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ISKCON Connection Newsletter, Issue 28, September 22, 2019
 
Prabhupada Nectar
If you study my books very carefully, then I am sure you will find out the means for applying this Krsna Consciousness philosophy in all spheres of life. There is no limitation. Simply it requires a little common sense practicality

Correspondence

1973 Correspondence

730131 - Letter to Amarendra das written from Calcutta:

January 31, 1973

My dear Amarendra das,

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated January 9, 1973, and I have noted the contents with great care. Whatever you can do to turn the minds of the people towards Krsna Consciousness, that is very much appreciated by me. You are intelligent boy. In consultation with your Godbrothers you can decide how to effectively run the campaign. I want to turn over now the management to my disciples as I am desiring to devote my time now simply for translating the books like Srimad-Bhagavatam. So if you study my books very carefully, then I am sure you will find out the means for applying this Krsna Consciousness philosophy in all spheres of life. There is no limitation. Simply it requires a little common sense practicality. The main point is that Krsna is the center of all activities, whatever is going on. Whatever the activity may be, if Krsna is the center, that is all right. The details simply require a little common sense. So you are there in Dallas, and you have al the details of the situation. So now, with the help of your Godbrothers there, you decide exactly how to execute the thing. After all, the result is given by Krsna. So the main point is simply to execute everything with complete sincerity and enthusiasm, without deviating from the principles that I have given you in my books. So I have seen the news clippings and they are very nice. Now you go on making more and more propaganda for informing people of this philosophy of Krsna Consciousness. If we push this propaganda very strongly and at the same time remain completely pure by following all of the regulative principles very strictly, by chanting sixteen rounds, reading the books, attending mangala aratrika, etc., then everything will be all right.

Hope this finds you in the best of health.

Your ever well-wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

ACBS/bmdg

 

 

 

ISKCON News

Courtesy of iskconnews.org

FFA-UK Distributes Thousands of Books to Schools in Vrindavan with Goal to Reach All 240
FFA-UK Distributes Thousands of Books to Schools in Vrindavan with Goal to Reach All 240

Food for All-UK, famous for its courageous food distribution in areas plagued by natural disasters or war, recently distributed thousands of Srila Prabhupada’s books to some of the nearly 250 schools in the Vrindavan area.

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BBC Radio Episode Celebrates Bhaktivedanta Manor as a Treasured Place of Pilgrimage
BBC Radio Episode Celebrates Bhaktivedanta Manor as a Treasured Place of Pilgrimage

BBC Radio 2’s Pause for Thought episode “Wherever I Serve” was presented by devotee Nimai Devi Dasi (Nima Suchak) on the UK network. Her reflection, which begins with a simple Temple floor tile, explores her treasured place of pilgrimage, ISKCON’s Bhaktivedanta Manor, and the 50th anniversary of the installation of Radha Gokulananda.

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ISKCON’s Sri Rama Padayatra Begins 41 Day Journey from Delhi to Ayodhya
ISKCON’s Sri Rama Padayatra Begins 41 Day Journey from Delhi to Ayodhya

Leading up to the much-anticipated temple opening in Ayodhya on January 22, 2024, ISKCON is organizing a series of events in Ayodhya and the rest of the country to take the teachings of Lord Rama to every household.

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Devotees Offer Kirtan to Thousands at Pattaya, Thailand Interfaith Event
Devotees Offer Kirtan to Thousands at Pattaya, Thailand Interfaith Event

On December 9th, ISKCON devotees joined representatives from other faiths (Buddhist, Christian, Muslim, Sikh, and Hindu) at the annual interfaith gathering held at the Sanctuary of Truth in Pattaya, Thailand. They offered kirtan for the thousands in attendance and provided prasadam and Srila Prabhupada’s books in booths at the event.

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CPO North America Holds Largest Online Training Ever
CPO North America Holds Largest Online Training Ever

Nearly 200 ISKCON managers, teachers, child protection volunteers, bhakti-vrksa leaders, and others who serve in positions of trust or authority throughout North America gathered for the largest online child protection training to date.

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The Bhaktivedanta Medical Association Launches its First Health Camp in UK
The Bhaktivedanta Medical Association Launches its First Health Camp in UK

The Bhaktivedanta Medical Association (BMA), a global healthcare committee with more than 220 devotee doctors dedicated to providing comprehensive care to devotees on a virtual platform free of cost, successfully launched its first-ever health camp on November 25, 2023, at the ISKCON’s Bhaktivedanta Manor. There were about 700 registrations, with 350 devotees attending the three-hour-long event. 

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Devotee Featured in The London Economic Shares His Hare Krishna History and Latest Projects
Devotee Featured in The London Economic Shares His Hare Krishna History and Latest Projects

Arjundas Adhikari Das (Andrew Horn), author, impresario, and Indian theatre expert, shares with The London Economic his early life as a Hare Krsna monk, an inside look at temple life, his pursuits across multiple artistic mediums, writing projects, and more.

To read the full article, visit The London Economic feature here.

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Moving from 16 Days of Activism to 365 Days of Action
Moving from 16 Days of Activism to 365 Days of Action

ISKCON’s GBC Statement Against Domestic Abuse from 2020 says, “Domestic abuse is indefensible, often illegal, and never acceptable within the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). Any interpretation of Vaishnava religious or social teachings that condones, endorses, or justifies domestic abuse is rejected by the North American Governing Body Commission (GBC).”

– see GBC Resolution Against Domestic Abuse here.

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Latest ISKCON GBC Meeting Report
Latest ISKCON GBC Meeting Report

The Governing Body Commission (GBC) of ISKCON resumed its regular online meetings on Wednesday, 6 December, after the Kartik break. Two significant topics were discussed at this meeting:

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A Stunning Temple and Community is Manifesting in the Heart of Mexico
A Stunning Temple and Community is Manifesting in the Heart of Mexico

Nestled in the picturesque landscape of Cueramaro, Guanajuato, Mexico, a transformative vision is taking shape—a vision that not only embodies the spirit of devotion and community but also lays the foundation for a harmonious blend of spiritual and studious living. The New Bahulavana Community, located in Cueramaro, about 200 kilometers east of Guadalajara is on the cusp of completing its majestic ISKCON temple—a testament to the unwavering dedication and perseverance of its founder, Trilokanath Das, and the vibrant community that envelops this burgeoning spiritual oasis.

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Dandavats

Courtesy of dandavats.com

Krishna Consciousness and Mental Health
Krishna Consciousness and Mental Health

By Dr Rupali Chadha.

Over the years I have been approached by many a devotee in distress. Though I grew up in ISKCON and have been slowly cultivating my own Krishna consciousness, I am very much a neophyte. I was blessed by Krishna’s will in that I became a physician. I went forward to specialize in general and forensic psychiatric medicine. It is for this reason, I am often approached by devotees when their emotional life becomes overwhelming. Often they are told to chant better rounds or seek shelter of Krishna. Well, perhaps Krishna guides them in their heart to talk to someone like me. One of my ...

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Naive Literalism
Naive Literalism

By Visakha Dasi

In each of its twelve cantos, Srimad-Bhagavatam, the "flawless ripened fruit of all Vedic scriptures," tells of miracles and mysticism, of the esoteric and extraterrestrial. We hear a cow, bull, elephant, monkey, and bird speaking deep philosophy. We learn of the four-headed creator who sits atop a lotus flower, of a magnificent aerial mansion, and of a five-year-old who pushes down half the earth with his toe and makes demigods suffocate. We learn of people giving birth...

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Remover of Obstacles
Remover of Obstacles

By Ganesh das

Brahma-samhita (5.50) “I worship the primeval Lord, Govinda. Ganesha always holds His lotus feet upon the pair of tumuli protruding from his elephant head in order to obtain power for his function of destroying all obstacles on the path of progress in the three worlds.” A devotee who is aspiring to obtain pure devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead may pray to Ganesha to remove all impediments on the path of spiritual progress. “Vinayaka (Ganesha) is effulgent like millions of suns. In all our matters, we pray to him to remove all our hurdles and impe...

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“If You Want To Play, You’ve Got To Pay”
“If You Want To Play, You’ve Got To Pay”

By Mahatma Das

In the early days of the movement a devotee explained Sigmund Freud’s theory to Prabhupada that everything one does is motivated by sex. The devotee disagreed and said he felt people are primarily motivated by a spiritual yearning. Prabhupada said no - Freud was actually right. Why did Prabhupada say this? Because Srimad Bhagavatam clearly explains that sex attraction, subtle or gross, is the impetus behind all material activities.

...

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Is God a Person or Energy?
Is God a Person or Energy?

By Sri Krishna

I know that Supreme Personality of Godhead who is transcendental to all material conceptions of darkness. Only he who knows Him can transcend the bonds of birth and death. There is no way for liberation other than this knowledge of that Supreme Person.“There is no truth superior to that Supreme Person because He is the supermost. He is smaller than the smallest, and He is greater than the greatest. He is situated as a silent tree, and He illumines the transcendental sky, and as a tree spreads its ...

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Step Back and Reconnect
Step Back and Reconnect

By Sacinandana Swami

"One should become like the ocean. The ocean is filled by many thousands of rivers, and millions of tons of its water evaporates into clouds, yet the ocean is the same unagitated ocean. The laws of nature may work, but if one is fixed in devotional service at the lotus feet of the Lord, he is not agitated, for he is introspective. He does not look outside to material nature, but he looks in to the spiritual nature of his existence; with a sober mind he simply...

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Why is There Suffering?
Why is There Suffering?

By Sri Nandanandana dasa

It is natural that at some point in our lives we ask, "Why is there suffering?" Or "Why am I not happy?" "Why can't we simply go on with life and not undergo so many trials and tribulations? Why can't God make a universe or world where there is no suffering?" Well, my answer to that is He already has, but we are simply in the wrong one. Let me explain it a little more fully. First of all, we are all spiritual beings within material bodies. Most people at least u...

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Practicing Krishna Consciousness at Home
Practicing Krishna Consciousness at Home

By Padmapani das

"You can chant anyway, anywhere. Whether you are in the college, whether you’re on the street, whether you are sleeping, lying, or whatever, you can chant. Because God has given you this tongue and you can chant. "Don’t think that Krishna is for the Indian or for the Hindus. No. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna. This Krishna is for everyone. For the human being, for the animals -- everyone. So if you think that Krishna is belonging to some particular country or religion, then you can chant...

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The Transcendental Effects of the Holy Name
The Transcendental Effects of the Holy Name

By Sri Namamrta

As a snake-bitten man is brought back to consciousness by the chanting of certain mantras, so one in the unconscious state of material life can be revived by hearing the maha-mantra: In the Garuda Purana the stress on hearing is expressed very nicely. It is said there: "The state of conditioned life in the material world is just like a man Iying unconscious, having been bitten by a snake. This is because both such unconscious states can be ended by the sound of a mantra." When a man is snake-bitte...

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Don’t Worry, Be Happy – The secret to true happiness and well-being
Don’t Worry, Be Happy – The secret to true happiness and well-being

By Devamrita Swami

“Anyway, money can’t buy everything,” members of all social tiers often quip. Daily life, however, regularly belies this old mantra. Happiness and even love often seem to have a price tag, or at least a significant financial correlation. Whatever our level of income and indulgence, we all long for true happiness and genuine well-being, however defined. Shouldn’t personal contentment become enshrined as a basic human right, for all people, everywhere? Then again, what about the special ...

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“The Pizza Effect”
“The Pizza Effect”

By Satyaraja Dasa

The main course arrived: pizza. The devotees were thrilled, since this is a much loved treat in these parts – but only when offered to Krishna, natch! “Hey,” one devotee quipped, “What about pizza? How does this relate to Krishna consciousness?” Luckily, I had been writing about just such a subject in a recent project for a major academic press. I am writing a high school reference book on Hinduism, and in my research I came upon an interesting reference to pizza.

...

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Tripurari
Tripurari

Morning Class SB 7.10.67

HH Ramai Swami, 16 December 2023

 Watch Now

 

 

 

 


TOVP News

Courtesy of tovp.org

The TOVP Requests – Give To Nrsimha and Go To Vaikuntha
The TOVP Requests – Give To Nrsimha and Go To Vaikuntha

The TOVP Team is extremely pleased to announce that all devotees who help build the Nrsimha Wing in the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium will go to Vaikuntha!!!

 Read More

Srila Prabhupada Teaches His First Disciples the Nrsimha Prayers
Srila Prabhupada Teaches His First Disciples the Nrsimha Prayers

From the earliest days in ISKCON, Srila Prabhupada always stressed the importance of worshiping Sri Nrsimhadeva for the protection of ISKCON, its leaders and the devotees. Our Mayapur Nrsimhadeva manifested there in 1986 as a result of several attacks on the temple, and after His installation these disturbances ceased. Being the World Headquarters for ISKCON, Lord Nrsimhadeva in Mayapur is the Protector of all its devotees.

 Read More

Moksada Ekadasi, Gita Jayanti and the TOVP, 2023
Moksada Ekadasi, Gita Jayanti and the TOVP, 2023

Moksada Ekadasi, observed on the 11th day of Shukla Paksha (the waxing phase of the moon) during the lunar month of Margashirsha, is a very special Ekadasi in two regards: it is the all-auspicious day on which Lord Sri Krishna spoke the Srimad Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra at the place now known as Jyotisha tirtha, and anyone who gifts a Bhagavad Gita away to a deserving person on this day is bestowed profuse blessings by Sri Krishna Bhagavan.

 Read More

Relationship Between God and Matter
Relationship Between God and Matter

A lecture by Dr. Richard L. Thompson (Sadaputa Dasa)

Srimad Bhagavatam 3.26.21
San Diego, California, January 22, 1993

 In a famous debate between Newton and Leibniz, Newton proposed that God periodically adjusted the motions of the planets in order to maintain precise motion, whereas Leibniz countered that since God is perfect, adjustments were not required. Thompson draws from perspectives offered in the Bhagavad-gita to help shed light upon this age-old dispute.

 Listen Now

 

 

Srila Prabhupada: 
founderacharya.com, vanipedia.org

The official ISKCON website: iskcon.org,

Find your nearest temple: centres.iskcon.org

ISKCON leadership: gbc.iskcon.org

Education such ar Bhakti-shastri, Bhaktivaibhava etc: Mayapur Institute, Bhaktivedanta Theological Seminary, Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education, Bhaktivedanta College Europe

Events: events.iskcon.org,

News: iskconnews.org, dandavats.com,

BBT books: bbt.org, krishna.com, vanisource.org, vedabase.com, bbtmedia.com

World Sankirtan Newsletter: wsnl.net/wsnhome.htm

Temple of Vedic Planetarium: tovp.org

Deity Worship and courses: deityworship.com, Mayapur Academy 

Inspiration & Sadhana: mayapur.tv, iskcondesiretree.com

Vaishnava Calendars: 
ISKCON GBC Vaishnava Calendar Comitee, GCAL (Gaurabda Calendar, a program for calculation of the calendar for vaisnavas, according Gaudiya-Vaisnava tradition.)
krishnadays.com, 

These dates and timings are for Sri Mayapur Dhama. Find timings for your location at the Vaishnava Calendar links.

December 17, 2023 (Sunday)
Dhanus Sankranti (Sun enters Sagittarius on 16 Dec, 15:51 Local Mayapur Time)

December 18, 2023 (Monday)
Odana sasthi

December 23, 2023 (Saturday)
Advent of Srimad Bhagavad-gita
Fasting for Moksada Ekadasi

December 24, 2023 (Sunday)
Break fast 06:14 – 06:26 (Local Mayapur Time)

Address: ISKCON GBC Office
P.O. Sri Mayapur, Nadia, WB 741313, India

Email: office@iskconconnection.org

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