In the darkness of COVID-19, with devotees around the world under stay-at-home orders for months on end, virtual programs have brought much needed inspiration and association. One of the stand out bright spots has been the Towaco Zoom Sangas.
Organized by ISKCON of New Jersey’s Towaco temple in the USA, the program has delivered talks by some of the most illustrious speakers in the Hare Krishna Movement eight times a week online, providing the kind of experience that would have been hard to find even before the pandemic began.
Speakers have included Jayadvaita Swami, Sacinandana Swami, Giriraj Swami, Bhakti Charu Swami, Radhanath Swami, Visakha Dasi, Kurma Das, Radhika Ramana Das, and many other senior devotees.
On average, each class has had about 200 connections, with viewers of each connection ranging from an individual, to a couple, to in many cases a family of four or five. Some speakers, however, have drawn up to 1,000 connections – about two to three thousand devotees.
Viewers come mainly from the Northeastern U.S., where ISKCON of New Jersey is, but many others hail from all over the East and West Coasts, as well as some from Europe, India and Australia.
Regular Zoom sangas have been taking place since mid-March, around the time when U.S. lockdowns started, with classes three times a week by Jayadvaita Swami, who is residing at the Towaco temple. Speaking on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8pm US Eastern Time, the Swami has been covering chapters 18 and 19 of the first canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, wherein we learn how the great devotee Pariksit Maharaja responds to a major crisis in his life.
Read more: https://iskconnews.org/towaco-zoom-sangas-a-bright-spot-in-the-darkness-of-the-pandemic,7371/
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