Pramukh Swami Maharaj

The year 2020 will forever be remembered as a year of isolation, distancing, and change. Along with longing to get back to “normal,” we hoped for peace and normalcy around the world. Unfortunately, peace continues to evade many parts of the world. Daily headlines are peppered with numerous instances of…

MAHARAJ AND SWAMI AT THE FOREFRONT On August 18, 1995, a grand, joyous and vibrant nagar yatra was held to honor the murtis to be consecrated in the newly built shikharbaddha BAPS Mandir in Neasden, London. It was the auspicious day of Janmashtami — Shravan vad 8 — the birthday of Bhagwan Krishna. The procession began…

W henever something doesn’t go my way, I tend to become upset and even angry. That angry mindset drags me down and I lose my confidence, which leads me to underperform in whatever I’m doing. Not reaching my expectations will lead me to getting even more angry. It’s a continuous…

LEADING WITH LOVE We may not realize it, but we are all leaders in some form in our own circle of influence: professionally, socially or personally. How one handles even the simplest of tasks reveals the leadership skills of a person. Visiting the supermarket, organizing a house-warming gathering, arranging a birthday party, raising…

Our pandemic-induced reflections on time, distance, and health have been interrupted in the past few months by questions of another orientation. Rather than ask ourselves how best to return to normalcy, and what that normalcy should look like, we are asking ourselves now how best to stand in solidarity with…

When it comes to managing our day-to-day interactions with one another, most of us can often be described as complicated. We all have within us an enormous capacity for humility, kindness, goodness, courage, generosity, kinship, and friendship. And at the very same time, in the very same mind, body, and…

CONTRADICTORY VIRTUES Kalidas, the classical Sanskrit author, in his epic poem, Raghuvansha, describes unique qualities of King Dilip in Sarg 1, verse 22: “Gnãne maunam kshmã shaktao, tyãge shlãghãviparyayaha.” [“Knowledgeable, silent, able to forgive, strong, charitable, above self-praise.”] Instead of just a simple list of virtues, Kalidas informs the reader that King…

After Swamishri returned from his 1977 overseas vicharan, there was an assembly in Atladra. Swamishri himself was reading the Swamini Vato and discoursing. Many eminent persons were seated in front of Swamishri. At that time an ordinary looking devotee, who was probably uneducated and seemed confused, came and stood directly…

For thousands of years, people have discussed the nature of God. But, to fathom God is complex and then to apply this understanding in one’s life, is a very subtle and slippery craft. For Pramukh Swami Maharaj, discussing the nature of God was not just an intellectual exercise, but a…