Planet ISKCON

24hours kirtan – Goverdhan dhari Prabhu

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Srimad Bhagavatam class on 3.10.18-22 at ISKCON, Melbourne
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When the bowman Dhruva heard the sage’s advice, he purified himself with drops of water and invoked the Nārāyaṇa Arrow upon his bow. As soon as it appeared that weapon dispelled all the magic cast by the mysterious foe, just as the dawn of knowledge dispels the illusion of suffering. That arrow was pure gold, and its feathers were those of a great swan. When it leapt from the bow it became a multitude of arrows piercing the enemy ranks with terrible noise, like flocks of peacocks flying into a forest.

Persecuted by the razor-sharp arrows falling everywhere, those gods became enraged and charged towards the bowman with their weapons held high – like serpents raising their hoods to attack Garuḍa. But as they rushed towards him the arrows pierced their arms, legs, necks and guts, delivering them to the paramount locus, beyond the realm of the sun, which the celibates attain.

Manu’s Consternation

Manu was very sorry when he came to see his grandson in his amazing chariot killing the offenseless mysterious gods. He approached Uttānapāda’s son with many sages, to give him good advice.

“Enough, child!” Manu said. “Excessive anger is the gate to darkness. It is awful that you have killed these gods, who did no wrong. My dear, your reprehensible deeds speak ill of our whole dynasty. You are killing the sub-divinities who have done nothing to you! One of them offended us by killing your brother. Out of affection’s grief you’ve killed so many of them, just because they are somehow related to your brother’s killer. Sādhus who are devoted to Hṛṣīkeśa never behave like this! This hatred for others is the way of animalistic men who embrace their external body as the true self.

“You worshipped Hari to the extreme, because he is the supreme foundation of everything, the true soul of all beings, and the true essence of all things. And you hope to always remember Hari and his beloveds. So why are you doing such abominable things? Should we think that this behavior is the result of your great vows?

“The All-Attractive soul-of-all is very pleased by forgiveness, compassion, and friendship given equally to all creatures. Pleased by such people, the All-Attractive liberates them from their enthrallment with an externally qualified concept of existence, and grants them uninterrupted spiritual bliss.”

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Translation of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 4.11.1 ~ 14

by Vraja Kishor dās

VrajaKishor.com

Tagged: Anger, Forgiveness, hate, Love

Wandering Mind Syndrome - we all get it but what's the solution? Try reading the mantra during Japa, it's a powerful way to bring the mind back to the sound. Your mind will also respond to loud chanting - sometimes I cup my hand over my ear and it acts like an amplifier.
Whatever we need to do to bring the mind back to the sound....we have to do it now!

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 22 December 2014, Cape Town, South Africa, Disciple Meeting)

Comment: You were saying how the altar is actually the spiritual world. However, I experience how personal worship of the deity can become mechanical, like a routine ten minute puja.

It can be but if every day, you try to do something special then it does not become mechanical. That is the trick. See, if you just do the standard way every day, then it becomes mechanical but if you go a little bit beyond and try to do something extra – that is what keeps the freshness. We should get on the platform of trying to do something extraordinary and that is the way to get out of any mechanical relationship, not only with the deity but also any other relationship.

In a marriage as well, it becomes mechanical after a while, ‘Here is your brekky!’  and then, one day you go out of your way and prepare a special breakfast and he goes like, ‘Whoa! What’s that!? Mmmmm! May I have more of that, please!’  Then there is some magic and it comes from making a special endeavor. That is the nature of relationships and deity worship is all about relationship – to do something special for our deity. It is then that the relationship comes to life.

We have to be careful also because the deity may go away. What if Krsna comes in your dreams and says that he now wants to go away somewhere else? Therefore we must be very careful not to become mechanical.

Rathayatra in Rome, Italy (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: “The essence of all Vedic knowledge—comprehending the three kinds of Vedic activity, the Vedic hymns, and the processes for satisfying the demigods—is included in the eight syllables Hare Krishna Hare Krishna. This is the reality of all Vedanta. The chanting of the holy name is the only means to cross the ocean of nescience.” (Narada-pancharatra)
See them here: https://goo.gl/evrJgV

Hare Krishna! Sannyasa initiation of HG Lilasukha Dasa at ISKCON Leicester
His Grace Lilasukha Dasa received sannyasa initiation this morning (31st May 2015) from his own spiritual master His Holiness Bhakti Caru Swami Maharaja. His sannyasa name is His Holiness Bhakti Prabhava Swami. Four other sannyasis were also witness to the momentous occasionÑHH Prahladananda Swami, HH Dhirasanta Swami, HH Dayananda Swami and HH Bhakti Prem Swami. The ceremony took place at ISKCON Leicester, and the event was presided over by Sri Sri Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra, Sri Sri Panca Tattva and Srila Prabhupada. Senior devotees and leaders from around the country also attended the initiation.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17667

Hare Krishna! Kirtana-Yoga and the Maha-mantra
The word kirtana means “praise” or “glory” and is the name given to glorification of God in song, especially in call-and-response style. There are different categories of kirtana. For example, nama-kirtana refers to singing God’s sacred names, lila-kirtana celebrates the transcendental activities of God and His associates, sankirtana is group singing, and nagara-sankirtana is public chanting in the streets. There are numerous variations of these. Closely related is bhajana, or prayerful song. Devotees generally stand or dance while performing kirtana, and they sit to conduct bhajana. In addition, bhajana is generally more subdued than kirtana.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17664

Ratha Yatra in Rome, Italy, 2015 (2 min video)
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/hykzYs

Brisbane Ratha Yatra 2015 (Album with photos)
Following the success of the festival from last year, Lord Jaganatha, Baladev and Lady Subhadra have grace us again riding atop the fabulous Rath cart!
See them here: https://goo.gl/yp60t6

Panihati & Snana-Yatra - 31 May 2015 (Album with photos)
ISKCON New Govardhana - Sri Sri Radha Govardhanadhari
Hare Krishna Farm Community in Australia
See them here: https://goo.gl/KfwFb4

Hare Krishna! Out of the Woman Comes the Man, Spends the Rest of His Life Getting Back When he Can
The chanting of the holy name is initially undertaken on the basis of duty, vows and jnana etc., but until it happens on the basis of taste, with our hearts sufficiently purified to the point that the chanting of the holy name is something that is more or less spontaneous, then the possibility, if not probability of fall down will always be with us. Hence until we reach these higher levels of taste and realisation we need the assistance of a proper social structure in the form of the varnasrama system. Being situated properly in the varnasrama system will greatly protect us from our lower natures. This protection comes directly to women and indirectly to men via the culture of protection and respect of the fair sex.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=2232

The post Nitai-kirtana, Pestine and Matsya ask about how devotees would go to heaven, attending karma schools and whether Lord Rama is svayam-bhagavan appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

On Sunday, May 17th, the TOVP North American Tour arrived in New Orleans, Louisiana to visit the ISKCON temple, fondly named mini-Mayapur by His Holiness Jayapataka Swami because of its congregation of Bengali devotees, many from Sridhama Mayapur. We were greeted by a rousing kirtan and brought to the temple room where the Lord’s Padukas and Sitari received an elaborate abhisheka.

Later in the evening the TOVP presentation was made to a packed temple room full of devotees who drive taxis for a living to maintain their families and support the temple. This was evidenced by the fact that at least 15-20 taxis were parked right outside the temple. Radha Jivana prabhu gave a heartwarming and emotional presentation, and Jananivas prabhu, endeared by all the local devotees as their siksha guru, spoke about Mayapur and the importance of serving this great project.

After the presentation devotees were requested by Radha Jivana to offer their pledges and, one by one, devotees began to sponsor Silver Gratitude Coins for $11,000. There was no end to the pledges. They simply kept coming in until the number of pledged Silver Coins reached 40, more than at any temple previously visited! Along with some Radha Madhava, Pancha Tattva, and Nrsimha Bricks, and Square Foot pledges, the total pledges reached an astounding $460,000 that evening. The ecstatic group of devotees then broke into a half-hour long kirtan, after which prasadam was served.

The post TOVP Daily Tour Day 67 – Vaisnava Taxi Drivers in New Orleans Pledge Half-a-Million Dollars to the TOVP appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Hare Krishna! Finding Shelter in True Identity
“One who has taken his birth as a human being in the land of India should make his life successful and work for the benefit of all other people.” (Sri Chaitanya-caritamrita, Adi-lila 9.41) Even though I wasn’t born in India, I’d like to take Lord Chaitanya’s instruction to heart. I’m an Indian-American in touch with Srila Prabhupada’s philosophy, so I feel well equipped with both cultures.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17659

Saturday Harinama Union Square, New York City, USA (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Sri Sankaracarya says: na hi na hi raksati dukrn karane. “Simply by juggling grammatical suffixes and prefixes one cannot save himself from the clutches of death.” The grammatical word jugglers cannot bewilder a devotee who engages in chanting the Hare Krishna naha-mantra. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, 7.73 Purport)
See them here: https://goo.gl/QIz19x

For the pleasure of our Ever Will-Wisher Srila Prabhupada (Album with photos)
Kalasamvara Das: Rasaparayana and his dedicated team adding 24 carat gold leaf to Srila Prabhupadas vyasana as part of 50 th anniversary celebrations.
See them here: https://goo.gl/jhkJ6a

Hare Krishna! Selling 15" neem wood Gaur-Nitai deities
Baltimore, Iskcon temple store named - ‘Bhakti Treasures’.. selling 15" neem wood Gaur-Nitai deities.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=17655

Contemporary Krishna Culture Showcase, London, UK (Album with photos)
A few photos from the magical night in Camden Centre, on the 28th of May.
A little photo update of the Contemporary Krishna Culture Showcase that took place on Thursday at Camden Centre featuring the incredible Samadhi Dance Company, Ananda Monet and Jahnavi Harrison. The evening was a success and we are still getting lots of amazing feedback from the guests! Check out these pictures by Yusra Ali to get a glimpse of this epic night.
See them here: https://goo.gl/ALxcdE

Sadhu Sanga 2015 (Album with photos)
There is no greater misfortune in this world then being bereft of the association of the devotees, particularly members of Srila Prabhupada’s family and the holy names. there is no greater fortune then being in the association of our glorious devotee family members chanting the holy names and hearing the glories of the Supreme Lord and His devotees - HG Malati Devi Dasi
See them here: https://goo.gl/0ReWcL

Daytona Beach, Florida Rathyatra (2015): 45 Photographs
Srila Prabhupada: Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s transcendental mission is to distribute love of Godhead to everyone. Anyone who accepts God as the Supreme can take to the process of chanting Hare Krishna and become a lover of God. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, 4.41 Purport)
See them here: https://goo.gl/49CNCD

Mangala Aarti Iskcon London

By Madhava Smullen

On March 14th, ISKCON New Vrindaban and Eco-Vrindaban board members as well as community residents wrapped up a busy first day of spring board meetings by spending time with the person whose vision lights the way ahead for them – Srila Prabhupada.

Having bonded and inspired New Vrindaban residents for the past two years, the regular “Prabhupada Sangam” organized by Kripamaya Das and his wife Krsna Bhava Dasi in the gorgeous temple room of Prabhupada’s Palace was a perfect cap to the day.

This particular Sangam featured a 130-picture slideshow entitled “Voyage to the West: Why and How the Hare Krishna Movement Came to America” by professional storyteller Sankirtan Das. Sankirtan plans on showing it in schools and universities around the country in honor of the 50th anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s journey from India to the West.

After a melodic bhajan led by Bhakta Will to set the mood, the gilded gold and marble temple room fell into darkness and devotees leaned forward eagerly to see the show.

As images of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu filled the presentation screen, Sankirtan’s clear, dramatic voice narrated the history of Mahaprabhu’s sankirtan movement, which caused a spiritual revolution in 16th century West Bengal.

Sankirtan then described how 500 years later, Srila Prabhupada took the cargo ship Jaladuta to the Western World, bringing with him only seven dollars in rupees, a case of books, and Sri Chaitanya’s simple message – love God, or Krishna, who is our dearmost friend.

Setting the scene for Prabhupada’s arrival, Sankirtan described how the hippy movement of 1960s America was the reaction of dissatisfied youth to the directions their elders had taken, such as rampant consumerism and the Vietnam War.

Ironically, Srila Prabhupada, at seventy years old, was just the person they were looking for. He was “the downtown Swami,” accessible to everyone. And he had a message that could change the world.

In 1966, when many newspapers including the New York Times ran headlines about his first chanting party at Tompkins Square Park, Prabhupada announced, “Now my movement has begun.”

From there Sankirtan described how ISKCON quickly grew, and listed all of Prabhupada’s achievements: how he circled the globe 14 times in 12 years, established 108 temples, wrote 80 books, and left us “a wonderful lifeline in the Hare Krishna mantra.”

Sankirtan also mentioned Srila Prabhupada’s 1976 visit to New Vrindaban, during which Prabhupada stayed for nine days in the house where Sankirtan lives now. “Today,” Sankirtan said, showing a photo of Prabhupada talking on his lawn, “New Vrindaban residents continue to try to realize his vision for the community.”

As the lights came up, New Vrindaban co-GBC Anuttama Das asked everyone to think about ways they could publicly celebrate Prabhupada’s arrival in the West this year, and ISKCON’s 50th anniversary in 2016. One idea, he suggested, was to participate in World Harinama Day on the 50th anniversary of the first Tompkins Square Park Harinama.

Others then shared their experiences of how Srila Prabhupada had impacted their lives.

Professor Burke Rochford, who has studied ISKCON since the 1970s, recalled how when he had just started his research, he hadn’t met Prabhupada, but all the devotees kept talking about him. Rochford couldn’t quite understand their devotion to him until he saw Prabhupada himself.

“I was there in 1975 when he visited Los Angeles,” he said. “And when he got out of the car, there was this explosive energy, and it just hit me, what he meant to people. That event really impressed on me his significance to all the devotees.”

Next Nityodita Das spoke about how before becoming a devotee he was riding a wave of rebellious movements. “I remember I was staying in a teepee, and someone gave me a copy of Prabhupada’s Sri Isopanisad,” he said. “In one fell swoop, just one sentence completely dissipated my attraction to Marxism.”

Finally local Wheelinger Bhakta Trevor shared the perspective of a newcomer who received Prabhupada’s grace through his devotees. “I was born in the area, but moved a lot and only heard about Prabhupada’s Palace in 2009,” he said. “A friend showed me a photo and I was immediately attracted.”

Trevor described how he began to visit New Vrindaban often and asked if he could help out. His story about mistakenly chainsawing up an entire tree that Madhava Gosh Das had asked him to cut just one branch off had the room in stitches.

“Madhava Gosh was very forgiving about the whole thing,” Trevor said. “I figured I couldn’t just show up once and butcher a tree, so I kept coming. What inspired me to stay was the devotees and how loving they are.”

The stories created a warm, sharing mood that continued on as everyone participated in an enthusiastic arati led by Dayavira Das, and finally sat down together to a delicious prasadam feast.

"But we must always know that there is nothing more pleasant than Hare Krishna. When we will be able to relish the transcendental pleasure, in chanting Hare Krishna, that will be the sign of our recovery from material diseases."

Letter to Tamala Krishna - Montreal, July 16 1968

The glorious disciples of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Bath Rathayatra, UK (Album with photos)
A beautiful Rathayatra was held in sunny Bath today. An intimate gathering of devotees assembled to partake in this transcendental parade. We met many lovely local people who joined us in the Royal Victoria Park for bhajans and Prasadam at the end. Jai Jagannatha, Baladeva, Subhadra! Jai Srila Prabhupada!
See them here: https://goo.gl/AQDHO0