ISKCON New Zealand Returns to Normal As Country Lifts All Restrictions
New Zealand has been widely praised for its aggressive response to COVID-19, aiming for an elimination strategy early on that many thought would not work. On March 25th, when the country only had 205 COVID-19 cases and no deaths, the government announced Alert Level 4 and implemented one of the strictest lockdowns in the world.
“Gita Made Easy”, an 18-day online course designed and facilitated by Amarendra Gaura Das and Sukirti Madhavi Dasi from ISKCON Chennai started off as a course aimed at an audience of 300, ended up with 10,800 people signing up.
In New Vrindaban, West Virginia, ISKCON’s first rural community which Srila Prabhupada earmarked as an example of sustainability to the world, resident devotees are using the pandemic to push themselves closer to their goal of self-sufficiency.
Varnasrama College — ONLINE will be officially inaugurated on May 15th, 2020 (Friday) with a global Go-Vrishabha Puja in conjunction with Vrishabha Sankranti.
A devotee men’s group started in Alachua, Florida in 1992 has offered both spiritual and practical support, as well as close friendships, for members over the past 28 years.
New Vrindaban has 2,200 acres, has been established as a foremost place of pilgrimage in North America, and welcomes 35,000 visitors per year. With a stay-at-home order issued in West Virginia, ISKCON New Vrindaban has closed down Prabhupada’s Palace, the Palace Lodge, and Govinda’s restaurant, losing half its income in the process.
It was once again practically demonstrated that those who are practicing self-sufficiency either to the full extent or at least to some degree are definitely less vulnerable in times of upheavals.
On 1st March, Bhakti Learning offered their new online Krishna-conscious program for children to Srila Prabhupada at his puspa-samadhi in Sridhama Mayapur.
With the current world situation, and the ongoing spread of the Corona Virus, authorities around the world are imposing quarantines and other restrictions on people which may lead to difficulty in maintaining the regular standard or schedule of deity worship in ISKCON centers.
Villa Vrindavana Yoga Center is providing yoga enthusiasts an authentic experience in a spiritual community, as well as a non-judgemental, pressure-free zone where they can decide how deep they want to dive.
In the U.K., devotees from ISKCON Leicester’s congregation joined a total of nearly twenty families for a groundbreaking scheme called ‘Come Dine Together,’ designed to build friendships and understanding between Hindus and Muslims.
To avoid the bumpy, risky roads and pollution when traveling to the Mayapur Gaura Purnima festival this year, travelers can instead book the Jaladuta boat service organized by the Mayapur Tourism department and enjoy a relaxing cruise down the river Ganga.
The Living Name Retreat is a unique experience focused on reigniting one’s relationship with the Holy Name.
Vaisesika shares why goals are important in Krishna consciousness and in other aspects of life; and how to set your New Year’s Resolution goals effectively in a way that will lead to success.
In West Virginia, the first frost can hit in Fall and the last in late Spring, halting the growing season all the way from October to May. But devotees in New Vrindaban, ISKCON’s first farm community have just introduced three high tunnel greenhouses, allowing them to offer locally grown flowers and vegetables to Sri Sri Radha Vrindabanchandra and the temple kitchens all year round.
A new paperback edition of “Hope This Meets You in Good Health,” a book by ISKCON guru and Prabhupada disciple Prahladananda Swami, is now available on Amazon.com and on Barnes & Noble’s website in English. The book has also been translated into Spanish, Polish and Russian.
Visitors can book a full experience, walking through the elaborate recreation of Vrindavan, as devotee guides take them back 5,000 years ago to the pastimes of Lord Krishna described in the Vedic scriptures.
D Magazine is available at every grocery store in Dallas, and is one of the best-selling magazines per capita in the U.S. on local newsstands. Devotees are saying that its piece – entitled “The Wild Pursuit of Bliss” – exhibits a rare look at the deeper essence of Krishna consciousness, not often found in the media.
Because it’s so easily accessible online, the project could be the beginning of a soul-searching journey for busy professionals who wouldn’t otherwise have time.
The property comes with ten acres of land, a two-storey, four-bedroom/three bathroom house, a pond, a cow barn, a shaded cow pasture and three cows.
Hidden away in the verdant Sahyadri mountain range in Maharashtra, some ninety kilometers from Mumbai, is Govardhan Ayurveda, a healing center that could change your life.
It’s a mobile “studio” with the words “Ananta Mobile Wellness Solutions” inscribed on the side, next to a logo combining the heart and the brain. Inside is a surprising oasis of peace: bamboo floors and benches, green paint on the walls, plants, soft lighting and comfortable rugs.
Cow Care in Hindu Animal Ethics, a new book by ISKCON guru and scholar Krishna Kshetra Swami, will be published by Palgrave Macmillan in early 2020. The work is set to make caring for cows, in the spirit of devotion, a serious topic of discussion in academia worldwide.
“There are many vegan and vegetarian places on the Gold Coast – but the most successful ones are the Hare Krishnas,” says Nitai Chandra.
“We’d like devotees in all the city temples in North America and beyond to consider New Vrindaban their country home, a place where they can recuperate and regenerate physically and spiritually,” says ISKCON New Vrindaban communications director Anuradha Dasi.
