We sometimes think of ourselves as being good adjudicators of who is serious in Krishna consciousness, and who is not. Who is pure, or not. Expecting that “More people will leave Krishna consciousness than stay,” we easily become proud of being one of the “privileged few” to remain. Being of the surprising few and rationalising this way is certainly premature, and signals immediate complacency. The adage, “It is how you finish that counts; not how you start,” usually escapes our attention when we think of how and why so many devotees leave Krishna consciousness. Ar...

Worse than being alone is to be with a person who doesn’t like you; too many people have experienced the anguish and chaos caused by an incompatible marriage. Such travesties are systematically avoided in Vaishnava culture because, besides training and restraint in behaviour prior to marriage, all care is taken in matchmaking: “Formerly, boys and girls of similar dispositions were married; the similar natures of the boy and girl were united in order to make them happy.” (SB 3.21.15) “The central idea is that if the boy and girl were on an equal level the marri...

Srila Prabhupada wanted us to set up ISKCON as an almost self-contained, devotional society, with our own schools, farms, economy, and social system. So far we have not completely realized that ambition, though there are some very good schools and options for those who want to live a life of 'full-time' engagement in ISKCON. But we also have large 'outside congregations' of devotee (like myself) who have our own jobs, careers, and community engagements.

Einstein, Emerson, Thoreau, Huxley, Hesse . . . I was amazed that this list an intellectual who’s who from recent world history was actually a list of thinkers who had appreciated the Gita. As I had been born and brought up in India, the place where the Gita was spoken millennia ago, I was familiar with it as an ancient Hindu text. I had even memorized some of it for verse recitation contests. But I had no idea that its contents were of interest to the modern mind, much less praised by ...

The Divine Form. "Then, as if by divine providence, an art college friend, upon returning from a visit to Bangkok, gave me some rice-paper rubbings taken from bas-reliefs of divinities of the temple of the reclining Buddha. Although I didn't know it at first, the images depicted the pastimes of Lord Ramachandra. I immediately appreciated the combination of delicate exquisiteness and divine irresistible power that Ramachandra personified while upon His chariot, bow drawn, ready to slay His evi...

Once there was a sage who lived by the banks of the Ganges River. The sage spent much of his time in meditation and he understood the difference between that which is ‘sat’ (eternal) and that which is ‘asat’ (temporary). Now he was destined to live until all the hairs on his body fell off. He is described as a ‘hairy’ sage. And only a single hair fell off during a life time of Brahma (which is millions upon millions of years). So this sage was going to...

Would Krishna Consciousness have even developed in quite the same way in the UK without George’s support? Krishna devotees cannot fail to acknowledge the pivotal role the ‘spiritual Beatle’ played in nudging Eastern philosophy irreversibly towards the mainstream. And would George have had the same effect in promoting Eastern belief-systems had he been part of a less prolific pop group? The important thing to remember is that George Harrison was never about self-aggrandizement. George used whatever talent, ability and impact he had in the same way that any other Hare Krishna devotee w...

My Father-in-law was at first alarmed by the framed photo of Srila Saraswati Thakur adorning our living room wall captioned with His Divine Grace's bold declaration that "...Western civilization must be crushed." I explained that the whole world was contaminated by the ideology of extreme exploitation which has it's heart inextricably intertwined with the roots of what History portrays as Western "civilization." This idea of exploitation ruins any realm in which it exists like a malignant cancer or lethal virus. It is this ruinous mood which must be crushed and not the spiritually h...

The King of Knowledge by Srila Prabhupada came to me at a pivotal time. I got the book without wanting it. My friend wanted to share it with me after he perused it. I had no idea - I was “book distributed!” I was skeptical but on my friend’s recommendation, I studied the book for at least a month. The King of Knowledge held ample flawless arguments. At the time I was busy trying recklessly to fill my life with mind altering substances and such. The “mind altering substances and such” did not fill the void but grew it to an expansive darkness.

Here is a list of some effects of eating bhoga: (1)Makes the mind wicked. (2)Causes bewilderment. (3)Destroys clear thinking. (4)Causes lust. (5)Dampens the enthusiasm for devotional service. (6)Creates material desires. (7)Causes atheism. (8)Creates impersonal or mayavadi thoughts. (9)Causes one to commit vaisnava aparadha. (10)Causes one to commit Nama-aparadha. (11)Cause indifference to Bhakti. (12)Causes one to be inattentive while chanting. (13)Clouds fine memory. (14)Du...

In the Bhagavad-gita Krishna says, “Enjoyments born of stimulation for the senses are themselves the very sources of misery. They have a beginning and an end, and one who is wise does not delight in them.” Yet it is those enjoyments, those “gifts of God,” that religious believers are often keen to receive. By prayers, by rituals, by following commandments, by “being good,” they hope that God will grant them the gifts of good fortune, of peace and prospe...

I do not know if the Krishna Balaram ISKCON temple in Vrindavan is among the best ISKCON Temples in the world or not but after having spent a few days here, I can say that it is definitely one of the best. A must-visit for every devotee visiting Vrindavan, it is not to be missed for anything! Built in an ornate architectural manner, the temple was inaugurated by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, Founder Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in the year 1975. Spread in a huge expanse, the ISKCON complex today houses a guest house, Govinda�...

Terrible, deadly fires have been raging in California recently, devastating homes and everything else on their way. I recalled Srila Prabhupada’s discussion of the first verse of Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura’s Sri Gurv-astaka. “This forest fire of material existence goes on perpetually, and the authorized person who can deliver you from this fire is called guru, the spiritual master. How does he deliver you? When there is a fire in the forest, you cannot se...

Here I will teach a simple process for reading the Srimad-Bhagavatam (or Bhagavad-gita or any sacred bhakti text) with relish. This process of studying sacred scripture is given in the Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad. It entails three elements and the Vaisnavas have added the fourth item: 1) Sravanam – collecting the information in the text, that is, hearing or reading the text, much like attentively listening to a lecture at the university. 2) Mananam – reflecting on the subject matter 3) Nididhyasan – contemplating on how I can practically apply this text in my own li...

This Hari-katha is attractive for all. It is sung by those who are already on the liberated platform due to being free from all material hankerings. It is the medicine [for those who are aiming for liberation]. Moreover, it gives pleasure to the ears and minds [of those who are complete materialists]. Due to all these reasons, which person will cease from hearing such katha, except for a butcher or the killer of his own soul?

To help propagate this revival, I’ve made a vow to live-stream my daily reading of your books. On the Facebook App, if one searches for “Daily Readings of Srila Prabhupada’s Books” and “likes” the page, one can hear your books, either live or at one’s convenience. Now I’m reading the Eleventh Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam. But when I finish the Bhagavatam I’ll move on to Sri Caitanya-caritamrita and read it out loud cover to cover; then the ...

Sometimes people think that physical proximity to the spiritual master is an indication of special mercy or good fortune, and in one sense it may be. But the real essence of the relationship with the spiritual master is service to the instructions. And service to the instructions does not depend on physical presence. When Srila Prabhupada was in Bombay, we used to go to his quarters every morning after mangala-arati, because at around six o’clock he would go for his morning walk. One morning Harikesa Prabhu, Srila Prabhupada’s secretary at the time, greeted us at the door. He was very exc...