Recently, at the appearance day of Lalita Devi there was an 8th anniversary of establishing the mataji sankirtan party in Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi. In 2007 female disciples of Srila Prabhupada invited everyone to take part in the congregational chanting in the Samadhi. There were many microphones, mridangas and karatals. It was a large loud blissful kirtan that certainly made Srila Prabhupada smile proudly as his disciples and grand-disciples ecstatically sang out the Holy Names here in the land of Krsna and the home of Srila Prabhupada. After that wonderful experience, devotees asked Mataji Krishodari, one of the kirtan leaders, to perform these kirtanas on a regular basis. From that day on until now there has been daily sankirtana in Srila Prabhupada’s Samadhi.
In the male 24-hour kirtan department there is good management and a high standard of playing and singing but, as one mataji told us, in the mataji party everything is more or less on a spontaneous basis. For a long time the kirtan party in the Samadhi was held by matajis from the temple’s mataji ashram who were small in number. Some days only one or two matajis would hold the kirtan but, nevertheless, they have been doing it every day for the last 8 years. It is known that Aindra Prabhu also wanted that the mataji kirtan in the Samadhi keep going so in this way there is a nice connection.
For a long time there was only one shift from 10:30 AM until 12:30 PM but two years ago the time was increased to 1 PM and after that the matajis jokingly named their kirtan «2.4 kirtan» because it lasts for 2 hours and 24 minutes. Then, the duration of the kirtan was increased to 3 hours and the matajis made an evening shift but still they lovingly call it «2.4 kirtan» as a minimum standard of doing this seva. Even now the leader of the party is still Mataji Krishodari. All of them not only sing but teach each other how to play instruments, build relationships with each other, discuss philosophy, etc.
Unlike in the western countries, where we have to put a lot of effort into attracting people to kirtan, here in Vrindavan you just need to do take up the service and you get a lot of admirers. The Indian public are open and friendly by nature. If they are attracted by your devotional mood, then they eagerly want to have your association.
For many pilgrims from remote villages white ladies who play instruments and chant Krishna’s names are the same as the dancing white elephants who bewilder the country’s men. As a mataji from the kirtan party said, “The elderly ladies from Bengal from tradition want to touch our feet, young people want to take selfies with us and thus try to sit as close as possible. Somebody wants to be a part of the kirtan and demands instruments to be given to him, others gladly join the kirtan but start to sing something else. There are some who come and fall into trance showing different ecstatic emotions like rolling on the flour and losing consciousness. Sometimes some mystic sadhus come to look at the kirtan party. Sometimes VIP persons, distrustful officials and big businessmen come and scan us trying to see our motives. Sometimes thieves come. Professional kirtaniyas skeptically pass by. Brajabasi matajis are ready to dance at any time and can surprise everyone by their specific motions of the body which are specifically used in their own village. Representatives of different sampradayas, apasampradayas, sects, religious groups etc. regularly come and look point-blank at us.”
Srila Prabhupada’s samadhi is a very unique place in the universe. It is not a museum with tablets and security and we are not members of any modern cultural movement. Srila Prabhupada dedicated his life for spreading Lord Caitanya’s sankirtana movement, congregational chanting of the Holy Names and kirtan that can be made at Srila Prabhupada’s feet in his Samadhi in Vrindavan is the unrivalled best opportunity to express our gratitude to Srila Prabhupada who gave the whole world the method that can bring us beyond birth and death.
Comments