Would you like to visit a large and beautiful temple near an equally large and beautiful beach? If so, then the ISKCON temple in Los Angeles is for you! Named New Dwarka and featuring the presiding deities, Their Lordships Sri Sri Rukmini-Dwarkadisa, the Los Angeles International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple and ashram compound is less than three miles from the world famous Venice Beach. Set in a residential area just off of Venice Boulevard, it has eight buildings for the accommodation of devotees and two large buildings that house the temple itself and the offices of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, ISKCON’s publishing and book distribution branch.

The Grounds

The temple building itself is extremely ornate, displaying what the devotees call “the Opulence of the Divine.” It houses the temple room, in which the Deities can be viewed and worshiped at regular times. In addition to the temple room, there is a vegetarian buffet and Govinda’s International Imports, a Mecca-like gift shop for all your Bhakti Yoga needs. Also on site is a large multimedia exhibit depicting scenes from the Bhagavad-Gita.

Daily Activities

The ISKCON devotees practice Bhakti Yoga, a form of yoga which focuses on devotional service to God. This service includes feeding, bathing, and clothing the Deities; distributing blessed food, called prasadam, to the public; the study of scriptures; and the singing and chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra:

Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama
Rama Rama, Hare Hare

Every Sunday, just like in ISKCON temples around the world, there is a vegetarian feast, with delicious foods all lovingly prepared by the temple devotees. The festivities kick off with a priest making an offering to the deities in a ceremony known as arati. Then follows a short class in the Bhagavad-Gita, one of many Hindu scriptures. Afterward, the food is served, and it is well worth the wait! The party really gets going with another arati done at the same time as a kirtan. This is a high-energy form of worship with drums, cymbals, and all kinds of noise makers. Everyone chants and sings the Hare Krishna maha-mantra while dancing around like their lives depended on it. Everyone is invited to join in. After another arati, everyone goes home, stuffed, exhausted, and dizzy from devotion.

The temple daily schedule offers many opportunities to view the Deities or simply to be present for an offering and a daily scripture class:

• 4:30am — Mangala Arati
• 7:00am — Shringara-darshan and Guru puja. The Shringara-darshan is known as the “Greeting of the Deities” and features music written by George Harrison. The Guru puja is an offering to the founder and Guru of ISKCON.
• 7:45am — Srimad Bhagavatam class. This is the scripture class, which focuses on the Srimad Bhagavatam, a 15-volume work that expounds on the ideas presented in the Bhagavad-Gita.
• 12:00pm — Raj-bhoga Arati
• 4:30pm — Arati
• 6:30pm — Sundara Arati
• 8:00pm — Sayana Arati

Our Comments

For spiritual history buffs, Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder of ISKCON, based his western world headquarters here for most of his final years. He spent much of his time here during the late 1960s and early 1970s, busy with book translation, writing, and lecturing to college professors and scientists. He personally founded the temple at this location in 1970, performing the opening ceremony himself. If you like your spirituality to be potent, this destination is sure to get your devotional blood pumping!

Visiting Hours & Location

Just off of Venice Boulevard on Watseka avenue, the ISKCON LA temple is one of the easiest to find temples in the U.S., located just minutes from Downtown Los Angeles and from Venice Beach.

ISKCON of Los Angeles
3764 Watseka Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90034