New Vrindaban Brijabasi Spirit

By Madhava Smullen “It was devastating,” says Advaitacarya Das, bowing his head. Srila Prabhupada’s Disappearance Day is coming up on November 15th in New Vrindaban. And Advaita, who has been a resident since the early 1970s, is recalling the day in 1977 when he and the other devotees at Prabhupada’s first farm community heard the […]

By Madhava Smullen It’s not something you see every day. A group of young girls and boys are huddled in the middle of the temple hall, some shocked and some cheering. They’re looking unbelievingly at the particularly effulgent boy at their center as he lifts an impossibly heavy burden. The young boys and girls might […]

Nitaicandra Das has always sought the simple life. It was while living in the forests of Trinidad, remarkably enough, that he received a copy of Srila Prabhupada’s “Science of Self-Realization.” “Living off the forest wasn’t working out for me,” he says. “And once I read Prabhupada’s book I realized, ‘This is it, it’s all here […]

By Madhava Smullen New Vrindaban’s autumn 24 Hour Kirtan – held during the sacred month of Kartik — is rapidly catching up to its summer cousin in popularity. Up from 100 attendees in 2011, this year’s festival is expected to attract over 400, looking for the authentic Vrindavan Kartik experience without having to travel seven-and-a-half […]

By Madhava Smullen Since it was introduced in 2012, ISKCON New Vrindaban’s Festival of Colors has dramatically improved public perception of the West Virginia farm community, mended lost relationships with locals and built new ones. The spiritual rejuvination festival is advertised with thousands of flyers and posters in local shops, restaurants, and universities, billboards in […]

By Madhava Smullen The 45th annual Janmastami festival at New Vrindaban in the USA this Labor Day Weekend saw more exciting progress made in revealing Lord Krishna’s holy dhama (abode) of Vrindavan there. The West Virginia village was established in 1968 by ISKCON founder Srila Prabhupada, who described it as “non-different from the original Vrindavan” […]

By Madhava Smullen Lord Krishna’s eternal consort Srimati Radharani is known as the Queen of Vrindavan. So what better place in the Western World to celebrate Her appearance day, Radhastami, than New Vrindaban? Described by Srila Prabhupada as “non-different” from Vrindavan in India, New Vrindaban’s Radhastami festival on September 21st 2015 drew many devotees from […]

  Gopal’s Garden Preschool, headed by New Vrindaban residents Sundari Devi Dasi and Mercy Mack, has been filled with action packed projects and fun this summer. Starting in March of this year, the preschool began with Sundari Devi Dasi and Mercy teaming up to build a healthy and interactive place to bring their children during […]

By Madhava Smullen As ISKCON’s 50th anniversary quickly approaches in 2016, and New Vrindaban’s 50th in 2018, long time members and residents are working to make sure that accurate histories of the past half century are available for future generations. Since the 1980s, some devotees in New Vrindaban have mistakenly claimed that Prabhupada’s Palace is […]