Hare Krishna Movement
The Hare Krishna Movement inspires spiritual growth through devotion, chanting, and the teachings of Lord Krishna, promoting peace and a joyful way of life.
Our Founder Acharya
Srila Prabhupada is the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). Born in 1896 in Calcutta, India, he dedicated his life to spreading the teachings of Krishna consciousness to the Western world. In 1965, he traveled to New York City and began a spiritual revolution, introducing the Hare Krishna mantra and the practice of Bhakti Yoga to a global audience. His teachings and writings, including the Bhagavad-Gita As It Is and the Srimad-Bhagavatam, have inspired millions of people around the world.
His Life and Teachings
Prabhupada was born in 1896 in Calcutta, India, and was named Abhay Charan De. During his working years, he managed pharmaceutical businesses across India.
In 1950, at the age of 54, he chose to retire from family life to focus on spiritual study and writing. He moved to the sacred city of Vrindavan, where he lived modestly in the historic Radha-Damodara Mandir temple. In 1959, he embraced the renounced order of life (sannyasa) and was given the title Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. While residing at Radha-Damodara, he began his monumental project: translating and commenting on the 18,000 verses of the Srimad-Bhagavatam.
In 1965, at the age of 69, Srila Prabhupada (as he came to be known) embarked on a cargo ship to the United States to spread Krishna Consciousness. Arriving in New York City nearly penniless, he faced significant challenges during his first year. Despite the hardships, he founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in July 1966. Under his leadership, the Society expanded rapidly, growing within a decade into a global network of over 100 temples, schools, institutes, and farm communities. In his final decade, despite his advancing age, Srila Prabhupada traveled the globe 12 times, delivering lectures across six continents. He initiated over 5,000 disciples from diverse backgrounds and introduced the Ratha Yatra festival to major cities worldwide.
Srila Prabhupada authored over 60 volumes of translations, commentaries, and summaries of India’s classical philosophical and religious texts. Renowned for their depth and clarity, his works are widely used as reference materials in college courses and have been translated into 20 languages. To ensure the widespread dissemination of his teachings, he established the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust in 1972, which has since become the world’s largest publisher of books on Indian religion and philosophy. Today, Srila Prabhupada is celebrated as one of India’s most prominent spiritual leaders of the 20th century.
Srila Prabhupada’s Timeline
1896
Born in Calcutta, India
1922
Meets his spiritual master for the first time on a rooftop in Calcutta
1933
Becomes a disciple of his guru Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati
1944
Publishes the first ‘Back to Godhead’ magazine that still continues to this day
1956
Moves to Vrindavan and begins translating Srimad Bhagavatam, his magnum opus
1959
Accepts the renounced order of life
1965
Travels to America on a cargo ship and has 2 heart attacks on the way
1966
Establishes ISKCON in New York
1977
Passes away from this world after establishing 108 Temples and spreading the teachings all over the world
GBC
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder-Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), established the Governing Body Commission (GBC) to be the ultimate managing authority for the society. In ISKCON’s Direction of Management written on July 28, 1970, Srila Prabhupada states:
“As we have increased our volume of activities, now I think a Governing Body Commission (hereinafter referred to as the GBC) should be established. I am getting old, 75 years old, therefore at any time I may be out of the scene, therefore I think it is necessary to give instruction to my disciples how they shall manage the whole institution. They are already managing individual centers represented by one president, one secretary and one treasurer, and in my opinion they are doing nice. But we want still more improvement in the standard of temple management, propaganda for Krishna consciousness, distribution of books and literatures, opening of new centers and educating devotees to the right standard.”
Srila Prabhupada reaffirmed the position of the GBC in his final will drafted in June, 1977:
“The Governing Body Commission (GBC) will be the ultimate managing authority of the entire International Society for Krishna Consciousness.”
Through legal documents, training, and discourse, Srila Prabhupada clearly identified the GBC as the highest managerial body in ISKCON. At present, the GBC body has thirty-four members who are individually responsible for overseeing the management and spiritual standards of ISKCON centers in assigned geographic regions. GBC members also supervise specific projects, initiatives, and ministries. Following the instructions of Srila Prabhupada, the GBC body convenes yearly in Mayapur, West Bengal for their Annual General Meeting, during which time they discuss proposals, specific issues and projects within ISKCON, and pass resolutions by way of a voting process.
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