Planet ISKCON

The managers of the TOVP construction team regularly visit the site to make sure that steady progress is being made, as well as to ensure that the quality of the placement of the numerous embellishments is being maintained, and to make plans for upcoming work.

From the photos you can see that a good deal of the marble and GRC (Glass Reinforced Concrete) pieces have been placed onto the temple interior and exterior walls. You can also see the progress of the art department which is moving forward quickly and in fine quality.

TOVP NEWS AND UPDATES – STAY IN TOUCH

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The post TOVP Construction Team Manager’s Inspection appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Ratha Yatra in Russia (Album of photos)
Srila Prabhupada: In this age of Kali, intelligent persons perform congregational chan...

While I was chanting japa this morning, my mind was flooded with a verse from Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s song Gurudeva!:

jogyata-vicare, kichu nahi pai, tomara karuna sara
karuna na hoile, kandiya kandiya, prana na rakhibo ara

“Upon examining my value, I find that I have none; your mercy is essential to me. Therefore, if you are not merciful I will constantly weep and I will not maintain my life any longer.”

Later, I saw just how appropriate and relevant the rest of the song was to my effort to chant.

                                    gurudeva!
krpa-bindu diya, koro’ ei dase, trnapekha ati hina
sakala-sahane, bolo diya koro’ nija mane sprha-hina

“Gurudeva! By a drop of your mercy, make this servant of yours humbler than a blade of grass. Giving me strength to bear all trials and troubles, make me devoid of all desires for personal honor.”

sakale samman, korite sakati, deho’ natha! jathajatha
tabe to’ gaibo, harinama-sukhe, aparadha ha ’be hata

“O lord and master! Please give me the power to properly honor all living beings. Only then will I sing the holy name in great ecstasy and all my offenses cease.”

kabe heno krpa, lobhiya e jana, krtartha hoibe, natha!
sakti-buddhi-hin, ami ati din, koro’ more atma-satha

“O lord and master! When will this devotee, obtaining your mercy, become blessed? Devoid of all strength and intelligence, I am very low and fallen. Please make me your own servant.”

Srila Prabhupada, please bless me with a drop of your mercy.

Hare Krishna.

Your eternal servant,
Giriraj Swami

Dublin Rathayatra 2019 was the Biggest and Best Ever! (14 min. video)
Dublin City was again blessed with a glorious Rathayatra...

Maha Harinam - Stockholm Sweden - 27 July 2019 (video)
Srila Prabhupada: The holy name of the Lord and the Lord are nondiffere...

Bhaktivedanta Manor (UK) Shree Krishna Haveli construction update.
Haveli Pathway Underway: The Haveli is nearing completion in the coming months, now work has begun to pave the pathways to and around the building. Were so excited for the building a facility for our generations to come…
‘One has to ascertain the right path for his activities by following in the footsteps of great saintly persons and books of knowledge under the guidance of a spiritual master’ - A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
T​he Shree Krishna Haveli will provide facilities ​to bring our community together for cultural activities, education and spiritual rejuvenation and ​no matter​ who we are, each of us can contribute to building this spiritual oasis. Support the Gita Walk and ​invest in the cultural and spiritual ​upliftment of society and future generations
​The Haveli project is the culmination of decades of struggle and sacrifices made by the community to secure their right to worship Sri Sri Radha Gokulananda.

Calm Before the Storm (Album of photos)
Indradyumna Swami: Polish Woodstock ( Pol’and ‘Rock ) is less than a week away. A big storm is gathering on the horizon: both materially and spiritually. The weatherman is predicting 3 days of rain and hail. Better now than later. But we’re predicting a tsunami of mercy in the form of Krsna’s Village Of Peace and all that it entails. In the meantime, we’re busy with last-minute preparations. My heart is pounding and I can’t sleep at night!

Bhakti Chaitanya Swami: Some photos of the prana pratishtha ceremony, abhishek and first arati to the Panca Tattva yesterday in Oms...

“Let’s talk later about making a Hare Krsna base here in our Romani community,” Shaban said when we reached the car. “Let’s not just talk words; let’s do something tangible. It can be connected to the culture we share. It can remind gypsies of their origins and can facilitate the deeds of your community as well. Let’s construct a building or monument that will stand for a hundred or two hundred years. Something glorious to represent our combined cultures. This day of our meeting should go down in history in the collective memories of our people.” He took both my hands and said warmly, “You are so wonderfully dressed! Before you go, let’s walk through the streets of our community so you can meet my people. We can take a few photos as well to remember this momentous day.” Continue reading "Bonds of Brotherhood
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While singing the Nrsimha prayers today, I was struck by the juxtaposition of two very different moods of the Lord—prahladahlada-dayine: He gave bliss to Prahlada, and hiranyakasipor vaksah-sila-tanka-nakhalaye: He cracked the stonelike chest of Hiranyakasipu with His sharp chisel-like nails.

namas te narasimhaya
prahladahlada-dayine
hiranyakasipor vaksah-
sila-tanka-nakhalaye

“I offer my obeisances to Lord Narasimha who gives joy to Prahlada Maharaja and whose nails are like chisels on the stonelike chest of the demon Hiranyakasipu.”

And I thought of the great Bhagavatam commentator Sridhara Svami’s beautiful verse in which he juxtaposes the Lord’s kind and ferocious dealings:

ugro ’py anugra evayam
sva-bhaktanam nr-kesari
kesariva sva-potanam
anyesam ugra-vikramah

 “Although very ferocious, the lioness is very kind to her cubs. Similarly, although ferocious to nondevotees like Hiranyakasipu, Lord Nrsimhadeva is very, very soft and kind to devotees like Prahlada.” (Sridhara Svami, commentary on SB 7.9.1).

All glories to Lord Nrsimhadeva and His devotees, among whom I pray to be counted.

Hare Krishna.

Yours in service,
Giriraj Swami

Vraja Kishor Schomaker has been awarded a Comet transfer scholarship, and is entering his third year of college with over seventy-five credits. All this despite a terrifying battle with a brain tumor in 2017 that left him temporarily unable to read. 

At a recent meditation retreat, I learned two very helpful concepts - “it’s about connection, not concentration” and “be a receiver, not an achiever”. 

Establishing and maintaining heart-connecting relationships with devotees of Krishna is fundamental for our spiritual growth and self-realization.

Forty four adults and nineteen children came together in the home of Sri Sri Kishore Kishori in Chicago during the weekend of July 13 and 14 to participate in the first-ever Krishna Homeschool Convention.

Insired by the Ramayana. Music and performance: Dhanya, directed by Rasa Partin, produced by Annick Jaegy, stylist: Ganga (Wild Mudra). 

This project has been inspired by Gopiparandhana Das. Watch a video on the daily activities of the students at ISKCON Bhagavata 
Mahavidyalaya.

Kirtan Oasis, ISKCON of Silicon Valley (video)
Srila Prabhupada: In the Adi Purana Krishna tells Arjuna: “Anyone who is engaged in chanting My transcendental name must be considered to be always associating with Me. And I may tell you frankly that for such a devotee I become easily purchased.” (Nectar of Devotion, 12)

Festival of the Holy Name in Spain (Album of photos)
Srila Prabhupada: “Haraye namah krsna yadavaya namah, gopala govinda rama sri-mudhusudana. This is another way of chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. The meaning is as follows: “I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna. He is the descendant of the Yadu family. Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto Gopala, Govinda, Rama and Sri Madhusudana.” (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya-lila, 25.64 Purport)

Kirtan with 6 harmoniums in Iskcon Tokyo! (1 min. video)
Srila Prabhupada: Because we live in the temples of Radha-Krishna and continuously hold hari-nama-sankirtana – the chanting of Hare Krishna – we consequently live in Vrndavana and nowhere else. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya-lila, 16.281 Purport)

by Mocomy Educational Videos.

This four-day music and arts festival attracts 40,000+ people, and as usual the prasadam distribution was a great success. 

Visnu and Garuda Monument (Album of photos)
Ramai Swami: While in Bali I was able to go out and visit the newly completed Visnu Garuda monument in the Nusa Dua area. This is the fourth highest of its kind in the world standing at 120 meters tall. An amazing architecture and sculptural achievement, although actual worship of the Lord would have been even better.
I also had the opportunity to be with my god brother and co-GBC for Indonesia, HH Kavicandra Maharaja. We attended the Rathayatra and other preaching programs together and it’s always nice to have his transcendental association.
Find them here: https://is.gd/DUFTWS

Largest attendance ever for Saranagati Rathayatra 2019 (Album of photos)
Saranagati Village is located in the historical Venab...

“One year when Lord Caitanya was at Allalanatha the devotees from Bengal arrived in Jagannatha Puri and word was sent to Lord Caitanya that they were there waiting for Him and He should go there. But, He was so much in the mood of separation that He did not want to go back to Jagannatha Puri without getting the darshan of Lord Jagannatha. The devotees very intelligently began kirtan and in that kirtan Lord Caitanya’s feelings of separation were pacified. Srila Prabhupada explains in his purport that the Holy Names of Krishna are Krishna Himself—and in this case Lord Jagannatha. So by immersing Himself in the Holy Names—Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare, Lord Caitanya felt the association of Lord Jagannatha. Srila Prabhupada comments further that whenever devotees feel separation from Lord Krishna or Lord Jagannatha, they can immerse themselves in the chanting of the Holy Names and thereby feel His presence and experience his association.”

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Snana-yatra talk (Right click to download)

While in Bali I was able to go out and visit the newly completed Visnu Garuda monument in the Nusa Dua area. This is the fourth highest of its kind in the world standing at 120 metres tall. An amazing architecture and sculptural achievement, although actual worship of the Lord would have been even better.

I also had the opportunity to be with my god brother and co-GBC for Indonesia, HH Kavicandra Maharaja. We attended the Rathayatra and other preaching programs together and it’s always nice to have his transcendental association.

Dubbed “Mantra Fest,” the outreach portion of Laguna Beach Rathayatra will be held on Sunday July 28^th in downtown Laguna Beach, and will be a uniquely interactive experience for the public.

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 24 February 2019, New York, United States of America, Bhagavad-gita 7.7)

In the tenth chapter of Bhagavad-gita, ahaà sarvasya prabhavo mattaù sarvaà pravartate (Bhagavad-gita 10.8), we can see that Krsna is the origin of all that is spiritual and all that is material, and the wise who notice this, they perfectly worship Him with love. That is ultimately where we want to come. Because we are seeing how kind Krsna is… how unlimitedly kind He truly is! He is the Supreme, the topmost personality, all powerful, all beautiful, all perfect, yet He takes interest in insignificant creatures like us. He specifically notices our individual existence and that is something special. Every living being means something to Krsna and thus Krsna takes a personal interest in every single living being. That is something extraordinary! Suhrdam sarva dehinam (bhutanam) (Bhagavad-gita 5.29) – heartfelt suhrdam, heartfelt friend and well-wisher of every living being. So to think about that, that is the most amazing thing! And I meditate on things like this and can only imagine how kind Krsna really is. In this way, we can appreciate Krsna consciousness and when we leave this temple, we can look everything we see with a fresh perspective because we can see how Krsna is actually manifesting all these things for us and how He is behind everything. Everything is simply an arrangement of His kindness; sometimes aimed to frustrate us and sometimes aimed to encourage us. But nevertheless, it is all by His loving mercy. That is Krsna!

The article " His loving mercy " was published on KKSBlog.

'Built to last' was a slogan that wasn't lost on Srila Prabhupada's institution. In pursuance of Srila Prabhupada's vision, as far as I know the highest administrative levels of ISKCON have been discussing and examining the 'culture of succession' principle Continue reading "Anniversary of the Incorporation of ISKCON
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“We shall call our society ISKCON.” Prabhupada had laughed playfully when he first coined the acronym. A friend had suggested a title that would sound more familiar to Westerners, “International Society for God Consciousness,” but Prabhupada had insisted: “Krishna Consciousness.” “God” was a vague term, whereas “Krishna” was exact and scientific; “God consciousness” was spiritually weaker, less personal. And if Westerners didn’t know that Krishna was God, then the International Society for Krishna Consciousness would tell them, by spreading His glories “in every town and village.” Continue reading "Incorporation Of ISKCON
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Devotees began building the Palace themselves back in 1973 as a residence for Srila Prabhupada, when he expressed a desire to retire to New Vrindaban and translate his books. Young and inexperienced, they trained themselves in construction and artisanal skills.

Epic Book Distribution at Iskcon Orlando!
This was one of the most epic moments at Iskcon Orlando. A devotee who was visiting the Orlando temple for the first time, bought a whole Saptarishi set (7 books authored by Srila Prabhupada) and gave that as a gift to another guest who also came to the temple for the very first time. This was witnessed by the temple presiding deities, Sri Sri Nitai Gaura Nataraja.
By Srila Prabhupada’s mercy, this world is filled with great devotees who sets a great example for us all.