Mayapur Today E-Newsletter - May 06 Edition

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> Mayapur Temple Elephant Departs This World

> Gaura Purnima Celebrated by Thousands

> In Samadhi

> International Entertainment for Gaura Purnima

> First Vaishnava Film Festival

> Hamsa Vahan Shiva in Historic Visit to Sri Mayapur ISKCON

 

Visit Mayapur.com for the latest news

 

Mayapur Temple Elephant - Gulab Kali Departs This World

 

Devotees around the world are mourning the sad passing of Mayapur's resident

deity-bearing elephant, Gulab Kali, who left her body at dusk on April 1st in

the presence of her beloved family members, the residents of Sridhama Mayapur.

 

Gulab came to Mayapur as a baby, only three years of age, in 1981. As the

adoptive baby of Sundar Kali, Mayapur's then-resident elephant, she Captured

the hearts of devotees and visitors alike. Sundar Kali would carry the deities

in the weekly procession, and Gulab would follow behind, holding Bhavananda's

hand with her trunk. He was her favorite. Her sweet, gentle nature endeared her

to everyone, and visitors queued to receive a gentle pat on their head from her

trunk.

 

Gulab died from complications arising from a foot infection. Ramadevi dasi, our

deity seamstress and healthcare expert, noticed the seriousness of Gulab's

condition and rallied the forces to try and reverse the situation. The greatest

concern was that Gulab was lying down - the chances of her contracting

pneumonia were high; she would have to be raised. "On the last day almost

everything was in place and the lifting was planned for late that evening or

early next morning," Ramadevi said. "We tried to turn her that day - 3 or 4

times - but she just wasn't in the right position and we failed. On the last

attempt I could see she was breathing very fast and hard and told everyone to

stop and let her rest. I was standing right by her head watching her; I was

really worried. She started to show signs of distress and I knew she was

leaving. I asked everybody to chant. She threw back her head, raised her trunk,

opened her mouth wide and trembled all over. She did this twice and one or two

minutes later she left." Ramadevi said the devotees were shocked. "Sadbhuja was

standing frozen to the spot, and two little gurukula girls, Nayika and Srinath,

were distraught. They had been there for the last two hours singing every song

and half-song and half-verse and odd words of songs that they had ever learned,

mixed up with maha mantras. They were devastated when Gulab left. They have

grown up with Gulab and she was very much a part of their lives." In order to

calm them down, Ramadevi reminded them of the specialness of Gulab's passing.

"I told them that Gulab had seen Madhava coming for her and had thrown her head

back and trunk up to greet Him. Then when He sat on her shoulders to ride her

back to Godhead she was trembling in ecstasy. They both started to calm down

and Nayika was saying between sobs, 'That's good. Yes, that's good.' So that's

how I will try to remember that day ..."

 

Gulab's body was covered with a cloth and her old blanket, and everyone came

for a last darshan. The next morning she was bathed by the gurukula girls and

ladies of the community, and decorated for her journey to her samadhi, behind

her house. "The girls did really lovely designs all over her face and

shoulder," Ramadevi said. "Then devotees began to write Hare Krishna in

different languages all over her body. Gaurahari, the goshala in- charge, was

taking care of the moving and was very sensitive and caring about it." She was

laid to rest according to Vaisnava standards - a suitable finale for her years

of dedicated service as the bearer of Sri Sri Radha Madhava.

 

All glories to Sri Gulab Kali ...

 

Visit the Mayapur.com photo gallery for more photos

 

Top

 

Gaura Purnima Attracts Thousands

 

Each year the festival in Mayapur increases in size, expertise, facility, and

beauty â “ in fact, in every way. From the professionally erected and outfitted

mainstage, to the Bengali drama and performance pavilion, through mini markets

and restaurants, the grounds were alive, colorful, and exploding with sound

constantly.

 

Highlights

Over 4000 international devotee participants from more than 80 countries

including new delegations from Vietnam, Israel, Nigeria, Zambia, and Togo.

More than 900 devotees on Navadvip Dham Parikrama

Over 50,000 plates of free prasad distributed to pilgrims

 

 

 

 

Visit the Mayapur.com photo gallery for more photos

 

Top

 

In Samadhi

 

The samadhi inauguration for HH Bhakti Tirtha Swami was held on Saturday 25th

February. A procession of devotees carried the urn containing Maharajaâ .s

ashes from the temple to the samadhi area, where a yajna was performed, and his

godbrothers and godsisters offered their remembrances of Maharaja in the pandal

area next to the samadhis. A feast was offered to all the devotees in Mayapur,

and kirtans were held in the evening in Maharajaâ .s honor.

 

Three days later saw the annual observance of the tirobhava ceremonies for His

Holiness Tamal Krishna Goswami. This is the fourth year anniversary of

Maharajaâ .s disappearance, and as usual the day started with the singing of Je

Anila Prema Dhana prayers at mangalarati, followed by remembrances of Goswami

Maharaja by disciples, godbrothers, and godsisters in the pandal area. In the

evening, â œKirtan with TKGâ was led by his godbrothers. During the last ten

days of his life, Goswami Maharaja held these kirtans in his room, and they

have become part of the Mayapur festival tradition.

 

One week prior to these ceremonies, on the 18th, the tirobhava ceremonies for

HH Gaura Govinda Swami were held here in Mayapur, on the disappearance day of

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. Orissan-style bhajans were sung over

the two evenings of the festival in honor of Maharaja, and the deity procession

â “ headed by Mayapurâ .s elephant, Gulab Kali â “ stopped at the samadhi area

while devotees circumambulated the samadhis, chanting in kirtan, before

rejoining the procession. It was a wonderful, colorful festival in honor of a

dear disciple of Srila PrabhupÃ.da.

 

All devotees present for the Mayapur festival season attended these auspicious

events commemorating the life and service of Gaura Govinda Maharaja, Tamal

Krishna Goswami, and Bhakti Tirtha Maharaja, and their dedication to the order

of their spiritual master, His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Prabhupada.

 

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International Entertainment for Gaura Purnima Festival

 

Mayapurâ .s 2006 Gaura Purnima Festival boasted an international line-up of

guest entertainers. Starting with the â ~home turfâ . performers, the Mayapur

Players stunned audiences repeatedly with their superbly enacted, finely-tuned

performances of Ramayana, The Birth of Lord Krishna, Sati, and so on. Under the

direction of HH Bhakti Marg Swami, the troupe rose to the occasion and

delivered outstanding dramas night after night. The highlights were Visakha

Dasiâ .s â œDance of the Deerâ from Ramayana; Radha Sundariâ .s dance solo in

Sati, and the servants of Siva performing their dramatic, dark, and

exhilarating â œCurseâ dance during Sati. Itâ .s difficult to distinguish one

sterling performance over another.

 

Jayadeva Das flew in from London to deliver his own unique brand of

crowd-pleasers. The audience responded en masse, raising the volume a few

notches and chanting â œJaya Jagannathâ along with Jayadeva. Jayadeva is about

to launch his Flo-Yoga DVD internationally, and the songs he performed in

Mayapur are included on the DVD.

 

Karnamritaâ .s performance precedes a tour of the USAâ .s kirtan-yoga circuit.

With the blessings of the assembled Vaisnavas, her career is about to be

launched in the US: she is now being managed by the promoters of Krishnadas.

Missing from this popular trend at present is the special ingredient of bhakti:

something that Karnamrita alone can add to the mix. Her performances were

appreciated in Mayapur. Karnamrita adds something special: she is a refined,

mature, professional performer; trained for several years by a leading guru in

the Drupada tradition of vocal arts, her voice is unique, powerful, and

soulful. We wish her all the best in the coming year, and hope she returns in

2007â |

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top

First Vaishnava Film Festival Held in Mayapur

 

On 11th March a packed pandal filled to overflowing to participate in and

celebrate the 1st Annual Vaishnava Film Festival, hosted by ISKCON Television

(ITV).

 

It was a wonderful night, starting with a clip of all the Hollywood movies that

included Hare Krishnas: mostly performing sankirtan. Then the hosts,

Nrisimhananda das and his co-host Praghosa das, led the audience through a

night of creativity and innovative talent, awarding the winners with those

highly sought-after golden statues: the Nityananda Award.

 

A Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Yadubara prabhu and Visakha devi

for their contributions to preaching through film.

 

Several awards, including Best Picture went to a highly professional entry from

South Africa - My Hare Krishna Family and was highlighted in the local South

Africa media with articles like this one:

 

LOCAL DOCUMENTARY WINS HARE KRISHNA OSCAR

 

My Hare Krishna Family, a 48-minute documentary directed and produced by

local film-makers Frank Opperman and Denise Slabbert won three awards at the

first Hare Krishna Film Festival in Mayapur, India on Saturday night.

This film was first aired on SABC2 during August 2005 and has subsequently

been rebroadcast during February 2006 as well as appearing on SABC Africa.

 

The film tells the story of Frank and his relationship with his younger

sister Yvonne - a Hare Krishna devotee. The documentary follows the story of

Yvonne Opperman (aka Ila Devi Dasi), her Ghanaian husband â “ Shastra Das and

their little son (and Frankâ .s nephew) Ramananda Raya. The documentary was

shot on two locations. The first location being Frankâ .s home in Melville,

Johannesburg, when his family comes to visit from Ghana. The other location is

a rural village, outside Accra â “ when Frank visits his Hare Krishna family in

West Africa.

 

Opperman says, â ~Itâ .s a real honour to have won the awards, not only for

best film but for best soundtrack and script as well. A highlight of this

production is the soundtrack which consists of a number of songs from a band

of street children from Kenya called Little Gokul, and itâ .s great that they

have been recognised as wellâ .

 

Producer Denise Slabbert says that expanding the audience across our borders is

a real bonus. â ~I think its incredible that My Hare Krishna Family has

received recognition as far away as Mayapur, one of the holiest places in

India. To get accolades from the international Krishna community for a

documentary with a totally independent voice is praise indeed.â . she says.

 

Yvonne Opperman and Shastra Das recently left Ghana and are now living in

Mayapur (some 150kmâ .s from Calcutta) - they were on hand to collect the

awards on Saturday evening. â ~It was really nerve-wrackingâ . says Yvonne

Opperman, â ~There were over 4000 devotees and I was really nervous.â . She

says that the South African devotees attending the awards were very pleased at

the outcome of a local film winning the Hare Krishna â ~Oscarsâ ..

 

 

Top

Hamsa Vahan Shiva in Historic Visit to Sri Mayapur ISKCON

 

A historic event took place in Mayapur. Hamsa Vahan Shiva, one of the most

ancient deities of Navadvip Dham, took a visit to our Mayapur Chandrodaya

Mandir. This is also the first time he has ever come to this island.

 

The story of Hamsa Vahan is as follows: Once Suta Goswami was having

discussions on Gaura Lila in Navadvipa Dham. Lord Shiva heard about it and

eagerly wanted to attend. Since his carrier, Nandi the bull, wasnâ .t fast

enough, Shiva borrowed Brahmaâ .s swan so he could get here in time. When he

came and listened to the glories of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he developed the

great desire to see Him. But since Lord Gauranga was not due to appear yet,

Lord Shiva became transcendentally angry and his body became extremely hot.

 

The origin of the deity is not fully known, but he gets hot when not kept wet.

Generally the deity is kept in a lake called Alakananda Kunda and comes out

only once a year. However, some 7 months ago, someone had stolen the deity from

the lake. The deity was recovered, but the villagers decided to keep him in a

safer place. So they now keep the deity in a small shrine in the village near

the lake.

 

We had proposed for Hamsa Vahan Shiva to visit our temple over three years ago,

since he sometimes visits surrounding temples to take darshan of the deities

there. Lord Shiva is known as the greatest Vaishnava and we felt that he would

want to see Sri Sri Radha Madhava and Sri Panchatattva. At that time the

worshipers of the deity were apposed to the idea. However, since he has moved

into the village he has been under the care of the village committee. They were

more favorable to the idea and on the 10th of April he finally came.

 

Visit the Gallery for an selection of photos by Vrindavan Lila DD.

 

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"The Krishna consciousness movement has established its center in Mayapur, the

birthsite of Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu,

to give men the great opportunity to go there and perform a constant festival

of sankirtan-yajna, and to distribute prasad to millions of hungry people

hankering for spiritual emancipation.  This is the mission of the Krishna

consciousness movement."

 

HIs Divine Grace

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami

Prabhupada

 

Gaura Purnima Offering of Service  2006 Donors

 

On behalf of the worldwide community of the 2006 Sri Gaura Purnima Festival 

participants we offer our heartfelt gratitude to the following donors who made

this program possible.

 

Prasadam Sponsors

 

Congregation of Bahrain

Congregation of Washington

Dolly Arora

ISKCON Jagannath Mandir, Bangalore

ISKCON Tirupati

Narendra D. Desai

Narendra Krishna Das

Shankar Adwal

Shyamananda das

Srinivas Missam

Swiss Tamil Krishna Society

T. K. Chowdhury

Zoran Elda Buncuga

 

Event Sponsors

 

Narahari-Dev Das

Narasimha Bhagavan das

Nundlall Kunjbehari

Pavaka Devi Dasi

Poonam Gupta

Supriya Kulkarni

Tina Vishal Kamdar

 

Offerings

 

Abhishek Singh

Acyuta Gaura Das

Andreas Karthaus

Anita Boro

Antonio Cizik

Ashneel Reddy

Atulkumar Gandhi

Braja Hari Das

Caru Caitanya Dasa

Damir Kurecic

Damjan Derlink

Daven Pillay

Evie Rodriguez

Ganga-Gati Dasi

Geli Weymann

Gopi Gita Devi Dasi

Guru Das And Rucira Dasi

Guru Palaniappan

Hare Krsna Dasi

Hari Kishore Das

Hope Wettan

Ian Lubsey

Ilayaraja Balachandran

Jayadeva Dasa & Kadamba Mala Devi Dasi

Jayanti Radhika Devi Dasi

Jayaraseshwari Devi Dasi

Jeffrey Corbin

Jennifer Olson

Jusaniya Devi Dasi

Kesava Devi Dasi

Kevin Spencer

Kiran Patel

Krodha-Krt Devi Dasi

Kunjabihari Dasa

Lajja Devi

Lalit Kapoor

Leslie Stacpool

Lokadhyaksa Dasa

Madhurya Isvari Dd

Mahabala Nitai

Manjari Singh

Manna Patel

Matyas Mero

Mauricio Restrepo

Nadesi , Gopal And Dinanatha

Narahari Dev Das

Nartak Gauranga Das

Nihal Sing

Nitish Goji

Pancharatna Das

Param Rushi Dasa

Paramdham Das

Peggy Ordonez

Piotr Adamski

Pitambara Dasa

Praghosa Dasa

Prashant Sarawade

Prystupa Alexandr

Radha Damodar

Radhabhava Gaur Das

Radhalakshmi Palffy

Radhikesh Das

Ramachandra Das

Ramatirtha

Ramesh Yerramsetti

Ramesha Das

Ramunas Gabsevicius

Rasika Siromani Dasi

Rodgers Niranjan

Sabina Govekar

Saksi Gopal Das

Sanath Shetty

Sandeep Budhrani

Sankirtan Das

Sapana Dixit

Sara Berggren

Saranga Thakura Dasa & Seva Priya Dasi

Sarika Hurjan Narain Singh

Sarla Menon

Sethulakshmi Kartha

Shruti Singh

Sivakumar Balasubramanian

Sri Gadadhar

Sri Radhika Dasi

Sri Vallabha Das

Srinivas Missam

Subal Syama Revindaran

Sudama Das

Susanne Linz

Syama-Mohini Dasi

Timo Tolonen

Tina Kamdar

Tom Cimerman

Uttam Krsna Dasa

Vamsi Dasa

Vinesh Raghavan

Vyasadev Palffy

Yasoda-Dulal Das

 

The names of all donors are read to the deities during abhishek.

 

Annadan Donors

 

On behalf of the pilgrims who received Sri Krishna Prasad produced with their

donations we offer our gratitude to:

 

Juraj Antoska

Umesh Arora

Ksenia Asatryan

Jotika Bajpai

Bhagiawatie Bhageloe-Datadin

Sara Czenstochouski

Victor Epand

Judy Harris

Tina Kamdar

Andreas Karthaus

Petra & Christoph Kraft

Ian Lubsey

Randall Meier

Sarla Menon

Vaidehi Mutyala

Jyotirmoy Pal

Prasanna Paladugu

Rangadesch Palasooriyakumar

Raksha Ramdeo Authar

Ronald Robinson

Philip Sadkin

Allan Saheblal

Prashant Sarawade

Hrishikesh Shinde

Sailaja Sitamraju

Rudy Snoeck

Nakul Srikumar

Liliya Toneva

 

 

 

Mayapur Today

 

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