Essence magazine, a lifestyle monthly for African American women, has featured husband and wife Krsnanandini Devi Dasi, a disciple of Srila Prabhupada, and her husband Tariq Saleem Ziyad, an Orthodox Muslim, in their April 2019 issue. The magazine has a circulation of 1.6 million readers.

The couple, who live in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, have been certified family life educators for many years and run the Dasi-Ziyad Family Institute together. They specialize in conflict resolution, finances, child-rearing and faith counseling.

Both Dasi, 67, and Ziyad 79, are also members of the Grihasta Vision Team, a group of professionals who offer resources, courses and counseling for ISKCON devotees in the grihasta ashram (householder stage of life).

The couple have been wed for 27 years, and are an excellent example of interfaith marriage.

“While other folks may bicker about which God deserves all the praise, Dasi and Ziyad choose to celebrate their differences and pray together rather than criticize,” reads the Essence magazine article. “When Ziyad observes Ramadan, Dasi fasts too, and he joins her at her Bhagavad Gita study class. Their openness to each other’s spirituality and religion has been a blessing to their union and the foundation of their international couples skill-building ministry.”

In the article, Tariq Ziyad says that “friendship, commitment, respect and a mutual desire to see our families do better” is “the superglue that keeps their bond tight.”

In the final paragraph of the piece, Krsnanandini adds, “Love means service. Love is unconditional. It means being willing to sacrifice for those you love and who love you.”

For more wisdom, read “Heart and Soul Connection: A Devotional Guide to Marriage, Service & Love,” which Krsnanandini and Tariq co-authored along with other members of the Grihasta Vision Team.  

Krsnanandini has also recently published two more books – “The ABCs of Chanting the Holy Names” and “The Narayan Number book” for children.

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Please pick up the April 2019 issue of Essence magazine in stores or on Ebay to read the full article about Krsnanandini and Tariq: https://www.ebay.com/i/153438836412?chn=ps

All Krsnanandini’s books are available to buy here: https://krsnanandini.com/shop/