"Kṛṣṇa is just like sun, and māyā, illusion, is just like darkness. So as the sun being present, there is no access of darkness, similarly, if you keep Kṛṣṇa always within your heart, there is no more darkness of this material world."

The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is giving the population of the entire world a chance to take advantage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness through the ISKCON centers, where one may perform Deity worship and chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and in this way obtain results with effectiveness increased a thousand times. This constitutes the best welfare activity for human society.

“The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself the doer of activities that are in actuality carried out by nature.”

Yes you're

Religion in its purest term is Laws of God. To follow/abide by the laws is to follow the instructions of the Lord. People have termed religion as different ways to reach God or different traditions that are followed to try and accommodate Lord's instruction into their lives. But over time, the term religion is now used in a completely different context and most of them hate even the term nowadays. When one abides by the Laws of God, one doesnt need any tag of a particular religion.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), otherwise known as the Hare Krishna movement, includes five hundred major centers, temples and rural communities, nearly one hundred affilated vegetarian restaurants, thousands of namahattas or local meeting groups, a wide variety of community projects, and millions of congregational members worldwide. Although less than fifty years on the global stage, ISKCON has expanded widely since its founding by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda in New York City in 1966. ISKCON belongs to the Gaudiya-Vaishnava sampradāya, a monotheistic tradition within the Vedic or Hindu culture. Philosophically it is based on the Sanskrit texts Bhagavad-gītā and the Bhagavat Purana, or Srimad Bhagavatam. These are the historic texts of the devotional bhakti yoga tradition, which teaches that the ultimate goal for all living beings is to reawaken their love for God, or Lord Krishna, the “all-attractive one”. God is known across the world by many names including Allah, Jehovah, Yahweh, Rama, etc. ISKCON devotees chant God’s names in the form of the maha-mantra, or the great prayer for deliverance: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Many leading academics have highlighted ISKCON’s authenticity. Diana Eck, Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard University, describes the movement as “a tradition that commands a respected place in the religious life of humankind.” In the 1980s Dr. A. L. Basham, one of the world’s authorities on Indian history and culture, wrote of ISKCON that, “It arose out of next to nothing in less than twenty years and has become known all over the West. This, I feel, is a sign of the times and an important fact in the history of the Western world.” ISKCON’s founder, Srila Prabhupada, has drawn appreciation from scholars and religious leaders alike for his remarkable achievement in presenting India’s Vaishnava spiritual culture in a relevant manner to contemporary Western and worldwide audiences. Members of ISKCON practice bhakti-yoga in their homes and also worship in temples. They also promote bhakti-yoga, or Krishna Consciousness, through festivals, the performing arts, yoga seminars, public chanting, and the distribution of the society’s literatures. ISKCON members have also opened hospitals, schools, colleges, eco-villages, free food distribution projects, and other institutions as a practical application of the path of devotional yoga.

Material existence is something like a blazing fire in the forest, which can be extinguished by the mercy of the Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The spiritual master is the mercy representative of the Lord. Therefore, a person burning in the flames of material existence may receive the rains of mercy of the Lord through the transparent medium of the self-realized spiritual master.

We offer obeisances for the following reasons: 1. Humility: Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is the Supreme Creator and our Supreme father. We are His eternal devotees. Everything in this world is provided by Him. Thus we need to become humble and accept His Supremacy. 2. Respect: Just as we respect our parents and elders, similarly we should offer our respect to the eldest of all persons: the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the Vedic tradition the best way to pay respect is by offering obeisances. 3. Devotional Service: Offering obeisances is an important part of devotional service by which the devotee confirms his attitude of submission.

"Our process is simple, all-embracing, we have something to offer for everyone. There is chanting, dancing, feasting and very perfect philosophy, so everyone may be satisfied with our Krishna Consciousness Movement."

"Our process is simple, all-embracing, we have something to offer for everyone. There is chanting, dancing, feasting and very perfect philosophy, so everyone may be satisfied with our Krishna Consciousness Movement."

"Kṛṣṇa is just like sun, and māyā, illusion, is just like darkness. So as the sun being present, there is no access of darkness, similarly, if you keep Kṛṣṇa always within your heart, there is no more darkness of this material world."

Material existence is something like a blazing fire in the forest, which can be extinguished by the mercy of the Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The spiritual master is the mercy representative of the Lord. Therefore, a person burning in the flames of material existence may receive the rains of mercy of the Lord through the transparent medium of the self-realized spiritual master.

Es absurdo

The materialist thinks that persons engaged in Krishna consciousness are crazy fellows wasting time by chanting Hare Krishna, but actually he does not know that he himself is in the darkest region of craziness because of accepting his body as permanent.

"Foolishly, people who are enamored of the glimmer of modern materialistic advancement are thinking that the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is for less intelligent men. 'I am better off being busy with my material comforts-maintaining a nice apartment, family and sex life.' These people do not know that at any moment they can be kicked out of their material situation. Due to ignorance, they do not know that real life is eternal. The temporary comforts of the body are not the goal of life, and it is due only to darkest ignorance that people become enamored of the glimmering advancement of material comforts. Śrīla Bhaktivinode Thākur has therefore said that the advancement of material knowledge renders a person more foolish because it causes one to forget his real identification by its glimmer. This is doom for him, because this human form of life is meant for getting out of the material contamination. By the advancement of material knowledge, people are becoming more and more entangled in material existence. They have no hope of being liberated from this catastrophe. In the Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya it is stated that Prahlāda Mahārāj, a great devotee of the Lord, prayed to Nṛsiṁhadeva (the half-lion half-man incarnation), as follows: 'My dear Lord, I repeatedly pray unto Your lotus feet that I may simply be stronger in devotional service. I simply pray that my Kṛṣṇa consciousness may be more strong and steady, because happiness derived out of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and devotional service is so powerful that with it one can have all the other perfections of religiousness, economic development, sense gratification and even the attainment of liberation from material existence.' Actually, a pure devotee does not aspire after any of these perfections because the happiness derived from devotional service in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so transcendental and so unlimited that no other happiness can be compared with it. It is said that even one drop of happiness in Kṛṣṇa consciousness stands beyond comparison with an ocean of happiness derived from any other activity. Thus, any person who has developed even a little quantity of pure devotional service can very easily kick out all the other kinds of happiness derived from religiousness, economic development, sense gratification and liberation. There was a great devotee of Lord Caitanya known as Kholāvecā Śrīdhara, who was a very poor man. He was doing a small business selling cups made from the leaves of plantain trees, and his income was almost nothing. Still, he was spending fifty percent of his small income on the worship of the Ganges, and with the other fifty percent he was somehow living. Lord Caitanya once revealed Himself to this confidential devotee, Kholāvecā Śrīdhara, and offered him any opulence that he liked. But Śrīdhara informed the Lord that he did not want any material opulence. He was quite happy in his present position and wanted only to gain unflinching faith and devotion unto the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya. That is the position of the pure devotees. If they can be engaged twenty-four hours each day in devotional service they do not want anything else, not even the happiness of liberation or of becoming one with the supreme. In the Nārada-pañcarātra it is also said that any person who has developed even a small amount of devotional service doesn't care a fig for any kind of happiness derived from religiousness, economic development, sense gratification, or the five kinds of liberation. Any kind of happiness derived from religiousness, economic development, liberation or sense gratification cannot even dare to enter into the heart of a pure devotee. It is stated that as the personal attendants and maidservants of a queen follow the queen with all respect and obeisances, similarly the joys of religiousness, economic development, sense gratification and liberation follow the devotional service of the Lord. In other words, a pure devotee does not lack any kind of happiness derived from any source. He does not want anything but service to Kṛṣṇa, but even if he should have another desire, the Lord fulfills this without the devotee's asking."

Everyone born in India, especially as a human being, can achieve the supreme success through the Vedic literature and its practical application in life. When one is perfect, he can render a service for the self-realization of the entire human society.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known in the West as the Hare Krishna movement, is a monotheistic branch of the Gaudiya Vaishnava spiritual tradition that dates back to Krishna Himself-the Supreme Personality of Godhead who appeared on Earth and spoke the Bhagavad-gita over five thousand years ago. ISKCON follows Krishna's teachings as revealed in the sacred Vedas, including Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam (aka Bhagavata Purana). Essential practices of Krishna Consciousness involve the chanting of God's holy names-among several processes of devotional service-to bring about lasting happiness and peace in society by reviving our loving relationships with God. 525 years ago Krishna appeared as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the form of His own devotee to establish the congregational chanting of God's holy names, sankirtana, as the easiest and most sublime spiritual practice for this age. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu popularized the chanting of the maha-mantra, comprised of sacred names of God: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. In 1965, the prominent emissary of India's spiritual teachings, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada Prabhupada (1896-1977) brought Sri Chaitanya's movement to the West and founded ISKCON in New York City under seemingly humble circumstances. Here's a brief time line of ISKCON's recent history. In 1965, at the age of 69, A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada left the holy land of Vrindavan, India, to spread Krishna's message in the West on the order of his spiritual master. He arrived in Boston by freight ship, carrying $7 in change and a trunk of books about Krishna. For the first year he struggled alone, booking speaking engagements at yoga studios, YMCAs, and bohemian artists' lofts, while living in the homes of people he met who sympathized with his cause and would give him temporary residence. He would often take a small bongo drum and sit under a tree in a public park to chant the holy names of Krishna. Curious onlookers would gather. Some joined in the chanting. Some began to take an active interest in his mission. By 1966 Srila Prabhupada was living in New York City, in Manhattan's then impoverished Lower East Side, and had begun regular weekly lectures on Bhagavad-gita, along with public chanting sessions, kirtan, in Tompkins Square Park. That same year, he incorporated ISKCON in New York City, envisioning that soon there would be centers around the world. From 1966 to 1968, as more and more spiritual seekers became attracted to Krishna consciousness, he opened ISKCON temples in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Montreal, and Santa Fe, New Mexico. In 1967, the first Ratha-yatra festival outside of India was held in San Francisco. Ratha-yatra is one of the oldest and largest annual religious festivals in the world, performed each year in the holy city of Jagannatha Puri on the East Coast of India. Several million people line the streets to pull giant 3-story chariots carrying deity forms of Lord Krishna through the streets, accompanied by festive chanting of His names. This festival is now held by members of ISKCON in cities around the world. From 1969 to 1973, temples opened in Europe, Canada, South America, Mexico, Africa, and India. In 1970, the Governing Body Commission, ISKCON’s managerial body, was established to oversee the growing society. From 1970 to 1977, ISKCON built major centers at the holy pilgrimage sites of Mayapur and Vrindavana, India, and a large temple in Mumbai. In 1972, Srila Prabhupada founded the publishing house Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT), now the world’s foremost publisher of books on Krishna consciousness, or bhakti-yoga. Krishna.com is a website project of the BBT. From 1966 through 1977, Srila Prabhupada translated more than 40 volumes of the great classics of Krishna conscious literature from Sanskrit into English, giving elaborate commentaries synthesizing the realizations of previous masters along with his own. These books include Bhagavad-gita As It Is, the definitive presentation of Lord Krishna's teachings, Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana), the 18-volume history of Lord Krishna's incarnations, pastimes and devotees, and Sri Caitanya-caritamrita, the 9-volume biography and teachings of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. These books have been published by the BBT in more than 50 languages, with several million copies sold and distributed by members of ISKCON to people all over the world. In 1973, the Bhaktivedanta Institute was formed to promote the teachings of the Vedas in scientific terms. Since 1974, ISKCON Food for Life has run karma-free vegetarian food relief programs in disaster areas and cities around the world. In November 1977, Srila Prabhupada passed from this world. By that time, ISKCON had established more than 108 temples, centers, schools farm communities, with more than 10,000 initiated members. In 1989, the Hare Krishna movement came out from the underground in the Soviet Union, as glasnost brought an end to persecution. By 1991, more than one million copies of Srila Prabhupada’s Bhagavad-gita As It Is had been sold in the former Soviet Union. In the early 1990s, various Internet projects were launched, including Krishna.com, ISKCON.com and other Hare Krishna websites. Today, ISKCON has about 500 centers around the world, with a worldwide congregation in the hundreds of thousands-from all walks of life. Just as the sun is known by many names in different parts of the world, “ISKCON,” “Krishna consciousness,” and “Krishna” Himself are non-sectarian and non-denominational terms which refer to the worship of God, the Supreme Person. Anyone, anywhere can practice Krishna consciousness and become a “fan” or member of ISKCON. You do not need to change your religion to adopt the practices of Krishna consciousness-such as chanting God's names. Although “Krishna consciousness” is culturally recognizable as coming from the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition within (what’s commonly known as) Hinduism, it refers to the eternal function of the soul, sanatana dharma. As such, it transcends the limitations of temporary material bodies and their associated designations.