By ISKCON GBC Strategic Planning TeamThe global devotee care directorate is hosting weekly devotee care webinars to emphasize the culture of devotee care in ISKCON temples and communities worldwide. Join us to hear this week's conversation with Radhanath Swami on Devotee care principles for developing a community.
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- 24 Jun 2020
By Riddha DasaI will miss you so much Pusta Krishna. You are gone from this world but will always be remembered by me. Our beloved Spiritual master A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada picked you to come and rescue me when I was alone in South Africa. You reminded me of how concerned that Srila Prabhupada was that as a young boy I was alone in South Africa.
...- 24 Jun 2020
By Dr Sahadeva dasaEvery reversal can teach us something. Every adversity has hidden lessons. If only we are willing to listen! The times are changing. The world is changing. Question is are we going to change? This 200 years old industrial civilization is entering a decisive phase as the curtains of karma start coming down.
...- 23 Jun 2020
By Cathy BorderCows and bullocks are revered by Hare Krishnas and at their farm, New Govardhana, they even have a cow retirement village. Hare Krishna devotees have been breeding cows and bullocks at the farm, near Murwillumbah in northern New South Wales, since 1977. The paddocks are specially levelled, food and water is kept close to the animals, and they are even serenaded in their dying moments.
...- 22 Jun 2020
By Subhag SwamiWe all know that previously also we got very good results of such prayers for some ISKCON leaders and Krishna bestowed His mercy. Everybody knows that Bhakti Charu Swami Maharaj is very dear to devotees irrespective of his disciples or other devotees. He can make everyone feel like his own very easily. He can easily make somebody feel at home. I have seen from the very beginning. Some say that he came to ISKCON in 1977. But within this short time, he became very dear to everybody in general.
...- 22 Jun 2020
By Giriraj Swami After throwing out all the debris, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates cleaned the temple a second time, looking for finer grains of sand and dust that they might have missed. Then they thoroughly washed the temple. With hundreds of devotees throwing hundreds of pots of water, they cleansed the ceiling, the walls, the floor, and everything else. Sri Caitanya Himself personally washed the sitting place of Lord Jagannatha with His own two hands. Even then, Lord Caitanya was concerned that du...
- 22 Jun 2020
By Giriraj SwamiWe are indebted to all our fathers, biological and preceptorial. Srila Prabhupada expressed his appreciation for his father in his dedication to his book Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead: "To My Father, Gour Mohan De (1849-1930) A pure devotee of Krsna, who raised me as a Krsna conscious child from the beginning of my life. In my boyhood ages he instructed me how to play the mrdanga. He gave me Radha-Krsna vigraha to worship, and he gave me Jagannatha ratha to duly observ...
- 21 Jun 2020
By Mayapur Sasi dasaFor the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada this report contains the following North American results of book distribution for the month of May 2020. North American Totals, Monthly Temples, Monthly Weekend Warriors. Monthly Top 100 Individuals, Monthly Top 5, Cumulative Countries, Cumulative Temples, Cumulative Top 100 Individuals, Cumulative Top 5
...- 21 Jun 2020
By Jhimli Mukherjee PandeyKOLKATA: So what if you won’t be able to tug the rope of Lord Jagannath’s Ratha this time? The chariot itself will come to your home, albeit virtually. Because of the Covid pandemic, Iskcon has been forced to cancel its 49-year-old rathayatra in the city and also the 6-kilometre-long yatra at Mayapur from the Jagannath Temple at Rajapur. Iskcon this year is taking a unique initiative to virtually bring the chariot home to the devotees. The project, called Mercy on Wheels is a completely digital initiative that will see 108 virtual rathas rolling out to devotees’ homes in so ...
- 20 Jun 2020
By Sucitra Devi DasiGood news, Maharaj's dependency on the ventilator has continued to go down, and has now been lowered it to 50%. Once these levels are down to 20% Maharaj can be taken off the ventilator. Another positive update: We had been requesting the team of doctors at the hospital to give Maharaj convalescent plasma, which is plasma that contains antibodies from people who have recovered from COVID19. Patients who received this convalescent plasma are usually taken off the ventilator within 3-4 days.
...- 19 Jun 2020
By the GBC ECWe write today to inform you that HH Bhakti Charu Swami has tested positive for Covid-19 and is currently in critical condition in the ICU at a hospital in the USA. We request the worldwide community of devotees to offer heartfelt prayers for Maharaja's prompt and smooth recovery.
...- 18 Jun 2020
By Sureswara DasaBir Krishna the calf loves coconut fudge, and Sita the teamstress knows it. Her pockets bulge with the sweet as she and Bir walk to the training ring. Today the calf will learn his first call: “Get up!” The earth is soft from the recent rain. Sita carries a lash and leads Bir with a rope tied to a blue halter. The calf bounds through a cluster of gnats, then slows as they come to the ring. What’s this? The gate opens, and Bir walks in to explore. He treads the ...
- 15 Jun 2020
By Giriraj SwamiThe Passing Away of Devotees in Apparently Unfortunate Circumstances, Zoom Conference with Devotees in Mumbai (video). “On numerous occasions, Srila Prabhupada has given the formula for enthusiasm: to follow all the regulative principles strictly — to chant our minimum sixteen rounds, follow the four restrictive principles, and to engage in all of the prescribed activities. That is the way to become enthusiastic and to maintain one’s enthusiasm.”
...- 14 Jun 2020
By ISKCON News StaffIn a video released today featuring Gopal Krishna Goswami, Bhakti Charu Swami, and Jayapataka Swami, these three initiating gurus and senior members of ISKCON’s Governing Body Commission (GBC) explain why they support the GBC resolution empowering women to serve as initiating spiritual masters in ISKCON.
...- 14 Jun 2020
By Bhakti Charu SwamiIn order to assist Srila Prabhupada Sri Krishna sent many devotees. And undoubtedly HH Bhakti Tirtha Maharaj is one of them. To assist Srila Prabhupada Krishna planted different devotees in different parts of the world, in different communities, in different societies and when Srila Prabhupada went to America they came forward to assist Srila Prabhupada.
...- 13 Jun 2020
By the GBC Strategic Planning TeamThe SPS, a unit of the GBC Strategic Planning Team, is offering a Temple Re-opening Guide to support our leaders in their efforts to re-open their temples. The team recognizes that our temples vary globally, and a standardized solution will not work. Therefore what is being presented is a high-level guideline, which may apply to most temples with scope for local customizations. A temple may use this resource by selecting only those aspects which are applicable to their situation.
...- 13 Jun 2020
By the GBC in South AfricaSouth Africa has a painful history. So many people have suffered transgressions, so many have endured racial policies based on discrimination and deliberate marginalization. This history and its ongoing ramifications should never be trivialized, and any callousness should be met with a concerted effort to deepen our collective understanding of past and present pain. Human dignity is the bedrock of our country’s constitution, which enshrines equality, human rights, freedom, non-racialism, and non-sexism. Those very same principles are also expressed in the constitution of ISKCON's...
- 13 Jun 2020
By Krsnanandini Devi DasiI have vivid memories of the many times my mother took my siblings and me to church the heartfelt gospel singing, the soul-stirring preaching, the supplications for lost souls to join the church. I remember the passing of the baskets to collect money to support the church and its many activities, and I recall well the song that generally accompanied these collections. Its famous, oft-sung lyrics still echo in my mind today: “You can’t beat God giving, no matter how you try. The more you give, the more He gives to you. Just keep on giving; you’ll find it’s ...
- 12 Jun 2020
By Bir Krishna GoswamiI am very much in favor of the peaceful protests. There has been gross injustice done to many segments of our society for many, many years. It is everyone’s inalienable right to be treated fairly regardless of whatever type of body they have, and to be engaged according to their nature. It’s good that this is happening to a certain extent; not the violence. Many people are coming to the understanding that they have been mislead, and cheated by the leaders who are not actual leaders. They are misleaders. The current situation can stimulate people to think twice about their goals. ...
- 11 Jun 2020
By Himani ChandnaAn article in the peer-reviewed European Heart Journal said Krishna's teaching to Arjuna in Bhagavad Gita held lessons for the world tackling Covid today. The Bhagavad Gita is more relevant than ever, especially now in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, says an article in The European Heart Journal, a peer-reviewed journal of cardiology published by Oxford University, and likened “Prince Arjuna” to healthcare workers and the Kurukshetra battlefield to hospitals.
...- 11 Jun 2020
By Govinda dasiBrahmananda had a protective mood of Srila Prabhupada, and this is what I most appreciated. I had a similar mood, almost a nurturing motherly mood--yet he was a huge mountain of a man--entirely capable of downing any aggressor. One story goes that an aggressor moved toward Srila Prabhupada, and Prabhupada calmly pointed to Brahmananda, and said, “This man will kill you if I ask him to...” And Brahmananda would have, most assuredly! He would have given his life to protect Srila Prabhupada. A...
- 10 Jun 2020
By the GBC Executive CommitteeThe GBC Body, along with the larger community of ISKCON members, is deeply grateful for the legacy of service and beautiful memories of Srila Prabhupada Brahmananda Prabhu has bestowed upon us all. His departure was sudden, but most auspicious. He left this mortal world in the holiest of dhams, Sri Vrindavan, in the association of Vaisnavas. We pray that these auspicious circumstances, along with Brahmananda Prabhu's deep desire to eternally serve Srila Prabhupada, now find him situa...
- 10 Jun 2020
By ISKCON GBC Strategic Planning TeamThe Global Devotee Care Directorate is happy to share the inauguration of a weekly Devotee Care webinar series called 'Vaishnava Seva'-an effort to emphasise a culture of devotee care in ISKCON temples and communities. We will be moderating conversations with senior ISKCON leaders, administrators, and caregivers etc. Today, we will interview Jayapataka Swami who is an ISKCON GBC and Co-Minister of the Congregational Development Ministry on the importance of Devotee Care for Preachers involved in Krishna Conscious outreach. The moderator will be Gauranga Das, who serves ...
- 9 Jun 2020
By ISKCON GBC Strategic Planning TeamServes ISKCON as the ISKCON Deity Worship Minister. ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry's focus is to educate and inspire devotees in the service of Sri Sri Radha Krsna.
...- 9 Jun 2020