ISKCON Mayapur Vedic City - Temple of the Vedic Planetarium

ISKCON MAYAPUR VEDIC CITY
Mayapur, West Bengal, India

A SPIRITUAL CENTER WITH SOCIAL CONSCIENCE AT HEART SINCE 1972

Home of Sanatan Dharma and the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium, Future Wonder of the World.

The ISKCON Mayapur City is open to visitors of all nationalities, colors, creeds, genders and religions.

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Launch Date

ISKCON Founder-Acharya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Vigilantly maintaining sanatan dharma for 50+ years

Spiritual upliftment through education and practice

Distributing free meals to one and all since 1975

Tribal Care Initiative outreach program

Community medical care for residents and locals

Employment opportunities for residents and locals

ISKCON MAYAPUR VEDIC CITY

ISKCON Mayapur City, the World Headquarters of the International Society for Krishna consciousness conceived by ISKCON Founder-Acharya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, is a 600-acre complex located in the heart of West Bengal, India. It has been a flourishing spiritual, educational, social, cultural and philanthropic community project based on the principles of sanatan dharma since it was established in 1972. It provides spiritual upliftment to visitors and its 7,000+ residents, job and education opportunities for local stability and growth, community medical services, and food distribution to those in need, and much more. Everyone is welcome to visit ISKCON Mayapur regardless of gender, color, nationality, caste, creed or religion.

Due to its widely known reputation, over 6 million visitors and pilgrims visit the project annually from all over the world, and that is expected to quadruple soon after the opening of the magnificent Temple of the Vedic Planetarium (TOVP) in 2025, the largest modern, Vedic-style temple to be built in several hundred years. The Government of West Bengal is eagerly cooperating to assist and help expand the means of access to the complex, located 75 miles from Kolkata at the confluence of the Ganges and Jalangi rivers in the Navadvipa area of the Nadia District of West Bengal.

Below are some of the highlights of the ISKCON Mayapur Vedic City project that illustrate its unique purposes, both material and spiritual, to make the world a better place to live.

VEDIC EDUCATION SYSTEM (GURUKULA)

ISKCON is an educational institution. As such, our Gurukula system has different types of material and spiritual education for different stages of life, and the different needs of the individuals, ranging from childhood to adulthood, and everything in-between. At present, we have three educational institutions for our children catering to their differing propensities and interests, three institutions to train adult devotees, and one training program for new members. Each of these institutions contains appropriately qualified and dedicated devotee teachers and trainers.

SRI MAYAPUR INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL

The Sri Mayapur International School, one of the educational institutes of ISKCON Mayapur, has been educating the children of Mayapur since it was founded in 1988. Students of many different countries study together here and receive a quality academic and spiritual education. The Sri Mayapur International School, or SMIS as it is commonly known, aims to be an inspiration to both ISKCON and the Vaishnava community by practically demonstrating how spiritual principles positively contribute to the quality of education and the lives of children and young people.

Currently, the Sri Mayapur International School has one hundred and sixty-nine students and forty-four teachers. Srila Prabhupada wanted his ISKCON movement to establish schools and educate its children in a Krishna conscious environment, and this school is a thriving example of the execution of his instruction.

This school is affiliated with the Cambridge Board of Examinations, UK. The school has ashram facilities for boys.

BHAKTIVEDANTA NATIONAL SCHOOL

Bhaktivedanta National School (BVNS) is an English Medium School that houses 800 students from Kindergarten through Class XII affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), New Delhi. It was formed in 2003 with the primary aim of providing comprehensive education to the community children of Mayapur and offers quality education in an atmosphere conducive for the students to learn the essential principles and values of life.

The school aims to impart quality education through a comprehensive, structured curriculum using innovative, classroom methodologies and will cater to a holistic all round development through co-curricular activities that weave values and tradition into them. The school has well equipped libraries and laboratories in addition to all the necessary facilities in keeping with the modern trends in Education. Experienced and trained teachers have been appointed to provide academic excellence.

BHAKTIVEDANTA ACADEMY

The Bhaktivedanta Academy provides for the study, practice, and dissemination of the teachings of Srimad-Bhagavatam and the Vedic literature dealing with philosophy, culture, and science, all in the context of dharmic principles as taught by our ancient acharyas.

Their focus is to enrich the lives of young Vaishnavas by creating a sanctuary of serenity and purity deeply rooted in the gurukula tradition. We are actively seeking dedicated male teachers to take up key roles that play a vital part in shaping our student's spiritual and academic journey.

MAYAPUR INSTITUTE

Srila Prabhupada wrote, “Throughout the world there is no institution to impart education in the matter of spiritual understanding. So we are going to open a big center in Mayapur where this education will be internationally imparted. Students from all parts of the world will go there to take education in this important subject.” The Mayapur Institute aims to fulfill this desire of Srila Prabhupada by establishing Mayapur as a center for higher education and training.

The Mayapur Institute is a leading international centre for education and training in the theistic philosophy, practice and culture presented in the essential Vedic scriptures taught by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu as translated and explained by Srila Prabhupada.

The institute will also provide advanced study opportunities for understanding the writings of the predecessor acharyas, the primary books of the four Vaishnava sampradayas and important Vedic scriptures.

Students from all parts of the world will thus be trained to be qualified teachers, preachers, leaders, theologians and scholars to distribute the unique contributions of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to humanity.

MAYAPUR ACADEMY

Mayapur Academy is focused on creating a brahminical vision and a spiritual future for our community and society at large. As ISKCON’s demographic matures into a broad family-based community, there is an increasing need for qualified brahmanas. Such active ministers are needed to serve the diverse needs of the community which include education, samskaras, deity worship, and much more.

Mayapur Academy is open to all initiated devotees. Our thanks must go to our growing network of volunteers and well-wishers. Without your support in the form of service and donations, Mayapur Academy would not be where it is today. You too could be part of a team dedicated to raising brahminical consciousness worldwide.

BHAKTIVEDANTA GITA ACADEMY

The Bhaktivedanta Academy offers online study courses of Bhagavad Gita, Srimad Bhagavatam and other Vedic literatures to all who are interested. The course consists of levels of study and thorough examinations to achieve the highest understanding of these most important Vedic shastras for practical implementation in daily life.

The first purpose of these courses is to focus on equipping believers—new and mature, young and old—to be prepared to “defend the faith” and to provide answers for those who are inquiring about Gita. Learn how to address issues such as: ‘Iswar(The supreme personality of God Head), ‘Jiva’(Living entity), ‘Prakriti’(Material Nature), ‘Kala’(Time factor), ‘Karma’(activities) and world religions.

Secondly, We seek to encourage the Devotee to apply devotional service in all aspects of life.

GOSHALA (COW PROTECTION)

ISKCON Mayapur has a vast Goshala accommodating 300+ cows, bulls and calves. The Goshala is well established with a veterinary doctor, a team of medical helpers, a team of cow lovers, cleaners and cowherd men who take the calves and bulls for grazing. The cows are provided grass, hay and fodder three times a day, and their fresh daily milk made into dairy products used to prepare offerings for the Deities in the temple, and prasadam for residents. Cow protection is amongst the top priorities in Vedic civilization and leads to peace, prosperity and higher consciousness.

FOOD FOR LIFE

Distributing free meals in Mayapur since 1975
Currently serving 1350 meals a day / 500,000 annually
Special Covid-19 relief programs
State-of-the-art, high quality, hygienic kitchen facilities
330 seat grand dining hall

“I want that you shall distribute prasadam (sanctified food) at least to hundreds of persons daily, and advertise very widely all over Nadia Province for people to come there and take prasadam daily without charge .…. Try to expand this program as much as possible at Mayapur.”
- A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, Founder of ISKCON Mayapur

OUR VISION

As an institution with a social conscience, we have been reaching out to the poor and needy in West Bengal to make sure that they don’t go to sleep on an empty stomach. Based on the instruction we received from our Founder in 1975, we have been putting efforts in this direction and today we can satisfactorily state that we feed half a million people annually, completely free of cost.

Cutting across caste, creed, race, or gender, we make hygienic, nutritious, and sanctified food available to people coming from humble backgrounds.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Since 1975, our team has been consistently distributing food to the poor and needy. A wholesome meal consisting of Dal (bean soup), Chawal (rice) and Sabzi (seasonal vegetables) served up to their hearts’ content fills them with a sense of both gratitude and fulfillment.

A state-of-the-art kitchen facility boasting all modern kitchen amenities such as automated dishwashers, captive boiler plant, vegetable cutting machines, cold storage facility to preserve raw materials for longer periods, and a grand dining hall that can accommodate 330 people makes us a high-quality hygienic facility in the region of West Bengal.

DISTRIBUTION

Every day we feed an average of 1350 people and also distribute evening snacks to all visitors. To make it a well-managed regimen, free coupons are distributed in the morning and meals are served in the afternoon. During the pandemic period, we are reaching out to victims and their families, and serving them highly nutritious meals to ensure that food related anxieties don’t contribute to higher mortality rates and more infection.

For more information: https://www.mayapur.com/serve-mayapur/food-for-life/

TRIBAL CARE INITIATIVE

India Tribal Care Trust (ITCT), one of the most significant initiatives of ISKCON Mayapur, is a public charitable trust formed under Indian Trust Act’1882. Even after 75 years of independence, tribal families of our country have been deprived of the major facilities and basic needs. They remain uneducated and isolated from the civilized section of our country. Thus, we have established India Tribal Care Trust to ensure the development and improvement of tribal communities in India. At ITCT, we think that every human being has the right to live a prosperous life.

Since 2016, our dedicated monks and volunteers have made the best efforts to feed tribal children, educate them, solve the drinking water problem, and educate tribal villagers. After 3 years, we have our presence in Tripura, Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha. This year onwards, we are expanding into Andhra Pradesh & Maharashtra.

For more information: https://www.mayapur.com/serve-mayapur/tribal-care-initiative/

COMMUNITY HOSPITAL

A small team of dedicated Doctors, Dentists and Nurses have been tirelessly working to provide basic health care to all local community residents and visitors with the available facilities in Mayapur.

There is an acute need to add certain very essential facilities to medical care and support which Mayapur is offering in order to cater to emergencies and bare essential health care needs of Mayapur residents, visitors and pilgrims.

These Doctors and Nurses have shunned lucrative career options in the outside world to dedicate their lives to the service of the local residents and visitors. They operate with basic facilities and often extend themselves beyond the call of duty to serve the entire community.

For more information: https://www.mayapur.com/serve-mayapur/mayapur-community-hospital/

TEMPLE WORSHIP

Since the founding of ISKCON Mayapur in 1972, simple temple worship in the Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir has become highly elaborate and detailed. With the opening of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium and relocation of the Deities into Their new home, even higher standards of worship will be put in place requiring a staff of hundreds of pujaris, cooks, seamstresses, etc., all working in the world’s largest pujari floor comprising an area of 2.5 acres, and composed of over seventy purposed rooms.

FESTIVALS, YAJNAS AND PUJAS

The Vedas enjoin: yajno vai visnuh. And in Bhagavad-gita the Lord says: yajnarthat karmano ’nyatra (3.9). All yajnas, pujas, worship, charity, sacrifice and austerity are meant to be directed towards the satisfaction of Lord Visnu, or Krishna. This, in essence, is sanatan dharma in action. And the ISKCON Mayapur City puts this into practical application through regular festivals celebrating the appearance of the Lord's avataras and the great spiritual masters (acharyas), regular agnihotra and other types of yajnas, and pujas directed for specific needs and purposes, both individual and collective.

FARMING AND SELF-SUFFICIENCY

Local organic agriculture along with cottage and small-scale industries provide the basic needs of the resident community with environmentally sustainable and healthy products, enabling and promoting a self-sustainable economy.

TEMPLE OF THE VEDIC PLANETARIUM (TOVP)

“Practically this Institution is the real United Nations, and here in Mayapur we are trying to create a place of inspiration for people throughout the world. We have the co-operation from all nations, all religions, all communities, etc. It will be an international institute. From all over the world they will come and see”.
- A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

In 2008 construction of the TOVP began in earnest under the able guidance and $30 million of funding from project Chairman and philanthropist Alfred Brush Ford, great-grandson of Henry Ford, founder of the Ford motor company. Situated on a footprint of 13.3 acres within the ISKCON Mayapur campus, the TOVP is one of the largest religious structures in the world, surpassing the Taj Mahal, Hagia Sophia and St. Paul’s Cathedral, and is ¾ the size of the Giza pyramid. The total square footage is over 400,000 square feet, and the main hall alone is 1.5 acres and can accommodate 10,000 people. The main dome is the largest stainless-steel dome of its kind in the world, and hanging within it like a beautiful chandelier will be the massive rotating model of our universe as depicted in ancient Vedic cosmological and astronomical books.

The temple West Wing will house the 150-seat planetarium theater that will be used for screening a range of presentations of Vedic cosmology, philosophy and science, and will also double as a lecture hall and convention center. A Science Center will bring to light remarkable facts about world history and development, and dioramas along with other types of state-of-the-art exhibits will be placed throughout the Wing.

The temples' 45-acre frontage will be adorned with luscious gardens and attractive walkways interwoven with gorgeous water displays and fountains, gazebos and sitting areas, surrounded by the residential quarters, shops, restaurants and schools of the expanding ISKCON Mayapur campus.

ISKCON Mayapur receives over 6 million visitors a year. This number is estimated to quadruple in the years ahead after the opening of the TOVP. This influx of visitors and pilgrims will further boost the economic condition of the surrounding area significantly and stimulate the improvement of roads, housing, farming, etc. The West Bengal Government and Tourism Department have agreed to assist with the appropriate development of the area:

“Mayapur is one of the 20 sacred places most visited in the world.”
Atri Bhattacharya - State Tourism Secretary, West Bengal

“Today I visited the ISKCON temple at Mayapur. We would be very happy to help them. This will definitely be a new landmark destination not only in the state and the country, but also in the whole world. It is indeed a wonderful experience for me.”
Mamata Banerjee - Chief Minister, West Bengal, 2/13/18

The Grand Opening of the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium is scheduled for late 2025, barring any further interruptions from the pandemic. Entrance into the Temple of the Vedic Planetarium and the unique educational experience it will provide will be free of charge.

MAYAPUR VEDIC CITY GALLERY

Mayapur University
Bhaktivedanta Anna-Dan Complex
Prabhupada Avenue
Skill Development Center
Transcendental Gardens
An Artisans Enclave
Temple Ghat on the Jalangi River
The Haribol Stadium
Guest Houses
Srila Prabhupada Ghat
Ghats along the nearby Jalangi

DONATE TODAY!

Please join us and help develop this unique multi-purpose project for the benefit of mankind.

For Donations and Inquiries in India:

TOVP Seva Office Bldg,
Sri Dham Mayapur, District Nadia
West Bengal, India, 741313

Donate: https://tovp.org/donate/seva-opportunities/general-donation-india/
Phone: +91 908-343-3981
Email: tovpinfo@gmail.com

For Donations and Inquiries in the U.S.:

Mailing Address for Donations (checks payable to TOVP Foundation):

TOVP Foundation, Inc.
PO Box 609
Alachua, Florida 32616

Tax Exempt EIN #: 81-1806953

Guidestar Member: www.guidestar.org

Donate: https://tovp.org/donate/seva-opportunities/general-donation/
Phone: +1 386-462-9000
Email: tovpfoundation@gmail.com

For International Donations and Inquiries:

Donate Now
UK Donors

Email: tovpinfo@gmail.com

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