Planet ISKCON

Caitanya-caritamrta Madhya-lila 11.1.

• If you don’t have knowledge you don’t get bhāva
• The members of the Pañca-tattva
• Gadādhara Paṇḍita takes care of Lord Caitanya in kīrtanas
• Kṛṣṇa tells Rādhā about His plan to appear as Gaura
• The members of the Pañca-tattva lived close by in Navadvīpa
• Gadādhara Paṇḍita taught Lord Caitanya the mood of Rādhā
• Lord Caitanya designated places of living for His associates
• Gadādhara Paṇḍita recieved what was most valuable to Lord Caitanya: the Deity of Toṭa Gopīnātha
• Lord Caitanya used to listen to Gadādhara Paṇḍita explaining the Bhāgavatam which drew Him into rādhā-bhāva
• Neither Gadādhara Paṇḍita nor Svarūpa Dāmodara went to Vṛndāvana
• An actor has to have the mood of the person he represents, not necessarily the looks
• Gopīs from kṛṣṇa-līla come as men in gaura-līlā: gender has nothing to do with spiritual identity
• There is no other reationship with Lord Caitanya than dāsya
• Service to Lord Caitanya is spreading His saṅkīrtana movement
• When Gaura is pleased He reveals our relationship with Kṛṣṇa
• Different understandings of how Lord Caitanya left the world
• Gadādhara Paṇḍita’s hand copied Bhāgavatam is still in the Toṭa Gopīnātha temple
• Today we should pray to Gadādhara Paṇḍit to help us develop our attachment to Lord Caitanya and understand and develop attachment for spiritual exchanges
• Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī wrote that Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was the empowered form of Gadādhara Paṇḍita
• Gadādhara Paṇḍita is the eternal counterform of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī as a devotee

The preeminent philosopher in Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's line explains why, in this age, the Puranas are essential for accessing the Absolute Truth. Sri Tattva-sandarbha is the first of Srila Jiva Goswami's Bhagavata-sandarbha, or Shat-sandarbha, six treatises that firmly establish the philosophy of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. In the texts leading up to this section, the author has discredited direct perception and inference as valid means to acquiring perfect knowledge. He has concluded that only the eternal Vedas can fill that role. Now he argues for the need to turn to the Puranas for understanding the unified message of the Vedas. Continue reading "The Authority of the Puranas
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Tallahassee 2018 - Festival of Chariots (Album of photos)
Our Festival of Chariots team chanted and danced in the 2018 Tallahassee Springtime parade. We won two awards this year: • Best in our category: Cities/Nonprofit Organizations • Best in Parade: “50 Years of IHEARTTALLY” Award!!!!!!!
Find them here: https://goo.gl/umG9hH

ECO-Vrindaban Board Meeting Minutes 03/24/2018

Mission Statement: ECO-Vrindaban promotes simple living, cow protection, engaging oxen, local agriculture, and above all, loving Krishna, as envisioned by Srila Prabhupada, the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON New Vrindaban.

Participating Directors: Chaitanya Mangala (chair), Makara (minutes recorder), Olivia, Ranaka, and Vraja.

Participating Advisors: Kalakantha.

1. Ranaka’s Monthly Report

• At the Temple Barn, Ananda Vidya & Lalita Gopi are currently milking 7 cows: Jamuna, Surabhi, Laxmi, Sita, Anjali, Sriya & Maliti. Milk production is up to 32 gal per day.

• Anjali freshened on Feb 19th with a bull calf named Nimai. Nimai was delivered in normal fashion with no problems during delivery but had internal issues along with apparent brain damage. The Vet gave him a 50% chance of survival and he died 11 days after his birth.

• On Feb 27th Sriya gave birth to a healthy heifer calf named Gaurangi.

• Subhadra is due the end of May.

• There are 5 heifers residing at the Temple Barn: 15 month old Vamsika, 7 month old Lalita, 3 month old Gopi Katyayani and 3 week old Gaurangi.

• Parvati continues to reside with Dharma for breeding at the Valley Barn. Jaya Radhe is still residing in Nandagram with Madhu for breeding. Usha has been confirmed pregnant and moved out from Madhu’s area.

• Ananda Vidya continues to produce approximately 15 pounds of butter, 15 gal of yogurt, and 1/2 gallon of Ghee on a weekly basis, & delivers them to the temple. He made and waxed two (8″ diameter x 3.5 inch high) wheels of Colby cheese this month and plan to produce 5 lbs. of Mozzarella cheese for Palace Pizza to be served after their Maha Cleanup this weekend.

• Ananda Vidya & Lalita Gopi finished clearing out the upstairs of the Temple Barn.

• Ray has been working on cleanup of the former Brose trailer site and is approximately 85% complete. The scrap wood has all been burnt, trailer frame cut into 3 pieces with cutting torch and all scrap metal piled for loading. Ray is repairing a brake cylinder on the F-800 flatbed truck, this will be used to haul the metal to the recycling center in Wheeling. When cleanup is complete, the lot will be available for rent to Suchandra, our garden manager, who plans to move a trailer on to it.

• Ray has also been cleaning up the area next to the old Brick Yard building. Scrap metal from there is also piled and ready to be hauled to the recycle center. The brush & scrap wood pile was burnt along with a general cleanup & reorganizing of the area.

• Repair work on the Nandagram field house: 2 new sink faucets installed, repairing water lines to the tub & repairing drywall on the basement ceiling below the tub.

• Ray continues moving hay from the Valley Barn to Nandagram.

• Chaitanya Bhagavat works with Hari Chand in the Ox Program for 1 hour each morning along with daily Nandagram herd care. Hari Chand has been measured for a new Yoke & Britchen so he can be trained for pulling.

•  Chaitanya Bhagavat has also been working on the Bahulaban fence line getting it ready for Spring along with Nandagram fence maintenance.  Repair work was also done on the Feed Isle.

• The garden crew, presently composed of Suchandra, Vidya, Lila, Mukunda dasi & Radhanath das, gathered together for a general communication & coordination on 3/16/18; it was a productive meeting that gave much hope for the upcoming season.

• Suchandra & Ryan, along with Ray on the tractor with the front loader, have cleared the old mulch & plastic off the Community Garden beds. This year we are planning a new system of weed control using reusable ground cover and some hay mulch when needed; this system will be much less labor intensive.

• Ray moved a dump load of well composted material from Nandagram to Vidya’s garden & 5 buckets to the Nandagram garden.

• The Valley Barn potato field has been spread with manure. We are also planning on growing potatoes in the Community Garden this year.

• Vidya has started over 1000 plants for the gardens consisting of peppers, tomatoes, basil, snapdragon, marigolds, statice and rosemary.

• Lakshmi Cow Sanctuary: Ranaka spoke to Dr. Sastri and informed him that the ECO-V board agreed to his request of taking responsibility for 5 of his cows. Ranaka informed him that he would need to have a veterinarian issue a valid CVI (Certificate of Veterinary Inspection, i.e. health certificate) before moving the animals to New Vrindaban and that we would be ready to accept them from the middle of May onward. Dr. Sastri will get back to Ranaka when he has things ready on his side.

• Passing of Nandini: Nandini, a 10 1/2 year old Jersey brought to New Vrindaban from Canada by Nila Gopal & Sukhayanti, died of cancer on March 6, 2018 at Nandagram. Her profile: Nandini was a bit of a loner who stayed mostly to herself but still enjoyed attention in the form of petting from devotees. She was also very protective of the calves in the herd & would always stay by their side.

2. Spring Joint Board Gathering Review

The weekend had a different format from what we’ve organized the past few years. The facilitators, Gopinath Bloch and Rebecca Mintz, did an excellent job directing the energy and setting a positive mood. Through various exercises, open dialogue and a planning session, a progressive division of responsibilities for ISKCON New Vrindaban was discussed, both for the immediate future and over a 5-year time frame.

3. Inviting ECO-V Staff to Board Meetings

Some of the feedback from the spring meeting brought to light a need for increased interactions between the members of ECO-V. The bi-annual weekend gatherings allow opportunities for exchanges between the staff and board. Additionally, the board would like to periodically invite staff members to attend monthly board meetings throughout year. The first opportunity will be in April 2018.

4. ECO-V Website Feedback

Overall, the look of the website is appreciated. Ideas for improvement: Change the photo on front page – possibly make a slideshow there; get new photos of cows and gardens from Erin and Hari Bhakti; add a link to Prabhupada’s Palace website; make a page about Srila Prabhupada, his cow protection local agriculture vision for New Vrindaban and include photos of him with Kaliya, ISKCON’s first cow.

5. IMCPA North American Team Building Conference

Kalakantha prabhu shared information about the upcoming ISKCON Ministry of Cow Protection & Agriculture conference. This event will be held in DeLand, Florida the end of June 2018 and will include strategizing about next year’s North American farm conference, tentatively planned to be held in New Vrindaban. He invited a couple of representatives from ECO-V to attend. Jamuna Jivani has already volunteered to participate.

6. ISKCON Communications Grant

WHEREAS: ECO-V wishes to support Anuttama prabhu, and his ISKCON Communications efforts, especially in appreciation of their ongoing promotion of simple living, cow protection and local agriculture projects throughout ISKCON.

RESOLVED: The ECO-V board approves a grant of $2,500 to ISKCON Communications for 2018.

Here’s a link to the ECO-Vrindaban website.

For regular updates, please visit, like and follow the ECO-V Facebook page.

Hare Krishna! The movie in El Salvador.
By: Atilio Flores
As part of the premiere of the film,“Hare Krishna: the Mantra, the Movement and the Swami who started it all”, “El Mundo” newspaper from El Salvador published in its section of movies a double flat about the documentary and life of His Divine Grace A.C .Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. This publication was printed last Thursday, April 5, the date of the simultaneous premiere for all of Central America.

TOVP Euro Tour Day 1: Radhadesh, Belgium.
With great pomp and ecstasy, the TOVP Euro Tour led by Lord Nityananda’s Padukas and Lord Nrsimhadeva’s Sitari and accompanied by Their Graces Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus departed Mayapur, arriving in Belgium on April 10th. This is the third year of such touring, bringing the mercy and darshan of Lord Nityananda and Lord Nrsimhadeva to devotees in every corner of the world.
The first stop of this tour was the Radhadesh temple in Belgium, home of the beautiful Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Deities. The program was held at the temple on April 11th and was attended by the entire small community of devotees headed by GBC Hrday Caitanya prabhu and temple president Manohar prabhu. As usual, the Padukas and Sitari were properly greeted with kirtan, arati, an abhisheka, etc., followed by presentations and talks by Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus. The intimate gathering of 30+ devotees was highly enthusiastic and generous and a total of $95,000 U.S. was pledged.

This was a very auspicious start for the tour. But the next day Braja Vilas met with a few wealthy Indian diamond merchants who were so enthusiastic they want to organize a large event with many of their friends at a future time to raise funds for the TOVP. Undoubtedly, the Lord is providing us with new avenues to pursue in our fundraising efforts during the next four years of the MISSION 22 marathon.

The next stop is Koln, Germany on April 13th. The Tour will remain in Germany for three days. The complete Euro Tour schedule is here: https://goo.gl/XSaqQt

When Mahaprabhu departed from this world, He entered into Gadadhara Pandita’s worshipable Deity, Tota-gopinatha. After Mahaprabhu’s departure, Gadadhara Pandita’s feelings of separation for Him were so intense that he appeared to age prematurely. For many years, Gadadhara Pandita had been serving the Deity of Tota-gopinatha, but eventually it became difficult for him to reach up to garland the Deity. To facilitate the service of Gadadhara Pandita, Tota-gopinatha sat down so that Gadadhara could more easily worship Him. He is the only Deity of Krishna who manifests a sitting position. Continue reading "Gadadhara Pandita – the Embodiment of Pure Love for Lord Caitanya
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Seminars were given on various topics to help future Zonal Supervisors be able to perform their services more effectively. These ranged from behavioural aspects of a leader, personal development, introspection, to specific management techniques including project management, digital marketing, and leadership models. The association with leaders from different countries offered a very enriching experience. The different experiences each devotee brought to the table has helped all the students to better understand the challenges they each face. Attending morning programs together, chanting japa, honouring prasadam in an atmosphere based on love and service increased enthusiasm and has given inspiration and strength to continue Srila Prabhupada’s mission. Particularly, the conversations held at the tables during prasadam and recreational activities has helped deepen relationships between the students. Continue reading "Historic First GBC College for Leadership Development in Latin America
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Would you like to know the previous life of Karna? (video)
A benediction given by Lord Surya became a source of anxiety for many and Lord Vishnu had to intervene to put things in order. But it didn’t finish there. A part of the boon was still valid and that’s how Karna was born.

Prabhupada Lilamrita by Vijay Prabhu on 12th April 2018 At ISKCON Juhu (video)

Karnamrita Das: I saw the grim reaper in my dream,
feeling no fear, I was curious to see him.
Coming near, he pointed his bony, pale hand toward me.
His other palm raised in blessing pose where it was written, the number 65—my age!
Then with both hands, he pointed to the sky, and shrugged.

Read More...

[Class at ISKCON, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA]

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The post Resolutions in the three modes – and in transcendence appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

NYC Harinam (Album with photos)
Ecstatic Harinama Sankirtana in Union Square Park! Friday April 13th.
Srila Prabhupada: The yogis are trying to control the senses by force. “I shall go to the Himalayas. I shall not see any more beautiful woman. I shall close down my eyes.” These are forceful. You cannot control your senses. There are many instances. You don’t require to go to Himalaya. You just remain in Los Angeles city and engage your eyes to see Krsna, you are more than a person who has gone to Himalayas. You’ll forget all other things. This is our process. You don’t require to change your position. You engage your ears for hearing Bhagavad-gita As It Is, you’ll forget all nonsense. You engage your eyes to see the beauty of the Deity, Krsna. You engage your tongue for tasting Krsna prasadam. You engage your legs to come to this temple. You engage your hands to work for Krsna. You engage your nose to smell the flowers offered to Krsna. Then where your senses will go? He’s captivated all round. The perfection is sure. You don’t require to control your senses forcibly, don’t see, don’t do it, don’t do it. No. You have to change the engagement, the status. That will help you. >>> Ref. VedaBase => Bhagavad-gita 2.62-72 – Los Angeles, December 19, 1968
Find them here: https://goo.gl/a261ss

Harinama at Coolangatta - 08 April 2018 (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: My Guru Maharaja used to say, prana ache yara sei hetu pracara. A person can become a preacher if he has got life. A dead man cannot become a preacher. So you must be very enthusiastic that “I shall preach the glories of the Lord to my best capacity.” It is not that one has to become very learned scholar to become a preacher. Simply it requires enthusiasm, “My Lord is so great, so kind, so beautiful, so wonderful. So I must speak something about my Lord.” This is the qualification, enthusiasm. >>> Ref. VedaBase => The Nectar of Devotion – Vrndavana, October 20, 1972
Find them here: Harinama at Coolangatta - 08 April 2018

“Satisfied Yet Dissatisfied” (5 min video)
Mahatma das: We will do well if we can adopt the mentality of being satisfied with where we are at yet dissatisfied in the sense that we can do better. By satisfied, I mean that we accept who we are and where we are, but focus on becoming the person we want to be and focus on our goals. If we allow our present deficiencies to discourage us, we can’t move forward. Where you are heading is more important than where you are now.

This affirmation of Jesus leads me, reading the book from a Vaiṣṇava Hindu perspective, to reflect on how the book’s exercise might best “work” for a careful reading by a Vaiṣṇava, for whom it is likely to be Krishna who is the all-in-all—not just as Bhagavān, the absolute Lord, but as the embodiment of ever-expanding love that is ever surprisingly (and often playfully) enacted and just as painfully hidden from view. Suffice it to say here that one challenge for the Hindu might be to resist the temptation to settle for easy parallels as some sort of confirmation that “it is actually the same thing.” For the Hindu to experience a similar opening of space to the Catholic tradition of loving Jesus would require a similar readiness to be unsettled and to suspend a broadly Hindu (or neo-Hindu) tendency to enfold the other into the self. Continue reading "Review of Francis X. Clooney, S.J., His Hiding Place Is Darkness: A Hindu-Catholic Theopoetics of Divine Absence
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1000 Miles Away (Album of photos)
Indradyumna Swami: One thousand miles away from Irkutsk, across the frozen Siberian tundra, is Krasnoyarsk, the 3rd city on our Russian itinerary. Here we were greeted by a blissful group of devotees, who introduced us to yet another amazing temple in this far-distant and isolated part of God’s creation. How do they do it? They are faithful followers of Srila Prabhupada, who is blessing them with unlimited mercy. Unique to the congregation is a group of gypsies, old friends of mine, who love to chant and dance in kirtan.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/nhuVFA

Headed by Premavatar Gauranga prabhu, the TOVP Construction Manager, we recently began mounting the decorative stars and ribbons onto the domes, beginning with the Planetarium dome.

Work is progressing rapidly and three segments have already been completed. Once completed, each segment is sealed and waterproofed insuring they will maintain their integrity and beauty for hundreds of years into the future.

The post Stars and Ribbons On the Domes appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

With great pomp and ecstacy, the TOVP Euro Tour led by Lord Nityananda’s Padukas and Lord Nrsimhadeva’s Sitari and accompanied by Their Graces Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus departed Mayapur, arriving in Belgium on April 10th. This is the third year of such touring, bringing the mercy and darshan of Lord Nityananda and Lord Nrsimhadeva to devotees in every corner of the world.

The first stop of this tour was the Radhadesh temple in Belgium. The program was held at the temple on April 11th and was attended by the entire small community of devotees headed by GBC Hrday Caitanya prabhu and temple president Manohar prabhu. As usual the Padukas and Sitari were properly greeted with kirtan, arati, an abhisheka, etc., followed by presentations and talks by Jananivas and Braja Vilas prabhus. The intimate gathering of 30+ devotees was highly enthusiastic and generous and a total of $95,000 U.S. was pledged.

This was a very auspicious start for the tour. But the next day Braja Vilas met with a few wealthy Indian diamond merchants who were so enthusiastic they want to organize a large event with many of their friends at a future time to raise funds for the TOVP. Undoubtedly, the Lord is providing us with new avenues to pursue in our fundraising efforts during the next four years of the MISSION 22 marathon.

The next stop is Cologne, Germany on April 13th. The Tour will remain in Germany for three days. The complete Euro Tour schedule is below.

The post TOVP Euro Tour Day 1: Radhadesh, Belgium appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

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[Talk at Raleigh, USA]

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The post Are our mistakes part of Krishna’s plan? – 2 appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

[Talk to Duke University students, Durham, USA]

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