Seattle Goura-Pournima Report

[Guest guest]

By Damaghosa Prabhu

(Posted here without his knowledge. Hope he doesn't mind! Hare krsna.)

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Obeisances------ All glories to Srila Prabhupada and all his ecstatic

followers.

 

Well, yesterday was,as usual ecstatic, being the appearance day of Sri

Caitanya Mahaprabhu celebration. Many devotees came from all over this area

and brought some gifts for the Deities and some brought preparations they

had made at their homes. For the pleasure of Sri Sri Gaura Nitai we here at

the temple made the following:

 

SAK-Lord Gaura's favorite

Gauranga potatoes-slathered in olive oil, sour cream, and beautiful butter

chutney of two kinds-nectarine and tomato pakoras-cawly, zuke and red pepper

samosas calzones-ummmmm

split pea dahl- with a large head of fresh coriander leaves added at the end

GULAB JAMUNS-by Gaurangas mercy they came out perfect!

Burfy-raspberry, plain, and lemon

sweet balls-coconut, coconut w/. almonds, and raisin

Rice-Royal Bengali pushpanna lemon drink-fresh squeezed couscous pie

fresh baked bread-with nectarines and sunflower seeds fresh milk chapuris

 

And other devotees brought fruit salad mixed with whipped cream, cauliflower

subji, oatmeal cookies, and tomato/zucchini/potato/curd subji .

 

All total, I think we had about 26 preparations to offer to Their Lordships

Sri Sri Gaura Nitai.

 

But the best part was Hari Nama which we did before the program started. It

is stated by Haridas Thakur that loud chanting is 1000 times more powerful

than soft chanting.

 

And in the Naradiya Purana, Prahlada maharaja states that a person who

chants loudly is 1000 times more pious than him who chants silently. Soft

chanting liberates the chanter only but loud chanting liberates all who hear

it. A selfish person is concerned with himself only, but one who is

compassionate concerns himself with others welfare. Therefore this Hari Nama

is the medicine for the age. We met some nice people out on the streets. One

group of students began filming us for quite some time then came to where we

were chanting and started asking questions. Turns out they are doing a

project for their anthropology class and will use the film of us chanting

for their class work. Another person who had been to Vrndavana India was

very much attracted to the chanting and later, upon my insistence, came to

the program and loved it, and bought some booksto take home. She had been to

the Krsna Balarama temple in Vrndavana and had liked it very much. Even

though there were ONLY three of us, the chanting was blissfull-and obviously

productive!!!!

 

When we came back to the temple, I had to still cook the Sak subji, pakoras,

and other things.

 

So, the others decorated Krsna's temple room with flowers and balloons.

 

We had a kirtan which I was told later that even made one "old devotee"

start to dance-something I'm sure he has long forgotten to do-since he comes

here or anywhere rarely.

 

But he thanked me very much as he and wife and daughter were leaving for

helping him to come. (Previously on the phone this week I got on his case

rather heavily for his lack of desire to pursue his spiritual life- at

all-and it worked. I had tried, in the past, all other techniques but none

of them got the result of getting him off his couch, so as a last resort, I

gave him whats been termed the "good ol' chilli sauce" - and it worked.

 

After the rip snorting kirtan which went on for some time, I gave class on

detailed information of who comprises the Panca Tattva and Their immense

potencies and followed that with a short explanation of Krsna's Holy Names

and how it is the treasure in the storehouse of this material world.

Afterwards, many devotees came to me and said how they very much appreciated

what they had heard (from the param para) as they never really realized what

they were chanting when they chant the Panca Tattva mantra.

 

So, in summary, by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mercy (who also by the mercy

of my good and chaste wife got another new outfit-Their 17th) all devotees

who attended felt Krsna in many of His Transcendental attributes- and all

took part in the yuga dharma-CHANTING DANCING AND FEASTING-THE SO SUBLIME

PROCESS TO BE HAPPY IN THIS DULL DARK AGE OF KALI!

 

SRI KRSNA CAITANYA RADHA KRSNA NAHE ANYA

(Sri Krsna Caitanya is none other than Sri Sri Radha and Krsna)

 

SRILA PRABHUPADA KI JAI !

 

Damaghosa das

Sri Sri Gaura Nitai Mandir

Seattle