ABOUT US

About ISKCON

ISKCON belongs to the Gaudiya-Vaishnavasampradāya, a monotheistic tradition within the Vedic or Hindu culture. Philosophically it is based on the Sanskrit texts Bhagavad-gītā and the Bhagavata 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 – Recommended Yuga Darma for this Kali Yuga

ISKCON Edinburgh

ISKCON Edinburgh is a branch of ISKCON Scotland.

We practice Krishna Consciousness through hosting programs every Sunday and by organising Vaishnava Festivals / Harinam. As part of our program we do the following for both Children and Adults

Kirtan (Singing & Dancing)
Japa (Chanting the Holyname)
Bhakti Vriksha (Group of devotees discuss practising Krsna consciousness and preaching activities.)
Studying from scriptures like Bhagavad Gita and SrimadBhagavatham
Honouring Prasdam
Puja and Arati for Deities and Jagad Guru SrilaPrabhupada
Offering Bhoga to Lord
We educate children in a fun way to grow their spiritual knowledge by teaching from Bhagavad Gita, SrimadBhagavadam, narrating Krishna Stories, Fun Games indoor/outdoor depending on weather, Art & Craft, Drawing/ Colouring activities.

Events

Sunday: 17/07/2022 11am

The Mound, Edinburgh EH2 2EL
Harinam is the congregational street chanting of the holy names of Krishna or God, if anyone is interested in performing the Yuga Dharma HarinamSankirtan in Birmingham, is cordially invited to join with us and assist in this effort to please His Divine Grace SrilaPrabhupada. Your cooperation in any way will please the Lord as this was the desire of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to spread his name in every town and village. Please join us in performing the Yuga Dharma HarinaamSankirtan in Edinburgh. Iskcon Edinburgh Sunday Program. Sunday 17/07/2022 1pm. Location will be shared on request Hare Krishna, If you fancy any one or all of these,

Enjoy Kirtans (Singing & Meditating on Mantra Music)

Like to Chant Holyname using Beads
Read from Scriptures like Srimad Bhagavad Gita / Srimad Bhagavatam
Honouring Prasdam

Then you have landed in right page. Feel free to contact us and taste our Sunday program for free. There are events for both Parents and Children every Sunday 3 pm. Address details can be shared on request. Join our programs with your family to taste the real nectar and add more values to your lives.

This weeks special guest Prabupada Prana Das, President Iskcon Scotland will be giving a guest lecture on Ratha YatraName of the Event: EnChanting Mantra Music & WisdOM EveningSunday: 17/07/2022 6pm

Our Founder

His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada was born in 1896 in Calcutta, India. He first met his spiritual master, SrilaBhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami, in Calcutta in 1922. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, a prominent devotional scholar and the founder of sixty-four branches of GaudiyaMathas (Vedic institutes), liked this educated young man and convinced him to dedicate his life to teaching Vedic knowledge in the Western world. SrilaPrabhupada became his student, and eleven years later (1933) at Allahabad, he became his formally initiated disciple. At their first meeting, in 1922, SrilaBhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura requested SrilaPrabhupada to broadcast Vedic knowledge through the English language.
In the years that followed, SrilaPrabhupada wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-gita and in 1944, without assistance, started an English fortnightly magazine. Recognizing SrilaPrabhupada’s philosophical learning and devotion, the GaudiyaVaisnava Society honored him in 1947 with the title “Bhaktivedanta.” In 1950, at the age of fifty-four, SrilaPrabhupada retired from married life, and four years later he adopted the vanaprastha (retired) order to devote more time to his studies and writing. SrilaPrabhupadatraveled to the holy city of Vrndavana, where he lived in very humble circumstances in the historic medieval temple of Radha-Damodara. There he engaged for several years in deep study and writing. He accepted the renounced order of life (sannyasa) in 1959.
At Radha-Damodara, SrilaPrabhupada began work on his life’s masterpiece: a multivolume translation and commentary on the 18,000-verse Srimad-Bhagavatam (Bhagavata Purana). He also wrote Easy Journey to Other Planets. After publishing three volumes of Bhagavatam, SrilaPrabhupada came to the United States, in 1965, to fulfill the mission of his spiritual master. Since that time, His Divine Grace has written over sixty volumes of authoritative translations, commentaries and summary studies of the philosophical and religious classics of India. In 1965, when he first arrived by freighter in New York City, SrilaPrabhupada was practically penniless.
It was after almost a year of great difficulty that he established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness in July of 1966. Under his careful guidance, the Society has grew within a decade to a worldwide confederation of almost one hundred asramas, schools, temples, institutes and farm communities. In 1968, SrilaPrabhupada created New Vrndavana, an experimental Vedic community in the hills of West Virginia. Inspired by the success of New Vrndavana, then a thriving farm community of more than one thousand acres, his students founded several similar communities in the United States and abroad.
In 1972, His Divine Grace introduced the Vedic system of primary and secondary education in the West by founding the Gurukula school in Dallas, Texas. The school began with three children in 1972, and by the beginning of 1975 the enrollment had grown to one hundred fifty. SrilaPrabhupada also inspired the construction of a large international center at Sridhama Mayapur in West Bengal, India, which is also the site for a planned Institute of Vedic Studies. A similar project is the magnificent Krsna-Balarama Temple and International Guest House in Vrndavana, India. These are centers where Westerners can live to gain firsthand experience of Vedic culture. SrilaPrabhupada’s most significant contribution, however, is his books.
Highly respected by the academic community for their authoritativeness, depth and clarity, they are used as standard textbooks in numerous college courses. His writings have been translated into eleven languages. The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, established in 1972 exclusively to publish the works of His Divine Grace, has thus become the world’s largest publisher of books in the field of Indian religion and philosophy. In the last ten years of his life, in spite of his advanced age, SrilaPrabhupada circled the globe twelve times on lecture tours that have took him to six continents. In spite of such a vigorous schedule, SrilaPrabhupada continued to write prolifically. His writings constitute a veritable library of Vedic philosophy, religion, literature and culture.

Activities

Daily Japa - Early morning daily Japa - 5 am till 6.30 am through zoom.
SrilaPrabhupad’s book reading - Every Fri - 8 pm till 8.30 pm through zoom.
We have a Library set up for allowing devotees to borrow and read SrilaPrabhupad’s books.
Organise Harinam (Sankirtan Yajna) – Once a month Coordinate and celebrate Vaishnava festivals all over the year for the pleasure of the Lord.