Believers: Builders of Fraternity and Peaceful Coexistence - Divali Greetings from the Vatican
The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue of the Vatican sends their cordial greetings and sincere good wishes as Hindus celebrate Deepavali on 27 October this year.
A world record for “Largest Addiction Awareness Festival” was awarded in the event by World Book of Records, London, to Gopal Krishna Goswami, ISKCON GBC, in presence of Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Unioun Health Minister.
Jagai Nitai Das, an active member of the Laguna Beach temple, organized the Jagannath Temple Tent this year at Bhakti Fest, which ran from September 25th to 30th at Twenty-Nine Palms near Joshua Tree in California.
ISKCON's Governing Body Commission (GBC) has released a resolution approving that "a mature, qualified, female devotee may accept the role of an initiating spiritual master."
The first Australian Kulimela, held from late December 2010 to early January 2011, was a major success, drawing around 300 kulis for seminars, devotional entertainment, kirtan, water sports and nature exploration. The same team has now scheduled a ten-year reunion event, which will run for five days from October 1st to 5th 2020.
There were about 15 attendees participating from Italy, Germany, Czech Republic, Ireland and Belgium.
For the past 13 years ISKCON’s Ministry for Cow Protection and Agriculture (IMCPA) has organized a European conference for ISKCON farmers and anyone interested in agriculture and cow protection. The idea is to create networks and unite everyone towards Srila Prabhupada’s goals for cow protection and simple living.
“Beating the normal trend we are thrilled to be invited to inaugurate the Durga Puja festival. It gave us a good platform to highlight the relationship of goddess Durga with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Our mission is to worship and spread the message of Bhagwan Sri Krishna, however, as per Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy, Ma Durga is revered as a demigod and the external energy of Lord Sri Krishna by the devotees," said Subroto Das, Media Spokesperson of ISKCON Mayapur.
“For the past number of years, we’ve been trying to get the Palace a status as a historic building in West Virginia,” said Palace Reunion Festival organizer Sukhavaha Dasi, to cheers from the crowd. “It’s a federal thing, not just a state thing, backing that this is a historic building!”
Srila Prabhupada’s Palace is one of ISKCON’s most impressive achievements. Built by young, inexperienced devotees who trained themselves in construction and artisanal skills, it began in 1973 as a simple residence for Prabhupada.
Due to the recently released large quantities of water from barrages Ganga has swollen, covering all low lands, and is flowing by the Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Marg road.
The venue for the event was Conway Hall, where Srila Prabhupada had given a series of lectures in 1969.
Kartika is glorified in the Puranas as very special for making spiritual advancement and the best place to be in Kartika is Sri Braja Dham
Kartik Navadwip Mandal Parikrama organized by the Mayapur Chandras is a small and intimate gathering of devotees travelling to various holy places hearing and chanting about the glories of Sri Sri Gaura Nitai and Their associates.
Members of the BBT along with a group of concerned devotees, including those with expertise on the subject of editing, convened at ISKCON of Washington, D.C. from September 20th to 22nd, for an extended discussion on the contentious issue of post-samadhi editing of Srila Prabhupada’s books.
“After we celebrated ISKCON’s global 50th anniversary in 2016, I was keen to capture the mood of something quintessentially British for our own UK Golden Anniversary in 2019,” says UK communications director Mina Sharma. “And what is more British than The Beatles!”
Launched in 1996 by Niranjana Swami and starting with an attendance of only 400, it grew to become one of ISKCON’s biggest festivals, with an unbelievable 12,000 devotees participating at one point.
While devotees are often focused on caring for their spiritual health, our bodies are temples that we use to serve Krishna, and must not be neglected – especially as more ISKCON members become advanced in age.
The theme for this year’s festival is ‘Anti-Addiction: Making India Addiction Free’. With this, ISKCON hopes to inspire youngsters to realize their true potential in a clean, green and progressive India. The annual festival will bring in a mix of academics, dignitaries and over 8000 youngsters together to inspire, learn and celebrate life.
“This conference will offer devotee attorneys, jurists and law students from around the world the opportunity to meet in person for the first time," organizer Guru Gauranga Das explains.
The stunning 350 square meter (3,757 sq ft) space is in a prime spot in the city center and offers healthy vegan prasadam to cater to current trends.
“If on the full moon day of the month of Bhadra one places Srimad-Bhagavatam on a golden throne and gives it as a gift, he will attain the supreme transcendental destination.”
A popular vacation spot in the south of Russia, Jubga is bordered on one side by lush greenery and on the other by the picturesque Black Sea. It has been the site of Sadhu Sanga for the past five years, although the festival was launched over two decades ago.
The Lord appeared as Sri Vamanadeva in order to honor His devotees – both the demigods, who required His help to gain back their kingdom from the demons, and Bali Maharaja, whose exemplary qualities and characteristics were revealed in his dealings with Lord Vamanadeva.
“One of the benefits of this was to show the disciples the culture of Vaishnava discussion,” says Sarvajna Das. “Another was to help them think about the topic more and how to apply it in their practical lives.”
