September/October 2010

According to the Vedic literature, Krishna, the Supreme Lord, lived on Earth five thousand years ago. Then, about five hundred years ago, He came again, this time disguised as His own devotee. Known as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, He appeared in Mayapur, West Bengal, and revealed the best spiritual practice for this age: the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), or the Hare Krishna movement, comes in the line of spiritual masters linked to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and has a large temple complex in Mayapur, just down the road from Chaitanya’s birthplace. In this issue we hear what it’s like to visit ISKCON Mayapur.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s disciples codified His spiritual teachings and the devotional practices He recommended. Srila Prabhupada incorporated those practices into the Hare Krishna movement. In “Motivation in Krishna Consciousness” Rashi Singh discusses some examples of those practices that help her keep up her spiritual enthusiasm.

At the core of Lord Chaitanya’s teachings is the idea that we should aspire only for pure devotion to God. With that principle in mind, Urmila Devi Dasi, in “Prayer for the Welfare of Others,” raises the question of how intercessory prayer fits with the principle of pure devotion.

Hare Krishna.-Nagaraja Dasa, Editor

Departments

ISKCON Desire Tree

A Leap of Understanding

In Your Own Words

Letters

Why We Stay in the Material World

Vedic Thoughts