Planet ISKCON

The BBC's popular religious/ ethics program Sunday Morning Live, broadcast Sunday 23rd August

Here is the remedy for eliminating all inauspicious things within the heart which are considered to be obstacles in the path of self-realization. The remedy is the association of the Bhāgavatas. There are two types of Bhāgavatas, namely the book Bhāgavata and the devotee Bhāgavata. Both the Bhāgavatas are competent remedies, and both of them or either of them can be good enough to eliminate the obstacles. A devotee Bhāgavata is as good as the book Bhāgavata because the devotee Bhāgavata leads his life in terms of the book Bhāgavata and the book Bhāgavata is full of information about the Personality of Godhead and His pure devotees, who are also Bhāgavatas. Bhāgavata book and person are identical.

Here's Jagattarini Mataji from Sacred India in Perth, Western Australia, reciting a translation of the ancient Sanskrit text known as Bhumi Gita- The Song of Mother Earth. This text was composed thousands of years ago... interesting to hear this rendition in the context of current global power struggles.

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Nrsimhananda das:Caitanya Mahaprabhu proclaims that the Holy Names will be glorified in every town and village. In our village within a town, the local Topanga Canyon media resonated Lord Jagannath's mercy. Even though He could not appear on the beach amongst ten thousand or so happy festival goers, He found his way into every home in our small community nestled in the mountains of Los Angeles county.

Below is a letter to His Holiness Jayapataka Swami from Ambarisa and Braja Vilasa prabhus recognizing the auspicious 50th anniversary of his acceptance of the sannyasa order in 1970.

Dear Jayapataka Maharaja,

Please accept our obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to you!

On the most auspicious celebration of your 50th Anniversary of taking the sannyasa order on August 26th, 2020 we wish to humbly bow down to your lotus feet and praise your amazing, widespread and exemplary service to Srila Prabhupada for the last almost six decades. You are a pillar of seva to our divine master and an inspiration to every member of ISKCON. We all owe you our gratitude and thanks for helping to maintain his Institution through so many trials and tribulations, and for expanding it worldwide through your ideal preaching.

Not only the two of us, but the entire TOVP Team are happy to celebrate this event in your honor. You are our staunchest supporter and representative, and we could not have accomplished all that we have without your help from the very beginning. We are eternally indebted to you for your determination to complete the TOVP, and our prayer to Srila Prabhupada, the Pancha Tattva and Sri Sri Radha Madhava is that you remain healthy and active for many years to come to see to its completion in your lifetime.

With utmost sincerity and humility we and the entire TOVP Team take shelter of your lotus feet to empower us to continue with this most important service to Guru and Gauranga.

Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga ki jaya!!!

Your servants,
Ambarisa das
Braja Vilasa das

 To honor Maharaja and help him complete the TOVP we request all his disciples and followers to take advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of sponsoring an abhisheka for the Grand Installation of the new Prabhupada murti in the TOVP in February, 2021.

‘Lock down’ – is the first adjective that glares out during this pandemic. However, that could not be the answer for the dream project of our beloved Founder Acharya. Every day of this challenging period has been harnessed at the Architects’ Desks to ensure excellent preparedness for construction.

The conclusive exercise prior to construction is creating mockups for detailed features of inlays and carvings. It is very exciting to share with you that the stapathis have done an impeccable job carefully choosing the appropriate stone pieces, whose grain direction compliments the design flow. This exercise is captured in the report, and done at zero cost by the stapathi in great partnership with our team. The mock ups have been a great success!

Additionally, the Sandstone vendors are ready with manufacturing and carving of the elements contracted to them. The good news is that it is now complete and awaits indication from us to be dispatched.

All accolades to our dear Ambarisa Prabhu. The love, guidance and empowerment that he has bestowed upon the team has created an undaunted motivation to forge towards that grand day…

Click here to see it in your browser or download a copy to your desktop for offline reading.

HH Radhanatha Swami, HH Bhakti Raghava Swami, HG Vaisesika Prabhu and HG Bhima Prabhu.

HH Radhanatha Swami, HH Bhakti Raghava Swami, HG Vaisesika Prabhu and HG Bhima Prabhu.

Lalita Devi was born in the village of Karhala, and later on her father brought her to Uccagaon, which is known as the place of her pastimes. There are still many remains of her having lived there, like a rock containing the imprints of her lotus feet.

There are also imprints of some small utensils she used when she and the other sakhis fed Lord Krsna, when He would come to visit them. When the sun-rays fall on the imprints of those pots and plates, they glitter and shine. All the sakhis used to play with Krsna and Lalita in Uccagaon, and there are many places there where you can see their footprints to this day.

There are four types of sakhis: svapaksa, vipaksa, tatastha and suhrt. Sva-paksa means those sakhis who are totally on the side of Srimati Radhika. Vipaksa means those gopis who are totally on the opposite side, i.e. supporting Candravali and opposed to Radhika. Tatastha means those who are neutral towards Srimati Radha Rani and more favorably inclined towards Candravali. Suhrt means those who are more favorably disposed towards Srimati Radhika and neutral towards Candravali.

Lalita-devi and Visakha-devi are examples of gopis who are svapaksa to Srimati Radhika, Candravali is vipaksa, Bhadra is tatastha, and Syamala is suhrt.

Lalita Devi is the prime ashtasakhi of the eight primary sakhis of Srimati Radharani. She generally has the same loving attitude towards both Radha and Krishna, yet she is more protective of and loyal to Srimati Radharani. Lalita sakhi is always favorably disposed towards the pastimes of Radha and Krishna, and she always tries to please Them. When Radha and Krishna meet and engage in amorous pastimes, Lalita gently wipes away the perspiration on Their lotus feet.

On the northern petal of Ananga-sukhada Kuñja, there is a beautiful kuñja covered with various kinds of flowers and trees. This place is known as Lalitanandada Kuñja and is the color of lightning. The lovely Lalita Sakhi always lives here. She has a beautiful bright yellow (gorocana) complexion and wears a dress the color of peacock feathers. She is adorned with celestial ornaments and personifies the type of bhava known as khandita. She and Sri Krishna are very, very dear to each other and her sea is to bring camphor and tambula to Him. Her age is 14 years, 8 months and 27 days. 

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The post Isnt it ego to think that a service won’t happen without us? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 13 September 2018, Durban, South Africa, Northdene Program Lecture)

As Radhastami is approaching, we are beginning to think about Srimati Radharani whose pure devotion is unrivaled. No one can display as much love for Krsna as Radharani does and no can serve Krsna in the way She can. Therefore, we aspire to be dasanudasanudasa – we aspire to be the servant of the servant of the servant of the gopis who are the servants of Srimati Radharani, and in this way, we approach this upcoming Radhastami in the mood of devotional service.

Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur writes in his book, the Prema Samputa, a pastime of Srimati Radharani after her marriage when She was living in Yavat. Yavat is not the place that Srimati Radharani grew up in. It was the house of Her in-laws and there, She was practically like a prisoner where She was being constantly surveyed as no one trusted Her. In this pastime, an extraordinary effulgent personality appeared in the form of a very celestial lady, a goddess, in the courtyard of the house of Srimati Radharani. So Radharani sent some gopis to meet this goddess and greet her, but the goddess was not replying. The gopis thought that was awkward and they discussed it amongst themselves that the goddess must be in a distressed state of mind and therefore did not want to speak. They went to Radharani with this information.

So Srimati Radharani personally went to pacify the goddess and said, “I understand that something must be burdening your heart, but you must know that once you speak of the burdens of your heart, it will bring you great relief. Here, you are amongst girls who are like-minded, therefore this is a perfect situation for you to open your heart and simply speak of whatever is burdening you!” The goddess then spoke and said that she is, in fact, one of the demi-goddesses who is witnessing everything and she can see what was going on between Radha and Krsna. This goddess said, “This is too much! I cannot tolerate it any longer! I cannot tolerate the way Krsna is dealing with you. You are so dedicated to Him, you give Him everything, you are fully devoted to Him and yet His behaviour is just shocking. How can he treat you like this?!” Srimati Radharani then responded, “No no no, you do not understand. As I am always thinking of Krsna, Krsna is always thinking of me. We are one in thought. There is no such thing as separation, we are always united!” The goddess then said, “My dear Radharani, I understand You feel like that, but do You think that is really true? Maybe this is what You want it to be… maybe this is what You are imagining it to be… but how do You know Krsna always thinks of You?” Radharani said, “I have no doubt at all. I know this about Krsna.” The goddess then followed, “I just cannot believe this. I will only believe this if somehow or other, You can think of Krsna and bring Him here. Since You are saying that You are one in thought with Krsna, then He should know this and then He should come here.”

Following this, Radharani said, “Okay, I can do this.” She closed Her eyes in meditation and got absorbed in Krsna. Then, when She reopened Her eyes, the goddess had disappeared but instead, Krsna was present right there! In this way, somehow or other, Krsna manifested Himself. First as a goddess, and then upon meditation, He manifested Himself again. So here we see in the Prema Samputa that although Radharani and Krsna are two, They are actually one.

The article " No such thing as separation, we are one in thought! " was published on KKSBlog.

Jagannatha Kirtanananda Das speaks to HG Jananivas Das & HG Pankanjanghri Das on the ‘Early Mayapur with Srila Prabhupada’.

Her Grace Bhumi dd (ACBSP) is one of ISKCON's early pioneers. She joined at the tender age of 19 and has served Srila Prabhupada's mission since then as a leading book distributor and cook. She has never taken anything for herself, but now she needs help. Recently Bhumi was diagnosed with ovarian cancer which has resulted in bone osteoporosis and a fractured spine. She has used up all her life savings paying for expensive medical treatment. Now, unable to even pay her rent, she faces the danger of eviction. Continue reading "Big seva opportunity: Help Bhumi’s campaign
→ Dandavats"

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Transcription :

Does love exist in the material world- The Monks Podcast with HG Garuda Prabhu

Transcript of the various topics perfectly summarised by Chaitanya Charan Prabhu from @1.47.38:

So, we discussed today if there’s love in the material world, and I shared my experience of my parents’ love. And you said that in one sense it’s obvious that this is love. But why is there this understanding there’s no love? Because of the nature of Prabhupada’s discourse and our understanding of Prabhupada. So Prabhupada had a dramatic way of presenting things where sometimes he made one statement where he was quite extreme, but then he would make another statement.

Then I think this “kanistha madhyama uttama; this is the most distinctive thing which stands out in our conversation. So, the kanistha mode is just taking one statement and absolutizing it. But the madhyama is more inductive; trying to make sense of various statements one by one. But deductive is understanding the whole purpose. And then he said “a most natural form of intuition”; where you see the part in the context of the whole; and that was profound!

Then you discussed where there is no love in the world. So, those kinds of statements are primarily delivered in a particular context. As devotees, Prabhupada also said in The Nectar of Devotion, that there is nobody who can live without loving. So, we discussed further also how in Prabhupada’s statements, sometimes he talked about how condemning people is Kanistha mentality; trying to understanding people is Madhyama mentality and trying to see how these people are already connected with Krishna and connecting them further, that is Uttama mentality. So that was beautiful again.

Another striking point discussed was that of thin, finely veiled form of lust. So, in the name of love and conforming to standards there, somebody might be exercising it. So, somebody might say “I am protecting you from lust”, like an authority might be saying that to a subordinate, “I am protecting you from lust”, but they might themselves be in lust. So, lust means basically wanting to control others. Or rather you put it that when “our need for the other person is more than our caring for that person”. So “I need you to maintain my image and I am such a great trainer of devotees and then you are spoiling my image then and that will not work”.

Then you talked about humility and passion; you mentioned that humility means to accept people where they are at, and passion means that we want to help them and one way we help them is to help them grow to elevate to come to the standard. Then another striking point in that connection was that, when we try to help, when we think we are helping people, we may end up hurting them.

You talked about being:
1. Narrow minded
2. Open minded
3. Broad minded

That was also beautiful. So many devotees may get hurt if the authorities are in a narrow-minded phase, narrow minded frame. We then discussed also how the movement is meant to nourish the devotees through the six full exchanges, but sometimes the movement may mandate at who is a devotee, who is a non-devotee. And then if we are relating with people based on only the institutional norms, that’s not real love. We accept the person for who they are; and if somebody goes off, go understand them and then see how we can help them.

You spoke about this spiritual guidance when you do “pariprasnena”. That is, it is not just about giving standards, but dealing with the nitty-gritties of how those standards are to be implemented and then having the vulnerability sometimes, that we may not know how to implement certain standards. Hence depending on the particular ashram, so, we can focus more on universal principles, than specific technicalities, specifics of the applying. So, love now exists everywhere, but love in its fullest exists in Krishna. And our challenge is not to reject all the other loves, but to help people grow from where their love is, toward loving Krishna.

Garuda Prabhu: “Beautifully put, yes.”

Chaitanya Charan Prabhu: “Any concluding words prabhu? This is so amazing.”

Garuda Prabhu: “I think that you if you were a university student of mine, I would have just given you an A.”

Chaitanya Charan Prabhu: “Haha Thank you, maybe in a future lifetime. I’ll have that thought too.”

Garuda Prabhu: “No, in the future lifetime, I will be your student. But no, you’ve, I think you’ve summarized beautifully. I appreciate so much how you are really tuning into these ideas. And that makes our conversation and dialogue very enjoyable for me. So I appreciate the opportunity, Chaitanya Charan ji. That’s all I have to say.”

Chaitanya Charan Prabhu: “See, I have two regrets after this discussion. First is that it’s not long enough. And second is I wish I had this kind of discussion 10 or 15 years ago; I would have learned so much and I would have also caused less damage to others.”

Garuda Prabhu: “Ha ha but still I am afraid I can say the same for myself.”

Chaitanya Charan Prabhu: “Yeah, maybe we have to go through kanistha to come to madhyama We cannot just jump to madhyama. So maybe that’s a part of our growth.”

Garuda Prabhu: “A child has to be a child before he can be an adult.”

Chaitanya Charan Prabhu: “Yes. The problem when comes in the child…….”

Garuda Prabhu: “The problem will be yes. Yeah, that’s a big problem.”

Chaitanya Charan Prabhu: “Yes. So, thank you, everyone. And I look forward to having you in future also for more discussions. Thank you very much.”

Garuda Prabhu: “Yeah. Thank you very much. Radhe Radhe Hare Krishna”

End of transcription.

The post The Monk’s Podcast 55 with Garuda Prabhu – Does love exist in the material world? appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

The "Digital SongBok" project aims to make known texts and translations of the most important Vaisnava Songs that have been handed down to us from the previous Acharyas belonging to the disciplic succession.

Midtown, Toronto

Bridges

The life of a monk is so much about building bridges and closing gaps. The endeavour one takes is to connect jivas to the Divine; bringing two worlds together.

I have always admired bridges—those who engineer, those who construct and also those who repair them—while on my walking travels. I had a flashback of men at work on bridges over the Fraser, in Hope, British Columbia, in the rain.

There are many kinds of bridges. One is for the mouth, as in dentures. At noon, over lunch, my temporary bridge broke off. Fortunately, I was able to secure an appointment by the evening for a repair job. The appointment ended up being a bit of a disappointment. It wasn’t so securely set in and I only noticed this upon my return home.

Before I arrived I took an evening walk from Eglinton and Yonge, back to the ashram. I looked up in the night sky and could clearly see Jupiter in front of me, and more faintly was Saturn to his side. Way above the city lights, and to the south, they sat there, giving inspiration.

Businesses that operate bars, cafés and such have areas of the street blocked off. People must have their drinks, I guess. I like the fact that folks are outdoors for air and under canopies while the sun is out. However, I question the drinking.

As I walked southbound, as a solo monk, those taking to the drinks couldn’t help noticing my saffron robes. I believe it triggers one to think spiritually, even if only for a moment. In this regard I like to think of myself as a small link, or a small bridge.

May the Source be with you!

4 km

Rosedale, Toronto

A Mask with a Print of God

A package arrived. It came from my sister, Rose Ann. It was kind of her. She sent a homemade mask, crafted by her own hand. The print on this Covid 19 mask is of Radha and Krishna, so I was immediately reminded of something or guru, Prabhupada, said, that when chanting, using the upper and lower lips as well as the tongue, it is Krishna and His internal potency dancing on your tongue.

I’m not a big fan of wearing these masks but I understand they are very necessary. I’m somewhat fortunate to be living in an ashram, where we are all like family, and we don’t necessarily require to wear one—due to the fact that outsiders don’t come inside—unless a service-person comes, who wears a mask, and is in and out of a restricted area.

My walks each evening, down spacious streets, allow me to breathe adequately and go mask-less. This evening Christopher and I trekked through Rosedale and then through a ravine. Apart from meeting a Nepalese father and young son, Christopher and I enjoyed the symphony of tree crickets. Over that glorious sound, we were able to eke out some semblance of mantra power. Their stridulating was overwhelmingly beautiful.

My meditations, or thoughts, which are sometimes louder than crickets chirping, went to Jim, Rose Ann’s husband, who’s stricken with cancer, and also Vedika, from California, who is fighting Covid 19. My prayers to these folks.

May the Source be with you!

7 km

Toronto, Ontario

Meditations

Our group of resident monks were reading from the book, “Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead”:

“The queens addressed the mountain as follows: ‘Dear mountain, you are very generous. By your gravity only, the whole crust of this earth is properly maintained, although because you are discharging your duties very faithfully, you do not know how to move. Because you are so grave, you do not move hither and thither, nor do you say anything. Rather, you always appear in a thoughtful mood. It may be that you are always thinking of a very grave and important subject matter, but we can guess very clearly what you are thinking of. We are sure that you are thinking of placing the lotus feet of Śyāmasundara (Krishna) on your raised peaks…’

“Dear dry rivers, we know that because this is the summer season, all your beds are dry, and you have no water. Because all your water has now been dried up, you are no longer beautified by blooming lotus flowers. At the present moment, you appear very lean and thin, so we can understand that your position is exactly like ours. We have lost everything due to being separated from Śyāmasundara, and we no longer hear His pleasing words…’”

The above passage from chapter 90 are meditations —

May the Source be with you!

4 km

Toronto, Ontario

Dark Moments

I am writing to contend with a sleepless night,

A pain more bothersome than a deep, sharp bite.

And I know there are supposed to be remedies out there,

Been tried again and again I may silently declare.

Everyone will want to be a doctor right now,

Sound advice tends to benefit little and not endow.

To count sheep, or chant mantras, is the likely technique,

I think prayers from others would be really unique.

I was driven today to Cherry Beach for a swim,

To relax nerves and bring some calm within.

We read of Krishna as son and a conjugal lover.

He relishes servitude and even acts as a brother.

We ate potatoes with a real scrumptious sauce,

You know, among veggies, they’re the real boss.

And our staircase kirtanwas to warm the soul,

After a fresh rain shower I felt clean and whole.

The night walk, however, did not contribute to the slumber,

For after, time dragged, as I watched each clock’s number.

I have come to accept this malady as an ongoing curse,

I am relieved, somewhat, that Dickens had it worse.

He sauntered the streets of London at evening,

But shaped his books characters; had their beginning.

Perhaps then I’ll resort to artistic expression,

At those wee hours, which usually causes depression.

If I give up hope I’ll enter a dark tunnel,

Like walking, I’m tested, avoid the puddle, don’t stumble.

May the Source be with you!

5 km

Toronto, Ontario

Myself and Women

Every other week I meet with my cousin Correy, along with her husband, at the park to philosophize, to spiritualize. Our discussions go deep and our sessions finish with the three of us coming out feeling lighthearted.

I trekked through the same park this Sunday afternoon, and in its central core, I decided to pass a few minutes at a picnic table, when a woman, Adriana, came by to ask questions.

“I saw you at a distance and wanted to find you,” said Adriana.

People might ask if monks communicate with women. As the saying goes in spiritual circles: “Like fire, like butter!” when referring to a woman’s affect when close to a renunciate. The renunciate is the butter which may melt in the presence of the opposite sex. It could happen.

At this point in my life I am not disturbed when a woman approaches for spiritual guidance or spiritual shelter. I do have to limit my time, however. We kept the distance that’s required by Covid, regardless. Her questions were answered and she went about her merry way. As she left, I told her of our mini-concert at 7:30.

She came with her sister, Lidiya, and oh, how they enjoyed our music and the mantra. They maintained distance and chanted with us, and we all felt a purification.

I’m glad they took the trouble to join us.

May the Source be with you!

4 km

  Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said: “Of the nine processes of devotional service, the most important is to always chant the Holy Name of the Lord. If one does so, avoiding the ten kinds of offenses, one very easily obtains the most valuable love of Godhead.” (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya 4.71) One might ask, “Then why do […]

The post A Bridge to Krishna appeared first on ISKCON News.

"In chanting you want to be so absorbed that you touch Krishna, that you touch the spiritual world and that when you have completed your chanting you will have a Krishna conscious fragrance or influence around you."

A video by Sobel Promotions.

  “For those who see Me in everything and see everything in Me, I am never lost — nor are they ever lost to Me.” (Bhagavad Gita 6.30) Sculptor Henry Moore (1898-1986) collected rocks and shells and studied their holes and hollow spaces, searching for what he called nature’s invisible “principles of form and rhythm.” […]

The post The Invisible Spaces of Life appeared first on ISKCON News.

"Slow down, breathe and peer deeper into the mystery of the everyday."

Srila Prabhupada taught us that for cooking, clarified butter, known as Ghee is the only oil to use. At Henry Street Radha Govinda temple the cooks strictly followed that instruction. To make ghee you take unsalted butter–not vegan butter or margarine and slowly let it simmer for many hours. Eventually, the pure butter oil or ghee collects at the bottom of the pot and the impurities float to the top.

A discussion between Chaiitanya Charan Das and Shyamananda Das.

His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami was a spiritual master and a Governing Body Commissioner (GBC) in the International Society for Krsna Consciousness (ISKCON). He was a disciple of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON and was regarded as one the most advanced devotees in the movement today.

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The post The Monk’s Podcast 54 with Navina Nirada Prabhu – Harmony in a multi-guru movement appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

An innovative new project promises to bring Mayapur to you – straight into your living room – via an immersive 360 degree Virtual Reality film on Radhastami, August 26^th.