Palace Renovation

By Nityodita das

Recently there was a flurry of pictures online of the Grand Opening of Srila Prabhupada’s Palace, 1979.  The memories evoked from those photos reminded me of the wonderful years spent rendering concrete (pun intended) service there and the community momentum that was built alongside its construction. 

In 1980,  I, along with several devotees were interviewed by BTG magazine and they quoted me as saying that my experience was that building the Palace actually built us into devotees! It was way more than a construction project, it was devotional training in the art of offering love to guru and Krsna! 

Now that the Palace is undergoing major renovation work by hired professionals , I was contemplating how to generate, at least in my own heart, a revival of the original enthusiasm of those special days leading up to and immediately following the several years of grand festivals at the Palace. 

As I was praying, a tiny group of devotees, Trevor, Kalpa, Daivata were pulling me with their invitations to the Palace to attend Prabhupada’s Mangal arotik at 6am. I was torn, as that was my japa time. But after a few days, I agreed to go…just one day….just to “encourage” them. Lol 

But what happened though was truly amazing! Although, there was only a handful of us, the transcendental acoustics generated by the enthusiastic singing of Samsara Davanala Lidha Loka……in the temple room somehow super amplified our voices and I had to look up towards the dome to make sure I wasn’t missing the presence of any demigods singing!  The intimacy I felt between us kirtaneers, who were chanting and dancing with abandon, seemed like something out of Chaitanya lila. This heart to heart feeling was enhanced by Prabhupada’s powerful presence magnified by the compactness of the sacred space of his gold and marbled temple room. 

Prabhupada’s Palace main temple room.

This Kirtan transported me back to a place of intense joy and service, the Grand Opening………..of the heart. This renovation is universal! It is available for all! No previous experience necessary, no resumés required! The only tools needed are your hands for clapping or making music, legs for dancing and voice for singing! No professional chanters needed! 

Now,  I regularly attend Prabhupada’s Mangala arotik every day that I am at New Vrindavan, have made it a regular part of my sadhana and am humbly inviting everyone to help renovate Prabhupada’s Palace! 

Hare Krishna! http://www.dandavats.com/?p=15564

CC-daily Podcast:

Download by "right-click and save content"

Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast

Download by "right-click and save content"

Bhagavatam-daily Podcast

Download by "right-click and save content"

Mayapur’s devotee elefants (Album 35 photos)
See them here: http://goo.gl/4PO6Aw

Parikrama in Varsana (Album 149 photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Although a Vaishnava is the most exalted person, he is prideless and gives all respect to everyone, knowing everyone to be the resting place of Krishna. If one chants the holy name of Lord Krishna in this manner, he will certainly awaken his dormant love for Krishna’s lotus feet. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila, 20.25.26)
See them here: http://goo.gl/mlRZaX

The GBC Visits the Mayapur International School (Album 7 photos)
See them here: http://goo.gl/yW3pfS

The post Bn. Jeny from Ukraine asks how the relationship between guru and disciple is eternal appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.

Hare Krishna! Shastra Dana in Sweden
Our Panca-Tattvas Shastra Dana program has now existed for almost six years. The purpose of the Shastra Dana is to enable everyone to participate in the distribution of Srila Prabhupada’s books and other Vedic literature. Our goal is to present the spiritual knowledge contained in these books to as many people as possible. The books we donate and puts out to various institutions around the country.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=15558

SGGS – Day 2 On day one participants explored ISKCON’s past, examining the trends in and influences on ISKCON, both internal and external. Following that participants began to look at ISKCON’s present on second day. Meeting’s facilitators started with a question: How well do the four groups in the room (the GBC members, the sannyasis, the gurus, and the […]

The post SGGS – Day 2 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

Bhakti Caru tells a story of how Srila Prabhupada was challenged with a question, “Why are you building new temples when so many old temples need renovation?”. The answer reveals why Srila Prabhupada has built so many temples, and especially the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium in Mayapur.

The post His Holiness Bhakti Caru Maharaja Speaks About the TOVP appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Hare Krishna! http://www.dandavats.com/?p=15552

Hare Krishna! Preaching program in Ranchi (Jharkhand, India)
On 9th February, devotees from ISKCON Patna organized first ever program in, Ranchi at Khel Gaon. The program was aimed at providing the basic understanding about following – The purpose of ISKCON, Bhagavad Gita, contribution of Srila Prabhupada to unabridged humanity. Of course the program also had other usual Krishna conscious attractions like Mantra Rock show and prasadam. Rambhadra Das spoke about the problems and shortcomings in today’s modern society and how teachings of Bhagavad gita are the only solution to them.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=15549

Srimad Bhagavatam class by H.H.Radhanath Maharaj in Sri Mayapur International School (Album 24 photos)
See them here: http://goo.gl/KyjdQw

The post February 14th, 2015 – Darshan appeared first on Mayapur.com.

Special Day Meditation Podcast:

Download by "right-click and save content"

07.02.2015 H.G.Jaya Jagannath Prabhu_BG-10.10

Holy Name Meditation Podcast:

Download by "right-click and save content"

The Mayapur ToVP design team have produced a temporary mock-up showing how the Deities and Altars will appear in the new temple.  

The Guru-Paramapara up to the six Gosvamis are placed on the left Altar, the Panca-tattva are on the middle Altar, and Sri Sri Radha Madhava and the Asta-sakhis are on the right Altar.  

All of these Deities are located within the main dome.  Lord Nrsimhadeva will be located in the eastern dome of the temple.

From: Sri Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir / Date: 7 February 2015
Speaker: Giriraja Swami

A small group of devotees went to Madras. We were the first devotees from ISKCON to go. Thinking back on that period and being here in Mayapur, I cannot help but think of Bhavananda Prabhu, who was part of that small party. One day, while we were staying in someone’s home, it was Ekadasi, and it was raining. Acyutananda Swami said that because it’s Ekadasi, it’s not good to go out. He was going to spend the day back at the house.

Bhavananda Prabhu and I were very staunch, enthusiastic, determined preachers, so we said, “You can stay. We are going out to preach. We are going to serve Srila Prabhupada.”

So we went out, and in Madras, at least in that area, there was a pretty deep sewage canal almost three feet deep running along the side of the road. But the rain was coming down so profusely that it completely filled up the sewage canal, and the rainwater flooded over the road and adjoining fields and one could see only water. We were walking on the road, but everything looked the same. It looked like everything was one. Then Bhavananda Prabhu fell into the sewage canal, and he was this deep in water and whatever else was there.

When I met Srila Prabhupada shortly thereafter, I related the incident to him, how we had experienced the Brahman platform of complete oneness. And I told him how Bhavananda Prabhu had fallen in. And Srila Prabhupada replied, “He is more advanced than you, because your knowledge was only theoretical [laughter] and his was realized.” [laughter]

In Bombay Srila Prabhupada had a friend named Dr. Patel. When we first came to Juhu we were living on the roofs of the existing tenement buildings, and then we eventually built a sort of crude hut. And Dr. Patel was very impressed by these American and European young men and women who had left their countries and comforts and had come to India to serve in such austere conditions. He was a proud man—he was a medical doctor who had studied in England and even then had maintained his strict Vaishnava practices, so he was a little proud of himself. But he was so inspired by the devotees that he personally went to the big cloth market in Bombay, MJ Market, and begged cotton and cloth and had mattresses sewn, and pillows made, and got blankets and mosquito nets donated, and he contributed twelve complete sets to that early group of devotees.

Now, those of you who have lived in ashrams may appreciate what Dr Patel experienced. Originally there were twelve mattresses, twelve pillows, twelve blankets, and twelve mosquito nets. But after a while one pillow disappeared, two mosquito nets disappeared, three blankets disappeared, and as time went on, there were hardly any remnants of Dr Patel’s hard-won donation. And eventually there was not a single trace of his donation—not a single thread! [laughter]

So, every morning when Srila Prabhupada was in Bombay Dr. Patel would accompany him on his walk on Juhu Beach. And he brought up the matter of his donation, and he was very upset.

Srila Prabhupada said, “You know why there is nothing of your donation left? Because all of my disciples are mukta, liberated. [laughter] They don’t care for these material things. [laughter] As long as they can chant Hare Krishna and serve their spiritual master, they are happy.”

 ——————————————————-

From Sri Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir / Date: 9 February 2015
Speaker: Hari Vilas Prabhu

Srila Prabhupada says, “I never felt that I am alone. When I came to United States like a pauper, like a poor man, no friends, no money, I was full of faith that my Guru Maharaja is with me. I never lost this faith.”

I have an experience of this. In France we were very poor also.  So Prabhupada wanted us to open a temple. So somehow or other by a miracle we opened a temple. And we invited him to come. So first he went to Moscow and then he came to Paris. The day before he came I was in deep, deep anxiety. We didn’t have any money, we couldn’t buy flowers, we couldn’t buy bhoga, we didn’t have a car, we couldn’t even rent a taxi. That night I could hardly sleep. I woke up very early in the morning, went down to the temple room, I started chanting. I was thinking what are we going to do? We are going to hitchhike to the airport, but we can’t hitchhike back with Prabhupada!

Now this is a true story. I am not making anything up or embellishing it.

While chanting I noticed there was a brown bag in the temple room.  So I picked it up, and I looked inside. It was full of money—more money than I had ever seen in my life! So immediately I put it under my arm and covered it with a chadar. I started to sweat, thinking what will I do if someone comes looking for the bag? So I just started chanting. We had mangala arati. It wasn’t really a temple room, it was just a room with a very small little altar, with a small picture of Panca-tattva and a few pictures of the parampara.

By 11 o’clock in the morning no one had asked me for the bag. We had to pick up Prabhupada at 1 o’clock in the afternoon. So I accepted this as Krishna’s mercy. I gave people money to buy flowers, to buy bhoga, we got a taxi, and we went to the airport. Vyavasayatmika buddhir ekeha kuru-nandana (Bg 2.41): One must have resolute, unflinching faith in the spiritual master and in Krishna: Somehow or other by the good will of Krishna everything will work out.

In 1996 for Prabhupada’s centennial I organized a program in San Jose, California. The guest speaker was Govinda Maharaja, the disciple of Sridhar Maharaja, Prabhupada’s godbrother.

He said, “Today, my dear friends, I have come to make a confession. I think in your Christian religion you make confession. My Guru Maharaja and I were sitting in Navadvipa. And we were getting news that your Gurudeva, your Swami Maharaja, was succeeding in the United States in spreading Krishna consciousness. We could not believe it!”

Now the question is, Why didn’t they believe it?

Because in 1933 Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura sent his best man, the most eloquent, most refined, most intelligent member of the Gaudiya Math to preach in England, and the Gaudiya Math sent him every month Rs 700, which might be like, I don’t know, $7000 dollars or something today. After four years Srila Bhaktisiddhanta called him back to Calcutta. He was hardly able to make one devotee, and when he met him, the ultimate insult was, he said to Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, “Your process doesn’t work!”

Prabhupada came to the West and proved that his Guru Maharaja’s process works, because he had absolute faith in the words of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura.

When I was young devotee, I think it was 1973, I came for the first time to India, and it was the time of Janmastami and then Vyasa Puja. The guest speaker, the honored guest, was the same person who had gone to England and failed. At that time the temple was not yet built. It was a construction site. I was sitting on a sand pile. There was no running water. You had to draw water from a well. But we were happy because we were with Prabhupada. On that day Prabhupada was sitting on his vyasasana, and we were trying to glorify him.

Gargamuni got up to speak, and he said, “Prabhupada is the only disciple of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura who had so much faith in his guru that he was willing to risk everything—his life, his health, everything—to please his guru. Not one of his godbrothers was able to do this.”

I was a little embarrassed when he said it. I was looking at the honored guest. I was thinking, “Why is Gargamuni speaking so strongly like this?” But the honored guest did not bat an eyelash. But when I looked at Prabhupada, I saw that he was smiling, he was very happy.

Gargamuni said, “Prabhupada did what his Guru and all the parampara wanted: prthivite ache yata nagaradi-grama/ sarvatra pracara haibe mora nama.

Again I looked at the guest, and again he was stoic. I looked at Prabhupada, and he was beaming. Then I thought in my heart, “One day I want to speak like that to glorify Prabhupada.”

And then the guest was given a chance to speak, and he said, “We cannot but accept the fact that your Swami Maharaja has done great service.”

CC-daily Podcast:

Download by "right-click and save content"

Gita Verse-by-verse Study Podcast

Download by "right-click and save content"

Bhagavatam-daily Podcast

Download by "right-click and save content"

Holy Name Meditation Podcast:

Download by "right-click and save content"

The Temple of the Vedic Planetarium is Rising! Srila Prabhupada's gift to Lord Chaitanya is nearing completion of the first stage. Be a part of all the intricate work that's gone into the construction last year by a dedicated team of devotees at Sridham Mayapur in West Bengal, India. A film by Sridama dasa and the team at the TOVP.

Hare Krishna! Beyond Conditioning
Sukadeva Goswami says: “These sins are like the dried leaves of creepers beneath a bamboo tree, which may be burned by fire although their roots remain to grow again at the first opportunity” (SB 6.1.13). The problem of sinful desires, or what may be more neutrally called addictive behaviours, has been of great interest in modern psychology. Different schools of thought have approached the problem differently, but perhaps the most prominent in recent modern history has been the behaviourist school of psychology.
Read the entire article here: http://www.dandavats.com/?p=15546

His Holiness Radhanath Swami implores us to take advantage of this invaluable opportunity to assist Srila Prabhupada in manifesting the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium. This project has the potential to attract the world to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. (2 min video)
Watch it here: http://goo.gl/ou4Poe

HH Gour Govinda Swami’s disappearance festival in Mayapur 2015 (Album 55 photos)
See them here: http://goo.gl/o8KArF

Beautiful Sridham Mayapur - various scenes - February 11, 2015 (Album 107 photos)
See them here: http://goo.gl/nnhjnZ

On this third and last day, participants took on the task of looking seventy years into the future, when all of Srila Prabhupadas disciples – and even most of the devotees who took initiation not long after Srila Prabhupadas departure – will certainly have left the planet. The participants were asked to envision what kind of ISKCON they would like to see – what a highly successful ISKCON would look like.