Oldest 24-Hour Kirtan Festival in West Celebrates 17 Years.
Over 2,000 people from the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe are expected to attend the 17th annual 24-Hour Kirtan in Birmingham, England from Saturday April 30th to Sunday May 1st. Today, it’s a huge bank holiday weekend draw. But back when the event – the oldest 24-Hour-Kirtan Festival in the Western world – began in 1999, attendance was much smaller. It all started with a group of Pandava Sena teenage youth, fans of the year-around 24-Hour Kirtan program in Vrindavan, Ind...

Harinama - ISKCON Auckland New Zealand: (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: One is understood to be an eternal servant of the......

Hare Krishna Mantra Fest In Benesov Gymnasium (Town in the Czech Republic) (Album with photos)
13.4. 2016 Assembly Hall Secondary School in Benesov.
Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna … echoed Wednesday 13. 4. in the evening the auditorium Benesov gymnasium, where devotees of Hare Krishna held for eighty spectators cultural program “Mantra Fest”.
From the stage sounded several traditional Indian mantras and bhajans, screened the footage of pilgrimage sites in India, lacked inických tasting traditional specialties, offering b...

Pujari-Portrait: Dhira Krsna dasa, disciple of H.H. Bhakti Caru Swami.
In which place are you serving? Since when?
Radhadesh, Belgium. I joined the temple full time in April 1992.
Since when are you serving the Deities and how did you get attracted to that seva?
I received second initiation in October 1994 and since then started doing Deity Worship in Radhadesh. I started dressing the Gaura Nitai Deities which are now in Amsterdam and at that time They were hosted in Radhadesh because there were no devotees in Amsterdam who could take ca...

100,000 Wishes Offered to Vrindavan Wish Tree.
Over 100,000 wishes gathered on Mandali Mendrilla’s sculpture dress “Mandala of Desires”, were offered to a genuine Wish Tree in Vrindavan, UP, India.
An intimate gathering of enthusiasts met under the tree at Kaliya Ghat in Vrindavan, and offered over 100 000 desires gathered on the interactive sculpture dress called “Mandala of Desires” (Blue Lotus Wish Tree) that was on display at the China Art Museum in Shanghai, from December 2015 to February 21. 2016, as part of th...

April 22. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: In the back of the loft I noticed a little curtain – an Indian madras type of curtain – and so I decided to peer into that area. I looked in and there was Swami Bhaktivedanta sitting there cross-legged in saffron garments, with the markings on his forehead and nose and his hand in the bead bag. Even though he looked like the real thing, he seemed more approachable and I said, “Hello,” and he looked up. I said, “Swami Bhaktivedanta?” a...

Harinama and book distribution in Sydney (Album with photos)
Sri Harinam Sankirtan Nectar 21-04-16
This evening was filled......

Padayatra Newsletter 2016.
Reports from different countries
50 padayatras for ISKCON’s 50th birthday
History of Padayatra
Inspiration from Srila Prabhupada
Various quotes and letters
Padayatra Hall of Fame
Padayatra manual
Photo gallery
Videos and films
Audio
Schedules and Contacts
To download the pdf document click here: http://www.padayatra.com/padayatra-newsletter-2016/

The Conch - Newsletter of New Govardhana Hare Krishna Community - April Issue.
EDITORIAL ADVISOR – H.H. Mukunda Goswami
GRAPHIC DESIGN & LAYOUT – Urvasi devi dasi
PHOTOGRAPHY - Urvasi devi dasi and Trevor Gore
EDITORIAL BOARD
Damodara Pandit dasa
Govardhana Seva dasa
Krishna Rupa devi dasi (ACBSP)
Mandakini devi dasi
To download the pdf document click here: http://goo.gl/q9zt0O

Govindas in Hungary: Hungry in Hungary. (Album with photos)
This place is ever-busy!
Kurma das: Maha prasadam sweets from Hungary’s New Vraja farm community are available at the downtown Govindas.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/ZOkCft

All India Padayatra Returns After Month Long Break.
By Acarya Dasa. The All India padayatra had spent almost a month in Navadipa Mandal. All the padayatris are so fully engaged in walking from one city to another during the year, that they do not have a chance to hear lectures or kathas from senior devotees. The padayatris therefore attended the sravan utsava[1] or festival of hearing in Mayapur which Acarya Dasa said was a “feast for our ears – we eagerly awaited this occasion throughout the year.” The padayatris also attended the Na...

Villa Vrindavana Experience (4 min video)
Villa Vrindavana lies on the rolling Tuscan hills of Chianti, in the district of San Casciano Val di Pesa, not far from Florence. The central building was built during the Renaissance and it is surrounded by a large Italian garden and by a park of mostly wooded land spreading out over about 90 acres. The villa was built in the sixteenth century as a residence for noble people. It was designed by the famous architects of that time. Some important personalities lived and stayed here, including Niccolò Ma...

April 21. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Prabhupada Liked to Take Walks.
Prabhupada liked to take walks. From his doorstep at 94 Bowery he would see directly across the street the Fulton Hotel, a five-storey flophouse. Surrounding him were other lower Manhattan lodging houses whose tenants wandered the sidewalks from early morning until dark. An occasional flock of pigeons would stir and fly from one rooftop to the next, or descend to the street. Traffic was heavy. The Bowery was part of a truck route to a...

Harinam in the Land of rising Sun, Osaka, Japan (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: O Hari-nama! The tips of the toes of Your......

A Visit To Qufu - The Hometown Of Confucius (Album with photos)
Indradyumna Swami: The other day we took a 3-hour ‘Bullet Train’ to Qufu, the hometown of Confucius, the famous Chinese philosopher and teacher. We stayed at the Confucius Institute, a small university where students study and practice the teachings of Confucius. During two days we gave a seminar comparing Vedic teachings with those of Confucius. At the end of each class we held a rousing kirtan with the students in which they would dance in great ecstasy. Our team also did kir...

Hindu: The Most Misinterpreted Term.
It’s possible that the colonial British people would have, either mistakenly or with some intention, grossly brought the vast majority of the non-Christian and non-Muslim natives under one umbrella – the Hindus – thus, converting a national unifying enthno-geographic identity of the Indians to a communal one.
To read the entire article click here: http://goo.gl/fCCS2D

Prabhupada Ghat To Accommodate Millions Of Pilgrims In Pandharpur Dhama.
An offering to Srila Prabhupada for ISKCON Jubilee.
ISKCON Pandharpur, under the leadership of Lokanath Swami, took the initiative of constructing a ghat on the eastern bank of the Chandrabhaga, right down the temple property.
Srila Prabhupada Ghat is situated on the Eastern bank of river Chandrabhaga. The ghat under development is 270 mtrs long & 90 mtrs wide. The different salient features of the Ghat are as follows Chandrabhaga Mandir Interaction Space f...

Advaita – The Partial Truth.
Rsiraja Das: Many people who look at Vedic philosophy in current times, understand it as Advaita, which is an interpretation of Vedanta, that claims that the ultimately reality is a singular, unified existence called Brahman, from which the world is produced, and the world is māyā or illusion. The Brahman is equated with consciousness, although how consciousness comes under illusion is a contentious issue since the time of Śaṅkarācārya who first propounded Advaita but did not provide a c...

The power of Prasadam!
Kishori devi dasi: Prasadam means Krishna’s mercy, and is the remnants of something that has been prepared for the pleasure of Krishna with love and offered to Him for His enjoyment.
Because Krishna has tasted it or enjoyed it, prasadam is not a material thing - it becomes transcendental. Krishna and Krishna prasadam are non-different.
That means one can get the same benefits by honoring Krishna prasadam as one could get by being personally present with Krishna face- to-face.
Prasadam is so powerful and so wo...

Kamada Ekadashi, 17th April 2016, big gathering of devotees in Mayapur. (Album with photos)
Srila Prabhupada: Caitanya Mahaprabhu says: “I have brought medicine to awaken every living being from perpetual sleep. Please receive the holy name of the Lord, the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, and awaken. (Srimad-Bhagavatam, 5.13.9 Purport)
Find them here: https://goo.gl/bVnOMH

TOVP update (Album with photos)
Dear Prabhus,
Dandavat pranams. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
We are happy to shar......

Padayatra in Russia - 50 000 Holy Name’s friends (3 min video)
50 000 Russian people will hear the Holy Name in 50 towns and villages.
Read how you can help.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/mjNH96

April 20. ISKCON 50 – S.Prabhupada Daily Meditations.
Satsvarupa dasa Goswami: Michael Grant.
Michael Grant: I went up to him after his lecture in the loft. I had the same feeling I’d had on other occasions when I’d been to hear famous people in concerts. I was always interested in going by after concerts to see musicians and singers, just to meet them and see what they were like. I had a similar feeling after Swamiji spoke, so I went up and started talking. But the experience was different from the others in that he wasn’t i...

Indian PM Sri Narendra Modi ji receives with reverence the Munificent Deity of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
Srila Prabhupada: Our only request is that if you want happiness, if you want to prosper, make your life successful, you must read Bhagavad-gita thoroughly, as it is, as Krishna says. Don’t try to misinterpret. Bombay, April 2, 1974.