Planet ISKCON

Tulsi Gabbard took time out of her busy schedule of events in New York to visit the main kirtan tent at the Rathayatra’s post-parade festival in Washington Square Park.

With his Bangalore-based agency, Shabdahari Das has run social media campaigns for world-famous personal development gurus like Tony Robbins, T. Harv Ecker, and Bryan Tracy. He’s also trained over 20,000 entrepreneurs in how to use social media to grow their businesses.

Initiates hailed from Houston, Washington D.C., New York, and London, and included prominent kirtaniyas such as Gaura Vani, Jahnavi, Tulasi, Ananta Govinda, and Janaki Priya. All others in the group are also dedicated to regular ISKCON service in their areas.   

Baladeva Das was appointed CPO Director in October 2018 by ISKCON’s Latin Regional Governing Body (RGB). Since joining ISKCON in 1991 in Argentina, he has done preaching, communications and educational services, lead the Nava Gundica Dhama temple, and helped edit and translate the Spanish edition of Caitanya-Caritamrita.

Pushpa Abhishek 2019 (Album of 86 HR photos)
New Govardhana San Diego, June 16, 2019
Srila Prabhupada: If with the arrow of chanting the holy name of the Lord one pierces Lord Vishnu’s lotus feet, by dint of performing this heroic activity of devotional service on receives the benefit of returning home, back to Godhead. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 7.15.42 Purport)

[Bhagavatam class on 4.18.9 at Auckland, New Zealand]

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“In this Age of Kali, Krishna is manifest in two forms; wood and water. Thus, by enabling the conditioned souls to see the wood and bathe in the water, He helps them become liberated.” “Lord Jagannath is the Supreme Lord himself in the form of wood and the river Ganga is the Supreme Lord himself in the form of water.” [ Lord Caitanya quoted in Caitanya-caritamṛta: Madhya 15.134-135 ]

A rare view of Bhaktivedanta Manor completely deserted due to the Rathayatra festival in London (Album of photos)
Bhaktivedant...

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 31 December 2018, Simhachalam, Germany, Srimad Bhagavatam 3.25.21)

Woody Allen once said, “You can go to a church, a temple or a mosque but that does not make you into a devotee. You can go into a garage but that does not mean that you become a car.” That is his logic and it is a good line. But then he does not know that you can in fact become a devotee in the temple. Here, you do become a car! (laughter) Here, you do become a devotee! Oh yes, it happens every moment and how does it happen? Because we are being purchased by the devotees around us. These devotees, they capture us completely!

Are we the greatest philosophers? Most of us are not. Are we the greatest scholars? Most of us are not. Do we really know Sanskrit? Most of us do not know, we just bluff our way through. Do we really know the shastras? Most of us do not. But one thing we know, we are trying. We are really trying to be devotees of Krsna and we are trying to do things nicely for Him.  

One of my early services was to clean the VIP room and it had to be done very quickly. So I used to get the dust and put it underneath the carpets in the room. But then I thought, “Ugh, but Krsna can look under the carpet, so this is not going to work.” So I lifted it back up and actually took the dust out. So this is devotion, where you are not cutting corners, but really trying to do it properly; doing it as nicely as we can and giving ourselves in service. In this way, everything becomes possible and then we can expand our boundaries. So here, the principle of surrender is key. Surrender somehow or other brings us to the point of trying. And on the strength of trying, we may struggle, but we work hard and somehow or other it gets done. So in that way this movement is not running on mundane skills. It just goes on the sincere efforts of the devotees.

The article " A movement based on sincere efforts " was published on KKSBlog.

Srila Prabhupada expressed his appreciation for his father in his dedication to his book Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, “To My Father, Gour Mohan De (1849–1930)”: “A pure devotee of Krsna, who raised me as a Krsna conscious child from the beginning of my life. In my boyhood ages he instructed me how to play the mrdanga. He gave me Radha-Krsna vigraha to worship, and he gave me Jagannatha ratha to duly observe the festival as my childhood play. He was kind to me, and I imbibed from him the ideas later on solidified by my spiritual master, the eternal father.”

Srila Prabhupada expressed his appreciation for his father in his dedication to his book Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, “To My Father, Gour Mohan De (1849–1930)”: “A pure devotee of Krsna, who raised me as a Krsna conscious child from the beginning of my life. In my boyhood ages he instructed me how to play the mrdanga. He gave me Radha-Krsna vigraha to worship, and he gave me Jagannatha ratha to duly observe the festival as my childhood play. He was kind to me, and I imbibed from him the ideas later on solidified by my spiritual master, the eternal father.”

As devotees, we try to encourage and facilitate our children’s Krishna consciousness, as Prabhupada’s father did with him—an effort that is solidified when our children find their eternal spiritual masters.

Srila Prabhupada wrote to one of his disciples, “You have accepted me as father, so I have also accepted you as my dear and real son. Relationship of father and son on spiritual platform is real and eternal; on the material platform such relationship is ephemeral and temporary. Although I cannot give you anything as father, still I can pray to Krishna for your more and more advancement in Krishna consciousness. Your sincerity and service mood will always help you in advancing your genuine cause.”

We are indebted to all our fathers, biological and preceptorial. To those still with us, we wish you Happy Father’s Day. To those who have left us, we love you and miss you and shall try to act in such a way as will please you—and Krishna, the Supreme Father.

Srimad-Bhagavatam (3.24.13) states,

etavaty eva susrusa
karya pitari putrakaih
badham ity anumanyeta
gauravena guror vacah

“Sons ought to render service to their [qualified] father exactly to this extent. One should obey the command of his [qualified] father or spiritual master with due deference, saying, ‘Yes, sir.’ ”

Srila Prabhupada explains, “Two words in this verse are very important; one word is pitari, and another word is guroh. The son or disciple should accept the words of his spiritual master and father without hesitation. Whatever the father and the spiritual master order should be taken without argument: ‘Yes.’ There should be no instance in which the disciple or the son says, ‘This is not correct. I cannot carry it out.’ When he says that, he is fallen. The father and the spiritual master are on the same platform because a spiritual master is the second father. The higher classes are called dvija, twice-born. Whenever there is a question of birth, there must be a father. The first birth is made possible by the actual father, and the second birth is made possible by the spiritual master. Sometimes the father and the spiritual master may be the same man, and sometimes they are different men. In any case, the order of the father or the order of the spiritual master must be carried out without hesitation, with an immediate yes. There should be no argument. That is real service to the father and to the spiritual master. Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura has stated that the order of the spiritual master is the life and soul of the disciples. As a man cannot separate his life from his body, a disciple cannot separate the order of the spiritual master from his life. If a disciple follows the instruction of the spiritual master in that way, he is sure to become perfect. This is confirmed in the Upanisads: the import of Vedic instruction is revealed automatically only to one who has implicit faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead and in his spiritual master. One may be materially considered an illiterate man, but if he has faith in the spiritual master as well as in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then the meaning of scriptural revelation is immediately manifested before him.”

On this occasion I pray to become a proper servant of my spiritual master, my spiritual father, Srila Prabhupada, and of all his other servants.

Hare Krishna.

Your aspiring servant,
Giriraj Swami

Devotees of Journey of Self Discovery (JOSD) Wellington had a power packed week with HG Chaitanya Charan Das, who gave 8 seminars from 3 – 9 June 2019.

HG Kunti Devi Dasi, a disciple of Srila Prabhupada and known Iskcon pioneer left this world.
Karnamrita Dasi (her daughter, shown in the little square photo with her mother): She left at 9:40am, she had said the evening before, just as we were ready to go to sleep, “The train is coming, I’m getting on” I thought there were no meanings to her words. And then the next morning my sweet friend Molly Ananga Manjari Martin who was helping with my mother’s needs, let me know that her loud death rattle had stopped and to come immediately. I’ll never forget how that death rattle sounded…it’s not something you want to hear your loved ones struggle through.
And there she was, I had only left briefly, but everything had slowed down, her breath, her sound, and her lips were spreading now into a smile.

Panihati is the name of a village located in the state of West Bengal, on the banks of River Ganges (10 miles north of Kolkata). It was one of the leading trade centres in earlier days when the river route was the main means of communication. A special rice variety called Peneti was imported at this […]

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The Festival of India (Ratha-yatra) in Connecticut (30 min. video)
Srila Prabhupada: The devotee’s life’s mission is to please Krishna, and he can sacrifice everything for Krishna’s satisfaction, just as Arjuna did in the Battle of Kurukshetra. The process is very simple: one can devote himself in his occupation and engage at the same time in chanting Hare Krishna. Such transcendental chanting attracts the devotee to the Personality of Godhead. (Bhagavad-gita 12.6-7 Purport)

Big Rathayatra in Florence, Italy (Album of photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is described as maha-vadanya, th...

When you have Kurma, the chef as your husband and it’s your birthday! (Album of photos)
Kurma: Birthday Prasadam. Here’s some up-close and personal darshan of (my wife) Dhira Lalita’s Birthday prasadam. It featured food from all the 5 major food groups - chocolate, sugar, cream, butter, and strawberries. Thank the Lord that birthdays come only once a year.
A big thanks to our neighbors Bhakta Terence and Bhaktin Niamh for hosting us.

[Talk at Auckland, New Zealand]

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Satsvarupa Dasa Goswami shares his inner journey through daily poems, writings and paintings. A candid place for genuine spiritual seekers to connect.

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[Talk at Auckland, New Zealand]

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Imagine a city that’s actually a vast solar energy harvesting system. A team of Michigan State University researchers has developed a technology that can turn transparent surfaces, from building windows to cell phones, into solar collecting surfaces – without obstructing the view.

New book by Paul Rodney Turner (Priyavrata Das) teaches readers how to unleash their inner bliss.

Life in this material world is just like an ocean of ignorance. We are in the midst of this terrible ocean, which has been tossing us in the repeated cycle of birth and death from time immemorial.

Once upon a time, this place was the centre of worship of the Buddhist Tantrics and the Kapalikas. But later, in the sixteenth century, when Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared to propagate the Sankirtana Movement, Panihati became a major centre of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas

We need basic Pathology lab machines, equipment and funds. We are asking the IKSCON community for help in acquiring the necessary equipment and funds so a self-sustaining and medically sound Pathology lab for our ever-growing ISKCON Mayapur community can be established.

The first ever ISKCON-London India Retreat was organised by Champakalata Priya devi dasi and Bhaktin Aartee who led around 12 devotees on this beautiful journey in March 2019. 

Remembering Aindra Prabhu (video)
Braja Bihari das and his wife Ananda Vrndavanesvari share some memories of Aindra Prabhu fol...

Dhruva Laddhu and his friend Kalyan Tamal were a few months old living in little hutches separate from their mothers and each other, fed by a mechanical milk drip before they were brought to ISCOWP from the dairy. Now 2 ½ years later, Dhruva and Kalyan are enjoying life as protected oxen at the ISCOWP sanctuary in Florida. Dhruva has a loving relationship with Balaji (9), who was a member of the ISCOWP staff who went to the dairy to bring him home. He enjoys Balaji's attention, especially when he shoos away the flies on his back. Dhruva reciprocates with some wet facial licks. Among the young cows and oxen, Dhruva is the most enthusiastic about treats. He absolutely cannot get enough of them. After changing pastures, he runs and kicks his heels up in joy. Dhruva is enjoying his youth far from the slaughterhouse.

The basic observance of Ekadasi, as prescribed by Srila Prabhupada, is to refrain from grains and beans and to chant as many rounds as possible. Although most devotees in ISKCON do not perform nirjala on every Ekadasi, many do on Pandava-nirjala Ekadasi. They also try to chant at least sixty-four rounds.

The High Court of Punjab and Haryana has ordered that animals are now to be considered legal persons in the Indian state of Haryana. This means that animals in the state may no longer be treated as “objects” or “property” and are “entitled to justice.”

Work on the Main Dome of the TOVP is almost complete! (Album of photos)
Sadbhuja Das: In the photos you will see blue tiling h...

ISKCON Mayapur: Panihati is the name of a village located in the state of West Bengal, on the banks of River Ganges (10 miles north of Kolkata).

Work on the Main Dome of the TOVP is moving quickly ahead and is almost complete.

In the photos you will see blue tiling has been finished along with most of the gold stars and other decorations. The trimmings around the dome such as the tilak symbols, cornices, etc. are also moving rapidly forward.

The post Main Dome Progress – June, 2019 appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.