ISKCON Mira Road

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Some Meditations for the Auspicious day of Srila Prabhupada's Arrival in USA

	From Srila Prabhupada's Diary THURSDAY 16 Today is the 35th day of our journey and yesterday night at about 10/30 p.m. we have turned one wheel(?) towards north eastern corner from the Bermuda latitude towards Boston port. In the morning the atmosphere was fairly cleared and the ship was plying very smoothly. The first officer told me that they never had such experience of the At lantic ocean and he ascribed the good luck to me. I said yes it is all Lord Krishna's Grace because due to my severe type of sea-sickness, He has Himself taken charge of the ship. In (?) expansion the Lord is rowing the oars. We shall certainly reach to America port safely. The whole day was clear sun-shine but at 4 p.m. the sky all of a sudden became foggy. The sun became dim covered by foggy weather. The horizon is still visible. Let us see what is still ahead. The ship is stopped completely at about 6 p.m. on account of dense fog. Be Lord Krishna pleased to get out this fog. By the Grace of Lord Krishna the fog was cleared after 2-3 hours and the ship started. The whole night was non-disturbing and today on the 36th day of our journey we reached safely at Boston Port at 5/30 a.m.
	17 FRIDAY We are now on the dockyard of Boston and at 10 a.m. the custom officers and others came on the ship. They have now issued the admittance permission after due checking etc. I saw the Boston Town with captain It is very nice and I shall describe it in a separate note. 36th day from starting from Calcutta Port To-day we are expected to reach Boston Port U.S.A. in the morning ACB—/9/65 We stayed the whole day & night at Boston till 4.p.m. next day
	18 SATURDAY To-day is the 37th day of our journey & at 4 p.m. we left Boston Port for New York. In the morning I had telephonic talks with Gopal P. Agarwal in Butler and he said that his man will receive me at New York & dispatch me to Butler by Bus or train as convenient. I tried to contact Dr. Misra but he was not available both yesterday and to-day. I do not know if he is coming to receive me. To-day I met two American nice gentlemen Mr. Gardiner & Fryer(?). We passed a beautiful canal and crossed underneath two overbridges. But at midnight there was considerable fog disturbance and the ship moved very slowly. The fog persisted till we reached late at New York Port at 12/30 on 19/9/65.
	SUNDAY 19 Today is the 38th day of our journey and we reached New York Port at 12/30 p.m. about three hours later than the scheduled time.
	SATURDAY 25 Today I have sent letter to Captain Arun Pandiya.

Srila Prabhupada's Arrival in America on September 17, 1965

After a thirty-five-day sea journey from Calcutta, Srila Prabhupada reached Boston's Commonwealth Pier on September 17, 1965. He took a short walk into the city and then returned to the ship. As he awaited the ship's departure for New York, Srila Prabhupada composed a Bengali poem, entitled "Markine Bhagavat-dharma" ("Teaching Krsna Consciousness in America")

Some of the verses he wrote on board the ship that day are as follows:
My dear Lord Krsna, You are so kind upon this useless soul, but I do not know why You have brought me here. Now You can do whatever You like with me.
But I guess You have some business here, otherwise why would You bring me to this terrible place?
Most of the population here is covered by the material modes of ignorance and passion. Absorbed in material life they think themselves very happy and satisfied, and therefore they have no taste for the transcendental message of Vasudeva [Krsna]. I do not know how they will be able to understand it.
But I know that Your causeless mercy can make everything possible, because You are the most expert mystic.
How will they understand the mellows of devotional service? O Lord, I am simply praying for Your mercy so that I will be able to convince them about Your message.
All living entities have come under the control of the illusory energy by Your will, and therefore, if You like, by Your will they can also be released from the clutches of illusion.
I wish that You may deliver them. Therefore if You so desire their deliverance, then only will they be able to understand Your message…
How will I make them understand this message of Krsna consciousness? I am very unfortunate, unqualified, and the most fallen. Therefore I am seeking Your benediction so that I can convince them, for I am powerless to do so on my own.
Somehow or other, O Lord, You have brought me here to speak about You. Now, my Lord, it is up to You to make me a success or failure, as You like.
O spiritual master of all the worlds! I can simply repeat Your message. So if You like You can make my power of speaking suitable for their understanding.
Only by Your causeless mercy will my words become pure. I am sure that when this transcendental message penetrates their hearts, they will certainly feel gladdened and thus become liberated from all unhappy conditions of life.
O Lord, I am just like a puppet in Your hands. So if You have brought me here to dance, then make me dance, make me dance, O Lord, make me dance as You like.
I have no devotion, nor do I have any knowledge, but I have strong faith in the holy name of Krsna. I have been designated as Bhaktivedanta, and now, if You like, You can fulfill the real purport of Bhaktivedanta.
Signed—the most unfortunate, insignificant beggar,
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami,
On board the ship Jaladuta, Commonwealth Pier,
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
Dated 18th September 1965.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Radhashtami- 27th August 2009

Radhastami is the celebration day of Srimati Radharani's appearance. Radharani is the consort of Krishna. She appeared to Vrishabhanu Maharaj (her father) in the village of Rawal a fortnight after Krishna’s appearance.

Radharani's special qualification is that She is the best devotee of Krishna. Krishna therefore loves Her the most. On Her festival day, devotees seeking Krishna's grace will especially ask Her to grant them devotion to Her beloved Lord, knowing that if they can attain Her favor, they can attain His as a natural consequence.

On Radhastami, Sri Sri Radha Krishna deities are traditionally dressed entirely in flowers. Sri Sri Radha Giridhariji are offered a beautiful outfit and give a very beautiful darshan to all who visit the temple.

The festivities on Radhastami includes darshan of Sri Sri Radha Giridhariji in beautiful outfits, spiritual discourses, kirtans and bhajans, maha-abhishek, maha-arati and offering of hundreds of bhoga foodstuffs to Their Lordships.

The next Radhastami falls on 27 August 2009. All are Welcome. Please come and accept the blessings of Srimati Radharani.

Founder Acharya: International Society for Krishna Consciousness

His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder-acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, was born in 1896, in Calcutta, in a Vaishnava family.

In 1922, Srila Prabhupada, then Abhay Charan, met his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami, for the first time in Calcutta. Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati, took a liking to Abhay and told him to devote his life to teaching Vedic Knowledge; more specifically to preach Lord Caitanya's message to the English speaking world. Although, Abhay accepted, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta within his heart as his spiritual master, it was not until 1932 that he became initiated.

In 1936 Srila Prabhupada wrote his spiritual master requesting if there was any particular service that he could render. Srila Prabhupada received a reply to that letter containing the same instruction the he had received in 1922: 'Preach Krishna consciousness to the English speaking world'. His spiritual master passed away from this world two weeks later; thus leaving these final instructions engraved on Srila Prabhupada's heart. These instructions were to form the focus of Srila Prabhupada's life.

Srila Prabhupada wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-gita and assisted the Gaudiya Matha in its work. In 1944, during the Second World War, when paper was scarce and people had little money to spend, Srila Prabhupada began a magazine called Back to Godhead. Single-handedly, he would write, edit, oversee the layout, proof-read and sell the copies himself. This magazine is still being published today.

In 1950 Srila Prabhupada adopted the vanaprastha (retired) life; thus retiring from home and family life, in order to devote more time to his studies. In 1953 he received the title Bhaktivedanta from his Godbrothers. He travelled to Vrindavana, where he lived very humbly at the Radha-Damodara temple. He spent several years there studying the scriptures and writing.

In 1959 he took sannyasa, the renounced order of life. It was then, while staying at Radha-Damodara temple that he started on his masterpiece: translation and commentary of the Srimad-Bhagavatam in English. He also wrote Easy Journey to Other Planets. Within a few years, he had written three volumes of English translation and commentary for the first canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Once again, single handedly, he bought the paper and gathered funds, to print the books. He sold the books himself and through agents in the larger Indian cities.

He now felt ready to carry out his spiritual master's orders and decided to start by taking the message of Krishna consciousness to America, convinced that other countries would follow suit. Obtaining free passage on a freight ship, called the Jaladuta he finally arrived in New York in 1965. He was 69 and practically penniless. All he possessed was a few copies of the Srimad-Bhagavatam and a few hundred rupees.

He had had a very difficult crossing, suffering two heart attacks and once arrived in New York he didn't know which way to turn. After a difficult six months, preaching here and there, his few followers rented a storefront and apartment in Manhattan. Here, he would regularly give lectures, kirtana and distribute prasadam. People from all walks of life, including hippies, were drawn here; in search of that missing element from their lives and many became part of 'Swamiji's' following.

As people became more serious, Srila Prabhupada's followers used to hold regular kirtanas in the parks. The lectures and Sunday feast days became renowned. His young followers eventually took initiation from Srila Prabhupada, promising to follow the regulative principles and chant 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra daily. He also reinstated the Back to Godhead magazine.

In July 1966, Srila Prabhupada established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness - ISKCON. His aim was to use the society to promote Krishna Consciousness throughout the world. In 1967, he visited San Francisco and started an ISKCON society there. He then sent his disciples all over the world to spread Caitanya Mahaprabhu's message and open new centres in Montreal, Boston, London, Berlin, and other cities in North America, India, and Europe. In India, three magnificent temples were initially planned: Vrindavana, the Krishna Balaram temple with all its ancillary facilties; Bombay, a temple with an educational and cultural centre; and in Mayapur, a huge temple with a Vedic planetarium.

Srila Prabhupada produced all of his books bar the three written in India within the next eleven years. Srila Prabhupada slept little and would spend the early morning hours writing. He would write almost daily between 1:30 and 4:30 a.m. He dictated his text, which his disciples then typed and edited. Srila Prabhupada would translate the original texts from Sanskrit or Bengali, word by word, and gave a complete commentary.

His works include Bhagavad-gita As It Is, the multi-volume Srimad-Bhagavatam, the multivolume Caitanya-caritamrta, The Nectar of Devotion, Krsna: The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Teachings of Lord Kapila, Teachings of Queen Kunti, Sri Isopanisad, The Nectar of Instruction, and dozens of small books.

His writings have been translated into over fifty languages. The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, established in 1972 to publish the works of His Divine Grace, has thus become the world's largest publisher of books in the field of Indian religion and philosophy.

Despite his heavy literary schedule, Srila Prabhupada did not let his writing stand in the way of his preaching. In just twelve years, despite his advanced age, he circled the globe fourteen times on lecture tours that took him to six continents.

His days were filled with writing, teaching his followers and the public, and with guiding his growing society, until the day he departed from this world. Before departing from this world Srila Prabhupada gave many instructions to his disciples to follow in his footsteps and to continue the preaching and spreading of Krishna Consciousness all over the world.

He departed this world on November 14 1977.

In the short time he spent in the west, he preached continuously, established 108 temples, wrote more than sixty volumes of transcendental literature, initiated five thousand disciples, founded the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, began a scientific academy (the Bhaktivedanta Institute) and other trusts related to ISKCON.

Srila Prabhupada was an extraordinary author, teacher, and saint. He managed to spread Krishna Consciousness all over the world, through his writing and preaching. His writings comprise of many volumes and are the basis of Krishna consciousness not only for his disciples but for his grand-disciples, affiliated members of the disciplic succession, and for the public at large.

Some of Srila Prabhupada's Unparalleled Achievements

In 1965, at seventy years of age, he ventured outside India for the first time to fulfill the order of his spiritual master. During his voyage at sea, he suffered two severe heart attacks. He reached the shores of America with the equivalent of seven dollars to his name.

He founded the International Society for Krsna Consciousness with a small group of disciples, after a year of struggling alone in New York City. This marked the only time in history that a Krsna devotee successfully trained non-Indians in the strict disciplines of Vaisnavism. Amazingly, this was achieved during the blossoming of America's hedonistic counterculture movement.

He sent his followers, chanting the names of God, into the streets of cities and towns everywhere and Hare Krsna became famous in every corner of the earth.

He sent his disciples to London, where they recorded the single, "Hare Krsna Mantra", with George Harrison, in 1969. It became the fastest selling of all the Apple Corporation's releases, including those of the Beatles. The record reachednumber 3 in Czechoslovakia, number 9 in Britain, and made the top ten in Germany, Japan, Australia, South Africa, Yugoslavia, and many other

countries.

He formally initiated approximately five thousand disciples. These initiates represented a sweeping diversity of nationalities, races, ethnicities, and religious backgrounds.

He established 108 Krsna temples on six continents, installed the deity of Krsna in each center and trained his disciples in the process of deity worship. Thirty-two new temples (almost three a month) were opened in a single year, between 1970 and 1971.

He inaugurated the Rathayatra Festival of Lord Jaganatha in major cities around the globe, in effect, bringing the temple to the people.

He instituted the brahmacarini ashram, something previously unheard of in Vedic culture, to give shelter to single women wishing to practice Krsna consciousness.

He instructed his disciples in 1967 to start an incense business to provide financial support for the temples. Within four years the business, Spiritual Sky Incense, generated an annual revenue of one million dollars (equivalent to $4,700,000 in 2007).

He introduced the "Sunday Love Feast" and other prasadam (sanctified food) distribution programs that provided millions of free meals to the public.

He created the world's first chain of vegetarian restaurants.

He spoke daily on the philosophy of Krsna consciousness, delivering thousands of formal lectures. Over 2,200 were recorded and archived.

He conducted many hundreds of informal conversations on the science of Krsna consciousness with disciples, guests and friends. Over 1,300 were recorded and archived.

He had scores of interviews and philosophical discussions with news reporters, scientists, religious leaders and politicians, as well as meetings with world-renowned dignitaries and celebrities like Indira Gandhi, Allen Ginsberg, Ravi Shankar, Alice Coltrane, John Lennon and George Harrison.

He recorded more than twenty albums of devotional music.

He published the monthly magazine, Back to Godhead, which he called the backbone of his movement. At the height of its circulation in the mid seventies, over a million copies per issue were sold.

He launched the ISKCON Life Membership Program that enrolled tens of thousands of members.

He built major temples in Bombay and Vrndavana, and founded a spiritual city at Mayapur. All became international sites of pilgrimage.

He established primary schools to provide education in the principles of devotional service.

He founded the Bhaktivedanta Institute to advance Krsna consciousness within the scientific community, engaging serious academics in the consideration of the science of self-realization.

He formed the Bhaktivedanta Swami Charity Trust to unearth and renovate the holy places of Lord Caitanya's pastimes.

He set up farm communities to teach "simple living and high thinking", emphasizing cow protection and dependence on God and nature.

He commissioned his artist disciples to produce hundreds of illustrations of Krsna's pastimes based on his meticulous instructions and the descriptions in his books.

He directed some of his followers to learn the Indian art of "doll making" to present Vedic philosophy through dioramas. This project became the FATE Museums.

He counseled his disciples on complex managerial, philosophical and personal issues in more than 6,000 archived letters.

He was the subject of more than 30,000 archival photos and more than seventy hours of documentary film footage.

He wrote approximately seventy books on the science of Krsna consciousness, sleeping only a few hours per day. Dozens of prominent scholars and educators from leading universities praised his work. The Encyclopaedia Britannica proclaimed that his voluminous translations from the original Sanskrit and his lucid commentaries "have astounded literary and academic communities worldwide." This feat is even more astonishing considering the translations and commentaries were in English, which was a second language to the author.

He founded the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) in 1972, to produce his books. By 1996, over 90,000,000 literatures had been published in fifty-seven languages and distributed in almost every country, making the BBT the world's largest publisher of Indian religious and philosophical texts. One printing alone of Bhagavad-gita As It Is required seventy-six train cars to ship the paper needed to print it.

He completed the entire Caitanya-caritamrta manuscript (seventeen volumes) in eighteen months.

He ordered and supervised the BBT in publishing seventeen volumes of his books in only two months time, in 1974.

Srila Prabhupada increased the standard of Deity worship in all the temples in Vrindavana, India when he installed the Deities in the Sri Sri Krishna-Balarama Mandir in the Vrindavana. Before this many of the Deities in the temples there were dressed in sheets, poor clothes, and even had bugs crawling on Them, and were often only offered tulasi water and no food offerings. Now everything has changed because of Srila Prabhupada, and numerous temples have beautiful worship for the Deities. Even the shop owners who cater to the needs of the growing number of devotees, many of whom are Western, have become rich because of Srila Prabhupada. Many also have his portrait hanging in their shops.

Prabhupada also circled the globe fourteen times, visiting twenty-four countries, preaching, inspiring his followers and making countless public appearances before multitudes of people.

He skillfully managed his international society simply through letters and personal meetings, virtually without the use of a telephone.

Without being blessed by a pure devotee, no one can be fully satisfied, nor can anyone understand the transcendental position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

(Srimad-Bhagavatam, 4.24.57, Purport)

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Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Some Meditations for the Auspicious day of Srila Prabhupada's Arrival in USA

Srila Prabhupada's Arrival in America on September 17, 1965

Monday, August 24, 2009

Radhashtami- 27th August 2009

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Krishna Is Great

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Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Some Meditations for the Auspicious day of Srila Prabhupada's Arrival in USA

Srila Prabhupada's Arrival in America on September 17, 1965

Monday, August 24, 2009

Radhashtami- 27th August 2009

Address:

Krishna Is Great

Click to know more...

Keep yourself updated ...

Upcoming Events

You are visitor no.

Followers

Blog Archive

Temple Location

Founder Acharya: International Society for Krishna Consciousness

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Always chant & be happy........