Planet ISKCON

Often, the competitive desire to “be the best” can carry over into our divine pursuit. We mentally create a spiritual CV and proceed to judge our success based on the achievements, recognition and respect that we can build up within our spiritual circle.

A few months back I had the good fortune to get association of a senior Vaishanava. During the lecture one line that really touched my heart was the advice that we should daily pray to Prabhupada to ‘make me an instrument of your compassion in this very life time’. It was seemingly a simple statement but it touched my heart and I started following it since then. Just by praying like this daily to Srila Prabhupada had some effect on my dull consciousness, inspired me to some act and brought newer realisations. I searched for this topic and found some very inspiring statements in scriptures, and particularly by Srila Prabhupada. I pray that below quotes will help every single follower of Srila Prabhupada to aspire to become his instrument of compassion in this very life time. What was Srila Prabhupada’s mood? Continue reading "Make me an instrument of your compassion!
→ Dandavats"

The post Jaya Gopala asks questions about the Golden Age appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

Nearly 20 diverse civil rights and religious groups today asked a court to support a community of Muslims in New Jersey who have been trying to build a house of worship for almost a decade.

For thirty years, a very special Lord Nrsimhadeva Deity has protected the devotees of New Vrindaban and all of North America, and received their love and service. Now, residents of the West Virginia village want to invite people from all over North America to come celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of His installation, and to behold the only full-size Nrsimha Deity on the continent, on His sacred appearance day.

Mayapur Institute: Unfolding Srila Prabhupada’s biggest vision on Education.
To fulfill this vision of Srila Prabhupada, Mayapur Institute (MI) was established in the year 2000. Since the launch of the Institute in 2000, over 2500 students of various religion, caste, creed and sex coming from various places like USA, UK, Russia, China, Australia, Africa, Europe, etc. have benefited from these programs.
Due to growth in student enrollment every year, the current classrooms and offices are inadequate. Hence, MI has embarked on setting up an exclusive campus at Mayapur.
The Project
Mayapur Institute Campus project, located behind the Gurukul and conceived from the fabulous architectural style of the ancient Dwaraka city is spread over 10 acres surrounded by the green space bursting with fields and forests. Situated on the banks of Ganga, it is ideal for those with a taste for walking through lovely natural areas. The entire campus and all the buildings will be fully vastu compliant with a general slope from SW to NE.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/6CYf0A

The post Daily Darshan: May 13th, 2016 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

http://www.villavrindavana.org/en/

A modern cartoon interpretation of the Ramayana by American artist Nina Paley.

Harinama and book distribution in Tel Aviv, Israel (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Simply by chanting the holy name of Lord Krishna, one can be freed from all undesirable habits. This is the means of awakening all good fortune and initiating the flow of waves of love for Krishna. (Sri-Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 20.11)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/K2BLPf

Written by Nimai

After his Vyasa Puja festival in Radhadesh, Kadamba Kanana Swami travelled to India for a one month stay. We arrived in Vrindavan on 30 April and spent a week there. We welcomed heat after it had been snowing in Radhadesh. Maharaj took a few days off to recover from the journey and the recent events. On Monday (02 May), the disappearance day of Srila Vrindavan das Thakur, Maharaj gave the Srimad Bhagavatam class at the Krsna Balaram temple based on verse 6.9.36. He spoke about the different expansions of the Lord and also explained how Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is non-different from Krsna. Maharaj went on to tell stories from the Caitanya Bhagavat, which was written by Srila Vrindavan das Thakur. He mentioned the occasion where Caitanya Mahaprabhu embraced Jagai and went blackish for a moment from all the sinful activities of Jagai which were absorbed; the Lord was displaying his non-difference from Krsna in this way. Watch the video on Youtube here.

On the next day, Maharaj gave an evening class based on Bhagavad-gita 3.34. The verse described lust and envy. Maharaj quoted Srila Baladev Vidyabusan, who said that these two (lust and envy) are thieves because they steal our pious activities if we give into them, and our consciousness will be plundered. Later on Maharaj pacified the audience though, by saying that even if we may not be pure devotees yet, we do have some love and taste for devotional service, for we do it voluntarily and this is what will carry us in our spiritual life. Watch the video on Youtube here.

Indradyumna Swami was also in Vrindavan during this time and Kadamba Kanana Swami went to meet him one day, to speak to him personally – they both went through some similar health problems and have a long-standing friendship. Indradyumna Swami was celebrating his Vyasa Puja the next day and Maharaj attended and spoke some words of glorification. There were many nice offerings by the disciples of Indradyumna Swami and he would often make some funny comment in response or glorify them back. Bada Hari Prabhu was also there and Indradyumna Swami said, “We would ask Bada Hari Prabhu to speak, but you must understand, he has to go through this six more times,” (referring to Vyasa Puja) and went on to say speak some sweet words about Bada Hari Prabhu, explaining that they have been travelling together for the last four years.

Maharaj and I kept up our daily 5km walk and on one evening, after the heat had gone down a bit, we visited the Radha Raman deity to take darshan. Maharaj also led kirtan in front of Krsna Balaram on another evening after the weekend was over and the temple wasn’t so crowded. Many devotees had been asking Maharaj to sing since the first day, so they were very pleased when he did. On the last days, many disciples came to see Maharaj, and he gave them a lot of personal time. There were also aspiring devotees, whom Maharaj accepted to our god-family.

From Vrindavan we travelled to the Delhi temple to stay for a night. Maharaj would’ve sang a fired up mangal arati for them, if our flight to South India hadn’t been so early in the morning. We arrived at the Ayurvedic clinic in Coimbatore on 06 May, Maharaj will be undergoing Ayurvedic treatment here for three weeks before returning to Europe.

Devotees are set to open their first ever temple in Georgetown, the capital of Guyana, this July as an offering to Srila Prabhupada for the 50^th anniversary of his ISKCON. The temple, located in an extremely sought-after area, will receive its grand opening during a five-day festival beginning on July 13^th, the day Prabhupada incorporated his society.

ISKCON Pandava Sena, the dynamic youth organisation of the UK, will be visiting Goloka Dhama Temple in Germany this July, as part of its annual “Senagetaway” trip. The trip not only provides a spiritual break for many young members of ISKCON in the UK and abroad, but also allows them to expand their horizons and take the sentiment of service into the real world and apply it in their lives. 

An unmissable spiritual retreat for youth to Goloka Dhama, Germany with Kadamba Kanana Swami and Gaur Gopal Das.
To sign up, visit: http://psena.com/senagetaway/journey-...

Lord Jesus: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)
Srila Prabhupada: “Your love for me will be shown by how much you cooperate with each other after I am gone.”
“Our movement is based on love and trust, so if we do not co-operate, then how is that love and trust? 750116 - Letter to Krsnavesa

Pandava Sena retreat 2016 in Germany.
ISKCON Pandava Sena, the dynamic youth organisation of the UK, will be visiting Goloka Dhama Temple in Germany this July, as part of its annual “Senagetaway” trip. The trip not only provides a spiritual break for many young members of ISKCON in the UK and abroad, but also allows us to expand our horizons and take the sentiment of service into the real world and apply it in our lives.
This is our request to any ISKCON youth that want to join us, whether in the UK, Europe or around the world! We believe this is a great opportunity to develop deep friendships with each other, dive deeper into spiritual practices, and empower each other in collectively serving in Srila Prabhupada’s movement!
Promo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYMa1EEl_-s
The annual trip has been held in a plethora of locations such as Belgium, Spain, Italy and France in the past with a variety of themes such as the Mahabharata, and this year we plan to visit Germany with the theme of “Vrindavan" - How to manifest Vrindavan consciousness in our hearts. Not only will the trip be full of exciting activities such as a day out to Europe’s biggest theme park, but we’ll be absorbed in ecstatic kirtans, interactive seminars, Q&A sessions and service opportunities in store.
This year, we’re fortunate to have the most incredible guests! We’ll be joined by: HH Kadamba Kanana Swami, HH Sacinandana Swami and HG Gaur Gopal Prabhu - all experts at making Krishna Consciousness relevant to the next generation.
If you would like to find out more (or want to sign up straight away!), please visit out website at http://www.psena.com/senagetaway/journey-home/ and do not hesitate to contact us via email at senagetaway@gmail.com with any questions. More information about our wonderful location, Goloka Dhama, can be found on their website at http://www.goloka-dhama.de.
Your Servants,
ISKCON Pandava Sena.

Beautiful letter of “Thank you”.
Adikarta Das: This is a very nice letter from a young girl in Jacksonville, Florida. It shows the importance of book distribution, and the potency of Srila Prabhupada’s books. I am sending it to encourage the devotees to make book distribution a priority.
—–
Hello! My name is Savannah. You gave my boyfriend and I books at art walk–I was the girl with the short blonde hair and he was the one who told you that he was from Venezuela and ended up owing me five dollars.
I started reading the “Self Realization” book in school the next day, and instantly began highlighting. I’ve just started reading, but so much has clicked with me already. I am finishing my junior year in high school, and have always struggled with not fitting in with my family’s religion. They are all Christians, my parents incredibly disappointed that I’m not constantly involved in their church. The truth is, there is so much hypocrisy with how their faith has presented itself, that I’ve claimed to be an atheist every since the eighth grade. This is primarily due to their beliefs and judgements on other individuals. (Yes, sadly, they are voting for trump and I may or may not have multiple Bernie stickers on my car.) But I have longed for a sense of spirituality, feeling as if I am missing out on a lifestyle that is right for me and meets my beliefs and views. I have always been interested in different religions and known that one day I would like to help others, aspiring to get my Master’s in mental health counseling. I’ve also recently taken up yoga and meditation, finding those tools to work wonders for the mind. This book immediately hooked me through mentioning the use of meditation and yoga as techniques to clear the mind, as well as going on to doing things for others, and even proceeded to mention the hypocrisy in many other common religions today, primarily, Christianity. I have already related and fallen in love with so many statements made in this book, and am definitely planning on finishing it. I’m also going vegetarian!
I just wanted to say thank you, and let you know that you are doing a really great thing for America by spreading this positive energy. I feel like, this year especially, our country has become incredibly divided with hatred and judgements on other human beings. Religions have definitely become more of a brand name than a kind, loving belief system, and I’m so happy that has been admitted and changed. I’m glad I had the pleasure of meeting you, and can’t wait to finish reading. Thank you, I’m very happy I have found this book, as well as Krishna Consciousness. Have a blessed day!
Savannah :-)

Sri Harinam Sankirtan Nectar: Sydney, 12-05-16 (Album with photos)
It’s Thursday night and once again Sri Harinam came to the streets of the city of Sydney. Tonight we all experienced another very beautiful Harinam. Thanks to the 20 devotees who came along to make Harinam a regular event on Sydney’s streets.
We had a wonderful start to the evening and there were many adventures along the way. One lady told us she wanted us to to chant Hare Krishna in English. We said we are chanting in English and she stayed with us and made videos of the Harinam.
Then there was a young man who came along and he wanted to sing. He looked like he was African but when we let him have a turn he was singing a Hindi bhajan, glorifying Lord Rama. It was wild and crazy.
Tonight we sang and danced along George street and then back to Town Hall by the Event cinema.
Whilst we were chanting at an intersection two guys came along and started chanting with us. They stayed with us for the rest of the night. They really enjoyed the chanting and dancing and the end they asked where we were from because they really loved it and wanted more. You can see them in a couple of photos.
Thanks to Radha Vinod Prabhu who distributed two books.
And don’t forget, we are chanting and dancing in the street every Thursday in the City of Sydney. We meet at 6.30pm to 8pm at Town Hall.
Please join us whenever you can, we have so much fun and so does everyone else. See you next Thursday.
Sri Harinam Sankirtan ki jaya.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/QYr5A8

May 13. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Worshiping Memories of Swamiji.
In our own little way, we are worshiping the hours and minutes when we were with Srila Prabhupada. One way to worship sacred time is to ask it, “Please come forward so that we may praise you with words and tell the world what it was like. Kindly come forward and reveal yourself, minutes and hours in which I was with Prabhupada.”
Almost as soon as I began seeing Srila Prabhupada, I also began fondly remembering him and what he said. After attending his morning class at 26 Second Avenue, I would walk east one block to First Avenue and then walk north to the Fifth Street Welfare Office. Just before Fifth Street was a very big apartment building where I used to stand in the entranceway under a roof and “kill time” before going in to punch the clock. I remember standing there and reviewing some of the philosophy that Prabhupada had spoken. He had said that any activity, if coated with bhakti, becomes a type of yoga. When fruitive activities are coated with bhakti, they become karma-yoga. Philosophical speculation coated with bhakti becomes jñāna-yoga, and pure devotional service activities are bhakti-yoga. What a wonderful philosophy!
To read the entire article click here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=8

Worshiping Memories of Swamiji

Please read full April Brijabasi Spirit Newsletter at https://us10.admin.mailchimp.com/campaigns/show?id=645913

“Although the Bhakti movement has spread far and wide, not many people know its founder Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu – even in India,” says ISKCON’s communications director in North India, Yudhistira Govinda Das. With the Festival of Inspiration in New Delhi this May 28^th, he hopes to begin changing that. Supported by the Government of India’s Ministry of Culture, the event will take place at the Talkatora Indoor Stadium near Parliament. It’s expected to draw a full house.

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 6^th, 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.

WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT? I have thought about and discussed this general idea many times, yet to me, it is always super essential, as what is important to us--really, really important, not just in theory, but what we feel in our heart and emotions--defines us and tells us where we are going in life. At one point in my life, having a relationship was my all defining absorption, and I was always on the lookout for that. At another time, finding myself materially--who I was in this body and what kind of work I should do, consumed my thinking and hankering.

Now, after many years of living, of finding what for me as been an ideal loving relationship, and my work as a writer, speaker, and healer, now, as I still meditate on death, even as my tumor is shrinking, I look into my heart beyond just wanting material desires that just go with my conditioned identity, or the lusts of the flesh, which I acknowledge as one part of me, but have done my best to make it only muzak in the background, I have to say that my devotion to Krishna is the most important aspect of my life.

I consider this the fruit of my years of practice, even though it has not reached the pitch of an all-encompassing, self-defining state, I still feel it, as I do during my worship and at times throughout the day as I pray and call out, "Please help me," or "Let me realize my full devotional potential and my service to others," etc, and it gives me hope of the person I am becoming. I want to give this energy and focus, and not merely the insanity and scandals of the larger world, or our devotional world. While I acknowledge that there are many important causes that need to be addressed, and I am glad that some people are,

read more

The naming ceremony of Radha from Krishna aur Kans movie.

With spiritual fasting, you may not make headlines, but you'll make headway on the path back to Godhead. What do Mahatma Gandhi, Dick Gregory, Jane Fonda, Norman Mailer, Bolivian dissidents, British suffragettes, and Irish revolutionaries have in common? Well, for one thing, at one time or another and for one reason or another, they've all fasted. Materially their fasting was somewhat successful, whether it was undertaken to free India from British domination, turn public opinion against the Vietnam War, lose weight, win amnesty for political prisoners, get the right to vote, or what have you. But how about spiritually? It's not that merely by starving we're sure to make spiritual progress. A lot depends on our purpose. Fasting for some political purpose my help us reach some political goal. But the Vedic teachings direct us beyond such goals. Fasting, say the Vedic scriptures, is meant to help us control the mind and senses so we can advance in spiritual realization; it's not for any other purpose. This may sound like a hard-nosed, shortsighted viewpoint, but before we make a hard-nosed, shortsighted judgment, let's take a closer look. Continue reading "Spiritual Fasting
→ Dandavats"

Graduation of Sri Paramahansa Goura (Album with photos)
Education.
Duca is a Sanskrit word that means suffering born of spiritual ignorance. Similarly Duca in Latin refers to decay, decayed, expires.
Plato defines ‘Educare’, education as the art of guiding and caring for the development of body, mind and Soul, to rid the later of the darkness of ignorance.
Graduation Etymologically means Grada or, go thru the stairs, now you can only go in two directions, up or down, unfortunately nowadays education focuses only on the matter and therefore we see that the degradation of spiritual values creates a civilization intended to materialism and therefore the exploitation of Mother Nature who in turn belongs to the Supreme Being, because is one of His energies.
The Bhaktivedanta Academy, established in 1984, is an educational institution based in Sri Mayapur Dham, India, which provides education for children, adults students on the principles of Vedic Gurukul system. Educational programs aim to complete a cultural reorientation students to produce a society in which individuals understand that their main occupation in life is to practice pure devotional service to the Personality of Godhead, unalloyed, with the goal of returning home, back to God.
Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita mentions some of the principles of true education.
Chapter 16, Verse 1-3
The Blessed Lord said: Fearlessness, purification of one’s existence, cultivation of spiritual knowledge, charity, self-control, performance of sacrifice, study of the Vedas, austerity and simplicity; nonviolence, truthfulness, freedom from anger; renunciation, tranquility, aversion to faultfinding, compassion and freedom from covetousness; gentleness, modesty and steady determination; vigor, forgiveness, fortitude, cleanliness, freedom from envy and the passion for honor-these transcendental qualities, O son of Bharata, belong to godly men endowed with divine nature.
Chapter 13, Verse 8-12
Humility, pridelessness, nonviolence, tolerance, simplicity, approaching a bona fide spiritual master, cleanliness, steadiness and self-control; renunciation of the objects of sense gratification, absence of false ego, the perception of the evil of birth, death, old age and disease; nonattachment to children, wife, home and the rest, and even-mindedness amid pleasant and unpleasant events; constant and unalloyed devotion to Me, resorting to solitary places, detachment from the general mass of people; accepting the importance of self-realization, and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth-all these I thus declare to be knowledge, and what is contrary to these is ignorance.
Sri Paramahansa Goura entered Gurukula when I was 6 years old, along with Srinam Vanamali who was 8, they help each other to practice and absorb the lessons of the life of the Ashram. Today Sri Gaura graduated after completing all stages in his life as a Brahmacari, celibate student and receive the blessings of his teachers to continue in the path with purity and devotion. Manorupa and I we were always humbly proud of his determination to stay and complete his training in Gurukula.
Please extend your blessings to this exemplary young man, in this way the teachings he has received can be transmitted to subsequent generations of seekers of truth.
Om Tat Sat.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/b6g4aa

From Back to Godhead

By Saksi Gopala Dasa

It was the Thursday before Christmas, and London’s Oxford Street (the longest shopping street in the world) was brimming over with Christmas shoppers. Twice already that week plainclothes police had arrested devotees chanting Hare Krsna there, but today we were intending to avoid any trouble. The five of us took a new route, profusely distributing the holy name to everyone within earshot. As we made our way through Piccadilly Circus (London’s “Times Square”) and then along crowded Regent Street, we brought smiles to many faces and raised eyebrows on many others. Finally we reached Oxford Circus, where we reluctantly stopped chanting and started back along Oxford Street toward the temple.

But all the shops were staying open late, so the street was still filled with pedestrians, though traffic had died down. The rustle of hundreds of footsteps filled the air. With so many materially conditioned souls surrounding us, there we were, chanting quietly to ourselves on our beads, and just holding our karatalas (hand cymbals) and mrdanga drums! It was hard to restrain ourselves from the loud glorification of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra. In fact, it was impossible! Casting aside any thoughts of our inevitable arrest, we launched into the most ecstatic chant ever! The tall buildings echoed to the sounds of Lord Caitanya’s sankirtanaparty while dumbfounded shoppers stood open-mouthed and bus lines of bewildered souls turned their heads to see the source of the transcendental sound vibrations. Single file, we chanted and danced along the clear space at the edge of the pavement, which widened as the crowds thinned out. Tottenham Court Road Tube Station, the end of the gauntlet, loomed up ahead. We were almost there, with no police trouble, when three highly suspicious figures suddenly appeared, blocking our path a few yards ahead.

“All right, lads, yer nicked!” said the young “student,” flashing his police I.D. card with immense relish.

“What! How can you arrest us? We’re not doing anything illegal.”

His two hard-faced confederates, similarly disguised, moved in closer.

“Come on! You know as well as I do you’re causing an obstruction. Down to the station; you’re all under arrest!”

“Obstruction? The pavement’s fifteen feet wide, we’re walking in the gutter, and there’s hardly anybody to obstruct’!” we protested. “All around you there’s drug addiction, prostitution, crime, and violence, and you can’t find anything better to do than arrest us for chanting the names of God! What kind of policemen are you?”

The retort seemed to catch him by surprise, but he quickly regained his composure and barked, “Look lad, you’re under arrest. Anything you say may be used as evidence. Now move!” Then, adding a liberal quantity of unsavory words (quite unbefitting a constable of Her Majesty’s Police Force), he joined his two colleagues in forming a rear guard, and the three of them escorted us toward the police station.

We were thinking of how unfortunate they were. Not only were they obstructing Lord Caitanya’s sankirtana party and harassing devotees, but these were the same policemen who had arrested the chanting party twice earlier that week! What demons! For protection we started chanting the glories of Lord Nrsimhadeva Krsna’s half-man-half-lion incarnation very softly at first, and then a little louder. The mrdanga crept in, marking the rhythm, and the karatalas soon followed. With no complaints from our police escort as yet, we chanted louder and louder until the street once more resounded with the holy names. Amazed that they made no objection, we turned and saw that the three policemen were grinning from ear to ear! We were incredulous. Here was the mercy of Lord Caitanya! By repeatedly arresting the chanting party, these previously offensive policemen had become purified by associating with devotees, and now they were taking great pleasure in the chanting of the holy names!

“Now stop or you’ll cause an obstruction,” directed our police guide as we approached a large bus line, which engulfed the pavement. We obediently stopped, considering it our good fortune that we had been allowed to chant at all.

Then something totally unexpected happened. After we had passed the bus line, our captor definitely proved himself to be no ordinary police constable when he ordered, “Okay, start chanting again.”!!

So we did, all the way to the police station, accompanied by the three blissful police constables, who, grinning from ear to ear, made no objection as the ecstatic sankirtana party passed right into the police station, past the main doors, through the hallway, and into the charging room itself!!!

Everyone was thunderstruck. Arrestors and arrested alike couldn’t believe it. Shaven-headed Hare Krsnas chanting their way into the cop shop. With drums and cymbals? It was unthinkable! The sergeant on duty turned a vivid scarlet and exploded in a fit of anger, threatening to “throw the book” at us and charge us with all manner of subversive criminal activities. We apologized profusely, pleading that we didn’t quite realize where we were, and he became somewhat pacified. As we answered philosophical questions from some of the interested constables, the sergeant charged us with obstruction, one by one, and we had to wait as he filled in numerous forms.

“All right, boys, tomorrow morning at ten o’clock you’ll be appearing in the Magistrates Court,” said the sergeant, now quite amiable. And with that he allowed us to go. Feeling very blissful at the way things had turned out, we filed into the hallway and prepared to return to the temple for the evening arati (temple worship) of Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha-Londonisvara. (Londonisvara means “Krsna, the Lord of London.”) On our way out of the station, we passed a high-ranking plainclothes detective-inspector. He paused and turned in our direction. Not knowing what to expect, we were surprised when he glanced over us in an almost fatherly way and said in a concerned voice, “Don’t be discouraged, lads; keep up the good work!”

Next morning in court we pleaded “not guilty” to the charges against us, and the judge deferred our case to February 2. At the time, we were unaware of the significance of the appointed date. Our trial was to be on the appearance day of Lord Nityananda the incarnation of God who helped spread Lord Caitanya’s sankirtana movement, and who personifies His mercy.

The Trial

As is customary on such holy days, the five of us fasted through the morning of Lord Nityananda’s appearance day and chanted His glories. At noon we attended a blissful arati and then broke our fast with a splendid feast. Afterward, we set off for Great Marlborough Street Magistrates Court, confident that Lord Nityananda would protect us. We were accompanied by a new and enthusiastic visitor to the temple, the Reverend Norman Morehouse (second only to the Bishop of Norwich), who came along to observe the court proceedings.

We arrived at the courthouse a few minutes before our appointed time of 2:00 P.M. and waited in the big hallway while the Reverend went through to the public gallery. The plainclothesmen who arrested us soon turned up, now in uniform, and waited with us. (It took a little persuasion before they cautiously took some of the hazelnut cookies we had earlier offered to Lord Nityananda.) At last we were beckoned into the courtroom itself and ushered into the dock. A stir went through the assembly. Shaven heads and saffron robes were the last things anyone expected to see in Magistrates Court on a Tuesday afternoon. The Magistrate (a balding, portly man in his late middle age, sporting a red rose in the lapel of his dark gray suit) surveyed us over the top of his gold-rimmed spectacles. After we reaffirmed our plea of “not guilty” to the court clerk, one of the constables, who had been sworn in at the witness box, proceeded to report the alleged conditions of our arrest.

In the constable’s version of the story, the chanting party miraculously grew from the original five members to seven and later to eight when he described how three devotees “ran off and escaped arrest.” According to his description, it seemed that there were many more people on Oxford Street than we had been aware of. Indeed, we had supposedly forced unlimited numbers of pedestrians into the road and had exposed them to the grave risk of being run over by the almost nonexistent traffic! The judge listened impartially and then, since we had no lawyer to speak on our behalf, he asked us if we would like to comment on the policeman’s evidence. We humbly pointed out that the constable, like everyone else, had imperfect senses, and that he had contradicted himself in assessing the number of devotees on the chanting party. The judge politely suggested the constable had made “a mathematical error.” At this a titter of laughter rippled through the courtroom, while the constable shuffled his feet and looked embarrassed.

The magistrate then asked if we would like to speak in our own defense. Having been previously chosen as spokesman, I stepped forward to be sworn in at the witness box and was taken aback when the usher asked me to hold a copy of the Bhagavad-gita in my right hand. He handed me a card, and I read out the words: “I swear by almighty Sri Krsna that the evidence I give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.”

Heartened by smiles from the devotees in the dock, I began to describe the circumstances of our arrest this time as they actually had happened. The magistrate listened as I went on to say, “We understand that the police have a duty to perform, sir; but we also have a duty. We have been instructed by our spiritual master indeed, we are instructed by all the principle scriptures of the world the Koran, the Torah, the Bible, and the Vedas thatwe should glorify God by chanting His holy names. Whether you know the Lord by the name of Allah, Jehovah, Rama, Govinda, or Krsna, God is one.”

“Oh, quite so, quite so,” affirmed the magistrate.

Encouraged, I went on: “In the Vedic scriptures, in the Brhan-Naradiya Purana, it is said, harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam “

“In English but what does it mean in English, please?” he interjected.

” Kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha. This was written in the Sanskrit language five thousand years ago. It means, ‘In this age of Kali [the present age of materialism and quarrel] there is no alternative, there is no alternative, there is no alternative for making positive spiritual advancement but the chanting of the holy name, the holy name, the holy name of the Lord.’ “

The judge in fact the whole courtroom sat there fascinated. I remembered Srila Prabhupada’s introduction to the Srimad-Bhagavatam and began to speak further.

“Although mankind has made great material advancement in so many spheres, we can see that factually there is a fault in the social body at large. People are not happy with their day-to-day activities, and there is an increasing disturbance of drug addiction, prostitution, violence, and crime. The root of the problem is lack of God consciousness. People are unaware of the actual purpose of life.”

Intrigued by this sound philosophy coming from the witness box, the judge relaxed his judicial appearance, sat back, and took a sip of water from his glass.

Even more encouraged, I asked, “Sir, with your permission, I would like to read a short passage that appeared in the London Observer in October 1972. It is an excerpt from an article written by that eminent English historian, Arnold Toynbee.”

Upon hearing the name of such a distinguished personality, the judge smiled slightly, and nodding his head in approval, he asked that I continue.

” ‘The cause of it [the world’s malady] is spiritual. We are suffering from having sold our souls to the pursuit of an objective which is both spiritually wrong and practically unobtainable. We have to reconsider our objective and change it. And until we do this, we shall not have peace, either amongst ourselves or within each of us.’ “

I continued, “As devotees of the Lord we strictly follow four principles: mercifulness, truthfulness, cleanliness, and austerity. These are the higher qualities of human life, and the absence of these qualities means the degradation of society. So the spreading of spiritual understanding among humanity at large is the highest welfare work. And an essential part of this program is the distribution of literature, and the congregational chanting in the street of the holy names of God.”

“Is that all?” inquired the judge.

“Yes, sir,” I replied.

“Then you may step down.” Adjusting his spectacles and regarding the devotees, who were once more assembled in the dock, the judge then said in a very firm yet amicable manner, “In legal terms you are guilty of obstruction, although it is of a very minor degree. Taking this into consideration, and seeing your obvious sincerity, I have decided to dismiss the case.”

We smiled jubilantly, thanked the magistrate, and were about to step down, when Krsna prompted me to add, “Sir, we were wondering if you had a court library here, in which case we would like to present a book for addition to the collection.”

“Thank you,” he replied. “I am quite sure we can accommodate it.”

I gave a copy of Srila Prabhupada’s Sri Isopanisad to one of the clerks, who promised to pass it on to the judge. Then we left the courtroom, thanking Lord Nityananda for His mercy.

Outside, our friend Reverend Morehouse greeted us with an ecstatic “Hare Krsna!” Beaming from ear to ear, he shook each of us warmly by the hand. “Congratulations!” he exclaimed. “It was wonderful! I am so proud of you all. I must say, though, I was somewhat surprised at the decision of the judge. In the cases before yours he had been quite severe. I’m sure that the Lord must have had a hand in the matter.”

And so were we. Sankirtana isalways successful, but it is especially so on Lord Nityananda’s appearance day: even a judge will take a book!

On the way back to the temple, I read one verse in Srila Prabhupada’s Caitanya-caritamrta that summed up our whole wonderful experience:

aparadha ksamaila, dubila prema-jale
keba edaibe prabhura prema-mahajale

“Lord Caitanya excused all the offenders, and they merged into the ocean of love of God, for no one can escape the unique loving network of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu”

ISKCON50 London Mellows.
Dates: Saturday 9th July & Sunday 10 July
We are excited to announce this exclusive ISKCON50 kirtan event in celebration of the 50th anniversary of ISKCON. Join us over the weekend as we chant 50 musical melodies for the pleasure of Their Lordships and Srila Prabhupada. More details will be available on our website nearer the time.
The event will be recorded live by Radha-Krishna Records and we hope to offer an album at Sri Sri Radha-Londonisvara’s 47th Anniversary event.
Read more: http://goo.gl/w6lK8Q

Offering an E card!
As you all are aware that in July 2016, ISKCON will complete 50 years of its existence. Being a golden Jubilee year, devotees from all across the globe will come together to present “Golden Jubilee Card” to His Divine Grace Shri A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
Yes, there is an e-card designed where devotees can submit their offering to Srila Prabhupada on the occasion of Golden Jubilee. Offering submission is available till 31st May 2016. Once you submit the offerings, an email will be sent to you for verification. Devotees are requested to kindly verify their email. It’s only after verification that your offerings will be finally submitted to Srila Prabhupada and will be counted.
Your offering will be confidential. Our technical team is also instructed not to read the offering column. Your personal details will be confidential and will not be displayed.
By submitting our offering to Srila Prabhupada for Golden Jubilee we will not only send our heartfelt message to him but we will also break the World Record in the category of “highest number of devotees submitting e-card offering”.
Devotees are requested to submit their offerings only once. Double entry by a devotee will not be accepted, it will be counted as violating rules.
So let’s get started. Kindly go to the exclusive website http://www.offeringstosp.com and submit your offering immediately.
This website can be accessed from your Computer / Laptop and even Smart Phone.
Let’s get going!

Nagy Zsolt asks where Kali is and whether chanting can protect us from him?

The post Bhanu Parwni (Varanasi) asks how to overcoming the laziness to chant and why nonveg is not acceptable to Vaisnavas appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

Child Krishna meets baby Radharani for the first time.
The Divine Appearance of Srimati Radharani.
The Puranas relate a story concerning the divine appearance of Shrimati Radharani as follows. One day, Vrishabhanu Maharaja, who was living at Ravel at that time, went to the bank of Yamuna at around noon to take a midday bath.
As he approached the bank of the Yamuna, he saw a golden lotus flower floating on the water and shining brightly like a thousand suns. Vrishabhanu immediately waded into the river and when he came near to the golden lotus flower, he beheld the most beautiful and radiant form of baby girl lying within the petals of the lotus.
At that same moment, Lord Brahma suddenly appeared in the sky and speaking in a grave voice, informed Vrishabhanu that in his previous life, Vrishabhanu and his wife Kirtida had performed great austerities in order to get the consort of Lord Vishnu as their daughter.
Lord Brahma told Vrishabhanu that this girl was the origin of the goddess Lakshmi and that he should take great care of Her. Lord Brahma then placed the baby girl in the arms of Vrishabhanu who became overjoyed, and after taking permission from Lord Brahma, returned to his home.
Seeing the beautiful baby girl shining like millions of autumnal moons, mother Kirtida was overcome with joy and immediately arranged for all kinds of religious rites to be performed and donated thousands of cows to the brahmanas.
At that time baby Radhika was placed in a gem-studded cradle and gently rocked back and forth by all the little girls of the village. Day by day Her luster increased just like the digits of the moon.
Within a short while it was observed that the baby girl made no noise and had not yet opened Her eyes. Vrishabhanu and his wife feared that their baby girl was perhaps blind from birth and also dumb.
At that time, Srila Narada Muni visited the home of Vrishabhanu and informed him that regardless of the girl’s apparent blindness, they should continue with the birth celebrations.
Vrishabhanu therefore made elaborate arrangements for a lavish birth celebration and sent out invitations to all the residents of Ravala and Gokula and especially to his dear friend Nanda Maharaja and his family.
On the appointed day, the guests had assembled and the birth celebrations were going on in great jubilation. Nanda Maharaja and Yashoda Mayi had arrived with Rohini and also brought their small children Krishna and Balarama.
Kirtida met with Yashoda and told her that she was very happy to have such a beautiful daughter, but was feeling rather distraught because her child was both dumb and blind.
Krishna had just passed His first birthday and was happily crawling around the courtyard on His hands and knees. Arriving at the cot in which Radhika was lying, Krishna held on to the sides and managed to lift himself up, He then peered into the cot where His gaze fell upon the beautiful moon-like face of baby Radhika.
As soon as baby Radhika smelt the exotic fragrance of Krishna’s transcendental body, She immediately opened Her eyes for the very first time, and looked directly at Krishna, who was the first person that She had ever seen.
As Krishna gazed lovingly at baby Radhika, He began smiling ecstatically. Radhika then suddenly began to cry and for the very first time she made a sound. Vrishabhanu and Kirtida, along with all the assembled Vrajavasis, were overjoyed to find out that their beloved daughter Radhika, was not blind nor dumb after all.
In the Radha-rasa-sudha-nidhi it says. “So powerful is the glancing of Her eyes, that the flute slips from Krishna’s hands, His peacock crown starts to slip, and His yellow shawl becomes displaced as He swoons and falls to the ground. Alas, will I ever get the chance to serve with love and devotion such a person as Radharani.”

Mayapur Daily Darshan May 12 2016 Candana-yatra Day Four (Album with photos)
Vana Bihari - Frolicking in the forest.
The cows take the lead, directed by Krsna’s flute song, kicking their hind legs in the air, shaking their necks, repeatedly lowing as they turn their heads to glance lovingly at the divine brothers. The cowherd boys play flutes, blow horns, and sing about Krsna’s many victories over the demons as they dance, twirl sticks and show off to their elders in many clever ways. Sometimes the gopas make a single line, each boy holding the dhoti of the boy in front of him, forming a giant colourful serpent that slowly snakes its way into the forest and out of sight.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/A5C5Vn