Planet ISKCON

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Harinam Sankirtan in Union Square park Saturday, July 15th (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s transcendental mission is to distribute love of Godhead to everyone. Anyone who accepts God as the Supreme can take to the process of chanting Hare Krishna and become a lover of God. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, 4.41 Purport)
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Srila Prabhupada’s disciple, one of the best kirtaniyas in the world – Bada Haridas Prabhu shared with the HARE KRISHNA Lifestyle some of his most intimate life moments. He opened up about chanting mantras, his family life, and his spiritual master. Continue reading "Interview with Bada Haridas Prabhu
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Rock legend Chrissie Hynde helped reopen a new Cardiff restaurant and even handed out flyers. Not everyone recognised her but she was completely unfazed. The Pretenders star Chrissie Hynde was in Cardiff on Saturday to reopen Atma at its new location in the Capitol Shopping Centre on Queen Street . And though she is a bona fida rock chick, the prominent vegan and animal rights campaigner, didn't think twice about trying to entice Cardiff shoppers into the cafe by handing out flyers. Continue reading "Rock legend Chrissie Hynde helps reopen a restaurant of the devotees in Cardiff, UK
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A nice class this morning detailing out the respects paid by 3 important personalities when they hear about the arrival of Lord Krishna to this world.

Srimad Bhagavatam Class: 10.02.25
Bhaktini Aruna Mataji
Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir, North Sydney
16.07.2017

The arrival of demigods to see the birth of Lord Krishna, is like the baby shower of these days. Who better than highest of demigods to welcome Him to this world?Goloka Vrindhavana, Vaikuntha planets and this material world are all His properties. He is the Supreme. Hence, demigods like Lord Brahma & Lord Shiva are there to pay their respects.

Lord Brahma in one of his prayers at another time asks for Lord’s mercy, ask for help to not be contaminated by ego and for His sweet advice. Similarly, our mood should also be like this – always relying on Krishna. In another pastime of his cow and cowherd devotees stealing, he says that there are many people out there who knows everything about Krishna but he himself doesn’t. So, what is our status? In another pastime, Lord Brahma was amazed to know that there were so many Brahmas who had come to see Krishna, he was just another small one. Krishna tells him that he has only 4 heads because his particular universe is only 4 billion miles long!

Lord Shiva is also an important personality and is in charge of destruction in the material world. He is but a transformation of the primeval lord and considered as the highest Vaishnava. Our approach to him should be of this understanding and that he is not an independent supreme lord. Lord Shiva himself addresses Krishna as the Supreme-most being. In another instance, he praises the beauty of Sri Krishna.

Narada muni was also there. He is always chanting, “Om Namo Narayana”. In his past life, he had heard of sweet pastimes of the Lord from the Bhaktivedantas. When he left home as a child in search of the Lord, he had a very brief glimpse of the Lord in the forest. Later the Lord tells him that this brief audience was only to increase his longing and eagerness of the Lord. The darshan of the Lord is only by His mercy. Even in our lives, we only have a brief audience of the Lord at the temple after which we leave for the material lifestyle.

Our purpose is only to long for Krishna. Everything else like beautiful home or husband or wife or job is not the primary goal. When we are in front of the Deity, we shouldn’t be asking for things but only offer prayers to please Him.

Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha launches CAITANYA SUBODHINI Adi lila, A Systematic Study Guide for Sri Caitanya Caritamrita.
Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha (BVVP): The Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha at ISKCON Govardhan Eco Village has been publishing many series of books, in the last two years, in service of the Vaishnava community, to assist in the understanding of Srila Prabhupada’s books, Srimad Bhagavatam and Sri Caitanya Caritamrta.
The first of the publication series, called BHAGAVATA SUBODHINI, is systematic study study guide for Srimad Bhagavatam. Last year on the occasion of ISKCON’s 50th anniversary, the Vidyapitha completed Bhagavata Subodhini series upto Cantos 1 till 6 in four volumes.

The second publication series is called BHAGAVATA RATNAMALA, a pocket size book containing the most vital and nectarean verses of Srimad Bhagavatam, which has been published in two volumes. The Vidyapitha also published CAITANYA RATNAMALA, a pocket book of the nectarean verses from Sri Caitanya Caritamrita.

The Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha has now come up with another wonderful series called CAITANYA SUBODHINI, A systematic Study guide for Sri Caitanya Caritamrita. On the most auspicious occasion of the 29th Brahmotsavam of Sri Sri Radha Gopinathji, the first volume of this series on ADI LILA of Sri Caitanya Caritamrita is being launched on 16 July 2017.

Following a similar presentation style of Bhagavata Subodhini, this new series CAITANYA SUBODHINI also presents the verse by verse overview of Sri Caitanya Caritamrita systematically with sections, sub sections, tables, flow charts, important notes from the purports and also special thematic compilations and other appendix materials to assist a systematic study of the Caitanya caritamrita chapters. We hope that this humble attempt in presenting this study guide would be pleasing to the Vaishnava community.

More information about the book can be found at http://www.vidyapitha.in/caitanya-subodhini-adilila/

Watch the promo of the book at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPzlvL7Hp04

Morning class at Passi home.

Marriage Matters!
Visakha Dasi: Everyone’s goal is to enter and remain in that elusive condition called happiness.
To be happy we must be peaceful (in Krishna’s words, “How can there be happiness without peace?”) and to be peaceful we must be content with the situation we are in, whatever it is.
We could choose to accept our lot in life and be happy, even if we don’t completely settle our marital discord. “One should be satisfied with whatever he achieves by his previous destiny, for discontent can never bring happiness.” (Srimad Bhagavatam [SB] 8.19.24) In the circumstances of our life, there is no element of chance. They are the result of the law of karma, a law that cannot err, and they are our destiny created by our past activities. It is as futile to rail against our pains and misfortunes, as it is to toil to increase our pleasures. “Without endeavor, one can get the amount of happiness and distress for which he is destined, and one cannot change this. Therefore, it is better to use one’s time for advancement in the spiritual life of Krishna consciousness.” (SB 7.7.42, purport) A person, content in their circumstances, can still choose to improve his or her life.
This attempt to change is not a gnawing dissatisfaction with the status quo, but a desire to fulfill our responsibility as a husband or wife and to advance spiritually.

“For spiritual advancement, one should be materially satisfied, for if one is not materially satisfied, his greed for material development will result in the frustration of his spiritual advancement. [On the other hand], one should not be poverty-stricken, but one must try to be fully satisfied with the bare necessities of life and not be greedy. For a devotee to be satisfied with the bare necessities is, therefore, the best advice for spiritual advancement.” (SB 7.15.21, purport)

A historical example of a content husband can be found in the prince, Priyavrata. He was content to live as a monk but due to the needs of the kingdom, he was requested by his elders to marry and rule as King. His marriage and rule were a sacrifice of his own desire. Yet instead of being bitter, he was just as content as a husband, father, and king for he never forgot his purpose and he conquered the modes of passion and ignorance in all their aspects including lust, greed, and envy as well as anger, bitterness and resentment. Srila Prabhupada explains that although Priyavrata was forced to break his vow of celibacy, he did not look upon his elders with resentment but with deep respect.

Unlike Narada Muni and Priyavrata, conditioned souls bind themselves to misery by holding resentments. Forgiveness (which does not necessarily mean approval of the act that caused the problem), frees one from this bondage.

First contentment, then peacefulness, and then happiness all become reality when we learn to forgive. And the first person to forgive is oneself. We can’t forgive others unless we first forgive ourselves for our own mistakes and character flaws.

“One should try to keep himself satisfied in any condition of life—whether distress or happiness —which is offered by the supreme will. A person who endures in this way is able to cross over the darkness of nescience very easily.” (SB 4.8.33) A contented person remains so through all acts of providence, whether those acts involve change or a lack of change. Contentment is accepting oneself, one’s partner and one’s situation with grace.

The year 2016 marked the Golden Jubilee (1966-2016) of the incorporation of ISKCON ( International Society for Krishna Consciousness) in New York by its Founder Acharya: His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. In continuance with the Golden Jubilee celebration, ISKCON Coimbatore is now presenting a series of inspirational life-changing talks titled “Saaram". The first of its kind was held on 12th July 2017, at Nani Phalkiwala Auditorium, Mani's High School, Coimbatore.The function was inaugurated by HH Bhakti Vinoda Swami (Zonal Secretary) ISKCON, along with Ms Vanitha Mohan, President, Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other dignitaries from Coimbatore.HG Gaur Gopal Das from ISKCON Mumbai, life coach, and international motivational speaker addressed the gathering on "Sutras for a Happy Life". HH Bhakti Vinoda Swami delivered an inspirational speech and also highlighted the significance of the upcoming Sri Kovai Chandra temple project at ISKCON, Coimbatore.The audience expressed their gratitude and appreciation towards the committed service of ISKCON in enlightening people with the secrets of Vedic scriptures, which is vital to achieve success and taste real happiness in life. Continue reading "Inspirational Coaching – “Sutras for a Happy Life”
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Harinam, book and prasadam distribution @ Sindhu Beach, Bali, Indonesia (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Comparing one’s own suffering to the suffering of others, one should be kind to all living entities. Once cannot avoid the sufferings inflicted by providence, and therefore when suffering comes one should fully absorb oneself in chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 7.15.24 Purport)
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Don’t give up. Have hope!
Byron Kyle: I grew up being taught a few core values, of those, faith and hope were of great importance. For me, faith is believing in what you cannot see. Hope is having faith that you will one day see what you believe. Realization is having your faith confirmed, that is, actually witnessing what you believe. It is problematic that faith is used to describe hope but the two support each other. Explained differently faith is an affirmation or declaration while hope is the doing. You must have heard people say, “Don’t give up! Have hope!” Hope is the will to carry on and this is why I write to all of you.
Joining this community of faith, I heard many grand stories of transformation. You hear them within every faith. Tales of triumph that sound like the basis for a Hollywood blockbuster or best-selling biography. Usually, you’ll find that these stories take place over just a few weeks to a few months. The intentions of these stories are good. They are meant to encourage and excite, and on most occasions they do, but I am here to tell you differently. For many, including myself, these stories are just stories. These stories are just puffed up tales of grandeur with no solid basis or traceable line of evidence. At least, these are my feelings and I am sure the feelings of many others.
A life in pursuit of perfection is undoubtedly going to be a life of struggle. Not all of us get it right the first time or the thousandth time! I am here to offer encouragement to all those who experience the path as arduous; who no longer feel ecstasy in kirtan; or who harbor difficult and compulsive behaviors in secret. I am here to encourage devotees who have been at this lifestyle for a while and are thinking they are not making much progress while novices seem to overtake them. And I am speaking as a young person and a university student facing the greatest social pressures he’ll probably experience in his life.

I encourage all of you to look back. It is only in retrospect that you will see all the footholds that have carried you across the fast flowing river of challenges that we call life. And moving forward, I encourage you to be more discerning in choosing where you’ll place your feet and which direction you’ll take. Life is certainly a marathon, not a sprint. Real, lasting change is often deep and gradual rather than quick and dramatic. Real change is usually quiet and an almost unnoticeable affair. Real change requires consistency and not just an intense burst of energy. This model for change applies not only to our devotional life but to all our endeavors.

So I say to all of you, my friends, to look back on your effort and to applaud yourself for it. Applaud the faith you have even if it comes and goes in fits and starts. And I say to you, in the words of Bhakti Tirtha Swami to “…resist the temptation to be normal, because those who are considered normal accept the values and practices of an insane world.”

Don’t give up. Have hope. The victory you are looking for may be just around the corner. You may lose many a battle but you have a choice on the outcome of the war. Jay Sri Krishna!

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I never thought, despite my secondary career as a teacher, that I would now be the one teaching what I had been lovingly taught. And as I taught, reluctantly and uncomfortably at first, the more grateful I felt to those who had passed these skills and knowledge down to me. I am slowly beginning to understand why our dear founder, Srila Prabhupada, travelled to the West to teach love of God. He said that he was simply repeating what Krishna, his spiritual master, and the other great teachers had said. He never took any credit for himself, he was devoid of ego, always grateful, and always ready to pass on what he knew. The passing down of knowledge and skills is a large part of a spiritual practitioner’s reality. As the great saint, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur aptly described it, “If we ourselves do not pass on or share this knowledge it will end and die with us.” Continue reading "Filling the Heart
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We would like to welcome you to our 13th anniversary celebration of Sri kñetra parikrama. This year the parikrama day falls on 9th November. On this day, devotees will circumambulate the entire Sri Ksetra dhama, a distance of around 19 Km. This parikrama has been performed since the time Vidyapati visited Sri Ksetra. ISKCON has […]

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New Ekacakra Dham in Slovakia (Album with photos)
The center of the Slovak ISKCON is located in a small village Abranovce in Presov. In the beautiful surroundings of the Slanské Hills, is developing a temple project and a rural community. The motto which underlies the Movement Hare Krishna is “Simple Life and high thinking” as it is taught by A.C.Bhaktívédanta Swami Prabhupada in his books. The aim of this project is to show the way of life that is based on spiritual understanding and simple way of living. And just to show, but also practically to live this way of life, as well as teach it and lead people to this natural way of life. Such a way of life according to the Scriptures makes a person happy and satisfied.
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A successful model Evgeniya Fedorova from Saint Petersburg, representative of the Vaishnava Culture, shared with the HARE KRISHNA lifestyle blog her story about how to turn non-sattvic business into a sattvic one, how to be a vedic and a modern girl at the same time and what kind of mantra she has been waiting for all her life. Continue reading "The Mantra that changed my life
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Srimad Bhagavatam Class Notes: 10.02.23-24

HG Abhishek Prabhu

North Sydney temple

15.07.2017

Kamsa was stricken with fear. He waited so many years for the 8th child to be born. All his moments were taken up, anticipating the arrival of Krishna. His fear had gone to that extent where he thought of killing his own sister instead of waiting. It was his natural option but he completely refrained from it. He felt the consequences would be too severe. In the pages of history, we see such carnage where one side would kill the family (children & pregnant women too) so that no lineages exist of the defeated army.

In our constant effort to push things to ourselves and pull away from things we don’t like, a living entity is in constant fear. This happens when one has turned away from Krishna. When one feels sheltered, he is satisfied. When one is absorbed in duality, he becomes covered. In BG, it’s compared to an embryo in the womb, totally covered. When one is deeply covered or in the mode of ignorance, he considers irreligious to be religious. Arjuna was very clear what he had to do on the war front due to advice of Lord Krishna. For such a person, their intelligence becomes very clear.

But Kamsa did not have this intelligence. He had no shelter of Krishna. We often find children who has had no proper parental shelter constantly look for a shelter. They feel a loss of identity and duty. In Vedic culture, there was an understanding that one’s strength (especially mental) comes from purity & dharma. Kamsa was very physically powerful and conquered many in the universe. Yet he had no mental strength.

When you are in a leadership position, one becomes isolated in someway because the decision he takes could be harmful or perceived to be harmful. This leads to people staying away from that person. Such an isolation is like death. But Krishna is such a leader that people long to name their children after Him. But, look at the case of incredibly dangerous dictators. Their name, activities and thoughts are pretty much banned from society. Think about the ill will on such people.

Kamsa was always engaged in unfavourable thoughts of Krishna in whatever he did, whether he be sitting, walking etc. He couldn’t see but Krishna everywhere. Although he was in total mood of absorption, unfortunately it was in enmity. Pure devotees of the Lord are also always thinking of Krishna but favourably. They have the mascara of love smearing the eyes of Krishna. Srila Prabhupada would see Krishna and preaching opportunities in everything he saw around him.

If children are raised with Bhakti in their hearts, then you can be confident to let them go. Even if a devotee is now seen engaged in sense gratification, there is always a chance of  a U-turn in his consciousness where he realises his mistakes and the time he has wasted. As parents, we cannot guarantee that the child will become a devotee immediately. But what can be done is to share Krishna bhakti with them in their younger years so that they can turn towards this lifestyle & education at some stage of their lives, even if you may not live to see it.

Science tries to reduce everything to physical principles with no acceptance of God and the divine diversity of life & emotions. Such a life is a waste of human life.

-*-*-

The post Daily Darshan: 15 July,2017 appeared first on Mayapur.com.

Gopala Bhatta Goswami (the son of Vyenkata Bhatta, a Sri Vaisnava brahmana) appeared in Sri Rangam, South India. Lord Caitanya once stayed four months in his home  and converted the family to Gaudiya Vaisnavism.

A boy at this time, Gopala personally served the Lord. Sri Caitanya treated him affectionately giving His remnants and blessings to become an acarya.

On pilgrimage he obtained twelve Salagrama silas. Later the Damodara sila manifested Himself as the beautiful Radha Ramana Deity. Since 1542, Radha Ramana has been worshiped with pure devotion following precise sastric rituals.

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, October 2011, Melbourne, Australia, Lecture)

Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva can give so many benedictions but they cannot give what Lord Vishnu can give, which is liberation from birth and death! But Lord Vishnu cannot give what Lord Krsna can give and that is Krsna-prema. Therefore, we understand that demigods are to be respected but they cannot compare to Vishnu. We worship Lord Vishnu but our deity is Lord Krsna because Krsna and ONLY KRSNA can give us prema – the love of God that exists in Goloka!

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Love must be one of the most over used and perhaps undervalued words in the dictionary. I’m just as guilty as anyone else, declaring my love for cheese on toast, lying in the sun, or, confession time, Raymond Chandler.
In the true sense of the word I wouldn’t say I really love any of those things. For me love means an awful lot more than just liking something rather a lot. Actually in the language of my scriptures, Sanskrit, the word love is only used in connection with God. These texts, known as the Vedas, are quite specific about love. For a feeling to qualify it must be devoid of selfish desire.
The epitome of such love is exhibited by Lord Krishna’s consort Radha. She once declared that Krishna’s happiness was also hers, and if somehow her sadness would make him happy, then that very sadness would become her greatest joy.
In this world however, love is all too often a kind of mutual back scratching. As long as the other party is in some way pleasing to me the relationship endures – but should they become troublesome, or maybe just boring, there’s every chance it will end. Even between parent and child, perhaps the strongest bond, we find relationships breaking down. What to speak of romantic relationships, where heartbreak is sadly all too common.
Therefore the scriptures say that love is really meant for God, whose love for us never fails. Indeed, Hindus believe that this is what we are seeking, our long lost love, and it is the only relationship that time cannot destroy. As St Augustine put it, ‘you have made us for yourself Lord, and our hearts are restless till they rest in you.’
I have also reached this conclusion, and, as much as I love sitting down with a slice of cheese on toast and a copy of The Big Sleep, I don’t think it will ever truly satisfy me in the same way as my love for God.

Our "Paramahamster" comic strip follows an enthusiastic devotee as he navigates a 9 - 5 work day in the corporate world. Please check back weekly for new episodes!