A Poem for Srila Prabhupada
August 25, 2008
A Poem for Srila Prabhupad
on the occasion of his appearance, Sri Vyasa Puja
August 25th, 2008
When I first drew breath
Srila Prabhupad was the air in my chest
he is the shadow
when I enter the templeroom
he is the silver voice
just beyond the margins of a bhajan
he is the rhythm of my footsteps
when I dance in a kirtan
he is the echo of my heartbeat
in the stillness when I chant
he is the smile
when I serve the devotees
Srila Prabhupad
gives me faith -
I would draw away from the Deities
question the scripture
and refuse to chant
without his example
Srila Prabhupad
is the significance in my life
the reason I breathe
and I believe
that you, my dear Vaishnava,
feel the same.
KuliMela Reflecitons: Prasadam ki jai!!
August 8, 2008
I must correct a possible misunderstanding. In my last post, I wrote that sometime after the closing ceremony, someone approached me 20 minutes before the Feast to confirm that he could serve out prasadam. Twenty minutes before. Now, this may have sounded like a one-time deal, a marvelous glitch in the aftermath of so much appreciation at the closing ceremony.
Allow me to clarify: I had people tracking me down all weekend long to let me know they wanted to serve. Sometimes they would approach me at weird, random times – maybe I just finished my japa workshop, or I was on a mission for the Registration booth. Sometimes a whole crew wanted to assure their place in the serving line – Gaura Nitai from the Polish Crew literally informed me a day early that they all wanted to serve dinner.
It was no joke. You either came early, or you lost your spot to serve. That was that. In the organized chaos of making sure everything ran smoothly in feeding 400 people, I will say that I never, ever ran short of servers.
I’ve heard it said in class throughout my life about some great Vaishnava who would serve everyone else prasadam – seconds, thirds – and then clean up after everyone before sitting down to take any prasadam for himself… and he actually enjoyed being last! He was actually in bliss. I kind of wrote that attitude off as a bit masochistic – delay prasadam??
But then, suddenly, I was in the shoes of that Vaishnava – if only for a couple days. I showed up early, was switched “on” for over two hours three times a day to make sure there were servers, utensils, the prasadam prayer was sung, prasadam didn’t run out, tables cleaned, pots put away… then and only then did I carry my plate up to the lawn in front of the castle to listen to the bhajans from the kutir. Often my friend Rupa would join me, and as we settled to the grass and took our first bite of prasadam, we would simply look at each other and smile in bliss.
Note: Although I enjoyed my work, I would like to apologize to Bimala (who was THE prasadam boss) and Narada (who often covered for me when I had to leave early) for not fulfilling my duties as thoroughly as I could have. Thank you for letting me know where I could improve in service to the Vaishnavas.
KuliMela LIVE – Day 4
August 3, 2008
One of my favorite parts of a huge festival like this is the ‘thank you’s at the end. The flow of gratitude begins… and then overflows. I certainly came away from the closing ceremony transformed with appreciation. I am certain others came away transformed as well.
You know why I know? At lunch, after the ceremony, people were positively crying out for a position as a server of prasadam. Someone arrived 20 minutes early to notify me they wanted to serve. I only laughed and assured him a place.
To listen to the glories for over an hour of the Vaishnavas who ran this festival certainly inspired others to serve.
I have planned to stay awhile in Radhadesh before heading out to my next destination, and I look forward to the serenity of this castle and reflecting on the KuliMela. I actually planned this next week here for this sole purpose of reflection.
An experience like this needs to sink in. I believe experiences need to be digested… There’s a saying in Ayurveda that nectar will be poison with bad digestion, and poison will be nectar with good digestion. Similarly, if I allow myself no time to ‘digest’ this festival (‘bad’ digestion), it’s almost as if I did not experience it at all. But giving myself the space and time to reflect and savor the beautiful moments (‘good’ digestion), then certainly the festival becomes ten times more powerful.
I hope to write a few more posts on this festival in the next week. As for now, I am still in my ‘is-this-real’ space, and a sweet melancholy that this festival has ended. After so long, so much planning, after so much eager anticipation… KuliMela has ended.
But not really. Watch out LA 09. Watch out Australia 010. Alachua 011… others on the horizon, such as Kazakhstan… Siberia… Mayapur… New Mayapur, France…
So really, KuliMela has only just begun.
KuliMela LIVE – Day 3
August 2, 2008
Insanity, insanity, insanity. Right now it is 1am, and I must split what happened during the day and what happened JUST NOW into two posts.
One word: Madhava. When night fell, all were drawn to the giant entertainment tent to the sound of a brewing kirtan. He sang one simple melody – no high parts, no low parts, nothing – just the holy name. AND WE ROCKED IT. I don’t know how many gurukulis packed into that tent, but like a rock concert, ALL DANCED. The sheer energy could knock over a bystander.
AAAAHHH!! We danced and we danced! Circles and trains and spins, crying out the holy name! Everything was thrown aside.
When vans of gurukulis arrived on Wednesday from various countries, commencing the flood of inspiration, I felt a little distant from the mass of exotic faces and exotic languages. All were in their traveling clothes of jeans and a t-shirt, and the barriers were still raised…
This kirtan smashed the barriers! Like, obliterated. Poof, gone. We are devotees of Krishna. What more can we possibly have in common?
When Madhava drew his kirtan to an uproarious close, we formed a parade and headed up the way to the castle for a mind-blowing fireworks show. Truly mind-blowing. I have been in Washington D.C. for the Fourth of July, on Capitol Hill watching the fireworks go off, and this fireworks show rivalled that. Fired off from the tower parapet of the castle, the fireworks themselves were unique and stunning, but I think the magic had to do with chanting “Gauranga!” “Nityananda!” the entire time. One firework fired so low, the sparks flashed off the tree nearby and glowing points of light rained down on us – all ducked and screamed!
As I sit here, I am in AWE that I am… well… here. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Even if another KuliMela takes place in Radhadesh in the future somehow, this festival holds a magic, something glittering, something powerful, something I will never forget.
KuliMela LIVE – Day 2
August 1, 2008
The day began with an overflowing gurupuja. Nearly one hundred devotees filled the templeroom – and as Gadadhar (from Italy) sang Sri Guru Vandana, chills chased down my arms as the voices resounded. Srila Prabhupad has united all of us. He believed in us. And here we are, generations later, organizing massive festivals out of sheer inspiration in the message he has given.
The bhajan kutir is the heartbeat of this entire festival. More than the entertainment tent and even – dare I say it? – the prasadam. Sankirtan – congregational chanting – unites us.
After I hosted the japa workshop, I headed over to the bhajan kutir. The combination of actually teaching the nuances of the holy name immediately followed by a heartrending kirtan by Jahnavi (from England), touched me powerfully. I felt deeply, deeply connected with the holy name.
Something momentous happened for me today. For the first time, I sang and danced in a kirtan by Madhava Prabhu, a gurukuli originally from Vrindavan. His intensity drew me – and everyone else – deep into the holy name. In the golden early evening, he began his kirtan. The unique aspect of Madhava’s kirtans is that he can sing the same tune for hours, and yet the mood remains fresh and beautiful.
I am in charge of prasadam distribution for the Mela, and dinner along with all of my duties was fast approaching. With a determined stride, I left the bhajan kutir to track down someone to delegate to. I could not miss this. I would not miss this kirtan. And so with some pleading, Kalindi (from England) agreed to take over for me. I returned triumphant.
And so Madhava’s kirtan flowed on… and on… past dinner… we didn’t care… at one point, after the first part of his kirtan had ended, he said softly, “They say in the spiritual world, every word is a song… and every step is a dance. So, let us stand up, let us dance… let’s party and make this the spiritual world.” And with a roaring cry, everyone rose to their feet… and Madhava began again.
We halted the mind-blowing kirtan because the evening entertainment needed to begin. The kirtan party missed dinner entirely – nothing was left of prasadam.
It is now 10:30pm, and I am beyond exhausted. I’m hovering in an “is this real?” kind of space. I have been so immersed in the service of prasadam distribution as well as the two japa workshops I am hosting (plus other intense services) that my capacity to absorb other aspects of the Mela has maxed out, such as the seminars and the entertainment.
I believe you all would love to read pages and pages on this festival, and all of the amazing events and revolutionary concepts getting planted here.
I feel infused with an otherworldly inspiration.
P.S. by the way, this is my 100th post, so as this is a pretty impressive landmark for me, I would like to thank all of you for reading this humble blog. I encourage you to check out some of the archives as well. All of your feedback and your encouragement inspires me to continue.
Thank you.
KuliMela LIVE – Day 1
July 31, 2008
This is a festival to cross borders. Picture this: 350 gurukulis from 25 different countries, all drawn to the lush hills of Belgium with sometimes nothing more in common than a passion to connect and to inspire one another.
As I write this on the evening of the first day of the KuliMela in Radhadesh Belgium, I realize with a depth I’ve never known how much Krishna crosses borders. No matter our language, our country, our body, our culture – Krishna reaches past all of those walls to touch our heart. Many don’t speak English here, but when bhajans began to fill the castle grounds this afternoon, we all became in sync.
From my personal realization, I feel infused with a desire to serve. And the spirit is infectious.
Stay tuned for the next four days and I shall attempt to write every evening updates and realizations (hopefully a little longer than this one) on this mind-blowing festival.
If you are not personally here in Radhadesh, don’t worry, Krishna knows no boundaries.
Moonwashed Journey – Guru Purnima
July 19, 2008
Travel in Hawaii is dramatic. There are fourteen different climate zones on the Big Island; the towns are very unique, the people different in each one. So when I proposed to my mom to cross the island to attend Guru Purnima in Hilo, believe me, it was a big deal. Considering gas is 4.69, we decided to do the eco-friendly thing and hop on a bus. And so our day began with the sunrise.
We walked everywhere (4 miles, according to my pedometer). And when we were relaxing in the cafe I used to work at when I attended University of Hawaii, I saw branches of this fruit (lychee) lying on the sidewalk. Hawaii’s a bit like that. The exotic is normal.
This path to the river is so deep I found the sign comical.
Approaching the temple at Godruma Gardens…
Above, Bodhayan Maharaj speaks on the occasion of Guru Purnima. Below, the melodious Chandra Kantha leads us in kirtan.
My first kirtan in two months, I could not resist dancing… in my limping way, I still encouraged all the other women to join in. Meanwhile, everyone offered overflowing flowers to the acaryas in our line. I meditated on my own spiritual master, Radhanath Swami, and offered him my respects.
I remember dressing the deities on the left, Sri Radhika Raman, many years ago with Mulaprakriti. Her enthusiasm and sincerity was contagious. I came away in stitches with laughter and also a sweeter appreciation for deities of Radha and Krishna.
Srila Prabhupad’s vision was so powerful, so immense, that it has even touched this little town of Hilo. With profound gratitude, I offer my deep, humble respects to this beautiful personality.Sri Mahotsava Guru Purnima ki, Jai!
A New Vrindavan Morning
May 14, 2008
My first Festival of Inspiration, I’m still reeling from such a rollercoaster of adventure. I found myself reveling in every single moment and did not even note the absence of e-mail or phonecalls or… sigh… my camera. For once I didn’t go nuts taking pictures. Well, except in the beginning… and at the end.
Rupa and I have formed somewhat of a dynamic duo. For our last project in Alachua before we scattered off to the world, we organized a bus of 40 people (mostly second generation) to head up to Festival of Inspiration.
A little crazy but highly successful, the bus was packed come Thursday evening. Here we are singing Sundara Arati.
One hour before I was scheduled to head to Pittsburgh airport, I realized that I had not visited the Palace of Gold. So in the soft, gray, rainy morning, I grabbed my camera and strapped on my tennis shoes. Time to do some serious dashing.
New Vrindavan in springtime.
On March 22, 1987 around Mangala Arati time, I was born in this house, which is across the road from Radha Vrindavan Chandra temple.
The Palace of Gold was my playground – when I was a kid, I used to roll down this very hill, dizzy and exhilarated.
For more photos, visit:
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| A New Vrindavan Morning |
As a P.S., I would like to thank those who came up to me at the Festival and personally thanked me for writing this blog. I always find it amazing to meet people on the other side of the screen.
