New Zealand 2026
17 Sep 2026 evening – Radha-tattva (English) – Christchurch, New Zealand | Srila BV Vana Maharaja
– Varsana means Rain of Prema of Transcendental Divine Love. – Radhika is the personification of Divine Love. – To understand what prema is, it is necessary to experience all the stages of sadhana-bhakti. – From sraddha to prema, and from prema to its condensation into madhanakiya-mahabhava. – Sat (existence), cit (knowledge), ananda (bliss). – Sat alone = brahman; sat + cit = Paramatma; sat + cit + ananda = Bhagavan. – Ra means anuraga, and dha means...
17 Sep 2026 morning – Radhashtami (English) – Christchurch, New Zealand
– Lila of Narada Muni giving blessings to baby Radha and having a vision of Her adolescence with Her sakhis. – Song: Sri Radha Krpa Kataksa Stava Raja. – Lila of baby Radha opening her eyes only when child Krishna calls Her. – The Madhu Smita Sri Radha book discusses tattva-siddhanta, sakti-tattva, saktiman-tattva, Radha-tattva, Durga-tattva, etc. – Regarding the Durga Upanishad; Radha and Krishna gave Their names to all the demigods. – Krishna grants dharma...
16 Sep 2026 evening – The Sweetness of Krishna, His Pastimes, and the Mercy of Gaurasundara (English) – Christchurch, New Zealand | Srila BV Vana Maharaja
– The glories of grihastha’s house: je dina grihe bhajana dekhi grihe de goloka bhai…(Shuddha-bhakata, caharana-renu 6) – Vrajendra-nandana Shyamasundara is sarva-avatari, the source of everything. – A shloka describing the purpose of Krishna’s appearance: paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām…(BG 4.8). – A shloka explaining that Krishna appears in a human-like form to bestow mercy upon His devotees: anugrahāya bhaktānāṁ mānuṣaṁ deham āsthitaḥ…(SB 10.33.36). –...
16 Sep 2026 morning – Q&A after hari-katha (English) – Christchurch, New Zealand
– Tulasi is Krishna-priya; she is very dear to Krishna. Krishna accepts offerings only when they are accompanied by a Tulasi leaf. – Question: What is our abode if we worship Jagannatha? Answer: If you worship Jagannatha, you will go to Vaikuntha or Dvaraka. When you worship Jagannatha, there should be a mood of separation, not opulence. – Mahaprabhu’s three types of mood: external, intermediate and internal. – The gopis do not believe that Krishna actually took sannyasa...
16 Sep 2026 morning – The Appearance Day of Sita Thakurani (English) – Christchurch, New Zealand | Srila BV Vana Maharaja
– According to Gaura-ganoddesha-dipika, Sita Thakurani, the consort of Advaita Acharya, is the expansion of Paurnamasi-devi. – Advaita Acharyа took diksha from Madhavendra Puripada. – Lila: Advaita Acharya wanted to get chastisement from Mahaprabhu, so he intentionally started to read Yoga-vasishtha (a Mayavada book) and was beaten by Mahaprabhu. – Advaita Acharya opened a vyakarana (grammar school) and Vishvarupa, the elder brother of Mahaprabhu, used to visit it...
15 Sep 2026 evening – Pure Love (English) – Christchurch, New Zealand | Srila BV Vana Maharaja
– Explanation of the different potencies of Sri Bhagavan. – On Srimati Radhika’s glorification of the beautiful form of Krishna. – Explanation of Krishna’s internal pleasure potency, which is always with Him. – On always desiring bliss and happiness. – Explanation of the perfect meaning of the word love. – On the true origin of love. – Explanation of the mood of separation and its internal and external aspects. – On the repeated cycle...
14 Sep 2026 evening – Ganesha Caturthi (Hindi) – Blenheim, New Zealand | Srila BV Vana Maharaja
– The vast differences in the cultures of India. – Sanatana-dharma is the thread of love throughout India. – Discussion of the 33 types of demigods. – Varieties of worship for Lord Sivaji and Lord Ganeshji. – How Narada Muni solves the argument as to who should be worshipped first amongst the demigods. – Sloka stating that the holy names are cintamani: nāma cintāmiṇiḥ kṛṣṇas’…(CC Madhya-lila 17:133). – The holy name in Kali-yuga is...