Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2025
My dearest Śrīla Prabhupāda,
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
Please accept our humble obeisances at your lotus feet. On this most auspicious occasion of your
Vyāsa-pūjā, we, the members of ISKCON Halifax, offer our heartfelt gratitude and love. We are
eternally indebted to you for your boundless compassion and the transformative power of your
teachings, which have illuminated our lives and guided us on the path of pure devotion.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your divine presence is deeply felt in Halifax. We recall with great joy and
reverence the visit of your beloved disciple, His Holiness Bhaktimārga Swami Mahārāja, during
his first Canada walk in 1996. At that time, Mahārāja expressed a profound desire to establish
an ISKCON temple in Halifax. By your immeasurable grace, that transcendental desire has now
manifested!
On behalf of His Holiness Bhaktimārga Swami Mahārāja and the entire congregation of
ISKCON Halifax, we are overjoyed to present to you the first and largest ISKCON temple in
Atlantic Canada. This temple, located at 29 Westwood Blvd, Upper Tantallon, is a 7,700-square-
foot, 23-year-old former Anglican church on nine acres of beautiful land. Its strategic location,
close to major Highway 103 and an upcoming affluent suburb, ensures accessibility for devotees
from all corners of the city, with a convenient 25 or 30-minute drive.
The temple features a simple yet elegant layout, including a spacious main hall capable of
accommodating three hundred devotees, a prasādam hall and kitchen, with a capacity of 180 devo-
tees, and several rooms that will serve as pūjārī quarters, brahmacārī quarters, a children’s school,
and other essential facilities.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, the acquisition of this property was a testament to your divine intervention.
Initially, when this property was on sale, our local realtor devotee, Nikhil Kapoor, informed us
about it. Due to its extraordinary features, numerous religious organizations and investors were
eager to purchase it. The seller received six offers, including ours. When Maṅgalānanda Dāsa
and Savyasācin Dāsa visited the property with us, they established an amazing and respectful
connection with the seller. Along with our offer of $1.5 million (the asking price was $1.9 million),
we included a letter written by Vyāsa Dāsa to the church owners, explaining what ISKCON is
and our sincere intentions for using this sacred property. That letter, combined with ISKCON’s
esteemed reputation, sealed the deal for us. Despite receiving higher offers, the church owners
chose to accept our offer, recognizing the purity of our purpose.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we are deeply moved by the extraordinary support we have received
from our ISKCON family. ISKCON Toronto has generously offered $350,000, His Holiness
Bhaktimārga Swami Mahārāja has contributed $150,000, ISKCON Brampton has provided
$30,000, and ISKCON Montreal has extended $2,000. It was monumentally inspiring to witness
the unity and collective spirit of all the temples in Zone 1 coming together to support this sacred
endeavor. His Holiness Bhaktimārga Swami Mahārāja and His Grace Indreśa Gaura Dāsa were
very instrumental in igniting this wave of support.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we have set both short-term (1–3 years) and long-term goals to ensure the
temple’s growth and the continued spread of your mission:
Short-term goals:
• Install a decent-sized altar (7.5 feet wide and 8.5 feet tall) and establish the worship of home
Deities, Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi Sagarīśvara.
• Encourage 7–10 devotees to take hari-nāma initiation in 2025 and train them in your stan-
dards of Deity worship.
• Encourage 4–5 devotees to take brāhmaṇa initiation in 2026.
• Strengthen our congregation’s relationship with you by keeping your seven purposes of
ISKCON in the center and encouraging regular study of your books.
• Establish effective management policies for progressive development and appoint sincere
devotees to lead various departments.
• Renovate the existing kitchen to effectively cook for 300–500 devotees.
• Create an exclusive room for your transcendental literature, with a proper inventory system,
and increase the book distribution so we can become one of the top five book distribution
temples in Zone 1.
• Start a Sunday school for children.
• Develop strategies for youth, Vaiṣṇava, and Vaiṣṇavī empowerment.
• Develop plans to generate a continuous stream of rental income.
• Develop preaching strategies to increase attendance among the Western community.
• Increase our outreach presence into local universities.
Long-term goals:
• Develop a congregation of devotees who practice strong daily sādhana and selflessly serve to
please Kṛṣṇa and you, Śrīla Prabhupāda – a congregation that understands the mood of this
movement and cooperatively works toward your seven purposes for ISKCON.
• Make this temple the ISKCON headquarters for the Atlantic Canada region, where smaller
centers can receive training to spread our movement and eventually establish their own
temples.
• Start a full-fledged Govinda’s restaurant.
• Install an opulent altar (21 feet wide and 17 feet tall) and install Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, Jagannātha,
Balarāma, Subhadrā, and Gaura-Nitāi Deities.
• Make this temple financially stable, with surplus funds to support other temples.
• Make this temple one of the top five well-managed temples in Zone 1.
This temple stands as a testament to your divine vision and the unwavering dedication of your fol-
lowers. We pray that it will become a vibrant center for spreading the glories of the holy name, a
sanctuary for devotees, and a beacon of spiritual light for the entire community.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, I want to summarize the heartfelt expressions from a few congrega-
tional members who attempted to write an offering to you. This summary includes the offerings
from Bhaktin Simran, Bhaktin Morin, Bhakta Rohan, Bhakta Neeraj, Bhaktin Kruti, and Bhaktin
Manish.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, you have fundamentally changed our lives, revealing the path
to Kṛṣṇa and spiritual understanding. You have provided answers to essential ques-
tions about the soul, our purpose, and true happiness. You are a direct conduit to
Kṛṣṇa’s mercy and guidance, a spiritual master, caretaker, friend, mother figure, and
guide. We have immense gratitude for your teachings, books, and the community you
have established. We aspire to deepen our Kṛṣṇa consciousness, follow your teachings,
and serve you and your devotees. We desire to make you proud.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we humbly beg for your continued blessings and guidance. May we always
remain faithful to your teachings and strive to fulfill your mission. Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa
Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare / Hare Rāma Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma Hare Hare.
Your servant,
Ambarīṣa Dasa
on behalf of your servants at ISKCON Halifax
Canada & USA, Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2026
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
On this most auspicious occasion of your Vyāsa-pūjā, we, the insignificant servants of your mission here in Halifax, offer our heartfelt gratitude and humble words at your lotus feet. Though our words are limited and imperfect, still we pray that you kindly accept this small offering as an expression of our appreciation for your causeless mercy.
You once said, “I have simply tried to give them Kṛṣṇa.” (Back to Godhead magazine #10-10, 1975: Summer Sessions With Śrīla Prabhupāda – Philadelphia: July 11–15) In this simple statement lies the depth of your compassion and the essence of your life’s work. Because of your determination and surrender, even a small place like Halifax in Nova Scotia has now been touched by Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is your miracle, not ours.
By your mercy, our temple completed one full year on March 28, 2026. What once was just a hope has now manifested into a beautiful spiritual center spread across nine acres, with a usable temple space of 7,700 square feet. We see this not as a material achievement, but as your invisible hand guiding everything.
Under the visionary leadership of our Zone-1 GBC, His Grace Indreśa Gaura Prabhu, ISKCON Halifax is preparing to serve as the anchor temple for the entire Atlantic Canada region. We envision our center as a spiritual hub, where upcoming centers in Moncton, Fredericton, PEI, New Glasgow, and St. John’s will receive the essential training, guidance, and support they need to blossom. By your grace, we hope to establish a strong, unified network of Kṛṣṇa consciousness across the Maritimes.
You taught us, “Everything must be done in the spirit of cooperation, without any irritation.” (Letter to Jagadisa, Hyderabad 18 November 1972). Keeping this instruction in our hearts, we are striving here to work together in harmony. In 2026, we have formed dedicated department heads, clearly defining roles and responsibilities so that service can be performed more efficiently and with greater devotion. We are witnessing how your instructions are practical and transformative when sincerely followed.
By your mercy, a brahmacārī has joined us from Toronto and is now residing at the temple. Because of this, the temple is now open five days a week, and we have also arranged basic facilities such as showers, allowing devotees and visitors to stay and engage more deeply in devotional service. These small steps feel significant to us because they bring your vision of a living, vibrant temple closer to reality.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your desire to spread the holy name is becoming visible here. In 2025, we successfully held our Fourth Annual Festival of the Chariots (Ratha-yātrā), welcoming around 2,500 to 3,000 visitors. The enthusiasm among devotees is growing, and we are preparing for our 5th Annual Ratha-yātrā on June 6, 2026. By your grace, this event has even received endorsements from the Canadian Prime Minister, the immigration minister, the Premier of Nova Scotia, and the mayor of Halifax. We see this as your influence expanding beyond boundaries.
Beyond these large festivals, our devotees are consistently taking to the streets. Every two weeks, a dedicated group of seven to eight devotees performs harināma-saṅkīrtana, filling the air with the holy name and distributing your transcendental books to the people of Halifax.
Under the leadership of His Holiness Bhaktimārga Swami, who has been a key instrument in the success of the Maritime region, your instructions and blessings are becoming alive. His presence, guidance, and inspiration directly connect us to you. In June 2025, he initiated eight devotees, and we are hopeful for three to four more initiations in June 2026. During Janmāṣṭamī 2025, for the first time, our temple witnessed an unprecedented gathering of more than 3,000 visitors. It felt like a historic moment for our community. We remembered your words, “If you simply chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, everyone will follow.” (Room conversation with French Commander, 3 August 1976, New Mayapur). Truly, by the chanting of the holy name, people are being attracted.
Our congregation is slowly growing and new leaders are emerging. We are also focused on reaching hearts through the arts. We are slowly building a team of devotees who can spread the message of Kṛṣṇa consciousness through the medium of spiritual plays, using drama to make the deep philosophy of the Vedas accessible and engaging for all. We see devotees taking responsibility with sincerity, and this gives us hope that your movement here will continue to flourish beyond our current capacity.
Inspired by your instruction that no one within a ten-mile radius of a temple should go hungry, in Mayapur in 1973, our Food for Life program is expanding. In 2026, we have set a target of distributing 5,000 meals. We pray that we can serve not only prasādam but also spiritual nourishment to all.
We have also begun organizing monthly kirtan festivals, attracting an average of 150 to 200 newcomers and introducing them to bhakti-yoga. Your instruction to “chant, dance, take prasadam, and be happy” (Letter to Saksi Gopala, Vrindaban, 6 December 1975) is becoming a lived experience for many who come in contact with these programs.
At present, the altar for our Deities, Gaura-Nitāi-Sāgaraiśvarya, is being prepared in India, along with a vyāsāsana for Your Divine Grace. We eagerly await the day when you will be properly seated in your rightful place, and the Lord will be worshiped with full opulence. We are also planning to expand our kitchen facilities with the hope of establishing a Govinda’s restaurant so that more people can receive sanctified prasādam.
In the matter of book distribution, we are trying to improve. During Gītā-jayantī, we received sponsorship for over 1,075 books. Recently, we have also received approval to set up a bookstall at Dalhousie University and to start a bhakti-yoga club there for the youth. We are hopeful that the younger generation will come closer to Kṛṣṇa through your books, which you described as the “law books for the next ten thousand years.”
Furthermore, we are excited to announce the launch of the Little Krishna Vedic Club this year, dedicated to nurturing children between the ages of 6 and 14. As we expand our outreach to the next generation, we are proceeding with great care and responsibility. We are ensuring that all legal compliance is strictly met and that the temple, our volunteers, and the devotees are fully protected by comprehensive insurance. It is our humble prayer that these young souls find a joyful and secure home in your movement.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, this year also marks sixty years since you came to North America, carrying the mission of your spiritual master across the ocean with complete faith. We wish to celebrate this historic moment in a grand way, remembering your sacrifices and determination.
We are deeply indebted to you. You have given us Kṛṣṇa, a purpose in life, and a spiritual family. Without you, we would have remained lost in material existence. Whatever little service we are able to perform is simply by your mercy.
Kindly bless us so that we may remain humble instruments in your mission. Please give us strength to overcome our shortcomings, unity to work together, and sincerity to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness in Halifax and throughout Nova Scotia.
We pray that one day you may be pleased with our efforts.
Your insignificant servants,
The devotees at ISKCON Halifax,
(written by Vidyāpati Dāsa)
Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2025
To our most beloved spiritual grandfather, Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances at your lotus feet. On this most auspicious day of the
129th anniversary of your appearance, we offer our heartfelt and deepest gratitude as an expres-
sion of our love to you.
As your granddisciples at ISKCON Harrisburg, we are forever indebted to the immeasurable
mercy you bestowed upon us. We can’t thank you enough for all that you have given us. You have
truly built a house in which the whole world can live.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, here at ISKCON Harrisburg we have been focusing on the “Seven Purposes
of ISKCON” you wrote in 1966. Currently, we are in the process of:
• Educating, teaching, and training devotees in the techniques of spiritual life through your
instructions, books, and the teachings of the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
• Gradually, our sādhu-saṅga has been increasing, which is encouraging devotees to come
closer to the Lord and to take to the chanting of the holy name.
• Helping devotees see that the temple is the embassy to the spiritual world.
• Encouraging devotees to read the books you so tirelessly wrote for us.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, since the appearance of Śrī Śrī Nitāi-Gauracandra in 2023, devotees have
become inspired to engage in more service for the pleasure of Their Lordships.
We started local university preaching at Penn State Harrisburg called the Bhakti Club. It
started at a grassroots level in late 2024, but now it’s gradually and organically picking up – all by
your mercy.
This year, we started our first training workshop: Journey to Self-Discovery. It was a success,
and the devotees are looking forward to more such opportunities. We will be starting more spiri-
tual educational workshops for the devotees to develop their Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
In 2024, we held our first Paṇihāṭi festival. Both adults and kids were enthusiastic about
making preparations for the Lord in clay pots. We hope to celebrate Paṇihāṭi every year for the
pleasure of Śrī Śrī Nitāi-Gauracandra and make it better each year.
Our Ratha-yātrā festival continues to invite and excite people – we have over a thousand
attendees each year – giving the public the opportunity to hear the holy name and to see Lord
Jagannātha-Baladeva-Subhadrā. This year we will be celebrating our fifteenth annual Ratha-yātrā,
and we hope to make it even more special.
Our morning Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam classes have doubled in attendance and participation. The
daily morning japa call has continued consistently, and devotees are keener to join the congrega-
tional chanting. With this, we are seeing a rise in commitment and dedication.
Our book distribution team of devotees is making extra efforts to spread the knowledge and
your transcendental books at every Monthly Saṅkīrtana Festival. We ask for your blessings and
mercy upon the devotees as they continue to distribute your books, which will plant the seeds of
devotion within the hearts of those who will touch, feel, and read them.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, we hope and pray that these humble efforts in preaching are pleasing to you.
Thank you for giving us the opportunity to engage our minds, bodies, and senses in devotional
service at your lotus feet. It is only by your mercy that we have been able to assist you in a small
way for Lord Caitanya’s mission.
We are beggars at your lotus feet, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Please help us to continue serving you –
with determination, enthusiasm, and lifelong commitment – now and always, until our last breath.
Dāso ’smi,
on behalf of ISKCON Harrisburg
Anasūyā Devī Dāsī
Asia-Eurasia, Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2026
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept my humble obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to Śrī Guru and Śrī Gaurāṅga.
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāminn iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
As you always emphasized simple living and high thinking, a lifestyle based on agriculture and cow protection, we here at ISKCON Hebri, a farm project near Udupi, in Karnataka, try to follow your words. We have around sixty beautiful gau sampada: cows, bulls, and calves.
This year, for the pleasure of Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi, we cultivated rice fields twice and produced eight quintals of rice. Spices like turmeric, black pepper, some varieties of vegetables, and different varieties of flowers are grown for the pleasure of the Deities. We also offer ghee and milk from our cows to the Deities. We go around to the different villages to preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness and conduct programs. A small team of devotees is trying to live the vision given by Your Divine Grace. Our inspiration and strength come from your dear disciple, His Holiness Bhakti Raghava Swami.
We seek blessings from your lotus feet so that we may continue our sevā and preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness in as many villages as possible.
Happy cows and happy devotees.
your humble servant,
Smitha Krishna Dāsa,
for the devotees of ISKCON Hebri
Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2025
My dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our respectful obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to you, O master at whose
feet all other masters bow. By your mercy, a lame man can cross mountains, a blind man can see
the stars in the sky, a dumb man can recite eloquent poetry, and the most fallen can return home,
back to Godhead.
On this most glorious occasion of your appearance day, we want to thank you immensely for
all the mercy you are giving us. You are very much present in the form of your wonderful mūrti
and very alive in our mandir. Thank you for allowing us to serve you.
In this Kali-yuga, the yuga-dharma is the saṅkīrtana-yajna taught by Caitanya Mahāprabhu. You
spread this saṅkīrtana movement all over the world by traveling fourteen times around this planet.
You are a very dear servant of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, who came to establish the true teachings of
Śrīla Vyāsadeva for the benefit of suffering humanity. Your greatness is constantly increasing as
your Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement continues to expand day by day.
All glories to you and the saṅkīrtana mission of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu!
Looking back at the past years of your ISKCON Heidelberg temple, by your mercy, all the
departments have improved considerably.
By Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi’s arrangement, many devotees are now coming to our temple from dif-
ferent parts of the world. Russians and Ukranians enhance your saṅkīrtana movement here in
Germany – twice a month we go on harināma through the streets of Heidelberg, Mannheim, or
Karlsruhe. We also go to Baden-Baden and Frankfurt, distributing your books along the way as
well as prasādam, for your pleasure. The people, by your mercy, are more receptive to Kṛṣṇa con-
sciousness. Your books are distributed on harināmas and in the temple, where we have Bhagavad-
gītās, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatams, and other books in many languages. The distribution of kṛṣṇa-prasādam
gives the people a taste of the nectar for which everyone hankers.
Our community has grown by the affluence of the Indians working in enterprises near our
temple, and by the divine plan, they are very happy to come to the temple and revive their lost
culture as well as to find a spiritual family.
Our pūjārī and kitchen departments have built up very nicely, with many pūjārīs and many
cooks serving you and Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi with a high standard and devotion.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, thank you for giving us this wonderful Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
We are eternally indebted to you! Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya!
Your servant,
Śrījī Devī Dāsī
on behalf of the devotees at ISKCON Heidelberg
Europe & Russia, Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2026
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to you on this most wonderful day!
2026 is a very special year for all Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas around the globe. This year, we have already celebrated Lord Caitanya’s 540th anniversary. Two other remarkable occasions are coming soon: the sixtieth anniversary of the incorporation of ISKCON and, of course, the 130th anniversary of Your Divine Grace. Devotees all over the world are going to celebrate these most precious events. We at ISKCON Heidelberg are also looking forward to observing them.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, on this wonderful day we are meditating on your childhood pastimes. Being born into a pure Vaiṣṇava family, you were surrounded by devotion to Kṛṣṇa all the time. You were absolutely charmed by the beauty of Their Lordships Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Govinda from a very early age. You soon asked your father to get you your own Deities so you could serve Them with love and devotion.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your father, Gour Mohan De, wanted three things for you: “He wanted you to become a servant of Rādhārāṇī, to become a preacher of the Bhāgavatam, and to learn the devotional art of playing mṛdaṅga.” (Śrīla Prabhupāda-līlāmṛta, chapter 1). You indeed made his dreams come true.
When you were only about six years old, you organized a Ratha-yātrā festival in your neighborhood. Satsvarūpa dāsa Goswami mentions in the Līlāmṛta that, by engaging your playmates in the Ratha-yātrā preparations, you became their natural leader: “Wearing a dhoti and no shirt in the heat of summer, Abhay led the children in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and in singing the appropriate Bengali bhajana, Ki kara rāi kamalinī.” (Śrīla Prabhupāda-līlāmṛta, chapter 1).
Even at such a young age, Śrīla Prabhupāda, you were already a person others wanted to follow. It was completely natural for them to follow you. The same happened with the young people of the US when you went there in 1965. Your disciples’ memories of how they first met you and joined the movement are the best evidence of this.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, we are in your eternal debt. We understand that this debt cannot be repaid. Yet, like a child who wants to please his father and buys him a present using his father’s own money, we are trying to please Your Divine Grace by preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the people in Heidelberg and the nearby cities. Our regular harināmas attract the attention of passers-by. They eagerly take your books and prasādam. They also like to take pictures, record videos, and share them. Our dear Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi welcome fifteen to twenty new visitors every Sunday, bringing the total attendance to 100–120 devotees and guests at the Sunday feasts. They dance and chant in ecstasy, listen to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and Bhagavad-gītā classes, and honor prasādam.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, we pray to be helpful in Lord Caitanya’s harināma-saṅkīrtana movement. Please bless us to become useful instruments in your mission.
Your servants from ISKCON Heidelberg
(written by Acintya Gaura Dāsa)
