Panihati Cida-dadhi Festival, Laguna Beach
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Hare KrishnaBy Giriraj Swami

Indradyumna Swami’s and my talks at the Panihati Cida-dadhi Festival in Laguna Beach on June 16 “Lord Nityananda was by nature very merciful and funny. Being merciful, He spoke to Raghunatha dasa as follows. ‘You are just like a thief, for instead of coming near, you stay away at a distant place. Now that I have captured you, I shall punish you. Make a festival and feed all My associates yogurt and chipped rice.’ Hearing this, Raghunatha dasa was greatly pleased.” —Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Antya 6.49–51 Continue reading "Panihati Cida-dadhi Festival, Laguna Beach
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A Small Special School – Bhaktivedanta Manor Gurukula
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Hare KrishnaBy Bhaktivedanta Manor School

A quick glimpse into the Bhaktivedanta Manor Gurukula, the new temporary location on the Hilton property site in Watford. See how free and happy the children are and where they develop their connection with Krishna and Srila Prabhupada's movement. Why parents put their children into Bhaktivedanta Manor Gurukula: Some of the parents of the Bhaktivedanta Manor Gurukula give their opinions of why they feel the Gurukula is the natural and perfect choice for their children and what makes it so special. I don't want any child to say to their parents 'why did you put me in a Hare Krishna School.' Mother Gunacuda talks passionately about why being a teacher at Bhaktivedanta Manor Gurukula is such an important service and how giving students the best academics alongside love and care will ensure that these beautiful children will remain part of Lord Chaitanya's movement. Continue reading "A Small Special School – Bhaktivedanta Manor Gurukula
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The GBC College and Iskcon’s Sankirtan
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Hare KrishnaBy Hanumatpresaka Swami

Like the six blind men approaching the elephant I can only see things from my perspective, either in my siddha-svarupa or currently embodied intelligence. With sincere attachment to my perspective on the elephant (maybe from the tail) I should be able to have a practical appreciation of the viewpoint of others, but a really practical view of the beast can only result from a dialog with other blind men attached to its other aspects: legs, sides, ears, tusks, trunk. Continue reading "The GBC College and Iskcon’s Sankirtan
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Gita 17.28 Having no faith in anything higher makes performance of religious activities unfruitful
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Bhagavad-gita verse-by-verse podcast

The post Gita 17.28 Having no faith in anything higher makes performance of religious activities unfruitful appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Bhagavatam study 76 1.15.7-12 Devotees see their achievements as Krishna’s mercy
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Podcast


 

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Don’t hold back!
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Don’t hold back!
BB Govinda Swami: Krishna never forgets anything what we have done. But Krishna is not a foolish person. He sees that we’re offering, but we’re holding so much back. Consequently, He wants us to give everything. Therefore we should question ourselves what are we giving and what are we holding back and why are we holding back.

Saturday, June 16th, 2018
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Edmonton, Alberta

Connor

I was on the Whitemud Trail with Bala and Rati when I received a call from Rajasuya in Brampton.  “We are being eaten alive by mosquitos,” I told him.

Rajasuya, who used to live in Texas said, “You should see them in Texas.  They are like elephants in size.” 

I wanted to say to Rajasuya that his remark made me feel better.  In some ways it did, but they continued to be voracious with their appetite.  Bala was getting the worst of it.

“Bala, your blood is to their liking.  Do you eat a lot of sweets—sugar, perhaps?”

It was somewhat of a confession time for him.

Regarding food, Connor, who’s eighteen, had just a little too much prasadamwhen we lunched back at the Krishna temple. Connor has really impressed me with his devotion.  It takes him two hours to get there and two hours to get back home.  That’s devotion!  He is becoming quite devotional—and renounced.  On my second walking installment for the day, Connor and Jaga Jivan joined me as we made our way toward the Yoga studio for a “Tales from Trails” presentation.  It was while on our journey that Connor renounced his meal.  I could see something might be coming on with his pale look.

It was an unpleasant experience; his donation to the sidewalk.  He quickly recovered.

Finally, we made it to the studio and it was just wonderful—the attendance, the mood, the questions.  I want to thank Jaga Jivan for arranging the program as well as Candice for having us use the facility, “Spirit Path” on 124thStreet.

May the Source be with you!
4 km

Friday, June 15th, 2018
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Edmonton, Alberta

Outing in Edmonton

For years I’ve been conducting satsangs or home programs which feature kirtan, talks and Prasadand often walking to the place of action.  Ananda is an excellent tabla player who accompanied me on 34thStreet in Edmonton.  The sky was a grey-blue, the hue that let us know it’s not going to stay.  A partial rainbow, meaning not fully-arched to our vision, made an appearance in that sky.

Generally these satsangs occur in the evening and are culminated with a meal.  However, upon arriving from our walk at the home of Yogendra, and settling down, I grumbled to our host about late-night eating not being good for you.  Yogendra concurred and so in the most jolly way we ate and chatted.  Then the kirtanwas begun by expert singer Nitai, followed by my talk on the personality, Akrura.  He was a personality not liked by the residents of Vrindavan—Krishna’s village—for taking Krishna away to the city.

I also did a reading ofThe Gopis Attracted by the Flute of Krishna.  The children who came with their moms and dads assembled in front of me. Unbelievably, they were most attentive.

The food was great and we ended with kombucha.  Yogendra insisted everyone dance during the kirtanso we all were inspired in a mix of Chaitanya spirit and “Grease.”  It was most enjoyable, thanks to the Edmonton team.

May the Source be with you!
6 km


Thursday, June 14th, 2018
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Brampton, Ontario

Red Wings

After a dental visit, Nanda took me to a park, Chinguacousy, and I sat to write  by the pond. To the surprise of both of us, this red-winged black bird came darting at us.  “Oh Krishna!”  It must have been its nesting area, but in our minds this was our resting area, or at least relaxing zone before the Bramalea Mall opened.

But it got more serious.  Our feathered friend came right at our heads, flapping its wings.  No beak penetration occurred, like in the scenes from Hitchcock’s “The Birds.”

Nanda got defensive and picked up a convenient branch, fallen from the trees of yesterday’s storm.  It was somewhat effective.  The bird was persistent, however, and we were humbled by his territorialism.

A terrorist?  I wouldn’t demonize the fellow that much.  It was just a case of taking care of dharma—duty—in the form of protection.

I do like the sound of this red-winged creature.  The shrill sound throws me back to childhood.  In southwestern Ontario there are lowlands, former swamps, the space they like the most.

God made every creature in a certain way; most of them get cranky like this guy.  I thank him for reminding me of Garuda, a super hero in the eagle category.

After the episode of attack, Nanda and I took care of phone business and then enjoyed the succulent parathas he had made.

May the Source be with you!
4 km

An Unforgettable Experience
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Hare KrishnaBy Radha Dasi

Hare Krishna, dear devotees! My name is Radha, I’m 19 years old and I am a student in my final year at Sri Mayapur International School. I want to share with you my incredible experience of book distribution in London this summer. I hope that it will please the senior devotees and reassure them that book distribution is still alive and well. And I hope it will encourage all the devotees of my age to give it a try. Here is how it started: for a long time I had wanted to feel myself like a real, active preaching brahmacarini from Srila Prabhupada’s time. Continue reading "An Unforgettable Experience
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An Evening with Sivarama Swami (2 min video)
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An Evening with Sivarama Swami (2 min video)
Recently Sivarama Swami spoke to an audience of 120 wonderful people about Compassionate Living, in downtown London. After the engaging talk, Ananda Monet led an unforgettable session of Mantra Meditation which got many people up on there feet, swaying & dancing! The evening finished off with a tasty meal provided by our friends at OmNom! The next London event will be later this year in September & more information will follow soon!

Step inside the Perth gallery dedicated to Indian-inspired art
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Hare KrishnaBy Pallavi Jain

The Sacred India Gallery in Perth displays the artistic works of resident artist Jagattarini. Jagattarini is an Australian artist but lived in India for over a decade. The artwork at the gallery includes traditional Indian carvings, a maze of intricate displays, walk-in installations and Jagattarini's 1/72 scale miniature dioramas based on stories of Lord Krishna from Vrindavan. These displays are an attempt to capture the "sights, sounds, and mystical atmosphere of spiritual India." Continue reading "Step inside the Perth gallery dedicated to Indian-inspired art
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Blessings of the vaishnavas
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(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 30 December 2017, Gold Coast, Australia, Bhagavad-gita 8.20)

At the end of our lives, there will be a weighing scale to see if we have enough to go back to Godhead. We will first put on the scale all our devotional service that we may have accumulated in our lifetimes, and there may not be much movement in the scale at that point. We will then add Prabhupada’s mercy onto our scale, and it will start to show some real movement then. But the real difference comes in when we place the blessings of all the vaishnavas.

Vaishnavas have the power to bless. So we must acknowledge that all vaishnavas across the world carry blessings with them, and our goal is to get all of those blessings. Not just some mercy, but all the mercy is required to enter Godhead. We must pray that somehow or rather, our actions will improve and that every vaishnava will think favourably of us. This is not so easy, as we have the tendency to step on some toes here and there, even inadvertently. We may make mistakes, but regardless we must still endeavour to attain the mercy of all the vaishnavas. If all the vaishnavas think good about us, then that will put great weight in our scale.

The article " Blessings of the vaishnavas " was published on KKSBlog.

Opposition leader visits Iskcon Victoria, Australia
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Hare KrishnaBy Sukadeva Das

On June 16, 2018, it was our privilege and honour to receive very distinguished guests Hon Matthew Guy, Leader of the Opposition from Victorian State Parliament, Andrew Bond – local candidate from Albert Park and Katie Allan – candidate from Prahran and other prominent members from Indian community at the Melbourne Hare Krishna Temple. They were received by our Temple President HG Aniruddha Prabhu. The guests were briefed on our future building upgrades such as conversion of current theatre into dining hall, upgrading paraphernalia room and converting current dining hall into multipurpose educational/cultural hall. Continue reading "Opposition leader visits Iskcon Victoria, Australia
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We plan to do many services during vacations, but end up in doing nothing – what to do?
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Answer Podcast

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Gita 17.27 Sat is not just a word for recitation – it is a conviction to cultivated and infused into action
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Bhagavad-gita verse-by-verse podcast

The post Gita 17.27 Sat is not just a word for recitation – it is a conviction to cultivated and infused into action appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Bhagavatam study 75 1.15.1-6 When we lose everything, we gain the Lord of everything
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Podcast


 

The post Bhagavatam study 75 1.15.1-6 When we lose everything, we gain the Lord of everything appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Christ and Krishna
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Hare KrishnaBy Parasuram das

We were invited to help at a huge evangelical event at a stadium. We have been cooking for the "Feed the 5,000" events all over Europe for the last decade and now we were going back to the original roots - this event would be Biblical! The organisers visited "Krishna's Castle" saw our operation, loved it, so off we went. I was a little hesitant in the back of my mind, being obviously Hare Krishnas in appearance, people could mistake us as religionists, but as we arrived that morning we were greeted with a loving cheer. Dozens of people came to help unload the van and start chopping veg. Continue reading "Christ and Krishna
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London Mellows’18 (Album of photos) Srila Prabhupada: Those who…
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London Mellows’18 (Album of photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Those who simply chant the holy name with the tip of the tongue are glorious. One does not even have to chant the holy name and understand the whole procedure, namely the offensive stage, offenseless stage and pure stage; if the holy name is sounded on the tip of the tongue, that is also sufficient. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.33.7 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/NWVyzL

Bury Place, then and now
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Hare Krishna Srila Prabhupada: We have got very nice temple near British Museum, 7 Bury Place. And all Europeans, they come to see our temple—from Germany, from France. Because we have been advertised in cooperation with the Beatles. The Beatles, Beatles, the George Harrison. You do not know his name? He is very famous man. Yes. So we have produced some records in cooperation with George Harrison's organization. So because the records are produced through George Harrison, we have got a very, very big sale. You see? And that has advertised Radha-Krishna Temple, London.

Don’t open Pandora’s box! Kadamba Kanana Swami:…
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Don’t open Pandora’s box!
Kadamba Kanana Swami: After years of chanting, we may stop and say, “Why am I doing this? I don’t feel like it anymore. I don’t know. I cannot get myself to chant anymore.” What happened? What happened to your knowledge? Is it all gone? Don’t you know that there is no alternative? Don’t you know that the material world is like hell? Don’t you know that you are caught here? Have you forgotten about all this? Don’t you know that this world is all glossed over by the illusory energy with an appealing packing? Nice beautiful packing with ribbons and beautiful colours, but what is inside? It is poison, it is suffering inside. This beautiful gift, packaged with glitter, beautiful ribbon and everything. And you want it but, oh God, it turns out it is Pandora’s Box.
In Greek Mythology, Pandora’s Box was given as a punishment to mankind. I will not get into the whole description of it, but basically, in Pandora’s Box all the suffering of the material world was kept with this beautiful box. Such an amazing box, that it was a gift from Zeus himself, “Whoa, a gift from the Gods! Oh, we are so lucky! Oh, what will be inside? I wonder! Oh, let’s look, open it up!” And then, all the suffering came out.
So this principle of the beautiful packaging of the material energy is there. It looks good and you may want to open it, but we must always remember that there is suffering inside. We must always look for the sign on this Pandora’s box that reads, “Do not open it. Watch out, do not do it!” So when we have knowledge in this way, we will not go for the material temptation as we remember that it is not worth it.