I ran across this short YouTube of Srila Prabhupada describing the importance of the Bhagavad-gita As It Is.
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Vrndavana, Krsna’s Transcendental Abode
I always enjoy going back through our collection of Back to Godhead Magazines and re-reading some of the old articles. We share with you the original article with photos just as it appeared in BTG in 1974.
Vrndavana, Krsna’s Transcendental Abode
by Visakha-devi dasi
Ninety miles southeast of New Delhi, India, is a railway station known as Mathura. From Mathura, a bumpy seven-mile ride by horse-cart brings one to a unique town called Vrndavana. This simple village is unlike all other places in the world, for when Lord Krsna, the Supreme Godhead, comes to earth with His associates to display His pastimes, He comes only to Vrndavana. Indeed, Krsna never leaves Vrndavana-and, by His grace, pure devotees can appreciate the Lord’s presence in Vrndavana even today.
Continue readingWhat If One Book Said it All
The voice of wisdom seems to speak in many tongues, through many ages-from Lao-tse’s Chinese to Shakespeare’s English, from Muhamad’s Arabic to Hegel’s German. You could get pretty discouraged trying to find the Absolute Truth by reading everything there is to read.
But what if one book said it all-everything you’d ever want to know about cosmic Creation, the mysteries of Time, the workings of Karma, the inner Self, and the Supreme Being, God.
And what if that book were an easily readable, fully illustrated translation of the world’s most renowned guidebook on spirituality-the Bhagavad-gita?
The Bhagavad-gita As It Is by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Look for it today.
Chanting Hare Krishna
“The Holy Name is so powerful that even by chanting with offense, gradually one becomes pure. Therefore we should not give up chanting under any circumstances.” -Srila Prabhupada
THE ESSENCE OF EVERYTHING IS THE SUPREME LORD
Sometimes when I am sitting and reading from Srila Prabhupada’s Srimad Bhagavatam, a verse or sentence from the purport just jumps out from the page almost like it is in 3D, and I catch a glimpse of what the Spiritual World must be like. It is beyond even my imagination, but sometimes I catch a glimmer of light, through a transcendental window, by the grace of my spiritual master His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
…The transcendental abode of the Lord where the trees are all desire trees and the buildings are made of touchstone. The Lord Govinda is engaged there in herding the surabhi cows as His natural occupation.
“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, the first progenitor who is tending the cows, yielding all desire, in abodes built with spiritual gems, surrounded by millions of purpose trees, always served with great reverence and affection by hundreds of thousands of lakṣmīs or gopīs.” (Bs 5.29)
…The Lord Govinda is engaged there in herding the surabhi cows as His natural occupation. And those who are artists, overtaken by the beautiful creation, should better see to the beautiful face of the Lord for complete satisfaction. The face of the Lord is the embodiment of beauty. What they call beautiful nature is but His smile, and what they call the sweet songs of the birds are but specimens of the whispering voice of the Lord.
Continue readingDisapearance Day of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
click on images to enlarge
Picture taken before Guru-puja
Today we honored His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada’s disappearance day with a half day fast followed by a nice vegetarian feast. The beautiful Vyasasana decoration was done some years ago by Her Grace Lokadrsti devi dasi.
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada’s Disappearance Day homage
by Vyasasan das
Dear Srila Prabhupada
Please accept my fallen obeisance’s, and my love, on this auspicious day of your disappearance. With your arrival on the shores of America, you brought with you the shinning lamp of knowledge; the wisdom on India and the Supreme Absolute Truth. You appeared on the shores of America the way the sun appears on the Eastern Horizon. Slowly revealing itself at first, then dominating the sky with its blazing effulgence. Illuminating the entire world with its golden light. Where there is light there is no darkness. And wherever your words are being sung and repeated, there is a glimmer of hope for the materially conditioned souls.
Continue readingMonth of Damodara: Kartik
Yesterday was the start of the month of Damodara, or as it is otherwise known, the month of Kartik.
Kartik, or the month of Damodar, is considered the best of months and is most auspicious for spiritual advancement. In the Skanda Purana it is stated:
“As Satya-yuga is the best of yugas, as the Vedas are the best of scriptures, as Ganga is the best of rivers, so Kartik is the best of months, the most dear to Lord Sri Krishna.”.
Also in the Skanda Purana it is stated:
“A person who offers a ghee lamp to Lord Krishna during Kartik burns away a collection of sins as big as Mt. Meru or Mt. Mandara, will not take birth again in this world and attains to the eternal spiritual realm where there is no suffering. Even if there are no mantras, no piety, and no purity, everything becomes perfect by such an offering.”
The Padma Purana describes the month of Kartik as Krishna’s favorite month. Devotional activities performed during this holy month are rewarded with greater spiritual results than usual so devotees often take vows to increase their spiritual practices or to simplify their material needs for the entire month. It is a way that they can remember Krishna more and increase their service to Him.
We sing the following song morning and evening and offer a ghee lamp.
Sri Damodarastakam
By Sri Satyavrata Muni
From the original 1974 “Songs of the Vaisnava Acaryas” songbook
This eight sloka prayer is sung morning and evening during the month of Damodara, which begins Friday Oct. 19, 2013
namāmīśvaraḿ sac-cid-ānanda-rūpaḿ
lasat-kuṇḍalaḿ gokule bhrājamanam
yaśodā-bhiyolūkhalād dhāvamānaḿ
parāmṛṣṭam atyantato drutya gopyā
1) To the supreme controller who possesses an eternal form of blissful knowledge, whose glistening earrings swing to and fro, who manifested Himself in Gokula, who stole the butter that the gopis kept hanging from the rafters of their storerooms and who then quickly jumped up and ran in retreat in fear of Mother Yasoda, but was ultimately caught-to that Supreme Lord, Sri Damodara, I offer my humble obeisances.
Continue readingNam Hatta: The Onus is On You
Nam Hatta: The Onus is On You
by Hansadutta dasa
In Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila, Chapter Seven, Lord Chaitanya’s method of preaching and Prabhupada’s comments regarding the process of preaching Lord Chaitanya practiced while traveling throughout South India (a period of about two years) are very necessary for all devotees to study and understand clearly.
Because of the circumstances under which most of Prabhupada’s early disciples joined the movement, a widespread misunderstanding has become a great obstacle for people in general to accept and practice Krishna consciousness in a realistic and progressive way under all circumstances. That misunderstanding is that a serious candidate for accepting and advancing in Krishna consciousness must abandon his worldly environment and responsibilities to join a temple ashram and live a communal or communistic life style under the rigid authority of an ISKCON GBC or guru. Nothing could be further from the truth, as we can plainly understand from the following descriptions of Lord Chaitanya’s preaching method and Prabhupada’s purports, which clearly support and obviously encourage the process introduced by Lord Chaitanya in His dealing with the Kurma brahmana and everyone He encountered throughout His two years of traveling and preaching in South India.
Continue readingAppearance Day of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur
In honor of the appearance day of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur, we are posting the “Songs of the Vaisnava Acaryas” songbook as a free pdf download, or the complete scanned book (Images) [check it out].
Songs of the Vaisnava Acaryas (Free download)
It is with great pleasure that we share with you the Original 1974 Edition of the Songs of the Vaisnava Acaryas, thanks to some very special devotees over at Krishnapath.org who are making all these original books available again and for free. This Song Book and The Hare Krishna Cookbook, were probably my two favorite books as a new devotee. They were so cherished that I had the pages laminated in plastic to preserve them. I must have known instinctually then that these books were endangered, because I also have my original 1972 Bhagavad-gita, original 1970 Krsna Books Vol. I & II, 1968 edition of the Teaching of Lord Chaintanya, as well as many others. Please click on the following link for a free pdf download of the scans of original song book. Hare Krishna!
for a free pdf download click on following link;
Songs_of_The_Vaishnava_Acharyas
Pdf download courtesy of; krishnapath.org
Images from; http://protectacow.typepad.com/photos/songs/index.html
Appearance of Lord Vamanadeva
Today is Parsva Ekadasi (fast from grains and beans) and also a fast till noon for appearance of Lord Vamanadeva. His appearance is tomorrow but the fast is today so that the Edadasi Break fast can take place between 6:54 – 8:37 tomorrow. With His appearance day in mind, as we are fasting today, we offer in Honor of Lord Vamanadeva, a select verse from the Srimad Bhagavatam, and a chapter summary. Hare Krishna!
Srimad-Bhagavatam
By His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Canto One, Chapter 19, Text 19
pañcadaśaṁ vāmanakaṁ
kṛtvāgād adhvaraṁ baleḥ
pada-trayaṁ yācamānaḥ
pratyāditsus tri-piṣṭapam
pañcadaśam—the fifteenth in the line; vāmanakam—the dwarf brāhmaṇa; kṛtvā—by assumption of; agāt—went; adhvaram—arena of sacrifice; baleḥ—of King Bali; pada-trayam—three steps only; yācamānaḥ—begging; pratyāditsuḥ—willing at heart to return; tri-piṣṭapam—the kingdom of the three planetary systems.
TRANSLATION
In the fifteenth incarnation, the Lord assumed the form of a dwarf-brāhmaṇa [Vāmana] and visited the arena of sacrifice arranged by Mahārāja Bali. Although at heart He was willing to regain the kingdom of the three planetary systems, He simply asked for a donation of three steps of land.
PURPORT
The Almighty God can bestow upon anyone the kingdom of the universe from a very small beginning, and similarly, He can take away the kingdom of the universe on the plea of begging a small piece of land.
The following is a chapter summary from Srimad Bhagavatam, eight canto, chapter 18, entitled “Lord Vāmanadeva, the Dwarf Incarnation”, describing the Lord’s appearance and activities.
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