In 1971, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada visited the USSR and planted the seed of Krishna consciousness. Krishna consciousness is the essence of Hinduism, also known as Sanatan Dharma. In the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna says that He is the Supreme goal of the Vedas, Vedanta, and Vedic culture. Prabhupada was on a closely supervised visit in those days, but he managed to preach to a young man named Ivan, and initiated him giving him the name Ananta Shanti Das. After Prabhupada's visit, Ananta Shanti preached all over the USSR. Many developments took place over the years regarding the history of spreading Krishna consciousness in Russia with much service and sacrifice by many devotees of Krishna, and today in Russia there are people who subscribe to the philosophy of Krishna consciousness numbering in the millions. If you are interested in learning this philosophy, you can read Srila Prabhupada's books free online at the Bhaktivedanta Vedabase. Also, the institution that Prabhupada established is perhaps the largest in the world today that propagates the complete culture of Sanatan Dharma. It is called the International Society for Krishna Consciousness or ISKCON. Today ISKCON has around 1000 temples and cultural centers in many countries around the world. You can visit these centers to learn about and practice Krishna consciousness. You can also practice Krishna consciousness in your own home or anywhere you live. In this modern age, the central focus among Krishna conscious activities is the chanting of the Holy Names of The Supreme Personality of Godhead, via the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare/ Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare 🙏🏼
