Janmashtami 2011

Happy Janmashtami! This post is late and unfortunately this time I have no photos to upload but let me tell you something you already know - it was breathtakingly beautiful.

The best part was that I got to take my grandmother and uncle with me. I have been so eager for them to come and see the empty halls that become beautiful with the presence of Krishna, His associates and His devotees. It truly is the Lord's mercy because I am always keen to take my grandmother out on festivals but I don't always get the chance to do so.

Anyway, we couldn't stay very long so we just planned to take darshan. And I also desperately wanted some of that glorious charnamrit! Yum yum. So we entered the hall, and I was feeling good to be amongst devotees again after so long in this festive atmosphere. Then I started to hear the kirtan that was going on, and my heart started to swell. We took darshan of Krishna and I found tears in my eyes. How does this happen? Everytime I go to the hall feeling normal and fine and when the kirtan starts and Krishna appears before me in His infinite glory, I am just taken in. Then I want to stare and stare and beg Him to love me even though I know He does. I wanted to stay there forever. It just felt so amazing to be there!

Darshan ended quickly as there was a really big crowd so we had to keep moving. Then we got amazing prasadam and I got my long desired charnamrit! Ooh I can taste it now. I never liked it before but now I am just crazy about it! It's the best!

There were many devotees doing seva like handing out gifts, prasadam, and keeping everyone's shoes/sandals in a bag. It was so endearing to see little kids of 10 years doing their bit to help out. The Lord is so merciful that He has engaged them in serving Him like this. When we were taking back our sandals, this one devotee did something so sweet. The person volunteering to give back sandals emptied out the bag and so our sandals were on the floor. My grandmother turned over my sandals and I wore them and the next thing I knew, I saw a devotee bending down turning over my grandmother's sandals and helping her wear them! She didn't really need the help but he thought she did and without hesitation he proceeded to help her. Now this was truly amazing for me to see because since I have OCD, the idea of touching shoes and sandals, that too someone else's, really puts me in an anxious state. And here was this devotee of the Lord, looking to serve another devotee. And he wasn't worrying about germs. He didn't care that they were someone else's sandals. To him, he just wanted to serve and help. My grandmother too was touched by the act. I was simply amazed. It's really true what they say about kind deeds - no matter how small they are, they sure do go a long way. I have no idea who that devotee is but may Krishna bless his heart.

This Janmashtami reminded me that I needed to spend more time with Krishna and it also gave me something to think about with regards to my OCD. Sometime ago, I was praying for good health and I felt like something inside me said that on Janmashtami, the birth of Krishna, I will also have a new birth. I took this to mean that all my health problems will go away since that's what I was praying for at the time. But now I'm starting to think perhaps it was more a spiritual rebirth. Maybe the idea of rebirth was just in my head and not really the Lord promising me something, but on Janmashtami, I realized that I still have a connection with Krishna even though I haven't spent a lot of time with Him lately and He is still resting in my heart. I haven't felt an emotional connection with Him in a long time, and that was just a such nice gift from Him on Janmashtami. Moreover, it was really crazy the things I had to do that day! Like walking barefeet! That is something I haven't done in a really long time because obviously I dread the idea of germs even on my feet. But the Lord gave me enough strength to do it. And later, a flower they gave us at the program fell on the floor, and of course, I dread picking up things that have fallen on the floor. Even if I pick them, I try not to touch the part that touched the ground. But this was a flower. Plus it was used in Krishna's service. If anything, instead of becoming dirty, it would purify me. So I picked it up and didn't bother about which side had touched the ground. Again, my strength comes from Krishna. He says in the Gita that He is the strength of the strong, and the only way I can be strong is through Him. So you see, He helps me in these ways to get over my fears, and from time to time, he rekindles our relationship tirelessly, despite the countless number of times that I put the flame out. And I know that He will always do so for us, out of His unconditional love.

I hope all of you had a blessed Janmashtami too. Share your Janmashtami stories in the comments section if you please :)

Gaura Purnima 2011

Happy Gaura Purnima and Happy Holi, all of you!

Gaura Purnima marks the birthday and appearance of our dear Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. There was a nice celebration here today for Gaura Purnima. I stepped into the Sindhi Hall and I could hear some verses being chanted. I climbed the stairs to get to the second floor. The chanting was getting louder and clearer. As I climbed the stairs, I realized that the glorious Bramha Samhita was being chanted. Oh, my heart longed to go closer and closer! I found my pace quicken as I climbed the stairs.

Ratha Yatra in Abu Dhabi

Ganesh said:

"There’s going to be a big jaganath ratha yatra festival on 11th Feb at ISC, Abu dhabi. Interested people may contact me at ganeshthebest@yahoo.co.in. NO MONETARY HELP REQUIRED. Only help required is participation. If interested one may also take part in cooking puri’s or mixed vegetables or sheera for the pleasure of lord and his devotees."

Do attend if you can! It will be a blast!

Kirtaniya Sada Hari

Kirtaniya sada hari: Constantly engaged in chanting the Holy Names of Lord Hari

I just came back home after an ecstatic evening. This weekend was just so incredibly Krishna Conscious. I didn't go for the event on Thursday, but I went yesterday and today.

Yesterday, HH Bhakti Brnga Govinda Maharaj sang such a beautiful kirtan. But my mind is foolish. I was so not into it. I was looking around me and everyone was just taken in by the kirtan. Why not me?

Party Weekend!

Hello hello!

Are you guys ready for a 3-day party, filled with music, dance, drama, food, and everything else that you can think of?

Starting this evening, until Saturday night, we're going to have a blissful Krishna Conscious Weekend. PARTY TIME WOOOHOOOOOOO!

Here are the details:

Govardhan Celebrations

Hare Krishna, everyone :)

Once again, I had the chance to see Ekalavya Dasa Prabhu. Today at Bhakti Vriksh, we were having Govardhan celebrations. We had kirtans for around 2 hours! It was crazy! So much energy, so much fun. Everyone was just absorbed in the kirtans.

Diwali 2010

Hey guys!

So the day's pretty much over. I just finished today's diwali aarti a while ago. I was in such a rotten mood just before the aarti. I was so impatient and so irritated. I had to help my sister find an outfit for her high school graduation ceremony tomorrow and we just couldn't find anything and it was frustrating me. We sat down for the aarti and I was just being so negative about everything. It all seemed very ritualistic, and I kept remembering the blog entry I posted earlier today, about ritualism. Moreover, I've gotten accustomed to thinking like this because of reading so much about how Hinduism is just "paganism" and "heathen". So anyway, I reminded myself of my own blog entry, and told myself to think of the meaning behind these rituals. Soon, during the aarti, I started feeling very

Happy Diwali, Everyone!

Hare Krishna!

Happy Diwali to all of you! I wish all of you lots of peace, joy and happiness, and most of all, love of God.

Let's spend today focusing on the meaning behind our prayers and rituals, which are the means to an end, and not the end itself. Today is a good day, and it comes with a good opportunity to practice this. We must always understand the reasons and intentions underlying all our religious acts and not become mechanic and ritualistic. There is no use of performing any rituals if the reason behind it is not understood. Actually, the reason should always be love.

HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj in Dubai

On 12th September, I was given the opportunity to attend a lecture by HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj. I'm so grateful. I didn't get to see him at the Janmashtami/Ratha Yatra festival on the 10th so Krishna gave me another opportunity :)

We got to the hall and Swami had still not arrived so kirtans were going on. That's what I love about Hare Krishna festivals. There's never an idle moment. Every time we have to wait, every time the sound system fails, somehow if something gets delayed, it's just another opportunity for kirtan.

Janmashtami 2010 + Ratha Yatra 2010 II

I attended the 3rd Janmashtami celebration (this year) yesterday. It was at Regent School. I am so thankful to Krishna. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to go because I just had 2 of my wisdom teeth extracted. I was worried I would have some serious after-effects. But Krishna has been taking good care of me, and I am eternally grateful. The celebration was incredible.

HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj and HH Mahavishnu Swami Maharaj in Dubai!

YES YES YES! HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj and HH Mahavishnu Swami Maharaj are going to be in Dubai! They're scheduled to arrive tomorrow (September 9th) and on September 10th, there is going to be a grand celebration. I cannot wait!! I am so excited!! It's going to be so awesome! Here are the details:

What: Rath Yatra

When: Friday, 10th September 2010 [Morning program: 6:30 AM to 1:00 PM. Evening program: 4:00 PM to 9:00 PM]

Where: Regent International School, The Greens

Program Schedule:

6:30 - 9:00     Purusha Sukta/ Sri Sukta/ Ayushyahoma/ Yagna

9:00 - 9:30     Breakfast Prasadam

9:30 - 11:30    Vishnu Sahasranama Laksharcana

11:30 - 12:30   Bhagawat Katha [Lecture]

12:30 - 1:00     Kirtan

4:00 - 6:00      Rath Yatra

6:00 - 9:00      Dance/ Drama & Cultural Programs

BE THERE! It's going to be awesome! :D

Janmashtami 2010

Happy Janmashtami, everyone! :) I hope everyone had a fabulous Janmashtami like I did.

I went to Sindhi Ceremonial Hall for the Janmashtami program. It was really nice.

A bad day, a baptism, a birthday, a book and a blog

I had a horrible day yesterday. I had a class at 8:30 in the morning and so, since I take the metro to Uni, I had to leave my house by 7:15 at the latest, to get the 8 am shuttle bus that my Uni provides. What happened was that I left my house in a fabulous mood. I was even singing. That's how good I was feeling. My friend's name ends with 'lova' so I was singing Mr Boombastic, exchanging Mr Lova Lova for Miss **lova Lova, while making a mental note to tell her about it have a few laughs.

So I was like "Mr Boombastic, say me fantastic, touch me in me back she say I'm rooooooooooooomatherfacker!!!"

Janmashtami 2009

Vaishnavas all over the world eagerly waited for the appearance day of their dear Kanha which fell on August 14th 2009. It's 2 days past now but I have still not gotten over the beauty of the Janmashtami festival.

For a quick overview on Janmashtami Today, it is the festival where people climb on top of one another, making a human pyramid to break the "dahi-handi" or "pot of yogurt" which is hung on a string tied to and from building tops. This is one of Krishna's pastimes enacted on the day of his birth. His birth too is a great story. Devaki and Vasudeva were locked in a prison cell because Devaki's cousin brother, Kamsa, was destined to be killed by Devaki's 8th son. So he ordered that all her children be killed upon birth. But when Kanha was born of divine birth, Vasudeva was instructed to