Gaudiya Math's Invitation

Gaudiya Mission (গৌড়ীয় মিশন)

The Sri Madhavendra Gaudiya Math, near Sri Dham Vrindavan, Khirchora Gopinath Dham, takes the pleasure to invite you all for the auspicious inaugural ceremony of a newly built temple on 3rd & 4th Dec 2015.

Check details at http://www.gaudiyamission.org/uploads/Remuna.pdf

Appearence day of Lord Vamana Dev

Special Darshan at Sri Radha Madhava ISKCON Mandir, Sridham Mayapur, India, for the appearence day of Lord Sri Vamana Dev. 25th September, 2015.

Source: Aradhya Gouranga Dasa Photography

When Israelis chanted 'Hare Rama Hare Krishna'

IndiaToday.in: Harish, Israel, September 6, 2015

The devotees staged plays portraying episodes from Krishna's childhood life, besides singing and dancing late into the night to the beatings of tabla and dholak and as harmonium, jhaal and flute played for hours.

The festival of Janmashtami was celebrated with full fervor in Israel as hundreds of devotees, mostly Jews, chanting "Hare Krishna, Hare Rama" descended here from across the country to celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna.

Kibbutz Barkai, one of many agriculture-based collective communities in Israel, is located close to a small township of Harish, which has come to be identified with followers of Lord Krishna popularly known here as "Hare Krishnas".

Several devotees along with their families have settled down in Harish and religiously practice the tenets of the sect they learnt about during their visits to Vrindavan and Mayapur in India.

The fanfare surrounding the celebrations has also caught the attention of many others who see it as a must-see event. "I have a strong attraction towards Indian culture but this group has also contributed majorly to the strong inclination and I haven't missed out on these celebrations since I was introduced to them some 14 years ago," said Karen, who came from a small town near Jerusalem.
The devotees staged plays portraying episodes from Krishna's childhood life, besides singing and dancing late into the night to the beatings of tabla and dholak and as harmonium, jhaal and flute played for hours.

"This is probably the biggest gathering of devotees in years and we made adequate arrangements having sensed such a massive turnout. The popularity of the teachings of the sect has been constantly on the rise in Israel and it doesn't come as a surprise," a devotee said .
The practices of the sect "brings a welcome relief amid the chaos surrounding the region, lifting people's spirits", another devotee said.  Krishna Prasadam, comprising 108 vegetarian dishes, was served to the guests after the cultural programmes.

Srila Haridas Thakur's Divine Glories

Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math: 19 September, 2005
Reported by Sripad Bhakti Pavan Janardan Maharaj currently staying with His Divine Grace at our Dum Dum Park Temple, Kolkata.

Today is the Divine Disappearance day of Srila Haridas Thakur, and early in the morning, after Mangal Arati in Dum Dum Park in Kolkata, Srila Govinda Maharaj spoke of Srila Haridas Thakur's divine glories. The following are several of the themes His Divine Grace discussed.

Srila Haridas Thakur was an exemplary devotee who always preached by his words, his actions, and his mind. Even before the appearance of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu he was already known as a dedicated devotee and preacher, and after the appearance of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu he dedicated himself to Mahaprabhu one hundred percent.

Srila Haridas Thakur was an intimate friend of Sri Adwaita Acharya and Srivas Thakur. When Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared, Srila Haridas Thakur could understand than an incarnation of the Lord had come because so many people were enlivened and chanting the Holy Names of the Lord.

After Mahaprabhu took sannyas, Srila Haridas Thakur told the Lord that it was impossible for him to continue living in Nabadwip and that his desire was to be with Mahaprabhu in Puri. In Puri, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu asked Kasi Misra for some place with a simple thatched hut, where there is a garden, and that place is known as Siddha Bakul. Kasi Misra replied that everything is for the satisfaction of the Lord Himself, and that Mahaprabhu did not have to ask, that he could have any place he desired. So Haridas Thakur was given that place, that garden house, in Siddha Bakul.

The Lord stayed in the Gambhir and daily he would go to visit Srila Haridas Thakur on his way to the ocean, where he would bathe at midday.

The society at that time was very strongly opposed to accepting anyone who was a mleccha, and Hinduism was very strong. Of course we are not Hindus, or Christians, or Muslims, or any of those things - but Vaisnavas. Srila Govinda Maharaj explained that everyone is coming from Vishnu, therefore all are Vaisnavas.

Haridas Thakur was the Nama-Acharya and always lived for the chanting and glorification of the Holy Names of the Lord. When he heard Srila Rupa Goswami's glorification of the Holy Name he was very moved:

   

"I do not know how much nectar the two syllables 'Krish-na' have produced. When the Holy Name of Krishna is chanted, it appears to dance within the mouth. We then desire many, many mouths. When that Name enters the holes of the ears, we desire many millions of ears. And when the Holy Name dances in the courtyard of the heart, it conquers the activities of the mind, and therefore all the senses become inert."

Haridas Thakur commented that he had heard many verses glorifying the Holy Names but he had not heard any verse like this glorification given by Srila Rupa Goswami.

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu lived for twenty-four years in Puri. The first six years He extensively travelled, and the last twelve years He was absorbed completely tasting Radha-Krishna lila in the Gambhir.

Haridas Thakur had a special ability that he could understand that soon the Lord would disappear and he commented that he did not want to see that final lila of the Lord. He asked the Lord to grant his desire: that he could leave this world before that final chapter of the Lord. In reply, Mahaprabhu assented, and said that Lord Krishna would satisfy Haridas Thakur's petition.

The next day Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came there with His devotees and began the chanting of the Holy Names - a kirtan that lasted more than two hours. Then Haridas Thakur took the lotus feet of the Lord upon his chest and began chanting, "Sri Krishna Chaitanya, Sri Krishna Chaitanya, Sri Krishna Chaitanya...."

He had dedicated his entire life to the chanting of Krishna's Name. His vow was to daily chant three lakhs (300,000) Names of the Lord, chanting the Mahamantra. But at the time of leaving this world, he chanted, "Sri Krishna Chaitanya," Mahaprabhu's Name, while looking at the lotus face of the Lord.

Then Mahaprabhu began dancing while holding the body of Srila Haridas Thakur. After the soul passes away, the body must be washed with water, and Mahaprabhu took Haridas Thakur's body to the ocean. Then with His own hands, and with the help of the devotees, Mahaprabhu dug a hole near the shore and, after burying Haridas Thakur's body, a mound was made above the body for the samadhi. In this way the Lord was engaged personally and it was very miraculous. There, all the devotees had a big kirtan and then all went with the Lord to bathe in the sea.

Afterwards, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu went to the shopkeepers near the Jagannath Temple, held out his uttariya and begged Jagannath Prasad from them for the festival of Srila Haridas Thakur. They all wanted to give all their stock of prasadam to Mahaprabhu, but Swarup Damodar, who was so close to Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, told the Lord that he would collect the offerings for the festival. In that way he collected a few palmfuls of each preparation from each of the shopkeepers and accumulated a large quantity which was then carried back for the festival. Kasi Misra also sent a large quantity of Jagannath Prasad for the Lord and all the devotees.

When all the devotees were to take prasadam, the Lord wanted to serve them, but He wanted to give each person more than what five men could eat. Then Swarup Damodar told the Lord that unless He personally sat down to take prasad, no one would eat. The Lord was made to sit, and Swarup Damodar and others then served the devotees.

Today is the festival of the disappearance of Srila Haridas Thakur, and as Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita notes, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu gave the boon that all those who participated in this festival, and those who will participate in the future festivals, all will receive eternal benefit and go back to Krishna.

Indradyumna Swami visits Mongolia

Land Of The Blue Sky

By Indradyumna Swami

Our long awaited dream to visit Mongolia came true today. As our plane circled the airport waiting to land at Ulaanbaatar I was surprised to see that the barren brown landscape, which stretched as far as the eye could see, did not contain a single tree. I also noticed all roads leading out of the capital were simply dirt roads. During a quick tour of the city before arriving at our local ISKCON temple for our first program we found people extremely curious about us and very, very friendly. Our great adventure has begun!

All photos by Ananta Vrindavan dasa

Offerings to Sri Radha Kunda

Beutiful pictures of the offerings to Sri Radha Kunda on the day of its appearance.
Sri Govardhan, Vraja Mandal, India.

Source: Facebook

Hare Krishna school achieves top marks in NAPLAN

ABC North Cast NSW, Australia:14 September, 2015

Hare Krishna school, Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula, has gone from failing several NAPLAN categories to performing above the national average in all of them.

Premarvati is the kindergarten teacher at Hare Krishna school Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula: "As a teacher, I do not use NAPLAN to measure the child's success. I'm very happy that they're doing well in NAPLAN now though. In past years, we've been a very small school so we've only had a few kids who sit for the test. There are some kids who always do well, and there are some kids not in the core program who have struggled. With the new program we've introduced, we're seeing results and it's very pleasing." (ABC North Coast: Samantha Turnbull)

Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula principal Victor Machevsky: "The school has participated in NAPLAN tests over the years and we were somewhat struggling with our performance. For the past three years we've been working on the quality of instructional practices and, in particular, on explicit direct instruction where we unpack the skills of reading into very small, understandable chunks. This year, we're seeing the results of those few years of hard work by the teachers. The school has performed above the national average in all the areas of literacy and numeracy." (ABC North Coast: Samantha Turnbull)

Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula Year 3/4 teacher Keli Dorman: "I love teaching here because it's a spiritually based school as well, so we're able to integrate our philosophy into a lot of our learning areas. So, for example, a lot of writing tasks we might do might be focused on some of our spiritual stories. Also, it's such a small school that we're able to give a lot of individual attention to our students that you maybe can't get so much in a really large school. We have a shared vision and I think that's what makes it so good here." (ABC North Coast: Samantha Turnbull)

Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula student Vrinda, nine: "It's very fun here and you get to learn a lot of things. I like the teachers, I like my friends, I mostly like everything about it. I'm really good at maths and science. When I grow up I want to be a singer." (ABC North Coast: Samantha Turnbull)

Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula student Nayana, nine: "Our school is surrounded by mountains, trees and cows. I like that we're all Hare Krishna devotees. My favourite activities are maths and English. Mum got me an e-reader for my birthday and I've been reading a lot on that - Magic Marks the Spot, Harry Potter, Tiger's Curse. I want to be an author because writing stories is fun." (ABC North Coast: Samantha Turnbull)

Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula student Danakeli, eight: "I love our assemblies because we can chant and sing Krishna's names. I also really love ballet. I want to be a ballerina when I grow up." (ABC North Coast: Samantha Turnbull)

Hare Krishna devotees established the Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula school in 1980 at Eungella on the outskirts of Murwillumbah in northern New South Wales, Australia.
The school began with a handful of students but has grown to more than 70.


Bhaktivedanta Swami Gurukula hasn't performed well in National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) testing since the test's introduction in 2008, failing several categories up until three years ago.

However, the introduction of new teaching programs has resulted in students outperforming others across the nation in this year's tests.

Students performed above the national average in all categories in the compulsory literacy and numeracy exams.

The school also performed above the average achieved by other Australian independent schools, with an 84 per cent increase in average score growth.

Principal Victor Machevsky said Hare Krishna community attitudes to education had slowly changed since the school was established.

"Throughout the developing history of the school, the devotees have seen the need for children to continue developing the values of the Hare Krishna movement, but at the same time to become competent and confident members of broader society," he said.

"That's where we are at the moment, bringing in research-based approaches to literacy and numeracy learning."

Mayapur and Kolkata temple Deities

Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math, Sep 10, 2015

All Glories to Sri Brahma Madhva Gaudiya Saraswat Sampradaya (lineage). All Glories to my beloved Grand Spiritual Master His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur PRABHUPADA & my beloved Spiritual Master His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Pramode Puri Goswami Maharaj.

Yours in the Service of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s Mission.
B.B.Bodhayan.
Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math (President)

www.sggm.in
www.gopinathmath.wordpress.com
www.gopinathmath.org
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New Gurukula Set to Open Near Sochi, Russia by 2017

ISKCON News, Sept. 11, 2015

Construction is set to begin on a new dayschool gurukula near Sochi, Southern Russia sometime this spring, with plans to open in September 2017. With no other gurukulas currently in operation in Russia, it may be under high demand as the only one of its kind.

The gurukula is planned in Baranovka, a small village 15 kilometers from Sochi City Center, which devotees have dubbed “Balaramovka.”

The devotee community there, started by the late leader of ISKCON’s Sastric Advisory Council Purnachandra Goswami in 2009, consists of about fifty devotees. Meanwhile the nearby Sochi ISKCON community is about 200-strong with many children.

The gurukula will be built on a recently donated half-acre plot 100 meters from the Baranovka ISKCON temple. A small house has already been constructed on the property for Amala Rasa Das, who will move with his wife Svetlana and their two children from Ukraine this October to develop the gurukula project and serve as its director.

The gurukula, named after Purnachandra Goswami, will be housed in a 7,500-square-foot, two-storey building with four classrooms, a large kindergarten room, an altar room for Gaura Nitai that will accommodate 150 children and parents, a kitchen, and a break room for teachers.

The gurukula will open with facilities for kindergarten (3 to 7 years old in Russia), as well as 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades. Later, it will introduce the remaining grades up to age 17.

Using examples from already existing gurukulas around the world, the day will begin at 6:30am with mangala arati, guru puja and a short Bhagavatam class, before launching into the regular government-required academic program. Extra curricular activities will include music classes on mridanga and harmonium, sports, martial arts, dancing, sewing, painting and more.

Because of the obstacles to becoming a licensed school in Russia, the gurukula will be classified as a homeschool program, and students will take their exams at a local government school.

At least 15 students are expected to enroll when the gurukula first opens in 2017, and at least 50 from all over Russia once it opens for all grades up to 17 years old.

“Already, many devotees have heard of our plans and are calling us to ask about enrolling their children,” says project manager Nadezhda Drobzheva.

Enrollment will be strict – parents will be required to follow the four regulative principles of Krishna consciousness, chant sixteen rounds of japa a day, and have a regular bhakti practice at home.

But managers say it’s all so that children get the full benefits of the spiritual environment the gurukula is trying to create; an environment that protects them from the harmful effects of the typical Russian government school, where, according to Nadezhda, they would learn bad habits like smoking and drinking from as young as ten.

“This gurukula was Purnachandra Goswami’s dream – he felt that taking care of our children is perhaps the most important thing in Krishna consciousness,” she says. “Because they are our future.”

The Manifestation of the Deity

Gaudiya Darshan, 15 September 2015

Śrīla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswāmī Mahārāj explains why the Lord appears in His Deity form.

When Śrī Śrī Gāndharvā-Govindasundar manifested in Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat Maṭh, Śrīla Guru Mahārāj composed this verse for the invitation to the festival:

chid-dhāma-sevāmaya-dṛṣṭi-yoge
sevā-vibhāvaiś cha sadā samṛddham
śrī-nāma-rūpaiś cha guṇair vilāsair
bhakte chidānanda-ghanaṁ tanoti
(Śrīla Bhakti Rakṣak Śrīdhar Dev-Goswāmī Mahārāj)

The Lord’s Name, the Lord’s Form, the Lord’s Qualities, and the Lord’s Pastimes are all transcendental, and transcendental existence can manifest itself at any time in any direction. We know that the Lord’s Name is the transcendental vibration form of the Lord, and this form of the Lord manifests in the clean heart of a devotee and then dances on their tongue. Śrīla Bhakti Vinod Ṭhākur said in his song,

kṛṣṇa-nāma dhare kata bala
viṣaya-vāsanānale mora chitta sadā jvale
ravi-tapta maru-bhūmi-sama
karṇa-randhra patha diyā hṛdi mājhe praveśiyā
variṣaya sudhā anupama
hṛdaya ha-ite bale jihvāra agrete chale
śabda-rūpe nāche anukṣaṇa
(Śaraṇāgati: Śrī Nāma-māhātmya, 1–2)

[“How much power does Kṛṣṇa’s Name possess? My heart constantly burns in the fire of mundane desire like a desert scorched by the blazing sun. The Name enters the core of my heart through the gateway of my ears and showers incomparable nectar. Forcibly, the Name then moves from my heart to the tip of my tongue and continuously dances there in the form of sound.”]

Similarly, the Lord’s Name, Form, Qualities, and Pastimes all very mercifully appear in the form of the Deity; everything that exists in the Pastimes of Kṛṣṇa is present with the Deity, and when the Deity manifests Himself, He gives His devotees chid-ānanda-ghanaṁ: eternal concentrated transcendental ecstasy. This is the description given by Śrīla Guru Mahārāj in his sanskrit composition. Why does the Deity manifest? To give the most concentrated form of transcendental ecstasy to the devotees.

The Lord’s Pastimes are revealed to the devotees in the form of Deity. In this way, Kṛṣṇa’s gives the gift of Himself to this mundane world. This is the vision of the Gauḍīya sampradāya. Śrīpād Mādhavendra Purī saw the forms of Gopāl and Gopīnāth with this vision, and wherever He went, Śrīman Mahāprabhu always saw with this vision and showed it others. That the Lord manifests Himself in the form of the Deity to give joy to the hearts of the devotees means that the Deity comes to take our service and that service is what gives us joy. In other words, through our service to the Deity, we will feel joy that is transcendental. All joy of this type is nitya-līlā; it is part of the Lord’s eternal Pastimes.

Those who cannot conceive of the Deity, however, must at least honour the scriptural evidence about the Deity. Otherwise, they will go to hell.

archchye viṣṇau śilā-dhīr guruṣu nara-matir vaiṣṇave jāti-buddhir
viṣṇor vā vaiṣṇavānāṁ kali-mala-mathane pāda-tīrthe ‘mbu-buddhiḥ
śrī-viṣṇor nāmni mantre sakala-kaluṣa-he śabde-sāmānya buddhir
viṣṇau sarveśvareśe tad-itara-sama-dhīr yasya vā nārakī saḥ
(Padma-purāṇa)

If someone cannot feel the transcendental nature of the Deity, that is not so much of an offence, but if they will not follow to the scriptural injunctions for honouring the Deity, then they must go to hell. Those who worship the Deity do not worship anything material, and the form of the Deity Himself is not material. We must believe this whether we can see it or not. The scriptures instruct us: “You must be conscious about this. You cannot recognise the difference between gold and imitation, but gold is always gold, and you must give honour to that.” From Śrīla Rupa Goswāmī Prabhu in Śrī Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, Śrīla Jīva Goswāmī Prabhu in Bhakti-sandarbha, and in many other places, we receive this warning: “Don’t forget that you are in the presence of Kṛṣṇa. When you are in front of the Deity, you are in front of Kṛṣṇa Himself, and you must give proper honour to Him.”

Śrīman Mahāprabhu went to the Jagannāth Temple every day to see the form of Lord Jagannāth and always glorified Their Lordships Balabhadra, Subhadra, and Jagannāth. In this way, He set an example for us. When He would stand in front of Jagannāth, He would see Jagannāth as Kṛṣṇa playing flute and attracting the gopīs.

dekhena jagannātha haya muralī-vadana
(Śrī Chaitanya-charitāmṛta: Antya-līlā, 16.85)

Śrīman Mahāprabhu always saw Jagannāth as Kṛṣṇa in this mood. Everything depends on the mood (bhāva) of the devotee.

We must honour the scriptural injunctions about the Deity. For that reason, we are holding a formal devotional function to install the Deity, but the vital point is that the Deity automatically manifests whenever any pure devotee of the Lord pays obeisance. Prabhupād Śrīla Saraswatī Ṭhākur established the service of the Deity in his Temples in this way for his devotees, but some formal installation function is also necessary for the junior, neophyte devotees.

When we offer worship, we follow the processes that are written in the scriptures. But if you put anything in front of a higher devotee, they will immediately think it to be Kṛṣṇa’s prasādam; they will think that Kṛṣṇa has taken it and now it has come to them. This is the feeling of higher standard devotees. We are all very neophyte, junior, and unqualified. We have only soft faith (komala śraddhā), and to make our faith strong, we are holding this function according to the directives of the scriptures.

We are so fortunate that Kṛṣṇa has given us the opportunity to join this festival for the manifestation of the Deity. So, we will honour it properly. Through saṅkīrtan, everything will be fulfilled, and the hearts of the devotees will be filled with joy.

Source

Spoken 18 May 1996.

Reference

archye viṣṇau śilā-dhīr guruṣu nara-matir vaiṣṇave jāti-buddhir
viṣṇor vā vaiṣṇavānāṁ kali-mala-mathane pāda-tīrthe ’mbu-buddhiḥ
śrī-viṣṇor-nāmni-mantre sakala-kaluṣa-he śabda-sāmānya-buddhir
viṣṇau sarveśvareśe tad-itara-sama-dhīr yasya vā nārakī saḥ
(Padma-purāṇa)

“Those who consider the Deity of Viṣṇu to be stone, Śrī Guru to be a man, a Vaiṣṇava to be a member of a particular caste, the wash from the feet of Viṣṇu or the Vaiṣṇava, which destroys the contamination of Kali, to be water, the Name of Viṣṇu and mantras for worshipping Him, which destroy all contamination, to be ordinary words, or Viṣṇu the Lord of all lords to be equal to others are destined for hell.”

Dharshan: Sri Sri Radha Syamasundar

16 th September, 2015
Sri Vrindavan Dham, India

Todays darshan of Sri Sri Radha Syamasundar Ji

Follow on Facebook: Radha Shyamsundar