In many of Srila Prabhupada's lectures he exclusively explains about the two topics sreya and preya. He explains that sreya means the ultimate benefit and preya means immediate profit. Just like children want to play all day long that is preya, but the parents know that they must go to school and learn in order to become educated, which in the long run will be beneficial for them, so that is sreya. In Bhagavad Gita Lord Sri Krsna talks about sreya and preya in terms of happiness, he says according to the...

The holy command of Shri Guru has been that we shall serve Godhead in association with one another. By the word ‘we’ he did not mean any one individual. There are many persons who are very selfish, indeed. They say, ‘I alone shall serve. It is incumbent on me alone. No one else has any claim to join me in my service of Godhead.’ But the kind heart of Shri Gurudeva says, ‘Come, let all of us jointly worship Godhead by giving up malice....

Hundreds of devotees were assembled in the temple room while Srila Prabhupada spoke. Suddenly, he stopped and became silent with his eyes closed. Everyone in the room became still, not wanting to disturb him. A pin drop could be heard. We didn't dare breathe too loudly. This went on for some time. Hundreds of devotees were transfixed on His Divine Grace's ecstasy, each being transported by his rapture. Our minds were overwhelmed with blissful anticipation. Srila Prabhupada carried us all to anoth...

Making sense of Vedic Rituals. Are traditional rituals mere acts of blind faith, or are there scientific reasons behind following them? An envelope protects and carries something valuable. It is the inner content of the envelope that’s actually precious. Similarly empty, meaningless rituals are like an empty envelope: devoid of any substance at best or downright offensive at worst.

Loving Krishna means loving everyone because Krsna is in their heart. Conversely, applying that logic backwards, if you don't love everyone, it means that you are not loving Krsna. Using the root and leaves example, if the leaves are looking healthy, it is to be understood that the root is receiving nourishment. In SB, eleventh canto, it is explained that only the kanishta or neophyte sees Krsna in the temple, but not in the hearts of all, and fails to respect and develop loving relationships with them. In my experience, the leaves and root example has been used in our preaching to di...

"No one is born hating another because of the color of his skin/ his background/ or his religion. People must learn to hate/ and if they can learn to hate/ they can be taught to love/ for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite. II – Nelson Mandela. How does one begin hating anything else? What is the origin of this feeling? Let us begin by trying to understand the origin of 'hate'. Hate of course is an emotion directly opposing love and therefore it is part of material nature's duality. Duality means two, or pair, as love-hate, like-dislike, day-...

You see these temples that we are living in, they are not in Kali-yuga. So long as the devotees are taking shelter of Holy name. this is Satya in this room as soon as you go out it is Kali. Why? because everyone here is simply surcharging everything with the holy name of Krishna. As soon as we forget the name, we are in Kali-yuga. As long as we are remembering, we are in spiritual world. We are liberated. Srila Prabhupada used to tell us in the earliest days, that all my disciples are liberated. We were just looking at each other like, we are liberated..? (laughter) we had so many h...

Is There A Conscious Self distinct from the physical mechanism of the body? Is there a mind distinct from the brain? Those who answer yes to such questions are called dualists, and they are rare in contemporary science and philosophy. Dualistic solutions to the mind/body problem are perhaps hampered by, among other things, inadequate analogies and allegories on the topic in Western thought. Whether we turn to Plato's cave, to the formulations of Descartes, or to the proverbial little green man in the brain, there is apparently not enough substance to inspire the modern ...

Do you want to live? Then come to drink from the nectarine river of the Holy Name. According to the Upanisads, we are all born in the ocean of nectar. We are not meant to be satisfied with anything else but nectar. This is our birthright. By appearing in the land of Navadvipa, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu revealed the chanting of the Holy Names as the means of obtaining this nectar of immortality and by taking on the role of a teacher He has revealed how to chant the Ho...

If one hears about the uncommon activities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His various incarnations, he is certainly elevated to the higher planetary system or even brought back home, back to Godhead. These narrations are transmitted by exalted personalities, and they eradicate all sinful reactions. Whoever hears these narrations attains all good fortune. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the dearmost objective of all auspicious benedictions. A human being who sings this song sung by me can please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. ...

Complacency is a dangerous element in the progress of Spiritual Life. It is very essential for an endeavoring spiritualist to always remember that the material world is not a place of comfort. It has been certified by the Creator, Lord Sri Krsna himself as dukhalayam and asasvatam, which means it, is full of misery and temporary

With the advancement of the ages, human consciousness had changed too. It is believed that today modern society has advanced far more than the ancient civilization. With more technology and equipments available at disposal, everything has become fast paced and instant. Material science has achieved a lot of progress than the yester years. This progress is thought of as an advancement in Civilization and is looked upon as a great achievement by the society

Panihati Chida-dahi Mahotsav, also known as the Chipped Rice Festival, is a yearly celebration of the pastimes of Srila Raghnnatha dasa Gosvami and Lord Nityananda Prabhu. This astonishing pastime took place on the banks of the Ganges at Panihati, which is about 1 hour drive from Kolkata airport. (Ask for ‘Panihati Boat Ghat’, Sodepur.) Lord Caitanya and His associates enjoyed many transcendental pastimes here. Chida-Dahi Mahotsav remembers how Lord mercifully reciprocated with His devotees by arranging, through Nityananda Prabhu and Raghunatha dasa, to provide an ec...