Caitanya Bhavan, 2nd Floor
ISKCON Mayapur +91 3472-245480
A joint educational initiative of the Mayapur Deity Department
and ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry
Student Information
Letter from the Director
Welcome to Mayapur Academy at ISKCON Mayapur.
Mayapur Academy was established in 2007 and since then many international students have studied with us and returned back to their temples and homes equipped with new knowledge, skills and values that will enable them to more effectively engage in deity worship and develop brahminical qualities.
Our annual Diploma Course is offered currently in English medium with simultaneous Russian language translation.
The teachers at Mayapur Academy are dedicated ISKCON members who assist students to achieve their learning goals as quickly and effectively as possible. The course offered by Mayapur Academy is well designed and employs dynamic educational methodology to provide the best possible learning experience for students.
We value our students and take pride in assisting them to achieve their goals. We aim for excellence and appreciate feedback which will help us to continually improve our course and service.
On behalf of the staff of Mayapur Academy, I wish all of our students a Krsna conscious and productive learning experience here at Mayapur Academy.
Nrsimha Kavaca dasa,
Mayapur Academy Director
Student Conduct
As a student at Mayapur Academy, you are expected to maintain the highest degree of Vaisnava conduct both in and out of the classroom, commitment to learning, and active participation in classroom activities.
HONESTY POLICY & PROCEDURES
The principles of truth and honesty are recognized as fundamental qualities of a brahmana. Mayapur Academy expects that both students and faculty will honor these principles, and in so doing, will protect the integrity of academic work and student grades. Students and staff of Mayapur Academy are held to the following honor code:
“I agree to conduct all service/activities with integrity, which will (thereby) enhance/foster the ethics of brahminical life. On my honor, I pledge that I have neither given nor received unwarranted assistance.”
Student Resources
Mayapur Academy offers a library with books in multiple languages. The library does not offer any resources on loan. No library property may leave the library.
Build Rapport
As you will find, building rapport and effective relationships are key to becoming an effective student. Mayapur Academy encourages its students to develop friendships and study groups amongst each other for assisting in the learning process.
Sādhana
Śrīla Prabhupāda stressed sādhana, saying it is necessary for advancement in devotional service. This is no less important for pūjārīs. In a lecture Śrīla Prabhupāda says:
Without hearing, what he will do, nonsense? Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam, this is our main business. Śravaṇam. If you don’t hear, what you will do? You will do simply sense gratification. That’s all.
So this is difficulty, that we are not very much interested in hearing. And that is the main business. Our bhakti begins: śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. We have to hear and we have to speak. But if we are not interested in hearing and speak, then it will be the same ṭhākura-bari, simply formula. That’s all. And gradually it will be stopped. Unless there is life of śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam, these big, big buildings, temples, will become burden. So if we are, if we want to create burden for future, then we may give up this hearing and chanting and sleep very nicely. It will be burden. Galagraha. Not śrī-vigraha, but galagraha. Galagraha. Śrī-vigraha means worshipable Deity. So if we give up this śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ, then it will be thought that “Our Guru Mahārāja has given a burden in the neck, galagraha.” This is the danger. So we must be very much alert in śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam. Otherwise all this labor will be futile. This building will be only the nest, nest for the doves and the pigeons. That is the danger.
Māyāpur, September 29, 1974
Therefore, Mayapur Academy students are expected to attend the full morning program from maṅgala-ārati through through Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam class. Student attendance is peer-monitored and is incorporated into grades for course units. Sādhana counts 5% toward your total grade. Failure to score at least 60% for sādhana results in an incomplete performance of the course unit.
Scoring method
On-time – 1
Late/leave early – 0.5
Absent – 0
Dress
Students are required to wear traditional devotional attire. Dhotīs with chaddars and/or kūrtās/t-shirts for men and saris for women. Yogi pants and gopī skirts are not acceptable.
Cleaning seva
Our students maintain the cleanliness of Mayapur Academy. Every morning (and as necessary) students are required to clean in teams for an assigned area for a few minutes prior to starting class. The cleaning performance is assessed both by faculty as well as via peer reviews by other students you serve with.
Assessment Methods
Both written and practical assessment methods are used. In most units, there will be written homework, exams, and essays. Additionally, units such as Temple Worship 1 and Cooking involve a practical performance of what has been taught.
Homework
In order to properly facilitate our serving you, we humbly request that all homework and assessments are clearly labeled with your name and topic of the paper – i.e. which homework assignment or essay it is. Unless the papers are clearly labeled they will not be assessed.
- Due – the first class of that unit on the next day unless otherwise specified.
- Clearly labeled – clearly label each page of all homework with your name, page number, which lesson it is from and the topic of the paper, i.e. which homework assignment it is as the header for the paper. Unless the papers are clearly labeled they will not be accepted and you will receive no mark. If the questions are numbered please number your answers. It is preferable that you write the question before your answer. If you are writing your answers in Russian, please write your name and topic in English.
- Legible – Please write legibly, if it cannot be read, it cannot be assessed.
- Paper – please use the paper provided by Mayapur Academy.
If you find that you have trouble keeping up with assignments or other aspects of the course, make sure to inform your instructor(s) as soon as possible.
Being on time for ārati means being present before the conch blows. Attending the full ārati means not leaving before the conch blows. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam class officially ends at 8:45am, therefore students may leave then in order to have ample time to honor breakfast prasādam and take care of any personal needs prior to arriving at Mayapur Academy.
Class Participation and Conduct
Class participation and conduct is an important part of learning. We encourage everyone to participate in the classroom activities and encourage devotees to participate in a Vaiṣṇava manner. Relationships are an important part of devotional service and are developed by observing appropriate protocol or etiquette.
Punctuality
To be on time means arriving before the start of a class or any other event with a start time. Any devotee arriving later will be marked as late. If we receive notice beforehand, with a reasonable excuse, your attendance points for the day will be higher than if you were simply to arrive late without prior notice.
If you contact us beforehand with a reasonable excuse for being late or not attending a class, you will receive 50% of the punctuality mark for that day provided the instructor receives written notification at least five minutes before the start of the class. If you are late without sufficient cause you will receive a negative mark -25%. If you fail to come then you will receive a negative mark -50%.
Any devotee who gets less than 50% for the punctuality mark in a unit will fail the unit regardless of how well they perfause of offensive deity worship.
Even though the total punctuality mark only counts for 10% of the total mark in a unit, it is nonetheless vital for effective deity worship. Our purpose here is to practically demonstrate to the devotees the importance of punctuality in deity worship. It is the pūjārī’s personal responsibility to the Lord to turn up on time for deity sevā. If the devotee is unable to turn up on time they are individually responsible to make some suitable, alternative arrangement. It is not the responsibility of anyone else. After all, it is YOUR relationship with Kṛṣṇa.