By Bharata Das
The first ever Rathyatra in California’s Capital City of Sacramento took place on September 18, 2022. This is the only Rathyatra in the world where Lord Jagannath made the very special gesture of giving darshan to hundreds of jeevas right at the front door of the State Capitol. It took a long time to bring Rathyatra to the capital of the most prosperous and progressive state in the United States. Srila Prabhupada and many devotees traveled all the way from the ISKCON Berkeley te
After a two-year hiatus due to the global pandemic, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness of Harrisburg (ISKCON of Harrisburg) is gearing up to celebrate the 12th Annual Hare Krishna Festival of India on Saturday, July 9, 2022, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at City Island in Harrisburg.
The devotees of ISKCON of Harrisburg are extending their warm welcome to one and all to attend the festival. The unique, 1-mile long, 63-acre City Island, is conveniently located just across the walking b
The annual festival of Jagannath Rath Yatra will be celebrated at the global spiritual headquarter of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Sri Mayapur Dham, Nadia.
Each year the devotees endeavour to raise the bar by adding new dimensions to the celebrations. The deities of Lord Jagannath, Baldev and Subhadra will be seated on three different carts and taken out in a grand procession. The scriptures mention that whoever takes darshan of the gleeful grin of Lord Jagannath se
On this full-moon day, sixteen days before Ratha- yatra, Lord Jagannatha is bathed. He becomes sick and is confined to rest for fourteen days. He is then offered special care until He comes out for Ratha-yatra.
A special bath of Jagannatha takes place on the Purnima of Jyestha month to commemorate the appearance day of Lord Jagannatha.
By Titiksu Das and Nitai Gaurasundar Das
London and Paris have much in common as far as Krishna Consciousness is concerned. Srila Prabhupada visited both cities many times.
He installed Radha Krishna Deities in both places and gave Them similar names...Radha-London Isvara (London) Radha-Paris Isvara (Paris). He also installed Jagannatha, Baladeva, Subhadra, and Gaura Nitai in both cities.
Rathayatras in both places attract thousands each year, around 20,000 people in London (since 1969) and ar
By Madhava Smullen
The San Francisco Rathayatra, ISKCON’s first, returned on August 14th after missing the year 2020 due to the pandemic, with a bright and colorful celebration for the Lord of the Universe at Golden Gate Park.
With the exception of last year, San Francisco Rathayatra has been held annually since 1967, when Srila Prabhupada sketched a truck with a four-pillared canopy on the back and organized his early disciples in introducing Lord Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra to North Ame
By Madana Gopal Das
The first Annual Parsippany, New Jersey, Rathayatra festival was held this summer on July 11th, 2021.
The bright-faced, colorfully dressed devotees, numbering over 1500, sang, danced, and joyfully pulled the beautifully decorated chariot of Lord Jagannatha, Baladeva, and Subhadra Devi starting at the Vrajdham temple and ending at the construction site of the brand new Grand ISKCON Parsippany Temple, where the parade ending with a thunderous kirtan.
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Our life is like a yatra – a pilgrimage, a spiritual journey towards the Divine. Our body symbolises the rath or chariot, through which we embark on the journey towards serving and attaining eternal love of the Lordships. Though we live in this material body or ‘rath’, the bonafide shastras and acharyas advise us to surrender its control to the all-merciful Lord Purushottama. Thus, by sincerely following their instructions, we earn their blessings and eventually we are able to blissfully maneu
Ratha Yatra or Chariot Festival'is a festival associated with Lord Jagannath held at Puri in the state of Odisha, India. It is the oldest Ratha Yatra taking place in India and the World, whose descriptions can be found in Brahma Purana, Padma Purana, and Skanda Purana and Kapila Samhita.This annual festival is celebrated on Ashadha Shukla Paksha Dwitiya (second day in bright fortnight of Ashadha month).The festival commemorates Jagannath's annual visit to Gundicha Temple
The presiding deities o
By Madhava Smullen
An online “Sravana Festival,” with a series of Zoom talks by illustrious guests about the pastimes of Lord Jagannath and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, is setting the mood for the upcoming Ratha Yatra celebrations at the ISKCON temple in Plainfield, New Jersey and on the Atlantic City boardwalk.
The nectarean spiritual talks, which are taking place every Sunday from 9:00am to around 10:30am EST, began on June 20th with Director of Gopal Jiu Publications Madhavananda Das, who is based
By Madhava Smullen
Lord Jagannatha is coming.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, 2020 was the first year without a New York Ratha Yatra parade in 45 years – instead, Lord Jagannatha was driven down Fifth Avenue in a minivan, along with a virtual online celebration.
This summer, things are beginning to look different. The number of new coronavirus cases in the US has plummeted from a seven-day average of more than 250,000 a day in early January, to a daily average of less than 14,380 during the past
With folded hands, we thank all the Vaishnavas for participation in this year’s Kshetra Parikrama. Irrespective of the pandemic and the bridge in physical association it has caused, in great numbers from all around the world, has tuned in daily to participate in the parikrama engaging our minds fully in Puri Dham.
This has proved to us that indeed we can systematically and devotionally engage modern day technology fully for the service of the Lord and how it can be used perfectly in this period
Happy Dipavali. A Good News for You!
Welcome to Puri Parikrama 2020!
As Supremely Merciful as Lord Jagannath, His Divine abode Puri dhama is reaching to you, wherever you are, in any part of this planet and you can join us in Puri Parikrama Online everyday from 2nd Dec-5th Dec. Do not miss the mercy of performing Puri Parikrama on the specific day prescribed in Scriptures(on the tithi of Marga sirsa masa Pancami – the 5th day after Purnima, in the month of Marga sirsa, this year it falls on 5th
Caitanya Mahaprabhu proclaims that the Holy Names will be glorified in every town and village. In our village within a town, the local Topanga Canyon media resonated Lord Jagannath’s mercy. Even though He could not appear on the beach amongst ten thousand or so happy festival-goers, He found his way into every home in our small community nestled in the mountains of Los Angeles county. I take no credit for His appearance here. I just opened the bi-weekly paper to find a darshan of His smile. We m
Ratha Yatra is usually a summer staple for ISKCON devotees, a chance to pull Their Lordships Jagannatha, Baladeva and Subhadra on Their chariot through the streets, share Krishna consciousness, see old friends and connect. With the COVID-19 pandemic, of course, none of this is possible in person, and Ratha Yatras all over the world have been cancelled. But devotees are thinking creatively and coming up with virtual alternatives for the chariot festival.
From July 1st to 12
