Karuna Bhavan (ISKCON Scotland)

Karuna Bhavan or ‘Sanctuary of Peace’, is a space for people from all walks of life to practice a more loving and compassionate way of living. Run by the Hare Krishna community in Scotland since 1987,it is being developed as a holistic spiritual centre, to help re-establish the sacredness of life. This is done principally by following a lifestyle based on the motto of ‘simple living, high thinking’.

Temple History
Diety
Daily Poojas And Festivals
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Additional Information

The first ISKCON temple to be established in Scotland was in Dundee in 1971, which was then moved to Edinburgh in 1972. The temple relocated in 1981 to Glasgow.

It was only in 1986 that the temple, now in Lesmahagow, took a secure footing and has grown from the initial three monks, to 40 local members with hundreds of supporters and thousands of well wishers. The original small temple was called Karuna Bhavan, which is the Sanskrit name for Abode of Compassion, and has developed into what is now a flourishing eco farm, spiritual education centre and a wonderful place for retreats.

The popular Gouranga campaign in North England and Scotland – ‘Call out Gouranga Be Happy’ is after Lord Gouranga or the Golden One. Lord Nityananda, Lord Gouranga’s eternal and intimate associate is All Merciful who sees the good in all and helps aid our spiritual progress. He moves us closer in our devotion to Lord Gouranga, avatar of both Lord Krishna and His consort Shrimati Radharani, who appeared 500 years ago in a small town in eastern India called Mayapur, currently in West Bengal, India. Lord Gouranga is also known as Shri Chaitanya Mahapraphu who gave a powerful impetus for a massive bhakti (devotional) movement throughout India. Under His direction hundreds of volumes on the philosophy of Krishna Consciousness were compiled. And the sankirtana movement or congregational chanting of the holy name – Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare is being furthered and followed all over the world in His footsteps.

Early Morning 04:30 – 05:00
Morning 07:00 – 07:45
Late Morning 08:10 – 12:00
Afternoon 12:30 – 18:30
Evening 19:00 – 19:30

Some of the major festivals celebrated annually include Ram Navmi, Janmashtami, Shivratri, Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi and Diwali. Marking the Hindu New Year, Diwali is one of the grandest Hindu festivals, and attracts many visitors and devotees to the mandir.

Lesmahagow, a quiet village founded by monks in the 12th Century is again home to monks but of a different order. In 1987 Hare Krishna monks moved into a humble property in Lesmahagow not far from Glasgow. With the motto ‘simple living, high thinking’, they began to develop an ambitious program and turned the site into a state-of-the-art Eco-Farm.

East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow MP, Michael McCann, opened the Farm’ this week. Michael was guest of honour at the event, which was also attended by Margaret Morton and Susan Haughey, Deputy Lord Lieutenants of Lanarkshire, local councillors Alec McInnes and George Greenshields and many local and national guests.