ISKCON NewsThe News Agency of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness

Durban, South Africa – To those of the Christian faith, Easter represents the day Jesus was resurrected from the dead. For many Christians, it is a time for celebration and a time for feasting. Much like the Christians, Easter also represents a time for celebration for members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Durban, South Africa, but for a different reason. For the past 21 years, ISKCON Durban has held its annual Ratha Yatra festival over the course of Easter weekend.

Nityananda Chandra dasa lives in the USA he is a devotee of Krishna and pujari at Sri Sri Radha Kalachandij’s in Dallas, Texas.

On Wednesday, April 8th, Nityananda Chandra dasa represented Lord Krishna and all the devotees when he gave the invocation at the Dallas City Hall council meeting. The invocation is a prayer given to open the council meeting and ask for the Lords blessings.

A Holy Name seminar was organized for the first time at ISKCON Ludhiana, India from 17th April through 19th of April. This event was led by Sudama Dasa from ISKCON Chowpatty, Mumbai.

Several topics were covered in the sessions such as how one could best focus when chanting the Holy Names and how to set the correct ambiance for achieving better satisfaction.

Warsaw, April 24 (IANS) India and Poland signed two important agreements on health and tourism Friday as President Pratibha Patil began the official part of her four-day visit to Poland.

On behalf of India, Ashwini Kumar, minister for state for industrial development and promotion and for Poland Katazyna Sobriska and Jakob Szulc, dealing with the respective ministries, signed the agreements.

Could the end of the world finally be upon us? New Age authors and conspiracy theorists would certainly have us believe so, determined not to be thwarted yet again. This time the apocalypse comes to us courtesy of a supposed ancient Mayan prophecy that the world will end on December 21st, 2012. And boy is it popular. A quick search on Amazon.com pulls up over a dozen books on the subject, all written within the last three years.

For thousands of years, whenever saintly people have searched for a good spot to live, they’ve chosen places of tranquility, far removed from the noise and clamor of the town. In a quiet place, undisturbed by distraction or temptation, surrounded by the beauty of nature, they’ve said their prayers, studied their scriptures, and engaged in meditation.

Ever thought much about footnotes? As a practicing lawyer I have nightmares about them! Footnotes have the power to illuminate or damn any argument. The American College Dictionary defines a footnote as follows: a note or comment at the foot of a page, referring to a specific part of the text on the page. I don’t mean to get into splitting hairs, but as a lawyer I can’t help myself. The Compact Oxford English Dictionary defines a footnote slightly different as: an additional piece of information printed at the bottom of a page.

The Dasi-Ziyad Family Institute (www.dzfi.org) announces a promotion for the Vaisnava Marriage Services Registry. Register Now (from April 25, 2009 – June 30, 2009) and take a 25% discount ($10 off) of the registration fee of $40.

Vaisnava Marriage Services Registry is provided for:

o The devotee (male or female) who wants to marry a compatible devotee spouse;

o Parents who want to provide their daughters with quality choices of compatible devotee fiancés.

We are happy to announce that the Fourth Bhagavata Sastri course at
Govardhana Srimad-Bhagavata Vidyapitham is now open for admission.

The Bhagavata Sastri course is unique in many ways:

** it is headed by one of ISKCON's most renowned devotee-scholars,
Gopiparanadhana Prabhu;

** the school's premises are located at Sri Govardhana, one of Krsna's most
favorite places;

We the members of the Bali Vaisnavas communities are humbly requesting your
participation in the up coming event "Bali Sankirtan Festival":

"The Glorification Of Vaisnanas In The Spirit Of Unity"

The festival will be held on 20th until 24th November 2009 in Bali.

Announcing The First Ever Vaisnava Marriage and Family Fest!
At the Festival of Inspiration 2009
May 8, 9, 10th , New Vrindavan
Hosted by the Grihastha Vision Team
We cordially invite all Vaisnavas, families & friends to attend the first Vaisnava Marriage & Family Fest.

This is a well-known and favourite rice dish amongst the Iyengars of South India who are followers of the Ramanuja Sampradaya. The recipe is over 1000 years old and is traditionally called puliogre. Makes enough for 4 or 5 persons.