Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2025
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our humble obeisances at the dust of your lotus feet on behalf of the Armenian
yātrā. All glories to you, our dearest friend and savior, the empowered representative of Śrīla
Vyāsadeva and Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, you have left us the greatest legacy – unique and perfect for all times
and places! We do not need to invent anything; you have given us everything. Simply by follow-
ing in your footsteps, your example, and especially your instructions, we see the results: people
are becoming attracted to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. What you have given us is perfect! You have pre-
sented this priceless knowledge in a wonderfully accessible way, giving us the culture, etiquette,
standards, and the correct understanding and application of them. Because life is long, in order to
dedicate it to Kṛṣṇa, you have given us everything we need.
Even when we fall or stumble, it is by your mercy that we know we must simply get up and
continue.
Our region, like others, is no exception. Here, people are deeply attached to material con-
ditioning, bodily identification, family, nationality, tradition, and culture … sometimes it even
seems more pronounced here. But like everywhere, sincere souls, when touched by your mercy
and compassion in the form of your books and your devotees, begin to realize their true position,
either instantly or gradually. Their lives and hearts change before our very eyes. This process is
truly wonderful and beautiful!
The legendary love feasts, the kīrtanas, and the best books about Kṛṣṇa in every sense – these
are our weapons and our priceless treasures. All that is required of us is a little sincerity and a
desire to assist you in your mission to save everyone! By your mercy, even in our small yātrā, there
are already so many of your fearless and selfless pure devotees, striving to fully dedicate their lives
to Lord Caitanya’s mission.
Sometimes there are difficulties and disagreements, but you said that if everyone’s goal is to
satisfy Kṛṣṇa, all differences will be resolved. We pray for your blessings to always follow this goal
in all situations!
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda, please allow us to be instruments in your hands! Please bless us to
develop even a drop of your compassion – true compassion! Please bless us so that difficulties do
not stop us but instead strengthen us. Kindly allow us, with full determination, to simply assist
you.
With endless gratitude to you, your eternal servants,
the devotees of the Armenian yātrā
(written by Hemāṅgī Devī Dāsī)
Europe & Russia, Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2026
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our most humble obeisances at the dust of your lotus feet. All glories to you!
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
In deep reverence, I bow down to His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, who is very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa, for he has no other refuge than the lotus feet of the Lord. O spiritual master, servant of Sarasvatī Gosvāmī, we bow down to you in deep reverence. You have graciously preached the teachings of Lord Caitanyadeva and brought liberation to the Western countries, where impersonalism and the philosophy of emptiness have become widespread.
Please allow us to express our deep gratitude and respect on this day, which is so important for all of your followers – the day of your Vyāsa-pūjā! This is the most important day for the entire ISKCON society, including our entire yātrā, because each of us understands that if it were not for your compassion, we would not be here … we would not have this wonderful temple, our beloved Śrī Śrī Dayāl-Nitāi Gaurahari, or these beautiful devotees who are learning to serve one another together every day by your example.
We are neither many nor few, but we are learning to accept and understand the mercy that you have shown us by inviting us into your family. You are the senāpati-bhakta whom Lord Caitanya Himself sent, and for the next ten thousand years, the knowledge that you left in your books will help even more lost souls who are searching for the meaning of life.
We remember how much effort you had to put in to make our society happen and for your books to see the light of day. This could only be done by a great devotee with a pure heart and the sincerity of a disciple like you.
You left us with a profound message that can help us achieve pure love for God, and this is truly a miracle. Your disciples and the disciples of your disciples continue to carry this knowledge and guide us on this path. We are very grateful to you for them; the determination and faith in their preaching speaks only of deep love for you, and seeing this, we also want to try our best to serve you.
Our Prabhupāda House is a place where we all gather around Śrī Śrī Dayāl-Nitāi Gaurahari and learn to serve Them and you, Śrīla Prabhupāda. We are learning to develop a mood of dependence on you, knowing that without your blessings, our insignificant attempts at service are meaningless. When we enter the temple room, we feel your gaze filled with great love and compassion. As we sing and dance, we experience immense joy in our hearts and great gratitude toward you. It was only through your mercy that They could come to us and accept our clumsy attempts at service … Lord Caitanya and Śrī Nityānanda are with us … and it was only possible because of you!
To understand and feel the value of each devotee whom you send to our temple, and to take care of them, is what we strive for – to generously share the gift you left us with everyone, knowing and feeling that you are with each of us.
Over the past year, 10,795 of your transcendental books have been distributed by the devotees of our saṅkīrtana yātrā, Śrīla Prabhupāda! In addition to distributing books, every day devotees go out to perform harināma, generously sharing the holy name and prasādam with everyone! During the year, many wonderful events were held, such as mantra yoga sessions, kirtan melās, public lectures, charity events for orphanages with prasādam distribution and cultural programs.
We also consider it important to hold the Vaiṣṇava Sevā festival, which brings together all the devotees of our region. This is a great opportunity for our yātrā to serve the devotees!
Śrīla Prabhupāda, you have changed our lives by showing us the true path and giving us a purpose in life. We are eternally indebted to you and, with the understanding that we can never repay this debt, we ask only for your blessing to continue serving, chanting, taking care of one another, spreading the holy name and your books. Then our lives will be successful.
With great respect and love,
The servants of your servants at ISKCON Yessentuki
Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2025
Dear 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
We are very grateful to you for giving us the simplest yet best process to understand ourselves, the
Supreme, and our relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. We are all trying to
read and understand Your Divine Grace through your books and the message of Lord Caitanya.
As we read and understand Your Divine Grace’s books, we feel very fortunate and protected
from the material influences and misunderstandings about God. If we don’t read Your Divine
Grace’s books, it is not at all possible to understand the simplicity of devotional service and to
develop loving consciousness toward all living entities, Vaiṣṇavas, and the most loving Lord Śrī
Kṛṣṇa.
As we continue in our Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we feel great value in devotee association, which
gives us the opportunity to remember Kṛṣṇa, hear about Kṛṣṇa, and increase our inner strength
and faith in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
To progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, Your Divine Grace gave us books, ISKCON and the
Seven Purposes you devised for it, devotees, and spiritual educational centers (temples). Along
with these Your Divine Grace blesses each of us who follows your instructions.
Your Divine Grace mentioned, “Your credit is that you had not changed any message and
instructions of Śrī Kṛṣṇa and guru.” Similarly, we seek empowerment to use our intelligence to
practice and preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness and its purposes without changing the essence. We seek
to be able to reach out to the Japanese in understanding their cultural sensitivity and require-
ments, and embed this valuable jewel of Kṛṣṇa consciousness in their lives.
In a small center in Yokohama, Japan, we are giving this opportunity of Kṛṣṇa consciousness
to the Japanese by arranging music festivals (kīrtana-melas), prasādam, and yoga study groups,
where we read systematically through Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. We hold Japanese devotee retreat pro-
grams with the sole intention of increasing the respect and love among the devotees. It is surely
helping all of them to easily take Kṛṣṇa’s names and open their hearts to hearing about Kṛṣṇa, the
Supreme God who is our controller and protector, and a loving God who is waiting for us.
After a couple of retreat programs, five or seven of the devotees out of the thirteen who
attended started chanting. They also developed the desire to be vegetarian and attend the
Bhagavad-gītā classes regularly. We see Your Divine Grace’s mercy and empowerment in those who
are simple and strict in following the process.
With all humility, and feeling the great fortune and gratitude in our hearts, we fall at your lotus
feet and seek your shelter, blessings, and empowerment to continue preaching in the Yokohama
and Tsukuba centers.
Your granddisciple,
Sudāmā Dāsa (KCS)
On behalf of the Yokohama devotees
Asia-Eurasia, Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2026
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
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
From our Yokohama, Japan, center, a second busiest and the largest city after Tokyo, we express our deepest gratitude for your having given us the path of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We come together every month for kirtan, kṛṣṇa-kathā, dancing kirtan, and prasādam. Our team cooks bhoga, decorates the hall for the program, and places the Deities’ pictures. The Japanese participate in kirtan and festivals. The Japanese like Gaura-Pūrṇimā and the Holi festival of colors. They also like the festival of lights (Deepavali) and Govardhana-pūjā.
Our team has been growing because of your empowerment through the guidance and care of His Holiness Kavicandra Swami Mahārāja. Our team members are embracing the process of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, adopting the four regulative principles within their lifestyle, and observing Vaiṣṇava festivals. Our team members in Yokohama are cordial and cooperative in organizing our Hare Kṛṣṇa festivals and programs.
Our team is very much excited during book distribution, especially the book marathon month, November-December. Our team distributes books in groups and goes door to door to distribute your book Bhagavad-gītā As It Is in languages like Japanese, English, Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil, and Bengali. We also distribute small books as sets to our community members.
In Yokohama in 2025, we distributed 400 Bhagavad-gītās and 100 small books.
Our congregation also comes together during Bhadra Pūrṇimā to receive Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam into their homes and sponsor sets of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam for yoga studios for the Japanese community.
In Yokohama in 2025, we distributed 11 full sets of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in languages like English, Telegu, and Hindi.
During this period, one of our members, Sudāmā Dāsa (KCS), worked with a devotee named Onon Zorigtkhuu, from Mongolia. He inspired Onon to speak to her friends and the devotees in Mongolia and encourage them to accept Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam into their homes. By Your Divine Grace’s mercy, she agreed to speak to her friends and the devotees in Mongolia.
With Onan’s coordination in Mongolia, Sudāmā Dāsa was able to send 25 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam sets and 3 Caitanya-caritāmṛta sets to Mongolia. All these sets were in the English language.
It took lots of coordination, but we did all of this legally and with permission from the BBT in America, the GBC, and respected ISKCON authorities. A very special thanks to our ISKCON of Silicon Valley (ISV) team for sending books to our centers in Yokohama and Tsukuba in Japan.
During the Bhadra Pūrṇimā campaign, our Japanese devotees distributed 6 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam sets and 1 Caitanya-caritāmṛta set among themselves or gifted them to friends.
The kids in Yokohama are very enthusiastic while doing dramas, kirtan, festivals, and chanting. They are excited to hear the pastimes of Lord Rāma and Kṛṣṇa’s childhood pastimes.
The families in Yokohama embraced the Monopoly game Every town and Village enthusiastically. This game was brought to Japan by His Holiness Kavicandra Swami Mahārāja. We distributed them to Japanese devotees, and devotees from India and Nepal.
As a team we’re growing slowly and surely to bring the auspiciousness Your Divine Grace gave us through Kṛṣṇa consciousness to Japan. Our Yokohama team humbly seeks Your Divine Grace’s blessings to continue and progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness with all cooperation, and to spread Lord Caitanya’s message and mission to more families in the coming years. We beg your mercy to help us properly understand and practice Your Divine Grace’s teachings, which we are learning through your books and lectures.
Your servants at ISKCON Yokohama
Sudāmā Dāsa and our team
Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2025
Dear Śrīla Prabhupāda,
Please accept our sincere obeisances. All glories to you on the sacred day of your Vyāsa-pūjā!
Fourteen years ago I read in the Līlāmṛta, “One competent man can start a center.” Foolishly
thinking of myself as one such person, I allowed the desire to settle into my heart that I could
be in charge of one of your centers. This year the fruit of that foolishness and the force of your
mercy reached ten years of maturity, as your Harmony Collective community celebrated a decade
together in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Though the place sounds obscure to most ears, and it is certainly
very far from Śrīdhāma Māyāpur, you might remember the name as it was shared by an immigra-
tion lawyer who first helped you with your America visa (a fact pointed out to me by a godbrother
curious about any prior connection between Ypsilanti and yourself). At the least, you would have
driven past our exit 181 on your way to State Street, exit 177 off US HWY 94, while on your way to
the University of Michigan for a speaking engagement arranged by the Detroit temple devotees
on June 22, 1971.
This decade has for us been a reckoning on many levels as we strive to even begin to align with
the direction and weight of your instructions and example. Today, as you know, we have a temple
for Śrī Śrī Gaura-Nitāi, a farm with eight protected cows, and a school for children. Confident
in your continued mercy, we seek to consolidate these three separate properties into one master
parcel in the next year. The attempt to serve your vision has kept a core group of us together amid
all the usual upheavals, and we have drawn in other committed followers of yours interested in
serving your long-term vision of a viable society.
And that is where I’d like to put a special emphasis of gratitude this year, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
While you put so much into establishing the formal organization of ISKCON, it’s so clear that
you had a vision for Mahāprabhu’s family that went beyond the borders of any formal organiza-
tion’s mandate. You spoke to this many times – so often that the many who feel alienated or
estranged from aspects of ISKCON as an institution today needn’t at all feel separated from you
or Kṛṣṇa. As you explained to your direct disciples:
Organization and institution are material. They are necessary to keep order, but they
are not the essence. The essence is to be Krishna conscious. (Letter to Haṁsadūta
Dāsa, June 22, 1972)
Don’t be dependent on any organization. Depend on Krishna. Organization is
for preaching, but our real business is to become Krishna conscious. (Letter to
Madhudviṣa Dāsa, February 4, 1973)
If one thinks that simply by joining an institution he becomes liberated, that is not
the fact. One must practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness personally. (Lecture on Śrīmad-
Bhāgavatam 1.2.12, Delhi, November 14, 1973)
Ironically, we have found the more we highlight this simple and open spirit of yours in our saṅga,
the more we receive trust and dedicated effort from your sincere followers. We have learned that
nobody needs the Harmony Collective, and that anybody can be rescued from the mundane mal-
aise by the mercy of yourself and Mahāprabhu. You have shown us we are not the source of that
grace, and yet you have trusted us with the profound opportunity to support its flow and recep-
tion. For that we are perpetually left astounded, grateful, and engaged.
Please continue to keep us close, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Please continue to send us your dear ones
in all shapes and sizes. Please ensure we always hear from which direction your living voice is call-
ing us forward today, tomorrow, and eternally. And finally, please help us live in such a way that
others are inspired to also listen to that sacred vibration and allow it to become the source of their
life.
Always for you, on behalf of your ISKCON Ypsilanti,
Deva Mādhava Dāsa (community director)
Africa, Homages ISKCON Centers, VP2026
Most beloved A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
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
Please accept our most humble obeisances at your lotus feet. All glories to your divine service and boundless compassion upon the conditioned souls.
On the sacred occasion of your 130th Vyāsa-pūjā, the devotees of ISKCON Zambia offer our heartfelt gratitude for the gift of Kṛṣṇa consciousness you have brought into our lives and into this part of the world. You fulfilled the divine prediction of Caitanya Mahāprabhu:
pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma
sarvatra pracāra haibe mora nāma
That the holy name would be heard in every town and village is no longer a prophecy; it is a living reality due to your sacrifice. Zambia, too, stands as a small but sincere testimony to this. By your mercy, what began as a modest preaching center registered in 2015 has gradually developed into a vibrant devotional community. Whatever growth has come is simply due to your vision and blessings.
We are especially grateful that our yātrā was recently blessed as Jagannātha Dhāma by His Holiness Lokanath Swami, affirming the special place Lord Jagannātha’s service has taken in Zambia. Our annual Ratha-yātrā has become one of the most visible and popular expressions of devotional culture here, attracting many newcomers and well-wishers.
By following your instructions as best we can, various aspects of your mission are taking root:
- Regular Sunday Love Feast and satsaṅga programs
- Harināma and book distribution
- Food for Life outreach
- Govinda’s prasādam distribution
- Annual Śrīmad-Bhāgavata kathā and Rāma kathā programs
- Kirtan Melā, begun in 2025, received an enthusiastic response
- Boat Festival, begun in 2024, now a cherished annual observance
- A growing community of practicing devotees, with some now initiated in the guru-paramparā
These are small offerings, but they are all attempts to serve your mission. We are encouraged that the next aspiration for the yātrā is to secure our own site and develop a temple within the city – an offering we pray may become a reality through your blessings.
Śrīla Prabhupāda, your mercy has reached Zambia through many channels. We remember with gratitude the visits and encouragement of many senior Vaiṣṇavas, including Radhanath Swami, Bhakti Narasiṁha Swami, Rāma Govinda Swami, the ongoing blessings of Lokanath Swami, and the pioneering contribution of Brahmānanda Swami, who planted seeds here in earlier years. Many senior devotees continue to nurture this small center through regular visits and guidance. We see all this as extensions of your mercy.
When we reflect that devotees in Zambia are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, worshiping Lord Jagannātha, studying the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, honoring prasādam, and trying to serve the Vaiṣṇavas, we know all of this exists only because of your sacrifice. You crossed oceans alone, accepted enormous hardships, and gave the world Kṛṣṇa. We in Zambia are direct beneficiaries of that compassion. For this we offer our deepest gratitude.
Please bless us to remain faithful to your instructions, deepen our sādhana and cooperation, expand your mission in this country, establish a temple worthy of your movement, and to always remain servants of your servants
If there is any success in this yātrā, it belongs to you. If there are shortcomings, they are ours. On this Vyāsa-pūjā day, we simply pray that we may continue assisting, however imperfectly, in your mission of spreading Lord Caitanya’s mercy.
Thank you, Śrīla Prabhupāda, for giving Zambia Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya! Gaura premānande! Haribol!
Your insignificant servants,
Jayagovinda Dāsa and the devotees of ISKCON Zambia
