Author Archives: lilasuka

By Madhava Smullen

ISKCON New Vrindaban and Eco-Vrindaban’s latest Department Head reports, on March 14th, showed that devotees were continuing to cooperate together with encouraging progress towards crystallizing Srila Prabhupada’s vision.

Co-GBC and MC for the day Anuttama Das introduced the event, explaining that since 2011, INV and ECO-V’s Boards of Directors and their managers and staff have gathered to communicate accomplishments of the past year and plans for the upcoming one.

But two years ago, they decided to make the gatherings open for all New Vrindaban residents and well-wishers to participate in. Sure enough, a sizeable group of residents were present, including longtime resident Varshana Swami, who offered a beautiful invocation that set the mood and intent for the weekend.

New ECO-V chairman Bhima Walker then introduced ECO-V’s department heads, beginning with interim Flower Garden manager Vidya Dasi. Vidya’s plans for the year included maintaining all the flower gardens; giving guests the experience of picking flowers and making garlands for Krishna; and creating an inviting atmosphere by adding benches, garden art and well-designed flower beds to the front of the temple.

Next, Ananda Vidya Das and his wife Lalita Gopi Dasi from Cow Care and Milking described how they get 30 gallons a day from their seven milking cows – enough for all the temple’s needs — and supply the Deity kitchen with butter, ghee, yoghurt and curd. They reported high standards of cow care, announced that two new calves were expected soon, and were glad that the milking barn’s ceiling had been insulated to make winters serving there easier.

 

Brand new ECO-V Project Manager Mukunda Das, who will be moving to New Vrindaban in May, said that initial teams had already been but together to discuss plans for an eco-village and food processing facility; and that he would be working on eco-friendly housing beginning with one demonstration home.

 

Bhakta Richard of the Ox Program reported that the three young teams of Isan and Balarama, Hari and Priya, and Manu and Nandi are all making great progress in training with the yoke and learning commands. In addition, oxen moved into the rebuilt Bahulaban ox barn at the end of last year; ox cart designs have been presented by carpenter Vyasasana Das; and a turnstyle that can run a saw or mill with ox power has been acquired.

 

Gopal’s Garden, the homeschool co-op run by Ruci Dasi, reported a new preschool for two to four-year-olds, a fundraising drive for improving its playground, and input from many members of the community. Proving that it does indeed take a village to raise a child, they teach such subjects as dramatic reading, literature, poetry, Deity worship, kirtan, art, and music. The school also has a charming new logo featuring youthful Krishna playing His flute.

 

ISKCON New Vrindaban community president Jaya Krishna Das then introduced INV by sharing its new mission statement: “To please Srila Prabhupada by promoting his vision for New Vrindaban through steady development of Simple Living, Holy Pilgrimage, Community Outreach, Spiritual Education, and, above all, Loving Krishna.”

 

Local brahmachari Bhakta Trevor with Community Outreach was first up for INV. He reported that he maintains regular Harinam Sankirtan and book distribution in Wheeling and Pittsburgh; is starting home programs in Morgantown; and plans to start a Krishna Club at West Virginia University, where students are already chanting. He also holds a weekly kirtan at Wheeling’s new age store The Noble Source, where the owner chants and keeps Prabhupada’s books. He has done all this, he said, through making friends and building loving relationships.

 

The super-busy Vrindavan Das reported on the three departments he oversees, beginning with Communications, in which he talked about making friendships with locals and students; inviting the Mayor of Wheeling and Moundsville City manager to Festival of Colors and Rathayatra; developing an attractive monthly newsletter; and having regular articles published on ISKCON News, Dandavats, Brijabasi Spirit, and also in the secular media.

 

In Marketing, Vrindavan outlined plans to launch New Vrindaban’s new website this year, and create an attention-grabbing brochure for the Palace of Gold and New Vrindaban which will be placed in visitors bureaus, local tourist attractions, and hotels. He also plans to place permanent billboards on two major highways to promote the Palace of Gold by mid May this year.

 

In Festivals, he said he planned to make national events of Nrsimha Chaturdasi and of Srila Prabhupada’s Appearance and Disappearance Days at his Palace. He also talked about plans to hold an early July retreat this year with Bhakti Charu Swami; open Rathayatra at New Vrindaban to the Ohio Valley public; and replicate Prabhupada’s Bhagavat Dharma Discourses. He also hoped to enhance national participation in Kartik, the 24 Hour Kirtans, Festival of Colors, and Festival of Inspiration, which expects a bigger crowd this year with Jayapataka Swami attending.

 

In an encouraging step towards succession, a father and son team presented next. Guest Lodge  manager Gaura Bhakta reduced prices for rooms and cabins, and plans to install lights to guide guests to the Welcome Center at night. He also hopes to increase guest visits during weekdays; and to have four new rooms with attached bathrooms on the ground floor by this year’s Festival of Inspiration.

 

His father Vasudeva Das plans to keep Govinda’s Restaurant open longer each year, from March 28th to January 2nd, to launch a new webpage for it, and to add new uniforms and name tags for staff.  He reported that Govinda’s used only in-house dairy for the past six months, and announced the arrival of new cook Sri Rupa Das from Mumbai; and new menu items such as Indian sweets, Italian lasagna and canelonis, and Mexican items like burritos.

 

Vasudeva also reported on the Devotee Kitchen, which is working on creating a balanced diet for devotees so that they get proper nutrition. The kitchen will be getting a new altar and a new oven this year. It is also mainly using New Vrindaban protected dairy and has dramatically increased use of locally grown produce.

In Palace Restoration, Gopisa Das has a plan to expand the parking lot of Srila Prabhupada’s Palace from 18 parking spaces to 80, with a bus turnaround. He also plans to complete the outer wall and upper steps this year, with the lower steps and entry railing to follow.

 

In Facilities, also overseen by Gopisa, the library, third floor residential rooms and hallway from the kitchen to the temple room were renovated, and frozen pipes and radiators fixed. This year, Gopisa plans to upgrade the temple and lodge’s electrical systems, and renovate the lodge bathrooms, restaurant kitchen, temple siding and entry doors, cabin roofs, and swan boat house.

In the Palace Rose Garden, Gopalasyapriya Dasi spoke about her plan to stop using chemical fertilizers and start using more natural methods with the help of Paul Zimmerman of the American Rose Society, who recently did the same for the famous Biltmore Gardens in North Carolina. This, she felt, would attract a lot of people.

 

Speaking for Varshana Swami, Jaya Krishna reported that the Land Management department is working on the Palace parking lot and improving roads, drainage, and the Govardhana Parikrama path; but that it needs qualified young personnel to replace Maharaja, who is suffering from health problems.

In 2015, Treasurer Laxmi Honest aims to make sure funds for helping devotees through capital improvements and housing are used for those purposes only. She will also provide all department heads with “monthly budget vs actual” reports so that they can understand where they can spend less and more.

A new addition to Congregational Development, Daya Gauranga Das, reported a team of five preachers and a plan to increase fundraising 14% this year. However, he also emphasized that the the focus of congregational development was not taking but giving, by sharing with people a spiritual solution to their problems. He announced that five “Lila Sthalis,” or places of the Lord’s pastimes, would be marked on the community’s Govardhana Parikrama path with dioramas and art, and that Dina Bandhu Das will launch an annual Braj Mandala Parikrama at New Vrindaban this May.

Last but certainly not least came the Deity Department, headed up by Abhinandana Das. This year it created a sustainable and reliable team of pujaris with a family mood of cooperation; maintained punctuality and high cooking standards; and renovated the Deity kitchen and pujari room. In 2015, the pujaris plan to re-launch the Deity sewing room to fix old and torn outfits; extend the dressing room to create more space for the Lord’s outfits; build a new house for Tulasi Devi; and facilitate a second ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry training course.

As the presentations ended, Jaya Krishna, in a generous guesture, offered everyone a bag of Govardhana dust and CDs from his recent Braj Mandala Parikrama in Vrindavana, India.

He also invited all to take a copy of the beautifully designed “Prabhupada’s Vision: Our Mission” poster, saying, “Please take one and put it up on your refrigerator or next to your altar so that we are reminded daily of what Srila Prabhupada wants from us.”

His request reflected how many board members, managers, and New Vrindaban residents left the presentations – newly energized and refocused on Srila Prabhupada’s vision for his first rural community.

Here is the schedule for NRSIMHA CATURDASI Sat. May 2, 2015:

5:00 a.m.                                     Mangal Aroti

5:45-7:30 a.m.                            Japa

7:30 a.m.                                     Gurupuja

7:45 a.m.                                      Greeting the Deities

8-9:00 a.m.                                 Srimad Bhagavatam Class by H.G. Sankirtan das

9:00 a.m.                                     Light Breakfast for those not fasting

10:00 a.m.                                   Govardhana Parikrama

12:30 p.m.                                                Aroti

1:00 p.m.                                     Bhagavad Gita Class by H.G. Gauranatraj das

1:30 p.m.                                      Light Lunch for those not fasting

3-5:00 p.m.                                 Fire yajna

5-5:30 p.m.                                 Gopuja at the Goshalla

5:30 – 7:00 p.m.                         Abhishek

7-7:30 p.m.                                 Aroti

7:30-7:45 p.m.                            Short Drama

7:45-8:00 p.m.                            Nrsimha Aroti

8:00 p.m.                                     Feast

(fasting till dusk)

Please bring your offerings of bhoga by 6:30 pm.

Please bring flowers for the abhishek by 3 pm

Strengthening The Vision:  Prabhupada’s Third Visit to New Vrindaban

 Written by Madhava Smullen. Archival Research by Chaitanya Mangala.

 From July 18th to 23rd 1974, Srila Prabhupada visited New Vrindaban for the third time, to further establish his vision for it as a sacred place known worldwide for five primary things: cow protection, simple-living, holy pilgrimage, spiritual education, and above all, loving Krishna.

In a letter one year earlier, the ISKCON Founder-Acharya had written to encourage the expanding farm community: “Yes! Go on acquiring the surrounding lands, and in this way we will establish a local self-governing village and show all the world a practical example of spiritual life as Krishna Himself exhibited in Vrindaban.”

As his arrival date fast approached, New Vrindaban residents were whipped up in a flurry of activity. Meanwhile a letter from the editors of Brijbasi Spirit magazine reminded them, “Although we are all engaged in preparing the outward appearance of the community for Srila Prabhupada’s arrival, we must even more so develop the proper consciousness to receive such a great personality.”

And so it was that all the New Vrindaban devotees absorbed themselves in a rip-roaring kirtan as they waited outside their Bahulaban farmhouse temple on Thursday July 18th, every passing car eliciting from them a sharp intake of breath. When Prabhupada finally arrived, he was followed by a river of devotees, calling “Jaya Srila Prabhupada!” as he walked regally into the temple, offered his respects to Sri Sri Radha-Vrindabanchandra, and took his seat on his vyasasana.

Srila Prabhupada sitting in front of the “grey house”.

In the Brijbasi Spirit, devotees describe “sheer spiritual force” permeating the temple room when Prabhupada began leading “Jaya Radha Madhava.” As Lord Krishna Himself states in Srila Prabhupada’s book Krsna: The Supreme Personality of Godhead, “A pilgrimage site becomes a holy place because of the presence of the saintly persons there.”

After his short but blissful kirtan, Prabhupada then delivered his arrival address, giving devotees an example of the kind of spiritual education he wanted New Vrindaban to be known for.

“So you are all very lucky in this far remote place, that is New Vrindaban,” he began. He talked about how Bhaktivinode Thakur, who had the idea to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world, had been a householder just like the residents of New Vrindaban; and about how they had the chance to provide the essential spiritual education that none of the country’s universities, colleges and schools did.

“I am very happy in this remote village,” he concluded. “You have got… Vrindaban Chandra. Vrindaban Chandra means the full moon light of Vrindavana… So worship the Deity and send missionary men from village to village and preach then gradually this center will be developed… So I thank you very much for your activities here. Hare Krishna.”

With another ecstatic kirtan following him, Prabhupada was then chauffeured to his residential quarters at the “Grey House” in Guruban, which had been renovated from top to bottom by an enthusiastic crew of devotees.

The next day, he toured the Bahulaban barn, to see how his cow protection vision was practically manifesting. He expressed his approval as devotees showed him their Harvestore silo, demonstrated its feeding system, and pointed out the lettering at the top that read “New Vrindaban — Founder and Acharya A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.”

Initiation Ceremony Bahulaban

Later the same day, Srila Prabhupada visited his under-construction Palace, which was being built for him to reside and translate his books in. He beamed as Kirtanananda showed him where his bedroom, bathroom, Deity room and study would be, tapping the walls with his cane to make sure they were solid.

As Prabhupada inspected the Palace – nothing more than a construction site at the time — Bali Mardan asked if it would be illuminated with jewels on the wall, like Lord Krishna’s Palace in the Krsna book.

Srila Prabhupada looked over at Soma and Gostabihari, two construction workers on the job at the time. They had been toiling hard on a building site that had neither electricity nor running water. “These devotees,” he said, “Are my jewels.”

When Kirtananda told Prabhupada the Palace would be ready soon and asked him to be patient with them, Prabhupada said, “I already am,” and added, “If you want, I am already living here.”

As he got into his car to leave, he looked up at Soma and Gostabihari through the open window. “So, you are working here?”

“Ghostabihari answered, ‘Yes Srila Prabhupada,” Soma recalls. “And then Prabhupada looked straight at us and said, ‘Thank you very much.’ It made me feel so good that he personally thanked me for working there.”

The next day, Saturday July 20th, about 400 devotees from all over North America including GBCs, sannyasis, travelling book distributors, and ISKCON Press staff gathered for a huge festival. Prabhupada attended guru-puja and gave Bhagavatam class in the morning. During the day there were ecstatic kirtans led by visiting devotees, and a delicious feast “with more preparations than anyone could eat,” according to Brijbasi Spirit.

In the evening, Srila Prabhupada spoke to a rapt audience, concluding his lecture by asking the devotees to all cooperate together “and then everything will go nicely.”

The next day, he initiated thirteen devotees, including Madhava Gosh, Tapanacarya, Advaitacarya, Rasalila, Nirmala, and Meghamala. He also awarded brahmana initiation to six candidates, including Parasara and Kashyapa (who would later become Varshana Swami).

In his talk, Prabhupada spoke about the simple-living aspect of his vision for New Vrindaban. He called the race for sense gratification unnecessary and praised living peacefully in a little cottage, growing vegetables and food grains, and getting milk from the cows. “We are trying to introduce in this New Vrindaban colony this simple life,” he said.

Later during his stay Prabhupada personally saw the Brijbasis’ efforts at this simple life. In 1973, he had written a letter instructing them how to build small cottages with wooden beams and tile roofs. “This design is especially suitable for grhasthas, who can feel very comfortable there,” he wrote.

Now he visited one of these cottages, dubbed “Prabhupada houses,” that had been built at New Vrindaban. Set in the Madhuban section of the community, it was home to Daivata Das and his wife Parayana Dasi.

When Prabhupada arrived, he appreciated the gardens where many householders were cultivating vegetables together, as well as the just-harvested vegetables on Daivata’s porch. “I do not want to eat anything unless it is grown here,” he said. “You should not buy, you should grow vegetables.”

He thoroughly inspected the cottage he himself had provided the design for with some interest, tapping the walls with his cane in his endearing way. Inside, he sat on a rocking chair, looking at everything and saying, “You should make thousands of these nice houses.” He then asked Daivata, “You are happy here?”

“Oh yes Srila Prabhupada, very happy. Thank you very much,” Daivata said.

Prabhupada continued chatting and laughing with Daivata for some time, asking about his four-month-old daughter Devahuti and commenting on how active she was. “I am very pleased to see this place,” he said before he left.

Prabhupada’s warm, personal interaction with Daivata was exemplary of all the interactions he had during his visit, with many devotees remembering his care and love in different ways.

Varshana Swami was impressed at how concerned Prabhupada was about making sure there were oxen and men working in the fields. “It really touched me that Prabhupada was attentive to what was being done in the agricultural realm,” he says.

Mahadevi Dasi will never forget the time that Prabhupada was giving out milk sweets to a huge crowd of devotees, and she worried that she wouldn’t get one. “As if he just read my heart, he looked directly at me, pointed his finger and held up the milk sweet that he had just bitten,” she recalls. “And it was passed through the devotees, right to me.”

And Gopalasapriya Dasi recalls how when Srila Prabhupada was talking to a group of devotees outside on a chilly evening, he stopped, looked at her and asked, “Are you alright? Such a thin cloth. Haven’t you got a cloth?” He then told one of the leaders, “You must find out if they have everything they need… the women need to be protected. They will not ask. You must ask them once a month and make sure that they are having everything they need.”

“I remember afterwards a few of the devotees were crying and feeling like he was so observant and concerned and he really does care about all of us,” she says.

For his part, Srila Prabhupada, like a proud parent, was very glad to see his first farm community growing into a wonderful realization of his vision.

“Regarding New Vrindaban I was very happy when I was there,” he wrote a few months after his visit. “Not only myself but all devotees and GBC members all enjoyed the atmosphere of New Vrindaban, especially the cow protection scheme. May Krishna give more facilities to advance the cause of New Vrindaban, and I am expecting very soon to go there and live in my proposed palace at least for some time.”

Opportunity:

ECO-Vrindaban is a non-profit organization serving in the New Vrindaban community, located near Wheeling, West Virginia, USA.

ECO-V promotes simple living, cow protection, engaging oxen, local agriculture, and above all, loving Krishna, as envisioned by Srila Prabhupada, the Founder-Acharya of ISKCON New Vrindaban.

We seek an individual with a strong knowledge of gardening, a passion for community and environment, who can handle both the challenges of managing community gardens and maintaining positive relationships with New Vrindaban residents, pilgrims and guests.

Duties:

• Oversee vegetable and flower garden facilities and staff

• Handle department related logistics and budgets

• Serve as an educational resource for local gardeners

• Coordinate garden volunteer activities

• Act as an organizational liaison and representative

All potential candidates must be:

• Excited to develop Srila Prabhupada’s vision for self-sufficient farm communities

• Passionate about environmental and food production issues

• Physically able to handle work in the gardens such as digging, lifting, bending, etc.

• Willing to live in New Vrindaban, WV

The ideal candidate will have:

• A proven track record and expertise in gardening

• Management or leadership experience, preferably with a non-profit

• A regular practice of individual chanting and participation in temple programs

Compensation: This will be a full-time, salaried position subject to a multi-year contract.

Please send cover letter, resume and any inquiries to Ranaka dasa: dfintel@msn.com

 

By Madhava Smullen

Nearly 40 New Vrindaban residents and board members gathered for a community dialogue on March 14th, 2015 to discuss starting a Village Council, which could provide residents with a voice and facilitate a more comprehensive community governance.

After a sweet kirtan and introductions all around that created a mood of warmth and humor, Joint Board Member Chaitanya Mangala Das introduced the topic, saying that the non-profit religious corporate structure New Vrindaban has used until now was like “trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.”

“Corporations, with their legal frameworks, rules and restrictions,” he said, “Don’t work for a more democratic body involving people in this kind of community setting.” He added that the Village Council concept was a new attempt by the Joint Boards at an ongoing effort to involve the broader community.

The inspiration behind the idea, he explained, came from a 1973 quote by Srila Prabhupada, instructing the leaders of New Vrindaban to “Go on acquiring the surrounding lands and in this way we will establish a local self-governing village, and show all the world a practical example of spiritual life as Krishna Himself exhibited in Vrindaban.” 

Chaitanya Mangala further summarized the Village Council proposition with three buzz words – small, local, and simple.

“Small: the proposed council could consist of five to eight key representatives from the ECO-V and ISKCON New Vrindaban Boards, the Advocacy Sanga, and other community interests such as local non-profits or businesses,” he said.

“Local: since the new council will represent the New Vrindaban village, members will have to live in it and be able to meet face to face on a regular basis,” he went on. “And simple: there should be few preconditions made before the Council is formed, with the focus on simply getting the group in a room talking on a regular basis.”

Chaitanya Mangala also pointed out that while a subcommittee consisting of Joint Board Members Dayavira Das, Ananga Manjari Dasi, Madhava Gosh Das, and president Jaya Krishna Das, had worked on the Village Council concept, they intentionally hadn’t filled in more specific details, leaving that for the Village Council “steering committee” to do.

As the discussion opened up to the floor, Nityodita Das of the community’s Advocacy Sanga expressed his group’s appreciation that two of its top priorities – devotee care and governance – where also being made a priority by New Vrindaban leadership.

He said that apathy in the community was to some degree caused by frustration at having no avenue to influence its direction. The Village Council, if successful, would be a helpful solution.

He concluded that a more inclusive system was needed so that people could express themselves, and pointed out that in the end all parties wanted the same thing – for New Vrindaban to be a more loving, Krishna conscious, united community.

Next Jesse, also from the Advocacy Sanga, expressed appreciation for the developments but also disillusionment. After spending a year-and-a half in the Advocacy Sanga, what he saw as a similar effort to the proposed Village Council, he felt they had failed to create a bridge between the temple management and community members, and was skeptical that a new organization would have any impact. However he did hope that it would.

Advaita Das responded with an impassioned, inspirational speech in which he opined that the Advocacy Sanga was a success – and that the current plan for a Village Council wouldn’t be happening without it.  He also echoed Nityodita’s thoughts on apathy being a problem in New Vrindaban, which he felt was a result of people not being appreciated and recognized.

Commenting that this was an opportunity for residents to take responsibility for creating what they want, ECO-V’s new project manager Mukunda Das suggested that they didn’t have to reinvent the wheel. “We can learn about the specifics of creating a Village Council,” he said, “From many successful intentional communities that already have Village Councils.”

Professor Burke Rochford, who has studied ISKCON since the 1970s and written many scholarly books and articles about it, was then invited to offer his reflections on the idea.

Calling it “an important conversation,” he said, “New Vrindaban, in contrast to other ISKCON temples, was specifically envisioned by Prabhupada as a community, and while that makes it a different and special place, it also makes for certain inherent challenges that other temples don’t have.”

Rochford mentioned that when he surveyed the New Vrindaban community some years ago, one thing that stood out to him was how the residents felt alienated because of the emphasis on the place (as being a holy pilgrimage) rather than on the people.

“Ten years later, the conversation is very similar,” he said. “But now’s the time for it to lead to something. This is your community, and the Village Council is an opportunity for the voices of the people to be heard.”

Rochford’s observations were echoed in the discussion that followed, with many saying they felt community members were not being put first and expressing the wish for an overall increase in focus on devotee care.

Advaita then turned the conversation back to the practicalities of a working Village Council, commenting that it was critical that the Joint Boards were represented on the Council and were attentive to the residents, to ensure that decisions are supported at the board level.

Meanwhile Nityodita offered the Advocacy Sanga’s open Wednesday meetings as a venue to continue developing the Village Council.

As the dialogue wound down, New Vrindaban co-GBC Anuttama Das observed that its general mood had been a positive one of “there may be disagreements, but let’s try to improve things together.” He quoted Bhaktivinode Thakur as saying, “progress is a gradual series of adjustments moving in the right direction.”

He acknowledged that trust needed to be rebuilt, which was a two-way street. He added that he saw the afternoon’s dialogue as real tangible progress and said, “If we work together, Krishna will continue to move us forward.”

In closing, Chaitanya Mangala said that the input and participation of every single person present mattered. He expressed that while there was no specific vision yet, the process of getting a Village Council up and running had been started.

Moving on, the Joint Boards, the Advocacy Sanga, and other groups and individuals will come together to formulate a practical plan.

“This could create a wonderful example of what Srila Prabhupada wanted us to do when he made his famous statement, ‘Your love for me will be shown by how much you cooperate to keep this institution together after I am gone,” concluded ISKCON New Vrindaban president Jaya Krishna Das.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As ISKCON approaches its 50th anniversary in 2016, ISKCON News is increasing its coverage of both the latest plans for the 2016 celebrations, as well as looking back on the early years of ISKCON and how Srila Prabhupada’s worldwide society developed. This article is part of a series connecting New Vrindaban, established in 1968 as ISKCON’s first farm community, to the grand visions, specific instructions and four visits by Srila Prabhupada. Today, New Vrindaban community members and well-wishers are revitalizing his vision, as expressed in these articles.

The Bhagavat Dharma Experience:

Prabhupada’s Second Visit to New Vrindaban

Written by Madhava Smullen. Archival Research by Chaitanya Mangala.

New Vrindaban, August 31st, 1972 – Just as he had three years prior in 1969, Srila Prabhupada arrived at New Vrindaban in a black Lincoln Continental, winding down the country road towards the excited group of waiting devotees.

But this time, the group was much larger, belting out a joyous kirtan, and standing in front of a new converted farmhouse temple. During Prabhupada’s last visit, there had only been the original Vrindaban farm and a few dozen close followers. Now, New Vrindaban had expanded to several farms including this main one, Bahulaban, presided over by Sri-Sri Radha-Vrindabanchandra.

As Srila Prabhupada stepped out of his car, the devotees hit the ground in exhuberant prostration. They pressed around him as he walked in his regal manner across the lawn and sat on a red-velvet vyasasana strewn with garlands and surrounded by a forest of Tulasi plants.

Thanking the devotees for all the hard work they had done to organize the upcoming festival, Prabhupada introduced the concept of the Bhagavat Dharma Discourses he was to hold at New Vrindaban. The event, where he would speak for over a week on the Bhagavatam, was to be one in a series that was already attracting thousands in cities throughout India.

“Just try to hear about Krishna,” he said. “Your life will be successful…. This is called bhagavat-dharma.”

After his talk, Prabhupada rode to an old farmhouse at Madhuban two miles away, where he would stay during his visit. He was clearly pleased to be back at New Vrindaban. “This Vrindaban, that Vrindavan, no difference,” he said.

The festival began the next morning. Over 500 devotees, guests and reporters had flooded in from all over the US for the biggest public event ISKCON had seen so far.

They all had to brave the austere weather and conditions of West Virginia mountain country. With no guesthouse, vans and tents dotted the hillside. During the festival heavy rain fell, chilling campers to the bone and turning Bahulaban into a sea of mud. In the mornings, devotees found their way through the dark to “the Ghat,” a cold, muddy pool next to the cowshed to bathe. Drinking water was hauled from a well. And cooking was done outside on makeshift stoves.

But devotees faced the hardships with good humor and comraderie, nicknaming Bahulaban “Mudsville” after the local town of Moundsville, and enjoying working with godbrothers and godsisters from all over the country. They were prepared to encounter any austerity for Prabhupada’s association. And Prabhupada himself didn’t mind the lack of facilities (his quarters had no running water). He was just happy to absorb the simple mood of New Vrindaban.

At 7:00am on September 1st – Janmastami Day – he walked the dirt road up “Govardhana Hill” with his entourage to give his first Discourse. The hill overlooked Bahulaban and provided views of densely wooded mountains fading off into the mists at every turn. At the top was the large open-air pavilion devotees had built themselves to accommodate all the visitors.

As a crowd of devotees and guests greeted him with loud kirtan, Prabhupada ascended a stage that stretched across one entire end of the pavilion and sat on his vyasasana. To his right, against a dramatic red backdrop, was a lifesize painting of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. To his left were Deities of Sri Sri Radha Damodara and Lord Jagannath. Flags and streamers hung everywhere.

Prabhupada spoke powerfully about the purifying nature of Krishna conscious sound vibration, the always blissful nature of God, or Bhagavan, and our relationship to Him – Bhagavat-Dharma.

Later, he inaugurated the beautiful new marble-floored temple room at Bahulaban, and presided over a large initiation ceremony at which many candidates from across the country received new names.

In the evening, after arati, came an experience many would still remember decades later. As devotees packed tightly into the temple room, Prabhupada had some of the sannyasis read aloud from Krishna book. After the entire introduction and first chapter on Lord Krishna’s advent, they thought it might be time to stop. But Prabhupada indicated that they should continue.

As they read on for hours, the exhausted devotees, famished from fasting all day and crammed into the sauna-like temple room, struggled to stay attentive to the weighty philosophy of “Prayers by the Demigods for Lord Krishna in the Womb.” Gradually, everyone began nodding off. A comical scene ensued as the dandas of sleepy sannyasis fell, crossing like swords across the aisle and then bobbing up as their owners jerked themselves awake.

Only Srila Prabhupada listened attentively, relishing Krishna’s pastimes. At last, well after midnight, he smiled. “I think you have had enough. Take prasadam. You are a little tired.”

Despite their exhaustion, after arati and the feast at 1:00am, many devotees stayed up through the night to chant their rounds and make sure they didn’t miss mangala arati the next day. For it was a most auspicious event — Srila Prabhupada’s seventy-sixth appearance day.

The next morning was beautiful and sunny as Prabhupada emerged from his car in front of the pavilion in his saffron robes and fresh, perfectly applied tilak. A sense of purity emanated from him, an otherworldly quality that stood out against the old car, as if he were from another age.

“When Prabhupada looked out of the Volkswagen, which was being driven by Hayagriva, he smiled like I’ve never seen him smile —  except in that picture in the Lilamrita when Brij stood up for the first time and he was just beaming,” recalls Varshana Swami. “As Sally Agarwal described it, that oceanic smile.”

Showers of flowers rained on Prabhupada as he entered the pavilion. Devotees chanted his pranam mantra at the tops of their lungs and hit the ground before him. Some smiled fondly at him; some seemed awestruck. All adored him. But Prabhupada didn’t play to the crowd as he made his way through it. He simply walked quietly to the stage, folded his palms before the Deites, and offered his obesiances to Them.

As he ascended his vyasasana to address the packed audience of devotees, guests, scholars, local politicians and reporters, he expressed that he didn’t want them to think he was receving all this adoration for himself. “It may be misunderstood,” he said. “An outsider may see that “Why a person is being worshipped like God?’ There may be some doubt.”

The name “Vyasa Puja,” he explained, comes from Vyasadeva, the incarnation of Lord Narayan and original author of all Vedic literature. Because the spiritual master passes this knowledge originating from the Lord through disciplic succession without change, he is offered respect once a year on his birthday.

Prabhupada emphasized that just as the viceroy of the king may accept valuable jewels and gifts on behalf of the king, similarly the spiritual master “receives all honor… on behalf of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not for his person.”

After Prabhupada’s talk, devotees ascended the stage one by one to offer flowers and obeisances and read out literary offerings. With such a crowd, not many got the chance – Silavati Dasi, an authority on Deity worship, was notably the only woman to make an individual offering, personally invited by Srila Prabhupada.

Bharadraja Das then began the Gurvastakam prayers. Hundreds rose to chant and dance, as Prabhupada looked on from his vyasasana and played kartalas.

As the kirtan began to get more lively, Vishnujana Swami took over the lead, playing mridanga right in front of Prabhupada. He sang with feeling, building the kirtan in intensity. In response, Prabhupada closed his eyes and began first to rock his head from side to side, then his whole body, his eyes tightly closed as he crashed his kartals together with more and more force.

Vishnujana’s kirtan reached a crescendo, and at last, as Radhanath Swami recalls, “It appeared that Prabhupada could not contain himself.” Overwhelmed with love for Krishna and the devotees, he took over the lead, calling out the Lord’s names in a strong voice.

The crowd went mad. Devotees rushed the stage, and a thousand arms reached out towards Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada began to cry, chanting through his tears. The devotees were swept up in his rare exhibition of spiritual emotion. A wave of love of Godhead hit them and they cried openly too, crushing the stage with total abandon and roaring out the Holy Names.  

“Srila Prabhupada’s chanting was so beautiful, it was almost like the sky opened up, love of God came down and it poured over all of us,” recalls Satyanarayan Das. “I’ve never been to a kirtan like that before in my life and never since… It was a divine experience.”

After the kirtan, as everyone sat stunned, a group of devotees staggered up the hill carrying an enormous birthday cake baked by Gayatri Dasi. Srila Prabhupada took a tiny morsel and nodded his approval, then left to go back to his quarters at Madhuban. The devotees, wide-eyed, looked at each other. It was maha-prasada!

In one surging mass, everyone dove at the cake, all wanting a piece of Prabhupada’s mercy. Some playfully attacked each other for a piece. Others rolled the cake through the crowd as devotees grabbed huge handfuls and stuffed it into their mouths. Some, in bliss, ran down the hill offering cake to astonished guests. “Here, this is Prabhupada’s cake!”

 “The cake was completely demolished, within minutes, in a frenzy,” Gokularanjana Das recalls. “In retrospect, it was offensive, but at the time it was like spontaneous devotion.” 

Later that evening, Vishnujana performed several selections from the Radha-Damodara Traveling Sankirtan Party’s Transcendental Rock Opera, then launched into another ecstatic kirtan. As darkness fell, the local devotees built a bonfire, and everyone sat around it, watching the flickering flames as they took turns reading about Lord Chaitanya’s pastimes.

The Bhagavat Dharma discourses continued for another week, with Srila Prabhupada carried royally by palanquin to the pavilion and back to the temple every evening, surrounded by an ocean of devotees carrying torches, lanterns, and flashlights and chanting uproariously.

“In each successive Discourse, Prabhupada took the devotees deeper and deeper into the meaning of Srimad-Bhagavatam,” recalls Suhotra Swami. “It was a perfect outline… Every devotee should study these lectures to study the logic of the Bhagavat philosophy, to see how every element of the philosophy is fundamentally connected to all other elements.”

Meanwhile, Prabhupada wrote to his disciples elsewhere in the world expressing his appreciation of  the festival. “The Bhagavata Dharma discourses here in New Vrindaban are going on very nicely, and daily several hundred devotees and guests are coming to hear, and it is truly a wonderful time,” he wrote to Radha Damodar Das. And to Brahmananda, he wrote, “Now go on holding [these] Bhagavata Dharma discourses in every city of the world.”

At last, on September 10th, the festival came to an end, and on September 11th, Srila Prabhupada departed, leaving the New Vrindaban devotees feeling satisfied and energized.

“[At the festival we had] the feeling that we were a family and there was Srila Prabhupada, he was our father,” recalls Krishna Kumari Dasi. “We all felt sheltered, we all felt protected. It was like a resurgence of energy and rededication. We all went back to our temples completely refreshed and rejuvenated and ready for whatever austerities we had to perform.”

Community Dialog on the topic of a possible “Village Council” at the onsite Joint Board Meetings in New Vrindaban

The weekend of March 14 and 15, 2015 was a jam-packed, exciting and informative two days for NV.  There used to be two weekends a year when the two Boards of Directors, namely  ISKCON New Vrindaban ( INV)  & ECO-Vrindaban would get together with their managers and staff so all involved could connect and communicate.  Starting two years ago, however, the joint board members decided to expand these weekend gatherings and open them up for all New Vrindaban residents and well-wishers to participate as well.

During the weekend of March 14 and 15, the activities were divided into four sections:

1. Sat. morning: Dept. Heads presented their yearly reports- accomplishments and goals.
2. Sat. afternoon the Community Dialog sessions were held – formal opportunities for board and community members to interact and share concerns with each other, the goal being to improve overall relationships. This year a Village Council idea was introduced.
3. Sunday morning, everyone was invited to go on a tour of the spots around New Vrindaban that are being improved and/or renovated, such as the Deity kitchen at the RVC temple, and the ox barn at Bahulaban, and more.
4. Sunday after the feast there were service appreciations given for some devotees who have been serving New Vrindaban for some time in different capacities but have recently stopped these services.

And, in between, on Sat. evening there was a relaxed, yet informative event at Prabhupada’s Palace.   Sankirtan prabhu gave his dramatic, visual powerpoint  presentation called “How the Hare Krsna Mantra Came to the West”. 

The account in this article is a glimpse into Saturday afternoon’s discussion, just one of the weekend’s events, to inform anyone who missed it.  There will soon be a series of detailed articles written by Madhava Smullen who also participated in the weekend activities.

Of particular interest to the residents of New Vrindaban was a lively community dialog,, after lunch on Saturday March 14, 2015, which was well attended by many community members. Chaitanya Mangala introduced the topic of a possible Village Council for New Vrindaban, which is just in the idea stage with no details worked out yet.  The proposed Council could ideally consist of a body of local devotees working together, where all residents could feel that they have an increased voice in their community of New Vrindaban.

Chaits mentioned how previously leaders of New Vrindaban had made valiant efforts to manage a community through a non-profit religious corporate structure, but this doesn’t work because the required legal structures have restrictions that can’t be transformed into a broader democratic system. Therefore, we need to approach this from a broader perspective.

Chaits emphasized three buzz words for such a Village Council: small, local and simple.

“Small: Let’s just have a few people on the Council, at least to begin with. Later it can expand as needed.”

“Local: The members should be available to regularly meet face to face, for optimum effectiveness and communication.”

“Simple: Let’s create as few pre-conditions as possible, so as not to restrict the group from starting. They can develop the rules they will operate under as they move forward.”

Then the discussion was opened up.  Devotees were expressing themselves very respectfully, but frankly as well.  Many remarked afterwards that this was a mature discussion coming out of people’s honest desires to have a “village voice”.  That is, the residents of New Vrindaban want a voice in how the community is run, so they spoke up frankly, but also showed much appreciation for the current leaders and managers and all the challenges they’ve faced.

The feeling of resignation that is sometimes evident in NV over the years was mentioned as one of the many challenges. This apathy has different sources.  There is much skepticism that things will change, yet others still have hope.  Some devotees have complained that, in their opinion, New Vrindaban is being run as more of a corporation than a spiritual institution.  Some asked what kind of influence would a Village Council really have on the decision-making process in New Vrindaban.  The NV Advocacy Sanga has been discussing many of these issues for the last year and a half.

One devotee appreciated that this year has been identified by Jaya Krsna prabhu as the year of “deepening relationships”.  Just as we have to continuously deal with the structure of the roads and buildings of NV, dealing with ongoing devotee relationships is also essential.

A suggestion came up for us to possibly study how a few successful intentional communities run and what their successes are based on.  Mukunda das said, “Those communities, although they may not be based on spirituality, have many of the “0’s” in the equation, but we have the “1” (Krsna) to make it perfect.  So we can still learn from them.”

An old friend and well-wisher of the Hare Krsna movement, Burke Rochford, a professor of sociology, was present at the meetings. He expressed that he sees these types of dialogs as very important. He said that since Srila Prabhupada had set up New Vrindaban as a community, as opposed to a city temple, that we have had to face certain special challenges.  He has also come to understand that the voices of the residents need to help shape the direction of New Vrindaban.

There was a short discussion on the topic of the Sunday feast. People were expressing both sides, namely what enlivens and what sometimes discourages the devotees’ attendance.

Although many topics were touched upon, the themes that were recurring throughout the afternoon were the need for the residents’ voices to be heard and the challenge of rebuilding trust.  It was suggested that a Village Council could address these types of concerns for a win/win situation.

The NV Advocacy Sanga announced that the Sanga will continue the discussion of a Village Council and try to come up with a solid proposal from their side.  They also expressed their wish, along with the joint Board members, that this healthy, open discussion will continue in the community at large.

Everyone is invited to come and help celebrate the auspicious Appearance Day of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, incarnation of the Lord, the original propagator of kirtan- chanting the Holy Names of the Lord.

He taught that anyone—regardless of background or spiritual qualification—could develop their innate love of God and experience great spiritual pleasure by chanting the Hare Krishna mantra.

GAURA PURNIMA SCHEDULE    Thursday March 5, 2015

5:00 AM                 MANGAL  ARATI
5:30 AM                 NRSIMHA PRAYERS                                       
5:45 AM                 TULASI PRAYERS
6:00 AM                 JAPA
7:30 AM                 GURU PUJA
8:00 AM                 GREETING THE DEITIES
8:20 AM                 SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM CLASS
11:00 AM              GOVARDHAN PARIKRAMA ( weather permitting)
1:00 PM                ARATI
1:30 PM                CLASS
2:15 PM                *Lunch  Prasadam (for those  who are not fasting)*

2:30 PM                  GAURANGA BHAJANS
4:00 PM                  Special Presentation by Sankirtan das:How & Why the Hare Krsna Mantra Came West

5:00 PM                ABHISHEKA ON THE ALTAR
6:00 PM                LECTURE BY HIS HOLINESS VARSANA SWAMI
7:00 PM                ARATI
7:40 PM                MAHA KIRTAN     
8:00 PM                PRASADAM FEAST
Your preparations for the Lord are welcome.  Please bring them by 5:45 PM.     Thank you!

Lord Nityananda’s Appearance Day in New Vrindaban Dhama

New Vrindaban started the New Year with a colorful, lively, family-friendly Nityananda Trayodasi celebration on Sunday Feb. 1.  Snow covered the ground all over New Vrindaban, but that didn’t stop many devotees from bundling up and carefully driving down to the temple for bhajans at 10:30 Sunday morning.

The sweet sounds of Nityananda bhajans –  “Boro sukher kabor gai”  and “Akrodha paramananda nityananda raya” and others – filled the air, serenading the Deities and devotees.  Then at 12 noon, the big, wooden Deity doors rumbled open to reveal Their Lordships, small Sri Sri Gaura Nitai, standing gracefully on a small podium, ready for Their abhishek. Everyone was amazed, watching the thick, syrupy honey poured luxuriously over Their Lordships’ forms, followed by yogurt, water, and other auspicious liquids infused with all sorts of sweet-smelling oils.  It was a treat for the eyes and heart. 

During the Lord’s arotik, a mellow kirtan was led by some of New Vrindaban’s most melodious singers.

Then, the devotees listened with rapt attention to His Holiness Varsana Maharaj relating intimate pastimes of Lord Nityananda and His associates, narrated with great love, as Maharaj always does.

All of these festivities culminated in a well-attended and sumptuous feast in honor of Lord Nityananda, the one whose name means “eternally blissful”; the one who is the elder brother of Lord Caitanya; the one who is an avadhuta not bound by any social customs; and the one without whose mercy no-one can understand Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Devotees Remember Sankara Dasi on 30th Anniversary of Her Passing

By Madhava Smullen

Friends and family are remembering Srimati Sankara devi dasi — known for her deep love of her children and quiet dedication to Krishna’s service even in the face of adversity — as the 30th anniversary of her passing approaches on January 25th, 2015. On that day, the Sunday Feast program at ISKCON New Vrindaban will be held in her honor.

Born Sylvia S. Walker on January 5th, 1946, Sankara dasi was raised in Michigan. She first met ISKCON devotees in Haight Ashbury, San Francisco in 1969, two years after the first ever Rathayatra there.

Moving back to Michigan, she lived near the Detroit temple with her young family and visited often. In the early 1970s, she and her then husband regularly invited devotees to hold weekend festivals at their farm in Ann Arbour.

In 1978, tragedy struck. Sankara was diagnosed with acute hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES), an extremely rare form of leukemia. She wanted to use whatever time she had left delving deep into her Krishna consciousness. So she moved into the Detroit temple full-time.

“When I first met Sankara and her children, in Detroit, she was a happy introspective person who held an extrordinary ability to see God everywhere,” recalls her friend Mrigaksi Dasi.

In 1980, when her five children had grown too old for the school in Detroit, Sankara moved to ISKCON’s New Vrindaban farm community near Wheeling, West Virginia, which she felt would be the best place for them.

Her own children weren’t the only ones Sankara cared for. From 1980 to 1983, she watched fifty children aged up to five years old at the New Vrindaban nursery. From 1983 on, she taught kindergarten and first grade at the community’s Nandagram School to over 200 children from all around North America. Her former students remember her fondly as patient, sweet and caring.

Sankara also sewed for New Vrindaban’s presiding Deities Sri Sri Radha-Vrindabanchandra and made their garlands daily, which was her favorite service.

“Sankara was easy to do service with; having an insightful and creative nature,” says Rupa Dasi, who worked with her on a sewing project. “She had a keen sense of focus for the project and really put all her heart into the service. She also was always very concerned for the welfare of her children. And this was a frequent topic of her talks. She knew her time was limited, and she was determined to use it to the very best advantage she possibly could on their behalf.”

During this time, Sankara had to go for heart surgery more than once due to leukemia enlarging her heart. She also suffered from asthma. Yet Vidya Dasi, who lived and worked with her – both in the nursery and in garland-making – says that no matter how sick she got, Sankara always did her service with devotion and dedication.

“I don’t think we understood at the time how her failing health must have made her feel,” says Vidya. “And I’m thinking back, ‘Oh my God, how did she not complain, how did she keep up with us?’”

Even on the morning when Sankara went to the hospital for the last time, devotees remember her making sure her daily garland-making service would be covered and that her children would be looked after. It was this mood that encapsulated her life.

At the Intensive Care Unit, when doctors declared they couldn’t do anything more and invited her devotee friends in, Sankara’s vitals stabilized as she heard them chanting the Hare Krishna mantra. When the doctors saw this and returned, she finally left this world, due to heart failure. It was January 25th, 1985. She was the first female New Vrindaban resident to leave her body. 

Sankara Dasi is survived by her five children, Chaitanya Mangala, Makara, Veena, Sesa and Bhima; her five grandchildren, Airavata, Kalindi, Lauren, Hayden and Daniel; and her former husband, Danakeli Das.

Her family had her remains cremated, and scattered her ashes among the flower beds at Prabhupada’s Palace Rose Garden. In 2005, on the 20th anniversary of her passing, they dedicated a Nama Samadhi in the form of a granite memorial bench in her honor at New Vrindaban.

The bench is situated along the scenic walkway that winds around the Kusum Sarovara Lake at the lotus feet of Gaura Nitai and in the shadow of Srila Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold. It serves as a place for people to relax and appreciate their surroundings as they follow a parikrama path through the holy dham.

Etched into the bench are the words: “In loving memory: Sylvia S. Walker – Sankara devi dasi. January 5th, 1946 – January 25th, 1985” and a quote from Sankara herself – “I am surrounded by the radiance, glory and richness of the Creator. In the final analysis, all things come from the same Source. We are all related; even the rocks are our brothers.”

 “My mother was a sensitive, thoughtful and highly spiritual person who quietly and determinedly performed her services despite whatever obstacles were placed in her path,” says her eldest son, Chaitanya Mangala, who is a board member of ISKCON New Vrindaban. “To me, that’s a sign of a genuine devotee.”

“Moreover,” he continues, “She cared deeply for her children and was totally convinced that the fledgling Hare Krishna Society, and more specifically New Vrindaban, was the best place to raise us. Despite the hardships and shortcomings, I do appreciate the sincere attempts made by my mother and others of her pioneer generation. And, as we honor the 30th anniversary of her passing, I humbly dedicate my community building efforts in her memory.”

New Vrindaban Outreach Jan 2015

Here are the updates and final program schedule of HG GaurNatraj Prabhuji. The only confirmation pending is for Sunday evening class at Detroit Temple. Thank you for your support in helping to reach out to broader audience. 

Program A
When:   Thursday, January 15th, 2015  6:30PM to 9:30PM
Where:  Canton BV, Prafullananda Madhava’s Home, MI

What: Kirtan jamming and Bhagvatam class for daily duties

Program B
When:   Friday, January 16th, 2015  program starts at 6:30PM to 9:30PM
Where:  Canton BV, Prafullananda Madhava’s Home,  MI
What: Kirtan and Bhagvad Gita – Chapter 17/18 

Contact:  Prafullananda Madhava Prabhu prafulla.kharkar@gmail.com or (734) 355-9707

Program C

When: Saturday, January 17th, 2015  program – 8:00 am to 9.00 am 
Where: ISKCON Detroit temple, 383 Lenox Ave, Detroit MI

What: Importance of Service in Sadhana

Program D

When: Saturday, January 17th, 2015  program starts at 7:00 pm with Arati and a class at 7:30 pm. 
Where: ISKCON Farmington (New temple), 36600 GrandRiver Ave, Farmington MI 48335

What: Yoga and Diet in KC

Program E

When: Sunday, January 18th, 2015  program –  5:00 pm to 6.00 pm 
Where: ISKCON Detroit temple, 383 Lenox Ave, Detroit MI
 

A Swami’s Dream Comes to Life: Prabhupada’s First Visit to New Vrindaban

Written by Madhava Smullen. Archival Research by Chaitanya Mangala.

New Vrindaban, May 20^th, 1969 – A small cluster of devotees waited at the entrance to the rural West Virginia property, hearts beating with anticipation. As the Lincoln town car turned the corner, they hit the gravel driveway in obeisance.

Srila Prabhupada stepped out of the car. “Oh, there are many waiting here,” he said, looking around with a smile that lit up his entire face. “Jai Sri Krishna!”

The devotees smiled back. They had been waiting for this moment since they first told Prabhupada in March of the previous year that they were negotiating with landowner Richard Rose.

From then on, Srila Prabhupada had been writing streams of enthusiastic letters to them, outlining his ambitious plans: that the land be called New Vrindaban; that “cow protection should be [its] main business;” that it be “a new place of pilgrimage for you Western devotees” and “an ideal village where the residents will practice plain living and high thinking.”

Even before Hayagriva told Prabhupada that the 99-year-lease had been signed on August 8^th, 1968, he went as far as to say, “I may permanently stay there and try to serve you in constructing a New Vrindaban city in West Virginia,” expressing that it would be the ideal place for him to spend the rest of his life translating spiritual literature. And now he was here.

Excitedly, the devotees loaded Prabhupada’s luggage into the old powerwagon they planned to drive him up the dirt road to the farm in. As Srila Prabhupada took his seat, they started it up. The vehicle lurched, coughed out smoke, and promptly died. They tried it again. And again. Each time, it cut out. The devotees, mortified, looked at their guru. This wasn’t how they had hoped his first visit would go.

“Why not walk?” he said, matter-of-factly. It was a subtle way of  pointing out, right from the get-go, that the simple life was superior to that of so-called modern “convenience.” And despite the devotees’ protests that it would be too hard on him, he set off at a smart pace up the ominously named “Aghasura Road,” a twisting, turning two-mile trail riddled with potholes and ruts.

As usual, Prabhupada’s much younger disciples were left huffing and puffing as they struggled to keep up with him. Head held high, he casually discussed the trees, flowers and vines along the way, interested in everything and finding ways to relate it all to Krishna consciousness. In just his first few minutes at New Vrindaban, he was already teaching his disciples his key instruction for the project, the glue that held it all together: loving Krishna.

At last, Prabhupada and the devotees rounded a curve in the road, and could see a clearing on the ridge ahead. There, amidst the lush green of the West Virginia countryside, was a small farmhouse, a barn, and the hand-built one room cabins that devotees resided in.

After washing and appreciating the devotee’s simple lodgings, Prabhupada sat down on a dais set up for him beneath a willow tree’s leafy cascade. Devotees brought him fruit, local tulip honey and fresh milk from New Vrindaban’s first cow, Kaliya. Then they sat before him in a semi-circle on the grass, looking up at him expectantly as he sipped it.

“I haven’t tasted milk like this in fifty years,” he said in wonder.

As Ranadhir Das paraded the milk’s maker, Kaliya, before him, he admired her, commenting that the Vedas calculate a man’s wealth in cows and grains.

Encouraged, the devotees told him that they hoped to get their own hive next year. “Then you will have the land of milk and honey complete,” Prabhupada said. “That is nature’s design, that everything is given complete for a happy life. We don’t require artificial amenities. All we need to realize Krishna is here.”

Prabhupada again made the same point when Lavanga-latika Dasi brought him a silver cup of water, freshly drawn from the well. “Oh, it is very sweet water,” he said. “That is Krishna. That is the way of remembering Krishna. It is so easy here at New Vrindaban.”

He then told the devotees how the morning sun at New Vrindaban could remind them of Krishna’s bodily effulgence; the cow of Krishna’s name Govinda, one who gives pleasure to the cows; and the countryside of His statement in the Gita that He is the sweet fragrance of the earth.

 

For Prabhupada, seeing New Vrindaban come to life was like seeing a dream come true. He had been planning a community like this since long before he had even travelled to the United States from India. While alone in Delhi back in 1956, he had written a series of articles in his Back to Godhead magazine, detailing his vision for a community where people would live a simple life based on the teachings of the Bhagavad-gita. And right from the beginning of ISKCON, he often told his disciples he wanted them to start a farm project. And they had done it! Prabhupada looked around at them with a broad grin that was almost childlike in its enthusiasm.

Sometime later, as he continued to chat with the devotees and look around the property, Paramananda Das finally succeeded in getting the powerwagon up the hill. Devananda and Prabhupada’s servant Purushottam carried Prabhupada’s luggage, including a big trunk packed with manuscripts, into his room. They then set the room up to his specifications, with a mattress on the floor and his Radha-Krishna Deities in a small cherrywood room attached to the bedroom.

Prabhupada liked his new room, with its two windows that opened out onto a view of the big willow tree. Quickly, he made himself at home, and settled right into his usual routine.

Always revolving around Krishna, Prabhupada’s day would begin in the wee hours as he rose to dictate his books. In his memoir The Hare Krishna Explosion, Hayagriva Das recalls waking up at 2:00am and seeing the light on in his room.

At 4:00am, Prabhupada would attend mangal-arati, watching the Deities intently and striking his trademark steel gong as twenty devotees crammed into the small temple room on the first floor of the farmhouse. He would then perform arati to his own Radha Krishna Deities, and chant his rounds in his room while the devotees did the same downstairs.

After breakfast, Devananda would massage him with mustard seed oil outside in the morning sun. Throughout the day, he would dictate letters, take walks, and hold meetings at his favorite spot beneath a persimmon tree with the devotees gathered around him on the grass.

In the evening, he would lead kirtan in the temple room, encouraging the devotees to dance. Then he’d give a lecture, darshans in his room, and finally rest, before beginning it all again.  

The days passed, lengthening gradually, bees buzzing lazily against blue skies and brilliant green trees, brief showers falling in the afternoons. Meanwhile, Srila Prabhupada built his fledgeling community, guiding the devotees as they sat with him beneath the persimmon tree.

Sometimes his instructions were practical. He told his disciples that he would show them how to build simple mud houses at practically no cost; that they should buy the adjoining property and build a bridge “so that gentlemen will come;” and that they should call their waterfall Keshi Ghat, their hills Govardhana, and their lakes Radha-Kunda and Shyama-Kunda. 

He sketched his own design of a two-wheel cart for workhorses. He talked about protecting cows and bulls as father and mother, and how they could provide all transportation, fuel, and dairy needs. And he laid out plans for establishing the varnashram system and building temples, a guesthouse, and living quarters. He even discussed a gurukula for spiritual education, although there were only three boys in the community so far.

His ambition amazed the devotees, and his strength and vision kept them positive. “Someday you may see that it’s a great asset,” he told them when they complained about the pothole-ridden Aghasura Road. “Someday there may be many cottages by the road, and people will be driving up to see. Don’t be discouraged.”

At other times, Srila Prabhupada’s instructions were more philosophical. He stressed the importance of chanting and reading, citing the six Goswamis of Vrindavana as role models. And he pointed out how the hard work of simple country life was perfect for developing Krishna consciousness.

 “They are hypnotized by Krishna,” he commented once, as he watched the young men work in the fields. “That is samadhi. Samadhi doesn’t mean inactivity. It means being completely absorbed in Krishna. Anyone chanting Hare Krishna is in samadhi. Anyone cooking for Krishna or writing for Krishna or working in the field for Krishna is in samadhi because the consciousness is: ‘I am doing this for the satisfaction of Krishna.”

Most of all, however, Prabhupada stressed how important it was for New Vrindaban residents to communicate and cooperate with each other, always with “Loving Krishna” as the connecting thread.

“You must jointly work,” he said during a conversation with Kirtanananda, Hayagriva, Shyama Dasi and other managers on June 9^th. “There may be sometimes disagreement, but you should settle up. Otherwise how you can make progress?”

“Everyone will cooperate,” he added. “Why not? It is Krishna’s. Nobody is actually the in-charge. Krishna is in charge. We are simply assisting Krishna. In that spirit we shall work…. Everyone should think that ‘I am acting to satisfy Krishna.’”

By June 14^th, now in his fourth week at New Vrindaban, Prabhupada was looking robust and seemed to be greatly enjoying the rest, fresh air, spring water, cow’s milk and of course the devotees’ association. They, too, were full of bliss in his.

But on June 18^th, upon receiving a letter from Mukunda about the progress his disciples were making in London, Prabhupada decided he must fly to England immediately. The New Vrindaban devotees, who had been hoping he would spend the entire summer with them, were crestfallen.

On June 22^nd, Prabhupada’s last night in New Vrindaban, all the devotees crowded into his room, eager to catch his last words. Amidst some light talk of his upcoming travels, he confided in them that personally, he would like to stay in New Vrindaban and finish translating Srimad-Bhagavatam.

As the evening wore on, six-year-old Dwarkadish began to nod off, as did his friend, five-year-old Ekendra. Prabhupada, who had developed a playful rapport with the two during his stay, smiled.

“So, you are feeling samadhi, Mr. D. D. D. ?” he asked. “All right. Let him take rest. And you are also feeling samadhi, Mr. Ekendra? You are very good boys. You can also take rest.“

At this, the devotees sensed that it was time to let Prabhupada himself take rest. But they remained in his room for some time more, hoping to soak up every precious moment they could. At last, they all offered obeisances and left his room.

The next morning, Srila Prabhupada left as he had come, striding down Aghasura Road at a brisk pace, his suitcases following him on a horse-drawn cart. As he got into his car and pulled away, the devotees saw him off with chants of “Hare Krishna!” and “Jaya Srila Prabhupada!”

Watching until long after his car had faded into the distance, they thought about how they could make this New Vrindaban community work, if only they followed Prabhupada’s instructions to love Krishna, live simply and work cooperatively together.

“I will also come again,” he had said just two nights before. “I like it so much here, but first I must finish the little work still remaining. I want to go once to London and Germany. Then I’ll entrust the whole preaching work to you. So do not become too anxious. With cooperation, everything will be possible. Krishna will help you.”

Remembering these words, the devotees turned back to continue their service of developing their transcendental farm community, and to begin their eager wait for Srila Prabhupada’s next visit.

By Madhava Smullen

“Krishna by His practical example taught us to give all protection to the cows and that should be the main business of New Vrindaban,” Srila Prabhupada wrote to his disciple Hayagriva Das in 1968, leaving little doubt as to the community’s focus.

Since then, New Vrindaban has always protected cows. But this year, the Eco-Vrindaban organization – which looks after 640 acres of rolling green forests and pastures – has renewed its focus, overseeing multiple improvements in the quality of cow care.

To begin with, a higher budget and a larger number of experienced devotee staff have been assigned to the community’s 48 cows, calves and oxen. The team, consisting of longtime program overseer Ranaka, inspirational guide Varshana Swami, ox teamster Daivata, caretakers Radhanath and Ray, and milkers Anandavidya, Lalita Gopi, and Radhapriya meet every month.

One major step they’ve made this year has been to increase medical care, proven by the case of milking cow Shankari, who fell and broke her leg on the pasture in March.

In the world of commercial dairy farming, this would mean an instant death sentence. Shankari’s devotee caretakers, however, spent $10,000 to give her the best veterinary care available at the OSU veterinary hospital in Columbus, Ohio. There, she received an X-ray, surgery to fix the break, and a high-quality cast. Now, she’s walking again, healing in her own private pasture.

In April, older cows Bahula and Kalindi developed eye cancer and were brought to OSU for an operation to remove the infected eyes. Radhanath then washed their wounds daily and applied localized penicillin when Kalindi developed an infection. Since then, both cows have healed.

Besides immediate medical needs, ECOV’s cow caretakers add other personal touches too. Head milker Anandavidya is doing a trial run on the product Fly Predator to rid the cows of bothersome flies. “The company sends you the larvae of a particular species of fly, which eats the larvae of the pest flies,” he says.

Meanwhile his wife Lalita Gopi has spent a lot of time cutting back the thorny wild rose bushes in the field next to the milking barn so that the cows don’t hurt themselves.

The milking cows can also look forward to a clean and cosy winter this year. Radhanath and carpenter Vyasasana Das have extended the feeding aisle in the milking barn to accommodate twice the number of cows, and created an enclosed “loafing area” where they can lie down in a clean, comfortable, hay-covered space. 

There are also plans to create a new drainage system for the “hospital pasture” next to the milking barn where pregnant cows and calves are kept. This will prevent the cows from getting hoof rot, which can be extremely painful and is caused by too much time in mud.

The devotees caring for the cows also need to be cared for, and there are hopes to insulate the milking barn by this winter to keep the milkers warm.

“I was there last winter, and it’s brutal!” says part-time milker Radhapriya. “By the time you’ve finished milking it’s like you don’t have feet anymore. No matter how many socks or how many layers of clothes you wear, you just can’t stay warm!”

That hasn’t stopped the milkers from working hard. Anandavidya and Lalita Gopi are now milking nine cows – twice as many as last year – in the mornings and evenings. That means double the milk too, with an average of thirty gallons every day. In the afternoons, Anandavidya makes butter, yoghurt and panir from the milk, providing most of the dairy for the Deities, devotees and the community Govinda’s Restaurant during offpeak times.

 The focus on cow protection at New Vrindaban has encouraged other devotees and guests to help with the cows too. Milking times are advertised as part of the temple schedule, so devotees occasionally come to milk, wash, feed or brush a cow. And South Indian brahmana Venkat Chalapati brings a group of guests nearly every morning for Go-puja and a chance to milk a cow.

“Lalita Gopi says that everyone should milk a cow at least once in their life,” Radhapriya enthuses. “And she’s right. When you spend time with cows, it automatically transports you into a relaxing, sattvic environment. You can go into the barn all stressed out, and being with the cows just makes it better. It slows you down – cows are not going to rush for anything!”

To add extra incentive for guests to visit, devotees have made the milking barn more attractive by painting Rangoli designs in the interior, and adding landscaping, freshly painted fences and a swing bench flanked by large, ornate flower pots to the exterior.

Of course, it’s not just the cows that are being cared for. Exciting developments are also afoot for oxen. Vyasasana Das is currently rebuilding an old barn in the Bahulaban area where the animals will be kept and trained separately from the main herd. The first floor will include spacious stalls for each ox and a tack room for equipment, while the second floor will be a hay loft. Outside there’ll be a training yard and holding area, with grazing pastures beyond.

Six bull calves between the ages of one month and one year – Pundarikaksha, Priya Darshan, Amani, Harichand, Nandi and Ishan – are already residing in Bahulaban and beginning their training to be oxen. Varshana Swami and Daivata Das, who worked with oxen in New Vrindaban’s early days, are leading the program.

The oxen are currently walking with a training yoke so that they get used to working together in pairs and learning commands. After that, they’ll start pulling a rope, then a chain and then a sled carrying firewood. Next, they’ll train for all the stages of breaking up soil until it’s fine enough to plant in – first plowing, then discing, and lastly harrowing.

Finally, when they’re two years old, the oxen will be ready to tackle the real precision work — pulling a cultivator between rows of crops. Varshana Swami hopes that they’ll make their first appearance at the community’s Garden of Seven Gates by next summer, and will be in serious production mode the summer after that.

Oxen, Varshana Swami feels, symbolize the kind of spiritual community Srila Prabhupada envisioned in New Vrindaban. “When you hitch two oxen together, the team dynamic kicks into play,” he says. “And Krishna is attracted where there’s teamwork, where there’s synergy, where there’s harmony, where everybody’s working together.”

“Which is,” he concludes, “What we here at New Vrindaban call the Brijbasi Spirit.”

DEITY WORSHIP SEMINAR:Presented by His Grace Jayananda das

www.deityworship.com          www.mayapuracademy.org

All seminar details are below the schedule.

Schedule

Fri. Dec. 5, 2014                       

Seminar                            11:00 am-1:30 pm

Lunch                                1:30 pm

Seminars                           3:00 pm- 7:00 pm

Sat. Dec. 6, 2014

Special Early Class           8:00 am -9:00 am

Seminar                            10:00 am – 1:30 pm

Seminars                           3:00 pm- 7:00 pm

Sun. Dec. 7, 2014

Special Early Class           8:00 am-9:00 am

Seminars                           10- 1:30 pm

END OF SEMINARS….Details below.

Friday, Dec. 5th

•11-1:30

•Introduction

•History and progress of IDWM

•Role & function IDWM

•ISKCON deity worship strengths/challenges 

•Why perform deity worship?

•The Lord is present in His deity form

•3-7

•Definition and goal of arcana

•Authenticity of deity worship

•Pancaratrika & Bhagavata vidhi

•Qualifications for arcana

•Position of the spiritual master

•Variations in arcana procedures and standards of worship

•Festivals observed (time permitting)

 

•Saturday, Dec. 6th

•8-9

•Mood of worship

•Values, attitudes, and behavior of a pujari

•10-1:30

•Deity dressing

•Purity

•Mantras and mudras

•3-7

•Acamana: demonstration & discussion

•Waking & Resting: demonstration & discussion

•Bhoga offering: demonstration & discussion

•Arati: demonstration & discussion

 

•Sunday, Dec. 7th

•8-9

•16 items of worship overview

•10-1:30

•Sodasopacara puja  demonstration (Standard GN procedure)

•Festival abhiseka

New Vrindaban Preschool Reopens

By Lilasuka dasi

The academic school in New Vrindaban has gone through many changes throughout the years.   From “Nandagram School” back in the 80’s, to the “New Vrindavan School” in the 90’s, to the current “Gopal’s Garden Home School Co-op”, all ages of kids and teachers have come and gone.  Many of the graduates have expressed fond memories of their time spent in those Nandagram classrooms. 

These days, a new wave of enthusiasm is hitting New Vrindaban in the form of a preschool! It is a welcome phenomenon that truly happened by surprise.  Recently, one of the newest mothers in New Vrindaban was searching for a babysitter for a few days a week.  The search didn’t exactly bear fruit, but something even better took place.  In talking to several other mothers with young children, the possibility of a preschool came up.  The idea was an immediate hit.

That same weekend, on Nov. 9, 2014, Mother Ruci held a meeting with the four interested mothers.  Mother Ruci said, “I was totally surprised at the enthusiasm, energy and commitment coming from these mothers for a preschool. It must be that the time is right for this to happen. I think it’s a great idea and I’m enlivened.  We’re ready for the New Vrindaban Home School Co-op to expand.”

The very next morning, all four mothers were down at the school building, working together to clean out the preschool classroom and bring in the paraphernalia provided by Mother Ruci. Lalita Gopi dasi, who cares for another mother’s toddler, Nadia, and who was instrumential in getting the project off the ground, was found enthusiastically sweeping the new classroom and arranging the tables.  Sundari dasi said, “I’m very excited about this class for my two year old daughter, Bhumi. Just having this class here will attract more families with young children to New Vrindaban, I’m sure of it.”

Vilasini dasi won’t be able to personally assist in the classroom, as she is going to school for nursing and also working, but she and her husband are very excited for  their three year old, Malini, to attend.  She confirms, “If they need us to shop for the class, I’d love to do that!”

One young mother,  Priti dasi, was born in New Vrindaban back in the early ‘80’s and is a graduate of the school herself.  She now has two little children of her own, one of whom will be attending the preschool.  Priti said, “When I heard about the possibility of this preschool, I was very excited. My three year old, Rama, is ready for this.  I’m really enthusiastic about helping to provide him a situation where he can learn to socialize with other kids his age in a Krsna conscious setting.”

His Holiness Bhakti Raghava Maharaj was invited to come and help make the inauguration of the preschool an auspicious event. Most important of all, Maharaj gained instant popularity when he invited the children up for seconds on cookies.

New Vrindaban Fall Board Meetings 2014:

Community Parikrama Showcases Exciting Developments

By Madhava Smullen

On November 2nd, after spending the previous day hearing presentations on New Vrindaban’s many departments, board and community members wrapped up this fall’s meetings by seeing some of the latest developments for themselves in an enlivening community parikrama. 

At 10:00am, around twenty-five people stepped out into a crisp but brilliantly blue and sunny morning and made their way first to the old barn at Bahulaban, which had fallen into a severely dilapidated condition over thirty years but is now being rebuilt as a new ox training center.

Renovation project manager Vyasasana Das spoke about his work on the barn, which has been given a brand new wood frame over its original core structure. He indicated the spaces on the first floor where there will be hay storage and corrals for oxen, and on the second floor where there will be living quarters for people working with the ox program.

Daivata Das, who worked with oxen when Prabhupada was physically present and is back to carry out the same service, showed everyone the training area at the back of the barn, and spoke about how he hopes to have the young oxen pulling a cart next year. He was clearly brimming with enthusiasm at getting to serve the community in this way again.

Meanwhile New Vrindaban pioneers Madhava Gosh and Advaita Das told stories about how devotees lived in the barn with their families in the early days, and how Advaita’s son was born there.

Madhava Gosh and his wife Vidya, who received an appreciation plaque to take home the previous day, were then presented with another public plaque which will remain permanently affixed to the new ox barn. “In recognition of more than four decades of service rendered to the cows and gardens of New Vrindaban by Madhava Gosh Dasa and Vidya Dasi,” it reads, “The Board of Directors of Eco-Vrindaban hereby renames this building the Madhava Gosh-alla.”

After everyone had a good chuckle at its pun-tastic new name, the ox program’s spiritual advisor Varshana Swami reminded them that the barn also had great spiritual significance. “It’s the last place built by devotees that Srila Prabhupada visited in Bahulaban,” he said. “And now, it’s getting a second life.”

Next, the tour moved on to the hilltop Radha Gopinath Mandir. Still under construction, it’s set to be a small replica of the original temple in Vrindavan, India. Varshana Swami, who is overseeing the project, pointed out the Radha Gopinath Deities residing in an elegant gazebo nearby, and said that They would move into Their temple once it is completed.

He then explained the history of the project, outlining Srila Prabhupada’s instructions to build not only seven replicas of Vrindavan’s seven main temples, but also replicas of its sacred lakes. He showed the group two of these replica lakes, Radha Kunda and Lalita Kunda, and spoke about the pastimes Krishna performed at them, while community president Jaya Krishna Das cheerfully sprinkled everyone with their sacred waters.

The tour also inspected a computer-generated image of the Radha-Gopinath Mandir, with Raghunath Das Goswami’s bhajan kutir and Radha-Kunda next to it.

“Please offer your blessings and prayers that Srila Prabhupada’s vision will unfold more and more,” Varshana Swami requested the assembled devotees.

From Radha-Gopinath Mandir, the parikrama went on to the Garden of Seven Gates. Garden manager Kacey Orr showed everyone the new greenhouse for in-ground planting, where greens will continue to be harvested until February and will last the Temple through much of winter.

She also took the tour through the recently renovated flower greenhouse, which was dormant but will see an astonishing twenty to thirty thousand flowers grown there throughout the 2015 growing season.

Walking through the open fields in the Garden of Seven Gates, Kacey talked about the crops grown there, including tomatoes, peppers, Chinese cabbage, green beans, pumpkins, watermelon, squash, ten-foot-high sunflowers, and marigolds, which were still growing in a golden carpet across the ground.

“Every time we pick, there are fifty gallons of marigolds,” Kacey said, before pointing out the area where a brand new rose garden, exclusively for the Deities, will be grown next year.

Kacey’s last stop was the smaller Teaching Garden, a cosy haven for herbs and flowers encircled by a newly-built honey-colored fence and gates. A regular site for guest tours, its centerpiece is an attractive wooden pergola where devotees can chant or make garlands, and guests can relax and soak up the peaceful environment.

“Next spring we will be taking it up to show-level, and putting signs in every bed so that guests know what they’re looking at,” said Kacey. 

Finally, the tour visited the community’s milking barn where nine Brown Swiss cows are milked, passing through the new swing and large decorative flower planters at the entrance. Inside, cowherds Ananda Vidya and his wife Lalita Gopi pointed out the new extension to the feeding aisle, and the new enclosed loafing area for the cows to relax in a dry, hay-covered space.

The weekend ended with a beautiful pushpanjali ceremony honoring Vaishnava acharya Gaura Kishora Das Babaji on his disappearance day. Afterwards, as they tucked into an Ekadasi Sunday Feast, all the devotees excitedly discussed everything they had seen and heard, inspired to continue their service with renewed energy and support New Vrindaban in its ongoing growth.

New Vrindaban Fall Board Meetings 2014

By Madhava Smullen

ISKCON New Vrindaban and Eco-Vrindaban’s second annual board meetings, held from November 1st to 2nd this year, shone a light on the rejuvenating rush of energy currently flowing through the New Vrindaban community and were invigorating for all the participants.

With the entire meeting open to all community members, there was a buzz of excitement as devotees bustled into the community hall at 10:00am to see what the first part of the meetings – a four-hour presentation of New Vrindaban’s 22 departments – would hold.

In his introduction, president Jaya Krishna Das reminded everyone of Srila Prabhupada’s vision for New Vrindaban as a sacred place known for cow protection, self-sufficiency, holy pilgrimage, spiritual education, and above all, loving Krishna.  He said that the transformational process the community began in 2011 has now past the ‘survival’ phase and entered the phase of improvement, and spoke of the need to develop a strong and healthy relationship between the temple and the broader community.

Kicking off the presentations, Lilasuka Dasi from Communications spoke about sharing news on New Vrindaban’s website and Facebook page, the Palace of Gold Facebook, Brijbasi Spirit blog, and monthly physical newsletter “News From the Holy Dhama.” Next year she’ll continue to focus on internal communications while Vrindavan Das connects with the media.

The Deity Dept., led by Abhinanda Das, reported a more stable, punctual operation with a reliable team of pujaris and good team spirit. Visitors were inspired by the beautiful festivals including the new Pushpa Abhiseka. In 2015 the dept. will renovate the Deity kitchen and pujari rooms, build a new Tulasi Devi greenhouse, and raise worship standards by hosting the ISKCON Deity Worship Ministry’s pujari training seminar.

Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold, managed by Tripad Das, had a good tourism season with lots of prasadam and books distributed to visitors from Pittsburgh and beyond.

The Palace Rose Garden, run by Gopalasyapriya Dasi, has “gone green” and plans in 2015 to develop a “Srila Prabhupada Rose” for ISKCON’s 50th.

Palace Restoration manager Gopisa Das reported one chattra renovated; black granite being laid on the upper steps; a new fountain and benches at the lotus pond; a new drainage system; and an emergency connection to city water for the community. 2015 will see the upper steps completed, lower steps started, parking lot extended; and the railing up to the Palace renovated. There are also plans underway to renovate the Palace’s boundary wall.

In Construction and Maintenance, previously overseen by Gopisa and being led from November 2014 by new resident Bhakta Paul, the temple guest rooms were renovated; the parking lot elephant restored; attractive signs posted everywhere to direct guests; and all temple doors and windows are being replaced to keep in warmth. Next year Paul will renovate the swan boat house, build a new kids’ playground, and complete many other departments’ construction projects.

Next Jayarama Das spoke about Congregational Development, where nine congregation members were initiated, 3,000 japa beads and 5,000 books were distributed, and donations are up 25%. Jayarama takes guests on a guided pilgrimage of New Vrindaban, while Gaura Nataraja Das visits the local prison weekly and his online Gita classes are watched by 500. Next year, the dept. plans to start a kids’ Sunday School and increase Palace of Gold entrances by 20%.

Sankirtan, led by Bhakta Trevor, reported distributing books and holding congregational chanting of the Holy Name every week in Wheeling, Morgantown, and Pittsburgh. 2015 plans include attracting new devotees and distributing prasadam at West Liberty University.

Sukhavaha Dasi reported that new dept. Devotee Relations opened an office in the temple with regular hours for devotees to express concerns; ran a pilot course on empathic communication; and offered counseling and conflict resolution. Next year it will open a Holistic Community Center, offer a free course to help second-gen devotees heal, and develop various support groups.

Govinda’s Restaurant, run by Vasudeva Das, hosted many tourist groups and students, and dramatically increased use of New Vrindaban’s own organic vegetables and cows’ milk. In 2015 it plans to use no commercial milk, finish its new décor, install a book display, reach out more to tour groups, and introduce popular dishes like lasagna, pie, breads and salads.

Under Vasudeva’s son Gaura Bhakta, the Guest Lodge finished seven more room renovations and replaced furniture in the cabins. Next year, it will add four new rooms with attached bath; update the cabins; introduce a uniform with name tags; start promotions and discounts; and add a desk that provides newcomers with information about Krishna consciousness.

Vrindavan Das of Festivals talked about Festival of Inspiration’s successes and challenges, increased attendance for 24 Hour Kirtan and Festival of Colors, and the first-ever Pittsburgh FOC drawing 6,000 students. Next year, the highest profile speakers in ISKCON will be invited for FOI’s 15th anniversary; 7,000 are expected at the NV FOC; and the dept. will add a public Rathayatra festival, a New Year’s Retreat and a retreat with Bhakti Charu Swami.

Gopal’s Garden, the Homeschool co-op run by Ruci Dasi, reported its students learning computers, Deity worship, art, and poetry as well as standard subjects, and doing service and kirtan together. Ruci, who has been teaching at NV for over thirty years, is encouraged by the enthusiasm of the students and parents, and looks forward to having many more students.

Among other departments’ achievements, Tejomaya Das at Water and Waste Water installed a new well that doubles capacity for festivals; Vyapi Das at the Apartments upgraded three apartments and will hand over his service to Hrishikesh Das in 2015; Varshana Swami at Land Management completed the parking lot at Bahulaban and finished the Parikrama path around Lalita Kund; and the aptly-named Laxmi Honest in Accounting is improving relationships with the bank, streamlining bookkeeping processes and saving thousands as she does so.

Eco-Vrindaban’s department head presentations followed. In his introduction, chairman Navina Shyam Das outlined how the organization covers the cow protection and self-sufficiency elements of Srila Prabhupada’s vision. He showed its brand new logo, and reported how in the past year ECO-V had officially changed its name from GEETA, refined its mission statement and become an integrated auxiliary of ISKCON New Vrindaban. He also spoke about its search for a manager, and introduced Mukunda Das, who was visiting from Alachua and participating in the weekend’s activities, as a strong candidate.

Next, Ananda Vidya and his wife Lalita Gopi spoke about the Cow program, which cares for 41 cows with nine milking cows and five new male calves. The milking barn has been extended to include a ‘loafing area’; cows are receiving first-class medical care; and the temple is being supplied with milk, yoghurt, panir, and butter. Next year the dept. will use non-GMO feed for the cows; cultivate nicer grasses in the pasture; and start a program to reduce flies.

For Ox Care, Daivata Das, who worked with oxen in Srila Prabhupada’s time, showed photos of the lively young oxen Harichand and Amani working with a yoke, and said that he hopes to have them pulling a cart next year, and living in their rebuilt ox barn at Bahulaban.

Kacey Orr at the Gardens reported a fully-planted high tunnel and hothouse greenhouse; harvesting many varieties of vegetables; a much better relationship with the temple kitchen; a new pergola with seating in the Teaching Garden; and regular guest tours. In 2015, she wants to double vegetable production; sell produce to guests on the weekends; offer internship programs for local students; and open the Garden of Seven Gates’ new rose garden for the Deities.

All presentations were deeply inspiring and reflected the progress New Vrindaban has been making lately.

“Visitors have already been saying they feel the change,” said Jaya Krishna Das, citing the need for deeping relationships and a Brijbasi mood of community spirit and unity moving into the future.

New Vrindaban Fall Board Meetings 2014:

An Evening with Srila Prabhupada at his Palace

By Madhava Smullen

At 6:00pm on November 1st, New Vrindaban board and community members ended their first packed day of meetings with a true treat – spending the evening with Srila Prabhupada at his Palace of Gold. The event was one in a series of monthly sangams arranged by Kripamaya Das.

As devotees arrived, Palace Restoration Manager Gopisa Das showed them the latest work done, pointing out the renovated lookout tower, the black granite being laid on the steps, and the new drainage system to prevent future water damage.

As they stepped from the brisk cold outside into Srila Prabhupada’s warm temple room, with the ISKCON Founder-Acharya looking out from his vyasasana over the stunning gilded ornamentation, marble flooring and ceiling paintings of Krishna’s pastimes, they felt as if they were entering the spiritual world.

Joint board member Chaitanya Mangala Das set the tone for the evening by reading a 1974 editors’ letter from the 12th issue of Brijabasi Spirit magazine describing a “hectic” week of “all-out service” as New Vrindaban devotees prepared for Prabhupada’s visit, but saying that even more important was developing the proper consciousness to receive such a great personality.

Chaitanya Mangala pointed that this was still applicable today —  as we are outwardly engaged in service, our internal reflection should be to develop qualities of surrender, humility, appreciation and love in order to truly receive Srila Prabhupada.

He then read several stories about the visit itself, including Srila Prabhupada’s arrival at Bahulaban, the Saturday festival with him attended by 400 devotees from around the country, and his tour of his still under-construction Palace.

Chaitanya Mangala also read about Prabhupada’s visit to Daivata Das’ house in Madhuban and pointed out Daivata amongst the devotees gathered. Seeing a devotee featured in a story about Prabhupada sitting right there and smiling at the memory was a wonderful experience for a young devotee like this writer.

Varshana Swami spoke next, reminding everyone that this Palace was the first Samadhi built for Srila Prabhupada. He told the story of how when Prabhupada visited this very same temple room while it was under construction, his disciple Bali Mardana asked: “Will this room be lit up by jewels like in the Krishna book?” In reply, Prabhupada, gestured to the devotees building the Palace. “These devotees are my jewels,” he said.

Varshana Swami also recalled the night when news came that Prabhupada passed away, and how the shellshocked devotees all gathered in the only place that made sense: his Palace. Although it was the darkest night of their lives, and they felt like they couldn’t go on, as they cried and chanted together in a mood of separation, they began to feel closer to Prabhupada than they ever had.

“Prabhupada’s ultimate gift is that the highest part of Vaishnava siddhanta is service in separation — which we’re all doing right now,” Varshana Swami concluded.

Finally Tamohara Das spoke about Srila Prabhupada’s management style, comparing it to parenting rather than corporate management and citing three specific qualities.

Firstly, like a good parent, he said, Prabhupada was a great communicator. Secondly, he brought the best out of his “children” by expecting the best from them. “Whatever Prabhupada asked us to do, we felt we could do,” Tamohara said.

Lastly, Prabhupada was warm and nurturing, like every good parent. “If we want to have Prabhupada in our lives and hearts, he’s there,” said Tamohara. “He continues to offer that protection years after  his physical departure.”

An endearingly “old school” kirtan lead by Daivata Das in Srila Prabhupada’s classic Hare Krishna tune followed, creating a mood very evocative of the memories that had just been shared. Finally, feeling blissfully closer to Srila Prabhupada and more encouraged in their quest to realize his mission, the devotees sat down together to a delicious prasadam meal.

 

By Madhava Smullen

“You have New York, New England, and so many ‘New’ duplicates of European countries in the USA, why not import New Vrindaban in your country?” –Srila Prabhupada, Letter, 3/17/68

In the spring of 2013, board members for ISKCON New Vrindaban and ECO-Vrindaban unanimously adopted a new community vision statement. It was called “Srila Prabhupada’s Vision for New Vrindaban.”

Its implementation as a renewed focus for the community might be new. But its roots go back long before Srila Prabhupada had even left India for the United States.

Back in 1956, while working alone in Delhi on his Back to Godhead magazine, Prabhupada had written a series of articles detailing his vision for a community where people would live a simple life based on the teachings of the Bhagavad-gita.

When he established ISKCON in New York in 1966, his seven purposes for the society included bringing members closer together “for the purpose of teaching a simpler and more natural way of life.”
As early as January 1968, he was issuing specific instructions about the community to his disciples: “The Ashram may be named as “ISKCON-Nagari or New Vrindaban.” And from May 1968 – the year when New Vrindaban was established — he issued a string of letters to his disciples describing exactly how he envisioned the community.

Through these, it’s clear that Prabhupada saw New Vrindaban as a sacred place known worldwide for five primary things: cow protection, self-sufficiency, holy pilgrimage, spiritual education, and above all, loving Krishna. And it’s these things that form the core of New Vrindaban’s vision statement today.

The first four are all inextricably connected to the last, loving Krishna. While teaching the importance of cow protection, for instance, Srila Prabhupada aligned New Vrindaban with the original transcendental village of Vrindavan, where Lord Krishna, His brother Balaram and Their friends would take Their cows to the pasturing grounds every morning.

“Krishna by His practical example taught us to give all protection to the cows and that should be the main business of New Vrindaban,” he wrote in a 1968 letter to Hayagriva.

Prabhupada taught the early residents of New Vrindaban to respect the cow and bull as their mother and father, as they could provide so many of the essentials of life. The bulls could till the ground, and be used for carting and transporting; while the cows could provide dung for fuel, and milk, butter, ghee and cheese for nourishment.

“The whole idea of New Vrindaban is that men who are living there should produce their own food, of which milk is the principal thing,” he wrote to Kirtanananda in July 1969.

Prabhupada envisioned New Vrindaban as a “self-governing village” that would set an example for the world and contain all the basic necessities residents needed: in one letter he explained how they could grow vegetables, fruit, wheat and other cereals, hand-weave cloth, and use an ox-powered mill to grind seeds into oil. Working to create this self-sufficiency, meanwhile, would keep devotees busy in the service of the Lord and ensure that they didn’t have to search for work outside.

This simple life wherein devotees had everything they needed, and weren’t distracted by trying to derive sense pleasure from modern amenities, was key to developing high thinking; or, in other words, Krishna consciousness, the true nature of the soul.

Adding further to the spiritual atmosphere of New Vrindaban were Prabhupada’s grand plans to physically recreate the original Vrindavan there, turning the community into a pilgrimage place. New Vrindaban is unique as the only farm community he envisioned in such a way.

“I have got ambition to construct there 7 temples as follows: 1. Radha Madan Mohan, 2. Radha Govinda, 3. Radha Gopinatha, 4. Radha Damodara, 5. Radha Raman, 6. Radha Gokulananda, 7. Radha Syamasundara,” he wrote to Hayagriva as early as 1968. He added in other letters, “The hilly portions may be named as Govardhana” and “If there are lakes, they can be renamed as Syamakunda and Radhakunda.”

Prabhupada hoped that these attractions and the Krishna conscious way of life would draw the public to visit. “I am sure this… attraction will make our neighbors friendly and surely they will come in number in future so that New Vrindaban will be ideal place for visiting from the neighboring provinces,” he wrote.

Adding to the appeal of New Vrindaban would be its spiritually-educated residents, who would be able to realize the first of Prabhupada’s seven purposes for ISKCON and “systematically propagate spiritual knowledge to society… in order to check the imbalance of values in life and to achieve real unity and peace in the world.”

Prabhupada specifically called for a “Rupanuga Vidyapitha” in New Vrindaban, a “school for educating brahmanas and Vaisnavas.”

He also recommended a school to teach Varnashrama, a traditional Vedic social structure of natural vocations and life stages, as well as a primary school where children could come from urban centers to learn reading, writing, mathematics, the basic sciences and Krsna consciousness.

All of this, of course, ultimately comes down once again to the essence of all of Srila Prabhupada’s directions for New Vrindaban: Loving Krishna.

“The cows, the trees, the cowherd men and gopis [of Vrindavan], their chief engagement was loving Krsna,” he wrote in July 1973. “And in New Vrindaban we want to create this atmosphere and thereby show the whole world how practical and sublime our movement is.”

During his first visit in May 1969, Srila Prabhupada thought of Krishna when he tasted New Vrindaban’s fresh well water, and told devotees of all the other things there that could help them remember the Lord: the sun, the moon, the cows, the fragrance of the earth, the wind and the thunder.

“It is so easy here at New Vrindaban,” Prabhupada said. “So much is there to remind us of Krishna that the devotee can’t forget Him for a moment.”

Another integral part of loving Krishna, of course, is to love His devotees; and this was perhaps Srila Prabhupada’s second most important instruction for New Vrindaban residents and for the greater ISKCON society: to love and appreciate each other and work cooperatively together.

While at New Vrindaban in June 1969, he told devotees discussing how to manage the fledgeling community: “You must jointly work [together]… There may be sometimes disagreement, but you should settle up. Otherwise how you can make progress?”

In a letter to Upendra, he wrote: “Now all my disciples must work combinedly and with cooperation… Our Society is like one big family and our relationships should be based on love and trust.” And to Babhru he wrote: “Sometimes there may be disagreement and quarrel but we should not go away. These inebrieties can be adjusted by the cooperative spirit, tolerance and maturity…”

After his first visit to New Vrindaban in May 1969, Srila Prabhupada continued to guide his disciples in how to follow these instructions during visits in 1972, 1974, and 1976.

And now, nearly fifty years later, New Vrindaban residents and well-wishers continue to cooperate together and sincerely work to realize his grand vision for the ideal spiritual community – a New Vrindaban, imported all the way from Krishna’s sacred village right into their country.

 

You are all cordially invited to New Vrindaban’s Thanksgiving long weekend program.  It begins Thursday evening Nov. 27, and continues with all sorts of transcendentally uplifting activities until the Sunday feast on Nov. 30 at 2:00 PM.  Hare Krsna.

Temple Program for THANKSGIVING DAY, THURSDAY EVENING NOV 27 2014
5:50 PM    Gopuja & milking of the cows at Goshala
6:15 PM    Sacred Storytelling with Sankirtan Das
7:00 PM    Gaura Arati by Jaya Rama Das
7:30 PM    Special Thanksgiving Vegetarian Prasadam Dinner
8:30 PM    Shayan Arati & Bhajan
<<<>>>
FRIDAY NOV 28 2014
5:00 AM    Mangala Arati
5:45 AM    Japa Session
7:00 AM    Milking the cows at Goshala
7:30 AM    Sringar Darsan & Guru Puja
8:00 AM    Srimad Bhagavaatam Class
9:00 AM    Breakfast prasadam served

12:30 PM   Noon Arati
1:00 PM    Noon Lecture
1:30 PM    Lunch prasadam served

5:50 PM    Gopuja & milking of the cow at Goshala
6:00 PM    Sacred Storytelling with Sankirtan Das
7:00 PM    Gaura Arati
7:30 PM    Bhagavat Gita Class
8:30 PM    Shayan Arati & Bhajan
<<<>>>
SATURDAY NOV 29 2014
5:00 AM    Mangala Arati
5:45 AM    Japa Session
7:00 AM    Milking the cows at Goshala
7:30 AM    Sringar Darsan & Guru Puja
8:00 AM    Srimad Bhagavaatam Class
9:00 AM    Breakfast prasadam served

12:30 PM   Noon Arati
1:00 PM    Noon Lecture
1:30 PM    Lunch prasadam served

5:50 PM    Gopuja & milking of the cow at Goshala
6:00 PM    Sacred Storytelling with Sankirtan Das
7:00 PM    Gaura Arati
7:30 PM    Bhagavat Gita Class
8:30 PM    Shayan Arati & Bhajan
<<<>>>
SUNDAY NOV 30 2014
5:00 AM    Mangala Arati
5:45 AM    Japa Session
7:00 AM    Milking the cows at Goshala
7:30 AM    Sringar Darsan & Guru Puja
8:00 AM    Srimad Bhagavaatam Class
9:00 AM    Breakfast prasadam served

1:00 PM    Noon Arati
1:30 PM    Sunday Lecture
2:00 PM    Sunday Feast Prasadam Served

8:00 am                Lecture about Govardhan

9:00 am                Breakfast

9:30 am                Painting Dome at Radha Gopinath Mandir

12:00 noon         Govardhan Parikrama- Meet in temple lobby

2:30 pm               Decorating Cows at Goshalla (behind garden)

5:00 pm               Abhishek

6:00 pm               Class by H. H. Varsana Maharaj

7:00 pm               Artika

7:30 pm               Group Singing of Govardhana Puja song

7:45 pm               Feast

ALSO:  If you have a small mountainous offering for the hill, please bring it to the temple room by 2:00 pm. Offerings for the altar please bring to the Pujari Room by 5:00 pm.
 

As we do twice a year, the board members of ISKCON New Vrindaban and ECO-Vrindaban will meet face to face November 1st & 2nd, 2014.
In our ongoing efforts to improve communications, we are organizing a weekend of open presentations and discussions.
We humbly invite all New Vrindaban residents and well-wishers to participate.

Weekend schedule:
Saturday, November 1st. 

10:00 am to 1:30 pm: Department Head Presentations for 2014 (under the Lodge)

1:30 pm to 2:30 pm: Lunch Prasadam (at Radha Vrindaban Chandra’s Temple)

2:30 pm to 4:30 pm: Community Dialog (under the Lodge)

6:00 pm to 7:30 pm: Srila Prabhupada Sangam (at his Palace)

Sunday, November 2nd.

10:00 am to 1:00 pm: New Vrindaban Tour (various locations around the Community)
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm: Sunday Program & Feast (at Radha Vrindaban Chandra’s Temple)

We would be honored if you join us throughout the weekend and look forward to seeing you then.

Hare Krishna!

Your servant,

Jaya Krsna das
ISKCON New Vrindaban Community President

Getting the mercy while cleaning out New Vrindaban’s Shyama Kunda, the devotees literally dug their hands into the mud, scooping it up and out of the kunda.  They filled up buckets after bucket of mud, formed a bucket brigade and emptied first Lalita Kunda and then Shyama Kunda.

Varsana Maharaja had to come to the rescue with his back hoe at one crucial point  to help scoop out some huge rocks.

At first, the devotees were under the impression that Shyama Kunda was only three and a half feet deep, but after discovering an additional three and a half feet of mud to sludge through, the hard work was finally completed.

Maharaja’s comment was, “Yes, this is a practice in going deeper! And this is what we are here for –  the service of beautifying the Dhamas and purifying our hearts.”

Radha Kunda, the crest jewel of Govardhan, is now beautifully shining, and freshly lined.

New Vrindaban’s replica Radha Kunda up on the replica Govardhan Hill got a fresh lining at the end of this summer of 2014. It’s called “Rhino”, a type of cement which hardens into enamel, and is guaranteed for 30 years not to leak. This took two weeks, and lots of time and energy to shovel all the muck at the bottom. After seeing the beauty of Radha Kunda, and understanding that Lalita Kunda is also leaking, Gopisa Prabhu suggested that we also line Lalita Kunda and Shyama Kunda.

Sukhavaha dasi relates the story:

“We had the rare opportunity of immersing ourselves (literally) in the sacred mud of those kundas, thus  receiving  some very special mercy.  There was only two days to clean out the other two kundas. Tilak  das and I worked along with some help from Lalita Gopi  dasi, Ananda Vidya das, Madri dasi and Gaura Shakti, and some extra help from Venkatta das, TK das, Navin das, Daivata das and Bhaktin Autumn as we all  proceeded to clean out Shyama Kunda, which was going to be really simple, because it was only 3 and ½ feet deep, according to Varsana Maharaj. No big deal. “We will have this done in no time”, we thought. As the mud and muck was being taking out of the kundas, a lot of mercy was flowing into our hearts.  

by Sukhavaha dasi &  Madri  dasi

The late summer has brought us a bounty of vegetables and a mountain of work preparing for the fall.  The teaching garden is filled with fall colors as the mums, calendula, daisies, and lilies have begun to bloom.  As the summer flowers and vegetables have completed their season the beds containing annual flowers (one that do not grow back in the spring) are being cover cropped. In the photo above daikon radishes are growing around daises yet to bloom. Other cover crops in the teaching garden include vicia vilosa (winter legume), wheat, and rye.

In the Garden of Seven Gates it has been all about harvesting, building, and planting.  Yes, I said planting; this time of year it is difficult to keep up the same early summer pace in the garden. Weeds start to win the epic battle with the garden, some plants start to struggle, and just keeping up with the harvest in a daunting task all its own.  However, to really get the most of your garden don’t miss out on the often forgotten benefits of fall planting.  In early August we seeded cabbage, spinach, lettuce, radishes, and beets which all love the fall weather and are fairly quick to harvest (none more than 60 days). At the end of August we seeded for our winter greens high tunnel with many of the same crops and added kale. The buckwheat field is now filled with an infinity of beautiful radish greens. In the terraces where vegetables like tomatoes and sweet potatoes were growing it is now cover cropped for the fall and will return early in the spring.  For weeks we had beautiful fields of giant sunflowers, the seeds are now drying to be shared with the community. Their former home is now a field of rye.

With more green beans to come, squash harvest, greens, and amaranth we still have a lot of picking to do. The test plot of giant golden amaranth has proven not only to be sustainable (no irrigation, no fertilizer, no pesticides), beautiful (most plants are over 9 feet tall filled with seeds) it produced an incredible bumper crop of amazing gluten free complete grains.  Which will be harvested after the first frost.

Another exciting harvest this year was sweet potatoes. This is a crop I suggest for everyone that can create some form of raised bed in their garden. When planted under the right conditions a single plant slip yields 8-10 lbs of sweet potatoes. We had enough to set up a “grown on site” sweet potato fry booth at the Festival of Colors.  We had a wonderful response and were very excited to share our harvest with people from many different communities.

As the New Vrindaban gardens transition to fall I will leave you with a quote from Rose G. Kingsley….. “In the garden, Autumn is, indeed the crowning glory of the year, bringing us the fruition of months of thought and care and toil. And at no season, safe perhaps in Daffodil time, do we get such superb colour effects as from August to November.” The Autumn Garden 1905

by Kacey Orr, New Vrindaban’s Head Gardener

There have been many renovations done in New Vrindaban over the last two years.  Govinda’s Restaurant received a complete overhaul, including a drop ceiling and ornate Rajasthani style furniture. The Welcome Center, once an old wooden cabin, was brought up to date with high tech insulation and new exterior/interior improvements. The men’s and women’s asramas were renovated with new lighting, walls, floors and furniture and the Palace Lodge rooms were greatly improved with similar treatment. 

This year, Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold is receiving some much-needed repairs. Renovations have begun with all new storm drainage pipes on the exterior second level. This is the first phase of an extensive design plan to handle all rain/snow water from roof to ground level and a necessity for protecting the soon to be installed new granite steps.

The work is part of a new push to fully renovate and improve Srila Prabhupada’s Palace with major visual improvements planned for completion by 2016 as an offering to Srila Prabhupada on the 50th anniversary celebrating the formation of his beloved ISKCON.

Stay tuned ─ more to come.

By Gopisa das & Lilasuka dasi

In the original Vrindavan, where Lord Krsna and His brother, Balarama, used to herd the cows and calves out to the forests every day, it was always a cause for celebration whenever a new calf was born. 

Well, in the same way, a new baby bull was born in New Vrindaban Sept. 9th, 2014 in the afternoon at 2 PM. and we joyfully celebrated that.   The new calf’s name is Balarama.  He is the 7th bull calf born this year in the dhama.  He and his mata are doing well at the comfortable Goshalla across the street from Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra Mandir.

The next time you visit New Vrindaban, please stop by the Goshalla to see Balarama’s progress.

Oh, and Balarama and his mata both love molasses balls!

Hare Krsna.

Thousands of people chanting, dancing and, of course, throwing colors – for peace, love and unity!

New Vrindaban’s third annualFestival of Colors brought out 5,000 participants to “color their lives and throw their worries to the wind!” This was the message that hit home with most all of the festival goers that day.   Everyone had the time of their lives.

“As you can see, the Festival of Colors in Moundsville today was a complete success!”  This was the declaration made by Sarafina Brooks, a reporter from the local TV Channel, WTOV 9 who appeared on TV Sat. Sept. 13, 2014 ­­covered from head to toe in green powdered chalk.  It’s clear that the local image of New Vrindaban is changing to one of peace, love and unity.

One young man who was there for his very first Festival of Colors was excited to say, “When we threw the colors up in the air, it was just like standing in the middle of a rainbow!”  Every half hour there was a wild color throw, accompanied by live music from one of five bands who played continuously throughout the day. The bands enthusiastically engaged thousands of people present in chanting the Holy Name, dancing, and throwing colors.   People also got to enjoy delectable vegetarian food known as “prasadam”, including New Vrindaban home grown, home cooked sweet potato fries and other delights.  Over 100 Krsna conscious books were sold to eager buyers.

This Festival of Colors was featured on the front page of a prominent local newspaper.  There was huge media coverage, with WTRF Channel 7, WTOV Channel 9, WV Public Radio, and three other newspapers.  Two of the TV channels even came before the Festival to do previews.  This type of coverage was unprecedented in all of New Vrindaban’s Festivals of Color to date.  Channel 7 announced, “ There might have been mostly gray skies over most of the Ohio Valley Saturday, but  there were rainbows over the Palace of Gold in Marshall County.“

Many of the guests also took tours of Prabhupada’s Palace of Gold and the Rose Gardens, wanting to know more about the beautiful and transcendental tourist attraction surrounding them.  Some bikers attended for their first time and one of them said, “This really isn’t a biker thing, but it’s a blast!  It’s all about love.  It’s a good time. Just hanging out with the people and nobody being mad.  You couldn’t do this with a bunch of bikers!”

Vrindavana das, organizer of the Festival commented, “This year it was more than just a good time.  This Ohio Valley has so many good people and they are feeling like this is becoming their festival.  People from all backgrounds are promoting love, friendship and unity.  They’re celebrating life together!  What could be better?”

Morning at Radha Gopinath Mandir w/ H H Varsana Maharaj:
11:30 AM               Bhajans
12:00                    Arotik and Kirtan
12:30 PM              Class by H H Varsana Maharaj
1:30  PM                Feast
*Note: If you would like to bring an offering for Srimati Radharani, please bring it by 11:45 AM to the Radha Gopinath Mandir.
Evening at the Temple:
5:00 PM                   Abhishek
6:00 PM                   Class by Sankirtan Prabhu, click above for the rest of the schedule. 
7:00 PM                   Arati   & Kirtan
7:45 PM                   Feast at the Temple
*Note: If you would like to bring an offering for Srimati Radharani in the evening, please bring it by 5:45 PM to the temple pujari room.

Team Work – Janmastami 2014

by Lilasuka dasi

The days leading up to a Janmastami festival are often exciting and energy-charged.  This year, some specific pre-Janmastami preparations held a special fascination for many.

Doing service together in co-operation with other devotees and friends towards a common goal is truly the key to surcharging both the atmosphere and our own souls with spiritual bliss. That was the scene on the days before Janmastami 2014.  As people worked together, the air was surcharged with inspiration and creativity for the Lord. 

Several days before Janmastami, Vijaya Radha dasi personally approached every devotee woman who lived within a four mile radius of the temple, asking them, “Prabhu, please come to the prasadam room on Saturday morning at 9:30 AM.  We’re going to make decorations out of greens and flowers so that Radha Vrindaban Chandra’s altar looks like Vrindavan forest for Janmastami! We can do it!  But we need your help.”

And they did it!  Picture a scene in the beautiful gopi, Vrindadevi’s grove in the original Vrindavan forest.  She dreams of preparing a gorgeous seat for her dearest Lords, Radha and Krsna, in the middle of the woods where they can feel very comfortable speaking and eating and joking and dancing in Each Other’s company.  Vrindadevi and her friends gather all sorts of forest greens and wild flowers, and spend the day laughing and making colorful flower arrangements for the pleasure of Their Lordships.  Following this mood, the younger and older women of New Vrindaban came together, along with many Janmastami visitors and guests─man and woman alike─using the best flowers and greens that Kali Yuga could provide. Collectively, they created beautiful flower arrangements and long, festive garlands to decorate the altars of the Lord for Janmastami.  Surely, Krsna and Srila Prabhupada were especially pleased by this co-operative endeavor.

One long-time resident of New Vrindaban commented, “This is so uniting.  We used to get together like this, years ago, for festivals, where many devotees used to join to work on a single project.  I feel a real sense of community.”

Another devotee declared, “All of us working together─I don’t mind waking up early for this!”

A couple from Virginia visiting New Vrindaban for their first time exclaimed, “This is fantastic.  We’ve found our peace.”

All weekend long, there were engaging activities and teamwork in so many areas.  The kitchen devotees worked very hard, culminating in serving out 300 plates of prasad on Saturday night, and another 500 plates for lunch on Sunday. There was a fire yajna, cow puja, a swan boat festival, Bharata Natyam dance, a drama towards midnight Sunday, and even some Hare Krsna rap singing! The Lodge was super busy with many satisfied visitors; tours at the Palace went on all weekend, and the restaurant was open through everything, serving extra hungry visitors.

One of the highlights of the weekend was Sunday morning, Janmastami day, as everyone was getting ready to greet the Deities in Their new Janmastami outfit.  The excitement was building. The crowd of residents and visitors were gathered before the altar, eager to see Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra.  As the kirtan built up, and the altar curtains finally opened, everyone had joyful darshan of the Deities in Their charming New Vrindavan forest scene, amidst the shouting of “Jaya Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra ki jaya!!”

Lord Balarama’s Appearance Day Festival

Everyone is invited to celebrate the auspicious Lord Balarama Appearance Day Festival on Sunday Aug. 10, 2014

Schedule

4:30 PM          Bhajans
5:00 PM          Abhisheka
6:00 PM          Class
7:00 PM          Artika and Kirtan
7:45 PM          Feast     

LORD BALARAMA’S APPEARANCE DAY

Balarama is a name of the Supreme Person, Who appears as Krishna’s brother. He is also in the category of God,   Krishna Himself is the origin of all other Personalities of Godhead.  Lord Balarama is the first expansion of Lord Krsna.

During Krishna’s childhood pastimes, Balarama also appears and plays like a human being with Krishna in the village of Vrindavan.

Whereas Krsna  always appears with a darkish complexion, like a bluish monsoon cloud, Balarama is always fair skinned.

Bhagavad Gita  states that when the earth was overburdened by demonic rulers who had amassed large military forces armed with deadly weapons to wage war for personal gain, Lord Brahma, the chief of the demigods in this universe, approached the shore of the ocean of milk. There, accompanied by Lord Siva and other celestial beings, he worshiped Lord Visnu, the supreme God of all gods. In response, Lord Visnu gave him instructions, which Lord Brahma in turn conveyed to the demigods. He told them that the Lord would soon appear on earth to diminish the burden of the world and that the demigods, to assist Him, should take birth in the Yadu dynasty. Lord Brahma further stated that Lord Balarama, who is also known as Sankarsana, would precede the Lord and serve Him in every respect:

vasudeva-kalanantah
sahasra-vadanah svarat
agrato bhavita devo
hareh priya-cikirsaya

“The foremost manifestation of Krsna is Sankarsana, who is known as Ananta.
He is the origin of all incarnations within this material world. Previous to
the appearance of Lord Krsna, this original Sankarsana will appear as
Baladeva, just to please the Supreme Lord Krsna in His transcendental
pastimes.” (SB 10.1.24)

 

Garden Blog

By Kacey Orr

7-16-2014

The last few weeks have been VERY busy in the gardens. We have had many new volunteers.  A family from Maryland came to work and camp in the garden.  Currently we have two volunteers from WWOOF (world wide opportunities on organic farms) that have been helping with our abundant harvest of green beans.  The Roots & Shoots 4-H Cloverbud Club came and spent a day touring the gardens and picking flowers.  The kids had a wonderful time and learned all about farming and flowers.

The first week of July we planted four varieties of squash.  This is the last big planting until fall.  Our sweet potatoes are looking great and the vines are filling in all the spaces in their beds. Twice a week we harvest herbs and greens for the temple (lettuce, kale, swiss chard, and arugula).  This week brought us our first full sized red tomatoes and bitter melons. Our current pick list also includes red raspberries, peppers, beets, basil, oregano, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, dill, and tons of green beans.  Two of our local contract growers have been also making weekly deliveries of carrots and cilantro.

Both the Teaching Garden and the Garden of Seven Gates are bursting with beautiful flowers.  The temple staff has been picking hundreds of marigolds for garlands and a variety of flowers for vases. As we move further into the summer harvest we hope to have more volunteers to continue to provide the community with a bounty of vegetables and flowers.

NEWS FROM THE FARM

July 21, 2014

Here’s a recent picture of moving hay from the field to the barn, we have approximately 500 bales rolled & stored so far this year, with about that many more to harvest before winter.

 

Quickly becoming a favorite New Vrindaban festival, the Fourth Annual Pushpa Abhishek will be celebrated Sat. July 26, 2014.

Their Lordships, Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra will be showered with thousands of fragrant flower petals of all colors and descriptions in the evening, accompanied by ecstatic Hare Krsna kirtan.

If you’d like to come early, at 10 AM we will begin preparing the flower petals for the evening flower showers.  Bring your own home-grown flowers to offer too, if you’d like, and join us.

Lord Jagannatha’s New Vrindaban country-style Ratha Yatra on July 19 was the best one yet! 

Even though there was a constant mist of rain from the skies, with brief periods of hard rainfall, this didn’t dampen the devotees’ enthusiasm for kirtan.  The balloons tethered to the Lord’s cart bounced around joyfully, the bubbles from the bubble machine floated around the devotees’ heads, the offerings to the Lord were presented from each householder along the route.  A good and transcendental time was had by all.

This year, for some reason, there were many automobiles trying to drive down the road during parade time.  However, of course, they all had to wait for the Lord’s chariot to pass.  As we were aplogizing to one couple who had to turn their large van around in a tight spot, the couple cheerfully declared, “We’ve been wanting to come up here for a long time.  This looks like fun! Can we stay and watch?”  They weren’t phased by the inconvenience..

Jagannatha Ratha Yatra ki jaya!

Paul Zimmerman, an expert rosarian who has been hired by the ECOV Board of New Vrindaban to help switch the Prabhupada’s Palace Rose Garden to an organic, sustainable garden, is keeping a blog on this project.  We published an initial article on the topic right on this website in June of this year, entitled “Prabhupada’s Palace Rose Garden at New Vrindaban Making the Switch to Sustainability”.
Paul Zimmerman’s article is copied below, and the link is:http://www.finegardening.com/transitioning-public-rose-garden-sustainability
This is an exciting task, and we really appreciate Paul’s guidance on this.
He is working with Gopalasyapriya dasi, who is heading up the project.

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Roses are plants, too!

Transitioning a Public Rose Garden To Sustainability

Transitioning a garden viewed by thousands of visitors to sustainability.

It’s one thing to talk about growing roses sustainably in our own personal gardens. There, we only have our own expectations to meet. Most of us who grow roses without chemicals have learned to live with some damage from insects and the occasional smudge of blackspot. We’ve realized roses were held to a standard higher than other plants and by simply viewing our roses the same way we do all our other plants a little damage is no big deal.

But what if it’s a garden open to the public? A well known garden receiving thousands of visitors each season who, because is what they’ve mistakingly been taught, expect perfection from roses. People who will likely spy blackspot from across the garden despite the sea of blooms and mutter “tsk, tsk, they should really take better care of this garden”.

The answer to can you transition a public garden to sustainability is yes, indeed you can. However, it can’t be done in the way I usually tell folks to do it with their home garden, which is to do it cold turkey.

As I’ve always said during the first year of taking a garden off chemicals it will look worse before it looks better. In our own gardens that’s no big deal because we can explain to visitors what’s going on. Plus, if anyone even utters a “tsk, tsk” we can throw them off the property!

Not so with a public garden. It’s under pressure to look good during the transition, there is no way to fully explain what’s going on and throwing people off the property is not good for building up the visitor count! With all that pressure how do you do it?

Enter the Palace of Gold Rose Garden located in the New Vrindaban community located in Moundsville, West Virginia. Founded in 1968 by Krishna devotees, the Palace itself was started and built by those same devotees starting in 1972. Remarkably they had little to no training in the skills it takes to build something like this. The results are striking and a testament to perseverance.

The Rose Garden is part of the original design and over the years became an AARS garden. That is All American Rose Selections, which was a testing/marketing program the rose industry used for decades. At present the garden is collection of mostly AARS winners planted in groups of 3 or more.

Over the years the garden was taken care of using traditional chemical rose care methods. Recently, however, those in charge of the garden wish to transition the rose garden to sustainable care – something they feel is more in line with their beliefs. Also, the garden needed a bit of upgrading including adding some new plants, moving around some of what is there and other normal garden chores for a garden every now and then.

Earlier this year they hired me to oversee this work and help the great group of folks who work in the garden daily. It will take several years because it must be done slowly, methodically and with sensitivity towards the gardens purpose, which is to be a beautiful public display garden.

I’ll be blogging about this project from time to time in this space. I hope as you embark on this journey with me and see it can be done, it will give you confidence to do the same in your own garden!

Happy Roseing

Paul