Dear devotees.
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to Guru Maharaja!
Here is a continuation to my report of Guru Maharaja’s activities in Sri Vrndavana-dhama. Read the rest of this entry »
We set of for Mathura, bright and early as usual. Guru Maharaj mentioned that he did not know Mathura very well so He would be referring to the book. Our first stop was Vishraam Ghat. Lord Varaha came here to take bathe and rest after killing Hiranyaksha. Krishna and Balarama also came to rest here after killing Kamsa. Lord Caitanya also bathed here. Guru Maharaja said that normally the pandas are very aggressive here – they empty out the devotee’s pockets and we are not allowed to take photos. But today we were lucky. Guru Maharaj very often encourages us to give donations. He said there were nice devotees and it will free us from our burden of karma. Read the rest of this entry »
We gathered at the same spot at the same time and set off for Badrinatha. We usually take our own breakfast and return to Vrindavana after the day’s parikrama to have lunch. This was an extremely long drive, our longest drive yet. It was a little austere being in the bus for so long but when we arrived there, it was definitely worth it. Read the rest of this entry »
We had some rest in the morning, recovering from yesterday’s 11 hours of walking. We met at the Samadhi of Srila Prabhupada at about 4pm and we set of on rickshas to the Radha Gokulananda temple. The samadhi of Lokanatha Goswami is in the samadhi garden and Guru Maharaj said that this was a very important samadhi in Vrindavana. Read the rest of this entry »
The long awaited 26km walk was upon us. On our way there, Guru Maharaj spotted a blue cow. Guru Maharaj is always on the look-out for these blue cows. He said that blue cows were a sign of auspiciousness. Read the rest of this entry »
By now, the group is starting to get into a routine of meeting and departing at 6am. I think that we were all still recovering from the previous days walking but we were ready for yet another day. We had no idea what to expect or if it would be anything like the previous day. Our dear Gurudev looked refreshed and was all enthusiastic and ready with no signs of fatigue at all. I am not sure how Guru Maharaj does it but I am sure the chanting may have something to do with it! Read the rest of this entry »
Yesterday was an amazing start to parikrama and set the mood for the next day. Despite Guru Maharaj having just arrived in Vrindavana Dham, he gave himself selflessly and took us into Vrindavana Town walking all over and narrating wonderful pastimes. I am not sure about you but most of these pastimes I never heard before. Syamananda Das prabhu has been co-ordinating this entire parikrama and is doing a wonderful job. Today we met early at 6am and 2 buses departed to Unchagaon. During our drive there, Guru Maharaj commented that these are Indian roads and whatever is bigger has the right of way. Read the rest of this entry »
Dear Devotees
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Guru Maharaja.
On Guru Maharaj’s request, I am submitting a post for His website. I pray that this may give you a brief idea of Guru Maharaj’s stay in India, especially for those of you who could not be here to join this parikrama. I
will be submitting a daily report of the parikrama, describing the days events, posting as many pictures as possible and hopefully setting out some wonderful pastimes – we all know that Guru Maharaj is a legendary narrator of pastimes so please try and capture these in the mood that Guru Maharaj would have presented if He were personally narrating it. I was not exactly prepared for this so please forgive any shortcomings. I would like to thank you in advance for the opportunity to serve you in this way. The parikrama is mostly as per the pre-determined schedule posted on the website with a few minor changes according to practicality and unforeseen circumstances. There will be several posts so please stay tuned. Read the rest of this entry »
Dear devotees,
Please accept my blessings. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.
This year we have two devotees reporting on our Vraja Mandala Parikrama.
One, Avadhutacandra prabhu, is with me most of the time, and has written in a broad sense about everything that is happening. The other, Syamarani devi dasi, has focused on the parikramas and pastimes.
There is a little duplication, but not so much. I hope you find them interesting.
First is the report of Avadhutacandra prabhu.
Hoping this meets you well.
Your ever well wisher,
Bhakti Caitanya Swami Read the rest of this entry »