Sanskrit is Greek to most people but for Bhanu Swami Maharaj (pic) the ancient language is a cinch to master. The Canadian of Japanese descent said the sacred language of Hinduism may seem complicated but it was easier than most languages because it was phonetic-based. “There are vowels and consonants but you only have to memorise 60. Reading it is easy. It is unlike the character-based Chinese or Japanese languages where you have to remember 6,000 to 10,000 characters,” said the scholar, 67....

Govinda's —the restaurant is located at the ‘Heaven on earth complex' in the Juhu temple. A large glass wall shows the temple in the background. The restaurant is off the foyer, a large air-conditioned room with wooden paneling and Gujarati lacquered chairs and tables. The maitre d' takes you to a vacant table. The extensive buffet is spread out at one end and the dishes are neatly labeled. There is a very fine music, the Hare Krishna mahamantra which is played in the background mostly in the transcendental vo...

Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, built in 1791, is one of the best-known landmarks of Germany. Through it's existence it has often been a site for historic events. On July 30 it served as a prestigious backdrop for ISKCON Berlin's annual Ratha Yatra festival. Sacinandana Swami, of German origin, was so enlivened that ISKCON was allowed to hold Ratha Yatra in such a time-honored place, that he chanted and danced in great ecstasy throughout the day.

The soulful sankirtan of Shri Vishnujana Maharaja illuminated the streets of San Francisco and Los Angeles , and then across the States, from the earliest days of Krishna consciousness. Today his uplifting bhajans and melodious kirtans still echo in the halls of ISKCON centers around the world. There was never a more faithful servant of Shrila Prabhupada, and the fortunate Vaishnavas who served under his loving care always keep his memories in their hearts. Shrila Prabhupada, who by his my...

Villa Vrindavan, in Italy, almost looks too old to have a future, but the humble devotees there are confident it will. ISKCON’s oldest building probably, the villa is four centuries old. Naturally, not everything works. A sunken semicircular fountain does not spout. The front roof nobly displays a stopped clock; the bell over it no longer chimes times. When devotees moved in with Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, putting their faith in the Lord’s names and graces they named the hun...

Here is the text from ‘Krishna’ Book, chapter 4, where, having being warned by Durga Devi that the child who will kill Kamsa has already taken birth, Kamsa is now repenting and is also trying to justify all his past sinful actions, putting them behind the bars, killing their children, etc., as will of providence. In these lines lie some very enlightening lessons for an aspiring devotee like my own self. “My dear sister Devaki-, you are so gentle and kind. Please excuse me—don’t be aggriev...

We oftentimes hear devotees say that their preaching efforts might become easier if a disaster strikes somewhere, or everywhere. More suffering should mean more turning towards spirituality and God. Will things be as simple as this? Would thinking like this be a tacit admission that we cannot preach successfully in “normal” times? In the event of a disaster, how do we know if the devotees themselves will not be immune to its likely trauma and effects, so as to impact on their own preaching abilit...

I was born and raised in the United States, and I saw all around me so much wealth, so much luxury, such nice telephone system and road systems, and televisions and everything else, and I saw so much power, but to myself and so many people of my generation it was so hollow, it was so shallow, because you see greed could never satisfy the heart. Bhagavad-Gita tells that greed is like fire, the more you feed it, the hungrier and more it needs. When people are trampling on each other, exploiting ea...

In a Talk at the Radha-Govinda Mandir in Calcutta on March 24, 1976 Srila Prabhupada said: And that is the inspiration of my devotional life. Then I asked my father that “Give me Radha-Govinda Deity; I shall worship.” So my father was also Vaisnava. He gave me small Radha-Govinda Deity. I was worshiping in my house. Whatever I was eating, I was offering, and I was following the ceremonies of this Radha-Govinda with my small Deity. That Deity is still existing. I have given to my sister. So then ...

ISKCON turns 50 today. And I would like to acknowledge that significant milestone by expressing my gratitude towards this "framework" established by Srila Prabhupada, without which, I and millions of others would not have had access to Krsna consciousness. That ISKCON, an organisation operating within the material world (but, according to Srila Prabhupada, not exclusively - there is a Goloka/Navadvip branch) to have faults should not be a surprise, nor a legitimate basis for withdrawing one's sup...

She said I was welcome any time, whether next week or in a year. She even encouraged me to bring friends. I’m sure those vehemently against religion (which seems to be increasingly the norm these days) will see this as a cunning ploy to reel me in. But I can quite honestly say that I would happily return and enjoy all that the temple and the devotees have to offer without feeling any pressure to become a devotee myself. In the past, I have heard the derisory term ‘Happy Clappers’ used to des...

Members participating in the authorship of this paper: Drutakarma Dasa, Gopiparanadhana Dasa, Purnacandra Goswami, and Urmila Devi Dasi “The rules and regulation are that nobody should accept blindly any guru, and nobody should blindly accept any disciple. They must behave, one another, at least for one year so that the prospective disciple can also understand, ‘Whether I can accept this person as my guru.’ And the prospective guru also can understand, ‘Whether this person can become ...

Ratha Jatra of Lord Jagannath being one of the largest religious festivals of India, is not just limited to its borders but also hugely celebrated outside India. Iconic cities like San Francisco, London, Los Angeles, Tokyo and even the remote corners of Russia celebrate Ratha Jatra in its full glory. By tracing some of the best Ratha Jatra celebrations held across the world, we can deduce that Lord Jagannath is undoubtedly the supreme Lord of the Universe!

Lawmakers are eager to place new restrictions on Russia's religious sphere, amending the legal definition of “missionary activity” as defined under the Constitution's article on the freedom of conscience and religion. Yarovaya's legislation defines as “missionary activity” any kind of religious practice that takes place outside special establishments, cemeteries, houses of worship, or religious schools. This applies to acts of worship, ceremonies, the distribution of literature, and preach...

ISKCON was formed by His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada who is a perfect student of such literatures. So where is the fault? The fault lies in me, in my heart. Not in ISKCON. Look at it closely, whatever faults are found in ISKCON some are ones that I myself brought into it. Of course, ISKCON was formed so that any man or woman suffering from the pangs of material life can come and learn to free themselves from such troubles. But the troubles and problems I find in ISKCON are not ISKCON's, they ar...

We have two choices as to which court we want to work in. The first court is that of the empowered demigod and mahājana devotee Sri Yamaraja. The second court is the court of Lord Nityananda. Working in Yamaraja's court means assisting his chief lieutenant Citragupta, whose job it is to note down all of the mistakes and sinful acts of conditioned souls.

People generally pray for material benefits: “O God, give us our daily bread. Give me nice position. Give me nice wife, nice following or this or victory,” so on, so on, so on, simply for material enjoyment. My Guru Mahäräja used to say that if we pray to God for all these nonsense things, it is just like a man goes to a king and the king says, “Whatever you want you can ask from me,” and if the man says, “Kindly give me a pinch of ashes.” It is like that. If we ask from God for some ...