Narasimha, the half-lion half-man incarnation of Supreme Lord Krishna, who appeared to protect Prahlada from his demoniac father Hiranyakashipu. Hiranyakashipu received a special benediction from Lord Brahma that he could not be killed by any human being, demigod or animal or any other entities; he could not be killed by any kind of weapons, neither during day nor night. So, the Lord appeared in half-man half-lion form and killed him with His nails at twilight, thus satisfying all the conditions. **Detailed program will follow shortly**  Sunday SchoolTo register,contact usEmail:sundayschool108@gmail.comCall:647.893.9363Th e Sunday School provides fun filled strategies through the medium of music, drama, debates, quizzes and games that present Vedic Culture to children. However the syllabus is also designed to simultaneously teach them to always remember Krishna and never forget Him. School Th e Sunday School follows the curriculum provided by the Bhaktivedanta College of Education and Culture (BCEC).  Gift ShopOur boutique is stocked with an excellent range of products, perfect for gifts or as souvenirs of your visit. It offers textiles, jewellery, incense, devotional articles, musical instruments, books, and CDs inspired by Indian culture.We're open on all Sundays and celebrations marked in our annual calendar.
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Chant and Be happy | |
Vaiyasaki Book Bestseller: Stephen Hawking On Trial - Confronting the Big Bang. A new book by Vaiyasaki das.
Sunanda das: Vaiyasaki Das, the well-known ISKCON kirtaniya, and author, recently published his newest book, Stephen Hawking On Trial – Confronting the Big Bang. Like his first Blockbuster book Cosmology On Trial – Cracking the Cosmic Code, this book is now also a Bestseller in its category on Amazon.
Vaiyasaki has taken seriously Srila Prabhupada’s instruction to expose the scientific account of the origin of the universe as mostly speculation with very little data to back up the assertions. Hawking is one of the world’s leading cosmologists, and disproving so-called scientific assertions will become one of the foundations for presenting the conclusive and self-effulgent truths of the Vedic scriptures and acharyas.
As the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium rises, and ISKCON reaches greater levels of public attention, it will be necessary for devotees to explain where science is right and where it is wrong. Therefore, I agree with other senior devotees that we would do well to seriously read these books of Vaiyasaki Das (Pierre St Clair). Sadaputa Das (Dr. Richard L. Thompson PhD), the architect of the planetarium design for the TOVP (www.youtube.com/SadaputaChannel) used to stress this point regularly, “It is not enough to just say that the Vedas are right and science is wrong. We must know why.” Srila Prabhupada wanted us to understand the importance and power of seeing through the veil of illusion created by modern materialistic science by which it presents itself as the authority on the universe.
Please click this link: http://amzn.to/1ZEIiim to read the latest five-star review by Top Ten and Hall of Fame reviewer, J. Chambers. Once you read the review, click ‘Yes, this was helpful’ under the review as this simple click will increase the exposure, popularity and sales of the book. Vaiyasaki has made this book available at the ridiculously low price of $0.99 to get it into everyone’s hands. Please purchase this book, or both his books, on the same review page.
Note: If you do not have a Kindle, just download the Free Kindle App to your Computer, Tablet or Smartphone to read the book.
2016 West Coast Vaisnavi Retreat celebrating ISKCON50.
You are invited to attend an ISKCON50 Celebration, a one-day Vaishnavi women’s retreat to be held in Camarillo, California - a short drive north of Los Angeles.
The theme of this exciting gathering is an extremely important one, “ Deepening our Relationship with Srila Prabhupada”.
Featuring: kirtan, seminars, Prabhupada memories, special guest speakers, sumptuous prasadam (breakfast, lunch and dinner), new friends, and much more…
Early bird registration is $25. From May 30th to June 24th, fee will be $30; and on the day of the event, $35. (Includes three full meals of delicious prasadam.)
When: June 25, 2016, 8:30 AM - 8:00 PM
Where: 206 Smuggler’s Cove
Camarillo, CA 93012
310 245-4706
Directions: http://goo.gl/nSUoU6
Please contact us if you have questions.
Rambhoru devi dasi, Radha devi dasi, Nandini Radha devi dasi
radha16108@gmail.com (760)449-0469
To register: https://goo.gl/qQ13pL
Museum of Sacred Art.
The Museum for Sacred Art is a feature of the Radhadesh Iskcon community (Chateau de Petite Somme – Durbuy Belgium). In the Museum there are many beautiful works of art depicting sacred themes from ancient India.
These works of art are mainly in traditional Indian styles, including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthani, Orissan, Keralan, and Tanjore.
Visitors can relax, stroll through the gallery, and enjoy these inspirational art treasures, soaking up the deep devotional sentiments expressed by the artists.
The Museum was conceived by Martin Gurvich (Mahaprabhu Dasa), secretary of the Hindu Forum of Belgium.
Read more: http://goo.gl/eOYgl9
Study at the Bhakti Academy.
How would you like to pursue spiritual life, even while earning your college degree? If you’re between the ages of 18 and 29, consider enrolling in the Bhakti Academy at Krishna House (214 NW 14th Street, Gainesville, FL 32603). Students live in private or semi-private rooms just three blocks from the UF library. While at Krishna House, students take part in traditional bhakti yoga and meditation practices (kirtan, japa, and Bhagavad-gita study), enjoy fresh daily vegan/vegetarian meals and can even take advantage of simple work/study programs to pay for it all. Applicants may be but are not required to be students at UF or Santa Fe College or even residents of Krishna House. They only need a strong desire to discover inner happiness and a wilingness to test-drive bhakti yoga in a drug-free environment. You’re invited to check out Krishna House by attending any of the bhakti yoga classes, which are held most mornings and evenings. You can print and fill out the application here: http://goo.gl/ErkYoC. If you are not able to visit, please contact us: http://goo.gl/WGyyBp.
Loughborough Festival, UK - 13th May 2016 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: The devotee can constantly think of the object of worship, the Supreme Lord, in any of His features—Narayana, Krishna, Rama, etc. – by chanting Hare Krishna. This practice will purify him, and at the end of his life, due to his constant chanting, he will be transferred to the kingdom of God. Bhagavad-Gita 8.8 Purport
Find them here: https://goo.gl/aZymRz
Almost Instant! On a tight schedule? These delicious dishes for Krsna are quick and easy!
Visakha Devi Dasi: Krsna Prasadam. I was looking through a new cookbook on making meals in twenty minutes, and I read, “Never before have so many people wanted so much out of life and had so little time to enjoy it. Between inflation, two-job marriages, and the quest for self-improvement, the momentum of our life style has us all dancing at a furious reel of achieving and coping. Something has to give. And usually the first thing to go is the time spent preparing our daily meals….”
When it comes to food, we want it effortlessly and fast. That’s why forty percent of the American food dollar is spent in restaurants and why an uncalculated amount is spent on fast foods at home precooked, frozen, canned, and instant.
But why, in the “momentum of our life style,” is cooking the first thing to go? Why not TV? Or the movies? Or the baseball game? Well, maybe it’s because cooking takes a lot of effort and the reward is often small and fleeting. We may labor for a few hours to make an elegant luncheon, only to be left with a pile of dirty dishes an hour after it’s served; and then a few hours later, everyone’s ready for another meal. Was it worth the effort? From the statistics, most of us must think not. We’d rather phone for a take-out pizza and sit back for Star Trek reruns. There are just more important things to do than cook.
Krsna’s devotees, however, have a different attitude. Our desire to get an understanding of who we are, who God is, and what our relationship with Him is. In the Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krsna explains that the process for achieving this goal is devotional service.
Time spent in devotional service is important. Time spent in other ways is wasted and can never be regained even at the cost of millions of dollars. The Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.3.17) confirms, “Both by rising and setting, the sun decreases the duration of life of everyone, except one who utilizes the time in devotional service to the all-good Personality of Godhead.” Similarly, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, “With every rising and setting of the sun, a day passes and is lost. Why then do you remain idle and not serve the Lord of the heart?” And a great devotee of the Lord prayed, “O my Lord, I have spent my life uselessly. Having obtained a human birth and having not served Radha and Krsna, I have knowingly drunk poison.”
A devotee understands that if we’re slapping a meal together so we can get out of the kitchen and watch TV, we’re wasting our time both in the kitchen and out of it. Cooking, or anything else done for our sense pleasure, is useless as far as spiritual realization goes; ultimately it won’t help us enjoy life or get much out of it. But if we’re cooking for Krsna (or doing any other activity for His satisfaction), our time is perfectly spent.
The care we take in finding the proper ingredients for cooking, as well as the love and devotion we give to preparing and offering dishes to the Lord, are all part of our quest for self-realization; they’re all devotional service. Those who purchase the food for Krsna, those who cook it, those who offer it, those who serve it, those who taste it, and those who clean up afterward all get a reward that’s neither small nor fleeting. They get eternal, spiritual benefit. In one way or another, they are engaging in devotional service, and that will lead them to the highest enjoyment in life.
The care we take in finding the proper ingredients for cooking, as well as the love and devotion we give to preparing and offering dishes to the Lord, are all part of our quest for self-realization; they’re all devotional service. Those who purchase the food for Krsna, those who cook it, those who offer it, those who serve it, those who taste it, and those who clean up afterward all get a reward that’s neither small nor fleeting. They get eternal, spiritual benefit. In one way or another, they are engaging in devotional service, and that will lead them to the highest enjoyment in life. It’s all a matter of knowing the process.
Sometimes it seems that the dishes Lord Krsna favors most take the longest time to make like milk sweets that must be boiled down for forty-five minutes, or kachauris (stuffed savories) that are deep-fried for twenty-five minutes. Yet, even in the momentum of our devotional lifestyle, we’re often fully engaged doing other services and don’t have as much time as we’d like to cook for Krsna. So this month, we’re featuring dishes that are quick and easy and that are also pleasing to the Lord. Puffed rice, for example, is a light meal, great for breakfast, brunch, or an afternoon or evening snack. Not exactly “instant,” but almost. And every second that we give to making, offering, serving, and tasting these foods brings us closer to our goal: an eternal life full of bliss and knowledge with Krsna.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/HRMbbn
While herding, Krishna runs amongst the cows. While the cows rest, He lies with them. To purify Himself, Krishna enjoys smearing His divine limbs with the dust raised by the cow’s hooves. Krishna considers the cow’s and bulls of Vrindavana His mothers and fathers. He greets them each morning with loving words, “O mother! Have […]
The post Gomati Vesa – Chandan Yatra Day 6 appeared first on Mayapur.com.
Teachers’ Appreciation Day at TKG Academy, Dallas.
At the heart of the school are the students, of course. Directly nurturing them are our wonderful teachers. Ultimately, it is thanks to them that our students are happy and successful. It’s their hard work and dedication that drive everything. It’s their daily, personal interactions, their care and attention, their patience and love which directly affect the children’s learning experience.
While we deeply appreciate their hard work year-around, on Friday, May 6th, we observed “Teachers’ Appreciation Day” at TKG Academy, to express our immense gratitude. Under Krishna Mangala Mataji’s coordination, parents brought elaborate lunch preparations. Many students wrote cards to their teachers and some brought gifts.
This year we included our volunteer teachers as well. Each teacher received a personalized gift, related to their subject of instruction. It was a lovely celebration of appreciation, marking an outstanding year of steadfast service.
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Vraja Kishor is our very own “home grown tomato”, so to speak. He’s been a student at TKG Academy since he entered our preschool class 10 years ago. This year he turned 14 and has pioneered the re-opening of our high school class. 
By Gour Govinda Swami
