Reading some letters from jail will convince you that the prison environment can be a fertile ground to develop self realization and devotion to Krishna. To expand our preaching effort, we need help with the following tasks:

• Database Development
• Administrator for Correspondence Courses
• Book Donations
• Collecting Prison Addresses

• IPM is actively arranging for leading preachers to visit prisons and lead prison preaching programs. We encourage inmates to organize these programs with at least five to ten people attending. Please give us sufficient notice and instructions on how to co-ordinate such a program and we will be delighted and eager to hold a Krishna consciousness sat-sanga program.

  Param vijayate Sri Krishna sankirtanam

  Contact bhakta Jerry with details.

• If any inmates need a copy of Tirtha Prabhu's The Definitive Guide to Practicing Krishna Consciousness in Prison, or, if you are in need of Srila Prabhupada's books in Spanish, or, if you are in need of CDs or cassette tapes of lectures and bhajans, please contact bhakta Jerry.

• IPM is now offering deity altar pictures for those inmates who are willing to take on the responsibility of deity worship within their facility. This nice altar set comes compliments of Candramauli Swami and has all the altar pictures necessary on a nice 8.5 by 11 inch cardstock paper. We are also providing descriptions and prayers to help inmates properly worship their deities. For an altar set please contact bhakta Jerry.

[Post ends here.]

Today I received the following email, asking for IPM contacts in Australia. Personally I don't know any, and have forwarded the letter to Bhakta Jerry, my main contact at IPM. But perhaps there are devotees in Australia who would like to establish a relationship with a newly imprisoned fellow-devotee? Here's the email:

Prabhu,

Do you know if any preaching in prisons such as you are participating in is happening in Australia? If so could you please provide some contact details for me. I know of a devotee who has just been imprisoned and would appreciate some guidance in how I can help him.

Hare Krsna!
YS

If you would like to get involved, or know somebody who might, please comment to this post, or write to me at: phani@namahatta.org.

your servant,

phanisvara das

After having a substantial discourse with one of my favorite senior god brothers, friend, and disciple of srila Prabhupada, Chandra Shekar Prabhu and I labored over the future prospects of the IPM (ISKCON Prison Ministry). How do we meet the demands of a growing inmate populace with a fixed number of IPM volunteers?

Due to my great fortune I was honored to tackle this issue with one of the pioneers of IPM. Hence, we appropriated the slogan "We're looking for a few good men," and replaced "men" with the word "vaisnavas." Naturally, this slogan morphed into a mission statement which spawned our desire to meet the needs of the most fallen and often neglected, "the prisoners within the prison, within the prison."

SKCON Prison Ministries is in need of old 'Back to Godhead' magazines. We get many requests from inmates for these beautiful magazines which are like touchstones in the dull environment of prison. If you have old copies sitting aroudn collecting dust please help us out. We would be willing to purchase them as well.

Contact bhakta Jerry at 773 808 1438 or bhaktajerry@gmail.com.

Thank you,
Bhakta Jerry

The Prison in Atascadero, Calif is looking for a devotee to go into the prison twice a month and give classes to the inmates there. If anyone is interested please contact Mother Shyama Priya, ISKCON Prison Ministry shyamapriya@aol.com 352-870-5489

[Post ends here.]

Srila Prabhupada writes in his commentary on Sri Isopanisad, mantra 11: “The …advancement of material knowledge for sense gratification is the path of repeated birth and death.” The culture of vidya, or transcendental knowledge is essential for the human being to get out of the diseased material condition of life. What exactly is transcendental knowledge?

by Bhakta Bruce

As is often said in regard to alcoholics and drug abusers, a person is hardly ready to give up his addiction until he has hit rock bottom. It is when Maya kicks so hard that he is ready to give up his sense gratification.

When is the best time to preach to a person? Is it when he is enjoying like a king, or when he has nothing or next to nothing? And in what circumstances does the living entity become favorable to hear that what he has considered pleasure is nothing but really pain?

Perhaps the best time to preach the miseries of birth, death, old age and disease is when the living entity finds himself behind bars, in a prison house within the prison house of this material world.

I hope this third issue of our IPM Freedom Newsletter for 2006 meets you in Krsna consciousness. We have several wonderful essays by inmates to share with everyone. There is a success story from bhaktin Bonnie who went to prison on a mission to spread Krsna consciousness. Tirtha dasa has contributed the story of Jagai and Madhai which is very applicable to our situations. He gives us practical advice on how and why to follow the four regulations. Jana Janmadi dasa explains the history and significance of Pandava Nirjala Ekadasi which falls on June 7th this year. Please observe this day of fasting. An IPM volunteer, Upendra dasa, informs us of the significance of the Holy Names.

Please continue sending me essays, poems and especially artwork. We are in need of inmate artwork. This is a wonderful opportunity to engage your talents in devotional service.

IPM is now on the web at www.iskconprisonministry.com. The site is still under construction but please visit us if you can. We will display inmate artwork and have resources for volunteers.

If you are a volunteer or financial supporter, please get in touch with me via email, jerryschutt at hotmail.com, so I can send out announcements via email.

Thanks to everyone for this wonderful service opportunity. Hare Krsna

By Bhakta Jerry

ISKCON Prison Ministries

bhakti te mukti - Devotion is real freedom

(Submitted by Bhakta Jerry.)

The ISKCON Prison Ministries have been giving Krishna consciousness to inmates in prisons all over the world for over 18 years. Candrasekhara dasa heads these ministries, which started as a way for him to preach as a householder. Responding to hundreds of letters and inquiries every year, he has kept the ministries going all these years, through many difficulties and with very little help.

Many people are looking for Krishna while incarcerated. The ISKCON Prison Ministries are helping them find Him by sending books, tapes, Back To Godhead magazines, videos, japa beads. Some inmates, guided by the ministries, have been able to take shelter of a guru. Many prisoners never had association of devotees before meeting them through the ministries. Some have never visited a temple, but are looking forward to it after they are released. Somehow or other finding a book and writing to a temple or the BBT, they were at last connected to the ministries.