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ISKCON Connection Newsletter, Issue 28, September 22, 2019
 
Prabhupada Nectar
There are two words, vani and vapuh. Vani means words, and vapuh means this physical body. So vani is more important than the vapuh. Vapuh will be finished. This is material body. It will be finished. That is the nature

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Appearance Day, Lecture -- Atlanta, March 2, 1975

So now, by the grace of Kṛṣṇa and Caitanya Mahāprabhu and in the presence of my Guru Mahārāja, you are so nice boys and girls. So in front of Caitanya Mahāprabhu you are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and you are taking part in it very seriously. So my Guru Mahārāja will be very, very much pleased upon you and bless you with all benefits. (break)

So he wanted this, and he is not. . . It is not that he is dead and gone. That is not spiritual understanding. Even ordinary living being, he does not die. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). And what to speak of such exalted, authorized personality like Bhaktisiddhānta. He is seeing. I never feel that I am alone. Of course, when I came to your country without any friend, without any means. . . Practically, just like a vagabond I came. But I had full faith that "My Guru Mahārāja is with me." I never lost this faith. And that is fact. There are two words, vāṇī and vapuḥ. Vānī means words, and vapuḥ means this physical body. So vāṇī is more important than the vapuḥ. Vapuḥ will be finished. This is material body. It will be finished. That is the nature. But if we keep to the vāṇī, to the words of spiritual master, then we remain very fixed up. It doesn't matter.

Just like Bhagavad-gītā. It was spoken five thousand years ago. But if you keep to the words of Kṛṣṇa, then it is always fresh and guiding. Not that because Arjuna personally listened to Kṛṣṇa about the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā, therefore he knew it. That is not the fact. If you accept Bhagavad-gītā as it is, then you should know that Kṛṣṇa is present before you in His words in the Bhagavad-gītā. This is called spiritual realization. It is not mundane historical incidences.

 

 

 

 

ISKCON News

Courtesy of iskconnews.org

Jahnavi Harrison Earns 2026 Grammy Nomination for Into the Forest
Jahnavi Harrison Earns 2026 Grammy Nomination for Into the Forest

In an exciting moment for the global kirtan community, devotional artist Jahnavi Harrison (Jahnavi Jivana Dasi) has been nominated for a 2026 Grammy Award for her latest album, Into the Forest. The Recording Academy announced the nominations earlier today, placing Harrison among the final contenders for Best New Age, Ambient or Chant Album at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards.

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New Video Series Brings Sankirtana Stories to Life
New Video Series Brings Sankirtana Stories to Life

Navina Nirada Dasa, a senior devotee with four decades of experience in ISKCON’s Sankirtana movement, has launched an innovative video series to inspire devotees worldwide to step out of their comfort zones and participate in Sankirtana. The professionally produced short films offer a fresh approach to sharing the transformative power of book distribution and Harinam Sankirtana with both devotees and the general public.

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VIHE Opens Registration for 2025–26 Winter Courses and Seminars
VIHE Opens Registration for 2025–26 Winter Courses and Seminars

The Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education (VIHE) has released its upcoming schedule of winter courses and seminars for 2025–2026, inviting devotees from around the world to strengthen their study of śāstra and deepen their devotional practice. The institute’s blended online and onsite offerings aim to support systematic learning and help devotees apply scriptural teachings in daily life.

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Window Opens for GBC Proposals Before February 2026 Meeting
Window Opens for GBC Proposals Before February 2026 Meeting

The Annual General Meeting of the ISKCON GBC Society is scheduled to begin in February 2026. In accordance with the ISKCON GBC Society’s Rules of Order, the GBC Secretariat has requested that proposals, each sponsored by two GBC members, be submitted by December 1, 2025.

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Help Renew ISKCON’s Historic 26 2nd Avenue Storefront
Help Renew ISKCON’s Historic 26 2nd Avenue Storefront

A piece of ISKCON’s history continues to be lovingly restored in New York City. The ongoing renovation of the original 26 2nd Avenue temple— known as Matchless Gifts — has already transformed this modest Bowery storefront into a living museum that recreates the atmosphere of 1966, when Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada first gathered his early followers to chant the Hare Krishna mantra. Spearheaded by Radhanath Swami and a dedicated team of devotees, the multi-phase project has sought to preserve every historic detail—walls, floors, artwork, signage, and furnishings—through years of careful research and restoration.

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Walking Home: Bhaktimarga Swami’s Pilgrimage of Devotion Across the Netherlands
Walking Home: Bhaktimarga Swami’s Pilgrimage of Devotion Across the Netherlands

When Bhaktimarga Swami set out on his 157-kilometer Walk of Devotion across the Netherlands this October, it was more than another of his celebrated treks — it was a journey home. At seventy-three, the Walking Monk returned on foot to the land of his parents, tracing a path through the flat, wind-swept countryside of Holland with the same quiet determination and grace that has defined his decades of walking pilgrimages around the world.

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Mayapur Hospital Receives ₹12 Crore Contribution from Bandhan Group Founder Mr. Chandrashekar Ghosh
Mayapur Hospital Receives ₹12 Crore Contribution from Bandhan Group Founder Mr. Chandrashekar Ghosh

In a significant milestone for the Sri Mayapur Community Hospital project, Mr. Chandrashekar Ghosh, Founder of Bandhan Group, Kolkata, recently made a generous contribution of ₹12 crores (approximately USD 1.35 million) towards completing the hospital building. The ceremonial presentation of the donation took place on October 19, coinciding with the auspicious month of Kartik. 

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Book Review: ESSAYS: Papers and Presentations Exploring the Vedic Tradition and Modern Science
Book Review: ESSAYS: Papers and Presentations Exploring the Vedic Tradition and Modern Science

ESSAYS brings together over three decades of unpublished research by the late Sadāpūta Dāsa (Dr. Richard L. Thompson)—a remarkable polymath whose intellect ranged across mathematics, physics, philosophy, cosmology, and the practice of bhakti-yoga. This collection offers a rare glimpse into the evolving mind of a thinker who sought to bridge the rational world of science with the metaphysical depth of the Vedic tradition.

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BBT Books Shine at Monterrey International Book Fair
BBT Books Shine at Monterrey International Book Fair

Devotees from Bhakti Center Monterrey represented the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) at the 2025 Monterrey International Book Fair, distributing nearly 850 of Srila Prabhupada’s books and sparking spiritual curiosity across Mexico’s industrial north.

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Interview: The Healing Power of the Mahamantra at Special Institutions
Interview: The Healing Power of the Mahamantra at Special Institutions

In this interview, we meet Caitanya Priya Devi Dasi and her husband, Govinda Damodara Das, who have dedicated their lives to a unique and special form of service. They share their inspiring experience of bringing the holy names of God (Hare Krishna chanting) directly into the classrooms of educational institutions for people with disabilities.

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Indian Minister of Environment Visits ISKCON Cape Town
Indian Minister of Environment Visits ISKCON Cape Town

In a heartwarming encounter of faith and diplomacy, the Honorable Union Minister of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav from India, paid a special visit to the ISKCON Cape Town temple during his trip to South Africa for the G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group Ministerial Meeting.

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Dandavats

Courtesy of dandavats.com

Shukratal Yatra and the Glories of Srimad-Bhagavatam
Shukratal Yatra and the Glories of Srimad-Bhagavatam

By Chandan Yatra Das

Shukratal is a tiny holy town about 2-3 hours (72 km) from Haridwar on the banks of Ganges River in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh. Srila Sukadeva Goswami spoke sacred Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana) to Maharaja Pariksit (the grandson of Arjuna and son of Abhimanyu), under a banyan tree 5000 years ago. Here at a place called Sri Sukadeva Temple, there is a gigantic 5100 year old Banyan tree, also known as Akshaya Vat Vriksha, underneath where Sukadeva Goswami, Maharaja Pariksit and 80,000 sages sat for 7 days continuously hearing Bhagavatam narration. The branches of this ...

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Finding Shelter in Times of Suffering
Finding Shelter in Times of Suffering

By Murari Gupta Dasa

“Can you please speak to my relatives,” a doctor friend requested me after a Sunday feast program in our temple. “Their youngest son died in an accident recently, and they are much traumatized.” I agreed and went to meet the family in a corridor outside the temple hall. The father told me how the son had gone to a picnic with his friends and had drowned in a river. He was just eighteen. I listened sympathetically, and when they asked questions I offered an...

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Selected quotes from Caitanya Bhagavata
Selected quotes from Caitanya Bhagavata

By Niranjana Swami

What to speak of being envious of the Vaisnavas, if one causes pain to ordinary living entities he is considered a fallen low-class person. Even after worshiping Lord Visnu, if a person gives trouble to other living entities, his worship becomes fruitless. Such a person suffers unlimited miseries. If a person is knowingly or unknowingly envious of a Vaisnava who is engaged in the nonduplicitous service of Lord Hari, his degradation is inevitable. Of this there is no doubt. Apart from this, if e...

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Updated: GBC Proposals, AGM 2026
Updated: GBC Proposals, AGM 2026

[Please note that the deadline is now December 1, not January 1, as mistakenly announced previously]. Dear Devotees, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. The Annual General Meeting of the ISKCON GBC Society will begin in February 2026. Following the ISKCON GBC Society’s Rules of Order, the GBC Secretariat requests proposals,...

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H.G. Hari Sauri Prabhu – SB – 08.11.2025 – Iskcon Vrindavan
H.G. Hari Sauri Prabhu – SB – 08.11.2025 – Iskcon Vrindavan

According to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī, the gopīs then replied, “But that Supreme Lord You are blaming is none other than Yourself, O most clever of speakers. Everyone in the world knows this! Why should we be ignorant of this fact?” “All right,” Lord Kṛṣṇa then told them, “if this is true, I must be God,...

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Philadelphia Bhakti
Philadelphia Bhakti

By Vrsabhanu das One way many people came in contact with the Hare Krishna movement was through college programmes. From the early days of ISKCON devotees have been presenting the Vedic philosophy to students at universities around the world. Srila Prabhupada was very happy to receive reports from such events. In this film we hear...

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Ramayan in Basingstoke

By Radha Mohan Das A beautiful cultural event themed around Diwali was arranged by the devotee community in Basingstoke, in collaboration with devotees from Bhaktivedanta Manor. In the arts faculty at Queen Mary’s College in the town, the Bhaktivedanta Players’ continued their 40th anniversary celebrations with a special version of The Ramayan. As a prelude,...

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Prabhupada Memories – DVD 101
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I was born into a vegetarian family. They practiced yoga and followed the philosophy of con men, an impersonal philosophy but rooted in yoga and principles like not eating meat. That was my upbringing. At the same time, I attended a Roman Catholic school. So from a young age I was exposed to both yoga,...

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Stimulation for Ecstatic Love Part 151 – Disguises Part 19 – This Girl is Not a Florist!
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What is the use of a bowman’s arrow or a poet’s poetry if they penetrate the heart but do not cause the head to spin? What is the use of a bowman’s arrow or a poet’s poetry if they penetrate the heart but do not cause the head to spin? Enjoy the videos and music...

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Failing to Succeed
Failing to Succeed

By Mahatma Dasa

The Brahma-vaivarta Purana describes a beautiful story of a brahmana in South India who wanted to offer sweet rice (khir) to his Deities but couldn’t afford the ingredients. So he decided to offer the sweet mentally. In deep meditation, he collected all the ingredients and cooked it. After the preparation was ready, he wanted to cool it down before he offered it to Krishna. After a while he touched his finger to see if the sweet rice had cooled down. It was still hot, and to his surprise his fing...

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The 12 Principles and Values of Krishna Conscious Family Life
The 12 Principles and Values of Krishna Conscious Family Life

By The Grihastha Vision Team

Krishna Conscious family life is consistent with the teachings and example of Srila Prabhupada, which must be applied with consideration of time, place and circumstance. In the field of grihastha life, one should take into account the local culture with-out compromising Srila Prabhupada's teachings. One should not attempt to simply transpose practices from one culture to another without understanding the principles and values. underpinning them.

...

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Srila Prabhupada talks about his sannyasa initiation
Srila Prabhupada talks about his sannyasa initiation

By His Divine Grace A.C.B. Swami Prabhupada

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...

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ATL 2025-10-31 Nagaraja dasa SB 3.20.3
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Harinam around the Jagannatha Temple
Harinam around the Jagannatha Temple

ECSTATIC Harinam around the Jagannatha Temple yesterday afternoon with Indradyumna Swami and 400 devotees! Tens of thousands cheered us on as we blissfully walked and chanted around the Temple twice. The most ecstatic harinam. Hare Krishna!! Indradyumna Maharaja Puri Harinam Nov 2025...

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Friend of Iskcon Gopichand Hinduja has passed, aged 85
Friend of Iskcon Gopichand Hinduja has passed, aged 85

Kripamoya Prabhu: Gopichand Hinduja has passed, aged 85. While most may have regarded him as an astute businessman with a sprawling empire, or simply “Britain’s richest man,” the Vaishnava community knew him as something much more. Each morning, before breakfast, he would visit London’s Radha-Krishna temple and take part in kirtan and darshan. His obvious...

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Sat Sanga – Go-seva, Community, and GBC Leadership – HH Krishna Kshetra Swami – 01.11.2025

Sat Sanga with HH Krishna Kshetra Swami Topics: Go-seva, Community, and GBC Leadership Song: Janma-lila (verses 1–16), from Srila Locana Dasa Thakura’s Sri Caitanya Mangala — The Loving Pastimes of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Dubai, UAE November 1, 2025 Sat Sanga – Go-seva, Community, and GBC Leadership – HH Krishna Kshetra Swami – 01.11.2025...

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SB – 1.2.18 – HG Anuttama prabhu – The remedy for eliminating all inauspicious things within the heart
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Here is the remedy for eliminating all inauspicious things within the heart which are considered to be obstacles on the path of self-realization. The remedy is the association of the bhagavatas. There are two types of bavatas namely the book bhagavata and the devotey bhagavata. Both the bhagavatas are competent remedies and both of them...

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Kartika does not end on the last day of Kartika!
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Srila Prabhupada: You have asked about the specialness of the month of Karttika, and the answer is that it is a special inducement for persons who are not in Krsna consciousness to perform some devotional service. For persons who are doing nothing in Krsna consciousness, it is an indirect inducement to take to devotional service in earnest seriousness, every moment is Karttika. In this connection, there is a good example that sometimes a store gives a special concession to attract new customers. Bu...

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ISKCON MAYAPUR WEBSITE OFFERS HIGH RESOLUTION PHOTOS OF MAYAPUR TO DOWNLOAD
ISKCON MAYAPUR WEBSITE OFFERS HIGH RESOLUTION PHOTOS OF MAYAPUR TO DOWNLOAD

Explore and download high-quality photos of Sri Mayapur-dhama, the spiritual capital of the world. This gallery features images of the Deities, temples, holy rivers, nature, and festivals—captured by devotee photographers. Each section links to dedicated folders with high-resolution photos for your non-commercial projects, presentations, and personal meditation. Temple of the Vedic Planetarium – TOVP Click...

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Visiting Alalanatha! (photos)
Visiting Alalanatha! (photos)

Yesterday we visited the Alalanatha Temple, where we completed our final parikrama for the month. Our program took place beneath a beautiful mango tree in a serene forest setting. There we listened to profound pastimes that occurred in that sacred place. Afterwards we had darshan at the temple and saw the stone that melted when...

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Morning Class HH Guru Prasad Swami – CC Madhya Lila 6.162 – Iskcon Delhi
Morning Class HH Guru Prasad Swami – CC Madhya Lila 6.162 – Iskcon Delhi

The Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad completely distinguishes the Lord from the living entities. The living entity is subjected to the reactions of fruitive activity, whereas the Lord simply witnesses such activity and bestows the results. According to the living entity’s desires, he is wandering from one body to another and from one planet to another, under the...

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Considering Material Conditioning Without Identifying With It
Considering Material Conditioning Without Identifying With It

By Paramadayala Nityananda Dasa

We sometime use the term "conditioned soul" without full awareness of the mystery it denotes.The soul is ontologically distinct from matter, yet conditioning is a material phenomena. However, as preachers, we must consider an individual's conditioning in order to guide them in pursuing Krishna Consciousness. Therefore we must have sufficient intelligence to consider conditioning without identifying with it.

...

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Significance of performing/attending mangal aroti
Significance of performing/attending mangal aroti

By Rasananda das

Of all the sixty four arts practiced by the gopis and in the vedic culture, among the topmost if not _the_ topmost, is singing. Krishna learned how to sing in the _kula_ of Sandipani Muni. Students of Indian classical music now spend twenty or thirty years learning how to sing. It is not a question of simply mouthing the words even though "loud and clear" (although that, by itself, is not completely devoid of merit). It best requires some bhava, devotional emotion (which one can h...

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The Rabbit that killed the Lion
The Rabbit that killed the Lion

By Udayananda dasa

I was doing some work at my home, and I was listening to some Srimad Bhagavatam lectures giving by His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada told a humorous story about a rabbit that killed a lion. It was so transcendentally pleasing that I thought I would share this nectar with all the assembled devotees on this world wide web site.

...

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Report on the recent Mid-term GBC Meetings in Italy
Report on the recent Mid-term GBC Meetings in Italy

DAY 5 GLOBAL PREACHING STRATEGIES & COMMEMORATIONS Morning Session: Praghosa Dasa led brainstorming on “Reflections on the Eve of ISKCON 60.” Focus: Reinventing outreach for the modern world, building stronger congregational engagement, and leveraging technology (e.g., podcasts, QR codes in books). Suggestion: Every temple to follow up personally with book recipients and use media tools...

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Krishna is the Ultimate Father
Krishna is the Ultimate Father


Morning Class SB 9-20-38
HG Bhakta Prabhu, 8 November 2025
ISKCON Melbourne

 

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TOVP News

Courtesy of tovp.org

The TOVP Prabhupada Legacy Museum
The TOVP Prabhupada Legacy Museum

In our efforts to build and populate this museum with such tadiyanam, we humbly beg all devotees with such items in their possession to consider donating or lending it to the Prabhupada Legacy Museum for the sake of posterity and preservation, and to benefit the millions of people who will see and associate with these things while visiting the museum over the course of many hundreds of years to come.

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TOVP Celebrates H.H. Radhanath Swami's 75th Vyasa Puja
TOVP Celebrates H.H. Radhanath Swami's 75th Vyasa Puja

Celebrate H.H. Radhanath Maharaja’s 75th Vyasa Puja this year with a specially designed commemorative medallion and help support TOVP construction. Maharaja has been one of the biggest promoters and pillars of this project from its very inception, and the TOVP Team wishes to honor his dedication.

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From Kutir To Mandir - The TOVP Story Flipbook
From Kutir To Mandir - The TOVP Story Flipbook

Follow the incredible story of the rise of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium (TOVP) from a straw hut in rat and cobra infested rice fields in the middle of nowhere of 1971 West Bengal, to the largest Vedic temple in modern history in 2024, scheduled to open in 2027.

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TOVP & Vedic Science Channel Present
TOVP & Vedic Science Channel Present

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

Sound Vibration and Its Manifestations

Srimad Bhagavatam 3.12.47 Alachua, Florida

December 27, 1995 Modern science considers sound vibration as mechanical waves. Vedic literature presents a definition that appears to transcend that by considering matter manifesting from energy identified with sound. Thompson examines the Puranic concept of sound by using three examples drawn from contemporary natural science – quantum mechanics, virtual reality, and the workings of the inner ear. He proposes that information expressed via a Vedic understanding of sound, may be fundamental to the manifestation of the cosmos.

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, Vrindavan Institute for Higher Education, Bhaktivedanta College Europe

News: news.iskcon.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.)

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

15 November, 2025 (Saturday)
Fasting for Utpanna Ekadasi
Sri Narahari Sarakara Thakura -- Disappearance

16 November, 2025 (Sunday)
Break fast 09:11 - 09:31 (Local Mayapur Time)
Sri Kaliya Krsnadasa -- Disappearance

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

Email: office@iskconconnection.org

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