​If bhakti is the art of becoming happy, why are we bhaktas not happy?
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Were Prabhupada’s early followers the eternal associates of Lord Chaitanya?
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​Are physical handicaps in this life the scars of sins from previous lives?
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Chanting Hare Krishna and the original problem.
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Chanting Hare Krishna and the original problem.
Sacinandana Swami: As practitioners that chant the holy name we all know how difficult it is to connect the mind with the holy name because by definition, the mind is only able to grasp material things. The mind can think of holidays at the beach or any other material subject. It is especially attracted to think about how to increase one’s wealth and how to engage in sexual activities. These are things we can easily think about because the mind is shaped like this. It wraps itself around money and the opposite sex very easily; it’s made like this, it’s a perfect material match. but the mind has great difficulty to stay with Krishna. Since we have come to the world, this is our problem: we have turned our back to Kåñëa, and this bahir-mukha, being outwardly faced, especially manifests when we try to chant the holy names. In other words, our basic envy of god, our feeling ill at ease with the lord manifests to a very obvious degree when we chant the holy name.

Don’t Starve your Mantras!
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Don’t Starve your Mantras!
One of the highlights for me at the recent Sadhu Sanga Kirtan Retreat was an instruction on mantra meditation. It was spoken by Sacinandana Swami in reference to the Gayatri Mantras that are chanted when one receives advanced initiation in the practice of Bhakti Yoga, but it’s a guide that can be applied to any mantra meditation practice: “Don’t starve your mantras”
Our devotional yoga involves the chanting of many mantras, the main one being the Hare Krishna mantra. A successful chanting practice needs both regulation and attention. When we neglect either of those, the mantra becomes weak and has little or no impact in our efforts for transcendence.
When we skip days in our practice, sometimes chanting, sometimes not, we are starving our mantras. When we chant mindlessly, just getting the prescribed number of mantras done, without attention or emotion, we are starving our mantras.
When we starve the mantras they leave us.
They will also come back to us, to our life, when we give them time and attention. The mantras themselves don’t need anything, they are transcendental sound vibrations, but will not work without our participation. If we chant with committed regulation, and chant with deliberate attention, they have the potency to shift our lives to higher ways of thinking and being. The sound purifies, frees our mind from misery and reawakens our original love for Krishna. This is their magic, the gift they give to us.
So don’t starve your mantras. Give them the time and attention then need, which is really the time and attention you need.

First Padayatra In Johannesburg Gauteng, South Africa
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Hare KrishnaBy Padmanabha Dasa

During the padayatra, people would often ask us about Srila Prabhupada. They wanted to know why he was sitting and not saying anything, and others wanted to know if they could touch his feet. We took this as a good opportunity to explain to people about Srila Prabhupada. The sun was blazing but with a cool breeze accompanying it, the procession kept moving. It was a joyous walk with many African people joining us; they sang, danced and jumped in ecstasy as they all tried to get some mercy. We ended the padayatra at the park with Nrishmadev prayers. Devotees then settled down on the grass and took the prasadam that was being served. We thank the devotees and public for their participation in making this a successful event. Continue reading "First Padayatra In Johannesburg Gauteng, South Africa
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Malaysia Padayatra Celebrates World Holy Name Week And Iskcon’s 50Th Anniversary
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Hare KrishnaBy Murali Vadhana Govinda Dasa

A small padayatra was held in Malaysia on August 14th. It was organized by ISKCON Teluk (Mayapur Baru) and commemorated ‘World Holy Name Week’ and ISKCON’s 50th anniversary. Srila Prabhupada visited the town of Teluk Intan located in the Hilir Perak district of Malaysia in 1970. He also visited the Mariamman Temple here. Now, years later it was decided that this temple would be the starting point of the commemorative padayatra. The padayatra was set to take place at 5:30 pm. There were around 50 devotees gathered at the Mariamman Temple. We also carried a murti i of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada. We had organized some media coverage from a local newspaper, ‘Tamil Malar.’ They were meant to cover the event from the beginning but unfortunately, because they had arrived late, it didn’t work out. They did, however; agree to publish the event later after we had completed the walk. Continue reading "Malaysia Padayatra Celebrates World Holy Name Week And Iskcon’s 50Th Anniversary
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An Ocean of Gaura Premamrta-krpa” – An elaboration on Srila…
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An Ocean of Gaura Premamrta-krpa" - An elaboration on Srila Rupa Goswami’s Sri Upadesamrta.
This wonderful book in two volumes has been compiled by H.G. Srimati Mataji (Vrindavana) and her team.
HG Srimati Mataji is a senior renounced Vaishnavi, who after serving for 18 years in Sri Mayapur dhama has now settled in Vrindavan since last 3 years.
She recently compiled a wonderful book based on Srila Prabhupada and previous acharyas which she dedicated to 50 years of ISKCON.
You can download it, as pdf files, here: https://goo.gl/ZcqsaI

New Vrindaban Prabhupada Festival to Awaken Sweet Service Mood
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Hare KrishnaBy Madhava Smullen

The festival is a revival of the historical Prabhupada Festivals that began in the West Virginia rural community with the opening of Srila Prabhupada’s Palace in 1979, and continued through to the mid 1980s. Lavish affairs, they saw devotees from around the world come together to serve Srila Prabhupada with processions, abishekhas and gift-giving, as well as 24-hour kirtans, dramas, sumptuous feasts, and elaborate fireworks displays. This year’s festival aims to not only bring back that tradition, but also to reconnect with previous residents who assisted in the gradual development of New Vrindaban; revive a spirit of giving special attention to Srila Prabhupada; and awaken the team spirit and sweet, sincere mood of service that the early devotees had for him. Continue reading "New Vrindaban Prabhupada Festival to Awaken Sweet Service Mood
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Chaitanya Charan Dasa: Oct 6-13, 2016
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The Toronto Hare Krishna Temple will be welcoming Chaitanya Charan Dasa from October 6-13, 2016.  Chaitanya Charan is a monk and spiritual author. He has done his Electronics & Telecommunications Engineering from the Government College of Engineering, Pune. He subsequently served as a software engineer in a prominent multinational software corporation.

Seeing the prevalent problems of stress, depression, addiction and overall misdirection – all caused by a lack of spirituality – he felt inspired to dedicate his life to the cause of sharing the spiritual wisdom of the Bhagavad-gita under the aegis of ISKCON (International Society for Krishna consciousness). He is a member of ISKCON’s leading intellectual body, the Shastric Advisory Council, and is the associate-editor of ISKCON’s global magazine, Back to Godhead. He is the author of the world’s only Gita-daily feature, wherein he writes daily a 300-word inspirational reflection on a verse from the Bhagavad- Gita. He has written over seventeen hundred Gita meditations that are posted on www.gitadaily.com and are read through daily feeds by thousands from all over the world.

He also answers questions by seekers on his site www.thespiritualscientist.com, where his over three thousand five hundred audio answers and several hundred articles are available.

He travels all over the world from Australia to America, giving talks on spiritual subjects in temples, universities and companies. His articles have been published in many national newspapers including Indian Express, Economic Times and Times of India in the Speaking Tree column. His writings in English have been translated into several foreign languages including German, Chinese and Romanian and several Indian languages including Kannada, Telgu, Bengali, Hindi and Marathi. He is the author of sixteen books.



Srila Prabhupada arrives in the USA, 1965
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Srila Prabhupada arrives in the USA, 1965.
Tomorrow marks the anniversary of Srila Prabhupada’s arrival in the U.S.A. in 1965.
Several years after Srila Prabhupada first arrived in America, a disciple discovered the diary he had kept during his passage from India on the steamship Jaladuta. Inside was a poem, handwritten in Bengali, which Srila Prabhupada had written on board the ship just after it had arrived in Boston harbor. The poem beautifully captures Srila Prabhupada’s first impressions of Western civilization and reveals his heartfelt determination to change the consciousness of America. It begins:
“My dear Lord Krishna, You are so kind upon this useless soul, but I do not know why You have brought me here. Now You can do whatever You like with me.
"But I guess You have some business here, otherwise why would You bring me to this terrible place?
To read the entire article click here: https://goo.gl/KtFO5B

Tests in spiritual life
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(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 14 December 2015, Mayapur, India, Srimad Bhagavatam 6.17.36-37)

sp_readingWe will be tested in our lives. It is not, ‘Maybe we will be tested!’ We WILL BE tested as this is the nature of devotional service. Srimad Bhagavatam is meant to guide us on how to act in a trying situation where we may have to face strong behavior from superiors.

What if one gets mistreated by the authorities in the institution? Still, this is not an excuse to leave Krsna consciousness! This is a very common justification found by many who have found an excuse to give into their mind and to allow themselves to return to the material life, ‘What could I do? No one understood me and I was mistreated! I’m just a soul whose intentions are good… but I was misunderstood and then as a result I was mistreated and here I am – a victim of the situation!’ No, you are a victim of your own mind! And of course, the mind is the seat of the senses and therefore a victim of the senses.

The mind is constantly looking for an emergency exit, ‘There’s gotta be some way to get out of this – this is too tight! No really, it’s too serious, it’s too much! I need a little more freedom. A whole lifetime of just four regulative principles and only Hare Krsna! Oh, please, give us a little more freedom!’

But we cannot do so because it does not align with transcendental knowledge. A way out is just not possible because you cannot argue with transcendental knowledge. But if there was a way out, what greater way out than to blame somebody else, ‘It’s not due to my fault that I fell down – I was mistreated, I am a victim!’

Yeah, believe it if you want to but it is not very convincing. Maybe you can fool your mind but I do not think you can fool anybody else. We understand very well what happened. The lower nature got the better of you and you just found an excuse to facilitate it!

We ourselves are by no means very powerful; we do not have great strength of character therefore we must read Srimad Bhagavatam and hear it again and again so that we can actually meditate on how to properly react to tests in life. We may not know spontaneously how to act in an appropriate way, therefore better we be thoughtful and meditate on it so that when such testing situations do arise then we can remind ourselves, ‘Okay, I remember what is supposed to be the right behavior!’ And after prolonged meditation, we might act properly in such a trying situation. One who is deeply thoughtful for a long time, one who has read Bhagavatam again and again, even though internally not yet completely pure, may act appropriately.

Wednesday, September 14th, 2016
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Wednesday, September 14th, 2016
Washington/Toronto

Getting Guidance

I had delivered a class based on a verse from the book, the Bhagavatam, 11:7:38, at the temple in Potomac.  The entire chapter seven is very instructive as it expounds upon the concept of guru—the concept of giving guidance.  It is in this text that Sri Krishna shares the example of how a sadhulearned about life from gurus known as the mountain and the tree.  I will simply copy the purport to the verse.

“Great mountains bear unlimited quantities of earth, which in turn gives sustenance to innumerable forms of life such as trees, grass, birds, animals, and so on. Mountains also pour forth unlimited quantities of crystalline water in the form of waterfalls and rivers, and this water gives life to all. By studying the example of mountains, one should learn the art of providing for the happiness of all living entities. Similarly, one may take excellent lessons from the pious trees, who offer innumerable benefits, such as fruits, flowers, cooling shade and medicinal extracts. Even when a tree is suddenly cut down and dragged away, the tree does not protest but continues to give service to others in the form of firewood. Thus, one should become the disciple of such magnanimous trees and learn from them the qualities of saintly conduct.”

Here Sri Krishna tells of two gurus, or teachers, that we find in nature.  It is through the words of the sadhu that we discover, in addition to the mountain and the tree, there are other elements which become instructors, totalling twenty-four.  This is an incredible, educational offer to all of humanity and that’s why the book, Bhagavatam, is such a gem.

May the Source be with you!

5 km

  

Tuesday, September 13th, 2016
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Tuesday, September 13th, 2016
Washington, D.C.

The Guy on the Parkway

Bharat, a lively member from the Potomac Vaishnav community, drove a group of us to the Gala event at the Capital Hilton, when the passengers asked about some of my walking experiences.  So I obliged.

Nearing the end of one of the selected adventures, I said something for them to think about.“When one walks, you are more inclined to be God-centered.  That holds true more-so than for those in a car.  An automobile can make you cold and callous, like the machine itself.”

Just as I made the statement, we noted a fellow, likely homeless, walking along the parkway we were on.  I rolled down the window and got the fellow’s attention. “Hey, you’re a hero for walking.”

His response was, “I’m walking after just having a triple bypass.”  With that, he pulled down his T shirt, as much as it would go from the neck, to reveal the medical marks.

“We think it’s great you’re on foot,” I reiterated.

“The good Lord is allowing me to do it,” he shouted back, in appreciation for the divine benefit he’s received.

In any event, I made the point about the connection between walking and spirituality, and right on cue, an affirmation came about.  The passengers and Bharat were questioning, “How could this be so?”  Something was magical in all of this.

The event at the Hilton was a milestone.  To commemorate ISKCON’s fifty years is remarkable.  Many speakers, including Congresswoman Tulasi Gabbard, honoured the achievements of ISKCON’s noble work.  She even picked up a ukelele and led all folks present in the chanting of Hare Krishna.

May the Source be with you!

0 km

Monday, September 12th, 2016
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Monday, September 12th, 2016
Toronto/Washington

Walking Monk Goes to Washington

I would like to use the phrase “hop, skip and a jump” with regard to my journey today, but that’s not how it works for aircraft travel.  The flight from Thunder Bay to Toronto was brief. It wasn’t choppy, as the phrase suggests, nor was the one to Washington D.C.  The journeys were short and sweet, or more truthfully,sweet, because they were short.

I arrived at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to be picked up by a Nepalese devotee, Chaitanya Nitai by name.  It is an enviable airport in that a gorgeous trail leads you directly into it.  It runs along the Potomac River and then under a canopy of a thousand trees.  This trail accommodates walkers and cyclists who can then come right up to the airport entrance.  I thought you could only do that in Thunder Bay.

I feel indeed honoured to reach the U.S. capital city to participate in ISKCON’s Historic 50th Anniversary, for it was fifty years ago that America started to acknowledge the work which was being done by Srila Prabhupada.  From 1966,when papers were signed and registered in New York City, to the early winter of ’77, a span of a mere eleven years, he established a worldwide adjustment in consciousness.  His aim was to approach life with a lighter tone, to experience bhakti, the essence of human sentiment.

Not all the world, at this point, has recognized his great worth.  The event tomorrow, held at the Capital Hilton, is a gesture to give credit where it is due.

May the Source be with you!

0 km

Sunday, September 11th, 2016
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Sunday, September 11th, 2016
Thunder Bay, Ontario

By the Side of the Road

By the side of the road, there was this substantial piece of a body of a deceased raccoon.  Let’s say he was one third there.  Millions of maggots were stirring about, chewing whatever they could as part of nature’s recycling department.  One day later, Nick and I, witnesses to the feast, saw what was left.  But for a few bones, practically the whole thing had vanished over a period of twenty-four hours.  It was just astounding what we observed in terms of the clean-up.  Hardly any fur was left.  We were in south central Ontario near Hastings.

Today, Prem and I ventured onto the body of the Sleeping Giant.  No, it is not a carcass.  It’s actually a beautiful provincial park, situated in this northern region off of Lake Superior.  I always wanted to mosey on over and explore the old boy, who, according to myth, was an old chief who went to slumber after hearing a prophecy that the White Man was coming.

This park, which has the formation of a peninsula, resembles a large reclining person (reminding me of the horizontal Vishnu lying in water) and features many walking trails.  People take full advantage of them.  You have many choices.

Prem and I decided to take the trail to the Sea Lion rock formation.  Said to be shaped over a billion years ago, you can currently witness what’s left of it.  We were a bit disappointed to see the head clipped off due to erosion; due to time actually.  Once, it had the semblance of a lion resting on his haunches.

That then is the work of the all-powerful we call time.  It wears away everything, even our own bodies, precious as they are.  The Gita reminds us that God is time.

May the Source be with you!

14 km

Vishwakarma Puja in the Service of Sri Sri Radha Madhava
- TOVP.org

Vishwakarma is the demigod of architecture. He is accredited for designing Dwarka. The Mahabharata describes him as “The lord of the arts, executor of a thousand handicrafts, the carpenter of the gods, the most eminent of artisans, the fashioner of all ornaments … and a great and immortal god.” He has four hands, wears a crown, loads of gold jewelry, and holds a water-pot, a book, a noose and craftsman’s tools in his hands”.

Ordinarily and as explained in the Bhagavad Gita, in ISKCON we do not engage in any form of demigod worship. However in West Bengal, India it is a popular cultural tradition among workers and engineers to hold a Vishwakarma Puja to obtain the blessings for good work. In our case, this puja was held and utilized in the service of Sri Sri Radha Madhava for building Their unique and new TOVP Temple.

On Saturday September 17, 2015 our TOVP Glass fiber Reinforced Concrete (GRC) Factory workers held a Vishwakarma Puja in the factory. The day before the workers had a “Gundica Marjanam” in the GRC factory. They cleansed the entire space from top to bottom. They also washed all the tools, machines, and factory vehicles.

Pictures of Sri Sri Radha Madhava, Lord Nrsimhadeva, and Srila Prabhupada were accompanied by a deity form of Vishwakarma. All of the factory’s tools were placed on the altar and were worshipped. The yajna was performed to remove all inauspiciousness and obstacles in our work. Also, we prayed for the good health and determination of the workers.

The yajna was followed by a sumptuous Krishna Prasadam feast. The workers and their families and other TOVP staff members attended the puja. It united an uplifted the spirits of everyone. It was a positive day and a grand opportunity to honor and celebrate all of the virtuous work that is being produced for the TOVP in our very own GRC Factory.

[See image gallery at tovp.org]

The post Vishwakarma Puja in the Service of Sri Sri Radha Madhava appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Прибытие к Кайласу
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Фотоальбом на FB

После нелегкого трехдневного путешествия наконец прибыли к нашему месту назначения в западном Тибете, священной горе Кайлас. Утром начнем трехдневную парикраму вокруг обители Господа Шивы.

​Is our intelligence enough for making right choices or do we need Krishna’s mercy?
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​How can we control the mind in professional settings where we can’t do devotional activities?
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The Glories of Srimad Bhagavatam (video) A seminar by HG Radhika…
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The Glories of Srimad Bhagavatam (video)
A seminar by HG Radhika Raman Prabhu given In Iskcon Silicon Valley.
The Srimad Bhagavatam is the very essence of all the Vedanta literature, a cultural presentation for the re-spiritualization of the entire human society.
“This Srimad Bhagavatam is as brilliant as the sun, and it has arisen just after the departure of Lord Krishna to His own abode, accompanied by religion, knowledge, etc. Persons who have lost their vision due to the dense darkness of ignorance in the Age of Kali shall get light from this Srimad Bhagavatam.” (Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.3.43)
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/7Bhg20

Sri Lankan Government Minister attended the celebration of Sri Krishna Janmastami Festival
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Hare KrishnaBy Mahakarta das

Honourable Mano Ganesan – Minster of National Coexistence Dialogue and Official Languages, attended the Sri Krishna Janmastami celebration at Sri Sri Radha Krishna Temple. He was offered Golden shawl, Prasadam and Garland. He gave a memento in honour of Srila Prabhupada for the 50th Anniversary of ISKCON. Continue reading "Sri Lankan Government Minister attended the celebration of Sri Krishna Janmastami Festival
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Address By Bhakti Charu Swami For The Srila Prabhupada Memorial Festival & Maharaj’s 71st Vyasa Puja Celebration
Bhakti Charu Swami

Please view a 10-minute video recorded by Bhakti Charu Swami on Srila Prabhupada’s mermorial festival, 17th September 2016, at ISKCON Ujjain. Please share with others. In this video, Maharaj highlights our good fortune in coming into contact with Srila Prabhupada, and how by His Divine Grace’s mercy we have come to the path of Krishna Consciousness.

The post Address By Bhakti Charu Swami For The Srila Prabhupada Memorial Festival & Maharaj’s 71st Vyasa Puja Celebration appeared first on Bhakti Charu Swami.