Websites from the ISKCON Universe
It was a tumultuous maha kirtana mele, observed in Iskcon Benin,today September 14,2014. As both old and young enthusiastically vibrates the holy name of our dear most father, Sri krsna. Read more › The post Sunday’s pictures appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.
In all my years of living in Toronto, I’ve never once stepped inside the Hare Krishna Temple. But that all changed a couple weeks ago.
What finally led me to venture inside this historic building?
One word: buffet.
For a glutton like me, simply uttering the word “buffet” is music to my taste buds. I immediately envision myself standing at a long table piling my plate to overflowing with delectable offerings from every possible food group. And the best part? Having free rein to stuff your plate and face over and over again – without people judging you. What a fabulous concept! Read more › 
Bhumi Devi Dasi: There are so many devotees who love and cherish Rose Forkash. She was the originator of the F.O.L.K. program and did so much to help befuddled parents of devotees to understand what their children were doing when they joined the Hare Krsna Movement in the 1970's and 80's. She has stayed close with many of the devotees over the years and chants Hare Krsna on beads every single day of her life. When I visited her recently, we brought some prasadam with us, and before she would honor it, she asked, "Is it offered?" She is so far out! I just love her. She is just like a real mom to me. Happy birthday Rose! May you go back to Godhead…! Oh! I forgot to mention, she is the mother of Lila Sakti devi dasi, one of the greats in our movement, and one of my very closest friends…. May good fortune be bestowed on their entire family! Read more › 
Indradyumna Swami: Concluding a full day of preaching here in Moldova, I met with a group of 40 distinguished scholars, professors, politicians, writers and poets in the evening. They asked many deep philosophical and spiritual questions and each one of them said they were more than satisfied by the answers. The proof came at the end of the program when they all bought copies of Srila Prabhupada's Bhagavad Gita! [ Photos by Mahavan das ] Read more › The post One of the guests asked “Can one chant Hare Krsna without being a devotee?” appeared first on SivaramaSwami.com.
No one can be more pure than devotees. Anyone who once utters the name of Vishnu immediately becomes purified, inside and outside. Since a devotee constantly chants the Hare Krishna mantra, no contamination of the material world can touch him. He is, therefore, actually purified.
(Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.12.37 Purport) Read more › 
Deity Worship at Home Temple Read more › 
1. A reprint of a strong article against cow slaughter appearing in BTG in 1976.
2. A brief appreciation of Vrinda who was rescued from the street seven years ago. She is reciprocating by lactating for two-and-a-half years. She is a champion home-grows tomato!
3. Fourteen Amazing Benefits of Ghee by Diana Herrington.
4. Srila Prabhupada's terse and strong order to the leaders of the Los Angeles Temple to not offer Sri-Sri Radha-Krsna things produced by the karmis.
5. Why Cow Killing Started in India by Manish Goyal (MBA). Interestingly enough, cow slaughter was not started in India by the Moghuls, but by the British!
6. An short story demonstrating that one is never the loser by serving cows.
Read more › 
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has given us a nice weapon for this age. The narayanastra, or weapon to drive away maya, is the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra in pursuance of the associates of Lord Caitanya, such as Advaita Prabhu, Nityananda, Gadadhara and Srivasa. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.11.1 Purport) Read more › 
Spiritual enlightenment is possible by the mercy of the spiritual energy of the Lord. The chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra is first addressed to the spiritual energy of the Lord, Hare. This spiritual energy acts when a living entity fully surrenders and accepts his position as an eternal servitor. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 4.9.6 Purport) Read more › 
"So this festival, taking part in these festivals means a step forward to our self-realization. Rathe ca vāmanaṁ dṛṣṭvā punar janma na vidyate. Simply by seeing the Lord on the chariot, one makes advancement for stopping the repetition of birth and death… This Rathayātrā is one of the activities of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore to take part in the Rathayātrā festival means to associate with Kṛṣṇa directly. So in this way, if we associate with Kṛṣṇa's name, Kṛṣṇa's pastimes, Kṛṣṇa's qualities, Kṛṣṇa's form, then, gradually, we transcend this material existence. Janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ."
Srila Prabhupada, London, July 13, 1972
Your servant,
Kamala Sundari devi dasi Read more › The post September 16th, 2014 – Darshan appeared first on Mayapur.com.
Photography Courtesy: Arjun Bhattacharyya. Anyone who carries Krishna within himself, constantly, can go anywhere and turn the place into a sacred pilgrimage. Letter to Rupanuga, July 3, 1968. Read more › 
After just returning from our summer kirtan tour of America and Canada, we couldn’t be more delighted to be back in the land of Kirtan, Vrindavan, just in time for World Holy Name Week.
We felt a special calling from Srila Prabhupada. A feeling of his Divine Grace’s acceptance to once again allow us to share the holy names at his Samadhi Mandir in Sri Vrindavan Dham.
Each night many hundreds of exuberant young and old, boys and girls would go wild, dancing and chanting to the holy names. Their ears wanted more. Their mouths called out louder. We sang and watched as their hearts transformed.
Read more › Do not concern yourself with students. Do not concern yourself with success. Do not concern yourself with numbers and accomplishments. Concern yourself only with the purity of your own meditation upon Nitya Prākaṭa Śrī Yugāla Rūpa Hari-Nāma Mahā-mantra (“The divine couple’s eternally manifest form as the Hare Krishna mahā-mantra”).
The entire world might chant on beads, follow ekadaśī or do a million other things; they may even all dance in spiritual ecstasy in nām-kīrtan and behold the incalculable beauty of Śrī Gaura Hari, and Śrī Śrī Rāsabihari-bihariṇī. But what benefit will that have for us if we still have not concerned ourselves with the purity of our own meditation upon Śrī Nāma?
We have one primary, sacred responsibility: to purify ourselves of ahaṅkāra (“self-centeredness”) and fill ourselves with prema śakti (“the empowerment of divine love”) emanating from Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and amplifying through her devotees, and then to pour that prema from the golden pitcher of our hearts onto the lotus flower of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Krishna Caraṇāmbujā.
We can help countless people gain an access to the entryway of Krishna Consiousness, we can become capable to transmit bhakti-latā-bīja (“the seed of the vine of spiritual devotion”) to innocent souls who have some inclination towards accepting it if and when we do not lose sight of the real priority and therefore endeavored with great effort, primary focus, and profound sincerity to remove the ahankāra from our hearts and replace it with the sincere aspiration for Krishna prema.
As the world holy name week 2014, entered day 11. The children of Nanda Gram Temple, Nigeria did a play on the holy name. Title of play is Haridash Thakure and the prostitute. Read more › 
One should take shelter of Krishna-Balarama, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose protective power is so great that it cannot be equaled in the material world. However powerful the reactions of one's sins, they will immediately be vanquished if one chants the name of Hari, Krishna, Balarama, or Narayana. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.16 Purport) Read more › 
"Authorities who are learned scholars and sages have carefully ascertained that one should atone for the heaviest sins by undergoing a heavy process of atonement and one should atone for lighter sins by undergoing lighter atonement. Chanting the Hare Krishna mantra, however, vanquishes all the effects of sinful activities, regardless of whether heavy or light." (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 6.2.16) Read more ›