Kartik Yatra Day 1

October 17, 2008.

In the morning after mangala arati devotees started assembling in the parking area of the temple while more kept coming way past the departure time. I got myself seated in an IYF Bus with Saurabh Prabhu. I had hope to get Ajita Govinda Prabhu's association abut he went in the Sankirtana bus. The bus was full of known, acquaintances, unknown, new and old devotees. It was great. Everyone was excited to go to Sri dhama. There were many students who had just completed their schools and were in 1st year of their graduation. How fortunate they are, getting into Krishna Consciousness so early in their life before they step into the morally corrupting and stressful corporate life. All Glories to Srila Prabhupada and the followers of his mission. (I felt like an old person, for heaven's sake I was in that age 8 years back.)

Faridabad devotees joined us on the way. I stuck a good friendship with one of them, Vaikuntha Murti Prabhu, who I had gone with last year on Srila Prabhupada Disappearance Day. We reached SriDhama by 10:00 AM. After reaching respective ashrams, devotees proceeded towards Phogla Ashram for breakfast. After this there was a lecture scheduled by Sridham Prabhu (ACBSP) where he explained the significance of Spiritual Master-Disciple relationship and the absolute necessity of being surrendered to Guru's instruction rather than acting whimsically on the path of devotion. The MC of the whole 3 day program was HG Vidur Priya Prabhu.

We all went to our ashrams for some rest, to come back for the evening program to the same place. In evening it was H.H. Prabodhananda Saraswati Maharaj and Dinabandhu Prabhu who gave lectures, followed by a delectable feast. VMP and I made it to Krishna Balarama temple just in time for the sandhya arati. The atmosphere was surcharged with exhilaration. Devotees desperately waiting for their lordships to give darshans and the kirtan was gaining tempo. The style of kartalas and mridanga beats, the melody, everything is different in Vrindavan. It is a uniqye style. The darshans opened followed by a roar of Radhe Shyam and Gauranga and Hari Bol by devotees. Deep Dana had started just after the gaura arti and before damodarashtakam.

Muktidata Prabhu was to lead the damodar prayers and the subsequent kirtan. However I went to the Devotee prasadam hall at the back of temple, where senior and resident devotees assemble for offering lamps and singing Damodarashtakam. I had heard about the uniqueness of this program from Gaurav(Blr) Prabhu. The special thing about this place is that after the damodar prayers a special prayer from Bhagvatam sung by the beautiful damsels of Vraja - the Gopi Geet is sung. In the temple hall, Muktidata Prabhu was making devotees jump up and down and dance ecstatically to his Kirtans. I joined back the main group again at 8:45 pm. By this time the congregation of dancing devotees had reach the Samadhi Mandir. There was loud uproar of Jaya Prabhupada Jaya Srila Prabhupada in all directions. The kartalas and midangas made a tumultuous sound which echoed in the Samadhi Mandir. Devotees were in no mood to leave and not a least bit tired. We then returned to our Sleep over bases. IYF boys had stationed at ....... Guesthouse on the Braj Parikrama Marg. Me, Nand Gopal Prabhu, and Saurabh Prabhu then sat talking while sipping hot milk and feasting on the light weight crispy rice. Went to bed late, knowing we had to get up early morning.

श्री वृन्दावन धाम की जय

Prelude to Kartik Yatra

This time I decided to go for Kartik Yatra with Delhi devotees. The yatra was scheduled for 17, 18, and 19 of October. That meant I wouldn't be able to attend any festivals this time around. But this time I was really intent of having association of devotees from Delhi, because otherwise its only 10-15 minutes when I visit temple. Later it came to be known that we will also be missing Guru Maharaj's (H.H. Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaj) personal association, as he would be in Mumbai for RGB meetings.

Finally it was revealed that it was good I decided to go that time, because If I would have delayed my yatra by 1 week, I would have completely missed it. I had to come to Pune for a project one week later for a project.

So I took a flight from Bangalore to Delhi on 15th night. Reached home past midnite. Next day was mostly relaxed and preparation for the yatra. in the eve I went to Radha Parthasarathi Mandir. As this would be the only eve I would get to offer lamp to their lordships. Met many devotees including Ajita Govind Prabhu and Saurabh Prabhu. Had brought Prasadam from Bangalore, so got to opportunity to serve the same to Mohan Rupa Prabhu. I didnt want to go away, but had to. Had to come back early morning the next day to start for yatra.

Reached home, had prasadam and then packed for the yatra and went to bed quite late. Couldn't wate to get up for exciting next 3 days.

Saurabh Pabhu

Saurabh Prabhu

Met him in Pune for the first time when he had come to do his summer internship there. My
misfortune that I could not attend him properly due to my ignorance of such dealings. After that Prabhuji called me several times from Delhi and also invited me once to stay a day in DCE Bace.

It was in Bangalore when Ajita Govinda Prabhu was leaving that I realized that Saurabh prabhu was his junior in DCE and highly revers him. This common thing made me saw a good friend in him. Then gradually over time I got more of his association during Janmashtmi and Kartik Yatra.

In the footsteps of his senior, he also has limitless love and desire for association of his shiksha guru: His Grace Mohan Rupa Prabhu. He has read Srila Prabhupada's small books twice,
Bhagavad Gita, Srimad Bhagavatam (all 12 Cantos) and Sri Caitanya Caritamrita (adi, madhya
and antya lila). He also leads the DCE Bace and is inspiring many boys in DCE for spiritual
life.
Its his greatness that he affords me his friendship, because friendship can be between equals.

krsna se tomara, krsna dite paro,tomara sakati ache
ami to’ kangala, ‘krsna ‘krsna ‘boli’,dhai tava pache pache

Updated on 12 October 2012: He graduated from DCE, went on to start up a venture in partnership with one of his senior. A successful hotshot, featured in one of the business magazines. Right now He is off to foreign lands to pursue further studies.

Ajita Govinda Prabhu

Ajita Govind Prabhu
(Anuj Gupta)

"A Vaishnava is a touchstone" - this statement becomes a matter of fact in association of Ajita Govind Prabhu. His mere presence inspires one to render devotional service to the
Supreme Lord and his devotees.

I met prabhuji in Delhi once, before I moved to Bangalore to stay with him in Surabhi Kunj. He was the first one there who made me feel comfortable as if at home and accompanied me anywhere I wanted to go. He teaches by his behaviour that a devotee does not have even a moment to spare for mundane activities. He was always absorbed in reading Prabhupada books if not rendering any other seva. I never saw him indulging in prajalpa.

His deterred love for his shiksha guru - His Grace Mohan Rupa Prabhu is infectious. It
was because of his mercy that I got in touch with Mohan Rupa Prabhu who so kindly accepted
to guide me. Ajita Govinda Prabhu always instills the idea of glorifying the devotees and their godly qualities which result in cultivating the same qualities in oneself.

My fortune of having his constant association was shortlived as he decided to move to Delhi
for a higher cause. Prabhuji is currently serving at Sri Sri Radha Parthasarathi Mandir,
ISKCON Delhi.

Updated on 12 Oct 2012: He is engaged in school preaching. Organises Gita Saar Contest every year for school childrens and recently published a book on Value Education with help from Paramhansa Pran Prabhu.

Chakravarti Prabhu

Chakravarti Prabhu
(Chandresh Devnani)

Apurva Gopal Prabhu introduced us. He became a very close friend of mine. Though the first time we met was quite funny which would be too much to be described over here. At that time we were both in the final year of our MBA and in same University, different colleges.

I would say it was his dedication and seriousness towards spiritual life which made me stop and check back mine. He has an amazing sincerity towards his shiksha guru (which primarily mean the instructions). It's in him where i see what following an instruction means. He has such great love and devotion to serve and please his spiritual master which I can't even
begin to fathom.

He is an avid reader of Prabhupada books and regularly shares the nectar with all.

Prabhuji is currently working with Wipro, based in Chennai.

Updated on 12 october 2012: He left his job in 2010 and since then as per the instruction of his Guru maharaja, he has joined full time and serving at ISKCON Juhu.

Apurva Gopal Pr

Apurva Gopal Prabhu
(Arun Wadhwani)

His entry into my life was like a hurricane that fast tracked me on the path of devotional service. Met him at the most unexpected place - a Cricket Ground, where we had assembled to watch a Symbiosis cricket match which had been forcefully thrusted upon us. The first conversation we struck and it revived my enthusiasm which had been a little low those days. It would not be an understatement if I would use the word "Overhaul" that he did to my spiritual life. The list of things that I came to do and understood because of his inspiration is inexhaustibly long. Foremost is Chanting 16 rounds and attending Mangala Arati regularly at Pune.

Prabhuji, hails from Bahrain where housed are his most cherishable deities Sri Sri Radha
Parthsarathi. His whole family is initiated. He is an expert cook and an expert deity dresser. Pretty much expert at anything related to devotional service. His enthusiasm is contagious and will catch up with even the most lazy lethargic ignorant person.

Currently he is pursuing Bhakti Shastri course and the final year of his Masters in Business
Administration.

ekaki amara, nahi paya bala,hari-nama-sankirtane
tumi krpa kori: sraddha-bindu diya,deho’ krsna-nama-dhane

Jugal Kishor Prabhu

Jugal Kishor Prabhu

After H.G. Sri Keshav Prabhu left to serve in Sridhama Vrindavan, H.G. Jugal Kishor Prabhu took the charge of our group along with H.G. Jaya Nitai Prabhu. Prabhuji is very gentle, caring and so tolerant of a rascal like me. He took the whole group to Sri Pandharpur dhama.

He knew perfectly well, how much freedom anyone needed and accordingly counseled and preached them. Even when I left Pune, Prabhuji out of his causeless mercy kept in touch and regularly ask me about my sadhna.

Without the constant prayers and wellwishes of pure genuine devotees like Jugal Kishor Prabhu, my spiritual advancement would have suffered the same meltdown that the current global economic situation is facing these days.

All Glories to Jugal Kishor Prabhu and his gentle Vaishnava Qualities.

Ravindra Caitanya Prabhu

Ravindra Caitanya Prabhu

(Rohit Tela)

Caring is the first quality that comes to my mind when I think of him. I met him in the very first Bhaktivriksha session I attended atSri Sri Radha Kunjabihari Temple, ISKCON Pune. He very mercifully dropped me back at my place as I was unaware of the roads of Pune. This practice went for quite long even when I was well aquainted of the routes and buses, answering all my stupid and intelligent questions with a calmness and seriousness that is so rare. He tolerated me While I was a fool, immature neophyte (I still am). He used to help me
understand the most difficult of philosophical points with much ease. The one conversation I had with him about one of the most important question in one's spiritual life: Choosing a Spiritual Master is one of my most cherished memory of him. He gave me very nice instructions in his own humble way to help me tread the path of spirtual advancement without obstruction.

Prabhuji is now attending a Bhakti Shastri course at Mayapur.

Update on 12 Oct 2012: He is serving full time @ Sri Sri Radha Kunjabihari Temple, ISKCON Pune since last 3-4 years now.

Nandgopal Jivan Prabhu

Nandgopal Jivan Das
(Narendra Naulakha)
The first time I saw him was long back when I had just started going to temple. My first ever Sunday class which I went to on my own accord. There he was, a thin looking young boy entering the class somewhat late and taking a big(tht
was really big) register to make notes. It was all a first time experience for me. We got friendly only after I went to pune for MBA and visited back. It was surprising for me. Many devotees who I had not talked to before all came and met me as if I was long known to them. It seemed they missed me, probably they really missed me, but I know in my heart that I had done nothing to deserve that treatment from such nice devotees. I was nothing then (now I am worse). But I guess devotees are like that, ready to spread love and compassion without discrimination. Our friendship gradually developed over time.

Prabhuji is also the acclaimed author and editor of the Krishna Conscious e-Magazine - The Higher Taste, a service he has been rendering at the lotus feet of Sri Sri Radha Parthasarathi under the guidance of H.G. Mohan Rupa Prabhu.

His business makes him travel around India, where he collects many Krishna Conscious stuff that he can lay his hands on.

Very enthusiastic, dedicated and friendly devotee.

Vaishnav Thakur Ki Jai !!!!

Amogha Lila Prabhu

Pandav Prem Prabhu

Pandav Prem Das
(Pankaj Jain)

Again one of the devotees who I came in contact with initially. I do not remember how I started talking to him. But as long as my memory serves me, I remember meeting him in Vrindavan in Kartik the very next day I met him for the first time and then in the auditorium where Final Lesson was being shown. Thereafter we sat for prasadam and he very gently inspired me to start chanting with one round and take up the reading of Bhagvad Gita As It Is. Pandav Prem
Prabhu also got initiated along with Avyanga Prabhu in Jan 2006 from His Holiness Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaja in Delhi.

Prabhuji is an avid reader of Bhagvad Gita and understands the message very nicely. He also gives classes on Bhagvad Gita to IYF Devotees on Sunday. And he always stresses on reading the Prabhupad's book. He is always full of appreciation for the sacred Bhagvad Gita as It Is. I wish I get even a small percentage of that love and understanding for it that he has.

Also I remember he helped me to buy my first ever beads and bead bag.

All Glories to Pandav Prem Prabhu.

Avyanga Prabhu

Avyanga Das

(Atul Gupta )

Avyanga Prabhu is one of those first devotees who gave shelter to a fallen soul like me and inspiration for taking up Krishna Consciousnes. He has great love for his deities Sri Jagannath Baldev Subhadra and Gopalji. He has a nice altar at his home and each festival he offers beautiful dresses to their lordships. He is an expert at all the deity related activities. He cooks very nicely for the lord and its often that Jagannath gets to fest on 64 bhoga items and more.

Prabhuji pinged me in response to my mail to yahoo group asking about IYF activities. There was no looking back after then. We used to chat, exchange mails, talk for hours everyday, where Prabhuji mercifully revealed the message of Krishna. He guided me how to practicaly lead a KC life. I met him for the first time a month later at Jagannath Rath yatra in Delhi in Nov 2005. He then introduced His Holiness Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaj - his then aspired spiritual master. He invited me to his diksha ceremony where I witnesses for the first time the process of initiation. I know many devotees who got initiated that time like Archit Prabhu, Nandgopal Jivan Prabhu, Pandav Prem Prabhu, Akshar Prabhu, Sundar Gopal Prabhu, Vaman dev Prabhu and many others.

Avyanga Prabhu played a very significant role in my Krishna Conscious life and is a contant source of love and care. He is very gentle, caring, expert and possessor of other brahminical qualities.

I offer my obeisances to this great vaishnava and beg for his constant association.

Panihati Yatra - Day 2

Continuing from the first day of yatra, here is the account of the second day when we visited Sri Ranganath and Banks of Kaveri. Despite last day’s tiresome but enthusiastic schedule, devotees got up in time for Mangala Arati by 5:00 AM. Devotees led a joyous kirtan thereafter and we got lost in dancing and chanting.

We departed for SriRangapatnam, just an hour drive from Melukote at 7:30 AM.


Day 2: Melukote to SriRangapatnam.

The bus stopped at the parking area. We got down and proceeded to the temple. The temple was built by the Ganga dynasty rulers of the area in the 9th century; the structure was strengthened and improved upon architecturally some three centuries later. Following the Sri Vaishnava etiquette we paid obeisances outside before the Garuda Stambha. We moved through one door to another finally reaching the inner sanctum sanctorum of the temple which houses the Sri Vigraha of the Lord of the Universes koti brahmanda nayaka : Sri Vishnu, lying down on the bed of Great Ananta, resting his head on one of his hands. Kaveri Devi is situated near the lotus feet of lord. The deity is all in all an illustration of the Lord’s majesty and opulence. It is so big that we can see only a part of Deity at one time, either the lotus smiling face, or the torso or the legs and lotus feet. The temple also has the Sri Vigrahas of Lord Narsimha Deva, Sudarshan Chakra and Laksmi Devi.

Here H.G. Sacidulal Prabhu – the IYF Bangalore Director joined us. After taking darshans we proceeded to the banks of River Kaveri to perform a special ceremony. It was the auspicious Appearance Day of His Holiness Tamala Krishna Goswami Maharaja – the dearmost spiritual master of Sacidulal Prabhu. We arranged an altar having Maharaj’s Picture, His book, Ranganath Prasadam and flowers. First some excerpts from the book ‘Servant of the Servant’ were read followed by glorification of his Spiritual Master by Sacidulal Prabhu. He cited many pastimes of Maharaj with Srila Prabhupada. Prabhupada used to remark that Maharaj had a “brain of Brahma”. Maharaj is known for his tireless and uninterrupted service to Srila Prabhupada. Then we sang the Gurvastaka prayer, performed kirtan and offered pushpanjali to Maharaj.

All Glories to His Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami Maharaja.

After Vyas Puja Celebration, we came back to the parking area and boarded the bus. Buses from Bangalore having congregation devotees had started flocking the area. In 10 minutes we reached Gosai Ghat where the main event was to be carried out. Tents had already been put up. Gaura Nitai were waiting behind the curtains and devotees were absorbed in their respective areas of service. It was a well organized Supply Chain Management. One group was washing utensils and supplying water from the river. Next batch was washing mangoes, some were peeling them, some were cutting them and others making a pulp out of them. Similarly some were rolling puris and cutting vegetables. It was much like the original festival at Panihati on the steps of the bank.

After sometime when senior devotees arrived with rest of the congregation, the abhisheka ceremony of Sri Sri Nitai Gaurasunder started. After taking a bath in various liquids like milk, honey and fruit juices, they were given a flower shower in the end. Then the 10 deities were carried on the heads by 10 devotees and proceeded for the watersports in the river. It was like Mahaprabhu and Nityananda and all other associates bathing in the Narendra Sarovar near Puri. Devotees splashed the cool water of Kaveri on the transcendental brothers shouting loudly in ecstasy: Gauranga! Nityananda! Gauranaga! Nityananda! Gauranga………..!!!!!

The rest of the devotees also entered in the river and had a good time. Splashing each other and trying to touch each other’s feet, devotees were oblivious to the outside world.

All devotees now fresh with enthusiasm; it was time for the cultural presentation. First IYF-Girls presented a pantomime themed “Me, My Mind and Kali (the age of quarrel and hypocrisy)”. It showcased how mind and Kali together conspire against the living entity and become the cause of suffering. But when the remedy of Krishna Consciousness is introduced, the mind becomes subjugated, kali keeps a distance and the sweet sound of Mohan’s murli arise in our heart, and through the process one day we come face to face with the lord of our lives: Sri Krishna.

After this brilliant performance it was time for IYF-Boys to present a skit based on one of the pastimes of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu with His intimate devotee, Gauridasa Pandit. This pastime is mentioned in Caitanya Bhagvat. It also included the pastime of how Mahaprabhu and Nityananda entered the heart of one of Gauridas’ Disciple – Hridayananda. There after the disciple was named Hridaya Caitanya – one in whose heart Mahaprabhu lives.

The much awaited part of the yatra was now in execution – The Feast Prasadam. The menu was extensive including puris, pulao, pineapple chutney, 2 subzis, kheer, sevai sweet, besan burfi and of course the main ingredient of this festival – Dahi Chira. The preparation was very rich with dry fruits. The devotees sat in lines and honored prasadam in great anticipation on banana leafs.

It was time for us to leave; back to the city’s hustle and bustle from this natural and simple life. While returning in the bus, we enjoyed a video titled Munnabhai . The central theme of the video was “Identifying a Guru” and was performed by devotees at Sri Sri Radha Gopinath Temple, Chowpatty. Finally the two day long yatra came to an end, but the memories would be forever etched in the minds of devotees.

Panihati Yatra - Day 1

Every year devotees from Bangalore go to the banks of Mother Kaveri near SriRangapatnam to celebrate the transcendental festival of Panihatti. Yatras of this kind always reinforce the devotees with dedication to Krishna Consciousness and also attract many new devotees to the Krishna Conscious life of ever increasing joy. The yatra comprised of visit to two holy places: Melukote and SriRangapatnam.

All Glories to Srila Prabhupada.

Day1: Bangalore to Melukote

ISKCON Youth Forum - boys decided to go one day prior to the rest of the Bangalore Congregation devotees in order to have darshans of Yoga Narsimha and Cheluva Narayan at Melukote. After Mangala Arati at Surabhi Kunj we started from Vinayaka Circle at 7:30 AM. Few devotees from BTM joined on the way. HG Kripamoy Gauranga Prabhu accompanied us on this yatra.
We had a stopover at Ramnagaram for breakfast prasadam. Prasadam was prepared at Surabhi Kunj. After honoring prasadam, devotees nicely disposed the used plates and glasses and left the place clean as before. Prabhupada says that Devotees should always leave the place as clean if not cleaner than before. He used to stress “Cleanliness is next to Godliness”.


After most of the devotees had completed their chanting, we watched a video about the pastimes of Srila Haridas Thakur. It included the pastime of Deliverance of the prostitute sent by Ramacandra Khan and Beating of Haridas Thakur in 22 market places and his unconditional attachment to the chanting of holy names of Krishna. This pastime shows that despite such pain and suffering, how Haridas Thakur never left chanting. So we should also struggle in times of mental agony and physical pain to chant the holy name.

After 4 hours we reached the holy place of Melukote. It has a rustic beauty about it. The atmosphere was very refreshing. We started off towards the Yoga Narsimha temple atop the hill, with Sankirtan party leading in front. The way to the top is through a number of steps made up of huge stones. It is said that at this place Prahlada maharaja came to offer pinda dana of his father Hiranyakashipu. The deity of the Lord Narsimha is said to be appeared out of a Saligrama sila. Other visiting devotees also enjoyed the kirtan and Narsimha Arati that was being performed by ISKCON devotees.

At the foothill is the Kalyani Kunda. It provides a picturesque sight from the top of hill. Adjacent to it, is a Narayan Temple. The deity is 4-handed form of Lord Vishnu made of white marble. After this we went to our accommodation – Ahobalam Mutt. After sometime, devotees performed kirtan and sung some Vaishnava Bhajans followed by Kripamoy Gauranga Prabhu’s lecture on Srimad Bhagvatam. Chapter entitled Indra offending Brihaspati. Prabhu gave enlightening insights into the spiritual master – disciple dealings. After the lecture, devotees cheerfully honored prasadam.

In the evening, we proceeded to Cheluva Narayan temple, a 5 minutes walk away. We performed lots of Kirtan. The devotees danced and chanted for nearly 40-45 minutes in front of the temple attracting passersby and temple residents.

There was still some time for opening of altar so we sat in the courtyard and heard the origin and pastimes of Cheluva Narayan Deities and Sripada Ramanujacarya. Following the Sri Vaishnava tradition of paying obeisances prior to Garuda Stambha we entered the temple. The courtyard echoed the sounds of drums and trumpet. There are two deities of Lord Narayan - Sri Sampat Kumar being the presiding deity and Cheluva Narayan deity being the Festival deity. The temple houses many deities including Sri Devi and Bhu Devi, Hanumanji, the deity of Sripada Ramanujacarya, he himself manifested and Alvars. After this we retired back to the Ahobalam Mutt, had dinner prasadam and then devotees went to bed.

This brings us to the end of the 1st day of Panihatti yatra.

Gaura Purnima 08 @ ISKCON Pune

Gauranga Jayate

Yadi Gaura na haite, tabe ki haite…..this song by Srila Bhakti Vinoda Thakur vocalizes my sentiments this Gaura Purnima. The very thought of Sri Gaura Chandra not being there is frightening. I had fallen deeply into the ditch of this illusionary world and saw no hope of ever coming out. It was dark, lonely and miserable. Trying to satisfy my never ending desires by various means and then getting frustrated by not achieving them the way I wanted it. It was very hopeless. Wandering from one sense enjoyment to other, hoping of quenching my thirst, but all I encountered were mirages. Oh! Mahaprabhu! You so mercifully took me into your care and gave me some respite. I had no qualification, no desire to be rightfully situated in association of devotees and chanting of holy name. But you being the most merciful person ever introduced me to this movement of your pure devotee: Srila Prabhupada. Mahaprabhu! Perhaps my fallen condition was the only qualification by which I deserved your mercy. If you are the wellwisher and purifier of fallen souls then I’ve got a doctorate in Sinful activities. I was and still am engaged in such abominable activities by speech, mind and body. Fallen soul like me made Krishna appear as Sri Gaura Raya on the auspicious full moon night of phalgun, from the womb of mother Sachi. Sachinandana is non other than Sri Sri Radha Krishna who appeared to bestow Vrajabhakti to undeserving people alike. Nimai born under the neem tree established the principle of chanting of the holyname.

I observed the Gaura Purnima Festival in pune this year. It started the day before. I packed my stuff and reached the temple at 8:30 pm. To my frustration of which I was quite ashamed later on, there was no dinner prasadam left. And the thought of fasting sent me out looking for some satvic food item on MG Road. Well, by the time I came back to temple, poha prasadam was prepared which all devotees were relishing. If only I had paitently depended on Krishna. Foolish me.

AGP was in his uniform and on duty, that included overseeing and helping out in almost any activity related to deities throughout the night. Pritam Prabhu, Deepesh Prabhu, Amit Prabhu, Cp all were staying back for the mangala arotik. We finally slept and woke jp on the auspicious day when the moon of Sri Gaura Raya appeared in Nadiya, Mayapur.

Sri Sri Gaura Nitai were so effulgently beautiful. Their beauty was dumbfounding and startling. The pujaris at Sri Sri Radha Kunjabihari had done a great job. The altar was bedecked with stunning floral arrangements. HG Radhe Shyama Prabhu sang the Guruvashtaka prayers. All the devotees were feeling immense joy in taking darshans of their lordships Sri Sri Gaura Nitai and Sri Sri Radha Kunjabihari.

After the morning program, the japa session commenced. And today was nirjal fasting till moonrise. It was to be a difficult day ahead. Chanting with dry mouth and throat. Ahem!! It’s gonna be tough.

Finally the awaited moment arrived and the lordships were ready to give darshans to the exited crowd of devotees. The pujari came out and blew the conch 3 times, making the heartbeats of the devotees race in excitement. The curtains opened and the altar was filled with white smoke creating a mystic ambiance. The altar also sported a water fountain. Their lordships were dresses in a mauve outfit and decorated with flowers and jewellery. Gaura Nitai were bestowing their causeless mercy to whoever wanted it that day. Lord was welcomed with the Govindam Adi Purusham Prayers and then the SachiSuta – Ashtaka Prayers were sung to glorify the most benevolent Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu – the beautiful son of Mother Sachi. We’d been singing this prayer every morning the whole month.

Thereafter was a lecture by HG RadheShyama Prabhu on the appearance and childhood pastimes of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. It went on from 9 to 10:30. As it was complete fasting, so series of lectures and kirtans were scheduled for the day. At 11 there was a lecture by HG Sri Guru Charan Prabhu and then in temple hall by HG Gaura Lila Prabhu. In the meanwhile I was busy fighting thirst and endeavoring to somehow complete 25 rounds of chanting. I finally got to do 32. The afternoon was difficult to pass. Temple devotees were engaged in preparing for the evening’s festivals. A magnificent altar was prepared for doing abhisheka. Two beautiful peacocks were also made by devotees themselves which augmented the magnificence of the stage.

Somehow I made it to 5 pm, by partly sleeping and chanting. Took a bath and felt really fresh. Also many of the devotees including HG Jugal Kishor Prabhu and HG Sachinandan prabhu were not there as they had gone to Mayapur yatra with HH Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaja. Finally the time arrived when their lordships arrived at the stage for the pleasure of their devotees and to show a never seen before pastime to the newcomers. The deities changed hues as the abhisheka progressed. HG Sundarvar Prabhu so kindly agreed to take pics from upclose on the altar. Devotees are so nice and so understanding. The abhisheka concluded by giving their lordships a water shower. After which HG Murari Prabhu gave a lecture.

I was backstage most of the time. Do not misunderstand that I was doing any seva or anything. So I got an opportunity to go inside the deity backroom to keep utensils used for the abhisheka. Broke my fast there with hot honey-ginger water. It felt like nectar. Never had I experienced such a fulfilling experience. The thirst was quenched.

Then I got busy with attending to the big guest list I’d invited for the event. Varun, Nipun, Anil, Dilip, Nupur, Krunal, Anand, Rinkesh, and most importantly Himanshu Bhaiya and bhabhi. Then sat down to feast on the wonderful ekadasi prasadam while talking as usual to AGP, Krunal, Amt Prabhu et al.

After seeing them off, I went to Muralidhar. For tomorrow again I had to get up early to attend the glorious mangala arotik on the Jagannath Mishra Festival Day.

Raj Bhoga @ Pune

The Pune saga is coming to an end. And so is the wonderful association of devotees that I have been getting. Apurva Gopal Prabhu (AGP) and many more. To commemorate this we prepared a feast for the lord and enjoyed ourselves very much. I had already shifted half of my baggage to the temple where I was to stay from 2nd April onwards till 9th April. So I’d come back to my flat to courier the rest to Delhi. Chakravarti Prabhu(CP) called and announced that we are having a rajbhoga today and that I should get free as soon as possible. AGP and Ankit Prabhu came to my place from where well went to CP’s place to do some serious cooking stuff.

Ankit Prabhu is from Mumbai and was on a long yatra to Mayapur during the gaura purnima festival and then to Vrindavan where he accompanied CP when he was there getting association from his guru maharaj. AP is a Hotel Mgmt Grad with an experience of working as a chef at Govinda’s, Chowpatty Temple, Mumbai. He’s a great person to meet with. Amiable, Unassuming, A person you can talk to.

So we went in an overly crowded bus to Viman Nagar and did some feast shopping which took quite some time of ours. Reaching CP’s home, he was already there with Amit Prabhu. So we took a 15 mins rest and then got down to preparing a seemingly impossible to prepare feast in the given time constraint. This led to shedding off of some major menu items including ‘cheese potato balls’ (…..aaarghhhh!!) Cp was busy preparing for his exam tomorrow, which didn’t go well by the way. Amit Prabhu was engrossed in the highest of service that’s chanting. So AGP, AP and me did most of the peeling and cutting vegetables. And yes! In the course of events I did acquire some culinary skills including kneeding dough for chapattis or samosa crusts. Yeah!

After hours of efforts, the raj bhoga was offered to the supreme lord with love n devotion.
And then we feasted like we were starving since days.

The final menu included:
Layered biryani (with Paneer n Sak Gravy)
Paneer
Grape Juice
Khaja
Lentil Soup (Dal).
Yes that was it. After so much of work this is all we could prepare. But it was worth it. As usual we got very late. We left Cp’s place at some where around 11 pm n headed for temple, where we were to sleep at night and attend mangala arotik thenext morning. The day was good and got to meet a new devotee, interesting devotee!!

Hope these raj bhoga sessions keep appearing again and again.

Pushpa Abhisheka @ ISKCON Pune

Jan 22, 2008.
Sri Sri Radha KunjaBihari , ISKCON Pune
PausyaAbhiseka Festival was celebrated in ISKCON Pune.
The program began with joyous kirtan followed by a lecture by HG Krishnananda Prabhu. He explained the meaning of Pushpa Abhisheka. Krishna is the master of the whole universe and a mere flower doesn’t do him much good. Just like when we offer Ganges water 3 times back in to Ganges, it is not flooded. Similarly no matter what we offer to Krishna, it is negligible in front of his opulences. Even if we offer the whole earth to Krishna, it is nothing as Krishna in form of Maha Vishnu, emanates innumerable universes..

But in Bhagwad Gita, Krishna states “ Patram Puspam Phalam Toyam……”. What does this mean then? In the same verse Krishna uses the word “bhakti” twice. Krishna is also known as “Bhavagrahi Janardana”. It’s the devotional attitude that Krishna is looking forward to. There are many pastimes where Krishna used to snatch morsels from the hands of his Gopa Sakhas, and ate broken rice from his friend Sudama. Similarly in Gaura Lila, Mahaprabhu ate bad smelling broken rice which Raghunath Dasa Goswami had gathered for his prasadam. No matter how fragrant and opulent flowers we offer to Krishna, if they are not offered with devotional attitude, they are no more fragrant, but smell bad.

Similarly when we chant 16 rounds of mahamantra daily, they are like flower offerings to Krishna only. So we should put in our mind and our intelligence in this process. We should offer our best chanting possible. This would please Krishna. The best flower that Krishna likes is chanting of the holy names by his devotees. We are not purified enough for our offerings to be accepted by Krishna. But we should still offer whatever small we can to Krishna, praying that “ O Krishna, though this offering is not fit for you because it is coming from me, but please be merciful upon this servant, and make this offering fit for your pleasure.” Thus by this process we can purify our offerings and our heart.

In this festival, Srimati Radha Rani and Sri Kunjabihari were showered with lots of flower petals. The abhisheka went on for about 30-35 minutes with yellow, orange and pink flowers. And as always the festival was followed by sumptuous feast prasadam.

Harry Potter Mania

Harry Potter, a series of 7 books, which created frenzy in the literary world with its entry. Millions of children have taken to a long forgotten habit of reading, perhaps a sigh of relief for the few intellects. Older children read it through out the day and for the smaller kids, their parents read them as bedtime stories, and continue long after the child was asleep.


"J.K.Rowling deserves all the plaudits that are being heaped upon her. For once, the word phenomenon is an understatement." -- Scotland on Sunday.

"The Harry Potter books are that rare thing, aseries of stories adored by parents and children alike." -- The Daily Telegraph

Such is the power of Harry Potter. The story about an orphan who feels uncared for and turns out to be the most popular wizard in an alternate world, captivated every child’s mind and heart. The trials and tribulations that Harry experiences seem familiar, that he immediately became a hero. Children like to dress up like Harry; their daily lingo has adapted words from the movie’s esoteric phrases and characters. It so happens that children especially in west do not get to spend much time with their parents and feel neglected and thus connect with Harry personally. And when they see this hapless guy turning into a hero in the other world of witchcraft and wizardry, their joy finds no bound.

No doubt, the book revived the reading habit in children in today’s age of Television and Computer. But the downside of all this is that the book has exposed and encouraged children towards escapism rather than enlightenment. Children see magic as an alternative to facing the reality. But what exactly is magic? Magic is something which someone can do, but I can’t. What good is it bringing about by making them read about witchcraft and wizardry? One thing for sure it encourages is the ghastly and cruel treatment of animals by sacrificing them at the altars of illusion.

Why someone watches movies, serials or reads books? Because life is boring and frustrating and people need to get an outlet, a means to temporarily forget their real life. If we survey the lives of the rich and the filthy rich, 5% of their time goes into their daily chores, the rest 95% time they try to escape from boredom, and that’s why they go to movies, theatres, join clubs, societies so that even if its for sometime, they get a relief. Because these people don’t know what to do with their lives, they indulge in these activities.

It would be surprising and yet very understandable the reasons behind the universality of the story. Parallels can be drawn with Krishna lila. The prophecy that a special child will be bornand would bring about an end to the evil king is the prevalent theme in both; Harry Potter v/s Lord Voldermort and Krishna v/s Kamsa. Harry’s escapades and learnings at Hogwarts can be compared to Krishna & Balarama’s stay at Sandipani muni’s ashram. The principle element of the story remains the same. In childhood itself, Krishna performs feats like killing big demons and protecting the vrajavasis from Indra’s anger by uplifting the Goverdhana hill.

Inspite of parallels there remains a huge difference - difference between Virtual Heroism and Eternal Heroism.

The diagram clarifies the rationale. Real life is at the level of Real Zeroism, where it is filled with boredom and lack of happiness and motivation. On the other hands these movies and books take us to the fictional world of Virtual Heroism. Where some virtual character does some magic or extra ordinary feat and plunges people in general into a further illusion or imagination.

On the other end of the spectrum lie the real and the eternal heroism. Who is a real hero? Krishna is great and so are his devotees. The story of Arjuna viz Brihanalla (in the garb of a eunuch) and the attack on Virata kingdom by kauravas illustrates just that. Krishna’s devotees are real heroes. Like Arjuna, Bhima, Dhruva and others. Apart from them, Krishna himself is the original, eternal hero. He is the hero of Vraja, the enchanter of gopis, protector of the citizens of Vraja, the destroyer of the immoral and the life of his friend. He has all the elements of a hero, and thus the stature of the eternal hero. And by associating with this hero brings an end to the meaningless and frustrated life and exposes one to the world of transcendence, where every gait is a dance step, every word is a song, and the atmosphere is filled with happiness and jubilation. In that world, Krishna is the central theme of every one’s life. Krishna holds the position of being their very soul and their lives.

The reason for the success of Harry Potter is one, people are in general ignorant of the goal of their lives and two, they want to escape the constant void in their lives. Stories like Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia give people hope, a shelter from the daily anxieties of lives. But viewed objectively, it is a false hope. Ultimately it would benefit no one. Also the attraction to the supernatural indicate to our innate character, that in reality there must be some super natural being to which we are all attracted. Its just that we haven’t find that person yet. So instead of Harry Potter, lets idolize Lord HARI, the POTTER. The very name suggests that he steals the hearts of his devotees with his pastimes and steals their, miseries and sufferings. He is the supreme potter, he carefully makes the universes which are perfect in everyway to help us achieve our goal and thus help us in shaping our lives.

Book Review on Bhagwad Gita

The following is a book review I recently presented in my college as a part of our communication practice curriculum.

The book that I am going to speak about today is based on real life incidents that happened 5000 years ago. The book is considered to be one of the great literary works in both oriental and western worlds. It was written in Sanskrit by Sri Vyasadeva, the compiler of the vedic literature. The author is said to have written texts like the 4 vedas, 18 puranas and 108 upanishadas that encompass all the vedic knowledge. The book is known as “The song of the God” in the western countries and for us it’s the much known Bhagwad Gita.



Gita is a part of the epic Mahabharata. It contains 700 verses spread over 18 chapters. Its background is set in ancient India, almost 5000 years back, when the dispute among the two related clans – the pandavas and the kauravas led to the cataclysmic battle of Kurukshetra – The Mahabharata.

The book has been written in a style that is seen in most of the contemporary literary work, i.e. question – answer based. There are primarily 4 characters, King Dhritrashtra, His Assistant Sanjaya, Prince Arjuna and Sri Krishna. The story begins when King Dhritrashtra - the blind father of the immoral Kauravas enquires from his assistant Sanjaya about the activites of his sons and that of Pandu’s sons in the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Sanjaya has been given this special vision to see activities in distant locations. He starts narrating whatever he is seeing in the battlefield. The first chapter basically describes the arrangement of the two armies and how Duryodhana – The kaurava prince tactfully praises his seniors and commands their confidence.

On the other hand Arjuna, one of the 5 Pandava brothers asks his chariot driver Sri Krishna to drive the chariot to the middle of the battlefield to view the enemy’s arrangement. However on seeing his relatives, teachers and his grandfathers he is overcome by grief and pity, he fails in strength and his mind becomes bewildered Consequently he presents various arguments to Krishna for not fighting.

The character of Arjuna – the hero of Mahabharata has been painted very realistically as he has been shown to have the same weaknesses as any other human being. He feels incapable of confronting his relatives and thus decides not to fight. He uses the intricacies of dharma to support his decision. Just like we find loopholes in the system to get away with our own whims and fancies. But later as we find out he turns out to be intelligent as he surrenders to Krishna – the most intelligent and asks for guidance. His surrender is not mere blind faith but based on rational conclusions.

Next we see how Krishna clarifies Arjuna’s doubts and induces him to fight and emerge victorious. These instructions are highly practical and quite executable. He reminds Arjuna about the goal of his life. And to know one’s goal, one needs to know one’s identity. So, it is told that all living entities are spiritual souls where as the gross bodies are nothing but inert matter. This inactive matter becomes active only once it gets in contact with the active spiritual particle. We come across quite interesting facts about soul, i.e. the living entity in the sense that we are the soul and not the body, just like a driver is different from the car and in reality he is the one that moves it, similarly our soul drives this body. Unlike Lord Voldermort’s soul, which is split into six, the size of the soul is 10,000th part of the tip of one hair and hence it is not further divisible. It is indestructible.

Krishna further explains the three ways leading unto the ultimate goal of life vide the karma yoga, dhyana yoga, and the bhakti yoga. The karma yoga entails the action in knowledge. This is the part that we mostly come across as those summary pamphlets. That how for every action, one has to suffer a reaction, good or bad. And how piety and sin both are chains of the material struggle.

Next is described the mechanical meditative process of controlling one’s senses – the dhyana yoga. Arjuna stating it to be impractical for a person in a position like his rejects this method. So here we see that Arjuna’s trust on his master is not based on blind faith but true inquisitiveness.

As a consequence Krishna reveals the Bhakti Yoga – the devotional service which he states to be the most confidential, simple and preferable way to attain one’s goal of life.


This knowledge that’s presented in the book was nothing new but in fact been given to Sun God by Krishna millions of years ago, however due to the breaking of the disciplic succession, Krishna had to descent and establish the dharma himself.


Krishna then describes how all wondrous phenomena showing power, beauty, and grandeur are but partial manifestations of Krishna’s divine energies and opulence. Lord Krishna grants Arjuna with divine vision and reveals His spectacular unlimited form as the cosmic universe. Thus he conclusively establishes his divinity.

It is said that all embodied souls are under the control of three modes, or qualities of material nature: goodness, passion and ignorance. They act upon us and bind us in the laws of karma. But by following the suitable methods suggested by Krishna, one can transcend them and achieve a blissful state.

The instructions conclude with Krishna explaining the glories of Bhagwad Gita, and then suggesting Arjuna that the highest perfection of life is unconditional loving surrender unto Krishna, which frees one from all sins, brings one to complete enlightenment and enables one to return to one’s original consciousness. Hearing all this Arjuna is convinced and leaves all this miserliness and grief and he prepares to fight.
he dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna gives a profound insight inside Indian spirituality. The book is not religious but deeply philosophical and rational. It gives a new perspective to the life and helps solves questions that many of us ask, but never bother to inquire about. Reading this book is highly recommended for all the people and should be a subject of study for those seeking a balance in their life and those who have lost all hope. Krishna revives the hope by assuring us the bliss, which we have a constitutional right to experience once we surrender to him.