Saturday, March 28, 2009
Radha Rasabihari, Lions, Swimming, Radha Giridhari and Cultural Programs!!!
My second day on the safari turned out to be a free day! First thing was getting to take darshan of Gaura Nitai, Radha Rasabihari and Rama, Lakshmana, Sita and Hanuman. So beautiful! Then, a bunch of us got onto the bus and took off to Sanjay Ghandi National Park. There we had a small breakfast and hung around chanting and taking in some sights which included two lions and two Bengal tigers...I know! Quite the zoo...LOL. Afterward, we were in for a special treat-we got to go swimming in the Arabian Sea! It was so much fun, just riding the waves and swimming in the warm waters. After a few hours on the beach, we then headed to the Mira Road temple where we got to take in the beautiful darshan of Radha Giridhari and Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra. After some wonderful prasadam and a quick nap it was time for the cultural program. Over 2000 people came! Such a wonderful preaching opportunity. All glories to this year's 2009 Safari!
Friday, March 27, 2009
A night of magic, love and kirtan!
I'm back in Belapur after spending 2 1/2 unforgettable days on this year's 2009 safari! I had SUCH an amazing time. The first night I arrived at Juhu, there was a cultural program that took place in the auditorium. This is what the safari does. At every place they stop, they hold a cultural program and in this way preach as well as see holy tirthas. The night was filled with magic, acrobatics, the Shyam dance, dramas, a fire show, kirtans and the highlight-HH Jayapataka Swami.
By some great fortune, this is the third or fourth time I have been in Maharaja's association this year and I can't express the emotion I feel every time I see him. He is simply incredible. His magnanimity, his service attitude, his care for all the devotees and his love for Srila Prabhupada is immeasurable. Despite still being in recovery, his schedule is as hectic as ever. That first evening, Maharaja gave a short talk and then afterward expressed his gratitude to the devotees who took care of him so nicely and arranged for everything when he first had the stroke. With so much love, Maharaja presented gifts and certificates to many devotees including his beloved god-brother HH Gopal Krsna Goswami. It was such a beautiful night filled with so much love and reciprocation.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Boat Festival in Vrndavana
I often have a tendency to look for the perfect picture. When I see a beautiful scene or a rare moment, the first thing I do is grab for my camera. But I actively chose to separate myself from my camera this time in Vrndavana.
It's said that all of the holy dhams are becoming more and more covered as Kali yuga progresses. I find this to be so true in Vrndavana. On the surface, Vrndavana is bustling, dusty and dirty. It's so hard to actually photograph the REAL Vrndavana. In fact the only way one can "see" Vrndavana is through the ears. Only by hearing about Vrndavana from the self realized souls can we actually see Vrndavana as it is.
That's why this time around I have very few pictures of Vrndavana. There were only two times that I took my camera with me when I went out. One, as you can see below, is when the boat festival took place in Krsna Balarama mandir and the second time was one time during the bhajans that took place at BBGS's home.
The boat festival was an INCREDIBLE experience. For one afternoon, there was no courtyard in Krsna Balarama mandir. Instead there was a carpet of beautiful flower petals arranged in different designs. Below this beautiful carpet was a mini-lake for chota Radha Shyamasundara. In a beautiful swan boat, they gracefully took a tour around this lake to the melodic chanting of the maha-mantra led by HH BBGS, HH SRS and HG Aindra Prabhu.
It's said that all of the holy dhams are becoming more and more covered as Kali yuga progresses. I find this to be so true in Vrndavana. On the surface, Vrndavana is bustling, dusty and dirty. It's so hard to actually photograph the REAL Vrndavana. In fact the only way one can "see" Vrndavana is through the ears. Only by hearing about Vrndavana from the self realized souls can we actually see Vrndavana as it is.
That's why this time around I have very few pictures of Vrndavana. There were only two times that I took my camera with me when I went out. One, as you can see below, is when the boat festival took place in Krsna Balarama mandir and the second time was one time during the bhajans that took place at BBGS's home.
The boat festival was an INCREDIBLE experience. For one afternoon, there was no courtyard in Krsna Balarama mandir. Instead there was a carpet of beautiful flower petals arranged in different designs. Below this beautiful carpet was a mini-lake for chota Radha Shyamasundara. In a beautiful swan boat, they gracefully took a tour around this lake to the melodic chanting of the maha-mantra led by HH BBGS, HH SRS and HG Aindra Prabhu.
Celebrating Holi in Chowpatty!!!
I have never celebrated Holi in India before. I've heard of it, seen pictures of people covered in all sorts of colour and always dreamed of participating in it, but never have I actually been part of a Holi celebration. But as always, Krsna fulfills all the desires of a devotee and he is so expert that he does it in such a way that he brings that aspiring devotee closer to him.
So I can officially say that not only have I been part of A Holi celebration, I've been part of chota Radha Krsna's holi pastimes in Chowpatty!
So I can officially say that not only have I been part of A Holi celebration, I've been part of chota Radha Krsna's holi pastimes in Chowpatty!
Gaura Purnima in Mumbai!
I've taken a lot of pictures throughout my travels in the past couple of weeks, but for some strange reason my SD card reader on my computer is acting up. Anyways, I finally found another way to transfer all the pictures, so here I go with posting pics!
First up is Gaura Purnima celebrations in Chowpatty, Mumbai. It was special to me in so many ways. One, it was Gaura Purnima in Chowpatty! Two, it was a chance to celebrate one of the most auspicious appearance days in the association of two of my beloved siksa gurus, HH Radhanatha Swami and HH Candramauli Swami and three, because I got to witness the sannyasa initiation of HH Bhakti Caksur Sundara Goswami.
First up is Gaura Purnima celebrations in Chowpatty, Mumbai. It was special to me in so many ways. One, it was Gaura Purnima in Chowpatty! Two, it was a chance to celebrate one of the most auspicious appearance days in the association of two of my beloved siksa gurus, HH Radhanatha Swami and HH Candramauli Swami and three, because I got to witness the sannyasa initiation of HH Bhakti Caksur Sundara Goswami.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Selfless Love
This year Radharani was so merciful that she allowed me to stay in her dham for almost 10 days. All trips to Vrndavana are supremely special, but this one was more than special. It was heart enriching experience. Not only was I granted permission to come to the holy dham, but my Guru Maharaja was in Vrndavana.
Being around Guru Maharaja is always a purifying and deep experience and this time was no exception. Niranjana Swami’s health is quite bad at the moment, but despite being in so much pain, his meditation is on how to help and care for devotees. He has no consideration to his own needs and comforts but is always trying to find a way to extend himself to anyone, whether they be a direct disciple or not.
Oftentimes we hear and read about the selfless service attitude of Srimati Radharani. But that’s just it, we hear and read. It is because of the causeless mercy of Srila Prabhupada that we have such amazing devotees, such as HH Niranjana Swami, who are showing us in action what it actually means to genuinely possess and practice these qualities of devotional service.
It is actually a very sobering experience to witness such selfless love and dedication. For me, it was also a heart operation because it was an eye-opener to how selfish and self-absorbed I actually am. Imagine being in intense pain and focusing only on the problems and spiritual welfare of others. It is mind-boggling.
But this is also the mood of Srimati Radharani. At whatever cost, despite whatever pain she herself undergoes, all she cares about is the happiness of her beloved Shyam. In fact, it is said that she considers that very pain to be her greatest happiness as long as Krsna is happy. Such an exalted state of being! To want nothing but the happiness of someone else.
It is my hope that one day I can imbibe even one insignificant sliver of this selfless love that my Guru Maharaja possesses. I pray that my greatest happiness will always be seeing the spiritual happiness of others and that I can be of some service to my Guru Maharaja.
Being around Guru Maharaja is always a purifying and deep experience and this time was no exception. Niranjana Swami’s health is quite bad at the moment, but despite being in so much pain, his meditation is on how to help and care for devotees. He has no consideration to his own needs and comforts but is always trying to find a way to extend himself to anyone, whether they be a direct disciple or not.
Oftentimes we hear and read about the selfless service attitude of Srimati Radharani. But that’s just it, we hear and read. It is because of the causeless mercy of Srila Prabhupada that we have such amazing devotees, such as HH Niranjana Swami, who are showing us in action what it actually means to genuinely possess and practice these qualities of devotional service.
It is actually a very sobering experience to witness such selfless love and dedication. For me, it was also a heart operation because it was an eye-opener to how selfish and self-absorbed I actually am. Imagine being in intense pain and focusing only on the problems and spiritual welfare of others. It is mind-boggling.
But this is also the mood of Srimati Radharani. At whatever cost, despite whatever pain she herself undergoes, all she cares about is the happiness of her beloved Shyam. In fact, it is said that she considers that very pain to be her greatest happiness as long as Krsna is happy. Such an exalted state of being! To want nothing but the happiness of someone else.
It is my hope that one day I can imbibe even one insignificant sliver of this selfless love that my Guru Maharaja possesses. I pray that my greatest happiness will always be seeing the spiritual happiness of others and that I can be of some service to my Guru Maharaja.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Only in Vrndavana
The last time I came to Vrndavana I was running around like crazy. I was attending the Varsana and Govardhan retreats and so spent very little time in Vrndavana itself. The few days I spent in Vrndavana were spent in the chaotic madness of Loi Bazaar. This time, I am not travelling so much but instead spending time chanting and taking in the sights and sounds of the dham itself.
Yesterday I saw the funniest thing ever. I was sitting and chanting when I happened to look up to the balcony of a house across the street. There were some clothes hanging on the line, drying in the mid-afternoon sun. At that very moment, a mischevious monkey happen to come by and start pulling on the clothes. Slowly but surely, this monkey started pulling down each of the items on the line and throwing it on the ground. As if that wasn't enough, it took one of the cadars and started wrapping it around its head and over its shoulders. I was laughing like anything. Only in Vrndavana would you see something like this.
I was thinking about this incident a lot while I continued to chant and was thinking, "I'm just like this monkey. I'm always trying to disturb and steal Krsna's things in the form of his energy." While the monkey causes a disturbance to the owner of the clothes by ripping and throwing them on the ground, I cause a disturbance to Krsna by trying to pass off and manipulate his energies like my own. Instead of being a mischevious burden, instead if I could only, and at all times, remember who the REAL owner is, then I could always find a way to use everything in Krsna's service.
Yesterday I saw the funniest thing ever. I was sitting and chanting when I happened to look up to the balcony of a house across the street. There were some clothes hanging on the line, drying in the mid-afternoon sun. At that very moment, a mischevious monkey happen to come by and start pulling on the clothes. Slowly but surely, this monkey started pulling down each of the items on the line and throwing it on the ground. As if that wasn't enough, it took one of the cadars and started wrapping it around its head and over its shoulders. I was laughing like anything. Only in Vrndavana would you see something like this.
I was thinking about this incident a lot while I continued to chant and was thinking, "I'm just like this monkey. I'm always trying to disturb and steal Krsna's things in the form of his energy." While the monkey causes a disturbance to the owner of the clothes by ripping and throwing them on the ground, I cause a disturbance to Krsna by trying to pass off and manipulate his energies like my own. Instead of being a mischevious burden, instead if I could only, and at all times, remember who the REAL owner is, then I could always find a way to use everything in Krsna's service.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)