ISKCON Prabhupada Village
About temple of the Holy Name

Prabhupada Village, home of the ISKCON Temple of the Holy Name, Festival of India and the Bhaktivedanta Archives and comprised of 365 acres, is situated in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in N. Carolina, 40 miles north of Winston-Salem and 60 miles north of Greensboro. The area is breathtakingly beautiful with lush, rolling hills and covered with vast and varied trees. Snow Creek casually winds its way throughout the property and the forests abound with wildlife, wild herbs, fruits, and flowers. One can see every star at night for there are no street lights (and no sidewalks). As night turns into day, one can hear the sounds of humming bees and the singing of various birds.

The village was begun in 1992 when Madhuha dasa purchased the property (subdivided it and sold parcels of land) with the aspiration to fulfill the desires of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the Founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). Srila Prabhupada wanted the devotees to live a more self-sufficient lifestyle while protecting the cows and bulls and to develop varnasrama, where those in society would work according to their natural propensities and serve Krishna or God. Srila Prabhupada also desired that there would be gurukulas (schools) in the country, where it is more favorable for practicing Krishna consciousness - away from the passions of city life – and where the children could be raised and taught in a natural, healthy environment.

The beginning days of Prabhupada Village tested everyone’s determination and patience as there was much to be done. Within a short time, two bright and spacious classrooms manifested and families began to move to the village. The school grew. Everyone helped build new dwellings, each of which had its own architectural flavor. The interior roads were named Prabhupada Rd., Seeta Dr., Rama Rd., and Krishna Rd., all of which are on the county maps. The local people have considered Prabhupada Village an integral part of Stokes County and friendly relations with the county residents continue to this day, especially because of all the prasadam (sanctified food) that has been distributed.

Although desirous of having a magnificent temple on the land which Madhuha dasa had donated and where one day beautiful deities could be installed, the devotees in Prabhupada Village met at one family’s house for programs for the first six years. In 1997-98, after much planning, the temple blueprints were drawn up by Vatsal dasa and others and ground was broken in 1998. Mukunda dasa, who lived in the community with his family, was a contractor expert in polysteel (block) construction.

The building was framed-in using polysteel blocks, which were extremely durable and easy to work with - so easy in fact, that the children helped to build the temple as if they were putting legos together! The polysteel was then filled with concrete. A local manufacturer of faux stones volunteered to custom make and donate the stones for the exterior of the temple.

In the beginning – and although a challenge – both the residents and generous donors helped to build the temple. Programs have gone on since 2005 and although work on the temple slowed down after some years, it has again picked up and a lot of the interior work has been done. Those who visit are awed by the beauty of the project.

Temple of the Holy Name is a member of ISKCON, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, and this site, iskconpv.org, is the official website for the temple. On May 8, 2016, beautiful 4 1/2' Gaura-Nitai Deities (Parama Karuna Nitai Gaurasundara) were installed in the temple. Please come for a visit! Hare Krsna.

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE:

The primary objective and purpose of the TEMPLE OF THE HOLY NAME is to advance, propagate, and disseminate the universal science of Krishna Consciousness as taught by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder-Acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who is Krishna Himself, appeared on Earth (1486-1534) to reveal to us the simple and sublime methods of reviving our dormant relationship with Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as taught in the Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. Lord Chaitanya also introduced the Yuga Dharma or the most effective means of making spiritual advancement in the present age, which is known as sankirtana, or the congregational chanting of the Lord's Holy Name. Srila Prabhupada therefore wanted us 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 and achieve real unity and peace in the world. We do this by bringing people to the temple to discuss the revealed scriptures, to engage in chanting the Holy Name, to worship the Deity form of Krishna, and to engage in different types of devotional activities meant for the pleasure of Lord Sri Krishna. The temple is also quite naturally the epicenter of profuse distribution of prasadam (delicious, sanctified foodstuffs) which has been prepared and offered to the Lord with love and devotion as well as the distribution of transcendental literatures, which are the basis of our teachings.

Because the TEMPLE OF THE HOLY NAME is situated in a rural community, we also have the profound opportunity to teach a simpler, more natural way of life by growing our own food, protecting and demonstrating the usefulness of the cows and bulls (oxen), as well as other important aspects of Vedic culture.

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1283 Prabhupada Road, Sandy Ridge, NC 27046
(336) 593-2322
© 2024 ISKCON Temple of the Holy Name