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January 4. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
By Satsvarupa dasa Goswami.
Prabhupada did not write as a mechanical routine; it was real for him, and so it can be real for us if we tune in to his wave length. Prabhupada refers to this as “submissive aural reception.”
When we can read in this way, it becomes enjoyable. When we read only as duty, we become guilt-ridden. We think, “I know I am supposed to worship this book, so why can’t I? What is wrong with me?” Then we start forcing ourselves and kicking ourselves, “Read Prabhupada! You are supposed to do it!” But if you push and nag a little child, he will not like it and he will rebel. While reading and walking with the Isopanisad, I found myself spontaneously appreciating Prabhupada’s purport, “Hey, this is good!” (I also got renewed appreciation for the fact that the verses were translated by Prabhupada. They had his flavor, “The self-sufficient philosopher who is awarding everyone’s desires since time immemorial …”)
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=4

New Life in Prabhupada’s Books

The Eye to See the I  features 121 reflections on the Bhagavad-gita that make its insights appreciable in brief, relishable nuggets of wisdom. The book published in hard copy on Janmashtami last year is already nearing the end of its first print run and will go for the second print soon. Recently released on kindle, it is now available free for five days from 6^th Jan to 10^th Jan.

Some of the reflections in the book are:

• Money talks – and walks away as it is talking

• We can’t replace the mind, but we can re-place it

• The soul seems far out because it is far in

• Free love is a self-contradiction

• The heart of knowledge is the knowledge of the heart

• Let repetition be a re-petition

• The past won’t last if to Krishna we hold fast

With punchy titles that distill each article’s central message, the Eye to See the I addresses a wide variety of issues, all meant to help us realize and relish the innermost core of our being.

The hard copy of the book can be ordered from voicebooks@voicepune.com and the kindle version can be downloaded from

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Qualification of Guru

Śrīmad Bhāgavata 11.3.21: “śābde pare ca niṣṇātaṁ, brahmaṇy upaśamāśrayam.”

1. Guru has utmost faith in śāstra (śābde pare)
2. and understands and can explain śāstra very clearly and thoroughly (ca niṣṇātam).
3. Guru is fully dedicated to spirituality (brahmaṇyāśraya)
4. and therefore calm and quiet / without selfish desire (upaśama)

Bhagavad Gītā 4.34: “upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ, jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ”

1. Gurus have seen / realized the true nature of consciousness (jñānaṁ tattva darśinaḥ)
2. and they can explain it to others (jñānaṁ upadekṣyanti)

Qualifications of Disciple

Bhagavad Gītā 4.34: “tad viddhi praṇipātena, paripraśnena sevayā”

1. Disciples want to learn. (tad-viddhi)
2. They are humble are receptive to their teacher (praṇipāteṇa)
3. They ask thorough questions (paripraśneṇa)
4. They tend to the guru’s needs (seva)

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 11.3.21: “tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta, jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam”

1. Disciples want to learn (jijñāsuḥ)
2. …about their ultimate welfare (śreya uttama)
3. …so they humbly and receptively seek a teacher (guruṁ prapadya)

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We usually find dīkṣā translated as “initiation” because to “initiate” something is to start it, to set it in motion – and dīkṣā is the thing that starts us in a certain direction.

In bhakti-yoga, dīkṣā is the thing that starts our devotional practices, sādhana-bhakti. Dīkṣā is the beginning of yoga. By dīkṣa we are accepted into a “school” of yoga and begin to be given whatever techniques and materials the school employs in its educational process.

Dīkṣā must be followed by śikṣā, specific and personalized instructions on the school’s philosophy and objectives, and similarly personalized instructions on how to employ the techniques and materials (given through dīkṣā) to realize that philosophy and obtain those objectives.

Dīkṣa and śikṣā are compulsory. In any field, to be guided by an expert is essential, but in bhakti-yoga it is absolutely mandatory because the primary subject (pure love, uttama-bhakti) is so subtle and elusive, and so foreign to our current nature.

There is a single practice which comes before this dīkṣā and śikṣā, it is called śrī-gurupādāśraya – to seek (a) competent guru(s). Of course, some education (śikṣā) is required at this stage as well. Thus śikṣā precedes and proceeds from dīkṣā. The śikṣā prior to dīkṣā however, is less personalized and more focused on basics like learning to identify a guru, and determine the most optimum school for one’s current level of “study.”

There are essential and non-essential components of dīkṣā.

The Essential Components of Diksha

The most essential component of dīkṣā occurs in the heart. The disciple decides to accept someone as his or her guru, guide, sacred teacher – and that person decides to accept the disciple as his or her śiṣya, pupil, sacred student.

The next most essential component of dīkṣā is that the guru transfers specific techniques and materials to the disciple – that he or she will use as the basis of their spiritual discipline and practice. Usually this is gradual, the guru giving the disciple new techniques when he or she is competent and ready for them. In gauḍīya-bhakti-yoga, the most essential among the materials is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and the most essential among the techniques is kṛṣṇa-nāma-saṁkīrtana and specific mantra, especially the two Krishna-mantra beginning “kṛṣṇāya govindāya…” and “kāmadevāya vidmahe…”

These two components are the essence of dīkṣā. Without them, “dīkṣā” is not dīkṣā.  Other components often accompany dīkṣā – to make it more emotional impactful and significant for the disciple, and to help the disciple in other ways. Here are some of those components:

The Non-Essential Components of Diksha

Disciple and Guru express their commitment to one another vocally and/or symbolically, before witnesses – often including sādhus, sacred fire, and the sacred mūrti. 

Guru gives (a) mark(s) to the disciple that visually identify him or her as a member of the school. These often include the following: a specific  tilok mark on the forehead, a specific name, tulasī necklace (and also for kṛṣṇa-nāma-saṁkīrtan), and a specific tattoo or brand.

All of these components are helpful but none are absolutely essential to dīkṣā.

Vraja Kishor dās

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Giriraj Swami and Guru Prasada Swami look back at their service in ISKCON over the last 50 years.

“I remember when a devotee came up to me and said, ‘Ten years ago I met you on the street and you gave me a book. From that book I found a temple and became a devotee.’ That is such a rewarding experience. Sometimes when you distribute books or do any service, you feel a little overburdened because there is so much to do for Krishna. But when you get that reciprocation from the deities or someone you have preached to, it makes everything worthwhile. You think, ‘I can participate in this way in Krishna consciousness.’ That is how I have put my little grain of sand into this movement — by trying to pioneer. And I am still trying to do that to some degree — if Krishna gives me the chance.”

—Guru Prasada Swami

Experiences and Realizations: 50 Years of ISKCON, Dallas

Over the last year the Auckland temple devotees organised about 10 Rathayatras in the area. The big cart was used for the city and a smaller cart for the suburbs and nearby towns.

A few days ago a Rathayatra went around the farm itself and the devotees danced and chanted ecstatically in front of Their Lordships, Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra Devi.

First Harinama of 2016 in Kiev, Ukraine (Album with photos)
Khreshchatyk is the main street of Kiev, Ukraine. The street has a length of 1.2 km. It stretches from the European Square through the Maidan and to Bessarabska Square where the Besarabsky Market is located.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/isKNpY

It was good to see a scholar tackling the uncertain area of morality in Vaishnavism, as did Ms Chatterjee with her essay, 'The Chaitanya School: Role of Ethics'. I found her essay thought provoking and a valuable contribution to what I feel is an area requiring much discussion. Although, as Ms Chatterjee rightly pointed out, Vaishnavism holds that 'spiritual progress is hardly possible without moral endeavour', the first requirement being of course the 'four regulative principles', it is still somewhat hazy, especially amongst ISKCON followers, exactly what our code of ethics should be. Do we follow varnashrama dharma or not? Are Vaishnavas transcendental to all external designations and thus the duties pertaining to them? How much is a Vaishnava serving Krishna to be bound by codes of worldy morality? Of course, one would expect a Vaishnava to display the highest moral character, and indeed Ms Chatterjee's first point was that one who surrenders completely to the Lord will thereby attain similar qualities as those possessed by the Lord. In other words, by virtue of their surrender to God, Vaishnavas should naturally evince all godly qualities. She cites some of the many scriptural verses supporting this point, describing how a genuine sadhu or saintly person will evince superlative standards of morality. Continue reading "A Response to The Chaitanya School: Role of Ethics
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By ISKCON Communications Ministry

“Joy of Devotion” Inspires a Half-Century of Growth

Washington, D.C.—1966 was a significant year. Chairman Mao Tse-Tung’s “Little Red Book” was published for the first time. Despite mass protests, the United States began to bomb Hanoi, North Vietnam’s capital. The Soviet Union’s Luna 9 made the first soft landing on the Moon. Actor Ronald Reagan was elected governor of California. Indira Gandhi visited Washington. Walt Disney died. The Beatles performed their very last concert in San Francisco’s Candlestick Park.

And, on New York City’s lower east side, surrounded by a handful of young followers in a small storefront temple on 2nd Avenue, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada incorporated a fledgling religious society. He named it the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, or ISKCON. On that hot summer day, the 13th of July, the Hare Krishna movement was born.

Few noticed the event. Fewer still would have expected this 70-year old swami and his band of reformed hippies to be more than a blip in the avant-garde history of New York City. But, fifty years later the society Prabhupada created is arguably the largest and most influential of global Vedic (Hindu) organizations, and the 600 plus Hare Krishna temples around the world attract an estimated nine million worshippers per year.

“Besides scholars, few people know the depth of the Krishna movement’s roots in India’s historic Vaishnava tradition, nor ISKCON’s impact as a leading proponent of devotional bhakti yoga around the world,” says Dr. Ravi Gupta, head of Utah State University’s Religious Study Department.

Srila Prabhupada passed away in November 1977. But, the movement he began has proven to be a resilient one. ISKCON today claims not just 600 temples, but 65 eco-farms and 110 vegetarian restaurants. Its affiliated Bhaktivedanta Book Trust is the world’s largest publisher of Vaishnava literature and has distributed 516 million books and magazines.

In addition, ISKCON’s affiliated Annamrita Food Relief program feeds 1.2 million school children every day in India, and ISKCON is the official faith partner with the British government for the Krishna Advanti schools, which oversees multiple schools. ISKCON’s world headquarters in Mayapura, West Bengal India, draws one million pilgrims each year and a new Temple of Vedic Planetarium is under construction that will hold 10,000 people in the main worship hall.

As early as 1975, scholars took note of ISKCON’s growth. Dr. A. L Basham, author of the famed book, “The Glory That Was India,” wrote that “The Hare Krishna movement… is historically very significant, for now, for the first time since the days of the Roman Empire, an Asian religion is being openly practiced by people of western origin in the streets of western cities.”

“ISKCON teaches that every living being is an eternal soul, and that happiness comes from awakening our relationship with God, Sri Krishna, the all-attractive person,” said Anuttama Dasa, ISKCON’s Communication Minister. “People know that a consumer driven life is a dead end; when they experience the joy of bhakti, or devotion, they realize this is what they are looking for.”

ISKCON inaugurates a year of celebrations marking the 50th Anniversary on New Year’s Eve. Throughout the year events will include major Rathayatra (“Giant Chariot”) parades down New York’s 5th Avenue, Washington’s Independence Avenue, Toronto’s Yonge Street, and London’s Trafalgar Square; as well as celebratory festivals and events to coincide with the July 13 anniversary date.

In addition, gala VIP dinners are planned for Sydney, London, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Washington. And, a 64-year old Krishna monk will walk for six months across the entire United States, commemorating Prabhupada’s teachings and ISKCON’s growth across America and the world.

Any discussion on religion remains incomplete without a reference to moral and ethical values. The case of Gaudiya Vaishnavism is no exception to that. It is true that ethics has not been systematically treated by the Gaudiya philosophers and that the issue in question has not been discussed independently, yet the fact remains that morality or ethics remains the sheet-anchor in their thought system. The philosophers of this school maintain that spiritual progress is hardly possible without moral endeavour; hence, they consider religion and ethics as inseparable As a matter of fact, the merging of the two remains an important feature for them. However, in the absence of any methodical exposition, we have to draw largely upon the teachings of Sri Chaitanya and the examples set by him and his close disciples. Continue reading "The Chaitanya School: Role of Ethics
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Mayapur: New Years Evening Kirtan Festival 2016 (Album with HR photos)
Srila Prabhupada: We are not afraid of maya because Krishna is there. Krishna says, “My devotee will never be vanquished by maya.” Maya cannot do anything if we become strong. And what is that strength? Chant Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare loudly. (Lecture on Bhagavad-gita, 3.6.10, Los Angeles 1968).
Find them here: http://goo.gl/09PAXa

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Marriage Anniversary!
Aniruddha Dasa married to Acintya Rupa Dasi for 35 Years!
Shrila Bhaktisiddhata Sarasvati Thakur: “If we simply engage in discussing topics of the Lord while living anywhere by the Lord’s mercy we can realize the glories of devotional service, the Lord’s mercy, and come to remember the Lord in our day-to-day life. A devotee should live wherever the Lord is pleased to keep him and should forget his own material miseries. When the propensity to serve the Lord is awakened in the heart while discussing hari-katha in the association of devotees, then we will automatically remember Hari under all circumstances.

Varnasrama series.

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South Korean Textbooks Reject Evolution.
In South Korea, a growing antievolution movement has successfully laid claim to young students’ minds — or, at least, their textbooks. The country’s Ministry of Education, Science and Technology announced last month that many South Korean textbook publishers will begin producing revised editions that will for the first time exclude discussions and examples of evolution. Biologists in Seoul are alarmed by the move, noting that scientists were not consulted by the ministry in this decision, reports the journal Nature.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/6DCLB

ISKCON Auckland New Zealand: Todays Rathyatra around the farm. (Album with photos) Kumeu, New Zealand.
A great way to start the new year!
Srila Prabhupada: One has to continue chanting the Hare Krishna mantra and preaching the chanting of this mantra because such preaching and chanting constitute the perfection of life. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 4.24.67 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/2PH6fz

Radha Kunda Seva: December 2015 Photos and Updates (Album with photos)
A Blessed and Happy New Year to you all!
It is cold in Vraja now which makes that hot, fresh and wholesome meal all the more valuable to our Radha Kunda ladies. With your support, we are slowly and steadily feeding more and more widows. They enjoyed their usual monthly feast on the 23rd of December, and then were treated by special sponsorship to a Christmas Day feast of puri, sabji, hot pakoras, and vegetable pulau! Our rented facility is a cramped and tight place to serve them, but by splitting them into two shifts, we’ve been making it work. We are excited and hopeful about the up and coming kitchen-building project and we will keep you posted on the progress of that.
Cleaning continues, and as always we feel so fortunate to have a service that keeps our hearts, hopes, and dreams firmly planted in the most sacred place in the universe, Sri Radha Kunda.
Please browse our latest photos and join our efforts by visiting www.radharani.com.
Your servants, Mayapurcandra dasa, Campakalata Devi dasi, Padma Gopi Devi dasi, and Urmila Devi Dasi.
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Mangalore’s Tenth annual Ratha Yatra! (Album with photos)
Indradyumna Swami: Today we had the good fortune to attend ISKCON Mangalore’s 10th annual Ratha Yatra parade through the streets of the city. Both the devotees and the public enjoyed it very much. All glories to the Lord of the Universe - Jagannatha Swami!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/5ZVecB

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January 3. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
By Satsvarupa dasa Goswami.
A possible danger as time goes by is that Prabhupada’s followers may lose touch with his personal nature. We can see this in the history of world religions. In Christianity some of the followers have developed an impersonal attitude toward Jesus Christ, and some may not even believe in his historic reality. They talk about “The Christ within each one of us.” There is also a danger of doing that with Prabhupada. Although we do say that Prabhupada is inconceivable and beyond what we know of him, yet we also know that his personal nature is very real, important, and lasting. He is the pure devotee of Krishna, and his appearance in our lives is still our greatest solace. When Prabhupada delivers us Krishna conscious knowledge, we accept it in parampara and because the knowledge is formidable and appealing – but also because it comes from him. By the sheer number of times we refer to Prabhupada and then turn to him, a strain is placed upon the freshness of our perception. Our desire for novelty is not satisfied. When that happens we look elsewhere for pleasure. And then an unfortunate thing occurs. Despite our official praise for Prabhupada, we find difficulty in reading his books. This is the dreaded rigor mortis that comes from too much institutionalism and not enough personal care for our personal relationship and memories with Srila Prabhupada.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=20490&page=4

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Contacts for writing forums:
1. Back to Godhead international (nagaraja.dasa@gmail.com)
2. BTG India (btgindia@gmail.com)
3. iskconnews.com (editor@news.iskcon.com)
4. dandavats.com (editor@dandavats.com)

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Life Beyond Borders – Radhanath Swami | Veda London

Keeping Personally Connected to Prabhupada