Bhakti-yoga
We are open every day of the year, with daily activities running from early morning until late evening. Join us for colourful worship ceremonies, healthy "karma-free" cuisine, daily meditation, talks and seminars; or pop into our boutique for spiritual books, health and well-being products, music and more.
Yoga is more than just a physical exercise. The word "yoga" comes from the Sanskrit root, Yuj, which means to link up with or combine. The word "bhakti" is derived from the Sanskrit word, bhaj, which means loving service. Bhakti-yoga means to connect to the Supreme by means of loving devotional service.
And of all yogis, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all.
Bhagavad-Gita 6.47
Today, some yoga practitioners consider the physical benefits of yoga to be the end in themselves. But according to the traditional yoga systems, physical exercises are just one step on the path of God realisation. The Bhagavad-Gita (the core spiritual text of the Hare Krishna movement) explains bhakti-yoga (the path of dedication and love) as the culmination of other yoga practices. Bhakti-yoga focuses on developing our dedication, service and love for the divine Lord Krishna.
Conscious Living
The lifestyle of a bhakti-yogi is one of intentional actions and choices that are in favour of becoming conscious of the Supreme. Through a variety of activities, a bhakti-yogi aims to become a devotee of the Lord, training the mind along with our actions towards selfless service to all living beings and ultimately to Lord Krishna. Living in this way, we reduce our karmic reaction because our daily activities are intentionally devoted to the divine who is the controller of karma.
Some of the activities we do daily are: meditate, sing mantra music, study and live by the sacred Vedic wisdom, have daily philosophy discourses, eat only karma-free vegetarian food, and try in all spheres of our life to live in a way that upholds the principles of truthfulness, mercy, austerity, and cleanliness.
Mantra Meditation
Meditation is a spiritual practice found in practically all religious and spiritual traditions, although the methods differ.
The Vaishnava tradition recommends the chanting of the names of God to be a particularly effective method of spiritual awakening, simultaneously opening us to an incredibly empowering experience. Bhakti-yogis use mantra meditation both on an individual level and collectively through mantra music and singing called "kirtan".
Karma-free Diet
We believe that the sourcing, preparation and eating of food should be based on principles of compassion, non-violence and balanced living. Thus, bhakti-yogis advocate a strict vegetarian diet, avoiding any animal products. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Lord Krishna tells His friend and disciple, Arjuna, to offer everything to Him and in this way everything he does, thinks, and eats becomes freed from sinful reactions, or karma. In Sanskrit, this is called "prasadam", which means mercy. This is sanctified food that has been offered to Krishna with love and devotion.
Feeding the Needy
Our food distribution programme, Food For Life, gives out freshly-made hot vegetarian food (prasadam) on Mondays to Saturdays at various locations in London. Our branch in London is part of the Food For Life Global charity that combats hunger and crisis relief by serving two million free meals a day, internationally. Find out more at www.ffl.org.
Spiritual Education Courses
Our London College of Vedic Studies, based at our ISKCON-London centre, holds regular adult educational courses with an emphasis on moral education and vocational training in specific topics such as healthy lifestyle, cooking, music, and personal development. We also have free daily discourses and taster sessions on philosophy, meditation and yoga which is open to all.
Community Development
Our centre holds annually more than 10 large public festivals with more than 1,200 participants, and more than 20,000 participants during our annual summer Rathayatra procession at Trafalgar Square. We have daily street processions where we distribute books providing spiritual knowledge and invite the public to our centre through lively music and dance. We also annually distribute more than 60,000 books to the public.We are a lifeline for cosmopolitian London - our centre provides a quiet place to spend time, connect with others and have a warm meal.
Volunteering Opportunities
Volunteers are an integral part of ISKCON-London. We have more than 300 volunteers who contribute to the day-to-day running of the Temple, organisation of events, festivals, courses, cultural showcases and all of our outreach work. Volunteering, or "seva" in Sanskrit, is fundamental to one's emotional and spiritual health. Our volunteers are given full access to hands-on work and leadership roles, and are taken care of as individuals in a dynamic and lively environment.
Srila Prabhupada founded ISKCON in July of 1966. The incorporation document states Seven Purposes of ISKCON:
(1) To systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society at large and to educate all peoples in the techniques of spiritual life in order to check the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.
(2) To propagate a consciousness of Krishna as it is revealed in the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam.
(3) To bring the members of the Society together with each other and nearer to Krishna, the prime entity, and thus to develop the idea, within the members, and humanity, at large, that each soul is part and parcel of the quality of Godhead (Krishna).
(4) To teach and encourage the Sankirtan movement of congregational chanting of the holy name of God as revealed in the teachings of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
(5) To erect for the members, and for society at large, a holy place of transcendental pastimes, dedicated to the personality of Krishna.
(6) To bring the members closer together for the purpose of teaching a simpler and more natural way of life.
(7) With a view towards achieving the aforementioned purposes, to publish and distribute periodicals, magazines, books and other writings.
