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image source: Mayapur.com, 2014 In order to celebrate the disappearance anniversary of His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, and to seek his favor, the devotees of ISKCON of Philadelphia enthusiastically prepared all the items included in his Bhoga arati song and offered them to Sri Sri Radha Saradbhari and Lord Jagannatha. Sri Sri Radha Saradbhari […]
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Week 18 This week’s report includes the visit of two generous donors who are supporting the ISKCON Relief Team Initiative. They visited Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Poland and were very nicely received by members of our ISKCON Relief Team as well as HH Sivarama Swami. Figures Country Refugees being Hosted Britain (excluding Northern Ireland) […]
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By Kamala Priya Devi DasiThis week's report includes the visit of two generous donors who are supporting the ISKCON Relief Team Initiative. They visited Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland and were very nicely received by members of our ISKCON Relief Team as well as HH Sivarama Swami. Continue reading "ISKCON RELIEF FOR UKRAINE — Week 18 Report
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Kamika ekadasi is celebrated as Krishna Paksha ekadasi in the month of Shravan. Observing this ekadasi is considered as auspicious as performing an Ashwamedha Yajna. As Gaudiya Vaishnavas, our main aim during ekadasi is to decrease bodily demands so we can spend more time in seva, especially hearing and chanting about the Lord’s pastimes and name.
It’s recommended to chant extra rounds and stay up all night chanting and hearing the Lord’s glories. It is also auspicious to donate to Vaishnavas and Lord Krishna’s service on ekadasi and we invite our readers to consider this Kamika ekadasi to donate towards the Give To Nrsimha 2023 Fundraiser. We are focusing on the completion and opening of the entire Nrsimhadeva hall and altar by the Fall of 2023 as a forerunner to the Grand Opening of the TOVP in 2024 when all the Deities will be relocated into Their new home. Please go to the Give To Nrsimha 2023 Fundraiser page TODAY and help complete this offering to the Lord.
NOTE: Kamika ekadasi is observed on July 24 in most parts of the US and on July 25 in India, other countries and some parts of the US. Please refer to your local calendar through www.gopal.home.sk/gcal.
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The saintly king Yudhisthira Maharaja said, “Oh Supreme Lord, I have heard from You the glories of fasting on Deva-sayani Ekadasi, which occurs during the light fortnight of the month of Ashadha. Now I would like to hear from You the glories of the Ekadasi that occurs during the dark fortnight (krishna paksha) of the month of Shravana (July -August). Oh Govindadeva, please be merciful to me and explain its glories. Oh Supreme Vasudeva, I offer my most humble obeisances unto You.”
The Supreme Lord, Sri Krishna, replied, “Oh King, please listen attentively as I describe the auspicious influence of this holy fast day, which removes all sins.
Narada Muni once asked Lord Brahma about this same topic.‘Oh regent of all beings,’ said Naradji, ‘Oh you who sit upon a water born lotus throne, please tell me the name of the Ekadasi that occurs during the dark fortnight of the sacred month of Shravana. Please also tell me which Deity is to be worshipped on that Holy day, the process one must follow to observe it, and the merit it awards.’
Lord Brahma replied, ‘My dear son Narada, for the benefit of all humanity I shall happily tell you everything you wish to know, for just hearing the glories of the Kamika Ekadasi bestows merit equal to that obtained by one who performs a horse sacrifice. Certainly, great merit is attained by one who worships, and who also meditates on the lotus feet of the four-armed Lord Gadadhara, who holds conchshell, disc, club and lotus in His hands and who is also known as Sridhara, Hari, Vishnu, Madhava, and Madhusudana. And the blessings achieved by such a person/devotee who worships Lord Vishnu exclusively are far greater than those achieved by one who takes a sacred bath in the Ganges at Kashi (Varanasi), in the forest of Naimisharanya, or at Pushkara, which is the only place on the planet where I (Lord Brahma) am formally worshipped.
‘But one who observes this Kamika Ekadasi and also worships Lord Sri Krishna achieves greater merit than one who has darshan of Lord Kedaranatha in the Himalayas, or one who bathes at Kurukshetra during a solar eclipse, or one who donates the whole Earth in charity, including its forests and oceans, or one who bathes in the Gandaki River (where the sacred Saligrams are found) or the Godavari River on a full moon (purnima) day that falls on a Monday when Leo (Simha) and Jupiter (Guru) are conjoined (conjunct).
‘Observing Kamika Ekadasi bestows the same merit as donating a milk-cow and her auspicious calf, along with their feed. On this all auspicious day, whosoever worships Lord Sri Sridhara-deva, Vishnu, is glorified by all the devas, Gandharvas, Pannagas, and Nagas. Those who are afraid of their past sins and completely immersed in sinful materialistic life should at least observe this best of Ekadasis according to their ability and thus attain liberation. This Ekadasi is the purest of all days and the most powerful for removing sins of the native.
‘Oh Naradaji, Lord Sri Hari Himself once said about this Ekadasi, “One who fasts on Kamika Ekadasi attains much more merit than one who studies all the spiritual literatures. Anyone who fasts on this particular day and remains awake throughout the night will never experience the anger of Yamaraja, the King of death personified.”
‘It has been seen that whoever observes Kamika Ekadasi will not have to suffer future births, and in the past too, many yogis of devotion who fasted on this day went to the spiritual world. One should therefore follow in their auspicious footsteps and strictly observe a fast on this most auspicious of Ekadasis.
‘Whosoever worships Lord Sri Hari with Tulsi leaves on this day is freed from all implication of sin. Indeed, he lives untouched by sin, as the lotus leaf, although in the water, is untouched by it. Whosoever offers Lord Sri Hari but a single leaf from the sacred Tulsi tree attains as much merit as one who gives away in charity two hundred grams of gold and eight hundred grams of silver. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is more pleased by one who offers Him a single Tulsi leaf than by one who worships Him with pearls, rubies, topaz, diamonds, lapis lazuli, sapphires, gomeda stones (gomaz), cat’s eye gems, and coral.
‘One who offers Lord Keshava newly grown manjari buds from the Tulsi plant gets rid of all the sins he has committed during this or any other lifetime. Indeed, mere darshana of Tulsi on Kamika Ekadasi removes all sins, and merely touching her and praying to her removes all kinds of disease. One who waters Tulsi devi need never fear the Lord of death, Yamaraja. One who plants or transplants Tulsi on this day will eventually reside with Lord Sri Krishna in His own abode. To Srimati Tulsi devi, who awards liberation in devotional service, one should therefore daily offer one’s full obeisances.
‘Even Chitragupta, Yamaraja’s secretary, cannot calculate the merit obtained by one who offers Srimati Tulsi-devi a perpetually burning ghee lamp. So dear is this sacred Ekadasi to the Supreme Personality of Godhead that all the forefathers of one who offers a bright ghee lamp to Lord Shri Krishna on this day ascend to the heavenly planets and drink the celestial nectar there. Whoever offers a ghee or sesame oil lamp to Shri Krishna on this day is freed from all his sins and enters the abode of Surya, the Sun-god, with a body as bright as ten million lamps. This Ekadasi is so powerful that if one who is unable to fast simply follows the practices as mentioned herein, he is elevated to the heavenly planets, along with all their forefathers.
“Oh, Maharaja Yudhisthira”, Lord Shri Krishna concluded, “These were the words of Prajapati Brahma to his son Narada Muni concerning the incalculable glories of this Kamika Ekadasi, which removes all sins. This sacred day nullifies even the sin of killing a brahmana or the sin of killing an unborn child in the womb, and it promotes one to the spiritual world by making one supremely meritorious.
One who kills the innocent, i.e., a brahmin, a child in the womb, a pious and spotless woman, etc., and then later hears about the glories of Kamika Ekadasi will be relieved of the reaction to one’s sins. However, one should NOT think beforehand that one can kill a Brahmin or other innocent people and then go unpunished simply by hearing of this Ekadasi. Such knowing committing of sin is an abomination.”Whosoever hears these glories of the Kamika Ekadasi with faith becomes free of all sins and returns home, back to Godhead – Vishnu-loka, Vaikuntha. Thus ends the narration of the glories of the Sravana-krishna Ekadasi or Kamika Ekadasi, from the Brahma-vaivarta Purana.
This article has been used courtesy of ISKCON Desire Tree).
Once there lived a strong and powerful warrior. During one of his adventures the warrior happened to kill a pious devotee of Sridhara Vishnu. The warrior wanted to perform austerities to get rid of the sin of killing a pious man.
He inquired with the learned saints about an austerity that would help in cleansing the sins of killing a virtuous devotee of Vishnu. The saints asked him to perform the Ekadasi fasting falling during the waning phase of moon in Shravana month as per traditional panchang followed in North India.
The warrior performed the Ekadasi fasting by offering prayers to the Sridhara form of Lord Vishnu. After the fasting and prayers, he gave food to poor people and helped them financially to overcome their difficulties.
Pleased with the devotion of the warrior, Vishnu appeared before him in His Sridhara form and gave him liberation from the sin of accidentally killing a pious man.
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Unique Sponsorship Opportunity: The 31 Dresses Campaign – sponsor an entire set of 31 Deity dresses for one day during the 3-month long TOVP Grand Opening Festival, scheduled for the Fall of 2024. This includes Sri Sri Radha Madhava, Sri Pancha Tattva, Sri Nrsimhadeva and the fifteen new sampradaya acharya murtis. A new set of outfits will be offered every third day of the festival allowing for only 31 sponsorships.
The 2024 Marathon is full-steam ahead. The Pujari Floor is completed and being prepared for the relocation of our beloved Mayapur ISKCON Deities. Now we want to have Their new dresses made as an offering to Them in Their new home to enhance our loving service to Their lotus feet.
This wonderful seva opportunity is available for individual or group sponsors or temples. Already several ISKCON temples such as Vrindaban, Mumbai, Chowpatty, Tirupati and Hyderabad have committed to this service. An individual or group can pay us the cost of the dress design and making ($25,000 by the end of 2023), or a temple can arrange for the design, making and payment themselves and provide the outfits no later than January, 2024.
If you are eager to offer direct service to Radha Madhava, Pancha Tattva, Nrsimhadeva and our acharyas and personally welcome Them to the TOVP, go to the TOVP 31 Dresses Campaign page TODAY before these sponsorships run out.
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