By Bhakta Nikhil
Friends, disciples and well-wishers of HH Subhag Swami Maharaj gathered in the holy land of Jaipur to participate in a festival of hearing, chanting and sadhu sanga between the dates of 15th ~ 20th October 2015. This is the 5th annual parikrama Maharaj has been holding in various holy places across India. Jaipur, also known as “Gupta Vrindavan” plays hosts to our Gaudiya Sampradaya’s most cherished deities’: Radha Govindadev and Radha Gopinath. As stated by Maharaj on a number of occasions, “Everyone in Jaipur is a devotee.” It could be for this reason that Their Lordships’ decided to make Jaipur Their permanent home.
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Day 1
Devotees reached Jaipur on the 15th morning. At 2pm, Maharaj arrived and was greeted with a tumultuous kirtan and bowing of conch shells. Beautiful rangolis decorated the floor creating an auspicious atmosphere. Within an hour of Maharaj’s arrival it started to rain heavily. Anyone who stays in India knows that the chances of raining in North India during October are very meager and in Jaipur there was no sight of rain since the last month. Devotees felt that Indra along with other demigods sent blessings for an auspicious start to the festival.
The inauguration ceremony started at 7pm with sankalpa which was led by HG Shyamasundarananda das from Mayapur. Devotees promised to participate with full enthusiasm and sincerity during the allotted time here. Maharaj then addressed the assembled vaisnavas with a short but powerful class. He mentioned the importance of Jaipur for Gaudiya Vaisnavas and the meaning of parikrama: a chance for all devotees to come together and serve, share realisations and make deep friendships on a spiritual level.
Day 2
Srimad Bhagavatam class given by HG Hari das was held at 8am. Hari das, a senior disciple of HH Bhakti Svarup Damodar Swami and sanyas candidate, inspired all on the topic of Dhruva Maharaj.
A mini Kirtan Mela was held between 5pm till 7pm. At 7.15pm Maharaj held an interactive session with all the devotees. He requested them to share their experiences in Krishna Consciousness and how it had made a positive change in their lives’. Many devotees responded by expressing how they are effected less by anxiety and tension and how their lives are becoming more and more joyful. The day ended with an ecstatic kirtan led by Indonesian devotees. When Maharaj started to dance, all devotees were left in an ocean of bliss.
Day 3
The day started early as buses left after Mangal arti to various temples around Jaipur. The first destination was Radha Natabara Mandir. A little known fact: after many of our acarya’s deities in Vrindavan were moved to Jaipur, they first stayed at this temple until further arrangements were carried out. A five minute walk landed us to Radha Madhava, the dearmost of Jayadeva Goswami. After a short and sweet kirtan in the courtyard, devotees proceeded to the buses which then took us to Radha Damodar. The deities of Jiva Goswami, being so small in height compared to the Radha Damodar in Vrindavan that most ISKCON devotees know, won the hearts of many. After a short walk, we visited Radha Vinodi Lal. These deities appeared before Lokanath Goswami and are said to be self-manifested. Devotees were surprised to see how similar Vinodi Lal looked compared to Radha Raman in Vrindavan. Radha Gopinath, which was worshiped by Madhu Pandit was next on the list. We reached just in time as the altar closed for the bhoga offering within a few minutes of devotees arriving. After paying our respects, we proceeded with loud kirtan to see Rupa Goswami’s Radha Govinda. We reached just in time for midday arti. With bells ringing and pilgrims glorifying Govinda with sweet songs, the spiritually surcharged atmosphere was one that devotees would not forget for a long time. Maharaj arrived shortly thereafter and gave a short class on the significance of these deities in relation with us being “Rupanugas”. He mentioned how Srila Prabhupada wanted that ISKCON should follow the deity worship standards of that in this particular temple. Devotees then headed back to our respective places and honored a sumptuous feast.
Day 4
Buses again left early in the morning to a village around an hour’s drive from Jaipur. Maharaj gave Bhagavatam class on the teachings of Prahlad Maharaj, stressing the necessity of giving the youth a spiritual education. “These are the future of ISKCON” was a phrase he repeatedly cited. At the end of the class Maharaj called all children to the front of the pandal and asked them to recite slokas from the Bhagavad Gita. The whole assembly just by seeing the youth so enthusiastically participating became inspired themselves.
In the afternoon there was kirtan, hari katha by various devotees and a wonderful drama. After afternoon prasad we headed back to Jaipur and took rest.
Day 5
Maharaj gave Bhagavatam class in the morning on the subject matter of Ambarish Maharaj, all devotees listened with rapt attention. Until Maharaj pointed it out, devotees didn’t realize that it was 45 minutes into prasadam time! Maharaj then commented,” By listening with rapt attention about the pastimes of the Lord nectar can be easily obtained.”
In the evening Maharaj held a question and answer session. At first devotees were apprehensive to ask questions but as Maharaj started to answer with enthusiasm, the questions started to flow. At the end of the class, a new book in Telegu was released entitled, “Hari Kathamritam.”
Day 6
Bhagavatam class was given by HG Ramanuja das of Manipur. He spoke extensively on the topic of Vaisnava dealings and relationships. Maharaj then spoke further on this emphasizing how Srila Prabhupada wanted this society to be based on “love and trust.”
At one o’clock a concluding ceremony took place. Devotees that played key roles in the festival spoke on their experiences during the festival and shared their realisations. Many broke into tears whilst pouring their heart to the audience. Finally Maharaj expressed his personal experience of the festival. A grand feast of 13 delicious items then awaited the devotees which officially marked the culmination of the program.
We thank all the wonderful vaisnavas who attended the festival. Many came from far-off places such as: Indonesia, Sweden, Poland, England, Spain and Italy. Special thanks to the kitchen department, many matajis helped cutting subji for hours on end. Everyone was working so enthusiastically, even the children! We would like to congratulate the managerial devotees who worked tirelessly, giving up bodily comfort to help make the program a success. Our most humble respects to HH Subhag Swami Maharaj, only by his expert guidance and dedication was the program taken from pen and paper and turned into a grand success. Last but not least we express our heartfelt gratitude to Srila Prabhupada who made a house in which the whole world can live as brothers and sisters peacefully enjoying a life of Krishna Conciousness.
ISKCON yatra ki Jay
Srila Prabhupada ki Jay
Jaipur Sadhu Sanga Mahotsava ki Jay
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