Devotee Care Seminar

The proposed Devotee Care Seminar will be a synopsis of the following GBC approved Devotee Care Course.

Devotee Care Course

(DCC) is an initiative of the ISKCON GBC Strategic Planning Team with an aim to "Embed the Culture of Care" within the devotee communities. Many devotees have left our movement or have become inactive, primarily due to the feeling of not being cared for. So this course has been designed, with the purpose that those who have come to the lotus feet of Krishna and Prabhupada may positively identify themselves with ISKCON as a caring society and thus remain active in KC till the last moment of their lives.

COURSE OUTLINE

The course is divided into four parts.

• What is Devotee Care and it's Scope.
• Why is Devotee Care important?
• Who is responsible?
• How to practically and effectively care for the devotees.
  It's a highly interactive worship involving debates, group activities, presentations etc.
  
  

BENEFITS OF THE COURSE

The course will lay down the foundation for developing vibrant devotee communities with Prabhupada and Krishna in the centre.
It aims at developing - Matured understanding of Devotee Care - Conviction of it's importance - Skills to practically care for the devotees. - Strategic plan for effective implementation.
The course also aims to bring mutual respect, unity and cooperative spirit amongst the devotees, especially leaders.

DURATION AND PARTICIPANTS

The duration of the course is 18 hours, out of which 9 hours is the interactive facilitation and 9 hours is for preparing and presenting the strategic plans on real life aspects of Devotee Care within the local community.
The course is primarily meant for the leaders at all levels and can be conducted effectively in person. The number of participants are restricted between 15 to 30 to be able to allow a close a personal interaction with everyone.

PRESENTERS

Damodar Das has been a faculty at "Bhaktivedanta Vidyapitha" for teaching Bhagavad Gita, Srimad Bhagavatam and Chaitanya Caritamrita at the award winning Govardhan Eco Village, since it's very beginning in 2012.
He also teaches Bhakti Shastri, Bhakti Vaibhava, Bhakti Vedanta and Teachers training Course at ISKCON's international headquarter based Mayapur Institute.
He has been serving in various leadership roles for over last two decades at ISKCON Chowpatty and Govardhan Eco Village. He conduct Leadership training courses at the ILEADS, meant to train the next generation of Leadership.
He is member of the Global and National Devotee Care Team and travels widely to facilitate Devotee Care Course, an initiative of ISKCON GBC. He also inspires and guides the leaders in practical implementation of Devotee Care within their communities.
He holds a B.Tech and M.Tech degree in Mechanical Engineering from the India's most prestigious University, IIT Bombay.
Under his guidance, the Kitchen at ISKCON Chowpatty and Govardhan Eco Village is ISO 22000 certified. His kitchen team has been successfully organizing "Mega Yatra kitchen on Wheels" feeding ~10k devotees daily in Annual Kartik Yatras and ~50k pilgrims everyday in Kumbh Melas. In person, he is also well known for his sweet culinary skills.

MADAN SUNDAR DAS

Madan Sundar Das is an educator, mentor, and community builder committed to devotee care and spiritual outreach. As the General Manager of ISKCON Pune, Hinjewadi, and Director of **Evolve Pune**, he has pioneered corporate outreach programs, nurtured a thriving congregation, and laid the foundation for an upcoming ISKCON temple.
Academically, he holds a Master’s degree from Ohio State University and has professional experience as a Research Scientist at Juniper Networks, USA. His corporate experience has given him deep insights into leadership, management, and organizational development.
As a teacher of Bhakti Shastri, Bhakti Vaibhava, and Teacher Training Courses, he helps devotees deepen their understanding of Krishna consciousness. Additionally, he is a facilitator of the Devotee Care Course (DCC), guiding individuals and community leaders in implementing structured devotee care systems.
He also conducts a Leadership and Management course at ILEADS, equipping individuals with practical skills for effective leadership, strategic planning, and organizational development.
With a practical approach to mentorship and community-building, his mission is to make Bhakti-yoga accessible, practical, and relevant, ensuring that devotees stay inspired, connected, and thrive in their spiritual journey.