Anyone who has participated in a maha-mantra kirtan – and knows the meaning and goal of the mantra – has experienced that there is no other sacred music or sacred sound that compares to it. Maha-mantra kirtan rivals all and Pranada dasi wants to shout it out to the broader community. She’s releasing the third book of The Bhakti Series, Prema Kirtan: Journey into Sacred Sound, on 12 November and you’re invited to the Launch Party. Nadiya Mani will lead the launch with a maha-mantra kirtan. All details can be found here (and below). “It’s truly noteworthy how many times Srila Bhaktsiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura commented that hari-kirtan,” Pranada says, “must be accompanied by hari-katha to have full efficacy. In other words, tattva needs to underlie the experience. But how do we give enough tattva -- katha -- at a public event or from a stage? Send them home with a book about kirtan!” Mary M., an advance reader of Prema Kirtan, wrote, “I am absolutely arrested in my tracks. You have managed to capture the essence of this thing [maha-mantra meditation] that I have been struggling to understand and accept beyond any shred of doubt. “I am eternally grateful to you for putting it into words that which not only my mind can understand but my heart. All your experience is so credibly squeezed out on the page for my -- and anyone else’s -- benefit. I am so deeply touched and gladdened. In tears all I can say is Thank You!” The first two books of The Bhakti Series won numerous awards, so we suspect Prema Kirtan is headed for acclaim as well. Enter the Giveaway for a chance to win a signed copy of Prema Kirtan and an audio book version by clicking here. The books of The Bhakti Series, Pranada says, are for our secular friends and family, our children (who often don't read the source texts), colleagues, acquaintances, and other people we may meet. “Here,” we can say, “Did you hear about kirtan or have you experienced it? This book explains the philosophy behind kirtan, why you experience the joy you do, how to do kirtan (and japa) yoga, what the goal of kirtan is, and its history and the nature of sacred sound.” The Launch of Prema Kirtan: Journey into Sacred Sound EVENT DETAILS: 12 November 2022 11:00am EST/ 4:00pm GMT 11:00 am EST Kirtan by Nadiya Mani 11:35 Welcome & Introduction 11:40 Pranada will read from Prema Kirtan 11:45 Pranada and Kosarupa will speak about sacred sound and their own journeys 12:15 We'll hear impressions from Advance Readers 12:25 We'll take questions from the audience 12:45 Announce Winner of the Prema Kirtan Giveaway THREE WAYS TO ATTEND IN PERSON ALACHUA, FL, USA ZOOM ZOOM ID #864 7853 5840 Passcode: 16108 FACEBOOK LIVESTREAM Live streaming to Facebook /PranadaComtois
The driving force behind Rūpa Gosvāmī’s acts, including his vast literary repertoire, was Caitanya Mahāprabhu, renowned as the initiator of the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava lineage in sixteenth-century India. In the eyes of his followers, Śrī Caitanya descended to earth to enact a specific redemptive mission. Indeed, his bhakti movement changed the hearts and faith of countless people, both in India of his day and worldwide in the modern era, by instilling in them the path of pure love of God
When Illness Takes Hold: Hopeful Words for Sadhakas explores the challenges and opportunities we face when dealing with illness (or losses and other obstacles) while practicing bhakti. The book has three essays exploring the authors’ personal experiences and the spiritual solutions they found; a question and answer section; and a collection of quotes from our acaryas that are meditations for coping with illness. Pranada dasi and Arcana-siddhi dasi, both disciples of Srila Prabhupada, have each suffered from chronic illness for several decades. Here they combine the wisdom garnered from their experiences in a fairly comprehensive, and loving, treatment of the subject. Arcana-siddhi is a Licensed Clinical Social Work who has been counseling devotees for nearly thirty years. Her husband of thirty-two years, Karnamrta das, recently passed away after a five-year battle with cancer. Devotees around the globe submitted questions for their Question-and-Answer section.
The GBC College for Leadership Development and Tulsi Books Publications are elated to announce the book launch of the book 'Being Srila Prabhupada-anugas' on the occasion of the conclusion of Srila Prabhupada's 125th birth year celebrations. This book by Rasikraman Das is a compilation of Srila Prabhupada's quotes on 51 themes of Leadership. It has been adopted as the official textbook of the GBC College, ISKCON's Leadership School. The book will especially be relevant for the followers of ISKCON who wish to have a deeper understanding of Srila Prabhupada’s personality and the legacy left behind by him in terms of his mood, message, and methods.
In October of 2019, the BBT and GBC appointed an Editorial Review Panel (ERP) to address concerns about the editing of Srila Prabhupada’s books. This article is the first in an ongoing series of contributions to ISKCON News sharing the findings and observations of the ERP.
The Governor of Kerala state of India, honorable Shri. Arif Mohammad Khan officially inaugurated the brief biography of Srila Prabhupada titled ‘The Captain’ written by Toshan Nimai Das from ISKCON Pune on 4th May 2022. Written and presented on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the appearance of Srila Prabhupada, this book is based on Srila Prabhupada Lilamrita and other biographies of Srila Prabhupada and is presented in a brief biography style in 14 chapters. After each chapter, the author has added an essay containing philosophical tidbits, historical information, and practical application points such as easy-to-remember acronyms, icons, statistics, etc. The appendices, in the end, contain other relevant and interesting information about Srila Prabhupada. Full of pictures and hand illustrations, this book is written mainly for guests and dignitaries visiting ISKCON, for school competitions on Srila Prabhupada, for new devotees, etc.
Today’s world is in disarray. Even the so-called educated class of society has no idea how to be happy, or how to do good for the world. Fortunately for us, the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya entertained this idea thousands of years ago. As a result of their thousand-year sacrifice, the enlightened sage, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, spoke Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, the panacea for respiritualizing the entire planet. Because the Bhāgavatam addresses the root cause of suffering, it is a cure-all for the many ills we suffer in this world. Śukadeva Gosvāmī’s sole purpose in life was to see that everyone received this panacea, this ultimate, all-pervading and always effective cure for the disease of material existence. Now, by the mercy of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, we all have the opportunity to help expand the distribution of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam all over the world.
From being stalked by a grizzly bear to being mistaken for an escaped prison inmate, swami and marathon walker, The Walking Monk, braves the elements and adventure across the globe to bring you the tales only trails can tell.
This is the extraordinary journey of Gordon "Jay" Erdman, a brilliant young American student who became Jayapataka Swami, a global spiritual leader. Beautifully written by Steven J Rosen (Satyaraja Das), this is the untold story of a person who has circled the globe over the last 5 decades, faced numerous challenges, and is a shining example of what it takes to carry forward the mission given by ones own spiritual master.