Sri Govindaji's Patrika - Winter 2016

Vol II

Issue IV

Winter 2016

A quarterly publication presented by Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha Vedic Educational and Cultural Center, Houston, TX.

A Few Words from the Board of Directors

Srila Gurudeva (right) and Srila Vamana Gosvami Maharaja (le )

passed away while Kartik parikrama was going on. As soon as Srila Gurudeva heard this news, he left for Navadvipa. When he reached Navadvipa, he found out that Srila B.V.Vaman Goswami Maharaja had already been put to Samadhi. Hearing this, he was extremely pained. However, he went straight to his Samadhi, paid his respect to him, and then left with his associates immediately. When he was sitting in the car that was about to leave, devotees in Navadvipa laid down on the road in front of the car because they did not want him to leave. Such was their deep love for Srila Gurudeva. This is similar to the love the Ayodhya-vasis had for Lord Rama, following His chariot when He left Ayodhya for a fourteen -year exile.

By the time this message will see the light; the celebration of Srila Gurudeva’s disappearance day will be in order. We pray to our beloved Srila Gurudeva to shower profuse mercy on us to allow us to serve His cause faithfully and remain true to the tradition he stood for with courThe tradition thus continues. This is age and fortitude. the story of the most exalted vaisnavas epitomizing love, devotion, and What tradition did Srila Gurudeva stand for? In November 2004, Srila sacrifice. This is the Caitanya parampara….

B. V. Vaman Gosvami Maharaja

Inside this Issue 

A Few Words from the Board of Directors

1



Hari Katha Corner

2



Sri Krishna Caitanya

6



Vaisnava Calendar

7



Temple Bulletin Board

8



Temple Events & Happenings

10



Krishna Puzzle

13



Building a Spiritual Library

14

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hari Katha Corner

You should think that I am always with you in the form of my books and in the form of my lectures and classes. Know that I am always guiding you. If you do this, you will not be weak, and you will also be able to make others very strong.

— Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja

Sri Guru—Heavier than God We should know what is guru-tattva.

Guru means "heavy," more so than anyone else in this world, even more so than Krsna Himself. Sometimes Krsna may come to that guru and take his foot dust; it may be so. It is written in Sri Gita-Govinda by Srila Jayadeva Gosvami that Krsna said to Srimati Radhika, “Dehi pada-pallavam udharam. Please be merciful and place Your lotus feet on My head. Be pleased with Me.” Krsna sometimes also says this to the gopis who serve Srimati Radhika more so than they serve Him. He may pray to them, “Please place your footdust on My head.” This is guru-tattva.

In other words, all the pure gurus in the disciplic line of Srila Rupa Gosvami, in their spiritually perfected forms, are gopi maidservants of Srimati Radhika. The subject of guru-tattva is the essence of all of our bhakti literature.

This subject is very heavy, and therefore you should hear it with the core of your hearts. We can only worship Krsna after we have worshipped guru.

caliber of Sri Narada Muni can escape this maya and its presentation of old age, but you are not like Narada Muni.

You will have to suffer if you are not careful.

It is stated in the Vedas: yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau tasyaite kathita hy arthah prakasante mahatmanah (Svetasvatara Upanisad 6.23) ["Only unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of Vedic knowledge automatically revealed."]

The instruction has been given since ancient times: “Be careful.” Yasya deve para bhakti. Those who are suffering and who want to be happy in this world and in the next, especially those living in the present age of quarrel and hypocrisy called kali-yuga, should serve Krsna, the Supreme Lord. And, not less than Him, such persons must serve the bona fide gurudeva. Here in this verse the word All of us in this world have turned away from Krsna.

Whether you accept it or not, it is true. Although we are para-bhakti has been used, and we should therefore know greatly suffering, we do not realize it. Why not? We have the meaning of bhakti: drunk such a large quantity of the alcohol of maya that we anyabhilasita sunyam jnana-karmady anavrtam have become completely mad; and in this madness we think ourselves very happy. You should know that one anukulyena krsnanu silanam bhaktir uttama (Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu 1.1.11) day you will have to give up your bodies and all that you have collected in this world. One day you will surely have to be old. Old age is very eagerly waiting to embrace you, ["The cultivation of activities which are meant exclusively and none of you will be able to escape it. A devotee of the for the pleasure of Sri Krsna, or in other words the 2 Sri Govindaji’s Patrika

as His manifestation (asraya-vigraha), we can have the seed of bhakti, the bhakti-lata. What is the bhakti-lata? It is krsna-seva -vasana, the desire to serve Krsna. This desire will come only from gurudeva, the bona fide Vaisnava, and it does not matter whether a guru is acting as a siksa-guru or a diksa-guru. He may act as a siksa-guru in the case where a disciple is initiated by a bona fide guru but he cannot avail his siksa. The seed of the Para-bhakti is the continuous, uninterrupted flow of the activi- bhakti creeper comes from this high class of gurudeva, and that ties performed by our body, mind, words and moods (bhavas), is why sastra states: which are executed only for the benefit of Krsna. Such activiyasya deve para bhaktir ties are not disturbed or covered by jnana (mental speculation or knowledge leading to impersonal liberation) and karma (the yatha deve tatha gurau desire to enjoy the fruits of one's activities), and it is performed tasyaite kathita hy arthah under the guidance of guru-tattva. If there is a lack of the above prakasante mahatmanah symptoms in a devotee's activities but bhakti is there to a small One can know who is Krsna only from gurudeva, and if a guru degree, we can still call it bhakti but not para-bhakti. is not bona fide, Krsna cannot be known. Among the sixty-four limbs of bhakti described in Sri Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, the The Vedas tell us that para-bhakti is certainly to be applied to Krsna, but first it must be applied to guru. If one has no guru, first four are in relation to sri gurudeva. The first is guruall his devotional activities will be like zero; only worldly fruits padasraya. Padasraya means taking shelter of gurudeva's lotus will come. If one thinks, "I am already chanting, remembering, feet, and that shelter is taken through hearing. That is harinaand performing arcana (regulative worship of the deity)", but he ma initiation in the real sense. Those who take shelter of such a is not truly initiated by a bona fide guru, the fruit of his activi- guru can progress quickly in bhakti. After guru-padasraya, ties will only be worldly. Intoxicated by sense enjoyment such a there is diksa and siksa. Diksa means initiation and siksa means instruction. The disciple will begin to understand his person may think himself happy, but he will not actually be gurudeva's instructions, and then he will try to follow them. So happy. It is therefore stated in sastra: we should take initiation from that guru. But be very careful.

If a guru is bona fide and you have some doubt in his character brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva or teachings, Krsna will never accept you. guru-krsna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija (Caitanya-caritamrta Madhya 19.151) yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasado yasyaprasadan na gath kuto 'pi ["According to their karma, all living entities are wandering throughout the entire universe. Some of them are being elevat- dhyayam stuvams tasya yasas tri-sandhyam vande guroh sri caranaravindam ed to the upper planetary systems, and some are going down into the lower planetary systems. Out of many millions of wan- (Sri Gurvastakam verse 8) dering living entities, one who is very fortunate gets an opportunity to associate with a bona fide spiritual master by the grace ["Only by the mercy of sri gurudeva can one receive the mercy of Krsna. By the mercy of both Krsna and the spiritual master, of Krsna; without his grace the living entities cannot make any such a person receives the seed of the creeper of devotional ser- advancement nor be delivered. I meditate three times a day on the glories of sri gurudeva and recite stava-stuti (prayers) unto vice."] his lotus feet."

What is the meaning of guru-krsna-prasade? It generally means that one can attain the bhakti-lata-bija, the seed of para-bhakti, ajnas casraddadhanas ca by the combined mercy of guru and Krsna. In this connection, samsayatma vinasyati nayam loko 'sti na paro however, there is another meaning. Here the meaning is that na sukham samsayatmanah the bona fide guru is a manifestation of Krsna Himself. Krsna does not come to us, but the guru may come, as Srila Bhaktive- (Bhagavatd-Gita 4.40) danta Swami Maharaja came and traveled everywhere. You ["Ignorant and faithless persons who doubt the revealed scripshould realize that the mercy of Krsna first manifests as the mercy of guru. From the bona fide guru, who is Krsna Himself tures do not attain God consciousness; they fall down. For the uninterrupted flow of service to Sri Krsna, performed through all endeavors of the body, mind and speech, and through the expression of various spiritual sentiments (bhavas), which is not covered by jnana and karma, and which is devoid of all desires other than the aspiration to bring happiness to Sri Krsna is called uttama-bhakti, pure devotional service."]

3 Hari Katha Corner

doubting soul there is happiness neither in this world nor in the next."]

Suppose a guru is bona fide and he is preaching and serving his gurudeva. If anyone doubts him and thinks, “My gurudeva is an ordinary man and he does not know this and that” or “I know better than him”, even in ordinary matters, that person falls down from Krsna consciousness and no one will be able to save him. We should be very careful not to associate with such persons. Also, do not associate with anyone who associates with that type of wretched person. Try to behave as you would behave regarding the passing of stool. If we can pass stool easily, we are very happy. We feel great relief if there is a motion. If the stool remains inside the body, we will be restless. We will not be able to do bhakti or anything else. Similarly, you will surely have to give up bad association for your entire life. If you want bhakti, if you want to become Krsna conscious, then do not mix with those persons who doubt a bona fide guru who is serving his gurudeva and preaching throughout the world. Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja had many thousands of disciples, but so many of them have completely given up their Krsna consciousness due to their doubts.

You may have heard the names of Dronacarya and Ekalavya. They were both present in this world 5,000 years ago, at the time of Krsna's pastimes here. Ekalavya went to Dronacarya and told him, “I accept you as my guru.” Dronacarya replied, “I knew you would be coming to me even before you came. I know your heart and pulse; you are very much against pure bhaktas and therefore I will not teach you the art of archery.” Ekalavya then said, “I have accepted you as my guru, so I must learn something about archery from you.” Dronacarya again refused and said, “I cannot give lessons to you because if you learn archery you will become a burden to the entire world.”

yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau tasyaite kathita hy arthah prakasante mahatmanah

learned such a high class of archery. When Ekalavya saw Dronacarya he fell at his lotus feet and told him, “What I have learned, I have learned from you.” Dronacarya then told Ekalavya, “If you have really learned archery from me, then I want some guru-daksina.” Ekalavya said, “Whatever you wish, I am prepared to give. I am also prepared to give me life if you want that.” Dronacarya replied, “I want your right hand thumb.” You would not be able to do this if you were asked to do so by your gurudeva, but Ekalavya did it immediately.

Ekalavya was still able to shoot with his remaining four fingers, but what was the result? During the Mahabharata battle he wanted to fight with Krsna and kill Him. Therefore, Krsna took His sudarsana cakra and very easily cut off his head.

In this connection, the sraddha of Ekalavya is compared to a clay pot. If one places a clay pot in fire, it will crack. The sraddha of Ekalavya was like that clay. He was selfish and wanted to ruin the devotees, and because of this ulterior Still determined, Ekalavya went to the forest and made a motive, his sraddha in making and worshipping a statue of clay statue of Dronacarya. He offered pranama to that Dronacarya was really not sraddha at all. Our sraddha statue and, repeatedly taking the foot dust of that statue should not be like that of Ekalavya; it should be like that he began to practice archery with great faith. Practicing of Arjuna. Always remember this and do not associate archery while regularly performing arcana and offering with Ekalavya. Some ignorant devotees, who are not actuflowers to Dronacarya, Ekalavya became a master of arally devotees, have named their sons or disciples chery. Then, one day, Dronacarya went to the forest and “Ekalavya.” We should always be careful not to have the saw Ekalavya, and he became astonished to see how he had misconception that he was a good disciple.

4 Sri Govindaji’s Patrika

Someone may ask, “If a guru is not an uttama-adhikari, how can he help his disciples? He may speak and behave incorrectly.” The reply to such a doubt is that if a guru is in the final stage of madhyama-adhikari, if he is madhyama-uttama, if he is very sincere and continually serving his uttama-adhikari gurudeva, and if he has no worldly desires, he will very soon become an uttamaadhikari. Mahaprabhu confirmed this truth at the Rathayatra festival while speaking to the inhabitants of Kulinagram. Do not doubt this.

and engage his disciples in such a way that they will advance in bhakti. What will be the result? If one has very deep faith in that guru, Krsna Himself will surely give the fruit, and that fruit will be the transcendental. Krsna will give that disciple the fruit of the association and shelter of and uttama-adhikari guru. To a devotee initiated by a madhyama-adhikari guru and who really desires to attain the highest goal, Krsna gives the association and mercy of an uttama guru who can bless the disciple with that goal.

Try to understand this. It is not very easy to understand, but try. Do not have any doubt about this.

Krsna has said in the Bhagavad-gita (9.23): Uttama-adhikari gurus are not easily available. They are very rare in this world. Moreover, even if they are available, most people will not be able to recognize them. For example, Sri Sukadeva Gosvami was naked, and Sri Vamsidasa babaji put fish bones and other abominable things outside his bhajana-sthali. You would not be able ["Those who are devotees of other gods and who worship to know that Srila Gaura Kisora dasa babaji Maharaja is an them with faith actually worship only Me, O son of Kunti, uttama maha-bhagavata. If a madhyama-uttama guru who but they do so in a wrong way."] is under the guidance of an uttama-adhikari guru will tell you, or an uttama-adhikari playing the role of a devotee in Krsna told Arjuna that if a person worships a demigod the stage of madhyama-adhikari will tell you, then you will with strong faith in order to fulfill his worldly desires, be able to know. thinking, “Surely he will fulfill my desire.” That person is actually worshiping Krsna Himself, but in the wrong way. We should be very, very careful about this. Do not have Someone may directly touch his nose and someone else any doubt to that kind of guru. If one is madhyamamay touch it by making his hand and finger go all the way uttama, he can help so much by his direction. The adaround his head before it reaches his nose. Similarly, that vanced madhyama-adhikari will very soon come to the person's desires can be fulfilled by Krsna alone, whether stage of rati (bhava), like Bharata Maharaja and Ambarisa they are fulfilled by directly asking Him or by getting Maharaja. If a person has doubts in him, do not associate them fulfilled in a roundabout way by going to the demi- with that person. His association should be given up as gods. The devatas are not powerful; they are unable to one gives up stool after passing it. give any benediction. It is actually Krsna who gives their Editorial advisors: Pujyapada Madhava Maharaja and benedictions. ye 'py anya-devata-bhakta yajante sraddhayanvitah te 'pi mam eva kaunteya yajanty avidhi-purvakam

In a similar way, a guru may be a madhyama-adhikari in the final stage; he may not yet be siddha (a perfect, selfrealized soul) like Sri Narada Muni, Sri Sukadeva Gosvami, and others. In that case, if he is a sincere devotee, and if a disciple follows him with deep faith, who will give the fruit of the disciple's worship? A madhyamaadhikari cannot give it. If one is an uttama-adhikari like Narada Rsi or Sri Sukadeva Gosvami or Srila Rupa Gosvami, he can give it at once, but a madhyama-adhikari cannot. The madhyama-adhikari guru will tell hari-katha

Sripad Brajanatha dasa Transcriber: Mana-mohana dasa / Typist: Vasanti dasi Editor: Syamarani dasi Translations of verses provided above are from the works of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.

The full version of this hari-katha article, including explanatory endnotes, is available at http://www.purebhakti.com/teachers/ bhakti-discourses-mainmenu-61/22-discourses-2003/288-sriguru-heavier-than-god.html.

5 Hari Katha Corner

Sri Krishna Caitanya

By Mahabuddhi Dasa “Obeisance to the most Magnanimous, the Giver of the Love of Krishna, the Own Self of Krishna, the Lord bearing the Name Krishna-Caitanya and possessed of the Form of golden hue! I submit myself to Sri Krishna-Caitanya, that merciful Person of wonderful deeds Who by the nectar of the treasure of His Own Love intoxicated the world, delirious with ignorance, by freeing it from the malady of nescience.”

~ Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada The Hare Krishna -movement is also known as the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. The followers of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, especially those who are from a place called Gauda, Bengal, are called Gaudiya. The Sri Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya Vaishnava Sampradaya is an authentic branch of this ancient school of Vaishnava thought. The Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition assumed its present shape after the divine appearance of Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He appeared in this world during a solar eclipse in February 1486. He was born as the son of Jagannatha Mishra and Sacimata in Sridhama Mayapur, in the town of Navadvipa, West Bengal.

During His life He manifested all the signs of a perfect devotee of Krishna, and through His example He instructed the whole world in the science of love of Krishna. Sriman Mahaprabhu is none other than Krishna Himself, who appeared to understand the depth of the love of Sri Radha, His eternal beloved, and to distribute the sweet mellows of love of God. Vedic texts state that Lord Chaitanya is the Supreme Person, Krishna, appearing as His own worshiper. He is the combined form of Krishna and Krishna's most dear devotee, Srimati Radharani. He came to experience the love She feels for Him, and to show by example how to fully surrender to Krishna.

Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates

“Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu should therefore not be considered one of us. He is Krishna Himself, the supreme living entity, and as such He never comes under the cloud of maya. Krishna, His expansions and even His higher devotees never fall into the clutches of illusion. Lord Chaitanya came to earth simply to preach Krishna-bhakti, love of Krishna. In other words, He is Lord Krishna Himself teaching the living entities the proper way to approach Krishna. He is like a teacher who, seeing a student doing poorly, takes up a pencil and writes, saying, “Do it like this: A, B, C.” From this one should not foolishly think that the teacher is learning his ABC’s. Similarly, although Lord Chaitanya appears in the guise of a devotee, we should not foolishly think He is an ordinary human being; we should always remember that Lord Chaitanya is Krishna (God) Himself teaching us how to become Krishna conscious, and we must study Him in that light.” (Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Sri Chaitanya Caritamrta, Adi Lila, Introduction)

He exhibited symptoms of love of God to the highest degree, and Quotations above are from the works of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhakemphasized chanting the holy names of Krishna as the best tivedanta Swami Prabhupada, published by the Bhaktivedanta Book means to attain love of God. Trust.

6 Sri Govindaji’s Patrika

Vaisnava Calendar

DECEMBER Sun

Mon

Tues

Wed

Thurs

Fri

Sat

1

2

3

December 10 11 22 24 25

Moksada Ekadasi Dvadasi, Break Fast 07:07 - 10:32* Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Goswami Maharaj ~ Disappearance Saphala Ekadasi Dvadasi, Break Fast 07:14 - 10:39*

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

15

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

JANUARY

January 8 9 23 24 27

Putrada Ekadasi Dvadasi, Break Fast 07:18 - 10:45* Sat-tila Ekadasi Dvadasi, Break Fast 07:15 - 10:47* Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaj ~ Appearance

February 3 4 6 7 8 9 22 23

Sri Advaita Acarya ~ Appearance; Fast till noon then Ekadasi preparations only Break Fast 07:09 - 10:47* Bhaimi Ekadasi Dvadasi, Break Fast 07:45 - 10:46* Sri Nityananda Trayodosi; Fast till noon then Ekadasi preparations only Break Fast 07:05 - 10:46* Vijaya Ekadasi Dvadasi, Break Fast 06:53 - 09:51* *Daylight Savings Time not considered

Ekadasi Friendly  All fruits (fresh and dried),

all nuts and all oils made from nuts  Potatoes, pumpkin, cucumber, radish, squash, lemon, avocado, olives, coconut, buckwheat, all sugars  All pure milk products  Spices: black pepper, fresh ginger, pure salt and fresh turmeric, all taken from a new and clean package

Sun

Mon

Tues

Wed

Thurs

Fri

Sat

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

FEBRUARY Sun

Mon

Tues

Wed

Thurs

Fri

Sat

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

Restrictions for Ekadasi  Tomatoes, eggplants, cauliflower, broccoli, bell peppers, beets, bitter melon (karela), loki, parmal, toroi, kunli,

drumsticks, bindi (ladies' fingers) and banana flowers  Peas, chickpeas and all types of beans, including products made from beans (e.g., papadams, tofu, tempeh)  All leafy vegetables (e.g., spinach, salads, cabbages) and leafy herbs like parsley, coriander leaves, celery and

curry leaves  Grains (e.g., millet, barley, farina, pasta, rice, corn) and all types of flour made from grains and beans (e.g., rice

flour, chickpea flour, urad dahl flour)  Starches from corn or grains, and products made from or mixed with these starches like baking soda, baking

powder, certain soft drinks with corn syrup, custard, certain yogurts and puddings, certain varieties of cream and cottage cheese, certain sweets and candies, and tapioca balls  Oils made from grains (e.g., corn oil, mustard oil, sesame oil) and products fried in these oils (e.g., fried nuts, potato chips and other fried snack foods)  Honey, and sweets made with starches  Spices: hing (asafetida), sesame seeds, cumin, fenugreek, mustard, tamarind, fennel, cardamom and nutmeg

7 Vaisnava Calendar

Daily Ara Schedule Mangala Arati

05:30 am

Srngara Arati

08:00 am

Bhoga Arati

12:30 pm

Utthapan Arati

05:00 pm

Sandhya Arati

07:00 pm

Kirtan & Hari Katha

07:30 pm

Bull

Sun Evening Hin 5:00-6 Bhakti G 6:00-7 Sri Govindaji Vedic School, 09/26/16

etin

nday g Classes ndi :00 pm Gurukula :00 pm

Temple Events & Happenings

By Geetika Sharma Pictures Courtesy of Visnujan Das Ratha Yatra

taking Sri Krsna from Dvaraka to Vrndavana on the chariot of their mind. This has a very sweet and deep philosophical implication SGGM participated in the 9th annual Houston Ratha Yatra, orga- which can be fully appreciated following the rupanugas. See the "The Origin of Ratha Yatra" book by Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayanized by the Orissa Culture Center on July 9, 2016 at India House. People from Houston and neighboring cities came togeth- na Gosvami Maharaja. er in a large number to celebrate the occasion.

Did you know that the English word juggernaut is derived from the The literal meaning of Ratha Yatra is the journey/tour of Ratha as Sanskrit word Jagannatha? it is derived from two Sanskrit words Ratha meaning chariot and Yatra meaning tour/journey. The festival commemorates the annual journey of Lord Jagannatha, Lord Balabhadra, and their sister Devi Subhadra to their aunt’s temple, the Gundicha temple, which is 2km from their temple.

Ratha Yatra is a centuries old tradition, dating back to the age of the Puranas, with origins at Puri a coastal city in the Indian state of Orissa. It is stated in the Shri Narada Purana “Rathe ca vamanam drstva punarjanma na vidyate" meaning that “Simply by seeing the Lord on the chariot one makes advancement for stopping the repetition of birth and death” As part of the cultural program, BV Siddhanti Maharaj addressed the audience on the importance of celebrating the Ratha Yatra.

SGGM devotees were blessed with the opportunity of carrying Shri Jagannatha to his elaborately decorated Ratha resembling a temple structure. The most exciting part of the festival was pulling the Ratha on the street outside India House by devotees. BV Siddhanti Maharaj, from atop the Ratha, led the accompanying procession in singing and chanting.

The Kirtan group from SGGM accompanied the Ratha with Indubhushan, Damodar and Nandu playing the mrdanga and Arjun playing the kartals. Shaunak prabhu sat on the Ratha with his resplendently decorated Sri Gaur-Nitai. Vijay prabhu and Dayanidhi prabhu represented SGGM in the maha aarti performed by a group of priests from various Hindu temples of Houston. The festival ended on a note of happiness with the distribution of mahaprasad to all present.

The Deity Cart at the Houston Ratha Yatra Fes val

Jhoolan Yatra Jhoolan Yatra (Swing festival) was celebrated at the temple on August 14. The festival, which celebrates Radha Krishna’s pastime of swinging on a golden swing, is celebrated in the month of Shravan (July-August) beginning on Pavitra Ekadashi and generally observed until Balaram Purnima (a period of 5 days).

During this time the monsoon rains have arrived in India and the atmosphere is pleasant. The greenery, which had dried out in the intense heat of summer, comes to life again. The atmosphere is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu told us to consider the pulling of chariot of fragrant with the scent of blossoming flowers like juhi, champa, Lord Jagannatha as gopis and especially Srimati Radharani are and chameli. Birds sing and peacocks dance displaying their

10 Sri Govindaji’s Patrika

O Bharata! Whenever there is a decline of dharma and an increase in adharma, at that time I manifest My eternally perfect form in this mundane world. paritranaya sadhunam vinashaya cha dushkritam dharma samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge To protect My unalloyed bhaktas, annihilate the wicked and re-establish dharma, I appear in every yuga.

(Srimad Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Sloka 7 and 8 )

Sri Sri Radha‐Govindaji Ensconced in Their Gorgeous Flower Grove During Jhoolan Yatra magnificent feathers. Srimati Radhika visits her father’s home in Barsana and engages in swinging pastimes with Sri Krishna.

At the temple, a beautiful flower bedecked swing was placed inside a large kunja (grove) made with hundreds of colorful flowers.

Radhapriya didi and Vijay prabhu put in many hours of tireless efforts to build this kunja and decorate the swing.

Thus, from yuga to yuga, whenever wickedness prevails Krishna manifests himself to destroy evil, protect the good and establish dharma.

The temple hall wore a festive look with colorful cloth lanterns, balloons and streamers hanging from the ceiling. A beautiful path of decorative columns and floral vines led to the altar. The deities looked resplendent in their Janamastami shringar. In the evening devotees, with great devotion and enthusiasm, started streaming

The festivities started in the evening with bhajans and kirtans.

Conch shells were blown and chamara and peacock feather were waved as the vijay vigrahas of Sri Radha Govindaji were brought from the altar to the swing. Upon seating the vigrahas on the swing bhog was offered followed by aarti. After the aarti devotees formed a queue to swing Sri Radha Govindaji while singing Jhoolan songs such as “Radhe jhoolan padharo jhuke aaye badara”.

The festival continued over the next 3 days with devotees visiting the temple at various hours to swing the deities. The final day of Jhoolan was August 17 which was also the day of Balarama Purnima, the appearance day of Lord Balarama, the elder brother of Lord Krishna.

Janamastami Janamastami, the grandest festival of the year, was celebrated with great fervor on September 25. Janamastami means birth (janam) on the eighth day (astami) after the full moon. It is celebrated to mark the birth of Sri Krishna five thousand years ago.

The purpose of his birth is described in the Bhagavad Gita in the following slokas: yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata abhyutthanam adharmasya tadatmanam srijamy aham

Sri Sri Radha‐Govindaji Resplendent in Their Mul ‐Colored New Ou it for Janmastami in. The program started on an auspicious note with Mangalacharan and Guru Vandana followed by Katha on the importance of Janamastami and a beautiful evening aarti. An elaborate bhog was offered to the deities.

Students from SGGM’s Vedic School had prepared a Govardhan Leela Drama written and directed by Rishika Dewan and Deepali

11 Meet Our Temple Pujaris

immediately opened her eyes for the very first time and looked at Krishna.

Sri Radharani is the divine counterpart of Sri Krishna and embodies the spiritual energy of Krishna. She is the energy and Sri Krishna is the source of the energy. Their relationship is inseparable like that of the sun and sunlight. Wherever there is sun sunlight is there and vice versa. Her name is mentioned explicitly once in the Srimad Bhagavatam indirectly with the word 'anayaradhitah' expressing that she is “the one who worships Krishna best”. It is only by obtaining the mercy of Srimati Radharani that one can achieve Krishna’s mercy.

The katha was followed by aarti, and gifts (called chaav) presented by devotees to Sri Radharani were kept on the beautifully decorated altar. A lavish bhoga including many varieties of cakes, sweets was prepared in honor of the occasion.

Sri Krishna, the All‐A rac ve One Agrawal. The drama included music, dance, and action to showcase the story of villagers taking shelter beneath the Govardhan hill The audience applauded enthusiastically when Keshav as Sri Krishna lifted the creatively designed Govardhan hill and all the kids stood underneath it.

The drama was followed by the much awaited performance by the Kirtaniyas band who had come all the way from California. Their high energy enthusiastic singing and playing of the mrdanga, kartal and harmonium charged the atmosphere with vivacity. At midnight the Maha Aarti started.The hall resonated with the ecstatic singing and dancing of devotees to celebrate the birth of their cherished Krishna. Devotees who had fasted for the occasion broke their fast by partaking the prasad.

Radhastami On September 9th Radhastami, the appearance day of Srimati Radharani, was celebrated at the temple. Dayanidhi Prabhu narrated the katha (simultaneously translated by Vishnu prabhu in English) behind Srimati Radharani’s appearance. Once Vrishabhanu Maharaja was taking his morning bath in the Yamuna river when he saw a beautiful baby lying within the petals of a golden lotus flower float by. He took the baby home and his Queen Kirtida devi was overcome with joy upon seeing the baby. They noticed that the baby’s eyes did not open and felt distraught.

Soon Yashoda devi along with baby Krishna came to visit from Gokul. Yashoda devi could not take her eyes from the baby resting in Kirtida’s arms and drew closer with the baby Krishna in her arms. As soon as Krishna came face to face with the baby she

Sri Sri Radha‐Govindaji Dressed in Their Beau ful Ou it for Radhastami

Interested in attending temple events and festivals? You are most welcome! To make sure you know about all the upcoming events, please sign up for our email list, visit our website, or visit our Facebook page. See you at SGGM very soon!

12 Sri Govindaji’s Patrika

Krishna Puzzle Can You Help the Bu er Thief?

Courtesy of Sita Dasi

13 Krishna Puzzle

Jaiva Dharma

Building a Spiritual Library In the great Vedic classic Srimad Bhagavad-Gita, the Supreme Lord Sri Krsishna has given very valuable and fundamental instructions to His eternal associate and dear friend Arjuna for the benefit of all human beings, to help them cross the ocean of material existence and attain His lotus feet.

Excerpt: Chapter 18, Verse 64 sarva-guhyatamam bhuyah srnu me paramam vacah isto ’si me drdham iti tato vaksyami te hitam sarva-guhyatamam – the most confidential of all instructions; bhuyah – again; srnu – hear; me – My; paramam – supreme; vacah– instruction; istah – very dear; asi – you are; me – to Me; drdham – extremely; iti – knowing; tatah – therefore; vaksyami – I shall speak; te – for your; hitam – welfare.

Again hear My supreme instruction, the most confidential of all knowledge. You are extremely dear to Me, and therefore, I am speaking this for your benefit.

To purchase Srimad Bhagavad-Gita and other books, please visit the SGGM Gift Shop today!

Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha Vedic Educational and Cultural Center 16628 Kieth Harrow Blvd.

Houston, TX 77084

(832) 464-4686 ~ contact@sggm.org ~ www.sggm.org ~ www.facebook.com/sggm.houston