Planet ISKCON

“By the end of this week, we’ll be all finished putting up the hay bales in the barn for the season!” 

These are words that every farmer likes to be able to boast, before winter sets in. Down at New Vrindaban’s  farm and cow shelter, Ranaka was able to make this claim with great satisfaction, as another summer leaves New Vrindaban.  “We put up 800 to 1,000 bales this year.  It was a good year,” declares Ranaka.  This cowherd boy is especially happy because he is helping  to fulfill Srila Prabhupada’s vision for New Vrindaban, which includes the importance of cow protection.

In addition to the hay, the acre of potatoes that Ranaka plants organically every year have just been dug up for collection, which is another sign that the summer is coming to an end.  But Ranaka feels ahead of the game, in preparation for another beautiful, yet sometimes brutal, New Vrindaban winter.  Self-sufficiency is one of the other main points in Srila Prabhupada’s vision for New Vrindaban, and the potato crop and other vegetables are a big part of that.  As a matter of fact, Ranaka has lived through 36 winters in New Vrindaban, since 1977, and his devoted helper, Ray, has worked with him for most of those years. “Ray is a hard worker and a good guy!” declares Ranaka. 

The barns in New Vrindaban first opened almost 28 years ago, in 1985, and have been continually serving Sri Sri Radha Vrindaban Chandra's cows since that time, following Srila Prabhupada’s mood for the community. This year, there will be some new residents at Krsna’s Goshalla in New Vrindaban, according to Ranaka Prabhu.

“We have three heifers old enough to breed, so we have built a strong pen for them and the bull. Then, in about nine months, the pregnant gomatas can be moved up to the milking barn across from the temple to give birth to their calves.”  And at the end of October, the 16 retired cows out to summer pasture in Bahulaban will be brought back down to their winter home at the farm and cow shelter.  There’s a lot of action at the Goshalla. 

The barn got a new coating on the roof this year!  Chaitanya Bhagavat Prabhu was instrumental in organizing this for the barn roof. Ranaka explains: “They rolled out a new coat of aluminum roof coating on the almost 50,000 square footage of roof, to keep the rust under control.  It was a hard job, but Chaitanya Bhagavat and some helpers worked hard until it was time for the contractor to come in and spray on the finish.”

 We’re happy with it.  We’ve been re-doing this barn roof every couple of years, but we’re hoping this new roofing to last longer.”

Ranaka is happy with the progress made at the Goshalla this year in hay, potatoes, cows, and roofs. He maintains that “Krsna has sent us some good people to work with and it’s very satisfying to see Krsna’s cow barn hopefully pleasing  Srila Prabhupada, and running as smoothly as possible.”

Intimate and sweet. Those were the words most often used to describe this year’s Kartik 24 Hour Kirtan in New Vrindaban.  The main organizer of this year’s kirtan, Vrindavan das, expressed it this way, “Many of the devotees told me that although the bigger and more extravagant summer 24 hour kirtans are always exciting, still this kirtan had a special, intimate feeling that made people feel more connected. There weren’t all the usual well-known kirtan leaders but many said that they really appreciated the more traditional and intimate kirtan mood of this weekend.”

People also liked the variety of kirtan styles: bluegrass kirtan, ukulele kirtan, flute kirtan, to name a few.

One regular kirtan-goer exclaimed, “When the kirtan is married with devotion, it transports you to the highest place.”

Another  young lady from Columbus, Ohio was at the 24 hour kirtan for the very first time. She declared, “This kirtan has been amazing! I can feel that the spiritual energy here is real.”

Another regular kirtan participant confirmed, “I love to chant Hare Krsna even at home, and I do that most of the time, but I especially like the super-charged, collective spiritual energy that I always experience when in the temple 24 hour kirtan. It gets me through until the next time I can attend.

Vrindavan, this year’s kirtan organizer, claims, “We are aiming to double the number of participants at next year’s New Vrindaban Kartik 24 hour kirtan! See you there!”

by long time New Vrindaban resident and award-winning storyteller Sankirtana Das

In the  late 1960’s, while in college, Sankirtana Das discovered an old book in the library. The Indian Story Book  (1914) by Richard Wilson,  a collection of India’s ancient stories,  included some from the epic Mahabharata. Sankirtana majored in Theater/ Film and turned one of the Mahabharata stories into a one act play. His theater class chose the piece as one of several plays they performed for elementary schools in New York City.

Sankirtana Das  was initiated by Srila Prabhupada in 1973 and has resided in New Vrindaban for over 37 years.  He developed the theater program here and  wrote, acted and directed numerous plays throughout the 80′s and into the early 90′s. He and Lokamangala prabhu developed and performed a two-actor, two hour  Mahabhharata drama for Off Broadway in NYC (1987), which they also toured to temples, colleges and special events for four years. Their performance touched many people who were fascinated that  each of the actors took on several roles, including the role of storytellers. Devotees would often suggest that they develop a full length Mahabharata film. But that was not to be.

Sankirtana started working on his Mahabharata manuscript in 2000. He explains the intent of his rendition was threefold, “to deliver the story as good literature, to give it a cinematic slant, as potentially the basis for a film, and to keep it at a length that could easily be studied in college classrooms.” Gradually, the manuscript came together as he tried to find the unique elements of each part of the story. He recalls, “Sometimes it was exhilarating. Sometimes it was discouraging. I wondered if I could really pull it off successfully. Sometimes I would stop writing for weeks or months at a time and go on to other projects.  But over the years, writing Mahabharata has been a wonderful meditation for me.”  

Now the book, entitled Mahabharata: The Eternal Quest is  finally available.  See www.Mahabharata-Project.com  It has received acclaim from scholars across the country:

“Fresh, fast-paced and cinematic! This book captures the scope and breath of this great epic.” Subhash Kak, PhD, Oklahoma State University (from the book’s Foreword)

“To condense the profound wisdom and rich culture of Mahabharata  into a book of this size constitutes a formidable challenge. In his offering, Sankirtana Das  has distilled the essence of the expansive scripture and has skillfully crafted  a book which is accessible and comprehensible to a universal audience.” Varshana Swami, Author & Vaisnava Scholar

“Sankirtana Das maneuvers through the story’s monumental terrain with ease. His powerful narrative captivates and sustains the reader.” Kevin Cordi, PhD, Professor, Ohio Dominican U.

“Both entertaining and erudite, This rendering of the ancient Sanskrit epic delivers a text that is readily accessible to the layperson and refreshingly insightful to the scholar. A delight to read – and ponder over.” Greg Emery, PhD, Director, Global Leadership Center, Ohio University

“A stirring and authentic version. My prayer is that this Mahabharata will be enjoyed, studied and appreciated by people for years to come.”  Dr. Laxmi Narayan Chaturvedi M.D, Author, “The Teachings Of Bhagavat Gita”

“A wonderful, rich narrative! Sankirtana Das  does  a fine job keeping all the threads clear, even as they interweave. I  see his  long career of storytelling at work on every page… it’s obvious how much work  has been put into it… this book should be in every high school and college library.”   Dr. Robert Rosenthal, Philosophy Chair, Hanover College, Indiana

For the last 20 years Sankirtana has offered professional storytelling programs and workshops in a variety of venues: schools, colleges, libraries, museums, temples, churches and special events. He is a recipient of a WV Artist Fellowship Award. His workshop, In Search of Story, delves into the creative process  to help participants explore and share the stories of their life’s journey. For more info about his programs visit www.sacredvoices.com