On July 27th, 1969 in San Francisco the most powerful spiritual celebration the bay area has ever known, the Rathayatra Festival, took place. Words cannot describe the nectarean beauty of the holy day glorifying the Jagannath Deities.
Today is the Jagannath Car Festival. There is great excitement in the San Francisco temple. A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, affectionately known as Prabhupada, had given a lecture the night before, and the chants had been sung with much enthusiasm.
Prabhupada emerged from a car which had cautiously nuzzled its way through the crowds up to the side of the great ratha car. Purple velvet steps were lowered onto the street by the devotees, and the Golden Guru rose up onto the ratha’s opulent throne, just below the Deities.
1969 San Francisco Rathayatra Festival
Children and grandmothers with tilok all wanting to pull the rope that will send dancing the grand Lord of the Universe. Then the conch is sounded and with the transcendental broom sweeping away the material dust, we dance towards Trafalgar Square.
In February 1944 His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada published the first issue of BACK TO GODHEAD magazine. At his home in Calcutta, he wrote the articles, typed the manuscripts, and designed the logo.
Miami—The ISKCON Food for Life program is in full swing here and in other cities across the United States and abroad.
These sixteen words—Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare—are especially meant for counteracting the ill effects of the present age of quarrel and anxiety.
In the face of perhaps a global nuclear holocaust, is there any scope within Krsna consciousness for practical action—say as in the realm of politics?
Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the creator of both the material and spiritual universes and is the father of all living beings. Not even a blade of grass moves without His sanction.
Many photos of ISKCON’s Sankirtan Party in New York City during 1969.
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada arrived at New Vrindaban, West Virginia on the morning of May 21st, 1969. It was his first visit to the mountain ashram, which is the first community in the West dedicated to Krishna conscious living.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness was formed in 1966 by Prabhupada A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, who came from India on the order of his Spiritual Master to preach love of God to the people of the West.
Sankirtan Special Back to Godhead Edition 1969
I was born and brought up in a Vaisnava family. From my early childhood, I had the privilege to learn about Krsna and worship Him. So when I came to this country, I was very much disturbed and disgusted with the Western concept of God as a bush of fire.
The two-story marble memorial, complete with ornate balconies and winding staircases and featuring photo and sculpture exhibits, stands adjacent to the Krishna-Balaram temple.
The maha-mantra means, “O all-attractive, all-pleasing Lord, O energy of the Lord, please engage me in Your devotional service.” Chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, and your life will be sublime.
Frolicking in the fields of Vrndavana, the two transcendental brothers, Krsna and Balarama, enjoy an eternal, carefree childhood. They are the oldest of all personalities, and yet They never age past the full bloom of youth.
Krishna Consciousness came to Hamburg in October, 1968. Two Americans and one native German formed the team for the first center in Central Europe.
The chanting began and people began to sway with the beat of the drums, clapping their hands and chanting Hare Krishna. We too began to feel the beat of the drums awakening within us, and before I knew it, the entire audience caught in the magical rhythm of the chant.