Srila Prabhupada: Now, this place I see, although I have not seen all, is a nice place. And the grhasthas may come here, have some small cottage, and grow your own food grains, vegetables, and have your cow's milk. Get nice foodstuff, save time. Why should you go in the city, hundred miles in car and again hundred miles come back and take unnecessary trouble? Stick to this spot and grow your own food, your own cloth, and live peacefully, save time, chant Hare Krsna. Very nice program. This is actual life. (Srimad-Bhagavatam Lecture, New Talavan, August 1, 1975) 

*************************

Dear Devotees,

Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

This project is an attempt to help establish and support rural agrarian communities and provide a basis for further spiritual and social development as instructed by Srila Prabhupada.  Every farm community in ISKCON is unique and could be considered an experiment. To establish these communities it does not matter what role you play in society - anyone ready to cooperate to fulfill Srila Prabhupada's desire is welcome.

No project will suit everyone’s needs and desires.  Please read everything carefully. We are looking for anyone who is favorable, has a good attitude, and who wants to establish such communities for themselves, for the general public, and for the future. There is considerable knowledge and cooperation required, as well as hard work, finances, and dedication.

We will accept anyone as long as they are strict vegetarians or vegans, do not take intoxicants, and are ready to cooperate together.  Eating meat is harmful to the environment in many ways, it requires far more land, and is therefore completely contrary to all principles of ecology and sustainability. On this basis we cannot accept anyone who is not vegan or vegetarian. Taking intoxication is simply a recipe for interpersonal disaster, and is similarly not conducive to spiritual advancement.

We want people with positive attitudes.  Many people interested in spiritual life try to maintain positive attitudes, and shun negativity in their lives. We invite people to share a real lifestyle that is most conducive to spiritual advancement, regardless of religious conviction. Participation is not limited to the followers or members of a particular sect, religion or philosophy in the eyes of the public. Srila Prabhupada even said to include homeless people.

Developing relationships, and planning extensively prior to getting land is the most important part of our model.  Current social or occupational roles are not very important. Full implementation of varnashram social structures may not be possible, but whatever degree is possible must begin by growing our own food and by a positive devotional attitude. From there all the parts of the social body will be physically and spiritually nourished, and continue to develop naturally. As a community develops, the need for all the various roles will gradually manifest and can be filled naturally, not by force, from within that community.

Those who don't want to "get their hands dirty" or who consider themselves scholars or brahmanas should not hold back until a community is well developed, as there may not be room. We will not exceed the carrying capacity of the land. Particular roles and functions needed within the community are expected to change over time and will be filled first by those living there.

Additionally, a brahmana can accept the role of a vaisya or a ksatriya. The brahmana grhasthas in Vedic society often had a cow, a small cottage, and a small garden. Having a garden does not make one a vaisya. A brahmana should certainly have a garden and a cow, but his primary service to the other members of society will not be providing food. Yet at the same time the grhasthas - regardless of varna - are supposed to maintain the other ashrams in society, and householders should always be inviting others to their home for prasadam, and distributing it profusely.

To think that a grhastha brahmana would have a cow and a cottage, which Srila Prabhupada clearly indicated, and not have some kind of garden does not make sense. Not every brahmana grhastha lived like this, but many did.

Srila Prabhupada gave hundreds of instructions that he wanted all devotees to live in this way, regardless of varna, by living simply and growing their food.  The cities are only for preaching and helping others take up spiritual life. We will provide dozens of such quotes in various presentations. 

Srila Prabhupada said children, women, brahmanas, and the elderly should be protected.  Such protection includes providing a safe environment conducive to spiritual life. We also advise background checks and/or checking references for all those desiring to live in a community. 

Two instructions are paramount: "Your love for me will be shown by how you cooperate together" and "Do the needful". These should be the motto for all communities. Forming such communities will require education, planning, and especially coming together as a group of people to learn about each other, develop relationships, and work together cooperatively to do what is needed. Without cooperation, and doing what is needed at the time, nothing can possibly work. 

Everyone is welcome, from all ashrams (stages of life), including those who feel they do not fit into any particular stage.  Community ashrams (for single people) are generally linked with a temple, and a typical community will not be constructing temples and ashrams in the early stages of development. A developing community would be very happy to accommodate brahmacaris or brahmacarinis (or qualified single people) in one or more of the houses before a temple is built. Once a community is developed there will be suitable accommodations for everyone, including guests and visitors. In addition, we will also have a certain category of members who will not reside in the community. (See the pages in the Membership section.)

If you have a positive attitude, are ready to live in the country, grow a reasonable portion of your food, and are ready to cooperate together and do the needful, please consider joining us.  We are not doing this to make a profit or create a business enterprise, but to please Srila Prabhupada by establishing some of the things he said were extremely important, including the development of such communities, various cultural projects, and ultimately, a new society.   

We welcome the opportunity to share ideas with existing communities in North America.  The approach we are using is community development by shared cooperation and agreement. We believe that a community is meant to have a community structure, and an ISKCON temple is meant to have an organizational structure. A temple can be a part of the organizational structure of ISKCON, which is a vertical management structure, but the community structure is separate from that.

We feel it is vital to also establish new communities, for several reasons - 1) we need many more of such communities everywhere, 2) ownership structures and layouts of some existing communities are not suitable for many purposes, 3) the management structure of some existing communities does not enable long-term social or community development, and 4) the location of some existing communities is less desirable for developing long-term sustainability. 

Most of this web site is designed so that anyone can read it.  Even varnashram can be described using terms understood by all. Aside from this section ("For Devotees") all the other sections describe everything in general terms to make it more accessible to people.

We offer our humble obeisances and express our deepest gratitude to Srila Prabhupada for everything, including the opportunity to serve the Vaishnavas.  We hope you will be pleased with our endeavors, and we pray for your blessings, your support, and your loving cooperation. 

Next - Srila Prabhupada