BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//ISKCON Punjabi Bagh, - ECPv5.10.1//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:ISKCON Punjabi Bagh,
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for ISKCON Punjabi Bagh,
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:UTC
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:UTC
DTSTART:20240101T000000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241226
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241227
DTSTAMP:20260418T102232
CREATED:20241118T063724Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250103T124856Z
UID:39105-1735171200-1735257599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Saphala Ekadasi 26th Dec 2024
DESCRIPTION:Saphala Ekadasi takes place during the waning moon of the Pausa month – December/January. The glories of this Ekadasi are insurmountably great. Actually there is no way to extol the divine results of observing Ekadasi; but still they are given in the Brahmananda Purana. Sri Krsna said to Arjuna: “Oh best of the Bharata lineage\, just as Lord Sesa is best among snakes\, Garuda is best among birds\, the horse yajna is best among sacrifices\, the Ganges is best among the rivers\, Sri Visnu is best among the demigods and the brahmanas are best among human beings; so\, among all vows of austerity the day of Ekadasi is best. \nThere was once a famous king named Bahuldan who lived in the city of Hirosena. He had four sons and a very beautiful wife. Among the Kings sons\, the eldest and most valiant was named Nalaka. This Prince Nalaka was extremely sinful. He would often blaspheme the Vaishnavas\, the brahmanas\, the demigods and he was attached to gambling. He would also regularly visit the houses of prostitutes. Consequently his father King Bahuldan exiled him to a far away land. \nBeing exiled far from the kingdom Nalaka lived in a vast jungle. He would eat wild berries and truffles\, roots and shoots\, raw meats and mushrooms to survive. At night he would sometimes return to his fathers kingdom and steal from the citizens houses. Despite his stealing the citizens were unable to stop him due to his being the son of the King. \nIn the forest where Nalaka lived there was a ginormous banyan tree. This tree was as worshipable as the demigods themselves. It’s branches reached down into the ground and reappeared here\, there and everywhere; forming an unimaginably mighty forest. For quite some time Nalaka lived beneath this timorous tree. \nBy accidence the day of Saphala Ekadasi fell while Nalaka was staying beneath this Banyan tree and he didn’t even realise. However due to exhaustion and fatigue from not eating properly Nalaka remained unconscious for many hours. He rose after noon on Ekadasi and because he was so weak did not kill any animals that day. He found some fruits and in a helpless pitiable condition decided to offer them to Sri Visnu – The Supreme Personality of Godhead. By the time the sun set on that day\, all he had managed to do was to offer one palmful of berries\, one branch of amalaki and one single qualscion fruit. Through the night he remained awake due to fear of wolves and his weak condition where he would be unable to defend himself. \nBy remaining awake fasting Prince Nalaka unwittingly observed Saphala Ekadasi. Lord Madhusudana accepted his austerities even though he didn’t realise it was Ekadasi. As a result of this unbeknown fast Nalaka’s father Bahuldan took pity on his wretched son and had him collected from the forest\, washed and bathed and reinstated in his rightful position as prince of the Hirosena province. Soon his father bequeathed the land unto Nalaka and he ruled as a just King. He acquired a beautiful wife and had many sons. \nBy observing Saphala Ekadasi one will certainly receive insurmountable benefits. Fame and liberation stand with folded palms before a person who fasts on this day. Those who choose to fast on this Ekadasi are indubitably great souls and will receive the result of performing an Asvamedha sacrifice.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/saphala-ekadasi-26th-dec-2024/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Ekadashi.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241226
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241227
DTSTAMP:20260418T102232
CREATED:20241213T125551Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250103T124902Z
UID:39569-1735171200-1735257599@www.iskconpunjabibagh.com
SUMMARY:Srila Devananda Pandit Disappearance Day 26th Dec2024
DESCRIPTION:Sri Devananda Pandit used to live at Kuliya. He was a famous reciter of the Srimad Bhagavatam and many people used to study the Bhagavatam under his guidance. \n   One afternoon\, Shrivasa Pandita came to hear Devananda Pandit’s recitation of the Bhagavatam. Hundreds of students were seated around the Pandit and some were following his reading in their own personal copies of the manuscript. \n   Shrivasa Pandita was a very advanced Devotee and thus\, when the sweet nectar of the Bhagavatam entered his ears\, his heart became softened in love of God. He started to cry and roll on the ground\, his body having become agitated by the waves of ecstatic love. \n   When the students of Devananda saw this\, they thought\, “This fellow must be crazy. He is disturbing our hearing of the recitation. Get him out of here.” Thus they picked him up and carried him outside. Though Devananda saw all this taking place\, he didn’t prevent those foolish students of his from committing this offense. As the guru was ignorant\, so his students were sinful.  \n Shrivasa said nothing\, but simply went to his house feeling very sad. All of this occured before the appearance of Sri Gaurasundara. \n   During Mahaprabhu’s exhibition of His divine position as the Supreme Personality of Godhead for twenty-one hours\, He asked Shrivasa if he remembered this incident. \n   One day\, when Mahaprabhu was taking a stroll around Nadiyanagara\, He came to Maheshvara Visharada Pandit’s house. At that time Devananda resided there. Mahaprabhu heard him reciting the Srimad Bhagavatam from outside and became very angry. \n   “What purport will that rascal explain? Not in any of his births has he understood the meaning of even one verse of the Srimad Bhagavatam. The Bhagavatam is the avatara of Sri Krishna in book form. Devotion is the only subject it teaches. The four Vedas are like yoghurt and the Bhagavatam is like butter. Srila Sukadeva Goswami did the churning and Maharaja Parikshit ate that butter. Sukadeva Goswami is very dear to Me. He knows very well that the Srimad Bhagavatam is meant to describe the truth about Me according to My own liking. Whoever sees any difference between Me\, My own Devotees and the Srimad Bhagavatam simply brings destruction upon himself.” [C.B. Mad 21.13]\n   Mahaprabhu made these statements in a voice loud enough for Devananda to hear. Then He turned to go back to His home. The Devotees following Him begged for more mercy. He continued\, “All the scriptures state that the Srimad Bhagavatam enunciates the highest realization. Without having understood any of this\, simply for the sake of name and fame as a religionist and a scholar\, he poses himself as a teacher of this great book. But he doesn’t know the purport. \n   “Only one who has understood that the Srimad Bhagavatam is verily the inconceivable intelligence of the Supreme Lord Himself knows that the only meaning of the Bhagavatam is devotion. In order to understand the book Bhagavata\, one has to serve the Devotee-Bhagavata.” \n   Devananda could hear all of these remarks from the distance\, yet he thought nothing of it. \n   After some time Gaurasundara accepted sannyasa and went to live at Nilachala. It was then that Devananda at last began to feel some remorse. “Such a great soul\, totally imbued with love of God\, but I never went even once to have His association.” \n   One day Srila Vakreshvara Pandita came to Kuliya to visit the house of one Devotee there. In the evening he held a festival of dancing and chanting the Holy Name. Devananda was present on this occasion\, and was completely stunned by Sri Vakreshvara’s effulgence and ecstatic chanting and dancing. As the night progressed more and more\, people came to listen to his kirtan until there was finally a huge crowd. Devananda took a cane and began to control the crowd so that Vakreshvara’s dancing wouldn’t be disturbed. \n   When Vakreshvara fainted in ecstatic love\, Devananda carefully put his head on his lap and brushed the dust from his body with his own upper cloth. Then he smeared that dust on his own body. That day his service to the Devotees had its auspicious beginning. \n   After some days\, Mahaprabhu returned to Bengal to see his mother and the holy Ganges. He also came to Kuliya. At that time thousands upon thousands of people came to have darshana of His lotus feet. All of those who had previously committed offenses against Nimai Pandita by thinking Him to be an ordinary human being now came to seek His forgiveness; Mahaprabhu forgave each and everyone of them. Among those present was Devananda\, who fell down on the ground to offer his obeisances to Mahaprabhu. From that moment he became one of the Lord’s foremost Devotees. \n   Still\, he felt a little hesitant\, and thus upon getting up\, he stood to one side. Mahaprabhu addressed him\, “Because you have served My dear Devotee Vakreshvara\, I am now pleased with you. By that service you have now been able to approach Me. Within Vakreshvara’s person is Sri Krishna’s complete potency. Whoever serves him must receive Krishna’s mercy.” \n   Devananda\, in a faltering voice replied\, “You are the Supreme controller. Simply for the sake of reclaiming fallen souls You have advented Yourself here at Nadiya. I am a sinful wretch and have never served Your lotus feet and thus was cheated of Your causeless mercy for so many years. Oh my Lord\, Who resides with in the heart of all living entities\, You are Supremely merciful.  \nOnly because You have shown Yourself to me have I been able to see You. O most compassionate One\, please instruct me. Let me know the actual purport of the Srimad Bhagavatam.” \n   Mahaprabhu replied\, “Now hear Me\, O brahmana\, and know that the only way to explain the verses of the Bhagavatam is in terms of bhakti. In the beginning\, middle and end of the Srimad Bhagavatam there is only one teaching: devotion to Vishnu\, which is eternally perfect and which is never destroyed or diminished.” \n   “As Krishna’s various incarnations such as Matsya and Kurma appear and disappear in this world by Their sweet will\, in the same way\, the Srimad Bhagavatam is not made or composed by any person. It makes its appearance and disappearance by its own sweet will. Due to the appearance of devotion\, the Bhagavatam blossomed forth from Vyasadeva’s mouth\, by the mercy of Sri Krishna.  \nDevananda Pandit\n“As Krishna’s various incarnations such as Matsya and Kurma appear and disappear in this world by Their sweet will\, in the same way\, the Srimad Bhagavatam is not made or composed by any person. It makes its appearance and disappearance by its own sweet will. Due to the appearance of devotion\, the Bhagavatam blossomed forth from Vyasadeva’s mouth\, by the mercy of Sri Krishna”. (In the image: The Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna with flute and Srila Vyasadev). \n   “As the truths regarding the Supreme Authority are inconceivable\, so are the truths of Srimad Bhagavatam. Many may pretend to know its meaning but they have no real grasp of the evidence the Bhagavatam presents. But whoever who simply remembers the Srimad Bhagavatam while admitting himself to be ignorant can understand the real meaning. \n   “The Bhagavata\, which is saturated with loving devotion for Krishna\, is an expansion of Krishna Himself and contains descriptions of His most confidential pastimes.” [C.B. Ant. 3.505-516]\n   “Now you should beg forgiveness by catching hold of Srivasa Pandit’s feet. The book Bhagavata and the devotee Bhagavata are not different. If the devotee Bhagavata is merciful to us\, then the book Bhagavata manifests its true meaning.” \n   Then Devananda fell at Shrivasa Pandita’s feet and begged forgiveness. Shrivasa embraced him and his offense retreated far away. All the Devotees shouted in ecstasy\, “Hari bol! Hari bol!” \n   His disappearance is on the 11th day of the dark fortnight in the month of Pausa. \nDevananda Gaudiya Math : \nDevananda Pandit\nDevananda Gaudiya Math\, Sri Navadwip Dham. \n   In the area where this Temple is located is where Sri Chaitanya forgave Devananda Pandita for his offenses. Whoever comes here becomes free of all offenses. The Radha-Krishna Deities on the altar are named Radha-Vinod Bihari. There is a Varaha Deity on the left called Kola Varahadeva. In Satya-yuga\, Lord Varaha appeared before one of His Devotees who lived in Navadwipa\, named Vasudeva. He told him how He would advent Himself in Kali-yuga as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Lord Chaitanya also showed His Varaha form in this area.\n   This Math was established by Bhakti Prajnan Keshava Goswami Maharaja. His samadhi mandir is here. He appeared on January 1\, 1898\, within Gaura Mandala\, in the district of Barisal in Bengal\, in the village of Banari Para. Before going to university he would read Bhagavad-gita\, Chaitanya Charitamrita and Srimad Bhagavatam. In 1915 he took first initiation from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. In 1919 on Gaura Purnima he took Vaishnava initiation. He preached in Puri\, Allahabad\, Assam\, Mathura and many other places. He took sannyasa from Srila Sridhar Maharaja in 1941 in Katwa. Soon after this he established this Temple. He gave sannyasa to A C Bhaktivedanta Srila Prabhupada. \nHow To Get There?\nTo get here you first go to the town of Navadwipa. You then take a rickshaw. From the boat ghata it takes about 15 minutes. The sign over the gate says Sri Devananda Gaudiya Math. There are statues of two elephants and lions fighting on the gate and devotees with folded hands.
URL:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/event/srila-devananda-pandit-disappearance-day-26th-dec2024/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.iskconpunjabibagh.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Sri-Devananda-Pandita.jpg
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR